Alumnus Returns as Digital Animator Former Principal Elected

Mete r Chronicle
Produced by the students of the Montrose Area Junior/Senior High School
Volume 25, Issue 3
INSIDE
Montrose Area School District
Former Principal
Elected Board President
By Katelyn Spellman, Co-editor in chief
A. Rebello/Meteor Chronicle
Freshman Amanda Rucker
won the Poetry Out Loud
competition held at the high
school Jan. 21. She recited
“Phenomenal Woman” by
Maya Angelou. With her win,
Amanda advances to the
Poetry Out Loud regional
competiton in Scranton in
February.
........................................
Photo courtesy of C. Owens
MASD superintendent Mike
Ognosky and technology
director Craig Owens participated in the Macey’s
Thanksgiving Day Parade.
To read more about the parade, turn to...
Page 6
DATES TO REMEMBER
Feb. 2
Battle of the Bands
High school auditorium
5-9:30 p.m.
Snow date: Feb. 9
Feb. 13
SADD Junior High SemiFormal Valentine Dance
High school gymnasium
6-9 p.m.
Feb. 23
Key Club Blood Drive
High school gymnasium
7 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Feb. 26
Meteor Fun Fair
Sponsored by the class
of 2011
High school
4-8 p.m.
March 3
Band Concert: Grades 5-12
High school auditorium
6 p.m.
Having spent 34 years as a
teacher and administrator, Doug
Wilcox is no stranger to education.
On Dec. 7 the third-year school
board member added the title of
board president to his resumé.
Representing Franklin, Bridgewater and Liberty townships, Mr.
Wilcox assumed the one-year
president’s position along with
newly-elected vice president Karl
Wimmer. Board member Kathy
Mordovancey nominated Mr. Wilcox for president.
“[I nominated Mr. Wilcox
because] I felt he would be able to
bring an interesting perspective to
the boardroom table. As a former
teacher, principal, administrator
and, most importantly, a parent in
our district, he has a well-rounded
experience,” Mrs. Mordovancey
says. “Having served on the board
with Mr. Wilcox over the past
two years on various committees,
especially the student liaison
committee, I truly believe he has
the best interests of our students
and all the constituents of our
district at heart!”
Originally hailing from outside
Ithaca, Mr. Wilcox earned his
associate’s degree in construction
technology from Alfred University
where one of his professors suggested to him that he become a
teacher.
“While at Alfred I did some
work for a drafting and drawing
professor,” Mr. Wilcox says.
“One day I helped some students
in class, and he asked me if I had
ever considered teaching. I hadn’t.
Without him, I would have never
become a teacher.”
Mr. Wilcox then went on to
Buffalo State University where
he earned his bachelor’s degree
in technology education and the
University of Scranton where
A. Rebello
Doug Wilcox
he earned his master’s degree in
administration.
First employed at Lackawanna
Trail High School, Mr. Wilcox
taught woodworking and mechanical and architectural drawing. He
was also the athletic director.
“I thoroughly enjoyed teaching,” Mr. Wilcox says. “[Becoming
a teacher] was probably one of the
best things that ever happened to
me.”
After 14 years in the classroom,
Mr. Wilcox was hired as assistant
principal and athletic director at
MAHS.
“As a teacher, you are concerned
with just your subject,” Mr. Wilcox
says, “but as an administrator, you
are concerned with everyone’s
subjects and the entire curriculum.”
During his employment at
MASD, Mr. Wilcox also served
as the high school’s supervisor of
special education, Lathrop Street’s
principal and the high school’s
principal.
“[As an administrator] I
learned that education is constantly
changing,” Mr. Wilcox says.
After retiring in 2005, Mr.
Wilcox began volunteering his time
one day a week as a tutor at Lathrop
Street and Choconut Valley.
See President, Page 2
...........................................................................................
Haircuts Produce More
than Light-headedness
By Dallas Ely, Staff reporter
When junior Lindsey Decker’s
younger sister Lacey began to lose
her hair at age 8, Lindsey wondered
what was going on.
“It was probably six months
before she had no eyebrows, lashes
or hair on her head. Just this past
month she lost her arm and leg
hair,” Lindsey said.
In July 2008 Lacey was
diagnosed with alopecia, an
autoimmune disease that causes
the immune system to attack the
hair follicles, causing hair to fall
out in small patches on the body or
in some cases all over the body.
At first when her hair began
to thin, Lacey wore hats, but then
when she lost all of the hair on her
head, she began wearing a wig
given to her by a friend.
Juniors Mark Wagner and
Kenny O’Rourke and senior Aaron
Roman realize the importance of
wigs to people who are suffering
from hair loss. In recent months
each of the boys donated his hair
to be made into a human-hair wig.
Mark became aware of the
problem of people’s dealing with
hair loss when he learned of a
cousin of his who was losing
Photo courtesy of Aaron Roman
Aaron Roman Before
her hair to alopecia. He started
growing his hair out about a year
ago when he came up with the idea
of donating it. His hair reached 10
inches in length before he decided
to cut it.
“I was pretty upset to cut my
hair. I loved it and I enjoyed it a
lot, but I was stoked that I knew
that someone else would have hair
then,” Mark said.
Mark’s hair was just long
enough to donate to Locks of
Love, a non-profit organization
that provides human-hair wigs
to children and young adults 21
January 2010
Alumnus Returns
as Digital Animator
By Eli Gere, Co-editor in chief
MAHS’s claim to fame is
no longer only Giants football
player Chris Snee. Digital
animator Jake Stephens may
have usurped the title of the
most famous graduate of
MAHS, having just finished
work on Golden Globe
winner Avatar credited for
its state-of-the art digital
animation and special effects.
As the film was debuting
in theatres across the United
States Dec. 18, Jake returned
to his alma mater after not
having been inside the school
since he graduated in 1991.
For the previous 18 months
he had lived with his wife and
two children in Wellington,
New Zealand, while working
on the film. As a lover of
Amanda Rebello/ Meteor Chronicle
the outdoors, Jake enjoyed
Jake Stephens speaks in the
being able to work on the Alumni
high school auditorium Dec. 18.
film outside and mentioned
“there’s not a bad view in the whole
and luscious tropical jungles. Even
place [New Zealand].”
Living in a different country may though he said he never thought he’d
be a dramatic adjustment, but Jake be where he is today (despite always
says he was ready for it, thanks to his wanting to work in film), he advises
study abroad experience in Italy while anyone interested in the film or game
attending Penn State to pursue a degree industry to follow his/her dream.
“I didn’t think it was possible…,”
in architecture.
“If I hadn’t gone to Italy in the he said. “Put yourself out there, take the
semester abroad,” he said, “I don’t risk, and it pays off.”
Senior Chris Stevens, who
think I’d be ready to live in another
is planning to pursue a career in
country.”
In the high school auditorium, information technology, found what
Jake spoke to graphic design, business Jake had to say quite valuable.
“I liked how he explained his day,”
and computer students about his
career, which has consisted more of Chris said. “… the majority of the day
videogame design than film animation. he is surrounded by people in a dark
He worked with gaming companies room filled with computers, chipping
such as LucasArts and Blizzard before away at a scene that could be three
becoming involved with his first movie. seconds long, that could take weeks to
“Doing a career change like that is complete…. It’s very time-consuming;
hard,” he said. “In film, it’s all about the it’s not all fun and games.”
Jake has returned to New Zealand
camera…. In games the player puts the
with his family to work on a new
camera wherever he wants.”
Jake was the technical layout movie, according to secretary Joanne
director for Avatar. He worked on McCain, who is a relative.
“They are settled back into their
designing some of the digitally-created
environments of the film, which routine and enjoying summer over
include vivid and pristine mountains there,” Mrs. McCain says.
...........................................................................................
years of age and younger who are
suffering from long-term medical
hair loss diseases such as alopecia.
“At first, my head was cold and
felt lighter,” Mark said, “but at least
it wasn’t sweaty all the time.”
Kenny donated his 13 inches of
dark brown hair to Locks of Love
as well.
“I just grew my hair out to grow
it out, and it was getting long, so I
just decided to keep growing it,”
Kenny said.
It took two-and-a-half years for
Kenny’s hair to reach 13 inches,
and he was ready to be rid of it.
“I hated how long it took to dry
it. I’m glad it’s gone,” Kenny said.
It took over three years to grow
Aaron’s 12 inches of strawberry
blonde hair. He had decided early
on to donate his hair to the Pantene
Beautiful Lengths program, a nonprofit organization that works with
the American Cancer Society to
provide wigs to women free of
charge. Six heads of hair, each at a
length of eight inches or more, are
needed for one wig, Aaron said.
“I waited longer than I needed
to,” Aaron said. “Then Halloween
Amanda Rebello/Meteor Chronicle
Aaron Roman After
came along, and I was dressing as
the Joker, and I decided that was a
good time [for a haircut].
“I was nervous about how it
was going to turn out because I
hadn’t had my hair short in three
years, and over the three years my
face had changed a lot, so I knew it
was going to be different.”
