April 1, 2015

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Volume 24 – Issue 26

www.truomega.ca Ω @TRU_Omega

FINDING

PRIDE ON CAMPUS OFF CAMPUS

STUDENTS SHARE THEIR STORIES, P. 6

Dew Tour brings big air and tunes to Sun Peaks, p. 8

WolfPack swim coach heading down under, p. 11

April 1, 2015

2

THE OMEGA

April 1, 2015

Undergrad research in focus

Student researchers present their work at annual conference Ashley Wadhwani ISSUES EDITOR Ω

Roughly 60 research projects were on display in Old Main on Friday as part of the Undergraduate Research and Innovation Conference. Students stood beside their posters and shared their months of research to onlookers.

Topics ranged from the impacts of the recession on students’ labour market outcomes to the dominance behaviour of the mountain chickadee during winter. Students followed their poster presentations with in-depth presentations on March 28.

Determination of Thymol in Mouthwash Using Capillary Electrophoresis

Kelsie Sallis, fourth-year chemical biology student, wanted to look at the compound Thymol, a strong antiseptic found in different brands of mouthwash.

“It’s an antimicrobial agent, so it’s one of the important [compounds] because that’s what’s going to fight tooth decay or gum disease,” Sallis said.

Advised by Kingsley Donkor, associate professor in the chemistry department, Sallis used capillary electrophoresis, a separation method used to detect the concentration of Thymol in mouthwash samples.

“It separates molecules based on their charge, size and viscosity. It detects [the molecules] through absorbance, different molecules absorb at different wavelengths,” Sallis said.

She found that the concentrations of Thymol were “super high,” actually higher than listed.

“It’s probably because I need to purify my samples a bit more before running them [again],” Sallis said.

Her choice of topic comes from her interest in pursuing dentistry, as well as her familiarity with analytical chemistry, the focus of her undergrad. Sallis noted that her research could go further but she has no intention of pursuing the concentration of Thymol in mouthwash beyond the conference.

The Womanish-Man and The Man-Woman: Cross-Dressing in Early Modern England

Megan Fenkhuber, third-year history student, began her research on female cross-dressing for a paper she wrote in her second year.

Advised by Annie St. John-Stark,

chair of the philosophy, history and politics department, Fenkhuber’s research derived from two pamphlets, “Hic Mulier” or The ManWoman and “Hæc-Vir” or The Womanish-Man, both published in 1620.

“Hic Mulier,” discussed women adopting men’s clothing and the detriment this had to society.

“The second one was an argument essentially between the narrator of the first pamphlet and one of these women where she defends her position. Because men’s fashion has become so much more feminized in the recent years, women are less. In order to differentiate themselves from men, their only option is to wear men’s clothing.”

Fenkhuber was struck by the importance clothing had on determining gender during this time period.

“Women were seen as underdeveloped versions of men,” Fenkhuber said. “There was only one true being and that was man,” Sallis said.

Photos submitted by Kelsie Sallis

Fenkhuber is currently working on a series of papers on cross-dressing, explaining “I’m working on one now on Victorian England and sort of a sub-group called husband wives.”

Moult Strategies in Western North American Passerines: Molt Migration

Jackson Kusack, fourth-year animal science student, decided to focus on the variation of moult strategies between 139 different North American migratory birds.

Kusack explained that moults are the replacement of feathers.

Advised by Matt Reudink, assistant professor in the biological sciences department, Kusack focused on four different strategies: winter moult, breeding moult, migration moult and stopover.

“What we wanted to look at is

what determines which strategy is favoured in those birds,” Kusack said.

Kusack looked at life history traits of birds and then looked to see which trait proved as a predictor for the different birds’ moult strategy.

Kusack chose this topic of research as there’s little published research on moult strategy, specifically stopover moult. He plans to publish his findings and potentially pursue a career in academia.

Full results have not been concluded, and research is ongoing until summer, according to Kusack’s prediction.

“We have to use relatedness as a variable and it’s a lot more complex of a model,” Kusack said. “We did find that in stopover moulting birds, they do have higher plumage, which means they are brighter.”

Incentives for electric car owners power up Drivers could save thousands on an electric car Mercedes Deutscher

THE OTHER PRESS (CUP)

Beginning April 1, the BC Government will continue its initiative program for drivers buying electric and hybrid vehicles, and will be offering up to $6,000 to those who buy or lease clean energy vehicles.

As an encouragement for buying clean energy vehicles, which are often more expensive than fuel-burning vehicles, the government is reducing the price. After filling out an application for the program, buyers can expect to see rebates ranging from $2,500, for electric vehicles with a smaller battery capacity, $5,000 for vehicles with a larger battery capacity, and $6,000 for vehicles that are run by a hydrogen fuel cell.

In addition to the rebates, drivers who trade in a vehicle from the year 2000 or older may receive additional discounts on an electric vehicle, saving up to $8,250.

The rebate is the result of a renewal of the Clean Energy Vehicle (CEV)

Program, which was introduced in late 2011. The CEV program was an effort to encourage drivers to buy clean energy vehicles, and was put into effect by the government to help meet a goal of reducing greenhouse gasses by 33 per cent in 2020, and by 80 per cent in 2050. The previous program also offered incentives for purchasing electric vehicle charging stations.

The original CEV program expired in 2014, after the program had reached budget limits.

This revival of the CEV program has been extended to March 31, 2018, or until the program’s budget of $10.6-million runs out.

The Minister of Energy and Mines, Bill Bennett, explained the cost of the program’s budget to the Vancouver Sun. About $7.5-million will go towards giving rebates to those who purchase clean energy vehicles. In addition, $1.6-million will be going towards installing more car charging stations at gas stations throughout B.C. The remainder of the program

budget will be allocated to research, public communications, and commercial-fleet clean fuel purchases.

“British Columbians who purchase electric vehicles typically save about 75 per cent on their fuel costs. That adds up to $1,600 per year,” Bennett

said in an interview with CBC. Meanwhile, B.C. Environment Minister Mary Polak stated in a press release, “With transportation representing 37 per cent of total provincial greenhouse gas emissions, clean energy vehicles are essential to reducing

emissions and maintaining healthy air quality.”

Along with the CEV program, a non-profit society by the name of Scrap-It is offering rebates up to $3,250 to drivers who are trading in vehicles made in 2000 or earlier.

