LHS Newspaper September Edition

THE BELL

Volume 88, Issue 4

November 22, 2011

Liberty High School

NEWS

Seniors Jared Benson, Jake Glasford and Jake Kiesgen of Melissa Jones’ advisory discuss college roommates.

3

NEWS

Students in Spanish IIII work together to cook up a sugary tribute to The Day of the Dead Holiday.

4

SPORTS

Wrestlers practice their moves in the conditioning portion of their off-season work-outs.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT: Glinda and Dorothy, with Toto in hand,

see page 14

23

ON THE COVER Playing Glinda, senior Libby Hill floats over the yellow brick road to talk with Dorothy, played by junior Lauren Pouliot, in The Wizard of Oz, presented by the drama department Nov. 18, 19 and 20. photo by Mackenzie Spencer

THE BELL STAFF Editor In Chief Ashley McGee Managing /Opinion Editor Amanda Fisher Features Editor Chris Mohr Sports Editor Cody Clawson News Editor Annie Ruckman Copy Editor Haley Sheriff Ads Manager Shelby Curtis Online News Manager MacKenzie Sackett Website Technical Support Cody Kesler Adviser Lori Oyler Reporters: Mat George Jacob Boese Kayt Carpenter Ben DeHart Madison Denton Kayla Hammer Nathan Hunt

Michaela Lamb Molly Meeks Katlyn Smelcer Diana Timmermans Samantha Turley

Photography Staff: Rachel Bower Lucas Carrel Emily Houck Breann Koch Samantha Novak Clarissa Parker

Lauren Pouliot Kelley Rowe Kyle Rutliff Mackenzie Spencer

OUR MISSION Our mission for the 2011-2012 school year is to bring together a variety of people and ideas to produce one collective body composed of articles, photographs and commercial messages. In this manner, we strive to provide a reliable, first-hand news sources that not only represents the Liberty High School community, but is created for them, by them, and about them. The Bell is a public forum for student expression.

CONTACT US 200 Blue Jay Drive Liberty, MO 64068 thebell@liberty.k12.mo.us (816) 736-5353

Erin Martin, Morgan Hayter, Alix Messer, Zac Wilburn, Paul Spring, and Cody Kesler gather around a fire to warm themselves for a night spent sleeping outside. photo courtesy of Jill Hertzog

GAINING A NEW PERSPECTIVE

by Nathan Hunt On November 14, teens learned what it was like being homeless for a night.

Picture yourself and some friends huddled around a garbage bin fire. It is a cold, snowy night in the dark, trash-filled alleyway, gunshots ring out in the distance.

Not many kids take the time to think about what it would be like to be a homeless teen in need. However, believe it or not, there are hundreds of teens that are homeless in the Metro area. Serteens, a community service club at LHS, sponsors One Homeless Night, an event for Liberty students to experience what it would be like to be a homeless teen. They do this once a year in November, sleeping in cardboard boxes on the football field.

“I could take away the experience of actually being a homeless person, and how horrible it is to actually be out in the cold like that and having no food because I eat all the time,” senior Diana Lalata said. Last year during the One Homeless Night, the weather was even more gruesome, with snowfall throughout the night. It helped Liberty students see just how the weather treats homeless kids during winter.

“This is my first time doing it, I thought about it last year but I chickened out because it was snowing,” said Lalata. One Homeless night has been going on for many years, and surprisingly enough, was not actually started by Serteens.

“It wasn’t started by us; it was started by Synergy Services in the Kansas City area. I know it has been going for a few years, I think it started when they built their teen center, to help house teens that are homeless.

At least three or four years,” co-sponsor Sara Langford said. The members of Serteens not only experiencing how it feels to be homeless, but they are also raising money to benefit Synergy house.

“I think the goal was for each person to get pledges for $50, then $1000 total,” sophomore Jennifer Meyers said. If a member raises $100, a brick will be placed at Synergy bearing the student’s name. Any student attending LHS was welcome to come and stay the night with Serteens.

“Anyone is invited. Mrs. Hertzog and I invited the different clubs of Liberty High School. Last year, what we did was invite groups to join us because we need to have help and the other sponsors we would help us get people. But if there was just someone who randomly wanted to participate, we would love to have them and we would also like for them to consider being a part of Serteens,” said Langford. Hopefully after the One Homeless Night, students will take away a new understanding of homeless teens.

FIND THE COFFEE

While out reviewing pumpkin treats, it was so chilly that Cody Clawson stole Kayla Hammer’s cup of coffee! Not wanting her to find out it was him that stole it, he hid it in this issue of The Bell. The first person to find her coffee cup and bring it back to room 101 at the beginning of sixth hour will recieve a prize courtesy of the Bell Staff.

OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW

by Chris Mohr

Advisory puts its foot in the door for the 2011-2012 school year.

Senior Taylor Doyle uses Advisory time to talk with her Advisory teacher. photo by Clarissa Parker

“Advisory provides an opportunity for students to feel more connected to our school. Its purpose is to establish accountability, to build relations and to create community within our school. The pillars from which we work are: academic development, personal support and post secondary planning. Our pillars are the catalysts for maintaining our purpose,” international

language teacher Tori Figg said.

Tori Figg, alongside nine other faculty members, make up what is called the Advisory Development Team.

These faculty members include Charity Stephens, Tara Harvey, Sara Wyatt, Brenda Wiederholt, Tracey Kracht, Greg Mees, Brett Coffman and Penny Holm.

Thus far, the implementation of advisory in place of seminar has had mixed reviews from all grade levels.

While change will always be tough, the program has been very successful so far, according to Figg.

“We always have room to improve, this is why constructive feedback is helpful. All grade levels so far have had the opportunity to provide feedback and we have appreciated it greatly,” Figg said.

Advisory has gotten some strong feedback, not only from juniors and seniors, but also sophomores.

“Advisory is 25 minutes of doing nothing and being with the same people for three years in a row is pointless,” sophomore Hanna Tapp said. “Instead of sitting in advisory doing nothing, it should be a time to do homework, meet with teachers and associate with others.”

Some seniors on the other hand, simply enjoy

advisory on behalf of the information presented on college preparation.

“We’ve talked a lot about college and financial aid, but its all stuff that is pretty self-explanatory,” senior Jordan Tanner said. “I don’t mind advisory, but I do think that we shouldn’t have gotten rid of seminar. One day can be spent on advisory and the other seminar.”

Sophomores get presented information on entering the high school realm while seniors get the college talk.

Juniors are the ones who get stuck in between - with, what some believe, has little substance.

“We have learned a lot about conflicts, how to apply to colleges, different clubs that the school offers and different kinds of relationships,” junior Marisssa Moreno said. “I think some of the stuff we learn is beneficial, but most of it is common sense, like how to settle an argument.”

Good or bad, advisory is here to stay. The Advisory Development Team is always accepting advice on ways to improve the program and make it more enjoyable.

“The relationships formed between student to student and teacher to student are valuable,” Communication Arts teacher Taryn MacGee said.

B.I.O.N.I.C. WEEK

by Ben DeHart

Showing the community that we care.

National Honor Society, Serteens, and Key Club are some of the clubs at Liberty High school that require students to have service hours. Often times, service hours are hard to come by and are usually pretty mundane. To help with this, Student Council got the idea of making an entire week dedicated to helping the community of Liberty. They came up with the name B. I. O. N. I. C. Week, or Believe It Or Not I Care Week.

“B. I. O. N. I. C. Week will be the first full week of December (December 7-11),” Student Council advisor Melanie Prince said.

While the activities will differ greatly, they all come back to the same basis concept: helping improve the community.

“Student Council decided to put together B. I. O. N. I. C. Week because we really wanted to help benefit the city of Liberty and its residents,” Student Council President, Joey Wheelhouse said “A previous B. I. O.

