The annual Totem basketball tournament held at Alberni District Secondary School is kind of a big deal. And for the past few months eight Grade 12 students have made a special effort to spread the word about the tournament.
They are the official Totem Spirit candidates, whose purpose has been to promote the longest-running high school basketball tournament in B.C. within the student body as well as out in public.
The number of candidates varies each year. This year there are eight: Josh Alemany, Kate Basra, Aaron Climaco, Vanessa Jones, Jenelle Kozlowski, Hali Stafford, Noelani Watts and Fiona Wertz. Some of them have used social media and public events (like the recent New Year's Day Polar Bear Swim) to help forward their campaigns outside of the high school.
Every year the Totem Spirit contestants help draw the hundreds of spectators that will crowd the gymnasium bleachers for every game, especially when the ADSS Storm will be playing.
Hali Stafford
Stafford says she is a "pretty quiet kid" and she wanted to get involved in Totem for her final of four years at ADSS. "The atmosphere is the big part of it," she says about attending past Totem tournaments. "It really made me love sports."
Aaron Climaco
Climaco has been in the pep band for four years, participating in Totem previously. This year he wanted to help promote the school. "The atmosphere, the big positive energy" are what drew him to run for Totem Spirit.
Josh Alemany
"I've never had an opportunity to show my school spirit," says Alemany. "I thought this would be a good way for me to make a name for myself and promote school spirit. I love that while it's a massive event for the community, it's big Island-wide."
Noelani Watts
Watts is the only Indigenous Totem Spirit candidate this year, something she is proud of. She hopes by running for Totem Spirit she will set a good example for other Indigenous students who follow in her footsteps. A member of the ADSS cheer team, Watts said Totem isn't just about the basketball.
"I went to my first basketball game in Grade 7. Totem...you have to be there" to understand the draw, she said.
Jenelle Kozlowski
Kozlowski is in her fourth year on the ADSS dance team, which performs at Totem every year. "A couple of my friends ran (for Totem Spirit) and it's always looked like so much fun. It's just really a community event that gets everyone excited," she said.
Kate Bosra
Bosra has participated in Totem as part of the ADSS leadership classes "but never to a big extent like Totem Spirit. I thought it would be a lot of fun to help out with it in a bigger aspect," she said. "I love the atmosphere. When you're sitting in the gym it's an unreal experience. It's unlike anything else we have throughout the year."
Vanessa Jones
Jones has been on the cheer team for the past two years, and knows first hand how electric the crowd gets when ADSS teams hit the floor. "I'm very excited," she said. She helped campaign with Totem 68 Spirit winner Jace Fedirchuk last year and said Totem Spirit is a positive experience. "I really like how the community works together."
Fiona Wertz
Wertz started high school at ADSS midway through Grade 8, so her first Totem wasn't until she was in Grade 9. "I had no idea what was going on," she said of her first Totem. "I realized that is something that I wanted to run for." Now in Grade 12, she is also part of the cheer team, which she says is a lot of fun during Totem. "It's just the feeling of how it brings everyone together."
Totem kicks off Thursday, Jan. 9 with the ADSS senior girls Storm playing Kwalikum at 5 p.m., followed by the senior boys playing Ballenas at 7 p.m.
The Totem Spirit winner will be crowned at the conclusion of the tournament on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025 at the ADSS Gymnasium following the final game.
