Boredom is sweeping the nation. Don't let it sweep you. If you're suffering from boredom, we have the remedy. It's called participation.

Work on your slam dunk, volunteer, read a book, go to the museum, join a youth group, get social... there are tons of fun things to do. If you have this affliction, it's time to do something about it. Read more.

Teens in Ontario are some of the biggest readers in the world! Get inspired by checking out our new profiles of some of Canada's best writers for young people.

• Kelley Armstrong
• Natale Ghent
• Paul Kropp
• Willow Dawson
• Gordon Korman
• Courtney Summers
• Cecil Castellucci
• Jocelyn Shipley

Our names: Gillian Carmichael and Alana MacLeod, 18-year-olds, from Brockville

Our story: “At the end of rugby season last year, we got into wakeboarding to keep fit. We talked to our friends and someone said, “The river is just for rich kids.” That gave us the idea to start a club so that all kids could wakeboard there.

We started by doing all the paperwork for registration, liability, insurance and let everyone know about the club through news releases and word of mouth. Gillian’s dad drove the boat for us. We planned to wakeboard thrice a week but too many kids showed up on the first day! So we ended up running the program five times a week. Last summer, 82 people between the ages of 5 and 25 were part of the club.

The club is a great way to stay active and also to keep kids out of trouble. Everyone in Brockville has supported us. We want to give kids from Brockville the opportunity to become professional wake boarders. So, we organized a clinic with a pro-wake boarder who shared his tips and also had a “wake-fest” competition to create awareness about the sport. Our management team of eight people is working on fund-raising right now.”

Learning experience: “We never realized how much planning goes into an event. We had a huge relay from Cornwall to Kingston along the St. Lawrence River which raised $3,000 but there was so much to organize. We also held an auction to raise money. The most important thing we learnt is to find reliable people who really help out.”

Get inspired: “People underestimate the power of youth. We were just sitting around and came up with the idea for a club. You can do anything you want. All you have to do is set your mind to it, focus on your goal and work towards it.”

At present, Gillian and Alana are considering post-secondary education next term but are busy planning events for their club. You can check out the Wakeboarding Club of Brockville for more details or their Facebook page.