After Alex McQueen graduates from BCSS in June she is looking forward to a summer of work in the Okanagan where she can, “increase my knowledge through work experience and outline how the real world works.”
She plans to save her money for the next year and then attend Selkirk College to become an esthetician – a job that would help pay her way through college or university later.
She is keen on getting into counseling or social services, but is also considering taking training as an x-ray technician.
She plans to explore her options over the summer, perhaps getting into some actual work settings to see what they are like.
Alex is interested in either addictions or trauma counseling. “I am a calm person,” she says. “I have always had random people come up and feel they could talk to me. But along around Grade 10, I started noticing that when bad situations come up that most people start freaking out about, I just kind of stay calm – so I started thinking about different kinds of counseling that are out there.
“I like to talk. I am not shy and I am really confident in stressful situations.”
Her resumé lists two current jobs – one at McDonald’s where she does just about every job you see being done at a fast food restaurant (janitorial, serving food, cashier, stocking, etc.); and her position at Pourboys Mechanical where her list of duties includes just about everything that you don’t see because it all happens behind the scenes (janitorial, sorting paperwork, painting, etc.).
Her family moved from Calgary to Rock Creek when she was nine years old and they’ve been in Midway for the past four years.
“I like small towns way better. You get to know everybody and there is not 300 people in your grad class,” she laughs.
Alex has been an active member of BCSS Spirit Club since Grade 10 and was on student council in Grades 8 through 10.
Her volunteer activities have involved four years of service at the Rock Creek fair and five years with the youth group in Midway.
Her hobbies include hiking and writing poetry. “I have a journal that I keep, I love writing I think that is going to be a part-time thing throughout my life.”