Funding for a lifetime of laughs

Marilyn Ramirez, Copy Editor/Co-Editor-in-Chief

March 29, 2013

On March 29, Comedy Sportz members Bryce Caliwag, 12, Miguel Meza, 11, and Marco Arroyo, 11, sit together in the theatre to play the game of Speed Date. The Blue Team beat the Red Team in this Relay for Life fundraising game.

In addition to their usual routine of comedy and improv, the Comedy Sportz High School League held a special game against each other on March 27 for Relay for Life, donating the proceeds in respect to senior Mario Galvan, who was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma last December. T-shirts supporting Galvan were sold and worn by members of both teams. Edwin Arroyo, 12, was in charge of the sales that evening.

“I think what we’re doing is going to really help Mario,” Arroyo said. “We want to get as many people to support what we’re doing so they can see how important he is to us.”

In order for Arroyo’s hope to shine through, the Comedy Sportz team strived to make this game a worthy one. One of the younger members, sophomore Hector Gonzalez of the Blue Team, showed more of his improv talents than usual.

“I had the most fun in Forward and Reverse,” Gonzalez said. “It was fun to just get up there and make everyone laugh, including the other team.”

Although playing as each other’s rivals, there’s a difficulty in controlling the laughter caused by watching the opponent’s performances.

“We’re not supposed to laugh in huge outbursts,” Juan Nuñez, 11, said. “We practice together for an hour and a half each week, so we’re really good friends.”

Captains Javier Navarro, 12, and Marco Arroyo, 11, gave the audience many opportunities to be a part of the performance with skits like Forward and Reverse, where scenes that are acted out are then repeated or continued, Slideshow, a game by which one member of the team narrates the random freeze-frames posed by his allies, and Scantron, where the referee stops the present action and asks the attendees to choose from the team-generated choices on what they’d like to see happen next. The referee of the evening, drama teacher Lars Hansen, maneuvered the game fluidly to keep the laughs going.

“Comedy Sportz is a family show, emphasis on family,” Hansen said. “This is a battle of hilarity; we are against anything that would offend my grandmother.”

This Hollywood-originated sport has influenced Downey further to partake in not only their matches, but in the struggle for finding a cure for cancer. These spontaneous Vikings will continue their theatrics at their next match on April 16.

About the Contributors

Marilyn Ramirez, Copy Editor/Co-Editor-in-Chief

For senior Marilyn Ramirez, newspaper is not only a class. No, for this young journalist, The Downey Legend is her inner voice, her happy, her passion, her future. Ramirez sets out to improve her writing ability with every new story, setting new goals for herself with the start of every deadline. She is currently the Copy Editor and Co-Editor-in-Chief on staff. She joined the online publication in order to gain experience in journalism; after studying at either UC Berkley or San Francisco State University, she is certain she will write for Time Magazine and develop a career in photojournalism. Ramirez plans on hiking through war-zones, or the jungles of Borneo in order to capture the beauty she wishes to documents. This journalist has no space in her agenda for anything less than extraordinary. When she is not writing stories or improving her photo and web layout skills, Ramirez enjoys spending time with her better half, Kyle Hudspeth. Like many others, she adores Disneyland and shopping . She might be found at her favorite drinks chain, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, reading a book or making awkward conversation with strangers. She has an unbelievable amount of positive energy, which she utilizes in a myriad of activities from school work, to staff bonding, however, it is not so obnoxious, because it is balanced out with the right amount of sarcasm. Ramirez is a fast-paced, modern girl of sorts with a dedicated disposition; she is undoubtedly heading toward great heights.

Cindy Macias, Photographer/Co-Photo Editor

For senior Cindy Macias, The Downey Legend is not just a newspaper; it is a place to show her photographs to the world. This photographer likes to take candid shots because she is able to capture the beauty of the moment and frame it in time. Macias is not only in newspaper, she is also juggling Yearbook along with her regular classes. She hopes to become proactive, less of a procrastinator, get straight As, be more organized, and improve her academic vocabulary throughout the year. She plans to study liberal arts at either UC Irvine or UCLA, but does not plan on dorming on campus because of the filth. Over the summer, Macias gained work experience while interning for Prestige Portraits, a company that specifically takes professional high school senior portraits. Her work involved secretary-like duties, such as calling for reminders and filing papers. When she is not taking photos, she is at the mall shopping for the latest styles at Pac Sun, one of her favorite stores. Macias walks around her neighborhood to ponder over her life. Her friends admire her sense of forwardness, personality, listening skills, and great advice. Macias makes her friends a priority. “The more you don’t see the person, the connection really isn’t there”, she stated. She started photography in the seventh grade, at Davis Middle School, and she has been taking pictures ever since, because photography challenges her to become better. Her personality, work ethic, and perseverance are all aspects that allow Macias to be an extraordinary photographer.