Pacific Index

The founders of Boxer Creative: Pacific’s newest club

   Nothing beats the thrill of a post-season buzzer beater, a last-second touchdown, or a walk-off grand slam. Sometimes, you just have to be there. But for the families and friends of collegiate athletes across the country, that’s not always possible. This is where the students, tucked away behind wide lenses and heavy cameras, truly shine. For them, the peak of the game isn’t just in the final score— it’s in capturing the moments that defined it.

   At Pacific, the student media team takes on a variety of roles ranging from live videography, courtside photography, broadcasting, and post-game graphic design. Along with a number of other responsibilities, the creatives work hard to give athletes and fans the best possible digital viewing experience before, during, and after games.

   Among this select group are seasoned veterans who truly do it all. Graduate student Aaron Brewer is probably a familiar name to appear on your feed. Masterminding some of the greatest photos, graphics, and even drone videos to grace the Go Boxers Instagram. Jenna Hickman, a senior film major, also makes up this bunch, with an infectious smile and a camera constantly at her side. Hickman’s hype videos and media day behind-the-scenes reels capture Boxers athletes in their element. And as expected, her photography skills are just as superb. Lastly, Pacific’s Student Section Instagram wouldn’t be anything without the creative mind of junior Rose Everingham. A graphic design major with a sense of humor you can feel on your screen, and a technical range that’s unrivaled on campus grounds.

   But where did these talented creatives start out? For Hickman, her love of film was influenced by her dad, who works in PR for the National Guard. This allowed her to be near a filming set from an early age and helped to develop her interest in videography. Later, after buying a camera from another Pacific student and having a positive encounter at the fall club fair, Hickman finally got the opportunity to pursue her interest. “At the club fair, they were super kind to me and encouraged me to do an internship for Go Boxers, and that’s kind of where it started,” says Hickman, landing her where she is today.

   Everingham’s route was a bit different; coming in as a journalism and graphic design major, she actually started by working for this very newspaper, the Pacific Index. Shortly after, she met Sports Information Director Derek Wiley through mutual connections, who offered her a design internship for Go Boxers, eventually pushing her to become part of the Red Den social media team.

   Behind a camera now for over five years, Brewer’s journey started in a photography classroom in high school. An athlete himself, Brewer didn’t realize just how much enthusiasm bringing his camera to games and sharing photos would bring to athletes. “I think as an athlete, you kind of know how much excitement there is within your sport, and you can share what big moments mean with your teammates, but that doesn’t necessarily translate to other sports and to other athletes,” asserts Brewer. “So utilizing my photography, videography, and graphic design skills, I can really capture moments and share the excitement that athletes have with their teammates and their sport, kind of sharing that excitement with the broader community here at Pacific.”

Together, with a small but tensioned team, these creatives strive to celebrate athletes and bridge the connection between fans and athletes. This is a mantra that inspired Hickman and Everingham to found one of the newest clubs on Pacific University’s campus, Boxer Creative.

Hickman says, “Starting Boxer Creative was a way that we can link celebrating athletes with building connections with other students in the media world, on top of learning new creative skills.”

   “Everyone comes from different backgrounds and knows so many different things that you just have to figure it out on your own,” continues Hickman. “Unless you have a resource, like Boxer Creative, where you can meet and connect with other creatives.”

   Everingham had a similar sentiment in her aspirations for Boxer Creative. “We’re Division III, you’re gonna see a world-class athlete. So it’s like, okay, then what’s special about Pacific? For us, it’s the student section, it’s the community, it’s the culture,” boasted Everingham. “We have all these people who care so much about our athletes, and in capturing that, it was cool to become a part of  something special.” She wants this feeling and sense of community to be passed down to the next generation of Boxer Creative members.

   Of course, none of this would have happened without Digital Media Director and Boxer Creative Advisor Zach Mortland, the biggest supporter of media students, helping bring this club to life. “It has been so much fun since I got to Pacific to see this community, because this community did not exist at my old school,” says Mortland, “Not only highlighting the athletes, but if I can help students like Aaron, Rose, Jenna, whoever, build their portfolio, I like being able to help out with that because to me it just adds to the enjoyment that I get out of what I do.”

   As Boxer Creative continues to grow and the sports information presence on campus rises, the team hopes that the club will be around for years to come. Creating a safe environment for media students to learn and develop their skills among like-minded individuals. Everingham adds, “I really hope Boxer Creative can continue to just grow and grow and give people opportunities to get people connected. But I really hope it can become the kind of community that we want it to be.”