The Express- Summer 2018

2018-2019

The express

Living life world wide By traveling out of the country every summer, senior Cate McClain and her family have experienced a variety of cultures.

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Volume 26 • issue 1 • Blue Valley Northwest High school

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contents features

4 serving up success 6 living life world wide 10 lifelong friends

review

14 cool as ice Cover: Senior Cate McClain sits on an elephant on her trip to Thailand in the summer of 2014.

Right: Also part of their trip to Thailand, McClain and her older brother, Jack McClain pose in front of a temple statue. (Photos courtesy of Cate McClain).

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Above: Junior Alisa Prinyarux practices tennis during summer conditioning. (Photo by Emma Johnson).

Left: Junior Annabelle Nitz poses with two kids her family sponsored through the organization People to People. (Photo courtesy of Annabelle Nitz) Right: Staff writer Danya Radhi reviewed three different snow cone shops including Lilo’s Shaved Ice, Miami Ice and Hokulia Shave Ice. (Photo by Maddie Beischel).

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serving up

Success

Varsity tennis player Alisa Prinyarux traveled across the country to participate in tennis tournaments.

by maddie oliver & jonny isaacson

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arsity tennis player and junior Alisa Prinyarux, went to multiple tennis tournaments around the country this summer.

Going to these tournaments, Prinyarux said, helped her get spotted by colleges as well as improve her tennis career.

Prinyarux said even if her tournaments are rigorous, she still strives to better herself and her future.

When not playing in tournaments during the summer, Prinyarux said she practices for five hours a day, with one hour being conditioning and the next four being serving or hitting balls. However, she said it all comes at a cost.

“During the summer, I sacrifice time with friends because my life consists of tennis,” Prinyarux said.

“It is hard to find a balance between tennis and friends.”

Prinyarux said she appreciates her parents for being so driven and supportive during her tennis career. “[My parents] sacrifice so much for me, so I am at that point where if I stop now, I am wasting everything that I have done for the past ten years,” Prinyarux said.

Eric Rand, Prinyarux’s coach, said

During summer conditioning, Prinyarux hits an overhead. (Photos

by Emma Johnson).

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Prinyarux prepares to hit a backhand. the hard work and dedication has paid off for her, as she is training for nationals.

“I sacrifice time with friends because my life consists of tennis.”

-alisa prinyarux “She has been improving at a pretty fast rate. She has been playing a pretty hefty schedule this summer,” Rand said. “She is trying to get ready to [go to] hardcore nationals in San Diego, so every team she plays she is working on things so she is ready for that.”

During her freshman season playing tennis for Blue Valley Northwest, she won state doubles with BVNW alum Kylee White and as a sophomore she placed third in state singles.

Her success and talent with tennis led her to national tournaments around the country where she said college coaches, like

those from Cornell and Columbia, have noticed her skills.

Chanawee Prinyarux, Prinyarux’s dad, believes his daughter should have an equity with her academics and sports in college.

“I would like to find a balance between tennis and academics, so we would be looking for the top division three colleges like Emory and Williams,” Chanawee said.

Rand also believes Prinyarux has a good chance at accomplishing her goals with tennis and academics in the future.

“The future for her is bright,” Rand said. “She will have lots of opportunities with lots colleges.

It will solely be based on what her goals are, academically or tennisrelated, whatever way she decides to accommodate those.”

According to Chanawee, he has seen Prinyarux grow because of the discipline that comes with playing tennis.

“The number one thing is that she got disciplined,” Chanawee said.

“She will be able to handle focus during a match, and she learned how to be tough but in a good way.”

Prinyarux said playing tennis for so long has taught her many life

lessons.

“Tennis taught me how to be a really good sport on and off the court,” Prinyarux said. “Also, [it taught me] how to respect your peers and off the court how to be respectful to teachers and classmates around you.”

