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Maize High School. 11600 W. 45th St. N, Maize, KS 67101

read. watch. play.VOL7.ISSUE4.FEBRUARY.2013

PreventionReaching out for help can save a lifePage 10

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editor-in-chiefashley golden

managing editorjordan watkinsphotography

editorbrittany neigenfind

reportersalec fields

gabby hermesjustin noble

haley mounesCall 316-992-4225 or visit darrinhackney.com

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ABOVE: Senior Katie Smith, the only girl in her first block metals class, learns how to tig weld Jan. 29. “I like tig welding, because it’s something harder to do and more challenging,” Smith said. COVER Photo illustration by Brittany Neigenfind.

RAISE YOUR VOICE BY USING YOUR WORDSSubmit a letter to the editor for the March issue to D18 or to mhsnewsmag@gmail.com

For the latest updates on scores, news and more, check out Play newsmagazine online at http://myhsj.org/mhsnewsmag or click on the link on the MHS website.

Play is the official newsmagazine for and by Maize High School students. Play is published six times throughout the year. Play is a student publication and a forum for public opinion. Letters to the editor should be signed and around 300 words. The editorials and columns are the sole opinion of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the USD 266 Board of Education, the administration, the faculty or the adviser. Printed by City Print

Play newsmagazine staff

KATIE MCCLURE

editor-in-chiefashley golden

managing editorjordan watkinsphotography

editorbrittany neigenfind

reportersalec fields

gabby hermesjustin noble

haley mounes

ad managerdagny castelli

photographers/reportersbéle benard

cheyenne esserhannah henricksmaite menendez

lauren nicholsbrooke johansonshelby carpenter

adviserdan loving

TABLE OF CONTENTS

How to prepare for blood drive.

05District considers altering drug-testing policy; campuses beef up security after recent violence.

New classes offered next year; Maize logos to change.

Reporter shares her struggle with being a klutz.

COLUMN

14

06

10

PHOTO FOCUSStudents participate in scholastic art competition.

15

Seniors balance hectic schedules.

LIFESTYLES

09

Community can take steps to prevent suicide.

NOW PLAYING

NEWS

12

EDITORIALMaize should implement programs to promote acceptance.

16

Play readers share stories about dates gone wrong.

ENTERTAINMENT18

Reporter discovers talent, love for bowling.

COLUMN21

22Athletics result in serious injuries for some students.

SPORTS

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The board of education is considering changes to the district drug testing policy. The current policy was discussed during the Jan. 14 school board meeting.

The policy states that any student who wishes to participate in any sport or an extracurricular activity has to consent to random drug test screenings. The policy has been in effect for five years. The district is evaluating the effect it has had on the students and schools — including if it serves as a deterrent — and the cost and accuracy of the tests. “What is an extracurricular activity? Could being in the parking lot be considered as an extracurricular activity?” Principal Chris Botts said, describing some of the issues the district principals plan to explore. Students have mixed opinions about the tests. “I think it’s good,” senior Rachel Mohr, who runs cross country and track, said of the current policy. “(Athletes) shouldn’t do drugs while they’re doing a sport.” However, sophomore Bryce Turner said the policy could be improved. “If they have evidence, they should drug test you and not on suspicion alone,” he said.

Botts said the Board of Education has not set a date to decide whether to change the policy. n

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NEWS

By Maite Menendez

District looks into drug testing policy

Recent school shootings have left people in shock and others in a panic to

make schools and communities a safer place.

Schools across the country are still deciding what path they will take with security. Some changes to improve security in other schools have ranged from improved locks on classroom doors to bulletproof whiteboards. Whatever the technique, most administrators agree that school security needs to be improved.

“I think there is more we can do; there are still doors being propped open and kids letting people in the building without being checked in through the of-fice,” Principal Chris Botts said.

Maize schools have had higher security than other school

districts for quite some time. Fol-lowing the Sandy Hook shooting in December in

Connecticut, in which 26 people were killed, the Maize district has been more supportive of helping school officers improve their level of training, district of-ficer Chad Cornish said.

Cornish wouldn’t discuss spe-cific changes but said that more advanced active-shooter sce-narios have been added to their exercises.

“We have more advanced tac-tics and weaponry than Wichita’s police department,” Cornish said.

Goddard, among other local schools, has simple but effective ways of improved security, said Ronny

Lieurance, chief of the God-dard school district’s police force.

Goddard will soon upgrade to buzz-in offices that are similar to what Maize offices have, along with revising their emergency plans.

“We are constantly reviewing our procedures in light of what happened at Sandy Hook El-ementary,” Lieurance said.

The National Rifle Association proposed that there should be an armed guard in each and every school.

“The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun,” NRA executive vice president, Wayne LaPierre said in a speech one week after the Sandy Hook shooting.

