Issue 849 Thursday, December 12, 2013

Supported by readers of the Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News

WINTER TALES

READERS WRITE,

PAGES 6-8.

REINDEER GAMES,

PAGES 4-5.

STAR CATCHING

FIRE, PAGE 3.

Yak chatHoliday happenings are

in the D! Have you been out ice-skating yet? The rink at downtown’s Campus Martius is now open. Check out lots of events happening there before the holidays at campusmartiuspark.org.

It’s also time for Winter Tales. The Yak has had fun over the last couple of weeks, opening his mailbag full of winter stories. Today, enjoy some of our favorites on Pages 6, 7 and 8. Come back next week for more!

Winter is a wonderful time to head to the movies, and the big screen has lots to offer right now, including the sequel to “Hunger Games,” called “Catching Fire.” We talk with a rising star, Willow Shields, who plays the younger sister of Katniss, on Page 3.

Who’s Santa without his reindeer? The Yak takes a trip to a reindeer farm in Michigan, Pages 4 and 5.

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Printed by: The Detroit Media Partnership Sterling Heights, Michigan, Fall 2013.

• Yakking About the News, Page 2.

Also Inside:

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Artwork by Jake Wood, 11, Larson Middle School, Troy

Yakking about the newsA weekly wrap-up for young readers

On the cover:

Dino Discovery

It’s been awhile since the Yak has shared some dinosaur news and this is a big one. In a recent issue of the journal Nature Communications, and reported in the media, scientists from the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and the Field Museum in Chicago reported that there was a dinosaur that roamed what is now part of the western U.S. 100 millions year ago. The dinosaur was two-legged and probably weighed more than 4 tons, reported the journal.

Panda NamedThe little panda that is thriving at the National

Zoo in Washington, D.C., now has a name – Bao Bao. The name, said the Washington Post, means treasure or precious. This month, Chinese diplomats and Smithsonian staff announced the naming, chosen in an online vote. It was a global selection, with more than 123,000 votes from all over the world.

Stamp for Muggles?Muggles, the word for ordinary people in the

Harry Potter series, can have stamps with a little J.K. Rowling magic to them to send their holiday – or anytime – mail. The U.S. Postal Service has new “Forever” stamps showing Harry Potter’s images. The USPS partnered with Warner Bros. for the stamps. “We are delighted to work with Warner Bros. on the release of these stamps,” said Postal Service Chief Marketing and Sales Officer Nagisa Manabe in a press statement. This has been an excellent partnership as we celebrate this fantastic movie franchise.” However, not everyone is wild about the Harry stamps. The Washington Post says a group called the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee, usually consulted by the postmaster general on new stamp images, was not consulted about the Potter stamps. Some have complained about the image – by a British author – not fitting for a Forever stamp because it is not of American origin. What do you think? The Yak wonders if a sorting hat is needed to help next time!

Word of 2013What was the word of the year? Oxford

declared it “selfie,” the word used for those self-portraits people take on their cell phones.

Compiled by Cathy Collison

AP Photo/Courtesy of the Field MuseumHere is an illustrated image of a dinosaur that likely roamed what is now Utah.

Photo Courtesy of the U.S. Postal ServiceOne of the new Harry Potter stamps.

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A Career Catching Fire

Willow Shields’ career is heating up in a hurry. In fact, you could say the 13-year-old actress’ career is

on fire. That’s because she’s in the hottest movie of the season, “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.” The movie had a blockbuster opening last month with an estimated $161.1 million in ticket sales. We caught up with Willow in early November by phone as she waited at the Dallas airport to catch a flight overseas to London to promote the film.

Willow plays the role of Primrose Everdeen, or Prim, the little sister of Katniss Everdeen, played by superstar Jennifer Lawrence. Willow’s role was a small one in the first film, but she has much more screen time in the “Hunger Games” sequel.

