December 10, 2012 Issue:2
Sculpture tour adds vibrancy downtown Featured inside: By Teresa Kim
Eau Claire Sculpture Tour, located downtown, picked the sculpture “Blind Spot” as its winner of People’s Choice Award for its second 50-week installment. This 2500 lb. sculpture displays a large frog unaware of its lunch sitting on its back, and was made by Dan Massopust. “I made an otter sculpture for the Mayo Clinic Pediatric Ward,” said Massopust. “When I received a photo of a small child sitting next to the otter, it touched my heart and I thought, ‘for the Sculpture Tour as well, I will make one for the children.’”
another frog sculpture because kids enjoyed the small frog.” This bronze life-sized frog sculpture was donated to the RHS art auction this year. For next year’s sculpture tour, Massopust plans to build a dragon sculpture. The “Blind Spot” will be donated to Eau Claire to be displayed permanently. Last year’s winner was “High Five” by Louise Peterson depicting
The two-years-old Sculpture Tour was established by Sherry Mohr who was originally from South Dakota. There was a Sculpture Tour in
the downtown area,” said James Hanke, a media contact of Downtown Sculpture Tour, which is a non-profit organization fully run by a committee of volunteers. Each ‘season’ is 50 weeks long and separated by two weeks where the sculptures are changed over. During these two weeks, sculptures are returned to the artists and new sculptures are brought
Superstorm Sandy’s impact felt locally Page 8
Dude! Up high!
“High Five” by Louise Peterson was the first winner of the Sculpture Tour. It is now displayed in Phoenix Park.
Life of ease?
Where’s lunch?
Dan Massopust’s “Blind Spot” won the People’s Choice Award in the 2012 Eau Claire Sculpture Tour. The design of the sculpture actually came from another small frog sculpture he did. “It was displayed next to the otter sculpture and children would come and pet it,” said Massopust. “I decided to make
The famous Beatles’ tune may have been the inspiration for this yellow submarine, featured on the Eau Claire Sculpture Tour. a friendly dog with one of its paws in the air, waiting for a high five. Purchased by Sculpture Tour Eau Claire and “People’s Choice” cosponsors Benny HaHa Arts & Gourmet Desserts and Eau Claire Ford Lincoln Quicklane and donated to the public, it now is permanently placed in Phoenix Park.
South Dakota, and when she moved, she took a template and replicated it in Eau Claire. “They also duplicated it in Canada, Kansas, and Minnesota,” said Mohr. “When we brought the idea to the city council in Eau Claire, they were enthused and excited.” The most difficult part in running the sculpture tour was the financials. The money was privately raised for a $16,000 per year budget. “From the community’s perspective, by adding the sculptures in the downtown area, it improves the aesthetics, foot traffic, and the cultural vibrancy of
Belling finals in Starquest
By Brianna Brown
Lianna Belling, a freshman at RHS, competed in the Starquest finals December 1. She sang Skinny Love by Birdy. Starquest is a fun way for young singers to show what they are made of. This local version of “American Idol” is sponsored by the Eau Claire Children’s Theatre, which includes critiquing judges and prizes. Belling is in the older of the two age groups that are eligible to compete. The two age categories are the singers
Star search!
Freshman Lianna Belling poses backstage at the Starquest finals.
13 and under and 14-20. There are only 10 soloists from each category who are advanced to the finals. The prize for the first place winner from both categories is $100 and a prize of $50 for every runner up. Although she did not win, Belling felt good about her performance, “It went really good (sic)! There were a lot of super good people. Some adults came up to me at the end and said I should have gotten second place.”
Seniors’ talents create business success Page 7
Featured attraction
Unusual sculptures, like this one, are part of the Eau Claire Sculpture Tour, which is designed to improve aesthetics in the downtown area. in. A committee, part of their volunteer board, does the selection process of the sculptures. “Sculptures are on loan and artists are willing to loan the sculptures because it provides opportunity for people to see and buy sculptures,” explained Hanke. So far, five sculptures have been purchased through the Sculpture Tour.
RHS hunters show off big bucks Page 10 All-conference athletes named, receive area, state awards Page 12
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Opinion Student Opinion
Editorial
Cultural activities deserve credit Prep sports dominate the local press and are known to attract large numbers of spectators. They are credited with teaching lifelong skills and promoting healthy living, but in reality, how many high school athletes will actually play beyond these four years? According to ncaa.org, the chances of a high school men’s basketball player playing in college are 3.7% and the odds of making it to the professional league from there is only 1.3%. On the other hand, according to thecommunicationfactory.com, 70% of jobs today require some form of public speaking. Even with this staggering number, forensics members, actors, musicians, and performers don’t receive enough recognition. Forensics advisor Judine Brey said that an average of four to five parents are the only non-competing attendees at forensics tournaments, and only about 100 people attended the One Act Dinner Theatre or show, while football games attract hundreds of fans.
People should continue to follow sports teams with enthusiasm, but it is vital that society begins to support other programs as well. People should continue to follow sports teams with enthusiasm, but it is vital that society begins to support other programs as well. One Act members typically spend about half the time working on their play as athletes do at practice, and most members are in other forms of performing arts as well. That commitment and talent should be honored and recognized. Band director Jeff Walk enforces the regulation that all band members must play in pep band. His reasoning is that most of the band’s exposure comes at sporting events because parents are the primary attendees of concerts. The music is good and the musicians are talented, and their accomplishments deserve to be appreciated. Many members of these extracurricular activities are awarded honors by fellow performing arts programs. Some of these include Star Quest competitors, Cloverbelt Conference band and choir members, and forensics state award winners, but they receive little press and little recognition by the public. News stations play sports footage every evening, but when was the last time you saw a clip of the school play? As a society we should try to put more emphasis on all of the effort and talent of students involved in cultural activities.
King’s Chronicle production staff: Teddy Annis Sean Branick Sarah Clark Isaac Jensen Teresa Kim Garrett Nowak Lindsey Overby Brady Pittenger Sarah Snyder Molly Wirz
December 10, 2012
Reporters:
Clare Bergemann Brianna Brown Delaney Erickson Soohan Kim Adam Loftsgaarden Jade Olson Laiken Peterson Meg Sedahl Nick Stanke
Gifts create lasting memories There’s always that one present that could almost make or ruin a person’s Christmas. It doesn’t matter who it’s from, but what it actually is. Almost everyone will say that their worst presents have been boring socks or underwear, and their favorites would probably be a vacation or some fancy piece of technology. Here at King’s Chronicle, we wanted to hear from the students about their favorite and least favorite Christmas gifts. If you know about some of the students here at Regis, you know they all have hobbies. A lot of the students’ favorite Christmas presents have to do with their hobbies. Michael Kuznar, a senior, said his favorite present of all time was his camera because it allowed him to start filming. Junior Braxton Collins said hockey sticks are always his favorite presents because he can “toss sauce” with them. Senior Courtney Tuura said her favorite gift came from her mom. It was her little tyke hoop. Tuura said it was her favorite gift ever because she loves basketball and she would use it constantly.
with her cousins. Freshman Seth Peterson’s favorite Christmas present was his Xbox, because he “uses it all the time.” The most unpopular presents seem to be clothing items, particularly in the color of white. Tuura said her least favorite present was white socks because she never wears white socks, and they were the wrong size and just plain uncomfortable. Wampler stated, “The worst present was cheap underwear. They’re not even the good ones.” Kuznar said his least favorite present was cologne he received when he was 12. When asked why, Kuznar replied, “I was 12 and had no idea what it was or why I’d use it. I still have it somewhere though.” And finally, an anonymous junior wrote that her least favorite gift were markers when she was 14. She wrote, “Seriously? They weren’t even cool markers. Maybe if I was six and they were sparkly awesome colorful markers. But really? I was 14. Disgrace.”
