Imagine living in a non-judgmental atmosphere where only harmless people socialized and did activities together — this is something the real world doesn’t offer, but one can virtually create.

Co-founder of the application Anomo, Ben Liu said, “I’d say we’re actually a little different from social networking — more like social discovering,” as he explained how to connect with local users of the network. Anomo is a live chat with anonymous avatars.

Liu said they labeled this app as “Anti-Tinder” because Tinder is purely about the external.

“We think that’s pretty shallow, so we want to base it [Anomo] on who people really are. Tinder is more focused on dating and we don’t mind if people use it for dating, but it can also be for friendships and all types of different relationships,” Liu said.

Liu indicated the key characteristic that really differentiates Anomo from other social networking applications is that they allow all users to make an avatar.

Liu’s partner and other co-founder of Anomo, James Sun, explained the importance of being anonymous on the app. Sun said it originally started as an anonymous social network that allows users to reveal themselves on the app over time.

Vanessa Brooks / Equinox Staff

“Even in the dating sense, if you think you might not be attracted to that person, but you might get to know them first and be attracted to them being funny and other things — Tinder doesn’t give that opportunity to happen. We do,” Liu said.

Liu said he found, when talking to users (in particular, female users), some are scared to give out information. He said when talking to someone, their name and where they are from does not matter at first; it is what kind of person they are that matters.

On Anomo there is no invasion of privacy, Liu said, “We allow you to do it [use the app] without giving up your identity until you’re ready to do so.”

Sun said Anomo has made social networking discoveries. For example, he said they found when people engage on these social websites they might have anxiety about how the person on the other side is viewing them.

“Will that person like me or not, or the way I look, or what my status is, or who I am, or what my social network looks like?” Sun asked.

Sun explained the problem is that, if someone has social anxiety, and they go on an app like Tinder, which asks, “Are you hot or not?” they’re going to miss out on opportunities to talk to a lot of people based on a photo.

Sun continued, “So our research showed by removing the picture, you get a social experience. If you’re perceived as beautiful or not, it doesn’t matter.”

Allyson Ayala, a Keene State College sophomore, agreed with Sun’s statement and said, “You wouldn’t be able to see someone’s personality through pictures. On Tinder people definitely only judge you on looks.”

Katelyn Newcomb, a KSC student, said she’s never heard of Anomo before, but she’s used Tinder. She said she’d enjoy a less judgmental app, because she thinks Tinder is all about looks as well. She said the user must double click on a photo to show they have liked it, and it is only if the other user also double taps the photo as well that it makes a ‘match.’

Sun said the way users get matched on Anomo with other users is by playing an “ice breaker.” He said it’s about a five-question test Anomo gives to get to know the user. Once the avatars interact with someone, they get smarter and can find out more about another avatar. After the user reveals more about themselves, then Anomo can find more people whom are compatible with Sun said.

Sun continued, “It’s always new. You open the app and you never know who you’re going to meet. It can be any reason to socialize; people meet at the same college, sports game, guys meet girl, girl meets girl, dating does happen, but it’s also just a social place. I think there’s something for everybody. If you’re not that good looking on Tinder, you’re not going to get much action, not many matches. Anomo is driven by common ground and common interest. We think it’s a different way to approach it.”

Liu said Anomo is used to help introduce people to others with shared interests based on everything from location to shared attributes.

He also said they gather information and try to learn as well as predict whose compatible with whom.

“Chats are private. We do have group chats and talks more in a forum,” Liu said.

Liu also said he thinks this app will stay nonjudgmental. “Our users are very, very positive. We thought the anonymity would drive them to act poorly. Because of anonymity, it’s pointless to bash an anonymous person, so they actually support each other,” Liu said.

Sun said, on average, users are on the app 38 minutes per day. Sun noted that on Facebook, users averaged 17 minutes of use a day. He also indicated the app is reaching all over the country.

Liu said the app has really taken off — even faster than they hoped.

Another new social networking site that is reaching all 50 states launched about a month ago. Cynthia Tercier is the founder of FirstInteraction.com and her idea behind social networking is to create a more active site. Tercier said, “You’ll be able to create a group in a community or area, like if you want to hike or skydive, or single moms want to meet other families with children and go have play dates, you can create that group, and then get similar people with that interest.”

Safety is key for FirstInteraction.com as the app makes sure that all users pass a background check. Tercier said they work with PeopleSmart, a company which does the background checks. “Anyone who had more than a DUI, it will come up as a misdemeanor, and then we can determine if it’s just a DUI or if there’s more to it. I’m not interested on what is in their record. We filter it based on the information we want,” Tercier said. Tercier said if the user does not pass, they are not provided with a reason. First Interaction will tell the denied users they are not able available to access an account, Tercier noted.

A KSC sophomore who wished to remain unnamed said she has used Tinder before, but has not heard of the First Interaction site. She said she feels using this app would be safer, because it is hard to know the past of some of the people you get matched with.

Once users can access an account, they can create and administrate their own group. Tercier also advised users to upload videos and photos, but encouraged them to be active in the picture or video, so other people can see what activities other users enjoy and participate in.

“Dog lover? Meet up with them [other dog lovers] at the doggy park. A paddle boarding group started in Hawaii, people can meet up at the north shore and work on their paddle boarding. Or a group called ‘Night on the town’ for anyone who wants to go dancing,” Tercier said as she talked about all the different groups people have already started to create.

Tercier stated she did a survey with over 100 people.

According to the survey findings, the age group her site attracted was ages 26-34. Tercier said she found it quite shocking that males were the majority of users. Jay Sahasakmontri, a KSC student, said males usually don’t want to admit to using social networking sites.

According to Tercier, the survey found that people who liked the idea of the website also liked that  there was a background check.

Newcomb said, “I’d definitely feel safer talking to people if I knew they had a background check first. People are creeps these days.”

Tercier said the website does yearly background checks on all users.

Bethany Ricciardi can be contacted at bricciardi@keene-equinox.com

Keene State College went into a lockdown Wednesday, April 1, when someone with a gun was reported near campus.

“You may go about your normal business,” an campus-wide update email stated.

Just nearly 20 minutes before this update email was sent out, “DO NOT LEAVE YOUR BUILDINGS!” was the order, sent out by Campus Safety at 10:07 a.m.

