The pine curtain, issue #11, june 8, 2013 by The Pine Curtain Magazine

The Sport Of Kings Inside Falconry

JUNE 8, 2013

PLUS

Special Report:

Smith County $35 million project for jail facility

PLUS

A Close Look to East Texasâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Education System

In This Issue

Contents

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR By Irving Marmolejo Editor in Chief

Summer is here, along with another issue from The Pine Curtain. Thanks for your support which gave us several awards on the last TIPA (Texas Intercollegiate Press Association)competition. Among the awards The Pine Curtain received 3rd place in General Magazine Overall Design and honorable mention in General Magazine Overall Excellence. You will find an interesting article about the sport of Falconry. The cover page is just an introduction from our photo story. It is followed by an article about Smith County jail facility expansion in our Special Report. We have an article to help you exercise even after a knee , back or leg injury. Of course, in the arts section , The University of Texas at Tyler shows off work from its student artists. Part of our staff is moving on to new projects, and we want to thank them for their help, support and assistance, we wish them the best. Cover page: Bryan Baker and his hawk , Photo by Irving Marmolejo

2 • The Pine Curtain

NEWS

The first year a school is deemed “academically unacceptable,” the school enters a process with the Texas Education Agency in which they are monitored by outside experts.

T-BONE

ESPECIAL

NEWS

FEATURES

ART

T-BONE

Take your average T-bone steak. Carve away the fat and the bone and the little that remains is meat. Take your average politician. Carve away the bluster and rhetoric and you just may find the truth…or not. In our T-Bone, we’ll look at political quotes that make us wonder where the meat is, closely examine their value and grade them just as a meat inspector might grade cuts of beef: Prime, Choice, Standard or Canner. Then we’ll serve it up to you for your consumption.

In This Issue

REVIEWS Movies: A new species has quietly begun taking over Earth. Before humans realize, they are under peaceful attack, thousands have been taken as hosts for the parasitic aliens. The “souls” come to experience this world and make it better, not change it completely.

SPECIAL REPORT Smith County Sheriff Larry Smith will soon begin recruiting federal inmates to house in the newly expanded county jail facility to pay off the $35 million bond.

THE SPORT OF KINGS

Birds of prey often used for falconry are eagles, hawks, falcons and even owls. These animals are natural killing machines. Falconers share a bond with their bird to improve its hunting skills. Birds of prey are excellent predators.

STAFF Editor-In-Chief

IRVING MARMOLEJO

Managing Editor

HAYLEE STORY

Video Editor

BIANCA SEE

Contributing Writers and photographers ARIANA RILEY KEVIN NGO JENNEE CLAY

JAKE WADDINGHAM

TRAVIS MCMILLAN KAYLEN BURGESS MATTHEW

CRAWFORD HANNAH HERVIEUX TAYLOR VALENTINE

BRADLEY THOMPSON

CHRISTIAN KEITT: SR. NEWS REPORTER

Adviser: DAVE WEINSTOCK Design Advisor: VANESSA JOYNER

Comments or questions can be directed to the.pine.curtain.mag@gmail.com The Pine Curtain Magazine is an online publication created by Communication students at the University of Texas at Tyler. Content may not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission from The Pine Curtain Magazine. ©The Pine Curtain Magazine 2013

June 8, 2013

T-Bone

“How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible,

‘Prime’ Truth: Top shelf—Grade A goodness.

‘Choice’ Truth: Mostly true, depending on the bull it came from.

‘Standard’ Truth: Run of the mill bull—more gristle than fat, less meaty than most.

‘Canner’ Truth: I wouldn’t eat that.

--In an April 9 Senate Education Committee meeting:

“We, in the state of Texas, are 49th in the country in what we are doing to support our per-pupil investment in education.”

--Senator Wendy Davis (D-Texas) According to this year’s report by the National Education Association, Texas spends $8,400 per student based on average daily attendance totals in public schools. Only two states fall behind Texas in education funding per student, Arizona and Utah, spending $7,021 and $8,340 per student, respectively. Including the District of Columbia, this ranking of 49 out of 51 is accurate. If D.C. Isn’t included, Texas ranks 48th. As another tidbit, Texas is also ranked dead last in the percentage of adults with high school diplomas, according to a survey done by the Brookings Institute. Davis knows her stuff, Texas is stingy when it comes to funding education. We give this a Prime grade. 4 • The Pine Curtain

whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?”—

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) The Sign of Four. —In a New York Times article published March 14th:

“Elected officials the last 10 years have put this state [Texas] into debt that will take 30 years to pay off.”” --Senator Kevin Eltife (R- Texas)

—In a statement issued March 22nd regarding the closing of the Tyler Pounds Regional Airport traffic control tower:

“This administration [Federal Aviation Administration] has decided to endanger American lives by shutting down 40 percent of this nation’s towers for ‘budget cutting

--Congressman Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) As part of the $85 billion federal sequester, the FAA cut $637 million from its budget, resulting in many air traffic controller furloughs. In most airports, workers took off one day every other week. Some 149 smaller airports, including Tyler Pounds, were forced to close air traffic control towers completely, due to lack of staffing. The preliminary report called for the closing of 214 towers, which would have been about 41 percent of the 516 in the national system. By the April 7th sequestration implementation, the list of closures had been reduced by 65 towers. Ultimately, only 28 percent of FAA towers were closed. We’d say that this was a statement based on the initial report, but Gohmert’s website acknowledges the final closure figure of 149 totaling 40 percent. He further accuses the Obama administration of using the sequestration as a means to “punish Americans.” It seems Gohmert might be deliberately misrepresenting the facts. We call this a Canner. June 8, 2013

T-Bone

The growing Texas debt is something all Texans need to keep an eye on. It is the third highest state debt in the nation, just behind California and New York, according to a new study by State Budget Solutions. The 2013 budget deficit is estimated to be near $9 billion. According to the Texas State Comptroller’s office, two major sources of debt are infrastructure and bonds for public projects. Until 2001, Texas was a pay-as-you-go state, relying on gas tax receipts to fund road construction. Not anymore. Since then, the debt in road construction alone has grown from zero to $11.9 billion. Public schools are the largest issuer of government debt, accounting for 33 percent of state debt. That figure has quadrupled in the last decade. The current total Texas debt is $287 billion and growing. Thirty years of repayment might be a little conservative, but we get the point: spending is out of control. We call this Prime.

