MONDAY
DAILY EGYPTIAN SEPTEMBER 16, 2013
DAILYEGYPTIAN.COM
SINCE 1916
VOLUME 99, ISSUE 18
Graduate recounts Blue Angels experience ELIZABETH ZINCHUK Daily Egyptian Fully dressed in blue, 2003 SIU graduate and U.S. Navy Lt. Ryan Chamberlain, landed his blue fighter jet and greeted the crowds at the Transportation Education Center Friday to speak to students about his experience as a Blue Angel. Chamberlain is serving on a two-to threeyear tour with the Blue Angels, a flightdemonstration squadron that represents the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. The nation’s second-oldest flying team, the Blue Angels, travel to about 32 to 33 cities every year to perform demonstrations to millions of spectators, Chamberlain said. Previously Chamberlain worked with Trans State Airlines for two years, joined the Navy in 2006 and was assigned to a flight squadron in October, 2009. This is his first year with the Blue Angels, he said. “It is special to me because I got to serve with the finest men and women with the Navy Marine Corps operationally,” he said. “Now the job I get, I still get to serve with them, but now I get to tell our story to a lot of people.” Chamberlain said his education at SIU helped him get to where he is at now, but specifically because he utilized what the university had to offer him. “Southern Illinois University allows you endless amounts of possibilities with the faculty and staff, but you have to take advantage of those opportunities, and if you are just going to go through life seeing what people can do for you then you won’t probably go far,” Chamberlain said. “You reap what you sow.” Chamberlain said through his new position in the Navy, he can represent the service by relating his experience to the students. “When you show up somewhere with a blue flight suit, people are inclined to listen to you more,” Chamberlain said. “It is not they’re listening to me, but they’re listening to the stories about the people I have served with.” Chamberlain said every person he has
TIFFANY BLANCHETTE | DAILY EGYPTIAN
Navy Lt. Ryan Chamberlain closes the cockpit hatch of a Blue Angel F-18 Hornet Friday after landing at the Southern Illinois Airport to speak with aviation students. Chamberlain, a 2003 SIU alumnus, was chosen in September 2012 to be part of the Blue Angels flight demonstration team after joining the Navy in April 2006. Chamberlain said without his education from SIU, he would not be where he is today. “The opportunity to be a part of the Blue Angels, wear the blue flight suit, fly blue and gold jets and represent the pilots that are flying the gray aircraft is extremely exciting and humbling,” Chamberlain said. “I am very proud to serve.”
worked with has a different story than his. He said he tries to tell those stories to people who are uninformed about the Navy. “When you go somewhere with no Navy presence, you are now spreading the word about what the Navy is doing,” Chamberlain said. “Most people don’t know what an aircraft carrier is or that the Navy has airplanes.”
David Newmyer, chair of the aviation management and flight program, said it is exciting to see Chamberlain come back to campus. “To me, he is Ryan, former student, and it is just wonderful to have him back, and he is a role model for the students,” Newmyer said. Newmyer said many students have military
orders, and to have Chamberlain come and tell them firsthand what to expect is a great reward for the students. More than half of the Blue Angels participants graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy, so for an SIU graduate to be on that list is rewarding, he said. Please see ANGELS | 4
Murphysboro Apple Festival sticks to core values KAYLI PLOTNER Daily Egyptian In an economy where every dollar earned is valuable, the Murphysboro Apple Festival remains familyfriendly by sticking to its original alcohol-free policies. The four-day festival begins the second Wednesday after Labor Day and is host to events such as parades, gospel concerts, a carnival, apple pie contests, a pageant and more. With 62 years of operation, the festival remains a constant staple for Murphysboro, drawing an average of 45,000 attendees each year. Festival Chairman Shawn Stearns said both the 8,000-person city of Murphysboro and the festival board members are proud of the no-alcohol policy because of the atmosphere it creates. He said the policy has been in place as long as he can remember. “It’s not about the money; it’s
about the families,” he said. “Could we make more money if we sold alcohol? Yes. But that’s not what we’re about. We’re about supporting the community that we live in.” Michael Laughland, a detective with the Murphysboro Police Department, has patrolled the festival for 18 years and said the alcohol-free policy plays an important role in his job. “It plays a big part in keeping things peaceful,” he said. “A lot of times when you have alcohol, you have drugs, you have problems, and that’s not what they want here.” The festival is set up in the heart of Murphysboro by blocking off areas of downtown streets in order to house the midway of carnival rides and food vendors. “They like to keep it downtown by all the local businesses,” Laughland said. “It has a huge impact on the local economy.” Stearns said supporting the local
economy is a source of pride for the festival, and was the foundation of the event from the very beginning. “This was actually started by a group of small-business owners,” he said. “When you look around, we have an incredible amount of orchards in this area, and back when this started, the apple orchards were a big part of the local economy, such as how our wine trails are now.” Stearns said local involvement is key to the festival’s success, from the apples, to the volunteers, even down to the theme — “Planting Seeds for Tomorrow” — that was chosen using ideas submitted from area schools. “Our youth take part in shaping the whole festival,” he said. “The floats are designed around it, our fliers are designed around it and even our T-shirts. This festival is important to our children.” Please see FESTIVAL | 4
SARAH GARDNER | DAILY EGYPTIAN
Festival-goers fill streets lined with vendors Saturday during the final evening of the Murphysboro Apple Festival. The 62nd-annual festival took place Wednesday through Saturday promoting the theme, “Planting Seeds for Tomorrow.” Festival Chairman Shawn Stearns said not allowing alcohol at the festival is instrumental in creating a safe and family-friendly environment.