On May 28, the rivalry between Laguna Beach High School’s junior and senior classes reached its climax in the Powderpuff football game. Powderpuff football, or flag football for women, has been an annual tradition for nearly two decades.

“I was very excited,” said senior Alex Degarmo. “We had lost as juniors last year, so I really wanted to win.”

Degarmo’s intensity was so high during practices that she broke her finger and could not play the game, acting as a coach instead.

Both teams had spent the past couple of weeks training with their coaches, assistant principal Mr. Bob Billinger and counselor Mr. Jeff Bock-ert (senior coaches) as well as principal Dr. Don Austin and silk-screening teacher Mr. Scott Wittkop (junior coaches).

“I got to meet a lot of girls that I haven’t known, and the girls got to reconnect and have fun,” said Austin.

At one point in the game, junior lineman Hailey White tried to distract the senior team by doing four back handsprings in a row.

“The goal was to distract the other team, and it was also just a funny way to start the game,”

said White.However, White’s back

handsprings weren’t enough to keep the seniors back. They quickly scored a touchdown in the first quarter. Senior Jessie Goodman received a pass in the in-zone and earned the seniors the lead. Senior Sam Kafer suc-cessfully kicked the extra point.

“It was glorious,” said se-nior Kacky Brown.

Clad in pink shirts and black shorts, boys cheered for the se-nior team. “It’s awesome for a change, seeing them in our po-sitions and enjoying a sport that mostly men play,” said Donen-feld.

The half time show consist-ed of the male cheerleaders do-

ing a few classic cheers. One of them was human bowling, and another was a five stage human pyramid.

“It was something differ-ent and hilarious. Whenever the game got slow, they sped it back up,” said sophomore Con-nor Ross.

By the third quarter, the ju-niors were finally able to get past the senior defense line and score a touchdown. Junior Beverly Ronses received a pass and ran 40 yards to the in-zone, successfully scoring the juniors’ only touchdown.

“If it wasn’t for my offen-sive team, I wouldn’t have been capable of scoring a touch-down. It takes a team to win a

game, not just one player,” said Ronses.

However, Goodman quickly scored another touchdown, and Kafer completed another extra point kick.

“I thought we still had a chance, but it was still so excit-ing,” said junior Allison Man-frini.

Unfortunately for the juniors, the seniors were a strong team and they weren’t letting up. The referees blew the final whistles and the seniors rejoiced. They had won this year’s Powderpuff football game.

“We won because we out-played [them] and it was amaz-ing,” said senior quarterback Kelsey Peterson.

At the LBHS Honors Con-vocation on Friday, June 11, 2010, Laguna Beach High School’s seniors will receive scholarships from multiple groups, organizations and residents.

Last year, the total dollar amount given at the Honors Convocation was a remark-able $230,000. This number was made up of many smaller scholarships, ranging from $200 savings bonds to $15,000 college tuition grants.

“We have a very unique and generous community,” said Jeannie Harrell, commu-nity service and scholarship coordinator.

Out of the 280 seniors who graduated in 2009, 100 re-ceived at least one scholarship. The benefactors are diverse, ranging from Laguna Presby-terian Church to the Veterans of Foreign Wars. The Festival of Arts donates $15,000 to stu-dents passionate for fine arts such as dance, drama or writ-ing. The Weaver family con-tributes $4,000 for each year of college to its scholarship winner. Other scholarships, from $500 to $1,000, are for seniors who have shown good citizenship.

“All students can apply, so really there is no reason why every student didn’t fill out an application,” said Harrell.

Once a year, Harrell vis-its the government and eco-

nomics classes to discuss the different scholarships avail-able. Then, seniors choose the scholarships most fitted to them and fill out the applica-tions. A student can apply for as many as he or she wants. All applications and supplemental essays are due on March 2. After that, LBHS sorts out the different documents and mails them to the donors. Because some of the donors want to meet the students face to face, interviews are arranged.

The Faculty Scholarship Committee determines around 30 of the scholarship winners. This year, the committee is composed of one counselor, the athletic director, the com-munity service and scholar-ship coordinator and seven

teachers. The students who applied for those 30 scholar-ships are assigned one of the members of the committee for an interview. During these in-terviews, the seniors can give any information that they had not put on their applications. This includes special circum-stances and personal factors. After the interviews are com-plete, the committee convenes and chooses the winners.

Finally, in June, the se-niors are rewarded their scholarships at the Honors Convocation.

“They have a chance to come up and meet the donors very briefly,” said Harrell. “They don’t know they’ve won until that night.”

June 11, 2010 http://www.lbhsnews.com Volume 73 Issue 9

On May 22, 2010, at Cypress College, the La-guna Beach varsity boys volleyball team took the title of Southern Section CIF Division II Champions against Westlake, a victory that hasn’t been achieved since 1983. To put that in perspective, 1983 rules still used side-out scoring, when a team must serve to get a point. Also, 1983 was only two years after the current volleyball coach, Lance Stewart, was MVP of the Laguna Beach High School volleyball team.

“The coaching was real-ly good and is what brought us to win Southern Section and State Regionals,” said senior Sean Kimball.

Unlike the crowed de-picted by The Brush and Palette’s 1983 volleyball article by Matt Keces titled “Volleyball…Ho-hum,” this generation of student sup-porters has been very enthu-siastic, filling the stands at all three final games, even the one on the day of prom.

“I thought it was the best game in four years and, more importantly, I thought the kids on both sides had a great time,” said principal Dr. Don Austin, one of the biggest supporters of school sports.

The Breakers won the championship in three straight games, with scores of 25-19, 25-23 and 25-22.

Of course, with a long line of victories comes a little pressure.

“It wasn’t till CIF South-ern Section finals when they decided to start me. The middle blocker got in-jured, so they put me in. I definitely felt the pressure but wasn’t bothered. I was ready! Everyone supported me. Everyone believed in me. It was a good opportu-nity to shine and to prove to always be prepared even if you’re on the bench,” said Kimball.

As so many great play-ers are matriculating, this victory meant a lot to the team. Statistics, courtesy of Frank Aronoff, show just how great these players are. Travis Woloson and Scottie Chapel, graduating seniors, had 361 and 306 kills this year respectively.

“I’m really amped that we ended the season this way, and I’m especially happy for coach Lance,” said Chapel.

Coach and player appre-ciation was mutual.

“Our goal is always to win our last game of the year. That means you win the championship,” said Stewart. “We’ve done what we were supposed to do.”

By Lindsey LoJaconoReporter

Boys volleyball takes CIF championship

The new Superintendent of Schools Sherine Smith starts on July 1. Smith most recently worked as Assistant Superintendent, Educa-tion Services at Fullerton Joint Union High School District. Laguna Beach welcomes its new superintendent. Look for a full article in the September issue of The Brush and

Palette.

By Karina ReissHealth Editor

The LBHS boys varsity volleyball team celebrate their CIF Championship victory for the first time since 1983. Everyone, except the losing team, was very excited about their victory.

(Bill Darnall)

The Help for Hope concert was a big

success. See page 3 for more details!

Hopeful seniors to attend honors convocation

Seniors win Powderpuff football game

(Robert Chew)Senior Christina Gardilcic lunges to rip off a junior’s flag. The seniors won the Pow-

derpuff game by a landslide.

By Becca GalanReporter

See page 12 for updates on LBHS

sports!

The Staff2June 11, 2010

Letters from the Editors-in-Chief

Journalism staff mem-bers revel in the excite-ment and success of this year’s paper, but amidst all the joyful reminiscing and preparing for next year, sadness surfaces because a beloved senior and Editor-in-Chief/Managing Editor Masha Goncharova will be departing from Laguna Beach High School.

Masha first acquired the position of Sports Editor her freshman year, moving into the Co-Editor-in-chief/Managing Editor role as a sophomore.

In addition to attending various journalism camps, she received an internship at the Orange Country Reg-ister.

“Being Co-Editor-in-Chief with Masha has been a great experience because we get along well, but we are very different people and I think our ideas made the paper better as a whole,” said Co-Editor-in-Chief/Production Manager Kellie Benson.

