Volume 87 Issue 4

The Pepperbox

March EDITOR’S BOX

When we began this issue, our goal was to interview only those deemed phenomenal in this community, but we soon realized that the wall-flowers in our society have just as interesting a story as those placed in the spotlight. Thus, the selection of profiles in this issue are a combination of the two: both the unrecognized and celebrated people in our community. In each interview, our reporters reached far beyond the confines of Arcata High; they immersed themselves in their subjects’ lives and worked diligently to unveil their stories. We hope you become as inspired as we are by these everyday people with extraordinary tales.

-Editors-in-Chief Zoe Ziegler and Gillen Martin and Managing Editor Sara Davis

Want to advertise or buy a mail subscription to the Pepperbox? Email Business Manager Alyssa Day at ahs.pepperbox@gmail.com!

Follow us on Twitter: @ahspepperbox Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/AHSPepperbox Visit us on the web: www.thepepperbox.com

EDITORIAL STAFF Gillen Martin Editor-In-Chief Zoe Ziegler Editor-In-Chief Sara Davis Managing Editor Terra Clarke News Editor Kaelyn Tuermer-Lee News Editor Hannah Finley Feature Editor Alley Perry Feature Editor Neel Rao Sports Editor Craig Broadman Sports Editor CJ Gray Opinion Editor

Ryan Ghisetti A&E Editor Carson McHaney Art Director Alyssa Day Business Manager Izzy Ensminger Online Editor Claire Robinson Copy Editor Alec Perrone Executive Producer Bodie Yonts Assistant Producer Indigo Davis Photo Editor Jesse Bareilles Assistant Photo Editor Caitlyn Patterson Social Media Director

REPORTERS Mozara Abdalla Amanda Andrews Scott Ballinger Taylor Camp Isaiah DuFresne Marlena Tavernier

Darik Gaston Emma Harris Gabe Hunt Isabel Luu Ellen Keil Claire Rockwood

Anna Nelson Solo O’Neill Triston Pigg Josh Winter Peter Shao

The Pepperbox would like to thank Western Web, based in Samoa, for printing at-cost. Western Web supports student journalism throughout Humboldt County and has made publications like the Pepperbox possible for decades. We appreciate their dedication to keeping print media alive.

Western Web

IN THE BOX Adam Huschle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Kieran Hayden. . . . . . . . . . 4 & 5 Andy Salatnay. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Matt Beard. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Big Al. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Jasper Sawatzky . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Michael MK. . . . . . . . . . . 10 & 11 Maggie Fleming. . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Mark Salamunovich. . . . . . . . 13 Dick Taylor. . . . . . . . . . . . 14 & 15 Piakai Henkel. . . . . . . . . .16 & 17 Poloma HT. . . . . . . . . . . . .18 & 19 Westin McHaney. . . . . . . . . . .20 Christian Legaspi. . . . . . . . . . . 21 Shelby Naish. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Dylan Diemer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Connor Cox. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Betty Chin. . . . . . . . . . . . 26 & 27

Questions regarding editorial content of the Pepperbox should be directed toward its editors. Opinions expressed in this paper are not necessarily those of Arcata High School.

Adviser Danielle Lehman

Friday, March 6th, 2015

People

The Pepperbox | Page 3

Adam Huschle: a striking individual Ellen Keil Reporter

S

lippery floors, lustrous balls, an oversized calloused right thumb, and Adam Huschle; perhaps the best bowler at Arcata High, more like in Humboldt County. On a Tuesday night, fellow pepperbox reporter, Hannah Finley and I walked into the Blue Lake bowling alley to witness his expertise and compete against him in just one game (two against one) while simultaneously talking to him about his bowling career and other hobbies. As we walked in Adam was already there finishing up a game while waiting for us. He said he had already bowled seven games, which we thought was an unfair advantage since we had no time to warm up. We put on our bowling shoes, picked out a ball, and we were ready to play. With the old fashioned juke box blaring 80’s rock, it felt like a night filled with good vibes.

About eight years ago, sophomore Adam Huschle was just another kid having birthday parties at the bowling alley with his friends. Soon his mom began to notice his real passion for the sport.

Shortly after he was added as the newest member of the Humboldt Bowling Club. To this day he continues to practice his hobby and competes in many large tournaments out of the area. His high score is a 279; his goal: 300. He has received over $3000 of college scholarships from bowling, and as only a 10th grader, it’s safe to say he is striking his way to success.

Just last summer, Adam made it to Nationals as an individual at the Reno National Bowling Stadium.

“Were you nervous at all going into Nationals?”

“No not at all, I was frickin’ pumped! Everyone else was taking it super serious,” exclaimed Adam.

“So what was the National Bowling Alley like?”

“The bowling alley was huge, it had four stories and was six times bigger than the bowling alleys in Humboldt.”

To this day he continues to practice his hobby and compete in many large tournaments out of the area.

His best score he’s ever bowled is a 279; his goal: 300.

Not only did he qualify for this event, but in his age group he placed tenth in the nation, competing against just under 400 bowlers. means he is thetenth best bowler in the nation who is twenty one or younger. Impressive is an understatement.

Although bowling has always come easily to Adam, none of his achievements could have come to be without determination and practice.

“I play about seventeen or eighteen games per week usually,” Adam declared.

You can always find him at the Blue Lake Bowling Alley striking away and keeping score for other League Bowlers. He usually plays about six or seven games by himself after the league bowlers finish.

“It’s a pretty interesting night.

There’s a lot of drunk bowlers cussing out the pins. I find it amusing.”

Adam is not exactly set on what he wants to do in college but he would certainly like to go somewhere to play on a bowling team and pursue his bowling career.

Ellen Keil/PEPPERBOX

Chances are, Adam Huschle will stike out more than once at the Blue Lake Blowing Alley.

The Pepperbox | Page 4

People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

Kieran Hayden and the singular they Sonia Copple Reporter

A

HS students are hasty to congratulate themselves on the school’s openminded atmosphere. I, too, have always felt that as far as high schools go, I’d be hardpressed to find a more accepting or nurturing environment. So when I sat down outside the taco truck on 10th Street to interview Kieran Hayden, I guessed that this article might be a reaffirmation of what is already known, accepted, and even celebrated on the AHS campus. But Kieran’s recounting of their high school experience led me to the conclu-

sion that despite Arcata High’s predominantly tolerant student body, at least one demographic is still marginalized and misunderstood.

If you were reading carefully, you might have noticed that I referred to Kieran as “they,” instead of using the more accepted pronouns “he” or “she.” Of course, we often do this when we’re talking about a hypothetical person of either gender (for example, “Someone else got the job, but I don’t know what their name is”). It’s no different in this case, except that we do know Kieran’s gender identity and it happens to be “non-binary,” a descriptor which applies to anyone who doesn’t identify as male or female and chooses to go by alternate, gender-neutral pronouns. Non-binary people fall under the broader category of “transgender,” describing anyone whose gender identity is different from the sex they were assigned at birth.

For people who do identify with their assigned birth sex, these concepts are hard to fully understand. “Gender is constantly on my mind,” said former AHS student Firefly (Mary Kate) Mizera. “For most people, thoughts of gender identity always live in the subconscious. But for trans people, it’s a huge weight on our shoulders.”

Arcata High junior Ezra Vega described how being transgender has affected him emotionally, since he always knew he didn’t belong in the “girly” clothing his parents made him wear. He said, “My parents thought I had a mood disorder be-

cause I was always angry or upset.” These struggles are commonly shared by transgender youth worldwide. In fact, according to a national survey, more than 40 percent of transgender people in the U.S. have attempted to commit suicide due to alienation from society and from their own bodies. Mizera described this alienation, saying, “Instead of thinking about ‘normal’ things, I’ll sit there and think about how confusing it is that my body doesn’t match the way I see myself. It’s a lens through which I view the world.”

It was last summer that Kieran

for transgender members. When Kieran speaks about this, they retain a nonchalant attitude toward the matter, claiming that speaking up for themselves is often “more of a hassle than it’s worth.” But their voice betrays an underlying hurt.

Unfortunately, disregarded identity is not the most immediate of Kieran’s problems. Kieran has had ice, eggs, and lit fireworks thrown at them from a moving car just outside the high school on three separate occasions. “I don’t know if it’s because I’m transgender or if it’s just random acts of violence,” Kieran said. “I don’t

For most people, thoughts of gender identity always live in the subconscious. But for trans people, it’s a huge weight on our shoulders.

-Firefly Mizera officially came out as non-binary and changed their name from “Kirsten” to “Kieran.” Currently, the only teacher who actually calls Kieran by their preferred pronouns (they, them, their, theirs) is Ms. Angles, who commented, “It’s still hard. I still catch myself.

But I really want to be respectful.”

Apart from Ms. Angles, Kieran is constantly misgendered by teachers– one teacher even refuses to acknowledge their name change– and only about 10 students consistently use Kieran’s preferred pronouns. And school isn’t the only place where their identity has been disregarded. Even the roller derby association with which they are affiliated was designed for an all-female populace and has “really intrusive hormone requirements”

know if it’s for a certain reason.

But it makes me feel like it is.” And their fears are valid, because violence against transgender people is disproportionately high. Over 2,000 incidents of anti-LGBTQ violence were recorded in the United States in 2013, and this number only reflects the small percentage of cases that were reported and legally substantiated.

Of course, the greatest tragedy is too commonplace and insidious to calculate: because transgender people are so commonly marginalized, they face a continual struggle to simply exist as themselves. Mizera said, “When people make assumptions about my gender by looking at me or listening to my voice, such a large part of my brain and heart are be-

Friday, March 6th, 2015 ing disregarded. And that stings.”

Beyond their gender identity, Kieran can also be defined by their impressive portfolio of activism-based art, their ability to maneuver through a rink of bloodthirsty roller-skaters, and their endearing affinity for hammerhead sharks. But when they are misgendered by classmates, teachers, and strangers– all of which occur on a daily basis– it seems as though the essence of their identity is being written off.

So what can the typical AHS student do to make our school a more inclusive place? “Ask someone’s pronouns if you’re not sure,” Kieran advised. “Don’t ask intrusive questions about surgery or hormones or genitals. People seem to think that transphobia is harmless, and that using the wrong pronouns or making transphobic jokes isn’t a huge deal. But it all goes into this culture where it’s okay to dehumanize trans people.”

Overall, though, Kieran seemed optimistic that AHS students are heading in the right direction. “I’ve noticed that a couple more people have been using my pronouns and that’s awesome. It makes your day when someone does. It’s just like...” Kieran straightened up and jokingly puffed out their chest.

Then they added, more seriously, “It’s like having your identity be valid instead of just being erased.”

Right as we finished the interview, a scraggly transient holding a cigarette stumbled up to our table. “Can I just say, though,” he slurred, “you ladies are beautiful.”

