Jax Bailey’s hard play almost jeopardized his hard work. A sports injury threatened to have him laid up for a year. Rather than moping about his misfortune, he decided to redirect himself.
I work hard, I play harder. I am very physically active and enjoy hockey, roller hockey, football, basketball, running, swimming, and badminton. A hard hit and a body smash cracked my shoulder and caused right wrist damage that required surgery. I was on the surgical wait list for eight months before my surgery took place in May.
My wrist injury was a big wake-up call. I was unable to work as an apprentice, meaning I wasn’t able to earn any money.
I didn’t want to waste a year sitting idle so I talked to school counsellors and looked at what courses I should be taking to get a grasp of the business requirements. I signed up and worked on courses to become a more rounded and resourceful student who also understands the business end of the trade
The upside of my injury is because I needed to find other activities to fill the void. I was one of 150 youth across Canada invited to attend “Experience Canada 150 & Me” as a youth delegate in Montreal (April 9 -14th, 2017) focusing on discussions about Canada and its future. I was also selected as one of 50 youth across Canada as a delegate for the Rick Hansen Youth Summit in Ottawa (May 19–22, 2017, just three days after my surgery).
I will be back to capacity over the next few months and even more motivated and ready to work hard and play harder.
Jax Bailey won a DeWalt 20V XR hammer drill and impact driver combo kit, courtesy of DeWalt.
We’d like to make sharing our readers’ passions an ongoing part of the magazine. If you think you’ve got a better tale to tell, send it to Allan Britnell: allan@renocontractor.ca .