Masha’s journalism skills will not fade away; a major in comparative lit-erature at Georgetown Uni-versity awaits her.

“Journalism requires communication. To com-

municate effectively you have to be a good leader and know how to share your opinions, knowledge and stories,” said Masha.

Whether through refin-ing the paper into the wee hours of the night, plan-ning with Mr. Brusky af-ter school, participating in journalism fundraisers, brainstorming great ideas as a class, conducting crazy interviews or just hanging out together during and af-ter school, this year’s jour-nalism staff had a lot of fun with Masha as their leader.

“My favorite memory of being in journalism is the night we stayed until 12 o’clock finishing the pa-per,” said Masha.

Although Masha must depart, the knowledge and skills she has passed on will forever be retained by cur-rent staff members.

Masha stresses that with-out Zoe, Kellie, Mr. Brusky and Dr. Austin, the paper would not be as good as it is right now. Masha credits them as being the individu-als that make the paper stay afloat.

“Having Masha as Editor has been great. She’s taught me so much. She is by far the coolest ‘boss’ I’ve ever had,” said incoming Editor-in-Chief/Managing Editor Becca Galan.

When people think of journalists, I bet they think about hard-hitting news, talented and hard-working individuals and lots of writing. Well, our journalism class can be de-scribed as all of these things, but it’s what is behind the exterior that matters the most. My three years in journalism have taught me more than how to interview and write. I have learned how to be a leader, a friend and a teacher. I have also learned more about InDesign than I care to remember.

However, journalism is not just about writing, it is about forming a community. I have made friends with individuals I probably never would have had the opportunity to speak to otherwise.

It is not only a class, it’s a place where intelligent and creative minds come together to create something amazing.

Words cannot express how much I will miss the paper next year. It has become a ma-jor part of my life, and some of my favorite memories of high school come from journal-ism. I remember Mr. Brusky’s first year in Mrs. MacKay’s room, and I remember blue dots, dandelions and “counting it.”

And who could forget the great journalism motto, “Just do it!”? I will miss finishing the paper late at night—which resulted in exhaustion and lack

of focus at school in the morning—listening to Pandora, ordering pizza, gossiping with fellow classmates that also stayed late and so much more.

Although Masha, Kendall, and I won’t be there to help, I am confident that next year’s staff will maintain the current integrity of the Brush and Palette and grow to even higher heights.

With veterans such as Camille and Nusheen and other staff members who are getting better every day, I know it will be an easy transition into next year. Good luck Becca, Nusheen and the staff of 2011-2012!

I know that you will all do wonderful things next year. A word to next year’s journal-ism seniors: I hope you walk away, as I am, with your own wonderful memories. Please do not forget to send me copies of next year’s papers.Sincerely,Kellie BensonEditor-in-Chief/Production Manager

These words are among the last that I’ll ever write for The B&P, and while the pros-pect of becoming another ant in the great race of the “real world” seems just so alluring, I can’t help but want to stop time.

As I write this, staff members are coming up to me, asking what to do after the person they interviewed told them their article idea wouldn’t work. One student couldn’t find anybody to give quotes on a controversial topic. And I’m supposed to know what to do?

My three-year occupancy of managing editor has truly been a learning experience as much for me as it has for the staff. It gave me the chance to think on my feet, and the staff members an opportunity find creative ways around barriers. It gave me a venue to voice my opinions, and the staff members a point to debate.

The greater part of LBHS is concerned with becoming better: whether academically, personally, or athletically, we focus on improving the student as a whole. The paper has therefore been fortunate in that article topics celebrate the school’s victories. Our staff boasts a record number of 25 members whose involvement in the school stretches from performing arts to the Persian club. What made me happiest this year is seeing that girl who used to cover Mr. Dressler’s plays strictly use our class to find out about the Persian club and develop herself in another part of the school. It was this year that I was able to watch the brainstorms that fill up Mr. Brusky’s boards be transformed into size 10 font articles with engaging headlines. Teaching a staff to love the final product and want to help make every article read with finesse and every page turn out neatly has paid off.

At this point, I find myself at a crossroads. An eager freshman, I wanted to eat the paper whole, writing as many as seven articles per issue and laying out four pages of our eight-page paper. A sophomore and junior, I hopscotched between teaching and writing, trying to share the workload with the growing staff. Now, I almost want to step back and watch the paper remove that third wheel and ride off into the sunset of journalism.

That was pretty corny, but it’s the most accurate statement I can write. Thank you staff, for cooperating with the paper’s guidelines and learning from me. Thank you Kellie, for understanding my weirdness and becoming one of my true friends. Thank you so much Mr. Brusky for helping me grow both as a leader and a person in these past three years.

See you during the Holidays! Masha GoncharovaEditor-in-Chief/Managing Editor

As we prepare to greet the new incoming students to our journalism staff, un-fortunately we must first say adieu to one of our most experienced and beloved editors, Kendall Kleinberg.Having taken journalism throughout her entire four years of high school and soaking up every bit of information, Kendall has blossomed into the writing world.

“I’ve learned to be per-sistent and ask questions [during interviews].”

Although she must leave her years of high school behind, Kendall will be in good hands at New York University.

“I’m going to be ma-joring in Journalism [at NYU].”

Not only has Kendall absorbed every aspect of

journalism, but also she has been an editor during all four years. When Kendall first became a part of the journalism staff as a fresh-man, she was appointed Health Editor. Through the course of her sophomore and junior year, Kendall was chosen to be the En-tertainment Editor. Finally, she holds the title of Fea-tures Editor, editing, cor-recting and improving each article that comes her way.

Throughout her four years on the journalism staff, Kendall has made so many wonderful memories.

“[My favorite memo-ries] would just have to be enjoying the camaraderie and [working] late nights.”

Kendall leaves us with sage advice: “Don’t be afraid to go out and talk to people, and don’t be afraid to choose articles that may be controversial.”

As the year comes to an end, the journalism staff is forced to part with their se-nior staff members.

After three years of be-ing in journalism, senior Editor-in-Chief/Production Manager Kellie Benson will be leaving the paper.

“I will miss the relaxed atmosphere [of journalism] and staying late to finish the paper,” said Benson.

Benson has held a vari-ety of positions in her three years in journalism. Ben-son was Business Manager first, then Features Edi-tor, and this year she was Editor-in-Chief/Production Manager.

“It’s been a very enrich-ing experience because not only have I gotten to be a part of the business aspect of journalism, but I’ve also been a part of the layout process,” said Benson.

In the future Benson hopes to use the communi-cation skills that journalism has helped her develop.

“I made the paper more organized and as a staff we’ve gotten better at lay-out,” said Benson.

Benson will attend Uni-versity of California, Santa Barbara in the fall.

“I’m really excited to go to UCSB because it will be

a fun atmosphere, and I’m really excited to continue my education,” said Ben-son.

The journalism staff will miss Benson as she abdi-cates her Editor-in-chief position this year.

“Kellie is an amazing co-editor-in-chief. She never let me down, and I will always strive to fol-low her example because she leads with integrity and discipline,” said senior editor-in-chief Masha Gon-charova.

Benson has also impact-ed the younger staff mem-bers, especially the ones who were new to journal-ism this year.

“I was new to the staff this year, and from day one Kellie was eager to help and encouraged me as I de-veloped my layout skills,” said freshman reporter Rickie Scott.

Overall, Benson has left lasting impact on The Brush and Palette staff.

“I think Kellie is an hon-est and hardworking Edi-tor-in-chief and provides a great example for all of us. Kellie never seizes to put 100 percent of her compas-sionate personality in every job she does—be it big or small,” said sophomore reporter Lauren Montgom-ery.

A salute to “veteran” senior staff membersBy Rickie ScottReporter

By Rachel YoungReporter

By Nusheen GoshtasbiOpinions Editor

From right: Kendall, Kellie, Masha. Words unecessary. (Becca Galan)

On March 21, the fifth annual “Help for Hope” concert in the Artists’ The-ater generated $$ for the City of Hope cancer re-search foundation.