Tennis terminolgy serve that lands inside the Ace- Alines and is untouched by the opponent

expression used when deuce- An the score is 40-40 and forth shots rally- Back across the court within a point

common type of overhead- Aserve

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living life

worldwide

by ellie diederich & kathryn case

Senior Cate McClain has traveled to five out of the seven continents at 17 years old.

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he’s 8,825 miles away from home, and senior Cate McClain and her family are in the depths of the African desert surrounded by a lifestyle nothing like their own. Diving deeper into the African way of life, they are escorted out of their hotel by an armed guard protecting them from the African wildlife.

Traveling overseas was not foreign

to McClain, as she had already explored other continents.

“It is cool that I can say I am 17 [years old] and I have already been to all of these places,” McClain said.

McClain’s passion for traveling began when her dad took their family to Europe where they visited Spain, France, Italy and Switzerland when she was in fourth grade.

While they were in Switzerland, they

visited the house their parents used to live in. McClain and her older brother, Jake, got a glimpse of what life was like when their parents lived in Switzerland, McClain said.

During their time in Switzerland, they visited Zurich, Bern, Fribourg, Interlaken, Zermatt, Lugano and Lausanne.

The McClains drove from Switzerland through Italy where they went to Milan.

In front of a waterfall in Africa, senior Cate McClain stands with her brother, Jake McClain, and their tour guide. (Photos courtesy of Cate McClain).

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McClain and her brother are at the top of Machu Picchu in Peru on a vacation in July 2015.

They drove down the Cote d’Azur into France. In France they visited Nice and Ville Franc, Monton and Monaco.

Her dad, Monty McClain, said he started traveling initially to Europe and Asia as part of his job with Koch Industries, but later decided to bring his family along to enjoy new places.

Monty said his job allowed him to live abroad, and fulfilled his desire to travel.

“I always had a case of wanderlust so to some extent my family just got dragged along,” Monty said.

As McClain and her brother traveled from place to place, their desire to travel grew, she said.

“It is something everyone is drawn to, but I am very fortunate that I am able to do it,” McClain said.

Although McClain has ventured to various countries, she enjoyed being in Zambia and Zimbabwe more than any other trip.

McClain expressed her love for the African trip as she talked about the family’s adventures there, like being face-to-face with a hippo. During their trip, the McClain family went on an open-door Jeep ride in the middle of a safari.

“It is different than what people

expect,” McClain said. “Stereotypes are different than the reality.”

McClain said the family’s unexpected experiences in Africa made it a memorable trip.

“I always had a case of wanderlust so to some extent my family just got dragged along.”

-Monty mcclain “There was something about it, it was so fascinating and eye-opening,” Jake McClain, Cate’s older brother said.

“You see a lot about Africa on the news, but being able to go to the largest cities they have there and see how built up it was and how different it is from the areas that are portrayed on the TV was really neat.”

While Africa was a memorable trip according to McClain, she has made other memories around the world.

While the McClains were in Peru, they hiked to Machu Picchu, one of the seven Wonders of the World and an

Incan ruins site.

“It is one of the most amazing things I have ever accomplished. There were several times I wanted to give up, but I wanted to be able to say I climbed Machu Picchu,” McClain said.

When possible, McClain said her family take a less-common approach to traveling across the world, as they fly to each country, then sail to each city on their trip. McClain vacationed on a boat for two weeks as part of the family’s journey to Spain in 2010.

It took the McClain family seven days to sail all the way around the island of Ibiza. During this time, they were able to visit six different locations within Ibiza.

Although they sailed around Ibiza, they also were able to see other cities while they were in Spain including Madrid, Barcelona and Seville.

“When we sail, we are in a different city somewhere else in the country every single night,” Jake said. “Sailing allows [you] to have more opportunities to explore, meet new people and immerse yourself more into the culture.”

Experiencing all these different cultures is what McClain said she enjoys

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On an open-door Jeep safari ride, McClain views the African wildlife on a trip in July 2013. most about traveling. Out of the cultures she has experienced, she said she appreciates Asian culture the most.

After visiting Thailand in the summer of 2014, McClain said she fell in love with the perfect mixture of beach and city and hopes to live there one day.

