Munster High School - Paragon Yearbook (Munster, IN)

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ALTHOUGH HOMECOMING IS a typical event for most schools, the extent of its celebration varies. Hastily working in order to make sure every gap is filled, junior Ella Aktay puts finishing touches on the float skirt of Animal. ANTICIPATING THE START of the Homecoming parade, seniors Jennifer Baron and Steve Kuklinski and Mr. Tom Russell, DECA sponsor, get into the spirit by “clowning around” on the Source’s float to help promote their balloon sale. GOING BEYOND THE usual teacher student rela- tion, Mr. Don Kernaghan, economics teacher, spends a few minutes before the bell rings giving seniors Caroline Paulson and Cheryl Brazel some additional advice about the Stock Market game. BY VIEWING THE accomplishments of others, one becomes instilled with the desire to excel. Proud of the coveted silver District Speech and Debate trophy, junior Mindy Shimorinski polishes the trophy that remains a constant reminder of the team’s success. — We break it 3 —

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Shattered Labels NOT ONLY IS physical strength necessary for success in athletics, but mental strength is also a determining factor. Intently watching his fellow teammates, senior Dan Bard concentrates on the play hoping they will gain the needed yardage. • Thirty-nine Seahorses swam as many miles as needed for a trip to Florida, and that was just for practice. • Two hundred and sixteen pounds of french fries and 125 chocolate shakes a day tamed the 1402 growling stomachs in three short 25 minute lunch periods. • An average of 455 pay telephone calls per week kept Ma Bell busy. • Nearly 12,000 books and periodicals vied for space on the temporary library’s shelves, making it hard to believe that only one year ago a destructive fire raged through the original library burning over 20,000 publications. Not meant to be confused with the record-breaking facts and figures to be published in the 1982 Guiness Book of World Records, these statistics serve only as eye openers to the now broken Munster stereotype. Whether the image existed in academics, athletics, organizations, activities, or personalities, Munster students were ready to prove that . . . We don’t fit the mold, we break it. Casting aside the snobbish small-town image that many Hoosiers have given them, Mustangs highlighted the many differences that set them apart from the crowds. One hundred and forty nine classes ranging from seven levels of Spanish to Introduction to Dance offered students a unique variety that let them get away from the usual 3 R’s of academia. Class diversification, in turn, paved the way for the addition of two credits to the already required 36 credits for 1983 graduates. Not simply accepting their classes only for “book value,” students went beyond the class wall structures to expand their knowledge. Mrs. Marks Tippett’s German 5 class defended America’s reputation found in Anti-American articles from a West German magazine, by writing a letter to the publication, while Project Biology students applied their tedious hours of lectures to an on-hand expedition of the Florida Keys. Proudly donned with awards, records, and team photographs, 18 athletic trophy cases lined the halls with material recognition for members of the ten male and eight female sports programs. While most schools considered themselves lucky to have a winning season, Mustang pride and determination saw four Conference titles, four Sectional titles, three Regional advancements, and one State Championship. Whether it was the Football Team or the Girls’ Swimming Team, fan appreciation and enthusiasm never ceased. Although not all teams always won, the fans were there to see the victories as well as the defeats. This same Mustang competitive spirit and pride also sneaked its way into the 32 clubs and interest groups. DECA members followed by National Honor Society, followed by Letterwomen’s Club and who knows who else, stuffed multi-colored M ’n M’s into the mouths and hands of chocoholic student’s growling stomachs, members of the newly founded Archaeological Field Trip Club sold stuffed animals to finance their spring archaeological dig. Yet fundraising alone did not constitute the make-up of organizations, as extra time and devotion were also

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i ii J students accentuate the differences EVERYBODY NEEDS SOME time by themselves. Finding the hall empty, sophomore Jeff McNurlan settles down in the corner to do some private studying. needed to maintain success and interest. Four years of 2,000 intense practice hours helped the Chess Team achieve a Top Ten National ranking. While new clubs and classes expanded beyond the typical high school mold, deep-rooted traditions remained intact. Sending the Freshman Class into a frenzied panic, the customs of Homecoming, from the Speech and Debate Team Chicken BBQ to the elaborate parade down Ridge Road, began three weeks earlier than usual. But the freshmen pulled through in Muppet style with their Rainbow Connection semi-formal dance, as did the individual classes as they finished final touches on Fozzie, Animal, and Scooter with seconds to spare. With personalities of their own, Students rejected both the mold of the typical high school teenagers as well as the mold of “snobbish Munsterites.” Whether it was a frustrated freshman scurrying about in the seven-minute passing time or self-assured seniors convinced they’re just “doing time,” students pulled together to prove . . . We don’t fit the mold, we break it. — 4 We don’t fit the mold —