Prom 2008
From Shattered Dreams to Unforgettable Moments

Shattered Dreams - Day 1: The Wreck
By Parker Brooks

It all began as a simple prom safety program with a little humor and a few statistics about drinking and driving from Police Chief Steve Grube. With one squawk of the police radio and sirens in the distance, the students could feel the atmosphere change.

Outside the school was a scene of drama with a realistic staging of a multiple car accident that involved a drunk driver. Students rushed from the program to the scene outside – three wrecked cars and victims lying on the ground covered with blood. Some of the injuries inflicted upon them were very gruesome to look at including a tire iron shoved through senior Maranda Jeter’s stomach. The student body could only stand and watch as paramedics came to sift through the wreckage. Eventually Care-Flight came with two helicopters to take away two of the victims – senior Lindsey Allen and junior Krissy Boxell.

Junior Cheyenne Tawater portrayed the drunk driver. She was given a sobriety test in front of the crowd and then hand-cuffed and taken away in a police car.

Three students were shown dead at the scene – seniors Megan Martin, Tiffany Lowry and Jeter. The three were put in body bags and placed in funeral home vehicles and taken away.

The police searched for evidence and besides finding several empty bottles that littered the ground around the wreck discovered a video that happened to have footage that showed how the students had become involved in the accident. The video was shown to everyone in cafeteria to show the consequences of drinking and driving.

Shattered Dreams - Day 1 Photo Gallery

Shattered Dreams - Day 2: The Memorial Service
by Kristen Kimmel

Day two of the Shattered Dreams program was a memorial service for those who died in the crash. The mock memorial resembled an actual funeral. Four caskets lined the front of the stage for seniors Lindsey Allen, Maranda Jeter, Tiffany Lowry and Megan Martin. The victim’s family members were seated in the front row along with the pall bearers consisting of boys from the senior class.

The service began with a video of scenes from the wreck. Jeter, Lowry and Martin were announced dead on the scene. A camera followed Allen, Katie Barnes and Krissy Boxell to the hospital. Allen died in the hospital due to a serious head trauma. Barnes had an arm fracture which broke through the skin. Boxell was paralyzed from the waist down due to glass wedged into her neck which affected her spinal cord. Cheyenne Tawater was taken away in a police car on the scene after failing a sobriety test. She was taken to jail and received $200,000 of DWI fines.

All four students had slideshows full of pictures of their lives up to the crash. Mrs. Martin and Mr. Allen spoke during the service. Tawater arrived in an orange jumpsuit and chains on her feet while Boxell in a wheelchair. Both gave emotional speeches of how they were affected by the crash.

“It was an experience I will never forget,” Boxell said. “I really hope we got our message across.”

Ponder Volunteer Firefighter, Charlie Williams, and Ponder Police Officer, Steve Grube, spoke to the students about personal situations in which they’ve come in contact with that teenage drunk-driving.

The Student Council has spent the entire year working on this project and kept it a secret from the student body. Even though the wreck and memorial was fake, it still impacted several students.

“Even though it wasn’t real, it made me want to cry to think that my friends really die like that,” Allen said. “I will definitely not get in a car with someone who has even taken a sip.”

Shattered Dreams - Day 2 Photo Gallery

Grim Reaper Visits PHS
by John Boyer

PHS students got a chance last week to visually see the prevalent dangers of alcohol. It started two weeks when StuCo sponsor Ms. Taylor asked several randomly chosen students for their shirt sizes, who, unaware of it, were selected to demonstrate the fact that every 15 minutes, a person will die of an alcohol-related accident.

“I didn’t know what it was for, but when I found out, I was glad I could be a part of it,” sophomore Kaleb Broadstreet.

Every 15 fifteen minutes last Thursday, a police officer, a grim reaper, portrayed by freshman Shellie Mills, and junior Krystal Mills would enter the would-be alcohol victim’s class and call them out, dress them in a plain, black shirt and white makeup and forbid them from speaking for the rest of the day. The chosen student’s yearbook picture was attached to a tombstone-shaped paper frame with “R.I.P” written at the top, which was then displayed on the wall near the cafeteria.

The next day, the students were given a different shirt, which designated them as the “living dead” of Ponder and tacitly cautioned people about the danger of alcohol. Miniature crosses were planted in the ground outside the school in memory of the victims.

“It was very powerful to see them come and take the people away and to see those crosses in the schoolyard,” sophomore Parker Brooks said.

