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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 13, 1986)
- Thursday, February 13, 1986/The Battalion/Page 3 State and Local )ig Kiss' to raise money for MDA A&M puckers up to break record By MARY ANN HARVEY Staff Writer JWhen was the last time you had a Bi^ Kiss”? ■fit was on Kyle Field last Valen- im’sDay, then you know it’s time to ikker up again for what has be- pnie a kissing tradition at Texas . |m. l.ast year A&M students and area isidents stocked up on chapstick ind mouthwash, preparing to break ■ record for the most couples kiss- ng in the same place for the longest finmint of time. I irhe record w as set at Oregon bu University in 1981, with 1,100 ouples kissing for two minutes truight. broke that record when >ver 2,400 participants formed a bn shape on Kyle Field and kissed j Ithree minutes. l| ■he event raised over $10,000 for he MDA and sparked new interest [jlm other schools in breaking the 3rd. Although Oregon State claims to have recaptured the record, and MDA spokeswoman says that no ver- iFication of this has been received. But on Friday, Valentine’s Day, A&M and several other colleges will be trying to “kiss” the University’s old record goodbye at 7 p.m. on Kyle Field while raising money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Challenging A&M on Valentine’s Day this year will be the University of Houston, Houston Baptist Uni versity, St.Thomas University in Houston, Tyler Junior College, Southwest Texas State University and the University of Texas. A&M’s second annual Big Kiss is sponsored by Kappa Alpha frater nity, Delta Delta Delta sorority, the Corps of Cadets and radio station KKYS-FM. Skip Bishop, program director for KKYS, said ne will have someone keeping a count of participants at UT. Bishop will be called as soon as UT’s kiss is over with a report on the total number of participants. “We will be able to find out if we beat them that night,” Bishop said. Bishop said the actual kiss won’t begin until 8 p.m., but the station would like to have everyone on the Field before that time. He said Dr. Vaughn Bryant, head of the Department of Anthropology, will be on hand to advise the crowd on the art of kissing before the three-minute count begins. There also will be a guest appear ance by Tico the talking dog, Bishop said. Tico, whose home is in Snook, has appeared on “Late Night with David Letterman” four times. Other entertainment before the actual kiss will include music from Four Hams on Rye, a Bryan-College Station band. The band will be play ing during the arrival of the partici pants and throughout the night. The registration fee is $5 per per son. Those who wish to participate may register at the Memorial Stu dent Center, the Commons, Sbisa Dining Hall, the Blocker Building and all area 7-Eleven stores. The fee includes a “Big Kiss” visor and “Kiss Kit” made up of Hershey Kisses, Dentyne gum, chap stick and other various sample products. Those who want to participate but don’t have a partner can join the “Lips Without Partners” section, Bishop said. Singles can mix and mingle and pick someone to pair up with if they want. “Last year we had over 30 people in the ‘Lips Without Partners’ sec tion,” he said. “We also had a lot of families with' kids participate last year. “We have a kiddie corner super vised by the the sponsoring organi zations for those with children.” MDA Program Coordinator Ro byn Lindsay said this year they are hoping to have 5,000 participants and to make about $20,000. other confesses aby's abduction never happened i;.:. ‘0 itil* Associated Press ROUND ROCK — A woman vho claimed her baby was kid- lapped by two men posing as plainclothes policemen and a jvoman claiming to be social '' worker has admitted the incident |rasa hoax, authorities said. Round Rock resident Denise enoj lock, 24, the mother of Justin luck, was charged with filing a alse police report after admitting Ihe made up the kidnapping pry, police said. “The whole thing was a hoax,” lound Rock Police Chief Wesley ri' 1 tfolff said. “She said she gave the laby to a sitter for the weekend, jlji [he baby sitter notified us.” illd Wolff speculated Buck may jd [ave made up the story because he and her husband have been laving marital problems. “She may have done it to get ^ven with him or to convince him pcome back to her,” he said. During a polygraph examina- ;ion Tuesday, Buck admitted the ddnapping never took place, iVolff said. She was placed in the (Villiamson County Jail, where he remained Wednesday af ternoon in lieu of $3,000 bond, heriffs officials said. Her son was placed in the tem porary custody of the Depart ment of Human Resources, Wolff said. “We filed on her because we don’t want a repeat of this,” he added. “This took a lot of time and man-hours to resolve. It also costs the taxpayers of Round Rock a lot of money.” A statewide alert was issued Friday when Buck reported her 10-month-old son was kidnapped by two men posing as plainclothes police officers and a woman pos ing as a Department of Human - Services social worker. Buck said she found her son Sunday after a woman called her and told her the infant was in her car. Wolff said authorities doubted the validity of the story from the beginning, because Buck con tacted local media before noti fying police. She also went to her Austin waitress job the next day, but did not return to her home until two hours after her shift ended. “We had a feeling everything wasn’t on the up-and-up,” Wolff said. Brazos pregnancy center free counseling By NANCY NEUKIRCHNER Reporter Jane, 19, is a sophomore at Texas A&M and likes to dance to country & western music. She has a 3.5 grade-point ratio and plans to grad uate in May 1988. She’s just like any normal college student — except she thinks she’s pregnant. Scared, she calls a hotline number from an