Smith County:

Jail Expansion By Haylee Story

Special Report

Managing Editor

Smith County Sheriff Larry Smith will soon begin recruiting federal inmates to house in the newly expanded county jail facility to pay off the $35 million bond. “I will be reaching out to the federal marshal to house federal inmates here,” Smith said, “it will help to pay down the debt faster.” Construction began in December on the Smith County high-risk jail facility. Once complete, the county can begin filling, then charging rent on excess beds. The expanded jail plan allows for growing room. Any excess cells can be rented out to other counties at full capacity. There are currently only 20 federal inmates in the Smith County jail. After completion, up to 100 federal inmates could be housed there. Since Smith County is home to a federal courthouse, it is an attractive place for housing these inmates. “It is much easier for the feds if they can house their inmates in the same city as the federal courthouse instead of driving all over Texas to speak to them,” Smith County Commissioner Jeff Warr said. Housing federal inmates brings in more revenue for the county than other counties’

6 • The Pine Curtain

having to transport on “ cityNotstreets improves safety for citizens and officers ” inmates. Smith County holds a per diem rent contract with the federal marshals that can be revised once construction is complete. “They pay more for a newer facility and for the convenience of alleviating transportation costs,” Warr said. The County Commissioners Court also agreed to use any revenue made from the new jail addition to pay down the bond debt. Although the bond allows for 30 years of repayment, county officials expect to see the facility paid for in 12. The price tag for the project is 1 cent per $100 property value. An average household can expect to pay about $13 per year for the expansion. Currently, the maximum occupancy for the low and high-risk locations is 755 inmates, but the average prisoner population for the county is approximately 855. There will be 1,139 beds in the new facilities. This will alleviate the expensive overcrowding issue. For the last seven years, Smith County paid $18 million annually to house inmates in excess of capacity out of county.

Moving the kitchen location will lessen risks involved with housing violent inmates in close contact with sharp kitchen utensils. Once these services were moved to their new location in December, construction on the downtown, in-house infirmary began. Until the infirmary is completed, any prisoner medical issues must be treated at a local hospital. Each year, trips to the hospital for non-emergencies cost more than $600,000. “Anything, minor things like insulin shots for diabetic inmates, have to be treated at the hospital,” said Nix. Even though the county has worked out a special rate with local hospitals, the infirmary is expected to save taxpayers millions of dollars. The infirmary will employ a few medical professionals, including a doctor and nurse. There is also the possibility for employment of additional physician assistants or nurse practitioners, depending on need. Sheriff Smith expects to hire 60 to 70 new personnel to accompany the new, larger facilities.

Right: Workers building additional sections for Tyler’s jail. Not only will the expansion save the county money, it will also promote safety.

Photo Irving Marmolejo

June 8, 2013 7

Special Report

Of that $18 million, transportation of inmates alone costs $2.3 million each year. “We’ve been spending tax dollars to ship back and forth from facilities to court instead of just housing them here,” Smith said. Provisions for inmate living are included in the Smith County budget every year, but rather than putting that money back into the county, it has benefitted neighboring counties. “We have actually been paying for other counties’ jails,” said County Commissioner Cary Nix said. The extra space couldn’t come at a better time, as the cost of housing inmates elsewhere is expected to increase.Construction is expected to complete in 2014. Not only will the expansion save the county money, it will also promote safety. Housing all the higher risk inmates in the downtown location provides underground tunnel access to the courthouse for trials. “Not having to transport on city streets improves safety for citizens and officers,” Warr said, “There is less chance of attempted escape.” The county is also taking advantage of newer trends in technology and switching to strictly video visitation privileges. “The new visitation system will cut down on contraband issues,” said Smith.

A F Through By Christian Patterson Contributing Writers

News

Local public school administrators harbor mixed feelings about changes in the Academic Excellence Indicator System(AEIS) to an A through F letter grade system.

This change is a part of House Bill 5, which includes current pieces of legislation containing plans for reduced testing and different graduation plans, according to Karen Raney, director of assessment and accountability for Tyler ISD. While the proposed new system would rate schools with letter grades like A, B, C, D and F, the old system classifies schools as unacceptable, acceptable, recognized or exemplary. The old ratings are determined by criteria like student test scores, high school completion rate and attendance rates for middle schools and elementary schools. Gary Brown, Robert E. Lee High School principal, said he thinks the high school’s label of “unacceptable” is not representative of the entire campus. “The accountability system as it is currently takes the whole school, pulls it apart in as many directions as you can pull it apart, any way you can divide it, they’ll divide it,” Brown said. “In those areas, whatever you score the lowest on, that’s what they give the entire campus.” This system of rating schools does not reflect what is really happening on campus, he said. “If I were to judge a business, I might have four or five criteria I’m going to look at, like the sales, revenue, expenditures, all those things for the whole business,” Brown said. “I wouldn’t find the

8 • The Pine Curtain

very weakest part of the entire business structure and put the label of the whole business on the weakest link.” Both Robert E. Lee and John Tyler high schools are still classified as unacceptable from the 2011 school year. All public schools kept their rating for the past two years while the state’s testing transitioned from one test, the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills or TAKS, to the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness test, or STAAR. Under the old system, the first year a school is deemed “academically unacceptable,” the school enters a process with the Texas Education Agency in

Whether you call it ‘academically “ unacceptable’ or ‘F’, to me that’s the same thing ” which they are monitored by outside experts, said Stacey Sullivan, Henderson Independent School District’s director of communication. “If they’re unacceptable for a second year, then TEA is actually going to come into the school and make recommendations for change,” Sullivan said. “It’s very much an intense procedure if a school becomes unacceptable.”

