The Daily Egyptian - November 29, 2023

THE

Daily Egyptian SERVING THE SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY SINCE 1916.

DAILYEGYPTIAN.COM

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2023

VOL. 107, ISSUE 14

Dawgs Dominate See page 3

Saluki football celebrate their win as they shut out Nicholls to advance to round two of FCS playoffs Nov. 25, 2023 at Saluki Stadium in Carbondale, Illinois. Lylee Gibbs | @lyleegibbsphoto

Set up “to fail:” Air traffic control shortage casts clouds over SIU aviation program Sandy Edson-Bowers sandra.edson@siu.edu

Students in SIU’s aviation program help make Southern Illinois Airport in Murphysboro the third busiest in the state, but a recent shortage of air traffic controllers led to potentially dangerous conditions recently.

Two sources close to the situation said a newly hired controller who didn’t get enough training created the hazardous conditions. The Daily Egyptian is granting these sources anonymity, but their stories corroborate each other’s.

One source said, “So what happened was, there was a new tower controller who has recently…been signed off for solo operations that he could conduct without being supervised…he just lost the whole

picture. He was clearing the wrong airplanes, getting people mixed-up, sending people towards each other.”

The source went on to say, “It all kind of fell apart…he never seemed to acknowledge that he had lost the picture so, SIU made the decision to [say]… ‘you’re not going to be able to keep track of everybody so we’re just not gonna be in the pattern.’”

The anonymous source continues, “…flight operations continued.

What ceased was [students] stopped conducting pattern work, meaning touch and go’s, traffic patterns – the takeoffs and landing at the airport.

Meaning, people could come back and be full-stop, but they weren’t allowed to keep going and doing multiple laps. They could depart, AVIATION | 4

Southern Illinois University loses “a great aviator and friend” Joei Younker | @younker_joei

Abby Horton of Salem, Wisconsin, was a dean’s list student in the aviation program at Southern Illinois University and a bright light to anyone she encountered. She enjoyed having new adventures and the freedom of flying.

Horton died Nov. 15 at the age of 20, leaving her family and friends, the aviation program and many others feeling sorrowful.

“Abby was a vibrant and magnetic young woman who loved spending time with her friends, vacationing with her family, Country Thunder, boating, fishing in Canada, spending time with her cousins, grandma’s mashed potatoes and grafting,” her obituary reads.

Her passion for aviation will be missed at Southern.

“Abby was such a joy to be around for her colleagues and friends in the school of aviation. She was a great aviator and friend and will be sorely missed by anyone who knew her,” Interim Director of Aviation, Michael Burgener said.

Services for Horton took place Nov. 25.

The Horton family has asked that in lieu of flowers, memorial donations in Abby’s honor can be made to the JED foundation or NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Health Illness.

If anyone needs mental health services, Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) is available to help students by calling 618-453-5371 and the National Crisis Hotline can be reached by texting 988.

Reporter Joei Younker can be reached at Jyounker@dailyegyptian.com.

Abby Horton

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Page 2 | News

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Pro-Palestine rally takes place in Carbondale

Bushrah Abughazaleh holds up a sign reading “stop killing innocents” on Main Street at a pro-Palestine rally

The statue honoring the first railroad coming through Carbondale is adorned with the Palestine flag and a keffiyeh inspired scarf during a pro-Palestine protest November 27, 2023 in Carbondale, Ill. Photo by Mo Collar | @m0.alexander

A group of protesters call for a ceasefire on Main Street at a pro-Palestine protest.

A group of protesters call for a ceasefire on Main Street.

Sports | Page 3

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Dawgs dominate in first playoff game at Saluki Stadium

Brandyn Wilcoxen @Brandynwilcoxen

If there were any doubts that Southern Illinois belonged in the FCS playoffs, they were silenced on Saturday.

The Salukis hosted their first playoff game since 2009, and first in the history of Saluki Stadium, and treated their fans to a 35-0 beatdown of the Nicholls Colonels of the Southland Conference.

Southern will travel to play the No. 4 Idaho Vandals (8-3) next week. Kickoff is scheduled for 9 p.m. on Dec. 2, and the game will be broadcast on ESPN2.

“When I got this job, you have a vision of playing a lot of playoff games in that place,” head coach Nick Hill said. “I was here whenever that was just a vision of building a new football stadium. I played in the old one. It’s been a goal of ours as the program to play one.”

Saturday marked the first shutout

by Southern Illinois in its postseason history, and the second time the Salukis have accomplished that feat this season.

The Saluki defense shined just as it has all year. It racked up three turnovers, including interceptions from D.J. Johnson and Brandon Combs. The team also prevented Nicholls from scoring on two red zone trips, with fourth-down stops on both drives.

“The defense, I can’t say enough

Ubayd Steed (7) approaches Pat McQuaide (7) of Nicholls as he is tripped up Nov. 25, 2023 at Saluki Stadium in Carbondale, Illinois. Lylee Gibbs | @lyleegibbsphoto

about everyone,” Hill said. “We could go down, from top to bottom, coach [defensive coordinator Antonio] James has those guys ready to play along with the other staff.”

