The Great Shakeout, the annual earthquake preparedness drill, was canceled on Oct. 20. Chabot College has done the Great Shakeout for many years, but this is the first the school has canceled the event. 

Due to the past few years of the coronavirus pandemic, the school has not many staff and students on campus. Along with the construction taking place around campus with the Paths to Parking project and the public address system stopped working. 

With a mixture of factors of construction, the pandemic, and electronic malfunction with the public address system, it was ultimately decided the Great Shakeout was canceled. 

“We feel pretty confident we’ll be able to circle back around some point next year. In the spring, hopefully. If we don’t get to it in the spring, we’re going to get back in business and we’ll do the ShakeOut for sure,” said Vice President Dale Wagoner.

Now that Thanksgiving has past and the Christmas holidays are around the corner, the Barangay Chabot Club held a parol making event on Nov. 29 in the Event Center.

Parol making is a Filipino tradition that includes making parols out of bamboo sticks and paper into the shape of a star. They are illuminated with candles or battery operated lights.

“Parol making is creating a Filipino lantern star that is commonly held outside or inside of people’s homes to celebrate Christmas,” said club president Maika Jeciel. “It symbolizes the three kings who went to see Jesus at the time of his birth.”

President of the Barangay Chabot Club, Maika Jeciel, presented a Disney animation on the parol star and Christmas holiday and then a tutorial on how to make a parol lantern. Many attendees were of Filipino or Asian descent and came to partake in the activities and socialize.

Barangay Chabot is one of the clubs MOVEMENT learning supports for Asian American and Pacific Islander students coming to Chabot College. Other clubs MOVEMENT supports are Association of China, Punjabi Club, Vietnamese-American Association, and many more.

“I enjoyed celebrating the culture with our fellow club members since Christmas is a big occasion in the Philippines. Being able to share and create a parol means a lot not just to the officers and the club but also us as Filipinos. We hope we have more activities like this!” said club secretary Stephanie Cornelio.

“I enjoyed most the club hosting a parol making event, the idea of being able to share this important tradition in the Philippines, with the community here at Barangay Chabot, that not only educates our community, but bonds us,” said Jeciel.

Netflix’s newest show, created by Leah Fong and Mike Flanagan, The Midnight Club, was released on Oct. 7. The show is about eight terminally ill young adults that reside in Brightcliffe Home hospice and tell haunting stories every night. When one of them is near death, they make a pact to try to communicate from beyond the grave.

Starring Iman Benson, Igby Rigney, Sauriyan Sapkota, Aya Furukawa, Ruth Codd, William Chris Sumpter, Annarah Cymone, and Adia.

The show starts off with Ilonka, played by Iman Benson, who is diagnosed with thyroid cancer and enrolls into Brightcliffe Hospice in hopes of finding a cure for her illness. She arrives at the hospice having learned of its previous past of being a home to a cult and a miracle patient Julia Jayne. Soon, she finds the other patients are in a club where they tell scary stories called the Midnight Club.

Flanagan’s The Midnight Club is adapted from Christopher Pike’s book The Midnight Club released in 1994. Flanagan is known for taking inspiration from previous works and turning it into terrific horror shows.

As someone who has watched Flanagan’s other shows such as The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, and Midnight Mass, I was excited to see what The Midnight Club would hold. I was excited to see what jumpscares or hauntings would be at the hospice where the eight teens resided.

The show did not reach my expectations on how Flanagan’s prior work did well with the horror element. While I think the show is a good premise with telling scary stories in the dark, I was expecting more ghosts and scares.

What I did enjoy the most was the connection between all the characters, they all knew they were on borrowed time and made the most of relationships with love and care for each other. The episode where Anya, played by Ruth Codd, was passing away made me cry. They all joined together to be with her in her final moments.

I had more questions than answers when I finished the show. For example, what gave Ilonka visions to visit Brightcliffe Hospice or why did Kevin, played by Igby Rigney, never mention he was sleep walking until the last episode? I found out recently that Flanagan is going to have another season for The Midnight Club, so hopefully my questions will be answered and be more engaging.

This year both Chabot College’s men’s and women’s soccer seasons were canceled on Sep. 20.

