March 2010Volume 4.5

LOS ANGELES BAPTIST MIDDLEAND HIGH SCHOOL9825 WOODLEY AVENORTH HILLS, CA 91343(818) 894-5742

Table of Contents2 4 6-7 10 1 2

Student Life Sports Inside LAB Hard News

8

Campus NewsEntertainment

Hannah Devaney ‘11

Why Donate Blood?LAB high school students give blood for a good cause.

With medical tables and tech-nicians filling

the library, students gave their time and blood to the American Red Cross. Those who gave became part of the 3% of Ameri-cans who give blood, when 38% of Americans are eli-gible to donate. The blood given by LAB students and staff was transported to a lab in Pomona, where many other donations arrived.

Red Cross con-tacted LAB three years ago to participate in this event,

and every year the number of students who donate increases. Last year, there were around eighty students who donated blood, and this year LAB raised the bar and had ninety-one stu-dents in this program. The Red Cross’ updated stan-dards mandate that students m e e t h e i g h t a n d weight r e -q u i r e -m e n t s in order to avoid n e g a -tive re-percussions like fainting. This new restriction helped students to avoid falling ill, creating a successful drive and saving two hun-dred lives in the process.

Senior Cynthia Villalta not only gave at the LAB blood drive, but she also gives blood on a regular basis. “It’s easy

LA Baptist Gives BackJackie Urenda ‘11

LAB students and staff gave blood in sup-port of the Red Cross Blood Drive.

and convenient to do,” said Cynthia. She goes every fifty-six days to a shop-ping center in the Granada Hills Pavilion to donate blood. “Every time you give blood, you are helping someone,” said Cynthia.

The Red Cross has been one of the largest organi-zations to respond to the earthquake disaster in Haiti. Over 80 million dollars have been given to help the survivors. Packag-ing and sending food, donating

over one million liters of water a day, and handing out shelter items are other ways the Red Cross offers assistance and support for those in need. Along with these items, the Red Cross ships blood to survivors in need and has responded to the Chilean earthquake by pledging $50,000 for relief.

Every year when the American Red Cross comes to LAB

the question “why do-nate blood?” goes through students’ minds. Ev-ery minute of every daysomeone needs blood. Right now, Red Cross work-ers say that only three out ofevery one hundred people in the country volunteer to give blood. Will you be one

of the three next year when the American Red Cross comes to LAB?

Some people donate because a friend asked them to, some be-cause a family memberneeds blood, and some because they believe it is the right thingto do. No matter what your motive may be, the time to act is now. The necessity forblood is at its peak. Every time you give blood you save three lives. When youdonate you will be some-one’s hero. Your donation may go to a newborn, a child, a mother or a fa-ther, a brother, or a sister,giving them an-

other chance at life. The American Red Cross saves millions of lives every year so they regularly plead with

the public to give blood. It is an easy process with a reward that words can-not explain. Consider par-ticipating in next year’s drive and decide now to give to those in need.

“ A m e r i c a n Red Cross saves mil-lions of lives every year.”

Photos courtesy of Gabe Ikeda ‘10.

“Every time s o m e o n e gives blood, three lives are saved.”

March 2010 The Knight Writer Student Life Page 2

Have you ever w o n d e r e d what exactly

is inside a girl’s purse? Why are some purses so large, while others are so small? For ju-nior Jenny Olsen, the larger the better. With a total of 54 items in her monstrous Target bag, TKW decided to ask her some questions to uncover the truth behind girls’ purses.

Does your purse give you backaches?

No, but it hurts my shoulder, so I have to switch arms throughout the day.

Do you need a purse that large? Why?

The Truth Behind Girls’ PursesUm, yes, of course! I have no idea what to take out to make it smaller.

How often do you change purses?

About once ev-ery three months because the han-dles break off.

Do you like car-rying a purse around? Why?

Yes, because I like being prepared for every occasion.

What is the most important item in your purse?

Hand sanitiz-

Jenny Olsen shows off her purse.

er. Everybody around me is always sick.

What is the least impor-tant item in your purse?A little pad of paper...when am I ever going to use that?

What is the most ran-dom thing in your purse?

Gauze.

Where do you buy your purses?

Charlotte Russe or Target.

From Jenny’s an-swers, it is evident that there is more to a girl’s purse than meets the eye. Girls use their purses for carrying necessities as well as hold-ing their other belongings.

Miranda Jarrett ‘11Hannah Devaney ‘11

Blessings to Mrs. Hisayasu Jackie Urenda ‘11

Mrs. Hisayasu i n t e r r u p t e d her homeroom

class to speak about her last year at LAB. She has decided to retire, making this the final year of biol-ogy with Mrs. Hisayasu. She explained, “I want to be home with my husband who has been retired for a year, and it’s time that I join him too.” Mrs. H has been teaching at LAB for six years. She is known as “a great teacher, devoted to her students, and a driven woman,” according to Emily Cuevas. She is also a strong Christian who has shared her faith with the students throughout her years of teaching.

While teach-ing, she talks about how God made all this pos-sible, which has helped s t r e n g t h e n her students’ faith tre-mendously.Mrs. Hisaya-su expressed her feelings, saying, “I will miss the students.” A l l the memories she made here at LAB will not be forgotten. There is not one memory she will re-member in particular, but instead she will remem-

ber “her students.” These memories consist of “a series of student-teacher moments, with a series of individual students” that can never be forgotten in her mind.

A d d i t i o n a l l y, her tearful lectures show a fearlessly passionate heart for teaching and for her students. Every day, she prepares herself for making her biol-ogy class as inter-esting and exciting as possible. This dedication has been apparent to her students through-out the years. She is a part of the LAB family, and

even with her departure, she will always be con-sidered a member of the family. Her stay at LAB has been an extraordinary adventure and has brought new views to the faculty and students of LAB.

Community Service Through the Eyes of a Teen

A goodbye hug for Mrs. Hisayasu

Kelly Wilkinson ‘10

With Facebook, cell phones, and television occu-

pying most teenagers’ time, helping those in need usu-ally comes last on the list of things to do. Disasters, such as Haiti and Chile, ask for help from everyone, no matter what their age. A survey was taken asking 17 and 18-year-olds what their views on commu-nity service were. Though some said they did not par-ticipate, they still thought it was important that teens help any way they could. While 19% of stu-dents do not participate in community service, 81% of them do. When asked if they thought it was impor-tant to give their time, 82% saw community service as a way to help the less for-tunate or that it was some-thing God called them to do. “It allows me to give back to the community and to be a living testimony,” replied senior Nick Col-lins on the importance of

giving one’s time. Senior Lauren Wahba comment-ed, “I have been blessed, so I need to help people less fortunate than me.” For the ma-jority of seniors, it was about serving others and glori-fying God. One student said, “If I don’t give my time, then who will?” showing how everyone’s time is important in a time of need. W h e n asked why they give their time, students were unselfish in their replies. Answers were as simple as “because I want to,” and “I want to help oth-ers in their physi-cal and spiritual needs,” as said by senior Mark Ketenjian. To volunteer, one does not have to have

a great amount of talent, he or she simply needs to have a desire to help those less fortunate than them-selves. Senior Hayley Won

shared, “I want to do some-thing for other people, even though there are not many things I can do.” A giving heart is all that is needed.

Where students volunteer their time ranged from church organizations to volunteering at hospitals. A person’s time is valuable

no matter where he or she serves. Vic-toria Mattoon serves at her grandmother’s church and helps since many of the members are elderly and unable to do what she is capable of. Other volun-teering opportuni-ties can be found at Children’s Hunger Fund, the Red Cross, or a local food bank. Donate a Saturday to giving your time to the less fortunate and walk away with a rewarding feeling. On the subject of more teenagers par-ticipating in com-munity service, over 84% of students said they would like to see more of their peers lending a help-ing hand. It does not

take much to reach the goal of more teens volunteering their time, and everyone can be a part of that, no matter what age they are.

