The Seminole Scribe

Spring 2015 Issue 1

In this issue:

Black History month in Sanford Sexually transmitted diseases Healthcare in 2015 Free college Vinyl makes a comeback Drinking at a “dry bar�

Mental health on campus To vape or not to vape?

Editor’s note

New year, new editor Hello Seminole State! My name is Carl Barrett and I’m the new Editor for The Seminole Scribe. I’m taking over the position from Melissa Merkler, who did a great job and put a lot of effort into the Scribe. I hope that can at least partially replace her!

This is my second year since I returned to Seminole State after a long absence to major in journalism. Having failed at other pursuits in college, I decided to come back to do something I was passionate in. Journalism is about reporting truth. It is about sharing stories with the world, whether it’s something of national or even worldwide importance like a secret government program, or something more mundane, like a local club meeting. It provides readers with a glimpse of the world around them, often in ways they aren’t used to seeing it. the In a world where every citizen is able to not only record their thoughts and surroundings, but also share them and information can travel from one end of the globe to the other in an instant, the need for balanced story telling is all the greater.

The Scribe is important to Seminole State because it is an entirely student created production. The stories, pictures, design and editing are all done by students.

The final say on what gets printed belongs to myself, a student. Because of this, we can offer a view of Seminole State which is potentially different than that produced through “official” channels. It not only gives the students of Seminole State insight to the culture of their school, it also helps teach those of us tasked with creating it how to tell those stories in an accurate and interesting way.

For many of its contributors, the pieces presented in this issue will be not only be their first article for The Scribe, it will be their first article ever published, period. I remember my first issue well! It’s quite a learning experience to see how much work goes into creating just a single page! Lots of red ink and tears goes into these first issues, but they can also be surprising as well!

So let me say thank you, person reading this copy of The Scribe. Thank you for being part of our journey to be journalists and thanks for letting us share the story of Seminole State with you.

Thanks,

THE SEMINOLE SCRIBE The Seminole Scribe is the official student newspaper of Seminole State College of Florida.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Carl Barrett STAFF REPORTERS Kimberly Burns, Tiffany Castro, Keyla Exclusa, Ian Finnerty, Tia Gautreaux, Elliot Lee, Joseph Meadows, Lauren Seay, Alex Sylvia FACULTY ADVISER Jennifer Sheppard EDITORIAL POLICY Viewpoints expressed in columns and letters to the editor are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Seminole Scribe or Seminole State College. Please limit letters to 500 words, and include phone number, name and area of study or affiliation.

Letters will not be printed anonymously. We reserve the right to reject letters.

MISSION STATEMENT We are a student-run newspaper that aims to construct a publication of professionalism.

Through each individual staffer’s utmost potential, we write for the interest of the school and its student body to deliver a quality news and entertainment source that uphold traditional journalistic values.

PUBLIC FORUM The Seminole Scribe is a “designated public forum.” Student editors have authority to make all content decisions without censorship or advance approval.

COPYRIGHT ©2015 The Seminole Scribe. All rights reserved. All content is property of The Seminole Scribe and may not be reproduced or transmitted without consent.

CONTACT US thescribe@seminolestate.edu Twitter @seminolescribe

On the cover:

Carl Barrett, Editor-in-Chief

2

The intersection of Sanford Ave. and 1st Street in downtown Sanford on a calm February morning.

Photo by Carl Barrett

The Seminole Scribe asked: “What does Black History Month mean to you?”

By: Tia Gautreaux and Carl Barrett

Bob Platt from Ohio, a Native American man who lives in Sanford spoke in a Native American language.

“This is my brother,” he said, touching his chest first then the man sitting next to him.

Fred Jamison from Alaska also living in Sanford said, “There needs to be a Native American

holiday.”

Easing into uneasy conversations By: Tia Gautreaux

Photo by : Jennifer Shepard

Mae Nielander from New Jersey has lived in Sanford for two years.

“It’s (Sanford) certainly not like where I grew up,” she said.

“We have a whole generation of people to kill off before things are going to change. Not me though.”

Photos by: Carl Barrett

Delana Williams, a Sanford resident and Seminole State College graduate, said she attends Black History month events.

“Events open the door to the discussion about Black History,” she said.