“Sometimes the public doesn’t understand when we say ‘We have three recognized campuses.’ They’ll say, ‘OK, that’s good,’” Sullivan said. “They don’t really understand that that is a significant achievement.” Everyone understands grades, though, she said. “If you make an A in a class, they know that’s good,” Sullivan said. “If a school has an A rating, you’ll know it’s a good school. If a school gets a C or a D, they’ll know that’s a school that’s not as good as it should be.” Brown said he doubts the new ratings will differ very much from their old counterparts. A through F Continues on pg 39

June 8, 2013

News

The new system will include similar state sanctions and interventions for underachieving schools, Raney said. “All of the sanctions drive different levels of campus planning,” Raney said. “The first year, you’ll rewrite your campus plan to address the areas where you were deficient.” The second year a school receives a failing grade; the state will monitor that plan and offer technical support personnel to help with those interventions. “You just progressively get more help,” Raney said. Schools should receive their new ratings under the A through F system sometime during the summer of 2014, Sullivan said. “All of that is still a little up in the air because the legislature is still making changes to both the testing system and the new ratings system,” she said. If and when the new system is approved, Raney said the new A through F rating system will feature four different areas of criteria. These four areas include improvement, student achievement, closing the achievement gap between students and college readiness measures like high school graduation, type of graduation plan and meeting college-ready standards on tests. “The index system which we’re going to be rated on is much improved because we’re getting credit for student growth, but slapping an A through F rating on it is really sad,” Raney says. Raney served on a state committee that did not recommend the A through F rating system. Instead, they suggested labels she said they thought were more “descriptive” than a letter system. “We recommended something like ‘exceeds expectations,’ ‘met expectations,’ ‘progressing, ” she said. “We’re adamant that our system would be a more positive approach than an A through F system.” However, Sullivan said she thinks the general public will better understand the new A through F rating system.

Teachers’ $alaries By Haylee Story

News

Managing Editor

School Board members at Henderson ISD began discussing a preliminary 2013-2014 school year budget that would include increasing teacher salaries in their April meeting. With the Texas Legislature currently in session, the board is unsure of what finances coming from the state will look like, but are expecting more revenue because student enrollment is up. “We’ll know more in a couple of weeks with kindergarten registration, but the last few years those classes have had 300 kids, said Keith Boles, Henderson ISD superintendent. Senior graduating classes average around 200 graduates, so with those leaving the district, and new students coming in, enrollment should be up by 100 students. “There is no doubt we’ll have more state revenue next year for enrollment, probably close to $500,000,” Boles said. The board plans to use that added revenue to pad the district’s 250 teacher salaries, in hopes of offsetting increasing health insurance costs. “We’ve been looking at teacher salaries and how the healthcare increases are impacting them,” said Boles. “We want them to know we’re taking care of them.” Besides healthcare costs, the board wants to make their offered salaries more competitive with the region as the district hires, and teacher contracts are renegotiated at the end of the year. “We need to do this now because we’re in the middle of hiring, and they want to know what they’ll be making,” Boles said. “We don’t want them 10 • The Pine Curtain

looking elsewhere.” The board voted to add $1,250 annually to teachers with work experience of zero to 15 years and $1,000 annually for experience of more than 15 years, plus. Teacher salary increases will cost the district $293,000. The regional median income for teachers is $45,038. These increases would put Henderson ISD teachers right at, or slightly above that number. The Henderson ISD salary schedule works in steps. With each year of experience, teachers gain more income, and certain milestone years offer higher bonuses. “In the steps, we take care of those with more experience with competitive rates,” said Boles “Where we’re looking at is taking better care of newer teachers.” “Right now, when we’re at a job fair, we’re at the low end, so I have to use other things to entice new teachers,” Stacey Sullivan said , district director of human resources. Sullivan has found it difficult to recruit new teachers for more specialized classes becauseof low salaries. “Usually, in classes like high school math and science, they are new teachers. Most new hires are in the zero to 15 year range,” said Sullivan. “They have demands, and I can’t get them in those classes.” Though the board unanimously agreed teachers deserve salary increases, some felt the discrepancy in raises correlating to years of experience was unfair. “A teacher with 15 years of experience still has bills, they deserve the same as everyone else,” board member Jon Johnston said. Johnston feels that promoting longevity is crucial because teachers with more experience tend to have families and are less mobile. If they begin to feel unsatisfied with their salary,

News

they may look elsewhere for employment. “Fifteen-year teachers are more likely to stay, and we want them to,” Johnston said. “We need to take care of them.” Ultimately, the board would prefer to give equal raises for all teachers, but it is dependent on unknown state funding. “It’s tough to try to figure out costs when you don’t know how much you can spend,” said Jamey Holmes, board member. Along with these increases, the board reserved the option to add the additional $250 to the more experienced teachers’ salaries over the summer, when state funding is more certain. If this additional salary increase is approved, it will cost another $25,000 in the district’s budget. “We know it will cost, but, if possible, we want everyone to be treated the same,” said Johnston. The board will discuss salary increases for administration and other staff at a future meeting.

Take a glimpse into the world,

We are your window. June 8, 2013

The Tomato City: By Haylee Story

News

Managing Editor

In a March 4th meeting, members of the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce presented local business owners their vision for rebranding and beautifying the downtown area. “We want to get locals to be tourists in their own city,” said Kathleen Stanfill, chamber membership development chairwoman. The initiative began after Chamber members watched a video presentation by Destination Development International called “The 20 Ingredients of an Outstanding Downtown.” DDI surveyed 400 successful downtown areas nationwide and compiled the characteristics they share.

“

Everyone decorates their own[tomato], they all look different, but they create a sense of unity

”

According to DDI, there are more than twice as many vacancies in downtowns than in neighborhood retail areas, nationwide. The Jacksonville Chamber of commerce wants to make sure their downtown does not join that statistic. They have since shown the video to merchants in the downtown area, and plan to share with all parties involved in bringing downtown back to life. “The first meeting really sparked interest and got the business owners talking,” said Peggy Ren12 • The Pine Curtain

fro, chamber president. The chamber hopes the revitalization efforts will promote networking between merchants and bring in locals first, then tourists. The added traffic downtown will be good for business all around. “Even the businesses that aren’t open on weekends will benefit from people hanging out on the weekends,” Debbie Kerzee, owner of Kerzee Insurance said “If people see your sign, it’s advertising.” The city’s annual Tomato Fest brings in the most tourism all year. For years, Jacksonville’s notability stemmed from the city’s love affair with tomatoes. It boasts the world’s largest bowl of salsa and a football arena dedicated to its favorite fruit. This year, chamber members hope tourists attending the festival will be enticed to return to Jacksonville more frequently after seeing the downtown area improvements. Now that business owners are engaged in the project, the next step is broadening the base of supporters. “The next luncheon will hopefully be emceed by a local realtor for the property owners,” said Stanfill, “a realtor can pinpoint specific value a downtown revitalization would have for their properties.” After that, meetings with the city officials will be held. “The city meetings will hold more educational opportunities for what businesses can do with their properties,” said Renfro. Current city codes will be addressed, as well as reviewing ordinances that might hinder the development of the area for possible adjustments.

