December 21, 2007 131 High School Road Latrobe, PA Volume 85 Issue 6

GLSHS earnsBronze Status

Natalie SchadeStaff Writer

Science fiction writer intrigues students in CSC

Bortz shows students insight to “Our Next Planet”

Kaitlin ZurawskyStaff Writer

On Tuesday December11, Dr. Fred Bortz spoke withGreater Latrobe Senior HighAcademic English classes in theCSC. Bortz is a professionalwriter who is currently writinga book called Our Next Planet.Bortz specializes in writingabout science and technologyfor young people.

Academic II studentswere given first hand exposureto a professional writer afterthey finished readingFahrenheit 451 by RayBradbury. Academic IV stu-dents will be doing a sciencefiction unit in the future.Students will now becomeaware of techniques used by

writers, and first-hand about thewriting process from a pub-lished writer.

Although Bortz is awriter, science played a majori-ty part of the presentation.Massaro says, “I wanted thestudents to see that althoughscience fiction is fiction andlargely speculative in nature, ithas its roots in what is actuallybeing discovered in the worldof science. After all, writershave to get their ideas fromsomewhere. Having Dr. Fredshare his views on why earth-lings might have to settle onanother planet someday, the stu-dents at Latrobe could get aglimpse into what some scien-tists are researching.”

Our Next Planet,Bortz’s book, deals with poten-

tial problems humans will facewhen the sun runs out of fuel.Bortz feels that humans willeventually have to move toMars.

Senior Matt Rain says,“The presentation was interest-ing, it related to science fictionwhich is what we are currentlystudying in English. He talkedabout a weird topic but kept thepresentation interesting at thesame time.”

Senior JasmineDugger says, “Bortz brought upmany interesting points andideas that I never had thought ofbefore, such as starting humansocieties on other planets andhow he thought that one dayEarth will not exist. It is hard toimagine those ideas being realsomeday, but the facts and stud-

ies he said helped make it seempossible.”

Not only did the pres-entation help students withwriting interests, it also helpedstudents expand their knowl-edge in the science departmentBortz explained the history ofour planet and how it came intoexistence.

After listening to thepresentation, most studentsconcluded that the speaker usedan active approach to explaintechniques and made the topicsinteresting to learn. Althoughmoving to Mars may not exact-ly have to deal with Englishclass, in the long run it relates toscience fiction, which is a unitthat you may be studying next.

Photo by: Angela Repko, Photo Editor

The Greater LatrobeSchool District is a leader amongschools in academics and tech-nology. They have been recog-nized for these accomplishmentsby being ranked nationally and isa top contender in many cate-gories.

Recently, US News andWorld Report turned its attentionto high school instead of collegeperformance. Many schools fromPennsylvania were rankedincluding Duquesne HighSchool, Mt. Lebanon, UpperSaint Clair and North Allegheny.Three different categories werecompared in ranking the level ofhigh schools. The first 100, wereawarded “gold” in top highschools, the next 405 earned a“silver” ranking and the next1,086 were named “bronze.”

Greater Latrobe SeniorHigh School was ranked in thebronze category. Three mainaspects went into the rankingprocess; statistical performanceon state testing based on levels ofpoverty, proficiency rates onstate tests for blacks, Hispanics,and economically disadvantagedstudents, and students achieve-ments on AP testing. GreaterLatrobe only ranked in two of thethree categories and unfortunate-ly did not score high enough inthe AP testing category to matchup to other schools. The USNews and World Report releasedan article which headlined as“America’s Best High Schools.”

Greater Latrobe SchoolDistrict should be proud of theoutstanding achievements withthe bronze ranking. “We areabsolutely thrilled! It is a reflec-tion of our dedicated staff,” saidGLSHS principal Dr. GeorgiaTeppert. The district scored a106.9 on the average student per-formance rate for state testing;compare that to the number oneranked school in the nation,Thomas Jefferson High Schoolin Virginia, who scored 144.5.

The US News and World Reportcritical analysis took into consid-eration the enrollment, theminority enrollment, the disad-vantaged student enrollment andthe poverty levels within everyhigh school.

GLSHS has made greatstrides in state testing over thepast few years which is one ofthe main reasons for the nationalranking. From 2003, state testscores have risen 8%. The state’saverage reading proficiency isaround 66%; while the seniorhigh’s reading proficiency isalmost 82%. “This is a greataccomplishment but we need tohave our eye on the future andkeep this trend going,” saidTeppert

Along with exceptionalstate testing scores, GLSHS hasbeen chosen as one of theschools that Microsoft featuredon technology. The senior highs’technology department is leadingthe way in technology andMicrosoft has noticed this. Theyhave noted that all students areequipped with laptops and havefull access to the internet, emailand all Microsoft media.

The corporation real-ized that most high school do nothave this privilege within theschool atmosphere. They haverecognized what a great opportu-nity and advantage the studentshave. “We have students whocome back to us after they’vegraduated and attest to the factthey felt so well prepared,” saidMrs. Robin Pynos, head of tech-nology.

Students at GLSHS arelucky to have the technology andthe staff here at Latrobe. The dis-trict has accomplished a lot withstate testing and within theirtechnology department. “We arefortunate to have the support ofour parents, community, andboard of education,” commentedTeppert.

The Greater Latrobe Senior HighSchool chorus members performedholiday songs at their concert withdirector Mr. Tourre. The SeniorHigh Holiday Concert showcasingthe band and chorus was held onDecember 13, 2007 at 7:00 pm inthe senior high auditorium. Solosincluded Keira Conley on flute andpiccolo and Caitlin Clingerman onpiccolo for band and Tim Lewisand Cady Walters for chorus. Theselections included “Away in aManger,” “A Festive Christmas,”“Little Jazz Drummer Boy,” “GodRest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” ““Deck the Halls,” “We AreLights,” “Dance of the Sugar PlumFairy,” and “Baby It’s ColdOutside.”

~Anna Sylvester, staff writer

Music lifts spirits for season

Lozier shows students emotional

side of warCol. William Lozier, a

Vietnam War veteran, spoke toMr. Wetzel’s Vietnam Virditionalcourse on December 4 and 6,2007. He was scheduled toattend one period but that wasextended to two periods due toone period not sufficing. Heserved with the U.S Army from1955 to 1983 making him anexcellent choice to talk to anyclass study on cold war topics.Lozier admitted that he talkedmore about the war to the classesthan he has in the past fortyyears.

Mr. Wetzel said, “I amextremely grateful for Col.Lozier to agree to visit our classand share his insights on theVietnam War. I feel grateful tohave had the opportunity toinquire about his military experi-ences during the cold war periodof our history.”

Lozier talked about thediversity of the people inVietnam and how although wewon many battles, the United

States lost the war politically. Heshowed magazines, newspapers,and even Christmas cards fromthe time of the war. He showedthe class how each of these repre-sented different propaganda tech-niques used by the Vietnameseand Americans.

