The Flare Online

Mothers Against Drunk Driving hosted a fundraising 5K walk at KC, Saturday, March 31.

During the awards ceremony several teams were recognized including Top Team and Top Earner.

After the ceremony, walkers began their circuits of the campus finishing back at Miller Plaza.

Featured at the walk was a pinwheel garden where those who had lost loved ones could write a special message to them.

Several local vendors who work with victims or educate young people on the dangers of drunk driving, were in attendance.

MADD was founded in California on September 5, 1980 by Candace Lightner now based in Irving, TX.  The goal is to prevent more deaths due to drunk driving accidents like the one that killed her 13-year-old daughter, Cari on May 3, 1980.

The mission statement for MADD states: to end drunk driving, help fight drugged driving, support the victims of these violent crimes, and prevent underage drinking.

The 24 hour victim line is 877.MADD.HELP

There is at least one MADD office in each state of the US and at least one in each province in Canada.

There are currently over three million members to date. Of that number, 742 teams, with 4,781 participants have raised $1,247,743.

All money raised stays in the community to stop these 100 percent preventable crimes.

The local chapter is in Tyler. Their number is 903-534-6000.

The KC Dance Department will hold an open scholarship audition for dance majors at 10 a.m. Saturday,  April  8, at the Parks Fitness Center, PE 106.

The audition is based on a class which will include ballet, modern dance, and jazz. No prepared material is necessary. Required dress for the audition is a leotard and tights (with a change of biker shorts for modern portion) with ballet shoes, jazz shoes or bare feet.
The scholarship will cover four courses in Ballet and Tap & Jazz, two courses in Modern, and one course in both Improvisation/Composition and Dance Appreciation. KC offers an intensive course of study for the beginning student, as well as those who have had more extensive training.

Upon graduation, KC students are prepared to enter the professional world or to continue their studies at a four-year college where courses could transfer in Fine Arts, Physical Education and Dance Education.
Scholarship awards are based on talent, ability, potential, financial need and the student’s interest in continuing professionally as a dancer, teacher or in a related area.

A scholarship student must fulfill the course requirements of a dance major and maintain at least a 2.5 GPA in all college courses. Scholarship students must also be active members of the KC Dance Club. The scholarship is renewable for four semesters with amounts up to $500 per semester.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Randolph C. Watson Library will begin accepting food for fines on Monday, April 17. Any student who owes a fine on a library book may bring several containers of shelf stable food or personal hygiene items to the circulation desk to pay for their fine. Books that have been lost will not be able to be paid for in this manner.

As the end of the semester is fast approaching, any student who has unopened, shelf stable items in their dorms, may donate those as well.

Donations may also be brought to the Office of the Vice-President, Room 165 in the Devall Student Center.

The food pantry is open to all KC students who do not live on campus. Students will need their I.D. to see Dr. Jenkins.

The following is a list of items needed. (Please, no green beans or Ramen noodles.):

•  Canned meals such as soup, chili, spaghetti or ravioli
•   Tuna
•   Dry pasta
•   Spaghetti/pasta sauce
•   Hamburger Helper or other “one pot” meal starters
•   Packaged pasta or noodle side dishes such as Knorr, Uncle Ben’s, Zatarain’s
•   Breakfast items such as Pop Tarts, instant oatmeal, cereal, pancake mix
•   Baking mixes such as Bisquick, and those for muffins and cornbread or cakes
•   Canned fruit
•   Rice
•   Instant mashed potatoes
•   Peanut butter
•   Personal hygiene items such as bar soap, shampoo, toothbrushes and toothpaste

 

Question: How did you get started in this business/industry? 

Ethan: We started as student workers. A friend of mine who was in theatre told me they were looking for a hand and made a lateral move and pushed me into that position. I had an interview and got the job.

 

Q: What is the process for working on Revels? Is it a lot of pressure and how do you deal with it? 

