MONDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2016 | SERVING TEXAS A&M SINCE 1893 | © 2016 STUDENT MEDIA | @THEBATTONLINE

BATTTHE BATTALION | THEBATT.COM

THE

By Matthew Jacobs@mtj2203

The student experience will be coming to an end this week for Aggies graduating this

week, who will have their commencement cer-emonies Friday and Saturday.

Approximately 4,600 students will be walk-ing the stage during the ceremonies, an all-time high for fall semester graduations, and about 100 more than last December. Among the graduates will be students from 13 academic colleges, and the Friday ceremonies will include the commis-sioning of 35 members of the Corps of Cadets as officers in the armed forces.

4,600 Aggies to walk stage Friday, Saturday

December graduation will commence Friday

and Saturday.

PROVIDED

By Mariah Colón@MariahColon18

‘Tis the season for holiday displays. From music to lights and everything in between,

the Bryan-College Station area is well prepared for the festive season and is even home to the largest Christmas attraction in the state of Texas.

More than 3 million lights welcome the attendees of Santa’s Wonderland. The Ag-gie-owned attraction opens every year from

Santa’s Wonderland, the largest Christmas park, to host thousands

Aggie-owned holiday attraction open for business

Santa’s Wonderland has more than 3 million

lights.

Brian Okosun — THE BATTALION

DOWN TO THE WIRE

Sophomore center Tyler Davis led the Aggies in scoring against South Carolina

State Saturday, with 22 points.

Cassie Stricker — THE BATTALION

In a closer-than-expected game, Texas A&M fended off South Car-

olina State 83-76, as the Bulldogs used a strong offensive attack to stay in the game down the stretch before falling short to the superior Aggies.

“You saw about 10 minutes of really

good basketball and probably 10 minutes or more than that of bad basketball,” head coach Billy Kennedy said. “We’ve got to get to where we play at a high lev-el for 40 minutes and we didn’t do that today. We played immature, we played like the game was over, especially in the second half.”

Sophomore center Tyler Davis led the Aggies in scoring, dropping 22 points on the night and adding a team-high eight rebounds as well. Davis was one of

By Alex Miller@AlexMill20

A&M holds off South Carolina State 83-76 in close game

BASKETBALL ON PG. 2SANTA’S WONDERLAND ON PG. 2 GRADUATION ON PG. 4

“I think getting

to turn your ring

around and the

symbolism of

being ready to

face the world

and coming

together with

your classmates

probably was my

favorite memory.”

AUBRE DEAN

This is the last

printing day

of the fall 2016

semester. We

will resume

publication

Jan. 17, 2017.

Coverage will

continue through

the break on

thebatt.com.

“My favorite

Texas A&M

memory comes

from senior year.

After finishing

karaoke at

O’Bannon’s,

we went

hammocking

through the night

in Academic

Plaza.”

THOMAS FULLER

“We knocked on

the President’s

house and

explained our

situation to a

very amused and

welcoming Dr.

Loftin. He gladly

invited us in to

use his facilities

and chatted with

us briefly.”

BRITTANY WITT

“I think my

favorite memory

at Texas A&M

was going on

a study abroad

with Texas A&M

Qatar to Nepal,

where we got to

volunteer in the

Himalayas at a

tiny little school

there.”

BILL BECKER

“My favorite

memories are

hanging out with

friends before

and after football

games and on

game days. We’d

get here early

and hang around

late, and just

Aggie football.”

CHELSEA SIRACKI

“That night

[Muster], I

remember sitting

down with my

friends and going

through that night

and just being

blown away by

the embodiment

of the Aggie Spirit

in that building.”

DAVIS MCCRACKEN

“My favorite

memory was

three years ago

and two days. Me

and my fiancée

were in All Faiths

Chapel and

she decided to

play some John

Denver songs on

piano.”

BRODY BRITTEN AMANDA JONES

“I came to A&M

with my cousin/

best friend as

first generation

Aggies. Since

we got our rings

on the same day,

we were able to

present our rings

to each other at

the same time.”

KAITLIN HESSE

“My favorite

memory is getting

my Aggie Ring

last year. My

whole family

was there and

it was a really

special moment,

something I was

looking forward

to for awhile.”

KATIE LANGFORD

“‘You know what

would be a great

idea? Getting

a hamster.’ So

we all went and

contributed to

getting the cage

and getting the

hamster and

getting a little ball

for it.“

REBECCA REAP

“I was running

a race one

weekend and

[my professor]

was at the race

cheering me on.

