LionFest replaces King of Hearts Student council hopes to draw large crowd for new sponsored event
LionFest will feature the following music, games, food and more.
by Gaby Sabatino @gabysab8
As the steady decline of King of Hearts’ (KOH) ticket sales became apparent to student council members and faculty over the past few years, many believed that there was no viable alternative but to cancel the event entirely and call it quits on trying to find a replacement. Months passed and frustration grew as LT’s student council president Nicholas Fuentes ‘16, found himself in a difficult situation. “The record low attendance at KOH last year was sobering, and I believe this shaped a near consensus within student council that either KOH would have to be eliminated or completely reimagined,” Fuentes said. “Student council went through a lengthy deliberation with regards to what, if anything, would replace KOH this year.” However, as student council continued to discuss the potential of hosting another event, the tables quickly turned. “We really wanted to come up with something different for this year,” student council secretary J.P. Remijas ‘17 said. “We thought a festival of sorts with different games would be very appealing to people.” On Feb. 27 starting at 6 p.m., LionFest will take place in the South Campus field house. Various inflatable games and obstacle courses will be available to students who wish to participate in this relaxed, casual event. There will also be an assortment of food and beverages, including DiNico’s pizza, candy, popcorn, cotton candy and refreshments accompanied by music by student bands, WLTL and professional DJs.
Prom update
Students vote online to have prom at Navy Pier next year’s Class of 2017
OPINIONS, 8
Robberies disturb LT area LT students robbed at gunpoint, police continue search for suspects
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by Tim Mikulski @t_mikulski
During the last weekend of January, two armed robberies of seven teens in La Grange and La Grange Park shocked residents in the area and the student community. No one was injured in either incident. Both villages’ police departments are investigating and have taken measures to improve the area’s safety. “Any time there is a high level crime in our area, all local towns combine resources to assist each other,” La Grange Park Police Chief Ed Rompa said. “We’ve been working together to put both incidents to proper closure.” The first incident took place at about 9:15 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 29 near Cossitt Ave. and Spring Ave. in La Grange. Two men on foot approached two LT junior boys with firearms and demanded their money and phones. After the teens handed over their possessions, they ran to North Campus to call police as the robbers ran away. Tessa Dougherty ‘16 lives at the same corner and has seen how the incident has changed the area. “I couldn’t believe it had happened,” Dougherty said. “The police have been canvassing the area and been very active. It’s definitely different now when you walk around here.” The next day, Saturday Jan. 30, three men approached four juveniles (also LT students) at Brewster Ave. and Kensington Ave. in La Grange Park around 8:30 p.m., again showing firearms and demanding cash and cell phones. The juveniles surrendered their phones and cash, and reported the crime to the nearby La Grange Park Police Department after the men fled on foot. News releases from both communities called the robberies “very similar.” The investigation continues with neighborhood interviews, reviewing potential evidence and following leads, Rompa said. In addition, the Chicago Tribune reported increased patrols in both visible and unmarked vehicles, the addition of “hire-back” officers for stronger police presence and further review of “several hours” of business surveillance video. A La Grange news release also said that there are several other investigative activities in progress that they cannot re-
Athlete signing day
SPORTS, 12
Turn to page 12 to find Check out page 8 for our out where LT athletes arguments regarding the have signed for colleges possibility of raising the and what sports they will legal tobacco age from be playing. 18 to 21. North Campus 100 S. Brainard Ave. LaGrange, Ill. 60525 South
Primaries preview
Brewster Ave.
Ogden Ave
ve. ve A o r g l Hil
Cossitt Ave. Spring Ave.
Tobacco age
$1 per item or all-you-can-eat for $5: DiNico’s pizza Soft Drinks Candy
Brainard Ave.
