November 25, 2015 - Illiana Christian High School

Echo)))
Learn common
misconceptions
about Illiana’s
drug policy
and what
the real policy
is on page 4.
the
Illiana
Christian
Volume 70 Issue 3
High
Discover students’
Thanksgiving Day
traditions on page 5.
School
November 25, 2015
Lansing, Illinois
Dodgeball
tourney unites
rivals around
common cause
Riley Goodwin
Reporter
Go-Club hosted its annual dodgeball tournament
on Nov. 13 at Illiana Christian to help raise money for a
stand up wheelchair for Trinity Christian College student
Katie Vree. Five of the teams
from that tournament went on
to compete at Trinity Christian College in the first ever
“Unity Dodgeball Tournament, which featured teams
from Illiana, Chicago Christian, and Trinity.
In 2011, Katie Vree was
diagnosed with a rare viral
disease during her sophomore year of high school.
Vree was paralyzed from
her shoulders down and was
forced to live in a wheelchair.
Over the years, with the help
of intense physical therapy,
she has regained the use of
her hands and is able to move
her legs.
Trinity brought to our attention that they wanted to
find a way to help support
Vree, so Go-Club, with the
help from Spiritual Director
Mr. Lance Davids, organized
the first annual community
dodgeball tournament.
The top four winning
teams from Illiana advanced
onto the finals where they
faced teams from Chicago
Christian and Trinity College.
“I always love community
events that bring our schools
Photo by Jeff DeVries
Seniors Matthew Zandstra (left) and Jon Gibson compete in the
championship round of the Unity Dodgeball Tournament at Trinity
Christian College on Nov. 19. Their team went on to win.
Saving lives
pulses through
Illiana’s blood
Marissa Johnson
Reporter
Photo by Jim Kamphuis
Illiana students swarm Senior Andrew VanMilligan on Friday, Nov.
13 after “The B Team” won the tournament.
together,” said Davids. “This
is one of the first major
events of the year where the
schools can get together and
scream and cheer, and it’s all
going towards a good cause.
Over 700 Illiana students
and community members
joined together Friday, Nov.
13 and raised over $3,500,
all of which was donated to
Vree.
Illiana had several teams
participate in its annual
dodgeball tournament, all
dressed up in different costumes and outfits. This year
junior Gabrielle Kreykes’
team dressed as the characters from Toy Story and won
“best costume.”
“Winning best costume
made me feel fantastic!” said
Kreykes.
This year’s dodgeball
winners at Illiana were
known as “The B Team.” Se-
niors Colin DeYoung, Noah
Ebbens, Jack Hillegonds,
Andrew Van Milligan, James
Zandstra, and Robby Zandstra all dressed up as nerds and
played to the song “White
and Nerdy.”
The dodgeball tourney
at Trinity was on Thursday,
Nov. 19. Over two stressful hours, Illiana teams gave
it their all. The championship round of the night was
between Illiana team “Like
Mike” and Chicago Christian
team “The Incrediballs”.
With the score tied 2 to
2, Illiana had 3 members left
against one Chicago Christian member before Senior
Chandler Kimmel knocked
him out, securing the victory
for the Like Mike. Everyone in Illiana’s Loud Crowd
swarmed him and his team
members in celebration of
their victory.
The Heartland Blood Centers came to Illiana on Nov. 17
2015 for the annual Student
Council fall blood drive. The
staff and student body donated
56 pints of blood.
Mr. Zandstra, one of the Student Council co-sponsors, said
The Heartland Blood Center has
been coming to Illiana for over
30 years. Zandstra added, “Illiana chose to be involved in the
blood drive because we always
want to help others in need.”
Junior Danielle Zander,
who has been giving blood
for two years, said, “I decided
to give blood because I get a
good feeling from it.” Zander
also said the workers gave her
more information about how her
blood would help others in need
and where her blood would go
after she donated.
The Heartland Blood Centers have many guidelines. To
become a donor, a person must
weigh 110 pounds, be at least
sixteen years old, and be healthy
and feeling well.
The Heartland staff give potential donors a mini-physical,
checking pulse, checking temperature, and checking iron levels in the blood. It takes about
8-10 minutes to draw the blood
of the donor. Afterward, the donor has refreshments to replenish the fluids they have lost.
Each donor gives one pint
of blood. That pint then undergoes a series of fourteen tests
that are performed to screen for
any infectious diseases. A donor’s body replaces the missing
fluids within 24 hours and the
red blood cells within weeks.
‘Sideways Stories from Wayside School’ leaves audiences screaming for more
On Thursday morning,
Nov. 5, the Drama Department put on a special student matinee of “Sideways
Stories for Wayside School”
for over 430 feeder school
students. In the next three
days, they would play the
same show to over 1,200
people.
The whacky characters
and silly shenanigans proved
appealing to audiences of all
ages.
For complete coverage, see page 6.
Photo by Randy Peterson
2
News
Who says a bun
can’t be beautiful?
T
here I was. Minding my own business,
conversing with my friends and my sister, and then BAM! Out of nowhere a
friend drops the dreaded phrase: “Kassidy, we have
something to tell you.”
“Okay?” I responded.
“We’ve been talking and
looking through photos and
we’ve decided that wearing your hair in a bun isn’t
the best look for you.”
