Raider Events
Beads and Bling: It’s a Mardi Gras Thing!
By: Gabby Albano
“There's no place like Mardi Gras!”
Mardi Gras is a colourful festival celebrated in Francophone cities throughout the world, most notably, in New Orleans. It is seen as the debut of Lent, specifically, the day in which people can eat all the fats in their homes in preparation for the fasting season. The festival is filled with extravagant parades, lavish decorations and delectable foods that are native to each city.
Assumption’s spectacular Mardi Gras celebration has been a tradition at the school for years, but was unfortunately put on hold due to the constraints of the pandemic. This year, Mr. Zanier and high school students at Assumption have revived the magic of the festival through the Mardi Gras Extravaganza. Those who attended on February 17 had the privilege of taking a dive into the Cajun/Creole lifestyle for one unforgettable night. The hall was decorated with purple, gold and green drapes that hung from the ceiling. By the end of the night, the floors were covered in glitter and sparkles. Guests were wowed by spirited entertainment from ‘Big Louie and the Band’ and the Assumption bands, Junior/Senior and Jazz. Their unmatched talent drew people to the dance floor, while they enjoyed songs that ranged from ‘Rolling in the Deep’ to ‘Careless Whisper.’ Guests were also able to experience a delightful menu that transcended New Orleans culture through savoury Creole dishes. The fan favourite was the Jambalaya with chicken, which is a rice dish that originated in South Louisiana in the 18th century.
It was imperative to Assumption that the Extravaganza reflected the true essence of the festival and it can be confidently stated that the goal was fulfilled!
Social Justice
By: Simran Parker
Pokemon Tournament
February 27 is Pokémon Day! In the lead up to the Spring Break Spirit Week, another
tournament kicks off! Due to the recent natural disasters in Turkey and Syria, we decided to use the momentum we generate as a way to raise awareness and money for relief efforts. If you’d like to donate (optional), you like competition, or you just want to come and watch, meet us any day during lunch next week in room 025. The winner of the tournament will receive a gift card of their choice.
Sweet Grams Initiative
This month at Assumption College Catholic High School, The Social Justice Club, alongside Student Council, decided to spread some sweetness in the air by selling Sweet Grams. What makes this initiative even more special is its goal of raising money to create gift baskets for new refugee students in our school community. These gift baskets will hopefully help them feel welcomed and comfortable, while also giving us an opportunity to show our Raider spirit. The students of Assumption did not disappoint with their contributions to this amazing initiative. With their help, the club raised 330 dollars worth of donations to be able to create gift baskets. The Social Justice Club is very thankful for everyone's contribution to purchasing Sweet Grams and hopes this dedication and participation are seen in other school initiatives.
Raider Athletics
By: Daniel Skliarov
Wrestling
To end off the week our Wrestling team went over to compete at the SWOSSA meet on friday. The tournament was very difficult with all the competition that was there from around our community. Despite our school coming in with injuries we had a very good run this year. However, the Raider journey is not over as Charissa made OFSAA! Overall it was a great effort put on by the purple raiders and we wish good luck to Charissa in Ottawa for OFSAA.
Raiders Care Club
By: Madelyn Rousseau
“It is never too late to be who you might have been.” - George Elliot
Raiders Care Club is currently working on formulating ideas to improve the student experience. As you make your way through the halls in the coming weeks, keep an eye out for helpful posters detailing proven study strategies to maximize test success.
As always, we are more than excited for new club members to join our crew. If you are passionate about making a positive impact and revolutionizing the way we think of mental health, come to our meetings in room 203 every Tuesday at lunch!
Model UN
By: Colin Prystanski
Hello, Raiders! This is Assumption’s Model UN Club’s first appearance in the Raider Newspaper, and hopefully not the last you’ll see from us! Model UN is a fantastic opportunity to help provide students with a global perspective on world problems. Model UN helps teach students about world problems and the teamwork skills necessary to help solve them which can be applied in their future lives. Model UN helps teach collaboration, leadership, writing, and speaking. If that didn’t sell you on joining, Universities and Employers love seeing Model UN on applications! Being a part of Model UN allows us to participate in mock UN Competitions throughout the year. This week, 16 of our members will be heading off to join in the CAPMUN Model UN tournament taking place at the University of Ottawa. Feel free to stop in on one of our meetings if you are interested, we’d love to see you there!
Poetry Club
Cafeteria Services Now Available !
Mrs. Nehmetallah and her amazing team of students and staff are now operating out of our school cafeteria servery. They are offering healthy food options for students, including soups, salads, sandwiches, a daily special and more. At the moment we can only accept cash payments, but in the future students will be able to use their debit card for payment. We will notify students once debit is available.
World News:
Ukraine War
By: Colin Prystanski
Last week on Friday, February 24th, marked the one-year anniversary of the war in Ukraine. At 5 am, a military operation was initiated to demilitarize and de-radicalize Ukraine on orders of the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin. The Russian forces began invading from
the North, South, and East, but after about a month of nonstop fighting, they were forced to withdraw from the North. At the peak of the invasion, the Russian forces controlled large amounts of territory threatening major population centers such as the capital city of Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Mykolaiv. After months of a hard-fought battle with the Russian military, and thanks to widespread donations of military equipment from Western Nations and NATO, Ukraine was able to push back Russian advances. As of the present day, the war has been largely confined to the Southern and Eastern sides of the Dnieper River which splits the country in two. This war has caused Europe's largest humanitarian refugee crisis since the Yugoslav Wars in the 1990s, displacing an estimated 14 million people. The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, was quoted saying in a ceremony in remembrance of fallen soldiers on the 24th, “We withstand all threats, shelling, cluster bombs, cruise missiles, kamikaze drones, blackouts and cold… And we will do everything to gain victory this year.”
Nigerian Presidential Election
By: Preston Seguin
The largest democratic election in African history remains a “close call”
The Fourth Nigerian Republic, the most populous country in Africa, is currently holding its 7th quadrennial free and democratic elections. This year, according to Nigeria’s electoral body, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), approximately 90 out of the country’s 200 million citizens are eligible to vote. While this number still falls far below half of the Nation’s population, this would be a substantial increase from last year's 60 million voter turnout.
Usually, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and the All Progressive Congress (APC) are the two dominant parties. However, this year Nigeria has a third political party in serious contention, the Labour Party (LP). So far, all three parties have struggled to gain a lead by even the smallest of margins, instead remaining in a high-tension deadlock.
The APC has nominated the former Governor of Lagos, Bola Tinubu, to be their presidential candidate. Tinubu, an accounting graduate from Chicago State University, has been involved in Nigerian politics since the early 1990s and is the most successful politician running for the presidency.
Atiku Abubakar is the presidential nominee representing the PDP and is the most weathered politician of all candidates. At age 76, Abubakar served as the Vice President of Nigeria for 2 terms, from 1999 to 2007.
Finally, representing the Labour Party is politician Peter Obi. He is the youngest candidate in this election at age 60 and is widely supported by Nigeria’s younger generation. Obi is predicted to come out on top, but historically, predictions have been incorrect in Nigerian elections.
Thank you Raiders for reading the second edition of Raider News!
Brought to you by
Jack Channo, Angela Moraru and Elizabeth Leo - Organizers and Editors
Ali Mohamad - Website and Paper Designer