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Christmas spirit touches hearts

By Taylor Clark / The Post-Standard

December 21, 2009, 5:45AM

Dan Conners, a senior at J.C. Birdlebough High School, wrote this essay for the December 21 Voices page.

By Dan Conners
Contributing writer

I saw the Christmas spirit in action this year. Earlier this month, some students from my high school spent time shopping at Great Northern Mall with local senior citizens.

I photographed the event for school. I have to say, it was truly amazing to see the seniors’ faces light up with delight when they were with the students. It was just as amazing to see my classmates’ faces when they realized how awe-inspiring a simple trip to the mall could be as they helped the seniors shop.

Among the Christmas music and the mall displays, there was something more important: our generation caring for our seniors. Not only did this trip touch the hearts of the seniors and students, it touched the hearts of other shoppers. One patron in the mall was so impressed by what we were doing, she donated $100 for lunch, or a reward.

One group of students was generous enough to spend their own money on a necklace for the senior citizen they were shopping with. It truly made me proud to be a part of this program. I believe we made a difference and helped spread cheer in our community.

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David Lassman / The Post-StandardJ.C. Birdlebough High School senior Dan Conners is ready to start his last year of high school.

If someone had told me my freshman year that I'd be looking back asking where the time went, I wouldn't have believed them. However, entering my senior year, I realize that is the truth.

Senior year is a time to make the grade, but also a time to enjoy the time you have left with your friends. It's time for your last stand before you join the working world and go off to college. It's quite stressful, and nerve-wracking to know this is my last year of high school. After having basically the same routine for 12 years, knowing it is coming to an end is sad and joyous at the same time.

Senior year is going to be full of things to look forward to. We get to take electives only offered to seniors, drive our cars to school and gain access to certain school features, such as the senior lounge in my high school in Phoenix. Another thing to look forward to are the good times we'll have with friends, and the memories we'll make that will last a lifetime.

This year should be the best year of my high school career, with the new freedom and choices open to me. Between choosing a college that suits me, senior events and graduation, there is so much to do, but so little time.

Senior year comes up quickly and some of us look back and say "I wish I would have done that!" or "I wish I would have done better in that class," but once you reach senior year, you put it all behind you. The longest part of my high school career is about to begin. That's the countdown to graduation; the day I can walk across the stage, get my diploma, thank my family, friends and teachers for helping me make it to my goal, to graduate from J.C. Birdlebough High School.

Hats off to The Vault? No way, Phoenix junior writes

Posted by Dan Conners / Contributing writer May 01, 2009 5:38PM

Dan Conners , a junior at J.C. Birdlebough High School in Phoenix, wrote the following essay for Voices after visiting The Vault teen night club in Baldwinsville.

I'm not a man who usually attends dances and other similar functions, but some friends and I gave a new nightclub, The Vault, a try on April 17, its opening night.

The first shocker was the "VIP" entrance fee of $20. I later found out we could have gotten in for $10, but nobody told us that.

A $20 fee is stiff compared to other teen hang out spots. On The Vault's MySpace profile, there was no mention of a fee, but I expected it to be somewhere between $7 and $15.

Samantha Furco, of Phoenix, is shooting for an August play date. That's when the high school senior hopes to build her long planned playground for children with special needs.

"I think we can do it. I hope so," said the J.C. Birdlebough High School senior.

A fundraising rummage sale is being held this weekend at the Schroeppel Town Hall to benefit the project. It continues from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. today.

"I've got a whole storage unit full of stuff," Furco said. "People have donated clothing, furniture, jewelry, a lot of stuff."

The sale is the latest in a string of fundraisers Furco has organized to raise money for the playground. She's had bowl-a-thons, spaghetti dinners and dances. A magic show is being planned for May.

"The support of people has been great," said Furco.

So far, Furco has raised more than $9,000 for the playground project. The equipment will cost about $70,000.

"I'm pretty confident we can raise the money by the summer," Furco said. "But if we don't, I'll just move the deadline. I'm not giving up."

