Appearing in July 16, 1998
STAR BEACON

Teens make different in England

A little music in England

Laura Dowler on "The Ice Storm"

LOCAL TEENS (left photo)clown with a local teen in Stockton. In front is Leslie Woods. In back is Jessica Zoblisien.

TEENS TAKE a break (at right)outside the Stockton church they worked out of.

Land of `Springer,' `Bay Watch'

Conneaut teens give England different perspective on America

By ROBERT LEBZELTER
Special Sections Editor
CONNEAUT - American is a blend of Jerry Springer, some "Bay Watch," sprinkled with "Beverly Hills 90210," with a dash of "King of the Hill."
All Americans are rich. Shootings and guns are a fact of life in American schools. Many kids pack guns.
If you agree that's pretty much America in 1998, you are on the same wavelength as teens across the Atlantic in England.
At least that's what some Conneaut and Edgewood High School students found during a recent visit to Stockton, England.
The kids are from Conneaut's First Assembly of God Church. The trip was supposed to pretty much present a "religion of the day" to teens in local schools over there. Their version of Christianity proved welcome in this city of 70,000.
While religious teachings are banned from public schools in America, England handles the matter differently. It permits all religions to make presentations, as part of the learning process.
Said youth pastor Sheldon Miles, "They have Hindus, Moslems. On the day we were there, they said, `Ladies and gentlemen, we have Christians here today,' and we walked in.
"It's better that way. They give the kids a choice. People here don't talk about (religion). I think teen-agers there have a more moral sense," Miles said.
The schools had definite restrictions.
"We couldn't do altar calls. We couldn't pray with them," said recent CHS graduate Abbey Sturtevant.
Added Miles, "It was very low key."
The 10-day trip wasn't confined to visiting schools. The local Assemblies of God church had an outreach ministry, in which the church opened its doors to kids on the streets, offering refreshments, pool and companionship.
"Parents abandon kids. They live on the streets," Miles said. "It's just a fact of life over there."
Still, the kids aren't too much different from those in the U.S., participants found.
"Their more loud and obnoxious," said Jakki Reitz. "They didn't have a sense of volume. A lot more of them smoke."
"They were kind of like us," agreed Jessica Zoblisien. "They weren't formal. They were more rambunctious."
Schools were different. Kids only get six weeks off in the summer and wore uniforms.
"Teachers were more strict," Zoblisien observed. "They said no chewing gum. They say that here, but there they meant it. You have to sit real straight. No elbows on the tables."
The food got some getting used to. People there eat fish and chips (fries) the way we eat pizza. But they do dabble in pizza.
"School pizza is the worst over there," Reitz said. "Worse than school pizza here."
And the lasagna. Well, don't even ask.
Sheona Terry said the most common question asked is: "What kind of candy bars do you have? Do you have Snickers bars?"
Their biggest success is Stockton teens were more receptive to their message than they were prepared for.
"Kids there thought Christians were ties and white shirts and girls in spiffy dresses," said Reitz. "They thought we spent all day praying, we didn't have any fun."
As a result of the visit, more Stockton kids are visiting the outreach program and a lot of them are dreaming of coming to America.
Said Reitz, "To them, America is a big deal. To us, England isn't a big deal."
Miles, who has taken youth groups to several other countries, added, "It seems wherever we go, people talk about America. People want to go to America."
Since their return, telephone bills have gone up, talking to their new friends across the ocean. The Internet has heated up with e-mail.
Some of the kids have reported visiting travel agencies several times, trying to find the best deal to America.
And while they want to visit America, they are also worried about the safety of the Conneaut group. They are afraid they will be shot in their schools, based on recent spurts of violence across the U.S.
The Conneaut group, called Ambassadors in Missions, held fundraisers to earn the money to go, including an Easter dinner. They also had to initially put down $100 of their own money to prove they are serious.
Rodney Ayres of Edgewood was hesitant to go, but only because of the money. He was glad he did.
Students stayed with church members in Stockton.
Reitz and Terry had previously visited El Salvador.
"El Salvador was a street ministry," said Terry. "You couldn't talk to people. I was only a first-year Spanish student then. You minister in El Salvador and you walk away and you don't know what happened to them."
The group is ready for another trip. In the past, kids have visited Russia and Jamaica as well as El Salvador.
But before they go, they may want to get their fill of good old American lasagna.

