Nov. 22, 2013Volume 94, Issue 3

Cathedral HS 5225 E. 56th Street

Indianapolis, IN 46226Twitter: @IrishMegaphoneMegaphone

Record number of students use state vouchers By Ashley King

A recent change in state law provides the opportunity for more Indiana high school students to attend a private school, including Cathedral, on a voucher, and this year, more students are doing so.

Mr. Duane Emery, vice presi-dent for enrollment management said, “The technical name for a state tax voucher is choice schol-arship. It is a program that allows a family who meets income and previous schooling criteria to qualify for government funding to be used towards a private school education.

“It is designed to give families a greater amount of ability to choose their own educational path for their children.”

Sixteen states provide a private school option with state tax vouch-ers, and 245,854 children’s families choose that option in the United States, according to information posted on the website of the Amer-ican Federation for Children.

Emery said, “So this year is the third full year of the program, and last year there were 46 kids here on vouchers; this year there are 126 students here on state tax vouchers. There are some significant reasons for that, because that number’s larger than what we had thought it would be by now.” From the 2011-2012 school year to the 2013-2014 school year, students who attend the school with a voucher have in-creased by a seven-fold.

Emery said, “On July 1, the state expanded the eligibility criteria. For instance, one of the biggest changes that impacted Ca-

thedral was that it went from your eligibility depending on having to spend the previous two semesters in a public school, to being able to use a tax voucher at any time, as long as the public school in your area received a failing grade. That means that students that were here last year without a voucher, are suddenly eligible for one.”

The public school located clos-est to Cathedral, Arlington High School, received such a failing grade on the state’s most recent ranking and was removed from the control of the Indianapolis Public Schools.

Different types of vouchers vary in the amount of money paid and are based on family income. Special needs vouchers and vouch-ers for low income families pay for

90 percent of the tuition and fees, and a slightly higher income fam-ily would receive only 50 percent funding.

Emery said, “We would have expected to have about 90 (stu-dents on vouchers) this year, but due to the state expansions, we have 126. However, it’s not impact-ing transfer admission as much as you would think. Over time we expect to see about 15 percent of our student body here on state tax vouchers.”

Emery emphasized that because of the school’s culture and goals, the students attending on vouch-ers have not significantly impacted the make-up of the student body. He said, “It is important to know

that this hasn’t changed our profile socioeconomically or demograph-ically as a school, because we’ve al-ways been enrolling students who would have otherwise qualified for a voucher. Roughly a third of our students receive need-based aid, and that’s been the case for years.”

This year’s raffle ticket cam-paign raised money specifically for that fund. Emery contacted several families of students attending here on state tax vouchers, but none was willing to be interviewed for this story. More information about the voucher program and tuition and fees may be found on the school website at www.cathedral-irish.org/vouchers.

Over the past three years, the number of students who attend Cathedral with a school voucher has significantly increased from 18 students in the 2011-2012 school year to 126 students this year. | Photo by Ben Sasin

Graduation moves to MuratBy Ian Kea

Seniors this year will not walk up to the podium at Clow-es Memorial Hall at Butler Uni-versity to receive their diplomas this year.

Instead the Old National Center which hold the Murat theatre downtown will host the 2014 graduating class. Clowes Hall consists of 1,400 seats and has well accommodated gradu-ations for the last 12 of 13 years. The Murat seats 1,800 people and has been an epicenter of concerts and plays for the Indi-anapolis area. The Murat stage is smaller in size so faculty will have to adjust this year.

Clowes Memorial Hall will host the Bob Williams and Andrew Warren gallery tour instead the Class of 2014 grad-uation.

Mr. Dave Worland said “We always like to go to Butler be-cause we have had graduation there for the last 12 of 13 grad-uations.

In 2009 the same thing hap-pened where we had to move to the Murat.

“Butler has things already scheduled way in advance and we didn’t make it in time. This is just a one-time thing, though. We hope to be at Clowes for several more years. The next best place to us was the Murat because it had similar size and space.”

One concern for this year’s graduation is also parking. Stu-dents, faculty, friends and fam-ily members will have to pay for parking this year compared to Clowes where parking was bountiful and free.

Worland said “At the Murat in 2009 it went smoothly.”

Indiana House Bill 1003

“Provides that an eligible choice scholarship student is eligible to receive as part of the choice scholarship any applicable amount that a school corporation (in which the student has legal settlement) would receive for a student as part of a special education grant.”

November 22, 20132

Inaugural mission trip to Joplin gives students both insight, perspective on service By Brigid Murphy

Senior Olivia Burris has gone on the fall mission trip every year since she was a freshman.

This year the mission trip moved from New Orleans, to Jo-plin, MO and Burris said it was a success.

The previous mission involved completing service at Holt Ceme-tery, but this year “the funding for the upkeep of the cemetery was no longer contributing and so the cemetery became overgrown and infested with snakes,” Burris said.

The people of Joplin were still in of help after the 2011 Ef5 torna-do devastated the city.

The work at the Joplin site was extremely different from the ser-vice at the New Orleans site.

“In Joplin there were many different tasks people performed. I personally worked to restore a thrift shop and served breakfast to the homeless. Many people worked on building habitat type houses and rebuilding damaged homes,” Burris said.

Burris spent time sorting through piles of clothes donated

from people all over the country after the tornado as well as mak-ing relief bags with necessities that would be needed if another disaster occurred. One of Burris’ favorite aspects of the service trip was serving breakfast.

Burris said, “This was one of my favorite parts of the trip because we got to sit among the homeless and talk to them about how they got to their current state, and we could really see how happy it was making them to visit with us.”

Campus Minister Charlene Witka was overtaken by the spirit of the people of Joplin. After the tornado hit Oklahoma, many vol-unteers left Joplin, so the people were happy to see our students come. The slogan of the people of Joplin is “the miracle of the human spirit.”

“Devastation is devastation. We know about the disaster in Indiana, but there we felt it,” said Witka.

One aspect of the annual mis-sion trip, regardless of the location, is having the last day of the excur-sion to explore the city.

Students congregate for a group photo after a long day’s work on a Habitat for Humanity build in Joplin, MO. | Photo by Meg Turchi

We The People dominates at District, prepares to defend its State titleBy Brigid Murphy

On Nov. 11, the We The People team won its district competition to advance to State on Dec. 15.

The team scored 958.5 points, which was 90 points higher than second place, Lawrence Central. Ms. Jill Baisinger, We The People moderator, said the biggest com-petition the team must face to de-fend its State title include Munster, Fishers, Hamilton Southeastern and Plainfield high schools.

Of the 12 teams competing to advance to the national level, these five teams, including Cathedral, are typically the top teams.

