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Free Press
Second Front
Priceless
Take One
Vol. 1 Number 34 Thursday, February 18, 2010
By Megan Wanamaker
All though the Valley Heights
Forensics meets have just started,
there are many achievements to
be proud of. In the first meet on
January 30th at Rock Creek,
Jessie Zidek qualified for state or
Champs as it is known in the
forensics world, with her third
place in poetry and Brooke
Claycamp qualified for Festival
also in poetry. Adding to the
Valley Heights forensic record,
Brooke Claycamp, Kayla Nordquist and Jessie Zidek
A Head Of The Game
senior Kayla Nordquist qualified
for state in poetry when she won
1st place in Seneca on February
6th over 35 other contestants. “It
was a great confidence booster
and it makes you feel like you
really did accomplish something,”
said Nordquist. At the
same meet Jessie Zidek took third
in poetry, qualifying again for
state and Jake Carlson medaled
with 4th place in Humorous Solo
Acting. Brooke Claycamp also
Luella Kurtz and Matt Fuller at the KAY Dance
Get Down With Your Bad Self
By: Sam Jones
The Valley Heights KAY
(Kansas Association of Youth)
club does many community projects,
but their favorite is the Twin
Valley Dance. This year the dance
was held on February 13 at Valley
Heights High School. “We look
forward to it every year, cause we
get to have fun and host a dance
while doing a community service
project,” said Megan
Wanamaker. Twin Valley brought
residents and the KAY members
competed in poetry barely missing
the final round and Alex
Laughlin competed in Improvised
Duet Acting (IDA) improving his
previous meet’s scores. The next
meet is in Hanover February
20th. Before that the group will
be performing for Rotary and the
grade schools. “Our kids are also
available to perform for outside
groups as we still need lots of
practice to continue improving
for state,” said Mrs. Coon
ate pizza and showed them a
good time while “busting-amove.”
Throughout the day
prizes were given out to the
guests. These prizes consisted of
pop, food, clothing, hats, etc.
There were about 78 people at the
dance.
M-Pact To
Preform In Area
The Marshall County Arts
Cooperative will bring the all-male a
cappella group, m-pact, to the area in
early March. While here, the group
will work with students from various
schools as well as give a free public
concert on Tuesday, March 2. The
concert will begin at 7:00 p.m. in the
Marysville High School auditorium.
“We are able to offer these concerts
free of charge because of the
generous funding we receive from
local trusts and supporters,” said
Wayne Kruse, the arts cooperative’s
executive director. “Because many
people believe in our mission and
donate to our cause, we are able to
provide free entertainment for area
residents. Tickets to a performance
such as this generally cost $20.00.
We strive to make sure that geography
is not a determining factor in
who has access to the arts and who
doesn’t, and we work to make sure
that economic factors don’t deter
people from attending events such as
this.”
The group, based out of Los
Angeles, combines the smooth soul
of Stevie Wonder, the percussive
power of Stomp, the funk of Earth,
Wind, and Fire, and the brass of the
Harry Connick Jr. Big Band – all created
by the human voice alone.
Hailed “one of the best pop-jazz
vocal groups in the world” by the
“San Francisco Chronicle,” m-pact is
respected worldwide as a cutting
edge trailblazer in the realm of vocal
music. Emerging from an age of
auto-tune and overproduction, this
sextet has cultivated a new generation
of ears hungry for the fresh, raw
power of nature’s “first instrument.”
While here, the ensemble will
work with students in the Frankfort
schools, Marysville schools, and
Valley Heights schools.
“When I became executive director
of the arts cooperative, one of the
Scouts Need You Help
Pack 137 needs you help to restock
the shelves in the Blue
Rapids food pantry located at the
Methodist Church. Bags with
instructions sheets were distributed
in Waterville and Blue
Rapids over the weekend asking
for non-perishable(canned and
dry goods) items to be placed in
the bags. The bags are to be
placed on your porch next
Saturday, February 20Th by 9
am. The cub scout who placed
the bag on your door will return
to pick up the donated food and
will take it to the food pantry. At
the pantry the food will be sorted
and the shelves stocked for distribution
to needy families in
Waterville and Blue Rapids.
Donations can also be made at
Hometown Foods in Blue
Rapids. A shopping cart with
Scouting for food signs on it has
been placed at the front of the
store for any donations. The cub
first requests I received came from
Bert Lord,” Kruse explained. “Bert
told me that he wanted us to bring a
male choir to the area so that the boys
in the elementary school would see
that it’s cool to sing. It took several
years to find the right group, but I
think we did it. The guys in m-pact
will be fantastic role models for all of
the students.”
The group’s work with Marysville
elementary students is part of a coordinated
effort to expose students to
the positive effects of vocal music.
Hannah Malotte, music teacher at St.
Gregory’s Catholic School, Veronica
Olmsted, music teacher at Marysville
Elementary School, and Valerie
Oltman, vocal music teacher at
Marysville Junior High School and
High School, have collaborated to
coordinate a vocal clinic for fifth and
sixth grade students. The students
will be released from their regular
classes on March 4 so that they can
attend an all-day vocal clinic with
Oltman’s junior high choir. A music
clinician from Kansas State
University will work with the students
throughout the day; their work
will culminate in an afternoon concert.
Ultimately, the goal of both experiences
is to attract students to choir.
“We’re working together to grow
the program,” said Oltman. “The
future of the program rests with our
youth. Hopefully, both of these experiences
will show the students that it’s
fun to be in choir, and that it’s rewarding,
too.”
m-pact is known for their unique
sound and style as well as their willingness
to work and perform for a
variety of people. “They’ve got a full
schedule,” said Kruse. “They’re so
willing to accommodate our requests
and share their expertise with many
groups. I’m looking forward to their
visit.”
scout pack will also pick up these
items and take them to the food
pantry. The Pack wishes to thank
everyone for their donation to this
well deserving and worthwhile
cause.
Upcoming events:
Feb 23rd- Flag ceremony and
National anthem at the high
school
Feb 27Th -Blue and Gold banquet
at theHigh school. This is
where each scout that has worked
hard and earned his next rank is
honored and presented his badge.
The pinewood derby will also
be on this date immediately following
the Blue and Gold banquet.
The pinewood derby is
open to the public and any adult
that wishes to build and race their
car can do so. They need to contact
Frank Popejoy to get the
rules and instruction.