Newspaper Stories about Katie Dunn-Rankin
'School House Rock Live!' awes and entertains
http://pineviewtorch.com
By Elizabeth Leone Published September 23, 2013 in Entertainment
"...The star of the show was a Pine View twelfth-grader, seventeen-year-old Katie Dunn-Rankin. Playing the part of the teacher, Dunn-Rankin portrayed the image of the fresh, young, first-day-on-the-job character that the show called for, and beautifully at that. “I thought it was going to be pretty simple, but the score is actually really complicated. We spent the first month of rehearsal just sitting in a circle in front of the piano,” Dunn-Rankin said of the rehearsal process.
It was apparent that the eldest cast member has been in show biz for quite a long time, and Dunn-Rankin's performance fell nothing short of excellent. If there is one reason to take the trip to Venice to catch one of the remaining ten showings of "School House Rock Live!," it should be to see Dunn-Rankin’s animated face light up throughout each heart-warming song.
Performances continue until Sept. 29, and tickets are available for purchase here."
http://pineviewtorch.com
By Elizabeth Leone Published September 23, 2013 in Entertainment
"...The star of the show was a Pine View twelfth-grader, seventeen-year-old Katie Dunn-Rankin. Playing the part of the teacher, Dunn-Rankin portrayed the image of the fresh, young, first-day-on-the-job character that the show called for, and beautifully at that. “I thought it was going to be pretty simple, but the score is actually really complicated. We spent the first month of rehearsal just sitting in a circle in front of the piano,” Dunn-Rankin said of the rehearsal process.
It was apparent that the eldest cast member has been in show biz for quite a long time, and Dunn-Rankin's performance fell nothing short of excellent. If there is one reason to take the trip to Venice to catch one of the remaining ten showings of "School House Rock Live!," it should be to see Dunn-Rankin’s animated face light up throughout each heart-warming song.
Performances continue until Sept. 29, and tickets are available for purchase here."
Sun Newspapers-
Girl Scout Awards story-
Katie Dunn-Rankin received her Girl Scout Gold Award
(like Eagle Scout for boys)
published May 25, 2013
(pictured in upper right and lower right)
Charlotte Sun Newspaper-
Charlotte Idol auditions
published April 15, 2013
(pictured in upper right)
The Venice Gondolier -
story about Katie Dunn-Rankin's Girl Scout Gold Project
(like Eagle Scout for boys)
published June 27, 2012
Girl Power! Retreat for middle school girls
Newspaper Stories by Katie Dunn-Rankin
Pine View Torch (www.PineViewTorch.com)
January 24, 2014 Doing away with the ‘R-Word’
Guest Editorial by Katie Dunn-Rankin
When I was in sixth grade, some older boys started messing with my friend, so I, being the tough little 11-year-old I was, started grabbing one boy's backpack and pulling him away from my her. Eventually, they left us alone, and as the boys walked away, I heard one tell the other, "You just got raped by that little girl!"
I was stunned and confused. My parents had told me about what rape was, and what I had done certainly was not that. Rape was a scary and gross crime, and those boys had walked away laughing.
Still today, people use a violent and disgusting crime to describe doing poorly on a test or losing an argument. When we use the word "rape" in a casual and joking context, we not only disrespect the degree of the crime and the suffering of the victim, but we also risk hurting the people around us or even ourselves.
First off, referring casually to rape, even when everyone knows you "don't really mean it," trivializes the crime. In a world where the line between rape and consensual sex can be unclear, we as a society should fight to educate and increase safety rather than further muddying the waters. At a stereotypical university, the phenomenon of date rape is real and rampant. In many freshman orientations, an entire session is spent on explaining what constitutes rape versus consent, especially when one or more of those involved are drunk. If we use the word "rape" casually, we will only contribute to the false belief that rape is no big deal.
Also, every time you use that word in a disrespectful manner, you risk seriously hurting someone. If you knew the person three rows down from you in English class had been raped by their uncle at age three, you probably wouldn't claim that you'd just been raped by a multiple-choice test. But the thing is, you never know what the people around you have experienced - even people you've known for years. One in every six women and one in every 33 men have been a victim of attempted or completed rape in their lifetime according to a survey by the National Institute of Justice & Centers for Disease Control. So it is likely that when you sit in class or walk down the sidewalk, someone around you has been raped or sexually assaulted. It is even more likely that someone around you has a friend or family member who has been raped.
