CULTURE CLASH

Above: Giacomo Dughiero clowns around during lunch on the senior deck with friends Griffin Kennington, left, Maddie Best, Steven White, Jordan Welsh, Spence Howell, and Charlie Waddingham. Right: Dughiero jokingly points to items in what he calls “The Italian Survival Kit.”

By MIRANDA BARRETTEditor-In-Chief

Bear The

VOLUME 16, ISSUE NO. 3 • DECEMBER 14, 2012 www.sjbearfacts.com • SAINT JOSEPH CATHOLIC SCHOOLFacts

MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR

INSIDE THISEDITION

n St. Joe students speak out, A2

n Fall semester exam schedule, A6

n Cheerleading not as easy as it looks, B1

Visit The Bear Facts Onlinewww.sjbearfacts.com

Giacomo Dughiero, this year’s Italian foreign ex-change student, is a senior

at St. Joe who enjoys gymnastics, playing piano and listening to Salmo – his favorite Italian artist.

Dughiero also is known for his sig-nature tumbling routines during St. Joe pep rallies. He is originally from Pa-dova, Italy, near Venice. He became in-volved in the exchange student program through his family.

“I got involved because my cousin came here five years ago, attended St. Joe in 2006-2007 and lived with the same family,” Dughiero said. “That's why I chose to come to Mississippi.”

Dughiero is living with Eddie, Becky and Emma Adkins. Becky Adkins works in the St. Joe Office of Advance-ment, and Emma is in the seventh grade.

Although Dughiero chose to visit here, he was surprised by the differenc-es between the United States and Italy.

“We have a lot of buses, and we walk everywhere,” he said. “Nothing is spread out like it is here. We don't have to drive all the time.”

School in Italy is different, too. Dughiero said, “our schools are harder. We have oral tests every day in every subject, and we don't get to choose our

classes. We have 13 grades instead of 12, and seniors don’t get privileges like they do here.”

Also, Italian schools grade on an 85- point scale instead of 100. Students are required to make at least a 65, the equiv-alent of an 80 here, to pass their classes.

School may be tougher in Italy, but Dughiero still finds time for his many hobbies. He has been a gymnast since he was 5 years old; has played soccer for 10 years; and has played piano for 12 years. He also spends summers teaching people to sail.

Dughiero has many talents and a lot of determination to keep up with so many activities. However, he has not yet de-cided what he wants to do after school.

“I don’t know yet,” he said. “I may want to study medicine in college.”

For now, Dughiero looks forward to his time in the United States. He has joined the St. Joe soccer team and was one of the “Bleacher Creatures” – stu-dents who show spirit by painting them-

selves for football games. He also is dating St. Joe

junior Mary Zuniga; the two attended Homecoming 2012 together.

Dughiero asked Zuniga to the Homecoming dance at the first football game of the season by writing signs that the cheerleaders held up during the game. In Italy, there aren’t dances like there are in the United States.

“I’ve never done any-thing like that before,” Dughiero said.

But Homecoming isn’t the only impressive thing Dughiero has done.

“He asked me out in the cutest way,” Zuniga said. “I got a call from someone’s number that was saved as ‘Will you be my girlfriend?’ I answered and he told me to go outside. He was stand-ing outside my house in the rain.”

St. Joe students have a lot to say about the new exchange student.

Junior Bailey Brilley of Jackson said he thinks Dughiero “lights up the school atmosphere while giving students a more global world view.”

Zuniga said, “One reason I think people like him so much is that he is so See Culture Clash, Page A8

After spending his life in Padova, Italy, Giacomo Dughiero suddenly finds himself thousands of miles from home attending a small Catholic

school in Madison – and right in the middle of a major...

sweet and friendly with everyone.”Dughiero had special visitors recently

when his mother and cousin traveled from Italy to see him; his cousin, a St. Joe alumna, also celebrated her five-year reunion at Homecoming.

His family visited the school, came to the Homecoming pep rally, attended

St. Joseph Catholic School students and faculty celebrated the Christmas season with the annual “Gifts of the Season” program in the Fine Arts The-ater on Saturday and Sunday.

The event featured performances by the school band, the choir and the St. Joe dancers. Performers sang seasonal songs, such as “Mr. Grinch,” “Carol of the Bells,” “Silent Night” and more.

Ronny Russell, the St. Joe band direc-tor, added new touches to the program this year. Russell directed the program for the ninth straight year.

“I am mostly looking forward to pre-senting a very enjoyable and fun pro-gram for everyone to come and watch,” Russell said before the performances.

Angel Espino, a 10th grader and first-year member of the choir, said he was looking forward to seeing the choir’s hard work pay off in a successful Christ-mas program.

He said before the show that he “was very nervous about my first perfor-mance because I could miss a note or forget my lines.”

Several students had solos this year. Sophomore Andrew Morgan gave a heartwarming performance of “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.” Morgan was nervous to perform his solo.

“I had to work hard to get the solo, and I hope I did it well,” he said. “Ev-eryone seemed to enjoy the show.”

Senior Kylan Toohey, who is always a hit at musical performances, wowed the audience with “The Christmas Song.”

“It was a bit difficult to move around the stage with my ankle broken,” she said. “But I don’t think it affected my singing. I loved getting to sing and get everyone into the Christmas spirit.”

Another highlight of “Gifts of the Season” was Matt Hosler, St. Joe’s Latin teacher,and the dancers performing “Mr. Grinch.” Hosler’s performance excited the audience.

The senior song was also a memo-rable performance.

“I’ve always seen the seniors perform every year, and I couldn’t wait until I got to perform,” said senior Anna Brad-shaw. “It was so special to sing with all the senior band and choir members at ‘Gifts of the Season.’ It’s hard to believe that we’re graduating soon. I’m glad I got to spend this time with my musical friends.”

The strings group also performed “Viva la Vida” by Coldplay, among other songs.

“The concert was so much work, but I had fun wowing the crowd with my vio-lin,” said sophomore Sarah Miller. “Re-ally, everyone worked so hard to make it come together.”

At the end of the show, the audience was surprised by snow falling from the ceiling. It was a happy ending to the Christmas concert, and no one expected the snow.

Every year the band, choir, dancers and teachers come together to make a wonderful and memorable show for the whole school.

“I’m so glad that we can come to-gether and celebrate Christ’s birth at St. Joe,” Morgan said. “It’s such a special time. I really can’t wait for next year’s show.”

‘Gifts of the Season’ createsmemorableWonderland

By MIRANDA BARRETT and WHITNEY WILLOUGHBY

Staff Writers

Photos by Miranda Barrett

Photo by Miranda Barrett/The Bear FactsRonnie Russell, the band director at St. Joseph Catholic School, conducts the school band at the annual “Gifts of the Season” holiday program on campus. For more photos from the event, see page A8.

“One reason I think people like him so much is that he is

so sweet and friendly with everyone.”

-Mary Zuniga“It was so special to sing with all the senior band and choir members at ‘Gifts of

the Season.’”

-Anna Bradshaw

Opinion & EditorialsDECEMBER 14, 2012A2

Merry Christmas - make sure to relax and spread the love

Gifts of the Season: a smashing success for the St. Joe Fine Arts Program

The Bear Facts

Miranda Barrett • Teryn YazdaniEditors

Matthew McKinleyWeb Site Editor

Terry R. Cassreino, Faculty AdvisorKeith Barnes, Principal

ReportersHalle Anderson

Jack ButtsRachel Divine

Searcy FoxNathan GiebVictor Griffin

Matthew HarkeyLondon HattenNick HembreeJack Hoffman

Mary Claire LogueJacquelyn Massey

ReportersSam Osborne

Bria PaigeOlivia PostSara Powell

Rachel ReddixKathryn SckietsElisabeth Scott

Milena SebuktekinMaggie Smith

Ian VandevenderJordan Welsh

Whitney Willoughby

The Bear Facts, the official student newspaper of St. Joseph Catholic School, is published at least once each quarter of the school year. This newspaper is devoted to the interests of the

student body, faculty, parents, alumni and community of St. Joseph. This paper’s purpose is to reflect the spirit of St. Joseph Catholic

School, keep the school community informed and help promote the school’s Christian values.

All stories and photographs are copyright © 2012 by The Bear Facts and St. Joseph Catholic School.

Reproduction and unauthorized use of any article, photograph or graphic in this newspaper is prohibited without explicit written

consent in advance. Contact The Bear Facts, P.O. Box 2027, Madison, MS 39130-2927.

Our View

although I don’t play any instru-ments, I love sitting back and hearing my friends show their musical talents.

“Gifts of the Season” this year was a bittersweet time. I

loved listening to the familiar performances, especially the famous crowd favorite “Carol of the Bells.” I also enjoyed hearing new numbers, such as “Mr. Grinch” by Mr. Hosler and the dancers. But during “The Prayer,” performed by Mr. Rus-sell and Loden Snell, I suddenly realized that this was the last time I would be attending “Gifts of the Season” as a student.

I thought back to all the years performing on stage, stressing over performances and hearing

The month of October brought an explosion of pink to the St. Joe campus. Football players wore pink socks, shoelaces and undershirts to

the games; cheerleaders wore pink bows and jackets; and signs around school were decorated with pink glitter.

