This past winter Western Wayne FBLA students participated in the Regional Leadership Conference for the state of Pennsylvania in a virtual format.  The students performed very well, and two Western Wayne students were elected as Region 22 FBLA Officers for the 2021-2022 school year.  Junior Luciano Azzato will serve as secretary for the region and Junior Morgan Coccodrilli will serve as president for the region next year.  At present, Lou serves as the region treasurer, and Morgan serves as the region secretary.

Lou said that he has been making the most of this unique year in education and FBLA.  He explained how he has had the opportunity to meet virtually with other region office holders.  Lou also enjoyed his experience in the virtual Regional Leadership Conference.  He discussed how he participated in the Business Calculations event and that he is preparing to participate in the State Leadership Conference for this same event during March.

As of right now, Lou is interested in the business field for a possible future career.  He really enjoys math in general.  He discussed what FBLA has taught him over the years.

“It’s taught me a lot of important skills that I have not learned in my regular classes,” Lou explained.  “I learned about interest and finance, and this has helped me to use my money the right way. Also, I have learned leadership skills such as responsibility, in taking care of others, and using my communication skills in a good positive way to get things done.” 

Lou aspires to attend a four-year university after graduation and is interested in Temple University, York University, and Penn State University.

Junior Morgan Coccodrilli is also glad to have the chance to participate in FBLA this year.  He explained how he helped to organize a meeting on a regional level by securing a speaker from the Woodloch Pines Resort to meet with the regional officers virtually.  Matt Kiesendahl of Woodloch spoke to the students.

“We learned how Woodloch has handled their business during the pandemic,” Morgan explained.  “We learned that it is important to cater to the people and to make sure your customers are your main priority. We also learned about the importance of caring for employees and adhering to CDC guidelines.”

In addition, Morgan explained how he really liked his experience in the Impromptu Speaking event at the Regional Leadership Conference.  He said that students in the event were given a prompt and ten minutes to prepare to speak on it.  The prompt was about how being in FBLA is like being a superhero.

“I discussed how being in FBLA is like being a part of The Avengers,” Morgan explained.  “You are a part of a team, and you help others.”

Morgan placed first in the Impromptu Speaking event.  He aspires to attend Penn State University and major in either engineering or premed.  He is also thinking about doing an ROTC program. 

“FBLA has taught me that a good leader understands when working with others not everyone will always agree.  You need to be able to find common ground to have success when working in a group,” Morgan said.

The following Western Wayne students placed in the FBLA Regional Leadership Conference.  In the Accounting II event: Lacey Fallon, first place; Alex Hineline, second place.

 In the Banking & Financial Systems event: Delaney Valinski, first place.  In the Business Calculations event: Luciano Azzato, third place.  In the Business Communication event: Hannah Elbert, fourth place.  In the Business Ethics event: Brett Schane and Caden Slifko, first place.  In the Business Ethics event: Adeladie Treibley, third place.

 In the Economics event, Haley Estus, fourth place.  In the Entrepreneurship event, Anya Rusnak and Sydney Hutchinson, fourth place.  In the Hospitality & Event Management Event:  Morgan Heenan, Sarah Collins, Alexandra Butler, first place.  In the Impromptu Speaking event:  Morgan Coccodrilli, first place.

 In the Introduction to Business event:  Lucas Putman, second place.  In the Introduction to Business Presentation event:  Alaina Maiocco and Ella Pavolvich, first place.  In the Introduction to Business Procedures event:  Brenna McGlone, second place; and Mackenzie Kennedy, fourth place.

 In the Introduction to Event Planning event:  Eleanor Black, fifth place.  In the Introduction to FBLA event:  Emily Romanowski, first place; Rhayni Carroll, second place; Taylor Maiocco, fourth place.  In the Introduction to Financial Math event:   Allie Pauler, third place; Weston Nugent, fifth place.  In the Introduction to Parliamentary Procedure event:  Skylar Long, first place; Alex Chapman, second place; Jenna Kwiatkowski, third place.

 In the Introduction to Public Speaking event:  Adrian Agnello, second place.  In the Management Decision Making event:  Rachel Tuman, first place.  In the Marketing event:  Aly McCarthy and Emilie McAllister, second place.  In the Parliamentary Procedure event:  Leonard Maiocco, Kaeli Romanowski, Lena Piccolino, Gabby Tetreault, and Rachel Hoch, first place. In the Personal Finance event: Thomas Gogolski, fifth place.

 In the Public Speaking event:  Kelton Slifko, second place; Lily Visceglia, third place.  In the Sports & Entertainment Management event:  Jake Kopcza, Alex Iovacchini, and Ashton Fitzsimmons, third place; and Caleb Hoch and Matthew Henneforth, fourth place.  In the Word Processing event:  Laynee Nugent, second place.

 In the Public Service Announcement event:  Julie Bryan, Cyrah Biehler, and Dustin Ferraro, all are Top 10 State Qualifiers.

