Meet Luna: the newest addition to the therapy dog family

Owner: Mari Mortensen

D.O.B: 2/5/2010

Place of Birth: Kentucky

Breed: Newfoundland, Border collie mix

Favorite Food: Whatever any human is eating

Favorite Toy: Yogi

 KA: Where were you adopted from?

L: I was in a crowded shelter in Kentucky and would have died, but I was sent to a foster home in Illinois and got on petfinders.com.

 KA: What do you have to do to become a certified therapy dog?

L:  1.) Have a great temperament

2.) Pass an evaluation which includes obedience skills, and ability to be gentle in all situations.

 KA:  What kinds of things do you do at RB and what do you plan on doing in the future?

L: Right now I’m just getting used to bells, crowds, stairs, and the big environment of the school.  I love it when the students come by to tell me how adorable I am. After I pass my test, I’ll be able to do all of the things Yogi does (go to the British Home, work with students in many different programs, and clean up the floors after 4^th hour.)

 KA: What else would you like to tell the students of RB?

L: If you haven’t met me yet, please come by room 137 on Fridays so I can get extra treats! Also, I’d like to thank Yogi for teaching me and being a great big brother.

Best Buddies Goes Hollywood

Best Buddies members walked the red carpet this past Saturday, April 17^th, for the annual Best Buddies Prom. RBHS Best Buddies, along with the Best Buddies chapter from Oak Park River Forest, danced the night away and celebrated the closing of a notable year for Best Buddies.

 The prom took place at OPRF High School last year, and RBHS Best Buddies members were excited to be hosting it this year.

  Best Buddies Goes Hollywood was the theme, complete with glamorous attire and Hollywood style entrances. Guests entering the dance made their way down a red carpet lined with twinkling lights, after first being checked off the guest list by four students acting as bouncers. 

 Over 100 students from both schools were present at the event, which took place in the East Gym.  A backdrop for pictures of buddy pairs was set up in the hallway as well as a bean bag game.  Best Buddies members were also able to indulge themselves at the chocolate fountain set up at the food table.

 “We worked really hard on all of the preparations and it took a lot of time,” said senior and Best Buddies officer Tim Hannigan, “In the end it was all worth while.”

 A large area of the gym was used as the dance floor where students danced to music provided by a DJ and showed off their moves for a dance contest that took place. Two Buddies from OPRF and two from RB were announced the winners of the contest and received trophies.

 “Everyone had fun, talking and dancing,” said sophomore and Best Buddies member Ally Carter, “We all got along great!”

 The dance went from 7-9 p.m. and all attendees were sad to say goodbye at the end.  All of the efforts in preparation for the dance made the event a memorable experience for both Best Buddies chapters.

Spread the Word to End the Word

Spread The Word to End the Word is a national campaign that was started to stop the derogatory use of the word “retarded” and to eliminate it from everyday speech.  This year, Best Buddies decided to spread awareness of the movement to the RB community by holding an official End the R-word Day at the end of March.

 The Best Buddies officers and other members of the club filmed a promotional commercial for RBTV, which was shown at school for a day during all English classes. The message was to encourage the school community to eliminate the use of the r-word and to promote a new r-word: Respect.

 “The campaign to end the r-word sparked a lot of discussion,” said Best Buddies sponsor Mari Mortensen, “We learned that many students have been hurt by stereotypes and offensive labels.”

 Schools all over the country have also helped spread the word by making banners for students and teachers to sign in order to pledge commitment to stop the use of the r-word.  The Best Buddies Chapter at RB received over 300 pledges during the two days in which a banner was set up in the school cafeteria.

 During the month of March, the goal of the national campaign was to receive 100,000 pledges.  With the help of many who feel strongly about this movement, that goal was met.

 Anyone wishing to take the pledge may do so at www.r-word.com.

Goodbye to an RBHS Therapy Dog

After seven years of service in the building, RB must say goodbye to a very special friend.  Snuggles the therapy dog passed away on Wednesday December 9^th due to a spinal cord disease.

