Wabash High School - Sycamore Yearbook (Wabash, IN)

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sfamw cnouHD The first of two of this year ' s convos was directed toward drug abuse. The speaker for the drug abuse convo was David Toma, who has been a drug addict, cop, and counselor. Toma spoke to a crowd of 3,000 stuaents from the four county schools: Wabash, Northfield, South- wood, and Manchester. Toma explained to students that It ' s your life , it is your decision to do what you want to do with it. Toma also spoke about the many drugs and their different effects on the user: loss of feeling, bhnd- ness, deformation of babies, and possibly, if a drug is used long enough, death. Toma ' s vast knowledge of drug abuse comes from his past ex- perience as a police officer in New Jersey, where he down in the gutter with tf junkies and started listening to them instead of locking them up without caring for them. This year ' s second convo was about sexual abuse. The convo came in the form of a play called Out of the Trap . got the The play was performed by the Bridgework Theater from Goshen, Indiana. Out of the Trap was a play that taught students ho to recognize and avoid sexual abuse. In the first half of the play, a character named Tricia has problems with her uncle, who tries to sexually abuse her. Tricia tries to tell her parents about the problem and then confides with a friend, who finally listens to her. In the second half of the play, the actors showed students how to prevent sex- ual abuse and how to find help if they need it. Students from the four county schoo s anxiously wait for Toma to hit the stage. Caring Gestures. These are the poses of a man who cares. Toma spent hours talking with students from all four county schools and more hours in private sessions. 20 Abuse Convos

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oesn ' t jump up and down ad scream. Senior Herb teele defended his choice of ob Seger, Bob Seger has a yle that appeals to the oung, the old . . . This com- ined with the longetivity of is outstanding success make im one of the greatest musi- ians ever. Senior Tim hristle explains his reason )r picking Jim Morrison, ' ho was right behind Bruce pringsteen in the poll, He ' as smart, poetic, and wild. [e lived on the edge of reali- ' all of the time . . . One of the Heavy Metal ivorites was Rudy Sarzo of luiet Riot. Senior Scott Gib- m explains, I like his style F ax playing bass . . . The ichnique he uses for play- ig, is my favorite and he ex- ecutes it very well. In my eyes he ' s the No. 1 bassist in the world. Rock and roll developed from several forms of music, it is a mix of rhythm and blues (R B) and country and western (C W). Blues men such as Bo Diddley, Fats Dominoe, and Ray Charles are credited with bringing about the first forms of rock. In 1953 Bill Haley, with his song Rock around the clock , set the pattern that much of future rock music was to follow. Perhaps the most popular rock star of all times was Elvis Presley. When Elvis first came out, people laughed at his flashy style of dress, but soon everybody was using this type of dress to appeal to the crowd. Another man, Phil Spector, also contributed to the start of rock and roll. He perfected techniques of over- dubbing and electronically manipulated sound, which produced a new kind of recording style, that brought the vigor and vitality of rock into sharp focus. Despite the success of all these per- formers, rock was still con- sidered a teenage craze. Something was needed to establish rock. A dance form that corresponded to the music had not yet evolved. So the twist developed. It was popularized by Chubby Checker, Joey Dee, and various other performers. After the twist became popular, big record com- panies began to compete for the big name rock per- formers. Following in the wake of the twist, came the British invasion. Groups such as the Beatles, Rolling Stones, the Dave Clark Five, Herman ' s Hermits, and Gerry and the Pacemakers dominated American radio and pop charts. This is how rock music began. Rock and Roll has demonstrated America ' s ability to create music to fit the profile of the American personality. Today it pro- vides the distinctive sound of our time and generation, and its popularity has swept the world. Modern Music 19

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, i ■ Tricia tries to tell her parents (who won ' t listen to her) about her problem with her uncle in Out of the Trap , performed by Bridgework Theater. ▲ Tricia tells a friend on the school ■ Tricia ' s uncle gets mushy with bus about the incident with her un- her in Out of the Trap , cle in Out of the Trap . Abuse Convos 2 1