Western Wayne Chorus students attended the virtual PMEA District 9 Chorus Festival. 

Rebecca Boots, Rhonda Fenkner, Bridgette Flannery, and Joanna Regalbuto had a successful and fun musical experience.

Senior Rhonda Fenkner and junior Joanna Regalbuto placed in their auditions and are now eligible to audition for the PMEA All State Chorus Festival which will also take place virtually in March.

            Rhonda and Joanna explained how even though their experience with district chorus was very different this year that it was also extremely enjoyable and rewarding.

            The students sent in their auditions virtually. Then for the festival they were able to practice with students from other districts and a guest conductor on Zoom.  The students worked to record their songs and editors compiled the songs together into finished pieces.

            “I really liked how one of our instructors did improv vocal exercises with us,” Joanna explained.  “He would have us hit a sour note and then fix it.”

            Rhonda explained after having done music festivals for years in-person that this year’s festival still had many of the great qualities that ones in the past have had for her as a musician.

            “I learned that it’s possible online to have a music festival experience,” Rhonda, who will attend Marywood University next year and study music therapy, explained.  “People were talking in the chat box and practicing together on the call.  All of us had a really good time.  We were all boosting each other’s confidence throughout the process.  It was very challenging and rewarding to sing out loud in front of about 90 of my peers on a Zoom call.”

            Rhonda and Joanna look forward to auditioning for the PMEA All-State Chorus Festival which will also take place virtually in March.  From left:  Joanna Regalbuto and Rhonda Fenkner.

            Western Wayne FCCLA students wrote letters to residents at the Julia Ribaudo Extended Care Center for Valentine’s Day.  The students were paired with a resident earlier this school year, and, for their first correspondence, the club decided to send their letter with mugs and sweet treats for their new pen pals.

            FCCLA Vice President Amelia Bosshard explained how she introduced herself in the letter and talked about how much she loves to read since her new pen pal also enjoys this activity.

            “I like knowing that they will get a smile from what we have sent,” Amelia explained.  

            FCCLA President Caitlyn Burdick also tried to make a personal connection with her resident through her letter.

            “My pen pal is a woman who likes music, so I told her about how I used to play ‘Sweet Caroline’ in the Western Wayne Marching Band,” Caitlyn explained.

            Both Amelia and Caitlyn plan to work with children in their future careers.  Amelia aspires to be an elementary school teacher.

            “A lot of what we do in the club is helping others, and I think in education I will be teaching kids compassion and teamwork,” Amelia explained.

            Caitlyn will study early childhood education and psychology after graduation.

            “As president of the club, I have worked to plan many events.  This will relate to working in a classroom because I will have to plan lessons, activities, and projects.”

            FCCLA plans to send more correspondence to the nursing home residents as the year continues.

FCCLA has coordinated with the Wayne and Pike County Victim’s Intervention Program to make it known that February is “Dating Violence Prevention Month.”  Students have placed bright orange flyers and ribbons in the hallway with flyers and important information for anyone who may be seeking help or experiencing an abusive relationship. Students have the opportunity to take an awareness quiz for a chance to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card.

FCCLA Director of Fundraising Paige Lee, sophomore, explained that her time learning about and promoting dating violence prevention has been a rewarding experience.

“I hope that students at our school realize that this issue should be taken seriously,” Paige, who also participates in indoor track and softball, said.  “I want them to know how important it is to contact someone for help if it is needed.”

FCCLA President Caitlyn Burdick, senior, agrees.

“I hope that my classmates realize that they can get out of a bad situation. There is always someone there to help them,” Caitlyn explained.

Did you know that one out of three high school students across the country experience an abusive relationship before they graduate? If you need help, reach out to an Advocate today! Call 570-253-4401 or text 570-798 -4VIP (4847).  Chat : vipempowers.or/chat

Western Wayne High School has two student semi-finalists in a statewide Suicide Prevention contest run by Prevent Suicide PA.

            Please vote for DonVito Borrelli, sophomore, who submitted Poster B and Sydney Hutchinson, senior, who submitted Audio File C.

            The 2021 PSA contest page can be accessed at http://psa.preventsuicidepa.org/2021-2/. Click on the thumbs up under each entry to vote for that entry.

            Both Western Wayne students take pride in their work and hope that it makes a difference for others.

            DonVito’s poster reads “Your Life Matters. You are Not Alone. There is always hope.” 

            He has incorporated three cartoon-like figures on the poster.  He explained that he tried to make the design pleasing to the eye.  DonVito has enjoyed drawing in this style for several years.

            “Cartoons inspired me to get involved in making art in the first place,” DonVito explained. “I watched a lot of cartoons as a kid, and I was always interested in how they were made. I drew a lot when I was little, and I just kept doing it and it developed into an active hobby.”

