A yearly highlight at Shawnigan Lake School is the annual Ski Week that transports nearly the entire student body and staff to the hills of Manning Park Resort for a week of frolicking in the snow. This amazing experience, and no small logistical feat, began in 1974 and has continued to be an important community-building mainstay of the School’s educational program.
It is hard for the written word to do justice to the positive energy and feeling of connectedness that we experience at Ski Week. It is an opportunity for teachers and students to interact in a different environment, learn together outside of the classroom, move beyond our comfort zone both physically and mentally and bring cooperation and teamwork to a whole new level.
The best way to sum it up is to compare the whole week to a well-loved, reliable and sturdy family campervan that faithfully delivers an unforgettable holiday each season and symbolizes years of cherished family memories packed into each trip. The Ski Week campervan is prepped well before the departure date, which is the first Sunday of every February. And the vehicle isn’t just well maintained; it is inspected, greased, tweaked, realigned, packed, repacked to insure it delivers a phenomenal road trip for everyone. The main drivers are Deputy-Head Jo-Anne Kingstone along with Shawnigan teachers Wendy Woollven and Nigel Mayes, who pour hours of energy and passion into pre-trip planning for a seamless Ski Week program. Their tireless dedication insures that no pothole, big or small, deviates the Ski Week campervan from running anything less than perfectly.
Another instrumental group at Ski Week is the grade 11 class. They are a large volunteer leadership group that takes charge of organizing games and groups to help with all kinds of Ski Week activities. Their multitude of responsibilities include being Snow Angels, experienced skiers and snowboarders who offer assistance on the hill to those in need, the bedtime helpers who gently nudge the juniors toward their rooms and make sure they are ready for “lights out”, babysitters to watch over staff children daily, recycling supervisors and carnival planners. The energy and atmosphere of Ski Week is highly dependent on the enthusiasm that the grade 11 team brings to the slopes.
Over the years, the Ski Week program has remained largely unchanged but has expanded into a mini Shawnigan Olympics. The week is filled with Interhouse competitions including downhill and x-country races, a snow sculpture event, tug-of-war and the academic Reach-for-the-Top challenge. Other highlights include the much-anticipated Staff Revue for the students, the fierce but fun staff versus grade 12 broomball game, the carnival festivities on the final evening and the new addition of musical après ski fun during the lunch break.
After six days in the snow, the Shawnigan family piles back into the campervan and prepares to be lulled into comfortable rest on the homeward journey along the Princeton-Hope highway. The feeling we take with us is one of contentment, pleasure and accomplishment for all the games and hard work it took to make Ski Week happen and moreover, a general gratitude that another family experience has been enjoyed by all.