Am I Proud to be VIU?
My experience isn’t a unique one. I am but one of many students—newly enrolled, making friends, attending classes, growing, learning, saying...
Laurent Lemay
ASSOCIATE EDITORLaurent is a fourth-year Creative Writing student. As a queer writer, editor, designer, and professional daydreamer, Laurent loves to experiment in alternating genres. In 2023, he took on the role of Managing Editor at Ryga and obtained a Writing and Publishing Diploma from Okanagan College. Now, after editing stanzas and socials for Portal 2024, he is eager to kick off his event planning debut. You can find him cycling the streets or holding his breath in Montréal where he swims competitively.
Everything by Laurent Lemay
WARNING: May Contain Gay Blood (PART 2)
Swabs, blood draws, and urine tests. This is Part Two of the two-part series sharing Laurent’s story of complicated ineligibility to donate blood...
WARNING: May Contain Gay Blood (PART 1)
Laurent’s journey, like many others, is entwined with the strict policies around “men who have sex with men” donating blood. This is Part One of a...
Saplings of Hope
I planted trees for three summers in the heat of the fire season from May to the end of July. It was a physically demanding job. I had countless...
When Gracie was Three
Remember your first swimming lesson? Water-winged, life-jacketed, and terrified to even dip a toe in the water? Or maybe you lived for the pool,...