According to the email, KPD reported a domestic incident with a firearm at Main Street and Proctor Court.

“STAY AWAY FROM THE AREA AND REMAIN INSIDE TIL FURTHER NOTICE,” stated the email.

There have been no injuries reported, but the white male had last been seen on foot on Appian Way. An email update sent out at 10:17 a.m. stated KPD had found the gun, but not the subject and to remain inside still.

Minutes later at 10:23 a.m. Campus Safety sent out another campus-wide email which stated KPD had found the suspect off campus and has him in custody.

According to WMUR, “Tyler Day, 22, of Keene, was arrested.

Day is facing several charges, including reckless conduct, criminal threatening, tampering with a witness and being a felon in possession of a dangerous weapon.” Witnesses said they saw him arguing with a woman on Proctor Street before firing his gun and leaving the area.

Bethany Ricciardi can be contacted at bricciardi@kscequinox.com

Today, Medal of Honor recipient George Dilboy would be called a professional soldier. 

By the time he shipped out to France as part of Keene’s Yankee Division contribution, he was only 22, yet had already fought in three wars in three different countries.

Used with permission of Stavro Nashi from his website http://greekodyssey.typepad.com/my_greek_odyssey/

While girls or new car models and moving pictures likely preoccupied most adolescent males, Dilboy liked fighting.

He added a year to his real age to fight for the first time in war. In the early 1900s he was 16 when he first stepped onto the battlefield, according to Arlingtoncemetery.net.

Born Feb. 5, 1896 in the town of Alatsata, Greece, for about 14 years Dilboy lived with his brothers Demetrios and Nicholas and his sister Marianthi and went by his Greek name, “Georgios Dilbois.”

In 1907 his father, Antonios Dilboy, left him for America. He settled in Keene, New Hampshire, where he waited for his son to meet him years later.  While he waited, he worked at Boston General Hospital.

The hospital is also where George Dilboy’s siblings would later work when they came to America, Alatsata.net stated.

Antonios Dilboy moved to Somerville, Massachusetts not long after coming to the United States. In 1912, George packed his bags, said goodbye to his hometown of Alatsata and sailed to Boston as his final destination.

After a year of living in New England, “Dilboy returned to mainland Greece, after adding a year to his age, to successfully fight for Greece as a volunteer in the Greek Army in Thessaly during the First Balkan War of 1912,” according to Arlingtoncemetery.net.

Dilboy fought in his second war right after his first. The website also stated Dilboy remained in Greece to successfully fight in Macedonia in the Second Balkan War of 1913.

It wasn’t until the war was over that Dilboy returned to his immediate family in Somerville.

This wasn’t where he settled down though; battle was still in Dilboy’s future.

But for now, he put down his gun and picked up his books.

He went to school and worked a summer job in Keene, New Hampshire for a few years before volunteering for his third war in the U.S. Army, in the Mexican Border War in 1916-17, according to Arlingtoncemetery.net.

In the Mexican Border War, Dilboy obtained an honorable discharge. He did return home to his father, but not for long — and for the last time ever.

His dedication brought him to re-enlist from Keene, New Hampshire in the U.S. Army to fight in France in the Great War in 1917-18, where he was killed at age 22.

After surviving numerous wars, he died a hero in the Battle of Belleau Wood.

The Battle of Belleau Wood was the first large-scale battle fought by the American soldiers in WWI, it began northwest of the Paris-to-Metz road.

“In late May 1918, the third German offensive of the year penetrated the Western Front, within forty-five miles of Paris. U.S. forces under General John J. Pershing helped halt the German advance,” History.com stated.

On June 6, General John Pershing ordered a counteroffensive. Their mission was to drive the Germans out of Belleau Wood.

Under General Games Harbord, Americans led the attack against four German divisions positioned in the woods. Under order, soldiers covered the land while still trying to take cover for their lives. But by the end of the first day, the U.S. suffered more than 1,000 casualties. Using machine guns, artillery and gas, by June 26 Americans prevailed, but at the cost of nearly 10,000 dead, wounded or missing in action, History.com stated.

Dilboy led the attack in the Battle of Belleau Wood in WWI and continued to fire at the enemy despite being seriously wounded.

His bravery spurred him to kill many of the enemy and dispersed the rest of the machine gun crew, according to “Carved in Stone: The Story of George Dilboy,” by George Dilboy’s cousin, Richard Rozakis, who now lives in California.

“Dilboy was mortally wounded during the battle and became the first Greek-American to be awarded the Medal of Honor,” according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS.gov).

George Dilboy was, “One of the ten great heroes,” who “died in the battlefield of France with superhuman heroism and valor,” Pershing said, according to“Immigrant Minds, American Identities,” by Orm Overland. Now buried in the Virginia, Arlington National Cemetery, Dilboy’s gravestone reads his death date of July 18, 1918, reports Arlingtoncemetery.net

On that day, he fought till death to protect his fellow Doughboys.

Dilboy’s courage to fight led to his legacy as the only New Hampshire resident honored with the Medal of Honor for WWI. Ultimately, Dilboy’s demise and his remains required attention from three U.S. Presidents over five years and became an international incident.

United States PresidentWoodrow Wilson, in the name of Congress, signed authorization to award the Medal of Honor to George Dilboy, Private First Class, of the U.S. Army, Company H, 103rd Infantry, 26th Yankee Infantry Division. Wilson presented Dilboy’s father with the Medal of Honor, saying, “In January of 1919, taking recognition for Dilboy’s courage and valor, on the Boston Commons, The Medal of Honor was presented to Dilboy’s father, Antonios Dilboy, whose parental role was recognized, “Your boy was born in a foreign land and, like you, he spoke the Greek language and with you came to his adopted country. You taught him of Flag and what American citizenship means. You made him appreciate blessings afforded to all aliens. You told him it was the greatest honor on earth to be chosen to defend with his life the freedom that you enjoy and you so developed his character and instilled into him this pride in your adopted country that no American boy excelled this boy in the supreme sacrifice he made,” he continued, “He was almost superhuman; he achieved things supposed above the limit of mental and physical endurance. His act cleared the way for his platoon to break through; that he died a splendid example,” wrote Andrew T. Kopan Ph.D. in “Defenders of the Democracy: Greek Americans in the Military,” about the Boston ceremony.

