December 2012 | Belmont High School | 221 Concord Ave., Belmont, MA.

02478
HIGHPOINT
Thanksgiving Pep
Rally: An Antidote to
Low School Spirit?
- Belmont Idol Auditions (page 4)
- ALLY week (page 9)
- anksgiving Football (page 6)
- Snowakes! (page 10)
- And more!
by omas Zembowicz
Students at BHS may cheer for the Marauders side
by side at football games, but many are concerned
that school spirit is rather low. is quarter, the
Student Leadership Team (SLT) and Captains
Council focused its eorts on planning the anks-
giving Pep Rally, held on November 21, in order to
achieve a better sense of school unity.
At the beginning of the year, the SLT identied
the lack of school spirit as one of the biggest problems
facing BHS. Some students felt that not enough was
being done to unite the school community and excite
students about school events. (cont. on page 3)
The BHS Fall Play:

PAGE 2

PAGE 2
By Beth Young
e BHS Performing Arts
Company (PAC) began their
2012 season with a fantastic
production: Rick Lombardos
adaptation of Charles Dickens
renowned A Christmas Carol.
Directed by Chris Brindley,
the play showed for three nights
and four performances, all of
which received stellar reviews.
e well-known plot was
followed accordingly, encom-
passing both heartwarming and
terrifying elements commonly
attributed to the play.
Starring Alex Grin as the
greedy Scrooge and Sam Korn
as his kind employee Bob
Cratchit, A Christmas Carol
provided an entertaining and
seasonal experience for all ages.
e adaptation Brindley
chose to follow included a full
musical score. e show
included actors who also
performed as musicians on and
o the stage. In addition to
acting, Korn played the synthe-
sizer and piano, and conducted
o-stage. Emma McGlashen
also juggled playing Freds wife,
Elizabeth, and the piano
onstage. (cont. on page 2)
I N THI S I SSUE.
A Christmas Carol

PAGE 2 BHS

PAGE 2 BHS
cont.from page 1: A Christmas Carol
[Everyone] had to learn a lot of music,
said McGlashen. [It] took some adjust-
ment.
Despite the multiple roles and diculties,
there was an excellent balance of music and
acting as many audience members were
astounded at the talented and well-rounded
cast.
All the performances were indeed a
success, much owed to the dedication and
hard work of the cast and crew.
Rehearsals were a ton of fun, but very,
very busy and also hectic, said McGlashen.
ey generally took place in the
afternoon and were around two hoursbut
got longer and more frequent as the opening
night got closer, said Caralyn Auero, who
played Mrs. Cratchit. [ere were even]
separate rehearsals for dierent aspects of
the show like music and group numbers.
McGlashen also mentioned that the
rehearsals had a lot of little kids running
around as the play featured many children.
Although this added to the slight mayhem,
the age dierences were hardly an issue.
Working with the younger kids was so
much fun, said Auero. ey really
brightened up the experience and loved
being around the high schoolers and being
involved in the show.
Korn agreed, and said that the Cratchits
bonded as a little family of their own.
e high schoolers were all very welcom-
ing and I hope to participate in high school
plays in the future, said Elliot OMalley,
who acted as Boy Scrooge.Although the
performances were all spectacular, there
were doubts as well as nerves.
I was nervousbut got past it and went
through, said Solomon Mankin, who
played a collecting man.
McGlashen also said that [even though]
the show came together in the endwe all
had our doubts at times.
But come together, it did! And in a
wonderful series of performances, complete
with amazing special eects and superb set
construction.
Korn summed it up best when he said, I'd
consider the BHS 2012 Fall Play an absolute,
resounding success!
Credit: Margaret Lazenby

PAGE 3 BHS

PAGE 4
cont.from page 1: anksgiving Pep
Rally
Our school is too divided and we
rarely come together to celebrate being
members of Belmont High School,
said one anonymous senior.
Hardly anyone does color wars or
really goes all out which is disap-
pointing, said an anonymous sopho-
more.
Enthusiasm for the event has never
been very high, with some students
complaining about it being too long,
boring, and confusing.
While students headed to the eld
house after school in previous years, a
steady stream walked out the doors
and headed straight home. ough
many like the idea of having each
sports team organize an activity to do
in front of the whole school, some
thought it wasnt worthwhile.
I thought the pep rallies were kind
of bad, and people would just leave,
said an anonymous junior.
Working closely with Mr. Davis and
Captains Council, a few members of
the SLT set out to organize the pep
rally and try to change public opinion.
is year, sports teams hosted a
series of events that put grade against
grade--and sometimes against the
faculty--causing each class to unite
behind their representatives to the
contests.

