A DIFFERENT MARCH MADNESS
Marine reflects on time in Iraq
Finalists selected for Sumter High boys basketball coach position.
What’s inside? A2 See photos from local woman’s 30th annual egg hunt
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B1 VOL. 118, NO. 138 WWW.THEITEM.COM
SUNDAY, MARCH 31, 2013 | SUMTER, SOUTH CAROLINA
THE MEANING OF EASTER
FOUNDED OCTOBER 15, 1894
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Christ is risen
“We don’t really have the Easter Bunny, but we do have an Easter egg hunt at home. My parents and church (Union Baptist Church in Rembert) like to focus on the real meaning. Easter is about Jesus getting crucified and dying on the cross for our sins. He gave His life for all of us.” Peyton Halley, 9, third-grade student at Sumter Christian School
“Jesus died on the cross, and three days later he literally rose again. We sometimes have Easter candy at my house. We have an Easter egg hunt, and there are notes inside the (plastic) eggs.” Ethan Elliott, 7, first-grade student at Sumter Christian School
KEITH GEDAMKE / SPECIAL TO THE ITEM
Christian schools focus on true meaning of Easter “Easter is important not just for Christians, but for those who need to know Christ. We need to show them their need for Him as a Savior. If they don’t trust in Him, they will go to a place called hell.” Nahdea Wiley, 10, fifth-grade student at Sumter Christian School
“Easter is (a time) for rejoicing and thanking Jesus for dying on the cross for our sins. We need to thank Him and God for all they’ve done for us.” A’Knia Myers, 11, fifth-grade student at Sumter Christian School
BY JADE ANDERSON AND ROBERT J. BAKER janderson@theitem.com bbaker@theitem.com While many children associate Easter with a giant, white rabbit and colored eggs, children in Christian schools learn about two pieces of wood and the man who died on them. “Easter encompasses the entire point of Christianity,” said Kristi Doyle, principal of St. Anne Catholic School. “It wouldn’t exist without Jesus’ death and resurrection. We talk to the students about his crucifixion, death and resurrection. It’s not spring break. It’s Easter break.” This information is shared with every student from the 4-year-old preschoolers through the eighth-graders. The younger children do more hands-on activities such as resurrection eggs while older children, such as the fourth-graders, incorpo-
PHOTOS PROVIDED
ABOVE LEFT: At one of the five stations at the St. Anne Catholic School retreat students shared bread and grape juice that symbolized Jesus’ body and blood that He gave His disciples at the Last Supper. ABOVE RIGHT: Another retreat station was designed to replicate the Holy Thursday event when Jesus washed his disciples’ feet at the Last Supper. Although the retreat was for middle school students, the whole school learns the story, and a first-grader this action was to teach the disciples about being humble.
rate words such as “triduum” into their vocabulary lesson for the week, Doyle said. “Each egg has something special,” said Georgia Robertson, a first-grader at St. Anne, as she showed off her
resurrection eggs. Her principal asked her what was in the last egg. “Nothing because nothing was in the tomb,” Georgia said. “What that means is Jesus rose from the dead.”
Teachers at Sumter Christian School, such as Laurance Kannon, an alumnus of the school, also incorporate the plastic eggs that open to reveal an aspect of the Easter story. He said there is practically no focus in his class on secular Easter traditions. “It isn’t really an issue,” Kannon said. “The kids bring some chocolate candy. I thought it was cool that one of my kids brought a chocolate cross (as a gift for Kannon). I’m really proud of my students because a lot of them are very active in their churches. They will be taking part in Easter plays and music at their own churches.” A’Knia Myers, 11, is one such student. She said she will play the wife of Pontius Pilate, the Roman prefect of Judea who presided over Jesus’ trial before his crucifixion. “I will also be singing in SEE EASTER, PAGE A7
Chickens at home on the rise “My family didn’t really support (the Easter Bunny) part of Easter. We ignored the secular portion of Easter mostly. We’ll be spending Easter at our church, Bethesda Church of God. We celebrate the real meaning of the season, how Christ was crucified and how He rose three days later and the promise of His return.” Mitchell Griffith, 14, freshman at Sumter Christian School
BY JADE ANDERSON janderson@theitem.com The back of the Reisenauer van features a mom, a dad, and two sons on one side. The other side has five chicken stickers. About two years ago, Kim Reisenauer joined the growing number of people raising chickens in their backyards. “The boys like it,” she said, referring to Adam, 7, and Jonah, 5. “The eggs are really different. They are very yellow. The yolk is almost an orange. If you bake with them, they make your dough more yellow. I had a ham, egg
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Jonah Reisenauer, 5, shows off Noodle, one of his family’s five chickens. All the chickens have foodrelated names, such as Dumpling and Nugget. JADE ANDERSON / THE ITEM
SEE CHICKENS, PAGE A4
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and cheese sandwich from (a fastfood restaurant) the other day, and I couldn’t eat it. The egg had no taste.” People raise their own for reasons other than taste, too, said Mary Weeks, store manager for Palmetto Farm Supply, Southern States Independent Dealer. “For me, it’s healthier,” she said. “There seems to be an increase in people trying to do organic. People
Everett D. Elliott Patricia Ann Brogdon Gary R. Logan George F. Hill Lillie Mae June Rosa Lee Howard
INSIDE
OUTSIDE SUN, BRIEF STORMS
Rosa Lee Lemon Linda D. Longberry Joseph Wright
5 SECTIONS, 32 PAGES
A little sun in between showers through the day; periods of rain at night. A9
HIGH: 72 LOW: 54 A10
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