Furco, a volunteer with the Special Olympics program, got the idea for the project several years ago when she saw a disabled child at a playground watching other children play on equipment he could not use.

"There are plenty of kids out there who could use something like this," said Furco, the daughter of Chris and Tammy Furco.

Since starting the project in earnest in August, Furco received several offers of land for the playground. She settled on a site in the town's William J. Farley Jr. Community Park, on Chestnut Street.

Phoenix teen is raising $70,000 to build a playground for disabled children

Posted by civen October 20, 2008 6:23PM

Samantha Furco, a senior at J.C. Birdlebough High School in Phoenix, wrote the following for Voices.

Do you have a dream you fear you will never be able to pursue?

Well let me just tell you something: Anything can be done that you put your mind and heart to.

Right now, I'm in the middle of a huge project that, in my eyes, I would have never thought I could do. One day I knew that I needed to do it, because no one else would have.

I came across a little boy watching the other children play on the playground. It's not that he didn't want to play. It's that he couldn't. He used a wheelchair and the playground was not accessible to children with disabilities.

That's when I knew I had to do something about this. I started doing a lot of research - on fundraising, community organizing and suitable playground equipment. I realized I knew I could do it if I could just get someone to donate a site.

It took me over a year to find land and get people to take me serious.

Things started happening after I contacted The Post-Standard. After an article on me came out, I received a phone call from the Town Supervisor, he asked me to attend a board meeting. I attended that board meeting and they all agreed to donate a piece of their land next to an existing playground.

After people started reading the articles and knew that I had received the land, they took me a lot more seriously!

Now I am currently in the fundraising process, but am really excited about it.

The playground is going to cost about $70,000 but I know in my heart that I will be able to do it. I hope to see the construction done by the end of next summer, ribbon cutting and everything.

The hardest part about this was getting adults to take me seriously. I am 17. People need to realize that not all kids my age are in the newspaper for bad reasons

Tasteful Native American mascots are harmless, Native American teen writes

Posted by Dan Conners / The Post-Standard January 04, 2009 2:56PM

Dan Conners, a junior at J.C. Birdlebough High School in Phoenix, wrote the following for Voices.

The use of Native American mascots in schools is a big issue throughout the country today.

Names like "Warriors" and "Chiefs" are disappearing, or their beloved mascot is changing.

To some people, those names and Native American mascots are offensive, but to others they are harmless.

I myself am a Native American, and I see no harm in allowing schools to use it tastefully.

If they have a name such as "Chiefs" and the mascot is a Native American who is ceremonious and wholesome, that's acceptable. But having one that looks nothing like a Native American, running around waving a tomahawk and screaming at the top of his lungs is a totally different story. That's offensive and somewhat rude to portray a race like that.

Bridge House Brats News

Fifth-graders safe and sound at Dillon Middle

By Debra J. Groom

September 09, 2009, 8:27AM

Phoenix, NY -- While all schools welcome new students each year, Dillon Middle School in Phoenix is rolling out the welcome mat to a whole bunch of newbies.

This is the first year that Dillon is a grade five through eight school. In the past, it has had only grades six through eight. So, half of the pupils who showed up for the first day of school today at Dillon are new to the school.
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Being at the middle school didn't seem to phase fifth-graders Ryan Virkler and Nicole Hetko.

"I like having my own locker," Nicole said. "And I like lunch because I'll be able to sit with my friends."

"There's a lot more freedom here and you can walk around more," Ryan said, noting here he will be changing classes and not sitting in one classroom all day like in elementary school.

The now fifth-graders got the chance to check out Dillon last year when they visited as fourth-graders. Both Ryan and Nicole said they weren't worried about the bigness of the school -- in fact, they were excited to go to middle school.

Dillon Middle underwent a lot of construction in the last year to get ready for the fifth-graders. A new classroom wing was built onto the school.

Superintendent Rita Racette said the move to Dillon was needed because things were getting tight with so many pupils at Maroun Elementary