By Aidan Isabelle
The 20th annual Oak Hill Band Show is going to be jam-packed this year, with 10 bands in total to watch. As usual, Oak Hill will perform their show in complete darkness with lights! It’s a spectacular sight to see, so be sure not to miss it. The list of schools includes: Jackson High School, Clay High School, Glenwood High School, South Webster High School, Piketon High School, Whiteoak High School, Paint Valley High School, Waverly High School, Unioto High School, and finally the Marching Oaks with their blackout show. The band show is a direct contribution to the Oak’s funds and is one of the largest fundraisers of the year, with several food vendors and the occasional mobile shop. If your schedule isn’t too busy, put some time aside and enjoy a one time annual event! The band also enjoyed a fantastic Saturday in Jackson during the Apple Festival and Band Show, and earned a third place trophy for the parade, and of course the smiles and cheers of a great crowd. Our season is just getting started.
The MOB has an extremely tough weekend this week, first striking up the crowd against the South Gallia Rebels tonight under Friday night lights. The Band once again performs the Top Gun Show, the most popular music of the year so far. Tomorrow, on Saturday however, the Jackson Band Show and Apple Festival Parade are at the peak of the year– the band marches at Alumni Stadium around 2:30-2:40PM, (based on various band setup times), and is one of the last bands to perform, before the Ohio State Marching Band takes the field at the end of the show, one of the most highly anticipated events of Jackson in years. If you are planning to attend the show, make sure to buy your tickets as soon as possible, as the stadium is likely to be filled on both sides. This gives the MOB one of the greatest opportunities to make a long lasting impression, so don’t miss out on this high class performance!
By Torie Scott
Oak Hill Choir is a choir group that operates out of Oak Hill High School/ Middle School. There are three choir groups that they separated into, the eighth grade choir, the sixth and seventh grade choir and the high school concert choir. The choir is like one big, weird family; they fight and laugh and hang out together. The choir has two concerts a year: the spring concert and the Christmas concert; they also perform at the Veterans Day Assembly and graduation as well as go caroling in the winter to nursing homes, assisted living and Hope Haven. The choir also brings Christmas cards to the elderly during caroling. We asked the director and some of the choir members what choir means to them. The director Mrs.King says, "Choir is a group of people that come together to be a part of something greater than themselves. It is about music that we would not be able to make alone making it together. We are buried in unity, which I take very seriously, which is our tagline. I believe every choir student brings something unique and special, and I want to bring that out in them." The Oak Hill choir students feel lucky to have an amazing director like her. I also asked the choir students Jullian McClaskey and Grant Lambert what choir means to them. Julian says "Choir means so much! I get to freely express myself and have a blast while singing! I love choir!"
By Torie Scott
Recently the school OHHS/MS introduced the bus passes. Little ID badges students must carry with them on and off the bus to be able to ride them. Each bus has a scanner where the students press their IDs to the scanner makes what many students call “a Mario lucky block sound.” Some students don't mind the passes, while others find it annoying, splitting the student body into three categories: those who don't mind them, those who could care less, and those who find them obnoxious and feel as though they shouldn't have them. No matter your thoughts, the bus pass is here for all students.
This year, schools from all over the area sent their bands and seniors to join the parade at the Jackson County Apple Festival. Students, staff and parents worked very hard to design a float for the Oak Hill seniors to ride on. We were led by the band whose performance was amazing. The crowds, especially the children, loved listening to the bands and waving to the people on the floats. A couple of college bands even came to join us, a big shout out to Ohio University and the Ohio State University who were there! “Go Bobcats and Buckeyes!” The parade did start off slow Saturday evening, but all the seniors had a blast and were so happy they came. We asked students Shyann Hart and Layla Conley how they felt about the parade and here's what they said, Layla, “I felt that it was very fun, and I love hanging out with my senior friends, and I can’t wait to do other senior events.” Shyann said, “Wednesday night, I really enjoyed that one.”
Original stories written by Torie Scott
**Reader Discretion Advised. These stories fall into the suspense, thriller category.**
The woods were dark, cold, and eerily still, the thick trees blocking out the majority of the moon’s light only allowing for little beams to escape between the leaves and branches. As the snow sparkles beneath them, light from the cabin’s window comes through. The light slowly starts to fade as the people inside take to rest. The creature slowly leaves the underbrush, leaving deep holes in the snow as it walks, its shadow laying immensely on the snow as the beast releases a howl that could make the mountains shake. The door swings open, screams echo as red droplets stain the windows and floor leaving a potent metallic smell in the air. The screams fade into silence as the light fades out into darkness. The beast retreats back into the woods dragging its prey behind it leaving only a trail of red and claw prints in the snow as evidence to its sins.
It was a day like any other; the birds were singing, the bees were buzzing, and little Susie was picking the daisies when she spotted an unusually looking flower. It was red and covered in spikes. The smell it emitted reminded Susie of fresh spilled blood, but the oddest thing about the flower was the way it seemed to follow her. She picked the flower and brought it inside. She showed her mother the odd flower. Gleefully, her mother’s face flickered with fear and sadness for a moment before returning to a strained smile like a doll. Her mother grabbed a small glass of water and placed the flower into it, handing it to her daughter. Susie grabbed the glass with the flower, bringing it up to her room, and placed it on her nightstand. Her mother kissed her goodnight. As Susie drifted off to sleep, her mother’s sobs echoed through the house for in the morning her daughter would be gone.