Nicholls was held to under 100 rushing yards, and its starting quarterback threw for just 127 passing yards.

On the other side, Southern committed just two penalties throughout the entire game, showing poise despite the playoff environment.

“We knew that it was gonna get a little bit chippy, just some of the things that we’d seen on film…” Hill said. “Staying away from that, having two penalties in the game, I felt like it was really a team win.”

Quarterback Nic Baker took sole possession of the all-time school record for passing touchdowns with a firstquarter pass to Aidan Quinn. It was the first of two touchdowns Baker tallied on the day in his third career playoff game.

“It hadn’t set in yet, but it’s something to look back on and be proud of,” Baker said. “It’s super cool having the first playoff

and financial aid, but the majority of the time living expenses, such as food, are not covered.

College students work day in and day out to improve their lives by working towards a college degree. A high percentage of these students are working to provide for themselves and to afford their schooling. The overwhelming stress of where their next meal is coming from should be the least of a student’s worries.

Many minority, first generation and housing-insecure college students are more at risk of being food insecure due to lack of financial resources.

Even students with secure housing are at risk of food insecurity. Meal plans at many universities can be quite pricey. Here at SIU, dining plans for on-campus dormitories and apartments range anywhere from $2,000-$5,000 for a full academic year adding a large financial burden on students.

Food insecurity can have nonfinancial impacts on students as well.

University students need to perform well academically in order to pass their courses, and energy is needed to do so.

When students go hungry, their ability to perform well in class decreases.

Food insecurity can affect the social and emotional health of students, this can later cause other issues such as poor mental and physical health.

The Saluki Food Pantry’s goal is to

develop and sustain a food pantry on the SIU campus to serve food insecure students. The food pantry will provide an opportunity for SIU students to serve other students and engage in conversations and solutions around food insecurity.

“We care deeply about SIU students experiencing hunger and hold them in the center of all we do,” the pantry said.

Not only does the pantry supply food for students, it also provides means for students to gain skills such as grocery shopping, cooking, budgeting, gardening and nutrition, as well as making students aware of the additional resources available to them on campus and in the Carbondale community.

The pantry is set on ending food insecurity here at SIU. In order to use the Saluki Food Pantry, students must complete a short survey. The information that the student must provide on the survey will only be seen by the staff responsible for the food pantry, and will be used for internal reporting.

The pantry is available to any current student with a valid SIU ID and there is no fee when utilizing the food pantry, all items are free to students.

In a visit to the Saluki Food Pantry, students are given enough food for each family member residing in their household to eat

for approximately three days.

“We believe that no student should be hungry,” the pantry said.

The Saluki Food Pantry opened in August 2016, and since then it has served more than 2,500 students and their families.

Donations can be brought to the Saluki Food Pantry on the lower level of the Student Center during operating hours. After hours, donations can be taken to the Student Center Administration Office on the second floor of the SIU Student Center.

Students can also volunteer to work in the Saluki Food Pantry, assisting

game in this stadium and getting it done.”

Ro Elliott got into the end zone twice and racked up 111 yards on Saturday, with the majority coming on a 60yard breakaway touchdown to start the second half.

“Romier, when healthy, he’s really good,” Hill said. “And he’s played a lot of football for us, and so it was fun to see him get loose and make a big impact on the game.”

The Salukis will face a tough test next week against Idaho, which finished second in the Big Sky Conference. The Big Sky is generally considered to be near the Valley in terms of competitiveness on the national level.

“How you recruit, how you build your team to win this conference is really, you’ve got to build a team that’s good enough to win the National Championship, or you’re not gonna have any success in this league,” Hill said.

Idaho’s three losses include a close finish against No. 2 Montana and a twoscore loss to California of the Pac-12.

The Vandals also suffered an upset on Nov. 11 against Weber State.

Sports editor Brandyn Wilcoxen can be reached at bwilcoxen@dailyegyptian.com or on X at @BrandynWilcoxen.

Saluki Food Pantry helps battle food insecurity during the holidays

Joei Younker | @younker_joei

Many people associate this time of year with food. Large family gatherings and big meals with an array of main courses, sides and desserts make up many people’s holiday season.

Not enough awareness is brought to food insecurity among college students this time of year. A national survey done by the Urban Institute in 2020 showed that nearly 23% of undergraduate students were food insecure.

The Saluki Food Pantry engages the SIU campus community to help increase awareness of food and hunger issues to engage more students and campus leaders.

The pantry is an organization on campus that works to help decrease those insecurities for students during the holidays and all other times of the year.

There are many reasons students tend to suffer from food insecurities more than others.

“With rising fees, textbook cost and living expenses, it has become increasingly difficult for students to juggle the cost of living with the cost of obtaining a university degree, and thus many students are fighting themselves, choosing between essentials such as food and the costs of college,” the pantry said.

Tuition and other university expenses can be covered by scholarships

students with completing the survey and inventorying donations.