Immediately I looked at Kieran, curious how they might react to being called a “lady,” especially by this lovely gentleman caller. Kieran’s shrug seemed to say, Whatever, I’m used to this. Discouraged by our silence, the guy started to leave. Then he turned around again to say, “I didn’t really hear that whole gender thing. So you can tell me how sexist I am for pointing out the fact that you’re ladies,” and promptly walked away.

People

The Pepperbox | Page 5

Carson McHaney/PEPPERBOX

The Pepperbox | Page 6

People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

Andy Salatnay: twenty-four hour trainer Kaelyn Tuermer-Lee News Editor

&

Terra Clarke

E

News Editor

at, sleep, train. Wait, scratch the first two. It’s six in the morning when the tired high school students arrive for their workout. Andy Salatnay, however, has been already been up for three hours. He greets the athletes with an enthusiastic smile and the typical, “Hey chica, what’s up?” The groggy clients, still half asleep, manage to make their way across the gym to the squat rack, where they begin their torturous workout of the morning. All the while, Andy presents a newfound inspiration and motivation for the athletes, persistently reminding them to never quit.

Accepting myself on days when I don’t achieve my goals. But those are the days that test you and make you a stronger person

- Andy Salatnay When we walk into the gym, it’s quiet enough to hear our footsteps. As we open the door, we see Andy anxiously eyeing the clock, preparing for the daily routine. He shuffles around the gym, organizing the equipment to the sound of his swishing sweats, as his large biceps threaten to burst out of his sleeves. His baby blue eyes sparkle with the promise of a tough training session. We set down our stuff and approach the whiteboard that contains our rigorous workout. As we begin our warm-ups, Andy carries out genuine conversation; he asks us about school, as any parental figure would. When the train-

ing begins, Andy’s mere presence helps us overcome our doubts.

Growing up in Crescent City, Andy enveloped himself in the surrounding nature. As an energetic child, he loved to mountain bike with his brother. Despite his athletic ability, Andy did not participate in organized sports until his junior year of high school. He fell in love with soccer and continued to play varsity for the remainder of his high school career. Enjoying the physical aspect of athletics, he desired to become either a firefighter or a personal trainer, choosing the latter in order to help other people on a more personal level.

Wanting to experience a new environment, Andy moved south to Las Vegas, where he would find himself a changed man. When you first think of Las Vegas, you picture the “sin city” where people seem to lose their clothes and money with every step. However, Andy embraced the city as a way to expand upon the horizon of personal training. At age seventeen, Salatnay enlisted in the delayed entry program for the Air Force.

After being accepted at 18, he served for six years. “Being in the Air Force allowed me to focus on goals bigger than myself. It helped me to have discipline to stay focused and achieve success.” Upon returning from the Air Force, Andy opened up a gym in Las Vegas. Tired of the façade of Las Vegas, he decided to get back to his hometown and make an impact in the Humboldt County community.

“The best thing about being a personal trainer is being able to connect with the person, make them feel comfortable, and help them to achieve their goals,” Salatnay said. Andy currently shares his gym space with Personal Trainer John Schmidt, who he claims to have a very “cohesive and symbiotic” relationship

Andy Salatnay/PEPPERBOX

Andy flies through the air to save the ball that’s heading towards the top right corner. with. “I’ve known Andy for about advice for others who are trainfour or five years,” Schmidt said, ing is to never give up. I know it “He is a good communicator and sounds corny, but keep moving foris very outgoing and positive. His ward and be passionate about it.” clients want to do what Andy And with that, we walked asks--they want to please him.” out of the gym as he reAndy is in popular demand with turned to his 24/7 routine.

45 to 50 regular clients who train two to three times per week. “He’s Andy’s 5 steps to success: meticulous,” Schmidt said, “the most focused and knowledgeable *Believe in yourself and in personal trainer I’ve ever met.” your actions, so that the Many feel they are too busy or goal you set out to achieve not motivated enough to spend will be accomplished. the necessary time to improve themselves. However, this is not *Know that you may not necesthe case with Andy. “I desire to always prove myself--to overcome sarily have the knowledge, skill the challenges in front of me every set, and resources currently to day, every week, every year.” Al- achieve your goals, but every though Andy may come off as a su- day set out with the mindset you perhuman, he has hurdles to over- need to accomplish your goals. come, much like the rest of us. His toughest obstacle faced is “accept- *Surround yourself with others ing myself on days when I don’t who challenge you to be better. achieve my goals. But those are the days that test you and make you a *Do not entertain detractors. stronger person.” Maybe that’s the reason he enjoys working with his clients: to see the look of joy and *Desire to truly help people by pleasure on their faces after they getting to know who they are by have just overcome the challenges allowing yourself to be genuine in their way, knowing that they and vulnerable in their presence. can continue independently. “My

Friday, March 6th, 2015

The Pepperbox | Page 7

People

Delving beneath the Beard Ryan Ghisetti A&E Editor

I

f he's not hanging ten on a surfboard, Matt Beard will be hanging art pieces in a gallery. In the Neighborhood Board Shop in the round tin building on Alliance Road nestled between surfers and their boards, the sound of steel drums circumvent the walls along with the atmosphere of equanimity pulsing through the veins. A path of surfboards leads you into a gallery. Art pieces line the walls and the faint smell of paint lingers in the air.

From the first impression of Matt Beard, his manly physique and well-groomed beard might intimidate you. But the second he begins to discuss surfing and art, a large grin appears from his beard.

One thing that sets Matt apart from other artists is he is one of a select few that does live painting. While a band plays, he paints a piece of art to how the music makes him feel. Beard attempts to match his brushstrokes to the beat of the music and at the end of the band's two hour set he produces an entire finished piece of art that is typically auctioned off to someone in the crowd. Matt thought back to his first time delving into this medium of art, “The first time I did live painting for an audience was in 2013 with the band Lik’wefi. It was New Year’s Eve at Arcata Theatre Lounge and, like life, I just jumped in and did it.” Mu-

sic is an auditory experience, but at one of Matt’s shows he translates what you hear into a tangible piece of art right before your eyes.

Matt has gumptious energy and an infectious laugh. This was especially prevalent when he discussed one of his favorite and most defining moments in his art career, live painting for a crowd while a childhood hero and famous surfer Tom Curren played music. “Tom

magazines, newspapers and yearbooks all of which have published Matt's work. To say Matt Beard is a big deal would be an understatement. Beard has been published not only locally and nationally, but also internationally. This worldrenowned artist has a large following from the surfing community for being able to capture the emotion behind waves. One of the highest acknowledgements Beard

Carson McHaney/PEPPERBOX

Curren and Matt Costa are playing music. Painting with them was a trip to me, from the time I was ten years old he [Tom Curren] was a hero and here I am 39 painting and he's sitting there playing and keeps looking back at me and keeps saying ‘hey guys check out this painting’ and im like thinking this is Tom Curren talking about me painting,” Matt said, still smiling from the experience.

Tucked in a corner of the Beard Art studio lies a stack of books,

has received as an artist has been being featured in Surfer's Journal, which profiles only one artist an issue. Matt was shocked to find out he was going to be published.

"I went to surfers and asked them to capture what surfing means to them. So that way the project had a real human element and had the credibility of being someone's moment. I had three done and went down south, I was told that I needed to tighten them up and it would be up to two years till I was print-

ed. But when I got back home I saw that I had a message on my answering machine and they [Surfer’s Journal] gave me pages and I had to have them done quickly.”

What separates Matt from other artists is that his art blends realism and his personal artistic curved style to create a wonderful piece.

“Art reflects a person's life. When it’s honest is when it’s best. Surfing is a big part of my life. I can paint landscapes without waves because I'm human but there is a hook that the beauty of nature brings me in.

Waves on a good day draw me in.

Its pretty fun,” Beard explained.

Above all, what truly separates Matt Beard is his humble beginnings as a college student. Moving up North to attend Humboldt State University and getting his first job as an artist for Humboldt Surf Company after they discovered his art on a flyer asking people for rides to the beach so he could surf. Since then, Beard has worked hard to be a self-sustaining artist with his work being featured on logos, buildings, and he even has a bus wrapped entirely in his art as an add for Fertile World. Matt keeps true to his surfing roots that brought him notoriety, and explains that “water to most artist look like noise, but to a surfer it’s music.” Staying true to himself and his self-effacing nature translates as an artist, husband, and father. Matt lives his life knowing that, like the waves, if you miss the first set another will be coming to catch a ride on.

Visit www.mattbeardart.com to view more of Matt Beard’s Art

Art Courtesty of Matt Beard

The Pepperbox | Page 8

People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

The man behind the sign Terra Clarke News Editor

H

e’s holding a cardboard sign that reads, “have a nice day” with a smiley face. Besides the beard and the cigarette, his face mirrors the one on his sign. Behind an abundance of facial hair and the brim of a baseball cap his bright eyes peek out. Big Al, in his endless number of layers, seems to blend in as a permanent appendage of the busy street corner.

As we talk, people stop at the corner, and stare nervously at Big Al, then me, then Big Al again. As a teenage girl, this starts to make me uncomfortable, but why? Could it be because of the way us teenagers seem to stereotype everyone at first glance. Too often I find myself looking at old homeless men, like Big Al, and immediately assuming that they’re creepy and just want money for booze. His rough, dirty hands willingly reach out to take the warm breakfast burrito I offer him before I bravely set out to find the true story of this enigmatic man.

How old are you?

“Sixty” What’s your name?

“My real name?”

Yes, your real name.

He shakes his head… “Big Al” Big Al has been a permanent resident of the same corner as long as anyone can remember, but his official time of arrival was 4th of July 1999. His life began in Southern Humboldt outside Shelter Cove, near a “little hillbilly” town called Welch’s Gulch.

He has spent most of his life in Humboldt County, ironically, because of what deters most people:

the lack of sun. Big Al experiences sun-induced migraines, making Arcata prime real estate for him.

Despite Big Al being engraved into the minds of locals as the epitome of homelessness, he is not currently homeless. He has been living in a seventeen foot travel trailer at the Mad River Rapids RV park since this last New Year’s.

He lives here with his dog, Sophia. When asked about Sophia, Big Al’s face seemed to light up.

“She’s the love of my life. Ya she’s a sweetheart.” He said, “If I didn’t have her I wouldn’t feel right, so she helps a lot. Especially on a bad day, she helps a whole lot.”

After listening to Big Al talk about the type of food Sophia has to eat in her old age, I began to forget that I was speaking to a man standing on a corner depending on the kindness of others for his survival. He seemed just like a regular man over sixty with an affinity for dog culture. It’s clear that Big Al loves his dog, but it also seems that his love for his four legged

Eighty percent of the people are good people and twenty percent are bigots, and you can’t let them bother you cause that’s just the way people are. They either love you or they hate you.