This year’s team has only 10 members, eight fewer than the minimum, which means eight members must double up on units of the Constitution that they must be familiar with. Baisinger said,

“They do not look at the size of the team as a disadvantage, but just as matter of fact. We have often joked that the team is small, but it is mighty. What they did at dis-trict, with what I often described as half a team, is amazing. I could not be prouder.”

Each member writes papers for a section and must be prepared to answer any question the judges ask. The work is rigorous, including a three-hour practice on Sunday and at least one hour long session with Baisinger once a week. Senior Kar-li Bernal, a team member, loves the rigorous work of the program.“I’d have 6:40 a.m. meetings four times a week, so I didn’t get very much sleep, but winning district made everything worth it. The program has made me become more polit-ically involved, as well as prepared

for college courses,” Bernal said.A unique aspect of the team

involves Senior Angela Meng, a Chinese exchange student who is learning new facts about the American government. “The ex-changes between her and the rest of the class, as well as the exchang-es I have had personally with her, have made this year very special and memorable for me,” Baisinger said.

The other eight team members are seniors Luke Wojtalik, Alex Dittmer, Sarah McClure, Sidharth John, Ian Kea, Susan Schrader, Jack Morouzis and Danny Steinmetz.

The team will compete for a State title next month to advance to the national competition. Baising-er said, “I feel better about the fu-ture of American politics when I see youth see a need to be involved

We The People members prepare for the competition at District later that day. | photo submitted

In New Orleans, the students went to the famous Café du Monde.

In Joplin, students traveled to St. Louis and visited iconic sites such as the City Museum.

Burris said, “I have never seen such a museum. It’s like a children’s museum for teenagers. There was a massive outdoor jungle gym, in-door caves, and incredible art.”

The students even got to go up in the famous Arch. The group ended its trip dining at the Spa-ghetti Factory, then boarded the bus and shipped back to Indianap-olis.

Although the NOLA trip will always hold a special place in Bur-ris’s heart with its lively city and interesting culture, she was glad to experience a new venture in Joplin.

Burris said, “I’m so grateful to have been able to see two fabulous cities filled with unique culture. This year was such a great experi-ence because it’s my last year here at Cathedral and it’s so cool how the mission trip can bring people together that normally wouldn’t hang out outside of school.”

Students work hard breaking up a concrete sidewalk in sunny Joplin, MO. | Photo by Meg Turchi

and be passionate about current issues around them. My happiest memories come from witnessing students who were meek, quiet, lacked confidence transform into

a young lady or gentlemen, who carry themselves with poise, con-fidence, and want to voice their opinion, because they know it matters.”

November 22, 2013 3

First blood drive of the school year results in 47 successful donations

Upper left is a picture of Cathedral students filling out paperwork in the WAC so that they can give blood. Pictured above is senior Gabby Woodman watching as her arm is sterilized so she can donate blood. Pictured on left is sophomore Casey Beidelman handing in her paperwork so she can give blood. | Photos by Jingle Wang

The National Honor Society sponsored a blood drive that occurred in the WAC. | Photo by Jingle Wang

Number of students signed up to donate blood: 99

Number of students who showed up to donate: 73

Number deferred due to medical reasons: 26

Number of pints donated: 47

Potential number of patients helped by these donations: 235

Next scheduled blooddrive: Jan. 16

After 41 years, chemistry teacher Glenn Mauger continues to inspire his students November 22, 20134

Brother Ken Haders plans to help make Holy Cross values well-known among students By Annie Browning This is the second of a two-part se-ries on Brother Ken Haders, a Holy Cross brother who joined the staff at the beginning of the school year. This is the continuation of the story from the Oct. 25 issue.

Q: What are your goals at Ca-thedral?

A: I think that the brothers dis-covered when we visited and talk-ed with administrators and people from Cathedral, that the values that Holy Cross promotes are here.

About 20 or so years ago we were beginning to name what the values meant because before that it was like an oral tradition that it

just came with the brothers as they traveled from school to school.

So as I come to Cathedral, I am basically helping to identify those strengths while helping to put names to those values so that we can celebrate it when we present the message of Cathedral.

Also, that we’re all using the same language and that the themes are presented in a strong, clear way rather than using different words to describe the same thing.

So hopefully to clarify the mes-sage, to strengthen the values by creating language that we can talk about those values and to explore

how we can implement those in a classroom or club or team or what-ever the activity is.

So we can make those values part of the life at Cathedral because we can name them and talk about them and celebrate them and ex-pand them to a common language and a common understanding.

Q: What is your favorite part about being at Cathedral so far?

A: I like the enthusiasm and the spirit of the students and of the faculty. It’s inspiring to see people so committed to a place and to making it a good place and a better place.

During his time at Cathedral, Brother Ken Haders would like to “make those (Holy Cross) values part of the life at Cathedral.” | Photo by Ben Sasin

Mr. Glenn Mauger, organic chemistry teacher, years instructs junior Annie Gregory about moles. Mauger has taught at Cathedral for 41 years. | Photo by Annie Browning

By Kara WilliamsWith his 41 years as a mem-

ber of the Irish family, Mr. Glenn Mauger has the distinction of be-ing the longest-serving teacher here.

And his former students and current colleagues have both praise and stories to tell about this veteran member of the faculty.

“One time he forgot to turn off a heating basket in the lab and freaked out. He remembered at 3 in the morning and drove to Cathedral to make sure it wasn’t burned to the ground,” said Lily Delalande ’11, a former student of Mauger’s. “He tried to blame my friend Christine and me for dis-tracting him, but let’s be honest, he totally just forgot. He may or may not refer to this incident as ‘The Ash Wednesday Miracle.’”

Mauger has taught a variety of courses including academic and honors chemistry, AP Chemistry, IB Chemistry, chemical analysis and organic chemistry. He typ-ically teaches science courses, although he has also instructed algebra and geometry.

Mauger said his favorite to teach is “probably organic chem-istry because it’s totally an elective course and it is not governed by state guidelines so you have a lot

of freedom in how the course is set up and what content you cover.”

Mauger said he has experienced many enjoyable moments here. “I don’t think I could pick just one single memory because there’s just so many things going through my brain, all of which have been really positive memories,” Mauger said. “There’s just lots and lots of good memories so I’m sort of afraid to mention just one because then it would make all these other things seem less because I picked one.”

Dr. Aarti Brooks, the current vice principal for research and curriculum and former science de-

partment chair, has worked with Mauger for 14 years. “He is so en-ergetic, so enthusiastic about what he’s doing that his energy is trans-ferred on to the kids,” Brooks said.

Mauger said he still keeps in touch with some of his former students. He talks most frequent-ly with Pam Jones ’86 “When she went to school here she sort of like adopted me. We just sort of bond-ed and have remained friends over the last couple of decades,” he said.

Delalande is a student who has been positively influenced by Mauger. Delalande said Mauger continues to give her advice. “He

probably won’t remember this, but I was thinking about leaving the research lab I worked in and he told me to wait it out and stay. I’m glad I listened because the prob-lem I had did indeed resolve itself with time.”

