Lawrence Kids, Spring 2013

LK

SPRING, 2013

LAWRENCE KIDS

THE COOLEST FAMILY IN TOWN

CONTENTS 10 16 20 22 26 28 30 33 62 66

SEASONAL ESSENTIALS VIEWPOINT SEASON’S READINGS HEALTH MAMA D’S FUNNIES THINGS WE DIG AT WORK FROM THE BLACKBOARD SPRING MUST DOS REUSE

FOR THE KIDS: CASA C O O L E S T FA M I LY I N TO W N BERT NASH / WRAP PROGRAM

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contributing photographers Emmalee Schaumburg schaumburgphotography.com Tasha Keathley-Helms facebook.com/tashakeathleyhelmsphotography Casey Wright caseywrightphotography.com Cover Image by Emmalee Schaumburg

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info@lawrencekidsmagazine.com (785) 766-5669

Thank you for reading.

Annie Crawford’s Spring

SEASONAL ESSENTIALS

Alvamar Country Club The Place to Play

For more information, please call: (785) 842-7767 or email: jtaylor@alvamar.com

Annie Crawford’s

SEASONAL ESSENTIALS with husband Chuck and kids Keyan (9), Madalyn (6) and Elsie (4) 1. Easter Egg Hunt - We go back to our hometowns but it is an important thing we do as a family, and there are always a bunch of them.

2. The Start of Baseball

- My son plays on a team with a bunch of great kids.

Go Diamondbacks! We also love KU baseball games.

3. Lemonade Stand - Few things say spring like a glass of fresh lemonade!

4. Movie Nights at Alvamar 5. Sunflower Family 5K

- The club has done a great job including families and young kids. Movie nights are fun for the kids and the parents.

- This is a great program for our family to stay active. This year it is on May 5, and anyone can participate.

6. KU Football Spring Game

- It’s not too early to plan for fall days on the Hill!

7. The Henrys’ Plant Farm - We go every spring for the flowers. It’s always my Mother’s Day gift and I love it.

8. Last day of School - We usually celebrate with an ice cream party on our street.

9. Camping at Clinton Lake

- The kids camp a lot. Most of the time they head out with my parents and their RV. S’mores, campfires, hiking... they love it all.

10. Pool Opens - Happy Memorial Day and hello summer!

Annie Crawford is a stay-at-home mom in Lawrence. Chuck is an IT Director.

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Because you want to remember your

best year yet photography

TASHA KEATHLEY HELMS

(785) 766-9989 facebook.com/TASHAKEATHLEYHELMSPHOTOGRAPHY

photo by Emmalee Schaumburg

Viewpoint / A Day at School

by David Johnston I know plenty of moms who volunteer in their kids’ classrooms. No doubt there are dads among us who do the same, though mostly our role remains in drop-off or pick-up lane, outside the brick walls of Lawrence schools. That changed for me, however, when I learned about a program at Sunflower Elementary, where my daughters attend 3rd and 5th grade.

Sure I’d attended all the parent-teacher conferences, music programs and school carnivals required of any involved parent, but I’d never been on the “inside” to experience a day in the life of my kids. Work commitments and other involvements kept me busy enough that I typically reserved my time off for, well, time off. The idea of accompanying my kids to school hadn’t occurred to me, until I was invited to be a “Watch Dog.” Watch D.O.G.S. (Dads of Great Students) is the father involvement initiative of the National Center for Fathering based in Kansas City. It engages fathers–and father figures–to provide positive male role models for the students and to enhance school security. A few Lawrence schools have implemented the program, though not all.

I got involved years ago when my kids started school at Sunflower, but it became a priority last December.

Since the tragic mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary, we’re all paying closer attention to school security.

Such an unconscionable event should never happen anywhere, and while still extremely rare, we’re all too familiar with the 24-hour news coverage that heightens fears and awareness of these events. This was the case 15-years ago when in Jonesboro, Arkansas, two middle school students opened fire on their classmates. A year later, we learned about Columbine.

According to the NCF, an interesting thing happened following these events. In schools across the country, more fathers began taking their kids to school. Whether it was a compulsion to protect and defend their children from unspeakable harm, or a basic desire to spend more with their kids, dads were motivated to take a greater role in the daily lives of their kids.

Thus, the Watch D.O.G.S. program was born and formalized by the NCF, encouraging male role models to commit to spending at least one day volunteering in their child’s school. Today, there are more than 2,650 Watch D.O.G.S. programs in 46 states.

Now dads, before you think to yourself, “Hey, this sounds like a piece of cake, where do I sign up?” be advised.

Spending a day in your child’s school is not all child’s play. For me, it was an eye-opening experience that gave me renewed faith and respect for the unsung heroes who nurture our kids by day.

My day started by checking in at the front door of school when it opened. A detailed schedule with instructions and a special “Watch D.O.G.S.” t-shirt and nametag were waiting for me at the office. My first assignment: Greet children at the door as they arrive for school.

This alone was more gratifying than just about anything I’ve ever spent doing on a day off, as kids were highfiving and exchanging fist-bumps with me, genuinely excited to start the day. They knew I was somebody’s dad, and my daughters beamed with pride telling classmates that their dad was today’s “Watch Dog.” As the day progressed, my duties involved patrolling the school grounds and hallways, helping with lunch in the cafeteria, and assisting for about an hour in four different classrooms. Organizers go out of their way to assign dads to their own kids’ classrooms for at least part of the day, but I was amazed to be treated like a rock star in every classroom. The teachers were probably the most excited, typically having a specific assignment in mind for me as soon as I entered the room, whether helping a child with his reading, or simply giving a student the extra attention she deserves.

I couldn’t have been more impressed with the way the school’s teachers and administrators handled their challenges–the true heroes of the hallways. The highlight for me, of course, was the opportunity to spend a little extra time with my kids while catching a glimpse of their daily life at school from the “inside.”

For more information about Watch D.O.G.S., contact your child’s elementary school or visit www.fathers.com/ watchdogs.

David is the Director of Marketing & Internet Services for the KU Alumni Association. His daughters, Sydney (10) and Sophia are (6), are in 5th and 3rd grade at Sunflower Elementary.

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Spring Reading Suggestions from the Librarians at the Lawrence Public Library

PICTURE BOOKS FOR LAP READERS

crafted thriller!

This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen

What to Expect When You’re Expecting Hatchlings, A Guide for Crocodilian Parents (and curious kids)

Caldecott Medal Winner for 2013 The small fish narrating this story has snatched a tiny bowler hat from a much larger fish. Though he swears a crab to secrecy as he flees with the hat, the unreliable crab betrays him instantly. This wryly funny book uses both pictures and words to tell the story of the small hat thief determined to keep his stolen prize.

