BOYS BASKETBALL

WEEKENDER

Guard Ben
Alexander growing
as Penns Valley
team thrives, 1B

A tale as old as
time returns
to the stage
at Penn State, 8C

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2016

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VOLUME 127, NO. 314

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PENN STATE SURVEY

THON 2016

Alumni
show
strong
support
. ....................................................................

Alumni support for university

at high point
. ....................................................................

Football culture? Athletics sixth

most important to grads
. ....................................................................

Trustees not tops for information

. ....................................................................

BY LORI FALCE

lfalce@centredaily.com

Remembering her smile

WILLIAM COLSHER Centre Daily Times, file

For the family of Miranda Kaye Zeigler, attending the Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon each year is a way to remember their daughter
who died of pediatric cancer in 2009. Thon 2016 begins Friday at the Bryce Jordan Center.

. ...........................................................................................................................................

14-year-old Miranda Kaye Zeigler died of pediatric cancer in 2009

. ...........................................................................................................................................

Omega Phi Alpha and Alpha Gamma Rho are motivated by stories
about her
. ...........................................................................................................................................

Miranda never attended Thon, but her parents do in her memory

. ...........................................................................................................................................

A new survey shows strong and

growing support for Penn State
from its broad network of alumni.
The Penn State Alumni Association has polled the universitys
grads since 2012, as Nittany
Lions grappled with the administrative changes, legal ramifications and public relations fallout
from the Jerry Sandusky child sex
abuse scandal.
Its important that we continue to proactively gauge the connection our alumni have to their
alumni association and their
alma mater, said President Kevin Steele. This survey offers us
a lens through which we can
better understand what our
alumni think as we work together
to support the university and
engage the wider Penn State
community.
The most recent poll, conducted in December with a group of
1,294 respondents, showed overall positive feelings at a four-year
SEE SURVEY, 3A

BY SHAWN ANNARELLI

sannarelli@centredaily.com

TAMMI ZEIGLER Photo provided

iranda Kaye Zeiglers parents will have one empty

seat too many Friday when they drive from their
Dillsburg home to the Bryce Jordan Center.
It will take them about two hours to get to the
Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon, a
weekend celebration of life saved from pediatric cancer, but also of
life lost to the disease.
The void left in Tammi and Jeff Zeiglers lives after Mirandas
death will be filled by her Thon organizations, Omega Phi Alpha and
Alpha Gamma Rho, dozens of students who mobilize year-round to
support the family.
The Zeiglers see themselves in a similar role.
They feel an obligation to support the students who fought to save

Tammi, left, Scott, Miranda and Jeff Zeigler attended a family reunion in
August 2008 in Missouri. It was their last family picture.

WOMAN FOUND DEAD

Parks Miller
calls on
public for
information

Mirandas life. Four students pairs from the sorority and fraternity
will dance for 46 hours at Thon without sitting or sleeping.
OPhiA dancer Kim Fazios parents cant make the trip.
She will look to the Zeiglers, who plan to be on the dance floor as
much as possible, for motivation. Sunday will be important for them
to be with their dancers.
Thats when its hardest for them, Tammi Zeigler said. Theyre
on their second, third or fourth wind.
SEE THON, 3A

. ....................................................................

The woman was identified

Wednesday as Corinne Pena

ON ASSIGNMENT

. ....................................................................

Penn State mens

basketball provides
rush of excitement

BY ABBY DREY

adrey@centredaily.com

With the time ticking away in

the Penn State mens basketball
game against No. 4-ranked Iowa,
Shep Garner stepped to the line
for a foul shot. As the ball left his
TOP STORIES
STAY CONNECTED

hand, love you! echoed from

the stands behind the home
bench. Swish.
Garners mom, Kim, showed
her excitement and love of her
son with her loud enthusiasm
from the stands for the entire
game. After the final buzzer and
the ball bounced down the court
past Garner, she joined the Penn
State student section on the court
congratulating the players. She
embraced all of the players and
was thrilled when she found her
son. After the players jogged off
the court to the locker room, and

BY JALELAH AHMED

jahmed@centredaily.com
FERGUSON TOWNSHIP

ABBY DREY adrey@centredaily.com

Kim Garner embraces her son, guard Shep Garner, after Penn State
mens basketballs 79-75 win over Iowa on Wednesday.

she caught her breath from all

the excitement, she told me it
was Garners grandmothers
birthday. His grandmother didnt
want him to spend any money on

a gift, but to get the win. He

warned his grandmother that the
Hawkeyes were a tough team,

COLLEGE TOWNSHIP

POLITICS

HIGH SCHOOL WRESTLING

MENS HOCKEY

Duplex proposal not

moving to public yet

Pope Francis: Trump

not Christian

Penns Valleys Decker

hopes hard work pays off

Seniors built strong

foundation for team

PAGE 4A

PAGE 5A

PAGE 1B

PAGE 1B

Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller

clutched a picture of the woman
found dead Sunday along a Pine
Grove Mills Road, pleading before cameras for anyone with
information to come forward.
Since we were able to identify
the woman in Pine Grove Mills
we wanted to put a name to the
face, while we ask for help,
Parks Miller said at a press conference Thursday
The woman was identified
Wednesday as Corinne Pena. She
was 35 when she died Saturday
or Sunday, police say.
Pena was the mother of at least
one child, who is in elementary
school.
She was found by a passer-by
on the coldest night of the year.
At the time her body was found

SEE LIONS, 3A

Briefs
Obituaries
News
Opinion
Sports

Serving central Pennsylvania and online at www.centredaily.com

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