Almost 6000 people driving around Penn Manor have to go out of their way every day, a very long way sometimes, because of a bridge that is being repaired right smack in the middle of the district. But the good news is it’s only until the end of November.
According to Greg Penny, a local Penn Dot spokesman, an average of 5830 vehicles used the bridge daily over the Conestoga River where Stehman Road in Conestoga Township switches to South Duke Street in Manor Township.
An elderly man fell from the construction site to his death during the summer. Photo by Liz Lawrence
The bridge was closed for construction June 14 and it’s been a great inconvenience to students, teachers and staff at Penn Manor High School, not to mention the many other district residents. Penny said the repairs should be finished by the end of November 2010.
The bridge over the Conestoga River in Manor and Conestoga townships before recent repairs. Photo courtesy of Penn D
In the meantime, senior, Jennifer Felegi, who lives on the Conestoga side of the bridge construction, is extremely annoyed about the situation. For her to get to school and a lot of different places, she has to go on a very long detour in order to get there.
“I waste my gas all the time,” said Felegi. “I have to leave so early and I show up late to places (school) and it could give me detention.”
Felegi explains that she can’t wait until she can go straight to school instead of going the whole way around. She does everything she can to gain time on her way to places, so she won’t be late.
“(When on Route 741) I cut through Comet Field everyday. It’s so much faster,” said Felegi.
The bridge being out is not only a problem for the students at Penn Manor. Resource Officer Jason Hottenstein explained that it’s a problem for him as a Millersville Borough police officer.
“It makes a longer trip to get to the district justice office. I now have to go 741 to New Danville Pike and then across Long Lane.”
“The bridge was never unsafe,” said Penny. He explained that Penn Dot assigns a number during each inspection of the bridge, which occurs at least every two years. A nine means a bridge is in tip-top shape. The Stehman Road bridge was rated a four.
The bridge being replaced near Slackwater Road is right at the dividing line between Conestoga and Manor Townships.
“A rating of four or below indicates poor conditions that result in a structural deficient classification,” said Penny.
The construction, being done by J.D. Eckman Inc., was on a 3.2 million contract to repair this bridge and another bridge in Lebanon County. The construction included a demolition of the existing bridge decks, the surface of the bridge that the cars drive over, and superstructure, what is underneath the deck. The bridge was built in 1958.
But most people don’t care much about the construction, just about when it will be done.
Janelle Witmer, also a senior from Penn Manor said, “I wish it would be open earlier.”
Felegi said, “I heard a lot of different things. This November, next November, I don’t think it will be for a while.”
Although for most students at Penn Manor the bridge presents a problem for them to get to school on time, it’s also a problem for many students after school.
“I don’t go that way to school, but I have friends that live over there,” said Emily Hutchinson.
It is also an annoyance to the busses that need to get to school. Taylor Hagor, a sophomore at Penn Manor, explained that the school scheduled her bus stop 10 minutes earlier than it was last year so that they could make it to school on time.
Girls are walking into the bathrooms at Penn Manor this year and are seeing notes aimed at raising their self esteem.
Written simply with a marker on Post-it-type notes, messages have been seen on bathroom stall doors that say, “you are beautiful,” “believe you are beautiful,” and “you are so much beautiful!”
Notes of encouragement are being posted in Penn Manor's girls bathrooms.
Although the author of the notes is anonymous for the moment, it may be someone who was inspired themselves by a similar campaign to promote a healthy lifestyle for adolescent girls.
Dubbed “Operation Beautiful” by its founder, Caitlin Boyle, a 26-year-old from Charlotte, N.C., said on her website that she strives to help women stop the negative talk about themselves and other girls.
Boyle started her healthy lifestyle blog June 2009. She also started the posted note trend which has spread to many public schools and bathrooms across the country and, since this year, includes the walls of Penn Manor.
Other notes in Penn Manor’s girl’s bathrooms read:“You are so much beautiful” and “God Loves You.”
As for the author of these notes, that still remains a mystery as does the amount of the amount of girls in Penn Manor who’ve seen the notes so far. But as for the ones who have, it seems that the message is getting through.
“It’s a good idea, because high school girls are always down about themselves,” said senior Mikah Farbo.
Other girls may have not seen the notes but said they would appreciate the message.
Simple notes are aimed at making a difference.
“It would probably make me smile,” replied Ella Perry.
“I would probably be surprised, especially since there’s always negative things written in the bathrooms,” Elana Hart responded.
Compared to last year’s problem with nasty and demeaning messages, which was covered by a story in Penn Points,https://www.pennpoints.net/?p=1375 the messages in Penn Manor’s girl’s bathrooms this year are a lot more positive.
Whether its one person or more, posting these notes around Penn Manor proves a positive attitude can “stick” to others.
New season, new faces and now Penn Manor football has a new and improved website.