Whatever the solution, ideas are being brainstormed and put into effect to make schools a safer place. n

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY MAITE MENENDEZ

Schools assess security after shootingLocal schools consider updates to campus safety after Sandy Hook tragedy

By Alec Fields

“I think there is more we can do; there are still doors be-ing propped open and kids letting people in the building without be-ing checked in through the office.” — Principal Chris Botts

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Students prepare for upcoming blood drive

The Red Cross Blood Mobile will be at Maize March 29th accept-ing blood donations. Students

may sign up beginning March 1st during lunch or with English teacher Suzanne McKaig in room F36. To donate, students must be at least 17 years old to give blood, or 16 and have a parent sign a consent form, which can be found on the Red Cross website. Everyone donating must weigh at least 110 pounds. All donors must present two forms of ID, such as a Red Cross Donor card, a driver’s licence or a school-issued ID. Students will not be accepted as a blood donor if they have visited coun-tries in the past 12 months that are considered “Malaria Zones.” A map of the countries can be found at www.cdc.gov/malaria/map. Donors may have piercings, but any tattoo not received from a state-reg-ulated entity will require a 12-month

waiting period before the student will be eligible for blood donation. When preparing for donating, stu-dents should drink plenty of water to help replace the fluids they will lose. “They need to drink at least over 64 fluid ounces of water,” Maize nurse Dana Desjardins said. “Especially that day, they need to eat a snack and breakfast.” The Red Cross recommends a healthy level of iron the day of the donation. Foods such as red meat, fish, poultry, beans, spinach and raisins are iron packed and would provide students with the recom-mended amount for giving blood. The Red Cross also advises avoiding fatty foods such as hamburgers, fries or ice cream. If there is too much fat in your blood, it can’t be used for transfusions. More information regarding regula-tions, medical conditions and details on blood donations can be found at www.redcrossblood.org. n

By Haley Mounes

Senior Brian Velo gives blood during the Red Cross blood mobile drive last November.

PHOTO BY MATTHEW POGUE

By Maite Menendez

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NEWS

Students from Diane Moser’s psychology class are participating in a food drive to help support the economically disadvantaged students in the district.

The food drive is a part of a required community service project for the class.

There are a growing number of students in the Maize school district who are considered economically disadvantaged, meaning they receive free or reduced-price school lunches, or their families qualify for other public assistance.

The percentage of economically disadvantaged students in the school district was 7.6 percent during the 2003-04 school year, according to the Kansas State Department of Education. The rate more than doubled to 16.6 percent in 2011-12.

“It affects more people than we think in the city of Wichita,” junior Sydney McGinnis said.

Moser’s class has advertised for non-perishable items acceptable for the food drive, such as cereal, canned goods, rice and granola bars. The goods are dropped into Moser’s room and taken to Vermillion Primary on Thursdays to be distributed to families in need.

“Kids are to take home as much food as they can carry to their family,” Moser said.

The current food drive is to last until the end of the term, when the class ends. Then the students from Moser’s fourth-term psychology class will take over the food drive.

“My goal is to keep going until next year,” she said.Moser said she also plans to spread the food drive be-

yond the students of Maize and hopefully provide help for Wichita.

However, she would need more donations to make it hap-pen. Moser said she plans to ask Walmart and Dillons to start donating unwanted food items every month.

“The big thing for the students is to get them involved in community service and to bond and connect with other students in the district, “ Moser said.

To help Maize families, bring non-perishable food items to Moser’s room F08 every Wednesday. n

Moser’s psychology class participates in food drive

Top: Seniors Cameron Zane

and Matt Breiding

package food items at Vermillion

Primary School.

Bottom: Food items collected

are bagged, boxed and sent to achild’s home.

PHOTOS BY BRITTANY NEIGENFIND

TAKE NON-PERISHABLE FOOD ITEMS TO DIANE MOSER’S ROOM F08

HELPApplesauce wGranola barswMac ‘n’ cheesewCerealwFruit cups wRice wCanned

goodswCrackers

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NEWS

Maize is adding many new courses for the 2013-2014 school year, allowing students

more opportunities to expand their knowledge.

All returning students must complete their enrollment online by Feb. 22.

One of these new classes is Principles of Illustration, which Jodee Johnson will teach.

“I wanted to teach the class because I thought it would be a good thing for the students,” she said.

Johnson had to apply and be accepted to teach this class.

“I’m definitely excited,” she said. “It’s a

combination of drawing and computer art.”

In this new art class students will be creating images with both traditional and digital media to communicate an idea. The expected outcome for this class is high.

“I’ve had several students say they’re going to take it,” Johnson said.

Johnson wanted a new art class because Maize now has a Visual Arts Pathway, but currently most of the classes in the pathway are not taught in the art department.

Students who want to enroll in the class will have to have taken Drawing 1

or Graphic Design. This class is for 2013-2014 sophomores, juniors and seniors and will be a term class available for .5 credit.

