Volume XCII
THE PINE NEEDLE St. Christopher’s School, Richmond, Virginia, December 2006
John Green, running machine English teacher takes running passion to extremes
by Peter Thomas ’07
While you might have stopped at 30 candles, John Green went ahead and did it in miles. Back on Sept. 29, the Upper School English teacher celebrated his 30th birthday by running 30 miles. “I figure 30 is one of those big, monumental times of life,” Mr. Green said. Now, Sept. 28 was Parents’ Night, and the next day was still a school day, so Mr. Green started his run at 2 a.m., having slept for four hours. “I tried to knock it out before Chapel,” Mr. Green said. Rev. Hollerith would be proud. If you are a member of the cross country team, you can understand what it means to consecutively run a Rockfalls-Cherokee, a Monument-Boulevard-Grove and a backwards Ziontown with Westham Station. Those routes contain some long stretches
SAC: A closer look by Thomas Jenkins ’07
Every afternoon the sound of clanging iron and punk music drifts out of the weight room. These are the sounds of Strength and Conditioning, a hodgepodge mix of athletes, slackers, idlers, and fugitives united under the roof of the weight room. The goals of this group vary far and wide, from those who seek to escape required athletics to those who work with feverish intensity to get bigger, faster and stronger. The nature of SAC often depends on the individual. The SACer can make it as easy-going and relaxed or as challenging and arduous as he wants. Typically though, when SAC is associated with a sport, such as wrestling, lacrosse or baseball, there is a coach who will make sure you show up and do the required lifts. In addition to standard workouts like the squat and bench press, Coach Blanton offers a regimen of running,
See SAC Page 3>
and hills which, for many people, would not be too fun that early in the morning. Although it was dark and humid (there was a storm the night before), Mr. Green said that the run felt fine and that he was able to maintain an eightminute pace for most of the run. “The most difficult thing was getting up,” he said. On his third and final loop, Mr. Green met Mr. Ellis, his daughter Kate Ellis who is a St. Catherine’s senior, and Mrs. Mary Anderson at the River Road Starbucks, which allowed him to finish his long run with some help from the St. Chris community. “It was nice having a little bit of company,” Mr. Green said. The Saturday after his birthday, Mr. Green ran the Maymont half-marathon, and four weeks later helped pace his wife in the Marine Corps Marathon. This
Many people associate the Christmas holidays with receiving -- a new bike, a letter from one’s grandmother or a new Playstation 3. It’s easy to get caught up in Christmas commercialism and overlook the less fortunate who need basic necessities. However, in recent weeks, St. Christopher’s students have demonstrated that it really is “more blessed to give than receive.” In the days leading up to
Fulfilling football fantasies
by J.P. Welch ’07
was all part of a training regimen in preparation for Mt. Masochist, a 54-mile race through sections of the Appalachian Trail that was created 24 years ago by David Horton, a Liberty University professor. Mr. Green described it as “a running buffet,” as it consisted of eight food stations spaced approximately four miles apart along the trail. These stations were stocked with items like Twinkies, energy drinks, soup, hamburgers and of course, water. Runners stopped for a few minutes at the
worked with children at the center in its after school program. The connection between St. Christopher’s and this organization goes deeper than student service. Mr. Abbott, dean of students, has served on Peter Paul’s Board of Directors and Dr. Anderson, former St. Christopher’s chaplain, has served as board chairman for the past few years. Most noteworthy is St. Christopher’s annual sponsorship of the Peter Paul Development Center’s Angel Tree Program that provides Christmas presents to needy families. This year, the Upper School and Middle School sponsored 19 families. In the Upper School, advisor groups of approximately 10 students each creatively raised money, shopped for presents and wrapped them. The Rev. Melissa Hollerith, Upper School chaplain, believes that there are many benefits of St. Christopher’s involvement. “First of all, I believe it is man’s nature to want to be able to give,
