Cougar Call
Volume 2 Issue 6
The cast and crew of "Cards of Fate"
State trophy
The masks of Drama
One Act Takes Second in State
CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR ONE ACT PLAY CAST & CREW! Piedmont’s One Act play placed 2nd in State competition at Darton College in Albany. The cast and crew members helping to bring home state runner-up honors include Senior Morgan Leach who played Buffy Youbetcha, the game show hostess; Junior Will Tillman, playing the role of Cinnamon, the game show announcer; and Junior Danny Ramsdell, playing the role of Nick Kowslowski, the contestant. Serving dual roles as Beth and the Mother was Senior Summer Collins while Junior Nick Maynard tackled three roles, as Bob’s friend, Punk and Otto. Other supporting roles included Mattie Smith as Mother, and Maddie Mooneyham as Susan Zimmerman, Ivy English as principal, Bridgette Phillips as Bambi, and Chris Cain as Larry and booth voice, Makennah Holifield as stage model and Ryn Smith as nurse. Deacon Robinson and Gracie Hunt rounded out the cast as the graduates. Madison Sanders and Hannah Nelson did a wonderful job serving as the game show crew who move props on and off stage during the performance. In addition, Steve Martin was given an Outstanding Performance award for the portrayal of Bob, Alex and the father. Will Tillman was given an honorable mention Outstanding Performance award for his portrayal of Cinnamon. Technical crew members included Chris McClain, Becca Hopper, and Amelia Dodson who ran lights along with Alicia Peek and Taylor Swart who ran the sound board for the production. Director Mary Ramsdell said, “A very special ‘thank you’ to all who supported our cast & crew or helped with this activity in any way. We could not have done this well without you! You are loved and appreciated!”
Pictures of Christmas at PAC
Christmas Jokes
2. Q: What do you call a broke santa?
3. Q: What do you call a cat on the beach at Christmas time?4. Q: What do you call Santa's helpers?
5. Q: What do you call an obnoxious reindeer?6. Q: Why was Santa's little helper depressed?
7. Q: What do you call an old snowman?
8. Q: Why is it always cold at Christmas?9. Q: What do snowmen eat for breakfast?
10. Q: What did one snowman say to the other snowman?11. Q: What do you get when you cross a snowman with a vampire?
12. Q: Where do snowmen go to dance?13. Q: What do monkeys sing at Christmas?
14. Q: What is Santa’s dog called?15. Q: What do you get if Santa goes down the chimney when the fire is lit?
16. Q: What often falls at the North Pole but never gets hurt?
17.Q. Why does Rudolph have a red nose?
18. Q. What do they sing under the ocean during the winter?
19. Q. What kind of bug hates Christmas?
20.Q. Which elf was the best singer?The Story of Christmas: It’s Not What You Think
I feel like the culture today has a much distorted view on Christmas. For one thing, the wise men were a little late to the party and did not show up until months later (that’s beside the point). What I mean is people today are confused on what is being celebrated. Some know that it is Jesus’s birthday, but they see presents and Santa Claus as the focal point. I also admit that I get lost in the presents and the parties and the decorations and the music and the… should I go on? While all of those things are so much fun to enjoy, we can’t lose sight of the real reason of Christmas. Jesus’s birth was the beginning of the restoration of the world destroyed by sin. He came to sacrifice himself for us, to restore Shalom (Hebrew word for peace). Matthew 20:28 states, “…just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” This year, I don’t want to just read the Christmas story before we tear into our gifts. I want to serve this holiday season (and the rest of the year) because Jesus can bless others through me. I want Jesus to be the first thought that pops into my head on Christmas morning in order to thank Him for His never failing love. To me, that is what Christmas is all about.
For more information on what inspired this devotional, join me in reading this amazing book called It’s Not What You Think by Jefferson Bethke. I am learning so much from this book!
Chandler Burrell and Dad
Varsity Boys
Coach Richardson and Chandler Burrell
Basketball Returns
The Piedmont Academy 2015-2016 basketball team’s seasons have begun again. On December 3rd, the teams played the Gatewood Gators.
