Each week, the Record (using a script in R) randomly selects a student at the College for our One in Two Thousand feature, excluding current Record board members. This week, Ben Lawrick ’24 discussed his childhood in Toronto, men’s hockey at the College, and who would be on the Mount Rushmore of Toronto people. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Kedar Veeraswamy (KV): Why don’t you just give us the standard introduction?
Ben Lawrick (BL): My name is Ben Lawrick. I’m a senior history major concentrating in environmental studies from a town outside Toronto called Mississauga. I play on the men’s ice hockey team here. Also, I’m a member of the Captain’s Council. [ITAL] [Oven alarm beeps.]
KV: You wanna put the lasagna in?
BL: Yeah.
KV: Well, tell me a little about The 6 [Toronto]. What was it like growing up there?
BL: Obviously, you guys hear about Drake, you hear about The Weeknd — that’s all people really know about Toronto. But growing up outside the city, I kind of wasn’t really influenced by actual city life. Mississauga is about 25 minutes outside.
KV: What’s one thing that would surprise people about Toronto?
BL: What people don’t know about is that the traffic is brutal. People go there, and the first thing they say is, “I didn’t realize how populated this place is,” or “Why does it take so long to get around?” We went into the city on special occasions. It wasn’t until high school that I started going into the city. It was about an hour and a half commute, and I would carry my hockey bag on the GO train. People would look at me like, “What the heck are you doing?” because it would be rush hour.
KV: Anything else?
BL: An underrated part of Toronto is the food. The food is really good. It’s a clean city. I’ve run into people who aren’t very nice, but people from outside always say the people are nice. I guess that’s a Canadian stereotype. There’s a lot of culture. I’d say I’d put it up there with New York City with the diversity and everything. So if you’re looking to eat some food and experience some different things and not worry about getting yelled at, then Toronto’s your place.
KV: Who’s on your Mount Rushmore of Toronto people? I’m pretty sure Mount Rushmore has four people.
BL: I’d go Mats Sundin, who was my favorite hockey player growing up. Arguably one of the best [Toronto Maple] Leafs of all time. Gotta put Drake up there.Dang, I wanna say — dude, I can’t even say four.
KV: I would put Kyle Lowry —
BL: I’d put Kyle Lowry just because he carried us to a chip. I like that. I was trying to think of someone outside the box, outside the sports world. I would put — lemme get back to you on that fourth.
KV: OK, yeah. That would be sick if it comes back at the end of the interview. Switching gears a little bit — you play hockey. What’s that been like?
BL: I played hockey my whole life. Playing hockey at Williams is different and the same. Obviously, growing up, hockey is your main priority. You’re like, “I’m gonna play in the NHL. I don’t care what happens,” and it’s good to have that dream. But I decided to take three years off from school, and took three gap years with the intention of getting a D1 scholarship. Didn’t work out, but I lucked into Williams. Coming here, there was the realization that I still am passionate about hockey, and it’s still my first love, but also, you’re here to get a good education. What I would say about Williams hockey is that all the guys are so passionate. If anyone needs anything, that’s your support network. I love all the fellas.
KV: Any fun team traditions that people wouldn’t expect?
BL: We actually have a couple. My team likes to golf. We’re the men’s hockey team and the “B” golf team. We probably have more tee times than the golfers. We do this event in the spring called the Williams men’s hockey scramble, and it’s for bragging rights. There’s no cash money on the line — it’s more of just being able to have that over the rest of the guys for the rest of the year. And we do this thing called Juiceboy. Every Thursday practice going into a game, we do a shootout, and the last person to score is deemed Juiceboy, and he gets to provide Gatorade for all the fellas in the locker room.
KV: And you’re on Captain’s Council?
BL: I wasn’t expecting that. We meet once a month and get a variety of perspectives. It’s just basically, what’s the deal on campus, how can we integrate athletes with non-athletes, and how can we support events going on that don’t have to do with sports? Kind of just highlighting those members on your team.
KV: How do you like the Pasture?
BL: The Pasture is pretty dope. I think it’s a great idea. I haven’t taken advantage of it enough.
KV: I was going to ask what your order is.
BL: The one time I went, I got a protein shake, one of those Honey Stinger bars, and a meat stick. I’m a big Jack Link’s guy.
KV: Here’s a good one: Would you rather be stranded in the ocean with nothing except a piece of plywood to float on or be dropped into the middle of the Amazon rainforest with just what you’re wearing right now?
BL: I can’t swim very well, so I’m taking Amazon all day. I learned how to swim as a kid, but water terrifies me. I would drown pretty quick. Are you more likely to be found in the ocean? Also, I got my fourth Toronto guy.
KV: Oh yeah?
BL: I’m going to switch out Drake, because I feel like that’s too easy, and I’m going to go Margaret Atwood, just because she has a connection to one of my family friends, and I think she’s a pretty influential person. And then, I think I’m going to go combination, because I like old music. Neil Young and Drake — they can be together. Drake will represent the new wave, and Neil Young will be the old heads.
KV: That would be a crazy collab.
BL: Yeah. I don’t know if Neil Young would even do it.
KV: We’re in your kitchen. What’s your go-to homemade meal?
BL: I’m a big breakfast cook. Before the Farmers Market closed, I would go down and buy a dozen eggs from the Quimby Farm. I’d buy the jumbo eggs, and every time I’d go down there, the guy would say, “Don’t throw out the double yolks!” I’ve gotten three double yolks. I’ll do fried, scrambled — sometimes I’ll do scrambled with arugula and goat cheese.
KV: You said you want to teach after school. What would you teach?
BL: History, probably, and coach hockey while I get my master’s. I’m excited to go down that path. Not sure what my master’s would be in, but something hopefully cool. I’d like to teach European history and hone in on Eastern Europe. I’m really fascinated by how humans react to war over history. I think the human condition and how resilient we are is impressive. And when we react to something like war, you get the base human reaction. That’s a cool thing to study.
