Talent show is a great vacation send-off 

 Shakespeare's The Tempest gains strength

FROM STAFF REPORTS
     Bonny Eagle High School's Drama Club, staged a fine, well-lit enactment of William Shakespeare's classic, The Tempest, last Friday and Saturday at BEHS. The Tempest was Shakespeare's last play and many believe it presents his farewell to the Globe Theatre and to his career as a playwright and maker of magic. There are a number of murder plots, much magic and suspense, and some romance in the play. The cast, made up mostly of underclassmen, gained confidence over the course of the three performances.
      Preceding the play, theater goers could take part in an Elizabethan dinner put on the BE Swim Team.  The menu included Prospero's Cider Pot Roast, Falstaff's Favorite Mashed Potatoes, Cleopatra's Carrots, and  a selection of puddings and pies.

Comic book legend lives on
​in super heroes he created

Picturethis is aiden isn't he cute
BY LIZ ST. ARNAUD
While it is true to say, “not all heroes wear capes,” we can certainly say that Stan Lee wore them all. As the father of Marvel Comics and the creator of many superheroes we know and love, he breathed life into a universe that we all never knew we needed. Even though he died on Nov. 12, 2018 at the age of 95, the legacy he left will never be forgotten.
On Dec. 28, 1922 Stanley Lieber was born, and his story began. His parents, Jack and Celia Lieber, were Jewish immigrants from Romania. They lived in New York City, and there, Stanley Martin Lieber began his legacy.
He graduated from high school at just 16, and got a job at Timely Comics soon after. He started out filling inkwells and erasing the stray pencil marks of other writers, In 1942 he was promoted to editor. In that time he had begun to write comic-book scripts for Timely under the pen name,  Stan Lee. He eventually changed his name legally to Stan Lee.
With every great name comes a great catchphrase. In the '60s Stan Lee wrote a monthly column in Marvel's Bullpen Bulletins newsletter. At the end of every column was the catchphrase, "Excelsior!"
As the world of Marvel evolved, Stan Lee created many characters and worlds within worlds. Many of the characters developed into teams such as the Fantastic Four, the Avengers and the X Men, teams that you may recognize from recent movies and TV shows.
The Fantastic Four is described as the first Marvel family. Lee created this group with artist Jack Kirby in 1961. According to their back story, a group of people were exposed to cosmic rays during a scientific mission to outer space, and after, they gained superhero abilities. They didn’t fall under the stereotype as normal superheros. They often had problems we humans can relate to. Even though this “family” is a bit dysfunctional at times, they all are very close.
Ever been bitten by a radioactive spider? Well Peter Parker, an avid science admirer, was. But be careful, not everyone develops arachnid powers. Spiderman was created just a year later in 1962 with the help of artist Steve Ditko. The idea behind Spiderman was to create a hero that people could find relatable.
Don’t you just hate it when you are exposed to gamma rays during the detonation of an experimental bomb and turn into a green monster that yells “Hulk smash!” ? Maybe an even more relatable character created was the Hulk/Bruce Banner. Bruce Banner was a physically weak, but strong-minded scientist. Just be careful you don’t put him under emotional stress, or compare him to the Jolly Green Giant; you might be surprised when a much more aggressive green giant  smashes the can of green beans on your head.
Red hair counts as being a mutant right? So that basically means it counts as having the X gene? Being a Mutant in this case is referring to the subspecies of humans who were born with superhuman abilities thanks to the X Gene. Originally, there were the X Men who are led by Charles Xavier (also known as Professor X). Lee created them in 1963 with the help of Jack Kirby.
Of course there is more to Stan Lee than just his magnificent comic book creations. He served in the Army  in 1942 in the training film division. He wrote training films, film scripts, posters, and instructional manuals. Working with him was (not one fish, or even two fish, maybe a blue fish), but Dr. Seuss!, aka Theodor Seuss Geisel.
Lee married Joan Lee and together they had two daughters, Joan Celia ( JC ) and Jan Lee. He wrote an autobigraphy “Excelsior! The Amazing Life of Stan Lee” and he even had his own show, Stan Lee’s Superhumans.
No super-hero fan will ever forget the day our hero passed ( darn you Thanos! ). Stan Lee will forever be an inspiration to many, and a father of all the stories we hold close to our hearts. It is now up to us to keep this planet entertained with imagination and creativity. Excelsior!

