Idra '18 feature on NBC Today Show

Mount Michael senior Jacob Idra was recently featured on the NBC's Today Show in a story on Omaha's Talons Basketball team consisting of young men from Omaha's Sudanese community.

View Today Show Story

Students Donate to Charities

The Student Council recently donated $611 in profits from the annual Halloween Dance to Benedictine Schools in Puerto Rico. 

They also donated $220 raised from No Shave November to Wigs for Kids

Worsham Signs to Play Baseball

Blake Worsham '18 Signs to Play for the Broncos

Senior Blake Worsham signs a letter of intent to play baseball for the Hastings College Broncos. Blake is the son of Bob and Amy Freshman of  Omaha.  Blake attended Elkhorn Ridge Middle School before coming to Mount Michael. 

Left to Right Standing: Dr. Peters, Bob and Amy Freshman, Coach Bob Sullivan, Coach Michael Hagge
Seated: Blake Worsham, Coach Steve Spongberg 

Spirit Week & Homecoming

Last week was a very busy week filled with enthusiasm and fun.  There were themed dress down days every day and a the traditional Spirit Week Bonfire on Wednesday evening. (Thank you to the Waterloo Fire department for sticking around and putting the fire out afterwards!) Photos

The Mount Michael Pep Band was in fine form for pregame. Photos

The Knights caped the night off with a 35-14 Victory!  - Game Photos

At halftime of the game the homecoming theme of "Honoring the Past, Building our Future" featured special recognition of past championships teams. A pregame dinner in their honor was also held in the Armory. Photos

• 1967 Cross Country: Team members in attendance were Dave Hahn, Richard Kaup and Elmer Wemhoff.
• 1982 Football: Jeff Jamrog, dave Tamisiea, Paul McCann, Bob Recker, Chris Higgins, Joe Hettinger, Dave Johnson, Rick Hanna, James Motl and Bill Honke. As a team they racked up a total of 270 points during the season while only allowing 19 points. In the State Tournament they shutout all their opponents. 
• 1997 Cross Country: Eric Crawford, Ben Luettel, Michael Pecha, Joe Salzbrenner, Wes Schieber, and Joe Wolpert. The 1997 championship was preceded by championships in 1995 and 1996. Leuettel, Schieber and Wolpert ran varsity on all three championship teams.
• 2012 Cross Country: JT Cronin

Halftime proceedings wrapped up with the announcement of this year's 1st Knight chosen by the student body. Photos

The Nominees were:

Lucas Van Haute: 2017 1st Knight

Andrew Nigro the son of Scott and Estelle Nigro. Andrew attended St. Gerald's through 8th Grade. He is currently involved in the Men of Benedict, The Philosophical Book Club and is a member of the Operation Others Core Team.  He is active in the Youth Ministry for both the rosary and adoration. Andrew is the Student Manager for the wrestling team and is involved with the St. Gerald Squires.  Andrew hopes to be accepted into the seminary.

Lucas Van Haute is the son of Bob and Cathy Van Haute.  He attended St. Columbkille's in Papillion through the 8th grade. He is a member of the National Honor Society, a Mount Michael Student ambassador and is a Mount Michael Yell Leader.  He starts on the Mount Michael varsity Soccer team and plays for the Gretna soccer club in the off-season.  During the summer, he works with youth at the Papillion Kids Club. Luke plans to attend university and major in Exercise Science.

Dash Wedergren is the son of Scott and Shelley Wedergren. Dash attended middle school at Elkhorn Ridge.  He is involved in the Mount Michael IT Club, Mock Trial, and Men of Benedict. Dash attended Boy's State this past summer and is an Eagle Scout.  He has completed an internship with the Gallup Organization. Dash plans to attend university and major in Cybersecurity and then attend Law School.

Freshmen Boys Town Ropes Retreat

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Mignondje elected Student Council President

Armel Mignondje '18

Congratulations to Armel Mignondje who was elected Student Council President for the 2017-2018 School Year.

At weekly chapel, on Monday of last week, 4 candidates each gave short talks to the student body outlining their hopes and goals for next year.  The other three candidates were Garrett Gloeb, Andrew Nigro, and Dash Wedergren. The election was held during classes last week.

