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Orchard Farm senior selected for Missouri All-State Band

By Raymond Castile
Amp editor

Two brothers in the same high school band might not be unusual. But two brothers and their mother?

Brothers Sean Sweany and Mark Sweany play brass instruments in the Orchard Farm High School Pep Band. Their mother, Cathy Sweany, plays clarinet. She is the only adult band member, besides director Wes Scott.

Cathy, an Orchard Farm High graduate, played her woodwind in the school band when she was a teen. She said she had so much fun in the band that she encouraged her sons to join when they hit high school.

When she heard her kids playing, she decided she wanted to play, too.

Sean Sweany, 18, is emerging as the most accomplished member of his musical family. The senior plays lead trumpet in the school’s concert and pep bands, plus the St. Charles County Youth Orchestra and the E. Desmond Lee Concert Band at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

“He is the all-around best player we have right now,” Scott said. “He is an amazing student.”

The Missouri All-State Band selected Sean as its eighth-chair trumpet player to perform Jan. 31 before a crowd of thousands during the annual Missouri Music Educators Association Conference at Tan-Tar-A resort.

Scott accompanied Sean to the state auditions Dec. 6 in Columbia, where he said judges tested “every aspect of Sean as a player.”

“It was a long, grueling day of sitting around forever, being nervous, followed by a few seconds of sheer terror,” Scott said.

Sean qualified for the state band by first landing a spot on the St. Louis Suburban District Band.

“It is like a football team making it to the playoffs, then the Super Bowl,” Scott said. “This is a huge thing for band kids in high school.”

“I’m pretty happy about it,” Sean said. “It’s a big deal because it is a real honor, and it takes so much practice and hard work to get into the band.”

Sean began playing trumpet in sixth grade when his cousin gave him the instrument as a gift.

“It’s fun to play. It has less fingering to remember than a guitar or keyboard,” Sean said. “With the trumpet, you have to use your mouth and lips, not just your fingers.”

Sean said he likes big band style, but prefers playing jazz solo. His inspirations are jazz musicians such as Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman and especially Louis Armstrong.

“I like how Louis Armstrong plays trumpet really high pitched,” Sean said. “The more you tighten your lips, the higher you go. I can play fairly high, but not as high as Louis Armstrong.”

But Sean can play higher than anyone in his class, he said. Trumpet players often compete with each other to see who can play the highest and loudest, he said.

“It’s a high school trumpet player thing,” he said.

Sean also finds himself in competition with his brother, Mark. The 14-year-old freshman plays trombone, tuba and baritone in the school pep, marching and concert bands.

“We ignore each other mostly, or try to,” Mark said.

Mark does not believe his brother is innately more talented — just older.

“My brother has had more years to practice than I have,” Mark said. “But I’ll be better, though, when I’ve had the same number of years to practice.”

Help is available to teens who have illness

By Nina Marie Rosenberg
Amp writer

When discrimination is based on race or religion, people call it for what it is. But some forms of discrimination are less obvious.

People with clinical depression encounter stereotyping and prejudice, but their antagonists might be unaware they are contributing to discrimination. Depression is an illness, yet the perception lingers that it is a personal weakness.

Jocelyn Treadway, 13, has a cousin with depression. She said she does not think of depression as being like cancer or heart failure.

“There are different stages of stress, and rage is like heart failure, whereas depression is a clogged artery,” Treadway said.
Treadway compared depression to drug addiction, saying “both are used as an escape from the mental pain.”

Dr. Mojgan Makki, a psychiatrist with Advent Medical Group in St. Peters, said people with depression might choose not to be treated for their illness, sometimes as a form of “self-sabotage.”

“Plus (there is) the stigma of taking psych meds, which means you’re ‘weak’ or you are ‘crazy,’” Makki said.

Medicines also sometimes have side effects and can be difficult to tolerate, Makki said.

There are many different treatments. Makki said there are conventional ways such as counseling, which helps you learn how to live with the illness and teaches you how to cope. There is also medication, which helps to reduce symptoms. There are unconventional treatments, such as exercise. If the depression is severe, a hospital program might be appropriate.

People with depression typically have feelings of sadness, Makki said. They are sometimes angry and have changes in sleep or appetite, or they want to be left alone.

