Ben Davies was sorting rocks.

Earlier that day, at the gravel hauling company where Davies (Technical Communication, 2005) worked as a dispatcher, his boss had dumped a box of stones on his desk. Normally, gravel samples were sent to a lab for analysis of size, consistency and quality, ensuring the crushing equipment was callibrated. But why pay for analysis when the man on the lowest rung of the company’s ladder could do the task between calling trucks?

It was while he lined up the stones, smallest to largest by miniscule increments, that Davies knew he’d hit rock bottom.

Raised in Transcona, the 31-year-old had never pictured himself at this crossroads. After finishing high school he had chased the Canadian boy’s dream of a career in hockey, moving to B.C. to begin his climb to NHL ice. But competition was intense. When he returned to Manitoba to regroup, he found his decision to leave the province had burned some bridges in the tight knit community.  Junior hockey, like every other organization, has its politics.

That’s how he came to be sorting rocks. Was that piece of gravel slightly bigger? Was this piece crushed too powerfully?

The following Monday he arrived at work with the course books for both Winnipeg universities and Red River College. He read them in one day. Read More →

Despite a difficult upbringing and troubled past, Red River College alum Corey Rempel has managed to channel his misfortunes into a new career.

Having turned his life around following a period of criminal activity and incarceration, Rempel now serves as a youth care worker helping teens in similar situations.

“As someone who has been in the system, I know how important it is to genuinely listen to clients,” says Rempel. “If they don’t think you’re listening, you won’t get anywhere.”

Rempel was born and raised in B.C., where he grew up in an abusive, neglectful household. He says he was left with no choice but to run away at the age of 13.

“I came from a bad home,” he says. “My father was murdered before I was even born, and I really didn’t have a family.”

Eventually, Rempel found himself under the watch of social services. But even as a youth in care, he was quickly exposed to an onslaught of negative influences.

“Breaking rules, crimes, drinking, and doing drugs — I fell in with a crowd where this was normal,” he says. Read More →

Not everyone can confidently say they scored their dream job, but Shaun Leonoff, Red River College graduate and grandmother of nine, can assure you she did, and it’s all thanks to a car accident.

During the life-changing incident, Leonoff severely damaged her elbow, ending her 30-year career as an X-ray technician. Because of her injuries, Leonoff had no choice but to look for another career path; having attended RRC in the past (it’s where she earned her X-ray technician credentials), she was this time drawn to the College’s Volunteer Management program, available through the School of Continuing Education.

“I lived in St. Anne and I had been a volunteer of all levels, from (being) the teachers’ field trip mom, to being on boards, to chair of the parks and recreation centres, and even a Scout mom,” says Leonoff.

When asked what inspired her to volunteer in the first place, she says, “Living in a small town, I saw the immediate benefit of volunteering. I saw the positive difference it made in our community.” Read More →

Derrick Sinclair had hardly held a wrench before he came to Red River College. Nor had he been to a sweat or a smudge. Now the 23-year-old Peguis-born Sinclair has taken an engine down to its bolts, is hoping to sign his apprenticeship papers shortly, and has a second name – Eagle Speaks.

On top of that, he’s been asked by the College to come back as a tutor to mentor students who might be confused about where they want to go in life. Just like he was.

In his final year of high school, Sinclair was like a lot of grads – unsure of what he wanted to do next. He had an interest in mechanics, fed both by a desire to help extended family members “who were always having to take their vehicles into the shops, instead of working on them by themselves” and the draw of a culture glamourized in films such as The Fast and the Furious.

But there weren’t many opportunities on the reserve to get a firm grounding in mechanics or auto repair. Sinclair also suspected the reserve’s school hadn’t pushed him hard enough to prepare him for college life – either in terms of the academic content or having a rigorous class schedule. He was looking for a bridge to let him explore trades education as well as check out what it means to be a college student.

He found that bridge in the Aboriginal Program for College Enrichment and Transition, formerly the Biindigen (“Welcome”) Program. Read More →

Emmanuel Domingo, a recent graduate of Red River College’s Railway Conductor Certificate program, didn’t know what to expect when he decided to go back to school after nearly 20 years.

The father of three moved his wife and young children to Canada from the Philippines in 2003. In his home country, he’d graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from Central Luzon State University in the province of Nueva Ecija. After working for years in the pig farming industry, he obtained a working permit to move his family to rural Manitoba through a government-sponsored program.