As most leagues’ playoffs are wrapping up and championships have been won and lost, I feel it is appropriate to take a moment to reflect on seasons past, and seasons to come, and to ask myself a question: why do I commit myself to this every year? Guarantee myself less than adequate first trimester grades, free periods wasted in front of the library computer screens, gazing drowsily at stat lines and injury reports? Wondering why my first round draft pick, the reigning rushing champion, got hurt after week two, damning me to three straight losses while I try to reassemble a team of undrafted free agents in an attempt to resurrect my season. Why? To pick up my dignity after last season’s one point championship loss, after which I couldn’t eat or sleep for several days? For the $180 cash reward for victory? That can’t be it. That’s not worth it. It is out of pride. It has been ever since the beginning, and will be for decades to come. No matter how much debt I accumulate over the years, I will fight on. For bragging rights. To elevate myself so that I tower above my enemies. To assemble the ultimate team, the greatest the world has ever known, that is why we fight. And when the season is over and the money is collected, to know what it is to be the champion, that’s what this is all about. So that when I enter a room full of opponents whom I have obliterated over the years I can proudly declare “the champ is here,” and they can make no smart retorts or attempts to disagree, because the scoreboard doesn’t lie. That day, however, has not yet come. And so, until it does, the struggle for glory will continue. I know that there are many who have looked over my shoulder in the computer lab and said something like, “Your team is pretty stacked.” While I take that as a compliment under most circumstances, I also think to myself, they just don’t know
See Giving Page 3>
See Football Back Page>
stations in order to grab as much food and water as possible and then continued along the trail. Mr. Green’s personal favorites at the event were oatmeal cream pies and ham and cheese sandwiches. Out of 284 runners, Mr. Green placed 70th. His goal was to complete the race in 10 hours, a goal which he exceeded by only five minutes. He ran a fairly conservative race, running his fastest pace in the last six miles. With a little help from
See Green Page 3>
Christmas giving thrives at St. Christopher’s
by Kyle Menges ’07
No. 3
Christmas, students in all grade levels have contributed to the Richmond community in many capacities, the most prominent of which is St. Christopher’s coordination with Peter Paul Development Center. St. Christopher’s has contributed to the Episcopal organization that serves families in Church Hill for more than a decade. In the past, the Lower School collected money through the Missionary Society to give to Peter Paul, while the Middle School students
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School News
December 2006
Dandridge plays several roles in Christmas classic Dandridge began to dance as a result of his forth grade Minds in Motion Program at Bon Air Elementary. He has not really slowed down since. He has performed in seven PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE RICHMOND BALLET of the last by Ted Moore ’07 eight performances of “The Paul Dandridge’s ultimate Nutcracker.” For five straight goal is to make it to Broadway. years, Dandridge was the As a senior this year, he has Nutcracker Prince. This year he already been offered a job at is taking on the roles of a party the Richmond Ballet. Because dad, a rat in the Rat King’s army, he has decided to attend a Chinese man and his “highlight college next year, Dandridge’s role,” the Russian Trepak. professional dance career will Time requirements at the ballet have to wait. conflict with the typical school While ballet is now the day at St. Christopher’s. Paul focus of his life, Dandridge has has worked with Mr. Johns to fit not always loved it. He grew in all his graduation requirements up playing soccer, football, in the morning before running basketball and baseball like off to ballet class at 1:30 p.m. most kids his age. every day. “My sister took dance before “I only get behind when I I got into it, and I hated ballet so miss school like from Nov. 28 much that I refused to even go through Dec. 3 when I went on pick her up,” he said. “That all tour with the ballet,” Dandridge changed in less than a year.” said. “When I’m here, however, I don’t feel behind.”
by Sam Perry ’09
A resident of King William County, Paul spends about two hours in the car everyday. “I don’t mind it, because I also sing, so I do that on my lonely trips,” Dandridge said. “It’s worth it, because I know when I go in to the city, I’m going to the best ballet company in the state, and when I leave, I know I’m going home to take a break in the country for a few hours before I make the trip again.” Paul contributes to the diversity of interests in the senior class, and he is well respected by his classmates as well as teachers. Dr. Andy Smith was impressed after seeing Paul dance at the Richmond Ballet this summer. Smith said after 30 seconds of watching practice, he saw how physically demanding ballet was. “In order to be a confident dancer like Paul, you need a remarkable amount of gracefulness and flat out physical strength,” Dr. Smith said. “The way Paul moved and jumped in the air helped me appreciate this as I drew comparisons to a wide receiver or a small forward in basketball. He has learned to control his body.”
