Hills Idol - Half Hollow Hills

Half Hollow Hills High School East Issue 3, June 2007 

So Long, Mr. Kindelmann 

By: Stacey Goldberg 

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF 

2007 will be a memorable 

year for nearly 400 High 

School East students because 

they can always look back on 

this year and say “I was a member 

of the graduating class of 

’07.” To these students, 2007 

will be a year of graduation, 

happiness and liberation, 

yet for Mr. Kindelmann, the 

High School East Principal, 

2007 will be remembered for 

something much different. 

Unfortunately, for those who 

have yet to hear the news, 

this is Mr. Kindelmann’s final 

year as Principal here at HSE. 

His leadership, guidance, and 

love for the school will be 

continued by Dr. Woodberry 

beginning in the 2007/2008 

school year. Although such 

news of Mr. Kindelmann’s 

retirement may bring sadness 

to many students, teachers, 

and parents, Mr. Kindelmann 

is not the type of man who 

would leave such a position 

and move on without being 

involved in the field of education 

to some degree. His love 

for the school is far too great 

to ever be suppressed by the 

overwhelming excitement of 

retirement. When asked if he 

has enjoyed his time at HSE, 

it took almost no time for the 

Hills Idol 

By: Jessica Repanes in between. Crowd favorites 

SECTION EDITOR included “You Give Love a 

Saturday, May 19, marked Bad Name” (sung by Chris 

the beginning of a district annual 

event, Hills Idol. This tain High Enough” (sung by 

Barnes), “Ain’t No Moun- 

PTA sponsored event featured Brittany Mignanelli), and “I 

high school students from Hope You Dance” (sung by 

both Hills East and West who Dana Putterman). The competition 

was being judged by 

competed against each other 

to see which student was the John Piazzia, Nikki St-James, 

best singer. Auditions accommodated 

numerous amounts Of course, what would an 

and Gary Saint. 

of students, but only fourteen Idol competition be without 

contestants from each school audience participation? Set 

were selected to participate in up outside the auditorium 

the Semi Finals. 

were jars labeled with each 

For the Semi Finals, each contestant’s name and picture. 

student selected one song Audience members were allowed 

to place a dollar inside 

to perform for the audience. 

Genres of music were their favorite performer’s jar. 

not limited, as they included The contestant with the most 

Rock, Pop, and everything Continued on Page 9 

INSIDE 

THIS ISSUE 

Soupa Saturday: 

HSE at the 

Soup Kitchen 

PAGE 2 

word “absolutely” to 

come streaming out! 

Mr. Kindelmann 

has been working as 

an educator for 37 

years. After realizing 

that he had an interest 

in one day becoming 

a Principal, Mr. 

Kindelmann graduated 

Iona College 

and became a dean 

in 1987 here in HSE 

(as well as a basketball 

coach). In 2002 

Mr. Kindelmann was 

promoted to Principal, 

and after 5 years 

at this position, he 

has decided it is time 

to retire. His wife, who currently 

works in the Huntington 

School District, is also retiring 

this year. When asked what his 

plans were for after retirement, 

Mr. Kindelmann eagerly responded 

that he would like to 

improve his golf game! 

As Principal, Mr. Kindelmann 

has made many numerous 

contributions to HSE. He 

feels his vision of a diverse 

school has become a reality. 

Additionally, he has successfully 

maximized instruction 

and enhanced the methods pertaining 

to how students learn. 

He has turned this large high 

school into a safe and friendly 

learning environment. He 

finds the greatest solace in seeing 

former students return to 

the high school as mature and 

happy adults. For example, 

Mr. Kindelmann specifically 

makes reference to the class 

of 1983 and the 9/11 memorial 

in the HSE courtyard as one 

On May 11th the Hills East 

Thespian Society presented its 

first annual “East in Lights” 

talent show, showcasing the 

wide variety of talent in our 

student body. All of the proceeds 

were donated to Relay 

for Life, hosted by the American 

Cancer Association. This 

is a charity event to raise 

money honoring cancer survivors, 

pay tribute to those who 

have passed on, and to help 

fight the disease. Participants 

have the power to support the 

American Cancer Society’s 

progress in the battle against 

cancer. The ticket money, as 

well as donations, went directly 

to this fantastic cause. 

The Thespian Society put on 

a great show, with many dif- 

POST-GRADUATION PLANS 

Where are our Hills East Seniors 

Going After Graduation? 

PAGES 6-7 

of the most memorable moments 

in his time here at the 

high school. Another joyous 

moment for Mr. Kindelmann 

came this year when Richard 

Mills, a representative from 

the New York State Board of 

Regents, made a spontaneous 

visit to the high school. Mr. 

By: Rebecca Harris 

STAFF WRITER 

ferent performances. The Dixettes 

did a great routine. Also, 

students Katrina Moise, Ilana 

Ventura, Jackie Ruggero, and 

Lisa Ruggero displayed their 

HSE spirit through dance. 

East’s musicians included violist 

Lace Abelbey, guitarists 

Melissa Karmel and David 

Barnstone, and pianist Russell 

Feinstein. Many of our talented 

singers wowed the audience. 

They were Gina Amico, 

Jordan Kugler, Aurielle Satterthwaite, 

Andrew Kirschner, 

Ashley Kotkin, Sami Jurman, 

Joe Bernardo, and Dana Putterman. 

They really amazed 

the audience with their strong 

voices and powerful tunes. 

Two of Hills East’s greatest 

bands rocked the stage. With 

More Tales from 

Behind the Scene: 

Concession Stands 

PAGE 11 

Mills was extremely impressed 

by the academics, worldliness, 

and orderliness of HSE and 

even said that this is an “all 

embracing school” (congratulations 

fellow classmates)! 

Mr. Kindelmann’s vision for 

the school is to continue to 

grow and stay environmentally 

friendly. Mr. Kindelmann 

eagerly demonstrated that all 

of the little things, such as 

unplugging unnecessary electronics 

when not in use, can be 

the most beneficial! 

Looking towards the future, 

Mr. Kindelmann is excited 

about Dr. Woodberry becoming 

the new Principal. “Dr. 

Woodberry has it all” Mr. Kindelmann 

said. “He is a terrific 

listener, he has good values, 

is an excellent communicator 

and is a terrific role-model.” 

Mr. Kindelmann is also excited 

with his decision to make 

Mr. Bongino the new Assistant 

Principal. Mr. Bongino 

Continued on Page 11 

energy and flair, they got the 

audience on their feet. They 

included Andre Doughty, Ryan 

Kober, Gabe Kirshoff, Jon 

Mackey, and the titled group 

“Blueprints for Mankind.” Students 

showcased their comedic 

side when Amanda Holder, 

Melissa Mayard, and Aurielle 

Satterthwaite performed “You 

Don’t Need a Man.” In addition, 

Melanie Levine’s Beverly 

“Dix” Hills was a great way 

to make the audience laugh. 

To end the show, the chamber 

choir sang a beautiful rendition 

of “Bridge Over Troubled 

Water.” It was a very memorable 

night, filled with joy and 

fun. Congratulations to all the 

Thespian Society members on 

a job well done! 

Movie 

Madness 

2007! 

PAGE 9

[2] Thunderbird HHH High School East 

Thunderbird [3] 

HSE 5th 

Fashion 

Show 


STAFF WRITER 

On Friday March 23rd, 

2007, the Hills East Fashion 

Club presented its 5th annual 

Fashion Show. Students, as 

well as teachers, modeled 

clothes from many stores 

including Estelle’s Dressy 

Dresses, Lacrosse Unlimited, 

Hot Topic and Tight N Up. 

The purpose of this fashion 

show was not only to have 

a good time, but to promote 

the United Nations’ goal of 

making fresh water accessible 

everywhere around the 

world. This program is called 

Magenta and the Magic 

Cloth. Magenta symbolizes 

the beauty that exists among 

diverse cultures. The “Magic 

Cloth” represents the association 

one can make when 

exploring the differences 

among those cultures. The 

money made from the fashion 

show goes straight to the 

House of Children in Peru, 

where families are building 

their own water troughs. 

People in this area are suffering 

from multiple diseases 

due to bacteria in the water 

and poor hygiene. As stated 

in the program, “By next 

year, we hope to have the entire 

district involved in Magenta 

and the Magic Cloth. 

Magenta may be the way in 

which we weave the cloth 

of friendship between ourselves 

and the world…” All 

of the models looked beautiful 

as they strutted down the 

runway with style. Teachers, 

including Mrs. Bongiorno, 

Mr. Mayo, Miss Rivera, and 

Dr. Woodbury all sparked 

loud cheers from the audience. 

The female students 

truly showed off the clothes 

well, while walking with attitude. 

The male models kept 

the audience entertained and 

smiling. The show went very 

smoothly and was a big hit 

among students and parents. 

A great job was done by all, 

including Ms. Patricia Gordon 

the advisor, Lisa Ruggero 

and Diandre Decaro the 

Co-Presidents, and all the 

officers. 

“Soupa” Saturday 

By: Lauren Greenberg 

STAFF WRITER 

In a place like New York 

City, it is nearly impossible 

to lack diversity. With so 

many types of people, one 

is bound to encounter a variety 

of lifestyles. Just 

like anywhere else, the 

streets of the five boroughs 

overflow with 

people who carry their 

own load of benefits and 

dilemmas. Unfortunately, 

in an area with such diversity, 

as inevitable as it 

is to find prosperity, it is 

just as common to come 

upon complete suffering. 

No matter how some may 

succeed or fail, people often 

require some form of 

assistance from someone 

other than themselves. 

Those who do not prosper, 

and cannot support 

themselves, do require the 

help of those who can. 

A homeless man begging 

for change on the corner of 

a busy crosswalk, or a hungry 

woman who rummages 

through trash cans in the 

Mr. President: We Need to Talk 

By: Carolina C. DeLeon 

STAFF WRITER 

Dear Mr. President, 

First, I’m going to state how 

I admire the fact that you’re 

willing to help a country under 

distress, and willing to help 

them fight for independence 

from a strong, powerful, and 

cruel dictator. Although many 

people have disagreed with 

the war in Iraq since the start, 

I am not ashamed to say that 

I did agree with us fighting 

the war and fighting for what 

this country strongly believes 

in: liberty and freedom. I 

do understand that you are 

under a lot of stress because 

what a president needs most 

is the support, understanding, 

and patience from his nation, 

which I am sure you may feel 

like you are not receiving 

right now. As a President, I 

too would feel tense and disappointed 

because it is either 

fighting for what I believe in 

or doing what the citizens of 

my country believe I should 

do. As you read this letter, I 

ask that you see yourself not 

as the President of the United 

States but as a hard-working 

middle class citizen of the 

United States. 

Before I start talking about 

the main issues, I wish to inform 

you a little about my 

background. Both my mother 

park are oftentimes difficult 

sights to see. In fact, the 

people who are not suffering, 

or have more to their 

names than the needy ones, 

tend to look the other way. 

It is entirely common for a 

person to walk past someone 

who is in need and turn his 

or her back on him or her, 

literally and metaphorically. 

From a young age, some 

children are taught never to 

give coins or attention to a 

and father came to this country 

when they were in their 

early teens from the Dominican 

Republic. They came 

to this country looking for a 

better opportunity to succeed 

and a new beginning. My parents 

struggled very hard to get 

what they have, and to this 

day, they still struggle. I am 

very proud of my parents because 

I have yet to suffer cold 

nights without a blanket or sit 

at a table with an empty plate. 

