Author: Kristian Skovrup As a result of Mrs. Paouncic’s departure from the choral program for maternity leave last month, her high school choir has come under new direction. Welcome, Mr. Lyons! In what is a historic first for the district, while the district looked for a temporary replacement, practices and preparations for the next concert were helmed by students. The program was under the direction of the senior class members of the choir, with students Emily Bonja, Daniel Dunmire, and Kate Myers responsible for teaching duties and other senior members handling the administrative duties of the course until Mr. Lyons came on board.
For a short time after Mrs. Paouncic's leave, classes were equitably divided among the three student instructors. Both Myers and Dunmire divided time between chorus and band, trading their respective instruction days and splitting these periods with Bonja. We look forward to supporting the choral program and the hard work of its students and new directors at the annual Spring concert this coming May!
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Photo by: Lici Jo Photos Author: Riley Silvis This winter, the Apollo-Ridge High School Bowling Team has participated in yet another fantastic season! In 2018 this team was created by Apollo-Ridge alumni Kristen Womeldorf who has since gone to college with scholarships won from this sport. Womeldorf has paved the way for students to get involved in their school and community.
Currently the A-R Bowling team’s home is at Wildlife Lanes located in Lower Burrell. The team includes a mix of sophomores to seniors, totaling 14 Apollo-Ridge High School students. The team is led by community members and experienced bowlers George Galo and Michelle Cominos. The traditional season ended the first week of February, but the boys varsity team qualified for the W.P.I.B.L championships and regionals. The boys also won the section against Freeport, an amazing feat for our high school boys! Sophomore Mia Ament qualified for W.P.I.B.L singles with her average of higher than 140. Over the ten matches this season, the girls' game average was 1,456.5 cumulative pins while the boys game average was 2,691.9 cumulative pins. Overall, this season the boys' team placed 1st out of the five local teams, with nine total wins. The girls ended the season with five total wins, landing themselves in 4th place. This season the bowling team welcomed a boys junior varsity including new bowlers: seniors Samuel Ryan, Colby Pozzuto, Brayeden Kerchensky and sophomore Tom Sodowsky. With a new junior varsity team and all new bowlers, the boys exceeded expectations by winning the section and qualifying for the finals and regionals. The varsity girls team welcomed Jessie Tevelonis to their team as well. Apollo-Ridge congratulates the nine senior bowlers and thank them for their hard work and dedication to the A-R Bowling Team. With this many senior members, the A-R bowling team will be looking for some fresh faces for the upcoming season. Bowling Team Rosters: Girls Team: Riley Silvis, Jessie Tevelonis, Amber Schwaed, Samantha Smart, Elizabeth Master, and Mia Ament. Boys Team: Kaleb Mulkey, Garrett Calderone, Jordan Able, Connor Mamros, Nick Cecchini, Colby Pozzuto, Brayeden Kerchensky, Tom Sodowsky, Sam Ryan Author: Riley Silvis On December 18th, 2021, Apollo-Ridge High School hosted another one of their successful blood drives sponsored by Vitalant. Currently, the American Red Cross is facing its worst blood-crisis in over a decade along with a 10% decline in individuals that donate blood and platelets. Because of this lack of blood, hospitals are having trouble deciding who deserves the blood that they do have. To aid in reversing this blood crisis, many companies are sponsoring blood drives for local people to go and donate.
Blood drives occur when people like you can go and donate one pint of your blood for ill or injured individuals. For every one person that donates, he/she could save up to 3 people. The December drive at Apollo-Ridge High School collected enough blood to save almost 100 individuals. Forty-six students and staff pledged to donate; but, sadly, only thirty-three could proceed with it. All of the blood taken from December's drive gave an opportunity to save chronically ill children, cancer fighters, and many others. On February 18, 2022, the school supported yet another drive. Apollo-Ridge School District should be proud of those who donated and continue to do so. As Vitalant says, “Add a little awe to your day, and someone’s life. Author: Greg Klingensmith Mr. William T. “Bill” Duff, 62, of Kiski Township, passed away unexpectedly on Tuesday, November 30, 2021, in AHN-Allegheny Valley Hospital, Natrona Heights.
Mr. Duff was a 1977 graduate of Apollo-Ridge High School and a 1990 graduate of IUP. He received a certification in 1990 from the Eastman School of Music and then worked as a music teacher for Apollo-Ridge High School from 1991-2018. Mr. Duff was also a music teacher at Murphy’s Music Center for many years. He was a skilled guitar player and collector of guitars and was well-regarded as a guitar luthier. He was well-known locally with his band Color Blind Willie. He loved going to concerts and spending time with his wife, children and his dog Zoey. Bill is survived by his loving wife of 34 years, Michele M. (Hixson) Duff; son, Captain William B. (Sarah) Duff, of Tucson, Ariz.; daughter, Katie D. Duff, of Indiana; sister, Debbie Bower, of Albuquerque, N.M.; brother, James McDuff, of Honolulu, Hawaii; and several nieces and nephews. Mr. Duff left an amazing legacy at Apollo-Ridge. Anyone who took his classes can remember how funny and kind he was to all of his students. He will be greatly missed by his former co-workers, peers, former students, and family. Author: Greg Klingensmith The 2021 Apollo-Ridge Battle of the Classes was an event that brought back the tradition here for many years. Last year, due to Covid-19, the competition was cancelled. This year it came back in full force! The competition involved many different athletic events, a dance-off, and topped off with a classic dodgeball tournament. In typical fashion, the senior class of 2022 led in points throughout the day.
After the athletic portion, the day ended in a quiz bowl. First, the seniors faced off against the freshmen in a surprisingly close battle. The seniors came out on top and advanced to the finals. Then, the juniors took on the sophomores in an even closer match, with the sophomores pulling off a huge upset. Going into the finals, the seniors all but won the competition and finally sealed the deal by beating the sophomore class in dominant fashion. Although the seniors came out on top, the show was stolen by the energetic and enthusiastic freshmen winning the prestigious Spirit Award. The students greatly missed this annual event last year, and they showed how much they loved it in how much fun they made the day. Let’s hope for more amazing days like this in the coming school years! |