Gamer’s Corner
[Editors’ note: If you’re not a true gamer, this story may be over your head.] With the release of two new powerful machines, the Nintendo Wii and Sony’s Playstation 3, last month, all three next generation systems are now on the market. The Xbox 360 is finally joined by its competition and loses some of its appeal as the only amazing console in existence. The technical information is all available and the three consoles can finally be compared. From a raw processing power standpoint, Sony’s PS3 dominates its opposition. Simply said, the processor data is comparable because of the different amount of processor cores between the three consoles. The Xbox 360 contains three processor cores. Although the PS3’s cores are not directly comparable to those of the Xbox 360, the PS3 has seven processor cores. The Wii is last in graphical prowess with a far less snazzy processor. The graphics card possessed by the Playstation 3 is slightly more efficient than that of the Xbox 360 and far surpasses the Wii’s graphics card. Both the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 can operate at the high definition resolution of 1080p (with the newest Xbox update), but the Nintendo Wii only operates at a resolution of 480p (853x480). Beyond this point the
comparison of graphics descends into an indecipherable flow of techno babble that I could ramble on about, but I probably would not inform anyone about anything because only a select few would understand it. There are other aspects to the consoles that are just as important as the graphics to consider when deciding which to buy. The Xbox 360’s media player is far greater than the PS3’s as the Xbox 360 specifically features TV and movie downloads. Xbox Live, an online service allowing gamers to play together, offers a much better experience than the online functions offered by the Playstation 3 with respect to online game matchmaking in particular. Between the two systems both have comparable wireless controllers, although PS3 features its tilt movement support that allows players to interact with games by tilting their controllers. The PS3 and Wii offer almost complete backward compatibility to games from previous consoles. The Xbox 360 allows
compatibility to only a few specific Xbox games. The Nintendo Wii was earlier named the Nintendo Revolution because of its almost noble attempt to revolutionize the way people play video games. The Wii seeks to widen the audience of people who enjoy video games and to raise the entertainment of gaming to a whole new level. The controller is the main aspect of the Nintendo revolution. The Wii remote looks like a small thin TV remote with an attachable Nunchuk control stick. Games on the Wii respond to movements from the controller as well as button presses. For example, to hit a baseball in Wii Sports the player swings the controller as if it were a bat. This amazing concept will undoubtedly bring older people to gaming who were originally put off by the complexity of the controls, and it lets people play games in a whole new way. Each console possesses its own strengths and weaknesses. The Playstation 3 is the pinnacle of gaming technology with amazing graphic power. What the Xbox 360 lacks in power it makes up for with its sleek presentation. The Xbox also has “Gears of War” and “Halo 3” (’nuff said). The Wii can hardly be compared to the other two as it offers a fun new way to play games. Play these next generation consoles and enjoy the fruits of our technological age.
What first words come to mind? “True to form. He is the Grinch. He is the only Grinch.” Mrs. Hollerith “Looks like an elf to me.” Mr. Bolling “Rowrrrr!” Eddie Watkins “Creepy” William Irby “The perfect role for the perfect person.”
Mr. Hudepohl
What is going through Mr. Towell’s head at this moment? “I can’t believe Melissa made me do this!” Mrs. Hollerith “I hate you all.” Eddie Watkins
“Why the ______ did I agree to do this?” Mr. Hudepohl
Student Council Update by President Kyle Menges ’07 Here’s what Student Council has done for you in the past several weeks:
Opened a Student Council fund with the Business Office, allowing the Council to raise and spend money on Student Council-hosted events, including: o The “Sacred Heart 5v5 Dodgeball Fundraiser,” which will be held January 23 and 25 from 7 to 9 p.m. and February 1 at Long Lunch. o The return of Tom DeLuca, the extremely popular hypnotist who performed in spring 2006. He will again perform for juniors and seniors on the afternoon of Friday, May 11, 2007. Planned a Wear Anything Day for Friday, January 6, 2007. Hosted a successful Christmas Dance on Saturday, December 9 with “The Hot Nuts.”
Student Council is the student representative body of St. Christopher’s Upper School. Any comments/complaints about any aspect of school policy or student life should be directed to your Student Council representatives.
December 2006
Features
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Ampersand presents a Tennessee Williams masterpiece
Bulldog football completes undefeated season
by Stephen Wood ’11
An undefeated season is something special. It is very rare in any sport at any level, and it’s something that a team won’t forget. After going 7-0 this fall, it is obvious that the Bulldog football team will remember its season for a long time. The season started off shaky, like most do, but the Bulldogs were able to get past the rookie mistakes and beat Benedictine. They beat Norfolk the next week in a great defensive game, then prepared to take on Collegiate. Last year, the seventh grade team was beaten three times by the Cougars, and this year the Bulldogs were out for revenge. They outlasted Collegiate and won, 12-7, becoming the first St. Christopher’s team to win on Collegiate’s new synthetic turf
Giving
field. That close game was followed by a pummeling of NansemondSuffolk, a hard-earned win at FUMA, and a 19-0 shutout at STAB. The Bulldogs wrapped up their dream season by beating Collegiate badly at home, a game in which almost every player got on the field. It was an outstanding season, led by coaches Don Golladay, Rich Hudepohl, Peter Cross, and Durk Steed. Quarterbacks Rob Vozenilek, Mason Wood, and Ward Wood all contributed immensely to the effort along with Casey Fox and Kevin Molloy, who star on both sides of the ball. The whole team came together when it mattered, completing something none of them will ever forget: an undefeated season.
