SEE INSERT MONDAY February 1, 2016
THE DAILY ILLINI The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871
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Vol. 145 Issue 69
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Campaign donations low in Champaign County BY DECLAN HARTY MANAGING EDITOR
C h a mpa ig n -Urba n a isn’t a presidential political hotspot, at least based on the most recent filings from the Federal Election Commission. But the excitement surrounding both Democratic and Republican candidates leading up to Monday’s Iowa Caucus has been felt for a while in C-U. Just take the Urbana Market at the Square, where on a cool, mid-October Saturday morning, the “Feel the Bern 2016” shirts seem to be the dress code. Eva Jehle, precinct committee person for Champaign County Democrats, wears one at a table covered with campaign buttons for Hillary Clinton, Jim Webb and her favorite, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. “I fully expect (Sanders) to win Champaign County in the March primary,” said Jehle, as she feeds crumbs from the remnants of a Cracked sandwich to her terrier, Pimm. “He’s the counterpoint to Donald Trump.” But Champaign County residents haven’t donated much money to match their enthusiasm for the 2016 campaigns, according to FEC filings.
Illinois’ voters gave $5,310,546 as of October, a sliver of the U.S. total of $269.5 million donated to 2016 presidential candidates. Within Illinois, Champaign County registers at under 1 percent of the state’s total with $52,739 raised for both Democrats and Republicans. Just 96 county citizens donated money to candidates in the election, according to the filings, which candidates must report quarterly. The Daily Illini plans to update this piece with new numbers once the FEC releases them, which is to be expected this week. While the most recent number of cash donations may be low in comparison, local support for certain candidates continues to make an impact. The 2016 presidential field is comparably larger than it has been in past years, but it’s also more diverse. The 15 presidential candidates that are still in the race are fighting to win over the support of voters from every socioeconomic class across the U.S. But according to a New York Times analysis, just 158 families, mostly upper-class white families, have funded nearly half of the country’s total raised.
HANNAH AUTEN THE DAILY ILLINI
Phi Delta Theta seniors Matt Marcotte, Daniel Oversen and Greg Garro stopped by their recently burnt down senior house to collect their belongings on Friday.
Fire devastates students Theta senior house on 908 S. Oak St. caught fire in the early morning. According to the Champaign Fire Department, there were six injuries due to the fire, though Penicook clarifies that everyone was fine. “I bruised my hip falling, my girlfriend burned her hand a little turning a doorknob, but we’re fine,” Penicook said. Penicook said one of the first things he did after getting out of the house was make sure all of the 14 residents that lived there were accounted for and okay. For him to escape the house though was a process, he
BY AARON NAVARRO STAFF WRITER
As the flashing lights and loud sirens of fire and emergency responders’ trucks contrasted against the dark hours of the early morning, senior Phi Delta Theta member Robert Penicook was in shock. Sitting in a provided bus, Penicook stared at the smoking, blazing shell of his home. “At first I was just so blown away, I had no idea how that had even just happened,” Penicook said. “I was in absolute disbelief, mostly so glad everyone was okay, so grateful.” On Jan. 22, the Phi Delta
SEE DONATIONS| 3A
said. “We tried to go downstairs, but there was this thick cloud of hot smoke, burning, keeping us from going back there. I shut the door, and then we all, there’s five of us at this point on the second floor, we ran to the right back room, looked out the window and saw all the other guys who had crawled out the basement window,” Penicook said. “They were screaming, ‘You gotta get out of there, the entire place is on fire.’ So what we did was me and Troy and Grant folded Grant’s mattress in half, threw it out the window, dropped the girls down first from the two-sto-
ry window, then we jumped.” The Champaign Fire Department firefighters appeared on the scene at 3:51 a.m. and contained the fire by 7:06 a.m., just before sunrise. “Whenever we arrive on scene the first thing we do is we want to make sure we have everybody accounted for from the structure,” Champaign Deputy Fire Marshal Randy Smith said. “First and foremost we want to make sure everybody is out.” The seniors received a plethora of support, from the emergency deans who came
SEE FIRE | 3A
UI student creates eye-powered wheelchair Grandma’s immobility inspires hightech chair BY RYAN WILSON STAFF WRITER
W