Director of Guidance Lyn Burton Brown said other new classes for next year include: AP Calculus 2, EMT/Emer-gency Medical Technician, Health Sci-ence 3, Pharmacology, Care of Athletes, Introduction to (Urban) Agriculture, Plant and Animal Science (formerly zoology and botany), Media Technol-ogy - Workplace Experience, Project Management and Resource Scheduling, Culinary Applications and Officiating Team Sports Fall/Spring.n

New classes expand student choiceBy Gabby Hermes

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY LAUREN NICHOLS

The school district is working to create new logos for Maize and Maize South.

Over the past 12 years, there have been several Maize Eagle logos, never being the district’s own. Maize South art teacher Jason Becker has been working for six months with Superintendent Doug Powers, both high school principals, the district communications director and the district athletic and activities directors to create new Eagle and Maverick logos that the schools can copyright and permanently use.

When the new idea was brought up to Maize students, many were reluctant to the new idea. Two logos were open for discussion during lunches Jan. 28 through Feb 1.

Senior Bryce Pearson does not like the

new design.“The ‘m’ being held by the talons is

probably the worst out of the choices given,” he said.

Some students said changing the logos is wrong, as it strays away from what they know and like.

“We should keep it the same because it’s tradition,” sophomore Paige Bailey said.

Director of communications Karen McDermott has been a part of the new logo designing since she hired Becker four years ago to design the district logo. Becker has design experience as an art teacher at both high schools and from owning his own freelance graphic design company.

“I am excited to have logos that will be consistently used and legally owned by

the district for our schools to use,” she said. “I am also pleased to be working with a professional graphic artist in the design of the logo as there are many things to consider when developing a new logo or brand.

The negative reactions toward the first round of logo suggestions sparked an interest in graphic design classes.

“The graphic design classes are remaking the logos, because the students didn’t like them [the other logos] and they looked like there wasn’t a lot of effort in them, so we’re remaking them as a side project,” senior Codi Prouty said.

McDermott said Becker will continue to refine version one of the designs to be ready to use at the beginning of the fall semester. n

By Cheyenne Esser

New Eagle logo is in the works

‘There’s nothing so bad that you can’t get help’

‘There’s nothing so bad that you can’t get help’

Emptiness. Loneliness. Fear. Anger. Isolation. An inability to express emotion. All signs of depression

that can lead one to commit suicide. Suicide is the third-leading cause of death among teenagers and affects more people now than ever. Teens are taking their own lives as a permanent solution to problems instead of getting the help they need. Therapist Diane Gaunt, an advanced practice registered nurse, said many youths haven’t learned how to cope. And when teens don’t know how to cope with situations that arise, they can feel hopeless and turn to drastic measures. “They may have tons of friends, but they may not feel that anyone cares,” Gaunt said.

She explained that keeping quiet when feelings like this take place is the No. 1 mistake a person can make, because not talking can lead to death. Some people do realize that they are having suicidal thoughts or signs of depression and go to someone for help. When people reach Gaunt, she said they typically have either tried to get over things on their own or are getting help because they are scared of how they’re thinking. Every case is different. Some suicide cases, she said, are not foreseen and the attempt is spur of the

moment. “Other cases that I see in the hospital, maybe they haven’t thought about it that

much but they’re very impulsive, and something happens, and boom, that’s what they do,” Gaunt said.

68IN THERE WERE

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2010

SUICIDES

If you fear someone may take his or her life:Be willing to listen, get help now

% preventable

Suicidepreventableis100%

Sedgwick County Suicide Prevention Hotline open 24/7: 316-660-7500Information obtained from Sedgwick County ComCare

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NOW PLAYING

Seeking help during rough times can prevent self-injury, suicide

By Ashley Golden and Cheyenne Esser

To Write Love On Her Arms, a nonprofit suicide prevention group, encourages people to help each other through rough patches in hopes of lowering depression, self-injury and suicide rates. TWLOHA fans and supporters write the word “love” on their arms on and during the week of World Suicide Prevention Day, Sept. 10. PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY BRITTANY NEIGENFIND

According to nonprofit suicide prevention group To Write Love On Her Arms, the global suicide rate has jumped 60 percent in the last half-century. Every 40 seconds, someone dies due to self-inflicted injury, and that statistic is expected to rise to one death every 20 seconds by 2020. Mary McClard understands the depth of tragedy suicide causes. Her son Timothy, a Maize graduate, committed suicide in 2002. “People will hide their problems and think they can take care of it themselves,” she said. “There’s nothing so bad that you can’t get help for it.” McClard and her husband, Bert, did not notice any suicidal symptoms in their son. He graduated from Maize in 1995 and spent 2½ years at the University of Kansas before transferring to Wichita State University where he graduated in 2001. He was living in his own apartment and had recently received a raise at his job. “Everything seemed to be going really well for him,” she said. “Sometimes you might be the only one aware of [symptoms] in yourself.” Warning signs are not always apparent to others, as in the McClard family, which is why getting help is so important. “He always thought he could fix things