(David van der Mark/Flickr Commons)

OPINION

The Omega Ω Volume 24 • Issue 26

The Omega Thompson Rivers University’s Independent Student Newspaper Published since November 27, 1991

www.truomega.ca /TRUOmega @TRU_Omega /tru_omega

EDITORIAL STAFF EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Sean Brady @iamseanbrady editor@truomega.ca NEWS EDITOR Alexis Stockford @AlexisStockford news@truomega.ca ISSUES EDITOR Ashley Wadhwani @ashwadhwani issues@truomega.ca SCI-TECH EDITOR Ryan Turcot @RyanTurcot sci-tech@truomega.ca ARTS EDITOR Kim Anderson @K_AndersonSays arts@truomega.ca SPORTS EDITOR Tayla Scott @taylascott3 sports@truomega.ca COPY EDITOR Rachel Wood @rachelwoood copy@truomega.ca CONTRIBUTORS Cam Doherty Simon Larsson Danya LeBlanc Wade Tomko

PUBLISHING BOARD EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Sean Brady INDUSTRY REP Christopher Foulds FACULTY REP Charles Hays STUDENT REP Kim Anderson STUDENT REP Mason Buettner

New TRUSU board must address low turnout

At just 9.4 per cent voter turnout for this election, things must improve

Sean Brady

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ω First of all, congratulations to the new TRUSU board elected last week. There are some new faces, some incumbents and many who tried their hand at student politics for the first time. I hope that regardless of the results, it was a valuable experience for you.

In the end, the Your Vote=Your Voice slate swept the election, taking every last seat at the table. Unfortunately, many students decided not to use their voice in this election, and I don’t think it was for a lack of trying on either slate’s side. I ran into more than a few candidates on campus in the run up to the election and most candidates did what they could to make themselves visible on campus with limited resources.

But with voter turnout at 9.4 per cent of our 8,384 eligible voters and a history of turnouts nearly as bad, and sometimes worse, there’s a problem here that needs to be addressed by those just elected.

Here are some ideas to get the ball rolling.

First, how about another polling station? TRUSU’s boardroom is a fairly good, visible place for students who are in the CAC to vote, but many never venture over to that part of campus, except to get their bus pass or buy books once or twice a year. It’s not really much of a thoroughfare. The new board needs to look into adding another polling station in Old Main. With a place to vote right

Cariboo Student Newspaper Society (Publisher of The Omega) TRU Campus House #4 900 McGill Rd, Kamloops, B.C. V2C 0C8 Phone: 250-828-5069 Advertising inquiries: accounts@truomega.ca

LETTERS POLICY Literary and visual submissions are welcomed. All submissions are subject to editing for brevity, taste and legality. The Omega will attempt to publish each letter received, barring time and space constraints. The editor will take care not to change the intention or tone of submissions, but will not publish material deemed to exhibit sexism, racism or homophobia. Letters for publication must include the writer’s name (for publication) and contact details (not for publication). The Omega reserves the right not to publish any letter or submitted material. Opinions expressed in any section with an “Opinion” label do not represent those of The Omega, the Cariboo Student Newspaper Society, its Board of Directors or its staff. Opinions belong only to those who have signed them.

COPYRIGHT All material in this publication is copyright The Omega and may not be reproduced without the expressed consent of the publisher. All unsolicited submissions become copyright The Omega 2014.

on student street, passersby will add significantly to the vote count and greatly improve visibility.

Second, let’s look at online voting. Other universities are doing it and their voter turnout is better for it. Making students care about the election is difficult – I understand that. But making them walk across campus to engage in the election is even harder. It’s 2015.

Why aren’t we casting ballots with the click of a mouse?

Third, we need to improve signage. It’s an expense, and no one likes expenses, but the union has to spend a little to improve Gen-

eral Election awareness. A big banner on Student Street, some large posters in unusual places, etc. – there are a lot of very creative, marketing-oriented students here on campus who could come up with some killer ideas for this. Let’s hear from them.

Finally, we need a longer timeline. The campaign period for the General Election this year was just nine days, not counting the two days when the election is on. That’s hardly enough time for most students to learn half the candidates’ names, let alone figure out what they’re all about. Cam-

paign time should be increased to at least two weeks.

We also might want to think about adding a series of quick debates for competing executive candidates, in addition to the all-candidates forum we have now, which is perhaps less adversarial than it should be.

Hopefully the new board will not only recognize their responsibility and the problem of low voter turnout, but also make and execute plans to act against it.

Best of luck in 2015-16 to all of you. editor@truomega.ca

March Madness: A love/hate relationship

Why it can be next to impossible to resist the madness Cameron Doherty CONTRIBUTOR Ω

PUBLISHING

3

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and its annual March Madness basketball tournament take over the sporting world (and my life) every spring.

The tournament consists of 68 of the top American university basketball teams playing games across the U.S., all of them vying for a trip to Indianapolis and a chance to cut down the nets as national champions. Alongside the action on the hardwood, millions of people around the world spend weeks obsessively researching before compiling brackets, which they can submit to ESPN, TSN and many other sports organizations in the hopes that their choices will net them a lot of money.

Every year I tell myself that it will be different, that this time I won’t get sucked in. I won’t constantly check game updates on my phone or pretend to pay attention in class while I look up scouting reports. Every year I tell myself that I will remain immune from

the whirlwind that is March Madness, and every year I lie. Three days before the tournament began on March 17, I caved. I scoured the Internet for any and every statistic I could find. I weighed almost every team’s national rankings against their offensive efficiency, looking at strength-of-schedule ratings until my eyes hurt.

In the 64-year history of the tournament, there is no record of anybody choosing a perfect bracket. When I was finally done, I had manically convinced myself that I, Cameron Doherty, had crafted perfection. That feeling lasted exactly two games.

When the unheralded team from Georgia State defeated highly touted Iowa State, my fevered dreams of perfection, along with 99 per cent of the 11.5 million brackets registered with ESPN, were busted. I couldn’t even be angry. This game was the ultimate encapsulation of what makes March Madness the perfect title for the tournament. A team full of unknown players had done the impossible. Georgia State came back from a double digit deficit with

less than two minutes remaining to shock the basketball world.

Only a few other major sporting events employ a single game elimination format like March Madness does. This format causes an amount of chaos unseen in most other tournaments. Teams that have dominated all year long can have a single bad night and watch a hard-fought season go up in flames.

The odds of a knowledgeable college basketball fan creating a perfect bracket are one in 128 billion, according to mathematics professor Jeff Bergen on DePaul University’s YouTube channel.

