The 13th team in the collegiate summer West Coast League will have two separate brands for day games and night games, drawing on two different aspects of the natural and cultural heritage of their home in British Columbia.
By night, the team will be the Nanaimo NightOwls. The nickname, which will serve as the team’s primary identity, pays homage to the Nanaimo Owls, a successful independent team that played in the 1920s. It also acknowledges the importance of owl imagery and mythology in the traditions of the Snuneymuxw, a First Nation of the Coast Salish People in British Columbia.
The addition of the word Night in NightOwls has significance as well, since the team likely would not exist had the city of Nanaimo not invested $1.1 million to install lights at Serauxmen Stadium.
For day games, both home and away, the team will play with a decidedly cartoonier alternate brand as the Nanaimo Bars, named directly for the classic Canadian confection. For the uninitiated, a Nanaimo bar is a dessert with three layers: a base of wafer, nut, and coconut crumb; custard in the middle; and chocolate ganache on top.
The team will begin play in the 2021 season.