In his time at RB, the King Charles Cavalier made over 100 visits to the British home as a part of the therapy dog program. He went to Maywood courtrooms to comfort students testifying in domestic violence situations and worked with the Core students as a means to improve communication.  In Oak Park, Snuggles was the first dog in the READ program and one of only five dogs to be allowed in the library.

He also worked at the Oak Park and Westlake hospitals as a motivator for physical therapy patients, provided motivation for ESL students to increase their confidence and public speaking, assisted in many classroom presentations on humane education, and helped many students escape a period of ADA.

Snuggles was famous for escaping the office to sneak into classrooms with known treat supplies.  He knew when to crawl into the laps of grieving students and to bark at those running in the halls.

In an e-mail to all staff members, Snuggle’s owner, Mari Mortensen expressed her gratitude for everyone’s kind expressions of sympathy.

“Snuggles was my Best Buddy,” said Mortensen in the e-mail.

Snuggles provided countless moments of comfort and smiles to students and staff.  He will be remembered and missed by many here at RB.

Madrigals perform for vets at Hines

On Wednesday October 28^th, the Madrigal singers performed at Edward Hines Jr. Hospital in Maywood.  This Hospital is a branch of the Loyola University Health System that services veterans. The lunch time series took place around noon and although it lasted for only 30 minutes, the performance meant a lot to the workers, patients, and veterans staying at the hospital.

The group performed in the hospital’s chapel for a small live audience, while hundreds of patients watched the performance live from the televisions in their rooms.  The event was televised throughout the hospital and made available for everyone who wanted to watch it.

This was the Madrigal’s second time performing at Hines Hospital and the singers came well prepared.

“We learned all of our own music during class and practiced outside of school,” said senior and Madrigal singer Stephanie Duve, “It was our first performance of the year and it went really well.”

The group performed its entire fall repertoire, which includes “Danny Boy”, “Good Day to Your Heart”, “Sing We and Chant It” and an encore performance of the Armed Forces song.

“It was cool to be able to perform the Armed Forces Song,” Duve said, “It had a huge impact on the veterans.”

The performance was looked forward to by all of the patients and workers at the hospital.

“A doctor and pastor at the hospital told us that people were so excited we were there,” said Duve.

The songs performed at the hospital were added to the group’s selection and many of the pieces will be performed again for future concerts.

The group’s first performance was successful and rewarding not only for the patients and veterans at Hines, but for the RB Madrigals as well.

“Music is a form of expression and it’s a universal symbol,” Duve said, “It’s something that brings people together.”

Seniors do service work around the world

A typical summer for most RB students, turned out to be an exciting and eye opening one for three RB seniors.  Vija Lietuvninkas, Connor Halline, and Emily Hejna, all spent part of their summer doing service work in three different countries around the world.  The students got to experience what it’s like to live in another part of the world and were able to help those who are less fortunate.

LIETUVNINKAS VISITS LITHUANIA

“I loved how the kids warmed up to us,” said Lietuvninkas of the Lithuanian kids she looked after at a children’s center.  Lietuvninkas left school a few weeks before this past summer break and headed to Lithuania, a country in Eastern Europe.  During her three weeks of service, she spent her time volunteering at a rural children’s center.

“The center was basically a safe haven for these kids who come from homes with parents that are abusive and aren’t good role models,” said Lietuvninkas.

Lietuvninkas planned her trip through Child’s Gate to Learning, an organization within her Lithuanian community.  About half of her expenses for the trip were paid through the RBEF.

Lietuvninkas stayed in a part of the country where the dialect was very difficult to understand, but felt that it was easier to make a connection with the kids because she is fluent in Lithuanian.

She worked with about 20 kids, ages 7 through 15, who enjoyed hanging out, having fun, and being loved by the volunteers like Lietuvninkas.

“Just seeing how much they loved us because of the attention and love we gave them was so rewarding,” said Lietuvninkas, “We were the highlight of their day.”