My parents love the land 

where they were born and I 

too have learned to love that 

land. That land I speak of is a 

land full of suffering, poverty, 

hunger, and violence, but I 

still manage to see their eyes 

glow from happiness. Those 

are some of the most grateful 

people I have ever met in my 

pleading person in need, for 

fear that the provided money 

will be used to commit acts 

of destruction. Understandably, 

some people also believe 

that those who go without 

a meal, or do not have a 

life, and I have learned to appreciate 

what I have because 

of them. 

This, which is my land, is 

land full of hope, a way to 

give back to my ancestors and 

prevent the future generations 

from suffering as they did. 

This is a land full of riches 

and prosperity. I have seen 

this country come together in 

the time of need and stand by 

each other. They would lend 

a shoulder to cry on when 

needed and give a bandage 

to those who are wounded. 

I’ve watched tears fall down 

our eyes as we lowered our 

flags and removed our caps as 

we watched the Twin Towers 

collapse. It no longer mattered 

the race or color of the 

skin; we were all Americans, 

and we all felt the pain. I ob- 

place to sleep, have brought 

these problems upon themselves, 

and therefore do not 

deserve any pity. The reason 

for these ideas and actions is 

not necessarily derived from 

a lack of concern or sympathy 

for those in need. Maybe 

the eyes of those who can 

provide for themselves fall 

short of the ability to view 

such sights of agony. Perhaps 

society cannot even 

look upon the faces of those 

whose lives have taken 

a turn for the worse, let 

alone provide for them. 

Luckily, for those who 

care to seek out the help 

they may need, there 

are some locations that 

provide a warm feeling 

for those who are 

normally locked out in 

the cold. Soup kitchens, 

shelters, and fund raisers 

are out to help those 

who have lost the ability 

to help themselves. One 

soup kitchen with a particularly 

warm heart and 

bowl of soup, is located 

at the Village Temple, in 

Greenwich Village of New 

York City. If one were to 

view the actual room where 

the cooking and distributing 

of food takes place, it 

would be hard to imagine 


served as people were crying 

and begging for help as they 

searched for their loved ones. 

I watched as the soldiers got 

ready to say good-bye to their 

loved ones and get ready 

to fight a war. We all felt so 

powerful but at the same time 

so powerless. At first, everyone 

believed we should fight 

and show that these colors indeed 

do not run. It happened 

September 11, 2001. Now, 5 

years later and we are still in 

Iraq fighting what seems to be 

an endless war. 

As an American, I am proud 

of my country’s ability to 

show that we can fight a war 

and not back down. At the 

same time, I feel embarrassed 

to say I’m an American. President 

Bush, my intentions are 

not to offend you in any way 

but to help understand why 

many people oppose the war. 

The major reason we entered 

the war was to show that we 

are not scared and get somewhat 

even with the attacks on 

the Twin Towers. After we 

proved to them that we are a 

strong nation, we also heard 

some news that we will stay 

in Iraq because they have 

some very dangerous missiles 

that are a threat to the world. 

This was proven to be false 

because they couldn’t find 


Goodbye to the Class of 2007 

By: Rachel Scall 


Four years ago an army of 

freshmen arrived at Hills East, 

giant backpacks and all. Year 

by year the backpacks got 

smaller and the freshmen got 

bigger. It may be hard to believe, 

but now that army of 

book-toting freshmen have become 

the senior class of 2007. 

There isn’t one senior 

who can say that each day of 

high school was the happiest 

day of his life, but there also 

isn’t anyone who can say that 

there weren’t any good days 

at all. Sure, we all complain 

about backstabbing rumors 

and snobby cliques, but when 

we look back on our days at 

HSE, we’re going to miss our 

friends, our favorite teachers, 

and, of course, spicy chicken. 

Together we have perfected 

the art of copying homework, 

Relay For Life 


& Melissa Tierney 

STAFF WRITERS 

On June 2nd through June 

3rd Half Hollow Hills High 

School West will host the community’s 

first American Cancer 

Society event called “Relay 

for Life.” “Relay for Life” 

is an overnight fund-raiser for 

cancer patients and survivors. 

Teams of 8 to 15 participants 

will be assigned a portion of 

land at the High School 

West track 

where they will pitch a 

tent to spend the night. 

The evening begins with 

Opening Ceremonies. This is 

when the community’s cancer 

survivors walk a victory lap 

around the track. The second 

lap is dedicated to those 

whom were most supportive 

and helpful to the cancer survivors. 

Throughout the rest of 

the night, there is at least one 

member of each team on the 

track at all times. Dr. Woodbury 

is involved in this event, 

and below is an interview 

with him. 

Q: What is the Relay 

for Life? 

A: It is a cancer fundraiser 

and awareness event 

through the American Cancer 

Society…to help people 

fighting the disease. It is an 

overnight relay. You assemble 

a team and walk for an 

hour. You get people to sponsor 

you to raise money. 

Q: Why is it being done? 

A: To raise money for 

cancer patients and survivors. 

Q: Where and when is it 

taking place? 

A: It is being held on 

High School West track. It is 

district wide. You need to be 

registered and part of a team. 

There will be performances as 

well such as the kickline and 

band. There will be a fun 

activity portion 

open to everyone, 

but the actual 

relay is 

for registered 

members. 

Q: Who is organizing this? 

A: The American Cancer 

Society, specifically for our 

Half Hollow Hills community. 

Q: Who are you hoping 

will get involved? 

A: Hopefully as many 

people as possible from the 

community. There are already 

two faculty teams of 

fifteen organized. We are trying 

to get all the clubs and 

activities from the schools 

involved. Anyone can donate 

money. 

Q: How will it be advertised? 

A: There is information on 

the district website. There are 

also flyers around the school. 

terrorized the librarians, made 

school bagels their own food 

group, overcome school IDs, 

and re-defined laziness. Right 

now it is safe to say that not 

only are we ready to graduate, 

but the administration is probably 

ready to hand over those 

diplomas. 

This year we played in our 

last indoor soccer tournaments. 

We plotted out our last 

elaborate cheating methods. 

Tips for the Real World 

By: Brian Kotkin 

STAFF WRITER 

My fellow seniors are all 

going off to college (or most 

of them anyway), and I have 

come to realize that despite 

your good grades you have 

the common sense of a goldfish 

and the survival instincts 

of a sponge (the one you use 

for cleaning, not the one that 

lives on the seafloor; that one 

can still feed itself). Knowing 

this, I decided I’d help 

you out with some things you 

should know before you (almost) 

go out into the world. 

First, please remember that 

most of you live among the 

top 5-10% of the country, financially. 

The proof is that a 

low cost house around here 

costs at least $500,000, and 

that’s really low-balling it. 

Thus, no matter where you 

go, you are going to be one 

of the “rich kids,” even if you 

think you aren’t. Most of the 

people in college can only 

afford it because of scholarships 

and loans; your parents 

probably have an account 

with a couple hundred thousand 

dollars stashed away 

for you. Therefore, never, 

ever, complain about your 

expenses. 

Second, beware the “Greek 

Week.” You may think you 

want to join a fraternity or a 

sorority, but do you want it 

enough to get held in place 

while someone puts a branding 

iron on your a-… uh, 

arm? Do you want it, need it 

enough to do twenty shots, 

so that even if you survive 

you’ll wake up in the morning 

and you’ll still be drunk 

until dinner? If your answer 

is yes, then I guess I’ll be 

seeing you at the next AA 

meeting. 

Third, you have not yet 

studied once. For some of 

you, that’s more literal than 

figurative. Chances are you 

don’t know how to study (I 

include myself especially in 

this category) and will be 

surprised when natural ability 

doesn’t slide anymore. 

We stole our last posters from 

the library and our last chocolate 

milks from the cafeteria. 

Now we are getting ready 

to say good-bye to our best 

friends, some of whom we’ve 

known since kindergarten. 

We are no longer little freshmen, 

concerned with looking 

cool despite our meter wide 

backpacks. Believe it or not, 

no matter how often we still 

visit Toys R Us to buy playdoh 

and coloring books, we 

have grown up. 

No senior will leave HSE 

unaffected. We have left our 

mark on Hills East and Hills 

East has left its mark on us. 

Each of our moments in high 

school, good or bad, was a 

learning experience that cannot, 

and will not, be taken for 

granted as we move on in life. 

Congratulations Hills East 

class of 2007, and good luck. 

A Bit About Mr. Barros 

By: Nicole Nagler 

STAFF WRITER 

Mr. Barros has been a 

Physical Education Teacher 

for the Half Hollow Hills 

school disctrict for 34 years. 

He taught 9 years at Signal 

Hill, 13 years at Hills West 

and for the past 12 years he 

has been teaching physical 

education classes here at 

High School East. 

Mr. Barros was inspired 

to become a teacher because 

he enjoyed learning and felt 

it would be nice to pass the 

knowledge along to others. 

His favorite class to teach 

is badminton due to the enthusiasm 

shown by the students. 

Mr. Barros’s favorite 

tournament was the first 

indoor soccer tournament 

that he ran by himself, before 

he was given help from 

the other physical education 

staff. The tournament 

created a lot of enthusiasm 

from the students and everyone 

always enjoyed the 

tournaments. He did not 

have one most memorable 

experience; however, he 

will always remember the 

students’ enjoyment of all 

their classes. 

Even though Mr. Barros 

won’t “miss getting here at 

6:00 am to set up the gym 

and to take care of other 

daily routines not connected 

to teaching, he will miss 

all the classes that showed 

enthusiasm for the material 

that was being taught.” 

After he retires, Mr. Barros 

plans on doing what 

ever he wants to do. His 

time and efforts which he 

has put into his work for 

the last 34 years have had 

a great impact on the district, 

and he will always 

be remembered as an excellent 

physical education 

teacher. 

Also, you won’t get away 

with writing the sentence 

“Please give me an A” on 

your essays in lieu of actually 

writing a substantial essay. 

Do that in college. I dare 

you. 

Finally, always remember 

that everyone thinks he is 

unique when he goes off to 

college, but only a few actually 

are. You’ll know exactly 

who I’m talking about when 

you get there. You think 

you’re awesome when you 

run around drunk and naked 

in the halls, but they’re the 

guys who show up to class 

wearing a black cloak and 

Guy Fawkes mask. Also, they 

answer to all who ask them alliteratively, 

just because they 

happened to see the costume 

from V For Vendetta in their 

closet. They’re the ones who 

go on the college radio and 

talk about various uses for 

vegetable oil for twenty minutes, 

just because they saw a 

commercial on TV. In short, 

you are no match.

[4] Thunderbird Issue 1, November 2005 HHH High School East 


An Interview With: 

Dr. Morris 

By: Ian Schwartz 

STAFF WRITER 

I was talking with one of 

my friends during the last 

few weeks and we were discussing 

up coming things 

that we had to do. I told 

my friend that I had an interview 

with Dr. Morris for 

my Hollywood and History 

class the next day. Immediately 

my friend said to 

me, “Who is Dr. Morris?” 

