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l a n o i g Re VOLUME 13
NUMBER 41
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2015
Jessa Heatherington satisfied with international experience MOUSH SARA JOHN WEEKENDER REPORTER Jessa Heatherington was the first female archer to represent William E. Hay Stettler Secondary Campus at the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) World tournament in July 2015. But Heatherington remains grounded after the experience. “Honestly, I didn’t go to Worlds or All-Stars to win, I went for the experience and I met people from all around the world who love archery just as much as I do,” said Heatherington. “I now have amazing friends from not only across Canada, but across the world, and I made memories that I will remember for the rest of my life, such as international Duck Duck Goose started from Will Roberts’
uncanny ability to start a game of it in every situation, or finding out how many Canadians we can stuff in a tiny elevator, the answer of which is 26 by the way.” It has not been an easy road for the 11th grader with hours of practice every single day, leaving very little room for anything else. Speaking about how she remained motivated all through those weeks leading up to the competitions, Heatherington comes across as a self-assured, gritty 16-year-old. “At both provincials and nationals, my driving force was ‘I will make it on the All-Stars team’ I wanted it so bad,” said Heatherington. “While I was at Worlds and AllStars, I just kept thinking ‘I’m here to represent Stettler, Alberta. I’m the
Moush Sara John/Weekender reporter
Jessa Heatherington with her bow and target board discusses her experience at the NASP All-Star World Championship 2015 and NASP world tournament.
first girl to ever represent William E. Hay at the NASP World tournament, I need to make my town proud.’ It was my way to stay focused.” Heatherington does not allow one arrow to influence the next, a philosophy she learnt from her coaches. “If I know I’m not doing as well as I would like, I usually try to stretch and then relax my muscles,” said Heatherington. “My coaches have told me to not let one arrow influence the next, and not to think about the past few rounds, so I try and distract myself.” Heatherington added, “There are days that I am really not good at it, but I still try.” Heatherington began taking archery lessons in 2013, a couple of years back, but she has already set targets for herself and is in love with the sport. “I do plan to continue with archery after I graduate,” said Heatherington. “I’ve always wanted to try using a recurve bow, maybe I’ll try Olympic archery. I’m really not sure right now. I just know that I won’t give it up. I love it too much.” Although archery is Heatherington’s sport, she has been dancing since she has been three, but as any professional she uses her lessons from each discipline to propel her forward. According to
Moush Sara John/Weekender reporter
Stettler’s Jessa Heatherington of William E. Hay Stettler Secondary Campus represented Canada in the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) 2015 All-Star World Championship in July 2015. Heatherington, both archery and dance are very similar, and they work well together. “In both cases, you strive for improvement and to be the best of yourself,” said Heatherington. “Also, a lot of the things I have learned from dance have helped me in archery, and many of the things from archery have helped me in dance.” Discussing how, Heatherington explained, “My posture and strength to begin with helped me to have a bit of a foundation before I began archery, and the strength and attention to details that I have built
from archery has helped me in dance.” Next year will mark Heatherington’s 14 years in the world of dancing. “It’s what I love to do, just like archery, and I dance up to five hours a night, four nights a week, taking lessons in every genre offered in Stettler, including tap, jazz, ballet, highland, musical theatre, pointe, acro, hiphop, modern, contemporary, and lyrical at Rhonda McCulloch Danceology,” said Heatherington. “My dancing has taken me to amazing places; not only have I won talent shows, and awards at dance com-
petitions for solos, duets, trios, and group numbers, I have also travelled to Vancouver, New York, and Los Angeles with my dance studio (Rhonda McCulloch Danceology).” Not only is Heatherington a learner, but she also loves to help others with her skills. “While I love dancing, I love to help teach it too,” said Heatherington. “It makes me so happy to see younger kids at my studio grow up with their dancing, and I love having a positive influence on them.” continued on page 2