The Cascade is UFV’s autonomous student newspaper and alternative press for the Fraser Valley. It originated under its current name in 1993, and achieved autonomy from the university and the Student Union Society in 2002. The Cascade is funded with UFV student funds, is a forum for UFV students to have their journalism published in an entirely student-run setting and is overseen by The Cascade Journalism Society Board, a body run by a student majority.The Cascade is published every other Wednesday with a print circulation of 800 and is distributed at Abbotsford, Chilliwack (CEP), Clearbrook, and Mission UFV campuses and throughout the surrounding communities.
In order to be published in the newspaper, all work must first be approved by The Cascade’s editor-in-chief and the corresponding section editor. The Cascade reserves the right to edit submissions for clarity and length and will not print any articles or be a platform for any contributor or contractor who has shared racist, sexist, homophobic, or libellous content online in any form. Letters to the editor, while held to the same standard, are unedited, and should be under 200 words. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect that of UFV, The Cascade’s staff and collective, or associated members.
The Cascade is published on the traditional, unceded territory of the Stó:lō peoples. We are grateful to be able to work and learn on this beautiful land.
Editorial // Clear those winter scaries away with The Cascade
CATHERINE CAMPBELL
Welcome to The Cascade, your source of news, culture, and student life at the University of the Fraser Valley.
(Please indulge my poetics, at least for this issue. They help me pretend that February is anything but an evil, bleary month.)
I’m writing this at the end of reading week. It’s been pouring rain and I’ve been living off coffee and homemade chicken soup, pretending the days don’t exist and that midterms aren’t lurking around every corner I encounter. Outside, the garlic and hyacinth bulbs are pushing through the dirt and the robins sing long before I crawl out of bed. I’d like to stay there, in bed, have the world stop for a little while, but life calls — and with it, another issue of The Cascade
On p. 17 of this edition, we clear away the winter scaries with a successful thrifting experiment: an old money aesthetic outfit unearthed for just over $30. Also on p. 17, welcome spring with a crunch! A crunchy pasta salad, that is; perfect for those days when you’re over our characteristic gloomy weather.
Then, fangirl your way over to p. 20 to learn about the Buffy reboot, where two of our dedicated reporters give us the lowdown on the upcoming series. And, if you’re as enthralled with Lady Gaga’s new single as the rest of us are, you’ll love the review of “Abracadabra” on p. 22. This issue’s feature answers the question that we’re all burning to know: what is a Cascade? Take a walk to p. 10-13 to find out and lose yourself in some excellent storytelling. And, if you have a fascination with all things spooky, strange, and unsolved, creep your way on over to p. 9 where we circle back to a long-forgotten (at least by most) case: the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight 370 (MH370).
That’s all from me for today. We hope you enjoy, and are finding little bits of spring starting wherever you are.
P.S. Do you have thoughts on this issue, or want to contribute your own words? Send an email to managing@ufvcascade.ca — we’d love to hear from you.
Catherine Campbell
NEWS BRIEFS
RENOWNED IMAM GAY ACTIVIST SHOT DEAD IN SOUTH AFRICA
Imam Muhsin Hendricks, a pioneer for 2SLGBTQIA+ rights, was ambushed and killed near Gqeberha on Feb 15. Hendricks is regarded as the “world’s first gay imam” and was an advocate for queer rights ever since first coming out at 29, despite the life-threatening risks.
“I’m gay, and I’m an imam, and I want to announce it to the world. And if they want to kill me, they can kill me, but I’d like to meet my maker with that kind of authenticity.”
Hendricks created and led the Al-Ghurbaah Foundation. This provided a haven for prayer at the Masjid Ul-Umam (the People’s Mosque) — an inclusive space with no queer or gender-based discrimination.
The Deputy Minister of the Department of Women, Youth and Persons, Mmapaseka Steve Letsike, denounced this murder as a “direct assault” on South African queer advocates. He urged the police to deepen their investigation to get justice.
“We call on the South African Police Services and all law enforcement agencies to strengthen their investigation, and track the persons responsible for justice to prevail.”
In The Radical (2022) documentary, Hendrick reiterated his decision to stand against death threats.
“The need to be authentic was greater than the fear to die.”
HEAVY WINDS MAY HAVE LED TO PEARSON AIRPORT CRASH
Following several days of heavy snow and difficult weather conditions, the Delta Air Lines Flight 4819 from Minneapolis crash-landed at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport on Feb. 17.
Amid strong winds and snowy conditions, the plane landed, upside-down, on the tarmac some time after 2 p.m. EST. Three people were found in critical condition, with a total of 21 reported injured. Current reports do not indicate any fatalities as a result of the crash.
During the days leading up to the incident, the airport received significant snowfall, with over 50 cms of ground accumulation as of Feb. 17. The area’s recent winter snowstorm led to the cancellation of hundreds of flights to and from Pearson International prior to the crash Monday afternoon. While the cause of the crash is currently unknown, weather is considered to be a contributing factor. The incident happened during a period of intense, high winds, with gusts of up to 65 km/h.
As per a post on X, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) will be investigating the incident.
“#TSBAir is deploying a team to investigate an aircraft accident at Toronto / Lester B. Pearson International Airport, ON. The TSB will gather information and assess the occurrence.”
UFV // February 2025 Senate recap
New fall semester dates, program changes, and EDI
RACHEL TAIT
Senate is the academic governing body of UFV, responsible for making decisions that impact the daily lives of both students and faculty. The Board of Governors, which looks at the business side of the university, is advised by Senate on matters of mutual interest. All at the university are welcome to attend Senate’s public meetings, which are held once a month. Senate makes decisions. This article will recap the main agenda items of the hybrid Senate meeting which occurred on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025.
A presentation was made on the progress of the work being done for policy 70, which focuses on academic integrity and misconduct. Liana Thompson, executive director, student academic affairs, and Lisa McMartin, manager, policies, projects, and reporting gave an update of what their working group was researching.
“What we were looking for was for some significant change to reflect what’s happening in our academic community since it was last revised in 2017.”
Thompson explained that the working group went with the design thinking perspective where they are continuously brainstorming ideas, sharing them for feedback, and making revisions in the process.
Mondays, 11 Tuesdays, 13 Wednesdays, 14 Thursdays, and 14 Fridays.
Gerry Palmer, associate professor, School of Business, suggested an alternative for a more balanced schedule where the last Thursday (Dec. 4) is a Monday and the last Friday (Dec. 5) will be treated as a Tuesday class. This will result in having 12-13 instructional days per day of the week during the fall 2025 semester. After a discussion, the Senate board was in favour of option four, and Johnston made a motion to implement option four in fall 2025. It was voted on and carried.
In her President’s Report, Dr. Joanne MacLean, president and vice chancellor, addressed the significance of Black History Month in the community and emphasized the importance of having black leaders in the generations to come.
Dr. MacLean also informed the Senate of the latest honour bestowed on the university.
“UFV was recently recognized as one of B.C.’s top employers for the 11th year in a row … I see this as a statement of everybody who works at UFV.”
Dr. James Mandigo, provost and vice-president academic, laid out in his Provost Report the importance of maintaining EDI and indigenization within the community.
Things were anything but certain after the UFV Cascades dropped a 3-0 decision on Valentine’s Day to the UBC Thunderbirds — a weekend series between the West Coast’s two premier teams that would determine the division’s top seed going into play-offs.
However, the UFV Women’s Volleyball Team (WVB) would respond the next day, and escape War Memorial gymnasium with a 3-2 victory on Feb. 15, leaving the rest of Canada West (CW) looking up at them in the standings, for the first time in program history.
The Cascades completed the regular season 17-3, ranking third in all of U Sports, and they haven’t lost any consecutive games during the entire season.
UFV is assured home court advantage for the duration of their play-off run after this weekend’s crucial split — and with a play-in round bye as top seed, the Cascades will face either the Trinity Western Spartans or the University of Saskatchewan Huskies on Friday, Feb. 28.
Federal and First Nations Peoples reconciliation continues after the Chiix̲uujin / Chaaw K̲aawgaa “Big Tide (Low Water)” Haida Title Lands Agreement was officially signed on Feb. 17 as Canada recognizes the Aboriginal title of Haida Gwaii. This agreement means that the 150 Crown-titled islands will start to transition back into the hands of the Haida people — giving them the right to govern.
According to CTV, this will change how disputes will be handled in court. Federally regulated services like airports, schools, and highways will still be under the Canadian government’s control. It will be a slow five-year transition period of determining what the agreement will look like in practice. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau commented on the significance of the signing and the country’s continued process of repairing relations with Indigenous peoples.
“As we mark a new chapter in the history of our nation-to-nation relationship, let us also recommit to walking the path of reconciliation. Because by working together, we’re showing that meaningful progress is possible.”
Some considerations the working group are looking at is the popular emergence and use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), how well the existing penalties fit with the circumstances surrounding academic misconduct, and if changes need to be made.
David Johnston, registrar and enrollment management, made a motion to approve the changes made to the entrance requirements for the Health Care Assistant certificate. These changes include students having a minimum of three years of full-time instruction, obtaining a minimum C grade in a Grade 11 English class, or having completed a language proficiency test to qualify.
The reason behind these changes was partly to update the application process and also to be ready in case the program is no longer funded on the provincial level. The motion was voted on and carried.
Johnston also presented different options for sessional dates for the next five years to ensure there are enough sessional days Monday to Saturday. The first option for fall 2025 is to follow the current schedule, which is a minimum of 63 instructional days in which there are 12
“I find myself, however, turning to sources of hope and inspiration that demonstrate that EDI is a commitment that ultimately unites us and is a demonstration of strength; and when we are united in this mission, we are better as a society.”
S. TERRONES
JEFFREY KENNETT
Illustration by Eseniia Bondar / The Cascade
Celebrating UFV’s recognition as one of BC’s 2025 Top Employers
Two UFV employees comment on the application process
SKY S. TERRONES
On Feb. 11, this year’s BC’s Top Employers (2025) were revealed by Mediacorp Canada Inc. — the biggest publisher of employment periodicals nationwide. Much to the university’s delight, UFV has been included for the 11th time in this prestigious list. Human Resources Associate Vice President (AVP) Kevin Jeske and HR’s Senior Advisor and Manager in Recruitment Services, Mark Pearson, shared their experience working at UFV and putting together the application forms for the award.
Pearson, who led the application process, commented on the in-depth procedure.
“There is a standardized application form that any organization wanting to participate would complete, so they ask you a set of questions in different categories.”
These categories can range from benefits, communication with employees, compensations, and recognitions to physical characteristics of the workplace. Pearson remarked on the collaborative work needed to answer them.
“It’s really a collective effort that I get to champion … ultimately, I want it to be reflective of our organization.”
Pearson observed that as much as this was a recognition, it was also an excellent way to attract and market to prospective employees by showing them what it’s like to work at UFV.
“They highlight a few things they might cite in terms of why we were selected … One of them was that the university offers a generous top-up to their maternity and
parental leave benefits. So, somebody who may be thinking of having a family thinks, ‘Oh, that’s great, where I work now doesn’t have that benefit. I’d like that kind of a benefit.’”
