MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5 | SERVING TEXAS A&M SINCE 1893 | © 2018 STUDENT MEDIA
Silver Taps
TUESDAY NIGHT WE HONOR THE FALLEN when 10:30 p.m. Tuesday where Academic Plaza
In honor of Aggies who have died, the Ross Volunteer Firing Squad will march in Academic Plaza and fire three rifle volleys of seven shots. Buglers from the Aggie Band will play a special arrangement of Taps.
November 4, 1998 - January 11, 2018
MARC PORTELL ELIZONDO A talented and hardworking student driven by his faith and love of others By Brad Morse @BradSMorse53
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arc Elizondo will be remembered for living through his faith, selfless outlook on life and desire to help improve the world. A keen academic, Marc came to Texas A&M on a full scholarship to study biomedical engineering, a desire born from an illness he was diagnosed with before arriving at A&M. “Two years ago he was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis,” Clare Elizondo, Marc’s sister, said. “He never complained, and he decided that he wanted to cure the disease … not for himself but for other kids, so they wouldn’t have to go through what he did.” Kind and considerate, Marc was not an ordinary kid, according to Arleen Elizondo, Marc’s mother. “Marc was different,” Arleen said. “I would say he taught me more than I taught him. He was very humble, sensitive to what other people needed, just extremely kind … honestly, no matter what the person did or who the other person was, he literally never said anything bad about anyone.” Arleen said Marc was a phenomenal ath-
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lete, excelling in tennis and reaching at least the semifinals of the state championship every year in high school. But no one could ever guess that, as he never boasted of his talents. She added that he never complained on the court, and no one could tell if he was winning or losing, as his attitude and demeanor never changed. “Tennis can be maddening, but I never saw him angry on the tennis court one time, and I never missed a match,” Alreen said. “And sometimes, the kids he’d play were just jerks. He’d come off the court and his dad and I would say ‘Can you believe he said this or he did this?’ And Marc would just say ‘No, he was pretty nice, really.’ Nothing could get under his skin.” Marc’s humble attitude was noticed by others, including his kindergarten teacher, according to Arleen. “His kindergarten teacher, at the end of the year, put together a booklet with each kids picture in there and she wrote something about each kid,” Arleen said. “And by Marc’s name, she put ‘This is certainly how Jesus was as a little boy.’” Marc’s selfless attitude was apparent in several other areas of his life. When he got his driver’s license, he became an organ donor. In ELIZONDO ON PG. 2
Marc Elizondo was a selfless person who was driven by his faith and a need to help others.
A small gesture that means more Attending is the least you can do By Cassie Stricker @cassie_stricker
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of the coastal and Great Lake states to Washington, D.C. and provide them with a marine policy experience,” Plotkin said. When the fellowship was established in 1979, many federal laws had been put in place the decade before such as the Clean Air Act of 1969. This time period is often known as the beginning of the environmental movement in the United States. “I think the importance has been at multiple levels,” Plotkin said. “For the Sea Grant network, this fellowship experience has given us an opportunity to educate early career professionals about the Sea Grant program and about what we do in each of the coastal states and the Great Lake states. We get to share some of the impacts and accomplishments that we have in our states with our fellows and they bring that knowledge with them when they go up to Washington, D.C.” Sepp Haukebo, Class of 2013 and manager of private angler management reform
t’s 10:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of the month. You’re standing in Academic Plaza, listening to the end of “Amazing Grace” being played on Albritton Bell Tower as students continue to make their way to the plaza. A few quiet minutes pass and you hear the Ross Volunteers getting closer and closer to the Sul Ross statue; their steps in perfect unison as they march in a slow, chilling cadence. You tense up as they fire a three-volley salute; your heart skips a beat with each gunshot. After a moment of silence, the buglers begin to play Texas A&M’s unique rendition of “Taps.” Shivers run down your spine as the chilling notes pierce the quiet night. The guy in front of you puts an arm around his girlfriend’s waist as she rests her head on his shoulder. You hear someone near you softly praying. Faint sobs come from somewhere in the middle of the crowd. The buglers finish playing and the last note lingers for a moment before fading into a deafening silence as you think about the students being honored that night. This is Silver Taps, one of Texas A&M’s most sacred, yet dreaded, traditions; the final tribute to Aggies who were students at the time of their death. This is what it means to be an Aggie. When I attended Silver Taps for the first time as a freshman in the fall of 2015, I didn’t fully understand its significance. My motivation for attending that night
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The Knauss Fellowship gives graduate and Ph.D. students the chance to broaden marine knowledge outside of the classroom.
From the coast to the capital Sea Grant Knauss fellows reflect on year-long marine policy experience By Savannah Mehrtens @SJMehrtens Sitting in her office, Texas Sea Grant director Pamela Plotkin thought back to 1994 and the experience that ultimately shaped her career. “There were no barriers or obstacles in my way,” Plotkin said. “I was allowed to get involved in just about anything I wanted to be involved in when I got to my fellowship opportunity, and that’s the experience most fellows have when they get there.” The Sea Grant Knauss Fellowship, established in 1979, is for any graduate and doctoral students who are close to or have completed their degree and are interested in ocean, coastal or Great Lakes resources. The program will lead them to offices that affect legislative or executive national policy while completing their fellowship in Washington,
D.C. The fellowship’s namesake, John A. Knauss, was one of Sea Grant’s founders and a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) former administrator. Plotkin said Knauss’ vision was to provide early career professionals with experience in government and public policy. “We’re indebted to him and grateful for his vision because this is a program that has not just provided experience and opportunity to thousands of people, but has also helped federal agencies and congressional offices gain real great experience from the people who worked in these positions,” Plotkin said. “It’s really an opportunity that helps in two directions — the people who receive fellows and the fellows themselves all benefit from the opportunity.” The fellowship is crafted to provide an intensive real-life experience to top students interested in national policy in relation to the oceans and Great Lakes, according to Plotkin. “The fellowship program is meant to bring the best and the brightest from each
THIS WEEK! TUE & WED Mature Themes
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