All: It’s a lot of long nights. We have put 522 hours into working on it. Different ideas and concepts come in early and we get asked for our input. There are a lot of logistics to being backstage and it tapers down to figuring out what is possible and what isn’t.  It is not just us, though. It has taken an army to get everything to come together. Communication plays a big part; anticipating needs and listening when people talk. Knowing that they will ask you a question and having an answer ready or a solution.

 

Q: What appeals to you the most about working backstage?

All: It keeps us busy. There’s a lot of critical thinking and problem solving involved and we enjoy it.

 

Q: Has anything ever gone wrong that led you to improvise or act quickly?  

E: A lot of things can go wrong. There was one incident where we had dimming lights completely shut down and we had to rent an electric iron lung.

Jesse: Another time the curtains got hung up and we had about 30 seconds to straighten it out. We try our best to keep any mistakes hidden. You don’t want it to be noticeable to the audience. It is also my job to help if one of the girls gets injured. They know I used to be a paramedic so I help them enough to get through the night and back on stage.

 

Q: What’s the hardest part of working on the production/show? 

E: Sleep deprivation. We all have our vices to get through it; coffee, Red Bull etc.

 

Q: Would you ever expand into a family business outside of Kilgore? 

J: We have a business already; Stage Left.  We decided on that name because we started out there. [stage left or house right is the right side of a stage facing the audience.]

E: I have toured part of Texas and played different events [on stage performances]. It just depends on what is needed. I prefer to be backstage. 

 

Q: What is it like working with your siblings? Do you work well together? 

E: We were all home-schooled. We’ve been working together for a long time and we usually know what the other is thinking or how they’re going to do something.

J: Ethan and I worked together in a candle shop. It was my first job. He was 18 and I was 15. If he tells me he needs something done, then he knows it will get done and doesn’t have to worry about it.

Sam: We trust one another and hold each other to high standards.

 

Q: Do you have any other interests? 

E: We all play music. We grew up in a very musical family. It is how I find my solace. We have talked about incorporating live music into shows.

S: I like syncopated and complex music that I can analyze and dissect or study; music theory.

 

Q: What kind of legacy do you want to leave behind? 

All: Our parents always taught us to leave a place better than we found it and we want to leave our mark on Dodson Auditorium. Dodson is an old building and we’ve removed a lot of its quirks. We built the stage and added the sound booth. Everything was spread out before and we decided it was better to be together in one area.

 

 

 

KC Fire Academy graduated 18 students during its 100^th graduation celebrated Wednesday, March 29. The ceremony was preceded by a reception hosted for all former KC Fire Academy students, instructors and members of the previous 100 classes. About 60 people attended, including a firefighter musical ensemble.

The former students, many who now hold jobs as firefighters and their instructors, enjoyed reminiscing about how the Academy has progressed since its beginnings in the late ‘80s. The KC Fire Academy was first started in August 1989 by Dennis Cage (retired Kilgore Fire Chief), Leon Glass (former chief of Longview Fire Department) the late Ronnie Moore, and the late David Buress. The Academy had 22 students in its first class. Around 1995, it expanded and began accepting students from Canada.

Of this class’ graduates, seven were from Canada. One of the students, Andrew Pike, from Yukon, Canada, talked about how expensive attending a fire academy up north, although he hopes to return home and find a fire-fighting job there.

During the reception, current lead instructor, Mike Fennell was presented with an award from Harleton Fire Department honoring him for the contributions he has made to the KC Fire Academy. Fennell said it was important to remember where the Academy came from since its humble beginnings in 1989, and to remember where they were and where they are going.

“Kilgore College Fire Academy has a rich, deep-seated tradition in the fire service. And we want to carry that on,” he said.

The academy is recognized as one of the top fire academies in the country and they have had students from all over the world come to the academy, he added.

“We’ve had students come from Canada, Guam, South America, the Bahamas, Europe, the Middle East,”  Fennell said.

Ricky Lasky, an emergency services consultant, motivational speaker and former chief of the Lewisville Fire Department gave a speech at the graduation ceremony. Lasky talked about the reputation of the Academy being one of the best in the nation.