Makki said, “If depression had a physical measure like how blood pressure or blood sugars in a diabetic patient can be measured, no one would think you can snap out of it. The problem is, you can only feel the disease and you can’t see the disease in any X-rays or blood works.”

According to GlaxoSmithKline’s depression Web site (www.depression.com), a person’s genetics and family history may determine if they will have depression later on in life. Feelings of depression are caused by a chemical change in the brain. Chemicals create emotional states. When these chemical messages are not properly delivered between brain cells, depression can result.

Treadway said it is not right to get mad at a friend with depression, even though that friend’s personality might change in ways that upset you. They might not want to talk to you, or they might want to sleep all day.

“You should help them and be there when they need someone to talk to,” Treadway said.

Besides doctors like Makki, there are services available to help teens with depression. Probably the most well known in the St. Louis area is Kids Under Twenty One, or KUTO. The organization has a crisis help line staffed by trained youth crisis volunteers. They work with callers to help them build self-esteem and confidence. They help them build problem solving and coping skills and assist them to develop a realistic plan of action to identify their options and resolve the crisis.

The KUTO help line is 1-888-644-5886. It is staffed 4-10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and 4 p.m.-midnight Friday and Saturday.

Students create themes for different holidays

By Raymond Castile
Amp editor

Instead of a jolly, fat Santa with a Christmas tree, a plump, smiling Buddha under the Bodhi Tree greeted students outside art teacher Amy Roesslein’s classroom door.

The papier-mache Buddha formed the centerpiece of a three-dimensional tableau illustrating Bodhi Day, a Buddhist holiday usually celebrated Dec. 8. It commemorates the day Buddha attained enlightenment while sitting under a pipal tree 2,500 years ago. The tree became known as the Bodhi Tree.

The scene was one of 34 entries in a holiday door decorating contest Dec. 8-12 at Francis Howell Central High School. Students chose holidays from 12 cultures and religions, then created doorway scenes illustrating them.

“I think our door is awesome,” Roesslein said.

Roesslein’s art club students assembled the scene, incorporating bright lights and ornaments associated with Bodhi Day.

Junior Josh Gibbar, 16, said he had to repair the scene every day because the purple and red wall coverings kept falling down. But he thought the work was worth it.

“It’s a very festive door,” Gibbar said. “The colors bring you in. It has a joyful and cheerful mood that gets you motivated to be enlightened.”
Senior Becca May, the art club president, selected the Bodhi Day theme.

“The point of the contest was to learn about a new holiday, and I had never heard of Bodhi Day before,” said May, 18.

Visual arts teacher Lisa Milos organized the contest. Milos sponsors the cultural diversity club.

“The point is to show there are many more holidays in the month of December besides Christmas,” Milos said.

Junior Rachel Mann, 16, a member of the cultural diversity club, was one of the contest judges.

“I was really impressed,” Mann said. “I was looking for creativity and effort. I asked the students how much they knew about the history of their holiday.”

Milos said she was pleased with the effort everyone put into their doors.

“Staff and students stayed late and brought in supplies from home,” she said. “People really went to the max. I did not expect them to be this elaborate.”

The art club’s Bodhi Day display tied for second place with a Kwanzaa door created by communication arts teacher Kelly Gerdiman’s students.

First place went to another Bodhi Day door created by communication arts teacher Sara Martens’ students.

Two doors tied for third place: a Virgin of Guadalupe door by art teacher Bob Storts’ graphic design students, and an Eid al-Adha door by special education teacher Nicole Fodo’s problem solving and mathematics students.

Amp will be on Christmas break next Sunday, but it will return Jan. 4 with a new plan for a new year.

Amp is moving up to section A – the main section of the newspaper. Look for it on the last page.

This new placement will give Amp more exposure. That means more people will see it and more people will read it. That is a good thing.

But there is a trade-off.

Amp will no longer appear every week. It will switch to a monthly schedule, like most high school newspapers. Beginning Jan. 4, Amp will run the first Sunday of every month.

But this does not mean you are getting less Amp. In fact, you will probably get more Amp than you know what to do with.