The middle school sixth graders played first, and lost 18-12. “The girls played great considering it was their first game ever played,” Coach Wilson said, “I was very happy with the effort that was put forth.” The middle school girls will be focusing mostly on leaning and mastering basketball fundamentals throughout the season. Wilson also states: “Our goals are to get better every day and to develop a love for basketball. I want them to have fun and learn the game."
The middle school boys faced the Gators after the middle school girls. They boys won. Coach Mike McCaart said “I’m really proud of the way the guys fought in the game, although we were behind at one point, we battled back and finally got the win we wanted.” Their effort is great and the boys are expecting to win very many games this season. The coaches are extremely proud of their hard work, and ability to work together on the court.
The varsity Lady Cougars fell to the Gatewood Lady Gators 58-3. Head Coach, Wilson, said “Gatewood is always tough to play, but I like playing them because it shows everyone where we want to be and how hard we need to work to get there.” Wilson went on to say “I am excited for the season. I am looking forward to see all of the girls hard work show itself to everyone."
The varsity Cougars also fell to the Gators 92-45. The Gators are a very physical and hard team to play, but the effort for the Cougars was there. It also hurt the boys having four players not able to attend. "We are definitely progressing,” Richardson said. “We still have a long ways to go. We aren’t opening the schedule with a cupcake. At this point, physically you still have a lot of work to do. We also have to be mentally tough. We want to have the attitude that we aren’t going to give into anybody we play, regardless of who they are.”
On December 4th, the basketball teams face Nathaniel Greene Academy. The middle school girls defeated Nat Green 21-10. Wilson said “We played very well. NGA hit 6 three pointers throughout the game, and if they wouldn’t have hit them it wouldn’t have been a close game, but they did and we were fortunate to get the win.”
The middle school boys finished the game with a score of 51-36 against Nathaniel Greene. Their effort was great throughout the game, and they played with great intensity. Their coaches are proud of their hard work and effort they put forth in practice and transfer all of their skills into the games.
The Lady Cougars defeated Nat Greene 47-28. Wilson said “It was a great team effort. I am proud of everyone for playing well. We were the better team and we played with the intensity needed to not allow them to be in the game. Offensively, we still have work to do but I am confident that we will come around before too long.”
The Cougars had an awesome memory made while playing against Nat Greene. Chandler Burrell, senior, had the opportunity to make history by scoring his 1,000th point in the game. Chandler said the he owes everything to his coaches and his family, especially his dad. His dad has been his biggest supporter, and always worked with him, so it was an honor for him to be able to make Cougar history. The Cougars defeated Nat Greene with the score being 68-37
On December 8th, the JV Basketball teams faced St. George Episcopal School. The JV girls fell 18-26. The JV is a time for freshman and eighth graders to play together and get more playing time then they would on a Varsity game. Although the girls fell, their effort was their throughout the game Wilson stated “I’m proud of the way they play defense, but we still have to work on our offensive approaches and definitely work on our shooting.”
The JV boys beat St. George Episcopal School with the score of 64-28. They played hard throughout the game and exceeded their ability. Although the boys have room for improvement, their effort continues to grow each practice and game.
The Varsity girls played Covenant Academy the same night. The girls fought a long hard battle but fell with a score of 39-30. “Their effort was there, we just fell short” Wilson said. “I am disappointed, because I believe we are better than they are. We played excellent defense but right now our offense is lagging. That is to be expected early in the year and I know it will improve as the season progresses.” He continue to say, “I am proud of the team, they are all working hard and improving each day. The girls are exciting to watch and everyone needs to come out and support them. We would like to see a full gym when we come back for home games starting in mid-January.”
The Varsity boys were also defeated that night with a score of 60-49. The boys did their best, their shots just were not falling that night.
On Friday, December 11th, the teams played John Milldege Academy. The middle school girls fell to the more experienced team. The middle school boys had a score of 49-33 which resulted in a win. The Lady Cougars fell with the score of 30-40. And the Varsity boys lost as well..
