SPEAK MAGAZINE
SPRING FASHION HAS SPRUNG CHECK OUT THESE LOCALLY-FOUND SPRING LOOKS
WOOD WORKING WIZARDS THE FOLKS AT RABBET RUN MAKE CRAFTING FUNCTIONAL PIECES OF ART CHILD’S PLAY
CROSSFIT IN RUSTON CONTINUES TO ATTRACT THOSE IN SEARCH OF PHYSICAL AND MENTAL “GAINZ”
SPRING 2017 | LOUISIANA TECH UNIVERSITY
upcoming events DIXIE CENTER FOR THE ARTS
APRIL APRIL 27: Hunky Dory, 7 p.m. Indie film with filmmaker Q&A. Part of the Southern Circuit Film Tour - $3 student tickets.
MAY MAY 1 - JUNE 31: Ferguson and Kordal Exhibition, Mon - Fri • 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. Art exhibition of artwork by Bonnie Ferguson and Dorene Kordal. - Dixie Center Lobby – FREE.
MAY 4-5: Ruston High School Presents: Bearcats on Broadway! - 7 p.m. • For ticket info contact front office at (318) 255-0807. MAY 9-11: A.E. Phillips 8th grade Musical! - 6:30 p.m. • For ticket info contact front office at (318) 257-3469.
JUNE JUNE 20-22: Ruston Community Theatre presents Lion King Jr. Times vary. Contact Dixie box office for tickets/details.
JULY JULY 13-16: Ruston Community Theatre presents South Pacific 13-15 at 7 p.m. – 16 at 2 p.m. All events at 212 North Vienna in down-town Ruston unless otherwise noted. For more information call (318) 255-1450.
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ARTS+CULTURE 6 | Meet Emily Rahn Being a tattoo artist is more than just a job.
10 | GAME ON! Take a look into the world of eSports on Tech’s campus.
14 | Tech Travels Looking to study abroad? Read about Tech’s efforts in making that dream a reality.
16 | The Case for Creative Writing Our writer speaks of the importance of the creative writing in higher education.
HEALTH+FITNESS
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20 | Crossfit in Ruston Crossfit has taken Ruston by storm. Check out these respected local “boxes.”
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26 | A Blue Sky State of Mind Blue Sky Yoga offers a tranquil but intense fitness option for local patrons.
30 | Finding a New Beginning New Beginnings Spa gives opportunities for health and wellness.
FASHION 34 | Spring Has Sprung Spring is here! Ensure that you’ll have the latest look.
FEATURES 40 | Dawgs For Paws For the workers at 4 PAWS Rescue, it’s about passion, not a paycheck.
44 | Rabbet Run Woodworks The folks at Rabbet Rin wooodworks make crafting functional pieces of art child’s play.
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SPEAK CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Jenna Price Kaliee Courts Caleb Daniels Alexandra VanBlaricum Elisabeth Sanders Emily Byrens Erin Maxson Josh Edavettal DESIGNER Michael McKnight Ashley Williams FASHION COORDINATOR Dakota Dupont PHOTO EDITOR Brian Blakely PHOTOGRAPHERS Ashley Kober Colin Fontenot Danny Do Jonathan Shaul
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ADVISERS Michael LeBlanc Dr. Judith Roberts T. Scott Boatright PRODUCTION MANAGER Michael LeBlanc
@LATechSpeak speakmagazinemedia speakmagazinemedia
34 ŠSPEAK Magazine is published quarterly by students in the journalism concentration in the department of communication and media studies at Louisiana Tech University. Views expressed in the magazine do not necessarily express the views of Louisiana Tech University. SPEAK Magazine welcomes letters to the editor. However, we reserve the right not to print anonymous letters. We also ask that each letter be accompanied by a telephone number, address, and classification or title. We will not print the telephone number or address. Direct all letters and inquires to speakmagazinemedia@gmail.com.
Louisiana Tech University is committed to the principle of providing the opportunity for learning and development of all qualified citizens without regard to race, sex, religion, color, national origin, age, disability, marital status, or veteran status for admission to, participation in, or employment in the programs and activities which the university sponsors or operates. For Title IX information, see University Policy #1445 at http:// www.latech.edu/administration/ policies-and-procedures/1445.shtm.
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MEET EMILY RAHN Arts+Culture
BEING A TATTOO ARTIST IS MORE THAN JUST A JOB
WORDS ERIN MAXSON
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PHOTOS COLIN FONTENOT
itting across from Emily Rahn, a tattoo artist at University Ink, one immediately gets the feeling that University Ink is not your average tattoo shop. The room is big and open. Couches and chairs line the walkway to get to the front desk. There are posters of tattoos and tattoo ideas lining the walls waiting to for their next owner to come and decide on them. But the shop itself is not what gives you the unique vibes; it’s the people.
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oey Bagwell, a long-time tattoo artist, opened up University Ink 10 years ago to continue his passion of inking people’s self-expressions in a more permanent way. He has since taught many other wishful artists the ways of the tattoo machine and has two of his apprentices working under him. Ruston native Emily Rahn is one apprentice at the shop who is working on rebranding herself and creating custom tattoos for each client that walks through the door. A lthough Rahn’s tattooing career was unexpected, she said “My whole life I’ve loved art…I came in for a touch-up and he (Joey) told me ‘I still don’t know why you aren’t tattooing.’” Two months after Joey offered her a job at University Ink, Rahn returned and was ready for work. Since then, two years have passed, and she has taken on many tattoos, big and small. And although the hours spent in the shop seem tedious to most, Rahn thinks differently. She said, “It’s been the most challenging and rewarding thing I’ve ever done. I’ll never do anything else in my life. I love it.”