So, perhaps I should be content with the fact that I have called three-quarters of the games right so far. But when next year rolls around I, and millions of others, will again be dreaming of perfection.

So if your bracket is just as busted as mine is, why should you keep watching? Because no other sporting event consistently delivers as many dramatic moments as March Madness. From the epic battles between Magic Johnson and Lar-

ry Bird to small school underdog teams defeating the Goliaths of the basketball world, March Madness consistently delivers the mustwatch television moments that define what I love about sports. This year’s tournament has already delivered its quota of dramatic moments and with the upcoming final four game on April 4 and the championship game on April 6, it promises even more.

Whether you are rooting for an underdog, cheering for a favourite like the undefeated University of Kentucky, or keeping an eye on the next generation of NBA stars, March Madness has something every sports fan can enjoy.

Give us your words!

We’ve got room for you. If you’ve got an opinion on a weekly basis, why not pitch it to us and put it on paper?

Politics? Social issues? Student life?

Tell us all about it and you might find yourself on this very page. If you’re interested in hearing more, write to editor@truomega.ca.

4 NEWS Incumbent slate sweeps TRUSU General Election

April 1, 2015

New board members take their positions May 1 in prep for next year Jim Elliot

INTERIM NEWS EDITOR Ω

Tenacious campaigning and experienced incumbent candidates helped the Your Vote=Your Voice slate of candidates sweep this year’s TRUSU board of directors election.

Your Vote=Your Voice candidates were elected to all thirteen positions on the board of directors. The margin of victory was substantial for several of the candidates, but it was most dramatic for Melissa Gordon, the victorious presidential candidate who won with 58 per cent of the votes in the three-candidate president race.

Gordon said she was “very excited and happy to be chosen by students,” and that her slate has “a lot of great things in mind” that they will start work on at their first meeting as board of directors in May. Throughout the campaign, adding TRU’s international students

to the student union’s health and dental plan was the key issue for Your Vote=Your Voice. Other issues advocated by Your Vote=Your Voice candidates included reforming academic advising and providing more representation on campus for LGBTQ students.

Your Vote=Your Voice’s success may have been due to voter confidence in their incumbent candidates. Ryan Makar, Cameron Staff and Paige Bernard will return to their positions as VP finance, director-at-large and women’s representative respectively. Melissa Gordon and Meshari Alanazi will remain on the board of directors but in different roles than the ones they were elected to last year.

The visibility of the Your Vote=Your Voice campaign may have also contributed to their success. Their candidates were handing out fliers outside the polling station for most of the two days the polls were open.

“This year, I felt like I didn’t even know there was an election

until yesterday, when I kept being approached and told to vote,” said TRU math student Charli-Rae Dougherty.

The opposing slate, TRU Synergy, also hosted several campaign events, including handing out cupcakes in Old Main and leading a walk to the polling station a few hours before polls closed on Thursday. Another walk to the polls was scheduled for Thursday morning, but it didn’t happen as planned. According to presidential candidate Assetou Coulibaly, the morning walk “didn’t have enough attendance, [because] both voters and candidates changed their plans at the last minute.”

There was a varying degree of commitment shown by the election’s independent candidates.

Independent president candidate Jordon Robinson admitted on Wednesday that he had not campaigned much. Independent director-at-large candidate Robert Wisla said that he had “handed out a good chunk of his fliers” before the

Director-at-large elect Cameron Staff and president elect Melissa Gordon outside the polling station. (Jim Elliot/The Omega)

polls closed.

The voter turnout for the election was only 9.4 per cent, down from 15 per cent last year. Members of

both slates expressed interest in increasing last year’s voter turnout during the campaign but ultimately did not succeed.

University denies request for president review results Assistant professor complaint not heard by university board of governors Jim Elliot

INTERIM NEWS EDITOR Ω

In a letter sent to TRU president Alan Shaver and the university’s board of governors on March 6, assistant professor Shawn Thompson requested that the statistics yielded by Shaver’s performance review survey be released to the university community.

Thompson’s letter contains a legal argument based on sections 22 and 25 of the B.C. Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. The request argues that Shaver “has a very visible and public function that affects the well-being of faculty, staff, students and the institution in very serious ways.”

A copy of Thompson’s letter, the survey results and anonymous comments were posted in the agenda for the March 27 board of governors meeting.

The request mentions a Nov. 28 email sent to university staff and faculty by Brian Ross, chair of the committee that conducted Shaver’s review, concerning the results of the survey. The email said that “Alan scored strongly,” and that “there were many accolades for

his achievements and constructive suggestions on improving internal communication and creating stronger ties with the faculty.”

On the morning of March 25, Thompson said he received letter from the board of governors signed

by Brian Ross and dated March 20, which outlined the board’s refusal of the request based on the B.C. Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. The letter cited Order F07-04 of the act as a refutation of Thompson’s arguments, and stated that Thompson’s only recourse now is an appeal directly to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of B.C. The administration is treating the letter’s request as an information request under the provincial privacy legislation, asking Thompson to direct any further questions to the university’s privacy officer.

But Thompson said his letter was not a freedom of information request, and instead a “direct request to both the president and the board of governors on behalf of the faculty.”

release to the campus the statistical results of the survey on the president?”

Two consecutive surveys were conducted because the online survey tool he used is limited to 100 responses in its free version. The surveys yielded a combined 154 responses from staff and faculty members, in which 90% of the responses were in favour of releasing the results of Shaver’s performance review. Thompson said that he sent a link to the online survey by email to all staff and faculty more than once.

When asked Brian Ross, TRU Board of Governors chair about the request’s denial, board of governors chair Brian Ross said via Thompson feels that he is email that to comply with Thompspeaking for the faculty because of son’s request “would be in breach a survey he conducted. The survey of privacy legislation” and that posed the question: “In the inter- “TRU does not release results of ests of transparency and account- performance reviews of any emability, should TRU president Alan ployee, as it would destroy the reShaver and the board of governors view process.”

“TRU does not release results of performance reviews of any employee, as it would destroy the review process.”

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Thompson claims that the release of the survey results would not constitute a breach of privacy and referred to that statement as Ross’s “legal opinion.”

Ross is also a lawyer and Queen’s Counsel.

Thompson said that he did not think that releasing the survey would destroy the review process because there is no job consequence for Shaver, who was appointed to another three-year term in November.

Earlier this year during the review process, TRU Faculty Association president Tom Friedman sent a letter to Ross in October.