Photo courtesy of Google Images.

March 2010 The Knight Writer Spiritual Life Page 3

Christians in Secular SocietySecular influ-ence is impos-sible to avoid while living in a secular world but how much, if any, can a Christian al-low in his or her life before it is too much?

Eric Davis ‘10

The term “secular” describes any-thing that is not of

God. We live in a secular world and it is impossible to be completely detached from secular influence. It is sometimes even nec-essary to take part in secular things in order tobe more effective wit-nesses to non-Christians. We are in control of some of the secular temptations that can influence us, like listening to secular mu-sic or going to a secular movie. Some influences, however, are out of con-trol, like accidentally see-ing a half-naked woman on the front of a magazine at a store or mistakenly over-hearing an acquaintance at school talking trash about the popular redhead in your English class. Tak-ing part in secular activi-ties, weather voluntary or involuntary, is not in itself sinful, but the truth is that it will always influence you whether you like it or not. Understanding this, it is vi-tal to realize that too much secular influence can tempt us to sin, and we need to be constantly examining our hearts to see if the influ-ences we are exposing our-selves to are not beneficial.

90 LAB high school students from every grade level recently took a poll regarding secular in-fluence in their lives. The poll did not account for secular influences that are out of their control, but it did ask about activities like listening to secular music, watching secular

movies, watching secu-lar television, and reading secular books. On average, a LAB high school student chooses to watch approxi-mately nine hours of televi-sion a week, listen to about thirteen hours of secular music a week, and collec-tively indulge in about 38 hours of secular activities a week. That equates to roughly five hours a day.

The test to exam-ine whether or not we are over-indulging is secular in-fluences is if the influence is distracting us from our pur-pose in life of loving God and others. Everything we do in life should be in light of our purpose in order to show God’s love. It is pos-sible for secular activities to help us in our purpose as Christians. Watching television for example is a great way to relax and rest, and God designed us to rest in order to function proper-ly. There is nothing wrong with taking an hour every Monday evening to unwind and watch Jack Bauer take on all the bad guys if your purpose for resting is to operate the next morning at top performance and therefore love God more. It becomes sinful when it becomes solely about Jack Bauer and not sim-

ply resting. Going to see a secular movie can be a ben-eficial time of fellowship with friends, or it can be all about the movie and distract you from loving others.

God has called us to minister to the lost, and to do this we must be at least a little seasoned in worldly things. Having knowledge of secular things will help us be better witnesses of Christ. If we all lived in a closed-off Christian bubble and never got out to expe-rience the world, very few people would ever come to Christianity because we wouldn’t be able to relate to the unsaved. Having common interests and ex-periences with secularists, like being a fan of star wars or attending hardcore shows, can make starting and keeping a friendship easier. Receiving the sav-ing love of Jesus Christ is more likely to occur in a friendship because the un-saved person will trust a friend more than someone they do not even know.

We are all unique individuals and our tolerance for secular influence will probably vary. There are also dif-ferent kinds of secular in-fluences and some can af-fect you more than others. For example, overhearing someone curse may dis-tract you from God much more than a half hour of “SportsCenter,” but for someone else, “Sports-Center” might be the most distracting thing they could do. Five and a half hours a day is a sizeable chunk of time. It may be a good idea to cut some of that time down and replace it with spend-ing time in the presence of God. The amount of secular influence you can handle is an issue between you and God. Just remem-ber that if it ever distracts you from loving God or people more, it is too much. Everything that we choose to do should be to further our purpose of lov-ing God and people more.

Popular music can be harmful to the Christian ears...how much is too much? Photo courtesy of Google Images.

The TongueLindsay Payne ‘10

A quick look at the power of the tongue as explained through the book of James.

It is hard to imagine that the tongue is not only physically the

strongest organ in the body, but can also be the most d a m a g i n g tool the body possesses . Every day our tongues are at work conversing with friends, asking ques-tions, and c o m m u n i -cating our t h o u g h t s . With the amount of time spent using our t o n g u e s , how much is actually used to glo-rify God and His c r e a t i o n ? In James 3:9-10 it says, “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness.” To praise God with the same tongue that we use to tear down our friends and disrespect our parents is not right. God wants us to uplift each other and spread His love amongst each other so that we can glorify Him together as a body. Imagine you are scrubbing your toilet with a toothbrush. Disgusting! It is filthy, it is horrid, and

it does not glorify your interests. The same day, your best friend comes over to spend the night and he/she forgets their toothbrush at home so you offer to lend them one of your own. Would you grab the new, pack-aged one that hasn’t been contaminated, or would you offer the one that you previously used to scrub the toilet? You would offer the new one. You wouldn’t help your friend with the same item that you scrubbed your

toilet with. In the same way, when we ex-pose our sin-ful tongues, we are disap-pointing and d i s g u s t i n g God. As we praise and worship Him, we are us-ing the same tongues that we use for gos-sip, judgment, and cursing. We are hand-ing Him our mucky tooth-brushes. We are using contaminated, filthy tongues to praise a God who is beautiful

and sovereign. Obviously, to live this out is a chal-lenge! There is not a per-son in the world that has not cursed, disobeyed, or judged someone. Thank-fully, God has given us the ability to pray to Him so that we do not have to go about these challeng-es alone. Next time you are in the midst of these challenges, pray that the Holy Spirit would re-mind you of this verse so that you have the satisfaction of worship-ing our Holy God with a clean, pure tongue to the extent that He deserves!

“With the tongue, we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse hu-man beings who have been made in God’s likeness.” James 3:9-10

Did you know?Mr. Littlefield dreamt of killing a snake on his trip to Africa. On his last day there, he spotted a Green Mamba! Luckily for the snake, but unfortunately for Mr. Little-field, he did not have a weapon with him.

March 2010 The Knight Writer Sports Page 4

The brainchild of J.E Skeets, editor of Yahoo’s NBA blog,

“The Basketball Jones” features the opinions of J.E and Tas Melas in a standard

Jeffrey Hershey ‘10The Basketball JonesCombining both humor and insight, “The Basket-ball Jones” is a great down-load for NBA enthusiasts.

twenty minute talk show format. Each show consists of segments dedicated to the on-and-off court hap-penings, separated by short musical breaks. Weekly features host highlights of NBA players, coaches, or executives guilty of com-

mitting a gaffe, and an-other show, “Crossfire,” in which the hosts take opposing views on a num-ber of topics and argue over them in a “lightning round” format. The show champions the “fan per-spective” of sports report-ing pioneered by ESPN’s Bill Simmons. It also pays special attention to the NBA “blogosphere,” a collection of bloggers who maintain web pages about their local teams. Many of these bloggers appear on the show as experts on their particular team. Located on iTunes, this daily download is free!

Although some peo-ple already have a fixed workout rou-

tine, for those who do not, it can be difficult to find one that works. A great place for everyone to start, however, is with their diet. When trying to achieve a healthy body, one has to make sure

what they put in their body is healthy. Although many people find difficulty in cutting certain foods out of their diet, one of the easiest ways to approach a health-ier diet is through portion control. Keep in mind that the purpose of eating is not to get full, but to feed and energize the body.

When beginning the physical aspect of get-ting in shape it is important to keep in mind what one’s body may or may not be used to. One must make sure to enter the workout plan slowly and steadily to assure the best results. As the body strengthens, the difficulty of the rou-

Ashley Miner ‘11 tine should increase. Find-ing a balance in which parts of the body are being worked can be difficult, but is very important. The most important thing to remember, however, is to be consistent. Without con-sistency, the work put into getting the body in shape will be close to pointless.