But the pink invasion was for more than Breast Cancer Awareness Month. October became personal when St. Joe senior Alex Cosmich and his sisters, sophomores Sophia and Isabelle Cosmich, chose to host a “Powder Puff Football” game in honor of their mother – who is fighting breast cancer.

St. Joe’s response was immediate and supportive. Teams were formed for the tournament, and teachers gathered donations in decorative buckets.

Over the years, we have seen St. Joe support many different causes. “Scary for Carrie,” a Halloween tradition to support Carrie Maniscalco, brings in a lot of money and fun costumes. But St. Joe students never forget that the true meaning of fundraisers is to help someone in need, not just to gain fun activities for themselves.

Dance Marathon is an annual fundraiser started by former St. Joe student Christina Lawrence to benefit the Blair E. Batson Hospital for Children. The event has raised more than $23,000 for the hospital. Students spend hours planning the event and raising money, not to mention dressing in crazy costumes to represent their teams. The eight-hour fundraiser involves standing on your feet for kids who can’t. The next Dance Marathon is May 3, 2013.

Invisible Children also has gained popularity. Representatives of the organization have visited St. Joe to help bring awareness to kidnapped children in Africa. James Patin, a senior at St. Joe, saw a cause that needed help. He expanded his efforts this year by adding a committee of dedicated St. Joe students.

Earlier in the year, seventh graders proved their power by winning the St. Vincent de Paul food drive. Everyone donated canned goods for a good-natured competition.

Juniors and seniors participated in a service day, in which they helped organizations across metropolitan Jackson. Among other things, students visited Little Lighthouse, a day care for mentally handicapped children. The sense of fulfillment and love gained is something students will never forget.

St. Joe has proven time and again to be a caring and generous school. The number of charities supported reflects the school’s Christian values, determination and competitive spirit.

We look forward to seeing how the school responds to the next challenge. We have no doubt students and teachers will come together as always and help any good cause that comes their way.

Showing the spirit of love and charity

The Students’ Poll

MIRANDA BARRETTEditor

Fidel Bello, 15, a ninth-grader: “Getting out of school and spending time with my family.”

Emmanuel Sullivan, 17, an 11th-grader: “Time off of school, to be honest.”

Francis Hill, 13, a seventh-grader: “Going to my grandmother’s house to eat good food.”

Shelby Doiron, 14, an eighth-grader: “Spending time with my family and the gifts.”

DaJour Evans, 15, a 10th-grader: “I like getting gifts.”

Victor Griffin, 17, a 12th-grader: “My favorite part is getting presents.”

The most won-

derful time of the year is upon us, my friends, and this means that the world is a happy song filled with gifts, scarves, and a plethora of multicolored lights.

I, for one, look forward to the upcoming break during which I will spend my days basking in front of my Netflix account catching up on my “Break-ing Bad,” “Doctor Who,” and “Downtown Abbey.”

As for you, my fellow Bruins, I hope that you make the most of this break by spending time with your beloved friends and families.

Take part in special holiday traditions. Find the pickle on your Christmas tree. Wake up at the break of dawn to run down your stairs in excitement for

the annual gift opening. Go to midnight Mass. Do anything that will make your holiday celebra-tions unique and special to you.

Christmas is a time of reliving childhood memories and Christ-mas recollections of the past. It is a time when your family and your community come together in peace and harmony.

This time of the year is also a time to give back. There is so much to do for ourselves some-times that it seems we can hardly focus on anything else.

If there is one thing St. Joe has taught me in my years here, it is the lesson of doing for others in times of need.

So, my message to you in this short, but poignant column, is to simply spread the cheer. Let those whom you love know that you love them and leave every encounter with no regrets.

P.S. Remember to drink lots of eggnog.

I myself have never had it ,but I hear it is rather kicking – and remember to roast those chest-nuts over that open fire. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the Bear Facts!

Last weekend, when I at-tended the “Gifts of the Season” concert, I was

overjoyed to see my friends – who are all involved in the fine arts, perform at their last Christmas concert.

Ever since elementary school, I have come to see St. Joseph performances. I have always admired the talent and work that goes into the fine arts at St. Joe.

This is what inspired me to want to be involved in the-ater when I arrived here. And

my band and choir friends worry about their concerts – even though everything always turned out fine. It’s funny to look back and smile at all the times we’ve had together in the Fine Arts building.

“Gifts of the Season” this year reminded me of how short senior year is. While it is very stressful, especially looking for colleges, it is a good time to sit back, relax and recognize all of the good times you’ve had over the years here.

Special to The Bear FactsSeniors Kathryn Sckiets, Teryn Yazdani, Miranda Barrett, Kylan Toohey, and Denise Baran celebrate their last Christmas concert, the 2012 edition of “Gifts of the Season.”

Photo by Miranda Barrett/The Bear FactsSarah Maher, Andrew Morgan and Teryn Yazdani celebrate Christmas during the “Gifts of the Season” program in the St. Joseph Fine Arts Building.

Christmas and the two-week Christmas vacation are literally days away. With that in mind, eighth-graders Morgan Sellers and Kaitlyn Watson, contributors to The Bear Facts, asked students at St. Joseph Catholic School what was their most favorite part of Christmas and the Christmas season. Here is what some of them said:

With the semester exams set for next week, Sellers and Watson asked students what is the most challenging aspect of semester exams, Here is what some of them said:

Chris Hanneke, 17, an 11th-grader: “The studying and the actual exam itself.”

Enrique Amaro, 12, a seventh-grader: “Studying and trying to remember what you have learned in the past.”

Luci Strong, 14, a ninth-grader: “Knowing what to review and what not to review.”

Matthew McKinley, 17, a 12th-grader: “Dedicating large amounts of time to studying non-stop.”

TERYN YAZDANIEditor

Bruin NewsA3DECEMBER 14, 2012

St. Joe checkmate

Photo by Miranda Barrett/The Bear FactsLatin teacher Matt Hosler and Spanish teacher Emily Lazor battle for the best language club.

St. Joseph’s foreign language clubs held their first meetings of the year, chose new club officers, prepared for upcoming events and renewed a long-standing ri-valry between the organizations.

They continue to grow larger every year, attracting members from several grade levels.

Every club has activities and regular meetings, which help students stay involved and learn more about foreign countries and their languages.

Even though the Spanish Club has held one meeting, Emily Lazor, the faculty sponsor, said plans are to hold meetings for the club officers every other week. A general meeting for members will take place once or twice a month.

The Spanish Club’s main goal this year: Provide service for oth-ers.

Mary Reagan Baladi, a senior at St. Joe and president of the club, is in charge of the club’s service project.

The club will help tutor His-panic children of Canton who are still facing the challenges of working with the English lan-guage.

The Spanish Club will design a T-shirt for members next spring. Club members also plan to mark several holidays as they did with Dia de los Muertos, Nov. 1-2; Our Lady of Guadalupe, Dec. 12; and Fiesta de Navidad, Christ-mas day.

“There is no rivalry because Spanish club is the best. There really is no comparison,” Lazor said.

In Latin Club, Matt Hosler, a St. Joe Latin, Mythology, and ACT prep teacher, goes by the

name of Magister Hosler. Latin Club meetings take place every Tuesday after school in room CCCIV, which is the Roman Nu-meral for Room 304.

The Latin Club Senate is the name of the club’s council which makes all decisions.

Hosler said the Senate is de-bating club T-shirt designs. Once the decision has been made on the shirt design, every mem-ber of the Latin Club will be eli-gible to buy one.

Hosler’s one word to describe the Latin Club – “primus,” a Latin word that means first and the best. “Latin is the originator,” Hosler said.

“French and Spanish are but pale echoes of an already perfect language. Also, there is a fish in Latin Club, Primus piscis.”

French Club meetings are held to plan events. They, too, have held their first meeting and elect-ed officers. Senior Searcy Fox is serving as president.

A big competition is brewing within the French club. Members are drawing T-shirt ideas for the club. Club officers will vote on the ideas; the winner will receive a free T-shirt. As of now, the club has two T-shirt entries in the competition.

The biggest and most well-known holiday celebrated in the French club is Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras is celebrated in February or March. King cake will be served and a party will be held for all members of the French club.

When asked about the rivalry Bobbi Naylor, the St. Joe French teacher and club sponsor, said, “There is no rivalry; we all serve our own purposes.”

Naylor also said the one word used to describe the French club would be “amusant,” which means fun in French.

For members of the St. Joseph Catholic School Chess Club, after-school chess matches often turn into epic duels.

But the club’s 12 members would have it no other way.

“I have enjoyed chess since the third grade,” said Caleb Bowan, a junior at St. Joe and co-captain of the club. “I learned how to play in a gifted studies program called Pathways.”

The club has 12 members, nine boys and three girls, who participate consistently in the or-ganization.

Club members believe each chess game is a challenge and requires a lot of thinking. The members have fun playing chess with each other after school, but they say competitive chess is a whole different story.

Matt Hosler, the chess coach

and St. Joe’s Latin teacher, stated he didn’t play chess at all when he was in high school. But when he went to college, he was intro-duced to the game.

“My roommate and I would

have epic chess battles,” Hosler said.

“Chess is fun yet challenging at the same time,” he said.

Most club members have been

playing chess for several years. Besides Bowan, junior Stewart Inman of Madison also serves as co-captain of the club. The two captains have been playing chess competitively for four consecu-tive years.

