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Show -NEWS- Spanish Fork A8 • WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2007 Coveting what matters most Steve Hardman / Spanish Fork News Steve Hardman / Spanish Fork News REPRESENTATIVES: State Senator Mark Madsen and Representative Aaron Tilton argued in favor of the voucher system. TEACHER FEATURE: Pictured, left to right, are Nebo Reading Specialist Debbie May, Karen Anderson and Zions Branch Manager Kathy Brandon. Voucher debate: Teacher honored: From DEBATE • A l over a period of 13 years, it would save citizens over $265 million. Swensen pointed out that citizens are going to have to put money toward education no matter what. But if the voucher system were implemented, the private schools would not be required to be fiscally responsible to the public, because voucher schools would not be required to publicly record any financial information. According to Tilton, the cost of education is going to increase no matter what. If we were to stick with the current education system, property tax, which is already high, will be increased, he said. Vouchers, he argued, are the solution to the growth problem. Madsen said that every person should have a direct say in how their educational funds are being spent. He said that it is difficult for a parent to have a say in the public school system, unless they run for the school board. According to Swensen, everyone does have an educational choice, but the implementation of the voucher system would allow schools to run based on profit, not what is best for the children. She mentioned that the schools would have no accountability to the government for at least five years, that the schools could teach whatever they wanted without being audited, and could hire teachers without any credentials. The evening allowed those present to glean information to assist their decision in either supporting or opposing Referendum 1. From ANDERSON • A l Anderson has always loved working with young children, and her favorite part of teaching is watching the excitement and interest with which they approach learning. "It's so exciting to see how much little children really want to learn," she said, 'it is so magical when they first get introduced to reading, and I love watching their eyes light up and watching them progress." Her enthusiasm and love came through to the countless children who gained a love of reading through her example. Last year, Anderson was diagnosed with non-smoking lung cancer, and had to retire immediately from her job as literacy specialist to begin fighting for her health instead. She has spent the year undergoing chemotherapy. Then, this summer, her husband, a special education teacher in Santaquin also received a diagnosis of cancer. But although her health wilt not permit her to be currently in the schools, Anderson's influence is still felt throughout the community. After being recognized on the KSL Teacher Feature, Anderson was honored at a celebration in Spanish Fork on Oct. 4, 2007. As part of her award, she also received a plaque from Zions Bank, an overnight stay at Anniversary Inn, a gift certificate for dinner at La Caille Restaurant, and a pair of season tickets from Hale Centre Theater, West Valley. Juggling: From B R I N E Y * A 1 foyajjjS Integrity, I "We live in a clean and beautiful place, and we need to work together to keep it that way. We need to be friendly, and mindful of each other, service-oriented, and put ourselves in others' shoed." — Richard M. Davis SDanisniFofhlCitvlOouncil News about people you know By people you know. -NEWS- Spanish Fork Locally owned and operated. Even through the strenuous years of BYU law school, Briney kept tossing the balls. He found it gave him a strange kind of distinction from the hundreds of other law students that were applying for jobs. Juggling was not only a distinction, but also served as an outlet for Briney during law school. It was the one thing that could let his brain change gears and release some of the pressure of school. As Briney perfected his act, he entered competitions, and showed pretty well. The first time he competed in the JuggleFest in Salt Lake City, he took third place. The next year he won, and is, in fact, still the reigning champ, "by default," he said, since the year he won was the last year they held the competition. "So I can say that I am the best professional juggler in Utah," he said. In spite of Briney's tongue in cheek bragging rights, he takes his competition seriously. "When I was looking at a competition, I practiced two hours a day for six days a week," he said. He also competed at the 2006 LJA (International Jugglers Association). Besides competitions, Briney's had a lot of neat experiences performing. For a while he combined his act with a partner, and they had the opportunity to perform at the Olympic venues in 2002. His partner was a bronze medallist in the international juggling competition, and Briney said it was hard when they had to split. Going from a two-person act back to a one-person act was a difficult shift. "1 had to compensate in a lot of ways. It was difficult to do solo after working as team. I had to carry it alone, and that was tough. He was amazing/' Briney said. One of the ways he compensated was to add comedy to his act. He also had to "slick up" his routine. "With a partner, they can cover for you if you make a mistake. I had to learn how to turn every drop into a trick," he said. One of his favorite places to perform is the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival. "I'm the only one in the world that does story juggling," he said. "I use the balls to tell stories. The crowds really like it and Timp is nice because the people there get it." Briney loves juggling for a lot of reasons. It gives him a different hat to wear outside his law office. "Everyone likes to see a juggler — no one is that excited to see an attorney. It's a nice contrast to law," he said. Now juggling has become a big part of who he is. "It's a glove. It just fits me. It comes as a natural thing to me," he said. Briney may laugh a little over holding his "default" title, but he has received a lot of attention at the international festival because of what he does. He knows thousands of tricks. He is constantly analyzing and perfecting his act. He said he knows more fiveball tricks than anyone in the world. His five-ball chops is probably his flashiest trick. The chops is a juggling trick where he catches a ball across his chest with a sharp chopping motion. He can do an eight-ball chop as well, but said he likes the five-ball chop better. Though it may not sound like it, a five-ball chop is actually harder than the eight-ball, and there are very few jugglers who can even do an eight-ball chop. He has juggled swords, fireballs and other "dangerous" props. He even did a "gig" where he juggled swords by strobe light. He said that it's not as dangerous as it seems. Briney is a world-class juggler, and he said there are a few things that he's found that differentiate his style from others. "Most of the famous jugglers focus on numbers. I focus on tricks that are unique," he said. Briney creates most of his own tricks, which is also a rarity in the juggling world. He said there are only four or five jugglers in the world that have created dozens of tricks. Briney is one of them. He likes to do strange catches, like a two-ball catch — just to make it more difficult. He said that his throws and patterns are all the same, but they look different with different props. He uses a lot of different props, but his favorites are still balls, though he uses a big variety of sizes and types of balls. Briney said that anyone can learn to juggle, from baby stuff to nine-ball juggling. He said the basics aren't that tough. "It's not as hard as people think it is. There are 10-yearolds doing eight balls," he said. He said the fastest he has seen someone pick up juggling is 15 minutes — but that is "dang fast." Usually it takes a couple of hours. Briney said that studies have shown that jugglers have an increased ability to learn in other areas. "Why aren't they teaching it in schools?" he joked. Briney said his family has benefited from his juggling. His kids accompany him to the carnivals, shows, festivals and other events where he performs. They are building a lot of memories together through it. Not only that, but his kids are learning to juggle, too. He practices in his garage, and during the wintertime, when there aren't as many distractions for the kids, they come out and practice with him. Briney is available for hire through his website at www. jugglingtricksunlimited.com, or call 787-5513. Briney has spent a lot of time perfecting his website. He said he has compiled the "most comprehensive juggling website" out there. He said he likes to do bigger events like assemblies for schools, and his gig lasts at least a half an hour. Briney lives in Payson with his wife April and their five kids with one on way. |