KEELY MCKLVEEN | Senior As I embark on my last year in Derry Area School District, nostalgia begins to hit. As an underclassman, senior year seemed so far away. Now there are only three quarters left until I become an alumnus. After receiving our diplomas, we will all part our separate ways and begin a new journey. Some may choose to stay within the region, while others will expand their horizons. No matter where we go, Derry Area is the root of our futures. Similar to a tree root, our time spent in Derry has supplied us with the nutrients needed to thrive in today’s world. One nutrient I have witnessed throughout my time here is the true influence of community. In general, a community consists of people who reside in the same place; however, here at Derry Area, community is the union of individuals through school pride. If you were to drive through Derry township, you might drive over a Trojan head or a sequence of football helmets as you approach the school. What began in the fall of 2016 still continues to this day as members of the community came together to paint these symbols throughout our district. Not only do these symbols represent the victories of our football team but also the esteem for our school’s accomplishments. As a freshman, I remember cheering at my first football game and being astonished by myriad of blue & gold that pervaded the stadium. From freshman to senior year, I have observed school spirit being augmented by support from the community and members of our school district. Friday night lights are just one of many examples of the development of school pride. In general, a community consists of people who reside in the same place; however, here at Derry Area, community is the union of individuals through school pride. When you attend a football game, multiple actions will catch the eye of someone outside of the district and community of Derry. One might notice how both sides of the stadium are filled with blue and gold. Or how an entire section of students are dressed to an elaborate theme standing above a sign that is titled “Trojan Empire.” A title that conveys a multitude of students forming a strong unity of school pride. This group of students also includes the cheerleading and band members. During the band’s halftime performance, you will see the cheerleaders along with the empire supporting the band by encouraging them. While the game continues, one will hear the roar of our school’s pride as the empire, band, and spectators cheer along with the cheerleaders to “Giving me a D” spelling out our school’s name DERRY. For home games, the sound of sirens blaring will catch your attention as the trojans score a touchdown. At the conclusion of the game students congregated around the football players forming a tunnel and sway to the Alma mater. All actions that exemplify the support of people coming together to form the community of Derry Area. Our school community does not conclude with friday nights but instead carries on throughout the school week. Without the students and faculty who encompass the school, it would just be a building. Here at Derry, I have been blessed to have dedicated teachers who go above and beyond to answer the call of an educator. All faculty members have devoted themselves to laying the foundation of our character through its curriculum. Without the students and faculty who encompass the school, it would just be a building. When you hear the word "curriculum," words like math, science, and language arts come to mind but it is more than that, it is the values established in those classes. At Derry, the essence of our curriculum is to develop students into responsible citizens. All which is conveyed through are faculty who instill upon us values of honesty, hard work, and compassion. These values are taught by teachers aiding students to develop skills of team work, time management, and problem solving. Not only do Derry’s educators establish these values and skills within us, they invest time into us as students. When you enter the building or wall through the halls, there is always a faculty member there to greet you or carry on a simple conversation about how you are doing. They invest into the betterment of not only your education but also the environment of the school. After graduating from Derry Area School District, the sense of community established over the years is one thing that I am thankful for and will miss about my time here. I thank all of the teachers and faculty members who have invested into not only my education but the development of my character. To the underclassmen of the school, I challenge you to better this community and fabricate the school into the environment you want to be apart of. It was great for me. KEELY MCKLVEEN | Class of 2020
