What May I Give?
Virginia Covey Boswell
What may I give you for Christmas?
What shall you have this year?
A beacon of hope to enfold you,
A word from the heart to cheer?

All this would I willingly give you:
The sunlight through green leafy trees;
The stars in their courses and moonlight,
And always, awareness of these.

I wish you the fun of a new friend,
The joy of a pleasure shared;
I wish for you true understanding,
And laughter, with nothing spared.

A child�s little hand in your large one,
And firelight ever aglow;
For tenderness holding you lightly
And encircling all you may know.

The enriching discovery of kindness,
A winged and wonderful thing,
The depth of its meaning and music
All this would I reverently bring.

May the road ever rise up to meet you,
May the wind give you nothing to fear;
May the sun shine warmly upon you
May these be your gifts this year.

	Drunk driving is the number one cause of death for Americans up to the age of 30.
	Someone is killed by a drunk driver every 23 minutes.
	44% of all night time fatal alcohol related crashes are caused by the 16 to 24 age group.
	6 out of 10 people who kill themselves in single vehicle accidents are drunk.
	1 in 3 high school students rides in a car driven by a heavy drinker at least once a month.
	On a Friday or Saturday night 1 out of 10 cars around you is driven by a drunk driver.
	Of 60 children born today, 1 will die and 3 will be gravely injured in car accidents related to alcohol before their 20th birthday.

          - Heather Hill

HOW TO SURVIVE A
BLIND DATE
     He collects bugs, rubber bands, and he�s a wonderful human being. That�s all your Aunt Emma told you about the boy she�s gone and fixed you up with, so understandably, you�re nervous. After all, what if this you wants to show you his bug collection?
     NO doubt about it: A blind date can be dreadful. But you can survive - maybe even have fun.
     When you and your mystery date discuss the particulars of your date on the phone, don�t tell him, "I'm game for anything� - you could end up on a guided tour of an ant farm. Instead, ask him what he enjoys doing. A movie isn't a bad idea. Afterwards, it will give you something to talk about.
     A blind date is not the best time to experiment with a new look, so hold off getting that Cyndi Lauper haircut you�ve been admiring. Wear something you feel comfortable in, then pray he doesn�t show up in a plaid shirt with striped trousers.
     Think of a blind date as a test of your courage - an adventure even. Who knows
- maybe he�ll be the spitting image of Richard Gere, Robert Redford, or Tom Selleck.
          - Diane Churan

Holiday Workouts
     You can eat, drink, and be merry during the holidays and not look and feel like the stuffed turkey you just ate - if you do some of the following exercises. Each of them burns off 100 calories.
   3-5 min. of jumping rope
   15 min. of jogging
   17 min. of downhill skiing
   18 min. cross-country skiing
   20 min. of cycling
   17 min. of swimming
   20 min. of singles tennis
   25 min. of brisk walking
   34 min. of skating
   45 min. of bowling
          - Jen Eckel

CHRISTMAS ABROAD (Cont.)
Switzerland
     Christkindli arrives in Switzerland in a sleigh drawn by six reindeer. He has wings and wears white robes and a crown on his head. He drives about the town distributing gifts. In this land of public fountains, an interesting custom is followed by young persons of marriageable age. On the way to midnight service they secretly go to nine different fountains and drink three sips from each. The belief is that the young man�s or girl�s spouse will be found waiting at the door of the church.