hen Paul Rosa was 15 or 16 years old, his grandma, Paula Partilla, was losing mobility at a rapid pace. She needed a power wheelchair, but not one that would be controlled by a joystick. No, she needed one that would be controlled by her eyes. He thought, “I need to help my grandmother. I don’t know how in the hell I’m going to do this.” He started experimenting with robots, algorithms and reading books at his Naperville home. After nearly 30 tries at making a chair that would fit all of his grandma’s
needs, Rosa finally built the perfect chair: the AutoChair. To move, all the driver needed to do was look in a certain direction and the chair would move there. This chair made Partilla capable of doing so many things, but — in Rosa’s terms — it was a slice of turkey on a cheese pizza. From a young age Rosa struggled to write, possibly due to a form dyslexia, he said. So instead of writing, he was plopped in front of a computer and told to type. But this computer was more than a substitute to writing for him; it was a sandbox full of toys and gadgets waiting to be used. Rosa quickly learned how to open Microsoft Word and, of course, a programming editor. He then started learning how to write code and began creating lots of list boxes in. Then, after some help from his dad, Rosa, now in Engineering, made his
first computer invention, a traffic simulator. He wanted to figure out why cars didn’t collide when they made right turns at intersections. Besides playing and programming in his computer sandbox with his dad, Rosa was playing in a literal sandbox with a therapist. A physical therapist worked Rosa’s hands on exercise balls, sandboxes and silly putty to help him write. “Oh my god, so much silly putty,” he said of his time in physical therapy. His physical therapist would hide beads inside the putty; the therapist intended for Rosa to pick them out but he had different ideas. He started molding the putty into different objects by using the rectangles and cups from his school’s art supplies box. Once, he tried getting the ink out of a pen by taking off its top and dipping it into hand sanitizer. It worked, but he ended
up knocking over his desk, spilling ink everywhere and being banned from using those tools. Outside of school, therapy and computer programming, Rosa had a close relationship with his grandma. She lived next door to the Rosa’s and Paul would invite her over to play everyday. They would commonly go to zoos, playgrounds and aquariums to watch dolphin shows. Partilla also cooked for Rosa though he said quality is a relative term when it comes to food. “Well, good cook can have a lot of meanings to it,” Rosa said. “Healthy? No. Delicious food? Yes.” However, one day during a dolphin show, everything changed. Partilla fell down some steps and broke her foot. She went to the doctor and Partilla learned she had ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s dis-
SEE ROSA | 3A
PHOTO COURTESY OF PAUL ROSA
Paul Rosa, senior in Engineering, built a customized wheelchair for this grandma. The chair, called AutoChair, could drive itself to help keep Partilla’s mobility.
Black Lives Matter co-founder to visit UI for lecture series BY SAMI JONES TOAL STAFF WRITER
RYAN FANG THE DAILY ILLINI
Students gather for the Black Student Solidarity Rally on the Main Quad on Nov. 18.
The Black Lives Matter movement began in 2013 when three girls created the Twitter hashtag, #BlackLivesMatter, following the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of Trayvon Martin. Opal Tometi, a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement, will visit the University on Feb. 19 to talk
about the movement and more. According to a press release announcing the visit, Tometi is “a dedicated activist working at the intersection of racial justice and immigrant rights for more than a decade.” Tometi’s visit is a part of the Spring 2016 Friday Forum lecture series called, “Breaking Down Down Racism: Fighting Racial Injus-
tice in the U.S.” Despite the title, Megan Flowers, University YMCA Communications Director, said her visit will be more of a conversation than a lecture. “There will be a lot more time for discussion where people can bring questions,” Flowers said. Flowers said the event is taking place on campus but she hopes it will bring in a lot of community members.
“We hope to be connected locally and learn about getting involved and taking action against social injustice,” she said. Tometi will begin with “A Conversation with Opal Tometi” at noon in Allen Hall. She will then talk at the University YMCA at 1:30 p.m. with a lunch reception to follow.
jonesto2@dailyillini.com
OPINIONS
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Cozad New Venture Competition offers entrepreneurial chances.
Slumping women’s basketball team hopes Buckeyes’ road troubles continue.
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