Dilboy was one out of 124 soldiers to receive the Medal of Honor in WWI, the Medal of Honor is the highest award for valor in action against an enemy force which can be bestowed upon an individual serving in the Armed Services of the United States, according to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s website.

Dilboy’s leadership was recognized. Right, left, right, left. Step-by-step Dilboy’s fellow Doughboys didn’t want to lose sight of him. They shadowed his lead and “The American doughboy Army followed Dilboy’s example and drove the Germans out of Belleau Wood and all the way back toward the German lines, as part of the Second Battle of the Maine, which saved Paris and the war for the Allies,” Arlingtoncemetery.net stated.

George Dilboy’s Medal of Honor citation explains what happened next.

“After his [George Dilboy’s] platoon had gained its objective along a railroad embankment, Pfc. Dilboy, accompanying his platoon leader to reconnoiter the ground beyond, was suddenly fired upon by an enemy machinegun from 100 yards. From a standing position on the railroad track, fully exposed to view, he opened fire at once, but failing to silence the gun, rushed forward with his bayonet fixed, through a wheat field toward the gun emplacement, falling within 25 yards of the gun with his right leg nearly severed above the knee and with several bullet holes in his body. With undaunted courage he continued to fire into the emplacement from a prone position, killing 2 of the enemy and dispersing the rest of the crew,” homeofheroes.com stated.

Yet, four years later Dilboy’s remains were first buried at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery at Belleau Wood, France.

His body was later taken to his birthplace in Alatsata on the Aegean Sea across from Chios, Greece, upon his father’s request.

In Dilboy’s cousin, Richard Rozakis’ book, he wrote the hero’s funeral was said to have been witnessed by 17,000 mourners as his flag-draped casket was placed in the Greek Orthodox Cathedral, The Annunciation of the Virgin Mary.

Unfortunately, when rampaging Turkish soldiers ransacked the church during the Greco-Turkish War of 1919-1923, the American Flag on Dilboy’s coffin was desecrated.

Rozakis stated, “The coffin was overturned and the bones of the Greek-American hero were scattered by the Turkish attackers. President Warren G. Harding was outraged. A soldier who fought for this country, not to mention multiple times, was being disrespected beyond the president’s belief. Harding sent the U.S.S. Litchfield to Alatsata, Asia Minor in September 1922 to recover the body remains. Harding also demanded an apology from the Turkish government.”

Harding received that formal apology and Dilboy’s remains were collected and a Turkish guard of honor delivered his casket, draped once again in an American flag.

Soon after, U.S. President Calvin Coolidge presided at his final burial when his parents in Chios requested his remains be transported to the United States.

He was then sent to an American landing party from the U.S.S. Litchfield. On Nov. 12, 1923, Dilboy reached his final resting place at the Arlington National Cemetery, according to their website. With full military honors, he lies buried at section 18, site 4574.

Dilboy’s legacy is remembered with plaques placed in Keene, New Hampshire and the Massachusetts State House in Boston.

There are also statues of the young soldier in front of Somerville City Hall and at the Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital in Hines, Illinois. Since 1953 Somerville’s Dilboy Stadium bears his name. The Somerville Museum exhibit of 2006-2007 also honored George Dilboy. In addition to the landmarks and the book, “Carved in Stone: The Story of George Dilboy,” there is Edward Brady’s book titled “Georgie! My Georgie!” written about the hero, George Dilboy.

“He was almost superhuman; he achieved things supposed above the limit of mental and physical endurance,” Andrew T. Kopan wrote, quoting President Wilson at the Medal of Honor Ceremony.

Dilboy wasn’t from this country, but he learned to adapt and appreciated the Flag and what American citizenship was. “That he died a splendid example,” Kopan said.

With a buffet in the center of the lobby and costumes and props decorating the area, the Redfern Arts Center hosted their annual Season Kick-Off Party with sneak-peak performances for free.

The Redfern’s Marketing and Business Manager Jackie Hooper said people have the opportunity to socialize for about a half-hour to forty-five minutes before going and seeing the live performances.

Hooper explained, “The music department students will be performing guitar work and then also two faculty members will be performing as well, separately. And then the Theater and Dance Department has one student performing a solo. Also, our director will be giving a sampling of the season with slides and videos.”

Hooper said this is about the fifth year that the Redfern Arts Center faculty has hosted a kick-off party. She said it’s about trying to get people excited about the season and to inform faculty, students and the community about what will be going on in the next year. “The Redfern brings in about eleven to twelve performing artists during the year,” Hooper said.

She also noted that professionals from off campus do the performances.  In addition, the Music Department has about forty performances scheduled at the Redfern this year, as well as four performances being done by theater and art majors, according to Hooper. In the lobby there were different mannequins dressed in costumes, which were made by the Theater and Dance Department for various performances in the past. Hooper mentioned each piece was labeled with what performances they were used in. In addition to the costumes, there were puppets out for show; some hung from the ceiling, others hung on the wall or were placed on a table. The puppets were about five to seven years old, Hooper said. However, they were not just out for nostalgia—they were out to highlight a production coming this year. Hooper mentioned that Celine Perron, a professor of Theatre and Dance will be doing a production with puppets, called, “The Phantom Tollbooth” in the spring.

In addition to all the colorful puppets and costumes, walking around the lobby in all black, taking selfies of herself in all different positions with different people was Kellie Lynch. She wore a curly yellow-haired wig and large, silver glasses on her face; she was ready to play her character for the performance in, “Einstein’s Happiest Thought.”

Olivia Schiaffo / Equinox Staff

Lynch said she works with Adele Myers and Dancers company and this isn’t the first time she’s performed this piece. The same piece premiered this time last year, starting the preparation in 2011 she said. “Its inspiration came from the idea of falling and flying. And then from there it evolved, many other things came up,” she said.

Another guest at the social gathering was Susanne Udall, a freshman at Keene State College.

She said she heard about the social gathering because she just got hired as an usher at the Redfern. She said she went to the job fair on campus and got an interview soon after.She continued to say that she is looking forward to being in the artistic environment. “I’m a Spanish major. I just have a lot of respect for people that are involved in the arts,” she explained.

She said she thinks her involvement is going to be a good way to get active on campus and meet other people who she might not usually see on a regular basis. In addition to Udall, Lyssy Barnes-Flint, a recently-transferred theatre major at KSC, was also at the kick-off gathering.

