The following story was published in the Peak in May of 1999:
Puzzling lights over Texada inspire students' story
UFO sightings over Texada Island have grade 3/4 students at Grief Point Elementary School intrigued. On April 14, around 9:30 pm, Carmen Anderson was at her friend Eden Carlsen's house. Out of the window they saw many coloured flashing objects moving over Texada . They came to the conclusion that what they saw was a UFO (unidentified flying object).
Several other students in their class also said that they saw the lights on the same night. That evening wasn't the first time Carmen and Eden had seen the UFO. They estimated they have seen the mysterious object about 10 times since the first sighting on March 24.
"People think it's a flare," said Carmen, "but it's not because it stays in the air and moves and changes shape."
Captain David Krayden, public affairs officer for Canadian Forces Base in Comox, said the lights the students have seen probably weren't flares since flares are usually red or white and they light up a large area. But he speculated that they might have seen the lights of one or more Aurora aircraft, which are flown over Texada by Maritime Patrol on a regular basis.
"The aircraft can look very mysterious sometimes," said Krayden. "When it’s really dark, you can't even see the outline, just the lights."
He said he gets about 30 calls a month from people reporting UFO sightings.
"But with six years at this job, from all the calls I have had, there are only a very few that have not been explained as passing aircraft or flares."
The patrol schedule of the Aurora aircraft is not regular, so Krayden could not confirm that there was an aircraft in the air at the time of the students' sighting.
Richard Olfert is the grade 3/4 teacher at Grief Point. When his students told him about the UFO sighting, he said he told them they should think about all the possible things it could have been.
“We didn't spend too much time talking about it because it's a little off-track," said Olfert.
But he added that the kids have researched and pursued the subject on their own.
"It's fabulous that they've gone and chased it," he added. "I think sometimes they learn more from sidetracks that they chase on their own than they do from the assigned curriculum."
Carmen said she has been reading about UFOs at the school and public libraries. She is convinced that the UFOs she has seen contain extraterrestrial beings. One of the books she and her friends have found most useful is entitled Aliens and UFOs: Are They Really Out There? She said she also watches anything on TV about aliens, except The X-Files, because she finds that show too scary.
Many of the students in Olfert's class said they also watch shows about aliens and space on television.
"In my opinion [TV and movies) are very strong influences," said Olfert. "Anything can be made to look real. The most important thing is that kids learn to recognize what is real and what is not."
But Carmen is convinced she knows what is real and she plans to keep watching the skies over Texada.
“I used to be afraid of them,” she said. ”But now I think it’s neat.”
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