This past Saturday, Nov. 16, Bucee, a new arrival to the community of Trinicats, passed away. Two Trinity University students found Bucee, known by many as “Buck,” dead on Stadium Drive from what appeared to be a hit-and-run. CAT Alliance will hold a memorial in his honor before the end of the semester.
The students called Maggie Enriquez, senior environmental studies major and president of CAT, who immediately arrived on the scene with another CAT officer. Enriquez explained that neither of her sponsors were available, but she was familiar with similar situations. When they arrived, they identified him and removed him from the road.
“It’s something that I’ve done in the past. That’s my job. I’m the president, so I handle major events like that,” Enriquez said. “I’ve fostered kittens in the past, and I’ve had tragic things happen, and it sucks every time. There’s no getting around that. It happens, but we just have to move on. I just keep moving on.”
Buck, a big orange and white tomcat, arrived at Trinity over the summer. He settled at CAT’s Murchison Station on Cardiac Hill with resident cats Tigger and Felix. He was in the process of becoming an official Trinicat, with CAT officers working on befriending him to trap-neuter-return him.
Despite his short time on campus, many students knew him. Enriquez mentioned Buck’s love for Tigger. Students like Elizabeth Saenz, junior international business major and CAT police station captain, often visited Buck.
“After breakfast, I would go up to Cardiac Hill and go say hi to Buck. It was nice to see him everyday,” Saenz said. “We just kind of existed in each other’s spaces. I really liked him. He was a big boy. He was really chunky.”
The care was palpable when news of Buck’s passing started to spread. Enriquez explained that his death affected everyone around her.
“Both students hung around. I was so grateful they did. They had their hazards on to make sure I was safe on the road,” Enriquez said. “And our Discord was blowing up. ‘Is he okay?,’ ‘Where is he?,’ ‘What’s going on?,’ ‘What happened?’”
Enriquez said she noticed that everyone’s attention was on Buck. Once the student body found out, the CAT Discord and Instagram were alive with notifications.
“[CAT members have] been spreading a bunch of positive remarks about him and their old photos of Buck in the group chat, and posting their comments on our Instagram too about how much they loved him,” Enriquez said.
Students outside of CAT, too, were posting and reposting about the tragedy. Fizz was filled with posts about remembering and avenging Buck. Students reposted CAT’s Instagram post countless times. Isabel Obando, first-year molecular biology and biochemistry major, commented on how Buck affected Trinity.
“When [Buck’s death] was confirmed, opening Instagram was nice, because the Trinicat kind of joined everyone,” Obando said. “It was nice that we all, with all our differences, came together to mourn him.”
Given the nature of Buck’s passing, CAT members encouraged people on campus — students and the wider community alike — to drive safer. Enriquez noticed how fast people drive on and near campus and said she wished there were more speed limit signs and crosswalks.
“I notice every day people pushing 40 down Stadium, pushing 40 down the street in front of Mabee Dining Hall even. They’re going so fast. It’s ridiculous,” Enriquez said. “Go slower. This is a campus. This is not off-roading.”
Saenz echoed Enriquez’s sentiment, asking that people driving at Trinity be more conscious of the animals they share the space with.
“We should be more aware of how we drive in a school environment. I know it was on Stadium Drive, but these cats aren’t just in the inner parts of campus. They explore, so we should just be more cautious, especially around dusk. Have your headlights on, if they’re broken go fix them. Drive carefully and cautiously, and if you see an animal, break gently. Don’t swerve off. Don’t make it more scared than it already is,” Saenz said. “Just be aware that the little animals that are part of Trinity, they’re just as important as the students here.”