If you can’t wait until Friday nights, you can check them out on the internet – and maybe buy yourself a t-shirt while you’re there.
The website has everything from recruiting opportunities to apparel and anyone around the world, thanks to the beautiful invention of a certain thing called the world wide web, can access Penn Manor’s surging football program. The program broke yet another school record last year with ten wins and an appearance in the first round of states.
Returning seniors on the 2010 Penn Manor Football team. Photo courtesy of Penn Manor Comets Football
According to head coach, Todd Mealy, there are three specific concerns he wanted to address by the website: “communication, fund raising and recruiting.”
First, communication, which Mealy noted is vital in the 21st century.
Having information on this new website can mend or prevent miscommunications between the players and coaches, he said.
An interactive calendar with game-times and events is one extra in the communication package.
Another way that the website enables communication is that parents and/or fans can sign up for an emailing list that sends “constant reminders,” Mealy said.
Of course the website addresses fundraising. As everyone knows, you can’t run a program, company, a run for president, a lemonade stand – whatever – without some financial aid from the outside world. If you’re not following, ask General Motors, they’ll tell you all about it.
The website allows all sorts of ways to contribute to the group of talented young stars.
Mealy said he understands that the parents who aren’t enrolled in the booster club and who are busy with a job, carting kids around to another child’s game or dance recital and all the other “mom” and “dad” activities, just might not have the time to take a big part in the football program.
But there are easy ways to give some money, via the website.
First, you can donate anywhere from $5.00 to $50.00, and set up a monthly donation called the “recurring comet club tab,” said Mealy, who dubbed it that himself. The funds will be taken directly out of the person’s bank account, like a subscription, without them having to pick up a pen and write a check.
Hey, there’s always the chance of there not being any ink left and everyone knows how frustrating that can be…
Mealy also plans auctions on the web for autographed footballs or pictures. There is a nifty online store where students and other fans can buy Comet gear like t-shirts, sweatshirts/hoodies, caps – you name it – all in men, women and children sizes.
Mealy stated that he got a lot of influence from the ’08 presidential candidates who “set records” in financial aid in order to assist them with their campaign.
Third and finally, recruiting opportunities.
For high school, college and even the pros, it is important to foresee the future and to scout out new talent for upcoming years. This website makes it easy to go through the recruiting process with “instant recruiting,” as Mealy calls it, with a recruiting tab.
Don’t get ahead of yourself, though; users need a password to enter that portion of the website.
Penn Manor coaches and scouts can look up players from middle school on up to see what their future might behold and keep track of those players to encourage them to continue in the football program.
“(We) lost a lot of players (coming from) eighth to ninth grade,” Mealy said, “so you can bet this recruiting tab will be clicked on a lot in the future.”
Also, college scouts from all around the country can check out current Penn Manor players. They can sit in their Tweety-bird boxers on their computer at home instead of coming all the way to Lancaster county to get a glimpse of how much talent the team, or a specific player, has.
Whether you want the attributes of a certain player, the team’s schedule, a signed football, a Comets coffee mug or recruiting information, it all can be accessed with a single click of the mouse on www.pennmanorcometsfootball.com.
The branches between your family tree might be tighter than you think.
Let’s admit it. We distance ourselves from everything that has to do with our parents from the way they dress, to the way they talk and even their interests in pop culture.
However, we’re mirroring our older generation in more ways than one without realizing it.
Some students reluctantly admitted to similarly acting like their parents.
“Some of the things I do or say really remind me of the things that my parents do,” said student Kelly Herr, “I think that I do kinda act like my mom when she was growing up.”
“[I’m] kinda [like my parents],” said student Meghan Miller.
But some students refused to agree.
“I would hope that I’m not [like my parents],” said student Halle Mosser.
Students like Mosser may find the proof shocking.
The Fads of Fashion
Your parents’ closets used to be filled with bell bottoms and polyester. We laugh now, but have you looked into your collection of the latest trends?
Our flannel trend compares to our parent's tie dye trend.
Flannel is the new tie dye. Almost every other student can be seen walking down the hallways wearing it during the Winter.
Take a second glance at your parent’s platform shoes – you might have a similar pair under your bed.
However, students complain about being nagged by their parents about what they have on before leaving the house.
“My dad yells at me when I wear jeans with holes,” said Miller.
“My mom hates the way a lot of girls dress now,” said Herr.
But when it comes down to it, we’re in the same position as the adults before us.
“[My parents] thought skirts were too short [as well]. They thought whatever trend was popular wasn’t going to last,” said Holly Astheimer.
Many of us scoff at the idea of mood rings being a trend for our parents, but what will our kids think when they find out the similar trend affecting us, or wearing animals as bracelets around our wrists, also known as Sillybandz.
So while the trends may look different, the type of styles show that we might not be as unique as we had once thought.
