Westville Public School Date: Feb.

25, 2013 Vol: 1 Issue: 4

Westville Yellowjacket

Journal

Westville weight lifters win events ...Vaughn, Luttrell show stuff

By: Sharee Crittenden and Kayla Watt Westville High School power lifters Austin Vaughn and Dustin Luttrell each took first place in their divisions in recent competitions. The Westville team took third out of more than 25 schools in the Feb. 1. meet at Muskogee. The team placed fourth in the Hilldale meet Jan. 25 . The boys did a good job and worked hard, said high school powerlifting coach Steven Cain. Coy Howe placed third at the Muskogee meet. Caleb Brown and Matt Camp have also been doing well in their divisions, and they said they do want to improve. The power comes from the Mohawks, said Matt Camp. Vaughn, Luttrell, and Camp got Mohawks, a hair cut style that includes a bald head with a
(Continued on page 3)

PUMPING IRON. Westville High School weightlifting team members Austin Vaughn spots Dustin Luttrell, who is squatting a heavy weight in practice. Both Vaughn and Luttrell took top honors for their weight classifications in a recent competition.

Photo by Kayla Watt

Westville boys make playoffs

Aubrey Cochran wears her crown after she was selected as this years FCCLA Queen.

Photo by Sarah Hensley

The Westville High School boys basketball team, whose starters are known as the Fab Five, advance to the state area playoffs Thursday to face Keys at 3 p.m. at Fort Gibson. School closes at 1:15 p.m. Thursday

to allow supporters to come out and support the team. Check the school newspaper website for breaking news about the YellowJackets in the state playoffs: www.westvillenews.weebly.com

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Westville Yellowjacket Journal

February 25, 2013

Sickness closes Westville school

By: Elvan Allen Westville schools closed last month after about 200 students and 18 teachers were absent because of a rampant scourge of flu and flu-like symptoms, according to school officials. Westville students were out of school three days in mid January, including Thursday Jan. 17, Friday and Monday, when teachers held in-service training. Westville School Nurse Latisha Goodall said in an interview that the number of kids sent home from school each day because of sickness increased from 25 to 50. Most of the sickness that students suffered from included fevers, headaches, aches, and upset stomachs, she said. Goodall said the sickness was bad enough for me to not want to send my own kids to school. Though Westville Schools had a little epidemic of their own, they werent the only ones. Both Watts and Lincoln, Arkansas schools have also closed their schools this year because of sickness. After Westville Schools returned to school, only about 90 kids were absent because they were continuing to suffer from illness. The leave of absence a huge success for the problem of attendance due to sickness. In the end this was a great solution to the problems Westville was facing due to the amount of people that were absent from school.

Check out our new school newspaper Website:

www.westvillenews. weebly.com

DairyBar Bar DairyCowboy Burger Home of the

Home of the Cowboy Burger

Visit the Visit the

Located: Across from Westville High School

Located: Across from High School 5560

Phone: 723-5560

Phone: 723-

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Westville Yellowjacket Journal (Continued from page one)

Page 3

Westville power lifters doing well

narrow streak of hair in the middle. Westvilles main competition in power lifting is Stilwell High School, said Cain. Stilwell won the Hilldale and

Muskogee power meet, he said. Westville and Stilwell are both in the Southeast Region, which means they compete against different and bigger schools, he said.

Both be competing in regional competition on March 2, gives them time to improve, Cain said. Lifting helps prepare athletes for football season next year, he said.

Westville band members make honor band

By: Amanda Cline Four Westville Band members recently participated in the middle school and high school honor bands in Stigler. Students auditioned and were selected to an association known as the Eastern Oklahoma Band Directors Association (EOBDA). Westville students were chosen to be in this band from both Junior High and High School students. Students include Ashley Sallee, a senior who plays clarinet received fourth chair; Dorinda Neale, a senior who also plays clarinet received seventh chair; Jake Cavness, an eighth grader who plays alto saxophone received second chair; and Daniel Neale, also in eighth grade, plays snare drum and received fifth chair. Students selected, performed in a concert on Feb. 2 in Stigler. Sallee said this event a life changing experience. It makes musicians more dedicated to what they do, she said. Practice all day, like 8 hours with people from different schools and then have a concert. We have a guest conductor come from a college and conduct all day. Last year, both junior and high school honor bands were recorded. Junior high honor band was directed by Charles Booker and the High school Honor band was directed by Tim Brandt.

Westville Schools annual Health Fair coming soon

By: Alisha Winkler Are you wanting to learn about health and anything related to health in a fun way? The Wednesday before spring break, March 13, is Westville Schools annual health fair. The health fair will be held in the gymnasium at Westville Schools. The community and students are welcome to donate blood to help save other peoples lives. However there are certain qualifications that you have to meet to offer blood. If you are 16 or 17 you must weigh 125 or more and if youre 18 you must weigh at least 110. The organization that will be taking the blood is Oklahoma Blood Institute. Different health care facilities are welcome to come to our school to advertise. Cherokee Nation will be there along with NEO and Stilwell Can Adair County Get Lifted. This year things will be a little different. High school and junior high students that have a good reason for going will be required to sign up and if you are currently enrolled in a science class as long as your teacher has signed his/her classes up you will be able to go. There was so much chaos with people coming and going as they please. said Westville Public School nurse, Latisha Goodall.

