Presbyterian Pan American School

January 25, 2015 •VOLUME 12 • ISSUE 4• KINGSVILLE, TX 78363

Eagle X-Press

Lady Eagles soccer plays in local tournament

by Scarlett SaldanaStaff Writer

Boys basketball faces loss

by Vania JimenezStaff Writer

Baseball season in full swing

Staff Writerby Miriam Jimenez

by Ana Karen DavilaStaff Writer

Students inducted into National Honor Society 4H prepares for livestock show

PPAS annual Christmas program heldby Nerina CruzStaff Writer

Senior Gina Lozano battles for the ball at a soccer tournament hosted by H.M. King High School, held at Mo Pac Field.

Photo provided by: PPAS Facebook

The National Honor Soci-ety (NHS) was established to recognize outstanding high school students. The official colors of NHS are blue and gold, and the offi-cial flower of the NHS is the yellow rose. On December 5, 2014, Presbyterian Pan American School (PPAS) inducted the new members.

The new members are Ju-niors Carlos Camarillo, Nerina Cruz, Ismael Barto-lome, Hector Garcia, Vania Jimenez, Frida Trevino, Reyna Martinez, and Keza Bizumuremyi, and Seniors Stephanie Kim, Clarisse Bucyana, Guillain Rurang-wa and Magdiel Alaniz.

“The new NHS members are really good role models for our school and we are very glad their effort has been recognized in this way,” said NHS President Monika Ruiz.

The NHS members are chosen by the NHS com-mittee which consists of the School President Dr. Doug Dalglish, School Princi-pal Ellie Perez, Librarian/Teacher Diane Garcia, Se-nior Advisor Desiree Alegria and Head of Math Depart-ment Hardy Robertson.

The students have to have a cumulative average of 85 and above and they have to be juniors or seniors.

“I am very proud of the stu-dents for putting academics as a priority while having posi-tive attitude and good char-acter and being a dependable student leader that their peers

This year, the 64th annual Kleberg-Kennedy Ju-nior Livestock show, a competition about homemak-ing and animals will be held at J.K. Northway Coli-seum. There would be many participants from the community and schools including Presbyterian Pan American School (PPAS). The lamb check-in will be the 28th, judging the 29th, and the auction is the 31st.The school is going to participate with ten partici-

pants and with ten lambs. The students are Sopho-more Mariafernanda Amaya, Sophomore Ember Ayala, Sophomore Jose Garza, Freshman Melany Gomez, Ju-nior Andrea Gonzalez, Junior Reyna Martinez, Fresh-man Dariana Sagastegui, Freshman Griselda Salgado, Senior Raisa Santos and Senior Samantha Zelaya. The students are working hard to make the lambs

look better by halter-breaking them, by exercis-ing them and teaching them how to brace. The stu-dents feed them twice a day, and exercise them once a day. Their lambs’ kind are firewood cross and medium wool, said Robin Harkey, 4H sponsor. “The students and lambs still need some

work but they are doing good,” Harkey said. Many of the students are do-

ing very well with their lambs, Harkey added. “The best part for me was to see the

kids’ progress with their confidence with their lambs the last semester,” Harkey said. Sometimes the work is hard but at the end

it is worth it and when you see your hard work pay off, it is a really good feeling, Martinez said. “It is the first time I do something like

this and I am very excited about it. I am very ner-vous, but I think that we are going to do very good in the contest,” said Melany Gomez.

could look at too,” Perez said.The nominated students

received a letter and ev-ery student who received one had to write an essay based on character, service, scholarship, and leader-ship, which are the four pil-lars that NHS is based on.

“People who want to be in NHS; maintain a high grade point average, stay disci-plined, be smart, and practice your essay writing skills,” said Senior NHS Member Manoach Bizumuremyi.

NHS members have dif-ferent responsibilities and one of them is to help other students with their aca-demics by tutoring them.

“NHS makes me feel proud of myself. I honestly did not expect to be selected to be a NHS member. Now I know that I’m doing the right thing in my classes and in my responsibilities as a student,” said Junior Frida Trevino, new NHS member.