Green by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

A salute to the color green! Who knew there were so many ways to to describe different greens, in rhyming two-word phrases, with wonderful art that makes you explore each spread.

Mouse’s First Spring by Lauren Thompson, illustrated by

by Bridget Heos, illustrated by Stephane Jorisch “Congratulations, crocodilian parents-to-be! You have little ones on the way. They’re called hatchlings. Read this book to find out where to lay your eggs, how you’ll know when the babies are ready to hatch, and what you and your babies will do all day long. But there’s one condition: don’t eat the book!” This series of colorful books has a great way of introducing larger important concepts while advising the crocodilian, insect or marsupial parents. Funny text, funny pictures, fun and educational.

The Extraordinary Mark Twain (according to Suzy) by Barbara Kerley, illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham

Buket Erdogan One bright day, Mouse and Momma head outside to play.

The wind blows in a bird, a worm, and a frog. And then, a flower! Could it mean spring is finally here?

Suzy Clemen’s journal about her father reveals the loving household the family enjoyed. Large clear humorous illustrations and brief text are interleaved with Suzy’s smaller journal pages, where she tried to set the record straight about her dad. A warm, easy to read introduction to a great man.

EASY

MIDDLE READERS

Tool School by Adria Klein

What Came From the Stars by Gary Schmidt

Tia Tape Measure, Sophie Screwdriver, Hank Hammer and Sammy Saw are the happy tools that bounce their way through these simple beginning Tool School readers. The stories are almost too simple, but the energy, and the fact that the characters are tools doing practical things, carry them along. “Measure everything!” says Tia Tape Measure as the friends begin to work on the library, where new shelves have arrived. When the foursome proceeds to organize the library by the size of the books, you might want to mention to your child that that’s not really how it works.

NONFICTION Lincoln’s Grave Robbers by Steve Sheinkin

Sheinkin, award-winning author of Bomb, tells a true tale of counterfeiting and grave robbing that reads like an expertly

Tommy Pepper, a sixth grader from Massachusetts, finds a strange gift in his lunchbox. Little does he know that he holds in his hands the key to saving a peaceful civilization on a distant planet.

The Terrible Thing that Happened to Barnaby Brocket by John Boyne, Illustrated by Oliver Jeffers Barnaby Brocket is a perfectly normal Australian boy… unless you take into account that gravity has no effect on him. At eight years old he starts on a journey that allows him to meet unique people all around the world who have embraced their special roles in life.

Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool

After WWII Jack is sent from his home in Kansas to a boarding school in Maine. He soon befriends an eccentric student, Early Auden, who believes that the mathematical concept pi is a real boy that they must rescue.

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THE BATTLE AGAINST SEASONAL ALLERGIES Health Issues by Dr. Kristen Evans / Lawrence Pediatrics

Seasonal allergies are allergy symptoms caused by outdoor pollens such as grasses, pollen, and ragweed. These symptoms include runny nose, itchy eyes, sneezing, cough, and dry scratchy throat.

Symptoms suggestive of some other illness include thick yellow green mucous, fever, pain, recurrent bloody nose, or a runny nose consistently just on the same side of the nose. cont.

There are multiple treatment options available for seasonal allergies. The goals of treatment are unimpaired sleep, the ability to engage in all normal activities and improvement in or resolution of symptoms with minimal side effects.

Management of Seasonal Allergies 1. Avoid All Triggers Keep windows closed with the

air conditioner on. Clean your clothes or even shower when you come inside.

4. Antihistamines These help the itching, sneezing

and runny nose but may not help congestion. They come in several versions – oral (Benadryl, Zyrtec, and Claritin), eye drops (Patanol), and nasal sprays (Astelin). The oral medications can cause either drowsiness or irritability and may need to be adjusted or changed. Nasal sprays and eye drops can cause local irritation, but are generally well-tolerated. These require a prescription.

5. Leukotriene Inhibitors Drugs like Singulair

wash the mucous and irritants from the nasal passages, moisturize the area and help move the mucous better. There are a variety of sprays and devices that provide nasal saline.

help reduce allergic symptoms such as mucous production.

They are usually prescribed for children who have allergies and asthma and need additional medications. They can cause headaches and cough, and rarely, severe psychological reactions like hallucinations.

3. Steroid Nose Sprays These are the first line pre-

6. Decongestants Decongestants are available over

2. Nasal Irrigation and Saline Sprays These

scribed treatment for allergic rhinitis, if you can convince your child to use them. Name brands include Flonase and Nasonex. They have few side effects, and they are more effective than oral antihistamines in nearly all studies. Generally, the dose is one squirt in each nostril daily, but this can be increased to twice-a-day and side effects most often noted are headaches and nasal irritation. To apply, clean the nose as well as you can, tuck the chin down, plug the opposite nostril, aim the spray toward the side of the nose. Spray and then breathe in.

the counter in oral (Sudafed, Actifed) and nasal (Afrin) formulations. They help congestion but don’t do much for sneezing and itching. They can cause irritability, high blood pressure and headaches. Nose sprays should be used for only two to three days; if used longer they can cause rebound increased congestion.

7. Allergy Shots Shots are given to decrease your child’s sensitivity to certain allergens. They are generally given by an allergist after a full allergy evaluation. They can be very helpful but are time consuming, as weekly injections are

required. There is a small chance of a severe allergic reaction.

8. Natural Remedies There are not many studies that examine the safety and effectiveness of natural remedies in children, nor are there any recommended dosages. Two that have some information are Butterbur, an anti-inflammatory that can be given to children over 6, and nettle, which can be given in children over 12. Neither should be used in pregnancy or while lactating, and dosages are not standardized. Quercetin, found most easily in guava juice, is another anti-inflammatory that may relieve allergy symptoms. Other possible therapies include acupuncture, homeopathy and Chinese medications. These therapies should only be given by experienced practitioners who work with children. *Please note that the brand name medications are here as examples and not necessarily as recommended choices.

2. Baking soda 3. 8 ounces (1 cup) of lukewarm distilled or boiled water. Do NOT use tap or well water as they may have impurities or additives harmful to the body.

In a clean container, mix 3 teaspoons of salt with 1 teaspoon baking soda and store in a small airtight container. Add 1 teaspoon of mixture to 8 ounces water.

Directions 1. Draw up saline into a rubber syringe or nasal spray bottle.

Bend over the sink with head tilted to one side. Squeeze about 2 ounces into nostril and allow to flow out the opposite nostril.

