Issue 13

APRI L 3 , 20 1 7 VO L. LI X

the harbinger

ISSUE 13

S H AW N E E M I S S I O N E A S T H I G H S C H O O L 7500 Mission Rd, Prairie Village, KS 66208

A HIDDEN JUUL The latest e-cig trend invades SM East classrooms

S

enior Jack Bernard* looks around his third hour class and sees seven boys charging Juuls in the USB ports of their Macbooks. To an unsuspecting eye, the small metallic devices could be flash drives. But Bernard knows they’re not typical school supplies; Juuls are the latest vaping products to reach East.

And they “hit hard,” he said, harder than other e-cigs. Each Juulpod Bernard uses — typically one a day — contains the same amount of nicotine as a pack of cigarettes according to Juul’s manufacturer, PAX Labs. But with no current federal regulation, health officials are unsure of the Juul’s impact, which some say scares them.

When Bernard’s Juul flashes green, fully charged, he wants to make another trip to bathroom for a “hit,” like he does five or six times every day — but the class is watching a movie, and he can’t leave.

With his old e-cigarette, he would have no choice but the bathroom. With smaller “clouds” and a lack of smell, the Juul gives him another option.

CONTINUED ON PAGES 16-17 *NAMES CHANGED TO PROTECT IDENTITY

PEEK INSIDE: NEW SHOPS IN PRAIRIE VILLAGE PG 4-5 BOYS PARTICIPATE IN LARP PG 14 FRESHMEN SPORTS 360 PG 28

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EDITORIAL

HAR B I N G E R S TAF F L I S T S PRI N G 2 01 7 PRINT EDITORSIN-CHIEF Ellie Booton Will Clough Claire Pottenger

INAPPROPRIATE People should be educated about cultural appropriation before they attack others for it

F OR: 1 2

AGAI N S T: 1

R

emember when only sticks and stones could hurt us? Today, words can apparently hurt us too — we’ve gotten a little too sensitive.

A Hampshire College student currently faces charges for allegedly assaulting a white basketball player of a visiting team over her culturallyappropriated braids earlier this month.

But this kind of frustration isn’t an anomaly — three weeks ago, a group of Latina students at Pitzer College demanded that all-white students remove hoop earrings on accounts of cultural appropriation, even sending an email to the entire campus.

Cultural appropriation, or the adoption of a culturally specific style by someone who isn’t a part of that culture, has become a heated topic on college and high school campuses in recent years.

But all the criticism has gotten out of hand. The Harbinger believes instead of attacking people for cultural appropriation, we should start a conversation that establishes the difference between appropriation and appreciation.

Imitation is the best form of flattery — when people wear clothing of another

culture, they’re celebrating that style, not mocking it. No one means to offend people by swapping trends; most of the time they don’t even realize their outfit is antagonizing someone.

But even if someone else’s clothing choices do personally offend you, that doesn’t give you the right to stoop to violence.

Since we’re sharing trends and ideas, it’s not fair to restrict certain people to boxes of an assigned culture

Putting up fists — literally or verbally — isn’t going to be a major advance for social justice. When a person feels marginalized by someone else’s clothing choices, “attacking” them back isn’t going to resolve any issues. Let’s just talk about it — where do we draw the line between appropriation and appreciation? It’s all about context and intent: if we’re meaning to celebrate a culture rather than mock it, that should count as a

compliment.

The truth is, the lines are too muddy to get upset over: is it cultural appropriation for us to eat Chinese food?

Or to learn to speak Spanish? Is it okay to wear a souvenir bracelet from a recent tropical vacation? Debates over cultural appropriation usually focus on cultures of racial minorities; which cultures is it safe to imitate, and which should we avoid?

The world is small and getting smaller; cultures morphing together is inevitable, so there’s no clear way to tell what belongs to which culture anymore. Since we’re sharing trends and ideas, it’s not fair to restrict certain people to boxes of an assigned culture. Of all the freedoms granted to us by our country, shouldn’t the way we dress or wear our hair be one of those?

We’re not saying it’s acceptable to mock a culture, but maybe it’s time to cool down a little when it comes to cultural appropriation. Some things are going to offend us. Most of the time, this appropriation comes from a place of innocence and ignorance. So instead of leaving angry Instagram comments or subtweeting or ranting at the lunch table, let’s make it our mission to teach cultural differences without pulling hair.

APPROPRIATION VS. APPRECIATION ap·pro·pri·a·tion (n.)

ap·pre·ci·a·tion (n.)

1.) Not knowing the history of a style

1.) Understanding the history

2.) Mocking said culture or style

2.) Celebrating that culture or style

3.) Wearing a style as a costume

3.) Wearing a style because you enjoy the style

EDITORIAL POLICY The Harbinger is a student run publication. The contents and views are produced solely by the staff and do not represent the Shawnee Mission School District, East faculty or school administration. Letters to the editor may be sent to room 521 or smeharbinger@gmail.com. Letters may be edited for clarity, length, libel or mechanics and may be accepted or rejected.

ASSISTANT PRINT EDITORS Daisy Bolin Grace Chisholm ART & DESIGN EDITORS Anna McClelland Yashi Wang HEAD COPY EDITORS Caroline Heitmann Robbie Veglahn PHOTO EDITORS Haley Bell Morgan Browning Kaitlyn Stratman ONLINE EDITORS-INCHIEF Ellie Cook Celia Hack ASSISTANT ONLINE EDITORS Morgan Biles Anna Kanaley MOBILE MEDIA & MARKETING EDITORS Marti Fromm Courtney McClelland SECTION EDITORS SPREAD- Katie Hise NEWS- Abby Walker and Kaleigh Koc SPORTS- Emily Fey, Reser Hall and Jet Semrick FEATURES- Ellie Mitchell & Brooklyn Terrill A&E- Sean Overton, Annabelle Cook and Pauline Shaver EDITORIAL- Will Tulp OPINION- Annie Jones, Gracie Kost and Liddy Stallard EASTIPEDIA- Scout Rice HUMANS OF SMEASTLucy Hoffman EDITORIAL BOARD Morgan Biles Daisy Bolin Ellie Booton Grace Chisholm Will Clough Ellie Cook Celia Hack Caroline Heitmann Courtney McClelland Claire Pottenger Robbie Veglahn Marti Fromm Reser Hall

COPY EDITORS Morgan Biles Daisy Bolin Ellie Booton Will Clough Ellie Cook Emily Fey Marti Fromm Harrison Gooley Celia Hack Reser Hall Caroline Heitmann Madeline Hlobik Anna Kanaley Lizzie Kahle Courtney McClelland Mac Newman Sean Overton Claire Pottenger Robbie Veglahn Abby Walker PAGE DESIGNERS Anna Dierks Elias Lowland Will Tulp Meg Thoma Katie Hise Gracie Kost Ava Johnson Annie Jones Carolyn Popper Sean Overton Lucy Patterson Lila Tulp Grace Padon Emily Fey Liddy Stallard Caroline Chisholm Sarah Wilcox Annabelle Cook Abby Walker Lizzie Kahle Emma Vaughters STAFF ARTISTS Will Tulp Maya Stratman ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITORS Diana Percy Ellie Thoma MOBILE MEDIA PHOTO EDITOR Audrey Kesler SME PHOTOS EDITOR Carson Holtgraves PHOTOGRAPHERS Allison Stockwell Annie Lomshek Ava Simonsen Elizabeth Anderson Ellen Swanson Ty Browning Laini Reynolds Grace Goldman Izzy Zanone Katherine Odell Libby Wilson Maddie Smiley Charles Manne Morgan Plunkett Sophie Storbeck Lucy Morantz Katherine McGinness Luke Hoffman Reilly Moreland Audrey Kesler

WRITERS Gracie Kost Maya Stratman Elizabeth Ballew Kaleigh Koc Lucia Barraza Pauline Shaver Alex Freeman SOCIAL MEDIA EDITORS Annabelle Cook Grace Padon ASSISTANT SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR Lucy Hoffman SOCIAL MEDIA STAFF Lucia Barraza Katherine McGinness Morgan Plunkett Alex Freeman Reilly Moreland ADS MANAGER Grace Chisholm BUSINESS MANAGER Caroline Chisholm CIRCULATION MANAGER Elizabeth Anderson SUBSCRIPTIONS MANAGER Sarah Wilcox CONTEST COORDINATOR Daisy Bolin VIDEO EDITOR Diego Galicia ASSISTANT VIDEO EDITOR Nic Bruyere VIDEO TRAINING EDITOR Cole Conderman INTERACTIVES EDITOR Will Tulp PODCAST EDITOR Reser Hall LIVE BROADCAST EDITORS Will Hembree Peyton Watts ANCHORS Avery Walker Peyton Watts MULTIMEDIA STAFF Drake Woods Avery Walker Will Tulp Nic Bruyere Sophie Storbeck Anna Dierks Peyton Watts Will Hembree

the

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OL CHO H S H I G KS 66208 AST N E Village, SIO MIS Prairie Rd, NEE S H AW Mission 7500

NEWS BRIEFS

PHOTOS

A breakdown of school, local and nationwide news

BY JET SEMRICK & MORGAN BILES

EAST

LOCAL

Students win arts scholarships

Prairie Village replaces lights with LEDs

THE ARTS COUNCIL of Johnson County awarded $4,900 in scholarships to four seniors on March 26. This year marks 20 years since the ACJC began awarding scholarships to seniors who show excellence in one of nine visual and performing arts categories.

Seniors Joey Gasperi, Meg McSweeney and Sean Overton won first in their respective categories of strings, production design and photography. Senior Annie Lomshek placed second for three-dimensional art. The three first place winners received $1,400, while second place received $700. The teachers who nominated the first place winners were also honored with $350.

While the money is a nice cushion to a student’s college fund, the award carries value beyond the monetary.

“Since I decided not to pursue a music major, I’ve been questioning why I spend so much of time practicing,” Gasperi said. “It was great to have the opportunity to compete and get validation for all the work I’ve put into improving.”

In total, nine East students were among the 104 finalists announced in February. The finalists were honored at the same March 26 gala that the scholarships were given.

THE CITY OF PRAIRIE VILLAGE will save $45,000 per year in electricity costs due to the purchase of new, high efficiency LED streetlights. Approved by the City Council on March 20, the new lights use half the energy of the current pressurized sodium lights and are significantly brighter according to Prairie Village public works director Keith Bredehoeft.

Prairie Village is purchasing the 1,736 lights from Phillips Lighting. The new lights are expected to arrive in one to two months. The final bill will be $343,323 for the lights themselves plus an installation fee of $121,086. “[The lights were] first suggested by one of our council members when we were contemplating purchasing the street light system from KCPL,” Bredehoeft said. “With the lower electricity and reduced maintenance costs, LED lights do not go out very often.”

Currently, there are 350 of the new lights installed throughout the city as a test. The closest new lights to East are at 79th and Reinhardt where there are five street lights installed.

Once the lights are delivered within the next two months, installation will take three more months before the entire project is complete during the early fall.

NATIONAL

President Trump signs Executive Order to change the U.S. approach to climate change

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP signed an executive order on March 28 to rescind many of the progressive era energy reforms enacted during the Obama administration. The order seeks to strengthen the United States coal industry while providing clean, affordable energy to the American people.

“The President strongly believes that protecting the environment and promoting our economy are not mutually exclusive goals,” White House press secretary Sean Spicer said during a press briefing on March 28.

The order itself calls for a review of “All Agency Actions that Potentially Burden the Safe, Efficient Development of Domestic Energy Resources.” That means that anything that harms domestic energy, such as the coal industry, is subject to

change.

Four of Obama’s executive orders passed from 2013 to 2016 aimed at combating climate change are being revoked under the order. The orders focused on preparing for and preventing a future of climate change.

In the past, President Trump has been criticized for his views on climate change. In 2012 Trump tweeted that “global warming was created for and by the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.”

“Trump doesn’t feel climate change is a real threat despite countless facts backing that it is,” sophomore Culley Woods said. “I have very little faith in his desire to address the issue of climate change.”

OF THE

WEEK

( A B OV E ) Junior varsity catcher sophomore Peyton Bridge, works with the pitcher before the next inning. | KAITLYN STRATMAN ( L E F T ) Juniors Iman Jaroudi and Kirsten Erikson throw pies at each other during a Pi Day celebration in IB Math HL. | HALEY BELL

THIS WEEK IN 140 CHARACTERS Wreck-It Ralph sequel officially called: “Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2. Jack McBrayer and Jane Lynch confirmed to return.

176

@NYTPolitics

@Royals

@ThelnSneider

407

Our first #BarkAtThePark of the year is 4/19! Tickets include a donation to @WaysideWaids.

12

39

Ivanka Trump is becoming an official government employee, joining her husband in serving as an unpaid adviser.

355

433

( A B OV E ) Junior Layla Villanueva uses a projector to stencil on letters for a prop in the spring play. | ANNIE LOMSHEK

4

NEWS

history of the shops A brief look into the past of the Prairie Village shops

60

years old

home of the SECOND OLDEST art show

REST in PEACE

Many well-known shops have left Prairie Village

recent Bruce Smith Drugs Spangler’s Toon Shop Waid’s

older

Village Toy The Children’s Shop Topsy’s Harper’s Fabrics

CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLO

in the city

built by

J.C. Nichols

after being named the in America in 1949 by the

National Association of Home Builders

NEWS

5

the

RENOVATING village After four long standing village shops leave, the Village undergoes modernizing renovations

BY ELLIE BOOTON

something old

T

T

iffany Town’s owner Bob Harsh was in his seventies when his store closed in January. The owner of Spangler’s, WIlliam Spangler, was 94 when he closed his 60-year-old shop in the Village Shopping Center this February. Fleet Feet was next to go. Then it was Bruce Smith Drugs.

In the last few months, four long-standing shops in the Village closed due to retirement of shop owners and the need for retiring outdated products and services, according to Donna Potts from the Prairie Village Merchants Association.

Senior Chace Prothe filled his prescriptions at Bruce Smith Drugs and bought birthday cards at Tiffany Town. He remembers Bruce Smith’s being a hub as a middle schooler at Indian Hills. “[The stores] were very convenient to have,” Prothe said. “I’m not really sure where else to [buy those things] in the Village now.”

The Village will primarily be filling the open spaces with services like restaurants, Potts said. In order to modernize,

his year, with Tiffany Town, Fleet Feet, Bruce Smith Drugs and Spangler’s leaving, the Little Gym and the owner of the Mixx are among the first to officially sign leases to replace these storefronts. Both replacements will ultimately attract a younger crowd and comply with the tightknit community feeling of Prairie Village, according to Potts.

Although no other future stores are set in stone, Potts said the Village’s stable places anticipate the addition of more localfriendly businesses to increase the customer traffic the Village has recently lacked.

Based on the popularity of the Mixx, Potts hopes the owner Jo Marie Scaglia’s plans for the village location will fix this lull.

However, the traditional Mixx is not what will appear in the Village, as she is in the process of creating a variation of the same concept. “[The] new concept has a different name and will offer different foods, but stay in line with the Mixx food philosophy of making everything from scratch and customized meals,” Scaglia said.

Scaglia’s original motivation for creating the Mixx stemmed from noticing a lack of healthy, fast-casual restaurants in the

Kansas City area. Her vision was clear: “There’s no simpler pleasure than a good lunch with good friends. I truly believe that it nourishes the soul. I crafted the Mixx first and foremost as a space where I would want to have lunch with friends.”

She utilizes other local markets such as Farm to Market bread, the Roasterie coffee and Scratch Bakery, while creating an uplifting and casual atmosphere which meshes will with the Village community. According to Scaglia, the Village will also offer a marketplace for prepared salads, meals and side dishes.

Junior Katie Uresti, who lives along the perimeter of the Village, is excited for the upcoming variation to be close by.

“I wish there were more restaurants that teens could go to in that price range,” Uresti said. “Right now there are a lot of random expensive places [in the Village] so more casual [restaurants] will be good.”

On the other hand The Little Gym, which was previously A Fairytale Ballet, will open April 10. As a center for “parent/ child classes, kids dance, gymnastics, sports skills and karate,” it aims to attract younger families, according to their website.

“The Little Gym will be great for mothers with kids,” Potts said. “[And] there’s a lot of those in Prairie Village.”