e eld house was absolutely
packed, and so many people volun-
teered to participate in games such as
tug-of-war that the event organizers
had to send several people back to
their seats.
e whole school enjoyed their time
together as they listened to the BHS
marching band perform a series of
songs, including Hey Jude by the
Beatles.
With their expectations rather low
for this years event, many students
were surprised when they found them-
selves laughing with the rest of the
school as Ms. Marino and Ms. White
dominated in a game of musical
chairs.
I think BHS denitely turned it
around with all the events. It was fun
to participate in and watch, said a
sophomore who thought last years
celebration was sort of lame.
According to many in the SLT, the
school still has a long way to go, but
many appreciate the progress that has
already been made. e improvements
to this years pep rally made students
look forward to attending, turning it
into the propagator of school spirit
that it was always supposed to be.

PAGE 3

PAGE 4 BHS
A Peek Through Belmont Idols Red Curtain

Aldis Elfarsdottir, junior- classical violin
ABOVE. Dory Nemitz (left), junior and Amelia Fox (right), sophomore- vocal
acoustic mash-up
BELOW. Danielle Ramos (left), junior, Hyunju Seo (far right), junior, and Jean Lin
(front right), senior, dance routine
By Eva Gallagher
Between Wednesday, Nov. 27, and Friday,
Nov. 30, over 25 musically gifted Belmont
High School students auditioned for Belmont
Idol, the local version of the hit television
show, American Idol.
Originally a small program to fundraise
money for Diversity Week, Belmont Idol has
grown into a production with a lot of talent
said Gabrielle Garschina, Belmont High
School Spanish teacher, audition judge, and
director of the show.
Belmont Idol was founded in 2005 but
there were many of years where it didnt exist
at all said Garschina.
According to Garschina, the show has gone
on consistently since 2009.
Last year was a great success, said
Garschina, who explained it was the rst time
so many people auditioned there was a need for
callbacks.
ough it has not been determined whether
or not callbacks will be necessary this year, the
range of talent impressed Garschina during
last weeks auditions.
We put a lot of consideration on how well
[students] are prepared for the audition, said
Garschina, as students tuned their guitars,
stretched their muscles and calmed their
nerves before the Friday auditions.
Garschina said that the judges like to see a
variety of acts as it makes the show more
interesting for the audience, yet more dicult
for the judges since theyre seeing so many
dierent genres.
[We look for a] passion or energy that being
communicated to the audience some kind of
presence, said Garschina. And thats a high
expectation, because none of these students are
professional performers.