Lindsey said she never really
gave much thought to people’s
donating their hair for wigs until
her sister needed one.
“It means a lot for people to
donate, and I can see that it means a
lot to my sister,” Lindsey said.
PAGE 2
METEOR CHRONICLE
JANUARY 2010
Shelp Makes MTV
Commercial in New York
Principal’s Perspective
From Montrose to Hollywood
By Principal Jim Tallarico
By Angela Short
Arts & Entertainment editor
When senior Grant Shelp got
on the bus Dec. 3 for a field trip
with the MAHS student council,
he never imagined he’d get the
chance to be part of a television
commercial.
Approximately 35 student
council members had decided
to spend a day in New York,
visiting Ripley’s Believe It or
Not! Museum at Times Square,
Rockefeller Center and Macy’s
flagship department store in
Manhattan.
As the students entered
Macy’s, Grant spotted an MTV
camera crew outside the store’s
entrance.
“[Junior] Mike Chapel and I
were walking past, and when we
saw them, we tried to get in the
background of the interview, but
then the MTV crew told us to
leave,” Grant says.
After the students entered the
store, the MTV crew walked in
behind them.
A short while later Grant
noticed the television crew talking
to three of the student council
chaperones, so he joined the group.
“When I walked over, they
were trying to get [student council
adviser Mike Boccella] to be in
a commercial for a credit card
company. They needed someone
who looked like a college student,”
Grant says. “Mr. Boccella didn’t
want to do it, so he volunteered
me. At first I was hesitant. I
wasn’t sure if I would be a good
person to do it because I’ve never
done something like this, but I
eventually gave in.”
The crew took Grant to another
part of the store to set up for the
commercial. His role as a “college
student” was to pretend he was
shopping as one of the musical
group Cheetah Girls, Adrienne
Bailon, came up behind him and
bought something he was looking
at with a credit card. The filming
of the commercial took 10 to 15
minutes.
“Even though it was staged,
they played the scene like it was
random,” Grant says.
The
commercial
was
broadcasted around Christmas
time, but Grant says he never got to
see it. After the commercial aired,
however, Grant received texts from
people who had seen it.
“I got some texts Christmas
Eve saying, ‘I saw you on MTV
shopping!’” Grant says. “After that
I started to watch MTV, but I didn’t
see anything unfortunately. Then I
started to get a lot of e-mails from
acting schools. I have been looking
at the schools on the Internet out
of curiosity, but right now I am
planning on attending Lock Haven
for fitness training.”
While he says the MTV
experience was interesting, Grant
says he has one regret.
“After our final take, [Ms.
Bailon] had to leave to go back
to the MTV studios, and I had to
shoot something by myself, so I
never got the opportunity to ask her
for her cell number,” Grant says. “I
was a little upset. She was easily a
10 out of 10.”
A. Rebello/Meteor Chronicle
Right before our students left
school for their holiday vacation
in December, they were treated to
a presentation by a very successful
Montrose High School alumnus.
Our kids just weren’t sure why
he was successful. All they were
told was that this man’s career has
taken him from this little town of
Montrose to a career in Hollywood.
His name is Jacob Stephens,
and he is a 1991 alumnus. Jacob
now lives in New Zealand with
his wife and two daughters, but
his loyalty to the place he grew up
remains forever engrained in him.
He was in town for the holidays
and to host a private screening for
friends and family of his newest
project: Avatar.
We asked Jacob to spend some
time with our students, telling
them about his career and how he
got from Montrose to Hollywood.
Little did our students know that
day as Jacob spoke to them in an
assembly that his newest movie, on
which he had worked as technical
layout director, would soon become
the highest grossing movie of all
time.
I must tell you what an
enlightening day it was for our
students. They realized that their
dreams and aspirations can be
achieved with a lot of hard work,
patience and maybe just a little
bit of luck. Jacob credited his
former educators at our school for
challenging him to reach his goals.
He in turn challenged our students
to not let anyone or anything stop
them from accomplishing the goals
they will set for themselves as they
plan their careers.
Jacob reaffirmed to our
students how very important their
education is. He also reaffirmed to
many students with many different
interests that winning the Super
Bowl isn’t the only way to become
a famous Montrose alumnus.
Angel Basket Project Huge Success
By Chelsea Gelatt, Staff reporter
While most students in the high school were counting down the days until Christmas vacation, Key Club members
were hard at work gathering supplies to fill Angel Baskets for 75 families in need within the school district.
The baskets contained common toiletries and other household items such as shampoo, toothpaste, dish soap, tissues
and paper towels donated by the high school’s student body, faculty and staff. In addition, many donated money for
purchase of missing items as baskets were assembled.
A week before the deadline for the Angel Baskets, Key Club adviser Suzanne Bennici announced that more supplies
for the drive were needed since at that point only 25 families could be served.
With the hope of encouraging more students to donate, the deadline was extended, and Mrs. Bennici and Key Club
members put out the word that more help was needed.
“It was really crazy and busy, sorting things out and figuring out what we needed and what we already had,” senior
Erin Caterson said.
A tragedy Dec. 17 involving the families of students from the school district may have turned the tide for the Key
Club. A house fire on Chenango Street in Montrose destroyed several families’ belongings.
“The fire really made people realize how lucky we are,” Mrs. Bennici said.
By Christmas week the student body had rallied, and students brought in enough supplies to serve the remaining
49 families.
“I wanted to donate to the Angel Baskets because I wanted to help families in our communities to have a good
Christmas,” sophomore Kate Kielceski said.
When it came time to distribute the baskets, families drove up to the back door of the high school, and Key Club
members loaded each family’s basket into their car while Mrs. Bennici talked with family members.
“It felt really good to help people who needed it, and it made me feel like a better person,” senior Ashley Nolan said.
President continued from Page 1
He tutors students in grades children got or are getting a
good education,” Mr. Wilcox
K-6 in any subject.
Mr. Wilcox and his wife says. “I want to make sure that
By Tatim Brace, Opinion editor
Betsy, a family and consumer all students in the district get a
For sophomores Allegra Spero and Alex Charles their junior year of high school will not be spent in science teacher at the high good, quality education.”
The struggling economy
Montrose. They will leave next summer for a year abroad as Rotary exchange students. Allegra will travel school, have five children, all
graduates of MAHS. Three will pose a threat to the
to Australia, her number-one choice of countries, and Alex will journey to Turkey.
of their eight grandchildren district’s ability to “stay
Although Alex’s first country choice was Russia, he said he is happy with the assignment.
“For a few seconds I was pretty disappointed, but then I thought about it and said to myself, ‘I’m going attend Choconut Valley, and current with curriculum and
three more will attend a MASD class offerings,” Mr. Wilcox
to Turkey! That’s pretty cool!’”
Among Allegra’s top choices were countries whose citizens speak different languages, she said, but she school in the future. It was says.
“[The board] will look at
the education his children
was “super excited” to hear she will visit Australia.
received and the education his one issue at a time and look at
“I really want to learn a new language, but then again, it’s nice that I don’t have to,” she said.
grandchildren are receiving the short-term and long-term
that inspired Mr. Wilcox to effects,” he says. “However,
become a school board member I want to make sure that
education continues to move
in 2006, he says.
“My children and grand- forward.”
Rotary Names New Exchange Students
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Life A
“Life As We Know It” is a year-long series devoted to informing teens
and the community about some of the issues teens face.
Social Web Sites Offer Too Much Information
In this computer-dominated
age, one does not have to call his
friends, acquaintances or even
people he barely knows to see
what they’re up to on a given day.
A day in the life of the average
American teen these days includes
waking up and checking Facebook
and Twitter to see what everyone’s
doing. Not only can young people
do this on their computers but also
many can use their cell phones to
access these sites.
Status updates plaster the
Facebook “walls.” These updates
are open to any “friends” to post
responses for all to see, responses
that can be positive or negative.
Facebook is the most invasive of
all social networking sites because
the “live feed” feature allows users
to be constantly updated on the
very public conversations and activities between their “friends” and
friends of friends. This feature is so
accurate that updates appear with
the up-to-the-second details of the
time new material was posted.
The words and images one
posts on the Internet may be available for years, and a person’s
profile may be viewed by future
employers and school admissions
officials as well as identity thieves
and stalkers.
Facebook profiles say a lot
about a person since the messages
exchanged over the site are often
very public and sometimes offer
detailed descriptions of one’s activities. This is the reason why
many colleges are starting to look
at applicant profiles.
According to Wall Street
Journal writer John Hechinger,
a new survey of 500 top colleges
found that 10 percent of admissions
officers acknowledged looking
at social-networking sites to
evaluate applicants. Of those colleges making use of the online
information, 38 percent said that
what they saw “negatively affected”
their views of the applicant. One
example of college admission
officers seeing things that reflect
poorly on applicants is photos of
underage drinking or drug use.