Prairie Village city planners have to comply with the internet and online shopping, which decreases the demand for retail stores.

“Shopping malls are going to services,” Potts said. “You’re going to see more restaurants and things like that.”

Village Shops’ real estate agent, Anna Rainbolt from First Washington Realty, said that the shops leaving is the “normal rhythm of retail.” Retail goes out in groups, services fill their spots. Most recently, places like Story, Chocolate Frog, Chipotle Mexican Grille and Etiquette Boutique took the place of decadeold shops.

One well-established shop in the Village, TCBY, has been standing for 19 years, so co-owner Nancy Bream has seen businesses come and go. She knows that this change is inevitable.

“We all know things change over the years,” Bream said. “I am going to have faith that they will bring in stores that will keep that friendliness and that local flare.”

Although the increase in customer traffic will benefit business, Bream hopes the diversified clientele which new stores and restaurants attract, will maintain the local, friendly and safe appeal Prairie Village currently provides.

“Customers become friends and you are interested in each others families and kids and you go through hard times together and that’s what Prairie Village [has always] meant to me,” Bream said. “The people that live in PV are what make it special, it’s a real neighborhood.”

PHOTOS ELLEN SWANSON AND KATHERINE ODELL

6

NEWS

HER

DITCHING TRAINING WHEELS New athletic trainer becomes familiar with the East spring season as she works in high school sports for the first time

BY WILL CLOUGH & HARRISON GOOLEY

EAST’S NEW ATHLETIC trainer Dakota Gelsheimer is now nearly one month into her job after starting work at the beginning of March. Gelsheimer follows former trainer Megan Burki, who now works as a clinical trainer for Dr. David Smith at KU Med. Already the beginning of the spring sport season, Gelsheimer has found herself thrown into a fast-paced job in an unfamiliar atmosphere.

As a 23-year-old who recently graduated from Washburn University with a degree in Sports Medicine and Central Methodist University with a graduate degree in Education, Gelsheimer is fresh to the field. She worked as a trainer at CMU before accepting a job at East.

“I’ve only worked with mainly

PHOTO KAITLYN STRATMAN

college athletes up until this point,” Gelsheimer said. “Going to the high school level, [I can be] more interactive with the whole family.”

She began working at the start of fourth quarter after Burki left, taking on all of the responsibilities that Burki once held – going to games and practices, following up with injured athletes and creating personal bonds with the student athletes.

Burki was known for having personal relationships with many of the student athletes – something Gelsheimer wants to continue herself.

“I definitely want to be an advocate where an athlete can come to me and feel comfortable around me; [I want to] be approachable,” Gelsheimer said. “But I know there is a line for

professionalism.”

Along with those relationships with students, Gelsheimer also wants to emphasize communication with parents and coaches. With whole family and team can be on board with her evaluations, she says the whole process of recovery goes much smoother.

With nearly the entire spring sport season still ahead of her, Gelsheimer will likely have plenty of time to create these kinds of relationships.

She has started by creating an open environment for students in her room – all thanks to that open door. “[Gelsheimer’s first month] has been great,” athletic director Debbie Katzfey said. “She’s excited, she’s motivated and she loves the kids already.”

Q// A//

PLEASE WELCOME: Q// A// DAKOTA

HOW DID YOU END UP AT EAST?

I work through KU Med, so when Megan applied for and got the clinic job, it created a gap. I was the one who was able to immediately move in without any other conflicting issues.

Get to know Dakota Gelsheimer through a series of Questions and Answers

Q// A// Q// A//

IS EAST YOUR FIRST JOB AS AN ATHLETIC TRAINER? Actually this is my second. Working at Central Methodist University in Fayette, Missouri, was actually my first. As a graduate assistant, I was working as a certified athletic trainer, but on top of that full time job, I was also going to school.

HOW DID YOU KNOW YOU WANTED TO BE A TRAINER? I’ve always known I wanted to help people because I have a passion for helping people through injuries and illnesses. I originally wanted to be a physical therapist, but after I thought about it, I changed my mind. I would rather be on the sidelines as soon as the person gets injured, not a month after.

Q// A// Q// A//

HOW HAVE YOU LIKED THE EAST ENVIRONMENT IN YOUR FIRST MONTH? It’s been going really well. I’ve been very impressed with how polite everyone is here. I’m not used to such politeness and such good manners from high school athlete. It’s really refreshing, and I really enjoy it.

HOW HAS HIGH SCHOOL TRAINING BEEN DIFFERENT THAN THE COLLEGE LEVEL? You get to be more interactive with the whole family at the high school level. You get to talk with the dad and the mom and the athlete themselves whereas in college you only talk to the athlete and doctor.

WHAT WAS YOUR IMMEDIATE REACTION WHEN YOU HEARD YOU WERE COMING TO EAST? I was really excited because I love working with high school kids. I love hearing your problems. You think it’s a really big deal, but when we sit down and talk about it, we find out it’s a small problem and you just snowballed it. So from there we can work it out and figure out how to solve it together.

Buy one Item, get one item of equal or lesser value FREE !!!

4046 W 83rd St, Prairie Village, KS 66208 dottiessouthernchic Dottie’s Southern Chic Boot-ique

Submitted by Bernie Fisher

Dottie’s STORY

This boutique is dedicated to that one special person that showed so many people how to “sparkle”. Thanks Dottie, Dorothy Julia Campbell Waidmann, for being so special.

As a child, Dottie’s founder and only daughter, Jeannie Mitchell, got to watch firsthand how her mom positively impacted the world around her. When a chance existed to sacrifice her own wants and needs for the good of someone else, sacrificing was always the choice Dottie would make. Dottie was always generous to others.

It was no surprise to find her wallet with only $1 remaining when passed in Oct. of 1993 after fighting an 8 year battle with leukemia.

When it came to clothes, Dottie definitely knew how to put an outfit together, and could do so on any budget! Dottie looked fantastic in anything from fishing waders to a formal dress, and she did so everyday. But it wasn’t just the outfits that made Dottie sparkle, it was her warm heart. Anyone can wear a great outfit, but a smile, a gentle touch, and kind words, all add up to treating others as special individuals, and that’s what brought Dottie to life. She didn’t just dress fabulously, she made everyone around her feel like the most important part of her day.

When founder, Jeannie Mitchell, decided to open a boutique, it didn’t take long to realize that she was being led by her mom’s spir-

it. At every turn in the development process, Dottie left signs of how it should look, who should be involved and what product lines should be carried. People arrived in her life just as they were needed. And yes, more than one was named Dottie!

Get to know more about Dottie as you shop. While in Dottie’s, you can watch actual home movies of Dottie and her family and friends which were filmed by her husband, Ray. Pay special attention to the outfits, her winks and the smile that she wears. And check out those amazing white sunglasses! Check out the mannequin covered in family photos that wears Dottie’s original red dress and plaid coat. And the photo of Dottie featuring her signature, that is now the logo of the store. A rose was added to her signature as a reminder of Dottie’s 3 month hospital stay as she fought cancer. Ray, her husband and Jeannie’s father, picked a rose from their garden, and after work would bring Dottie a new rose everyday.

At Dottie’s Southern Chic Boot-ique, each member of our team is a “Dottie’s Doll.” (Dottie used to design and sew her own dolls.)

When choosing a Dottie’s Doll, we start by looking for people with a warm heart and a desire to make others happy just like Dottie did.

We hope you feel like you are special when you visit Dottie’s!

ACROSS THEPOND BOND Staffer adapts from spending every day with her best friend to only seeing her once a year

BY ANNA KANALEY

B

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ANNA KANALEY

lasting the 2010 hit “Airplanes” in her black Mini Cooper, Jemima Swindells and I alternated singing parts – she rapped B.o.B.’s verses and I sang Hayley Williams’ chorus.

On our way to Culver’s for our weekly kid’s meal, I glanced over at Jemima and realized I only had a few months left of this. After sophomore year ended, there would be no more car jams. No more after school Culver’s runs. No more seeing my best friend every day.

Flashback to eighth grade when Jemima and I both happened to sit at the same lunch table the first day of school.

I found out she had just moved from London and would be spending her next three years in Kansas for her dad’s job.

Awkward, brace-faced, 13-year-old me had no idea how those next three years with Jemima Swindells would affect my life.

Because neither of us had anyone else to sit with, Jemima and I sat together at lunch every day after that. She invited me to a Royals game and then a concert at the Midland. She joined my lacrosse team, and I started listening to her music.

Our friendship progressed freshman year when we had classes together and really started spending time with each other outside of school and sports. It sounds like any basic friendship, but it kept growing. We spent every day together; her house became a second home for me. I stopped caring what other people thought of me — Jemima thought I was a good person and gave me the confidence I needed to be my own person. I realized I had never experienced a friendship like it. I had friends who were nice, but never anyone who supported me like she did.

The summer after freshman year, Jemima took me back to London with her, where I got to see her home and meet her friends she had left two years before. Her friends were ecstatic to see her again, and that was when I realized

the same thing would happen to me the next year when she would move back to London permanently. I would be in the same position her London friends were in – only seeing Jemima once or twice a year and relying solely on Snapchat or texting to stay in touch.

I tried to push that thought out of my head. I told myself that I just needed to appreciate the time I could spend with her and not think about the future. I treated our friendship as if she weren’t leaving me after sophomore year. I didn’t realize that putting off reality would make saying goodbye even harder in the end.

Sophomore year Jemima and I were inseparable. Three of the same classes and after school gossip sessions made it almost impossible not to spend time together. If I wasn’t home by 3:10 after school, I received a text from my mom asking “Where are you? Culvers with Jemima?” with laughing face emojis. I didn’t have a car, so Jemima drove me everywhere, including home from school even though she lived 12 minutes in the other direction from me. We jammed to Ed Sheeran and 2009 Avril Lavigne as if we were on James Corden’s Carpool Karaoke show. She listened to my daily obsessions over the cute boy in my French class, or the new Hen House bag-boy who held eye-contact for that extra second.

Since she left, I stopped doing the things that we did together. I don’t play lacrosse anymore. I don’t like to obsess over a new crush when she’s not the one listening. I don’t even listen to the music I used to love. It’s not the same without Jemima, so why would I do the things that make me miss her more?

But the one thing I won’t stop is talking to Jemima, even if it means we have to deal with the six hour time difference. We try to FaceTime a few times a month and Snapchat every day.

But those seven second selfies or quick

30 minute catch-ups aren’t the same as the privilege of spending every day together, knowing you still have time left.

Even though it feels like part of me is missing not having Jemima around every day, I wouldn’t trade our time together for all the Culver’s in the world. She’s the reason I joined the Harbinger – the reason I’m writing this story in the first place.

She convinced me to explore school clubs like Coalition and Feminist Club. She kept me up-to-date on world news and politics and made it interesting. She made sure I knew it was OK to struggle sometimes and that I could always talk to her.

Jemima is the reason I am who I am today.

It’s been almost one year since Jemima and I have been together in person. Almost one year since her black cat Goodison has tried to murder me with his claws. Almost one year since Jemima and I have sat in our favorite booth in the back corner of Culver’s eating our kids meals. Almost one year since I’ve had a family meal with my second parents, Victoria and Matthew Swindells.

But I won’t let it hit one year.

Now, I’m just counting down the days to May 26. I’m waiting for the plane to touch down at London’s Heathrow Airport, where I’ll only be a taxi and a Tube ride away from Jemima. I’m ready to see my best friend again for a week. I know I’ll be heartbroken to leave her like she left me, but I know I won’t go a full year without seeing her again. I won’t let that happen.

If Jemima hadn’t sat at my lunch table the first day of eighth grade, I don’t know where I’d be today. I believe everyone has someone they were always supposed to know. Someone that makes their eyes shine a little brighter and their smile grow a little bigger. Someone that makes them laugh on the floor for hours, just so happy to be alive. And I believe that someone for me is Jemima Swindells.

ANNA & JEMIMA

NUMBERS

1

DOG JEMIMA THREATENS TO STEAL every day

2017 schedule For more informations, visit www.lancerlacrosse.org

FRESHMAN

DATE

TIME

3/6

6:30 p.m.

3/22 7:00 p.m.

3/28 6:00 p.m.

FACILITY

Lee’s Summit North Blue Valley HS Rockhurst HS

4/8

12:30 p.m.

Ladue

4/8

4:00 p.m.

St. Louis Desmet

4/19 6:00 p.m.

Shawnee Mission East

4/27 6:00 p.m.

Shawnee Mission East

4/29 2:00 p.m.

Blue Valley HS

5/6

JV Tournament

TBD

OPPONENT DATE

LS North 3/8 3/25 3/28 BV JV 3/31 4/1 4/2 Rock Fresh.

4/6 4/10 Ladue 4/12 4/17 4/19 Desmet 4/22 4/24 Olathe East 4/27 4/28 4/29 Rock Fresh. 4/29 5/2 5/5 BV JV 5/11 5/17 TBD 5/19

TIME

6:15 p.m.

2:15 p.m.

8:00 p.m.

5:45 p.m.

6:00 p.m.

2:00 p.m.

7:30 p.m.

6:15 p.m.

6:15 p.m.

6:15 p.m.

6:15 p.m.

4:30 p.m.

6:15 p.m.

3:30 p.m.

5:30 p.m.

11:00 a.m.

1:30 p.m.

6:30 p.m.

7:00 p.m.

TBD TBD TBD

FACILITY

type

OPPONENT

Shawnee Mission North Game Northland Shawnee Mission East Game Olathe East Blue Valley Highschool Game Blue Valley Shawnee Mission East Game BV West St. Louis University HS Game SLUH St. Louis Desmet Game Desmet Rockhurst HS Game Rockhurst Shawnee Mission North Game Mill Valley Shawnee Mission North Senior Night Blue Valley Shawnee Mission East Game LS West Shawnee Mission East Game LS North Rockhurts University Game St. Thomas Aquinas Shawnee Mission North Game SM South East Parking Lot Depart for Milwaukee Milwaukee Game Kettle Moraine Kettle Moraine H.S. Game Glenbrook North Kettle Moraine H.S. Game Hamilton SE ODAC Game Olathe South Pembroke Game Pembroke TBD Game Quarter Finals UMKC Game Semi-Finals UMKC Game LAKC Championship

DATE

JV SCHEDULE TIME

FACILITY

3/8

8:00 p.m. Shawnee Mission North

3/25

4:30 p.m. Shawnee Mission East

3/28

6:30 p.m.

4/1

4:00 p.m.

4/2 12:00 p.m.

Blue Valley HS SLUH

OPPONENT

Northland

Olathe East Blue Valley SLUH

St. Louis Desmet

Desmet Rockhurst

4/6

6:00 p.m.

Rockhurst HS

4/8

2:30 p.m.

Shawnee Mission East

4/10 8:00 p.m. Shawnee Mission North

LS West Mill Valley

4/12 8:00 p.m. Shawnee Mission North

BV North

4/18 6:15 p.m.

Shawnee Mission East

LS North

4/22 6:00 p.m.

Rockhurst University

4/24 8:00 p.m. Shawnee Mission North 4/25 6:15 p.m. Shawnee Mission East

Aquinas SM South BV West

4/26 6:15 p.m. Shawnee Mission North Leavenworth 4/28 6:00 p.m.

5/2

8:00 p.m.

5/5

5:30 p.m.

5/6

TBD

Shawnee Mission East

Lawrence

ODAC

Olathe South

Pembroke

Pembroke

JV Tournament

TBD

10

OPINION

a BOCA GRANDE farewell After 14 years of travelling to Boca Grande, Florida for spring break, one final trip leaves a nostalgic feeling

A

BY LIDDY STALLARD

s I roll down the window of my mom’s charcoal gray Volvo, the smell of saltwater rushes into the car. I can’t help but close my eyes as I have flashbacks of twirling around on the beach in a green tutu at age three, being chased into someone’s backyard on a golfcart by rowdy high schoolers and keeling over laughing while hiding from them in bushes as a middle schooler.

Over the past 14 years, Boca Grande, Florida has become a second home to me and a place where I associate many of my family memories. Once I’m away at college in two years, the odds of spring break lining up with my family’s will be slim. With this reality hitting me, I chose to cherish my last days in Boca Grande soaking up the sun and eating ice cream up to three times a day.

