The Bearprint - Upper Moreland School District

The Bearprint
V OL UME
BEARPRINT
STAFF
2014-15
Editor
Esther Moon
Co-editor
Nolan Wenik
Staff
Dakota Hornak
Chiara Lucia B-g
Connor Buehler
Katie Dormer
Kerwing St. Louis
Andrew Harbaugh
1 4,
I S S UE
3
D ECEMBER
ISS UE
What is the true meaning of Christmas?
Jingle bells, jingle
bells, jingle all the way. Oh!
How I can NOT wait for Christmas break. It has finally arrived, Christmas! It is finally
that time of year where the
stockings are hung from the
chimney with care, and visions
of sugarplums dance in our
heads. But while we are putting up trees
and buying
those last minute gifts, Upper Moreland
is giving back.
Did
you know that
it was not until
the 19th century that Americans began to
embrace
Christmas?
We reinvented
it, turning it into a family day
with reminiscence and peace.
During this time, English author Charles Dickens created
the classic holiday tale, A
Christmas Carol. The story’s
message of the importance of
charity and good will towards
all humankind, hit a powerful
chord in the United States and
England, and showed members of Victorian society the
benefits of celebrating the
holiday. Although many families are quick to assume that
they had been celebrating
Christmas the traditional way,
Americans had really reinvented the holiday to fill the
cultural needs of a growing
nation. Finally, Christmas was
officially declared a federal
holiday in the United States on
June 26, 1870.
For some, Christmas
is a season of receiving, for
us, Christmas is a season of
giving. The Upper Moreland
Student Council with the help
of Mrs. Scenna and Mr. Staub,
are bringing back the overwhelmingly successful food
drive. The Food Drive will last
from December 8th to December 19th and with the help of
the Homeroom Representa-
tives they are planning the
biggest one yet! Did you see
the awesome videos that were
in the announcements? The
posters around school? The
Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook posts? It was blown up
out of porportion and with all
the proceeds staying local, it
will truly make a difference.
Did you donate?
On a different note, there
are others, mostly
who are afraid to
admit it, that think
that Christmas is
all about the gifts.
The ideology of
giving instead of
receiving lost in the
dreams of a miniature sleigh and
eight tiny reindeer.
Christmas means
different things to different
people, to some it is the one
time of year where the family
finally gets together, to some it
is the one most stressful time
of year, and finally to others
the best time of year when
they wake up, extra early on
the 25th day of the last month
of the year and see what Santa left.
(Continued on page 2)
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What is the True Meaning of Christmas? (Cont.)
It is also around this time where we
lose count of how many Pollyanna's
we actually have to be in.
I leave this with you, think
about this now...is Christmas a time
to give back? Or a time for gifts? I
think I have a pretty good idea as to
who said what. So donate a can,
help someone in need, give back
and most importantly, know that the
best thing about Christmas, is the
ability to believe in whatever you
want. Have a great break, don’t eat
too many cookies, and if you do,
save me some! Andrew Harbaugh
Christmas Isn’t Unique, You know
In 2014, we live in a society
where the true meaning of Christmas
has been lost in a commercialized
day celebrating profits instead of
prophets, as was originally intended.
Because of this, stores advertise
Christmas sales hidden under the
guise of “holiday” sales. Christmas
completely dominates the shopping
industry, and the other religious celebrations of this time are left in the
dust. There are many other holidays
in the month of December besides
Christmas, with the two most common being Hanukkah and Kwanzaa.
Oh, Hanukkah. It has brought the
world many songs like “Festival of
Lights” and, everyone’s favorite, “I
have a Little Dreidel”. But Hanukkah
is more than that. It is a time when
people of the Jewish faith celebrate
the rededication of the Holy Temple
in Jerusalem. Hanukkah’s ancient
founders overthrew their Roman
oppressors, winning back their original holy place. When it came time to
light the menorah to signal their vic-
tory, the ancient Jews were only able
to find enough oil to light the candelabra for one day. By what could only
have then been described as an act
of God, the menorah burned for eight
nights and days, spawning the week
long celebration we know today.