That is because we are launching a new Amp Web site on Jan. 4. The site will include more stories, reviews, columns and photos. It will also include video and interactive media. The print version will give people a taste of Amp, but the Web version will give them a full, all-you-can-eat buffet.

The site will still be under construction when it opens, but all the bells and whistles should be up and running by the end of January. This will be a place where you can not only read stories, but also have discussions and add your own content, including photos.

So check back on Jan. 4. Just take the front section of the newspaper and turn it over. There it will be – the new monthly Amp. Then go online and check out our new Web site.

But not yet! Remember...Jan. 4.

Until then, on behalf of all of us at Amp, have a happy holiday and a great new year!

Carrey gets back in the swing of things with “Yes Man”

By Kevin Reape
Amp writer

This past year has been full of great films. Fortunately for moviegoers, the last few weeks of 2008 will be full of some of the best yet. We have seen some great comedies this year, like “Tropic Thunder” and “Step Brothers,” but the best one hits theaters this weekend. It stars one of my favorite actors, Jim Carrey.

“Yes Man” is his first comedic starring role since 2005, when he did “Fun with Dick and Jane.” Some thought he would possibly retire from his usual movie genre, but his latest film definitely shows that he is back and better than ever.

“Yes Man” is the story of Carl Allen (Carrey), a “no-man” who goes through his entire life with a negative outlook, saying no to everything, spending his lonely nights watching movies and ditching on his plans with all of his old buddies. An old high school friend finds Carl and persuades him to attend a self-help program entitled Yes Man, which promotes the use of the simple word, “yes.” After being called out during the program for being so negative, Carl has no choice but to start saying yes. Instantly, his life begins to change.

By saying “yes,” Carl almost instantly meets a girl he likes named Allison (Zooey Deschanel). He begins to realize that his new positive outlook on life is not a bad thing, and he begins to enjoy the new things he is able to do.

As the movie follows Carl through this life-changing process, you will most definitely begin to think about your own life. I am sure this movie will change some people’s outlook on things. It is definitely a movie with a positive message.

As I said, I am a huge fan of Jim Carrey. A lot of people thought this seemed just like a movie he did in the past, “Liar Liar.” This movie has the same type of idea, but the two films are completely different. It is hard to say which one is funnier, but I laughed throughout this entire movie. If you are a Carrey fan, you will love this movie. If you are new to his films, this is a good place to start.

Deschanel does a wonderful job and is probably the best actress that has worked alongside Carrey since Jennifer Anniston in “Bruce Almighty.” The other roles in the movie aren’t played by big name actors, but they all do a great job, and Carl’s boss in the movie is definitely a treat every time he is onscreen.

“Yes Man” is rated PG-13, and is definitely approaching an R rating as there is some sexual, crude humor, language and minor nudity. If you are old enough to see this movie, it is definitely one you want to check out, as it is one of the best comedies I have seen in a very long time. It runs a little over an hour and 40 minutes.

Finals hit high school students hard

By Cynthia Zhang
Amp writer

As the retailers tell us, the holidays are a time for joy, love and peace. But they are also a time for incredible stress, as any high school student can testify.

With final exams so close to the holidays, teens have to find a way to balance work, friends and last minute studying – a balancing act that often results in panic attacks and hysteria.

“English is really easy, but math and science are hard,” said Sarah Thoms, 16, a junior at Francis Howell High.

Thoms said that, theoretically, students should have more time to study for finals because it is the end of the semester and “we’re not really doing anything.” But despite the lull in school activity, other things can eat up a teen’s time.

“I try to study as much as I can, but I’m really busy, since I work,” Thoms said.

“I’m absolutely dreading the physical science final,” said Alex Katubig, 14, a freshman at Howell High. “It is definitely my hardest class this year and I’m guessing that the final will not be any easier. This is the most stressed I have ever been about a test.”

Katubig said she has already taken finals for history, Spanish 2 and English honors. This was her first experience with final exams.

“History was pretty easy. A few tricky questions, but I think I pulled through,” she said. “Spanish 2 was a little more tough, I was stumped on some of the grammar and vocabulary. English was time consuming since I always seem to second guess myself in this class.”

“I’ve only taken my constructed response finals,” said Heidi Rose, 15, a freshman. “I think my hardest final will be my honors physical science one. Hopefully I won’t procrastinate until the last moment like I normally do.”