The letter said that he “is perceived as someone who does not engage effectively with students, faculty or staff.”

Thompson made it clear that he is “not aligning himself ” with that letter or with the critical comments yielded by his survey and published alongside his letter to the board.

He maintains that his request was motivated by the “desire to create a public debate and a public forum about issues of transparency at the university ... and also to test the limits and reveal the limits of transparency at this institution.”

–With f iles from Alexis Stockford

MORE INFORMATION: www.truomega.ca/work

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

The Omega Ω Volume 24 • Issue 26

5

Putting climate change on the docket

TRU ecologist wants climate change discussed for upcoming federal election Ryan Turcot

SCI-TECH EDITOR Ω

A TRU professor is among 60 Canadian academics backing up a new report that hopes to bring climate change to the forefront of political platform discussions in the wake of this year’s federal election.

The Sustainable Canada Dialogues (SDC) report, titled “Acting on Climate Change: Solutions from Canadian Scholars,” suggests 10 nationwide policy orientations that SDC believes would push Canada to reduce greenhouse emissions by 26 to 28 per cent by 2025, relative to a 2005 baseline.

“Often when academics and think tanks get together and talk about climate change, the message can look quite bleak,” TRU ecologist Lauchlan Fraser said.

“We wanted to have a positive outlook. We were looking for a solutions-based document that can … propose solutions to make people understand that there is something that can be done.”

The report’s most emphasized short-term suggestion is for Canada to adopt a national carbon tax or “cap and trade” program.

“British Columbia already has a carbon tax that has been very successful,” Fraser said, citing a study conducted by Sustainable Prosperity.

According to the report, titled “B.C.’s Carbon Tax Shift After Five Years,” the province reduced fuel consumption by 17.4 per cent between 2008 (when the carbon tax was first implemented) and 2012. “[On a national level] it’s likely this would be a “cap and trade” system where certain industries are provided a top level at which they may emit greenhouse gases,” Fraser said.

“If they exceed that level, they pay for it. If they don’t exceed it, they can trade what they haven’t used. We would have to work our way down the scale over time, reducing that cap, but it could be a very effective way of reducing carbon emissions and looking for alternative energy sources.”

The alternative to a national cap and trade system would be a national carbon tax, according to the SDC report.

“With a national carbon tax, one approach to adjusting the price over time would be to link the tax to the social cost of carbon (currently $40 per tonne of CO2 or higher and estimated to increase annually by $1 per tonne of CO2),” the report reads.

In the short-term, the SDC report also suggests that Canada eliminate subsidies to the fossil fuel industry and integrate sustainability into new and maintenance-related infrastructure investments.

In the mid- to long-term, the report suggests including an east-

to-west intelligent electrical grid to distribute hydroelectric energy, new national energy efficiency programs and a revised national transportation strategy.

Additionally, the report includes sector-specific recommendations.

“My contribution to the report was through my experience with the agricultural sector, and particularly coming from B.C. where we have an agricultural land reserve,” Fraser said.

According to the SDC report, Canada’s agriculture sector is responsible for 10 per cent of the nation’s greenhouse emissions, eight per cent of the national GDP and 12 per cent of jobs in the national labour market.

“There have been some challenges and threats to the agricultural land reserve, and yet that is a very important structure in place to retain valuable agricultural lands – not only for food security but also for biodiversity,” Fraser said.

“The dismantling of the family farm is an issue. We need succession planning. We need diversity in the farm industry to try to get away from the vast monocultures that drive a lot of the big farming today. And of course, we need to reduce the burning of fossil fuels in the agricultural industry.”

Fraser said he hopes the issues and suggestions outlined in the SDC report are discussed at a federal level.

“One of the big pushes for this

Lauchlan Fraser is involved in the report titled “Acting on Climate Change: Solutions from Canadian Scholars.” (Thompson Rivers University)

report was that the main organizers have been working very closely with political parties to get the message onto party platforms so that, when the federal election comes up, these

will be talking points,” he said.

The report will also be presented at the United Nations 2015 Climate Change Conference in Paris, France, he said.

Seeking energy salvation through solar power TRU professor weighs in as B.C. looks for alternatives to fossil fuels Wade Tomko

CONTRIBUTOR Ω TRU geography professor Michael Mehta voiced his concerns about the province’s low usage of renewable energy at last week’s Research Across the Disciplines talk. He thinks that B.C. should be moving towards solar power.

“Germany, with an annual 1,500 hours of sunlight, receives 50 per cent of their renewable energy through solar installations,” Mehta said, noting that Kamloops receives 2,080 annual hours of sunlight in comparison.

The grid system present in Kamloops can lose up to nine per cent of its power due to inefficiencies in transporting electrical power long distances from BC Hydro’s dams to energy-consuming hubs, Mehta said.

The province’s current hydroelectric infrastructure, combined with its abundance of sunlight, could create a “perfect marriage” where the province utilizes solar power in the summer and hydroelectric in the winter, he said.

According to Mehta, solar energy in North America is still under the shadow of fossil fuels. Those looking to buy and install a solar photovoltaic or thermal system can face a markup of nearly 200 per cent of the product and service’s actual worth, he said.

Mehta’s idea isn’t necessarily to install solar panels on every roof in Kamloops, but to create a system of distributed mini grids built around solar-powered residences that distribute excess power to neighbours.

Despite the heavy initial investment of switching to a photovoltaic or thermal solar system, he said homeowners could save up to $1,070 within their first year of installations.

BC Hydro is supporting renewable energy in theory, he said, but isn’t doing as much as it should.

Energy-conscious homeowners and this generation of university

students need to take the first step in moving towards solar power.

With the help of non-profit organizations, which sell equipment at the producer’s cost and install on a basis of donation, Mehta believes that the jump to seeing solar installations lining Kamloops’ infrastructure is fast approaching.

Next week, Mehta will be hosting a presentation put on by his students for the city council and the general public. The focus will be on renewable energy projects proposed by his students for the Thompson-Nicola region. It will be held at 7:00 p.m. Thursday, April 2 in TRU’s Clock Tower.

(Maryland GovPics/Flickr Commons)

6

April 1, 2015

FINDING PRIDE

by Ashley Wadhwani

It

should be no surprise that some people wait until university to come out. High school seems to do its best to highlight our differences, sometimes in cruel ways, showing us that we should expect to be scrutinized by peers. In a sense, university is the safe haven that follows, instead encouraging diversity and being a cradle for new ideas and acceptance, while still challenging what and how we think.

