The Storm Signals UNIVERSITY OF RIO GRANDE / RIO GRANDE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
RIO GRANDE, OH
THURSDAY JANUARY 28, 2021
Art Show with Gerry Enrico On Tuesday, November 17 there was a workshop and an art show at the Greer Museum on campus. The show was done by Gerry Enrico. Gerry’s workshop started at 10 AM on Tuesday, November 17, the workshop was during the drawing class because he was drawing a portrait.
He chose student. He started with a plain sheet of paper that was around 17 x 20“. He showed the class how he took charcoal to lay out the face first with a rough black streaky mark. And then went into detail with sections that he picked out. He talked about how he broke the face down into sections by creating a grid on top of their face. He said that his portraits can take up from an hour to two or up to a month or two depending on how much detail he feels that needs to be put into these portraits. The portrait that he finished during the drawing class took around an hour and 30 minutes. The level of detail that was put into the drawing was simple but yet made the drawing look realistic. In the first 15 minutes you could see the models face on the white piece of paper. He explained to the class that he jumps around to different mediums when he feels bored, but he’s very passionate about drawing portraits because he can express the emotion that that person is feeling on their face. The museum opening was later that evening on Tuesday, November 17 in the Greer Museum on Rio’s campus. The museum was decorated in all of his beautiful portraits around the room. He had a mixture of men and women portraits, one of a monkeys, one of a chicken and also a pray mantis. As he spoke to the room about 30 minutes into the opening he explained two of us portraits, one was a older gentleman that was on the cover of his flyers, he explained all of the beautiful white markings and gray markings
on expressing his emotions through his face and jaw line. The other Portrait that he explained was of a older lady and said they had no relation to her at all, but he explained all of the sadness within her face and how he felt so connected to it. He talked a lot about practicing his work wherever by drawing on a subway or in an airplane. The last thing that he explained was his pre-mantis drawing he said that no one will ever see this this drawing again, it expresses the woman pray mantis and how she was so aggressive and how she eats her partner after mating. As the showing on he explained that the monkey portrait that he did, also had five or six other collaboration pieces that went along with it, but the same person buys those drawings as Gerry is finishing them. The show was beautiful, it was great to have a local artist and famous artist in our gallery.
VOL 1, ISSUE 3
Storm Signals • Page 2
AROUND CAMPUS
Ceramics Class “Kiln” It By Serenity Kirts
FREE Online Yoga with Dr. Chamberlain Tonight at 6:30pm via Zoom. Check Rio’s Instagram and Facebook for link.
2020 Homecoming Queen and King
Baleigh Bradley (Alpha Mu Beta/Volleyball) & Austin Kendall (Baseball)
This fall I decided to take Ceramics 1 having no prior art background or experience. I literally took the class out of pure interest for the art form and I thought it would be a fun class to take. Ceramics turned out to be everything I had wanted it to be and more. Throughout the semester there was never a time I wasn’t showing off pictures to my friends the cool things I could make in the class. Whether it be cups, bowls, or even a whole teapot with a wooden handle, everyone was enjoying my stories of how the piece was done or how long it took. All while I was learning how to make things with clay I never thought I would be able to do before, I was meeting some new awesome people along the way. Due to the other classes in my schedule I had to miss the first 2 hours of class every Tuesday. I came in on the very first day, stressed because I had to be late to class, and worried about what I had signed myself up for because I had no idea what I was doing. The instructor, Kevin Lyles, told me about all of the possibilities and outcomes of the class and everything you can do in the world of Ceramics. I had showed him some of the types of pieces I adored but didn’t know if I could pull off and he assured me that I could. The next class we learned about the different stages of clay and how we will learn what type of clay we like to work with. I sat and thought to myself, “There is no way I am ever going to get good enough in this class to tell the difference between clay,” but sure enough I did. Everyone in the class was always so supportive and kind, offering up creative tips and kind comments about each other’s work. If I started a piece, not sure of
if I even wanted to complete it for fear of messing it up, Kevin was right there to help with any ideas or advice he could give to help me make it how I had wanted it to be. This wasn’t the type of class where you came in each day waiting on the time to pass. This was the type of class where you came in each day getting kindly greeted by Kevin and your classmates, you were encouraged to engage your creativity, everyone listened to music on the speakers as they worked, everyone did their own part to clean-up, and then you said your goodbyes until the next class. Having the freedom to make things really allowed me to find what I enjoyed making and strive to make it the best I could. It made me want to go to the art annex to work outside of class time even. Towards the end of the semester we had a class where everyone brought a can of something (corn, carrots, etc.) to put in a giant soup. Everyone took a break and ate out of a bowl they had made themselves and enjoyed being with everyone to sort of start to narrow down the semester. If you are ever contemplating taking this class I highly recommend it. It is 100% the best class I have taken and I am not even an art major. Through this class I have gone to campus art show openings that I had never been to before and fell in love with them, I have made Christmas presents people will love, I have met amazing people, and I have realized that I can do whatever my creativity leads me to do. With such an encouraging, kind, and personable support system that comes with taking this class you would not regret taking it.