 He explained the most challenging part about making this particular contest poster for the statewide Suicide Prevention contest run by Prevent Suicide PA.

 “The most challenging part was probably the text on the bottom. I didn’t want to put something that was incredibly common, but I also didn’t want to put something that was more obscure, so I tried to find a good middle point.  I hope people see that there are still people there for them. No matter how alone they feel, there is still someone there to help them, even if it seems like there isn’t.”

            DonVito was happy to use this contest as a way to express himself through his artwork. 

     “I love creating art because I want to make people feel something. I specifically enjoy  animation. I want to entertain people, and I want to leave a lasting impression on them with the things I make. I want to make people be able to go, ‘Hey, I enjoy this and I’m going remember this for years to come,’ ” he explained.

      DonVito aspires to go to a community college and then do freelance animation and graphic design work or other art-related projects.

            Fellow Western Wayne semifinalist Sydney Hutchinson also aspires to pursue a liberal arts related field after graduation.  She plans to pursue communication journalism in college.

             For her entry in the contest, she created a 30 second audio file about suicide prevention awareness. She explained that the most challenging part was making her submission fit the time requirement.

            “It took many tries to get it right,” she explained. “I hope that people get from my audio file submission to know that they can always reach out for help if they need it.  Someone is always there for you.”

            When listening to her submission, pay attention to the sound affects she added for typing, emailing, etc. She really enjoyed creating this project, and it made her feel even more confident about her choice to pursue a career in possibly broadcast journalism.  She has committed to Penn State Main Campus in the fall.

            “I love to write especially when it is about something I enjoy,” Sydney explained.  “I have learned a lot in my Western Wayne classes to help prepare me for my career especially about how to work with people and how to get along with them.”

            Sydney is involved in many activities at Western Wayne which include:  cross country where she serves as captain, indoor track, outdoor track, NHS, FBLA, yearbook, and student council.

            The Western Wayne School District encourages the public to vote online for these two talented students in the Suicide Prevention Contest.

The public voting is open from now until Friday, February 26th. One vote per person, per contest, per day. Voting is open to anyone and can be shared widely. Contest winners will be announced in early March, and winners will be honored in the spring.

The 2021 PSA contest page can be accessed at http://psa.preventsuicidepa.org/2021-2/. Click on the thumbs up under each entry to vote for that entry.

Sydney hopes that after the public views her submission and the others on the website that they feel hopeful.

“I want people to know that they are not alone.  There is always someone that is there even if you don’t think there is.”

Pictured is DonVito’s poster entry.

Western Wayne Senior Tyler Peet has always had a love of cars.  He has been involved in competition racing since he was seven years old.  Members of his family have been involved in racing and this sparked Tyler’s interest in the sport.

            This past race season, in October of 2020, Tyler won a race at the Big Diamond Speedway in Pottsville and received a $1,500 dollar prize.  The Big Diamond Speedway track is one that races weekly once the season starts. To partake in the race, participants arrive, pay a fee to participate, and then race.

             “An event like this is very wild, hard, and stressful.  The race format would be 7 p.m. warm-up laps for all cars, then there are heat races which is one of your qualifying races.  This is a short 8 or 10 lap race with about 10 cars in the field (depending on how many cars come to race).  In a heat race, your goal is to finish as close to the front of the field as possible because only a certain amount of cars will make the A-main.  The cars that don’t qualify through the heat race will go to a last chance qualifier which could have anywhere from a six car field to a twenty car field.  This race will be around fifteen laps long and less cars will advance to the A- main.  The people that qualify for the A-main will race with the main goal being to win,” Tyler explained.  ““In this race, I started in fifth and I was able to pass the four cars in front of me to take the lead and eventually take the race win.”

Since Tyler has been involved in car racing since he was very young, he has had a lot of training experience by racing as much as he possibly can during each season.  He also enjoys his auto shop classes at Western Wayne and considers himself an all-around repair man.

            “A big thing in the racing world is not giving up,” Tyler said.  “This is a big lesson because in just a second your entire night can change.”

            Being a part of the racing scene isn’t something that a lot of high school students commonly do.

“I would say being a high school student and racing is not very common,” Tyler, who also plays baseball for Western Wayne, said.  “However, I know a good amount of people that are my age that race.”

There are some challenges that racers must overcome which Tyler discussed.

“I would say the most challenging thing is qualifying for the race just because of how many cars that show up,” he explained.  “For example, I was at a race, at the end of the year, where about 90 cars came and only 30 made the main event.”

Tyler greatly enjoys his experiences with racing and hopes to continue racing after high school.

“My favorite part about racing would have to be winning races,” he said.  “After high school, I still plan on racing.  My goal is to move up the ranks and eventually turn it into my full-time job. Throughout the years, I have met a ton of people.  I have not only had the opportunity to be around and talk to some of the biggest names in racing, but I have been able to also become friends and work with some of them.”