Local teen enjoys stint as page at Queen’s Park

David Fagerdahl has been catching up on his rest after returning home from a five-week internship as a page at Queen’s Park in Toronto.
“It was a lot of hard work but I really enjoyed it,” said the 13-year-old Fort Frances resident. “As a page, I was responsible for serving the MPPs along with 20 other [students].”
Although Fagerdahl admitted he initially found the work difficult, he said it was only a matter of time before he began to feel comfortable in his role as page.
“I was responsible for going into Chambers and organizing the MPPs’ binders and papers,” he recalled. “At first it was hard but once I got into a routine, I had no problem.”
Fagerdahl was chosen from among 400 applicants for the five-week internship, which started Nov. 14 and ended Dec. 15.
“I was very excited when I got a phone call telling me I had been accepted,” he enthused. “I got to go to an orientation session before I started as a page.
“While I was there, I got to meet a lot of really nice people.”
In addition to his work as a page, Fagerdahl also was required to attend classes throughout his stint at Queen’s Park.
“It isn’t all work, I did have to go to school, too,” he remarked. “They had a teacher there and we got to learn about politics, and do a lot of really interesting things.
“You pick up a lot while you are down there in the House.”
Among the many highlights of his internship, Fagerdahl was most excited about the opportunity he had to be involved in the Christmas preparations at the Legislature.
“They were busy getting things ready for the ‘Lights Across Canada’ celebration,” he remembered. “That is when they light up all of the Parliament buildings across Canada.
“While they were [promoting] it, they did a commercial and I got to be in it. That was a lot of fun.”
Though his internship is now over, Fagerdahl was very happy with the experience and would encourage others his age to participate in the program.
“I would recommend it to anyone who would like to do it,” he stressed. “It was a great learning experience and I am glad that I had a chance to be a part of it.”