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F E ATU RE S
The Greensboro College Gospel Choir delivers a performance Jan. 18 at Greensboro College
honoring Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King jr.
Students gather for MIK
vigil and performance
By Skylar Larsen
Staff Writer
Icy bullets of water stung the skin as they
pelted down from the dark clouds. The
chilly wind was steadfast against the flames
that wavered unsteadily on white candle
sticks' despite'lhe“parficip'a'nt5'' atteifiptS 'to''
keep them going.
On Jan. 21, faculty, students, and mem
bers of the Greensboro community left the
warmth of their residences to huddle togeth
er outside Dana Auditorium and light a
candle in remembrance of Dr. Martin Luther
King Jr.
"The candlelight vigil is to pay homage
to Dr. King, to pay our respects," explained
Jada Drew, Africana Community coordina
tor and Multicultural Leadership Scholars
coordinator, shortly before the vigil began.
"He was taken away before his time. So it's a
time to pay respect to his life and the things
that he did, and also to pay respect to those
who lost their lives during that time."
The Martin Luther King Candlelight Vigil,
sponsored by The Africana Community, was
held for Guilford College's annual Martin
Luther King Celebration. Over the week-
long event, students assembled to learn
about the impact that King had on society
through his work with the Civil Rights
Movement.
Christina Somerville, junior, expressed
her connection to King.
■' "What'he'(King)'stood for was^a-way of-
life that we should live throughout the day.
So for me, service and giving back to the
community as well as love and compassion
is not just a one-day-of-the-year thing."
The bitter cold of the night was soon
forgotten as strangers gathered together to
celebrate King's life through song, led by the
Guilford Gospel Group, Greensboro College
Gospel Choir, and the New Light Missionary
Baptist Women's Choir.
Following the music. Rev. Gardes H.
Brown spoke, stressing the importance of
remembering what King gave up to mold
the nation that we have today.
The MLK Candlelight Vigil was started to
inspire a community effort in honoring King
here at Guilford, so that students may take a
moment to remember him and the effect that
his involvement in the civil rights movement
Study Abroad Stories
Siena: A Local Rivalry
By Izzy Hayton
Guest Writer
It was at one of the first orientation ses
sions that someone told our group of 12
about contrade.
"The city is divided into 17 sections,
each a contrada — plural, contrade," said
Robert Williams, professor of economics
at Guilford and faculty leader of the first
Guilford-Siena study abroad program.
"Learn your host parents' contrade. It'll be
important."
A little medieval town in the foothills
of Tuscany, Siena has, for nearly 500 years,
held what is locally known as "II Palio." It
is, at first glance, an unremarkable custom
— a very old, but very simple horse race.
Every year, jockeys from 10 of the con
trade pick their race
horse from a lottery
and are given 24 hours
before the race begins.
The horses are usu
ally brought into their
contrada's church and
blessed by a priest.
The jockeys aren't
forgotten, and they're
blessed too, but they are
considered less impor
tant. For instance, if a
' -rider- falls' Off hi& • horse
in the race and the horse
goes on to win, that
horse's contrada is still
awarded the victory.
OK — so, a very inter
esting local horse race.
But, as it turns out, the Sienese are as
dedicated to II Palio as North Carolina
natives are to college basketball. Imagine
the big Duke-Carolina game is on and the
room is divided between Duke fans and
UNC fans, all of them screaming.
Now put those screaming fans in the cen
ter of a city square (the Piazza) and imagine
10 horses running circles around them.
Then multiply the chaos by five, because
even that image doesn't take into account
that not two, but 10 sworn enemies are all
screaming for their different teams.
It makes you wonder about married
couples that come from different contrade.
Another difference between college basket
ball and II Palio is that when a baby is born
in Siena, they are registered with a contrada
for the rest of their life, and their loyalty is
predetermined.
So what happens when the mother and
the father of the child are from different
areas? I asked Patricia Ramspeck, director
of the Leonardo da Vinci Scoula, where I
am studying, and she shrugged.
"Sometimes they flip a coin," she told
me, "or sometimes they make a deal — the
first child is one contrada, the second is
another. It is usually a very big argument
for parents."
I was wrong. This is anything but unre
markable.
Local Siena channels
often show recaps of
the past Palio. In 2007,
the Leocorno contrada
— the Unicorn — won.
In 2008, the Istrice, or
Crested Porcupine. 2009
featured the ferocious
Civetta contrada, other
wise known as the Little
Owl.
Despite the names of
the winners for the past
three years, the contrade
I are definitely intense.
The Scoula, or the school,
I our group is attending is
g in the Dragon contrada
(Drago), and the other
participating contrada
include the Panther, the Eagle, and the
She-Wolf, respectively Pantera, Aquila, and
Lupa.
Encouraged by Williams and Ramspeck,
I looked up the contrada I'm living in.
Maybe Td be the panther, or some other
equally awe-inspiring mascot. When I
looked it up on the map, my street was
right on the border between two sections.
I zoomed in, closer and closer, until I could
finally read the fearsome name of my con
trada; II Giraffa.
In other words, the Giraffe.
Students choose
officer of the year
By Kara Thomas
Staff Writer
Public Safety conjures images in students' minds of men
acing golf carts and approaching trouble. But Public Safety
Supervisor Brad Young is trying to move away from that
scary image.
Young, who works the third shift from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m.,
has worked as a Public Safety officer at Guilford for five
years. Before beginning part-time work at Guilford, he
worked for seven years at Elon University.
This year, students chose him as Officer of the Year, which
is an award decided entirely by students, according to
Director of Public Safety Ron Stowe.
A former aspiring teacher. Young views his job as more
of an extension of the education system than a form of law
enforcement.
"After two years in college I kind of messed up, so I can
relate to the kids," said Young about his decision to leave
Pembroke State University, thus giving up his childhood
dream of teaching.
After leaving Pembroke, Young pursued a career as a
police officer. A bad back injury ended that pursuit, which
led him to Public Safety.
First-year Marissa Bowers was pleasantly surprised by
her first encounter with Young.
"I expected him to be mean about letting me into my
building one night," said Bowers. "He just laughed and said
everyone did it. He's a lot cooler than I thought he would
be."
"Brad has always treated us with respect," said junior
Andrew Slater. "He's not here to keep everyone from having
a good time, he just honestly wants people to be safe."
That is exactly the kind of relationship Young wants to
have with the students.
"I tell them (the students) that I'm kind of like their dad,"
said Young. "I definitely think of them as my kids."
Young's fatherly approach toward students is probably a
result of his two children — a son and a daughter.
A desire to keep his daughter out of day care prompted
him to take the job at Elon, where he was able to work three
weekend shifts.
Outside of his work at Guilford, Young spends his days
sleeping, watching college sports and being with his chil
dren. On the night of our interview, he was eagerly checking
the scores of a game.
If Young could give any advice to students, it would be
for them to "find a job they love and they'll never do a day
of work." That is what Young says he's found with Guilford.