The Iola Register, Oct. 14, 2022

ACC to raise tuition rates

By VICKIE MOSS The Iola Register

A tuition increase is needed at Allen Community College, but exactly what it will look like is yet to be determined.

The board approved an in crease to attend the two-year school, but debated at length over whether to increase the technology fee, particularly with so many students taking online classes.

“We don’t want to have hid den costs. We want to be very transparent,” ACC President Bruce Moses said.

“We are highly affordable. Part of this is because of students who take the oppor tunity to engage us online. That’s why we have students in 45 states because they shop around and they see they can take a class for $61 per credit hour. That’s not sustainable for us.”

In 2018, the college moved to a flat rate of $61 per credit hour for all students.

On Tuesday, trustees re turned to a tiered rate system of $75 for in-district students, $85 for out-of-district students, $95 for out-of-state students and $105 for international stu dents.

If ACC had increased its tu ition rates two years ago, the college would have received

an additional $2 million total, Roberta Nickell, chief finan cial officer, reported.

The new rate will start in the summer of 2023.

The college also charges $25 per credit hour for student fees, $25 per credit hour for technology fees and $15 per credit hour for book rental

and material fees.

Currently, the total tuition costs and fees is $126 per credit hour. The new rate will range from $140 per credit hour for in-district students to $170 per credit hour for international students.

Whether to increase the

Allen

LaHarpe needs to make costly repairs for sewer

By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register

LAHARPE — LaHarpe will apply for a $1.4 million loan to begin improving the city’s water system.

City Council members capped an extended, and oc casionally testy, discussion Wednesday by applying for the loan from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, at the urg ing of BG Consultant engi neers.

The city’s sewer system has two main problems, B&G representatives Bruce Boettcher and Wes Sishaar explained.

The first stems from the amount of inflow and in filtration of such things as stormwater entering the sewer system because of failed lines and leaky tap connections.

The extent of that dam age will be determined lat er this fall with the use of a camera inspection of the lines, Mayor Mae Crowell said.

The second issue — the one Council members are targeting first — deals with LaHarpe’s lift stations, all of which are nearing the end of their expected life.

A lift station is a pumping station that moves wastewa ter from a lower elevation to a higher elevation.

“If our lift stations go down, we’re in trouble,” Crowell said. “This is to the point we have to do it.”

Wednesday’s hearing and subsequent regular meet ing were held in front of a crowd of about 25 residents, many of whom voiced oppo sition to an expected meter charge hike that would be

Hays tries to conserve water, but it may not be enough

By DAVID CONDOS High Plains Public Radio

HAYS, Kansas — This town’s water problem couldn't be put off any longer.

After an especially dry year, the wells that pumped water to Hays ran dangerously low in early 1992. If the northwest Kansas town did nothing, peo ple feared they could run out of water by late summer.

Most folks agreed it was an emergency. They just couldn’t agree on what to do about it.

When City Hall suggested installing low-flow toilets, people argued that would just clog things up and overload the town’s plumbers. One city commissioner implored the town’s clergy to preach the water conservation gospel from their pulpits. A letter in the Hays Daily News de scribed a plan for strict water rationing as “trying to incite a riot.”

The city stood at a cross roads.

“Hays has an opportunity to become famous,” a local ed itorial suggested. “Not as the town in Kansas with a water problem, but as that town in Kansas that solved its water problem.”

While communities across the semi-arid High Plains all face their share of droughts, Hays was — and is — the only city in Kansas with more than 15,000 residents but no sus tainable source of water.

It’s caught in the middle. Too far west for reliable rain fall and reservoirs. And too far east to tap into the massive — if disappearing — Ogallala aquifer. So when prolonged drought hits, the town’s buck et of backup plans isn’t exact

ly overflowing.

That’s why Hays continues its decades-long quest for a sustainable water source to day — it’s now in the middle of jumping through legal and regulatory hoops to build a 70-mile pipeline that would bring in water from three counties away.

The 1992 crisis wasn’t the first or last time Hays has had to worry about running low on water. But it marked a turning point.

“It was a wake-up call for the city leaders at the time,” current city manager Toby Dougherty said. “They real ized quickly the best thing they can do is start conserv ing what they have.”

Fast forward three decades to a parking lot on the east edge of town.

As the sun creeps toward the horizon, dozens of fam ilies mull about at a school

district street fair. Some kids line up for a chance to sit in a street sweeper, get a balloon animal or turn an auger dan gling from a power company crane.

But in the corner, a big blue local celebrity draws a crowd of his own.

That’s WaterSmart Wally, the mascot of the city’s water conservation program, giving out one high five after anoth er.

And this fuzzy raindrop gets around. Waving from the back of a truck during pa rades. Dancing at basketball games. Dropping in on class rooms to teach water conser vation bingo.