A TOSS-UP BETWEEN THE RANGES IN DESIGNS THAT COME THROUGH THE
“
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MY FAVORITE PART ABOUT MY JOB IS
DOOR, STRETCHING MYSELF AS AN ARTIST, AND THE ACTUAL CLIENT. -EMILY RAHN
Ruston, being a university town, has brought many college kids into the shop. But Rahn thinks that this kind of crowd gives a more rewarding kind of work. “We have a lot of people who are art students who will come in. They know exactly what they want. But a lot of them still give us artistic freedom because they know we understand what translates well as a tattoo versus what looks really 8 | SPEAK magazine
good on paper,” Rahn said. The work may be tedious and rewarding, but there is more than meets the eye when it comes to tattooing. From expensive machinery, certifications, inks and more, Rahn claims that the job is well worth the costs. “It is expensive to be a tattoo artist,” Rahn said. “But if you are doing it in a shop where everything is very sterile and very clean and very professional, it’s well worth it to spend the money and get everything certified like it should be.” The daily process for Rahn is different than the other artists at her shop. Rahn comes in early to work on her designs, clean up her station and prep her machines. By the time the client has arrived, she has already prepped everything and is ready to tattoo within minutes of the stencil approval of her design. Once Rahn gets started, she tries to keep the client as comfortable as possible throughout the process. She says the two most common responses she hears from those in the chair are, “That’s it? That’s not bad,” or “Man, I deserve some Dairy Queen or something after this.” Throughout her days at University Ink, Rahn has acquired
some interesting stories from her tattooed clients. From strange tattoo placements to the reasons behind each client’s tattoo, there are many different kinds of people to come to sit in her chair each week. At University Ink, there is more than meets the eye behind each tattoo artist. Rahn’s caring and creative personality is what makes her shine in the shop. “Most of the time, the client’s response is, ‘I am so sorry I’m being so difficult!’ And I just let them know that it’s my job and I love my job and am
there for them, and want it to be as perfect as possible,’” Rahn said. University Ink is a place where true self-expression can be seen in every corner. Tattoo artists like Rahn are the reason why people return to University Ink time and time again for their eccentric and individualistic art. Jennifer Martz, University Ink’s former receptionist, truly said it best: “If everybody was the same, it would be a pretty boring world.” And at University Ink, it is never boring. SPRING 2017 | 9
RESURGENCE OF GAMING COMMUNITY AT TECH WORDS CALEB DANIEL
PHOTOS DANNY DO
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nticipation hung in the air as the two teams began their match. Thousands of fans cheered the competitors on, while millions more watched at home. The winning team would achieve the title of champion, and the losers would be sent home in defeat. This was not a traditional sporting event, however. This was a match of League of Legends, one of the many competitive video games that have taken the world by storm in recent years. The phenomenon of competitive video gaming, more commonly known as Esports, is on the rise both internationally and in the United States. The 2015 League of Legends World Championship, for example, was viewed by 36 million people, a number that the baseball World Series has not reached in 20 years. This wave of Esports popularity has not left Louisiana Tech unaffected. What follows are just a few stories of student gamers competing in two popular Esports: League of Legends and Super Smash Bros.
LEAGUE OF LEGENDS Starting this winter quarter, student gamers like Brian Greber and Brandon Smith have a better opportunity to play competitive League of Legends on campus than ever before. The game, simply known as League, has meant a lot to them. They take pride in it. Their friend groups are shaped around it. It was a part of Greber’s life before high school was. These two students have given part of their lives to the game, and the game gives back. The League community at Tech provides tournaments, club meetings, and more to help grow the gamers’ experience.
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Smith, a sophomore marketing major, said he found where he belonged at Tech by joining the League club. “Walking into Tech last year, I didn’t know anybody,” he said. “As soon as I went to my first League club meeting, the guys took me in with open arms. We developed a really strong bond through League, and now we hang out probably three times a week.” League is played by teams of five players each controlling a single “champion” character. These champions gain money and get stronger over time, with the objective of destroying the enemy stronghold to achieve victory.“You kill stuff, you make money, you get stronger and you destroy the base,” Greber said. “That’s probably the game
From right to left: Matt “Absoltastic” Brandl, a senior in computer science, and ULM student, Damien Boyd take time off to enjoy tournaments held for the action game known as Super Smash Brothers for the Nintendo Wii U gaming console.
on the most basic level.” After a dormant period, the Tech League club Greber and Smith, known as “Nitros” and “The KiDD” in-game respectively, are the most experienced veterans in the club. They agree with Laprairie that the social aspect of the game is essential. Greber, a sophomore cyber engineering major, said his friends are a major reason he continues to play League. “I started playing the summer after eighth grade,” he said. “My brother has played League since it began, and he got me into it. I continue to play now mostly because of my friends. Basically everyone I know plays League. There’s a really big social aspect to the game.” Greber said the game lends itself to connecting with players all over the world. “I played with guys from places like Massachusetts, Puerto Rico and Canada in high school, and I’m still close to some of them,” he said. “You just keep connecting to people through other people.” Led by League of Legends, the Esports community in North America is growing from top to bottom. Many universities now offer Esports schol-
arships, and the professional League teams use the collegiate teams as a means to scout for talent. “I love it,” Smith said. “There’s a bit of a competition between traditional and non-traditional sports now. You know, the jocks always picked on the nerds in high school. So it’s great to see that we’re fighting back now. I’d love to see my future kids live in a world where they have the opportunity to go into an Esport or a traditional sport as a career.”
SUPER SMASH BROS. Like many competitive gamers, Matt Brandl was introduced to the world of Esports through brutal defeat. “When fall quarter 2014 started up, a friend of mine who was already interested in competitive Smash came over to my apartment and destroyed me and my roommates,” Brandl said. “I started from there going to tournaments and continually getting destroyed. It was a bittersweet feeling to lose so hard to people and know I had such a long way to go.”
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I LOVE SEEING A UNIFIED COMMUNITY THAT ALL ENJOY ONE THING” –Danny Do
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uper Smash Bros. is a series of fighting games incorporating iconic Nintendo characters such as Mario, Link, Kirby and Pikachu. The fourth installment in the series, commonly referred to as simply Smash 4, is the most played Smash title on Tech cam-
pus. For casual gamers, the Smash 4 barrier of entry is much easier to cross than games like League. “The game is very easy for anyone to pick up because every character has similar controls,” Brandl said. “There are many different antics that can ensue, and this makes it a great party game to play with friends for hours on end.” Despite this draw as a party game, Smash 4 also has a more serious competitive side. “Competitive Smash takes the party game environment and transforms it into a serious test of wits, awareness and survival that is just as fun to me at the end of the day,” Brandl said. Starting in 2014 with campus tournaments hosted 12 | SPEAK magazine
by Tech radio station KLPI, competitive Smash has spread across north Louisiana. “north Louisiana over the past year has really begun to flourish as a Smash region,” Brandl said. “There are tournaments almost every weekend all across I-20. It’s safe to say that if you have a free Saturday, it’s very easy to find a place to play some Smash competitively.” A senior computer science major, Brandl has come a long way since entering competitive Smash over two years ago. Wielding his signature character King Dedede, he is currently ranked as the fifth-best player in north Louisiana. “My goal in Smash is to be someone who top players want to play against,” Brandl said. “Nothing less, maybe something more.” This year, a group of freshmen from Slidell have joined Brandl as top-ranked players in north Louisiana. Among them is freshman engineering major Devin Caffarel, who said he found the Tech Smash scene to be open and inviting.