This National Cancer Institute, a father to City of Hope, helps budding labo-ratories create promising new cancer therapies. Six years ago, the NCI gained the attention of 7th graders Alec Jaffe, Andrew Levin and Adam Selevan, who selected the foundation as a recipient of their commu-nity service project.

Now in their senior year, the trio organized the concert with a twofold pur-pose. The concert not only

raised money for cancer research, but also provided aspiring young musicians with a chance to perform on stage.

Through the rock, pop and folk beats shone the talents of 18 student groups and soloists. The “Soulag Vibrations” lead singer Austin Bounds felt inclined to express his ap-preciation for the City of Hope.

“This is one rad char-ity,” said Bounds.

Bounds’ band shared the stage with multiple student rock bands, such as “The Swell,” and “The Yot Club” who performed “On My Way” and “The Hoffman”.

The concert also fea-tured a number of quieter pieces, from Nia Evan’s

cover of “Better Near to You” by A Fine Frenzy, to

Coldplay’s “Fix You,” sang by senior Alison Azera and

accompanied by seniors Casey Chen, Masha Gon-charova, and Levin, and junior Sarah Busic’s ver-sion of Bon Iver’s “Skinny Love,” accompanied by math teacher and guitarist Mr. Gary Shapiro.

Shapiro in fact was the only teacher-performer, singing a rendition of a Spanish song. His personal show, the winter “Shap Show: No Suits Allowed” likens to the goals of “Help for Hope” in its objective to raise money for a cause. Shapiro admitted his hopes that student initiative for charitable causes does not stop with Jaffe, Levin and Selevan.

“I hope that someone can take up the reigns on the Help for Hope legacy,” said Shapiro.

“This is a wonderful concert.”

Jaffe, Levin, and Selevan NARRATED the “rad” event and ap-peared in more than half of the performances. While they focused the greater part of the con-cert on music, making jokes and having fun, they boys concluded the evening with a reminder of the cause for which they were performing.

Jorge Lazaro, a rep-resentative from the City of Hope, shared his thoughts on the positive nature of the event, at the end of the concert.

“It’s a culmination of our efforts. It’s a bit-tersweet moment see-ing the event come to a close,” said Jaffe.

Students and teachers sing for a good cause

Since the first week of May, selected students in Ms. Lisa Jay’s dance class have been choreograph-ing dances for fellow classmates to perform at a student show in the dance studio on June 2-3.

“It’s an actual perfor-mance in the studio, not the theatre. It’s a small thing but anyone can at-tend,” said junior Haley Seitz.

The purpose of this as-signment is for Jay to give her students an oppor-tunity to be able to cho-reograph by themselves, communicate with one an-other, and work in groups.

Choreographers were able to work in groups or perform a solo piece.

The choreographers in-clude Austin Giangeruso, Trevor Bass, Haley Seitz,

Lily Rogers, Sophia Tupy and Laura Otszu. Many other students are in-volved in practices as well as performances.

“It’s a good idea be-cause ticket proceeds for the student show go to the Michael J. Fox Founda-tion,” said Seitz.

The Michael J. Fox Foundation is a charity dedicated to research on Parkinson’s disease.

In addition, student choreographers have the opportunity to use this project for end of the se-mester credit.

“We have been working on it for like a month, so

it can be your final if you put the effort into choreo-graphing a dance,” said junior Berklee Donovan.

For those students performing in a student choreography, weekly re-hearsals are necessary up until June 2.

“You get the oppor-tunity to learn students’ individual styles” said Donovan.

This project was headed by Jay and oc-curs annually, so danc-ers should expect it next year as well. The student show is open to all stu-dents of LBHS on June 2-3.

LBHS students dance to their own beat By Ashlyn McCleveReporter

Entertainment 3 June 11, 2010

The annual Candle Rose event is a compila-

tion of acts by seniors in a way of saying goodbye to their classmates and the rest of the school.

This event has been a tradition at LBHS since the late 80s and for a few years was in danger of not occurring from a lack of senior acts.

However, this year there are over 20 groups

of seniors with acts pre-

pared that are “bringing the tradition back loud and strong,” according to activities director Pam MacKay.

The nature of the

event limits participa-tion in the acts only to seniors, but everyone is invited as a spectator.

Each senior will

only be able to perform once—either solo or in a group.

There are two re-hearsals, on May 27 and June 17, right after school at Guyer Field, which are mandatory for participants in order that they perform at the real event.

The actual event is on

June 18 at 6:30 p.m. There is no set end

time because the dura-tion is only limited to the number of seniors who want to partici-pate.

Speak with Mrs. MacKay if you are a se-nior who wants to get involved in the Candle Rose event.

By Dillon RonsonReporter

Seniors rekindle their high school spirit

Dance student’s show off their moves at the student cho-reographed dance show. Anyone could attend and the show took place in the LBHS dance studio.

Dancers perform their student choreographed danc-es. This show took place on June 2-3 in the Dance Studio.

(Sophia Tupy)

By Zayd TurbiOutside Reporter

Alec Jaffe, Andrew Levin, and Adam Selevan impress the crowd with their musical talent. They decided upon singing “Party in the USA” by Miley Cyrus for the Help for Hope Concert.

(Zoe Germano)

The Candle Rose senior talent show helps being the senior class closer together.

It brings the tradition back loud and strong.

“”

Dear Senior Class...June 11, 2010 4

It’s June already? Where did the time go? That sentiment often echos throughout our lives. You find yourself looking at something meaningful and wishing that life had a pause button. Where the moment of beauty and importance could just be frozen so that it could be better appreciat-ed. Until that becomes possible, your memory (and possibly your camera phone) will have to suffice. In the midst of the chaos and noise that sur-rounds us on a daily basis, take a moment to appreciate where you are and how far you’ve come. Take a breath and look at those around you, those who love and support you and be thankful for them. Stare into the eyes of the people you love and memorize their face. Appreciate those moments, cherish them because they are far too fleeting. But those are the moments, those are the people, the memories that you will look back on. So revel in those precious moments and take joy in the journey.

It has been my honor to know you and to have been a small part of your lives.-Ms. Kristin Parker

I have enjoyed our time together immensely. You have made me laugh, cry and ponder many things. For example, why are you addicted to text messaging? Is it really that important of a conversation that it can’t wait? My wish for you is that all cell phones die for just one week. During that time you could experience having meaningful conversations with your friends that are uninterrupted by a “must reply” text message, you will notice your surround-ings and not walk into things or other people while you text or talk. Ok, this will never happen as technology has become an integral part of our daily lives. But please use it for good.

A couple of simple philosophies that have worked for me and hopefully will work for you as well. First, spend your energy wisely. It takes a great deal of energy to do something right the first time but it is a giant waste of energy to do something poorly, make excuses for the failure and eventually work to fix it. Secondly, always expand your comfort zone. Embrace meaningful challenges even if they are uncomfortable at first.