2. Repeat on opposite side.

3. Keep head down so fluid does not flow backward into mouth or ears.

Lawrence Pediatrics Recipe and Directions for Nasal Saline Irrigation Adapted from the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology

Ingredients 1. Pickling or canning salt with no iodide, anti-caking agents or preservatives

4. Blow your nose gently.

Dr. Evans has practiced pediatrics in Topeka, Kansas City, and Virginia. As a pediatrician who has worked in private practice, a faculty member at The University of Kansas Medical Center, and a pediatric hospitalist at Stormont Vail Health Care, she has treated children of all ages with a wide variety of illnesses. She also serves as adjunct faculty for Saint Louis University and is a board member of the American Academy of Pediatrics, tiny-k and Safe Kids.

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Mama byD’s Funnies Julie Dunlap About a year and a half ago, when I turned 40, I began a quest to cling to my youthful curiosity by trying something new every month.

From zip lining in Mexico to taking voice lessons, exploring the world outside of my comfort zone has reopened my eyes to adventure.

But like most experiences, trying something new is even more fun when shared, which is why I enlisted my friend, Janette, to join me on this journey. Janette, ever-willing and game for anything for the nearly 20 years I have known her, took my self-challenge to a new level of active pursuits, braving a pole dancing lesson and introducing me to her barre-based exercise class.

Believing nothing could be more torturous than spinning on a pole with my aging equilibrium or performing hundreds of microscopic leg lifts under the watchful eye of a French drill sergeant, I naively agreed to join Janette for an aerobics class at Sky Zone in Kansas City.

I arrived at the center on a crisp Thursday morning, poised and ready for an hour of jumping. From the promotional photos they had of happy adults jumping with vibrant smiles on their faces, I anticipated this workout would put me in touch with my inner child in a new and thrilling way.

Our instructor, a teeny, tiny young thing I secretly nicknamed “Chirpy,” led us to our workout area. For those of you lucky enough to have never been here before, Sky Zone is an indoor bounce-a-palooza.

Imagine the grocery section at Target covered wallto-wall in a grid, six columns by 15 or 20 rows of rectangular trampolines, each seven feet long and separated by large, flat pads, and all surrounded by trampoline-lined walls.

We each picked a trampoline, and Chirpy began.

“Jump in place gently,” she instructed. “Nice and easy. We just want to get your heart rate up a little here.”

By the time she finished that sentence, it was too late. My heart was beating roughly 350 times per minute. Fifteen seconds into this workout, and I was fairly certain I was going to die on the trampoline.

And Chirpy was just getting started.

“Now,” she continued without missing a bounce, “add a little more power to your jumps. You can even try some tricks here.”

While Chirpy proceeded to straddle, toe-touch and

scissor kick high above our heads. Janette and I stuck with our eight-inch aerials and prayed our bladders held up.

“Next we’re going to run like this,” Chirpy informed us, leaping like a little blond ponytailed gazelle from trampoline to trampoline all the way to the end of the grid and prancing back to us with a smile.

I know just enough about sports psychology to understand visualization. Digging in deep, and realizing we still had 58 minutes of this to endure, I tried to visualize myself as a little gazelle leaping just like Chirpy.

I also know enough about my body to know I looked not at all like a gazelle, but more like a polar bear, lunging from spot to spot with a look of panic on my face, for shortly after the first turn, I realized my top half was moving much faster than my bottom half. My heavy feet tried to catch up to my accelerating torso for three trampoline lengths or so before I face-planted.

And now I know enough about physics to know that when one face-plants on a trampoline, one does not simply land, but, rather, skips across the trampoline much like a rock skipping across a pond. Bounce, bounce, skidding bounce before coming to a stop.

The knee burns from skidding on tension-loaded rubber did not hurt nearly as much as my pride. Also not nearly as much as Janette did when, on the last lap at the very end of the class she managed to twist her ankle so badly, even Chirpy came to a screeching halt.

No one moved. Maybe out of respect for our fallen classmate but probably more so because our burning quads prohibited us from effective movement.

Floor burns and swollen ankle, we hobbled to our cars.

“We need to branch out,” I told her as we unlocked our doors. “Next month, let’s go see a movie we’ve never seen before.”

“And not exercise?” she asked.

“Not next month,” I winced, easing into the car.

“Let’s just try something new.”

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Things We Dig Spring, 2013 / Field Notes good for grocery lists, play date details, notes and doodles

For the better part of the past 5 years, we’ve searched high and low for a great pocket notebook.

From spiral-bound to hard covers and beyond, we’ve tried them all and all of them failed. Then we found Field Notes.

But they’re not just for grown ups. Our kids use them as much as we do. They use them in school for notes, and to jot down ideas for their great novel. The Expedition Edition actually features waterproof and tear-proof paper, which is great for boys’ and girls’ outdoor data collections.

The grid-paper notebooks are the perfect size (3.5” x 5.5”) to fit in a pocket. Each book contains 48 pages and they are stapled, which allows for comfort and durability. As soon as we tried our first one, we knew we had found what we had spend so much time and money trying to find. When we learned the story behind the notebooks, we fell in love.

Aaron Draplin is a graphic designer in Portland, Oregon. Born and bred in the Midwest, Draplin formed a fascination with the promotional notebooks handed out at old feed and seed shops. Eventually he formed a stash of thousands of the books. Wanting a great notebook of his own, he began making them himself and sending them to friends.

FIELD NOTES colors

Jim Coudal, a entrepreneurial friend of Draplin’s in Chicago, got a notebook and knew instantly that they were something special. Field Notes was born.

The company makes pocket notebooks and other seemingly lost tools for writing notes (pencils, steno pads, desk calendars, etc). Initially the company offered simple brown notebooks. Now they offer yearly “Colors” subscriptions that deliver new, colorful notebooks seasonally (right). Our favorite are the State Fair packs (left - available for all 50 states) and the now out-of-print Summer Camp (they were neon).

Yes, we know it’s silly to get so excited about notebooks, but Field Notes really are great. We use them everyday and don’t leave the house or the minivan without a book in our back pocket. For interview notes to story ideas to people to call back, these little notebooks are something Lawrence Kids really digs.

“The world’s getting faster and faster, and we’re doing our part to offer spirited products to slow things down a bit,” says Aaron Draplin. “The youth of today are held hostage by the landscape of mobile devices, video games, apps and electronic doodads. Let Field Notes bring ‘em back down to earth a bit. Good real estate for sketching, poetry, treasure maps, doodles, notes in class and lemonade stand schematics. In a world where handwriting is slowly, sadly on its way out, let Field Notes be a good place to practice some penmanship. We believe in the youngsters!”

In Lawrence, Field Notes are available at the fantastic Wonder Fair (803 1/2 Massachusetts St). Orders can also be made online: fieldnotesbrand.com.

