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A p r o d u c t o f t h e

S t e v e n s P o i n t J o u r n a l & B o y s & G i r l s C l u b

Cover Story:

Giving Thanks

2November 2010November 2010

GIVING THANKSOnce again, the holiday season is beginning to

creep up on all of us. Many people begin to put money away for Christmas presents, gargantuan Thanksgiving dinners and memory-fi lled New Year’s Eve/Day parties. It seems sometimes the holiday season is better for many companies rather than the people they sell gifts to.

Despite this, there is something very important for all of us to keep in mind throughout this holiday season: Many families are not able to enjoy their holidays as much as others are.

A shocking amount of people have lost their jobs due to recession, and evictions are defi nitely not slowing down. Add in the increasing cost of food and gasoline, and money becomes very scarce very quickly. Even though your holiday season might be wonderful and perfect, try to imagine what it is like for others who aren’t as fortunate as you. Would you still be happy if you were in the same position as a family who was unemployed or homeless? Most people would say no.

It seems to me like many people have forgotten that the holiday season is the time of the year when compassion and charity are most important. Whether it’s done by donating winter clothes to the Salvation Army, donating money to a family in need, or simply by buying someone something they normally wouldn’t be able to aff ord, every little deed counts. Material items have hijacked the spirit of the holidays. But that doesn’t mean we have to agree with the corporate masterminds who have millions of dollars to spend on commercials, but not one penny to donate to the needy. If we

all work together, we can make the holidays a joyful time for all.

How might this be accomplished? Well, look at Thanksgiving, which is drawing very near. Maybe you could look for a charity or church that is collecting canned food to give to those in need, and use one-fourth of the money you were going to spend

on your own Thanksgiving dinner to spend on canned food to give away. Also, if you hear that someone is having trouble aff ording food, why not buy food for them? You don’t have to spend $50 or more on this. This can be accomplished with $10 to $20, maybe even less.

The same applies to Christmas and New Year’s. Try to fi nd charities or groups that are taking gift donations and support them. Look for people who are having trouble aff ording gifts and/or decorations, and give them the help they need. Above all, treat these actions as a form of volunteer work. Don’t expect the people you are helping to give back to you. Isn’t the knowledge that you’re

making many people smile enough? If you could see the joy your small deed did to a family, or maybe even multiple families, you would know you did an incredible thing.

So, let’s all try to make this holiday season truly joyful for all. After all, a little compassion can sure go a long way, especially in the season of giving.

By Landon NiedOur Voice Staff Stevens Point AreaSenior High Junior

all work together, weacjo

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making many people smile enough? If you could

3November 2010November 2010

TEEN PADDLER SHARES TEEN PADDLER SHARES EXPERIENCES ABROADEXPERIENCES ABROAD

By Hailey ThompsonFor Our Voice

Stevens Point Area Senior High Junior

Editor’s note: For the third straight year, Stevens Point athlete Hailey Thompson has made the USA Canoe and Kayak National Slalom Team. This Stevens Point Area Senior High student fought against the best whitewater paddlers in the country to keep her spot on the team during the trials, which took place in May in Wausau. She made the senior national team for women’s whitewater canoeing. She placed fi rst, making her the top ranked paddler in the United States, and she also made the junior national team for canoeing and kayaking. Over the summer she competed in the Senior World Cup Series, which involved three diff erent races in Europe. She also competed in the Junior World Championships in France in July.

The following is something Thompson wrote while waiting in an airport on her journey back home.

As I type this, I fi nd myself in the Ljubljana Airport, waiting to get on a plane, and consequentially, other planes, that will bring me home, to Wisconsin. Before passing through security, I was able to spend an hour or so talking with two fascinating guys over mugs of Slovenian Hot Cocoa — one of them was Slovenian/Australian, and one Norwegian … it seemed to be a reminder of all of the amazing, multi-cultured people I’ve had an opportunity to meet while being here.

