The Howler - Sitka School District

B l a t c h l ey M i dd l e S c h o o l ’s N ew s p a p e r
written
by students, for students
NOVEMBER, 2011
VOLUME 3, ISSUE 2
The Howler
Choose Respect Mural
By Misha Bekeris and Mackenzie Whitson
As you all know, we have a new mural at our school.
If you haven’t noticed the mural, then you either don’t
come to school very often, or you may have moved here
recently because it’s right next to the front doors of
Blatchley. Blatchley was chosen to bear this unique and
colorful mural for two reasons; it would be easily visible
from the HPR road, and also that the mural’s message,
Choose Respect, goes along with the school-wide mission of being Respectful, Responsible, and Safe.
Many people were involved in creating the mural.
The main artists who helped create and plan the mural
were Eliseo Art Silva and Sonesa Lundmark, but many
other people were on the mural committee. Apparently,
the mural was planned to be on the Courthouse, but they
had complications with the process. The mural took exactly one year to complete, and the process is still ongoing, as they are finishing budget matters and reports to
agencies that granted money to the mural committee.
The planning of the mural was split into two parts.
The community participated in a planning project entitled
Invisible Stories. Individuals were asked to respond to
prompts in writing such as “If you really knew me, you
would know…,” “Respect is…,” and “Three things not
talked about in Sitka....” Another planning opportunity
took place in Mrs. Farvour’s video production class called
Beyond Words, where Blatchley students were asked to
use writing, photography, theatre, film, and other means
to represent self, family, and the community. At least 100
invisible stories were submitted, and 10 Blatchley students participated in Beyond Words. The mural was
painted at the UAS hangar, where members of the com-
munity were invited to participate, and at least 170 did.
Overall, the mural is a great one, and we here at
We asked a couple of people on the mural committee Blatchley are proud to have such a wonderful piece of
about the mural. Elizabeth Schafer is a part of the mural
art at our school.
committee, and she responded, “To me the mural is important because while it is a beautiful piece of art, it is an
Inside this issue:
important reminder, hopefully to our community and any
visitors to our community, that while our surroundings are
Favorite iPhone Apps
2
spectacularly beautiful, we still struggle with the ugly issues of domestic violence, bullying, and sexual assault. I
Dodge the Dodge Ball
2
hope the mural will create many opportunities for people
in our community to speak honestly about these issues,
Dare to Skate
2
recognize that we have a problem, and then try to be part
of the solution to create a place where people are treated
California Boy
3
with dignity and respect and can feel safe.” Another person on the committee, Julie Smith (Sitkans Against FamiJolly Journalism
3
ly Violence) responded, “What is the mural about? Well
Mr. Hirai’s Worst Day Ever Comic
3
on the surface it’s about respect, about choosing respect.
If you look closer you begin to see clearer definitions of
Games Page!
4
respect. It’s about digging deeper, looking beyond the
surface, listening to one another’s stories, better underTen Years Ago at Blatchley
5
standing each other due to this sharing of stories, celebrating diversity and cultures, taking care of our environPolice Blotter
5
ment and the people around us, providing a helping hand,
honoring traditions and cultures, and recognizing those
Horoscopes
5
who have made a great impact on the world. It’s about
Gagner Unleashed
6
fully recognizing that no one should be forced to hide from
their invisible story, nor should we, as a community, push
Splashing into October
6
these things under the rug. It’s about communities taking
on the responsibility to create better systems so that less
Flying into Wildlife Air Strikes
6
people are carrying the burden of invisible stories and
more people are healing from them.”
The Truth About Energy Drinks
cause them to get headaches, stomachaches, sleepiness, or be grumpy throughout the day. Consuming energy drinks every day over a period of years can lead to
caffeine addiction because your body will start to depend
upon it. Another long term effect people are concerned
about is cardiovascular disease. Since caffeine is known
to speed up heart rate and raise blood pressure, this can
lead to arteriosclerosis, hardening of the arteries. Not
only does this put you at risk of heart disease, but this
may also increase your risk of having strokes.
People who consume energy drinks on a daily basis
should try to cut back by drinking them less often, to decrease their chances in having long term side effects. For
most people, having an energy drink every once in a
while is okay, but people should try not to make it into a
habit. Healthy ways getting
more energy include eating healthy meals
(including breakfast), getting a good night’s sleep
(about 8.5 hours), and
exercising daily.
By Minh Iwamoto
How bad really are energy drinks? Why do adults
care so much about how many we have? Truth is, energy drinks don’t have any therapeutic benefit because
caffeine and sugar are the main ingredient in energy
drinks. Also they can cause some side effects in kids and
young adults. Energy drinks don’t seem to benefit your
health. These reasons seem to be the biggest factors for
why many adults don’t like young people drinking energy
drinks.
According to associatedcontent.com, an energy
drink can have up to 25-35 grams of sugar and 350 mg
of caffeine. Their caffeine level is equivalent to 10 cans
of Coca Cola, and the sugar level is equivalent to 6-9
teaspoons of sugar. The amount of caffeine recommended for people the age of 12-14 is around 95 milligrams. If
you have an energy drink with 80 mg of caffeine, then
you’ve already had most of your daily intake.