She recognized

me. “

ERIN DRINKWATER

“My favorite

memory was

when we did

March to the

Brazos with the

Delta Company

veterans. We

were able to go

and hang out

together, which

is something

uncommon.”

JOSUE RAMIREZ

“My favorite

memory is

going on Aggie

Awakening and

then being really

involved with

organizations on-

campus and at St.

Mary’s Catholic

Center all through

college.”

REENA WEAVER

“My favorite

memory was just

walking into Kyle

Field for the first

time.”

SARAH WYNN

“Between

making

friendships with

the people that

are in my camp

to developing

relationships with

the freshmen and

helping them to

transition has

been my favorite

part.”

MACY BARLOW

“I met some of

the best friends

that I could have

ever dreamed of

meeting through

Phi Lamb and it

has just really

pointed me on my

walk with Christ,

too.”

Compiled by Hannah Gerken @gerken.Hannah

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FROMTHEFRONT 2The Battalion | 12.12.16

Associates who receive this award are

recognized for going above and beyond their

normal duties to promote teamwork, unity, a

positive attitude, kindness and exceptional

customer service.

Thank you, Amanda, for all your hard work and

dedication to the Communications Center!

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Maintenance

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Month

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mid-November to early January and attendees can view lights, listen to live music, roast marshmallows, go shop-ping and take photos with Santa him-self.

The owner of Santa’s Wonderland, Scott Medlin, Class of 1994, said the initial idea for the wonderland started as a concept of being a drive-through Christmas attraction.

“In 1998, we bought the property and it was originally a 20-acre tract in the very beginning and little by little we’ve added a piece here and there,” Medlin said. “Around ‘02 or ‘01 some-one suggested that we try a hayride. So we tried it out ... Needless to say it was a hit and it has just grown from there.”

Medlin said while Santa’s Wonder-land could not have grown into what it is today without the contribution of those who work at the wonderland, the initial idea came from his experience of Christmas.

“I was in so many nativity scenes,” Medlin said. “We would do it for the church and the parents and then when all that was over we would go to my grandparents’ house and the only thing my grandmother would ask for was

for her kids to do a live nativity scene. When I got old enough we started put-ting Christmas lights on the house and my brother and I did that and every year we got more and more serious about it ... It was just a matter of out-doing the previous Christmas.”

Santa’s Wonderland has grown through the use of social media and park expansions that those coming to the wonderland have extended outside the Bryan-College Station area, Medlin said.

“From the outside looking in you might just say this is a College Station thing,” Medlin said. “Well, that is our address but in reality there are a lot of people who come from a lot of differ-ent places.”

Sarah Callaway, Class of 2015, has worked several holiday seasons at San-ta’s Wonderland and said the reason she continues to come back is the positive environment.

“When I first started I was in high school and transitioned into college and there was a lot of stress,” Callaway said. “At some point I think I was working three jobs at the same time, but every time I’d go to Santa’s Wonderland, no matter what, I’d see the lights and the stress just washed away — it is definite-ly many people’s happy place. You’re

just in a different world. Every other care or problem you can leave at the door when you walk in and you’re transported elsewhere.”

Medlin said the amount of joy that guests feel is the most rewarding part of Santa’s Wonderland, and that through constantly adding to Santa’s Wonder-land he hopes to keep that happiness thriving.

“It is a happy place for a lot of peo-ple,” Medlin said. “Every year, we add multiple new scenes inside the trail of lights and the feedback we have re-ceived is that people come back every year because we change it up. Walt Disney used to say that he would never open up the same Disney World two years in a row, so I love that idea of constantly changing.”

Madison Goolsby, health junior, said while she has grown up going to the Wonderland she is never let down by her experience.

“I am a different type of sightseer because I grew up here, so I already know what to expect, but from my view living here and going to Santa’s Wonderland almost every year, I know it is amazing,” Goolsby said. “All of the workers are very sweet and helpful. It is definitely a Texas kind of Christmas and it just gets bigger and bigger.”

SANTA’S WONDERLAND CONTINUED

four A&M players who scored in dou-ble-digits. Admon Gilder had 16 while DJ Hogg and Robert Williams had 15 points each.

