Quistor Voices

Over 30 years ago then Principal Wendell Davis, Mr. Jimmy Woods (the Voice of the Conquistadors), and Coach Leslie Pool began filming football games and producing a coaches show called “Fifth Quarter.” Mr. Davis also taped and played other Olive Branch city activities especially the Christmas parade. When Mr. Davis took a job at the county office, he began developing a program that could be managed by students and a teacher at the high school. Mrs. Joyce Helmick, teacher of Gifted English, took the program. The students began a daily news announcement program that could be broadcast in every room in the school through cable channel. Students called the news broadcast “Quistor Voices.” When Dr. Charles Garrett became principal, the program began to expand. Mrs. Helmick and her students had learned to handle programming. They not only did “Quistor Voices,” but they also covered the elections, did interviews with businesses and even the governor of Mississippi. When the new school was opened, Helmick gave up the program which then reverted to a school news program with a few additional projects. Several different teachers helped out with the news program throughout the late 90s and into the new millennium. In the winter of 2003 Marc Lewis took the program and began making drastic changes to the format and overhauled the technical aspects of the program. Mr. Lewis removed over 3/4ths of the studio’s gear to make way for all new digital equipment. New digital cameras, editors and lights were installed in 2004 and the rigorous campaign continues to this day. “I want this program to be on the finest in the south, to do that I want to give our students the best equipment we can possible afford.” He and his students have continued the school news program and are expanding to add programs to OBTV Channel 19 on the local cable channel. The community has already begun seeing more programs on OBTV produced and directed by students, and more concepts are being thought out.

The History Of QV from marc lewis on Vimeo.