Audacious In Her Pursuits

Meet Ms. Penny Pan

Pictured: Ms. Penny Pan with her son George, Grade 9

Penny’s mother would get home from work, tired after a long day, and head straight to the sewing machine. She’d spend hours hunched over the whirring machine, mending socks and shirts and whatever else people brought by. “We owned the only sewing machine in our small village,” Penny explains, “and people needed her help.” Penny’s mother had three children, little money and even less time, but she always helped how she could.

As a child, this left Penny often wondering when her mother would get to her… when would it be her turn? She still remembers her mother’s smiling plea. “Soon! Soon!” she would promise, “I’ll get to you soon.” 

It wasn’t until Penny got older that she understood.

Penny started to see what her mother’s help meant to the people in their village. Her initial, childlike exasperation turned to admiration; she was in awe of her mother, a woman who lived selflessly and for others despite not having much herself. “Helping people really goes beyond yourself,” Penny smiles. Her mother knew this, that in their small, impoverished village it took a little help from everyone to get by. Penny may have “hated” waiting for her always helping mother, but that wait is what shaped her into who she is today. Penny is now the one who helps, and who – like her mother – hopes to inspire her own children, sons Andy and George, to help and give someday.

It is with this hope that Penny’s family first found themselves at Meadowridge School.

When Penny started looking at schools for George, she wanted a “good school,” one that was academically challenging and advanced. She found that at Meadowridge, but there was something else, too: Meadowridge was different than the other schools she toured. The facilities were open, the faculty friendly, and the community “welcoming and kind.” Even George loved it. This was a place, she realized, that would help her son become balanced and well-rounded, the “best version” of himself. This was a place that would inspire George to help. Meadowridge was “one of those few great schools,” Penny nods. They applied, got in, and bought a house nearby. 

The whole family took to the community straightaway.

It’s been three years since then, and George has settled in nicely and still loves his school. Penny, likewise, has embraced life at Meadowridge. Serving her second term as a Board Member, she also sponsors events, supports the Annual Fund, organizes celebrations and volunteers wherever needed. Penny is a parent who, when asked, will always help how she can. It’s how she was raised. “It’s just who I am,” she puts simply. So when she heard about Audacity, the Campaign for Meadowridge School, Penny knew she wanted to get involved; she was the first to donate to the campaign, a donation which helped build a new classroom in the high school complex. 

Giving really goes beyond you or your children, and that means building the school so it becomes better and better for everyone

Ms. Penny Pan

 

Penny’s contributions are plenty, but she doesn’t see it that way: she feels fortunate to give and be involved. “As I learned more about the history of the school,” she explains, “I learned how it was the families before us who built it.” Her son is here because families before hers had the audacity to build a school and the generosity to help it grow. Penny feels “proud” that she can continue that tradition and help grow our school.

As a board member and parent, she has important insight into what that growth will bring. Learning about the history of our school has gotten Penny excited about its future. “I know the school’s challenges and difficulties,” she explains, “so I’m excited to see how our contributions will bring change.” Students will learn better, live better, and then – she hopes – they’ll “come back.” Meadowridge will become a special place, a lasting place for all students who join us to come back to in the future. Not just that, but the school will be here for new, future families to join, just like she and George did those years ago. And it’ll be an even better school, one with more spaces and programs and opportunities.

Penny still smiles, remembering what her mother taught her growing up. “Giving really goes beyond you or your children, and that means building the school so it becomes better and better for everyone,” she concludes.

Learn how you can get involved Email us at development@meadowridge.bc.ca