Everything old …is new again
Brooke names top-finishers in state recycling contest
Brooke High School students Ember Clever, left, and Kaelyn Piatt received top honors for the dresses and accessories they created from recycled materials for the Re-Fashion Style Show held by the Recycling Coalition of West Virginia. Clever’s flowered dress and crown were made from old newspapers, while Piatt’s dress and parasol are comprised of empty Ramen Noodle packets. -- Contributed
Annaliese Schupbach, a sophomore at Brooke High School, placed second in the 14 and older division for her cola-inspired ensemble. -- Contributed
Lyla Van Horn, a sophomore at Brooke High School, placed first for grades 9-12 in a statewide contest that invited youth to enter artwork, compositions or videos centered around recycling. She entered a “bouquet” made with damaged, old records and wire coat hangers into the competition, which was held by the Recycling Coalition of West Virginia. -- Contributed
Christari Wilson, a fifth-grader at Cornerstone Christian Academy in Beech Bottom, placed first for grades 4 and 5 for her sketch inspired by the theme for the Recycling Coalition of West Virginia’s annual contest, which was “It All Comes Back to You.” -- Contributed
Brooke High School students Ember Clever, left, and Kaelyn Piatt received top honors for the dresses and accessories they created from recycled materials for the Re-Fashion Style Show held by the Recycling Coalition of West Virginia. Clever’s flowered dress and crown were made from old newspapers, while Piatt’s dress and parasol are comprised of empty Ramen Noodle packets. -- Contributed
Annaliese Schupbach, a sophomore at Brooke High School, placed second in the 14 and older division for her cola-inspired ensemble. -- Contributed
Lyla Van Horn, a sophomore at Brooke High School, placed first for grades 9-12 in a statewide contest that invited youth to enter artwork, compositions or videos centered around recycling. She entered a “bouquet” made with damaged, old records and wire coat hangers into the competition, which was held by the Recycling Coalition of West Virginia. -- Contributed
Christari Wilson, a fifth-grader at Cornerstone Christian Academy in Beech Bottom, placed first for grades 4 and 5 for her sketch inspired by the theme for the Recycling Coalition of West Virginia’s annual contest, which was “It All Comes Back to You.” -- Contributed
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Four Brooke County students emerged top winners of two state contests after using their artistic skills to send a message about the importance of recycling.
Since it was formed in 1999, the Recycling Coalition of West Virginia has encouraged recycling throughout the state through various means, including two contests challenging students to apply their creativity to sending a message about the value of making use of miscellaneous items that might otherwise end up in the trash.
The nonprofit group is sponsored by various entities, including the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, Association of West Virginia Solid Waste Boards and several local solid waste authorities.
The contests include its Freedom Contest, in which students in various age groups are invited to submit artwork, essays, poems, songs or videos conveying the theme "It All Comes Back to You," which stresses recycling is an individual decision that benefits the environment.
The other is the Re-Fashion Style Show, in which students in grades 5-12 are challenged to create clothing using materials that would otherwise be discarded.
Recycling Coalition of West Virginia board member Paul Hayes and JoAnn Snoderley, youth program coordinator for the WVDEP, recently visited Brooke High School and Cornerstone Christian Academy of Beech Bottom to recognize Lyla Van Horn, winner of the Freedom Contest for grades 9-12; and Christari Wilson, its winner for grades 4-5.
They were joined by representatives of the Brooke County Solid Waste Authority, which helped to promote the contests locally.
A fan of vinyl records from the past, Van Horn used several damaged 45 RPMs and colored wire hangers to create a "bouquet" of flowers.
She explained she used heavy duty scissors to cut the hangers and records and then formed them into petals and stems while using the colored labels on which the names of the songs and recording artists were printed as the flowers' centers.
Van Horn added she applied remnants from an old make-up pallet to apply a little additional color to the flowers.
Van Horn attributed her love of old music to her grandmothers, who shared many of their old records with their family.
With her submission to the contest, she wrote: "I have entered this piece into the competition because music can all be how you perceive it and your perspective."
Van Horn said after finding the damaged records, she decided to use them in a piece of art "that shows the beauty of the two kinds of art and how many ways you can embrace it. It all comes back to you to decide how you want to embrace it."
It's the second consecutive year Brooke High School has had a winner in the contest.
Last year's winner was Van Horn's brother, Josh, who was the winner for grades 9-12 for his own work of art.
They are the children of Danna and Jamie Van Horn of Colliers.
Brooke High School art teacher Sara Walden Roark, who taught Lyla and Josh, said, "Hopefully we'll get a third consecutive winner. You never know."
For her own artistic entry, Wilson, a fifth-grader, sketched a handful of plastic water bottles and a dog's dish, with a canine and its house standing nearby, noting such containers have been recycled as bowls.
Wilson's mother, Melanie Mitchell, said she has enjoyed learning recently about recycling through videos posted on the internet.
Heather Baker, her teacher, said she was one of several pupils at Cornerstone who entered the contest for the first time this year.
"We definitely are very proud of her," she said.
Van Horn and Wilson each received a $75 gift card, provided by the coalition's business partners, while their schools received $100 gift cards for school materials.
Students from Brooke High School and Brooke Middle School have been regular participants in the coalition's Re-Fashion Style Show, which is in its 21st year.
This year, the middle school had two top finishers -- Kaelyn Piatt, who placed first overall in the age 13 and under division and Ember Clever, who placed second overall for that age group and was named winner in the newspaper category.
The latter is named such because its entries were created using old newspapers.
For her entry, Clever shaped the discarded periodicals into flowers for a black-and-white, sleeveless dress, and matching crown.
Piatt's dress was created using empty Ramen Noodle packets of various colors and was complemented by a matching parasol.
Their teacher, Lindsey Zeigler, said, "Kaelyn said she eats a lot of Ramen noodles. She had different flavors so the dress is really colorful."
Zeigler said, "The Ramen noodle dress was very sturdy, but the newspaper dress had to be repaired at times."
She noted entries for the competition have been pieced together in various ways.
"Some have been stitched together, some glued and some Velcroed," she said.
Zeigler said the two were among several students from the school who entered the contest, adding it's the third year the school has been represented.
All entries in the contest were modeled at a fashion show held by the coalition on Nov. 18 at the Huntington Mall and involving about 40 students.
Zeigler noted the students may recruit a friend to model their creations, but the two eighth-graders chose to don their own.
They were among several students from the middle school who participated.
For their winning entries, Piatt and Clever won gift cards totaling $300 and $250, respectively.
Also among the top finishers at the Re-Fashion Show was Annaliese Schupbach of Brooke High School, who placed second in the 14 and older division and received a $150 gift card.
Schupbach modeled her dress, which was made with empty cardboard boxes for Coca-Cola products, including gray and red cartons for Diet Coke and red and white for the soda's traditional version.
The dress was complemented with a small handbag made with numerous pop can tabs.
Roark noted Schupback, a sophomore, placed in the contest in both of the last two years.
In recent years, Roark has organized a fashion show at the high school to allow her students to display their creations for their peers and invited the middle school students to participate.
Zeigler noted Roark has brought in a panel of judges for that local event and awarded treat bags to its top finishers.