Athletic Director Jeff Druin explained why the season was shut down before it could begin. “For the women’s team, they did not have enough players to field a team as for the men’s team, we had 15 players, which is enough to compete. When we ran their eligibility, we discovered that six student-athletes were academically ineligible, reducing the roster number to nine eligible athletes, which is not enough to field a team.”

Jeff continued, “After having a conversation with Dr. Cooks, Vice President of Instructions, we made the decision to give the team some time to fix the situation. Shortly after, we had to make the difficult decision to cancel the season.”

 Student athlete Christopher Mercado shared his feelings regarding the season’s cancellation. “I think it’s sad. We put our all into this, and it was just taken from us out of nowhere. We’re really hoping there’s a better future for the sport at this college.” 

In addition to the season’s cancellation, the men’s longtime soccer coach, Tony Igwe, announced that he would be stepping down from his position and retiring. “I just put in my resignation today. I’m gonna miss it. I just talked to the players. I will miss them.”

Jeff shared his thoughts about Tony’s departure. “The week he was hired as the soccer coach was the same week that I started in a full-time position here at Chabot. We worked together for many years. 22 years, to be exact.”

Jeff added, “Tony has inspired a lot of young soccer players. He has shown great care for all the student-athletes that played for him. I hope this next chapter in his life will be good for him, and I wish him nothing but the best.”

Tony hopes that the athletic department will be able to add more support for the next head coach. “They just need to be behind them. Go to local schools and recruit, which I used to do. They just need to help the soccer department as much as they help Football and Baseball.” As for the vacant coaching position, Jeff explained that the department is hard at work in identifying new candidates to fill the role for the next year’s season.

Looking back at his time at Chabot, Tony is very grateful for what he was able to accomplish with his student-athletes and the bonds that he was able to build with them. “I know about five of my players now who have masters and PHDs, and they call me all the time and say, “coach, you remember when you brought me into your office, and you gave me a pep talk? That changed me.”

Tony added, “My job was to see these players move forward in life. I have a bachelors in physical education and I have a master’s in psychology, and I got my coaching credentials. I did everything to make sure that I stood out and that my players would do well. My intentions were always to push them forward toward a four-year university and a possible scholarship to play D1 soccer.”

Tony retires with an incredible career consisting of representing the Nigerian National Team in the 1968 Olympics, captaining his country during World Cup qualifying matches, and winning three national titles for the University of San Francisco. He also coached at the next level for Stanford University’s women’s soccer team.

By: Henry Hincapie

Staff Writer

“Walk and Roll to School Day” is an annual celebration that allows students, families, and caregivers to experience the benefits of exercise while teaching them proper pedestrian and road safety. The Hayward Police Department encourages parents and students to join their classmates and walk bike, or roll to class on Oct. 12. 

Hayward Police Sergeant Tasha DeCosta stated, “We hope this is a fun, rewarding experience for students and community members that shows how important it is for everyone to be safe walking, biking, or rolling.”

Hayward Police Department offers tips for students who walk, bike, or roll to school:

• Plan your route on roads with sidewalks or paths away from traffic. If there are no sidewalks, walk or ride as far from cars as possible, facing traffic.
• Use crosswalks, preferably at stop signs or signals. If there are unmarked crosswalks, cross at corners on streets with fewer lanes and lower speed limits.
• Always look left-right-left before crossing the street. Continue to scan for traffic as you cross the street.
• Watch for cars entering/leaving driveways or parking spaces.
• Always wear a helmet when riding or rolling.
• Be aware of your surroundings. Keep the earbud or headphone volume low enough to still hear around you.

On this day, drivers should be extra mindful of the increase in foot and bike traffic and be prepared to stop to accommodate the school buses and children making their way to school. As always, drivers should watch their speed when in school zones.

In order to track participation and show support for active, healthy, and safe transportation, schools are encouraged to register at walkbiketoschool.org. Here are some Chabot students’ thoughts on whether they plan on participating in this event.

Tony: “I did hear about this event through my high school. I plan on participating because I already walk or skate to school. It usually takes around 40 minutes to walk here and a lot shorter on my skateboard”

Many students do not plan on participating in this event due to the fact that they don’t have the means to join the event and the walking distance would be too long for them.

Bilal: “I have not heard of National Walk and Roll day. I live an hour away and I don’t have a bike because it broke a while ago So, it wouldn’t be convenient.” 