The chess members practice every Wednesday and Friday af-ter school in Hosler’s classroom. They attend and participate in about two to three tournaments a year. The chess club’s first tour-nament of the year was Oct. 26 in Jackson.

Although the chess club mem-bers believe chess may be some-what challenging, they believe it is also very fun and a great way to get to know people.

The chess club believes that in the game of chess, players must have a creative mind to master the game. “The game of chess takes just a few minutes to learn, but a lifetime to truly master,” Hosler said.

“The game of chess takes just a few minutes to learn, but a

lifetime to truly master.”

– Matthew Hosler

By MARY CLAIRE LOGUEStall Writer

By RACHEL REDDIXStaff Writer

Battle forthe best languageHere are details about

the St. Joseph Catholic School Chess Club

n The club: The St. Joe Chess Club

n Meetings: Wednesday and Friday, 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

n To join: Attend a meeting or speak with Matt Hosler, the chess coach

CHESS CLUB

Polk’s Drugs

118 East Main StreetFlorence

(601) 845-8610

Bruin NewsDECEMBER 14, 2012A4

NEWS | SPORTS | OPINION | PHOTOS MULTIMEDIA

It’s all here atTHE BEAR FACTS

ONLINEGo to: www.sjbearfacts.com

The Dating Game: Then and NowAbby Quitzau had just started

teaching eighth-grade religion at St. Joseph when she realized she needed a password to access the school’s computer network.

So, she did what she thought made perfect sense. She asked Aaron Reller, a second-year Spanish teacher whom she ran into. The conversation, though, led to a relationship that today finds the two engaged to be mar-ried this summer.

“She is my No. 1 fan, and I am hers,” Reller said recently.

Reller and Quitzau are one ex-ample of how innocent conver-sation between two people can cause a spark that leads to dating and, possibly, a long-standing relationship. It happens every day to people everywhere in the world.

The circumstances may be dif-ferent. The details may not be the same. But the outcome can often be similar – even at a place

like St. Joseph Catholic School, home to more than 400 students in grades 7 through 12.

Brantley Bariola and Mack-inzie Riley, both ninth graders, have been dating after a year of being good friends. Bariola slightly blushed and smiled when he talked about the way he asked Riley out for the first time at youth group.

Last summer, the two kept up with new music for each other to listen to. One night at youth group, Bariola listened to a song – this, after Riley kept reminding him for weeks to do so. The song inspired Bariola to ask her out.

For Jack Hoffman and Lucy Kennington, their experience began differently. The two St. Joe juniors have been dating for more than seven months.

Hoffman and Kennington spent one rainy weekend day watching a Tom Hanks comedy when the two officially decided to go out.

“He asked me to be his girl-friend on a rainy day when we were watching the classic movie

‘Big,’” Kennington said. “He said, ‘When are we going to make it Facebook official?’ I re-plied, ‘When are you going to ask me?’

Many people believe that dating has changed because of technology and the way people

communicate on a day-to-day basis. Others, though, say dating has remained the same. Rachael Kenyon, the theater teacher, said dating has always caused major drama.

“I wasn’t allowed to date un-til I turned 16,” she said. “Thank God, too. I was too young and had no idea about what I really wanted.”

Kenyon said, “dating in high

school was more about social status in high school that led to too much drama and confusion. It was not dating for what dating is really for.”

Barbara Mustain, a sopho-more religion teacher at St. Joe, said she believes dating in high

school should be nothing but fun. She encourages group dating,

in which students go out with a group of people instead of being alone – a perfect way to avoid awkward moments.

Emily Lazor, a Spanish and religion teacher at St. Joe, said, “society tells us a lot of things about this, but often times they're against what would truly make us happy in the long run. I think that often times people feel pressure to date just for the sake of dating someone, but this can be hurtful in the long run.”

Reller said he believes dating means spending time with some-one you enjoy.

He believes that it “gets messy” after that because you then have to decide whether your

relationship is exclusive.Aja Hyde and William Lind-

sey, both seniors at St. Joe, said they believe that dating is too serious in this generation of high schoolers. Hyde’s exact words were “we are young.”

Amanda Weissinger, an Eng-lish teacher at St. Joe, talked about her years in high school and where she and her boyfriend would go on dates.

“We would go to the movies, bowling, picnics out at the Res-ervoir, parties, football games and the fifth quarter dances af-terwards,” she said. “We hung out at the Reservoir parks a lot.”

Weissinger also said that before she could date in ninth grade, her parents required her boyfriend to come over for din-ner and a movie with her and her family.

Weissinger thought of this as a bit of an embarrassing moment.

Conversation between couples didn’t rely on the Internet or tex-ting years ago.

Relationships were built on face-to-face meetings, which were limited to either school or a visit at home. Reller said dating has changed through the methods in which couples communicate.

When it’s time to go on that first date boys and girls had spe-cific expectations they needed to meet.

Kenyon talked about her opin-ion on the expectations for the

night: the boy was expected to act very respectful. She also liked the saying “if you can’t do it in front of your parents it’s not okay.”

Kenyon also said that the plac-es couples go now are about the same as she did when she was in high school. They would go to the movies, parties, the Res-ervoir, and dinner if they were being really fancy.

Mustang said that in her youth, girls never called a guy – adding that boys would think lowly of a girl who called him first.

“When a boy finally asked a girl on a date”, Mustang said, “the boys paid for everything.”

Kennington said that still hap-pens with her today; she said Hoffman also covers the bill whenever they go on a date. On their first date, they went mud riding and then to Tico’s for din-ner.

Lazor gave this advice: “As young people, our No. 1 goal should be to, first, become the person than God has intended us to be, and then to figure out how dating would fit into this in a good way.”

Reller offered his own simple words of advice for students that are dating in high school, “Good looks are only skin deep. Don’t be careless with people’s hearts. And don’t let them be careless with yours.”

“Don’t be careless with people’s hearts. And don’t let them be careless

with yours.”-Aaron Reller

By HALLE ANDERSONStaff Writer

Special to The Bear FactsSt. Joseph juniors Jack Hoffman and Lucy Kennington have fun at a football game.

Special to The Bear FactsSt. Joe ninth-graders Mackenzie Riley and Brantley Bariola enjoy each other’s company.

Bruin NewsA5DECEMBER 14, 2012

is APROUD SPONSOR

OF ST. JOSEPH

CATHOLIC SCHOOL

go bruins!

At least one St. Joseph Catho-lic School teacher uses a unique method to encourage students to support the poor and underprivi-leged: He bakes and prepares homemade cookies for students who help others.

Brother John Brennan is an 11th grade religion and 12th grade government teacher at St. Joe who bakes cookies for his students if they raise a certain amount of money.

“The students really enjoy the cookies and enjoy raising mon-ey to help out other families,” Brennan said.

Brennan became interested in baking from watching his moth-

Brother John cookiesbring Christmas cheer

er. His mother loved baking and baked cookies all the time. As his mother aged, he took over the job and started baking himself.

When his mother moved into a nursing home, he baked for her, other patients, his father and oth-er families in South Jackson and Canton.

The amount of money the stu-dents must raise to earn cookies depends on their class size.

If students are in a small class, they must raise $50. If the class is big, they must raise $100.

Brennan’s students love his cookies. Katherine Mangialardi, a junior from Madison, said, “I never would have thought of a better to raise money for the poor, and it is very fun and exciting.”

Brennan started the process 14 years ago by baking cookies for other people and for his relatives.

Then, he started baking them for his students.

“The cookies taste delicious. All of my classmates enjoy them. I think it is great way to encour-age students wanting to donate money to help out,” said Abbie DuPont of Madison, a junior from St. Joe.

Brennan bakes chocolate chip, white chocolate and “integrated” cookies which include both dark and white chocolate.

Brennan has also used this de-licious fundraiser to raise money to take many children to the Mis-sissippi State Fair.

Brennan says he enjoys mak-ing cookies and his students would not have it any other way. It makes his students happy and it is for a good cause.

By OLIVIA POSTStaff Writer

Holiday baking is a common activity around the Christmas season; most people want a quick-and-easy treat that every-one enjoys and is mess free.

Christmas is a festive and joy-ful time of year. People bake several recipes to keep spirits bright during the holiday season. St. Joe sophomore Isabelle Cos-mich said she loves baking over the Christmas break “because it’s fun and I give the treats as gifts.”

Chef Paula Dean has one of the fastest recipes for Christmas peppermint bark. It is an easy five-step process. Dean’s fa-mous peppermint bark is perfect for the holiday season. The red

and white candy cane pieces in the white chocolate give it a fes-tive feel.

The best thing about this reci-pe is that you can make it in only a matter of minutes.

Step one: The first ingredient you need is candy canes. Take the candy canes and place them in a plastic bag and pound them into tiny chunks. You will need 1 cup of the candy cane pieces.

Step two: Melt 2 pounds of the chocolate of your choice in a mi-crowave. You can use white, milk or dark chocolate. Dean uses white chocolate in her recipe.

Step three: Pour the crushed peppermint into the melted choc-olate. Stir until everything it is mixed evenly throughout the bat-ter.

Step four: Pour the mixture onto wax paper on a cookie sheet

Fun recipe to spice the winter season

and sprinkle the remaining candy cane pieces on the top for deco-ration.