Delalande is currently a chem-istry major at IU. She said, “I didn’t like chemistry until I started work-ing with (Mauger) after school.”

Mauger’s teaching methods sparked Delalande’s interest in the subject. “He was definitely not afraid to be ridiculous to get stu-dents to pay attention,” she said. “We always did fun activities in

class that would help us visualize the concepts we were learning better.”

Principal Mr. Dave Worland has known Mauger for 23 years and worked with him here for 13.

“My experience with Mr. Mauger has been nothing but what I would hope for any teacher, and that is a teacher who is passionate for the students that he is teaching. He wants to inspire his students to be the best they can be,” Worland said.

Mauger’s advice to new teach-ers is “just to know yourself.” He said, “To be a really effective teach-er you have to know both your strengths and your weaknesses so that you can take advantage of your strengths and work around your weaknesses.”

The principal said he has been incorporated into Mauger’s teach-ing methods. “He’s even used me as a molecule. I’m in there sitting and reviewing and just observing and he made me feel really wel-come to be in there,” Worland said.

“I hope that future generations of teachers become like him so they don’t lose that zeal and that energy and that love of students that Mr. Mauger has.”

Cathedral Can Project provides opportunity for service learning in and out of the classroom By Claire Moore

Mrs. Liz Browning’s fourth period class listens to Allison Wehrli deliver a speech. | Photo by Emerson Wolff

November 22, 2013 5

“Apple pie with tons of redi whip”Herb Miller, Senior

“Mashed Potatos”Mallory Whitsett, Freshman

“Pumpkin Pie”Tommy Kacius, Freshman

As you prepare for next Thursday’s big feast, what is your favorite Thanksgiving food?

During a cold, windy week last month, English 10X teacher Mrs. Liz Browning’s students could be found doing service. In and of itself, this statement may not seem out of the ordinary for students here, but these sophomores participated in a new kind of service project: building sculptures.

Earlier this year, Browning had an idea. Her vision was for her students to be able to create sculptures out of used cans to help raise awareness for the canned food drives of local food pantries. Although she says she came up with the concept, she said, “The kids did all of the work planning their sculp-tures.” She goes on to say that it was “no easy task.”

To go about creating these sculptures, Browning was able to receive a grant

from GenerationOn, a global youth service movement, to help pay for tools, glue, wire and spray paint. The students were given time in class to look at the materials, mostly cans, and to brain-

storm ideas for their sculptures. Mrs. Browning said that in each class

a student took the lead and the class fol-lowed suit. Each of the sophomore class-es built two sculptures and they were all

To recognize football success, opening of play, school day will conclude with pep rallyToday’s schedule

1: 7:55 to 8:352: 8:40 to 9:203: 9:30 to 10:104: 10:15 to 10:555: 11:00 to 11:406: 11:45 to 12:25

7: 12:30 to 1:108: 1:15 to 1:559: 2:00 to 2:40

Pep Rally2:45-3:25

In support of all the school activities happening this weekend a pep rally has been scheduled at 2:45-3:25 in the WAC to kick off a fun-filled Irish weekend.

With the football team taking on Terra Haute in the semi-state game and Catheatre putting on

the production of “The Sparrow” there are numerous oppurtunities to support your fellow classmates.

“The purpose of the pep rally on friday is to recognize and hon-or some of our students who have been successfull so far this year and to gather as a Cathedral fam-

ily and celebrate these successes,” Worland said.

Pep rallies are scheduled every six to seven weeks. A special fea-ture this afternoon will include ap-pearances by a few senior parents to perform a skit in honor of the football teams accomplishments thus far.

built during class time. The project took four days start to finish; the students built the sculptures in the classroom and spray painted them outside in the park-ing lot.

In doing the Cathedral Can project, students learned a variety of lessons, soph- omore Abbey Finn said, “This opened my eyes and made me realize there are people who suffer hunger in my own city.”

Sophomore Nolan Boyle agrees. He said, “It helped me remember how for-tunate I am to have three meals a day and snacks, especially on Thanksgiving.”

For next year, Browning hopes to be able to build the sculptures on a week-end with better weather. As she says, “We picked the rainiest, coldest three days in October.” Despite this, she said she thinks overall the project went well. She said, “The sculptures are great.”

“Turkey’”Timmy McNulty, Junior

“Dressing and Macaroni”Jia Cross, Senior

Fifty years ago today, tragedy struck AmericaNovember 22, 20136

By Meg TurchiThe nation was filled with sadness 50 years ago from today when President John F. Kennedy was assassinat-ed in Dallas. U.S. history teacher Mr. Brad Berghoff, although not alive for when the assassination occurred, be-lieves that it greatly affect-ed the nation.“There is too much evi-dence that points to many possibilities in terms of one sole shooter,” Berghoff said. He believes that President Kennedy’s assassination involved more individuals than just Lee Harvey Os-wald. Berghoff himself was not greatly impacted by this tragedy, but the nation was deeply affected. Ken-nedy’s assassination was

one of the most devastat-ing events to happen to that generation. So many people adored the Kenne-dy family. “They were the most famous family in the

United States just because of the influence they had. Before ‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’ and dumb reality shows, that was literally a reality show of its

own, watching the news to see what the Kennedy family was doing that night or on that weekend.”On Nov. 25, 1963 the nation came together and

Librarian Mrs. Jennifer Herron shows Ms. Amy Weber a display of books and magazines on President Kennedy. | Photo by Sam White

Faculty, staff recall their vivid memories of President John F. Kennedy’s assassinationMrs. Kathy Keyes

Mrs. Kathy Keyes, English 10X, AP Literature and Composition teacher and Brain Game moderator, sat in her half-day kindergarten class when she found out President John F. Kennedy was assassinated.

Looking around as a kindergart-ener and seeing her teacher, her mom and her dad crying was quite a sight for Keyes. As a kindergartener, she was quite confused. After listening to her principle come over the intercom saying Kennedy was assassinated she watched her teacher break down in disbelief. Then her school was let out early and she was picked up by her mother, who was greatly affected by this tragedy.

The next memory involved Ken-nedy’s funeral. Keyes and her family

watched it on television. “We were united watching the funeral,” Keyes said. It was a time of great sadness for America Keyes recalled.

Keyes remembers feeling sympa-thetic toward Caroline Kennedy, John F. Kennedy’s daughter, who was a kin-dergartener as well.

Looking back on this assassination as an adult, Keyes believes Oswald was the sole mastermind who killed Kennedy. She also said that America lost its innocence as a country.

