Lacrosse player has big plans for his future in the sport

Elek Himer finally managed to bring home some hardware from a prestigious lacrosse competition.

Himer, a 15-year-old who has Cree and Mohawk ancestry, was a member of the Alberta entry that captured the bronze medal at the national boys’ under-16 field lacrosse tournament.

The six-team event, which was called the Alumni Cup, concluded on Aug. 31 in Edmonton.

Himer, who lives in Innisfail, was the only Aboriginal player on the Alberta entry. His squad defeated Saskatchewan 19-5 in the bronze-medal match.

Ontario downed British Columbia 12-4 in the gold-medal contest. Nova Scotia and Manitoba also fielded clubs at the nationals.

Earlier this summer Himer competed with the Alberta entry at the North American Indigenous Games in Regina. He was a member of the under-19 squad that placed fourth.

Himer also had a pair of other fourth-place finishes to show from his previous national championships, while he was at the Peewee and Bantam levels.

Understandably, he’s thrilled to have captured a medal at his most recent Canadian tournament.

“A big weight was lifted off my shoulders,” he said. “I’m glad the team effort came together.”

Himer, who plays the attack position, contributed offensively by racking up 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) in six tournament games.

He said he was confident his side would be among the top three finishers in Edmonton.

“I knew our team could pull it out,” he said. “But I don’t think of the outcome. I play the game and see whatever happens. I play for my Creator and my Kokum.” 

Himer, a Grade 10 student at Notre Dame High School in Red Deer, has been playing lacrosse for seven years.

This year he played box lacrosse at the Midget level with the Red Deer Chiefs. He also played field lacrosse with the Red Deer Orangemen.

Himer plans to continue playing both box and field lacrosse, ideally graduating to the professional ranks some day.

He’s hoping his lacrosse skills eventually land him an athletic scholarship at an American university. Then he wants to play pro in the National Lacrosse League, a box lacrosse circuit, as well as the Major Lacrosse League, the highest calibre field circuit around.

Since his high school does not offer a lacrosse program, Himer is hoping to suit up for several other teams this school year.

Right now he’s a fullback with the Notre Dame varsity football squad. Himer has the ideal size for a fullback, packing 230 pounds onto his 5-foot-10 frame.

He is also hoping to suit up for his school’s basketball, volleyball and golf teams this year.

Despite being thrilled he was the only Aboriginal player on his team at the nationals, Himer was not trying to make a big deal out of this fact.

“I wasn’t going out there repping (Aboriginals),” he said. “But I was showing people there’s Natives still playing the sport. I was very humble about it - keeping it calm and cool.”

Though he was the only Aboriginal player on the Alberta club, Himer was not the only team member with an Indigenous connection.

Roy Payne, a Métis who lives in Edmonton, served as the team’s assistant coach.