On Saturday, December 12th, the Varsity teams played Oak Mountain. The Lady Cougars won with a score of 54-51.the Lady Cougars were the better team in the match up. The girls were up by many points the half, but they gave the opposing team a chance to come back. After playing a hard team on the day before, the girls were physically and mentally exhausted, but luckily they held it together until the end to be able to earn the win.
The varsity boys defeated Oak Mountain Academy 64-33. Again, the team was exhausted and playing the day after another big game resulted in tired legs. This week's practice will be for getting the guys legs back under them and working hard on improving our offense and defense.
The teams will continue playing on December 19th, playing away, against Nathaniel Greene Academy. We, as a PAC family body, hope to have a full gym for each team after the school returns from the break.
And from all of the basketball teams: “We wish each and every one of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
BY: Haley Tyler
PAC Returns to the Mat
On Saturday the 5th, the Cougars wrestling team had their first meet of the year at Community Christian. For middle school, Trent Coots went 2-0 in the 90lb weight class. For the varsity, Ian Boyd went 1-1 in the 132lb weight class, Tanner Coppock went 1-1 in the 170lb weight class, Parker Clark went 2-0 in the 182lb weight class, and Logan Connor went 1-1 in the 195lb weight class. Head wrestling coach Alvin Hawkes said, “it was good to see some of our inexperienced wrestlers get some mat time and good for the previous year’s wrestlers to get back into the game. We were missing some wrestlers this weekend but hopefully we will get them back over the next week. ” The next meet will be on Saturday the 12th at Creekside. The starting time has yet to be determined.
BY: Joseph AndersonThe Clay Crushing Cougars
On Friday and Saturday the 4th and 5th of December, the Clay Crushing Cougars shot at the GISA State Shooting Competition at Forest City Gun Club. At the competition each shooter shot 300 rounds total (100 each in skeet, sporting clay, and trap). For the Cougars, every team member qualified for the state tournament, and all participated but one. To qualify for the competition a shooter must participate in at least three GISA shoots. The weather at the shoot was cold and windy on both days which made it difficult to shoot, but the Cougars concentrated and ended up lacing 8th place out of 17 teams. The highest overall shooters for the Cougars were Mitch Marsh who shot a total of 249, Zach Sanders who shot a total of 243, and Anne Marie Hildebrant and Eli Waits who both shot a total of 237. The top shooters for sporting clay for the Cougars were Mitch Marsh who shot 81, Zach Sanders who shot 79, and Joseph Anderson, Browning Benton, and Eli Waits who each shot 76. The top shooters for skeet were Mitch Marsh who shot 88, Hunter Whiting who shot 86, and Anne Marie Hildebrant and Eli Waits who each shot 83. The top shooters for trap were Zach Sanders and Anne Marie Hildebrant who both shot 82, and Mitch Marsh who shot 80. Anne Marie Hildebrant tied for 3rd place in ladies’ skeet and entered a shoot off and eventually won on the third station. She also placed 3rd in ladies’ trap and placed 4th in ladies’ sporting clay. Congratulations to all shooters who participated in this competition. Sadly, since the year is over, the team must say bye to seniors Chris Coogler, Noah Quick, and Hunter Whiting. Looking back this year, the Cougars shot in five regular season competitions and one state competition. Mitch Marsh placed 1st for the team at Old Hudson on September 12th, Joseph Anderson placed 1st for the team at Tom Lowe Shooting Range on September 26th and tied for 8th at the competition, Anderson also placed 1st for the team at South River on October 24th and 6th overall at the competition, Zach Sanders placed 1st for the team at Old Hudson on October 31st, and Sanders also placed 1st for the team at Old Hudson on November the 14th. Thank you to the parents and coaches for the support this year!!
BY: Joseph Anderson
Why is Christmas so Commercialized?
