Some would give their grievances to the family on an obituary tribute page, and some would deal with their grief quietly. For the majority of students, this was a first brush with suicide. “I always remember her saying “We got this!” before every [swimming] set. Her positive and radiant personality was so contagious to be around. Sending love and support to the family for this heartbreaking loss,” recalls Sophie Hanson ’24.

 Mental health is an increasingly important issue, with suicide being the second-leading cause of death for adolescents and young adults aged 10-34. With this in mind, it’s more important now than ever to reach out to counselors, friends, or another trusted adult if you’re considering suicide or are having other mental health related problems. If you are concerned for someone else, please do the same. With Mental Health Awareness Month coming to an end, reality serves us a painful reminder that mental health is a discussion that should be happening every month of the year.

Here are some available resources for those struggling:

988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline

Text MN to 741741 Crisis Textline

1-800-273-8255 National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

Here are some links for more information on suicide preventation and mental health:

National Alliance on Mental Illness Minnesota

Suicide Prevention Resources List

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

Johnson got the chance to experience the team’s success for half the season. He was the starting guard, until he partially tore his ACL against Minneapolis Southwest. “It didn’t feel like it was torn but I knew something was wrong,” Johnson remembers. “I went to the hospital after the game and the doctors told me It was partially torn but a full ACL surgery and recovery was needed, it sucked.” 

Johnson was told he would be out for the year.

Dealing with a similar injury, Kotilinek had been on the varsity bench all year, but was getting closer to playing late in the season, after partially tearing his ACL in August while playing football. During games, all Kotilinek could do was hand out water and cheer on the team. During practices, he would do what he could to stay in shape. “It motivated me to practice harder by myself knowing there is a chance I’d play. I practiced a lot of free throws, which were really hard because I had to use a different shooting form. I also would rebound if they needed me when their putting shots up,” he explained.

Missing both Johnson and Kotilinek to similar injuries had a big impact on the team. Wyatt Jayson ‘24 said that the team was significantly impacted by the losses.

“They both brought so much energy to the team,” Jayson said. “They really held the team together so without them it’d be tough, but we got it done. Even though losing both of them was tough, it motivated us to play harder for them, knowing they couldn’t be out there.”

The team lived up to Jayson’s word. They went on to win their section and made their first appearance in the State Tournament since 2014. Kotilinek finally got in after all his hard work and made some nice plays in the quarterfinals. Johnson has mentioned his recovery is ahead of schedule and is preparing for next year.

Otto has grown up around bull riders, mainly his father, Carl Otto. “My dad, he rode buck and horses throughout his life, and I’ve been exposed to it around my family, just hearin’ about it.” 

As a seven year old, Otto decided to get on the back of a cow for the first time, and has been riding ever since. “One day I just had a wild hair to start, and so we loaded up some cows at the house and I got on ‘em.” It wasn’t until he was 13 that he would ride his first bulls. “It started off pretty rocky. A lotta times hittin’ the dirt but yeah, it eventually picked up.”

Despite trials and tribulations, Otto finds things to keep him motivated. “There are some rocky times that you

think it’s not gonna get much better, but then you kinda remember your goals that you’ve set for yourself, and the promises you’ve wanted to make, so you keep striving for that.” Otto’s goals have not been without reward, “One I had this year earlier, that I achieved, was to make the High School World Finals.” The NHSR (National High School Rodeo Association) is an organization founded in the 1970s, offering scholarships and mentoring for young bull riders, “it was definitely quite the experience.” Otto remembers. Other goals of his are to make it to the NFR (National Finals Rodeo) and the Great Lake Circuit Championship.

Otto frequently posts his bull-riding experiences on his Instagram.

Vincent Otto

Q: What was your worst ride? Your best?

A: My worst one, that’s gotta be Fort Dodge, Iowa earlier this year. I got on a bull, he was a dalmatian lookin’ bull, can’t remember his name I think it was like Time Reaper or something. I got on him, and we made about 3 jumps out, and he clicked my feet out from me and I did a cartwheel over the top of him and got trampled pretty good. That was probably my worst.

My best would be Madison, Minnesota last year. I got on a bull that barns used to bring for a lot of PRCA deals, and I got out there and rode him. He was one that you’d look at him and be like “Oh no, there’s no way,” being able to look back and think I did that, that’s kinda cool.

Q: What’s your favorite part about riding?