“WHAT?!” I shouted. “Not the best
look for me?” I
proceeded to
tell them off
for even sugKassidy Weemhoff
gesting such
Arts Editor
a thing about
my lovely top
knot. But of course I was a little hurt. Well, maybe
more than a little considering I didn’t wear that hairstyle for the next two years of my life. Before that
confrontation I didn’t even have a second thought
about the way I wore my hair, but now it was an insecurity.
Insecurities: we all have them. They can be
small things like “my hair looks horrid in a bun” or
“If this one pimple on the tip of my nose won’t go
away, pretty soon people are going to sing the classic Christmas song to me.” Or they can be big things
like “My grades are taking a turn for the worse” or
“Why can’t find any good friends?”. We often feel
like we’re alone in thinking these things, but I’m here
to tell you you’re not alone. Not even in the slightest.
The hair bun is just the beginning of my insecurities story. As I got older, the issues started becoming
a bit more serious. Things like college and friends
and boyfriends sent my anxiety sky high, and with it
came more insecurity. I wished I could change myself.
If only I could be more artistic, if only I could be
athletic, if only I had better self-discipline, if only....
and the list goes on and on. I longed to be somebody
else, as if that might magically make me better.
It didn’t. Actually all that those destructive
thoughts did was cause me to feel even more worthless. They followed me all the way to high school,
and I still struggle with self-doubt every day. But
somewhere along the road things became clearer to
me. I would talk to my friends and they would tell me
their insecurities and I would think: Are you joking?
Your life looks perfect, you’re perfect. But let me tell
you, my friends felt the opposite of perfect.
That’s when I realized that not everyone is as
stable as they may appear. Everyone has insecurities,
visible or not. Also, most of the time the things you
hate about yourself are completely charming to other
people or are things they would never notice if you
hadn’t pointed them out.
I also realized that trying to find self-worth in the
way I look or the things I have is never going to make
me secure. There’s only one thing that can create a
sense of peace and stability in life, and that is knowing that we are children of God. He never makes
mistakes, and, as Mr. Davids says, what authority do
you have to tell God that he can’t love you, or that he
created you wrong? You have a purpose. He created
you with specific gifts, use them.
Ultimately, feeling insecure is a waste of time.
There, I said it. All those moments you spend pitying yourself or focusing on flaws could be spent enjoying the real, quality moments in life. Living a life
where you don’t even love yourself isn’t a life at all.
So love yourself. Love yourself because God loves
you, because you have a purpose, and because life
can be beautiful. You just have to let it be.
And if you want to wear your hair in a bun, rock
it.
Photo by Jim Kamphuis
Student council members serve veterans breakfast during first period, Nov. 11.
Illiana recognizing, honoring veterans
Lauren Curtis
Reporter
Incent Neil Venhuizen was
born in the Netherlands and
came to America in 1955. He
was drafted in 1958 and then
began serving in the US army.
“I’ve worked so hard and
on this day it feels good to be
recognized” He said. “What Illiana has done is so unreal and
it’s great.”
Venhuizen was one of over
50 veterans who attended festivities at Illiana on Nov. 11.
GO Club and Student Council
planned the day’s events.
Illiana’s Veterans Day festivities started outside with devotions and the raising of the
flag. The devotions, presented
by history teacher Jeff White,
came from John 15:13: “Greater love has no one than this, to
lay down one’s life for one’s
friends.” White went on to liken
the sacrificial service of veterans
to God’s sacrificial love for us.
To end his speech, he told us the
story of Mike Spencer and his
experience in a prison- of- war
camp. Spencer made his own
flag out of contraband materials,
and he was beaten for it. Dave
Wagner, a veteran in attendance,
called the story an “eye opener
to the real meaning of the flag.”
After devotions and breakfast, the veterans joined students
for a speech given in chapel by
Captain Timothy Vermeer. Captain Vermeer is an Illiana graduate (2006) that now serves in the
US marines stationed in Washington D.C. He flew to Lansing
to present his speech at his own
cost because he wasn’t allowed
to take any donation.
“The last two years we’ve
had veterans come and speak
who were a little bit older, and
this year Mr. Holwerda and I
thought it would be important
to get a young voice here,” said
Sara Johnson, Go Club sponsor.
“We’ve almost doubled the
number of veterans we’ve had
from the first time to the third
time,” added Johnson. “We had
51 RSVP.”
Student council member
Rachel Groen, a sophomore,
called the day a “success.”
‘This I believe’ dinner
raises $1.1 million
Victoria Sonowo
Reporter
Freshman Arif Pitts prepares food for Rib Fest.
Photo by Jim Kamphuis
Ribs ‘gratifying to soul’
Josh Smits
Reporter
Illiana held its 11th annual
Rib Fest Fund Raiser for the Illiana Christian High School
Foundation Saturday, Nov. 11
between the two Saturday performances of “Sideways Stories
from Wayside School.”
Rib Fest is a dinner aimed
at raising funds for the Illiana
Foundation. Foundation funds
are used to reduce the cost of
tuition. This year’s dinner raised
approximately $6,200 for the
Foundation.
The Illiana Christian High
School Foundation hosted the
event, preparing and cooking
182 slabs of ribs. The menu also
included chicken, salad, bread,
side items, and dessert. The food
and decorations was all donated
by Dutch Farms, Walt’s Grocery
Stores, and Amber Mechanical.
Raising funds may be the
dinner’s purpose, but it was not
the only attraction or even the
main attraction. Almost everyone interviewed said that the ribs
were the best part of the event
and the reason that they came.