Jacksonville

News

One ordinance business owners have shown interest in modifying deals with outdoor dining. “If you want to get people downtown, you need to offer more things, like cafes and restaurants with patios,” said Kerzee. For now, the focus is largely beautification. “We’re trying to find ways within the city bylaws to keep Jacksonville beautiful,” said Kerzee. Keeping with the famed Jacksonville tomato theme, many merchants are placing concrete tomatoes outside their shops. “Everyone decorates their own, they all look different, but they create a sense of unity,” said Kerzee. The Keep Jacksonville Beautiful organization is also ramping up efforts to recruit volunteers to clean up trash around town. Extra trash receptacles have been added downtown to eliminate any littering problems. Currently, there is no concrete timeline for the project. “Once we meet again with the business owners, we’ll have a better idea of the direction they want to go,” said Renfro. Some goals will be short-term, others may take longer if the changes are dependent on updates to city codes. “It’s about an attitude,” said Stanfill, “We know if locals won’t hang out in their own downtown, neither will visitors.”

Jacksonville website courtesy pictures

June 8, 2013

The Host

Movie Review

Following the massive success of the first three installments of the “Twilight” series, New York Times best selling author Stephenie Meyer wanted to try something new. For her latest story, she segued into science-fiction, rather than dealing in supernatural beings. It took Meyer a year to write “The Host.” She started the story while editing the third “Twilight” book, “Eclipse.” On May 6, 2008, “The Host” was released as an adult sci-fi novel by Little, Brown and Co., a division of Hachette Book Group USA. The book was a no.1 New York Times best seller and topped the chart for 26 weeks. In September 2009, Meyer got a movie deal. Production began, and the film was set to debut on March 29, 2013. After seeing trailers for “The Host,” I was intrigued. The novel’s plot had never interested me before, but due to some clever marketing, I reconsidered. A new species has quietly begun taking over Earth. Before humans realize they are under attack, thousands have been taken as hosts for the parasitic aliens. The “souls” come to experience this world and make it better, not change it completely. Melanie Stryder is part of the human resistance and has gone into hiding with her brother and boyfriend. While on excursion, she is taken by the souls. Wanderer is the soul implanted into the girl’s body. She has traveled to many worlds, but is not prepared to experience human emotions, and Melanie just won’t go away. She is

flooded by Melanie’s memories and develops feelings for the humans she has never met. Sharing a body, Wanderer and Melanie set off to find the humans. Their journey together is dangerous and brings about understanding to each of the body’s inhabitants. The alien species believe themselves to be the saviors of entire worlds. They look at the war and destruction of Earth caused by humans and see them as an ugly, wasteful species. Because of this, the souls take possession of the host bodies completely. Wanderer even feels Melanie “should have better sense than to linger this way.” Moments like this get under the viewers’s skin.

By Haylee Story

Opinion

Managing Editor

14 • The Pine Curtain

The Host Continues on pg 35

Courtesy Picture by Wikipedia

There are no

Boring days,

just days with-

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Features

Anti-Gravity

Treadmill Treadmill

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Whether it is an Olympic runner or an obese patient looking for a way to ease the pain of exercise, AlterG is a great option By Jake Waddingham & Brad Thompson Contributing Writers

I have used it for a variety of injury recoveries

”

The AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill offers the truest running simulation and allows Leptich to train for her specific sport. “I have used it for a variety of injury recoveries,” Leptich said. “The AlterG is great for continuing your training while healing an injury.”

Anti-Gravity Continues on pg 34 June 8, 2013

Features

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On the track at the regional meet in Michigan, senior Alexandra Leptich broke the tape after eight laps to win the 3,200 meter run. The victory secured her spot in Saline High School history, and helped propel the team to a regional championship and a chance for Leptich to compete at the state meet. After high school, she went to run for the maize and blue of the University of Michigan, only 10 miles from her home. She enrolled in the school of kinesiology to study movement science. This season, Leptich redshirted for the Wolverines to save her eligibilty for future competition. Throughout Leptich’s running career, she has been plagued with injuries. From hairline fractures to tendonitis in her knee, she continually seeks ways to train through the pain. She tried water workouts and other cross training exercises, but now Leptich defies gravity when she runs.

Developed by NASA technology for rehabilitation, the anti-gravity treadmill allows the user to continue exercising at a set percentage of their body weight. Using air pressure as a lifting force, the treadmill suspends the user above the running surface. It can take up to 80 percent of total weight off of the legs, allowing for ultra-low impact. Runner’s World editor-at-large and winner of the Boston Marathon, Amby Burfoot said in a column, “The AlterG is the most significant advance in training equipment for distance runners in the last half century.” The AlterG allows athletes to continue running at a normal gait without the resistance of water or elastic bands. It is also adjustable to run backward and allow lateral movement. Dr. Cathy Fieseler, director of sports medicine at Mother Frances Hospital in Tyler, Texas, said allowing recovery from all the pounding that running causes is beneficial. “Specificity of training is so important,” Fieseler said. “To improve in running, you have to run. That is why we are always looking for a good alternative when people are injured.” Whether it is an Olympic runner at the Nike Oregon Project or an obese patient looking for a way to ease the pain of exercise, AlterG has a two options for training. AlterG’s two varieties of anti-gravity treadmills are based on athletic injury recovery and medical rehabilitation. The machine elevates to a 15 percent incline to

Organ Transplant

Features

Alternatives

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Right now we have more than 200 people on our transplant list. They may wait years, many people die, waiting on it

18 • The Pine Curtain

”

By Bianca See & Travis McMillan Contributing Writers

The process

Organs for transplantation come from two main sources: living donors and cadaverous, or dead donors. There are many tests required for any potential organ donor— seven or eight depending on the sex and age of the donor and the organ being donated. Blood typing determines how well-matched a prospective organ recipient is to the person getting the organ. “You do have to be ABO compatible,” Oden said. “Your blood type has to be compatible, but it doesn’t mean it has to be the same.” Crossmatching is a blood test that tells if an organ recipient’s blood is compatible with the blood type June 8, 2013

