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14 saturday july 27 2002 economist sun stouffville tribune at the schools teacher of the month staff photosjoerd witteveen bryanna lundie nominated luca lavoie her french teacher at kateri tekakwitha catholic school in markham as the york region newspaper groups teacher of the month for july french teacher shapes lives through language sport by linda johnson staff writer when luca lavoie accepted a teaching position in ontario 14 years ago it was supposed to be temporary something to do before moving on to another profession i thought i would do it for a year or maybe two he said but i got hooked by that accident mr lavoie found his ideal career the stu dents at kateri tekakwitha catholic school in markham where he teaches french would undoubtedly agree at the suggestion of grade 4 student bryanna lundie mr lavoie is york region newspaper groups teacher of the month for july bryanna said she nominated mr lavoie because he not only helped her improve her french hes also a fantastic track and field and crosscountry coach mr lavoie is a great french teacher she said he is very enthusiastic and tries to make it fun for all the classes he has helped me learn the language and i love going to french class mr lavoie is a good coach and i like the fact he has helped us with our running she said we came in first in the legacy run hes nice to be with every year mr lavoie organ izes a running club for students in grades 4 to 8 the club which now has 100 members helps prepare them for the area cross country meet in the fall and the track and field meet in june it gets the students out run- ning laps after school so rather than sit in front of the tv and play video games they stay after school and jog with me he said laughing mr lavoie said principal ron sciulli is always supportive of ideas to encourage physical activity among students this year the school which has only 300 students placed third in the york region cross country finals in the legacy run the annual fundraiser for markham stouffville hospital the school scored the highest participation and the most money raised but mr lavoie said students commitment to the sport is more important than whether they win to me as long as the kids are committed and they are having a good time thats what counts if we do well thats a bonus when i bring the team if all of them have been working hard and have been committed to come to practice im happy even if we finish last but usually we dont he said the running club is open to all students so he said even the slower runners have a chance to do well because they compete against themselves not others so its up to them if they want to get their 50 km ribbon they have come out and jog with us thats something i try to pro mote he said even if youre not a great athlete if you com mit if youre consistent and come out and jog youll see the result at the end as they run each student gets a popsicle stick for each lap com pleted the club has a reward system with ribbons plaques and medallions for students who reach threshold distances or 50 100 or 150 km mr lavoie said whether hes coaching or teaching french he always tried to make what hes teaching interesting and fun after all part of being a kid is to have fun i think they grow up too fast he said before becoming a teacher mr lavoie was an artillery officer in new brunswick after six years in the army he decided to go back to school and went to quebec city to complete an ma when he saw an opening to teach in ontario he took it plam ning after a year or so to move to the united states but instead he stayed he said he loves the chance to shape others lives its the difference you can make in the lives of those you work with and teach he said its the teaching of the gospel the chance to give the students opportunities to grow and to travel through life with a different view concert enthusiasts responsible for safety by patrick mcalpine at the schools writer after spending nearly two hours in line a music fan checks his watch again the fan looks ahead at the thousands of people waiting ahead of him many of these people are fanning themselves with programs or drench ing their heads with bottled water to fight the 36 cheat this is how more than 32000 peo ple celebrated canada day at the radio station edge 102s annual edgefest concert the summer concert festival held at molson park in barrie has been one of the most popular concert events in ontario for years unfortunately this years date was also the hottest day of summer thus far the event featured performances by several wellknown hard rock and alternative bands including canadian groups default finger 11 and nickelback overall more than 35 groups were on the bill attending concerts remains a favourite pastime for teens and young adults it is a chance for fans to experience a performers talents without the use of studio equipment and as such it pro vides a more natural environment to their music however as the popularity of a group rises so do the ticket prices tickets for this years edgefest cost 4250 from ticketmaster tickets for many other concerts can go even high er reaching 90 or more upon entry to the venue summer concert goers probably would have wanted to buy something to drink to battle the sweltering heat as a firsttime crowd surfer i must say that it was the most amazing and craziest thing i have done in a while it was a very interesting feeling to be taken across the crowd in the air but when they reached the refresh ment tent they may have been sur prised to discover that bottles of water that normally sell for 1 in vending machines were being offered at 350 a slice of pizza went for 4 so why then would anyone espe cially teenagers who need to save money dish out their hardearned cash just to see a band whose music they have heard numerous times i go to shows because i like the whole experience says stouffville res ident and avid concertgoer danielle vidinu you get this feeling as the artist walks onto the stage you feel like a part of it all for one night it is the best feel- ing to sing along with the performer live to one of your favorite songs ms vidinu 18 has been to more than 50 concerts since the age of six she has seen everything from pop sen sations destinys child and nsync to the notorious eminem and limp bizkit limp bizkit members have been charged several times for inciting vio lence at their concerts fans have been injured and even killed while moshing a form of danc ing that involves a large group of peo ple hurling their bodies against each other with as much force as possible if you dont like moshing dont see a rock concert go watch a britney spears concert or something says markham rock enthusiast michael mills mr mills 18 says the crowd is inspired to mosh after feeding off of the energy of the band on the other hand he is aware that there can be consequences from get ting too into the moment he has the scars to prove it ive had three concussions 18 stitches and five opencut wounds from attending rock concerts mr mills said crowd surfing another form of con cert entertainment in which audience members are lifted up and held above the heads of fellow fans and passed to the front of the stage may be an exhil arating experience but it is also anoth er way that people can get hurt at a concert as a firsttime crowd surfer i must say that it was the most amazing and craziest thing i have done in a while it was a very interesting feeling to be taken across the crowd in the air says 18yearold jennifer senez unfortunately during my crowd surfing someone accidentally dropped me and i fell flat on my back it hurt immensely die day after while injuries are a major concern of concert organizers there is also a focus in eliminating any form of drug use or underage drinking on concert grounds however this rarely stops everyone from sneaking in banned substances during an edgefest performance by the band sevendust a marijuana ciga rette was thrown onto the stage at the lead singers request the vocalist then paused in the middle of a song lit the joint and smoked it in front of thousands of people this is not to say that all concerts will be overpriced dangerous or lit tered with drugs most are very secure safe and fun it is the responsibility of those who attend a performance to stay safe and have a good time if they can do this they will most like ly enjoy a performance to remember patrick mcalpine is a student at brother andre catholic high scliool in marklmw