A: Honestly just the thrill of it, the fact that it’s a sport that’s honestly so graceful but so brutal at the same time. The thrill of being able to look back and see what you accomplished.

Q: What are some emotions or thoughts you have while riding?

A: There’s always a little bit of fear there, it’s normal, it’s human nature. My mind’s set on it, almost so excited that like it makes you mad, you kinda wanna get mad, get in your own mindset ‘fore you do it, so you can almost take it like its a fight. That excitement when you get riding him “Oh, here we go.”

Q: What sort of training goes into bull-riding?

A: We get on the livestock, obviously nothing that’ll buck very hard, something to just kinda head runs for you. I have a barrel that I get on that makes the motion of a bull and my dad’ll critique me as I go.

Q: Do you have any tricks you’ve learned while bull riding?

A: If I had to give someone a tip about it, just keep your mind clear and it’s simple. It’s an easy thing to overthink, but if you can keep it simple, it’s just up and down motion 24/7.

Q: What are your plans for bull riding in the future? Are you looking to go professional?

A:This is my first year I’m 18, so I get to buy my PRCA [Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association] card which is the pro card, and hopefully this year’ll be my first year on the pro circuits. Pretty excited about that.

The Hoofprint reached out to Otto’s main bull riding coach Carl Otto for a word about Vincent Otto.

Carl Otto

Q: How would you describe Vincent?

A: I would describe Vincent as determined, disciplined, and with a lot of grit and passion for the sport of bull riding.

Q: What qualities does Vincent have that make him a better bull-rider?

A: His ability to focus all his energy on the ride. When he is sore, or in a hang up, to stay calm and get himself out of the situation.

Q: What’s your favorite memory of Vincent?

A: When he made his first ride at nationals and seeing the satisfaction on his face that he can ride with the world’s best.

Q: What is it like being his coach/teacher?

A: Coaching Vincent is rewarding. We watch clips of his rides then go out and practice. That could be time on his drop barrel to help his driving forward with the up and down motion, or just on a stationary barrel to help position memory. He does many things such as riding horse bareback with his rope, balancing on a basketball, and the gym is a lot of core and leg work. Having 100 percent dedication from Vincent makes it easy.

Q: What do you think people could learn from Vincent?

A: Vincent’s bull riding started at 4 years old with many bumps and bruises. He never lost the heart or determination or goal of being a professional bull rider. If you want something it doesn’t come easy, be honest to yourself and respect life.

Q: Anything else to add?

A: If I was going to add anything else it would be that his heart and soul is a bull rider. He is always grateful to those who have helped him. Vincent is humble and understands the danger of the sport. He is willing to help new kids out on their bull riding career.

Now in her 5th year of playing, Anderson’s love of music is more prominent than ever. “I love how it enables us to express ourselves. I love how there’s always something you can get better at, especially the violin. There’s so much technique to it, and so much to do. Looking at harder music, and listening to professionals play motivates me to keep going and see how far I can get.” 

In the fall of her freshman year, Anderson was selected along with cellist Mitchell Friesz ‘25 to participate in the Middle Level Honors Orchestra (MLHO). MLHO is a program involving stand-out 7th through 9th grade orchestra students across Minnesota. “I had just started at the high school, it was all brand new, but I didn’t want to say no to the opportunity. So, I prepared for an audition.” The audition included a choice piece, two scales, and a section from a piece they [MLHO] chose, all submitted through an online recording.

“I didn’t find out if I had made it in until January. They sent out like “Oh, you made it in, congratulations,” and there were ten pieces. We had about six weeks to prepare it on our own, and then in February we met as a group with all the other orchestra students who had been nominated,” Anderson remembered. The students met at North Western University in February 2022, having a 10 hour rehearsal to combine their music and perform the next day. “It was a really fun event. It went really fast but it was super fun to play with people that were so experienced and to get a totally new perspective. Playing with other people is always super helpful to build relationships, learn how other parts sound, how it all comes together. You can be a soloist and be part of an ensemble, both totally different experiences but they’re both amazing.”

“I love the variety that music brings, I love how the bow and strings work together to make the music flow and make a really good sound. I love how, as string instrumentalists, we can play loud, short, fast, but also long and lyrical.” These technical qualities of playing the violin aren’t without their downsides. “The violin is a perfectionist’s instrument. You have to be right whether it’s your fingering, your bowing, any of that. I’m definitely a perfectionist so I’m working on learning how to be okay without being all the way perfect. I feel like the violin almost kind of helps with that, even though it’s still a perfectionist instrument. If I can’t quite get the note right or the bowing right it’s helping me to learn it’s okay, I can practice and I can get there.”