PAUL KOONTZ, JR. | Football For those of you who don't know me or know of me, I'm the quarterback for our high school football team. I'm actually really excited I was asked about playing quarterback on Friday nights for The Station, because it's something I feel is a once-in-a-lifetime type thing that not many other people get to experience. Football in and of itself is a very emotional game where you make bonds that are sometimes stronger than the bonds you make at home with your family; your teammates are your family. They are your brothers, which makes playing quarterback that much more awesome. There is nothing else like throwing a ball to your brother and watching him take it to the house. But there is so much more that goes into playing quarterback than "see receiver, throw to receiver, score a touchdown." There is not a better feeling than when you get to celebrate a win with your brothers and the rest of the school, including the band and majorettes, who play a bigger part than most people think. ...your teammates are your family. First, I'd like to start by talking about pregame and warm-ups. This is by far the easiest part of the night, but during this time I talk with Mr. Mylant, or 'Coach Ox' as we know him, about the things we like going into the game. Once we get into warm-ups I just try to get as loose and ready to go as possible. Then, we hit game time. During the game, there are a lot of things I do that aren't seen very often, like talking to specific guys after a bad play to get them back into things or talking with Mr. Mylant again to see what he likes. Right before and during plays, I'm doing a lot of unseen things. I watch the film from our prior plays to see what plays look good and what kind of defense they run. Prior to the snap of the ball, I'm reading the opponents entire defense and visualizing what I think they are going to do during the play. During the play, I read what they do and make a decision in about three seconds all while defensive linemen are trying to sack me, but I don't worry about that too much because our offensive line is the best there is. But there is so much more that goes into playing quarterback than "see receiver, throw to receiver, score a touchdown. Regardless, it's a lot harder than it seems to be. I am basically the "coach on the field," if you will, when it comes to offense. If someone has a question about a play or something like that, they come to me, and I know the answer. It's a lot of mental work and understanding the offense as a whole. I need to know what almost every guy is doing, and make sure every guy is in the right place. I hope you learned something new about what it's truly like to play quarterback on Friday nights, and I just wanted to thank you for coming out and supporting us like you guys do every week. It means a lot. PAUL KOONTZ, JR. | Football
MRS. KEMMERER | Math Picture This: Music blasting, party lights lighting the room, and a “whoop whoop” being yelled from somewhere behind you. You can feel the music in your body and you just can’t stop moving. You start slowly, at first just moving your feet along to the beat. Next, your arms join in and begin to move too. Before you know it, you’re breaking a sweat, dancing like nobody’s watching, and smiling like a fool. This is not a dance or a party, it is Zumba! My first experience with Zumba was about eight years ago. My sister asked me if I wanted to try a new workout that she did with a friend and absolutely loved. I was hesitant at first; the class my sister wanted to do was a six -week commitment. Six weeks is a long time in “teacher years”. (Especially when you have no idea what you are walking into and you are already juggling a very busy schedule.) Also, I was looking for a “real” workout and I wasn’t sure that Zumba was it. I played soccer in high school and for two years in college. I was used to getting my butt kicked by running like a maniac or lifting weights. I was worried that Zumba wouldn’t be enough for me. This is not a dance or a party, it is Zumba! I was so very wrong. The very first Zumba Fitness class that I took was at the Latrobe Skating Center. The lights were turned down and the music was blasting. A smiling, welcoming instructor took her place on the stage and greeted all of her new students. She told us to not worry about getting all of the moves; just focus on the feet and the rest will come. That first song flew by and I looked at my sister and said, “That was only the warmup?! This is going to be a workout!” I’ve been hooked on Zumba ever since. I’ve always loved to dance and now I was dancing to choreography that was designed to target different muscle groups and to create a full body workout. I never expected to become a Zumba instructor. Going to Zumba was an hour of dancing, sweating and laughing with my sister and my friends; it was my “me” time. It was my time to get away from the stresses of life and to get in shape. Zumba helped to curb anxiety that developed when regular exercise got put on the back burner and I wasn’t taking enough time to take care of myself. However, an opportunity presented itself when my instructor announced that she was retiring. The Zumba class that I was attending started to feel like a family. I was one of “the regulars” who attended every class, had “my spot”, and knew the other students by name. I couldn’t bear the thought of breaking up our Zumba family and thankfully my sister and another student in that class felt the same way. I never expected to become a Zumba instructor. Being a Zumba instructor is a time commitment, but it is something that I look forward to every class. After hours of discussions, planning and ensuring this was possible; my sister (Kristy Shearman), another student from our class (Valerie Palko), and I created “Your Zumba Crew,” where our classes are all about ensuring our students enjoy themselves and get a fantastic workout. We attended a training last December to become certified Zumba instructions and began our Zumba business at A.V. Germano Hall in Derry immediately. Since that time, we have created our own, but always growing, Zumba family. This summer we were