Caffeine is a stimulant, which makes you feel more
awake and alert. Caffeine gives you energy by blocking a
chemical in your brain, which is called adenosine. This
chemical is what promotes your sleepiness, so without it,
you wouldn’t be able to sleep. The boost of energy you
get after having an energy drink is caused from the adenosine being blocked, so your body sends you a boost of
adrenaline, which wakes you up. However, the boost of
energy from caffeine is only temporary.
No one really knows for sure what the long term
effects of consuming energy drinks are, but we have
some pretty good assumptions based on their ingredients. People who depend on energy drinks daily may get
so used to them that when they don’t have one, it can
Letters to the Editor
7
A Hoonah Girl Comes to Blatchley
7
Why We Celebrate Thanksgiving
7
Huskies Take the Gold
7
Cool Nail Designs
7
The Alaskan Nutcracker
8
Milk’s Favorite Cookie
8
Can You Guess That Teacher
8
Page 2
THE HOWLER
Favorite iPhone Apps
By Misha Bekeris and Minh Iwamoto
Have you ever wondered what the most popular
iPhone app is for Blatchley Middle School? We took a
survey of 80 students here at Blatchley to find their favorite iPhone apps. As shown in the graph below, Angry
Birds is the most popular iPhone app for girls. For the
boys, the most popular iPhone app is Tiny Wings, with
Fruit Ninja one vote
behind. Out of the
five teachers surveyed, the most
popular app was
Angry Birds. Overall, Angry Birds was
the most popular
app for both girls
and boys combined. It seems that
the majority of the
teachers like the
games that are the
least popular
amongst the students.
Fischer Tresham likes Angry
Birds because, “It gets really
addicting and it’s fun.” Misha
Bekeris wishes Fruit Ninja would’ve gotten the most
votes because he thinks, “It’s fun and addicting as well,
and sometimes people just need to relieve some stress
on those fruits.”
Got broken phones or electronics? We
have your solution! Mrs. Demmert will gladly
take any broken phones, laptops, iPods, cameras, GPS devices, video games, DVDs, and
much more! Mrs. Demmert sends them to a
company that recycles electronics and gives
us money for our technology classroom. So if
you have any electronics, bring them down to
the computer lab and drop them off to Mrs.
Demmert or give her a call at 966-1418. Recycle forward!
Thanks again to Alaska Marine Lines for
donating the shipping of these recycled electronics to the lower 48!
Stephanie Lambdin Productions
Dodge the Dodge Ball
By Gideon Henderson, Jericho Villanueva, Conner Unger
The 5th Annual Dodge Ball Tournament took
place on Friday, October 21st from 3:30-9:30pm. Mr.
Hirai hosted the tournament which cost $5 to participate in.
The winning team, “The Power Puff Girls,” included Tevin Bayne, Trevor Dalton, Ky Stockel, Michael
Doggett, Trevan Coleman, and Nicholas Wright (who
replaced Braden Case because Braden was sick). Ky
said, “It was a scrumptious game, and Nicholas has
cat-like reflexes.” He also told us that their secret
weapon was Nicholas’s pro dance moves. Trevor said
it was a very dull game. Tevin stated the best part
was when Michael nailed Gideon in the face. He also
said that Nicholas is athletic, very smart, and is the
best player on the team. Michael stated that it was
awesome and is proud of himself and his teammates.
The Runner-up team was “The Skillz That Killz,”
who won last year’s tournament. The team name was
changed from “The A-Team” to “The Skillz That Killz.”
They changed the name because it sounded cooler.
The team included Michael Unger, Elijah Didrickson,
Josh Young, Marjo Vidad, Izzy Primacio and Miguel
Garcia. Michael Unger said that he was sad and did
not like losing. He thought that Elijah was the best on
his team and that Michael Doggett was the best on
the “Power Puff Girls.” They were most afraid of Michael Doggett and Trevan Coleman.
The 3rd place was “Jaba” a whole team of girls
and that's it, nothing but girls. The team was Minh
Iwamoto, Meghan Way, Shelby Schmitt, Zoe Krupa,
Tatum Bayne, and Ava Parrish. Mrs. Demmert’s favorite highlight of the tournament came when Ashlyn
Colburn-Haiola “owned” a game-winning play by nailing Kieran Owens in the face during one of the first
games of the tournament.
Recycle Forward PSA
“Make One Moment Last a Lifetime.”
Talks, where Gideon
breaks down the dodge
A creative photography session for:
ball tournament. “I
thought the dodge ball
Maternity/Newborn
tournament was pretty
Family/Children
good. I was not surprised at the outcome
Senior Photos
at all, with Nicholas on
Beauty/Portraiture
the winning team. He
was truly a prophecy; I
Weddings
can see him becoming
a professional dodge
ball player someday.
I’ve heard talk of a
‘secret weapon’ that the
winning team used. I
Call 623-0973 or 738-3179 or email
question what this
weapon was exactly,
[email protected]
but it sounds very suspicious. This leads me
to wonder if the winners did, indeed, win fairly.”
Jericho Talks
In Jericho Talks (which is better than Gideon Talks, and did I mention better than Gideon
Talks), you get to read Jericho’s report about
the dodge ball tournament: “I participated in the
dodge ball tournament and didn’t go very far.