Only a quarter of the schools
checking the online sites said
they had an improved view of the
applicants, according to the survey done by education company
Kaplan, a unit of the Washington
Post Company. In addition to
these profiles being used to review
applicants, some colleges use
Facebook to recruit high school
students and award scholarships.
Leah Hope, a reporter for ABC
local news in Lombard, Illinois, reported that a string of teen underage
drinking arrests were made in that
area when pictures from a party
were found on Facebook. The
students were from two different
high schools in the area, and 11
of them were athletes who faced
suspension from their sports.
Before allowing underage
drinking photos of oneself to be
posted all over the Internet, he/she
should consider who is viewing
them.
By Tatim Brace, Opinion editor
In November 2009, an article
by K.J. Lang for the LaCrosse
Tribune in Lacrosse, Wisconsin,
revealed that Adam Bauer, a student
at the university of Wisconsin, was
caught drinking underage in a way
that most Facebook users would
never have expected.
Like many Facebook users, the
19-year-old had approximately 400
“friends” and said that he believes
he was caught when he accepted
a “friend request” from a girl he
didn’t recognize.
“She was a good looking girl. I
usually don’t accept friend requests
from people I don’t know, but I
randomly accepted this one for
some reason,” he said.
A month later Adam was
taken to the local police station
and given a $227 fine because of a
photo of him drinking a beer on his
Facebook profile.
One Facebook danger that
many experience firsthand involves
photo tagging. “Friends” can tag
other “friends” in photos with a
link to his/her Facebook page.
Unlike Myspace, these tags do not
have to be approved by the person
who is being linked.
Senior Sally* said this happened
to her without her knowledge until
later in the day when she stumbled
upon it on her Facebook wall. Sally
was tagged in a picture taken at
her house of a counter top covered
in alcohol bottles. She and other
underage high school students were
preceived as underage drinkers but
had done no such thing.
“We were at a party with people
who were of age, and the minors
didn’t drink, but it looked like we
had,” Sally said.
Even high school students who
have already been in trouble with
authorities and are on probation
will brag online about their illegal
lifestyles. When a member of a
social networking site thinks that
only a select few are looking, he/
she is usually wrong.
* Name has been changed to
protect the student’s privacy.
Opinion
Editorial
Editorial Cartoon
High School for Exploration,
Not Missed Opportunities
Leaving small-town Montrose
and heading out to the “big
world” leaves students facing
many challenges. Although four
years of high school prepares
each student as much as possible,
there is still a certain amount
of trepidation at the thought of
leaving the security of home and
venturing into the great unknown.
Students do themselves a
disservice by not investigating and
taking advantage of opportunities
available to them.
Some seniors look back on
their high school careers and wish
different choices had been made
about the classes that filled their
schedules. Computer illiteracy is
one concern.
“I wish I had taken a computer course or graphics to take
advantage of the computers,”
senior Nikki Fruehan says. “I am
terrible with computers!”
Most students realize that
as the technology era thunders
and technology itself becomes
a part of everyday life, there are
expectations for students coming
out of high school to possess
a reasonable skill level with
hardware, software programs and
the Internet.
“I don’t know how computers
work,” senior Eli Gere says. “I
wish I had learned, especially if
[I were to go] into a technologyoriented career.”
Another recurring regret
among some seniors is selecting
the wrong or too few electives.
“I wish I had taken more art
courses,” senior Renée Oleniacz
says. “I would have taken
advantage of art at the high school
level.”
When asked to choose the
next year’s courses, students try
to predict which will be most
useful, fun or necessary. Looking
back upon these choices, seniors
sometimes wish they had planned
differently.
“I wish I had spread out my
science classes,” senior Julia
Koloski says. “I am taking [AP]
biology, [AP] chemistry and
physics this year.”
Taking the easy way out
seems to be a common factor
among students. Although there’s
no need for someone to take on
as many AP and honors classes
as possible, no one should
underestimate him or herself
and do the bare minimum either.
Students should take classes that
they may enjoy and that will also
prepare them for whatever they
plan for their futures.
“Don’t just look at the
individual classes,” senior Meggie Vaccaro says. “Look at your
schedule as a whole. Make sure
the workload is what you can
handle, but don’t shy away from
challenges.”
If one knows some of the
classes he/she would like to take
in college and the high school
offers precursors for those
classes, take them, she says.
Students aren’t the only
people who look back on high
school and wish they had done
something differently. Teachers
often push their students toward
certain classes or school activities
in light of their own high school
days and the opportunities they
may have missed.
“I tell students to take classes
such as Latin and science…. As
for clubs, join clubs that offer
you personal growth or selfimprovement,” junior English
teacher John Koloski, a 1982
MAHS graduate, says.
Participating in sports or
school-related activities is an
important part of high school.
Not only can one make new
friends but also students learn life
skills such as time management,
working cooperatively with
others and the value of hard work.
Students and teachers alike
say missed opportunities in high
school aren’t necessarily academic alone. “I wish I would’ve done more
sports,” senior Brian Snow says.
“I would have been able to stay in
better shape.”
“I was so focused on obtaining
an academic scholarship that I
never participated in high school
sports,” Mr. Koloski says. “I
was lucky to experience sports
“No breadsticks again? Lunch period 5C always gets left out!”
before it was too late. My sports
experiences in college satisfied
me, [but] I wish I had started
earlier in high school. [However],
as long as you are breathing and
physically fit enough to try, it’s
never too late for sports.”
Mr. Koloski makes a good
point: It’s never too late. Collegebound students who never took
advantage of certain course selections in high school can more
than likely make up for that at the
university level, and there is room
for sports and other activities.
Those who don’t intend to go to
college could pick up a class or
two, such as an art or accounting
class, in the community or try a
sport with some friends.
Many seniors say they missed
at least one great opportunity during their high school years.
“I wish I’d taken more of
the AP sciences,” senior Larissa
Hilgner says. “I’m planning on
going into a science major.”
It’s never too late, Mr. Koloski
says, but one can never go back
either. High school is a onetime experience. Students cheat
themselves when they don’t step
up and make the most of every
opportunity available to them.
Meteor Chronicle
Montrose Area Junior/Senior High School
Editor in chief...............................Eli Gere
Katelyn Spellman
News/Features editor..................Katelyn Spellman
Opinion editor..............................Tatim Brace
The Chronicle is a student publication researched, written and produced by members
of the staff named here and printed by the
Arts & Entertainment editor..... Angela Short
Mulligan Printing Corporation. All unsigned
Elementary editor........................Geena Bistocchi
editorials within this publication were written
to reflect solely the opinion of the entire news-
Samantha Vetri
Junior high editor........................Leah Cronk
Sports co-editors..........................Megan Henry
Angela Short
Photo co-editors...........................Katie Hibbard
PAGE 3
JANUARY 2010
METEOR CHRONICLE
Amanda Rebello
paper staff. Letters to the editor are welcomed
and will be published as space allows but must
be signed and include contact information.
Names will be withheld upon request. The
Editorial cartoonist.....................Clara Lattimore
Chronicle reserves the right to edit letters for
Adviser..........................................Sandra Kaub
grammar and clarity, and all letters are subject
Staff
Dallas Ely, Chelsea Gelatt, Johanna Hripto, Kate Kielceski,
Cory Kimmell, Courtney Kimmell, Kaitlin Liddick, Brooke
Malloy, Katy Swingle, Kayla Tyson,
Carmen VanNess
50 High School Rd. Montrose, PA 18801
to laws governing obscenity, libel, privacy,
and disruption of the school process as are all
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(570) 278-3731
Another Voice
Reality of Military Sinks In
By Amanda Rebello
Photo co-editor
During the high school’s
Veterans’ Day assembly this past
fall, students who are planning
to enter military service after
high school were asked to stand.
Looking around the auditorium,
I saw students I have gone to
school with for the last four years
standing up. I saw people I’ve
come to care about standing.
Prior to that moment I had
known that some people I know
are planning to enlist in the
military, but seeing them stand
alongside the gentlemen and
ladies who have already served
our country made the reality sink
in. As soldiers, Marines, airmen,
these students could be deployed
to hostile situations, meaning that
they might never come home.
These kids, ones I’ve had
classes with and spent time with
over the last three or so years,
are entering military service. I
am so proud to know people,
especially young people, willing
to risk everything for our country.
At the same time, however, I am
terrified that after graduation,
people I normally see in the
stores or around town on breaks
from college schedules or jobs
won’t be there. I’ve always had
a deep-seated respect for the
men and women who gave their
lives for our country, but thinking
that the names of my friends and
classmates might someday be
added to a memorial wall of those
lost in war scares me.
In early December President
Obama announced that he would
send 30,000 more troops to
Afghanistan. That’s 30,000 more
mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters,
friends and others we care about
leaving to go overseas.
Whether this is a good or bad
decision is not for me to say. I’m
not the president; I don’t have his
knowledge of the situation.
As an American, I can only
hope that the president makes
the decision that is best for the
country, and that the rest of us
remember the families and friends
left behind. Theirs is an equally
difficult sacrifice; they must go
on with their daily lives without
the support and assistance of their
loved ones.