Anderson highlights that while academic orchestral accomplishments may be nice, music is about more than that. “I can say from my own experience over COVID, stuff was really hard for everybody. It was tough with school, and not really knowing what each day would hold, but I knew I would always have my music to go back to. I played more than ever before in that time, in lockdown. I just kept going back to my violin, and my piano, and just being like, “this is the thing that’s constant, this is kinda what’s holding me together right now.” 

“Playing music is so good for the mind and the soul, and it’s so restoring.”

The Hoofprint reached out to orchestra teacher Kristine Wiese for a word about Anderson.

Kristine Wiese

Q: How would you describe Lucy?

A: “I would describe her as a go-getter, I would describe her as passionate, I would describe her as friendly, and just an overall hardworking young lady.”

Q: What qualities does Lucy have that make her a better student/player?

A: “She has a natural ability to lead with confidence, and to help anyone who needs it or asks for it.”

Q: What’s your favorite part about being her teacher?

A: “As with any of my students, watching her grow in her abilities as we work through music, watching her take the initiative to help others, and again as with any of my other kids, being proud of their abilities when they get to that “Aha” moment of knowing a piece.”

Q: What do you think people could learn from Lucy?

A: “That when you set your mind to it and take time outside of class, you can really do anything that you want to do. You have the ability to play as you hoped or to improve as you wished to.”

Q: Was there anything that surprised you about Lucy?

A: “I’d say probably the only thing is she’s generally a very quiet, reserved person, but her playing is not indicative of that. Her playing is very confident and very strong; typically I see peoples playing representative of their personality qualities, and in her she’s got more confidence in her playing than one would be led to believe when you’re first talking to her.”

“You can tell it’s a passion, you can tell it’s a safe place for her, and you can tell that it’s simply something that she loves to do.”

“My oldest brother played soccer when he was younger. My younger sister and I always went to his games and I just thought he was the coolest person ever and I wanted to be just like him.” 

Presently, Erickson is on her eighth season and has been playing for the High School since 9th grade. However, Erickson is set apart from the rest; she has been a high school captain since her sophomore year. A role that is traditionally reserved for upperclassmen, Erickson recounts her experience, “It was kind of crazy being with the other captains that were seniors. They were a lot bigger and stronger than I was, I was like a shrimpy little sophomore and so that was, in terms of the physical aspect of the game, that was challenging.” Having to navigate leading a high school team is not for the faint of heart, but it helps when the people around you are supportive. “The seniors my sophomore year, they were really welcoming and encouraging. They taught me a lot of leadership skills.”

Some of the responsibilities that come with being a leader are leading all the time, 24/7, and setting good examples for the people around you.

“Our coach puts a really strong emphasis on not only leading off the field but leading on the field, so we’re expected to be super competitive all the time, always trying to win,” Erickson said.

Although Erickson had to work twice as hard to catch up with the other senior captains, it hasn’t been without benefit.

“It’s hard to get out of bed every morning and be like “Oh, I have to go to soccer, again,” and the physical training is difficult, but getting to do it with some great people, and people who are going through the same thing, is just so overly rewarding. I am a very relational person and so being able to make connections and play the sport I love with my best friends is something that I’m just truly beyond blessed to do.”

Erickson also leads in a program called FCA. FCA stands for Fellowship of Christian Athletes. They meet every other week to plan events called “huddles” that take place once a month. “We’ll have a speaker come and talk, we always have food and snacks, and we always play a big game because we’re very sport/athlete-focused. Kids from everywhere come together and we just have fellowship with one another and try to build relationships.”

After being prompted by her friend, Peyton Anderson 24’ to join bible study sessions at the middle school, Erickson got involved with FCA.

“When COVID hit in our 8th-grade year, we were forced to go digital. That didn’t really work, but Peyton and I, we really wanted to keep something going. So, we recorded devotionals. That’s when Mr. Watkins, our leader at the middle school, was like ‘hey I think you guys should consider leading at the high school’, so once COVID was tame, we got into the leading aspect of it.” 

At their meetings the FCA leadership team plans the huddles and practices making connections.