“Kids love him.” Holly Dickman, the city’s water conservation specialist, said. “He loves hugs, so he gets lots of those.”

As far as Dickman knows,

ACC President Bruce Moses, left, Board President Jenny Spillman and board member Lonnie Larson review paperwork at the start of Tuesday’s board meeting. REGISTER/VICKIE MOSS

The Hays water conservation program’s mascot, WaterSmart Wally, gives out high fives at a recent street fair. Wally is just one sign of how far the town’s water-saving culture has come since the 1990s.

CONDOS

Water gushes from beneath a manhole cover along Monroe Street following a June rainstorm in LaHarpe, a sign of a fail ing sewer system, engineers explained this week. REGISTER/

Nadine McClain

Nadine Lee McClain, age 93, passed away Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, at her daughter’s home in Spring Hill. Nadine was born March 27, 1929, in Iola, to Clyde Hur lock and Goldie (Stout) Hurlock.

Bill Stierwalt

William (Bill) Norman Stierwalt, age 57, died Monday, Oct. 3, 2022.

He was born Feb. 1, 1965, to Kay Tindle and Melvin Stierwalt.

Police fatally shoot Topeka man

ities say.

Nadine McClain

Nadine graduated in 1947 from Iola High School. She was a tele phone operator for Southwestern Bell Telephone in Iola in the 1950s. She and L.W. “Mac” McClain were married Feb. 12, 1955, in Iola. Nadine was the book keeper for Alco Drilling Company.

Nadine was a member of Wesley United Method ist Church and the Sorosis Club in Iola. She was a hospital volunteer for many years. Nadine, Mac, and her family enjoyed traveling all over the United States, plus trips to China, the Holy Land, Europe, Scandinavia, the Caribbean, Canada and Mexico. She liked to bake cookies and pies, and make dif ferent kinds of candy for family and friends. Na dine loved spending time with her grandchildren.

Nadine was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; her brothers, Delbert Hurlock and Larry Hurlock; and her sisters, Marian Michael, JoAnn Hurlock and Frances Hurlock.

Nadine is survived by daughter, Torri (Mitch) Van Kam, Spring Hill; son, Rance (Lisa) McClain, Fort Smith, Ark.; grandchildren, Jordan McClain, Connor McClain, Patrick McClain, Chloe Van Kam and Aidan McClain; and brother, Randy (Lela) Hurlock, Gas.

A visitation will be from noon to 1 p.m. Wednes day, Oct. 19, in the chapel at Feuerborn Family Fu neral Service, 1883 U.S. 54, Iola. A funeral service will follow at 1.

Interment will be in Highland Cemetery, Iola.

Memorials are suggested to Wesley United Meth odist Church, which may be left with the funeral home.

Condolences may be left at www.feuerbornfu neral.com.

He was married to Stephanie Stierwalt. He had one daughter and 12 siblings. He was pre ceded in death by his dad Melvin Stierwalt and his brother Melvin Stierwalt Jr.

There are no services scheduled at this time.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Topeka po lice officers shot and killed a man early Thursday after he walked toward them with a knife as they tried to intervene in a carjacking, author

Jones ordered to pay $965M

WATERBURY, Conn. (AP) — Jurors ordered conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on Wednes day to pay nearly $1 billion to Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims’ rela tives and an FBI agent, who said he turned their loss and trauma into years of torment by promoting the lie that the rampage was a hoax.

The $965 million verdict is the second big judgment against the Infowars host for spreading the myth that the deadliest school shooting in U.S. history never hap pened, and that the grieving families seen

in news coverage were actors hired as part of a plot to take away peo ple’s guns.

The verdict came in a defamation law suit filed by some of the families of 26 peo ple who were killed in the 2012 shooting, plus an FBI agent who was among the first responders. A Texas jury in August award ed nearly $50 million to the parents of another slain child.

Robbie Parker, who lost his 6-year-old daughter, Emilie, said outside the Connecti cut court that he was proud that “what we were able to accom plish was just to simply

tell the truth.” “And it shouldn’t be this hard, and it shouldn’t be this scary,” said Parker, who became an ear ly target of conspir acy theorists after he spoke at a news conference the day after the shooting. The jury awarded him the most of any plaintiff: $120 mil lion.

Jones wasn’t at court but reacted on his Infowars show.

As courtroom vid eo showed the jury awards being read out, Jones said that he himself had nev er mentioned the plaintiffs’ names.

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation said in a news release that a woman called 911 areport a 33-year-old family member, Tay lor Lowery, was inside the home, armed with a knife and behaving erratically.

She was able to escape, and Lowery drove away from the home in a sport utili ty vehicle, according to the KBI, which is investigating.

Officers spotted him later at a gas station convenience store, where they saw him attempting to steal a car with a woman and infant inside.