Billy Wampler, a sophomore, received a game worn Brandon Jennings basketball jersey. To make the gift that much better, Jennings is Wampler’s favorite basketball player. Other favorite presents include vacations. Junior Danielle Zwiefelhofer received a cruise to Honduras, Belize, and Mexico. She said it was her favorite present because she got to go on the cruise
Editorial Board News Editor: Soohan Kim News Editor: Lindsey Overby Feature Editor: Sarah Clark Feature Editor: Laiken Peterson Layout Editor: Sean Branick Layout Editor: Nick Stanke Advisor: Judine Brey Technology Guru: JR Smathers
Editorial Policy
King’s Chronicle is a public forum published by the Research and Journalism class at Eau Claire Regis High School. Its purpose is to entertain, investigate, evaluate, and inform students of activities and issues which may be of concern to them. It also provides an open forum for the diverse views of its readers. Editorials are the opinion of that individual writer, but not necessarily the views of the advisors, administrators, or the Regis Catholic Schools organization.
The King’s Chronicle
Opinion
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RHS staff recall favorite Christmas memories As Christmas is near and festive atmosphere blooms, some RHS teachers share their Christmas memories. “My father always bought patchy and weak Balsam Trees for Christmas,” science teacher Dr. Anne Geraghty started. “Our home would smell like Christmas.” Her family always celebrated a full twelve days of Christmas, bringing in the tree on Christmas day and taking it down on Epiphany. Usually they would also place the nativity scene for display. On Christmas day, a small baby would appear on the manger and the three wise men from afar would begin to step closer to the nativity scene. Finally, on Epiphany, the three wise men would arrive at the manger and worship baby Jesus. “I found out that Santa Claus was not real in second grade,” said English teacher Margaret Hart. “I stayed up all night in determination to find out and he never came.” However, she kept it secret from her younger siblings. Later, her youngest sibling confessed that he knew Santa wasn’t real, but kept quiet to keep receiving presents. “I remember my earliest memory of Christmas,” substitute teacher Steve Nelson began. “When our special Aunt – Aunt Emogeen – gave me a winter parka for a Christmas present.” Carefully packaged, the blue jacket was gorgeous with red lining and a hood. He was about five years old at the time and he never had owned a parka, though he had thinner jackets. He still remembers being so proud of that jacket. “It was the first time I remember Christmas being really surprising and happy,” Nelson said.
“When our special aunt - Aunt Emogeen - gave me a winter parka for a Christmas present. . . It was the first time I remember Christmas being really surprising and happy.” - Steve Nelson “On Christmas Eve, our family would take out a single huge apple,” said math teacher Sue Garcia. The family would turn all the lights off in the house and place candles instead. Then her grandparents would take out a note card with the story of her greatgrandparents, how they cut and ate a large apple on Christmas. Back in her great-grandparents’ time, there was no electricity or luxurious food. To recre-
ate the moment her great-grandparents had, Garcia’s family would turn off the lights and cut a huge apple into six pieces for each of the present members of the family every year. “I lived on the East Coast of Philadelphia and when I was about five years old our family drove over to Chicago to visit my grandparents,” said religion teacher Ellen Killian. On the way, a horrendous snow storm engulfed them; it closed the interstate and left them stuck in the snow. Finally, a tow truck came to the rescue. In the course of being dropped off at a gas station in the middle of Indiana, she had lost her shoes. Thankfully, her grandparents drove from Chicago to pick up the stranded family. “We always celebrated Christmas first at my Grandmother’s house because that was where my dad’s side of the family got together,” said religion teacher Robert Peñate. He remembered that on one particular Christmas, his cousin Ian had wished for a Swiss Army Knife. Finally on Christmas Eve, when the family had gathered around the tree to harvest presents, Ian received a wrapped box with a piece of paper, instructing him to search for his present. Immediately, he set out to find the present, flipping tables and throwing objects out of the way. After the house had become a complete mess, he made it back to the room with the Christmas tree, only to realize the present had been in that room all along. Aunt Gladys had placed a Swiss Army Knife in a box on top of the clock. “Every Christmas Eve, our family would pile in the car to attend the Christmas Mass,” said secretary Meta Hilson. However, her father would always make an excuse and return to the house. After a long waiting, they would finally leave to the Church. When they returned to the house, they were all surprised to find the gifts under the tree that Santa had left. “My dad even used our sled to leave sleigh marks outside, as if Santa had rested his sleigh there,” said Hilson. “When I was in third grade, the movie “An American Tail” had just come out,” said choir teacher Becky Santine. One day, Santine and her mother were walking along downtown. Just then Santine spotted a large stuffed animal of Fievel, a character in the movie. It was sit-
ting inside a store window, and with much excitement, Santine begged her mother to buy it for her. However, the doll was 25 dollars, which was worth more during that time. “I don’t know if Santa can afford it,” said her mother. Disappointed, Santine continued their steps. Christmas arrived soon after and after all gifts were unwrapped, Santine’s mother pointed to a gift box hidden behind a tree. It was Fievel. “I remember exactly saying ‘Thank you Santa, wherever you are,’” said Santine. “I still have that doll.”
“I was in sixth grade and we celebrated Christmas at our neighbor’s house on Christmas Eve. We came back at midnight and an Atari was sitting underneath the tree. . . I still write to [Santa] and I still get something under the tree.” - Julie Schober “It was the year of 1970,” said social studies teacher John Snyder. “As my Christmas present I received a 19 inch color TV.” His parents had kept it a secret and when he saw his present, he was overwhelmed with joy. He had never owned a color TV before and it meant so much for him and his brothers. “I still remember that very distinctly,” said Snyder. “I was in sixth grade and we celebrated Christmas at our neighbor’s house on Christmas Eve,” said science teacher Julie Schober. “We came back at midnight and an Atari was sitting underneath the tree.” It was one of the first video games ever made and was accompanied by packages of Centipede, Pac Man, and Pit Fall. It had a big bow on it and Schober was over the moon. She stayed up the entire night playing Atari. “I still write to [Santa] and I still get something under the tree,” said Schober. “One Christmas Eve, my older sister and I snuck downstairs to take a peek at our Christmas presents,” said physical education teacher Jaci Ristau. When they had reached downstairs, behold, there were two brand new sleds. They could hardly sleep all night, thinking that they would receive the sleds next morning. As morning arrived, they came back downstairs while pretending they hadn’t seen the presents. However, they were crestfallen when they realized that the names on the sleds were those of her younger brother and sister.
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December 10, 2012
News
One act receives awards at state theatre festival The cast and crew of This is a Test received an All-State Award at the Wisconsin High School Forensics Association (WHSFA) festival held November 15-17 at UWStevens Point. RHS was one of 47 schools who qualified for the festival.
In addition, the group received three other awards. Junior Abby Hollenbeck was recognized with an outstanding acting award for her portrayal of Ellen, the show’s main character. Throughout the play, Ellen has to deal with the difficulties inherent in taking a test on no sleep, including paranoia, cheating classmates, and being undermined by her own subconscious.
English teacher Judine Brey was presented with an outstanding directing award. “I’m very pleased,” Brey stated, “but I was really hoping for an ensemble award for the kids. They worked really hard and pulled off a tough script.”
A what?
Cast members Margaret Killian, Abby Hollenbeck, Ana Myers, Mitchell Petit, Isaac Wolfe, Bridget McMenomy and Aissa Kidess rehearse for the fall play. Hollenbeck received an acting award at the state contest.
Finally, the group received an outstanding crew award, which recognizes exceptional technical work done during a performance. This is the first year WHSFA has presented these awards. “I think the judges were impressed by the fact that we were able to build a 28-foot wall in five minutes,” Brey said. “Overall the concept was carried out very well and they totally deserved the award.”
Along with performing the show, the students were able to view the other shows that qualified for the festival, attend workshops, and watch a main stage production of Once on this Island. The group’s final performance was for the sixth annual forensics dinner theatre December 1. Guests were served a meal of beef tips over noodles, accompanied by salad, bread, vegetables, and dessert before viewing this state-winning play. Two student-directed shows, The Ugly Duckling, directed by senior Leilah Kidess, and Tryouts, directed by junior Lily Howder, were also presented at this time.