The food is “always amazing,” said senior Lorna DeWindt.
The ribs were so good to
sophomore Joshua De Young
that he described them as “gratifying to the soul.”
On Friday Oct. 30th,
2015 the This I Believe fund
raising dinner took place
with over 500 people attending. This fund raiser was set
to inform not only Illiana parents but also the community
about why a new campus is
needed and why it is important that the students receive
a good Christian education.
Illiana’s development director, Mr. Steve Holwerda
said, “The dinner went very
well; everyone really enjoyed their time.”
This dinner is actually
the first one hosted by Illiana
in order to raise money for
the new campus. According
to an e-mail Holwerda sent
on Nov. 13, the event raised
just over $1.1 million in cash
and commitments.
Mr. Matt Kimmel, parent
of senior Chandler Kimmel,
said, “I think this dinner was
able to provide additional de-
tails and facts on why there
is a need for a new campus.”
“They were able to provide a visual aspect of the
new building in 3-D on how
it would look like. Now I’m
able to understand what is
needed like new facilities, a
new auditorium and bigger
athletic fields, many were
able to fellowship together
and the speakers such as Mr.
Davids delivered an amazing
speech on how it’s all about
the kids and what they need,”
said Mr. Tim Smits, parent of
Drew and Josh Smits
“Now people are able
to understand how this new
building could improve the
education given to the students. It’s important that the
students are given a Christian
education and that we seek
God’s guidance on how we
can support the community.
We need to look for a specific
direction on how to best contribute and support the new
school,” said Kimmel.
3
News
Administration
not changing
tune on ear
bud policy
Juliana Knot
Co-Editor in Chief
Aaron Knapper, a senior who
gave his testimony Friday
night. “I wasn’t really nervous to give my testimony.
I was more worried that my
message wouldn’t be effective to the students. I’m aware
that many students have situations worse than mine. ”
Junior Machaela Whitlock and sophomore Kayla
Fabrizius said the worship at
Praise Crowd was absolutely
phenomenal. Fabrizius said,
“I enjoyed the testimonies of
the two boys.”
Mrs. Drost, a Praise
Crowd sponsor, said, “[At
Praise Crowd] we worship
God through singing songs,
listening to testimonies and
other messages, and praying.”
Drost added, “Praise
Crowd is usually held after
another school event, such as
the Dodgeball Tournament or
a basketball game. We usually host a breakfast once a
month on a Thursday morning, which includes a time of
devotions and prayer.”
Starting last spring, the
Illiana administration instituted a policy that no headphones were to be worn
while in school. Since then,
vice president A.J. Turkstra
has said that no student has
been officially punished for
wearing earbuds.
“Students have been
very good about it,” Turkstra said. “It’s surprising
as acceptable as [wearing
headphones in public] is today.”
Turkstra said that he has
had to tell kids to take out
their earbuds, but has never
had any repeat offenders
from whom he needed to
confiscate the earbuds. If
taken away, students would
have to pay five dollars,
similar to getting back a
confiscated cellphone.
Junior Justin Gaddis
said that Turkstra once told
him to take off his headphones and threatened that
next time it would result in
them being confiscated.
Gaddis said, “I don’t
like the policy. I’m here before anyone else is, so I like
they might not know that
most of the major things
that happen in this country,
happen right here at home,”
said Mr. Venhuizen. “You
don’t know what could happen in your own backyard.”
“Chicago is way more
complex and has a lot more
history than I or anyone
else could have imagined,”
said senior Jake Disselkoen. “It’s insane. My favorite place was the Walnut
Room [in the old Marshall
Field’s building] because
it brought back memories
of going there as a sophomore.”
“I got to better understand the types of architecture that we learned
about in class,” said senior
Trevor Scheffers. His favorite place to go was the
trade floor at the Board of
Trade building where students could see how trading
works.
Senior Sydnee Van Beek
said, “I thought it was great
to see all the old architecture of all these old buildings. Most of them are in
great shape.” Her favorite
place was the Chicago Theater.
Van Beek added, “It was
built in the 1920’s and it
seats about 5,000 and the
architecture was amazing.
It was pretty cool to see the
artists and the plays that
still take place there.”
Mr. White informs students about Cloud Gate, more
commonly know as “the Bean.”
Photo by Jim Kamphuis
Students raise their hands during the chorus of “Blessed be the Name of the Lord” after the dodge ball tournament .
Praise Crowd lifting hands
to successful opening night
Mikerra Hall
Reporter
The Praise Crowd Board
sponsored its first evening
Praise Crowd on Nov. 13
after the conclusion of the
dodgeball tournament.
Organized by a group of
19 juniors and seniors, Praise
Crowd is a place where Illiana students join together as
a student body to focus on
worshiping God.
“The whole chapel was
filled with students,” said
to
listen to
music in the
morning.”
S e n i o r
Parker
Roeda
voiced support for
the policy. “When
kids have earbuds in,
they seem like they have no
interest in being here,” she
said.
However,
she
also
thought that the policy
should be more lenient. “I
get not having headphones
in the passing periods,” she
said, “but during break and
before school is the student’s personal time.”
Turkstra says the policy
is lenient enough. “Certain
study halls and the media
center allow kids to listen
to music during them… and
if I see a kid with earbuds
in waiting for a ride after
school, I’m not going to say
anything to them.”
For him, the policy is
about three things. Turkstra
said, “I think it promotes
safety in the hallways, respect, and less distraction
from academics, which is
what Illiana is all about.”
