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Sports: Golden State rolls to 2-0 Finals lead See B1
THE IOLA REGISTER Locally owned since 1867
www.iolaregister.com
Monday, June 6, 2016
Some seniors feel pinch amid budget cuts By MELISSA HELLMANN The Associated Press
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Joyce Clark, 82, takes pride in cooking her own meals and living independently. Clark cites volunteer work and voracious reading for keeping her sharp. It also helps that a homec-
are worker spends about five hours a week cleaning Clark’s Topeka apartment, doing her
laundry, and helping her with grocery shopping. But funding meant to keep seniors like Clark out of nursing homes by offering them in-home services soon will be cut. It’s one of the steps the state is taking to eliminate a $151 million shortfall in the state’s $16 billion budget for the fiscal year that begins
July 1. Opponents say the move will drive the elderly into nursing homes and onto Medicaid, which will cost the state more money in the long run. Democratic Rep. Nancy Lusk, of Overland Park, called the cuts “foolish” and “harmful to seniors.” She blames a 2012 tax policy that
exempted over 330,000 business owners and farmers from income taxes. “The state is not fulfilling its responsibilities for core services,” Lusk said. But Angela de Rocha, spokeswoman for the Kansas Department for Aging and See CUTS | Page A2
RAINS DON’T DOUSE RELAY FUN
School children in swimming suits wait in line as Brian Donovan, food service provider for OPAA, prepares to hand out pizza at the summer food service program’s Fun Friday at Riverside Park. Below, Makayla Perez poses with the beach towel she won in front of MARV, the Meals And Reading Vehicle. REGISTER/KLAIR VOGEL
Meeting MARV By JASON TIDD The Iola Register
Makayla Perez sat on a school bus, but this was no ordinary yellow school bus. This was the MARV bus, the new Meals and Reading Vehicle for USD 257’s summer lunch program. The white-painted bus with smiling fruit depicted on its side was parked next to the Iola Municipal Pool. On top of the Mustang-emblazoned wooden table was a sandwich, apple slices, cauliflower and a chocolate milk. Next to the bus window was an assortment of books. Perez did not eat much of her lunch this time, but that was OK with her mom, Crystal Jones, who is also a food service worker. Perez said the
Above, auctioneer Ross Daniels leads a fundraiser for cancer research at the Allen County Relay For Life Friday evening at the Iola square. Below at left, luminaries in remembrance of those lost to cancer and in honor of those still living light the relay path. Below at right, Helen Sutton, left, and Laura Vogel hand out shirts to cancer survivors. Overnight rains forced the relay to end at about 2 a.m., a few hours earlier than expected. REGISTER/KLAIR VOGEL
free meals are healthier than what she would normally eat. “I ate some of my food,” said Perez, who will be a freshman at Iola High School this fall. “Usually at home I See MARV | Page A4
Tempers likely to soar as Congress returns
Library system celebrates 50 years By BOB JOHNSON The Iola Register
In 1965, before the Internet and wide use of computers, efforts began to make library books more available throughout Kansas. Regional library systems were conceived, and a year later the Southeast Kansas Library System became a reality with a vote of the State Library Advisory Board on June 27, 1966. Lucile Wagner, Iola librarian and an icon in the field, was responsible for local efforts, having traveled to communities across southeast Kansas to sell the idea. The SEKLS, headquartered at Iola’s Public Library since day one, will celebrate its 50th anniversary this month. To mark the milestone, Roger Carswell, director of Iola’s library and the SEKLS,
By ANDREW TAYLOR The Associated Press
Connie Mitchell, board president of the Southeast Kansas Library System, and Roger Carswell, its director, visit prior to presentations at a 50th anniversary event Friday. REGISTER/BOB JOHNSON wrote a book that gives extensive history of the system. Appropriately, its title is “Booking along since ’66.” FRIDAY’S signature event
Quote of the day Vol. 118, No. 156
gathered scores of librarians and other personnel from participating libraries at St. John’s parish hall for a banSee SEKRLS | Page A4
“Common sense is not so common.”
— Voltaire, French wrtier 75 Cents
WASHINGTON (AP) — Both temperatures and tempers are likely to run hot as lawmakers return to Washington for an abbreviated 6-week summertime session featuring a handful of must-do legislation and the roll-out of a House GOP campaign agenda that’s a pet priority for House Speaker Paul Ryan. The spring was a little bumpy for the Wisconsin Republican, yo-yoing between his role as the top elected Republican in the country in the era of Donald Trump and manager of the difficult-to-control House. Both roles have placed Ryan in difficult spots. He’s
openly struggled with the Trump phenomenon — endorsing the New York billionaire as the GOP’s presumptive nominee on Rep. Paul Ryan Thursday despite “our differences” — and he’s found it difficult to corral wayward conservatives, just as his predecessor John Boehner, R-Ohio, did. Summertime in presidential election years is often a time when Congress lowers its sights and focuses more on what it has to do rather than testing the limits of what the political thicket See CONGRESS | Page A4
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