Bring it on 2012!

            Happy New Year! I hope you all had a delightful Christmas. Here in Pierre we had no snow. For once I can say I missed it. I always love a white Christmas, especially since I have never known this time of year without snow. On the other hand, it has been nice not having to drive in it, wear a coat, or run on the treadmill.

You might be wondering what I have done with my Miss Teen of South Dakota title. For the past two years, my school has not had Veterans' Day off. Instead, we all gather for an assembly with many honored guests – local veterans. Since some of these citizens are getting older and have various disabilities, the student senate seniors drive golf carts around the parking lot in order to help these find men and women out. It is the least we can do for all they have done. After we've done our job, we watch the assembly; and I have to say it never fails to give me goose bumps when they ask them to stand.

The past month brought about many events to attend bearing my banner. My family spent Thanksgiving in Aberdeen, SD, visiting my mom's family. While we were there I helped with Santa at the mall. The mall's employees had goody bags for the kids after they told (or showed) Santa what they wanted for Christmas. I was deemed one of Santa's elves and got to pass out bags. The job was very entertaining. A good number of kids were terrified of Santa. They wanted nothing to do with him, even if it meant no present from him. Other kids brought pages from magazines to show Santa exactly what they wanted. It was precious! I was lucky enough to get a picture with the busy guy before he left.

            During the month of December, I also helped with the 14^th Annual Pie Day hosted by South Dakota's Attorney General Marty Jackley at the Capitol. I poured coffee at the event two years ago when I was the Capital Area Junior Snow Queen and was given the same duty this year. As I filled cups, many people inquired what I had to do to earn the title and why I do not wear a crown. It was hard to explain to some of them that it isn't the same pageant they watch on TV. I tell them it is more of a "what have you done with your life so far" pageant, as opposed to a beauty pageant. Since I love to chat, every once and a while I would get into a deep conversation and forget that I had the coffee. A couple older ladies even asked me if I had a "significant other." I replied no, and they went on to tell me not to get involved with boys and to set the bar high when looking for one. What good advice!

            This past month I also spent a few hours ringing the Salvation Army bell at Walmart. On two Saturday nights, a couple of my Student Senate friends and I showed up to sing and ring. The weather was a little nippy, but we enjoyed freezing our toes off while singing Christmas carols. In my opinion our best number was The Twelve Days of Christmas. I ended up searching the lyrics on my phone after we realized our memories weren't as good as we thought. Many generous citizens donated money. I'm sure some of them put money in just to get us to be quiet, but we kept right along. I have been ringing the Salvation Army bell every year since 5^th grade, and it has never failed to get me in the Christmas spirit… even when the ground and air are snowless. Unfortunately, the Christmas season only lasts so long. Now all we can do is look forward to a new year and make it the best one yet! The next year promises to be big one with the transition from high school to college, but I'm ready! Bring it on 2012!

- Katherine Van Gerpen

We are Family!

I'm extremely behind with my blog…

I will start off with the activity that consumed most of my time and energy during the first few months of school. Every day after school, until the end of October I had cross country practice. Unfortunately, I didn't go to run but to manage. I injured my legs this summer running which made it sometimes painful to walk, let alone run. I believe, however, that everything happens for a reason, and I didn't let this unfortunate event ruin my season. My new friend, Andrew, who was/is also injured, and I made managing enjoyable. Being former runners we knew what had to be done and how to do it. Andrew and I did everything from filing newspaper articles, to writing thank you notes, to timing. Even though we were only managers, we were still part of the team and included in everything.

The best thing about our cross country team this year is that we are a family. In fact our locker signs even say, "WE ARE FAMILY!" We didn't just spend practices together; we had family bowling, family swimming, family movie night, and multiple carb feeds. This didn't only make the season more fun, but I believed it helped us place well at state. The girls' cross country team took home fourth place, the best our girls' team has ever received.  And the boys' team three-way tied for fourth and ended up with fifth. We were one point away from winning the best program in the state! The best part about our places is that we got to go to HuHot afterwards to celebrate by stuffing our stomachs! I was so glad that I was able to share this proud moment with the teams, even if I was only a manager. I'm excited for everything Pierre Cross Country will be in the future.

- Katherine Van Gerpen

Forever a Gov!

My senior homecoming has unfortunately come to an end. The theme for the week was superheroes, and it was unquestionably action packed. Monday's dress up day was traditionally class color day. Being a senior I was finally blessed with the easiest color to find – black. That night my first, best friend, whose name is also Katherine, won Homecoming Queen! Exciting!