We did not get far because we played ‘The
Skillz that Killz’ first. Minh and I had an Asian
showdown in our match, which sadly did not
end well for me (*sigh*). At the last game of
‘Power Puff Girls’ vs. ‘The Skillz That Killz,’
Tevin got a double kill on Izzy and Micheal Unger, which was pretty awesome.”
Gideon Talks
Now we move into our next section, Gideon
Dare to Skate By Josh Davis and Fischer Tresham
Skate Club is free to enter, and it is just a dry
warm place to skate. You will appreciate Skate Club
when it’s a cold, rainy, and windy day. They put up
ramps in the M.P.R. to practice tricks. Bikes are too
much for the ramps that they use, so only scooters and
skateboards are allowed. They require you to bring your
own helmet. Skate Club will loan you a helmet, but they
request that you bring your own. Skate Club starts after
Thanksgiving. Skate Club is a place for skaters and nonskaters. Even if you don’t know how to skateboard, you
can learn.
Ryan Kauffman, who runs Skate Club,
wants to help people learn how to skate. Mr. KaufRyan Kauffman
man says, ‘’If you put your mind to it, you can do
anything.” He told us that he was in 6th grade when he
skate club again the following year. Up to 10 kids are
got his first skateboard. Mr. Kauffman thinks skating is
able to join skate club.
something fun and keeps people active. Not that many
people get hurt in skate club. Three out of four kids rejoin
Page 3
VOLUME 2, ISSUE 3
Jolly Journalism
California Boy
By Odalys Esparza and Josh Davis
By Minh Iwamoto
Caleb Meyer moved here
from California in June. Caleb
reports that he likes to play video
games and likes soccer. He also
said he went to a soccer camp for
a week. When asked what his
favorite class was, he answered
that he likes computer class. His
favorite teacher is Mr.Atkinson.
Caleb has two step brothers and
a half sister. He thinks Blatchley
is a fun school. When asked how
he would describe himself, he
answered, “Like a person.”
When asked what his favorite
California memory was he answered that he liked the time he
went to Six Flags for his birthday,
and he also likes to see his dad.
He also said that he likes chocolate, and his dad lets him eat it
whenever he wants to.
Have you ever
wanted to be a
reporter? Do
you like to type?
Do you like
knowing the
news before it
comes out? If
so, then journalism is for you!
Here in journalism class, we have many students who interview people, write
articles, make word searches,
and much more.
You’ve probably seen some of
these students walking around
carrying notebooks, which they
use while they interview. After
they have interviewed people, the
students type up an article on the
topic of their choice. In the previMeyer
ous papers that have come out at
Blatchley, the ads for some businesses are drawn by the
Caleb
students in journalism. Businesses pay for ad space in
our paper, which pays for our class to get the papers
printed on real newspaper. The word searches, puzzles, and horoscopes are also created by journalism
students.
Most students like being in journalism for a few
different reasons. Misha Bekeris likes journalism class
because, he says, “It’s exciting to know what’s happening before anyone else knows.” From Ali Venneberg’s point of view, she thinks it’s fun to write stories
and interview people. Mrs. Demmert says she loves
teaching journalism class because “I like helping kids
become better writers.”
The Larkspur Café
Open Monday thru Saturday 10-6
747-7607
Open Tuesday - Saturday 11 A.M.-10 P.M.
Sunday open for Brunch 10 A.M.-2 P.M,
*Closed on Monday*
We also offer live music and events!!
Page 4
THE HOWLER
Games Page!
Cornucopia
Cranberries
November
Stuffing
Pilgrims
Thankful
Dinner
Family
Wishbone
Mayflower
Yams
Native
Get the Howler
online @
tinyurl.com/bmstech
Pumpkin Pie
Yams
Page 5
VOLUME 2, ISSUE 3
Ten Years Ago at Blatchley By Ali Venneberg and Katie Holmgren
Ever wanted to see Blatchley ten years ago? We got
the scoop on Blatchley one decade back in time and
found out some hilarious, interesting, and crazy facts.
Brandon Haskins, who is a former student from
Blatchley ten years ago, says some things still haven’t
changed since he was a student. The teachers haven’t
changed very much, especially Ms. Farvour! He also
commented that some things have definitely changed
like the new teachers, the rules have gotten less strict,
the Commons,
and the 6th
grade locker
area. The 6th
grade locker
area used to be
rows of lockers.
Brandon
says, “It was
really easy to
hide from
teachers, but
that was only
fun for like two
minutes.” Brandon told us his
most crazy
experience at
Blatchley: “When I was in 6th grade, we were lining up to
do our concert in the gym, and all of a sudden everyone
broke out into an instrument fight! People were banging
people’s heads on their instruments. There was blood
everywhere!” When asked who his favorite teachers
were, Brandon responded, “In 6th grade my favorite
teacher was Mr. Kernin because of his Zena warrior cry.
In 7th grade, it was Mrs. Gagner because she always sat
me next to the really pretty girls. And in 8th grade it was
Ms. Sagel because I was her T.A., and that was the
BEST class ever!”
