Fedoruk says receiving the Distinguished Alumni award has been an honour and has reaffirmed his commitment to community.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a great sense of satisfaction,\u201d he says. \u201cI think not many folks go out and do things to be recognized; they want to contribute, and that\u2019s how I feel. So I feel really humbled and honoured that they\u2019ve recognized this, and it makes me feel that I\u2019ve been able to give something back, and folks can see that. And hopefully, it\u2019s an example for other folks who maybe are like me, when they\u2019re starting out, they\u2019re getting going, but later on, they have a chance when they have time, and they have resources, they can give back, too.\u201d<\/p>\n After some time in the Navy prior to attending college, Fedoruk says he began to desire an education outside of his milieu, ultimately leading him to Camosun.<\/p>\n \u201cI was finishing the fifth and sixth year in the Navy. And at the time, I didn\u2019t see myself progressing much further. I was like, Okay, I\u2019ve done this, and perhaps now is the time for me to try something different. And so I thought, I\u2019ll go. I didn\u2019t do a degree, so I thought, I\u2019ll go back, and I\u2019ll go to school, and maybe start a completely different life journey… But as things worked out, I ended up back in the Navy,\u201d he says. \u201cSo it\u2019s interesting because I\u2019ve never seen myself going back to the Navy; that wasn\u2019t my plan. It was just over time, there were some things that drew me back there, and\u2026 [Camosun] set me up.\u201d<\/p>\n During his college career, Fedoruk took on student leadership roles in the Camosun College Student Society (CCSS), and Camosun\u2019s Education Council and Board of Governors. He says his work and skill building with the CCSS was especially useful in later roles.<\/p>\n \u201c[The CCSS] really helped me understand relationships between people. And I\u2019m not saying I\u2019m great at it, but it helped me to understand it,\u201d he says. \u201cAs I progressed through the Navy, I would draw back on these experiences\u2026 and think about\u2026 how we interacted and how we worked together.\u201d<\/p>\n Fedoruk says he appreciates his time at Camosun, which emphasizes continuous learning.<\/p>\n \u201cI really came to appreciate and really connect with the lifelong-learning culture, or certainly, that\u2019s the way we spoke: \u2018Being here is about lifelong learning,\u2019\u201d he says. \u201cI think I connected with that while I was there\u2026 I wasn\u2019t just taking a course. It was just another part of a lifelong learning journey, and it was always a journey.\u201d<\/p>\n As current students work toward their careers, Fedoruk suggests they find, plan, and reach for what they desire for their future.<\/p>\n \u201cThe advice I would give [Camosun students] is just to set out the path they want to go to, set out the goals. Everyone will say that,\u201d he says, \u201cbut measure the progress along the way, and don\u2019t hesitate to change if you need to. It doesn\u2019t have to be because you picked one path, it doesn\u2019t mean it has to be that path. You can change moving along. And don\u2019t wait for everything to happen for you because you\u2019ll miss it.\u201d<\/p>\n After graduating from Camosun\u2019s Associate Degree program in 2015, Promising Alumni recipient Mitchell transferred to UVic, where he completed a Biology degree. In 2024, Mitchell graduated from UBC with a doctorate in Dental Medicine.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/AngusCiv_NoTie-scaled.jpg\")
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