Richard Froese
South Peace News
Peace River School Division has honoured transportation manager Merlin Lee as the first employee nominated for the new Driving Success campaign for October.
Lee was honoured for his outstanding professionalism and dedication to the community, PRSD announced in a news release Oct. 10.
Last spring, Lee sprang into action during the Shaftsbury Trail wildfire to evacuate inmates from the Peace River Correctional Centre. He calmly organized his team and even volunteered to drive a bus himself, working alongside the RCMP and correctional staff to ensure everyone was safely evacuated.
He advocated for his drivers, ensuring their needs were met while they drove the inmates to a secure and safe location.
Then, despite being up all hours of the night, Lee ensured all regular school bus routes were back up and running the next time in time for school.
His incredible commitment in the face of adversity truly deserves recognition.
Starting in the 2024-25 school year, PRSD will celebrate nominated staff and students for the extraordinary work they do, states information provided by PRSD.
Nominations are submitted to the principal of each school in the division.
The PRSD Celebrations campaigns are being developed as a strategic communication project to acknowledge and celebrate the many talented, passionate and dedicated students and staff in the school division.
PRSD Celebrations include two campaigns – one to feature students (AchievingSuccess) and staff (DrivingSuccess).
The campaign was designed to show the community some of the ways PRSD is achieving “success for all”.
PRSD states the goal of the campaign is to:
-Amplify the voices of our students.
-Celebrate and acknowledge the work of its staff.
-Flood the public space with positive and inspiring stories from within our schools.
The campaign does not necessarily choose a winner so much as highlight staff and students.
Staff or students can be nominated through the campaign by school administration and PRSD central operations executive. The individuals are then celebrated publicly through the campaign.