THE BELL

N. I. C. Week activity was the rake and run, where students pick neighborhoods and literally run through the neighborhood raking people’s lawns into nice and neat piles. And this year we will be incorporating everyone at LHS by having different dress-up days such as wear pink for breast cancer awareness.”

Student Council is interested in getting all the staff members and all classes involved with the week’s activities.

“It’s the little things that count,” junior Audrie Estrada said, “I always love helping people, but with B. I. O. N. I. C. Week, I feel like our help is going so much further because it benefits our community and city directly.”

Everyone is welcome to join Student Council in their efforts to help the city of Liberty “Not only do we want them to join us, but we want them to be enthused and excited to be helping us.

It’s not just another service project, it’s a week long

3

event that shows the city of Liberty that we do care,” sophomore Jakoby Swanson said.

B. I. O. N. I. C. Week is a fairly new activity here at LHS. “B. I. O. N. I. C. Week started last year and went off really well. Our goal this year is to get more people and potentially more clubs involved. The more volunteers we have the more help we can deliver,” Wheelhouse said.

With the success of last year’s B.I.O.N.I.C. Week, Student Council is ready to get it started again this year.

“We are all very excited about this year’s B. I. O. N. I. C. Week and we hope to have a great turn out all week long. More information will be given out when B. I. O. N. I. C. Week approaches, but as for now, it’s definitely a week to have marked on your calendar,” Wheelhouse said.

NEWS

DAY OF THE DEAD

by Nathan Hunt

Spanish classes honor the Hispanic holiday dedicated to remembering loved ones.

Spanish III classes made and decorated sugar skulls to honor loved ones on Day of the Dead. photo by Sammi Novak

Junior Audrie Estrada mixes the ingredients to make the sugar skulls. photo by Sammi Novak

THE BELL

If a student walked down the foreign language hallway, they would see a table full of little paper mache skeletons and sugar skulls. But have no fear, these are not meant to be morbid cadavers from some horror film. These figures represent the likes of Steve Jobs, Albus Dumbledore and loved ones who have passed.

Whether a celebrity or family member, these all are made by Spanish III and IV class for the Hispanic holiday, The Day of the Dead.

Spanish III creates sugar skeletons, purely out of sugar.

While they might be edible, most students choose not to eat them, choosing instead to have their art admired by all who pass through the foreign language hallway. The students paint the skulls different colors and patterns to express themselves. Creating sugar skulls has been done for many years as a part of the requirements for the class. Although this might not be every closely related to the Day of the Dead, it helps students connect to Hispanic culture.

“It is supposed to be a celebration

of the lives of family members who have passed away. It’s a day of remembrance and celebrating lives, it’s not supposed to be sad or scary,” junior Taylor Gibson said.

The advanced language students get to make a whole project out of this holiday.

“It’s a 70 point project. You memorize six facts about the person and present it to the class in Spanish,” junior Shelby Murtha said. The Day of the Dead is celebrated throughout all Hispanic countries. Mexico, Spain and Central America in general are all examples of places in the world where this holiday is celebrated. It might not always look the same in every country.

“This is primarily something celebrated in the Americas; in Spain the tradition is to celebrate All Souls Day. They go to mass on November first, but in the Americas, specifically in Mexico, it is fused with the indigenous culture, so the Aztec culture or pre-Hispanic culture also celebrated the Day of the Dead,” teacher Profe Stolwyk said.

Students describe who they

made in remembrance for The Day of the Dead.

“It was just fun to remember the good things about what my grandma did, that’s who my skeleton was,” senior Morgan Osborne said. Different objects were to be brought by the student to personalize their skeleton even further.

“We had to bring three things, it was a requirement. I brought cotton balls for her hair, stencils to paint when she died and puzzle pieces because she would do puzzles with us,” Osborne said.

While some did a family member, others created celebrities to commemorate.

“I made a dead basketball player, my parents chose it for me,” Murtha said. Whether it is personal or impersonal, every student made and presented their own skeleton to the class. With The Day of the Dead over, we will have to wait another year to see what other skeletons are created to remember those who have passed, in the process, learning a lot about Hispanic culture.

Spanish Honor classes make skeletons to celebrate Day of the Dead, a holiday to remember those who have passed. It is also part of a project in which they are required present three facts about the person their skeleton is based off of to the class in Spanish. photo by Nathan Hunt

4

NEWS

VOICE FOR THE VOTE

by Haley Sheriff

AP Government students are raising the bar in an attempt to lower the voting age.

Each year, in the midst of the politically charged atmosphere of autumn, AP Government students are always bustling about, completing some kind of project involving the process of their government. During election years, students are required to campaign for a minimum of five hours for the party of their choice; however, as 2011 was not an election year, that option was not available.

Liberty and Liberty North students, therefore, have been given a yearlong task of lowering the voting age to 17 years old for primary elections.

“We like to have students involved, to understand and experience the intricacies of government themselves.

But as this was a non-election year, we needed to find another way, and I always had this idea in the back of my mind seeing other states complete it successfully,” AP Government teacher Kurt Gates said. “While in Jefferson City, I happened to see State Representative Myron Neth, and after suggesting the idea to him, he was very supportive.”

This concept is certainly not new.

In the past decade, 17 states have given 17-year-olds the right to vote in primary elections if they will be 18 by

the time of the general election.

For the first semester, students have been researching these states and the impact the bills have caused since their ratification. They have then incorporated this information as evidence in each of their essays to back their stance.

“Already this year, we have come together to write legislation to propose to our state representative,” junior Lydia Davis said. “From there we will take the best written drafts and combine them into a single legislation that best reflects what we want to accomplish.”

Students hope to introduce the bill

by December, and by then classes will begin to focus on lobbying. During the second semester, students will expand the project to a statewide endeavor by writing letters and calling other schools, attempting to strengthen their efforts with more involvement. Most are very optimistic and passionate about the proposal.

“There are so many 17-year-old high school students that are more informed than adults, and there are a lot of decisions that can directly affect them,” junior Emily Duncan said. “A lot of them have jobs and even pay

taxes, and they play such a significant role in society that they should have an equally significant voice.”

With a natural skepticism of government, along with the work of such a large and rather daunting project, some doubt the outcome of the bill.

“It’s a good project with a primary goal to educate us, but personally I have no confidence in an AP Government class being able to accomplish this. It’s all a question of Congress, and from there it’s out of our hands,” junior Max Accardi said.

“Though the bill itself is reasonable, I think the idea will inspire much opposition for opposition’s sake.”

The project itself will be passed on to next year’s batch of AP Government students, who will then work towards placing the bill on the ballot and its ultimate ratification. Some however, are dismayed that after all the time and work they put into the cause, they will not be the ones to get it finalized.

“They shouldn’t be upset—they’re the ones that got the ball rolling,” AP Government teacher Ron Ludwig said. “Without their hard work, [this project] wouldn’t have happened at all.”

AP Government classes try to change the voting age to make more students eligible for voting. photos by Lauren Pouliot

PEER HELPERS

by Michaela Lamb

Students go to Manor Hill to educate younger students about the importance of being drug-free.

To help Liberty’s fifth graders learn about drugs, the Peer Helpers went to Manor Hill Elementary for Red Ribbon Week. Led by Prevention Specialist, Amy Tuso, a small group of Peer Helpers met with the younger students during an unorthodox assembly.

“We played informational games like Top Card, Mine Field and Find Someone Who. It’s a lot more interesting for the kids that way,” Tuso said. “This way, the kids could identify what was important to them without being told by someone else.”

It was not just an experience for the fifth graders, however, but the Peer Helpers, as well.

THE BELL

“I really enjoyed seeing how much the kids knew about drugs and alcohol and how much interested they were in learning about it,” junior Emily Lorei said.

Several of the Peer Helpers who had a hand in Red Ribbon Week felt their assembly was a success.

“I think all the kids really heard what we were saying,” senior Anna Kain said. With fewer anti-drug programs in place, several students feel that it is a good thing that someone is talking to today’s youth.

