Winter 2019 USJ

Journal The Union St.

Support for Minorities 05 Marching Band 16 Disney + 22

Vol. 5 Issue 3 Winter 2019 Cherry Creek High School 9300 E. Union Ave. Greenwood Village, CO 80111

con ent

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Organized non-profit

Downtown Lizzie

Non-profit Generation Tech receiving grant money for their new organization

Get to know different holiday attractions in downtown Denver

by Jane McCauley

by Lizzie Esses

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Thrift culture

Advisory feature

The environmental benefits and popularity of buying secondhand clothing

Creek’s attempt to fix mental health and the effectiveness of advisory

by Faith McCurdy

by Jane McCauley

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Marching band

What’s going on in China

After a successful marching band season, they had to weather the disappointment of missing finals

Understanding the current affairs with Hong Kong and the concentration camps

by Gracie Lordi

by Seung Lee and Carly Philpott

2 | Contents

COVER PHOTO BY GRACIE LORDI

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USJ STAFF

Editor-in-Chief Gracie Lordi

Photography Editor Seung Lee

Advisor Yoni Fine

Copy Editor Carly Philpott

Design Editor & Student Life Editor Faith McCurdy

Staff Writers Lauren Becerra Da’najzah Dorsey Allie Eliav Maayan Eshkenazi Lizzie Esses Ashley Garrett Deniz Gunes Samuel Heyman Calvin Lascor Tori Miranda Akash Shivakumaar Kiley Smich Alex Radin Jonathan Yoon

News Editor Jane McCauley A&E Editor Bre Mennenoh Opinions Editor Giovanni Machado Sports Editor & Web Editor Hannah Edelheit

Purpose:

The Union Street Journal is a student publication distributed to the students, faculty, and staff of Cherry Creek High School. The paper serves as an information source and a two-way communication forum for both the school and the community. Opinions expressed do not necessarily represent the views of Cherry Creek High School or the Cherry Creek School District. Letters to the editor are accepted and can be submitted via email to: unionstreetjournal@gmail.com Letters cannot be anonymous, and they may be edited for clarity.

Winter 2019

Generation Tech receives grant money

BY JANE MCCAULEY News Editor

It’s early on a Saturday morning at 1:30 at Holly Creek, a retirement community, where about a dozen Creek students gather around in the lobby. Excitement buzzes around as groups of students communicate with each other through walkie-talkies from other parts of the building in residents’ apartments.

Generation Tech is a non-profit that was created last year in December

by CEO senior Zachary Wang and President senior Simar Chadha. Its mission is to bring different generations together by teaching seniors how to use technology.

“Everyone has a new perspective and a new identity when they work with older adults. Everyone learns something new that they never would’ve expected,” Wang said. “Being able to be with someone so different and yet, in the end, so similar is so interesting.”

The organization is a place for students to volunteer, help, and connect with residents.

Yet the volunteers who continue to return to places such as Holly Creek on a weekly basis find that the help they give to the residents is equally returned. “[Students] go in, and they’re actually having genuine conversations with [residents].

Both parties actually benefit and create long standing connections between each other,” Chadha said. “It’s great to see that even if you’re one person going to help with technology for some older adults, you’re still making an impact on their individual lives.”

For volunteer director and junior Anjali Kurse, helping others with technology has always interested her even before she discovered Generation Tech. After helping her

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News | 4

PHOTO BY JANE MCCAULEY

STEP UP: Senior resident Hugh Petrie, 82, sits with freshman Nathan Sunker

at Holly Creek Retirement Community where Generation Tech aids the residents with technological problems they have. Sunker helped teach Petrie how to play the game Akinator on an Alexa that the program bought with their grant money. “It’s a wonderful little project. I love them,” Petrie said.

What’s great about our program is that we’re not only going in fixing their problem.

It’s about going in and building a connection between two generations.

a grant from the Next50 Initiative over the summer. It was $21,000 in total.

The money has been used to buy more technology such as Alexas that are used when volunteers visit senior communities and centers.

Students in the program gp every Saturday to senior centers, like Holly Creek, and entering rooms in groups of two to three to help residents with any technological problems from printers to TV set-up.

“We’re investing for the future, so we’re trying to buy technology,” Kurse said.

The program doesn’t require that the students who volunteer have advanced or more than average experience with technology since Creek’s students already have more knowledge than the residents.

“We always have programs within our organization that make sure everybody’s up to speed and that everybody is capable of doing the tasks that everyone else is,” Chadha said.

With the new grant money and attention drawn to the program, the organization has gained momentum for a solid future.

“We’re seniors. Once we leave, our impact is going to just continue to grow because we have this great foundation of leaders here that are being trained to pick up where we left off,” Chadha said.

-Senior Simar Chadha grandmother in India by setting up her TV shows over FaceTime, she remembered reading a flyer for the program, and joining the program just clicked.

“I love the relationship aspect of [Generation Tech]. I’ve always been very personable.

I love talking to people and getting to know people,” Kurse said.

GenerationTech also provides unique advantages for students who have preconceived ideas about what it is like to help older adults.

“I really like the people that we work with.

A lot of times on TV, you’ll see that older people are often portrayed as kind of ignorant, and that’s really not the case. They’re actually very nice,” said freshman Nathan Sunker.

The non-profit has picked up a lot of momentum since they applied for and received

Minorities meet to address issues at Creek

BY KILEY SMICH Staff Writer

PASS, Partnership of Academically Successful Students, is a meeting that happens once a month and dives into parent and student concerns at Creek, especially with the minority population.

Assistant Principal Marcus McDavid, one of the directors of PASS, says the goal of the group is to help find solutions to any problems or questions tdifferent community may have.

“We’re trying to just listen to the students talk about their experiences and challenges.

Where they felt like they had been supported, or where they felt like Cherry Creek High School needed to support them more,” McDavid said.

Caramel Rouse, a parent of a Creek graduate, feels that this group has benefitted and supported her daughter greatly.

“It has focused on how to help my daughter, who’s a minority, kind of find her way,” Rouse said.

These meetings have united minorities and given them opportunities to talk to one another to see if they happen to be dealing with similar issues. The meeting is also consistent with focusing on futures and colleges

for students.

“It’s given me information that I never would have known about had I not started coming to the past meetings every month,” Rouse said. “It was talking about how you go on to college if that’s what you choose to do and you’re able to find out if college is not for you.”

Senior Crystalina Wedlaw was one of the few students chosen to do a student panel at a past meeting. Wedlaw, along with other minority students, got the opportunity to talk about their experiences and views about what they thought needed to be addressed.

“It gave me a voice to be able to speak about the issues happening that sometimes the adults don’t necessarily solve,” Wedlaw said. “I think it could help with unity by letting minorities voices be heard.”

It is a challenge for educators to talk about race in a productive manner without someone feeling offended or hurt. PASS addresses these concerns and works towards creating a better environment for the minorities of Creek.

“We’re making efforts to work with our teachers so that race and equity and educa-

tion are all in the same conversation,” McDavid said.

Principal Ryan Silva is also engaged in PASS and has made it a priority of his to address the minority community at Creek. Silva is regularly communicating with parents and students who need support and help with their futures outside of school.

“The purpose is to share what’s going on at the school with parents,” Silva said. “It’s important to get perspectives [from] all.”