Although Keyes was only a kin-dergartener, she still felt the effect of Kennedy’s assassination. She felt the unity as America mourned it mur-dered president. Keyes said, “It felt as if this bright light has been extin-guished.” By Valerie Moore

Mr. Terry Fox Mr. Terry Fox describes the reaction of President Ken-nedy’s assassination as “silence, just silence. It was unbeliev-able. We just thought ‘Is this a hoax?’ or ‘Is this a joke?’”

Sadness filled the nation when their president was shot and killed in Dallas, Texas. Today marks the 50th anniversa-ry of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination. Fox remem-bers the nation’s feelings about the event, “I think from the emotional standpoint, it was the sorrow. It was pretty sad when it happened. For most of the adults at the time, it was a big loss for them.”

At the young age of 10 years old Fox stood in his Aunt Francis’ living room as he watched the news of Kennedy’s assassination on a black and white TV. Regarding the deliv-ery of the news he said, “back then the news wasn’t as fast as it is today, and so (there was) a lot of speculation and a lot of no answers for a long time. It took a couple weeks to get all of the information.”

As most national events do, the assassination changed the country in a lot of ways, especially regarding security. Fox said it was “a loss of trust.” By Annie Browning

buried its 35th president, John F. Kennedy. This event has had a lasting impres-sion on the people, United States and the people who were alive for this event.

November 22, 2013 7

Study hall was typically not any-thing special for permanent substitute Mr. Daniel Wellman as a student. But on a cold, rainy Friday, Nov. 22, 1963, study hall transformed into the spot Wellman will forever remember as the place he was when the President was shot.

Noblesvile High School had no PA system at the time so Wellman and

On Nov. 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, allegedly by Lee Harvey Oswald in Dallas. To-day marks the 50th anniversary of the death of the 35th President of the Unit-ed States. Director of Campus Minis-try Mrs. Charlene Witka recounts her memories of this heart-wrenching day that changed our country forever.

Witka, who grew up in Merryville , IN was in her seventh grade choir class when the nuns told them to return to class and broke the news that the Pres-ident had been killed. They turned on the TV and for the rest of class sat and watched the clip of the President being shot.

The day of the funeral Witka’s school was given the day off. “I will never forget Mrs. Kennedy walking behind the coffin with the horses and little John John saluting his father,” Witka said regarding the showing of the funeral on television.

When the startling news broke that Lee Harvey Oswald Kennedy’s alleged assassin, had been murdered, Witka recalls the nation as feeling “empathetic,” but not empathetic in a way as to commend his acts, but that he did not deserve to die. The Ameri-can people were struck with the ques-tion of “how much tragedy is going to happen,” Witka said.

Witka’s family who regularly at-tended Mass can recall certain ref-erences that were made and prayers that were offered up to the Kennedy family during mass. “The nation was stricken with grief, paralyzed,” said Witka. “Attending Mass was part of the mourning process.”

Like all things in life, time heals everything. The nation would come together and carry on with life. “I was really proud or our nation for coming together as one, no matter what faith one was, in the light of tragedy,” By Elizabeth Wyman

Mrs. Charlene Witka

Mr. Daniel “Doc” Wellman

other students heard the news of Presi-dent John F. Kennedy being shot by an English teacher who announced it to the class. Wellman always just assumed it was only a shot, maybe just to the shoulder.”It never occurred to me that (Kennedy) would die,” Wellman said.

Suddenly all TV stations switched to news on the shooting and Wellman also watched the funeral on a few days later. Wellman remembers everyone around him having reactions of sad-ness, confusion and panic.

Lee Harvey Oswald, the alleged shooter, was arrested that very same day. Wellman said, “I don’t think I ever thought about anything other than Oswald being the only shooter. I never thought of any conspiracy.”

Wellman said the assassination didn’t largely impact his family specif-ically, but it affected the nation in tre-mendous ways. He also gave a speech at his high school graduation in which he discussed violence in America, hav-ing the assassination in mind when de-livering the speech. By Brigid Murphy

Fr. John Zahn Fr. John Zahn was merely a 20-year-old college student the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. He was attending a small college in South-ern Indiana, Oakland City College. Zahn was heading back to the rec room from his class when he heard the news.

Zahn walked into the room to the sight of about five of his friends all standing in front of the television screen. “Everything stopped,” he said. One student walked in and exclaimed that he was glad Kennedy was killed. Zahn and his friends became angry and scolded him for being insensitive. Zahn said he vividly remembers Wal-ter Cronkite crying on television. “It was an extremely emotional time for everyone,” said Zahn.

The talk around Oakland City Col-lege the following days was whether or not classes would be held on the day of Kennedy’s funeral. Zahn and a large group of other students began plan-ning on boycotting all school facilities and functions on the day of his funeral if the school decided to continue as normal. “I didn’t feel as though it was right for us to continue with our daily lives as if nothing had happened on such an important and sad day,” Zahn said. School administrators opted to

Mr. Mike Feeney

One day changed history. On No-vember 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated during a visit to Dallas.

Mr. Mike Feeney, Director of Major and Planned gifts, vividly recalls that moment as a freshman at Brebeuf Je-suit Preparatory School. “I remember exactly where I was sitting. I was in my English class, sitting against the wall four people back in the first row, when my principal announced that President Kennedy was shot.”

Feeney noticed that the news of the assassination affected more than just his school.“The whole city shut down. Everyone was in shock,” Feeney said. “When I got home that day, my family was speechless.”

Confusion came after the shock that the country felt. “Everybody was confused because we were not sure whether it was a plot, or one person. We didn’t know what the plan was.”

Soon after, the Warren Commission Report was published, which conclud-ed that the assassination involved one man, and one gun. However, skeptics questioned the report’s conclusion. “No one really believed it (the Warren Report). Many people thought that it was a conspiracy, and that Cubans and Russians were involved so as Ameri-cans, we were confused,” Feeney said.

However, Feeney is confident in what he believes happened that day.“Today, I’m convinced that it was one man (Lee Harvey Oswald) and one gun because I’ve read enough about it,” he said.

Kennedy’s assassination hit the Catholic community hard because he was the nation’s first Catholic presi-dent. “He was a hero (to Catholics) at the time,” Feeney said. “We (Catholics) took a lot of pride in him.”

Feeney believes that every genera-tion has its defining moment, such as Kennedy’s assassination for his gener-ation. “There are other comparable in-stances for other generations, like Pearl Harbor, Kennedy’s assassination and 9/11,” Feeney said. “I don’t know what’s next, but there will always be a defining moment in your life.” By Ben Sasin

give each teacher the option either to hold classes, or postpone them until af-ter the funeral. Zahn said that most of his professors chose to postpone class, and he believes they made the proper choice. By Ben Baker

8 November 22, 2013

Goodman: Orchestra teacher by day, musical performer by night

Band concert: Dec. 8, 1 p.m.Choir concert: Dec. 5, 7 p.m.