himself,” she said. “And that was where he made his mistake.” It is not only important to help yourself. Saving someone else’s life is possible by being aware of symptoms. If someone you know is exhibiting signs of depression or suicidal tendencies, do not be afraid to seek help. Gaunt first suggests asking the person straight-forwardly “are you having thoughts wishing you were dead?” She said many people believe asking someone if they’re suicidal will cause them to start thinking about self-injury, but that is not true. “[Just asking] opens a door letting them know they have support,” she said. When suicide does take place, as it did in the McClard family, coping is extremely difficult. Self-blame usually takes place as family and friends of the deceased try to decipher why they did not pick up on symptoms. It is hard to move past a suicide. “It is harder to get over suicide, rather than an auto accident,” Gaunt said.

The McClards were given plenty of advice when they lost their son but found that they needed to follow their own course of coping. Mary McClard doesn’t believe that time heals everything. “It’s what you do with the time,” she said. She suggests being honest about what happened and not trying to ignore the reality of the situation. She dealt with that issue in the beginning. “I didn’t want people to focus on the way he died; I wanted them to remember the way he lived,” she said. Mary suggests using available support groups and journaling as therapeutic releases. She urges people to seek professional coping help if they cannot return to their normal schedules over a long period of time. No one has to learn to cope with the loss of their son, daughter, mom, dad, friend or anyone else if the person in need speaks up when they need help. “Suicidal thoughts are temporary. Depression can be treated,” Mary McClard said. Reach out and help when you notice someone in need, and when you need help — do not waste time getting the help you need. “Your life is too important to let it end that way,” Mary McClard said. n

68IN THERE WERE

IN S E D G W I C K

COUNTY

2010

SUICIDES

If you fear someone may take his or her life:Be willing to listen, get help now

% preventable

Suicidepreventableis100%

Sedgwick County Suicide Prevention Hotline open 24/7: 316-660-7500Information obtained from Sedgwick County ComCare

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Mary McClardHer son Timothy, Maize graduate, committed suicide in 2002.

INFOGRAPHIC BY BÉLE BENARD

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PHOTO FOCUS

Scholastics Students

Béle BenardVerity Clark Chloe Cloud

Lucas DownesMariana Figliolino

Lauren HadleyMegan Hawkinson

Kayln HelmAshley Herreid

Lizzie Hurley

Honorable MentionHonorable MentionGold KeyHonorable Mention and Silver KeyHonorable MentionHonorable Mention2 Honorable MentionsHonorable MentionHonorable MentionGold Key, Honorable Mention and Gold Key Portfolio

Bronwen Jenkins Sarah Karim Zack Manuel

Gigi MarquezTravis McCarty

Mika Mitchell Shannon Nadres

Sarah Nash Kyle Nguyen Wyatt Payne

Gold KeyGold Key Honorable Mention 2 Honorable Mentions and Silver Key Silver KeyGold KeySilver Key Silver KeySilver KeyHonorable Mention

Michael PhillipsChelsey Ratzlaff

Emma RekoStylan Roberts

Sam SalinasHaley Smith

Mia TaylorKate Utech

Taylor Utter Zac Warwick

Gold KeyHonorable Mention and 2 Silver KeysSilver KeyHonorable Mention3 Honorable Mentions2 Honorable MentionsGold Key and Honorable MentionGold Key and Honorable MentionGold KeyHonorable Mention

Senior Heather Engle

Senior Lizzie Hurley

Senior Samantha Salinas

Sophomore Mia Taylor

Senior Lucas Downes

Senior Sam Salinas

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EDITORIAL

“I’m starting this group to show people that they’re not alone.”-senior Aubrey Boor

Every day at Maize, students feel alone due to bullying. If students at Maize implemented a Pay it Forward/Rachel’s challenge program, many students would not feel as

alone as they currently do. Have you ever looked at someone

and wondered what they’re thinking? What about that kid in your math class, have you wondered why he always wears the same clothes? Why that shy kid in the back of your chemistry class never talks? Or maybe why that girl sits alone at lunch and reads by herself?

Whether or not it’s noticed, nearly everyone is fighting some sort of battle. For this very reason, Rachel’s Challenge was established.

Rachel’s Challenge is a program based on the writings and morals of 17 year-old Rachel Scott, a student killed at Columbine High School in 1999. It has been said that she left quite the impact on fellow students, reaching out to new students, victims of bullying and those seen as outcasts.

After seeing the success of Rachel’s Challenge, we are encouraging Maize to follow in her footsteps to reach out and help others.

This school year at Maize there has only been six bully reports filed, but any high school student knows very well that

bullying is much more prevalent than that.This raises the question of why students are not speaking

up. Bullying isn’t something anyone should have to deal with. It leaves scars emotionally and, in some instances, physically. Many students believe that telling an adult will lead to more

trouble. This is where Rachel’s Challenge comes in.