Local History students explore city,
learning ‘major things’ about hometown
Cassie Iaconelli
Reporter
The Local History class
took a field trip to various
sights in downtown Chicago on Wednesday, Nov. 18.
Thirty-two
students,
along with teachers Mr.
Venhuizen and Mr. White,
went to see several different sights around Chicago.
They left Illiana at 6:15
am and they arrived back
around 8 p.m. Students visited Roosevelt University,
the Bank of America building, the Chicago Theater,
and the Reliance Building.
“We are taking these
students on this trip because
Photo by Jenny DeBoer
4
Feature
Drug testing: separating fact from fiction
Drug testing policy
designed to help
students, not hurt
JP Peerbolte
Reporter
Illiana’s current drug
and alcohol policy was put
in place by the school board
in 1999 and was modified in
2012. The policy was created
to assist students in making
good choices.
“The policy is meant to
be a deterrent, not to catch
kids,” said vice-principal AJ
Turkstra. The policy was put
in place to keep students accountable for the decisions
they have made.
A part of the drug and
alcohol policy at Illiana includes random drug testing.
“I do roughly 40-45 test a
year randomly,” said Turkstra.
Turkstra added that he uses a
random number selector on
his computer to find a number,
and he then uses that number
to coordinate with a student
I.D. number.
Another part of the drug
and alcohol policy is testing
for suspicion. Turkstra said
that if several teachers make a
comment about a change in a
student's behavior that might
point toward drug use, he will
most likely test the student.
He might also test students if
he receives a report that they
had drugs in their car or were
at a party where drugs were
present.
Students are given the
option to confess drug use
before a drug test. “If a student confesses before a (random) drug test, they are then
safe from expulsion [for the
current test],” said Turkstra.
Students that confess drug use
are put on a clinical plan that
includes drug abuse counseling, future drug testing, and
other parts to keep students
accountable for drug use.
The clinical plans include
a parent meeting. Every plan
is individualized for each student’s situation.
Controlled
Substance
Managers perform the drug
tests here at Illiana in room
004. There are currently two
kinds of drug tests at Illiana,
a urine test and a hair sample
test. A urine test can take 1-2
days to process while a hair
test can take 2-5 days. Hair
tests can trace drugs absorbed
into the body as far back as
8-9 weeks earlier. Turkstra
Common student misconceptions
about Illiana’s drug testing policy
Who does the drug testing and how are people tested?
“They take your blood and test it.”
--Freshman Connor Robertson
“Mr. Turkstra does the testing.”
--Senior Alaye Hogue
“Officers come and do the testing.”
--Freshman Jared Krygsheld
“They take you to a creepy house and test your hair.”
--Senior Mark Hale
What are the consequences of a positive result?
“If you test positive, you get expelled.”
--Freshman Annie Weemhoff
“There is zero tolerance for a positive result.”
--Senior Eros Perez
“If you get caught, you get expelled.”
--Sophomore Cambrie VanRoekel
said that he receives results
from the tests by e-mail.
Turkstra said while he’s
been vice-principal, Illiana
has never expelled a student
for failing an initial drug test.
Students have been expelled,
however, when they failed a
second drug test, a failure that
reveals the student was not
following his or her clinical
plan.
Police only are involved
if drugs are thought to be on
school property.
Illiana’s
drug policy has no tolerance
for drugs on school property. Students who have drugs
on school property will most
likely be expelled.
Turkstra said that overall
the drug-testing policy has
been successful. Though two
students fell off their clinical
plans this fall and were expelled, we currently have four
Photo by: Jeff DeVries
students who are successfully
following their clinical plans
and who have remained drugfree.
Turkstra added that the
plan works in ways “you
can’t measure.
Students
who get tempted say no for
reasons other than their own
self-worth.”
“If the program is helping students,” Turkstra said,
“then God bless that.”
Events from past illustrate need for
Illiana’s drug policy
Hanna VanderWoude
Photo Editor
“When I was a student here
in the early 80s there was no
drug testing policy. There was
a fairly significant substance
abuse problem here, but the
school didn’t address it other
than you weren’t supposed to
do it and if you were caught
with contraband you’d be expelled,” said English teacher
Mr. Jeff DeVries. After explaining the lack of drug testing
policy DeVries told a story of a
high school experience he had
with one of his friends that he
believes affected the drug policy here.
One of DeVries’s friends –
whom we’ll call “Bob”- was a
drug addict.
“I knew that Bob experimented with drugs, but I didn’t
realize that he was as deep into
them as he was, and that he was
really suffering from addiction problems,” said DeVries.
At the end of DeVries’ senior
year, Frau Westerhof, the German teacher at the time, talked
to him and two other friends
about how she suspected Bob
had a drug problem. Afterwards
DeVries and those friends started going to New Life Resources for counseling and planned
an intervention. At the end of
the summer, Bob’s intervention
was held at DeVries’s house.
Both parents, step-parents,
friends, Westerhof and a counselor attended the intervention
to confront Bob about his drug
use.
“The meeting went poorly.
He got angry and stormed out of
the house. We [the three friends
and DeVries] had to pursue him
a couple blocks, and ended up
in the forest preserve,” said
Devries. “We, as young men,
were starting to think that maybe he didn’t have an addiction
problem, and that’s why he was
upset.”
The young men went off to
college, and Devries and one of
Bob’s friends, who attended the
intervention were roommates.