Creating a food secure campus is something the Saluki Food Pantry strives to do each and everyday, especially during the hard times of the holiday season. For more information about the Saluki Food Pantry, such as current operating hours, visit https://studentcenter. siu.edu/services/saluki-food-pantry. php Reporter Joei Younker can be reached at jyounker@dailyegyptian.com

Cohen Poe cpoe@dailyegyptian.com

Page 4 | News

AVIATION

CONTINUED FROM 1

they could come back in, but no staying in the pattern.”

When asked by the Daily Egyptian if they knew what happened, the anonymous source said: “Yes. He was given four days to get used to the area and then to sign off to solo.

The company who runs the towers in this area, is a contract tower, it’s not an FAA tower. Yeah, they set him up to fail.”

An airport pattern is similar to a racetrack in the sky, with four straightaways and four turns.

The runway sits on one of these straightaways. A touch and go is when a plane comes in and lands on the runway for practice. The plane then takes off again, circles the pattern then flies around the pattern to land again.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the government agency that develops and regulates a system of air traffic control. The FAA accomplishes this by hiring air traffic controllers who manage the flow of aircraft in and out of the airspace of an airport. From the airport tower, the controllers can see the airplanes and give directions or

Wednesday, November 29, 2023 clearances to fly into a specific area of the airport or to send them out of the airspace.

In April of this year, the FAA appointed a panel of outside experts to study problems in airline safety after the U.S. experienced a series of close calls at airports across the country. The group of experts, named the National Airspace System Review Team, issued a 52-page report this month, calling for action by the FAA to make improvements in aging technology and to take action regarding a current national shortage of air traffic controllers, among other recommendations.

“For the record, there is an air traffic controller shortage across the nation… same at [Southern Illinois Airport], there’s supposed to be seven controllers but right now, there’s only three,” the second source told Daily Egyptian.

“The company [Midwest Air Traffic Control Services, Inc.] has brought a rapid response controller in to help with that and then they bring some controllers over from Marion to help when they can.”

The first anonymous source said, “I think part of the issue is, it’s [a] ‘contract tower’, so Midwest can’t get anyone to come to our tower. There’s a lot of

Air traffic control tower located at the Southern Illinois airport in Murphysboro, Illlinois.

Lylee Gibbs | @lyleegibbsphoto

operations, we’re the third busiest in the state. And they can make the same amount of money at a different tower where they’re not having to deal with all the stress. Why would they want to come here?”

The second source said, “So, [Southern Illinois Airport] is kind of unique because… the FAA owns the building, but they contract the controllers out through another agency.

And so it’s Midwest Air Traffic Control, they’re out of Kansas City… It’s a private company, so the FAA pays them to run these smaller airports, smaller towers, and staff it, and pay the controllers.”

SIU Aviation Safety Officer Michael Robertson told the Daily Egyptian in an interview from his home: “So when you get a new controller that’s not used to the traffic load, there’s an adjustment period that takes place for that controller. Just like a brand new student learning to fly, you know, might struggle with the radios and their orientation. A controller that’s not up to the speed of 130,000 operations a year is going to… have those training hiccups as they start from that perspective… when we run into traffic, we call them traffic pattern conflicts. Those types of things happen all the time. That doesn’t necessarily

mean that an accident almost occurred.

It just means that maybe there was some confusion.”

Robertson continues: “On that given day, it was one of those busy days that we’re pretty accustomed to that the controller might not be accustomed to as busy as it was and was making some situational errors, some mistakes… they go through a training kind of check out as well. So when they come here, they get certified and kind of rated for the tower before they’re released to kind of go on their own.”

Robertson said he understands that the controller “had a loss of situational awareness as to where people were.”

“The way I understood it was that some pilots took themselves out of the pattern until the controller could get a handle or a grasp on where people were, and then you know if you leave and when you come back, if it’s calmer, it’s better,” Robertson said. “The controllers do that for us all the time, so when it gets busy, if somebody’s confused, they’ll just say I need you to depart, say, to the northwest and call me when you’re five miles out or something like that. You know what I mean? So it’s just a kind of a standard way that if things are starting to

get messy, whether it’s from a student perspective or the controller perspective, that people will just take themselves out of the situation, so it doesn’t make it worse.”

Robertson also said he did receive a report from a pilot regarding the incident but that it did not fall under the criteria of needing to be reported to the FAA. SIU Aviation assistant instructor Elliott Benton said the right steps were taken to ensure students weren’t in harm’s way.

“If anyone feels that safety is ever in question, to take a step back for safety sake, to re-evaluate, is a good thing,” Benton said.

The Daily Egyptian reached out to the controllers in the tower for comment. This resulted in a phone call from a representative who would not give permission to use her name.

She stated she was from Midwest Air Traffic Control Services and said, “Well, they’re not going to speak to you.”

Sandy Edson-Bowers is a Graduate Student in Professional Media Studies and Media Managementand can be reach at andra.edson@siu.edu

Southern Illinois Department of Aviation Technologies sign at the Southern Illinois airport. Lylee Gibbs | @lyleegibbsphoto

News | Page 5

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Alumna Winifred Haun returns to SIU alongside esteemed dance company Carly gist | cgist@dailyegyptian.com

Winifred Haun is a renowned choreographer, dancer, instructor and artistic director. But before she was an award-winning artist, she was a Saluki.

