Avi Pandya

Age: 17
School: Grade 12 student at Westwood Community High School for School Year 2020/2021
Future Goal: To become a business owner and make meaningful memories

Written by Manorama Joshi, MACOY

Avi Pandya is a student with burning enthusiasm, and classmates will never see him in one place. His active mind keeps him driven to be a part of many things in the community and school, while always staying true to his goals.

He has been an active athlete playing for Westwood Community High School’s varsity basketball and badminton teams. But he’s not just athletic; Avi is also active in a few extracurricular clubs at the school that allows him to stay passionate and goal-driven. The Green Initiative has given him a place to live his ambition.

“I have always been passionate about the environment and how we treat it,” he said.

SADD (Students Against Drunk Driving) lets him support important awareness programs, and Robotics allows him to explore a field of expertise. He was also the Vice President of the Student Council at Westwood for the 2019/2020 school year.

In the community, he is a helping hand by taking part in leadership roles in the Mayor’s Advisory Council on Youth (MACOY). He also volunteers for the Northern Lights Health Foundation’s Festival of Trees and for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Wood Buffalo, as well as mentors and manages the Operations Director position in the non-profit, Youthcomputing.

He continuously finds time between his extracurriculars and schoolwork to volunteer for any cause within the region, no matter what, while having a knack for building relationships with people from all walks of life.

Not only is he immersed in the Wood Buffalo region, but he has a sharp mind and positive outlook, even though the COVID-19 pandemic. He took the time at home to put a focus on things he wanted to mark off his to-do list.

“I saw it as an opportunity to improve on my mental and physical health,” he said. “I took the time that I had and put it towards learning things that I had been putting off for many years due to school and work.”

Avi also has the gift of good work ethic and organizational skills, which allowed him to excel, not only in the community but also in school. And by maintaining high academic excellence, he also enrolled in the AP (Advanced Placement) programs at the school.

“If there were something that I wanted to do or had set my eyes on, I would stop at nothing to achieve it,” he said. “My curiosity, combined with my determination to achieve my goals, along with my love of learning, pushes me to try new things.”

Avi envisions himself starting his own business in the future and plans to continue stepping outside of his comfort zone and make as many meaningful memories as he can.

“If there was something that I wanted to do or had set my eyes on I would stop at nothing to achieve it.”

— Avi Pandya

About the author

YMM Parent Team

YMM Parent Team is a collaboration of authors and contributors from in and around Fort McMurray.