Marilyn Pelch, parent of a current Creek student, feels this meeting is a good support group for kids from different ethnicities.

“You have a set of parents are advocating for their kids, making sure their kids are comfortable and welcome in an environment where they are minorities,” Pelch said.

PASS is a great resource that is useful for students who are concerned and are seeking answers or comfort at Creek.

“I want to make sure that when kids say ‘I go to Cherry Creek High School’, that they’re a part of the culture and influencing the culture rather than [haveing] to adapt to the culture,” McDavid said.

AFTER 15 YEARS: English

and social studies secretary Mary Ann Goff plans on retiring at the end of this year.

“It’s going to be very hard having her gone,” Social Studies Department Coordinator Mike Kraft said. “She basically runs this place.”

Goff says she plans on visiting Hawaii in Feburary with her husband who is also retiring this year. Goff also wants to visit her grandkids more and take piano lessons during her free time.

“These kids are great. The teachers are great. It’s like a family. That’s the thing I’m going to miss the most,” Goff said.

PHOTO BY GRACIE LORDI

Winter 2019

Activism with a click

BY TORI MIRANDA Staff Writer

Activists are highly praised for their confidence to stand up for their opinions and share them passionately. But with new websites and social media platforms, many people have questioned whether online activism is effective, leading to the coining of the term slacktivism.

Slacktivism is known as supporting a cause with social media or online petitions and with least amount of effort and commitment. Change.org is a website that allows anyone to create petitions online. All you need is an email. Over the past few months, there has been a surge of online petitions related to the Cherry Creek School District on this website.

Two Cherokee Trail High School freshmen, Elly Salaz and Skylar Gaines, created an online petition to get all of the Cherry Creek School District to have no school the day after Halloween. This petition has reached almost 100,000 signatures, far exceeding their expectations.

“I really wanted to see how many people were wanting November 1st off,” Gaines said.

“But I didn’t expect us to have so many signatures in just one week.”

Creek senior Zach Gauthier created another online petition requesting a change in the administration at the district level.

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Gauthier made this petition after the district did not call a snow day during a heavy storm.

He felt that students’ safety was put at risk because of severe weather conditions.

“I want the administration to know that some kids aren’t happy with what’s going on.

I think the administration needs to listen to us a little more,” Gauthier said.

There have been several other online petitions made asking for changes. An unknown user created a petition to get rid of the ID requirement at Creek. Another Creek student that has graduated created a petition to arm teachers.

Both Gauthier and the CT freshmen said they hadn’t followed up on their petitions by scheduling any meetings with administrators at the school or district level. Gauthier said that he has mentioned it to teachers, but no steps forward were made. Gaines expressed interest in speaking to an administrator but admitted that she has not mentioned it to anyone other than a few friends so far.

This brings up the question: are these petitions effective, or are they a form of slacktivism?

At the district level, the petitions have not done anything. At the school level, the petitions have sparked an interest among students, but there has been no further discussion among most of the faculty. Principal Ryan Silva was surprised to know that these petitions were going around school when he wasn’t aware of them at all.

“If there’s e n e r g y around a topic, then you need to let people know. Doing

if there’s energy around a topic, then you need to let people know. Doing it through social media or even hardcopy is great, but just getting signatures doesn’t actually do anything. You actually have to talk.”

-Principal Ryan Silva

6 | News

it through social media or even hardcopy is great, but just getting signatures doesn’t actually do anything. You actually have to talk,” Silva said.

If students are pushing for a change, it is something that all administrators automatically have on their radar. However, there is no ability for them to be aware of the issue if no one talks about it. Simple communication is key. Every student has the ability to meet with an administrator to discuss issues if they chose to do so.

The possibility of students approaching Silva or other administrators with a change they would like to see is encouraged. Silva has taken different student-initiated ideas that have helped make a difference in the Creek community for the past school year.

“Last year, in the spring, I met with students to talk about things that impact mental health,” Silva said. “The different themes that came up were technology, the lack of relationships with students and teachers, and also homework. So advisory was born out of that input we got from students.”

From this, students, staff, and faculty also formed a technology committee that has helped manage the best use of technology at Creek. The key to these changes being made was communication. When Creek was in a mental health crisis during second semester last year, several students pushed for differences to be made; this was the outcome.

“Once we’re able to have a conversation, then you can start to see action process happen,” Silva said. “It doesn’t mean that just because there’s a petition, and somebody comes up to you that you just do it. It has to lead to people being involved.”

These petitions have shown student interest, evidently by how many signatures they have gotten. The lack of information that administrators have concerning these topics, however, shows that they have been ineffective thus far.

“What I think would be more important is that there’s a dialogue so that people have a better understanding of why,” Silva said. “You have all different types of stakeholders be part of the conversation to craft a plan that works for everybody.”

S t u d e n t ’s photo recognized nationally

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This is a picture I took of my dad’s hand and my grandma’s hand two days before she passed away. My grandma lived to be 94 years old, but she suffered from Alzheimer’s. Out of all the photography classes, over 100 images were considered by the school to be entered into the 2019 Scholastic Art & Writing competition. Only 16 images were chosen, and mine was one of the 16. When I was entering my picture, I saw there was another competition called “New York Life Award” which is a national competition where six pictures are chosen that show personal loss, grief, and bereavement. [Photography teacher Todd] Adams and I decided to also enter my picture into that competition to see how well it [would do]. Photography has always been a passion of mine, and it feels amazing that it is being recognized at a state and national level. To me, this picture represents love and family.

-Sophomore Kimmy Huckabee

PHOTO BY KIMMY HUCKABEE

Winter 2019

How Spectrum can help

BY KYLIE SMICH Staff Writer

Junior Jamie Ryan, the co-president of the Spectrum Club, believes that there is a huge stigma around the queer community and that the topic is constantly avoided.

“I definitely think the general perception of the queer community here isn’t negative; it is just silent,” Ryan said.

According to Ryan, the Spectrum club is known around campus, but not for what they actually do.

“We’re definitely known as just the gay club where the gays hang out.

[People think] they all date each other or whatever, but in reality, we do work,” Ryan said.

Ryan identifies as non-binary, meaning they don’t identify as male or female. They believe the club has really helped and supported them and others in the club.

“Once you go in there, no one is going to shame you for being who you are,” Ryan said. “You are welcome

8 | Student Life

there no matter what, whether you be an ally, or you’re questioning, or you are part of the community.

Ryan has also explicitly said that there is some fear that comes along with being a part of the LGBTQ+ community at Creek.

“It was the little things like hearing the F-slur, or hearing ‘that’s so gay.’

Things like that really break down who you are and how comfortable you are and how you feel,” Ryan said.

Spectrum Club has helped.

“I think it’s really hard to talk to people when you have a certain identity at the school because there’s just such an isolation [around] being queer here,” Ryan said.

The Spectrum Club unifies the LGBTQ+ community and helps with this feeling of being alone and not finding comfort.

“We just want people to feel safe because that is all we could ever ask for in any high school environment or

any environment,” Ryan said.

One way the club does that is by being a forum to discuss common problems, like that of teachers using non-preferred pronouns.

“I run into a lot of problems of substitutes not understanding my gender or teachers not understanding my gender as I prefer,” Ryan said. “We just want to live our lives and be ourselves peacefully.”