asked to offer additional classes at the Blairsville Armory, which we started in September. We are currently teaching classes three to four times a week and our students are achieving great success. In the past two weeks I have had a student tell me about how her health has improved drastically from the weight she has lost doing Zumba and another student tell me that she has lost forty pounds since the spring and that she has never felt better. Zumba is an interval workout; this means that after a proper warm-up, songs are selected to create intense and recovery periods throughout the workout. Our classes generally have around fifteen songs including merengue, salsa, cumbia, and reggaeton rhythms. We also kept the philosophy of our first instructor and that was to pick songs that are just fun. We have pop songs sprinkled throughout our playlists and are currently having fun with some Halloween songs leading up to the holiday. It is so important to find a way to stay healthy throughout your life. That includes eating right, getting proper sleep, and routinely working out. The physical and mental benefits of taking care of yourself are absolutely phenomenal. For me, Zumba is that workout. It is my hour where the stresses of the day no longer matter, I just dance with some amazing people, enjoy myself and laugh when I mess up. MRS. KEMMERER | Math
OLEXEI NUTTALL | Senior If you would have walked up to me as a freshman and told me that I would be the captain of the boys' soccer team, I would have looked at you as if you had two heads. Flash forward to October of 2019, and I still can’t believe that I’m living that moment. In the beginning of summer, I was told that the girls' soccer team could be dissolved due to low participation numbers. My first reaction was to go into panic mode. From June until mid August, I tried my best to ask any girls I could to see if they would be interested in playing soccer. When I realized that there might not be enough girls to field a team, my heart sank, but I was not disappointed in myself because I never gave up and I tried my best to field a team. I got a call one morning from new head coach, Tawni Lynch, that I and other girls could play on the boys' soccer team. This made me feel extremely nervous because playing on a guys team can be very intimidating especially being female. I and the other girls, Julie Shaffer, Bethany Allen, Alyssa Main, Emily Bolish, Faith Heckathorne, Abbie Bolen, Danielle Cramer, Hope Shaulis, and Kara Semelsberger, all agreed to be "thrown to the wolves" and play on the boys' team. We didn’t know what to expect. When the first day of mandatory practices started, we were instantly greeted and accepted by the boys team. There were awkward vibes between the two sides, but the boys were very accepting to what we called “the merge.” The first day of practice was physically demanding and exhausting. It seemed like we were straight sprinting for hours. The beating August sun did not feel mercury either. After the first day of practice was over, the Boys head coach Austin Main told us girls that he was proud of us for coming out to play on the guys team; however, we needed to work five times harder to compete against other guys teams. There were awkward vibes between the two sides, but the boys were very accepting to what we called “the merge.” Throughout the mandatory practices, the whole team was improving and we were all coming together. When our first game came along and Coach Main told the team that the Captains would be Damian Morales, Anthony Ditonto, and myself, I was shocked because I was the captain of the girls' soccer team my sophomore and junior year. However, I did not expect at all to be a female captain of a men’s soccer team. As we played through the season, when the captains from each team would meet and shake hands before every game, I would get strange looks from the other captains. During games, I would get strange looks from opposing players, I would get chirped at, I would get laughed at, and I would get talked about. I cannot speak for the other girls, but I can imagine they were experiencing the same type of things. This didn't stop me. Being on one of the only soccer teams in the WPIAL that merged isn’t an easy thing to accept. This season was a challenge, but I am thankful that the guys on our team stuck up for the girls on the team, and the coaches too. Playing against a male athlete is a lot harder than playing a female athlete, being a female athlete. I am thankful for the experience the boys' team has provided me and how it made me grow and better my skills. I am also thankful I got to finish my Derry Soccer career with my fellow captains Morales and Ditonto because we played middle school together and were captains together 8th grade year. Morales and Ditonto improved me as a player, helped me, were great leaders, and supported me throughout the season. I also thank my teammates, coaches, supporters, and family throughout the season. I'm glad to call this team, my family. Moral of the story is to never let any stipulation stop you from doing what you love. I didn't. We didn't. OLEXEI NUTTALL | Senior