That said, I have to admit, I am really, really excited to get back and see my parents, my dog, and my friends. These past two weeks in Slovenia have been truly incredible. I came alone, to Europe, for the fi rst time, which was an adventure in itself. But I also found myself in some truly interesting situations leading up to the competition.

During one evening after I had wrapped up my last training session, I returned to the police academy with Nuria Vilarrubla (Spain)

and Reka Forizs (Hungary), to put on our team uniforms for the Opening Ceremony Parade. I was really excited, because Opening Ceremonies are always a fun show, and a great opportunity to meet foreign friends. Nuria, Reka, and I were joined by Jane and Ella (New Zealand and Cook Islands), and we began walking to where the bus would take us to the ceremony. Barely fi ve minutes away, I tripped on a metal stub, and came crashing onto the sidewalk with a hefty cut on my knee … not too smooth on my part. A kind Slovenian lady helped us,

and gave us a ride to the meeting area. The French coaches, Pierrick, Medhi, and Jonathan met us, looked at my knee, and told me I was headed to the hospital.

So, I missed out on Opening Ceremonies, but I did get to experience fi rst-hand a Slovenian operating room, and a couple of stitches. I was pretty bummed about the stitches, but even more concerned about how I was going to kneel in a canoe the next day to race. The course set was complicated, with lots of energetic bursts of speed required. I had studied video, and walked the course, and with the exception of the stitches (which kept me out of my boat for time periods of more than 3 minutes, so no good warm-up) I was feeling prepared.

It was a cold, rainy day, but the sun came out through the rain just before my run. It was almost as good a getting a hug for luck before starting. Once I began paddling, I barely felt my knee. I was focused on the race. I laid down a clean, if not remarkably speedy run, which planted me fi rmly in 10th place. I wasn’t sure if I should take a second run, because I was top 20 and progressing to Semifi nals anyway, but I’m not one to watch other people paddle … so two hours later, I got back in my boat, and took a second run. It was going to be fl awless, but at the 14th gate, I hit a wave wrong, and was pushed down beneath two gates — sustaining two 50-second penalties. After everyone had raced, I was still in 12th from my fi rst time, so I made it to semis. The next day, racing was canceled.

The previous day’s rain had swollen the river into a massive, roaring torrent which poured out of the side walls and onto the sidewalks. I spent the day at the riverside, wishing I could hop in a boat and play in the mammoth waves. The following two days were qualifying runs for men, and fi nals for women kayaks … I love cheering for my friends, but I am also much more of a competitor than a spectator. So Sunday and Semifi nals couldn’t come fast enough. Continued on page 4

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The water was back to normal levels, and the course was unchanged, so I reviewed it carefully, and prepared for my run. My knee was a lot less painful after three days of rest, so I hopped in the boat early for a proper warm-up. Feeling good, I awaited my run in the start gate. The timer clicked away beside me, and I was conscious of the mass of humanity on the river bank — Slalom is pretty popular here, and there were a lot of very happy spectators.

Finally, the last three seconds beeped away beside me, and I took off . My run had the right pieces, but it wasn’t as fast as I had hoped. I leapt out of my boat, and ran to the scoreboard. I ranked 3rd, initially, but there were 12 highly skilled ladies left to go. Anxiously, I watched each competitor charge down the course, hoping I could cling to top ten, and make it to Finals. Finally, the last girl made it down the course — and I rested in 10th place! I was stoked! This was my fi rst time in the Finals of a Senior World event … and I couldn’t be happier. The next several hours before my run were tough. I vacillated between total disbelief, minor panic moments, and pure, care-free anticipation. Finally, the time for me to get in my boat rolled around. Things blurred, and then I was doing my fi nal run. I lost a lot of time when I fl ipped beneath the big upper drop, but regained some of it at the bottom of the course. When I fi nished, I was in 1st place briefl y. I was bumped to 3rd, and remained there for quite some time, but ended up fi nishing in 6th. I couldn’t be happier about this fi nish either — it’s my best result to date, when competing with women of all ages.