Right now, Spectrum is actively working on proposing all-gendered bathrooms and doing clothing and food drives.

“Something we’re working for is just to be taken seriously because we are a serious club. We do serious things,” Ryan said. “We care so deeply about changing this school for the better for the queer community and other communities.”

PHOTO BY SEUNG LEE

DOWNTOWN

LIZZIE

BY LIZZIE ESSES Staff Writer

Mile High Tree November 30 -January 31 Free

Fetch Holiday Market November 30-December 1, December 6-8, and December 13-15 $5-10

Though the very large electronic tree is the main attraction, the event also offers multiple festivities.

Located at Sculpture Park in the Denver Performing Arts Complex, visitors can go inside of the tree for an immersive experience, listen to live music, and watch light performances every 30 minutes.

The music features classic songs from many holiday traditions, including Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. The Performing Arts Complex is a great way to experience art year-round, but the Mile High Tree is an installation worth visiting.

Bonus: Canine friends have the opportunity to meet Santa on Dec. 22.

The Holiday Market, located at the Denver Sports Castle, hosts many vendors during the winter. Not only is it a convenient option for holiday shopping, but it’s also a fantastic opportunity to experience Denver in the wintertime. Though it may not be the greatest activity for younger children, it’s a fun and productive option nonetheless. One weekend passes are $5 and three weekend passes are $10.

Downtown Denver Ice Rink November 26-February 16 Free (with $9 skate rental)

Denver puts up a whole ice rink in the middle of Downtown’s Skyline Park.

It’s free, though you have to pay $9 to rent skates. It’s a fun and active outdoor option which is rare in the winter time.

Zoo Lights November 29-December 30 $15-20

A classic staple of Denver’s winter culture is the Denver Zoo’s massive 80-acre light show. Over a million lights are hung throughout the zoo with fantastic photo opportunities at every turn. Though it’s an after hours event, it’s a great attraction for all ages, children and adults alike. Important Note: Zoo Lights tends to sell out quickly, so you should grab your tickets in advance.

Night Lights Denver November 7-January 31 Free

The Denver Theatre District projects artwork onto the Daniel’s & Fisher Tower every Thursday through Saturday. It’s not a full activity, but it is a great city centerpiece and photo opportunity. Definitely worth a visit, especially during a nighttime city exploration.

ART BY FAITH MCCURDY

Winter 2019

A personal Star Wars ranking to argue about

Empire Strikes Back

The Empire Strikes Back has all of the scenes that everyone remembers: from the first encounter with Yoda, to the Battle on Hoth, to the duel between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader. This movie has it all. The cherry on top is the movie’s end with the villain winning, allowing for a triumphant comeback in Return of the Jedi.

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A New Hope

This is where it all started. A movie about a young farmhand from Tatooine inspired many to fall into a galaxy far, far away. The writing and directing of George Lucas made this world so special, but the score of John Williams adds depth to this movie. However, A New Hope has too much world-building that can get old after a while.

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Return of the Jedi

The final movie of the original trilogy, Return of the Jedi polishes off the Rebel Alliance’s victory and the fall of the Empire. This movie may be the weakest of the original trilogy, but it isn’t bad.

Viewers get to witness the strength of the Emperor, but some scenes are a bit childlike and uncharacteristic for what is typically in Star Wars.

Revenge of the Sith

While many viewers’ main criticism is the portrayal of Anakin Skywalker, I think that Christensen did a spectacular job with what he was given. Anakin succumbs to the dark side, there’s the “droid attack on the Wookies,” and the fall of General Grievous. The movie feels a bit rushed, but not enough to lower it on my list.

BY AKASH SHIVAKUMAAR & ALEX RADIN Staff Writers

With the upcoming Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and its very mysterious trailer, there is much speculation as to what will occur in the movie. Whether Rey is really evil or Palpatine is still alive, it’s all a blur to conspiracy theorists and fans alike. In the trailer, we can see plenty of new planets and scenes, but as usual, the trailer mainly serves to intrigue the audience. It makes us all wonder: what is Disney really planning for the end of the 3-part trilogy saga?

So far, Rey has been developed as a clear protagonist, and Kylo Ren as an antagonist.

Yet, we see them work together in the trailer as they did briefly in the previous movie: The Last Jedi. This makes sense because

10 | A&E

we see how Kylo’s parents are both heroic rebels. Many hope to see character development in the next movie as director JJ Abrams has kept much of this a secret.

“I think Kylo will switch sides and sacrifice himself for the rebels,” freshman Gankhuyag Nyamdorj said.

With much talk surrounding Kylo switching sides, there is also much speculation of Rey becoming a Sith due to a scene in the first trailer where she is wielding a dual-sided red lightsaber. Many believe this may happen because in The Last Jedi, Rey explores the conflict between Light and Dark. She is scared of her pull to the Dark side, so fighting a dark version of herself

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Phantom Menace

The Last Jedi

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Revenge of the Syth

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The Force Awakens

Hopes and fears for The Rise of Skywalker

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CCHS students’ favorite Star Wars Movies Return of the Jedi

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The Empire Strikes Back

With one goal in mind, other than making Disney money, Rogue One explores how the Rebel Alliance obtained plans that were vital to the plot of A New Hope. This allowed the movie to explore morality within the Rebellion and deliver some of the most powerful scenes of Darth Vader.

A New Hope

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Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Attack of the Clo nes

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BY SEAN ARFIN Contributing Writer

would be a logical way to face her fear of that vision coming true.

These are all points covered by the trailer; however, some fans, like freshman Nate Kretchmer, have other ideas that they think could improve the movie.

“I want Luke to come back as a ghost and fight Palpatine while Rey and Kylo fight on the Death Star,” Kretchmer said.

All these possibilities and conspiracies introduced in the trailers for the final movie would make great conclusions to the saga, but, no matter which direction the franchise takes, fans can be sure that Episode IX will be one to remember.

PHOTOILLUSTRATION BY ALEX RADIN

thrift culture

m g e w .

y, e t d. of a r s.

the rise in popularity of buying second hand

BY FAITH MCCURDY

Student Life & Design Editor

STYLES: Senior Emma Stengel looks through jackets at Arc Thrift store. Stengel prefers thrift stores because she is able to find clothing that is affordable, unique, and environmentally friendly.

CONVENIENCE: These are senior Cole Motsenbocker’s favorite thrifted clothing items from Buffalo Exchange and Arc Thrift. Motsenbocker prefers Buffalo Exchange because of the brands names that are easier to find there.

A few times a month, senior Emma Stengel chooses to spend her Saturdays sifting through brightly colored cardigans and floral print midi skirts to find what she hopes to be the perfect clothing item. At thrift stores like Arc Thrift and Buffalo Exchange, she looks through racks and racks of secondhand clothing, not only for accessibility, but also for ethical reasons.

“At first it was because I liked the fashion and it’s affordable, but now it’s because of [other] reasons,” Stengel said. “[It’s] because of the environmental aspect. I’m [doing] it to try to reduce the amount of waste I’m producing.”

Thrifting has become more and more popular over the past few years and has grown 21 times faster than the retail market, according to GlobalData. With the rise in popularity, the reasons why people thrift ranges.

“A lot of celebrities are [thrifting] now. It’s gotten a lot more popular in media,” senior Cole Motsenbocker said. “People might not have thought to [thrift] that much, but it’s becoming a lot more mainstream.”