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“My boys hang out at the restaurant quite a bit. I like having them around. They like a good pasta and red sauce, so they can help make that.� ~ Michael Beard, chef 715, At Work with Ridley (6) and Liam (2)

photo by Tasha Keathley-Helms

FROM THE BLACKBOARD

by Vanessa Sanburn, USD 497 School Board President

Some people wonder why the school board would pursue a $92.5 million bond issue in the face of school budget uncertainty, with debates currently taking place in both the Legislative and Judicial branches of our state government. Even though investment is badly needed in our buildings, would that money perhaps be better spent to hire more teachers or give the current ones a raise?

To answer these questions, it is important to have a basic understanding of the complex laws that govern school finance. State laws govern the way taxes can be collected and spent on public education. In our community, the only additional revenue that can be raised to support our schools is through the passage of an occasional bond issue, which was voted on in the April 2nd ballot. Bond funds are restricted to fund improvements to infrastructure, for example - building additional classrooms, installing more energy efficient windows, upgrading technology. Bond funds can’t be used to pay for salaries or to hire additional teachers.

However, some building improvements save operating costs on electric bills, for example, and those annual savings can be used for staff.

The funding to pay for staff and programs comes largely from the school finance formula set by the state legislature. It starts with a Base State Aid Per Pupil (BSAPP) currently set at $3,838. Additional weighting factors such as socioeconomic disadvantage, or being a non-native English speaker increase the amount of aid allocated per student. Other state funding helps pay for special education programs and for transportation.

The federal government provides funding for school

nutrition programs to help provide breakfast and lunch at free or reduced prices to students who qualify. The feds also help fund programs to help at-risk and special education students. This is an oversimplification, as other funds exist, as well as state equalization dollars that help less wealthy communities across Kansas.

A Shawnee County court recently issued a ruling, citing an earlier Kansas Supreme Court decision, that the legislature is underfunding schools and is in violation of the state constitution which says “The legislature shall make suitable provision for finance of the educational interests of the state.” A bill has been introduced in the legislature this session in an attempt to change our constitution to give the legislative branch sole discretion over education funding. Public education advocates across Kansas are opposed to this proposal.

Kansas has excellent outcomes from our system of public education. Our state consistently performs in the top 10 in the nation when comparing a variety of measurements such as test scores, graduation rates, the number of our students who go on to college, etc.

These outcomes exist despite our state being funded in the bottom third of the nation. No state performing better than Kansas spends less per pupil. We get excellent value for the dollars we spend.

It will take both local investment and an increased financial commitment from our state legislature for our public education system to continue increasing student achievement and helping kids realize their full potential.

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FOR THE KIDS / SPRING, 2013

DOUGLAS COUNTY CASA

Court Appointed Special Advocates Douglas County CASA provides comprehensive advocacy for abused and neglected children in need of care and under the protection of the court system.

photos by Casey Wright

“I really and sincerely wish there was no need for this organization. I think every person involved with CASA would say that.”

- Diana Frederick

Diana Frederick has a job. Unfortunately, she’s very,

very busy.

As the Executive Director of Douglas County CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates), Frederick oversees the daily operations of a dedicated, driven staff and volunteer base working to advocate for children whose lives have been turned upside down.

“I can’t spend much time dwelling on the reasons we’re here,” Frederick says. “We have our work cut out for us doing all we can to help these kids.”

In 2012, Douglas County CASA advocated for 105 kids in the county court system. That number has risen from 66 kids in 2008. Frederick believes two things are to credit for the increase: money and reputation.

“Unfortunately, hard economic times for parents often results in mistreated or neglected children,” Frederick explains. “Also, I believe our reputation has grown and the court system is seeing the benefits of our work.”

That work is tedious. Douglas County CASA provides comprehensive advocacy for abused and neglected children in need of care and under the protection of the court system. Trained volunteers investigate, facilitate, monitor and mentor. Through compassion and commitment, they are dedicated to be the child’s voice through their journey to a safe, loving permanent home.

Every year in Douglas County, dozens of children are removed from their homes and placed under court protection for their own safety. Some of these children are victims of violence, psychological torment or sexual abuse. Others have been neglected or abandoned.

Many are placed in foster care. CASA is dedicated to making sure these children get the attention they deserve. With the help of specially trained volunteers who advocate for the best interests of these vulnerable children, CASA helps children and teens find safe, permanent and loving homes.

When a child is place under court protection, the judge has an option to assign that child to a CASA worker.

When assigned, the CASA worker’s role is to spend time with the child and learn what they want – then report to the court the wishes of the child.

“This isn’t a light-hearted volunteer job,” Frederick

says. “Our volunteers go through more than 30 hours of training and extensive background checks. We absolutely could not function without our outstanding group of volunteers. They are CASA.”

Hon. Jean Shepherd started the Douglas County CASA office in 1991. The long-time Douglas County Family Court Judge had presided over countless cases and always felt a connection to the kids involved.

“It was heartbreaking,” Judge Shepherd says. “I felt like these kids were just being swept up in the process and were having major decisions made for them, with little or no input from the kids.”

In 1977, Seattle Judge David Soukup formed an organization to help advocate for children in court cases. By the late 1980’s CASA was a national program. Judge Shepherd helped organize the Douglas County Chapter. After her retirement in 2010, the organization’s playroom and Volunteer of the Year award were named in her honor.

“I’m very proud of the work our CASA does on behalf of the kids of Douglas County,” Judge Shepherd says.

“I know we’ve done good work for kids. It makes me so proud to see kids that have aged out of the program stay involved and help other kids who are in difficult situations. We help kids have a voice in what can be a very bureaucratic process. Of course, none of it would be done without the work of the volunteers.”

In part because of the work and advocacy of Judge Shepherd the Kansas Supreme Court now mandates judicial districts to have organizations that train volunteers in these areas.

CASA volunteers review the case file, including the social history and legal documents for the assigned Clockwise, from top left: playroom in new office, CASA logo on quilt, Executive Director Diana Frederick, gifted quilt.

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“We absolutely could not function without our outstanding group of volunteers.

They are CASA.” - Diana Frederick

case as soon as they can. Meetings with the child(ren) are kept informal to help the child relax and form trust with the volunteer. Volunteers meet with the child at least monthly, though most try to spend more time with their assigned kids. They keep in regular contact with parents, foster parents, caseworkers and all other professionals or individuals involved in the child’s case.

“Commonalities of our cases almost always include abuse or neglect,” Frederick says. “These are kids that have suffered a lot of challenges. It’s often heartbreaking, but we can’t dwell on that. We are here to serve those children. The average time a child spends in our program is 2 to 3 years.”

Much of the energy of the administration is spent trying to find the dollars needed to support the cause. Currently, Frederick says, there is a waiting list to use CASA services.

“Much like a school district has student-to-teacher ratios they must maintain, we have volunteer-to-children ratios,” Frederick says. “If we hire more volunteers to advocate for children, we need to hire more staff to manage those volunteers. If we hire more staff, we have to pay them.”

