What has happened?
The Chesterton High School band hosted their Annual Mattress Fundraiser on March 17th at the Chesterton High School gym from 4pm to 9pm.
“This fundraiser is designed to bring in fundraising dollars to the Chesterton High School Band Department, spread among the Trojan Guard, concert bands, Winter Guard, percussion, and jazz ensembles,” said Band Director Adam Bess.
The fundraiser offered adjustable bed frames, pillows, and mattresses at all price points.
“This fundraiser is enjoyable over others because of the ease on the students’ parts,” said Bess. “The students don’t sell anything; there isn’t any product to be delivered, no knocking door-to-door for customers. We simply spread the word and attempt to get as many referrals as we can to help out our bands!”
The fundraiser brought in a lot of support for the band and really started off the fourth quarter of the year in a very positive way.
“The fourth quarter holds our spring concerts, including the Indiana State School Music Association festival for concert bands,” said Bess. “Our students have been working diligently on perfecting their concert literature and I’m excited to see what level of high performance we can achieve in the next nine weeks.”
The fundraiser was a very popular event for the band as it brought in all members of the community who want a supportive mattress and a good night's rest.
“We appreciate any and all support for our music program,” said Bess. “Even if it means simply attending our school concerts or participating in our fundraisers, everyone’s contributions count for something, and the community support ensures a continuance of great music in our schools!”
What is happening?
The Duneland Area Exchange Club is hosting its Annual Youth Talent Showcase on April 13th at 6pm in the Chesterton High School Auditorium. Auditions were held on March 19th and March 21st. Tickets for the event are $10 for adults and $5 for students.
“This is the 28th year hosting this event,” said Chairperson of the Duneland Exchange Club Talent Show, Judi Rue. “All proceeds go to Natural Helpers at CHS.”
The talent show is divided into three divisions of Primary (Grades K-4), Junior (Grades 5-8), and Senior (Grades 9-12). There will be trophies awarded to 1st, 2nd, 3rd of each division as well as a $100 cash prize to the 1st place winner of each division.
“It is an opportunity for the duneland students to showcase their amazing talents and feel accomplished,” said Rue. “As well, it is a chance to see talents that would otherwise be unnoticed.”
The event is popular for all members of the Duneland community, as well as to those who enjoy seeing students proudly show off their talents to others.
“The event is an upbeat and fun atmosphere, please come check out all the talented kids,” said Rue.
Teacher Spotlight
Matthew Waters teaches Radio/TV and Film Literature at Chesterton High School, but he is most well-known for being the sponsor for the Chesterton High School’s Radio Station, WDSO. WDSO is hosting one of their more famous events, the Radio-Thon, from 6am on April 8th to 4pm on April 12th.
“Radio-Thon is a long running fundraising event for WDSO,” said Waters. “As where other clubs do fundraisers where they sell things, we are asking the community to call in, drop off or pledge to donations. This is really similar to what NPR and PBS does, except we only ask the community for donations once a year. The community has been really good to us over the years and we need funds to keep the club afloat and the station running.”
The Radio-Thon is a student-run fundraiser in which money is raised in various types of ways.
“There are over 30 members of the WDSO club if each of them could ask friends and neighbors to give a donation and each student get about 50 dollars that would be really appreciated,” said Waters. “We are asking if some of the businesses in town would give away items that we will give away on-air, so you have a chance to win something just for listening.”
The Radio-Thon is very different than the everyday process of the CHS Radio Station, as this event allows members to get feedback from the community.
“The community does tell us often through e-mail, phone, word of mouth, and social media that they are listening and like the radio station,” said Waters. “Radio-thon gives us an opportunity to interact with them over the phone, or dropping in to give a donation which doesn't happen every day.”
With Radio-Thon taking place within the fourth quarter, many will be able to look forward to summer break once the event is over.
“Personally, I enjoy bike riding in the summer with my daughter and I am TV show fiend, so I get a lot of catch up time on shows that I want to watch,” said Waters. “ We still have a lot of work to do updating our TV studio and video/lighting equipment, but this has been a good school year for improvements to the radio station.”
Student Spotlight
The Chesterton High School Drama Department put on an amazing show of “Looking Glass Alice In Wonderland,” where many students got to play the coveted characters from both the novel and animated film. The play took place in the CHS Auditorium on March 1st and 2nd at 7pm and March 3rd at 2pm.
Senior Fatima Ahmad took part in this play, playing the iconic lead role of Alice.
“I really liked playing my character because I could channel that inner child in me and really get a chance to play it out,” said Fatima Ahmad. “She’s very curious and sweet, but also sassy at times which I can relate to a lot. It makes it easier to play if the actor has a lot of similarities to their characters.”
There were many scenes that amazed the audience and that actors enjoyed playing.
“My favorite scene is definitely the final scene where we discuss who has eaten the queen’s tarts,” said Ahmad. “The disorder of Wonderland is very apparent in this scene and I think it turned out really cool.”
Acting is a great way of expression for adults and students alike, so the opportunity can really benefit the actors and delight an audience.
“I enjoy acting because it allows you to sort of step away from all the stress of your life and be able to step into someone else’s world,” said Ahmad. “I like to become a character and be able yo play it out how I imagine. It’s a fun pastime and the people who share the same interest are great to get along with.”
The play exceeded expectations for the actors and audience alike.
“We had a lot of surprises in store within this production and I encourage you to check out this play and any others that feature such exciting characters such as this one,” said Ahmad.