Devin “EJ” Caffarel, a freshman in engineering, intensely focused on his game play during one of the gaming tournaments.
“The Tech Smash community is very similar to the Slidell community in the way that both are friendly and helpful to new players,” Caffarel said. Caffarel said he found lifelong friends through Smash from the very first day. “I first got into competitive Smash when my friend offered me a ride to a nearby tournament,” he said. “I got destroyed. However, the two players who beat me have been my mentors and friends throughout my time in the Smash community.” Aside from friendships, Caffarel said he plays Smash in part to keep his mind sharp. “I play because it’s a game that forces you to think,” he said. “You have to know your character’s limits and specialties against each other character. It’s not a game where you can just turn off your brain.” In addition to the long-standing pay-to-play KLPI tournaments, Tech now offers a free tournament known as Tech Central. Danny Do, tournament organizer, said his motivation for starting Tech Central
was a bit selfish. “I just knew I wasn’t good enough to compete in any of the tournaments already established,” said Do, a sophomore computer science major. “I decided I wanted something free to help me hone my skills while still having the fun of a tournament setting.” Despite his initial motivations, Do said he loves every aspect of being a tournament organizer. “To me, it isn’t ever out of any obligation,” he said. “Even if I did quit playing one day, I would still host the events simply because I love seeing a unified community that all enjoy one thing.” Brandl said he wants to continue playing Smash past college because it contributes to his life even outside the game. “I keep playing because I still learn so much every time I pick up a controller,” he said. “I learn new things about myself and my opponent. Playing Smash is therapeutic to me, and as long as I have people to play it with, I don’t think there’s any reason for me to ever stop.”
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TECH TRAVELS
Seeing the world, experiencing new cultures WORDS ALEXANDRA VANBLARICUM
T
ech Travels, a program founded here at Tech, has been giving students the opportunity to study abroad for many years. Jonathan Donehoo, the director of the program, has played a critical role in creating programs that interest students and promote learning in a new culture and gaining new experiences. Professors from all disciplines at Tech have also been instrumental in guiding students through this scary, but exciting, period of their lives. Tech Travels has offered programs to Rome, Costa Rica, England, France, Germany, and Spain. This summer students will travel to Madrid, Spain and Berlin, Germany in programs led by Professors Paul Nelson and Damon Caldwell, respectively. Future ideas of programs include a summer geography program in Cuba led by Dr. Taylor Mack, and Professor Pedro Derosa has been instrumental in securing an agreement to work with the Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Argentina, one of the oldest universities in Latin America. Tech Travels is also trying to create an English teaching internship in Tucumán, Argentina. Studying abroad can often be a terrifying idea to consider. Students are faced with heavy costs and may 14 | SPEAK magazine
feel uncomfortable immersing themselves in another culture and, in many instances, being surrounded by a language they do not know. It can be intimidating to become part of a culture different from your own. “However,” Nelson says, “this sense of not being able to control your environment through your own language passes Jonathan Donehoo very quickly, and in fact contributes to your learning alternative ways to communicate and negotiate.” As for the costs, saving money ahead of time is an excellent way to make the price of a study abroad program less frightening. Nelson recommends saving for the program two years before, so that a little bit can add up over time. Tech Travels is also working on ways to keep the costs down for their programs. Despite the fears students may have, they should still consider studying abroad. “Being outside of the U.S. gives students a chance to see how our country is perceived abroad and even a chance to look perhaps more objectively and appreciatively (and sometimes even more critically) at our own culture and what we
sometimes take for granted here,” Nelson said. Exploring other countries helps students see the world, and their own home country, in an entirely different way and helps them understand, more personally, other cultures and appreciate them. On a similar note, Caldwell encouraged students to consider studying abroad, saying, “Living in the heart of America, Tech students can be insulated from a larger understand and experience of the world. The trip helps in understanding our place in a global environment, and expands the notions of what is possible for students in the world.” When students experience another culture firsthand, they broaden their horizons and realize that there is more to the world than what Ruston, Louisiana offers. Not only do they get to see it the beauty of another culture, but they get to learn how they fit into that culture and their impact on the world as a whole. Language immersion programs, like the trips to Costa Rica and Spain, are also incredibly beneficial for Tech students. Not only are students given the chance to practice the Spanish they’ve learned in their classes, but “they’re absorbing the language and culture of the area they’re immersed in,” according to Mr. Nelson. During these programs, students spend several hours each day
taking classes and also get to enjoy weekly tours and excursions, given in Spanish, to places of cultural and historic interest. Additionally, students are able to get a more personal look at the culture because they stay with local families and get to see, firsthand, how these families live. However, there are college specific program as well, such as the architecture focused study abroad opportunity led by Caldwell. His three-week program in Berlin gives students the chance to live in the city and visit various places of historical, architectural, or cultural significance. Students are also able to visit southern German cities in a week-long bus trip and there are a few day trips to other places as well. While the School of Design does not have any current plans for programs beyond the trip to Berlin, they do consider hosting programs every few years, and the College of Liberal Arts usually has one or two every year, such as the trips to Spain and Costa Rica. Katie Archer, a senior at Tech, went on the Costa Rica program led by Dr. Anne Reynolds-Case last summer. She says her time there was one of the best times of her life. “You are completely surrounded by a new country while learning a new language,” She said. She attributes her experience there to helping her gain a new perspective on life because “it teaches you how other people live and it allows you to experience that.” She recommends the Costa Rica Tech Travels program because she believes that everyone should have experience traveling abroad. For Nelson studying abroad changed his life. At age nineteen, Mr. Nelson went to Spain, at twenty he went to Mexico, and at twenty-one he went to Venezuela. On these trips, he “learned that despite national boundaries, we are all human and that a willingness to communicate with others is almost always rewarded with kindness.” Because of those experiences, he was inspired to help others get the opportunity to study abroad, and here at Tech he has done just that, leading students through the Tech Travels program at Spain. For Caldwell, his own study abroad experience didn’t begin until he started working. “As an alumni of Tech and having grown up in the region, I get great satisfaction from helping to expand the experience base of students like myself,” Caldwell said. Like Nelson, he says he has seen the change studying abroad can have on students. For students and professors of Louisiana Tech, studying abroad has been a life changing experience. Tech Travels has played a crucial role in helping students travel the world and learn about new cultures and countries firsthand. For students, studying abroad is an incredible opportunity that should be taken advantage of, and Tech Travels is here to help students embark on their own international journeys. SPRING FALL 2017 | 15
