Let It Snow! - Convent of the Sacred Heart

4 news
Class of 2009 prepares to leave a legacy
lauren manning
In the spring of 2007, members of the
Convent of the Sacred Heart Class of 2009
met to plan their sophomore retreat. While
successfully planning the retreat, another
endeavor also grew out of these discussions.
Now in their junior year, these same students
have established the Class of 2009 legacy
project.
This project, formally named the Nora
Falk Legacy Initiative, was defined by the junior
class as having “the common goal of improving
the experience of families with children
suffering from serious illnesses through
service, awareness, and personal commitment.”
“I think this project means a lot to our
“
I think one of the
best things about the
legacy project is that it
really shows how Nora’s
love for helping others
is translated to all other
people.
grade because it is something that we were
able to create ourselves, so we are very passionate
about our cause,” said junior Kyla
Harrington.
Although the plan for the project comes
from the entire grade’s thoughts and ideas,
much of the inspiration comes from another
source. Nora Falk, a member of the Class of
‘09, passed away at age 14 in 2004 after a courageous
battle with leukemia. The values and
love which Nora vividly promoted in all aspects
of her life served as a strong motivation
for the Class of ’09 to establish this project in
her memory.
“I think one of the best things about the
legacy project is that it really shows how Nora’s
love for helping others is translated to all
other people,” said junior Ale Ferrara. “This
tori porter
arts editor
”- Junior Ale Ferrara
staff writer
Photography class is one of the most
sought-after electives in the Convent of
the Sacred Heart Upper School. With six
classes and fifty-eight students in total,
photography teacher Ms. Kev Filmore
teaches levels one, two, and three. The following
explains how photo students get
from film to print.
After shooting the assignment, girls
are sent into the rolling closet. The closet
is situated in a corner of the darkroom and
is absolutely pitch black. The darkness is
absolutely imperative because if the film
gets light on it, the pictures are ruined.
In the closet, first pry the top of the
film canister off with the bottle opener
in the closet. Then, insert the end of the
film into the film reel. Twist the sides of
the reel so that the film winds up into it.
After the film is all the way wound in, use
the scissors in the closet to cut the inside
middle cylinder from the film canister off
of the film. Place the reel in the light-safe
container, and screw the top on before
leaving the closet.
Once finished in the closet, go out into
the darkroom. Pre-wet the film for developing
by lifting the red lid off of the light
safe canister. Because of its design, taking
the red top off will not expose the film to
light. After pre-wetting, pour the developer
into the canister. Agitate the canister
every thirty seconds for five minutes to
develop the film. When the developer is
done, pour it back into the pitcher where
is really a Class of 2009 project. Half of our
class didn’t even know her and I think it is an
incredible thing that she is still making an impact
in peoples lives for those who did and did
not know her.”
Through almost weekly meetings and
an ongoing email chain, the junior class has
worked consistently to achieve their goal with
this project. Finally, in late October, a group
of five students met with Mrs. Jayne Collins,
the Head of the Upper School, to propose the
project.
“I was exceptionally pleased to see how
devoted the group was to preserving the
memory of Nora in such a way. This could
bring ease to all those who loved her that are
suffering. The girls are so dedicated and it is
a really good
thing they are
doing. This
is really a living
memory
of Nora,” said
Mrs. Collins.
W h a t
began as a
broad idea
has now been
condensed
into a much
more focused
service project.
With the
help of Mrs.
Kerry Bader,
Director of
Community
Service, the
students were
Nora Falk is the inspiration for the Class of 2009 Nora
Falk Legacy Initiative.
able to transform their range of ideas into a
plausible and more finite plan.
“At their first meeting, the students were
so enthused and had many wonderful ideas.
As they continued talking, they realized that
in order for the project to be successful, they
would have to narrow their focus,” said Mrs.
Bader. “This focus allowed them to define
their scope and move ahead with their proj-
it came from, so as not to waste the chemicals
or contaminate the water by pouring
them down the sink. Stop the developing
process by setting the canister under water
for five minutes. Then pour in the fixer,
a chemical which fixes the film to keep it
from changing. After agitating the fixer
every thirty seconds for five minutes, put
the canister under another water wash.
When the water is done, pour perma-wash
into the canister and continue agitating.
Following the perma-wash, it is safe to
take the film out of the light-safe canister.
Remove it, take it off the reel, and dip it
into hydroflow, which is the final chemical.
Run the film through your fingers to
take the excess hydroflow off.
After developing the film, bring it out
of the darkroom and clip it in the drying
closet. It will take about twenty-four hours
to dry, so be patient.
ect.”
