Merrillville High School - Merrillvue Yearbook (Merrillville, IN)

Page 26 text:

Spring break isn ' t always FLORIDA Florida was fabulous! Cancun was a carnival! Colorado was colorful! The world travelers found their spring breaks to be quite satisfying as they wasted no time in making tracks to their far-off destinations. But, for those who chose to keep their suitcases in the closet and their feet planted firmly on the ground, Merrillville was MARVELOUS! I stayed home, but my boy- friend came up to visit which made it worth staying, said Ali- son McCullom, senior. Merrillville offered a wide va- riety of activities. They ranged from parties to movies. I almost got to go somewhere warm, but I ended up staying here and I got a lot done, claimed Cathy Marks, senior. I even went to Indy for a couple of days (last big family vacation be- fore I get too old). It wasn ' t what I would have liked to do, but I still had fun. I went out with my girlfriend and a few of my friends who stayed home, added Jon Lea, senior. Spending time with girl- friends and boyfriends also proved to be very popular. I spent the whole break with my girlfriend, claimed Tony Olejnik, senior. Spring sports, such as track, baseball, softball and soccer an- chored some students to home- town soil. I wished I could have gone to Florida, but I went to track and won four races, said a proud Jim Kerr, senior. I spent a lot of my time at soccer practice as we began our soccer season over break, added Mike Sofa, senior. Jobs were yet another incen- tive to hold spring breakers back. I worked two jobs over spring break, admitted Judi Ed- gerton, senior. The money was great! For those who wanted the sun kissed look without the sun, tan ning salons were their tropics. I spent most of my tint ' cheating ' in the tanning booth, stated McCullom. As the world travelers re turned, the hometowners ' proved that the suitcases did no have to leave the closets for th good times to roll. by CINDY HYDING0 Vacationing in his hometown, Dave Pavnic, junior, takes a trip to Cedar Lake to go windsurfing. Many students are bound to Merrillville because of lack of dinero.” 22 And then some

Page 25 text:

' Mom, can I come home? ' An unbelievable 80 degrees is outside. Or is it that speech due next hour? All of a sudden, a headache makes itself known, soon fol- lowed by stomach pains and a sore throat. Instant flu. Right about here is where a trip to the nurse comes in. It ' s time to go home. I like going home because tests stink when it ' s nice out- side, said Buddy Pearson, ju- nior. Suzie Tam, junior, comment- ed, I usually try to leave after second hour because the sun is in full force, and I can lay out. But getting home is not al- ways as easy as it would seem. When you are sick, the nurse sends you hom e, no questions asked, said Patty Zolondz, sen- ior. But sometimes you have to go to extremes for a simple call home. W M, iUAA cM leand that fauwiU quote,, If yoaie, tick, why dicUt you, itay home m the, fi ut piaee? And I ' m sure we ' ve all heard that famous quote, ' If you ' re sick, why didn ' t you stay home in the first place? ' said Zo- londz. Once students are home free, it ' s agreeable on the hot spots to be. You go to the beach, said Megan McDermott, junior. There ' s no other place to be. by JOY BRIDY Not feeling to well, Mike Budzevski. senior, calls home, The nurse gives stu- dents a choice of going home or lying down when not feeling good. Schrenker NEW COACH Wimmer brings 44-12 record, state title Schrenker Athletic Director Janis Qua- lizza announced that 31-year-old Rick Wimmer of Zionsville, In- diana will succeed Frank O ' Shea as head football coach. Coach Wimmer, who has coached at Zionsville High School since 1983, has compiled a 44-12 record. In the last three seasons, Coach Wimmer accumulated a 34-2 record, including the 1988 season ' s 14-0 record and the Class 3A state title. We hired Rick over 30 other candidates. He ' s a dynamic young coach who has a past re- cord of taking a program and turning it around, Ms. Qualizza stated. Coach Wimmer is a graduate of Huntington High school and the University of Indianapolis. I am extremely excited to be here at Merrillville. I am eager to get things started and prepare for fall. I bring my philosophy of hard work and good work techniques to Merrillville, and I hope to install a program of sol- id fundamentals, Coach Wim- mer announced. Coach Wimmer said that he is looking forward to several chal- lenges at Merrillville. They in- clude making the transition from coaching 3A to 5A and coaching the Duneland Confer- ence for which he has the ut- most respect. Another challenge facing Coach Wimmer will be that of going up against Hobart. Last season Hobart had the best team in the state. I can ' t make any promises, but right now, I hope to be competitive with them, Coach Wimmer said. Coach Wimmer realizes that there may be some pressure to win; however, he has been in similar situations and has han- dled it. Right now, he just wants to get aquainted with Merrill- ville and its people. Coach Wimmer is married and has two small children and enjoys a wide variety of activi- ties ranging from bicycling and weight lifting to playing the banjo. by MIKE BANHAM Zionsville, Indiana ' s Rick Wimmer was chosen to succeed Frank O ' Shea, dean of students, as the head football coach for the Pirates, He was chosen over 30 other candidates who applied for the job. And THEN SOME 21

Page 27 text:

Gift of life Over 100 pints of blood donated to help others On Wed. March 23, 104 stu- dents donated blood to the Fort Wayne Regional Red Cross Blood Drive. The donations were given in efforts to save the life of Bryan Swanson, a fifth grade student at an elementary school in Crown Point. The reason I gave blood was because of Bryan. I felt really bad for him, and I wouldn ' t have felt right not giving blood to help him, stated Krissy Trakas, senior. All of the donors were at least 17 years old and weighed over 110 pounds. The donors were checked to varify they were in good health and had never suf- fered from hepatitis. The blood drive process began with a short talk to the students encouraging those of age to help save a life. Students were in- formed that the process was not very painful and did not place any health risks on the donor. Before the students were able to give blood, permission slips signed by a parent had to be re- turned. I feel the blood drive was a good turn out, and the an- nouncement concerning Bryan ' s condition helped make the drive a success, stated Delores Poxen, nurse. Swanson passed away at the University of Illinois Medical Center the day before the stu- dents donated blood. However, the blood was put to use to help others. I gave blood simple because I know that I can save a life. I have plenty of blood and I feel good about giving some of it to some- one who is in great need of it, stated Silvana Sulli, senior. BY TRACY WIKSE Relaxing on the table, Scott Gron- owski, junior, donates a pint of blood to the Red Cross. The blood drive was a huge success receiving 104 pints. ■L id you find yourself sitting home on weekends thinking of what a great time your friends were having? Well, students stopped thinking about their friends and signed up for COMPUTER DATING. The Senior Class had a fund raiser for students to find that perfect person through Comput- er Dating. Students answered a questionnaire about their likes and dislikes. Questions ranged from kissing on the first date to types of music preferred. Completed forms were then sent to Data Match Incorporated in New York. Anxiously awaited results were returned in a few weeks. In order for students to obtain their results, they had to pay one dol- lar. The results consisted of twelve names from the most compatible to the least. Receiv- ing these names did not mean the students HAD to go out with them. Many students thought they would have to go out with the people whose names they re- ceived. Therefore, some students did not participate. For example, Brad Evans, sen- ior, commented, I might be matched up with somebody I don ' t associate with. Fortunately, other students looked at the match as being more of a fun thing. I wanted to see who met my expectations at MHS, concluded, Jennifer Vereb, senior. So MHS students were able to say good-bye to the Dating Game and Love Connection, but hello to Computer Dating. by MISSY GAYDA And then some 23