Step Five: Place it in the re-frigerator and let it solidify for about 45 minutes.

After the chocolate has hard-ened again, break up the choco-late into smaller more bite size pieces. Then the dessert is com-plete.

Sophomore Blythe Summers said, “Peppermint bark is so easy to make and it tastes good.” Summers also said, “My favorite part was the white chocolate.”

Cosmich said, “This is the per-fect holiday recipe to give people because it’s yummy and looks cute and festive.” Most people look for easy and eye-catching desserts to give as gifts over the holiday and that is exactly what peppermint bark is.

By MARY CLAIRE LOGUEStaff Writer

Bruin NewsDECEMBER 14, 2012A6

CURRIE JOHNSONGRIFFIN GAINES & MYERS, P.A.

ATTORNEYS AT LAW

SUPPORTS THE BEAR FACTS

1044 River Oaks DriveFlowood, MS 39232

Phone: 601-969-1010

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St. Joe junior Whitley Pannell is leading the way with the cre-ation of a team designed to com-pete in staging mock trials.

High school mock trial is a competition-based activity where high school teams from different schools across the United States take on the roles of lawyers and witnesses to create an authentic trial. Students are given either a criminal or civil case and are to prepare an entire case for com-petition.

Mock trial season begins in

St. Joe junior Bailey Brilley was elected lieutenant governor at the 2012 session of the Mis-sissippi Youth Legislature – cap-ping a successful trip for the school’s 18-member delegation to the four-day conference.

Brilley and freshman Ben Payne were named Outstanding Representative; junior Whitley Pannell was named Outstanding Senator; and senior Sam Miller was named Most Outstanding Lobbyist.

Brilley said the program is worth the time and effort.

early January of next year. Af-ter a series of regional and state competitions, eligible teams ad-vance to the national mock trial competition – which will be held in Indianapolis May 9-11, 2013.

“I want to be a lawyer. And when I heard and read about mock trial in a magazine, I thought it would be a great way to start learning about the law and the legal system” Pannell said.

The team members of the 2012-2013 mock trial team are Bailey Brilley, Noah Greene, Dominic Indest, Bria Paige, Whitley Pan-nell, James Patin, and Ben Payne.

The team will be led by Pannell along with two coaches, Shaunte’ Washington, the assistant district attorney for Hinds County, and Mr. Joe Hemleben.

Mock Trial requires knowl-edge about the law and how the legal system works. The compet-ing teams have to create strong cases to present to the courts that include an opening statement, cross examination questions, and closing statements.

Team member, freshman Noah Greene, said, “I am looking for-ward to better understanding how the law works while still compet-ing on a competitive level.”

In a round, two teams compete at a time – one team prosecuting and one team defending.

During these mock trial com-petition rounds, actual judges from around the community serve as the presiding judges and lawyers evaluate and judge the two team’s performance to pick a winner.

Pannell said, “I hope that we learn a lot about the legal sys-tem. We are not focused on win-ning this year, although winning would be nice. We will focus on winning and nationals next year.”

Whitley Pannell starts Mock Trial

Bailey Brilley elected Lt. Governor“I get to talk all day,” he said.

“I learn about government. And I get to meet some amazing people. Youth Leg is something nearly everyone should experi-ence once.”

From Nov. 7-10, more than 400 students from up to 15 high schools across Mississippi par-ticipated in Youth Legislature, a mock legislative session de-signed to teach teenagers about government and the legislative process. Delegates also elect of-ficers for next year’s session.

Brilley, who participated in Youth Legislature last year, will now help run the program for the 2013 session.

Youth Leg delegates stayed at the Marriott in downtown Jack-

son. During the length of the conference, delegates debate and pass legislation in House and Senate committees as well as in full House and full Senate floor debates.

The night before the confer-ence ends, students attend a Gov-ernor’s Banquet – where candi-dates running for office speak. The session ends the next day with an awards ceremony, where certain students are honored for their outstanding work and par-ticipation during the session.

St. Joe’s delegation includ-ed freshmen Payne and David Bradshaw; sophomores Buddy Paul Martin, Jack Oldstad, Zach Smith and Grant LaFleur; juniors Brilley, Pannell, Pace McDonald,

Charlie LeDoux and Karson Nel-son; and seniors Miller, Victor Griffin, Spence Howell and Wil-liam Fetherson.

The partnerships of Bradshaw and Payne and Brilley and Pan-nell both presented bills that were passed into law. Bradshaw and Payne’s bill proposed equal funding for all public schools based on the number of students in attendance.

Brilley and Pannell’s bill pro-posed the institution of a task force to reimburse survivors of the Mississippi Eugenics Move-ment. The movement was a state-run and state-funded program that allowed sterilizations of cer-tain individuals because of bad genetic history.

n Monday, Dec. 17Full day of classesAll classes, Periods A-H, will meetLunch will be served

n Tuesday, Dec. 187:45 a.m.: Warning bell7:55 a.m. - 8:50 a.m.: Study Hall8:55 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.: Exam Period A10:15 a.m. - 10:35 a.m.: Break10:40 a.m. - Noon: Exam Period E12:05 p.m.: Dismissal, lunch will not be served2 p.m.: School offices close, After School Care ends

n Wednesday, Dec. 197:45 a.m.: Warning bell7:55 a.m. - 8:50 a.m.: Study Hall8:55 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.: Exam Period B10:15 a.m. - 10:35 a.m.: Break10:40 a.m. - Noon: Exam Period D12:05 p.m.: Dismissal, lunch will not be served2 p.m.: School offices close, After School Care ends

n Thursday, Dec. 207:45 a.m.: Warning bell7:55 a.m. - 8:50 a.m.: Study Hall8:55 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.: Exam Period C10:15 a.m. - 10:35 a.m.: Break10:40 a.m. - Noon: Exam Period G12:05 p.m.: Dismissal, lunch will not be served2 p.m.: School offices close, After School Care ends

n Friday, Dec. 217:45 a.m.: Warning bell7:55 a.m. - 8:50 a.m.: Study Hall8:55 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.: Exam Period F10:15 a.m. - 10:35 a.m.: Break10:40 a.m. - Noon: Exam Period H12:05 p.m.: Dismissal, lunch will not be served2 p.m.: School offices close, After School Care ends

n Christmas BreakWeek of Dec. 24: No classes, school offices closedWeek of Dec. 31: No classes, school offices closedMonday, Jan. 7: Classes resume with Period A

FALL EXAM SCHEDULE

By MAGGIE SMITHStaff Writer

By BRIA PAIGEStaff Writer

Photo by Ben Payne/Special to The Bear FactsJunior Bailey Brilley gives a speech at Youth Legislature,

proving himself the best choice for lieutenant governor.

EntertainmentA7DECEMBER 14, 2012

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St. Joseph Catholic School

An international publishing sensation, Yann Martel’s fanta-sy adventure novel “Life of Pi” is one that can be found on the bookshelves of many St. Joseph students because they are re-quired to read the book for 10th grade English.

Now, readers of the book can see the story brought to life on the big screen. Two-time Acade-my Award-winning director Ang Lee has adapted “Life of Pi” into a major motion picture, which can be seen in dazzling 3D.

For those unfamiliar with the story, “Life of Pi” is the journey of a teenage boy, Pi Patel, who has been raised in India in a zoo run by his family. A Hindu by birth, Pi also practices Islam and Christianity, striving to simply love God.

On Saturday Dec. 1, popu-lar Christian singer Matt Maher performed at St. Joseph Catholic School for the second time this year.

This time, it was a major event. The Knights of Columbus provided food while students listened to a student band, The Simple Gulls. The Simple Gulls are made up of Nick Maloney, Loden Snell, and Gene Loper.

The food was good and the atmosphere was enjoyable, while we listened to the cheesy jokes

When his family crosses the Pacific Ocean on a Japanese car-go ship traveling to Canada, the ship sinks and Pi finds himself alone in a lifeboat with a hyena, an orangutan, a zebra, and an adult Bengal tiger. “Life of Pi” masterfully tells Pi’s story as he uses his cleverness and spiritual-ity to survive.

For some time, Martel’s novel was thought to be “unfilmable” until Lee took on the task of film-ing the beloved story. Due to the dramatic plot twist at the end, those who have not read the book are advised not to see the movie.

True fans of the book, howev-er, will not be disappointed. “Life of Pi” is a brilliant and beautiful adaptation.

The essence of the film con-sists of Pi stranded at sea with only the company of the tiger

– known as Richard Parker – as he struggles to keep himself alive. As tedious as this might sound, Lee’s innovative direction sweeps one away so that the time easily flies by.

The tiger, composed of CGI, looks startlingly real, especially in 3D. But as ground-breaking as the film is, one must not forget its major theme, which is the power of storytelling. This theme is es-pecially heightened by the talent of newcomer Suraj Sharma, who plays Pi.

He portrays both the highs and lows of his character’s voy-age with complete believability and passion. In such moments as when he mourns the death of his family, he adds a touching real-ism to the mind-bending tale.

Overall, “Life of Pi” is a skill-fully made film, one that proves to be as exhilarating to the soul as to the eyes.

and covers songs by the Simple Gulls.

The doors opened to the con-cert at 7 p.m., but people were lined up 30 minutes earlier. The people were entertaining them-selves waiting for the doors to open.

