GUELPH, Ont. – For varsity athletes competing at the intercollegiate level, there is a great sense of pride that comes along with representing your university. And while that will certainly ring true this season for Gryphons women's volleyball student-athlete,
Nikina Bear-Lowen, it is also fair to say that she will be feeling a tremendous sense of pride for a lot more than simply her chosen post-secondary institution when she sets foot on the volleyball court this season with the Gryphons.
Constance Lake First Nation
For
Nikina Bear-Lowen, who just recently turned 19-years-old earlier in September, the 2023-24 women's volleyball campaign will mark her first season as a member of the Guelph Gryphons women's volleyball program.
Nikina Bear-Lowen and mother, Zandra, with Constance Lake First Nation flag at 2023 North American Indigenous Games
From the University of Guelph's campus, it is about a 12-hour drive north to Constance Lake First Nation, which boasts a small population with approximately 900 members on reserve and 900 off reserve, a community made up by a mixture of members, including Cree, Ojibway and Oji-Cree. It is here where Nikina spent the formative years of her childhood, growing up as the eldest child in a family of five, as the older sibling to her sister, Naima (14), and brother, Noah (15). "Going to school in the community, a lot of traditional values were incorporated into the curriculum, with Elders helping teach us about a wide range of topics, from baking to crafts," says Nikina, who is currently majoring in human kinetics at the University of Guelph. "My grandma speaks Cree, and even though we weren't taught it as young kids, we were around it with our Elders, and now we are starting to slowly learn some of the basics."
The Role of Sports and Athletics Within in the Bear-Lowen Family
For those who know the Bear-Lowen family closely, it perhaps comes as no surprise to see Nikina reach the varsity level, considering the key role that sports and athletics has always had within the Bear-Lowen family dynamic.
Bear-Lowen family: left-to-right Noah, Naima, Patrik, Zandra & Nikina
Nikina's mother, Zandra, is a former varsity athlete herself, having played women's volleyball at Vancouver Island University. Nikina's father, Patrik, played varsity basketball for five years (four years at Vancouver Island University and one year at Simon Fraser University), before playing professionally oversees in Sweden for five years. In 2004, Patrik and Zandra welcomed their first child, with Nikina born in Vancouver, B.C. Shortly after Nikina's arrival, the family moved from Vancouver, back to Ontario to re-unite with family and community members at Constance Lake First Nation. "Being active was always such a big part of our lives growing up," says Nikina. "Up north, there was not much besides hockey, but even if it was something like running or fishing, our parents were always making concerted efforts to introduce us to a variety of sports and activities."
The Move to Brantford for High School & Nikina's Success on the Volleyball Court
Access to more organized sports and activities arrived around age 10 for Nikina, when her family moved from Constance Lake First Nation to southern Ontario, arriving in Brantford, where Nikina attended high school at Brantford Collegiate Institute. "There was definitely a bit of culture shock when we first arrived in Brantford," adds Nikina, who excelled in the French immersion program during her high school years at B.C.I.
"At Constance Lake, I was in a class with maybe four other kids my age. And in Brantford, it was suddenly a class of 30. So that was a big adjustment." While Nikina was adjusting to a new life in Brantford, she was also starting to carve out a path for herself on the volleyball court, encouraged by her parents, who both coach within the Brant Youth Volleyball Club. While Nikina's progress on the volleyball court was temporarily interrupted by COVID during her Grade 11 and 12 years, it was becoming clear that she had the skill set required to succeed on the court, with Nikina excelling at the club level, including a 2022-23 season with the KW Predators. In September of 2021, Nikina actually arrived at the University of Waterloo, still just a few weeks shy of her 17th birthday, and excelled academically at U of W while studying health science, but did not compete with the Warriors women's volleyball program. After taking a year off, Nikina had once again started reaching out to different universities during the summer of 2022, and by the spring of 2023, Nikina's decision to become a Gryphon was made.
2023 North American Indigenous Games
Prior to the 2023 fall semester getting underway, Nikina took part in an unforgettable event this past summer. In July, Nikina proudly represented Team Ontario at the 2023 North American Indigenous Games (N.A.I.G.) in Nova Scotia. The 10th North American Indigenous Games were held July 16-23 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, with 15 sports competing at 21 venues across Kjipuktuk (Halifax), Dartmouth, Millbrook First Nation and Sipekne'katik.
The North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) 2023 brought together more than 5,000 athletes, coaches and team staff from 756+ Indigenous Nations celebrating, sharing and reconnecting through sport and culture with the help of 3,000 volunteers. Nikina's Team Ontario volleyball team were eliminated in the quarterfinals against a talented Team Manitoba. But the overall experience for Nikina is one she will never forget. "It is really hard to put into words how amazing of an experience it was to be able to compete at N.A.I.G.," says Bear-Lowen, who competed in the 19U division, while her mother, Zandra, coached the 16U Team Ontario squad to a 4th-place finish. "It was like a mini-Olympics, and it was amazing to be able to meet so many different people, from remote communities all over, who shared a lot of cultural similarities. There was even a Cultural Village, with stage performers, Indigenous throat singers, rappers, traditional dance, vendors selling earrings, moccasins and bracelets. We were able to trade pins representing our home place with other athletes. We stayed in a hotel with other volleyball teams and provinces, so were able to meet athletes from New Mexico and the Yukon and the Northwest Territories. It was amazing."
Over 1,100 unique, self-identified Indigenous athletes tried out for Team Ontario, with 435 athletes ultimately selected to represent Team Ontario at the 2023 North American Indigenous Games in Nova Scotia.
Sense of Community / Choosing the University of Guelph
"I really enjoyed my first few visits to the University of Guelph, and felt pretty connected here," says Nikina, when asked why she chose to be a Gryphon.
"You can really sense the strong feeling of community here. And I was able to practice with the girls (Gryphons varsity women's volleyball student-athletes) and they were all so great to me." The 2023-24 season marks Nikina's first season of eligibility, and third-year academically, with the 19-year-old studying human kinetics at U of G while competing with the Gryphons varsity women's volleyball team. "Everyone in my family has been really supportive and is pretty excited," adds Nikina. "With the games streamed live online, it is nice to know that my family up north can watch. There was even some talk about my family up north maybe going to the Nipissing game in February in North Bay. But there's lots of excitement."
Nikina and her Gryphons women's volleyball teammates are currently in the midst of preseason preparations, with the team playing in a total of 10 exhibition games, prior to the 2023-24 OUA regular season opener on November 10 versus Lakehead.
Message from the University of Guelph, Department of Athletics:
As an institution committed to learning, research, and improving life, we are on a journey of transformative acts towards reconciliation. We acknowledge our role in strengthening relationships with First Nations, Inuit, and Metis peoples, and in upholding our responsibilities as treaty partners and citizens.
We know there is much work to do here and across Canada and we are dedicated to taking these next steps together towards a brighter future.