The tradition of spending every spring break in Boca was started by my grandmother and several of her closest Kappa Alpha Theta sorority sisters. Although sitting around the pool with the grandchildren of the six other families cracking up as our grandmothers pass around pansies — the Theta flower — and sing old college songs will be a fond memory of mine, I have made plenty of my own memories over the years.

These memories represent the many stages of my life.

Monday night is bingo night at the Gasparilla Inn, a hotel that has been on the island for over 100 years. As I enter the inn, a man in a white suit and matching hat opens the front doors for me. I can’t help but wish that walls

covered in pastel colors and palm leaves were the wallpaper in my own room. Sun dresses and strappy espadrilles are only fitting for the occasion. Around the age of six I would roll my eyes at the amount of dresses my mom and grandma would make me try on for the occasion, now the two of them are my go-to fashion critiques.

I can thank my dad, brother, and March Madness taking place over spring break for my love of KU basketball.

Every year we search the small island top to bottom for newspapers with brackets inside. Once we finally get our hands on one we head back to the kitchen table to fill them out. On game day, we all throw on KU jerseys over our soakingwet swimsuits in order to make it to South Beach in time to watch the game.

Orders of nachos and calamari cover the table as we chant, “Yeah, I’m down in Kansas balling like I play for Kansas.”

Celebrating a KU win has always been more fun in Boca, especially when it’s a full speed run into the ocean afterward.

Each year, I can count on having at least 15 friends from KC to run around with. Most of these friendships started years ago on earlier spring breaks. I continue to stay in touch with these people once I’m back in KC, but the week we spend in Boca is the only time where all 15 of us, who happen to go to four different schools, are in the same place at the same time.

The days we spend running from the pool to the ocean, and then back to our houses for a poolside game of Spoons or Cards Against Humanity are my favorite and I know if it weren’t for this trip I would have never made these connections.

Every night after dinner we shoot

each other a text to coordinate the nightly meetup at Loose Caboose, a family style restaurant with a wide brick patio. After downing our ice cream — Boca Banana or Cake Batter — and quickly recovering from brain freezes, we jump on our golf carts and cruise around on the small island for the next hour.

On a good night we find plenty of other carts to tail. Other nights we meet kids from a different state and play them in a game of basketball at the community center. Once our parents can no longer be convinced to let us stay out any longer, we head home knowing we will repeat the same activities tomorrow. The thought of aimlessly driving around in golf carts and belting out the song “Express Yourself” seem just the thing to do while in Boca.

Over the past 14 years, I’ve learned that First Beach is the best place to watch the sunset and Banyon St. makes for the best pictures because the sun just barely peeks through the gaps in the tunnel, looking like tree branch shadows. Loose Caboose has the best chicken fingers on the island, and the island school has recess at 11 a.m. every weekday - so don’t try to go play basketball then, or they’ll kick you out.

I know I’m not special when it comes to beach side vacations, but spring break has become more than just a vacation for me. The week I spend in Florida every March is full of tradition and family history. My family spring breaks are soon coming to a close, but I wouldn’t trade the experience and memories I’ve made over the past 14 years for the world, although I wouldn’t mind a Loose Caboose in Prairie Village.

( A B OV E ) The pool behind the house that the Stallards have stayed in for the last five years. | PHOTO COURTESY OF LIDDY STALLARD ( M I D D L E ) Sophomore Bobby Kissick drives sophomore Sophie Lawrence and Liddy to buy ice cream from the Loose Caboose. | PHOTO COURTESY OF LIDDY STALLARD ( B E L OW ) Moments after sunset on First Beach, the beach that backs up to the house the Stallards stay in. | PHOTO COURTESY OF LIDDY STALLARD

+

FEATURES

the The districts’ new schedule changes should be revised due to their negative impacts

BY MAC NEWMAN

I

can feel my face start to heat up as every eye in the classroom lands on me. I realize my mistake – I had walked into the wrong classroom and forgotten about the new advisory period that administration had been droning on about. The thing is, I was actually excited to go to math class because my teacher was going to allow us to review before my Algebra 3 unit 5.2 exam over graphing logs. I instead had to turn around and briskly walk to my seminar class to “discuss” diversity.

The new Wednesday and Thursday block schedules, with an advisory period, shortened seminar and the late start, are restricting students’ ability to improve grades and succeed. This transition shortened the seminar by 40 minutes and cuts time out of third hour. These stricter rules only bring a shorter window to meet with teachers and make up assignments.

SMSD made this change starting in February – mainly for teachers who teach at multiple schools and have to travel mid-day, so the schedules line up. The new rules and restrictions, including needing a pass to travel, mandatory assemblies limited traveling, that come with the transition are counterproductive and ludicrous.

The advisory period was doomed to fail from the beginning. The name “advisory period” made me think it was going to be a short time to be

“advised” or have a time to meet with teachers and counselors. Fat chance.

The 35-minute period, awkwardly wedged in the middle of first and third hour, used for Link Crew, is a complete waste of time and resources for all grades. It takes away time from third hour, disrupting class plans and time management for teachers.

For high schoolers, college searching and college preparation is a constant storm cloud over our heads. The advisory period is prime opportunity to simply search for colleges, write scholarship essays or meet with your counselor – as well as the normal workload of seven classes and the after school activities such as spring sports and clubs. Instead, we listen to non-productive link leader presentations on East’s racism problem or on Jane Elliot.

Also, with the new rule of needing a pass to travel the halls during seminar, precious time is wasted.

Having to get the pass in the first place normally results in being late to seminar, because you usually need to get it in between passing periods. If someone forgets the pass they can’t leave, or you have to email the teacher and ask for permission – once again wasting more time that should be used to talk to teachers and working improve your grades.

Additionally, the recent influx of assemblies including Jane Elliot and a college preparation presentation for juniors, assemblies need to be made optional for all grades. We as young adults are able to make the decision to be in attendance or instead do our assignments and meet with teachers/ counselors.

The late start is the only positive thing to come out of this transition, but it still has big issues. On the first late start, I arrived 10 minutes before the bell like a good student. I was planning on finishing up some AHAP reading, but instead I was met by teachers and a gate, and forced into the overcrowded cafeteria. If someone was actually able to do homework in that nightmare, I applaud you.

My proposal to fix these issues that affect our schedule each week is simple. Either remove advisory period from the schedule and have the link leader presentations be five minutes at the beginning of seminar – or transform it into a mini seminar in which students can freely travel to wherever they need to go.

To fix this extensive time-wasting in seminar, students need to be able to roam freely and should not have to have a pass. Administration should be thanking the stars that their biggest issue for seminar is mildly-loud students meeting with friends in the hall to study or do group work and not fights, drugs or guns.

The late start provides a nice break for the sleep-deprived students of East — pretty much every student — and should stay. But the cafeteria idea was obviously unplanned and a last resort, and students should be able to meet with teachers or go to other places to work. However, only if it was an established meeting time the day before.

From my observations, administration’s counter arguments to free roam during seminar are that kids just roam around the school with no destination and subsequently wreak havoc. Yet I always saw students last semester extremely eager to leave seminar and go do what they need to get done. It isn’t fair or productive to punish an entire high school due to the few students who make their own decision to not be productive.

At the end of the day, this school is supposed to be for preparing us, the students, for college and life. It is starting to seem like this school cares more about looking good for diversity programs and assemblies rather than providing all opportunities to improve as students.

11

LANCER VOICE

BY THE NUMBERS

LATE STARTS

95% of students think that they should be allowed to meet with teachers on late start days

ASSEMBLIES

3 IN 5

Lancers think that all assemblies should be optional

ADVISORY

70% of students say advisory time is ineffective Surveyed out of 407 students

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Playing music together has strengthened juniors Sam Fay and Caroline Blubaugh’s relationship

F

BY MEG THOMA

lyers are plastered all over the school hallways announcing juniors Sam Fay and Caroline Blubaugh’s first debut.

This time however, not just as the couple who already does everything together — from rock climbing to DECA partners – but as an official musical duo. It’s another activity to add to their repertoire as a couple.

Caroline and Sam first met freshman year during cross country season and since have discovered a love for not just each other, but playing and creating music together.

Living next door has made it much easier to make time for practicing together because anytime they feel like picking up the guitar and running through some of their favorites songs, it’s just a 30-second walk from Caroline’s front door to Sam’s basement, where his dad set up a music studio where Sam had learned to play many years before. Here, they are provided with an amplifier, a guitar, drums and a keyboard.

The two found their love for music separately growing up surrounded by music in their homes. However, when Sam moved in at the beginning of high school, they were able to share their passion together. A big factor in sparking this was Sam’s dad, Brian Fay — who played in a band at their age — and was also a large influence in the beginning of their career, which began to take off this year.

Brian helped blend their two styles

together for the outcome they were looking for, which was mimicking their favorite couple duo, Dresses. One of their favorite songs to perform is “Duet Song” because the couple plays the guitar and sings just like the two of them. Caroline works with the harmonies and plays the guitar, while Sam knows the melody of the songs the best with his background from chamber choir. Together, they sing their favorite songs such as “Can’t Help Falling in Love” by Elvis Presley and “Hallelujah” by Jeff Buckley.

“I really was there to help correct the harmonies and the melodies for the songs that they wanted to sing and play,” Brian said.

According to Brian, the start of their music career was different than what most musicians face. Normally, he explains that when groups get together to perform, the pressure can break a group up, but playing music has had the opposite effect on them – it has strengthened their relationship even further. Their dynamic, as a couple, is such that they can bounce ideas off of each other and except and work on them.

Finding their place on the stage came naturally because they are able to balance each other out. Sam stays cool and collected, making the performance more at ease, while Caroline has the “go-with-the-flow” attitude, but can

sometimes feel the nerves of a stage performance. Their musical talents have allowed them to perform in many events including performing at the Coalition Love Concert on Feb. 25 and a Blue Couch Session with the Harbinger.

Their first debut, the Love Concert, was when they began to accustom to the nerves of the stage. They could still see the attentive faces of their audience, which helped them feel more comfortable on stage. Their best friends in the front row was nothing but a blessing according to Caroline.

“Seeing my friends front row really helped me to calm down and realize this was just basically like another practice run,” Caroline said.

One of their biggest fans of their music, and relationship in general, is junior Kirby Motsinger, who is a mutual friend to both.

She introduced them freshman year at cross country where Sam asked Caroline to homecoming, sparking the whole relationship and now she gets to watch her “work” all fall

Fay and Blubaugh perform “Can’t Help Falling in Love” at the Love Concert on Feb. 25. | AUDREY KESLER

into place.

“I think they were going to end up together no matter what though because, I mean, look at them,” Motsinger said. “They’re both so great together.”

The two performing together is not only a rewarding experience for them, but for Brian, who is always the fresh pair of ears to hear their harmonies from the beginning. He had also introduced one of their favorite songs to perform, “Hallelujah” to Sam when he was little. Now he gets to watch him grow up with it and now even improve with his new musical partner.

“For me, it really just came full circle getting to watch my son perform on stage that very song with his best friend,” Brian said. “It truly almost brought me to tears.”

MOMENTS

Blubaugh and Fay laugh over ice cream at Betty Rae’s in Waldo. | LIBBY WILSON

Blubaugh used several signs to ask Fay to freshman year WPA. | PHOTO COURTESY OF CAROLINE BLUBAUGH

The summer before freshman year Fay and Blubaugh took this picture in a mall photo booth. | PHOTO COURTESY OF CAROLINE BLUBAUGH

14

FEATURES

CLASH OF CLANS

Meet the

A look inside East’s newest trend, live action role playing or LARP

BY CAROLINE HEITMANN

S

PHOTO MORGAN BROWNING

enior William Schmidt sees an opportunity.

Squished together on a wooden bridge crossing a small pond, he and his clan, the Dark Riders, are at a standstill against the opposing clan, the Storm Shields. At first, the Dark Riders and their allies, the Bjørn Rike, had ferociously charged and literally jumped on their opponents, a massive dogpile becoming the new strategy. But after a few minutes, it fizzled down to some weak jabs between some PVC pipe and old sleds – well, spears and shields.

There needs to be a winner though, so to spur the action again, Schmidt decided to climb over the bridge railing and attempt to leap to the island, a maneuver senior and ally John Arnspiger just completed.

Schmidt swings his leg over the railing and gets into place on the thin ledge. If he misses the bank, it’s a cold, muddy bath on a 52 degree day at Shawnee Mission Park’s Shelter 2, but he takes the risk and launches.

With his homemade kilt flapping in the wind, his bare feet land in the mud. But he doesn’t even have time to lift his sword before two enemy Storm Shields slaughter him. Schmidt falls to the ground, then sits up and laughs.

“If I’m going to die, I’m dying in style,” Schmidt said.

No wimpy deaths on this battlefield.

Schmidt is in the midst of an intense LARP battle between 42 boys. LARP, or Live Action Role Play, is a game of sorts, where people gather with homemade weapons to battle to the “death.”

Let’s be real: it’s not a common sight. One time a couple on a walk stopped and turned their date into a LARP-watching session for 10 minutes.

But the boys agree that literally none of them care if they make a fool of themselves. They don’t do it so they can dress up like it’s the Renaissance Festival, but because it’s adrenaline-filled and fun. They can mess around, spear their friends for a few hours, laugh about it, then go back to normal – no judgment at all.

And the idea, which was born after a Game of Thrones-watching session at senior Clayton Phillips’ house with seniors Logan Cleaver and Ryan Kahle, is not just a trend. It’s now a $200 investment for Kahle and about $100 for Phillips – the materials for the weapons cost some money.

But they’re worth it. PVC pipes get painstakingly covered in PVC insulation and pool noodles to create spears and swords. Old sleds turn into shields – senior Jack Griswold uses a Vineyard Vines belt for his shield handle. Arrow points get new foam guards. And duct tape, team colors of course, keeps it all together.

Each clan — so far there’s five — has their own elder. The elders are the almighty leaders: Kahle, Logan, Phillips, senior John Arnspiger and KCC senior Louie Wrablica. Kahle, Logan and Phillips are the original inventors, but Phillips got the idea two years ago from two then-seniors Will Reimer and Will Fenimore. LARP isn’t a new phenomenon, but East had never experienced it before.

So far, they’ve had three battles, two at Shawnee Mission Park and one at Loose Park.

The most recent battle — March 26 — was the biggest yet. As the warriors slowly appeared in their carpools, they pulled out a speaker to blast “Seven Nation Army.” Then some practiced dueling while others checked weapon inventories and planned out strategies. Once everyone arrived and had assembled into their clans, Dark Rider senior Parker Shirling called to the others to signal the start of the battle – then they charged.

Some boys go in full sprint, like senior Jack Griswold, whose face scrunches way up as he flies across the grass, shield in one hand, sword in the other, plastic gray helmet bouncing up and down. Others hang back then circle around for a surprise hit.

“It’s utter chaos,” Shirling said.

From the very beginning, Phillips, Kahle and Cleaver knew they would have to take LARP fairly seriously if they wanted it to stick.

“With something like this, you have to be

all in, you have to be sold and completely in character,” Phillips said.

Kahle made a Constitution — a six-page Google Doc — which fully breaks down all the rules regarding weapons, alliances and even how an execution would take place. At the last battle, Phillips was executed after losing a oneon-one duel to sophomore Luke Cleaver. Phillips wielded not only a sword but a sort of Thor-esque hammer too, yet couldn’t compete with Luke’s multi-pronged, weapon extraordinaire. Phillips knelt down in a circle of boys, and the victor beheaded him. As Philips fell to the ground, the surrounding circle of boys went from silent to boisterous cheers.

It’s deadly out there.

“I’ve bled in every LARP battle – little scratches on my arms,” Logan said. “This is not some little thing.”

Kahle agreed, laughing.

“We sacrifice our bodies,” he said.

Two skirmishes in at the most recent battle, senior Simon Bradley looked down to see blood running from his knee. Senior Eli McDonald cut his toe — he doesn’t know on what — during a swim in the muddy pond. Then a few weeks ago during the battle at Loose Park, senior Eli Kurlbaum had a PVC pipe spear snap in half on his arm, leaving an impressive bruise. He said it was tennis ball-sized and a “nice purpley-yellow.”

The boys do it again anyway – it’s fun, remember?

