The Vol. 95, No. 29
IN THIS ISSUE CAMPUS A new pad
Mike Spell, former director of judicial affairs, left during break to manage the Grove Apartment complex, which can house students beginning in August, page 4
Winter course
More than 250 graduate and undergraduate students participated in January shortcourses Jan. 8-12, page 4
Honduran ministry
Students from the Journalism and Mass Communication Department and the College of Business Administration traveled to Honduras to do mission work for a non-profit organization, page 8
SPORTS
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OPTIMIST FRIDAY
1 section, 10 pages
January 19, 2006
n Despite slightly warmer weather Thursday, the National Weather Service forecasts accumulation of rain, sleet and snow this weekend. By MALLORY SCHLABACH Editor in Chief
Students continue to arrive in Abilene three days after classes officially began as winter weather moved across the nation. During the past week weather delayed travelers and often made driving unsafe. Many students were stranded in airports or at their homes as a mixture of rain, sleet and snow moved east across New Mexico into Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Missouri and Arkansas. Others attempted to drive in to Abilene on Wednesday despite snowy interstates between Dallas and Abilene. Tara McKee, sophomore education major from Atlanta, had to delay her trip back to Abilene until Tuesday because of weather conditions in her
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hometown. “I was glad when they delayed classes until Wednesday because I couldn’t be here until Wednesday anyway. So it was nice that I wouldn’t miss classes,” she said. Unfortunately, the snow storm that struck Abilene and most of Texas on Tuesday night created treacherous driving conditions by the time she began to drive to Abilene at 5 a.m. Wednesday from the Dallas airport. “I probably didn’t drive more than 40 mph to get here today,” she said. McKee didn’t make it into Abilene until 2 p.m. because of all the car accidents on Interstate 20, and because part of the interstate was closed because tractor-trailers couldn’t make it up or down a hill called Ranger Hill. “It was scary because I would lose control of the See
BRIAN SCHMIDT SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER
Tori Ahlers, sophomore biology pre-med major from Spring, walks to the Brown Library through the intermittent rain and 42 degree temperatures Thursday afternoon before another winter storm was expected to arrive in Abilene.
WINTER page 9
Friends and family recall the funny times, shared memories of freshman Tyler Sheets, who was killed Dec. 21 By MALLORY SCHLABACH Editor in Chief
The Wildcat men’s basketball team lost its first conference game against Eastern New Mexico University on Thursday 86-82, page 10
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Physical resources and other construction crews have been working during the break on residence halls. Find out what they’ve been working on online at: www.acuoptimist.com
SPEED READS Faux food?
The FDA announced earlier this week that cloned animals will be safe to eat, once introduced into the food industry. The organization that test foods for safety before public consumption, said it could not find a difference between cloned and non-cloned animals. While some doubt the FDA’s opinion and wonder if the meat and milk will truly taste different, cloned animal meat is expected to hit the markets in the next five years. -UWIRE
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Sleet, icy weather create traveling problems, delays
‘We have no regrets’
Falling short
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To many, Tyler Sheets was a piece of heaven on earth. To others he was a super hero, brother, son and friend. At age 19, friends say he was one of the wisest people they knew, and the kindest. Tyler’s older brother Landon remembers his brother and best friend as thoughtful, honest and hilarious. “He was always thinking of others and a selfless person. I alSheets ways thought of him as absolutely hilarious,” said Landon, junior pre-med major, smiling. “He was one of those people who could tell a funny joke with a straight face, but he was also one that could laugh at other people’s jokes too, and he was sincere that they were funny to him.” Tyler, a freshman exercise