Prom for the class of 2017 and beyond will remain at Navy Pier. The results were determined on Feb. 19. and Navy Pier received 1,477 votes—68.54 percent compared to 14.34 percent for the Museum of Science and Industry and 11.51 percent for the Field Museum. “I am thrilled for the future classes of LT that prom will remain at Navy Pier,” Prom sponsor Mary Gresge said. “Since most students attend Prom only once, each class deserves the unique experience that Navy Pier provides.” The voting for the venues was postponed from December until February due to new or changed information. The voting officially opened on Feb. 6 and remained open for two weeks. Freshman, sophomores and juniors were prompted to vote every time they logged into an LT computer until they had submitted their vote. “We would have done our students an injustice without getting all the information before setting up the website,” Director of Student Activities Peter Geddeis said. “If the venue were to have changed, we wanted students to have as much say as possible.” The afternoon before the voting website was launched, Navy Pier officials made a final change to their information. They extended LT’s guaranteed dates for prom from 2017 through 2020, just as the other two venues—The Field Museum and the Museum of Science and Industry did. “Although it can never be confirmed, LT looking into other venues may have put pressure on Navy Pier to see what they could do to accommodate us,” Geddeis said. Regardless of the delay, students remained interested in the topic. Over 750 votes were cast the first day and 95 percent of those students made a choice between venues—rather than selecting “no preference.” “I feel like [prom at Navy Pier] will be great,” Junior Class Board President Abby Vulich ‘17 said. “Navy Pier is gorgeous and it allows us to stay in the same price range.” The price per ticket will remain at $115 and post-prom will include the Odyssey cruise ($35 per person). “Going to Navy Pier has been a tradition at LT,” Geddeis said. “No other school holds prom there and this is something we pitch even to eighth graders.”
Video games on two 20-foot LCD screens Jousting Photo booths Bouncy Boxing Inflatable Twister Obstacle Course Human Foosball
Kensington Ave.
by Lea Voytovich @leaaa_21
Student bands including: “American Condition” “The Feud” “Double Identity”
“If you want to come in your pajamas, you are more than welcome,” Director of Student Activites Peter Geddeis said. “We want you to be comfortable. This is informal. This is something fun in the middle of winter that can shake things up and bring people together.” Instead of opting for a lame, scaled-down KOH, student council began to imagine a winter social which would be able to adapt to lower attendance rates, Fuentes said. Ticket sales start at $15 and, additionally, there will be an opportunity to purchase an all-you-can-eat wristband for $5. This allows you to get any food or drink at the event that would otherwise be an extra cost. Furthermore, if you decide to buy your ticket at the door, tickets will be $20 for both LT and non-LT guests. “We decided to include DiNico’s pizza to try and draw people on the hope that five additional dollars for all-you-can-eat food would be very attractive,” Remijas said. LionFest will go from 6 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. and doors will close at 9 p.m. Student council hopes to have at least 1,300 students attend LionFest—around the same number of students who attended KOH last year. “If we can get 1,300 students then we should easily break even,” Geddeis said. “I don’t think it’ll be that tough to get 1,300 students since it is a school of 4,000 students.” According to both Remijas and Fuentes, student council believes that this event has the potential to draw a larger crowd than KOH and, in turn, create profit for future events, like next year’s All-School Assembly. “I am confident that this event will succeed,” Fuentes said. “The student council has put in a great deal of time and thought into building a new tradition from the ground up, and I believe the attendance will reflect our hard work.”
Map illustrating where the robberies occurred. (Buckler/
port on. LT has been working with the police departments on measures to keep students safe, Student Resource Officer Ken Uher said. “The increased patrols will be indefinite,” Uher said. “Any time there’s a serious incident, we have this increased presence in reaction, to prevent it from happening again and to find the people who perpetrated it.” Both police departments reported the offenders as black males between 18 and 20 years old. In the La Grange incident, one offender was described as about 6-feet tall with a slim build and gray hooded sweatshirt while the other was described as 5-feet 9-inches tall with a heavy build, dreadlocks and a dark jacket. The La Grange Park report described one offender as 6-feet tall with an athletic build and black coat, another as 6-feet tall with a thin build and black hoodie with jeans and a third only as wearing a black hoodie with black pants. The La Grange Police Department asks residents to be vigilant when in less populated areas of the village, and for Continued on page 3 anyone with information to call them at (708) 579-2333. “[To stay safe,] have an awareness of your general surroundings,” Uher said. “Just watching each other’s backs and traveling in groups is the way to go.” PULSE, 16-17
Curious to find out more about this year’s primaties? Check out pages 16-17 for more in-depth coverage. Campus 4900 Willow Springs
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