Features

Life on the donor transplant list is not easy. The list is long, and patients wait, becoming more desperate to get that life saving call each day. There are more than 3 million registered organ donors in Texas, about one person for every 100 who live in the United States, according to Donate Life Texas. Nearly 117,000 people in America, including children, need life-saving organ transplants. “There’s almost 100,000 people in the United States that need a kidney transplant,” said Billie Oden, East Texas Medical Center organ transplant coordinator and registered nurse. While almost everyone has heard of organ transplantation, the process is a mystery. What happens when someone needs an organ? Usually, organ transplants are last resort procedures. Nurse Jennifer Mills, of Castle Rock, Colo., describes it as, “very, very dangerous.” That is why doctors and patients tend to explore other curative routes before opting for a transplant.

of the organ donor. A positive match means the organ will be rejected by the blood stream, while a negative match for the organ means the recipient body will not have a problem accepting and growing the organ. Antibody screens are done to make sure the organ will not be rejected by the recipient’s immune system, something that happens even with properly matched organs. Oden explains the more exact science of matching organs with compatible recipients. “There are six antigens. We say it’s kind of like playing the lottery,” she says. “You’ve got six

Features

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the social worker does from the neck up,” said Oden. “We make sure they have a clear understanding of what they’re asking to do.” Once a donor organ and its recipient are matched, they are given the same United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) number. This number ensures the correct patient is receiving the correct organ. “This number is very important,” said Nurse Erika Silverman of Tyler. “It lets us know that no matter how far that organ has travelled to meet its matching patient, it is the correct organ and all the tests have been done to make the surgery and post-op recovery successful.”

In order to be an organ donor after death, a person has to die in a hospital on a ventilator,

numbers and I’ve got six numbers and if all six numbers match, that’s called a zero mismatch,” she explains. “It’s rare to get one of those, usually if you can match two or three of them, that’s pretty good. With immunosuppression the way it is now, really you don’t have to have any of those markers match.” Tissue-typing looks at the white blood cells of the organ to match six specific genetic codes on the donor and recipient’s cells. Urine tests, X-rays, and arteriograms are also performed. Arteriograms take X-ray views of the blood vessels in an organ to make sure it will receive proper circulation once it is transplanted. Finally, donors undergo psychiatric tests, catalog any family history of disease and patient fitness and a final blood test before surgery. Programs like the one at ETMC use social workers to establish both recipients and donor’s psychological standing. “As the nurses we test from the neck down and 20 • The Pine Curtain

The organs

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Many people have a fear of signing up as an organ donor because of the myth that a doctor will not work as hard to save them or simply let them die because they are an organ donor. Oden dismisses this misconception. “We never want anyone to die. It’s not like somebody in a motor vehicle accident is automatically an organ donor,” she says. “It has to be under very controlled circumstances where this individual is kept alive with a ventilator so the organs are kept alive, even though they may be brain dead.” The removal process of all the organs following the death of the donor is known as organ harvesting. The organs are bagged, put on ice and then sent out to the recipients who need them. Organs like the pancreas, both lungs at the same time, the small intestine and the heart can be donated safely hours after death, but not much longer. Hearts and lungs need to be transplanted within

four to six hours of death. Livers get about eight to 10 hours and pancreases last about 15 hours. Not all organ donations are given by the deceased. Kidneys come in pairs, and the average person only needs one, so they often come from living donors. Livers, while extremely important to living donors, can grow back when they are cut from or sectioned off. Single lung transplants from living donors are rare, but they do happen. Kidneys last the longest. An iced kidney can be transplanted 24–36 hours after recovery. And organ donation is not limited to insides. Bones, skin, cartilage, tendons and corneas can be given as transplants after death as well, but these tissues are only viable about 24 hours after death or donation.

The problem

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As of October 2011, there are 100 million living organ donors in the United States, about 43 percent of the adult population. Despite the large amount of people volunteering for organ donation, there is a grave shortage of viable organs, even in the East Texas area. “Right now we have right at 200 people on our transplant list,” Oden said. “Each one is waiting for that phone call. They may wait years, many people die waiting on it.” According to Donate Life America, every 10 minutes another name is added to the national organ transplant list. An average of 18 people die annually because they are not able to receive an organ donation in time. There are many reasons for this. One is there are simply not enough people willing to donate their organs, and too many people who need them. This is worsened by the fact that many of the organs transplanted come from the deceased, which is far less convenient for those in need of donations. “In order to be an organ donor after death, a person has to die in a hospital on a ventilator,” said Pam Silvestri, spokesperson for the Southwest Tissue Alliance.

“Less than two percent of deaths occur under those circumstances, so the number of people who can be donors is very small," she said. The other reasons for the lack of available organs and tissues lie with living potential donors as well. "Too many people in the United States don’t take good care of their health,” Silvestri explained. “Type II Diabetes is exploding in our country and most of the people on the wait list need kidneys.” Another reason for this is money. Surgeries are expensive without insurance, as is the treatment and medication needed to stay alive to receive an organ transplant. Oden said the price of the surgery and resulting care vary depending on the patient and their insurance. “Probably 80 percent of the people transplanted Donor Continues on pg 36

June 8, 2013

By Irving Marmolejo

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Editor in Chief

In a regular work day for Bryan Baker, department chair of Skill Training Center, teaches and looks over the welding students at Tyler Junior College. On Sunday he attends Colonial Hills Baptist Church where Robert Carter is the senior pastor of the congregation. They both share the same hobby. Today, they are heading to the forest to practice the sport they both enjoy, falconry. Birds of prey often used for falconry are eagles, hawks, falcons and even owls. These animals are natural killing machines. Falconers share a bond with their bird to improve its hunting skills. Birds of prey share physical characteristics which make them excellent predators. “Falconry is the art or sport of hunting and catching wild game with raptors,” said Pastor Carter. Their eyesight is several times more accurate than that of a human being which gives them the advantage of surprise. Its talons have four sharp claws used to catch and control. They have a strong beak which falcons use to cut important nerves and finish its prey. Such lethal weapons are used with incredible speed and intelligence. “The bird is not dependent on me at all. The bird is a very capable hunter especially if you had the bird for few years,” Baker said.

22 • The Pine Curtain

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Falconry is the art or sport of hunting and catching wild game with raptors

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Photos and design by Irving Marmolejo

June 8, 2013

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With two decades of experience Baker recently captured a red tail hawk on December 25. His daughter called it Angel. He goes deep into the woods looking for squirrels. Today, Carter and Baker brought their two hawks which will be hunting at the field on separate times. Angel is the first hunter. Trainer and bird work together. The hawk gets on a high position to scan the trees for any movement. Down on the ground the trainer hits the trees on a perimeter around the bird. If a curious squirrel comes out the hawk will notice it first and patiently wait for the right moment to strike. “That animal is driven to catch and the one being chased is driven to flee and get away . It is really a life and death kind of thing. It happens all the time,” said Carter. Squirrels are smart and fast. Their knowledge of the terrain is used to their advantage. Despite their inoffensive appearance they are vicious and aggressive. “They have incredible strength in their jaws and very sharp teeth so they bite and they bite the hawk but hawks learn how to handle them.