- Big Al

Terra Clarke/PEPPERBOX

Big Al maintains his usual position on the corner of 17th and G streets. sweetheart makes us more similar than I thought we were. “I like animal people,” he said, “They’re good people; they have responsibilities. It’s like having a kid, you’ve got to take care of your kid.”

Although Big Al has a loving relationship with his canine friend, he doesn’t feel the same way about all people. Big Al has had problems with law enforcement in the past, but he says he doesn’t have a problem with the police themselves, it’s the people who call the cops on him that upset him. “Citizens call on you ‘cause that’s how they get off, I mean they actually get off by calling the cops on people … like I say, the good people are good and the bad people are bad.”

Once people call the police about something, they are forced to come check it out, but otherwise they don’t bother Big Al. Right on cue, a police man pulls up to the stop sign and nods his head at me before continuing on his way. Even the police know that Big Al is an iconic member of our society who

has become, in our own Arcatian way, a respected celebrity of the community with a great point of view on life. “Eighty percent of the people are good people and twenty percent are bigots, and you can’t let them bother you cause that’s just the way people are. They either love you or they hate you.”

As I return to my rightful place on the other side of the sign, the world is altered and I walk away with a newfound respect for what and who the man behind the sign is. I have found out what life is like for someone who has so little, but who is also so positive about his current situation. My preconceived notions have left me with the raw reality of the human condition. No stereotypes or labels, just the disposition of a unique and commendable member of our community. My first impressions have been shattered, but I don’t know if I will ever truly know who Big Al is. Before he is out of sight Big Al says, “don’t take any offense, I don’t tell anyone my real name.”

Friday, March 6th, 2015

People

The Pepperbox | Page 9

Jasper Sawatsky: a man of many battles Alley Perry Feature Editor

I

magine walking into a building full of people with lives significantly more interesting than yours, people whose experiences could fill an extensive and intriguing book trilogy, where yours could make a decent pamphlet, maybe. Now imagine doing this blindfolded. I had no idea what to expect when I walked into Timber Ridge. In fact, I had no idea who I was even going to end up interviewing. Luckily for me, it was Jasper.

1924, a historic year of beginnings; New York City holds the first ever Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the original Winter Olympic Games are held in Chamonix France, and the event most pertinent, Jasper Sawatzky is born to a conservative Mennonite family in Kansas.

Somehow, 90 years later, Jasper is here, at Timber Ridge in Mckinleyville, California. He holds in one hand a Coca Cola, the red metal can whose style and design has changed almost as much as he has since 1924. Jasper Sawatzky is a man of many battles; not only did he fight in the second World War, but he faced the psychological trauma that followed, and won the fight for his sweetheart Rose.

“My wife died last year, Rose Sawatzky was her name,” he told me. Both German speakers, Mennonites, and eager to travel the world, Rose and Jasper met after his service in the military at Tabor College in Kansas. Rose and Jasper’s love story sounds as if it’s right out of a swoon-worthy romance novel.

In fact, according to friends of the pair, he wrote a short self-published book entirely about Rose.

“I was successful in wooing my wife, [even though] she had a boyfriend for a year and I thought

for sure that they were gonna get married. I was afraid to ask her for a date because she seemed to be into this guy, but I liked her, and I could sense that she liked me too.”

Jasper didn’t let the apparent unavailability of Rose hinder his affections. He used their common interests, the school choir, and passion for education to bond further with his future wife. Though Rose’s boyfriend had already proposed, Rose, only 19 at the time, had turned him down saying that she was too young. “[Rose’s boyfriend], he was a big guy, like me, and even more handsome, if you could imagine.” Rose agreed to go on a date with Jasper to a choir performance, Jasper recalls the date going rather well, and ending with a shared ice-cream sundae.

On the second outing, a strategic double date to borrow a friends’ car, Jasper made his biggest move yet.

Jasper and Rose sat in the backseat of a ‘36 Ford, the date was coming to an end as the car pulled up to Rose’s dorm. Jasper made the life changing snap decision to sneak a quick kiss before Rose had to leave.

Rose was shocked at Jasper’s boldness. “You didn’t ask me to kiss you,” she told him.

“Then I’ll return the kiss,” Jasper told her, before kissing her again.

This time Rose kissed Jasper back, “I broke the ice, I could’ve said ‘Oh, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to offend you’ but I’m not that type, and so eventually I won the game, I won [Rose].”

A WWII veteran, Jasper gives a face and a voice to the brave soldiers we learn about in history books. Before meeting Rose, Jasper was first drafted and given a job in communications, until November of 1944 when he was placed on the frontlines “dodging bullets and whatever.”

Last September, when visiting a former exchange student that had

once stayed with Rose and himself, Jasper retraced some of his steps from the battles he had fought in WWII. “I wanted to find the gravestone that I’d hidden behind, because we were trapped in the middle of the city in the graveyard, and the German snipers were shooting down from the apartment buildings up high, and we were like sitting ducks. The guys in front of me were getting hit like crazy, and yelling and screaming, I dived behind a huge gravestone and I heard the bullets hitting it, but I knew then I still wasn’t safe.”

Jasper’s war stories may sound like a scene out of a blockbuster biopic, but to the people like him that actually lived these moments, they can leave scars, many of which aren’t physically visible. “By the end of the war I was an emotional wreck. In WWII they didn’t consider the psychological impact on a person as much as they did the physical, as a result I was sent to an American hospital in France, after I couldn’t function anymore; I couldn’t sleep, I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t do anything. I was in really bad shape.”

The traumatizing effects of war unfortunately continue to follow Jasper to this day, but he didn’t let it stop him from continuing h i s suc-

cessful life. After leaving college and marrying Rose, the pair began their teaching careers at a high school in their home state of Kansas.

They taught there nine years until Jasper said to Rose, “I don’t know if can handle this much longer.”

“Well lets try something else,” Rose suggested.

“She had a personality very much like mine, she was a ‘here we go’ type,” he said. So the two trekked to California with their two adopted children Kay and Kent. Eventually, the Sawatzky family moved to Humboldt, where Jasper spent 30 years teaching at HSU. Rose taught at Arcata High, until she grew tired of the position and started an Antiques business in Blue Lake. The couple has traveled to six continents, and traveled overseas, not including Hawaii, more than 70 times.

Throughout his impressive 90 years of life, Jasper’s love for learning hasn’t faltered, “Get as much education as you can, and do it early before you have a family.”

Everyday Jasper works on his autobiography, a project that his daughter Kay has been helping him with. The book should be finished within a month, and will detail all of Jaspers many battles, and incredible victories.

Often I bounce between the idea that life is too short, or that I might not contain enough zeal to live a fulfilled life. Talking with Jasper, I realized that my frequent existential crises were unnecessary. As cliche as it sounds, everyone has an interesting story if you stop to ask, and as I walk out of Timber Ridge, shaking Jasper’s hand before I left, I know this is true.

The Pepperbox | Page 10

People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

‘Started from the bottom, now we here’ Solo O’Neill Reporter

Y

ou may know him as the guy with the long brown hair, always smiling and laughing, but Michael Martin-Kunkle wasn’t always this

way. When he was just a middle schooler, Michael got into a bad way with some worse people. Michael’s journey is one of spiralling tragedy and inspiring perseverance.

During his three years of middle school, Michael attended over six middle and continuation schools. When asked why he moved from school to school so much Michael responded, “Who said I was kicked out? I didn’t.” He then paused and replied, “Just kidding, I got kicked out.” With this,

he let out his signature laugh.

The beginning of his fall from grace began when Michael was suspended from Sunny Brae, after he was caught with weed. A week later, he was expelled for fighting. Michael then transferred to Pacific Union. Not long after, Michael was expelled from PU for bringing a knife to Arcata High and was sent to Eureka Community School. Again, he was kicked out for possessing weed. Michael went back to Pacific Union to be-

gin 8th Grade, where he pretty much dropped out of school. Finally, Michael went to Mattole Valley where he was on independent study until he stopped going to school. “Luckily, Mattole just let me go into high school after I passed my STAR test,” Michael stated.

Michael grimaced as he described how he got into it with drugs during his dark years. “Well, first I started out with weed, because I got into the wrong crowd at a young age.” Then Michael got

Carson McHaney/PEPPERBOX

Too many people are unaware of the struggles and achievements that hide behind Michael’s captivating smile.

Friday, March 6th, 2015 his first girlfriend, and she was an even worse influence on him.

From weed, Michael went on to alcohol, then started popping pills.

And finally he met more bad people, and did a lot of acid. According to Michael, “ I’ve done enough acid to sedate the whole city of Arcata.” We asked Michael what other drug’s he’s done. “Do you want me to be specific?” He started counting out on his fingers. “I’ve done weed, Adderall, morphine, LSD, Molly. cocaine, a lot of alcohol, tobacco, mushrooms, prolly some other stuff I can’t think of.” He laughed.

“Sassafras,” he said still laughing. “Yes, it’s a drug, it’s like a sap.”

Michael feels that the lowest point of his life was back when he was living on the streets and doing drugs everyday. During Michael’s low point, he lived on his friend’s couch for about six months. “After that, I went and couch surfed and did my thing for about four or five months.” Later on, Michael would integrate himself back into his family. “Back then, my family was just doing their own thing.

I wasn’t really a part of society then, so I don’t blame them. They were probably pretty heartbroken, because I was really close to them as a kid. Deep down, I think they knew I would come around.

I didn’t really run away, it was just a mutual decision to split up.”

It was back when he was doing a lot of drugs and living on the streets that he noticed something was wrong with his body. He described his frightening awakening, “I was drunk one night and got jumped by a couple older guys and got kicked in the groin. That caused my lymph nodes to really swell up!” He became scared after noticing a large bump sticking out of his abdomen. Afterwards, he went to his mom and asked her to get him a doctor’s appointment.

When they went in to St. Joseph’s to get his CAT scans, the doctors found nothing wrong. Meanwhile, his lymph nodes swelled up really big and he was in constant

People and excruciating pain, so Michael went to the Bay Area to see a specialist and got another appointment. The doctors found his tumor immediately and diagnosed him with Hodgkins Lymphoma, a fairly common cancer which is usually in the neck. Doctors told him he needed to start chemo right away. So two weeks later, Michael started going to Stanford, three days out of the week to get chemo.

“The tumor was gradually get-

at Stanford that cured him. “Out of the entire world, they’re probably one of the best in their field,” he said.

Michael described the effects of chemotherapy, “Chemo kills the cancer cells, but the good cells too. There’s nothing like some good old Jesus Juice,” he laughed. Michael also had to take a lot of pills to deal with the effects of radiation: Steroids, nausea pills, appetite pills, and laxatives.”

His road to recovery was dif-

Man, I just wanna help the world.

I’m kind of a hippie now. I just want to save the environment and live life to the fullest.