Not all students think finals are as difficult as their peers say.

Freshman Nicole Harmer, 14, said that, while she dreads her Spanish final, she has already taken history and English finals. “They weren’t that bad. Just took some time,” she said.

Thoms and Katubig both agreed that cramming was a bad strategy. They said it does not help students, and is a source of much of the stress associated with finals.

“If I could change something about finals, I would tell the teachers to stop cramming,” Katubig said. “We should start reviewing and filling out packets while we are working on that unit. Without all the cramming, I think the stress would go down a few levels.”

“I think that it’s bad that we have to cram while we’re still learning,” Thoms said.

Rose said she wished the Francis Howell district would spend less time on finals.

“That way, we can just get them over with,” she said.

By Lauren Steinmeyer
Amp writer

The Conspiracy Corner began as a joke article in Fort Zumwalt North High School’s student newspaper, the Panther Press. It became one of the paper’s most popular features. Now the Conspiracy Corner has been “revAMPed” as part of the Suburban Journals Amp teen section. Please be aware that Conspiracy Corner is a satire. These are mock articles. That means they are fake. Do not take them seriously.

Christmas is “the most wonderful time of the year,” according to a famous song. But for teenagers, Christmas just isn’t what it used to be.

As children, we believed in fairy tales, magic and wonder. But once puberty hits, we learned the horrible truth. Santa wasn’t going to be giving us presents anymore. He and the other holiday creatures – the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy – had forsaken us because we hit our teen years. We were devastated. Slowly, we passed through the stages of grief until we came to accept that magic and wonder just didn’t exist for us anymore.

Christmas was still a magical time of year. But we were older and becoming cynical, like many adults. As we grew older and gained new responsibilities, we budgeted the magic out of Christmas. We thought Santa Claus was dead.

But we were wrong.

This reporter has uncovered yet another incredible conspiracy. Not only is Santa real, but he has not forsaken us teenagers.
His reindeer still land on our rooftops. He still leaves presents under our Christmas trees. But we never get to see or open them. Why? Because they are stolen right out from under our nose. Stolen by Santa’s evil nemesis ­— Anti-Santa.

I found out about Anti-Santa through hours of searching cyberspace. An obscure Web site popped up and I found an anonymous source proclaiming the existence of an evil Santa look-alike. Pictures taken by brave (but now missing) individuals show Anti-Santa with curly black hair and a long black beard, a green and black Santa suit, and a belly that jiggles like a bowl full of nitroglycerin. He looks exactly like a negative image of Santa Claus.

Anti-Santa was originally named Calvin Clause. At a young age, Calvin was quite the popular kid in class. Smart, funny and generous, Calvin had it all. But everything changed when he hit puberty. His face became covered in zits. His body odor could be smelled for miles. His voice cracked nearly every time he spoke. It was the worst case of puberty anyone had ever seen. The other holiday creatures bullied him mercilessly. They shoved him into lockers, called him some of the worst names imaginable, and made his life a living hell.

Santa Claus, then called Kris Kringle, was the leader of the popular kids at North Pole High School. He was handsome and the best hockey player. Girls wanted him and guys wanted to be him. He married his high school sweetheart, who is now known as Mrs. Claus. Because he was popular and immature, Kris participated in bullying Calvin. Kris grew up and came to regret his younger ways. He tried to make amends with Calvin, but it was too late. The damage was done.

Kringle changed his name to Santa Claus. To make up for the mistakes of his youth, he dedicated his life to bringing happiness to others. He began giving presents to boys and girls around the world, in memory of the boy he bullied. But Calvin was not satisfied.

Hating Santa with such fierce rage, Calvin took his revenge. He moved to the South Pole and became Anti-Santa. He began stalking Santa every Christmas Eve, following behind him in a flying, black dog sled pulled by six moose. When Santa would leave presents for anyone over the age of 12, Anti-Santa would creep in afterward and take the presents away.

Teenagers everywhere began to lose hope. They thought Santa had abandoned them. As parents, they began telling their children that Santa was not real. They planted cynicism and depression in children’s minds.

