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 Chantal Gagné
Why did you choose Trent? Trent was appealing to me for several reasons. Coming from a small northern rural community, I was looking to expand my horizons and have an experience outside of Northern Ontario, while still being a part of a smaller community. Because of Trent’s small size and the good things I heard about Peterborough, I decided it would be a good place to do my undergrad. Another reason was because I heard that the nursing program was excellent and also because there was a cross country running team that I could be a part of. Trent also offered me excellent monetary incentives, which has helped and supported me enormously throughout my undergraduate degree. How would you describe yourself? How would others describe you? What are your passions in life? I am a very active, outgoing individual. I am passionate about life in general and strongly believe in the concept of holistic health/well-being, therefore taking care of and addressing our physical, emotional, spiritual and intellectual self. These beliefs are rooted in my everyday life, as well as in my responsibilities as a nurse. Two of my greatest passions are learning and helping others, which tie in nicely with the choice of career that I’ve made and the lifestyle that I pursue. I am also passionate about pursuing a very active, healthy lifestyle and enjoying the beauty of nature and the outdoors. My peers, friends and family members would describe me as driven, outgoing and energetic/active. Have you been involved in any clubs, groups, and/or sports at Trent? If so, which ones? I was fortunate to be a part of many different communities at Trent and in Peterborough throughout my undergraduate degree. A large portion of my time was spent running for the varsity cross country team and serving as women’s captain in my final two years. I also ran and competed in track and field at the interuniversity level, as well as for the Peterborough Legion Track and Field Club. I also played intramural basketball and squash, which were both great experiences. I always tried to make time to volunteer during my degree and volunteered for various places and programs on campus, like Walkhome, Peer Mentoring and note taking, among various other areas in Peterborough. During my first couple years I also tutored and taught French to home schooled students and university students. In my final year I had the opportunity to complete my final nursing placement in Whitehorse, Yukon. I spent my final semester there and will be returning to work there and will begin my nursing career at the Whitehorse General Hospital. What has your time at Trent meant to you? What are some of your favourite memories? What will you take with you from Trent? My time at Trent has been incredible. I’ve had great experiences and have made some wonderful friends. It is difficult to sum up into words what four of the most important years of an individual’s life means. The time I spent at Trent means a lot to me because it has helped shape who I am and facilitated a lot of growth in many positive ways. Being at Trent opened my eyes to a lot of different interests that I may never have explored otherwise. I’d have to say that a few of my favourite memories include travelling for running meets with the cross country and track team and rushing from class or clinical to practice each day, where we always had good laughs and had the opportunity to meet and grow with other people over several years. Another great memory, which I share with fellow nursing peers, are the sleepless nights, the seemingly endless of hours of clinical in addition to a full course load and most certainly, the satisfaction of looking at one another after our final class in April and knowing that we were finally nurses. Because of my experiences over the last 4 years I will take many things away from Trent, like great friends, valuable knowledge, the importance of appreciating the people around you and what they have to offer and the fact that one should never underestimate how many things you can cram into 24 hours and that every little bit counts. What are your future plans and aspirations? What do you hope to accomplish? Like many, I aspire to and want to make a difference in the world. I hope to help and facilitate growth within our healthcare system and society, by heightening the focus of the importance of social determinants, health promotion and disease prevention. I also want to make a difference in northern rural communities by facilitating equitable access to necessary healthcare and basic needs of life. I plan on moving into graduate studies within the next year or two, after getting a bit of great nursing experience under my belt. In five years I see myself on some sort of adventure learning new things, either in an educational setting or a clinical setting of some sort. Within the next 10 years, I’d like to be completing my M.D. or Ph.D and eventually move into teaching in an academic setting. I feel that educating people and advocating for growth and change will be how I most make a difference. Right now, I am really looking forward to working in and living in the Yukon and adventuring around in Canada’s Great White North for a while. I am also looking forward to being a nurse and exploring many of the options and opportunities that are inherent in this career and the difference that I can make. Is there anything else you would like to add? I appreciate the opportunity to share my experiences with others and the recognition as one of Trent’s successful graduating students. “We are like trees. Our roots are put down very deep. And we take things from the four directions and we take them into our lives. And if you pull us up by the roots, we are lost. We have to go back and find those roots, find those beginnings that are strong, so that we can live a good life.” – Elder Betty McKenna |
Iroquois Falls, Ontario