“Even though you have a degree, in the Philippines it’s hard to find a job. In Canada, the opportunities for my children are endless,” says Domingo. “Back home, there were problems with the health care, security and education systems. In Canada, I can die tomorrow and not worry about my children.”

Domingo quickly excelled in the pig farming industry in Manitoba. In 2007, his employer rewarded Domingo for his high productivity with an all-inclusive trip to a location of his choice. Domingo opted for a one-month trip back home to visit his relatives in the Philippines. During this time, his company tasked Domingo with a special project: to recruit and interview up to 20 candidates from the Philippines, to move to Canada to work for their company.

Unfortunately, Domingo’s plant shut down in 2012, leaving him unemployed. After a year of job hunting, Domingo met with an employment consultant in Steinbach and expressed his interest in the railway industry.

“I had friends who were working at CNR, and I thought, ‘Why not?'” he recalls. Read More →

Darrell Brown took the exact opposite path most kids dream of: he sold his arcade business and went back to school.

But the 47-year-old graduate of Red River College’s International Business diploma program (1998) hasn’t looked back, first founding a marketing company to connect European tourists with Manitoba First Nations, then a manufacturing company preparing office furniture orders for First Nations and government clients.

“I’m in business to make clients happy,” says Brown. “That, to me, is where it’s not about profit. It’s about delivering a good product or service.”

With a father in the army, Brown experienced the typical “base brat” upbringing, moving a number of times during his childhood, including two tours in Germany. His father’s final posting brought the family to Winnipeg, where Brown graduated high school, then worked for a major Crown corporation for 10 years.

It wasn’t a great fit.

“I didn’t care for the union mentality,” he says. “Toward the end of my time there, the company was offering buyouts during a two-week window and they accepted me. I took my meagre buyout, cashed in a boatload of RSPs and found a business to buy… Basically I was doing everything to make it happen.”

Brown’s arcade business, stocked with pinball machines and pool tables, had 15 locations at the height of its popularity. But this, too, wasn’t the fulfilling career he had envisioned. He wanted to take his career in a larger, more meaningful direction; one that tied in his native heritage. That’s when he found the International Business diploma at RRC. He sold the business and hit the books. Read More →

Sabrina Rogers, a Continuing Education student in Red River College’s Youth Recreation Activity Worker program, wasn’t so sure she’d make it to graduation after she received some unexpected news months before starting her program.

“I found out I was pregnant coming into the program,” says Rogers. “Because of that, I wasn’t sure if I’d even finish or if I was going to have to drop out. I almost felt bad because it was as if I was taking the seat from someone else who deserved it.”

Fortunately, she put all her doubts behind her and surpassed her own expectations. Today Rogers is not only a new mother to a beautiful, healthy daughter, Sophia, but is also only a handful of practicum hours away from completing her program.

“As my stomach kept growing it gave me more incentive and motivation to finish,” says Rogers. “I also wanted to do this for my family, instructors and everyone who supported me. My family wouldn’t let me drop out, no matter how much I wanted to at some points.”

The 22-year-old was born and raised in Selkirk. She moved to Winnipeg at the age of 18 to live with her aunt, who then introduced Rogers to the program.

“I was working as a hairdresser and I wasn’t doing much. I was doing the same thing everyday,” admits Rogers. “I did a program at the Aboriginal Centre for Policing and Corrections and I had a practicum at the Manitoba Youth Centre, which is where I eventually want to work.”

When asked what inspired her to pursue a career supporting youth at the Manitoba Youth Centre, Rogers recalls a special memory where she says it all clicked.

“There was a young girl who was being released during my practicum at the Youth Centre. She lived in the North End and lived with six siblings in a one-bedroom house with her grandfather. Her parents didn’t even come visit her the whole time she was there.”

“She had no clothes to leave with, so I brought her clothes from my closet. She promised she’d finish her school because of what I did for her. Knowing I gave her that little bit of hope made me want to continue,” says Rogers. Read More →

Mike Shillinglaw, a recent graduate of the Web Site Development certificate program at Red River College, has come a long way since last summer. After 12 years, the father of two was left jobless after being let go from his federal government position as a graphic designer when budget cuts were made at his research centre.

“It was interesting because I was actually looking for a change,” says Shillinglaw. “Working for the government, you often had certain responsibilities and it made it difficult to branch out. I felt my skills were lacking, and in order to be employable I knew I had to upgrade my skills.”

