Independence Day 2011 -- NYC

Sports

Penn State women's lacrosse player Jackie Eastman faces Florida Gators' Hayley Katzenberger on the field on April 2. The Florida Gators won 13-7 in an American Lacrosse Conference match-up at Bigler Field at University Park, Pa.

 Florida Gators fans celebrate at a women's lacrosse game against Penn State on April 2. The Gators won 13-7 in the American Lacrosse Conference match-up at Bigler Field at University Park, Pa.

George Mason men's volleyball player Brandon Joyner eyes the ball at a game against Penn State on April 2 at Rec Hall at University Park, Pa. Penn State won 25-21, and is currently ranked 10th in men's volleyball. 

George Mason men's volleyball players celebrate at a game against Penn State at Rec Hall at University Park, Pa on April 2. In the end, Penn State won 25-21.

THON 2011

Thon 2011 kicks off Friday at the Bryce Jordan Center.

Moralers teach the line dance Friday at Thon 2011.

Kevin Fritz, a dancer for Delta Sigma Phi, reaches for a beach ball on Saturday morning during Thon 2011. 

Maggie Liang, Penn State freshman and Thon moraler, dances at Thon 2011 early Saturday. 

Allie Dolinsky, dancer for Student Pennsylvania State Education Association at Thon, plays Wack a Moraler early Saturday. 

 Thon family member William Keim, 3, plays catch with a circle of spectators. 

Theatre dancer Margaret Mason, left, and moraler Amanda Miller embrace during the line dance early Saturday.

Participants make the symbol of the Four Diamonds Fund during a line dance early Saturday.

 Thon children participate in a fashion show early Saturday. 

 Theatre dancer Margaret Mason does the line dance.

Nittany Lion Fund dancers for Thon 2011 Nathan Weiner, left, and James Regan dive onto the Slides of Strength.

 Thon participants slide down the Slides of Strength.

Thon 2011 audience members make the Four Diamonds Fund symbol as Four Diamond families gather on the stage on Sunday. 

Members of the Penn State Lehigh Valley Thon organization, Sarah Islam, left, and Denise Pedone, right, rest at the concourse level on Sunday. 

 

Thon 2011 raised more than 9 million dollars, a new Thon record. The announcement came at the conclusion of the 46-hour dance marathon Sunday, February 20, 2011.

Defining Beauty

Penn State alumna and Lamar resident Jaime Gentzyl receives highlights at Looks Hair Design in State College, Pa. by hairdresser Kelly McMurtrie on Monday. Photo by Marilyn Perez

Penn State alumna and Lamar resident Jaime Gentzyl gets her hair washed at Looks Hair Design in State College, Pa. by hairdresser Kelly McMurtrie on Monday. Photo by Marilyn Perez

Meal Moments

Church member Rodney Reese enjoys a conversation during a Thursday dinner affiliated with the University Baptist Church located on S. Burrowes Street in State College, Pa. on the third of February. 

Church member Marnie Hoy enjoys a conversation during a Thursday dinner affiliated with the University Baptist Church located on S. Burrowes Street in State College, Pa. on the third of February.

Superhero

 Elizabeth Strickler has been helping stray animals find homes as the volunteer dog coordinator at Centre County PAWS in State College, Pa since 1985. She performs reiki, a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing, on a male cat named Wishbone who has been paralyzed from the waist down since being hit by a car. Photo taken by Marilyn Perez for Comm 469 on Sunday, January 30, 2011.

Elizabeth Strickler, volunteer dog coordinator at Centre County PAWS in State College, plays with three-year-old dog Joseph who will likely find a home for adoption in the afternoon. Photo taken by Marilyn Perez for Comm 469 on Sunday, January 30, 2011.

B is for Baker

 Rebecca Altmann, baker and executive pastry chef at *ndulge cupcake boutique, applies icing to an order of gluten-free peanut butter cupcakes early on a Thursday morning in January of 2011. Altmann majored in Linguistics and American Sign Language at the University of Rochester in New York, but after graduating, she decided to attend the Pennsylvania Culinary Institute in Pittsburgh. She has been working with *ndulge since its opening in 2010. Photo taken by Marilyn Perez for Comm 469.

Rebecca Altmann, baker and executive pastry chef at *indulge cupcake boutique in State College, speaks on the phone with the company's owner, Don Selkowitz. Selkowitz, a Penn State graduate, often calls into the shop, which is his retirement company, for social and business matters. Photo taken by Marilyn Perez for Comm 269.