“I have been interested in making dances since I was about six…I’ve literally been doing it from the beginning,” Haun said. “...And a typical path for a dancer is like, you’re a dancer, and you want to get a job in a company, and you work for that company…

My path to doing that, it kind of mostly started here at SIU.” Haun was invited to return to Southern Illinois University as the Fall 2023 Glassman Distinguished Speaker. The endowment was brought to the University Honors Program by alumni Michael and Nancy Glassman.

“This offers us the opportunity to bring artists, scholars, scientists, makers [and] creators to our universe,” Honors Director Jyotsna Kapur said. “Our ethos is learn, lead, serve. It is about comprehensive thinking. We want our students to think broadly across disciplines…So we want students to be exposed to the arts and the humanities and the sciences.”

Kapur said that professor Darryl Clark suggested Haun be this year’s speaker. Clark is a professor from the School of Theatre and Dance and teaches the “Maternal in Movement” honors course.

“It’s really exciting to come back [to SIU] for a lot of reasons, because I used to watch Pilobolus and Hubbard Street and all these famous dance companies in this very theater,” Haun said after a company warmup at Shryock Auditorium on Nov. 16. “And so it’s really exciting to get to bring my professional dance company back here, and we wouldn’t be here without Darryl. Thank you, Darryl.”

As part of the Michael and Nancy Glassman Distinguished Lecture, Haun’s company, Winifred Haun and Dancers, completed a oneweek artist-in-residence program at SIU. The residency kicked off on Nov. 12 with an open audition for SIU students and community members, and concluded on Nov. 17 with a public showcase.

“It was really fun,” Haun said in regards to blending the two different groups of dancers together. She said it was hard to recruit SIU dancers since the department is so small, but several musical theater majors auditioned, which allowed the team to “[create] things that worked with their strengths.”

“I always say to choreograph for whoever’s in the room…And there was just a really nice connection between the dancers and myself,” she said.

Clark added, “There was a lot of

joy in the room on the stage when they were doing the work.”

SIU freshman Nicholas Steinberger said working with one another was a great experience.

“They understand that you’re not as skilled as them so they help you with everything you need,” he said.

Assistant choreographer Crystal Gurrola agreed it was “a lot of fun.”

“At our performance, [the] opening piece showcases that group of people who just wanted to come in and participate,” she said. “And they were super open and willing to be creative.”

For first-year student Ty Lunn, this opportunity allowed her to perform again after six months.

“It was a bit challenging but I was able to overcome it by being confident in my abilities and in the choreography,” she wrote.

Lunn also said this experience gave her a “new dance perspective.”

“This experience has opened my eyes to how fun dance is,” she said.

“It definitely makes me consider doing dance as a profession.”

The residency wasn’t just an opportunity for local dancers to learn and grow, however; it was also a chance for Haun’s company members to experience new endeavors. Throughout the week, the company hosted several workshops. Gurrola was given the opportunity to teach a few of these.

“On Wednesday, I taught a contemporary dance class, and then earlier today [Thursday], I taught a ballet class,” she said. “I really enjoyed that experience and giving the students a different perspective. I threw out some very challenging classes, but it was fun to get them out of their comfort zones and just try stuff.”

Gurrola also said that working on a college campus was inspiring, and she hopes to work with other schools in the future and possibly return to SIU. “There’s just such an energy of being on a college campus where everyone kind of has the same common goal of achieving something great for their future, and you can just feel that being here,” she said.

Antrell Brown, an apprentice for the company, said the opportunity allowed him to enhance his ability to adapt to change.

“One thing I can really take away from this is just being open to exploring all the different possibilities that other spaces can bring; other people, other energies,” he said.

The residency was Brown’s first time participating in a show. He said it allowed him to familiarize himself more with his fellow dancers.

“Because I am an apprentice, I don’t get many opportunities to perform,” he said. “It’s my first time

The Winfred Hans Dancers prepare to bow after a performance Nov. 17, 2023 at Shryock Auditorium in Carbondale, Illinois. Simeon Hardley | @Simshardphotography

actually traveling and performing with the company. So getting to know everyone a little bit closer, a little bit more intimate, it’s been a very nice experience.”

Haun’s Chicago-based company has been around since the early 1990s. But when she began her studies at SIU in 1981, she contemplated giving up dance.

“When I came to SIU, I thought I was quitting dance, and I was trying to look for something else to do,” she said. “And I thought, maybe a physical therapist or a psychologist, I mean, I had so many majors, it was ridiculous. But I got to study things like anthropology, Chinese, philosophy and history, and for a while I was going to be a history major, because I loved it.

And so SIU gave me that to begin with.”

She credits the opportunities the school provided her with for helping her find her way.

“There was a really awesome dance instructor, Linda Kostelic, who taught dance composition, and that really helped out a lot,” she said. “And there were lots of other smaller things, but these are the ones that I think really impacted my career: I studied advanced lighting design in the theater department, and also acting, and I took voice lessons. So I got to do a lot of things that I think helped inform what I’m doing now, like I just used my advanced lighting design skills to set cues for the show. And a lot of choreographers, I think, could use that.”