The junior came to the social gathering to see what was going on this season at the Redfern. She’s working on “Equus” this year, in addition to taking six theatre classes. Barnes-Flint found the event to be beneficial. “It’s a very good way to meet people and [see] who’s going to be around next year and what you can go to. I like how it’s open and there’s food,” Barnes-Flint said.

Faculty appreciated the students’ appearance at the Season Kick-off Party. Director of the Redfern Arts Center Shannon Mayers said a serious focus this year is getting students involved and to take advantage of the opportunities offered at the Redfern. In addition, she said this kick-off party is truly an invitation for the community to be welcomed to the building and to introduce them to the shows they offer. She said when she came on in 2011 she added a lot of performances because that’s what’s really exciting to people. For example, something she started is Creative Connections, which aims to create more activities with the Keene community.

“We really want our community to see the Redfern as a place to gather, as a place that is social. That it’s not just coming in, seeing a performance and leaving—because we have a lot of other activities, free programming activities,” Mayers said.

Some of them are pre-show talks, lectures and workshops that happen with all of their events. In addition she said the Redfern Arts Center works with the Colonial Theater to do education outreach. Jackie Hooper said students only pay five dollars for any ticket to go see a high quality performance at the Redfern.  Someone else who finds the prices at the Redfern to be great compared to the Colonial Theater is a man who has lived in Keene for a very long time, Frank Kellom. Kellom said he takes advantage of the great performances offered at the Redfern. He said he subscribed to just about every performance coming to the Redfern this year.

“I support the place. I buy my tickets and I also give them some money sometime during the season, just to help encourage young people in the arts,” Kellom explained.  He said he’s on campus quite a bit and has friends who teach here. Kellom said he found the kick-off social gathering to be wonderful and very positive.  In addition, he said people in Keene are very fortunate to have all these events offered on campus.

Bethany Ricciardi can be contacted at bricciardi@keene-equinox.com

“When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace,” is a quote attributed to the well-known artist Jimi Hendrix.

The words love and power caught my eye when I first came across this quote. I recognized what I saw and I had to say it out loud a couple times before I realized its deep meaning.

“When the power of love…” — I like this because it gives love a source of power to begin with. Love is one of the most potent responses a human being can share with someone.

Then, ”..Overcomes the love of power — This is where I saw love go from potent to just seriously poisonous. If love is a response of human beings and our love is focused on power, there is no love; there is no connection — just a drive for control and no sympathetic real feel of love.

So, after sitting and dwelling on this quote for a while, I realized something. The world does not love its people the way it should.

Erin D’Aleo / Graphics Editor:
Ricciardi compares a Jimi Hendrix quote to the United States of America and the love the government does not show its people.

Therefore, we do not live in peace, but instead we watch families live in hunger, die without ever seeing a doctor’s care, or are given a gun and told to go kill overseas.

We do not live in peace, because the love of power is too strong, and the power of love…well, where is it?

On Dictionary.com love is described as a profoundly tender, passionate affection for another person. Another description is a feeling of warm personal attachment or deep affection, as for a parent, child or friend.

When looking into Hendrix’s words, I found someone else had shared this knowledge. BetterWorld.net had written, “We look forward to the time when the Power of Love will replace the Love of Power. Then will our world know the blessings of peace,” William Gladstone said in the 1800’s.

Gladstone was right that peace is a blessing. I really wish that part stayed with Hendrix when he reworded it. Peace brings happiness and mercy and that is exactly what a blessing is. I like to think that one day I will live in a peaceful world — one with no war, maybe one where parents won’t leave their children, or one where the sick could be treated, covered by health care or not.

Focusing on this nationally, if the U.S. people loved us — if they loved their people, then why is health care one of the most profiting businesses in this country?

We deny sick people coverage because we think they will cost too much money to treat. We don’t put your dying mother or father on the list for donors because United Health One, Assurant Health or any other health insurance company doesn’t cover them.

Health care is for the profit, not the people. It’s for the power and control, not the love and care.

Claire Andre and Manuel Velasquez wrote an article on scu.edu and told Americans’ stories.

The article read, “In Alameda County, a private hospital turned away a woman in labor because the hospital’s computer showed that she didn’t have insurance. Hours later, her baby was born dead in a county hospital.”

I’m sure that woman loved her baby, and would’ve loved being a mother.

But clearly “We the people,” do not love others enough to let go of the money and power this countrywide company is providing.

Andre and Velasquez said in their article, “Further, critics of health care for profit maintain that all persons have a right to live their lives with dignity. Mixing business with medicine will inevitably lead to abuses that violate patient dignity. A patient is in a vulnerable position, necessarily trusting that the doctor’s decisions about his or her medical care will be guided solely by the patient’s best interests. But in a system of for-profit health care, doctors will become subject to the control of lay managers accountable to share-holders whose primary aim is making a profit.  Such hospitals will encourage doctors to promote profit-producing drugs, surgeries, tests and treatments. And, medical treatments and counseling lacking profit potential, however effective, will be discouraged. Even more worrisome are physicians who themselves own the facilities they operate. Doctors owning dialysis centers, for example, have been accused of putting patients on dialysis sooner than necessary and putting off kidney transplants that would eliminate the need for dialysis altogether.”

The quote above really said it all for me. Patients are manipulated and aren’t being treated in the right ways. The doctor only sees a profit, not a person.

These types of people are harming society, but are being encouraged to act this way by higher authorities.

How can society be so unethical? You look for the best in things, such as when they talk about prices of health care going down and such, but you never see these promises come true.

The article continues, “The amount we spend on health care every year has grown from $75 billion in 1980 to nearly $500 billion today. If this rate continues, by the year 2020, we will be spending 40 cents of every dollar we make on health care.”

It also said there are currently 37 million people in the United States living without health insurance because they cannot afford it.

Look to your right. Now look to your left. If there is someone there you love and care for, imagine them gone.

They’re gone because the U.S. government controls the system and we don’t even know where to start looking to change it.

They’re gone because a doctor wouldn’t take them in.

They’re gone because the power of love has not, and probably never will, overcome the love of power.

Bethany Ricciardi can be contacted at bricciardi@keene-equinox.com

Rainbow colors  filled Appian Way as Keene State College students dressed in bright colors for the first KSC Pride Parade.

