Recent History – 1999
June 15, 1999, By Daily News Staff
Hard work and a steady attitude earned a South Peace Secondary student top honours at the recent graduation ceremonies held June 5.
Cobus Kirtzinger, 17, was the recipient of the Dawson Creek Kiwanis Club Scholarship for the highest academic average. The $3,000 award, which has been given out to the top academic graduating student for about 15 years, was presented by Arlan Dokken, president of the club.
“It’s a real pleasure to give an award like that,” he says. “He’s a pretty smart student to be getting the award.”
“Pretty smart” might be the term. Kirtzinger kept up a 92 per cent average in the last year, to win the scholarship.
“I had to do my work,” he says, as he carried a full academic load including all the sciences, English, Spanish, drafting, math and calculus.
Originally from Cape Town, South Africa, Kirtzinger is planning to return there in the fall to take engineering at the University of Stellenbosch.
After that he says, the future will tell. “I want to travel, maybe go live in Australia. It’s nice and sunny down there,” he laughs.
His summer plans include travel as well, and a month of intensive karate training.
The Kiwanis Club also honoured graduating students Cherissa Fontaine and Rochelle Lowe with bursaries of $500 each.
Fontaine is planning to attend Simon Fraser University to take her elementary teacher training and Lowe plans to attend Grande Prairie Regional College to take her bachelor of science.