The KBI said offi cers repeatedly or dered him to drop the knife he was holding. When he advanced toward the officers with the weapon, five of them fired, strik ing Lowery multiple times, the KBI said.

Lowery was pro nounced dead at the scene. No one else was injured, the KBI said.

LaHarpe: Failing sewer systems makes for tough decisions

Continued from A1 from USDA.

used to pay off the loan.

Boettcher estimated sewer fees could wind up anywhere from $40.30 to $57.20 per month, depending on how the project is financed. Current sewer fees cost LaHarpe residents $32 monthly.

There are plenty of factors at play, Boettch er noted.

First of all, the city learned only in July La Harpe would be unable to apply for Communi ty Development Block (CDBG) grants to help fund the project because of limits put on this year’s disbursements. (The current edict is that CDBG grants can be used only for such things trail develop ment and daycare facil ities, but not city infra structure.)

Ideally, the city could use CDBG funding in future years, if the feds loosen those purse strings.

And the Council also may be eligible for a Ru ral Development loan/ grant match from the United States Depart ment of Agriculture, he continued.

But with a looming deadline to apply for the KDHE Revolving Loan Fund, the Council must apply this week, Boettcher noted. Hence, the need for Wednes day’s hearing.

On the bright side, that loan could be es chewed without penal ty if the other funding sources materialize, such as the Rural Devel opment loan/grant.

Boettcher gave an analogy of a car driving along an interstate high way at 75 mph. “You’re zooming along, but there are off ramps.”

In fact, the city has the option of taking no action, he continued.

“You could decide to hit the brakes, see where (CDBG) goes with it and maybe do this again in two years or five years,” Boettcher said.

But to illustrate his point, several in the au dience noted “manhole fountains,” when wa ter comes gurgling up through manhole covers during torrential rains.

That’s because the rainwater is breaching the sewer lines, Boettch er said. “It means your system has failed.”

Audience members

peppered Council mem bers and the engineers with questions and com mentary throughout the two-hour hearing.

“We’ve got people in town, who if they have to pay $30 or $40 more on their bill, they don’t eat,” Doug Northcutt warned. “And this is the first time we’ve heard about this.”

He and several other suggested waiting, until more grants are avail able.

“Honestly, I don’t know if I disagree” with the notion of waiting

six months, Boettcher said.

But the danger in waiting is that costs have been skyrocketing as inflation has spiked, with the Federal Re serve expected to raise interest rates again. And there’s no guaran tee CDBG funds will be available next year, ei ther.

As an aside, LaHarpe is paying for the upcom ing CCTV and smoke testing with use of fed eral COVID relief funds (more than $80,000) plus another $30,000 grant

WEISHAAR gave the group a synopsis of the sewer system.

Much of the sanitary sewer system was done in 1976, with more than nine miles of PVC truss pipe, 178 manholes, four pumping stations and 5,700 feet of sanitary sewer forcemain.

In 1998, two more lift stations were installed, and a three-cell dis charge lagoon serving LaHarpe and Gas was built.

The typical useful life of a truss pipe sew er system is between 50 and 75 years, Weishaar noted, while lift sta tions have an expect ed life span of 15 to 30 years.

“If you make it 15 years with a lift sta tion, it’s paid for itself,” Boettcher added.

And as more ground water breaches the col lection system, it forces the lift station pumps to work even hard er, Boettcher added, which adds to ongoing maintenance costs and higher opportunity for failure.

Boettcher said the city will know more after the CCTV inspec

Running out of

tions. He anticipates most of the ground water infiltration is sues are at service tap connections and seal to pipe connections, which is ideal, because it means some repairs could be done by relin ing those lines, rather than the significantly more expensive full trench replacement

COUNCIL member Danny Ware also spoke about the timeline. Even with starting the process now, it will take a while for financing sources to be finalized.

“You’re still looking at two years before any construction begins,” Ware said.

And Boettcher re minded the Council members they are ad dressing only the lift stations so far.

Boettcher pegged a full-scale sewer system replacement at $5.1 mil lion.

He acknowledged the economic restraints facing LaHarpe, but noted as an engineer, his recommendation is to fix the entire system now, rather than wait.

“You’re spending a lot of money to be inef ficient,” he said.

Bruce Boettcher of BG Consultants speaks during a public hearing Wednesday about LaHarpe’s sewer system. Behind him is Mayor Mae Crowell. REGISTER/RICH ARD LUKEN

Water: City of Hays has several initiatives to conserve

she and Wally are the only ones doing their particular jobs in the whole state. And their presence is just one sign of how far Hays has come in its push to ab sorb water conservation into the town’s culture.

That type of shift can’t happen overnight. And some folks in town still gripe about not being able to water their lawns in the summer or call the strict regulations gov ernment overreach.