Among other UFV benefits mentioned on BC’s Top Employers website were professional development funds, UFV’s encouragement for employees to adopt healthy lifestyles, and a flexible health benefits plan. The plan includes $1,000 to be used for eligible medical or dental expenses, with the opportunity to transfer those funds to the employee’s retirement savings plan.
Jeske echoed Pearson’s statements and emphasized the significance of the way the organization considers and measures these workplaces.
“This is a quantitative assessment of all of the factors that make up a really good employer as opposed to a qualitative anecdotal summary of ‘I really like it here’ … we offer a very robust set of employee
benefits and other working conditions that when you assess them objectively and compare them to other employers, we rate very well, and that’s super important.”
While personal accounts and individual stories were not considered for this evaluation, Jeske remarked on the fulfilling experience and camaraderie found at UFV.
“I’m, relatively speaking, newer to UFV, having worked here coming up to three years, and I’ve really been impressed with how well-supported I feel as an employee … while it’s not perhaps measured in this survey, the collegiality and the professional tone characterized at UFV is also something that’s very rewarding.”
Pearson, who has worked at UFV for 13 years, expressed his elation at being an employee of the university.
“It’s the longest place I’ve worked … I get to do a job I love; I get to do that with people that I love to work with, and I
get to feel like the work I do matters, and that’s really important to me.”
Pearson revelled in the sense of community fostered at UFV and the joy the recognition from BC’s Top Employers brings him.
“I’m always pleased when we win because I feel like it’s a collective win for every single person who works here.”
Both Pearson and Jeske celebrate this success but are still mindful that there is always room for improvement; it’s essential that the university and its employees reflect the wider community’s diversity. Looking back, Jeske recalls his time as a former student and current employee of the university, and what it means to him to be part of this community.
“I’m sitting in exactly the same spot as where I took my very first class at UFV in 1990 … I’d always worked in service organizations and creating community, but not in my own community. So, coming back to work at UFV was an opportunity to do community building in the community that I’ve called home for most of my life.”
Pearson added that Jeske’s experience is one of many and reflects the environment nurtured at UFV — one that should continue to be developed.
“We have several of those examples, some of whom have been here 25-30 years just in this department. So, it’s a real testament to the community feeling that we’re trying to always foster. It doesn’t end. The work doesn’t end just because we’ve won an award. We don’t close the door on our climate and culture and say, ‘Good job.’ I mean, we can always continue to build on that.”
UFV on the lookout for a new president
There
are big shoes to fill after MacLean’s exit
VERONICA POWELL
Dr. Joanne MacLean, UFV’s current President and Vice-Chancellor of seven years, announced her retirement for June of this year. That means the hunt has begun to find a new president to take her place, which officially took off on Nov. 19, 2024. The search for a new president takes significant time and careful consideration from the Board of Governors, who oversee the entire process. Al Wiseman, UFV’s secretary, shared with The
Cascade details about the presidential search, the president’s critical role at the university and in supporting its students, and what this means for the prospective president.
Wiseman explained that UFV’s president works alongside the Board of Governors in overseeing institutional operations. They’re also the Chair of Senate, which is an integral position in leading the Senior Administrative team, the Vice President, the Office of General Counsel, and the Chief Financial Officer,
as well as Wiseman himself as the University Secretary.
The president oversees the university’s strategic direction and plans to implement and achieve the university’s goals. Another key job that comes with the presidency is building strong relationships with other UFV campuses, such as Mission, Chilliwack, and Hope, as well as with donors and other supporters.
and personal traits they must have to succeed in the role.
“What it comes down to is leading the university at the highest level … ensuring we live out our values, ensuring that we’re pursuing the mission of the university, and then ensuring that what flows out of that — the integrated strategic plan, the strategic enrollment management plan — are being followed or that the results are being achieved.”
When deciding who to establish as the new president, Wiseman talked about some of the most important capabilities CONTINUED ON PAGE 05
Since 2006, UFV has run a uniquely modelled Canadian institution in Chandigarh, India, where students can take part in Experiential Learning UnderGrad Programs before smoothly transitioning to finish their program in Canada. Dr. Satwinder Bains, associate professor in the School of Culture, Media, and Society, shared how the project came to life and her ongoing support for these transfer programs.
UFV India began with the Experiential Business Program (BBA), and has since expanded to include the Experiential Computing Program (BCIS) and the Experiential Liberal Arts Program (BA).
Bains mentioned how her dream was to get a curriculum started in South Asian studies that was on par with the essential skill set required for improving social work in subcultural communities. She noted that many factors played a part in the birth of this memorandum of understanding.
“It seemed like the stars were really aligning themselves to make this happen.”
During this time, Premier Gordon Campbell had been taking delegates to India to invite trade. Interested in developing a partnership, UFV’s then-president, Dr. Skip Bassford, joined the journey.
“[Bassford] wanted to create something. So, all this initiative came out of his office.”
Bains remarked on the instrumental role of business Professor D.J. Sandhu, who travelled to India alongside and helped build the bridge between institutions.
“He was from that region. He had a lot of social capital still in the region. He knew people. He could open doors. He could ask questions. He could drop in. So, it was easier for him. It wasn’t easy, but it was easier.”
Bains also commented on the quality and triumph of the students despite the small quantity of programs offered.
“It still only has about three programs and is a small, contained campus. But what they do, they do well. You don’t want to just grow for the sake of growing and just churn people out of university. You want them to have a solid experience where [their] success is uppermost in our minds. Every student has graduated from that program. Not one has dropped out.”
Around 175 students come to Canada from the Chandigarh campus each year. However, Bains said that less than 10 students have gone to study at the Chandigarh campus since its opening. Regretfully, Bains feels they have failed at effectively advertising this opportunity to students.
“We initially had wanted that stream to be a strong stream, but it hasn’t been. Very few students have gone to study in India and we haven’t been able to market that well enough.”
Regardless of the low number, Bains emphasized the value of studying abroad.
“The benefits are amazing. Especially in today’s transnational and global world, to have that kind of exposure where you have sat within another country with likeminded students.”
She described the experience as an “easy benefit” as students would attend a UFV campus, with the advantage of exploring a diverse society rich in culture, history, and civilization. The experience would also provide the perfect opportunity to form connections.
“You create lifelong friendships. You create relationships that you’ve never dreamt of, outside your comfort zone.”
However, with discrimination on the rise, the logistics and potential struggle to motivate students to participate in these programs were brought up. Bains shared
Together, the designated search committee looks for people who are visionaries and strategic in their work. With a new president, there will be a fresh set of eyes to analyze the school’s needs and student priorities.
“If I was the new president, I’d be looking at what is it [that] we do to ensure that students are getting what they should be getting? … Where are there gaps? I’d be leaning on the Vice President to help me understand, [and] I would be talking to SUS.”
Wiseman added that having a solid motivation as the leader of a university is just as crucial.
“[We need] somebody who has a determination to achieve goals as a school.
People who are doing this, that’s what’s driving them.”
With great responsibility comes significant pressure to ensure students have a fulfilling university experience. It’s up to the president to deliver their commitments to students.
“[Students] have things that matter to them, and they all want certain things from the university … the pressure is on the president to make sure that we’re doing what we can do to achieve our targets.”
The successful candidate will ideally begin their presidency on July 1, 2025, but depending on varying factors, they could start as late as Sept. 1.
her opinion on the matter.
“The utopian hope is that when you see people who are different from you, you embrace them and say, ‘Canada has so much to offer, welcome! This is a lovely country. I live here; you live here. We can all live collectively.’”
Bains observed that while that is the expectation, it differs from the students’ experience coming to Canada.
“International students say to me regularly, ‘How come domestic students don’t talk to us?’ Because there’s this inbuilt kind of group mentality, right? We all belong to something or some idea of who we are, our identity, and it’s hard to break out of it.”
She encouraged students to look inward and be the change they want to see.
“We always think we need to learn about the other for our own change to happen. But until you’ve done your own changing, learning about the other means nothing.”
Regardless of these struggles, Bains is committed to supporting students, the program, and her job as an educator, prompting people to appreciate each other’s similarities rather than their differences.
“You keep doing the work. You always hope that any little bit of difference you can make will make a difference. So, we never give up. And it’s not over.”
Former students open up about life after university
PRATI KAPOOR
University is a place that provides experiences and opportunities that are integral in helping students develop and grow as individuals. A question that often arises is: what happens after graduation?
Former UFV students Mehmet Ercan, Aakash Dean, and Raghav Dani shared their experiences with The Cascade and gave advice for graduating students.
Mehmet Ercan graduated with a degree in Integrated Studies back in May 2024. During his time at UFV, Ercan served as a Community Assistant at the Lá:lem te Baker and was a practicum student at the World University Service of Canada Student Refugee Program. This experience helped him realize his true calling — to work in student affairs — and helped build self-confidence.
“I like changes … I don’t like to follow one particular thing in general … UFV gave me a purpose and gave me a very good mentality. UFV gave me a perfect idea of what I should do.”
Ercan shared that he found the transition from UFV to the external world challenging and is still looking for a job. He is using this time as an opportunity to educate himself in different fields.
“I am trying to make sure I am always improving myself, and I always find hobbies to help.”
Ercan explained that potential employers look for diverse extracurricular experiences and emphasized that attending UFV serves as a significant networking opportunity for students.
“If you want to create a club, the school is there for you.”
Aakash Dean shared his experience as a transfer student from Fraser Valley India (FVI). He graduated in June 2022 with a Bachelor of Business Administration, majoring in human resources.
As a student, Dean worked in the Campus Card office at UFV. There, he discovered that his true career aspirations were in the education sector. He built professional connections with his professors and gained knowledge from the courses he studied at UFV.
While Dean was a part of the student company program, Dendranato, at FVI, he learnt French and enjoyed attending networking events. These experiences helped him adjust comfortably in the corporate workspace.
“I was trying to network with people and get to know people; I think that really helped me prepare better in the workplace.”
Dean currently works as a study abroad coordinator at UFV, taking care of inbound and outbound mobility at the university. The job offers Dean the opportunity to attend staff week
programs where student employees from different countries come together to share knowledge. Dean recently participated in programs in Spain and Japan.
Some of the challenges Dean faced when searching for employment was the lack of professional Canadian work experience during his graduation which affected job preparedness despite strong academic scores. As he gained real world experience, it helped him improve his interview skills. It also taught him the importance of maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
“Rather than earning minimum wage for 70 hours, it’s better to actually grow yourself professionally … Rather than earning more, I can invest [in] myself today so that my salary can increase in the next few years.”
Raghav Dani graduated with a Computer Information Systems Diploma in December 2019. During his time at UFV, he worked as a Global Student Associate at UFV International. Being active on campus gave him the knowledge and experience he needed to seamlessly transition into a professional setting.
Dani credits UFV for everything in his life. His time at UFV gave him the academic knowledge, work experience, networking opportunities, and references he uses to date.
Dani is currently working for FreshBooks, where he investigates bugs in software and provides customer support. He is also a part of the onboarding team which helps train new hires and conduct product demonstration workshops. The hardest challenge he faced was landing himself an interview, which required tailoring a resume and cover letter to the company standards, on top of staying motivated and consistent with applying for jobs, despite facing multiple rejections.