Looking around at my peers
during the November assembly, I
realized that soon they would no
longer be my peers. They would
be part of our country’s armed
forces, a group of people I have
always looked up to. It struck me
as odd that the reality of all that
hit home for me with the simple
gesture of those students standing
up. It made me think.
When does that reality sink in
for the family and loved ones of a
soldier? The moment their loved
one signs on for military service?
When he/she gets the letter for
deployment? When he/she has
been gone for months? When
those back home get the word that
their soldier is not coming home?
For me it was that assembly.
.....................................................................................
CORRECTION
In the Page 1 story of Issue 2, “Gas Drilling Impacts Area,” Ms.
Kathleen McGinty was misidentified as Pennsylvania’s Secretary of
the Department of Environmental Protection. Ms. McGinty served in
that position from 2003 to 2008. Mr. John Hanger is the current DEP
Secretary.
PAGE 4
JANUARY 2010
METEOR CHRONICLE
Third Graders Investigate Native American Tribes
By Samantha Vetri, Elementary co-editor
After Lathrop Street third
third
grade entation for his/her classmates.
grader Colin Spellman was
teacher Christine The speakers showed their peers
assigned the Algonquin tribe
Brewer, but now the contents of their folders
for his Native American
is
integrated and discussed the process
project, he took a month to
into
Lathrop they followed to gather their
complete his work both in
Street’s reading information.
and out of school.
curriculum
on
Students in the third grade
He colored the front of the
family traditions. classes who did the project say
project packet and mounted
The
third they enjoyed it and learned
the picture on the front of
grade
teachers a lot more about the Native
a manilla folder. School
who did the pro- Americans than they had known
librarian Natalie Hawley took
ject approached before.
a cart of books about Native
it similarly except
“My favorite part was when
Americans to his classroom,
that Mr. George we went on the computer at
and he began to read about
Smith also gave school and at home and rehis tribe. That same day he
his class the op- searched about the Native
took his project home and
tion to create mo- Americans,” Madison Gihool
researched information with
dels of the houses says.
his mom. Then he started to
their
Native
“It was fun because we got
answer questions about his
Americans lived to tell how we got information
tribe by using the information
in.
and to do it because we also got
he had found, colored a map
F o l l o w i n g to create our person and got to
of where his tribe had lived,
the
completion share the project with the class,”
wrote a bibliography, and
of their research Ethan Hitchcock says.
before he knew it, it was time
and accumulation
“I love to assign this project
to present.
of information in each year. The students get exSamantha Vetri/Meteor Chronicle
The project was originally
Third graders Adriana Scarfalloto (left), Gabrielle Baker, Courtney Pellew, and their folders, each cited to do it, and they learn so
part of the social studies Ethan Hitchcock display the projects they created during their study of Native Ameri- student prepared much about the Native American
curriculum, according to can tribes at Lathrop Street Elementary School.
a short pres- culture,” Mrs. Brewer says.
...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Gifted Students Produce Newsletters
By Geena Bistocchi, Elementary co-editor
Elementary gifted students at
Lathrop Street and Choconut Valley
were in search of a challenge this
school year, and they found one: to
produce a monthly newsletter for
each of their schools.
They brainstormed ideas for
weeks and looked at copies of other
types of publications such as school
newspapers, the Independent, the
Press & Sun-Bulletin and The
Times Tribune.
Even though the students
weren’t producing newspapers, the
periodicals they studied still had the
basics that they could go by. They
looked at the layout and design
of the papers; they gathered and
decided what was more appropriate
for newsletters than newspapers.
“I learned how much work
it takes to make a newsletter,”
fourth grader Megan Monteforte
says. “It takes so much time and
concentration.”
At first the students had a hard
time grasping what topics were
timely and what weren’t, they say.
They had to realize that what they
were writing one day might not
still be relevant to readers when the
newsletter actually came out two or
three weeks later.
Before the students could start
their newsletters, they had to learn
about editorializing, conducting
interviews, what’s appropriate for
a school newsletter and what’s not.
This is where gifted teacher Debbie
Andre came in.
“I learned that all newspapers
have to have something that people
would enjoy reading,” fourth
grader Mathew Lonzinski says.
Fourth grader Maddie Guinane
says she picked up the information
from Mrs. Andre quickly—that
wasn’t the greatest challenge for
her.
“The hardest part was to apply
it to what I was doing. It was hard
to put my own words in for what
someone else had said,” Maddie
says.
The students sat down as a
class, and each suggested story
ideas for the first newsletter. Then
the group as a whole narrowed
down the ideas to the items they
thought would be most appropriate
and timely.
In Lathrop Street’s newsletter,
“The Crater,” the students featured
Teacher of the Month Dot Martin
and included science updates
and information about recycling,
holiday events and games.
Choconut’s “Valley Times”
offered readers similar items
and also included a list of new
selections in the school library.
“I went around and got to take
pictures,” Maddie says. “I liked it
so much I would like to become a
photo editor someday.”
The students say they hope to
publish their next newsletters in
February.
..............................................................................................................................................
Fifth Graders Revisit Oregon Trail
By Geena Bistocchi, Elementary co-editor
The
Oregon
Trail
started in the small town of
Independence, Missouri, and
stretched for 2,000 miles until
it reached the Willamette
Valley in western Oregon.
Pioneers following this trail
had an eight-month journey.
Choconut
Valley
fifth
grade teacher Bridget Ferencik
recently recreated the perilous
journey of the Oregon Trail
for her students, teaching
them critical thinking skills,
bravery and time and money
management in the process.
Mrs. Ferencik divided
her class into three groups,
each comprised of a banker,
a blacksmith, a doctor, a
farmer, a hunter and a scout.
The group members made
decisions
about
crossing
rivers, when to hunt, when to
stop for supplies, which routes
to take and how to handle
problems that occurred. When
problems did occur, the person
whose profession related to the
problem resolved the issue for
the group.
“It
was
an
exciting
experience to see what it was
like to travel across the country
in a covered wagon and realize
the dangers they were going
through,” Ben Welsch says.
Students kept log books/
journals of everything they
did. When they spent money,
they subtracted the amount
they had spent from what
they were given at the start
of the journey. When they
used ammunition for hunting,
bought food, needed wagon
supplies or a new oxen,
clothing or bedding, they had
to log the purchases in their
books and subtract the amount
of money they had used.
Each team began with five
health points. If they ran out
of food, got a disease or made
an incorrect decision to solve
a problem, they lost health
points.
“It was a very challenging
journey because you never
knew what was going to
happen,” Theresa McNamara
says. “You could run out of
food, die of a disease or get
trapped by snow, climbing up
a mountain.”
The students also wrote
journal entries every day,
explaining what events had
occurred. They explained how
they overcame obstacles and
how they reached decisions.
The project took a total of
nine class days to complete.
The members of one team died
early on in the game because
of
poor
decision-making.
Whoever was alive at the end
of the trail were the winners.
“The winners received a
huge prize,” Mrs. Ferencik
says. “They got to be alive!”
Little Voices
“What do you want to be
when you grow up?”
By Samantha Vetri and Geena Bistocchi
Elementary co-editors
Photos by Geena Bistocchi and Samantha Vetri
Andrew Rapisardi
Choconut Valley
Third Grade
“I want to be in the army
to help our freedom.”
Scott Palmer
Lathrop Street
Third Grade
“I want to be a Lego
designer because I usually
have a million ideas for
Lego and imagine a million
sets that no one is making.”
Nicholas Coy
Christopher Lewis
“I want to be a scientist
because
I want to invent things.”
“I want to be a bridgeworker because my daddy
works on bridges.”
Lathrop Street
Second Grade
Choconut Valley
Kindergarten
JANUARY 2010
METEOR CHRONICLE
Students: She Never Stops Giving
By Leah Cronk, Junior high editor
Leah Cronk/ Meteor Chronicle
Seventh grade English teacher Charlotte Sherwood helps Sean
Warner with an assignment during an English class Jan. 20.
She’s not only a daughter,
a sister, a wife, a mother of two
and a friend but also a teacher
whose compassion and gifts of
giving know no bounds, seventh
grade English teacher Charlotte
Sherwood’s students say.
Mrs. Sherwood has donated
her time to helping others
through a variety of activities and
groups in the high school and the
community. One such project is
starting Days of Difference Week,
five days each spring dedicated
to challenging the student body
and faculty and staff to make
positive changes and recognize
people who make a difference at
MAHS. At the beginning and end
of the week, assemblies are held
to recognize certain students who
have made differences.
“[The assemblies] are a reminder that [high school] students
are not the lost generation,” Mrs.
Sherwood says. “The assemblies
are about the positive things in the
world instead of always focusing
on the negative.”
The point is to show others
that people are powerful in
their words and actions, Mrs.
Sherwood adds.
“[The Days of Difference assemblies] made people realize
that no one is mechanical, that
everyone has feelings,” junior
Alex Cranmer says.
