GARDNER-WEBB UNIVERSITY
Volume 12 No
Serving the Gardner-Webb University community for more than 60 years
This Edition i Midnight l\/ladness strilces tonight
In campus news-
There’s a new art
school in town and it’s
a dream come true. See
page 2.
Octoberfest holds some
new and old activities.
See page 2.
Annika Slade uses her
German language
ability to help other
students. See page 2.
■ Opinion/editorial >
Lauren Taylor shares a
lesson learned from Dr.
Phil. See page 3.
Cassie Gold now joins
Diana Palka in
debating who won the
final presidential
debate. See page 3.
A Letter to the Editor
suggests that Obama
would turn the U.S.
into a communist land.
See page 3.
In sports-
Weather
Thursday Friday
Oct. 23
Mostly
sunny
High 64
Low 43
Oct. 24
Rain
High 56
Low 55
i Fun times in LYCC
I start hoops season
I By Blake DuDonis
I Pilot sports writer
\- Calling all college basket
ball fans: This one is for you.
I Gardner-Webb holds its an-
I nual Midnight Madness festivi-
j ties tonight in the LYCC, with
I things being done a bit differ-
I ently this year.
I In addition to meeting the
I players on GWU’s men and
I woman basketball squads, there
I will be an exhibition game that
I pits GWU faculty, staff and stu-
i dents against the Harlem Wiz-
I ards.
The Harlem Wizards is a
I trick basketball team that looks
to not just to play good basket
ball, but to thrill the fans.
The first half of the game
will be more of an entertaining
one, where tricks and alley-oops
will come en masse.
The second half will look to
be a bit more competitive.
Although the GWU faculty/
staff team has not been firmed
up, some of those lacing up
their shoes for the first half of
the game will be Tracy Jessup
and Neal Payne from campus
ministries, along with profes
sors Eddie Stepp and Jim John
son.
Also on the team will be for
mer Crest High School great and
current GWU golf coach Tee
Burton. Burton is second all-
time in Crest history for points
scored in a career, and looks to
find his old touch again.
Once the teams take the
court for the second half, the
student team will take the floor
and look to upset the undefeated
Wizards.
“I’ve taken it as my personal
calling to beat the Washington
Wizards,” said Brian Arnold,
assistant director of student ac
tivities and organizer of Mid
night Madness.
Representing the students
will be Kam Durr, Cam Neisler,
Jon Logan, Greg Humphrey,
Tony Crudup, David Overstreet,
Ricky Rhodes and Marcus Po
lite.
The event is free to every
one, and the school is looking
to get the community involved
this year.
The Harlem Wizards trav
eled to local area elementary
schools with some members of
the Bulldog basketball team and
encourage the kids to come out
with their parents.
Everyone is encouraged to
bring a canned food item to the
event to help the less fortunate '
in the community. ^
The first 500 students w*ho
arrive to the event will receive
a free T-shirt, and everyone in
attendance will have a chance
to win a free autographed jersey
from the men’s and women’s
basketball teams. ;
Harlem Wizard apparel vfill
also be given out.
The doors open at 6 p.m. and
the event will run from 7 p.m. to
around 10 p.m.
Homecoming livens campus
with weei^end of activities
The football team gave
Presbyterian College a
whupping. See page 5.
Find out what former
GWU football player
Brian Johnston is up to
in the NFL. See page 5.
The swim teams are set
to enter a new season.
See page 3.
The men’s golf team
and Ryan Bell place
identically in 2 tourna
ments. See page 4.
By Michelle Alwerdt
Pilot staff writer
This weekend, Gardner-
Webb will be a busy campus
as the festivities that make up
Homecoming erupt.
The biggest event during
Homecoming is the football
game against Virginia Military
Institute.
During halftime this year’s
king, queen, prince and female
class representatives will be
crowned.
The marching band has
prepared a halfl:ime show in
memory of Sid Haton, the band
director who died in September.
The show will consist of five of
Haton’s favorite songs.
Member Kenneth Collins
offered another reason for the
marching band to be excited
about the performance.
“Homecoming is really ex
citing because it is a much big
ger crowd that we get to per
form in fi-ont of,” he said.
The planning committee
hoped to have a bonfire Friday,
a long-standing tradition that
has been canceled the past few
years due to rain.
This year, according to Ka-
rissa Weir, who is in charge of
Student Activities, the forecast
for rain has again forced the
cancellation of the bonfire.
The annual parade on Satur
day at 12:30 p.m. will go down
Main Street.
It will include floats and
appearances by many Gardner-
Webb clubs, seven sponsors,
class floats, the band, alumni.
Homecoming representatives.
Jennifer Cheek
Amy Elliot
Beth Long
Rachel Redding
and the Boiling Springs Fire
Department.
Other students are excited
about Homecoming as well.
