From playing with Hot Wheels to driving hot wheels
Roy Twinn shares his CPA journey and passion for fast cars
Roy Twinn CPA was fueled by a different kind of drive to achieve his CPA designation. Since he can remember, he has been passionate about and fascinated by fast cars. In school, he longed to own a Subaru WRX STi. “It’s what drove me. I have a vision and knew the only way to get there was to work on myself—and that’s what a CPA [designation] has helped me do,” says Roy.
Today, Roy owns that WRX STi—more specifically, a 400-wheel horsepower 2016 WRX STi. Just a few of the long list of modifications Roy’s made include adding a large twin-scroll turbo, a twin-plate clutch that will put any leg day to shame, titanium exhaust, and TE37 wheels. “I’m not playing Hot Wheels now,” says Roy. “I’m driving the hot wheels.”
In addition to his love for fast cars, Roy is a proud member of the Sawridge First Nation and is currently a Corporate Controller at the Sawridge Group of Companies, a company founded by the Sawridge Cree First Nation of Slave Lake, Alberta.
Roy is driven to give back to the youth of Sawridge First Nation. “If I can change their path for the better, that’s all I need,” he says. “When I’m gone, it’s going to be them.”
He shares his knowledge, expertise, and experience with his First Nation and gives back without limitation—values that are deeply rooted in his culture and upbringing. “It’s my culture. It’s embedded in my values and teachings from the First Nation,” says Roy. “You take from the land, [and] you give back; you take the knowledge you gained, and you give it back to your community. When they have a question, you can have the answer.”
However, it hasn’t always been smooth sailing for Roy to get to a place where he felt he had something to offer to his community. In school, Roy wasn’t a straight-A student. “I felt bad for not getting high marks, but they got me to where I am today,” says Roy. “Even during the CPA [Professional Education] Program, there were failures, but I had to pick myself up and learn from them and see what I needed to do next time.”
Without a doubt, Roy picked himself up. Earlier this year, he was a CPA Alberta Early Achievement Award recipient, and although the award took him by surprise, he’s humble about his achievement. “I don’t praise myself,” he says. “The acknowledgement within the profession is encouraging, and it’s just the beginning.”
Roy tells students and aspiring CPAs: “If I can do it, you can do it too. Just apply. Put in the effort, fill out the forms, and be there. It’s going to be worth it in the end. It may seem gloomy, and it may seem like you are putting in too much, but you have it. It’ll be worth it.”