-By Madeline Matcheski

My name is Madeline Matcheski and I am so excited to have the opportunity to co-op at the Hub. I’ve enjoyed writing for as long as I can remember; everything from creative storytelling to poetry to opinion essays. I distinctly remember reading a book in Grade 3 on journalism and deciding that was what I wanted to do with my life. I feel that writing is so critical as a source of expression and being able to share this at The Hub greatly interests me.

I’ve written a few pieces already and I hope to add more to my portfolio. In 2017 I wrote a short story that won the “Write at your Library Contest” through the Owen Sound library and it paved the way for me to continue to explore writing. Recently I have written two pieces through The Hub called “The Rise of a Left Wing Generation,” discussing the political alignment of Generation Z and “Sexual Assault on Campus” detailing the fears of women on Western University campuses after the rape allegations. Both of these topics are important to me and I may decide to pursue more writing like this. I plan to use my time here to write about events in the community, social injustices, the history of the area and maybe some fun and experimental storytelling.

To share a bit more about me, I grew up on a small farm outside of Tara and attended OSDSS. I am now almost 19 and taking a victory lap before I go off to University in the fall. I enjoy reading, baking and playing rugby among other things and I dream of travelling.

In Grade 9 I made a rash decision to join the school rugby team and it was probably one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Through it, I met some amazing people that I still consider close friends and learned important lessons on the importance of teamwork. In 2019 I even had the pleasure of going to Scotland with the team. I met new people, experienced the culture and drove through the beautiful highlands. I have craved that feeling of discovery and exploration ever since.

Although the pandemic has kept me from doing sports and travelling, it has been a nice break to allow me to discover other skills and interests. Without it, I doubt I would have learned how to bake and make jewellery.

In the future, I hope to write a book or blog in my spare time; anything where I have the chance to use writing as a creative outlet. I really want to use my skills to make a difference on at least a small scale; whether this is writing a few fantasy novels for people to enjoy or raising awareness for people in poor situations to get the help they need.

After all, as my favourite author, Margaret Atwood says, "A word after a word after a word is power."

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy my future works!