Senior Aubrey Boor has been working on creating a group that will act much like Rachel’s Challenge. Boor plans to open the group to students who have gone through hardships.

Boor’s idea sparked from leading at her church and speaking to middle

school students who have been bullied. She plans to reach out to students and support

them through struggles.“I’m starting this group to show people that they’re

not alone,” she said.If you see a classmate having a rough day, talk to

them and assure them it’ll turn around. If you’re walking down the hallway and someone drops their things, help them pick up. Be there for your peers, even the ones you don’t know. The smallest of actions can ultimately make the largest differences. You never know just how far one act of kindness may travel. n

Students should participate in being there for their peersBy Béle Benard

PHOTO ILLUSTRATIONS BY BÉLE BENARD

Reach out to Rachel’s Challenge

I have always been an extremely clumsy person. My medical record consists

of four broken bones, several scars and a few trips to the emergency room. Tripping over my own feet, limbs flailing wildly as I fall, the obnoxiously loud thump as I make my land-ing face down, followed by the laughter of my dearest friends — that’s my signature move.

My most recent display of my clumsy nature came January 4th during the boys varsity basketball game at Koch Arena. The dance to the school’s fight song is a routine that I’ve done more than 100 times, so I didn’t put much thought into it. Kick, clap, clap, turn, kick… it’s quite simple. So, of course I was sur-prised when I lost balance and landed sideways on my ankle, nearly toppling over.

At first the pain was toler-able, but within the next few seconds my left foot felt as if I had stepped into a small campfire. The hurting was especially powerful on the outer part of my ankle, burn-ing and throbbing all at once. Fighting back tears, I returned to the sidelines after the end of our performance and planted myself on the floor. Another cheerleader offered to get me a bag of ice while my coach scoured the arena for the athletic trainer. Soon the game began again and there I sat, tenderly holding a yellow plas-tic hot-dog bun bag of ice on my slowly swelling extremity. I watched my fellow cheerleaders cheer on our team.

In that moment, the only thought running through my head was, “Why can’t I just be a tad graceful for once?”

The athletic trainer finally arrived and examined my ankle and foot. I had to walk with him once up and down the arena

court, even though I didn’t think I could take any more steps. He said I had aggravated the tendons and rolled my ankle but that the sprain was not serious and would heal with time.

After returning home and sleeping rather uncomfortably with my leg elevated, I awoke early Saturday morning to visit our family physician for X-rays. Unable to bear weight on my left foot, I hopped awkwardly on one leg with the help of my dad’s old cane. I was quite a sight, apparently, judging by the stares of those inhabiting the waiting room that morning.

Once the X-rays had been taken and our consultation with the doctor completed, the final analysis was bittersweet news: I hadn’t broken or frac-tured anything, but I had seri-ously sprained my ankle and pulled and twisted the tendons in my foot. I was instructed to stay off of it for three to four days or until the pain subsided, but that ultimately sprained ankles and tendons take months to heal. The most important instruction I had been given was to “be patient,” something that I tend to struggle with some-times.

I can’t help but think that in a way I was lucky. It could have been a lot worse, even though I wish it hadn’t happened in the first place. But it did, and there isn’t anything I can do about

it. The klutzy, fumbling, awkward creature within me has once again awoken from its slumber and made itself known in the world, or at least my world.

Hopefully Klutzilla won’t be interfering with my life again anytime soon. n

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COLUMN

“I’m starting this group to show people that they’re not alone.”-senior Aubrey Boor

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY BRITTANY NEIGENFINDSophomore Shelby Carpenter stumbles down the hallway, dropping her books.

KlutzillaBy Shelby Carpenter

STRIKES AGAIN

Reach out to Rachel’s Challenge

LIFESTYLES

Timeisticking

Students must find a way to balance school with jobs, hobbies and other school activities to make the most of their time

By Hannah Henricks and Lauren Nichols

Managing classes, work, music, cars, sports, friends and other things is a struggle many students face. Students must find a way to balance things they need

to do and also what they want to do for enjoyment. Learning how to prioritize is a huge part of a student’s life if they want to succeed.

Senior Kevin Benavides seems to have all of his activities scheduled out: school, friends, his job at Dominos, his involvement in Science Olympiad, and in his band Half Mast, all while managing a 4.06 GPA.

“Prioritize, plan ahead, stay organized and make sure not to waste an hour,” Benavides said.

Benavides is motivated by wanting a good future, which includes going to a good college. He plans to study aerospace engineering.

Aside from studying one to two hours daily for his classes, he also has to spend time studying for Science Olympiad. Science Olympiad students have to study topics on their own time to prepare for their competitions against other schools.

“My favorite thing about Science Olympiad is you get to compete with other people,” Benavides said. “I like competition.”

Senior Kendrick Keomany spends his time outside of school as a musician and recording artist.

His passion sparked at only 5 years old, when he found his mother’s piano and began playing. A short two years later, he learned to play the drums.