At 7, people flooded into the auditorium trying to get the best seats. It was entertaining watch-ing hundreds of people run to seats just to get back up two sec-onds later to buy T-shirts.

When the concert started, Kylan Toohey opened with two songs. She sang great and it was wonderful to see the support of her fellow students.

When Matt Maher walked out, ear piercing shrieks filled the room. It was so exciting finally seeing him.

He sang a couple Christmas songs and some songs from his albums. Everybody was singing and dancing, so it was fun.

Then a speaker, Paul George, came out. He was funny so it was enjoyable, while also inspi-rational.

When Adoration began ev-eryone got quiet. It was a great Adoration because everyone was reverent.

I was sad when the concert was over because it was so much fun.

Matt Maher concert returns to St. Joe

‘Life of Pi’ worth a trip to theaters

“The Life of Pi” is now playing at area theaters.

By KATHRYN SCKIETSStaff Writer

By RACHEL DIVINEStaff Writer

FILM REVIEW

Bruin NewsDECEMBER 14, 2012A8

Culture Clash, from page A1school Mass, and stayed for 12 days.

“Giacomo’s mom was so sweet,” Zuniga said.

Dughiero plans to stay in Mis-sissippi until the end of the school year. He will walk at graduation with the class of 2013, but will

not get his diploma until he fin-ishes school back in Italy.

The St. Joe student body is ex-cited to have such an interesting and friendly exchange student this year, and wishes Giacomo the best as he spends his year in America.

Photos are special to The Bear FactsIn the photo on the left, Giacomo Dughiero, an exchange student from Padova, Italy, hugs his “sister,” Emma, after swim practice. In the photo above, Dughiero displays his soccer skills. Dughiero, a senior, plans to return to Italy after he complete his year as a senior at St. Joseph Catholic School.

‘Gifts of the Season’

Photo by Miranda Barrett/The Bear FactsMatt Hosler, St. Joseph’s Latin teacher, performs high kicks with the dancers during the song “You’re a Mean One Mr. Grinch” during the 2012 edition of “Gifts of the Season.” The production was staged Saturday and Sunday at St. Joseph Catholic School.

Photo by Miranda Barrett/The Bear FactsRonnie Russell directs the student band in “Winter Wonderland” as snow falls during the concert.

Photo by Miranda Barrett/The Bear Facts Senior Kylan Toohey belts out a note while performing “The Christmas Song.”

www.sjbearfacts.com • ST. JOSEPH CATHOLIC SCHOOL Bruin Sports

NBA trainer coaches varsity basketballWhen the St.

Joe basketball team opened the season last month, the Bruins were led by a new coach – Nick Stamps, a former National Basketball Association trainer.

Stamps took over for former Coach Keith Barnes, now the school principal. Stamps, a Mississippi native, is a former St. Joe student who left the school when it moved from Jackson to Madison. Stamps finished high school in Clinton.

“The reason I have come back to coach is because I went to school here and I’m really close with Coach Barnes. He was my actual first high school bas-ketball coach at St. Joe,” he said.

Stamps graduated from Clinton High School and attended Tallahassee Com-munity College in Florida on a basket-ball scholarship.

He played there for two years before transferring to Louisiana Tech Univer-

B1 • DECEMBER 14, 2012

Three teen-age girls gently lift

a fourth and use all their strength to toss her high into the air as students and football fans feverishly cheer St. Joe football players.

The girls, members of the St. Joseph Catholic School cheerleading team, make the stunt look like a lot of fun and easy to do. But that and other acrobatic routines they perform every week at pep rallies and football games require a lot of hard work and hours of dedication.

“Cheer isn’t really hard, but it isn’t easy,” said Taylor McBeath, a freshman member of the cheerleading squad. “It’s just a big responsibility and effort. To be a cheerleader you have the responsibil-ity to cheer your team on, and also to be a role model for your team and school.”

Eighteen girls make up the St. Joe cheerleading team. Cheerleaders form the basic support group for school ath-letics and activities. Cheerleading re-quires commitment, dedication, athleti-cism and more work than many people may think.

Cheering requires talent. In order to make the team, any interested girls have to sign up and try out for a spot on the squad. Before tryouts, students partici-pate in “cheer clinic,” where they are taught one dance routine and two cheers. In just one week, they must master ev-erything taught and be ready to perform in front of a group of judges.

The lucky ones win a spot on the team – and then begin the hard, gruel-ing work.

Cheerleading is an organized sport. Cheerleaders must learn dance routines and cheers by a specific deadline, and

It’s not as easy as it looks

Friday Nov. 9 marked the end of pos-sibly the best season in St. Joe football history when the Bruins lost a heart-breaker to the 2011 state runner-up: the East Marion Eagles.

The Eagles led almost the entire game as they scored a field goal in the second quarter and maintained a 3-0 lead all the way into the final quarter. The Bru-ins were deter-mined, though, as they gathered momentum and strung together a critical drive. William Fether-son scored a touchdown with just over eight minutes remain-ing to take the lead, 7-3.

The defensive struggle continued as St. Joe forced the Eagles to punt the ball away. Once the Bruins had the ball, they tried to run the clock out but were unable to chew up all of the remaining time.

This gave East Marion one final shot – and the team drove down the field con-verting on long plays and a big fourth down. On their last offensive play, the Eagles scored the game-winning touch-down with 6 seconds remaining.

St. Joe was unable to take the kickoff back for a touchdown and fell for the first time this season to the East Marion Eagles by a score of 10-7. The Bruins ended the season with a record of 12 wins and 1 loss – this coming after the school’s first undefeated regular season run in 40 years.

“Our guys fought and fought all year long,” said Coach Flip Godfrey. “This loss definitely hurts, but we went down swinging. I couldn’t be more proud of what our guys accomplished this sea-son.”

Even though the Bruins had their eyes set on a state championship, this was not by any stretch of the imagination a disappointing year. They did something that hadn’t been done in four decades, which was go undefeated in the regular season.

By JACK BUTTSSports Editor

Bruins finish historic season

This year’s Egg Bowl was

one of the most hyped in a long time because both teams brought in talent and no one was sure who was going to come away with the win.

Being a Mississippi State fan, I was all hyped up about us having eight wins – but wasn’t sure exactly what Ole Miss

Ole Miss wanted this year’s Egg Bowl more than State

By LONDON HATTENStaff Writer

Photo By Sara Powell/The Bear FactsJacquelyn Massey, a junior at St. Joseph Catholic School, leads a cheer during a Bruin football game while being held by Elisabeth Scott, left, Mary Wheatley and Shelby Willoughby. Massey and other cheerleaders practice extensively before attempting new routines at home football games.

brought to the table.There was arguing all week back and

forth between both fan bases talking about all the great players that they had. The game really could have gone either way.

Once the game began, Ole Miss grabbed the lead quickly. But Mis-sissippi State tied it up even quicker. Early in the second quarter, the State team looked like it was dominating and was going to run away with the game for a fourth straight season.

Ole Miss fought back, though, and tied the game at 17 by halftime.

In the second half though, the Rebels

came out and blew State away. Ole Miss seemed unstoppable.

I think that the coaching had a lot to do with what went on that Saturday night in Oxford. Ole Miss was prepared as best they could be, and it showed on the field.

Mississippi State, on the other hand, wasn’t. The team looked lost on both sides of the ball. I believe their coaches just told them it was going to be easy like the last few years, and they wouldn’t have to earn it.

I could tell that this was probably the case because in the second half Ole Miss out-scored State 24-7, and

it wasn’t pretty. The play calling was another thing that upset most people.

Nick Griffin and Josh Robinson are Mississippi State’s two biggest running backs, and they barely played any of the game. Because of this, State couldn’t run the ball. And because of that, State had a difficult time throwing the ball as well.

If State would have given the ball to those two backs a lot more, they might have been able to keep up with Ole Miss on offense because the defense obviously had no hope. They were just not prepared for what hit them.

The biggest reason for such a blow-

out score in this game was one thing, though: Ole Miss wanted it more. They were tired of hearing all of the State fans and players telling them this is our state.

They got fed up with it. And with the right coaching, they were able to prove a lot of people wrong. It was almost the exact opposite of three years ago when State wasn’t supposed to win but they came into the game with better coaching and way more desire.

Jack Butts, a senior at St. Joseph Catholic School, is the sports editor for The Bear Facts.

JACK BUTTS

St. Joe cheerleaders practice countless hours each week – all in an effort to support school athletes and excite rabid fans

See Bruin football, Page B8See cheerleaders, Page B8

n Cheerleader safety, more photos, B8

By MATTHEW HARKEYStaff Writer

sity on a scholarship, where he finished his last two years of college eligibility.

Jack Olstad, a sophomore who played power forward last year, said he likes the new coach. “I haven’t really got to know him, but I am looking forward to the season,” he said.

Stamps never planned on being an NBA trainer. But when in college, he met Al Jefferson, who at the time was a sophomore in high school. Stamps’ dad made them go out every day, play bas-ketball and work to get better.

When Jefferson was drafted out of high school, he hired Stamps as his per-sonal trainer. Slowly, Stamps’ name got thrown around and he started getting more and more clients.

“Coach Stamps is a well-qualified coach. He knows what he’s doing com-ing from a trainer background; he knows how to get us into shape,” said Richard Brown of Jackson, a junior at St. Joe, who last year played power forward.