On January 12th, the Presbyterian Pan American School (PPAS) baseball sea-son started with train-ings and practice with Coach Hardy Robertson. Robert-son said the boys are working hard to im-prove and have good results in their first game that they have scheduled on Feb-ruary 24 in Rivera. Robertson said he

feels proud of the boys and he hopes this sea-son to be a good one. He feels excited

to see the new kids who will be on the team this year and

watch them do their best and improve,” Robertson said.Senior Magdiel Al-

aniz said baseball is his favorite sport and he has been waiting for the season to start since last semester.

He also said that there is a lot of new peo-ple and a lot of tal-ent but he thinks that they can improve by working hard. Alaniz added that Robert-son is a good coach.“He is an amazing

coach and friend and I know that he is go-ing to take us to vic-tory,” Alaniz said. Junior Diego Cantu

said he is excited for baseball season be-cause it is his favorite sport and he hopes to win a lot of games. Cantu said they are good as a team and are improving as well.

On January 9, 2015, Presbyte-rian Pan Ameri-can School (PPAS) Boys’ Basketball played against Corpus Christi Wings School at home and lost, 52-45. “Even though

they practiced one day, they did well,” said Head Coach Matthew Mayorga.The leader scor-

er was Chang Hee, scoring 17 points.I’m proud to be on this

team. Also I’m thank-

ful with my team to help me to improve myself, Hee said.Also, on January 6,

2015, the boys played against Freer at home and lost, 50-29. “We are im-

proving every game and I am proud of how far we have come,” said Coach Vince M o n t g o m e r y.The expectation

for Mayorga is to get better on offense, he said.

They are doing good, everybody is improving every day. If they keep doing good, they will be the best team, said Manager Ariel Lima.

On January 9, 2015 the PPAS Soccer Girls’ participated in a tour-nament hosted by the H.M. King Lady Brah-mas at Mo Pac Field. First, they played against

H.M. Kingsville at 10 a.m., losing 2-0, even with the rain and the cold weather; the team did their best and gave all on the field. “Although our opponents

played dirty, we never lose our integrity,” said Sopho-more Fabiola SaldanaThen at 2 p.m., they

played Alice. PPAS Girls’ were losing by one goal when Senior Mariana Gomez scored a goal and then the game finished. The final score was

1-1, ending in a tie.

“Even though we had difficult matches, Coach [Reili] Cantu was al-ways there giving us support and I appreci-ate that,” said Fresh-man Saida Castrellon.Finally at 4 p.m., PPAS

Girls’ Soccer played against Corpus Christi King High School J.V. win-ning by one goal, thanks to a penalty by Sopho-more Alexa Contreras.”The team gave their best

in the field thanks to Coach [Reili] Cantu’s training techniques,” said Sopho-more Rocio Paredes.The matches in Satur-

day got cancelled because of the high temperatures of cold weather and rain.“The weather affected

all the teams. I believe considering the condi-tions, everyone played in-credibly well. We need to improve on communica-tion as well as spreading out the game on the field. The field conditions kept deteriorating throughout the day, but the girls nev-er gave up on plays. The second day of the tourna-ment was cancelled due to field conditions and weather. Coming out of the weekend with 1-1-1 is not bad after Christ-mas break. We will keep on working hard on the knowledge of the game as well as the skills and build on the lessons learned from the weekend,” said Coach Reili Cantu.

PPAS Students gathered in the Chapel for a special Christmas service.

Members of the boys baseball team have started

practicing for the first game.

Photo provided by: PPAS Facebook

The boys faced Corpus Christi Wings at home on

Jan. 9

Photo provided by: PPAS Facebook

On December 6, 2014, stu-dents from Presbyterian Pan American School (PPAS) celebrated Christmas. The annual Christmas program took place at The Morris Chapel and started with the choir singing Christmas songs, including a perfor-mance by the praise band and reading Bible verses. The solo performance was

by seniors Ana Vazquez and Grace Han. Playing the in-struments was Senior Kev-in Ishimwe and Sophomore Juan Vazquez. The next solo was by a Junior Martha Saenz singing “Holy Holy.” “At first, it was hard step-

ping up and singing, but later on, I understood that

I was singing for God and thank him for the opportuni-ty to perform,” Saenz said. After the service, stu-

dents, faculty and staff had a Christmas dinner ban-quet and a gift exchange, where for many years now,

the entire student body participates in the “Se-cret Santa” gift exchange. “This Christmas year was

more organized than the last year and the food was great. I was excited because

the semester would end,” said Senior Monika Ruiz. Vasquez said that ex-

changing gifts is not to buy him or her an expen-sive gift but giving them a nice gift that comes from the heart. After the christ-mas dinner, every student received their present and had the opportunity to take pictures with Santa Claus, Charles James Lillie.“Dress up as Santa Claus

and wishing every stu-dent a good Christmas, it was a good experi-ence that I always will remember,” Lillie said. The night concluded with a