With mass attention cast upon thrift culture, many celebrities have brought hype to buying secondhand by posting about it on social media and platforms such as YouTube. ‘Immersive shopping’ has become the number one largest trend on YouTube, according to MediaKix, and “hauls” and “shop with me” thrifting videos are included in this.

“People have started thrifting because of celebrities which is good

because it makes an environmental friendly option trendy,” Motsenbocker said. “I think that social media influencers are the ones who have started this whole thrifting revolution.”

In America, 85% of clothing that could be recycled ends up being thrown away. This has led to different clothing textiles accumulating almost 10% of solid waste that Americans produce, according to The Saturday Evening Post. And while many people have started noticing the current environmental crisis, many don’t understand how much clothing plays a part in this. “[Since] people can’t see the immediate cost, like the negatives of producing so much waste, so there’s not any immediate change happening right now,” Stengel said. “I do wish more people would be more environmentally conscious.”

With the environmental benefit that thrifting brings, it also helps to connect communities. Some of the most common thrift stores also act as a non-profit. Arc Thrift helps fund programs that serve individuals living with developmental disabilities, and Goodwill serves to fund different community programs like job training and placement services.

“With thrifting, I guess you get more than you give. It’s good to increase the lifespan of [an] item of clothing,” said sophomore Anna Olsen. “But mainly, you can help the environment and different people just because you like some clothing.”

PHOTOS BY FAITH MCCURDY

Winter 2019

Stuck under the surface

Advisory attempts to improve Creek’s mental health

BY JANE MCCAULEY News Editor

It’s been eight months since the most recent suicide at Creek. With hope to stabilize the mental atmosphere, administration implemented the new advisory period.

But the majority of both students and teachers feel that although it is helpful academically, advisory isn’t making the intended impact – to provide emotional support in a comfortable and safe space for students.

“I do feel that in light of what happened last year we needed to take some real steps towards trying to address those concerns,” social studies teacher Matthew Buddington said. “I’ve got to say, I do applaud the school for taking positive steps to try to build a sense of community and support for students.”

By providing a solution so quickly, there is always the possibility that new problems arise. Many believe it was just a quick fix to a much bigger problem.

“I think the main thing to keep in mind is that we’ve done something that Creek doesn’t usually do, and that is jumping in and inventing as we go. The Creek way traditionally has been, ‘plan it out, sort it out, vet it, research it out, suss it out, and then make a move,’” English Department Faculty Senator Loreen Hughes said. “That’s a part of where some of the difficulties are coming from because we are kind of inventing this as we go.”

Many upperclassmen believe that by putting a group of random students with a teacher with little to no knowledge of their history together, relationships built on trust

12 | Feature

and closeness aren’t possible.

“Advisory, as admirable as the effort is, can’t succeed in what it wants to do which is create a sense of community when it throws two dozen students who barely know each other together for half an hour each week,” junior Sarah Bian said. “I appreciate the effort to try to help support us, but right now, it is a give and take situation.”

According to a poll of 486 Creek students, 58% of the student body approves of advisory’s intentions, but 65% feel that is has no impact on their mental health at all. If advisory is to stay within the schedule, it seems that more students need to see an impact on their overall well-being.

Many students are appreciative of the

How has Advisory influenced your mental health?

POLL OF 486

65% - Not at all 28% - Positively 7% - Negatively

time advisory provides to complete homework and other assignments though. Aside from getting time to finish work, most students believe that the time spent on actually teaching or talking about the students’ mental health hasn’t progressed.

“The discussions and TedTalks shown during the period always end up being the jokes of the day,” senior Austin McBride said.

And it isn’t just the students who feel that advisory was a rushed solution. There are also difficulties due to the short amount of time teachers and faculty were able to prepare for teaching the period. The only training teachers received was one Sources of Strength meeting at the beginning of the year about what advisory was, what it would look like, and how to talk to the students.

But many students don’t feel that even the limited amount of teacher’s training is reflected in the classroom, but some, like senior Vida Elekovic, understand why that is. “[The teachers] don’t really know what they’re doing quite yet, and I feel like my teacher doesn’t really know what he’s doing quite yet. That’s totally fine because it’s the first year. People are trying to learn about it and see how to help kids,” Elekovic said.

With this year being the first to have the advisory period, sudden changes like this are bound to need more time to take effect and make noticeable changes, especially at a school with over 3,700 students.

“I don’t know what it’s going to look like two years from now or five years from now,” video production teacher David Gamelin said. “We’re just learning what to do with that class period. [With] something this new, it takes a little time to figure out how to wisely use that time. I know that there’s potential here. But what that is, I’m not sure.”

Advisory has especially proven difficult to convince seniors that it will make an impact on them.

“I think that advisory might be helpful for [underclassmen] since they will be staying with the class for multiple years, but having the class for the first time as a senior is kind of useless. In our advisory they make us play name games and talk about our men-

“

tal health, but it’s stupid. We are graduating,” senior Armando Guadiana said. “We either already know these people or we don’t care because we are leaving soon. I could be using the time more effectively by working on college applications, but we don’t get to do that.”

Some students wonder if it is even possible for advisory to work. Part of the problem for some students seems to be the forced feeling of the period, which would keep students from actually opening up.

“I don’t think that if kids are struggling, they’re really going to speak up in that kind of environment considering they don’t know most people. We don’t know each other’s names, and nobody asks,” Elekovic

For

“Along with it being a good time to finish some last minute homework, I see the point in [advisory], and I think if students gave it a chance, then it will be great for what it’s there for. I feel like if students gave a little bit more effort into Advisory, then they could have a community of people they wouldn’t expect to have. Strangers are just friends you haven’t met yet.”

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-senior Mackenzie Opp

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“It gives us the opportunity to take some time and reflect on our mental health. I think it is a great idea because it is the staff and school community showing their support and care for the students.”

PHOTO BY GRACIE LORDI

-freshman Sawyer Billingsen

said.

Advisory is not going anywhere, and at the beginning of next year, all five of the traditional high schools in the Cherry Creek District will have the advisory period. Yet students remain hopeful that it will still make an impact.

“The concept of Advisory has good intentions, and I think it is good to have a safe space built into your school community to express whatever emotions may be bugging you and to foster positivity among ourselves. However, I think when it goes into practice, the system starts to fall apart. The system is still in its infancy, and a lot of its kinks seem like they need to be worked out before any good can really come of it,” senior Ava Palicki said.

Against

“If we look at advisory for its real purpose, it feels more like a quick fix. If advisory is going to be better in the long run, there needs to be a conversation about what’s going at Creek. What are the causes of all the mental health issues going on at Creek and what can we do as a community to change it for the better? Ignoring the issues and just saying, ‘oh, you can talk to a trusted adult at school,’ is like patching up a gaping wound with a band aid.

“

-senior Kevin Nguyen

“Advisory is not preventing any student from committing suicide. If anything, it seems to be increasing stress among students. Advisory is another class taking more time from our day as students. Teachers need more time. Students need more time. Advisory is attempting to force students to connect with teachers. I want to have natural connections and feel as if I can talk to trusted adults on my own terms.”