Thanks to an incentive program run by the government for past employees, Shillinglaw was eligible to receive an education allowance to help support his next career path.

Naturally as an RRC alumnus (he graduated in 1990 with a diploma in Advertising Art, now known as Graphic Design), Shillinglaw looked into RRC’s Continuing Education programs.

“I looked online and I liked the course offering. In the end I thought the Continuing Education program was the right fit because not only could it meet my training needs, but also my timing needs. I was able to work with the coordinators to fast track it and be done in nine months.”

Shillinglaw credits a big part of his success to physically being in the classroom with his instructors.

“My instructors went out of their way to make sure we were up-to-date with the current trends and new technology,” he says. “They know a lot about the industry and they’re not just giving you the book stuff.” Read More →

“When you’re working on a plane, fix it to the degree you would if the most important person in your life is flying on it next.”

By the time Dylan Pereira was a few weeks into Red River College’s Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME) program, each of his instructors had given him a version of this piece of advice. The 20-year-old Winnipegger, who graduated his program this spring and is now working as an educational assistant at RRC’s Stevenson Campus, said the maxim stuck with him.

“It makes you think … it reminds you of the importance of the work you’re doing,” he said.

Pereira, a Sisler High School grad, is happy he’s tackling that work. It’s clear Pereira is in his element as he runs through the different systems – hydraulics, electrical, plumbing, turbines, steel – that come together in the complex machines he gets to “tool around with” each day. After studying the theories behind modern airplane systems in a classroom, Pereira and his fellow students got their hands dirty working on College-maintained aircraft at the Stevenson Campus hangar, which is perched on the western edge of the Winnipeg airport. Course work grew in complexity as Pereira added more skills to his tool kit, until his final projects had him assessing and repairing a full airplane – though not by himself.

“It’s more of a team kind of class,” says Pereira of the AME course. “When you work on a plane in the real world, you’re part of a crew, so the class is set up the same way.”

The small team – in Pereira’s class, about a dozen students – almost didn’t get Pereira as a crew member.

“I originally planned to study dentistry in high school,” he says. “It was my father’s idea. He wanted me to get into something that makes good money … both my parents didn’t want me to work too hard and only live paycheque to paycheque.” Read More →

Each year, a maximum of four Lieutenant-Governor Medals are awarded to Red River College students who best combine academic and technical achievement, involvement in College and/or community activities, and good character.

JOCELLE CUVOS — Business Administration, 2013

A graduate of Red River College’s Business Administration program, Jocelle Cuvos first enrolled in the hopes of one day becoming an entrepreneur, and of eventually starting her own photography studio — a passion since high school.

Having now completed her studies at RRC (while maintaining a very busy extra-curricular schedule), she plans to continue her education by obtaining a degree from the University of Manitoba’s Asper School of Business.

While at RRC, Jocelle served as president of the Students’ Association, and played on both the soccer and volleyball teams. The experiences allowed her to give back to her community, as both an ambassador for the College and a volunteer in such initiatives as the RRC Shinerama, a charity event that raised funds for cystic fibrosis research.

Jocelle’s involvement in student life had a positive impact on her time here, and she plans to continue her involvement with the College as a volunteer Student Ambassador (who’ll promote RRC to prospective students) and by attending as many Rebels games as her schedule will allow!

She attributes her success in part to the love and support of her family and friends, and to the encouragement and support she received from her RRC instructors.

ABBY SILVA — Business Administration, 2013

A fellow graduate of RRC’s Business Administration program, Abby Silva was at first drawn to the College by the flexible and diverse career opportunities that awaited her in the field of business.

Like Jocelle, she also plans to leverage her RRC training as an entry point to further accreditation, by pursuing a designation as a Chartered Accountant (CA) while also seeking part-time employment in the accounting industry.

Also like Jocelle, Abby was heavily involved in athletics while attending the College (and twice won tournament MVP honours at the Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference). A member of the Rebels Women’s Basketball team, Abby says her involvement in sports kept her motivated and determined in her academic pursuits, by allowing her to develop an active routine that kept her healthy, focused and constantly striving for success.

She plans to maintain that routine as a member of an outside basketball league that also affords opportunity for community outreach, through fundraisers, tournaments and other volunteer-driven events. She attributes her success at Red River College to a combination of hard work, patience, and — most importantly — a positive attitude.