Chilli Chilli Bang Bang:

THE APOLLO
Chilli Chilli Bang Bang:
Hot on Poverty’s Trail
1
January 2013
INSIDE :
NATION AND WORLD
Alumni, Josh Chirilla
and his band Read between the Lines start a
new project. Pg 2
Strongsville High School student teacher, Jason Fritsch, tastes the chili at the Chili Cook Off benefiting the Friends of
Rachel Club April 4.
By Lyssa Gwinn
According to the United States Census Bureau, there are an estimated
1,270,294 people living in Cuyahoga
County, and 16.4% of them are living
below the poverty level. That’s almost
208,328 people living in poverty.
In addition, city data reports that
about 3.8% of Strongsville residents
were living below the poverty threshold in 2009.
Strongsville students are out to make
a difference. SHS is home to the extracurricular club, Friends of Rachel,
a branch of Rachel’s Challenge.
FOR’s mission is to “…inspire, equip
and empower every person to create
a permanent positive culture change
in their school, business and community by starting a chain reaction of
kindness and compassion.”
FOR clubs are a national success.
The main goal of these clubs is to help
create a permanent cultural change in
schools, and show kindness to those
around them.
Strongsville’s branch of Friends of
Rachel is on a mission to make a difference in the community. The members of FOR are well aware of the poverty statistics here, and simply won’t
allow families in Cuyahoga County to
go without.
This holiday season, FOR members
are determined to make a positive
impact on the lives of families here in
Cuyahoga County.
See CHILI pg. 2
Hostess, The End Bond Issue 116:
What if it Passes?
Has Come
By Mike Brill
he end is near for Twinkie lovers nationwide, as the bakery brand Hostess
filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for
the second time in the last decade.
This will also be the end for 19,000
employees.
Since 1907 the brand Hostess has
dominated the snack world, with
tasty treats like; Ding Dongs, Ho
Ho’s, Powdered Donettes, and so on.
Hostess started in Irving, Texas and is
also where there headquarters stand
today. Hostess is also the maker of
Wonder and Natures Pride bride.
The first time Hostess filed for bankruptcy was in 2004. It was slowly grew
into debt because of labor unions escalating prices and costs for ingredients like flour started to rise. Five
years later in 2009 Hostess started
there rebuilding process.
Over 80% of their employees belong to many different labor unions.
The biggest unions are the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and,
the Bakery Confectionary Tobacco
Workers and Grand Millers International Unions (BCTGM). They use
these unions to help the workers get
benefits and also help set up rules.
What happened in 2004 is a lot like
what is happening now. The labor
unions are forcing Hostess to pay
large amounts of money in a short
time because of their financial status.
Also factory employees have gone on
strike do to cut of pay. This has put
Hostess in over 100 million dollars in
debt.
Do to the large amount of debt,
Hostess has agreed to a winding
down stage which will terminate the
company completely in about a year.
In the next sixteen weeks Hostess will
reduce their staff by 94% and just over
3,000 workers will stay and slowly
make the rest of their ingredients.
If Hostess is unable to pay off their
debt or come to a new agreement
with the labor unions they will be letting go 19,000 people. It would also
be shutting down 33 bakeries, 565
distribution centers, around 5,500
delivery routes, and 570 outlet stores.
There are over 20 outlet stores in Ohio
including stores in Parma and Akron.
With the economy in a recession
looking for a job can be very difficult
and with Ohio being very high in unemployment it will make things harder. “With the controversy in 2004 I
tried to leave as early as possible,” says
Adam Reitz a former truck driver
who delivered Hostess products and
quit over a year ago.
Some companies are taking people
from Hostess and are hiring them for
their experience.
See HOSTESS pg 2
By Dan Chips
Strongsville’s media has been over
taken by bond issue 116. The voting is done but the recount is still in
progress. Currently there are 11,530
votes for and 11,447 against, this puts
the votes for up by 83. It is very important for our future generations
that this issue passes, and if the issue
doesn’t pass it is very likely that the
opportunity to have another issue just
like it will never come.
Now is the perfect time for something like this issue to pass because
construction rates are low and even
though it is a big bond it will only
raise the people’s taxes slightly. This
bond issue will use $81 million and
will only cost tax payers $2.09 more
per $100,000 in valuation than they
pay now.
The bond money can only be spent
on physical improvements and will
not go toward any salaries. The
changes from this issue will also
help to consolidate energy and save
a minimum of $1.5 million a year in
operating costs.
See BOND pg 2
What will happen if
Strongsville’s bond
passes? Continued Pg 2
THE APOLLO WRITERS:
DAN CHIPS
LYSSA GWINN
AL KAMCZYC
MIKE BRILL
JANUARY 2013 | THE APOLLO
CHILI
Continued from pg. 1
November 20, 2012 Strongsville’s
FOR club hosted the Chili Cook Off;
the purpose of the chili cook off was
to raise money to buy items such as
gift cards, Christmas presents, toiletries etc for needy families
Michael Sack, a Friends of Rachel
advisor said, “We [FOR] are in the
business of helping people…FOR
seeks to leave no one behind. It is our
belief that everyone belongs and everyone needs to be included.”