WORDS EMILY BYRNES PHOTO ASHLEY KOBER
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ucked away within a quiet garden inside George T. Madison Hall, sits a statue of the stoic Shakespeare. A bench is placed purposefully in front of him. Here you can sit, and let your mind drift away from all your worries. Here you can think, create, and clear your thoughts of anything that might be causing you distress. As such, you take a seat in front of him, minding the crunch of grass beneath your feet, and perch precariously on the edge. The wooden planks give off a subtle warmth, and they creak dangerously, threatening to collapse in their old age. Still, they hold fast and support your weight. Gazing up into the statue’s smooth face, you see that he isn’t quite staring at you. He instead seems to be looking off into the distance, lost in uninterrupted thought. As you sit and ponder this, you become increasingly aware of a sense of peace that has enveloped you. Your mind soon starts to drift, and you begin to reflect. It is an almost sacred space, inhabited only by those who dare brave the wooden platform to speak their dreams, and voice the cries of their soul that only the written word can express thoroughly. The beauty of the garden doesn’t solely rely on its rose bushes to create the tranquil atmosphere. Everyone is welcome, no matter what your level of writing or major. It asks only that you sit, and think. Case Observations For the students of Louisiana Tech’s creative writing program, the Shakespeare Garden is particularly special. It is a safe haven, a space so rich in the beauty of nature and isolated serenity that once the glass doors shut tight behind you, it feels as though you have been transported to a completely different world. The world that we have left behind for a brief moment, holds a future that is uncertain, and somewhat terrifying for those that choose to pursue an arts or humanities degree. With each passing day, whispers of the possibility of decreased funding, and the arts being deemed “unimportant” is a frightening likelihood. All eyes are currently on The National Endowment for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. If these agencies are de-funded, what will happen to the dreamers, writers, actors, drawers, musicians, weavers–artists who make our life so vivid and worth living? Kenneth West is an exceptionally talented senior undergraduate who is an English major, the vice president of the Poetry Society, and also happens to be concentrating in creative writing. Since he arrived at Tech in 2014 he has applied to and won the competitive Anna Prothro creative writing Scholarship, every year, consecutively. On winning the prestigious award, he said, “It has given me a lot of confidence, in my work, and the confidence
to continue writing.” Scholarships like this are extremely important to furthering the continued support and funding of our young writers in a college setting. They inspire, reaffirm and solidify the student’s work as a representation of their talent at the highest level. For West, his preferred form of literature is poetry. He has known since he was twelve years old that he wanted to be a writer, and has always gravitated more towards poetry. Growing up, reading and writing were a “world of [his] own” and have absolutely shaped his life for the better. In high school he also had very supportive teachers. In the 10th grade, after finishing his mid-term test, his teacher handed him his paper back and said, “I hope you major in English when you’re in college.” This kind of support led to West doing just that when he graduated. A handful of the many writers that have influenced him are Shakespeare, Sylvia Plath, and the great post-war Polish poet Wisława Szymborska. So why should people care? Why should they value poetry and the arts, just as much as the sciences? “It also shows us a different side,” he said “I think a lot of people think they’re suffering, and that they’re suffering alone. Things like poetry and prose, short stories, drama–it shows that you’re not suffering alone. These are the same dilemmas we’ve always faced. Going back to Plato and the ancient Greeks–we’re all trying to fundamentally wrestle with the same problems that we may never have the answers to. I think creative writing is a big part of that. We may be able to ignore it for a while, focus on STEM, but we’re going to come back and wonder… what are we doing this for?” Austin Harrison is a second degree graduate student at Louisiana Tech who was heavily involved in the Poetry Society. At different points in the past three years alone, in addition to helping re-establish the Poetry Society, he has been the editor-in-chief, vice president and the president of the Society before stepping down and helping to train another member. Harrison has always known that he wanted to be a writer. He said, “While young boys wanted to be police officers and soldiers–of course, I wanted to do that too. But the thing that has always stuck no matter what, is creative writing.” But what exactly is creative writing? How do you define something that seems so abstract? Harrison describes it as “using your own mind to fill in the blanks.” He continues on to express that even non-fiction can be creative writing. The process involves taking something within yourself… and using it openly to create a world. “A world, that is just your own. It’s using your own ideas and mindsets and creating this framework for others to play in and enjoy.” In the seventh grade, he also experienced support from his reading teacher, who would be retiring that year. Since she had such a profound impact on his writing career he wanted to show his appreciation and took
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the next step: he wrote her a poem. Though he felt it was basic, and very elementary, the poem reduced her to tears. For him, “it was the impactful nature, where [he] saw the visceral nature of the human mind being broken by written words.” It was never about making her cry. He saw, right before his very eyes, how simple words could move someone to such a profound expression of joy. “Art has a chance to take what they have, that’s real in the world, and to change it–alter it, into what the artist desires the world to be,” Harrison said. Though many feel this way, with the way that things are going, young writers who are just getting their start are becoming increasingly discouraged when it comes to how the arts are being treated. Harrison suggests that if you’re older: write to your representatives. You can express yourself, and explain that it’s important to the community. You need to stay engaged, and don’t give up just because someone tells you know. You can absolutely change the world around you. “As a society we need to reflect. We need to celebrate our own individuality, our own expressiveness. And again, the sciences, are necessary. It’s a wonderful career. But we need art, to represent