A great place to learn a little bit about life. That's what Hank Holowaychuk still thinks of Lakeland College more than 50 years later.

Holowaychuk attended Lakeland, then called the Vermilion Agricultural and Vocational College (VAVC), in the late 1960s, taking animal sciences and plant sciences courses. He was also instrumental in founding the VAVC Rodeo Club.

“When I attended college, my focus was rodeoing. I grew up in a small community and worked as a bullfighter for Stan Boychuk, a rodeo contractor. He provided stocks for the club for many years, while we worked for local farmers to raise money to get the club roster off the ground. In our first year, we filled out the Vermilion town arena two days in a row,” he says.

Between many laughs, Holowaychuk also recalls using a pencil to lock his dorm room for the weekend and leaving through the window because there were no locks on the doors, as well as planting barley seeds in the flower gardens. He adds that he values the relationships he maintains with classmates, instructors, college staff, and community members.

Holowaychuk's Lakeland experience inspired his first donation to the college during the Great Canadian Giving Challenge in June.

“Even though my college attendance was on and off, it was always a good place for me. This is a token of appreciation to the college and an opportunity to give somebody else a chance to go and, hopefully, have the same experiences. It's great to see how much the college has grown for the good of the community and region, and it feels good to help be a part of that,” says the mayor of Smoky Lake, Alta.

Holowaychuk's donation contributed to the $2,550 raised for the student relief fund, which gives students access to funding and support services needed to learn at Lakeland.

With so many students' finances hindered by the COVID-19 pandemic, Lakeland raised funds through the Great Canadian Giving Challenge. The student relief fund continues to help build the Support our Students Enhanced Bursary Fund.

According to a Statistics Canada Survey, 67 per cent of students are concerned about having no job prospects in the immediate future and 51 per cent believe they'll have difficulty paying for tuition in the fall and keeping up with other bills and payments.

Photo: Hank Holowaychuk poses with woolly mammoth statues.