After weeks of phone calls with his legal representatives, I finally arranged a face-to-face interview with Anti-Santa. His only stipulation was that I not take pictures or video.

I met Anti-Santa in a Starbucks. He was disguised as a business man. Anti-Santa was surprised at how much information I was able to dig up about his past. He seemed genuinely nice, if a little schizophrenic. He wanted the truth to be aired and Santa Claus’ misdeeds to be revealed.

Anti-Santa said he thought that he and Santa would have reconciled by now. When I asked him why he just didn’t contact Santa, he raged for 20 minutes.

I told him I had arranged for someone to visit him. I signaled outside the window. Santa Claus himself walked into the Starbucks. The two men stared at each other for a minute. Then Santa bowed his white-topped head and said, “I’m sorry.”

Anti-Santa stood up and, with tears in his eyes, hugged the man he had vowed to hate. I left the two Santas together to reminisce, reconcile and drink coffee.

Many teenagers have forgotten the joy of Santa Claus. Now that he and Anti-Santa have buried the hatchet, maybe teens will rediscover the magic of the season.

Some seniors choose to graduate from high school early

By Alexis Hitt
Amp writer

Senior year. The last year of high school before one is sent off to the “real” world. Whether a teen is going to college or getting a job, leaving high school can be one of the most exciting, yet terrifying transitions in a teen’s life.

Many high schools in St. Charles County offer seniors the opportunity to start the journey even earlier by graduating at the end of the fall semester.

Missy Bradshaw, 17, a senior at Wentzville Holt High School, is one of the many seniors that decided to graduate early. Bradshaw kept her grades up, got all her necessary credits and had to fight off senioritis in order to leave high school early.

“I figure I have put up with enough in school,” she said. “I have gotten the credits and other things necessary in place, so I’m able to graduate early. Plus, a lot comes with maturity. I feel like I am ready for bigger and better things.”

Alicia Jacobs, 18, another senior at Holt, made sure she got enough credits so she could graduate early.

“I’m super stoked, but I’m extremely stressed out because, while all the other seniors have another semester to get all their work done, I only have a week,” Jacobs said.

During second semester, Bradshaw will start evening classes at St. Charles Community College. She will take 16 hours a week. She plans to work as well to save up money for her education.

Jacobs plans to work full time at Jimmy John’wws to save money to attend Columbia College Chicago in the fall of 2009.

After first semester ends, Bradshaw and Jacobs will no longer be high school students. However, they both plan on returning for prom, senior week and to walk at graduation. Bradshaw said she is going to miss the people in her classes but she still plans to see her close friends.

“I am super excited to graduate early,” Bradshaw said. “Because I’m going to be able to start a new phase in my life soon.”

Winter driving tips for teens

By Nikki Meyer
Amp writer

Every year snow and ice blanket St. Charles County. Driving in such dangerous conditions can spell bad luck for anyone, especially new teenage motorists not used to driving in severe winter weather.

Last December, a huge winter storm hit the area. Most school districts canceled classes, but Fort Zumwalt schools remained in session. Many students did not show up. Some buses skidded on the ice. Highway P was especially slick.

Outside Fort Zumwalt North High School, ice had accumulated on the parking lot and in front of the school. Some cars slid on the ice and jumped the curbs. The salt on the lot was not enough to prevent accidents, like the one that happened to senior Robert Speers.

“We were driving to school on a really icy day, and we turned into the gate. Our car kept going straight into the gate,” Speers, 17, said.

Senior Ashley Lynch, 18, encountered a deadly situation last winter when she was driving to Troy. She hit a patch of ice on a busy two-way street and spun out, crossing the center line into oncoming traffic.

“A semi-truck was coming toward us and hit the back of our car,” she said. “We spun back to the other side of the road. No one was hurt. The worst thing that happened was our snowball maker broke.”

Many times teens will find themselves in an accident or stranded. To help in these situations, teens should be prepared. Jeff Cook, a resource officer at Fort Zumwalt North, provided some tips.

“To be prepared, you should take vehicle inventory. Do safety checks regularly. If your car breaks down, the first thing you should do is get your car as far off the road as possible,” Cook said.

It is always good to have a bag in your car filled with things you might need in case of an emergency. Such items include ice scrapers, a small shovel, a small bag of rock salt or sand for traction, road flares, jumper cables, flashlight, batteries and a blanket.

