Principal prepares to serve country Ten years ago, The United States of America was callous-ly struck by the most horrific tragedy imaginable. T e n years ago, C e n t r a l York High S c h o o l ’ s p r i n c i p a l Ryan Caufman fulfilled his childhood dream of joining the military, a dream he had long cultivated since he was a “little boy.” After going through basic training and officers’ candidate school, Caufman was commis-sioned as a second lieutenant, then later as a lieutenant, and now holds the rank of captain for the Army National Guard. Caufman has commanded two companies, military intelli-gence and HQ for a battalion, and is currently preparing to deploy for Kuwait from Janu-ary 2012 through January 2013 as a S2 head intelligence offi-cer for his brigade. He entered the mili-tary March 31 2001, just six months before the catastrophic September 11 attack. He says the tragedy has affected not only him, but also his family

and closest friends throughout the years. He said he has seen the strain the “war on terror” has put on his fellow soldiers

and their families. has simply made him more determined to join forces with thousands of other Americans and put a stop to the terrorism and hatred that looms within the Middle East and has come dangerously close to infecting our soil.

“It’s been tough…I’ve seen it stress a lot of families,” Caufman said in regards to the toll that military families face when they are forced to watch

their loved ones make the brave sacrifice of risking their lives to protect America.

Family, especially with the birth of his first child, two month-old son Reid in June. Reid is one of Caufman’s most powerful motivators when it comes to fighting...

See CAUFMAN on page 2.

“I would hope for us to continue to take a leader-ship role and humanitarian role in the world.”

-Ryan Caufman, PrincipalWhat do you remember most from 9/11?I remember watching my mom die. We lived pretty close to the World Trade Center. I only remember watching her die and at the same time the world trade center was hit.

How did that affect you?That’s my mom. She died at a young age and growing up without her was hard.

What happens every time that day comes?I’m in school. The whole day I’ll be depressed I won’t talk about it. I’ll just cry the whole day and when the school brings it up on the announcements and have a moment of silence I always get more upset and people come up to me & ask “Devona didn’t your mom die that day?” The day is sad, but on her birthday I bake a cake with my brother and sister and we eat it.

Does it bother you when people come up and ask you that?Kinda but I’m not a rude person. I’ll just be like “Yeah,” but that just brings more tears. And I feel like every year it comes around I lose more memory of her because I was so young and I don’t remember much. I was six.

When did you first tell people?When I was in 8th grade. It was on that day. People were

Q: What do you remember most from 9/11?A: I remember watching my mom die. I don’t remember

what her job was, but I know she worked there. She died at home We lived pretty close to the World Trade Center. I only remember watching her die and at the same time the World Trade Center was hit.

Q: How did that affect you?A: That’s my mom. She died at a young age and growing

up without her was hard.

Q: What happens every time that day comes?A: I’m in school. The whole day I’ll be depressed. I

won’t talk about it. I’ll just cry the whole day and when the school brings it up on the announcements and have a moment of silence, I always get more upset and people come up to me and ask “Devona didn’t your mom die that day?” The day is sad, but on her birthday I bake a cake with my brother and sister and we eat it.

See “GORDON” on page 2

September 11 events hit home for Central student

by Paige BenjaminGUEST WRITER

Managing Editor Danae Taylor interviews junior Devona Gordon about her September 11 experience.

Principal Caufman holds his two-month old son while wearing fatigues (Courtesy Photo).

GORDONQ: Does it bother you when people come up and ask you that?A: Kinda but I’m not a rude person. I’ll just be like “Yeah,” but that just brings more

tears. And I feel like every year it comes around I lose more memory of her because I was so young and I don’t remember much. I was six.

Q: When did you first tell people?A: When I was in eighth grade. It was on that day. People were shocked, I think it

seemed surreal to them. They were caring.

Q: From all the events that happened how does it make you feel?A: I think it’s nice that the school talks about it on the announcements but after that I

don’t feel like people care. I think they do it because they have to, not because they want to.

CAUFMAN to preserve our country’s freedom. “I never really realized how having a child would change my perspective on things,” Caufman said. Caufman says that while on deployment, he’s going to miss the little things most. All of his son’s “firsts,” for instance. Going out to eat with his wife and family. The staff and students of Central York High School. Shaking graduates’ hands on graduation day as they walk across the stage to accept their diploma. However, Caufman says he is prepared to serve his duty to our country with both determination and pride. Another one of Caufman’s motivators is ensuring that his son has a bright, safe future in America. Caufman explained how one of his main goals in joining the military is ensuring that his children would have all the things he himself had the privilege of growing up with. Caufman also explained how the military has changed drastically in the past ten years. “The lessons learned at war over the years have re-

ally changed how we operated. It’s a different military—plan, organize, and operate.” Caufman also hopes that our government and mili-tary continues to help other countries in need and that we don’t stop representing what we stand for as a country. “I would hope for us to continue to take a leader-

ship role and humanitarian role in the world,” he said, explaining how isolation is bad and that he would hate to see America stop “having a hand and say in the world.” What parting words does he

leave to the Central York High School student body and staff he has come to love? He pondered the question. “I meant what I was talking about with the sense of urgency,” he said while reflecting on his CTV announce-ment on the first day of school. “Education is so important…work as hard as you possibly can. All of the adults here are here for all of the kids. Take advantage of that and thank them.”“And of course,” Caufman said, “have a great year.”

“The lessons learned at war over the years have really changed how we operated. It’s a different

military—plan, organize, and operate.”-Ryan Caufman, Principal

Upcoming Events

at Central

Senior FundraiserTailgate

September 165:30 p.m.

Senior Cafe

Support the Troops GameSeptember 23

Wear Red, White and Blue to the game!

Joey DanielsMini Golf

TournamentSeptember 25

2-4 p.m.Heritage Hills

Gordon reflects on her mother’s funeral pamphlet (Photo by Danae Taylor).