Along with the Days of
Difference Week, Mrs. Sherwood
helped junior high guidance
counselor Kathy Oehler last fall
form a body image support group
to create a safe place where students could discuss body image
perceptions and how to deal with
less-than-perfect self-images.
Mrs. Sherwood also has
formed groups for students
dealing with grief and loss, anger
management, divorce, healthy
choices, drugs and alcohol, social
skills and healthy relationships.
She is also planning to form a
group to counsel students with
parents in the military.
For eight years Mrs. Sherwood and her twin sister, seventh
PAGE 5
Mrs. Sherwood says she
has been surrounded by “great
role models.” Her mother, for
example, is someone who always
handles situations calmly.
My mother and grandfather
especially [have influenced] my
outlook on life,” Mrs. Sherwood
says. “I’ve realized how good I
have it, but I remember my past
experiences with being bullied.
As an adult, I want to help
students because I can sympathize
with them.”
Mrs. Sherwood hopes the
positive attitude that she expresses
will help students realize what’s
really important in life; people are
important, not things.
“I encourage others to stop
waiting for other people to make
a difference but be
“I try to be more like she is,
the superhero they’ve
waiting for,”
always with a postive attitude.” been
Mrs. Sherwood says.
Junior Courtney Lawrence “We are powerful with
our words and actions.
Kelly says Mrs.
Sherwood
has
taught her a lot in
The first competition included
the years she has known her.
approximately 25 participants.
“Last year I went through a
“I left packets in the morning
[for each participant]: a schedule lot of difficult things, and I felt
of the workout for the week, tips I could talk to Mrs. Sherwood
for eating habits and a bottle of about everything, and because
water with the word ‘will power’ of her giving me advice, I’ve
[on it for encouragement],” Mrs. changed my view and how I feel
about certain things,” Kelly says.
Sherwood says.
As a gift for Mrs. Sherwood
Each year Mrs. Sherwood has
done the class, a total of more for all she has done for him and
others, he says, seventh grader
than 100 pounds were lost.
“Mrs. Sherwood’s encourage- Taylour Sherman recently organment was wonderful,” secretary ized a blanket drive in her honor
Pam Knapp says. “She encouraged for his Pay It Forward project in
others to always motivate and Mrs. Kempa’s reading class, an
encourage their teammates as assignment emphasizing individual kindness.
well as their opponents.”
“I knew people needed blankMrs. Sherwood describes
herself as open-minded and easy ets [this winter season], and I
going with a good sense of humor, thought [the blanket drive] would
but junior Kelly Strohl describes be a nice idea,” Taylour says. “I
her as an influential teacher in also knew Mrs. Sherwood would
the school who always brings a be pleased to know I thought of
positive attitude to school instead this idea because of things she’s
taught me.”
of her problems.
Over 60 blankets were
Junior Courtney Lawrence
says Mrs. Sherwood tries to see donated to Interfaith in Montrose. “[Mrs. Sherwood] goes far
the best in everyone and has made
and beyond to try to make a
a good impression on her.
“I try to be more like she is, difference in people’s lives and
always with a positive attitude,” tries to show them that they do
make a difference,” Kelly says.
Courtney says.
grade reading teacher Charlene
Kempa, taught PASS (Paths to
Achieving Success in School
and Society) classes that were
mandatory for eight graders and
an elective for tenth, eleventh,
and twelfth graders. Even though
PASS classes have been dropped
from the curriculum, both teachers
continue to teach their current
students lessons on bullying, selfesteem, trying to better one’s self
and making a difference.
Mrs. Sherwood also helps
teachers. For the last two years,
she has taught an after-school aerobics class, including a Biggest
Loser Competition, for faculty
and staff wanting to shed pounds
and improve their overall health.
...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Students Pay It Forward
By Leah Cronk,
Junior high editor
Some time ago seventh grade
reading teacher Charlene Kempa
was shopping in a local grocery
store when she checked out
behind a woman who discovered
she had too little money to pay
for the groceries she had planned
to purchase.
Mrs.
Kempa
noticed
the woman’s dilemma and
remembered that a few days
before, two of her students had
given her $25 they had raised by
carrying firewood into a man’s
house for their Pay It Forward
project in her class.
“The boys had told me that
they had earned the money but
didn’t know what to do with it, so
they wanted me to take it and use
it or donate it to help someone
else,” Mrs. Kempa says. “I
thought the woman in front of me
was the perfect person to help.”
So Mrs. Kempa handed the
woman in the grocery store the
boys’ money. The next day she
told them what she had done.
“It felt good to help someone
because I worked hard to get that
money,” Troy Ely says.
When Mrs. Kempa first
included the Pay It Forward
project in her curriculum six years
ago, she was looking to improve
students’ reading comprehension,
vocabulary and writing skills.
Mrs. Kempa chose the novel Pay
It Forward by Catherine Ryan
Hyde for the students to read
because it also teaches important
life lessons.
“Sometimes we think that the
small things that we do won’t
change the world, but even a
simple smile can set off a chain
reaction,” Mrs. Kempa says.
In Hyde’s story a boy is
given a homework assignment to
change the world by helping three
people who in return have to help
three other people, starting a chain
reaction of random kindness.
For Mrs. Kempa’s project,
students were to learn more about
themselves by looking at their
own strengths and weaknesses.
They also researched a wellknown person in the world who
has “paid it forward,” and last,
performed at least one act of
kindness for another person,
according to Mrs. Kempa.
“I felt really good about
myself [after I did the act of
kindness], and it was a joy being
able to help other people,” seventh
grader Austin Nolan says.
Austin had collected soda
tabs to donate to the Ronald
McDonald House.
Other students volunteered at
the local Humane Society, visited
the elderly at nursing homes,
raised money for charities, picked
up litter, shoveled snow and did
other random acts of kindness,
according to Mrs. Kempa.
Seventh grader Meghan
Gilhool volunteered to help with
her church’s fall festival that is
held annually for kids of all ages.
“It felt good to give back to
others because of all my church
has done for my family and the
community,” M eghan says.
Seventh grader Morgan
Stetson says the project was a lot
of fun and very inspiring. Meghan
agrees.
“I learned that everybody
can do good in this world, and
if everyone ‘paid it forward,’ we
would have a better and nicer
world,” Meghan says.
Competition Yields Donations
By Courtney Kimmell, Staff reporter
Just inside the door leaning
up against the chalkboard was
a mountain of soap, detergent,
other household items and
toiletries waiting to be moved to
the student lobby.
They were to be dropped into
Angel Baskets for the Key Club’s
annual project to help school
district families in need.
History
teachers
Sarah
Brander and Dan Cherney encouraged their eighth graders to
donate money and items for the
baskets by running a competition
to see which teacher’s classes
could gather the most.
“[The competition] is fun for
the kids, a great way to get them
involved,” Mr. Cherney says.
Donated items were assigned
point values to keep track of
donations. For example, a bottle
of shampoo equaled two points;
the donation of $1 was four
points. In addition to products,
over $500 was collected, according to Mrs. Brander.
Even though the competition
ended in a tie with both classes
earning over 5,000 points, the
students were very loyal to their
teams and tried to make sure
they would be the winners. The
competition even spilled out of
the classrooms.
“At lunch everyone was
saying, ‘Oh, we’re going to
win,’” Amber Coy says.
As a reward for the students’
hard work, Mrs. Brander and Mr.
Cherney scheduled an afternoon
away from classes. The entire
eighth grade watched the movie
Harry Potter and the Half-blood
Prince Jan. 15. However, the
reward was not the only reason
students donated.
“It’s nice to donate stuff, and
it’s nice to win,” Mckenze Clark
says,” but it’s also nice to help
people less fortunate than me.”
The recipients of Angel
Baskets were not the only people
helped by this competition. The
students also benefited.
“[The competition] gave
them the realization that not
everyone can help themselves,”
Mrs. Brander says.
JANUARY 2010
PAGE 6
METEOR CHRONICLE
$Arts & Entertainment$
Winter Fun Begins
on Mountains
By Geena Bistocchi and Angela Short
Elementary co-editor and Arts & Entertainment editor
Out and About
with Angela
and Geena
A
s we sat on the ski lift,
one in front of the other,
we were nervous to reach
the top of the mountain because,
in our opinion, getting off the lift
is always the hardest part.
I watched as Geena prepared
to dismount. The moment I saw
her snowboard touch the ground,
I could tell that it wasn’t going
to end well. As the lift turned,
Geena forgot to let go of the side
of the chair and fell flat on her
face.
Then it was my turn.
Unfortunately, Geena had not
gotten out of the way yet, so
when I got off, Geena grabbed
my board, and I fell over her. We
scrambled to get out of the way
of the next snowboarder and lay
on the cold snow for 10 minutes,
laughing about the snowboarding
skills we lacked.
This will be our second year
in Ski Club. Despite not being the
best snowboarders in school, we
enjoy our trips to Elk Mountain
north of Scranton very much. It
is exhilarating to learn new tricks
and speed down the hill.