One night the friend brought up
Bob and said that maybe Bob
wasn’t addicted and maybe
they had it all wrong. Within 24
hours, they received a call from
Frau Westerhof that Bob had
checked himself into rehab. He
was addicted to cocaine, and
he ended up in the emergency
room because “his heart felt
like it was going to explode in
his chest.”
Illiana had a very lackadaisical drug abuse policy before
1999. According to records that
Illiana’s secretary Bonnie Trepton had, on June 6th, 1999 Illiana adopted its first actual policy. And in August of 2012 that
policy was revised to what it is
now. Events like the one that
DeVries experienced helped to
produce the drug policy that is
now in effect at our school.
“Maybe if there had been
a drug policy while Bob and I
attended Illiana, he wouldn’t
have come so close to death,”
said DeVries.
Feature
5
Echo’s Editorial Staff
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What's your main dish?
Turkey
Ham
Most Popular Thanksgiving Day Activities
Pasta
Other
With whom do you spend Thanksgiving?
Friends
2%
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1%
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Football
Board
Games
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Movies
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Black Friday:
The good, the bad,
the ugly
B
lack Friday is a time when people
selfishly buy all they want, trying to
get the best deal, so they can kindly
give those purchases away a month later. Hypocritical or just cultural? I have seen some crazy
things on Black Friday, from yelling to trampling. Everyone
has the images of people
stampeding into a store
in the wee hours of the
morning, while the employees who opened
the doors run for their
lives, hoping not
to get trampled.
O n e
time, when I
went to Menards with my Jennifer DeBoer
dad on Black
Co-editor in chief
Friday, we overheard a disturbing conversation. A middle school aged child
walked away from his mother and she yelled at
him, “Next time you do that, I’ll make this a
black and blue Friday for you.” My dad hurriedly pushed me away from that lady, and we
continued our shopping.
Despite the negative associations, I have
great memories of Black Friday too. I went
to Orland Mall with my older sister Grace on
Black Friday a few years ago. We saw a wedding in the mall. It was a small wedding but
crowded. People were stopping to take pictures.
Later that night, we saw it on the news.
When I was little, my parents were
those people that got up at 3 a.m. to go shopping. By the time they got home, my sister and
I were up, but were quickly shooed upstairs as
they brought the gifts they bought to their room.
I would try to lean over the balcony to see what
they got us, but my parents were smarter than us
and double bagged the gifts, so we couldn’t see
them.
Now, people don’t need to wake up at
3. They can go to Target at 6 pm on Thanksgiving. The sooner they work off that Thanksgiving meal the better, right? Last year, I went to
South Lake Mall in the middle of the night, on
Thanksgiving, to go shopping. I saw so many
people, from school and my church. It was
weird though, because as I looked at the lines of
people I just wondered how so many people are
actually buying gifts that the recipient actually
wants.
Some of the best deals happen on Black
Friday. Stores spend millions of dollars in ads
expecting an amazing profit in return. They also
sell low, so more is bought, which also means
they are making a profit.
Mr. Veldman once told his accounting students that his friend who has a store at Orland
Mall either makes or breaks a year depending
on his sales on Black Friday. It is an important
day to the world’s economy. No matter how
bad the economy is, people feel the need to buy
their children, friends, and colleagues’ gifts for
Christmas.
So whether Black Friday is an excuse to go
work off the Thanksgiving meal or get the best
deal possible, it is a time when memories are
made. People have to find the right gift at the
right price and can get very agitated while doing
so. It also is an important time in the American
economy. Money is made, but also spent.
So, Black Friday is good? I don’t know. But
I’m sure you can find a book on that at a Barnes
and Noble half off on Black Friday.
6
‘Sideways Stories’ leaves ’em in stitches
Kids React!
We asked kids what they thought of
the play. Here’s what they said:
“There’s a lot of good parts but the
best was probably when they turned
Mrs. Gorf into an apple and when they
tangoed.” - Charlie Bivona, 12
Reporter
“Sideways Stories from
Wayside School”, written by
Louis Sachar and adapted by
John Olive, was performed by
the Illiana cast on November
5, 6 and 7. A kooky montage
of hilarious scenes set in the
off-beat grade school warmed
the hearts of all who viewed
it. From teachers turned into
apples to toe sales to mushroom surprise, the twisted tales
were sure to coax laughs out of
young and old, bringing everyone back to their youth.
Director Jeff DeVries said,
“Everybody in the cast found
their character and their part,
they brought energy and in
“That the one person was missing but
she really wasn’t and she was on the
swing.” -Timothy Prim, 9
“I liked when they all screamed every
single time. My favorite character was
that girl with the little pigtails because
she has her own personality.”
-Kristine DeYoung, 8
“Well my favorite part of the play
was when the lightening came and the
teacher tried striking the student but
she turned into the apple and made the
kids scream.” -Mikel Evans, 12
that sense they were great.”
He also said that he saw many
kids from the Thursday morning performance who brought
their families back for other
performances. “That’s pretty
high praise that the kids want
to come back...it shows that the
play worked well.”
“Overall I think it went
very well,” said set designer
Jim Kamphuis. “Even with
the minor glitches I think everyone who went to the play
had a really good experience.”
He said he was nervous about a
few technological issues like the
disco ball coming down or the
microphones not working, but
in the end the production was
The attentive students of Wayside School gaze at their new teacher, Mrs. Jewls.
extremely successful.