“It’s important because even though kids get talked to about drugs, it’s a lot more relatable when it’s

5

from kids closer to their own age,” sophomore Anna Kempf said.

Because of the Peer Helpers’ work, Manor Hill’s fifth grade is more knowledgeable about drugs and alcohol and now know have the confidence to resist them.

“I hope we have the opportunity to do something like this again, but it’s up to the elementary and middle schools to invite us,” Tuso said.

With all of the great information presented in a fun and relatable way by students, to students, the Peer Helpers make a great case against drugs.

NEWS

TYPE IT TO MY FACE photos and design by Jordan Tanner

Is cyber bullying a problem at LHS?

With social networks and cell phones, falling victim or becoming guilty of cyber bullying is easy to do.

by Annie Ruckman Blogging, tweeting or texting, it is all the same when it comes to cyber bullying. Cyber bullying is bullying through email, instant messaging, chat room exchanges, Web site posts, or digital messages or images sent to a cellular phone. Cyber bullying, like traditional bullying, involves an imbalance of power, aggression, and a negative action that is often repeated.

About 45 percent of 100 students surveyed think that cyber bullying is a problem at LHS, and 85 percent of students know someone who has been bullied. Throughout the years technology has become more and more apart of the lives of students and with this increase has also come an increase in cyber bullying through any sort of technology.

“I see cyber bullying on Facebook mostly, people are just talking bad about others. If I see it I tell them [ bully ] to cut the crap and get over themselves,” senior Cara Termini said.

Talking to an adult or friend about cyber bullying is one of the best options to try and get support and help through situations online.

“In terms of what people can do, they can block a certain person or certain phone numbers.

One of the big problems with cyber bullying is that people think its funny, or it was intended to be a joke, they don’t necessarily see that its hurtful, so rather than people defending the person being bullied, they laugh about it, or try to minimize it and act like its not a big deal,” counselor Amy Tuso said.

Cyber bullying can take away the safety aspect of home for some people when others use media to attack another person “One of the biggest risks with bullying, and with any bullying that we don’t know what is happening out of school, we don’t know why they do the things they do and so to tease somebody about what we think is weird because we don’t understand can a lot of times being joking or teasing about a situation going on and the risk is that we seriously hurt someone,” Tuso said.

The best thing students can do is to talk, by talking you get a different perspective on things.

“I had a friend who was being bullied online and I told them they can’t live their life based off of how other people look at them, if you’re worried about what everyone else is saying about you, you will never be able to see yourself clearly, it’s all a matter of being confident and self assured,” sophomore Emily Moore said.

THE BELL

6

In a recent survey conducted by the Liberty Bell, we asked students if they thought 45% think cyber bullying cyberbullying is a was an issue at problem at LHS Liberty High 55% think School. The cyberbullying is majority of the not a problem at answers said that LHS cyber bullying is not an issue.

Below is a list of some of the types of cyber bullying as defined by the National Bully Prevention website.

Harassment: repeatedly sending offensive, rude, and insulting

messages. Denigration: distributing information about another that is derogatory and untrue through posting it on a Web page, sending it to others through email or instant messaging, or posting or sending digitally altered photos of someone.

Flaming: online “fighting” using electronic messages with angry, vulgar language. Impersonation: breaking into an email or social networking account and using that person’s online identity to send or post vicious or embarrassing material to/about others.

Outing and Trickery: sharing someone’s secrets or embarrassing information, or tricking someone into revealing secrets or embarrassing information and forwarding it to others.

Cyber Stalking: repeatedly sending messages that include

threats of harm or are highly intimidating, or engaging in other online activities that make a person afraid for his or her safety (depending on the content of the message, it may be illegal).

NEWS

www.get your griff on.com

Get your Griff On at Missouri Western State University – small classes, awesome professors, great residence halls and a beautiful campus!

Ask about our $1,500 A+ Scholarship!

Call us - 800-662-7041 St. Joseph, Mo. The university for you!

Got a smart phone?

Check us out!

Western is an equal opportunity institution.

GUTEN TAG, CIAO & BONJOUR AMERICA!

by Katlyn Smelcer

Board a flight from Europe; Depart to LHS, home of the Blue Jays. photo by Kyle Rutliff

photo by Mackenzie Spencer

Johan Lanzrein Switzerland Neirivue, Switzerland is home to Johan, a small town of only 300 people. There, he learned his first language, French, but also to be fluent in English and German.

He has brought with him both culture and charm to the halls of Liberty High School. To fly across the sea was not cheap. It cost Johan about eleven thousand dollars, even with the two thousand dollar scholarship he recieved. But Johan does not regret it.

“I wanted to do an exchange year. I was bored of my life in Switzerland; I did the same thing every day. I wanted a change,” Lanzrein said.

Curiosity, it seems, is contagious, as it is building up in many students as they speculate on what Johan thinks of Liberty.

“High School is much easier and the classes are more fun. Here the people are much nicer, because in Switzerland if people don’t know you they won’t talk to you. The food is very different too,” Lanzrein said.

What is more is that the students appear to be quite intrigued with him.

“Johan is very nice, he’s easy to talk to, and he has better manners than some of the guys here,” sophomore Aubrynne Jaramillo said. Others are charmed by Johan, as well.

“He’s really funny and sociable,” junior Alexa Wright said. It is no riddle to Johan when it comes to charm, and he has even managed to make a best friend.

“I went over to his host parents’ house to sell him cookies for a fundraiser. We’ve become pretty close, best friends actually,” senior Chelsea Ross said.

His schedule now consists of classes that give him diversely new experiences each day. Compared to his life back home in Neirivue, Johan is happy about the miscellany of America.

“Back home, I just liked to hang out with my friends and go to the park. During the week all I did was go to school, I did the same thing every day. Here, every day I do different things,” he said.

THE BELL

Lorenzo D’lppolito Italy Travelling all the way from Italy, Lorenzo D’Ippolito knows a thing or two about living in a different country.

He came to Liberty on scholarship from the American Field Service. He is glad he did.

“I love America,” senior Lorenzo D’Ippolito said.

Schools in Italy are much more structured; here at Liberty High School many students feel overworked and over disciplined, but Lorenzo does not think so.

“I had to study a lot back home because my school is very difficult,” he said. But his hard work has paid off, allowing him the opportunity to high school in a different country.

“I had to take three tests and speak with the people from the American Field Service about why I want to come here and about how well I speak English,” Lorenzo said. He has since grown to like Liberty.

“I like this school because the teachers are friendly, I like the subjects, and I like all the sport spirit,” Lorenzo said. He especially enjoys the spirit towards soccer.

“I like the soccer games because in Italy soccer is the biggest sport,” Lorenzo said. Attending the soccer games also helped Lorenzo get to know some of the students.

“Rhonda Dempsey introduced me to him at a soccer game, then I realized he was in my Spanish class,” senior Leah Rutliff said. Moving to a new school is nerve racking for anyone, but Lorenzo seems to have handled the transition with ease, even making a good impression on the students here.

“Lorenzo is very sweet, he seems like a gentlemen,” junior Courtney Custer said. Students must be at least a little different than students back in Italy, and the students here do notice it.

Lorenzo came to our school for a once in a lifetime learning experience and he is definitely glad he did it.

“I like this experience, I like the people here because they are family and they will wait for you if you don’t understand,” Lorenzo said.

8

photo by Kyle Rutliff

Stanislas ‘Stan’ Girard France Stanislas Girard, or Stan, for short, is from Saint Germain en Laye, France, a city not to far from Paris.

But, for Stan, he had more than enough reason to take the flight to America.

“Learning English is the main reason and seeing how people live in America and the third reason was to get away from France and be free kind of,” senior Stan Girard said. In France, Stan did not get out of school until 6. But the hours are just one of the many reasons he enjoys high school here a lot better. According to him it is very easy for him, the teachers are very nice, and he never has homework.

