Good morning. I'm Jenna Hansen!
I'm Jeff Hellman!
And I'm Steven Kellner! Welcome once again to the "Bear Facts", the weekly radio show from Bishop Garrigan High School.
Last Saturday Garrigan hosted the district individual speech contest, and our school's entries did very well in competition. Garrigan earned 15 Division One (or "excellent") ratings, and just 5 Division II (or "good") ratings. Among the students earning Ones were Eric Cassmann for his Acting selection; Steven Kellner, Rachel McGuire, Keshar Nadkarni, and Nancy Syharath in Poetry; Amanda Golwitzer, Rachel Foth, and Amber Golwitzer in Prose; and Nicole Elbert and Rosalind Kirsch in Storytelling. Amber Golwitzer received a One in Literary Program; Steven Kellner and Brooke Myers got Ones in After-Dinner Speaking; Autumn Thompson earned a One in Public Address; and David Murphy got top marks in Improvisation.
Because so many students earned excellent ratings, the next couple of weeks will continue to be busy for speech coaches Mary McCall and Sarah Freking. State contest will be Saturday, March 22nd at Storm Lake. Between now and then all the students will be working hard to perfect their selections so they can get the best possible marks at state. Congratulations and good luck to all these hard-working speech students.
Last Tuesday the Golden Bear boys basketball team finished their season with a decisive loss to Okoboji in the district championship. While everyone would have liked the Bears go on to state, things just didn't come together on Tuesday. Okoboji seemed to make all their shots, while the Bears couldn't buy a basket. Garrigan had a great season, though. They had convincing victories over tough competition, and everyone is proud of the year they had.
This morning thirteen Garrigan students are on their way to Sioux Center for the Dordt College Math Tournament. While spending the day taking math tests isn't exactly most people's idea of fun, math competition has been one of Garrigan's strongest extra-curricular activities in recent years. Coach Daryl Kohlhaas expects another strong showing from his team today. Players include seniors Jeff Hellman, Rosalind Kirsch, and David Murphy; junior John Kohlhaas; sophomore Samantha Kirsch; and freshmen Ana Maria Pal, Spenser Rahm, Jeff Lappe, Noah Devine, Kandice Roethler, Gavin Freking, Joe Rahm, and Jacob Hellman. Good luck to the math team!
For the past two days the Garrigan music department has been presenting their annual pops concert, and everyone agrees it was a great show. Among the top performances were Steven Kellner singing "Empty Chairs and Empty Tables" and John Kohlhaas with "Old Man River". Then there was the Mayer family-Rose, Lizzie, and their mom Deanna-singing "Down to the River to Pray". The band also entertained with selections from the rock group Chicago. Between the music and comedy selections, there was definitely something for everyone. Congratulations to directors Dennis Freking and Linda Mertz and to all of Garrigan's musicians.
March is a busy time for the Golden Bear danz squad. This coming week they'll be performing at the state basketball tournament. Then the following week they're headed for sunny California and the National Dance and Drill Team Championship in Anaheim. Coach Colleen Conway-Schiltz is expects the girls to have a fun time and also do well in competition. We'll tell you more about the danz squad's trip to nationals on next week's show.
Danz squad isn't the only team headed for nationals. Next summer six members of the quiz bowl team will be competing in the National Academic Championships in St. Louis. The group includes veterans with national experience like John Kohlhaas, David Murphy, Steven Kellner, and Matt Courtney; as well as national players Jeff Hellman and Mike Blocker. Good luck to all these students and to Coach David Burrow.
Our Senior Spotlight this week shines on Chelsie Wood. Chelsie comes to Garrigan from the Whittemore area. She is a good athlete who enjoys pitching for the softball team and being a back-row specialist in volleyball. You might have also seen her performing with the choir at the pops concert last week. Chelsie is a receptionist at Deb's in Algona. She'll be off to college next year, and we wish her all the best.
On our Golden Bear calendar this week, the math team is in Sioux Center today for the Dordt College math competition. Then tomorrow from 2 - 4 there will be a special reception at Garrigan to honor long-time bookkepper Lynn Elbert.
Monday track practice begins. That afternoon from 3:30 to 6:30 we'll have parent-teacher conferences at the Rochleau Center. Then on Tuesday there will be a Lenten penance service at St. Cecelia's.
Wednesday conferences continue. That night the prom planning committee will meet. Then on Thursday we'll have a jeans day to raise money for the student gift to Gala.
Thursday night is the annual Academic Banquet, where we honor all the top students in the school. Then on Friday there's no school-the start of a four-day weekend.
That's the "Bear Facts" for another week. Thanks for tuning in, and be sure to join us again next week for more news from Bishop Garrigan High School.