To succeed as a student at UFV, Ercan advises students to learn about territorial acknowledgements, minorities, and different cultures. He encourages students to be more optimistic and work toward improving themselves.
Dean’s advice to students is to believe in themselves and say yes to opportunities. He emphasized that students need to be more engaged and make use of the resources available to them.
Dani suggested that students should not be discouraged while looking for their desired careers and to not blame themselves for any rejections.
“If you have that consistency and motivation to keep applying for jobs, one day the opportunity is going to fall into your lap,” said Dani.
If you’re like me, you rarely play video games on hard mode and it’s an absolute must to keep your inventory after death in Minecraft (2009). By adjusting a game’s level of difficulty, gamers can decide for themselves how much of a challenge they’re up for. As for me, I’ve been playing Red Dead Redemption (2010) since I was 10-years-old and still refuse to turn off aim assist. To each their own, right?
Apparently not. I’ve experienced my fair share of judgement from gamers, because according to them, there’s a right and wrong way to play video games. To them, playing on anything less than the hardest difficulty is synonymous with cheating or just plain laziness. Here I was thinking the whole point was to have fun.
After a long day, I’m not in the mood to rage at my screen because my game’s difficulty is too high or because I lost my entire inventory to an exploding creeper. If you ask me, the real world is challenging enough. These games should serve as a break, and whichever difficulty gives you the most joy is the one you should be playing on.
Learning how to sew is one skill that should not have been allowed to become an oddity. I am a firm believer that we should teach sewing like we teach how to tie a shoe — as a practical necessity. Learning to sew changed my perspective on the items I own. The backpack that I’ve had since elementary school got a tear in it? Not a problem! Besides some visible stitching it works as well as it did in third grade. The jeans that fit nicely got a hole in them? An opportunity for a fun patch; no need to mourn those perfect jeans.
I feel lucky to have family members that can guide me with stitching techniques, but there are a huge amount of YouTube videos on basic stitches for people to learn from. At the dollar store and thrift shop, there are affordable sewing tools for anyone looking to start sewing. I don’t think I’ll ever be an exceptional seamstress but I can always add a bit of love and personality to my clothes while making them last that much longer.
BY KARA DUNBAR
Column //
The Environmentalist: Homero Goméz González’s legacy
A life dedicated to advocating for monarch butterflies and their protection
FABIOLA CRUZ ALDERETE
Welcome to The Environmentalist, your column for understanding the natural world. Today we will remember the life and work of Mexico’s greatest monarch butterfly defender.
A man walks through a forest, surrounded by lush trees and greenery. Suddenly, a burst of orange and black surrounds him, as if greeting him. The monarch butterflies rise in gratitude; they know that without him, there would be no home for them to return to.
Homero Goméz González was one of the most well-known and respected environmental activists in Mexico and Latin America. He represented local farmers and Indigenous communities, leading successful conservation efforts in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in the forests of Michoacán. Brave and unwavering, he spoke out even when his work was threatened by criminal groups known as cartels.
“He was always looking out for everyone; he made sure that the forest was reforested every year,” said Javier Miranda García, a colleague of Goméz, to BBC.
Known as a guardian of the monarch butterfly, Goméz protected their habitat until, in the end, he paid with his life. On Jan. 3, 2020, Goméz disappeared. 16 days later, he was found dead in an agricultural well in Ocampo under suspicious circumstances. Many suspect involvement from cartels and even government officials; it was discovered through the autopsy results that his death was not accidental, and robbery was not a likely motivator. Tragically, in Latin America, activism — especially in defence of the environment — is often a death sentence.
The monarch butterfly holds a special place in Mexican culture, as they are believed to carry the souls of deceased loved ones. Recently, the monarch has been seen as a symbol of Latin American
immigrants and the unity between Canada, the U.S., and Mexico. And so, with every monarch we see in the sky, we can believe that a part of Goméz’ soul journeys with them.
Goméz dedicated countless hours to exposing the destruction caused by illegal logging in Mexico, a threat that directly impacts butterflies. His efforts succeeded and he became an early advocate for environmental causes, as well as the face of monarch butterfly conservation. His passion extended to his family and loved ones, who remember him with deep affection; his entire community honours him with gratitude and admiration.
Thank you, Homero, for being a light in the dark. You showed us that change is possible if we are brave. As you once said: “If we are going to do something, we should do it without fear.” And oh, what a fearless man you were.
Column // Tech Talk: new laptop not working as it should?
I bought a new laptop online. Things weren’t what they seemed.
SEAN HORN
Welcome to Tech Talk, where we explore all things technology in relation to student life. This week, I bought a new laptop online for a killer deal and it hid some nasty secrets.
Ever see a deal that seems too good to be true? I see them all the time as a tech shopper, especially online. It just so happens that I needed a new laptop and a new desktop. I won’t say where online I bought these computers from, but what I will say is that they were both bought from different sellers.
I’ll start with the laptop; it’s a Lenovo Yoga 7 2-in-1 and I gotta tell you; on paper, it’s fast and can do almost anything you’d want with little or no complaint. So, imagine my surprise when I unbox it, plug it in, turn it on, and see that it’s not at all as good at performing as expected. Other users had no issues, updates
worked flawlessly and didn’t take forever, yet my laptop could barely do the same tasks and I couldn’t update the drivers for the video card. This is a problem — a big one. After looking at any programs that were running in the background, I found a ton of non-standard stuff.
Turns out, this great deal was loaded with cryptocurrency miners, the software that allows people to earn cryptocurrency by using their computer to crunch the numbers of the program. There was also an alarming amount of spyware. Both of these aspects explained the lack of performance and why my internet connection was so slow. To compare with the other computer I bought, a mini desktop machine, which has almost the same specifications as the laptop, ran without an issue. There was no bloatware or insidious extras, beyond the ones Microsoft is forcing us to use. I’m looking at you, Copilot.
So what do you do in this case? The best thing to do is go to Microsoft’s website and learn how to make your own recovery key from their clean copy of Windows 11 — which is free as long as you have a system that had it before. You then kiss your files goodbye and fully wipe the hard drive clean. It’s a nuclear option that shouldn’t be used lightly, but it is the only way to make sure your system is safe to use.
After doing this, the laptop will need all the drivers and updates, the software that makes everything work, and once those are done you should be good to go. If you suspect that your new computer isn’t running the way it should, get someone to look at it. Especially if you bought it from a less than recognized store, like I did. In short, there’s no free lunch and when something seems too good to be true, it generally is.
Lifestyle // Transitory on Tinder
Not-so-breaking news: Tinder sucks
DARIEN JOHNSEN
You see, the problem with dating is that I just don’t care; and dating when you don’t care is so much less exciting than being a mid-20 something with hopes and dreams for your romantic future.
About once a year, I reluctantly and shamefully re-download Tinder, only to be immediately disgusted by my decision. I’m not that motivated or interested in finding a romantic partner, but a girl needs to get laid once in a while. Now that I’m on the border of 30, this has become a lot more complicated, mostly because I know how it all pans out. Casual dating tends to turn into someone getting more invested than the other, and awkwardness and rejection ensues. I’m also not one for one night stands — like, at all. It’s all well and good if you’ve got a great friend who’s also open to benefits, but in my experience, that doesn’t come without its complications and should be avoided all together. And so alas, dating apps it is.
Being on dating apps is so uncomfortable. My potential connections either look too dateable or too douchey. If you go with too douchey (which I feel is the
safer bet if you’re searching for a casual fling), you’ll wind up doing most of the chatting and will likely have to ignore the onslaught of blaring red flags. And if you go for the too dateable, one of you is going to catch feelings.
The real problem when it comes to getting laid? My standards are too high. I want to feel connected and socially attracted to the person I’m having sex with, but I don’t want either of us to be romantically invested. On the other hand, I can’t have sex with someone just for the sake of having sex. It leaves me in an uncomfortable limbo, untouched — yet untouchable.
I’m old enough now that I can exist as a somewhat sexually unsatisfied woman, but that doesn’t mean I don’t sometimes yearn for a snuggle or two. This means I inevitably end up on one or another dating app once a year, grimacing and swiping left. I’m sorry Paul, 35, who likes long drives in his BMW, you’re a big-time texter, and I have real big issues with “text men” — left. Jay! You look so fun, super handsome, great pictures, but your button-up shirt and overzealous smile makes me think that you may be
too well-adjusted for me — left. Summer, 30, beautiful smile — you look down-toearth and sweet, but your seven different hair colours make me think you may be a little unstable and likely to get too attached; plus, you live in Bellingham — left. And so it continues: they mention Sydney Sweeney in their bio? Left. Jock? Left. A so-called “real man” who thinks that gender roles in 2025 are all twisted? Good god — left. Bellingham — left, and once again, Bellingham — fricking left. Why are they always in Bellingham? I wish I could say that this ends in some sort of happy ending (pun intended), where I find the perfect person to casually hook up and hang out with, avoiding all this nonsense. Sadly, I still haven’t figured out how to navigate this awkward transitory time in my life. I swipe for an hour or two over the following week, only to wind up exasperated and delete the app. I’m once again back where I started, alone and mildly unsatisfied. But to be honest, maybe this is what I prefer. Sure, I’d love a prince or princess charming for a night or two now and then, but I think I’ll stick with the less confusing, trusty and reliable vibrator.
SNAPSHOT
I love British television, but is it because I’m British?
Illustrations by Iryna Presley
I was recently analyzing my television track record and I took notice of what TV shows I’ve watched that were specifically consumed in British culture. My range went from a dark, gloomy fantasy like The Sandman (2022), to a steamy, period drama like Outlander (2014–). I’m consistently pulled into a variety of series regardless of plot, genre, or characterization. The British television repertoire is something I’ve found myself returning to, but why? After careful analysis, I came to a semi-solid conclusion.
At first thought: it’s the thick accent, the unique terminologies, and the unbelievably good looks of certain male figures that make me drop everything to watch a show. Digging deeper, most British individuals share a social etiquette that seems rare elsewhere. They’re genuinely polite, respectful, and own a certain wit and class I find comforting. Being British myself, it could be my desire to explore my heritage. Television creates a loophole into learning about the rich history, strong traditions, and famous landmarks I long for through storytelling. So, I haven’t pinpointed the precise reason for my obsession, but I know one thing. Being of British descent or not, I can always trust the Brits to entertain and educate me.
BY VERONICA POWELL
Illustration by May Beeney / The Cascade
World // Who else remembers MH370?
You might not think about this internet mystery often, but I’ve kept a close eye on it for 10 years
SNAPSHOT
Does
productivity kill inspiration and creativity, or do they go hand in hand?
by Iryna Presley
Without productivity, creativity would result in incomplete art pieces and unfinished sculptures. Or does productivity kill the inspiration to create?
