The Search for Equality
Photo taken by Elizabeth Benigni
By ELIZABETH BENIGNI
“I want to change someone’s life.”
Chauncey T. Alexander’s words form a stream of confidence as he speaks. His brown eyes look around the room,
as if to see someone listening. Chauncey, a freshman communications major at Robert Morris University (RMU),
sees college as an opportunity to sharpen his leadership skills.
“I want to change someone’s life.”
Chauncey T. Alexander’s words form a stream of confidence as he speaks. His brown eyes look around the room,
as if to see someone listening. Chauncey, a freshman communications major at Robert Morris University (RMU),
sees college as an opportunity to sharpen his leadership skills.
The ‘Trini’ Lifestyle
Photo taken by Aimee Morgan
By AIMEE MORGAN
He has no shirt and no shoes. He begins to strum his guitar and sits down in front of the Bob Marley
poster that covers his entire dining room wall. With a beaming smile and charming island accent,
anyone feels warmly welcome in his presence, something that likely landed him his job at the Crowne
Plaza in Moon Township, Pennsylvania.
25-year-old Jesse Boocock, a manager at the Crowne Plaza, will soon be leaving in one month to go
back to his home of Maraval, Trinidad, just outside of Trinidad’s capital, Port of Spain.
He has no shirt and no shoes. He begins to strum his guitar and sits down in front of the Bob Marley
poster that covers his entire dining room wall. With a beaming smile and charming island accent,
anyone feels warmly welcome in his presence, something that likely landed him his job at the Crowne
Plaza in Moon Township, Pennsylvania.
25-year-old Jesse Boocock, a manager at the Crowne Plaza, will soon be leaving in one month to go
back to his home of Maraval, Trinidad, just outside of Trinidad’s capital, Port of Spain.
Home Operated Business Hopes for Change
Photo taken by Jeremy Harris
By JEREMY HARRIS
A health supplement is being sold from a local neighborhood family. Kathy Bost is running a home-based
business that provides omega-3 fish oil for her customers. She is making this product available by literally
running a sales business out of her own house.
A health supplement is being sold from a local neighborhood family. Kathy Bost is running a home-based
business that provides omega-3 fish oil for her customers. She is making this product available by literally
running a sales business out of her own house.
Changing the World One Couch at aTime
Photo takan by Julie Gabriel
By JULIE GABRIEL
Good news for travel lovers looking for a cheap way to stay in cities, meet new people and have a great
time for less money, couch surfing is all rage. Couch surfing, a relatively new concept in America gives
travelers the opportunity to sensitively reduce their costs.
Originally from France, Sophia Bourgade, and Alexandre Bouvier, are experts at finding at the best deals
in town and are frequent couch surfers. Mathieu Lakhani, and Marc Coudray, two Robert Morris
University college students are not new to the topic of couch surfing either.
Good news for travel lovers looking for a cheap way to stay in cities, meet new people and have a great
time for less money, couch surfing is all rage. Couch surfing, a relatively new concept in America gives
travelers the opportunity to sensitively reduce their costs.
Originally from France, Sophia Bourgade, and Alexandre Bouvier, are experts at finding at the best deals
in town and are frequent couch surfers. Mathieu Lakhani, and Marc Coudray, two Robert Morris
University college students are not new to the topic of couch surfing either.
Struggle and Disappointment Pave Performer’s Path to Success
Photo taken by Andrea Zanaglio
By ANDREA ZANAGLIO
A salty, tangy familiar scent fills the air of the Byham Theater’s lobby in between rehearsal scenes of the
Pittsburgh Musical Theater’s latest production of “Seussical the Musical.” Definitely that of Italian dressing,
which possibly served as the final touch to an Italian hoagie grabbed on-the-go because time is money in
this business, the aroma secretes from the perspiring pores of an overly jubilant, 29-year-old ready to sprint
back on stage at a moment's notice.