Today, Keomany records and produces music in his home studio.

“I enjoy music because it is my passion and what I was born to do,” Keomany said.

With such a passion for music, managing his time is important.

“Without making the time,” Keomany said, “Music would be nothing and music is my life, so it is very important to me.”

Keomany has opened his studio’s doors to other people as well. Some Maize students have also used his studio.

Senior Jeff Light has to find a way to balance football, soccer, bowling, school, sleep, work and his love for his cars. Until recently, he owned a 1999 Mercedes SLK230 he called “Jin.” Since his sophomore year when Light purchased this car for $7,000, he put an additional $5,000 into it.

Light enhanced the car with new headlights, coilovers, new rims and tires, a new air intake, and a mass air-flow sensor. Light paid for his car and additional parts by working at Aflac insurance and by receiving help from his dad.

Just recently, Light sold Jin for an offer he said he couldn’t resist. Now he is juggling his schedule with putting time into his new Nissan 240SX that he purchased for $3,500.

Light believes that the best way to prioritize one’s time is to set goals and achieve the major goals before achieving the smaller goals. He prioritizes his time by spending his weekday time on school and dedicating his weekends to his car.

“Time management is important because it helps everything become balanced out,” Light said.

These students have all found a way to balance their busy lives and put important things first. By doing this, these seniors have made it through high school. n

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ABOVE: Senior Kendrick Keomany makes music at his home studio.

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Senior Jeff Light works on his ‘99 Mercedes SLK230 before he sold it for a Nissan 240 SX.

Kevin Benavides, senior, balances his job at Dominos, his band and his school work.

PHOTOS ILLUSTRATION BY BRITTANY NEIGENFIND PHOTO SUBMITTED BY JEFF LIGHT

PHOTOS BY BRITTANY NEIGENFIND

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ENTERTAINMENT

Junior Daniel ReepPlay: Have you ever had an embarrassing date?Reep: “Not really awkward, but the stupidest thing we ever did was when we took a candle and had a candlelit dinner at McDonalds.”

February is thought of as the season of love; heart-shaped cards are distributed amongst lovers and the scents of flowers and chocolate fill the air. With Valentine’s Day thursday, many people burden themselves with the task of finding a sweetheart to spend the holiday with. Whether it’s the day of

adulation or not, dating is a year-round activity. Dating has its ups and downs, good times and bad times, and sometimes a little creativity on a date can go a long way. The following are stories from students and staff about their personal dating experiences.

LOVE is in the air

By Shelby Carpenter and Brooke Johanson

Junior Daniel Reep on a candlit dinner-date at McDonalds with his girlfriend junior Kaili Potter.

Social studies teacher Skeeter RankinsPlay: Have you ever had an embarrassing date?Rankins: “My sophomore year I had this sort of crush, you could say, on this one girl named Bonny Miller. I was a real shy kid, real nervous to ask anybody out. Junior year, I asked her out and she said yes and it was awesome. Of course I took her to dinner, took her to a movie, you know pretty traditional. But, I owned one of the worst cars an American could own and that would be a Ford Pinto. The kind that if you tapped on the back it would blow up. Mine never did. So I had kind of a putrid car and there was nothing personal that was embarrassing but we went into the movie, we had had a nice date, nice time, and we come back out to the car, put the key in the ignition (this was after I opened the door for her because I was a gentleman) and nothing. The car would not start. So here I am with this girl that I have wanted to date for several months and actually said she would go out with me and the date went well and this car is the bane of my existence. It would not start and so I had to call a tow truck and my mother. It was an embarrassing ride home to say the least. I hated that car. I should have known better with that Pinto.”

PHOTO ILLUSTRATIONS BY BROOKE JOHANSON

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Need a lovely location?

is in the air

Abuelo’sAbuelo’s is offering a dinner-for-two special through Valentine’s week, Feb. 10-14, which includes fajitas and dessert for $30.

Granite City Food & BreweryGranite City is offering a couple special available also Feb. 10-14. It includes soup or salad, optional appetizer, two entrees and dessert for $60.

Outback SteakhouseOutback is doing a special for two during the week of Valentine’s Day. This includes an appetizer, two steaks, sides and a couple’s cheesecake for $35.

Papa John’sPapa John’s is selling festivley heart-shaped pizza’s every day until Valentine’s Day.

Sophomore Braxton Miller Play: What is your dream date or ideal date?Miller: “Well I would go to Chipotle and get some food. Then we would go to Sedgwick County Park. I would put a little blanket in the back of my truck bed and we would eat Chipotle in the back of my truck at Sedgwick County Park.“

Junior Chase WhitePlay: What is your most embarrassing date?White: “Well we went out to dinner and I had to go to the bathroom, but I wanted to put it off until later. I farted really bad, and it was loud and embarrassing. Then we paid and we left. It was awkward on the way home. I tried to handle it with humor. I tried to just laugh it off. I was mad that I just messed up the date.”