Before becoming a Knight, Armel attended Saint Coumbkille Catholic Grade School in Papillion, Nebraska. Armel is the son of of Afi Eugenie Adokpe of LaVista.

Zhang Selected as First Knight by Student Body

Three Mount Michael seniors were nominated by their fellow classmen to receive this award.  Those nominated are recognized for their strong character and discipline; their ability to place others before themselves; their vow to be loyal, generous and humble in deed; and their embodiment of the five Benedictine values of moderation, service, integrity, community and hospitality.

Those students nominated were: Zach Cairney; Caiden Groff; and Eric Zhang. The Mount Michael student body voted to determine the winner.  

Mount Michael Head of School, Dr. David J. Peters presented the First Knight Award to Eric Zhang and was accompanied by previous First Knight winners Logan Kalkowski ’15 and Michael Fisher ‘16.

The Three Nominees

Zach Cairney, the son of Brian and Susan Cairney.  Zach attended St. Vincent DePaul through 8th grade.  He is currently involved in Student Council and runs on both the Mount Michael Cross Country and Track teams. He volunteers at the St. Vincent DePaul Math Counts Club and assists with the Mathnasium.  Zach is also an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion and assists in the Chapel.   Zach plans to attend a university where he will major in Actuarial Science.

Caiden Groff, the son of Aaron and Melissa Groff.   He attended St. Patrick’s in Elkhorn through the 8th Grade.  Caiden currently serves as the Mount Michael Student Body President as well as participates on the Ambassador’s Club.  He starts on the Mount Michael varsity football and baseball teams and was elected as last year’s winter sports Yell Leader.  Upon graduation, Caiden plans to attend one of the United States Service Academies.

Eric Zhang, the son of Bo and Yanrong Zhang Taiyuan, China. Eric attended middle school in his home country of China.  He is involved in the Mount Michael Student Council and competes on the Speech Team.  Eric has been a Red Cross volunteer in his native China as well as a volunteer in an Elkhorn nursing home.  Eric plans to major in Economics and attend graduate school.

2016 First Knight Eric Zhang Accompanied by Mount Michael Parents Ronald and Darci Kaps

Students Prepare for Slam Poetry Contest

Jack Avilla | Guest Writer for "THE MOUNT"

Competitions are a regular occurrence in the life of most high school students, especially in a small school. One upcoming competition is the Louder than a Bomb contest that the slam poetry team is set to compete in with two preliminary rounds on March 23 and March 30.

The competition, which runs for two weeks, showcases the work of poets from over thirty schools. The competitions will take place in several locations around the city including a newer movie theater complex called “The Alamo” near the Embassy Suites in La Vista.

The groups that score the highest will continue on to the semi-finals and finals. Last year the all-rookie group made it to the semi-finals, which they hope to repeat this year, but at least for this team it is about more than the competition. 

Junior Nash Kelly practices performing his piece while the rest
of the team listens critically, preparing to give him feedback.
Team members have been meeting since mid-October

“I would love if the team made it to the semi-finals again this year,” proctor Gina Fosco said. “But mostly I hope our poets are inspired by what they hear, and have come to know their own truth a little more.”

For one poet, sophomore Joey Recker, poetry has had a profound effect on his experience as a whole.

“It is truly an accessible art form for anyone that has a cool culture surrounding it,” Recker said. One of the unique things for club member is they have the opportunity to attend poetry events outside of the club meetings and the competitions.

Recently Recker attended a slam competition at the Omaha Healing Arts Center in the old market. The event is hosted on the first Saturday of every month. At these slams anyone can come and read their poetry in an open mic time period. Following the open mic the slam competition begins. The slam itself is very competitive.

The scoring system is unique because it is solely based on audience member’s reactions. At the beginning of a slam, the master of ceremonies (M.C.) asks for volunteers who have no connection to the poets reading. They are then given a whiteboard to write their score for the poem on a ten point scale.

“I had the opportunity to be a judge and I got to experience the love and hate from the crowd as I gave my scores,” sophomore Jack Blaser said.

The scoring and response to the scoring is another way attendees of the slam get to express themselves. Everyone said what was on their mind at the time. Everyone was themselves. The atmosphere was a very vital part of the slam.

“The people there were very diverse with a variety of different opinions and thoughts,which I liked,” said sophomore Jacob Idra, who also attended the event.