Coach Stamps is excited for the bas-ketball season. He said he likes the ef-fort put forth from the guys in condition-ing, and he is really impressed with how the team looks so far.

“You have the responsibility to

cheer your team on and also to be a role model for your team

and school.”- Taylor McBeath

WILLIAM FETHERSON

Photo By Sara Powell/The Bear FactsDenarius Odell drives toward the goal as Charlie Waddingham watches in the background during the St. Joe-Hartfield basketball game on Tuesday, Dec. 4. Under Coach Nick Stamps guidance, St. Joe won.

n Basketball off to good start, B2

Bruin SportsDECEMBER 14, 2012B2

Now that the mighty St. Joe Bruin football team’s season is over, it is time to turn to another sport: the golf team.

The St. Joseph Catholic School golf team is led by Coach Rusty Boshers, who is quite proud of the positive direction in which his team is headed – even if the current team lacks the usual year-round players the program used to have.

The team consists of juniors Ryan Delmas and Hamp Godfrey and seniors Walker Foggo, Na-than Gieb, and Stevan Whyte.

“Last year, we finished third out of 12 in our district,” Bosh-ers said. “That’s pretty good con-sidering our lack of year-round players, even if we do play a couple of weak teams.”

The Bruins also play teams outside of their 2A district, such as Germantown, St. Andrew’s and Ridgeland High.

The Bruins begin practice

in January in locations ranging from the Lake Caroline course to the Whisper Lake course. Bosh-ers was a little doubtful of prac-tice at Whisper Lake.

“The Whisper Lake course is too close to some houses for me,” he said. “I don’t want any broken windows.”

Senior golf player Walker Foggo of Madison offered some insight on what is to come.

“We are going to wreck” Fog-go said with a calm but assured attitude of victory.

St. Joseph golf readies for season

The St. Joe tennis team is look-ing for another winning season after winning state champion-ships and several individual titles the past three years.

Tennis Coach Lynn Ogden, the physical education teacher at St. Joe, and has been coaching for St. Joe for seven years and has three state championships under her belt. Ogden has won Coach of the Year for four years; her re-cord is 118 wins and 31 losses.

The tennis team had a strong

season last year and won the team championship along with five other individual state titles. A match is won by winning four out of the seven games played. There is number one singles, one and two doubles and mixed doubles.

Last year, seventh grader Sted-man Strickland crushed all the competition. Strickland has been playing since he was 4.

“We lost six strong starters this year,” Ogden said.

There are still some strong players returning, including se-niors Mike Boland and Ryan Riley. The teams’ season starts

Feb. 27 against a good oppo-nent, Northwest Rankin. Practice for the tennis team starts just a month before on Jan. 27.

Ogden believes that “you play the way you practice,” so she takes practice serious and goof-ing off is strongly frowned on.

The players are ready for this year’s season. “I’m so excited for this year. We are going to win again,” said junior Shelby Wil-loughby.

Tryouts showed good signs, and Ogden said that “her opti-mism for the upcoming season has returned.”

Tennis team plans a great year

By NIC HEMBREEStaff Writer

By JACK HOFFMANStaff Writer

The St. Joseph Bruin basket-ball team swings back into action this year with a new coach, Nick Stamps.

The team is off to a 7-4 start with a recent win Dec. 7 over former district powerhouse Wil-liam Sullivan. The game ended in dramatic fashion when se-nior point guard Denarius Odell drove down the court and made a lay-up to give the Bruins the lead with 3 seconds left in the game.

The team has three returning

seniors Odell, power forward Nick Beasley and center Charlie Waddingham. The team also add-ed two new seniors Will Lindsey and Brennan Trask.

The team practices almost every day. Matthew Harkey, a junior at St. Joseph and a team member, said the practices “are very difficult, and coach makes us run a lot.”

The Bruins have a new coach because last year’s coach, Keith Barnes, is now serving as St. Joe’s principal. Stamps, is a for-mer player and helps train NBA athletes during their offseason,

such as Utah Jazz center Al Jef-ferson.

The Bruin basketball team had a slow start to the season, going 1-2 because four players were not being eligible to play while they played football. Since the football season ended, Wad-dingham, Beasley, Odell and Lindsey have returned.

The Bruins wish to continue to have a good rest of the season.

“Coach Stamps pushes us ev-ery day,” sophomore Jack Olstad said. “We know the champion-ship is a possibility, and we work for it every day.”

By IAN VANDEVENDERStaff Writer

Bruin basketball: A lot of hoopla

Bruin NewsB3DECEMBER 14, 2012

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St. Joe siblings: double troubleHaving siblings at Saint Jo-

seph Catholic School can have its share of difficulties and ben-efits.

But for Nick and Caitlyn Bea-sley, Abbie and Sammie Dupont, and Lauren and Robbie Tonos, having brothers and sisters at-tend the same school has reaped benefits for them.

Nick and Caitlyn Beasley – “The Dynamic Duo”

It’s no secret junior Caitlyn Beasley loves to cheer on her big brother, senior Nick Beasley,

whether he’s on the track field, basketball court, football field or baseball field.

“Whenever he’s running, I’m always running right beside him on the sideline,” Caitlyn said.

The support doesn’t stop on the football field and basketball court. Caitlyn says she makes Nick goody bags on game days.

Nick said his favorite thing about Caitlyn is how loving and caring she is. Nick also supports Caitlyn by painting up for her volleyball games and cheering her on.

Nick and Caitlyn are both

heavily involved on campus. Nick participates in track, base-ball, basketball and football. Caitlyn participates in track, basketball, volleyball, retreat team, student council and Span-ish Club.

Caityn says she will miss see-ing her big brother and making funny faces at him in the hallway next year after he graduates.Abbie and Sammie Dupont –

“Sister, Sister”If you saw junior Abbie Du-

pont and sophomore Sammie Dupont, you probably wouldn’t realize that they are sisters. Abbie

has long, curly hair, while Sam-mie has shorter, straight hair.

Abbie is more outgoing, and Sammie is quiet. Sammie is a cheerleader, Abbie a soccer play-er. Sammie likes pop from the 1940s, Abbie enjoys rock from the 1990s and early 2000s.

Despite their differences, the two are close.

“Whenever I’m having a hard time, I can always go and talk to her,” Sammie said.

Their differences are bountiful, but they also share a few similari-ties. Both Sammie and Abbie are honor roll students and enjoy lis-

tening to music and hanging out with friends. Abbie and Sammie also love their Tim McGraw jam sessions in Abbie’s car on the way to school.

Most importantly the two share a great love for each other.

Lauren and Robbie TonosWith their thick dark hair, tan

skin and brown eyes, junior Lau-ren Tonos and freshman Robbie Tonos often get mistaken for twins. They get these traits from their father, Edward Tonos, who is Lebanese.

Although they both share a strong resemblance to their fa-

ther, Robbie acts much like his mother, Robin Tonos, who is qui-et and reserved. Lauren, though, not only looks but also acts like her father. She is much more out-going and talkative.

Lauren and Robbie both partic-ipate on the St. Joe Swim Team. Lauren is also a cheerleader here at Saint Joe.

Lauren loves spending time with her little brother.

“He’s easygoing and easy to talk to. He is really trustworthy and never tells secrets,” she said.

Likewise Robbie also loves spending time with his big sister.

Semester exams are next week at St. Joseph Catholic School.

After two academic quarters of instruction, students will dem-onstrate what they learned in the first semester.

Brother Dan Lauber, the high school guidance counselor, said the exams are “an assessment of your overall performance in the subject area to that point.”

Caitlyn Beasley a junior at St. Joe, studies for her exams by making notes and retaking old tests.

April Fulgham, another junior

and a new student, studies for her exams at least two weeks before the exam.

Fulgham said she does that so “I can be well prepared for it. I rehearse the facts over and over to stick it in this noggin of mine.”

Lauber and Elisabeth Noel, di-rector of curriculum, instruction and guidance at St. Joe, offer sev-eral tips to help you prepare for and do well on the exams.n Plan ahead by looking at the

final exam schedule so that you know which test falls on which days and which of your tests are on the same day.n Study in advance. Never

wait until the night before to start studying for a semester test.n Prepare a written schedule

for yourself indicating when you will study for each test.n Organize your notes and

use study guides. If the teacher doesn’t give you a guide, prepare your own. Rewriting notes is a good way to remember informa-tion.n If the teacher gives a review

session before or after school, at-tend it.n If you study well in groups,

organize your own study groupn Know what material to

study.n Find out what type of ques-

tion format the teacher is using, i.e. short answer, multiple choice, essay, fill in the blank, etc.n If you are an auditory learn-

er, record yourself reading your notes aloud, then play the record-ing back several times.n Flag your notes by high-

lighting or using Post-It notes.n Calculate your grades in

the class. Determine what score you will need to get the semes-ter grade you want in the class. Make a goal.n Come prepared to take the

exam with pencils, scratch paper, etc. Wear a watch.n Eat a good breakfast and get

rest the night before. Don’t over-do it with caffeine.n If the test is Scantron, be

careful when skipping a ques-tion to answer later. Make sure you are answering the questions in the correct answer blank. It is easy to get off one and waste time trying to “fix” the answer sheet.n Read the test directions

carefully.n Check over your test if time

permits.n Do homework, daily assign-

ments and really studying for the quizzes and test given to you now.n Make sure you pay all of our

library fines so exams will count.