Hanukkah remains, even today, a
faith based celebration, very similar
to what it started as so long ago. It is
a holiday similar to Kwanzaa in that
respects. Kwanzaa may be a lesser
known holiday today but has a reason for celebrating that has remained constant for a very long time.
Kwanzaa began in Africa lifetimes
ago, with first harvest celebrations
across many different tribes. While
Christmas, and even Hanukkah, to a
very small extent, have a foundation
in gift giving, Kwanzaa is deeply
rooted in culture. Based on the five
fundamental ideals, which are: ingathering, reverence, commemoration, recommitment, and celebration,
Kwanzaa may mean different things
to different families, but the overall
message is clear: reflect on times
past, recognize the importance of
family and faith, and celebrate for the
success that has occurred and hopefully will occur through the years.
Of the three most well-known December holidays, Kwanzaa and Hanukkah are obviously more about
tradition than Christmas. With the
history behind Hanukkah, and the
culture behind Kwanzaa, Christmas,
in its modern, gift-giving form, cannot
compare to these two other holidays.
It is important for people of all faiths
to recognize holidays of other faiths,
and our society is becoming more
and more out of touch with these
other holidays. Instead of celebrating
“The Most Wonderful Time of the
Year” as an economic holiday, we
should remember why this season
resonates within us: it is a time for
celebrating our roots, whether you
are Christian, Jewish, or African
American.
Nolan Wenik
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Snowball! Part 2...
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Creative Writing Corner
TheGentleman ExcerptfromanoriginalnovelbyBreannaDevlin Hoan Do. ChapterOne:TheBrothers ____________________________________________________________________________________________
“So, the other day, Charlie and the
Chocolate Factory was on.”
“The new one?”
“Old one.”
“Well then you’re thinking
of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate
Factory.”
Theo tsked. “Nope, definitely Charlie.”
“No, see the old one is
more centered around Willy Wonka, while the new one is more
about Charlie.” Jack drained the
black coffee from his mug
“Besides Willy Wonka is a hell of a
lot catchier than Charlie.”
“Okay enough with the
semantics.” A look of annoyance
crossed Theo’s features. “Now, as
I was saying, the other day I was
watching Willy Wonka and the
Chocolate Factory-”
“Bingo.”
“-and I hadn’t seen this
film since I was a kid, right? From
what I could remember most of the
film was sunshine and daisy’s,
except those daisy’s and even the
sunshine were edible. So I’m
watching this movie, and I realized
a few things.”
“Oh Boy.” Jack muttered
into his coffee cup with a slight roll
of his eyes. Theo hadn’t heard a
thing.
“One. Uncle Joe is a jerk.
That worthless waste of space laid
around in bed all day, making little
Charlie run around the neighborhood throwing newspapers around
to every house just to pay for his
tobacco. Then, when Charlie finally gets the golden ticket, he suddenly regains the will to walk
again, and doesn’t even bother
asking if anyone else wanted a
tour of Wonka’s factory. Two. Willy
Wonka is psychopath. No explanation needed for that, really. And
finally, three. The entire world is
ruled by candy. It is a literal candy
land without the candy cane forests and gum drop princesses.”
“The Princess was made
from frosting.”
“Whatever.” Theo waved
dismissively before flagging down
the waitress, “My point is as children we watched these films a
couple of times at least, right? All
those times had to do something
to our brains. Like uh,” He
snapped his fingers to make the
point come faster to his mind,
“subliminal messages, and what
not. Jesus, Wonka practically
drowns the fat kid in chocolate.”
The waitress strolled over, eyeing
the brothers with the sweetest of
grins, which Theo kindly returned
before she refilled the coffee. “No
wonder so many people are
messed up.”
“Is that why you are the
way you are.” The corner of Jack’s
lips twitched slightly.
Theo formed a mocking
smile. “Ha ha ha, says the guy
who’s seeing a therapist.” He took
a sip of his coffee. “How’s that going by the way?”
“He’s dead.”
Theo raised a incredulous brow.
“Again?”