“No one here cares, no one judges that we’re running around hitting people with spears and swords made out of foam,” Shirling said.

The elders are still planning a way to pass on the role of elder in the summer, but they know one thing: they want LARP to last for years.

For now though, they’ll keep battling. And when they’re done, they’ll pull off their black ski masks, shed their bathrobes and hop into their cars, maybe playing “Seven Nation Army” as they drive away.

EL DE RS senior JOHN ARNSPIGER

THE GUILD OF BOB JONES

“My favority memory has been the seige on the bridge aginist Storm Shield clan at Shanwnee Mission Park... One invader, Eli McDonald, even decided to swim to the island in freezing rain to surprise the Storm Shields from the rear.” senior LOGAN

CLEAVER DARK RIDERS

“My costume/armor consits of a rob from a Harry Potter costume that I had lying around. My wolf shirt, I found that at a thrift store and I wore football forearm pads, old black football cleates and some black facepaint.” senior CLAYTON PHILLIPS

BjØRN RIKE

The last battle we had I made my costume out of an old soccer shirt and cut the sleeves off and sewed on a patch to show my clan’s symbol. I also wore a cape that I found in my basement and skateboarding kneepads I found in my garage. senior RYAN KAHLE

STORM SHIELD

“I really hope that the little league that we started just continues to be active...It’s a matter of how much effort they put into it. I hope it’s a lot because I think it would be really great to see it live on.”

PHOTO ESSAY

15

( L E F T ) The Dark Riders, Guild of Bob Jones and Bjørn Rike clans attempt to overthrow the Stormshields to gain possession of the island across the bridge. “It was honestly so much fun getting 50 people out there and having everyone go head to head,” senior Michael Hamilton said. “It was a chaotic mess, really it was just great.” | MORGAN BROWNING ( B E L OW ) Senior Danny Tapp paints fellow clan member, junior Robbie Veglahn’s face before the battle.

“We have a group chat of everyone in the clan and we discuss strategy beforehand,” Tapp said. “We share weapons and outfits for the battle, and just get hyped for it.” | MORGAN BROWNING

PARK

LAR in the

Students gather regularly at local parks to compete with their “clans” in live action role play battles.

( A B OV E ) Senior Will Seitz lunges at senior Carl Young with his sword during their duel. ”I like to have the individual duals personally,” Young said. “[The hammer] that I use is pretty hard and I swing it with full strength. I’m out to try to break weapons. I’m going out to try my best to make people fear me because that’s something we can use in later games.” | MORGAN BROWNING

( A B OV E ) Senior Parker Shirling yells to the other clans to see if they are ready to begin battle. While it wasn’t originally planned, every battle now starts with Shirling’s war cry. | MORGAN BROWNING

( L E F T ) Michael Hamilton prepares to go head to head with a member of the Dark Riders clan. “[Senior] Clayton [Phillips] approached me and asked if I wanted to do [LARP]. I said ‘Absolutely, it sounds like a blast,’” Hamilton said. “[LARP] sounds like the nerdiest thing I can do to have fun, and it’s honestly just a great time.” | DIANA PERCY

16

SPREAD

SPREAD

PHOTOS MORGAN BROWNING AND DIANA PERCY

SO WHAT EVEN IS A JUUL? Described as the next generation of electronic

PAC K TO POD

STUDENTS WHO OWN JUULS USE AN AVERAGE OF SEVEN PODS A WEEK OR ONE POD A DAY

BASED ON A POLL 0F 497 EAST STUDENTS

CIGS 1 JUUL POD

the Juul is a

VA P E

closed system vaporizer that

Is refillable using juice

uses natural

VAPE

— instead of free base

Has countless flavors of juice

Has only 5 flavors of pods

Pull strength is controlled manually

Pull strength is automatic

Is comparably large and heavy

improved taste

Charge lasts about 2 days on average

D E M O GR APH IC A N ALYS I S

CONTINUED FROM COVER

“I

’ll just take a hit with it cupped in my hands and blow it into my jacket so no one can see,” Bernard said. “That’s why it’s so nice, I could never do that with a big e-cig in the middle of class.”

Bernard’s not the only one using a Juul, though legal purchasing age is 18. According to a survey of 497 East students, 32 percent have used a Juul. It’s easy to use and conceal: its streamlined design can fit into a pocket or wallet unlike many other e-cigs.

To Juul users like sophomore Grace James*, above all, it’s cool. James said just “having it in your hand” makes you look better at a party. The Juul is so “cool,” in fact, that 41 percent of upperclassmen boys use five or more Juulpods each week, the equivalent nicotine consumption to five packs of cigarettes.

Such a discreet product is different from the “big honking machines” that e-cigarettes used to be, according to assistant principal Britton Haney, making it difficult for authorities to detect.

Currently, the effects of the Juul remain a mystery: there is little to no research on the Juul and nearly no regulation of the e-cigarette industry as a whole according to federal health officials and preventative medicine doctors.

The Juul has infiltrated classrooms, bathrooms and parties in a matter of months. One in four upperclassman males now own a Juul. And of those who said they have used a Juul before, 40 percent said that they have used them at school, despite the district’s no tobacco policy.

Kids like Bernard have charted out the best

bathrooms — the ones without teachers in them — throughout day to take a few hits. Bernard said groups of friends will fill the sink-area with clouds of vapor during passing period.

According to Haney, multiple students have complained about Juul and vape use, though only one student has been caught with a Juul. Its size and lack of smell leave it undetected; 80 percent of students surveyed feel that if they wanted to, it would be easy to hide a Juul and use it in school without getting caught.

The Juul has remained unknown in the adult and medical communities as well, having only been on the market since June 1, 2015. Professional sources including contacts from the Center for Disease Control, KU Medical Center and the Kansas State Legislature didn’t know what a Juul was prior to requests for interviews for this piece.

On May 5, 2016, the FDA extended its jurisdiction over tobacco products to include every kind of electronic nicotine delivery system, including Juuls.

A plan has been laid out for the introduction of each step of regulation. However, no regulation of the manufacturing, distribution and sale of e-cigarettes or vaping products will go into effect until 2018 according to the American Lung Association.

“I mean there’s just no control,” said Dr. Edward Ellerbeck, Chairman of Preventative Medicine at KUMC. “It’s like you went to your garage and said ‘Oh I’m going to mix some stuff up here. This looks like nicotine. I’ve got some rat poison and on the side it says it has nicotine, so I’ll throw a little bit in.’ Nobody’s

Charge lasts about one full day, or the use of 1 pod

CREME BRULEE SMELLS LIKE VANILLA, TASTES LIKE CAKE OR CUSTARD V I R G I N I A T O BAC C O DOES NOT HAVE STRONG SCENT, TASTES LIKE RICH AMERICAN TOBACCO FRUIT MEDLEY SMELLS LIKE REGULAR VAPE JUICE (FRUITY), TASTES LIKE MIXED BERRIES COOL MINT SMELLS LIKE CRISP MINT GUM, TASTES LIKE SOOTHING PEPPERMINT

B A S E D O N A P O L L O F 4 9 7 E A S T S T U D E NT S

MALE UPPERCLASSMEN 24.8% MALE UNDERCLASSMEN 20.2% FEMALE UPPERCLASSMEN 4.6% FEMALE UNDERCLASSMEN 6.5%

MALE UPPERCLASSMEN 43.4% MALE UNDERCLASSMEN 38% FEMALE UPPERCLASSMEN 25.5% FEMALE UNDERCLASSMEN 21.8%

MANGO SMELLS LIKE A TROPICAL ISLAND, TASTES LIKE HAWAIIAN FRUIT

“The designs, flavors, and

% O F S T U D E NT S T H AT watching over [the manufacturers].”

Despite the lack of regulations, many users such as James believe that “Juuling” is safer than smoking cigarettes. Compared to the 32 percent of students who reported having used a Juul, 21 percent of students reported having tried a cigarette in a poll taken by the Harbinger in October of last year.

But according to James, it’s not the fact that students think Juuls are safer than cigarettes that is drawing them in — it’s the stronger “buzz” and easy access anytime.

“I honestly don’t think anyone cares or pays attention to whether it’s healthy or not,” James said.

“It’s just like, ‘I’m invincible, it’s not going to hurt me’.”

Dr. Brian King, Deputy Director for Research Translation in the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health, said the long-term effects of using e-cigarette products including Juuls is unknown because they’ve only recently reached the market.

For regular adult smokers, e-cigarettes like Juuls are a safer alternative, Ellerbeck said. E-cigarettes do not produce smoke like regular cigarettes do, therefore reducing certain carcinogens released in the burning of tobacco.

“E-cigarettes generally emit lower levels of dangerous toxins than regular cigarettes. However, safer is not the same as safe,” King said. “Youth should not use any type of tobacco product, regardless of whether it’s smoked, smokeless or electronic.”

The concerning part about young people using vaping products, however, is the level of nicotine

JUUL POD F L AVO R B R E AK D OW N

Is very small and lightweight

information courtesy of juulvapor.com and vaporgroup.com

ACTUAL SIZE

*NAMES CHANGED TO PROTECT IDENTITY

Can only be refilled using pods Pods contain 5% nicotine

nicotine — for and sensation.

JUUL

Juice contains 2.4% nicotine

nicotine salts

BY GRACE CHISHOLM & ROBBIE VEGLAHN

1 PACK OF CIGARETTES

N O T YO U R AV E R AG E VAPE

cigarettes,

A new electronic cigarette, known as the Juul, is powerful, discreet and taking East by storm

...WHICH IS THE EQUIVALENT OF ONE PACK OF CIGARETTES A DAY

17

OW N A J U U L

% O F S T U D E NT S T H AT

H AV E U S E D A J U U L

branding of products like the Juul show that the industry is targeting younger audiences.”

EDWARD ELLERBECK CHAIRMAN OF PREVENTATIVE MEDICINE, KUMC

consumption, Ellerbeck said.

The younger a person starts using nicotine, Ellerbeck said, the more likely they are to become dependent.

Research has found that nicotine rewires the reward system in the brain; in the still-developing brains of young people, this can be especially destructive.

Thirty-six percent of male upperclassmen reported using a Juul five or more times a day, taking multiple hits on each occasion. And they’re inhaling more nicotine per hit — while other e-cigarettes typically sell e-juices with concentrations of 2.4 percent, Juulpods contain 5 percent.

With more than double the concentration of nicotine, Bernard saw that as reason enough to buy another Juul for $50 just two days after losing his first.

The two days he went without, “it was all [he] could think about.” It wasn’t like he needed it, he said, but he just couldn’t wait for another buzz.

Half of the calming, pleasurable sensation of nicotine fades away every two hours, Ellerbeck said.

Once that happens, users starts to feel jittery and anxious, and crave that nicotine delivery again.

“It’s not like I am constantly feeling like I have to do it,” Bernard said. “But I do probably go to the bathroom once every two hours or so to ‘Juul.’”

What also concerns Ellerbeck about the Juul is the flavors of Juulpod juice offered: mango, virginia

tobacco, cool mint, fruit medley and creme brulee.

Ellerbeck believes the designs, flavors and branding of products like the Juul show that the industry is targeting younger audiences.

An occasional cigarette smoker, sophomore Dan Thomas* couldn’t imagine going back to cigarettes after a few months of “Juuling” exclusively. “[My friend and I] both ripped [a cigarette] at a party and looked each other and said ‘This just is not as good anymore. It just sucks now’,” Thomas said. “The taste was awful and we’d forgotten how bad we smelled after.”

The creators of the Juul did not respond to interview questions, but CEO of PAX Labs Tyler Goldman issued this statement to the Harbinger: “Juul was created to be used as an alternative to traditional smoking for adults of legal smoking age only,” Goldman said. “We take the underage use of any nicotine products very seriously, and we strive to keep our products out of the hands of minors.”

Despite Goldman’s statement, in Ellerbeck’s experience, traditional smokers aren’t concerned with flavors or hiding the fact that they smoke “like the kids sneaking Juuls under their sweatshirts do.” The more that electronic products look, feel, smell and taste like normal cigarettes, the happier traditional smokers are.

“If I would talk with my 50-year-old smoker who has [chronic obstructive pulmonary disease] and I ask

them, you know ‘Would you like some fruit punch flavored e-cigarette?’ they would laugh me out of the room,” Ellerbeck said.

Though minors using tobacco products is illegal, students with fake IDs buy Juuls and their pods for themselves, and those of legal age often buy and distribute Juulpods in bulk — and then sell them for a profit, Bernard said. What he doesn’t keep for himself, Bernard sells to other kids. By up-charging an extra $3 for a $17 pack of four pods, he’s made over $50 selling them to younger students.

Groups of friends have made day-trips out of driving to Lawrence vape shops to buy pods, because all the local stores have been out of stock, Bernard and Thomas said.

Recently a store in Lenexa began carrying Juul products and has become a closer option for students who want a quicker replacement for their Juulpods.

J.C. Carroll from Let’s Smoke and Vape Shop KC, has noticed the increase in Juul popularity. Though he doesn’t have concrete sales information — he’s still waiting to receive his Juul product shipment — he believes the Juul will outsell other options. He gets multiple calls every day from customers asking about Juuls.

Organizations like Tobacco 21 KC are working to get the Juul and other tobacco products out of the hands of minors. Tobacco 21 has pushed to restrict the use of

tobacco products by teens by raising the purchasing age for tobacco products from 18 to 21. Several local cities, including Prairie Village, Leawood and Lenexa have adopted this legislation.

But while it is included in their push for legislation change, John Hall, Tobacco 21’s representative in the KC Chamber of Commerce, doesn’t believe the Juul will be a lasting trend. “[The popularity of the Juul] gives us a reminder of the importance of our work, but this product is just the latest in the series of things that catch on quickly, especially with young people,” Hall said. “In two years, there will be something entirely new that replaces Juul in this market, I suspect.”

Ellerbeck doesn’t see this trend going away. He imagines that once the government does begin to regulate e-cigarettes like the Juul, a few major players will have survived, mirroring the current Big Tobacco industry. Manufacturers could give away Juuls for free, he said, and “bank on the fact” that people will “become lifetime users.”

However, James agrees with Hall that the Juul is a fad.

“Anything electronic kind of goes away,” James said.

“I feel like there will be something else. These came after vapes, and something will come out that’s worse than this.”

16

SPREAD

SPREAD

PHOTOS MORGAN BROWNING AND DIANA PERCY

SO WHAT EVEN IS A JUUL? Described as the next generation of electronic

PAC K TO POD

STUDENTS WHO OWN JUULS USE AN AVERAGE OF SEVEN PODS A WEEK OR ONE POD A DAY

BASED ON A POLL 0F 497 EAST STUDENTS

CIGS 1 JUUL POD

the Juul is a

VA P E

closed system vaporizer that

Is refillable using juice

uses natural

VAPE

— instead of free base

Has countless flavors of juice

Has only 5 flavors of pods

Pull strength is controlled manually

Pull strength is automatic

Is comparably large and heavy

improved taste

Charge lasts about 2 days on average

D E M O GR APH IC A N ALYS I S

CONTINUED FROM COVER

“I

’ll just take a hit with it cupped in my hands and blow it into my jacket so no one can see,” Bernard said. “That’s why it’s so nice, I could never do that with a big e-cig in the middle of class.”

Bernard’s not the only one using a Juul, though legal purchasing age is 18. According to a survey of 497 East students, 32 percent have used a Juul. It’s easy to use and conceal: its streamlined design can fit into a pocket or wallet unlike many other e-cigs.

To Juul users like sophomore Grace James*, above all, it’s cool. James said just “having it in your hand” makes you look better at a party. The Juul is so “cool,” in fact, that 41 percent of upperclassmen boys use five or more Juulpods each week, the equivalent nicotine consumption to five packs of cigarettes.

Such a discreet product is different from the “big honking machines” that e-cigarettes used to be, according to assistant principal Britton Haney, making it difficult for authorities to detect.

Currently, the effects of the Juul remain a mystery: there is little to no research on the Juul and nearly no regulation of the e-cigarette industry as a whole according to federal health officials and preventative medicine doctors.

The Juul has infiltrated classrooms, bathrooms and parties in a matter of months. One in four upperclassman males now own a Juul. And of those who said they have used a Juul before, 40 percent said that they have used them at school, despite the district’s no tobacco policy.