Angel in Disguise
Photo taken by Michelle Wolniak
By MICHELLE WOLNIAK
It’s a quiet morning at the small massage clinic in Cranberry Township. The hustle and bustle of the hourly
flip at Massage Envy has died down. Elizabeth Munson Erbrecht, pregnant for a little over 35 weeks, looks
comfortable in her new maternity shirt and is ready to welcome her first child into the world. She sips tea
from her purple coffee mug as she begins to explain how she became interested in an occupation most have
never heard of: hospice massage therapy.
It’s a quiet morning at the small massage clinic in Cranberry Township. The hustle and bustle of the hourly
flip at Massage Envy has died down. Elizabeth Munson Erbrecht, pregnant for a little over 35 weeks, looks
comfortable in her new maternity shirt and is ready to welcome her first child into the world. She sips tea
from her purple coffee mug as she begins to explain how she became interested in an occupation most have
never heard of: hospice massage therapy.
Rags to Riches: A Coming to America Story
Photo taken by Brittany Fortuna
By BRITTANY FORTUNA
Moving from the groovy ‘70s and into the punk rock, valley girl ‘80s, 1979 gave great promise to the
nation. The first Sony Walkman was introduced, Rocky was only up to the second filming, and Jimmy
Carter was the reigning President.
But for one man in particular, 1979 brought a vast change to his life, a change he thought he would
never forget.
Moving from the groovy ‘70s and into the punk rock, valley girl ‘80s, 1979 gave great promise to the
nation. The first Sony Walkman was introduced, Rocky was only up to the second filming, and Jimmy
Carter was the reigning President.
But for one man in particular, 1979 brought a vast change to his life, a change he thought he would
never forget.
Life after Football
Photo taken by Matt Revtai
By MATT REVTAI
Josh Miller didn’t take the normal route of most retired athletes, who are usually happy to get away from the daily
grind of the media. Instead Josh, who was a punter for the Pittsburgh Steelers the majority of his career in the
National Football League, decided to work in the media post-retirement.
Josh Miller didn’t take the normal route of most retired athletes, who are usually happy to get away from the daily
grind of the media. Instead Josh, who was a punter for the Pittsburgh Steelers the majority of his career in the
National Football League, decided to work in the media post-retirement.
One Woman’s Struggle to Make a Difference
Photo takan by Heather Lowery
By HEATHER
LOWERY
It’s 11 a.m. A prisoner in her own home, she takes another swig of the vodka she keeps by her bedside,
the same drink that has kept her there for so many days. After a few hours, she wakes up, gets dressed
and makes her way to a meeting, an Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting. She had no idea that the
mid-morning shot of vodka would be her last. She decided that same day that her life was not going to
be all about her.
It’s 11 a.m. A prisoner in her own home, she takes another swig of the vodka she keeps by her bedside,
the same drink that has kept her there for so many days. After a few hours, she wakes up, gets dressed
and makes her way to a meeting, an Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting. She had no idea that the
mid-morning shot of vodka would be her last. She decided that same day that her life was not going to
be all about her.
Local Kid Makes It Big
Photo taken by Alissa Dorman
By ALYSSA BENSON
It is every athlete’s dream to play a Division I sport and make it to the professional level, all while making the
big bucks for doing what they love. This common dream rarely comes to fruition, but when it does, it’s special.
For Pittsburgh-born and raised hockey player, Denny Urban, that rarity just became reality.
It is every athlete’s dream to play a Division I sport and make it to the professional level, all while making the
big bucks for doing what they love. This common dream rarely comes to fruition, but when it does, it’s special.
For Pittsburgh-born and raised hockey player, Denny Urban, that rarity just became reality.
A New Perspective
Photo taken by Natalie DeBarto
By NATALIE LOUISE DEBARTO
The pale office sits in a little “cubby hole” of what is the largest building on Robert Morris University’s campus.
Past the mail boxes, down the steps, and inside the Center for Student Success is the office of Randon
Willard, the crisis counselor at RMU.
Though it was a long journey to this office, once there, Randon found his place in the world.
The pale office sits in a little “cubby hole” of what is the largest building on Robert Morris University’s campus.
Past the mail boxes, down the steps, and inside the Center for Student Success is the office of Randon
Willard, the crisis counselor at RMU.
Though it was a long journey to this office, once there, Randon found his place in the world.