This semester, seven Pueblo students will be receiving their high school diploma. (This list is subject to change at the last moment, grades pending.)
According to Ms. Rachel Apalategui, Pueblo’s registrar, the following seven students will be graduating tonight:
1. Yuriel Escalante Valenzuela
2. Eva Espinosa
3. Raul Garcia
4. Cody Johnson
5. Jazmin Rivas
6. Joel Molina
7. Gabriel Palomino
Most of these students will be attending a graduation ceremony for all T.U.S.D. high school students tonight, Thursday, Dec. 21 at 6 p.m. at Catalina High School. According to Apalategui, perhaps as many as 100 students across the district will be graduating tonight.
One of those lucky Warrior graduates is Gabriel Palomino, who needed an extra semester to catch up his credits. Specifically, he needed two credits in science and math.
“I still feel as if I’m the Class of 2017, even though it’s going to be in December,” Palomino said. “I’m an example of a student who didn’t concentrate and didn’t do work on time. But, I just want other students to know that they should push on—things do get better. It all comes with time.”
Palomino plans to pursue a career in culinary arts at Pima Community College immediately after he earns his degree from Pueblo.
“This degree means a lot to me, but it’s not the end of my academic road,” Palomino said. “I’ve worked too hard to give up now.”
Retirements at Pueblo High School are always sad occasions for the staff and students who have to bear the agony of missing these employees, but retirements are especially sad in December because part of our beloved Pueblo community will not be with us in the new year.
But, Ms. Rosalie Sinteral, Pueblo’s registration attendance clerk for the past six years, has made up her mind. After juggling with the idea of staying another semester or even another full school year, she announced several weeks ago that she would, indeed, retire after more than 31 years in Tucson Unified School District.
“Despite knowing how much I’m going to hate leaving my Pueblo family, it’s time I retire,” Sinteral said. “I just feel that it’s the right time for me at this point in my life.”
Sinteral began her years in the district at several elementary schools—three years at Manzo, 17 years at Ochoa and five years at Grijalva. After her husband passed away, she decided to devote more time at work, which is what motivated her to come to Pueblo, where she works virtually year-round.
“I wanted to be at a school where I could work full-time,” Sinteral said. “When I first came to Pueblo, I needed to work more hours because it was good for my soul.”
Despite being a Tucson High School graduate (1976), Sinteral said that part of her heart is here at Pueblo.
“I’ve always felt at home here,” Sinteral said. “Truly, over the past six years, Pueblo’s staff is like a giant welcoming family who has always made me feel loved.”
Students, too, have expressed their love for Sinteral.
“Some of the students I knew from Grijalva Elementary School are here at Pueblo,” she added. “And there’s no way that I’m going to miss their graduation ceremonies in the next two or three years.”
She added that she felt especially close to students when they called her “Nana”, “Tia” or just simply, “Rosalie”.
“I never thought of students calling me by my first name was disrespectful,” Sinteral said, “because to me it just meant they felt they could trust me or they felt closer to me, like a friend.”
Sinteral said that she will also be returning for sporting events—as well as occasionally popping in to have lunch with her “lunch pals”, Ms. Susie Ugalde, administrative secretary, and Ms. Amalia Salazar, Native American student services counselor.
“These two ladies have been a lot of fun to know and have made my job a whole lot easier,” Sinteral said.
The feeling is definitely mutual…
Salazar said, “Rosalie has been a very good friend to me. She has exceptional qualities, including a willingness to always help make our lives easier here at Pueblo. She will be greatly missed. I’d like to personally say to Rosalie: ‘Enjoy your retirement to the fullest, and thank you for your gift of friendship.’”
Ugalde said, “For the thousands of people who came through those main doors, Rosalie was always welcoming and respectful. Personally, she has been a great friend to me in the six years. She also always remembered everybody’s birthdays! I will so very much miss having lunch with her.”
Sinteral said that she’s not the “rocking chair” type. She plans to spend time with her mother, as well as her nine grandchildren—who vary in age from 20 years old to 11 months old.
“Maybe I’ll have the time to finally travel like I’ve always wanted to,” Sinteral said. “I’ve always wanted to go to Hawai’i, so that is high on my list. Also, I would love to visit an old friend in San Antonio [Tex.] and, of course, go see Graceland in Memphis [the home of Elvis Presley].”
