WWS Spotlight…
Sarah Clark & Leo Kwok – WWS Family members
Tell us a little bit about yourselves – We moved to Whistler this summer after spending three years in Ubud, Bali where our two girls, Tayleigh (Grade 4) and Kailena (Grade 2) attended Green School. Leo and I were both raised in Vancouver, but we’ve spent 14 years abroad – 11 years in Hong Kong prior to Bali. When we agreed it was time to return home to Canada, we chose to build a new life here in Whistler among a more like-minded community of family focused, active and outdoorsy people. Our girls are loving trail riding as well as the wide range of other activities here from musical theatre and aerial silks to soccer and tennis. But the truth is, we all cannot wait to get back on skis this winter (although, Leo keeps threatening to dig out his circa 1994 snowboard)!
Leo maintains a sourcing and manufacturing company in Hong Kong, however, while in Bali, as the girls ran a muck in the jungle at Green School, Leo’s entrepreneurial spirit took flight and he a few partners opened Ubud’s first full facility family sports centre, “Titi Batu” named after a historical stone bridge and a nearby sacred holy spring. This allowed Leo to indulge more regularly in his passion for squash and basketball while the girls skateboarded, took hip hop dance and swimming classes. I literally got my ski legs back at the boot camp classes last Autumn. I originally worked in PR and journalism in Vancouver and in Hong Kong, but I now practice as a Registered Holistic Nutritionist. In Bali, I practiced with in-home consults allowing my clients a tailored privacy while investigating the root cause of their health issues. I am really looking forward to getting back to work here in Whistler.
Our eldest, Tayleigh is a big fan of both the visual and dramatic arts making Waldorf a natural fit for her. While our youngest, Kailena is a whizz at math and loves soccer, basketball and tennis. Both learned to ski in Dec 2018 and absolutely love it. As a family we love to travel. Over the past few years, we regularly visited the east and west coasts of Australian and explored New Zealand. Our most memorable trip was in 2018 to Raja Ampat, a protected marine conservation area in Western Papua where we shared a live aboard diving boat with another family and enjoyed two to three dives per day while the children snorkeled above us. However, we are so grateful to be settled back home in Canada now and to avoid jet lag for as many years as possible. The odd drive down to Vancouver is enough of a family adventure for now!
How did you first hear about WWS? – We first heard of WWS from a friend who raved not only about her children’s experience here at WWS, but of her own as well. We immediately identified as it’s so important to us that parents be involved and engaged in the school community and that we have a natural rapport with truly invested teachers. We have experienced this beautiful rapport with WWS since our application process began and have been so impressed and overjoyed with our girls’ teachers and our experience as a family at WWS thus far.
Is there anything that has surprised you at our school? Our girls are probably most surprised to have flush toilets at school after finally getting used to the compost toilets at their former school! They are making great progress being back in the developed world, thankfully! As a family, we have all been pleasantly surprised by how attentive the girls’ teachers have been since our arrival. For our younger daughter, her teacher actually came to our home to meet us and to connect with Kai prior to starting grade 2. This was so meaningful and so thoughtful. The number of check ins and follow up emails from both grade 4 and grade 2 teachers have also been really thorough, and extremely thoughtful with a genuine interest in our girls’ settling in and in their learning. This has meant the world to us as the social – emotional aspect of a new school has really been seamless.
School Bulletin…
- Right Turn Clyde – Sept. 22 @ 11am… Waldorf faculty member Katherine Fawcett and Waldorf parents Harvey Lim, Pierre Richer, Robyn Forsythe and Tony Horn are playing music in Village Square as part of Arts Whistler’s Hear & Now Celebration. Come cheer them on!
- Creekbread Fundraiser – Sept. 24 @ 8:30pm… Help support Grade 9 students Savannah and Zen as they fundraise for their upcoming Karuizawa Sister City exchange trip. (50-50; silent auction; raffle). If there is anyone who would like to donate to the silent auction please contact Savannah.
- Epic SchoolKids Whistler Blackcomb Pack – Registering Now... a FREE program for Canadian and Washington State. It’s available for Kindergartners through Gr. 5 and provides five days of free skiing and riding at Whistler Blackcomb. No purchase necessary! It also includes one free first-timer ski or ride lesson with equipment rental, restrictions apply.
Please join us at for a Community Information Session about our new Spring Creek Early Years Centre opening in November 2019.