Victims of rape and sexual assault are haunted by their experience for a lifetime. Even years later, victims wake up with nightmares. Some victims can never have a healthy sexual relationship with their spouse because of what was done to them. If you have never experienced rape, the word may not mean anything to you, but to a victim, it evokes damaging emotions and could bring back painful memories.
Most people like joking around, but they wouldn't knowingly hurt the people around them.
January 24, 2014 Doing away with the ‘R-Word’
Guest Editorial by Katie Dunn-Rankin
When I was in sixth grade, some older boys started messing with my friend, so I, being the tough little 11-year-old I was, started grabbing one boy's backpack and pulling him away from my her. Eventually, they left us alone, and as the boys walked away, I heard one tell the other, "You just got raped by that little girl!"
I was stunned and confused. My parents had told me about what rape was, and what I had done certainly was not that. Rape was a scary and gross crime, and those boys had walked away laughing.
Still today, people use a violent and disgusting crime to describe doing poorly on a test or losing an argument. When we use the word "rape" in a casual and joking context, we not only disrespect the degree of the crime and the suffering of the victim, but we also risk hurting the people around us or even ourselves.
First off, referring casually to rape, even when everyone knows you "don't really mean it," trivializes the crime. In a world where the line between rape and consensual sex can be unclear, we as a society should fight to educate and increase safety rather than further muddying the waters. At a stereotypical university, the phenomenon of date rape is real and rampant. In many freshman orientations, an entire session is spent on explaining what constitutes rape versus consent, especially when one or more of those involved are drunk. If we use the word "rape" casually, we will only contribute to the false belief that rape is no big deal.
Also, every time you use that word in a disrespectful manner, you risk seriously hurting someone. If you knew the person three rows down from you in English class had been raped by their uncle at age three, you probably wouldn't claim that you'd just been raped by a multiple-choice test. But the thing is, you never know what the people around you have experienced - even people you've known for years. One in every six women and one in every 33 men have been a victim of attempted or completed rape in their lifetime according to a survey by the National Institute of Justice & Centers for Disease Control. So it is likely that when you sit in class or walk down the sidewalk, someone around you has been raped or sexually assaulted. It is even more likely that someone around you has a friend or family member who has been raped.
Victims of rape and sexual assault are haunted by their experience for a lifetime. Even years later, victims wake up with nightmares. Some victims can never have a healthy sexual relationship with their spouse because of what was done to them. If you have never experienced rape, the word may not mean anything to you, but to a victim, it evokes damaging emotions and could bring back painful memories.
Most people like joking around, but they wouldn't knowingly hurt the people around them.
Winner: Florida Scholastic Writing Award 2014
Venice Gondolier Sun (www.venicegondoliersun.com)
Dec 4, 2013 Front page
Pine View given Guinness record by Katie Dunn-Rankin
For the 600 students and teachers, it was a struggle to fit everyone inside the cafeteria, but it had to be done, because it was time to make the sandwiches, and time was of the essence.
In fact, time was the only reason any of those 600 people were in the cafeteria that morning.
On May 30, Pine View School, led by its Interact Club, broke the Guinness World Record for the number of sandwiches made in an hour. The 600 students made 5,721 sandwiches in 30 minutes and 24.68 seconds. They would have continued for the whole hour, said Joshua Palmer, previous Interact president and current Vanderbilt student, but they ran out of bread. Today, the record that Pine View set remains unbroken, said Palmer.
This event was special because the sandwiches were donated to five local food banks, and the surplus funds were donated to charity. This past Monday, Pine View held a ceremony to honor the accomplishment. Current Interact President Alex Hayes, a senior, presented the official Guinness certificate to Pine View Principal Steven Covert.
“There are lots of people who are good at lots of different things, but now we know that Pine View is the best at making sandwiches,” said Jeremy Kemp, who lead the project last year and currently attends the University of Virginia.
To engage the entire school, the Interact club emailed every teacher and asked for classes to volunteer at the event. So many classes expressed interest that Interact had to choose the first 20 classes that volunteered. Older students made sandwiches and lead the organization efforts while second and third graders volunteered by putting stickers on every box of sandwiches.