MR. CURCIO | English Back in 2002, Allen Iverson, the retired, hall of fame basketball player for the Philadelphia Sixers, stepped up to the microphone and proceeded to say the word “practice” 22 times to sarcastically rant about how he was being judged for not “practicing” hard enough. More than 15 years later, this response has become the topic of a documentary, an allusion response to whenever someone even talks about practice, and yes, even a meme. Albeit Iverson successfully mocked the concept of practice, he did not minimize the importance of practice in everything that we want to do well. The SATs are a stressful time for a lot of high school students. I vividly remember taking the SATs with a set number in mind because my goal was to attend Penn State University. Of course, I do not remember that exact number, but currently, a typical Penn State student earns a score of 530-630 for Reading and Writing and a score of 560-670 for Math. For those wondering, to get into Harvard, a typical student scores between a 710-800 and 720-800, respectively. Being a student-athlete, I respected and valued the importance of practice. If I struggled with a certain play, I redid and replayed it over and over again until I got it right. If I needed work on my track start, I read articles on strategies and techniques until it was the best that it could be. YouTube wasn’t necessarily a thing yet. Just like a game on Friday, you can’t practice exactly what will happen on “game day” for the SATs, however, you can practice - which is where the PSATs come into play. The PSAT literally stands for Practice SAT. Not only this, but based on how well you do on it, you can qualify for scholarships strictly for practicing. As an analogy, this is like wrestling someone at practice and because you pinned your teammate, you automatically letter. Some of you may have laughed at that comparison, but it’s not that far off: a letter is something you work for and earn… just like scholarships. At this moment in time, it’s probably too late for you to take the PSAT, as the dates this Fall were October 16th, 19th, and 30th. However, the test is not going away. My advice to any underclassmen is to take the PSAT whenever it is offered, especially if you have goals of earning scholarships or getting into a particular college. Before you take the PSAT, choose three schools that you are interested in and find out what a typical student there usually scores to be admitted. Write these numbers down because these three numbers are your goals. Once you get your scores back, cross-analyze and see where you are. If your scores aren’t good enough, keep practicing - you can take the PSAT as many times as you wish. If you’re comfortable with how you did, then get prepared for the SAT - when it matters. Allen Iverson tried to diminish the importance of practice by mocking it. It’s not mentioned as much as the quote, but the year before, his team made the NBA Finals. After his rant, he never won another playoff series as a Sixer. Yes, the SAT is the game, but the PSAT is more than “just practice,” especially if you want to win. MR. CURCIO | English
KIERA DANKESREITER | Class of 2019 I have been avoiding writing this piece since I embarked on the last odyssey of my high school career this year. Something about it didn’t feel right. I suppose I didn’t feel like a senior yet. But then the first semester ended, and now the third quarter has as well, leaving me in the last few weeks of high school - ever - and I still don’t feel like a senior. I’ve been mulling over why, trying to put the feeling into words to figure out what went wrong that I can’t seem to quite enjoy this last stretch, and I believe I’ve finally figured it out: I have so many things I want to do, and not enough time to do it. When I entered high school in 2015, I had a checklist of the things I wanted to do. I had great plans to finish writing a novel, become almost fluent in German, and basically transform myself into a better different person. Yet the only thing I achieved was the last one. I have not completed my novel (though I am about 60,000 words into the rough draft) and I’m barely declared intermediate when it comes to my German capabilities, but I have changed for the better over the years. And honestly, that’s the most important thing. Writing gave me confidence, and let me use my words to inspire others. Now that I am close to the end of my initial schooling, I look back on all I have not accomplished, and I feel guilty. But that’s my problem. I set all these goals to accomplish by the time I graduate, and since I am one to always get projects done on time, it bothers me. So I’ve started trying to train my brain to think less about what I didn’t do, and more of what I have done in the past four years, and who helped me get here. When it comes to my novel, what a lot of people don’t tell you is that it is mostly solitary work propelled by self-motivation, which is something I didn’t have much of until my junior year. My personal drive used to only be geared towards my academics, but I now direct it down several different avenues. And there are several people responsible for that. My former English teachers really helped me shape my craft and find my voice. Mrs. Feldbusch gave me the initial confidence I needed to put my words on paper, while Mr. Williams’ Fun-Write-Fridays helped me realize I write better in short bursts. Mrs. Harr always was willing to read my (pretty rough) rough draft of my first few chapters while I discovered the plot and the direction I was going. And Mr. Curcio always gave no-nonsense reviews of what I wrote that was kind of intimidating but filled with tips that I wouldn’t have considered incorporating otherwise. Honestly, without them, I would have never grown to