Finally, slow down when possible. Think about how quickly the last four years went by and know that the next four years will go by even faster. Time seems to speed up exponentially with each stage of life so take a moment to enjoy what life is offering you right now. Other than that, go rule the world!-Mrs. Hartford

Class of 2010, Adults, in general, tend to get too serious too quickly. Giving advice (what I’m about to do here) can be some pretty serious business. The truth is of course, there are a lot of things that go into being a functional adult. A few you might want to consider here. First, I think it’s important to find the humor. This is especially true in the things and places where the humor is very tough to find. If you can do this well, you will be much happier. That much I can guarantee you. Next, try to keep your Ideas alive. You’re all still so good at it. This will become more difficult to do in time. After a while, our minds want the solid rock of Answers, not the marsh of Ideas. But it’s the Ideas that are interesting in life; it’s the Ideas that bring change and people together. Too many adults have the Answers. Answers are comforting; it feels good to think you have it figured out. Well, none of us truly do. Having Answers usually just results in dividing people that you love. Stay open to the Ideas.Say “I love you” to your parents. You can do this today. I know it may be hard to ap-preciate much right now. I get it. You’re ready to cut that cord with Mom and Dad and rage – but don’t forget who you are: a product of Mom and Dad. They have sacrificed and given more to you than you’ll ever know and there’s no way you can ever repay them for it. Try. Try to repay them with a sincere “thank you” and “I love you.” Re-member, you will always be their baby.Finally, avoid vague pronoun references and “3 or more” taboo verbs. Have Fun out there kids!Mr. Brobeck

These words are from my heart,I am so sad to let you go and yet so thrilled for you all. A lot of you have already entered the “French Matrix” either by choice or accident. Regardless if you studied French, Spanish or step foot in any class at LBHS, you were exposed to an “existentialist way of thinking.” CLASS OF 2010, you come from a new era entering a new realm of ventures and thinking styles. You belong to different palettes and tastes, loving Pink Floyd and Lady Gaga at the same time (I am not sure who she is yet). You rage “against the machine” and embrace it in a dialing heart beat. You are the “yin and the yang,” the “savoir Faire,” and the “nouvelle vague “ in a rhythmic Remembrance of the things past Proustian time with a Debussy nocturne tune melody (Clair de lune) while Tchaikovsky dances along the lakes of hopeful swans. I wish you the best on your wonderful journeys. I know you will embark a long “voy-age” just as Candide with beautiful smiles, passions, desires, dreams, honesty, kindness, and authenticity an you will always also remember “to cultivate your garden!” You are our FUTURE , YOU are the ROAD and the Destination , and YOU think therefore YOU will be . YOU are all part of US and WE are all part of YOU. You are the new PRINCESSES and PRINCES , QUEENS and KINGS ,” STEINBECKS “, “ VICTOR HUGOS “, “MONETS” , “PICASSOS” and “ MARIE CURIES “ SHANGAS “ the SAIL and the BOAT , THE OCEAN AND THE SHORE , and finally the “INCROYABLES.” ( INCREDIBLES ). Your legacy is here forever and yet to come. We will All miss you and welcome you back anytime as your minds traced an indelible print on the canvass of our LIFES …..VIVE LA CLASSE DE 2010! A JAMAIS , POUR TOUJOURS , FOR EVER…..Je vous aime! Revenez me voir , la porte sera toujours grande ouverte….Odile

Senior WillsJune 5, 20105

Mercedes Amezcua: “Advice to my broth-er: Have fun your senior year and don’t stress out. ”

Danielle Cudmore: “All the fun times in French to Kary Combs and Chris Bills.”

-Alex Rieckhoff: “My mom’s panic and hawk eye I now bestow onto my brother Kristifano. Have fun.”

-Clayton Steel: “My rapping skills to Lia Berger”

Alec Jaffe: “My mustache, to Ben Hanson.”

-Nick Martinez: “I leave behind my immense sponging skills to R.K. Keep Shredding!”

Hannah Glass: “I’m leaving behind the snow leopards tele-scope to the next ACR class. Also, I’m leav-ing behind the stage for Caroline to keep away from EJ.”

-Karly Mac: “I am leav-ing behind my intense basketball skills to Maddy Knutson.”

-Hannah Deline: “I leave behind my Olympic swim-ming times to Riley Duncan. Make me proud!”

-Beau Martinez: “To Tylan Kang, I leave the trombone section and my Trombone.”

-Christian St. Clair: “My singing skills to Ethan Morris.”

-Ryan Raffo: “My lep-rechaun costume for Tim Peterson”

-Chloe Cunning-ham: “The joy I felt dancing on the Artists’ The-atre stage to my classy freshies. Love you girls!”

-Austin Giangeruso: “I want to leave my stress behind to Lau-ren House because she needs more stress in her life.”

- Elizabeth Shabazian: “Mrs. Hartford’s sass to her future classes.”

-Tommy Newton-Neal: “I leave Matt Neev the Ice Bath.”

-Clara Plomgren: “I leave the Clara and Sophia chorus legacy to Mak-enna Zur Schmiede and Sydney Nash. It’s your class.”

Sean Pigden: “My pencil to Mr. Brobeck.”

-Nia Evans: “I’m leaving my wise advice to Wyatt Fair; you are going to miss it when I’m gone.”

Kellie Benson: “I want to leave behind our Jacuzzi adven-tures to Daniel Ste-vens because I miss him so much!”

-Andrew Shapero: “Questing/Adven-tures leadership and Pokemon-naming-power to Jeff White.”

-Alex Young: ìI be -queath the power of orangina.î

-Michele Ferruci: “Dancing lessons to Macklin Thorton”

Wyatt Irinns: “I want to leave Oak Street beach to Adam Mejia.”

Elle Hartley: “All my ACT and SAT prep to my little brother.”

-Sean Mulville: ìMy purple speedo to Spencer Dodson.î

-Kyle Jones: “My In-N-Out leftovers to Jordan Glenn.”

-Robbie qualmalz: “My rainbow speedo to my brother An-drew.”

-Sam Piszkiewicz: “I’d like to leave my sleep depri-vation to next year’s senior class, although I’m sure there’s plenty to go around.”

-Kendall Klein-berg: “I want to leave behind my shortcuts to my brother.”

COLLEGE 2010!WHERE ARE YOU GOING?

HILeeward Community CollegeJosh Hernandez

ITT TechDerek KnottMichael Niebuhr

WAUniversity of Washing-tonMatthew Anderson

OROregon State Univer-sityHannah DelineMatthew PerellaAlexis Tuchscher

University of OregonWyatt IninnsElle HartleyGarrett Kemp Lowe

Taylor DorseChristopher HillemannCharles Jackson

Zachary Riegler

Linn Benton Community CollegePaige Mramer

CAStanfordNicholas Brown

Lexi Ross

San Francisco State UniversityLogan SchoembsClayton SteelChristina Gardilcic

Zoe Germano

City College of San FranciscoHayley Wood

UC Santa CruzIan KrohnfeldtJuliet UlibarriParker Yamasaki

David Brunner

UC BerkeleyLena KardosHannah GlassCamille BorgesNicolai Doreng-Stearns

University of San DiegoHana LinkAlison BloomMichael CannanRichard Mattingley

UCITommy Newton-NealSean PigdenTravis WolosonZachary CooperRouzbeh KazemianSara Kazemian

Irvine Valley Community CollegeElizabeth ShabazianChristina LamkinAmahlia McManusKatelynn BaptistaDrew GerholdMorgan GreenoughCharles HylandAna MedinaAlexandra NavasJasmin SanchezPatrick WhiteJourdana Gergis

Santa Barbara City Col-legeKeren Weinberg

UC DavisClara Plomgren

CAL State FullertonBryan PhamBrenden FergusonKyle JonesLasslie Martinez

Chico State UniversityCody Blanchard

Fullerton CollegeAlec Jaffe

UC RiversideDillon RonsonJessica TanCameron Cornell

Cuesta Community Col-legeNia Evans

UCSBKellie BensonAlex Trinh

UCLAMichael HayAlison AzeraAlexandra Williamson

USCAlex YoungTamara AlbersBrett LinkletterKativa Strickland

Claremont McKenna CollegeSophia Patrico

Healing Hands SchoolKarly Mac

Orange Coast CollegeAlex GustisKirk CastroPorter HoganTrevor BassJordan CedenoNatasha CookTessy DominguezChelsea GarmshausenCheri PlazaChase St GeorgeTawny YoungJustin BlakePatrick ConnorChristian O Connor