Social studies teacher Skeeter RankinsPlay: Have you ever had an embarrassing date?Rankins: “My sophomore year I had this sort of crush, you could say, on this one girl named Bonny Miller. I was a real shy kid, real nervous to ask anybody out. Junior year, I asked her out and she said yes and it was awesome. Of course I took her to dinner, took her to a movie, you know pretty traditional. But, I owned one of the worst cars an American could own and that would be a Ford Pinto. The kind that if you tapped on the back it would blow up. Mine never did. So I had kind of a putrid car and there was nothing personal that was embarrassing but we went into the movie, we had had a nice date, nice time, and we come back out to the car, put the key in the ignition (this was after I opened the door for her because I was a gentleman) and nothing. The car would not start. So here I am with this girl that I have wanted to date for several months and actually said she would go out with me and the date went well and this car is the bane of my existence. It would not start and so I had to call a tow truck and my mother. It was an embarrassing ride home to say the least. I hated that car. I should have known better with that Pinto.”

Senior Courtney RitchiePlay: Have you ever had an embarrassing date?Ritchie: “It was his first date ever, and I thought I would give him a shot because he was a really sweet guy. We went to Chipotle and every bite that he took ended up on his t-shirt. Then when we left, he came around and opened my door and then I shut it and he got really mad all of a sudden because he wanted to shut my door. Then we went to the movies and it was really awkward and we kind of just watched the movie. Then he took me home and it was completely silent on the way home. I didn’t bring my keys with me because I didn’t think I would need them, but my parents weren’t home. My mom was out of town and my dad was across town, so nobody was answering their phones. Then he just dropped me off and left me there. He didn’t even wait for me to open the door or anything. I was stuck on my front porch for an hour and a half until I called my best friend to come pick me up.”

Senior Courtney Ritchie

When I was 5 years old, I joined the Saturday morning pee-wee bowling league. I

scored only two pins in my first game but jumped up and down, filled with excitement. By the end of my first season I had an average of about five pins.

The sport became part of my life so fast and I loved it. As that first season ended I knew I had found the one thing I could really be passionate about. I knew it was something I had to continue, something I could strive for.

My grandpa gave me my first bowling ball when I was 7. It was pink, lime green and orange and I named it Scooby Doo. It didn’t have any special “talents” to it, but it was special to me because my grandparents were very proud of my bowling.

The dad of one of my older teammates coached me every Saturday morning before my league. When his daughter was no longer eligible to bowl league, I started looking up to some of the other kids around me who, in my young eyes, were very talented. Every Saturday I went 30 minutes early to practice to receive more coaching.

When I was 12 years old and on the Junior Major team, my average had improved and was about 80 to 90 pins per game. In that same year I gained a new private coach, Cory Rainwater. Bowling an extra day throughout the week helped my average jump to around 100 pins. I also got a new ball (I named it Twilight). It hooked only a little bit but still helped me raise my average even more.

By my freshman year I was averaging about a 150 before the start of the high school season. A few months before season started I got two more bowling balls. When tryouts rolled around, I became more and more nervous because I knew only two of the girls on the team of 24. That first week was nerve-racking, I started off in the top six but slowly dropped day by day. Even though that first week was rough, I gained many new friends.

Cory was now my high school

coach along with Dave Walker. I went from practicing two days a week to practicing five days a week. I dreaded the long, cold, 5 a.m. practices every Tuesday and the 9 p.m. split team practices but I still enjoyed every waking minute being on the team. By the end of the season I had beat many of my goals, bowling many games over 200.

After season ended, I picked up a new private coach named Rick Steelsmith, a former PBA bowler who was just elected to the United States Bowling Congress Hall of Fame. He’s helped me bump my average to nearly 170. He also helped me bowl my high game of 247, a few months ago, with yet another new bowling ball (named Jimmy Buffett).

Bowling has become a huge part of my life and is something I work very hard at, spending many hours at the alley bowling five to six days a week. My freshman year I was bowling as the seventh spot on junior varsity.

Now, I’m bowling varsity and hope to continue to make progress.

One can improve only so much at a time, but in the wise words of Coach Walker: “Practice doesn’t make perfect, perfect practice makes perfect.” n

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Lifeofa bowlerBy Cheyenne Esser

Sophomore Cheyenne Esser has been bowling since she was 5 years old.

PHOTO BY BRITTANY NEIGENFIND

SPORTS

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Dangerousgames

By Jordan Watkins and Justin Noble

Injuries are a part of life when it comes to playing sports

Junior Kavan Jobe supports the basketball team at the game Feb. 1. Because a football injury left him unable to play basketball this season, Jobe watches the team from the sidelines in street clothes.PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY CHEYENNE ESSER

games

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Common injuries explained

It was only two weeks into the football season, a game against Salina South. Junior Kavan Jobe had the ball and

was trying to escape a tackle just like he had a hundred times before. But this time, things went differently.