With TRUSU’s pride awareness week on now, the exploration of various aspects of LGBTQ culture is centre stage, and with this in mind we reached out and heard from three students who shared their experiences.

COMING OUT IN THE FIRST YEAR Amy Ouwehand, third-year tourism student, didn’t come out openly as lesbian until her first year at TRU, at the age of 19.

“I knew I was going to take a couple years. I don’t just rip off the Band-Aid,” she said.

Throughout high school Ouwehand dated boys, but she recalls her attraction to girls beginning in Grade 6.

“I knew it was always there, but I kind of said ‘eh whatever,’ like I’ll just ignore it, hopefully it’s just a phase,” Ouwehand said. “I came out as bi when I was 18.”

The realization that she wasn’t “75 per cent [into girls], 25 per cent [into guys],” but in fact 100 per cent lesbian wasn’t an overnight progression for Ouwehand.

“You have to sit down and talk to yourself and [say] ‘Yes, I am gay. This is who I am,’” Ouwehand said.

For Ouwehand, it took roughly a year to be comfortable with her sexual orientation.

“After 20, I started saying ‘this is who you are, you have to be true to yourself’ because I was still kind of living in denial, even though I did essentially come out,” Ouwehand said.

For Ouwehand, the TRU campus is a place she feels free and is less restricting than her hometown.

“Being back home … it’s not really fun. My girlfriends know that I’m gay, but they don’t want to talk about it. But I mean, it’s the way it is,” she said. “It’s great. Kamloops feels so much more comfortable. Just being out here, like, it’s not even a problem. I have the best friends here.”

Ouwehand was becoming closer with a female friend when she felt the need to define her sexual orientation. She had been dating guys when they first met and was worried the friendship would change. In the end, much to her surprise, her friend could care less.

Ouwehand said her friend’s reaction was to tell her that she was an amazing person and that it wasn’t a big deal.

Along with the memories of acceptance, however, are the less positive experiences. One night, at Cactus Jacks Nightclub, Ouwehand took her friend away from a guy on the dancefloor and he lashed out.

“It was kind of like a ‘get out of my face you fucking dyke’ kind of thing,” Ouwehand recalled. “My friends were there and they heard it. They came over and just reamed the guy out. I was just so shocked at the time. That was the first time

I ever got called out.”

For Ouwehand, she’s not sure that her friends back home would have been as supportive.

Ouwehand recognizes that TRU’s campus population isn’t as big as other universities and that the pride community is also not as large, but does feel that TRU still has room to grow.

“You see pride awareness week, so there is advertisement for stuff like that. But I just feel like our group here could do more,” Ouwehand said.

“Honestly, there’s no comparison to international week.

Because international week, this place is filled. You know what week it is,” Ouwehand said. “I know people are working their ass[es] off but I just feel like it could be a little more presented.”

When asked if she thinks people who don’t accept the LGBTQ community ever will, Ouwehand blamed it on naivety.

“They don’t know everything, and you know what, it’s a lot to do with religion, with race with all that other stuff,” Ouwehand said. “If you grow up that way, and you have your entire family telling you that’s how to live – that that’s the way the world works – it’s no surprise that someone [will think LGBTQ] isn’t right, this is not what I’ve learnt.”

Artwork by Rae Imeson

7

The Omega Ω Volume 24 • Issue 26

FINDING A SECOND SPIRIT Megan Graham, current TRUSU LGBTQ representative, has started experimenting with the pronoun of they/them in replacement of he/him and she/her. For Graham, who identifies as two-spirited, this resembles the concept of being what she refers to as “two-in-one.”

Graham became fascinated with the identity of twospirited peoples after high school, during their time in Calgary, after attending a queer film festival.

“It’s traditionally a native or Aboriginal North American term,” Graham said. “But the concept of it is to be in one body with two spirits, so you represent male and female in different ways.”

The non-native equivalent would be gender queer or third-gender, according to Graham. Within Aboriginal communities, two-spirited individuals are often spiritual leaders, a quality Graham relates to.

“The two-spirit, for me, is gender and sexuality being integrated into spirituality was really key,” Graham said.

Graham is a fourth-year interdisciplinary student with a focus in outdoor ministry.

According to Graham, there are many different roles we each individually play, and as a two-spirited person they are able to move between roles.

“At times I need to be a stronger masculine presence, and be that outgoing sometimes arrogant and pompous [person],” Graham said, laughing. “Other times I can be really romantic and really feminine – well I guess not really feminine. That’s a bit of a stretch. I’ve never been really feminine, but I can be a lot softer and kind.”

For Graham, they note that their coming out story “is not that exciting” – they’ve always just been themself. Growing up, they never had to hide any part of their orientation.

“I am really lucky that my parents allowed me to be tomboy,” Graham said. “And let me do whatever.”

Graham was often met with confusion, as Megan is not a boy’s name.

SOMETIMES IT’S NOT A ‘THING’ Christopher Herbert, third-year sociology student, grew up in a small town in northern B.C., always knowing he was gay.

“I was just always attracted to guys on TV shows and stuff,” Herbert said. “Being gay in a small town is difficult.”

Herbert isn’t comfortable when he goes back to his hometown, but feels it’s more important that he’s comfortable with himself.

“I don’t talk about it, because I know people are going to have a different opinion,” Herbert said.

Herbert had a best friend growing up that, upon learning of his sexual orientation, ended the friendship.

When he moved to Kamloops in 2012 he officially identified as gay. In his first year, Herbert took a sociology class on sexuality. Another student at the front of the class spoke up about the struggles he had faced being gay.

Herbert recalled how understanding the class was, saying, “It wasn’t something I really expected. It was nice to know I was now in this environment where somebody could say to the class ‘oh I’m gay’ and that’s not that big of a deal, it’s not a thing.”

For Herbert, he recognizes that relationships with male friends, who, although supportive, are kept at a distance.

“I know there are friends that I have that are male, that if I wasn’t gay I’d be closer with,” Herbert said.

As some of his guy friends have gotten girlfriends, tensions have risen from the girlfriends feeling uneasy with Herbert’s closeness. Overall, Herbert’s experience at TRU has been safe but still feels like progress can be made, specifically the stereotyping surrounding homosexuality.

“When you come out, you take on everything that gay means,” Herbert said. “If you’re gay, people assume things about you.” For Herbert, he finds these assumptions include flamboyancy and femininity.