Although find-ing a new routine can be tedious and require a large amount of self discipline, the results, both long term and short term, will be well worth it. Not only will you get a healthier body to-day, but with consistency you can have a healthier body in the future as well.

With the warm weather ap-proaching, it is time to get in shape for Spring Break.

The first middle school dance team in a long time has

started off with great suc-cess and their commit-ment has been evident at many of the boys’ basket-ball, girls’ basketball, and boys’ flag football games.

In order for a girl to join the team, she had to be interviewed and show up to the first prac-tice. Some of the girls did not know each other at first, but they were soon connected through the team. When asked why

Middle School Dance Team Returns to LABNaomi Ogaldez ‘10 she joined the dance team,

Brenna Rivera said, “I have never been in a dance team before or in a dance stu-dio before, but I wanted to try something new and I like dancing, so I joined. So far, I have loved it.”

Consisting of six talented girls, Mrs. Cheva-lier has had the opportunity to coach them. Their prac-tices are held from 3:00-4:30 PM every Wednesday and Friday after school. They have prepared three dance routines to the songs “Walking on Sun-shine,” “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” and “Black and White.” The routines are usually approximately three minutes long and fea-ture props depending on the

After only a hand-ful of practices, the Lady Knights

had the opportunity to participate in the play-off games, which led to the league champion-ship game. This team of sixteen talented ladies, each full of devotion and a com-mitment to do what it takes to win, has cre-ated a bond that has ex-tended beyond school. They have learned to be the bigger man when it comes to showing how strong they are, and to keep their cool, even when the other team is not playing fairly. They have learned to communicate with one another and work with each other’s method of playing the game. Leading them to an almost undefeated season were Caitlin Mur-phy and Jaelle Engel, who

Naomi Ogaldez ‘10

Middle School Girls Soccer Wins Championshipscored most of the points in their victorious season.

The team is made up of sixth through eighth grade girls, some who have played for as many as nine

years, and oth-ers who are playing for their very first time. As a re-sult, many of the experi-enced players have helped their teammates learn

new drills and techniques which have led to great im-provement. Even though

some of the players got injured during the season,

song. The girls all collabo-rate together to make the dances presentable. They collaborate and come up with many ideas to help coordinate the dances.

The team’s sole purpose is to have fun. They performed in one of the first pep rallies, which was the kick-off of many of the middle school sports. They also have had the opportunity to perform approximately nine times in front of an LAB sports audience. They ended their season by cheering on the boys’ basketball B team, which defeated the Santa Clarita Cardinals and beat the VCAL Divi-sion III B team Cham-pionship game 39-34.

they still came back on board when they had fully recovered. With eleven girls

playing

o n the field, and the rest of

the team cheering for them on the sidelines, the girls encountered some chal-lenging games. A highlight game was against Grace

Community, which the girls won 5-0.

With cleats flying off

play-

e r s ’ f e e t

during the game, Caitlin

Murphy, Jaelle En-gel, and Sarah Marshall kicked penalty shots that enabled them to score.

There are always factors that are a huge help in encouraging the team to want to win. When asked what her inspiration and motivation to play soccer is, Caitlin Murphy said, “One of my inspirations and mo-tivation for soccer are my parents. They help to moti-vate me to keep on playing, especially when the game is intense and there is a lot of competition happening. They are there for me in the sidelines, cheering me on to do my very best.”

The girls ended their season by playing a home game against Laurel Hall for the championship game

on February 25, 2010. They won the game 2-0,

and the team captured the VCAL Division I Girls Soccer Championship. As-sisting Jaelle Engel’s win-ning goals were Brooke Fessler, Kalyn Lattimer, and Caitlin Murphy. An outstanding defense by many of the players and goal keeper Rebecca Ra-mos kept the Eagles score-less for the entire game. They end their season 7-0-1.

Left to Right: Karissa Scamardo, Rachel Ranieri, Summer Chevalier, Brenna Rivera, and Daniela Jimenez

Soccer Team’s season comes to a victorious end.

Mrs.Che-valier leads dancers.

Get Fit for Spring Break

Photo Courtesy of Google Images.

March 2010 The Knight Writer Middle School Page 5

The eighth grade class has been studying World War II and

Middle Schoolers Learn of an Intolerant HistoryIvana Miro ‘11

The eighth grade class experi-ences The Museum of Toler-ance in Los Angeles, California.

the life of Anne Frank. The Museum of Tolerance,

Eighth graders during lunch break at the Museum of Tolerance.

Thrilled and anx-ious middle school students gathered

around Mr. Richmond, awaiting the new fun ac-tivity that was in store for them. The students partici-pated in an old-fashioned tournament of Rock, Paper, Scissors. In explaining his choice of game, Mr. Rich-mond stated, “It’s different and unique. Anyone can play.” Most middle school students participated—Mr. Shanks even joined in for a round or two. The beginning of the tournaments started off with a practice round. After a few practice runs, a few ground rules were set to avoid cheating, and Mr. Richmond urged ev-eryone to be involved. The first round determined who would move on to the fol-lowing round. Each round broke the number of con-testants in half. Near the end of the tournament, Mr. Shanks joined in to com-

pete against Robert Mata and won. Robert Mata stated, “He was cheating! He could read

my mind or something.” The final round consisted of three mid-dle school students, Mr. Shanks having dropped out to avoid conflict. Andrew Katz, Grace Giganti and Joseph Kim battled it out in an intense round. Grace Gi-ganti lost and claimed 3rd place. The two boys then set off in a fierce competi-tion. Their hands swiftly moved from rock, paper, and scissors. After an enter-taining game, Joseph Kim claimed 1st place in a close match with Andrew Katz. Overall, it was a fun and interesting new ac-tivity. It amused the specta-tors and left them at the edge of their seats. Vanessa Kar-jack stated, “It was loud but fun to participate in, and it was oddly intense.” Joseph Kim was overjoyed with his victory. He explained that his strategy to winning was “playing the game with my sister and some luck.”

LAB’s First Rock, Paper, Scissors TournamentRacquel Daza ‘10

Middle school students participate in a fun and competitive activity.

From left to right: Andrew Katz, Joseph Kim, Grace Giganti. Top three contestants of the tournament.

The devoted softball girls had the op-portunity to play in

the league championships on Wednesday afternoon. The girls showed their talent, winning the play-off game by a landslide victory while still enjoy-ing themselves on the field during every game. These ladies try to get the most out of their practices by giving their best effort to prepare themselves for each game. They have practices every Monday,

Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:15-5:00 PM. It is easy to see their passion and inten-sity when these 16 girls are out in the field. They get their game faces on with great excite-ment! When asked why she likes playing this intriguing game, Jackie Stone, a key player, who has played for six years, said, “I love playing soft-ball because it is very fun and competitive.”

Softball Team Finishes Off a Challenging Season Leading them through this tremendous season were coaches Mica and Kyle

Brown and Joe Varon, as well as team captains Gabby Vitello and Kimber-

ly Brown. Each of them kept up the motivation

and determination to win.

On February 24, 2010, they played Life House Lutheran

of Northridge in a game

tha t would de-

termine who would hold the title of Division I VCAL

Naomi Ogaldez ‘10

The girls’ middle school soft-ball team ends their season with a grand slam.

League Champions, with the whole team contrib-uting, they succeded in a winning victory of 6-2. A combination of strong pitching from Kristine

Varon, an important two run single in

the third inning by Kimberly Brown, and a game winning run by Elexa H e r n a n d e z ,

the Knights dominated the

game. Summer Pohl, Kristine Varon,

Emani Macias, and El-exa Hernandez were the point scorers for the team.