At first, I thought he was 

kidding. How could he not 

know who Dr. Morris is? It 

turned out that he was not 

joking around. It also turned 

out that my friend was not 

alone. I proceeded to ask 

some of my other friends if 

they knew. So, who is Dr. 

Morris? For starters, Dr. 

Morris is the Director of the 

Social Studies Department 

in our district. He is a hard 

working, dedicated educator 

who loves his job almost 

as much as he loves history. 

Growing up in Great Neck, 

Dr. Morris found his love 

for history at a very young 

age. Since he was little, 

his family would take vacations 

to historical places 

and talk about different 

history events. In school, 

social studies was his favorite 

subject. “Teaching was 

for me,” Dr. Morris stated 

as he re-lived his past. After 

graduating high school, 

Dr. Morris attended Buffalo 

University. He then received 

his Master’s Degree at C.W. 

Post and also received his 

Masters and Doctorate at St. 

Johns University. 

One thing that sets Dr. 

Morris apart from most other 

people is his belief in the 

importance of film in our 

social studies curriculum. 

He is a very strong supporter 

of Hills East’s Hollywood 

and History class, which 

explores historical events 

through movies. With the 

help of Dr. Morris, the teachers 

of Hollywood and History, 

Mrs. Bongiorno and 

Mr. Scorcia, have been able 

to go to “new heights” this 

year with their classes and 

really teach their students 

the difference between historical 

fact and Hollywood 

fiction. 

I had the privilege of sitting 

down with Dr. Morris 

to talk to him about his 

opinion on film and the importance 

of it in our education. 

Here’s the interview: 

Q: What is your favorite 

historical time period/ historical 

event? 

A: The Holocaust. 

Q: What is your favorite 

historical movie? 

A: There are so many… 

I really couldn’t even tell 

you. 

Q: Do you think it’s important 

to have classes like 

Hollywood and History as 

a part of everyone’s schedule? 

A: Yes, I think it is important 

to understand the facts 

in movies. Certain films can 

have big impacts on your 

life or society. For example, 

the movie ‘Birth of a Nation’ 

arguably started the 

civil rights movement. 

Q: Do you think Hollywood 

movies do a good 

job of portraying historical 

events? 

A: Yes and no. There are 

many Hollywood movies 

that do an incredible job at 

showing different events, 

however, I think it is also 

important that students 

watch documentaries that 

really show all the facts. 

Hollywood movies give you 

a base. Documentaries give 

you more knowledge. 

Q: Are movies in classrooms 

really a good idea? 

A: Yes, many students 

and even adults learn better 

from visual aid and not 

only hearing facts. All social 

studies classes and not 

just Hollywood and History, 

should show a movie once 

in a while. We should look 

to film as a barometer, an 

important visual aid. 

Q: Is it a problem that 

many Hollywood movies 

add events that didn’t happen 

during a historical time 

period? 

A: Well, that all depends 

on the viewer. It is up to us, 

the viewers, to decide what 

is junk and what is good 

information that we should 

remember. 

Q: Where would you like 

to see this class go in the future? 

A: Hopefully, we can 

eventually expand the curriculum 

of the class to include 

modern era films, 

explore film makers and 

Academy Award winners, 

and maybe even watch some 

foreign films. 

For those people who 

didn’t know Dr. Morris, I 

hope this got them a little 

familiar with him. However, 

this incredible educator, 

who is such a big part of our 

everyday educational lives, 

deserves much more than an 

article in our school newspaper. 

Dr. Morris has shown 

me what it really is to have 

a passion about something. 

He loves his job, movies 

and history more than anyone 

I have ever met. No one 

matches the support that Dr. 

Morris gives Hills East and 

our Social Studies Department. 

So, next time you’re 

in the social studies wing, 

and you see Dr. Morris, say 

“Hello”, and thank him for 

everything that he has done 

to make our educational experience 

at Hills East that 

much better. 

‘07 Career 

Day at HSE 

By: Courtney Hartman 

STAFF WRITER 

If you were able to get 

through the mad rush of anxious 

students racing to get the 

last free pen or lollipop you 

would have been able to gain a 

plethora of information about 

possible future careers at Career 

Day. 

Every high school student 

has had the conversation with 

an adult that began with the 

awkward question of, “So, 

what do you want to be when 

you grow up?” If you were in 

the majority, then you would 

have answered either “I don’t 

know. I’m still thinking,” or 

even lowered your eyes and 

pretended not to have heard 

the pressing question. We 

know there are so many opportunities 

in the world and 

so many interesting careers; 

however, it is often hard to 

settle on just one. 

Career Day was a chance 

for students to learn about 

many different jobs directly 

from the people who have 

them. Students were exposed 

to the ever-popular lawyer, 

librarian, teacher, politician, 

but also the more obscure 

jobs of dress designer, graphic 

artist, and electrical engineer. 

All of the representatives 

were more than eager to 

answer questions or explain 

their job. They tried to make 

students interested in their 

areas of expertise by revealing 

all of the aspects of the 

job that attracted them. There 

were pamphlets and fliers 

that highlighted the different 

careers and students were 

able to take them so they 

could learn more about the 

job qualifications and what 

that career would entail. 

Did you know that if you 

ever become a salesman the 

first rule of thumb would be 

to know that “The buyer is 

a liar”? Or, say you’re one 

of those people who carries 

around a camera with him at 

all times, just in case a good 

photo opportunity pops up, 

then you might be interested in 

a career as a professional photographer 

in which you could 

be involved with numerous 

areas of photography which 

include magazines, greeting 

cards, weddings, or even 

crime scenes. A “Dunkin Donuts” 

representative was present 

offering information on 

the ownership of franchises, 

and giving out free samples, 

of course. A very intimidating 

sergeant was there discussing 

his association with the Marine 

Corps and how to become 

involved with the military. The 

local politician, Susan Berland, 

also took time from her hectic 

schedule as a councilwoman to 

talk about her work. 

The success of Career Day 

has helped many indecisive 

students have a clearer view of 

their future. Everyone who attended 

was able to find something 

that interested him or 

her. The extensive list of professions 

attracted many students 

who, otherwise, would 

still have no idea what their 

future career goal would be. 

Now, when asked the question 

“What do you want to be when 

you grow up?” many kids from 

our school will be able to answer 

with a more conclusive 

response rather than the conventional, 

“ I don’t know.” 

THUNDERBIRD STAFF 

Editors-In-Chief: 

Stacey Goldberg 

Rachel Scall 

Layout Editors: 

Andrew Kessler 

Kevin Kong 

Section Editor: 

Jessica Repanes 

Staff Writers: 

Rebecca Harris, Adam Girgenti, Brian Kotkin, Ian Schwartz, 

Melissa Tierney, Amanda Ostuni, Nicole Nagler, Courtney 

Hartman, Spencer Fogel, Lauren Greenberg, Carolina 

Cid DeLeon, Jessica Minassian, Essence Thomas, Hilary 

Weissman 

Advisors: 

Mrs. Fluger 

Mrs. Davis 

Disclaimer: 

The Thunderbird herby states that the opinions 

within this publication are those of the writers and do 

notnecessarily reflect those of the staff, administration, 

or school community. We thank you for reading 

the thunderbird and hope you enjoy our content! 

E-mail: Thunderbirdhse@gmail.com 

HSE’s First National Art Honor Society 

By: Jessica Repanes 

SECTION EDITOR 

The National Art Honor 

Society (NAHS) was officially 

established in Hills 

East this school year (2006- 

2007). The club is designed 

to bring together students 

who are dedicated 

to their art and want 

to share that passion 

with others in and out 

of school; its advisors 

are Ms. Corazón and 

Mrs. Uttendorfer. 

The National Art 

Honor Society is an organization 

which was 

founded in 1947 by the 

National Art Education 

Association. Over 

time, the NAHS has 

established more than 

1250 chapters; there are currently 

73 in New York. 

To clarify how the NAHS began 

in Hills East, Ms. Corazón 

said, “in the school’s Activities 

Booklet, the NAHS was listed 

as a club, but I knew we didn’t 

have official chapter membership 

in the National Art Honor 

Society. There was never any 

induction ceremony or required 

service hours for its members, 

so the club wasn’t functioning 

as a true Art Honor Society. 


STAFF WRITER 

On Saturday April 28th and 

Sunday April 29th the Half 

Hollow Hills High School 

East Players performed the 

classic musical, The Sound 

of Music. It is a wonderful 

story of an aspiring nun 

who falls in love with a man 

and his seven children. Love 

and perseverance 

keep the family 

together amidst 

the harsh German 

and Nazi 

influences taking 

over their 

home of Austria. 

The fabulous 

musical drama 

conveys the universal 

theme of 

freedom. The 

Hills East performers 

did an excellent job 

of portraying such a meaningful 

show. 

Half Hollow Hills was certainly 

alive with the sound of 

such breathtaking music and 

vocals. Lead roles were performed 

by Jordan Kugler as 

Captain Von Trapp, Samantha 

Jurman as Maria on Saturday, 

and Rachel Berman as 

Maria on Sunday. Children of 

When Mrs. Uttendorfer came 

[to our school], she asked if we 

had an Art Honor Society and I 

said ‘no, not officially, but I’ve 

always wanted to establish a 

chapter at our school. If you 

are willing, we could run [the 

club] together.’ She loved the 

idea … and so did Mr. Kindelmann 

and our supervisor, Mr. 

Randazzo.” 

Of course, the club could 

not run smoothly without its 

dedicated officers. They are 

Co-Presidents Jason Berkenfeld 

and Samantha Schulman, 

Vice President Remy 

Goldberg, Treasurer Kimberly 

Wirth, Secretary James 

Rigano, Public Relations 

Lindsay Stetzer, Historian 

the Von Trapp family included 

Brittany DeCicco, Jason 

Rosenberg, Gina Amico, Jacy 

McDonough, Jared Glazer, 

Hailey Brosnan, Dana Putterman, 

Melody Agrillo, Rebecca 

Weiss, Melinda Eller, 

and Brittany Nadler. The 

children especially shined in 

their unique rendition of The 

Lonely Goatherd. 

Other memorable actors 

included Ryan Kober 

as Rolf, Taylor Sokol as 

Elsa, Stephanie Berland as 

Frau Schmidt, Travis Miecnikowski 

as Franz, and 

Andre Doughty and Gary 

McKenna as Max Detweiler. 

Fantastic voices rang 

through the audience thanks 

to a great group of nuns including 

Nicole Honovich, 

Anna Boyd and Web Master 

Stacey Goldberg. Together, 

the advisors and the club’s 

thirty one members participate 

in activities to promote 

art in the school and at school 

related events. The members 

assist the Art Club with their 

projects and have recently 

painted a replica of Van 

Gogh’s Starry Night mural 

that will take part in the district’s 

Relay for Life. “Painting 

the murals are so much 

fun; it combines my love 

of art with developing new 

friendships” states Samantha 

Schulman. In addition, 

the members helped to operate 

Safe Halloween’s Haunted 

House, set up decorations for 

HSE’s ‘Sound of Music’ 

Jaclyn Vingan, Ilana Saltz, 

Sarah Shapira, Lorraine 

Asti, Kerry O’Reilly, and 

Rebecca Frank. 