become the writer I am today or the person. Writing gave me confidence, and let me use my words to inspire others. The second item on the list was about German. As many of you know, Derry’s German program was cut in my sophomore year, and at the time, I was planning on majoring in German. I knew that three years without the experience of the language would leave me at quite a great disadvantage compared to others in my field, and so I worked closely with Dr. Perry and Mr. Ferencak to try and get the few remaining German kids an opportunity to continue their language learning experience. Now, I am the only student at Derry still taking German as a foreign language, but without these people as well as Mr. Long (who also encouraged me to keep going) and Ms. Smeltzer (who let me do my work in the library each day and kept my morale up), I wouldn’t have the opportunities I do now and I certainly would not be dual majoring in English and German as I am today. There is a sort of balance here that I’ve really come to appreciate in the last year. The last item on my checklist that I wrote for myself in 2015 was to change for the better. That one was the easiest one in my mind then, but it has actually been the hardest. Change comes at a cost, and that cost for me was a lot of extra time, heartache, and woe to become the person I am today. I have made and lost friends changed career paths, picked up new interests and gained a whole lot more confidence than I started out with. Looking back on my past four years, there are too many people to thank. These are just a few mentors who impacted me. I could have written piles of articles on how the people here at Derry shaped me, but I am limited to only one. When it comes down to it, Derry has its flaws. It has things that need reform, problems that need mending. But I also know that there are a lot of good people here, students and faculty alike. Here, I have seen people tear down others, and another group builds that individual back up. There is a sort of balance here that I’ve really come to appreciate in the last year. There is also a sort of respect from the senior class, respect that comes from kids that know that all of this is coming to an end sooner than we think, and we’re trying to make the most of it. People are extremely nice and open, and everyone is looking to the future. It’s really refreshing. I think the seniors are a little nostalgic, and I know for a fact I am. And it’s not necessarily a bad thing. You see, I have so much to be thankful for as a result of Derry. If I had been elsewhere, I wouldn’t be the same. I was shaped by my environment here, and no matter how far I go - whether it is Georgia, Japan, or Germany - I can always call this place home. KIERA DANKESREITER | Former Senior Editor
MIRANDA SCHMUCKER | Class of 2013 Dear high school self, It sure doesn’t seem like it now, but getting a C on that test isn’t the end of the world. Finding out the boy you like doesn’t like you back isn’t the end of the world. Not knowing who you are yet is not the end of the world. Though right now it’s hard to see outside the scope of high school, it’s important to understand that this is just a tiny, little stepping stone in your life. No one knows who they are, what they want to be, where they want to go, what makes them happy yet. And that’s okay. It’s been four short years since high school and I feel as if I’ve lived a thousand different lives in that time. In high school, I got straight A’s, participated in a handful of extracurriculars, volunteered in my spare time and had all the friends I could ever possibly want. College life changed my perspective on myself REAL fast. I was getting regular C’s on tests, wasn’t making a ton of new friends and overall wasn’t adjusting well to my new life. I spent so much of my high school years feeling better than the town I grew up in, feeling as if I was smarter than everyone else and my time was more valuable than my peers’. But if that is true, why did I miss home so much and why was I a B-average student? I guess what I wish I could say to myself in high school is to slow down. Your whole life is still ahead of you. You don’t have to be put together and successful at sixteen. Hang out with your friends as much as you can. Eat what you want, but also GO FOR A RUN AND TAKE CARE OF YOUR SKIN. Appreciate all the opportunities you have available to you in high school. Get to know new people and hold real conversations with your teachers. You’re not too good for this town or this school or your friends, and if you begin to lose your humble, life will put you back in your place. Trust me. You’re not too good for this town or this school or your friends, and if you begin to lose your humble, life will put you back in your place. Trust me. In high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do in college. All my friends already knew they wanted to major in biology or chemistry or engineering and I had no clue at all. It felt like because I was smart, and because all my friends were doing it, I should only apply to big name schools and get a degree in Pre-Med and become a doctor. Even though that wasn’t at all what I wanted to do, it’s what I tried to do. I applied to only state schools with massive tuition bills for biology programs. I got accepted into each school for each program and didn’t even feel happy or fulfilled. It felt wrong. I changed my major three times before finding what I really wanted. It