RHS clubs wrap up fall events, plan winter activities Environmental Club
Key Club
NHS Project
Academic Deacthlon
Student Council
Environmental club members are starting to recycle paper, bottles and cans during the school day. Based on this effort, advisor Dr. Anne Geraghty stated that, “It could be better; the idea came late and now people have to get used to putting bottles and cans in the new blue bins found across classrooms. The bottles can’t have caps. Green recycling bin goes into the cardboard dumpster outside, and bottles and cans need to go into the corresponding dumpster.” By doing this, the club hopes to make the entire school more eco-friendly.
Regis Key Club is a branch of the Eau Claire Kiwanis Club. Members participate in numerous fundraising opportunities in the Eau Claire community. The Key Club officers are President – Molly Wirz; Vice President – Rachel Liming; Treasurer – Alex Beckfield; Secretary – Victoria Setla. Their first fundraiser was a coat drive, in which the Regis Catholic School System collected and donated more coats than ever before to Sacred Heart Hospital; Key Club hosted one of its biggest fundraisers on November 1. It was held on the Regis tennis courts, Key Club collected candy for troops overseas. This event was sponsored by Regis Court Dental. Students with any questions or an interest in joining Key Club, please contact advisor Eric Nelson or one of the officers.
An ongoing NHS project this school year is Teresa Kim’s Link Club. Link Club is a national organization that raises awareness and funding for North Korean refugees. Kim began a branch of the club this year at Regis and its goal is to raise $2,500 dollars to rescue one refugee. Earlier this year she set up a screening by the national Link Club organization at Regis for both RHS and RMS in order to inform the student body about her project. The group will be having various fundraisers and activities throughout the year in order to reach its goal.
The academic decathlon team started the year off well, with a first place finish in the sub regional, November 13. The team will head to Barron County January 11 for the regional. During the regional competition, the team will have to answer multiple choice questions, give speeches, give an interview, and write an essay on a book.
The student council has to been planning and taking care of school business and affairs as usual. They received $160 for the cricket car bash, which will be used in later events for the school. They are currently planning dances for over the winter months and are looking for ways to better the school for the students.
MIC
Forensics
Many members of the MIC club attended the annual International Folk Fair at UWEC November 4. During the Book Fair, some MIC members created bookmarks with foreign writings and wrote names in their own language for other students. The first pot-luck of the year was held during October as well.
The Forensics team had its informational meeting on November 8. Approximately 60 students attended the meeting. Forensics team members should have three practices before Christmas Break to be eligible to compete on the team. The first tournament is Saturday, February 2 at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.
The 5th Annual Festival Foods Turkey Trot was held at the Eau Claire YMCA on Thanksgiving Day, November 22, 2012.
The top ten female finishers were; Danielle Fischer, Katelynn Williams, Mikaela Boley, Allyson Kvislen, Shae Havner-Sierer, Shara Schultz, Shauna Joan, Jenny Lauritsen, Lexi Martens, and Jessica Adams.
The Environmental club recently took a trip to the “Ice Age trail” in New Auburn in north Chippewa County. The Ice-Age center has many fun displays, such as a bone display, a hatchet throw, live animals, a 4.5 mile hike, and other native American contests. Other plans include a visit to the Eagle Center in Wabasha, Minnesota just southwest of Mondovi, and possibly snowshoeing.
Band
Band and Jazz Band has been working on several new songs, including Party Rock Anthem, 7 Nation Army, and several others, which they unveiled at the Homecoming Game halftime show, October 6.
Sturgeon Bowl Lake Sturgeon Bowl team has been having practices on Tuesdays and Thursdays to prepare for the Lake Sturgeon Bowl competition February 3, 2013. Team members include Sarah Clark, Clare Bergmann, Leilah Kidess, Danielle Zwiefelhofer, Abigail Hollenbeck, Aissa Kidess, Tyler Peterson, Mitchell Petit, and Lauren Clark.
Pep Club
The pep club’s latest project was to put together a pep assembly for the football Spanish Club team. They sent them with a Spanish Club is relatively food and gatorade package, new at RHS. The club is funded by the booster club, advised by Spanish teacher for their game in Madison Kayla Felton. The club has at Camp Randall versus St. approximately 10 members, Mary’s Springs on Thursday, who met in September. November 15. The club’s next Members discussed what they project will be to plan Winter would like to do throughout Carnival. the year for the club, including designing and ordering t-shirts.
LiNK
The LiNK Club provided a screening for the entire school October 15th. The speakers were Menekse and Philippe of LiNK organization. The LiNK Club had its second meeting the first Tuesday of November to plan fundraising and activities for this school year.
Choir The RHS choir is currently working on its Christmas season music. The choir will also be involved with some fun activities. They sang Christmas carols for the Eau Claire Country Club on the 4th if December, and will be caroling around RHS for fifth hour on the 21st of December. The choir is also excited for its Christmas concert held on December 17th.
Student Council
The student council has to been planning and taking care of school business and affairs as usual. They received $160 for the cricket car bash, which will be used in later events for the school. They are currently planning dances for over the winter months and are looking for ways to better the school for the students.
Turkey Trot raises funds for local charities
The proceeds from this event were donated to the Boys & Girls Club of Eau Claire and the Eau Claire YMCA. All finishers received a long sleeved tee shirt and a five inch pumpkin pie. Participants chose from a five mile run or a two mile walk. The top ten male finishers were; Cory Hayden, Scott Hayden, Clay Scott, Tim Cote, Ryan Burch, Regis Alumni, Nick Wagner, Nick Anderson, Jared Holden, Shane Miller and Jordan Herrick.
Bonnie Nicolai, Senior Staff Member at the Eau Claire YMCA shared there was a 44% increase in involvement over last year with 2,718 participants. She said, “There were great numbers and we had an awesome day!” In January, the financial results should be in. At that time they will be able to determine the amount raised for these two great charities!
The King’s Chronicle
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News
Presidential election affects policy focus By Isaac Jensen
At times it seemed the Presidential campaign would never end. Between June1 and November 6, there were more than one million ads on television and for one election it was estimated that each election lost more than $6 billion. Now the results are in. Obama won over Romney in both the electoral college and the popular vote. Winning was the result of hard work, a lot of money, and a successful plan to get the votes. But winning is just the beginning. Minutes after his victory, Obama tweeted, “We’re all in this together… we know in our hearts that for the U.S.A. the best is yet to come.” There are four issues that
Obama must focus on: the Climate change issues fiscal cliff, climate change, may be helped by Obama’s immigration, and foreign handling of Hurricane policy. Sandy and the praise of Michael Bloomberg, Regarding the fiscal a Republican Mayor. cliff, Bush tax rates are Lowering emissions by about to expire, and deep taxing freight shipping, spending cuts agreed upon aviation, electricity use, by Congress last year will and personal travel could begin. Obama will have be substantial. Getting to get some Republicans a carbon tax passed will to agree on a tax increase, only work with bipartisan but that won’t be easy. No support. Republican in Congress has ever voted for any kind Immigration Reform of tax increase since 1990. impacted the election Perhaps he can make a result as Obama won the deal based on the House Latino vote by 71 to 27 Republicans desire not to percent. Clearly there was have deep Pentagon cuts. recognition of his policy Obama will also have to get opening up college to Democrats to compromise children of undocumented regarding such programs as immigrants. This policy Medicare by changing the was the first step in eligibility age.
Student safety questioned after off campus incidents By Garrett Nowak
According to the U.S Department of Education website, crimes occurring on campus at the university have decreased. Sex offenses and aggravated assaults have decreased the most over the past year. Off campus facilities have also seen a decrease in crime rates with the only reported crimes being two cases of aggravated assault. The question of the safety and security on campus is not being questioned, but are the right precautionary devices being taken by students living off campus? Campus officials are having trouble deciding how much control they can take to make sure each student can be completely safe while attending UWEC.
legislation will not remove Assad from Syria, force Iran to comply or make deals between Israel and the Palestinians. Obama’s impact in this area will likely have a lot to do with his appointment for the new Secretary of State. That individual will need to manage the powder keg of Iran, Syria and IsraelPalestine and avoid the threat of WWIII. There is hope in the favorite to win next year’s presidential elections in Iran. When interviewed by The Christian Science Monitor, mayor of Tehran, Mohammad-Bagher Iran The last area of focus is on Qalibaf said “competition foreign policy, specifically along with collaboration will regarding Mideast peace. take the place of opposition This area is a little more and disagreement.” difficult to manage. Our
Crime rates low, despite sensational crimes
UW-Eau Claire
Students living on campus and attending the University of WisconsinEau Claire (UWEC) have been concerned about local crime, but also comforted by the new occurrences and statistics arising from this previous year.
comprehensive immigration reform. According to Newsweek, Washington liberals would like this to happen in a big way, because it’s the right policy and because it would keep Latinos voting for the Democrats in large numbers for a long time to come. The path to immigration reform already exists. The old Kennedy-McCain legislation tightened the border security, updated the badly outdated visa program and provided a path to citizenship for many who came here illegally.