“Sanford as a city needs to do more to try to reach out to everyone, black and white… It is still uncomfortable.”

Stepping out of my comfort zone to spark a conversation about Black History Month in Sanford, I felt the tension spike. Trying to capture the spirit of Black History Month in downtown Sanford was difficult for me as a student journalist. I experienced two interview rejections from men from the older generation in the community in Sanford. That caught me off guard as I was expecting to hear a lot more on the topic of Black History as Sanford is filled with historic stories within the community. After conducting a few other interviews, mainly from women, I realized that there are still uneasy feelings when talking about Black History Month between black and white people. All seems well to the narrow eye yet the black citizens of Sanford were still reluctant to answer questions from me on the topic of race.

A beacon shining through Sanford’s dark past

2015

marked the 50-year anniversary of our own Seminole State College’s founding in Sanford, and there’s reason to celebrate this milestone. The history, progress and individual stories of students, staff and faculty of Seminole State are as unique as the area in which it resides.

What started out 50 years ago with 750 students and 10 portable classrooms set in the middle of one large orange grove has blossomed into a 2- and 4-year college with over 30,000 students and four campuses spanning Seminole county.

“Physically, there’s a lot of differences [with the campus],” Trent Tomengo, professor of humanities and former student of Seminole State College from the 1990s, said. “With the renovations of….other parts of the college, there’s a lot of big differences visually that I think makes the college a lot more inviting.”

Though it seems that time and time again in the college experience, the professors and staff make the biggest impact and mark upon a student’s psyche.

Even with all of the technology in the world, it still takes people to make it all happen.

“These are some of the best years of my college career. It was an extremely positive experience” Tomengo said. “Most of my professors made an indelible impact on me. As a matter of fact, about three or four of them became mentors of mine [and] ushered me all the way through grad school,” Tomengo said. “It started here.”

Even through all of the good that’s happened on campus, off campus, here in Sanford, is an altogether different tale.

In the 1950s, locals, including members of the Ku Klux Klan, ran famous baseball player and civil rights legend Jackie Robinson out of town after the area’s minor league team integrated.

Civil rights activist Harry Moore, who founded the Sanford chapter of the National Association for the

Trent Tomengo, former Seminole State College student and current professor of humanities, said now “the college a lot more inviting.”

Story and photos by Joseph Meadows Advancement of Colored People, was killed on Christmas, 1951 (not in Sanford, but in retaliation for his actions there).

Recently, most news out of Sanford had to do with the death of Trayvon Martin and subsequent arguments over Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law. This brought national attention right to the city’s front doorstep, in addition to civil rights activists, including the Reverend Al Sharpton.

Activism and promoting one’s cause has never been a stranger to the Sanford/ Lake Mary campus. In fact, that large, downward sloping grass field outside of the bookstore just next to the Fine Arts building, was once a natural amphitheater where students of all stripes would go to promote their ideas. It was and remains an open space for free speech, thought, political rallies and even live music.

“It could have been about abortion, whatever was going on with the government at the time. Sometimes it was positive,” Eden Donahou, professor of math and former student of Seminole State College, from the 1970s, said.

“I had some really great faculty and they would come out (to the amphitheater during the break),” Donahou said.

“Sometimes, if there was something going on, they would post on their doors, ‘I’m going out [to the amphitheater]’.”

Eden Donahou, professor of math at

Seminole State College, is also former

That legacy continues with student from the 1970s, she said. job fairs and recruitment for social causes and clubs. So, even though at times it seems like a murky cloud could be hanging over the city of Sanford, one bright light is Seminole State College, shining in many different ways with its dedication from the staff to students’ social activism.

More Seminole State history: - First public college in the Orlando-area, pre-dating Valencia College and the University of Central Florida (then Florida Technical University) as a member of the public trust.

- The college was the first fully integrated college in the area while also boasting an integrated basketball team.

Burning, itching, blisters?

A

By Kimberly Burns

t least one of your classmates has an sexually transmitted infection.

That’s because 1 in 4 sexually active females, or 25 percent, are living with a sexually transmitted infection, or STI, according to the 2013 Sexually Transmitted Diseases Surveillance report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Now it could be more important than ever to practice safe sex.