“My knee just locked up on me,” Jobe said. “I thought I was going to be all right.”

It wasn’t until almost a week later that Jobe learned he had become one of 10 million athletes injured each year, according to Georgia Health Sciences Health Network. He had torn his right anterior cruciate ligament, causing him to miss the rest of the football season and the entire basketball season.

Freshman Shelby Mabie has suffered a similar setback. She twisted her knee cap, forcing her to miss a season and a half of soccer and a season of cross country.

“It kind of happened over time,” Mabie said. “It got to where I could not take it anymore.”

Mabie will be back in the game for girls soccer in March, and Jobe will be playing under the Friday night lights next fall, but injuries don’t always just happen once.

Senior Dane Byfield suffered an ACL injury twice playing high school football.

“First time was sophomore year,” he said. “I was running got hit in the side of the knee. This year, senior year, I got hit again. Completely blew out my ACL.”

After missing out on baseball sophomore year and recovering successfully, Byfield played football junior year and into senior year with no big problems, until the Sept. 28 game against Salina Central.

“I felt it pop. I kept running on it because I guess my adrenaline was just rushing, but my coach told me to sit out.” Byfield thought he was fine this time, but the next day his knee felt stiff.

“I told my dad I should get an MRI and found out I had tore it again.”

He had hoped to play football in college, but has decided against it to avoid another injury. A few collegiate coaches have spoken to him about playing for them.

“I had to say no because I don’t want to play, tear it again, get surgery and go through rehab,” he said.

Physician Dawn Comstock, who studies sports injuries in adolescents,

said that nearly 60 percent of sports-related injuries are in the knee, and more than half of those knee injuries are ACL tears. The most common causes of ACL tears are player-to-player contact and attempting to rotate on a planted foot. Both factors were in place when Jobe was injured.

Nearly half of all ACL injuries are related to football, but Comstock said that is primarily because football teams are larger than teams of other sports. Female soccer players have the highest chance of injuring their ACL. In fact, females are six times more likely to suffer an ACL injury than males.

Although ACL injuries are common and require surgery, athletes should be equally as concerned about concussions. Richard Bomgardner, coordinator of

Wichita State’s athletic training program, said concussions can be worse than ACL injuries because they lead to health issues later in life such as early Alzheimer's.

Bomgardner said concussions in athletes are on the rise.

“You have to look at the size and speed of the athletes that are playing nowadays,” he said. “We are never going to get to the point where we do not have concussions.”

However, Bomgardner said that with proper training there might not always be as many.

As many as 47 percent of athletes don’t feel any symptoms after suffering a concussion and don’t get immediate treatment.

“Concussion symptoms can be delayed,” Bomgardner said. “You can take a hit and think, ‘Oh I just have a headache,’ but over time they will progressively get worse.”

After a concussive blow, an athlete can experience dizziness, memory loss, the ability to focus, lightheadedness, and headaches. Bomgardner encourages athletes not to make hits with their heads and to always wear padding.

“It might help stop the severity [of a concussion],” Bomgardner said.

If a concussion is left untreated, athletes often suffer frequent memory loss and headaches, as well as oversensitivity to light and an inability to focus.

Most athletes agree that while sports can be dangerous, the love for the game is worth it.

“It’s not a safe sport, but if you love it you might as well play,” Byfield said, speaking of football.

Jobe said he hopes his injury this year won’t affect sports in the future.

“You’ve just got to be smart about what you’re doing,” he said. n

“It’s not a safe sport, but if

you love it you might as well

play.”senior Dane Byfield

ACL teArMCL teAr ConCussionshin spLintsTear of the anterior cruciate ligament in the knee connecting the femur to the tibia

Wide and thick band of tissue that goes down the inner knee, from femur to tibia, is damaged or torn.

SOURCE: ADULT HEALTH ADVISORSOURCE: AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ORTHOPEDIC SURGEONSSOURCE: CEDARS-SINAL SOURCE: U.S. LIBRARY OF MEDICINE

A traumatic head injury that disturbs brain functions.

Pain in the shin and lower leg caused by prolonged running, typically on hard surfaces.

Thanks toVia Christi’s west side ER

Back in the saddle

Short ride, Short wait

When Amanda Guthrie needed emergency care for internal bleeding,

the Garden Plain resident felt fortunate Via Christi Hospital on St. Teresa — home to west Wichita’s only ER in a hospital — wasn’t far.

An on-call specialist quickly responded, and within minutes she was undergoing life-saving surgery in a state-of-the-art operating suite.

Now, Amanda is back in the saddle of her busy life. “I’m still here for a reason, so I’m making the most of the second chance I’ve been given.”

Amanda Guthrie, patient

To hear Amanda’s story, scan or go to viachristi.org/fastER.

Via Christi Hospital14800 W. St. TeresaWichita, KS