“It wasn’t fair that they were put down because of a religion

they were born into.”- Summer Chevalier

among other things, is a mu-seum about the racism and prejudice that went on dur-ing WWII against the Jews. The museum looks at the Holocaust as one of the most extreme eras of mankind’s unfair-ness and brutality. This

museum has even ex-panded to other locations such as Jerusalem and New York City. The original isthe one located in Los Angeles which was opened in 1993. The facility re-

ceives about 350,000 visi-tors annually. The most talked about sec-tion in the museum is “The Holocaust Section” which is divided into different time periods dur-

ing of World War II. There are testimonies on “Ho-locaust Survivor Cards” that visitors get (with children’s faces on them) and at the end of the mu-seum, the visitor finds out whether the child ac-

tually survived or not. The eighth grade stu-dents were all impacted by their visit to the mu-seum. Another section in the museum is called

the Tolerance Center which discusses the is-sues of prejudice in every-day life and there is also a collection of documents and temporary exhibits as well as a section called Finding our Families, Finding Ourselves. Summer Chevalier shared her thoughts and feel-ings about the Holocaust by saying, “It wasn’t fair that they were put down be-cause of a religion they were born into.” Zach Stone also said that his experience at the mu-seum was a lot of fun and very interesting.”

Page 6 A Day In The Life of The Faculty The Knight Writer March 2010

After being born and raised in Mexico, Jose moved to America some 20 years ago. Since then, he has worked at LAB as the maintenance man for 18 years. He has a wife and three children: two sons, ages 22 and 20, and a daughter, 10. Jose is currently working and performing his duties with a badly bruised finger. While closing the gates to the student parking lot, Jose smashed his finger between the gates. The only other serious injury he suf-fered from was a badly sprained ankle he got when he fell off a ladder. Jose is a hard worker who efficiently and diligently finishes his tasks and keeps the campus running smoothly.

Jonathan Chae ‘10

Nolan Scott ‘10The Custodian Capers

Brian Berkefeld, after graduating from El Camino High and CSUN, started off as a teacher at a small school. Mr. Berkefeld initially came to LAB as an assistant football coach under Coach Perkins two years ago. However, when his school shut down and his teaching job was terminated, Mr. Berkefeld received a job on the custodial crew here at LAB, thanks to Mr. Tippet. This year, Mr. Berkefeld continued to coach football under Coach Hender-son and began to work as a custodian and a coach for the boys’ varsity basketball team. Mr. Berkefeld is also married, as of November 2008, and he hopes to return to teaching.

Jonathan Chae ‘10

I wake up to an alarm cell phone ring-ing in my ears. It is 5:30 AM. “Why am I doing this again?” was the first

thought that went through my mind. Af-ter I was done feeling sorry for myself, I got ready, made some coffee, and headed out the door a few minutes past six. I ar-rived at LAB at 6:30 AM on the dot. As I was pulling the keys out of the igni-tion of my car I looked down to find out it was 45 degrees outside. I grabbed my hot coffee and stepped out into the icy air. I saw a custodian off in the distance walking into the gym, so I pro-ceeded to follow him. There, I intro-duced myself and found out his name was Jaime. It’s actually kind of funny that I learned his name after being at the school for almost six years. I explained to him what Chae and I were doing, and we got right to work. We first took all the bars off the gym doors and unlocked the deadbolts to the classrooms. Right off the bat I realized I had been missing out not knowing Jaime during my time at LAB. I never would have expected such a warm, comical personality from him. I’ve seen him almost every day for years, and I had subconsciously decided what he was like without ever speaking to him. Over the next few hours before school began, Jaime and I went around the school picking up trash from the previous day while talking about his experience at LAB and the different tasks the custodi-ans perform on a daily and early basis. We continued working until about 7:30, which was when most stu-dents began to arrive. We then met up with Chae and Jose in front of the boys’ bathroom by the basketball courts, where Chae and I began preparing the steps to be sandblasted with the school’s power washer. Once school started we began sandblasting the steps. Jose explained that sandblasting would take the top

layer off of the step, exposing a rough surface to increase grip on the steps. This took the first two periods of the day, and after that we took our morning break. After we returned from our break and fin-ished off our breakfast, Chae and I were split up again. Chae was sent with Jose and I was

sent with Lupe. Lupe and I worked for the next three periods till lunch trimming the bushes on the Woodley side of the school. While I was working I had plenty of people ask me in hushed tones, “What did you do?” or “Is this forced labor punishment?” Any-way, after a few hours we broke for lunch. Chae and I immediately headed over to the senior patio and laid down on the benches for a little down time. Thirty minutes went by like nothing and we were back at it. We hit the final stretch at about 1:00 PM. After finding Jose we were directed to the gym to set up for basket-ball. Out of all the things the custodians do on a regular basis, setting up and tear-ing down the gym for chapel, practices, events, rainy days, etc., is by far the hard-est. After finishing our work in the gym we were done for the day and headed home. It was a great eye opening experi-ence I won’t forget and made me respect what the custodians do for us every day.

“It was a great eye opening experience I won’t forget and made me respect what the custodians do for us every day.”

5:30 Alarm goes off. Wake up, get ready.

6:35 First task is to go around and take the bars off of the gym doors and unlock the classrooms.

6:45 Custodians sweep all the sidewalks of leaves and trash. They also pick up all the trash around campus before school.

7:07 They keep up the Mission Hills baseball field for the baseball program which is off campus, on top of all the work at school.

7:08 It takes Jaime from 7AM to 1PM to cut the grass at the field every week. That’s 6 hours on a lawnmower.

7:15 Kids and Teachers start to arrive. Lupe and Berkefeld are sweeping the sidewalks.

7:00 Hands start to lose feeling because of the cold. All the cus-todians have to wear gloves.

6:51 The custodians actually pick up a lot of the slack for the city in front of the school by cleaning the sidewalks and trimming the trees.

6:56 Routinely check lockers, to see if they are rigged. “These kids think they’re smart but they don’t fool me.”

6:43 Jose puts up the flag. Fog clings to the football field. Berkefeld is watering the grass. Chae arrives 15 minutes late.

6:30 Arrive on time with my cof-fee. 45 degrees outside. I can see my breath.Nolan’s

The Knight Writer March 2010 March 2010 The Knight Writer A Day In The Life of The Faculty Page 7

As a maintenance worker, Jose does a myriad of jobs around campus. The first thing I did when I met with

Jose was walk around campus, unlocking the deadbolts on all the doors. He has to do this because he and the janitors are the only ones with keys to the bolts. Afterwards, we went into the boys’ and girls’ locker rooms to make sure all of the sinks and toilets were working correctly. We then went upstairs to the boiler room, which is near the lan-guage rooms. That room houses a gigantic water heater that controls the temperatures of the rooms. Jose checks every morning to make sure that the flame does not go out. If it does, temperatures in the rooms drop. Jose and I then walked around campus, closing the student parking lot gate and the rest of the gates around campus. Af-terwards, we collected all the cones at the student drop-off zone on Woodley. About halfway into first period, Nolan, Jose, Jai-me, and I prepared to sand blast the steps that lead from the blacktop to the gym. Af-ter Jose and I pushed the pressure cleaner to the job site, we measured the steps and made marks with duct tape. After putting fuel into the power washer, Jose and Jaime took turns spraying the high pressure sand- and-water combination at the stairs. After two periods of spraying, all the dirt and grit was removed, exposing a strip of tread. After we finished the job, Jose and I received a notice that one of the sinks in the bathroom was not working, so we went in, found the malfunctioning sink, and began to work on it. Jose unscrewed the gearbox below the sink and replaced the batteries. Then, Jose and Jaime let Nolan and me take our nutrition break. When we got back to work, we joined Coach Berkefeld on his trash circuit. We started on the blacktop near Mr. Ho-gan’s room and circled around the whole campus, picking up trash off the ground. Once Jose got off his break, I