That night, the competitors gathered one last time, and whiled away our last hours dancing together, celebrating the victories, consoling the disappointments and valuing each others’ company. This morning, I woke up bright and early to catch my fl ight … and in about 17 hours, I’ll be home. It has been an amazing journey, and I will treasure the memories I made here for a very long time.

Our Voice writer Danielle Pederson loves to

read and wants to share some of her favorite authors with you. Here’s a list of her top four authors and her favorite books that they’ve written. Share her passion for reading by picking up copies today!

Meg Cabot: “Size 12 is Not Fat,” “Size 14 is Not Fat,” “Big Boned,” “Pants on Fire,” “All- American Girl,” “Jinx,” “Every Boy’s Got One,” “The Boy Next Door,” “Haunted”

Sarah Dessen: “Lock and Key,” “Just

Listen,” “The Truth About Forever,” “Along for the Ride,” “This Lullaby,” “Dreamland,”

“Keeping the Moon,” “That Summer,” “Someone Like You”

James Patterson:“Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment,” “Maximum Ride: School’s Out -- Forever,” “Maximum Ride: Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports,” “Max,” “Fang”

Nicholas Sparks: “True Believer,” “The Wedding,” “Message in a Bottle,” “A Walk to Remember,” “The Notebook,” “The Last Song,” “The Rescue,” “A Bend in the Road”

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favorite authorsfavorite authorsBy Danielle PedersonOur Voice Staff P.J. Jacobs Junior High School Ninth-Grader

1. Meg Cabot2. Sarah Dessen3. James Patterson4. Nicholas Sparks

Danielle’s Top 4

Authors

Hailey from page 3

5November 2010November 2010

By Gabrielle Morey

Journal Staff

Home-Schooled Tenth Grader

Nov. 1 is National Family Literacy Day, so I thought I’d share a few of my family’s favorite books.

A word play off the famous poem by Cecil Frances Alexander, “All Creatures Great and Small” by James Herriot recounts Herriot’s enterprises as a country veterinarian in 1930s England. It documents his most fascinating, confusing and yes, most hilarious cases, including a cantankerous horse, a piglet who lives in a mansion, and a spoiled dog named Tricki. While readers will undoubtedly fi nd themselves enchanted with the animals in the book, perhaps even more endearing are the adventures of Herriot himself. It’s a great book, especially for animal lovers.

Another of my favorite books is “Shaking the Nickel Bush,” an autobiography of Ralph Moody, a young horseman and brilliant entrepreneur in the early 1900s who always manages to reach his full potential despite his circumstances. After a medical condition forces Ralph to give up his career as a stuntman, he and his friend, street-wise Lonnie, must go in an old Ford jalopy search of a ranching job. Along the way, he discovers his talent for sculpting his favorite animals and horses.

I love the book “Around the World in

Eighty Days” by Jules Verne. In this story, Phileas Fogg, despite all the odds stacked against him, bets his life savings that he can travel the circumference of the earth in eighty days or less. The journey seems impossible, especially considering the issues he’ll

encounter: Train hijackings, boat engine problems, bailing a friend out of jail, and, worst of all, a private detective trailing Mr. Fogg around the world believing he’s a bank robber! A true masterpiece of literature!

Reading is benefi cial in so many ways, but I particularly enjoy reading these books for their powerful messages presented in humorous, interesting stories. They will never get stale. Happy National Family Literacy Day!

STUDENT SHARES FAVORITE BOOKS

FOR NATIONAL FAMILY LITERACY DAY

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Are you a junior

high or high school student in

Portage County who loves to write? Are you interested in learning

what it takes to put a newspaper together? Do you want your artwork or creative writing pieces published?

If you answered yes to any of those questions, this

newspaper needs your help.

Our Voice, a monthly product of the Stevens Point Journal and

The Boys & Girls Club of Portage

County, needs a new student staff to write about issues aff ecting them, entertainment, fashion, books, sports and more.

Co-founder Sam Dinga created the publication in summer 2006, recognizing that youths often are disengaged from newspapers. He created this publication to boost interest in reading and writing.