Is Christmas commercialized? There have been many arguments as to whether Christmas is too commercialized or not. In my opinion I think Christmas is almost commercialized. Retailers play Christmas music in department stores way before Thanksgiving. Is it because Christmas is such a big holiday people get really excited for it way before any other holiday? Is it because people get really excited for getting gifts? I believe many people have forgotten the true meaning of Christmas. People have gotten so caught up with wanting presents they’ve been asking forever for that they forget why we truly celebrate Christmas.
Another reason is for the commercialism is Black Friday and Cyber Monday. People try their absolute best to go shopping after Thanksgiving to get the best deals for their loved ones. It has become so big in the past years that times for Black Friday have been getting earlier and earlier. People become so blinded by the low prices that there have even been reported stabbings in stores over highly desire items.
Christmas decorations are a big item as well. People go all out to make sure they’re the brightest house in the neighborhood. People in the U.S. will spend up to $6 billion dollars on Christmas lights a year. Some households will put on shows for their neighbors that will last up to half an hour.
Food is another associated item of Christmas. People will spend hundreds of dollars just for one meal. Businesses use commercials to sell their food and talk about their dropped prices in order to sell their products. Stores sales increase greatly during the holidays. 768,000 people are hired just throughout the holidays because so many people are buying food to cook for their loved ones. Food sales rise about fifteen percent above the baseline.
I think Christmas is about spending time with your family and friends and celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. I think many people need to look up from their phones and stop worrying about the Black Friday prices and be with their families and friends and be thankful for what have.
Do You Like Christmas Music?
Tumbling Out of Competition Cheer
Our competition cheerleading team took the floor once again at Loganville Christian Academy cheer competition; the competition was called The Mane Event and had many schools compete such as John Millage Academy, Tiftarea Academy, Loganville Christian Academy, Gatewood Academy, Bethlehem Christian Academy , and also Covington Academy who competed in a different division. A good cheer team is ready for anything and is prepared to make changes at any moment. That is exactly was the team had to do with a team member, Caitlyn Young, recently getting injured during a football game. Due to this unexpected injury Young could not compete in the competition the next day. That morning the team had made changes throughout the routine 20 minutes before their performance. The cheerleaders are strong believers in good luck, every competition they do the same morning routine and even say two claps and a woo. With confidence, they took the floor and performed their changed routine for the judges. After their performance they waited patiently for the award ceremony to begin. After the judges declared the individual awards such as best choreography and best jumps. Out of five GISA teams, the Piedmont Academy cheerleaders took home second place out of the competition and won first place for best jumps. “I was very proud of how they performed especially how they changed the routine and performed perfectly with only ten girls.” Said cheerleading coach Tonya Coe. “I was really excited and proud of all my teammates.” Railey Holloway, sophomore competition cheerleader for Piedmont Academy, said. With the cheerleaders becoming more confident and improving with each competition they compete at, they are becoming more ready and prepared for state. Words to live by in celebration and motivation for the cheerleaders, “Pain is temporary, pride is forever. Two minutes thirty seconds that’s all.” Bailyn Whitaker, junior competition cheerleader for Piedmont Academy, gives her famous pre-performance speech.
BY: Sydney ReardonThe Life of a Senior
Please read this with discretion. Exaggerations used for comedic effect.
Monday-
I am The Master of Solitaire. All throughout the day, I show that stack of cards who’s boss. My lack of motivation and hopeless habit of procrastination keeps any academic progress at bay, and enables me conquer the world of online card games. The world is not ready for my level of intellectual talent. In my brief, but persistent, moments of boredom, I can hone my skills and practice my clicking. I have recently begun considering a career in solitaire. They always say to, “Find something you’re good at, and get paid for it.” Well, I’ve found something.
Tuesday-
I can now wake up fifteen minutes before I am due to leave for school. Never in my life have I been able to get everything done in such a short amount of time and still look halfway decent. As a senior, I am finding new and creative ways to maximize my time spent lying on the couch, surfing the internet with the TV on as background noise. Getting ready for school in a short amount of time is my newest development. Next, I hope to shorten the time it takes me to write a seven page paper.