Doing a little singing

CONNEAUT - The group that traveled to Stockton, England, was there not only to present Christianity, but to do a little performing.
The troupe did some short plays, some miming to music and some singing.
One of the singers, Leslie Woods, captured the attention of a man who attended one of the performances.
His name was Andy and he had a recording studio. He asked her to record for him.
With an audio tape of music she brought from home, she sang "Lion and the Lamb" and "King of What I Am."
Would she like to return to England some day, where he musical start began?
No doubt, she says.
"It's wonderful there," she said.
- Robert Lebzelter

`Ice Storm' unthaws family tensions

A Laura Dowler column
Thirty years ago America entered an age known as the 70s.
It was a time of rebellion and a time of experiments. Ang Lee has recreated this tumultuous time in the film "The Ice Storm."
This film is many things. It is a look back on a previous time. It is a look at human nature and human desire, and it is an example of what a well directed film looks like.
The story focuses on two families, The Hoods and the Carvers. Both families seem to be perfect on the outside, but are shattering inside. Ben Hood (Kevin Kline) is having an affair with Janey Carver (Sigourney Weaver). His wife, Elana (Joan Allen), knows about the affair and can stand no more lies from her husband.
Wendy Hood (Christina Ricci) is 14 years old and is developing a curiosity toward the opposite sex. She and Janey's son Mikey (Elijah Wood) are interested in each other, while Mikey's little brother, Sandy (Adam Hann-Byrd), worships the ground Wendy walks on. Wendy's brother, Paul (Tobey Maguire), attends college and hopes to get lucky with his crush while she spends the weekend alone.
All the problems of the characters come down to one night. The one night involves a trendy key party where willing couples swap wives for a night and a freak ice storm. By the next morning the lives of all the characters will have changed.
One important aspect of any film is the acting. The performances in the "Ice Storm" were very strong from the entire cast. I was especially impressed with the performances of Christina Ricci and Adam Hann-Byrd. Both were able to develop characters that were believable and honest. They handled the material in a mature manner, which to me was important. There were several scenes with Ricci and Hann-Byrd that impressed me. It was the honest performance that I liked. I was also impressed by the performance of Elijah Wood. The scenes between Wood and Ricci were stirring.
Having been witness to an ice storm in third grade, I remembered what it was like, but the striking cinematography of the storm really moved me. It reminded me of the power of God in nature. The beautiful vision of the ice can hide the dangers it carries, like the perfect family can hide the hurts and needs inside.
I am surprised that "Ice Storm" did not receive more Oscar nominations than it did. Sigourney Weaver was nominated for best supporting actress, but that is the only major award it was nominated for. It failed to gain nominations in the best picture or best director category. I am especially disappointed with the latter. Lee deserved to be nominated.
I was impressed with the directing of the film. I noticed subtle and not so subtle angles. There was a repeated image of ice and shattering, as a hint of things to come. One shot however sticks out in my mind, It's a bird's eye view, (which means it was shot directly above the subjects) of Ricci and Wood kissing in the woods. It is obvious to me that Lee is a talented filmmaker who can create a scene like Eric Clapton can play a guitar.
I didn't personally live in the 70s. I wasn't even born in that era, but I've read enough to know that it was an era of experimentation, free sex and bad fashion. It was a time when America was losing faith in its leaders, because of a little thing called Watergate. For some people it wasn't only the government they were losing faith in. I found the ice storm to be a poignant and moving look at the 70s and at the structure of the family.
Dowler, who will be a senior at Edgewood this fall, was actually born in the 80s and has trouble remembering the 90s.