The Aggie defense struggled in the second half as the Bulldogs made 17-of-32 shots (53 percent) in the final 20 minutes. SC State (2-7) also outscored A&M (7-2) 45-35 in the second half.

“In the second half, we got compla-cent, basically letting them come out and giving them whatever they want-ed,” Gilder said. “It was not a good job of getting stops on the defensive end, let them get confidence and that’s why I think the game was pretty close.”

Despite scoring 22 points, Davis was not pleased with the way A&M played in the second half against a team Davis said they knew they should have beat.

“When you give up 45 points [in the second half] to a team you just killed in the first half, something is wrong,” Davis said. “When you know you’re supposed to beat a team, you go out there and beat them. You don’t let the game be close and you don’t play down to their level ever. We got to fix up a couple things, have a different mind-set, different approach to the defensive end.”

The Bulldogs countered the Aggies’ four double-digit scorers with four of their own. Eric Eaves led the way

for SC State with 23 points. Edward Stephens scored 18 points for the Bull-dogs, making all six of his field goals from behind the arc. SC State was 12-of-23 from three-point range.

“I’m proud of the fight,” South Car-olina State head coach Murray Gavin said. “Coming from where we’ve come from this season, there’s definite growth, that’s something we can build off of.”

While the Aggies struggled defen-sively, they were efficient on offense, shooting 55 percent from the field. A&M continued to dominate down low as well, outscoring SC State 48-24 in the paint.

The second half opened with a back-and-forth scoring fest, but SC State used a 12-0 run in a two-and-a-half minute span to cut the A&M lead to 61-52 with 12:20 remaining in the game, as the Aggies did not make a field goal for just over three minutes.

The Aggies were hot out the gate, making six of their first eight field goals to hold an early 14-8 advantage over the Bulldogs at the 14:33 mark of the first half. A&M used a 17-4 run to stretch its lead to 26-10 with 9:24 re-maining in the first half as SC State was held scoreless for 6:10 between baskets.

SC State would heat up though, sinking seven of its next nine shots, in-cluding five three-pointers by Stephens to cut A&M’s lead to 33-27 with 5:06 left in the half. A&M responded to

the SC State run by subbing in starters Gilder, Hogg and Davis, who com-bined to score the next 13 points for A&M after returning to the court.

A&M took a commanding 48-31 lead into intermission after shooting a red hot 66 percent from the field in the first 20 minutes, ending the half on a 15-4 run.

“Our subs that came in didn’t play well,” Kennedy said. “The level of play dropped and I went back with the start-ers. We were up 15, up six, went back with the starters and went into half up 17. We got to get better play out of our bench and when they don’t play well, our starters have to be more effective.”

Moving forward, the Aggies have a week off before they face Arizona next Saturday at the Toyota Center in Houston as part of the Lone Star Shootout. Kennedy stated his team is not ready yet, but knows they have the week to prepare for the powerful op-ponent. The first thing to fix, howev-er, may be effort, something that if not mended could result in a bad ending for A&M a week from now.

“We’re not ready [for Arizona], we’ve got a week to get ready,” Ken-nedy concluded. “Arizona is a potential top-15 team, they’re a very good bas-ketball team. At times in practice, we have to coach effort. That’s the sign of a team that’s young, relaxes and thinks the game is over. That’ll get you beat against Arizona by 25.”

BASKETBALL CONTINUED

Cassie Stricker — THE BATTALION

Sophomore forward DJ Hogg scored 15 points in Saturday’s win over South Carolina State.

GRADUATION 3The Battalion | 12.12.16

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I got a little story for you, Ags.

I was supposed to go to The University of Texas at Austin. I grew up wearing burnt orange and

cheering on the Longhorns. When I applied for college, I only applied to UT originally and was admitted into their journalism program. The second I saw the offer of admission, some-thing felt wrong. Then, my now-fi-ance Nick, brought me to a game at Kyle Field and everything changed.

I had never been to a football game where everyone was that into the game. I had never done anything like put my arms around the peo-ple next to me and sway. After the Aggies won, we rushed to Fish Pond and watched as the yell leaders were thrown into the water and led us all in a yell practice. I remember looking around at the maroon crowd and thinking, I want to go here. I applied the next week, and have never looked back.

When I came to Texas A&M in the fall of 2013, I had no idea how much this place would capture my heart in seven short semesters or that it would become a part of who I am. Something is special about this place, there’s something in the air that just sets it apart.