Cal Polytechnic Univer-sity- San Luis ObispoNicolas MartinezAnna Stewart-Bussey

Cal Polytechnic Univer-

sity-PomonaMichele Ferrucci

Cal TechSamantha Piszkiewicz

Pomona CollegeRobert Chew

Soka UniversityGerry Artman

Chapman UniversityJena MacCabeLadan Davia

San Diego State Univer-sityNathan BaderSamuel Roberts

Cal State Long BeachMercedes AmezcuaMakaila Palmer

Saddleback CollegeStevie ContursiRyan LeeDiana Ramirez

Jennifer CouryGrace KomoroczyPeter SalomonKevin Bardzik

Academy of Art San FranciscoMorgan Crowl

FIDMJessica DawsonNatalie Martin

California School of Cu-linary ArtsHelen Kramer

University of RedlandsCasey Miller

Laguna College of Art and DesignAlexander Maxwell

OccidentalEden Radovich

Loyola Marymount Uni-versityMadison Barton

Santiago Canyon Col-legeNicholas Henrikson

Humboldt State Univer-sityCole Kennedy

WestmontMorea Arthur

AZNorthern Arizona Uni-versitySamantha Kafer

Arizona StateAlicia Amador

University of ArizonaSpencer FreidenrichAlexandra KnillJake Glazer

COColorado CollegeRachel Macdonald

University of Colorado at BoulderBryn ValaikaChristian St. ClairAli BakerMichael OperaBrynmarie MaisonKate WinnReed Thompson

Colorado StateSebastian Schott

TXBaylor UniversityBeau Martinez

LATulane University

Jake Johnson

Christina CrowleyShannon Thomasvis

MIUniversity of MichiganNoah Hoffman

Michigan StateAnnie Sasso

ILNorthwestern Univer-sityKatharine Brown

The University of Chi-cagoKelsey Peterson

IN Indiana UniversityHannah NixonRobert Quellmalz

OHOhio StateTimothy (Scottie) Chapel

NY United States Mer-chant Marine Academy Ryan Raffo

St. John’s UniversityRyan ChanVivian West

New York UniversitySophia TupyKendall KleinbergAndrew Levin

Frances Lydon Lance Knapp

Parsons School of De-signSadie Drucker

Union College

PA Dickinson CollegeChloe Cunningham

Bucknell UniversityAlex DegarmoAdam Selevan

VAWilliam and MaryPaulette Grand Pré

NCWake Forest UniversitySarah Davis

SCThe College of Charles-tonMcKenna NokesMichael Rubel

MEBowdoin CollegeAleph Cervo

MAEmerson CollegeMadi Silvers

Boston University

Brent Donenfeld

Northeastern Univer-sityAdam Miyawaki

Tufts UniversityAndrew Shapero

Lesley UniversityVictoria Ellis

Suffolk UniversityCaylie Morck

Berklee College of Mu-sicCasey Chen

RIJohnson and WalesAlexis Huntley

Brown UniversityAlex Rieckhoff

CTYaleBlake Hofmeister

NJPrinceton UniversityAustin Giangeruso

MDUniversity of MarylandChelsea Donenfeld

Goucher CollegeTierney Doran

DCGeorgetownMasha GoncharovaMadeline Jaeger

CANADASimon FraserDanielle Cudmore

Senior AdviceLogan Schoembs: “Rise and shine to clear away all the stains from yester-day.”

Kendall Klein-berg: The greatest plea-sure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.

Jaramie Rob-inson: Do the Dunlap home-work!

Jake Glazer: Find a light socket and plug in.

Ryan Lee: Love saves two while hate hurts one, make a differ-ence.

Sabina Seyster: Yes, there can be “too much of a good thing.” Pineapple juice gives me diarrhea.

Caylie Morck: Do everything you can while your responsi-bilities are low. Don’t get caught.

Wyatt Ininns: Truck it. Thug Life.

Camille Borg-es: Stay true to yourself and don’t let others try to change you.

Michelle Fer-rucci: Make sure your fourth period is close to the cafeteria.

Trevor Bass: As long as you listen to ‘Tik Tok’ with an open mind, things will work out, I promise.

Kaleb Rotert: Embrace your dreams while you still control them.

Sam Piszkie-wicz: There’s a lot you can’t learn from textbooks, aca-demic subjects included.

Morgan Crowl: “If you can’t believe in yourself, be-lieve in me who believes in you!”

Madi Silvers: “The definition of a cynic: someone who knows the price of every-thing and the value of nothing”-Oscar Wilde

Ryan Chan: “¿Estas kidding me?”

Ryan Raffo: “Have a good weekend so you have something to talk about during the week”

Lena Kardos: “No regrets!”

Mercedes Amezc-ua: Talk to people you would normally not talk with. Keep it classy because Face-book can be your worst en-emy.

Casey Miller: “Fool me once… Shame on you… Fool me twice, shame on me.

Morgan Greenough: Don’t take life so seriously and basically drown yourself in wonder and achievements, try and enjoy life. Love the person you are.

Elle Hartley: “Take time to actually enjoy high school because it ends the second that you realize that you rushed through it.”

Robbie Qualmalz: “He who laughs didn’t get it.”

Sean Mul-ville: Befriend Billinger.

Hannah Nixon: “You can’t soar with the eagles when you’re surrounded by turkeys.”

Austin Giangeruso: “ Do something outside of your comfort zone. It may be the best experience you have in high school.”

Sara Kazemian: Try to be like Keren Weinberg. You will do great things if you accomplish this goal.

Brent Donen-feld: “Kobe > LeBron always”

McKenna Nokes: “Be involved with the school as much as you possibly can.”

Chloe Cunning-ham: “Do the right thing and remember Zing-er.”

Hana Link: “Do everything, join everything and be friends with everyone you can. No regrets!”

Karly Mac: Choose to heal rather than harm and our world will find peace.

Hannah Glass: “Get-ting on a teacher’s good side isn’t consid-ered cheating.”

Hannah Deline: Life is like a box of choco-lates, eat it all but not too fast

Alex Gustis: “Keep on keep-ing on!”

Diana Ramirez: Don’t give up because any-thing is possible even when it seems like it’s the hardest.

Kirk Castro: “Join the Bear Watchers Coalition, for we find strength in numbers.”

Clayton Steel: “Make risk taking a daily routine.”

Nicolas Marti-nez: Stay true to your Roots!

Jessica Tan: Never let others influence your decisions. Always fol-low your instincts.

Makaila Palmer: Life is what you make it.

Noah Hoffman: Don’t get pooped on by seagulls at lunch. However, if you see it happen to someone else point and laugh. Also, DO NOT TAKE AP SPANISH!

Danielle Cud-more: Those who matter don’t mind and those who mind don’t matter.

Alison Azera: “You really only get one chance to do it all right—don’t waste it.” Andrew Shapero:

“Don’t use the bath-rooms beneath Sogo’s classroom”

Nia Evans: “ Do some-thing crazy so you have something to say when someone asks you what the craziest thing you have done in high school is.

Alison Bloom: Eat lots of Otis Spunkenmeyer cookies- they are del-ish!

Kellie Benson: “Never ever EVER trust a hyena”and“embrace nonsense as much as knowl-edge. It wakes up the brain cells”-Dr. Seuss. “You should not wear yourself out too soon.”

Alexis Huntley: “If you follow your pas-sions, everything else will fall into place”

Brett Linklet-ter: Fight on!

Alex Gromet: Live life as if it were your last.

Samantha Ferri: I think everyone should stay in school. Don’t do drugs or alcohol. Don’t be mean and treat others how you want to be treated.

Victor Pakpour: Anything is possible.

Christina Lam-kin: “Those who don’t succeed never try, but those who do try succeed in everything they believe.”

Sophia Tupy: “Work hard, but enjoy high school—time flies whether or not you’re having fun.”

James Christensen: “If you want to be sane, be a little insane.”

Adam Miyark: “Try everything you can.”

Samantha Kafer: “TGIO-Thank God it’s over.”

Sean Pigden: “Hugs not drugs.”

Bryan Pham: “Good Luck.”

Keren Weinberg: “Study hard so you can party hard.”

Elizabeth Sha-bazian: “When you wake up in the morning you better feel like P-Diddy.”

Tommy Newton-Neal: “My heart isn’t even beating.”

Alec Jaffe: “Get a free 5th and 6th.”

Amahlia McManus: “ For all girls in high school: have some dignity—it can take you a long way”

Porter Hogan: “Drugs are for Fools!”