The budget for the national CASA office was cut by 63% in 2012. As a result, grants to many state offices were cut, and the Douglas County CASA program did not receive any national funding. The local office operates on funds contributed from Douglas County, The City of Lawrence, the United Way and multiple state and regional grants.

“We also rely on the generosity of many individual donors,” Frederick says. “I want Lawrence to know how grateful we are for their continued support.”

The most touching donations are often from Lawrence kids.

“It always brings a smile to our face when Lawrence kids help,” Frederick says with a big smile. “Sometimes a local kid will have a birthday party and ask for donations to CASA instead of gifts for themselves. We had one girl organize donated Halloween costumes for our kids. It’s really heartwarming to think of these kids looking out for others.”

The office, located on New Hampshire Street, recently expanded to two floors. Frederick says the new space is

a welcome change.

“We’ve been using our space as efficiently as we can,” she says. “But you can only turn closets into offices so many times. The new space is great because now we have dedicated areas just for our volunteers to interact with the kids. Things aren’t so crowded and that’s a great change.”

As case loads increase, Frederick wants Lawrence to know how important it is to keep watch for abused or neglected children. She says too often people don’t report suspected abuse because they don’t want to get involved in other’s lives. But, she adds, it only takes one call to change a life.

“Again, none of us here are glad that our services are needed,” she emphasizes. “But kids do need our help and we work very hard to give them a voice and to give them a chance. Sometime we get so caught up in being a thriving college town that we forget that not everyone is thriving. Please keep your eyes open for any mistreated children.”

To report child abuse and neglect in Kansas, call (800) 922-5330.

For volunteer opportunities, please call (785) 8325172.

LK

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COOLEST FAMILY 42

IN TOWN

Iconic Musician / Speech Pathologist Three Great Kids / Dogs / Chickens Matt Pryor and his family are living the life in Lawrence.

photos by Emmalee Schaumburg

“I’ve seen everything that my tired eyes would view.

There’s nothing that compares to seeing you.”

Matt Pryor / What My Tired Eyes Would View

He won’t admit to it, and he certainly doesn’t act like

it, but Matt Pryor is a rock ‘n’ roll icon.

Sitting in the quaint East Lawrence home he shares with his wife and kids, the self-described stay-at-home dad gives no indication of his impact on American music. Only the tattoos showing under his shirtsleeve hint at that. He cooks, cleans and rides his bike to the grocery store. Pryor helps his three kids with their homework and shuttles them to lessons and the park. He is a typical dad.

Oh, and he is also that guy from The Get Up Kids, one of the most influential American bands of the past 20 years.

Right now, Pryor is dealing with the same proplem countless other parents across Lawrence deal.

“I mean, really,” he says with a shake of his head and a sigh. “The school is right there. I mean it’s right there.”

With that Pryor motions across the street and down half-a-block to his kids’ elementary school.

“I watch them walk out the door with plenty of time on the clock,” he explains. “Why can’t my kids make it to school on time?”

Pryor and his wife, Christine Kosirog, are a happy couple. The two smile when the other tells stories and often finish each other’s sentences. When one finishes talking, the other often picks up where the other finished with “right and…” The couple are long-time sweethearts who met in their hometown of Kansas City. They started dating in their early teens.

“We were like 13 and 14,” Christine says with a big laugh and a glance at Matt. “I was in eighth grade, Matt was a younger man in seventh. Through high school we would break up occasionally, but we’ve always been really close friends, so we’ve been a constant in each other’s life.”

After high school, Christine moved to Boston for college. Matt took a different route. He was drawn to punk rock at an early age and knew that was where he was headed. He started playing guitar, writing songs and forming bands. Eventually, he formed The Get Up Kids.

Then things started happening.

The Get Up Kids fused punk sensibilities with melody and emotion. Their energy was contagious. It wasn’t too long before the band gained an audience and attention.

Pryor and his band mates picked up their drummer from his high school graduation and did what all bands do.

They hit the road.

“We formed The Get Up Kids in 1995,” he says. “And we started to tour in 1997. Really, at that point, I wanted to tour so I could go to Boston and see her. We headed east as much as we could. Booking shows in the area whenever possible.”

Christine was always a fan of the band, but she started to notice something strange in Boston.

“Whenever people would ask where I was from, I’d say Kansas City,” she explains. “People would ask, ‘Oh, like The Get Up Kids Kansas City?’ It was funny to me because the band hadn’t really taken off in Kansas City yet.

But I kept telling Matt, ‘Hey you guys really have some traction out here.”

“Maybe that’s because we were always touring the northeast,” Pryor adds with a smile.

Eventually, The Get Up Kids took off all over. The band toured with Weezer and Green Day before headlining their own tours. In the midst of it, the two got married.

Album sales were up and tours were almost non-stop.

“I proposed to her backstage of the Bowery Ballroom in New York City at one of our shows in 1999,” Matt says as Christine smiles. The couple married a year later and, essentially, found themselves in Lawrence.

“The other guys in the band had moved here from Kansas City, and I really liked the vibe of the place,” Matt explains. “At the time, we were in our twenties, I was in a band and we didn’t have any kids. It was a great place to live.”

Christine wasn’t as excited about moving to the small town.

“I didn’t want to come back,” she says frankly. “I wanted to move to New York and go into publishing. I told Matt ‘Okay, you have one year. I won’t live in Kansas City, but I’ll live in Lawrence because our families are all from the area. But after that, we’re out. We are leaving.”

When the couple settled in Lawrence, things weren’t great, but eventually, the town charmed Christine.

“The first 6 months were rough because he was gone a lot and I just didn’t get it here,” she explains. “I didn’t get a college town. I grew up in the city and moved to a larger city. But that spring it hit me. And spring here is so amazing. I was walking down Mass Street and I just stopped and thought: I’m going too fast. I need to slow down to really get the energy of the place. Now I’m so glad we didn’t move. I can’t imagine having kids anywhere else.”

The newlyweds really didn’t have any plans to start a family. Matt was seemingly always touring, and Christine had a 5-year plan that didn’t include a baby (or babies).

“I was talking to my mom one day and she was asking about kids,” Christine says with her custom smile. “I told her we absolutely had no plans to have kids anytime soon. I think I might have already been pregnant when I said that.”

When Christine and Matt learned they were pregnant, everyone’s reaction was the same. Well, almost every-

“We laugh about that with people now. Our friends say ‘We’re just not really ready to have kids. We might wait.’

I’m always like yeah, cause there’s gonna come a point in your life when you think, ‘You know what, I’ve got like 18 years with nothing to do and like $250,000 saved up.” ~ Matt Pryor

one.