Our Voice is delivered to all households in the boundaries of the Stevens Point Area Public School District with students in grades six to 12. It also is available at the Boys & Girls Club sites. If you do not meet those guidelines but would like to receive copies, contact Tom Gustin at 715-345-2290 or tgustin@gannett.com.

There is no fee to join the staff , and

students can write as much or as little as they want.

Call adviser Nicole Strittmater at 715-345-2249 or e-mail her at nstrittmater@gannett.com for more information.

CALLING ALL WRITERS!CALLING ALL WRITERS!

Purchase Books at: Bookfinders,Book Look & Book World.

For more information call Cheri at:715-345-5507.

7November 2010November 2010

By Kaylyn Kluck

Our Voice Staff

St. Peter Middle School Eighth-Grader

Lyd had never seen so many Dream Catchers come to see an airball game before. The stadium was full. And Lyd had no idea why. She was a newer Dream Catcher, not an older, experienced one. Usually the adults played on Field 1. But today, Lyd had been prepared to play an intense game against Kat, a wicked Dream Catcher who was captain of a rival team. Suddenly a guy came up to the them and told them to re-locate to Field 1, where the best of the best played. Everything was so confusing, but Lyd mostly cared about

winning. She hated Kat. Kat hated her. Lyd knew winning was everything now.

Lyd’s airball team, the Thunder Flyers, consisted of her best friends, Chase, Olivia, JJ, Jason, Arena, and…Quigley. Quigley was only playing with the team today because their other team member was unable to play. Lyd hoped that they would all come through for her. She couldn’t beat the competition alone. Airball was a tough game. Being a Dream Catcher meant you could fl y because you had wings, and you lived on top of the clouds, so it was played in the air. The fl ying ball fl oated around the fi eld. The object of the game was to get the ball in the other team’s goal. You could toss it in, kick it in, or whatever worked. And to defend the other team from scoring, you could punch, kick, shove, and in real

intense games, knock the opponent out. Lyd loved it.

After suiting up in the amazing locker rooms under the Field 1 stadium, Lyd gave her team a fi nal pep talk, reassuring them that they would win. Everyone, even Arena, who usually had an expressionless face, looked nervous.

“Um, Lydia, what if we lose?” Olivia asked uneasily.

Lyd replied suavely, “Call me Lyd. And we won’t lose. We worked too hard to lose. Well, most of us anyway.” She glanced at Quigley, who was braiding the loose threads of his Thunder Flyers jersey.

“Why are we playing here?” Jason asked. Lyd admitted, “I have no idea, okay?”The team got called up to take the fi eld.

DREAM CATCHERS: DREAM CATCHERS: Playing AirballPlaying AirballEditor’s note: This is the fi fth installment of Dream Cathers in Our Voice. The sixth will appear in the December issue.

Continued on page 8

8November 2010November 2010

“My mom tells her friends

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school, IT’S FUN!”

- Jason Davis

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Gosh it was big. There was so many Dream Catchers Lyd didn’t know in the crowd. Then she saw Kat’s team, the Sky Gems, getting positioned on the other side of the fi eld. Lyd got scared inside. Kat looked so confi dent, like playing on a huge fi eld was no big deal. Again, Lyd wondered who had moved the match in the fi rst place. But there was no time to consider, because the Dream Catchers were fl ying to their positions. Lyd, Arena, and JJ played forward. Olivia, Chase, and Jason covered mid fi eld, and Quigley was goalie. Lyd wondered if she should have made Arena goalie instead, because she had never seen Quigley play before. But it was too late to switch up the lineup. Lyd handed her air ball to the referee, because it was Lyd’s turn to provide it. She could see the mix of horror and shock appear on Kat’s face. Kat had thrown Lyd’s old air ball off the side of a cloud the other day, and this one was an exact replica of the one Kat had taken. It had arrived mysteriously at breakfast this morning.