Kids like Bernard have charted out the best

bathrooms — the ones without teachers in them — throughout day to take a few hits. Bernard said groups of friends will fill the sink-area with clouds of vapor during passing period.

According to Haney, multiple students have complained about Juul and vape use, though only one student has been caught with a Juul. Its size and lack of smell leave it undetected; 80 percent of students surveyed feel that if they wanted to, it would be easy to hide a Juul and use it in school without getting caught.

The Juul has remained unknown in the adult and medical communities as well, having only been on the market since June 1, 2015. Professional sources including contacts from the Center for Disease Control, KU Medical Center and the Kansas State Legislature didn’t know what a Juul was prior to requests for interviews for this piece.

On May 5, 2016, the FDA extended its jurisdiction over tobacco products to include every kind of electronic nicotine delivery system, including Juuls.

A plan has been laid out for the introduction of each step of regulation. However, no regulation of the manufacturing, distribution and sale of e-cigarettes or vaping products will go into effect until 2018 according to the American Lung Association.

“I mean there’s just no control,” said Dr. Edward Ellerbeck, Chairman of Preventative Medicine at KUMC. “It’s like you went to your garage and said ‘Oh I’m going to mix some stuff up here. This looks like nicotine. I’ve got some rat poison and on the side it says it has nicotine, so I’ll throw a little bit in.’ Nobody’s

Charge lasts about one full day, or the use of 1 pod

CREME BRULEE SMELLS LIKE VANILLA, TASTES LIKE CAKE OR CUSTARD V I R G I N I A T O BAC C O DOES NOT HAVE STRONG SCENT, TASTES LIKE RICH AMERICAN TOBACCO FRUIT MEDLEY SMELLS LIKE REGULAR VAPE JUICE (FRUITY), TASTES LIKE MIXED BERRIES COOL MINT SMELLS LIKE CRISP MINT GUM, TASTES LIKE SOOTHING PEPPERMINT

B A S E D O N A P O L L O F 4 9 7 E A S T S T U D E NT S

MALE UPPERCLASSMEN 24.8% MALE UNDERCLASSMEN 20.2% FEMALE UPPERCLASSMEN 4.6% FEMALE UNDERCLASSMEN 6.5%

MALE UPPERCLASSMEN 43.4% MALE UNDERCLASSMEN 38% FEMALE UPPERCLASSMEN 25.5% FEMALE UNDERCLASSMEN 21.8%

MANGO SMELLS LIKE A TROPICAL ISLAND, TASTES LIKE HAWAIIAN FRUIT

“The designs, flavors, and

% O F S T U D E NT S T H AT watching over [the manufacturers].”

Despite the lack of regulations, many users such as James believe that “Juuling” is safer than smoking cigarettes. Compared to the 32 percent of students who reported having used a Juul, 21 percent of students reported having tried a cigarette in a poll taken by the Harbinger in October of last year.

But according to James, it’s not the fact that students think Juuls are safer than cigarettes that is drawing them in — it’s the stronger “buzz” and easy access anytime.

“I honestly don’t think anyone cares or pays attention to whether it’s healthy or not,” James said.

“It’s just like, ‘I’m invincible, it’s not going to hurt me’.”

Dr. Brian King, Deputy Director for Research Translation in the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health, said the long-term effects of using e-cigarette products including Juuls is unknown because they’ve only recently reached the market.

For regular adult smokers, e-cigarettes like Juuls are a safer alternative, Ellerbeck said. E-cigarettes do not produce smoke like regular cigarettes do, therefore reducing certain carcinogens released in the burning of tobacco.

“E-cigarettes generally emit lower levels of dangerous toxins than regular cigarettes. However, safer is not the same as safe,” King said. “Youth should not use any type of tobacco product, regardless of whether it’s smoked, smokeless or electronic.”

The concerning part about young people using vaping products, however, is the level of nicotine

JUUL POD F L AVO R B R E AK D OW N

Is very small and lightweight

information courtesy of juulvapor.com and vaporgroup.com

ACTUAL SIZE

*NAMES CHANGED TO PROTECT IDENTITY

Can only be refilled using pods Pods contain 5% nicotine

nicotine — for and sensation.

JUUL

Juice contains 2.4% nicotine

nicotine salts

BY GRACE CHISHOLM & ROBBIE VEGLAHN

1 PACK OF CIGARETTES

N O T YO U R AV E R AG E VAPE

cigarettes,

A new electronic cigarette, known as the Juul, is powerful, discreet and taking East by storm

...WHICH IS THE EQUIVALENT OF ONE PACK OF CIGARETTES A DAY

17

OW N A J U U L

% O F S T U D E NT S T H AT

H AV E U S E D A J U U L

branding of products like the Juul show that the industry is targeting younger audiences.”

EDWARD ELLERBECK CHAIRMAN OF PREVENTATIVE MEDICINE, KUMC

consumption, Ellerbeck said.

The younger a person starts using nicotine, Ellerbeck said, the more likely they are to become dependent.

Research has found that nicotine rewires the reward system in the brain; in the still-developing brains of young people, this can be especially destructive.

Thirty-six percent of male upperclassmen reported using a Juul five or more times a day, taking multiple hits on each occasion. And they’re inhaling more nicotine per hit — while other e-cigarettes typically sell e-juices with concentrations of 2.4 percent, Juulpods contain 5 percent.

With more than double the concentration of nicotine, Bernard saw that as reason enough to buy another Juul for $50 just two days after losing his first.

The two days he went without, “it was all [he] could think about.” It wasn’t like he needed it, he said, but he just couldn’t wait for another buzz.

Half of the calming, pleasurable sensation of nicotine fades away every two hours, Ellerbeck said.

Once that happens, users starts to feel jittery and anxious, and crave that nicotine delivery again.

“It’s not like I am constantly feeling like I have to do it,” Bernard said. “But I do probably go to the bathroom once every two hours or so to ‘Juul.’”

What also concerns Ellerbeck about the Juul is the flavors of Juulpod juice offered: mango, virginia

tobacco, cool mint, fruit medley and creme brulee.

Ellerbeck believes the designs, flavors and branding of products like the Juul show that the industry is targeting younger audiences.

An occasional cigarette smoker, sophomore Dan Thomas* couldn’t imagine going back to cigarettes after a few months of “Juuling” exclusively. “[My friend and I] both ripped [a cigarette] at a party and looked each other and said ‘This just is not as good anymore. It just sucks now’,” Thomas said. “The taste was awful and we’d forgotten how bad we smelled after.”

The creators of the Juul did not respond to interview questions, but CEO of PAX Labs Tyler Goldman issued this statement to the Harbinger: “Juul was created to be used as an alternative to traditional smoking for adults of legal smoking age only,” Goldman said. “We take the underage use of any nicotine products very seriously, and we strive to keep our products out of the hands of minors.”

Despite Goldman’s statement, in Ellerbeck’s experience, traditional smokers aren’t concerned with flavors or hiding the fact that they smoke “like the kids sneaking Juuls under their sweatshirts do.” The more that electronic products look, feel, smell and taste like normal cigarettes, the happier traditional smokers are.

“If I would talk with my 50-year-old smoker who has [chronic obstructive pulmonary disease] and I ask

them, you know ‘Would you like some fruit punch flavored e-cigarette?’ they would laugh me out of the room,” Ellerbeck said.

Though minors using tobacco products is illegal, students with fake IDs buy Juuls and their pods for themselves, and those of legal age often buy and distribute Juulpods in bulk — and then sell them for a profit, Bernard said. What he doesn’t keep for himself, Bernard sells to other kids. By up-charging an extra $3 for a $17 pack of four pods, he’s made over $50 selling them to younger students.

Groups of friends have made day-trips out of driving to Lawrence vape shops to buy pods, because all the local stores have been out of stock, Bernard and Thomas said.

Recently a store in Lenexa began carrying Juul products and has become a closer option for students who want a quicker replacement for their Juulpods.

J.C. Carroll from Let’s Smoke and Vape Shop KC, has noticed the increase in Juul popularity. Though he doesn’t have concrete sales information — he’s still waiting to receive his Juul product shipment — he believes the Juul will outsell other options. He gets multiple calls every day from customers asking about Juuls.

Organizations like Tobacco 21 KC are working to get the Juul and other tobacco products out of the hands of minors. Tobacco 21 has pushed to restrict the use of

tobacco products by teens by raising the purchasing age for tobacco products from 18 to 21. Several local cities, including Prairie Village, Leawood and Lenexa have adopted this legislation.

But while it is included in their push for legislation change, John Hall, Tobacco 21’s representative in the KC Chamber of Commerce, doesn’t believe the Juul will be a lasting trend. “[The popularity of the Juul] gives us a reminder of the importance of our work, but this product is just the latest in the series of things that catch on quickly, especially with young people,” Hall said. “In two years, there will be something entirely new that replaces Juul in this market, I suspect.”

Ellerbeck doesn’t see this trend going away. He imagines that once the government does begin to regulate e-cigarettes like the Juul, a few major players will have survived, mirroring the current Big Tobacco industry. Manufacturers could give away Juuls for free, he said, and “bank on the fact” that people will “become lifetime users.”

However, James agrees with Hall that the Juul is a fad.

“Anything electronic kind of goes away,” James said.

“I feel like there will be something else. These came after vapes, and something will come out that’s worse than this.”

18

FEATURES

COLORFUL I

BY SEAN OVERTON

COLLAB Two friends relationship is strengthened through creating collaborative art illustrations

PHOTOS AUDREY KESLER

t’s 12 a.m. on Saturday night toward the end of sophomore year. Nowsenior Natalie Roth starts crying because of her stressful and emotional school week. Roth thought she was going to have no one to talk about her week with.

Instead, now-senior Katie Crossette made the effort to stay out past curfew and drive to a calm street to sketch with Roth because she knows it always calms Roth down.

This kind of attention to each others’ emotions paired with a love for art set up the relationship that Crossette and Roth have today. From sophomore year to now, the girls have become best friends and turned their friendship into a creative partnership.

They work together to create collaborative art in various mediums. Spending time brainstorming a clothing design showed Crossette Roth’s interest in Japanese art. Staying up late to finish a project at Crossette’s house first semester gave Roth a chance to hear about Crossette’s week.

Crossette explained that taking time to see how the other is feeling is something they keep in mind while working on their collaborations. A simple game of passing a piece of folded paper back and forth in math, taking turns drawing random subjects, turned into a creating actual illustrations for projects in class. They started creating illustrations that involve the themes of biology and human connection, since they are both interested in how the two themes connect.

They start by one of them drawing, then pass the illustration back and forth between their sixth and seventh hour art classes, keeping in mind the others’ interests while they add to the piece so it is something they both like when the drawing is finished.

After Crossette and Roth realized that their simple math drawing was actually something interesting, they were mad they hadn’t created work together before.

The girls partnership started back in eighth grade. Chatting in a sewing class was when Roth first began to really take

notice of Crossette because of their similar interests in music, art, literature and “almost everything.” Roth said that she has never found someone who is as interested in her passions as Crossette is, or someone as openminded about life. Crossette felt the exact same connection as Roth.

“I was drawn to Natalie’s self confidence and ability to get along with everyone who crosses paths with her,” Crossette said.

The two girls are now best friends.

Crossette explained that since both of them are in the International Baccalaureate program and the visual art class, they hang out every day and work on homework and art at one of their houses.

“I am more of the jokester and planner, while Katie is the sweet one who could spend an hour doodling,” Roth said. “We balance each other out and truly care for each other, which is why when we decided to collaborate artistically this year, it went so smoothly.”

Both girls create art in various mediums like ceramics, painting, printmaking and illustration. Before they started collaborating, the girls would go to each other whenever they felt like they hit a wall artistically or need advice on a project.

“I was working on a graphic novel project ‘Martyrdom of Mortal Sin in December’ that discusses sinning and celibacy and how self restraint is equated to being really pious,” Roth said. “The content was explicit, and I was nervous to talk about a religion in a controversial way.”

While Roth felt nervous about creating art that discussed controversial biblical ideals, Crossette was there to provide reassuring advice.

“When she would show me the sketches for it, I would make sure she knew how dope it was, and that even though it is scary in our setting, it is an interesting perspective she should take as far as she can,” Crossette said.

The drawings the girls created after their math class drawing game strengthened their relationship and was praised in critique by art

teacher Adam Finkelston. Crossette and Roth decided to continue their collaborations.

“It’s so great to see how [Roth and Crossette] collaborate,” Finkelston said. “You can tell how close they are and how they feed off of each other’s energy and ideas.

They’re both so smart and creative, so it’s a formidable collaboration that does result in work of pretty great depth and complexity.”

Crossette and Roth have taken their illustrations to fashion design – working on a fashion line for the upcoming Healthy Rivers Fashion show in May. When the Healthy Rivers project brought up another opportunity for collaborative art, the girls knew exactly who they wanted to work with – each other. Crossette said that even though design is neither her nor Roth’s main media, having someone she trusts to work through a new artistic medium alleviates a lot of the pressures.

“My overall friendship with Katie can be reflected through the way that we collaborate,” Roth said. “It’s refreshing to work through things with other people and also gives you a greater pool of ideas to come up with concepts that you would normally never think of.”

Within Roth and Crossette’s designs and friendship there is a lot of trust that the other person will add something the other likes.

Roth believes that it has changed her high school experience by having someone who can know how her day is going by looking at her face for two seconds. Crossette explained that being friends with Roth these past four years has changed her for the better because of the confidence Roth has brought out of her art and personality.

“No matter what happens, I know I could call Natalie up in 20 years and feel like we were drawing in my room on a Tuesday night,” Crossette said. “She is going to be in my life no matter what, and our high school friendship and art we have worked on has made that happen.”

GALLERY

“DEATH OF THE EGO OF THE SOUL”

“TRIANGULAR SACRAL PLANE”

“CORPOREAL RETRIBUTION”

FEATURES

19

INSPIRATION

K N I IN THE

BY ELIZABETH BALLEW

W

Senior students reflect on the reasoning and inspiration behind their tattoos

hen senior Nigil Houston got his tat, he almost “I’m a cross country runner, and I’ve dealt with a lot of passed out cold in the tattoo chair from not eating destructive eating habits,” Kinney said. “Running was one of anything before hand. Hazel Hitchcock squeezed those things that for a long time really worsened my conditions, her mom’s hand and focused on her voice to distract from the but when I got healthy again, running was the thing that tattoo gun pounding on a sensitive spot on her bone. Sensing brought me back up.” that his time with his dad was limited, senior Sean McMahill Tattoos can also be more than just a memory of someone decided to finally go through with getting a tattoo. He no doubt or about someone inspirational. For some, tattoos can be about had a lot on his mind, but once he plopped down in the chair, all the places that have impacted and a shaped a person’s life. of his concentration was focused on the grinding needle.

When she was 16, senior Hannah Breckenridge got a tattoo “It didn’t really hurt,” McMahill said about his wrist tattoo. of a black outline of a lotus flower— that she drew herself— “But once it hit this vein it just shot up my whole arm.” with the word “balance” in Hindi underneath it on her hip to Students at East aren’t getting tattoos for the adrenaline represent the time she spent in India. She picked the symbol of rush or to be rebellious. They are getting designs on their skin the lotus because it is the Indian national flower. Then when she to represent a time in their lives, how they feel or for a person was 18, she got wildflowers on her ankle to continue with the that inspired them. It’s not a just a tattoo, it’s art with meaning flower theme. To her, wildflowers remind her of Kansas, where that is carried on the skin forever. she was born and raised.

Hitchcock got a tattoo of a cartoonish “I didn’t feel necessarily like, ‘Oh ladybug on her ankle in honor of this is representative of me forever,’” her recently-deceased ‘Grandma Breckenridge said.

“I wanted I try to tell everybody the story Ladybug’ who loved everything something that was specific to the because I got it in honor of [my ladybug-related. The ladybug three years I was in India so that’s tattoos are a family affair as her really what made me want to do dad]. I don’t really like bringing it mom and four older sisters have it when I was that age and of that up, but I feel like it is worth it. their own unique twist on the bug symbol.”

SEAN MCMAHILL featured on their ankles.