Boredom and intense emotions are the lifeblood of creativity. If we are productive all day long, with a time-stamped morning routine, gym and pilates classes filling up our 24 hours, then when do we lay back and bore ourselves into being inspired and creating art? Without a basic level of productivity, we wouldn’t have art. Waking up, being focused and disciplined, are necessary to work on our ideas and get things done. Is unfinished art an art form as a whole or a form of unproductiveness? How can we be creatives in a life that is so focused on routines and time stamps? Or is productivity an art form in itself? I think there’s art in using your time to create yourself: the art of being ourselves
BY PARUL BHOLA
NATALIA TOSCANO MURUA
With everything that happens on the internet, it’s hard to keep track of every new dramatic event. It feels like they can come and go in five minutes — every day there’s something new for people to talk about. What feels like something that’s going to be a historic event, dies in the flames of virality and sinks into oblivion. Still, I think a lot of people keep better track of specific events out of personal interest. For me, the mysterious disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight 370 (MH370) still fascinates me. Even if I tried, I couldn’t say it better than Petter Hörnfeldt, an experienced pilot with more than 10,000 hours in the cockpit of the Boeing 737, who argues:
“How can a Boeing 777, one of the biggest and most modern aircrafts in the world just vanish without a trace? It can’t.”
On Mar. 8, 2014, almost 11 years ago to the date, MH370 disappeared after taking off from Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia with 239 souls on board, bound for Beijing Capital International Airport in China. A massive search was launched to find the missing aircraft, but to no avail. At the time, everyone was talking about it, since it was an indisputable tragedy and an extremely unusual event. It’s the 21st
century; aircrafts can’t simply disappear without a trace — there’s always a trail of clues left behind.
Back then, I was starting to dip my toes into the topic of airline incidents, and from then on it’s become something I’ve kept coming back to. Just as other people might levitate toward, for example, True Crime Cases or Seconds From Disaster (2004-2018); I find the topic of aircraft accidents very intriguing. I’ve watched most, if not all, episodes of Air Crash Investigation (2003–) that I could find, and I have seen myriad videos on the topic. I would consider myself knowledgeable enough when it comes to these incidents to say that for MH370’s wreckage to remain undiscovered is extremely unusual. For over 10 years, the question of whether one day we’ll find the wreckage and finally be able to solve the decade old mystery has never left my mind. Even if it’s no longer an internet hot topic, and even if for the rest of the world it’s old news, for me it will never cease to be riveting.
Almost a year ago, Mentour Pilot released a video essay presenting all known information related to the case, and urged for another search to be initiated to find the wreckage. While it’s confirmed that the plane went down, thanks to debris recovered from the
ocean’s surface, we still have not been able to locate the aircraft as a whole. Still, the YouTube channel’s video revived the conversation on the internet about the importance of finding the missing plane. To say that I’ve monitored any developments closely is an understatement. So, imagine my surprise when I learned that a new search effort would be conducted in the first months of 2025! I am delighted to announce that at the time of writing this article, Ocean Infinity’s Armada 78-06 vessel is underway to the estimated crash site. A lot of new developments were made in the past couple of years, and it was thanks to them that this new search was greenlit.
I’ll admit, I have high hopes for this search. I won’t overwhelm you with the details but, in short, the combined knowledge of dozens of industry experts agreed that the new selected search site is very likely to contain the remains of MH370. I believe the families still affected by the disaster today deserve closure, and that pinpointing the crash site and examining the wreckage is paramount for improving air travel safety. I can’t wait to hear more about how the search effort goes, and if it is found, I’m sure it will become viral again.
Illustration by May Beeney / The Cascade
Illustrations
What is a Cascade?
If you’re looking for belonging at UFV, you can find it on campus every Friday and Saturday night
JEFFREY KENNETT
If we ever happen to run into each other on a wintery Saturday night at 2 a.m., in a city where the temperature is -12, and our flights the night before were delayed twice from a snowstorm … there’s a good chance of two things being true:
1. My socks are probably slightly damp from walking to a pub through piled-up snow in sneakers — like a true West Coaster — and 2. I’m exactly three beers deep (if you know, you know).
It doesn’t take long for me to become that guy at the bar: talking about sports with strangers; bringing up random athletes of the past, remembering some guys.
Students always say that UFV is boring. Have you ever been on campus on a Friday or Saturday night?
determination
Matthias Klim, a fourth-year forward on the men’s basketball team, had seen the program’s Blocks (BLK) record hanging up in the locker room since he arrived at UFV in 2021. He wanted it for himself and hunted it down. It didn’t always seem possible though; staying healthy and avoiding injury can often come down to luck.
During the 2022-23 season, Klim established a U Sports record 12 BLK against the Saskatchewan Huskies. This elevated his career total to 42, inching closer to the record of 72 he was chasing. By the beginning of the 2024-25 season Klim needed only 6 BLK to pass Sukhman Sandhu for first place.
The milestone moment came against the University of Victoria Vikes on Nov. 23, 2024. The Cascades turned the ball over, leading to Vikes guard Renoldo Robinson reversing the ball down court before Klim got a hand on it.
“I would love to say it was a monster play in the making, but I just got back on defence [and] did my job … whatever happened, happened,” said Klim. “Very honoured, especially
I love watching sports; in particular, I love watching games that are competitive. The Cascades overflow with competitiveness, playing for individual pride as well as the teammate next to them.
After spending last weekend in Hamilton, Ontario talking about basketball, volleyball, and the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off at NASH87 (the largest student journalism conference in Canada), our Cascade newspaper team departed Toronto Pearson Airport back to Abbotsford.
Approximately 18 hours later, at 2:15 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 17, Delta Air Lines flight 4819 crash-landed on one of the very same runways we had departed from just one day prior. I wouldn’t exactly call it a near miss, but had our flight been delayed (like it was for everyone else at Pearson after the crash) who knows what could have happened. With so many intersecting paths and circumstances, it
really puts things into perspective for me.
My job is to write about sports — how lucky am I?
I started as The Cascade’s sports editor in February of 2024, and ever since then I’ve asked a lot of different people a lot of different questions.
Some of the best basketball players in the country play for our university and I’ve gotten to see a lot of them up close over the course of a full season now. UFV’s rich diversity extends to our sports teams — we have both international students and homegrown Abbotsford personalities.
When I talk to the UFV athletics community, a question I always come back to in some shape or form is: What is a Cascade? What does it mean? What are they made of?
This is what I’ve figured out so far.
with the others on that list; Sukhman, [Daniel Adediran], all those guys.”
Dario Lopez has been alongside Klim since his first year, and the pair have stood beside each other for every national anthem presentation since joining Canada West. Klim is extremely superstitious; you’ll often find him jogging through the lobby at the last second prior to tip-off as part of his pre-game ritual.
Coach Joe Enevoldson also joined the program in 2021-22 during the COVID season.
The coach has seen tremendous development from the Chilliwack native since he was a freshman; Klim is usually first sub off the bench. Enevoldson praises Klim’s rim protection, explaining it forces shooters to be more aware on offence with such an active defensive presence.
With another 20-30 games to put distance between himself and Sandhu on the all-time BLK list, Klim appreciates the idea of young kids in the Fraser Valley chasing down his record one day… but not too soon.
“I’m hopefully gonna make it unattainable.”
Dogged
The Cascades women’s basketball team went through two down seasons in a row in 2017-18 and 2018-19, winning a combined 18 games. In 2019-20 their fortunes changed for the better.
Maddy Gobeil, Nikki Cabuco, and Deanna Tuchscherer all became Cascades that season, going 17-5 in their rookie campaign. Since the beginning of the Gobeil-Cabuco-Tuchscherer era, and at the time of writing, UFV has amassed a record of 79-27. The 2024-25 season is the fifth and final for the big three.
There was the possibility of the team stumbling out of the gate after a longer play-off run; going all the way to nationals last season, after a Canada West bronze medal win. Experiences like 2022-23, when the team finished 15-7 but were ousted by the University of Alberta Pandas in the play-offs, were essential for the growth of the team.
Cascades strength and conditioning coach Matt Chapdelaine calls them a “slow burn.”
“Rather than the engine just being hot, we’re gonna run —” he said. “We’re gonna wall up teams and really make them feel us.”
The Cascades might have moments where they don’t look like themselves, but they never stop being themselves. There’s internal belief that they deserve to be seen as a contender at the national level.
Timeouts for this team are high-level conversations. It’s not coaches teaching athletes what they should be doing. It’s coaches collaborating with athletes, and athletes collaborating with each other, working more dynamic looks or stops on the defensive end. This group has embraced thinking about the game at a different level.
I call it professionalism — Chapdelaine calls it mutual respect. On some youth sport teams there is a classism or hierarchy between starters, seniors, and bench players. Coach Al Tuchscherer has made everyone see that no matter what role you play on this team, they’re all significant. Redshirts (RS) are as valuable to each win as the ones playing 20 minutes a night.
“Motivation can come hot and fast, and momentum is a slow roll. It just continues to build on itself … and they definitely have momentum.”
When a rookie with the physical gifts of D. Tuchscherer begins their U Sports career, they don’t know they’re not supposed to be good, so they play simple and free. This year while battling injuries, whether D. Tuchscherer is on the court or on the bench, she brings an intimate understanding of the game to the team.
Even if D. Tuchscherer isn’t producing points, check her Plus-Minus (PM). When she’s on the court the Cascades usually score more than they get scored on, a testament to
her skill defensively. On offence, she takes defenders out of the picture. If she’s in the paint, she’s drawing in her check, so the perimeter has an extra half a second — oftentimes creating open shots for Cabuco.
“Deanna is one of the most dependable people on this team,” said Chapdelaine. “[It’s] like having a coach on the court.”
Chapdelaine theorizes that the beautiful thing about basketball is the more you play at a certain level, the more the game starts to slow down. A key and well-documented aspect of growth in Cabuco’s game has been her shot-selection. This year, the game seems to have slowed down for her, allowing for extended possessions and better shots.
The Port Moody native works tirelessly over off-season, allowing for increased trust in her abilities as an athlete, while continuing to excel as a student as well.
“For Nikki, it’s not just athletic growth or skill growth and development, it’s personal growth,” said Chapdelaine.
On a lot of nights following games, Gobeil is often limping around the lobby or has an icebag on her ankle. If you’re trying to find her on the court, I’ll make it easy for you: she’s
the one that’s always diving on the hardwood for deflections, and for lack of better words, making shit happen.
Gobeil has buckets of confidence, and the more that she adds to her toolkit, the more she has at her disposal. Two summers ago she spent hours with all of UFV’s assistant coaches adding different finishes to her game to capitalize on her abundant driving opportunities. Since then Gobeil has added up to 20 different types of finishes: rolls off the backboard, rainbow shots, floaters — you name it, it’s in her bag.
Chapdelaine encourages athletes to find the right combination of confidence to know that they’re the best they’ve ever been, and humility to know that they can still be better.
“As long as you hold those two things in balance, you dictate how long your career is going to be,” Chapdelaine said. “Maddy’s superpower is, ‘if I can, I will,’ and she’s like that in everything. ‘If I can get extra shots up at six in the morning, I will. If I can make a play at a free ball, I will. If I can drive right now and draw a foul, I will. If I can take the shot over your head, I will.’”
After a game in which the Cascades fell to the Thompson Rivers University (TRU) Wolfpack 83-74, I ran into Jaylen Lee in the lobby of the Athletics Centre.