“I’m looking forward to it,
I think it’s going to be a really
fun weekend,” freshman Aman
da Jefferies said.
This year’s female represen
tatives are fi-eshman Whitney
Stroup, sophomore Marcessa
Pace, junior Megan Sipe, and
seniors Jennifer Cheek, Amy
Elliot, Beth Long and Rachel
Redding.
“I’m very excited,” said
Redding. “I don’t know what
to expect. It’s going to be a new
experience.
“One of my favorite experi
ences at Gardner-Webb is the
powder puff football game. It
is so much fun, the girls are re
ally competitive, and you get to
make new friends.”
Stroup is happy about her
role in Homecoming.
“I’m very excited, it’s an
honor,” she said.
It’s going to be a busy week
end for Stroup who has to drive
home to Morganton Friday to
give the crown away at her high
school’s homecoming.
She must be back by Sat
urday to cheer at the football
game and be ready to walk dur
ing half time.
Unable to attend homecom
ing this year. Sophomore Kelsey
Moore enjoyed Homecoming
2007, and is unhappy that she
can’t participate in some fun
activities.
“I’m really sad. I wanted
to go, especially to the powder
puff game—that was one of the
things I really wanted to partici
pate in.”
See page 2 for a schedule of
Homecoming events.
Alumna brings
operatic talent
to Homecoming
By Molly Phipps
Pilot staff writer
World-class opera singer
Samantha Sain Staton, a Gard-
ner-Webb University graduate,
will be performing here Friday
as part of the Homecoming fes
tivities.
Staton graduated from Gard
ner-Webb in 2003 with a bach
elor’s degree in sacred music.
She studied here under master
teacher Patricia Harrelson.
She just finished a master
of music degree in vocal per
formance/opera emphasis from
the Cincinnati Conservatory of
Music, one of the best graduate
opera programs in the world, ac
cording to information from the
Fine Arts department.
Staton recently had her first
professional performance with
the Cincinnati Symphony, and is
a rising star in the opera world.
“An exceptionally engaging
performer with a world-class
voice, Mrs. Staton is currently
in great demand both on the
concert and opera stage,” said
Dr. Patricia C. Sparti, depart
ment chair, in a press release.
Staton, a soprano, will be ac
companied by Dr. Cindy Swice-
good on the piano.
Her appearance is part of
the Distinguished Artist/Distin
guished Alumni Concert series
presented by the Department of
Fine Arts at GWU.
The recital is in Blanton Au
ditorium at 8 p.m. There will be
a reception from 6:45 until 7:45
p.m. in the Gardner Recital Hall.
Both events are free and open to
everyone.
Exit project becomes children’s book about service dogs
Source: The Weather Channel
Index
News pajii* 2
('oramiiiiit\ pagL’ 2
()p.^Kd page 3
Fhuto page 6
Sports page 3.4.5
By Shauntel Greene
Pilot staff writer
At age 18, Gardner-
Webb University freshmen
Chelsea Usher has written
and published a children’s
book, thanks to the senior
exit project that is a require
ment for all public high
schools in North Carolina.
The project consists of
two parts: writing a paper in
the junior year and then do a
presentation of the work se
nior year. Usher’s paper was
about military war dogs.
The theme expanded
when Usher had the oppor
tunity of doing an internship
with a veterinary hospital in
the past year.
Her mentor. Dr. Roy
Ferguson, had a German
shepherd named Chero
kee, who had been raisd for
training as a leader dog for
a blind person. However,
when Cherokee reported for
training, he didn’t pass his
physical and was returned
to Ferguson.
The veterinarian learned
how to train Cherokee to be
a rescue dog.
Usher decided that her
senior project would be a
children’s book based on
Cherokee’s life as a rescue
dog. She said that was al
lowed because the topic was
related to military dogs, the
topic of the paper she had
written.
“Cherokee’s Puppy
Tales” tells of the everyday
life of a German shepherd
rescue dog. The story is told
from Cherokee’s perspec
tive and it also explains the
life and training of Emer
son, a leader dog now living
in Canada. Usher dedicated
the book to Ferguson.
The book, which is filled
with color photos, describes
the in-depth process of be
coming a leader dog. In ad
dition to raising awareness
about service dogs. Usher
said her book “gives people
different prospective on
training dogs for the blind.”
Usher published the
work through MyPublisher.
com. She sells copies of the
book at cost.
This is an interesting and
informative read for dog
lovers and those who want
to know more about the life
of rescue and leader dogs.
Sadly, Usher said that
Cherokee died about two
weeks ago. He had pancre
atic cancer.
Contact Usher at (828)
699-3977 for more infor
mation about purchasing a
copy of “Cherokee’s Puppy
Tales.”
Brvan Cooper
Chelsea Usher holds a copy of her
book, “Cherokee’s Puppy Tales.”