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WWW.GUILFORDIAN.COM
Housekeeping
staff are
campus’
unsung herns
CLARENCE TURPIN
S7AH=WRrrm
/Visualize waking up at four in the morning
every day to dean bathrooms, dorm lounges
and dassrooms. It's a necessary job that many
don't have the gumption for. Luckily, our
housekeeping staff does.
'To do housekeeping, you have to have a
certain amount of fortitude," said Diredor of
Environmental Services Gerald Uttle. "Not
everyone can do it."
Though early mornings might seem
unbearable, some staff members see early rising
as just a circumstance that takes some adjusting
to.
"It is not easy to adjust your body to
work way before the sun comes up," said
Housekeeper Adrianna Tralongo. 'To get eight
hours of sleep, I have to go to bed at 7 p.m., and
that can be hard to do."
However, this hard work does not go
unnoticed.
"I think that what they do is very valuable,"
said Little. "Without housekeeping, the campus
would not be as prosperous."
Most of the housekeeping staff enjoys
interacting witli coworkers and students.
"Working in Dana, I enjoy interacting with
the students throughout the course of a day,"
said Housekeeper Eionshafae Coppedge. "I
like interacting with my coworkers as well. It is
an upside to the job."
Throughout ^e year, many students take
notice of the efforts of the housekeeping staff
and believe that these staff members are worthy
of admiration.
"Housekeeping is really what keeps the
campus going," said senior Neisha Washington.
"Housekeepers do the grunt work. If it weren't
for housekeeping, the campus would not look
as nice."
"Without (housekeepers), dorms would
get extremely gross quickly," said sophomore
Will Koppenhaver. "It is nice to have them
because they keep bathrooms clean, and that is
important to me because I hate showering in an
unsanitary place."
"I think (housekeepers) are very important
because of what they offer us," said Rich^dson.
'They allow us to have a clean lifestyle and a
more sanitary living space."
As a residential advisor, junior Morgan Myers
has a special respect for the housekeeping staff.
"There would be trash from students left
everywhere (without them)," said Myers.
"We are not going to clean up after ourselves,
unfortunately."
Junior Ryan Phillips believes that the
housekeeping staff does not receive as much
gratitude as they deserve.
"I feel like (the housekeepers) are
irreplaceable," said Phillips. 'They often do
not get enough credit for what they do or deal
with."
At the end of the day, gratification is not
the most important thing to our housekeeping
staff — it is doing their jobs to the best of their
abilities and making the campus a better place.
"It makes my day when I can make
someone else's day," said Floor Technician and
Housekeeper Andre Fitzhugh.
F E ATU RE S
One Hillel of a club: promoting Jewish learning
JOSH BALLARD
It was cold and nearly dark when I went to the Hut. Fortunately,
the freezing temperatures and approaching night gave way to
warm smiles and welcoming light.
I was going to Shabbat, a weekly event put on by Guilford
College's chapter of Hillel, "the largest Jewish campus
organization in the world," according to the Hillel International
website.
"We promote Jewish learning on campus," said club president
and first-year Stephanie Byer. "We're open to everyone who
wants to come learn and participate."
The group of around 11 people was indeed very welcoming. I
was visiting a particularly special Shabbat celebration, one that
included wearing pajamas and making s'mores.
Shabbat is the Hebrew word for Sabbath. The Sabbath is a day
of rest meant to represent G-d resting after creating the world.
Shabbat is observed from sundown on Fridays until nightfall
on Saturdays.
While there, before making the s'mores, we lit candles, poured
wine — in this case, grape juice — and broke delicious Challah
bread, all while saying the requisite blessings.
After this welcoming and eye-opening ceremony, attendees
could have more bread, grape juice, cookies, milk and s'mores.
The meeting became more of a time to speak among friends and
reflect on the week's events.
Senior Will Singley is not a member of Hillel, nor is he Jewish,
but he had a pleasant time at the Shabbat ceremony.
"I had never worn a yarmulke before, so that was neat," Singley
said in an email interview. "It is always very neat to get first-hand
experience and learn about the customs of a different religion that
you are not normally exposed to."
Had it not been for Byer and her friends, these experiences
might not have been possible.
Junior Sara Besmertnik was one of the few people involved
in Hillel last year and had been running into issues with event
attendance, as well as finding new leadership.