The Lights, The Music, The Gaga
If you turn on the radio, nine times out of ten, a Lady Gaga song will come on and everyone in the room starts to sing along of how they ‘want a bad romance’ or how you ‘can’t see their poker face.’
“Lady Gaga is one of today’s most fascinating singers because she’s different,” said student Shannon Nitroy.
Lady Gaga is always altering sounds, looks and fashion, and is inspiring others along the way but she’s not the first superstar to have an ever-changing career.
Our older generation had its own Lady Gaga – the one and only, Madonna, who also had a huge impact on music in the ’80’s and 90’s.
Is Lady Gaga our generation's Madonna? Photo from kingsofar.com
“Madonna adopted a new persona for every album,” said Thea Andrews, a former correspondent of music for Entertainment Tonight, “Gaga does it for every song, every big performance.”
Madonna and Lady Gaga are arguably the biggest pop stars of the former and the current generation respectively.
Many adults saw Madonna’s songs – such as ‘Like a Virgin’ or ‘Papa Don’t Preach’ as provocative and controversial.
Lady Gaga is no stranger to controversy as well, but it may prove that a little bit of controversy makes for a lot of success.
But today, the same ones who were followers of Madonna are now anti-Gaga.
“My dad thinks [today’s music like Lady Gaga] is crap,” said Miller.
But just like how some of us have sneaked ‘Like a Prayer’ onto our iPods, some of our parents have their guilty pleasures as well.
“My mom listens to Lady Gaga,” said Herr, “She sings the wrong words, but she listens.”
More Surprising Similarities
Long hair was cool in the ’70’s and has had it’s fair share of time in the spotlight during our lives.
Long hair was both popular in the past and today. Photo from media.com
Our parents lived through a strongly opposed Vietnam War, and now, we our currently watching a similar War in Iraq.
Both generations have had their share of natural disasters – In 1970, an earthquake in Peru left 700,000 people homeless, while the 2010 earthquake in Haiti left about 1.5 million people homeless.
The older generation worked hard to land onto the Moon – now we watch as our astronauts attempt to explore Mars – and further.
One of the greatest hurricanes ever, Hurricane Agnes, occurred in 1972, which has been challenged by the 2005 Hurricane Katrina as one of the most costly hurricanes ever.
Different But The Same
Yes, we are our parents.
We have their DNA, their chromosomes and the same genetics, but until we’re about 30, we will probably do anything we can to distance ourselves from them.
Still, our fashion trends, our music and the events that we witness prove one small thing.
We’re more alike than we know, or at least, want to admit.
Penn Manor’s illustrious rocket team headed to London last week with high hopes – that they would be able to top their amazing win in national competition with success in the international contest.
And they did it.
Against teams from England and France, Penn Manor seniors Jordan Franssen, Brendan Stoeckl, Nate Bernhardt and Tyler Funk, led by physics teacher Brian Osmolinski, flew their rockets the closest to the competition goal of flying 825 feet with a total air time of 40 to 50 seconds.
“We are so excited that we won,” said team member Brendan Stoeckl, in the online publication NewsBlaze. “We succeeded because of practice, good data analysis and teamwork.”
The competition was held in Great Britain at the Farnborough International Air Show.
The four-member team from Penn Manor High School in Millersville, PA posted the best score to win the international fly-off. Horsforth School in Leeds, England placed second. The French team was unable to launch its rocket due to technical problems.
Two months ago, Penn Manor High School’s rocketry club placed first in the national Team America Rocketry Challenge which they won by flying their rocket without breaking the raw egg inside.
The students began their rocket design early this year with a mantra of keeping it simple but making it efficient in design.
The recent graduates said they began designing the rocket in the fall and building it in January and February.
Osmolinski said Penn Manor remains one of the few area schools with a rocketry club, which includes six teams in the middle and high school and said the district has been successful because the kids figure out what decisions need to be made and work needs to be done.
The international rocketry challenge is the culmination of three separate competitions: the Team America Rocketry Challenge (TARC), UKAYRoC and the French Rocketry Challenge. Each contest brings together teams of middle and high school students to design, build and launch model rockets. This year the challenge was to launch a rocket that reaches an altitude of 825 feet, stays aloft for 40-45 seconds and returns a raw egg unbroken. As part of their score, teams also had to give an eight minute presentation on their rocket design to a panel of international judges.
Sponsored by the Aerospace Industries Association and the National Association of Rocketry in the U.S.; ADS, Tri Polus Ltd, Space Connections and the Royal Aeronautical Society in the UK; and GIFAS and Planete Sciences in France, the programs are designed to encourage students to pursue careers in aerospace.
“Based on today’s competition, the future of our industry is looking pretty bright,” said Marion Blakey, president and CEO of AIA in the News Blaze. “The level of enthusiasm of the participants is phenomenal, and each team deserves congratulations for winning their home competitionand inspiring other students.”