UWEC due to injuries received from a fire in their apartment, parents and students alike are raising questions about how safe off campus housing is. Ross Livermore and Jacob Clarkson died on October 8 and October 9 respectively, due to injuries received from a fire in their Water Street apartment. Two of their roommates also had serious injuries, but are expected to make a full recovery. Firefighters who arrived on the scene said smoke alarms were present, but they were not sure if they were fully functioning. School officials are now wondering if they should take more precautions towards students living off campus, even though they do not have the responsibilities of student housing.
Either decision these officials make should not change the fact that universities should always take the safety of their students seriously and help With the recent deaths keep a safe campus. of two students attending
By Delaney Erickson
Due to the recent crimes, Eau Claire looks as though it’s becoming more dangerous. The city has become used to little misdemeanors, so when something larger scale occurs it gets blown up to extremes. With the recent car chase on October 5, which ended in a shooting by Culvers on Brackett Ave., people began to wonder if things are changing in the area. Statistically, this is not the case.
According to Captain Dan Bresina, “The crime rate has been steady in the past 10 years in Eau Claire County.” Bresina added, “The nation has seen an uptick in mass shooting cases, which seems to show no sign of reducing. Many people have looked at the reasons for this to include the use of violent video games, media coverage, and mental health issues to name a few.” Nationally, the crimes in Eau Claire are much lower than average. There are far
less property crimes and assaults, but there is an above average amount of forcible rape. In 2010, the average violent crime rate was 403.6 incidents, while the Eau Claire violent crime rate was 208.3. Bresina also says “In the Eau Claire area we have seen an increase in burglary and theft crimes. We have a large issue with alcohol/drug consumption as people sentenced to these crimes are one of the biggest users of the Eau Claire County Jail.”
focusing on more modern technology looking to improve the products they are marketing to the population. The hottest selling toy in the 1980s was the Cabbage Patch Kid. Not only were these dolls a big hit when they initially hit the market, their longevity is evident because children from all around the world are still playing with them today. These dolls are built to be long lasting and entertain kids for hours on end with the most simplistic of ideas. These dolls brought in a frenzy of attention because of how realistic they were, coming with a birth certificate, unique name, birthdate, and adoption papers. In the 1990s action figures took the world by storm. Before then, they were still lagging behind all of the other toys in the spot light. They took reign over the toy kingdom in
the ‘90s when almost every animated show and movie created action figures for the characters in them. Toys like Teenage Mutant Turtles and Toy Story characters were flying off the shelves. Senior Joe Konzen, an avid action figure player, says his favorite childhood toy was a Buzz Lightyear figurine. This falls into the normal persona of what kids being born in the ‘90s like. Over the years, we have adjusted our pocketbooks and gifts by what children were yearning for during that particular time period. Every year we have new items and “fads” that kids will always want. No matter what their children ask for, parents are still willing to show their love by bowing to their kids’ needs and wants.
Toys change, kids’ desires don’t With the invention of the slinky in 1943 by Naval engineer Richard James, kids were entertained and distracted for hours. The race for inventing the most intriguing and fantastic toy began and is still occurring to this day. With the holiday season approaching, parents are looking through magazines and catalogs trying to find the best deal for their children. Electronics are now becoming increasingly popular. Parents are shying away from the stereotypical “toy,” like figurines and reverting to handheld games or electronic devices to entertain their children. Not only do parents want to buy electronic toys, kids are also more interested in them. Things from Gameboys to Xboxes have been hot commodities in the past decade. Companies are
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News
December 10, 2012
Band, choir members prepare for Cloverbelt music fest Choir director Becky Santine and band director Jeff Walk nominated students to perform in the 2013 Cloverbelt All-Conference Band and
Choir Festival.
This festival is made up of usually around 125 music students from various
Cloverbelt schools, with the performance location rotating from school to school. January 19, 2013, the performance will be held at Thorp High School.
The students involved in the program are looking forward to the experience. “It is an honor to represent our school in the Cloverbelt
All-Conference Festival.” Bergmann said. These students will be performing with others their age for a festival full of fun and excitement.
Walk has nominated the following students to perform: seniors Samantha Taleff (flute), Clare Bergmann (flute), Amanda Eisenhuth (alto-saxophone), and Jacob Larson (trombone); juniors Paul Amann (baritone) and Lily Howder (drums).
Just a singin’. . .
Cloverbelt choir members include Sarah Snyder, Sean Jordan, Eun Min, Jesse Walters, Abby Hollenbeck, Brianna Brown, Nick Lovelien and Kristin Mathiowetz.
Santine also nominated the following: seniors Brianna Brown (soprano II) and Sarah Snyder (alto I); juniors Abby Hollenbeck (soprano II), Eun Min (soprano I), Jesse Walters (bass) and Kristin Mathiowetz (soprano I); sophomores Nick Lovelien (tenor) and Sean Jordan (bass).
And the band played on!
Paul Amann, Samantha Taleff, Jacob Larsen, Clare Bergmann, Amanda Eisenhuth and Lily Howder will represent the band at the Cloverbelt music festival.
Eau Claire tradition begins with Christmas parade
Banned books contain educational value, despite controversy
Saturday December 15 is the first annual Clearwater Winter Parade. The parade will start at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire lot on Water Street and go all the way to Hobbs Ice Arena on Menomonee Street. It is from 5:00pm – 9:00pm, with other family-fun events starting at 6:00pm.
National Banned Books Week was September 30 to October 6 and celebrates our freedom to read. By bringing attention to books that are challenged or banned, Banned Books Week highlights the harms of censorship.
By Teddy Annis
The event is free and will have indoor and outdoor activities at Hobbs Ice Arena for local families. What is also unique about the event is that any funds raised go toward scholarships for youths, youth programs and Fairfax pool programs. Some activities
of the outdoor planned for the
parade include: fire pits, a s’mores station, snow sculpting, free hot chocolate, school band showcase, concession sales and food vendors. The indoor activities include: open skating, activity booths, figure skating showcase, ice games, curling demo, cookie decorating, and skating with Santa. The parade has been mainly created by Eau Claire Parks, Recreation & Forestry, but is also majorly sponsored by Xcel Energy and Mega Foods. There are definitely a lot of activities planned for the parade. Many in the Eau Claire community are looking forward to the event and hoping it continues for years to come.
Eau Claire ready for holiday spirit Last year, the Eau Claire area was ranked number one for holiday spirit in the U.S. The contest was based on sale data, social media, and music. This year, the Eau Claire area and towns around it will be booming with holiday spirit. Following are some activities that will be taking place this holiday season in the Chippewa Valley. Irvine Park in Chippewa Falls will have its annual Christmas decorations, as does Tenth Street Park in Altoona. These crazy lights will create a wonderful holiday atmosphere. In Eau Claire, Santa is in the Oakwood Mall from November 17 until Christmas Eve. He does leave for an hour every day to feed his reindeer, but these times are located online. Anyone in the mood for a holiday show can view the
Shillelagh Lads Christmas show December 19 and 20 at Houligans Steak and Seafood Pub. This event is reservation only and $39.99 a seat. It includes a three course meal and Irish Christmas Carols. Enjoy a horse drawn wagon ride through downtown Chippewa Falls and Irvine Park, December 6 through the 20. The cost is $4.00 for whoever wishes to attend. Monday, December 17, from 6-8 p.m. there is Christmas Caroling around the neighborhoods. Bundle up with friends and family members and walk around the neighborhood singing holiday tunes. Altoona families should meet at Tenth Street Park; Chippewa Falls families should meet at Micon Cinema, and Eau Claire families should meet at Wilson and Randall Parks.