PAGE 5 BHS

PAGE 6
By Beth Young
e BHS Performing Arts
Company (PAC) began their
2012 season with a fantastic
production: Rick Lombardos
adaptation of Charles Dickens
renowned A Christmas Carol.
Directed by Chris Brindley,
the play showed for three nights
and four performances, all of
which received stellar reviews.
e well-known plot was
followed accordingly, encom-
passing both heartwarming and
terrifying elements commonly
attributed to the play.
Starring Alex Grin as the
greedy Scrooge and Sam Korn
as his kind employee Bob
Cratchit, A Christmas Carol
provided an entertaining and
seasonal experience for all ages.
e adaptation Brindley
chose to follow included a full
musical score. e show
included actors who also
performed as musicians on and
o the stage. In addition to
acting, Korn played the synthe-
sizer and piano, and conducted
o-stage. Emma McGlashen
also juggled playing Freds wife,
Elizabeth, and the piano
onstage. (cont. on page 2)
Garschina said having people in the
darkness with music playing would get the
audience totally pumped up and keep
them involved, which really adds to the
night.
e students who auditioned for this
years show will be notied the week of
Dec. 10 to nd out whether or not they
made the cut.
ere will be scheduled dress rehearsals
that Garschina admits will be a little
tricky, considering theyre expecting a
certain level of production quality.
However, said Garschina, all the
students performances and the m a g i c
behind the curtains the sound, the lights
and the staging never fail to impress.
F or an evening of immense talent and
entertainment, be sure to attend Belmont
Idols 2013 performance on ursday, Jan.
10 at 7 p.m. in the Belmont High School
auditorium.
Garschina said she is happy with
what Belmont Idol has become.
is year, approximately 12 acts out
of the 25 that auditioned will be
showcased, all determined to
impress both their audience and the
judges.
e Friday auditions took o with
an impressive classical violin perfor-
mance by junior Aldis Elfarsdottir,
who has been playing a little over
nine years, she told Garschina
enthusiastically.
From a dance group mash-up
with Danielle Ramos (junior),
Hyunju Seo (junior) and Jean Lin
(senior) to juniors Sydney Perkins
and Joe Fitzgeralds cover of Jack-
son by Johnny Cash, the afternoon
was lled with an array of genres.
Im very interested to see how
[the mind reading act is] going to
come o, said Garschina before
Korns scheduled audition time.
Its hard to judge that against
dancing and instruments and
singing.
But Garschina believes Korns act
will allow a more interactive
production in terms of the audience
and challenge the judges nal
decision.
e more diverse the genres
[are] the harder it is for the judges,
said Garschina.
During the auditions, small
groups of students in three or four
stood at the threshold of the little
theaters door to provide silent
moral support.
ABOVE. Max Davidowitz, sophomore- drummer
BELOW. Ms. Garschina- judge
After her lyrical dance routine
to Hurt by Christina Aguilera,
Elaine Miao said she was so
nervous and had tried to pretend
no one was there.
I just tried to focus all my
energy into the dance, said Miao.
e song and the movements
have a lot of meaning I felt I
could share that with other
people.
Soon after, sophomores Max
Davidowitz, Austin Ickes, Rowan
Wolf and junior Andrew Barry
performed an original rock song,
Over My Head with a full drum
set, electric guitars and bass.
Davidowitzs father Mitch, who
came to watch his son audition,
commented that Belmont Idol was
great last year.
As the auditions came to a
close, freshman Emma Taylor
played piano as she and junior
Audrey Barnes performed a
mash-up of Titanium by David
Guetta, Lights by Ellie Gould-
ing and Diamonds by Rihanna.
At the end of the audition
session, Garschina shared her
plans for this years show.
Im hoping that this year,
between transitions, we can bring
back really popular songs that
people recognize and play them
for thirty seconds, said
Garschina.


PAGE 5

PAGE 6
by Crystal Rhee
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 22 -- On
anksgiving Day, the Belmont
Marauders and Watertown Raiders
entered the Belmont football eld, deter-
mined to win the last game of the season.
However, Belmonts winning streak over
Watertown for seven consecutive years
came to an end as Raiders defeated
Marauders 7-28
Belmont dominated the rst quarter
with a touchdown. It ended with the
score 7-0, Belmont. e second quarter
wasnt as successful. Watertown
reinforced their defense line and blocked
several plays. By half-time, the score was
7-14, Watertown in the lead.
During the half-time, the Belmont
Marching Band took over the eld. is
game was also their last of the season,
especially for the seniors. ey pedthree
songs, and a tribute to the Beatles.
In the second half, Watertown scored
yet another touchdown, and the game
came to an end, 7-28, Watertown.
Belmonts overall score in the season is 1
win (in Winchester) and 10 losses.
SPORTS
Thanksgiving Football Game: Belmont Loses to Watertown
BHS Marauders play at the anksgiving football game. Credit: Daphne Assimakopoulos
BHS Marching Band. Credit: Amanda Chambers
ABOVE. Max Davidowitz, sophomore- drummer
BELOW. Ms. Garschina- judge