AIA created the Team America Rocketry Challenge in 2003 to celebrate the centennial of flight and to generate interest in aerospace careers among young people. The success of the program encouraged UK aerospace industry leaders to create the UKAYRoC in 2007 with similar goals in mind. Last year at the 2009 Paris Airshow, France announced they would compete as well in the international rocketry challenge.
Synthetic marijuana or, as kids call it, “spice” or “K2,” is becoming the new drug of choice. It gets kids high and is currently legal.
Although it’s considered a brand new drug, coming mostly from Hong Kong, some Penn Manor students claim they’ve tried it, others have never heard of it.
“I think it’s awesome,” said a Penn Manor senior, “I’ve tried it before but don’t remember the difference from regular marijuana.”
The Journal Gazette in Fort Wayne, Ind., wrote an in-depth report on the substance in an April 29 article.
According to The Gazette article, much of the K2 is packaged in Hong Kong.
Synthetic marijuana is sometimes called "K2."
The article explained that many tobacco or “smoke shops” claim the substances are herbal in nature but that they are actually laced with either JWH-018 or JWH-073, or both.
“Both of those compounds were created years ago in a Clemson University laboratory. Somewhere along the line, companies overseas obtained the compounds and started producing the herbal blends now being sold in the U.S,” the article states.
Lancaster’s Puff ‘n Stuff on North Queen Street carries a similar product. Not called “spice, k2, or synthetic marijuana, an employee there insisted their product, sold as a herb, has the “same effect.”
The employee described the product as botanical or herbal incense and named some of the brands including, “Paradise and Bajou Blaster.”
According to an employee at Puff ‘n Stuff, you must be 18 years of age to purchase anything tobacco-related.
The Tobacco Palace in Park City Center said it does not carry any of the herbal incense products.
Nature’s Way in Elizabethtown carries both K2 and Spice which costs from $15 to $40 per gram and “must be smoked liked incense,” according to the clerk who answered the phone there.
Jason Hottenstein, Penn Manor’s Resource Officer said that he has heard of it but locally it has not been discovered yet.
“As far as the law enforcement community goes it has not yet been an issue,” said Hottenstein.
“I want to stress that these compounds were not meant for human consumption,” John Huffman, a Clemson professor whose group created the synthetic chemicals, commented in the Gazette story, “their effects in humans have not been studied and they could very well have toxic effects and they should absolutely not be used as recreational drugs.”
According to Huffman, these chemicals were created to understand relationships between structure and the biological activity of substances known as cannabinoids, which could result in new therapies for liver disease and other forms of cancer.
At this point, these chemicals are not being used for studies other than young kids wanting to get high.
According to The Phoenix New Times, the chemical JWH-018 in the synthetic marijuana is what is responsible for the high that kids are seeking.
Kids are bringing their new fad to school Photo courtesy of http://farm3.static.flickr.com
“We heard a little bit about it four or five months ago,” said Jerri Lerch, executive director of the Drug and Alcohol Consortium of Allen County, commenting in the New Times article. “High school personnel heard kids were sprinkling it on cereal and also smoking it.”
Within the last two months, Erin Roberts, Penn Manor’s Juvenile Probation Officer, said she has heard about it from kids she is monitoring.
“I would approach it like I would cigarettes,” said Roberts, “I would advise them to refrain from it.”
“Any mimic of drug use or possession is treated the same way as if they had illegal marijuana,” said Doug Eby, Assistant Principal. “[The punishment would be] ten days out of school suspension.”
After the ten days of OSS, a board hearing will be held and the board members will decide if the student(s) will be expelled.
“Synthetic drugs and herbal drug products like Spice and K2 are not made in a controlled environment and thus you are playing Russian roulette when it comes to these types of products,” said Dawn Dearden, a spokeswomen for the DEA, commenting in a published report. The agency first began receiving reports about abuse of the substance last year.
“There is no way, outside of a controlled laboratory environment, to determine the chemical makeup, synthetic ingredients or amounts, and therefore there is no way to determine with any accuracy what the potentially harmful effects may be,” said Dearden.
Although this synthetic substance is currently legal, if you are pulled over, you will still be charged with driving while impaired, several law enforcement officials warn.
Penn Manor students have mixed views on the legal status of synthetic marijuana.
“It’s still negative to health and should be illegal,” said junior Quinn Nadu.
“I think it’s nice that it’s legal,” said junior Lindey Kunkel, “but I also think it opens a door to legalizing regular marijuana.”
“I was trying to be normal, natural, but it wasn’t easy. I sat there like wood,” said sophomore Mandy Li recalling her first few weeks at an American high school.
After traveling thousands of miles to immigrate to the United States, she knew few words in the English language when she arrived. Just sitting in the vast cafeteria with a strange language babbling all around her was isolating, to say the least.
“I do feel lonely, but when I was in China I felt lonely too,” Li said, “I cared too much for academics and not socialization.”