Interact, a community service club sponsored by Rotary International, endeavored to coordinate an event that would simultaneously serve the community, raise funds for their projects, and make a name for the club on campus.
In accordance with their motto “Service above self,” once club members decided to break a world record, they sought to find one that would be helpful to others, and they decided to make sandwiches because after breaking the record, they could donate the sandwiches to the hungry.
Because the record-breaking event had a goal of community service, Walmart awarded two grants to Interact for the use of purchasing supplies for the sandwiches. In addition, Pine View parents donated about $1000, and Pine View members of National Junior Honor Society donated jelly.
Initially, Interact club members decided to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches because they seemed simple and familiar. An unexpected hurdle in their plans arose in March, when a Pine View mother raised concerns about using peanut butter for the sandwiches.
Many students at Pine View, she noted, had peanut allergies, and making thousands of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in the cafeteria could leave trace amounts of peanut butter, endangering students with allergies.
Kemp, Palmer, and other Interact leaders agreed with the Pine View mother, but also found themselves in a bind because using soy butter instead of peanut butter would exponentially increase their costs. Interact contacted companies that produced peanut butter replacements and solicited donations. Interact ended up receiving 54 pounds of WOWBUTTER, a toasted soy spread using no peanuts, in exchange for promoting the product at the event.
Another obstacle arose when Eckrich Bacon Lovers Deli Meats broke the record only nine days before Pine View’s attempt was scheduled. This New York deli made 2,706 sandwiches, which upped the number Pine View had to beat.
“We were not sorry to break their record only nine days later,” Hayes said.
Covert echoed similar sentiments. “In true Pine View fashion, you didn’t just beat it by 100, 200, 300. You beat it by 3,000. That is just incredible,” Covert said to students at the ceremony.
To officially hold a Guinness World record, there are specific requirements, including video and photographic proof and witnesses unaffiliated with the group breaking the record. Pine View’s TV production class volunteered to film the event from five different angles so that, in theory, Guinness could see every single sandwich of the 5,721 that were made. Each of those sandwiches was also inspected by the officials who witnessed the event.
Interact received so much support for the sandwich-making event that, after purchasing supplies, they had about $1000 to donate to their global service project: Life for a Child, an organization that works to prevent death of children due to type 1 diabetes. Life for a Child provides insulin and testing supplies to diabetic children in third world countries.
Fighting diabetes is one of the main causes that Interact supports, and it has supported this cause since Kemp, Palmer, and other friends founded the club in 2011. “Diabetes is growing at a ridiculously high rate,” Kemp said. Kemp’s younger brother Daniel has type 1 diabetes, which inspired Kemp to become involved in the cause when he was in fourth grade.
Although Pine View broke the record when Steve Largo was principal, current principal Covert expressed his appreciation of an event that both provided fun and fame for Pine View and also served to aid others. Both he and Hayes expressed interest in breaking another world record at Pine View in the future. “We just have to find what our next record will be,” Covert said.
Venice Gondolier Sun (www.venicegondoliersun.com)
Dec 4, 2013 Front page
Pine View given Guinness record by Katie Dunn-Rankin
For the 600 students and teachers, it was a struggle to fit everyone inside the cafeteria, but it had to be done, because it was time to make the sandwiches, and time was of the essence.
In fact, time was the only reason any of those 600 people were in the cafeteria that morning.
On May 30, Pine View School, led by its Interact Club, broke the Guinness World Record for the number of sandwiches made in an hour. The 600 students made 5,721 sandwiches in 30 minutes and 24.68 seconds. They would have continued for the whole hour, said Joshua Palmer, previous Interact president and current Vanderbilt student, but they ran out of bread. Today, the record that Pine View set remains unbroken, said Palmer.
This event was special because the sandwiches were donated to five local food banks, and the surplus funds were donated to charity. This past Monday, Pine View held a ceremony to honor the accomplishment. Current Interact President Alex Hayes, a senior, presented the official Guinness certificate to Pine View Principal Steven Covert.
“There are lots of people who are good at lots of different things, but now we know that Pine View is the best at making sandwiches,” said Jeremy Kemp, who lead the project last year and currently attends the University of Virginia.