joined him in his search for a table that was missing a bolt. We checked all the tables near the softball field, and when we finally found it, Jose promptly put the bolt back in and tightened it, and we went on to our next task. We grabbed a ladder, sponges, an orange cleaning agent, and a bucket of water and walked over to the blacktop once again. We set the lad-der up against the book shed because there was some graffiti we had to wash off. Jose let me try, but after I scrubbed off two letters, my arm was tired, so I got down. Jose finished washing the rest of the graffiti off without complaint or rest. The last job I did with Jose was to check the air conditioning filters. We climbed up to the roof above the gym (yes, there is a pool!), shut the power off to all of the air conditioning units, opened them up, pulled the filters out, and changed the ones that needed changing. We then climbed back down, and Jose pulled out his arc welder to fix a broken chair. At 12:30, I got my normal lunch break, and afterwards, I helped Nolan fin-ish up raking the bush clippings. After helping Jose deliver a box of papers to the Office of School Development, I joined Nolan and Jaime in the gym. There, we cleaned up all the trash off the floors and bleachers, pushed all the bleachers back in, disassembled the platform, rolled up the mats, and set up the basketball court. This was by far the hardest part of the day. I used to be like any other LAB student, unappreciative and oblivious of the janitors’ work, but after this eye-opening experience, I am so much more thankful for the work and time these guys put into making our campus look nice and clean. These guys deserve more respect than they are given. From now on, I know that I will think twice before throwing my trash on the floor, and everyone else should too.

Jonathan Chae ‘10A Day On The “Job”

Jaime has been with LAB for 28 years, which is the longest of any of the custodi-ans. He started working at LAB in 1982 during his senior year. He worked from July to the end of the year, making about $5000. He bought his first car for $7000 that year, and his car payments and insurance totaled around $500 monthly. That left him with roughly $540 for the rest of the month. After giving his mom $500 to help out with living expenses, he only had $40 left over for himself monthly. Today he attends a Catholic church close to his home every Sunday and once a month on Friday. Jaime takes great pride in his work, especially his tree trimming and shaping, and has a contagious, optimistic spirit that never seems to falter.

Lupe is Jose and Jaime’s uncle. He lives in Panorama City and has been working here for 17 years. He does not talk quite as much as Jose or Jai-me. He is probably the quietest of the custodians, and he is also the oldest.

Nolan Scott ‘10

Nolan Scott ‘10

7:08 It takes Jaime from 7AM to 1PM to cut the grass at the field every week. That’s 6 hours on a lawnmower.

7:40 Jose and Jaime bring out the power blaster to sandblast con-crete steps for more traction.

7:52 Students arrive in big numbers, and we take a rest until school starts so we can have space to move around.

8:00 School has started. Berkefeld locks up the gates by the basket-ball courts, and Jose locks up the rest of the gates to protect students.

8:22 Chae and I mark off the stairs six inches from the front so Jose can sandblast the steps.

10:06 We take our break. The janitors are still eating breakfast in their office. We help Berkefeld pick up the trash after nutrition.

1:07 Every day after lunch the custodians pick up the trash we leave lying around. They collect eight or nine cans of trash daily.

10:33 Chae leaves with Jose; now I’m with Lupe. We are going to trim the bushes reaching out into the walkway by the classrooms.

10:32 Done taking out the trash. Now the rest of the crew is done with breakfast, and we go get our new orders.

7:15 Kids and Teachers start to arrive. Lupe and Berkefeld are sweeping the sidewalks.

4:08 Help Jaime set up for practice. Setting up the gym is probably the hardest thing they do on a regular basis.

Timeline

March 2010 The Knight Writer Hard News Page 8How the “Great Recession” Affects ImmigrationIt was around noon on

an overcast Saturday afternoon in Van Nuys,

California. Stagnant pools of rainwater collected in depressions in the black-top, and darkened storm clouds ominously loomed in the distance. A group of unemployed painters stood restless and idle in front of an empty Dunn-Edwards paint store parking lot, hop-ing desperately that some-one would stop by to hire them, as they anxiously watched a steady stream of cars whisk by on the adjacent Sepulveda Blvd.

Many of these work-seek-ers have immigrated to the United States from other countries, and according to a report by the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington D.C., they “have been hit somewhat harder by the current reces-sion than have native-born Americans. Immigrants (legal and illegal) now have significantly higher unem-ployment than natives.” The report also went on to men-tion that “this represents a change from the recent past, when native-born Ameri-cans typically had higher unemployment rates.”

One such painter, who de-clined to give his name for this interview, said that he had immigrated to the Unit-ed States from Guatemala. Our “John Doe” was a mid-dle-aged man who carried a portly physique and wore a

faded, paint-stained T-shirt and a simple, well-worn white hat. He bemoaned in fluid English that work has been scarce and that he “barely has enough food” for his wife and children.

“John Doe” tried to make light of the situation by joking that he “doesn’t even have a penny in his pocket” and pointing out that he does not have enough money for beer. His primary con-cern, however, was how the economy is af-fecting his fam-ily. His jesting quickly faded to darting eyes and an anxious tone as he expressed worry about making rent and putting food on the table.

The report by the Center for I m m i g r a t i o n Studies also cited that Cali-fornia is among the highest ranking states for decline in immigration employment. In addition, a recent report done by the Department of Homeland Security stated that the number of illegal immigrants in California has dropped by 250,000.

Inter-American Dialogue, a nonprofit organization that works on “policy analysis, exchange, and communica-

tion on issues in Western Hemisphere affairs,” said in a study that “for approxi-mately 12% of surveyed migrants, the greatest diffi-culty of the crisis has been losing their job or having had someone in their fam-ily lose their job. Of those who remain employed,

many (approximately 24%) are faced with reduced work schedules; 16% report working fewer hours than before and 8 % report that,

as independent workers, they are finding less work.”

A recent editorial by the LA Times argued that Mexican immigrants have been es-pecially entrapped in an international quagmire due to the economic down-turn. The editorial said that

The Current State of the Toyota Recall FiascoOut-of-control ac-

celeration, atypical breaking action,

and a myriad of other trou-bles plagued Toyota, the United States’ largest car-maker in terms of sales. Since news of the largest and costli-est recall in automotive history broke out, Toy-ota, in efforts to retainand reassure its custom-ers, has been working diligently to resolve the quality and general re-liability issues of eight of its most popular ve-hicles sold in the U.S. The first wave of recalls started with the Camry. People com-plained that accelerator pedals would get stuckbecause of the floor mats, causing the cars to accelerate uncontrollably. In one case in southern California, a family of four was killed be-cause of this. The recall woe affected seven other vehi-cles in Toyota’s lineup: the RAV4, Highlander, Ma-trix, Corolla, Avalon, Tundra, and Sequoia. Approximately 8.5 mil-lion vehicles have beenrecalled in total so far, making this recall the

largest and most expen-sive in automotive history. Recalls did not stop there. Issues with the third generation Toyota Prius (the 2010 model) also started to

rise. Customers com-plained that when travel-ing over bumpy or un-even roads at low speeds the brakes would act abnormally, not giv-ing the feel and perfor-mance expected. Some

said the brakes would “skip” or lose function entirely for a very short amount of time. Some 400,000 vehicles, in-cluding the Lexus

HS250h and Toyota Sai,(sold only in Ja-pan) were affected by this particular recall. Even more recalls are plaguing Toyota. It was announced on February 16 that Toyota would recall

its ultra-popular Co-rolla. The problem cited was an issue with its power steering system. Since the recalls started, Toyota dealers have

been flooded with worried motorists rushing to get the necessary repairs made. Many dealers have halt-ed sales of the affected vehicles as they make the necessary repairs.Financially, this recall is an

enormous blunder as Toyo-ta’s stock has dropped about 16%. Manufacturing at two Toyota plants in the United States will be halted temporarily.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHT-SA) has received over 2,000 complaints, 34 ofwhich were fatalities, ac-cording to the LA Times. To prevent future accidents like

this, Toyota says they willimplement use of a system to shut off the engine when both accelerator and brake pedals are used, which shouldstop the sudden accel-

eration of the vehicle. Also, a sort of “black box” data recorder will be installed on all newvehicles. The Times says Toyota is being given at the most two months to provide the NHT-SA with the necessary“paperwork required for its investigation.” Toyota’s presi-dent, Akio Toyoda (nephew of the founder of the company), “an-nounced his intent to head the company’s newly created Special Commit-tee for Global Quality, which will coordinate regional quality-controlmeasures with chief quality officers,” says the Times. This and the previously mentioned

precautions and vehicle improvements are signs that Toyota wants to re-store customer loyalty and trust, a sign they are “moving forward.”

while many face bleak em-ployment prospects in the states, some are afraid to return to Mexico because of the surge in drug-related

violence. The LA Times column said that “for gen-erations, immigrants have dreamed of going back to Mexico to enjoy the fruits of their U.S. labors. Today, fear of violence is keep-ing more people focused on their futures north of the border and changing longtime patterns of as-

similation and migration.”