Featured band songs: “Where the Black Hawk Soars,” “Yorkshire Christmas Carol,” “Sleigh Ride”

Featured choir songs: “Let it Snow,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” “Oh Holy Night,” “All I Want for Christmas is You”

Band, choir prepare for holiday concert

occupation, Goodman said he never actually wanted to become an educator. His teacher told him that he needed to teach but Good-man insisted that he had to prac-tice. “One day as I was leaving she handed me information for my two new students. I said I don’t have students, and she said, ‘Yes, you do now.’

“When you want to give an ex-ample to a student you want that example to be perfect. You don’t want to give a sub-par example.” His teacher kept telling him that he should teach and he had a gift. Goodman said he knew he had tal-ent, but he didn’t really understand what she was talking about.

Goodman said he was asked twice by school administrators to see if he wanted to teach orchestra. “It keeps coming back around to me. There is some kind of divine providence, some kind of message here, I’m not really sure what it was, but it keeps coming back, so I said OK.

“At the end of the third week, (the) second day I went home, I thought this was the most wonder-ful thing that ever happened to me. To be at Cathedral itself is pretty amazing.”

By Emerson Wolff In light of the upcoming hol-

iday season, the band and choirs will perform their annual Christ-mas concert.

Each choir will showcase its talents with songs that reflect their voices. “I choose music based on the students and what they enjoy, and also what helps them to learn different aspects of the holiday season,” choir direc-tor Mr. Tyler Lemen said.

“If you watch the movie (‘A Christmas Carol’) with Jim Car-rey that is the song that kind of culminates the movie, and I thought we would culminate our concert with that. It brings everyone together at the end,” Lemen said.

The final song of the band’s concert is “Sleigh Ride.” “I think ‘Sleigh Ride’ because it’s a Christ-mas type song, it’s a classic. Probably a lot of the parents in the audience have played it too if they were in band,” Band Di-rector Mrs. Kathy McCullough said. There are special effects like those the listener may hear if he were on an actual sleigh ride, such as sleigh bells and whip cracks.

On their selection of songs, Lemen and McCullough both said that they try to model the songs they choose for the stu-dents’ taste and interests. Mc-Cullough said, “I think about who we have in band and what music would fit that band best. Every year, it is a little different.”

Sophomore Phillip Burgess watches as Mr. Steven Goodman adjusts his double bass to the correct height. | Photo by Ben Sasin

By Zane Turi The old saying that those who

can’t do, teach, definitely doesn’t apply to Mr. Steven Goodman, the orchestra teacher and band assistant who is in his fourth year here.

Goodman has been performing for more than 15 years in India-napolis. He has also toured with many bluegrass and folk bands in the Midwest, mostly in Kentucky and Michigan as well as some on the East Coast. Goodman has also played at the International Jazz Festival in Montreal.

“I had never in my wildest dreams have imagined playing at one of the biggest and most fa-mous jazz festivals in the world. I’ve played other places, including Berlin and Atlantic City,” Good-man said.

One of Goodman’s dreams is to perform at the Newport Jazz Fes-tival, a major event held each year in Rhode Island. Next on the list for Goodman is the International Festival in Switzerland. “This is a huge classical venue. Only the best classical orchestra and best classical musicians are asked to play there. You don’t apply, they ask you to perform there,” he said.

Back in 1989 one of Goodman’s groups was asked to play at the fes-tival. His group was the first ever to play at the International Festival of Music.

Growing up, Goodman was in-troduced to many different genres of music, such as bluegrass, opera and show tunes, as well as country and classical. When he was in the third grade, Goodman took a mu-sic class. He remembers watching a performer on TV play the violin and so he chose it. “When I got the

chance to do string day, I picked up the violin and the teacher said, ‘Do you want to try something else?’ and I said no, I want to play violin.”

Goodman said he has worked with some great people in his life. “My first bluegrass album that I cut, I shared the stage with Mi-chael Cleveland, who was a five-time Grammy award winner and six-time national bluegrass fiddle champion.”

When it comes to his current

Opportunities abound to give back during upcoming holiday season By Katie Swanton

The Gregory family has con-tributed a great amount toward the WRTV 6 toy drive and the WTHR coat drive. Mr. Kevin Gregory, communication chief meteorolo-gist for RTV6, and his father, Mr. Bob Gregory, a retired meteorol-ogist for WTHR, were selected to advertise these two local charities.

This event is also presented by AAA insurance. The charities are promoted by TV, radio and occasionally newspaper. Coats were collected and distributed at the State Fairgrounds for the coat drive. The donated items then were given out to those less fortu-nate around the state.

“There were no requirements necessary,” said junior Annie

Gregory. “If you needed a coat you got a coat.” The coats were distributed in October and nearly 700 coats were collected just from students here alone.

The coat drive campaign has lasted for 27 years and continues to serve many families. “It’s easy to donate to the coat drive because we all have coats we have outgrown,” said Mr. Gregory.

An upcoming event is the WRTV 6 toy drive. It will kick off at Monument Circle a week from today at the annual Christmas tree lighting. Anyone can donate any new or gently used toy at the Christmas tree lighting downtown or they will be collected at any AAA Service Center. The collec-tion continues until Dec. 14.

Toys can range from those for babies to 12 year olds. “Families in need benefit from the RTV6 toy drive by having a gift to give their kids during the holidays,” said Mr. Gregory. This drive serves more than 100,000 children each year.

Indianapolis offers a variety of other opportunities to give back during the Christmas season as well. This year there are several upcoming events in which indi-viduals can help give back to those less fortunate.

Scotty’s Brewhouse is support-ing Riley Hospital for Children by taking up a collection of toys. Every donation it receives, a guest will receive a free order for their homemade dill chips. Also, every time a donor purchases a special

Riley Red Wagon hot cocoa, a dol-lar will go to Riley.

Sears helps people give back to military families by collecting do-nations through the Sears Heroes at Home wish registry. Students can take clothes, toys and holiday decorations to a local Sears store or donate online at sears.com/heroesathome. Sears will then dis-tribute the gifts to military families across the nation.

Anyone can donate to Gleaners food bank any food items for its Pack the Pantry: A Case for Giving event.

Several organizations are spread out throughout Indianapo-lis to help individuals get involved this Christmas season.

November 22, 2013 9

By Ben BakerThe school recently experi-

enced many changes: the new locker room, the improved athletic fields, the key card doors and a brand new athletics director. Mr. Doug Seagrave, who said he is lucky to be here.

“Cathedral has a mission and vision I very much admire,” Sea-grave said, “I saw an opportunity to be a part of a high school dedi-cated to success (and I took it).”

Before Seagrave began his work here, he served as the assistant athletics director at Decatur Cen-tral, the football team Cathedral defeated in the first round of the Sectional. Seagrave then worked as the AD for Perry Meridian, War-ren Central and Triton Central.