Lyd smiled and looked up at the sky. It had been blue a minute ago, but now it was a pale gray. She prayed that there wouldn’t be a storm. At the center of the fi eld, the two captains gave each other one glance that said, good luck, you’ll need it. And then the gong sounded. The air ball was released into the air, and Lyd and Kat raced to grab it. But Kat was quicker. She got control of the ball and fl ew with lightning speed in between Lyd and JJ. Unwilling to let Kat score that easily, Lyd yelled to Chase to stop her. Chase grabbed Kat’s leg, which slowed

her down enough to make her loose grip of the ball. Jason retrieved it, tossed it, and it was caught by Arena, who fl apped her way to the middle of the other team’s side. One of the huge boys from the Sky Gems smashed himself against her. Arena was losing strength from the hit. Lyd raced over to help her, and gave the boy a hard upper-kick in the rib. Lyd could hear the crack of the boy’s bones. She had kicked so hard, one of his ribs was broken. But that only stopped him for about fi ve seconds. He was back on Lyd’s trail in an instant. Arena handed the ball to her, and Lyd chucked it towards the goal. The Sky Gem’s goalie blocked it.

One of Kat’s friends, a girl, now had the ball. She fl ew to the Thunder Flyer’s side, where JJ fl ew down on top of her head, which he kicked, and the girl was knocked out. The crowd cheered, they loved it when someone was out cold. Kat got the ball from her unconscious teammate, and fl ew to the goal that Quigley was supposed to be defending. Instead, Quigley was standing on the side of the net, watching the action in awe. Lyd wanted to scream. The goal was wide open! Kat kicked the ball, and Lyd thought for sure that it would go in. But instead, it ricocheted off of Quigley’s round head. Kat hissed in anger at her mistake, and then Chase and Olivia ganged up on her, each taking one of Kat’s arms and pulled them in the opposite directions as hard as they could. Kat screeched in pain. Jason retrieved the ball, threw it to Lyd, and she took off towards the other goal. Several Sky Gems attempted to stop her, but Lyd threw it in at

the perfect angle and scored. The crowd went wild. Happiness

surged through Lyd, just as it always did when she was in the lead. That’s when she heard the thunder. Every Dream Catcher froze. They were so high up in the clouds that thunder was immensely loud. The referee told Lyd and Kat that they should probably postpone the rest of the match.

“No way!” The captains both shrieked.

The ref shrugged. “Well, I suppose that as long as there isn’t lightning…”

“We’re playing,” Kat said. And they did.

Several kicks, punches, and shoves later, Kat got a hold of the ball and made an amazing charge

to the Thunder Flyer’s goal. She threw it in, and it was impossible for Quigley to reach. Lyd kicked the air in frustration. Now the teams were tied. The ref came up to them again.

“I really think we should stop.”Once again, the girl’s refused.

They agreed that whoever won the next point would be the winner.

“Are you sure Lydia?” Olivia questioned Lyd.

“Absolutely. Let’s end this!” Lyd screamed over the roaring wind.

But Kat and Lyd had made the wrong choice. Because the next time the ball was released, they both raced to get it. Both their fi ngers had just barely clasped the ball when the lightning struck them both.

Dream Catchers from page 7

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Tickets available at University Information & Tickets, Dreyfus University Center, 1015 Reserve St., 8am-9pm, Monday through Friday, 12pm-9pm, Saturday & Sunday; and at the Sentry Theater Upper Lobby one hour prior to each performance. For more information or reservations call 346-4100. Adults $18 & children under 12 $9.

Produced by special arrangement, and music and idialogue material furnished by TAMS-WITMARK MUSIC LIBRARY, INC., 560 Lexington Ave., New York, NY 10022.

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9November 2010November 2010

DEAD OR ALIVEDEAD OR ALIVEBy Hanna BurchOur Voice Staff St. Peter Middle School Eighth-Grader

Editor’s note: This is the third chapter of a continuing series. For Chapter 4, look for the December edition of Our Voice.