ourselves. Otherwise, we aren’t anything,” Harrison said. When Harrison graduates from Tech, he plans on pursuing his MFA in playwriting. He seems himself as director/writer and his work has been described as “very specific, full of imagery, and tending to have grim themes.” Some of the great writers that influence Harrison are: Robert Frost, Edgar Allan Poe and E.E. Cummings. In addition to his enthusiasm about the program itself, and his dedication to his work, Austin Harrison will leave behind a very meaningful legacy when he finishes his graduate work. Not only has he helped re-establish the Poetry Society, but in working with his colleagues and professors, he is also the mind behind the widely read and anticipated “Quatrain” which now includes various states around Louisiana and is open to anyone who wishes to submit poetry to be published. Sarah Dulaney is the current president of the Poetry Society and a senior English major that is majoring in the creative writing concentration and minoring in math. Oddly enough, Dulaney didn’t start off in English when she first came to Tech. Like many others, she choose engineering and was fairly content with it for some time. When Dulaney started having trouble with some of her engineering and math classes, she would immediately turn to her writing to help relieve some of the stress. There was a particular quarter that she had a math class and two English classes and found that she started dreading her math, and not being able to contain her excitement for English. Her father, who she describes as being a “quiet man,” called her that same quarter to check on her. He was concerned about her, and knew that she had been hav-
ing some trouble. To her surprise, when she agreed that she had been enjoying her English classes he replied: “If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck… it might be a duck.” That was the last piece that she needed to reaffirm that this is what she truly wanted to do. She confides that one of her favorite memories of her time at Tech, was in her first creative writing class. “I hadn’t really shared anything before. After I read my first poem, I received a quiet awe from a good bit of the class. That was the moment I realized I could actually do this. That moment of silence will be with me forever.” Dulaney said creative writing is one of the easiest ways to express herself. She has been drawn to the medium since as early as the seventh grade, and feels like the need to write is insatiable. “I just have to write, like an artist needs to paint, or musicians need to play. It’s hard to say how long it has affected my life, because I don’t think I can remember what it was like not to be writing.” Like previously, the tough subject of a possible future without funding had to be addressed. Why is creative writing important, and what does it mean to the students in the program? “The arts, including creative writing, are important,” Dulaney said. “Books are how we communicate societal views and opinions. While the sciences are important to build the future, the arts are how we show how we live today. When the future looks back–inventions or scientific discoveries don’t really tell anything about the people and the culture of the time. Art gives you that. That’s why we as humans love books, paintings, and sculptures so much; they are the living, breathing past. They’re bits of ourselves–reflected.” Every writer has their own path and experiences when it comes to how they found their way, but it is all fueled by that same incessant need to put pen to paper. Maya Angelou once said, “There is no greater agony, than bearing an untold story inside you.” This holds true for each of Tech’s creative writing students and reverberates through every academic hall where literacy and the arts are celebrated. The arts are not only just how we express ourselves, but how we communicate with others. The arts can be healing, and therapeutic, as well as serving to teach lessons to both the young and old. It is a way of preserving our lives, and the culture of a people. Though the creative writing program is still fairly young, it already boasts three proud graduates of the program, and has managed to awaken and touch the lives of those who dared to take up its mantle and enriched those who have supported them on their journey. These scholarships, programs, and agencies are viable and extremely important; not only for the growth of the students, but for the world. These are the shapers of history who record, preserve, and establish who we are, leaving behind legacies and records that have and will forever change our lives. SPRING 2017 | 19
Health+Fitness
CROSSFIT IN RUSTON
A LOVE FOR FITNESS AND BUILDING A STRONG COMMUNITY
WORDS JENNA PRICE
PHOTOS BRIAN BLAKELY AND BRITTANY FLETCHER
CATAHOULA CROSSFIT
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usic pulsed through the box, and weights leapt from the floor as the four men and two women began the 8 a.m. CrossFit workout. Little was said as a timer on the wall began to count down the prescribed 60 minute workout. The six divided into partners by gender and started the exercises. A single cheer echoed off the walls when they finished first set. Twenty minutes was left on the timer. One man pulled off his shirt as the air quickly warmed up. Someone yelled, “I can’t feel my legs!” between reps. The garage doors once used to keep the crisp, early morning air out were pulled open. A man lost his footing on his box and repeated his jump as his partner laughed. With ten minutes remaining, puffs of air erupted from their gaping mouths,
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and the six finished the second set of exercises. Conversations begun to pick up as the clock dwindled down to single digits. The two women ran over to the machines eagerly to start a third set. The music blared so loud it was difficult to hear the lyrics. The clock turned to zero. “Good job, guys,” said Joey Slaughter, one of the four men and owner of the box, Catahoula CrossFit. Joey Slaughter, Marc Hume, Bill McCumber, Chris Decuir and Stephen Taylor opened Catahoula CrossFit during the summer of 2016. These men, along with their wives, originally opened it as an outlet to push one another while sharing in their mutual love for CrossFit. “There were four of us who were like-minded individuals, all couples, with different professions who liked working out
together,” Slaughter said. “So, we wanted to open a gym together. We wanted to basically build a community.” Although the six have been doing CrossFit for several years, comments about sore legs and wrists were repeated across the box after the 8 a.m. workout. Bill said the workouts are not any less difficult when done with friends, but doing them together has created a community. “Just like idiotic behavior, you probably wouldn’t do it on
The magazine said the atmosphere of CrossFit boxes have a “faintly post-apocalyptic vibe to the culture, as though it were training for survival.” To Bill, a former collegiate swimmer and now a father, the community of CrossFit has allowed him to maintain the intensity of his previous Division I workouts. “With a team, swimming was great, but trying to keep up that kind of level of activity on your own was exhausting,”
your own,” McCumber said. “But, when you get a band of friends together, suddenly it sounds like a great idea.” The community offered by CrossFit has been a draw-in factor for many like the owners of Catahoula. For those on the outside, however, the stigma of the culture of CrossFit’s community has been categorized by its stereotypes of injury-prone exercises and members’ fitness obsessions. The New Yorker described CrossFit as a “fitness cult.”