“My character, Prim, has grown up quite a bit from the first movie,” says Willow, adding that Prim is finding success as a healer. “She’s a really sweet character” to play and “I have some cool scenes.”

Willow says she feels very lucky to be part of “The Hunger Games” movie franchise, based on the bestselling trilogy by Suzanne Collins, because it’s been a great learning experience – and a lot of fun. In addition to learning by watching other accomplished actors on set, including Donald Sutherland, Willow says Jennifer Lawrence was always joking around on set and saying funny things.

Willow was 10 when she landed a role in the first film, so she was just discovering the “Hunger Games” series. “Actually, I was in the middle of reading the first book when I got the part,” says Willow. She turned 11 while filming the first movie and had a lunchtime party on set with two birthday cakes – one for Willow, and one for actress Paula Malcomson, who plays her mom in the movie, and also shares her birthday.

The Power of Suggestion Willow, who was born in Albuquerque,

New Mexico – and still lives there – got

into acting about five years ago almost by accident. There is a lot of film and television production in New Mexico, and someone saw Willow and her twin sister, Autumn, and told the girls they should be actresses. “It was really just a random person on the street,” says Willow, but the sisters took that advice and decided to audition for some locally advertised roles. Willow’s first job was a voice-over (speaking but not seen) part on a short film. But soon she was in front of the camera, landing TV roles and a spot in the Hallmark movie, “Beyond the Blackboard.”

“The Hunger Games” was Willow’s first movie on the big screen, and now with the movie sequel, Willow’s career is sure to be red hot. Already, she has been on the cover of “Seventeen” magazine. What’s next? After enjoying the holidays with her family, she is looking forward to getting back to

work on the next “Hunger Games” movie in the New Year.

By Janis Campbell

FAST FACTSBirthday: June 1.Home Life: Willow and her family

live in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She has a twin sister, Autumn, and brother, River, 16 (both actors, too). The family has four dogs and a cat.

School: Willow and her twin have always been home-schooled. Her brother attends a regular school. Her favorite subject is English because she enjoys reading and writing.

Activities: She takes dance lessons, including ballet, hip-hop and modern, plus gymnastics.

Photo by Keith CottonWillow Shields, 13, stars as Prim Everdeen in “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.”

A Michigan Home Where Reindeer Roam

Do Santa Claus’s reindeer have the run of the house? Probably not – and Mrs. Claus probably doesn’t bottle-feed

the babies, either. Carol Borton does both at her reindeer

ranch in Kalamazoo. She takes newborn reindeer into her warm and cozy house 24 hours after they’re born, then hand feeds them for four months.

So let’s call her Christmas Carol. We can’t resist because that’s what Carol is – a self-created Santa’s helper, transporting her reindeer around the state to spread holiday cheer.

“I have the largest herd in Michigan,” Carol said proudly in an interview late last month at her ranch. She was wearing a reindeer sweatshirt, of course.

Carol has had seven reindeer houseguests. The babies live indoors “almost completely” for a week and “pretty much roam the whole house.” Don’t things get messy? Not really, Carol said. “I lay two rows of carpet protector on the floor by the couch, then I put blankets over the top. That’s where they tend to urinate and it doesn’t get into the carpet.”

RAISING REINDEER“Oh, it’s fun!” she said. “I just love it. I’ll fall

asleep on the couch and one will climb up, snuggle next to me, and fall asleep, too.”

Don’t you wish you had a pet reindeer? We sure did! But reindeer are a lot of work, and Carol and her husband, Gary, had to learn a lot about the species to take care of

them properly. Right now, they have 14 reindeer – and no,

there’s no Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen or Rudolph.

“When they’re on display, then we have a Prancer,” said Carol, laughing. She and Gary will display the herd at 20 holiday events across Michigan this season, though none in the Detroit area. They have two bulls, Bob and Tank. The adult females are Lisa, Nancy, Millie, Oreo, Loosey, Montana, Sissy, Sandy,

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F I E L D T R I P

Photo by Patricia ChargotThese are a few of the Carol and Gary Borton’s 14 reindeer. Reindeer don’t like to be alone. They like to hang out together.