Practice in the Park

For some people, public speaking is not an easy task. Especially when the poem you are reading is very personal to you which impressed Idra.

“The amount of effort and courage to go and talk in front of a crowd like Joey did, with the comfort that he had, shows what kind of guy he is,” Idra said.

It is exactly this courage that makes a poetry slam such a unique event. According to Recker, the poetry is not just for entertainment, “it’s inspiring and has a lot of substance.”

Knights Recount Their 2016 March for Life Experience & Stranding During a Historic Blizzard

A Group of Mount Michael students and their faculty chaperone just returned from an adventurous trip home from the 2016 March for Life in Washington DC. Listen in as Garrett Engel, Michael Ford, Kalle Haines, Christian Keller, Paul Dougherty, Ben Hynes, Ben Nigro, Jeremiah Connealy and Amy Masek tell the story in their own words. View Directly on YouTube

Runza Student of the Week: Jackson Thompson

Mount Michael Benedictine senior Jackson Thompson was recently featured on Omaha's KETV Channel 7 as the Student of the week.  Jackson also received a $500 scholarship from Runza.  Congratulations Jackson! 

Click on the embedded video below to watch.

https://youtu.be/N5EGArkxnk0

Freshmen has high hopes for American Education

Hudson Hohman | Guest Writer

Freshman Temi Adeyemo came from Africa for a better chance at college. Adeyemo has very high hopes for his future and he is already on track to reach his goals.

“I really wanted to go to school in America” Adeyemo said.

Adeyemo already has big plans for his future. He says he wants to become a successful journalist and coming to america will help him get there. According to Adeyemo, getting into american colleges coming from a Nigerian high school is not easy.

“We get overlooked,” he said.

                         Temi Adeyemo during Math Class         photo by Cade Johnson

Adeyemo won’t let this get in the way of him doing what he wants though. He believes attending Mount Michael will give him the boost he needs to get into college, not unlike the majority of students who attend the school here.

“He cares alot about his work. Everybody here thinks he’s going to be super successful,” freshmen Jaret Kline said.

Adeyemo says his biggest achievement was his 30 on the ACT in eighth grade. Compare that the the 28 ACT average at Mount Michael (the highest high school ACT average in Nebraska).

“He is way too smart to be a frosh” freshman Taylor Davis said.

Adeyemo not only has the respect of his classmates but also his teachers “He cares a lot about his work and is always a good contributor in class,” Mr. Swanson said.

“I have already made tons of good friends and really enjoy the bond that comes with being a freshman here,” Adeyemo said. He has acclimated well to the boarding lifestyle and is doing very well in his classes. He is shaping up to be the all in one package, extremely smart and very well liked by his peers.

“I really like living there it was very fun but really crowded,” said Adeyemo about his home country of Nigeria. His parents are already very successful people, his father owns a pharmacy in Nigeria and his mother works at the University of Florida where she is a research scientist. Coming from Nigeria, Adeyemo has seen a very different side of the world. “There is definitely a very distinct poverty gap in Nigeria, there’s no middle class. You’re either very poor or not,” Adeyemo said.

Some may think of Adeyemo coming from Nigeria as a handicap; but he doesn’t mind it, he embraces it. He is following in the footsteps of every single one of our ancestors and Adeyemo is continuing in the long tradition of pursuing the American dream.

$164,000 Scholarship Awarded to John "Jack" Morrissey

Colonel Sutton from Creighton University's ROTC program presents a check to John Morrissey

Congratulations to Jack Morrissey on being awarded a $164,000 ROTC Scholarship.  He has been accepted to and will attend either TCU or Baylor.   Jack is the son of alumnus Brian "84 and Kris Morrissey.  Jack attended St. Patrick's grade school in Elkhorn before coming to Mount Michael as a freshman.

Brian '84,  Jack and Kris Morrissey

The YouTube Sensation

Brian Schneider | Staff Writer

It is amazing what students can come up with when they live at school, from warball games, to pillow fights, to making videos of popular songs with unexpected dancers. Juniors Broden Kaps and Eric Zhang did just that.

Zhang, who transferred to Mount Michael in the second semester of the 2013-2014 school year, is a studious, kind individual who works hard and tries to do his best at all times. However, a different side came out of him in this video which may have been inspired by his roommate. Zhang is rooming with Broden Kaps this year, and their fun is just beginning.