When parents consider books inappropriate for their children, they inform the school district that those books should be removed from the curriculum and the school library. “Often books are challenged for reasons revolving around vulgar language, racism, and sexual content,” explained RHS English teacher Judine Brey, “but if teachers inform the students about what is inappropriate, it is not too dangerous to read them.”
When I was in college, I was glad to have been given the opportunity to encounter difficult and challenging material with the help of my high school teacher.” - Margaret Hart
Because each school has its own school district, list of challenged books vary from school to school. So far, RHS does not have any challenged books to which students have restricted access. The only time RHS was close to having a banned book was when Harry Potter became an issue for its wizardry content. However, the former Bishop and the Pope responded that the Harry Potter series did
not have to be removed from our library. Anne Hoffmann, RCS librarian, is a key member in determining books RHS should have. “I choose books that are in accord with
“I choose books that are in accord with Catholic doctrine as well as our budget and curriculum.” - Anne Hoffmann
Catholic doctrine as well as our budget and curriculum,” Hoffman said. Among books that parents, teachers, and some closing schools donate, library assistant Carol Donahue and Hoffman sort through and choose which ones are acceptable. Brey and fellow English teacher Margaret Hart, lament that some books are banned. “Just for context the entire text should not be completely thrown out,” Hart said. “When I was in college, I was glad to have been given the opportunity to encounter difficult and challenging material with the help of my high school teacher.” An example of a challenged book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is famous for its racial language. It has been challenged in many high schools and an abridged version of the book has been created. “Abridged versions take poetry out of a book,” responded Hoffman.
so it wasn’t offensive. That was the way it was back then.”
Top 10 most banned books
1. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (1932): Banned for “themes on negativity.” 2. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (1939): Banned for its descriptions of the poor. 3. Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller (1934): Banned for obscenity and sexual content. 4. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut (1969): Banned for war themes. 5. The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie (1988): Banned for blasphemy of the Islamic community. 6. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chobsky (1999): Banned for sexual content. 7. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (1958): Banned for criticism of colonialism. 8. American Psycho by Brett Easton Ellis (1991): Banned for graphic violence. 9. The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka (1915): Banned for being ‘decadent’ and ‘despairing.’ 10. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov (1955): Banned for sexual content.
Senior Sarah Clark testified, “I read it in a historical context This list was found on shortlist.com.
The King’s Chronicle
Page 7
Feature
Collins, Kuznar utilize talents in business world By Sarah Clark
Reid Collins and Michael Kuznar have made a name for themselves in the film world already, and their careers have only just begun. To top the list of Collins’ successes, the RHS senior has recently won the Canon Project Imaginat10n contest. Kuznar, on the other hand, began his own caricature business more than five years ago. The pair has also collaborated, contributing to their success, by making their own movie production group called DeliciousNesEssities.
Out of more than 200,000 entries, Collins’ photo was one of only 50 winners.
Together they have made dozens of short films with the help of other RHS students. Collins often works as the actor in the films, but he really likes the production and filming side of it as well. Meanwhile, Kuznar is behind the scenes and plays the role of writing, directing, and editing. The video group has come a long way from when it first began three years ago, and Collins said, “I’m more focused now on the look of it and the camera angles than the acting side.” Kuznar claims their best work is their newest and longest clip titled ‘Psychotism.’
Reid Collins
DeliciousNesEssities’ biggest success came when a member of the Funny or Die website offered to work with the pair. He sent them video clips to contribute to one of their films,
allowing the three to make a video together. Kuznar had followed him even before he worked at Funny or Die, and was able to meet up with him in California on a summer vacation. He now works for Saturday Night Live as a director, which makes his connection with Kuznar and Collins even more beneficial for the two. The group’s most watched video is a Paranormal Activity 3 spoof with over 2,500 views, and many of their short films are random skits that explore different genres. The acting is done by Collins, as well as several other friends and classmates. Collins also enjoys photography, as it goes hand in hand with the skill of filming the videos. It’s a fairly new hobby for him, since he picked it up only
Cartoon mania!
Senior Michael Kuznar created these caricatures of senior football players Khadel Akindolire, Joe Konzen, Hayden Frey, Chris Pica-Anderson, Jade Olson, Vince Killian, Adam Loftsgaarden, Soohan Kim, Nick Stanke, Michael Maenner and Sean Branick.
about a year ago. He bought a camera to use for DeliciousNesEssities and found himself using it to capture still photos whenever he got the chance.
This fall, Collins entered the Canon Project Imaginat10n photo contest. The contest had over 200,000 entries in 10 different categories. Five directors had the chance to choose one photo from each category to create a short film using their selected pictures. From each category, 91 photos were selected by the public, which were then narrowed down by the directors for a total of 50 winning photos. Collins’ entry was one of these 50 and was chosen by actress Eva Longoria. He was awarded $500 toward a Canon purchase and a trip to New York for a film festival in June of 2013, where his photo will be incorporated into a short film. The award winning photo was a close-up of embers in a fire pit, which was entered into the category of ‘obstacles’ under the description that the logs and ash were blocking out the glowing embers. Collins described how he took the photo, saying, “I was up at my cabin and there was a big bonfire and I was just walking around taking pictures of it. I had a lens that was really zoomed in.” Being selftaught, he can credit himself for learning the art of photography so well. Collins’ plans for the future are to attend a two year school in the Midwest and eventually transfer to California. There he would search for an internship or a job to gain the experience necessary to become a Cinematographer. His dream would be
to work for a large movie production company, and he seems to be well on his way. Rather than through a lens, Kuznar creates his art by hand. He formed his own caricature business titled Sir Drawz- A lot Entertainment in 2006, and its popularity and success have grown continuously since then. He has always liked to draw, so his dad encouraged him to set up a caricature stand at an airplane show that summer; he couldn’t believe the business he got, and he never looked back. He began by drawing live black and white drawings at events, but he has most Michael Kuznar recently begun to draw digitally. Regarding the digital techniques, Kuznar says, “There are a lot of advantages: it’s a onetime expense, it makes my work flow a lot quicker and easier because I never have to prepare, and usually the final product looks a lot nicer.” He uses a specially designed tablet that functions like electronic paper to draw as well as a computer for other functions. In a typical week Kuznar draws about eight hours for his business and about ten for his enjoyment. Most of his business now comes from commissions in which people email him caricature requests, but he still draws at events such as weddings, graduation parties, and corporate events. The next two years Kuznar would like to attend the University of Milwaukee because of its specialties in art and film. After that he hopes to call the University of Southern California home and pursue his dream job of being a director. His intentions are to combine his love for filmmaking and drawing into a career.
Hot Embers.
Reid Collins’ award winning picture was titled ‘Hot Embers.’ It was submitted to the Canon Project Imagitat10n contest and was chosen by Eva Longoria to make a short film. He was also awarded $500 for being one of 50 winning photos.
