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A Committed Life

by Sarah Schnitzer & Sarah Lucas
Shearim Torah High School for Girls

Shearim Torah High School for Girls celebrated Jewish education for girls of Arizona May 6 at the Arizona Historical Society. The topic was “A Committed Life” and the speakers talked about the importance of commitment and what it means to be committed to a Jewish education. The school, an all-girls Orthodox high school, opened in 2007. In March 2012 the school received its official certificate of accreditation from AdvancED. 

Head of School, Rabbi Raphael Landesman, spoke of commitment and reflected on the seven key components to attaining the accreditation, including a strong vision and purpose, qualified teachers, a structured curriculum and quality governance.

“The primary focus of a Jewish education is commitment. Jewish commitment means staying on the Torah course when the going gets tough, and believing that the eventual results are worth the difficulties encountered on the journey,” Landesman said. 

  Dr. Jeff and Mrs. Aileen Becker were recognized for their commitment to Jewish education. The Beckers are a family of a previous student of Shearim Torah High School. Their daughter, Sloane, was a part of the first graduating class. Even though it was hard at times, they did not give up. Currently, their daughter is studying in Israel and soon will be attending Stern College in New York. The Beckers are proud of the committed Jewish woman Sloane has become. At the event the Beckers shared thanks to the school for instilling in their daughter everything she needs to lead a committed Jewish life.

Senior Elianna Schnitzer spoke about her commitment as a Torah observant Jewish woman, what being committed meant to her, and what she believes it should mean to the girls. The school is dedicated to help students realize one’s potential enabling students to become the Jewish leaders of tomorrow.  “The event was truly amazing and I feel honored to have been able to speak and express my gratitude to my school,” Elianna said. 

There were about 130 attendees and this included families present from throughout the Valley to give support.  

“I knew my daughter Elianna was speaking and I had heard my daughter speak many times before.  At the Shearim Torah High School brunch I listened to a young woman speak so eloquently with commitment and devotion. I was so proud to see her representing her high school, her community and all Jewish women,” Linda Schnitzer remarked. Many of the girls are excited. 

“I am really happy that I ended up coming to the school, It makes me feel like I am a part of something,” freshman Karina Mar added.

The Arizona Historical Society served a delicious brunch amongst a sea of cream tables with purple flowers. A video was presented to share some of the activities that go on at the school. There was also a raffle held to help raise funds. Freshman Raina Meyerson spoke of commitment throughout Jewish history. “People can do anything, provided they are committed to the idea. Shavout is the time to renew our committment to the Torah and what better place to commit yourself than Shearim,“ Raina shared.  

“Hearing Raina’s Speech made me realize that we are a family and we are all in it together,” freshman Rachel Uvaydov said.

Who Was Helen Keller?

by Reporter Ndidi
Opara, Whispering Wind Academy

Helen Keller became a best-selling author even though she was both blind and deaf. She became blind and deaf after she had a horrible fever before she was 2 years old. After the fever broke, her mother soon found Helen couldn’t hear or see. But a woman named Annie Sullivan helped her break the wall of darkness in her life. Helen learned how to read with braille. And she became a famous world traveler and an inspiration to American people.

Erin Hunter to Release New Series

by Reporter
Emma Rae Suttell
Highland Lakes

Erin Hunter, famous author of the bestselling series Warriors, is said to be writing a new series called Survivors. It’s set to be released in October and will be published by HarperCollins. Hunter seems to have found a new interest—dogs!

An early preview released reveals a dog that seems to be trapped in a cage. The dog is eager to get to a “pack.” This pack reveals that Hunter still has her interest in many animals living together. In Warriors there were clans and now the dogs are in a pack. The first book in the series Survivors will be called “The Empty City.”

Warriors is a series about cats, each in a clan, fighting to survive. Warriors has about 45 books in their saga. About a third of them are Manga, books in cartoons. The Manga books describe what happens after the series has ended. Hunter also has a series named Seekers, about bears.

But who is Erin Hunter you ask. Erin Hunter is just a pen name made up by three authors—Cherith Baldry, Kate Cary and Tui Sutherland. Victoria Holmes is their editor.Holmes started as an editor for many books. Then, HarperCollins asked her to write a book about cats. She thought, why not?

The authors have the freedom to make cats do different things in these books, but when you are writing about humans, you don’t have as much freedom.

When the time came for a new series, Holmes considered different animals like dolphins, horses and dogs. The Seekers series ended up featuring bears. These books have clues about what will happen in the long run. The books are written for people of all ages, not just kids. But kids are just drawn to the books.

They are not sure if there will ever be a Warriors movie, but it would be fabulous if there was. So be on the lookout for the new series Survivors.