wasn’t until I stopped thinking about what my friends or parents wanted and just considered what I actually LOVED. You cannot go through life with external influences always in the back of your mind. Do what YOU want, because YOU love it and it’s important to YOU. Yes, eighteen really is too young to try to understand what you want to do for the rest of your life, whether you go to college or straight into the work force, but that’s life, and if you let others choose your path for you, it’s very likely to be a miserable one. High school self, you don’t know it yet, but everything turns out okay. You graduate college early even though you thought you’d never make it out alive. You move to CALIFORNIA. Can you believe that?! You make it on your own in San Francisco and live life for yourself. You make all your own choices, take care of your health, and make some of the best friends you’ll ever have. And none of it would’ve been possible if you hadn’t worked so hard in high school and let all the stresses of life get to you. Don’t hurry to grow up so fast. The biggest lesson I have learned since high school, that I SO wish I could go back in time and tell myself, is that time is precious. Never, ever, ever take your friends, your teachers, your family, your health, any aspect of your life for granted. Do everything you can to enjoy every stage of your life. The little things you stress over, that feel like they are going to end your world today will mean nothing in a year. Everyone will find his or her own definition of success and happiness in the years to come. Life isn’t a competition. You find what you love in your own time and often it will mean making mistakes along the way, but that’s okay. One of my favorite song lyrics to think of when I’m going through a difficult time is “life’s not out to get you, but trust me you’ll be fine because I’ve been moving mountains that I once had to climb.” Everything will come together when it’s supposed to, high school self. Don’t hurry to grow up so fast. Stay humble. Be kind. Do what you love. Live YOUR best life. Sincerely, Still-doesn't-have-it-together-yet, MIRANDA SCHMUCKER | Alumni Contributor
MR. CURCIO | Newspaper Advisor In 1958, Ella Fitzgerald released an album entitled, Ella Swings Lightly. On that album, there is a song entitled, “What’s Your Story, Morning Glory.” With this release, the phrase was born and subsequently copied for years to come by the likes of Oasis and The Beatles. The song is basically about Fitzgerald asking the morning from its “point of view” why her lover has not responded back to her message of “I love you.” Think a morning text message that never comes even though the text you sent last night says Read. Yes, even Ella Fitzgerald was left on Read. But besides in song, the phrase has been used as an allusion to ask people what their stories are, usually as a way of introduction. Joseph Kelly says it best in his Introduction to the Seagull Reader Stories: We can’t escape stories. We read them in the newspaper; we see them on television; and over lunch or coffee or on the phone we tell each other stories about ourselves, our friends, our enemies, our heroes. Stories keep us afloat. We need to both hear and tell stories to make sense of the world and our place in it. It doesn’t matter what age - as long as your long-term memory can remember, you will have a story. What’s unique about these stories is that the perspectives all depend on the point of view of the storyteller. We are all storytellers, and we all have stories - especially from high school. High school is where a lot of memories are made. According to memory researchers, we have something called, ‘the reminiscence bump,’ which proves that our “strongest memories come from things that happened to us between the ages of 10 and 30” (McAndrew). These memories are captured by the stories we tell our best friends, our future friends, and yes, even our own future families. The goal of The Station is to help get high school stories told and enjoyed. A few years ago, I came across The Players’ Tribune, which featured sports stories written by the athletes themselves instead of journalists. The first article that I came across was one written by Andrew McCutchen who wrote a first-person narrative about his experience in center field during the 2013 Wild Card game against the Reds. While reading, I was transported to that night and actually felt like I was playing center field for the Pirates (when they were actually good). It was after reading this article that I realized, this is what a high school newspaper should be - and so, The Station was born. What’s next? Well, there is no Station without stories. Your stories. I encourage you to write your own stories and submit them for publication: Students. Teachers. Administration. Alumni. Bottom Line: If you are currently a Trojan or once a Trojan - feel free to submit. We will edit them. We will revise them. We will make them look “good” aesthetically. All you have to do is write. So, what’s your story? MR. CURCIO / Newspaper Advisor Works Cited “Ella Fitzgerald – What's Your Story, Morning Glory?” Genius, genius.com/Ella-fitzgerald-whats-your-story-morning-glory-lyrics. Kelly, Joseph. The Seagull Reader. W.W. Norton, 2001. McAndrew, Frank T., and Cornelia H. Dudley Professor of Psychology. “Why High School Stays with Us Forever.” The Conversation, 25 Sept. 2019, theconversation.com/why-high-school-stays-with-us-forever-56538. |