I just experienced the most unhealthiest part of my life, and one of the most unhealthiest points anyone could ever be [in].

-Michael Martin-Kunkle ting bigger and more painful, until I went in for three months of chemo and radiation. This period was pretty tough, and really really scary. “When they first told me I had cancer, I was just in shock. I was just staring at the middle of the room and thinking to myself, I can’t believe it man, I’ve actually got cancer. Not long after, I started chemo, which is where they hook you up to an IV and pump a bunch of chemicals into your bloodstream. I still have a scar from the port I had in my arm.” After his chemo, he would go back to the hotel to stay for a couple days and recover, then come back up to Humboldt on the weekends. “I did that for three months and then after that, radiation lasted for 2 weeks, everyday. I had to go in and sit under this machine and get blasted with radiation.” Michael described the amazing facilities and doctors

ficult, but the cancer was like a blessing in disguise to Michael.

“Afterwards, I just wanted to start the recovery, and become the best person I could be. Cancer motivated me to live a healthier life. I just experienced the most unhealthiest part of my life, and one of the most unhealthiest points anyone could ever be. Just knowing that it wasn’t fun, and getting my ass kicked by my brother while I was that unhealthy,” he laughed. “That made me feel like shit because I was always able to beat up my brother and at some point the tables turned and he was able to kick my ass.”

His experience motivated Michael to clean up and improve his life. His road to recovery was difficult, but cancer scared Michael and made him appreciate his life. “I started to realize what I wanted in life.” He described how he started to realize

The Pepperbox | Page 11 how much he was “messing up.”

After chemo, Michael had a major lifestyle change. “I really don’t like being around weed anymore because it represents a time of my life that I was really down.”

For two years after his chemo, Michael was really scared to eat or drink anything that was unhealthy even caffeine or chocolate and candy. “Having cancer just really made me want to live.

Which is probably where I got my idea of living life to the fullest!”

Michael describes his perfect night: “Probably go to the gym, get my workout in. Get a sauna.

Oh, after going to the beach and watching the sunset with my homies: my dogs. Then probably kick it with my friends, do something. Maybe hang out at a friends house. Then go to a small get-together or party. Have a little fun there. And then from there just hang out. Go to Toni’s, get a burger.

Country burger. Top off the night.”

Who is Michael Martin-Kunkle now? What is he all about? “I love animals man, I have a pitbull named Isis, a mutt named Scooter and two cats. You don’t need to know their names because they’re cats,” he laughed. “Oh and I have hella koi fish too, I love Koi.” He believes in seizing the day’s happiness. “Happiness to me is jumping off of rocks into the river, and the smell of the fresh ocean air. I really love water for some season. I like the lake, ocean, and river. I live for thrills like roller coasters and jumping off rocks.

Michael talked about his future, “I’m just a good dude. Man, I just wanna help the world. I’m kind of a hippie now. I just want to save the environment and live life to the fullest. Most of all, I like helping people. If I have a chance to help somebody in need, I will.

“I still hate cancer with everything in my heart because I’ve seen what it can do to people, especially kids that didn’t deserve it.” Michael explained, “Cancer saved me, it was the start of me improving my life.”

The Pepperbox | Page 12

People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

Maggie Fleming: not your typical DA Caitlyn Patterson Social Media Director

W

hile most people are at home eating dinner with their families or going out for good times, Maggie Fleming is probably still in her office.

She is most likely consumed with whatever trials she has going on at that moment, and trying to finish everything as fast and diligently as she can. Being a mother, wife, and now the District Attorney of Humboldt County can obviously be difficult to balance. Although to Maggie, being the extraordinary woman that she is, it’s all worth it.

I think that you always have to be thinking about what the right outcome is for the individuals involved because it can vary from case to case so dramatically, - Maggie Fleming Maggie has served more than 25 years of being a Deputy District Attorney, “Ever since I was very young I’ve always wanted to be a prosecutor,” she told me during our delightful and insightful chat at Wildberries.

“I just always thought it was really interesting. Then, as a young person I started following trials. I use to go the superior court in Oakland, where I grew up. I would watch a trial and then I’d follow the case.”

Growing up in Oakland was a great experience for Maggie. Her parents had grown up there as

well, so they knew a lot of people.

The neighborhood in which they lived was stable and everyone got along. “I grew up in a world where I felt like everybody could be seen for who they were. I felt really fortunate for that.” she said.

Even though it may seem like Maggie had a great life during her early years, everyone seems to have some sort of bump in the road. For her, it was the death of her mother when she was sixteen. “I have to say that out of all of my experiences, that was definitely the biggest. It was just so sudden.” She said, “I was really lucky that I was in a really small, tight-knit high school because I received a lot of support and that made it so that I could survive.”

Ever since she was young, Maggie liked to have a lot of responsibilities. She had lots of jobs in high school, such as babysitting, house sitting, and helping with the janitorial business that her parents owned. Maggie was also a big sports player, and did fairly well in her academics, “I wasn’t as diligent as I should have been but I was a pretty good student.

Which was lucky for me because at some point I realized that I had to do fairly well in school if I really wanted to go to law school. I think that dawned on me early enough so that I was okay.” she said. And she was definitely “okay”, considering that she attended UC Davis to receive her law degree.

“It was great, you know. I was really lucky too because it was sort of out in the country still when I went. And it was such a change from Oakland. It was really nice.”

As I listened and thought about the inspiring words of Maggie Fleming, something dawned on me.

Our new District Attorney is not someone you should be afraid of.

She’s actually a normal, sweet, and thoughtful person who is fulfilling

her life-long dream: to make our community as peaceful as it can be.

“I think the job itself is one of the most important jobs in the community, as far as what you do as the DA. It all has an impact on the public and in the community,” she said.

According to an online dictionary, the definition of a District Attorney is, “An elected official of a county or a designated district with the responsibility for prosecuting crimes.”

According to Maggie Fleming, it’s actually a lot more than that.

“I think that you always have to be thinking about what the right outcome is for the individuals involved because it can vary from case to case so dramatically,” she explained. “In so many ways it’s just really carefully reflecting on the choices you make and making sure they’re appropriate and that they’re fair and that they’re just.”

Something that we all know is

that there is a lot of crime, everywhere, especially in California.

Humboldt County is ranked in the top third of the state property crime wise, and our state isn’t very small… Although statistics show that crime rate in Humboldt has reduced a lot since 2010, Maggie and I both agree that it can be reduced even more by possibly using different strategies when it comes to punishment and rehabilitation. “I think in some cases instead of incarceration, we should be looking at alternatives like mental health treatment or substance abuse treatment. That can have a huge impact on crime if we can really advance that” she said.

If anyone is interested in pursuing a daring and action-packed career like Maggie’s, she highly encourages you to come to the courthouse for a job shadow.

She would be absolutely delighted to show you around.

Carson McHaney/PEPPERBOX

Maggie enjoys a cup of tea during the interview at Wildberries Marketplace in Arcata.

Friday, March 6th, 2015

The Pepperbox | Page 13

People

Leaving his Mark on Arcata High Jesse Bareilles

Assistant Photo Editor

W

hen the Pepperbox decided to do a Profile issue, I immediately thought of Mark Salamunovich. Who around campus is more incredible than Mark?

If you know Mark, you know he does everything in life with a smile on his face including putting books back on the shelves, which he does everyday during fourth period as a library aide, so I sat down in the library to get to know Mark a little better.

Unlike some of our other interviewees, Mark is no newcomer to the journalistic limelight; he was recently interviewed by News Channel 3 on his involvement with Special Olympic Bocce Ball.

Mark is 17 years old, a sophomore and enjoys playing basketball and bowling. Though he does not enjoy all Special Olympic sports, Mark likes it because, “it’s fun and I get to learn a lot of new sports and make new friends.”

Another title Mark caries with pride is “self-proclaimed movie critic,” one of Mark’s favorite things besides foods involving ketchup are movies. He is particularly interested in “Magical Movies,” like The Odyssey, Night at the Museum 2, Zathura, and The Hobbit, which he told me was “so cool.” Mark also likes watching Monk and The Twilight Zone.

In his free time, you can find Mark playing basketball, lifting weights and playing guitar. Mark not only plays guitar, he makes his own music.

This winter Mark was given the opportunity to be the team manager for the varsity boys basketball

team. In the time Mark has been Team Manager for the varsity boys basketball team, he has gotten to know some of the athletes he looked up to and they have gotten to know him. Senior Russ Taylor explained that, “he’s super fun to have on the bench during games, he always inspires us to be our best.” Mark has really enjoyed, “teaching my players manners so they don’t use bad words after they lose.” Mark also has also enjoyed getting to know Ryan Bi-

He’s super fun to have on the bench during games, he always inspires us to be our best.

-Russ Taylor

I’m managing a team that trusts me and who cares for me. I feel like my team is a family to me!”

To end our interview, I asked Mark if there was anything else he wanted people to know about himself. Mark went on to tell me, “When I was at Sunnybrae in Mr. Ennes class, I went to my friend Zach and did this(as he flexes his bicep) and everyone in class saw how big my muscles were and how strong I was.

That’s when I became popular.”

Mark’s superman-like muscles are just one of his many fantastic qualities. sio, the new varsity coach. Mark told me, “he’s a pretty funny guy, he has some really funny jokes.”

If you, like many high schoolers, frequent your Twitter timeline you may have come across a picture or two of Marks pre-game letters he writes to his teammates.

He encourages them and lets them

know that, “I’m right behind you guys always, forever.” With letters like that, it’s no wonder the team excelled this year with a league title and Nicali Tournament win.

Mark wrote in a recent letter to the team, “When I see you guys practice before a game, I say to myself, I’m so glad that

Carson McHaneyPEPPERBOX

After hearing this I asked if he works out, he said “I lift weights when I feel like it.” Mark, like Connor Cox, one of his favorite teammates and another one of our interviewees, is naturally strong. As you can see for yourself in the picture.

So next time you see Mark in the hall, say “Hi.”

The Pepperbox | Page 14

People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

Packaged craft: Local chocolate reaches the world Sara Davis

Managing Editor

I

n the industrial outskirts of Arcata, California, a lone warehouse receives various shipments from third world countries. Huge sacks from Belize, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, and Madagascar help create ten tons of an ever-so-popular product right here in Humboldt County. Once done processing, neatly packaged and labeled delicacies are distributed across the United States, with more than 110 locations in California alone, and several international buyers. Dick Taylor Chocolates is not your ordinary chocolate maker.

Located off Giuntoli Lane near highway 299 in Almquist Lumber Company, artisans Dustin Taylor and Adam Dick have created awardwinning in-house craft chocolate for the last four years. What initially began as hobby in Dick’s laundry room in 2011 rapidly progressed into a business. Before chocolate making, Dick and Taylor performed together in the Huckleberry Flint band and did carpentry for several years. “We had reached this point in our mid-thirties where we were starting to have families and were questioning ourselves: Are we gunna be carpenters forever? Or is there something more to do that we want to explore?” Dick said. During this time, a friend passed along a YouTube video of some American chocolate makers. “We had never even thought about making chocolate, but the process was really intriguing and really appealing to us.

