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Vol. 88, No. 34 Thursday, February 9, 2012
Nothing stopping you from having a damn good time.
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Terminal cancer patient Sarah Pharis checks off bucket list item with help of local Italian restaurant By KELSEY NUNN contributing writer
Many people have their entire lives to do what they want — go skydiving and bungee jumping, travel to a faraway place and write a book. But for Sarah Pharis, it’s just living to age . Making calamari, bruschetta, garlic bread, salad, pasta and chicken parmagian at Tutti Gusti on Monday evening was more than just for a meal for the Staunton native. It was also something to cross off her list of goals to complete. Pharis, , lives with terminal cancer. “On April , I was diagnosed with a choroidal melanoma in my right eye,” Pharis wrote in her blog, [LovexInfinity]. The tumor “was mm at the base and looked exactly like the fetus of a dinosaur curled inside its shell. I was years old.” The vision in her right eye was extremely distorted. Almost four years later, she was told the cancer had spread to her liver. “My doctors previously had told me that this probably would never happen,” Pharis wrote. “To the contrary, the literature I had read reported as
ALISON PARKER / THE BREEZE
Sarah Pharis, 32, had always wanted to cook in an Italian restaurant and finally got her chance Monday night thanks to Tutti Gusti. Pharis was diagnosed in April 2006 with a tumor in her right eye. Four years later, the cancer moved to her liver and most recently to her left ovary in September.
much as a percent chance that this would happen. I was terrified, but not surprised.” In March , Pharis had surgery to remove the tumor from her eye and a larger, benign tumor from liver.
Making the big leagues Alumna Lindsay Czarniak makes her way up the corporate sports ladder to ESPN By EMMIE CLEVELAND The Breeze
There was a time when ESPN’s newest SportsCenter anchor wasn’t even considering a profession in sports. When Lindsay Czarniak graduated from JMU in , she had her sights set on a different career. “Honestly, my dream was probably that one day I would do something that would be like a morning show or something like that,” she said. Czarniak went to Centreville High School in Fairfax before coming to JMU, where she pursued a SMAD major with a concentration in jour-
“She was one of those people that I knew right away she had ‘it.’ ” Rustin Greene SMAD professor
nalism and a minor in studio art. With her rising success in sports broadcasting, Czarniak has become an idol to JMU students with ambitions in the journalistic field. Makenzie Walter, a senior SMAD major and sport communications minor, saw Czarniak speak at Centreville’s graduation in and has been following her career since. “It’s inspiring, because you know you can do the same thing,” Walter said. “She went to my high school, and she obviously went here. She lived in my neighborhood.” Because of her close ties to JMU, it’s easy for fellow sports-lovers and students to relate to Czarniak. “I loved D-Hall,” she said. “The other place too, I’m trying to remember. The Festival? That was new when I was there. And there also used to be this place that was called Mr. Jay’s. Is that still there? I loved it.” She enjoyed watching Dukes’ soccer, lacrosse, wrestling and football,
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but said the football team “wasn’t anything like it is now. “ “There definitely wasn’t a crowd following,” she said. She knew she wanted to pursue a broadcasting career after she took a news production class taught by SMAD professor Rustin Greene. The class produced a weekly newscast. “That’s when I really realized what it was that I wanted to try to do, because I didn’t know if I wanted to do print or more writing — maybe even creative writing,” she said. “I just wasn’t sure … The extracurricular part of doing that TV show with everyone was what really hooked me.” Czarniak also had a scriptwriting class with Greene and made a lasting impression on him. “She was extraordinary,” Greene said. “She was one of those people that I knew right away she had ‘it.’ ‘It’ is defined in many ways, and it’s characterized in many ways, but she had ‘it.’ Not only was she intelligent and focused and disciplined and a hard worker, but she was also very talented.” Czarniak was no stranger to sports journalism. Her father Chet was a sports writer, so she witnessed the lifestyle — the attendance of sporting events and the travel — the profession entailed. “I remember when it was my birthday when I was really young, and Magic Johnson announced that he was HIV positive,” Czarniak said. “That was one of those things where as a kid, I was bummed out because my dad couldn’t be at my birthday party, but at the same time it was one of those things [when] he really got me exposed to the breaking news aspect of sports.” But not immediately compelled to follow in his footsteps, Czarniak chased a career in news. After she graduated, she worked at an entrylevel position behind the scenes at CNN. “It meant that you’re doing all the grunt-work things, but it was a
“I was lucky to be a candidate for resection,” Pharis wrote. “Not many with metastatic ocular melanoma are.” She was diagnosed with mets when the cancer moved to her left ovary in September.