“Broden is a really good friend. He is helpful and funny and he comes up with fantastic ideas,” Zhang said.

One of Kap’s greatest ideas was to have Zhang dance. Ever since the song “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)” by Silento came out, it has been a hit, taking the pop culture genre by storm. However, the dance moves are what made each of these songs so popular.

The Whip is a dance move where the movement consists of nearly making contact between opposite knee and elbow, dropping the knee, and pushing the arm forward like driving a car one handed. The Nae Nae is waving back and forth while walking backwards, which is a continuation of the Whip.
Kaps and Zhang worked hard for two weeks shooting the video.

“We were shooting everyday after study hall for around twenty minutes,” video editor and fellow junior Homer Xu said. According to Kaps, Zhang held off on calling his parents every night to work on the video, something that is normally important to Zhang.

“Sometimes it was hard to not call my parents when we filmed but the video was a good way to relax and get my mind off of studying,” Zhang said.

While the three worked on the video, the hype kept building. “I was excited to see what Kaps would come up with,” junior Joe Coldiron said.

They had to be creative to make the best possible video, using different places inside the school, primarily Zhang and Kaps’ dorm and the gym, Shots of Zhang wearing sunglasses and headphones while dribbling basketballs or hanging his arms around his friends also added a creative aspect to this extremely cheap production, according to Xu.

However, the result is a fairly high quality video. Some of the lighting was just a flashlight being waved around. Xu had the idea to use the flashlight to add a dance floor vibe to the music video, simulating the flashing lights of a dance floor.

Editing also helped improve the visual appeal. Using Windows Movie Maker, Xu made the final edit of the music video in around five to six hours.

Zhang was disappointed when Kaps was not in the video with him, after Kaps told him they would be dancing together. However, once Zhang got into the video and started to dance, he had a good time making it.

Watch Zhang Whip was an instant hit the night it came out, soaring above 300 views in the first week.

Zhang is considering doing another video, but for now he is focusing on more typical evening activities like studying.

 Kaps enjoyed the film making as well, making sure he made time for the video every night after study hall.

When Kaps began to film, he knew right away that the film would not be a serious video. Kaps was inspired to do this video when he asked himself, “What would happen if we made a video of Eric dancing to this song?” The end result made many people laugh, deans included.

“Eric’s whip form is on point,” sophomore Luke Van Haute said. Junior Keylan Beller agreed “The video was very creative and very funny,” junior Keylan Bellar said.

Kaps is thinking about doing another video. However, he wants to keep all of his ideas for new videos a surprise. Perhaps one of these surprise videos will come in the second quarter.

Meet the Frosh: JP Jensen

Cade Johnson | Staff Writer for THE MOUNT

J.P Jensen / Photo by Cade Johnson

As the 2015 school year rolls around, the class of 2019 begins their journey of high school. However, Mount Michael isn’t just a school, it’s a brotherhood. This brotherhood is built upon the relationships you make freshman year and getting to know your classmates on a deeper level. This deeper level is what makes the Mount different. Every class has their characters and personalities. The class of 2019 brings J.P. Jensen for example.

Jensen graduated from Saint Margaret Mary in 2014, and has a wide range of interests. He enjoys computers, cars, and game shows to name a few of his enthusiasms. His favorite computers are Apple computers.

“I think personally they’re better than PC’s,” Jensen said. One of his favorite shows is a 1970’s show called Match Game which is a revival of an earlier show called The Match Game from the late 1960’s.

Jensen participates in cross country on the junior varsity team. He chose cross country because, as he jokingly pointed out, he “wouldn’t last too long in football.” Jensen is not a fan of tennis either, although he has played tennis before for fun. According to Jensen tennis “would be a lot more fun when you can hit the ball.”

He plans on trying out for bowling in the winter, a sport he has lots of experience in. Jensen used to go bowling with his mom when he was younger. He would tag along on weekday mornings. In the spring, Jensen will try out for the golf team. His reasoning is straightforward: “I’m not a fan of baseball, soccer, or track.” He has high hopes for the golf season this year.

The transition from grade school to high school can be tough for some people. Especially if your new home is Mount Michael. Judging by the first couple of weeks, Jensen has transitioned well. One of his favorite teachers, similar to the majority of his classmates, is English teacher John Gathje.