But what had kept Li from socializing in China proved to be the key to her involvement in her new school, Penn Manor, and her new life.
Li left her home in China last April for a Lancaster County home, where her mother would marry her soon-to-be husband, an American, whom she had met online.
Mandy Li came to America from China in 2009. Photo by Lyta Ringo
Although Li’s voyage is not unique -about 100,000 teenagers immigrate from their home countries to America each year, 917 immigrants (both adults and teenagers) moved to Lancaster County in 2009 – it can be treacherous.
Many foreign-born students have a difficult time fitting into American culture and keeping up with typical economic standards enjoyed by teens here, according to the Urban Institute, a non-partisan economic and social policy organization.
Children of immigrants, according to Urban Institute research, tend to be isolated in their new schools because of language, economics or ethnic stereotypes, hence dropout rates are higher for immigrant teens than ones who were born here.
In other words, moving to the “land of opportunity” is not always a positive experience for everyone.
Li spent the last six weeks of school last year getting acclimated to social situations and hearing the English language at all times, as she already had enough credits from school in China to complete her freshman year, said Penn Manor’s English as a second language teacher, Wendy Letavic.
“I was nervous in [the] classroom. I didn’t know what to do. Sometimes I have no words. It could get a little lonely,” said the 16-year-old.
“I believe that when immigrants come during their teenage years, they are missing some valuable tools that are essential for social adaptations to our culture,” explained Letavic. “Many have difficulty adapting to being a “teen” in America, as well as the cultural differences in our country as compared to [Mandy’s] native country. They want to fit in right away and become Americanized. The food and the mannerisms of America are so much for them to take in and they don’t want to seem any different than anyone else.”
Letavic said Li was quiet and reserved in the beginning, as is customary of her Chinese culture.
“I was a little frustrated. I kept falling asleep when the teacher was teaching and I didn’t understand much English at that time,” said Li of her early days.
Fortunately, Li had the piano to turn to when things became difficult, saying that piano is a form of expression and a “very good mental relaxation.”
Shy and soft spoken, Li appears to gain confidence as she sits at the piano. Her shoulders become straighter and her chin higher. She seems to transform as her hands fly over the keys.
While she plays, Li also lets her imagination wander, visualizing different scenes and stories each time she plays a song.
“You come to be like that [changing and imagining]. You have to change sometimes because life changes,” Li said.
“Playing makes me feel less stressed,” she said.
Observers of Li’s music say she tends to play strong pieces, and she agreed.
“I hurt my fingers by playing so hard. My teacher suggest I play a soft song,” Li laughed.
“I had very few friends in China, but I’ve made friends [here],” she said.
Li’s many talents and positive attitude helped her connect to people here, which made things less lonely.
“People are just interesting. I love to meet all kinds of people,” Li said.
She left a lasting impression on the first new friends she made and the teacher who discovered her talent at the piano.
But the challenge was to explain her skill and her interest when she had very few words in her vocabulary to do so.
“[Mandy] came into my Piano I beginner’s class. I passed out books and they started playing. Soon, Mandy came to me and said, ‘this too easy.’ So I got her a Piano II book and she started playing. Soon she came back and said again, ‘this too easy,’” recalled Melissa Telesco, a music teacher at Penn Manor.
It was in her first few months in Lancaster that Telesco discovered one of Li’s hidden talents.
“I asked her to unplug the headphones and play for me so I could see where she was at. She went into some amazing piece and I was like, ‘oh, okay, [you need] other books,’” Telesco said.
Her amazing musical talent drew other students to her. It made them want to get to know her better.
“I heard epic Chopin and I was like, ‘Whoa,’” said senior Henry Stewart, who takes piano lessons from the same Millersville teacher that Li does.
Click on this link to listen to Mandy Li play an excerpt from Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini:Mandy Paganini Excerpt.
“One day at lunch I said ‘hi’ and she taught me how to say some things in Chinese. She’s so nice,” said sophomore and music student Brendan Kincade.
Not only did Li face a world of new cultural experiences and a foreign language, even the atmosphere and daily schedule were vastly different.
“China [was] busy and crowded. U.S. [is] more social and relaxed, even at night,” Li said.
She described a day in China as waking at 6:15 every morning and not ending sometimes until midnight. A school day lasted from 7:10 a.m. until 6 or 6:30 p.m., when Li would walk home to complete her homework.
She explained that the architecture in her home country is different than that of America but she said she appreciates the beauty of both.
“We have small bridges and traditional houses. It’s more European style here, with big bridges and fresh air,” said Li.
Besides having a knack for piano, Li also has a very special aptitude for math.
Li started math at Penn Manor in Algebra I. That, much like the Piano I book, turned out to be too easy. Mandy progressed through Algebra II, Geometry-Trigonometry, Pre-Calculus and has now completed Honors Calculus.