"We asked around to see if anyone would step up to lead Hillel
for this year and nobody said they would," said Besmertnik in an
email interview. "We didn't fill out a budget request and the club
ended up on hiatus."
Hillel club president and first-year Stephanie Byer pours grape
juice for the weekly Shabbat meeting. In addition, the group meets on
Mondays bimonthly.
"Stephanie (Byer) and I are both in the (Am I The Only One)
club, and one night we started doing our own little Shabbat
service in the Hut," said Hillel member and first-year Amanda
Libby. "Other people heard about it and wanted to know if we
would start up the Hillel club again. We both said yes and started
having official meetings."
Besmertnik was able to meet with Byer and get the club back on
track, both financially and organizationally.
Hillel now holds Shabbat on Fridays at 7 p.m. in the Hut. They
also meet on Mondays twice a month at 6 p.m. in the Hub in the
Library. These meeting are open to the campus community.
Upcoming events include a Hanukkah celebration and multiple
events for the spring, including a Passover event.
"You do't have to identify as Jewish to join the Hillel," said
treasurer and first-year Laura Todd, who is not Jewish herself.
"All people are welcome as long as they are open-minded and
respectful of the faith."
Author Terry Roberts speaks on crafting first novel
ALLISON DEBUSK
SiMfWuia
It's 1917. At a luxurious resort in the North
Carolina mountains, local townspeople
watch over imprisoned Germans while the
hotel manager falls in love with a married
woman from New York City.
This is the plot of Terry Roberts' first
novel, "A Short Time to Stay Here," which
was the focus of Roberts' campus visit and
book reading on Nov. 15.
"We invited Terry Roberts to come
because we love supporting local and
regional authors," said Visiting Assistant
Professor of English Myl&ne Dressier.
Roberts was bom in Asheville, N.C., and
raised near Weaverville. He currently lives
in Chapel Hill.
Roberts spent four years crafting this
novel that depicts a little-known piece of
history. In 1917 when Congress declared
war on Germany, the U.S. government put
German citizens who were on American
soil into internment camps.
One of these camps was in Hot Springs,
N.C. at the Mountain Park Hotel, which
housed over 2,300 Germans and employed
local townspeople to guard them.
"You had this collision with these
sophisticated Germans and these locals
who had never been out of the county,"
said Roberts.
Roberts drew inspiration from this
culture clash, modeling some of his
characters after real people. However,
his protagonists are his own creations,
and Roberts uses these characters to his
advantage.
'The book felt like it was grounded in
history and grounded in reality, but it was
free to explore whatever I wanted with
these characters," said Roberts.
That exploration took on some deep
questions.
"I'm really interested in how people
come to understand the human condition
and themselves over the course of their
lives, and I think that comes out in this
book," said Roberts. "The man and woman
are trying desperately to understand what
if s all about."
While on campus, Roberts visited
Dressler's Introduction to Fiction class,
where he answered a variety of questions
regarding inspiration, research and setting.
At the reading, Roberts read three
excerpts from his book and also took
questions. One attendee asked if he enjoyed
writing and publishing a novel.
"As long as you don't care about this end
result," he said, holding up a copy of his
book, "it's a pleasure."
Roberts' visit was just one of the many
events planned for National Novel Writing
Month.
Every Wednesday, fiction-writing
workshops have been held in Duke 103
from 3:30-4:30 p.m. On Thursday nights
from 7:00-9:00 p.m. students enjoyed quiet
writing time in the Hut. On Nov. 30, there
will be an open mic night in the Greenleaf at
7:00 p.m., to which the English department
has invited anyone who would like to share
their creative writing.
During National Novel Writing Month,
writers attempt to pen a 50,000-word novel
in 30 days. Some Guilford students are
participating this year, including juniors
Amber Swan and Carissa Dulchinos.
Writers across the nation participate for a
variety of reasons.
"I have written a novel before, but I'm
participating in NaNoWriMo to challenge
myself not to rest on my laurels," said
first-time participant Swan in an email
interview.
"The constraints of NaNoWriMo ensure
that I don't have time to revise or plan,"
said second-time participant Dulchinos
via email. "It's really about just creating
something. That, coupled with the fact that
no one ever has to read it, releases a lot of
the pressure to create something good."
Whether it's a novel written in 30 days
or a work that takes four years, Dulchinos
echoes a sentiment that stretches across all
boundaries of writing and,entices many
authors.
"You never really know what you'll end
up with," she said. "I think that's part of
the fun, though."