Joe Martin, Levi Martin and Dr. Ricardo Manmohan were awarded King Charles III Coronation Medals on Feb. 21 in front of an intimate gathering of friends and family at the newly renovated Clayoquot Sound Community Theatre in Tofino.

Courtenay-AlberniNDP MP Gord Johns presented the honour on behalf of the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada. Johns was tasked with nominating 20 individuals from his riding for the Kings Charles II Coronation Medal, an award that recognizes outstanding individuals who have made a difference in their community.

Ryson Barker believes his hockey career has been greatly enhanced this season.

It’s taken massive commitments, however, not only from the 13-year-old from Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation but also from various members of his family.

That’s because Barker has not been living at home this season. Instead, he’s been in Penticton where he suits up for the Okanagan Hockey Academy’s Under 15 AAA team.

The Okanagan squad competes in the Canadian Sport School Hockey League, a circuit which features clubs representing academies from across the country.

Rose-Mary Dupperon, a Hesquiaht First Nation member and Grade 9 student at Alberni District Secondary School (ADSS), is the recent winner of an art contest put on by the First Nations Health Authority (FNHA). Her artwork will be featured as part of a new FNHA resource called the “Harm Reduction Conversation Toolkit.”

Although the overexploitation of Pacific herring remains a burning memory for many watching the health of the keystone species, a commercial fishery is set to return in late February with increased harvest rates.

Shae Doiron grew up around sports in Port Alberni, and has organized several ball hockey tournaments, but what unfolded over the last weekend of January in a packed Maht Mahs gymnasium was something different. 

As part of its long tradition of hosting the sport on the Tseshaht reserve, Maht Mahs took in 14 teams for three days of hustle and sweat before a lively crowd – all in honour of those lost due to drug use, a phenomenon that has become disturbingly widespread amongst First Nation communities. 

Excitement is building for Hoobiyee 2025, a two-day celebration of Indigenous dance and culture set to illuminate Vancouver’s PNE Forum on Friday, Feb. 28 and Saturday, March 1. 

Pronounced HOO-bee-yay, the event is guided by the emergence of the first crescent moon in late winter and marks the beginning of the Nisga’a new year. 

Although the debate continues over how the province should handle the ongoing overdose crisis, a ray of hope is evident in the declining tally of fatal deaths in B.C.

On Feb.4 the B.C. Coroners Service reported 2,254 deaths due to illicit drug use in 2024. While it remains the leading cause of death to residents under 60 – more than homicide, suicide and car crashes combined – B.C.’s tragic toll from last year shows a 13 per cent decrease from 2023, and the lowest seen since the COVID-19 pandemic brought a surge in drug-related fatalities in 2020. 

It’s been a busy month for President Trump. From directing the U.S. to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement and waging war on paper straws to raving about turning the Gaza strip into the “Riviera of the Middle East”, the antics of the Trump administration have been nothing short of unravelling.

While 51 per cent Native Americans voted for Trump, according to a poll released by Native News Online, many nations have sent letters to the President in response to the recent political developments. 

Birthright citizenship

Over a hundred walked through the streets of Nanaimo on Feb. 14 in recognition of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and gender diverse people – one of many such marches that took place over the weekend with hopes of ending a national crisis.

Organized by the Vancouver Island University Student Union, the MMIWG march in Nanaimo was one of many held across Canada on Feb. 14. An estimated 250 people participated in the walk in Nanaimo, according to Leah Vaisanen, VIU's Indigenous Students' Representative. 

For the first time since 1989, the Ucluelet Secondary School (USS) Warriors senior girls basketball team is heading to the Provincial Championships.

Head coach Emily Collins says her team represents the heart and depth of the west coast with players represented from Ucluelet, Tofino, ʕaaḥuusʔatḥ (Ahousaht), Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ (Ucluelet First Nation) and ƛaʔuukʷiʔatḥ (Tla-o-qui-aht).