Mr. Henshaw, the 6th grade Social Studies teacher,
says that Blatchley has become a happier and more positive place to be. Mr.Henshaw’s funniest and most memorable moment was when a boy stuck a paper clip in an
outlet and got burned. When we asked him what hasn’t
changed about Blatchley, Mr. Henshaw said, “Mrs. Potrzuski... She hasn’t changed a bit.” He also says that the
dances had more hip
hop and rap. Another
thing he added about
Blatchley ten years
ago was that he and
Mr. Kernin used to
dress up in cheerleading costumes
and go around in
Rollerblades during
Spirit Week.
Mr. Allison, the 7th
grade language arts
teacher who has
been here for ten
years also had things
to say about Blatchley this past decade.
He says Blatchley is a more kind place, and the PBS has
really helped. He also says some things have not
changed like the building is still the same, and they still
have awesome lunches! Mr. Allison also states, “I will be
here until the day I die.” He also says that the rules at the
dances are not as strict as they used to be.
Mr. Lass says that there are new teachers, less students, and a smaller Commons now at Blatchley. His
funniest moment here was when Mr. Henshaw made a
Police Blotter
Horoscopes
By Maya Reda-Williams, Kate Morse, and Katie
Holmgren
By Ali Venneberg and Angelo Molina
October 27
At 1:41 PM A teacher was reported stealing coffee.
At 1:40 PM Two students were lying on the stairs, not
allowing others to pass.
At 1:43 PM A student was reported hoarding brownies.
At 1:46 PM A student was caught kicking and jumping
on another student in the hallway.
October 28
At 12:36 PM A student was reported jumping onto a
moving computer cart.
At 12:41 PM A student was reported begging to be
slapped.
At 12:42 PM A student was found stapling his shoe.
At 12:44 PM A girl was found breaking into someone
else’s locker.
At 12:57 PM A student was seen sliding down a banister.
At 1:05 PM Two students were found wrestling on the
ground in the hallway.
Aries (March 21-April 19): Today a special person from
your childhood is about to knock on your front door with
something special for you.
Taurus (April 20- May 20): Today you will come to school
to find that your locker has a secret past that only Mr.
Henshaw knows.
Gemini (May 21-June 21): You will find out what Mr. Patnoe really hides in his hair, and you will get to keep it.
going away video for Ms. Raffaele. Mr. Lass also says
that there were fewer dances back then. “The music
was more my age,” he claimed. Mr. Lass says that
Blacthley is a fun place to work too.
Mrs. Dick, the 6th grade science teacher, who has
been here for twenty-one years says some things have
definitely changed. She thinks that the average age of
the teachers has gotten a lot younger, and we have
had a big technology change in the last ten years.
Plus, the drill team isn’t as big of a deal as it used to
be, and they don’t have the plays anymore. Mrs. Dick
says that the plays used to be big productions in the
gym, and it used to be a huge thing. But they don’t
have that anymore.
Ms. Farvour, the 6th grade language arts teacher
who has been here since 1997, says some things that
have changed are that there was no school website:
parents actually had to call “homework hotline” to find
out their child’s grade. She also states, “I’m a lot nicer
than I used to be.” She also says that the lunches have
gotten a lot better. Ms. Farvour’s best memory is
“when the janitor toilet-papered my room....I still don’t
know why he did that.” Some things that are the same
are the kid’s enthusiasm, their hunger to learn, and
their kindness. Ms. Farvour also says that the dances
used to go a lot later than they do now. They used to
be from 7-10 p.m. “Plus, the music was a lot older, so
the kids didn’t like it. Back then, the teachers were a lot
older. The teachers all were walking around Blatchley
with canes.”
Blatchley has definitely changed over the past ten
years. We have made a lot of big changes, but some
things we still have not gotten rid of. Here’s to another
great ten years to a great school!
Capricorn (December 22-January 19): Say “hi” to Gideon Henderson for massive luck, and he will give you
his homemade “chocolate”.
Aquarius (January 20-February 18): Isaac Pike will
appear in your locker and say, “I’m your father” and will
try to chase you down the halls screaming, “Come here
now!!”
Pisces (February 19-March 20): You will wake up, and
your hair will be gone and will be autographed by Adam Sandler, and he will be sitting on your couch drinking a coke.
Cancer (June 22-July 22): Make sure you double-check what’s really in your lunch today,
and make sure you don’t put it in your backpack.
Leo (July 23-August 22): You will discover that
Rapunzel lives under your bed, and will give
you her chocolate chip cookies.
Virgo (August 23-September 22): Watch your
back; you never know what will hit you. Better
keep a close eye on Mr. White.
October 31
Libra (September 23-October 22): Mr. Kernin
At 1:16 PM Two truant girls were found running down
will give you a dozen Twinkies and play
the street to the harbor.
“Twinkle, Twinkle” on his tenor saxophone
At 1:20 PM A girl was reported stomping on others’
while Mr. Hirai dances to an Irish jig.
feet.
At 1:23 PM A boy was reported kicking people in the
Scorpio (October 23-November 21): You will
shins.
see Conner Unger fall down the stairs and
At 1:23 PM The same boy was reported threatening to shave his head bald.
smash a laptop.
At 1:24 PM The same boy was seen smashing a
Sagittarius (November 22-December 21): Mr.
pumpkin outside the school.
Robidou will give you a piggyback ride and will
At 1:27 PM A teacher was allegedly using his phone in give you 1 million dollars in pennies.
school.