“One of our big mottos is ‘you can’t pour into others if you’re not being poured into’ so we focus a lot on discipleship. We’re a relational ministry, so we want to build connections, but then everything is rooted in the gospel and how we’re going to spread the word of the Lord. We need to know how to do that, so that’s what we focus on as a leadership team is how we can be at the root of sports and athletes, but how can we glorify God in the doing of it.”

“I joined choir in 7th grade. I originally played the saxophone in 6th grade, but I was really bad,” Erickson remembered. “I love to sing. I sing at church too so being able to keep doing that is really fun.” Erickson’s church went on a mission trip to South Dakota this summer. “There’s a talent show, and my youth leader and I, we sang a duet, which was really cool. We sang a song called ‘Honey in the Rock’ by Brooke Ligertwood. Then when we get back we do a youth breakfast, and the whole congregation comes and you talk about the trip. and we sang it at the breakfast too.”

In addition to singing at her church, Erickson is in the Concert Choir at BHS.

“I’m not gonna lie, Concert Choir was a little eye-opening this year. It’s a really big step up because the returning seniors and our section leaders are very talented. My favorite thing is, at the end, when we finally get a piece we’ve been working on for months, we finally get it down pat and it’s just perfect. There’s nothing like that, when all the harmonies are matched up, it’s really really cool.”

“If I wasn’t in extracurriculars I don’t know what I’d be doing if I’m being super honest. I’m super busy all the time, and that’s how I like it. Every person that I’m surrounded by is so supportive and encouraging and walks with me every step which is just so crazy and amazing.” Erickson recounts the importance of being a part of the groups in her life, “being so busy helps me stay on top of academics and school work as well because I know that I have to get this done before my game or I have to get this done before my FCA event. I think while everything’s super fast-paced, it keeps me on a schedule and orderly and organized.”

“I think people take for granted the people that support them and the people that put in so much work into helping you become not only a better player, a better singer, but a better person. And it goes by so fast, it’s crazy to think that we’re juniors and freshman year was so long ago, it’s really important to be grateful.”

The Hoofprint reached out to Assistant Soccer Coach Carrie Schmitt and Choir teacher Zack Carlson for a word about Erickson.

Carrie Schmitt

Q: How would you describe Claire?

A: “Claire is a positive leader on and off the soccer field. Claire is a kind, determined and supportive student athlete who is always willing to support those around her.”

Q: What qualities does Claire have that help her be a better player?

A: “Claire consistently displays good sportsmanship. She is self motivated, prepared and has pure will to win. Claire believes in herself and her ability to constantly improve. She remains positive in all situations.”

Q: What’s your favorite memory of Claire?

A: “Watching Claire play and love the game of soccer fills my bucket. Each time I have the opportunity to watch Claire play soccer is my favorite memory.”

Q: What is something younger people could learn from Claire?

A: “Claire understands the game of soccer (what is happening on the field). Claire consistently shares her understanding of the game with her teammates during practice and games to ensure everyone is playing to their full potential. I value her desire to help others see the game as she does. Our younger players learn a great deal about the game through Claire’s leadership.”

Q: Was there anything about her that surprised you?

A: “Claire is wise beyond her years. Watching her lead others in her areas of passions does not surprise me, it excites me for all she has to give others!”

Zack Carlson

Q: How would you describe Claire?

A: “Hardworking, dedicated, and passionate.”

Q: What qualities does Claire have that help her be a better student?

A: “She doesn’t stop trying. I think that’s really huge. She’s always willing to help her classmates.”

Q: What’s your favorite part about being her teacher?

A: “Knowing that the sky’s the limit. She’s going to continue to work hard and continue to grow until she graduates. I think that’s really cool to see because a lot of students have this fixed concept of their own achievements and I think she has the ability to go past any of that, and really reach as far as possible, which is just really cool.”

Q: Was there anything that surprised you when you first met her?

A: “How mature she was. Like right off the bat she was always kind and respectful, a lot of my students are kind and respectful, but it stuck out to me because ninth grade is always a challenging time.”

Q: Anything else you’d like to add?

A: “She’s awesome.”

Walking the halls of Buffalo High School, you can often see students wearing LGBTQ+ flag accessories, pins, lanyards, etc. to either show support for the community or to show pride for their identities. Most LGBTQ+ students haven’t gotten a chance to speak about what it’s like being a non-cisgender person at this school.

Daniel

Q: What do you identify as?

