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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 20, 2003)
Sports: Crazy eights • Page 7 Opinion: Preferential treatment • Page 11 THF RATTAT TfY\T iinn jd/lI i/vLii u rN Volume 110 • Issue 37 • 12 pages A Texas A&M Tradition Since 1893 www.thebattalion.net Monday, October 20, 2003 Student dies after accidental fall By Bart Shirley THE BATTALION Levi Windle, 24, a senior agricultur al development major from Leander, Texas, died Sunday at approximately 1 a,m. Windle had been in critical condi tion since Tuesday night, when he fell from a fence and broke his neck. Windle had been climbing the fence when his feet got tangled at the top, causing him to lose his balance. Floris Hampton, Windle’s grand mother, said he had asked that his memorial service and the remem brance of him be a celebration. “He was such a magnetic personal ity,” Hampton said. Windle spent many of his summers at his grandparents’ ranch in Dodge City, Kan., with his cousins and broth er, Brody. Hampton said Windle was close to his family. Several of Windle’s friends said he was close to many of his friends, too. Sarah Denham, a senior agricultural economics major, said Windle would do anything for someone who needed help. “He was just incredible/ 4 Denham said. “We were all incredibly blessed to know him.” Denham said she had taken a turf management class with Windle. She had been absent from a Monday class and Windle teased her about it during the class’ next meeting. “We sat in the very back row,” Denham said. “He waited until every one was in the class except for the pro fessor. All of the sudden, he began talk ing very loudly, saying things like ‘So, Sarah ... how come you weren’t in class on Monday? Oh, that’s right, you were too drunk to come to class.’ Which was n’t true, and then all 200 people turned around and laughed at us.” She said she was mortified by this outburst, but it was just typical of Windle, who found her embarrassment hilarious. His roommates, Guy Crump and Hunter Pontious, said Windle’s second home was the Dixie Chicken. Pontious said he remembered one night at the Chicken that found Windle standing on top of a table, clad only in white boxer shorts with red hearts on them, holding a beer in his hand. Friends since high school in Leander the trio were regulars at Northgate, and everyone knew Windle. “He never stopped smiling,” Crump said. Windle was heavily involved in the Student Bonfire this year. A member of the Class of 2002, he was a student leader who missed his own birthday celebration two weeks ago in favor of going to cut. A tree was cut down on Sunday afternoon in his name, and it is expected to be the centerpole for the Bonfire. Crump and a large group of Windle’s friends have established The See Student on page 2 Services for Levi Windle, 24, will be today at 2 p.m. at Rudder Auditorium. Organizations stress alcohol awareness By Dan Orth THE BATTALION Texas A&M. student organiza tions and city and state officials will pool their resources this week to promote responsibility and safe ty when dealing with alcohol. Through this week’s events, these organizations hope to educate stu dents on the effects of alcohol and strive to help them make responsible dedsions while drinking. Alcohol-related organizations including CARPOOL, Responsible Aggie Decisions and Alternative Spring Break are composed of stu dents who want to serve their fel- /ouvlggies and some who have had bad experiences involving alcohol. A student who wished to remain anonymous said a previous experi ence changed the way he thinks about drinking and driving. “One night in my hometown, my friend and I were out drinking and we decided to drive home,” he said. “We were pulled over by a cop, and he recognized the fact that we were drinking and driving.” He said the police officer escort ed them home instead of arresting them, after explaining the legal con sequences of drinking and driving. “I realized that my actions were stupid, and I decided to join CAR- POOL as a way to offer a second choice for those who don't want to put their future in jeopardy,” the student said. This week all programs will converge to promote alcohol awareness and will get a chance to share what they do. During the week there will be various activities related to alcohol education including a DWI mock trial and a speech given by Texas Gov. Rick Perry. Aggie Alcohol Awareness Week Events planned this week aim to educate students on making \ ^ responsible decisions. MONDAY-Oct. 20 | /F Recruitment tables - Wehner, J m Rudder Fountain and Blocker, /J 11 A.M.to2P.M. | TUESDAY Oct.21 DWI Mock Trial - Rudder Audltorim, 7 P.M. to 9 PM. I WEDNESDAY-Oct. 221 Gov. Perry will speak - MSC Flag Room, 11 A.M. to 2 P.M. | FRIDAY-Oct. 24 | fTarty^rol Know How - In front of Sbisa Hall, 11 A.M. | to 2 P.M. SETH FREEMAN • THE BATTALION SOURCE : STUDENTLIFE.TAMU.EDU The DWI mock trial will be held on Tuesday in Rudder Auditorium and will feature a judge, lawyers, officers and city officials to answer student questions. The trial will be an example of one of the possible consequences a person could face if they decide to drink and drive. Former student Jeff Schiefelbein said he received a DWI in 1997 and decided to turn it into something positive. He worked with peers to develop the student- run designated driver program CARPOOL in 1999 which has been giving safe rides ever since. Courtney Blankinship, a junior political science major, said she is concerned about students who decide to drive home after drinking. “I don’t like it when people put others’ lives in danger,” Blankinship said. “I think that too many people get in the car after a night out and do not think about the consequences of their action until later.” See Alcohol on page 2 Keep on diggin’ SHARON AESCHBACH • THE BATTALION Junior aerospace engineering major Adam Saturday afternoon, students gathered at three Chisholm shovels out dirt to plant a tree during parks in the Bryan-College Station area and in Replant Saturday. From 8 a.m. to late Sommerville to plant and repot trees. Chemistry prof, 86, dies By Jacquelyn Spruce THE BATTALION Arthur E. Martell, dis tinguished professor emeritus of Chemistry, died Wednesday, Oct. 15, just three days before his 87th birthday. Martel] was born on Oct. 18, 1916, in Natick, Mass., and came to Texas martell A&M in 1966 during the big rise in enrollment, said Abe Clearfield, professor of chemistry and longtime friend of Martell. Upon his arrival at A&M, Martell was charged with building a first-rate chemistry department.