“I have experienced many viewpoints of how people see the world, how you should take it in and how to appreciate it by many people from different countries,” McClain said.

Getting to know different perspectives, she said, has made her more thankful for what she has as well

as she is more outgoing and openminded to trying new food and talking to new people.

For Jake, he said his experiences with other cultures has made him who he is today.

“I believe that traveling has opened our eyes to different cultures and people who are in this world,” Jake said.

“It has made us more well rounded, accepting [and] understanding individuals.”

If McClain did not have these traveling experiences, she said she would not be as thankful after

witnessing many diverse cultures, something her dad said traveling has given her.

“I hope it has given [McClain] a perspective of the world she wouldn’t get by staying at home, a perspective and a respect for different people and cultures,” Monty said. “At the same time, I think it helps her appreciate home, what she has, what she can do and what is available to her here.”

As well as McClain, Jake said he has gained a life-changing perspective of the world.

“Since I have been introduced to

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McClain poses with her brother in front of the Matterhorn in Switzerland.

McClain is with her brother in Tiananmen Square in Beijing on their family’s most recent trip to China, on July 30.

[traveling] I just have this hunger I need to feed,” Jake said. “I really enjoy traveling and being able to understand different cultures from my perspective.”

McClain said she plans on continuing her lifestyle as an avid traveler for as long as she can. As of now, she said she would like to live in Asia someday to continue learning about the Asian culture.

“I just really like the atmosphere of Asia,” McClain said. “The culture and history is amazing, and the cities are always filled with things you would never see in the United States.”

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Lifelong friends Junior Annabelle Nitz’s family found a way to help people and be introduced to cultures from around the world without needing to leave Johnson County.

By Katie Rodriguez and Raabia Qureshi

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ach spring, a group of about 100 to 200 international military students from allied nations, like Ghana, Germany and New Zealand, embark on a rigorous training program at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Ft. Leavenworth, Kan. To make the plunge into an American lifestyle less intimidating, each officer and their families are assigned three sponsors: a member of the U.S. Military, a sponsor family in the Leavenworth community and a sponsor family from the Greater Kansas City area through the program People to People.

Being one of the latter for 11 years, junior Annabelle Nitz and her family sponsor families from around the

world through this organization.

As a sponsor family, the Nitz’s said they’re expected to nurture a personal relationship with the officer and family they’ve been assigned over the course of their one year stay. They also need to introduce the families into an American lifestyle.

When Nitz was eight years old, her family hosted a family from Ghana.

Their familiarity with the outdoors and enthusiasm toward living in the United States prompted Nitz’s family to take them to Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead, Nitz said.

However, when the families got there and fed the goats with bottles of milk, Sam, the five year old boy from Ghana, misunderstood the purpose and took an approach the Nitz

family found humorous and odd.

“He didn’t understand why you would feed a goat with a bottle, so he just started drinking it,” Nitz said.

“It’s so funny that with an American kid you would never think to do that, but he didn’t understand. It’s funny and kind of shows that barrier.”

“You just can’t imagine just how enriching it is to your life until you’ve experienced 11 different countries and families.”

- Kim Nitz The Nitz family started their journey with the program when Nitz’s mom, Kim Nitz, along with her husband, were introduced to it at a benefit concert for veterans sponsored by People to People in downtown Kansas City, Mo., shortly after moving from Chicago.

After learning about People to People, Kim said her family was eager to get involved as soon as possible in order to expose her kids to the diversity the Kansas City area lacks in comparison to their previous home in Chicago.

“I think it kind of gave [her kids] a foundation for understanding that Junior Annabelle Nitz visiting a German family they sponsored in years past. (Photo courtesy of the Nitz family).

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the world is bigger than just what we see oftentimes in Johnson County,” Kim said.

At the end of the year-long sponsorship period, the mindset of both families are typically radically adjusted, Kim said. The warm and welcoming Midwest atmosphere goes a long way with the military families, she said, and described the enrichment her own family attains from the experience as invaluable.

