Prince Albert Police Association awards Kerrianne Dawn Bergen Memorial Scholarship to Brooklyn Davis
The Prince Albert Police Association honours one graduating student from Carlton Comprehensive High School each year with the Kerrianne Dawn Bergen Memorial Scholarship.
The Association selected Brooklyn Davis as this year’s recipient in late May. The Scholarship has been offered for several years but the Association recently increased the value from $750 to $1,500 because membership felt they needed to give more to support youth in their future plans.
Davis said she had been applying for several scholarships, but the topic of this scholarship—raising awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving—caught her eye.
“Drunk driving is a topic I paid a lot of attention to and it's a topic that I like to bring up a lot,” Davis said. “It’s like, well, a drunk driving essay would be great. I think it's something I know enough about and I could write one really well and then my family has always been an advocate against it….. I'm very, very grateful that I got the scholarship.”
Kerrianne Dawn Bergen was a 16-year-old Prince Albert resident who was killed tragically in a drunk driving collision in 1991. The police association says the scholarship's purpose is to honour the wonderful person she was and to bring about awareness and change regarding drinking and driving.
Davis said her family has always been strong opponents of impaired driving. In her essay, she wrote about the work of her grandfather, Garry Davis, who was the provincial coordinator of the Driving Without Impairment program for several years. The course is mandatory for drivers with a first offense of impaired driving.
“My grandfather was passionate about lowering drinking and driving rates with this
program so that future generations, including his children and grandchildren, would be smarter and safer while driving,” the essay reads.
The association said they selected Davis because she had great grades and references, and her essay showed the importance of being aware of how impaired driving impacts people of all ages. The association also liked that she focused on how everyone can do something to try and help prevent these things from happening in our community.
Davis said that she was surprised to be selected for the honour. She expected her classmates to write great essays, so she wasn’t expecting to be chosen.
"I had a lot of qualified classmates,” she said. “I was surprised and when I won I was also very honoured.”
Davis is planning to attend the University of Saskatchewan to study Agri Business. As with her passion to end impaired driving her love of agriculture comes from her family.
“My other grandpa actually is a farmer and I have lots of ties to the farming community,” she said. “I just love the industry and the lifestyle, so I'm hoping to get my foot in the door there.”
To receive the scholarship, students had to write a 500 word essay, provide reference letters, graduate in 2024 and be accepted to a post-secondary university or college.
This scholarship is provided by the members both Sworn and Civilian from the Prince Albert Police – not the Prince Albert Police Service itself.
The association also presented the first ever Prince Albert Police Association Mental Health Scholarship at the Ecole St. Mary High School Graduation ceremony on Tuesday at the Art Hauser Centre.
michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca
Michael Oleksyn, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Prince Albert Daily Herald