In finalizing their plan, the students decided
to focus on both healthcare and education
as their basic initiatives. These ideas,
chosen by class vote, are expected to expand
as the project continues to grow.
“It was really difficult to narrow down
the project because there were so many good
ideas, but obviously it is not possible to do everything.
It has been a good learning experience
in terms of how to work on a team and
hear everyone’s input,” said Kyla.
In general, the healthcare branch of the
project places focus on improving the hospital
experience for both sick children and
their families. Through this, the students
plan to promote education in a number of
different ways including
homework
help and spreading
awareness. In planning
projects and
opportunities such
as homework help,
arts-and-crafts,
pen-pal groups, and
visits with both the
sick children and
their siblings, the
students not only
want to provide
service, but also to
make a personal
connection.
Over time,
the group plans
to grow, giving all
members of the Class
of ‘09, and eventually
students in other grades, an opportunity to
participate in this project, so that it can continue
for years to come. In hopes to expand
the project to its fullest extent, the students
also plan to connect to other schools throughout
the Network of Sacred Heart Schools, by
inviting them to participate in local service
projects as well as inspiring the schools to begin
a similar program.
Going deep into the dark room
Photography students use the darkroom to develop pictures using a light
safe canister.
To make a print, take the film and
place it in the enlarger in the dark room.
Turn on the enlarger’s light and shine the
picture on a “dud” piece of photo-paper. A
“dud” is a piece of paper that has been accidentally
exposed
to light and therefore
cannot be developed
with a picture
on it. When the
picture is situated
well, turn the light
off and put a real
piece of paper on
the easel. Shine the
light through the
negative, without
moving the paper
lindsey festa
courtesy of ale ferrara
or the negative.
The final step
of developing a
print is to put it
in the developing chemicals. The same
chemicals used for developing the film are
used to make a print. First, after exposing
the paper to the light, put it into the tray
full of developing chemical. This makes
the picture appear. Second, put in the tray
of water for thirty seconds, which stops
the print from developing. Lastly, take the
print and put it in the tray of fixer, which
stabilizes the print and makes it so that it
doesn’t change. Finally, put it in the sink
to wash under water for at least five minutes.
Once the picture has been developed,
put it on the drying rack. Congratulations
on successfully developing a print.
Model UN students
attend the Princeton
Conference
cristina ceballos
managing editor
A plague of locusts ravaged Somalia, scientists
in Botswana found a cure for AIDS, and
barbarian tribes attacked the Roman Empire
at the 2007 Princeton Model United Nations
Conference. Thirteen students from Convent
of the Sacred Heart participated in the conference,
which took place from November 29 to
December 2. Delegates represented different
countries or people, simulating a gathering of
the United Nations.
“I spent a lot of time preparing for this
conference, but it was worth it,” said sophomore
Beth LaBossiere, who represented Australia
in the Social, Cultural, and Humanitarian
committee. “I learned a lot about current
events. It’s much more interesting to learn
about countries’ points of view in this context,”
she said.
Sophomores Adaire Carey, Tori Porter, Grissel
Barragan, and Katie Randolph spent
some downtime together at the Princeton
Model UN Conference.
grissel barragan
Beth’s committee was one of the largest
committees in the conferences, with over 100
delegates representing 70 different countries.
Other delegates participated in crisis committees,
which were much smaller and ranged
from 16 to 30 people.
Sophomores Katie Randolph, Kate Garcia,
and Tori Porter were part of a joint crisis
committee, in which one committee reacted
to the actions of another. Half of the delegates
represented the leaders of a rebellion in Somalia,
while the other half represented government
officials trying to crush the uprising.
“My room solved the crises much faster
than the other room,” said Katie. “We kept
outwitting the people in the other committee
while they just talked about their problems
too much. It was really fun,” she said.
The conference was run entirely by
Princeton students, and some committees
included guest lectures by Princeton professors.
Although most of the delegates came
from high schools in the northeast, schools in
China, Turkey, and Venezuela participated as
well.
“
I spent a lot of time
preparing for this conference,
but it was worth
it ... It’s much more interesting
to learn about
countries’ points of view
in this context.
”
- Sophomore Beth LaBossiere
“I really benefitted from the other kids in
committee, since they had such strong views,”
said sophomore Grissel Barragan. “I was
amazed at how good everyone was, although
it was a little overwhelming.”
For many Sacred Heart delegates, Princeton
was the first large conference they attended.
New delegates learned Model UN
procedure and vocabulary, which can be confusing
for novices.
“I loved that my committee was formal,”
said Beth. “Using phrases like ‘motion for a
10-minute moderated caucus with a speaking
time of one minute’ became second nature to
me,” she said.