Lynch said she keeps an ice scraper and flashlight in her car.

Senior Shiloh Taylor, 17, said she carries rope and a can of ice defroster. She advised teens to drive slowly and follow state law by always wearing their seat belts.

“You can never be too cautious of a driver. You may think you are a good driver, but watch for other people,” Lynch said.

If ever in need of roadside assistance, a driver can dial *55. It will connect them to the Missouri Highway Patrol. They will then connect the driver to the department covering the jurisdiction the motorist is in. In St. Charles County, the sheriff’s department non-emergency number is 636-949-0809.

The most dangerous part of driving during the winter is black ice. This is a term for a thin, clear layer of ice on the road. To spot black ice, look for a wet spot that is slightly darker and duller than the rest of the road.

Black ice normally forms on roads that are close to a source of water, tunnels, or shady and rural areas. It also is more likely to form on overpasses and bridges since those road surfaces tend to freeze more quickly than the rest of the road.

Taylor described his experience with black ice.

“We were driving on Christmas Eve, going to my grandparent’s house. We were going over an overpass and hit black ice, even though there was two feet of snow.
We ended up spinning four times and stopped right on the edge of the overpass, facing a car coming at us from the other direction,” he said.

If you encounter black ice, as soon as your car begins to slide, take your foot off the gas. Don’t slam on the brakes. If your car begins to skid, turn the wheel in the direction of the skid.

While driving, leave plenty of space between you and the car in front of you.

Remember, just because you are in a truck or SUV that has four-wheel drive, that does not mean you are invincible to icy roads.
Winter driving can be hazardous, but taking the right precautions can make things safer for teen drivers.

By Hannah Ross
Amp writer

Students at Francis Howell High School were so excited about the presidential race that they spent little time discussing a Nov. 4 ballot issue that directly impacted them.

But a month later, they are realizing the passage of Proposition B will bring major changes to their school. Some students have mixed feelings about those changes.

Voters approved a $78.5 million bond issue to finance renovations throughout the district, including $68.9 million to replace most of Francis Howell High School.

Portions of Howell High are 50 years old. Under the plan, all but the school’s newest sections would be torn down and replaced. There will be 106 new classrooms, a gymnasium, a media center, a cafeteria, sports fields and additional parking.

“The construction is really needed,” said junior Shane Black, 16. “The building is outdated. Lights flicker on and off. When you enter the old gymnasium, sometimes you can see parts of the ceiling laying on the floor.”

The current campus spreads classes among several buildings. Students have to walk outside between class periods. The new high school will put almost all classrooms under one roof. It will also eliminate the outdoor commons area and replace it with an indoor commons.

Freshman Alex Bayne, 14, said he likes going outside between classes.

“The only time it’s bad is when it’s raining, but it hasn’t rained much,” Bayne said. “I would kind of miss being outside.”

The existing Howell High layout is more like a college campus than an average high school. Many students hang out in the commons and eat their lunches outside.

Sophomore Amanda Davis, 15, said she really enjoys the way the school is now and does not want to break with tradition.

“We have had this school forever. Even though it’s old, everyone knows we’re the original,” she said.

Sophomore Olivia Cassidy, 16, said the new design “looks nice but takes away from the uniqueness of our school.”

Freshman Michelle Schroder, 15, said she likes making the school one big building instead of several small ones.

Freshman Jeremy Geear, 15, agreed that putting all classes in one building would be better than the present layout. Geear said he liked that the new school would have soccer fields, something the current school does not have.

Principal Chris Greiner said the new design would not mean students would have to stay indoors all day.

“Students who wish to go outside between classes or during lunches will still have that option,” Greiner said.

Although most students admit the school needs change, some do not know why the design has to change it so much.

“Why can’t we just fix what we already have?” Davis said.

Greiner said the primary reason for putting all the classes in one wing was to make the campus safer and more secure. Currently, the school has 30 doors accessible during the day. With the new design, only a few doors will be accessible, Greiner said.

Geear said he was not worried about spending the next two or three years attending a school that is under construction.

“It might be a little disturbing, but I don’t think it will be that bad,” Geear said. “Most of it will be far away from my classes, where the student parking lot is.”