science major from Muleshoe, was killed on Dec. 21 outside of Farwell when the truck he was driving struck a tree. The truck careened into the median. When Tyler attempted to corrected it, he over corrected and the passenger side struck the tree shortly before 4 p.m., according to police reports published in the Clovis NewsJournal. His mother, Bernita, said she felt God had put special blessings in their life, as a way of preparing them for his death. On Wednesday, the day before the accident, the Sheets family awoke to a snow-covered landscape in Muleshoe. Bernita said she didn’t want Gini and Shelley, ages 17 and 14 respectively, to drive to school with the weather icy, so most of the family spent the day at home that Wednesday. Although Bernita said she had wanted to clean and bake, she said the seven kids at home at the time: Sarah, Landon, Tyler, Gini, Shelley,
Ben and Cori, bundled up and spent the morning playing outside and taking pictures of each other. Later that afternoon, she said Landon, Tyler and Ben, who is 12, wanted to go hunting. Their father Kyle, a local physician in Muleshoe was supposed to be on call that evening, but decided to have someone else take his place so he could go hunting with the boys. “I know that they didn’t get very far to go hunting because they kept getting stuck, but they just had a good time together and enjoyed each other’s company. We feel really blessed for them to have been able to spend that time together,” she said. On Thursday, the day of the accident, many of the kids spent the day playing games together. The Sheets parents were getting ready to go to a Christmas party, and left the house at 3 p.m. “I don’t always do this to See
SHEETS page 5
Students ‘shift’ into Sing Song mode n Social club members, class participants and members of the Sing Song production team have begun preparations for the 50th anniversary of Sing Song. By LAUREN SUTTON Opinion Editor
The late-night gatherings of various social clubs and classes on campus and the sound of light-hearted, funny lyrics adapted to familiar tunes indicate that ACU’s long-lived tradition is close at hand. As the spring semester begins, preparations “shift into high gear” for the university’s largest student production of the year— Sing Song. “Shifting into high gear” is the theme for this year’s Sing Song and director of student productions Kendall Massey said the 2007 production will focus on the changes made at the university throughout the past 50 years. “I’m excited to see how the show comes together,”
said Massey. Last weekend the Sing Song production staff met to discuss all that needs to take place in the coming month to get ready for the production. The weekend retreat had three objectives: to layout an effective production plan, to get to know everyone on staff and to find a spiritual focus. “We built on building relationships with each other and got to know each other,” said Elizabeth Russell, a junior communications major from College Station. “We did a lot of group work together; we did activities centered around having to rely on each other.” Many of the clubs and classes participating in Sing Song began practices this week, and Russell, a participant in Sigma Theta Chi’s act and downstage manager said learning how to balance her time will be a challenge. See
SING SONG page 9
Smoking ban takes effect during winter break n Businesses that allow smoking in a public, along with the individual, can be cited and fined for lighting up now that the smoking ordinance has been in effect for the past few weeks. By KELSI PEACE Features Editor
Don’t light up in a public place in Abilene—unless, of course, you’re prepared for a citation and a fine. The new smoking ordinance, which went into effect Jan. 3, emily smith CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER prohibits smoking “in all enHomer Winkles, owner of Royal Inn Lounge’s Bar, My Place, be- closed public places” and desiggan a petition to halt the ordinance. He needs 66,000 signatures. nated outdoor areas, according
Department of Journalism and Mass Communication
to the ordinance. Voters supported the ban in the Nov. 7 election, passing the proposition 69 percent to 31 percent. According to the ordinance, more than 22,000 residents voted. The ordinance has spurred many concerned phone calls to the city with local business owners calling to ask how they are affected and how they can avoid a citation. “Every business is different; everyone has his own set of circumstances,” said Daniel Santee, interim city attorney. Santee said all businesses became smoke-free on Jan. 3, when
Abilene Christian University
the Abilene Reporter-News published notice of the ban. Businesses that allow patrons to smoke can receive a citation along with the individual. Smoking is now prohibited in public places, including, but not limited to, bars, bingo facilities, places of meeting, waiting rooms and common areas open to the public. Apartment complexes are not included in the ban because they are residences; however, if the apartment is open to the public for any reason – for instance, daySee
WINTER page 9
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