By Devyn Brinkerhoff

By Ashley Morris

By Alecsandria Hopkins

By kenzie Edmondson

By Willow Colbrese

By Kortni Brown

By Jonas Lujan

If you attempted to buy a 2012 yearbook online for $45 and were not able to finish the transaction, I have extended the deadline for a week.

However, I did discover that the Walsworth program only works with Safari.

Please let me know if you need any help.  I greatly apologize for the inconvenience.  We will also accept checks for $45 through September 7th at both campus business offices.

Thank you for your patience!

Claire Carter

ccarter@ccsd.k12.wy.us

Hayley Stephens Junior Staff Writer

There are several brave individuals at CCHS who are entering the military.

“I’ve been wanting to go ever since third grade,” said senior Justin Blaszkowski. “I grew up on Ellsworth AF Base and have had my future set on the Army National Guard. Past relatives have gone and I feel like it’s my turn. I owe it to my country.”

Blaszkowski is not alone.  “I’m going in because I want to have a future in life,” said junior Logan Wambeke. “I want something to look forward to.”

“I’m going on Army Active Duty; my grandma inspired me,” said senior Keelie Gavin. “She was my best friend, and ever since she passed away in 2001, I’ve wanted to become just like her.”

“It’s always appealed to me,” said senior Harley Kalb who is joining the Marines in October.  “I like how they take who you are and amplify it.”

Kalb has already experienced the tougher aspects of being in the military.  “My older stepbrother has been in the Army for nine years.  He is now in a hospital in California, recovering an IED blast in Afghanistan.  He is now blind in one eye.”

The danger of going into battle does not daunt Kalb.  “The risk of getting injured is high, but I know that the training I will receive will lower that risk.”

Furthering ones education is also a motivation for enlisting.

“I’m training in the National Guard already, and they will pay for most of my college,” said junior Ty Joslyn. “When I get out, I want to go into Airborne. I will drop out of airplanes behind enemy lines and shoot the bad people.”

Students looking in pursuing a career in the Army Guard can start right away as a high school student.

“We pay students up to two hundred dollars for one week out of the month to come train. Also, we will pay for college,” said local recruiter and Staff Sergeant Mark Hansen.

Julie Markadakis Sophomore Staff Writer

Having your own job when you’re a teenager is often a big step towards gaining independence.  According to the U.S. Department of Labor, by age 15, two-thirds of teenagers have some sort of employment. Do Campbell County High School students work too?

Junior Brittney Helgoe loves her job. “I’ve worked at Honk Kong restaurant for over four years now,” said Helgoe. “It’s my choice to work. I enjoy having my own money to pay for things, and I work with a lot of my friends.”

Helgoe isn’t the only student who loves the big bucks. “Having my own money to get whatever I want is the best part,” said sophomore Joey Hochhalter, who works at the Shell Convenience Mart. “I usually don’t have to depend on anyone to help me buy anything anymore.”

For some students, the people they work with make the jobs worthwhile. “I love my managers,” said senior Rachel Cunningham who works at KFC. “They’re always nice and enjoyable to work with.”

Having a job isn’t anything new for some teens. Sophomore Alyssa Watson, who works at Pokey’s, knows exactly what that means. “Working all the time makes it really hard to see my friends sometimes,” said Watson. “Having a job is a lot of responsibility to take on, but the money is nice.”

Balancing school and work is always important..  “It’s okay for students to have jobs, as long as they’re keeping up with their grades,” said Special Programs teacher Rosalia Gutierrez.

Whether you work for extra spending money, or for paying bills, having a job is a big step in a young person’s life.

Malaree Holland Editor In Chief

“When I hear the word ‘lunch lady’ I think of old crabby women in hairnets,” said senior Lelani Fowlke.  “I know that’s not true and TV and movies have just influenced the way I think of them.”

“That is a horrible stereotype,” said CCHS lunch lady Diana Lang. “We are all happy lunch ladies.” Over the years, the media has created the image of a crabby, old, hairy lunch lady into the heads of its viewers, but the lunch ladies at Campbell County High School couldn’t be further from that fictional character.

The cafeteria workers at CCHS are definitely dedicated to their jobs and the students. “I get here at four-thirty A.M. to turn on the ovens and put meat in that needs time to cook,” said Lang.  “Then all of the other ladies get here at five A.M.”

Not only do the lunch ladies prepare food for CCHS, they also make lunch for the elementary schools and junior highs in Campbell County School District. “Once we get those lunches done, we get a 15 minute break and then it’s time to prepare for our school’s lunch,” said Lang. “After we serve the students, we go out and clean up the tables. Then, we get 30 minutes for lunch. Then, more cleaning.”

Lunch lady Tammy Hunt prepares yet another meal for the students of CCSD.

Even after the lunch ladies clean up after the students at CCHS, they have even more to clean. Elementary schools send their trays to the high school to be washed. “It’s like a never-ending job,” said Lang.

Even though they don’t see as many kids as they wish they would, there is always a massive rush of faces on Fridays. “On a normal day we get about 200-250 students. Pizza day is our big rush; there’s a whole crowd,” said Lang.