“Everybody is doing somebody,” Seminole State College student Maria del Mar Sugars said. “It’s not right to assume that everyone has been informed about the risk of unprotected sex.”

Rebecca Padilla, sociology professor at Seminole State College who teaches classes including marriage and family, human sexuality and sociology, agreed that the problem is students are coming to the college campuses with very limited knowledge about their own bodies and how to communicate with their partners about practicing safe sex.

One way to encourage safe sex among students would be for colleges to provide free condoms.

“Condoms should be given out for free so that our students are protected from STI’s,” Padilla said, adding that students do not seem to see “the connection between STI’s and condoms.”

However, some students have been brave enough to share their stories in her classes on contracting an STI but more students should talk about their experiences because, she said, there is a stigma that makes students shameful of coming forward and telling their stories because they do not want to be frowned upon.

“Everybody is doing somebody.” - Maria del Mar Sugars “If we didn’t have that stigma more students would come forward and share their stories to educate others to not make the same mistakes that they did,” Padilla said.

In addition, Padilla recommended her human sexuality class, which receives rave reviews from most students, because “it’s an important class,” adding that there are high rates of STI’s at Florida colleges.

“Every student should take the human sexuality class as an elective,” Padilla said.

But Seminole State student Kyra Clark said she did not agree that college students should be required to take human sexuality, adding that course should be instilled in children as early as middle school.

Seminole State College social sciences professor Rebecca Padilla, who teaches human sexuality, holds up condoms in her office on the Sanford/Lake Mary campus recently. Photo by Kimberly Burns Contact the Florida Department of Health, located at 400 West Airport Boulevard in Sanford or call (407) 665-3000 for confidential services to anyone seeking care for the prevention of STIs.

Background image by fastcoexist.com/1682703/condoms-dont-just-protect-against-bad-bugs-they-help-good-ones

Affordable Care Act set to become less affordable Beginning this year, the government will be implementing a penalty for those who did not have health insurance. Anyone who didn’t have health insurance in 2014 should expect to pay the state either 1 percent of household income or $95, whichever is more, by the time April 15th comes around.

Joseph Kim, an insurance agent with the Blue Cross, said “[the tax] will mostly affect the poor. Almost all of my clients have been complaining about how fast their premiums have been rising, since ACA passed. The rates have gone up three or four times more than what they were before. And they will only continue to go up unless the government seriously reforms the bill.”

The tax is set to increase each year that one does not have a coverage plan. According to the ACA’s website, those who don’t have health insurance through out 2015 it will rise to 2 percent or $325, then 2.5 percent or $695 by 2016.

By Elliot Lee The Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, was passed in March 23, 2010 in order to provide more affordable and better coverage to the American people. However the Manhattan Institute of Policy research found that since the ACA passed, health premiums have increased for nearly everyone, with the average national premiums having increased in 45 states. Insurance rates for people in Seminole County have gone up by about 111 percent for young men and about 62 percent for young women.

Statistical data from the United States Department of Health and Human Services showed that ACA continued on next page

ACA continued from page 5 in 2009, the average 21 year old spent roughly $1,800 on health insurance annually and in 2014, the average 21 year old spent about $3,500 on health insurance. Data taken from a study done by the PwC Health Research Institute showed that in 2015, healthcare premiums in Florida are due to go up by an average of 5.3 percent.

For Kimberly Burns, 27, a Seminole State student and The Seminole Scribe reporter, said has been denied health insurance several times due to the fact that she is not currently working.

“They don’t want to cover me because they know I can’t really pay for it, but the coming tax isn’t really an issue for me now, but once I graduate it’ll be a real problem,” Burns Said.

Another Seminole State student, Eric Arroyo, 23; said he doesn’t see how the mandate is fair.

“If I cannot afford to, or don’t want to pay for health insurance, who the **** are you to make me buy your insurance, it’s crooked. I feel like [the bill] had very good intentions at first but in the end it does more harm than good, so many students are already having such a hard time getting by.”

Image Source: OECD Health Data 2013

From the office of Student Services: PeopleSoft Unavailable Friday, March 6 to Monday, 16, 2015: Due to a software update, PeopleSoft applications will not be available beginning at 3 p.m. on Friday, March 6, 2015. The system will be restored by 6 a.m. on Monday, March 16, 2015.