-junior Shayla Patton

Winter 2019

Girls basketball aiming for another historic season

BY GIOVANNI MACHADO Opinions Editor

The score is 49-49. After being behind for the entire game, Creek finally manages to tie the game with 23.5 seconds left on the clock.

Senior Jana Van Gytenbeek gets the ball, stalls for ten seconds, and then passes it to junior KaCee Kyle, who holds the ball and gives it back to Van Gytenbeek with roughly ten seconds left on the clock. Van Gytenbeek dribbles into the paint and attempts a layup with only three and a half seconds left on the clock. She makes it.

That’s how the season ended on Mar. 9. That night went down in Creek history as possibly the most important night for Creek’s girls basketball: their first state championship title ever. And now, Van Gytenbeek, who recently signed to play for Stanford next year, looks forward to repeating last year’s groundbreaking performance.

“Last season was a great experience because we got a new coach and basically got to build

from the ground up, not only focusing on defense and offense but creating a family as well,” Van Gytenbeek said. “That being said, I think we can repeat what we did last year but we have a long way to go and everyone needs to buy into the process again.”

Last year was the first year of the girls basketball program under Clint Evans’ coaching. After winning the state championship on his first year as Creek’s head coach, Evan longs for an equally good season.

“That championship game was probably the best atmosphere I’ve been a part of as a coach,” Evans said. “Those are the games that the girls remember, so I just hope to get in a situation where they get to make more memories.”

After setting the bar so high, the expectations for the season are clear: to win state.

Again.

“We want to get back to state and we want to win a state championship,” senior Cali Clark said. “We need to have that mindset to get there, but we all know that we need to put in work and there’s a lot to work to be done.”

Clark believes that after last year’s remarkable performance, other Colorado teams will have a different approach towards Creek.

“There’s definitely a bigger target on our backs now,” Clark said. “There was already one, us being Creek. But now that we’re state champions, people are not going to want us to win two in a row or three in a row.”

Even though most of the players already got to the top, no one thinks they should settle

down or that the work is done.

“We have big shoes to fill, and we are excited about this season,” Van Gytenbeek said. “I’m glad we got it done last year, but getting it done this year would make it so much sweeter.”

Evans has the advantage of working with pretty much the same team he worked with last year since only two of his players graduated in 2019. This will be an advantage considering the complexity of Evans’ set plays.

“The girls know my expectations you know, we run a lot of sets. And so they already have a background,” Evans said. “Now it’s just natural. They just go and do it, so that will allow us to work on other things and allow us to get better individually because we probably don’t have to spend as much team time on stuff.”

Evans acknowledges that the team he has on his hands is not a team you see every day and hopes that people come and support the team this year.

“This is the best team I’ve ever had,” Evans said. “I think it’s worth coming out and watching it.”

“

That championship game was probably the best atmosphere I’ve been a part of as a coach,’’ - Coach Clint Evans

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT: Junior KaCee Kyle practices for an upcoming girls varsity basketball game against Cherokee Trail on Jan. 8 at 5:30pm.

14 | Sports

PHOTO BY GIOVANNI MACHADO PHOTOILLUSTRATION BY HANNAH EDELHEIT

JV 2 just keeps swimmin’

PHOTO BY ASHLEY GARRETT

BY ASHLEY GARRETT Staff Writer

For girls joining the JV Swim teams, there is now a change for those who don’t make it onto JV1.

While there used to be a JV2 team, Coach Eric Craven decided to cut the team last year and make one large JV team. The problem with that was that team would have to practice at night, and many students weren’t able to as they were a part of other activities.

Many of the students were disappointed to hear that their team had been cut.

“I was really sad that I might not have been able to swim the last year of my high school years,” JV 2 captain senior Sarah Lytle said. “I was a little surprised because I wasn’t really aware about the possibility of the cut.”

Some of the girls also felt upset because they were in danger of losing their team.

“When I found out the team was cut I was really upset and disappointed because it was so abrupt,” junior Nicole Bensonsaid. “The swim community and family we built would be changed.”

Since some students weren’t able to even swim with JV1 and were just learning to swim competitively, it meant that they were going to lose their shot at competing. The two volunteer coaches stepped up, even though they had no swim training before this.

“They push us to do our best and contribute knowledge and

skills to help us constantly improve,” Benson said. “Their time and dedication [are] amazing.”

The teams are placed through time trials which is where swimmers compete in different events and the thirty five lowest times are on varsity, the next forty people make JV1, and the rest go into JV2.

“The JV1 team is a little faster and more established than the JV2 team as the JV2 team is just learning the concept of competitive swimming,” Craven said.

Many of students are not able to make it on the varsity or JV1 team and that means that JV2 is their only option.

“A lot of freshmen can’t make varsity or JV1 so I felt bad that they wouldn’t have the opportunity to swim,” Lytle said.

Meets also look different between the two Junior Varsity teams. There are only four swimmers allowed in each event from the entire team, including varsity and both of the junior varsity teams. Since JV2 is already a JV team it will be harder to have them practice with the rest. “[The JV 2 team] isn’t going to get as many meets as JV1 and varsity” Craven said. “It’s pretty hard to get in 85 girls when you are only allowed to put four swimmers in each event.”

The Varsity team needs to be able to practice as they are the most experienced swimmers and it’s a goal for the JV swimmers to work their way up the teams.

“JV1 is the next team below

them so they are trying to move up to varsity, so they [varsity] are going to get more meets than JV2,” Craven said.

With the assistance of Creek’s prospective swim team parents, the girls were able to continue practicing swim and dive in an organized community setting.

“It is probably one of the only sports that gets this many girls for the amount of lanes that we have,” said Coach Craven. “I

think there were a lot of parents [who volunteered] for swimmers that were on the JV2 team, and they were like no we can’t let this happen.”

Now, the team is closer than ever to being a family.

“We gave a good connection and the captain’s have worked to get us to be a team,” said senior Katya Ostopowicz.

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16 | Sports

Season of change

BY GRACIE LORDI Editor-in-Chief

Last year, marching band didn’t make state finals for the first year in nine seasons.

“We all were, the upperclassmen in particular, kind of coming back with a vengeance,” senior Stewart Rojec said.

And the band did just that this year. Placing 2nd in the Metro Region and 7th overall in Colorado, this is the best they’ve done in Rojec’s four years and getting closeest they’ve been to breaking Creek’s record of 6th overall in the state.

Going to finals is a big deal for marching band.

It’s an experience that they look forward to and work towards every year. Because of snow, however, the competition was cancelled this year.

The Colorado Band Association State Championship typically consists of about 30 bands convening and duking it out for the state title.

Between spectators and performers about 8,000 people attend.

The Air Force Academy is the only venue that can accommodate a competition of that nature, but with that, it creates a novel experience for the teams that get there. For Creek band, it’s a tradition that brings the team closer together.

“It’s pretty exhilarating performing there, because it’s huge,” Rojec said. “And we get our picture taken and everyone cries outside the buses, and it’s very ritualistic. It’s very structured and everyone’s used to it and it didn’t happen. So yeah, it just felt kind of hollow.”

This year’s band season has been a year of change, increasing from the typical 120 members to 136.

In previous years, the marching band purchased packages of pre-arranged music. This year was unique in that the score and show were custom designed. The theme “trains” included a

small train that was used in the performance as well as a variety of train-related songs.

