Tracy Chen wins Millennium Scholarship

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Local student Tracy Chen has given a great deal to her school and community. Thanks to her hard work, the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation is giving something to her.

Chen, a Regent Park resident and Central Technical School student, has received a $4,000 scholarship, which will go toward her upcoming journalism education at Ryerson University.

The recent high school graduate has worked as editor of Central Tech's creative publication The Forge and founded a poetry club for her fellow students. In both cases, she said the payoff far outweighed some of the challenges she faced along the way.

"It was a very strenuous process getting writers but when we released (The Forge), it was very rewarding," she said.

She also donated her time to the Regent Park publication Catch da Flava, which helped young people in her community make their voices heard.

"It's a publication where youth can contribute articles, and there are always some great stories," she said. "Everyone has their own story to tell."

Chen's volunteer work stretches well beyond the written word, however. She has volunteered at the Anne Johnston Health Station, where she worked with seniors and those with disabilities on the health centre's youth advisory board. She also worked with Planned Parenthood Toronto, serving as a resource for her fellow youth.

"A lot of youth have questions about sexual health and I just answer those questions over the phone, e-mail or MSN (online chat)," she said. "The training was difficult for that - it took 10 weeks - but there's a lot of information that people need to know."

Chen has also worked with Doctors Without Borders, organizing newspaper clippings that highlighted some of the hardships being faced by people around the world.

She has also taken a strong interest in those in need closer to home, helping Central Tech take part in the Rogers Phones-For-Food program, in which students donated used cellphones to raise money for the Daily Bread Food Bank.

"Our school collected 103 cellphones, which allowed us to raise $1,250," she said.

Though she has obviously made a difference both at home and abroad, Chen was taken aback when told she was one of the winners of a Canada Millennium Scholarship.

"I was really surprised to win because it wasn't until after I handed in my entry that I really did a lot of (volunteering)," she said.

Chen is currently working as a Heritage Toronto intern and is looking forward to tackling university in the fall, working toward a career in the media.

"I'm really interested in international news right now and there's so much going on that people should know about," she said.

Ontario Lt.-Gov. David Onley paid tribute to Chen and her fellow scholarship recipients at a special reception at the Liberty Grand recently.