Angela Stiklaitis, Li’s calculus teacher, also said Li would take homeroom periods to tutor other math students.
“Sometimes I can be careless, but I like math,” said Li.
Stiklaitis disagreed that Li is careless though and said that Li is a bit of a perfectionist and that she excels at math.
Stiklaitis said in the remaining two years of Li’s high school career she will be taking Linear Algebra and Calculus III at nearby Millersville University.
Li began her piano journey as a first grader when she and her mother walked past a piano store in China. She continued to practice as she found time and in summer, when school work was not an obstacle.
When Li arrived in Millersville, Pa., she practiced the piano six to seven hours a day on an electronic keyboard. She would pick out Bach and Beethoven pieces from the Millersville University library to practice, said Li’s stepfather, Michael Chermack, a retired geography and history teacher.
When Li’s second year at Penn Manor began this fall, she was just as dedicated to her music as ever, practicing on one of the music department’s pianos each day after school.
“She practices everyday ’til 5 or 6 o’clock,” said Telesco, to whom Li is grateful for providing her with an actual piano, rather than the keyboard she has at home.
“It’s always better [to play] with real keys. My teacher [Telesco] created opportunity. My piano skill improved. I feel so good, so excited,” said Li.
In April, Li performed at Entertainment Penn Manor, the yearly talent show.
“It was my first time on stage, my hands were shaking,” said Li.
Though Li’s nerves may have been jangled, the audience was impressed.
“Whatever she plays, people are blown away,” said Stewart.
With so many talents, Li’s future is certain to be bright.
“I like traveling, after I graduate, I will visit China. I will eat a lot [of Chinese food],” Li said, adding that she most misses her grandparents and her grandparents’ cooking.
Li said here in America, her mother usually prepares traditional Chinese food or, if there’s not time, sandwiches. She said they never eat typical “American” Chinese food because it’s just not the same. Authentic Chinese food has unique flavors to each area of the country.
“I am definitely going to college. I don’t know what I will major in, maybe music or math or art a double major,” said Li, who hopes to gain entry to an Ivy League school.
She also wants to learn to play the violin.
“I just love instruments. I like the beauty of art and the beauty of music.”
Li talks about possibly learning a third language, such as Japanese, Korean, German or French.
“I have lots of things I want to learn,” said Li.
With Li’s dedication and determination, learning all she wants could be just the beginning.
It was the best of art intentions, but it has become a complicated project.
What was planned as a single year, simple school beautification project has taken on a life of its own as obstacles and delays have set in for the past two years.
But the art students at Penn Manor are continuing to put their efforts toward improving the school’s exterior appearance by completing a glass tile mosaic of Vincent van Gogh’s “Starry Night” on a large cement retaining wall overlooking a newly installed koi pond.
“The inspiration for this project was a very, very ugly retaining wall in a beautiful courtyard,” said Teri Hay the Penn Manor art teacher in charge of the Starry Night mosaic mural. “I just always wanted to put something on that wall. [The wall] idea started before the pond, 2008-09.”
According to Hay, her fine arts, commercial art, and ceramics classes have all dedicated class time to work on the wall mural. The fall 2008 commercial art class created the idea of the wall and the other art classes added their own specialties.
“All of my art classes have worked on it for about a week,” said Hay.
Four students were trained to place the artwork onto the wall, junior, Whitney Reno, and seniors, Nikki Dewitt, Chelsea Hahn, and Dasha Finks.
Reno will be in charge of teaching next year’s chosen students how the artwork is placed onto the wall and how the past art students wanted it to turn out.
“I got out of my classes for two full days and I work on it during fourth block a lot,” said Reno.
In order to finance the mural, the art department needed to apply for education grants.
According to Hay, most of the money came from PMEF, Penn Manor Education Fundation. Last year’s student council also donated a fair share of money toward the mural.
With a big project like this, you’d expect several problems.
And there were.
“I didn’t realize you had to prepare the wall to keep glass on the wall,” said Hay.
Students continue to cover the massive retaining wall with art tiles. Photo by Lyta Ringo
This problem caused the art department to spend extra money on hiring professionals to add wire mesh and concrete to the wall before the artwork could be displayed.
“That was an expensive, long project,” said Hay.
“You have to work really fast, some tiles fall off,” said Reno.
The wall project was expected to be finished within a year after being started, according to Hay, but will be continuing into its third year in fall 2010.
“Next year this time [it will be finished,]” said Hay.
For an update on the project, click on the featured video at right.
Tech Sergeant Michael Schock hadn’t seen his 6-year-old son, Logan, for more than eight months. In April, Logan received the biggest surprise of his life. His daddy came home.
Logan’s Mother, Melissa Shirk, explained to Logan that his dad, Shirk’s ex-husband, would be arriving home Friday. However Shirk knew very different because he was actually arriving on Tuesday as a big surprise – at Logan’s school.