Lucy Briggs, the Public Relations Representative of KSC Pride, said, “Today we’re doing a couple of things — first of all — just the message of equality that we always try to advocate for. We also have some petitions that are going for name change policies, because the school and their name change policy for any of our tran [transvestite or transgender] students, or anybody who wants to change their name, even if we legally change them, they haven’t been changed in any of the class registries and it automatically outs all of our students.”

Briggs said addressing personal pronouns is a long conversation students have to have with professors and students that can be very uncomfortable. She said students should be asked when they come to KSC what gender pronouns they prefer so they don’t need to have that future conversation with a class.

Sam Lewis / Equinox Staff:
The KSC Pride parade held colorful signs with sayings such as “Love knows no gender,” and “straight for equality.”

Kal Rasku, who also said his birth name is Julia and is listed in the directory as Julia Rasku, is the president of KSC Pride. He said he has a friend who started attending KSC with his name assigned at birth. His friend  legally changed his name, but couldn’t get the name changed in the school system.

Rasku said he believes students should have the, “Freedom to be able to have the name you want — to have it available on Blackboard and for your email because your name will out you. If you email someone and say, ‘Hey, you know, this-that-and-the other,’ and it says blatantly in the email, ‘This is from Susan something,’ and then you sign it Kyle whatever, that outs you right there.”

For that reason he said the school needs to change the IT systems so people can have their preferred name in the system.

Another one of the petitions promoted the addition of more unisex (gender-neutral) bathrooms.

“That’s a big problem for our tran [transvestite or transgender] students, the lack of ability to have bathrooms that they can go out and use. We’ve heard stories of people having to plan their day around bathrooms that they know they can use,” Briggs said.

KSC student America Rojas attended the parade and signed both positions. She said she supports what KSC Pride is doing.

“Students can’t use bathrooms and they have to work their way around showering. Showering’s supposed to be a common thing, not something that should be a problem in your life. We [non transgenders] have the convenience of it; it shouldn’t be a problem for them. They should focus on school, not worrying about where to go to the bathroom,” Rojas said.

Aspen Everhardt, the vice president of KSC Pride, held up a sign that said, “All families matter.” Everhardt said she hopes to find more opportunities for gender nonconforming students, such as having more gender-neutral bathrooms on campus.

“Especially freshmen halls — there aren’t any individual showers for people and you can experience a lot of harassment…just using the bathroom,” Everhardt said.

Bobbie Barry, an alumni of KSC, is a volunteer worker for Parents, Friends, and Families of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG). Promoters for PFLAG were at the KSC Pride Parade.

Barry said, “PFLAG is a national organization. We have three-hundred-and-sixty chapters around the United States. We have active chapters in New Hampshire. We have one here in Keene that meets on the first Tuesday of each month at St. James Episcopal Church and everyone is welcome, ally, parents, family members, brothers, sisters, grandparents— you name it — everyone’s welcome.”

She said the Episcopal Church invented PFLAG to meet in the building when they started a group since 1988. They have been meeting in a free room in St. James since 1988.

Barry said, “We have participated in marriage equality in new Hampshire, so we do have marriage equality now. And we had to go back again and fight for it because they passed it, and then the next legislature tried to take it away [and] tried to repeal the whole thing.”

Sam Lewis / Equinox Staff:
Participants of the KSC Pride parade were dressed in bright colors as they marched down Appian Way and Main Street.

Barry continued, “We had to go to battle again and really talk about why we need marriage equality in this state. Well as you know, other states have followed soon and the Supreme Court finally followed…and said marriage is a constitutional right for gay and lesbian people.”

Barry said PFLAG has worked on other things, such as the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. She said many gay, lesbian or transgender people can be fired for their sexuality.

“Our country is coming along…PFLAG started forty-two years ago when this one mom in New York City [at the] first gay pride parade carried a sign…that said we love our gay son,” Barry said. Barry said PFLAG is all volunteer based and non-profit organization.

Keene resident Ashley Engelbrecht is a sex consultant who brought some information to the parade.

Engelbrecht, who works in the Keene area said, “Simply stated, it’s [her company] a sex toy party [business], but we offer a lot more than toys. We have products that pamper, provoke and please.”

Engelbrecht said she attended the parade for people to be able to book a party or enter a raffle.

Rasku said KSC Pride wants to set a foundation with the hope that the parade will become an annual event.

He said, “We wanted to bring the community together here and we figured that a great way to do that would be with the parade, and we hope that you know we can open up more opportunities and bring more people here next year.”

Jacob Knehr, the events coordinator for KSC Pride, said,  “We have free giveaways, we have posters, we have some vendors here who’s going to be advertising products, along with PFLAG advocating for the LGBT community and we have a DJ so it’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Students were dressed in rainbows expressing their LGBT support.

“We’re just promoting support for the LGBT and GSRN community, and just spreading awareness that we support,” Knehr said.

KSC Pride also hosted a rainbow rave later that night in the Mabel Brown room in the L.P Young Student Center.

Bethany Ricciardi can be contacted at bricciardi@keene-equinox.com

Student Trustee at Keene State College, Allie Bedell, stated in an email information promoting Student Government Elections. 

As written in Bedell’s email, “Student Government Election petitions are now available.  Petitions will be available today through April 18.”

In the email, she said students can receive a petition in either the L.P. Young Student Center or online.

She advised that all petitions must be submitted to the Administrative Offices on the third floor of the student center by 4:30 p.m. on Friday, April 18.

“Elections will be held on Monday, April 28th, through the MyKSC page,” she said. She also said questions can be directed to Bedell at abedell@ksc.keene.edu.

Bethany Ricciardi can be contacted at bricciardi@keene-equinox.com

On March 6, members of the Monadnock Region, the N.H. Governor and Keene State College president and faculty gathered at the Alumni Center for the first annual Business Monadnock Trendsetters award ceremony, presented by the Keene Sentinel, Business Monadnock Magazine and the Keene Young Professionals Network. 

The awards were presented to young professionals who are recognized for making a difference in the Monadnock Region. Angie Ruest, the Keene Sentinel’s executive assistant, said the candidates cannot be over 40-years-old and must be nominated by someone in their business or someone else in the community.

To receive the honor, candidates must put forth effort in the community and demonstrate “how they help their business to grow, and how they help their community grow [is important to them]. It’s community-minded people,” Ruest said.