“The bottom line is this: We just don’t know how to effectively treat this cancer once it spreads, other than cutting out the tumors,” Pharis wrote. So she wrote a list of things she wanted to accomplish, filled with the nearly impossible, the terrifying and the memorable. Butch Strawderman, former owner and loyal customer of Tutti Gusti, read about Pharis’ story and wanted to help. “Looking at the list, I thought I could help her knock out a bunch of things,” Strawderman said. He emphasized the collective involvement of the community to help Pharis reach her goals. Strawderman organized a hot air balloon ride for her and a few friends and is searching for Tom Jones concert tickets, two more items on her list. Fortunado Merone, the current owner of Tutti Gusti, also wanted to help. His family, too, has been affected by cancer. “On her bucket list, she wanted to make cherry soup and cook pasta for all the families and everyone,” said Merone, see PHARIS, page A4
Alum wins big with $ commercial By LAURA WEEKS The Breeze
As soon as the first second of Jonathan Friedman’s Doritos “Crash the Super Bowl” commercial aired, “everybody started freaking out,” Friedman said. The contest allowed participants to submit homemade videos promoting Doritos products. “It was pretty amazing. The excitement was instantaneous —everything just erupted.” Friedman experienced the win with the other four finalists and representatives from Frito-Lay. Friedman, whose bank account is soon to be about $ million heavier (pre-taxes), hasn’t started planning what he’ll do with the money. “It still hasn’t sunk in that I’m actually going to have that munch money,” Friedman said. He says that he does, however, plan on spending some of his winnings on gifts for friends and family, as well as on a movie that he and his brother have been working on. Does he have vacation plans? Maybe in the future. Friedman describes the trip to Indianapolis, which was one of the perks of being a finalist as a vacation
in and of itself. “It was the most luxurious vacation that I’ve ever had,” Friedman said. “Everything was paid for, seven-course meals — it was ridiculous. They really treated us well.” Media attention after the win has been “crazy” and “exhausting.” The morning after the Super Bowl, Friedman stayed up until a.m. doing interviews, then had to be at the studio by a.m. doing interviews via live telecast. He filmed a segment for “Inside Edition” yesterday. “I’m finding out that I’m popping up in different places and not even knowing about it,” he said. “It’s been nuts.” For Friedman and the other four finalists, it wasn’t about who was going to win. By the time the Super Bowl aired, the group had been together for four days. “We all became friends,” Friedman said. “Even if it wasn’t mine that won, I would be happy for whoever it was. I think we all kind of felt that way about each other at the end.” Support from his family and friends was also a huge aspect for Friedman throughout the whole process. “They were all saying how I was going to win when I didn’t even believe
COURTESY OF JONATHAN FRIEDMAN
Alumnus Jonathan Friedman was the $1 million winner of the Doritos “Crash the Super Bowl” commercial contest.
I was going to win,” Friedman said. CONTACT Laura Weeks at breezearts@gmail.com.
BECKY SULLIVAN / THE BREEZE
‘Truth and Tranquility’
ArtWorks Gallery held the opening of the “Truth and Tranquility” exhibition on Monday. Art students of Agnes Carbrey have created life-size self portraits in drawing, painting, fabric and photo forms. Tranquil landscapes from southern France and the French Mediterranean showcase the Fauvist colors of JMU art students in the Southern France Painting Abroad Program. All exhibitions are sponsored by the school of art, design and art history. “Truth and Tranquility” will be open until Feb. 24. The artWorks Gallery is located at 131 Grace St. and is open Monday through Thursday 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday through Saturday 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.
see CZARNIAK, page B6
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NEWS Think before you ink
Are tattoos sentimental stamps or permanent regrets for students?
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OPINION Faculty frustration
Professors, angered by a lack of pay increase, call out the administration.
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LIFE Pool (Taylor) hall
JMU’s recognition of new Billiards Club opens avenue for competition.
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SPORTS Drug test dilemma
Sudafed, Midol and vitaminwater are among the substances athletes should be wary of when taking a drug test.