“They teach with passion here,” he said. “It’s all about being a public servant; it’s all about the higher cause, the higher purpose.” Lasky said. His speech embraced the intensity and quality of training KC academy provides. Lasky said so many community colleges and fire departments offer fire training programs but KC fire academy was outstanding.

The KC Fire Academy is recognized by the state as an impeccable program and it is accredited by the Texas Commission on Fire Protection and the State Firefighters and Fire Marshals Association. KC fire academy offers three or four classes per year. They have a limit of 25 students per class. The classes last about 12 weeks.

 

 

KC student Tina Marie Reed brought home Photographer of the Year among Div. 2 schools at the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association meeting held March 30-April 1 in Dallas. In their respective divisions, the Ranger Yearbook took third in Overall Excellence and The Flare Newspaper received honorable mention in Overall Excellence against two-year colleges and four-year universities across the state.

In on-site competition, Reed, Longview sophomore, placed third in news photography. Reed, along with Tiffany Johnson, Longview sophomore, received an honorable mention in 2-person photo essay. The Flare newspaper received honorable mention in Best of Show. In all, 442 students, representing 45 schools competed head-to-head in 25 events during on-site contests. Students also had the opportunity to choose from more than 50 workshops presented by professional journalists and instructors over a two-day period.

In previously published work, KC students won 10 awards for the Ranger yearbook, including three firsts for photography. The Flare newspaper staff received 17 awards, including first place finishes in feature photo, photo illustration and opinion page design. The Flare Magazine finished in competition with a second place in photo illustration. KC is the only junior college in its yearbook and newspaper division, competing against medium-sized universities such as Rice, Southern Methodist, Stephen F. Austin, Sul Ross, Tarleton and Midwestern, among others.

 

Individual awards are:

• Elijah Banks: 2^nd-Newspaper Sports News Story, HM Sports Page Design

• Tiffani Branch: 2^nd-Newspaper Picture Story

• Devin Brooks: HM-Yearbook Information Graphic

• Rain Cohn: 3^rd-Newspaper News Photo

• Victoria Gilchrist: 1^st-Yearbook Photo Story, 1^st -Yearbook Academic Photo; 1^st-Newspaper Photo Illustration, 2^nd-Newspaper Picture Story

• Tiffany Johnson: 1^st-Yearbook Photo Story, 2^nd-Yearbook Opening Spread, 3^rd-Yearbook Information Graphic; HM Newspaper Sports Action Photo

• Lauren LaBoyteaux: 1^st-Yearbook Photo Story

• Paulin Libebele: 1^st-Yearbook Photo Story

• Meaghan Morton: 1^st-Newspaper Opinion Page Design; 2^nd– Newspaper Feature Page Design, 2^nd-General Magazine Illustration; 3^rd– Newspaper Editorial, 3^rd– Newspaper Sports Column; HM-Newspaper General Column

• Richard Nguyen: 1^st-Yearbook Photo Story, 2^nd– Yearbook Sports Action Photo; 2^nd-Newspaper Picture Story

• Tina Marie Reed: 1^st-Yearbook Photo Story, 1^st-Yearbook Feature Photo; 1^st-Newspaper Feature Photo, 2^nd-Newspaper Ad Design, 2^nd-Newspaper Picture Story

• Sam Rodriguez: 1^st-Newspaper Photo Illustration

• James Shrewsbury: HM Newspaper News Feature Story

• Da’Jah Thompson: 2^nd-Newspaper Sports Feature

• Staff- 3^rd-Yearbook Student Life Package, Yearbook Title Page; 3^rd-Newspaper Special Edition

 

Tiffany Johnson was the editor of the 2016 Ranger Yearbook. Kathryn Agee was the editor of The Flare during Spring 2016. Meaghan Morton was the editor of The Flare during Fall 2016.

TIPA is the largest and oldest state collegiate press association in the nation. It was established in 1909 to recognize excellence in Texas collegiate journalism.