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Show November 7, 2000 5 - The Forum pireadl Youir Mighty Wings amid FDy By Amanda Shiner Staff Writer Westminster Scholarship donors and recipients and Westminster College Trustees were honored at the Scholarship Recognition Luncheon on October 26 from 11:30 a.m.-l:0- 0 p.m. in Payne Gymnasium. At 11:30 AM, a line of students, trustees and donors extended down the sidewalk in front of Payne Gymnasium. Upon entering the building, the guests were given name tags and received help finding their assigned tables. Students, donors and trustees were mixed throughout the tables. The assigned seating gave students and donors the opportunity to meet each other. After everyone was seated and eating, the Academic Vice President, Steve Baar, started the program. Baar told the audience that Westminster President Peggy Stock was ill and could not attend. He said the purpose of the luncheon to allow the donors to meet the students they have helped. He said the donors give a significant amount of money and never see who benefited from it. After Baar finished welcoming the guests, Chris Quinn, the music director and the Chamber Singers performed. The first piece was titled "Stinkin' Garbage," which was inspired bythe popular Broadway show "Stomp." The singers never spoke a word and played the song on triangles, plastic garbage cans, metal pipes, wood, etc. According to Quinn, "Stinkin' Garbage" calls for 30 metal garbage cans. The luncheon was the first time they played the piece; they did not know how loud it was going to be in the gym. Scholarship recipient Heidi Bruce was introduced and invited to say a few words on behalf of all the students. Bruce is a junior majoring in English. She said she was honored to represent all of the scholarship recipients and told the donors their support meant a great deal to the students. She said every student has a story and that many of the students would not be able oTfemiiDteir By Angela Corbett Staff Writer In the spirit of politics and the upcoming elections, the movie "The Contender" is a practical choice for those of you who are concerned with the government and its affairs. Although the movie did not meet the challenge at the box office, it is being hailed as having the fortitude to carry it through to the academy awards. "The Contender" stars Joan Alien as Laine Hanson, an Ohio senator picked out of obscurity by President Jackson Evans (Jeff Bridges) to fill the vacant position of the Vice President. The President forgoes nominating two other worthy candidates in an attempt to have the first female vice president and leave a white house legacy. Shelly Runyon, played by Gary Oldman, despises Hanson, and as the chairman of the confirmation committee. or continue to attend Westminster without their support. She said it was great there were so many donors at Westminster and that they gave money to students they have never met. Bruce said it was an honor for students to meet the donors and told them they helped the students make a future. She said most of the scholarship recipients are likely to donate money when they are able. Bruce was followed by the recognition of three scholarship donors, the Ruth Eleanor Bamberger and John Ernest Bamberger Memorial Foundation, Patricia Pattison Lakness and Jack and Nancy Behnken. They were each given a gift and were encouraged to say a few words. The Bambergers have been involved with Westminster since 1969. They were not only scholarship donors but also the donors of Bamberger Hall and other projects that required capital. Their scholarship is currently given to eight nursing students. A member of the foundation accepted the award and said the foundation appreciated the honor. She said the Bambergers would be proud of the scholars and that the foundation was proud of its history. Lakness was in Ohio and could not attend the luncheon. She attended Westminster in 1936 thanks to financial aid. She was heavily involved in student government while she attended. Her scholarships are awarded to outstanding female students. The purpose of her scholarship is to continue the legacy of leadership among female students. The Behnkens had a daughter who attended Westminster. When they came to Westminster about 22 years ago, they felt it was a good campus and took interest in the institution. They have helped Westminster in numerous ways, including bringing technology to students, erecting a front entrance sign and aiding other numerous capital projects. Their scholarship started in 1995 and is given to students who show academic achievement, character and financial need. The special guest speaker was Utah State Senator . and Westminster College Trustee, Paula Julander. Julander is a known community leader, nurse and the executive director of the Nurses Association. According to Baar, "She is the classiest Utah state senator." Julander said it was a privilege for her to be at the luncheon and be involved with "one of the greatest crown jewels in Salt Lake City." She said she believed the rest of a student's life is founded in college. She told the donors they helped to make it possible for the students to continue their education, to learn things they never knew and to make dreams to come true. Julander said her father always told her to get as much education as possible because nobody would be able to take it away from her. She then related a story of her struggle to get her second nursing degree at the age of 40. She said she did not feel up to the task and wanted to quit. She said one of her instructors would not let her quit and helped her see the potential she did not know she had. Julander told the students the donors see something the students cannot see right now, that the donors are giving the students the opportunity to fly. She told the students it takes hard work, quick thinking and muscle and that, "People who dreamed, aspired to greatness." She said that students need to take the chance to rise above challenges. Throughout her speech, she spoke of a common vision of helping others, making things better than before, rising to full potential and leaving a legacy. During her speech she quoted and spoke of John F. Kennedy, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Martin Luther King Jr. and William Shakespeare's "Julius Cesar." She finished her speech by telling students to spread their mighty wings and fly. Baar ended the luncheon by telling the donors how grateful students are to receive the financial support and how many would not be able to continue their education without the help of the donors. He told students one day they would be in a position to give back and help someone else. 55 he will do everything in his power to stop her nomination. Runyon begins an investigation and conveniently, an unnamed source comes forward with a story and photographs of the future Vice President in various deviant sexual acts. Runyon secretly leaks the story to an array of tabloids and media, and then proceeds to introduce the evidence in the committee hearings. Willing to go to any lengths to destroy Hanson's life, Runyon brings in ghosts from the past in an effort to discredit the Vice Presidential private matter in her past and no one has the right to know what happened. Her strategy of silence and composure throughout the film construct a belief in both characters and audience that the things she is accused of are true. The end of the movie brings an easily predicted twist. Although the acting portrayed the controversial subject matter well, and the film carried the moral of standing by one's principles, the storyline leaves much to be desired and the plot is reminiscent of the Clinton sex hopeful. scandal. Runyon is not alone in the endeavor to ruin Hanson's life; he has help from a Governor whose nomination for the vice president was turned down in favor of Hanson. Other congressmen opposing Hanson's nomination are also at Runyon's disposal. Throughout all the embarrassment and disgrace, Hanson refuses to deny or admit to the charges saying that it is a The movie is extremely dramatic, which is common for a movie dealing with such a divisive subject. However, it is always nice to have a little comic relief, although the only comedy, if you could even call it that, stems from the President's obsession with food. While the acting is better than average, the dialogue is lacking. The speeches given by both Hanson and the President sounded like something out of a cheaply done educational war show. I've heard more original orations while watching "South Park." Full of sex, politics and scandal, and released a month before a major election, "The Contender" should have had no one to contend with. Maybe the answer lies in the fact that many people are sick of politics, and as for the movie's main theme, the fight for privacy and the public's right to know... well, we've all been through that, and who wants to Bill and Monica's affairs. All in all, "The Contender" is an average film and for those of you who enjoy sex and politics entwined, I would recommend that you go see it. As for everyone else, my advice to you is, if you see this movie at all, do not pay $7 to do so. It will be coming to a dollar theater near you very soon. re-li- ve |