Shattered Dreams - Day 2 Photo Gallery

Prom '08: Lost in this Moment
by Krissy Boxell

All prom guests entered into a majestic and romantic world upon arriving at the Meritt Bois-D’Arc Buffalo Ranch where the PHS Prom of 2008 was held. Eifel towers, roses and scenic lights helped to secure a French mood and caused all students to become “Lost in the Moment”

On the dance floor, an interactive D.J. kept the party going by energizing the guests. He had various assistants who passed out streamers, hats and various other objects to keep the dances interesting. They began Congo lines and fun dances for all of those interested in cutting a rug.

In the casino room, students were available to enjoy various card games such as poker and black-jack. Numerous slot machines lined the walls for students to play on and win tokens. Tokens and any poker chips collected throughout the night were cashed in and exchanged for tickets. Once you received your tickets, you placed them in the sack of your choice, giving you a chance to win the designated raffle item. Winners were drawn at the end of prom.

Throughout the night, all attendants voted on one senior boy and girl to be named Prom King and Queen. Katie McCullough was crowned Prom Queen alongside Nathan McPherson, who was named Prom King. The King/Queen dance followed with the theme song of the night, “Lost in this Moment” by Big and Rich.

Directly after, a fireworks display lit the night sky as seniors bid farewell to their final year at PHS, bringing the memorable night to a close.

Prom '08 Photo Gallery (Photos contributed by Ms. Taylor & Ms. Koleber)

The Lyles Gallery (Photos contributed by Laura Boxell)

The Roar gives a special thanks to the photo contributors - thanks for sharing!

Strong Pitching Leads Lady Lions to Victory
By Kaleb Broadstreet

Last Thursday at the TWU softball field Ponder softball fans gathered to watch the girl’s first play-off game against Callisburg. The girls didn’t hesitate to bring their best stuff to the game. The game started with Ashley Anderson striking out three in the first inning and Kristen Kimmel helped give the team a boost as well by hitting a bloop single over the second baseman. She was left stranded though, and the score remained tied at zero.

During the next inning both teams went three up and three down, but in the third inning Morgan Stover bunted and reached second base on an error. She got out on a base running error though, and the game remained scoreless until the fifth inning. In the bottom of the fifth inning Aubrey Antle hit an infield single and was moved to second by a well placed bunt by Brooke Sanders. Then, with two runners on, Stover bunted down the third base line and the third baseman had a throwing error that deflected off Stover and allowed Antle to score.

The following inning the Lady Lions scored another run with Kimmel leading the inning off with a double and Emily Liberto knocking her in with a triple in the gap. So the girls went in to the seventh inning with a 2-0 lead. Callisburg managed to score one run in the seventh inning but they were no match for Anderson, who had 14 strike-outs and only allowed two hits all game.

With strong pitching from Anderson and strong clutch plays from the freshmen players the Lady Lions gained their first play-off win. Next, the team will face Malakoff in the Area round of the playoffs this Friday.

Bi-District Gallery 1 / Bi-District Gallery 2

Click pic to check out the Lady Lions player profiles:

27 Dresses
By Lindsey Allen

To most women, a dress is so much more than a mere piece of clothing. It is elegant, fun, eye-catching and most always meant to put the focus on the lovely lady wearing it. However, Jane (Katherine Heigl) is an exception to this traditional description. She owns 27 formal dresses; some beautiful, some unique, some rather ugly…. and all bridesmaid attire. Her friends tend to take advantage of her willingness to participate, and though Jane doesn’t jump for joy to take part in such ceremonies, she, being passive and kind, always ends up helping.

Jane is not only so insistent on offering her services for weddings, but also goes above and beyond for her boss at work. Somewhat a typical story line in this situation, he refuses to recognize her efforts and flirts with Jane just when his selfish self needs something. Not so typical, one night Jane and her boss are at the same club when Jane’s attractive sister starts dancing with him. They start to fall in love, which breaks Jane’s considerate heart because she simply wants everyone to be happy.

While running the show at one of her many weddings, Jane faints… only to wake up and see a gorgeous man (James Marsden) trying to help her off the floor. He notices her sometimes cynical views on love but never stops trying to prove to her that he is different and eventually she, with him or someone else…deserves a wedding of her own.

Jane starts to realize that maybe she should concentrate more on herself at times. Her big problem now is whether or not to give this cute guy a chance or continue having a heavy heart about her sister and boss.

Starring: Katherine Heigl, James Marsden, Malin Akerman, Edward Burns, Melora Hardin, Judy Greer

Rating: PG-13 - for language, some innuendo and sexuality

Available on DVD: April 29, 2008