Storm Signals • Page 3
Rio to Host Human Trafficking Discussions Rio is partnering with area organizations to bring awareness and education about human trafficking. Rio in conjunction with Eyes Up Appalachia and The Gallia County Citizens for Prevention & Recovery, will host three virtual seminars held the last Friday of January, February, and March.
“Seriously? That’s Human Trafficking?” starts the series off on January 29th at 1pm. Stephanie Rollins a twenty-one-year survivor of Human trafficking and advocate as a Peer Support Specialist who mentors survivors on their road to recovery is the featured speaker.
Shannon Dalton, Rio Alum, co-organizer, and Community Programming Coordinator for Gallia Jackson Meigs ADAMH Board added, “We hope to inspire students, staff, and faculty to respond, take action and impact their community. Rio has ‘caring family’ value on campus; I think it is possible to extend that value of care across our region and statewide in response to human trafficking.” The event is hosted via Zoom and will stream on Rio’s Facebook (URioGrande).
Change of Power by Jayce Phillips
On January 20, 2021, the sacred hands of democracy in the United States of America were on full display. Joseph R. Biden was sworn in as the 46th President of the United States and Kamala D. Harris as the 49th Vice President of the United States. After weeks of violence and insurrection, America witnessed a peaceful transfer of power. The inauguration continued on and is now written in the history books. The event looked different than in years past. The National Mall was not filled with millions of people due to the pandemic and security concerns. Instead, Americans tuned into the Inauguration through national television to hear a speech that was written around unifying the country. Vice President Kamala Harries made history herself as being sworn in as Vice President. She was the first African American and the first South Asian American to be sworn into the second highest office in America. Harris is the daughter of a Jamaican father and a
The New Grande Central By Brianna Eberle
Have you been inside Grande Central lately? If you haven’t, you should check it out! Not only has Twinkleberries found a second home inside, but there have been several renovations done over winter break. There are new tables and chairs for students to hang out at inbetween classes, a more organized game space, and a massage chair for student use. Also new to the space is a paint job done by the ResLife staff over the break. You may think that the blue paint color is new to Rio, but the Carolina Blue has actually been one of Rio’s colors all along. Make sure you stop by soon and check it out!
The Storm Signals A production of Redstorm Media / Marketing Interns
STAFF
Photo via AP
mother who was from India. Joe Biden made history as becoming the oldest president to ever be sworn into office at the age of 78. As America opens a new chapter in government, the message from the speeches of the inauguration were to unite together and defeat the global pandemic.
Serenity Kirts, Managing Editor Mason Dishong Brianna Eberle Alyssa Lingenfelter Layton Mitchell Jayce Phillips Parker Ruff Ashton Snider Darcy Williams Advisor Renée DeLawder, Director of Marketing For more information, questions, or to submit an article email: redstormmedia@rio.edu
Storm Signals • Page 4
SPORTS
Rolling into a New Season By Serenity Kirts
January 16th the men’s and women’s RedStorm Bowling teams competed in the Buckeye Baker Bash. This tournament took place in Columbus, OH at HP Lanes. After a long bus ride and a late start to the tournament the women’s team finished 9th place overall. Their day consisted of 25 consecutive baker games with no substitute players and they powered through it. The men’s varsity team placed 5th out of 10 teams and the jv team placed 4th out of 5 teams. After this great start to the season for all three teams some players received awards from last season. These consisted of Brianna Eberle, Serenity Kirts, Colin Little, Jacob Ramsey, and Wyatt Sipple receiving academic awards and Reece Collins and Chris Somerville receiving All Tournament Team awards. For all updates on Rio bowling follow @rio. bowling on Instagram.
Cheer By Brianna Eberle Rio cheer has got some pep in their step this year. With new members and rising numbers, the cheer team is improving every year. The cheerleaders get to cheer and perform stunts at every men’s home basketball game.