​

Cross Country team wins championship 

PictureMembers of the girls cross-country team pose with their trophy after the Festival of Champions in early October. Left to right, Coach Ryan Dyer, Coach TJ Hesler, Han- nah Stevens, Emma Pendelton, Delaney Hesler, Emma Abbott, Kayla Raymond, Ami Beaumier, Abigail Nelson, and Coach Michael Burleson. Photo courtesy of Cory Abbott
FROM STAFF REPORTS
   The BEHS girls cross country team had five runners in the top 29 to run away from Falmouth and Camden Hills by 43 points in the Class A cross country state championships Oct. 27. Freshman Delaney Hesler was fourth in 19:02, and senior Ami Beaumier was fifth in 19:05. Kayla Raymond at 13th, Hannah Stevens at 21st and Emma Abbott at 29th rounded out the scoring.
“A full team performance,” Coach Mike Burleson told the Portland Press Herald. “Our top five had their best race of the year.”
This was the Lady Scots third title in four years. The girls also came away with a first place finish at the 17th annual Festival of Champions in Belfast in early October.
   The team was competing against 58 teams from Maine and nearby states. Their overall score was a 96, 34 points better than the second place team. In that meet, senior Ami Beaumier came in third out of 610 runners with a time of 18:45.94. Freshman Delaney Hesler was 10th with a time of 19:15.15. Senior Kayla Raymond was 25th with a time of 20:01.80. In all, the team had an amazing seven girls in the top 10 percent of runners (the top 60). Next stop for the Scots is the New England championships next weekend.
Picture
Freshman Delaney Hesler is without peer among freshmen runners in the state.
Picture
Senior Ami Beaumier will be missed next year.

Life with an exchange student  is challenging and rewarding

PictureZoe Peters, on the right, has had fun sharing experiences this fall with exchange student Ilenia De Lucia, who is from Verona, Italy.
Editor’s note: Junior Zoe Peters is one of the BEHS students hosting an exchange student this fall. She shared her experience so far with Eagle Times editor Athen Hollis. 
     I wanted to host an exchange student because I love languages and learning about different cultures. I thought it would be a great experience to become close to someone from another country to be able to experience those things.
    Many people read through application after application looking for someone whom they feel is a good fit for their family. However, the way my family and I chose to host a long-term student was very different. We got involved with Greenheart Exchange through its two- week program that brought a group of students from France to BEHS last spring. The local coordinator, Judy Farwell, who is in charge of all Greenheart host programs in this area, came to my house to interview my family about hosting one of these students.
     At some point, she began talking about long-term hosting, and even though my parents were not fans of the idea, she wanted to show us what a student bio looked like anyway. She skimmed through the names and quickly chose a girl that she had been trying to place for a while. My mom and I started reading all about her and were shocked at how similar she and I were. Our grades, interests, hobbies, and favorite subjects in school were all exactly the same. My mom looked at me and said, "How would you like to host an exchange student?" 
    Once we discussed it with my dad and told Judy our final decision, the process went quickly. There was a lot of paperwork, along with back- ground checks of the adults in the house, a home visit for Judy to see where Ilenia (my exchange student) would be sleeping and to take pictures of the house for Ilenia. We had to write a host family letter, which is a letter from the host family to their student so they can generally get to know the family. Host students write one into their applications too, before their families choose them. 
    Living with an exchange student has definitely been an interesting experience so far. I grew up as an only child, so I really like living with someone who’s my age; in some ways it’s like having a sister.  But there’s definitely a challenging side to it too. It’s a challenge learning to live with someone new, especially because of the different cultural norms. Sometimes the language barrier can get in the way as well. Trying to communicate expectations, classes, or again, cultural norms can be difficult, but it’s nothing that can’t be solved.
    Nevertheless, the most fun part is having a best friend that lives with me. It’s like having a year-long sleepover. I look forward to continuing to build our friendship. It’s so much fun getting to travel with Ilenia, and learning all about her culture. 
    To anyone thinking of hosting an exchange student, I suggest doing it! Take your time with choosing the right student. Find someone whose interests match up well with your family’s. 
     Remember to contact them long before they arrive, so you can get to know them, and make them feel like they’re a part of your family! 

Congratulations to the 2018 Bonny Eagle Homecoming court!

Picture
The 2018 Homecoming court poses for a picture during the dance. Back row from left to right, Zackary Allocca, Deytric Enking, Will Hendrix, Griffin Madore, and Will Whyte. Front row from left to right, Ashely Conners, Jazmyne Mejias, Allie Carpine, Sydney Gillingham, and Keelin Sweeney. Will Hendrix was crowned Homecoming King and Allie Carpine was crowned Homecoming queen. Photo by Diane York.

Girls soccer and field hockey made playoff runs this fall

     Both the girls field hockey team, under new coach Vonde Saunders, and the girls soccer team made it to the playoffs this fall. The field hockey team was eliminated in the first round by Gorham in a hard- fought, 1-0 game. The girls soccer team ended its season 9-4-2, with a loss to Windham in the state quarterfinals.