Special thanks to a group 

of very talented musicians, 

HSE’s pit orchestra. The 

show would not be complete 

without the great student directors, 

parents, and other 

adult helpers including Jared 

Glazer, Rebecca 

Weiss, 

Kimi Greer, 

Lisa Ruggero, 

Fayth Berman, 

Larry Jurman, 

Adam Kugler, 

Allyson Sokol, 

Lori Horowitz, 

Vivian DeRosa, 

Peter Amico, 

Denise Honovich, 

Chris 

Creevy, Victoria 

Reres, Mike Weiss, and 

Frank Berman. Additional 

thanks go to the stage crew 

and lighting technicians. . 

Congratulations to directors 

Kita and Gary de Sesa on 

a truly brilliant job making 

this show come alive. An 

amazing job was done by all 

cast and crew members, and 

thanks for such an enjoyable 

production! 

Senior Banquet, display artwork 

in the HHH District Art 

Show and are currently putting 

the finishing touches on a mural 

of the solar system located 

in the science wing. 

As an NAHS member, every 

student is required to complete 

a minimum of two hours of art 

related service each month. 

The students must also maintain 

an overall B grade point 

average, and an A average in 

their art classes. 

To officially declare the National 

Art Honor Society a Hills 

East Club, and to commend 

the participating students for 

their efforts, the National Art 

Honor Society’s 1st Induction 

Ceremony took place on 

Remembering: 

STAFF WRITER 

On March 27th, Mr. Frankel’s 

Sports in American 

History and Mr. Carey’s 

Amnesty International Club 

took a field trip to Suffolk 

Community College. Both 

classes had an opportunity 

to see a Jackie Robinson exhibit 

and discuss the importance 

of Jackie Robinson. 

Stanley Glenn was a speaker 

at the presentation. He 

was a catcher who played in 

the Negro Leagues for the 

Philadelphia Stars, the same 

league as Jackie Robinson. 

Glenn never got a chance 

to play on the same team as 

Jackie Robinson, who was a 

Kansas City Monarch. He 

laughed as he told us he had 

the opportunity to call Jackie 

“Rookie.” Glenn never 

got a chance to play in the 

major leagues due to racism. 

During a tryout, a scout 

from the New York Yankees 

heard about Glenn’s talent 

and came to watch how he 

May 21st. All of the inductees 

were dressed in black and 

white, as in the true tradition 

of an Artist’s Ball. After many 

discussions, the advisors and 

officers decided that black and 

white would be our chapter’s 

official colors; this is 

ironic because black and 

white are not colors, but 

achromatic colors: neutral 

tones without a hue. “We 

chose black and white 

because black and white 

represent the extremes in 

art… [when put together], 

the two opposites complement 

each other and make 

a visual balance (like 

yin and yang), and that’s 

what we were trying to 

convey” explains Jason 

Berkenfeld. A lot of effort 

went into the formation of the 

Induction Ceremony, including 

creating the club’s invitations 

and writing numerous speeches. 

Special thanks are in order 

to the Co-Presidents, Samantha 

Schulman for creating the 

beautiful invitations, and Jason 

Berkenfeld for writing the Four 

Pillars, a fundamental part of 

the ceremony. 

The officers had high hopes 

for the Induction Ceremony, 


Jackie Robinson 

By: Spencer Fogel 

played. When the major 

league scout arrived, he noticed 

that Glenn was black 

so he left without watching 

him. The question and 

answer session began after 

he finished talking about 

his life. When asked how 

racism affected his play at 

bat and in the field he responded, 

“It didn’t, baseball 

was my sport, I loved 

it then and I love it now.” 

His love for baseball and 

fellow comrades was complimented 

when he told the 

audience about his admiration 

of Jackie Robinson and 

teammates. It was further 

expressed when he told the 

audience that he was deeply 

saddened when he found 

out about Jackie Robinson’s 

death at age 53. Glenn also 

took the time to talk to us 

about the release of his new 

book, Don’t Let Anyone 

Take Your Joy Away: An inside 

Look at Negro League 

Baseball and Its Legacy. 

The book is about his career 

in the Negro League 

baseball and the history of 

the time period and how it 

affected his teammates and 

him. In the last chapter of 

his book, he emphasizes 

the importance of joy, and 

Continued on Page 9



HSE SENIOR GRADUATION PLANS 

A Abel-Bey, Lace: Penn State 

Afati, Omid: Arizona State University 

Ahern, Catherine: Middlebury College 

Albert, Dana: University of Rochester 

Anastasio, Cara: University of Richmond 

Anderson, Jess: Pace University 

Antoine, Vanessa: Binghamton University 

Arora, Shivani: NYIT 

Atkinson, Shanah: College of New Rochelle 

B Barnstone, Jamie: Quinnipiac University 

Bekheet, Raymond: The Cooper Union 

Belodolf, Aaron: Nassau Community College 

Berkenfeld, Jason: Harvard College 

Bernstein, Jordan: Cornell University 

Berman, Brett: University at Buffalo 

Bhasin, Nikhil: NYU 

Blatt, Spencer: American University 

Boccio, Eric: Washington University in St. Louis 

Boehm, Allison: College, Undecided 

Brancato, Briana: Northeastern University 

Brock, Kenny: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill 

Brower, John: University of Maryland 

Brutus, Jessica: Binghamton University 

Bryerman, Corey: University of Wisconsin 

Buck, Jocelyn: University of North Carolina, Greensboro 

Buckley, Juliana: Dowling 

Burgazzoli, Jeff: West Virginia University 

Butler, Shanelle: St. John’s 

C Cai, Diane: Brown University 

Carrieri, Samantha: C.W. Post 

Callender, Brandon: Boston University 

Carle, Gary: Five Towns College 

Chiarenza, Rosario: SUNY Binghamton 

Chin, Liana: Cornell University 

Cid, Arlina: Plans to travel 

Clark, Melanie: Binghamton 

Clemente, Stephanie: Wesleyan University 

Cohen, Danielle: SUNY Albany 

Cowan, Chelsey: Emory University 

D Daibee, Anil: Boston University 

DeCaro, Diandre: University of South Florida 

DeStefano, Dana: Boston University 

DeRosa, Laura: Laboratory Institute of Merchandising 

Desnoyers, Ronald: Long Island University 

DiSanto, Brian: Loyola College in Maryland 

Dorn, Erin: SUNY Purchase 

Dresner, Meredith: Johnson and Wales University 

Dubato, Christina: Adelphi University 

Dubicki, Alex: Stony Brook 

E Edelmen, Hannah: University of Wisconsin 

Eller, Samantha: Adelphi 

Engelhardt, Andrew: CUNY Baruch 

Esposito, Jarrett: Adelphi University 

FEATURED SENIOR 

Sarah Fogel 

“I learned that hard 

work is worth it in 

the long run—the rewards 

are great, still, 

you owe yourself 

some fun as well.” 

F Fackler, Alyssa: University of Buffalo 

Farber, Zachary: Indiana University 

Fisher, Louis: Columbia University 

Flerx, Erika: Towson University 

Fogel, Sarah: Cornell University 

Fowlkes, Naja: St. John’s University 

Friedfeld, Sam: Indiana University 

Friedman, Hailey: Emory University 

Frigenti, Nick: University of Hartford 

Fuentes, Isai: Suffolk Community College 

Fung, Stephanie: University of Buffalo 

G Gans, Zak: Indiana Bloomington 

Garyn, Lindsey: University of Tampa 

Gebhardt, Michael: Northwestern University 

Gerber, Dan: University of Deleware 

German, Brett: Hofstra 

Giaime, Brian: Digipen Institute of Technology 

Gill, Brian: University of Maryland, College Park 

Gill, Pasha: Carnegie Mellon 

Gobourne, Ashlee: Stony Brook 

Goldberg, Remy: Emory 

Goldstein, Alex: University of Wisconsin, Madison 

Gordon, Alex: Dickinson College 

Gordon, Nikki: Undecided 

Gottlieb, Ariel: Towson University 

Graynor, Kyle: NYU Stern School of Business 

Greenbaum, Melissa: Onondaga College 

Greenberg, Matt: Malloy College 

Griffith, Troy: Farmingdale, then transferring to Tampa 

Grosskurth, Thomas: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 

Gutterson, Glen: Duke University 

Guzman, Elizabeth: Traveling to the Dominican Republic 


Alexandra 

Hochstrasser 

“Do not stress too 

much to be the best, 

enjoy high school 

because once you’re 

gone you never go 

back.” 

H Hale, Gabe: New York Institute of Technology 

Halperin, Greg: Duke University 

Hamrah, Zelikha: Hofstra 

Handlin, Ashley: SUNY Plattsburg 

Harrison, Colleen: University of Maryland 

Hasan, Syed: New York Institute of Technology 

Hochstrasser, Alexandra: Long Island University, C.W. Post 

Hoenig, Randi: Binghamton University 

I Idrovo, Jorge: Nassau Community College 

Israel, Katharine: University of Tampa 

J Jacobs, Jay: University of Miami 

K Kadioglu, Erol: Iona College 

Kasan, Blake: Brandeis University 

Katz, Stefanie: Towson University 

Kessler, Josh: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 

Kim, Jen: Tufts University 

Kim, Sam: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 

Kirschner, Abby: SUNY Albany 

Kirschner, Andrew: SUNY Stony Brook 

Kochman, Julie: Princeton University 

Koppell, Steve: University of Maryland, College Park 

Kotkin, Ashley: Hofstra University 

Kotkin, Brian: Bard College 

Kowalski, Catherine: Mercy College 

Kresofsky, Kevin: University of Tampa 

L LaGrange, William: University of South Carolina 

Landress, Marisa: Syracuse University 

Lefkowitz, Rebecca: Binghamton 

Compiled by Rachel Scall 

Leifsson, Diana: Tompkins 

Leitman, Ben: Syracuse University 

Lisse, Fabian: Going back to Germany 

Lituchy, Sam: Syracuse University 

Loony, Chris: SUNY Albany 

Lopez, Nelson: College, Undecided 

Loughlin, Jimmy: Binghamton University 

Lovett, Ashley: SUNY Stony Brook 

Lustberg, Matthew: Syracuse University 

Lykos, Juliann: SUNY Cortland 

M Maiman, Zach: Lynn 

Malik, Shamli: University of Connecticut 

Manjares, Kasandra: SUNY Cortland 

Many, Renzy: CUNY Brooklyn College 

Marchessault, Sean: Boston University 

Marchon, Daniel: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 

Marquis, Titi: Pace University 

Mastrocola, Joseph: Boston College 

Mathew, Alex: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 

Mayard, Melissa: Stony Brook University 

McAlpine, Amanda: SUNY Albany 

McCann, Mike: Lehigh University 

McEnaney, Rob: SUNY Oneanta 

McNeil, Gene: US Navy 

Meyer, Lexi: Princeton University 

Meyer, Zach: Washington University in St. Louis 

Miecnikowski, Travis: Penn State University Park 

Milber, Dan: Penn State 

Mincone, John: James Madison University 

Mlawer, Emmy: University of Maryland 

Moehring, Kristin: SUNY Albany 

Mohamed, David: Stony Brook University 

Morris, Melissa: University of Wisconsin 

Munoz, Oscar: University of Hartford 

Myles, Duane: Suffolk Community College 

N Nackenson, Josh: Tufts University 

Nagler, Nicole: Sacred Heart 

Nagvenkar, Sonia: CW Post University 

Nemeroff, Michael: CUNY Baruch 

Ng, Melissa: SUNY Oneonta 

Nieder, Brigitte: Boston University 

Nobile, Nicole: Providence College 

Nomani, Junaid: SUNY Binghamton 

O O’Brien, PJ: Buffalo State 

O’Garro, Anderia: Pace University-Pleasantville Campus 

Oji, Aku: SUNY Old Westbury 

Oren, Ori: NYU 

Ostuni, Derek: Penn. Tech 

Ozen, Deniz: Boston University 

P Padover, Andrew: University of Florida 

Pagano, Maddy: Pace University 

Park, Joe: Stony Brook University 

Parziale, Vincent: Stony Brook University 

Pellegrino, Tom: Suffok Community College 

Pennino, Carolyn: St. Johns 

Pesso, Lindsey: Buffalo State 

Petersel, Zach: College, Undecided 

Piep, Nathyn: SUNY Geneseo 

Pierre, Patricia: Connecticut Culinary Inst. 