For Breckenridge tattoos are SENIOR “You don’t really realize it until about confidence more than anything you’re like, ‘Wow this is permanent. else. When she got her first tattoo, This is never coming off my body,’” she wasn’t indecisive or hesitant like she Hitchcock said. “I was so sad about my grandma [so] now that I thought she would be. have this, it kind of lifted a weight off my shoulders.”

“I think I’m confident enough in myself to not feel like [the Like Hitchcock, McMahill also got a tattoo in memory of tattoo] has an impact on me,” Breckenridge said. “Rather I have someone that passed: his dad. He got “love you buddy” on the an impact on the fact I choose to get it and it represents myself.” inside of his wrist—his dad always said that to him. They used to Tattoos can represent someone’s persona as well. “Truly text it to each other; when one of them was going somewhere— blessed” is carved in bold, fat letters on the inside of Houston’s it was always “love you buddy.” The last time he talked to his arms, because that’s simply how he feels. He’s always desired a dad was when he showed him the tattoo. Even with the heavy tattoo, but it had to have meaning. In 20 years, he wants to be meaning behind it, this doesn’t stop McMahill from showing able to look at his biceps and still feel it has significance. it off.

“That’s how I feel. I feel I’m truly blessed in anything I do,” “I try to tell everybody the story because I got it in honor of said Houston.“Whether it’s sports, whether it’s just my day-tohim,” McMahill said. “I don’t really like bringing it up, but I feel day life [...] I just believe it.” like it is worth it.”

While it may seem like a tattoo is just scarring ink, it is a Much like Hitchcock and McMahill, senior Carolyn Kinney motivator and provides inspiration to those who get them. also used body art as a way to remember someone. She has in “It depends on what kind of mood I’m in. If I’m going for cursive “run” on her ankle with three little dots underneath a run, I’m like ‘OK you have a tattoo on your foot, just do it,’” the R. The tattoo is a way for her to remember her aunt, and a Kinney said. “When I’m feeling down and sad, I’ll look at it and motivator for herself. be like, ‘Remember why you got this.’”

MEMORABLE MARKINGS

“Truly Blessed” SENIOR NIGIL HOUSTON

“love you buddy” SENIOR SEAN MCMAHILL

“Run” SENIOR CAROLYN KINNEY PHOTOS HALEY BELL & LAINI REYNOLDS

20

FEATURES

C O NVE RT I N G Senior utilizes natural talent and gets involved in contortionism

TO

CONTORTIONISM

BY EMILY FEY

“S

PHOTO HALEY BELL

he doesn’t drop her butt anymore, I’m so proud.”

It’s not everyday that keeping your butt high in the air would be a compliment — or something to even be proud of — but to senior Eliza Wetz, hearing professional contortionist Ariana Ferber-Carter announce this “huge improvement,” made her day.

Among the upside-down performers suspended on purple silks and metal rings in Lucia Aerial Performing Arts in Town Center is Wetz. Letting gravity do its work and pull her into her right splits, Wetz is in the middle of her weekly contortion session.

Every Monday at 5 p.m., Wetz practices her natural talent of contortion — a sort of ultra-flexibility that allows a performer to bend in ways that, to an ordinary person, seems completely impossible and highly uncomfortable.

“I’ve always been just really naturally bendy in my back,” Wetz said. “I don’t really know how I found [contortion] to be honest, but I think it started when I did gymnastics.”

After an ankle injury her freshman year on the gymnastics team, Wetz took a break from all the bending and stretching until a year ago, when she discovered Lucia. She went through different classes at Lucia such as lyra, silks and deep stretch/conditioning before finding her niche in contortion. She connected with her current teacher, Ferber-Carter, and transcended past the beginner moves and into more complicated, advanced positions.

“When I first started, I could do a lot of things that normally you have to wait to do, so I had this moment of ‘oh I’m pretty good at this,’” Wetz said.

Just a year after stepping onto the blue mats in front of the glass mirrors of Lucia, Wetz is already determined to show that her innate talent isn’t just a phase or a hobby. She plans on taking her two passions — nursing and contortion — and combining them in the future.

“I am going to UMKC or Penn Valley to get a nursing degree and then my boyfriend and I are planning on moving up to Canada and go

to the circus school there,” Wetz said. “I love both things [too much] to only do one.”

With Carter-Ferber’s tight schedule, Wetz is only able to schedule one 30 minute session a week. She uses up every second of the half hour to try and reach her goal or turning contortionism into a career. She arrives to Lucia as early as possible to begin her routine of stretches: leg muscles, splits then back muscles — in that order every time.

After extensively warming up her muscles, Wetz dives into one of the many bizarre positions she can contort her body into.

Starting in a back-bend, she slowly moves her hands towards her feet. With one last inch of her fingers, Wetz is able to secure her hands around her ankles — she is in a perfect semicircle.

While flexibility is critical to becoming a skilled contortionist, performers need more than that to make it in the performing world, according to Ferber-Carter. Enjoying the acrobatic practice and fully committing to putting in the necessary work and conditioning is just as crucial. In every one of their sessions, Wetz shows all of the traits of a gifted contortionist.

“Natural flexibility is secondary to all the other skills you need,” Ferber-Carter said.

“You need that, but just that isn’t enough.”

Like any sport, contortion has its health benefits and precautions. The deep stretching can be a huge stress relief, but for Wetz, the “intense yoga” can sometimes result in a pain and uncomfortable feeling that pushed her natural stretching abilities to their limits.

“When we get to the point where I’m doing something well and then [Ferber-Carter] says ‘hey let’s push you a little farther,’ that is when it gets really uncomfortable,” Wetz said.

“There are times when I don’t know how I am going to make my back bend anymore, but I am always able to.”

Despite the painful “crunching” of her back as she bends it back and all the repetition of her least favorite ab exercises, Wetz always comes back to class each week, ready to work just as hard because of the strong relationship

she has built with her teacher. And to make Wetz enjoy the hard twisting and bending of her body, Ferber-Carter has made sure to balance out all the intense training and physical strain on Wetz body, with a fun, stress free environment.

During each session, Ferber-Carter reveals a new story about her years traveling with Circus Smirkus and in return, Wetz is able to take her mind off of her depression, bipolar disorder, ADHD and anxiety. Combining Ferber-Carter’s positive attitude and playful banter helps her focus only on what she wants to — getting better at contortion. “[Ferber-Carter] is always so peppy and happy,” Wetz said. “She knows how to push me in the good ways and the pain never deters me from coming back. If you are feeling really sad, you can go to Lucia and [Ferber-Carter] can push you and it’s a healthy way of hurting yourself.”

Wetz has found that most people don’t know what contortionism is; she finds it hard to explain the curling and stretching while doing justice to all the time and effort she puts into it. But one person who knows every detail of each of her sessions and actually knows what a ‘cobra’ and ‘pretzel’ are, is her boyfriend Ben Soderstrom.

“Contortion in general takes so much time and effort to be good at,” Soderstrom said.

“It’s all bending and twisting your body in ways that plenty of people couldn’t fathom.

Each week she takes it a little further and it’s ambitious. I love that she enjoys it.”

Through all the feelings of tearing muscles and stretching tendons, a friendship has been created that is strong enough to make the pain all worth it to Wetz. She knows that FerberCarter will always have her back, whether it be holding her up during a bridge or helping her get through a hard day.

“Contortion is really hard, so if you don’t enjoy your time training or the people you are training with it’s not gonna go well,” FerberCarter said. “It’s too miserable to do it in a way without humor. You need that stuff to balance out the rest of it because it is so challenging.”

ELIZA’S TIPS FOR CW

Practice every day

Never skip stretching

Eat a healthy diet to maintain flexibility and stengthen muscles

Keep working even if you can’t tell, you’re making progress

BY GRACE PADON

(5)KC FITNESS WHEN:

The run is May 21

1

5

10

BEGINNER

INTERMEDIATE

ADVANCED

WHAT: Contestants

navigate a WHERE:The course is on the difficult obstacle course bank of the Kansas River

RI

KC TIMBER CHALLENGE The run is April 22

WHAT: Contestants

are doused with color as they run

WHERE:

SHAWNEE MISSION

The course is next to Shawnee Mission East

EAST

LOVE FUND COLOR RUN The run is June 10

WHAT:

Contestants run through inflatables as they run

WHERE:

TIMBER TIMBER RUN RUN

A RIGOROUS COURSE complete with a zipline and fire jump waits for the adventure-seeker on May 21 at the KC Timber Challenge 5k.

The KC Timber Challenge 5k is just one of five obstacle course mud runs that takes place throughout the year at the Zip KC ziplining park in Bonner Springs, KS. The course sprawls across 140 wooded acres with over 30 obstacles.

The price for registration is $44, but it includes a T-shirt, a finisher’s medallion, souvenir wristband and race entry. Along the course, racers will be greeted with views of the Kansas River as they make their way up and

SHAWNEE MISSION EAST

WHEN:

dates quickly coming to an end in early spring, grab a couple of friends and sign up for a 5k or two. These three 5ks possess varying skill and intensity levels, so there’s bound to be one for every type of exerciser.

G R AC E ’ S “ E X P E R I E N C E L E V E L ” M E T E R

AS S N R KA VE

WHEN:

A guide to fitness events around Kansas City in the coming months

TO SOME, getting outdoors to run a 5k sounds like the epitome of a nightmare, while to others it’s the best way to start a Saturday morning. Kansas City hosts a plethora of 5ks every year, ranging from easy walks with friends to rigorous workouts. With registration

The course is next to the Kansas Speedway

INSANE INFLATABLE 5k

EXPERIENCE LEVEL:

7

down a seven-story zipline tower as a part of the course.

Participants can sign up as teams and wear costumes of their choice – as long as they don’t mind getting them covered in mud. Photographers along the way capture moments of extreme distress and teamwork as competitors fight to the finish the mud run, and the pictures can be viewed after the race online for no additional cost.

After the race, cool off with refreshments at the finish line and watch other contestants complete the final obstacles as you listen to a DJ in the “Party Zone.”

COLOR COLOR RUN RUN STUCO IS HOSTING THEIR third Color Run to benefit the Love Fund at East on April 22.

The 3.1 mile run will start at 9 a.m. in the East parking lot, and wind up and down the streets of the surrounding neighborhoods. At certain checkpoints, participants will be drenched with a variety of non-toxic colored powders that won’t hurt eyes.

Registration for students are $10, while adult tickets are $20. A T-shirt is included in the price of a ticket. All proceeds will go to the Love Fund, an SME organization that helps out East students

EXPERIENCE LEVEL:

3

and families in financial need.

A color run is more of a fun run and less than an actual run, making it an optimal 5k for the people who sign up just for the free T-shirt and Instagram pictures – cough, cough, me. If you really aren’t into the running part of the color run, you can sign up as a volunteer for service hours by helping at the registration booth and water stations. Feel free to stick around after the race for a DJ and snacks.

To register as a runner or volunteer, visit https://smestucoexecs.wixsite.com/ smelovefundcolorrun.

INFLATABLE INFLATABLE RUN RUN THE INSANE INFLATABLE 5K is a unique way to spice up a typical summer weekend. Step away from your job at the lifeguard stand or your usual seat by the pool to compete with your friends in an action-packed course of inflatables.

Obstacles such as “The Mad House” and “Crash Course” will greet you at the Kansas Speedway on June 10. Competitors will maneuver their way through 11 intricate and lengthy inflatables on a 3.1 mile track in order to successfully complete the race.

The price for a general admission ticket may seem little pricey at $54, but

EXPERIENCE LEVEL:

2

it includes a T-shirt, a finisher’s medal, a custom runner’s bib and access to the inflatable course. The last day to register is April 14.

For those who aren’t in top-notch shape, don’t worry. This race isn’t about finishing the fastest, it’s just about completing the 5k. It’s also a good excuse to pretend like you’re on an episode of Wipeout.

Once you cross the finish line, stop by the race’s after party for live music, food trucks and sponsor and merchandise booths.

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A&E

‘Before I Fall’ comes off as a chick flick trying (and failing) to be an intriguing mystery

BY AVA JOHNSON

A

s soon as the commercials ended, I instantly thought, Oh no, please don’t be another version of “Mean Girls” or “Clueless.” Don’t get me wrong, I love “Clueless” and “Mean Girls,” but I’ve seen those classics one too many times.

I chose this movie because I thought it’d be more than classic teen drama — it’d be a mystery.

“Before I Fall,” a young adult mystery/drama film based off of author Lauren Oliver’s bestselling novel, starts off to be your

stereotypical cheesy young adult film with the jocks, the nerds and the popular girls. Seventeen-yearold Samantha Kingston, played

by Zoey Deutch, is Hollywood’s ultimate teenage girl: small waist, shiny chestnut hair and a dreamy boyfriend. She’s the epitome of Hollywood’s high school popular girl.

Deutch and the rest of the cast carried their parts strongly.

Deutch pulled off the looks and personality of a high school girl pretty well for being 22 years old.

TALE as OLD as TIME Disney’s newest live action ‘Beauty and the Beast’ doesn’t quite bring the classic Disney animation to life but impresses with gorgeous visuals

BY CAROLINE CHISHOLM

n recent years, Disney began transforming their classic animations into contemporary live-action films. With recreations like “Alice and Wonderland,” “Cinderella” and the “Jungle Book,” Disney has received mixed reviews. However they continue to explore the idea of

modernizing their classics.

Recently, Disney released a new adaptation of “Beauty and the Beast” that came to theaters March 17. I was hesitant to go see the film because I hadn’t been impressed with the previous adaptations, but decided to give Disney another chance. After seeing it I had the

The acting wasn’t a problem for me — the plot was.

Samantha’s perfect high school life takes a sharp turn when she and her friends leave a party, and their car hits an obstacle, flips and they all die. But to everyone’s surprise she doesn’t actually die; she is trapped in purgatory, reliving that same day over and over again with an array of life lessons delivered to her

each day.

She is a popular, mean girl.

But does that mean she deserves to die and relive the day of her death over and over until she’s nice to other people? Seems like a dramatic way of portraying a lesson on bullying, but maybe I’m not opening up my imagination enough.

The magic behind how or why Samantha continues to relive the same day on repeat is never explained. Throughout the entire movie I thought, ‘Why is she reliving this one day over and over again?’ It was beyond confusing to not know any details behind this repetitive cycle that was taking place the whole movie. I guess whoever decided that this movie fit under a mystery/drama genre has interesting views on what is

mystical vs. what is confusing.

Even while walking to my car outside of the AMC theater, I was thinking: Was Sam trying to change her bad habits in order to break out of this never ending cycle? Or was she just trying to make positive changes in her life to become a better person? This wasn’t a mystery; this was just confusing.

This is a teen chick flick — not a mystery. Don’t be fooled like I was. There isn’t any interesting aspect of mystery — there is only confusion on why she is trapped living the day of her death on repeat. If you have $10 lying around and you want to do something, then go ahead, but I wish I had saved my $10 and watched “Clueless” in the comfort of my bed.

NOT WORTH THE TICKET

same thought: it wasn’t good.

Actress Emma Watson plays bookworm Belle, while Dan Stevens plays the infamous prince who turned into a hideous beast. Stevens did what he could with limited lines in his script, while Watson poorly portrayed the emotion of a girl whose father and freedom were taken away from her all at one time.

With a somewhat awkward romance and moments where actors were missing emotion, the film lacked the charm the classic animation had.

Stevens was not only the prince in the first and last scenes, but also was the voice of the computer-generated image Beast. His voice as the Beast made the audience feel his frustration as the petals of the rose were slowly falling off and his regret when he let Belle leave, which further developed his character.

While Watson captured the essence of Belle, she lacked any emotion and her singing sounded

auto-tuned. I was sitting on the edge of my seat during “Be Our Guest,” but unfortunately for the audience, Watson was unable to conjure up the same level of excitement. Her return to the castle to confess her love for the Beast finally showed me the emotion I had been looking for, but her expression of love was nothing compared to how I look at a pint of Edy’s Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream. She wasn’t the Belle I had previously looked up to as a kid.

The film updated its original score with several new songs.

During the movie, I felt the new and original songs seamlessly joined together, but by the time I was in the car on my way home I was tapping my foot to the tune of classics like “Gaston” and “Be Our Guest” rather than the forgettable new additions.

