Boxing: Humboldt grad fighting for title
Inside: Map shows extent of California’s drought woes
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THE IOLA REGISTER Thursday, January 23, 2014
STATE
AARP favors Medicaid expansion By DAVE RANNEY Kansas Health Insitute
Pastor Jennifer Loeb reads to youth during Wednesday’s Kids Club at First Presbyterian Church. From left are Kealie Kealer, Kayden Griffeth, Bailee Griffeth, Deacon Harrison, Jenisis Harrison, Zane Griffeth and Rilya Miller. REGISTER/BOB JOHNSON
PUTTING HER J PASSION FIRST
Loeb travels rocky road for a place behind the pulpit
By SUSAN LYNN The Iola Register
ust about every aspect of Jennifer Loeb’s life has led her into the ministry. Even as a sales clerk at Macy’s, Loeb found herself counseling customers and coworkers. Her position in the plus-size department found her boosting women’s flagging self-image as they shopped for clothes. “I became the chaplain of Macy’s,” she said. Loeb, 54, is the new pastor at First Presbyterian Church. It is her first church as an ordained minister. It’s an accomplishment 15 years in the making. Loeb also has a degree in early childhood and elementary education. And while she found teaching a rewarding career, she continued to feel God calling her to the ministry, she said. “In moments of calm, I could feel this compelling calling that
Kobach: birth scan helped 7,700 By JOHN HANNA Associated Press
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A scan of Kansas birth records will allow election officials to validate voter registrations for more than 7,700 people who hadn’t complied with a proof-of-citizenship law, Secretary of State Kris Kobach told legislators Wednesday. Kobach said he expected the registrations to be confirmed within a week — allowing the prospective voters to legally cast ballots. The list of voter registrations on hold, about 20,200 as of Tuesday, will shrink by 38 percent. But Kobach’s critics immediately noted that almost 12,500 registrations would remain on hold because the other new voters haven’t yet provided a birth certificate, passport or other documentation of their U.S. citizenship, as required by a law that took effect last year. The figure is See KOBACH | Page A5
See LOEB | Page A6
TOPEKA — AARP Kansas officials and volunteers spent much of Wednesday reminding legislators of the organization’s support for expanding the state’s Medicaid program. “We are pro-Medicaid expansion,” said Andrea Bozarth, director of community outreach for AARP Kansas. “Twenty percent of the people that would be affected by Medicaid expansion are between the ages of 50 and 64. That’s who we represent.” Kansas is one of 23 states that have chosen not to expand their Medicaid programs to include adults whose incomes are below 138 percent of the federal poverty line. Currently, low-income children, pregnant women and the elderly are eligible for Medicaid. Childless adults are not. Expanding Medicaid, Bozarth said, would benefit seniors who are not yet eligible for Medicare. “A lot of times, these are people who’ve either been laid off through no fault of their own or who’ve had to take time off work to care for a relative or a partner who has a chronic illness and they’re trying to get back in the workforce,” Bozarth said. “They find themselves without any medical coverage at all.” Bozarth was one of about a dozen AARP members who deSee AARP | Page A5
American bandstand: Humboldt makes register By KAYLA BANZET The Iola Register
After two years of planning, applying and waiting, Humboldt’s town square bandstand is now on the National Register of Historical Places. The Downtown Action Team was notified this week of the Jan. 8 listing. Larry Tucker, Humboldt city administrator, said he is pleased with the end result. “It’s a center point in our town,” he said. “Hopefully, it will bring lots of people to the area.” Two summers ago the team contacted the Kansas Historical Society and told them about the park and bandstand. Two women from the society came down and examined the area. The bandstand, which was built in the early 1900s, was a good candidate for the list. The team was told the entire park qualified. Because the property belongs to the city, the team addressed the council. “The council had concerns that if the park was included we wouldn’t be able to add anything to the park,” Tucker said. Once a place is listed on the Register any improvements must be approved by them. So
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the team went ahead and submitted only the bandstand as a potential qualifier. The DAT made improvements to the bandstand. It raised $10,000 in materials to make cosmetic changes to the flooring, ceilings and new lighting. “B & W and Monarch helped a lot with the material and labor,” Tucker said.
“We found out that the pillars were about to fall in and B & W helped fix that.” Tucker said with the new improvements the team hopes the bandstand will last another 50 years. “This is really a community project,” he said. “Hopefully people can feel proud.” The Humboldt High School Band will have a spring con-
cert on the stand and other entertainment will play on the structure in the future. THE STAND is just the beginning for Humboldt. The DAT is working toward having a historic business district. There will be a survey done this summer to examine See BANDSTAND | Page A5
The pavilion on the square in Humboldt was named to the National Register of Historic Places on Jan. 8. REGISTER/KAYLA BANZET
“We think in generalities, but live in detail.”
— Alfred North Whitehead, English philosopher 75 Cents
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