However, the chili cook off was for
Strongsville High School staff only.
The price to enter was $5 for unlimited chili, salad, dessert and water, and
$2 for salad, water and dessert.
There were exactly 20 different
chilies and 8 salads. Some interest-
ing chili names included Chili Chili
Bang Bang, Don’t Mess with Texas
Red, Global Warming, and Gobble &
Oink.
Kim Craigs, an English teacher
at Strongsville High School was the
proud Global Warming chili maker.
When asked about the silly, yet
creative name she joked, “I named
it Global Warming because everybody blames everything on Obama
even when it’s not his fault; including
Global Warming. So, if my chili tastes
bad, everyone can blame Obama.”
In addition, Doug Cicerchi, a social studies teacher at SHS said, “It’s
[the cook off] at a convenient time in
the day, and classes aren’t being interrupted.” He also went on to say that
he thought the chili cook off was a
great thing for a great cause and that
he trusts FOR to do the right thing.
The new Strongsville High School
9th grade principal, Adam Marino attended this year’s chili cook off with
coworker and 11th grade principal,
Vicki Turner with high spirits. He
said, “Anytime you bring good people
together with good food, it’s a guaranteed good time.”
When asked about his favorite chili
he couldn’t decide because the entire
faculty did such a good job preparing
their chilies; it was just too close to
call. However, he did say, “The spicier
the better!”
His coworker and lunch buddy,
Vicki Turner commented, “This is a
great thing for a great cause.”
Strongsville High School students
and staff are working together, side
by side in effort to help end or at
least put a dent in poverty here in
Cuyahoga County. Great food, great
people and a great cause can help to
make a difference. –
HOSTESS
Continued from pg. 1
2
The Boy With A Heart of Gold,
but A Pocket Full of Lint
Read Between the Lines : Josh Chirila (vocal/Guitar), Ben
Tomek (Drum), Luis Herrera (Guitar), and Jay Hall (Bass)
By Al Kamczyc
It seems like now-a-days people
hardly ever bounce back from obstacles given to them after facing so
many positives. That looked like the
case for Josh Chirilla and his band
Read between the Lines.
Josh and Rbtls looked like they had
a lot going for them senior year with
a growing fan base, a debut extended
play (or ep) that had gotten great
reviews, and a ton of labels offering
them deals. However once senior year
was over, things fell apart.
“We turned down Tate Music Group
which was a mistake, but at the time
the entire situation with that just felt
shady, we needed to pay them $5,000
and the contract could be terminated
at any time,” said Ben Tomek, the
band’s drummer. “We even played in
front of a label before but our guitarist
at the time kept screwing up so that
didn’t go well either.”
Tate Music Group is a family operated record label, they sometimes run
ads on M.T.V. and they have over 300
artists under its label.
“The fact that it had more signed artists then any other major label also
seemed a bit too much,” Said Josh
“Also only some of the bands they
signed have gotten big says a lot.”
In addition to their misfortune with
music labels the growing fear of college became a part and lead to the
eventual on official break up of the
band.
“I don’t consider it a break up, its
BOND
Continued from Pg 1
A shelf of Hostess’ products is almost empty, as customers
stock up on their favorite goodies before they are gone.
Some companies are taking people
from Hostess and are hiring them for
their experience. Nickles Bakery in
Navarre Ohio has hired truck drivers
for their business. “You always want
to bring in talent. Im sure there will
be room for good people,” said Don
Pountain, Toledo branch manager for
Nickles Bakery.
As Hostess struggles to stay alive
their competitors are hoping it goes
under. With their products filling
shelf ’s across the country brands like
Little Debbie and Tastykake are ready
to take their place.
Hostess biggest seller Twinkies
have still been flying off the shelf ’s
but it’s their new products that have
been taking a dive. Hostess has recently tried to go healthy and it has
not worked. They have tried making
low or reduced fat products and it has
backfired. Thus making no profit and
getting them not any closer to helping
them recover.
This wouldn’t be the first time Hostess has rebuild from a slump. “With
generations of loyal customers, numerous iconic products and a talented, experienced work force. Hostess brands has tremendous strengths
to build upon,” said Brian J. Driscoll,
president and Chief Executive. For all
the Hostess fans and Twinkie lovers
there is hope that they can rebuild.
Having done it once they can learn
from their mistakes and make it possible, but will have to take a lot of willing employees and company’s able to
give support. –
The bond money can only be spent
on physical improvements and will
not go toward any salaries. The
changes from this issue will also help
to consolidate energy and save a minimum of $1.5 million a year in operating costs.
$9 million will be spread throughout
all of the elementary schools. People
think this may not be enough but
the reason there isn’t more money
being put into them is because the
Board wants to take down all of the
elementary schools and build new
ones within ten years. Although this
is not definite the board doesn’t want
to spend to much money now just to
completely rebuild the elementary
schools again.
The money will be spent mainly
on maintenance repair. The biggest
problems in the elementary schools
are leaky roofs, broken windows, and
other small yet important details.
