wmm WfpwH' 11 * : Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2019 with funding from LYRASIS and LYRASIS Members ■Av ' https://archive.org/details/valhalla1996wood BRAVING • THE Go With the Flow p.6 All jFirecJ Up p. 4 & Dovn To Earth p. 158 ® Bfie <f a Breeze A 228 A fter a hard rain, the smell of the saturated earth permeated the air from puddles all over the grounds. Prepared for rain with umbrella in hand, junior Paul Thalacker walks in from the trailers at the close of the school day. The six new trailers forced students to brave the elements just to attend classes. VALHALLA • 1996 3001 Old Bridge Road Woodbridge, VA 22192 (703) 494-7135 Enrollment: 2845, Vol. 32 Braving the Elements • 1 BRAVING • THE W ith the addition of six trailers on the basketball court, students braved the elements as they ventured outside to attend their classes. Despite rain, hail, sleet, and snow, classes continued. A new computer system, SASI, was adopted, putting all interim grades for each class on one piece of paper in a format similar to report cards. Students braved their parent’s reactions when given an interim that was two weeks obsolete. The installation of a new phone system allowed more calls to be made into the building and the phone number changed. This caused temporary conflicts and confusion, and the system had to shut down for a day. New grey carpeting was laid in the library, brightening up the atmosphere of the room. The walls in the multimedia lab came down to give the appearance of more space. Prince William County introduced a new bus system. Called Omnilink, the bus system provided a means of transportation for people without cars. The buses ran from Old Bridge to Chinn to... 2* Braving the Elements KEEPING STRIDE Nothing's gonna break their stride. Seniors Fatima Aniteye and Adrienne Edwards run down Willowood Drive with junior Mamie Pekanyande and senior Shannon Farrell. Despite the heavy rains the cross country team was out in full force and could be found running all over Lake Ridge from the early hours of the morning until dark. Part of being on the cross country team was being able to run in any type of weather and on any terrain. The team ran through the streets and also through the woods around the school. IT'S ELEMENTARY The surrounding scenery took on an element of change when trees were cleared to make room for Old Bridge Ele¬ mentary School. The school opened September 5 with 598 students enrolled. 3 Opening • ... Potomac Mills and back to Chinn again. This gave people access to shopping, gyms, and the library. Expansion to 1-95 continued, making trips to Springfield and DC quicker. The improvements were not helpful when a tractor trailer carrying toxic materials overturned October 28. 1-95 was closed for more than 12 hours. Pope John Paul II came to the United States on a goodwill tour October 4 through October 8. He stopped in Baltimore and celebrated mass with thousands of worshippers at Oriole Stadium at Camden Yards. People who won tickets through a lottery sat in the pouring rain waiting for the Pope's arrival. When he finally arrived, the sun shined. The Reverand Louis Farrakhan organized a day of atonement for the nation's African American men. The Million Man March took place October 16 on the grounds of the Mall in Washington, DC. Farrakhan disputed the official Park Service crowd count of an estimated 400,000. ABC News commissioned an independent agency whose estimate was double that of the Park Service. Students who had permission from their parents to attend the march were given an excused absence for the day. CONCENTRATE Careful concentration is the key to the perfect parade. Freshmen cheerleaders Mea Outlaw and Rebeca Gonzalez help Shan¬ non Dalby decorate their truck for the homecoming parade. John B. King 4 • Braving the Elements CATCH THE WAVE With school spirit painted all over his face, senior Jon Publicover plays with the Mighty Viking Marching Band for the October 20 pep rally. Band, JROTC, golf, tennis, field hockey, Vikettes, and cheer¬ leaders were dismissed early from class to or¬ ganize in the gym. The drum intro ignited the flame of school spirit as it triggered the band's entrance with “The Horse.” The cheerleaders lifted their arms into a V above their heads and the crowd shouted, “Hey!” Between the roar of class cheers, JROTC expressed enthusiasm with cheers accompa¬ nied by stomping and clapping. Opening • 5 GO*WITH«THE A wave of change overcame the Athletic Boosters when they proposed the “Mother of All Car Washes.” The stream of cars flowed steadily all morning while athletes from every team scrubbed down cars. The effort raised $3,500 in donations for all fall sports, short of expectations. Cal Ripken turned the tides September 6, breaking Lou Gehrig's record for the highest number of consecutive baseball games played. Fans poured into Camden Yards to watch his 2131 game. After being accused of drowning her two sons, North Carolinia resident Susan Smith escaped the death penalty. The final verdict sentenced her tc|30 jail.^^"—I The grand opening of Incredible Universe at Potomac Mills attracted people interested in electronics, software, and music. With a McDonald's inside, a karaoke machine, and a virtual reality game, masses of people flooded the store and mall, making Potomac Mills Virginia's number one tourist attraction. One hurricane after another stormed off the coasts of the Carolinas and creeped up to Virginia. They caused problems for sports teams. Three football games were rained out and the marching band could not perform at Homecoming because of the conditions. Golf districts were also rescheduled due to rain. Water was everywhere; students braved the elements everyday. 6 • Go With the Flow