Kennedy Bruce

Article by Melissa Di Costanzo
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January 31, 201

Bruce Kennedy has been a photographer since he was 16 years old. The Williamstown resident is hoping hat he'll be able to take his skills to the North Pole by winning an online vote.

Exploring the northern most point of the planet Earth was never on Bruce Kennedy's bucket list.
Until about a month ago. Kennedy, clinical director of mental health at the Ottawa Hospital, has entered into a contest that could win him the trip of a lifetime. He's on a quest to travel to the North Pole.

Kennedy, who lives in Williamstown, has entered into an online competition to become the official blogger and photographer for Quark Expeditions' 20th anniversary trip to
the North Pole. The trip is a $54,000 cruise to the North Pole for two. If he wins, Kennedy will be taking his son, Andrew.
Because of the price tag, Kennedy says this is an adventure he wouldn't have considered doing.

Until he heard about the contest. "I love adventure" he explains
simply as his reason for entering into the contest. "It's a whole different world. You're on top of the world. How many people do that?"

Kennedy is a seasoned traveler. He's hiked in Ireland, climbed the coastal mountains of British Columbia and Machu Picchu. Kennedy has been to Paris, Vienna, Prague and London. He's lived in the Northwest Territories and hiked up mountains alone. .
But a trip to the North Pole would be an experience unlike any other he's ever embarked upon before.

"This is a different adventure" he says. "I don't think I've had a
similar experience. It'll be me against the elements"

Kennedy learned of the contest through a personalized
Facebook message from a stranger asking for votes.
"Twenty-four hours later, I was in the contest;' he says, with
a laugh.

The contest opened at the beginning of December. Kennedy learned of it later in the game, having registered on January 21. The contest closes on Feburary15, which means Kennedy
is eager to spread the word about his goal.

"I want to win," he says. There is going to be 24 hours of sunlight. I'm going to meet people from around the world (the boat holds 128 passengers). I love meeting fellow adventurers. I'll see landscape I'll never have the chance to see again. I'll be taking a polar dip that truly will be a dip. There are no other polar dips
after that. I'll be at the top of the world."

He had never blogged before, until he wrote a 400 word essay about why he is qualified to be Quark's official blogger (you can check that essay out on the website listed at the end of this story). But Kennedy has had experience with photographing - he's been a photographer since he was 16
years old.

If he wins the contest, Kennedy is looking forward to photographing wildlife such as polar bears and walruses. And
he's also interested in the North Pole's landscape, which
is much unlike a city's landscape.

"It's you against you out there;' he says. "Big cities bring a certain charm of attraction. Everything is presented to you:
lights, sound, noise and entertainment. (In the North Pole)
it's how you interpret nature. There's a rawness out there."
As the clock ticks and the contest closure looms, Kennedy says his focus now is to garner more votes. He's planning on taking his story to local media, Ottawa outlets and possibly even national media organizations. He and his wife, Rosalind are also
putting up posters in Martintown, Lancaster, Cornwall and
Williamstown.

Kennedy also has a Facebook page - called "Help get Bruce
Kennedy to the North Pole!" - and business cards which he
plans on handing out to people.

"On a scale of one to 10, I'm a 12 right now," he says. "I'm
absolutely pumped about this." Rosalind smiles.

"He's on the computer, morning, day and night," she
says.

As of Sunday, Kennedy had 214 votes. He was in 28th place,
however, he is the Canadian with the most number of votes
(the person with the most number of votes is from the
United States and, as of Sunday, held 3,073 votes).-

"Come on Canada," he says, with a grin. "Get behind me:'