The following systems utilized by students, will not be available: · MySeminolestate · Online admissions application · Online Student Orientation · Please note that the following systems will be available: · Sakai: https://dl.seminolestate.edu/portal · Outlook: https://mail.seminolestate.edu The maintenance is being scheduled over Spring Break 2015 to limit its impact on students, faculty and staff. For more information, contact the Help Desk at ext. 2000.

Students search for mental illness help

F

By Ian Finnerty

or most college students, school is the most stressful thing in their lives. Ninety percent of college students say they have a mental health issue but only half of them report it to their school, according to the National Alliance of Mental Illness. Of the ones who say they have an issue, 64 percent of college dropouts are no longer attending school due to mental health issues, NAMI said.

Lucca said he stays busy with crisis counseling and classroom presentations where he talks about the services his department provides.

Licensed clinician Nelson Lucca, a crisis counselor and a psychology professor at Seminole State, said he follows up with students after their visits and makes sure they are well and performing in school to their full potential.

believe that the Crisis Counseling department should be more easily accessible from the Seminole State website, “even putting the number on the bottom of the front page can help the people that need it,” Rivera said.

With 50 percent of students with a mental illness seeking help,

Contact the Seminole State College Crisis Hotline at (407) 416-9976 for more information.

“A lot of students come in from talking to their teachers who send them to us or from talking to classmates that have found help through us,” he said.

For students who have a mental Seminole State “Mental illness debilitating illness to the point student Ashley does not where performing Burton said she regular school tasks has been battling discriminate is almost impossible, both depression and anxiety disorders and against race, age accommodations can be made in class for while she did not seek or gender.” students to complete any help from the school, she said she - Nelson Lucca assignments. is much happier now However, according to NAMI, due to good understanding friends the top reason students don’t seek and classmates. special accommodations is because “It’s nice to have someone to talk to of the tedious paperwork. because school is overwhelmingly When a search was conducted for stressful,” she said.

“Suicide” on the Seminole State website, the only result is for a For Seminole State student Michael Correctional Officer Certificate.

Rivera, he said he feels comfortable When searched for on the websites talking to his professors about of the University of Central Florida, personal problems.

Stetson, Rollins and Daytona State, “Since they have been through all each has an entire page dedicated the struggles of school and being to helping students having suicidal a teenager and can empathize with thoughts. students,” Rivera said.

This could be a problem for Along with professors, the Crisis Seminole State students who might Counseling department at Seminole still live at home and don’t want to State can also help students with talk to their parents. personal counseling, from suicide prevention to depression and Both Lucca and Rivera said they anxiety. were surprised to hear this and

Vinyl’s vengeance

I

t seems no mystery that album

original vinyl from older bands connects you deeper to

sales, through the medium

that time period.”

of CD’s, have declined in

the past years. With the advent

By Keyla Exclusa

of streaming and downloading music, music’s accessibility is easier than ever. And with CD’s hitting

Former Seminole State student Abiam Velazquez said that although he just recently started collecting vinyl, he knows “it’s something I’m going to continue to do for the rest of my life.”

an all-time low in 2014, according

“The records add artistic value to the music

to Nielsen Soundscan, the CD’s

because of the cover art,” he said.

vintage counterpart, the vinyl record, is experiencing an exact opposite trend.

Plus, not only is music an escape for some people, it’s also the extension of a particular culture,

Vinyl culture has experienced resurgence

message and mindset and the perpetuation of

in the past few years. From 2008 to 2012,

this culture is what it’s all about for some disc

vinyl rose from .4 percent of total sales to

jockeys.

1.4 percent. In 2014, vinyl sales boosted 52 percent, Nielson Soundscan reported.

“I’ve been collecting vinyl since I was 10 years old and DJ’ing since I was 14 years

For the youth, the resurgence of vinyl seems

old,” John, also known as DJ DustyFingers,

to be a reaction to the easy accessibility of

said. “It’s a huge part of my life and I

digital downloading.

take it upon myself to extend the culture

“It’s not the same as looking at a little picture of the album on your screen,” Seminole State student and reporter for The Seminole Scribe Elliot Lee said. “Physically holding my record and taking the time to listen to the needle drop.”