Just like the other foreign exchange students here at the high school, Stan had to take the Secondary Level English Proficiency Test to get here; which is a test to make sure he could speak English well. Although Stan likes school here in America, it is not without a few flaws.

“The big difference here is the food. I hate the fast food. [And] everyone knows everything about everyone here and in France it is not like that,” Stan said. As far as what the students think here, Stan fits in just perfect.

“He’s hilarious and he has great hair,” senior Audrie Sifuentez said. Back in France, Stan enjoyed something pretty similar to students here; he loved to play rugby.

One difference that Stan noticed here at LHS is the high school relationships.

“The relationships between boys and girls are more organized in France, there is no in between,” Stan said.

While there have been both positives and negatives that have come with it, Stan has experienced living in a different country, which is something people could only dream of, and after all this, Stan’s future looks pretty bright.

“I have a lot of plans; I gave myself four years to learn Spanish, then I want to go to engineering school for five years, and then travel all over the world for engineering,” Stan said.

FEATURES

SALUTE TO FSA

by Michaela Lamb

Future Soldiers of America teaches teenagers discipline and respect.

Juniors Ashley Downing and Bret Kirk do strength training exercises as part of FSA’s bi-weekly meetings to teach them the discipline necessary to be a member of the armed forces. photo by Clarissa Parker

Future Soldiers of America (FSA) is dedicated to teaching young men and women about the military and the discipline needed to be involved in the armed forces.

“The FSA is for anyone interested in the military,” junior Chris Addison said. “It’s fun too. It’s not for people who are just ridiculously involved with the military anymore.”

The FSA, whose numbers are small this year, is not just for boys. In fact, two out of the six regularly attending members are girls.

“It can get difficult being around the guys all the time,” junior Ashley Downing said. “But you become more like a family over time and less like an individual.”

Team building and physical activity play a central part in the FSA’s activities. Community service is key to the club’s endeavors as it teaches responsibility.

“Last year we did a highway clean up day where we walked around and picked up trash on the highways,

and [so far] this year we’ve done Safe Halloween, [but] we still have more activities planned,” junior Bret Kirk said. Kirk is the Lead Lieutenant in FSA, which is largely run by the students involved.

“It’s their club, I’m just here for help and support,” club sponsor and Social Studies teacher Jeff Wilkins said.

With dwindling numbers this year, the FSA hopes to increase their numbers to get back to where they were last year.

“We need more people to get our numbers up and get off the ground again,” Kirk said.

The FSA meets Tuesdays and Thursdays in room 913 after school. For information on how to sign up, contact Mr. Wilkins.

EXPANDING BORDERS

by Kayla Hammer

What new limits will International Skype Club take Liberty to this year?

New leaders, like daily-living teacher John Barreca, are working toward pushing International Skype Club to be just as efficient as it was last year.

Even with the change of a new face to the team, the club is said to run similar to last year’s program.

“The kids come in and sit down at their computers, log on to Skype and chat with a student,” Barreca said.

After the members log in they begin to converse with the pen pals. The main purpose of this is to help their pen pals improve their English, as well as for the members to begin learning Chinese.

“Last year I loved it. It was fun to get to talk to people over in another country,” said junior Kaitlyn Hudlemeyer..

Most students hear from the advertisement that the club is about travelling, but all club members might may not even make the journey.

“To be able to travel you must keep an attendance of 75%,” said Barecca.

Though there is work involved with the Skype program, club members are rewarded for their effort with the trip to China and Taiwan.

“I traveled to both for two weeks and we met half of the schools we talked to,” Kaitlyn Hudlemeyer said.

There seems to be an overall excitement for the traveling and it is advertised frequently. But there is so much more to the club.

“I wish that they would maybe talk more about what we actually do because when they advertise they talk about traveling but it’s more than that,” said junior Alex Thomas.

Traveling, it would then appear, is just one component of the club. The main concern for club members looks to be advertising. Another concern is where they travel

in general.

“I would like to go to European countries,” Alex Thomas said.

The problem is that the club does not get to pick what group of kids they converse with and where they travel to.

“The club doesn’t get to decide where they travel and what students they get to converse with. The Skype program is ran from a person in California and he is actually from Taiwan himself,” said Barecca.

Unless the rules change at the higher level, the club will continue traveling in the same manner.

Regardless, the club hopes to have another exciting year, eventually meeting the kids they have conversed through the computer screen.



  

 

 







SPOTLIGHT

BRADY NEWLAND

by Madi Denton

“When Brady trains he goes all out on every rep, he is very dedicated to doing everything right. He has had a great sophomore year. He has had some big catches in varsity games and also has been a leader on our JV team.

He has a very selfless attitude toward the game. Whether he is running a route or blocking for a run he pays great attention to detail,” head football coach Chad Frigon said.

BN CR Q: A: Q: A: Q: A:

When did you start playing football?

I started playing football around first grade.

What’s your favorite part of the game?

The game in general, I mean, you know, playing out there with your team and scoring, basically.

What is your best football memory?

Sophmore Brady Newland is a leader on the Junior Varsity Football team. photo by Emily Houck

8th grade, I really had a blast. And my team ended up playing in the championship for our league, and the city championship.

CATE REYNOLDS

Q: A: Q: A: Q: A:

What do you do when you’re not playing football?

I also play basketball and baseball, and just prepare for the next season.

What is your motivation while you play?

I strive to be like guys on TV that are playing in the NFL.

What are your plans after high school?

I plan to continue playing sports throughout life, basically.

by Mat George

“She is a positive and a motivated person in class,” Communication Arts teacher Taryn MacGee said.

Q: A: Q: A: Q: A:

What is your favorite part about gymnastics?

Having a goal and working towards it everyday.

Also, being able to do things most people can’t.

How long have you been competing and what level are you?

I have been doing it for eight years and I am a level nine.

Who has been your biggest inspiration?

My biggest inspiration has been my coaches and the people who have pushed me.

Q: A: Q: A: Q: A:

Is it hard to balance both school and gymnastics?

Yes, it can get tough sometimes because I’m at the gym four hours a day and that doesn’t leave much time for homework.

Have you become close with your teammates?

Yes, we’re like a big family. They’re my sisters and we look out for eachother.

How many competitions are there a year?

We have about six or seven competitions and then state regionals and nationals which you have to qualify for.

“Even though me and her don’t go to the same gym, it’s cool to be able to talk gymnastics with her,” junior Tessa Jaranowski said.

THE BELL

10

Junior Cate Reynolds has been competing in gymnastics for eight years. photo by Lauren Pouliot

FEATURES

SPOTLIGHT KAYLEE MARQUARDT

by Ben DeHart

“Kaylee is one of those students that I will always remember. She is so determined in anything she does, if she sets her mind on a goal, you better get out of her way! She is respected by many, but loved by many more,” Science teacher Maria Knowles said.

KM SJ Q: A: Q: A: Q: A:

What got you interested in sports?

The school that I attended (St. Charles), started sports at a very young age. When everyone else went out for t-ball, I jumped on the opportunity.

What sports do you play for Liberty High School?

I am an outside hitter and defensive specialist for the varsity volleyball team. I also run the 100 and 300 meter hurdles, I am on the 4X400 meter relay team, and I participate in the high jump.

Why do you enjoy playing sports?

I enjoy the team aspect. I get to hang out with my best friends every day after school.

Senior Kaylee Marquardt made the MO-KAN all-star game for volleyball. photo by Mackenzie Spencer

Q: A: Q: A: Q: A:

What is the MO-KAN all-star game and how did you get chosen?

My coach nominated me to be a part of a volleyball team made up of the best players in the state of Missouri. I got to compete against Kansas’ best high school volleyball players.

Along with playing sports, how do you maintain a 4.0 GPA? I like to study with my friends a lot. If we do well enough I like to reward us by making cookies!