Pisano, Stephanie: Stony Brook University 

- 

Plotkin, Alyson: SUNY Cortland 

Portnoy, Chelsea: Indiana University 

Posillico, Christina: Towson University 

Pratt, Amanda: The University of Rhode Island 

Press, Samantha: Towson University 

Price, Josh: University of Maryland 

Q Qiao, Liz: Duke University 

R Rae, Stephanie: St. Joseph’s College 

Reckner, Alex: St. John’s College 

Reddy, Pavan: Emory 

Reddy, Pooja: University of Virginia 

Regan, Nick: University of South Florida 

Ricciuti, Jesse: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 

Richard, Mia: University of Massachusetts, Amherst 

Rigano, James: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 

Rodriguez, Jonathan: Boston College 

Rogove, Matt: University of Florida 

Rosedale, Becky: University of Maryland 

Rosenthal, David: Suffolk Community College 

Ross, Samantha: SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry 

Rossi, Samantha: Suffolk Community College/St. John’s 

Rufer, Chris: University of Delaware 

Ruggero, Lisa: Pennsylvania State University 


Kevin Kresofsky 

“You can’t take anything 

in life too seriously 

because you’re 

only here for a limited 

time.” 

S Sachdev, Sandeep: College, Undecided 

Sanit, Justin: University of Maryland 

Satnick, Ally: SUNY Buffalo 

Sawyer, Michelle: Duke University 

Scall, Rachel: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 

Schenker, Matt: Culinary Institute of America 

Schneck, Susan: Siena College 

Schulman, Samantha: CW Post 

Schwimmer, Lindsey: Towson University 

Scott, April: Georgia State University 

Seiden, Tara: SUNY Binghamton 

Seifter, Allie: University of Rhode Island 

Silverman, Ross: NYU 

Simon, Brandon: Northeastern University 

Simon, Derek: NYU Tisch Film School 

Singer, Julie: NYU 

Sommermeyer, Kristin: Centenary College 

Sookhu, Sanjay: Stony Brook University 

Sprance, Alexandra: Wood Tobe-Coburn 

Stern, Ethan: Emory 

Stetzer, Lindsay: Syracuse University 

Stolzenberg, Andrew: Lafayette College 

Stolzenberg, Zach: Dartmouth College 

Streisand, Michelle: Herkimer Cty. Community College 

Struhl, Jason: Elon University 

Sung, Brian: University of California at Berkeley 

Swaby, Leon: Adelphi University 

T Tager, Ali: Marist 

Tager, Samara: Indiana University 

Tantillo, Ariana: Providence College 

Teufel, Sarah: Northeastern University 

Tobias, Ariana: CUNY Hunter 

Tom, Erika: NYU 

V Vanella, Lauren: Boston University 

Venezia-Walerstein, Jason: University of Maryland, College Park 

Verma, Shawn: Iona College 

Vignola, Elicia: Johnson and Wales University 

Vinokur, Brett: Washington University in St. Louis 

W Walker, Elizabeth: Suffolk Community College 

Wan, Nicholas: Temple University 

Wang, Jeremiah: Stony Brook University 

Warmbrand, Matt: SUNY Oneonta 

Warren, Carly: Syracuse University 

Warshaw, Rachael: Boston University 

Wasserman, Alison: University of Michigan 

Weiner, Alyson: Northwestern University 

Weiss, Stephen: Towson University 

Winkler, Jordan: SUNY Geneseo 

Witter, William: The Cooper Union 

Y Yu, James: Stony Brook University 

Z Zacharia, Ilana: Lehigh University 

Zarett, Rebecca: University of Rochester 

Zelen, Ryan: Brown University 

Zeman, Ryan: St. Joseph’s College 

Zimmer, Brittany: Johns Hopkins University 

2007 Senior Reflections & Memorable Quotes 

Q: What is your favorite high school memory? 

“Winning Suffolk County and Long Island Championships for golf 

in 2006.” -Matthew Lustberg 

“Playing croquet with Mr. Pitman.”-Kenny Brock 

“The roar of the crowd when my ninth grade indoor soccer team 

upset the number one seed at the indoor soccer tournament.”-Michael 

Gebhardt 

“Hearing that Alex Dubicki got into Princeton!”-Jordan Bernstein 

“Being part of the We the People Team.”-Jason Berkenfeld, Lexi 

Meyer, and Zach Stolzenberg 

“Mr. Rahbari non-chalantly saying, ‘Oh no, that’s chlorine gas…I 

can’t feel my legs.’”-Joshua Nackenson 

“HHH East Varsity Roller Hockey ’05-’06 Champs.”-Brian Gill 

“Running across the lawn while being chased by school security to 


Susan Schneck 

“One Important 

thing I have 

learned is life 

is too short to 

be anything but 

happy.” 

Names and colleges were culled from senior surveys. The 

names of those who did not fill out the surveys (or those 

that filled out ambiguous answers) were omitted. Featured 

seniors were selected based on best commentaries. 

avoid going to class after AP tests.”-Nicole Nobile 

“Winning Volleyball County Champs.”-Ori Oren 

Q: What are your post-graduate plans? 

“I hope to become a traveling musician.”-Ryan Zelen 

“Traveling to Dominican Republic and Disney World.”-Elizabeth 

Guzman 

Q: What is one important thing that you learned 

in high school? 

“People are as happy as they make up their minds to be.”-Brian Gill 

“The most important people in life are your friends.”-Hailey Friedman 

“An appreciation for real toilet paper.”-Derek Simon 

“High school kids cannot drive.”-Joseph Mastrocola 

“Everyone you meet has something to teach you.”-Michelle Sawyer



Remembering: 

News About the Less Fortunate 

Summer Jobs 

By: Melissa Tierney 

STAFF WRITER 

School’s almost over so 

it’s time to figure out what 

you are going to do for the 

summer. In between camp 

and vacations, a great idea is 

to get a job for the summer! 

Not only will your parents 

be happy that you’re doing 

something productive with 

your summer vacation, but 

you will make money to 

possibly save up for a car 

or buy whatever you want! 

Now you have the dilemma 

of where to work. Here are 

just a few ideas of great 

summer jobs for teens. 

One good place to work 

at is Ralph’s Italian Ices. 

Ralph’s is extremely popular 

during the summer so 

they are looking to hire 

teenagers to work there. 

Another good place to 

work at is the mall or movies. 

Most teenagers that 

Organic vs Conventional 

By: Jessica Minassian 

STAFF WRITER 

Does it matter, organic or 

conventional? Many people 

say it does and others say it’s 

all the same. Organic foods 

are less processed which 

do not contain any 

chemically altered 

ingredients such 

as preservatives, 

and hydrogenated 

oils, and high 

fructose corn 

syrup. Also, many 

organic products 

aren’t really organic. 

If you choose to buy 

an organic product, please 

read the labels carefully. 

Conventional foods are 

good, however, may have an 

impact on your diet. Some 

By: Essence Thomas 

STAFF WRITER 

Once my mother I were 

walking down 6th Avenue 

in Manhattan. I was blasting 

my Ipod so I couldn’t really 

hear much, when out of 

the blue this hand stopped 

me. I quickly pulled out 

my head phones and said 

“ What’s wrong with you, 

what are you doing?” This 

guy looked me and said “ 

I’m sorry if I frightened 

you ma’m but can I get a 

little bit of change? I’m really 

hungry”. All of a sudden 

this feeling of sorrow 

and pain came across me. 

It seemed like all the emotions 

this homeless man 

was feeling, I some started 

feeling. I felt a sense of 

pain, loneliness, neglect, 

and depression. I felt like 

a failure in life. I went into 

my pocket and pulled out 

twenty dollars. I was skeptical 

at first, but I couldn’t 

resist but give this man my 

only and last twenty-dollar 

bill. He was so happy. 

He had a big million-dollar 

smile on his face. I would 

never forget that feeling. 

This is one homeless 

man out of a million other 

homeless. Homeless people 

are adults, teens, kids, and 

even babies. The homeless 

don’t go to camp during 

the summer go to the mall 

and movies, therefore, they 

are always looking for new 

recruits. Not only do you 

get to work at a place you 

go to all the time, but you 

may get to see some of your 

friends there. 

One of the best places 

to work is at the beach. If 

the beach has a concession 

stand or needs parking attendants, 

the staff hires 

teenagers. Also, the beach 

is the most popular place to 

go to during the summer, so 

they are going to need all 

the help they can get. 

Not only is getting a 

summer job a great way to 

make money, but you also 

meet new friends and aren’t 

simply sitting on the couch 

all summer. If you need 

something to do this summer, 

getting a job is a fantastic 

idea! 

foods, especially fast foods, 

use an oil that makes you 

want to eat more. Organic 

foods do not have that oil, 

but as mentioned above, read 

labels carefully. I believe 

organic foods are better 

for you. They look 

fresh. I drink a 

lot of milk and 

eat organic 

foods. The organic 

milk is 

said to be 

from cows 

that aren’t 

fed hormones. 

Also, there are organic 

meats that are from animals 

that weren’t fed hormones 

and were only grass fed. Organic 

foods are truly better 

than conventional. 

shelter Rebecca Website 

says that the main cause for 

people to end up homeless 

or less fortunate is because 

at some point in their lives, 

these people were abused, 

sexually, emotionally, and 

mentally. Most runaways 

end up homeless too. 

There should be more shelters. 

Shelters should be in every 

state, every country, every 

city, and every borough. 

We pay enough taxes in this 

country to afford 

a place for these 

people to stay. It 

makes me really 

upset to have to 

go into the city 

every weekend 

and see more 

homeless. There 

are homeless 

people who have 

not had a hot 

meal in months 

or years, haven’t 

had a hot bath 

for days, weeks, 

and months! 

It’s depressing 

to see all 

these big time 

“rappers” driving 

around in 

these big cars 

National Art Honor Society 

“…our goal was to stay 

along the lines of a regular 

induction ceremony, but to 

add an artistic flair as well 

… like an artist’s reception, 

including the slideshow of 

our artwork and having the 

string quartet [play at the 

reception] in order to begin 

a tradition. Everyone will 

love it!” declared 

Schulman. 