Chapter 3“Let me go! I didn’t do anything! Fender,

HELP ME! Come on, don’t hold so tight!” Angela struggled against her kidnapper for the second time that day. “It’s not like I have anywhere to escape to,” she said angrily, scowling at him. Her brow frowned in fury, while she squinted at him with deadly eyes. He laughed, seeming to have a sense of humor unlike this morning.

“Yaw know, ya’ll pretty cute when ya angry. Reminds me of my own beauty, Ninny, back at home. Aw, ain’t she a pretty one. You got yo self a boy?” he asked, his eyes sparkling more and more, knowing that he was taunting her. This

made Angie even more angry.“None of your business. Humph. And I don’t

care about you wife. Poor her.” Angela was cut off as the man plopped her down on a bench and pulled out a pair of handcuff s. He strapped them on her wrists. “Don’t talk about Ninny that way, brat.” He spat at her, losing his light, humorous mood.

“You stay here, kid. Don’t cause any trouble for me, either. I got myself a gun back on the ship, and if you knew me, you’d know I’m not afraid to get rid of little brats around here with it,” he threatened. The man, who went by Toady, jerked his thumb backward in the direction of the ship, indicating where his gun was. He walked away and started shouting orders to the other men, while plopping some tobacco in his mouth.

“Wait! Toady! Can I ask you just ONE question?” Angela begged, forgetting her attitude toward him. Toady turned around

looking annoyed.“What?” he asked in an exasperated voice.“What are you going to do with me? Why did

you take me away from my mom? Why are you here? Why am I here?” Angela quizzed.

Toady sighed and checked his watch. “Listen, Angel or whatever your name is, that is for me to know and for you to fi nd out,” he said smugly.

“It’s Angela, actually,” she glared. He ignored her and smiled mischievously. “Now, leave me alone. I have to go make sure ...” Toady turned and left, not bothering to fi nish his sentence. Angie pouted and cursed him under her breath.

The ship had landed while Angela was trying to fi gure out what it was doing back. She had known that it would probably eventually return, but she had no idea when. The ship had reached shore and an anchor was thrown overboard. She had gone over toward them and watched them dock. A plank had unfolded and had acted as a bridge to the rim of the shore. Toady had grabbed her when he stomped off the plank, making it almost cave in. Some other strange men, Angela assumed they were the ships crew, had made a small camp on the island.

Angela tried loosening the handcuff s, but it was useless. She sighed, giving up and took the opportunity to inspect the Continued on page 10

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people around her. One man, who she decided to call Smoky, was sitting a few feet away from her, keeping a small fi re alive. The weather on this island is weird, Angela thought. Sometimes, the sun was burning everything, sometimes the wind was so harsh it knocked you down or gave you goose bumps, and during most evenings the weather was deathly cold and numb.

Smoky lit a cigarette, dropped the match on the ground, and took a puff of it. He blew the smoke through his teeth, slowly, enjoying it. Angela gagged. She hated the smell of smoke, especially from cigarettes. While Angie was making faces at the horrid smell, he looked at her and noticed Angela for the fi rst time. He took time to glance her over, as he inhaled more drags of smoke. When he fi nally noticed her disgust toward the cigarette, he held up a pack of them and off ered her one, gave her a smug grin, but he didn’t expect her to accept.

“Eww, no way. I hate cigaret — wait, never mind. Yes. Why yes.

I’d love one.” She stammered and smiled sweetly as she got an idea. A cigarette could be used as a small weapon of some sort if it was lit. Smoky handed her one, surprised at her response. She gripped it in her now freezing hands, refusing the lighter he off ered her.

“I rather not smoke, uh, right now, I mean,” Angela told him. She squirmed in her seat and looked away. Smoky shrugged and got up to fetch some more fi rewood. “Suit ya self.” He headed away carrying an ax.

Angela, frustrated and tired, kicked her legs up and lay down. How had this happened? To think that a couple days ago she had been sitting in Algebra class passing notes between herself and her best friend, Shalila, and now was being held captive on an island by some grubby, smoking men. She had enjoyed Fender’s company before the ship had come back, but ...