To engage the entire school, the Interact club emailed every teacher and asked for classes to volunteer at the event. So many classes expressed interest that Interact had to choose the first 20 classes that volunteered. Older students made sandwiches and lead the organization efforts while second and third graders volunteered by putting stickers on every box of sandwiches.
Interact, a community service club sponsored by Rotary International, endeavored to coordinate an event that would simultaneously serve the community, raise funds for their projects, and make a name for the club on campus.
In accordance with their motto “Service above self,” once club members decided to break a world record, they sought to find one that would be helpful to others, and they decided to make sandwiches because after breaking the record, they could donate the sandwiches to the hungry.
Because the record-breaking event had a goal of community service, Walmart awarded two grants to Interact for the use of purchasing supplies for the sandwiches. In addition, Pine View parents donated about $1000, and Pine View members of National Junior Honor Society donated jelly.
Initially, Interact club members decided to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches because they seemed simple and familiar. An unexpected hurdle in their plans arose in March, when a Pine View mother raised concerns about using peanut butter for the sandwiches.
Many students at Pine View, she noted, had peanut allergies, and making thousands of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in the cafeteria could leave trace amounts of peanut butter, endangering students with allergies.
Kemp, Palmer, and other Interact leaders agreed with the Pine View mother, but also found themselves in a bind because using soy butter instead of peanut butter would exponentially increase their costs. Interact contacted companies that produced peanut butter replacements and solicited donations. Interact ended up receiving 54 pounds of WOWBUTTER, a toasted soy spread using no peanuts, in exchange for promoting the product at the event.
Another obstacle arose when Eckrich Bacon Lovers Deli Meats broke the record only nine days before Pine View’s attempt was scheduled. This New York deli made 2,706 sandwiches, which upped the number Pine View had to beat.
“We were not sorry to break their record only nine days later,” Hayes said.
Covert echoed similar sentiments. “In true Pine View fashion, you didn’t just beat it by 100, 200, 300. You beat it by 3,000. That is just incredible,” Covert said to students at the ceremony.
To officially hold a Guinness World record, there are specific requirements, including video and photographic proof and witnesses unaffiliated with the group breaking the record. Pine View’s TV production class volunteered to film the event from five different angles so that, in theory, Guinness could see every single sandwich of the 5,721 that were made. Each of those sandwiches was also inspected by the officials who witnessed the event.
Interact received so much support for the sandwich-making event that, after purchasing supplies, they had about $1000 to donate to their global service project: Life for a Child, an organization that works to prevent death of children due to type 1 diabetes. Life for a Child provides insulin and testing supplies to diabetic children in third world countries.
Fighting diabetes is one of the main causes that Interact supports, and it has supported this cause since Kemp, Palmer, and other friends founded the club in 2011. “Diabetes is growing at a ridiculously high rate,” Kemp said. Kemp’s younger brother Daniel has type 1 diabetes, which inspired Kemp to become involved in the cause when he was in fourth grade.
Although Pine View broke the record when Steve Largo was principal, current principal Covert expressed his appreciation of an event that both provided fun and fame for Pine View and also served to aid others. Both he and Hayes expressed interest in breaking another world record at Pine View in the future. “We just have to find what our next record will be,” Covert said.
Venice Gondolier Sun Oct 12, 2013 (www.venicegondoliersun.com)
Vigil to remember those lost to drugs, alcohol by Katie Dunn-Rankin
When Laura Lambrecht’s 18-year-old brother Eric joined the United States Coast Guard, working to intercept drug boats ans they entered U.S. waters, no one knew that he would eventually develop an addiction to the very substances he was proud to be fighting against.
Eric had dedicated his career to saving lives by keeping shipments of drugs out of the United States, but he could still not completely fight off his own addiction to narcotics. In 2010, at the age of 25, Eric passed away due to a drug-related incident. The death of her brother who could instantly bring a smile to her face is the reason why Laura Lambrecht is hosting a Candle Light Vigil in memory of those who lost their lives due to drug and alcohol-related incidents.
Lambrecht is hosting the vigil at 7 p.m. on Oct. 25 at Blalock Park located on the island of Venice at 300 S. Nokomis Ave. She welcomes anyone who has lost someone to substance abuse or a related incident to join her in memorializing them through lighting up the night with candles.
