The Bear Facts

April 25, 2015

Good morning! I’m Betty Straub!

I’m Tony Kollasch!

And I’m Emily Riesenberg! Thanks for joining us for the “Bear Facts”, the weekly radio show from Bishop Garrigan High School.

Tonight is Prom night 2015. Juniors have been busy all week transforming the gym into a beautiful ballroom. This year’s prom theme borrows from Alice in Wonderland, and couples will enter through a giant keyhole onto the runway. The Grand March will be at 8pm, and as always the public is invited to attend.

The fun continues until midnight, and then it’s time for After-Prom. There are all kinds of games, including a Garrigan-related take-off on Cash Cab. Everyone at After-Prom will have lots of chances to win prizes, and we know it will be a fun time for everybody.

Last Saturday Garrigan hosted the state solo and small ensemble music contest, and it turned out to be a very good day for the Bears. Band students received eight division I or “superior” ratings and four division II or “excellent” ratings. Instrumentalists who earned I’s for their solos or small group work include Mark Fakler, Morgan Frideres, Hannah Bernhard, Josh Hamilton Zach Kollasch, Tony Kollasch, Andrew Meister, and Andrew Miller. Others earning I’s were Gigi Byrkeland, Johanna Vaske, Sam Trainer, Kylie Fox, Courtney Kirsch, Caitlin Thilges, Mariah Bronk, Isabelle Davis, Taylor Frideres, and Betty Straub.

The big news was that two Garrigan choir entries were named “Best in Center” and earned invitations to the Outstanding Performers Showcase that will be held on the Iowa State University campus in May. A total of ten vocal entries received division I entries, and there were also five division II’s. The choir entries that were judged superior included Mark Fakler, Levi Capesius, Chloe Garman, Sam Trainer, Dorothy Kirsch, Mariah Bronk, Caitlin Thilges, and Tony Kollasch; as well as Taylor Illg, Zach Kollasch, Nick Kayser, Tommy Kollasch, Skyland Meraz, Andrew Meister, Patrick Marlow, Andrew Thilges, Nick Kayser, and Carolyn Baxter. 

Other I’s went to Morgan Frideres, Betty Straub, Dorothy Kirsch, Caroline Hamilton, Gaby Stteil, Sam Harrington, Johanna Vaske, Mariana Pacheco, Precious Robeson, Josh Hamilton, and James Quinlin. Congratulations to vocal director Linda Ferjak, band director Ken Ferjak, and all the students who did well at state solo and ensemble contest!

Last Wednesday was Earth Day. While some schools decided it was too windy or cold to work outside, we went ahead with our service day projects at Garrigan. For the twenty-third straight year, Garrigan students picked up trash along the section of highway we adopted near Sexton. Students also worked in parks and cemeteries around Algona, and also in Whittemore and Bancroft. Another part of the day was a fashion show, with all the outfits made out of trash. The students thought junior Zach Boelter had the best outfit, but the teachers selected freshman Ben Degen for the best trashy dress award.

In recent years one of the more popular spring activities has been target shooting. Twenty Garrigan students are part of shooting teams sponsored by the Izaak Walton Lodge. So far junior Mariah Bronk has teen the top shooter, winning the female division at several area meets. Others involved include Jacob Thul, Kristian McGuire, LeeAnn Eischen, Logan Rosenmeyer, Nicole Walker, and Lexi Berte.

Other trap shooters are Will Eggers, Will Fox, Zach Muller, Grant Arndorfer, Taylor Becker, and Charles Berte; plus Megan Brown, Sam Harrington, Chase Hatten, Alex Lichter, Matt Thul, Jackson Rosenmeyer, and Emerald Shipler. Good luck all season to the target shooting team!

In the coming week students at Garrigan and Seton will be taking the STAR tests. These new tests supplement the Iowa Assessments that we’ve taken for years. Data from them will be reported to the State Department of Education, and teachers will also use them to make decisions about how to best teach their classes. The STAR tests are all taken online, so we’ll be spending time on computers to show what we know in English, math, and other subjects.

Next week we’ll be holding elections for student council. This year two groups of juniors are running to be student council co-presidents. Zach Boelter and Landen Studer will take on Joseph Espinosa and Logan Besch. That election will be Tuesday. Following that we’ll have elections for class presidents and representatives. This year’s eighth graders have an especially large group running. Twenty-two candidates are running for four offices in that class. Good luck to everyone running for student council.

Last week the North Iowa Conference held its annual art show, and eleven Garrigan students participated. Taylor Becker, Trevor Darling, Morgan Hanna, Kelsey Hovey, Kenzie Keith, Courtney Kirsch, Alex Lichter, Parker Schiltz, Sarah Skilling, Cady Steinman, and Cassidy Vitzthum all went over to Waldorf College in Forest City to exhibit their work. Congratulations to art teacher Sheena Weydert and all the honored artists!

Our Senior Spotlight this week shines on Paige Berte. Here to tell you about her is Kaitlyn Fogarty.

Paige Berte is a Whittemore native who probably best known for her skills in volleyball. She was named the most improved player on the Golden Bear team last fall. Paige is also involved in Christian Leadership in Action and the National Honor Society. She especially enjoys her business classes and plans to major in that field in college. We wish Paige all the best in the future.

Thanks, Kaitlyn. On our Golden Bear calendar this week, tonight is Prom 2015. The Grand March will start at 8pm, with the dance and after-prom activities following.

Monday there’s golf, with the Bears hosting North Iowa. Tuesday we’ll have the student council president election. That night there’s boys track at Emmetsburg, and the girls track team runs at Forest City.

Wednesday there’s CYO golf at Fort Dodge. We’ll have Eucharistic adoration that day, and there’s a 1:30 dismissal for teacher inservice. Also on Wednesday the senior boys will have a luncheon at the KC Hall sponsored by the Algona Police Department.

Wednesday night the band and choir will have their spring concert. Thursday we’ll have elections for class presidents. That night there’s a coed track meet at North Union. 

Next Friday we’ll have Grandparents Day at Garrigan and Seton. That night the gold team plays North Union at Armstrong.

That’s the “Bear Facts” for April. Thanks for joining us, and be sure to tune in next week when we’ll have more news from Bishop Garrigan High School.