Schroeder said she thinks the construction will make the school environment “very confusing and busy.”

“It might even mess up my schedule,” she said. “It’s going to be even more confusing for the eighth-graders coming in next year.”

Cassidy agreed with Schroeder. “It’s going to be loud, having to be in class with jackhammers in the background,” she said.

Cassidy said she is even more frustrated that she has to “suffer through the distractions while all the freshmen get a new school and we are stuck with the janky one.”

Black said he would like to see the new school, but it does not bother him that he would graduate before it was finished.

Black has experienced trying to learn in the midst of construction. In fourth and fifth grade, he attended a private elementary school that was erecting a new building next door.

“It wasn’t that bad,” he said. “You would mainly hear a sledgehammer now and then, but you can ignore that.”

Black said he thinks Howell High construction will be inconvenient, but the benefits will outweigh the difficulties.

Beatty brothers’ book helps other teens understand finances, saving

By Hannah Lawson
Amp writer

David Beatty, 16, Devin Beatty, 14, and Deric Beatty, 8, are three ordinary brothers from Washington state who have accomplished something extraordinary.
Together they have written a book and are raising thousands of dollars for the families of Marines who have given their lives for their country. The brothers’ book is meant to help teenagers better understand the importance of finance.

David said the idea of writing a book was a personal goal for the brothers. When deciding a subject, they chose “writing about choices and how those choices can affect your life both financially and personally,” he said. This choice resulted in the book “Pulling Weeds to Picking Stocks,” which was published this year.
David said the title refers to how the boys started with service-oriented jobs and moved to working with the stock market.

The book’s sales have been going well. David was even interviewed on Rush Limbaugh’s radio talk show. Limbaugh gave the boys free advertising during his show.

After writing a book about handling money wisely, the brothers decided to do something different with the proceeds of their book. Instead of saving or investing it, they are giving it to the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation, which is dedicated to helping families of fallen Marines. The foundation operates only through public donations.

The brothers’ goal is to donate $25,000 to the foundation. Not many teenagers have that much money to donate toward a cause.

David said he and his brothers were introduced to the foundation after their grandfather died in February 2007. He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

“When we wrote the book later that year and got our publishing contract, we decided at that time it would be awesome to help the children and families of fallen soldiers,” David said.

David said it was not difficult to work together with his siblings.

“While writing the book we really didn’t disagree. We liked doing the surveys and putting the pieces together. Because we have similar ideas on the subject, it was a great experience,” he said.

Because it is directed toward teenagers and kids of any age group, one might wonder, just what should teenagers know about finance? Is it really necessary to learn about finance this early?

“This is an important question,” David said. “Young adults and teenagers have not had good examples of what it is to learn proper finances. This means we’ve grown up in a ‘gimme’ society. We don’t have to wait for anything really. We can charge it, ask our parents for it or get a loan.”

David said it would be good for teens to make it their goal to not buy anything unnecessary until Christmas or their birthday. That would help them understand the idea of saving money, he said.

“When we talk with people who have taken us up on this advice, we find they, in the end, decide those purchases they would have made were no longer needed or wanted,” he said.

Teens have to start learning how to handle money fast. It is not something they learn about in school. Their first experiences in money management comes with their first job, first car and first checking account.

David said a simple rule applies in these situations.

“Kids should learn to wait and save,” he said. “They will find after saving the cash to buy the car or whatever that they will appreciate it much more and gain valuable skills for later. It is important that kids know they do not need things right away.”

As far as having trouble with money, David said teens can prevent those problems. If teens were held accountable for their actions, then they would learn how to manage their money, he said.

The financial crisis and government bailouts have been in the news, but many teens might not give them much thought. David said he and his brothers have strong opinions on the Wall Street bailout.

“There are several reasons this bailout is not a good idea,” he said. “First, the problem has not been solved. No disciplinary actions have been taken, and there is nothing in place to hold anyone accountable. Therefore, the money has been wasted. Second, because there is no action being taken other than distributing money to shore up balance sheets, the banks can hold onto the money and still not loan it. Third, depending where the money came from, it either increases our national debt, which increases inflation, or people who were responsible are punished for those who were not. And those who were not are getting sort of a pass.”