McCumber said. “With a life, a job, and kids, it was not feasible.” The vigorous 60-minute conditioning during CrossFit has allowed McCumber to complete workouts in one hour compared to the numerous hours he used to spend in the pool. “When the workout is different every single day and you go from cold to dead in an hour with people that you love, it is incredibly effective, efficient and fun,” McCumber said. SPRING 2017 | 23
RUSTON CROSSFIT
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auren Derveloy owns CrossFit Ruston with her husband, Ethan. In her experience, she interprets each CrossFit box as more than a gym. “It’s a lifestyle,” Lauren said. “Most of the time people are looking for accountability. I hate to run, but when you are running with people with high energy, who love what they do, it’s fun.” The atmosphere strengthened by the 300 members part of CrossFit Ruston creates a unique, diverse community. The youngest member of their box is 12 and the oldest is 86. “We are diverse, but we mesh together because we have the common goal of becoming 1 percent better,” Lauren said. This is not a characteristic isolated to CrossFit Ruston. McCumber believes CrossFit in general undersells the community cultivated in each box.
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“It’s like going to church,” McCumber said. “You see lots of different people that you don’t normally get to see, and you are getting together to do what we love. After workouts you say, ‘This sucks, see you tomorrow.’” The owners of Catahoula wanted to build their own gym based on the community they experienced with each other and have the opportunity to celebrate the diversity of this community. “We have different strengths and weaknesses, so we compliment each other,” Marc Hume, one of the owners of Catahoula, said. “We love CrossFit, and it can be shared with a wider community.” With such a strong atmosphere of energetic encouragement, a cult stereotype of CrossFit has emerged and become evident to the members.
“We embrace the cult idea,” Lauren said. “It’s a cult of people getting fit, and it’s contagious. If you love what you are doing, you can’t stop talking about it.” Haven Schroeder originally strongly opposed CrossFit because of the well-established stereotypes of its cult status promoted through social media. When her fiancé, Matthew Moore, started CrossFit and asked her to join him, she laughed off the idea of it. “I had only seen videos on Facebook of people making fun CrossFit,” Schroeder said. “The videos were way over the top with screaming, throwing things and eating insane amounts of peanut butter.” Schroeder’s hesitation was also rooted in the initial intimidation of CrossFit. Haven is the definition of small, weighing at just a couple pounds over 100 and few inches over 5 feet. She
was impressed by Matthew’s sheer amount of dedication to the exercises before going to teach every day, but the reminder of her small stature kept her from going to the box herself. “There was something in my mind that said, ‘There’s no way you can lift your body weight much less more,’” Schroeder said. Eight months ago, Schroeder went to her first day at CrossFit Ruston. Similar to Catahoula, loud music, weights covered in chalk and plenty of cheers after a finished workout greeted her at the door. When she left the box, she no longer felt small, but instead, she felt the overwhelming strength of a new found capability in herself and what she could do. “Feeling incredibly strong and capable is a feeling I have struggling with throughout my life,” Schroeder said. “I’m 5’4” but I feel taller because if you only knew what I’m capable of.”
A BLUE SKY
STATE OF MIND BLUE SKY YOGA OWNER, DONNA FRANKS, STRIVES TO GIVE HER PATRONS A TRANSCENDENT EXPERIENCE
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WORDS KAILEE COURTS
PHOTOS JONATHAN SHAUL
W
alking into Blue Sky Yoga, the first thing you will notice is the dark room and the low, peaceful music playing in the background. If you walk in for a hot yoga class, you may notice the room is warm, but that is all a part of the experience. Donna Franks is the owner of Blue Sky Yoga studio in Ruston and Monroe. The studio has been open since May of 2012. “Opening a studio just came to me in a dream,” she said. “I started manifesting this back in 2007 and then a few years later it became a reality.” Franks said she has been practicing yoga for more than 15 years, and she loves everything about the practice. “I had a friend who was a triathlete who started offering yoga classes on a VHS at like 6 in the morning,” she said. “I went to those and fell in love with the way I felt after.”
She started teaching yoga classes in 2003 in a friend’s garage, then moved to a little studio where she later became a certified instructor. “Teaching came way before opening the studio,” she said. “I was just subbing for a friend’s class and then slowly made my way to teaching my own classes. I eventually started teaching at the Lambright Sports and Wellness Center at Tech in 2006, and I still teach there twice a week.” For Franks, yoga is not about if you can do the poses perfectly, but all about the breathing throughout the practice. SPRING 2017 | 27
“For me the main thing is teaching yourself to breath calmly in stressful situations,” she said. “It’s way more than just a physical practice, it takes a lot of mental strength as well.” Franks said her favorite thing about teaching yoga classes at Tech is that things are always changing. “The Tech class is never the same, sometimes we will have a full room and other times there may be five students,” she said. “It keeps me on my toes. If a phone rings, or people walk in and out, I just have to remember to stay calm and go with the flow of what is happening.” For Franks, opening a studio was just something that came after teaching. “Like I said earlier, I kind of had dreams of opening a studio, but I wasn’t sure what to do,” she said. “Until one day I was teaching a class and I looked around the room and it was full, and I just said it’s time. So, I started looking for space and we opened the Monroe studio in May 2012.”