Who is your biggest inspiration?

My dad has always supported me but he always pushes me to be a well-rounded person.

“Kaylee is one of my best friends. She always has a smile on her face and she will do anything to help anyone in need. She is someone that I strive to be like. She is a major inspiration in my athletic goals. Kaylee is just a wellrounded person and I enjoy being around her,” junior Lauren Holm said.

STACI JOHNSON

by Shelby Curtis

“She has a dynamic personality and she’s a hard worker. She really is an asset to Liberty High School,” Librarian Wanda Gibson said.

Q: A: Q: A: Q: A:

What classes and extracurricular activities do you teach?w

Competitive Theatre, Debate I and Advanced Debate, and I am the head speech and debate coach for these students and ninth graders.

What is the most exciting thing about your job?

The kids that I get to work with on a daily basis.

They are creative, intelligent and hard-working, and it makes my job fun to work with them during class and at tournaments.

Which memory sticks out to you the most since you’ve been working at the high school?

We went to this fancy Italian restaurant in Dallas, everybody got dressed up and we just had a wonderful time eating great food, celebrating nationals and enjoying the experience.

Q: A:

What is one thing that you hope your students get out of your class?

I hope my students leave the class with proficient communication skills and a sense that they are a part of something bigger than themselves— that their speech and debate family will be a special memory from high school.

Q: A:

How does your teaching style differ from most teachers?

I have to maintain a sense of “organized chaos,” where students have structure, but are also free to be in charge of their own learning. Because I spend up to 15 weekends a year and lots of after school time with these kids, my teaching style is very relationship-oriented.

“Mrs. Johnson is one of the greatest teachers I have ever had the blessing of learning from. She invests her heart into each student and genuinely cares about each one of us,” senior Kelley Rowe said.

THE BELL

11

Teacher Staci Johnson is a valuable asset of the Debate and Forensics program. photo by Clarissa Parker

FEATURES

THANKSGIVING DISASTERS

“One Thanksgiving, my dad got the idea from a TV show to hide a fake heart inside of our turkey--the kind of realistic-looking heart--to prank my uncle. We shoved it in and let it bake inside, and everything seemed all normal until my uncle started carving. The heart by then was all mushy and disgusting, and my uncle started flipping out, thinking it was an actual heart,” junior Amy Hartgrove said.

stories and photos by Kayt Carpenter and Haley Sherrif; intro by Sam Turley These students dish out their dinner disasters and family traditions.

Thanksgiving is a time to be grateful for everything and everyone in your life. As we gather with our families over a delicious and long anticipated meal, anything could happen.

Holidays are usually a little chaotic, but very exciting. Family members from all over, and usually their pets, travel to one location to feast, catch up, and relax. With that said, the holidays have the potential to create many memorable, for better or worse, moments in a family.

“It was the first Thanksgiving that my mother decided that we were going to be vegetarian. So, she went online and she was being a health freak and she researched how to make a tofu turkey. She did pretty well because she got the shape correct, it was pretty decent. She cooked it in the oven and when she took it out it was solid. Then, it was about 8:00 and we were just putting things in pretty dishes and setting the table and everything.

So she cuts open the turkey and it was mushy inside, it was a disaster of a mess. We ended up just cooking spaghetti and eating Italian,” senior Alanna Raymond said. photo by Chris Mohr

“It was a couple years ago and we were all in the kitchen. My mom was just preparing the food like she usually did until ‘Single Ladies’ by Beyonce came on the radio. She set all the food down and started busting out dancing. We were all laughing so hard--it was hilarious, but also embarrassing. She hasn’t done it since,” junior Haley Vickers said.

THE BELL

12

“Me and my family always eat Chittluns’ with hot sauce—they’re actually called Chitter Links, and they’re pig intestines. They’re really wrinkly and not squishy, but firm and chewy. They basically taste like spaghetti noodles without the flavoring and slime,” sophomore Nyshele Posey said.

“My mom’s friend was in town for dinner, and she made stuffing. I wasn’t sure I wanted to eat it because she had fake nails on and I didn’t want to find it in my food. My mom told me to try it out, and see how it tastes. So as the meal was ready, and we all sat down, I took a big bite of the stuffing. It tasted good for a minute, but had a crunch to it, too. Fair enough, the French-tip nail that she had been wearing was in my mouth getting eaten. I spit it out, told my mom I wasn’t eating anymore, and everyone just started laughing. It was a funny experience to see, but a nasty thing to eat,” senior Tessie Dempsey said.

INDEPTH

“Well I don’t know if it is so strange, but after dinner we start playing Christmas music officially and then at the most a day later we put up our tree and standard ornaments,” junior Rori Coyle said.

THE BELL

“So every year my family does a road run. It’s usually in Texas, last year we did the Turkey Trot. And you know, it’s always snowing, and the cross country does it also. It’s a way that we bond, and it’s something my family does. It’s a 5K and it’s been around for a while,” sophomore Kyle Gabrielson said.

13

“I have two Thanksgivings, and at the one at my lake house, everything was ruined. We ruined the mashed potatoes, over cooked the turkey, and all of the other sides. My dad was working on building a shed and we were there so late, we had to pack our ruined Thanksgiving dinner into the cooler to take home to the dogs,” junior Morgan Osborn said.

“Our tradition is that after every Thanksgiving we typically go shopping down at Zona Rosa at midnight, and that’s just terrible.

My disaster was one year at Thanksgiving, my mom was cooking a fancy meal and everything. She was getting ready to pull out the turkey and she dropped it all over the floor. So, she just picked it up, put it back in the pan, and set it on the dinner table and just let everyone eat it. But, not everyone knew about it, only we knew about it so we didn’t touch the turkey,” junior Bobbie Henderson said.

INDEPTH

A LEAP OF FAITH

photo by Nathan Hunt

by Annie Ruckman

Actors learn how they can soar in the upcoming fall musical.

photo by Sammi Novak

Christine Conge, playing The Wicked Witch of The West in Liberty’s upcoming performance of The Wizard of Oz, may flash a kind smile when she’s not on stage, but as she flies over The Land of Oz on her broomstick, she is anything but friendly.

Cast members of the fall musical, The Wizard of Oz, prepared to take a flying leap at their shows running Friday, November 18 through Sunday, November 20. This year a special addition was added to provide a new twist to the musical. Actors flew across the stage and flipped through scenes thanks to a company from Las Vegas.

“We have hired Flying by FOY from Las Vegas to set up a flying rig system. The witch, the monkeys and even Dorothy herself will be harnessed and will fly throughout the show. We even get to use Glinda’s bubble and the hot air balloon,” Director Phillip Holthus said.

Training for the flying process started November 11. Everyone flying was required to attend special fly choreography rehearsals the weekend before the performances to figure out the feel of flying. However, with the training that the company provided, some students still found the thought of flying a little scary.

“I knew auditioning for the part of Glinda I would be flying, which was nerve-wracking at first. I am not a huge fan of heights, but knowing that I am going to be using professional fly equipment, and relying on professionals who fly performers on a daily basis in Las Vegas, it definitely calms down my nerves,” senior Libby Hill said. Throughout the whole musical

PIZZA & PREP

multiple characters leapt to life on stage.

“I was really excited at first and then I started to think about it, and then I thought, oh this is really scary because we have only two wires and we’ll be flipping. But I’m still just mostly excited,” junior Kayleigh Tinkham said.

Flying in the musical gives the performance a more realistic feel, the audiences could be stunned by the tornado that sweeps Dorthy up and around making them feel like it is real.

“I definitely think it is necessary for Glinda to fly in her bubble. I want all the little kids in the audience to just freak out and believe that it’s all so real. I would do anything to make these performances as real as possible just for their sake. It’s going to be a great show, and great experience for everyone involved with the production,” Hill said.

The new addition of flying brings in many challenges that should be factored in before the final product is ready to be presented.