Military homecomings are a common but joyous event in this family. Not only Schock but Shirk’s two older sons, Nathaniel and Shane Kelley, also are in the military. Shane is currently in training with the Marines and Nathaniel is in Afghanistan, also with the Marines. Schock was in the Navy for four years and then continued in the military by joining the Air Force.
On the appointed day, Melissa arrived at Eshelman Elementary early with drinks for the first grade class while Logan’s teacher, Patricia Detter supplied the cake. Logan’s brother, Shane Kelley, was also at the school for the event.
Melissa grew up in a military family herself. Her grandfather was in the Army, and her mother and father were in the Air Force. Shane and Nathan’s father is also in the Air Force, so they have grown up with military influences.
“My brothers are all military and my sisters (including myself) have all married military men,” said Mrs. Shirk.
Logan and the rest of his first grade class were in the library when his mother arrived.
Logan and his Dad. Photo Credit Melissa ShirkDetter had the classroom decorated with red,white and blue Mylar balloons.
When the students arrived back to the classroom from the library, they were questioning why it was decorated and why there was food and drinks in the back.
But Detter just went on with the class routine, inviting the students to sit on the carpet for reading time. She explained the decorations, saying they were having a party with their fifth grade reading buddies.
That afternoon in class, the phone rang, the cue that he was there. With her video camera ready Shirk walked down the hall to meet her youngest child’s father for the surprise. Schock was accompanied by Logan’s grandmother and his aunt.
Then the moment of truth. Schock arrived to the class and called out “Is there a Logan Schock in here?”
Logan immediately raised his hand and just stared at his dad in disbelief
Logan's jumping into his dads arms. Photo Credit Melissa Shirk.Mrs. Detter assured the shocked Logan that he could get out of his seat.
Logan jumped up and ran to his daddy’s arms.
Logan didn’t know what to think when his dad walked into the room.
“I thought it was someone else, I was in shock,” said Logan.
After the big surprise, the class had questions and celebrated with cake and drinks.
Logan said he loved the surprise.
“I was really surprised, It was a good surprise.”
For Melissa Shirk, surprise homecomings and surprises in general are all part of the military life, one she thinks is a good choice for many young people.
“Describing her son, Nathan, Shirk said he did not do that well in high school academically but excelled when he got into the military.
“He is very dedicated and committed,” she said.
Nathaniel Kelley is currently deployed in Afghanistan. He faces life threatening tasks everyday. He paves the way through combat areas and clears out insurgents in hostile areas. He allows for ground Marines to come through and accomplish missions.
LcP1 Nathaniel Kelley writting a letter with his free time in Afghanistan.
Shirk’s middle son, Shane Kelley, a 2010 Penn Manor grad, left April 19 for in Paris Island, South Carolina, for his initial 13 week Marine Corps Boot camp. Shane finished high school early to specifically to leave for boot camp. Ten days after boot camp ends, Shane will be allowed home for ten days and then he will report directly to Camp Geiger, North Carolina for Marine combat training.
After Camp Geiger, Kelley will be trained for the “every Marine a rifleman” status, becoming a trained rifleman. After this training, he can be placed anywhere in a variety of different schools across the world to train in aviation maintenance, his specific Military occupation specialty.
“I am happy for him that he is starting his career and following his dreams, but the mom in me, wants him close to home and I am going to miss him very much” said Melissa.
“When Nate was in boot camp, I wrote to him every single day. Sometimes it was just ten lines or it was ten pages. I was always positive and upbeat and told him how brave he is and how proud I am of him” said Melissa.
Since Nathan has been deployed, Melissa sends him care packages consisting of food, toiletries, etc. Melissa recently talked to Nathan on the phone and he shared that he wasn’t able to shower and change his underwear for 28 days. Melissa went out and bought ten packs of boxers, deodorant, baby wipes and other stuff for him and his platoon to share.
Despite the hardship, both young men know they are doing something for their country that will be worth the sacrifice.
“I wanted to do something that had a bigger meaning, while everyone is here at college, working or sitting around , I will be out in the field, keeping the home-front safe, ensuring my country stays the free country that it is,” said Shane.
As young as Logan is, he has accepted his brothers and dad’s military goals.
“I’m proud of them! I love them very much and I miss Nate being home and Shane just left and I miss him already,” said Logan.
Nathaniel (left) and Shane Kelley at the Marine training center. Photo Credit Melissa Shirk
“The Marines don’t take anyone, and in order to earn the name Marine, you must earn it with high honors and even harder work. It entails making it through the toughest boot camp and surviving The Crucible, a grueling 54 hour, 9 meal, 60 mile hike with little or no sleep. Only then, once they complete The Crucible, are they called Marines,” said Shirk.
“It would be extremely hard. It’s always there, ” said freshman Kayla Brown.