Poland
     The Polish people make thin cakes, oplatki, for Christmas. They are decorated with holy pictures and are blessed by the priests. On Christmas Eve they are eaten by members of the family, and are even exchanged among friends much as we exchange Christmas cards. The custom in Poland of �carrying the star� consists of a transparent paper star with Christmas scenes on it. The star has a light inside which shines through the paper showing the scene.
          - Steph Sosh

Outstanding Students

Nothing is impossible to a faithful and willing heart.
     Author Unknown

MARK DERESKA
     This issue of the Penn Post is honoring an outstanding student of the junior high. Mark Dereska, an eighth grade student, is a dedicated swimmer. He first became involved in swimming by participating on the Antietam Swim Team and is presently in his fourth year of training. He spends 45 minutes on weights and 2 hours in the water 5 days a week.
     Mark now swims on a national level and has competed in the states. Mark has achieved the following: won YMCA States in 50 freestyle as a 10 and under with a time that placed first in the nation for YMCA�s that year, 3 county records plus many throughout Y�s and United States Swimming, won or placed at the Junior Olympics both summer and winter for the past 2 years, received Sam Cohen Trophy for outstanding swimming at Antietam pool for 2 consecutive years. Altogether Mark has 110 medals, 32 trophies, 6 plaques, and 32 ribbons.
     In the future Mark would like to break a national record. When asked about Olympic hopes, Mark replied, �I spend my time training for the next meet. If the Olympics would come up, I�d love to try and win a gold medal or two.�
          - Steph Sosh
 

New Students

     ANGELO DiMARIA previously attended school at St. Mary�s parochial school Angelo enjoys school at Mt. Penn.
     One of the biggest adjustments for him is becoming familiarized with the school and switching to different rooms for his classes. He likes most of his classes and is particularly fond of music, art, and wood shop.
     Another major change for Angelo is becoming accustomed to gym class; although he finds it to be very different, he thoroughly enjoys it.
     Angelo also finds the cafeteria to be new to him. He likes the food served and is adapting well to his new environment.

     JOSEPH OCETNIK, who is from Reading, claims that Mt. Penn is smaller than his previous school. He enjoys the lunches here very much, although he feels they should be lengthier.
Joseph, a 7th grader, misses going on regular field trips as he did at his previous school, as well as his school mates. He looks forward to being a high school student and joining the baseball team.

Work Study Programs
     Many people who would like to go to college but can�t afford it don�t realize that more than nine hundred colleges and universities across the country are involved in cooperative education programs. There are plans that allow students to attend school part of the year, and work in jobs usually related to their major for the remainder. Therefore a student can pay for a good part of her college education while she works.
     These programs are called �cooperative education� because they depend on cooperation between outside agencies and the college to design a program in which study and work will reinforce each other.
     In 1968, there were 120 of these pro�grams. Today there arc about 920, and enrollment is still climbing.
          - Kelly Grim

SHOTS ARE HOT!
     This years girls basketball team has an outstanding number of participants. There is a lot of talent to be found, along with depth.
     There are three Varsity starters returning from last year: Roberta Schreiber, Amy Miller, and Diane Churan. There is also one sophomore, who played last year: Lara Stutz.
     Mrs. Thomas, head coach, hopes to have a winning season. She feels that there is much talent and victories aren�t out of reach.
 

An introduction of players:
Roberta Schreiber	Marsha Yerger
Diane Churan	Valerie Kring
Kim Schmidt	Catherine Krize
Barbara Yerger	Judith Krize
Amy Miller	Jenny Moyer
Lara Stutz	Traci DeCarlo
Margaret Monroe	Amy Milakofsky
Kristen Bukowski	Cindy Jurasinski
Lisa Jozwiak	Debbie Albrecht
	Pam Tucci

         - Diane Churan

Outstanding Athletes

BOWLING FOR FUN
     It�s that time again! Mount Penn bowlers are striking up the alleys in preseason. It�s bowling intramural time. Most of the people who participate in this activity usually play during the regular bowling season. It�s a practice session for them. All players play a regular three game set as if they were playing during regular season. The only difference is that the bowlers are not competing against other schools.
     Mr. Fegely, coach of the Mount Penn girls� and boys� bowling teams, feels that this season is filled with some high prospects. He mentioned that the girls bowling team will probably be contenders in their division. On the other hand, this year�s boys� bowling team is very young and that may cause some difficulty in gaining a top spot in their division. The boys wilt be in a building process this year.
          - Karen Denby