November 26, 2007

by Joe Harrison

What would happen if we didn’t have a football coach next year?

What would Happy Camp do without football? Happy Camp High has had football for at least fifty years. It is a community tradition. Everybody who has ever gone to high school here comes to watch the games. All of the elders come to watch the young kids play. Even people who don’t have kids in school come to root for the kids who are playing.

I don’t think most of the kids would even come to school if there wasn’t a football team. We would lose school funds, which support our school. We would lose out trips, our COS trip and other fieldtrips.

Then, what’s left for us kids to do? There would be nothing but trouble, and everybody would drink. At school, kids would be out of control. There would be a lot more fights and drug use because there would be no motivation to go to school.

What would Happy Camp do without football? I think this whole town would turn into a hell hole—nothing but druggies and alcoholics and need a lot more law enforcement.

How many kids in this community do you think would graduate if we didn’t have a football team? Perhaps as many as 35% pf high school students wouldn’t stay in school to graduate. Some of the kids I’ve talked to said it there wasn’t a football team they wouldn’t even show up for school. I think it would all go in a chain reaction, first football, and then basketball.

As we grow older, people say that the young look up to us. Well, how are they supposed to look up to us when we have nothing to do but drink and do drugs! There would be a big change, instead d of playing in a game on Friday night, we would be getting drunk and driving our cars around, and that’s how 50% of the teens die in this neck of the woods.

What are some of the benefits of playing football? One benefit of playing football is to release stress, and stay in shape. However, the best thing about playing football is a person gains discipline and self control.

Football is a very fun activity. Guys can get girls and they learn more about the game. Students also show the people in the crowd what they’re made of. When the team goes on an out of town game, they get to travel a long way sometimes. The most fun part about traveling is eating fast food. When the players travel to other towns they represent our school and Mr. Dyer. That is why everyone is on their best behavior.

Last, but not least, I would like to talk about Coach John Kufner. He has been coaching at Happy Camp for over thirty years. He has more wins than I’ve had girl friends, and that’s a lot. He is a legend in his own time, and now it’s time for him to sit at home and watch football on television like the legend that he is.

No matter what happens here in Happy Camp, football needs to keep going on!

November 8, 2007

Today  I was just going back and re-reading some stories on Happy Camp News, and I happened on the Letters to the Editor page. I found the letter I wrote to the entire town two years ago and it is still as true as it was when I wrote it. My wife and I have run off to be with our other children and to be closer to family during our time of loss. However, we have not found any more support here than we had from our good neighbors and friends in Happy Camp. Happy Camp is a place that will stay in my heart always and I am still just as grateful to all the wonderful people who live there as I was when I wrote that letter in the first place.

Someday the world will know about Happy Camp and realize that despite it’s problems, it has a wonderful and pure heart. God bless all of you. My family and myself send our love.

Bob (JavaBob) Schmalzbach

by Cody

What happened to the Music?

Do you love music? I do. I feel that it is a statement in itself. It expresses culture and life through the words of a song. Music states an individual’s personality by what instrument they play. Someone who plays electric guitar may be a person who likes to play hard rock, or maybe a person who plays the trumpet likes classical music.

At Happy Camp High School it has been extremely difficult to explore musical talent. “Why is this happening?” you’re wondering. This is a question that must be answered. You may not know this, but when a student does not show up for classes, it cuts down the budget for that particular class. If one student or more ceases to show up, then the class is cut. Another reason the music program was cut in Happy Camp High was the fact that the federal government would not fund the program because they want the students to learn the basics, such as math, history and English. With the loss of the music program in our school, we must find a way to integrate these programs back into the school curriculum.

There is no music program at Happy Camp High School. The loss of this program upsets me for many reasons. First of all, there are many students that can play an instrument, but have difficulties trying to learn the instrument. Many students, myself included, have to teach themselves by using the Internet or buying music books from a music store. Even then, I don’t really know if I’m playing the notes right. There is no guidance. I love playing the electric guitar; however, it’s hard for me to teach myself how to play. I wish a high school music program was available to any student who wants to learn.

Music is not only an excellent activity to learn, it also helps with many of your brain functions. Scientists say that music works the part of the brain where math is processed. Math is a very important subject in life to learn. If you can play an instrument you are most likely able to do math with no hassle.

The thing that most people don’t understand is that music is not just an extra curricular activity just to do to get easy credits for high school. It is part of everyday life. All the music you hear on the radio everyday is because someone might have taken a music program in their school. If you are exposed to music in school now it could become your career later in life.

With the budget for schools going down hill, the music and arts programs are usually the first to be cut. The federal government believes that music is not important to the school curriculum, when in reality it is what students need. If students had an outlet to get away from stress, they may possibly stay away from drugs. It would keep students minds on something they enjoy doing.

This will be a problem for many years if we don’t act now. There are options to ending this outrage. Schools could appeal to our elected representatives in our state and federal governments to fund the music programs.

This could happen. but without the proper agreements from the community this program will never progress in our schools.

If music was back in our schools then people with gifted talents can grow. Please help me and other students bring the music program back to the school curriculum. Don’t let music disappear from existence forever.

November 7, 2007

By Slim Randles

Some things aren’t allowed to go away, no matter how much a person might want them to, and no matter how much sense it makes to do away with them. It was that way with Doc’s golf tournament.

Last fall, to raise money for coats for kids who needed them, Doc talked two farmers out of the use of their pastures and set up the only 18-hole golf course in history that was created in an hour and a half. Each of the 18 holes had a hole (personally dug by Doc with a shovel) and a flag by the hole (a steel t-post personally pounded in by Dud) and a tee-off spot (personally tee-off by Herb Collins). But that was all the course had. If there was grass on the fairway, it was because the cows missed a bite. The whole course was hazard. The tenth hole alone had two rock piles and a manure sump to negotiate. The second hole required people to clear a prairie dog town or lose the ball forever to the abode of confused and terrorized rodents.

Well, everyone had fun, and the whole thing was won by Delbert Chin, owner of the Gates of Heaven Chinese restaurant, who came in with the low score of 312.

Doc wasn’t really excited about doing it again, but first one, then another of our locals pestered him until he relented and set out a whole new course this year that included the elementary school playground and the town’s sewage treatment lagoons.

Twice as many people signed on to play this year, and Doc admits that next year’s course might have to take in the gravel quarry just east of town.

“The hardest part about this tournament,” he told the boys down at the Mule Barn truck stop, “is figuring out what par should be.”

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