The names of Santa’s original eight reindeer can be found in an 1823 poem, “The Night Before Christmas.” Rudolph first appeared in a 1939 story, which

inspired the song, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.”

Barbie, Peanut, and Buttercup.“I’m going to show you my little

munchkin,” said Carol, leading us to an outdoor pen to meet her 14th reindeer, Red, a male. Red is six months old and the cutest, sweetest little guy ever. He loves being petted. But he and Buttercup were soon to be sold to a deer farm in Nebraska. “They have a lot of displays this year, so they need more reindeer,” Carol explained. “They got their whole herd from my farm.”

Carol’s interest in reindeer began in 1998. She and Gary had gone to Quebec, Canada to hunt caribou for her 30th birthday. They didn’t get a caribou, but on the way home met a man at the airport from Traverse City who raised reindeer. Carol started thinking about buying more animals for her farm – she and Gary already had horses and cows. But she “wanted something different.”

The next summer, she and Gary visited the Traverse reindeer farm and another reindeer farm down the road. At the second farm, the owner had a reindeer on a lead rope, and while he and Carol were talking, “he handed me the lead and that was it,” Carol recalled. She was smitten! She wanted her own reindeer.

REINDEER GAMESBut she wanted them to be as tame,

or friendly and calm, as possible. So she decided to bottle-feed the babies, “which most people don’t do because it takes too much effort,” she said.

The babies end up bonding with the herd as well as with their human keepers, which makes caring for them a lot easier. They also

behave better at holiday events. They’re all different, Carol said. Bulls can be prickly, and some females are shy and standoffish. “But some are sweet. They’ll come up and lay their head on you like they want a hug.”

They do not like strong, unfamiliar smells. Once at a display, a woman walked up to a bull, saying, “I just want to give him a kiss.” She was wearing a lot of perfume. “The reindeer stuck his nose through the fence, went ‘choo!’ and snot shot everywhere – not massive amounts but enough to get her wet.”

Reindeer are “really intelligent and learn things really quick,” Carol said. “You can put them in a harness to pull a sleigh (for the first time) and they’ll just dig in and start pulling.”

They also like to “put sticks in their mouths all the time and roll them around in circles.” Mainly, they like being with each other, eating grass and catching rays on nice days. “They’re herding animals and don’t like to be alone,” Carol said. “They like to be together. When they lie down, they lie down together.”

Just don’t underestimate them. Two big black labs once did, breaching the fence of a pen to stalk a female reindeer. “She just hurled them in two different directions,” Carol said. “They couldn’t get out of there fast enough.”

By Patricia Chargot

IF YOU GO: Carol and Gary’s ranch will be open noon to 4 p.m. Dec. 21. Go to reindeerranch.ws for directions. To see reindeer closer to home, visit Wayne County’s Festival of Lights from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Dec. 16. The reindeer will be at the end of the drive-through show next to Santa’s Shelter.

Reindeer were introduced to Alaska from Siberia to 1892 to ease hunger among the Native Alaskans. The food shortage was created by the whaling

industry, which decimated the local populations of marine mammals, the Native Alaskans’ main source of food.

5MICHIGAN K.I.D.S. | WWW.DNIE.COM Thursday, December 12, 2013

Meet Carol’s newest “little munchkin,” Red, a six-month-old male.

Photos by Patricia ChargotA visitor pets Red, the farm’s youngest reindeer.

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Winter TalesWelcome to our annual December

Winter Tales by Yak’s Corner readers.Thanks to all of you who filled the

Yak’s mailbag with stories and art. Today’s tales come from Detroit, Dearborn Heights and Troy. Enjoy some of our favorites! Come back on December 19 for more!