People are nice here — they smile at you and will talk to you on the bus. People are willing to help you carry a box from your car in West Campus across campus to your dorm room in Dunn. People believe in you here, there are so many opportunities to grow and gain experiences.

Despite the numerous things I learned in the classroom here at Texas A&M, the most important thing I learned in college is that you are here for a reason.

Even if A&M wasn’t your first choice or you aren’t liking it the way you thought you were going, let yourself fall in love with this school. Go to Midnight Yell. Stand in unison with your Aggie Family at Silver Taps. Take the picture with the chalkboard saying you ordered your Aggie Ring. Saw ‘em off. Let yourself not be too

cool for A&M, because this school and this family are unlike any other.

College is so much bigger than just the school work and studying. College is where we go to grow up and become who we are supposed to be. College is a time of growth and being challenged. It’s learning how to adult before you actually have to. Get out there and experience this place, because there’s nowhere else like it.

When I walk across the stage on Friday evening and finish my time in Aggieland as a student, I will not be leaving it all behind. I am blessed to be able to take the memories, the values and the lessons learned with me everywhere I go in the form of my Aggie Ring. Every time I look down on my little piece of Aggie gold on my right hand, I will smile and remember where I came from and the special place that made me into the woman I am today.

This isn’t the end, this is only the beginning.

Hannah Fenske is a communication senior and assistant life and arts editor for

The Battalion.

Hannah Fenske remembers falling in love with Aggieland

‘This isn’t the end, this is only the beginning’

Hannah Fenske@hannahfenske13

I came to Texas A&M completely unaware of what I was getting into. I moved to College Station a year prior to college from Tampa,

Florida. I actually grew up a huge Florida Gator fan. Once I got into Texas A&M I started to love going to school here. I hope as time goes on the culture here will live on because that is what more than anything else separates Texas A&M from other schools.

The best part about graduating col-lege in a few days is that for the first time in my life I have worked really hard to do something and completed it, and I hope that will encourage any-one reading to keep working towards completion, because it proves to your-

self that you can accomplish some-thing you have set out to do. College is the hardest I have ever worked and know that life will continue to be tough at times but finishing college is reassurance that I can make it through tough times.

One thing that I keep reminding myself is that I haven’t really done anything yet. I paid for an education and will most likely graduate, but now I have my whole life ahead of me to become the person I want to become. College is just the first step in getting to where you want to be in 10, 20 and 30 years from now.

Always set goals. I have constantly surprised myself with what I have been able to do — some things I couldn’t imagine have doing 10 years ago, like graduating from a state university. There are plenty of takeaways from college, but setting goals applies to all things in life. I have

started setting goals for everything, and even through college it has helped me change my focus toward con-stantly bettering myself and trying to improves people’s lives around me.

Stop stressing. I used to worry non-stop about school, friends and work. But you can’t control everything in life. I am 22 years old and for the most part, everything I’ve ever lost sleep over in life has ended up being okay. Granted, you slip up — you might not pass a class, or you have to stay another semester, or you can’t even mathematically conjure a way to pay rent next month after all the money you shouldn’t have spent on North-gate, but it will turn out alright.

Best of luck Ags, it has been a pleasure!

Brad Canon is a construction science senior and assistant news editor for

The Battalion.

Brad Canon reflects on hard work, setting goals

‘College is just the first step’

Brad Canon@BradCanon1

Don’t miss out on the extraordinary.

Do the unexpected.

Apply by January 1:peacecorps.gov/apply

It’s not too late to order your copy of the 2016 Aggieland yearbook. The 114th edition of Texas A&M’s

official yearbook will chronicle the 2015-2016 school year. Distribution will be Fall 2016.

For older Aggieland yearbooks go online to aggieland.tamu.edu or call 979-845-2613. You can also drop by the Student Media

Office in Suite L400 of the MSC.

Hold onto a piece of Aggieland

NEWS 4The Battalion | 12.12.16

Luke Roberts, a petroleum engineering senior graduating this week, said the coming changes offer a mix of emotions, and that there is still some uncertainty ahead.

“It’s exciting, but also kind of scary,” Roberts said. “I don’t really want to leave behind the college life, but I’m really tired of school. I’m applying for jobs, and still looking. I’m kind of avoiding the oil and gas industry a little bit, just because I’ve seen how cyclical it is and I’d like a more stable job. I’ve been to a couple of interviews in Houston, and I’m also looking for a job with the Department of Homeland Security in Fort Worth.”