Oh my gosh, Angela panicked. Where was Fender? Angela hadn’t noticed him missing. The last she

had seen him he was beside her as they watched the ship come in. But then she had wondered over to the other side of the island and just expected Fender would follow her. She stood up and looked frantically around the island, turning in circles, until she was certain that her eyes hadn’t missed Fender and that he wasn’t in sight. Maybe one of the men took him she thought, praying that this was true. She stumbled over to Toady, tripping over her own feet.

Toady was standing near the ship, chewing his tobacco, as she headed toward him. He saw her just as she almost collided with him. “Whoa! Watch where you’re going, miss.” He scowled at her. “Now, why did you come over here? I thought I told you to stay put!” he grumbled.

“Toady! Have you seen Fender? Where is he? I demand to see him RIGHT NOW!” Angela gasped out of breath as she snapped at Toady.

“Fender? Who the heck is that?” Toady chewed on his tobacco, swirled his saliva and spit disgustingly

into the ocean. Angie gave him a dirty look. She was getting sick of all these rude mannered people.

“My dog, stupid. Where is he?” Angela spat out, and realized she had said my dog. She didn’t take it back, though.

“How am I s’pose to know? I haven’t seen any animals out here. And if I did, they would’ve been dead already. Mmm ... I do love animal meat ... Anyways, you scoot your little behind back over next to the fi re.” He brushed her away and walked back shouting more orders and commands.

Angela’s eyes sent daggers into his back, wishing that looks could kill. But, obediently, she stomped back toward her bench. She plopped down and started silently crying. She didn’t know where he could’ve gone, if he had drowned, if someone had killed him, or what. All she knew was that her only friend, Fender, was missing.

Dead or Alive from page 9

11November 2010November 2010

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EMPTY BOWLS: EMPTY BOWLS: COMBATING HUNGER AT HOMECOMBATING HUNGER AT HOME

CASEY LAKE/STEVENS POINT JOURNAL.Empty Bowls patrons Danielle Lorbeck, from left, her mother, Heather Lorbeck, Dane Royer and Morgan Marotz, all of Stevens Point, look over some of the 1,200 handmade bowls that were available Saturday at the Empty Bowls lunch at the Stevens Point Area Senior High.

By Lydia WardOur Voice Staff Stevens Point Area Senior High Sophomore

Most people are aware of the worldwide hunger crisis. However, what you may not be aware of are the similarly devastating eff ects of hunger right here in Portage County. Many families in our county face a shortage of food and hunger every day.

However, there are ways to

combat hunger in Portage County. Canned food drives from school or religious organizations are common, and monetary donations through various groups are also frequent. But the annual Portage County Empty Bowls fundraiser, which occurred on Oct. 16 at SPASH, is arguably one of the most unique and direct ways to fund the fi ght against hunger at home.

I had never participated in the event before this year, but the fi rst thing I noticed, even before I had

entered the building, was that it was i n c r e d i b l y popular. The parking lot was packed, and inside, it was no diff erent. I ended up waiting in line for 30 m i n u t e s before getting a n y w h e r e near soup. But when all $10 of the a d m i s s i o n price goes to fund programs of the Portage County Hunger and Poverty Prevention Partnership, I would have been willing to wait much longer.

Once through the ticket line, I was told to select one of many ceramic bowls made by local potters, students and other members of the community. Then, in a cafeteria-style set-up, I was served my choice of many options of soups, stews and chowders provided from area restaurants, including Emy J’s, @ 1800, Christian’s Bistro, and The Wooden Chair. Bread, cookies, and beverages were also served.

In addition to the meal, the event included live entertainment from Tom Pease and Rock, Paper, Scissors, a demonstration from local potter Joe Clark, children’s pumpkin

painting, and a marketplace selling Empty Bowls merchandise.

Empty Bowls got me thinking. It is important to continue raising money for Wisconsin, but if it’s that simple to have such a large eff ect for Portage County alone, imagine what could happen if the entire world banded together to fi ght hunger.

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