The wonderful machinery and working with big bags of cocoa beans---it’s really tactile, really hands-on. It took a lot of the skills and the things that we love best about being carpenters and that fine craftsmen needed to be a carpenter and took it in another direction into crafting an ornate food product.” For the first two years, Dick and Taylor continued carpentry work, with chocolate making as a side occupation. Gradually, their hobby progressed into creating chocolate every night and weekend. Eventually the pair quit their carpentry jobs to devote their time and energy to chocolate and have been doing chocolate full time for the past two years.

Only using organic cacao beans and organic cane sugar, Dick and Taylor purposefully disregard vanilla, additional cacao butter, and other emulsifiers (additives used to preserve processed foods) in order to feature the subtle flavor distinctions in the cacao sourced from around the world. Unlike chocolatiers, who simply buy and remelt chocolates already created by large manufacturers, Dick and Taylor are bean-tobar chocolate makers; they process cocoa beans into a product in-house, rather than merely melting chocolate from another manufacturer. This allows the pair to oversee every step of production, from the farm to the finished and wrapped bar. “We buy these big burlap sacks of beans and we’re performing all the processes that take it from the rough commodity it is into a beautiful finished chocolate bar,” Dick explained. By the time the pair have started to sort beans to the time they’ve molded and wrapped the finished product, three weeks will have gone by. “We would love to shorten that up, but it’s a real labor intensive, hands-on process but we believe in that model because we feel like we’re able to control what’s happening with more critical flavor development steps and textural development steps,” Dick said. With the evident love and care the

pair put forth into their chocolate, it’s no surprise they have won multiple awards for their chocolates. Their quality chocolate is even featured in the world’s largest chocolate library, Selfridge’s department store, in London.

Similar to the co-creators and owners, the intricate and ornate boat frame sketched on the chocolate wrapper truly reflects their past lives as carpenters. Designed by Taylor’s brother, Garrett Taylor, an illustrator at Pixar, the wrapper depicts the building of a wood boat. “Building a wood sailboat is like the pinnacle of the skills that you can acquire as a woodworker. So to us [the wrapper design] really speaks to a high degree of execution and craftsmanship,” Dick said. The design also incorporates Humboldt County shipbuilding history. “Humboldt County has such a rich building tradition and a rich tradition of craftsmanship. A lot of the early lumber schooners that sailed wood up and down the west coast were built on Humboldt Bay. Out in Fairhaven there were tons of shipyards where they built tons of huge schooners. The Hyde Street Pier in San Francisco was built on Humboldt Bay. I don’t think most people would get it, but [the wrapper illustration] gives us a sense of place,” Dick explained.

With their rapidly growing business, Dick is excited about the ability to hire people within the community and provide more jobs in the future. “When we did carpentry it was always just the two of us. Now that we run a different style of business we currently employ ten people. But I can easily see employing forty or fifty people.” Along with being a great employer in Humboldt County, Dick Taylor Chocolates also benefits those in third world countries. “The more cocoa beans we’re able to buy, the more we’re able to impact the lives of the farmers in Belize or Madagascar or Ecuador. As a business we have potential for much greater impact--here and abroad.” As for the future, the pair hopes to incorporate a retail component to their exclusively wholesale business. Already, the business is transferring to a new location in Eureka, behind the Co-Op, replacing the Alternative Building Center. There, Dick and Taylor are looking to include an all-things-highend-chocolate tasting room to feature chocolates from other makers around the world that they enjoy, along with their own chocolate.

Throughout the world, others outside of Humboldt are able to indulge in the divine chocolates of Dick and Taylor. “A lot of the time when you start a business you think of your local market, who we’re targeting, and the great part about chocolate is that the world is who we can sell chocolate to. Which is really cool, because something that is made here in Humboldt County has the potential to be sold all over the world. It’s a really exciting business to be in. Dustin and I are constantly amazed,” Dick said. Currently, they distribute to 31 states across the United States, along with stores in Japan, Australia, Belgium, Germany, United Kingdom, and Canada. Yet, for Dick and Taylor, it becomes increasingly difficult to simply enjoy their own chocolate bars without critiquing it’s possible burnt taste or bizarre flavor. “With our own stuff we’re our own worst critics,” Dick revealed. Ironically, if the the pair wants to take pleasure in any chocolate, they indulge in a Toblerone or Snickers bar. “I get more enjoyment out of that kind of stuff than somebody who claims to make a single origin dark chocolate bar, and I’m like ‘yeah, right.’ But occasionally we just get this bent and sit down and eat the whole bar-- just devour it in three bites, this whole entire chocolate bar,” Dick confessed, “because, you, know, it’s good.”

Friday, March 6th, 2015

People

The Pepperbox | Page 15

The Pepperbox | Page 16

People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

Piakai Henkel: explaining the enigma Gillen Martin Editor-in-Chief

Flashback to one of my last memories of 2013--a typical night of winter break in Humboldt. A group of kids who have grown up kind of knowing each other, existing around each other’s intersecting friend groups, are thrown together because someone’s parents are out of town. The house we are in has a mind-blowing loft and one of the few people hangin’ up in it is Piakai Henkel.

He has been an enigma of Arcata High’s social scene since I’ve joined it. Gone for years it seems, then he suddenly makes casual appearances out and about with his friends like he’s never left. The loft is a cool space to talk in, and I finally work up the courage to inquire about his mysterious life. Something both beautiful and annoying about Piakai is his nonchalance.

He talks about this exciting, interesting, and all-around abnormal life he is leading so casually. While his modesty give the illusion of humility, the lack of explanation he leaves statements with is endlessly frustrating.

For example, he will state something like “I just want to be the best soccer player the world has ever seen” in the most understated, indifferent, subtle way possible. It prompts the desire to shake him by the shoulders and say “Bro I just want to know more.” He acts like starting a professional soccer career at fourteen is nothing out of the ordinary.

But for all the frustration his passivity causes, his charm outweighs it. He speaks gently and directly, so everything he says comes

off thoughtful and profound. At 19, he stands at “1.78 meters,” or, for us Americans, 5’10”. He possesses the build characteristic of most soccer players, a figure that just suggests nimbleness. But unlike all soccer players, his features perfectly compliment it. A frequent smile, tan skin, bright eyes, high cheek bones, dimples, tousled hair that frequently changes color, and an overwhelming vitality certainly add to his charisma. As a life-long world traveler, Piakai has adopted a diverse and defining sense of style (with an especially asian flare since his time in Japan). He can often be spotted rocking a leather jacket or skinny jeans, but he stays true to his HumCo roots with the typical NorCal boy Vans, beanies,

Carson McHaney/PEPPERBOX

Carson McHaney/PEPPERBOX

and Nike.

When I met with Piakai (very early in the morning the Sunday after prom), he was rockin’ a very ‘him’ combination: a beanie, a scarf-ish thing, soccer gear, a leather banded watch (who wears a designer watch to play soccer?), and grey vans. His hair was new, blonde and black mixed together in a way that could only look good on him. He had just finished playing a pick-up game at the Redwood Bowl. We sat up in the stands so I could finally wrangle his life’s story out of him. Even though college students played frisbee and HSU cheerleaders (who knew those even existed) counted aggressively and irritatingly below us, I couldn’t be distracted from his words.

Piakai went to Arcata High school for his freshman year, starting in 2009. He played for our varsity soccer team as a freshman, becoming a member of “The most ballin’ Arcata High soccer team of all time” with such tiger legends as Alex Cunha, Ty Watkins, and Joe Mayer. Throughout his childhood, he had traveled to Paris frequently, and can speak fluent French.

In fact, when I first met him, I remember noticing that his phone was set in French. That summer, 2010 now, he went to France and attended a soccer camp there.

“The coach that was running it got sick, and the guy who filled in turned out to be a PSG recruiter, random coincidence. I played really good, and he asked me to come try out for the elite team at the academy. I stayed for like 3 days, and I played in one training game.

And then they signed me, which is just, like, crazy.”

“And you just decided to uproot your life and move across the world and not go to high school anymore?”

“Yep, that is pretty much what I did.”

And so, at fourteen, he moved to France to play for Paris Saint-Germain Football Club’s under seventeen team. To play in France’s professional soccer league. At fourteen. And he’s casual verging on apathetic about this. Infuriating. But he didn’t really not go to high school anymore. “At the academy, we had accelerated courses.

Seven trainings a week, and in

yourself and be independent. But I have friends everywhere. Everywhere I travel, I make new ones.

In a way, it’s sad. Always saying goodbye to people. But that’s how it is, people drift in and out of your life.”

“I just don’t get your life.”

“I don’t get it...you just leave?... and play soccer?(mocking, falsetto tone) It’s not rocket science, I’m just going to be a professional soccer player until I’m thirty or thirtyfive. Make millions, then retire.”

“What are your plans for after thirty or thirty five?”

“I want to start a company eventually. In Japan, foreign food and foreign items just sell because they’re foreign. You can introduce foreign products and foreign food and people will just go crazy because it’s exotic. I want to bring something good from Arcata to Japan. We have some really funky, good food that I think people would really like in Japan. Like if I brought something like Hole in the Wall or Los Bagels to Japan.”

As in the career of any professional athlete, rough patches do exist: “The only time things get really hard is when I’m injured, or not playing well. But I don’t think I’ll get tired of soccer anytime in the near future.” This year, Piakai was out six months for injuries.

Three months for a surgery on his fifth metatarsal (a common procedure in athletes) and three more months for an ankle injury. When I met with him at the Redwood Bowl, he was icing his knee.

“Do you think you’ll ever play in the Olympics?”

“It’s impossible to tell. That’s still a year away. I mean, it’s possible.

Depending on how good I’m playing. Because that’s under twentythree’s, I’m only nineteen. I haven’t been called in to the national team in a while. But I’m staying here, not going back to Japan again. Some teams in America’s MLS are interested. My knee still hurts, I’m just kind of taking it easy for a while.”

Carson McHaney/PEPPERBOX

“You’re staying here? That’s awesome. How often do you usually come home?”

“Usually just for a month in winter every year. For Christmas.”

“That’s kind of sad.”

“No…I’m out seeing the world.”

“Do you ever feel like it’s taken away too much? Childhood...your friends...high school? Do you ever feel like you’ve just missed out on a lot here?”

“A little bit, especially a couple years ago. Now it’s not so bad, I don’t really regret it anymore. But definitely like in high school, I kind of wished I could come back for a year or something. But yeah, I’ve always just had bigger and better plans.”

“What’s made it worth it?”

