Apologies for the delay in posting. Not to exaggerate, but my entire world came crashing down this past week as I studied for my economics test that I took at 4 p.m. today. Don’t ask me why, in my senior year, I chose to take electives that involve numbers. I had completely escaped their evil grasp after high school, and yet here I am.
So, we elected a new president. I hope most of you watched the speeches Tuesday night. Both were exceptional. In the abstract, I was very proud to watch history take place. I don’t know if electing Obama means that the United States is better-handling racism than it was 10 years ago, but hopefully it’s a sign of progress.
Sure, I voted for the other guy. But that’s because I thought his policies would work better for the U.S. and international community. (Yeah, I know Europe wanted Obama, but that’s not what I mean.) That doesn’t automatically mean that I think Obama would be a bad president, though. He’s my president(-elect), and he’ll get judged on the exact same score card that Bush did.
Moving onward… I submitted my third podcast today in class. The assignment was sort of a free-for-all: personal narrative, storytelling, or “experimenta.” I went with personal narrative, in part because you didn’t have to go out and do any actual reporting. I know, I know–I’m lazy. But see above if you forgot what this last week has been like.
So, I did my podcast about Wito. Well, not so much about him, but since it was a personal narrative, it’s more about what happened and how I dealt with it. Last spring in Gene Burd’s “Feature Writing” class, I wrote a similar piece. As far as I know, only he read it, and that was partly on purpose. It felt weird writing a personal narrative about someone else passing away. (Not to imply that you could write a personal narrative about your own passing, either…) The point I’m trying to make is that I didn’t like making this story about me.
But I think writing this story once already (in Burd’s class) made it easier this time around. And you know what? It is about me, at least a little bit. Witnessing someone with as much passion and dedication for what he did, firsthand in high school, had a profound effect on how I viewed education, work… a lot of things. The same could be said for my parents, brothers, sisters-in-law, and anyone else who has had a significant influence in my life.
So, I do have a story to tell. It’s up to you to determine if it’s a good one or not. But it’s mine. I figured since I shared this with my professor and classmates, who are otherwise perfect strangers, I might as well share it with those of you I know best (and the rest of the Interweb). So without further ado, my podcast (it’s about 5 minutes long, so plan accordingly):
Sorry for the somewhat touchy-feely post. I’ve been in a weird mood the past week or so. Maybe my headcold knocked something loose in my brain. Or Obama’s sweet words have finally gotten to me. I’ll get back to you on that.
After about five months of serious fundraising, I’m thrilled to be able to announce that we have exceeded our goal of $5,000 for the Stephen Witowich Memorial Scholarship fund!
I received an e-mail update today from Mrs. Torrence at the business office of Beaver Area School District. She said that thanks to the generous donations of the Hilton Head H.S. National Honor Society and St. Vladimir Church in Ambridge, we now have $5,205 in the fund, which will grant one BHS senior a scholarship this spring.
On Friday, I talked to Kathy Scharfenberg, NHS sponsor at Hilton Head, who said the group hosted a car wash on March 1 at the local Outback Steakhouse. The restaurant supplied water and hoses for the students, and the weather was ideal, Scharfenberg said. At the end of our phone conversation, she asked me to resend my initial letter informing them of our efforts to procure a memorial scholarship for Wito. The students asked if they could host the car wash annually–an amazing gesture of generosity. The group raised and donated $500.
St. Vladamir Church in Ambridge hosted a bowl-a-thon recently and donated the money raised from that event to the scholarship. Thanks to the generosity of the Ukranian Orthodox church and its event’s participants, we are $750 closer to awarding a scholarship in Wito’s name.
Single donations from former students and parents have been sporadic, but often very charitable. They are much appreciated.
In short, thank you to those who have helped us reach this milestone. We did it.
At this point, it’s unclear what events Beaver H.S. students and teachers will do to raise money for their former teacher and colleague. Several students have worked independently to raise money through t-shirt sales, but the community has thus far seen no action from the school’s student organizations, including NHS—the group for which Wito was a sponsor.
It’s time to get your act together, BHS. Clearly everyone else already has.
We part the veil on our killer sun
Stray from the straight line on this short run
The more we take, the less we become
The fortune of one that means less for some
(Any Destiny’s Child fans in the house tonight?)
Bill Clinton came and spoke at UT’s Main Mall last Wednesday. I considered writing about that (because it’s kind of a big deal), but I’ve decided against it. Undoubtedly you people are all sick of my political rantings and ravings, so I’m going to put that to rest (until I read the headlines tomorrow). But, as a service to you (the faithful reader) and posterity (i.e. Jeets Jr. and/or Jeetsina [I debated for 5 minutes whether or not to leave that in because of how much it freaked me out, so don't feel alone.]).