Data shows that these trends could possibly affect the community surround-ing Los Angeles Baptist. According to the LA Times, 45.7% of North Hills resi-dents are foreign-born, and the city was given an ethnical diversity rating of “highly diverse” in compar-ison to the 114 other neigh-borhoods in Los Angeles.

When “Doe” was asked about what he would do if the current economic situa-tion continued, he shrugged and said, “I’ll just have to wait.” The group of work-less painters, about ten or so deep, huddled tightly around “Doe” as he told his story. He speculated that if these circumstances continued he might need to find another job, but when asked about what line of work he might pursue he gave a disheartened shrug and said, “I don’t know.”

Cory Minderhout ‘10

Adam Dauer ‘10

An ominous view of an unemployment office. Photo courtesy of Google Images.

“...Doesn’t even have a penny in his pocket.” “John Doe”

Toyota President Akio Toyoda testifies before Congress about the recent recalls. Photo courtesy of Google Images.

March 2010 The Knight Writer Opinion Page 9

You have just passed your driv-ing test and now

you have a license. Pent up with excitement, you alsowant your own vehicle. The question is, which one is the best? First off, consider this fact: the world is indeed running out of oil, and sooner or later analternative fuel will be needed to power cars. Today’s hy-brid technology is only an interim so-lution. They maybe “green,” but in the long run, the spent batteries these vehicles use have to be thrown away in places such as landfills. The min-ing process for the nickel-hydride bat-tery to power the vehicle is VERY dirty, putting a huge amount of pollutants into the air and taking away from the “green” label these vehi-cles carry. Also, hybrids run solely on electricity up to a certain speed, then switch over to their gas engine to continue mov-ing, which requires gas refined from the dwindling oil supply.

How to Find the Vehicle That Best Suits YouThe solution is to use a fuel that will never run out, like Hydrogen. The solution is Honda’s FCX Clarity Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle. Honda’s FCX Clarity is truly a revo-lution. Powering it is

the world’s most abun-dant element, Hydrogen.The Hydrogen trav-els to what is basically an electric generator (Honda’s V-flow Fuel Stack) that combines the Hydrogen and Oxy-gen to produce electric-ity. This resulting elec-tricity is transferred to

a compact lithium-ion battery to be stored or sent to the engine to power the car. What re-sults from the Hydrogen and oxygen combinationprocess is one of the Clar-ity’s byproducts, water.

Normal gasoline-pow-ered vehicles only use about twenty percentof the energy they make to run the vehicle, where-as the Clarity is three times more efficient be-cause the fuel transferis much more direct due to fewer compo-

nents in the engine that make the energy loss. The advantage of being Hydrogen pow-ered, as stated earlier, is that because Hydrogen is the most abundant element on the planet, it will never run out. Also, hydro-

gen costs almost the same as gasoline, so it will be wallet friendly. Refueling is just as easy as it is now. All that needs to be remembered is that the pump must be locked in place so the high pressure does not shoot the pumping han-dle out of the car. To

make things even more convenient, Honda is at work developing re-fueling stations that can fit comfortably in homes, so when someone needs to refuel, a supply will be readily available.

Continuing the “green” bill, the Clar-ity’s interior is made of a special bio-fab-ric. Honda’s bio-fabric reduces carbon dioxide out-put by thirty percent versus seats made of polyester. This fabric withstands dailywear and tear much better

than polyester. It also con-forms to the human body, providing for a much more comfortable seat. The Clarity comes standard with Honda’s satellite-linked navigation sys-tem and a very easy to read multi-layer dash-board with 3-D graphics. There are a few slight problems, though. Honda is only giving the FCX Clar-ity to a few select dealersin southern California. As of now it is not possible to buy one, but they can be leased for $600 a month.Because of the very limited amount of hydrogen refuel-ing stations, one has to live pretty much in the immediate area of the dealer to be able to lease the car in the first place. These are only small issues, however, becausethe environmental ben-efits that come from building a vehicle that is made of environmentally friendly materials and runs on an alternative fuel far outweigh the cost. This car is not an interim solu-tion that uses more oil. The FCX Clarity fits seamlessly with the format of today’s cars, and as the technology improves, it will have the potential to be the car of the future.

Vegetarianism is an option that many people

should consider. A veg-etarian is a person who consumes no meat or fish, and sometimes not any animal products. Accord-ing to Vegetarian Times, "7.3 million Americans are vegetarians, and 22.8 million follow a vegetarian-inclined diet." Being a vegetarian has many benefits but there are also disadvantages. A disadvantage of being vegetarian is a decrease in protein due to a lack of meat prod-ucts. Without protein, the body lacks energy and the strength to fight against infections. How-ever, foods such as eggs, milk, spinach, soybeans, whole grains, rice, beans, corn, oats, nuts, peas, and peanut butter all contain protein. Being a vegetar-ian also makes it harder to pick foods off of a menu at a restaurant, but there are restaurants that are completely vegetar-ian. Sun Power Natural Cafe is a vegetarian res-taurant located in Studio City and has a variety of many vegetarian-friendly foods. One final disadvan-tage to being a vegetarian is that is often difficult to eat with a crowd. Family meals are especially dif-ficult, as there is usually

Vegetarianism

one meal is cooked for a whole family and prepar-ing a separate meatless meal can be quite a hassle. There are many advantages to being a vegetarian. For one, be-ing a vegetarian helps the environment. Fossil fuel is conserved when less meat is being produced, and forests are saved be-cause less land is needed for animals. Being a veg-etarian also helps improve personal health. Vegeta-bles do not contain cho-lesterol and have many nutrients that are good for the body. It has also been proven that vegetar-ians are less likely to be obese. In addition, veg-etarian food is generally cheaper than meat-based food and, there are vege-table-based substitutes for every meat product imag-inable. Being a vegetarian is not for everyone, but after examining available food and where it comes from, vegetarianism could be a good choice.

The new Honda FCX Clarity. Photo courtesy of Google Images.