Sinteral especially wants to thank everybody at Pueblo for being the “special community” it has been for her—and always will be.
“There’s a magic here at Pueblo that I have seldom felt anywhere else,” she added. “I never want to hear that magic disappearing. What a wonderful, magical place this has been for me!”
Upon retirement, Sinteral said that she just wants to take life one day at a time.
“I don’t want to stress about my future,” Sinteral said. “I don’t want to miss the whole point of retirement.”
On Friday, Dec. 8, approximately 70 faculty members, staff and students turned a cook-off into a raffle contest where the chili, soup and stew were evaluated.
Ms. Sarah Barnes, a Multi-Tier System of Support Facilitator, coordinated the event during first and second lunches.
“This event is part of a plan to build a sense of community,” Barnes said. “It’s always fun to pull an event that is focused on food as a way to bring people together in a playful way.”
Tickets were one dollar—allowing one to be a “taster”.
“Diverting from a professional setting helps people get to know one another along with showing off the staff’s hidden talents,” senior Carlos Chavez said. “I think that all of us students like to see our staff getting along and having fun. It definitely humanizes our teachers a bit more.”
“This event was an excellent break from the grueling grind of teachers’ schedules and encourages the staff to enjoy one another,” Barnes said.
Ms. Kathryn Gunnels, assistant principal, earned the blue ribbon—a first place for her chicken and gnocchi soup.
Marketing teacher Dr. Maria Bicknell won second place for her three-bean vegetarian chili.
Mr. Patrick Peatrowsky, economics teacher, won for his “green chili de gringo” creation.
Pictured left to right: Maria Bicknell, Kathryn Gunnels & Patrick Peatrowsky
All three winners received a beautiful apron—from the crafty hands of Exceptional Education Department Chair Ms. Trevia Heath.
She added, “There will be more competitions in the future.” Barnes said that she is considering having a salsa contest and a dessert competition.
Barnes said that $70 was raised, and the money will go into a general fund for future staff celebrations.
“For an event that I sold just six tickets in the beginning, I was very pleased with the end results,” Barnes said.
Beginning this school year, Pueblo High School administrators will honor students who have perfect attendance in an effort to encourage students to be present every day.
Earlier this school year, in September, 252 Pueblo Warriors earned a certificate because of their perfect attendance. Freshmen led last month’s perfect attendance statistics, according to Assistant Principal Kathryn Gunnels, who created this program in order to stimulate better attendance.
Gunnels said, “We want to reward [our students with] good behavior, and perfect attendance is a great start.” She added that they will be awarding students who achieve perfect attendance with certificates each month throughout this school year—and surprising some students with prizes.
Juan Romero Ruiz with Assistant Principal Kathryn Gunnels
One of those “surprised” students, freshman Juan Romero Ruiz, was very honored by Gunnels.
“I’m just doing what I’m supposed to do,” he said. “I come to school every day like all students should.”
Jessica Prado Rascon & Alyssa Soza
Sophomore Jessica Prado, another student who was honored for her perfect attendance, said, “I do face some challenges with the traffic, but I still manage to get to Pueblo. Waking up and getting here are definite challenges, but earning high grades motivates me the most.”
Freshman Alyssa Soza echoed Prado.
“I’m committed to high grades,” Soza said, “and that means having perfect attendance so that I don’t miss anything in the classroom.”
Gunnels said she hopes seniors—the class with the worst attendance during the first quarter—take their last year of high school seriously, and to “kill” the “senioritis” bug now.
Teachers, too, have been receiving “Perfect Attendance” certificates—a message from administrators that teachers are definitely appreciated, too, for their commitment to being here every day.
In October, another 214 Warriors achieved perfect attendance; in November, however, the number of students with perfect attendance dropped drastically—to just 150.
Gunnels said that she does not speculate why there was a dramatic drop from October to November.
Learning Support Coordinator Ms. Sarah Barnes, a new employee to Pueblo this school year, distributed these certificates to teachers.
“Teachers should definitely be rewarded for their stellar attendance, too,” Barnes said. “It says a lot about our educators when they are here every day.”
Among the two or three hundred substitute teachers that Pueblo welcomes every school year, very few can boast that they have published a book, attended the legendary Woodstock Music Festival in 1969 and dress better than most of our contract teachers.