PAGE 7
BULLETIN

PAGE 8
DECEMBER EVENTS
by Anya Zhang

12/6-7: Grease Auditions
12/8: ACT Testing at BHS and Ha-
nukkah begins!
12/10-14: Students who audi-
tioned for Belmont Idol will be noti-
fied!
12/12: Bandarama
12/13: Progress Reports Avail-
able on Edline
12/15: MMEA All-State Auditions
12/19: BHS Winter Concert
12/22- 1/1:Winter Vacation
Drum major Roxie Martino (grade 12) leads the marching band at
the anksgiving game. Credit: Amanda Chambers

PAGE 7

PAGE 8
MAURAUDER LIFE

PAGE 9

PAGE 10
by Sol Park
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER
1-- Belmont High School s
Gay-Straight Alliance club
(GSA) held a social after
school to show their advocacy
of ALLY and Anti-Bullying
month.
Sta and students from all
grades and group circles joined
to discuss not only the impor-
tance of anti-bullying, but also
the success of the recent
PFLAG (Parents, Families,
and Friends of Lesbians and
Gays) assemblies.
November is widely
accepted as Anti-Bullying
month. An Ally is someone
who does not identify as
LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual, Transgender, Queer)
but still supports LGBTQ
rights.
To show that they back all
equal rights, the members of
GSA and Diversity Commit-
tee took the initiative creating
and distributing purple
ribbons.
Additionally, they orga-
nized the PFLAG assemblies
during which speakers came
in to share their personal
stories, creating awareness of
the issues of bullying.
Students and faculty
attended these assemblies
throughout the school day
dressed in purple or wore
purple ribbons to show their
support.
Joey Tocci, president of
GSA, said that the purpose of
the social, specically, was to
give people a reason to discuss
the PFLAG assemblies. He
also said that it was also for
people to have a good time.
My favorite part of the
social was seeing all the dier-
ent groups of people who
came, said Tocci. I expected
a particular group of people to
show up and that d be it, but
in actuality the turnout was
very diverse and that is just
what we were hoping for.
Garschina said having people in the
darkness with music playing would get the
audience totally pumped up and keep
them involved, which really adds to the
night.
e students who auditioned for this
years show will be notied the week of
Dec. 10 to nd out whether or not they
made the cut.
ere will be scheduled dress rehearsals
that Garschina admits will be a little
tricky, considering theyre expecting a
certain level of production quality.
However, said Garschina, all the
students performances and the m a g i c
behind the curtains the sound, the lights
and the staging never fail to impress.
F or an evening of immense talent and
entertainment, be sure to attend Belmont
Idols 2013 performance on ursday, Jan.
10 at 7 p.m. in the Belmont High School
auditorium.
ALLY Week: BHS Celebrates
Anti- Bullying Month
by Jessie Lu
As students return from December
vacation, they are greeted by the cold,
uneventful lull separating the New Year
from February break. e spring musical is
four months away, so what other shows are
there to look forward to? Well, theres
Belmont Idol, of course! A local version of
the hit TV show American Idol, Belmont
Idol gives Belmont High School students a
chance to showcase their talents, both in
singing and other pursuits, and ultimately
vie for the number one spot, the spot for the
winner.
Auditions for the shows limited spots
were held on November 28th, 29th, and
30th. According to Sam Schwartz, the
producer of Idol, the nal lineup will be
announced sometime after a couple of
weeks of deliberating and soaking in all the
talent... in order to ensure maximum talent.