The students were alsoappreciative for Lozier speakingto the class and expanding theirknowledge of the war. JuniorJosh Wyatt said, “I liked his pres-entation. Knowing more aboutthe emotional side of the warinstead just the facts makes iteasier to understand what the sol-diers went through.”

Having a decorated warveteran speak to the class aboutthe Vietnam War helped the stu-dents get a more personal view ofthe war itself. His partingthought on current politicalissues was, “We need to supportour troops and elect officials whomake the right decisions overpolitical reasons.”

Courtney BriggsStaff Writer

BREAKFAST WITH SANTA- Gino, Maria, and Anthony, children of Dr. Piraino, principal of Baggaley ElementarySchool, smile through their painted faces as they sit on Santa’s lap at the annual Breakfast with Santa. The event was hosted by mem-bers of the Leaders of Tomorrow club and advisor Mr. Krehlik on Saturday December 15, 2008. The breakfast excited many childrenwho are looking forward to the arrival of the “real” Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. The children were able to get their faces painted,design a Christmas craft, eat a variety of cookies, and participate in a coloring contest with the assistance of high school students.

~Courtney Furwa, Features Editor

Photo by: Courtney Furwa, Features Editor

Who’s Meow Championcrowned SPORTS4

22 Decemeber 21, 2007Decemeber 21, 2007

NewsNewsU

pcoming Events

News-In-Brief

Brianna Saddler, Staff Writer

Students communicateusing video conference

Andy Smithhammer, Staff Writer

1/2Instruction Resumes7:30 Boys Basketball @Plum7:45 Basketball @ Kiski 1/37:30 Wrestling @ Woodland Hills7:45 Girls Basketball @ Kiski1/47:00 Wrestling vs. Norwin7:45 Boys Basketball @ Kiski1/7 6:30 Financial Aid Meeting- Aud.7:30 Girls Basketball vs. Hempfield1/81:00 Susquehanna college visitPd 10 Artist in Residency- Human Figure7:30 Boys Basketball vs. Hempfield1/97:00 Wrestling vs. Penn Hills1/104:00 Swimming vs. Norwin6:00 Global Awareness Film Night7:30 Girls Basketball vs. Albert Gallatin1/113:00 Wildcat Band Sub Sale- CaféWrestling WCCA Tournament7:30 Boys Basketball vs. Albert Gallatin1/12Wrestling WCCA Tournament2:30 Boys Basketball vs. Hollidaysburg 1/147:30 Girls Basketball @ Connellsville 1/156:55 am PA Math League Contest- S1037:30 Boys Basketball @ Connelsville7:30 Girls Basketball vs. State College Area Sr.Hi1/16 End of Second Quarter7:00 Wrestling @ Kiski7:30 Boys Basketball @ Knoch1/171:00 Edinboro college visit 6:00 Swimming @ Connellsville7:30 Girls Basketball @ Uniontown1/18Teacher-in-service (no school for students)Swimming WCCA Diving Warm-ups7:00 Wrestling @ Derry7:30 Boys Basketball @ Franklin Regional

Photo by: Angela Repko, Staff Writer

On November 12,2007, Greater Latrobe testedtheir first video conference inthe Center for StudentCreativity. The conference waswith Derry Area School Districtas a practice to work out how allof the equipment works.

Other schools in the areaincluding Derry Area, Plum,Gateway, Franklin Regional,and Adelphoi Village schoolsuse the video conference pro-grams. With the technologyGreater Latrobe posseses, thereare new possibilities for com-municating with other schools.For example, the school boardsand staff of Greater Latrobe andDerry Area could have meetingstogether over the video confer-ence units. Because of the secu-rity devices on the student lap-tops, it is not certain whetherstudents will be able to takeadvantage of the video confer-encing systems on their own.

Latrobe has two videoconference systems. One is astationary unit in the CSC witha projector. The other unit is amobile unit that can be movedthroughout the school with aprojector, speakers, DVD play-er, and VCR. Although the unitcan travel anywhere throughoutthe school, it will be primarilyhoused in the technologydepartment.

The conferences worklike a like a phone conversationwith video feedback. Virtualfield trips, staff meetings, meet-ings with other schools, archivepresentations, and guest speak-ers can be conducted. “It can beintegrated into the classroom innumerous ways,” said Mrs.Houck, who teaches broadcastand video production. “My stu-dents in broadcast could have aconference with students inanother broadcast class inanother school in another partof the country. It gives you a lotof options without physicalboundaries.” The video confer-encing systems can be connect-ed to any other video conferenc-ing equipment; therefore, who-ever is using the unit can con-nect with anyone else who hassimilar equipment.

Presentations can alsobe recorded and shown to othergroups of people. A split allowsthe viewer to see a power-pointprojection on one half of thescreen and the person giving thepresentation on the other half.

Video conferencingunits are also used in manyother places. Deaf and hard-of-hearing people use them tocommunicate with sign lan-guage, businesses have meet-ings with others in farawayplaces on short notice, andpatients could contact doctorsand nurses in emergency or rou-

tine situations. “This is going to allow

our students the ability to domuch more cultural events,”said Mrs. Golden, director ofthe CSC. For example, if a stu-dent took part in a foreignexchange program and stayedwith a host family, the studentcould keep in touch with thehost family using this equip-ment upon returning.

Latrobe’s video con-ferencing systems were pur-chased with grants from theMcFeely-Rogers Foundationand the Community Foundationof Westmoreland County. Theywere bought from Tandberg, a

company that specializes invideo conferencing systems andis based in Norway and NewYork City.

“It’s a good opportuni-ty at this time,” said Golden.“They are serving as a culturalresource.” The video conferenc-ing units will be very advanta-geous to the students and willprovide many new opportuni-ties to learn without boundaries.Students in schools across thestate or even the country cannow come together in a newway, forming lasting bonds andcreating new ideas.

On November 12, 2007, Greater Latrobe participated in theirfirst technology video conference with local Derry Area usingthis video conference system.

PSAT Conferences

Before Holiday break,the students who tookthe PSAT met with theirguidance counselors.Students The counselorsdiscussed the scores andexplained what eachsection meant.

Band Christmas DinnerBanquet

On December 14, 2007 theGreater Latrobe MarchingBand held their annualChristmas Dinner. Chicken,potatoes, vegetables, salad,and a dessert were served.Friends and family attendedwith the band member.Following the dinner a dancewas held. Seniors, Matt Kuharand Justin Shirey acted as theDJ for the night.

Rotary Studentsof the Month

For the month of DecemberJuniors Abby Hewitt and NickMonzo were selected asRotary Students of the month.They were chosen by display-ing extra curricular activities,athletics and academics. EveryWednesday Hewitt and Monzoenjoy a lunch at DuNunzio’schophouse.

Breakfast of Champions

NovemberOn November seniorsKreighton Long, Mrs.Patterson, Math department;Angela Repko, Mrs. Zalewski,World Languages department;Pete Wast, Mr. Savekis, SocialStudies department. JuniorsKyle Gierok , Mr. Marraco ,Science department; SpencerOnuffer, Mrs. Snyder,Language Arts Department;sophmores Gordon KaylorMrs. Burford, Family andConsumer Science depart-ment; Braden Licastro, Mr.Byers, Physical Educationdepartment.