Adam Dauer ‘10

Racquel Daza ‘10

A Car Accident Survival GuideAccording to an

AAA report, 1 in 3 teenagers are

involved in an accident within their first year of driving. This statistic is shown to student drivers, but parents rarely talk to their kids about what to do if they do get in an accident. Being in an ac-cident can be a very scary experience even if it is a simple fender-bender. What do you do if you find yourself in this situation?I was faced with this very question in early Septem-ber when I was rear-ended on the 5 freeway. Though your first reaction may be shock or panic, it is very important to stay calm. Immediately after the impact, turn your hazard lights on so that other cars around you see that some-thing has happened ahead of them. If you are able to, you need to attempt to pull over to the side of the road and out of the way of traffic. This will ensure the safety of you and the other driver when assessing the damage. Once you are safely on the side of the road, it is okay to exit your vehicle and be-gin to look at the damage. I was very fortunate be-cause the lady who had hit me remained calm and was very helpful in guiding me through this process. You may want to take pictures

so that you can later show them to your insurance.After you have assessed the damage and made sure that there are no serious in-juries, you must exchange names, numbers, and insur-ances so that you can con-tact the person in the future. Before leaving the scene of the accident, you must file

an accident report with the police, if the accident is se-vere enough. Only after you have exchanged all neces-sary information and filed a report, it is okay to leave the scene. Be very careful when merging again with the flow of traffic on the road.When you get home, it is

important to make sure that you call you insur-ance and inform them of the accident. Then they can begin to negotiate with the other person. These steps may seem like common knowledge, but it is a very good thing to be prepared for what-ever may come your way.

Natalie Smith ‘10

Photo courtesy of Google Images.

Photo courtesy Google Images.

March 2010 The Knight Writer Entertainment/Review Page 10

Natasha Rabadi ‘10Munchies for Menchies

Photo Courtesy of Google Images.

Ivana Miro ‘11

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks tell the story of a sol-dier named John who comes back to his hometown after being gone for war.

Dear John: Another Epic Love Story by Sparks

As the volleyball team cleared the gym, the senior

council began to create a true fiesta feel. Red, green, and white streamers were strung from the ceiling to the sides of the walls, and color-ful tablecloths were placed over each table. Candles completed the look on the serving and dining tables. As people began to arrive, they were greeted by Senior Class President Aun-drea Cruz and ASB Public Relations Officer Eric Da-vis. Many of the other stu-dent council members were dressed in ponchos and sombreros to add to the fes-tivities. Guacamole, chips, and salsa were laid out on each table for the guests when they arrived. After a short period of mingling and enjoying each other’s company, it was time to eat. Senior Class Chaplain Nat-alie Smith led the student body in a word of prayer and then they were dis-

missed to dig in! The food was provided by fellow classmates Cynthia Villalta and Evita Gonzalez. Andy Otis said, "The food was very good and super ap-propriate for the occasion!" Once the crowd seemed to be full to the brim, it was time for piña-tas! Three colorfully stuffed piñatas were hung from the

basketball hoop in the back of the gym. Students were blindfolded, spun around, and handed a bat to attempt to break it open. When one would break open, the

The senior class gathered in the gym for a Friday night filled with great Mexican food, salsa music, and piñatas.

Fiesta For SeniorsNatalie Smith ‘10

Mix up as many flavors and top-pings as your heart desires.

Have you ever won-dered what it would be like to have ev-

erything you want on your frozen yogurt? Come on down to Menchie’s where you can choose from the multiple choices of deli-cious frozen yogurts and the mouth-watering choices of candy, fruit, and choco-late toppings that will sat-isfy any sweet tooth. Out of all the ice cream eateries, this is hands down every-one’s favorite place to get a sweet treat because the yogurt is made from live and active cultures and is low in fat and high in cal-cium. It is a great place to spend time with friends, especially around the fire

pit outside that will keep you warm no matter what the weather may be like. It is a great way to just enjoy some low fat frozen yogurt while spending quality time with friends and family. Menchie’s offers a range of flavors, including cookies n’ cream, cappuc-cino, and French vanilla.

Each flavor is creamier and sweeter than the next. You can mix in any or all of the forty toppings of your choosing, picking from sprinkles, chocolates, can-dies, granola, fresh fruit, and hot fudge. They make it so convenient for every-

one, and if you have a hard time choosing between two flavors, you can simply just mix in both flavors and have double the enjoyment. They even allow you to sample any and all flavors if you have a hard time deciding and this way you get to sample all of your fa-vorite frozen yogurt treats. Menchie’s is as simple as just mixing your frozen yogurt with some toppings, weighing the ice cream, and paying for your desert. At Menchie’s, you pay by weight, not by topping, so you can have as much or as little of ev-erything you want. Come around to the registers to weigh your Menchie’s mix. Make it exactly like you love it. It is quite the treat after a long day at school where you can just sit back and enjoy a delicious ice cream creation of your own.

“Out of all the ice cream eateries, this is hands-down everyone’s fa-vorite place”

John lives with his fa-ther but finds it very difficult to have a

conversation with him because of his father’s lack of social skills. Everything changes when he meets a girl named Savannah who is in North Carolina for the summer to build houses for less fortunate families. Both Savannah and John bring out the best in each other and instantly fall in love. Savannah helps John mend his relationship with his father and helps him understand why his father is the way he is. Their love is put on hold when John is called back to active duty . They stay together and

connected through let-ters and phone calls, and he comes back to see her on his leaves. They both look forward to the end of John’s tour so he can come back and start a new life with Savan-nah, but neither of them anticipated September 11.

The pressure put on John to stay with his army brothers

causes him to reenlist for another two years. Savan-nah says she understands, but John sees a difference in her letters and their phone calls. Then the two words “Dear John” change abso-lutely everything for him. A movie based on the book came out on Feb-ruary 5. It was as good as the book, but there were differences between the two. The book has more details than the movie, and

it captured the characters better and made the reader appreciate each character more. It is a good idea to read the book before seeing the movie because this will result in a greater apprecia-tion for the story and char-acters. The book and movie were definitely made for a female audience since love stories usually attract fe-males. This novel is very well written and it truly-captures the dialogue of the characters. When asked what she thought of the conclu-sion of this epic love story, junior Hannah Devaney an-swered, “I hated the conclu-sion. I was so confused as to whether or not it was a hap-py ending. Did this dynamic duo end up together? It kills me softly every day that I do not understand the ending.” In the end, the movie did not do the book justice. Many of the details that made the book amazing failed to be presented in the film. People who have not yet seen the movie but have read the book should plan on being some-what disappointed when entering the theatre.

Dear John Poster. Photo Courtesy of Google.

“The movie and book were good, but there are differ-ences between the novel and movie”

“The food was very good and super appro-priate for the occasion!”

seniors would trample each other in order to get candy, just like little kids at a birthday party. As the night came to a close, the senior council realized there was a good amount of food left over. They could have just put it in the teachers’ lounge or sent it home with people, but even after a long night of work they wanted to help others in need. They loaded Senior Council Vice President Nick Collins' truck up with the food and drove it to the Salvation Army where it could be given to people who truly needed it. The fiesta night was not only a successful fundraiser and a healthy time of fellow-ship, but it ended in con-tinuing to look for ways to help serve the community.

Traditional Mexican food. Photo Courtesy of Google.

March 2010 The Knight Writer Entertainnent/Review Page 11Fiction Novels Inspire a Magical Theme ParkMary Tamura ‘10

Harry Potter books and movies come to life in Spring 2010.

As the Harry Potter fans travel on this amazing journey

to Hogwarts and its sur-rounding areas, they will see their favorites spots come to life. There will be three rides: The Forbidden Journey, which will take guests inside the Hogwarts Castle and Hogsmeade to see scenes from the movie; Dragon Challenge, which is themed as the Triwizard Tournament, and a friend-lier ride, Flight of the Hip-pogriff, which is a creature that is a half horse and eagle.