N.H. Governor, Maggie Hassan, said, “I think it’s just really important for people of all ages, but especially young people, to understand what kind of opportunities there are in New Hampshire—for young people to engage and start their own businesses or become part of a business and then just thrive.”

Hassan continued, “I think this [trendsetter awards ceremony] really highlights the ability of that—for people to chart their own course in New Hampshire and have a great quality of life. It is an honor; this is a great group of energetic people who are really making a great difference in New Hampshire.”

Haley Erdbrink / Equinox Staff:
Keene Sentinel President, Terrence Williams, opens the first ever Trensetters awards ceremony. To his right, he is joined by KSC President, Anne Huot, N.H. Governor, Maggie Hassan and Keene Mayor, Kendall Lane.

Manager of Corporate Development at C&S Wholesale Grocers, Meredith Speranza, was one of three members of the C&S team to be nominated.

Speranza said, “I was so excited to be among all the other winners who are doing such great stuff, and to be able to win something for doing what I love.”

She said she thinks her next step is going to be to join another board. Currently, she is part of a fellowship program that teaches leadership skills.

Terry Williams, president and chief operating officer for the Keene Sentinel said, “We want to bring attention to a lot of the young professionals in the community that are doing not only great with their companies, but also within the community, so it’s just a recognition of that. We kind of get the ball rolling in terms of publicizing why it’s [Monadnock Region] a great place to be, and why it’s a great place to be young and to be a part of the community. So, that’s kind of the initiative, to get it started and recognize these people.”

Williams said there were close to 60 nominations at the end of the search. Later, he said a great committee worked their way through the nominees and came up with potentially 22 winners, two of which were couples—which made a total of 24 winners. He said all the awards are of equal stature.

When the ceremony began, Williams said there were common attributes that put the group together. These included innovation, helping others, the focus on healthy lifestyles and products and intense curiosity in terms of helping to make things better. “I have read each of these stories and I can tell you there is much to be proud of with this group,”  Williams said.

Hassan said this group of young people are critical to the economic future.

“We need to make sure we have a work force with twenty-first century skills, we need to make sure that that work force is well positioned to help us grow our businesses and to grow our economy and strengthen our middle class,” Hassan said.

The N.H. governor said the more young people that are engaged in the business community, the better off everyone would be in terms of their civic life and economy.

“We want all of you who are being honored tonight and all of you who will be honored in future years and all of you who deserve past honors as well, to understand and know that we want to support your hard work so that you and others can continue to thrive here,” Hassan said.

The governor continued, “We have great potential to build our success, we are as well positioned as any state in the country to lead in economic innovation, we’re doing it already— we’re growing jobs, we have these great, great attributes to bring.”

Hassan said young professionals represent the opportunites that exist in the state of N.H. “Not only am I proud of you and happy for you, I want to tell your stories as much as I can because success is contagious and we want to bring more people here as they understand how successful all of you are being,” Hassan said.

President of KSC, Anne Huot, said she worries about the ability to attract and retain highly talented young people who want to live and dedicate their lives to the region.

“This event, being sponsored by the Sentinel, is an important step in that direction I think— because it gives us the opportunity to recognize and support young people who are doing amazing things in a community that is deeply superlative in it’s affection—not only for the place, but for the people that make up the place. And [with] the presence of our governor in here tonight—I think is a strong testament for the importance of that,” Huot said.

Huot also noted that she was very proud of the KSC members and the alumni that were awarded.

Dr. Emily Porschitz, assistant professor at KSC for the Department of Management, came to the stage and said she was a scholar who studies careers in the United States.

Porschitz said a huge mission of the Keene Young Professionals Network, shared with the governor and Keene mayor Kendall Lane, is to attract and retain young people. She said they do not have to look outside their region for answers; they already have them there.

Porschitz said, “When I look outside of our region, I see a prevailing work culture that is worrisome. I’m sure I’m bias because I work with college students all day and I do my research on early careers, but I find these trends affect young workers, perhaps, more than others. They’re starting their career in a distinctly difficult environment where [the] only support often comes in the form of a self-help book, or a video. I found that a lot of this is not the case in the Monadnock region. I think there’s a less tangible feeling too, that those of us who live here feel we know that the word community has deep meaning and uncommon transformative power—and we value hard work with grace and pride.”

Mayor Kendall Lane thanked all those who put the event in motion, such as KSC, Sedexo catering, the Keene Sentinel and the KSC string ensemble. In addition, he thanked the presenting sponsor, Markem Imaje, as well as award sponsors Clark-Mortenson Insurance and Financial Services and Brattleboro Subaru and hospitality sponsor, C&S Wholesale Grocers.

Beth Mullen and Andrew Dugrenier, members of the Keene Young Professional Network, presented the awards to the 24 winners. Megan Ruffee, Brian Lee and KSC senior Jennifer Zinka made a video about the winners and their future goals.

The winners, which came from all over the Monadnock Region, included Keene owner of Beeze Tees, Timothy Pipp, to Laina Barakat, director of Monadnock International Film Festival.

The Business Monadnock Magazine special edition features trendsetter award winners and a description of their accomplishments.

Bethany Ricciardi can be contacted at bricciardi@keene-equinox.com

Some interest has been expressed in New Hampshire House Bill 492, which would pass the legalization of marijuana in the state of N.H.

Colorado and Washington legalized marijuana through a referendum, or statewide vote. New Hampshire does not allow statewide referendums.

According to the Live Free or Die Alliance, “Opponents believe that since N.H. has one of the largest legislatures in the world, citizens have ample access to their elected representatives and do not need the power of a referendum.”

A marijuana legalization advocacy group, Marijuana Policy Project, wrote the bill.

Representative Steve Vaillancourt sponsored the legalization bill and stated any bill that has taxes included in it has to go through  The House Committee on Ways and Means after passing through the house.

Then, the bill will remain there until it moves to the senate. After passing the senate, the bill will go to the governor.

If the governor does not veto it, the bill will becomes a law, Vaillancourt explained.

According to Vaillancourt, the Ways and Means committee will look at the bill and approve or disapprove  it sometime in mid-March.

Eric Jedd / Equinox Staff

However, he said, no matter what the Ways and Means committee decides, the bill goes to vote again in the house. Vaillancourt said the Ways and Means committee is full of “Reefer Madness” types who will not pass it. He said if they disapprove, the bill still has a solid chance to pass through the house again.

