Fichuk becoming recognized leader

Fort Frances resident Dexter Fichuk wants to make a positive change in his community and the world.
And not only is he doing that, but he’s now being recognized for his efforts.

As leader of the Fort Frances Mob(ilizers) at Fort High, a group associated with Free the Children’s “Me to We” philosophy, the 17-year-old spent many hours over the past year organizing events and fundraising to champion the cause of social change.
Due to his hard work and passion for helping others, Fichuk recently was chosen to be featured in a segment that will air on MuchMusic and CTV during its annual “We Day” television special in November.
CTV senior producer Ken Katigbak and a cameraman visited Fort Frances last week to film Fichuk and his friends as they organized a bullying awareness concert, which was held last Tuesday evening at the Townshend Theatre.
“It’s something I always wanted to plan and was going to do it a little later in the year,” noted Fichuk.
“But when I got the call that they were coming to film here, I decided to move it up,” he explained, adding that it gave him just a week to pull the concert together.
“It motivated me to get it done,” he reasoned.
The “Just Stop Bullying” concert featured performers Ryne Strachan and Spencer Pearce, who offered up their renditions of Paramore’s “We Are Broken” and Jon Foreman’s “The Cure for Pain,” as well as an original song entitled “Bite My Tongue.”
Larissa Desrosiers then sang “Use Somebody” by Kings Of Leon, and two original pieces called “A Better Day” and “I Will Listen.”
Trevor Barker followed with Switchfoot’s “Dare You to Move” and two of his own compositions, entitled “Center Stage” and “Footsteps Along the Beach.”
Each performer shared their story about bullying, as well as several other speakers, including Alanna Walsh, Curran Strachan, and Shai Loyie, who offered their experiences.
“I think it went really well,” enthused Fichuk. “I was so happy with everyone who performed and spoke—they did such a great job.
“I think everyone who was there took something from it,” he added, noting they had tried to target as many different types of bullying as they could.
The concert also was filmed as part of the segment on Fichuk.
“It was pretty exciting having cameras following me around,” he admitted, noting the cameraman took some shots of him around town, as well as at the high school.
They also interviewed him and a few of his friends.
“I’m so excited to see how it will end up,” Fichuk said of the upcoming television segment.
“A lot of people will see it.”
Not only will it be included in the “We Day” television special, Fichuk said it also will be played during the live “We Day” events across the country.
“It’s been a dream of mine to speak at ‘We Day,’” he remarked. “I’m not going to be up there on the stage, but this is pretty close.”
He hopes it inspires others.
“Anyone can plan events like the bullying awareness concert,” Fichuk said. “Anyone can make a change in their community.
“They just have to have the motivation,” he stressed.
Fichuk, along with 35 other Fort High students, attended the “We Day” event in Winnipeg last November. He indicated the school has 45 tickets for this year’s event on Oct. 30.
“It’s a really great event,” he enthused. “It really gets you pumped up and motivated.”
And Fichuk really wants to get Fort High students involved in the events he’ll be organizing this year, such as the “30-Hour Famine” and “Hallowe’en for Hunger,” because he wants to ensure these initiatives continue after he graduates.
“I’m trying to set things up so they will continue when I’m gone,” he noted.
In related news, Fichuk also was selected as this year’s student trustee on the Rainy River District School Board and took his Oath of Office at last night’s regular meeting.
While his role will be to keep the board up-to-date on what’s happening at the high schools in the district, he hopes he’ll be able to inspire students at other schools.
“I want to spread what I’ve been doing to more schools and push for positive change,” he said, noting he’ll be working closely with the student councils at Rainy River High School and Atikokan High School.
“I’m really excited for the opportunity,” he remarked.
With a new school year underway, Fichuk is looking forward to all the activities, events, and positive change he hopes to achieve.
Along with campaigns such as “Brick by Brick” and the “Vow of Silence,” he’d like to build upon last week’s bullying awareness concert and perhaps organize something for elementary school students.
“I am hoping a lot more people are going to be interested in helping with everything this year,” Fichuk said, noting because of the recent concert and filming, more people within the community are aware of his efforts.
“It’s not just about what’s going on in the high school, but in our community and around the world,” he reasoned.