1,696 people attended the
play over its 5 performance
run. Ticket sales from the event
covered costs of the play such
as make-up, costumes, light
fixtures, repairs, and set pieces.
Any leftover profit was put towards the drama department
to use for future productions.
Out of all the hilarity experienced through the play weekend, one performance stuck out
to Kamphuis. The Thursday
matinee, attended by gradeschoolers from around the area,
was very entertaining. “Those
kids had so much fun at that
performance, they sang along
with everything and clapped...
They were a great audience.”
Photo by Randy Peterson
Sideways sets, sounds, and script
Beth Boonstra
Reporter
Nov. 5, 6, and 7 the Drama
Department performed “Sideways Stories from Wayside
School,” a lighthearted children's’ production, that had a lot
of unique effects behind it. In
addition to writing half of the
play themselves, director Jeff
DeVries and set designer Jim
Kamphuis had to figure out how
to create a wall-sized teacher
made of school supplies, sounds
for imaginary instruments, and a
playground for teenagers.
DeVries made different
sounds, singing all the different parts of the songs and then
using digital effects to make
each instrument unique.
“It was a challenge,”
DeVries said. “I had to make
sounds like an instrument,
but not one that anyone’s ever
heard of. I think my wife enjoyed hearing me sing to myself like a lunatic in my office.”
Senior Katie Ericks, an
actress that plays one of the
make believe instruments,
said that after adding the music “you could really start to
see the whole thing come together.”
Kamphuis was responsible for engineering Miss
Zarves, a giant wall made of
school supplies built to look
like a teacher’s face, complete
with moving mouth, a wiggling nose, and spinning eyes.
He also had to assemble a
playground built for “big kids
pretending to be little.” The
challenge was making it safe
to be used without actually
attaching it to the stage.
Kamphuis said, “Set design is like building with legos,
everything is interchangeable.
You already have the bases,
but you add the color and rearrange them.”
Calvin Christian School
Ask
vicky
viking
Mother’s behavior
puzzles, frustrates
daughter
“I liked the part where Leslie faked Myron pulling her pigtails. And I thought
Mrs. Jewls was nice but I know Mrs.
Gorf so I don’t think she’s that mean.”
-Rachel VanderZee, 11
Kassidy Weemhoff
Arts and Leisure
5th grader Christian Stokes
said, “Were those instruments
real? Cause they sounded really cool. And I didn’t expect
[Miss Zarves] to move! All of
a sudden she just started talking!”
Photo by Jeff DeVries
Miss Zarves, the mysterious teacher of the 19th floor, was crafted by set
designer, Jim Kamphuis.
Dear Vicky,
So I know it’s pretty typical for a
teenage girl not to get along with her
mom, but this is starting to get ridiculous. My mom & I NEVER seem to get
along. It seems like when we fight, I’m
always the one “in the wrong” and she
can never apologize for what she said
to me. It’s always “mother knows best,”
but I don’t feel the motherly love that
should be behind that statement. And she
can never seem to praise what I do right,
but only points out what I do wrong. It’s
frustrating and extremely discouraging.
She only gets defensive if I try to approach her on the subject, so what do I
do?
Sincerely,
Daughter in Distress
Dear Daughter in Distress,
I’m sorry to hear about how things
are going with you and your mom. That
is a tough problem. She probably does
not realize how harshly she is acting.
Fixing things with your mom isn’t
easy, but it can be done. Here are some
things that can help build a better bond
between you two.
First, talk to her. How often do you
actually have a conversation with your
mother? Don’t just make a beeline to
your room once you get home. And,
don’t mess around on your phone when
you talk to her. Share your life with
her, and ask her about her day. It’s what
friends do.
Second, offer to help before she
makes you help. If you ask to help, she
is less likely to be such a harsh critic
ahead of time. It will also take some
stress off her plate and let her know that
you care. If you are going to have to
work, you might as well do it on your
own terms.
Lastly, be willing to back off. I know
how tempting it is to try to have the last
word in an argument, but it isn’t worth
it. Next time you and your mom argue,
let it go and keep quiet. Nothing you say
at this point will help your case. If you
really think you are being wronged, give
your mom some time so you both can
settle down before you try to figure it
out.
I’m sure your mom does love you;
she probably is dealing with a lot more
than you know. Try to be as loving as
you possibly can, and you should see
some changes in your relationship.
Do you need advice? Contact Vicky at
vickyvikingilliana@gmail.com or write a
letter and turn it in to Mr. DeVries’s mailbox located in the office. Thank you!
Sports
7
Viking
v-ballers
fall in
regional
title
Jacob Thompson
Co-Sports Editor
Photo by JP Peerbolte
Jacob Thompson, Luke Boss, Austin Ohm, Nick Wondaal, and Ryan Koontz walk back to the line after final run out at the state finals.
3A XC boys state finals
Luke Hillegonds
Co-Sports Editor
The boys cross country
team took 15th out of 25 schools
at IHSA 3A State Competition
in Peoria on November 7. Senior Colin DeYoung finished
ninth and received all-state hon-
ors down state.
DeYoung said, “Running 3A
was challenging but it was fun,
and I’m very proud of how I ran.
I couldn’t ask for a better finish
to my high school cross country
career.”
Sophomore Austin Ohm
finished second for Illiana run-
ning a 15:13 time to finish in top
75 at the state meet.
Ohm said, “I didn’t
feel very nervous because there
wasn’t a pressure that we had to
run a certain time in order to win.