Also near Scranton is Sno
Mountain. It is a great place to
go with its assortment of night
trails, one of which is a steep hill
with several moguls (little snow
bumps). Even though we are
novices, it is still fun to weave
among them. Sno Mountain is
also one of the cheaper mountains
in the area. A night pass during the
weekend costs only $28.
For
those
who
don’t
snowboard or ski, Sno Mountain
also has a big tubing section. The
tubing area offers 10 chutes, each
800 feet long. A day ticket during
the weekend costs $36.
The night before Valentine’s
Day this year, Sno Mountain will
present a fireworks display at
dusk free to skiers, snowboarders
and tubers on the mountain.
Although our snowboarding
skills leave something to be
desired, we still have so much fun
doing it. We highly recommend
giving the sport a try. You’ll be
surprised how fast you’ll be
hooked!
For more information about
Ski Club, contact health and
physical
education
teacher
Mike Dooley or senior high and
English teacher MJ Kelly for
junior high.
School Officials Get ‘Spidey Powers’
By Johanna Hripto and Samantha Vetri, Staff reporter and Elementary co-editor
School superintendents often Macy’s special project team. The at 6:30. From there they raised
“wear many hats,” as the saying small group plans and supervises the balloon into the air, lined it up
goes, in their role as a CEO of various projects for Macy’s, on the parade route, and took it
their districts, overseeing budgets, including the parade, Fourth of through the parade, Mr. Ognosky
policies and personnel, but not July fireworks, the Easter flower says.
many wear red Spider-Man caps show, and Santa Claus festivities
“It was a very exciting time. It
and matching outfits. That’s at Christmas in the New York was fun to be in the inner workings
exactly
what
of the parade because
Superintendent
I have watched the
Mike Ognosky
parade for many,
did
Nov.
26
many years, and it
during the Macy’s
was really interesting
Thanksgiving
to see all of the work
Day parade in
that goes into the
New York City.
parade and making
Mr. Ognosky
it successful,” Mr.
and technology
Ognosky says.
director
Craig
Balloons
were
Owens were two
first used in the third
of approximately
Macy’s Thanksgiving
65 balloon handDay parade in 1927.
lers for Marvel
At that time they
Comic’s “Spiderwere made of rubber,
Man”
balloon.
rather than today’s
They and their
polyurethane.
The
team
handled
balloon-making
the guide wires
process can take up
and directed the
to a year, according
balloon along the
Photo courtesy of Craig Owens to a Web site called
parade route.
H o w S t u f f Wo r k s .
The Spider- Superintendent Mike Ognosky and technology director Craig Ow- Watching the balMan balloon was ens pose in costume for the Spider-Man balloon in Macy’s Thanks- loons inflate has
29.1 feet tall, giving Day Parade Nov. 26.
become a tradition in
78 feet long and
New York City, with
37.8 feet wide,
people gathering on
according to Marvel News’ Web City store. Her group also travels 77th Street and Columbus Avenue
site. In order to handle a balloon, around the country, assisting to watch the balloons be tested
participants must weigh at least other Macy’s stores with their the night before the parade.
120 pounds and be in good health. special events.
After the parade was over, Mr.
“We were located in the
In October Mr. Ognosky and Ognosky and Mr. Owens helped
beginning of the parade, the first Mr. Owens spent a few days at New deflate the balloon, put it back in
balloon down the street. Mr. York’s Columbia University’s its storage crate and returned their
Owens and I were located on football field, learning how to Spider-Man uniforms.
the front left of the balloon,” Mr. handle the balloons and follow
Next year’s parade will be
Ognosky says.
the instructions of the pilot, held Nov. 25, and Mr. Ognosky
The experience for the two according to Mr. Ognosky.
says he will be ready if asked.
administrators started when Mr.
On the day of the parade,
“I really had a great time
Ognosky’s daughter, Kate Hagon, Mr. Ognosky and Mr. Owens doing it this year, and to see the
asked if they wanted to participate woke at 5 a.m. to pick up their faces of the young children as you
in the 83rd annual parade. Mr. uniforms for the parade, their are working the balloon down
Ognosky and Mr. Owens agreed. Spider-Man man costumes. Then the parade route was just a great
Mrs. Hagon is a member of they reported to the balloon site feeling,” Mr. Ognosky says.
................................................................................................................................................
Student Bands Fueled by Motivation, Positive Thought
By Eli Gere, Co-editor in chief
Growing up in a small, rural
Pennsylvania town, teens may
sometimes feel disconnected and
isolated from the rest of the world.
The possibility of never leaving
home or traveling abroad may be
discouraging and grim for some.
Ideas like this are what fuel the
creative works of the band Above
the Shoreline, which is one of
several local bands with members
who attend MAHS. According to
the vocalist Tory Daral, a senior,
one of their songs titled “Now or
Never” was written about “getting
motivated” for the future and how
much life there is to live outside
of one’s hometown, even though
there’s nothing like home.
“If you really want to see the
world,” Tory says, “there’s a whole
world outside of Montrose….
But it’s always nice to come back
home.”
“Now or Never” is one
of the band’s acoustic songs,
though they primarily play
electric music. They consider
their music a blend of pop,
indie, punk and alternative
and describe themselves
as
“motivational”
and
“positive.”
In addition to vocalist
Tory, guitarists Jeremy
Matthews and Matt Rucker,
drummer Brien Travis and
bassist Ryan Galloway make
up the band. All are seniors
except for Ryan, who is a
graduate of Blue Ridge High
School.
The inception of the
Photo courtesy of Above the Shoreline
Members of the band Above the Shoreline band was almost accidental,
Tory says. Several of the
are (clockwise) Brien Travis, Tory Daral,
members randomly got
Ryan Galloway and Jeremy Matthews.
together one day just to have a
good time and make some tunes.
“We’ve all been kind of friends
in school,” Tory says. “All of a
sudden it happened. It was just like
magic.”
The band members’ easy-going,
optimistic attitude is reflected in
its practices, which usually take
place at least once a week at Tory’s
house or wherever at least some of
the members can get together. The
band prefers to rely on spontaneity
and energy to fuel its music.
“Basically our practices revolve
around writing songs on the spot,”
Tory says. “Our best songs come
in like five minutes, not when it’s
really thought out.”
Two of Above the Shoreline’s
original songs, “Kill Your
Television” and “Oh Universe,”
can be heard on their MySpace
site. According to Ryan, almost all
of their music is their own.
“I would say that we play 95
percent originals and five percent
covers,” he says. “We intend to
convey our own messages, but we
still enjoy playing our versions of
some of our favorites.”
Another student band playing
original music is COUNT US IN!
which consists of juniors Brandon
Blaisure on drums, Cory Snow on
bass, and seniors Casey Wolanin,
Steve Lucenti and Dan Haberle
on guitar with Cameron Smith on
vocals. They have been together for
about a year and perform regularly
at venues such as the Montrose
Theatre and Eleanor Rigby’s, a
club in Scranton.
“We’d like to have a show once
a month,” Steve says. “Sometimes
we have more than one, which is
great, but sometimes we don’t have
a show for like two months.”
Casey says that COUNT US
IN! plays sort of an “old school pop
punk sound with a lot of heavier
and melodic parts.” Casey writes
all of the lyrics and the guitar riffs
with Steve, and “everyone else puts
their two cents in.”
In COUNT US IN! writing a
song usually results from Steve’s
experimenting with different
sounds on his guitar and then the
other band members working off it.
“Usually, I’ll be goofin’
around and make a riff up,” Steve
says, “and then Casey will add
something to it. Then he’ll put the
lyrics to the music.”
Steve says he learned how to
play his style of music by repeatedly
listening to bands such as Blink 182
and Four Years Strong and then
playing their music. However, he
also incorporates different musical
styles into the band’s music by
listening to other artists, such as
blues guitarist Freddie King.
“It kind of helps me add my
own style to my music,” he says.
At practices Casey says he and
the band prefer to go in determined,
but that they still enjoy a laidback
atmosphere.
“Well, usually we just jam,”
Casey says. “I prefer to go
into practice with a schedule
and actually try to accomplish
something, but it usually just turns
into playing with air soft guns or
watching TV and eating Chinese
food, which I’m not going to
complain about.”
The band members may seem
rather relaxed, but Casey says
it is important to them to make
music that’s built on energy and
determination, and that communicates that feeling of power
between the band and the listener.
“I just play what feels good,”
Casey says, “and gets us going
because I understand the fact that if
you have energy in your music, the
crowd will reciprocate that energy
back to you.”
METEOR CHRONICLE
CYO Teams Have ‘Lots of Talent’
By Katy Swingle
Staff reporter
CYO
(Catholic
Youth
Organization) is a program
designed to give kids a “great
option and opportunity to play
organized sports because it’s not
as time consuming as other teams,
such as school teams,” according
to girls’varsity coach Jerry Feeney.
This year, the Saint John’s
Neumann Celtics have two
JV boys’ teams rather than the
normal JV and varsity teams
for the first time ever, according
to JV coach Dave Rebello.