Haun advises students to explore their interests and discover their passions before deciding on a career path.

“A lot of times when people try to put their careers together, they go, ‘If I do this, it will lead to that,

and it will lead to that, and then here’s the thing that I want to do.’

But life does not work like that. I wish it did, believe me,” she said.

“When you make decisions about what you’re going to do next, like your major, or whatever it is, you have to decide what you want to spend your time doing.”

She said the reason she never ended up going into physical therapy is because she realized she did not enjoy the steps it took to get there.

“My mom said to me, because I [didn’t like] the statistics and the biology and all of that…‘If you don’t like the path that you take to get to the goal, it’s not going to be worth it when you get there.’

And I think that’s really true,” she said.

Haun also wants to remind others of the countless options they have for their future. She hopes to leave students with this advice: “don’t worry too much about your decisions.”

“There is never one decision you make that’s going to make you or break you. That doesn’t exist,” she said. “Just make a decision based on the information you have in the moment and see what happens.”

“And nothing is permanent,” she added. “You can always change direction.”

Winifred Haun and Dancers has had an eventful year, she said, and still have several upcoming projects.

“We just started a new program called the Third Coast Contemporary Dance Program [for] dancers between the ages of 17 and 25. They come and take class with us, rehearse with us and they perform with us,” she said.

“So that started, we had our gala and then we came here.”

The company will be performing at Links Hall in Chicago on March 1-3 for a project Haun calls “First Draft.”

“It’s an opportunity for choreographers to create new work, especially for the showcase,” she said. “And then in May, we’re going to be at the Ruth Page Center [for the Arts]. And that’s Memorial Day weekend, I think. And then next fall, we’re going to be at the Studebaker Theatre in downtown Chicago.”

As for the School of Theatre and Dance, Clark said there are no events planned for this spring, but he is working with Rosanna Cauti, director of the SIU String and Youth Orchestras to bring students together for a “live music and dance concert” in spring 2025. Clark plans to revive a piece he choreographed for the American College Dance Festival this year and create a “dance on film.”

“Professor Cauti came to me with this piece for solo violin and said, ‘You have to dance this,’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah, I could.’ But I came up with an idea, and this idea is to do a dance on film,” he said. “I want to call it Phoenix, and I want it to be about a rising spirit. It’s going to be dedicated to Elijah McLean, who died in Aurora, Colorado, as a result of police violence. He was a violinist, so that’s a perfect tribute to him.”

The SIU Dance Company will also be hosting two showcases, one in December and one in April.

Clark said their first performance called “Snowfall” will take place the first week of December.

Staff reporter Carly Gist can be reached at cgist@dailyegyptian.com.

Page 6 |

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

| Page 7

Wednesday, November 29, 2023 Seairra Hughes (21) dribbles the ball as the Salukis face George Washington in the San Juan Shootout Nov. 25, 2023 at Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Sydney Prochaska (3) guards a Charlotte player in the San Juan Shootout tournament Nov. 23, 2023 at Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Salukis in San Juan Photos by Dominic Hoscher | @Domhoschermedia

Paige Clubb (2) goes to shoot the ball as the Salukis face George Washington Nov. 24, 2023 at Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Se’Quoia Allmond (40) dribbles the ball towards the basket as she is guarded by Imani Smith (12) of Charlotte Nov. 23, 2023 at Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Se’Quoia Allmond (40) looks towards the basket to shoot Nov. 25, 2023 at Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Layout by Peyton Cook | @_peytoncook_

The Salukis huddle together as they face West Virginia Nov. 25, 2023 at Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The Salukis beat Charlotte 55-22 on Thanksgiving Day, and George Washington 65-55 Nov. 24, but fell to West Virginia 73-55 during the tournament championship game Nov. 25, for a 2-1 tournament record. The Salukis’ next game will be Dec. 6 against Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville at home.

Laniah Randle (4) looks across the court as she dribbles the ball Nov. 23, 2023 at Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

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News | Page 9

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A turtle bathes in the sun on a log on a warm fall day Nov. 15, 2023 at the Campus Lake in Carbondale, Illinois.

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Wildlife Society helps campus turtles

Annalise Schmidt aschmidt@dailyegyptian.com

Turtles are a fan-favorite attraction at SIU and can be spotted all over Campus Lake, swimming and basking in the sun. However, with the regular presence of people along the bank, these turtles are most commonly found on logs in the center of the lake, often lacking the necessary space needed.

Members of the Student Chapter of the Wildlife Society on campus want to change this by building turtle islands to eventually place in the lake.

Taylor McKenna, current president of the Wildlife Society, said, “The turtles that call Campus Lake home have a limited space to sun without being disturbed by humans. These ectotherms need to bask in the sun in order to stay alive by regulating their internal body temperature. Adding more square footage of safe space for the turtles to sun themselves will create less stress of constantly fleeing from the day-to-day human activity around the lake.”

The goal of this project is to build two turtle islands to put in different spots in the lake.

“The ideal timeline for this project would be deploying them in the spring when we have reached a string of nice weather…If we deploy them in the spring, they would stay out all summer until mid-fall, where they would be stored for winter storage,” McKenna said.

