The Forester, Issue 6
We're a weekly newsletter for students at Lake Forest College, with new issues coming out every Friday.
Ukrainian Students Speak Their Mind
by Isa Hinojosa
The night of Thursday, February 24, Oleksyi Vyshyvanyuk, a junior commuter student at Lake Forest College, was driving to his home in Lake Bluff after tennis practice. When he pulled into his driveway, his father, a Ukrainian immigrant, was waiting for him.
His father told him, “Russia is invading Ukraine. They are declaring war”.
Vyshyvanyuk described his feelings as “shocked but not surprised”.
Oleksyi Vyshyvanyuk, image courtesy of Oleksyi Vyshyvanyuk
That same night, Angelica Hyrb, a freshman student at LFC and the daughter of two Ukrainian immigrants, was laying in her dorm room scrolling through Instagram. Her feed became flooded with news of the invasion. Her first thought was her family, who call Western Ukraine home.
Several members of both Vyshyvanyuk and Hyrb’s families were able to cross the Ukrainian border to safety.
Vyshyvanyuk shared, “As of right now, one of my grandmas safely evacuated to Poland. She is currently there now and we’re trying to get her to us.” Hyrb’s family has a similar narrative.
“My aunt and my cousins needed to go to Italy for a little bit to get away from it, but they’re starting to come back to restart school”.
Angelica Hyrb, image courtesy of Angelica Hyrb
However, other members of Vyshyvanyuk’s family are experiencing a different side of the war. He says, “My other side of the family, they weren’t allowed to leave. When the first attacks happened everyone fled, but then the border patrol later on prevented people from evacuating the country. So, they just stayed at home. Luckily, they live in the west side of the country where there have not been many attacks.”
Both Vyshyvanyuk and Hyrb say that they are in contact with their family members in Ukraine almost every week. They explained that these phone calls usually consist of their parents asking their families what they are in need of that week.
Vyshyvanyuk said, “We try not to think about (the invasion) when we call each other. I try to tell them how my day has been and think about positives. We say things like, ‘this won’t take long’ and ‘in a couple months, we’ll come and visit, or you’ll come to America’”.
According to Vyshyvanyuk and Hyrb, the best way to support the victims of the invasion are through donations. You can also get involved by going to protests in the city to show your solidarity.
“I’ve been going to peaceful protests in Chicago around Millenium Park,” Vyshyvanyuk said.
“Obviously, you don’t have to be of Ukrainian descent, there have been Lithuanian, Greek, Polish, and even some Bulgarians at the protests saying to stop the war. So, it’s nice seeing the city of Chicago uniting and supporting us”.
Lake Forest College has also shown their solidarity by sending out emails to condemn the attacks on Ukraine. This action being taken was important for the school’s Ukranian students.
However, students here have encountered some upsetting reactions to the invasion from students of non-Ukranian descent. On this subject, Hyrb says, “Sometimes, humor is a great coping mechanism but sometimes it can be taken to a point where it’s insensitive. I feel like a lot of people haven’t struggled with something like this in their life. It’s not affecting me first-hand, but it’s still something I have to think about. They don’t understand the reality of it.”
The reality is Ukraine is a beautiful country that is being destroyed. Hyrb reflects on her time in Ukraine, saying, “It is very community-based. Everybody knew everybody for miles, and here I don’t even know my neighbor three houses down.”
The Ukrainian community is strong, and the Lake Forest College community should support their strength in the best way possible by continuing to provide aid for those in Ukraine and being there for those on campus who are affected by the conflict.
The Class of 2022 Looks Back on Their Time at LFC and Forward to the Future
by Basia Urban
On the morning of May 7, hundreds of students will hear their names called across the stage of Ravinia in Highland Park and receive their well-deserved diplomas, marking the end of their time at LFC and the beginning of their lives as college graduates.
Though they all look forward to reaping the rewards of their efforts, for many seniors, looking back on their time at LFC is a bittersweet experience.
“I loved it here,” one senior said, reflecting on her four years at the college. She also says that she felt like two years of her time at LFC were stolen from her due to COVID.
“I’m so glad it’s over,” said another. “I like…the school, but I’m so happy [that part of my life is over], you know?” Almost every senior I spoke to echoed the same sentiment at least once.
“It’s really weird to think about,” yet another reflected. “I don’t think my life will ever be like this again…I’ll have to…pay for all my food from now on, there’s not…a bunch of different safe places I can go hang out in like there are here—there’s just nothing really like a school campus in anything else in life. I’m surrounded by people here every day.” She paused. “I hope it doesn’t feel…lonely being grown up.”
I’ll be graduating in two weeks along with them. As we all remember our times here and think about what’s to come, it becomes clearer every day that while none of us are sure what we’re in for, we’re looking forward to it—somewhat.
Still Looking For Classes?
By Cameron Lowe
Have you filled your entire fall and spring semester schedules for the upcoming 2022-2023 school year? If you haven’t here is a short list of classes that I personally recommend.
ENTP 110 with Professor Pappas: All the fall sections are full, but there are still seats open for the spring semester. This class is a Monday Wednesday course, and they meet from 2:30-3:50. I have taken this course and I really enjoy Professor Pappas!
JOUR 120: There is no instructor listed, there are fall and spring seats available, and this is a Monday Wednesday course. It meets from 1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. and is a great course to become a better interviewer as well as working toward producing better quality writing.
AFAM 110 with Professor Joseph: There are no available seats in the fall section, but in the spring this class meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1:00 p.m. - 2:20 p.m. I have not actually taken this course, but I have heard very good things.
Good Luck in the upcoming years, Foresters!
Question of the Week: What Are Your Summer Plans?
By Mark Rice
Our weekly question this week was what Forester students are doing for the summer.
After a long two semesters, many students look forward to the three month break from the stress of classes and student life. The opportunity for some R&R and the ability to make some money to fund the next year of college is always a good time for college students, and this week we went around Lake Forest College asking students what they plan to do with their summer vacation time.
Javan, a rising senior, said that he will first be going back home to Arizona where he will watch his younger brother graduate.
“I'm looking forward to the graduation party a lot, it’s a big milestone for him and I'm extremely happy for him.”
Javan is also looking forward to going to California for the Fourth of July and helping his cousins move to Utah.
Mal, a rising sophomore, also plans to go home to St. Louis.
“I got my cousin's graduation and I'm excited to just hang out with my family, it's been a long time since I've seen them.”
On top of that, Mal looks forward to a vacation to Texas.
Langston, another rising sophomore, is excited to go back home to Los Angeles where he will enjoy some of the sunny weather, working out, and making some money doing construction. Langston also says he is going to work on his hands and his explosiveness so that he can have a productive sophomore season as a wide receiver for the Foresters.
Tyler said that he was going to keep it chill this summer and plans to play basketball and work for the summer.
Ryan says that he will spend most of his time this summer working, but will enjoy a few vacations to Michigan, Florida, and Texas.
Snacks for Finals Week
By Joshua Gasca
As the final week of school approaches, people begin to stay in their dorms a little longer than usual to put their finish their papers or study more. This may bring them to eat some pretty interesting snacks and meals. To give you insight on those, here are some ideas for snacks you might reach for:
• Cookie dough
• Cool ranch Doritos
• Swedish Fish
• Life Savers (could be mixed with the Swedish Fish)
• Peanut butter Ritz Bits
• Peanut butter and honey
• Pink lady apples
• Oatmeal cream pies
• Star crunches
• Mini Donettes
• Twizzlers
• Pizza rolls
• Cheez-Its
• Cheeze balls
• Animal crackers
• Goldfish
• Dried fruit