Alex Rieckhoff: “ There are so many memories at this school, you cannot re-member them all, so cherish the ones you do.

Alex Young: None of the drinking fountains work.

8June 11, 2010

Farewells / Goals9 June 11, 2010

Ryan Raffo: “Serving our country as a mili-tary officer and pos-sibly future congress-

man.”

Chloe Cunningham: “I want to become Diane Kruger from National

Treasure, curating mu-seums or art galleries.”

Austin Giangeruso: “I hope to become the

CEO of Taco Bell and In-n-out.”

Alison Azera “Find something I love doing and be

on Cash Cab.”

Christian St. Clair “Vegas.” Alec Jaffe “Make

bank”Clayton Steel “Buy my mom the art stu-dio she never had.”

Amahlia McManus “I hope to travel to every country in the world before I

die.”

Trevor Bass “ Take Bobby Newberry’s spot.”

Adam Selevan “Pro-fessional Call of

Duty Player.”

Wyatt Ininns “ Be-come a successful Architect/Barrel-

master.”

Sean Mullville “Be the first person on

Mars.”

Alex Gromet “I hope to be a successful entrepreneur.”

Robbie Qualmalz “To be the first woman presi-

dent.”

Samantha Ferri “ make friends in college, not feel like an outcast, and have a good new

life.”

Karly Mac “I hope to bring entertainment through the world of music and serenity through the art of

massage.”

Makaila Palmer: “One day I hope to be a flourishing artist and art teacher for as many students as I

can.”

Noah Hoffman: “Rule the world, in one way or an-

other.”

Morgan Crowl: “I hope to design the next big

video game.”

Kaleb J. Rotert: “publishing my

novel.”

Morgan Greenough: “I want to be successful in the career I choose and to have a beauti-ful family that I can raise to be the best

they can be.”

Hana Link: “I hope to be a veterinarian and

return to live in Laguna Beach.”

Sophia Tupy: “Be employed by Austin Giangeruso at one of his successful fast food enter-

prises.”

Tommy Newton-Neal: “I want to run in the Olym-

pics.”

Hannah Glass “I hope to conquer the world with

Ellen Degeneres.”

After 36 years of teach-ing at Laguna Beach High School (1974-2010), math teacher Walt Hamera is retiring at the end of this year. Hamera began teach-ing at LBHS when he was 29 years old, soon after he returned from the Marine Corps in Vietnam.

Although we all know Hamera as the “math guy,” he first taught two other subjects.

“I was on an intern pro-

gram for a year at LBHS. I was hired to teach two History classes and two Economics classes, but two days into the school year they changed my History classes to English because I was an English major in college. So, I taught Eng-lish and Economics for 17 years,” said Hamera.

In 1991 Hamera earned his math credentials and has been teaching math at LBHS ever since.

Currently, Hamera teaches Algebra 1A, Alge-bra 1B and Honors Geom-

etry.“The reason I was hired

was to coach football. I was assistant coach for four years, head coach for four years, and freshman coach for four years,” said Ham-era.

When he first moved here with his wife, Hamera pumped gas on Crown Val-ley until he found a job at LBHS. He did not get a job immediately, but instead began working as substi-tute teacher. Then, Hamera became the football coach and was hired full-time.

“I will miss my relation-ships with my kids and col-leagues. The kids keep me young and always guess-ing as to what they will do next,” said Hamera.

Hamera will not stop teaching.

He is talking with Uni-versity of California, Ir-vine about being a student teacher advisor for the next few years.

“I will check up on the student teachers five times during the year. I will help guide them,” said Hamera.

But that’s not all Ham-

era has in store. Hamera and his wife have plans to travel after he retires.

“We own a condo in Kauai, so we will go there in January. We are going to travel through the states, especially the east coast. Then we will go see the rest of the world,” said Ham-era.

Hamera will always be remembered at LBHS, and will be missed dearly by both his students and his colleagues.

“When Hamera bailed on the English Department

(he fell asleep reading) and joined the Math Depart-ment, I was concerned he would criticize my punc-tuation, but he turned out to be an exceptional math teacher, department mem-ber, but most of all, he be-came my friend,” said math teacher Gary Shapiro.

Although Hamera will be missed, he will always hold a special place in LBHS.

“It was just time for me to go. I want to really enjoy traveling before I get too old to walk,” said Hamera.

Goals

Be sure to check out

The LBUSD Educators’ Commemo-rative Wall in the district

recognizing all of those who have retired beginning with

the year 1963

Congratulations to Mr. Hamera on another ex-cellent project!

The wall mentions all retirees- including teachers, janitors, and various other staff members.

This project deserves student recognition due to the time, effort, and dedication the process of

constructing this wall required.

A comedian retires without failing to inspireBy Nusheen GoshtasbiOpinions Editor

Features10June 11, 2010

Senior Events The seniors have had a busy

month and have many events planned as the last few weeks of school wind down. Here are some events to look back on or forward to:

Career Day Job ShadowDate: May 18Where: Camp PendletonTime: 7:15 AM

Senior Finale with Keith HawkinsDate: May 19Where: North GymTime: 8:00 AM

“Give Back Day: with Zero Trash Laguna Date: May 20Where: District Office Parking LotTime: 8:00 AM

Honors ConvocationDate: June 11 Where: the Artists’ TheatreTime: 7 AM

BaccalaureateDate: June 13Where: St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church

Senior Finals and CheckoutDate: June 17-18Where: LBHS

Candle Rose Senior Talent ShowDate: June 18 Time: 7 PMWhere: the Artists’ Theatre

Senior Pool PartyDate: June 21Time:12:30 PM to 2:30 PMWhere: LBHS pool

Senior Trip to Knott’s Berry FarmDate: June 22Time: 9 AM to 4 PM Where: Knott’s Berry Farm, Buena Park

Senior GraduationDate: June 24Time: 8 PMWhere: the Irvine Bowl

Grad NightDate: June 24Time: After Graduation Ceremony until 6 AMWhere: Destination Unknown

The Rotary Club of Laguna Beach annually awards nine Laguna Beach High School students $250 each to encourage and ac-knowledge excellence in both academics and athlet-ics. The top scholars ac-knowledged this year were Morea Arthur, Nicholas Brown, Kirk Castro, Han-nah Glass, Austin Giangeru-so, Masha Goncharova and Sophia Patrico. Recently,

soccer player Kelsey Pe-terson and track-and-fielder Blake Hofmeister were rec-ognized as students of the month.

“I was honored to re-ceive the Rotary student of the month award for science. It is such a great community organization,” said Brown.

The Rotary Club is the world’s first “service” club organization, with more than 1.2 million members in 33,000 clubs world-wide. This humanitarian

club’s motto is “Service Above Self.”

The Laguna Beach chap-ter was founded in 1931 by 12 business men who want-ed to make a difference in their community. The club’s obligations include community, international and vocational services.

“We at the Rotary are extremely honored to serve our community through many service projects,” said the 2009-10 President, Rick Lang.

The Laguna chapter

is very supportive of the youth leadership in Laguna Beach.

It also sponsors an An-nual District Speech Con-test and District Choral Contest. Its yearly stu-dent scholarships exceed $4,000.

“Rotary has no secret handshake, no secret poli-cy, no official creed, no se-cret meeting or rituals. It is an open group of men and women who simply believe in helping others,” said Lang.

By Mackenzi BaldridgeReporter

Students get awarded for stepping up

A rotary winner, Nick Brown is working with chemicals in ACR. He won an award for science.

(Bryan Pham)

The Laguna Beach Rotary Club annually accordshard-working LBHS seniors.

We’re all senior citizens...

right?

Bullies: usually big, scary, aggressive people who trashcan the weak and steal lunch money from the helpless. Well, at least in the cliché sense of the word.

However, as many fresh-man learned on May __, anyone can be, and proba-bly is in some way, a bully. Nance Morrissey gathered all freshmen in Cassandra Butler’s Health room to learn about the many dif-ferent types of bullying, and to discuss their own experiences.