“It freaked her out,” Matt says with no humor in his voice. “And it freaked everybody in the band out. But it didn’t freak me out. I was really comfortable with the idea. That was at the peak for our band and I thought, ‘Well I’m not going to quit this.”

Christine agrees with Matt, but says she soon got control.

“Yeah, initially I was shocked and overwhelmed,” she says. “But it didn’t take long and I was excited. Lily was our first, so I thought if Matt went back on tour a week or two after she was born, everything would be fine. I might have underestimated being a parent a bit.”

“We had discussed that, if getting pregnant happens, then it happens,” Matt says. “I think I meant it and she didn’t think it would happen, so she was on more of a career path.”

When Lily was born, the realities of touring, and spending weeks away from his family began to take its toll on Matt.

“It was just like loosing a limb, the first tour after Lily was born was gut-wrenching,” Matt says earnestly. “The shortest amount of time away from my family would be 3 weeks. Most likely it was 4 or 5 weeks away, 9 months a year. Most parents would say that would just kill them.

It’s something you can’t really explain to someone who isn’t a parent. Certainly you can’t explain it to people in bands, which I understand. The reason you start a band is so you can tour and get out.”

Though leaving his family behind tour was tough, Matt says his attitude toward touring had began to shift before Lily was born.

“I had goals when we started the band,” he says. “There was a series of stepping stones I wanted to achieve. I wanted to go on tour and we did that. I wanted to tour Europe and we did that. That was a big deal because that was like the adventure of all. Touring is an adventure, but tour in a van in Europe and staying in hostels is just like going to the moon. I wanted to tour Japan and we did that and I wanted to tour Australia and we did that.

I wanted to tour with a bus and we did that. And then

it was just like, ‘Well I guess that’s it.’ At that point you really read to begin making creative decisions to keep it interesting.”

Christine wasn’t ever mad that Matt was leaving. Two weeks after Lily was born, Matt hit the road and she understood.

“That was their biggest tour and I knew the deal,” Christine says. “Plus, we’ve all benefited from what he does.

We get to travel and experience really great things. But when it’s hurting him, I hate it. But when he’s here, he is totally Mr. Mom. He doesn’t have to worry about stress at the office or get up and leave to make a job or something. So I know the benefits and the consequences.”

The band was at the peak of their popularity, but Matt was not at the peak of his happiness. He was missing his young family and The Get Up Kids had just released a record that was a departure from their previous work.

“I was already thinking that the road wasn’t where I wanted to be and the band was getting these kind of lackluster reviews because our record was so different than what we had released,” Matt says. “I knew I was done. I quit the band in 2004 and we did a ‘farewell tour.’ I needed a break. I’d been touring for 10 years. We were about to have our second kid. I was stressed out. I didn’t want to be on tour. I wanted to be home.”

When the decision to leave The Get Up Kids was made, Matt knew it was the right thing to do. “I felt so relieved,” he says with a big sigh. “It was like taking off a noose.”

Though the decision was made, Matt’s obligation was not fulfilled. The band had booked tours in America, Japan and Australia all in a 4-month span, and they weren’t about to cancel the dates. Matt would fly home on days off just to be with his family.

“That was a bad tour for us at home,” Christine says. “I was really pregnant with Elliott and he was gone. It was a dark time for Matt and I was in survival mood. I just wanted him to feel better. I love what he does, but it’s not worth him feeling miserable. And this whole time I was

“That spring it hit me. And Spring here is so amazing. I was walking down Mass street and I just stopped and thought: I’m going too fast. I need to slow down to really get the energy of the place.

Now I’m so glad we didn’t move. I can’t imagine having kids anywhere else.” ~ Christine Kosirog

dealing with my own things. I was a stay-at-home mom and I still had the desire to go back to school and I had career ambitions I hadn’t met. I put that part of my life on hold, which is fine. That’s a big part of what parenting is.”

Christine’s career has since flourished. In 2006 she opened the great Painted Lady Flowers and ran that for a few years before becoming a speech pathologists. Matt says he makes music because “that’s all I’m qualified to do,” Christine’s career choice was more conservative.

“I knew it was a very sustainable field,” Christine says.

“Jobs are available and it pays very well.”

Christine works with clients through tiny-K and Lawrence Therapy Services. Her calm demeanor, kind eyes and easy laughter encourage clients to relax and help her form repore. Christine says she loves her job, but she’s her career aspirations are not fulfilled.

“I know I can’t be a stay-at-home mom,” she says frankly. “I’m just not strong enough for that.”

Between therapy meetings with her clients, Christine is working on her PhD. She doesn’t bring it up in conversation and only mentions her studies in passing. In a moment when Christine leaves the room, Matt mentions her aspirations. He is clearly, very proud of his wife.

“She won’t tell you this,” Matt says quietly. “But she’s studying neuroscience. She’s going to be a brain doctor.

She doesn’t mention it and it would be the first thing I say to people when I meet them.”

As Christine was settling into her professional life, Matt continued to make music, namely with The Terrible Twos, which was a natural offspring of a songwriter being a father.

“The Terrible Twos was just me taking the songs my kids and I were writing and singing and making some records,” Matt says. “You can’t make rock music about ‘I love my wife. I love my kids. Life is great.’ You know?

That just doesn’t work with rock. But it works great for kids music.”

Instead of writing about heartbreak and the emotional wreckage of relationships, Matt was writing about dinosaurs and poop.

“Yeah, we sing a lot of songs about poop,” Matt says.

The Terrible Twos and New Amsterdams (another band Matt started) gave way to a solo career that continues today. The music and the lifestyle of Matt’s solo work molds well with the reality of being a married father of three.

“I’ve been home a lot more since Jerzy was born (in 2006),” Matt says. “And that is really great. I still have to make music and record music and promote it, but I can do it on my schedule now.”

That schedule includes being a stay-at-home dad, most of the time. Christine’s busy schedule takes her out of the home most days, so Matt and dog Bengal are in charge

of getting the kids up, dressed and out the door to school.

Matt loves to cook, so making meals is a joy, and he uses the time the kids are at school to write and record music, book solo tours, edit his podcast (www.ntwha.com) and be home for kids after school.

“I think it’s great,” beams Christine. “He still does what he loves. Then when the kids are done with school, he’s here and ready and not stressed about not getting something done.”

Because, as Matt explains, bands never really break up, reunion tours with The Get Up Kids have complicated the summers the past few years. Those tours, however, haven’t been as taxing as the grueling year-long trips were.

“Maybe we’ve all matured,” Matt smiles. “But it is a little easier now, because our kids are older and they can even come along for some dates.”

This winter Matt tried something he’d never done: short, concentrated groups of regional shows. He would leave for 5 or 6 days, play 5 or 6 shows, and be back home. It worked well for two reasons: it’s quick and cheap.