Highlights of WJC’s speech:
I got there early and volunteers were passing out half sheets of paper. They told us that these were our tickets to get into the speech. I was suspicious (aren’t we outside?). I read the form and it asked for my name, address, etc. and asked when I would be willing to take off of work to call people on Hillary’s behalf and club Obama supporters with large, wooden sticks. “You have to fill these out to get in. It’s your ticket,” they told us. As 5:30 got closer and more people started coming, it became clear that they were just liars. They collected the forms before we went in, and the line that stretched around the block was full of people who hadn’t filled them out. Dirty tricks…
Bill was good. He’s a great speaker, as I’m sure you’ve heard. He had about 30 people talk before he came out to warm up the crowd, which was decidedly split between Hillary supporters and Obama supporters who will do anything to hear a charismatic speaker of any sort. One crowd-warmer shouted “H-I-L-L-A-R-Y… what’s that spell?” Literally a third of the crowd must have yelled “Obama!” Which… I think speaks for itself.
**********
My eyes were opened last night to the creative world of Noah Erin. Noah’s a senior at the blessed BHS, and he’s been working on commercials for the school’s newspaper, the Echo. To put it simply, he has a gift. They’re funny, smart, clever… all those words that Ebert & Roeper use to describe movies that no one wants to see… except you will want to see these. And lucky for you, they’re all on YouTube.
BHarmony stars my nextdoor neighbor, Ben Rubino. With Sam Cooke playing in the background, this ad is actually for a fundraiser for the Wito Scholarship. Students filled out “personality profiles” on Valentine’s Day, the results were compiled, and then people were matched up with their “best fit” from students throughout the high school. I’ll tell ya, we were never smart enough to come up with ideas like this in high school.
Echo Sauna: So this one is actually one I saw a couple months ago. Easily the most “risque” of the bunch, “Echo Sauna” has you going one way… and then BAM! Takes you another direction. Nice. (Click the titles to watch the clips.)
Echo Toasted: A take on the classic “Leggo my Eggo” ads of yester-year (simpler times!), this commercial takes you inside the teacher’s lounge (I’m assuming) AND gives you tips about how to eat a balanced breakfast. I’m also a huge fan of the “punch” sound effects.
Echo Paperboy: For fans of the classic Nintendo game “Paperboy,” this ad “delivers” (OH MY GOSH, GET ME A TV SHOW!). You also get a great insider’s look into the halls of BHS. For alumni, a trip down memory lane. For wannabe-alumni, your big break. I’m a big fan of the Argyle Echo shirt, and of course Maracek’s outburst at the end… who knew?
Echo Flirt: And finally, this one takes you inside the tawdry lives of BHS studyhall students… There’s a brief shout out to the 724 (WHAT WHAT!), and the 50s era music theme continues as well. Also, is that Noah on the cover? If so, well done…
I am so, so sorry that I’ve been absent all week. The fam came down for a visit last weekend and I had two tests and a project due this week. I’m nearly done with everything, but I’m still feeling frantic. Probably post-traumatic stress disorder. Or maybe it’s blog withdrawl. I’ve got the shakes and I’ve been snapping at people that the New York Times is part of a vast liberal conspiracy plot…
Anyway, last week Cory Malagise, a senior at Beaver Area H.S., e-mailed me about a his senior project. As some of you know, there was an effort to sell T-shirts in Wito’s honor that would raise funds for the scholarship. This was shot down by the brilliant administration for reasons I can only describe as unconscionable. Somehow trying to raise money for a beloved teacher is “taboo” in Beaver.
Anyway, Cory has essentially found a loophole and is selling T-shirts now. They don’t say “Wito” anywhere on them (the loophole, apparently), but all the money he raises—which is up to $600 already—is going straight to the scholarship. It’s a great shirt, and a great cause.
For anybody who reads this, even if you didn’t know Wito, I really encourage you to buy one of these shirts. I mean seriously, when’s the next time you’ll be able to get your hands on a piece of Beaver history like this? It’s a once in a lifetime offer.
Here’s the Web site with all the ordering information on it: http://www.beaverhightees.tk/. You can even order online via PayPal. The shirts are $10.
There’s a lot going on right now, and your boy Jeets, as usual, is here to sort everything out for you. Let’s get started.
First off, the Wito fundraising is actually going really well. Our goal is to raise $5,000 and by our estimates, we’re about halfway there. That is great news! I can’t thank those of you who contributed enough. And for those who haven’t but still want to, there’s still time! Click on the link at the top of this page for the Stephen Witowich Memorial Scholarship details. I really encourage you to do this sooner rather than later, though. We’re trying to get this thing going before the end of the school year so we can start the annual scholarship this year–the first in nearly 10 years without Wito in the BHS halls.