"Juuls Are For Tools"
at Bonny Eagle 

PicturePhoto from the vape.guide
BY LEA PILLSBURY   
        Puffs of sweet-smelling smoke drift up from bathroom stalls. One student says, “Look, I just ghosted it.” The words: “You must have rookie lungs,” followed by coughs, can usually give away what students are up to. Juuling on school grounds is the newest trend among teens, and Bonny Eagle High School is no exception.
       Vice Principal Mr. Jason Tarr explains, “It is a huge issue in our school. I have had to spend two days of my week every week for the past two months on punishments for Juuls and vapes, and I have much better things to do than that.”
      

EDITORIAL
The death of the thinking student

BY ABIGAIL KOVACS 
​     I have spent over a decade in the public school system and am just now coming to the realization that I have been complicit in a massive fraud. While I may appear accomplished in the eyes of college admissions officers, it has not been in the way one might expect. Unfortunately, 10 years of traditional schooling and straight A’s has not made me any more intelligent. Despite what my grades may tell you, I am by no means smarter than any of my peers; I am, perhaps, simply the best at following instructions. ​

Students get it wrong this time

FROM STAFF REPORTS
    It used to be true that the way Bonny Eagle High School students voted in the state's Mock Election was a good predictor of how actual voters would vote in the November election. But this year, BEHS students -- along with students across the state ---- got two big items on the Mock Election ballot wrong.
     BEHS students overwhelmingly voted for Republican Shawn Moody to win the governorship over Democrat Janet Mills by a 447-109 margin. As most know by now, Mills became Maine's first female governor with 51% of the vote to Moody's 43%.
     BE students also predicted that Question #1, which asked voters if they wanted to fund home health care by taxing people with incomes over $125,000, would pass. The measure was resoundingly defeated by Maine voters.
     Students did match the real election in the races for U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives where Sen. Angus King and Rep. Chellie Pingree were re-elected.
   

 From BEHS to News Center 6

Picture
Screen shot by Brenna Finn
BY BRENNA FINN    
   ​ Have you watched Channel 6 News lately? If so, you might have seen reporter and 2010 Bonny Eagle graduate Samantha York on your television screen. Samantha joined News Center Maine during the summer of 2014 soon after graduating from the University of Southern Maine with a major in Media Studies and Communications.
    Samantha says she always loved writing in school. Her English teachers, Mrs. Kathy Field and Mr. Dan Murphy, pushed her to pursue a career in journalism. To gain experience, Samantha took over the school’s morning announcements for the athletic director and narrated school and library introduction videos, which helped her learn the functions of a camera. She also started "BE in the Spotlight," a radio show that talked about what was going on at BEHS. 
  

Bonny Eagle gets to state finals with one-act play, Humbletown

PictureDara Khin from a scene in Humbletown.. For more photos, click on the words Bonny Eagle in the story headline.

BY SARAH DUROCHER AND BRIAN WAKEM
​    The BEHS drama club's journey is over, but it's likely the participants won't soon forget the 2018 statewide one-act play competition. It all started with a trip to Camden-Hills Regional High School on March 9. The students, competing with their historical satire, Humbletown: The Greatest Town On Earth, crossed their fingers as the crowd roared its approval. They were competing against three other Class A schools (schools with 500+ students): Camden Hills Regional High School, Waterville High School, and Edward Little High School. 
     Bonny Eagle's performance was on the first day of competition. While the cast and crew knew that it had been one of their best performances yet, they were informed shortly after they finished that they had exceeded the time limit by 5 seconds, and that they had been disqualified. The students, angry and disappointed, headed back to their hotel for the night.

Watching the birdie

Photos by Tabitha Burgess
FROM STAFF REPORTS
     The Class of 2020 made over $100 at its fundraising badminton tournament in late March.  Close to 22 teams, made up of students and staff members, participated in the double-elimination tourney. Though the second day of competition was postponed almost a week because of our two snow days, competitors hung in there and put on a good show. A team named 'Samolia' (Sam Connell and Mollie Ward) won the tournament.
      "We had a few bumps in the road, but those were expected," said sophomore class officer Athen Hollis. "I would say this event was successful given the obstacles we had to work around."
Wrestling team rising
PictureAlex Smith, Tyler Fitz, Brian Dupuis, Caleb Frost, Hayley Grant, Emily Welch, Alivia Stanley (Photo Courtesy of Caleb Frost).
 BY HAYDN GOULET
     While it has yet to achieve the same immense following as basketball or football, the fan base for wrestling has grown immensely this year.  Seniors Caleb Frost, Tyler Fitz, Alex Smith, and star freshman Colby Frost have all played a key role in the expansion of the wrestling fan base. As a team, they only have a 4-10 record, but each have great individual records.