– Cathy Collison

A Weird Christmas EveBy Reginald Alexander, 7th Grade,

Carver S.T.E.M. Academy, Detroit

One snowy Christmas Eve, a boy named Will was excited that it was December 24th. He couldn’t wait to get his Christmas presents. He thought about what he might get: things like new toys, games and clothes. He couldn’t stop thinking about it. To get his mind off of things, he had to do something fun. He thought he should go outside. He asked his mom if he could go outside but she

said the temperature was too low and he might catch a cold. It was only 32 degrees! When his mom left the room, Will went out the back door without permission. He made a few snow angels, snowmen and tons of snowballs.

Then Will heard a peep. It was a talking snowman! Will was shocked. “Who are you?” Will asked. “I am the snowman you built. ”

Will’s mom saw that it was time for lunch. She called for Will. She didn’t hear him and began to look around the house. Will’s feet started getting cold and he decided to go inside. He told the snowman he had to go in. Will ran inside for hot chocolate and warmth. The snowman was at the fireplace! Will was surprised and asked, “What do you want, snowman?” “I want to be your friend.” the snowman replied. “Well, okay,” Will said. “But, don’t get caught!” They became friends. Will fed the snowman and took care of him until he heard his mom coming into the living room. “Oh, no!” Will told the snowman to disguise himself. He disguised himself as a picture. “There you are,” said Will’s

mom. She wanted him to come and have lunch. They went into the kitchen. By the time Will got back to the living room and found the snowman had melted by the fireplace. “Oh, man!” Will said. But, he thought to himself, he could always make one on the next cold and snowy day.

Hot Cocoa To The RescueBy Hussein Hachern, 3rd grade,

Kinloch Elementary, Dearborn Heights

Once there was a boy named Hussein. He and his brother Mahdi watched the news. There was going to be eight feet of snow! They went to sleep and then they woke up and looked out the window and just saw white snow! So they screamed, “Snow!” Suddenly, from outside, a snow monster came alive. Mahdi and Hussein needed to fight the snow monster so they put on their jackets, their red gloves and snow boots. Then they made hot cocoa and spilled in on him!

He melted. Mahdi and Hussein saved the world.

Artwork by Jessica McEachern, 11, Troy Artwork by Chelsea Rosenberg, Troy

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Jeremy’s Red HatBy Naomi Cook, 13, Henry Ford Academy: School for

Creative Studies, Detroit

Winter was approaching and young Jeremy Pickens planned on having a fun “hatless” winter. But every morning once he had finished eating his breakfast cereal his mom would say, “Now Jeremy, before you leave the house put on your hat.” Jeremy disliked his hat very much. He would always wonder what mother of the past invented such a peculiar head garment.

Every morning it was the same. Jeremy would wake up at 6 a.m. and wash his face, then get dressed. He would eat breakfast and when he went to kiss his mom “goodbye” she would take his hat out of his coat pocket and slip it on his head. She would then say, “Now Jeremy, I thought I told you that when you leave the house you have to put on your hat.” Jeremy would frown and then pull the hat off of his head. It was bright red and when he put it on it would cover his eyes. Reluctantly, Jeremy would say, “Yes, Mom” and put the hat back on his head. His mom would then smile and tell him that she loved him and to have a great day as he ran out the front door.

When Jeremy got on the school bus, he would take his hat off again; he didn’t want to be the only kid wearing a hat. As he sat down next to his friend Lana, he noticed that her nose was red and so were the noses of everybody else on the bus. Jeremy didn’t know why everyone had a red nose, but after a few minutes he remembered what a great lunch his mom had packed and began to show Lana what was inside his lunch box.

Later at recess, Mrs. Walker, Jeremy’s first-grade teacher reminded the class that it was cold out and to put on their hats. It seemed that only one or two kids ran to get their hats, while the rest

of the class ran outside and started to play in the snow. Jeremy wasn’t sure what to do. Should he put on his hat or just go play with is hatless friends? Then he heard Lana call him, “Come on, Jeremy, we’re going to play Snowman Tag!” Now he had never heard of such a game, but felt excited to learn how to play. In his excitement, Jeremy totally forgot about his hat and ran outside to play with his friends. While he was playing he fell in the snow a few times – his hair got soaking wet with melted snow – and every once in a while he would sneeze, and so would his hatless friends.