Herbert has attended Pride Club events directed at the LGBTQ community, but isn’t actively involved with pride advocacy on campus. He supports the acceptance and equality that pride fights for, but doesn’t relate to the portrayal of gay men attached to pride awareness, specifically found at pride parades.

“The issue is that it’s really hard to represent an entire population of people without generalizing them,” Herbert said. “I’m not like some gay people and you know we’re all different. I have different values so growing up I always felt like gay pride doesn’t really represent me. It represents a certain type of person, just not me.”

Herbert enjoys both his traditionally masculine and traditionally feminine qualities. He enjoys videogames, going to garbage dumps and building bikes out of the scrap parts he finds.

“I like hunting – I’m really into fishing,” Herbert said.

His sense of humour, he feels, is more feminine in taste.

Similarly, he identifies his love for cooking to be more feminine.

“I like to garden. I like fucking tomatoes!” Herbert said, laughing.

According to Herbert, femininity is seen as inferior to masculinity, leading to inequalities for gay people who are a part of the feminine realm. In comparison to his lesbian friend, he notes that there could be greater difficulty for gay males to enter the feminine realm then what his lesbian friend endured.

“I think gay issues are going to improve when women’s issues improve, once femininity is understood for its value, I think gays will have an easier time.”

“I’m gay but I feel like that’s such a small part of who I am as a person, and so it shouldn’t be this huge thing.

“I would say ‘well yeah, it’s not, do with it what you will.’ If you think I’m a boy then I guess that’s up to you. It doesn’t really matter,” Graham said. “I wouldn’t necessarily correct people – and I still don’t often correct people.”

Graham lets others correct as they see fit, saying, “sometimes my girlfriends will remind people, ‘hey, no, that’s a she – that’s my girlfriend,’” Graham said.

For Graham, learning of two-spiritedness was not a sudden self-identification but was one of the many “ways of being.” It was when they started working with Aboriginal youth a few summers ago that two-spirited fit how Graham had always simply been.

“It takes a little bit to grow on you,” Graham said. “I’ve only really been ‘out,’ in the sense of communicating that to people in the last year or two.”

Since being at TRU, Graham’s understanding of the queer community has grown.

“I wasn’t part of any clubs back home, I didn’t have a lot of friends that were specifically, ‘let’s go to pride parade let’s do all these things,’ like pride, pride, pride,” Graham said. “It wasn’t until I joined the Pride Club on campus purposefully putting myself in that position that I started to open and see [that] there are a lot of options, there’s a lot going on.”

Graham was looking for a group of people similarlyminded to theirs who had informative experiences to share.

They came across the Pride Club, where they found a diverse group of people.

“You say your name and your pronoun – anybody’s an ally, anybody can be gay or straight, it doesn’t matter because it’s about you just being who you are in a safe place,” Graham said.

As LGBTQ representative, Graham has designed pride awareness week to give others the same learning experience they had in their mid-20s. Graham intends for the week to be a bigger and bolder move than just offering a Pride Club.

“Especially around [TRU], there’s a lot of different cultures and not necessarily less acceptance, but a lot of different attitudes towards it,” Graham said.

Before I’m a gay person, I’m so many other things,” Herbert said. “My name’s Chris Herbert, I’m a sociology major at TRU, I have a history minor. I’m very interested [in] global issues.

I’m a very kind person, I’m really funny. These qualities, they’re just qualities like being gay, but I don’t think gay is that significant because someone’s not going to love me because I’m gay, but because of what I’m interested in, my humour, stuff like that.”

8 ARTS Dew Tour brings tunes and big air to Sun Peaks

April 1, 2015

Tokyo Police Club, Mother Mother play Sun Peaks Danya LeBlanc

CONTRIBUTOR Ω

Snow sport enthusiasts, spectators, music fans and athletes splashed through the slushy snow at Sun Peaks Resort March 27 and 28 to watch the Dew Tour Am Series unfold.

The third annual amateur slopestyle ski and snowboarding competition sponsored by Mountain Dew created an atmosphere on the mountain that showcased the characteristics of ski culture with friendly competition, two live concerts, and yes, free food.

Despite the giveaways, the concerts and the live snow sport entertainment, the Dew Tour event was far from busy. Early spring for mountains all over Western Canada has melted much of the mountain, so the volume of skiers and boarders on the hill has dropped dramatically. Still, the spectators that did come watched in awe through sunglasses and goggles as skiers and boarders launched themselves ten feet in the air off three consecutive big air jumps.

Spectators listened to modern beats blasting from the commen-

tator’s tower beside the last big air jump of the course. The music could be heard from the Village Day Lodge, where some tiptoed through the slush puddles to receive complementary bottles of Mountain Dew, bags of Doritos and freshly pressed Dew Tour t-shirts. Others avoided the slush by finding a perch in the sun at Bottom’s Bar and Grill patio and watched the event with a beer in hand.

With free snacks and souvenirs, Tokyo Police Club on Friday and Mother Mother on Saturday evening, the Dew Tour Am Series was as much fun for spectators as it was for the competitors.

“Everyone can be part of it, having fun with the concerts and stuff,” said Matt Rokosh, a 14-year-old snowboarding competitor from Kamloops.

After a day of skiing, boarding and splashing through puddles, event participants were entertained with live Canadian rock music each evening. On Friday night, alternative folk band Shred Kelly opened for Tokyo Police Club, an indie-pop band from Ontario. On Saturday evening, Scott Helman opened the stage with upbeat acoustic indie beats

Mother Mother lead singer Ryan Guldemond at Sun Peaks March 28. (Danya LeBlanc)

that were catchy and smooth, an easy introduction for Mother Mother’s rock spectacle.

Though the parking lot that the concert was hosted in could have held a much larger crowd, a group of rockers were crammed up to the stage dancing with their fists in the air to Mother Mother’s “Bit by Bit.” Though otherwise well organized and promoted, scheduling delays and confusions left both competitors and spectators waiting in the snow. One particular delay in the competition set back the scheduled snowboarding women’s finals by an hour and a half.

Danny Ogurian, a 17-year-old ski competitor from Stony Plain, Alta., said that the delay was just the one of the scheduling setbacks that had deferred the competition.

“Some of my friends were confused by the schedule and missed morning practice, so they had to just jump right in at qualifiers,” said Ogurian.