“I think the biggest challenge will be that I have to get over the fact that I’ll be like 20 feet off the ground,” Tinkham said.

These actors were determined however, to present the best performances that they can possibly give. Shows included flying, flipping and twirling and were sure to leave audiences blown away.

by Molly Meeks

Life proves to be a balancing act for debaters.

With pizza in hand, debaters are getting prepared for tournaments. Along with spending time preparing every Wednesday and Thursday in class, some even come in before and after school. Students spend several hours a day getting ready for their upcoming tournaments.

“Pizza and prep is when the varsity work on their own events. We print articles and evidence and prepare our events for the upcoming tournaments,” sophomore Sam Tallant said.

Thursdays after school debaters spend their evenings getting prepared for upcoming tournaments. Preparing for debate tournaments is harder than one may think. Some debaters have to fill entire storage tubs with evidence, while others fill entire binders.

“Preparing takes a lot of time because that’s really

THE BELL

the only way to do well at a tournament despite how charismatic you naturally are. Most events are judged by the amount and quality of evidence you have, so preparation is really important,” junior Jesse Drewry said.

The amount of work required to be fully prepared all depends on the type of debate students do. Regardless of type, preparation takes hours a day, so it is no surprise things can get kind of tense.

“Preparing can be stressful if a tournament catches you by surprise, which happens a lot,” Drewry said.

Luckily, debaters have a partner to help relieve some stress. Partners divide and conquer to cover all parts of preparation. Getting prepared in class tends to be much different than preparing before or after school.

“Class is more chaotic and focused on managing

14

group activities. After school is more intensive and students get individual coaching,” teacher Staci Johnson said.

Not all debaters are focused on their own events; some spend their Wednesday afternoons helping novice debaters. Varsity kids take time to get students from both junior highs prepared for their own tournaments. These students are dedicated to keeping all their homework, sports and friends well balanced with their debate work in order to be successful.

“Especially sports. You may have to miss practices or you have to miss prep which could seriously hurt how prepared you are at tournaments,” junior Kathrine Kulhmann said.

A&E

Exit 1-6 performed in silly costumes for their Halloween show. Pictured above (from left to right) are Michael Murdock, Tristan Starner, Lucas Carrel, Allie Holyfield, Haley Brown, Baily Williams and Anna Kain in the midst of a skit. photos by Clarissa Parker

EXIT NOW

by Samantha Turley

A closer look into Exit 1-6; preparation, inspiration, and services.

Imagine being on stage, in front of a crowd, with no script or direction, imagination being the only guide For Exit 1-6, this is how they perform; with improvisation, meaning they have no set scenes to perform.

The team is made up of ten members, all of who auditioned thoroughly for their spot and were carefully chosen by the team coach, Trish. During auditions, they are given a topic, but it is up to them to decide how to run with it. Imagination and humor is key.

Once on the team, practices are every Tuesday at the high school. The mission of Exit 1-6 is to use improvisational techniques in theatre to increase cooperation skills and confidence.

“People are paying to come see amateurs make stuff

up,” sophomore Haley Brown said.

Tickets to the monthly shows cost three dollars if purchased at lunch and five dollars at the door. There they will see the group transform ideas into whole acts, relying on creativity as their essential force.

“We have established games that we already know we’re doing. Everything after that, we are making up,” senior Tristan Starner said.

Before each show, the team is downstairs, getting ready for the opening act.

“There really isn’t a way to prepare with Exit 1-6, that’s what is so great about it. It’s all improv,” said Brown.

Behind the scenes, when the team is not performing or practicing, they are admiring their favorite

comedians and actors for inspiration.

“My personal role models are Tina Fey, Will Ferrel and Amy Poehler because they are the funniest people in the world. A good role model for our whole team would probably be Trish, our coach, because she’s great at improv and so funny,” said junior Allie Holyfield.

However, the group is not only providing laughs for their fellow classmates and teachers, but helping the community as well. They do a fundraiser for the local Corbin Theatre on the Square and a book drive for Invisible Children.

It just goes to show even a club based on humor can help the community, as well. Maybe most importantly, though, they are learning more about themselves along the way.

The absurd costumes brought laughter to the already outrageous skits Exit 1-6 is known for. Pictured above (from left to right) Michael Murdock, Anna Kain, Lucas Carrel, Haley Brown and Allie Holyfield. photos by Sammi Novak and Clarissa Parker

THE BELL

15

A&E

816-792-9911 1917 Star Dr. Suite A

HAPPY TIMES T-SHIRT CO. “Our advertising is just tops!”

400 NE HWY 69 CLAYCOMO, MO 64119 816-455-2615 Ask for Richard!

Ryan R. Snyder, M.D

EAGLE FITNESS Health Club

338 S. 291 HWY Liberty, MO 64068 (816) 781-8600

photo by Clarissa Parker

3 13 photo courtesy of Ashley McGee

disagree that advisory has been helpful.

Liberty High School is no stranger to change this past school year.

One of the most prominent changes was the switch off of seminar, usually held for thirty minutes after second hour on Tuesdays, for advisory. In a Bell survey of 199 students, 124 were not pleased with this new two-day program. The Bell Staff shares similar feelings towards this transition.

Advisory is not helpful because the teachers are given topics to talk about in class that have been covered multiple times in and out of school; topics like the effects of drugs and alcohol on the body, texting while driving, cheating and plagiarism. The purpose of advisory is to educate kids with not only school smarts but with street smarts, and to create a better environment for the school.

However, this program is not as helpful for seniors, considering they are learning about college applications and entering college life. With college applications due in January through February,

ASHLEY MCGEE EDITOR IN CHIEF Come Together Walking through the hallways of the school, on a daily basis, I see people whose names I don’t know, who I’ve never so much as talked to and whose story I’ll probably never get the chance to really understand. And, yet, I thought I knew them. She was always smiling, so her life must be easy. He was in a fight, so he must not have any self-control. They were all friends, so they must have the same attitude.

I was wrong. There’s no way to know a person without talking to them. There’s no way to understand a situation without experiencing it. And there’s no way to

generalize a group when every group is made up of individuals with different ideas, beliefs and values. My thoughts were never malicious, targeted at a specific group or, most importantly, acted upon. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.

According to the National Education Association, it’s estimated that approximately 160,000 children miss school every day because of bullying.

Even worse, FBI statistics show 6,604 hate crimes happened in 2009 alone.

Discrimination, it seems, is so deeply embedded in our society. It’s everywhere we look. The idea of bringing an end to it is daunting.

But I spent two days at William Jewell, surrounded by 45 people of differing genders, races, religions and sexual orientations and there we shared our personal stories, innermost thoughts and some of the most meaningful moments I’ve ever had. Chances are, most of us never would have met otherwise, but in this room, we set our differences aside and opened up to one another without fear of judgment or ridicule or rejection.

And if we could come together, even if only for a matter of days, I still hope that one day the rest of the world can, too.

some claim the curriculum is untimely and should be geared toward juniors, who actually need to prepare for the upcoming process.

As for the juniors, they are being taught about dealing with stress and texting while driving. Those things are effective for that age group, but should be expanded to sophomores as well. Meanwhile, sophomores are taking team bonding to the elementary level, having Show and Tell and “making new friends,” that they will never see again until class reunion and even then they still won’t remember each other’s name.

Instead of using advisory to learn about the world around us, students mostly choose to finish that homework assignment from the other night, to study for an upcoming test or to check up on social networking sites. Perhaps the advisory council should regroup and review what this program is truly trying to accomplish.

photo by Jordan Tanner

agree that advisory has been helpful.

STAFF EDITORIAL

AMANDA FISHER MANAGING EDITOR Don’t Judge A Book By Its Cover Six evil little letters, one huge word: Submit. After 45 minutes of carefully filling out all of my personal, academic and credit card information, I was ready to click submit and permanently cross my fingers for the next couple of weeks.