“Just being able to do so many

things for my age. At this point, I’ve already accomplished a lot.

Much more than I would’ve been able to if I had just gone to Arcata High.”

And he has done a lot in his nineteen years. And will continue to do big things. I’m sure of it after talking to him. Although his charm is soft and sweet, it is juxtaposed with a burning desire. An unquenchable drive. It goes back to that night in 2013. “I just want to be the best soccer player the world has ever seen.” Two years later now, I asked him about that comment. “If you’re gonna do anything, and invest yourself in it, you might as well try and be the absolute best in the world. If you plan on being perfect, you’ll probably be pretty good.”

n t E e r e pri n i l s e d

es

between, regular curriculum, but with private teachers. They sped up the work and we did everything in about 1/3 of the time, so we’d only have classes like 3 days a week for like 4 hours, but we got the same amount of work done,” Henkel shared.

After two years with PSG, in 2012 he went to the town of Amiens, about an hour north of Paris to play for the third-division Amiens Soccer Club. He played with their under nineteen and reserve teams for a season, and then moved to Japan.

“How did Japan even happen?”

“My mom had a friend in Japan whose husband was the manager of one of the clubs there, and he invited me to try out. They only have three foreigner spots on every team in Japan, so because of that I couldn’t sign with that team, but I went and tried out with another team that was in the same league, and then they signed me. By the time I went there, my resume was pretty impressive, so it was pretty easy to get clubs to be interested.”

A casual, nonchalant move at eighteen to a country where he didn’t know the language and he played on a team where most players were in their mid to late twenties. Even when he left Japan in late December, after a year there, he didn’t fully know the language: “I speak about 1/3, understand 2/3.”

I remember that when I first met him back in 2013, he explained to me that just about his only constant companion in Japan was an elderly female translator.

“Was it hard to make older friends and adjust?”

“No...no...that’s just who you end up becoming friends with. They’re just kids too. You don’t get older and more mature, just older.”

“Has it been hard living so far away from your friends and family here for most of your life?”

“It’s kind of like going to college when you’re fifteen. It takes some getting used to to do everything

People

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Friday, March 6th, 2015

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(707) 826-0559 P.O. Box 2041, McKinleyville CA, 95519

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People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

Paloma Herrera-Thomas: Living with Lyme Izzy Ensminger Online Editor

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f Paloma Herrera-Thomas had everything her way she would live in South Korea. After auditioning for her dream career as a musician with YG Entertainment, she would hop on a plane to Seoul and live in an apartment her parents had bought her. She would eat copious amounts of Pho noodles with various mixed vegetables and broths in cute little china bowls, and eat pastel coloured Matcha cakes for dessert. She would be a singer, and go on tours around the world, and retire to own a cute little bakery somewhere, living a life that is truly Instagram worthy. For her, this life is her wildest dream.

A far off goal that has been in the works since her eighth grade year when she first developed her affinity for Korean culture. When she talks about her life in Korea, she speaks in the same way I would if I was describing to you the person I love the most, or a secret I have never told. She says that she knows that her dream seems crazy and unattainable at times, but she maintains this optimistic outlook on the execution of her plans.

Auditions.

YG. Musician.

Izzy Ensminger/PEPPERBOX

Touring.

Retire.

Bakery.

She has her life all planned out, everything is as she would want it to be. She has a house, a dog, two parents, and a piano. She also is living with one of the 300,000 yearly reported cases of Lyme disease in America.

Paloma is a fifteen year old sophomore at Arcata High school.

She stands at five feet four inches tall. She has long, dark brownishblack thick hair that has been dyed purple and teal along the ends.

She stands with one hip popped to the side and a mason jar of her latest breakfast concoction in her hand. Some days she walks with a slight tilt in her step. She lives with her mom and dad in a one story house in Bayside and loves

to play piano. She has been living with a Lyme disease diagnosis since she was seven years old.

It is 9:45 a.m. I am sitting on the metal benches that are permanently fixed to the cement floor via four bolts in the front of the school. A dark blue Toyota Highlander pulls up at the curb and a bundle of cable knit cardigan and carefully shined boot climbs out.

One hand clutching a cell phone and the other encircling a mason jar of smoothie, Paloma enters school for the day. This late appearance is not a new thing for Paloma.

She says that her mornings are the hardest, when the pain is most intense.

“On a scale from one to ten? It’s like a... BOOM.” Paloma’s sched-

ule has been fitted around her morning, with her first two periods being Core Support, and being enrolled in PE independently, outside of the regular school day.

We sit down in the library and I turn on my audio recorder app.

She tells me about how she found out she had Lyme. When she was younger, she would play soccer each week. At age seven she had to quit because she couldn’t play for long periods of time without developing a limp.

She started to notice more symptoms as the year progressed.

“I was in a lot of pain, my joints were super stiff, and I would slur my words a lot. And I would get these fevers and really, really strange night terrors. I don’t know what else. I’m sure there was more.”

Lyme affects people emotionally as well as physically. The difficult nature of Lyme causes controversy within the medical community.

Paloma was misdiagnosed several times and given treatments that made her symptoms progressively worse. “It was so frustrating to me, it was just like 'Agh, what is wrong?'"

The CDC’s webpage suggests that patients who receive a two to four week course of antibiotics should make a full recovery within a few months of infection. Unfortunately this is not the case for anyone who is not diagnosed quickly. After the initial stage, the spirochetes spread throughout the body,

Friday, March 6th, 2015 damaging neurological, cardiovascular, and rheumatic systems, causing arthritis, brain fog, fever, headaches, nausea, and fatigue.

While researching for this interview, I came across a laundry list of symptoms that attack all of the bodily systems. Simply put, Lyme is not an easy recovery for some people. It’s been eight years since Paloma was diagnosed, and her symptoms have progressed into what is known as Chronic Lyme.

As it comes to my understanding, Paloma is a fighter. She tells me that mornings are almost always the hardest. Some times she has to stay in bed all day she is in so much pain, but the next day you will see her back at school and would never guess.

On the rose and checkered clothed table in front of me bags of pretzels and Veggie Pirate Booty, a bottle of tea, a sushi roll, five potato samosas, two chili sauces, a tub of fruit and yogurt, and three cherry-chocolate hearts make up the gluten-free mountain that is our collective lunches. It is not a coincidence that all of this food happens to be gluten-free. As well as Lyme, Paloma has Celiac and is allergic to wheat, yeast, red beans, soy, barley, oats, and cheese.

I eat two of the samosas dipped in a chili sauce, a handful of Veggie Pirate Booty, and two cherrychocolate hearts. She eats the rest.

Her mother, Deanna Herrera-Thomas, stands in the kitchen and occasionally pokes her head into the room to add something or to answer my questions about Paloma’s childhood. When Paloma

People was younger, she used to run a lemonade stand that would donate all of it's proceeds to local animal shelters. Because of her successes she has had multiple articles written about her from a young age.

This volunteering spirit is something that she never grew out of.

Paloma plans to travel the world, volunteering with different organizations to help those in need.

“Many hands are needed, and I want to be those hands.” This generosity and spirit carry on into her family life as well, although both her parents work long hours as professors at College of the Redwoods, Paloma and her family share a close-knit bond.

In addition to her academic classes at Arcata High, Paloma is enrolled in the Arcata Arts Institute Advanced Theatre Studies class. Every day the AAI Theatre class practices the basics of physical theatre, voice, ensemble movement, characterization, and the like. She is also very dedicated to learning and practicing piano and vocals. She recently received a new keyboard in the mail, one that allows you to record while you play, add effects and backgrounds, adjust the volume, and layer levels of music. To me, this keyboard is a foreign hunk of plastic plating and ridged dials, but to Paloma it is one of her greatest joys. I have never been a very musical person, and I don't really know what it is like to create a symphony out of strings, hammers, and keys, but the ease at which she can play songs and compose her own makes me wish that I did.

Despite the regimen of medications, the daily pains, and the hazy focus, Lyme is just one part of Paloma's life. She will grow up and go to college, get a job, and move to wherever she chooses. One of the hardest things I can think of, Paloma lives with every day. She doesn’t just live with it, she thrives with it.

“What I would tell anyone who were just diagnosed with Lyme is to stay positive. It’s so easy to wake up and go, “I’m in pain, I don’t have to go to school”, “I don’t feel good, I should just stay home”, ”I don’t have to do anything because I’m sick.” but you can’t let it

The Pepperbox | Page 19 take over your life like that. You have to push through it, and then you can accomplish anything, it doesn’t matter that you’re sick, because you are made stronger by it.”

Paloma would like anyone to know that she is available for contact at her email address at any time. Students who have been recently diagnosed with Lyme or those living with chronic pain can look to her for support or tips on how to manage or help minimize any symptoms.

Contact her at PHerrerathomas@nohum.k12.ca.us.

The Pepperbox | Page 20

People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

Arcata High’s best kept secret Hannah Finley Feature Editor

actually. I guess influence from my family and friends mainly.”

He speaks of these hobbies as if they don’t entice interest from anybody in the presence of his casual, free flowing conversation. Those who know Westin would surely agree that he is a quick learner with a humble, suave attitude.

I glance at my heeled boots and reluctantly manage to decline the thoughtful offer.

Westin is undoubtedly the type of person one wants to be seated next to on an airplane; he never runs out of interesting stories to capture your interest with. As I sit at his kitchen table and discuss

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he mother toils away in the kitchen, chopping and separating fresh vegetables while evenly cut bite sized pieces of tofu lie in arranged rows to dry. It’s 6:45 PM and the youngest sister sits at the lit dinner table completing her homework. The pale walls are decorated with artwork and a corkboard full of pictures, achievements and reminders occupies the corner. As I admire the welcoming nature of the household, one of the elder children jogs up to the door, returning from his Latin dance class. He is featured on the corkboard, frozen in a picture of a past music recital. This family of six, with their perfectly arranged couch pillows, is arguably an ideal American family. What one may not gather from the surface is the absolutely unique and and pleasantly odd qualities of the Arcata High senior, Westin McHaney.

Westin, the 17-year-old wonder, goes much further than what many people may initially assume.

He is not only a motivated student, avid member of the orchestra, and track athlete, he is a band member, one badge away from an eagle scout, and possessor of a variety of unusual hobbies. Some of these hobbies include dance, music, yoyoing, poi (fire dancing), unicycling, engineering, mountain biking, and backpacking.

With his typical family unit, one may wonder where he developed some of his less mainstream hobbies. Westin claims, “I don’t know

Carson McHaney/PEPPERBOX

Unicyling, just one of Westin McHaney’s many hobbies, took McHaney several hours to learn.

Westin is undoubtedly the type of person one wants to be seated next to on an airplane; he never runs out of interesting stories to capture your interest with.

“I started unicycling a few months ago.”

Take note that he can ride down stairs and do jumps.