24 • The Pine Curtain

They bite severely, they could bite a toe off but the hawk learns how to handle it,” said Carter. Any animal will use its claws or sharp teeth to fight for its life. On top of some bushes and vines Baker’s hawk, Angel, engaged in a hostile fight with a raccoon. On situations like this falconers cannot interfere. The hawk’s experience helped it to finish a fight with a bigger animal uninjured.

Become a Falconer The Texas Parks and Wildlife regulates falconry in the state, but falconers are require to have a federal and state permit. Obtaining a falconry license in the United States requires an aspiring falconer to pass a written test, have equipment and facilities inspected, and serve a minimum of two years as an apprentice under a licensed falconer. After meeting all the requirements the aspiring falconer is allowed to capture a falcon or a hawk. “We use different types of traps and we have a prey. It is used to lure them in and they get caught in the trap,” Baker said. “We put a hood on them to calm them down. That begins the process of taming them down and getting them calm,” Carter said. Visit www.texashawking.org for more info.

“So we actually take them out and release them. They fly just like they do in the wild. They hunt so we are basically taking a bird of prey and forming a bond with it. We are not training it to do anything that doesn’t come natural to it,” said Baker. Mr. Baker is aware of the possibility of losing his bird while hunting. Sometimes his hawk will get ahead of him while going after its prey. That is why he, like many other falconers, uses radio telemetry, a modern radio transmitter attached to its bird.

“ They could bite a toe

off but the hawk learns how to handle it ”

Photos by Irving Marmolejo

June 8, 2013

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“Telemetry enables us to track our birds so we can keep up with them and therefore we don’t lose them really often and the birds wear a hood to keep them calm when they are not hunting and when they are not in their muse, in their house,” said Carter. Carter has practiced falconry, flying falcons and hawks, for more than a decade. Carter presents to others falconry using it to share spiritual lessons of life. He preaches the message of salvation through Jesus Christ, know to Christians as the King of Kings while explaining what was known as the sport of kings. Carters hawk’s name is Rodeo. In the forest, he hunts with his red tail hawk who patiently waits on a top of a tree. Sometimes hawks will attack to push its prey in a certain direction working strategically to finally launch its fatal blow. “Honestly that is kind of what we do in falconry we are watching. It is an exciting thing to see and to watch and to experience,” Baker said.

Once the hawk catches its prey its talons search for a soft tissue on the head where they apply an incredible pressure reaching the brain which immediately kills its prey. Carter and Baker were attracted to birds of prey and falconry since an early age. They know that the main purpose of falconry is the preservation of birds of prey. The pilgrim falcon’s population was removed in many parts of the United States as a result of pesticides. Falconry played an important role bringing the species to stability and it continues to help the protection of wildlife. “I released birds in the past and re-trapped new ones,” Baker said. Birds of prey have to be captured before they are sexually mature. It is because birds of prey are very territorial and become aggressive around their nest area. This year some hawks decided to make their nest on top of the University of Texas at Tyler cafeteria. Male and Female hawks cater and take care of the eggs together. Around April eggs hatch. Some species of hawks tend to have the same mating partner their whole life. The admiration of birds of prey is depicted as a sign of power and strength over the ages. The Mexican flag on its coat of arms is represented with a golden eagle perched upon a cactus eating a snake. The great seal of the United States has a bald eagle holding arrows and an olive branch. Many falconers describe their role as nature watchers, those who look at nature unfolded, cruel for some, beautiful for others, but at the end naturally balanced. “Sometimes we don’t like to think about it, but it is really the way it is. For you to live, something is going to die,” Carter said.

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Below: Baker checking his bird’s talons after a fight with a raccoon. Left: Carter searching for a good hunting spot for his bird, Rodeo.

26 • The Pine Curtain

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Above: A falcon protects its prey Far Top Right: Bryan Baker puts a hood on his hawk’s head after hunting to keep him calm. Top Right: The serial number on the hawk’s talon is use to identify birds of prey used for hunting. Right: Bells are attached to the hawk’s talon follow the bird by sound while hunting. Below: Baker uses a whistle to call back his bird. Right Below: A hawk patiently scans the trees for any movement.

June 8, 2013

eye sight: up to 8 times better than that of humans strong Beak:designed for tearing strips of flesh from prey.

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well camouflaged: an overall brown appearance with varying amounts of stripping below.

The lifespan of red-tailed hawls is about 13 to 20 years in the wild.

hawkS can dive at speeds that can reach up to 180 mph.

Powerful Talon: crushing pressure of almost 200 pounds per square inch.

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Far Below: Pastor Carter holding his bird’s prey. Right Below: A falcon stares curiously at the camera. Left Below: A pilgrim falcon waits for its meal in its big muze (house). Right: Angel taking a break after chasing prey. Middle Right Carter teaches young students the basics of falconry. Right Low Corner: Bryan’s hawk, Angel, is going after a squirrel.

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Sometimes we don’t like to think about it, but it is really the way it is. For you to live something is going to die

June 8, 2013

Luscious Crumb By Matthew Crawford & Kevin Ngo

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Contributing Writers

As fresh pastries leave the oven, skilled hands at The Luscious Crumb bakery in Mineola, Texas gently layer cookies with light blue frosting for a local event. Dawn Trammell, owner of The Luscious Crumb, began baking when her wedding cake was not delivered to her reception. After that disappointment, she wanted to ensure her friends and family would have a dependable baker for special event desserts. Word spread about the quality of her cakes, and soon, Trammell’s clientele grew. By using high quality ingredients instead of focusing on cost, Trammell believes the baked goods at The Luscious Crumb are tastier than most. “We spend a lot more on our ingredients than most bakeries do. That’s one reason why we are a little more expensive as far as our retail price goes,” Trammell said. “A lot of bakeries don’t even bake their own cakes, they get them in frozen. We make everything fresh here,” Trammell said. “All of our frosting and fillings are made from scratch, our frosts and butter are made from real cream.” The Luscious Crumb makes each cake different from the previous with a unique style and form. “Some people will come in and say ‘I want that 30 • The Pine Curtain