The turtles become more active after winter. They will be able to explore these new islands and establish new routines.

Natalie Hawkins, who was involved in the building process of the turtle islands, said, “Constructing man-made turtle islands for the turtles on campus lake is important because there are so many turtles that live there, and they seem to only have a couple logs to rest on.”

By using common materials to create these islands, students in the Wildlife Society will have the opportunity to see turtles who are content and safe more frequently.

“I was surprised by how simple the turtle islands were to make and how little supplies were needed or could be recycled from other projects. My favorite part about the building process was

learning how to build something that would be helpful to the environment in our community,” Hawkins said.

Sarah Krieger, secretary of the Wildlife Society, said, “I was interested in learning what kinds of materials went into building a turtle island. It was actually really simple and required only a few materials, including a plastic tube [flexible plastic drain], water bottles and zip ties.”

To build one of these islands, they stuff the drain with recycled water bottles, wrap it with mesh, put artificial turf on top of it, and secure it all with zip ties. The water bottles help it float in the water, and they are secured with a rope and a cinderblock to keep it in place.

Krieger said her favorite part of building the turtle island was putting the astroturf on top, which gave the island a more natural look. This step adds to the authenticity, making it more likely that the campus turtles will actually utilize the islands.

“There could be an opportunity to build more islands in the future if the first two are successful. Any student who enjoys the outdoors and appreciates wildlife is welcome. Our members have a chance to hear from professionals in the field, participate in volunteer research and learn applicable skills that could be applied to future employment,” McKenna said.

The Wildlife Society has been an active RSO on campus for the past 11 years. The club strives to provide members with professional development and hands-on opportunities to learn and apply for future endeavors in the wildlife field.

As president of the Wildlife Society, McKenna has seen both what it is like to be a member and what it takes to organize activities like their current project.

She said, “I like being involved because the club brings people with similar interests together to prepare us for our future jobs. I have had the chance to be a part of opportunities and networking connections that I can’t get in the classroom. On top of that, our activities help contribute to conservation efforts in our local

community.”

The club also allows students who are new on campus to make connections, gain new skills and stay involved in campus activities while simultaneously helping wildlife in the community.

Hawkins said, “I am a freshman in the Wildlife Society, and I enjoy being involved in this organization because it allows me to meet new people on campus who have the same interests as me and get involved with my zoology major outside of the classroom.”

The Wildlife Society has also hosted events such as pumpkin carving, a drone workshop and a resume night throughout this past semester to engage students in campus life.

Krieger said, “I greatly enjoy being involved with this RSO because it is both educational and allows for handson experience, such as building turtle islands.”

Even for those not entering a wildlifebased career field, the club provides opportunities for students to explore their other interests and take part in community events.

Devin Tambling said, “I am just a general member of the organization, but I love being involved because the activities are so different from my normal day. I am a mechanical engineering major, so I enjoy learning about and helping animals in the area.”

The turtle island project is a great opportunity for members involved to help the animals right on campus. Being in the immediate area, it is important to realize the impact humans have on the environment and the animals who live there.

“Our goal as a club is to contribute to outreach about the natural world around us. By also building these islands, we hope to educate the public about turtles they might not have seen before due to them popping back underwater and the overall ecosystem contribution of turtles to the lake,” McKenna said.

For more information about upcoming meetings please contact siutws@siu.edu.

Staff Reporter Annalise Schmidt can be reached at aschmidt@dailyegyptian

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Page 10 | News

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Bill’s Story: Saluki football alum who lost legs hopes to walk at next Homecoming Howard Woodard hwoodard@dailyegyptian.com

On Nov. 21, Bill Story turned 72 years old. He played football for the Salukis from 1970-74 and later played professionally for the Kansas City Chiefs. He is also a diabetic, and both of his legs are amputated above the knee. He has dealt with countless injuries, including back issues and a ruptured Achilles. But he has not accepted a wheelchair and doesn’t plan on doing so.

“Well one, a wheelchair hurts my butt,” Story laughed. “…I just believed that if I stick with it, something will get better.”

One of Story’s teammates from Southern, Tom Laputka, said Story’s reaction to these things is not surprising.

“It’s not going to get him down... here’s a guy that’s in his 70s, lost both his legs above the knee and he said, ‘Tom, if I ever sat down in one of those fancy wheelchairs, I’d probably never get up, but I’m not going to do that,’” Laputka said.

Story doesn’t have plans of running a marathon or taking a stroll around Campus Lake, but he does want to walk at SIU’s 2024 Homecoming game with the aid of his prosthetic legs. Laputka said he would go to the extremes to watch that moment.

“I would love to see him do that.

I’d hitchhike out there just to see it,” he said.

Story is from Melrose, Tennessee, and was a part of a group of guys from the Memphis area who were recruited to the Salukis during that period.

Another teammate of his, Jerry Hardaway, is also from the region and is the same age. When he heard about what was occurring in Story’s life, it gave him an opportunity to look in the mirror.

