Life wasn’t easy for Patrick Lee.
After coping with the loss of his father when he was in Grade 4, he then had a tough time adjusting when his mother eventually re-married.
The departure of his older sister to live abroad also led to Patrick to keep himself to himself in his early teen years.
However, in Grade 10, the Richmond resident started to come out of his shell and, two years later, he is now well and truly plugged into his school’s network, filling multiple roles.
So much so, that the  — an organization that awards need-based scholarships to high school students who have overcome adversity — awarded Patrick one of 85 $5,000 scholarships towards post-secondary education.
“It was a huge shock to receive it,” said Patrick, 17, who’s in Grade 12 in the international baccalaureate program at Sir Winston Churchill secondary in Vancouver. “I heard about (the scholarship) last year through my counsellor and thought I’d give it a shot.
"I can use it for any public, post-secondary institution.”
Patrick said his mom has been a huge inspiration in his life and has always encouraged him “to go for it all the time.”
“In Grade 10, I started taking on more leadership roles and I started participating more in school activities,” he added. “I joined the theatre group and I’m now directing one of the shows, as well as being the president of the student council.”
Suffice to say, Patrick’s star is on the rise and he’s applied to Simon Fraser University to study molecular chemistry and UBC’s Faculty of Science for the bio-tech program.
Of the 85 scholarship recipients this year:
• The average annual family income of the recipients was $25,145;
• 51% of the scholars experienced abandonment by a parent or guardian;
• 45% suffered from physical, mental, or sexual abuse;
• 40% faced drug or alcohol abuse in the household;
• 25% experienced disability or serious illness;
• 19% faced the death of a parent or guardian;
• 12% experienced the incarceration of a parent or guardian;
• 8% are wards of the state or in foster care;
• 8% have faced homelessness.