Vaillancourt indicated the senate will probably say “no.” He said the governor has stated she plans to veto the bill.

“I never expected this to pass the house to begin with,” Vaillancourt said, “In fact, we are a government of people. I think the elected officials should listen to what the people have to say, and they [the people] want this.”

Vaillancourt stated, “Even though we are not likely to legalize [marijuana] this year, we may decriminalize [it],”

Vaillancourt added he is absolutely convinced that a proposed decriminalization bill will pass the house by a two-to-one margin. Vaillancourt shared he is  more optimistic than ever the senate will pass the decriminalization bill. Vaillancourt said, “The Criminal Justice Committee recommended killing the bill, and we overturned it.”

He continued, “For several years in a row, the New Hampshire House has passed decriminalization bills. They have died in the senate each year….New opinion polls show tremendous support for the bill….I have confidence in these polls.”

In a New Futures op-ed on legalization featured in the Concord Monitor, Tricia Lucas, advocacy director of New Futures, wrote, “As the New Hampshire Legislature prepares, yet again, to consider legislation to legalize, regulate and tax marijuana, I am reminded of the quote from H. L. Mencken, ‘For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple and wrong.’ Although the marijuana legalization issue can be easily stated for an opinion poll, in reality the issue is complex, with significant implications for the public health and safety of New Hampshire residents and our economy. It is time to move beyond rhetoric, simplistic responses, and legislation by poll to a serious policy discussion, supported by current research and data.”

According to Joe Gallagher, communications coordinator for New Futures, “New Futures is serving as the anchor organization to Project SAM [Smart Approaches to Marijuana] in New Hampshire.”

The New Futures information states the addiction rate is one in every 11 adults who have tried marijuana, and one in six adolescents who have tried the substance, according to the article in the Concord Monitor.

Tricia Lucas also stated, “In 2011, 28.4 percent of high school students reported using marijuana one or more times in the last 30 days. Because legalization will increase access and convey the message that use is without risk, youth use will increase.”

Keene State College’s Executive Summary for the fall 2012 semester showed 25 percent of KSC students have used marijuana within the last 30 days.

Tiffany Mathews, coordinator of wellness education at KSC, said marijuana is seen by some as a safe and benign substance instead of being an addictive drug that has the potential to impede success and hinder people from fulfilling their potential.

She said it is highly doubtful that the Center for Health and Wellness at KSC will dispense medical marijuana in the future for those reasons.

“While it may lack apparent ill effects, it alters cognitive and social development and can lead to long-term effects on life and well-being,” Mathews said.

Mathews also included some information from the NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse) which stated, “With recreational marijuana use recently legalized in two states and increasing public pressure to ease restrictions on the drug nationwide, the availability of this drug is bound to increase. Only time will tell how these factors influence teens’ perception of marijuana’s safety or lack thereof. The key may be to do a better job of educating America’s youth about the value of their brains, and how utterly important it is not to engage in behaviors that could permanently compromise that organ during a very vulnerable period in its development.”

Mathews indicated she does not think the legalization of marijuana would benefit the college. She said she has had people come in and talk about using marijuana, and they talk about how it decreases their motivation to do the things they used to do.

She said they lose motivation to follow through on things and that even with the use of marijuana overtime it becomes a habitual thing for students and they completely change their goals altogether.

Mathews suggested that, “Marijuana isn’t usually connected to violent behavior, but if you did a little digging, possibly ask students who are leaving, transferring or dropping out…Ask them if marijuana may have had a role in that? Research does show as they become habitual users, even though they may seem laid back and relaxed, it’s often a disconnect with their goals that they once had coming in.”

Aside from how students might be affected by this bill passing, staff and faculty have expressed possible  change as well.

Director of Campus Safety, Amanda Guthorn, said laws change periodically, so they have to adjust their procedures and protocols to reflect that.

Guthorn noted, “We stay on top of what’s happening in the law, and it would just change the manner in which we respond. So right now if we get a call for a potential marijuana circumstance, because it’s an illegal drug, we call Keene police, because we can’t legally possess the drug ourselves.”

Guthorn continued, “That’s the protocol we’ve worked with Keene police on. So if it’s no longer illegal, for over 21 [year-olds], that eliminates that issue. But if it’s still illegal for under 21, we still need the police. So there are a lot of nuances to it. It’s not just a ‘yes it’s legal,’ ‘no it’s not,’ type of thing.”

Guthorn said even if it became legal, the majority of the campus is under the age of 21, therefore  Campus Safety would still face a number of issues.

Campus Safety already receives many calls about potential marijuana use on campus, according to Guthorn, who said if the drug became legal students might start experimenting more with it.

Guthorn said she does not think it will necessarily increase the number of people who use marijuana for whatever purposes, recreational or medical.

“Whatever policies we’re going to enforce, we have to create them before they go into effect…I think it [laws changing] always presents challenges. Are professors going to be able to tell if kids are coming to class high? I would guarantee kids are coming to class high now,” Guthorn predicted.

In addition to the changes New Hampshire faces, representative Vaillancourt said, “We are at the cutting edge of historical change. We’ve come a long way, certainly in my lifetime, and we are making progress that is good for all society.”

Bethany Ricciardi can be contacted at bricciardi@keene-equinox.com

A sports fan might dream of being in the Super Bowl one day, but a sports fan who loves to write might dream of covering the Super Bowl as a journalist. 

For one former Sports Editor of The Equinox at Keene State College, that dream came true.

Paul Silverfarb, KSC Alumni and The Equinox Sports Editor in 1999, said we could probably hear him screaming from Connecticut when he found out his credentials had been accepted to report on the Super Bowl.

Silverfarb grew up in Trumbull, Connecticut, and started at KSC in the fall of ’95.

Silverfarb worked on The Equinox newspaper staff as a sports reporter for three years, until he became the sports editor his senior year. When Silverfarb graduated from KSC, he said he planned to take off a couple weeks to regroup, and to, “get ready for the fun stuff.”

His plan became side tracked when a news reporter position for Norwalk Citizen opened up. Silverfarb said he worked as their general assignment reporter until he became the sports editor in Norwalk in 1999.

Contributed Photo: KSC alumnus, Paul Silverfarb, stands at MetLife Stadium before the Super Bowl he covered.