**********
Mitt Romney wimped out! Couldn’t take the heat! And in typical Romney fashion, he even wimped out leaving the race. He’s “suspending the campaign.” Whatever that is. Just wave the white flag. I guess he’s hoping McCain gets struck by lightning before the nomination and the delegates he won will count for him in that instance. Morbid, but probably not far from reality.
If you want to see something really funny and surprising, click here. It’s a video of John McCain endorsing Mitt Romney for governor of Massachusetts. Oh, how the times have changed!
We had some good times, though Mittster! Gunna miss ya. As you hit the exit, I’ll leave you with this gem I heard from a friend of a friend last week: “Romney only won the Michigan primary because the state is a giant mitt.” That’s the kind of analysis that should be all over CNN.
**********
I’ve added two members to my blogroll since our last “open house,” and I thought I’d take a brief minute to give them a shout out, just like the others.
Abby Terrell — Abby and I met on one of the first days of class Freshman year. We were both in the “Community and Culture” FIG (Freshman Interest Group)… Texas offers the opportunity to take 3 classes with the same set of people in your first semester on campus. I did this, but mainly because they reserve spots in certain classes for these FIGlets (as we were called) and I couldn’t get into those classes otherwise. Anyway, she’s in Thailand this semester. Her blog is so good! You really get the “American perspective” of a fascinating culture (beautiful pools, too, as seen left). People give the king a standing ovation before every movie at the theater!
Buddy Burkhalter — Buddy is my roommate-roommate. Actually, I say that, but right now we’ve been ousted from our room for the second time in a week because of flies. But for about 95% of the year, we’re roommates. Anyway, Buddy’s blog is a nice mix of pictures and writing. He’s a senior and has a lot going on right now, including interviewing for “Teach for America.” Make sure you check out the really creepy picture of me on his blog (there’s an outtake of me with the hat AND the newspaper, where I really get that “newsie” feel…)
Last November, I sent a letter to the faculty, staff and administration of the Hilton Head High School in South Carolina where Steve Witowich, my former chemistry teacher, taught for nine years. I informed them that in Beaver, we’re trying to raise money to honor Wito’s memory and asked that if they felt called to give, we would really appreciate their donations.
On Friday I received a call from a reporter at the Hilton Head Island Packet, the local newspaper, who got a copy of that letter. Today, the paper printed an edited version of my letter along with a picture of Wito from his time down there.
Please take a minute and read the Island Packet story here.
Also, just as a brief reminder, you can donate to the fund via PayPal by clicking on the “Stephen Witowich Memorial Scholarship” link at the top of the page. Thanks everyone for all your support in this effort.
The Beaver County Times and (my new best friend) Jessica Bruni wrote a story about Wito in Sunday’s paper.
You can read “Beaver Area students honor late teacher with scholarship fund” here.
Although it’s about impossible to put into words quite who Wito was, this story comes about as close as you can get. It not only covers his life, but it also mentions the scholarship we’re trying to set up and how to contribute. It’s a worthwhile read–and on that note, I’d like to retract the ‘Shipist comments made earlier in October and thank her for taking the time to write this story. ;)
On another note, this is probably it for me until after Christmas and maybe the New Year. I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year! Take care and be safe. See you in 2008, friends.
Since I’m having a hard time coming up with an idea for what to write today, I’ll tell you a little about what I’m doing and ask you for some help.
Along with a couple of my friends, I’m trying to establish an annual scholarship for Beaver Area High School seniors, honoring the name and memory of Steve Witowich, my chemistry teacher who passed away this past August.
Wito, as he was better known, was in incredibly talented teacher and an even better friend. His passion for chemistry and his students is known not just in the Beaver area, but also in Hilton Head, SC where he taught for nine years.
This scholarship will preserve the memory of this immensely talented teacher and honor students who exhibit the characteristics and passions held by Wito.
As difficult as this can be, we’re asking for money from students, parents, teachers, administrators and all those whom Wito touched both directly and indirectly. This is a difficult task and to be perfectly blunt, we have a long, uphill battle in raising this large sum of money. But it’s a worthy cause and one that we believe is important in preserving the memory of one of Beaver’s greatest teachers.
We’re asking that you not only give money to this important cause, but also to spread the word about it. Wito touched an incredibly vast number of people. I think that was seen on the Tuesday night when many of us gathered at First Presbyterian Church in Beaver for a prayer service for Wito. The more people who know about what we’re trying to do, the better our chances are of reaching our goal.
I’ll post specifics about when and where you can send money for this scholarship. Since many of us will be home around Thanksgiving and Christmas, these will likely be the times we organize and take action on this project.
Many former teachers have scholarships given in their name every spring. I believe it would be a mistake not to add to that list the name of our former chemistry teacher and friend, Steve Witowich.