“We
started
practices,
and we had 20 kids for JV,”
Coach Rebello said. “We split
into two teams to give each
player more playing time.”
Coach Rebello would prefer two JV teams rather one
team with too many boys.
“I like [having two teams]
because
during
practice,
you have more time to work
with each player, and you
can play every player every
game,” Coach Rebello said.
For junior David Macey,
this change has little effect.
“[I think] it was necessary for
PAGE 7
JANUARY 2010
all the kids to get equal playing
time,” Macey said, “but for me,
I still play as much as I would.”
The boys play one or two
games a week during the winter
season against other CYO teams
from the Triple Cities area,
according to Coach Rebello. He
thinks that his team is looking
to do well this season and will
make it to the championships.
“We’re a good team,” Macey
said. “We just beat the other
undefeated team (Jan. 13).”
The
boys’
record
at press time was 6-0.
The Lady Celtics also compete
against Triple Cities teams,
averaging 11 games a seasons.
In addition, the team enters two
tournaments during the season.
During Christmas break,
the Lady Celtics played in a
tournament in West Windsor, N.Y.,
taking on five other teams from
Williamsport to Binghamton.
The Celtics captured third place.
“I think we stepped up
our game a lot because we
faced better teams than we
would in the normal season,”
junior Allison Russell said.
Early in the tournament, the
Lady Celtics knew they were
in for a tough competition.
“After we finished the first
game of tournament play, our
players and coaches realized that
we needed to bring our ‘A’ game
to be competitive,” Coach Feeney
said. “Every girl stepped up their
game and we finished strong.”
The team’s first tournament
was only a few weeks into
the season, and the ladies
were competing with only
seven
returning
players.
“I think we rose to the
opponents’ level even though
we didn’t have many practices
[before
the
tournament],”
Russell
said.
“We
have
talented players with much
dedication and heart to play.”
Junior Sarah Feeney agrees.
“We seem to get along
really well, and I think that
if everyone puts in the effort,
we could be a really good
basketball team,” Feeney said.
At press time, the Lady
Celtics’ record
was
4-0.
...................................................................................................................................
Powlerlifters Prepare
for Gold
By Kate Kielceski
Staff reporter
Katie Hibbard/ Meteor Chronicle
Junior David Macey stays focused during an after-school power
lifting practice Jan. 20. The last competition the power lifting team
attended was the Stars and Stripes Championships Nov. 23 in
Scranton. The team brought home four first-place awards and three
second-place. First place winners were senior Jay White (114 lbs.),
juniors Cory Snow (148 lbs.) and Macey (181 lbs.) and sophomore
Tyler Whipple (132 lbs.) Second-place finishers included seniors
Derek Stocker (168 lbs.) and Kevin Reed (198 lbs.) and junior John
Oliver (132 lbs.). The next competition for the power lifters will
be Feb. 28 at the New Jersey State Championships in Princeton.
Wrestling: Not Just a Sport But a Passion ..............................................................................................
By Katy Swingle, Staff reporter
Wrestling has af“The kids are workfected almost every
ing incredibly hard in
aspect of his life,
the practice room, and
new varsity coach
we are seeing it pay off
Jim Lewis says, from
at our tournaments by
choosing friends to
more kids getting wins,”
selecting courses in
Coach Lewis says. “If
school to accepting
the wrestlers continue
job offers to pursuing
to keep practicing hard
a career, even to
all year, I believe we
shaping his attitude
can have a very positive
toward
others.
and competitive season
“I actually began
for both individuals
wrestling when I was
and
the
team.”
in kindergarten when
“Practicing
hard”
I was five years old,”
is what the wresting
Coach Lewis says,
team
does
after
“but my dad used to
school, according to
be an assistant coach
junior Kyle Rogers.
at Blue Ridge, so I’ve
“[Coach
Lewis]
Sam Vetri/ Meteor Chronicle
been going to matches Varsity Coach Jim Lewis watches one of his athletes
coaches practices harder
and practices ever wrestle in a match against Lackawanna Trail Jan. 20.
than last year, so we’re
since I was born.”
in better shape,” Rogers
Coach
Lewis
says. “We do more
look at everything in a positive
wrestled in elementary and high manner,” Coach Lewis says. cardio and have an ab workout.”
school at Blue Ridge. He was
Even
though
practices
Wrestling
also
taught
the first Raider wrestler in the Coach Lewis valuable life may be more taxing for the
high school’s history to reach 100 skills, such as multitasking wrestlers this year, Rogers likes
wins, he says, and only the second and organization, he says. the way the practices are held
Raider to earn a state medal.
The supportive fan base, the and the improvements he sees.
He went on to wrestle at top quality wrestling facilities,
Senior
Chris
MorKing’s College while he pursued and the Meteor wrestlers them- d o v a n c e y a g r e e s .
a teaching degree in elementary selves drew Coach Lewis to
“[We] do more wrestling
education, where he was a part of coaching at MAHS, he says. each
other
rather
than
teams that finished in the top four
Mordovancey
says,
“As someone who competed drills,”
and top eight in the country. He against Montrose, I was always “It’s
more
live
action.”
returned to Blue Ridge to coach impressed with the support I
Coach Lewis hopes that he
for three years prior to joining the saw the wrestlers receiving,” can give his wrestlers a sense
Meteor coaching staff this year. Coach Lewis says. “I also of pride and an understanding
“Wrestling taught me what saw some incredible talent of what hard work really is.
hard work really was. It made me and potential when watching
“I want them to be positive
challenge myself and brought out the wrestlers against my and see they can achieve anything
the competitiveness inside me. It teams and at districts.”
they really put their minds to,”
led me to be someone who looked
Since starting his work Coach Lewis says. “I want
forward to challenges instead of with the Meteors last April, them to believe in themselves
someone who wanted to avoid Coach Lewis says the team has and know that they can chalthem and waste time trying made steady improvements lenge themselves and work
to find an easier way around and has become a team that harder than they ever thought
things. The sport has helped me can be very tough to beat. imaginable and still be fine.”
Snowboarding:
Sport or Spiritual
By Carmen VanNess, Staff reporter
The cold wind blusters past
her face. Tears run not down
her face but sideways. The
rush of speeding down the
mountain pulses through her
veins. All self-consciousness
is lost. She is snowboarding,
gliding down the snow-covered
mountain like an eagle soaring
on the breath of the wind.
There is a connection
between her and the mountain—
she is not just a person on
a snowboard but rather, a
part of the mountain. For
most, snowboarding is just
a sport, an activity to fill
time, but for her, it is much
more than that—it’s spiritual.
The amount of energy
required to “slide” down
that mountain is enormous.
Concentrating on S-carving
trying not to fall, not to
catch an edge are just a few
of the challenges that make
snowboarding and skiing extreme
sports that test the individual.
“I don’t have to depend on
anybody but myself,” Ski Club
chaperone Chris Tripp says.
The physical aspect is
very demanding. A continuous
exertion of energy is necessary
to maintain an adequate speed
until one arrives at the bottom
of the mountain. A competitive
sport for some, the yearning
to be the best isn’t present
in other snowboarders. This
lack of competitiveness is not
to be confused with laziness;
snowboarding
is
a
self-
realizing, feel-good sport.
Comparing oneself to others
is replaced with a desire to
find joy and self-fulfillment.
“When I’m snowboarding,
I don’t think about anything
else. It’s peaceful,” senior
Joe
Hamernick
says.
This is a popular view
among those on the mountain.
“When you’re going that fast
down the mountain, you don’t
think about anything else. Your
mind narrows. It’s just really
peaceful, and communication
is really difficult. You’re
almost forced not to talk,”
senior skier Aaron Roman says.
The mountain creates a
natural sanctuary for those
who ski and snowboard. There
is an energy connection, a
certain vibe, created by the
snowboarding
environment
not only by the skiers and
snowboarders themselves but
by the mountain itself. The
necessary trust between the
snowboarder and the mountain
can only be understood
after learning the ways of
snowboarding. This trust gives
one the ability to speed down a
narrow, steep slope, replacing
fear and anxiety with a calm
found in few other places.
For those who have
experienced this phenomenon,
skiing
and
snowboarding
are beyond simple sports
or exercises. They become
almost a religion or a
life-alteringpassion.
PAGE 8
JANUARY 2010
SPORTLIGHT
Commentary
Teams ‘Open Their
Hearts’
By Megan Henry, Sports editor
As Christmas break drew
near, the hallways of MAHS
were full of students enthusiastically discussing plans and
family traditions that would
fill the approaching days off.
Along with the usual holiday
excitement, however, the basketball cheerleading squad had
something new in the works:
homemade Christ-mas cards and
a donation to send to the St. Jude
Children’s Research Hospital in
Memphis, Tennessee.
The idea for the donation
came from head coach Nicole
Wolf, who has made independent
donations to the hospital in the
past, and included $70 from the
squad of sixteen along with the
cards.
“I thought it would be a good
idea for the girls to spread some
holiday spirit,” Coach Wolf says,
“and give back by creating their
own cards and donating what
they could.”