On Tuesday, many creative people showed up in their homemade, duct tape garb. I too, wore a blue and white, polka dot, duct tape dress with matching head band that I had handcrafted all on my own; I was even told a few times that from a distance, it looked like a genuine dress. Maybe I should reconsider my future career? Later that afternoon I marched in my last homecoming parade, and I have to say, it's one thing I won't miss next year.

Each class is given the responsibility to put together a float for the parade. Since I am senior class president, it was my duty to organize this ritual for the last time. It's always a challenge to get people to ride the float, especially now that many seniors are part of Govmobiles, marching band, or sport's floats. As a result, my parents and little brother drove a flashy yellow Camaro, covered in many superheroes' sayings, on behalf of the senior class.

The comfiest dress up day was Wednesday. You have to be purely passive not to join the fun of pajama day! I went all out by even rolling my hair in curlers, with my mom's help. I was also the head of the homecoming t-shirt committee. The shirts had a big superhero G on the front, and the back read, "The Govs are our superheroes!" And then the Mitchell mascot was saying "…and our worst nightmare!" They didn't turn out exactly as I had envisioned, but people seemed to like them nonetheless.

If you would have walked into Riggs High School on Thursday morning, you would have been swarmed by multiple Spidermen, Catwomen, and unrecognizable figures that were mysteriously non-verbal. You guessed it… superhero day! Being that my nickname is Kat, I sported feline ears, whiskers, and a tail for the day.

Game day! Green and white was Friday's theme. I wore a green shirt with a large superhero K duct taped on it. Everyone loves Friday because school ends earlier in order for the class Olympics and powder puff game to be played. The senior class student senate members are in charge of organizing both these events and "refereeing" the Olympics. As always, the senior class won the Olympics. A few of the games that the classes and teachers competed in were bobbing for Barbie, Saltine whistler, face painting, and head balloon pop. We even made them eat peanut butter, hot pepper jelly, pigs' feet and mackerel sandwiches. Yum!

Not only did the seniors win the Olympics, but we were named the powder puff champions as well, and that's not even rigged! I contributed to the 30-6 win on the defense side. The greatest part of the game is watching everyone in my class put forth the effort towards a mutual objective. We were in high spirits even though we lost the actual football game 61-6 against Mitchell. A win would have been memorable; however, I will always be proud to be a Pierre Governor!

-          Katherine Van Gerpen

Doing work

Sorry it's been a while since I've written a blog! I feel like I have so much to write about, but I'll stay focused.

My first question on stage at the Miss Teen of South Dakota pageant was, "What would you do if you were given $5000?" I answered that I would use the funds to transport students from all over the state to Pierre to help clear out the sandbags. The second question I was asked was, "What would you do if you were chosen as Miss Teen of South Dakota?" Along with two other answers, I again mentioned the de-sandbagging efforts.

The first Saturday after school began a friend and I spent about eight hours removing sandbags from four different homes. The last house we worked at was, by a long shot, the dirtiest one I have been to yet. When I got home, before letting one foot step into the house, my dad sprayed me with the hose. I'm sure there was a smidge of built up anger against me that was relievedby him then. :) That following Tuesday for cross country practice we helped remove sandbags for a former, cross country, runner's family. We made swift work of the mansion size house with 30 plus runners and had a grand time roasting in the sun together.

That following Saturday I volunteered again. This time I was assigned to a group consisting of all older men who were constantly worried about me and always reminding me to use my legs, not my back and to drink plenty of water. I had unknowingly adopted six protective fathers for the day. At the second to last house, we joined a group of teens from Rapid City who were part of a program that drove up for the day to help out. It was exciting to work with more people my age. We may have had more fun than should be allowed while de-sandbagging. But shhh! Don't tell! That day I helped free double the number of homes of the dreadful walls, clearing out nine different houses!

Most recently, last Wednesday I skipped out of school for the afternoon with nine other student senate members to merely put a dent in a tall wall. The house was out near the golf course, and needless to say, the wall wasn't much shorter than me. Throughout the afternoon we happened upon a number of spiders and snakes. Since I have neither arachnophobia, nor ophidiophobia (fear of snakes), I happily carried the friendly creatures to requested locations, far away from the fearful ones. Despite the fact that we only removed half the bags, our tall pile clearly shouted that we did work.

Keep on the lookout for another blog this weekend after the shock of homecoming has leaves my system.

- Katherine Van Gerpen

Here's to the year of "lasts"

I am sad to say that I am a senior. It feels like yesterday I was a freshman trying to figure out how to turn around discretely in the hallway, while simultaneously pretending to know where I was going. This morning my parents took the cliché first day of school picture of my brother and I with backpacks on and all. Of course, my dad didn't fail to remind me that my soon-to-be teenage brother is now obviously taller than I am. Finally, it became clear to me that I need to invest in more pairs of heels… I mean, it became clear that this is my last, first day of school picture, and this is truly going to be the year of "lasts." BAM! I had the title of my next blog.

