New school year starts with sad newsFrom Staff Reports
Our beloved, longtime English teacher, Mr. Brooks Clark died on Sept. 7 after a short illness. Faculty members who had known him for up to 30 years, seniors who'd had Mr. Clark for junior English and current juniors looking forward to studying with him this year were all stunned by his sudden and tragic passing. A celebration of his life was held on Saturday afternoon, Sept. 14 in the high school gynmasium. More than 500 members of the Bonny Eagle community, past and present filled the bleachers and chairs on the gymnasium floor. Superintendent Paul Penna opened the ceremony with his personal memories of Mr. Clark. Other speakers included current teachers Mr. Cole Phillips, Mrs. Meaghan McCrea, Mr. Dan Murphy, Mr. Skipper Geanangel, along with assistant principal Mr. Thomas Noonan. Former student Abigail Kovacs also shared her remembrances, and Lea Pillsbury sang a moving rendition of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah." The Eagle Times will be devoting two pages of student and teacher memories of Mr. Clark in its first issue this fall. |
Congratulations Class of 2019 graduates! |
Explorer Day full of activities Tomas Barazza talked to BEHS students about VIVE 18, an innovative organization that seeks to encourage teens to enjoy high school without drugs or alcohol. Staff Photo
FROM STAFF REPORTS Volunteers from inside and outside BEHS gave demonstrations, led workshops, and facilitated activities during the school day, April 9. While juniors were busy taking the SAT and seniors were off volunteering at the elementary schools (or sleeping in), Bonny Eagle's sophomores and freshmen got a chance to have some fun while learning about various pursuits and hobbies. Students rotated through several modules during the day, having chosen from such varied activities as yoga, woodworking, journaling, corn hole and badminton competitions, knitting, and cupcake decorating. They also had a chance to see firefighting, martial arts, virtual reality, and hairdressing demonstrations, led by faculty or former students. Students also listened to presentations by Jake White and Tomas Barazza of VIVE 18, a transformational drug and alcohol program for teens that provides them with strategies for throwing drug-free parties and learning to have fun without the peer pressure surrounding alcohol-driven activities. To access a video and the slideshow of Explorer Day events, click on the photo above. |
Guys and Dolls a fitting sendoffFROM STAFF REPORTS
The Bonny Eagle drama club put on its final event of the year May 9, 10 and 11 at Bonny Eagle High School. The musical, Guys and Dolls, was the perfect ending to the season and to the careers of co-cirectors Mr. Rick Osann and Ms. Mary Ellen Schaper. When they began teaming up to put on the spring musical 15 years ago, Guys and Dolls was their first show. Their decision to put on the show one more time showed the timelessness of this Broadway show, which first debuted on stage in 1950. The cast and crew delighted the audiences with stirring renditions of such musical classics as "A Bushel and a Peck," "Luck Be A Lady," and "Sit Down You're Rocking the Boat." Guys and Dolls was based on short stories by Damon Runyon and the musical was awarded a Pulitzer Prize. The award was rescinded, however, because the playwright, Frank Loesser, was being investigated by the House Un-American Activities Committee during the Red Scare era. Nonetheless, Guys and Dolls ran for 1,200 performances. Over the years there have been various revivals and some famous names have played the lead character, Nathan Detroit. Among them are Frank Sinatra, Nathan Lane, Bob Hoskins, and Robert Guilliaume. Reportedly, there is a movie revival in the works. |
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What's Inside
Click on the photos to read some of our latest stories Fantastic Beasts
Take Two 
Getting to know our exchange students
Juuls are for tools
From BE to WCSH-6
BE IDOL a big success
Putting on
"The Tempest" 
Comic book legend lives on
With spring comes Lyme Disease
Winter athletes
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Stress and social media... Are they related?
BY SARAH DUROCHER AND ELIZABETH TURNBULL
Social media is a large part of most teenagers’ lives. Many high school students check their phones for messages in the hallways between classes or scroll through Instagram before class. Researchers have been studying teen use of cell phones to see how social media affects stress and mental health, and the results are significant. Curfew leads to frustration
BY MACEY CABRAL
With the school year half over, students are still adjusting to the laptop curfew that went into effect in September. Principal Mrs. Lori Napolitano explained part of the reasoning behind the decision was that many parents had sent complaints of their children staying up too late. Though the policy stems from parents’ concerns, Principal Napolitano says, the “final decision was [mine].” Two athletes
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Runaway chicken at BEHS captured by Edith
By Macey Cabral
The Rhode Island Red can be found in most backyard flocks. Known for their hardiness, they are meant to be outside (or in a coop). So, the sight of one of these fine birds bolting down the hall by the cafeteria on a chilly Thursday morning raised some eyebrows, along with the attention of Head Custodian, Ms. Edith Ricker. Ms. Ricker divulged that she apprehended the rogue Red with ease. “I went in and grabbed my coat, threw it on top of [the chicken] to startle [her], and then I just grabbed for [her] legs,” she explained with a chuckle. Winter Assembly
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Congratulations to the 2018 Bonny Eagle Homecoming court!
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.
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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.
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EDITORIAL
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Students get it wrong this time
 Janet Mills is Maine's new governor, the first woman in the state's history to win the governorship. Wiki-commons photo
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. |
Bonny Eagle gets to state finals with one-act play, Humbletown Dara 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." |
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Wrestling team rising
 Alex 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 Some 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 beginsBY 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 Mrs. 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 Adam 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 Colbe 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 Mrs. 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.