While People to People is designed to be mutually beneficial in the way it enriches sponsor families like the Nitz’s and offers support and warmth to military families, there are challenges to overcome throughout the process, Nitz said.

“One year, we had a family from Germany, and the kids were older than me and my brother,” Nitz said, “and they weren’t as willing to be here and form those relationships.”

The age difference that sometimes exists between Nitz and the foreign family prevents her from creating a friendship and connect with the

family as a whole, she said.

Nitz said language barriers are also very prevalent. According to her, many of the military families come to this program knowing little to no English, especially the young children that are not yet fluent in their native languages. In order to overcome these barriers, patience is necessary, Kim said.

“Our family this year is from Indonesia. When they first got here and came to our home for dinner, we said, ‘Do you want to do some sports?’ and you know, they declined.

[But then] within an hour, we had all three non-English speaking, or the wife, daughter and son, downstairs in a massive ping-pong tournament,” Kim said.

It’s not uncommon for the Nitz’s to be faced with gaps in cultural standards, such as timeliness, when interacting with the officers and their families.

However, this has ultimately made them more sensitive to cultural differences, as well as the fact that

they can create deep, personal relationships in spite of them, Kim said.

“You just can’t imagine just how enriching it is to your life until you’ve experienced 11 different countries and families.”

- Kim Nitz Nitz said when they sponsored their first family, she was four years old and her brother was three years old, and the officer’s two daughters were around the same age. The two girls were from Switzerland and barely spoke their native German, much less any English.

“My brother didn’t understand that since he was too small, so he’d just yell at them louder and louder,

Breaking down People to People -Organization launched in 1956 by President dwight d. eisenhower -chapters located throughout africa, asia, europe, latin america, the mideast and the united states -120 international student delegations representing 90 countries who participated in the 2017-18 year

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because he didn’t understand they had no idea what he was saying.

Despite that, we still played Legos in the basement,” Nitz said. “You don’t have to be able to speak English to be able to build Legos.”

In fact, Kim said the relationships the Nitz family created with each one of the 11 sponsored families they have worked with continue to be present in their everyday lives, even after the family returns to their home country.

From baking homemade German bread to learning how to effectively communicate with people from a different background, Nitz said she and her family have implemented many valuable takeaways from participation in this program.

The Nitz’s plan to take a gap year from sponsoring families because of a busy schedule with two high school students taking away from the time commitments the sponsorship requires, Kim said. However, she said she hopes they’ll resume hosting families in the future.

Kim said she encourages everyone

to join the Greater Kansas City chapter of People to People, because the process to become a sponsor is painless and the benefits reaped are too great to comprehend until having the experience.

“It’s just been, all in all, a priceless experience,” Kim said. “You just can’t imagine how enriching it is to your life until you’ve experienced 11 different countries and families and made these lifelong friends that really change your world.”

*To find more information on the Greater Kansas City chapter of People to People, go to gkcptp.org.

Nitz discusses her experience with sponsoring families through the organization People to People. (Photo by Sara Maloney)

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Cool as ice

Photos by Maddie Beischel

Before the summer heat comes to a close, staff writer Danya Radhi visited some of Kansas City’s popular snow cone restaurants. Each restaurant is rated out of five snow cones.

By Danya Radhi

Lilo’s Shaved Ice 7617, 8300 N Oxford St. If you are looking for a perfectly balanced snow cone that is unique with its add-ons like Miami Ice, but also has the classic flavors like Hokulia, you have come to the right place! The biggest downside to Lilo’s right off the bat is the long drive, but it’s perfect if you

are ever in the North Kansas City area. The exterior is almost identical to that of Tad’s with the blue and white colored shack, yet Lilo’s is more aesthetically pleasing with their use of string lights and fonted logos. Similar to Hokulia, it is located in a parking

