Sports. A wide variety of communities built into a fundamental piece of culture. Hockey. A Canadian dream that allows for people to cheer, rejoice, and bask in the hopes of  passion and desire in the sports industry. Hockey is a sport that allows for communities to flourish in a way like no other. Hockey brings people together. Hockey is hope. Inside the sports industry, there are many jobs to be done when telling the stories of sports and who is behind all those stories, sports journalists. Sports journalists have a front row seat of all there is to be told about sports. 

Sara Westerholm has a dream. Her dream is to work in sports. She wants to tell the stories of the athletes and their fans. She wants to be able to tell both sides of the story, as everyone’s voice deserves to be heard. Everyone should have someone or something to rely on, whether  its your family, friends or a sport, like hockey. 

Hockey is a community that will never go away. Hockey is what brought Sara her love of sports and her dream to work in the industry. That is what brought her to Kamloops to be able to attend Thompson Rivers University to achieve her dreams. Except, they are not dreams, they are reality. Sara Westerholm is getting her education and making her mark in the sports community, and she is just getting started. 

Hello and welcome back to T is for Teamwork at TRU! Today, I am releasing the audio podcast with Grace Grantham.Grace Grantham is a second year criminology student here at TRU. She is looking to work in law enforcement with her degree. Grace is a wonderful person who makes interviewing extremely easy. Grace and I spoke about the importance of mental health and how she deals with it in her day-to-day life! This is from a student perspective which allows for open and honest transparency as sometimes it can be hard to have someone to talk to, or talk about mental health in a way that makes sense to you! Sometimes when talking about mental health, it can be highly intimidating and nerve-wracking. Mental Health is a large topic that is highly important. Mental health is one of the fundamental pillars of health and wellness. Without taking care of your mind, you cannot take care of your body. This can lead to damage to yourself and your esteem, which can lead to negative effects. Mental health is just as important as physical health as they go hand in hand. Physical health matters. Mental health matters.

How Lucy stays healthy as a student athlete

Lucy Millam is a student athlete who plays on the women’s volleyball team. She is currently in her third year at Thompson Rivers University. She moved to Kamloops to be able to be on our Wolfpack. When she is at home in Victoria, she said that she is able to have a full fridge and daily meals made by her family, which is she very grateful for. When she is on her own in Kamloops, she has challenges surrounding a full fridge. Her main issue is that her mode of transportation is not always accessible as she does not have a car. If she is missing something for her meal prep, she may not be able to quickly get that missing ingredient. She has her meal preps as a way to save time due to her busy schedule, including travel, school work, practice and many more responsibilities.

How Lucy deals with stress in her daily life

Stress is not linear. Stress does not have a certain affect on people, it is unpredictable. The management of stress is of the utmost importance. Lucy has many responsibilities including her studies, her work and her sport. Being a member to the Wolfpack means a lot to Lucy. It can be very difficult to maintain a balance whilst being so busy, which can further stress and lead to unhealthy habits to develop. Lucy maintains her stress by having a strong support system behind her. Her support system allows for a calming presence which can be hard to maintain on your own. She also attacks her stress on her own by keeping a journal near by so that she is able to write down what she must complete in both the school and the sport world.

How Lucy avoids burnout

Lucy fears the word burnout. She fears it may happen to her. She does not deny that negative feelings arise but TRU and their resources make it possible to avoid burnout and continue to thrive in the sports world. She tends to focus on the positives and while she may feel feelings of doubt and anxiety, she realizes what has come and what is continuing to come from her playing at a high level. She has travelled across Canada and worldwide even, venturing all the way to Turkey to play the sport she loves. She gets to play her sport with her friends beside her and continue to further her connections to volleyball. She loves volleyball so much and is forever honoured that TRU allows her to represent them in such a competitive yet inclusive manner.