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Blue Sky Yoga gets its name from the Sanskrit term Samadhi. Franks said Barron, the man she went to for her training, would refer to Samadhi as a blue-sky state of mind. “I think this practice really works for everyone, physically and mentality, you can make it work for anyone,” she said. “I wanted a name that was really simple and inviting. I originally wanted to use Samadhi, but I wasn’t sure if it would reach people here, and I think Blue Sky Yoga works due to simplicity.” “I think this practice Franks decided to open the Ruston studio in Decemreally works for ber of 2013. She said running everyone, physically a business is not always fun and games, but she loves the and mentality, you practice and she loves the can make it work for people that go along with it. “This is a business, so I have anyone.” to do the managing part of it – Donna Franks as well,” she said. “Sometimes I have to work seven days a week because most of my instructors are part-time and may not be able to make it to the class. I don’t want to cancel a class because then that would discourage people from coming back, so I teach. It is tough sometimes, but I love the people I get to meet, and I get to work on the practice.” Franks said the Ruston location will be moving
in early February. “We just recently got a new building downtown across from University Ink so we are excited to be able to move there,” she said. “This building actually holds more mats but there are more rooms in the downtown building so there are more opportunities for new classes.” Franks said she still hasn’t worked out all the details of the new building but she is anxious and excited to move in. “I think it will be really good for business because we are going to be downtown,” she said. “It will make it easier for students to come and we will be closer so people will know where we are now.” Franks said she offers discounts for students who wish to attend studio classes because she knows how money can be tight for a college kid. “Our introduction deal is 30 days for $30 and students can get 30 percent off at both the Ruston and Monroe locations. We have a suggested drop-in price where the instructor will ask you if this is you first time and if you say yes she will then ask how much you’d like to pay. If the class is already full from people who have pre-registered then we may not be able to let you in, but so far we have not had to turn anyone away.” Franks said the one thing she wishes to tell people who are apprehensive about practicing yoga is you do not have to be perfect. “Yoga is just as much a mental practice as it is a physical practice,” she said. “I teach breath driven classes so I want people to focus on their breath throughout the practice. Not everyone can bend and move the same way and that is OK. If you focus on your breath strengthen your mental state, the physical part will just fall in with it.”
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Finding a New Beginning A Personal Approach to Conventional Medicine WORDS ERIN MAXSON PHOTOS DANNY DO
P
reventative health and wellness has taken the world by storm over the last few years. According to the Global Wellness Institute, preventative and personalized health has increased over 78 percent since 2010. Despite this increasing demand for personalized and preventative care, not all providers are convinced it is the future of conventional medicine. Others are stepping out of the box and finding ways to prevent sickness and serious health issues by providing long-term plans for their patients. One of these “others,� Lucy Douglas, has opened up her own practice. New Beginnings Wellness and Spa has become a safe haven for those trying to break free of their health issues and create a new outlook on their lifestyles. SPRING 2017 | 31
LUCY DOUGLAS
NEW BEGINNINGS OWNER
Douglas, a Ruston native, has spent many years trying to find peace with health and wellness. “My vision and passion for true, vibrant health and joyful longevity is what led me to start my own practice,” said Douglas. “I was weary and frustrated by the paradigm of disease management that has been so prevalent in healthcare.” Since the ever-growing healthcare sector continues to push back on preventative health and wellness, Douglas is a provider within the area who takes on a more personal outlook with her patients. Patients from Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and more come to visit Douglas at her office to finally find peace with their own health issues. Rae Lynn Parrish of El Dorado said she has been saved from conventional medicine through Douglas. Parrish said, “My health involves us, and not just her.
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I’ve had physicians tell me that I will have to make another appointment or ‘That’s not my area.’ I can come in with all of my problems and all of my symptoms. She [Douglas] looks at every one of them. We take it down to the foundation together.” Since Parrish has been to see Douglas, she has spread the word to others in her area, bringing more El Dorado women to New Beginnings. Age is no matter to Douglas as she helps anyone who is looking to prevent heart disease, diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure. Douglas encourages those who think it’s too early to start to think twice:
“It’s never too soon, nor are you too young, to start taking care of yourself—to be intentional about how you honor your body.” What Douglas is trying to accomplish at New Beginnings is something that is much larger than just herself. She said, “This band-aid approach continues to put millions of people at risk for the devastating consequences of chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and stroke which kills more people in the U.S. than all forms of cancer combined! What people are not being told is that these diseases are almost 100 percent preventable.”
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Fashion
Spring has Sprung STYLING DAKOTA DUPONT
PHOTOS BRIAN BLAKELY
CLOTHING CURATED FROM RODEO BOUTIQUE
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BLOUSE | Moon River, $68 JEANS SHORTS | Free People, $68 BLOUSE/DRESS | Free People, $128 JEANS SHORTS | Free People, $68
BLOUSE | Everly, $27 JEANS | Free People, $78
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ROMPER | J.O.A., $70 SPRING 2017 | 37
DRESS | Free People, $68
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BLOUSE | Show Me Your Mumu, $128 JEAN SHORTS | Free People, $68
SPRING 2017 | 39
Features
Dawgs for Paws For the workers at 4 PAWS Rescue, it’s about passion, not a paycheck WORDS ALEXANDRA VANBLARICUM PHOTOS ASHLEY KOBER
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ast the rolling fields of Tech Farm, one animal rescue group gives a voice to the abandoned, the abused and the neglected animals of Lincoln Parish. This nonprofit organization, with two passionate directors and a wealth of volunteers at its helm, has saved thousands of animals in its 10 years in Ruston. Shortly after Hurricane Katrina, Sue Martin, director of operations at 4PAWS Rescue, started the organization in her backyard. Under her guidance, 4PAWS has become a household name and now has a shelter of its own, with plans for an enclosed shelter being made. The organization has been maintained for so long because of the dedicated staff, numerous volunteers, and board of directors, which includes Sue Martin and Ashley Taylor, director of community relations and public relations. Ashley Taylor believes that saving these animals “is about a passion not a paycheck.� None of their staff, from the one-time volunteers to the board of directors, is paid, and the organization itself makes no profit off any One of the reasons 4PAWS is so unique is because of its ties to Louisiana Tech. Ashley Taylor is a Tech and Kappa Delta alumna, and their staff managers, Kristyn and Mary, are both current pre-vet majors at Tech. Kristyn and Mary both live onsite and are responsible for giving medications, shots and vaccines to the dogs, answering the phones, performing heartworm tests and helping with adoptions.