Bullying can manifest in the big, scary person said previously, or more com-mon to Laguna Beach, it can manifest in a girl start-ing rumors, or a guy just messing around with his friends.

However harmless someone may think their comments or slanders are, they can and probably will hurt the person they are talking about.

Last year, in a nation-wide survey for teenagers, 11 percent of students re-ported that they have been victims of bullying, while 13 percent admitted to bul-

lying themselves; 6 percent admitted to both.

Recently, because the boom in Internet network-ing and technology, a new type of bullying has arose: cyber bullying. This is de-fined as using email, tex-ting, instant messaging, chat rooms, and social net-working websites to harm or embarrass others.

This is one of the most popular forms of bullying, especially with the help of Facebook or MySpace.

During the meeting in Butler’s room, vice princi-pal Bob Billinger warned students that what they put

on the Internet is not pri-vate, everyone can see it. When putting something on the World Wide Web, understand that is really is worldwide.

Do not put anything on the Internet that could hurt someone if they see it. If everyone does this, Cyber Bullying can be stopped.

Bullying is a problem that has been around for-ever, but it can gradually be stopped.

Next time, think about your word choices or who you are talking too, because especially in Laguna Beach, word spreads fast.

By Anissa Rodriguez Reporter

June 11, 201011

As a part of gradua-tion, seniors and even juniors get to experience the long-time traditions that accompany com-mencement.

One tradition, run by Lisa Arthur in previous years, is the Baccalaure-ate ceremony. Baccalau-reate is a religious ser-vice which will be held at the St. Catherine of Siena Church this year.

The service welcomes all denominations and those that “have a spir-itual connection to a church,” said Arthur.

The ceremony cel-ebrates the lives of those who have dedicated themselves to learning.

“Speeches help [se-niors] get excited about the opportunities ahead,” said Arthur.

Not only will there be a rabbi and a Catholic priest, but there will also be student speakers and musical performances.

Another tradition takes place during the graduation ceremony it-self. Junior girls volun-teer to help decorate and hold arches as seniors walk through them on the way sit down for the graduation ceremony.

Organized by the par-ents of junior students, the arch girls receive letters requesting them to be a part of the cer-emony.

“The parent com-mittee gets together and selects responsible girls who represent all the groups,” said Jessie Holechek, a junior who will be participating in holding the arches this year.

FeaturesBullying: a continuing problem in schoolBy Lindsey LoJaconoReporter

A student experiences bullying on campus. Bullying oc-curs both on and off campus.

Keeping up with traditons

8th grade. Thurston Middle School. Ms. Sil-ver’s English class. 6th period. I was sitting in the front of the room, quietly doing my work. Out of no-where, I felt something hit my right shoulder. Giggles erupted in the back of the classroom.

Grabbing my shoulder in pain, I looked next to my seat to see what hit me: a black graphing calculator. I turned around to see who threw it, looking disgusted and trying to hold back my tears. A large group of boys burst out laughing.

“Whoever just threw that calculator needs to go apologize to Camille, NOW!” screamed Ms. Sil-ver. The culprit got up and walked over to my desk.

“Oh Camille I am SO sorry,” the kid said sarcas-tically, exaggerating his apology.

The kids in the back of the classroom continued to crack up while the rest of the class remained silent.

This event is what start-ed it all.

While my experience with bullying was not as in-tense as it could have been, it caused me much emo-tional distress that greatly affected me.

I continued to deal with bullying throughout my

freshman year. A few of the

bullies who were behind the calculator scheme were in my 1st period Health/World Geography class.

They would constantly pick on me: giggling at anything I would do, call-ing me “Cam Cam” in a joking way, making stupid comments or interrupting me with obnoxious noises in the middle of my presen-tations.

You’re probably think-

ing: “It’s not a big deal, they’re only joking.” But after giving me a pet name and singling me out in front of the entire class day after day after day, it started to take a huge toll on me emo-tionally.

It would always put

me in a horrible mood and made it hard to concentrate on my schoolwork. I told the bullies to stop harass-ing me, but that only led to mocking. I tried getting my teachers to intervene, but that didn’t stop the bullies, either.

Sometimes the taunt-ing would be so bad that I would burst into tears in the middle of class and sprint out the door, cell phone

in hand, and call my mom sobbing to have her come and pick me up because I was so upset.

I missed so much school that my grades started to plummet, all because of the immature acts of this group of bullies.

The bullying also con-tinued when I got home. I had several encounters on Facebook of kids trying to add me as a friend just to make fun of me, and even a photo of a monkey was posted with a caption that claimed I looked like it.

As I entered my sopho-more year, I thought the bullying would finally cease, but it didn’t. The name calling, ridiculous laughter, and singling out continued.

I became so depressed that I eventually started seeing a therapist to learn how to deal with the bullies and get myself back to the way I was.

It took several months of one-hour therapy ses-sions once a week to finally make myself feel better. Thankfully, the treatment worked and I was able to

recover and learn how to deal with the bullying. If it wasn’t for the therapy, I think I would still be emo-tionally distressed.

Seeing the recent news stories of bullying that has gone too far always upsets me. How can kids be so mean to each other for no reason?

Do they not care that they are leaving their victims so upset and self-conscious of themselves that it leads to their emotional death? Do they not care about how other people feel? It’s so unbelievable.

The moral of the story: treat others how you would want to be treated.

Sometimes you might not realize that you are bul-lying someone, but it is al-ways good to be aware of what you are doing.

Bullying does exist at our high school and so many people are unaware of it. I hope that I can one day help to fix this almost unnoticed problem and make it so that kids aren’t terrified to come to school because of who might tease them that day.

H o w c o u l d yo u b e s o h e a r t l e s s ?

It started to take a huge toll on

me emotionally

By Camille RingEntertainment Editor

“

”

For four years, students compete for the honor of valedictorian. Not only does this senior earn the ti-tle, but he or she also gets to wear a medallion and make a speech at the graduation commencement ceremony.

The class of 2010 is proud to name Robert Chew as its valedictorian.

“When I found out I was valedictorian, I was really surprised because there are so many extremely quali-fied students in our senior class. Being the valedicto-rian has been a really cool capstone to four years of

hard work at this school,” said Chew.

According to the LBHS student handbook, the stu-dent with the highest GPA in the class will be honored as valedictorian.

Similarly, the student with the second highest GPA will receive the honor of salutatorian.

“There could in fact be more than one valedictorian if they have the exact same ‘highest GPA’,” said Donna Todd, LBHS registrar.

Just as there can be more than one valedicto-rian, there can also be more than one salutatorian. Con-gratulations to salutatorians Andrew Shapero and Nick Brown for their accom-

plishments. “I have never really con-

cerned myself with rank-ings, but rather tried my hardest in all of my endeav-ors. It has been helpful that I have enjoyed all of the classes I have taken in high school,” said Brown.

Other honors include cum laude (GPA of 3.5-3.75), magna cum laude (3.75-3.99) and summa cum laude (4.0+) accord-ing to cumulative academic GPA through first semester senior year.

The seniors who earn these titles wear gold tas-sels over their caps and gowns. Those receiving summa cum laude also wear a cord.

“Throughout my four years here, I have had teach-ers that really inspired me to want to participate in their class,” said Chew. “I have never been the ‘stressed out, study all night for a test’ type, but when it came time to perform, I did my best because I wanted to. A good report card was never my goal—it just happened to result from the classes I had become invested in.”

Chew will be attending Pomona College, a liberal-arts college in Southern California and a member of The Claremont Colleges.

“Congratulations, Rob-ert,” said LBHS senior So-phia Patrico. “I can’t wait to go the Claremont Col-

leges with you next year.”Although obtaining this

distinction is a great honor to Chew, he declares that it was never his goal to be-come valedictorian; it was merely a result of talented teachers and interest in his work.

“I would hope that the underclassmen aren’t spending their limited time in this great place worrying about the title of valedicto-rian. I urge them to become involved here and have as much fun as possible. If they can connect with their teachers and become in-vested in their classes, then the success, and possibly the title, will come later,” said Chew.