“That’s the most efficient way to tour, really,” Matt says.

“I get my guitar, a car and go.”

That doesn’t mean the family doesn’t come along. Last year while Christine was taking exams, Matt pulled the kids out of school for 2 weeks, rented a RV and toured.

Matt and Christine are happy with their life. Lily, Elliott and Jerzy are unfailingly polite (they can be overheard asking “May I please have my turn on the Wii now?”).

The family plays piano together and laugh often. They grow a lot of their own vegetables in a backyard garden and harvest eggs from multiple chickens. Music, as one could expect, plays a big role in their lives.

“I worked a bit last summer on a farm,” Matt explains.

“One day Elliott was like, ‘Dad, what are you doing? You make music. You’re not a farmer.’ He’s right.”

Like most kids, Lily, Elliott and Jerzy don’t see their dad as being all that cool. Sure, he’s a musician and because of him they’ve been on some of the world’s great stages and seen a lot of the world, but he’s just dad. That’s just fine with Matt.

“Does any kid think their dad is cool?” Matt jokes. “I don’t think what I do is any more interesting than what anyone else does.”

In hindsight, Matt and Christine say they wouldn’t change anything. They are glad they had kids young, feel lucky to be successful at their careers and love life in Lawrence.

“We laugh about that with people now,” Matt says.

“Our friends say ‘We’re just not really ready to have kids.

We might wait.’ I’m always like yeah, because there’s gonna come a point in your life when you think, ‘You know what, I’ve got like 18 years with nothing to do and like $250,000 saved up. Man, just go for it. Having kids really is great. Most of the time.”

LK

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HALF OF ALL LIFELONG MENTAL ILLNESSES START BEFORE THE AGE OF 14.

Megan Smith knew there was something wrong. She

was in 7th grade and earning straight A’s, but she was miserable.

“I would be a wreck every night,” Megan says while shaking her head. “I would work on my homework for hours and hours and hours every night. It was terrible.

I wasn’t enjoying the little things that 7th graders like.”

Karen Glotzbach also remembers those nights. In fact, she will never forget them.

“I didn’t know what to do,” Karen recalls. “I didn’t know who to speak to or why she was such an emotional wreck every night.”

According to Karen, The Bert Nash Community Health Center’s WRAP program saved her daughter’s life.

According to their material, the WRAP (Working to Recognize Alternative Possibilities) program at The Bert Nash Community Health Center is designed to improve child development and learning, increase connectivity to the broader community, and provide resiliency, wellness and mental health support within one of children’s primary natural environments: their school.

Really though, it’s much more simple than that.

“The mission of the program is to make students as effective as they can be at school,” says Charlie Kuszmaul, WRAP Program Coordinator. “We want to reach kids when they are at the most vulnerable. Half of all lifelong mental illnesses start before the age of 14. If we can get to the kids in school, we have a much better chance of effectively helping them.”

The WRAP program was a natural development from Kuszmaul’s experience working with Lawrence High School in the 1990s. He was working with administrators and social workers at the school to help identify

and offer treatment for young people. At one point, he suggested the school bring a group of students to Bert Nash on a consistent basis. The idea was shot down almost immediately.

“Kids won’t do it,” Kuszmaul explains. “Bert Nash is where the crazy people go, they think. We’re not going to find many kids that will voluntarily get on a bus once or twice a week and head to the mental health center in town. We knew we had to find a better way.”

The idea was to eliminate as many barriers to mental health services as they could. If kids could see a therapist in their school, Kuszmaul thought, they would become more comfortable with the idea. The school agreed.

“They told me if we went there, they could get you all the groups we could handle.” Kuszmaul said. “And that’s when the WRAP program was formed.”

Initially, funding needs were very low and money was provided by the school district to cover Kuszmaul’s expenses operating in Lawrence High School. As the program (and number of high schools) expanded, adding staff and funding became a major concern. The money from the school district fell well short of covering the cost of added therapists.

A grant from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) and support from the City of Lawrence and Douglas County provided the necessary funds to implement the WRAP program in Lawrence High School, the new Free State High School, 4 middle schools in town and schools in Eudora. A recent decrease in funding has lead to WRAP being pulled from elementary schools and two of the four middle schools in Lawrence.

“The idea is to take our services here at Bert Nash and remove all barriers kids might have to access them,” Kuszmaul explains. “If the kids are more comfortable, then parents will become more comfortable and we can

get past this stigma of not discussing or talking about mental health issues.”

Children and teens can get involved with WRAP very easily. Most students enter the program from a referral by a teacher, parent or school counselor; but any child is welcome to seek help on their own. WRAP therapist are on campus and accessible.

WRAP workers are master’s-level clinicians that are available to help with the behavioral, emotional, familial and psychological problems students may have.

“Schools are not properly trained to deal with those problems,” Kuszmaul said. “Schools are equipped to educate children. We’re asking our school system to do something it was not set up to do. Teachers and school administrators are not capable of determining if a 9 year-old is suicidal.”

Program workers are on campus and easily available to students. By being a consistent presence in the school environment, Kuszmaul is confident young people’s perception of mental health care will change.

“Youth are so much more adaptive than adults,” Kuszmaul says. “I see a big difference in kids today than when I started working, more than 20 years ago.

As with society, kids are starting to understand and accept that a mental health issue is no different than a physical issue like a broken leg or something. If your leg is broke, you get some help. If your mind isn’t quite right, you get some help.”

Emotional and psychological problems will almost always be a deterrent to students succeeding in the classroom.

“Let’s face it, if a kid is seriously thinking about killing himself, he isn’t going to be too worried about his algebra homework,” Kuszmaul says. “Children deserve to have someone available to help. The teachers in our school system are fantastic educators. Our WRAP workers are fantastic therapists.”

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Karen Glotzbach vividly remembers the night her daughter talked about suicide.

“I’ll never forget it,” she says. “Megan and I have always had a close relationship and I think she’s always been comfortable talking to me about things.

That night she was sitting on my lap, which was odd because she was a teenager. She had her head on my shoulder and said, ‘I know why people do it’ referring to suicide. She said it stops people from always feeling bad and ends the constant worry their family feels.”

Karen, a paramedic with the Lawrence Fire Department, understood Megan wasn’t trying to get attention. She had come to a realization.

“We talked for quite awhile that night,” she says.

“It was a very calm conversation where I assured her that suicide was not the answer, and that we would do whatever we could to get some answers to why she

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always felt this way.”

Megan had struggled for years. She was a straight-A student but spent countless hours on her homework.

Yes, she wanted to succeed, but Megan and her mother knew it was something more than a desire to get good grades.