The team responded well to
her suggestion, according to senior captain Renée Oleniacz.
“Immediately, people... kept
bringing in cards,” she says, “and
everyone was excited about it.”
It is not unusual for MAHS
teams to “adopt” causes to during
their sports seasons. Since the
death of a player’s mother in
2007, the field hockey program
has supported breast cancer
by participating in the Making
Strides Against Breast Cancer
walk and raising funds through
sales of items such as jewelry and
baked goods. This year the team
raised close to $100, according to
senior captain Sammie Fowler.
While such fundraisers are
great ways to support worthwhile
causes, they can also teach valuable lessons while at the same
time providing a team with a
way to show its gratitude to the
community that supports it.
“It’s a way to show people
we’re not just active in school,”
Oleniacz says, “but also in the
community.”
Coach Wolf is hoping that
such activities will enhance the
cheerleaders’ self-respect as well
as their commitment to others on
the squad, in the school, and in
the community.
“My personal definition of a
cheerleader is an individual who
shows respect and morale for
themselves and others, whether
it be inside or outside of school,”
Coach Wolf says. “I was always
taught respect by putting myself
in other’s shoes and giving what I
could…. I thought this would be a
good idea for the girls to do since
it was going toward a good cause,
and they knew they were lifting
the spirits of others…. It allowed
them to better understand the
hardships some people have to
go through, which is important to
know and understand in everyday
life.”
As individuals fortunate
enough to participate in activities such as cheerleading and
field hockey, donating to a cause
is a great way to show gratitude
and give back. It is admirable
that among practices and games
these teams have made time to
give back to the community,
and although their actions were
altruistic, recognition is deserved.
“What you give out you always get back in return,” Coach
Wolf says, “but I don’t expect
the girls (or anyone else, for that
matter) to expect to get anything
back in return…other than
respect and feeling good about
themselves in the end. Because
of the success of [the] St. Jude
[donation], I plan on continuing
it in the future. I also hope to get
different ideas from the girls in
years to come so that we are able
to continue to help out locally.”
An upcoming fundraiser to
assist in the building of the new
hospital in Montrose is being
planned between the basketball
cheerleading squad and the
high school’s student council,
according to Coach Wolf, with
hopes of getting the whole school
involved.
“[The St. Jude project] allowed [the girls] to open their
hearts a little more,” Coach
Wolf says, “especially around
the Christmas season. Giving to
others always warms the heart
and makes you a better person in
the end….”
Student Hunters Take Aim
By Johanna Hripto, Staff reporter
The Monday after Thanksgiving is just another day off from school for most students at MAHS, but for senior
Jonathan Small and junior Andrea Hinds, it means the first day of deer hunting. They get up early, grab their guns
and gear, and head out into the woods, hoping to see that prized deer.
Both Small and Hinds have hunted since they were 12. Pennsylvania’s one million hunters are second only
to Texas’s 1.1 million hunters, according to a study done by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Ten
percent of the 12.5 million hunters in the United States are women, according to the USFWS, which is up slightly
from the last decade. The most significant growth in hunters was among young females.
Q: How did you become interested
in hunting?
Hinds: My dad asked me to take a
hunter’s course at Elk Lake, and I
agreed. We’ve been hunting since.
Small: I grew up with hunting. It’s
a family thing. My dad, both brothers, and cousins all hunt.
Q: Who do you go hunting with?
Hinds: My dad. He lets me take
the first shot.
Small: The rest of my family.
Q: Do you use guns or bows and
arrows to hunt?
Hinds: I use guns, a .243 rifle.
Small: I started archery this year.
I’ve used rifles since I was 12.
Q: What do you hunt?
Hinds: Only deer.
Small: Mostly deer, but I also hunt
turkey and bear.
Q: Do you dress your own kill?
Hinds: I don’t. My dad does it for
me.
Small: My dad dresses it.
Q: Where do you hunt?
Hinds: We go to Camp Corby near
Friendsville.
Small: My grandmother’s farm.
It’s 170 acres near Lawton.
Q: Did you get anything this year?
Hinds: Nope.
Small: Nope.
Q:
What’s
the
best
kill
you’ve
gotten?
Hinds: Just a button buck (a deer
with small antlers).
Small: An eight-point last year.
Photo courtesy of John Small
Jonathan Small
Q: Why do you go hunting?
Hinds: To bond with my dad.
Small: I enjoy the outdoors.
Q: What’s your favorite part about
hunting?
Hinds: When you first see a deer
and you’re waiting for it to come
into view, it’s exciting.
Small: Being outside.
Q: Do you mount the deer you kill?
Hinds: If it was a big one, we’d
mount it, but for now, we just eat
them.
Small: We take them to someone to
mount them for us.
Q: What other hobbies or sports do
you participate in?
Hinds: I play tennis and softball on
a travel team and for the school. Small: I don’t play sports, but I
work on a dairy farm.
Q: What do you do on the farm?
Small: I help with the chores and
restore agriculture equipment,
like tractors, wagons and general
machines.
Q: Do any of your friends hunt?
Hinds: Yeah, two or three.
Small: A lot of them. We went
coyote hunting once. We didn’t get
any.
Q: Do you feel other hunters treat
you differently because you’re a
girl?
Hinds: Not really. The old men at
camp are excited and ask me if I got
anything
Q: What do your friends think of
your hunting?
Hinds: They think it’s cool. We talk
about it in hunting season. People
think I’m shy and quiet, so they’re
surprised when I tell them.
Photo courtesy of Andrea Hinds
Andrea Hinds
METEOR CHRONICLE
Ely, Major Top Team
Scorers
Brooke Malloy and Kayla Tyson
Staff reporters
Basketball players
Dallas Ely and Colby
Major couldn’t be
more alike athletically
if they shared DNA.
Both
sophomores
have played basketball
since the primary
grades at Lathrop
Street
Elementary,
both are positioned at
shooting guard, both
are regular varsity
starters who play their
sport year round and
both are leading their
Meteor
basketball
teams as high scorers.
Getting some varsity experience as
freshmen last year
helped both players
understand the game
at an advanced level,
gave them confidence,
and introduced them
to what they would
be
facing
again
this year, they said.
“It gave me more
experience. I played
against better players at a younger
age, and I knew what I would be
up against this year,” Major said.
Family is an important part of
both players’ basketball careers.
Ely was introduced to basketball by her sisters Brittany
and Autumn, who played travel
ball on a team their dad coached
when Ely was in second grade.
“They’re always trying to
help me. They’ve all played
and are willing to play and
help me with it,” Ely said.
Major’s dad, a former basketball player himself, taught
him the ways of the game.
His dad would play around
the house with him and even
coached him a bit, he said.
After learning from their families, Ely and Major continued
with basketball and played travel
ball in fifth and sixth grades.
Moving to the high school, the
athletes joined junior high teams,
hoping to learn better teamwork.
“There is no comparison
[between elementary and high
school basketball] because high
school basketball is so much more
physical, and everyone is bigger,
stronger, faster and has developed
their skills more,” Major said.
In ninth grade Ely and Major were tapped for varsity,
but playing for the Meteors
isn’t the only place they
Dallas Ely
Colby Major
participate
in
basketball.
Ely also plays Amateur
Athletic Union (AAU) basketball.
In eighth grade she joined the
STNY (Southern Tier New York)
Flyers where she participated
in
various
tournaments
throughout
New
York.
Two years ago, Ely tried
out for the NEPA (Northeastern
Pennsylvania) Flames and has
been a part of that team since,
playing shooting guard with
girls from the Scranton area
in two major tournaments, the
USA Invitational at Penn State
last July and a tournament
at Villanova in September.
“It’s a great experience. That’s
when you get to show people how
you can play because it is with
girls that you don’t play with
every day, and you get to play
teams from all over that are of
high experience levels,” Ely said.
Major also plays on an AAU
team, the Southern Tier Rage,
in Binghamton with guys from
the area. Since fifth grade he has
been involved in the basketball
program and plays in tournaments all over the Northeast,
such as in Rochester, New York,
and in Scranton. One of the
team’s major tournaments is
in Springfield, Massachusetts.
Last year, Major’s team was
one game away from advancing
to the championship round.
Major said his participation
in AAU has improved his
game
“tremendously.”
“I play more often and
learn more things,” Major said.
Ely’s and Major’s hard work
and dedication to their sport
have paid off. Both are leading
scorers for the Meteors with
game averages of 16.8 points
for Ely and 15 for Major, according to The Times-Tribune.
“Confidence”
is
what
girls’ varsity coach Al Smith
sees in Ely when she shoots
the ball. Her skills are what
make her such a prolific
scorer, Coach Smith said.
Ely leads the Lady Meteors
with 213 points this season.
Major leads the Meteors
with 187 points at press time.
“It’s pretty overwhelming
because you’re the youngest on
the court, and you’re doing just
as well as they are. It’s a pretty
good experience,” Major said.
*Photos from the MAHS Web site.