The seventh annual Candle Light Vigil is sponsored by the Narcotics Overdose Prevention & Education (NOPE) Task Force, a nonprofit organization that works to save lives by preventing overdose death through education, support and advocacy.
The NOPE Candle Light Vigil s serve to raise awareness of addiction problems and to allow a safe forum for families and friends to grieve loved ones, removing any shame associated with “the disease of addiction.”
The most important thing for me to remember now is that the struggle of addiction continues for so many others – it isn’t over,” Lambrecht said.
Because she has experienced the struggle of having a family member with a substance addiction, Lambrecht wants to support others in a similar situation. She also wants to honor those currently struggling with addiction and to raise the awareness of the serious issues that can arise in a person’s life after just one poor decision. “I am hosting the NOPE Candle Vigil … to not only honor my brother’s life, but also to educate the community and provide support to local families,” Lambrecht said.
The Task Force devotes most of its resources to education. Representatives of NOPE travel to middle schools, high schools and colleges to make risks associated with taking drugs, the dangers of combining commonly abused druge, and how to intervene when a friend is struggling with addiction.
“Many lives have been destroyed by substance abuse and the disease of addiction…” said NOPE Task Force Executive Director Karen Perry. She noted that addiction-related tragedies are often viewed with prejudice, and that the NOPE Task Force desires to remove this stigma.
“The memory of our children, our relatives and our friends who have passed will live on in our hearts, forever memorialized,” she said.
For more information about the NOPE Candle Light Vigil, contact Laura Lambrecht at 941-894-4033 or at [email protected]. To learn more about the NOPE Task Force, visit NopeTaskForce.com.
Vigil to remember those lost to drugs, alcohol by Katie Dunn-Rankin
When Laura Lambrecht’s 18-year-old brother Eric joined the United States Coast Guard, working to intercept drug boats ans they entered U.S. waters, no one knew that he would eventually develop an addiction to the very substances he was proud to be fighting against.
Eric had dedicated his career to saving lives by keeping shipments of drugs out of the United States, but he could still not completely fight off his own addiction to narcotics. In 2010, at the age of 25, Eric passed away due to a drug-related incident. The death of her brother who could instantly bring a smile to her face is the reason why Laura Lambrecht is hosting a Candle Light Vigil in memory of those who lost their lives due to drug and alcohol-related incidents.
Lambrecht is hosting the vigil at 7 p.m. on Oct. 25 at Blalock Park located on the island of Venice at 300 S. Nokomis Ave. She welcomes anyone who has lost someone to substance abuse or a related incident to join her in memorializing them through lighting up the night with candles.
The seventh annual Candle Light Vigil is sponsored by the Narcotics Overdose Prevention & Education (NOPE) Task Force, a nonprofit organization that works to save lives by preventing overdose death through education, support and advocacy.
The NOPE Candle Light Vigil s serve to raise awareness of addiction problems and to allow a safe forum for families and friends to grieve loved ones, removing any shame associated with “the disease of addiction.”
The most important thing for me to remember now is that the struggle of addiction continues for so many others – it isn’t over,” Lambrecht said.
Because she has experienced the struggle of having a family member with a substance addiction, Lambrecht wants to support others in a similar situation. She also wants to honor those currently struggling with addiction and to raise the awareness of the serious issues that can arise in a person’s life after just one poor decision. “I am hosting the NOPE Candle Vigil … to not only honor my brother’s life, but also to educate the community and provide support to local families,” Lambrecht said.
The Task Force devotes most of its resources to education. Representatives of NOPE travel to middle schools, high schools and colleges to make risks associated with taking drugs, the dangers of combining commonly abused druge, and how to intervene when a friend is struggling with addiction.
“Many lives have been destroyed by substance abuse and the disease of addiction…” said NOPE Task Force Executive Director Karen Perry. She noted that addiction-related tragedies are often viewed with prejudice, and that the NOPE Task Force desires to remove this stigma.
“The memory of our children, our relatives and our friends who have passed will live on in our hearts, forever memorialized,” she said.
For more information about the NOPE Candle Light Vigil, contact Laura Lambrecht at 941-894-4033 or at [email protected]. To learn more about the NOPE Task Force, visit NopeTaskForce.com.