October 17th, 2017

Captivating all the students attention, Ben Fanelli came to PKM this week.  Ben life story was one that resonated with many of the hockey playing students at Park Manor.  At the age of 16, he was in the OHL with many saying he was headed to the pros.  A routine puck retrieval spun Ben Fanelli’s life into an entirely new direction.  After a diagnosis of a concussion and told that he would never play hockey again, Ben had a decision to make.  What was his life going to amount to?  Ben shared his journey about how a person can shift from one dream to creating another.

His message was one of fitness, optimism, mental well-being and importance of mindfulness to manage stress.

You could have heard a pin drop as Ben had all 215 students silently participating in a mindful moment.

Ben Fanelli runs a not-for-profit organization call “Do 40 Fitness”.  The proceeds that he makes from this business allows him to come to schools like ours, work with individuals with disabilities, seniors or with disadvantage individuals individually. His plan is simple, 25 minutes of exercise, 10 minutes of and 5 minutes of mindfulness.

We are thankful for the opportunity to have such a positive role model speak to our students about choices, hard work and healthy life balance.