exactly the way it is’, and of course we won’t turn them away. We’ll make it, but we always try to put a different twist on everything,” Heather Trammell said, the owner’s daughther and a baker at The Luscious Crumb. “We don’t want someone to have the exact same cake that someone else had,” Trammell said. The Luscious Crumb specializes in making 3-D cakes in various shapes and sizes. The cakes can be anything from a Barbie Doll’s dress, to a shoe or even a favorite sports team’s mascot. Because of Trammell’s high standard of originality for specialized desserts, the prices for these 3-D cakes can be high. Prices begin at $150 and increase according to individual cake intricacies. The cake-making process is time consuming. Mixing ingredients takes time, and crafting 3-D cakes can become an all-day event. “We’ve spent days on cakes before, branching out in different directions. One time, we worked on a cake for eight hours straight,” Trammell said. The Luscious Crumb has a wide variety of products, not only in types of desserts but also with each individual item. “We have more than 80 different cupcake flavors,” Trammell said.

“ I have not borrowed a penny to

[operate] this business. I pulled some money out of savings to get started ” The Luscious Crumb also sells products that are not their own. Sheila Parker, the Mineola Mercantile owner, makes fried pies that she sold before The Luscious Crumb relocated. As a joint operation, The Luscious Crumb shares the rent for the store and gives profits for the fried pies back to Parker. Trammell knows the importance of staying in touch with her clients, and she relies on social media to keep her clients informed. “We post on our Facebook several times a week, and when we have lots of things going on, sometimes we post two or three times a day,” Trammell said. Baking is a detailed process that takes a lot of practice and patience to absorb. The staff of The Luscious Crumb enjoys their craft and has taken the time to grow and perfect their abilities. “Once you learn how to do it, it takes a lot of patience, but when you learn that patience, it’s fun,” Trammell said.

June 8, 2013

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October and May are The Luscious Crumb’s peak months for sales. They are the top months for weddings. Last year, The Luscious Crumb baked cakes for nine weddings in May, followed by 11 weddings in October 2012. Trammell’s wedding cakes were originally listed between $900 and $1200, but prices were reduced due to the current economic hard times. Wedding cakes now average between $400 and $600. Unlike many other new businesses, The Luscious Crumb started without using any business loans. “I have not borrowed a penny to [operate] this business. I pulled some money out of savings to get started,” Trammell said. Trammell originally started a bakery in Gainesville, Texas, but after two years the store went under. She opened a second store in Lindale, Texas, but after realizing most of her clientele came from Mineola, she moved her business downtown there. The Luscious Crumb is now located in the Mineola Mercantile on Broad Street. Working jointly with the Mineola Mercantile,

Right: Title: Recurrence Name of Artist: Z. Miles Mayfield

Art + Life

Below: Title: Fenced Name of Artist: Z. Miles Mayfield

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Ceramic and Ceramic Mix Media

The University of Texas at Tyler Art Department presents the exhibition Ceramic and Ceramic mix Media. This is some of the artwork that represented UTTyler in Houston. This is affiliated with NCECA (The National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts).

Left: Title: SEDIMENT Name of Artist: Z. Miles Mayfield

Above: Title: Recurrence Name of Artist: Z. Miles Mayfield

Art + Life

Right: Title: Pins Name of Artist: Tonya Shanholtz

June 8, 2013 33

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Anti-Gravity page 17

simulate hills, reaching 18 mph and allows lateral movement for exercise drills. “Endurance athletes typically enjoy the AlterG Pro model more because the max speed in forward and reverse is a lot higher,” AlterG sales representative, Kerri Bauer said. Leptich’s teammate Becca Addison said the AlterG has helped a lot of other runners on the team get back into shape earlier because they could run sooner with less impact. Besides the University of Michigan, many other college and professional teams take advantage of minimal impact training. The Los Angeles Lakers, Baltimore Ravens, Chicago Bulls and the U.S. Olympic Training Center all use AlterG technology. Running legend and coach of the Nike Oregon Project, Alberto Salazar said in a Runner’s World article that runners can add up to 25 percent more miles to their workouts thanks to the AlterG. For medical teams, the AlterG M300 has a maximum speed of 12 mph and a reverse option of 3 mph. It can also be raised to a 15 percent incline. Fieseler said this option could be encouraging for patients who struggle with weight. By reducing their impact, they can exercise with less pain and stress to their joints. As an example, Fieseler used a diabetic patient with severe neuropathy. The condition causes the sensations in the nerves to stop reacting. The AlterG would allow the patient to not feel overwhelmed by the physical action because of the relief the anti-gravity treadmill allows during a weight-bearing exercise. “This is an intriguing device,” Fieseler said. “It would be a pretty awesome tool to start an exercise 34 • The Pine Curtain

program that would otherwise be dangerous to a patient with this disability.” Because users are suspended above the treadmill belt, patients with vision trouble or severe arthritis can exercise without the aid of a spotter. This gives a patient a better feeling of free movement that cannot be duplicated. For programs like Salazar’s runners or the Los Angeles Lakers, cost is not a problem, but for the recreational runner, the anti-gravity treadmill carries a heavy price tag. The new medical model M300 can range from $24,000 to $27,000. The AlterG Pro model jumps up to $75,000. Fiesler said one option to reduce the cost for a university or gym would be charging individuals a fee to rent the machine for a block of time. “Someone who was recovering from an injury and cannot adequately train would benefit from an option like this,” Fiesler said.

Photo by Jake Waddingham

Above: Jason Hamilton, a UTTyler student, during a demostration of the Alterlter G .