Ms. Diane Donato is definitely difficult to miss. She loves fashion—her fashion—and she wears it well.
“The way you dress truly represents yourself to the world,” Donato said. “When you look better, you feel better.”
Donato feels so strongly about clothing and fashion that she based her published book, Clothes Encounters of the Divine Kind, on the premise that what she wears has made—and continues to make—a colossal difference in her own spiritual awakening and that her attire has helped her to “heal” from a series of personal tragedies in her past.
Raised in Waterbury, Conn., Donato said that she grew up “a free spirit”. After graduating high school in 1967, she attended college and was among the millions of young people protesting the Vietnam War.
“I wanted to help the world become a better place,” Donato said. “I still would love to help save the world.”
She added that she “took a break” in the middle of her college years in August 1969 to attend the Woodstock Music and Art Festival in upstate New York—known today as simply “Woodstock”—where nearly half a million people rejoiced in their generation’s greatest musical artists.
“I definitely identified with much of the music from that era,” Donato said. “One of that era’s greatest songs was John Lennon’s ‘Give Peace A Chance’, which is still as relevant today as it was nearly 40 years ago. I’m all about world peace.”
After a lot of cold winters and expensive real estate, Donato ventured to Arizona at age 65, a few years after she retired.
“I really want to be a motivational speaker,” she said. “I have a lot to say to a lot of people. One thing I would like to tell all young people is that they should take risks and follow their passions.”
Donato’s book, Clothes Encounters of the Divine Kind, is available at Barnes and Noble or online at Amazon in both soft and hard covers.
From Left to Right: Efrain Estrella, Marissa Orr, Laura Conde & Andrew T. Romero
On December 1, 2017, four Warrior students will travel to Denver to witness former Pueblo student Lafayette “Fat” Lever’s “Retiring of a Jersey” (No. 12) ceremony, accompanied by exceptional education teacher and yearbook advisor Ms. Marie Little and Assistant Principal Frank Rosthenhausler.
Fat Lever
Students may know that Pueblo has a “Lever” Gym, but sadly, many of our current Warriors do not even know Lever about his legendary status—how remarkable this Warrior was back in his high school days and how nationally acclaimed he would become well into the 1990s.
Lever began playing for the Denver Nuggets from 1984-1990, and during those seven seasons, he averaged 17 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.5 assists. A two-time “All Star”, Lever ranks first all-time in franchise history in steals (1,167), second in assists (3,566), seventh in points (8,081) and eighth in rebounds (3,621).
And to think that this former all-star basketball player got his first taste of fame here at Pueblo during two very definitive basketball seasons: 1976-77 and 1977-78; Pueblo’s varsity basketball teams were State Champions for two consecutive years. Today, Lever Gym boasts these victorious seasons with banners that will definitely stand the test of time.
Math teacher Ms. Martha Avila-Miranda was a senior when our varsity Warrior basketball team won their first State championship.
“I have proud and fond memories of my high school years at Pueblo,” Avila-Miranda said, “and it was an exciting time to be a Warrior—especially as a member of the pom/cheer team traveling to all the basketball games. School and community spirit was sky high during the mid and late 1970s. I definitely remember the basketball team under the direction of coach [Roland] Lavetter and the leadership of Fat Lever, who was very disciplined—and that model of working and playing hard transferred to all who knew them.”
Fat Lever pictured to the right of Coach Lavetter.
She added, “After all of these years, I am so touched to know that our former leaders and heroes have not forgotten their roots and are giving back to our Warrior community. I see many of the team members at different events here at PHS. I just want to say congratulations to Fat and all of his accomplishments. He is another reason that he has made us all proud to be Warriors.”
Lever, a 6’3” point guard, did not begin his NBA career with the Denver Nuggets, however. Two years earlier, Lever was the 11th overall pick in the 1981 draft—selected by the Portland Trailblazers after a successful run playing for the Arizona State University basketball team. (Lever would eventually return to ASU and complete his degree in education in 1996.)
By the time Lever arrived in Denver in 1984, the Nuggets were in desperate need of a miracle. That came in the 1985 season—when Lever helped the team advance to the Western Conference finals. Although the team would lose to the Los Angeles Lakers in five games, this season would prove to be the Nuggets’ most successful.
