November 30, 2018 www.plaintalk.net Vermillion Plain Talk 9 NOVEMBER 2018 VERMILLION.K12.SD.US VERMILLION HIGH SCHOOL’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER GIVING THANKS & GIVING BACK BY MASON COURNOYER he Thanksgiving holiday is a time for families to get together around a grand feast, celebrating the good times surrounded by Tthe ones they love. It is a beautiful festivity held across the United States of America, in which we sometimes take for granted. There are fam- ilies everywhere who cannot join due to their nancial situations elly Stone, a teacher at Vermillion High School, aims to that within our community. She devised the Tanager Takeout program, which is located inside Vermillion High School in Room 41 and is held every Friday. ÒWeÕve been looking to getting more food to the kids in our school and their families,Ó Stone says. The program happily serves around 50 families weekly combining efforts with the likes of the Welcome Table and The Backpack Program. Together, they ensure our community is not hungry and not alone. As a participant of Tanager Takeout myself, I have nothing but praise for what Mrs. Stone is doing. If you feel the same way and want to help in any way possible, donate food or money to PO Bo 219 and your contribution will not be forgotten. Another program helping serve the community of Vermillion is the Food Pantry, located at Trinity Lutheran Church. Teresa McDowell Kelly Stone (far right) and Tanager Takeout volunteers. Photo submitted by Kelly Stone. Johnson is one of the few who help keep the community fed. ÒIÕve always worked in Social Services,Ó she said, ÒI like working with individuals. I know people are hungry and theyÕre invisible to regular citizens. ou never know what the person net to you is going through. A good kid wouldnÕt be able to concentrate if heÕs hungry and no one can visibly see that. A lot of food in great condition is thrown away when they should be going to families who need it.Ó As many as 270 families around the Vermillion Community are served every month. The Thanksgiving holiday can see as much as 150,000 pounds of food donated to the Food Pantry program. The Thanksgiving meals offer turkeys, stufng, cranberry sauce, corn, and pretty much anything else holiday related. The Food Pantry program is only as strong as its volunteers which has over 80 people who donate their time each year. In addition to the great volunteers, the Food Pantry also combines efforts with various other programs surrounding the community including the Welcome Table, Tanager Takeout, Backpack Program, the Salvation Army, EvanÕs Diaper Bank, and BrianÕs Closet. If you are interested in donating to the Food Pantry, you can drop off items at 81 East Clark, at one of the drop boes located at any of the churches in Vermillion, or at the blue barrel drop sites at Walmart and HyVee. A DAY TO HONOR 5 W. CHERRY ST. BY MARCUS DIAZ & MADDI KALLSEN VERMILLION n Nov 12, the Veterans ceived second place, while Nick held at the W. H. Over Museum, 624-4444 ODay assembly welcomed Doty and Madison France tied where less than forty people at- the entire community to come for third place. While interview- tended. Billberg proposed to the to celebrate the service of vet- ing Ashlyn Bickett, she spoke American Legion Committee erans within the community and about the pride she has for her to have the event at the High Tanager Merchandise, Greeting Cards, Candies, Home Decor and throughout the country. All the father, who she wrote her essay School from there it grew to Many Other Great Gift Ideas! schools in the community partic- about, and the pride she has for where it is today. She loves to ipated. Austin school and Saint America. Her father served for read the Junior Veterans Day Agnes came and sang about the over thirty years in the National papers. It helps her get to know pride of America. The middle Guard and became a great leader the community and her students. school interviewed staff and in and out of the military. She felt Ms. Billberg thinks Veterans Day students around the school and surprised and grateful after real- gives us all a chance to honor the made a heartfelt video on what izing her paper won. It wasnÕt veteransÕ service. veterans day means to them. The difcult for Ashlyn to reect on Veterans Day give us all high school gladly hosted the the importance of Veterans day the opportunity to support the 525 West Cherry St. event in the gym. or the service of veterans A day troops and share a sense of vi- Vermillion, SD 57069 The juniors wrote papers to honor everyone who protects tal patriotism and pride for our 605-624-5574 about veterans who are close to us is a good one. beautiful country. them or have impacted their lives. Ms. Lenni Billberg start- Ashlyn Bickett won the writing ed the Veterans Day program contest. Morgan irkman re- ve years ago. It was originally November 2018 11 30 6:30pm 5th Grade Winter Concert VHS STUDENTS HEAD TO THE POLLS 7pm Dance Inferno Recital @VHS @VHS State “Oral Interp. Festival” @ 5pm Wrestling Double Dual (H) BY MADDI KALLSEN Watertown 5pm BBB: Flandreau Indians (T) 13 December 2018 4:30pm 7th/8th GBB: Lennox (T) oting is vital to our de- would have voted.