“I think the 

Induction will 

go very well 

because we 

have very competent 

people 

running it, and 

organizing it… 

and it will be 

very momentous because 

this is the first year of the 

NAHS, and we want to 

start off with a bang!” said 

Berkenfeld. The officers’ 

expectations were met and 

then surpassed at the night 

of the Induction; it was a 

memorable occasion for 

everyone. 

The advisors and current 

members are excited to continue 

with NAHS in the fall, and 

they already have an agenda. 

Mrs. Uttendorfer says, “Hopefully 

next year, we can accomplish 

some of our other goals, 

for example, implementing an 

art auction, creating a student 

art gallery, and connecting 

with the community through 

outreach…these are all great 

ideas, and they will take time 

to develop.” 

Both advisors agree that 

one of the best things about 

the NAHS is the interaction 

between staff and students. 

“I enjoy working more individually 

with the students, 

hearing their opinions, and 

developing new ideas together 

of how we can artistically 

enhance the school” states 

Mrs. Uttendorfer. 

“It’s an honor to work 

with such talented and 

dedicated young artists. 

Continued From Page 5 

The NAHS Banner Created by Stanley Hamilton. 

and bragging about all the 

money they have, when human 

beings just like them 

are dying of starvation. 

Even on the new MTV 

show, “My Super Sweet 

Sixteen,” you can see all 

spoiled boys and girls who 

have all this money and 

can’t spare at least twenty 

dollars as I did. 

All I’m asking is to 

spare some change for the 

needy. You can visit shelters 

and help out. You can 

make a difference in this 

world. Help other adults, 

teenagers and children less 

fortunate than you. You 

can give the less fortunate 

a reason to look forward 

to living, for tomorrow, 

because, everything you 

have can be gone tomorrow. 

Just a simple visit to 

the to the website, www. 

homeless.org.au.com can 

be the perfect start. 

We have an opportunity 

to make art an important 

part of our school and 

our community” declares 

Ms. Corazón. The advisors 

and members were 

happy to participate in the 

NAHS’ Induction Ceremony, 

since it will make this 

club a permanent addition 

to Hills East. 

“We’re the 

first school 

in the district 

to have 

a National 

Art Honor 

Society, so 

this is a very 

special night 

for everyone...It 

is my 

hope that we are leaving a 

legacy for those that come 

after us” continues Ms. 

Corazón. The effort this 

year’s members put into 

the NAHS has created a 

foundation that will ensure 

a solid future for the club 

in the years to come. 

For more information 

regarding East’s National 

Art Honor Society, visit the 

website at: 

www.hsenahs.co.nr 

Jackie Robinson 

if you don’t have your joy, 

you have nothing to live for. 

His presence and his story 

were both greatly appreciated 

by the audience. 

After the question and 

answer session, the students 

and I had the opportunity 

to see the Jackie 

Robinson Exhibit. The 

exhibit was composed of 

several panels, as well as 

showcases. The showcases 

contained two replica Jackie 

Robinson jerseys and another 

contained old Jackie 

Robinson baseball cards. 

One panel showed Jackie 

stretching with 

some of his 

Hills Idol 2007 

money in his/her jar by the 

end of the Finals received a 

special prize. 

After all twenty-eight 

contestants performed their 

best, the judges selected 

the top fourteen singers to 

compete in the Finals competition, 

which will be held 

on June 9 at 7:30 pm in the 

Candlewood Auditorium. 

Finalists include: Crystal 

Cimaglia (HSW), Annette 

Gershovich (HSE), Brittany 

Gray (HSW), Andrew 

Kang (HSW), Shanay Kibler 

(HSE), Brittany Mignanelli 

(HSE), Dejanae Mitchell 

(HSE), Alisha Nelson 

(HSW), Melissa Passarelli 

(HSW), Dana Putterman 


tolerant teammates, such as 

Pee Wee Reese. Tacked to 

another panel was a picture 

of Jackie in his military 

uniform. The last, most 

influential panel, showed 

some of the hate mail that 

he received prior to the 

game. That panel helped 

depict some of the hateful 

feelings of some men and 

women during this time period. 

The exhibit and program 

were both interesting 

as well as educational. 

On April 4th, former All- 

Star slugger Ken Griffey Jr. 

asked Commissioner Allan 

“Bud” Selig to wear Jackie 

Robinson’s famous retired 

number 42 to commemorate 

Jackie Robinson’s legacy, 

and he was granted permission. 

Selig went on to lift 

the retirement of Jackie’s 

number 42 for that day only. 

The Los Angles Dodgers, 

the Pittsburg Pirates and St. 

Louis Cardinals were among 

the teams that had all of their 

players, coaches, and managers 

wear Jackie’s 42. On 

April 15th, all 

of the Major 

League teams that were 

playing celebrated Jackie 

Robinson’s 60th anniversary 

since the breaking of the color 

barrier and playing for Branch 

Rickey’s Brooklyn Dodgers. 

The biggest ceremony took 

place in Los Angles. In attendance 

were broadcaster Vin 

Scully and Rachel Robinson, 

who made speeches on behalf 

of Jackie Robinson. Jackie 

Robinson was a true pioneer. 


(HSE), Corey Regensburg 

(HSW), Gina Salvia (HSW), 

Sarah Schapira (HSE) and 

Natasha Zaveri (HSW). 

As for next year’s expectations, 

Ms. DiFiore anticipates, 

“… [Hills Idol] will 

take on a life of its own, and 

next year’s event will be even 

bigger!” 

All of the proceeds made 

from this event will contribute 

to the Half Hollow Hills 

Scholarship fund and to the 

Half Hollow Hills PTA counsel 

activities. Congratulations 

are extended to everyone who 

participated, and all are encouraged 

to attend the Finals 

Competition to support their 

classmates. 

Movie Madness 

By: Amanda Ostuni 

STAFF WRITER 

Grab your wallets, hop in 

your cars and head on over to 

the theater people. Buy your 

ticket, get your popcorn and 

sit down to the latest movie 

because boy has Hollywood 

been busy. There are a ton of 

hotshot movies that came out 

during the month of May. It 

seems in recent years many 

movies are being made into 

trilogies, for whatever reason, 

but all of these trilogies 

had very successful original 

and sequels. 

The three movies, 

third in their 

series that came 

out in May that 

everyone rushed 

to see are Spiderman 

3, Pirates 

3, and Shrek the 

Third. Spiderman 

3’s release day 

was May 4th. 

In the latest 

addition of 

the Spiderman 

story, Spiderman 

faces many 

conflicts with 

people around 

him as well as 

within himself. 

His newly firm 

love life with MJ 

is already being 

threatened by a 

former flame. 

Two new bad 

guys are after 

him and Peter’s 

best friend is 

highly suspicious 

of his true 

identity. Peter 

has to carry the 

weight of keeping 

his love life 

together, keeping 

a friendship, 

and keeping himself 

alive, all the 

while trying not 

to lose himself in 

his own pain. The 

cast still had the 

same three stars- 

Kirsten Dunst 

returning as MJ, 

Tobey Maguire 

returning as Peter 

Parker and James 

Franco returning 

as Harry Osborn. 

There are new additions in 

this movie. Topher Grace, 

along with Thomas Haden 

Church, make an appearance 

as new bad guys and Bryce 

Dallas Howard appears as 

Peter Parker’s former flame 

and threat to his relationship. 

There were mixed reviews 

about this, as well as 

supposed rumors of a fourth 

and final Spiderman. There’s 

no telling what the deal is 

with that for sure yet. 

However, we do know 

that Shrek The Third is not 

the last of its tale. Rumors 

say there are 5 Shrek’s in the 

planning. Shrek 3 came out a 

week after Spidey. Speaking 

from personal experience, 

the movie was hysterical. 

However, they made it a 

little more for an older audience 

than the original Shrek 

had aimed at. There was 

plenty of humor for all ages, 

but then there was also much 

humor that little kids would 

not understand or that they 

shouldn’t hear. Shrek brought 

in a lot more money its first 

weekend than Spiderman 3 

which could be surprising to 

some. It is questionable that 

Pirates will beat Shrek, but 

it is supposed to be VERY 

big. Pirates 3, formally 

called Pirates of the Caribbean: 

At the World’s End. 

The movie is the final chapter 

of the struggle to save the 

pirating way of life for old 

pirates such as Jack and new 

pirate Will. They engage 

in a battle against different 

forms of evil, a struggle for 

survival. It is the last in its 

tale, which is sad but at least 

they don’t run the risk of 

getting the criticism of being 

too dragged on and outliving 

its fame as Shrek 

and Spiderman are 

running the risk of 

by continuing. Pirates’ 

release date 

was May 24 at 8 

pm. 

These three are 

not the only trilogy 

talked about 

movies coming out 

in 2007. There’s 

Oceans’ Thirteen 

[the third of its 

kind] with the return 

of its amazing 

cast, due out in 

June. Then, there 

is Rush Hour 3 

with the reappearance 

of the two 

unlikely cop partners 

Carter and 

Lee [Chris Tucker 

and Jackie Chan] 

coming out in August. 

Also due out 

in August is a third 

Bourne story, the 

Bourne Ultimatum 

with star Matt Damon. 

Those are just 

some of the talked 

up movies that 

are a 3rd installation 

of a story. Be 

sure to check those 

all out as well as 

other non-triologies, 

like the long 

awaited Harry 

Potter 5 as well as 

the sequel to Bruce 

Almighty… Evan 

Almighty. Apparently, 

the latest 

thing in Hollywood 

is to, instead of 

making new movies, 

just make new 

ones that continue 

old stories. An especially 

favorite number of 

movies seems to be 3. Is it 

too much? That will be determined 

by all you viewer’s 

out there and your reactions 

to these movies. So get to 

those movies and decide if 

trilogies are going to be the 

new thing of Hollywood or 

not. Happy Viewing!



Put it in Reverse! 

By: Rachel Scall 


Wikipedia defines backmasking 

as “an audio technique 

in which sounds are 

recorded backwards onto 

a track that is meant to be 

played forwards.” Although 

backmasking was first used 

in the late 1950s as part of 

an avant-garde genre of electronic 

music called musique 

concrète, it has been adopted 

by various artists throughout 

the past fifty years. 

Backmasking began to 

stir up controversy when, in 

1969, a radio DJ received an 

anonymous call telling him 

to play gibberish, spoken 

at the end of The Beatles’ 

“I’m So Tired”, backwards. 

When this was done, instead 

of sounding like a series of 

mumbles, the track plays 

“Paul is dead man, miss 

him, miss him.” Today, it 

is still unknown whether or 

not this backwards message 

was recorded intentionally. 

John Lennon was known to 

purposely backmask certain 

tracks, such as Tomorrow 

Never Knows and Rain, but 

many other Beatles tracks 

have now been found to 

have backwards messages. 

On YouTube, videos have 

popped up examining a multitude 

of Beatle’s tunes, continuing 

to raise the question, 

“Did The Beatles do this 

purposely?” 

On a track such as “Revolution 

9” from of The Beatles 

(more commonly known 

as The White Album), it is 

hard to believe that backmasking 

was not purposely 

recorded. The song, which 

lacks a recognizable melody 

and instrumentation, clearly 

forms the phrase “turn me 

on, dead man” repeatedly 

when played backwards. 

The mystery of backmasking 

does not stop with The 

Beatles. When listened to 

backwards, Nirvana’s Smells 

like Teen Spirit is no longer 

a song about conformity, 

but rather a song about hate. 