We just went out there and tried to
run as if it were a normal race.”
Junior Ryan Koontz
added, “We all ran pretty well
and we weren’t even supposed
to place better than 21st or so. So
we as a team were very pleased
with how we ran. We would
have liked to run in 2A where
we could have placed higher, but
we did the best we could with
the circumstances.”
Jim Piaskowy produces consistent greatness
Faith Mischka
Reporter
Mr. Jim Piaskowy, a.k.a.
Coach Pi, is an applied arts and
physics teacher, and he is the most
successful cross country coach in
Illiana’s history.
Piaskowy has been coaching
at Illiana for 12 years. In that span,
he has had numerous athletes, both
as individuals and as teams, run and
win downstate. He credits his success to various sources.
“First of all, I like to keep it
fun,” Piaskowy said. “We can train
while playing running games or ultimate Frisbee.”
He also credits parent involvement. The parents have great relationships with the coach and with
the runners, and their support helps
build on the encouraging atmosphere Coach Pi tries hard to create.
Piaskowy himself has been
running for over 45 years, and he
loves the sport of cross country.
“I love the individual effort
that comes wrapped up in a team
concept,” he said. Everyone has to
do their part. I also love the mental component. This sport is 50%
mental and 50% physical.
Senior Nick Wondaal has run
for Coach Pi for four years. He
said, “Coach Pi creates the perfect
balance between having fun and
working hard. He also helps us to
balance sports with homework and
with the rest of our lives.”
Piaskowy said, “I enjoy
teaching and coaching, especially at Illiana. I could teach
here for quite a while and never
get burned out.”
Photo by NWI Times
Coach Piaskowy just finished his 12th season as head coach of boys XC.
“It was a tough loss,”
said junior Maddie Maatman speaking about the
regional loss to Manteno
on Oct. 29. This season
had been incredible for
the volleyball girls who
closed with a strong record of 26-10. The Vikings went into the regional title expecting to
win, yet Manteno played
what coach Nikki Vandyke
called “the game of their
life,” and they had home
court advantage.
“Having
regionals
there was hard,” said senior
Mikinsey
Pruim.
“They were already a step
ahead of us before the
game even started.”
The Vikings, who had
beaten Manteno two times
in a tournament earlier
that season, jumped off
to a strong start and won
the first match. The second match was close but
Manteno was able to hold
strong and even it up to
1-1. Although the girls
had the lead for most of
the third match, but they
couldn’t close out and
ended falling 17-25, 2520, 21-25 in three matches.
“We had a great season, and I think we overthought everything,” said
senior VanBeek. “It was
hard to end my Illiana career like this, but I’m just
glad we had a great season.”
Male Athlete of the Month
Female Athlete of the Month
“Ohm came out and ran fantastic,” says teammate senior Nick Wondaal. “He definitely deserved
the accolades that came from his hard work.”
Sophomore Austin Ohm has had a standout
season this year in cross country, helping the boys
place 2nd in regionals, 3rd in sectionals, and 15th in
state. Ohm was one of the top runners this season
having his standout races when it counted. He won
all-sectional honors he placed 2nd for the Illiana
boys at state, and placed top 75 overall.
“I focused on working hard this summer,”
Ohm says. “I had no idea how much the hard work
would really pay off this season. I’m super pleased
with the way I ran.”
Gabby Kreykes has played varsity her first
two years here at Illiana and is now playing her
third season. Kreykes has achieved many awards
including MVP of Metro-Suburban Conference as
a sophomore. She was also on the All-Tournament
Team for the Beecher Thanksgiving Tournament
her freshman and sophomore years. Also, she has
been on two All-Tournament Teams for the Lisle
Christmas Tournament.
Kreykes averaged 14.2 points per game as a
freshman and 17.6 points per game as a sophomore.
“I want to focus more on winning rather than
my individual performance. I’ve been practicing
my free throws and look forward to this season.”
Opinion
8
Editorial
Two “n”s or
Vikings and Knights finally find common ground not two “n”s?
Music blares. The crowd
stands in anticipation. The
room is hot from being over
crowded. Then the whistle
blows. Students and faculty
dressed in crazy, festive costumes rush the court. The
crowd screams, and cheers
fill the gym. The colorful
balls whiz across the floor,
most missing, but some hitting people, forcing them to
take the walk of shame to
the sideline, and erupting
the crowd in a new chant.
The dodge ball tournament is one of the most
loved events at Illiana, but
this year it was different.
Not only were we playing
each other, but on a Thursday night at Trinity Christian College, we got to play
against our rival. We finally
got an opportunity to beat
on each other without facing
repercussions.
We
are
constantly
bickering with Chicago
Christian. We have battles
over twitter. We form loud
crowds against each other.
We scream at each other
across gyms. We try to diss
each other whenever we
can. When our girls volleyball team beat Chicago
Christian for the first time
in a long time, we Vikings
went crazy. It was one of
the season’s highlights. The
rivalry even gets messy at
times, and our schools have
to reign us in.
This time, however,
they didn’t. They wanted us
to get into it. We got the opportunity to go at each other
without worrying about facing repercussions. We saw
our fellow students
go
at
our rivals.
T h e y
got to
chuck
balls
at our
rivals,
and in
doing
so, they won us bragging
rights.