Page 8
Feature
December 10, 2012
Superstorm Sandy hits East Coast
Local charities plan aid for victims Preparation needed Monday, October 29, Hurricane Sandy made landfall on the East Coast, shutting down transportation, flooding major thoroughfares, and interrupting the presidential campaign. For the first time since September 11, 2001, the stock exchange was closed, and remained closed the next day. The federal government was also shut down in Washington. The entire stretch of the Jersey Shore was ravaged, including the community of Point Pleasant Beach, which is the hometown of RHS religion teacher Ellen Killian. She urges students to help in any way they can. “There are different social pages that have been set up to monitor requests and needs, and the Bishop also mentioned that the best way is to use just monetary donations and allow the Catholic Relief Fund to appropriate the funds locally in the hard hit areas to the people who need it most.” New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, a noted Republican, is cooperating fully with Democratic President Barack Obama, demonstrating what these harsh circumstances require of us. During the storm, lower Manhattan’s Battery Park measured record high waves at 14 feet, which displaced around 400,000 people from their homes around the area. Parts of the subway system were flooded, and high winds knocked a construction crane off its perch on top of a skyscraper. The storm
caused about 2.8 million power outages in the Northeast, with the New York area alone counting for 350,000 of them. Numerous fires broke out soon after the storm, which damaged around 80 private homes in Breezy Point, Queens, and almost 50 homes were completely destroyed. The loss of life could have been much more severe, but the federal government authorized help before the storm, meaning that the word to evacuate got out much faster than it would have. According to a health care worker at Mayo Clinic Health Systems in Eau Claire, “Meeting the most basic needs is of top importance, such as food, clothing, shelter, medications required for chronic conditions (insulin, antihypertensives, heart medication).” As with hurricane Katrina, people from all over the United States are coming together to help with the devastation to the New York City area. Through the Red Cross, people may donate their time, blood, and money to the effort. The local Eau Claire Red Cross can be found at 3485 East Hamilton Avenue. Local Red Cross workers have recently returned from the affected areas, and are looking to return shortly. There are many ways in which people can help, such as donating blood. A way to donate money is to text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation to the rescue effort for Hurricane Sandy.
Climate factors increase storm’s severity In the past few years, the United States has experienced a lot of “super storms.” One may ask, what can we do to pinpoint the cause of these storms? Dr. Anne Geraghty, an RHS science teacher, gave an explanation as to why Hurricane Sandy became so destructive. “There’s three reasons. Climate change may be a factor because hurricanes intensify as they pick up heat from the oceans they pass over. The second factor was that it arrived on the Eastern seaboard at the same time as a nor’easter coming from the opposite direction. The third factor was that the arrival of the storm coincided with high tide, which made the flooding worse,” Geraghty said.
“Climate change may be a factor because hurricanes intensify as they pick up heat from the oceans they pass over. The second factor was that it arrived on the Eastern seaboard at the same time as a noreaster coming from the opposite direction. The third factor was that the arrival of the storm coincided with high tide, which made the flooding worse.” - Dr. Anne Geraghty When trying to study storms, there is a path that is necessary to find. There are always new models that are being made for this study. The Global Forecast System (GFS) model was used to predict Sandy’s track, while the Naval Research Laboratory ran the U.S. Navy’s Operational Global
Atmospheric Prediction System (NOGAPS) model. The NOGAPS model measures winds in the stratosphere to air-sea fluxes to drive ocean general circulation models. Using this model it was easy to obtain information about Sandy. When Hurricane Sandy was detected, its path was known one week in advance of its arrival. The citizens of the affected area were in need of preparatory plans, or they had the option to evacuate. A good way to prepare would be to create an emergency plan. This would include drawing a map of your home with exits in every room; talk with an out-of-state friend or family member about possible situations, and stock up on food and other items necessary to survive. The destruction of Sandy was horrendous, but there are many people around the country doing their best to help.
to survive disasters
By Sean Branick
Disaster preparedness is rarely on the front of people’s minds unless they’ve just been through a major natural disaster. Hurricane Sandy was one of the most devastating storms that has hit the United States in recent memory. The storm disabled the transportation network of New York and New Jersey. Subways had rivers flowing through them, cars were submerged in water on streets, and some small towns have been declared inhabitable for the next eight months, demonstrating just how horrific this storm truly was. According to Red Cross representative Linda Soltis-Schroeder, “If there were natural barriers rather than homes built right on shore, the damage would not have been as significant. And from what I’ve heard, Sandy turned West into shore rather than continuing a rotational pattern that would have taken it East out into the sea.” New Jersey native and RHS religion teacher Ellen Killian states, “There was just a study and article written about the beaches that had used the Army Corp of Engineers to help build dunes and how those beaches using those resources were less damaged than those who hadn’t used the Corps for advice.”
“If there were natural barriers rather than homes built right on shore, the damage would not have been as significant. And from what I’ve heard, Sandy turned West into shore rather than continuing a rotational pattern that would have taken it East out into the sea.” - Linda Soltis-Schroeder One of the reasons it was so damaging was people were not ready for such a disaster, and with good reason, as it is extremely rare for so large a hurricane to hit land so far north. There was no set of procedures to cope with a natural disaster of this magnitude. When it hit there was mass confusion, adding to the chaos in the aftermath of the storm. Soltis-Schroeder adds, “Natural disasters that hit populated areas affect more people, more homes, businesses, and infrastructures. Sandy happened to come ashore in the most populated area of the east coast. Populated areas are dependent upon infrastructure such as electricity, sewer, water, mass transit, and communication. When those services are disrupted it is difficult for people, businesses, organizations, and even governments to operate.” After the storm hit, a large fire broke out in Breezy Point, Queens, causing a massive amount of private home damage, around 80 houses were affected by the fire, and about 40 were completely destroyed. This left many people homeless and unable to find a suitable place to go for aide. Soltis-Schroeder urges us to “Get a Kit, Make a Plan, Be Informed,” which is the Red Cross’ program for disaster preparedness. It is a way to stay abreast of the natural disasters or other emergencies that befall us. These plans can provide us with supplies and the necessary information to keep ourselves safe.
The King’s Chronicle
Page 9
Feature
Mayans full apocalyptic talk By Meg Sedahl
There has been a movie made about it. Books have been written. It has several different titles, all signifying the same day. It is the Apocalypse, the end of the world as we know it. This year has sported additional apocalyptic conversations because of the ancient Mayan culture.
so called Apocalypse. The Book of Revelation talks about the end of the world. There are four horsemen that are described in the book, the four horsemen of the Apocalypse. The Church believes the Apocalypse will come, but it doesn’t buy into the Mayan predictions of it.
The Mayans had a system. They created their own calendar, a calendar that was seen as religious and sacred to the Mayan culture. They used the stars to tell the difference in days and years, and they predicted December 21, 2012 to have a significant change on the world.
NASA stated that the only thing special on that day is it’s the night of the Winter Solstice, the longest night of the year. Nothing else is expected to happen that night.
The Mayans said on this day the sun will be directly in line with the center of the Milky Way. They claimed the energy from the Milky Way to the Earth would be disrupted, and would cause the Apocalypse. The Mayans also claimed that the magnetic and gravitational fields would be disrupted, contributing to the many natural disasters that would be part of the Apocalypse. The Catholic Church also has views on the
It’s up to each individual to decide if he wants to believe in it or not, but there isn’t enough information to say for sure when the end of the world will happen. There isn’t enough evidence, and the Mayans were not nearly as advanced in technology as we are today. NASA can tell us the end of the world isn’t coming any time soon. One last thing: the Mayans have also predicted the world to end at 11:11 p.m. on December 21, 2012. Be sure to wish the world won’t end, and that the Mayans were wrong!
For your viewing pleasure, top 10 apocalyptic films Wondering what to do on the night of December 21? Maybe try one of these apocalyptic films. When Worlds Collide (1951) - A work that imagines the results when Earth collides with the gas-giant Bellus. War of the Worlds (1953) - Humanity makes it through a martian invasion. The Birds (1963) - An Alfred Hitchcock Classic in which our feathered friends turn out to be bloodthirsty bandits. Night of the Living Dead (1968) - The original Zombie flick in which the end of the world comes through the hands of the undead. Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970) - This sequel features a group of cave-dwelling humans who finally eliminate the apes. . . and earth in the process.
Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981) - Part of an Australian film trilogy that focuses on people fighting over fuel. Reign of Fire (2002) - Hollywood’s attempt to bring about the end of the world through dragons. The Day After Tomorrow (2004) - Climate change causes huge devastation, including the next ice age, in this environmentally focused film. Children of Men (2006) - An apocalypse brought about by an unexpected circumstance: What if people stopped having babies? I am Legend (2007) - The cure for cancer ends up having the unfortunate side effects of creating zombie-like creatures. - Titles taken from Beliefnet.com
Meningitis
Outbreak sparks concern
Recently there has been an outbreak in America of a disease known as meningitis, which is believed to have occurred from tainted steroid injections.
