DaxTigley
High school senior at the DSBN Academy in Niagara, building a web design agency and pursuing my passion for helping the community.
- School
- DSBN Academy, Grade 12
- Based in
- Niagara Region, ON
- Post-secondary plans
- Niagara College, Business
- Running PMC since
- April 2026
Hi, I'm Dax.
I’m a high school senior at the DSBN Academy in Niagara, I’ve lived in Niagara my whole life, so when I say I work with local people, I mean the shop down the road from me.
In April 2026 I started Paragon Media Canada. It came from watching people I know get quoted five figures for a website, or handed one they were never shown how to update. So I do it myself, start to finish, and my number is the one that rings when something goes wrong.
The other thing I run is Niagara Volunteer Opportunities. Every student here needs 40 volunteer hours and nobody tells you where to find them, so I built the site I wish I’d had in Grade 9. It’s free, and it always will be.
The rest of my time goes to my camera, basketball, and the people around me. My friends and family are the reason any of this is fun instead of just work.
Paragon Media CanadaYou run the business. I'll run the website.
I started Paragon Media Canada in April 2026 after watching local trades get quoted five figures for a website, or handed a template nobody ever touched again. That didn’t sit right with me, so I started doing it myself.
It’s just me. I take the first call, I design and build the site, and I’m the one who answers when something breaks. No account manager passing messages to a developer you never meet.
Every price is on the site, starting at $299 to set up and $50 a month. I hated having to ask what things cost, so I don’t make anyone else do it.
“Great value for money, and very easy to make any changes to your website”
- 1The first call
Thirty minutes on the phone about what the business does and what isn’t working online.
- 2Design and build
One to two weeks, with revisions until it’s right.
- 3Launch and support
Hosting, SSL, backups and three content changes a month. You never have to log in.
Transparency
Clients get a portal that shows what I’m working on and when. No mystery invoices, no chasing me for an update.
Respect
For your time, your budget and your customers. If something isn’t worth paying for, I’ll say so.
Innovation
Search keeps changing. I keep up with it so you can get back to running the shop, the truck or the studio.
Sites I've built.
Paragon Media Canada↗
My agency site. Public pricing, a page for each of the 12 Niagara municipalities I serve (St. Catharines to Wainfleet), a blog and a portfolio. Built to rank in local search and get people to call.
Niagara Volunteer Opportunities↗
Matches volunteers with nonprofits across all 12 Niagara municipalities. Mostly students working off their 40 community hours. You can filter by city, age and interest or by a “Counts toward 40 hours” tag, and apply without making an account. There’s a Student Hub with a printable hour log, and every organization gets checked by phone or email before it goes up.
Berardocco Auto↗
Tony Berardocco’s independent shop at 230 Colborne St in Welland, opened August 31, 2026. The site has a symptom picker that routes you to the right service, before-and-after sliders, pages for diagnostics, module programming, electrical and general repair, a booking form, and a phone number you can tap from any screen.
Axel Rodriguez Photography↗
Portfolio for Axel Rodriguez, a student photographer in Niagara who took 1st at Skills NCDSB 2026 and made the top 8 at Skills Ontario. 34 photos in a gallery you can filter by Events, Branding or Sports, plus services, a booking form and his Instagram feed.
Opportunities
I built the page I couldn’t find.
During my high school years, I went looking for multiple opportunities to volunteer, and all I found were scattered Facebook posts. Nothing in one place, and nothing that told you if it would count toward your hours. So I started NVO as a personal project and built the page I couldn’t find.
It covers all of the Niagara Region, from St. Catharines to Fort Erie. It’s free for volunteers and for organizations, and it’s staying that way. No ads and no paid tier.
Currently, I’m in the process of expanding NVO. The listings you can browse are samples I wrote to show how it works. Every organization gets checked by phone or email before its listings go live, and I’m still working through that. If you run a non-profit in Niagara, or you’d like to help run NVO, get in touch.
What Ontario high school students need in community involvement to graduate. You can filter for listings that count.
Niagara municipalities covered, from St. Catharines to Fort Erie.
To post or to apply. You don’t need an account to apply.
The youngest you can apply. Each listing also shows its own minimum age.
If you’re volunteering
- 01Browse
Filter by city, age and interest, or switch on “Counts toward 40 hours”.
- 02Apply
A short form with no account. Your birth year checks you’re 13 or older, and it’s never stored.
- 03Hear back
The organization gets your application by email and contacts you directly.
- 04Log it
Bring a printed hour log for your supervisor to sign, then submit it the way your school board asks.
If you run an organization
- 01Get invited
Ask to join. Every organization is confirmed by phone or email before anything publishes.
- 02Post
Free. Set the minimum age, the schedule and whether it counts toward 40 hours. Police checks and phone numbers stay off unless you turn them on.
- 03Review
Applications come to your email, and your dashboard lists everyone who applied with their answers.
- 04Record
After a shift, mark who showed up and the hours you saw. That register is your own record.
- Every organization confirmed before it goes live
- A report link on every listing
- Free for organizations and volunteers
Competitor for photography at DSBN Skills
In April 2026 I competed for photography at DSBN Skills. I knew going in there were people there who were better than me. I went anyway.
Sadly, I didn’t place. However, I did come away with some of the best shots I’ve taken, and the experience was once in a lifetime and I’m glad I did it. I learned a lot about how to shoot under pressure, and how to get the best out of a subject in a short time.
I’d do it again in a heartbeat. It was a really good opportunity.
Everything else I shoot
Niagara Region, Toronto, and whatever is in front of me.
What I'm listening to.
Music is on for basically everything I do. Building sites, editing photos, driving around Niagara. I’ve always had a lot of respect for the people who make it.
That respect got a lot bigger once I made a song myself. I produced it start to finish, and sitting behind a real console showed me how much goes into one track: the arrangement, the mix, every little level. I listen to everything differently now.
Those are my monthly playlists. Here's what's on right now.
Basketball
Pickup runs, or just shooting around by myself. It’s how I get out of my head.
Friends & family
They get me out of the house and keep me normal. I couldn’t go without them.
Desi
Tibetan Spaniel–Pomeranian mix, short for Destiny. Thinks she runs the house.
Photography
Harbour sunsets, marinas, train tracks, murals, cars. Niagara mostly, Toronto when I can get there.