This article has contributions from Mike Leonor and Kennedy Petty

The newest film in the Predator series, Prey, was released Aug. 5 as a Hulu original starring Amber Midthunder and Dakota Beavers. Directed by Dan Trachtenberg and written by Patrick Aison, the film is set in the early 18th century in the Great Plains, where a young Comanche woman witnesses the crash landing of a spacecraft and sets out to prove herself as a hunter.

Prey differs from the rest of the Predator series as it predates the original films and consists almost entirely of Native American and First Nation actors and actresses. The casting of this film made it possible for more Indigenous talent to premiere on the big screen.

Naru, played by Amber Midthunder, is a healer who dreams of becoming a distinguished hunter like her older brother, Taabe, played by Dakota Beavers. While pursuing a deer in the forest with her dog, Naru witnesses what looks like a Thunderbird falling from the sky. She takes this as a sign to prove herself. She returns to her village to find out that one of the hunters was taken by a mountain lion. Naru insists on coming along with the search party to help track and provide medical care but soon comes across signs that something alien is out there.

After healing the hunter, she encounters the mountain lion on the tree branch but gets distracted by mysterious sounds and lights and falls, hitting her head. Naru becomes frustrated after her failed attempt to catch the mountain lion. Her brother is successful and is rewarded by the tribe, becoming War Chief. She wanders from her tribe to investigate. Meanwhile, a Predator hunts for a formidable opponent worthy of fighting.

The cinematography was simply beautiful, with panoramic shots of nature and ancient North American landscapes. The use of the landscape really sets the movie’s tone while following Naru’s growth and use of her surroundings.

The introduction of the Predator was epic, showing off his robustness and strength. His weaponry and use of limited technology showed how primitive and powerful the Predator can be without its traditional armor and weapons.

I would say the representation of the Comanche Nation was done well and with love from the people who all worked together on this film. I loved that they showed subtle nods toward the indigenous tribe, from the knowledge of medicine to crafting an arm stretcher out of wood and sticks.

Midthunder’s performance as Naru was refreshing because it differs from previous Predator films. She portrays Naru as a girl relying on her intellect and observation skills and using her surroundings to her advantage. There is no military, no advanced weaponry to eliminate alien creatures. There is just Naru simply being strategic and using her home-field advantage to defeat the Predator.

What surprised me about this movie was the actors did a Comanche dubbed version. I do not think this has ever occurred in a Hollywood film.

“I think this is the best Predator movie I have seen so far. One of the best in the series,” said Dr. Kim Morrison.

“I liked the fact this film wasn’t compared to the original franchise movies. It’s not male-dominated,” said librarian Eugenia Chan.

Hurricane Fiona hit Puerto Rico as a Category 1 storm on Sept. 18 with historically large amounts of rainfall and shut down electricity on the island. Parts of Puerto Rico were hit with over 30 inches of rain, causing significant damage to bridges and roads from flooding and mudslides. 

Hurricane Fiona came five years after Hurricane Maria, a Category 4 storm that left nearly 3,000 people dead in 2017 and devastated the island’s power grid. Afterward, it took almost a year for electricity to be restored to all residents of Puerto Rico in 2018. 

At least 21 people have died from Fiona, according to the Department of Health in Puerto Rico. 

Gov. Pedro Pierluisi of Puerto Rico had asked Biden to prioritize rebuilding the island’s transportation infrastructure. 

“We want to be treated in the same way as our fellow Americans in times of need. All American citizens, regardless of where they live in the United States, should receive the same support from the federal government,” said Pierluisi. 

President Biden traveled to Puerto Rico on Oct. 2 and promised $60 million in hurricane relief funds from the federal government to help rebuild areas in Puerto Rico that Fiona hit.

As Puerto Rico slowly recovers from Hurricane Fiona, Florida was decimated by Hurricane Ian, a Category 4 storm. Many residents on the mainland and island communities were left without power, and many found themselves homeless. 

The current death toll from Hurricane Ian is 127 in Florida. Five deaths were attributed to the storm in North Carolina. 

President Biden and first lady Jill Biden traveled on Oct. 5, Wednesday, to survey the damage in Florida. 

Biden and Gov. Ron DeSantis put aside their political differences to work together on rescue and recovery efforts for the people of Florida. 

“I think he’s done a good job,” Biden said when asked about DeSantis’ response to the storm.