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Westville Yellowjacket Journal

February 25, 2013

Junior attendant Harlie Stafford is escorted by junior Destin Pretty during the Westville Family Career and Community Leaders of America 2013 Coronation
Photos by Sarah Hensley

Junior attendant True Farabee is escorted by Johnson Waring during the Westville Family Career and Community Leaders of America 2013 Coronation on Jan. 26.

FCCLA ROYALTY. Westville FCCLA members selected as royalty this year include (from left) Mollie Cromeans, Brooklyn Collins, True Farabee, Aubrey Cochran, who was crowned queen, Harlie Stafford, Andrea Maloney and Jamilyn Alexander.

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Westville Yellowjacket Journal

Page 5

Did you know.

By: Kimberly White Valentines Day, or St Valentines Day, is celebrated every year on February 14. Another popular symbol would be either doves or lovebirds. These are two birds which mate for life and it was once believed that they choose their mate in the middle of February. Valentines Day is also the day when people show their affection for another person or people by sending cards, flowers, or chocolates with messages of love. The day gets its name from a famous saint. Emperor Claudius II had banned marriage because he thought married men were bad soldiers. Valentine felt this was unfair, so he broke the rules and arranged marriages in secret. When Claudius found out, Valentine was thrown in jail and sentenced to death. There, GREAT BIG CARD. Westville High School student Destinee Boydston holds her large valentines Day card behind he fell in love with the jailers daughter and when he was taken to be killed on Feb. 14 he the vase of flowers she received on Valentines Day. sent her a love letter signed, from your Valentine. Fun Facts about Valentines Day is perhaps best known for its Valentines Day cards. In Medieval times, girls ate bizarre foods on St Valentines Day to dream of their future spouse. Around 3% of pet owners prefer to give Valentine gifts to their pets, because they are more grateful than humans. In the past, some people believed that if a women saw a robin flying overhead on Valentines Day, it meant she would marry a sailor. If she saw a sparrow, she would marry a poor man and be very happy. If she saw a goldfinch, she would marry a millionaire. The red rose was the favorite flower of Venus, the Roman goddess of love.
Source: http://festivals.iloveindia.com/valentinesday/valentine-day-fact.html

ANOTHER BIG CARD. Westville junior high student Bronwyn Ernsten holds a Valentines Day card that she made for a loved one. Photo by Kayla Watt

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Westville Yellowjacket Journal

February 25, 2013

Coates, Collins, win school talent show

...Smart takes third
Westville senior Tori Coates placed first Westville School Talent
Show on Jan. 31 when she performed a

song that she wrote for her classmates. Senior Chip Collins, who also sang a song, placed second in the high school division. Angel Smart, who sang and played the piano, placed third in the high school division. In the elementary division, the winners included Vanessa Williams and Kendra Wilkie in first place, Brooklyn Duncan and Emma Talent show winners. Westville senior Tori Coates sings with Chip Collins Swank in second place and Audrey during the talent show. Coates and Collins won individually in the high Phillips, Anna Funberg and Lindsey school talent show and Angel Smart won in the junior high. Photo by Kayla Watt Harp in third.

Drumming. Tristan Taylor plays drums to the song Nightmare by Avenged Sevenfold during the talent show.

Photo by Kayla Watt

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Westville Yellowjacket Journal

February 25, 2013

JUDGES AWARD WINNER. Team members pictured from left include Cody Lowery, Dustin Brantley (back), Austin Sanderson, Samuel Augare and Dalton Carson. Photos submitted

Robotics team wins judges award

By: Harley Perkins The Westville Robotics team earned the judges award in the Feb. 2 Oklahoma Vex Robotic Regional Competition. The Westville robotics team impressed the VEX judges with their knowledge, excitement, and ability to overcome adversity, said Sunny Alves, one of the faculty sponsors for the team. Robotics is a branch of technology that deals with design, construction, operation , and application of robots and computer systems of their control sensory feedback and information processing, according to Wikipedia.com. Alves said the team members did well in competitions on both Feb. 2 and Jan. 12. dents competed in the Claremore Westville students said they Zebra Sack Attack Robotics faced challenges lifting five competition Jan. 12. pounds of bean bags in the Jan. Westvilles three teams placed 12 competition. 14th, 30th, and 33rd in the recent Whoever gets the most bean competition, according to an bags per team color in the goals event organizer. may win the round but it depends on the goal they made it in, and depending bean bags are scored differently, said Richard Mickey Shook, a Westville High School student. ROBOTICS COMPETITION. Jake Cavness in a Shook and other recent robotics event.. Westville stu-

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Westville Yellowjacket Journal

February 25, 2013

DISTRICT WINNERS MAKE STATE. Starters for the Westville High School boys basketball team, known as the Fab Five show their muscles and share a smile after winning the district championship game against Vian on Feb. 15 at Westville. Players, from left, include Justin Self, Conner Delarosa, Chip Collins, Hershell Gifford and Martin Schultz. Westville advances to the state playoffs on Thursday to face Keys at Fort Gibson.

TOURNEY WINNERS. The Westville Seventh Grade Boys Basketball team beat Siloam Springs to win the Peoples Bank Classic tournament on Jan. 18. The team finished the year with a record of 15-3, according to Coach Tyler Patterson. Team members shown from left include: Front row: Dagan Hembree, Caleb Swank, Shane Davidson, Cole Cundiff. Back row: Coach Tyler Patterson, Tyler Hammer, Haydn Kaiser, Brent Sanders, William Young, River Kaiser, Morgan Grooms