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“What’s amazing about these girls is their hearts,” Taylor said. Taylor said that despite their tough schedules, Kristyn and Mary put their all into taking care of the dogs at 4PAWS. They understand that these dogs are physically, emotionally and mentally abused, and so they work to socialize them and teach them how to love and trust people again. For Mary, this meant spending extra time with Myrrh, a Chihuahua who was dropped off at the shelter. “I was certain we would never be able to touch Myrrh,” Mary said about the terrified dog’s arrival at 4PAWS, but a week later Myrrh was a totally different dog, sitting in Mary’s lap and letting her love on her. Mary and Kristyn both arrived at 4PAWS looking to fill requirements to get into vet school and instead found an organization they have fallen in love with. “My time with 4PAWS has been a growing experience for sure,” Kristyn said. She’s gained invaluable practice for vet school, learned how to manage and lead people, and most importantly, she’s found another side of herself. She said working at 4PAWS has shown her that she loves her major and that she has what it takes to be a vet. As a whole, Tech students have been invaluable in helping maintain 4PAWS Rescue. “Anybody can help.” Taylor said. “If you can’t adopt, foster. If you can’t foster, donate. If you can’t donate, volunteer.” Because the organization is 100 percent volunteer based, they depend on people coming to help, and Taylor said that most of these volunteers have been Tech students. Two shifts are offered each day, seven days a week. During these shifts, students let the dogs run and play while they replenish the dogs’ food and water and clean their pens. Ashley also started Tech a Dog for a Day where, for $3, people can come to the shelter between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Tuesdays and Fridays and can, essentially, adopt a dog for a day. This program helps with leash training for the dogs and gives them lots of extra attention. However, these funds also go toward paying for food and treats for the shelter since the organization does not receive city funding. “Everything we get, including the foot and vet bills, is out of the goodness of others and the people who work here,” Ashley said. Because the organization does not make a
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profit off of the $85 adoption fee, it depends on fundraisers in order for them to find the best homes possible for the animals. For the past two years, Sue and Ashley have put on the Fur Ball. Their first year they raised $20,000 to go toward their building fund, and this last year they raised ASHLEY TAYLOR, $15,000. They also sell $12 4Paws director of calendars, featuring a dog community relations each month and his or her and public relations story. Regular donors have (pictured above) also helped 4PAWS maintain their shelter. The support of the Ruston community has been invaluable for 4PAWS, and, to return that favor, 4PAWS has had a huge impact on Lincoln Parish as well, saving thousands of animals and helping reunite owners with lost pets. Their hard work recently culminated with Sue Martin receiving The Ruston Chamber of
“Anybody can help. If you can’t adopt, foster. If you can’t foster, donate. If you can’t donate, volunteer.”
Commerce Bill Best Humanitarian Award. For the organization, this was an exciting time for 4PAWS because Sue was acknowledged for her contribution to the Ruston community. Her founding and leading 4PAWS has led
to countless animals being saved. For them, 4PAWS is about giving a voice to those who cannot speak. It’s a calling, not a job, and for the animals they save, that makes all the difference.
BOUTIQUE & TANNING
offering the latest on-trend fashion styles and tanning ! 1913 E Kentucky Ave, Ruston, LA • (318) 255-7888
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DAVID MASON (Left) and JAY CROWELL (Right)
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WORDS JOSH EDAVETTAL PHOTOS JONATHAN SHAUL
t all started with a girlfriend and a simple request three years ago. She wanted a table; so, her boyfriend and his friend handmade her one for Christmas, and she loved it. Then, another person had another request. This time, it was a cutting board, and while a cutting board might be a seemingly small piece of equipment, it is what started Rabbet Run. Rabbet Run is the passion and Ruston-based company of Jay Crowell and David Mason, and the name “Rabbet Run” comes from a reference to the book “Rabbit, Run” — a book written by John Updike. However in the beginning, their name was not “Rabbet Run.” Originally, the name for their company was Rabbet and Awl. (Both the words “rabbet” and “awl” refer to tools used in woodworking, but are pronounced close to the pronunciation of “Rabbit” and “Owl”.) Unfortunately for them, this name was too close to the name of an already existing company called “Peg and Awl” that sells similar products, and they had to change it. They eventually decided on the name “Rabbet Run,” and that name has stayed the same for the last three years.
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“Functionality is our main deal. Our products are made to use.”
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hen Crowell and Mason started working together, they did not intend to make an empire; rather, they wanted to do something that they enjoy and could put time and love into. In the last three years, they have not sought the limelight, but rather they are known for the quality and craftsmanship of their products. This is their passion and what they love to do, and even with working another job for 40 hours each week, they find time to spend time on everything they make. Rabbet Run is best known for the fashioning of their cutting boards. When they made the original cutting board three years ago, demand started growing, and today, they have an established business that is steadily moving forward. Their reputation has not been the product of clever advertising or an expansive marketing campaign however. In fact, the only events they attend to show their product are the Ruston Maker’s Fairs and Railroad Music Festival. Instead, their focus lies
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on the quality of their product. When first talking about what Rabbet Run is, David Mason said “functionality is our main deal. Our products are made to use.” He went on to explain that many of the cutting boards that they produce look similar to some of the cutting - David Mason boards being produced in Ruston already, but their product is different to him for two reasons. The first is that Rabbet Run cutting boards are durable. They are meant to be used and are not just made for decoration; you can cut on them, and they can handle it. The second reason is that he knows the amount of time spent on the smallest details. Both Crowell and Mason take as much time as they can to make sure that their product meets their own high standards. Both Mason and Crowell emphasized the amount attention that goes into every detail, every step of the way. From the start, they make sure their product is made well. Mason said, “We spend time on everything — especially material. We don’t want it to be garbage.” Mason and Crowell are always on the hunt for wood that could be good for a project and are specific with what they want the wood to be like. However for them, the making of the product is just as important as the beginning and the end. With every step of the actual making of their products, they make sure to check each other’s work and do not move on to the next step until they are both happy with what has been created. Both Mason and Crowell definitely pay attention to detail, but the aesthetic of their board is also important to them. They use a variety of wood types and patterns for their layout, and a result, no board is the same. They have an Instagram account
that shows some of the boards they have made throughout the years; their account name is rabbet_run. While they have an Instagram account, they do not have a Facebook or any other social media for their company, and in a way, this symbolizes what they plan on doing with the future of Rabbet Run. They like where they are as a company and want to continue doing what they love. They are steadily gaining followers and customers, but they are not pushing for immediate growth. Rather, they work hard on what they are currently doing, and as a result, their boards have quality. One of the final things Mason and Crowell had to say was that they both feel that is incredibly important to give back to the community. In fact, the proceeds of their first product sold were given to charity. In addition to the giving to charity that they do, they have given their work to be sold at various venues that help causes such as funding for the school of design at Louisiana Tech, scholarships for students at Tech, and treatment of cleft pallet. In the end, they want to make their community a better place, and Rabbet Run helps them do that. SPRING 2017 | 47
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