Though it felt as though I was creating a Facebook account, I had just finished applying for my college of choice and immediately, a wave of fear, anxiety and stress was thrown on me. I had felt so confident before applying but as soon as I hit that button, all of my securities flew out the window. I couldn’t help

but wonder why these people judge me and don’t know me. So what, I have an average GPA? So what, I have a sort of average ACT score? These people in admissions reviewing this application don’t know me in the least bit. I wish they could know this and maybe, just maybe, they’d be more likely to say yes.

-I stopped a bully in the third grade.

-I’ve rescued two cats in my lifetime.

-When one of my friends was sick, I surprised her with a “Get Well Soon” package of goodies.

-I won first place at an art fair in the second grade.

-I wrote a song for Kelley Rowe.

-I dressed up as Kathy Beth Terry at the Katy Perry concert.

-I’ve seen every episode of Friends.

-I hang out with my parents more than anybody else and I’m not ashamed of it.

-I eat hard candies in two’s.

-I almost cut my finger off while making homecoming decorations.

-I met The Big Show.

-I memorized the Gettysburg Address in fifth grade.

-I took the time to put this together.

(By the way, as of a few days ago, I got accepted!)

The articles on these pages do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the entire Bell staff. Please feel free to comment in a Letter to the Editor at thebell@liberty.k12.mo.us

THE BELL

17

OPINION

photos by Kyle Rutliff

I have been pretty much addicted to my iPhone 4 ever since I got it back in July. I worked so hard all summer, picking up extra shifts at work, to save up enough money to buy it. I was so excited to trade in my old LG enV and finally get my dream phone. The second the Verizon Wireless guy put my precious iPhone in my hand, I instantly became obsessed.

Before the iPhone came to Verizon in February, I actually wanted a BlackBerry; I thought they looked pretty cool. But when I tested it out, I discovered that it was not the phone for me. The keys were way too small and not mention the graphics were just awful. BlackBerry’s are just way too boring in my opinion.

Now, when I first tested out the iPhone, it blew my mind. Usually I hate touch screen phones because they are slow and the keys are tiny, but not with the iPhone. The screen uses Retina display that makes it crystal clear and super fast. There really is not much that the iPhone cannot do. I love that I can watch videos, listen to music, text and call my friends, play fun apps, surf the web and use Twitter and Facebook all on one little device. There is also Facetime, which allows you to video call your friends with other iPhones or iPod Touches via Wi-Fi. I’m sure my fellow iPhone addicts can agree with me that iPhones are just hands down better than BlackBerry’s. Now, those of you who are still undecided about what phone to get when your contract is up, trust me and choose iPhone! It will be the best cell phone decision that you will ever make. You will never go back.

MacKenzie Sackett Online News Manager

IPHONE VS. BLACKBERRY Amanda Fisher (Mobile) 0 Me

12:17 PM

BlackBerry is the New Black Before I ramble on about why I love my perfect little BlackBerry, let me be clear about a few things. I am aware that I will lose this battle and I’m okay with that. I know that to some, BlackBerry’s are old news and that iPhone’s are on the (continual) rise. Now that that’s all cleared up, I can now safely say that I love my BlackBerry so much.

In my life, I’ve had only three cell phones. All of which were flip phones. As you can tell, I really don’t care too much about technology. When I look for a new phone, I look for a phone that is easy to use, I can text and call people, put my work schedule in a calendar, and check Facebook and Twitter.

Let me take you back to where this all started. My rebate was quickly approaching and I apparently needed a new phone, though I was content with my Sprint Katana (told you, old school). I began my research and nowadays, the only phones out there are either huge or teeny tiny, and somehow, all involve touch-screens, apps and literally anything you could think of. Obviously, none of these appealed to me. Until I finally ran across the BlackBerry. Up until that point, I thought the people that had BlackBerry’s were workaholics and all business.

I was proven wrong and found they were really cute phones and you didn’t have to have some business mogul job to have one.

Another major reason I love my phone is that there’s no apps or games. I’m not 12 years old, I don’t have time for games. The only app-type thing I use is Pandora, Facebook and Twitter and I use all of those sparingly. I know that to others, I don’t use my BlackBerry to the fullest extent. I don’t use BBM, it is utterly ridiculous and just a fancy form of text messaging. I just use the basics. I could not care less about the fancy, high-tech things in life. I just want to be able to call, text, tweet and post statuses.

THE BELL

18

Amanda Fisher

Managing & Opinion Editor OPINION

PUMPKIN TREATS

Sports editor, Cody Clawson, and reporter, Kayla Hammer reviewed all the pumpkin-inspired treats around Liberty. Here’s what they thought!

Cody Clawson photos by Rachel Bower

Here they have boxed pumpkin pies.

Absolutely horrible. When I opened the pie up the actual pumpkin stuff stayed completely solid and was just not good at all. It didn’t taste good or smell good. There is no way I would recommend it to anyone.

Kayla Hammer

McDonald’s Individual pumpkin pie 2 for $1 I am a HUGE fan of pumpkin pie concretes. I would like to say these are what made me addicted to the flavor pumpkin. The concrete here was very good. It’s nothing I would die for or go get every day, but it was still very good. I would definitely recommend it to a fellow pumpkin lover.

Now here I feel like I am not a good person to judge the pumpkin spice latte. I do not like the taste of coffee and this had a coffee taste to it. The smell was amazing but the taste was just not good for me. I feel like if someone likes the taste of coffee they will find it okay. Again, nothing to die for, but okay.

I wasn’t a fan of the pumpkin pie. Though you get more bang for your buck, the pies were anything but appetizing. When you open up the pies and dissect them you can see the filling, which looks far less appetizing than their apple pies. If you’d like to get your thanksgiving on go get their apple pies instead.

The Pumpkin concrete was delicious in every sense of the word. You can taste the pumpkin distinctly, with a hint of cheesecake. If you want to get your fill of ice cream before winter comes, get the Pumpkin concrete here!

Sheridan’s Pumpkin pie concrete $4.50 Normally I am an advocate for Starbucks but the Pumpkin Spice latte was not a favorite by me. It didn’t taste that much like pumpkin but there was an unpleasant after taste. Not completely awful but I would just stick to your regulars there instead.

Starbucks Pumpkin spice latte $3.95

IHop, hands down, had the best pumpkin food out of these four places. Here I tried the Pumpkin praline pancakes. Probably the greatest pancakes I have ever had.

Ever. They didn’t have a huge pumpkin taste so for people who aren’t pumpkin fans will still like it. I definitely recommend it!

Pumpkin Praline pancakes were the bomb dot com! There wasn’t too much of a pumpkin taste but more of a caramel taste. The pecans had a sugar coating that definitely added to the flavor. I highly suggest these, and for fewer than five bucks who can beat that?

IHop Pumpkin pancakes $4.95

THE BELL

19

OPINOIN

CICI NAILS AND SPA 8302 N. OXFORD AVE. 792-5257

Only 30 Days Until Holiday Break!

1317 H Highway, Liberty

816-792-4800

SPRINTING TO SUCCESS

by Jake Boese

Shannon Hall had a season to remember, placing 6th at state.

Senior Shannon Hall kicking it into his final gear preparing to cross the finish line. “I internally keep myself going because it is as hard of a sport mentally as it is physically,” Hall said. photo by Kathrine Kuhlman

Cross Country runner Shannon Hall has had an impressive season this year, becoming the ninth ranked runner leading up to the state competition.

Hall’s knowledge of correct preparation helped him continue his success at state, placing sixth among the top runners in the state of Missouri.

Shannon has a routine before every race that helped contribute to his success throughout the season.

“I know what to eat and don’t workout the day before. I also get a good night’s sleep two days before the race and pretty much act normally the day before. The most important thing is to always have food in your stomach,” Hall said.

Shannon’s history in the sport does not go back far but no one could be able to tell by his performance.