At 1:32 PM A student was found smuggling paper into
the office.
At 1:35 PM A girl was found having eaten seven tums
Have anything that you want to sell? Want to announce an event or activity? Well, now you can
and still going.
At 1:49 PM A plant was reported to be attacking a stu- because BMS is introducing Classifieds to The Howler! With these Classifieds, you can post a personal
add to sell an item or announce an upcoming event! These ads are currently only $10 each, and all
dent.
Howler Classifieds
funds will go to support Blatchley’s Journalism class. Bring your classified ad request to Misha Bekeris.
Page 6
THE HOWLER
Gagner Unleashed
By Gideon Henderson
Mrs.Gagner is a new 8th grade Social Studies
teacher who moved here from the Flathead Indian
Reservation in
Montana. She
said that so far
she loves Sitka, and so
does her husband. She decided to become a history
teacher because she
loves history,
and wants to
spread her love
of learning to
others. Her
favorite history
is all of American history,
especially the
Mrs. Gagner
founding of
America and Great Depression. She also said that
her hero is Eleanor Roosevelt, mainly because she
had a rough childhood and overcame that, but also
because she stood up for civil rights. She also likes
anyone who perseveres in life, no matter what.
Some of her hobbies are swimming, reading,
and even biking with Mrs.Demmert. She attended
college at the University of Montana and Ashland
University. Her favorite childhood memory is
spending time with her cousins at Flathead Lake.
“Every day class has a funny moment,” she
said, and she enjoys the funny moments because
they make the class a more fun place.
Splashing into October
By Connor Fulton
As many of you know, there was an invitational
swim meet here in Sitka on October 14-16 called
October Splash. One of the various reasons this
swim meet was so small is because there were only
3 teams, and it was an invitational.
The only team that actually traveled to Sitka
was Glacier Swim Club. (Juneau) Glacier Swim Club
is coached By Scott Griffith. Ever since Scott became their coach, they have broken over one hundred records! Scott was awarded senior coach of the
year in 2007, 2008, and 2010!
The next team is Baranof Barracudas (BBSC)
which is one of the two teams we have here in Sitka.
Baranof Barracudas is coached by Bobby Goldhahn
whose goals for his swimmers are to break as many
records as they can, improve their times, and take
state. Bobby has been coaching for over 13 years!
And will do whatever it takes to win!
The other Sitka team is named SEAK swim
team. SEAK is coached by Robby Jarvill. Not only is
he the coach of a swim team, but he also holds most
of the records here in Sitka. He was the former
coach of Barracudas, but now he coaches another
strong team. Robby also coaches high school swimming which practices twice a day! Every two weeks
they compete in different towns or cities.
However, just because it was a small swim
meet does not mean you can`t go fast! During this
meet, a few records were broken! Makai Saline, 8
years old, broke two of Sitka`s long standing records. The first record he broke was the 50 yard freestyle. And his second record was the 50 yard butterfly. His time was a 38:8. The second record breaker
was Skylar Moore who is in the 11 and 12 year old
division and has broken many records in the past.
During October Splash, Skylar broke one record by
herself, and one record on a relay team! The record
she broke by herself was the 1650 (mile). Most
swimmers don`t even want to talk about the mile
because swimming the mile is like putting yourself
through a blender!
The last record broken at this meet was the
girls 200 yard freestyle relay. The four people who
broke the team’s record for the relay were Camila
Gomez Duclos, Whitney McArthur, Skylar Moore,
and Jessica Davis. Their time was a 2:13.84.
One of the pretty interesting facts about this
meet was that the Glacier Swim Club had brought
more people in their team than we have in both of
the teams in Sitka combined!
At the end of the meet, out of the three teams
that fought, there was only one first place. And that
trophy went to Baranof Barracudas. In second place
was SEAK swim team! And in third place was the
Glacier Swim Club!!!
Flying into Wildlife Air Strikes By Fischer Tresham
Wildlife air strikes (airplane accidents caused by
mainly birds and animals that cross the runway
when the plane is taking off) happen a lot in the
world, all over the world and most air strikes happen
during takeoff. My dad works for the USDA (United
States Department of Agriculture) wildlife service.
His job is to keep the birds off the runway so that the
planes don’t hit them. It’s a very important job because it can be fatal to the people and the plane if a
bird goes into one of the engines. Usually it always
ends bad when the plane goes through a flock of
geese.
FIRST RECORDED AIR STRIKE
On April 3, 1912, the first recorded bird strike
happened at Long Beach, California. A gull collided
with a model EX Write Pusher airplane, and the impact of the gull on the airplane caused a fatal crash.
MILITARY EJECTION ACCIDENTS
Duluth, Minnesota
In 1992, an F16 (military fighter jet) hit a Lesser
golden plover, and the pilot ejected out of the plane
before the plane went down.
Austin, Texas
December 1992 - An F16 had a Red Tailed
Hawk go through one of the engines, and the pilot
had to eject. The plane crashed without him.
Elmendorf, Alaska
September 22, 1995 - An E-3B Airplane struck a
huge flock of Canadian geese during flight, and the plane crashed
less than 1mi. from the runway.
The plane had 24 crew members
on board who all died in the crash.