-Clearfield said Martell lured distinguished faculty, including F. Albert Cotton from MIT, to A&M, which in turn brought more first-class faculty. “He was brought here with the idea of building the department,” Clearfield said, “and he built a lot of quality into it.” Martell earned his doctorate in chemistry at New York University and his bachelor’s at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts. Although Martell was in the process of building the chemistry department, he was also interested in research on coordination compounds, Clearfield said. Before his death, he was working to develop com pounds to combat cancer. “He is a major figure in the develop ment of A&M’s reputation in science,” Clearfield said. “He’s known as a pioneer who developed a whole era of chemistry.” Martell retired two years ago but still con tinued his research, Clearfield said. He said Martell began to experience kidney trouble, so he would research as often as he could. “The days that he didn’t have to have dial ysis, he would come in to research,” Clearfield said. “He would amaze people at the things he See Prof on page 2 Organ donation education examined in new study By Justin Smith THE BATTALION In early July of 1995, while moving to San Antonio, one of Steve Brunson’s lungs collapsed and he spent nearly two months on a ventilator, during which time his heart stopped twice. “On August 19th, the doctors had even told my wife I wasn’t going to make it,” said Brunson, a senior accountant for the Texas A&M University System. “Two days later, a pair of lungs became available.” Brunson is one representative from A&M sharing his story as part of a nationwide study on organ donation. The study, which was started in September by the Southwest Transplant Alliance, is being conducted at six universities across the country, including A&M, Rutgers, Alabama, Arizona, University of North Carolina-Charlotte and Penn State. Brunson said he is doing great now, but has to take 16 pills a day to stave off rejection. Still, he said it is easily worth it to lead a more normal life again. “The most important thing for people to do is to tell their family that they want to donate so they can tell the doctors,” he said. “I cannot stress that enough.” The purpose of the study is to see if education will have an effect on people’s understanding of donation and their will ingness to participate. This will be accomplished by surveys on the campus es before and after the education phase of the program. Mike Stephenson, chief investigator for the project at A&M and assistant professor in the Department of Communications, said Rutgers has the same plan as A&M while two other campuses will concentrate on a media blitz and the remaining two campuses will serve as control campuses receiving no education. The purpose of the project is twofold. The first is to increase the number of peo ple who are willing to donate, and the sec ond is to emphasize that people must tell their families if they wish to be donors. “Even if you have an organ donation card,” Stephenson said, “your family has the final decision on what will happen, so tell them what you want.” The personalized education consists of first-hand accounts of organ recipients and families who have chosen to donate Organ Donation Information What to do if you would like to become an organ donor: Talk to your family and friends about your decision Get a donor card and show it to your next of kin Get a donor sticker on your driver license and make organ and tissue donation a part of your living will RUBEN DELUNA • THE BATTALION SOURCE : SOUTHWEST TRANSPLANT ALLIANCE the organs of a loved one. Another Aggie supporter of the project sharing his personal story is Jim Snell, director of Instructional Technology Services and senior lecturer for Veterinary Anatomy and Public Health. Earlier this summer, Snell’s daughter Leslie Ann was killed in a car accident in See Donation on page 2 Mulroney to discuss international issues By Sonia Moghe THE BATTALION Brian Mulroney, former prime minister of Canada, will discuss international issues and ways of promoting peace and stability Monday night at the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum. As leader of the Progressive Conservative Party, Mulroney served as the 18th Canadian prime minister from 1984-1993. Mulroney was involved with the North American Free Trade Agreement and the Acid Rain Treaty between the United States and Canada, as well as tax reform, deregulation, pri vatization and reduction in govern ment spending. Former President George Bush will briefly introduce Mulroney. The MULRONEY two have shared a history together — specifically with their simultaneous leadership terms that led to their involvement in signing NAFTA along with former Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari. This will not be the first time Mulroney has worked with Bush or Texas A&M outside of the office. He has worked with both while participat ing in A&M’s Program in Presidential Rhetoric, which peaked during the 1999-2000 school year. Additionally, both were a part of the ‘NAFTA at 10’ conference, which celebrated the 10- year anniversary of NAFTA and placed Bush, Gortari and Mulroney on a panel assessing NAFTA. Mulroney is speaking as part of the Leonore and Francis Humphry’s International Speakers Program, which features two speakers per year. The lecture will begin at 6 p.m. Monday in the Annenberg Presidential Conference Center at the Bush Library. Tickets for the lecture are available at the MSC Box Office, The Eagle, WTAW radio and KBTX television.