Brown and White Vol. 123 no. 22

              Vol. 123 No. 22
Friday, December 7, 2012
‘All the Lehigh News First’
THE BROWN AND WHITE
Lehigh University’s Student Newspaper Founded in 1894
SPORTS
Basketball team to face St. Francis
Page 12
WALLY TRIMBLE
Tribute to
a Lehigh legend
Page 4
Celebrate Christmas in Bethlehem
Page 5
LIFESTYLE
By MELISSA HARANS
Bethlehem is hosting its annual Chris­kindlmarkt, a holiday market complete with live Christmas music and food that is popular with Bethlehem citizens until Dec. 23.
Bethlehem, which has also been known as the Christmas City since 1741, is full of Christmas-themed events that many Lehigh students are unaware of during the holiday season.
“The city embraces the holiday season as part of its identity,” said Silagh White, director of ArtsLehigh. “From the Star of Bethlehem shining on South Mountain 365 days a year, to the many traditional parts of our environment, it’s a pretty cool place to visit, if you’re not lucky enough to live here.”
Yet many students remain on cam­pus during the holiday season, and do not attend these events, which include a Christmas pageant, Christmas City Village, horse-drawn carriage ride Christmas tours, Bach Choir of Bethlehem Concert, Christ­mas at SteelStacks and more.
“The arts and cultural aspect of the holiday season go into high gear,” White said. “Area schools are all doing holiday concerts. Arts organizations close to cam­pus are also putting on traditional holiday programs.”
Christkindlmarkt is the most prominent of Bethlehem’s holiday events. ArtsQuest runs the event every year around Christ­mas season, this year it is from Nov. 15 to Dec. 23 at the First Street PNC Plaza.
This marks the events 20th year, and there are 125 vendors each week, which is a new record for the market.
Cory Tucker, ’14, is familiar with many of the events Bethlehem is holding, but said he thinks the activities involved may be geared more towards families, rather than Lehigh students.
“I think the Christkindlmarkt is a good idea, but from what I know about it I think it’s definitely one of those things many people are age would do with their family,” she said. “It’s a lot of crafts and food, but there is nothing that really draws in a 20-year-old unless you are really into crafting. However, it’s definitely worth going if you want to get into the holiday spirit.”
Other students said the reason they do not attend the Bethlehem festivities is that they simply are unaware of them.
After viewing a list of the events, Ma­rissa Rosenzweig, ’13, thought that some events did look interesting but still said she probably would not attend them.
“I feel that we aren’t close with the people who live in Bethlehem,” she said. “Lehigh is its own little community, so we celebrate holidays within our community.”
Despite this disconnect between Lehigh’s students and the citizens of Beth­lehem, there are some new traditions this year that may help bridge the gap.
Every year, the city sells gold tinted plaques that are placed on trees throughout downtown streets during the holiday sea­son. Each tree costs $100, and that money helps fund the numerous holiday light dis­plays throughout the streets of downtown Bethlehem. However, this year, the city
‘Christmas City’ hosts holiday events
By SAMANTHA ORLAN
The Bethlehem Skateplaza recently added 10,000 square feet, and its grand opening in November drew a crowd of thousands.
Located just less than three miles from Lehigh University’s campus, the park’s addition made the Skateplaza 23,600 square feet.
“Even though it’s close, it’s not well advertised around campus, so it’s often forgotten about as an option,” said Paul Graham ’14, a long boarder. “If more Le­high students were aware of it and there was an easy source of transportation stu­dents would definitely consider going.”
The park first opened in July 2010, and according to an article on Lehigh Valley Live, the park invested $100,000 toward design and $400,000 toward construction to finish the addition, $185,000 of which was paid with money from a state grant.
“The Bethlehem Skateplaza is a huge benefit to the community as a whole,” said South Side Recreation Coordinator Mark Atkinson. “With the plaza nearly doubling in size, it has become one of the bigger skateplazas on the east coast.”
According to Bethlehem-Pa.gov, be­fore the initial opening of the skate park in 2010, Bethlehem Mayor John B. Calla­han spoke about the Skateplaza event.
“It is important for the city to provide a safe and legal place for kids who skate and BMX. It has been a long time in the making, but I am confident the Skateplaza will be world class and worth the wait,” Callahan said.
“The new addition is anchored by the ‘10 Stair’ feature, which serves as both a skateable feature, or a stage for a concert,” Atkinson said. “The Plaza was designed for the skater and non-skater in mind.”
Lehigh students may start to see the skate park advertised as a venue for more mainstream events like a farmers mar­ket, concerts and outdoor movies. With its location near the Sands Casino and SteelStacks, students are bound to see the renovated area in the near future.
“Students that do not skate or bike can take a short walk down the South Bethle­hem Greenway to the plaza to attend any event that may be going on,” Atkinson said. “With the new expansion, the plaza may possibly host large-scale events in the near future, which may be an attrac­tion for Lehigh students to attend. On any given day, you can find skaters or bikers from surrounding states who made the trek just to ‘Shred the Za’ as the local kids call it.”
Written on the SkatePlaza’s section of Bethlehem-Pa.gov, the mission of the skate park is clear.
“[The park’s goal is] to establish a world class SkatePlaza in Bethlehem that is unrivaled in its progressive design and immense size. The plan addresses the needs of the community and the desires of action sports enthusiasts to exercise in a safe, secure environment. Benefits include strengthening community partnerships, providing positive youth development, and contributing to the health and physi­cal well-being of our city in a multi-use, park like setting.”
For more information about the Skateplaze, follow Bethlehem Parks and Recreation on Twitter (@Bethparksnrec).
By ANNA BOLD
Lehigh Eco Reps held a program to teach students how to upcycle by mak­ing reusable bags out of old T-shirts Tuesday afternoon.
Students were able to visit the Eco Rep’s table on the second floor of the University Center and donate old T-shirts that would then be turned into a reusable bag. Students were able to learn how to create their own bags out of the T-shirts and then, after making the bags, had the option to keep their bags or do­nate them. Bags were to be donated to a school in Brooklyn, N.Y., as part of a Hurricane Sandy relief effort, courtesy of Phi Sigma Pi.
“Everyone’s got full drawers at home,” said Dean Palmiter, ’15, an Eco-Rep. The Eco Reps are trying to
B&W photo by AMALIA HATALIS
A large Christmas tree eclipses Bethlehem SteelStacks. Bethlehem has been known as “The Christmas City” since 1741 because of its extraordinary celebration.
Mayor: Skateplaza will be world class
Students learn to ‘upcycle’ from ECO Reps event
See ECO REPS Page 2
See CHRISTMAS Page 2