Catrin Merrit is only in Grade 7, but she’s already exhibited a knack for both literacy and music.
Earlier this month, Merrit entered into a literary contest at the Fernie Academy, coming out on top and winning a guitar. But she didn’t win the guitar for herself. Merrit selflessly donated her winning prize to her friend.
“I don’t play guitar, so it wouldn’t have been much use for me, but my friend and I write songs and perform them, so I thought I might enter the contest for her to win it,” Merrit said, adding that her friend recently had her guitar broken by one of her six siblings. “She has a very musical family and she needed a guitar…we keep having to borrow them from the school.”
The contest required Merrit to incorporate her literary talent into writing a letter. Merrit said she used this opportunity to write a letter addressing her passion for music and her desire to replace her friends broken guitar.
The Fernie Academy student said after winning the guitar for her friend Kyrsten Johnson, Johnson wrote her a thank you song.
“After I won her the guitar, she went home and wrote a song for me,” she said.
Merrit emphasized that the two girls often write songs that reflect their life experiences.