However, previously unanswered questions such as

SO-SO

2.5/5

Belle’s mother’s whereabouts and what happened to the Beast’s family were finally answered in the film, and the scenes brought more depth to the storyline.

Along with the updates in the storyline, the sets were well thought out and pleasing to the eye.

The ballroom garnished with large bouquets of flowers and chandeliers catching the light with a breathtaking glimmer that left me in awe. The film’s impressive shifts from light to dark in each scene contrasted the village and the cursed castle.

The visual aspects of the movie were beautiful, but the acting was a little beastly. The lack of emotion in the characters acting left me disappointed.

Ultimately I was left feeling confused whether I enjoyed the film or not. It did not live up to my six-year-old self’s vision of “Beauty and the Beast.”

3/5

g n i r p S

REA D

I

O T N

This collection of newly -released books will help de-stress this spring season

BY EMMA VAUGHTERS

e

ativ

rm info

4.5/5

THE RULES DO NOT APPLY

THIS HEARTWARMING NOVEL follows the work of Andrew, a writer who carelessly loses a keepsake from his late fiancée, and can’t let go of the memory that the lost relic has dissipated into. As a result, he has become the Keeper of Lost Things; he salvages whatever lost baubles he stumbles upon in hopes of replacing his sacred lost treasure. Author Ruth Hogan reminds readers that the meaning of one’s life will

never become immediately evident. Instead, it is to be uncovered little by little, as one’s personal journey takes them where they would have never imagined — hopefully with an abundance of joyful discoveries along the way.

This novel is perfect for anyone who needs a reason to smile; it’s a wonderful reminder that the world can be a meticulous, spectacular collection of opportunities and discoveries if you look for the beauty in everything.

r

ille

thr

23

A&E

L

et’s face it: high school is busy. When I’m not in school, or nannying, or doing homework, I’m most likely face down in my bed, fast asleep, with “Criminal Minds” still playing on my Macbook on the corner of my bed. Though I enjoy staying busy, with this comes stress.

Finding ways to de-stress are key to, well, surviving high school, and books are what save me. On nearly any sunny Saturday in the spring, I’m probably lost within Loose Park, lying in my green Eno

hammock with a novel in hand. I may be deep into one of Jodi Picoult’s heartwarming reads, or shivering through a crime thriller. In an attempt to help others de-stress as well, I’ve curated a collection of spring reads for any mood you’re feeling. These range from a thriller to defeat your fourth-quarter slump to a heartwarming read if you’re disappointed that another year is coming to an end. Each book is relatable in it’s own way, and is worth the read — even if you’re busier than I am.

THE NIGHT OCEAN

A LABYRINTH OF MYSTERY and scandal, Paul la Farge’s “The Night Ocean” is ideal for anyone needing a spark of excitement.

Protagonist Marina Willett has lived her life embedded in mystery. Her husband, Charlie, has a preoccupation with a horror novelist who has a dark past. In addition, Charlie has his own issues and is in a mental hospital. When Charlie goes missing, she must connect the two lives to find

her husband and understand how he reached his breaking point. While most thriller novels are physically gripping, this one stands out: it gives insight as to how emotion can be just as thrilling as action by the lengths Laura goes to find her husband. La Farge made me question my own understanding of commitment; what length would I be willing to go for someone I care about?

3.5/5 ted

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THE KEEPER OF LOST THINGS

A MEMOIR ABOUT taking the unconventional route in life, Ariel Levy’s “The Rules Do Not Apply” provided me a sense of relief. Not because I felt comforted or pitied that my life isn’t completely harmonious, nor because Levy inspired me to do anything fantastic to change it. This novel didn’t inspire me to change anything, actually, but rather gave me the relief that my life isn’t meant to follow a set of guidelines. Levy assured me, through her hardship, that everyone travels their own path and that “normal” does not exist. To do so, she takes PHOTO AVA SIMONSEN

GOOD

readers through her anythingbut-cookie-cutter life with refreshingly raw commentary.

Within one month’s time, she suffers the death of her child, a messy divorce and a house foreclosure — right after having felt like she’d finally found herself. Through these personal experiences, Levy points out that nobody can “have it all,” despite the desire to. This memoir is perfect for any young adult who feels the strain of pressure to have every bit of their life in order; Levy is 38 and, hell, she’s not even close.

vy

hea

3.5/5

WE ARE OKAY

IMAGINE INTENTIONALLY leaving everything behind after high school graduation — blocking out every last memory that was once a piece of your identity. Literally creating a fresh start.

Marin, a recent graduate, has taken this route. She escaped her San Francisco life for college in the polar opposite: New York City.

Marin isn’t just looking for a new beginning however; she is deliberately escaping a tragedy from her past. “We are Okay” brilliantly chronicles the internal struggle haunting every teenager during a time of

hardship; the depressive feelings that come with a loss of identity. This sentiment is familiar to many high schoolers, as we all unfortunately know the feeling of going through a minor, or major, identity crisis.

Author Nina LaCour’s ability to perfectly capture the rapturous and afflicted teenage mind is what sets this read apart from others in the young adult genre. If you can relate to this emotion (don’t worry, it’s normal), LaCour will remind you that there’s always someone rooting for you.

4/5

24

A&E

PHOTOS LUKE HOFFMAN

BY SCOUT RICE

T

he parking lot is filled with people munching on the Roasterie’s Sunday food truck brunch. Inside is cramped with people looking to order their daily dose of caffeine from the large variety menu, and attached in the back is a factory producing hundred of pounds of specialty coffee. It’s just another Sunday at the Roasterie downtown.

The Roasterie, a KC classic for coffee, offers a variety of coffee in their three café locations in Brookside, Leawood and downtown, along with daily tours of how

( FA R A B OV E ) Rows of racks containing coffee beans from all over the world are kept in this warehouse before being brewed. ( A B OV E ) A girl on the Roasterie tour records the coffee brewing demonstration at the end.

The Roasterie’s factory tours show how excellent local coffee is made

they make their coffee. As a coffee enthusiast and a regular visitor to the Brookside location, I effortlessly decided to cut 45 minutes out of my Sunday for the tour of the factory.

The factory itself struck me as an average warehouse, about half the size of the East main gym, filled with large, metal air-roasting machines on my left, a monotone wall on my rights, and burlap sacks of unroasted coffee beans stacked in rows in the middle.

One small air roaster is the only noise in the warehouse as the air inside forcibly jumbles the heap of raw beans around. A few other hairnet-clad workers meander the factory, but there isn’t any production taking place. The factory definitely had a slower-paced feel than the attached café.

Because of the Roasterie’s pride in their flavorful scents, I was expecting to be hit with a strong coffee aroma in the factory. However, I was disappointed to learn on the tour that coffee beans don’t smell until they are roasted. Thankfully, our samples of a light-roast Yemen blend at the end of the tour filled the merchandise and tour meeting room with an overwhelming aroma of fruity scents mixed with spice.

The enthusiastic guide took the group step-by-step through the best way to brew the coffee, detailing the exact heat of the water and grams of coffee acceptable. Throughout the tour, she had a well-rehearsed set of comments about the machines. As we made our way through the tour, she snuck in a few jokes relating the machines to people and calling them by names, and I found myself laughing along with the rest of the older people in the room.

As she guided us around the oneroom factory, she showed the line of air roasters that ranged in size. She called this the “green mile,” as it was just a row of burlap sacks stacked to the ceiling filled with raw green coffee beans. She later went on to point out and explain odd-looking machines that I learned are the ones that package, issue the nitrogen flush, apply the heat seal and date

the roasted beans.

The whole process ensures the most naturally flavored blends possible. I learned that their blends from Mexico tend to be more naturally flavored vanilla and chocolate, but on the other hand, African blends are often times naturally fruity. The tour guide referenced a specific Ethiopian blend that, when brewed right, taste exactly like a handful of blueberries.

It brings me comfort to know that their blends have a series of quality control standards, starting with the fact that most of the coffee is sourced through direct trade relationships with the farmers so that they can check in on the growing process. It ends in Kansas City, at the factory where, after being air roasted, a small portion is brewed and tasted to ensure quality.

Black coffee isn’t my favorite, so after being given the option to taste the Yemen blend, I decided I was in the mood for purchasing a signature drink from the café after the tour.

The Roasterie’s “sweet mocha madness” combines rich white and dark chocolate flavors with espresso and milk to create a satisfying hot mixture. It sounded perfect, and because I’ve had it before at the Brookside Roasterie location, I knew that I was in for a treat.

I happened to be a victim of the crowded afternoon rush during my Sunday afternoon at the Roasterie.

After 20 minutes of waiting, I had to leave my $4.09 mocha behind in order to make an appointment.

The service was extremely slow, even when factoring in the amount of employees and orders. Nowhere that I have ever been for coffee has ever taken that long.

Despite the slow service, the end product of the beautifullyroasted coffee beans is amazing. The commitment to well-roasted beans and the effort put forth into making every bean just as good as the last makes the Roasterie one of my favorite coffee hubs in the city. Now I know the journey of my coffee.

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FRESHMAN OVERFLOW After 11 Senior swimmers graduate last year, the new swim season is overtaken by underclassmen

BY ELLIE MITCHELL

AFTER LOSING 11 SENIORS last year, 12 of the 29 varsity Girl’s Swim Team members are now freshmen. By having so many new swimmers the entire dynamic of the team has changed, according to junior captain Emma Linscott. The upperclassmen hold a stronger sense of leadership as they guide the freshmen to understand how the program works.

However, Head Coach Rob Cole’s coaching style hardly changes when he has a group of freshmen this big. He has high expectations that the upperclassmen will show them how to swim the correct sets and help them out when needed.

The dynamic of the group is always changing with how many returning members there are, but no one is treated differently, according to Cole. The dynamic shifts towards the upperclassmen delegating how the team works and what Cole’s expectations are.

“Everybody has the same expectation on the team,” Cole said. “All of the girls are putting in the same commitment, and I expect the same out of freshmen as I do the seniors.”

Linscott says that having 12 freshmen on the team is not necessarily a bad thing. The freshmen rely heavily on the upperclassmen to know what to do and how to do it like when to show up to practice and what to eat before a meet.

“Coach Cole writes different sets on the board and usually the freshmen have no idea what that means, so we just have to help them get the hang of it,” Linscott said.

Freshman Ashleigh Espinoza says that

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swimming against girls who have been to state many times is the most intimidating part. This is the first time when they are swimming against each other in order to make it to state while also trying to get the most points possible.

Only the top three in each event end up going to state. The upperclassmen help them out by letting them know that Cole sometimes will put two girls in the same event during a meet just to race each other, according to Linscott.

Going into tryouts Espinoza had a good idea that she was going to make varsity based on the times that she had been swimming on her club team. During the first meet on Saturday, Espinoza got her first state cut for the 100-meter freestyle with a time of 56.18 seconds.

Freshman Lucy Smith was intimidated going into tryouts even with her older sister, Izzie, being on the team. Smith said that now getting into the season the upperclassmen are actually really helpful and show them a good example of what Cole expects.

“The upperclassmen really help me understand what Rob is trying to say,” Smith said. “It was overwhelming going into it but having them there to tell us what to do really helps.”

Linscott and the other upperclassmen make sure that the freshmen are aware of everything that is happening, whether that is what time to be at practice on Monday morning to whether or not they are riding a bus to the meet. Linscott likes having the sense of responsibility that she hasn’t had before.

PLUS

For swimmers who may not have the time commitment or the endurance of a Varsity swimmer, JV Plus is the in-between team FRESHMAN MOLLY HOGAN penciljumps into lane one to begin JV swim practice. Bobbing up and down, the nine JV plus swimmers watch coach Ali Erickson write down the set exclusively for their lane. The rest of the JV team swims in the other five lanes doing their own sets.

These nine girls make up the JV plus swim team, a middle ground for potential varsity swimmers. They swim both JV practices and varsity practices on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, as well as Saturday mornings with varsity.

The JV Plus team swims more difficult sets than the rest of JV during that practice. The girls are unable to work up to the varsity team this season, according to head coach Rob Cole, as the team is already full, but if the girls put in effort in the off-season the chance that they will make varsity next year is very high.

Prior to this year, nearly half of the 30 JV girls were part of the JV plus team.

This year, Cole planned on making the plus team more focused for experiencing what varsity is like in bits. Cole wanted a smaller group of girls to show them that they are being looked at for the varsity level.

“We have kids that maybe are good enough to be on the [varsity] team, but their endurance level and how much effort they put into the off-season is not giving them an opportunity,” Cole said.

According to Cole, it would not be safe to throw the nine JV plus swimmers in the pool with a low endurance level because their bodies aren’t used to it. However,

LANC

ICE O V ER

There are only a few of us on JV Plus, and because of that we get more one on one time with FRESHMAN our coaches.

EMMA BARICKMAN

V

FRESHMAN MYA KNEESSY

JV Plus is a good spot for me. I’m not overwhelmed, but it’s definitely a challenge. Fewer people in the lanes help me set my pace.

by being on JV plus, the girls are given the opportunity with varsity part time on Tuesday, Thursday and all of Saturday.

Hogan and freshman Martha Saferstein quickly realized the amount of work and effort required to be at the varsity level when practicing with the varsity squad.

Swimming continuously, the JV plus lane tries not to stop during each set. The intensity of varsity exceeds JV because there is no sitting out — every lap missed has a consequence like push ups.

“Swimming with the varsity team helps push me farther to swim faster and harder since no one ever stops,” Hogan said. “I want to make varsity next year, so by swimming more and working harder to get better times I think I can do that.”

Some of the girls strive to reach the varsity level while others, like Saferstein, are less concerned with what team they are on. Instead Saferstein focuses on the challenge of swimming extensive sets and likes the aspect of being in between the two teams.

“Being on varsity is a lot of work and seems very intense,” Saferstein said. “I swim more just for the exercise and try to get the best times possible.”

Saferstein likes the fit of JV plus giving her a competitive place to swim, since the girls will swim in both JV and varsity meets. Because they are selected, the plus swimmers feel motivated by their skill being acknowledged, further pushing them toward making it to the varsity level.

Varsity practices are a lot more work and you have to be commited to push yourself. The upperclassmen are FRESHMAN all really helpful.

JANIE MAHAFFY

PHOTOS ALLISON STOCKWELL

26

FEATURES

A ROCK-SOLID

RELATIONSHIP

BY COURTNEY McCLELLAND

A

Senior builds lasting relationships through rock climbing

s a 20-something year old man falls five feet down onto the gym mat with a heavy thud, senior Zoe Scofield glances over with a laugh.

“Oh yeah, you’re not supposed to fall like that,” Scofield said. “You need to fall with your hands in, so they don’t get hurt.”

Since Scofield began rock climbing her freshman year, she’s become all too familiar with the do’s and don’ts of climbing: do keep your chest close to the wall and point your toes. Don’t straighten your arms while you climb – it wastes energy.

She’s learned these tricks over the years as a competitive rock climber at RoKC, an indoor rock climbing gym located in North KCK that opened in April 2016. Before this, Scofield climbed at The Cave Bouldering Gym – a closer location to her house, but “more intense,” as Scofield described it.

Climbing isn’t about competing to Scofield; it’s about the relationships she’s made, and the community it’s blessed her with.

Scofield met her boyfriend, Cooper, through rock climbing, and she’s grown closer with her sister as the two of them climb together. She’s become closer with her friends, offering up her free day pass to those who haven’t already purchased the $63-a-month gym membership.

Senior Emma Chalk, one of the many climbers Scofield has recruited, even purchased her own monthly membership and joins Scofield about once a week at RoKC. Together, Scofield and Chalk warm up with sets of jumping jacks, push ups, pull ups and stretches before heading to the wall.

“Can we just play ping pong instead of

doing pull ups?” Chalk says as she glances over longingly at the empty ping pong table just feet away from the warm up area.

But Scofield persists, reminding Chalk of the importance of warming up those rarely-used muscles rock climbing requires.

It’s this kind of commitment that has made Scofield a V5 climber. Rock climbing routes are ranked on a level from V0 through V9, V9 being the hardest. Chalk considers herself a V3 climber. Routes are ranked based on how far apart the holds are, the type of holds, how long the route is and how inclined the wall is.

Scofield eases her way up a V3 to start.