“It still hurts, even when you’re not playing,” he told me.
J. Lee, a resident of Chilliwack, B.C., transferred to UFV this season after spending his rookie year with the University of Calgary Dinos (U of C) in 2023-24, and has been serving as a RS for his hometown Cascades this season.
Growing up at his dad Mike Lee’s basketball games, J. Lee fell in love with the sport. M. Lee ran the point guard position for two University-College of the Fraser Valley (UCFV) championships in 2000 and 2002, and would return to win his third national title as a member of UFV’s coaching staff in 2004. He was the tournament MVP in 2002.
J. Lee wasn’t always certain of following in his father’s footsteps though. There were times where he would ask himself, “Do I want to do this?”
“As I grew older I realized that there’s a reason I’m playing,” he said. “This is happening for a reason … it’s an opportunity that a lot of people don’t have.”
Alongside his father’s history with the university, J. Lee’s grandpa, Pat Lee, was at the
helm of UCFV basketball for 12 years, before they even had a gymnasium. Over his time as coach, P. Lee amassed a record of 151-56, leading the team to three PacWest championship titles in five years: 2000, 2002, and 2004. P. Lee endorses Coach Enevoldson’s vision to build a team with Lower Mainland kids first and foremost, as teams that have grown up playing with and against each other are more likely to go the extra mile for one another.
The family lineage doesn’t end there though. As if this story wasn’t cool enough, there will be two Lees sharing the court next season. MEI standout point guard Isaiah Lee has committed to UFV and will be joining the squad next season, and has gamebreaking potential to be an immediate difference-maker.
M. Lee still has trouble comprehending that his two sons will be playing together at the same school in the immediate future.
“I feel lucky that this place was a home to us for so long, and now it’s going to be a home to them and all of us again for the next four or five years.”
Profiling as a big Shooting Guard (SG) that can knock down shots, J. Lee has the opportunity to become a major factor next season. The Cascades have come up on the wrong end of five games in 2024-25 that have been determined by as few as nine points. A player who
can convert shots like J. Lee becomes all the more valuable in these narrowly determined outcomes.
J. Lee has an abundance of pride to be playing in a program pioneered by his family. Having the opportunity to play together with his younger brother is not something he expected, and he’s eager to make the most of it after dealing with an injury this season.
“To potentially play with my brother where I grew up, and put on for the valley … I can’t wait — especially at the highest level in Canada. I’m super grateful for everything that’s been, everything I’ve heard, [and] everything that’s been given.”
As a transfer from U of C, J. Lee is unable to join the active roster, but if eligibility would allow, it’s safe to say he would be playing regular minutes on this team. As an MEI and prep standout, just like his younger brother, J. Lee brings winning experience from prestigious athletic programs.
With both Lee brothers officially entering the fray next season, Enevoldson sees a sustainable path to greatness for this Cascades team.
“Jay’s going to be a big part of that, as is Zeke [Isaiah],” he said. “They’re a big part of our future.”
It doesn’t take an expert to watch a game and be able to tell which team is better. The best team usually wins, and if wins are indicative of being good, we have good teams at UFV.
You just have to pay the slightest bit of attention.
Being a Cascade is about elevating the crest on the jersey. If we as students take as much pride as our athletes do to represent the Fraser Valley, there’s a fortress to be built on our very own campus. Good teams, bad teams; it doesn’t really matter. The players in Abbotsford are easily overlooked in favour of larger programs
within the province, but if you think nothing is happening here, you’re part of the problem.
Anything can happen in sports; that’s what makes it so much fun. If UFV’s students start believing in their teams just as much as the players do, look out. But if you won’t take my word for it, consider this from P. Lee:
“[When] I first started the job I said, ‘we’re going to win with Valley kids … we’re gonna win with local talent’ … and people thought the Fraser Valley [was] too small. I said I’m gonna give it five years … if we’re not improving in five years, I’m going to quit … and that year
we won nationals in Edmonton.
“People used to say [we] didn’t have a hope … [but] believing you can win [is] 90 per cent of winning a championship. That’s what I tried to teach those kids … we can win … we just need to play together.”
sports@ufvcascade.ca
Sports Editor - Jeffrey Kennett
Cascade Q&A: Max Prevost & Nick Cleland
JEFFREY KENNETT
Max Prevost, Infielder (INF) and Nicholas Cleland, Right-Handed Pitcher (RHP) are third-year students on the UFV Cascades Men’s Baseball team. Last season, the ‘Scades won their second Canadian College Baseball Conference (CCBH) championship in team history, and will officially begin their title defence this spring. Who makes the best playlists on your team?
Both: Not [Andrew Vander Veen]!
Prevost: He’s got good AUX, it’s just repetitive. I take a lot of my music from him but I hate it.
Cleland: You’re going to get a lot of good songs from him … and you’re also going to want to pull your hair out sometimes.
Who was the most welcoming when you joined the team in first-year?
Cleland: Let’s see, Ty Hall was awesome, Jack Ray, Dylan Merritt, Blake Badger. Those are the guys I remember when we first came in that really welcomed us. There’s too many to name. It all happened so fast … just a couple years ago, I was the rookie that didn’t know anyone, now I’m one of the older guys that gets to tell younger guys what to do and whatnot.
Prevost: Badger, Lewis Antonuk, Lane Grunerud is another name. We had them all last year which was nice for our second year, and we ended up winning the championship which is special. That whole group of leaders who we came in with all left [this season]. So we’re trying to step up a bit … Now these rookies come in [and] we’ve felt where they are, they’re all nervous, and it’s nice to welcome them and be the leaders.
What’s it like to play for Riley Jepson as a coach?
Cleland: [Jepson] changed the whole culture. The biggest thing is he makes [us] feel confident, he believes in every single guy. He makes a personal connection with everyone. [We’re] never worried about messing up with him, because he understands.
Prevost: [He’s] a player’s coach, he’s had this experience before. He knows how it is to be a student athlete. He’s one of the boys … but he’s not … he’s a coach, obviously.
We look up to him [and] we respect him; everyone wants to play for him and play for each other because of him. That was really what brought us the championship last year.
As roommates, who’s cooking dinner most nights?
Cleland: We’re pretty good in the kitchen, but we do a lot of repetition. Breakfast wraps every morning, and then dinners will always be burritos or pasta, tacos, chicken, all that stuff.
Prevost: We’re excited to go down to Phoenix and crush an In-N-Out, but a lot of fast food too out here, which is unfortunate.
What was the championship journey like last season?
Prevost: We play exhibition games against college teams as well as high school teams, just to get some games in, [but] last year in exhibition, I don’t think we beat a college team. But we had a great winter, and the
Health & Fitness // Fitness for beginners
A kinesiology professor’s tips and tricks to get in shape
CAITLYN CARR
Leslie Horita is a kinesiology professor at UFV.
The new year can bring with it a list of resolutions, among the most popular being a promise to start exercising. It’s no secret that working out is vital for staying healthy, but where do we start? What kinds of exercises should we focus on, and what’s the difference between exercise and physical activity?
To get an idea of how beginners can stay fit, The Cascade sat down with Leslie Horita, a kinesiology professor at both UFV and Langara College. Horita explained that not only does staying fit
make you look healthier, but it can also improve your mood and even help your mental performance.
Hitting the gym as often as you can might be what you first think will get you into the best condition, but hold your horses. While cardio and lifting weights are both important, beginners should focus on finding workouts that can realistically be incorporated into their daily routines. Horita says it’s best to start with something like going for a walk, or doing another form of physical activity that suits your lifestyle.
“If someone is told, ‘Well, you have to do this. You have to go into a gym,’ but they hate being in a gym, [then] they’re
spring was excellent. We finished first or second in the league, and went on a run.
Cleland: Another big game was in Kelowna … We had an 11-nothing lead, somehow blew it, and then we were down three runs bottom of the ninth, and somehow came back and ended up winning that one. It just showed we don’t give up, [we’re] gritty, and keep the foot on the gas. Was there a turning point?
Cleland: Our first year, we played a really good school, Phoenix College, and they pumped us back-to-back games. Then last year when we played them again we were kind of thinking, oh, here we go again. But we locked in and gave it our all and ended up beating them. It was a really awesome game.
Prevost: It kind of ruined their season [too], by losing to an unranked Canadian team who no one knows. They didn’t make play-offs because of it. Q&A has been edited for length and readability.
not going to want to do [the] activity,” she said. “Finding [an] activity and group of people that [you] enjoy being with… that’s where you start.”
Find some fun things to do with your friends, like throwing a frisbee around at the park, or going for a hike so you can post the view online. Try to keep up with your dog on a run, or join a Zumba class. Having a multitude of activities to shift between allows for fewer deterrents from working out, like changing seasons, bad weather, and other life situations.
Even if you’re not specifically exercising, it’s important to be physically active every day. Things like walking around your house while talking on the phone,
stretching while doing laundry, and even parking a little bit further away from the grocery store entrance are all good to get in the habit of doing.
“It doesn’t need to be a specific, dedicated period of time,” said Horita. “It can be as simple as, ‘I don’t have time to do the activity I really like to do, but instead, I’m going to make sure I take the stairs all day … instead of the elevator.’”
If you are setting time aside to exercise, Horita recommends roughly three to five days per week for cardio. As for strength training, two to three days a week is the standard.
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Photo by Joshua Sulpico / The Cascade
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Once you’re at the gym, don’t forget to start with a five to 10 minute warm up. Next, try to work out as many muscles as you can with eight to 10 different exercises. Two to three sets of each exercise should take you about an hour, but really, you can stay as little or as long as you’d like. (Although you might get kicked out once the gym closes).
“The real win in that situation is just getting in the habit of showing up.”
While any gym buff knows to never skip leg day, it turns out you can if you’re a beginner. Individually scheduling your leg, chest, and arm workouts is called a split routine, which is geared toward people who go to the gym five to six days a week.
Horita recommends beginners stick to
a whole body workout, since participating in a split routine as a beginner could lead to only a few muscles being worked on in the span of a week. It would be great if everyone could find the time to go to the gym two or three days a week, but beginners are more likely to go once or twice a week. That means you want some full body workouts while you’re at the gym.
Looking to deliver on that New Year’s resolution? Start by incorporating some physical activity into your daily life. Otherwise, Horita suggests registering for KIN 103, Concepts of Physical Fitness, as an elective if you’re interested in learning more about how to stay fit.
“We cover nutrition, different types of exercise, [and] basic principles of training. [Students] would learn how to set up a basic health and fitness program for themselves.”
Basketball // Seniors night with the Cascades
UFV
wraps up basketball regular season against Trinity Western Spartans
ANNA MCCAUSLAND
On Saturday, Feb. 15 the UFV Cascades Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams (MBB, WBB) celebrated their seniors while closing out the regular season against their Langley rivals, the Trinity Western University (TWU) Spartans.
With their Quarter-Finals (QF) spot already secured, WBB earned a 54-40 win, while MBB fell short, losing 86-77 to the Spartans in a nail-biter that went down to the wire.