Only a couple of months ago?!

“Okay it’s not that hard.

I’ll let you try if you want to.”

events throughout his life, embarrassing moments, and pleasant memories, I feel as though I am embarking on an adventure and reliving events from his captivating childhood. To add some perspective, the first day I be-

came acquainted with him, we sat in my yard and related stories for nearly two hours, recounting adventures, comparing hobbies, and laughing at past failures.

As I continue with my investigation into his unique yet disclosed lifestyle, I ask him to take me through a day in the life of Westin McHaney.

“Well, which one?” Today!

He continued to take me through his average busy Wednesday as I began to realize my lack of daily activities…

Among some of his daily activities, he rehearses the bass with his band, The Clez Encounters.

His band performs clezmerine and gypsy jazz music. The Clez Encounters have performed a variety of events, such as the Bagels and Blitz event, Arts Alive, and a wedding. They hope to continue performing and improving.

Between participating in his many activities, Westin claims that his biggest hobby is engineering. He has already been accepted to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo where he plans to major in engineering.

For the average person, a quick solution to a material desire is purchasing something; for Westin, he enjoys the challenge of building things. Some of his products include a trebuchet, a red wagon push gocart, a hovercraft, two kinetic sculpture race projects, a skateboard, and a longboard, just to name a few. Currently, he is in the progress of constructing a Kinetic sculpture with his father. He claims that it’s coming down to about 100 days and the pressure is building. I, however, have no doubt that the project will be completed in an impressive fashion.

Westin McHaney is without a doubt an impressive individual.

From his many interesting traits to his sweet disposure, he is certainly worth becoming acquainted with.

Friday, March 6th, 2015

People

The Pepperbox | Page 21

Turning the tables of the local music scene Indigo Davis

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Photo Editor

hristian Legaspi, also known by his stage name Esch, is the man behind the lights and the mind behind the music.

Many of us have appreciated his talents during prom and other school dances, making him well-known around campus. Not only does Legaspi DJ, but he also produces his own music from writing songs, making beats, and performing them on a turntable. While you’re out enjoying yourself on the dance floor, Esch is giving your ears what they want to hear.

Legaspi’s love for music all started when he was growing up in the Philippines, and his mom constantly tried to put him on stage. Dancing and playing guitar were always a part of his life as child.

“In the Philippines it was like a friendly rivalry amongst parents to try to show off their kids talents or whatever. I never cared for it much until a family friend taught me how to play this little guitar,” Legaspi said.

That was when it all started.

He played guitar for a while, “making mountains of horrible songs", until he got more practice and realized what sounds he liked. He stuck with playing folk and rock songs, but then started the transition into DJing and producing.

“Hip hop lyrics and beat patterns were always a motivator for me," Legaspi said. “I was listening to some gangsta stuff in Trinidad Elementary.”

Legaspi learned to make mu-

sic by just going with the flow.

He has had three guitar lessons and made the McKinleyville High Guitar Club his senior year, even though he didn’t know what chords or notes he was playing. He was inspired to start making music when his girlfriend at the time told him he was good at it. Once he started producing music, he learned the programs just enough to make beats and synths.

“To be honest with you, I have no idea what I’m doing. I just do it.” He said. “I’ve always just made accidental music.”

Once he started DJing for Accurate Productions, he was pressured to get a stage name.

“I was watching Pokemon with my girlfriend at the time and she asked if I wanted to dress up like Ash Ketchum for Halloween. It just hit me… DJ ASH Ketchum,” Legaspi said.

Unfortunately, a lot of people were trying to get that same name, and Legaspi didn’t want Asian jokes thrown at him, so he decided to change it to Esh. He liked that name, and everything went well with it, until one night. Legaspi was the opening DJ for Salva, and after the show a stranger came up to him and said there was already a band with a copyright to the name Esh. About a month passed by, and he decided to add a “ch” to differ from the other band.

“I just went with the fastest option. It was an embarrassing situation,” he said.

Aside from working with Accurate Productions, Legaspi has put on his own local hip hop event called GoodEats. He was excited to put on his own show,

Photo courtesy of Christian Legaspi

Christian “Esch” Legaspi spinning the turn tables in the elements. but also realized the amount of work and planning that he needed to do.

“I was stressed out the whole night but the second I got behind the turntables I forgot the world and the fact that my door guy probably should have had security,” he said.

Legaspi’s favorite venues in Humboldt are the Sapphire Palace in the Blue Lake Casino and Portuguese Hall in Arcata. He prefers big venues because in his opinion DJing for as many people as possible makes it easier. His favorite types of events to DJ are the ones where he gets to choose what music he can play.

“Give me five minutes with someone and I can make them a DJ but what makes a quality DJ is someone who can pick up what the crowd wants,” Legaspi said. "Anyone can play mainstream and get a majority of people to dance, but can they mix those songs tastefully to-

gether?"

Music has become a huge part of Christian Legaspi’s world. He has tried to separate from it and focus on getting his masters in Psychology, but music always comes back into his life. He explained that he never really felt welcomed here after coming from the Philippines, and music helped him feel more connected.

“Music made me feel connected to life and gave me a sense of belonging,” said Legaspi. “I swear I didn’t just make that up for Tumblr bloggers to write about.”

Christian “Esch” Legaspi will continue to make his own music, and be inspired by Dilla, Ta Ku, and Kanye West, as well as photography and visual media.

“I try to apply what I see to what I create in the sonic world,” he said.

Don’t forget that there is a man behind all the lights, beats, and turn tables.

The Pepperbox | Page 22

People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

180 life-changing miles on foot Alyssa Day

Business Manager

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any people become distraught when they don’t have their car or phone for a day, but how about for a month, while traveling 10 to 20 plus miles a day on foot?

When I got assigned to write about Shelby Naish, I had no idea who I was meeting or how it would go. As it turns out, there’s much more to Shelby Naish than you would think.

Typically, this 16-year-old junior spends her time with the people she loves, plays guitar, and dresses comfortably. She says that she loves to be in the outdoors, and has always lived in Humboldt.

During the school year, she says she mostly looks forward to her summer escape. The escape probably doesn’t sound too fun to most, but to her, it’s a huge fulfilling piece of her life. This escape she speaks so highly of is a backpacking trip.

“The first backpacking trip I went on was when I was four years old. Typically, I go with my family as I have since I was young, but this last summer, that changed.”

She said that she wanted a challenge and a life changing experience, and she succeeded in both of those categories.

“Overall this summer I travelled 180 miles on foot. I went for about a month with some friends.

Last summer I went without my family to a camp called Unalayee. Unalayee is not like an ordinary camp at all. It’s a commune full of crazy backpackers that push you to your breaking point.”

So if she can’t even bring her phone, what can she bring? “I bring as little as possible, but my pack was still about forty pounds at first; I had to help carry food for ten people. You try and bring

Shelby Naish shows her appreciation for the beautiful Trinity Alps. as little as possible. Even little things like cutting your toothbrush in half and using sticks as utensils can help for thirty days.

I had two pairs of shorts, two shirts, fleece pants, a fleece jacket, and even that was overboard.”

This last summer, Shelby travelled a total of 187 miles on foot.

To pass time, she typically sang, played instruments, or read as she hiked. “Finding ways to pass time is important to keep myself from thinking about the 15+ miles I had to cover in order to get to the next lake. When we’re doing cross country (off trail hiking), I go into a hysterical state because of how scratched and bruised I get. I have to get into a different mindset.

(Mind you, I don’t have any music to listen to because it’s not allowed at the camp).” Not quitting on this journey was an amazing feat, considering that at the very beginning of this trip, Shelby tore a ligament in her ankle. “Walking with a brace because of my ankle

wasn’t fun, but I knew I’d make it.

I always do. Of course I wanted to sit down and not do it, but I knew the fulfillment to come, so I kept pushing on. I also lost my sleeping pad halfway through. We couldn’t have any fires this year due to how dry it was, and it did hail and freeze a lot. Being so cold was not fun.”

Modern day normalities are not often recognized or appreciated until a person is able to have an experience like this. We probably don’t realize how many times a day we see ourselves via Instagram, mirrors, snapchat, or Facebook. “I didn’t hear music or advertisements, or even see my parents or anyone I was related to for a month. I didn’t hear about any news and so much had happened while I was gone. I also hadn’t seen myself for almost all that time. I got to see myself in-between sessions, but I looked like I was a different ethnicity due to my dirt tan.”

After an experience like this, it’s hard to come back to the “normal”

Photo courtesy of Shelby Naish

world of work, school, electronics, and stores. “I feel more at home when I’m in the alps. There’s no societal pressure or judgement. I feel super out of place when I get back. Even just going to stores and public is weird. It makes me hate how materialistic everyone is, and typically I get more outraged when I’m surrounded by it entirely. I also feel like I have nothing to do, because I get so used to doing 10 plus miles (sometimes 20) a day.

When I get home and see everyone and their small town lives, it really depresses me. My experiences make me feel stuck and disappointed in our generation.”

Apart from the struggles during the trip, and the disappointment of coming back to society, Shelby wouldn’t have changed anything about it. “It is an experience that one cannot understand unless they do it. It was the most eye-opening and life-changing thing that I’ve ever done, and I wouldn’t take it back for anything.”

Friday, March 6th, 2015

People

The Pepperbox | Page 23

Dylan Diemer: the volunteer Mozara Abdalla Reporter

& CJ Gray

Opinion Editor

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regular 15-year-old boy would most likely sit through his school day waiting for the time when he would be free from responsibility after the bell rings. He would want to go out and spend time with friends, or relax and watch TV. But Arcata High has a 15-year-old boy that chooses to

He helps wrap ankles, massage injuries, and run the overall operations of the sports training program at the AHS gym.

use his free time volunteering.

Sophomore Dylan Diemer is in it for the people. His array of responsibilities and experiences show just how much he cares about taking care of others. Just at Arcata High, Diemer is an exceptional contributor to the school community. Diemer is the director of the Crisis Team that focuses on suicide intervention with students.

He is also an assistant trainer for athletics. He helps wrap ankles, massage injuries, and run the overall operations of the sports training program at the AHS gym.

When we showed up to conduct the interview, Dylan was rocking his black “Arcata High Training” polo shirt and a pair of khaki pants - the classic train-

ers outfit. Where many boys would have their keychain lanyard hanging out of their front pocket, Diemer had a pair of blue latex gloves. With a smile he offered us seats up on the training bed, while he checked the score of the JV boys basketball game.

Between working with the Crisis Team and training program, Diemer somehow finds time to volunteer off campus as well. This includes being a Red Cross wilderness first responder.

“I’ve done search and rescue [with the program],” said Diemer.

Diemer has also done volunteer work in foreign countries such as Ecuador, Panama, Ireland, Guatemala, and Bornia. In these countries he helped expand volunteer programs and share ideas.

