Black History Month 12. Boys Swimming

Black History Month

By Amy Nguyen

February is Black History month, also known as Black Appreciation month.

Black History month is where Black history and achievements are celebrated. Black

History month isn’t just celebrated in the U.S it’s also celebrated in other countries such as Canada which is also celebrated in February while Ireland and the U.K celebrate it in

October.

It was created by Carter G. Woodson who was dedicated to celebrating the historic contributions by Black people which led to Black History month.

Black History month is in February because both Fredrick Douglas a leader in the abolitionist and former slave and Abraham Lincoln who thought and taught that slavery was wrong were both born in Febuary. Black History month was recognized in 1976 by President Ford.

Black History is American history, Black people have played a very important role in America’s history such as culture, art, literature, politics, and so much more. Happy Black History month!!

Amy Nguyen interviewed Zay

Q- Do you ever feel like being Queer make you less Black? A- I don’t personally feel like that. But other people when they find out I’m queer in their eyes they will think I’m less Black.

Q- What’s your favorite part of being both Black and Queer? A- The acceptance because I feel when I’m in a group of queers I feel more accepted and I don’t have to hide that my homosexuality.

Q- What are the challenges you face from being both Black and Queer? A- It’s the fact that a lot of Black people won’t accept that I’m queer. I feel like I already face a lot of oppression from being Black and that I have to hide that I’m queer.

Q- Do you ever feel like you have to pick between identifying as Queer and Black? A- Yeah definitely especially when I’m around another group of people.

Q- For those reading this, what would you want them to take away from this interview? A- That because I am different than you are doesn’t make me truly different and it doesn’t affect my personality. I’m still a person and people should understand I am who I am.

Learn more about black history month

The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum join in paying tribute to the generations of African Americans who struggled with adversity to achieve full citizenship in American society.

ASB Corner

Happy Spring Trappers! Here’s a few updates on what’s been happening in ASB and what we’re planning on bringing to a reality. As you know, there was a food drive before winter break that was made into a class competition. Seniors won and we’re collaborating to paint a mural somewhere around our school that represents FVHS but also incorporates our 2022 seniors. Good job to everyone who participated and each class did well. Freshman had 108 points, sophomores had 1,091 points, juniors had 197 points, and seniors had 1,101 points. This made a huge impact on our community. In addition, we are working on honoring our past athletes by creating a “Wall of Fame” and “Record Board” with some of our best athletes who have already graduated. If you know of anyone who has been in all-league and graduated 2010-2019, please contact us. If you haven’t already, sign up for a Spring sport and you could happen to appear on one of these in the future! There’s girls golf, girls tennis, fastpitch softball, baseball, boys soccer, and boys & girls track & field for the Spring season. No experience needed. Unfortunately, there isn’t going to be a winter dance or a traditional non-formal dance this year due to COVID cases rising. However, there is going to be a prom primarily for the seniors then being opened up to juniors if there’s space left. SENIORS, there have been 2 surveys sent out by our ASB advisor (Owen Frasier) to your student email. Please respond to those, as your feedback is important to giving you all the best prom possible under these circumstances.

Our school also has a Unified team who consists of amazing special-ed athletes. Volunteers (some being within our ASB class) have committed their time to practice and play as a team with Ben Moore, Tayler Williams, and Wyatt Anderson. This is a great opportunity to connect deeper within our school and community. The games are a positive environment where we cheer on both teams. If you would like to show support, reach out to Coach Mings @ James.Mings@vansd.org! Stay updated with ASB on our social media! If you have any questions, feedback, and/or concerns, please feel free to reach out.

Instagram: @fortvancouverupdates_

Twitter: @FVHSASB

Curricular Clubs: CLICK HERE

Non-Curricular Clubs: CLICK HERE

Tarik Kurta placed first in districts for the 50 meter freestyle. He was Fort’s only state meet qualifier.

t’s the end of winter (almost) and we are getting ready for spring!

IMy favorite season. But my favorite sports season is winter, and it just ended. Let’s take an in-depth look at the Fort Vancouver swim team! Our school’s swim team combines with Hudson’s Bay because we don’t have enough people, but it does mean that we have a fun team.

Head coach Sarah Dunn has this to say about the season:

“This year was definitely a good building year for our Fort team. Last spring, when the season was pushed to the end of the school year and reduced to only 5 weeks, we only had 3 guys on the team. I did a lot of recruiting this fall and it definitely paid off! This year we had 13 guys join the team: 3 seniors, 0 juniors, 3 sophomores, 8 freshmen! We’re going to have a strong foundation to start with next year and I look forward to building from there.

Our first-year swimmers did an amazing job learning the ropes- and there’s a LOT to learn in swimming. Lots of rules. They all learned all 4 strokes, turns and starts. Something I’m most proud of as a coach is when a firstyear swimmer takes on the challenge of doing a new race or a stepping up to take on a difficult race. That’s why we chose, last year, as a team, to make the varsity lettering requirement that you had to compete in 2 out of 3 of the following races at least once in the season: 200 IM, 500 free or 100 fly. I wouldn’t make this a requirement if I didn’t think people couldn’t do it. I know I can get first-year swimmers to the skill level needed to attempt these races, but it takes some confidence and willingness to take a risk on the part of the swimmer to try these events and I’m very proud of those who did. (Who did? Isaac Dennett, Brody Will, Jonas Catton, Braydon Johnson). Season highlights: Our group of guys is unique. For the past several years, the team has trained with the Hudson’s Bay team, mostly because the 2 teams were small and could share the pool space. Eventually, one coach took over both teams and the teams basically blended into 1 big team. We still score separately at meets and wear different colors, but we do everything together and I really think that’s what makes our team unique and a lot of fun! Ask any guy on the team- they just love the camaraderie we have. They’re all brothers. They all support each other, joke with each other, terrorize each other, but in the most loving way. When we show up to meets, everyone can see it- we have something special. Other coaches comment to me on how much fun our team has and what good spirit we have. I’m definitely proud of that. A few of our stats include:

Fort placed 6th out of 11 schools (beating Bay, Washougal, Seton, RA Long & Hoquiam); Fort beat Bay in every dual meet; Fort gains wins over Battle Ground, Columbia River, Skyview, Washougal, Seton Catholic, RA Long, Hoquiam, and Heritage.

Fort also beat Bay in our first annual Red vs. Gold intersquad meet. I’ve decided to make this an annual tradition. Each team chose a line-up of some serious and some not-so-serious races to compete against each other in. We will do this every year as a bit of friendly rivalry.

Lastly, Fort had one swimmer qualify for state. Tarik Kurta will compete in the 50 free & 100 free. He is currently ranked 5th in the 50 and 11th in the 100.”