The Canadian geese blew out both
engines in the plane. There was
no chance of survival because of
how fast the plane went down.
ALASKA AIRLINES PLANE ACCIDENT
Before school started here in
Sitka, an Alaska Airlines jet hit an
eagle just before it landed on the
runway. The damages weren’t bad enough that the
plane couldn’t take off again. The flight was
delayed for a few hours; then people boarded the plane to go to their destination. When
the plane took off, it hit another eagle right
after leaving the runway, so the plane had to
circle around and land again. After the second eagle was hit, people were afraid to fly
that night. They delayed the flight until the
next day.
Wildlife air strikes happen about three
times a week in Sitka. Not all damages are
newsworthy.
FED-EX AIRPLANE ACCIDENT
Recently here in Sitka, Alaska, a Fed-Ex
airplane was taking off from the airport and
hit a seagull. The plane stopped before the
runway ended. My dad was called on his day
off because of this. When he went out on the
runway to identify the type of gull, he found a
piece of the airplane’s engine and took it into
the shop where they were working on the
airplane. They thought they had fixed the
engine until my dad showed them the piece
that they missed while cleaning up the runway. Apparently, that certain piece of the engine made a big
difference because that gull caused over a million
dollars in damage towards the engine. The guy told
my dad that if he didn’t bring them the piece he had
found, the plane would have blown out the engine on takeoff and went down in the ocean. The
million dollars does not count the shipping for the
parts of the engine or the time they spent rebuilding the engine, but it was just the damage that
was caused by the seagull.
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Page 7
VOLUME 2, ISSUE 3
Letters to the Editor
By Angelo Molina, Jimmy Villanueva, Isaac Pike
Dear Editor,
I think that the remodel of Blatchley is a great
idea! Unfortunately, we have to suffer some bumps
along the road to get there. First of all, it’s frustrating
how almost none of the clocks work right. I often find
myself asking people with watches what time it is.
That works fine, but it would be nicer to look up at a
clock and have the time be accurate. I also think it
would be nice if we had a little more transition time to
get from class to class. Three minutes is enough time,
unless you have to go to the bathroom. I think that we
should have five minutes, so that we have enough
time to go to the bathroom. I am very excited for when
we will have a nice clean school, but I wish it could
come sooner. Thank you for listening to my ideas.
Sincerely,
Goldie Blackson
Dear Editor,
The remodel at Blatchley is
great, but there are a few things that
could be worked on. First, it would be
nice if there were a few more windows
so you don’t feel like you’re in a dungeon all the time. Second, it would
help if the clocks in the rooms worked
so you don’t get messed up on what
time it is. Third, some of the drinking
fountains don’t taste very good. There
are a lot of things I really like about
Blatchley, but there are a few things
that could be changed.
Sincerely,
Ashlyn Nutting
Dear Editor,
I’m glad our school is getting a remodel, but
since it is still being done, it is kind of a mess. With
the ceiling being gone, you can hear what’s happening in the other rooms, and looking up is just scary.
The walls are dangerous; I’ve actually gotten a scrape
from one of the walls. Huge spaces have no carpet
which is really ugly. I am really glad that they are fixing the school, and I’m sure it will look amazing when
it is done. For now it’s a mess, and I wish it were done
sooner.
Sincerely,
Jackson McGraw
Dear Editor,
I kind of like being in Blatchley’s remodel so
that when it is fixed, we will have a brand new school.
There are also a lot of bad things though. the clocks
are off time and there are a lot of other thing that are
wrong with the school. Also some kids think that there
are crazy people in the air vents.
By Kate Morse and Maya Reda-Williams
If you have seen a girl in seventh grade you’ve never seen before, that’s probably Maliyah Bilyeu, a new
student here at Blatchley. Maliyah moved here on Friday,
October 28th.
Maliyah just moved
here from Hoonah, Alaska.
Before that, she was living
in Yakutat. She says that
so far she’s really liking it
here because “It’s bigger...way bigger. Hoonah
was a really small town. I
also like the house that I
have here.” She has two
siblings, but they’re both
still young, only two and
four yours old. Her favorite
class at Blatchley is Art.
She says she likes it because she’s relatively good
at it. Maliyah’s favorite
thing to do when she lived
in Hoonah was hang out
with her friends.
Maliyah Bilyeu
by Annie Garcia and Odalys Esparza
Thanksgiving, you know the holiday where your family
gets together and has a big dinner. Many people don’t know
the history of the holiday, like why we even celebrate it. This is
how it started.
Over 100 people traveled on a small ship called the Mayflower looking for a new home in 1620. Finally after 65 days of
traveling, they settled in Plymouth (now known as Massachusetts), but unfortunately their first winter was so bad that over
half of the original group did not survive the winter.
About 6 months after the settlers left an Abnaki Indian
named Samoset visited the colonists, and the next day he
returned with another Indian named Squanto. Squanto helped
the Pilgrims by teaching them all the things they needed to
know to survive in their new home, like how to avoid the poisonous plants, plant corn, and get the sap from the maple
trees. Thanks to Squanto, the Pilgrims’ first corn harvest was
very successful - so successful that the colonies’ Governor
(William Bradford) threw a big feast to celebrate and invited the
American Indians to come. Everyone brought food including
the Indians. The feast actually lasted for 3 whole days and is
now remembered as the first Thanksgiving.
