Kansas State University - Royal Purple Yearbook (Manhattan, KS)

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FRIENDS IN KANSAS Continued from page 22 The crowd went wild when Brooks ap- peared through anopening in thestagefloor. Brooks opened his act with the song Ro- deo andperformix1popularsongs from all of his albums, including the unrcleasod album, The chase. Brooks entertained the crowd with Friends in Low Places, and encour- aged the crowd to sing along. He also intro- duced his most recent single, We Shall be Free, which had gospel overtones. The crowd enthusiastically responded to thesong, which pleased Brooks. To get that kind of a response for a song you ' ve never heard before really makes a person feel good, Brooks said. The crowd responded to all of Brooks ' songsthroughouttheeveningastheyswayed, sang, clapped and yelled. He ' s atrue entertainer, said Louis Funk, junior in civil engineering. He ' s there to play for the people. During the concert, Brooks addressed rumors circulating about his retirement Brooks said he planned to take a vacation to spend time with his wife, Sandy, and their daughter, Taylor Mayne PearL He said he (lain t want his fans to be angry with him if he chose not to return to the music industry. 1 don ' t think he ' s made up his mind about retirement. I just think he ' s trying to prepare hisfans, Funksaid. It will be agreat loss if he does decide to retire, but that ' s his choke. He needs to do what ' s best for him. After Brooks had finished performing, the audience erupted into a roar of protest that brought Brooks back on stage for an encore performance. Brooks sang another version of Friends in Low Places. He also sang a rendition of the Georgia Satellites hit, Keep Your Hands to Yourself. Brooks proved he deserved his Enter- tainerof the Yearawar d as he swung into the crowd hanging from a rope. He also took one fan ' s camera, reclined on the stage and took a picture of himself with the camera ' s owner. Another fan had her picture taken with Brooksduring the three hours shespent with him. After the concert was over, I got to go backstage and meet him, said Kelli Darting, junior in hotel and restaurant management. It wasgreat,but Isawhowexhaustedhevms. I knew then his career really was using all of his energy. Despite Brooks ' exhaustion, Darting said he had to deal with 250 screaming fans wanting autographs. Darting said she real- ized the kind of person he was off the stage. It was a very exciting experience, but once it wasover I got toreally thinking about it, she said. I realized he ' s just an ordinary man, like you and me, with a talent and kindness he uses in just the right way to touch people ' s hearts. After learning they arm tick- ets to the Brooks show, Bloxendale and Stara cel- ebrate. Brooks opened his act widsthesong Rodco. (Photo by Craig Hacker) °ARM BROOM iti 25

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In a contest to win Garth Brooks tickets, Jennifer Bloxendale, junior in pre• physical therapy, squirts whipped cream on Michele Stava, sophomore in speech therapy. The contest was held at Wendy ' s on Anderson Av- enue. (Photo by CraigHacker) Richard Lulu, freshman in education, and Greg Gehrt, freshman in architectural engi- netting, await the announce- ment of their winning num- bers. Litre headed off to claim his ticket after hearing hisloncry number calk (Photo by Craig Hacker) 24 no OARTI1 BROOKS

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BREA KING elaneOlgeirson,senior in el- ementary education, said she al- ways wanted to become a teacher. I ' ve had several different jobs and in almost all of them I worked with kids, she said. Olgeirson was a non-traditional student who waited several years before entering college. My very first day of college was on my 36th birthday, Olgeirson said. ' 7hisreally yotmg kidsat next to me in my class and I thought, ' My God, I could be this boy ' s mother. ' I decided then I would never think of other students as anything but my peers. Olgeirson ' s husband and three daughters supported her wish to go back to school. She and her hus- band decided she needed to be a full-time student. Nancy Bolsen, director of FENIXAdultStudentSetvices,said a quarter of the total student enroll- ment included non-traditional stu- dents. Our definition of a non-tradi- tional student is 25 or older, or marriedandunder25, Bolsensaid. Most of them are in the 25.39 age group, but some have been in their 51:1s, 60s and 70s who simply appre- ciate life-long learning, Bolsensakt Some, and this is the rarity, have been in their 70s and 80s, and have come back to get their degrees. The reasons for people return- ing to college varied. The variety (of reasons) has to do with some wanting to upgrade their skills, such as teacher accreditdation, or they want a ca- reerchange, Bolsensaid. Manyof themcomebadcbccauseofachange in life circumstances like divorce. Some found it difficult to go back toschool,but there weregrouPs for non-traditional students that offered help, including the Non- Traditional Student Association and FENIX. ' We have child care informa- tion, travel infommtionsuch asride sharing, and ways to leave emer- gency numbers where a parent can be reached, Bolsen said. We also have general information on Man- hattan for those non-traditional students who move here to go to school. Decisions to go back to school can also be hard on families. Olgeirson ' s youngest daughter did not like her mother going to college. ' She missed hav- ing me there, Olgeirson said. I ' d had time to co those extra things, like ex- tra cooking and sew - ing. Olgeirson felt earning her de- gree was important, and put extra effort into it by taking additional classes. A degree in education re- quired 126 hours, but Olgeirson went beyond that to earn hours in social science and history, in addi- tion to her main area ofconcentra- tion in German. With busy class schedutes,Olgeirsonsacriftced time with her family. ' There are times when I miss having that time (at home), Olgeirson said . My oldest daugh- ter once told me she knew that what I was doing was important, but sometimes not in school be- cause she wanted the old mom back. He ' s been after me to go back for years, Olgeirson said. We decided that if I wanted to grctduatebeforeouroldestdaugh- ter was ready for college, I should go full-time. BY DIANE HUTCHISON 26 riOtt-TRADITIONAL STUDEMS Among other students, Myers walks to statistics class. Her classes were three days a week which meant she seldom drove to campus from her home in Milford. (Photo by Cary Conover)