“I am a local reporter for my newspaper, Greenwich-Post, now. I’ve done sports editing, a lot of local stuff, high school and college games. We’re very lucky that we have professional athletes that live in our town, also owners of professional teams—all that fun stuff is living around us—so I’ve been able to use that towards the national spotlight,” Silverfarb said.

Silverfarb said he applied for credentials to cover the Super Bowl in October of 2013.

Credentials, similar to press passes, offer permission from the company, in this case the NFL, for someone to enter an event.

After applying for these credentials, Silverfarb explained that he forgot about the application, as he did not think that his credentials would be accepted. But sure enough, in November of 2013, he received his NFL credentials.

“The game stunk, it was a stinker; everything leading up to it though was as awesome as you could imagine it could be,” Silverfarb started to explain.

“It was about a 20-21 hour day. I got on a train at 8 a.m. in Fairfield [Connecticut] where I live, to Grand Central Station, walked to Times Square where the hotel for media was. From there, I picked up my media credentials for the Super Bowl game. And at about 1:15 p.m., they started loading the busses for the media to the Super Bowl. I didn’t have to drive or pay one-hundred dollars to park, which was awesome,” Silverfarb said.

From the Super Bowl venue on, Silverfarb noted there were hours worth of security.

“I was sniffed by very friendly dogs, once on the bus—picture airplane security, but twice as bad as that. It was a level-one security event. They [the NFL] needed my SS [social security] number, they did a background check, the whole nine yards,” Silverfarb mentioned.

He said the NFL made an axillary section just for the Super Bowl and that is where he sat.

There was working Wi-fi, he was given a boxed lunch and he said there was a lot of waiting and talking to a lot of different media members until kick off.

Silverfarb mentioned he was also keeping a live blog throughout his day, posting about the event.

Silverfarb, a self-described Red Hot Chili Peppers fan, said that he really enjoyed the halftime show, while mentioning that he also became a Bruno Mars fan that night.

“He’s [Bruno Mars] very entertaining. The show was very good. I remember what it was like live, and then I watched it later on YouTube to see what it was like on TV, and the live [version] was much better,” he said.

Silverfarb also got to participate in media day for the Super Bowl. This event, which took place on the Tuesday before the Super Bowl, was a completely different event in New Jersey, according to Silverfarb.

Silverfarb arrived to a facility  where all reporters got to interview the players. He said the Denver Broncos came out and reporters could talk to them for about an hour, until the Seattle Seahawks came out.

Silverfarb said he spoke with numerous players and coaches from Broncos Head Coach John Fox to Richard Sherman, cornerback with the Seattle Seahawks, to Peyton Manning, Broncos quarterback. Silverfarb said he asked them the same type of questions as the other reporters.

“You know everything from ‘How do you think your defense is going to hold up, to what’s your favorite color;’ just everything,” he explained. The KSC alumni said his Super Bowl story published on his website on Greenwich-Post with the title “Denver Broncos no match for Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl 48.”

“Sometimes I think I’m over my head, but then, I mean, I got credentials to the Super Bowl. There are not that many people in that stadium that could say ‘I was chosen as a respected person of the media to cover the Super Bowl.’“

He continued, “I think there were three to four-thousand members of the media there, and like ten-thousand that applied for it, and I was one of them. Part of that, all the crap you go through, edits, stories, see this, see that, it’s worth it to say, ‘Oh wow, I get to cover a Yankee’s game. I talked to athletes that play for the NHL that are going to play in the Olympics.’ It lets you know you’re succeeding and on the right track,” Silverfarb commented.

Writing for The Equinox in college was one of the greatest things Silverfarb did while at KSC, he said.

“Because the books tell you one thing, and how to write a nice story, but the real world experiences are what is very important, especially in journalism. It’s always nice to be prepared. I was prepared a lot more when I interviewed players and was used to doing it because I did it for The Equinox,” Silverfarb said.

He explained he was happy he chose journalism as his career path after graduating KSC.

He said, “It’s [journalism] truly what I love to do. It’s a lot of fun, I like to write. I joke around with my wife, she’s a math major, and I’m lucky if I can do two plus two. I can write a nice story, but I just hand everything with numbers right over to the wife,” Silverfarb laughed.

Silverfarb explained that he gained more than a journalism experience in college.

While at KSC; he met his wife in Carle Hall in 1999. They got married in 2003, he said. Silverfarb also shared that in 2008 they welcomed two little twin boys to their family.

“We have five-year-old twins. That is beyond anything you could imagine in life. You’re tired now? Oh boy. You put in a good eight to ten-hour day, and you come home and it doesn’t stop. I couldn’t be happier though, it’s worth it,” Silverfarb said.

Silverfarb is also happy to say he went to Pumpkin Fest all four years as a student here at KSC.

To all journalism majors at KSC, Silverfarb said, “Be as creative as possible. Don’t give up after your first few stories with a lot of corrections. I still get a lot of corrections, stick with it and don’t give up, and good things will happen.”

Silverfarb said he has been in contact with the Alumni Office at KSC on-and-off since he left the college.

Sara Telfer, associate director of Alumni & Parent Relations, said the Alumni Association’s hope is that they can help alumni stay connected to the college.

“We do that in many ways, starting when they’re students. One reason we try to get alum back on campus is to talk to students; help demonstrate that once you graduate you can still come back and stay connected. We have events on campus that we hope alumni come to—home-coming, winter fest, alumni reunion weekend, where they can stay on campus and kind of relive their past experiences here,” Telfer said.

Telfer said one of the things the office is working on right now is a big push in terms of making sure they have updated information on graduates so they can stay in touch better.

She also said the Marketing and Communications office on campus puts out an online newsletter that goes out typically once a month, where someone can see and read about alumni’s accomplishments.

“Shawn Huckins, 2007 featured in the Huffington Post, Jennifer Dunnington in 1993 joins the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and Bravo TV goes behind the scenes of Katrina Hodgson’s 2006 ToneItUp Workouts,” are a few that Telfer listed.

“Anytime someone has an accomplishment, it reflects positively on the college,” Telfer said.

Silverfarb said when he found out he was going to be interviewed it was “very cool.”

“It’s a great honor to be featured in a paper that I put so much time and effort into while I was at Keene [State College],” Silverfarb declared.

Bethany Ricciardi can be contacted at bricciardi@keene-equinox.com