An author-slash-teacher, a motivational speaker-slash-author and a physiotherapist-slash-charity marathon head.
Those are the compound occupations of Jessica Kluthe, Spencer Beach and Grant Fedoruk who just made an exclusive list: Avenue Edmonton's Top 40 Under 40 list, that is.
The magazine's Class of 2013 list recognizes the metropolitan area's best and brightest young community leaders, rising stars in their chosen professions, or are otherwise bringing the most positive recognition to the region.
The annual Top 40 Under 40 list published recently in Edmonton's Avenue Magazine had a couple of people on it who hail from its northerly neighbours. The list is meant to recognize the most exceptional young community leaders from the metropolitan area.
This year the list names Spencer Beach, Jessica Kluthe and Grant Fedoruk as members of the exclusive club.
"It's pretty crazy!" exclaimed an excited Kluthe. The Morinville raised author, now 28, was thoroughly thrilled to receive the news. "It's very encouraging and I think speaks to the fact that people are interested in stories."
"It's just been a really unexpected honour. The room was just full of talented, energetic, really forward thinking people. Just to be among them has been so amazing. Of course, because of social media, everyone is just spreading the word and being really supportive and full of congratulations."
Her non-fiction book, Rosina the Midwife, recounted the tender and heartbreaking story of her Italian grandmother who stayed behind in the Calabrian region of the Mediterranean country while she said goodbye, one by one, to all of her family. It currently has a high 4.42 star rating (out of 5) on the Goodreads meter.
The popular and critical appeal has opened up other doors for her, including participating in last month's LitFest, speaking on a panel with Lawrence Hill, one of her literary idols, she confessed. There is also her work with Make Something Edmonton keeping her busy. That effort is intended to help promote other Canadian books and writers.
She also had recent work published in the Feathertale Review anthology called Eat It: Food, Sex and Women's Writing. Another novel – a work of fiction, this time – is coming along too. Slowly, she said.
Kluthe, who teaches business writing and publishing in the communications program at Grant MacEwan University, hopes not to use this moment to promote herself but rather to remind other writers that success lies in perseverance.
"I'm really grateful but I also just want people to know that you can definitely make it as an artist in this province. I hope that me being recognized as a Top 40 can just speak to that and encourage others to keep pursuing their creative goals because it's totally doable."
Always on the run
First off, Grant Fedoruk wants to clear up the confusion. He's not as old as Avenue claims that he is.
"I'm 38!" he clarified. "The magazine put me at 39. I've got a few more years but it's not a sprint for us…" I'm very happy with what we've accomplished in the last five years. Our goal isn't to slow down by any means."
The president of Leading Edge Physiotherapy in St. Albert and Edmonton is also at the head of the RunWild Marathon. The now established footrace is ranked as a Top Ten event by Canadian Running magazine, and for some good and noble reasons.
There were more than 1,600 participants in the 2013 race, all of whom helped to bring in $130,000. All of the proceeds were divvied up between the St. Albert 50+ Club and the Zebra Child Protection Centre.
The next edition of the marathon takes place on May 4, 2014. Fedoruk said that he's been getting a lot of Star Wars jokes because of it. "May the fourth be with us!" he laughed.
Business is steaming along and the work we're doing in the community has really been a lot of fun. Time consuming, but fun."
"It's definitely an honour," he said of the Top 40 list. "It's a pretty impressive group to be included in. It's pretty humbling, that's for sure. There are people doing some great things out there."
He made sure to add that he doesn't stand alone in what he does. His work is supported by his wife, Heidi, his family and his partners.
"I got a big cheerleading team. I just get to scream the loudest."
An unstoppable force
Spencer Beach doesn't slow down for much. This last week, he was in Calgary conducting a presentation, one of 100 such presentations he does each and every year all across North America.
The 39-year-old St. Albert native and Paul Kane graduate was horribly burned during a workplace accident in 2003. He suffered second-, third-and fourth-degree burns to 90 per cent of his body. He's a true survivor and doesn't take his life – or others' lives – for granted.
To him, being on the Top 40 list is nice but to have someone put his name forward for it meant a lot more.
"I really don't go seeking out awards. To be recognized, that's where the honour comes is somebody else wanted to give me the recognition," he stated.
He did say that the publicity helps to promote his work. Everything helps get my message out, he said.
"This is just one more key in the mechanism that helps to drive the machine called Spencer Beach and his passion for safety and helping people in life."
Still under 40 with a few months to go, he now focuses his energies on being a motivational speaker, talking about education, health and workplace safety, often with an incredible sense of humour. He makes frequent presentations through his company, Spencer Speaks.
He has also written a book about his experiences. In Case of Fire: Please Remain Calm Then Slowly Rebuild Your Life was published in 2010.
As for the future, he will continue on with his talks but has ideas for other possible books in the future. He'd like to write about dealing with anger and hardship and overcoming it.
"I think anger is an awesome emotion. People just don't know how to tap into it."
Another idea would be for people facing surgeries. He knows a thing or two about the subject: he's had 37 surgeries "and counting" to recover from his injuries.
The first question that people should offer their surgeons: "ask how long the surgery will be. The longer it is, the longer you're going to be under anaesthetic and the more risks that come with that. Also it's a lot harder to overcome that."
Et al
Other honourees on the recent Top 40 Under 40 list include artist and writer Alexis Marie Chute, Rona Fraser (the director of development at the Nina Haggerty Centre), Alexis Hillyard (the Sexual and Gender Minority Equity Supervisor with the U of A's Institute for Sexual Minority Studies and Services), and Adam Rozenhart, the co-host of The Unknown Studio podcast and co-founder of Edmonton Nerd Nite.