Queen’s Another One Bites 

the Dust reveals drug messages 

when played in reverse 

and Led Zeppelin’s Stairway 

to Heaven is said to contain 

a backwards message revealing 

the band’s affiliation with 

Satan. Robert Plant, the lead 

singer of Zeppelin, says of the 

backmasking accusations that 

“To me it’s very sad, because 

Stairway to Heaven was written 

with every best intention, 

and as far as reversing tapes 

and putting messages on the 

end, that’s not my idea of 

making music.” 

For a long time it was rumored 

that all of these backmasked 

messages were in fact 

subliminal messages, meant 

to subconsciously influence 

listeners. This myth has been 

rejected, as scientific evidence 

has shown that backmasking, 

when listened to forwards (or 

as intended), produces no effect 

on the listener. 

While the backmasking of 

some artists has become an ongoing 

myth, that forever leaves 

fans wondering whenever other 

artists have taken advantage of 

the recording style to poke fun 

at those who believe everything 

that they hear (or think they hear) 

on a backwards track. On Pink 

Floyd’s Empty Spaces (on The 

Wall), Roger Waters decided to 

play around with some backmasking 

just to have some fun. 

A portion of the track played 

in reverse reveals the message 

“Hello, hunter(s)...congratulations. 

You’ve just discovered 

the secret message. Please send 

your answer to Old Pink, care 

of the funny farm, Chalfont... 

Roger! Carolyn’s on the phone! 

Okay.” The message refers to 

Pink Floyd’s former lead singer 

and guitarist Syd Barrett. Waters 

is known to have purposely 

recorded other backmasks on 

some of his solo albums. 

The mystery of backmasking 

in rock and roll will remain just 

that: a mystery. Backmasked 

tracks are readily available on 

YouTube. You decide whether 

or not you believe the hype. 

“Soupa” Saturday 


how many acts of kindness 

are achieved in such a small 

space. Every single Saturday 

morning, rain or shine, 

the Village Temple prepares 

for and feeds at least two 

hundred hungry people, 

which is approximately 

twelve thousand people per 

year. What began in 1987 

as a few volunteers distributing 

home made sandwiches, 

has blossomed into 

a successful, well working, 

and organized soup kitchen. 

Despite its title, the Village 

Temple certainly provides 

far more than just soup. Volunteers 

prepare sandwiches, 

deserts, salads, fruits, and 

much more on a weekly basis. 

Nonetheless, their nutritious 

and delicious soup is 

what they are famous for. 

All volunteers are entirely 

friendly and united, as they 

each contribute to a positive 

workspace. The only sadness 

that is ever expressed 

is solely from the tears produced 

by the chopping of the 

onions! Those onions can be 

quite powerful. 

There are many other charitable 

organizations spread 

amongst the globe, helping 

the needy members of 

society. Although one may 

believe that the suffering 

of a complete stranger isn’t 

of importance, it is necessary 

to help those who cannot 

help themselves, despite 

who they are or what they’ve 

done. If one were placed in 

the position of a needy person, 

all human beings would 

wish for support from another. 

Maybe, too many people 

assume that changing one 

person (most likely themselves) 

isn’t going to better 

the issues of people across 

the entire planet. However, 

this world is solely composed 

of a large mass of 

individual people. Anyone 

who provides a helping hand 

towards a significant cause 

is assisting our world on its 

path to excellence. Changing 

one person is, in fact, changing 

the entire picture. 

“HOT FUZZ” 

By: Brian Kotkin not funny, and unlike other 

STAFF WRITER 

comedies, it just goes with 

Are you tired of cliché action the flow, as though the actors 

films with a near-invincible protagonist 

and some evil villain done something absurd. For 

had no idea they had said or 

with lots of lackeys and tons instance, they have a meeting 

of firepower and explosions? of the Neighborhood Watch 

Well, so were these guys. Actually, 

they love that sort of thing the dangers of The Living Stat- 

Council in which they talk of 

and probably watched every ue (a man who paints himself 

action movie ever made prior to gold and stands still for people 

filming this and now think they to take pictures with him) to 

actually are action stars. the community. They’re afraid 

Rather than trying to turn a he’ll bring jugglers to the village. 

formula on its ear, they simply 

take that formula and introduce The acting is superb, the 

the sort of wry and dry British jokes are hilarious, and the absolute 

absurdity of the whole 

wit you’d expect from the creators 

of Shaun of the Dead. For thing culminates in the last 

instance, our hero is no longer twenty or so minutes. I don’t 

located in crime-ridden London; want to ruin it, but it is perhaps 

rather, he has been transferred to one of the most brilliant (and 

a small village that hasn’t had most awesome) action/comedy 

any reported crimes in 20 years. sequences I’ve ever seen. There 

As a result, our hero, Chris Angel 

(you’ll recognize him from because no one has ever done 

are no words to describe it, 

his role as “Shaun”) is something 

of a fish out of water. pull it off perfectly. 

anything like it before, and they 

However, while this little There is no reason you 

town has had no crime, it has shouldn’t go see this movie, so 

had an inordinate number of why are you still reading this? 

accidents. Angel, as a suspicious 

city boy, decides to insure 

you it’s worth every cent 

Go on, go see Hot Fuzz, I asvestigate, 

and from there the of admission (though maybe 

absurdity grows and grows. not worth the concession stand 

There is no moment that is prices). 

Rush Hour 3 

By: Adam Girgenti 

STAFF WRITER 

When you think of the great 

tandems in buddy cop movies, 

what names come up? Turner 

and Hooch, and Starsky and 

Hutch are names 

that usually come to 

mind. Not too long 

ago many people 

considered Lee and 

Carter to be at the 

zenith of that group 

as well. However, after 

contract talks fell 

through, it seemed 

doubtful that there 

would be a third installment of 

the series. Now, six years since 

Rush Hour 2, Rush Hour 3 is 

set to hit theaters August 10th, 

2007. Both Jackie Chan and 

Chris Tucker will be reprieving 

their roles as Chief Inspector 

Lee and Detective James 

Carter, respectively. Also Tzi 

Ma, who has gained some 

fame for his role on 24, will be 

portraying Consul Han. 

The movie is based in Paris, 

but starts out in New York. 

While in New York, Chief 

Inspector Lee’s job is to protect 

and escort Consul Han. 

Han is prepared to give a big 

speech concerning the ubiquitous 

Tri-Ads in front of the 

World Criminal Court Summit 

in New York. While giving 

his speech, an assassin shoots 

Han and flees the scene, almost 

killing him. Meanwhile, 

James Carter, who has recently 

been demoted to a traffic cop, 

happens to be listening to the 

radio when the tragedy occurs. 

He rushes to the scene 

to help, but instead interferes 

with Lee’s pursuit of the culprit, 

as he always seems to end 

up doing. Carter teams up with 

Lee to gain back his honor and 

to track down the perpetrator. 

They follow a trail to Paris, 

France, which is a unique setting 

for this series. This is because 

the first Rush Hour took 

place in Los Angeles, Carter’s 

home, and Rush Hour 2 was 

located in Hong Kong, Lee’s 

home. In Rush Hour 3, both 

Lee and Carter will be “two 

fish out of water” in a new 

location: Paris, France. Rush 

Hour 3 looks to be a funny, action-packed 

movie to hit theaters 

this August. 

Mr. President: 

We Need to Talk 

evidence that made this statement 

true. We kept fighting 

to help liberate their country 

from the dictatorship of Saddam 

Hussein, who I might 

add we conquered. We captured 

him and sentenced him 

to be hanged but our soldiers 

remain in Iraq. The question 

we now ask ourselves is 

“Why are we still in Iraq?” 

Many of the soldiers who 

are in Iraq are young men 

in their twenties. They have 

their whole lives ahead of 

them. They are the future of 

this country, and now they are 

on the other side of the world 

basically fighting for their 

life. About more than 3,000 

soldiers have died fighting in 

the war. As I stated earlier, 

I am a Hispanic American as 

well as many of the soldiers 

fighting. One of the questions 

I really hope to receive an 

answer to is, “Why is it that 

in order for you to participate 

or complete many things in 

this country you have to be 

a citizen but to join the army 

and be sent away to fight a 

war for this country you do 

not have to be a citizen?” 

Many families have been 

torn apart because parents, 

uncles, or grandparents have 

been deported to their countries. 

I believe that instead of 

spending millions of dollars 

on what has become a pointless 

war, we can help provide 

aid to those countries that 

need help and maybe it will 

help control the number of illegal 

immigrants coming into 

this country. It’s truly a heart 

rendering sight because what 

many of them do come for is 

a job so they can provide for 

their family; many of them do 

not wish to do any harm. We 

can also help provide within 

our own nation and help fight 

poverty. 

I’m not only against the 

war just because of the 

thought that we have no business 

being there anymore but 

also because of all the economic 

problems and emotional 

problems it is causing. 

As you are well aware, funding 

for the war is very expensive. 

Taxes have increased 

and gasoline prices have increased 

too. When gasoline 

prices increase, the prices of 

many products we depend on 

also increase but the one thing 

that doesn’t seem to increase 

is the amount of money that 

is written on the checks that 

are received weekly. I can 

only imagine all the money 


spent on campaigning and 

commercials to encourage 

people to join the war. The 

money spent on all that can 

go to better things such as 

campaigns to encourage kids 

to do well in school, or programs 

to help them express 

their feelings so they won’t 

turn to violence as an answer 

to their problems. I understand 

that the army is there to 

protect our country, but there 

wouldn’t be any country to 

protect if the citizens in the 

country aren’t doing well. In 

order to receive a good job 

you need to be in good mental 

health and receive a good 

education. Before we go out 

and fight a war overseas we 

should extend a hand here 

and help fight our own war 

against violence, gangs, and 

help encourage kids to stay 

in school. 

I might be only 16 years 

old and I do understand that 

this letter is one of the many 

letters you receive. I also understand 

that I can’t change 

the world, but my voice 

counts and I will not rest until 

my voice is heard. I hope that 

today it will be heard. I speak 

for all the mothers whose 

hearts are filled with so much 

pain and sorrow that they are 

too weak to speak. I speak for 

all the husbands and wives 

who no longer have a partner 

and can’t stop replaying in 

their minds the moment they 

once said “till death do us 

part”. I speak for all the children 

who no longer have a father 

or mother to raise them, 

to give them a hug when they 

cry, or to help them recognize 

right from wrong. Most 

of all, I speak for the soldier 

who is either fighting or once 

fought the war, living everyday 

with fear that this might 

be his last day. Those soldiers 

have such great courage, 

strength, and a heart to fight 

for this country. Although 

this war will one day be over 

and someday be called history, 

these soldiers will always 

be heroes, and part of what 

makes them a hero is putting 

all their dreams aside to 

fight for something only you, 

President Bush, can understand. 

As a voice for all these 

soldiers, mothers, fathers, uncles, 

cousins, and most of all, 

citizen’s of the United States, 

I ask that you take my letter 

into consideration and bring 

our soldiers back home. 

Respectfully, 

Carolina Cid DeLeon 

More Tales from the 

CONCESSION STAND 

By: Brian Kotkin 

STAFF WRITER 

Last issue, I wrote about 

working at a concession stand. 