The biggest difference between here and the places Seagrave previ-ously held jobs involved “emphasis on athletics and academics. The

spiritual component to activities here is very positive,” Seagrave said. More than 80 percent of stu-dents here are involved in athlet-ics. “Expectations are very high for all of our students,” Seagrave said.

Due to the high expectations of student-athletes, the AD position is subject to similar expectations. “There is no average day. That is the great thing about my job. Every day has some managerial activities but much of the day is determined by the unforeseen,” Seagrave said.

“Developing relationships with students and watching them develop as people and athletes (is the best part of my day),” said Seagrave, who also cited a situ-ation most high school athletics directors do not have to face. “A challenge for an AD (here) is not having many of our athletic events here on campus,” he said. This is

a problem for many coaches and athletes. Football, baseball, track, swimming, bowling and soccer compete at venues not on campus.

When not working as AD, Sea-grave likes to spend time with his wife, Erica, and his two children, Morgan and Jackson.

“We love to attend sporting events and movies,” said Seagrave. At Eastern High School in Green-town, Seagrave was a basketball player; today he enjoys playing tennis.

“I am a fan of nearly any sport,” said Seagrave. “I just like the com-petition.”

The first-year AD said, “Cathe-dral has a spirit unlike any other school with which I have been as-sociated. It is a culture, it is a feel-ing that surrounds the school and the people every day. It is a place of support and nurture. It is a place of expected maximizing of potential.”

New Athletics Director Mr. Doug Seagrave shakes hands with a senior Courtney Graham in his office. “Cathedral has a spirit unlike any other school with which I have been associated,” Seagrave said. | Photo by Sam White

As fall sports wrap up, several teams prepare to begin their winter seasonsBy Ian KeaWrestling The wrestling squad, led by Head Coach Sean McGinley, fin-ished last year’s season on the mats ranked eighth in the state.

The defending Regional champs are led by current Seniors and future Rutgers Scarlet Knights Wesley Bernard and Vinny Corsa-ro heading into the season.

Bernard said he can’t wait for the season to start. “The best thing about wrestling season to me is the relationship you form with the team. I’ve never felt a team bond like I do with all the guys on the team, especially the seniors,” Ber-nard said.

With a young squad Bernard said, “I try to lead by example. I like to think that some of the younger guys look up to me so I think that if they see me doing the right things and working hard they will do the same.”

After strong performances in-dividually last year, these two lead-ers focus on a bigger objective.

Bernard said, “Our team goal is to win the team State title in Feb-

Ice hockey The men of the Cathedral-Cha-tard Hockey Club (CCHC) are led this season by seniors Jordan Thompson, Alex Dennen, Bob Mooney, Bradley Lewis and be-loved water boy Ian Berry.

Mr. Eric Glanders serves as one of the hockey coaches. The team capped a solid season last year with an undefeated run in the 4A division of the tournament. The Irish tied a game in the State tournament and did not advance because of goals against.

Dennen says he wants a State championship “more than ever.” The last time the boys won the State championship was in 2011. Mooney looks to capitalize on this season. “I want five shutouts this season, hopefully more.” “Goals are great but it all starts with summer workouts. We have to work hard then so we are ready

in the fall, Lewis said.While the season already has

begun, the team’s next scheduled competition will take place tomor-row against Munster at the Fishers Forum.

After his first few months on the job, new AD makes successful transition

ruary and to win our dual meet at Perry Meridian at which I expect a large student section, hint, hint.”

Men’s basketballThe Irish are back on the court

looking for a challenge. The State runners-up look forward to a sea-son where they are the last ones standing in the end. The Irish are led by Head Coach Mr. Andrew Fagan, Assistant Coaches Mr. Tim Adams and Mr. Walter Offat and seniors Matthew Gregory, Collin Barthel and Justin Baker.

Even though the Irish lost the likes of IU freshman Colin Hart-man and IPFW freshman Moe Evans. Coach Fagan said expec-tations remain the same. He said, “Obviously we lost a lot off last year’s team but we bring back a lot of important pieces. It’s those (seniors) that know what it’s like to have success and play on a high level. We have good, young play-ers to mix in with our returning guys.”

The Irish will be a youth-driven team but that doesn’t reduce ex-pectations, according to the coach.

Fagan said, “We feel as the year goes and we gain the necessary experience, we will have another great chance to have another spe-cial season.” Adams said, “The biggest com-petition is ourselves”.

The standard has been estab-lished, and Baker attests to that. “Coach Fagan tells us when we play hard to just never give up no matter what happens. Play as a team and stick together through all adversity and hard times. Also to make sure we are on top of ev-erybody else game in and game out”Women’s basketball

The girls opened the regular season last Saturday, a 15-point loss at Carmel and traveled to Muncie Central Tuesday evening. The squad is led by Head Coach Ed Frieje and seniors Kristin Pi-woworski, Mallory Taylor, Col-leen Lane, Kirsten Alexander and Courtney Crowe.

Piwoworski is optimistic this season hoping to finish strong af-ter numerous leg injuries that held her back from performing at her best. Piwoworski said she believes leadership, team chemistry and a dedication to hard work are keys to making this season one for the record books.

“As a team, I would like to see us become so close that our desire to win for each other will give us an advantage over our competi-tion,” she said.

Fellow senior Taylor said she agrees. “I want to be stronger as a team. I want to be able to connect with my teammates on and off the court, and I want the team to do the same,” Taylor said.

“The best thing about basket-ball season are the bonds that we share. Sometimes the people on your team you don’t get a chance to see unless you’re on the court. But during the season we bond by team meals, pregame talks, bus rides, and exciting tournaments. It’s great,” Taylor said.

STAFF EDITORIAL

megaphoneStaff

Co-editors in chief: Ben Sasin,Elizabeth WymanNews editor: Ben SasinAssistant news editor: Zane TuriOpinion editor:Claire MooreAssistant opinion editor:Jill Stinson Feature editor: Meg Turchi Assistant feature editor: Emma Flynn

In-depth editor:Elizabeth WymanAssistant in-depth editor: Ashley KingSports editor: Ross WeberAssistant sports editor: Ian KeaA&E editors: Kara Williams, Emerson WolffPhotographers: Annie Browning, Jingle WangReporters: Ben Baker, Brigid Murphy,

Katie SwantonCartoonist: Megan WolfAdviser: Mr. Tony WillisPrincipal: Mr. David WorlandPresident: Mr. Stephen Helmich

Megaphone is a forum for public expression. These opinions do not necessar-ily reflect the views of the entire Megaphone staff or of Cathedral High School.

Letters Policy -- Letters to the editors are welcomed from readers who wish to express their opinion on issues and topics that affect them. Letters should be de-livered to the student publi-cations lab (room 2212) or e-mailed to megaphone@gocathedral.com at least two weeks before the paper is published. All letters must be signed and will be pub-lished with the writer’s name affixed. Length is limited

to 300 words. Megaphone reserves the right to edit letters for grammar and for space requirements without changing intent. Letters that are libelous, unduly sar-castic or caustic will not be published.