My Favorite Video Game

by Reporter Christine Wright, Copperwood Elementary

Mario in his vivid, dramatic cherry outfit warily, gradually inches toward the tiny mud-brown Goomba. The Goomba advances, the man leaps exactly, precisely on its head. The Goomba has departed, vanished or more correctly has been killed. The lofty vast red flag appears in Mario's vicinity and Mario dashes toward it. He springs to the top of the colossal flag, another victory! The adrenaline running through my veins slowly dwindles and my muscles unclench. My hands slowly release and place the controller on the table. Kids all around the world are delighted about the new pleasurable way to spend their time; video games. My personal preferred video game is a classic, it is New Super Mario Bros. It is entertaining and stimulating. This video game always makes me laugh and it is a way to bond with family. It also is different from other video games on the market. Therefore, people adore this video game.

For a starter, this game is so amusing! The games lively, cheery, shrill music always makes me want to get up and dance, but the actual playing always has me standing on my feet, tense and concentrating. At the same time, this game keeps me on my toes waiting for what will happen next. It is a lot like a quest, never knowing what will happen or whether Mario will fail. As a result, this game brings merriment to my life.

Additionally, this game is different and exhilarating. My adrenaline is always racing and my muscles are tense whenever I play this game. In contrast to shooting and sports video games, this game is enjoyable for all ages. Mario is a classic that has been around for a long time. Nintendo really knows how to keep this game thrilling for everyone. New Super Mario Bros has eight worlds, they keep these worlds tricky but not so testing that one gets frustrated and stops playing. They always make new trials for each world and manage to make each and every level unique.

Furthermore, this game can be played with multiple people. For example, if you had relatives or friends over, you could challenge them in coin battle or play with them in regular mode. Coin battle is where you have to collect more coins than the other person to win—so a little friendly competition. The other option is to pass levels and aid each other in regular mode. You can choose from four characters, that means four people can play. This guaranties memories and joy for the whole family!

Summer Is Fun!

by Reporter Kaelie Zelms, Wildfire Elementary

During the summer it seems so hot and boring, but it’s actually a great time to exercise your body and have fun. So let’s get off the couch and do something fun or go outside.

Ready to enjoy your day and not be bored, you should start by exercising! Exercising is not always fun but it is good for you. Exercising is a great way to start your day right. Also it exercises your brain and heart while you’re doing it yourself. You should get at least an hour of exercise each day. If you notice that your heart is beating faster when you exercise, here is why—muscles have to work faster because when you are moving they burn off a lot of nutrients. Without nutrients your blood has to flow faster so your heart has to beat faster to make the blood travel faster. Always remember to drink a lot of water when you exercise, especially during the summer.

Here is a list of things you can do during the summer to have fun: swim, have a water war, sell lemonade, go to the park, go for a walk, do arts and crafts, do a camp, and so on. Summer can be a lot of fun!

Rising Food Prices

by Reporter Jimmy Hill, Dos Rios Elementary

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, also called the FAO, Food Price Index had risen 2 percent from December to February. It rose again in March and went down 1.4 percent in April.

According to the FAO the Food Price Index measures monthly the change in the international prices of food. The index was 90 in 2000 and is now at 214.

According to the Financial Times, meat prices are high with the rising cost of cattle near an all-time high. Poultry and pork are up 8.5 percent. That is up 7 percent from last year.

Good News for J.K. Rowling Fans

by Reporter Josue Pineda, Isaac Middle School

It’s been five long years since J.K. Rowling published her seventh and final Harry Potter novel, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” and it seems the author is finally ready to move away from the beloved young wizard and into the world of adult novels. Publisher Little, Brown announced that it reached an agreement with Rowling to publish her first book for grown-ups. The publisher did not reveal any details of the book or even when eager readers could expect its release, though in a statement through the publishing house, Rowling did seem to indicate that she had finished writing the novel.

“Although I’ve enjoyed writing it every bit as much, my next book will be very different to the Harry Potter series, which has been published so brilliantly by Bloomsbury and my other publishers around the world,” she said. “The freedom to explore new territory is a gift that Harry’s success has brought me, and with that new territory it seemed a logical progression to have a new publisher. I am delighted to have a second publishing home in Little, Brown, and a publishing team that will be a great partner in this new phase of my writing life.”

At the UK premiere of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2”, Rowling told MTV News that she had been writing actively since finishing the final “Potter” book, but that she wanted the film franchise to wrap before she released anything. “I’m writing, and I’ve done quite a lot since finishing Harry,” she said. “I also felt I wanted the last film out of the way before I made any moves on the publishing front. Harry is so huge, and I suppose my involvement with the world has still been quite intense. This feels like a new beginning to me.”