“I couldn’t. I’d be really bored and wouldn’t know what to do,” sophomore Kelly Herr, said emphatically.
“That would be hard since it’s everywhere. It would be very tempting,” said freshman Nick Charles.
Twenty four hours without any iPods or music of any kind, no computers, no Facebook or television or news. A reporter from Lancaster Intelligencer Journal challenged us to go a full day without the use of any of the mentioned electronics.
She said it would be a good experience and a good writing exercise.
We were nervous. We were skeptical. We were unsure.
One authority, the Kaiser Family Foundation, that tracks these kind of trends, reports that children ages 8-18 use technology for more than seven and-a-half hours a day.
Seven and-a-half at the least, we thought.
But we did it.
With a journal in our hands at all times, we kept track of how we got through the grueling experience.
Carrying journals with us helped document what we did - and didn't do. Photo by Mike Nitroy
The first few hours of the day, it really didn’t make as much of a difference because we were in school.
School policy does not allow cell phones, iPods or access to social networking, although most students usually find some way during school to connect to the outside world.
But not for us, not this day.
“I’m not feeling too different yet because I don’t usually use my phone and iPod a lot during school. Right now, I’m just focusing on planning to find things to occupy my time tonight.” – Mike Nitroy 10:26 a.m.
“It hasn’t really affected me yet except that I keep reaching for my phone to check the time and it’s not there.” – Lindsey Ostrum, 11:01 a.m.
But after lunch, we were surrounded by computers in journalism class. It was difficult not to take a peek at those brightly colored screens all around us. They were calling us. They knew our names.
It seemed so inefficient to spend the time it would take to get out a pen and look endlessly for a piece of paper when others could just turn their computers on.
They were all busy typing away while we sat technology-less and empty.
“I’m so bored, Mike and I are playing tic-tac-toe, and making M.A.S.H notes. The boredom is really starting to sink in.” – Ostrum, 12:21 p.m.
“Lindsey and I played so much tic-tac-toe that we had more draws than anything because we figured out how to play so you don’t lose.” – Nitroy, 12:37 p.m.
24 hours without technology including laptops is difficult.
The real test of endurance and temptation started as we stepped inside our houses. Our technology-loving families filled the house with sounds of their favorite TV shows.
“I’ve decided to choose eating in order to pass the time right now, but no worries, I have a high metabolism. Watching my neighbor mow her lawn is almost like TV, right? I watched her push her Craftsman lawn mower around and around as it lowered the two-inch-tall grass. Down the hill and the up the hill, down the hill and up the hill. It was mesmerizing for a whole four minutes.” – Nitroy, 3:10 p.m.
“I feel so lazy just laying around, but I have no clue what to do. I could read but I finished my book and I need to find another new book that I can read for hours. But, that will never happen. Harry Potter’s over.” – Ostrum, 3:35 p.m.
As the day progressed, things weren’t looking up.
“I’m running out of things to do. My attempt at cleaning my room was an utter failure. I picked up my Coldplay shirt off my chair. Just looking at it hit me in the face reminding me of this horrible day. I thought about taking it down to the laundry room, but I just can’t get motivated without listening to music.” – Ostrum, 5:25 p.m.
“I just played the piano, which I haven’t in forever. I couldn’t remember what was flat and what was sharp. I had to mow the grass without my iPod and it really was not enjoyable. It seemed as if it took five times longer than with music.” – Nitroy, 5:30 p.m.
“I had color guard practice after 6:30.It distracted me for a while, but then when I thought about coming home I got depressed remembering about how boring it was going to be. As other members talked about recent photos on Facebook, my thoughts went to how I would check them out, but all I could do is watch my mom on Facebook. ” – Ostrum, 7:44 p.m.
As the sun went down, so did the amount of things we could find to do.
“I’ve never played so many board games in one day. I’m extremely bored. No pun intended. Scrabble and Boggle with my mom made the time pass. A little.” – Nitroy, 8:02 p.m.
“This is killing me. Death by the eighteenth century. Not being able to listen to music all day is like telling a kid with chicken pox not to scratch themselves.”- Ostrum, 8:20 p.m.
An entire day without technology, including music, proves to be difficult for teens.
When we couldn’t think of anything else, there was only one thing left to do.
“I’m officially going to bed almost an hour early because there is just nothing left that I can find to do. This whole no-technology thing got old fast.” – Nitroy, 9:35 p.m.
“I tried to fall asleep earlier than I usually do, but since I did pretty much nothing all day, I couldn’t get tired.” – Ostrum, 9:55 p.m.
We woke up. It felt like Christmas as we sprinted for our phones and turned on the radio to full volume.
Twenty four hours later, the positives were slim but they did exist.
Spending time with families, being more focused on homework and revisiting old activities were just some of the productive things we experienced.
But even acknowledging that, we came to one obvious conclusion.