Tips for surviving fall semester exams

By HALLE ANDERSONStaff Writer

By SARA POWELLStaff Writer

VISITTHE BEAR FACTS

ONLINEwww.sjbearfacts.com

Your source for St. Joseph Catholic

School News

Merry ChristmasDECEMBER 14, 2012B4

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On Dec. 25, every high school teenager will expect to find cer-tain gifts under the Christmas tree – but what really are they hoping to find?

Although every teen is dif-ferent, certain items are will be popular among the majority across the country. Categories include books, clothes and tech-nology found at local stores such as Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, Sportique and Libby Story.

The two books that inspired the hit movies of “Twilight” and “The Hunger Games” have be-

come popular among teenagers. “I would recommend the ‘Twi-

light’ books to everyone,” said Morgan Peoples, a senior at St. Joe. “They have romance, ac-tions, and mystery in the plot. I think that they would be a great Christmas present.”

Junior A.K. Moorehead had a different recommendation.

“‘The Hunger Games’ books would make such great pres-ents,” she said. “I have enjoyed reading them and are way better than the movies.”

Therefore, if the teenager you are buying a present for has an interest in vampires, romance, and reading, any of the “Twi-

light” books are sure to be a hit – especially if you are buying for a girl because of the romance story line. “The Hunger Games” is more of an action-packed, sus-pense-filled novel and would be a great Christmas present for both boys and girls.

Athletic wear and winter wear are two of the best selling catego-ries of clothes during the Christ-mas season. When buying athlet-ic wear for a girl, dark black yoga pants, colorful running shoes and comfortable dry-fit shirts are some of the favorite items.

One of the most important things to remember when buy-ing athletic wear for girls is

color. Popular athletic wear for boys include basketball shorts, dry-fit T-shirts, and colorful run-ning shoes. Studies show that boys like to have athletic items with their favorite basketball or football team’s name.

Jack Butts, a St. Joe senior, said he loves “getting T-shirts with Mississippi State’s logo. I would be so happy to get some new State T-shirts for Christ-mas.”

For winter wear, girls love to receive winter scarves, knit-ted hats, mittens and petticoats. Comfortable Ugg boots are also a great winter item for girls. Pa-tagonia pullovers are popular

items for both boys and girls this Christmas season. For winter wear, long-sleeve, collared polo shirts as well as polo sweaters would be the perfect fit for boys.

The biggest category of pres-ents for every teenager would be technology. This category can be broken down even further to computers, phones, video games and music-related items.

Apple is one of the most popu-lar brands of computers and cel-lular devices. The best-selling Apple computer is the Mac book, and the best selling Apple phone is the iPhone 4. The top video games include “Halo 4” and “Just Dance 4.”

CDs have made a comeback for this Christmas season. If the teen you are buying for has an in-terest in country music, he or she would love the latest CD from Taylor Swift or Jason Aldean.

If she loves British boy bands, the latest a One Direction CD would be a great gift. Junior Elis-abeth Scott of Madison, “I just love the new One Direction CD. It’s the only music I ever play I my car.”

If parents, family and friends buying for a teenager choose items that are related to books, clothes or technology, they will have a happy teenager on their hands this Christmas season.

By JORDAN WELSHStaff Writer

Holiday shopping made simple - the perfect gift

JACKSON – Six St. Joseph students performed in Ballet Mississippi’s 30th annual “The Nutcracker” at Thalia Mara Hall on Dec. 2 – and at least one was in almost every scene.

All six dancers blew specta-tors away with their talent, dedi-cation and energy level in their performance.

Each St. Joe student partici-pated in a variety of roles in this performance. Seventh-grader Helen Mary Katool took on five roles: “Doll,” “Big Mouse,” “Snowflake,” “Candy Cane” and a “Blue Bell.” Sophomore Bria Page made St. Joe proud by playing the roles of a “Snow-flake” and a “Rose.” Sophomore Ellen Gwin danced beautifully as a “Snowflake” and “English Gigue.” Sophomore Daniella Tellkamp gracefully danced the roles of “Snowflake,” “Span-ish” and “Flower.” Sophomore Domenica Tellkamp danced the roles of a “Toy” and a “Rose.”

Yet, junior Anna Claire Chas-

By JORDAN WELSHStaff Writer

St. Joseph students grace the stage in Ballet Mississippi’s production of ‘The Nutcracker’

tain took the spotlight that after-noon, as she played the most cov-eted, and most important part, of “Snow Queen” in addition to her parts of “Arabian” and “Flower.”

“Anna Claire did absolutely amazing,” St. Joe junior Rachel Divine said. “I am so proud of her performance. I was absolute-ly blown away by her talent and beauty as a dancer. I was tearing up after her ‘Snow Queen’ per-formance. She will always be my favorite ‘Snow Queen.’ ”

The afternoon performance began with a lively party scene. The plot thickened as Godfather Drosselmeier magically changed the scene as he shrunk Marie into toy size.

Then, the Nutcracker and the Mouse king fought with swords in an intense battle. The heroine, Marie, saved the Nutcracker and aided in his defeat of the evil Mouse King.

Later on, the stunning Snow Queen graced Marie with a dance of thanks.

After the intermission, the An-gel Fairy opened the performance with her precious, young angels. The characters of “Spanish,”

“Arabian,” “Chinese,” “English Gigue,” “Mirlitions,” “Clowns” and “Flowers” all gave Marie a dance of thanks. The profession-al dancers, Adiarys Almeida and Joseph Gatti, finished the perfor-mance as Sugar Plum Fairy and Cavalier.

Students from St. Joe attended the performance to support their St. Joe dancers.

Spectator Anna Grace Salem, a junior at St. Joe, said, “I was so proud of each of the girls. They did a great job on each of their parts and looked beautiful.”

Freshman Marion Welsh said, “They all did an amazing job. I was so impressed with their danc-ing skills. I can’t wait to bring my Nana to their performance again next year.”

St. Joe is very proud of all six students in Ballet Mississippi’s “The Nutcracker.” The Sunday performance showed the degree of talent and dedication each stu-dent has in the difficult activity of ballet.

All six St. Joe students made Ballet Mississippi’s “The Nut-cracker” performance a show to remember.

Special to the Bear FactsSt. Joe ballerinas Ellen Gwin, Bria Paige, Anna Claire Chastain, Dominica Tellkamp, Daniella Tellkamp, and Helen Mary Katool stop to pose for a picture after a stellar performance in Thailia Mara Hall.

Merry ChristmasB5DECEMBER 14, 2012

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People of all ages are ex-cited to take a spin around the 7,200-square foot ice skating rink that opened its doors Nov. 17.

The rink is open Sunday to Thursday from noon to 9 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. The price of $15 grants access to all the fun attrac-tions for the whole day.

The fun doesn’t stop here. A 15-foot ice slide creates excite-ment for everyone. People don’t mind waiting in the long line to

take a turn down the slide. A 40-foot Christmas tree can be seen for miles and miles.

More than 16 million colors fill the lights covering all the at-tractions. Many different Christ-mas trees line the skating rink.

People stay warm by purchas-ing snacks from the concession stand. They can take a break from skating by drinking hot cocoa, a Christmastime favorite.

There are free nightly concerts, too. More than 40 choirs will join the Christmas on Ice celebration.

There is a Christmas Story Trail. Children and people of all ages get to learn about the birth

of Christ and the true meaning of Christmas.

“I skated for several hours and had a blast. It’s tricky. But once you get the hang of it, it’s so much fun,” said junior Bailey Brilley of Jackson. He joined many others to enjoy the skate rink.

Eliza Strickland, a freshman, did not mind waiting in the long line to get her turn going down the slide. “I waited in line for the ice slide. It was so fun and I re-ally enjoyed skating, too.”

The new tradition, Christmas on Ice, will be in Madison until Jan. 6. It is expected to return next year.

Skating season comes to Madison County

Photo by Victor Griffin/The Bear Facts

The beautiful decorations at Christmas on Ice help bring in the Christmas season.

With Christmas right around the corner, many people are al-ready getting in the spirit by put-ting up Christmas trees.

But where did the most recog-nized Christmas decoration come from?

Thousands of years ago, before the seeds of Christianity, trees that stayed green all year round had special meaning for people in the winter. Some people be-lieved that evergreens would ward off spirits.

The ancient Egyptians praised the god Ra by decorating their homes and buildings with green palms and leaves.

Early Romans marked the win-ter solstice, Dec. 21 and 22, by decorating as well. These green adornments became common to early people.

Sixteenth century Germany takes the credit for beginning the Christmas tree tradition known to us today. Devout Christians started bringing already deco-rated trees into their homes in Germany.

Though not proven, it is widely believed that Protestant reformer Martin Luther was the first to put candles on trees, attempting to re-create the starry background of night for his church family.

Christmas trees were not wide-ly known in 19th Century Amer-ica. In fact, they were an oddity.

As late as the 1840s, trees were seen as a pagan symbol, and the first recorded display of a tree in America was in the 1830s by German immigrants in Pennsyl-vania.

In the late 1600s, William Bradford, the second governor of the Pilgrims, recognizing the strong Puritan faith in Christmas being sacred, attempted to stop the practice of any Christmas rit-ual other than a church function. This law lasted until the early 19th Century.