“He’s very funny, and makes class fun!” Jensen said enthusiastically. This is not a surprise as Gathje makes the sudden and somewhat intimidating shift into high school a fun experience.

Jensen enjoys being a day student but is thinking about trying out boarding. He especially likes the brotherhood that his classmates and him are building in their first year and hopes it will only grow as his time at the Mount continues.

Sophomores Travel to South Korea

Michael Ecker | Staff Writer for THE MOUNT

Throughout the dorms one can hear different languages, smell different foods, and see different clothes. The seven-day boarders add a way to experience cultures that can’t be found anywhere else in Nebraska. Students from South Korea, China, Vietnam, Spain and Belgium, help expand the student bodies’ understanding of other cultures, languages and activities. Sophomores Jack Avilla, Riley Kruse, and Joey Recker got a rare chance to fully immerse in a different culture.

Joey Recker, Jack Avilla, and Riley Kruse

On May 22, the three freshmen, now sophomores, left Omaha to begin a two week long adventure. The flight took off early in the morning to Dallas/Fort Worth International. and their final flight arrivied at Incheon International Airport in Seoul, South Korea on May 23.

“It took over 24 hours of traveling,” Recker said, “the time differences gave me horrible headaches.”

The money for the trip didn’t come out of nowhere. The three negotiated with their parents to get the opportunity for this trip. The plane tickets cost around $1,000 one way. After that the sophomores were lucky enough to stay with sophomore Kyeongmin Kim and his family.

The three traveled around South Korea with Kim. One of the places they went to was the border between South and North Korea. there, they visited a Joint Security Area, also known as a Korean Demilitarized Zone, and saw first hand the tension between North and South Korea.

“Going to the Joint Security Area showed me a lot about there being a constant feeling of the possibility of war,” Avilla said.

Even with the tension, the sopho­mores agreed there is a side to the relationship between South Korea and North Korea that most Ameri­cans never hear about. They noticed that there is a lot of respect between the people of the two nations. Many people have family members or know people in the other country.

On May 25 the three experienced one of the most unique Korean cultural events, the celebration of Buddha’s birthday at Jogyesa Temple in Seoul. The temple is the center of Zen Buddhism in South Korea. During the celebration the people celebrate with songs, dances, and traditional clothing.

“I thought it was the most exotic, ancient, and beautiful of all the places we visited,” Recker said, “it was amazing to see the tradition and history at the temple.”

The group also experienced a wedding and a mass at Kim’s parish. Both were in Korean but the three enjoyed the uniqueness compared to the American counterparts.

Joey Recker, Riley Kruse & Jack Avilla Dressed as Korean Warriors

The three experienced another unique cultural activity. They dressed up in traditional South Korean clothes, those of warriors in Ancient Korea. They wore the clothes at one of the many palaces in South Korea.

Although they experienced a great deal of traditional culture, the boys also saw the modern side of South Korea. The country has developed a reputation of a culture centered around Korean pop, or “K-Pop”. “K-Pop” is known for its flashing lights, interesting fashion, and crazy music. But outside of the big cities there is a lack of “K-Pop” culture. 

“It seemed like only older people are still practicing traditional Korean,” Kruse said, “they are the only people not enveloped by ‘K-Pop’.”

One of the main things the three noticed was the work ethic. They got the chance to visit Kim’s father’s workplace, where they noticed how hard people worked and the quality of the work done. Workers sometimes also stay at officetel, which is a residential area in a workplace. This lets workers have the chance to work late and get up early to work without the transportation required to go home and back.

“People there aren’t lazy,” Recker explained, “everyone from the adults to the students have incredible work ethic and motivation.”

Another difference they noticed was a lot more respect to elders. This stems from an importance of family. Meals are also more important with more formal meals and less fast food.

Of course the sophomores, like most students know a favorite purchase on weekly outings to Walmart is Ra­men noodles, In South Korea the three students tried different foods. One of these foods was a liquid mix of herbs and medicine. The mixture was supposed to give you strength, but Recker just thought it was “funky”. Another dish is called tteokbokki, a dish with meat, rice cakes, and vegetables in a red sauce, which all three enjoyed.