Sincerely,
Brandon Carlos
Dear Editor,
I like the Blatchley remodel I think it will
look cool. I also like the stairs where it says, “The
road to success is always under construction.” I
Dear Editor,
can’t wait for the elevator to work (are we allowed to
I think the lockers are perfect size, but the
use it). Also I can’t wait until the remodel is done. I
lock combo twister needs to be greased. I think one of
really love Blatchley.
the lights are going to fall on me or something like a
wire or nail. The water fountain water is warm, and
Sincerely,
tastes a little funny. hopefully the work on
Hanna Swanson
the school will be done by the next school
year. Well that’s all I have to say.
Sincerely,
Max Johnson
A Hoonah Girl Comes to Blatchley
Why We Celebrate Thanksgiving
Dear Editor,
School is going to be way cooler when it’s
done being remodeled. Finally, you’ll be able to lean
on the wall without getting scraped or having torn
pieces of the wall stuck on your back. I think it’ll be
nice when the water fountains are fixed, too.
Sincerely,
Jake Trierschild
Huskies Take the Gold
By Minh Iwamoto
This year the girl’s and boy’s A team from
Sitka were invited to Yakutat to play in a
basketball tournament. The tournament
took place November 3-5. The teams competing in the tournament were from Yakutat,
Sitka, Houston and Christian Academy
(both from the Anchorage area). Both the
Sitka teams went undefeated in the tournament, resulting in getting 1st place.
The first game the Sitka girls played was against
Houston, beating them 31-19. The next day they played
Yakutat and won, 22-12. On the last day they beat Christian Academy in a three minute overtime with a winning
score of 30-25.
The first game the boys played was against Yakutat
with the score being 46-26. The day after that they defeated Houston with a score of 50-26. On the last day
the boys beat Christian Academy, 52-30.
All of us had lots of fun on the trip and enjoyed playing. The parents from Yakutat fed us great meals, and all
the teams stayed at the school. During our free time we
went swimming, walked
to the surf
shop, and
went to the
beach. Despite the fact
that Yakutat
has no cell
phone service,
the trip was
very fun.
Cool Nail Designs
By Odalys Esparza
We all have our own nail designs we like to do, but
what are the most famous designs? When asked what
their favorite nail designs are, many girls said they just
liked to do one plain color. Many other girls said they like
to do French tips. Amber Markley explained she likes to
do French tips with stripes. Mary Bernhardt said she
likes to do zebra stripes, flowers, and hearts. Ms.Riva
exclaimed she likes to do dark blue nails. Brittany Michael answered that she likes to do one solid color with
some kind of nail art. One design I really liked was one
Mia Nevarez explained, “Blood splatter, which is your
nail completely white with red dots.” An anonymous 7th
grade girl answered that she liked shatter nails. 6th
grader Skylar Moore likes bright colors. Breanna Barragan likes polka dots, stripes, paw prints, butterflies,
and diamonds. All these girls have awesome nail designs. According to this survey the most famous design
is the French tip. So get all your nail polish and let your
imagination come up with awesome nail designs.
Silver Bay Seafoods is proud to support Blatchley Journalism!
Page 8
THE HOWLER
The Alaskan Nutcracker of 2011: Sitka Studio of Dance
By Ali Venneberg and Sienna Reid
Have you ever heard of The Nutcracker? This year
the Sitka Studio of Dance is putting on The Alaskan
Nutcracker. The Nutcracker is about a young girl named
Marie (who will be played by our very own Emma
Combs). Marie falls asleep on the couch and dreams
that her Nutcracker doll becomes a real person and
takes her on an adventure. The adventure includes a
battle between rats and soldiers, visiting a land of snow
and ice, visiting beneath the ocean, downtown Sitka,
and much more! Want to find out what happens? Then
come to The Nutcracker which will be playing December 2-4th at the Performing Arts Center.
About working on the set of The Nutcracker, Emma
Combs said, “It’s really stressful at times, but also really
fun. We worked really hard on it, and I really want all of
you to come.” Emma also told us what inspired her to
be Marie: “I wanted a challenge, and I knew all my hard
work would pay off. Last year I didn’t even want to be
Marie, but after going to New York [last spring break]
and seeing Broadway, it inspired me to go for it. I didn’t
even think I would get Marie.” Emma practices from 114:00 pm on Saturdays, as well as a few extra practices
during the week.
Camryn Grant is in the Snow and Ice Scene, and
the Party Scene. She is actually playing Frida (Fritz in
the original). Camryn says she would much rather perform in The Nutcracker than watch it.
Zofia Danielson, another Nutcracker performer and
BMS 6th grade student, has been dancing at the studio
for five years, and she loves the performance. Zofia is in
the Party Scene this year because she had so much fun
last time as a little herring.
Zimri Hinshaw is a 7th grader who is also performing and says he practices two hours every Saturday for
the show. Zimri is in the Party Scene. He said when he
was a little boy, he took ballet for about four years and
then quit.
Ariadne Will, Sienna Reid, and Ali Venneberg are
Milk’s Favorite Cookie
By Katie Holmgren
Through the moving doors of the grocery store sits
the shiny blue package of milk’s favorite cookie: the
Oreo cookie - one of the world’s sensations.
