Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/670030
COURTESYPHOTOS The Elementary Students of the Month of April and the school they represent are from le to right: 1) Maci Dyke, Antelope Elementary School 2) Cadence Killam, Berrendos Middle School 3) Vance Wagner, Berrendos Middle School 4) Sonia Langarica, Gerber Elementary School 5) Dylan Rocha, Lassen View Elementary School 6) Yaneli Castellon, Los Molinos Elementary School 7) Ofelia Gamez, Maywood Middle School 8) Jakob Grootveld, Richfield Elementary School 9) Danielle Foley, Sacred Heart Parrish 10) Yevette Sanchez, Vista Preparatory Academy 11) Emily Hardwick, Woodson Elementary School. The High School Students of the Month of April and the school they represent are from le to right: 1) Esperanza Romero, Centennial High School 2) Jasmin DelaTorre, Los Molinos High School 3) Noe Espinoza, Mercy High School 4) Samantha Dunn, Red Bluff High School 5) Joseph Mills, Red Bluff High School 6) Almyra Jones, Salisbury High School (not pictured is Seth Danielson, Corning High School). ELKSLODGE Each month the Red Bluff Elks honors area stu- dents for doing the right thing. Each student has displayed positive charac- teristics such as excellent grades, extracurricular ac- tivities and high career goals. During the presenta- tions the honored students gave a speech praising their parents, teachers, and their school. Most outlined their future career goals and they are very impressive. The people in attendance cheered voraciously for the young honored students. It was a very positive expe- rience for all individuals present. Elementaryandhigh school students honored California State Uni- versity, Chico's Latinos in Technical Careers, TRIO Educational Talent Search and MESA Schools Pro- gram will hold their an- nual STEM Academy for sixth through ninth grade participants from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday, April 23, in the O'Connell Tech- nology Center on campus. The event will expose stu- dents from 20 local schools to science, technology, engi- neering and math (STEM) fields through hands-on, interactive workshops pre- sented to motivate them to attend college and pursue a STEM career. The STEM Academy is an opportunity to get young minds both excited about a varietyoftechnicaldisciplines and to begin to consider the valueofhighereducation.The students that participate in the STEM Academy are low- income, first-generation col- lege students. Latinos in Technical Ca- reers is the CSU, Chico chapter of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engi- neers. The STEM Academy is an event that the chap- ter has put on annually for more than 25 years. CHICO STATE STEM Academy aims to attract young students to science and math fields The Soroptimist Interna- tional of Red Bluff will be awarding a one time schol- arship in honor of Mary Al- ice George at their awards meeting on May 11. There is a very short application pe- riod for this $2,000 award. The monies for the schol- arship are coming from a variety of groups and in- dividuals whose lives were made better because of Mary Alice's positive atti- tude toward life. A group of these peo- ple thought the best way to honor her memory was to create a special scholarship that would assist a female who is trying to complete her education so that she can become the woman she would like to be. The family and others will be reading the application's with that thought in mind. The appli- cations are available at the Job Training Center and the Shasta College office. An application an also obtained by sending a re- quest to Jill Wabbel at jill- wabbel@aol.com. All appli- cation must be received by 5 p.m. April 29 for consid- eration. All completed applica- tions need to be sent to the SIRB at P.O. Box 962, Red Bluff, CA 96080, to: Atten- tion Scholarship. The public is invited to forward this information to any individual who would benefit from this special Mary Alice George Memo- rial Scholarship. Anyone who would like their name and mon- ies added as a benefac- tor, or for questions please contact Nancy Shilts at nshilts@att.net for more information. SOROPTIMIST INTERNATIONAL Groups to offer Mary Alice George Scholarship COURTESY PHOTO ElkinsandFlournoySERRFenjoyedcreatinghamstermasksa erreadingthe book Memoirs of a Hamster by Devin Scillian. Students had the opportunity to work with oil pastels and learn about proper pet care. SERRF PET-CARE LESSON CONTRIBUTED PHOTO These students experienced a nice evening banquet along with a plaque to add to their portfolio and a small scholarship. These are Red Bluff's future doctors and engineers and agriculturists. From le to right: 1) Jacob Samuelson, Red Bluff High School 2) Kevin Dean, Los Molinos High School 3) Laura Keane, Mercy High School (Not pictured is Whitney Armstrong, Corning High School). ELKS LODGE EARNING HONORS By Martha Irvine TheAssociatedPress METAIRIE, LA. Though he cannot speak, Benjamin Alexander has much to say, one typed word at a time. Ben was diagnosed with nonverbal autism and epi- lepsy a few months before his third birthday. Now 22, he is a writer and a stu- dent at Tulane University in New Orleans with a GPA of 3.7. In his essays, he re- turns repeatedly to the "fiend" that tried to silence him, the condition he sar- castically calls his "gift." "Who in the hell gave me this gift?" he wrote in one piece published in a lo- cal online journal. "Please, take it back." Ben wants to help edu- cate people about autism and challenge stereotypes. That's not easy because he still needs some assis- tance using a computer to communicate, and that's caused some to doubt him over the years. On a recent evening, Ben's father settles him at the keyboard and rests his hand under his son's arm. He lightly squeezes Ben's forearm, a subtle move that sets him into action. Ben begins to punch the keys with one finger. "I . am . not . stupid . as . some . people . used . to . think," Ben types. He unwraps his arm from his dad's and hits the pe- riod by himself, causing the computer to read each word in a robotic voice that he doesn't really like, but needs. Later he adds, "I want people to know I am here." As the sun rises over the leafy streets of suburban New Orleans, Ellen Schnei- der enters her son's room, adorned to the ceiling with tributes to his beloved New Orleans Saints football team, and rouses him for his day on campus. "Come on, B-man." She leads him to the bathroom to use an electric toothbrush. "Oooh, you're gorgeous," she says, as she looks into his wide hazel eyes and wipes his bearded face with a towel. This morning, Ben is calm, having taken his medication — pills for ev- erything from epileptic sei- zures to anxiety. He eats sliced apples and bread for breakfast while laughing to himself or babbling: "Aw aw, mm mm, bip bip." The soft sounds seem invol- untary in some moments, self-soothing in others. This daily existence, with its many ups and downs, has tested the re- solve of his success-minded parents, both age 55. His mother is an ophthalmol- ogist, his father an obste- trician. They also have two daughters, Hillary, 25, and Lexi, 15. "We cure things with our hands. We cut it out. If it's something that needs to be removed, we remove it," his dad, Sam Alexan- der, says. But with Ben's condition, "we couldn't do that." When Ben was born, there was no indication that anything was wrong. Family videos show a smi- ley, chubby-cheeked boy with curly red hair just beginning to form words. "Hello," he seems to utter in one video, after pick- ing up an old telephone receiver. In the months that fol- lowed, however, Ben lost those first few words. He stopped looking people in the eye. His parents often would find him off in a cor- ner spinning around and around. Doctors initially told them to be patient, that it wasn't unusual for some kids to have delayed speech. But then, when Ben was about 2 , came the diagnosis they feared: autism. Often called per- vasive developmental dis- order, it was accompa- nied by epileptic episodes, which worsened in adoles- cence. "It felt like he died," dad says. Ben never spoke again. Though advised to keep their expectations low, his parents took him from spe- cialist to specialist, to Mi- ami, Boston and Chicago, and tried any number of recommended therapies. 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