Pass it On has been part of the high school experience on Salt Spring Island since 2010. This school year, we are looking back with former participants to see how the program impacted their lives. We start with actress Fiona Pirie, who was in Pass it On Girls between 2013 and 2018.
Fiona Pirie joined Pass it On Girls after she heard about it in middle school. “When I was in grade 8, Kate [Nash] came to the middle school to talk about Pass it On. She told us that we would be matched up with mentors, called big buddies, who we could ask questions and who would keep an eye out for us when we started high school”, Fiona says, looking back. “I had a lot of nerves making the big jump to high school, so I signed up, and it became a huge part of my life.”
Pass it On pushed her out of her comfort zone, she says. “Pass it On brought people together who otherwise wouldn’t have gotten together. I connected with people outside of my normal friend group and realized that, even though we seemed to have little in common, we were more similar than we thought. Knowing that made it so much easier for me to make new connections, which still benefits me hugely.”
After graduating from GISS, Fiona went to London to study acting. She returned to BC in 2024 and is now making a name for herself as an actress in Vancouver and on Vancouver Island.
Her experiences with Pass it On also helped her in her working life. “As an actor, you have to have an understanding of the human condition to be able to portray a character on stage,” she says. “Pass it On stretched my understanding of other people, but I also learned a lot about myself. I came into the program a bit biased, assuming people always see the worst in you and judge you. But it turned out I was the one being judgmental. Pass it On immediately removed that. It came in handy in every job that I had so far, knowing how to bridge gaps and interact with different types of people from all walks of life.”
Fiona was part of the program for five years, had four little buddies, and is still friends with her mentor in her first year of Pass it On. “My family lives on Pender Island, and the water taxi leaves right after school”, she continues. “In the first years, I stayed over at my big buddies’ house so I could join Pass it On. Zorah is still a dear friend of mine, and we have been bumping into each other all over the world since.”
One of the highlights of the years Fiona participated in Pass it On, was the annual waffle party. “Kate hosted this party at her house and made waffles with milk from the cow that she milked herself that morning. Kate was a profound role model for me. She’s the kind of adult who treats young people as equals, as whole humans. I felt seen.”
Looking back, Pass it On had a bigger impact on her than she realized at the time. “I was an insufferable high-energy kid in high school. It was unsustainable. Pass it On gave me confidence and mellowed me out. It basically got me through high school.”
Fiona Pirie can be seen in ‘The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley’ at the Chemainus Theatre Festival between November 13th and December 23rd.