“We started from scratch. We built this completely from from ground zero. So, we picked music that we liked,” Band Director Tim Libby said The score includes songs with obvious train connections like “Crazy Train” and “Last Train Home” by Pat Metheny. It also contained more nuanced songs such as one from a movie where the song is played during a fight happening on a train.

Alongside custom-arranged music and a bigger band, Libby implemented a new marching technique that he learned in a band convention over the summer.

“That made some positive impacts too because we changed our techniques slightly to be a little more uniform, and a little cleaner.”

All of these factors were game changers for the band and propelled them through the competitions. That’s what made the cancellation that much more disappointing.

The band was able to play a final show for friends, family, and fellow students at Stutler Bowl on Oct. 26. Rojec described it as a “nice sense of closure” despite not having been able to perform one last time in front of the judges.

Aside from the abrupt end to the season, the band made many changes that excelled their performance to the top tier. Libby looks forward to the next coming years, but appreciates all that occurred this year “It was one of the most fun seasons I’ve had. And they all worked very hard.

And they had a good attitude all year long. It was really a pleasure,” Libby said.

PHOTO BY GRACIE LORDI

Winter 2019

What you need to know about

CHINA More than

2 million Muslims imprisoned Around

1 million

Protesters in Hong Kong on June 9 according to the protesters More than

4,491

Protesters injured Around

2,600

Protesters arrested And

2 Dead Protesters

18 | Opinions

Stand with Uyghur Muslims Missing persons. Desecration of religious monuments. Experimenting on children. Brainwashing. These are all warning signs of minority persecution that the 1930s and 40s taught us to look for.

But this isn’t Nazi Germany. This is modern-day China, and Uyghur Muslims are the target.

For several years, China has been interning Uyghur people in camps with the purpose of ‘re-education,’ claiming that the camps were schools. More recently, however, it has become evident that these camps are a clear violation of human rights, and the detainment of the Uyghur Muslims is involuntary and inhumane.

CNN estimates that as many as two million Uyghur Muslims are currently detained in camps in Western China. The conditions are awful, and brainwashing is rampant, says BBC. And while the Chinese government claims these camps are schools, their policies indicate otherwise.

A leaked Chinese memo urged camp staff to promote heavy security, controlling every aspect of detainees’ lives.

Recent evidence has even shown that the Chinese government could be illegally harvesting detainees’ organs for transplants. China’s transplant market produces about $1 billion a year, says NBC, and much of that is illegal.

And yet, while several countries have issued statements against the Chinese internment camps, none of them have taken any real action against China.

These camps are a clear violation of human rights in so many ways. So why is no one doing anything about it?

In July, 22 countries, including the US and several other global powers, wrote a letter condemning the internment of Uyghur Muslims. They urged China to stop these practices.

But this letter was not addressed to China. Instead, it was intended for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet. Its authors begged her to take action, but their efforts did not have any direct consequences on China.

Since China became a modern global

BY CARLY PHILPOTT Staff Writer

power with the rise of the Communist Party in the twentieth century, other global powers have been reluctant to take a stand against them. It’s true that China has a massive influence on the global economy; without them, many countries would lose their main trading asset and with it, money.

Large countries that rely heavily on China for trade often tiptoe around Chinese issues, no matter how pressing. China still claims sovereignty over Taiwan, for example, so while Taiwan functions as an independent country, only 14 out of 193 countries in the UN recognize it as one. The same goes for the concentration camps: nations don’t want to get on China’s bad side.

But the US could take that risk. Because of the sheer size of our economy and military, we have the power to stand up to China. And if we take our stand, others will be quick to follow.

Sometimes, it’s hard to know when to intervene in foreign affairs. We have a complicated history with foreign involvement; sometimes, it goes well, sometimes not. But it’s undeniable that freedom of speech and freedom to practice your religion are not only American rights, but human rights, and the United States has established itself as a leader in defending them.

If the US were to take drastic action such as suspending Chinese investments and trade, other countries would follow.

And if the whole world stands up to China, China will have no choice but to eliminate the concentration camps.

About two million people are currently in captivity, and no country is doing anything concrete to stop it. By taking action, the US would lead other countries to do the same.

This is no longer a question of maintaining impeccable relations with China.

It is a question of whether we’ll be on the right side of history. More importantly, it’s a question of maintaining basic human rights and justice for an unfairly oppressed minority group, the Uyghur Muslims.

Liberate Hong Kong Trigger warning: this article contains mentions of rape.

There’s an ongoing crisis riddled with violence and corruption that’s happening in Hong Kong, and it needs your attention.

To get a better understanding of the Hong Kong protests, it’s vital to know the history of the region and its relationship to mainland China.

Hong Kong is practically its own country with its own government and laws, but they are still technically part of mainland China.

This is known as a two systems, one country system.

With this agreement, Hong Kong is able to grant its residents freedoms that mainland Chinese citizens aren’t given.

Taiwan is in a similar situation where it functions as its own country, but many still consider it a part of mainland China.

The discussion about the separate systems began when a Hong Kong resident had murdered his pregnant girlfriend in Taiwan but confessed his crime in Hong Kong. He was unable to be convicted for his crime because there was no agreement between the two systems in Hong Kong and Taiwan that allowed one region to request the surrender of a fugitive.

This situation led to discussions about an agreement, but Beijing got involved which stirred concerns in Hong Kong as it would subject all Hong Kong residents to the threat of being victims of a notoriously cruel legal system.

The new bill was met with an uproar of protests where people urged the government to rescind the bill. Beijing’s involvement imposed a threat to residents of Hong Kong because they had an overwhelming fear of being victims of a corrupt legal system they don’t belong to.

People weren’t hesitant about the agreement with Taiwan, as that country grants more human rights like Hong Kong does; the main opposition was towards the inclusion of mainland China. The protests have been riddled with violence from both sides, but the police brutality against protesters has been extreme. Amnesty International has called the police’s use of force a violation of human rights, and they have made accusations of the police torturing detained protesters. According to TIME, a student has died after being found with serious head injuries near a protest site, the police have fired live bullets at protests, leaving one person in critical condition, and a police officer drove

BY SEUNG LEE

Photography Editor

a motorbike through a crowd of protesters.

There are even allegations of police officers gang-raping a detained protester while in detention.

The Hong Kong protesters have five core demands for the government to answer to before they even think about backing down.

The first demand is for the bill to be rescinded completely. This is what started the protests initially, and, in October, Carrie Lam, the prime minister of Hong Kong, met this demand.

The second demand is for Lam’s resignation. Her time as Hong Kong’s leader has proven to be disastrous with the extradition bill as proof. She and her administration have also previously been under fire for the imprisonment for democratic activists, the criminalization of the pro-independence Hong Kong National Party, and the disqualification of multiple pro-democracy candidates. Lam no longer acts as a leader for the people with 80% of Hong Kong residents stating their refusal to support her in a survey conducted by Hong Kong Free Press.

The third demand is for the government to redact all references to the protests as “riots.”

There was undoubtedly violence from both sides during the protests, but characterizing the clashes as riots is portraying people’s efforts as fits of irrational anger. This narrative demonizes the protesters which takes away from the entire movement they’ve diligently worked on when the majority of them are pushing forward using peace.

The fourth demand calls for an independent inquiry on the actions of the police.