“I was willing to try most foods,” Kruse said, “but there were some really spicy foods that I wouldn’t go anywhere near.”

Riley Kruse, Kyeongmin Kim, Joey Recker, & Jack Avilla 

There was one part of Korean culture that was familiar to the sophomores: gaming. Some international students spend hours and hours on their computers playing games. In Korea the gaming culture is even stronger. People spend so much time in PC Cafes that there is a law forbidding students to be in a PC Cafe after 10 pm on school nights.

“We as Americans are pretty bad with our overuse of computers,” Recker said, “but in Korea it’s scary how much people spend on their computers. We would walk by PC Cafes and it would be packed with gamers.”

The boys also enjoyed the public transportation system which allowed them to get around easily at just 60 cents a ride.

“The public transportation was great. Both the subways and buses were clean,” Avilla said, “we got everywhere we needed to on public transportation.”

The trip will be a lifelong memory for the three sophomores. . “Traveling is important,” Kruse said, “these experiences can be really cool and you can learn a ton.” No matter if you’re traveling to Iowa or South Korea traveling is fun and brings people together.

More than Meets the Eye: Nick Snyder

Joey Recker | Guest Writer for THE MOUNT

In tight knit communities, such as Mount Michael, people have the chance to really get to know each other, especially if the community is small. People who see each other every day also start to form what they think is a relatively accurate idea of who the others surrounding them are, but in reality, they can be wrong.

Take Nick Snyder for example. He is the ideal student. In fact, one of his goals this year is to make a 4.0 grade point average. He is focused, organized, and extremely relaxed. A calm and collected guy.

“He listens,” said Spanish I teacher Carolina Westling. “There is nothing bad about him.”

Mrs. Wessling also praised him for being very studious when he was in her class as a freshman

“He is a great representative of the Mount Michael community.” she said. Fellow classmate Jacob Idra said something along the same lines.

“Nick is a cool dude, he will listen to anything.” While another classmate, Tommy Weekly, noted that Nick is very tolerant and patient.

“He let’s me steal his Pepsi,” Weekly said. The two clearly get along very well.

But there is so much more to Nick’s character than these things. Idra met Snyder on the tennis courts freshmen year. He made friends with Nick easily, and the two enjoyed the season together.

“We always had a good time, he made it a better experience.” Idra said.

In fact, the two became close enough that Nick persuaded Jacob to join choir sophomore year, an activity that Idra never would have seen himself doing if it was not for Snyder.

Classmate and friend Tommy Weekly appreciates Snyder’s sense of humor, specifically because they find the same things funny. But what is most important to Weekly is that Snyder “is a good friend to keep around.” Tommy remembers sharing shows and books with Nick, and of course, he always listened.

Snyder is also a ‘car guy’ according to his close friends. One of his favorite hobbies is to work on his car on the weekends, a ‘92 Pontiac Firebird.

“It needs some work,” Nick commented. “It has panels coming off, no stereo or air conditioning.” But this does not phase Nick. He is passionate about putting in work on his car, and really enjoys driving on the weekends. One of his idols is Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla Car Company. In Snyder’s eyes, Musk is a visionary and someone to model himself after.

In fact, one of his dreams is to become the CEO of a big company when he gets older, but this is only one of his dreams. He said that he could see himself becoming a doctor or an engineer. Whatever it is that he chooses his ambition and great communication skills will get him there. And he will probably listen to the people around him.

Homecoming: First Knight Award

Three Mount Michael seniors were nominated by their fellow classmates to receive the First Knight Award.  Those nominated are recognized for their strong character and discipline; their ability to place others before themselves; their vow to be loyal, generous and humble in deed; and their embodiment of the five Benedictine values of moderation, service, integrity, community and hospitality. First Knight Photos by Eric Coldiron

Those students nominated were: Michael Fischer; Luke Krajewski ; and Jacob Ramaekers. This past week, all members of the Mount Michael student body voted to determine the winner.

Dr. Peters (Head of School), Robert, Jacob, and Michelle Ramaekers; Machell, Luke & Matt Krajewski; Kris, Michael & Brett Fischer. 