Men’s Basketball By Serenity Kirts
Freshman Megan Knope says, “I joined the team because cheerleading is my favorite thing in the world, and I was given the opportunity to cheer here and immediately jumped on it! I love the team. Every girl is so supportive and friendly. I love cheering for the team and at the games! I’m so very thankful and blessed to have gotten the opportunity to cheer here at Rio!”
Saturday, January 23rd the RedStorm men played against Asbury on our home court. This was an exciting game to watch the guys win and play as a team in. Shiloah Blevins showed off to the crowd with several slam dunks throughout the game. Blevins was also named Player of the Week for the River States Conference the week of this game. The men’s team are now overall 9-6 for winloss. They play next on the 27th at Indiana Wesleyan University and their next home game is February 2nd where they will take on West Virginia Tech.
For all updates on Rio cheer follow @urgcheerleading on Instagram.
For all updates on Rio men’s basketball follow @urgmbb on Instagram.
SPORTS
Storm Signals • Page 5
RedStorm Women Wallop UC-Clermont by Randy Payton, Sports Information Director RedStorm outscored the University of Cincinnati-Clermont in all four quarters and cruised to a 103-77 victory over the Cougars, Saturday afternoon, in women’s basketball action at the Cougar Dome. The RedStorm completed a season sweep of their hosts, upping their record to 10-7 in the process. UC-Clermont dropped to 2-3 with the loss. Rio Grande jumped to a 27-14 lead after one period and extended its lead to as many as 17 points in the second stanza before settling on a 50-35 advantage at the intermission. UC-Clermont did manage to close the gap to 10 points after a three-pointer by Ashley Moore made it 52-42 with 7:54 left in the third quarter, but the RedStorm blew things open by blitzing the Cougars with 17 consecutive points over the next three minutes and taking a 69-42 lead following a layup by sophomore Hailey Jordan (Columbus, OH) with 4:46 remaining in the period. Rio’s lead twice reached 28 points later in the quarter, including 73-45 after an offensive rebound and putback by freshman Caitlyn Brisker (Oak Hill, OH) with 3:39 left, but Clermont made things a bit more interesting with a 21-6 run over the next five minutes to draw within 79-66 after another three-pointer by Moore with 8:39 remaining in the game. However, Clermont would get no closer. The RedStorm responded with a 10-2 scoring spurt -culminating with a layup by sophomore Regan Willingham (Ashville, OH) with 4:59 left to play - to regain a 21-point cushion and the Cougars got no closer than 19 points the rest of the way. Willingham led a quartet of double-digit scorers for Rio Grande with 20 points, while Jordan added 16 points and sophomore Lexi Woods (Waverly, OH) finished with 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Brisker contributed 10 points to the winning effort, while senior Chyna Chambers (Columbus, OH) had a game-
high 10 assists and a team-high four steals. Junior Avery Harper (Seaman, OH) blocked a game-high three shots. Rio Grande finished 42-for-83 from the floor overall (50.6%), while enjoying a 50-29 edge in rebounding and tallying 28 assists on its 42 field goals. Those figures helped to offset a 14-for-22 showing at the free throw line (63.6%) and 22 turnovers. UC-Clermont hurt its own cause with 25 turnovers. The Cougars shot 41 percent overall (23-for-56) and went 26-for-33 at the free throw line (78.8%). Moore led all scorers with 31 points in a losing cause, while also collecting a gamehigh five steals. Victoria Brooks finished with 13 points, a team-best six rebounds, a game-high five steals and two blocked shots for UC-C, while Kristi Duncan netted 12 points.
Rio Grande’s Regan Willingham scored a team-high 20 points in the RedStorm’s 103-77 win over the University of Cincinnati-Clermont, Saturday afternoon, at the Cougar Dome in Batavia, Ohio. Photo by Justyce Stout
Wrestling Written by Layton Mitchell The inaugural season for the wrestling team has had quite a bit of cancellations so far. To date, the team wrestled a tri-meet with Thomas Moore and number three ranked Lindsey Wilson at Thomas Moore. The team went 0-2 on duals for the day. They pick up again February 19th and 20th in the Mid-South Conference tournament to try to qualify for the national tournament.