Ó The student went on to say, ÒI felt like a real 14 Vmocracy here in America also went on to say, ÒMy vote part of democracy.Ó Various 1 6pm Gymnastics Triangular: SF Roosevelt (T) and gives us all an opportunity matters, just not that much.Ó other students shared these same SAT Test- TBA TBA- Dance Inferno Recital @VHS 15 to partake in the important de- Many no doubt relate thoughts. Eagerness among 9am Wrestling Invite:SF Roosevelt TBA- GBB @Pentagon cision making that determines to the way this student feels, young people around the coun- (T) 9am Wrestling: SF Washington (T) 18 who leads us. This November, so many in fact it changes the try to vote is becoming more 3 7pm 7th/8th GBB: Yankton (T) 4pm BBB/GBB: Tri Valley (T) one of the most important elec- course of elections. The impor- and more popular, although 7pm School Board Meeting @ 17 tions occurred, the Primary. tance of voting can be summed there is still an ever-pressing al Neuharth Media Center, USD 7pm VHS Fall Show @VHS Campus State “A” Volleyball @Sioux Falls Many seniors at Vermil- up with ease by Mother Teresa. issue with people not voting. 4 20 lion High School are now old ÒWe ourselves feel that what Voting is vital. Vot- 7:30 VHS Holiday Concert @VHS Early Dismissal- All Schools Dismissed @1:30pm enough to vote some have gone we are doing is just a drop in ing, in and of itself, is the basis 4:30 7th/8th GBB: West Central 6 21 out, registered and voted, others the ocean. But the ocean would in which our democracy runs 7pm 6th Grade Winter Concert @ NO SCHOOL- Christmas Vacation chose not to. As adults, many be less because of that missing on. Our entire political sys- VHS 22 11:30- Winter Wonderland believe itÕs an important re- drop.Ó tem is based on what the peo- 5pm Wrestling Quad: Yankton (T) 4pm 7th/8th GBB: Harrisburg (T) 9am Wrestling: SF Lincoln (T) sponsibility to vote, while some Many students who ple believe to be just and true. 7 24 NO SCHOOL- Christmas Eve 4pm BBB/GBB: Bon Homme (H) donÕt have much of an opinion chose to vote felt a bit more 25 8 on politics in general. One stu- strongly on the issues and so- TBA- ACT Test @VHS NO SCHOOL- Christmas Day :) Maddi Kallsen is the Student Editor of 26 dent who chose not to vote sim- lutions at hand, and the people the Vermillionaire. StudentÕs identities Dakota XII 7th/8th GBB: TBA- 7th @ Lennox TBA-8th @Canton NO SCHOOL- Christmas Vacation ply claimed they Òreally donÕt running to address them. After were kept anonymous for this story to 27 encourage thoughtful response without 10am Wrestling: Watertown Invite care.Ó They added, ÒI do notice voting, another student said, ÒI (T) NO SCHOOL- Christmas Vacation revealing political bias. 28 issues and maybe if I had done really wanted to vote and looked 12pm Gymnastics: Wagner (T) 10 NO SCHOOL- Christmas Vacation the research as to who is trying forward to it. ItÕs important to 4:15pm 7th/8th GBB: Yankton (T) 4pm BBB/GBB: Tea Area (T) to the issues I care about, I be involved and informed.Ó She 31 NO SCHOOL- New Year’s Eve 10 Vermillion Plain Talk November 30, 2018 www.plaintalk.net NOVEMBER 2018 VERMILLION.K12.SD.US VERMILLION HIGH SCHOOL’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER Native American Heritage Month BY ZADYA ABBOTT n Lakota, a Native spoken Coolidge gave a declaration contain- Columbus and AmericaÕs colonist their door, that somehow or another language,WasŽoyuze means ing the rst formal reuest for Amer- past. Christopher Columbus is cred- the newly discovered living room IÒVermillion.Ó ÒThe name ican ÔIndiansÕ to be recognized as cit- ited with ÔdiscoveringÕ the new world becomes mine.Ó Then, beginning in ÔSouth DakotaÕ comes from the tribal izens. In that same decree, Coolidge because the world he ÔdiscoveredÕ it 1870, the U.S. federal government name of the Dakota Siou, mean- proclaimed the second Saturday of for had a larger platform for global attempted to eradicate Native culture ing ÔfriendlyÕ or Ôallied,ÕÓ (native.