Christmas dance at the Stu-dent Union Building (SUB).

by Hector GarciaStaff Writer

Photo by: Nerina Cruz

Photo provided by: PPAS FacebookStudents were inducted into the John A. Mackay chapter

of National Honor Society at PPAS. The induction cer-emony was held on Dec. 5. Photo by: Hector Garcia

Sophomore Ember Ayala working with her lamb to get it ready for the livestock show.

FEATURES & OPINION

CMC Activity promotes community bonding

by Isaac Del RioStaff Writer

Eagles X-Press Staff: Adviser, Desiree Alegria. Ismael Bartolome, Nerina Cruiz, Ana Karen Davila, Isaac Del Rio, Hector Garcia, Juan Hernandez, Kevin Ishimwe, Miriam Jimenez, Vania Jimenez, Eric Kazerwa, Alain Kwizera, Sunghoon Kwon, Ana Lopez, Scarlett Saldana.

by Alain KwizeraStaff Writer

New Year’s celebrations differ throughout the worldby Ismael BartolomeStaff Writer

by Ana LopezStaff Writer

by Juan HernandezStaff Writer

Students are welcomed back with dance

by: Sung KwonStaff Writer

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Recognizing Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Taken 3 brings adrenaline to the audience

Senior Raquel Cahuich

Photo by: Sung Kwon

The year 2015 has begun and with this, the beginning of a new year. This is a time to enjoy with your family and give thanks to God for another year of life. Senior Patrick Sh-

ema from Rwanda said that this epoch of the year should be the greatest party we should celebrate in the whole year. One of the purposes

that we celebrate the New Year is the be-

ginning of new goals that we set for our lives and new wishes during the year, said sophomore Abiel Cardenas from Mexi-co. Cardenas celebrat-ed the New Year with his family and friends. They had fireworks, “discada” as din-ner plate and they all waited until midnight to hug each other and enjoy the moment. “This is some kind

of the beginning of a new way of life,” Cardenas said.Not all the people cel-

Raquel Cahuich, an 18 year old senior, has been chosen as the student of the month for January at Presbyterian Pan American School. Cahuich is from

Campeche, Mexico. She was born on Sep-tember 4, 1996. Cahu-ich also sings. She is in Campus Ministry Council and a member of the National Honor Society but also plays basketball. “I know I am not the best stu-dent, but I try to work hard and give all I have,”Cahuich said.Cahuich is also a

dual credit student and she attends Coast-

al Bend College for English, Econom-ics and Government. “I am happy that I am

attending college right now because it is giv-ing me an advantage of the classes, ”she said .Her passion is read-

ing because reading inspires her in every-thing she does. She sees PPAS as one of the blessings that God

gave her in her life because it is the place where she learned most of the valu-able things that will help her in her life. “I am thankful to

be chosen as the stu-dent of the month be-cause I never thought I would be cho-sen,” Cahuich said. She describes herself

as shy but friendly. Cahuich wants to at-

tend a college in Mex-ico after she graduates because she wants to be close to her home.“The advice I can

give to my under-class men is to fol-low your dreams and never give up,” Cahuich said.

Presbyterian Pan American School (PPAS) students celebrated the 2015 semester with a wel-come back dance on January 9, 2015, held at the Student Union Building (SUB) on campus. “We had fun, we

danced, we talked with friends, basi-cally we rebounded with our friends after a long Christ-mas break,” said Se-nior Luis GonzalezThe dance was

organized by the student coun-cil members. The freshman class was in charge of the concession stand.“It was very nice

to see everyone to-gether again I hope

this will be a good year for every-one,” said Student Council President Emilio Vasquez.PPAS students en-

joyed the dance with different kinds of music like electron-ic, Mexican and pop.A concession

stand with snacks was available for students to pur-chase food and drinks as well.“Even though it

was raining, every-one was dancing. I enjoyed being with all my friends. It was a good time,” said Sophomore Henri-ette Mbawmbaw.