Host page 14

It’s a bit enraging to think of a body snatcher having the “right” to a body, while its owner is held prisoner in the mind. Shouldn’t the parasites have better sense than to just expect compliance? But this is Wanderer’s story, and although she is an intruder, I grew to love her. Wanderer is charged with finding Melanie’s family and turning them in to be implanted with souls. Usually, when a soul is implanted into a host, the soul chooses to reunite with the body’s former companions. It makes readers wonder if the souls are really as in control of their hosts as they believe themselves to be. Weaved throughout the journey are stories of the many other worlds Wanderer has lived in. They have names like “See Weeds,” “Spiders,” “Bears” and “Flower Eaters.” Diving into another world is part of the expected adventure of a sci-fi novel, but Meyers’ worlds are half-hatched. When Wanderer tells her stories, they remain too abstract to clearly imagine. The word associations of everyday plants and animals used for foreign species

if used correctly. Bauer said the AlterG team has sales representatives across the country specializing in medical, athletic and military training information. They also have an international team working to globalize the use of the product. Today, the AlterG is helping teams like Michigan reach new heights. This season the team finished fifth overall at the national competition in Kentucky. Training is already underway for the 2013 track season and Leptich and the Wolverines will be looking to defy the odds and gravity with the aid of their antigravity treadmill.

forces the reader to first imagine the word used, then reshape the image as further described. It makes for a very muddy picture. It seemed that Meyers had an idea for a story with two minds sharing one body, and used the science-fiction genre to flesh it out. Instead of listing so many far-off planets with vague descriptions, she should have stuck to one and really given it life. Meyers’ strength lies in her ability to capture the true vulnerabilities of human emotion— even through the lens of an alien species. For as cruel and barbaric as the human race can be, the kind and hopeful human spirit reveals itself— even to an alien parasite occupying the body of a fellow human. Meyers’ ultimate success was crafting two characters, seemingly at odds, yet not requiring readers to choose a side. I felt sad for the capture of Melanie’s body, but also sympathetic to Wanderer’s perspective. Ultimately, it is not the next literary masterpiece. At times it was underdeveloped, but the heart of the story is very human. I’m glad I reconsidered.

June 8, 2013

Opinion

She also said the mechanics of running on the anti-gravity treadmill are better than trying to run in a pool. While the resistance of the water is a good cross training exercise, movement requires a scissor-kick motion instead of a true running form. Leptich said using the AlterG every day can have negative effects as well. The suspension can cause hip and lower back pain. Teammate Lindsey Hilton enjoys feeling lighter and faster, but feels like her upper body form is off when running on it. “It makes you run weird because you have to hold your arms higher.” Despite these minor hassles, the Michigan runners and Fiesler said the anti-gravity treadmill is critical for rehabilitation and performance enhancement

Donor page 21 have Medicare and some have private insurance,” she explains. “There is a certain cost that is Medicare allowable, but it is a little different with each person. It can be quite expensive depending on how long you stay in the hospital.”

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Organ alternatives

To solve this problem, doctors and research scientists have spent years working on alternatives to the traditional organ transplant. Over time, science has produced many feasible solutions to the organ supply problem. One alternative is organ donation from animals, called xenotransplantation. The early experiments regarding animal-to-human organ transplant yielded poor results, as the human body’s immune system would reject the transplanted animal organ. In Oden’s experience, she has not seen or heard of this being a successful treatment. “They have such a problem with your immune system when you are talking about a xenotransplant, getting a kidney from a pig or something like that,” she says. “We just have a ways to go before that can be successful.” Over time however, scientists found a connection between pigs and other animals that opened up some possibilities.

36 • The Pine Curtain

Researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the University of Minnesota and the Mayo Clinic conducted a series of similar experiments that transplanted insulin-producing cells from pigs into monkeys with diabetes. After 100 days, the diabetes was reversed. Unfortunately for humans, dangerously large doses of "immunosuppressants", or drugs that slow the function of the immune system, were needed to stop the monkeys' immune system from rejecting the pig islet cells. But recently, experiments at the Shanghai Institute of Immunology at the Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine in Shanghai, China have shown that genetically manipulating organ tissue from pigs provided transplant material that could be used in humans. More research is needed, but these trials could lead to genetically engineered animals producing organs for human transplant. Tissue development from stem cells is seen as a potential area for vast advancements in the area of growing new organs that are 100 percent human. The process for organ screening would be much like today’s, except the organs would be grown healthy and to a specific blood or tissue type. Stem cell research is controversial because the most successful types of stem cells are embryonic stem cells, which are found in fetuses. The ethics of taking stem cells from aborted fetuses or creating stem cells with fertilized eggs is still being debated.

A through F 9 Everyone understands grades, though, she said. “If you make an A in a class, they know that’s good,” Sullivan said. “If a school has an A rating, you’ll know it’s a good school. If a school gets a C or a D, they’ll know that’s a school that’s not as good as it should be.” Brown said he doubts the new ratings will differ very much from their old counterparts. “I think it’s calling the same thing different names,” he said. “Whether you call it ‘academically unacceptable’ or ‘F’, to me that’s the same thing.” Brown said once administrators get more infor-

Artificial organs, which could potentially be a branch off of stem cell research, are still in the highly theoretical and experimental stage. There is more to discover about organ function and reproducibility before science gives us bio-synthetic organs.

The future

One thing is certain, the list of people needing organs is growing, and the best way we currently have to fill that need is volunteer donors. Donate Life America projects another 20 million people will register to become organ donors by the end of this year. Silverman encourages people to sign up for organ donation. “Whether you are able to donate a kidney or other organ while living, or if you sign up to have your organs harvested after your death, every little bit helps!” for more information about organ donations or transplants, go. You register to become an organ donor at https://www.donatelifetexas.org/.

mation about the state’s rating criteria, they will be able to better judge the effectiveness of the new rating system. “I think many of us will be able to make a more valued judgment as to whether this is moving in a positive direction, whether this system will be more representative, or whether it’s the same old situation we’ve been dealing with just with a different name and a new face,” Brown said.

June 8, 2013

News

There is another source of stem cells in humans, though. It is in found in the umbilical cord blood of newborn babies. Recent experiments have shown that stem cells in the umbilical cord blood can be reprogrammed to be embryonic stem cells. The University of Iowa and the Iowa City Veterans Affairs Medical Center found that embryonic stem cells could also help reduce the chances of transplant rejection in patients. Not all stem cells come from embryos. “We all have our own stem cells in our own body that can be utilized for different things,” said Oden. With advances in this area of stem cell research for adult bodies, there is hope that one day doctors will be able to grow new organs from stem cells. By doing this doctors would be able to get around the biggest issue in organ transplants, the immunosuppressant drugs required so the body will not reject the donated organ. The work with stem cells and lab-grown human tissue is still in its early stages but there have been some very promising signs for success.

Photo by Irving Marmolejo

June

Cascada de Agua Azu, Chiapas, Mexico

Photo by Irving Marmolejo

July

Isla Mujeres, Cancun, QuintanaRoo , Mexico

Photo by Irving Marmolejo

August

Palenque, Chiapas, Mexico

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; his love endures forever. Psalm 107:1