 Michael Fischer son of  Dr. Brett and Kris Fischer.  Michael is from Fremont where he attended Clarmar Elementary and Bergan Middle School.  Michael is the Student Body President and represented Mount Michael this summer at Boys State.  He is a member of the National Honor Society and a member of the 2015 Small Schools State Champion Academic Decathlon team.  He is active in sports, including as a member of the Mount Michael tennis team, the District Champion bowling team, the golf team and regularly powerlifts.  During his summers, he volunteers at the YMCA summer camp in Fremont and is a Lifeguard.  He is also a member of the 2016 Mount Michael Mission trip that will spend their spring break serving others in the mountains of Mexico.  Michael is planning to major in International Business and Political Science and is planning to attend either Rockhurst or Benedictine College.

Luke Krajewski is the son of  Matt and Machelle Krajewski.  Luke attended elementary school at St. Wenceslaus, where he is currently a Lector and Eucharistic Minister.  He is a member of the STATE CHAMPION Mount Michael Tennis team as well as the varsity basketball team and plays golf for the Knights.  Luke serves as a member of the Mount Michael Men of Benedict and represented the school at the University of Nebraska’s Chemistry Field Day.  He was a member of the 2015 Mount Michael Mission trip to the mountains of Mexico where they built a chapel for local villagers.  He is planning on participating on the Mission Trip again this spring break.  Luke is a member of the National Honor Society and is planning to major in Pre-Med at Notre Dame, Creighton or the University of Nebraska- Lincoln.  Luke plans to become a doctor.

Jacob Ramaekers is the son of Robert and Michelle Ramaekers.  Jacob attended elementary school at St. Vincent DePaul’s in Omaha.  He was a member of the 2015 Small Schools State Champion Academic Decathlon team where he placed 2nd in National Academic Decathlon competition. Jacob plays drums in the Mount Michael band has been a multi-season Yell Leader for the Knights.  He is active in wrestling and cross country at the Mount, and is a member of the National Honor Society.    Jacob remains active in his church through ongoing participating in the St. Vincent DePaul Youth Group and has spoken on the Spirit Catholic radio show “Witness”.  He works with his brother to restore rental properties in the area and plans to attend a four year college.

Dr. David Peters presents Michael Fischer with the 2015 First Knight Award

Arby's Athlete of the Week

Mission Trip to Mexico

More Mission Trip Photos from Mr. Cormier - Photos from Fr. Daniel

Monday: The Knights are currently working on their 1st building project, a chapel.

Quiet Student’s Talent Shines on the Lanes

Thomas D’Aquila | Staff Writer

Aaron Meyer’s unassuming nature may lead people to overlook him, but the bowling team knows this gentle giant to be a bowling wizard.

“I had bowling birthday parties at the old Elkhorn Lanes,” Meyer, a junior, said of his early years of the sport. “My dad always took me bowling and it was fun. I liked bowl­ing, so he eventually bought me my first bowling ball and I just sort of went from there.”

Junior Aaron Meyer preparing to throw a strike.
( Photo courtesy of Meyer family)

Meyer’s passion for the game grew as he began to view bowling in a more competitive light. “I started practicing the summer after eighth grade,” Meyer said.

He does feel that sometimes this sport is overlooked by his peers. “[Some people] don’t think it’s hard to do, or they see it as useless. But they don’t realize how much skill and dedication it takes,” Meyer said. “It’s not a basic sport, it kind of a unique thing.”

Meyer is not the only one in the family with the bowl­ing bug. Most of his family on his dad’s side have been on a competitive team at some point, reaching back to his great-grandfather’s love of the game.

More notably, Meyer’s father is a part of the coaching staff for Mount Michael’s team.

“He brings a lot of knowledge to the team, so I mostly look at him as a coach,” Meyer said. “[The team] respects him as a coach as well, but they also see him as my dad.”

Working so closely together Meyer and his father have developed a shorthand way of communicating during a match.

“We have a connection. Some­times my dad will give me a look that says ‘What are you doing?’ But I will give him another look that says ‘I got this,’” Meyer said.

For Meyer, being on the bowling team is not too different from the casual bowling of his childhood.

“I guess it’s just kind of the atti­tude, which is more focused on scor­ing,” Meyer said. “It’s more about trying to get a better score and focus, not just goofing around. I clear my head and think about the importance of the match I’m heading into,”

With a first place in the individual series at district and a second place individually at state, Meyer seems to be doing just that.