RHS News

ASB Connects the Dots
by Kati Dickson

November 6-8 was a busy weekend for ASB president Alisha Lacewell. After competing in the State Championship Cross Country Meet on Saturday the 6th, she immediately turned around and headed off to Seaside along with the rest of the ASB to take part in an annual leadership conference. The OASC (Oregon Association of Student Councils) held its 50th annual leadership conference for high school leaders.

School pride was a huge issue for the Reedsport ASB, consisting of Alisha Lacewell, Josh Savey, Chris Kaufmann, Mandi Schafer, Dharmi Patel, Lisa Osekowsky. and because Stephanie Markwick was not able to attend the conference, Justin Fulps was elected to go in her place. How to put-on a successful pep assembly was one of the many workshops that RHS students attended. Workshops on how to appreciate the staff and how to have more fun, school wide events were also topics for the conference. “We have to connect the dots to connect the school, and we learned how to do that at the conference.” Lacewell commented about the key-note speaker Mark Scharenbroich, who spoke about connecting the dots of schoolmates in order to bring a sense of unity in the community.

Four Runners Compete at State

by Michele Kirk

With Lane Community College in Eugene being the place of the Cross Country State Meet for over twenty years now; 2004 wasn't any different. At the District Cross Country meet held on October 30th Alisha Lacewell, Kati Dickson, Tyler Hague and Andrew Merschel all placed in the top seven, gaining them a spot at the state meet on November 6th.
At exactly 12:00 a.m., 114 girls from across the state started on a 3.1 mile race which would lead from the muddy baseball fields,

up a steep hill, past West Bank, around to a wood chip hill and steep incline past the Soccer Bowl and then past the Team Parking Lot to the one mile mark which was a loop around Eldon Schafer Drive. This was full of wood chips.
    Next, Lacewell and Dickson ran up a hill and parallel to 30th Avenue where Kati Dickson said, "This is when you get that hopeless feeling in your stomach." After going around two ponds, the two mile marker was reached. Once again, the girls ran through West Bank, past the Soccer Bowl and the Team Parking Lot, cut across near the Softball Fields, ran parallel to 30th Avenue, and straight to the track for the finish line. Not only was there mud and wood chips to run through but the entire terrain was wet.
    Kati Dickson had a final time of 21:20 and a mile time of 6:52 which gave her an overall 14th place finish, only 4 seconds behind the 13th place finisher, Heather Ryan from Central Linn. Close behind was Senior Alisha Lacewell with a time of 21:26 and a mile time of 6:54 came in 16th place.
    The boys started their race at 2:30 p.m. and once again had 114 participants, two of them being Andrew Merschel and Jesse Jackson. Their race was mapped out the same as the girls but the later the day got, the muddier it got. Although it was muddy, it didn't stop Andrew Merschel from finishing 50th with a time of 18:43 and a mile time of 6:02. Jesse Jackson finished 52nd with a time of 18:47 and a mile time of 6:03.
    Alisha Lacewell said, "This Cross Country Season surpassed all of my expectations, I trained all summer with the goal of making it to state in mind. Crossing the finish line at state was the epitome of all my hard work and dedication."

Fagnan Speaks About Obesity

by Kati Dickson

   Dr. Fagnan of the ORPRN (Oregon Rural Practice-base Network) spoke to a packed room at the Umpqua Discovery Center about what many would call an epidemic of obesity in America, more specifically in Oregon. American and Oregonian lifestyles and eating habits was the main topic of the night, as was how we can help in our community to help prevent and stop obesity in our hometowns.
    The mission of ORPRN is to improve the health of rural population in Oregon though conducting and promoting health research in partnership with the communities and practitioners we serve. Obesity, caused by poor diet and lack of physical activity, are major causes of premature mortality. Many studies have shown that 70%-80% of all obese children will remain obese their entire life, and being overweight or obese at the age of 20 could reduce your life span by up to 20 years.
    Childhood obesity is of utmost importance for Oregonians to try and teach their kids healthy eating habits as well as maintaining a physically active life to prevent premature mortality due to obesity. “Genes load the gun, lifestyle pulls the trigger”- Dr. Hostin has become a quote that is a subtle reminder that even though you may have the “obesity” gene in you, the choices you make in life still give you the right to maintain a healthy lifestyle. A now widely known fact is that Oregon is now the first state west of the rockies that the obesity rate is over 20%. Obesity is well on its way to becoming the largest cause of modifiable mortality.