The three-dimensional nativity scene had also become popular during this time. The Germans had taken up the idea from St. Francis of Assisi, who is said to have made the first Nativity scene in the 1200s.

In 1846, Queen Victoria was drawn with her family around a

Christmas tree. Unlike the royal family before her, anything that the queen did instantly became the fashion even in American society. Thus the Christmas tree dug its roots in America.

By the 1890s, Christmas trees were becoming popular. Orna-ments were being bought from Germany for people everywhere.

Many Americans used home-made ornaments and sometimes food like apples and nuts as well as brightly dyed popcorn. Christmas trees began to appear in town squares and the tradition of decorating a big evergreen in homes still carries on today.

People today still find special meanings for the Christmas tree. St. Joe student Anna Edge said Christmas trees remind her “of Jesus’ birth and the whole mean-ing behind Christmas in the first place. And cookies.”

Christmas trees have become so common that people have for-gotten about its pagan connec-tions and instead turned to think about what Christmas really means to them.

The evergreen history of the Christmas tree

Photo by Victor Griffin/The Bear FactsThis tree in Renaissance is one of the many Christmas trees that can be found around the Madison/Ridgeland area during the Christmas holiday season.

By JACQUELYN MASSEYStaff Writer

By SAM OSBORNEStaff Writer

For the latest news from St. Joseph Catholic School, visit

THE BEAR FACTSONLINE

www.sjbearfacts.com

NEWS | SPORTS | OPINION | PHOTO GALLERIES MULTIMEDIA

Christmas PhotosDECEMBER 14, 2012B6

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St. Joseph Catholic School celebrated “Gifts of the Season” on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. These photos by Miranda Barrett, editor of The Bear Facts, offer a quick glimpse.

Top left photo: Sophomore Andrew Morgan sings his solo “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.”

Top right: Mrs. Windham directs the middle school choir in her very first “Gifts of the Season” production.

Bottom left: Mr. Russell and junior Loden Snell play a trumpet duet to “The Prayer” while senior drum major Kathryn Sckiets directs.

Bottom right: Senior Brennan Trask takes the mic for a solo in the senior song, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.”

Christmas PhotosB7DECEMBER 14, 2012

For the latest news from St. Joseph Catholic School, visit

THE BEAR FACTSONLINE

www.sjbearfacts.com

NEWS | SPORTS | OPINION | PHOTO GALLERIES MULTIMEDIA

Photos By Miranda Barrett/The Bear Facts

Photo on the left: Seniors Denise Baran, Kylan Toohey and Teryn Yazdani smile after the final performance on Sunday afternoon.

Above photo: Matt Hosler sings “You’re a Mean One Mr. Grinch” while dancers Taylor Manning and Mollie Gray-Lewis accompany him.

Bruin SportsDECEMBER 14, 2012B8

St. Joe students, faculty, staff and parents watch in awe at every foot-ball game and pep rally as they watch cheerleaders throw others into the air or perform various flips and toe-touches.

Cheerleading squads are always di-rected by a qualified advisor or coach. The coach must have such qualifications to make sure that safety precautions are held throughout cheer routines.

Practice sessions are held in places fit for the activities of the cheerlead-ers. Cheerleading requires use of proper matting, and practice must take place

away from miscellaneous objects. All cheerleaders and coaches receive

proper training before attempting any type of jumps, tumbling or stunting – a rule by the American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administra-tors.

Before anything, cheerleaders must make sure that they properly stretch and warm up before performance. Failure to do so could cause a serious injury.

All types of jewelry are prohibited in cheerleading. Cheerleaders are required to wear soft-soled athletic shoes and proper uniforms.

The term “stunting” means a build-ing performance when cheerleaders put a designated girl called the “top girl” in the air. There are multiple girls involved in a stunt group. Each girl has a special importance in the group. There is a base,

n Cheering isn’t as easy as it seems, B1

By LONDON HATTENStaff Writer

Photo by Matthew Harkey/The Bear FactsSt. Joe cheerleaders perform at a Bruins football game last fall.

Cheerleaders, from Page B1they must perform in complete and total unison. If one cheerleader misses one step, the entire routine is thrown off – at least temporarily.

St. Joe cheerleaders spend about five hours a week during football season prepping and practicing. Cheer prac-tices usually consist of stretching, run-

ning, stunting and learning new cheers and dances. They practice over and over again for two hours until everything is absolutely perfect.

Before football games, cheerleaders go to a different team member’s house every week. They eat together, prepare for the night’s big game, and do last-minute practicing. The pre-game ritual has built a strong sense of camaraderie among cheerleaders.

Mary Wheatley of Madison, a sopho-more cheerleader at St. Joe, said her time on the team has been “a great bonding experience with other St. Joe girls. It also is very rewarding at pep rallies and games after a lot of hard practice.”

Courtney Helom, a junior cheerlead-er, agreed.

”My favorite part of cheer has to be the pre-game prepping with the cheer-

leaders,” she said.Besides cheering at games, Wheatley,

McBeath and other cheerleaders create posters for football games and place them on the lockers of every football player. They attend every home foot-ball game. They also attend and cheer at home basketball games.

This year, cheerleaders persuaded Principal Keith Barnes to designate Fri-days as “theme days” in which students can dress according to a specific theme. This year students participated in such theme days as “Blue and Gold Day” and “Camo Day.”

But regardless of the theme of the day or the colors that students wore, it was the spirt and dedication of the St. Joe Cheerleaders that helped foster the love of the “Blue and Gold.”

“It also is very rewarding at pep rallies and games

after a lot of hard practice.”

- Mary Wheatley

middle, spotter and top.“We practice the stunt over and over

again until everyone sticks it,” said Courtney Helom, a junior St. Joe cheer-leader.

The only way for cheerleaders to im-prove their safety is by staying aware. March is National Cheerleading Safety Month.

The main reason for awareness is in-jury prevention. Not all injuries can be prevented. But by undergoing the right safety procedures, injuries in cheerlead-ing can be reduced.

The focus on preventing injuries is following the rules, teaching the correct spotting techniques and using the proper skill progressions.

The best way to maintain a safe and injury-free cheerleading squad is to stay aware and responsible.

Cheerleader safety top concern

The Holy Rollers, St. Joe’s bowling team coached by Dennis Dillon, have started their season off with a bang.

The boys’ bowling team beat St. An-drew’s 5-3, and the girls’ bowling team tied St. Andrew’s 4-4.

The boys’ team is led by seniors Drew Meyers and Steven Whyte; the girls’ team is lead by seniors Leighton Hill and Britney Browning.

Stewart Inman, an 11th grader on the bowling team, said that Dillon is a good coach. Inman said that “everyone enjoys his witty comments and motivation.”

Inman is excited for the bowling season and expects a lot from the team. Caroline Bonin, a junior on the bowl-

ing team at St. Joe, is also pumped for the new season. Both Inman and Bonin are returning bowlers from the team last year.

Inman said his favorite part about bowling is getting strikes and winning, whereas Bonin said she likes how laid back it is and how she can still have fun while being competitive.

Bonin said she recommends bowl-ing to students “because even if you are not the best bowler, you’re still a part of the team and you participate no matter what.”

Added Inman: “We are all in it just to have fun.”

The bowling team practices Tues-days and Thursdays at Fannin Lanes. In practice they play three rounds of bowl-ing which takes about an hour to an hour and a half.

By MATTHEW HARKEYStaff Writer

St. Joe bowling team strikes again

Besides that, the Bruins also won their second straight district championship. Everything about this season seemed to be a breeze because of the talent that made up the team.

Twenty seniors carried the load for the Bruins this year; losing all of them is going to be tough next year. There’s no doubt that this class was one of the greatest to ever set foot on the field for St. Joe.

The Bruins blew past all of their op-ponents this season, including teams that people favored over them. No mat-ter what was said, though, the team went out with a ton of swagger and took care of business.

After St. Joe beat Union, which was favored to win, the Bruins knew they could take on anyone. They beat the Yellow Jackets on their home field by 29 points.

After that, the only challenge that they had left was Wesson, the chief competi-tor for the district championship. The Bruins beat the Cobras 27-0 and went on to end the season undefeated the fol-

lowing week against after winning at Enterprise Lincoln.

In the first round of the playoffs, St. Joe handed Enterprise Clarke a heavy 38-0 beating. The next week is where things got rough.

East Marion was no doubt the tough-est team the Bruins had faced all season and it showed.

“I had the time of my life playing out there with these guys,” said senior Nick Beasley. “Everything about this team seemed to be perfect. We weren’t just teammates. We were brothers.”

Bruin football, from Page B1

Photo by Jack Butts/The Bear FactsSenior Bruin football player Brett Burgess scores a touchdown for St. Joe during a critical game against Wesson. The Bruins went undefeated in the regular season before losing in the playoffs. It was the first undefeated season in 40 years.

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Photo by Jack Butts/The Bear FactsBurgess continues to run wild during the Wesson game.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

From the St. Joseph Journalism

Staffof 2012-2013

“Everything about this team seemed to be perfect. We weren’t teammates. We were brothers.”

- Nick Beasley

Photo by Jack Butts/The Bear FactsSenior Nick Beasley keeps the ball in the hands of the Bruins while Wesson tries to go for a tackle.