Although Lever played for the Dallas Mavericks from 1990-1994, Lever affirmed in several interviews that his heart was always with the Denver Nuggets. Due to several knee injuries and other circumstances, Lever retired from the NBA in 1994.
Lever later become a broadcaster for the Sacramento [California] Kings from 2007-2014, and eventually he returned to Arizona—Chandler, specifically—where he is currently a consultant in sports and international business. He also works with the Junior NBA program.
Our four Pueblo students—one from each of the media programs (radio, television, journalism and yearbook)—will have the privilege of witness Lever’s jersey being officially “retired” during a halftime Nuggets game on Saturday, Dec. 2.
After two weeks of raising enough money for airfare through many generous donors—and through a lot of tenacity and perseverance!—our Warriors depart from Tucson International Airport at 6 a.m. and will return to Tucson Sunday morning.
Yearbook student Andrew T. Romero, a junior, is the representative from his class and was very instrumental in initiating this trip. Back in October, Romero’s yearbook teacher, Ms. Marie Little, announced to her class that Lafayette (“Fat”) Lever’s jersey was going to be retired at a Denver Nuggets on Dec. 2 and that it would be a great opportunity for several of our Pueblo media students to travel to Denver and interview Lever and be a part of this historical sports moment.
From there, Romero had a conversation with former assistant principal Eduardo Nuñez (who was also a 1960 Pueblo High School graduate), who contacted Lever regarding Lever’s retirement celebration and getting Pueblo students there for this event. From there, Lever contacted Little—and Lever was able to get six media passes to the Dec. 2 Nuggets game. Lever is also taking care of our Warriors’ hotel costs for two nights.
Romero said, “I knew early on that this trip was going to be a possibility, and although I didn’t think I would be selected to participate. However, the universe likes me—I happen to be at the right place at the right time. My grades were low, but I was able to bring them up to passing, and therefore I now became eligible to represent yearbook.”
Romero approached Pueblo Principal Dr. Augustine Romero about this proposition and got his “thumbs up”.
“This trip [to Denver] is a great opportunity for our students!” Principal Romero said. “Lafayette [Lever] was, indeed, very generous!”
Junior Laura Conde, advanced journalism student, learned that she was going after editor-in-chief Iram Arce turned down the opportunity because he had “absolutely no interest in basketball.” Therefore, journalism teacher Mr. Rana Medhi selected Laura because of her excellent journalism skills.
“I didn’t want to get my hopes up too high,” Conde said, “because the whole thing seemed kind of far-fetched. But, now that we have our Southwest Airlines tickets, it’s definitely real. I’m looking forward to the interviewing process—obviously the most important story I’ll be writing.”
Radio student Marissa Orr, a senior, “When Ms. Wilson told me to go outside with Ms. Little, I thought I was framed or something. But, then I found out that I was selected to be the representative of radio to travel to Denver. This is an awesome opportunity for me—and I feel honored and privileged to have been selected by Ms. Wilson to represent radio.
Television student Efrain Estrella, another senior, said, “I feel very blessed and very lucky to be selected to go on this trip because it is a really big opportunity to not only for myself but my peers who will be coming along with me. This trip means a great deal to Pueblo High School as a whole, too.”
Ms. Marie Little, who will be co-escorting the students to Denver, said, “After the initial phone call, Lever was making contacts to ensure that all costs could be covered. Unfortunately, he was unable to secure airfare costs, so we had eight days to raise money to fly us six to Denver.”
Little said that in just eight days, she and the four students were able to raise $2,385—much of which came from current and former Pueblo faculty and staff members.
“We are beyond overwhelmed by the generosity of the Pueblo community,” Little said.
Mr. Frank Rosthenhausler, the other co-escort, said, “The entire Pueblo community is very excited about this trip. It’s awesome that our students are learning part of Pueblo’s history and also participating in the Denver Nuggets’ history. Very few students will ever get this kind of opportunity.”
Rosthenhausler added that he was a bit skeptical at first regarding the prospect of Ms. Little and students raising money for the air fare.
“The airline tickets were a hefty price, but they pulled it off,” he said. “I love how they were able to achieve this goal in such a short time.”
The entire Pueblo community anxiously awaits the students’ return to Pueblo to hear the highlights of this historical moment in sports history. The fact that Lever began his rise to athletic stardom and legendary sports acclaim right here at Pueblo makes this story even that much more powerful.