Still, Ogurian said that this was the only competition that he attended this year, and that it would probably be the only one he would go to next year because you don’t need to qualify to attend.

“Usually you already know who is going to win because you know what trick they did to qualify, so there’s really no competition. But at an event like this it’s really about whatever trick you can do here.”

Competitors over the age of 13 could register online and do whatever tricks they desired, regardless of skill level.

The opportunity to network was a huge benefit for the riders. Slopestyle enthusiasts from across Western Canada had the opportunity to meet and make connections. Matt Rokosh and his identical twin brother Justin, competed this weekend, with Jus-

Boarders and skiiers alike flew over Sun Peaks during the 2015 Dew Tour Am Series event on March 27 and 28. (Kim Anderson/The Omega)

tin on skis and Matt on a board.

They both started looking at slopestyle as a career five years ago, but don’t take lessons and instead depend on their peers for support.

“We just go up and see what we can do and if we need help, we just ask. Everyone is really friendly and will teach you how to do

stuff,” said Justin.

Spectators and competitors persevered despite the warm spring conditions. Boarders and skiers took advantage of the snow that is still on the mountain in this friendly competition, while spectators dodged puddles as they gathered free merchandise by the armful.

Anderson: The problem with hoarding A crumpled, yellowing A+ essay written for an art history course, a tired, tattered pair of saggy sweatpants from high school volleyball, an angst-ridden teenage journal filled with teardrops, pain and profanity. All of these things take up room in your world.

We pay to live in a space. Slowly, we obtain trophies that fill the

place. We are all guilty of it.

They are inanimate objects that alone are meaningless, but combine to build a treasure trove of our history. Why do we hold these items so tightly? Are they the dog-eared pages that mark notable chapters in our lives? Are they a true representation of the paths we’ve walked?

Not really.

Spring cleaning is upon us. This means we are supposed to sift through our things, our precious, priceless stuff. We can ignore this chore for as long as possible. We can procrastinate by sorting it and then never taking it to the thrift store, or to the dumpster, where most of it truly belongs.

You have boxes of old notes from middle school, birthday cards from years ago, old clothes that, at the

time, advertised your membership or ability in something. You hold onto these items as if they are the experience itself. You give personality, value and meaning to things that mark an important time in your past. This is fine, until it’s time to move it. You cannot comprehend the scope of all your crap until you have to sort it, place it into boxes and label it. How many boxes can you scrawl “odds n’ ends” on?

Will you ever squeeze back into those red skinny jeans you used to wear? Maybe, but we both know the honest answer is no. Yet, there they are, mean mugging you from the closet alongside your gang of punky, outdated and undersized teenage clothing from your glory days.

We justify living in larger spaces simply to accommodate all this

stuff. Do I need to drag five shelves, seven lamps and a rickety, ratchet, old patio set to the new place? No. The answer is, and forever will be “no.”

Souvenirs, mementos, trinkets... call them what you will. The fact remains that it’s all just stuff. We assign significance to things because the hours and days are flashing before us at an alarming rate. Instinctively, we are afraid of change and in turn, growth. Transitioning means that we must leave our old self behind. Too quickly we forget that the walk is more important than the destination, and the amount of tacky cargo you amassed on the trip.

True significance is found in your own memories, in the experience of the time. Hold on to them. Visit

them now and then. They are yours forever. They are all you’ll have when you are aged, tired, and sentimental. They belong to you.

Say yes when opportunities arise. Will you be in this moment again? No. You’ll never have another chance to do what you’re doing right now, with the people you are with.

Say yes to experience. Say yes to the memories. Say yes. Say it now.

Say no to the mass of junk that you hoard in your home, for no real reason, aside from being petrified to forget who you are at this crossroads of time and space.

Do not allow material items, or the pursuit of them distort what is truly important. Do not be enslaved by things. You’re much stronger than that. Trust me.

ARTS

The Omega Ω Volume 24 • Issue 26

APRIL EVENT LISTINGS

April 3 – Rang De Basanti, Campus green in front of Old Main

ON CAMPUS, AROUND KAMLOOPS

Celebrate unity by throwing colours. The event is free to attend.

Food will be availble, but tickets must be purchased beforehand at TRU World reception and TRUSU desk. Tickets are $15 for Students (until March 31) and $25 for non-students. 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

April 8 – The Great White Hootenanny with Shred Kelly, Heroes Pub Presented by the TRU Events students, Shred Kelly is playing at Heroes Pub. Tickets are available at the TRUSU Desk, Oronge Boardshop, The Lemonade Stand, Eaglepoint Golf Course, and the Lone Wolf Gallery. Tickets are $10 presale and $15 at the door. 8 p.m.

April 10 – Last Class Bash, TRU campus Meet up with your classmates and high five one another for finishing another year at the Last class bash presented by TRUSU. This on-campus party features a beer garden, free food, games and live music. 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Elizabeth Arden (neé Florence Nightingale Graham), 1939 (b/w photo) / Creator(s): Fisher, Alan, photographer / [Public domain], via Library of Congress

“Our only limitations are those which we set up in our own minds, or permit others to establish for us.” › Elizabeth Arden: Self-Made Maven In a time when women dare not wear make-up or run their own businesses, Elizabeth daringly did both. She was not a trained chemist, yet she pioneered the concept of scientifically formulating cosmetics. She was not a business graduate, yet she created a global empire. Curiosity and drive were her teachers; the world, her classroom.

We think Elizabeth would have simply adored AU, giving people all over the world the chance to make their mark, on their terms, in their time. Beautiful.

open. online. everywhere.

Learn more at business.athabascau.ca

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April 9 to 18 – 17th Annual Kamloops Wine Festival, The Coast Hotel (and various wineries) Attend wine tastings, dinners and seminars on all things wine. Here is an opportunity to support the KAG in their massive fundraiser.

Sample 250 B.C. wines and listen to live music at the consumer wine tasting event. Visit the tourism kamloops website for a full schedule and ticket information.

April 17 – BFA Graduating Exhibition Opening, Old Main Gallery

April 17 – The Comic Strippers, The Sagebrush Theatre

TRU Bachelor of Fine Arts students are presenting their final artwork in their graduating exhibition. The gallery is located in OM across from the Blackbox theatre. Follwing the opening night, the gallery will be open to the public for two weeks. 7 p.m.

The Sagebrush theatre is the only place in Kamloops that you’ll find comedy, improv, and (fictitious) male strippers all rolled into one show. Check out some of Canada’s best improv comedians perform their own special brand of sexy comedy. Tickets kamloopslive.ca or call 250-374-LIVE (5483).