Storm Signals • Page 6
Commuters Corner: Be Kind to Fast Food Workers By: Darcy Williams I believe everyone should have to experience working in customer service at least once in their life. As a current college student, I am fully aware that I am not the only one who is facing the constant struggles of being treated poorly based off negative stereotypes toward people working in the food industry. I have learned multiple lessons about society and life that has helped shape me into the person I am today. Working with the public has trained me to appreciate kindness and to not let negativity outshine it. I agree, it is very hard to keep this mindset when a customer raises their voice at a worker for giving them a drink carrier and making it clear they did not want it. The customer starts demanding for the worker to throw it away and when the worker tells them they aren’t allowed to throw it away based off safety precautions
It’s Game Time! By: Alyssa Lingenfelter It’s a new season for the growing Rio Grande eSports program. This season, Rio’s gamers will be competing in Valorant, Rocket League, and Call of Duty. For updates check out Rio Grande eSport”s Twitch, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook pages. New jerseys are also now available on esportsgear. com with more merch coming soon. Every Sunday evening at 7pm, Rio Grande eSports game leads and coaches will be hosting a game night for everyone to get together and game with some great people. So, grab your controllers, keyboards, and mice and hop in the Discord linked below to join the fun! Snap the QR code or visit: https://discord. gg/rXmnwknmDM
due to the pandemic, the customer throws a fit and starts to say a few choice words in the workers direction. (True story) The worst part is that these actions put a damper on people’s moods and make them rethink their life decisions when they are just trying to make money and do their job. Working in the fast-food industry requires a lot of patience and hard work but it is very rewarding. It is easy to assume that serving coffee or flipping burgers does not take much skill and that is correct, but it does take a particular type of individual to deal with customers and the public. I have met some extremely hardworking people over the course of two years working at McDonalds. I get discouraged because there are people busting their tail everyday trying to provide for a family but not getting the
credit they deserve. A person shouldn’t be less of a human just because their job isn’t considered “a real job.” Everyone has their own baggage that they carry and should not have to put more on their plate just because someone’s fries were cold. There is more to life than taking anger out on innocent workers. If there are issues, then still inform the workers. I promise you they won’t care and will do their best to meet the customer’s needs. All I am saying is that the same result would come from politely asking someone to fix the issue rather than lashing out and considering the worst. In conclusion, having a job in customer service is a humbling experience and allows people to appreciate kindness and learn to consider other people’s feelings. So, get out there and be nice to your local fast-food workers! They will appreciate it 100%.
Officer of the Year By Serenity Kirts
One of our very own Campus Police Officers, Megan Cochran, was recently was selected to receive the award of Officer of the Year. She is the very first female to receive this award. Being with Campus Police for just a little under a year now she has done a great job. The votes by her colleagues show her true leadership and commitment to the job. Whether it be checking up with students, doing campus rounds with RA’s, or being in the dunk tank for Fall Fest, Megan is always up for the task. In addition to being full time at URG/RGCC, Officer Cochran holds auxiliary commissions with the Gallia County Sheriff’s Office and Rio Grande Police Department. She is also currently pursuing her Associate’s degree in Psychology.
Storm Signals • Page 7
Icebreaker of the week: If you could fight any wild animal and actually have a shot at winning, what animal would you pick? Written by Layton Mitchell I have been asked this very question approximately 3.7 times in my life. After years and years of research, I have finally found the correct wild animal to pick. Some may say sloth, dodo bird, squirrel, elephant, or even the crazy lose-the-battle-ten-timesout-of-ten kangaroo, but one eclipses all of those by far. If there was any wild animal out there that I think I could take in a battle, the only correct choice would be an orca. To clarify, I mean just one orca, not a whole pod because I’m no John Wick. I have once swum to the bottom of the
Mariana Trench and back up on one breath before so I will be prepared for some underwater battle. Additionally, orcas are whales, whales are mammals, and that means they need to breathe. Upon further research, I saw an orca can only hold its breath for 15 minutes while I can hold mine for 12 hours minimum. I will swim out to the middle of the ocean, find an orca, and drop a Rock People’s Elbow on it to engage in battle. While it thinks it may be dragging me down, I will be the one dragging it down to its doom! If it flips me out of the water, I was a state champion gymnast as well as 4th place in swimming and diving in Wyoming in 2004 so I will be fully prepared and swan dive back into action. We will throw some hands and fins and haymakers, and when the time comes for it to take a breath fourteen and a half minutes later, I will simply grab
Storm Signals • Page 8
WELCOME BACK RIO! A few photos from the first week back on campus.