WBB overcomes difficult shooting night
The Cascades sprung out of the gate early with senior Maddy Gobeil owning the court as her usual self, finishing with 16 Points (PTS), one shy of Spartan Sydney Bradshaw for the game-high in scoring.
Third-year guard Bernie Leda was among the most efficient of the Cascades shooters, going 3-5 from both the field, and Three Point (3PT) range off the bench. Senior Nikki Cabuco had an off shooting night, managing only three Field Goals (FG) on 11 attempts.
UFV enjoyed a 13 point lead by halftime, proving to be too steep a mountain for the Spartans to close the gap in the second half.
Julia Tuchscherer led the defence as a key player in the fourth quarter with nine Defensive Rebounds (DREB), 3 Blocks (BLK) and 2 Assists (A) through the game, racking up a total of 7 PTS and 31 minutes of play time.
The Cascade caught up with Gobeil, a Kamloops native and reigning UFV women’s athlete of the year, to talk about her last regular season home game.
“It’s been a very long journey … three of us graduates have been here for six
years and Google [Sidhu] for five. It’s super special to be able to go through [my] whole university career with such a big group of people that are truly some of my best friends.”
The victory locks in UFV as the fourth seed in Canada West.
Hernandez and Lopez fill stat sheet
The Cascades struggled with their defensive assignments in the first quarter on Saturday, as the Spartans got the drop on UFV with a 28-19 opening frame. The gap was closed to eight points heading into the second half after an epic dunk by Clay Kurtz before the buzzer.
UFV gained traction in the third quarter, as the international duo of Ismael Hernandez and Dario Lopez keyed a Cascades comeback, picking up points left and right that continued into the fourth quarter. Lopez was the highest scoring player of the game notching 27 points, and a major inside presence with
11 REB to go along with 3 Steals (STL) and 4 A. Hernandez had perhaps his best game of the season, scoring 25 PTS on 7-11 shooting from the field, and 5-8 from downtown.
The Spartans and Cascades traded baskets in the fourth quarter as the lead was shrunk to one for the Spartans. A late eight point run propelled TWU over the finish line, converting on two late free throws that put them up by 11 points in the final seconds.
Team captain Takeshi Croke capped off an impressive senior season with a 10 A performance, a new program record. Croke averaged 5.4 A this season, building a cumulative sum of 108 total assists on the year — the second highest single season tally in Cascades MBB history.
Croke, a Victoria B.C. native, joined the Cascades in 2023-24.
“It’s been a great two years here with UFV … I think I made a great decision [in] coming. The past two years I’ve made a ton of friends [and] really good relationships with all the boys,” he said.
Senior celebrations
Culture carriers Gobeil, Cabuco, Sidhu, and Deanna Tuchscherer will all be graduating from UFV at the conclusion of this year’s play-offs, making this the team’s final attempt to win a national title as a core. Croke, Jake Willemsen, and Chris Jackson — who had a small celebration earlier in the season — are set to graduate as well.
Sidhu, a hometown Abbotsford product and W.J. Mouat Secondary grad, has had the time of her life wearing the green and white.
“I’m super grateful for the past five years that I’ve been a Cascade,” said Sidhu. “It’s been a dream of mine to play
at this school since I was younger, I was always watching the Cascades.”
The Calgary Dinos played the Cascades on Feb. 22 in the WBB QF at the UFV Athletic Centre — which the home team won 62-59 advancing to the final four.
Meanwhile, UFV took on the Lethbridge Pronghorns in Victoria during the MBB play in round on Feb. 21 where they won 91-71, advancing to the QF. They faced off against the University of Victoria Vikes on Feb. 22, ultimately losing 106-84 and putting an end to their season.
Hypermasculinity, or a community building emotional intelligence?
MAKENNA BRAR
While you may have seen Boys Club posters around campus advertising chess, pizza nights, and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) watch parties, but there’s a little more to it than that. The UFV Boys Club is a part of a larger organization: the Boys Club Network (BCN). Founded by Walter Mustapich, the group was christened ‘Boys Club’ in 2000, and later added “Network” to the name when it was registered as a Canadian foundation.
The Boys Club chapter at UFV was established in 2024 by Ryan Poirier and Max Pinchin; two students who found that a sense of community was lacking on our commuter campus.
“When we came to UFV, there [was] not too much of a community here, we found. So we were thinking, ‘what can we do to kind of add to that?’ And we made some calls.”
The pair were originally introduced to the BCN at their high school, Brookswood Secondary, enticed by free food and field trips. However, as Poirier shared, they quickly realized that it was more than just hanging out and filling up their stomachs.
“[We were able to] express ourselves, get our emotions out there, in a comfortable environment. We really liked our time there.”
The BCN at Brookswood reflected a classroom-like environment, offering course credit for work done within the club. Poirier explained:
“Your assignments are having these deep conversations. We even had assignments with due dates on emotional intelligence or things like that.”
At UFV, the Boys Club looks different to its original format for middle and high
school students. Changes were made to adapt to the needs of men pursuing higher education, including career talks from financial advisors and investment bankers.
“In high school, we find it’s a little bit different, taking these kids who might not have the greatest opportunities … their family life is pretty bad, or financial situation is pretty bad, and they’ll take those kinds of kids and give them opportunities they wouldn’t normally have. With Boys Club here … we’re trying to take them from the high school format, which is taking them from a bad place turning into a good place, and now we’re trying to take them from a good place and turning it into a great place.”
As you might be able to guess from the name, the Boys Club is a space for men. However, the network has female influence — for starters, the organization is supported by United Nations Women (Global Champion for Gender Equality). When asked what their response might be to someone who may be apprehensive toward the Boys Club, Poirier shared as much.
“Well, I think one of the network’s biggest supporters are women ... being able to support guys and take them from potentially negative circumstances, and bring them to a better place will just drastically change how they contribute to society. And I think, if you take a look at guys who are negative toward women, they’re obviously not going to be in the best place, right? So we’re taking guys and we’re really supporting them. We’re teaching them how to be better in social circumstances.”
Though women may not be included in the day-to-day scope of Boys Club
meetings, it doesn’t mean they’re not positively impacted by the work done by the network. The BCN shares that many of their advocates and speakers include women, and imply that, by improving boys’ lives through the network, they inadvertently improve the lives of girls.
According to the BCN website, many of the unhealthy social behaviours seen in today’s young men and boys can be attributed to the content they consume online. Social media can influence the way boys see the world and the ways they exist in relation to others.
“We’re not really trying to denounce any view on masculinity. Obviously, online, you’re gonna find these very provocative takes on masculinity [where] someone [is] just talking into a microphone, looking at a screen. Sometimes people will take that as masculinity in theory, and they’ll be addicted to looking at those. What we’re trying to do is kind of express masculinity in practice. And I don’t think the two are very much alike at all,” said Poirier.
When asked to speak on this, in relation to current popular content promoting toxic masculine ideals on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram, Pinchin shared that with the Boys Club, they hope to offer guidance and support.
“[Boys] have a space to come and talk to us about it, talk to some of the other guys in a room where they feel safe to talk about it … It gives them more space to learn and grow as a human for themselves.”
The UFV Boys Club meets at 11:45 a.m. every Monday. For more information on upcoming events, check out their Instagram, @boysclubufv, or sign up through their rubric page.
Photo by Ashkan Forouzani on Unsplash
Photo by The Nix Company on Unsplash
Campus Fashion: finding an“old money aesthetic” outfit for $50 or less
Tips to finding great deals on a budget
tall leather riding boots, and trench coats.
This is Campus Fashion, your source of inspiration for seasonal trends, cool finds, and wardrobe basics to keep you looking stylish throughout the year.
There is a lot of fun to be had while thrifting — beyond the promise of a good deal — like the thrill of the hunt when shopping for an aesthetic you love. The “old money aesthetic” has sparked a trend where influencers buy luxury clothing under a budget of $100. However, The Cascade, loving a good challenge, wondered: would it be possible for someone to find an “old money” outfit for less than $50?
The term old money refers to a style of dressing that is minimalist and classic, made from high quality, luxury fabrics such as linen, cashmere, and silk. This aesthetic usually stays within a neutral colour palette, featuring styles like chinos, tailored blazers, cashmere turtlenecks,
Over the course of a few thrift trips, I found an outfit that embodies the “old money aesthetic” for a much lower price point than designer and retail store prices.
The first place I went to was MCC Clothing Etc., where I found a brand new pair of tall, genuine black leather boots with buckles, made by Naturalizer. The boots still had their original tags, priced at $250 CDN. At MCC’s half price, I only paid $10.
When looking for old money aesthetic pieces, it’s a good idea to look for styles that have clean, elegant lines and are, ideally, in excellent condition.
Another piece I found was a pair of brown and grey tweed dress pants by RW&CO for only 50 cents. These dress pants are regularly priced around $80, and so this made another great versatile find at a great price.
Tweed patterns are a good option when buying for the old money aesthetic.
The pattern’s colours and texture add a richness to an ensemble; for this particular aesthetic, it’s always better to go for smaller print sizes.
The next store I went to was Value Village, where I purchased a Uniqlo brand grey cashmere turtleneck for $10 and an Everlane cotton khaki trench coat for $10.50. The retail price for the turtleneck is regularly $130, on sale right now for $99, and the retail price for the trench coat is around $394 before tax.
The great thing about buying neutral basics is that they pair well with many outfits. Part of the beauty of the “old money aesthetic” is that people invest in higher quality basics that look and feel good. They also last longer than fast fashion because they are made with higher quality materials.
The total cost of the outfit was only $32.80, when the original retail prices would have totalled $962.08. The difference in cost is incredible and goes to
show that not even quiet luxury needs to be expensive when thrifted on a budget.
The Cascade Kitchen: savour this yummy pasta salad!
PRATI KAPOOR
The Cascade Kitchen is a student-run food column that brings you budgetfriendly recipes and cooking tips. Check back each week for something new to try in the kitchen, or if you want to see your own recipe featured next, get started by reaching out to culture@ufvcascade.ca.
Pasta salad is one of the easiest and quickest dishes to whip up. Whether you’re planning to make it for an appetizer, as a side dish for potlucks or barbeques, or looking for a light course and satisfying meal, this pasta salad is for you. It is fresh, creamy, and full of crunch. Also, it’s ready in less than half an hour! What else does one need?
Serves: 4-5
Prep time: 15-20 minutes
Cook time: 5-7 minutes
Ingredients:
2 cups medium shell pasta
1 1/2 tbsp salt (or to taste)
3/4 tbsp red chilli powder (or to taste)
1 cup thinly chopped onion
1 cup diced cucumber
1/2 cup finely diced red bell pepper
1/2 cup finely diced yellow bell pepper
1 cup sliced black or green olives
1 cup of cooked corn kernels
1 1/2 – 2 cups mayonnaise
1 tbsp black pepper (or to taste)
1 tbsp oregano (or to taste)
Method:
1. In a large pot, bring 4 cups of water to boil with 3/4 tbsp salt. Add the pasta and cook on medium heat for around 10 minutes.
2. While the pasta cooks, finely dice your onions, red and yellow bell peppers, olives, and cucumber. Set them aside.
3. Take a large bowl, combine all your chopped vegetables, as well as your corn and mayonnaise. Mix until everything is fully coated.