“I was pretty much an ambassador for the Red Cross,” explained Diemer.

Diemer continued to share about how he started volunteering for Red Cross when he was just 11, and how it opened up his eyes to the wonders of helping people.

“I enjoy the self-gratitude and staying busy,” Diemer said when explaining why he continues to volunteer.

Although he may not have much time for himself, he does play JV boys soccer, a sport he enjoys so much that he also referees it. On the field, when he refs men’s league, he has to deal with adults not respecting his authority.

When asked about how he deals with disrespectful adults he chuckled and told us that “I card ‘em!”

But many times Diemer is not in a position of authority, but rather at an equal level with adults that he volunteers with. To be successful in these situations, he tells us that he “shows them respect, listens to them, works with them, and tries to connect with them in order to gain their respect.” He does not hold

grudges against these adults because he realizes that most of them are not used to working with some-

I want to stop crime, especially sex crime involving children. It sickens me. one who is only fifteen years old.

Diemer has worked to overcome these distressing situations, but even while being interviewed Diemer seemed slightly uncomfortable. He could not control his urge to help people. He wrung out his fingers with nervous energy just waiting for someone to ask for his assistance. He got his chance when a cheerleader came over asking for him to cut the tape off her fingers. He had his scissors out within seconds, cutting off the tape, while simultaneously striking up a conversation with the girl. After sending the cheerlead-

er on her way, Diemer swivelled back in his chair to face us, and continued to share about himself.

“A lot of people don’t know that I have my co-pilots license. I flew a plane over the Blue Hole in Belize. I really enjoy it, and it gives you a whole new perspective.”

To add to his involvements, Diemer is an open water lifeguard during the summer in Minnesota. He said this was one of his best experiences. It is one more way for him to help people.

Having such a positive viewpoint on helping others has put Diemer on a track to a bright future. Although currently he does not get paid for all the work he does, he hopes to pursue a career where he can help others.

“I want to stop crime, especially sex crime involving children. It sickens me.”

But with a full schedule now, Dylan Diemer has dedicated himself to helping others for no monetary reimbursement at all. The only pay he gets is the self-satisfaction.

Carson McHaney/PEPPERBOX

Dylan Diemer takes a break in his home away from home, the AHS trainer’s room.

Through the Looking Glass Arcata High School

Class of 2015 presents

A Fashion Show Extravaganza

Sunday, March 15, 2015 2-4 p.m.

Arcata Community Center Tickets: $25 adults $15 students, seniors, and children Includes Fashion Show, Luncheon and Silent Auction A Benefit for the 2015 Safe and Sober Graduation Event

Friday, March 6th, 2015

The Pepperbox | Page 25

People

‘Beastmode’ to beast whisperer Taylor Camp Reporter

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was lazy to get this assignment started but as a reporter of this school I felt a responsibility to get off my butt and put in work, the decision was made to just start simple. I was able to interview his old time friend Darik

as a little basketball on the side, 10 years from now see’s himself living off the land in Alaska.

Though not publicized throughout local school media and such, he’s described as a tank and one hell of a football player, Humboldt’s own “Beastmode.” Informing me he has no fears, this HSU commit is compared to Brian Cushing of the Houston Texans. Getting to know Connor Cox; we’re at the bench

“Favorite player?”

“Patrick Willis.”

“What’s something interesting to know about yourself?”

“I can roll my tongue 3 times.”

“What’s your favorite food?”

“Steak and mashed potatoes.”

“What’s your favorite movie?”

“Cowboys with John Wayne.”

Cox is an animal on the gridiron with minimal blocking he breaks tackles finding the end zone often,

Carson McHaney/PEPPERBOX

Connor Cox feels a stronger connection to dogs and goats than any other animals.

Gaston who I just happen to be sitting right next to in class, though I knew who I was working with previously I was able to piece together how different eyes viewed a impacting athlete amongst this school by the name of Connor Cox. A student who is currently living the game of football as well

in front of the high school, him standing, I'm sitting. Cox was rocking a longsleeve shirt, cargo shorts, and some fresh white Nike’s.

“So Connor, what’s your favorite channel on TV?” “ESPN.” “Favorite football team?”

“49ers.”

long time friend Darik Gaston compares his tenacious nature to a “lion.”

Interestingly, what many of you didn’t know is that Connor is also known to be an animal whisperer and very in touch with nature. To reach a few details he explains to me how dogs and goats are some of his favorite animals he comes

Though not publicized throughout local school media and such, he’s described as a tank and one hell of a football player, Humboldt’s own “Beastmode. in contact with, “I feel more of a connection with them, I just know they like my company.” Also enjoys outdoor activities like fishing, hiking, and long walks on the beach. I guess you could say football and animals is what the man knows best.

Though accomplishing a Big 5 championship appearance his sophomore year it hasn't been all fun and games. His team has not won a game since then, on top of that Cox has suffered a bulged disc in his back throughout his career but even thats not stopping him from the next level. Cox was asked how he gets through with such hardships, getting straight to the point. “Wake up, play some tunes, take the day by the nuts, & get s**t done.” He looks up to his father Mike Cox who is a member of the hall of fame at both Arcata High and HSU. Another man who inspired Connor was one they all call coach Sanchez. “Wake up on the wrong side of the bed on game days,” Connor’s favorite piece of advice he’s ever received from him.

Give Cox a hand for what he has done for this school on an athletic standpoint because players like this don’t come around too often, who knows when the next will be.

Make sure you go and give Connor some support next year locally here at the Redwood Bowl, looking to rock the number 4.

The Pepperbox | Page 26

People

Friday, March 6th, 2015

A saint for Humboldt County Anna Nelson Reporter

A homeless man walked into the Betty Chin Center, a place where he felt quite at ease.

He said, “I just want to come in to say goodbye Ms. Betty, I going to die.”

Ms. Betty said, “Before you die, just take a nap, on the couch.”

And he said, “Nope, this too nice, I cannot do that.”

Ms. Betty replied, “Nope this is your center, this your couch. I want you take a nap. But after you take a nap, you wanna die, that’s fine by me, but right now you take a nap.”

After the nap, he woke up.

Then Ms. Betty said, “What else I can help you? You’re not gonna die right?”

He said, “Yes, I’m not gonna die now.”

Betty Chin is of small stature, and of Chinese descent. She wears casual clothing usually consisting of comfy sweats and a hoodie.

Betty Chin is a winner of the 2008 Minerva Award and the 2010 Presidential Citizen Medal Award, the nation’s second highest civilian award. She runs a center that helps the homeless people of Humboldt; helping an estimated 500 people

a day. She helps the mentally ill, disabled veterans, runaways, drug abusers, and families with no homes. Betty starts her day as early as four on most mornings and does a multitude of deeds from making PB&J sandwiches, driving students to school, and delivering meals to people anywhere from Fortuna to Mckinleyville. And it’s not until around 11 at night, after a full day of countless selfless acts, that she finally goes home. What inspires this woman to labor day after day?

Betty’s early life doesn’t start with her own memories. It starts with her mother, who is her true inspiration.

Chinn’s parents were local doctors in the United States, but her mom eventually decided to take a risk by moving to China. She wanted to make a change and the medical need for women in China was just the outlet for work she needed.

Betty’s mother had the courage to leave her country and go to China to help people. In China, she started a church and started a choir for kids. She took many people who were suffering from leprosy, at that time still an untreatable disease, and put them in a house in China to help them. That, however, went against many people’s beliefs. And even after dedicating

her life toward helping others, the Chinese government killed her.

Betty is still in disbelief.

She said, “I don’t know if she was young or wanted change, I don’t know, what get her the courage to do something like that? To leave the United States and go to China?

See I just find that so incredible.”

Betty Chinn was born into a wealthy family. At the age of seven, after her family was killed due to the Cultural Revolution, she endured four years of persecution, torture, and poverty while living day-by-day in a garbage dump,

becoming mute from the abuse.

She was able to escape to the United States and ended up in San Francisco where she met her sisters. Her speech became restored, and she learned English through watching Sesame Street.

Years later, she met her husband, an HSU professor in S.F. They now reside in Humboldt with two grown sons.

While working as an assistant PE teacher at her eldest son’s school, Betty noticed that a girl was always asking her son for food. Betty started to pack an extra

Bodie Yonts/PEPPERBOX

Betty Chinn in front of the Betty Kwan Chinn Day Center, whose goal is “working together to help those in need move forward.”

Friday, March 6th, 2015 sandwich in her son’s lunchbox.

She soon found out the girl’s family was living in a van in a nearby parking lot and that her father was unemployed, so she started making her family meals too.

This was the starting block for what has now become a community organization in helping the homeless. Her outreach program now involves the Betty Kwan Chinn Day Center, Betty’s Blue Angels, and Betty’s Shower, and helps countless people around the Humboldt Bay area. Because of all the obstacles she had to overcome in her life, Betty was driven toward almost unimaginable levels of dedication to helping others. She never wanted anyone else to feel the hunger and pain she went through.

Betty is motivated by other people’s kindness. When people smile at her and pat her on the shoulder, it inspires her and is a step toward healing from all the trauma she has experienced.

“So that’s why everytime when I go to school and talk to the kids, I tell them be kind to each other.” Betty says this is one of the most important things.

“Sometimes, when someone punches you, you get bruised, and then you heal. When somebody says something bad about you, it stays stuck in your heart. So when people are kind to me, I take it inside, and I tell myself I no longer have to have anyone be mean to me. I know somebody care for me and kind to me. That’s how it should be with everyone to each other. And that’s important to me.”

The greatest gift you can give someone is time. There is nothing more valuable. This was one of Betty’s advice for young people.

“I really do believe that money cannot be everything. Money is good, but I think sometimes money and power can destroy you too.

I think that’s what happens. I think right now young people, I don’t say all them, but some get it to so easy. People they don’t even have jobs, and buy everything they

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People don’t need, just to buy it to fit in.”

“You guys, your generation have a huge job ahead of you. So to be a leader, future leader you guys have to have compassion,” Betty said.

Betty doesn’t believe this is the story about her, she believes this is the story about the Christian community, yet another example of her selflessness.

“You know the guys that I stood by when I went to China, they used to torture me, hurt me, but today we can stand there side by side. I tell Dan (pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Eureka) and Karin (Dan’s wife) many times I can forgive, but I cannot forgive my enemy. I can’t. I say it so hard. They teach me how. That’s the prayer. Forgiving your enemy. It’s very powerful. If anybody hurt me, I pray for that person.”

It’s pretty fitting when the name you’re born with becomes the embodiment of your life. Only a few years ago, Betty Chinn discovered her Chinese birth name: Wai Kwun. Wai means compassion. Kwun describes the sacrifice one makes for their community.

Courtesy of Betty Chinn

Barack Obama presents Betty Chinn with the Minerva Award.

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