“Total shock. Saying, ‘this can’t be happening to my brother…all right, I better make sure that my blood pressure is stable, make sure that my sugar level is stable, make sure that now I start trying to eat and stay healthy, you know to counter that stuff,’” Hardaway said. “If it could happen to him, what’s it to keep it from happening to me?”

Even though it happened to Story, his desire to keep pushing forward is notable. Another one of his Saluki teammates, Bob Thomure, notices Story’s impact from afar.

“It’d be simple to say, ‘I’ve had enough’,” Thomure said.

Story was an offensive tackle and was on the practice squad with the Chiefs before logging official service with them in 1975 and later venturing into Canada with the Edmonton Eskimos. After getting into teaching momentarily, he went on to work in the restaurant business for 37 years.

In August 2005, Story went under the knife for a ruptured Achilles. But the surgery was botched, and the Achilles area became infected. The infection spread throughout his body, and he was later diagnosed with a

staph infection in his back.

It led to back pain so severe that it would take Story an hour and a half just to get out of bed. Around 2008, he got a procedure to amputate his right leg after he struggled to be upright.

“I was concerned about what was going on because I couldn’t stand up straight when the spinal cord and the nerve damage got so bad, I started to collapse,” Story said.

He was on crutches before needing to get his right leg amputated again.

Initially, the plan was to take off an inch off the limb every so often, but Story decided to simply get an abovethe-knee procedure in 2021. The next year, the same was done to his left leg.

As difficult as these health problems were to deal with, Story continued to try to overcome them.

“My whole thing was regardless of what happened, I was going to do something,” Story said. “One, get through it and two, make it better.”

Story said he asked a physical therapist if he would make it out of the rehab center after losing his second leg. She told him no; it would be too much of a challenge. But he disregarded it, and after two and a half years in rehab, Story made it out of the center this past September.

“My whole thing was, that’s not gonna be the case, I had to get out,” Story said.

Walking on prosthetics was a complete learning process for him and Story compared it to walking on steps or having your feet on two different swinging ladders. It also adds preparation time for simple tasks that most people don’t think twice about.

“You get ready to get up to the kitchen or the bathroom, you guys get up and go,” Story said. “I got to make sure I got the computers turned on the prosthetic, the wheels are locked, the walker I’m going to pull up on is locked, and the wheels on the wheelchair are turned backward…”

It is a constant balancing act and that makes life more challenging, but Story handles it with grace and positivity.

Hardaway said, “It didn’t stop him.

He said, ‘Okay, this is not a setback, this is another door. This is not a door that’s closed, here’s another door that’s open. It wasn’t a thing of woe is thou. I’ll pass this too, you know.”

When Story played at SIU, he was regarded as a leader for the team.

Different issues arose at the time, such as coach Richard Towers not wanting Black players to have mustaches or White players to have sideburns, as well as the ongoing Vietnam War, but Story was always in the middle of bringing the team together.

“Story was considered our spokesman… He was our sounding board that Coach Towers would call in to say, alright what are them guys out there thinking?” Hardaway said.

No matter what the situation was, Story simply wanted to bring people

Photo provided by Bill Story

together in those times of distress.

“There was so much stuff going on, you just tried to hold everybody together,” Story said.

He has held himself together quite well over the years, but Story isn’t persevering solely on his own personal strength and will, he trusts in his faith, and it has been a major contributor for him to keep going.

He has been a member of a church in the Memphis area for almost 25 years.

“This church made me a better person, I’ve been to churches…and if nothing changes, you just wasted your time. So I finally got somewhere where it caused me to make some changes,” Story said.

Along with having a competitive nature and drive that a lot of people don’t have, Thomure said he can see where Story’s belief drives him as well.

“He’s a real strong Christian, real strong. He’s a man of faith and he believes in that, and I think that helps him,” he said.

When Laputka recently visited Story at an assisted living facility, Story went down to the main lobby where there was tile flooring. The apartments and hallways on higher

floors are carpeted which makes walking on prosthetics even more difficult. But when the two went down to do their walking routine, they captured a crowd of onlookers.

“You should have seen the audience.

People were paying attention, they were moving over and sitting down, watching the whole thing take place, and for all intents and purposes, you know, inspired by that,” Laputka said.

“And that was the key, is that Billy is a sort of an exuding inspiration to those around him.”

Story has lived in Gainesville, Florida, for the past several years and rehabbed at Palm Green Rehabilitation Center. During rehab, Director Lynn Stuart was a huge contributor to Story improving with his prosthetics. He then moved to the Holiday Atrium Retirement Center where general manager Marissa Vazquez was to aid Story and continue his road of recovery.

These women have given Story everything necessary to improve while supporting and encouraging him through rehab.

“Both of these ladies are and have been my blood and lifeline throughout this long journey,” Story

said. “...I’m paying tribute to people who furthered my life.”

Story has two sons, three granddaughters and four grandsons, and says it would mean a lot for them to see him walk at an SIU Homecoming game. But Story’s everlasting push to keep moving forward would mean more for others even beyond his immediate family.

“Everything that they would throw at me, I was determined to do it or make it better, and that’s been my whole attitude through it all,” Story said.