December, Upper School students and faculty donated more than $300 in holiday food baskets. Continued from Page 1 In addition, some Upper School to contribute - this project students are volunteering as provides a wonderful means mentors and tutors at St. Andrew’s to do so,” Rev. Hollerith said. School in Oregon Hill throughout “Secondly, at this time of year, I December. After raising more than 1,000 think it is so important to get out of self and think of others -- their pounds of food to donate to the needs, their woes, their worries. Central Virginia Food Bank for A project such as this provides Thanksgiving, the Middle School one with the opportunity to turn continued to focus on giving to the Richmond community outward instead of inward.” Finally, the Angel Tree project while expanding their focus to provides an opportunity for international issues. In addition advisors and advisees to bond. to the Angel Tree program, Rev. “By the end of the process, they Durk Steed, Middle School undoubtedly know one another chaplain, led sixth and seventh graders on a trip to the Children’s better,” Rev. Hollerith said. While the Angel Tree project Hospital to sing for patients. was the largest-scale contribution Internationally, the Middle School to the community by Saints this sent a care package to marines season, students found additional stationed in Iraq. Elliott Warren, Middle School ways to serve others. In early Missionary Society president, has not let Saints forget the neediness of others. On Dec. 11 he gave a speech in chapel regarding malaria, a disease that kills more than 3,000 people a day. In addition, a “WearAnything Day” was held to raise money for Nothing But Nets, Richmond Christmas Mother Mrs. True Luck with grandson Richard Luck ’08 and the Lower School an organization that distributes insecticideMissionary Society.
by Peter Thomas ’07
Hoffman ’07. Coyle plays an excellent and animated Tom, vividly portraying the frustration and eccentricity of the character. Rumble, the youngest member of the cast, provided a surprisingly convincing portrayal of the oldest character in the play, filling the pushy and overwrought maternal role quite well. “I think she did really well, especially as a sophomore,” said Coyle. “That was the hardest part in the play.” This play differed from other recent Ampersand productions in
coated nets in Africa to prevent the spread of malaria. Even the Lower School students and faculty found multiple ways to give this Christmas season. On Dec. 11, the Lower School Missionary Society presented a $200 check to the Richmond Christmas Mother, Mrs. True Luck, grandmother of Richard Luck ’08 and Charles Haw ’10. The Christmas Mother fund, started in the 1930s by The Richmond Times-Dispatch and the Salvation Army, collects donations to help families in need, providing money to buy toys, presents and even necessities like coats, said Mrs. Megan Limburg, Lower School chaplain. All recent Lower School graduates should remember the Lower School’s contributions to the Ronald McDonald House, a “home away from home” for families whose children receive medical care in Richmond hospitals. The tradition of helping this organization continues with more than 100 bags of groceries collected this year. This season, STC students have made an impact on those in need, not only in the Richmond area but around the world. “One thing is certain,” Rev. Hollerith said, “a St. Christopher’s boy understands that it is in giving that we receive.”