According to the online dictionary, meningitis is: inflammation of the meninges, especially of the pia mater and arachnoid, caused by a bacterial or viral infection and characterized by high fever, severe headache, and stiff neck or back muscles. An easier way to describe it would be: the swelling of a tissue that covers your brain and spinal cord caused by bacteria and certain viruses that causes the symptoms of fevers and headaches. It is mostly common among college students living in dorms and one of every seven cases results in death. Among the people who survive meningitis, 20% of them deal with long-term consequences such as brain damage or hearing loss. The meningitis outbreak is the worst in the states Tennessee and Michigan. It isn’t as bad in Wisconsin, but the badger state seems to be surrounded by states that have the outbreak bad, such as Michigan, Minnesota and Illinois. According to Patrick Shinners, doctor at Sacred Heart Hospital, the meningitis outbreak has impacted three groups of people within Eau Claire: college students at UWEC, or any college in general, because many of them live together in dorms, and in elderly and children because they do not have as strong immune systems. Shinners says the most common symptoms of meningitis include: headache, fever, in some cases rashes, nausea and vomiting, delirium or mental confusion, and the worst being a loss of consciousness or a coma. According to Shinners, any other outbreak common locally would be influenza or the flu, which our community has flu-shots for.
International students adjust to American lifestyle By Soohan Kim
As the title says, this article will discuss the life of international students. However, before we get any farther, I think it is vital to define the international students I’ve chosen to interview and the selection process. Out of 13 international students at RHS, I decided to select one of each gender who has spent the least amount of time in the U.S. Some of the international students who have spent a long time in the U.S. have become accustomed to America, because what they do in their daily life isn’t much different from an American student’s routine. For this reason, the two international students I’ve chosen to interview are Eva Cui and Kiet Li.
Eva Eva Cui is a junior who came from China second semester of last school year, and she is hosted by the Liming family. She goes back to her family once during summer for about three months, but when she is
Acting 101
Eva Cui got some stage experience this fall by participating in the state qualifying one act.
in the U.S. she uses Skype to video chat with her family and friends. She came to Regis through her intermediary, a place that introduces schools in America to students in foreign countries. She is enjoying her life at Regis so far. The main difference between going to school here and going to school in China is that she gets much more free time here. In China, she would get much more homework every day. Regarding the homework in China, she adds “We have a lot of homework. For high school students, we would get two to three pages of math or biology homework that would take a couple hours.” In a normal school day, she wakes up at either 6:10 when she has morning practice for the One Act Play, or 6:30 if she doesn’t. After school is over, she takes the school bus to her house and goes on the internet for an hour or two. She usually goes on Facebook, Twitter, or surfs the web. Then she does her homework; for her, math homework is easy and takes little time, but homework from literature class or history class takes much more time. After doing her homework, she skypes with her family or friends if she has time. Sometimes on weekends she watches movies or goes shopping with her friends.
Kiet Kiet Li is a freshman who recently came to Regis from Vietnam. This is his very first year in America, and he heard about Regis from his aunt who is currently hosting him. He likes to play baseball and listen to pop music, and he is thinking about joining the school baseball team. A couple times a week he talks to his family on the phone, and he will go back to Vietnam during summer vacation. Similar to Eva, the main difference between going to school here and in Vietnam is that in America, he gets much more free time after school. He will be studying at Regis for the next two years, and is planning to go back to Vietnam after that. Occasionally, Kiet wakes up at six to get ready for school and he takes the school bus. In school, math class is easy and English class is sometimes easy; however, history class is hard. After school, he sometimes goes shopping at the mall, but usually he does homework. For dinner, his family goes out to eat a lot.
Page 10
December 10, 2012
Feature
Local hunters boast prize bucks in 2012 season
RMS teacher Cody Rumpel
RHS senior Amanda Eisenhuth
RHS teacher Bryant Brenner
2010 RHS Alumni Adam Ganske
The bow hunting season this year runs from September 15 to November 15 and November 17 to January 6, and the gun hunting season was November 17 to November 25. The general opinion about this year’s season so far is that it is better compared to last season regarding the number of deer seen. Passionate hunter and 2010 RHS alumni Adam Ganske stated, “I thought it was pretty good. The number of deer we saw in our group was pretty good. I just thought that the weather was pretty up and down then it hit the cold streak. The rut was pretty scattered; it was like how it usually is. It was kind of a hard rut to hunt but for the most part, it went pretty well.” A rut is, according to the Dictionary.com, the periodically recurring sexual excitement of deer, goat, and sheep. During their rut season, the bucks will busy looking for does and will pay less attention to humans, so they are much more vulnerable. Following are pictures of deer shot by RHS members.
RHS parent Scott Cameron
Seasonal sales increase with arrival of Black Friday Christmas sales seem to come to stores around the world earlier each year. Most retailers decide to start selling Christmas decorations and other Christmas items around mid-October, because that’s when people usually start to do their shopping for Halloween decoration and candy.
“All seasonal sales started after Halloween. It takes a bit for the seasonal merchandise to sell a lot, but it gets big after Black Friday.” - Eau Claire Target Manager According to the manager at Target in Eau Claire, “All seasonal sales started after Halloween. It takes a bit for the seasonal merchandise to sell a lot, but it gets big after Black Friday.” For many consumers, the sooner the Christmas decoration and sales, the better. People may also start to hear a lot about in ads during the Christmas season. According to the Target manager, some of the more impressive toys are Leap Frog toys for kids and video game systems, including the Wii-U.
A popular toy most teens will remember from their childhood that is making an unexpected comeback is the Furby. It first became popular back in 1998 when it became the first successful toy robot. The problem was they were surprisingly banned by the Pentagon for being considered a threat to national security. They did have a comeback in 2005, but it was nowhere near as successful as it was in 1998. The newest Furby has improved by having screens for eyes so the toy shows more emotion. What’s more suprising is the more a person talks to it, the more English words it picks up, enhancing the ability to talk to the toy. This upcoming Christmas season, Furbies are expected to be a best seller. Another popular toy expected to sell well this year is the Nintendo Wii U. This is the next Nintendo system in the video game industry, and it is expected to sell out faster than the Wii did back in 2006. The Wii-U is a big improvement in video games because the controller is a tablet with a touch screen and a few buttons. Based on some of these new toys, it’s clear that technology has greatly improved in the world of children’s toys since the 20th century.
They’re ba-ack!
A new take on the 1998 toy the Furby is one of the big sellers this Christmas season.
The King’s Chronicle
RHS Basketball
Young girls team takes the court At a glance: Head coach: Cody Rumpel (Second season) Last year: Lost in state semi-finals Seniors: Rachel Liming, Courtney Tuura
Last year, the Regis girls basketball team lost a few key players. This year though, the team is ready to step up and fill those big shoes. The team, coached by Cody Rumpel, has only two seniors, who are also the team captains, Courtney Tuura and Rachel Liming. The Ramblers kicked off their season November 29 against Eau Claire Immanuel Lutheran, winning 51-47. The team also played in the Bishop’s Cup December 1 in La Crosse. This was the first time in four years the cup hasn’t gone in favor of the Regis girls team. They lost to La Crosse Aquinas 35-50. Rumpel stated that “the key to the season is continuous improvement.” He said if both
Boys basketball
the players and coaches are focused on building up their strengths and improving on their weaknesses, then the team will be competitive. Rumpel is predicting Altoona, Fall Creek, McDonell, and Osseo to have “very strong clubs” and will be tough contenders in the Western Cloverbelt Conference.
Going up strong
Sophomore Haley Gibbons drives to the basket against Immanuel Lutheran.
Page 11
Sports
Hockey comes to local ponds With the winter weather approaching we should see lakes and ponds freezing over with ice. Hobbyists look to these lakes for fun and adventure. Snowmobiling and ice fishing are mainstream activities that people take part in.