PMEA District 11 Auditions 2k14
On December 13th of 2014,
PMEA District Band & Orchestra
auditions took place once again,
(thankfully right on time and not after
a month of postponement, which
happened last year due to the crazy
amounts of snow we got.) This was
something almost all the music kids
were looking forward too after
months and months of preparation. I,
personally had looked forward to this
audition since my PMEA season
came to end at PMEA Regional Orchestra as of March and wanted for
the music festivals to start again. I
think that the audition itself is thrilling, nerve-wracking, and fun all at
the same time. I enjoyed meeting
people from different school districts
that all shared the same interests &
love as me. Our love and deep interests of music and how to grow as a
musician all bonded us together
even if it was just for that one morning.
piece. (The best part is that it is all a
blind audition-which means the people who are judging you only know
you as a number and a voice. Not as
a person.) You go into different
rooms, play through what you have
to play and gather back to a certain
meeting point, waiting for other members of your school to slowly trickle
back. Now to me, before an audition,
during an audition, are all better
things than the waiting for results
after an audition. I turn into a complete wreck, not being able to focus
on anything until results are posted.
When they are finally posted, I have
a sense of relief no matter if I make it
or not, because now I can actually
focus on other things and move on
with my life. Anyways, that Saturday
from about 3:00 PM, to 10:30 at
night, I did absolutely nothing-I
paced, laid in bed, and probably
went on about a million walks. But
thankfully, our band director Mr.
Cowen, posted the results to the
After 3 years of going through the
Upper Moreland Marching Band FaPMEA auditioning process, I believe cebook group, which was when my
that the actual audition process is
friend had let me known that I had
really not that bad. In musical terms, made first chair viola for PMEA Diswe had to perform scales, a piece
trict 11 Orchestra! I was extremely
from our solo, and a sight-reading
surprised, and started hyperventilat-
PAGE
ing, considering I thought my audition was really nothing special. With
a huge sigh of relief, I was happy,
knowing that I could see all my
friends from different school districts
again in one place! (Also because I
could finally start my English essay
and study for my 3 other tests on
Monday.)
I would also like to say congratulations to Julia Huff, who made it on
tuba, Nolan Wenik, who got first
chair for both PMEA District 11 Orchestra and Band, and everyone
else who auditioned! All of your dedication is amazing and I know that
your love & interest in this amazing
thing called music will bring you to
great lengths in your musicianship.
Esther Moon
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Thanksgiving parade success!
PLAY ON!!!!!
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Artist To Watch - Pvris
Starting a band is something that takes dedication, time, and
effort; it’s not an easy thing to do,
and is sometimes a task that can
take years for it to finally get off the
ground. But for one musical group,
their rise to success came a few
months after their formation- a relatively short time in the music industry.
Pvris, (pronounced “Paris”),
is a female-fronted rock group from
Lowell, Massachusetts, formed by
vocalist and guitarist Lyndsey Gunnulfson, guitarist Alex Babinski, and
bassist Brian MacDonald in 2012. At
first, the band started out small by
composing songs for their eponymous EP and playing local shows,
gaining them a fanbase and a spot in
the Vans Warped Tour in the summer of 2013. Then, in June of 2014,
after their release of an acoustic EP,
the trio announced their signing to
Rise/Velocity Records, making them
the first and only female-led band on
the roster. After performing yet again
in the Vans Warped Tour in the summer of 2014 and playing as a supporting act for Tonight Alive and
Mayday Parade later that fall, Pvris
released their first full-length album
titled “White Noise” on November
4th, 2014.
The sound that “White
Noise” had to offer to the world is
one that surprised many reviewers,
who stated that the album offered a
unique style, giving a varied and well
-balanced blend of pop, electronic,
and rock influences. Another critic
complimented the writing styles of
the band, saying that their ability to
craft ridiculously catchy choruses
and perfectly layer instruments made
it hard to believe that “White Noise”
was their first studio album. Gunnulfson’s powerhouse vocals added
even more to the positive feedback,
saying that her confidence when
singing gives a certain edge to the
tune. For an album consisting of only
ten songs, it definitely packs in a lot
of punch.
Pvris is definitely a band to keep on
the radar as they continue on their
musical journey.
Take a listen to their full album here
on Spotify: https://play.spotify.com/
album/7acEEWUWq2GVgeS9tr9cOp
Food drive is coming to a close, who will
be successful in the end? Just remember,
it’s all for a good cause!!