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MAURAUDER LIFE

PAGE 9

PAGE 10
the club was forced to brainstorm
for a more protable, engaging
fundraising event. e Snowake
tradition commenced that year,
after a student proposed the selling
of glittery plastic snowake
ornaments for students and teachers
to exchange before the holiday
season.
Currently, the Snowakes event
carries on with great success,
selling up to two thousand snow-
akes every year.
e Belmontian Club students
divide jobs among themselves for
the fundraiser, appointing dier-
ent people for the making and
delivering of the snowakes and
the purchasing for their adopted
families gifts. is uplifting
event provides comfort and joy for
decient families during the
holiday season while simultane-
ously providing BHS students and
sta a heartening way to encour-
age and cheer each other up before
parting ways during winter break
to celebrate the blissful holiday
season with their own families
and friends.
Most students generalize Snow-
akes to be an event where cards
attached to snowake ornaments
are bought to be delivered to
friends and teachers within the
school. Very few know about the
real purpose driving the Snowake
tradition every year at Belmont
High School. What is this event
really for? Where does the money
go?
e Snowakes fundraising was
initiated over ten years ago by the
BHS Belmontian Club after they
adopted a few families from the
Community Servings (CS) organi-
zation. Primarily operating to serve
free meals to families diagnosed
with illnesses in eastern Massachu-
setts, this non-prot organization
enables dierent individuals and
groups to adopt some of these
families before the holiday season
by allowing them to fulll the
holiday wish lists of their families.
e Belmontian Club originally
held bake sales to fund the wish lists
of their families, but when the
money raised proved to be insu-
cient to pay for their families gifts,
Spirit Week?
by Elaine Miao
is year BHS decided to step it
up a notch and make one large pep
rally that everyone would love. e
Student Leadership Team thought
of creating a spirit week, but
unfortunately, it didn't work out so
well. ere should have been a
pirate day, a jersey day, and many
more dress-up days. is might
have been due to the late announce-
ment.
However, students still partici-
pated in Class Color Wars. Fresh-
men wore white, sophomores wore
blue, juniors wore red, and seniors
wore black. Although a proper
spirit week failed to happen, the
SLT hopes to try again next year.
by Crystal Rhee
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 22 -- On
anksgiving Day, the Belmont
Marauders and Watertown Raiders
entered the Belmont football eld, deter-
mined to win the last game of the season.
However, Belmonts winning streak over
Watertown for seven consecutive years
came to an end as Raiders defeated
Marauders 7-28
Belmont dominated the rst quarter
with a touchdown. It ended with the
score 7-0, Belmont. e second quarter
wasnt as successful. Watertown
reinforced their defense line and blocked
several plays. By half-time, the score was
7-14, Watertown in the lead.
During the half-time, the Belmont
Marching Band took over the eld. is
game was also their last of the season,
especially for the seniors. ey pedthree
songs, and a tribute to the Beatles.
In the second half, Watertown scored
yet another touchdown, and the game
came to an end, 7-28, Watertown.
Belmonts overall score in the season is 1
win (in Winchester) and 10 losses.
By Hayoung Hwang
D oes the word snowakes sound
familiar at BHS during this time of the
year? While most of the freshmen and
new students at Belmont High stand
cluelessly when they hear this word, the
older students at BHS are accustomed to
having the word being tossed around
during these few weeks before winter
break.

Heartening
Snowflakes
Student crowd watches the pep rally. Credit: Jenny Kim

PAGE 11 LOCAL

PAGE 12
In almost all of New Jersey the
power was out for days. With
dropping temperatures, the lack of
heating became a problem for the
elderly and inrm.
Sandy victims of New Jersey are
continuing to recover. Because
homes were washed away or
severely ooded, people were sent
to Red Cross shelters. Many
volunteers have been working to
help families recover from the
aftermath of Sandy.
In addition to washed away
houses, Queens, New York, was
hit by an inferno at the height of
the storm. Across 15 states, more
than 8 million people had lost
power.
roughout the United States,
Sandy has claimed at least 100
lives and caused approximately
$50 billion in damage. e
American population hopes to
have a strong recovery with plans
striving for better protection of
potential disaster areas in the
event of a future storm.
by Vinutna Veeragandham
ough initially proclaimed a hurricane, as
Sandy reached our hometown of Belmont its title
was changed to a post-tropical superstorm.
However, when it nally reached Belmont it was
nothing more than rough winds and heavy rain.
e aftermath consisted majorly of toppled trees
and overturned earth.
In preparation for Sandy, Belmont public
schools closed, supermarket shelves were cleared
of non-perishables and water, and families
bundled up at home, preparing for the big hit.
e destructive forecasts as well as the eects
on the states it had already passed through made
the prospects of the impending storm alarming.
In Massachusetts alone, 108,000 families lost
power. Belmont survived with minimal damage
while other places in the U.S. were hit hard.
New Jersey was one of the most severely
aected states. Residents reportedly had never
seen a hurricane this big in all the years they had
lived there. Gas had to be rationed and electric
poles were down.

