January 2011 Mark Sutherland


. In the last issue, Sutherland reminisced about his past in Hawaii and the events that led him to California. No , Sutherland opens up about the darkest days of street life before he was rescued by the lo


Last month, The Eagle Flyer introduced readers to a three part series about Mark Sutherland, an ex-alcoholic who credits his reco Shipley


Tennis girls show love on and off the court


very to God, the girls’ tennis team, and its coach, Mindy ve of some good Samaritans… w By Sabrina Harding, Editor-in-Chief/News Editor “


Drinking is no longer a choice when you’re too far gone,” Mark Sutherland paused, a King James Bible


in his hand. He stared at it as he spoke, “Drop too far below the levels for too long, and you die from seizures. You can never let the alcohol levels drop.” On that particular subject, Sutherland is something


of an expert. A recovering alcoholic who has been so- ber six months this February 25, Sutherland is known at his recovery facility as the man with the devotional let- ters. Letters that came from the girls’ tennis team here at school. The compassion of the team and the care of his beach “family” have brought Sutherland farther then he thought possible. Before the Shipley and MacGillivray families brought


him hope and the team gave him encouragement, Suther- land was trapped in the vicious cycle of alcohol and liv- ing on the streets of the San Diego area. A native of Hawaii, Sutherland said, “The bottle is se-


curity; Life. No one will hire you; no one will rent to you or share a room with you. Paying rent vs. buying vodka means homelessness just comes naturally. It becomes a paradox of the choice…A paradox of a lifestyle.” Often it is difficult to understand where homeless alcoholics find the money to feed their addiction, but Sutherland indicated that it was surprisingly simple. He said, “I would walk up to a construction site and be will- ing to do $1,000 worth of work for $300, because $300 was enough Vodka for a month.” Vodka was Sutherland’s vice of choice, and while


beer was useful for small hits, the alcohol levels were not strong enough to take care of the dropping blood levels. There is a “terror window” for alcoholics on the street; a time between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. when the liquor stores close and an unprepared alcoholic can die. The street dwellers who suffer from the disease of alcohol- ism can survive on very little with very little, but not without a drink. “It’s all you want or need. Buying food is a blas-


phemous waste of good alcohol money. It is idol wor- ship, and my god was Vodka. I would do anything for it. All costs, any lengths…Being an alcoholic is hard work. It takes 24 hour dedication. There is no true rest. The mind says you’re free, but the body and soul are en- slaved,” Sutherland said. “It is a miserable moment-by- moment existence, but there is a point you reach where that makes sense.” But there was also a point Sutherland reached where he knew he needed help. “I was in an alley, and I was afraid to fall asleep. I


knew that if I fell asleep I would die. I just knew. I found out later that I was bleeding internally. I was coughing blood and I cried out, ‘I don’t want to die drunk, and I don’t want to die alone.’ It wasn’t a prayer, just a cry. A very audible voice—it’s not a man…I couldn’t describe it—says to me, ‘If you’re not drunk you won’t be alone, and if you’re not alone you won’t be drunk.’ It wasn’t a conversation, just a plea and an answer. My kids would never have known if I’d died there. My cry was my sur- rendering...It was my turning point,” said Sutherland.


But help for an alcoholic isn’t actually as easy to get


as one would think, and Sutherland’s grueling recovery process was only just beginning. “I still needed a drink, because I was dependent, but


the battle was raging inside…In February 2008, I spent two weeks in detox for the first time. And during the two week blackout period, I didn’t drink. Its the longest I’ve been sober in 35 years. It’s new territory for me. After the two weeks, I felt good. I thought I was fixed. I was glad it was over… I got a job installing windows. I drank every day, but my big downfalls were only on weekends. Six weeks went by. I had a company truck, and I can remember stopping at the grocery store to pick up food for the day. I got all my stuff and I was waiting to pay. Next to the checkout they had all the Vodka on display. The half-gallon bottles. I put all the food to the side, and picked up the Vodka. I can’t tell you why. I began drinking in the parking lot. I took the truck to the work site and gave it back to my boss. We both knew I wouldn’t be back on Monday. Another three months went by of street life and jail. While I was buy- ing the Vodka I was thinking to myself, ‘Well, at least you tried.’ I knew I would lose everything, but I wasn’t strong enough,” said Sutherland. For the next two years Sutherland continued the cycle of rehabilitation and swift decline. “I kept thinking, ‘I’ll get better tomorrow,’ but tomor-


row never came. I was grateful for everyone’s help, I was! But I could always find ways to justify the drink- ing…So, for two years I had been trying to get help… at least that’s what I kept telling myself. It was all in vain, but the battle inside me was still going on, which was a good sign,” said Sutherland. “I was in the hospital every ten days or so. If the liver failure doesn’t get an alcoholic, then the malnutrition does. There was war inside, and it was not just between my body and mind anymore. Now it was the body and the alcohol too. I tried on certain days not to drink in excess. Just what I needed to survive. I would get to three days, then I would celebrate by having a drink and it started all over again.” On August 13, 2010, Oceanside beach had a surf com-


petition. The competitions were another way Sutherland got money, since he became an avid and talented surfer while living in Hawaii. His first night in Oceanside, Sutherland spent passed out on the pier. At the same time, Mindy Shipley, coach of the girls’ tennis team, was running the lemonade stand at the base of the pier. “On Wednesday I remember singing a song from Ha-


waii. It was the night I met Mindy [Shipley] and Nancy [MacGillivray]. I knew things were different that night,” said Sutherland.