Some students at Seminole State said they began collecting vinyl early on as a nostalgic connection to the time period of that particular genre.

listeners in general.”

“I take it upon myself to extend the culture to future DJ’s or collectors.”

- DJ DustyFingers

“I began collecting at 15,” Seminole State student Jen Hobson said. “Finding an

to future DJ’s or collectors or music

Top: Records on sale Middle: Abiam Velazquez with record collection.

Bottom: DJ DustyFingers at The Donut Shoppe’s closing party.

No need for a D.D.

By Lauren Seay

Vaping, vindicated?

Q

uitting smoking can be hardmore than 480,000 Americans each year are killed from the toxins of cigarettes, according to the Center for Disease Control. Some smokers can’t find relief in nicotine gum or patches.

“Humans get addicted to things they enjoy, you know... whether it’s f***ing, stealing, gambling, jerking off, whatever it is, people get addicted to things they enjoy,” Corey Fels, owner of an electronic cigarette store and former Seminole State student, said.

Upper left: Sign outside of Brilling Dry Bar in Michigan. Bottom left: Fresh fruits used in authentic non-alcoholic drinks. Right: Bartender mixing a new drink using club soda and juice. Photos submitted by Nic Simms. here’s no need for a to hangout and have a good time at a designated driver after leaving bar, “ Nic said. a dry bar. That’s because the dry bar, a new concept trending Orlando offers a wide variety of from the United Kingdom all the entertainment for the night life. All way to Michigan offers everything of which serve alcohol. So where found at a regular bar: food, music, does a college student go hangout mock drinks and the typical bar who doesn’t drink or doesn’t feel atmosphere minus the alcohol. The like being around drunk people? mock drinks are fancy, creative and Maybe the movies, the library or just many have said they are even tastier a friend’s house. than the alcoholic ones. Don’t bother looking for one here; there are none Several Seminole State students in Orlando and none in the state of Florida. said that there is a market here for a dry bar.

Nic Sims of Anne Arbor took it upon herself to open her own dry “I would love to go to a bar and bar and turned her husband’s coffee hang out with my friend’s without shop into The Brillig Dry Bar at feeling like I have to a have a drink.” night. With only opening twice said Seminole State student Jeanette “I’d say about 85 percent of this last in December, the success was so Weissner. one was college students.” overwhelming, it is now officially Another student Kenny Cole said, open every other Saturday night.

With hopes of expanding her own “ I love the night life. As long as The clientele is diverse, consisting business, it is also one of her goals there is good music I would go to a of people in sobriety, pregnant to help others to open their own. dry bar.” woman, Muslims and a surprising number of college students.

“I can’t fix Ferguson, or what is Out of several other college students going on in New York, but I can do asked about the dry bar, all of them “Each time it has been a new this. Create a safe place for people said they would attend. crowd of people. “ Said Nic,

T

“I can’t fix Ferguson, or what is going on in New York, but I can do this.”

- Nic Simms

8

“We get up, do the same thing every day… and we get into these habits and rituals and that’s what makes it hard to quit smoking,” he added.

Electronic cigarettes, with some possibly designed to replicate the look and feel of regular cigarettes, show their most helpful quality by mimicking the experience of smoking but with different flavors and less harmful chemicals. Inhaling anything other than clean air may be unhealthy, but e-cigarettes can be viewed as an alternative to smoking cigarettes, not as a one-stopshop to quitting.

According to the Harvard health blog, e-cigarettes contain “generally smaller” doses of the harmful chemicals found in regular cigarettes, producing a vapor from a mix of propylene glycol, vegetable glycerol and nicotine.

However, nicotine still causes high blood pressure, and a recent study published

By Alex Sylvia

by the New England Journal of Medicine suggested that levels of formaldehyde (a cancer causing carcinogen,) are comparable in e-cigarette vapor as to traditional cigarettes. At the same time, the studies were done with unregulated devices, meaning that if a user does not know how to use their device safely and within certain limits, then they may be doing similar harm as if they were smoking cigarettes.

Lynn Sposito, a 49-year-old non-smoker, said it’s too early to make any concrete decisions about the safety of “vaping.”