With a day like the lunch ladies have, an easy day would seem desired, but despite their day, they would like to see more students in the lunch line. “Closed campus would be great,” said Lang. “That way we’d know the kids are eating healthy.”

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Kendra Kaness, Sophomore Staff Writer

“My dad honked and waved at me when he dropped me off for school in the ninth grade,” said junior Kenny Gustafson.  “He did it just to embarrass me, and he succeeded.” It seems that many teens have been embarrassed by their parents.

Some parents have a knack for this. Senior Estella Ortega’s parents are no exception. “Some of my friends and family came over and my parents started to show them pictures of me as a kid, naked running around the house.”

Senior Cole Sorch is in the same boat. “My mom babies me and tells me what to do, and when my mom asks me to give her a hug, my friends say, ‘Give her a hug.’ It embarrasses me.”

“It embarrasses me when my mom chews me out in front of my friends,” said senior Devon Stahla.

Sophomore Coral Smith said, “Just being with my parents in public makes me feel embarrassed and not normal.”

Some teenager’s think differently, as sophomore Ashton Peterson explained, “I don’t care; I’m not ashamed of my parents.”

Sophomore Amanda Kinsolving agreed. “I’m not embarrassed by my parents. I love my parents.”

Are parents aware of their work? Basketball coach and Drivers Ed teacher Mike Curry is. “My daughter says, ‘It’s not the seventies’ about what I wear. I would say I probably embarrass her.”

But on the flip side, teens probably embarrass their parents too. That’s a whole other story.

As they skated around the rink they locked eyes and timed slowed. They moved toward each other and their lips locked. It was electric. Everyone remembers his or her first kiss, right?

“It felt like my heart fell out of my butt,” said sophomore Ariel Hope. “We skated holding hands and we shared cotton candy. I would definitely kiss him again.”

“It was my thirteenth birthday. I got butterflies in my tummy even though he made out with seven other girls before me,“ said junior Taylor Farnsworth. “Skylar Salazar was an outstanding first kiss. It is something I will never forget.”

“Homecoming was when our friends pressured us into the kiss,” said senior Ashley James. “I was in California at the time, and it gave me butterflies. Your first kiss is something you will never forget.

Cherokee McKenney is the mother of a former CCHS student, and her first kiss was bittersweet.   “The kiss happened in the first grade and we dated until eighth grade.   I had to move, and the day after I left, I got a call from the boy’s mother, saying that his pacemaker had stopped in the middle in the night.  He had passed away.”

“He was a wrestler,” said librarian Mitzie Neugebauer. “We dated throughout the season. It happened when he was walking me home after his match and we stopped by my door and he kissed me. Yuck! was what I thought of the kiss.”

Guys remember their first kiss too.

“It was summer time and we were at Keyhole,” said sophomore Michael Morsett.  “We were swimming around and she stopped and hugged me. We just looked at each other and we kissed.  That was something I didn’t expect coming from her. I have never been so nervous in my life.”

Your first kiss will always be remembered.  Hopefully though, it’s not your last.



Julie Markadakis Staff Writer

For high school students, expressing yourself is often a top priority. For some, tattoos and piercings are a creative outlet.

“I have eight different piercings,” said sophomore Alyssa Watson. “It’s a way to express myself, and I like to be different.”

Though they do convey individuality, not everyone has a pleasant experience with their piercings. “I went through the pain of piercing my hips by myself,” said sophomore Kendra Kier. “I liked them while they were done, but I got in trouble for it, and now I have ugly scars to live with.”

They may be innovative, but piercings aren’t the only way to define who you are. Tattoos are another option. Junior Orchid Ricketts, who has a blue butterfly on her hip, is a perfect example. “I just got my tattoo because wanted one for a long time,” said Ricketts. “For me, it’s just about the fun of having one.”

Junior English teacher Nathel Coca loves her tattoos. “I got my first tattoo in 1993,” said Cocoa. “I love all of mine. Some of my friends look at me like I’m crazy, though!”

Sometimes though, a person’s tattoos have deep meaning “I got my tattoo to remember my little brother that passed,” said sophomore J.B. Fickel. “It’s something that will be there permanently to connect me to him.”

Senior Harley Kalb felt the same way when he got his tattoo. “My sophomore year, I got my uncle’s signature tattooed onto my bicep,” Kalb said. “It means a lot to me because it has a history behind it. Now I’ll always have a reminder of my uncle.”

Regardless of your reasoning, a tattoo or piercing is a big commitment. Before you go under the needle, remember to think about what you’re getting into.

Campbell County High School has numerous wonderful teachers, but this year an art teacher has been chosen as Teacher of the Year for Campbell County School District.  Ceramics teacher Mike Plourde was the amazing teacher to earn the title for Campbell County for 2010.  Plourde teaches art classes at the South Campus.

“I’m impressed about how much he cares for his students,” said drawing and painting teacher Rede Ballard.

Plourde is happy to have colleagues like Ballard and Jason Linduska.  “I would say that they are both friends and mentors to me.”
“Art is my passion, because it is easy to do,” said Plourde.
“Over the years,  I’ve worked hard, but a lot of teachers out there to deserve it too,” he said of the award.

That may be so, but Campbell County High School is lucky to have an instructor like Michael Plourde.