The brothers did not expect their book to become such a big seller. Amazon did not buy enough copies and sold them all before new shipments came in. After ordering more copies, the book shot up to No. 5 on the Amazon best-seller list. The brothers even got an opportunity to sign their first book for their customers.
The book is also available directly from the publisher at www.tatepublishing.com.

The Beattys’ Web site welcomes visitors with the preamble to the U.S. Constitution. If you take a minute to explore the Web site and read about what the boys are doing, then you end up with the realization that they are no ordinary kids.

This fact has a great deal to do with their upbringing. Their parents were the ones who interested them in the stock market and taught them how it works. In “Pulling Weeds to Picking Stocks,” the brothers wrote, “You have to understand that our house runs strangely on a regular basis.” They have lived in Iowa, Colorado, Texas, Washington and Michigan. They have been places and seen things that other kids have not. They have been home-schooled by their mom off and on but have also been in public school.

The boys compare the “economic” language of their household to a second language. They grew up hearing their parents’ financial decisions and the explanations for them. David and Devin were 6 and 8 when they got their first shares in a stock market account.

The boys have not stopped after one book. David and Devin are currently working on a book about the relationship between the Constitution and the economy.

By Hannah Lawson
Amp writer

It’s lighthearted, written by young adults and an easy read. “Pulling Weeds to Picking Stocks” is a book written by the Beatty brothers, ages 16, 14 and 8. It’s about personal finance and responsibility, something most of us hear about from our parents but not something we typically learn in school. The book isn’t just about handling money, though. It also stresses building lifelong character traits.

In the book, the brothers say, “Preparing for an emergency combines all aspects of your life. You need to be self-reliant, you need to be able to work with and help others, and you need to be prepared.”

The brothers share the view that when you learn about finance and responsibility at their age, you have a head start on everyone else. It’s something teens are not required to learn, yet it’s essential to the rest of one’s life.

The brothers say in the book, “Our second financial layer is really education. Not the school kind, but learning to educate yourself by paying attention.”

They define this education as “thinking outside of the box,” setting your goals and going after them, and taking responsibility for your actions. Of course, they stress the importance of using your money wisely and learning to save and budget; they include a simple plan that readers can follow.

The Beatty brothers surveyed people for their book and, as an experiment, tried being traveling salesmen. They learned about pricing, budgeting, marketing and planning.

That’s one of the reasons the Beattys’ book is so educational. It’s not the kind of education you receive in school. It’s the kind of education you have to decide to give yourself. It is your choice whether you’ll learn about wise uses of your money at this time or put it off until later.

“Pulling Weeds to Picking Stocks” is about working toward and achieving your goals. It’s interesting to read also about the Beattys’ parents’ unique way of teaching their kids.

The Beatty brothers are convinced that you can learn about money no matter what your age, and in the economy we’re growing up in, it just might be a good idea.

By Alyssa Walker
Amp writer

Will Smith was in St. Louis Wednesday for a red carpet premiere of his new movie, “Seven Pounds,” at AMC Creve Coeur 12.

The event was sponsored by many radio stations, including 100.3 The Beat and 93.7 The Bull. 100.3 The Beat was broadcasting live from the theater and throwing T-shirts to the crowd. The DJs were running up and down the red carpet to find out who could scream the loudest and gave away prizes to winners.

Canned food also was collected at the event for the St. Louis Area Foodbank, and 300 turkeys were donated for Thanksgiving dinners. The fans who donated a can were put into a drawing to win tickets to see the movie that night.

The event brought out many stars, including Rams players, Mickey Carroll from “The Wizard of Oz,” Chingy and Nikko Smith.

In “Seven Pounds,” Smith plays the part of a suicidal, guilt-ridden man who attempts to make amends for his past, according to imdb.com. Smith’s character helps out seven strangers in the movie.

Smith suggests that the movie is for 13 and over audiences. “It doesn’t have bad language in it, but the content is more mature for the older audience,” he said.

When Smith took to the red carpet to exit, he spent as much time as possible with his fans. He even took cameras from them and leaned back against the fence to take pictures of himself with them.

You can check out “Seven Pounds” in theaters Dec. 19.