DecemberFor the month of Decemberseniors Kathryn Barchesky,Mrs. Balko, Art department;Lindsay Kramer, Mr.Scaffardi, History department;Christina Kwaczla, Mrs.Massaro, English department;Zack Ray, Mr. Brant, Sciencedepartment; juniors EmilyFarah, Mrs. Bronson, WorldLanguages department; LaurenStout, Mr. Gorinski, PhysicalEducation department.

Juniors Cary Lydic, Tommy Orzehowski, Connor Shields, Kelsey Pierdominici, RobertHimler listen to State Trooper Mike Young as he explains his career choice, and answers any ques-tions that the students had during the Career Fair held in the Center for Student Creativity onThursday, December 13, 2007. All juniors and other students involved in a business elective wererequired to attend. The students benefited from the career fair because students were able to interactwith the community member and gain knowledge about the career. The community members, especial-ly alumnae want to come back to Latrobe High School because they like to give back to the commu-nity and their high school alma mater.

Brianna Saddler, Staff Writer

Photo by: Angela Repko, Photo Editor

Career Fair

E d u c a t i o n a lLeadership Intuitive, or ELI, is anew program in GLSD this yeardesigned to support school tra-ditions and improve studentlearning. The program helpsschool districts bring togetheradministrators, teachers, andschool staff in making decisionsrelated to change.

According to theUniversity of Pittsburgh’s web-site the vision of ELI is to,“Advance student achievementin the public schools of westernPennsylvania to a familiar stan-dard of excellence.” The objec-tive is for the school districtsparticipating in ELI to be knownby the quality of leadership,shared vision, and excellentteaching that is incorporated inthe cultures of every ELI schooldistrict.

Assistant principal Mr.Chad Krehlik explains, “ELI isan educational focus groupcomprised of teachers, princi-pals, central administrators,guidance counselors, and tech-nology coordinators fromgrades K-12. Our goal is todevelop a united leadershipteam that promotes unitythroughout the district.”

Mrs. Rebecca Snyder,a faculty representative stated,

“Each leadership team in theschool creates a strategy in ableto meet self-selected goals.GLSD goals include an academ-ic goal and a leadership teamgoal. The academic goal focuseson improving literacy K-12 byimproving the way we accumu-late and use assessment infor-mation to meet individual stu-dent requirements.”

Greater Latrobe SchoolDistrict decided to involve itselfalong with other westernPennsylvania school districtswith ELI in order to enhancecommunication throughout thedistrict and to focus on specificinstructional initiatives.

A product of ELI is thestaff recognition committee.The committee is similar to theBreakfast of Champions, as staffmembers are nominated by col-leagues for some act of kind-

ness, going above and beyondthe call of duty, or even comingup with an innovative idea.

Mrs. Carole Ryderexplains, “It is a way of buildingone another up rather than com-plaining.”

An award went to Mrs.Leslie Harvey for her help in thetransition of German teachersfrom Mrs. Bellissimo to Ms.Bailey. She said that the awardcame as a “shock” and that shewas only awarded it for doingthe “right thing at the righttime.” Mrs. Deb Rost, nominat-ed by Mrs. Cindy Pompelia, wasalso a recipient of the award forher generosity towards faculty,staff, and students.

The criterion for aschool district to be involved inELI is not varied and theprocess is simple. The schooldistrict must be present in west-ern Pennsylvania and there mustbe a combination of rural, sub-urban, and urban-type districts.The district also must have avariation in socio-economic sta-tus.

ELI is described as notjust another program but ratherfocuses on group effort,informed examination and plan-ning for instructional improve-ment in schools.

Adminstratorsparticipate in ELI

“ELI is an educationalfocus group comprised ofteachers, principals, cen-tral administrators, guid-ance counselors, and tech-nology coordinators fromgrades K-12. Our goal is todevelop a united leadershipteam that promotes unitythroughout the district.” Assistant principal, Mr. Chad Krehlik

Anna SylvesterStaff Writer

Kaitlin ZurawskyStaff Writer

In each issue of the High Post publication, an infograph will be composed to generalize opinions of the student body about school issues. This issue’s infograph deals with the restriction on file-sharing programs.

Most known for their ability to share music and video files, programs like LimeWire and WinMX can also be used to share other files, folders or programs that the user permits. Should teenagers should be allowed to share documents, programs,and even law-permitting audio and video files on school-issued computers?

Winter Fashion Trends

Chit Chat OpinionOpinion33 December 21, 2007December 21, 2007

Carmella StankoColumnist

Fashion is a mediumfor students to showcase indi-viduality. However, a distinc-tion needs to be made betweenexpressing yourself and sheerignorance. They say beauty ispain, but is it really worth therisk of frostbite just to sport thatshort skirt and flip flops in win-ter? Is school an appropriatesetting for girls to expose them-selves?

I am all for going withthe flow and wearing whateverone wants, but only to a certainextent. Remember that winterhas arrived, and with it freezingtemperatures, snow storms, andwet, cold slush. Just as storeshave chosen to retire the sum-mer apparel, bringing out thewarmer clothing, so should stu-dents at GLSHS. For example,as the weather man, Jon Mains,predicts four inches of snow,ladies, please refrain from wear-ing the open-toed pumps. Boyswho rock the flip flops, for yoursake put them back in the closetonce the temperature dropsbelow freezing. I promise, youwill be much more attractivewith your toes still intact andwithout frostbite.

Winter coats are amust. Some girls think thesecoats make them look bulky andfat, but truth be told, they lookquite ridiculous without them.It’s always better to dress in lay-ers and forget how “fat” itmakes you feel. Being warm iswhat should matter. Short jack-ets, to me, make no sense.Jackets after all are meant toprovide warmth, something notpossible with stomachsexposed.

“Who wears short shorts?”How about, “Who wears shortskirts?” Girls at the school areconstantly wearing short skirts,even as the snow continues tofall outside. Put these back ofyour closet until spring please.

Ladies need to realizethat they can still be attractive

with their bodies covered. Thesweaters and tights look is notappropriate for school. Whilean Old Navy mini dress withtights shows class, a simplelengthy sweater paired withfancy leggings shows just theopposite and causes distraction.Clothes are meant to cover, notreveal. Students should notcome to school looking “sexy”to impress the opposite sex;school is rather a place whereeveryone is given the opportu-nity to learn, despite appear-ance.

Many other fashion-able clothing choices are appro-priate for the winter weatherwhen coming to school. Forexample, UGG boots are cute,cozy, comfy, and serve to keepfeet nice and toasty.Timberlands are also extremelystylish. The roll downs are apersonal favorite of mine, andthey come in a variety of stylesand colors for males andfemales. As boots, they providewarmth and can withstand theday’s activities. Pea coats aremaking their come back, they’refashionable with their doublebreasted structure which is flat-tering to every figure. Eventhough their length may vary,they still serve to keep youwarm. When needed they keeptheir owner warm, but they caneasily be taken off in the hotrooms as well. Longer sweatersare cute on girls, and sweatersare a nice change for boysaccustomed to wearing graphictees. One can dress them upwith khakis, or go casual injeans. The possibilities are end-less. You can still be stylishwhile keeping warm.