Zellers will need new boilers and
many of the schools will need new
heating and cooling. The elementary
schools just need basic repairs to help
the students be more comfortable.
The biggest amount of money will
be put into the brand new middle
more or less just a break until we’re
ready to return and play with each
other, I miss the hell out of it though,”
Ben said.
College however wasn’t on the agenda
for Josh and he soon after packed his
bags up and headed out of Cleveland
to his new home, Ontario, Canada.
He primarily left however; due to financial issues here in Ohio and decided to stay with family up there.
“I just had to leave Cleveland, I had
trouble finding work here and there
were opportunities in Canada,” said
Josh. “I had family there so I figured I
would go up there and stay for a while
until I get things straightened out.”
The move however, wasn’t as easy as
it seemed. Soon Josh faced isolation
from his peers.
“It’s tough being so far away from
your friends, cause when your with
them you just want to go out and have
fun, now that I’m here, I kind of just
keep to myself,” says josh “Which is
good and bad in a way because I’m so
far away from home, but its kind of
gives you time for reflection on yourself and your life, Ontario is my sanctuary I guess you could say.”
After facing issues with music labels,
then going on break with his band,
financial issues, and separation from
the place he grew up in, Josh is ready
to get back on the radar with music.
His new project, “The boy with a
Heart of Gold but a Pocket of Lint”
aims to do exactly that.
“The title makes sense, it describes
him perfectly,” said Ben “He has the
school, which will cost around $46
million. Jennifer Pelko is principle
of Center Middle School. She said “It
is extremely hard for teachers to do
what they need to with water coming in threw the roof and when every
room is either freezing or boiling.”
When Pelko was asked what she
wanted to see kept from the old school
she said “I really want the new school
to keep the two gymnasiums because
we are constantly using both, and I
would like them to have at least three
computer labs because they are very
important in helping the kids learn.”
She also said “I really like having the
school divided up by teams and having one team upstairs, another downstairs, and others spread through out
the building.”
The new school is going to have to
be significantly bigger than either of
the two current buildings. This is
because if the bond passes the sixth
grade class will be brought up to the
middle school and the sixth, seventh,
and eighth graders in all of Strongsville will be put into one school.
Dave Riley is the principle at Albion Middle School. He said “There
will need to be some major changes
in the new school. The lockers, class
rooms, and hallways will all have to
be bigger.” He also said “We will have
new kinds of lighting and other tech-
purest heart and cares so much about
the people around him, but he’s flat
broke.”
Josh has plenty of people backing
him and his new project, which almost makes it feel like his pockets
aren’t so empty after all.
“It’s honestly a blessing that I have
friends who can see what I’m trying
to with my music and support me every step of the way,” said Josh “It isn’t
every day you have someone willing
to just give you free studio time AND
let you have your own creative control
over your music.”
Steve Rosenthal, the same sound engineer who has worked with Shawn
K has known Josh since his band has
started, so it was easy helping him out
to further his musical ambitions.
“We basically grew up together, and I
see where his musical direction is going,” said Steve. “I believe in him.”
Steve isn’t the only one that has been
giving Josh help with the production
of his new project. In fact at the studio
in which he records during the six day
period he was in America one would
have been able to see other artists
making appearances to listen to the
first couple tracks of the project and
giving their opinions and criticism on
the production.
Such artists that have made stops
in the studio from day to day ranged
from new comer rapper Shawn K to
old band mates like Ben Tomek.
“We all believe in him,” said Shawn
K. “He’s had a rough past year and it’s
great to see him back in his environment doing what he does best.”
So far “The Boy with a Heart of Gold
but a Pocket Full of Lint” has two
definite singles. It’s unsure whether
or not Rbtls will reunite to assist Josh
with the project but it is slated to be
released sometime next year.
“The main thing to keep in mind
is to never lose sight of what your
dreams are,” said Josh. “You will face
so much in your life time and sometimes we lose sight of what our heart
is telling us to do.”
With everything Josh has gone
through it just goes to show that if
you surround yourself with people
who support you, and your dreams
are strong enough, nthing will get in
your way. Not even 600 miles away
from the only people you’ve ever
known, isolation, or money issues.–
niques to make the class room better
learning environments.”
The final amount of $26 million will
be spent on the high school. This
money will be spent entirely on technological improvements; this encompasses new classroom technology like
smart boards, computers, laptops,
and wireless internet. The Board of
Education also wants to fix the parking lot and try to improve the heating and cooling system. They aren’t
one-hundred percent sure what will
be done to the school as a whole but
Mr. Steffen, the principle at Strongsville High School, said “We really
want to look for a way to utilize all of
the space in the building. We want to
update the technology in class rooms
and the media center to make our
school have an overall better learning
environment.”
Mr. Steffen said “If the Bond Issue
passes we can expect to start seeing
work done at the high school around
the end of the school year or at least
within the next six months.”
The recount of the votes should conclude some time before December
second. When we finally hear the
results hopefully it will be the good
news we are all waiting for and can
start looking towards Strongsville’s
better educated future.