Erin Taylor, a graduating English senior, said she will be pursuing graduate school as the next step in her career.

“I want to get a Library Science degree,” Taylor said. “I want to work in archives. At the university I’m applying for they’re calling it ‘Archives and Digital Curation,’ but it really goes into anything library related. The program I’m looking at is actually a dual-degree at the University of Maryland, which is the library degree, but you can also get a history degree at the same time.”

Taylor also said graduating in the fall can feel strange and different.

“It’s really weird; it feels very sudden,” Taylor said. “And then I think it’s a little more stressful because, in terms of ap-plication deadlines, the deadlines are in the middle of finals, so you have to do everything all at once. Finals, applications, graduation, holidays.”

Joel Nakamura, a graduating petroleum engineering se-nior, said he is ready to move on to the next stage of life.

“I’m glad to be done,” Nakamura said. “I’ve taken 157 credit hours in my undergraduate experience. I’ve been to two different schools. I started out at the Colorado School of Mines, near Denver, and transferred down to here two years ago. So I’ve had four semesters at Texas A&M. I’m looking forward to having my undergraduate experience behind me, and to be able to move forward with what I want to progress with in life. I’m really excited to graduate.”

Nakamura also said he does not intend on taking the conventional career path with his degree.

“I’m actually not planning on using my Petroleum En-gineering degree,” Nakamura said. “I’m hoping to go into ministry. My goal is to do missions work overseas. Right now after I graduate I plan on sticking around in town and paying off my student debt, and also volunteering with Cru and basically being an intern with them. That’s what I will be doing in the spring, and in the fall I’m either going to be in the Fellows program at Grace Bible Church here in town, or I’ll be in South Asia with Cru.”

Graduation ceremonies will be held at 9 a.m., 2p.m. and 7 p.m. Friday, and 9 a.m. Saturday at Reed Arena.

GRADUATION CONTINUED

If a fish has any experience analogous to graduation, it must be the moment it hears about dry land. “Dry land? Preposterous!” the fish must think until

it is flapping wetly on concrete, terrified it cannot breathe.

Graduation is five days away. Most of us who will walk the stage have probably thought the same things this whole semes-ter — where am I going to work, where am I going to live, should I go to graduate school and how will it be living with my parents again if I do none of the above. We consider many practical things about life after college. But we seldom think of happiness and how we might pursue it after this week.

The pursuit of happiness sucks. The phrase itself should make you avoid it at all costs. To pursue means to struggle; to exert time and energy against some obstructive force. Things that are pursued run from their pursuers, and things that pursue usually do so without good intention. Cats pursue mice, lions pursue antelopes and big fish pursue small fish. Why do we have to do the same to happiness?

The answer can only be understood when you consider the absence of happi-ness. Without achieving their pursuits the lion and big fish will starve (the cat will, regrettably, be fine). In other words, you truly pursue something when it is vital to your survival and you do not have it yet.

It is easy to forget how lucky we are that our pursuits of happiness are often so easy they lose this meaning. College life is a pursuit of many things — grades, jobs, Aggie Rings — but happiness is just a friend, phone call or trip home away. We may know happiness is not everywhere and in everything, but true sorrow is often a definition we still have no need for.

Life after college is when this last childhood outpost will be destroyed. All my friends will no longer live within 10 minutes of each other. Parents will grow old and frail. Relationships will break. For the first time in our lives we will be alone, geographically in a new city or emotionally as someone thrust into a world that simply does not care about personal success or failure.

If you haven’t learned already, you will learn around or after graduation that happiness does not arrive with every day like the sunrise. It is something that you must make a very conscientious effort to achieve. Happiness will not come to you, even if you are patient; it must be chased until your lungs burn.

Aggieland has shown me what true hap-piness is. For myself and for every graduat-ing senior, we must now learn to seek that happiness in the outside world — to find it in our work, in our spouses and in the causes we champion. The greatest pursuit of our lives is about to begin. It is now our responsibility to learn how to do it well.

John Rangel is an aerospace engineering senior and special sections editor for

The Battalion.

‘Aggieland has shown me what true happiness is’

The pursuit of happiness‘Aggieland has shown me what true happiness is’

John Rangel

Aerospace engineering senior John Rangel will graduate this weekend with about 4,600

other December graduates.

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