“Kids in junior high don’t have crying fits every night because of homework,” Karen says.

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the time, in an effort to help Megan. Her frustration grew when, not only were they unable to help, they didn’t acknowledge a problem.

“The meetings were always the same,” Karen says.

“Every teacher would say the same thing. ‘She’s such a good student and great to have in class.’ I would ask what could explain her emotional outbursts every evening and everyone attributed it to Megan being a perfectionist. I understand that, but come on! This was, like 7th grade algebra or something.”

“I would just cry and cry and cry over nothing,” Megan says. “I couldn’t explain why I was so upset or why I couldn’t stop crying. I just didn’t want to feel that way for the rest of my life.”

Eventually Karen convinced the school to test her daughter for a learning disability and she was diagnosed with a minor learning disability. The diagnosis didn’t help and Megan continued to struggle.

In the summer between 7th and 8th grade, Karen and Megan moved from Topeka to Lawrence. That school year brought the same frustrations that had haunted Megan and her mom for years: emotional fits and struggles and Megan’s constant pain.

By 9th grade, Karen learned that Megan’s issues had become more than mental. She had began physically harming herself by cutting.

“I don’t really remember that time,” Megan admits.

“It was such a dark period for me and it’s all kind of a blur now. I know I was skipping school a lot and feeling totally miserable. The worst part was not knowing why I felt so bad. I was depressed about being depressed.”

Then they found the WRAP program.

“Unfortunately, funding for our programs is always an issue,” Charlie Kuszmaul says.

Because of reduce funding, the role the WRAP program plays in Lawrence schools is diminished. There

are only so many dollars to spread, and that has resulted in removing WRAP workers from some area schools. Kuszmaul is confident the community will see the benefits of aggressive mental health care for youth, and expects the program to grow.

“Clearly, as a society, we are seeing the risk and possible devastation of untreated mental health in kids,” Kuszmaul says. “I’m thankful for the opportunity to help the kids we do reach, but I know there are some that are slipping between the cracks and we owe it to them to help.”

When Megan first met with her WRAP worker, she felt better.

“It’s not that nobody else took me seriously,” she explains. “But when I started with WRAP, they really seemed to understand what I was saying and they focused on me and what steps we could take to help me get better.”

One of those steps was enrolling Megan in Bert Nash’s therapeutic classroom. The room in on the Bert Nash campus and is set up like a traditional classroom, but therapist are available for one-on-one attention. Soon, Megan began to flourish.

“Her grades had dropped severely before she started the WRAP program and the classroom at Bert Nash,” Karen says. “She was at risk of failing. With WRAP’s help she went back to her straight-A studies, without the emotional breakdowns and graduated on time.

She told me ‘Mom, I wish I could have always learned like this.’ I think being in that classroom helped her shut off all the distractions and noise in her head. I’m really just so proud of her.”

Megan praises the help from the Bert Nash center.

She is now a beautiful 24 year-old that is excited about her future.

“They helped identify what can trigger my depression and how to avoid those moments and environments,” Megan explains.

Now married and set to earn her degree in May, Megan has a job lined up in her dream field: audio engineering. Her broad smile is almost always on her face, and she is happy to discuss her story and help anyone who may be going through what she did.

“I’m just so happy with my life right now,” she says with a great big smile. “I’m so thankful for all the help I’ve received.”

Karen beams when she talks about Megan. She is obviously very proud of her daughter. She is also a vocal advocate for mental health.

“I tell parents all the time, don’t give up,” she says emphatically. “There is help and you will get through this. We’ve got to drop the embarrassment some might feel about treating mental illnesses. There are great programs and people in Lawrence than can and will help families.”

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I can’t wait to go to the dentist again!

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www.wegrowsmiles.com

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SPRING MUST DOS 1. KU Relays Photo courtesy of KU Athletics

2. Monarch Watch

3. Farmer’s Market

4. Art in the Park 5. Plant Flowers

photo by Tanya Golash-Boza

Spring 2013 Must Dos 1. KU Relays Every Spring for 85 years, the University of Kansas has hosted some of the world’s best track and field athletes. Professional, collegiate and high school teams desend on Memorial Stadium for three days of high-grade competition. The event has always been fun, but in 2010, Downtown Lawrence began hosting a few events, and we were totally hooked. This April, take the kids downtown and be awed by feats of strength (elite men’s shot put) and astonished by flying ladies (elite women’s long jump). kuathletics.com April 17-20 / Memorial Stadium & Downtown Lawrence

2. Monarch Watch Open House Monarch Watch is an educational outreach program based at the University of Kansas that engages citizen scientists in large-scale research projects. Monarch Watch gets children of all ages involved in science. They provide a wealth of information on the biology and conservation of Monarch butterflies and many children use it as a resource for science fair projects or reports. “We encourage children to showcase their research or school projects on our website and we involve them in real science with the tagging program.” monarchwatch.org May 11 / Monarch Watch Center - 1200 Sunnyside Ave.

3. Lawrence Farmer’s Market With more than 90 vendor members, the Lawrence Farmer’s Market has become the premiere place to obtain the freshest, most nutritious locally produced agricultural products in the region. As a “producer-only” market, patrons are presented with the unique opportunity to directly connect with the grower, rancher or cook of what they purchase. “We like to say, ‘If you raise it, bake it or make it in Kansas, you can sell it.” lawrencefarmersmarket.com Every Saturday, 7-11am / 800 New Hampshire Street

4. Art in the Park Art in the Park, the annual juried outdoor exhibition of fine art and fine craft, is Lawrence’s premiere arts event and is sponsored by the Lawrence Art Guild. Featuring the highest quality work by many area artists and craftspeople, as well as continuous musical entertainment, food vendors, and family fun, it is the Lawrence Art Guild’s primary fund-raising event. More than 10,000 people typically attend Art in the Park. lawrenceartguild.org May 5 / 10am-6pm / South Park

5. Plant Flowers Do it early. Do it often. Get your kids’ hands dirty and create something beautiful. Then share.

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REUSE LAWRENCE KIDS / SPRING HATS Materials: Small paper plate, paint, paintbrush, scissors, school glue, magazine, buttons & ribbon.

1. Paint the bottom of a small paper plate and let dry.

2. Cut two, parallel 1-inch slits into the plate and thread a long piece of ribbon through.

3. Using your Lawrence Kids Magazine, cut out flower shapes with a pair of scissors. Layer flower shapes and decorate with buttons and/ or glitter.

4. Glue flowers to hat and let dry.

5. Now you’re ready to start spring in style!

By Rebecca Dunn / Full-time stay-at-home-mom by day, part-time youth librarian by night and on weekends, Rebecca has pages of creative ideas for seasonal fun on her beautiful blog www.sturdyforcommonthings.com.