When Margaret Holec first emigrated from Poland to Canada 35 years ago, everything she knew about the English language came from secretly listening to Leonard Cohen.
While it was a poetic first taste, it didn't do much for her ability to communicate in a new language – that is – until she enrolled in an English as a second language (ESL) class at St. Clair College.
"English is a tool. It's a beautiful, tremendous tool that can open doors to almost anything. You just have to find it," says Holec, who all these years later is teaching ESL classes at the Unemployed Help Centre Hub of Opportunities. And now, for her continued efforts, she's being honoured with a ‘Sparks of Excellence' Award from the Teachers of English as a Second Language (TESL) Association of Ontario.
Holec received the honour for her "exceptional dedication to learners, colleagues, and her community, setting the standard for excellence in language instruction and assessment," according to TSEL Ontario.
"A consummate educator, leader, and community builder, Margaret Holec brings creativity, compassion, and professionalism to everything she does," reads a release from TSEL. "Her tireless commitment to learners and her vision for inclusive, engaging language education embody the very spirit of the Sparks of Excellence Award."
For Holec, it wasn't Cohen who gave her the confidence to communicate in English. That journey started – and continued – at St. Clair College.
"St. Clair College was really great to get connected, to see people, to get to know people, to realize the potential that is available to me," recalls Holec. "As a newcomer, you don't have any friends from school or people you grew up with. So, to me, that was my first connection with people and building that network."
Holec vividly remembers her teacher, her classmates and even the classroom where she first gained the confidence to communicate in a different language.
After she gained those skills, she enrolled in the Nursing program at St. Clair College, which led to a job as a nurse.
But Holec felt a pull back to the conduit of her confidence.
"I remember every moment of that, how I felt seeing that ESL teacher, and how much I wanted to be a teacher," says Holec, who went to teacher's college back in Poland. She so desperately wanted to be that change agent for others and armed with a growing command of the English language, finally felt like she could do it.
"One day I said, you know what, I don't want to be a nurse anymore. Now I have enough strength and power to change it and to do different things, and that's how everything started," she says.
Over the past 20 years, Holec made a name for herself locally, helping newcomers fine-tune their English to help them open their own doors and possibilities.
"How privileged am I, doing what I like and hopefully making a difference in my students lives," she says. "My classroom is not really about teaching English. It's really for them to find out that there are people who believe in them and give them that strength that you can do whatever you want – that it is possible. And I think that's what teaching is all about."\
Holec has been volunteering with TESL Windsor since 2025, serving as vice president and president, strengthening the professional community through inspired leadership, dynamic events, and expanded outreach.
"Thank you to TESL, to UHC – Hub of Opportunities, and to my family. Together, we have built a tremendous network of people who believe in second chances, second languages, and second homes," says Holec, who aspires to extend her love of those things she holds dear to others who follow in her footsteps.
"This about rebuilding your life in different ways," she says. "When you arrive here (in Canada), sometimes you are just like a person who is mute. And my job is to give them that voice that can help them to find a job, to do whatever they want, to communicate, to express themselves, to find beauty in English."
Holec has founded a youth group for newcomer children and is a co-host of the ‘What's Up Windsor' radio program on CJAM-FM.
"English: whenever you need it, it's there for you," she says. "Whether it's in a conversation, in listening, or in understanding other people, it just allows you to live your life so much fuller and so much deeper than without it."
"It really feels like I've come full circle: from mute and confused, to confident and proud."