My class schedule isn't easy, but life isn't always easy…

1^st – Personal Finance/Open

2^nd – AP Calculus

3^rd – Band

4^th – Open/AP Psychology

5^th – Honors English

6^th – Intro to Info Tech/ AP Government

7^th – Biology 2

 

            As I was sitting in school today, listening to the monotonous, welcome back spiels, I was reminiscing about all the adventures I had this summer. Unfortunately, Pierre was invaded by the Missouri River at the end of May. The first four days of my summer break were spent helping family friends move out and sandbag their home. Luckily, Girls State swooped in to save the day… or the week. Never have I been in the presence of so many remarkable personalities as were present at Girls State. I say with pride that I was a part of the city St. Paul. Immediately after Girls State I crossed the state to participate in the Volks March and climb Crazy Horse for the second time. That makes it a tradition!

Being the huge nerd I am, I not only attended one, but two Health Professions Camps this summer; one at USD and another at SDSU. Both provided me with useful information about a career in the health field. If you were wondering, I have dreamt about growing up to be a pediatrician since I was ten. Until then, I wanted to be a babysitter. In essence, I have always loved children; even when I was still a child myself.

I mentioned in my first blog that I would say "I do" to Student Council. This summer I journeyed all the way to The Gateway Arch (St. Louis, MO) to take part in the first NASC (National Association of Student Councils) STAR Leadership Conference. My favorite element of the conference was trading StudCo shirts with members from other states. I also enjoyed exchanging pins because it was an excuse to erratically initiate a conversation and a simple way to beautify my lanyard. OK that was two things, but I couldn't choose.

 

I had memorable times in Pierre this summer, as well. Many days and evenings were spent with my friends and family swimming, star-gazing, riding bikes, watching movies, or sitting around the campfire. During these last few weeks of summer I have been able to check a couple more things off my bucket list. 1. Pierre was host to a 3.4 magnitude earthquake in the afternoon of August 9, and I felt it! 2. I got to drive a jet ski for the first time, and you better believe the speedometer hit 60 mph. So basically, I had a first-class, last summer as a "kid." There was that word "last."

 

-          Katherine Van Gerpen

Hi, my name is...

This is my first time blogging, and I have to say I'm excited about it! I'd like to start off by letting you get to know me! My name is Katherine Van Gerpen, and I'm seventeen years old. I was born in Pierre, SD, and it continues to be my lovely home. The Miss Teen of South Dakota pageant two weekends ago was my second one; my pageant involvement began when I participated in Miss Pre-Teen of South Dakota four summers ago.  The only other title I have held is the 2009 Capital Area Junior Snow Queen. 

Lucille Ball once said, "If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do." What a great quote! I don't want to bore you with every activity I've ever been in; instead, I'd like tell you about my favorite one. It starts with a "Student" and ends with a "Council." If Student Council were a person, I'd probably marry it. The variety of students that are involved in StudCo are what make it so special to me. They are motivated, hardworking, self-disciplined, and eager to make the world a better place. Prior to winning Miss Teen of South Dakota, my greatest memory was attending the NFHS National Student Leadership Conference in July 2010, in Indianapolis, IN. The conference was overflowing with amazing individuals from around the continent, many of which I still keep in close contact with!

I'd like to talk about the pageant in Pierre two weekends ago. What a great experience! The other two candidates who were Honor Court members were Deanna Romero, Sioux Falls, and Ashley Zimmerman, Pierre. It just so happened that we all had red dresses which made the top three picture look like we planned it. My favorite part of the weekend wasn't winning but sharing the final moment with one of my best friends, Ashley Zimmerman, especially, since that morning she had said, "What if we're the final two?" Crazy how things work out that way!

This past weekend I attended the Brown County Fair in Aberdeen, SD. I had planned to go to the fair before I won Miss Teen of South Dakota, but it turned out to be a good place to get a little wear out of my banner. And let me tell you, it is a conversation piece, which is perfect because I enjoy meeting new people and chatting with them. I was also offered a few free tries at different games which I gracefully failed at. Overall, it was a good chance to get used to wearing my banner around.

Thank you for reading my first blog! I plan to keep it up-to-date on my doings so check back soon!

-          Katherine Van Gerpen

Introducing Miss Teen of South Dakota 2011

Hi everyone! This is Sunny (blogmaster and State Director). This past weekend a new Miss Teen of South Dakota was named during the program in Pierre. Congratulations to Katherine Van Gerpen from Pierre! Welcome to the family Katherine!!!