“I’m not a huge fan of them,” she said, “and I don’t think they’ve been around long enough to really know [their safety].”

The vaping industry could be regulated just like alcohol and tobacco and the effect would be a spike in prices.

But Fels said, while he did not want to see e-cigarettes become regulated, he would prefer regulation to the alternative.

“Because if the industry gets destroyed,” he said, “then a lot of people are going to die because of it”.

Corey Fels, owner of The Vaporatory

What free college could mean for many

By Tiffany Castro

finding a decent paying job without a degree, Vazquez said it has been difficult for him to pay back his college debt. Similar stories exist all across the nation.

According to the College Board, a nonprofit that connects students to college success, the average cost of tuition and fees for the 2013–2014 school year was $3,241 at two-year private colleges. President Obama said, 40 percent of those attending college will choose a community college. In his January speech, Obama also offered to help those already experiencing college debt lower their payments to “prepare people for the new economy.”

The only catch, according to the president, would be keeping a decent grade point average and graduating within a specified amount of time.

Some students, however, have been skeptical of Obama’s plan.

Photo by Reuters

I

Amber Almestica, a former Seminole State student said, “Where is he going to get the money from? He’s also planning on lowering taxes.”

“By the end of this decade, two in three job openings will require some higher education,” In his January State of the Union Address, President Obama said. “We still live in a country where too many bright, striving Americans are priced out of the education they need. It’s not fair to them, and it’s not smart for our future.”

“We’ve only heard President Obama’s speech and no draft legislation,” Davis wrote in an email to The Scribe. “We’ve seen no specific funding proposal.”

n the midst of what seems to be a booming economy, middle class families across the country could be clinging to the possibility of free college. That’s according to President Barrack Obama’s new proposal to “lower the cost of community college down to zero.”

The bill is expected to, if passed, increase enrollment and offer nearly 9 million students the chance of an education and higher paying jobs in the future, as reported by the Orlando Sentinel.

“If I could pay for it, I would be in college right now,” Nelson Vazquez, a self-proclaimed Seminole State dropout, said. With the rising cost of living and the challenge that exists in

Seminole State’s Diretor of Communications and Media Relations Jay Davis said it’s really “too early to comment” on what the President’s proposal could mean to students.

Alicia Green, pre-school teacher and recent graduate of Seminole State said she believed the plan could be a turning point for the community of Sanford to “get people off the streets.”

“Why wouldn’t we want free college? Most people in our community simply don’t go because they can’t afford it. . .Combine it with dual enrollment and you have someone who has a bachelor’s degree for free.”

SAME CAMPUS NEW HORIZON Finish your bachelor’s degree while staying close to home. Apply now. ucfseminole.com | 407.708.2471

While you’re on campus...

Sunday, February 22

1 to 4:30 p.m.

Softball: Raiders vs. EFSC (DH), Sanford/Lake Mary, Raider Softball Field 2 to 4:30 p.m. - “Radio Golf ”Theatre, Sanford/Lake Mary, G-123

Monday, February 23

9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Larry Vienneau ExhibitGallery, Sanford/Lake Mary, G-101 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Blood Drive, Altamonte Springs, Parking Lot 12 to 1:30 p.m.

The Rhetoric of Activism, Sanford/Lake Mary, C-110B 12 to 2 p.m.

SGA Business Meeting, Sanford/Lake Mary, C-110 4 to 5 p.m.

LSAMP LinkedIn Workshop, Sanford/Lake Mary, J-103

Tuesday, February 24

9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Blood Drive, Altamonte Springs, Parking Lot 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

Seminole State Toastmasters Club, Sanford/Lake Mary, L-301 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

Skill Session: Finish Strong, Sanford/Lake Mary, J-112 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Skill Session: Passport to Success, Sanford/Lake Mary, J-112 7 to 9 p.m.

Tuesday Voices, Sanford/Lake Mary, Multipurpose Room (building C) 7:30 to 9 p.m.

Music Student Recitals, Sanford/Lake Mary, Fine Arts Concert Hall (G-118)

Wednesday, February 25 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Career Fair, Oviedo, Patio 12 to 2:30 p.m.

Movie Presentation: Selma, Sanford/Lake Mary, C-110 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.