If someone walked into
the gym at Trinity who
didn’t know what was going on, they would not have
thought we were united at
all. They would have seen rivals screaming over the gym
at each other and whipping
balls back and forth. They
would’ve seen us flooding the court to celebrate
that our team won but more
importantly that Chicago
Christian’s team didn’t. That
hardly sounds like a picture
of unity. But there is more
beneath the surface than
what meets the eye.
Echo)))
the
Editors-in-chief
News
While we are all going at each other, we were
still united. We are coming together for one cause.
We were helping a young
woman, a Chicago Christian
alum, who has been through
way more than anyone
it. And for at least one night,
even as we threw balls at
each other, we remembered
that we’re not just rivals. We
are brothers and sisters in
Christ.
Maybe that is partly why
we have a rivalry. Everyone
bickers with their siblings. It’s bickering, but
beneath it all is love,
and that’s why the bickering isn’t damaging or
destructive. Maybe our
rivalry with Chicago
Christian works because we are all connected by our belief in
God.
We
have
the
same values and the
same purpose out on
the court and field. We
are trying to spread the
love of Jesus everywhere
we go. In the dogde ball,
we, the Knights and the
Vikings, were showing
Christ’s love to Vree,
and in doing so, we
helped move her a step
closer to becoming a
nurse, an occupation in
which she can show that
same love to others. But
maybe the nights is even
more important because
it reminded all of us that
sometimes we should set
sibling rivalry aside and
enjoy being one family
of God.
“Maybe our rivalry...
works because we
are all connected by
our belief in God ”
)))
should go through. All the
money the individual high
schools and then the event
at Trinity raised is going to
help Katie Vree pay for a
wheel chair that will aid her
in her pursuit to become a
nurse. That’s pretty cool.
When asked about the
events, Vree was very appreciative. She said, “It was
amazing just seeing them
have a rivalry but kind of
have fun with it for a cause.
It was really precious to
see.”
We turned our rivalry
into a way to help someone.
We had one purpose, and we
got to have fun while doing
Editorial Cartoon)))
Jennifer DeBoer
Juliana Knot
Collette Bouwer
Feature
Arts
Elyse Dunham
Andy Sons
Kassidy Weemhoff
Sports
Photos
Jacob Thompson
Luke Hillegonds
Hanna Vander Woude
Advisor
Jeff DeVries
Editorials, unless otherwise stated, have been written by an editor
and reflect the opinion of the majority
of the Echo staff. Opinions expressed
are not necessarily that of the administration, faculty, or student organizations.
Letters to the editor can be submitted to the advisor or sent to the
school. All letters must be signed and
must not exceed 250 words. They will
be printed provided there is enough
room and content is not offensive to
the general public. Names will not be
withdrawn unless there is good reason
for doing so.
Klapak
Loving one neighbor by hitting the other
The newspaper is a forum for expression; therefore, we
encourage feedback or commentary. Please contact us at
theillianaecho@gmail.com
I
t was my geometry class freshman
year. We were all about to take a test.
The boy next to me looked at his and
sighed, “The only answer I’m going to get
right is my name.” I can remember thinking
about my misspelled birth certificate and saying, “I’m not even going
to get that right.”
My name is Juliana. One “n.” It’s the
Dutch way of spelling
it. My parents chose
my name to honor
our heritage. But
after I was born,
in the chaos of
e v e r y t h i n g , Juliana Knot
they
never
Co-editor in chief
checked
which spelling was the Dutch spelling, one “n” or two.
So when the nurse asked my mom to fill out
the birth certificate, my mom guessed and
decided the more “n’s” the merrier. My birth
certificate listed my legal name as Julianna
Knot.
And it stayed that way unnoticed for the
first fourteen years of my life. It wasn’t until
the winter of my freshman year that the second “n” caught my eye. I had to look up my
birth certificate in order to apply for a passport. It then hit me that I had been living a lie
for my whole life,
Even worse than discovering the mistake
was enduring the wait to change it. Thanks
to the wonderful government of Illinois, my
name stayed one “n” too long for another
year. My driver’s permit said Julianna. My
social security card said Julianna. My friends
started exaggerating that awful “an” sound
when they said my name. It was horrible. Every time I wrote my name I felt like a fraud.
The waiting period wouldn’t have been
so bad if I hadn’t corrected so many people
on pronouncing in the past. Every time I said,
“It’s Juliahna not Juliănna,” bit me in the
butt when the people I had corrected in the
past realized that, in fact, I was wrong. About
my own name.
My name is now legally Juliana Knot. All
it took was one forged baptismal certificate.
But every time my name gets mispronounced
now, I’m reluctant to say anything different because I can count on one of my lovely
friends to bring up the fact that it should actually have been pronounced that way for over
seven eighths of my life.
There’s also the cynic. “Why did you
even change your name? Was it really worth
the hassle?” Occasionally, I wonder the same
thing. Is my pride really so fragile that an extra “n” could shake it? Yes. It has nothing to
do with the Dutch spelling or heritage. It’s
just the fact that I’m Juliana.
Every sophomore taking English is required to read the play The Crucible. The
main character John Proctor’s most famous
line is this, “Because it is my name! Because
I cannot have another in my life! … How
may I live without my name? I have given
you my soul; leave me my name!”
I have to apologize to my English teachers. Whatever great moral lesson that quote
was supposed to convey is lost on me. It only
reminds me of endless paperwork and bureaucracy for the sake of one fewer “n.” Julianna is a different person than Juliana.
And now I have the birth certificate to
prove it.