By the time Jeremy got home, he wasn’t feeling so well. He reached into his pocket and felt something very warm and soft. It comforted his freezing hands. Jeremy pulled it out of his pocket and rubbed it on his face. It was delightfully warm; he then set it atop his head. It was his hat, the bright red hat that he

hadn’t worn all day. At that moment his mom opened the door. “How was your day honey?” his mother asked. Jeremy sneezed and his mother replied, “You didn’t wear your hat, did you? Well come on inside, I’ll make you some cocoa.” Jeremy knew he should have worn his hat and as he walked past the mirror in his living room, he saw he had a bright red nose. “Oh!” he said to himself, “I should have worn my hat.” Achhoooooooo!

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Rudy and the Skating RinkBy Mikiya Hamilton, 7th grade,

Carver S.T.E.M. Academy, Detroit

Rudy woke up very excited one Saturday morning. She hurried and did her chores and ran down to her father’s office. “Dad, can we please go ice skating?” said Rudy.

Her dad asked if she was sure she wanted to go. Rudy had been trying to skate since she was nine years old. She thought about it for a minute and said, “Yeah.”

Rudy went outside to practice. She saw her best friend Michael taking out the trash. They waved. Rudy looked at the ice and took a deep breath. She closed her eyes and started skating slowly. She fell. When she got up she tried again and she fell. This time she closed her eyes and tried again. Her dad came out of the house and watched as she continued to practice. He was so proud of her. When she finished, she opened her eyes and saw her dad. He was smiling. He was so proud of her. Rudy was overjoyed. She skated over to him and he gave her a big hug. “I wish mom were here,” said Rudy. “Me, too,” Dad said. They got in the car and drove to the ice arena later that night. There were lots of people on the ice. Rudy was breathing hard, she was nervous. “It’s going to be OK,” Dad said.

Rudy put on her skates and went out onto the ice. She skated slowly for a moment and then stopped and kissed her necklace that her mom had given her. After she did that, she started skating fast past people. She stepped into the

middle of the rink and started to spin really fast. Everyone was really surprised and happy. Rudy’s dad was extremely proud of her. She stopped spinning and smiled. Everyone clapped and cheered. Rudy kept smiling so hard that her cheeks felt like they would fall off. She rushed over to her dad and said, “Did you see me out there?” He said, “Yes, and I’ll never forget it.” They hugged again and had fun skating the whole night.

Christmas MiracleBy Julia Fry, 11, Larson Middle School, Troy

When all was quiet on Christmas Eve, the little girl was in her bed dreaming her dad would get out of the hospital. He had been there for four weeks and all she wanted for Christmas was for her dad to get better. When she woke up, she smelled the sweet delicious waffles, her grandma was making for her. When she crept out of her room, she could see the Christmas tree light up the hallway. Her grandma was watching her because her mom died two years ago from a heart attack. When she got to the family room, she saw the little red ornaments from her mom three years ago. She saw all the presents under the tree some with bows, some with ribbon and one that said “From Dad.” She hurried up and opened it, still with a waffle in her mouth. In the tiny box, there was a charm bracelet. The little girl was so happy, she wore it everywhere! When she went to the hospital to thank her dad, she was so happy to see him. The next day, she lost her bracelet. She was so upset. She couldn’t get over it for a week. The next week, her dad came home and the little girl was thrilled to see him. Her dad had a surprise for her. A little box that said “From Dad” on it. She opened the box and it has a charm bracelet. Her dad told her she left it in the hospital. It was a Christmas miracle.

Artwork by Allen Pinjic, 11, Troy

Artwork by Ashley Weinberg, 11, Troy