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Verve 12
Pumpkin Invades Fall Foods
By Anika Becker
Staff Reporter
A season that was once all about apples has turned its attention to indulge in a new fall flavor, pumpkin. This increasingly popular fall trend has become everything pumpkin. From ice cream, to muffins, to lattes, pumpkin has become a staple in Americans’ diets during the fall. Many, like Junior Kate Yarbrough, mark the beginning of fall with a pumpkin milkshake from Magic Fountain. Others enjoy an array of pumpkin bread, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin waffles, pumpkin pop tarts, pumpkin candies, pumpkin donuts, and more. Pumpkin recipes have been proven to be highly beneficial, appealing not only to taste but also to health. The health benefits of pumpkins include sharper eyesight, a high percentage of vitamin A and potassium, improved heart health, skin protection, and a good mood. Pumpkins also include the same amino acid, tryptophan,
Frosh Halloween Trick: no broadcast
By Emily Gao
Staff Reporter which gives off that sleepy, lulled feeling one might get after eating too much turkey on Thanksgiving. They also are rich in phytosterol, a chemical that reduces ‘bad’ cholesterol, according to WebMD. These health benefits are an added bonus to the great taste of pumpkins, making them even more appealing to seasonal food fanatics. This pumpkin fad is somewhat new, and continues to climb exponentially every year. Pumpkin food sales have grown “$290 million last year, reports Nielsen. The sheer number of pumpkin offerings domestically jumped nearly 19 percent last year.” Whether it is pumpkin spice or actual pumpkin, this seasonal food has become increasingly popular during the fall time. Blogger Rachel Olsen said, “Supposedly, ‘American Runs on Dunkin.’ But right now, we’re all running on pumpkin,” and pumpkins will continue to fuel Americans through the fall months.
November 2013
After Halloween cancellations for two consecutive years due to bad weather, the student council worked hard and successfully conjured up the ghost of assemblies past in the 2013 Halloween extravaganza. The student council organized this year’s show, with help from the Class Councils. “The Halloween assembly has always been a favorite in previous years and because we have been unable to hold it in the past two years due to the storms, we are trying to bring it back,” said Student Council President Max Graeb. The assembly was composed of individual and group costume contests, plus performances ranging from Ash Ketchum choosing Pikachu (to which Mr. Munjack quipped “You’ll never get that two seconds back!”) to elaborately choreographed song, dance, and drumline numbers. Judges included Mr. Wayne Mallette from the Music department, Mrs. Monika Bartlett from World Languag-
es, Ms. Caitlin Botti from Science, Mr. Casey Sink from Mathematics, and Mr. Steven Ertz, representing History. The hour-long assembly took place on Halloween, Thursday Oct. 31. It began during first period and ran into second period. Although the main event was in the auditorium, due to the increase in student population and the limited capacity of the auditorium, freshmen were divided up and sent to the library or the cafeteria to watch a simulcast. There were technical difficulties, however, so the only Freshmen to see the show were participants in the contest that were allowed to sit in the auditorium. Freshman David Medina was in the cafeteria, and he said, “Well, it was an hour spent with friends, and that’s not a bad thing.” May this be signal the return of one of Summit High School’s greatest traditions. Ms. Winifred Caetta, student council adviser, said, “It was so great to see the school come together in spirit. I thought it was just great and we really needed it!”
Assembly back after two-year hiatus! Photos by Emily Gao
MC Munjack! English teacher and crowd-pleasing emcee Mr. Neal Munjack kept the show rolling and the audience laughing. Here he is with some student contestants.
Winners Announced Faculty Winners: Mr. Gary Pascal and Mr. Eric Fontes were foosball players; student group The Tennis Girls, Seniors Chris Laughlin, and Nick Lioudis; performance team seniors Andrew Aguilera and Nate Bowyer won for their reprisal of “Jump On It,” their show-stopping 7th-grade act. Halloween History Originally a Celtic holiday to honor the spirits of the dead who were supposed to wander around at night on Oct. 31, Halloween was the day when fires were lit to repel ghosts and help them find their way to the afterlife. Costumes were not part of the sacred observations, but dressing up on Halloween has become a natural part of the holiday in America. Before, costumes were entirely homemade, but now they have spread to become commercially produced and seasonally marketed. As contemporary Halloween drifts away from traditional supernatural images, pop culture started to influence choice of costumes with characters such as Superman, SpongeBob, and Darth Vadar.