Scholastic writing award winners to be honored

PictureSome of the award winners: Back row, L to R, Logan Hiltz, Michael MacFarland- Foley, Ian Jarvis, Lauren Bearor and Cassidy Grass. Front row, L to R: Michaella Tillo, Julia Morin, Kinsey Oliver, Tayler Johnson-Hartley, and Sydney Gillingham. Photo by Joanne Lannin
BY GARRETT HAWXWELL
      Fourteen BEHS students earned an award or recognition for their writing in the Scholastic Writing Contest. They will be recognized at a ceremony at Hannaford Hall, at the University of Southern Maine, Portland campus on March 16 at 6 p.m.
     Ian Jarvis was one of the winners, earning a Silver Key for his poem, Renaissance.
     “I enjoyed entering my piece in the contest and was happy to have been recognized,” said Ian.
     Two students won Gold Key awards: juniors Lauren Bearor for her short story, “Dark,” and Michael MacFarland-Foley for his poetry collection, “Outliers.”

Robotics build season begins

BY KADY MURPHY
​    ​High school students around the world have questioned for years what the future will look like. Will there be robots to do our work for us? We might have the answer to this question because of FIRST, an organization dedicated to spreading the recognition of science and technology. FIRST Robotics Competition is the subdivision of the program for high-school aged students, and it’s also the program in which our MSAD 6 robotics team, BERT 133, competes.
​    Every year, FIRST reveals the theme of the competition season. Last year’s theme was called FIRST Steamworks. This year, the competition is called FIRST Power Up and is video-game themed.
     Robotics teams from all over the world have six and a half weeks to build their robots and prepare for competitions. BERT has been brainstorming the best ways to tackle this year’s game.
​    

Chinese spoken here at BEHS

PictureMrs. Ji Wenhau during a Chinese language class at BEHS. Madison Chayer photo.
BY  MADISON CHAYER
​    Growing up in Shijiazhuang, the capital city of North China’s Hebei Province, our new Chinese language teacher, Mrs. Ji Wenhua, says that her experience in school was much different from what she is encountering at BEHS. In China, schools were much stricter and the students were forced to wear uniforms. She likes the fact that the students here are allowed to express who they are.
     Mrs. Wenhua says she was interested in working in the U.S. because the students know very little about China, and she’d love to give the students more in- formation about the culture.
“I think your country has the most advanced educational system,” adds Mrs. Wenhua.

Students with special needs learn how to cook

PictureAdam Carberry, Darren Gravenstien, and Chris Pillsbury. Photo by Lea Pillsbury.
BY LEA PILLSBURY
     On Wednesday’s the special needs students load the bus from the high school and are taken to the Jack Memorial School. Their faces light up as soon as they see Chris Pillsbury, who started the program in 201, with the hopes of teaching students in the special needs department to cook and have everyday life skills.
     The students yell “Hey Chef” and go in for personalised handshakes and hugs. One of the students, Dean, says “My favorite thing about coming here is seeing Mr. Pillsbury, don’t tell him this but I think of him as an older brother”.
    Pillsbury has always been a chef, working at places such as Fore Street and Becky’s Diner, running the Royal River Grillhouse, and previously having two restaurants of his own. 

 Unified basketball has another good year

PictureColbe Lewis (13) goes up for a shot in a 2017 Unified basketball game. The 2018 season is in full swing. For more photos, click on the words Unified Basketball in the story headline.

China trip shows similarities

PictureMrs. Napolitano takes a selfie with a group of Chinese students.
 BY ATHEN HOLLIS
     After a 10-day trip to China, Bonny Eagle High School Principal Mrs. Lori Napolitano has learned that Chinese education is more similar to America’s education than it is different, and she hopes other teachers can get this experience in future years.
     Mrs. Napolitano traveled to China in November with Mr. Benjamin Harris, the Bonny Eagle Middle School principal, and Mr. Douglas Parker, the Steep Falls Elemenary School principal, as part of the Chinese Bridge Delegation, a group sponsored by the national College Board.

Inside was so delightful at the BEHS winter talent assembly

FROM STAFF REPORTS
     As the snow came down outside, a cavalcade of voices entertained students at the annual holiday assembly on Dec. 22, hosted by Zach Klein as Santa and Nathan Carlow as the Grinch. Below, a group of select chorus members perform a vocal percussion rendition of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" during the annual holiday assembly.  Staff photos and video

Teachers give Class of 2017 a deserving send-up/send-off

A modest proposal indeed

EDITOR'S NOTE: The following video captures Eagle Times editor Ronahn Clarke's farewell to BEHS at the Senior Last Assembly June 7 at the University of Southern Maine. Ronahn was Salutatorian of the Class of 2017. He will be attending Colby College in the fall.