Good morning! I'm Denise Kohlhaas
I'm Brooke Myers!
And I'm John Kohlhaas! You're listening to the "Bear Facts", KLGA's weekly radio show from Bishop Garrigan High School.
Last Saturday the Golden Bear speech team had an awesome day as they competed in the district large-group contest in Ft. Dodge. The Bears brought home eight Division One or "excellent" ratings and three Division Two or "good" ratings. Three acting ensembles earned ones. "My Name is Leslie" stars Eric Cassmann, John Kohlhaas, Amber Golwitzer, and Brooke Myers and tells about a waitress who doesn't want to take anyone's order. "Men Are from Milwaukee; Women Are from Phoenix" stars Jesse Bode and Katelyn Besch and shows a couple discussing the differences in the sexes. "Act 3, Scene 5" is a parody of Romeo and Juliet, and stars Josh Broesder, Ashley Waller, Renee Taphorn, Allison Even, and Amanda Thompson.
The varsity readers' theatre also received a one. It's called "All's Well That Ends Wrong" and shows college girls being distracted as they study. Cast members are Amber Golwitzer, Sadie Foertsch, Amanda Golwitzer, Laura Kellner, Nancy Syharath, and Brandon Rowley. The group mime "A Day at the Fair" with Liz Mayer, Kayla Reding, Andrea Arndorfer, and Theresa Reising also got a one. So did three group improvisations. The improv groups included John Kohlhaas, Scott Stence, Eric Cassmann, Josh Broesder, Ashley Waller, Jacob Hellman, Brandon Rowley, Seth Rogers, Tim Lind, Garrison Brosnan, Chris Loebach, Cindy Reding, and Alicia Miller. All groups that earned ones will advance to the state speech contest next weekend in Spencer.
Yesterday twenty-four Garrigan graduates came back to Garrigan to talk about their careers. On Career Day we welcomed alumni who work in art, social work, agriculture, nursing, banking, law enforcement, investments, architecture, fiber optics, law, actuarial science, radiology, culinary arts, cosmetology, and jewelry. Thanks to all the alumni who helped out. It made a fun and informative day.
Each year many of Garrigan's juniors and seniors take courses at Iowa Lakes Community College. Garrigan students receive college credit for classes like Statistics, Finite Math, Composition, Speech, Human Anatomy, and Medical Terminology. The courses give them a leg up on their classmates when they go off to college. Iowa's Post-Secondary Option Enrollment Act allows them to take college classes free of charge, and Garrigan provides "comp time"-free periods during the day in exchange for the time students spend in their college classes.
There's always something new to check out on the BGHS website - garrigan dot unlimitedweb dot net. You'll find photos and roster lists for every activity the school offers, as well as an extensive alumni section and background information on the school. The school calendar, menus, and newsletter are regularly updated, and there's also a huge section about Seton Grade School and lots of fun candid shots of high school students. Garrigan's website has won awards for being one of the best school websites in the country. It is regularly updated by Sarah Freking's web page class, and a "What's New" page will tell you all the latest additions. So check out Garrigan's home in cyberspace - garrigan dot unlimitedweb dot net.
The quiz bowl team just sent off the checks from the money they raised in the Trivia Champions Think-a-Thon earlier this month. Twenty-five students participated in the event, where they answered questions to raise money for St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital. All together the team raised $307.42 for critically ill children. Junior Matt Courtney raised $75 all by himself; and senior John Kohlhaas, freshman Alex Bradley, and sophomore Jeff Lappe each raised over $35. Thanks to the quiz bowl team for using their brains to help out sick kids.
Our Senior Spotlight this week shines on Jesse Bode and Ben Geelan. Jesse Bode is a very active senior. His top activity is probably choir, but he is also in cheerleading, speech, drama, and Christian Leadership in Action. He's also part of the quiz bowl team that will be heading to nationals next June. Jesse will be off to college next fall, and we wish him good luck.
Ben Geelan's number one activity is baseball. In addition to being a hard-hitting catcher on the Golden Bear varsity team, Ben plays in fall leagues, and has appeared in scout showcases around the country. Ben is a National Honor Society member who also enjoys playing intramural basketball. He has committed to play baseball at the University of Iowa, and we wish him all the best in the future.
On our Golden Bear calendar today there's a varsity basketball match-up with Garner. The games will be played at home, here at Garrigan, with the boys game starting at 5pm.
Tomorrow intramural basketball continues. Then Monday at 6pm we'll have the annual Evening of Theatre, saluting the large-group speech entries.
Tuesday and Wednesday we'll have pops concert auditions. Tuesday night the basketball teams host Hampton-Dumont, and Thursday the freshman teams host Newman.
Thursday will also be the annual Education Fair at Seton. Friday the basketball teams host Algona High for Senior Night, and then next Saturday there's state large-group speech at Spencer.
That's the "Bear Facts" for January. Thanks for tuning in, and be sure to join us again next week for more news from Bishop Garrigan High School.