So to all my readers,please heed my advice. Haveyour own style, and dare to bedifferent. Wear what you wantto; refuse to let others influenceyour clothing choices, but besmart.

Infections spread through wrestlingToo close to home?

Due to recent events, alearned spectator might specu-late about the level of awarenesswrestler's have about the risk ofinfections and viruses that maybe passed to and from compet-ing and same-team athletes.Tinea corporis also known asringworm is the most commoninfection of which wrestler's areat risk. Methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus, orMRSA, is a staph infection that,through its name, expresses itsability to resist antibiotics.MRSA is a communicative dis-ease relative to the communityand especially the athletes atLatrobe as cases of it haverecently been reported in andaround Westmoreland County.However, this infection, likeringworm, can be treated.

On a more local andalarming spectrum, the Herpesgladiatorum virus commonlyknown to wrestler's as “mat-herpes” has caused commotion

in neighboring schools andcommunities. Cases of it havebeen reported in four high

school athletic programs inSouthwestern PA already thisseason. After a scrimmage atMt. Pleasant School District,Penn Trafford reported severalcases of mat herpes to theHealth Department. As caseswere almost immediately afterreported by Connellsville offi-cials, these reports might be theprecedent of an epidemic. Thisdisease is forever in its host.

In response to the out-breaks, the two athletic depart-ments cancelled the wrestlingprogram for two weeks: aninterval allegedly long enoughto heal the herpes legions.Assuming the departments careabout the wrestler's in the rest ofthe conference, the two weekspostponement is enough to pre-vent further contraction of thevirus. This is obviously not thecase. Just one week into thepostponements another twoschools, Kiski Area and South

Park, reported cases of mat her-pes.

To understand thatthey are at risk, wrestler's needto learn the facts about herpes.First, unlike staph infectionsand ringworm, no kind of her-pes can be treated or eradicatedfrom the body. That, along withthe not-so-reassuring fact thatthe cells in which the virus laydormant may reactivate at cer-tain times, should make everywrestler at every school cau-tious about participating in thegrappling sport. The fact that aninfected person can have an out-break during a time of emotion-al or physical stress is especial-ly concerning. A person cannothave more physical stress thanin the high contact competition.

Junior CameronKovatch of GLSHS realizes hispersonal responsibility as anathlete. “We are required to useKenshield before and showerafter every match,” the wrestlersaid. KS Skin Cream, formerlyknown as Kenshield is a foam

applicant that athletes can use tohelp prevent these types ofinfections. But even with thesepersonal precautions, it seemsas if the involved school’s ath-letic departments are touchingthe issue with a light hand bysimply suspending the programfor two weeks. After those twoweeks, when the virus is sup-posedly to be healed, thewrestling will continue and theteams and their opponents areessentially still at risk.

This disease cannot beextinguished. When a personcontracts mat herpes, not onlymust he deal with it for the restof his life, but also he is puttingeveryone he physically contactsat risk. The only way to trans-mit the disease is direct contact.This means that after PennTrafford and Connellsville sus-pended their program, the viruslingered on. Until mat herpes isquarantined and literally cutfrom the teams, high schoolwrestler's are at continued riskof getting the virus.

Andy SmithammerStaff Writer

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Number of students

yes no

File Sharing

Compiled by Andy Smithhammer, Staff Writer

Around theworld in 80

words Pat LynchColumnist

Mitchell InvestigationSenator George

Mitchell released the list he hasbeen compiling over the pastten years. Perhaps more playersare on steroids in professionalbaseball, but the report took abig chunk out of the problem.Names like Roger Clemens andBarry Bonds are expected toshow up with any reports thatinvolve steroids. Mitchell evenattacked former players likePete Rose and Mark McGuire.The report was a bold and bravemove on the senator’s part, butnow what? Will the playersexperience legal actions, or willthey just have to live with thefact that they cheated, they willknow any records they set intheir careers were fake.

Pirates of the Somali watersSomali pirates have

seized a Japanese tanker shipcarrying 40,000 tons of fuel andare now demanding one milliondollars in exchange for the safereturn of the 22 crew members.Although the ship is owned byJapan, the crew consists of menfrom the Philippines, SouthKorea and Myanmar. I am sureif all the countries chipped in alittle bit of money, they couldhave citizens returned safely. A

U.S. naval ship came to the aidof the ship in late Octoberdestroying the pirate’s vessels.This act caused the pirates toremain on board of the ship andtake hostages.

Shootings, againIt seems like every

issue I am writing about anothermentally troubled teen whocould not handle his life, so hedecided to end innocent peo-ple’s along with his own. I can,not reiterate enough how dis-gusted I am with these recentshootings. If these people are somentally ill and they broadcastthemselves on the Internet orwarn people about what theyare going to do, why do the wit-nesses just stand around and donothing. Stand up, and do some-thing about it! You could saveso many lives. Robert Hawkins,a 19-year-old man in Omaha,Nebraska walked into a mallwith an AL-47 and opened fire,ultimately ending in 9 fatalities.His former girlfriend received atext message from Hawkinsprior to these events stating thathe was going to do somethingalong the lines of shootings, yetshe did not report it to thepolice.

Good Guy Bad GuyPolitical correctness and the holiday season

These days almost any-thing can get someone in trouble;even saying Merry Christmas.Many think that “MerryChristmas” is a harmless holidaygreeting; while others think it isan ignorant greeting meant only tothe Christian population and notto other religions.

While the majority ofthe population thinks that thisargument is preposterous, manycompanies such as Zales, Target,and Wal-Mart have had slogansthat appeal to the broader audi-ence, such as Zales’ “Tis theSparkle Season”, Target’s“Savings for the Holiday Season”and Wal-Mart’s “Be Bright.”After the Catholic Leagues boy-

cott of Wal-Mart and Target, theyboth caved and changed their slo-gan to incorporate Christmas intotheir marketing campaign. Whenlooking at artificial Christmastrees at Target in Greensburg, theywere not even called ChristmasTrees, but rather ridiculouslynamed holiday trees.

Now I do not have aproblem with political correct-ness, however it can get out ofhand quickly. When one sees aMenorah, they don’t call it a holi-day light, they call it a Menorah.So why does it hurt people to calla Christmas Tree by its propername? The tree is unique toChristmas, so stores should recog-nize at least that if not anythingelse. Some local companies havedecided to keep with traditional

slogans that incorporateChristmas. For example, Overly’slight display has stuck with a verytraditional slogan of “TraditionalCountry Christmas.”