The Oreo has been
around quite a while.
It was invented in
1912 and worked its
way up to the United
States’ best selling
cookie. In fact, if
every Oreo cookie
ever made were
stacked on top of
each other, they
would reach the
moon and back five
times! Over 7.5 billion cookies are consumed each year. That’s a lot of
Oreos!
There are at least 9 different types of Oreo cookies.
These consist of Original, Mini, Chocolate Creme,
Chocolate Creme Mini, Reduced Fat, Double Stuf,
Fudge covered, Fudge mint covered, and Double Delight. Each cookie is unique and tasty just how Nabisco
(National Biscuit Company) intends.
The Oreo is a simple cookie with a creme circle
surrounded by two chocolate disks. Twelve flowers are
cut on either side of the cookie each with the word Oreo
written in the middle of them. Each one is manufactured
in New York City. No one knows who thought of the
simple but creative design.
also Blatchley students performing in The Nutcracker. Ali
would also like to add, “Go to The Nutcracker! It is going
to be awesome!”
Though Mr. Robidou isn’t in The Nutcracker this
year, he was in the 2001 show as the Nutcracker! He
was also Drosslmeyer, the Big Bad Wolf, and the Rat
King in the years following that. Mr. Robidou says,
“When I was the Big Bad Wolf, I actually scared a 2nd
grader half to death which really made me realize the
emotion and acting skills that people put into this production. This is such a wonderful show with great choreography and lots of talented, dedicated dancers. It’s a great
way to kick off the holiday season, and I would definitely
recommend people go to this amazing performance!”
A man named Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky wrote the
music for The Nutcracker in 1892. The ballet was based
on a German story called “The Nutcracker and the
Mouse King.” The original name for the German girl was
Clara, not Marie. The first performance of The Nutcracker was in Russia during 1892, and was originally for the
entertainment and delight of children and families. Unfortunately, the performance failed according to the public
and critics. Tchaikovsky died 2 years before everyone
found out what a great production it really was. It became
especially popular in the U.S.
Melinda McAdams, the Director of the Nutcracker,
says, “I started The Nutcracker in 1998. I planned for a
whole year before we started to get dancers involved.
We raised money and borrowed costumes. We have
been performing it every other year since then. We took
an extra year off in 2008 because
the new theatre wasn't ready, and
we had destroyed our stage extension for Centennial Hall. That's why
we're now on odd years.”
About The Alaskan Nutcracker,
Melinda says, “I really like The
Alaskan Nutcracker. I like the creativity we've been able to introduce
to the production. I also hope the
public has enjoyed seeing a little of
Alaska onstage. However, I think
we will go back to a more traditional Nutcracker next
time. The second act will either be in the land of the
sweets again where every dance gives Marie some kind
of sweet thing to eat. Or the second act will be globetrotting where each dance represents a country. We
have done it both ways, and both are fun. We have a lot
of great costumes in storage that I'd like to get out
again.”
“We have had our share of craziness. Once in the
Northern Lights, our ‘light’ which was a long sash of
fabric attached to the rigging above the stage, fell
down during the dance. The dancers managed to
dance around it, but it was interesting. One year, everybody had the stomach flu. We had a lot of people
double cast so some could stay home, but most people tried to tough it out. One young dancer in the party
scene puked right onstage in the middle of her dance.
Our onstage maid cleaned it up right away and her
stage mom carried the girl off stage. Unbelievably, the
audience didn't notice - not even the girl’s dad. We've
always encouraged getting flu shots since then.”
“Once we forgot to put The Nutcracker back in his
place at the end of the show, so Marie had to pretend
to find him and hold him and be happy. She did a
good job faking it. And once, one of our backstage
crew died a week before the show in an accident. It
was very hard for all of us to continue, but we knew
she would want us to carry on, so we did the best we
could. We dedicated that year's show to her memory.”
“I'd say there are usually 15 people actively working backstage during the actual show. However, we
have many more people being ushers, ticket sellers,
hair and make-up helpers, doing laundry every night,
and mending costumes. We also have a large crew of
people that work before the show goes on to design
and make costumes, sets, backdrops, and props. We
also have people working on publicity, programs, displays, and tickets. In last year's program we listed 160
people as helping out before production. This year we
have 70 people dancing.”
“This year will be a lot the same as last time.
However, we are changing the battle again. This time
the Nutcracker will have Rockettes to help in the battle, and the bad guys will be life-sized Rat Girls. Instead of dancing with swords or guns, they will battle
by dancing steps at each other. The Rockettes are in
tap shoes, and the Rat Girls are doing jazz. The Battle
ends when the Rat Queen gets insulted and leaves in
a simper.”
So come on down to the Performing Arts Center
on December 2-4 to see this wonderful production,
and kick off your holiday season! For more information, contact the Sitka Studio of Dance at 7476774, or get tickets at the Studio or Old Harbor Books.
We hope you can join us for this wonderful production
put on by the Sitka Studio of Dance!
Can You Guess That Teacher?
By Kate Morse and Annie Garcia
This is a picture of one of our teachers at BMS when she was a kid. Can you guess
who it is?
The answer will be revealed in the next issue of The Howler.