Hardaway referenced the ending moments of Dr. Martin Luther King’s ‘What Is Your Life’s Blueprint’ speech where King quoted Langston Hughes. ‘If you can’t fly, run. If you can’t run, walk, if you can’t walk, crawl but by all means, keep moving.’

Hardaway said this encapsulates Story’s determination.

“That’s gonna be telling you about Bill Story. He’s a fighter, man,” he said.

Sports Reporter Howard Woodard can be reached at hwoodard@dailyegyptian.com

Sports | Page 11

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Racing ahead: SIU track and field prepares to open season in Saluki Fast Start meet Ryan Grieser rgrieser@dailyegyptian.com

The SIU track and field teams will open their season in the Saluki Fast Start meet on Dec. 2. A lot of work has had to be done to get to be ready to get off to a fast start though.

While the Salukis regularly hosted a meet at the beginning of December pre-COVID, there hasn’t been one with other teams since COVID happened.

Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Richard Jones is happy to have an “early bird” meet once again.

“It’s good to just have a small group of teams, it’s good to be able to transition out of the intersquad meet back to a meet where we can have our fans and the student population come forward,” Jones said.

The meet also functions as something of a reward for the athletes for working as hard as they did during the fall.

Jones said, “We’ve been working ever since the day after Labor Day, and this is our first real test, so it’s good to have that in place.”

It will also be the first test for over 20 new athletes who are entering their first season as Salukis.

“The staff wound up recruiting a lot of good athletes to come in and fill in the gaps from some of our graduating seniors, and just really put their mark on the caliber of athletes they want to coach,” Jones said. “I’m excited to see what this looks like.”

It isn’t just newcomers Jones is excited about; there are several standout athletes returning from last year, including sophomore sprinter Xavier Preston and senior sprinter Iaunia Pointer.

Jones thinks that Pointer, an All-MVC performer, multiple time MVC Track Athlete of the Week and regular podium finisher, is especially focused entering this season.

Jones said, “You just get that senior focus. This is the last hurrah, and she’s ready to really give it her all, so she’s been focused on that.

Pointer agrees, and is working to improve on even the smallest things.

“I’m more focused on… working on some of my disadvantages, like when it comes to blocks or form or anything like that, and just improving marks,” Pointer said.

Senior distance runner Ethan Senti is also looking forward to getting his senior track season started.

“We have a couple of seniors who might be graduating, and I’m one of them. It’s kind of our last chance with this group to make that push,” Senti said.

Senti had an especially decorated cross country season. He was named Prairie Farms Athlete of the Week by SIU, was recognized for the second straight year as the MVC Cross Country ScholarAthlete of the Year, won the Elite 17 award (given to Missouri Valley athletes who have the highest GPA competing at finals for their respective sports) and won the 8k race at the MVC Championships.

Senti and the distance runners are ready to do their part in taking SIU back to the top of the conference.

“We haven’t been at the top of the conference the last couple of years, and so we really just want to finish as high as this year, so we’re going to do everything we can as the distance team to make that happen,” Senti said.

Pointer specifically mentioned doing well at the Penn Relays as a goal for the team this year.

“Last year for the college section, we won it and we won The Big Wheel, making that a tradition for ourselves,” Pointer said.

Pointer didn’t forget about the MVC portion of the schedule, either.

“We want to rank, we want a championship. I

Yarauseth Zavala | yzavala@dailyegyptian.com

feel like we deserve that, and we’re working hard to accomplish that,” Pointer said.

While Jones certainly carries high expectations for the athletes in house, he does acknowledge that while SIU can still be a threat in the Valley, they may be a year away from winning the conference and being a force.

“I like to see the development of these young men and women into not just being regular college student-athletes, but great college studentathletes,” Jones said. “I still think there’s another year or two of development, and then once we really get that going, I think we become a little bit more unstoppable.”

Part of this development is a change in mindset that Jones has seen among the team, saying they’re “just approaching practice with a better attitude and with more intent to be good.”

“That mindset, that behavior is contagious. It’s been contagious with the sprinters and the throwers and the jumpers as well. We’re all kind of encouraging each other as we’re working out,” Jones said.

Pointer thinks that this attitude is a strong suit of the team and that it pushes athletes.

“When you have a team that comes just as hard behind you as you come for yourself, it really does help,” Pointer said.

According to Pointer, a big part of a team having your back is the bonds forged with teammates.

“The main thing is team bonding or getting to know them personally so that it’s better for us, on the track as well as outside the track,” Pointer said.

Tight relationships among the team is another factor that Pointer feels is important, especially when it comes to setting records.

“So far, there’s been good chemistry. We’re all

striving for one thing… creating new traditions for ourselves, breaking records and stuff like that.

I’m really excited to see what this year brings for us,” Pointer said.

Creating traditions and breaking records is often a product of dedication from athletes, something Jones wants people to take note of.

“We want to make sure that these young men and women are being recognized for their hard work and dedication as student athletes here at SIU. This program continues to be one of the top level programs around and in the school… we want to continue to do our part to be just as successful as the other programs,” Jones said.

Sports reporter Ryan Grieser can be reached at rgrieser@dailyegyptian.com.

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Wednesday, November 29, 2023