It’s a Wrap! The El Estoque gift guide • elestoque.org
online
School Loop should be an open forum • Page 7
Former students return to coach athletic teams • Page 15
Seniors launch a company to create customized sweaters • Page 22
opinion
sports
entertainment
elestoque
YO UR MO M'S Sometimes it’s about more A FO B!? Offensive or not?
than just words • Page 11
Volume XXXX • Issue 4 • Monta Vista High School • Cupertino, CA
Buzzworthy
The man of the copy room, Buzz Delaney, triumphs through cancer and life
December 18, 2008
by Serena Lee
I
n Portable 3, surrounded by buzzing and whirring copy machines, is a survivor. He is a survivor of the Vietnam War era, lung cancer, open heart surgery, a heart attack, and most importantly, a survivor of life. Buzz Delaney, who provides printing services for the district, has been diagnosed with lung cancer in his left lung. This is the second time he has been diagnosed with lung cancer. In 2000, he had lung cancer in his right lung that simply just involved surgery. The current cancer requires chemotherapy and radiation. “For a few minutes, of course, you feel sorry for yourself and then it’s just, well, what do we have to do to get rid of it?” Delaney said, after learning about his diagnosis. see BUZZ on page 3
Jeremy Lee and Daniel Stenzel | El Estoque Photo Illustration
Student strikes it rich with Internet profits
Changing minds
Passionate junior Hanson So devoted to entrepreneurship
Organization fights stereotypes
by Lauren Parcel
by Varshini Cherukupalli
J
unior Hanson So turned a spare $20 into over $50,000. He is no magician—he’s an entrepreneur. In the spring of his freshman year, So began the workings for his own business. His business runs on the premise of creating and buying Web sites, building them to make money, and then selling them. He started with $20 to buy his first Web site, and was able to sell it for $100, making a cool $80 in profit. After he earned that initial money, he used it to invest in other Web sites, starting the process all over again. The business
builds on itself. According to So, a lot of time and energy goes into building a successful Web site. “First, you need to find a good product or site. Then, you need to find a way to successfully market it and make money, and then, you must find a good buyer,” So said. “Marketing takes a lot of time.” So spends hours marketing his Web sites through sites such as Google, Myspace, Facebook, and Youtube. In addition, he hires web brokers and programmers to aid him in the process. Owning his own business is no
small ordeal for So. He spends around 2-3 hours a day working on his Web sites. Depending on the difficulty, he works for varying amounts of time on any given site. “After you put in the initial work, [the Web site] will grow by itself,” So said. Other than the effort he puts into actual work on the sites, So spends hours more creating business plans, networking, and making goals. So has already filled three notebooks full of notes and ideas to improve his business.
“Castilleja was an amazing place, but it wasn’t my ‘real world,’” Gunderson said. Gunderson’s children attended Lynbrook High School, and she felt more connected to this area. So, when she was offered a position here, she was excited to finally bring together the work she loved with the area she loved. Over the last eight years, Gunderson hasn’t noted any major changes in her job, other than an entirely new office staff. Gunderson loves it here, and believes that the school has become better and better with each year. see GUNDERSON on page 4
see CHANGE on page 4
see SO on page 6
‘Heart of MV’ leaves family Administrative assistant retires tomorrow by Lauren Parcel
A
Lauren Parcel | El Estoque
GUNDY Assistant to the Principal Sue Gunderson is retiring to travel the world with her husband.
candy dish: always stocked, always ready and waiting for a passerby. May it be an old friend or a fresh face, everyone is welcome at Sue Gunderson’s desk. In August of 2000, Gunderson stepped off an all-night flight from Hawaii, and into her new job as Assistant to the Principal here at MVHS. In the preceding eight years, Gunderson worked in a similar position at Castilleja High School in Palo Alto. While she loved the school, she was ready to try something new and didn’t enjoy the lengthy daily drive.
C
hange. It’s not only the main slogan of President-elect Barack Obama’s campaign, but also the name of a team that has arrived at MVHS. And this team is definitely following the mantra, “Yes we can!” Team Change is the name of a student group that will be forming to inspire social change and greater cooperation among students. A continuation of the Challenge Day experience, Team Change will be working to break down barriers and stereotypes between students. In addition, the team will be introducing peer counseling sessions as an option for students who seek help. At the first meeting on Nov. 19, Student Advocate Richard Prinz spoke for the group when he stated that he did not want Challenge Day to be a brief comeand-go experience. People came out of Challenge Day feeling very moved and motivated, and he wanted that feeling to carry on. Therefore, in order to include people that did not attend Challenge Day, Team Change will encompass anybody who desires to make a difference. Senior Harsha Gorti, a member of Team Change, wants it to be as member-based as possible so that it will appeal to more students. “We really want to see what the members think and find out what they want to do so we can be inclusive,” Gorti said. The meetings will include activities held at Challenge Day, like small group sessions for people to open up and share their emotions. A main focus will be to prepare the students for peer counseling. This will make it easier for the students to relate to their own peers rather than to an adult, however trained that adult may be. At the Nov. 19 meeting, Prinz gave a handout that listed the main aspects of peer counseling as well as the statement, “Feelings come from beliefs. No one makes us feel the way we do.”