Merrillville High School - Merrillvue Yearbook (Merrillville, IN)

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The MHS first caravan provided an exciting send off for the Pirates when they departed for the regionals at West Side. During the Gary Regional game against Lew Wallace, Lenny Schmidt, senior, shoots for two. Despite the Pirates valiant effort, the Hornets managed to slip by with a last second shot 52-50.

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Activity: mhs provides fun Throughout the year students were given many opportunities to get involved in recreational activities. Intramural Tournaments was a new program started in 1982. Jim East, history teacher and basketball coach, organized the tournaments. The tournaments were held in the downstairs gym during lunch periods. MHS has never before opened the gym for recreational activities during lunch. The tournaments were open to anyone, although there were no girls who signed up. Some of the tournaments held were basketball, “Horse,” Twenty-one and table tennis. Many students participated in these tournaments. Other tournaments were suggested but the limited amount of time available made them impossible. Coach East said, “I think that the students enjoyed the Intramural tour- naments, but there’s only so much you can do in such a short amount of time.” During days that a tournament wasn’t taking place, the gym was open for the students to use as they pleased. Winners of the tournaments received trophies. The Student Activity fee paid for the trophies. Scott Orosz, senior, winner of the “Horse” commented, “I en- joyed Intramurals. I think it’s a good idea to give students something to do at lunch since they’re not allowed in the hallways.” Activity periods offered another opportunity for students to enjoy different recreational activities. Paul Schuyler, principal, started the Activity Program at MHS several years ago. He saw it done at Taft Junior High School and liked the idea and brought it to Merrillville. Students were required to sign up for one subject of their choice. Those who didn’t were assigned to study halls. Some of the most popular activities offered were basketball, raquetball, Shape-up, beautiful you and Uno. The teachers chose whatever they wished as their subject. Pat Mulloy, government teacher, said, “I chose Bogle for enjoyment more than any- thing else. I enjoy activity periods and I think the students do too.” This year activity periods were held only during the second jemester. Tom Herbert, assistant principal, com- mented, “At the beginning of the year the students are kept occupied with Homecoming activities. During the second semester is when they need a break from regular classes. Also, the teachers are very busy at the begin- ning of the year.” Joe Michael, senior, commented, “I enjoyed it my sophomore and junior year. However, now I’m a little tired of it. I guess I’ve run out of things to take and would rather go home earlier anyway.” Mr. Herbert said, “I think it would be well worth it if all of the stu- dents got involved. Too many of them take study halls or don’t bother to sign up at all. I’m hoping that with only five activity periods scheduled, the students appreciate them and get involved.” Jill Pennock photos Kawicki During activity period, Jeff Kontor, junior. Gene Guernsey and Nick Bumbales, seniors, concentrate on “Uno”. With the help of Dick Ebler, English teacher, Chris Daniels, sophomore, learns some new moves in chess. Activity Period 27

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The Merrillville crowd gels into the sectional spirit” as they cheer their team on to victory. Cutting down the net is a privilege reserved for winners. Mike Meshede, junior, enjoys this moment after playing a hard game against Munster. W INNING: Enthusiasm backs Pirates When the basketball team started into the Sectional Tournament, it was like the beginning of a new season. The MHS student body began preparing for this new season during the week before the final game. Student Council sponsored a spirit competition between all three grades. The sophomores were assigned the upstairs math and science hall. The juniors were assigned the front English hall. And the seniors were assigned the main hall. Each class decorated their area with signs supporting the team. Carol Teeter, aide, Valerie Tanke, publications advisor, and Jim East, history teacher and basketball coach, judged which hall was decorated the best. The seniors won and received a plaque which now hangs in the main office. Lori Jeleski, Student Council president, got the idea of the sign competition from Pierce Junior High School. Anne Guba, Student Council vice president, said, “We used to have this type of competition at Pierce and it worked well, so Lori suggested that we try it here.” The Pirates won the first game of the Sectionals against Calumet. They then went on to face Lake Central and Munster over the weekend. Many fans traveled to Calumet to support the team and be a part of their victory. The Saturday night victory over Munster ended with the ceremonial cutting down of the net. The following week was filled with excitement and preparation for regionals. A car caravan on Saturday morning sent the Pirates off to West Side. Coach East came to the Student Council with the idea of the caravan. He got the idea from schools where he used to teach. All students and community members were encouraged to decorate their cars and drive in the caravan. Coach East explained, “I wanted to try the caravan at MHS to get community involvement. Merrillville is a large, spread out community, and sometimes it’s hard to get everyone involved. I think the caravan was very successful, especially for the first year.” The caravan followed the team bus and two fan buses to the game. It was police escorted non-stop to West Side. It was er a mile in length. Margaret Stallings, home economics teacher, Mrs. Tanke and Mrs. Teeter judged the cars. Ten dollar gift certificates to Hegewisch Records were given to the people with the best decorated cars. Michelle and Carri Broda, sophomores, won first place. Second place went to Phil Pardus, sophomore. Bill McCoy, junior, came in third. When asked if he thought the caravan helped the team, Coach East said, “I think it helped a lot. Instead of getting support from the school the day before the game at a pep rally, the team got support from the community on the way to the game, when they really needed it.” Dennis Metcalf, senior basketball player, said, “I think the caravan was great. It got everyone actually involved.” Besides sponsoring the caravan. Student Council also distributed signs to local businesses supporting the Pirates. Lori Jeleski said, “We tried to get support from the community as well as the school, and I think it worked out well.” The Pirates lost in the first game of regionals. The Lew Wallace Hornets managed to slip by the Pirates 52-50 in the final seconds of the game. But the Pirate fans still had a lot to be proud of. Jill Pennock Winning 29