Taryn Painter
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The Bears Take A Tumble
Inside the Glass | Issue 3
Now that November is over,
it is time to highlight the Bears annual Thanksgiving game. Snow filled
the atmosphere as fans filled Wintersport, six-forty marked puck drop.
Not so long into the game the Bears
gave up a breakaway which led to a
goal for Hatboro. Then, the Hatters
tacked on two more goals with the
help of their captain. All hope
seemed lost for it was now three to
nothing.
However the Bears did add a goal to
prevent a shutout. A few plays later
the game became quite physical.
The
The most shocking thing to
me was that there was barely any
Upper Moreland Fans. Hatboro Fans
filled the bleachers, screaming and
cheering. Of course this is most likely
because Hatboro did not have a
team last year. As far as the Bears,
next year will be a re-building year,
because many of their starters will be
graduating this year. The game ended in a Hatboro victory three to one,
and good luck in next year’s Thanksgiving game!
Connor Buehler
Want to learn how to
crochet?
There is a crochet club every Tuesday, right after
school, in Mrs. Wood’s room. All you need to bring is a
hook (recommend 5mm) and any type of yarn that you
would like to use. You’ll learn how to make scarves,
hats, etc. and even get to hang out with awesome
teachers like Mrs. Wood, Mrs. Lipenta, and Ms. Roush!
Kerwing St. Louis
Ten Best Things About the Holidays
1. People just seem to be happier and nicer!
2. You can't help but sing a Christmas song, even if you don’t like to
sing.
3. Shopping for people (serious or gag gifts) always makes you smile.
4. The smell of baked goods in the air for a month.
5. People set aside their differences.
6. There’s color everywhere!
7. Decorating the Christmas tree with your family.
8. Having hot chocolate by a fire with a warm, heavy blanket.
9. Family coming down to visit (even of they are annoying).
10.Santa Claus!!!!!!
Katie Dormer
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The Savior after Marching Band
The final Marching Band
competition came and went, and now
we are all at a loss-unless there is
some sort of a miracle that can replenish our needs. Well, our prayers
were answered! Indoor groups have
begun-a kind of replacement for color
guard members and percussionists
for marching band.
Indoor Percussion gives not only
marching band percussionists, but
anyone interested in hitting things as
hard as possible a fun outlet. With
only three years of experience, the
Indoor Percussion ensemble has just
started.
We got an interview with the head
staff member, Alex Clemente. This is
his fifth year instructing indoor
groups, and he feels extremely excited for the upcoming season that he
Lastly, we touched
base on how close he is with the kids
he instructs. It was refreshing to see
that he loves to joke around and
laugh with the kids he instructs, but
also know when to put on a serious
face. They know when to “flip the
switch” as so to say. The school is
excited to see how the Indoor Percussion ensemble turns out in the
Mr. Clemente’s love of drumming
began when he was ten. All I can say end with the help of this amazing
staff.
is that it involved a Tama Rockstar
drum kit, Phil Collins, and his father
Upper Moreland has lots of other
(whom he thanks for all of his inprograms that anyone can try, and
volvement in his musicianship.)
they are not just for marching band
We were also interested to see how kids. Jazz Band and Indoor Color
Guard are very popular as fillers for
Mr. Clemente felt about the time
the cold winter season. So if you find
commitment. He believes that it is
worth it, but with a day job and con- yourself bored during the winter
months, go on out and join a indoor
structing a storyline for the group,
group!
there are just not enough hours in
the day to make everything perfect.
Dakota Hornak has ahead of him. But, he is even
MORE excited about the staff that
are accompanying him this season.
He feels like the staff and him are
equally concerned and impressed
with the ensemble they instruct and
loves every aspect of it.
Winter Concert! Great job to all!
Note from the Editor:
Thanks to all who read the Bearprint on a monthly basis! We hope to produce an issue every month, and if at anytime anyone wants to join, we meet on Wednesdays after school, in
Mr. Casey’s room! (902)
Esther Moon
Note from the Editor
Thank you for reading the Bearprint! Keep up with our fabulous articles and be the first to know about all
of the upcoming Upper Moreland events, book and movie reviews, and anything you could possibly think
of!
-Esther Moon
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