Wednesday-
I recently bought a new shirt that is the softest piece of fabric I’ve ever felt in my life. I had to wear it today, but, over time, I have learned just how big of a mistake I made. That shirt sheds more than I do. The fuzzies are slowly taking over my life. The are on my bookbag, my laptop case, my car seat, my jacket, and everything else. I am finding them in my hair. One got in my eye and almost blinded me. At one point, my nose itched, so I rubbed my arm across my face. There were so many little spheres of soft, incurable polyester on my face, I felt like I was turning into Santa Claus. I will be finding pieces of that shirt years from now.
Thursday-
I am not prepared for college. I can’t even spell Santa Claus. I would have sworn on my life that it was spelled with an “e” at the end. Luckily, Google was there to set me straight. I blame English class for confusing me. What if I get a mean professor? What if I get an annoying roommate? What if I forget to pack socks? I am not mature enough to wash my own clothes and make my own food. At this point, college terrifies me. There are so many unknowns, and I am not ready for them.
Friday-
Finals give me anxiety. They are tests that cover half a year’s worth of knowledge. How am I supposed to remember all that stuff? Plus, I don’t get any paper that tells me what is on the test. There must be an unspoken rule that seniors don’t get study guides. I miss those. *sigh* Finals...
BY: Sarah HollandNational Honor Society
Congratulations to the following students who have been accepted into the PAC National Honors Society for 2015-2016:
Kevin Davis
Wyatt Galloway
Ivy English
Anne Marie Hildebrant
Mack Brady
Ian Boyd
Chris Coogler
Kylie Garner
Summer Conley
Morgan Spivey
Jackson Waddleton
Mikayla Rigsby
Morgan Johnston
Grayson Bradley
Alicia Peek
The Induction Ceremony is scheduled for January 7, 2016 at 7:00 in the PAC gym. This year’s group is the largest group we have ever inducted at one time (15). Also, the 2018 student class includes the most members from any one class ever inducted at once (9 members). Congratulations new members!
Secret Santa
For its 16th year, Piedmont Academy opened its doors with community outreach to local merchants to provide “secret shopping” for the students. Merchants set up “shops” in the gym and the students were able to practice budgeting while they shopped for family and friends. Some of the children could not resist the urge to splurge and purchase something for themselves!
The school’s Grandparents’ Club came and wrapped the presents for the students and promised to keep their surprises a secret. Middle school students assisted the young shoppers and they were a huge help.
Merchants and groups participating included the PAC Grandparents, Monticello Drugs, Silver Rabbit, Sylvermyst Creations, and Peddler’s Corner.
Pictured with their “secret” gifts are elementary students Mason Owens, Drew Maddox, Cole Clark, Savannah Stanton, Anna Grace Hinson, Abigail Arnold, Dylan Pitts and their shopping helpers, middle school students Morgan Whitley, Dylan Coe, and Jessica McEwen
Operation Christmas Child
Before school let out for Thanksgiving break, the FFA and Y-Club members came together to serve others through the Operation Christmas Child organization. The students packed boxes full of toys and necessities for underprivileged children. Handwritten notes were prayed over and placed in each box. The experience was an amazing way to step back and be thankful for all that we are blessed with, and to help others in need. There will be many joyful smiles on Christmas morning thanks to this wonderful organization.
Christmas Joke Answers
1. A: a wrapper
2. A: It's Saint-NICKEL-LESS
3. A: Sandy Claws!
4. A: Subordinate clause
5. A: RUDEolph
6. A: Because he had low elf esteem.
7. A: Water
8. A: Because it’s in Decemberrrr!
9. A: Frosted flakes!
10. A: Can you smell carrot?
11. A: Frostbite!
12. A: A snow ball!
13. A: Jungle bells, jungle bells!
14. A: Santa Paws!
15. A: Crisp Cringle!
16. A: Snow!
17. A. Because he sneezes a lot!
18. A. Christmas Corals!
190 A. A humbug.
20. A. ELFis Presley.