Knowledge Bowl team earns trophy, heads to States
Kyle Blasi of Green Mountain Falls headed to Greeley this week for the state Knowledge Bowl competition. Blasi has competed with the Manitou Springs High School team since his freshman year.
“It’s brain sports,” he says of the competition, which pits three teams of four students against each other in multiple rounds, testing their knowledge in academic subjects like science, math, history, language arts, and current events.
Teams move up or down based on their performance. Moving up a room means going up against tougher teams.
Similar to athletics, graduating seniors often leave a team with large gaps to fill. Rebuilding years can be difficult, and this was one of those years. Recruiting members has been a challenge due to the team’s academic nature.
Last fall, the team set out to change their image so “people didn’t think of this as only a nerd club,” says Evan Fugate, who co-captains the team with Blasi. They hosted Jeopardy-style trivia at school events and talked to other kids about the joy of being part of a team.
It worked.
The team’s ranks grew and they earned a trophy at regionals, placing 3rd out of 18 teams. Teacher-advisor Andrew Slama says of their win, “The teamwork, positivity, and sheer determination of this team was a sight to behold! I could not be more proud of them.”
The team works hard, drilling with practice questions, training in weak areas, and even practicing buzzer skills.
It’s brain sports. – Kyle Blasi
Yet success is more than hard work. “Each person has their own specialty, which makes us competitive,” says Blasi. “The same applies to each person’s personality, which makes the group fun.”
It’s clear these kids delight in each other’s company. At regionals, they were the only team to go outside between rounds and play in the snow.
Ute Pass teen writes, directs, and acts in one-act plays
A play written by Isaac Boczkiewicz of Green Mountain Falls debuted last week at Studio West of Pikes Peak State College (PPSC) as part of the “Arnie’s Love Mix” showcase. His play, “The Moonlight Remembers,” was one of several one-act plays selected for performance by members of Springs Ensemble Theater and the PPSC Theater Department.
Boczkiewicz, a Manitou Springs High School (MSHS) junior, is earning college credit through a PPSC theater class offered at the high school. Earlier this year, Boczkiewicz wrote a comedic one-act play, “Scales and Presidency,” and then directed his fellow students in performing the play.
As an actor who has starred in several school productions, Boczkiewicz enjoyed the experience of directing his fellow students and making sure all the pieces work together. He says that unlike a full-length play, there’s a lot less time to flesh out the story and characters. He enjoyed the challenge of expressing “emotional depth in a short amount of time.”
The PPSC program called for plays centered around love in all its forms. Boczkiewicz started out writing about a romantic relationship, but his idea evolved to a parent-child relationship inspired by his mother and sister. “The Moonlight Remembers” is a poignant story about memory loss and who we are to ourselves and each other without our shared memories.
Unlike the play he wrote for the high school, Boczkiewicz was not involved in directing “The Moonlight Remembers.” He watched it for the first time as an audience
Ute Pass grateful to Judith Piazza
Since 2023, Judith Piazza has covered Ute Pass news in the Pikes Peak Bulletin, highlighting local businesses and nonprofits and showcasing community individuals and groups with articles written with her signature warmth.
Piazza loved her role in sharing the stories of Ute Pass, yet she is ready to make time for other things. A musician with an active role in the community, she performs at many events and leads guided retreats.
“It has been a joy to bring Ute Pass News to the Pikes Peak Bulletin over the last 18 months. Thanks to Rhonda Van Pelt and Lyn Ettinger-Harwell for having the vision to expand coverage and for bringing me onto the team, and to Heila Ershadi for continuing on. See you around town as I continue on the path of music, rhythm, sound, healing, and travel adventures!”