Service Day: Zumbathon 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Skill Session: Selecting a Major, Sanford/Lake Mary, J-112

Thursday, February 26

10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Mock Interview Day, Heathrow, HEA-203 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

Altamonte Springs SGA Meeting, Altamonte Springs, ALT-214

10

Friday, February 27

1 p.m.

Baseball: Raiders vs. SPC, Sanford/Lake Mary, Jack Pantelias Field

Saturday, February 28

7 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Service Day: Autism Society race 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Softball: Raiders vs. SPC (DH), Sanford/Lake Mary, Raider Softball Field 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Baseball: Raiders vs. IRSC, Sanford/Lake Mary, Jack Pantelias Field 5:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.

Dream Gala, Orlando Marriott Lake Mary

Sunday, March 1

12 to 4 p.m.

Softball: Raiders vs. MDSC (DH), Sanford/Lake Mary, Raider Softball Field

Monday, March 2

9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Larry Vienneau ExhibitGallery Sanford/Lake Mary, G-101 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

SGA Special Events Meeting, Sanford/Lake Mary, C-110 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

Volunteer Interest Meeting, Altamonte Springs, ALT-214 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

Volunteer Interest Meeting, Oviedo, OVE-108

Tuesday, March 3

12 to 2 p.m.

Alcohol Awareness Event, Altamonte Springs, Outside main entrance 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

Oviedo SGA Meeting, Oviedo, OVF-108

Wednesday, March 4

12 to 2 p.m.

Alcohol Awareness Event, Sanford/Lake Mary, Student Center Green 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

Skill Session: Grade Point Average, Sanford/Lake Mary, J-112 2 to 5:00 p.m.

Baseball: Raiders vs. SJRSC, Sanford/Lake Mary, Jack Pantelias Field 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Volunteer Interest Meeting, Sanford/Lake Mary, C-110A

For more events, visit: seminolestate.edu/newsroom/events/

Festivities and philanthropy for fallen musician

T

he fourth installment of Ralphfest, a local a 3-day music and arts festival, will commence Feb 20 in the downtown Orlando-area honoring the life, mentorship and musicianship of one of Central Florida’s most beloved local guys, Ralph Ameduri, Jr. Ralph Ameduri was murdered in Winter Haven September 10, 2011 during a botched robbery attempt, while taking a break from playing a live set. He was 45.

After being shot, Ralph didn’t make it long before he passed on. Though, his family and one friend, seemingly representing all of who couldn’t make it, were there to say goodbye.

The Orlando music scene, shocked and devastated from the news, sprang into action to make sure their friend’s memory wouldn’t die.

An overwhelming turnout of support manifested itself the first festival and combined, the first three have been attended by an estimated 4,500 people.

But the mission of Ralphfest was just starting there. ”So, the first year was about covering expenses for the funeral and (taking care of) his fiancé,” Jeff Sweat, the event’s organizer and best friend of Ralph, said. “The second year set up the scholarship.”

While the first year was about raising money to deal with the monetary aftermath of the tragedy, subsequent festivals set to create a foundation with the intention of delivering a donation.

That donation would take the form of a musical instrument, which would be awarded to an up-andcoming Seminole High School student in need of a permanent instrument.

Instead of handing out cash to be spent willy-nilly, the foundation is rewarding an instrument that could perhaps ensure a continuing path in music for that one student.

“It’s about passion,” Sweat said. “[The student has] to be active in the band department. Their family has to make under a certain amount of money, because we don’t want to give rich kids (free) instruments. [The student has] to graduate and [the student doesn’t] have to be college-bound.”

The third Ralphfest took place later than expected because of the impending trial of his murderer, Samuel Sweet, Jr., only 17 years-old at the time of the shooting.

By Joseph Meadows

Sweet was found guilty on all six charges, including first-degree murder.

This year’s festival boasts over 60 bands on seven stages and three venues. Also, the foundation has expanded its mission and this year will be giving away two instruments.

“By next year, we’ll be able to give away three (instruments), maybe four. Who knows,” Sweat said.

And while the sting of this tragedy will never be forgotten, those in attendance, including the event’s organizer, are more at peace than in years past.