4. Once the pasta is tender, drain and rinse the pasta with cold water to prevent it from sticking together.
5. Add your cooled pasta to the bowl with 3/4 tbsp salt and 3/4 tbsp chilli powder; mix gently.
6. Taste and adjust the consistency. If the pasta feels dry, add an extra 1/2 cup of mayonnaise.
7. Sprinkle with black pepper and oregano and toss them well. Enjoy!
Optional:
For the best flavour, refrigerate the pasta salad for 15-20 minutes before serving.
Photo by MART PRODUCTION / Pexels
RACHEL TAIT
Photo by Prati Kapoor
Crossword // STUDY BREAK
Sudoku //
Horoscopes //
By: Madame LaCarte
Aries - Mar. 21 to Apr. 19
You know where you want to go and you’ve mapped out how you’ll get there. But it will require you to do certain things, such as being honest with yourself, using self-discipline, and above all, leaving your emotions behind. Hopefully the destination will be worth what you leave behind.
Taurus - Apr. 20 to May 20
Queen Bee, be wary of buzzing mindlessly. Those you lead will follow you to the web you cannot see. Slow down, think it through. Wear the crown, but not askew.
Gemini - May 21 to Jun. 20
Have you ever seen a horse tied to a chair? It could easily move it and run away, but it has convinced itself it is a prisoner. Just like the horse, you are trapped by your own delusions of self-pity. Clip-Clop, Clip-Clop; only you can make it stop
Cancer - Jun. 21 to Jul. 22
What to do? What to do? Feels like you should give up right about now. Feels like everything is falling apart. But that’s how stories go … things always get bad before the hero prevails.
Leo - Jul. 23 to Aug. 22
You really need to learn to spot bad advice. You know what you want, but listening to the wrong crowd will have you missing out. Here’s a tip: only listen to advice from people who have what you want. Stop asking those who are single or in toxic relationships for relationship advice.
Virgo - Aug. 23 to Sept. 22
Don’t get me wrong, I love dissociating. It’s probably my number one source of creative thinking. But sweetie, life is still happening outside that head of yours, and if you don’t check in every now and again, you’ll always be checked out.
Libra - Sept. 23 to Oct. 22
Birthing anything is hard work. You have things you want to create, and that’s admirable, but you can’t wish things into existence. It’s time to push now.
Scorpio - Oct. 23 to Nov. 21
What’s the saying? Man plans and God laughs? Well my dear, you are a walking comedy show right now, and all the Gods are howling.
Sagittarius - Nov. 22 to Dec. 21
Things at home are uncertain. A breakthrough is on the horizon. Inspiration will come, as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow. You just need to get through the night first.
Capricorn - Dec. 22 to Jan. 19
Good things are happening but your ties to your past may be stopping you from seeing them. Let go of the bondage of self and find your momentum. You’re on your way, so long as you keep your eyes facing forward.
Aquarius - Jan. 20 to Feb. 18
It’s hard to tell if gifts are real or just a form of manipulation. The same strings that have held you together have allowed others to puppeteer you around. But see the truth, and set yourself free. You don’t need strings — you’re a real boy now.
Pisces - Feb. 19 to Mar. 20
The universe is so big, and there are so many things to see. No one can see it all, and that can be depressing. It can feel like there is no point to enjoying some things, if you can’t enjoy all things, but this is where you are wrong. If nothing matters, then NOTHING matters; therefore, you have free will to do as you please. Go play in the comforts of nihilism.
What is CIVL all about?
Members of CIVL shared its goals and opportunities for students
PRATI KAPOOR
CIVL Radio is Canada’s original number one campus radio station! Formerly “UCFV Campus and Community Radio Society,” the station has been in operation for 15 years serving both UFV and the Fraser Valley. The team at CIVL met with The Cascade to reflect on the station’s goals, projects, and student opportunities.
The radio station works toward engaging students in the community, helping to develop professional skills, growing cultural infrastructure in Abbotsford, and creating space for local and emerging artists to perform. According to Aaron Levy, CIVL’s station manager, if you’re interested in radio, you can find a place on the team.
“No matter who you are, if you’re interested, you can not only fit in, but you can shape the organization … it’s really exciting for me to see that over the years … if you’re interested, nothing will stop you as long as you have a good attitude, and you’re cooperative, and you understand that we’re all doing this together.”
The station also offers students fulltime, paid co-op positions. One example of this is with Miyako Ando, CIVL’s
Project Manager. For her, this involves scheduling shows and managing volunteer training sessions, among other things. These positions also provide students, like Jash Vashi, with volunteer opportunities to get involved in podcasts and shows, gaining work experience, and even the possibility of running their own radio show. As Levy explains, volunteers are a vital part of CIVL’s operations.
“We need volunteers for everything you can imagine for operating a non-profit organization, which includes finance, budget, administration, graphic design, and everything [else].”
CIVL is currently joined with Archway Community Services in an ongoing collaborative partnership project, for the Cultural Diversity Awards, where CIVL interviewed a number of the nominees, sharing their experiences and stories.
The station also hosts programs put together by students, such as Ando’s ZUBA ZUBA Trio — a radio show, in Japanese, featuring international students sharing their experiences in Canada. Another student-run program, started by Vashi, is Jammin with Jash, which runs every Tuesday at 1 p.m. — featuring South Asian music and highlighting
underappreciated artists.
For Vashi, the campus radio station provides international students like him with support.
“People like Aaron, people like Stephen [Munga], people like Miyako, they make sure that we are okay. They also spread awareness … [and] motivate you to do good in the university.”
Stephen Munga, music director, elaborated on the importance of community radio stations.
“Campus and community radio is easily one of the most important government funded sectors … because it does so much for the marginalized people and the under-represented people, not just through music, but through community engagement [and] community events.”
It’s not always easy though; being a campus radio station has its challenges. CIVL is reliant on UFV’s utilities and facilities, and as CIVL continues to grow, that much needed infrastructure isn’t always there; with some in the organization feeling that the university doesn’t offer enough support — especially when the station depends on them for utilities and other necessities, as Levy laments.
“When the power goes out, we’re the
last one anybody cares about … And I would maybe broaden it to say that that is emblematic and symptomatic of a broader problem, which is like what Stephen said, we want to build the infrastructure. Our biggest challenge is UFV’s infrastructure not being suitable for our needs as an organization.”
In the long-term, CIVL plans to launch 92.3 FM, by Apr. 1, expanding the station’s range from Hope to Tsawwassen. They have a documentary releasing on Apr. 5, that the Community Radio Fund of Canada gave $50,000 to produce. UFV 50 also contributed $5,000 to promote the film as part of the special anniversary celebrations.
In the future, the radio station wants to build annual UFV student bursary scholarships that will support media literacy and media studies — for, among others, women of colour — combating inequity and helping students achieve their goals through education.
“We’d like to be sending multiple students to school every year in the future with different identities and backgrounds to contribute to a richer and more effective media landscape.”
Photo submitted by Aaron Levy
Illustration
Editor - Anna McCausland
Television //
“If the apocalypse comes, beep me”
Grr, Argh! Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot
DARIEN JOHNSEN & SKY S. TERRONES
“In every generation, there is a chosen one,” and as the Hellmouth opens once more, a new Slayer has been called to kick its ass. On Feb. 3, it was announced that Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) (BTVS) is approaching a reboot pilot with potential collaborators in talks with streaming network Hulu.
The original series follows the story of 15-year-old Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar), destined to slay otherworldly villains as she deals with the ultimate evil: high school. The show combines comedy, horror, romance, drama, and action to produce a truly one-of-a-kind, ground-breaking masterpiece. It features not only a strong female lead but also the first recurring lesbian couple on prime time TV, Willow Rosenberg (Alyson Hannigan) and Tara Maclay (Amber Benson), who dated over a span of three seasons, solidifying its status as a cultural icon and one of the top 90s superhero TV programs.
The show is said to have influenced cinema in more ways than one. It was the first show to use “Google” as a verb, has arguably the greatest musical episode to ever air (which is said to have been influenced by the Xena: Warrior Princess (1995-2001) TV show of the same era), and coined the term “Big Bad.” It even influenced an entire academic field of “Buffy” studies. Plus, gay witches — hello?!
Buffy saved the world a lot — not just
Books //
is confirmed to be in the works
within the show itself but also for those of us who followed her journey. Although it premiered almost 30 years ago, its cultlike fan base has remained ever-loyal, gathering in online chat rooms to discuss and analyze the show. With the pilot’s announcement, the Buffy subreddit has been home to absolute chaos as fans rant, rave, speculate, and gush over what a new era of Slayers could bring. If one thing is clear, fans of BTVS adore BTVS. This show isn’t just about slaying vampires, demons, and forces of darkness; it’s also about navigating the trials and tribulations of young adulthood, with Buffy as our inspiration to walk through the fire.
“The hardest thing in this world … is to live in it … Be brave. Live. For me.”
So far, we don’t know much about what the reboot may look like, but here’s what we do know:
While it has been confirmed that
Challenged in Canada
Gellar will rejoin the cast, she won’t be the lead slayer. Instead, the focus will be on a new slayer, building off the show’s final season, where a world of potential slayers was activated. Two writers have been scouted already, Nora and Lilla Zuckerman, who worked on both Poker Face (2023–) and Fringe (2008-2013), as well as Oscar-winning director Chloé Zhao, who is a long-time Buffy fan.
Gellar has infamously been against a Buffy reboot. She and Zhao connected three years ago, falling into a discussion about a Buffy revitalization that ended up on Hulu’s desk this year. Gellar took to social media to reassure fans that the show would be in good hands after the announcement dropped.
“I know how much it means, and we will only do it if we can do it right and honour that legacy and extend it, but it just seems like the world needs a superhero
right now.”
During troubling times, I often find myself asking, “What would Buffy do?” (In fact, you can buy an entire spiritual guide for that). She inspires me to make hard decisions, to push away my selfish desires for the greater good, and to be courageous in the face of danger. The reality is we need a hero more than ever. They may not be able to save us from the real world, but if only they could renew our hope, perhaps it could boost our strength and give us the confidence to withstand our current social apocalypses (“Turns out I suddenly find myself needing to know the plural of ‘apocalypse’”). As Buffy would say:
“There is only one thing on this earth more powerful than evil… And that’s us
Any questions?”
Celebrating Freedom to Read Week with five books written and challenged in Canada
KARA DUNBAR
Intellectual freedom is a pillar of democracy, but is only as strong as those who are upholding it. This is why for over 40 years, libraries and bookstores across Canada have celebrated Freedom to Read Week. Happening Feb. 23 to Mar. 1 this year, the week aims to encourage Canadians to reflect on our commitment to intellectual freedom. To help you practice your right to intellectual freedom, here are five challenged books by Canadian authors.
Barometer Rising (1941) by Hugh MacLennan
Neil Macrae died in disgrace — or so the story goes. Unknown to his former colonel and lover, Macrae returns to Halifax
to clear his name. The Halifax Explosion of Dec. 6, 1917 interrupts the efforts, and sets the stage for a hero to emerge in the midst of a country discovering itself. 19 years after its publishing, the Manitoba School Boards Association unanimously voted to remove the book from the high school curriculum due to the vulgar language used. It was later learned that most trustees had not read the book themselves.