There are many accounts of the police using unnecessary force, but no action against them is being taken. This means that the officers will remain untouched while the people who were victims of the violence and aggression have to live on knowing their attackers won’t face any consequences. It’s not that the people are completely innocent, but the police have clearly committed wrongdoings and should be investigated, and Hong Kong can be protected by people who rightfully deserve the title of a police officer. This is an extremely important demand because there’s no way a group this badly mistreated by the police will back down knowing that their abusers get to continue on with their lives.

The fifth and final demand is that all the protesters who were imprisoned are to be released and cleared of their charges. The per-

spective is that they shouldn’t be sentenced to years of imprisonment when the government that convicted them is consistently corrupt.

It is deemed nearly impossible for the people of Hong Kong to receive any justice while the corrupt and inhumane Communist party still holds power in mainland China, but there’s still something that can be done.

America has already begun doing its part in helping Hong Kong with two bills. The first authorizes sanctions on officials in both mainland China and Hong Kong for violations of human rights. The second one bans the sale of crowd-controlling equipment such as tear gas and rubber bullets to Hong Kong police. But this is only a start. America and other countries need to continue to show that they stand behind Hong Kong and carry out visible actions to back up their words of support.

The five demands of the protesters should be met. The majority of Hong Kong is unsatisfied with the government and its actions, and changes need to be enacted before casualties build up and relations are so damaged to the point of no return. Reconciliation between the people and the government is still very much possible, but only with other countries like America continuously pushing mainland China to follow the five demands.

It’s scary when something so horrifying is going on, and you want to help but don’t know how. Reading this is one step in the right direction; being aware of what’s happening and staying informed on these situations is critical to making sure people in need are getting the help that they deserve.

If you want to do your part to stand with those in Hong Kong, continue to update yourself on the occurring events, post about it on your social media so other people can get informed, and continuously express your concern about Hong Kong on public platforms. When large groups of people ask for change, it’s likely that they’ll get it. If we push our support for Hong Kong, our representatives will hear us and continue the work that they’ve started.

Stand with Hong Kong. They need it now more than ever.

Winter 2019

NOT PICTURED: Senior Faith McCurdy and her brother 13 years ago at their childhood home on Christmas Eve. Every year,

as a “McCurdy tradition,” they would sit in front of the fire place listening to “This Christmas” by Donny Hathaway in their Blues Clues and Barney towels.

after you lose someone

BY FAITH MCCURDY

Student Life & Design Editor

It’s hard sometimes. People surprisingly always bring up their siblings: it’s a common thing for people to bond over. “They were so annoying last night.” “They always do this and it sucks so much.” “They’re just a jerk sometimes.”

I always try to join the conversation, bringing up stories about my two and three year old sisters, but only sometimes do I mention my older brother. It’s been too long

20 | Opinions

for me to actually remember the little nitpicky stories like that.

When looking back on memories, it’s hard not to make everything sound over exaggerated and picture perfect. Everyone always wants to remember the good and forget the bad.

When my brother passed away, I was about to start eighth grade. He was going to be a junior. Three years older, and almost a

foot taller. When I think back to remember him, I want to always remember the good times.

When he took me out to Daniels Park on the 4th of July, when he drove me for the first time in his, now my, beat up Acura, when we used to watch Naruto, and play Minecraft together in his room. Those are the memories I cherish.

But I can never think about him too long.

When I do, I think of the last words he said to me. I think of the last smile I saw on his face. I think of the last time I saw his pale, resting face with his eyes closed, unmoving.

There are thousands and thousands of people that pass away every year from suicide, and it’s hard. We look at the amount of people, and it makes us cry. But it’s more than that. Each individual has their own story and family that gets forgotten within the numbers themselves.

Today, there are suicides everywhere.; everyone’s been affected by them. Those of us that experienced the second semester last school year know firsthand the effect that suicide has on a school, on a community.

It’s not something we talk about enough.

The individuals, the lasting effects. It’s not one thing that happens that hurts us for a while then we forget or move on. I may not cry everyday about it anymore, but I can’t drive past Lincoln and Yosemite, or drive up to Daniels Park, or watch really cheesy anime in his old bean bag chair anymore because all of these things remind me of him.

My biggest dream as a child was having a family and kids and coming back to Colorado to visit my brother, their uncle, and talking about all the crazy stories we had and would have had growing up. Now I can’t even imagine having a family or kids without them knowing him.

It’s something that permanently influences how someone lives their life, how I live my life. Day to day, but also year by year, and it will probably continue decade by decade. I think about him in every interaction and in every decision I make. It hurts so many people, including me, in mental, physical, and emotional ways. It’s a lot harder and more hurtful than people think.

I look at my dad, and I see the way his eyes gloss over whenever he sees photos of my brother on his laptop. I look at my mom and see how her health has physically gotten worse since the loss of my brother. When I go to family reunions, I see the way they always leave an open spot next to me because they know that’s where he would sit. It’s the little things that feel weird; they don’t always feel necessary, but they at least acknowledge my brother. They remember him, and I notice that.

I’ve had random people come up to me and text me talking about how much they loved my brother. People that I’ve never met follow me on Instagram because they knew my brother. I see the way people cared about him and how they’ve transformed their love

for him into a love for me. I can recall every time that someone has reached out to me, telling me that my brother has impacted them in ways I could never understand.

When I was a freshman, my brother would have been a senior, so all his friends knew who I was. It was hard to see them graduate knowing that my brother would have been there. It was hard hearing them announce names, and having his not be one of them.

It was hard seeing all his friends with their gowns and diplomas taking pictures without him. It’s still hard.

Now being a senior myself, I look at these moments knowing my brother never experienced them. I’ve thought about the different people I’m graduating with, and I’ve known some people from elementary school and even preschool for over 13 years. I didn’t even know my brother for that long. How can I have known random people from school longer than I’ve known my own brother?

It’s hard for me to think about it. It hurts to feel like I don’t even know my brother that well. Suicide is the hardest thing I’ve ever struggled with. And the effects of it last. It runs in my family. I struggled with suicidal thoughts, my brother has, my friends have.

All of it affects me now.

Still to this very day, it feels so suffocating.

The thought of people I do and don’t know, having to go through something so evil. I get so nervous I can’t breathe. I’m so terrified of the thought of losing someone close to me, or the thought of someone having to go through what I did. It haunts me. It scares me more than anything.

People tend to talk to me about it because they know I'm more understanding than those who have never experienced something like this, but it still scares me. I want to be there for them, but it scares me because I want to help but sometimes I feel so helpless.

I don't want to regret anything with others the way I do with my brother and with my own life.

A lot of people still always ask me if I have any regrets. I still don’t know how to answer that. It was hard for me to notice anything.

My brother always wanted to protect me and would never tell me anything about how he having a hard time. I never saw the stereotypical signs because he was so good at hiding them away so his little sister didn’t have to see him hurting.

I didn’t notice. My brother always said I was the one he was closest to out of everyone in the world. But I didn’t notice. I felt like I didn’t do anything. I felt like I had failed him.

He was always there for me when I needed him, but I couldn’t be there when he needed me.

When it first happened I blamed myself, and I know a lot of other people blamed me too, even without meaning to. Even now, I know in my brain that it’s not true, but in my heart it’s hard to feel like I’m not the one to blame. It still eats at me every day when I think about him.