Next month Sutherland reveals his relation-


ship with the tennis team, his plans for the fu- ture, and Mindy Shipley talks about meeting him for the first time…


91 new students join the Eagle family


year, about 91 new students joined the school, some at the semester break. New students are important not only for the school, but also for the school staff. As the number of students goes


E


up, the school adopts more pro- grams to address the increasing stu- dent body. The change in attendance affects the staff at the school and the number of students at the school af- fects how many books are purchased for classes.


very year, the seniors gradu- ate; students come and go. This


By Juliet Mullen, Senior Staff Reporter Julie Pittman, Director of Admis-


sions, said, “Everything depends on how many students attend the school. Maintaining a constant enrollment is the main thing. Our budget depends on our enrollment.” Not only is it vital to gain more


students, but also to make them feel welcome so that they stay at the school. Spreading the word about our school will help more students come. “I heard about this school from


some friends from my church, and I’m glad that I came from Carlsbad,


especially since this school will help me stay out of trouble. Although there aren’t as many classes avail- able, the teaching is a lot better,” said new student Tyler Pollard (‘14). Last year, the enrollment peaked


at 783 students. This year at the start of the first semester, the school had 697 and has gone up to 703 students from the start of the second semes- ter. Every student counts towards helping our school.


H


-News-


The mystery behind the cancelled Winter Formal


Masks Off! By Matthew Kettle, Business Manager


igh school memories consist of sports, friends, and school events. But this year’s Winter Semi-Formal will be left to the imagination, not the memory. ASB told students about the two week time window to buy


Winter Semi-Formal tickets and announced it every second period. Despite that, a lack of sufficient ticket sales and stu- dent interest caused the cancellation of Winter Semi-Formal this year. ASB sold a total of 71 tickets, but they needed to sell 100 tickets to make the event possible. A formal school event like Winter Semi-Formal costs approximately $5,000 to put on. The school would have lost $1,400 if the event took place with only the 71 students who purchased tickets. “[A main deciding factor] is student interest—underclass-


men weren’t as interested as upperclassmen,” said Co-ASB Advisor Jon Hornkohl, “Prom is a bigger event; students weren’t focused on having [Winter Semi-Formal] this year... they’re geared more toward prom.” Some students looked forward to Winter Semi-Formal and were disappointed when it was cancelled. “It’s my last year, and I’ve never been able to go [to Winter Semi-Formal]. It’s one of the last events of the year...kind of a bummer,” said Tristan Thompson (‘11). Others, however, were relieved that it was cancelled—


whether it was money issues or they were uninterested in go- ing in the first place. Sophomore Kevin Moore said, “[Winter Semi-Formal] cost


too much...I didn’t think it would’ve been that fun... [it would have been] a boring dinner and limited dancing.” Junior Jake Lawrence agreed. he said, “It costs a lot of money [for a ticket], and I have to save up for Prom.” Even Thompson said, “If you bring a date, the guy has to


spend $80. I honestly don’t have the money to pay for two tickets.” Instead of having dancing as the main attraction, like at Homecoming, a stand-up comedy act would have shared the main spotlight of the evening with dancing. Students and par- ents alike called for something to change because of the be- havior during the dancing at Homecoming, which is one of the main reasons why students chose not to buy tickets. “Homecoming had nothing to do with Winter Formal de-


cisions. Dancing was never supposed to be the main part... [ASB had] already planned Winter Formal to be like this,” said Co-ASB Advisor Amanda Beaumont. For anyone who struggled financially with Winter Semi-


Formal and are apprehensive about going to Prom, Beaumont said, “We’re doing as much as we can to offset costs...trying to keep ticket costs low... [they will] probably cost the same as last year: $70-$75.” Although Winter Semi-Formal didn’t work out, ASB still


plans to fill the rest of the school year with events and ac- tivities such as the Pasta-4-Pennies rewards, game nights, and Park at the Park alongside MORP and Prom.


Coach Bickley’s BBQ back again


By Kristen Hines, Senior Staff Reporter O


n January 12 and 13, the school hosted a barbeque fund- raiser in support of the three teams that will be taking short term mission trips later this year. When people purchase barbeque lunches directly from the


school, the profits are equally distributed among the teams. However, if people purchase tickets from an individual team member ahead of time, that member receives the benefits directly. All the profits raised from this fundraiser will go towards


the mission teams who will be serving the countries of Swazi- land, Guatemala, and Haiti. As the first of three barbeques concluded, it appears that


this particular type of fundraiser will be a successful one. Stu- dents raised over $800 just through tickets alone. The hope is that in the future, the school will advertise fundraisers sooner so that more students and the public have a better opportunity to participate. If you are interested in supporting a student individually


for either of the final two barbeques, or by donating a finan- cial gift, please contact Jilane Hawkins, Anna Irby or Eric Baldwin.


The next fundraising barbeque will be held


on February 9, 10 and 11. The final one will be March 16, 17 and 18.


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