Megaphone is the student news-paper of Cathedral High School, 5225 E. 56th Street, Indianap-olis, IN 46226, (317-542-1481), and is published the last Friday of every month.

Mission Statement:The Megaphone is committed to delivering honest news and informing the student body with quality, informative, and entertaining news.

November 22, 201310

As Cathedral students, we have a lot to be thankful for as we approach Thanksgiving.

We are all privileged enough to come to a school that students travel all over Indiana in the hopes of attend-ing.

Our football team has won State for the past three consec-utive years, our We the People team came fifth in the nation last year and just last week qualified for the state finals again this year, and the myriad lists of school successes and victories simply begin there.

In addition to being the best in what we do, as students here we are also able to experi-ence the unique and bonding known to us as the “Cathedral family.”

In good times and in bad, throughout our years here we all surely witness the students and even teachers coming together to help and support one another.

Unfortunately, we have experienced such tragic events during the last two weeks but know that the presence of God

and the support of our friends help us meet these tragedies with grace and compassion.

Although we know we have a lot to be thankful for, we may not always take the time to think about and appreciate those things.

In the spirit of the upcom-ing holiday, here’s a list of just a few of the things for which we all can be thankful. • Use of our iPads in class for academic work and yes, every now and then, to check out Dumb Ways to Die. Our teachers and their willingness to help us not only in class, but outside the school day as well (just to name one example, the math teachers who give up their Sunday afternoons to come to school to assist us).• Everyone in the parishes who pray for us.• The college guidance coun-selors and all the work they do to help the seniors prepare their college applications. • The friendly competition amongst classes, which is showcased by the annual spirit stick competition.

• Our beautiful campus, which has been especially impressive with the changing of the leaves and the recent dusting of snow. • Our ability to show our faith, from the morning prayer to Father’s afternoon dismissal.• The peer mentors and all the assistance they provide the freshmen. • The leprechaun and his infectious spirit. • The smoothie machine.• Dr. Greer and his dedicated omnipresence. • Our school spirit. • Our parents for sending us to school here.• The SLC.• The daily morning drive up the hill.• Our diversity. • Our school’s 95-year tradi-tion of educational excellence. No doubt you have your own items that could be added to this list. Next Thursday, when you thank God for your turkey and dressing and that final piece of pumpkin pie, thank him for everything on this list and your own.

Thanksgiving: Much more for which to be thankful than just days off school

Let’s make fictional city of Pawnee in ‘Parks and Recreation’ a reality in our state When the TV show was in

its prime, I was in love with “The Office.” Then when Steve Carell, who played as re-gional manager Michael Scott, announced that he was leaving the show, I was heartbroken.

That was until I discovered the TV show “Parks and Recreation.”

The show stars Amy Poehler as Leslie Knope, the perky deputy parks director in the parks depart-ment. Other major personalities include Nick Offerman, who acts as the bacon-loving Libertarian Ron Swanson; Aubrey Plaza as April Ludgate, a shy yet hilarious girl; Chris Pratt as the amateur and

immature shoeshiner; Jim O’Hare as Jerry Gergich, an older man who is blamed for all of the of-fice’s problems; Rob Lowe as Chris Traeger, a nutritional supplement addict and perfectionist and Retta as Donna Meagle, the office’s dra-ma mama.

This show is more than just about a parks and recreation de-partment of a little fictional city named Pawnee, Indiana.

It’s about a group of govern-ment employees who run into the most absurd situations. For exam-ple, in one episode, Knope tries to transform a concrete slab where telephone booths once stood into

“Indiana’s smallest park” which would be “0.0000003 square miles.” And the time when Dwyer falls down a steep ravine where a park once was and breaks his leg, Knope asks the doctor for his dirty cast because “it’s a symbol of new beginnings (for the future park).” Or the time when Knope mistook Swanson for a turkey on the office’s

annual hunting trip. Every episode is packed with hysterical scenes, and I can guarantee that it would have you laughing. The show takes place in Indiana because not ev-ery show on primetime television occurs in our great state. I believe that the show pokes fun at govern-ment employees, yet puts Hoosiers in a good light.

That’s why I believe that Pawnee should be an actual city in Indiana, set up just like it is presented on the show. It would be Indiana’s seventh largest city and located 90 miles from Indianapolis, just as mentioned on the show. Key desti-nations in the city would be town

hall, JJ’s Diner, Pawnee Zoo, Li’l Sebastian Memorial, numerous parks and a museum featuring real sets from the show.

Just imagine, establishing a city in the middle of cornfield and transforming it into a booming metropolis, which would bring in millions of dollars every year be-cause of its many amenities.

This layout for a city would gain national attention and it would definitely be the first of its kind.

If you have never seen the show, I highly recommend you watch it either on Thursdays at 8 p.m. on NBC or on Netflix. You’ll thank me later.

PERSONAL OPINION: BEN SASIN

“This layout for a city would gain national attention.”

Riley Dance Marathon brings together students, helps those touched by Riley HospitalOne of my favorite somewhat

cliché quotes is “nothing is impossible, even the word itself says I’m possible.” We hear this quote during prayer in Mrs. Katie Lewis’s theology class at least once a week. But it took me nine and a half hours on my feet without sitting down truly to understand what that quote really means.

A few weeks ago the school held its annual Riley Dance Marathon to raise funds for Riley Hospital for Children. Every year we come

together for roughly seven hours to “dance” for those who can’t. We dance, eat and share stories about why we feel the need to support Riley Children’s Hospital and all that it has affected.

Riley Hospital will forever hold a special place in my heart. Wheth-er it was visiting my sister during one of her 17 surgeries there, being dragged along to countless doctor appointments against my will as a child, or eating Easter dinner by my sister’s bedside, Riley Hospital

made the situation as comfortable as possible.

While Carmel may raise $300,000 which is great, ours is about something more. Sharing the stories of kids and families

who have been so deeply touched by Riley Hospital they become a support system for those patients who are currently there. If it wasn’t for generous donors like Riley DM participants, they may not have gotten the personal care and treat-ment that Riley provides.

There’s something incredibly special about meeting a little boy, Braden, who wasn’t even supposed to be born alive, play football and basketball with his friends and complete an inflatable obstacle

course at age 8. Or a freshman boy, Josh, who was diagnosed with cancer or Patrick, whose life was saved by Riley when he was diag-nosed with cancer.

So while Carmel does it all for the money, which is great, we do it for the success stories. For my sister, for Braden, for Josh, for Pat-rick, for all of the other Cathedral students and family members who Riley hospital has affected. We do it for the kids.