The Campus Min-istry Council (CMC) at Presbyterian Pan American School (PPAS) hosted a game night at the girl’s center on January 16, 2015.“To make this activity

enjoyable for the stu-dents we played dif-ferent games like Uno, Jenga, Dominoes, and many other board games,” said Monika Ruiz, CMC Member. Ana Karen Vazquez,

President of CMC, said they wanted to have community bonding among the students to allow them to be more comfortable with each other and

live like Christians.“This is our purpose

that we have for this ac-tivity,” Vazquez said. Sophomore Ariel

Lima, CMC Member and Supervisor of the Activity, said that he

had a lot of fun be-cause it was one of the special occasions where you can get along with all of the students on campus. “My job was to watch

them while they are

playing games but also to teach them how to play them,” Lima said.Before all the stu-

dents were dismissed for the evening, Se-nior Stephanie Kim, said it was a great opportunity to get to know new people and spend time with them through ‘simple’ games. “The most fun part I enjoyed was when we played Uno and taped player’s face every time they spoke foreign. It was an evil game to play but it was with good motives,” she said.

Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) brings an-other action movie and adrenaline to the big screen in Taken 3. Oliver Magato di-rected this film and it was released in theaters on January 9, 2015. We saw fa-miliar faces in this movie, but the movie introduced a few new characters as well.According to www.

c o m i n g s o o n . n e t , Mills, an ex-govern-ment operative, is one of the actors that we see again because he also starred in Taken 1 and Taken 2, when

Students enjoy time at the Welcome Back Dance, held after the first week of school.

According to www.thekingcenter.org , each year, since 1968, The United States celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. day, remembering the life and legacy of a man who brought hope and healing to America. According to his

childhood he had values of courage, truth, justice, com-passion, dignity, hu-mility and service. The King Holi-

day honors the life and contributions of America racial justice and equality, the leader who not only dreamed

of a color-blind soci-ety, but who also led a movement and made it possible to make it real. That movement cost his life when on April 4th, 1968, he was assassinated at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee.

Joshua Perkins, his-tory teacher, said that he admires Martin Luther King because of his drive to change the world around him.“The U.S. celebrates

Martin Luther King Day because of the changes he helped bring about and the sacrifices he made for others,” Perkins said.Dr. King’s “I Have

a Dream” speech, Nobel Peace Prize lecture and “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” are among the most revered oration.

ebrate the New Year in the same way. Shema spent the New Year’s Eve with his family in Oregon. Even though

As part of a new beginning, Sopho-more Juan Vazquez said that one of his goals for 2015 is to have better grades and get closer to God.Principal of the

school Ellie Perez said that she would like to see her students continuing working in their academic goals and to dream big. “I wish a wonderful

2015 year and bless-ings for all of my ba-bies and their families at home,” Perez said.

Photo provided by: www.indiamarks.com

NHS Member named Student of the Month

his daughter was ab-ducted and his ex-wife as well. Mills is the main actor with great action skills.Mills is being

pursued by many

Photo provided by: www.taken3movie.com

Actor Liam Neeson in the newly released movie, Taken 3.

they were far away from home, they cel-ebrated the New Year with typical Rwan-dese food. Shema ate

chicken, hard boiled eggs, cookies, chips, and “ugali” rice. “I expect to achieve

my goals that I have for this year,” Shema said. Junior Xuemeng

Chen from China said that they celebrate the New Year between the months of January and February. It is called the Spring Festival.“It is a very spe-

cial time of the year because is one of the only occasions where you get to see all your family to-gether,” Chen said.

laws enforcement agents for the mur-der of his ex-wife. The movie lasted 109

minutes. There were a few times when the effects were bad, but

Photo by: Nerina Cruz

Photo by: Isaac Del Rio

Senior Stephanie Kim and Junior Ana Lopez enjoy play-ing games at the CMC-sponsored activity in the girl’s

center on Friday, Jan. 16.

Photo provided by: crenshawcomm.com

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

the gorgeous action scenes take the audi-ence’s attention and keeps you in suspense. Other actors in

the film are: Forest Whitaker, Maggie Grace, Leland Orser, Famke Janssen, Sam Spruell, Jon Gries, Jonhy Weston, Dylan Bruno, according to www.imdb.com. Taken 3 is a good movie. The film is exciting with fic-tion and action and is well worth watching.