St. Mark soccer player heading to Ontario Tech

Focus on Youth

By Phill Potter

Name: Georgia Hogan

Age: 17

Address: Greely

School: St. Mark High

Grade:12

Parents: Karen & Michael Hogan

Brother: Jack (21), University of Ottawa

Sister: Kelty (20), Concordia University

(my siblings and I are all two years apart)

Pets: “I currently have no pets. My siblings and I have been asking our parents for a dog for years. We bet that they will get one when all of us kids leave.”

Pet Peeves: “Other than some average bothersome things, like eating with your mouth open, or a family member walking into your room and leaving with the door open when it was closed before – a pet peeve of mine is when someone talks over a good song (especially in the car). I love to sing in the car, and I feel like it is just wrong to not appreciate a good song when it comes on the radio.”

Part-time Work: “I work as a Shift Leader at Dairy Queen, Riverside South. I’ve been working there since September of 2019. My favourite part about working there (other than flipping blizzards of course), is the people I work with. I’m glad that I get to work at a place with people that have become my friends. It makes every shift fun!”

Favourite Subjects:

“My favourite subject is history. I love learning about the past and why things are the way that they are today. This year I’m looking forward to a class I’m taking called Earth and Space Science. Space and the history of the Earth, and what we know about the universe, really fascinates me, so I want to continue my learning on that.”

What do you enjoy reading for pleasure?

“I enjoy reading non-fiction books about history and real stories from the past. I think those are so interesting. I love a good fiction book as well, but I just love learning about history, and gaining all this knowledge that I did not know before. Sometimes I get so caught up in other things, that I forget how nice it is to just sit down and read a good book.”

Who is your favourite author?

“I haven’t read enough books from one author to really have a favourite. Although, my favourite book series so far, is The Maze Runner by James Dashner. With novels, I love science fiction, mystery, and action books – like The Maze Runner. It’s the excitement and action that keeps me engaged, because I do find when I’m reading something I’m not interested in, I tend to not pay attention to what I’m reading.”

What is your greatest accomplishment?

“My greatest accomplishment? Big question! What I’m most proud about so far in my life, is my development as an athlete and a soccer player. I’m really proud about how long I have played, and how far I have progressed in my soccer “career.” The opportunities I’ve had along the way with this sport, has been a part of my life from a very young age.”

School Activities:

“Usually at school I would be involved in a number of school activities and sports teams, but sadly, sports haven’t been able to carry out during this time. Despite that, I do have other things keeping me busy around school. I’m part of the Women Empowerment Club, I’m one out of three Den Leaders on St. Mark’s Student Council, and I’m a Co-Leader with Alyisha Kelly and Rachel Lawrence of St. Mark’s first Black Student Association (BSA), which we formed in December 2020. As a Den Leader, our main role is to promote school spirit and involvement. It’s also been really exciting for the school to have this club that will focus on creating awareness, and discussing ongoing issues.”

Other Activities/Interests:

“Outside of school, I’m a competitive soccer player, and I also do track and field. Sports are a big part of my life. With restrictions of the pandemic it has been a little weird not having a regular schedule for training. My other interests include playing piano, the guitar, and listening to music. Being at home, I’ve been able to do a lot of these! To add to that, my family and I have had time to watch lots of movies and binge TV shows.”

Career Goals: “In the fall of 2021 I’ll be attending Ontario Tech University where I’ll be playing soccer for them as well. I’m really looking forward to life in university, and being able to play soccer at a higher level. In terms of career goals, I’m not 100% on what kind of job I want to have, but I do have interests in numerous things that I could choose from.”

Comment:

“Since the beginning of the pandemic, a lot of things have changed; especially the way we live. I think I’m more on the introverted side, so I don’t really mind all this time at home. Although, at times I do miss the little things I used to do with friends, such as movie nights in the basement, eating at a restaurant, or just being able to see them in person. I’m glad, that with safety measures in place, we’re able to go to school for part of the week, because I’m worried that I have become too comfortable with this ‘at home lifestyle’. On another note, a shout out to my family. I’ve been very grateful during this time, because they’re my favourite people to hang out with. They definitely keep things interesting enough so I could hardly ever get bored.”