“I started in the summer before ninth grade...I wanted to do a simple sport that I didn’t have to think too much in. I always liked field day in elementary school, so that also got me into it.”

Hall’s coaches attribute his success to his mentality.

“He is laid back whether he is training or racing so it keeps him relaxed during races,” coach Tim Fritson said.

Fritson also believes that Hall was a born runner.

“He has a tremendous amount of talent and a natural running ability. His offseason workouts this summer also helped him improve for this year,” Fritson said.

Hall does not need anyone else to keep him motivated; his personal drive and the difficulty of the sport keep him going.

“I internally keep myself going. It is just as hard of a sport mentally as it is physically,” Hall said.

Shannon hopes to continue running well on into college.

“I want to run mid-distance track at Mizzou or UMKC.”

PROTECT THIS HOUSE

by Jake Boese

With Under Armour as the new official uniform of the football team, they take on a whole look.

Uniforms represent a team no matter what sport it may be. The football team has a five-year rotation for uniforms and coach Chad Frigon thought it would be best to make the change to Under Armour, which will now represent the team.

The uniforms not only represent the teams play style but also represent the way they players carry themselves.

“They show that the team has swag and that’s how we carry ourselves,” junior Justin Tucker said.

The coaches also wear Under Armour because they want to look united with the players.

“This season we were up for new uniforms (it rotates approximately every five years) and we got a bid on many different styles and the Under Armour rep had the best bid for the style and quality we wanted,” Frigon said. “We selected Under Armour because we wanted to match the uniforms that our team uses and we like the style and quality of the gear,” Frigon said.

THE BELL

The players on the team really like the look of the new uniforms.

“We like them because we all like to look fresh,” sophomore Kellan Turner said.

The uniforms make the players feel like top tier athletes.

“Everyone feels official and everyone loves the uniforms,” senior Brandon Chapman said.

The uniforms not only help the players look good but the comfort of the fabric also helps perform and feel better.

“They are lighter. Every time we get new jerseys they’re more comfortable than the last time...Look good, play good,” Chapman said.

The inaugural season for the uniforms have passed and the players hope to improve next upon the first season with the new look.

21

Sophomore Brady Newland lines up in his new Under Armour uniform. “I like the uniforms because they give a comfortable tight fight during the game for peak performance,” sophomore Kellen Turner said. photo by Breanna Koch

SPORTS

&STOP EM’

JUST TRY

by Mat George The Jays Junior Varsity team finished the regular season with an undefeated record, going 14-0.

It is almost unheard of for a high school team to go throughout the whole season without losing a league game. But that is exactly what the JV volleyball team managed to do. With a season record of 14-0, the team played each game leaving it all on the court.

“It feels really good and deserved to be undefeated because of all of the hard work we put in every day,” junior Halie Ewing said.

To be able to say you’re undefeated is something that not very many teams can say. With this knowledge, many players have happy feelings about this.

“It feels really good because you know it doesn’t happen a lot,” sophomore Kayla Henrichs said.

Without losing any games during the regular season,

the end of it can get very intense and even a little bit scary for some. Others try to not think about that and just play the game to the best of their ability.

“We don’t usually get nervous during a game. Our biggest problem is that we won’t play to our potential.

A lot of times a team isn’t as experienced as us and so we have to push ourselves to play at our level and not there is,” junior Hannah Knapp said.

Throughout the season, there will undoubtedly be some games that are harder than others.

“The hardest game was our game against Blue Springs. There were three games and it was one of our best games. They were really good and they made us work,” Knapp said.

For three of the teammates, playing as one is something they’re familiar with.

“Shelby, Hannah and I play on the same club team.

We’ve played with each other for a long time and are used to how each other plays,” Ewing said.

For most people, losing is the most disliked thing about playing a game. The JV volleyball players this season did not have to worry about that.

“It feels really good to win when we’ve played really well as a team,” sophomore Katie Seever said.

“The girls worked hard all summer, stayed after practice during the season and were really easy to coach. They were willing to do whatever to be successful,” Coach Goulding said.

photos by Rhonda Dempsey

Junior Shelby Mann bumps the ball directly following their opponent’s play.

THE BELL

Junior Halie Ewing sets the ball for one of her teammates to return in over the net.

22

Freshmen Madison Morhaus spikes the ball into the opponents faces.

SPORTS

photo by Breanna Koch

photo by Sammi Novak

Basketball

Kyle Rutliff 12

“Mondays and Wednesdays we do a lot of conditioning and plyometrics. Tuesdays and Wednesdays we are able to get the balls out and scrimmage. This year has been a lot easier for me just because I have better prepared myself. I can’t wait for this season and the atmosphere the Cokley Crazies are going to bring for my senior year.”

Sam Magnuson 11

photo by Mackenzie Spencer

Wrestling

“Off-season wrestling is for the wrestlers who want to get better and stronger. It gets us prepared for when the actual season comes. During the workouts we lift weights and go on long runs. The whole program is very beneficial to us and gets us motivated for the season to come.”

JOSH MESMER 11

photo by Emily Houck

“First we warm up. After that we sprint and do agility work and condition. Then we go down to the weight room to get stronger. I feel like it is very beneficial. I have gained 80 pounds of mostly muscle since freshman year through the off-season program. I can really tell it helps the team during the season because the stronger you are, the better you are.”

Football photo by Maren Finn

photo by Rhonda Dempsey

Luke Norton 12

Baseball

“Right now we are going to stay outside for as long as possible so we can work on our actual baseball specific skills. We will do some conditioning drills outside and once it gets colder we will come inside and do some lifting and conditioning in the gym to get fully ready for the season. It helps us because we just get in shape and it helps us work on our skills and get instruction from a coach rather than just ourselves.”

OFF SEASON SWAG

by Cody Clawson

Cross Country Kyle Gabrielson 10

“Our off season is more strength building than like distance. We will do hill workouts, leg presses, and weight lifting and stuff like that. There really isn’t an “off-season” for us though. During winter running we run twice a day everyday, morning and afternoon. Our morning workouts start at 5:30 a.m. Usually we run around 70 miles a week but that varies sometimes. People who do off-season are typically a lot more successful than those who don’t.”

Hays Hall 11

Soccer

“One of our coaches is a personal trainer so we meet at the gym and he puts us through workouts that are insane. Usually the next day we are really sore and it is hard to walk around. Doing this really gets us all in shape so we are more prepared than the other team to play an 80 minute game. I feel like it really pays off because I’ve gotten a lot stronger and it has made me play better.”

Off-season conditioning programs have become a huge part of the “system” here at Liberty.

The past few seasons, Liberty has really embraced the idea of off-season conditioning. For some students, it has almost even become a requirement. While off-season may seem like a drag sometimes, it is very benificial to the players’ success on the field or court.

FALL SPECIALS!!!

1 MONTH UNLIMITED $25.99!!

LEVEL 1 AMBITION 250 32 BULBS 3 FACIALS

Buy any bottle of lotion ($40 or more) and get one free tan on our high pressure bed. must present coupon for specials • valid through December 21st, 2011

must present coupon for specials •valid through December 21st 2011 For Liberty High School Students

For Liberty High School Students

LEVEL 2

1 MONTH UNLIMITED $39.95 ADVANTAGE 400 40 BULBS 3 FACIALS

must present coupon for specials • valid through December 21st, 2011 For Liberty High School Students

VENETIAN TAN “The Innovative Tanning Experience” Come in and check out our new Rhinestone Bling T’s NEW location at 9768 N. Ash Ave. Kansas City, MO 64157

- or -

Great convenient hours: Mon-Thurs 7am-10pm Fri & Sat 7am-7pm Sun 10am-6pm

152 Hwy & N Brighton Next to the Brass Rail 4920 NE 81st St

Kansas City, MO. 64119 816-436-2901

FOR LIBERTY STUDENTS ONLY