Fans can also visit the famous village, Hogsmeade, where fans can enjoy the infamous Butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks restaurant, see the Hogshead Pub, eat enchanted candies like Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans from Honeydukes, and visit Olivander’s. All shops and restaurants will be Harry Potter-themed. Quidditch play-ers can go to Dervish and Banges, which has every-thing needed to play the

soccer-inspired sport. Fans of Fred and George Weas-ley will be thrilled to find out that there will also be a Zonko’s Joke Shop, which will have Sneako-scopes and other magical items. There will also be a store called Filch’s Empo-rium of Confiscated Goods, which will have Ministry of Magic items like remote control golden snitches. In addition there will be an Owl Post, where guests can send letters with a Hogs-meade insignia. They can also visit the owls that send the letters at the Owlery. The park will also feature the Hogwarts Express, and there are bound to be many other

adventures inside the park. The theme park will be at

Apple Unleashes New Tablet Technology: iPad

Last month, Steve Jobs held a confer-ence revealing the

new iPad. The new Apple iPad is a bigger version of the iTouch and is going to be the next generation of computers. The iPad has a 6x8 frame, and the high-resolution, 9.7-inch LED-backlit IPS display on it is remarkably crisp and vivid. Due to its use of a display technology called IPS (in-plane switching), it has a wide, 178° viewing angle. Therefore, one can hold it almost any way desired and still get a brilliant picture with excellent color and

Universal Orlando Resort and will be a part of Uni-

The Harry Potter Theme Park. Photo courtesy of Google Images.versal’s Island Adventure.

contrast. The multi-touch screen on the iPad is based on the same revolutionary technology as the iPhone. The technology has been completely reengineered for the larger surface of the iPad, making it extremely precise and responsive. Whether one is zooming in on a map, flicking through photos, or deleting an email, the iPad responds with in-credible accuracy. Along with all this technology, the iPad is incredibly light and thin, making it easier to transport. At just 1.5 pounds and 0.5 inches thin, it can

be taken anywhere. With a slight curve to the back, it is easier to pick up and more comfortable to hold.

The iPad has many more benefits such as its 10-hour battery life and its wireless and 3G connec-

A.J. Beregszaszi ‘10

Steven Jobs reveals new Apple product like no other.

Out of every major city in the United States, Los Ange-

les has the worst air quality (TreePeople.com). With temperatures rising and natural resources diminish-ing, one organization has made it its goal to bring nature back to city life. The organization is known as Tree People, a group of citizens driven to improve the environment. In the early 1970’s, fifteen-year-old Andy Lipkis be-came disgusted with the air quality at his camp and sought a way to bring clean air back to the environment. His solution was simple: to plant trees. It is now forty years later, and his vision has evolved into an envi-ronmental organization set on making cities “green.” Lipkis says it is his mis-sion to “get people to take personal responsibility for

the urban environment.” His dream is to create an urban jungle and expand the tree canopy over LA.

Cities cover less than one percent of the planet but contribute to eighty percent of greenhouse gas emis-sions (TreePeople.com). The dark-colored pavement that surrounds buildings creates “urban heat islands” that attract the harmful heat from the sun. Tree People has set out to create a Func-tioning Community Forest.

By mimicking the functions of a forest environment, it is believed that cleaner air, less heat, and less pol-lution can be achieved. Andy Lipkis posed this question: “In places we can’t plant trees, such as buildings and parking lots, what else can be done to green our city?” Special technology created to pro-tect natural resources has been developed, including the use of permeable pave-ment as opposed to asphalt, French draining systems to quickly collect ground and surface water, rain barrels to collect and store rain-water to recycle, and cis-terns to store water as well. Tree People is a unique group that fights to change the dangerous way of life in a city environ-ment. The organization offers a program where citizens can plant their own trees around the Los Ange-les area to encourage the development of a greener community. Something as simple as one tree can make all the difference.

Bringing Trees BackMiranda Jarrett ‘11

As Haiti is swarmed with help from countries all over

the world, LAB students aspire to do their part by creating a “Hope for Haiti Tour.” Senior Gabe Ikeda, the brains behind the job, gathered a group of reliable students who feel the call to help this desperate coun-try in need. Some people question why God would allow the earthquake to hit such a poor and spiritually lost country. Gabe responds with the answer “Before the earthquake, Haiti was just a small island no one really cared about. Now, look how many people and Christian organizations are reaching out to them!” The “Hope for Haiti Tour” is a combina-tion of student bands and

acts. “Over ten musical groups, bands, and art-ists have already joined the ef-fort to help sup-port the people of Haiti.” The bands include U n d e s e r v e d 521, Broad Awake, Fear I Am, Brazen Acts, and One Accord. Along with them, special artists Priya Warner and Lauren Thurston, and comedian Justin Washington would like to help Haiti. The team hopes to have opportunities to play at churches such as Shepherd of the Hills, Rocky Peak, and Corner-stone. The dates have yet to be finalized, but the tour is expected to begin in March. The team hopes to get donations from at-tendees and vendor sup-port (Jamba Juice and Chick-Fil-A) will go to World Help Organization and special funds for Haiti. World Help is a Christian organization that focuses

As temperatures rise, an organi-zation brings nature back to the city of Los Angeles.

Photo courtesy of Tree-people.com

Hope For Haiti TourNatalie Smith ‘10

Talented teens propose a helpful idea for needy vic-tims.

on accommodating the needs of orphans and work-ing towards their salvation. This dedicated group of students has a de-sire to help in the restora-tion of Haiti, both physical-ly and spiritually. The Hope for Haiti Tour 2010 has a website up and running for more information. People will also be able to pre-order shirts with their logos on them and see the final-ized tour dates when they are announced. For more information, visit www.hopeforha i t i tour. com.

tions. The iPad has a built-in audio system and a custom A4 chip for maximum mem-ory space and efficiency.

The iPad is going to be the future of text books and reading. It will have the capability to down-load textbooks, reading books, and newspapers for people to view. This advance in technology will help people such as college students to save money when purchasing textbooks for their classes. The iPad will be released on April 3, 2010. There will be three differ-ent versions available for purchase. It is available in 16G, 32G, and 64G and there is the option of Wi-Fi with 3G network.

Photo courtesy of Google Images.

Photo courtesy of hopeforhaititour.com

March 2010 The Knight Writer Campus News Page 12Two Brothers Experience an Irregular Commute

For most high school stu-dents, driving

to and from school is a normal, every-day routine. For two LAB boys, on the other hand, the regu-lar commute to school was far from normal. On February 26 at approximately 7:50 am, two broth-ers were approaching LAB when a Hispanic passenger emerged from a black Toyota Corolla and intrud-ed upon the boys. Waiting pa-tiently for the light to turn green, Cody

and Casey Phillips were facing east on Lassen when the man used a metal object to smash the Phillips’ front passenger win-dow. “At first I didn’t process my window being shattered, but then I realized what was going on when I saw someone swing-ing what looked like a gun, but turned out to

be a metal object,” ex-plained Cody. To the brothers’ dismay, there were cars in front and behind their vehicle, making it impossible to escape the intruder.

Casey, the younger of the two brothers, who had been texting a friend just seconds earlier, was immediately at-

tacked through the broken window. The man, wearing a black beanie and ski mask, swung the metal object at Casey about three times before Casey was finally able to get his legs around and kick at the man. Af-ter frantically kicking, Casey finally made contact with the man’s face and arms. Fi-

An unex-pected, early morning attack startles two LAB students.

Lindsay Payne ‘10

nally, after a b o u t a 30 second struggle, the man fled on foot north across Lassen to a nearby alleyway.

There were two witnesses to this incident, Mrs. Estes, who was in front of the boys, and a man who was driving four cars back. According to the male witness, “the sus-

pect in the black Co-rolla cut everyone off and picked the man up.” The witnesses also managed to get part of the man’s li-cense plate number and a detailed de-scription of the driv-er and the vehicle. After the man’s escape, Casey was left bleeding out of both legs due to cuts from the remaining shards of glass stuck in the window frame as he was quickly kicking for his sur-vival. Casey was immediately rushed to the hospital where he had to get fifteen stitches in his right leg and six in his left.

Although the two brothers man-aged to escape, they are both in shock that something so terrible could happen to them.

Pictured above: The Lassen and Woodley intersection where the boys were attacked.