Congratulations To Erick Yang
by Lee Hunt
Congratulations to Erick Yang on winning the 2023 World Individual Debating and Public Speaking Championships. Erick, now a Grade 11 student at Sir Winston Churchill High School (SWC), was the youngest person to ever win the Championship. He was also the very first public school student to ever do so!
Erick initially won the Canadian National Debate Championship in Winnipeg, then moved on to the World Championships in Durban, South Africa. The latter competition required debaters to prove their skills in four different areas – impromptu, prepared debate, interpretive reading, plus prepared speech. Each category was weighted equally with five to seven different judges determining each. Talk about challenging!
Erick’s SWC debate coach, Quintin Krogstad, described Erick as, “very intelligent, humble, thoughtful, and grounded”. Quintin also told me that the impromptu and debate categories seem to come “naturally to Erick, so that he could focus on the Interpretive Reading and Prepared Speech aspects.”
SWC Assistant Principal, Jayme McDonald, told me that Erick is “a great kid … I’m totally blown away by his success.”
Erick’s family members were described by Quintin Krogstad as “very supportive” and delighted with Erick’s international victory – especially Erick’s father who accompanied Erick on the trip to South Africa.
Congratulations, Erick, and all the best in your future endeavours!
Condolences
by Lee Hunt
“She was a lovely lady with a great sense of humour – a strong and independent woman.” This is how Marilynn Wagner was remembered by Steve Dietrich, Sportsplex Manager for the Brentwood Community Association.
Marilynn passed away on June 1, 2023, at the age of 79.
Back in the 1970s and 80s, Marilynn was very active in our community. She regularly worked at bingos and casinos, plus scheduled volunteers for the outdoor rink. She will be especially remembered for her work in helping to establish the Figure Skating program in Brentwood. Steve recalled that “Marilynn and her husband Emile were very active in creating costumes, backdrops, and decorations for the annual ice shows. The shows had a different theme every year.” Their children Carol and Curtis both participated in the Skating Club and in the Ice Shows.
Steve also marvelled that, even after she moved out of Brentwood, Marilynn would still occasionally stop by the Sportsplex to have coffee and “to make sure that things were still going well.”
We at The Bugle extend our condolences to Marilynn’s family. Our community continues to thrive on the solid foundation established by individuals such as Marilynn Wagner.
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