The Bear Facts
Good morning! I'm Jessica Richter!
And I'm Brandon Donahe! You're listening to the "Bear Facts". Happy New Year from all of us at Bishop Garrigan High School.
Tomorrow is a very special day for Garrigan senior Mike Reel. He will receive a special court of honor for achieving the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America. Mike has earned twenty-six merit badges. He has participated in the Order of the Arrow and in an eleven-day backpacking expedition. For his Eagle service project, Mike created a special outdoor meditation area at St. Cecelia's Church. Mike is the second Eagle in the Garrigan Class of '99. He joins fellow senior Doug Besch in achieving Scouting's most distinguished honor.
Mike also received another very distinguished honor this winter--an appointment to the United States Naval Academy. Both Senator Charles Grassley and Representative Tom Latham approved Mike's appointment to Anapolis. Mike has been interested in the military for a lon time. He would like to be a military pilot, and he hopes is career path might eventually lead him to NASA. Congratulations to Mike on these accomplishments.
We also offer congratulations to Garrigan senior Doug Besch. Doug is the first Garrigan student ever to win the district award in the Voice of Democracy competition. In the Voice of Democracy competition, students compete with a taped radio address on a patriotic theme. Doug won a free trip to Des Moines, where he will be one of only ten students who will compete for the national award. Congratulations, Doug!
Several Garrigan sports fans have coined a new catch phrase: "There's no 'I' in 'team', but there is an 'I' in 'Phil'!" That rather strange motto supports Phil Kramer, the lone member of the Golden Bear wrestling team. After getting his first career pins earlier this season, Phil has gone on to defeat several other opponents. Just this week he defeated all three of the wrestlers he faced in Emmetsburg to bring more victory to the school. His next match is today at Estherville. Keep it up, Phil--and keep those opponents down on the mat!
The Golden Bear quiz bowl team is battling the cold this morning as they head down to Eagle Grove for some mind-numbing competition. Those competing today feature seniors Rachel Studer, Andrew Brunsen, and Mark Anderson, as well as juniors Jen Reinhart, Louie Bode, and Wade MacDonald. The core of the team is made up of sophomores, including Ellie Reising, Lynn Kohlhaas, Ben Lickteig, and Scott McGuire; as well as Paul Loebach, Chris Missal, Justin Froehlich, and Brooke Buscherfeld. Freshmen Rebecca McGuire, Adam Rahm, and Bob Brandenburg will also be strong contributers to the team. Good luck to everyone on the quiz bowl team!
It's time once again for the activity that for some Garrigan students is what they wait for all year long--intramural basketball. Registrations are way up this year. Sixty-one boys signed up for intramurals, or almost exactly half of all the guys in school. That means more people are out for intramurals than participated in any of the "real" sports at school. Intramurals sometimes look like a cross between a basketball game and a circus, but they're always a fun time.
Student Council sponsors intramurals. The teams get together every Sunday afternoon to play. There are no "time outs" in intramurals; the clock runs continuously for four eight-minute quarters. In most games everyone plays full-out from the start of the game to the end. Most games are fairly low-scoring, but there's always the occasional triple-digit blow-out. While things are generally looser than in ordinary basketball, varsity players are always on hand to referee the games. Their whistles help to keep things in line when it starts to get a little rough.
The two most experienced teams are officially known as "Team C" and "Team E", but everyone at school calls them the Stus and the Fire Ants. Jay Servantez is the captain of Team C, and his teammates are fellow seniors Justin Roethler, Todd Vaske, Matt Buscher, Paul Richter, Mark Anderson, Jake Sutter, and Brad Servantez. Team E is headed up by senior Joe Lucas, but his teammates are mostly juniors. They include Chris Weir, Jason Geving, Ed Elbert, Bryan McAlpine, Eric Eischen, Sam Lickteig, and P.J. Vaske. We'll keep you updated on how these and all the other teams do as the season progresses.
Normally at this point in our show we have our Senior Spotlight, but we're going to start out 1999 by saluting someone who's not even officially a senior. Here to tell you who we're talking about is Louie Bode.
There are four exchange students at BGHS this yar. One is returning for her second year in Iowa, and two are here for the whole year. Simone Adler, though, will be leaving Garrigan next week. She's officially a junior, and she comes to Algona from Germany. Simone spent the past four and a half months with sophomore Angie Kohlhaas and her family.
In the short time she's been at Garrigan, Simone has certainly made a name for herself. Her biggest accomplishment is probably shattering the girls' cross-country records and finishing in the top 20 at the state cross-country meet. Simone also enjoys music, and her excellent English skills have made it easy for the rest of us to get to know her. After she finishes her semester tests at Garrigan, Simone will be heading back to Europe to cram for her college entrance exams. We'll miss you, Simone, but we wish you all the best back in Germany!
Thanks, Louie! On the Golden Bear calendar this week, there's quiz bowl today at Eagle Grove. This afternoon Phil Kramer wrestles at Estherville. Tomorrow and Monday Abby Rahm and Josh Kohlhaas will be at the Dorian Music Festival at Luther College in Decorah.
Also tomorrow, intramurals begin. The action starts at 12:45 in the Garrigan gym. Then on Monday there's JV hoops, with the Bears travelling to West Bend/Mallard.
Wednesday is the first day of semester tests. We'll have a special schedule, where students only need to be at school during their exams.
Wednesday noon the sophomore class will be treated to lunch at Godfather's as a reward for finishing in first place during last fall's magazine drive. That night the freshman basketball team travels to Emmetsburg.
Thursday semester tests continue. At lunch that day the juniors will enjoy Subway party subs as another reward from the magazine drive.
Next Friday we're finally done with exam week. That night the Bears host Humboldt for a basketball quad. The Youth Council will be hosting a taco supper during the games.
That's our first "Bear Facts" for 1999. Thanks for tuning in, and be sure to listen up next week when we'll be bringing you more news from Bishop Garrigan High School.