By Kellie BensonEditor-in-Chief/Production Manager

Holding the honors of graduation

(Kellie Benson)

Sports12June 11, 2010

Despite his appendix bursting and a stress frac-ture in his shin, senior Blake Hofmeister was CIF runner-up in cross country and is ranked top 50 nationally in track and field.

“Running helps to clear my mind, teaches me to strive for my personal best, and takes persever-ance. And who doesn’t like running 8 laps around the track?” said Hofmeis-ter.

Besides overcoming tough obstacles, he does well holding on to friends and doing well in school.

“Tenacious, kind, daz-zling and titillated are words that I would use to describe Blake,” said senior and close friend,

Richard Mattingly.Many teachers, coach-

es, peers and adults can learn and draw inspiration from Hofmeister.

“Before this last year, Blake was like a lot of previous runners with a strong work ethic. For a while, we didn’t know about his appendix and after he had surgery, it was incredible to see what someone’s real ability is with desire and passion. He is the fastest runner since Eric Hulst in the 70s, so he is pretty amaz-ing,” said previous coach Dave Brobeck.

Hofmeister believes his proudest moment this year was winning state.

“Next year I am attend-ing Yale University. When I visited in November, I sensed a collaborative rather than competitive

environment,” said Hof-meister.

Family members ap-preciate the joy that Hof-meister exhibits in all he does.

“I see Blake as gradu-ated from college and do-ing whatever makes him happy,” said Hofmeister’s mother, Maggie Hofmeis-ter.

While Hofmeister’s work has certainly paid off, he remains humble and appreciative of those who have played mean-ingful roles in his jour-ney.

“I would like to thank cross-country coach Dave Brobeck and track coach Steve Lalim for their dedi-cation to the team despite their busy lives and famil-ial obligations,” said Hof-meister.

On Saturday, May 15, twenty-four talented and dedicated Laguna Beach High School athletes load-ed onto a charter bus early in the morning and headed up to Carpinteria High School to compete against numerous schools for the Division Four California Intra Scholastic Founda-tion Championships. These select athletes had been training all season for this one final meet, aiming for a personal record and hoping to qualify for state.

“I liked CIF because it

brought me together with different parts of the track team that I didn’t normally associate with. I’m a jump-er and I hung out with dis-tance the whole time. The whole thing was a blast, and I had the time of my life,” said senior and long jump finalist, Sabina Sey-ster.

Athletes from about fifty schools attended the CIF fi-nals this year, aggressively competing for their places at the next level.

“I enjoyed how we got to compete against a lot of different schools rath-er than just with the five schools in our league,” said

sophomore and one hun-dred meter sprinter, Marisa Merchant.

With qualifying stan-dards met, the nine com-petitors with the top times

moved on to the Divisional Preliminaries with the hope to carry on to state.

“CIF was great because I could compete against many athletes to know

where I stand, and it also gives me knowledge of what I need to accomplish to be the best,” said junior and nine-year high jump fi-nalist, Christianne Kinder.

This experience has shaped the athletes into top condition so that they can take on any event with complete confidence in the future.

“CIF challenged my potential, and I got better times by drafting off the best girls who were not only in my division but also in division two, when we were combined for the two mile race,” said sopho-more and distance final-

ist, Natasha Strickland, who also holds the double school record for the two-mile.

The girls who qualified for CIF contributed to the win against Costa Mesa to get there. Track had not claimed a victory under the CIF preliminaries in forty years, and on May 6, they managed not only to suc-ceed in winning the first place title, but also in crush-ing the other schools by over twenty points. Thanks to persistent coaches and willing athletes, this year’s track team has risen above all expectations and fought for the first place win.

By Lauren MontgomerryReporter

Track runners jump, dash and throw for gold

By Nile Koegel News Editor

Sporty seniors become Ivy League big ballers

The application, the anticipation, the building suspense. And finally, the release of held breath: Ad-mission.

As the seniors’ year comes to a close, they hope to receive letters of accep-tance from eager colleges opening their perennial doors to new students. La-

guna Beach is fortunate to have a total of five students heading to Ivy League schools and Ivy equiva-lents: Lexie Ross for Water Polo and Nicholas Brown for Merit (Stanford), Aus-tin Giangoruso (Princeton), Blake Hofmeister for Run-ning (Yale), and Alexander Rieckhoff for Volleyball (Brown).

“These are the toughest schools to get into,” said

12th grade counselor Jeff Bockert.

Indeed, top-tier schools such as Stanford often only accept about 9% of all ap-plicants, according to web-site admissionsconsultants.com.

“When I found out that I was accepted to Stanford, I was absolutely ecstatic,” said senior Nick Brown, who plans to major in Bio-mechanical Engineering,

along with Business or Spanish.

For students, what the school has to offer, as well as its atmosphere and its culture, are factors in choosing the school.

“I think my work ethic will help me to fit in. I look forward to showcasing my individuality at a school where no one is afraid of being different,” said senior Lexie Ross, who will be

studying Human Biology and well as playing water polo at Stanford.

Like Ross, Hofmeister is drawn to the athletics as well as the academics that await.

“I will offer the school my problem-solving abili-ties and running talent [Ö] I’m confident in coach Ireland’s abilities, and the team’s successes are a tes-tament to his knowledge,”

said Hofmeister, who will study Mechanical Engi-neering and run distance at Yale.

Despite the prowess of these schools, these gradu-ating seniors feel up to the challenge.

“I think that I will fit right in at Stanford. Ev-eryone that I have met up there is just as passionate and driven as I am,” said Brown.

Most children start walking at age two. For 12th grader and profes-sional snowboarder Bryn Valaika, that’s when she starting skiing.

“I lived in Telluride, Colorado. Instead of P.E., they had everyone on the snow,” said Valaika.

While her peers would miss school because of family situations or sick-ness, Bryn was marked absent as she traveled the world to snowboard.

“My favorite part about it is that as much as I’m gone and missing school, I am able to see so many amazing places and have gained a better understand-ing of different places,” said Valaika.

Bryn always looks for

something more in her ap-proach to the sport.

“Snowboarding also provides me with the abil-ity to work on tricks and challenge myself physi-cally as well as mentally,” said Valaika.

Friends would consider Valaika sassy, intelligent, adventurous, caring and especially driven.

“My brother and I have always had a sibling ri-valry type deal so anything he liked to do I had to start doing and compete with him in,” said Valaika.

The majority of students just plan on going to a col-lege after high school and finding what they want to do in life.

“Every time I turn around, she is off to some obscure corner of the world. Unpredictable,” said friend and fellow se-

nior Parker Yamasaki.Even though Valaika’s

snowboarding allows her to visit new destinations, she always loves being close to home.

“I travel basically all winter and am able to see hundreds of amazing places. This year I got to go to Austria where we got to ride neck deep snow, which was epic, but Mam-moth continues to be my favorite place to ride,” said Valaika.

Valaika is sponsored by GNU, Volcom, Nike, 6.0, Mimi’s Cookie Bar, Oak-ley and Active Ride Shop.

“I have won a couple of contests, but recently I have been more into going on editorial photo shoots for magazines such as Transworld Snowboarding and Snowboarder Maga-zine,” said Valaika.

Senior athletes: from Vail to YaleBy Savannah MillerReporter

By Gerry ArtmanSports Editor

Bryn Valaika

Masha GoncharovaKellie BensonNile Koegel

Kendall KleinbergNusheen Goshtasbi

Camille RingGerry ArtmanBryan PhamGreta MartinKarina Reiss

Savannah MillerMiche Rudnick

Editor-in-Chief/Managing EditorEditor-in-Chief/Production Manager

News EditorFeatures EditorOpinions Editor

Entertainment EditorSports/Health Editor

Photo EditorPublic Relations Manager

Health EditorWeb Manager

Business Manager

Anissa RodriguezMackenzi Baldridge

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The Staff Box

Blake Hofmeister

Junior Natasha Strickland leads the pack and senior McKenna Nokes follows close behind in a race. The cross country team won several accolades this year.

(Steve Howard)