NEWS
Plymouth Football Names Unified Sports Club Hero of the Week
By: Ally Schwinke
Staff Writer
The Unified Sports Club was announced as the Plymouth Football Hero of the Week. Each member of the club was given a football jersey and the club as a whole received a trophy.
“Hero of the Week simply means a community member or members who have either done something or gone through something that we feel deserve special recognition,” said Kyle Meteyer, Assistant Principal for Activities and Athletics at Plymouth. “Student athletes get a lot of attention, but they put the Hero of the Week presentation front-and-center to help our students, fans, parents and coaches remember what is really important in life.”
Unified Sports is a club where general education and special education students pair up and play a variety of sports. In the fall, they practice bowling; winter is basketball and in spring, they play bocce ball. At the end of each season, the club plays a tournament against other unified teams or participates in the Special Olympics.
The club is led by Amy Boyer, Merril DeRose, Lisa Benages and Lauren Delapaz.
According to Boyer, a teacher of students with Autism at P-CEP, the club was first started in the spring of 2014. That season, they only played bocce ball. DeRose, an adapted physical education teacher, said that over the last year they have gained participation and that is why they were able to add basketball and bowling.
“This program gives our students the opportunity to be student-athletes and to build lifelong relationships with partners, coaches and other families. I felt honored to be a part of this program and I know our athletes, partners and parents did too by all of the smiles on everyone’s faces,” said DeRose.
“Everyone part of Unified Sports was thrilled to be honored by the Plymouth football team. I don’t even know who was more excited: the students or their families. Students go through challenges their whole lives and to have a club in our school that promotes inclusion and exception is amazing,” Boyer added.
Jake Stelmaszek, a senior at Plymouth and a member of the Unified Sports club, said, “Unified Sports is an enriching club. I am glad that I have been a part of it because of its eye opening experiences. The club has impacted my life as well as many others. I have made many new friends that I would not have met if it was not for this club. I was so excited to find out that it was being honored as Hero of The Week and I hope that it will gain more popularity because of this.”
DeRose said that the club tries to provide a source of healthy competition and camaraderie. She also says that some athletes may not always win, but they try their hardest just like anyone else.
The club believes and follows this statement from the Special Olympics, “Let me win but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.”
Photo by Steve Schwinke
The Unified Sports club is honored by the Plymouth football team. The club was celebrated for encouraging general and special education students to come together to play sports.
Saturday, November 28, 2015
On Oct. 26, the World Health Organization released a statement of its findings that processed meats are now classified as carcinogenic, meaning having the potential to cause cancer, and red meat is “probably carcinogenic.”
Red meat, including beef and pork, is listed as a group 2A carcinogen, meaning that its risk is lower and is based on limited evidence.
Processed meats, or anything that has gone through a process to enhance flavor or preserve the quality, is a group 1 carcinogen. Other carcinogens in group 1 are tobacco and asbestos, however, the WHO denies that they are equally as dangerous. In a Q&A on the WHO website, they said, “The IARC [International Agency for Research on Cancer] classifications describe the strength of the scientific evidence about an agent being a cause of cancer, rather than assessing the level of risk.”
The IARC used a compilation of over 800 studies done in multiple countries, looking at a variety of diets. They assess the association between red and processed meat and more than a dozen types of cancer. The most evident link is between the consumption of red meat and colorectal, pancreatic, and prostate cancer. Processed meats are found to be linked to colorectal cancer and possibly stomach cancer.
Though no one is diagnosed with cancer and told that the sole cause is eating processed meat, the Global Burden of Disease Project estimates that about 34,000 cancer deaths per year worldwide are attributable to diets high in processed meat.
Some students at the Park are very mindful of this information and looking into other ways to decrease their risk of health issues. Devankar Mukhi, Plymouth senior, said, “I still want to enjoy my food, but I want to stay away from pork because I found out how bad it is for you.”
The press release from the WHO says that “each 50 gram portion of processed meat eaten daily increases the risk of colorectal cancer by 18 percent.” That is the equivalent of two slices of deli meat or bacon.
“I’m not gonna lie, I don’t really keep in mind the health side when I eat. The taste is always the first factor I look at,” said Salem senior Dhaman Bansal. “It’s only when I’m not feeling good that I look at how bad the food I’m eating is.”
World Health Organization Calls Processed Meats Carcinogenic
By: Kylie Cardenas
Staff Writer
Saturday, November 28, 2015
Coach Tim Baechler Earns Place in Hall of Fame
By: Michael Adzima
Sports Editor
After 26 years of coaching high school football, Canton Varsity coach Tim Baechler is being inducted into the Michigan High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
He has been with the Chiefs since 1998 and has coached the program to eight division titles, seven district championships, two regional championships and a state championship game appearance in 2005.
After the 2015 regular season, Baechler reached a career record with Canton of 152-46.
The coach has found success and a home here in Canton. “I think it means I’ve been around for a while, so I’ve been able to enjoy some longevity,” said Baechler about his being honored for all his years as a coach.
His son Brocton played for the Chiefs, and his other son Lou is currently a sophomore playing linebacker.
Before coming to Canton, Baechler began his coaching career as an offensive coordinator with Onsted High School in 1989. He then became an assistant coach at his alma mater White Pigeon High School in 1991, but left in 1992 to take his first head coaching job at Hudson. Baechler stayed at Hudson until 1997 when he went to coach at Dexter, and after one season, came to Canton to begin his long success with the Chiefs.
This is not Coach Baechler’s first hall of fame honor as a coach. He was inducted as a member of the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2012. With all of his success, especially at Canton, Baechler is extremely grateful for the help of his fellow coaches, “It’s a tremendous honor, but it’s really a testament that I’ve got loyal coaches, great men and they’re like brothers to me. Certainly they have just as much to do with it as any coach would.”
Photo courtesy of Canton Athletics
Coach Baechler has instilled a tough and competitive system at Canton. The offensive revolves around running the ball and the defense is relentless. The style of play might not be pretty, but it has brought tremendous success for the Chiefs.
Baechler also attributes his success to the commitment and toughness of his players, “All the players I’ve had over the years are committed and believe in what we’re doing,” he said.
Coach Baechler has had a major impact in his decade and a half of coaching Canton’s football team. The honors and championships may keep coming for the coach, but he will always be thankful for the hard work and help from the players and coaches who have worked with him along the way, adding that “You wish you could just have everybody who’s involved with you get that hall of fame ring with you, because it’s not just me.”
Saturday, November 28, 2015