Well, now that I’ve had some 

more experience, I’ve decided 

to write up a list of rules 

for the next time you decide 

to bother the kid behind the 

counter. 

1 

We don’t set the prices, the 

people who run the 

Corporation do. The 

prices are set in the 

computer. Therefore, 

don’t yell at us if the 

prices are too much for 

you. You didn’t have 

to come here, and you 

already knew what you 

were getting into. After 

all, you’ve been to the 

movies before. 

2 

We won’t give 

you an employee 

discount, 

even if 

you say “pretty 

please with sugar on 

top.” Also, my managers 

do notice when 

stock goes missing, 

so no, I’m not going 

to let you have something 

just because you 

don’t want to pay. 

3 

Don’t tell me my 

prices are too expensive 

and then take 

your money out of a 

designer purse or wallet. 

You’re just justifying 

the Communists 

that way. 

4 

This applies primarily to 

my theater, but yes, the sizes 

are that big. If you want to go 

on a diet, go to Jenny Craig. 

Otherwise, be satisfied with 

our fatty foodstuffs or just 

don’t buy anything. Also, 

don’t tell me you have a thyroid 

condition. Synthroid is 

was formerly a student here at 

HSE and is very committed to 

the school. Mr. Kindelmann 

is very proud to announce that 

Mr. Gitz will become a head 

administrator and there will 

be two new assistant principals 

who have toured the 

school and are excited to begin 

work here next fall! After the 

Virginia Tech. incident, Mr. 

Kindelmann assures the HSE 

students that HSE is a safe 

building. The administrators 

are always ready to utilize the 

available to the public at a 

relatively low cost; in other 

words, stop eating like you’re 

hibernating for the winter. 

5 

We are not here to make 

sure your family meets its 

daily nutritional requirements. 

Therefore, do not expect us 

to have hamburgers, pizza or 

fries. If it’s not on the menu, 

we don’t have it. 

6 

This is to all of the people 

in this school to whom I have 

a passing acquaintance who 

have seen me in the theater: I 

will NOT give you free tickets. 

Deal with it. 

7 

There is no part of the theater 

where there is a trashcan 

P.A. System and new plans 

to use cell phones as a means 

of communication are being 

devised. HSE will continue 

to practice evacuation drills 

and has received tips from 

the experts as how to properly 

evacuate the building in case 

of any emergency. 

It is unfortunate that such a 

loved and well-respected Principal 

will be stepping down 

from office this year. Mr. Kindelmann’s 

legacy will always 

be present in the HSE building 

less than 30 feet from your 

current position; at the Concession 

stand, there is one 

within 10 feet to your left and 

right. Take the 10 steps in the 

given direction to throw your 

stuff out so I don’t have to. 

8 

I can break a hundred, theoretically. 

However, I only start 

out with $75 in change, and I 

am not here to be your personal 

bank. I know you get your 

money from the ATM in twenty-dollar 

bills, so don’t bother 

me with massive bills unless 

that’s really all you have. By 

the same token, don’t pay me 

in nickels, dimes, and pennies 

when you don’t have any bills 

left. I know I’m supposed to 

take them, but I don’t like 

taking the time to 

count all the money 

you dumped out 

of your piggy 

bank. 

9 

To the old-timers 

(and to some extent the 

middle-aged people): a quarter 

can’t buy you lunch anymore, 

so don’t reminisce to 

me about the old days when 

you could get into a double 

feature for a dollar and 

you got popcorn for 

a nickel. Production 

costs for movies are 

up, thus rights for 

obtaining movies 

is up, gas is higher 

in cost than ever, 

so please don’t tell me 

we’re robbing you. I don’t 

have a gun, after all…yet. 

10 

Finally, do not stand on 

line for 10 minutes, complain 

about how long you’ve been 

standing on line, and then 

tell me you don’t know what 

you’re getting. The prices are 

listed right above my head, so 

tilt your head 30 degrees up 

to read it. We have corrective 

lenses now, so use them. 

So Long, Mr. Kindelmann 


and the future administrators 

will be sure to take his advice 

and continue to make HSE a 

terrific place to learn. On behalf 

of the entire Thunderbird 

staff, we would like to wish Mr. 

Kindelmann a happy retirement 

and to welcome the new staff of 

2008. The guidance and leadership 

that has been provided in 

the past will certainly emanate 

into the future and continue to 

provide HSE students with successful 

futures and wonderful 

high school experiences.

[12] Thunderbird Issue 1, November 2005 

HHH Dance Takes 

Championship 

By: Hilary Weissman 

STAFF WRITER 

Three of the district’s 

dance teams made it to the 

coveted Championships 

hosted by the Long Island 

Kickline Association. The 

Hills East Dixettes, the 

Hills West Wranglerettes, 

and the West Hollow Middle 

School Kickline ventured 

to Nassau Community 

College on March 11th to 

claim their trophies after 

three preliminary competitions. 

The Dixettes took 

first place on Long Island in 

the Pom category, the Wranglerettes 

took first place in 

the Dance and Hip Hop categories, 

and West Hollow 

took third place in the Middle 

School Dance category. 

Each team experienced 

many firsts throughout the 

competition season. While 

the Dixettes has consistently 

won first place at the preliminaries 

for a few years, 

they ultimately outscored 

Boys JV Lacrosse 


STAFF WRITER 

The Hills East JV Lacrosse 

Team is mainly made up of 

sophomores and is coached 

by Mr. Thearle. Record wise, 

this season has been up and 

down, finishing with 7 wins 

and 9 losses. The season was 

successful in many other 

ways. The players on the 

team have shown tremendous 

growth and improvement, 

both as individuals and 

as a team. 

This year’s team has several 

key players on the offensive 

end and defensive 

end. Offensively, Frank 

Disanti, James Ahearn, 

Mike O’Donnell and Mike 

nine other pom teams on 

Long Island to be invited to 

Championships. The Wranglerettes, 

who are regulars 

at winning in the Dance 

Category and even competing 

at Nationals in Florida 

each year, this season was 

their first at competing in 

Hip Hop, and they proved 

to be more than capable in 

their new category as well. 

West Hollow’s Kickline 

team has also undergone 

quite a transformation this 

season. They took on a rigorous 

practice schedule, 

along with learning different 

styles of dance, in order 

to prepare themselves for 

the entirely new experience 

of competing. These measures 

clearly paid off in that 

they received a spot at the 

Championships. All three 

dance teams had excellent 

performances and are very 

proud of themselves. Congratulations 

to all of the 

dancers! 

McLaughlin have all been 

major scorers throughout the 

season. Defensively, Sam 

Goldfarb, Jake Goldfarb 

and Shariff Saad-el-din have 

stepped up to fill the much 

needed goalie position. Matt 

Saul and Ali Erdem have 

been a rock on defense and 

have stepped up to be team 

leaders on the field. Other 

key contributors to this year’s 

success were Paul Zafferiou, 

Sean Bowman, Conner Meyers 

and Steven Graziano. 

The players have gained a 

lot of knowledge this season 

both as players and as athletes. 

Mr. Thearle feels that 

the season’s success can continue 

into next season. 

Girl’s Softball 

By: Amanda Ostuni 

STAFF WRITER 

The T-bird logo was proudly 

worn this year by Hills 

East’s Girls Softball, JV and 

Varsity alike. At the head 

of the teams was returning 

coach, Coach Hogan. We 

welcomed on to the coaching 

staff 2 new coaches- Coach 

Silvestro, the new assistant 

coach for Varsity and Coach 

Guariella, who replaced Peter 

Basil as JV coach. Both 

teams had a wonderful group 

of girls this season. The roster 

for JV is this: 

Katie Austein, Brittany 

Bass, Brittany Bloom, Lauren 

Dollinger, Amanda 

Dryer, Vita Fiore, Anna Keneveskya, 

Jackie Kosloski, 

Elisabeth Linde, Alex Oliverio, 

Amanda Ostuni, Sam Romoff, 

Jackie Silver, and Sam 

Weinberg, 

Varsity’s team consisted of 

the following people: 

Melissa Baker, Diedre Bruno, 

Michelle Cartwright, Elizabeth 

Giambalvo, Samantha 

Goetz, Mary Johnson, Krista 

Marzano, Jen McNaughton, 

and Mary Navarra. 

Three very talented 8th 

graders were also brought up 

to be apart of the Varsity team. 

They are: Alexa Goetz, Taylor 

Dreitlein, and Bria Green. 

They also helped out the JV 

team by taking turns pitching 

for us. They were a great addition 

to the high school softball 

program and we look forward 

to having them with us for 

their high school career. Although 

we say hello to these 

new comers, we must sadly 

say goodbye to our seniors: 

Samantha Carrieri, Lindsay 

Garyn, Katherine Kowalski, 

Allison Seifter and Brittiney 

Sorrentino. 

They have been a great 

help to the teams and Coach 

Hogan is proud to have seen 

them grow in their high 

school careers. On behalf 

of all the softball players, 

coaches, and fans we wish 

them good luck in their college 

careers as students and 

athletes. We hope college is 

a grand slam for them. The 

Varsity team finished out 

with a record of 9 wins and 

10 losses, a very even record. 

Well done! JV performed 

nicely too. Their record 

was 6 wins and 11 losses. 

The team had many players 

new too the game and they 

progressed very well. We 

struggled at first, but we finished 

strong. Coach Guarriella 

says, on being a coach 

for the first time, “I enjoyed 

coaching very much and was 

very proud of the team.” The 

softball season was a success 

for everyone and we 

can only hope it’s even better. 

Until next season fellow 

softball players, well done, 

see you next season on the 

diamond. 

Congratulations to the 

HSE Fashion Club! 

See page 2 for more details 

Hills East 

JV and 

Varsity 

Baseball 


STAFF WRITER 

The Half Hollow Hills 

High School East JV 

Baseball Team is one of 

the most popular sports 

at HSE. The baseball 

team is made up of 

freshman and sophomores 

and is coached 

by Mr. Rizzo. When 

talking to Mr. Rizzo, 

he said he feels that the 

boys have definitely 

had a successful season. 

Day in and day out, the 

team gives 100% of itself. 

This year’s success 

came from hours of hard 

work, improvement, 

dedication and determination 

that the team put 

in. 

Mr. Rizzo thinks that 

this year’s success will 

definitely carry out into 

next year. This year’s 

team included a group 

of young team members 

who gained a lot 

of valuable techniques 

and memories and much 

needed playing time. 

Many of the older boys 

will be looked upon next 

year to step up and fill 

a senior-loaded varsity 

baseball team, which is 

unfortunately graduating 

this year. 

This year’s team had 

several key players. 

Maxx Gold was a valuable 

pitcher and one of 

the best on the mound! 

He also learned a new 

position at 1st base this 

year and became very 

successful. Another 

valuable player, Mike 

Lykos, has been a solid 

defensive center fielder 

as well as a lead off hitter. 

This year’s captains 

are Maxx Gold, Mike 

Alaveri and Billy Liolis, 

all who have made valuable 

contributions to the 

team and the team’s success. 

Next year, Tommy 

Delasandrow and Anderw 

Dowskin, who are 

two freshmen, will be 

looked upon to lead the 

team to future victories. 

The team finished with 

a 9-7 record - great job 

guys!

Hills Idol - Half Hollow Hills

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