This radical twist onChristmas isn’t just happening invery liberal areas such as southernCalifornia, but is happening inc o n s e r v a t i v e w e s t e r nPennsylvania also. In the 1989Supreme Court case of the Countyof Alleghany v. ACLU, theSupreme Court ruled that the dis-playing of a manager in the court-house is unconstitutional, howev-er the displaying of a Christmastree and a Menorah is constitu-tional, the reason being that thegovernment was recognizing theJewish and Christian faiths in theholiday season. Pittsburgh started

calling the Christmas season the“Sparkle Season” about sevenyears ago, much to the misgivingsof the local citizens, who feel thatthe Christmas, or at least holidayname should be preserved.

While all faiths shouldbe recognized in the holiday sea-son, I believe that political cor-rectness has reached an all timelow. The American populationshould be free to say any holidaygreeting they like at their workplace, without being afraid to facelegal repercussions. So to all outreaders out there, MerryChristmas, Happy Kwanzaa, orHappy Hanukkah. As for me, Iwould be satisfied if you used anyof these greeting to me, I knowthat you would mean well and notharm.

The staff of The High Post is committed to serving the stu-dent body of Greater Latrobe Senior High School. The opinions pagecontains the ideas and views of individuals and does not represent theviews of the staff, advisor, or administration in its entirety.

The High Post is a public forum for student expression,therefore any student who wishes to create dialogue concerning anissue may do so by submitting articles or Letters to the Editor inroom C-109. In order to uphold the integrity of the publication, TheHigh Post reserves the right to edit submissions for grammar, styleand available space. Submissions should not exceed 300 words.

Advisor: Mrs. Renee Stallings Administration: Dr. Georgia Teppert, Mr. Steven LoCascio and Mr. Chad Krehlik Printed by the Latrobe Bulletin

The High Post 2007-2008 Editors-in-Chief

Mike DeFabo and Amber Biddle

Section EditorsNews Editor- Samantha ServiceFeatures Editor- Courtney Furwa Sports Editor- Matt ZittOpinions Editor- Stephanie SiorPhoto Editor- Angela Repko Distribution Manager-Ian KishAd. & Prod. Mgr.-Nick BaughBusiness Manager-Chris James

StaffTyler Baloh, Ben Battaglia, Courtney

Briggs, Joe Ferlin, Justin Downs, RyanLaDuke, Pat Lynch, Mary Maatta,Brian Noel, Angela Repko, BriannaSaddler, Natalie Schade, Carmella

Stanko, Anna Sylvester, KristinaWiggins,Lindsey Yelenic, Kailtin

Zurawsky

Editorial Policy

Brian NoelColumnist

Cartoon by Brianna Saddler, Staff Writer

SportsSports44 December 21, 2007December 21, 2007

4. Anna Gibas

1. Natalie Bower

8. Mike McCurdy

5. J.J. Hue

2. Jeff Yunetz

3. Emily Fenton

6. Matt Blank

7. Dave Duhaim

4. Sean Knaus

1. Joe Dado

8. Tony Lamosek

5. Amber Mondock

2. Joelle Kissell

3. Ryan Kissell

6. Joe Walters

4. Lindsey Muchnock

1. JeffJoe Regula

8. Kayla DeVault

5. Jason Timmons

2. Brian Hantz

3. Nathan Pennesi

6. Kelly Feiertag

7. Andrew Williams

4.Eric Shaffer

1. Alexa Bryson

8. Lisa Artuso

5. Abby Hewitt

2. Matt Molitor

3. Dylan Nowe

6. Andrew Oshnock

MichaelaKissell Region

Ryan GoodmanRegion

Brent HeckelRegion

Emily Fedor Region

Who’s Meow is a 32 athlete bracket style tournament to determine who is themost now, or should we say meow, athlete. So what does it mean to be meow?You have to excel both on the field and in the classroom. We will break down

the matchups, but the students will decide who is crowned the most meow athlete.

Congratulations to all selected GLSHS athletes.

Natalie Bower

J.J. Hue

Emily Fenton

Dave Duhaim

Joe Dado

Sean Knaus

Ryan Kissell

Joelle Kissell

JeffJoe Regula

Nathan Pennesi

Lindsey Muchnock

Brian Hantz

Alexa Bryson

Eric Shaffer

Dylan Nowe

Matt Molitor

JeffJoe Regula

Nathan Pennesi

Alexa Bryson

Dylan Nowe

Natalie Bower

Emily Fenton

Joe Dado

Ryan Kissell

Natalie Bower

Joe Dado

JeffJoe Regula

Dylan Nowe

Tyler Baloh and Ryan LaDukeColumnists

Dylan NoweNatalie Bower

Lindsy MuchnockSenior• Selected to All-Tournament Team during the

Ringgold Tournament• PPG: 19.7 (2006-2007 season)• Named All-Section 2007 season

Jeff RossiSenior• Foward-Three year letterman• 4 Goals (2007-2008 season)• 8 assists (2007-2008 season)

11/36

12/36

Marcus CampbellIntern

Wildcat Cardbook

Our fantastic idea of re-making Sportcenter’s Who’s Nowinto a Latrobe version finally has a winner. The choosing of thestudents for the 32-athlete bracket depended on how well they didon the field and in the classroom. Throughout the previous issues,readers have witnessed upsets, marginal wins, and victories wherethey flat out destroyed there opponents in the amount of votes.After six times of voting, the students of Greater Latrobe HighSchool have chosen junior power forward Dylan Nowe to be theMeow athlete of Latrobe High.

What Dylan has done on the court and in the classroomhas proven to be very recognizable by his fellow classmates. Eventhough he is noticed as one of the best athletes in the school, he isstill humble unlike most talented players. “It is really nice to winWho’s Meow, but there are better athletes than me,” said DylanNowe of winning the accomplishment.

It was kind of unexpected for a number three seed to winit all, but Dylan certainly deserving of the honor because he is ahighly skilled baller. Especially with all of the talented athletes thathe had to face-off against throughout the tournament. Nowe startedoff his championship run by defeating a very good baseball playerin Andrew Oshnock in the first round. His second round match-upwasn’t any easier when he went up against popular senior runnerMatt Molitor. But Nowe surprised a lot of kids by just barelypulling out the upset.

Nowe then just started taking number one seeds out of thetournament like a man on a mission. Next on the list was RobertMorris recruit Alexa Bryson. Once again, he slightly came out withthe victory. In the semifinals, Nowe met up against hockey phenomJeffJoe Regula and defeated him for a spot in the championship,where he faced off against Natalie Bower. In one of the closestvotings of the tournament, Nowe won by 11 votes to take the Who’sMeow crown.

A lot of people have been involved in helping Dylanbecome the skilled basketball player and student that he is today. “Icredit and thank my parents, coaches, Mike Fedele, and all the nicepeople that voted for me for helping me win Who’s Meow.

Now that he has won Who’s Meow, he will continue onwith his success in this basketball season. We believe that oncecollege coaches find out that he won, the scholarship offers willstart pouring in like a rain storm.