She follows the path of the wall as if she has done the route a million times, smoothly twisting and turning her way to the top. The whole thing takes less than five minutes, but her lungs are already pounding. When she finally jumps off the eight foot high wall, her feet land squarely on the mat.

“She makes it look so easy,” Chalk jokes to a fellow observer as Scofield ascends the V3. “She’s like, ‘It’s fine, just put your foot behind your head and climb.’”

Scofield’s flexibility and strength came with four visits to the gym a week, three with her team of nine and once on her own. She spends hours hanging out at RoKC, bringing her dinner to go and eating alongside the employees at the front desk.

“If I fall and break something while I climb after eating this greasy food, it’s all your fault,” Scofield jokes to the employee behind the counter.

It’s these kinds of relationships that make climbing so enjoyable to Scofield. It’s

about the accomplishment of achieving a new route. It’s about the experiences it’s brought her. It’s not about the competitions, those just came along with it.

“I didn’t really want to do the competitions,” Scofield said. “But my mom was like, ‘You may as well if you’re going to be training so much,’ and they’re a good way to build more strength.”

Rock Climbing competitions follow two formats: one is to complete as many routes as possible in three hours, the other is to make it as far up a never-before-seen route in four minutes. Scofield competes about once a month during the fall and spring seasons. There are a few regional competitions, but most competitions take Scofield out of state.

“The rock climbing community here is really small,” Scofield said. “But that probably has to do with the lack of mountains here.”

Scofield, who began climbing just four years ago, competes against climbers who started when they were as young as 4 years old. But that “late start” hasn’t deterred her success. She usually finishes in the top five of competitions, even tying for first last year.

But the awards aren’t what motivates Scofield to keep climbing higher and higher.

It’s seeing her sister climbing right next to her and knowing her boyfriend’s waiting at the bottom to congratulate her. She’s found a new family to eat dinner with, and she’s learned the right way to fall down and get back up.

( A B OV E ) Scofield has been certified to belay and lead belay, so tying a figure eight not and using a carabiner will keep her from falling. ( L E F T ) Using a foot hook move, Scofield propels herself up the bouldering wall. ( L E F T ) After climbing to the first hook, Scofield brings up her rope to clip herself in.

PHOTOS ANNIE LOMSHEK

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ACT

28

SPORTS

SPORTS

360

FIELDINGthe FRESHMEN Four freshman make varsity spring sports teams

BY WILL TULP

emma burden

brynn winkler

jake louiselle

will mohr

soccer

swimming

tennis

lacrosse

position: center midfield

12

years playing

Q: What are you doing outside of practice to better yourself?

A: Once a week, I’ll go through speed and agility training. I’ll do 13 or 14 different sets on the agility ladder. So two feet in, then one foot out, stuff like that. And then I’ll put cones [in a diamond shape], and I’ll start in the middle and like quick step seven times and then sprint forward seven times, then back, middle [and] outside. Then I’ll usually do 200 jump ropes. [To finish], I’ll do this like knee-strengthening thing so I don’t tear anything, where I just stand and push off one foot and land on the other.

Q: What are you nervous about for the upcoming season?

A: I’m really nervous to play SM West. I know a bunch of the girls that we’re going to be playing against through club, so I’m just nervous for that. Also, my [club] coach is bringing out my team for a bunch of the games, and they’re all eighth graders so they’re still playing, so I’m pretty nervous to play in front of them.

PHOTO SOPHIE STORBECK

events: butterfly and freestyle

3

years swimming

Q: What’s the best difference between country club and high school swim?

A: My favorite thing that’s different is definitely the team aspect. At [Carriage Club], I didn’t really talk to the coaches, I don’t really know if they even knew my name.

I didn’t know most of the other people; they just kind of went to meets, and they weren’t necessarily my crowd. But here, it’s cool to have a team aspect on swim, because I never really experienced that on country club.

Q: What is the team aspect of high school swim like?

A: I’ve heard a lot of people say swim [is] more individual. But when I was talking to [varsity girls swim coach Rob Cole], he was saying that obviously he wants to win state, but the main thing is focusing on having everyone bond, too. Because if we’re not bonded, then we can’t push each other and then we’re not going to win state. I feel like the team aspect in swim is really important. Like, even in tryouts I didn’t even really know anyone’s names, but they were cheering for me when I was racing and I was like, ‘Oh, this is pretty cool.’”

PHOTO SOPHIE STORBECK

position: n/a

11

years playing

Q: You play with Overland Park Racquet Club & Kansas City United Tennis. What is that like?

A: How it works is, [Kansas City United Tennis] Academy starts around 2 p.m., and most of the days I play. I get out early from school at 1:40 p.m. during sixth hour, and then I go play from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. [with] more of the elite group of eight kids. Typical academy would be like match play oriented, like doubles [and] singles. We’ll do some consistency drills like rallying with each other, and then we’ll go into some match play.

Q: Where has the academy taken you during your tennis career?

A: I’ve made it to a lot of higher tournaments.

Most tournaments go from open tournaments to futures, which is like seven states, and then it goes to supers which is higher level, and then sweet sixteens which is the top sixteen players in Missouri Valley, and then it goes to nationals. I’ve gone to most of the tournaments. I did intersectionals when I was 14 which is [where] the top four players in the Missouri Valley region, [which includes] eight states, play against all the other sections in the United States.

PHOTO KATHERINE MCGINNESS

position: midfielder

6

years playing

Q: What’s it like being the lone freshman?

A: It’s interesting. It’s a lot more competitive, and it’s also almost a responsibility. If you’re the only freshman there, you know that once you become older, and you’re a junior or a senior, you know how you felt [as a freshman], and you can help out those guys that are going to make it in the future. And then also, you’re going to be one of the guys on that team that’s going to be important when you get older, so it’s good to have the experience.

Q: Did you know anyone on varsity other than your brother going into this season?

A: I’ve known all of my brother’s friends that are on the team for a while now, and then I’ve gotten to know the other kids just through being on the team with them. Then last year, I kind of did the whole water boy thing when I was in eighth grade. So I got to be on the sideline with the team, and I learned a lot about them. That was last spring, and now going into this spring, I’m on the team.

PHOTO CJ MANNE

SPORTS

S

BY LILA TULP

29

PHOTO ELIZABETH ANDERSON AND LUCY MORANTZ

enior Jessica Parker knows the risks.

One loud pop in her ACL and she’d be completely done with soccer, the sport that she’s been playing for over a decade.

One small tear and she’d undergo a third surgery, plus nine more months of recovery right before college. One wrong step and she’d have to live with arthritis in both of her knees.

Still, after walking away from the sport for two years due to previous injuries to her anterior cruciate ligaments, and despite what she’s been told by her dad, her doctors and even herself, Parker is willing to take any risk to play varsity soccer with her teammates one last time.

Soccer is Parker’s everything, and it has been since she played her first five-on-five rec game as a kindergartener. Though she was a part of the state championship golf team and had been working to play golf in college for almost 12 years, she couldn’t get the cheering fans on the sidelines and her grass-stained soccer jersey out of her head. When it was taken away from her during her sophomore year, she immediately began counting down the days until her cleats would be back on her feet.

“My life was all sports, all the time,” Parker said. “And when people had to help me walk 10 feet, it felt like everything was changing, I went from playing soccer almost every day to a benchwarmer and a manager instantly.”

In 2013, during her freshman year, Parker heard a pop in her knee. After a series of X-rays she found out that she had torn her left ACL. A year and a half later, during her sophomore season of high school soccer, Parker was defending her opponent when it happened again, another pop in her ACL, it was the same before, only this time in her right leg.

The first time she tore her ACL, Parker crammed nine months of recovery into six.

Her hours spent at soccer practices were now spent trying to gain function of her knee or lying in her bed, hardly able to walk to her kitchen to grab a glass of water. Every day she worked hard at rehab and at home so she could be back in her forward position with her team in time for the following season.

Parker began physical therapy the day after her surgery, trying to bend her knee in a 90 degree angle and re-learning how to walk across the room. At home she would lie down on her wooden kitchen table wincing in pain as her father, Steve Parker, slowly bent her knee forward and to the side. Although her main goal was to get back to soccer as soon as possible, Steve had different ideas and was skeptical about letting her go back to the sport at all. He was just hoping that her knee would heal completely.

Her second recovery was similar to her first incident, but this time, after hearing her parents’ concerns, she wasn’t rushing to get back to soccer. Parker spent nearly 10 months

doing everything she did the first time: stretching, squatting, walking and waiting During both of her injuries, her teammates were by her bedside with packages of Oreos and jokes trying to keep her mind off of her knee, hoping that she would return to the team. However, worried that her ACL would tear again, Parker quit soccer for the remainder of her sophomore and junior year.

She then shifted her main focus to golf and started contacting college coaches for potential scholarships.

“Golf was a huge part of my recovery,” Parker said. “I started focusing on it more than soccer [the second] time since I wasn’t planning on playing again, and even though I couldn’t rotate on my knee to make a full swing, it really made my short game improve.”

Although Parker was offered a number of scholarships at the end of her senior golf season, the schools weren’t ideal for her, changing her focus back to soccer.

In the months after she quit golf, Parker couldn’t get her mind off of soccer. She couldn’t resist the 11 years worth of celebrating wins with her best friends. Without those friendships, Parker believes she wouldn’t have considered returning to the soccer. However, it was a Christmas present from her parents that she got during her sophomore year that gave her the final push.

“After my second injury, for Christmas my parents gave me this book of my whole soccer career and I literally started crying... so I never looked at it,” Parker said. “Then a few months ago I saw it sitting on this bookshelf and I thought maybe I could look at it now. I got it out and I didn’t cry, it just made me so happy and I knew I really needed this again.”

A few weeks later, about one month before tryouts, her mind was made up. Parker sat down with her mother, Laura Parker, and talked to her about trying out for soccer in February. Knowing that Steve would likely say no to the idea, she started winter conditioning without his knowledge. However, when he eventually found out, the conversation she had been so carefully avoiding became inevitable, and she worked hard to convince him that this was something she had to do, whether he liked it or not.

“Every time she gets on that field, every time she goes down, it’s scary, especially as a parent,” Steve said. “I’m still not entirely comfortable with her playing just yet. Ultimately I knew it was going to be her decision in the end and I could see how much she wanted to play for her senior season.”

On the first day of tryouts, Parker was nervous ‒ she could still feel a slight pain in her knee. As she dribbled and shot the ball Parker made sure every move she made was clean and precise to prevent another injury to her ACL. However, during the fourth week of the season, Parker was scrimmaging the JV team

GETTING

BACK IN THE

GAME Senior Jessica Parker plays her final soccer season despite two ACL surgeries

when something felt off. Her knee popped again, not as severe as the past two times, but enough that she still became worried; everything that she worked so hard for could easily turn into nothing.

Parker breathed a sigh of relief when she learned that she had only torn some of her scar tissue. Though she was still unable to practice for a few days, Parker is now focusing more than ever because she knows that at any moment, she could be done with soccer for good.

Going into her final season, Parker has prepared herself for all of the possibilities.

She knows that she could hear the sound that she’s come to fear and could once again be at the point she’s been at twice before and the cycle would continue. While she’ll still go into each game holding her breath, this is what she wants to do: spend her last months in high school doing what she loves with the people she loves.

“This is a huge risk what I’m doing, and I know that,” Parker said. “It was keeping me up at night and this is something that I really, really wanted to do more than anything and if it’s something that you love enough, you just have to do it.”

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CURTAIN CALL The four seniors in the spring play reflect on their time in the East theater program

BY ANNIE JONES

PHOTOS GRACE GOLDMAN

CHRISTIAN KENNEDY Actor – Diabolical Host, Wife, the Panda, Mom What difference has being involved in the theater program made for your high school experience?

I think I would be a drastically different human if I never involved myself here at East. When I started theater eight years ago, I was shy, shut in and an extreme introvert. Looking back at getting the courage to audition for my first Frequent Friday here or even standing in front of [Co-Theater Director Brian] Cappello and introducing myself makes me laugh at the growth I have seen in myself. The friend group I have created has been tremendous — something I wouldn’t give up for the world. Instead of partying on weekends, we go do laser tag or scavenger hunts. We see shows, we laugh and create; and it’s something rare that I don’t think you can find in other areas at East. I love them. I love East theater.

How do you feel with this being your last East theater production?

It’s an extremely emotional experience. It’s like the last hoorah. This will be my 14th main stage production here, not including the three Frequent Fridays I’ve participated in, and the two I have produced myself. It’s hard to put into words, but it’s much like graduating. It’s a section of my life that is coming to a much anticipated end but will never truly dissipate. The moment I stepped into the school theater was my home, and will never not be — ever. The magic, the family, the network, the lessons, the people that are backstage that I will truly miss. Words aren’t enough.

CARSON CAMP Actor – Tooley, Jessica What difference has being involved in the East theater program made for your high school experience?

I was really shy my freshmen year and wasn’t very confident in myself. Through the years in East theater, I’ve gained more confidence, my self-esteem rose and I truly broke out of my shell. I’ve learned so much through East theater, especially from Cappello and [Co-Theater Director Tom] DeFeo. They taught me about the theater: how to act, work with tech and I can’t thank them enough for that.

What has your experience in East theater been like?

It’s been a roller coaster. I came into high school a lot more timid and didn’t exactly know what to do, and I found a home in East theater. Everyone is so nice, caring and very non-judgemental because we are all weird but lovable people.

Any time I was worried or stressed, I could come to the auditorium for rehearsals and forget about that for a little while. You always have a place in East theater, even if you do one show or multiple. It’s just such a welcoming atmosphere.

KYLIE LEDFORD Student Director What has being a part of the theater program taught you?

Theater has taught me many things. A big one is really how to gracefully take defeat and to still work hard no matter what happens. In the end the experiences are very valuable.

What difference has being involved in the East theater program made for your high school experience?

Being in East theater has basically been my entire high school

experience. It has shaped everything and been a really amazing place to be. I don’t think I would’ve had half as good of an experience if I didn’t do theater.

What has been your favorite memory while in theater?

My favorite memory would probably be belting out the final song of “Seussical” next to my best friends and really taking in the last moments of my onstage theater career.

TOM DeZUTTER Assistant Stage Manager What shows have you participated in at East?

I was the lead in two Frequent Fridays my freshman year, “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “R.U.R.” My junior year I was in Repertory Theatre’s Children’s Shows and Original One Acts. My senior year, I acted in “Our Town,” the fall play. I was on Set Crew and Lights Run Crew for “Seussical,” and I’m the Assistant Stage Manager for the Spring Season. I also directed two Frequent Fridays, “Senator” and “Poof!: An Accident,” one of which (“Senator”) I wrote.

What difference has being involved in the East theater program made for your high school experience?

It has really made my senior year incredible. Getting to work with these creative people every day, getting to see them be funny and touching and inspiring and ridiculously talented has been amazing.

Having the chance to be creative and learn to work hard in your own right has been mind-expanding and makes you see everything in a new light.

31

32

PHOTO ESSAY

( R I G H T ) After splitting up into different classrooms, freshman Grant Colvin helps the students read paragraphs of non-fiction text. “. . . many of them had just come over to America, and it was their first educational experience. It was really cool to see how these kids are getting started in the country and how education is a crucial part of them adapting into the culture,” Colvin said. | MORGAN BROWNING ( B E L OW ) Junior Carson Holtgraves listens to two students as they read from their online books. | KAITLYN STRATMAN

DONATION EDUCATION TO

East students donate their time and school supplies to refugee students at the Kansas City International Academy

( A B OV E ) Junior Isabel Miller teaches Jemah a trick to easily solve multiplication problems. The students were playing a multiplication game to help them memorize their times tables. | KAITLYN STRATMAN

( A B OV E ) Coalition sponsor and teacher, David Muhammad, talks to students in the auditorium where both schools formed groups to learn about each other. “Meeting the refugee students makes the work we are doing more tangible. They see that there are ‘real’ people on the other side of their service. [The students] are intelligent and warm hearted humans, capable of great things if provided with the opportunity,” Muhammad said. | KAITLYN STRATMAN

( L E F T ) After coalition arrives at the Kansas City International Academy, freshman Grant Colvin helps unload the school supplies from the bus. “I wanted to go with Coalition because I felt it was one of the ways I could make an impact while still doing it through my school,” Colvin said. | MORGAN BROWNING