An activity that is becoming more and more popular is playing hockey on these frozen bodies of water. Recently some students at RHS have taken up this adventurous and fun-loving sport. Half-moon Lake has been the home for these participants, since it is several minutes away from school.
light diminishes and they can no longer see the puck. Last year to cap off the pond hockey season, 2012 RHS alumnus Isaac Schober held the first ever Schober cup at his home on the outskirts of town. Having created an ice rink in his back yard for his brothers and himself, he invited all of athletes over for a three vs. three hockey tournament. Canada native senior Khadel Akindolire said that “playing in this tournament outside brings memories of the hockey I played in Canada
“Playing in this tournament outside brings memories of the hockey I played in Canada outside.” -Khadel Akindolire
outside.” Anyone who didn’t want to participate in the games could spectate and sit around a fire to keep warm. With around 30 competitors RHS alumni Brian Gobler, Sam Loftsgaarden, and Isaac Schober took home the cup of the first 2012 pond hockey champions. This year is looking better than ever for playing hockey outside and students are looking forward to the new season. Once ice freezes over, people will be able to see these avid players outside once again.
These students bundle up and bring their gloves, sticks, and shovels to create the perfect pond hockey environment. Shoveling off a part of the lake that is around 100 feet long and 35 feet wide, they create the perfect sheet of clean ice. Once their arena has been created adding two gloves to each end as goals, they take to the ice and play until their
Hockey
Senior leadership key Team faces heavy schedule as part of Middle Border Conference for team success At a glance Head coach: Bill Uelmen (Thirty-third season) Last year: 13-10 Seniors: Hayden Frey, Isaac Jensen, Vince Killian, Sam Loftsgaarden, Chris PicaAnderson, Nick Stanke
The 2012-2013 Regis boys basketball season is under way! They are coming off a 13-10 season. There are multiple returning players and Coach Uleman is hoping to get off to a winning start.
“This year senior leadership will play a huge role in the outcome of the season.” - Bill Uelmen When asked what was special about this year’s team, Bill Uleman said, “This year senior leadership will play a huge role in the outcome of the season.”
He views this year’s team as more athletic than the teams in previous years. Bill Uleman shares he likes the work ethic of the team members. He pointed out that he has players who focus on basketball more than other sports on this year’s team. He enjoys coaching players with a love of the game.
At a glance Head coach: Guy Brown (Third season) Last Year: 16-8-1 (playing as an independent) Seniors: Joe Konzen, Mason Maher, Sam Nelson, Garrett Nowak
The Regis hockey team has been enjoying a lot of success, winning 16 of their games last season, and head coach Guy Brown is confident in the new season, compared to last season.
coaching staff and a great group of kids.” However, it will not come easy, as “Our schedule has become much more difficult. We not only joined a competitive conference, but also picked up independent games against multiple Big Rivers teams, as well as top 10 ranked teams from the 201112 season,” Brown added.
Brown stated, “For the first time we are part of a conference (Middle Border) with the likes of Somerset and New Richmond, both of which have a strong recent history in Wisconsin high school hockey.” The team has several goals for the upcoming season; chasing the banner, peaking in the playoffs, and growing the young men within their team into teammates and better people.
“In comparison, we are one year older, stronger, and more mature after adding a strong freshman group again in my third year of coaching, all while not losing a single player to graduation in 2011-12,” he said. Senior hockey player Joe Konzen added, “The outlook looks good. We’ve put in a lot of work to build off last season. We’ve all put effort towards lifting, stick handling and offseason hockey programs. We have a very supportive
GOAL!
RMB players celebrate after sophomore Matt Pulver’s goal on Monday, November 19, 2012 at Hobbs Ice Arena.
Sports
Page 12
December 10, 2012
Football
Ramblers end season at Camp Randall
Set it up!
Senior setter Carmen Flunker gives directions during a regular season volleyball game. Flunker was named to both the All-Conference and the All Area teams.
Huddle up!
The Ramblers prepare before the opening kick-off at Camp Randall stadium in Madison. November 15, the RHS football team ended its successful season at Camp Randall in Madison. The Ramblers football team lost to the St. Mary’s Springs Ledgers after a long battle. The two undefeated teams gave their all to win the gold ball, but the luck was in Ledgers’ favor.
On the second round of playoffs, Regis won the game against Pittsville by a landslide. During the game, senior defensive end Sean Branick intercepted the ball after it got tipped and was able to make touchdown, and freshmen running back Tommy Cicha made his first varsity touchdown in his high The victory against its fierce school football career. Excited rival Colby on its third game about his touchdown, Cicha foreshadowed the Ramblers’ said, “It was intense, thrilling; successful season and a my heart was beating, and clear shot at the Cloverbelt everyone was screaming. It was Conference title. On its sixth pretty awesome.” game, when the opponent Cadott unfortunately forfeited, After the final game, the football team was 6-0 and the Ramblers finished their was excited for the Conference successful season with the title game against another record of 13-1. Head Coach undefeated team, Stanley- Bryant Brenner, proud of his Boyd. players, added, “The players had a very successful season which they deserved. Their “The players had hard work and dedication to summer and morning lifting a very successful has paid off.”
season which they deserved. Their hard word and dedication to summer and morning lifting has paid off.” - Bryant Brenner
During the Conference Championship game, both teams fought for every inch of the field. At the half time, it was 14-0, Regis. However Stanley-Boyd caught up to the Ramblers and the game ended 23-15, Regis. After the hard fought game, the football team won the Cloverbelt Conference title for the first time since 2006.
First and 10?
Senior Nick Stanke gets ready for a play during the state championship game. Stanke was one of two seniors named to an All State team.
Just a stroll through Casper Park
Junior Braxton Collins and senior Michael Kozuch were named to the All-Conference first and second teams, respectively.
Fall sports teams receive all-conference honors Dozens of RHS athletes have been acknowledged for their success this season. Fall sports awards are as follows.
All-conference football players are sophomore Nolan Kern, and seniors Khadel Akindolire, Nick Stanke, Garrett Nowak, Michael Maenner and Hayden Frey for first team. Second team members are seniors Vince Killian, Chris Pica-Anderson and Sean Branick and junior Victor Bourget. Senior Adam Loftsgaarden, junior Max Sires, and sophomore Cameron Pedersen made honorable mention. Additionally, the allregion team was awarded to Akindolire, Kern, Stanke, and Maenner. The latter two also made all-state teams, with Stanke being named to the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association all-state team and Maenner making the Associated Press all-state team.
Fore!
Four-year varsity golf player Amanda Eisenhuth was a first team All-Conference selection this year. Two other Ramblers golfers were recognized.
The all-city qualifiers are Stanke, Maenner, Bourget, Killian, Nowak, Loftsgaarden, Branick, Pica-Anderson, Kern, Frey, Akindolire and Pedersen. All-Northwest team members are first teamers Nowak, Maenner, Kern and Stanke. Second team consists of Pedersen and Pica-Anderson, with special mention going to Akindolire and Frey, and honorable mentions members are Branick, Killian, Bourget, and Loftsgaarden. Kern is the youngest football player to be recognized this year. He thinks, “It’s cool, but it’s a lot of hard work. Hard work and lifting got me here.”
“I felt like all of the players that got something definitely deserved to be given an all-conference award. If I could put all of my players up to get an award I would, because they are an awesome team.” - Kendra Pagel First team all-conference volleyball players are Seniors Morgan DeMars and Carmen Flunker. Junior Amanda Giguere made second team, and senior Rachel Liming made honorable mention. Flunker and DeMars also made the all-area first team, and Giguere qualified for the all-area honorable mention team. First year coach Kendra Pagel said, “I felt like all of
Ace!
Junior Maria Neff is the first RHS tennis player to be selected to an all-state team. Neff finished in the top eight at this year’s state contest.
the players that got something definitely deserved to be given an all-conference award. If I could put all of my players up to get an award I would, because they were a great team.” Boys soccer players who made all-conference are junior Braxton Collins on first team and seniors Michael Kozuch and Sam Nelson on second team. Girls golf members who were named to the all-conference teams were Amanda Eisenhuth, Hannah Ottevaere, and Megan Pokrandt. Eisenhuth made first team, while Ottevaere and Pokrandt qualified for second team. The girls tennis team isn’t a member of a conference, but number one singles player junior Maria Neff was named to the Wisconsin High School Tennis Coaches Association all-state second team. This is the first time an RHS tennis player has been awarded as an all-state team member.