“This year is about not worrying about what’s going to happen, what going to go on (with the trial),” Sweat said. “Now we can celebrate without having to worry about jack s**t and truly celebrate Ralph’s memory and the impact he had on so many people in Central Florida.”

Visit RalphAmeduri.com for further information.

Poster courtesy of Jeff Sweat

Q&A: Local celebrity

Story and photos by Joseph Meadows

Anthony Cole

Anthony Cole is a major fixture of the Orlando music scene. He’s help build something that musicians around here can be proud of. Since the early 1990s, his reputation has grown in the area by playing with legendary Jazzman Sam Rivers and with his mother, Linda Cole, among many, many others. Cole, 47, now the full-time drummer for Jacksonville’s “JJ Grey and Mofro” and Austin, TX band “the Greyhounds,” is now himself the elder statesman and mentor to many Orlando-area musicians.

What was your first concert you attended?

I was less than a year old. [We] went down to the Apollo…. to see the James Brown Revue.

This is 1968/69. She [his mother]said that the whole time, [from] the moment they came out on stage, I was just hopping and bouncing in the seat. She knew right then…. she saw me getting plugged in. You know what I mean?

She credits the James Brown Revue. First of all, I got it from my family, but that was natural.

Tell me about your family.

Oh man, the Cole family.

Obviously famous for Nat “King” Cole and Natalie Cole.

We’re cousins when it comes down to it. My grandfather, James, was a singer who played piano as opposed to Nat, who was a piano player who also sang.

What bands were you listening to back then?

Oh my god, the first band I saw was Wendy O. Williams and the Plasmatics. It blew my mind (because) they had a black bass player with a white mohawk. It was the first time seeing (a mohawk). (I was listening to) the punk bands: the Circle Jerks, Black Flag all that stuff. And then Devo happened to me. So, by the time I was in high school, I was a New Waver. We weren’t punk rock. New Wave was a movement. I still am (a New Waver). I was hip to Jazz/Rock Fusion, but really when it was just Fusion, they dropped the Jazz/Rock…. about five years after getting hardcore into that, I moved here to Florida.

Somewhat change of scenery?

It changed everything. At first I didn’t think it was happening. We had to turn around and go back. This is not going to happen. But where I am, musically, now, I wouldn’t be here, where I am now, if that never would have ever happened. I could still be living in Detroit or L.A. and who knows? Moving here to Florida changed everything because I got into the Bluegrass thing. I grew up on Country music, from my grandmother, so I wasn’t unaware of it.

How did you meet Sam Rivers?

He had been down with Dizzy Gillespie. (When) he moved down here….it was less than a year from when I moved here. By that time, we were regulars at the (local) Jazz Jam. Everybody was running up (to me), because they thought I knew about Jazz. They were like, “Sam Rivers is here.” I’m thinking, “Who’s Sam Rivers?” Even though I had heard him on a Chaka Khan record, I still didn’t know who he is. I played with my mother. He heard me play and it was like, “That’s the cat I want to play with.” I was living in Daytona Beach at the time. So, eventually, there was a message on my machine, it was Beatrice Rivers…. she said, “Hi, this is Bea Rivers. Sam would like you to go on a European tour. Call us back as soon as possible.” I sat there for two days and listened to that message. Finally, I called them back and Bea went off on me, “We were waiting for two days!” All of a sudden I’m going to Miami to get a passport and going with Sam Rivers overseas.

“Moving to Florida changed everything.... where I am, musically, I wouldn’t be here.”

- Anthony Cole

Your mother’s side, all musicians?

Yes. All singers. My uncle Carl, being the baby of the family, when he was 14, I was five/ six years old, (contributed) to my musical development at the time. But my uncle Steven introduced me to Parliament Funkadelic and I’ve been a Funkateer ever since.

Living in Detroit at a young age did what for you musically?

The time spent in Detroit, MI was major for me because of the type of [musicians] that I was around. It was everybody.

Fast forward a few years and you’re in L.A. In 1980 we moved….in less than 24 hours, you know, my life changed. I went from hardcore Soul/R&B music to New Wave and Punk Rock. Overnight. And it overtook me.

So, now, I’m in this whole [different] world of music, whole different genres of music, but I had that….foundation of R&B and funk. I had that. So that music made sense to me.

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