PERSONAL OPINION: HEAVEN’S TO BETSY | ELIZABETH WYMAN

“Riley Hospital will forever hold a special place in my heart.”

Theology teacher praises NCYC, tells of her experience and the experiences of manyIf you want the opportunity to

meet teens from across the coun-try, rock out to some of the best Catholic musicians, get inspired by some of the best Catholic speakers and have more fun than a teen should be allowed to have while praising Jesus, then you should be in downtown Indianapolis with over 20,000 teens from across the country, including some of your

Cathedral classmates.The National Catholic Youth

Conference is a three-day bienni-al gathering of Catholic teenagers from across the country. I attend-ed NCYC for the first time in 1993. There were over 10,000 teenagers from across the United States gathered together in Philadelphia to celebrate their faith. On the first night of the conference, during the

opening session, all 10,000 teens were gathered in the main room of the convention center. I looked

it was going to be a special three days. And special it was.

This year NCYC is taking place through Saturday in downtown Indianapolis; over 20,000 teens, three days of concerts, nationally known speakers, interactive expe-riences in the theme park and an opportunity to grow in your faith. NCYC is a gift every teen deserves

GUEST OPINION: MS. DAWN DYE

“Right then and there I knew it was going to be a special three days.”

November 22, 2013 11

around the vast space and was mesmerized by what I witnessed. Every teenager in the room was openly celebrating their faith. One of the students I brought from my parish looked at me and said, “This is so cool!” It was cool to be Catho-lic?! It was cool to sing and praise God out loud…in front of other teens? Wow!

Right then and there I knew

megaphone Face-off November 22, 201312

In many popular teen novels, there exists a love triangle that keeps the buzz of the novel alive for a long time after the book is released. One of the most famous is the love triangle that exists in Stephenie Meyer’s Twi-light series.

But an even better series whose second installation comes to the public in theaters today is The Hunger Games. In Suzanne Collins’ three-book series, a love triangle brings about a great question and near war among fans. Are you Team Peeta or Team Gale? Of course, the an-swer is obvious. Gale.

Even from the beginning, Gale and Katniss have been best friends; not even just best friends, but the kind of best friend that would do anything for you, and you would trust them with your life. Gale has always and unwaveringly been there for Katniss.

In the first installation, The Hunger Games, the book highlights the great relationship between Gale and Katniss right from the beginning. They hunt together to get more food for their families and sit out in the woods, always talking about life and what’s happening in their world. Katniss knows that she could tell Gale anything, and she often opens up to him about her most inner thoughts, feelings and fears. They are always helping each other to be better hunters and people in a world so controlled by the Capitol.

When Katniss is chosen to compete in the Hunger Games, Gale vows to look after her mother and Prim, and to make sure they don’t starve. It means a lot that Gale is willing to take care of Katniss’ family while she is gone, on top of the many

siblings that he has himself. Gale is such a caring and family ori-ented person, as he takes several tesserae in the Reaping to give his family more food in poor District Twelve. His brothers and sisters are just as important to him as his relationship with Katniss.

You can tell that Gale is in love with Katniss because of the way he acts around her. He is always ready to listen, he’s pro-tective, but not too protective, a genuine and caring person, and knows everything about Katniss, better than anyone else. If you look at this evidence, Gale is the perfect one for Katniss.

He, by every account, is not only a great person to have around, but is everything that a girl wants in a boyfriend. I truly believe if Katniss had not gone to the Hunger Games, her and Gale would be together. Gale and Katniss are the perfect pair, they have the best friends foundation of their relation-ship mastered. Throughout the books, there’s always something between them that cannot be ignored.

Not to give away anything for those who have not read the book, but when Katniss is in the arena with Peeta, and their little love story begins, it’s made clear to us that Gale does not like seeing Katniss with Peeta. Of course, it makes him sad to watch the girl that he loves spending so much quality time and possibly even falling in love with another boy. This shows how much he truly cares about Katniss, and wishes he were the one that she got to spend that time with.

Last, if you’ve seen the movie, you absolutely cannot say you don’t love Liam Hemsworth. With that I rest my case: Team

By Emma Flynn By Emerson Wolff If you were to ask a teenage

girl these three words, “Gale or Peeta,” it is almost guaran-teed that your question will be followed by a lengthy lecture in which she will express at great detail why, in her opinion, Katniss belongs with either Gale or Peeta.

The fascinating concept of choosing team Gale or Peeta isn’t always necessarily who the girls’ favorite boy is as much as why they chose him. Everyone has their own reasons as to why they are absolutely certain that Gale or Peeta is the one for Katniss.

I think it is honestly impos-sible to truly pick a side without having read all the books. You have to be presented with the entirety of the plot before you can make an informed decision. I had always favored Peeta’s character, but I don’t think I was convinced that he was best for Katniss until the end of the sec-ond book. And that’s the trou-ble. People too often choose the character or real life person that they themselves are infatuated with, and not who is best suited for Katniss. I think throughout all three books Suzanne Collins hints as to why Peeta and Kat-niss belong together.

In the first book, the reader learns about how when they were children, Peeta disobeyed his mother and gave Katniss the loaf of burned bread, for which he received a beating. While this small act may seem insignifi-cant, it sets up a major theme of the trilogy. Hope. Peeta is able to offer Katniss hope through-out the novel, a perspective that maybe life could be ok.

Peeta asked Haymitch to do everything in his power to save Katniss. He wanted her to sur-

vive so that she could return to her mother, Prim, and Gale. He was willing to sacrifice his life for her. When they are the last two in the arena and learn that there can only be one winner, Peeta insists that he should be the one to die.

In Catching Fire, small details that show his compassion continue to support Peeta. He takes it as his duty to protect Katniss from all danger. He is always there to offer support for Katniss when she is in need. When she has nightmares, Peeta is there to comfort and soothe her fears.

While they are kissing on the beach, Katniss describes this spark that she feels within her. She first remembers feeling it in the cave with Peeta for the first time. Katniss says it was the first time she felt that hunger within her, and wanted more of it. She never described this feeling she experienced when she kissed Gale, only Peeta.

I think what fully convinced me that Katniss belonged with Peeta was in the third book when Peeta was kidnapped and tortured by the Capitol. People wonder, “Why Peeta?” Peeta was taken solely so the govern-ment could break Katniss. If the government truly thought Katniss loved Gale, it would have taken him instead of Peeta. The government knew that destroying Peeta would mentally break Katniss and subsequently, the revolution.

Peeta offers Katniss a flower of hope, a contrast to the fire that burns within her own heart. After being broken by the Capitol, Katniss and Peeta are a symbol that there is hope, and that the government cannot destroy their faith and love for one another.

FACE- OFF: Team Peeta or Team Gale? With today’s release of ‘Catching Fire,’ it is only fitting to pit two staff members against one another in this classic debate sprung from the series.