Few parents react with joy when they learn that their teenage daughter is pregnant but Moya Beedie who had her first child at fifteen wants all parents and others to know that teenage pregnancy can lead to a positive outcome...and her parents agree -- They were the ones that nominated her as this week's Neighbourhood Hero.

Now in her late twenties, Moya was a fifteen year-old NDSS cheerleader when suddenly, to her surprise, she found herself three months pregnant.

"I was so naïve I never thought I could get pregnant," she says looking back.

Although she considered all her options, Moya soon decided to have and keep her baby. She was also determined to continue her high school experience and complete her education - In fact she remained on the cheer leading team until she was five and a half months pregnant.

Moya had always been mature for her age her mother says (and Moya agrees) -- At ten, she was the youngest person in Nanaimo to ever get a baby-sitting certificate -- and she wasn't a "partier". So she was ready, willing and able to become a responsible parent.

Everyone was very supportive both in and out of school, Moya recalls but she remembers walking down the hall and day after day having people looking at her belly instead of her.

"I felt like putting my hand down by my belly and waving at them," she laughed as she recalled that period of her life.

When James was born eleven days before her sixteenth birthday, Moya turned to the Teen Leaning Centre for baby-sitting support so she could continue her studies at NDSS and, although she and her husband lived in a suite in her parent's house for the next year, they insisted on raising James on their own and anyone that knows James today will tell you they did a great job.

It really helps you achieve success if you have a good strong role model and clear goals to work toward. During her high school years Moya kept thinking about her Grade three teacher, Joanne Jobin.

"She was personable, energetic, outgoing and she loved to teach," Moya recalls.

So with Joanne as a role model, Moya decided to be a teacher too and she did what she needed to do to reach that goal while always being a good parent.

Moya Beedie is now a French emersion teacher and she has just returned to her classroom after giving birth to her third child. Here's Moya's advice for teenage girls:

1. If you are gong to have sex, use protection. Don't be as naïve as she was.
2. If you do get pregnant, stay in school.
3. Focus on your child and be a positive role model.
4. Develop clear goals for your future and don't let partying get in your way.
5. Remember there is help out there and don't be afraid to ask for it.

Those who read last week's column will remember that when Candice Robertson got pregnant at 17, she found the support she needed at the Teen Learning Centre. That sounds like a good place for anyone to start.

Candice and Moya were both nominated within hours of one another. It makes me think that "the powers that be" just might know of a few people out there who could use this message.

Today I also want to acknowledge a second Neighbourhood Hero.

I haven't been able to reach Kylee Ryan to get more information about her friend Tammy but I want to at least print the nomination form Kylee sent in because friends like Tammy are important. Here's what Kylee had to say.

"I think Tammy is deserving of the title "nieghbourhood hero" because, even though she definitely has alot of problems of her own, she will always give me a hug or listen to my problems. She even tells me i am her favorite when i am sad."

Thanks for taking the time to nominate your friend Kylee.