She enjoyed doing different crafts with the kids, especially making bracelets, the activity they enjoyed the most.

“I wear bracelets they made me so I can keep them close to my heart,” said Lietuvninkas, “Every time I look at the bracelets I think of them.”

CONNOR HALLINE SEES COSTA RICA

“I got addicted to coffee; they had the best coffee in the world,” said Halline of Costa Rica.

This past summer, Halline spent a month doing four different service projects in the Central American country of Costa Rica.  He applied for the trip by filling out an application through AFS (American Field Service).

Halline was in a work crew of about 17 other high school students from across the country.  He spent time on a self sustaining farm, renovated two high schools by fixing tiles and bathrooms, and built trails in the rain forest.

“We basically had to carry bags of sand and rock through the rain forest for three miles,” said Halline.

Halline lived with his group in a barn for the first and last week of his trip and stayed with two different Costa Rican host families for the two weeks in-between.

“At first it was really awkward but I was able to speak Spanish almost fluently,” he said.

Halline enjoyed learning a lot of Spanish and even got to be a guest speaker on a Spanish radio talk show.

“It was a really great experience and I made a lot of close friendships,” said Halline.

HEJNA GOES TO GHANA

“It was rewarding because the people are truly grateful for anything you do,” said Hejna of her experiences in Africa.

This past summer Hejna spent a little more than two weeks in Hohoe, a small village in Ghana, Africa.  She applied for her trip through a teen program called Cross Cultural Solutions and had to write an essay and interview for the spot.  Some of her expenses for the trip were paid through a grant from the school and from sponsors who Hejna asked to donate money.

Hejna worked on many different projects during her trip including painting the outside of a hospital, visiting the school for the deaf and mentally disabled, and helping out at an orphanage.

She spent time at the orphanage, playing with children who only spoke some English.  They enjoyed drawing pictures for the volunteers like Hejna.

“The kids at the orphanage wrote things like, I love you Emily,” said Hejna, “It was heartbreaking.”

She stayed in a house with the other teen volunteers and experienced different African culture lessons presented by dance groups and speakers.  Hejna enjoyed getting to know the other volunteers who were from all over the United States as well as other countries like Canada, England and Belgium.

Although Ghana is one of the more stable countries in Africa, Hejna saw people living in tin roof huts and experiencing a very different lifestyle.

“I had to get 5 or 6 shots because of the foreign diseases I could catch,” said Hejna, “The food also made a lot of us sick because we weren’t used to it.”

Hejna, who has wanted to go to Africa since junior high, was grateful for her experiences and enjoyed getting to know the different people she encountered on her trip.

“It was cool to see how other people live,” said Hejna, “It makes you appreciate your own life a lot more.”

Students accept Best Buddies award

Over the summer the University of Indiana held the annual Best Buddies leadership conference, inviting students from all over the world to learn how to become future presidents of their high school programs. Seniors Kate Abbatacola and Kelly Sherman went to the conference to represent Riverside Brookfield High School, and accept their highly praised award.

For the second time in its four year history at RB, the Best Buddies program came away with the “Outstanding Chapter” award. The award is given to just twenty two schools out of the entire Best Buddies program. That includes all fifty states, and several countries such as Ireland, Russia, Greece and Poland.

“Its great,” said Sherman, “What people don’t realize is that we’re top dogs when it comes to Best Buddies. They constantly used us as examples in all the workshops we attended.”

Sherman and Abbatacola attended five workshops a day for three days straight, developing new skills and ideas for the current year.

“It was nice to meet people from other states and countries who share the same passion for Best Buddies that we do,” said Abbatacola, “My favorite part was the 80’s dance. It was like homecoming times a million. I would love to be able to do that for our program.”

The possibilities are endless and with a new group of buddies already being interviewed and paired up, this year is off to a great start.

“We’re really excited about this upcoming year and we’re planning on being and outstanding chapter once again,” said Abbatacola.