SAC
Everything is dark. A young man walks in from the back, heads to the front, removes his coat and steps inside the bluish circle of light which is cast on the steps. Then he starts telling me about the things in his pockets. This is how the Ampersand’s November production of “The Glass Menagerie” began. The St. Chris-St. Catherine’s performance of Tennessee Williams’ classic play entertained three packed audiences in McVey Theatre. The play portrays a late 1930s family living in a claustrophobic St. Louis apartment. Amanda Wingfield, played by Elizabeth Rumble ’09 is the mother of two adult children, Tom (Johnny Coyle ’07) and Laura (Grace Flatin ’07) whose father has abandoned them after falling “in love with long distance.” The cast is joined by Tommy Callan ’07 as Jim O’Connor, the gentleman caller. This fall’s play was well received by those who saw it. “I’d say it’s one of the best they’ve done,” said Brian
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stretching and other lifts that is sure to please the devoted athlete. Obviously the school would like to have as much participation in the athletic program as possible, so don’t plan on doing SAC year round. These Saints offered some commentary on the program. One SACer, who wished to remain anonymous, said his favorite workout is “the walk from the locker room to the gym.” One newcomer quit after he found that “it’s the most extreme thing on the face of the earth.” Richard Morgan (Fall SAC ’05) described it as “SACtastic.” Will Towne (Fall SAC ’04, ’05, ’06) said, “If you want to see the body that can come from SAC, just look at me.” Spencer Hall (Fall SAC ’04,’05,’06 and Winter SAC ’06, ’07) said, “SAC is the foundation of St. Christopher’s athletics.” Alex Grymes (Fall SAC ’06, Winter SAC ’06, ’07) said that SAC is very hard which means he needs more rest in the evenings which means less homework done which in turn leads to an early start in the senior slide. Neil McGroarty offered a dissenting opinion of SAC, saying about the SACers, “They’re lazy. They should do a sport.”
several ways, one of which was the small cast size. “The small cast kind of put a spotlight on all of us,” said Coyle, who appreciated the more personal intimate style of the play, as seen in Tom’s several monologues. As for the set design and lighting aspects of the play, most noticeable was the new and expensive lighted screen in the background. When illuminated, this screen created a claustrophobic effect of a tilting, leaning high rise. This effect became very interesting toward the end of the play, when the scene was the darkest and most intense of the entire performance. Also, the overall lighting was colorful and surreal, contributing the “memory” theme of the play. Sporting a strong cast and excellent lighting and set design, Ampersand’s production of “The Glass Menagerie” was a definite success. As for the future of theatre on campus, Ampersand will produce a series of one acts this winter to which the St. Christopher’s community can look forward.
Green
Continued from Page 1 Tom Wolfe’s “I Am Charlotte Simmons,” Mr. Green was able to keep himself motivated, as well as distracted, throughout the run. However, Señor Nystrom will tell you that running with such assistance is not really running at all. “You don’t have to be a super runner to finish something like this,” Mr. Green said. He said that the only real question one needs to consider is, “Can you convince yourself to train enough to make it physically possible?” Mr. Green went ahead and ran the Richmond Marathon a few days later, which was probably not the best idea after such a grueling race in the mountains. “I love the Richmond Marathon,” he said, “but I certainly felt…that maybe I had overestimated my abilities.” The STC community can look forward to even more to come from Mr. Green as he plans to complete a rigorous series of distance races known as the “Horton Slam” throughout the coming year.
December 2006
The Back Page
My new year’s resolution is:
The Pine Needle staff Senior editors Ted Moore Thomas Jenkins Peter Thomas
“Seniors can go out to lunch whenever, wherever. Also, I want to restore all sections of the yearbook.” Headmaster Charley Stillwell
“Update my phone plan to include more anytime minutes to call that special someone.” James Smyth
Senior writers Kyle Menges J.P Welch
Sophomore contributor Sam Perry
Middle School Correspondant Stephen Wood
Faculty advisors
Mr. Hamill Jones Mrs. Kathleen Thomas
“I’m going to make high honors. But I’m serious this time.” Harrison Graham
“I’m giving up video games… No more Sega, N-64, X-box, Playstation. I’m done with it. It’s time for me to grow up and move on… Wait what? You want to come play ‘Supersmash Bothers?’ It’s on like ‘Donkey Kong.’ ” Scott Bacigal -----------SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION----------
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“I vow to push sports and school work aside and spend more time exploring the outrageous ‘world outside my mind.’ ” Jake Gardner
new year’s dance 2007
Time: 4 p.m. - 3 a.m. Rules: You will be on time. You will stay the entire time and everyone WILL HAVE FUN!!!
P A R T Y !
GHT! I N O T E C N DA
Football
Continued from Page 1 that there are those “casual” fantasy footballers out there who are reading this and thinking, “no, that’s not what it’s like,” but to me and many with whom I compete, the season never ends and the coming off-season provides time to recollect and to plan new draft strategies, decide which players to keep on your team for next year, and above all to punish everyone whose score you doubled this season.
Did You Know?
Sam Karn broke the individual record for most points in a game for St. Christopher’s basketball, scoring 44 points against Atlee. Also, the Saints broke the alltime scoring record for points in a game that day, scoring 135 points in the victory.