Lives of Girls and Women (1971) by Alice Munro
In the only full length novel from Munro, a young woman growing up in 1940s rural Ontario begins to spend more time in town with an eccentric group of women through which she explores the
multifaceted sides of womanhood.
Through the mid to late 70s, the book faced numerous challenges due to its placement in Ontario’s Grade 13 English curriculum because of its content being deemed pornographic in nature. When she spoke to CBC in 1979, Munro said:
“As soon as one step is taken you have to start resisting, because that makes the next step easier. Though the people who are concerned say that they are not interested in taking books out of libraries or bookstores, I wonder if it is that they are not at this point interested in doing that.”
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (20th Century Fox)
Barometer Rising cover image courtesy of New Canadian Library
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 20
When Everything Feels Like the Movies (2014) by Raziel Reid
Life through Jude’s eyes is like a movie set through which readers can see what a few days as a gay teenager in a conservative town are like. This book is based on the true story of Lawrence King, who had asked a fellow male classmate to be his valentine. King was then shot and killed by that classmate in 2008.
The book won the 2014 Governor General’s Literary Award for Young People’s Literature and subsequently faced an online petition backed by concerned parents, YA authors, teachers, and others seeking to revoke the award due to the sexual conversations and fantasies that the characters engage in.
Betty: The Helen Betty Osborne Story (2015) by David Alexander Robertson, illustrated by Scott B. Henderson
Betty had attended residential school and high school in a small Manitoba town; she had dreams of becoming a teacher. But in 1971, at the age of 19, she was abducted and murdered. Initially met with indifference, Betty has come to be a figurehead for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls movement.
This graphic novel is based on a true case, and in 2018 was put on the not recommended for use in classrooms list by Alberta Education due to it not being deemed age appropriate. Robertson called out the list, saying that discouraging teachers from using specific books is a form of censorship.
The Handmaid’s Tale (1985) by Margaret Atwood
What’s a banned book list without The Handmaid’s Tale? This modern classic is told through Offred, a Handmaid under the new social order in the former United States. It takes the Book of Genesis at its absolute word in order to deal with social unrest and a declining birth rate.
Its place in Toronto high school curriculum was challenged in 2008 for profanity, anti-Christian overtones, and sexual content. In 2009, the review by the Toronto District School Board recommended that the book remain in the curriculum for Grades 11 and 12.
With polarizing politics on the rise, it is increasingly important to protect our right to disagreement and discomfort. Library staff, booksellers, and teachers are our everyday democracy defenders, but they can’t do their job if readers don’t do theirs.
Movies // Hearts for Heart Eyes
The rom-com slasher we didn’t know we needed
CAITLYN CARR
Imagine if Scream (1996) took place on Valentine’s Day and you’ve got Josh Ruben’s Heart Eyes (2025). In this horror comedy, the Heart Eyes Killer (or H.E.K.) targets couples every Feb. 14 with themed weapons like deadly arrows and knives with hearts on them. When the serial killer targets two not quite platonic co-workers, Ally (Olivia Holt) and Jay (Mason Gooding) must fight for their lives against H.E.K., while also dealing with their undeniable chemistry.
Heart Eyes is a film that I figured wouldn’t be an Oscar-winning blockbuster but knew from the trailer that it would be entertaining — and I was right. It had me laughing from beginning to end. What impressed me the most was the way the movie balanced its three genres: romance, horror, and comedy. In typical rom-com fashion, the film hits romantic beats like the meet-cute and the first kiss with humorous twists and one-liners. Then, before you can get too comfortable, H.E.K. appears and brings with him horrific gore and suspense all throughout the film.
The actor whose range best supported the film’s many genres was Gooding, who is known for Scream (2022) and Fall (2022). Since Jay is both a smoothtalking gentleman and a sarcastic drama queen, this role gave Gooding an opportunity to demonstrate his strength as an actor. Safe to say, Jay was my favourite character in the movie. Not only that, but Gooding quite literally poured his blood, sweat, and tears into the role. In an interview with The Kelly Clarkson Show, he
described how an injury he had on set ended up making the final cut:
“I had lodged my left hand through the window … and as I’m getting sutures and fixed up on set, Josh the director comes up [and says], ‘Hey, it looks really cool. Can we use it in the movie?’”
While the characters in this film were endlessly entertaining, they were also examples of your classic infuriating horror movie characters. At one point, instead of running from H.E.K., Jay and Ally decide to stay put and gaze into each others’ eyes — a truly confusing decision that had me internally screaming. And why would someone ever think it would be a good idea to hide from a murderer inside of a working wine press? While decisions like these frustrated me, I will admit that they highlighted the movie’s comedic and campy nature, so maybe they’re a necessary evil.
In terms of the actual plot, Heart Eyes follows a formula that fans of the Scream franchise know all too well: creative and bloody murders by a masked foe followed by the grand reveal of the killer’s identity and motive, usually with a twist. While this formula has no doubt proved successful, I wish that Ruben had strayed further from it to make the film that much more original.
Nevertheless, the multiple genres of this movie perfectly encapsulate the amusement and fear that can be felt at the beginning of a new relationship. Represented through both a masked killer and Ally’s own fear of commitment, Heart Eyes encourages viewers to remain open to love.
Lady Gaga’s newest release is an anthem to defeat life’s toughest roads
VERONICA POWELL
Electric. Poetic. Powerful. It’s the best way to describe Lady Gaga’s newest single “Abracadabra” as part of her upcoming album titled MAYHEM (2025) that will be coming out on Mar. 7. She teased the third song from her album through a surprise release of the new music video amid a string of commercials during the 67th annual Grammy Awards. Gaga steps back into her eccentric, dark pop roots, while still capturing the essence of who she is — dramatic and authentically quirky. The lyrics take us through a captivating, hypnotic dance of techno, deep beats, and quick drums in defeating the devilish world that we live amongst.
“Abracadabra” maintains quick, pulsating snares with spurts of drums and angelic sounds in between. Gaga gives listeners peace of mind and advice ahead of our trying journeys with the lyrics: “Pay the toll to the angels.” The tempo
increases as we trudge through life’s element of self-doubt, but there’s hope for a light at the end of the tunnel. “Hold me in your heart tonight / In the magic of the dark moonlight,” the tone digs deeper with a slow, muffled beat, and her commanding vocals present mystery and fear from our internal monologue. “Like a poem said by a lady in red / You hear the last few words of your life” questions our capabilities for success, and the narrative of reinvention is born when we’re faced with our ultimate challenge; ourselves.
The witch-like lyrics of the main chorus surround the rolling synths, as her voice rises above the energetic instrumentalization of pounding bass lines singing, “Abracadabra, amor-oo-na-na / Abracadabra, morta-oo-ga-ga.” The words are like a spell cast from the character of the “lady in red” and it relates to the song’s theme of light and dark battling each other, or our hopes and fears.
Despite the mysterious flavour, it’s
intense, catchy, and persuades us to get on the dance floor whether we want to or not. In the midst of her lyricism, “amor” and “morta” come to the forefront. Meaning love and death in Latin, Gaga delivers an easter egg to a previous hit song with “amor” spelling “Roma” backward, linking to the love spells in “Bad Romance.” Gaga cleverly uses the dance floor to extinguish the fire felt from the “lady in red,” known as our inner demons who challenge our worth. She symbolically ends with us breaking free from her control and relishing in the freedom, never returning to the past.
Much like her fashion, Gaga delves into the artistry of avant-garde creation. Despite how addictive the tune is from its hard bases in the midst of heavenly cries, the song isn’t super distinct from her previous hits. Her vocals are undoubtedly powerful, but the uneven, boxy rhythm of the chorus made me cringe in discomfort. It sounded too clunky, and I hit a wall in
trying to get back into the smoothness of the following verses. Even though her cryptic lyrics made me wrinkle my nose in objection at first listen, I’ll admit the more I listened the more I danced. As someone with a knack for a dark, thrilling story with unusual characters, the song definitely checked all my boxes.
“Abracadabra” is groundbreaking and earth shaking, no doubt. It holds a theme of transformation in our fights to survive the destination through life’s trials. Gaga resurrects a powerful message about thriving in the face of adversity, and she encourages listeners to say “I’m up for the challenge.” She tells us in order to defeat the monsters, we must be the angels. Authentically and unapologetically ourselves. Most of all, the song is a valuable lesson to all who will listen — be resilient in the challenges, persevere, and find the magic in life by embracing in the mayhem of it.
Photo courtesy of Lady Gaga / Interscope Records
Photo courtesy of Lady Gaga / Interscope Records
Column // Book Talk: finding belonging in the pages of a book
An ocean between and Oddný Eir still draws me back
CATHERINE CAMPBELL
Welcome to Book Talk, where we help you find new fuel for your bookish obsession. While you might not find these authors while scrolling short-form content online, you will find their work to be significant, impactful, and, hopefully, something you reach for time and again. Happy reading!
Oddný Eir Ævarsdóttir is the kind of author I strive to be: mildly reclusive and surprisingly offline. While she has written three autobiographical novels, she has also organized community-focused visual arts events across several continents and worked as a translator and editor of literary writing. Eir also runs a publishing company, Apaflasa, with her brother, Uggi Ævarsson, an archaeologist and researcher. Her own writing has been nominated for three awards, with Jarðnæði (2011) winning the 2012 Icelandic Women’s Literature Prize.
In 2018, I travelled to Iceland with a friend, during which time I promptly fell in love with the country. There was black sand, driving wind, cobblestone streets (in the city, at least), and long stretches of road where you didn’t meet another person for miles — perfect for someone like me. So naturally, upon arriving home, I took every book on Iceland out of the library that I could find to prolong the feeling of belonging I felt there.
Land of Love and Ruins (2011) was one of the books I found, and of course I fell in love with it. It has everything I love: diary-like entries, short and to the point
writing that bares the depths of the writer’s heart. Beyond this, ties to ecology, archaeology, and the land itself made me feel like I was back there, on a black sand beach, watching sneaker waves come a little too close for comfort.
It’s unsurprising then that one of the main themes of the book — to find a place to belong — still strikes such a cord with me. Years later and through many iterations of life, I continually find myself drawn back to Iceland and to Land of Love and Ruins. I read the book at least once a year, and dream of moving to Iceland — or at least visiting again — multiple times a month.
Of course, this circles back to a problem I seem to keep encountering: the desire to be somewhere else, as though my problems won’t find me in that cold corner of the world. But I think Land of Love and Ruins can be an answer to this, too — a way I can live out the lives I want to while still being present in the one I have now.
The problem with this book is that I want to quote it all, paste the entire book’s text right here so you can experience it too. In lieu of copyright infringement — and with a strong encouragement to pick up a copy for yourself — I’ll leave you with this quote:
“You mustn’t bury yourself alive, forget to rise up, or bind yourself to the dust in melancholy surrender.”
Happy reading!
Cover of Land of Love and Ruins (2011) by Oddný Eir Ævarsdóttir