A: “Generally, nonbinary, but if you want to get more specific, agender or the lack of any gender at all really.”

Q: What was the process of figuring out your gender identity?

A: “When I was around 10, I realized I didn’t mind which pronouns people used for me, and went by any for a while until I found other trans people sharing their experiences and identities and realized those resonated with me more than the gender I was assigned at birth.”

Q: When did you come out?

A: “I came out to my friends before my family, but September 2019 is when I came out to my friends, and around March 2020 is when I came out to my family.”

Q: How has your social life been affected by coming out?

A: “Not a lot, actually. All of my good friends and close family took it well and understand it at least enough to respect me being trans.”

Q: What are some ways the school district has been supportive?

A: “The biggest I think is having good teachers who respect their students. And also the gender neutral bathrooms are a blessing.”

Q: What are some ways the school district has been unsupportive?

A: “Not that I can think of really. The district itself has been pretty good all things considered.”

Q: How have students responded to your coming out?

A: “I haven’t come out to many students other than my friends, but most of them take it pretty well with the worst just asking some pretty weird questions.”

Q: What are some of the comments people have made, good or bad?

A: “I’ve actually been called a trans icon by a fellow trans student whereas the worse comments are just more invasive questions.”

Jay

Q: What do you identify as?

A: “I’ve changed my labels a lot, because I’m still trying to find myself. I originally came out as nonbinary, but now that it’s been a little more than a year and I’ve had more time to grow and learn as a person, I’ve realized the reason I came out as nonbinary in the first place was because I had internalized transphobia for myself, I was too scared to say I was trans because it’s kind of a ‘big thing’, and I thought nonbinary would be taken better by more people.”

Q: When did you come out?

A: “November, 2020.”

Q: How has your social life been affected by coming out?

A: “There’s a lot more people than I expected that support me and use my pronouns. There definitely are still some people that know that I’m trans but still use my deadname just to tick me off, I guess. People do it mostly to get under my skin, I’ve noticed that a lot.”

Q: What are some ways the school district has been supportive?

A: “I have had some support, it’s nice seeing teachers having a rainbow flag and seeing a teacher’s pronouns on their lanyards. Mrs. Lostetter especially has really made me feel comfortable in her classroom. She openly told people to knock it off if they were being homophobic. It’s the little things that you can do. There should still be more support from staff and students, however.”

Q: What are some ways the school district has been unsupportive?

A: “I think we should have a better health ‘unit’ or talk about human sexuality, because the one that we have right now just covers the bare minimum, and there’s definitely a lot more to learn about.”

“I hate having to go into the girls locker room, it feels so unwelcoming. As a trans person, not saying this is for everyone, but it feels very not nice if you don’t want a lot of people to know, you’re masculine presenting, and forced to go into the girls’ locker rooms just because you have boobs, it feels like you’ve basically been outed and all eyes are on you.”

Q: How have students responded to your coming out?

A: “It’s been a mixed bag of reactions, I would say there’s definitely been more good reactions than bad, but there still are some bad. There’s always a ‘am I gonna get hate-crimed?’ thought everyday. I definitely feel like here I’ll get hate-crimed more than other places.”

Q: What are some of the comments people have made, good or bad?

A: “I’ve been called a f*****, and I’ve definitely gotten some weird looks.”

You can find more information about gender identity and the LGBTQ+ community from these sources:

GLSEN. (2021). School Climate for LGBTQ Students in Minnesota (State Snapshot)

GoodRX Health. (2021). What Do Each of the Letters in LGBTQIA+ Acronym Stand For?

MPR News. (2021). A Guide to Understanding Gender Identity Terms

“This [tradition] was something that Madame Nordmeyer suggested that we do for all semester classes, because we always do a crepe party and learn how to make crepes and the tradition behind crepes in the spring semester,” he said.

In this French tradition, people used to burn a large piece of wood for 7 days to bring the Sun back. This is a winter solstice celebration, but instead of burning wood people now decorate cakes that look like logs.

Swanson sent out a Google Form for voting to commence at the end of the allotted half hour of decorating. Students walked around the classroom viewing the bûche de Noël logs made by their peers. Each student submitted a vote and the results came in. The Fourth Block winners were Makayla Ruiter ‘22 and Kal Lindell ‘23, who created what they described as a “traditional yule log”.

 “It’s a fun class,” Ruiter said, “especially when you can do random stuff like this.”