Ryan LaDuke and Tyler BalohStaff writers

Who’s MeowChampion unvailed

7. Tony Lonigro 7. Kristin SchmuckerCHAMPION

Dylan Nowe

The initial stereotypethat goes along with hockeyplayers is that they arepredominantly Canadian withmissing teeth. The opposite istrue for the Wildcat rollerhockey team. A roster filled withunfamiliar names and evenfemale athletes the Roller Catsfind ways to win no matter whothey play.

The team has one icehockey player on the roster andthe rest enjoy the roller aspect ofthe dynamic game of hockey.During the game four playersand one goalie from each teamoccupy the playing surfacecalled the “deck.” The games aretypically fast paced and highscoring that makes for anexciting game, however inlinehockey is a non-contact sport.

The inline team plays

all of their gamesat the new Hot Shots in MountPleasant. They have found somechemistry after only one year ofplay. “The beef and the cheesebetween the team are great thisyear,” said junior Mike Fedele.“Our season is going wellbecause we have a great coach.”

Chuck DeVault is thecoach of the team, father ofKayla and Kyle, both players onthe team. The team is being ledin scoring by Kyle DeVault with42 points, his stats tell the talethat he is a very unselfish playerwith 16 goals and 26 assists.Freshman Brant King follows inscoring with 15 goals and 8assists. The Cats expect to closeout their season with a winagainst North Hills in an awaygame on December 29, 2007 atHarmarville Blade Runners.

In-line hockey teamrolls over opponents

Pat LynchStaff writer

Dylan Nowe takes the crown

Last year the Lady WildcatBasketball team won the section title.Instead of taking the year off, the ‘Cats arepoised for another playoff run. Regardless ofthe loss of three key seniors from last year,the Lady ‘Cats intend to compete for anothersection title.

The girls got off to a quick start insection play on December 6, 2007 bydefeating Albert Gallatin with a score of 64-45. The 64 points was the highest of theseason for the Lady ‘Cats.

“We played really well,” saidsenior point guard Emily Fenton, “It was agood team effort.” The Lady ‘Cats workedas a team to achieve victory. “We were justclicking and we had good connection on thecourt,” continued Fenton.

After winning the section last year,the team looks to repeat that special feat.“We wanted to defend our section title andcertainly make a run for the section this year, but we’ve dugourselves a hole with two loses in thesection,’ said Coach Fenton.Although the team lost three of their keysenior starters from last season, the Lady‘Cats feel they have the type of players that can step up into those roles this season.

“As long as we work hard, our team shouldbe able to make up for losing those threeimportant seniors,” said sophomore pointguard Courtney Zitt.

By pushing each other to be better,the Lady ‘Cats can make up for the lostexperience. “Some of the girls never hadexperience in a varsity game so we are goingto have to push each other and we need

everyone to contribute,” Fenton said. Juniors Katie Gettemy, Mollie Kovalcin,Katie Ferguson, Alicia Kolling, and RachelDeFelice compete for the three open startingspots to try and contribute.With a 2-4 recordthus far the Lady ‘Cats will need theexperienced players like Fenton and LindsyMuchnock to step up this season and providenecessary leadership lost from last year.

SportsSports 55December 21, 2007December 21, 2007

Ben BattagliaStaff writer

Indoor Lacrosse keepsplayers sharp for regular

season Greater Latrobe boy’s lacrosse players

are getting even more “into” the game. In additionto the outdoor spring season, the boys are alsoplaying indoors this winter. Senior Joe Ferlinalong with juniors Pat Lynch, Nick Monzo, EricThornburg, and Andrew Williams play for ThreeRivers Lacrosse Red’s indoor Lacrosse team.

Lacrosse is usually played on a biggeroutdoor field in fall and spring. Indoor lacrosse isa way for these outdoor players to play the gamethey love during winter. “I like it because I get toplay lacrosse in the winter and because of howmuch faster the game is,” said goalie Thornburg.“I love getting shot after shot ripped on me andthat’s what makes it fun.” Indoor lacrosse is played in a rink about the sizeof a hockey rink. Each team fields seven playersand a goalie as opposed to nine players and agoalie in the outdoor game. “The great thingabout indoor is that it is a perfect combination ofboth lacrosse and hockey atmospheres,” saidattack man Williams.

Players who normally play on theoutdoor field must make the adjustment toplaying on a smaller field at a much faster pace.“Indoor is a much faster game, and it is difficultto adjust to playing in a more confined space at afaster pace,” said midfielder Monzo. “The speedis the biggest difference,” said Thornburg, “It’s somuch faster than the outdoor.”

Although the most obvious difference isthe speed, another difference between the two isthat indoor shows more skill and outdoor is morestrategy. “There’s nonstop action going both waysthe whole game and the pure stick skill of theplayers is illustrated, where as outdoor is more ofa strategic game,” Williams said.

Playing indoors during the off-seasonhelps these players stay sharp for the regularseason. With their hard work and dedication plusthe emphasis of skill in the indoor version, theboys can help their chances of being recruited toplay lacrosse in college.

Ice Cats battle meat of the scheduleRyan LaDuke

Columnist

On the Ice

After breezing through our opponents during the firstmonth of the season, we have now been playing much tougher teams.Throughout the first month of our schedule, we had convincinglywon most of our games. The effortless 17-2 and 10-2 victories overErie Cathedral Prep and Greensburg Salem are unlikely against talentthat we now face.

The “meat” of the second place Icecats schedulebegan on November 12, 2007 with a tough 4-2 win over BishopCanevin, who is currently fifth place in the PIHL Class AA. Sincethen we have been scrapping our way through the league’s betterteams. Unfortunately, after a 17-day Thanksgiving break layoff, ourperfect record was broken by a decent South Park team. They cameinto our own arena and beat us 5-3. That really was a reality checkfor us and we have elevated our play to the next level since.

We came into a key game against then second placeFranklin Regional with a chip on our shoulder after the loss and werehungry for a win. After junior defenseman Brody Aukerman scoredon the power play with about a minute left in the game, we were ableto go away with an important 3-2 victory.

Next on the list were the Jaguars of Thomas Jefferson, whowere Penguin Cup finalists last season and are currently sixth placein the league this season. However, they did not prove to be toomuch of threat to us as we were able to cycle the puck easily aroundtheir defenseman in route to a 6-3 victory. The game proved to be aconfidence booster considering we pulled out the victory without ourleading scorer JeffJoe Regula and one of our best defenseman BrodyAukerman.

The biggest game of our season was recently againstWest Allegheny. Not only did the Indians come into the game rankedfirst in all of Class AA, but they were the team that upset us in theplayoffs last season. Payback tasted so sweet. In one of the greatesthigh school games I’ve ever been apart of, we defeated WestAllegheny 5-4 in overtime. This game had it all: a penalty shot savedby junior goalie Nick Loyacona, an overtime game-winning goal byjunior right winger Andrew Ong, Scottish bagpipe music played byMr. Snyder during breaks, and blow horn playing by enthusiastic fanSam Gaten. This is the kind of win that will prepare us for big gamescome playoff time.

