Thursday, April 10, 2014
LHS & LCHS Wins top Honors At Virtual Enterprise Trade Fair In New York
Virtual Enterprise class members of the Loretto High School Virtual Enterprise firm, The Animal Kingdom, Inc. and Alpha & Omega, Inc of Lawrence County High School, recently traveled to New York City to attend the Virtual Enterprise International Trade Fair.
This year’s event housed over 150 company booths, representing schools from Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Michigan, Illinois, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York.
Schools were also there from Romania, Canada, Germany, Austria, Bulgaria, Wales, Brazil, and Indonesia. Even though the thousands of students in attendance were from diverse cultures they enjoyed marketing their company’s products, competing in several areas of business, and making new friends.
The members of both firms spent many hours before the trip in preparation for the trade fair competitions.
When the students arrived at the Regiment Armory the day of the big event, they learned the LHS & LCHS catalog design had advanced to the semi-finals.
Excitement was in the air as the bell rang to begin the trading, and the building was filled with many future successful businessmen and women practicing their professional sales techniques.
During the much-anticipated awards ceremony at the close of business, the LHS and LCHS students were awarded for their hard work and preparation for this year’s event.
Loretto High School’s virtual business, The Animal Kingdom, Inc., won 2nd Place in the Catalog Design Competition while Lawrence County High School placed 10th from among over a hundred international catalog entries.
Both firms were also recognized by receiving “Outstanding Award” in the coveted Booth Design Competition which encompassed over 150 booth entries.
In addition to the excitement of the awards ceremony, the employees of The Animal Kingdom, Inc. processed over $130,000 in sales of pets and pet accessories.
This year’s trip held many adventures and much excitement for the Loretto High School group in the beautiful city of New York.
The bright lights of Times Square and delicious cuisine, including famous cheesecake from Juniors Restaurant, added to each day’s events. Two students were lucky to be celebrating their 18th birthdays during the trip.
Sarah Methvin had a big surprise waiting for her at The Cake Boss Café, which added to her special day, and Samantha Beckman enjoyed being serenaded by Hoda Kotb at The Today Show on her birthday.
A visit to The Today Show this year was extra special due to the group’s invitation to the “Who Knew?” segment during the Kathy Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb hour. Samantha Beckman and Ms. Pack were chosen to answer trivia questions from Kathy Lee on the air, which added to the fun.
This year the LHS group attended the Broadway show, A Raisin in the Sun, starring Denzel Washington. After the show Mr. Washington made an appearance, much to the delight of his fans from Loretto!
Other famous New York landmarks visited by the group included Central Park, The Plaza Hotel, Hard Rock Café, John’s Pizzeria, Ellen’s Stardust Diner, Tiffany’s, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum, Macy’s, The Empire State Building, Wall Street, and Battery Park.
Celebrity sightings make the trip one to remember, and this year members of the group were able to see Denzel Washington, Lady Gaga, Honey Boo Boo, American figure skater, Jason Brown, and New York Rangers goalie, Henrik Lundqvist.
The 9/11 Memorial and the World Trade Center area brings out the patriotic spirit in all who visit. St. Paul’s Chapel stands among the skyscrapers and serves as a symbol of the many people who showed bravery and unity during the time of the 9/11 event. The group not only toured the chapel and 9/11 Memorial, but experienced something special while in the chapel.
Visiting groups and choirs sometimes are allowed to sing in the chapel. One of the students, Alex Beckman, was able to sing The Star Spangled Banner for the crowd during our visit. There was not a dry eye in the chapel by the time she finished singing, as well as a lasting memory for everyone.
Traveling to New York this year with Loretto High School were students Cara Andrews, Alex Beckman, Samantha Beckman, Jake Brewer, Maria Brink, Rhett Kennedy, Sarah Methvin, Ana Rico, Sydney Strickland, and Kelsie White, along with the LHS Virtual Enterprise instructor, Ms. Mary Pack.
Also attending was LHS Business Technology teacher, Roberta Niedergeses, along with chaperones Bob and Robin Beckman, Sheila Methvin, Robin Dishongh Beckman, Kylie White, Deanna Hallmark, and Michelle Price.
The Lawrence County High School students and chaperones hit the streets immediately upon arriving in the Big Apple. First stop was St. Patrick’s Cathedral followed by a stroll down Fifth Avenue allowing students to experience landmarks such as Trump Towers, Tiffany’s, and FAO Swartz.
Enjoying the sights of Central Park, the LCHS group travelled towards the famous Columbus Avenue before stopping for a visit at the David Letterman Show which lead to the first celebrity sightings of Kristen Chenowith and Amy Shumer.
After having a fun morning taking selfies with the stars of the Today Show and watching Olympic skater, Jason Brown perform in the Rockefeller Ice Skating Rink, the LCHS students enjoyed the beautiful daytime view of NYC at the Top of the Rock followed by delicious cheesecake from the famous Juniors Restaurant. Students were also lucky this day to get to see celebrity, Nick Lache and singer/actress D Woods.
This year, the LCHS group enjoyed the Broadway play, Aladdin which was a magical experience in itself.
The LHS and LCHS Virtual Enterprise students would like to thank the community for the support kindly given this year with fundraising and donations in order to make this trip possible. Without community support, they would not be able to enjoy such a wonderful opportunity.
The 911 Memorial was a surreal stop on the trip as always followed by a visit to the beautiful St. Paul’s Chapel that housed firefighters and police officers during the rescue and recovery after the attacks on the World Trade Center.
With little energy left over the LCHS group also enjoyed a visit to the Empire State Building, Staten Island Ferry, Times Square, Madame Tussauds, Wall Street, and New York Stock Exchange.
LCHS students attending included Lance Egly, Harley Buie, Madison Johns, Casey Shelton, Hunter Mitchell, Bailey Sisk, Lauren Old, Taylor Hill, Kaitlyn Harvey, Carson Black, Dylan Guthrie, Elijah White, Hannah Melton, and Charity Foster. Chaperones this year included Alanna Harris, Holly True, Pam Bonee, Amber Walker, and Shannon Watson.
Loretto High School and Lawrence County High School Virtual Enterprise students and teachers would like to thank our communities for helping make this once in a lifetime experience happen.