Sandy Takes America by Storm
ABOVE. A tree topples on Harriet Street at 1:30 p.m. in
Belmont. Credit: Franklin Tucker, BelmontPatch
RIGHT. Sadly, two trees came down on Selwyn damaging two
homes. Credit: Louise Domenitz
Credit: Franklin Tucker, BelmontPatch

PAGE 11

PAGE 12 VOICE
HIGHPOINT STAFF
Editors
Jenny Kim
Eva V. Gallagher
Advertising/ PR Managers
Jessie Lu
Thomas Zembowicz
Format & Design
Anqi Wan
Photographers
Jenny Kim
Amanda Chambers

Writers
Beth Young
Thomas Zembowicz
Eva V. Gallagher
Sol Park
Crystal Rhee
Jessie Lu
Hayoung Hwang
Elaine Miao
Vinutna Veeragandham
Phoebe Mesard
Questions? Suggestions?
Email us at
belmonthighpoint@gmail.com

Find us on Facebook!
Special thanks to our PTO for
making Highpoint possible!
photo: middlebury.edu
such as Robert Frost. It is easy to see why
he would return there time and time
again, seeking inspiration among the
scenic horizons and endless green elds.
Conference attendees were likewise
encouraged to take advantage of these
resources during early morning hikes in
the woods and free writing time lying
out in the sunny grass.
e best part of the experience was
being surrounded by such a diverse
group of smart and interesting people.
Students were sorted into workshop
groups of about ten peers that had
selected the same genrepoetry, ction,
or nonctionand paired with a noted
writer. My workshops always took place
in armchairs around the replace in the
blue-walled parlor of the Inn. Our work-
shop leader, Karl Lindholm, Emeritus
Dean of Advising and Assistant Profes-
sor of American Studies at Middlebury,
resembled Ernest Hemingway in both
his bearded visage and his clear, concise
style of prose. Feedback was always
constructive and supportive from him
NEYWC Experience
by Phoebe Mesard
For the past 28 years, 200 talented,
driven students from across the country
gathered on the Bread Loaf campus of
Middlebury College for the New
England Young Writers Conference
(NEYWC) in May. is four-day
program is at the very least eye opening
and potentially life changing. I was
lucky enough to attend last years
conference but had no idea what to
expect going into it. I was not used to
thinking of myself as a bona de
writer. I was nervous about sharing
my work and not tting in. It turns out
I had nothing to worry about
e campus was incredible. Named
after the distinctive bread loaf shaped
hill it occupies, the grounds are popu-
lated by equally distinctive yellow-
sided, green-roofed buildings.
Among these is the Bread Loaf Inn,
a haunt of many of literatures greats ,
source: facebook
and he rest of the group. One persons
comment about a certain word choice often
generated a discussion about all the conno-
tations of each word and how it could
change the meaning of the piece. Professor
Lindholm always took a side in these
debates but insisted his opinion was not the
nal word.
I was constantly astounded by the work of
my peers. Whether it was during a work-
shop, dorm reading, or open mic session, the
room always seemed to be gilded with pure
talent. I had never had even the slightest
desire to go to a poetry slam but it is incred-
ible what a new meaning the words take on
when their author is standing before you
pumping life into them. I was inspired to
step out of my nonction comfort zone and
try my hand at a poetry workshop the next
day. I was even more shocked to nd that I
was proud of what I had created during that
half hour sessiona saga about my
tormented relationship with my allergy-
inducing cat. It turns out not all poets take
themselves too seriously.
Although the application process for this
year is well underway (ve sophomores and
juniors have been selected to send a sample
of their writing to NEYWC and two will be
accepted to attend the conference), I encour-
age any current freshmen and sophomores
to consider applying next year. If you love to
write and read, or just appreciate meeting
cool people, you will have a fantastic time at
Bread Loaf. In just four short days I made
some great friends who I am still in touch
with. One goes to boarding school in
Connecticut; another lives above the famous
Stonewall Inn in New York City. All of
them had fascinating stories and big dreams.
As far as I am concerned, there is nothing
more inspiring than a little dose of
the-world-is-a-big-place. To all future
attendees, I am so excited for you! I hope
you nd this experience as rewarding as I
did!