Although, we have gone 4-1 during the so called“meat” of our schedule, we still have tough games left to play againstKittaning and Peters Township. As you recall we did not do wellafter a 17-day Thanksgiving break layoff and what do you know afterwe play Kittaning, we have another huge layoff before we play thefourth best team in the league. The Peters Township game is after an18-day Christmas break. Our only loss came right afterThanksgiving break, and we will not let the “Merry Christmas” spiritforce us to lose another.

Cats take downGators

Coming into the 2007-2008 season, the wrestlingteam had one question in mind.Can their youth and relativelyinexperience lead them to theplayoffs? After losing toprecruit and State ChampionRyan Goodman (WVU) theCats are depending on youngertalent to carry the team thisseason.

This showed as theCats were able to pick up theirfirst section victory of theseason against the GatewayGators by a final score of 38-33. The match was a little tooclose for Coach Billett’s likingbut was proud of the outcome.“They are wrestling hard. Wehave just got to keep onimproving all the way aroundand see how much better wecan get by the end of the

season,” stated coach Billettafter the match.

After the Cats jumpedout in front with a 12-9 leadjunior Blake Bumar waspinned to give the Gators theadvantage at 18-12. Latroberegained the lead and neverlooked back as junior Nathan

Pennesi followed with a fallover and junior Joey Waltersdefeated his opponent in just56 seconds. This gave the Catsa 24-18 lead and afterexchanged forfeits the Cats led

the Gators 30-24. Junior ToddHimler and senior Phil Ferryended the attack with a 4-0decision and a technical fallover which gave the Cats a 38-24lead. The Gators would rallyto score nine more points butthe Cats held them off and wonby a final score of 38-33.

Latrobe is now 1-1 insection play and 3-4 overall.“The guys just have to hangtough, which they will. Wehave just got to keep gettingbetter as the seasonprogresses,” reiterated coachBillett. The Cats return tosection play on Wednesday asthey battle Penn Trafford.

Ryan LaDuke and Tyler BalohColumnists

Face Off

What four teams do you thinkwill make the Final Four?

LaDuke: A lot rides on theseeding in the 64 team bracketat the end of the season, but if Ihad to pick four teams that Ithink would make the FinalFour, I would have to pickNorth Carolina, Georgetown,Kansas, and Michigan State.The undefeated North CarolinaTar Heels have a starting line-upthat boasts future NBA draftpicks. Their best player is bigman Tyler Hansbrough, who isaveraging 21.4 points and 9.6rebounds a game. Georgetownalso has a center who will leadthe Hoyas to the Final Four inRoy Hibbert. The monstrous7’2’’ Hibbert surprisinglypassed up the NBA draft tocome back for his senior seasonat Georgetown. In sevenvictorious games, he hasaveraged 13.4 points and 7.1rebounds. Kansas is an all-around team with players whocan put the ball in the hoop.The 9-0 Jayhawks have 6players that average over eightpoints a game. Their highestscorer is sophomore forwardDarrell Arthur, who is averaging13.9 points a game.

Michigan State lostonly one game to a very goodUCLA team. However, theyhave one of the best players inthe country in point guard DrewNeitzel. He sets up great playsand also finishes them at timesby putting the points up on thescoreboard. Neitzel isaveraging 14.2 points and 4.7assists per game. The Spartans

also have another spectacularscorer in forward RaymarMorgan, who is averaging 17.6points and 7.7 rebounds a game.In the end, all four of theseteams will have a good chanceat winning a nationalchampionship.

Who is this year’s Cinderellateam to watch out for?

Baloh: In every year of collegebasketball, there are alwaysupsets. Especially when theNCAA tournament comesaround they call it “MarchMadness” because it is justsimply madness baby.Remember the improbable heroGeorge Mason who made anunbelievable run into the finalfour 2 years ago. Every yearsomething fascinating and trulyremarkable happens, and I don’tsee why it wouldn’t happen thisyear.

I think that one of theCinderella teams this year isgoing to be the Saint Mary’sGaels. They don’t have adifficult schedule, this year andthey have the talent to get far inthe tournament. The toughestopponent as I can see right nowat this point is division rivalGonzaga, but I don’t even thinkthey are comparable to theGaels. Monster guard PatrickMills averages 16.1 points agame, and stud Omar Samhanaverages close to 14 points agame. This team has got what ittakes, but can they survive theregular season and finish solidinto the NCAA tournament.

Lady Cats set out to defend section title

Photo by Matt Zitt

Ben BattagliaStaff writer

Matt ZittSports Editor

Wrestling

Mountain WrestlingTournament Results:

Placing for the Wildcats wereRyan Walters at 112 poundsand Nathan Pennesi at 119pounds. Ryan placed 7th

defeating Mack Shelton ofMeadville 4-3, while NathanPennesi placed 4th losing twotough overtime matches. In thesemi-finals, Nathan lost to thenumber one seed, Sam White,

from Perry Ohio 3-1. In hismatch for third place he lost tosecond seed, Nico Cortese ofHempfield, in a sudden death

ride out 2-1.

Inline Hockey

The Latrobe Inline hockeyteam played two home gamesthis past Saturday. The Cats

mercied the Shaler Titans 12-4in the first game. Kyle

Devault and Tyler Baloh ledthe charge with 7 and 6 points

respectively. However, thesecond game resulted in a 5-2loss to Pine Richland. Theirnext game will be 1pm at

Harmerville on Saturday the29th, where they will play

North Hills.

Boys Basketball

After a blowout win vs. theDerry Area Trojans, the boys'basketball team was a little

shell shocked when theylooked at the scoreboard and

found themselves down by 14in the third quarter againstConnellsville. However,thanks to a late surge byjuniors Jeff Yunetz and

Andrew Fisher, who led allscorers with 18 points a piece,the resilient Cats clawed theirway to a 74-68 victory over

the Falcons.

Girls Basketball

The girls' basketball teamstarted section play off on theright foot by defeating AlbertGallitin by a final score of 64-

45. However, the team hasrecently been struggling,

losing the past two sectiongames against Norwin and

Uniontown.

WildcatSportswire

Wrestlers pick up first section win ofthe season

“The guys just have tohang tough, which theywill. We have just got tokeep getting better as theseason progresses,”Coach Billet.

Justin DownsStaff writer

Junior Pointguard Rachel DeFelice burns past Uniontown defender in route to thehoop. The girls were defeated in the section matchup.

The hospital is the last place anyone would want to beover the holidays. You miss out on all the Christmas traditionslike hanging stockings, opening presents and being with family.However the patients at Latrobe Area hospital will not miss outon one Christmas tradition, caroling. As a part of this yearly tra-dition, the Spanish club carols for all of the patients at the hospi-tal, and adds their own twist by singing entirely in Spanish.