Even now when writing this, it hurts and I hesitate every time I have to change something he did from present to past tense.

My brother passed away when I was twelve. He was sixteen. After it all happened, I never thought I would live to be past sixteen myself. I never thought I had it in me to keep going. I never wanted to be somewhere where my brother wasn’t.

Now I’m seventeen, and I’m scared to graduate this year. It’s the biggest step I’m having to take where I don’t have my brother as an example to look up to. He went through everything before I did. I always had someone to set an example for me to follow. But now, I don’t have that. I always wanted to follow in his footsteps, but they’ve stopped here. Now I need to take the first step on my own.

The greatest honor is when teachers who have had him or family members talk about how much I remind them of him. From the way I speak, to the jokes I make, to the way I act around others: they reflect my brother.

Of course he did some questionable things and made mistakes, but the way he handled them is what makes me admire him so much.

Every time something happened that was his fault, he admitted his mistakes and owned up to his faults. He was as human as the rest of us. He was as human as me. The way he acted was not perfect, but it was genuine and he always tried to improve who he was. I used to hate being compared to him because I always felt like I was less than him, but I’ve moved past my selfish mindset to see that it’s truly a compliment.

He was a perfect student in all honors and AP classes. He was an amazing musician at saxophone and piano. He was a superstar athlete in wrestling and football. He was the nicest stranger to others. He was the funniest person to everyone around him. But most importantly, he was the best older brother I could ever ask for. With everything I do, I want to reflect him, and I owe every success to him.

Zachariah Lane McCurdy. My number one role model.

Winter 2019

Disney+ shows and movies to binge during winter break

22 | Opinions

BY LIZZIE ESSES AND LAUREN BECERRA Staff Writers

In Lemonade Mouth, a group of unlikely friends meet in detention and form a band to create a soundtrack of early 2000s style pop. The cast, led by Disney Channel icon Bridget Mendler, showcases each character with unique and likeable qualities. The movie presents events that are unrealistic yet still relatable because most understand the trials and tribulations of being in high school. This is the main reason that Disney Channel Original movies are so appealing to Gen-Z, and Lemonade Mouth exemplifies this theme beautifully.

Disney+ offers many holiday classics, such as Home Alone, but Halloweentown is easily the best holiday movie featured, though it isn’t a winter movie. This film is a magnificent tale of family and individuality.

It embodies the spirit of Halloween with lovable protagonists in a spooky town of monsters and witches, creating a story fit for all ages. Featuring the late Debbie Reynolds, the cast is fantastic and portrays the characters with warmth and originality. It’s not only a great movie for the Halloween season, but for anytime a feel good movie is necessary.

Oliver and Company, a heartwarming adventure following an orphan kitten named Oliver and other four legged friends met along the way, sheds a light on the importance of community and being surrounded by a good group of friends.

Although the movie has been criticized of being just another dog and cat movie, the whimsical animation style, lighthearted musical numbers, and nostalgic feel set Oliver and Company apart from the other Disney classics about animals.

The magic of Disney comes to life in this nostalgic yet timeless series. Wizards of Waverly Place is targeted towards younger audiences, but can still be relatable to teens today. Viewers grew up along with the kids of the family, saw what they were experiencing being portrayed on TV, and also enjoyed the entertaining wizardry involved. I personally connected to the aspect of having parents of different races. Not often did I see myself represented, and because of that, Wizards of Waverly Place easily became one of my favorite shows, and I’m sure it did the same for other mixed kids.

Race to Witch Mountain, starring Dwayne Johnson and AnnaSophia Robb, is one of the most serious sci fi/action movies in the Disney franchise. Two teens from another planet must save their planet as well as Earth, all while fighting against the clock to reach the government base Witch Mountain before it’s too late.

This film keeps both the classic Disney feel and incorporates more mature aspects of typical sci fi/action films. If you enjoyed Guardians of the Galaxy, Men in Black, or Jurassic Park, this movie will be up your alley. Race to go see this throwback.

Following the lives of siblings Dipper and Mabel, the series follows the mystical events of the town Gravity Falls. Creator Alex Hirsch tells a story of deep mystery and conspiracy through easily digestible 20 minute episodes. The show and characters are designed incredibly and the plot is perfect for all audiences. Though it may come off as childish, the characters are lovable and the story is captivating. As the story unfolds, a deeper puzzle and mystery captivating for both adults and children is revealed. Therefore, this show gives the perfect opportunity to binge or watch with family.

Shootings are terrible. We’ve been living like this for so long that we’re used to it in the most horrific way.

It’s time to respond and do our best to combat the epidemic of gun violence in schools. There is a lot of debate surrounding the responses to these tragedies. How to handle firearms, mental health, and security are all ongoing topics of discussion as we think about what the future looks like and what we want for our ourselves and our children.

It’s a problem, and although we don’t have all the answers right now, it is time to react.

The school has already made moves to increase security with the implementation of the IDs. A drill where we can simulate the experience of a tragedy is just another step towards a more prepared student body.

For the first time in Creek history we practiced a lockdown drill. It took about 30 minutes and provided a sense of clarity and space to start a discussion about emergencies and tragedies.

The lockdown opened the floor to questions students may have had lurking underneath the surface but were not confident enough to ask.

Where do we go if we’re on campus but not in class? Can we use our phones? How will we be released from classrooms after the threat has passed? How does this prevent students from being injured? Wouldn’t a threat be aware of our tactics?

It’s not like the drill was a bunch of fun, but we appreciated it and thought it was a good space for learning. The explicit statement that

it was in fact a drill was an important step in the process. The drill may have felt too real and too scary.

Having the drill announced prior to the event allowed students, parents, and teachers to prepare themselves and start conversations with each other.

Some of us experienced police personnel knocking loudly on the door and yelling for room occupants to raise their hands. This was a startling experience, but it added a seriousness to the situation and helped to get a better picture of what everything would really look like.

We feel safer now that we’ve been equipped with the tools to handle a situation that seems sadly possible.

In the future, we hope to have more lock down drills. It’s ludicrous to expect to have drills in every class, during every period of the day but if a tragedy were to occur, we don’t know which room we’ll be in. Having teachers discuss protocol with each of their classes and the intricacies of each classroom would provide a peace of mind.

Again, having a drill to cover every single class isn’t practical, but having a drill once a semester would allow the conversation to continue and answer the questions we’ve been asking. As well, solidify the protocol we’ve practiced.

This is something we wish we never had to think about, but it’s here and ignoring it is only going to bring more anxiety. The drill allows us to talk things through and feel confident in our course of action if a true emergency were to occur.

LOCKDOWN

STAFF EDITORIAL

Winter 2019

Bruins finish 14-0 season with state title

CHAMPIONS: Junior quarterback Julian Ham-

mond III carries the ball in the first half of the 5A State Championship against the Columbine Rebels at Empower Field at Mile High on Dec. 7. Hammond only had to throw for 91 yards thanks to Creek’s defense and rushing attack dominating the game.

CCOD: Creek fans were able to celebrate

a championship victory after losing last year to Valor in the state final. This is Head Coach Dave Logan’s 8th state championship.

STACKED STACKS: Senior Jayle Stacks

played a key role in the game with 13 carries for 136 yards and a touchdown. He was later named Most Outstanding Player.

PHOTOS BY GRACIE LORDI