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COMICS

April 1, 2015

xkcd.com

SPORTS

The Omega Ω Volume 24 • Issue 26

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Swimming down under for the first time

WolfPack coach and Kamloops swimmer head to Australian competition Tayla Scott

SPORTS EDITOR Ω

WolfPack swim team head coach Brad Dalke and Kamloops Classic swimmer Colin Gilbert will see Australia for the first time when they head down to represent Canada at the 2015 Australian Age Group Championships.

Gilbert, 16, was selected for the competition, which runs from April 13 to 20, for consistently being one of Canada’s fastest swimmers in butterfly and freestyle distances in his age category.

“Canada is sending a junior team to race down there to get some experience in a country with a lot faster kids, because Australia is like a mecca for swimming,” Gilbert said.

Three other boys, six girls and two coaches were also chosen to make up Canada’s Junior Development National Team. One of the coaches, Dalke, was selected as a coach for his success training Kamloops swimmers.

“We’re a smaller club going headto-head against all these larger teams.

When we were at the Western Canadian Swimming Championships, we placed tenth overall. That’s out of a couple hundred swim clubs,” Dalke said.

Dalke has coached at the provincial level before, but it will be his first time coaching at a national level. It will also be both Dalke and Gilbert’s first trip to Australia.

“I guess it’s cliché, but it’s on the bucket list,” Dalke said.

“The biggest challenge will be the travel. When you travel, the rule of thumb is to give yourself a day for every hour of time change. Well obviously it’s 19 hours that we’re making a change so we only have 48 hours to get ourselves ready,” Dalke said.

When the competition ends, Dalke, Gilbert and the rest of Canada’s junior team will have a chance to coach and swim off of Australian beaches.

“We’ll be training and doing some technique work and working with coaches down there, and those coaches, they’re legendary,” Gilbert said.

Gilbert is glad to have a friend from Kelowna, who was also chosen to compete on Canada’s junior team, accompanying him, along with his longtime coach Dalke.

“I’m not going to have to deal with a coach that I don’t know. With Brad, it’s like, this is what we do at home, and this is what we’re going to do when we’re halfway around the world. It’s great to have a coach that’s been with you every single day of

your life,” Gilbert said.

There will be some familiar faces at the competition for Dalke as well, like his former coach and former roommate from the University of Calgary, both who live in Australia.

But there will be one more big competition to take on before Dalke and Gilbert go down under. On April 1, the pair head to the 2015 World Championships & Pan Am Games Trials in Toronto where Gil-

bert hopes to qualify for the FINA World Junior Swimming Championships which occur in Singapore in September.

“This summer is going to be really busy for me. I’ve got a lot of competitions but I’m looking to go and break some records. That’s one thing I haven’t done and that’s one thing that I’m looking forward to, and just enjoying wherever swimming takes me,” Gilbert said.

It’s too early for Gilbert to decide on what university he wants to attend, but TRU will doubtfully be in the running.

“The level I’m at I think I can get to a decent university with a decent team,” Gilbert said. “It’d be nice to be with a bunch of really quick men, like have a good men’s team and I don’t know if TRU necessarily has that. So I’d rather go to a place that has a really solid team with depth.”

Soccer: the struggles, the hopes and the growth Local coaches talk recent growth within TRU and obstacles for Kamloops youth soccer Simon Larsson

CONTRIBUTOR Ω

Although soccer is a popular sport in Kamloops and interest at TRU has spiked, there is still room to grow, especially at the youth level.

The Kamloops Youth Soccer Association (KYSA) has 117 fewer players than it did in 2013, accord-

ing to registration data from KYSA executive director Keith Liddiard.

“Youth soccer in Kamloops is not growing at the moment,” Liddiard said. “Registration has been pretty stable the last few years.”

But Kamloops coaches are still optimistic concerning soccer’s growth and engagement among youth in B.C. “A lot of people don’t realize this,

but soccer has actually taken over as a youth sport all throughout Canada and the United States,” said Tom McManus, head coach of WolfPack women’s soccer and former head coach and technical director of KYSA. McManus, who also has coaching experience on a national level, said soccer has been the predominant choice for youth for roughly

Marlie Rittinger. (TRU Athletics)

20 years, with more children playing soccer than hockey. This is mainly due to soccer’s low equipment costs and accessibility.

John Antulov, the WolfPack men’s soccer head coach, agreed, saying “soccer is the highest participatory sport ... with the KYSA here, there are almost 3,800 kids playing soccer in Kamloops.”

Antulov estimated that there are another 2,000 to 3,000 women and men playing soccer in Kamloops outside of KYSA. “If you look at a small town like Kamloops, you have almost 7,000 people playing soccer. That is pretty significant,” Antulov said.

Despite soccer having interest and high participation numbers, the sport is facing difficulties.

“Finance is a huge factor,” McManus said. “Unfortunately today, some clubs are beginning to charge a lot of money for kids to play soccer. I know some players are not playing for the cost factor, and that’s a shame. I want soccer for everybody.

I want everyone to keep playing at whatever age.”

While soccer numbers have decreased at the youth level, TRU has seen an increase in interest since it changed to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) in September.

“I would say we get triple the emails that we usually get,” Antulov said. “Our last ID camp we had close to 50 [participants], and we usually

averaged about 30. We’re seeing a significant jump in interest.”

But that doesn’t mean that Antulov can add more players to his roster.

“We just don’t have the finances to keep a lot of players. Budgets are very tight,” Antulov said. “Geographically, it’s very spread out here. It costs a lot of money for travel, which a lot of people can’t afford. You need to have an organization backing you up.”

Both McManus and Antulov agreed that although soccer has a widespread interest and participatory engagement in Kamloops, it still has potential to expand. But for that to happen, both coaches said changes need to occur in local soccer organizations, starting with funding that can support new opportunities.

McManus shared an example from Manitoba, where he used to coach their professional soccer team, the Winnipeg Fury.

“They got money from the Government of Canada, from Manitoba and from the city to help them build this [indoor] facility, and it’s an absolutely beautiful facility,” McManus said. “I would love to have something like it here on campus.”

“Soccer as a sport in Kamloops can be very successful. It can be the number one sport and it can continue to be that. We just have to make sure that we are getting good indoor facilities, outdoor facilities, whatever we can get,” McManus said.

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April 1, 2015