For the past thirteen years, a group of 30-60 Spanishstudents have been going to Latrobe Area Hospital to provide a

‘Feliz Navidad’ (Merry Christmas) for all their patients. Thisyear’s outing took place on December 20, from 3:30 to 4:30.Spanish teacher Mrs. Ryder said, “The kids that are coming outare doing it out of the goodness in their heart ”

Some songs that the carolers sang were the Spanish ver-sion of “Jingle Bells,” “O’ Come All Ye Faithful,” “Little Townof Bethlehem,” and “Silent Night.” Most patients don’t under-stand the Spanish language but are able to recognize the tune.“We don’t always have the greatest voices, but we’re decent andwe can get the melodies,” said Ryder.Spanish National Honor Society President and Treasurer ofSpanish Club, Lindsay Kramer said, “It’s really nice to see howmuch the patients enjoy it, and it’s really fun to sing “CascaBell” [Jingle Bells].”

Along with using their time to brighten the days of thepatients, the students are also raising money in order to buy toysfor the Pediatrics Wing of the hospital. The toys will be given tokids anywhere from infants to age 18.Also for this year, all the Spanish classes are making an arts andcraft version of the Mexican Poinsettias. The poinsettias will behanded out to the patients with a card reading ‘Feliz Navidad delClub de Espanol’ which means Merry Christmas from theSpanish Club.

Junior Spanish Club member Mollie Kovalcin said, “Ilove being able to put a smile on someone’s face because whowould want to be stuck in the hospital on Christmas?” With theirheavenly voices the Spanish students of GLSH are providing thatwarm holiday cheer to those in need. Making the holiday seasona merrier time is always a good thing no matter what languageyou’re singing in.

FeatureFeature66 December 21, 2007December 21, 2007

GLSHS clubs give back during the Holidays Natalie Schade and Kristina Wiggins

Staff Writers

Students give back to the community

Mary MaattaStaff Writer

“Pablo, because his scruffybeard would feel amazingnext to my silky smooth

cheek.” - Mike Roach, senior

“Andrew Fisher”-Heather McMahan,

junior

“Eric Shaffer-because he’s thequarterback.”

-Hilary Bastin, sophomore

“Andrea Sutyak because Ikinda like her. (Just a little

bit)” -Jeff Smail, senior

“Mrs. Curci- because it wouldremind me of getting a kiss

from my grandmother when Iwas younger.”-Mr. Evans

“Channing Tatum” -Megan Stouffer, junior

“Nick Loyaconna, becausewhen we lock lips our world

becomes divine.” -Alex Stahl, senior

“Haley Barry” -Zach Landers, sophomore

“Hannah Montana” -Jake Donaldson, senior

“Shelby McAdams becauseshe’s a good dancer.”

-Cody Brennan, sophomore

“Richie Kucera- because he’sso cute.”

-Heather Prah, senior

“Hines Ward”-Meghin Kerila, sophomore

“Jesse Copelli-of course!”-Alyssa Maley, senior

“Eva Mendez” -Spencer White, Junior

“Johnny Depp” -Lauren Urana, sophomore

“Pamela Anderson” -Josh Munden, senior

“Ali Hurley because she hasreally pretty eyes”-Zach Ray, senior

“Eva Longoria Parker” -Chris Mock, sophomore

“New ski pants & seasonpass to Seven Springs”

-Mr. Mains

“Rockband and/or a life”Jeff Sisson, senior

“A 2400 on the SAT”-Alex Battaglia, junior

“A plane ticket to my familyin California”

-Annie Cavalier, sophomore

“Time with my daughterAva”

-Madame Zalewski

“I-Touch”-Jesse Metz, senior

“My two front teeth… noreally a new digital camera”

-Paige Blawas, junior

“HD-TV”-Zach Kenly, sophomore

“Unlimited supply of shoes”-Mrs. Keyser

“New phone, an A in pre-calc”

-Ali Weihl, sophomore

“A watch”-Joe Pocevicius, senior

“Hot pockets”-Lu Wu, junior

“Planet Earth DVD”-Caitlin Ryan, sophomore

“Car insurance money”-Alex Walters, senior

“A new calculator” -Ms. Kniff

Dear Santa,This year for

Christmas I want...

Photos by: Angela Repko, Photo Editor

Each year the Student Council brightens the com-mons with a student decorated Christmas tree. Greater

Latrobe Senior High clubs created ornaments to representtheir club. A contest was organized by junior Natalie Bower,who held the collection of the ornaments and determined the

winner. The winning entry (inset) of the annual ornamentcontest was submitted by Junior Emily Farah of The

Classical League. Farah’s prize was a Wildcat drawstringbag.

~Kristina Wiggins, staff writer

Photo by: Brianna Saddler, Staff Writer

Photo by: Courtney Furwa, Features Editor

Senior Katie Capets held a new toy drive to benefitthe Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. Any new toy ormonetary donation was accepted. This drive doubledas Capets’ senior project. As Red Cross ClubPresident, Capets is very involved in the giving seasonsaying, “I wanted to bring joy to sick children over theholiday season.” The drive ended December 14, 2007with an overflowing collection box and a total of thir-ty dollars in monetary donations.

The Latrobean Yearbook Staff and The NationalHonor Society members have been active in givingthis season by buying gifts for underprivileged kids

in conjunction with Westmoreland Youth andFamily Services. The two groups combined stafffunds along with personal contributions to buy.

They were provided a detailed wish list of items topurchase for boys and girls ages eight and nine.

Senior Alexa Bryson shopped for the gifts, whileother students led by Katherine Bowser wrappedthem. Senior Melanie Darrigo, an editor of the

Latrobean, said “It was really nice to buy things forsomeone who might not get as much as you forChristmas.” Senior Jenna Giovannagelo of NHScontributed to buy Bratz The Movie for a younggirl, “It was rewarding to know that I can helpmake a little girl’s Christmas more special this

year.”

The Junior Classical League held a Winter Wear Drivein conjunction with Father Stanley Markiewicz priest of

St. Vincent. They asked students to share the warmththis holiday season by donating clean coats, blankets,

and mittens for homeless men and women ofPittsburgh. The drive ended December 14, 2007 raising

about forty coats and twenty blankets for the cause.

The Red Cross club volunteered their time onWednesday December 19 working at Overly’s CountryChristmas. They will be helping with concessions,Santa’s visitors, and anything else to make it an enjoy-able holiday experience for all guests. Students involvedin this event include seniors Ryan Kissell, JennaGiovannangelo and Mike Roach, along with sopho-mores, Sam Fox, Stephanie Caverno, Nick Klohonatz,and Arielle Fodor. Mike Roach said, “It was worthwhile helping out in the community, its satisfying.”

The holiday season is all about giving, and this year plenty of clubs and organizations in Greater Latrobe Senior High School are ready to donate. Organizationssuch as Children’s hospital, Westmoreland Youth and Family Services and St. Vincent are all awaiting donated gifts from clubs and individuals. After all everyone deservesa gift for the holidays.

Photo by: Courtney Furwa, Features Editor

Spanish Club carols at the hospital

~ Kristina Wiggins, staff writer

Who do youwant under

your mistletoe?

Mary Maatta and Lindsey Yelenic