lot but has a much more secure feeling to it. Unlike the previous two, the 32 flavor options for Lilo’s are located on the side of the shack and are accompanied by toppings you can order, like condensed milk and chocolate sauce. Just like Miami Ice, the snow cones at Lilo’s are placed over ice cream, but Lilo’s uses multiple ice cream flavors: vanilla, coconut and coconut pineapple, to make sure everything works well together. This way, the vanilla can be paired with sweeter flavors while the tropical ones work well with the coconut and the coconut pineapple. When it comes to the cone itself, the ice was the perfect medium between the previous two locations. It was soft, like Hokulia’s, but the ice was

able to remain compact and firm enough, like Miami Ice, to eat enjoyably. The flavors were vibrant and lasted from the first bite to the last and mixed well together. For example, I got the one of Lilo’s premade combinations, the Arrowhead, which was pineapple mixed with tiger’s blood. To my surprise, the two flavors mixed amazingly!

The ice does tend to melt quickly and turn a bit sticky on the hands, but nothing too difficult to deal with.

Although far away, Lilo’s Shaved Ice has incredible snow cones that are packed with flavor while being the perfect consistency making them great for a hot day. Lilo’s is a definite go-to snow cone spot for the summer, if you have time to make the long drive.

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Miami Ice 1624 W 39th St.

Unlike Hokulia Shave Ice, Miami Ice is a walk-in, sitdown restaurant located in the outskirts of downtown Kansas City, MO. From the outside, Miami Ice stands out from the crowd with its vibrant mix of blue and pink detailing, and very retro

vibe given off from the LED signs and corner store-type set up. Once you approach the register, there are 37 different flavors that are recommended to be mixed.

One unique aspect about this store’s ice is that each snow cone sits atop their

classic vanilla ice cream.

The pairing of shaved ice and vanilla ice cream to me was just as controversial as pineapple on pizza, which did not mix well. I disliked how the creamy sweetness of the vanilla ice cream clashed with the textured sour aspect of the blue raspberry snow cone I tried. This being said, if you were to choose a sweet flavor, such as cotton candy, the ice cream may correspond very well. When it comes to the snow cone, there were a few faulty details that put Miami Ice at a disadvantage. First, the ice

Hokulia Shave Ice 13420 College Blvd.

By solely reading the name of this first location, it is apparent there is a tropical feel to it. Once you arrive, you are greeted by a very colorful and Hawaiianthemed shack, extremely similar to Tad’s. On the front windows there are 50 different flavors that range anywhere from Tiger’s Blood and Blue Raspberry to more unique flavors such as Li Hing Mui and Red Velvet.

You can opt into getting various add-ons such as coconut flakes or sour spray to make the ultimate snow cone and they even offer ice cream. They have three different sizes ranging from the small Short Board to the Big Kahuna. When it comes to portion sizes, Hokulia goes big or goes home with a heap of ice fit for Maui himself. Once you have your

ice, you can find your way to the shaded seating just left of the shack. One very unique aspect about Hokulia is that there are perfectly sized holes distributed around the table for you to place your cones in, helping to avoid spilling and stickiness while devouring your treat. When

it comes to the cone itself, it is executed to perfection.

The ice is extremely fluffy and melts in your mouth as you consume it, like frozen cotton candy. The flavoring is evenly distributed among the ice making each bite full of flavor.

was extremely compact and hard to scoop, making the experience very frustrating.

The flavoring was tasty but not well distributed within the cone making a few bites solely ice. As mentioned before, there is the pleasant surprise of ice cream at the bottom, so I would suggest getting a flavor that will correspond well with your ice. With a somewhat sketchy atmosphere due to the unfamiliar location and “run down” feel to the area, along with sub-par snow cones, Miami Ice is last on the list of my snow cone tour.

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2018-2019

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Kathryn Case Ellie Diederich Emma Gau Ben Hobbs Jonny Isaacson Naomi James Aidan Knauth Izze Lenfter Grace Miller Maddie Oliver Raabia Qureshi Danya Radhi Erin Reece Katie Rodriguez Lola Shipman Jenna Weyforth

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