MARYSTOWN, N.L.— It didn’t come easy, but that’s part and parcel why Eric Kearley has been recognized for his accomplishments.
Kearley has been awarded the Sandy Donahue Memorial Bursary, recognizing him as Student of the Year by the Burin Peninsula Laubach Literacy Council. The annual award is presented to a student working at the ABE Level 1 Program.
Kearley told The Southern Gazette on Tuesday, June 26, that he needed to do upgrading in order to get into a heavy equipment operator course.
“It’s just something I always wanted to do,” he said of the program.
Before pursuing heavy equipment operator training, he plans on returning to the Burin Peninsula Laubach Literacy Centre in September to complete the ABE Level 2 Program.
Kearley, who is orginally from Terrenceville, but now makes his home in Swift Current, stayed on the Burin Peninsula during the winter months, but once spring came he began to make the hour-and-a-half commute from his home to the centre located on Creston Boulevard.
It took him almost three years to get everything in order to go to the centre.
“I need to be able to receive my EI (Employment Insurance) while I was going to school and it seemed like I was having trouble to get them to put me in there for that,” he said. “But after I got all that red tape over (with) it was alright.”
In the past Kearley worked at whatever jobs came his way.
“I was just working as a labour(er), fisherman — whatever I had to do,” he said.
Kearley plans to look for work for during the summer months.
“It all depends on what I can get at,” he replied when asked what work he would be doing, “there’s not much on the go actually.”
Colin.farrell@southerngazette.ca