advertisement she’s seen — 823-CARE. And care they do — 24 hours a day. Although Jane is a hypothetical person, situations such as this one are real. Brazos Valley Crisis Preg nancy Services counsels and assists about 50 women a month, and 70 to 75 percent of them are A&M stu dents. Judie Bruegger, who runs the center, said, “We answer questions and help as much as we can.” The organization, funded entirely by donations, opened in May to counsel and assist pregnant women. It also offers free pregnancy testing. The center and hotline are staffed by 24 men and women — all volun teers. The counselors all have differ ent experiences that enable them to better relate to the women who call or visit, Bruegger said, and they at tend a mandatory training session. Lori Goetz, a hotline volunteer since September, wanted to work at the center. “I felt, firstly, that they were doing a good job and secondly, that they needed help,” Goetz said. Goetz said most women call be cause they are frightened they are pregnant, but some call to get infor mation about birth control or vene real disease. “I try to place them emotionally,” Goetz said. “Sometimes they just need to be heard.” The women who call on the hot line are encouraged to go to the cen ter to determine if they are preg nant, Bruegger said, and all information is kept confidential. She said the counselors try to con vey to the women they do have the time to sit down and think about their decision. Bruegger said although the orga nization is pro-life, its workers real ize that abortion is an option. She said their first priority is to help the woman and to make an effort to pre sent all the options. The center can contact “she pherding homes” — families that take in pregnant women and give them Financial and emotional sup port. They also work closely with adoption agencies and doctors, who offer services at a reduced rate for the women, Bruegger said. Bruegger said the center also keeps a closet filled with maternity and baby clothes, which they give to pregnant women to help lessen the financial burden of having a child. In addition to counseling, she said the volunteers also speak at high schools and to church groups and home and family living classes about making choices. Bruegger added that the organi zation is trying to expand its services to include sex education, so its preg nancy counseling may be unneeded someday. if a mm. Pickle seek to end uncertainty about '86 bonds ■aiF Associated Press WASHINGTON — Two Texas ngressmen are trying to dump a pvision in the pending tax reform islation they say is “wreaking voc with bond markets around the unify.” ini' 11 Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, and tp. J.J. Pickle, D-Austin, want to inge the retroactive date in a pro- ^ lion of the tax reform bill that lim- tax-exempt status for local gov- nment bonds. Some projects, including the $1.2 P 1 t# billion Texas water plan approved by voters last year, have been halted because of uncertainty created by the proposed restrictions, which would be retroactive to Jan. 1, 1986. “Without changing the date, it just effectively stopped it (the water plan),” said Reg Arnold, devel opment fund manager for the Texas Water Development Board in Aus tin. The tax reform bill, which has been passed by the House and is pending before the Senate, would put a $ 175-per-person ceiling on the amount of tax-exempt bonds a state can issue. For Texas, the total would be about $2.6 billion, state economic analyst Elaine Furlow said. But while the legislation is pen ding, bond attorneys can’t certify the tax-exempt status of bonds for 1986. Bonds to finance local govern ment projects are sold to investors who are repaid with 'taxes or reve nues. The tax exemption is an incentive to investors. A bond counsel must certify tax- exempt status before bonds go on the market. The bond market nationally has dropped to 5 percent of what is was last year, Furlow said. “Last year, Texas accounted for $20 billion of the $160 billion in bonds sold in the United States,” Gramm said. The bill also would eliminate tax- exemption for bonds for other cat egories of projects, such as facilities that benefit private entities, like some airport facilities. Ilf . eft' p y SUMMER JOBS Interviews with camp owners and directors on Monday, February 17, 1986 9:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. MSC — Rooms 226-231 All TAMU students are welcome Recruiters representing about 40 camps will be available to visit with you about jobs at their camps this summer. One National Park Service Concessionaire from Colorado is also scheduled to be present for interviews. CAMP DAV gallery iSSAN 10% Student Discount Discount is on all parts & labor on Nissan Products only. Wg will also offGt 10 /o dis count on labor only on all non-Nissan products. Student I.D. must be presented at time workorder is written up. We now have rental units available for service customers 1214 Tx. Ave. 775-1500 $5.49 S pieces oi CYvicV^ & 8 toWs \ __ _ \ sT-3 9 2, pieced olCtocW® sj 2 toW® CYvwVerv' r\ ro \\ s \ \ \ \ Cvrsvottvet pays » ottvC t V» et ^ll* \ One couV on t t c x^ vcS \ s^sViwUons. 0«e ^ ^ ^ CYxvC*^ Chicken ’n rolls Offer good at 705 Texas Ave. 512 Villa Maria Rd 1905 Texas Ave. AG6IE FOOTBALL CLOCK Savor the memories or our Southwest Conference Championship and Cotton Bowl victory. Face of clock is 12” X 12”, mirror background, silkscreened with maroon and white “Good Bull”. Team opponents and game scores are highlighted on “G1GEM” symbols around the clock and a large cotton boll appears in the center with a big aTM. Built for Aggies by Aggies (DKi B5J1W Mail check or money order to: ACT Mfg. Co., 8918 Sharpview Drive, Houston, TX 77036 Quantity Ordered Postage and Handling Sales Tax SHIP TO: @ $29.95 each @ 2.02 each @ 1.53 each Total Enclosed Don't forget friends and family!