But two generations of children have now grown up here since the water crisis of 30 years ago. And for many of them, the water-sav ing practices that make Hays such an outlier in Kansas are just a normal part of life.

When the town held its annual poster contest earlier this year, kids as young as 2nd and 3rd grade drew pictures of people xeriscaping and using rain barrels. One illustrated the benefits of waiting to run your dishwasher until it’s full.

Another depicted a familiar face — WaterS mart Wally — front and center, shedding a horri fied tear as he watched the town’s precious re source drip away from a leaky pipe.

“If you grew up here, you lived with it,” Dick man said. “We are that way because we had to be. We have to be.”

The California of Kansas

Twelve years ago, city manager Dougherty boarded a flight bound for Las Vegas to meet with water districts from across the western U.S.

At the time, Hays was riding high from the wa ter-saving measures it put in place in the 1990s, he said, and the city hadn’t thought much about updating them. After all, its efforts were still leaps and bounds above its neighbors.

“We were the leader in Kansas,” Dougherty said. “But I felt like the dumbest kid in the class room out there.”

Looking around the conference room at the stuff towns out West were doing to conserve water, he quickly real ized how far Hays had fallen behind its water scarcity peers and decid ed to double the town’s efforts.

So he and other city leaders ventured West again and again to pick the brains of some of the country’s most wa ter-conscious cities.

“We have had to look to places like Las Vegas and Tucson and Phoe nix,” Dougherty said. “ We stole our landscaping regulations from Utah.”

The city’s cash-forgrass program that pays residents to remove their irrigation-dependent lawns? That idea came from Las Vegas.

The demonstration gardens that were plant ed around town to show residents how to xeri scape with native plants? Modeled on similar ones in Salt Lake City.

Dougherty said Hays is now studying how Si erra Vista, Arizona, uses wetlands to naturally filter and store its waste water for reuse.

Even the idea for Wa terSmart Wally came from other conservation mascots out West.

Here’s a sprinkling of the ways Hays pushes and pulls its residents to save water today:

Hays was the first city

east of Colorado and north of Texas to start a cash-for-grass program, which offers residents up to $3,000 to replace typical fescue and blue grass lawns with less thirsty options, such as xeriscaping with rocks and shrubs or planting drought-tolerant types of grass. It remains the only program of its kind in the state.

Hays built a system that irrigates the town’s golf course and base ball fields with recycled wastewater, known as ef fluent. That saved more than 100 million gallons of water last year.

Hays sends welcome buckets to new residents filled with rain gaug es, shower timers and a blue dye tablet to check your toilet for leaks. The city has also handed out thousands of low-flow showerheads over the years. Residents can stop by city hall to trade in their old head for a new one anytime at no cost.

People can still get re bates for installing lowflow toilets — $150 a pop. They can also get $200 rebates for putting in high-efficiency washing machines.

Unlike other cities that offer utility custom ers discounts for buying water in bulk, the water rate in Hays gets more expensive the more you use.

The city has someone on staff whose job it is to personally call cus tomers who are using a lot of water. That can both alert customers to

unknown leaks and let them know that they’re being watched.

Hays has a half-cent sales tax dedicated ex clusively to funding wa ter projects, like getting water from new sources or making its existing wells more efficient.

And finally, one of the most visible measures: outdoor watering re strictions. For the warm est four months of the year, residents can’t wa ter their lawns from high noon until the evening. Homes and businesses can also get a violation for having an outdoor water leak or a sprinkler that sprays into the road

year-round.

The Hays Police De partment has handed out 85 outdoor watering violations this year so far. First-time violators get a warning and some education about why Hays has to conserve. A second violation within two years comes with a $50 fine. A third viola tion ups the fine to $200.

But because strict wa ter regulations are so rare in this part of the country, getting one of those warnings might be the first time a Hays newcomer gets the mes sage.

Perry Harrison moved to Hays with his fami

ly three years ago after growing up in eastern Texas, where there’s plenty of rainfall. So he was surprised to get a knock on his door from three city employees this summer telling him to turn off his sprinkler.

“We don't want to be those people, so we were a little mortified,” Harri son said about receiving his first water violation warning. “It was very much a ‘Welcome to hav ing a lawn in Hays, Kan sas.’”

That’s all part of changing the culture.

If you’re the only house on your block trying to save water, Dougherty said, it can feel like you’re swim ming upstream. But the more people who buy in, the easier it is to follow along.

And one lot at a time, having a brown lawn in Hays has become social ly acceptable. In a dry year like this one, it’s the norm.

“Eventually, you'll be the outlier if you have the lush, irrigated fescue lawn that gets irrigat ed four times a week,” Dougherty said. “Peer

pressure's a big motiva tor.”

‘On an island’

So, how big of a dent have all these conserva tion efforts made in the town’s water use?

Each person in Hays uses an average of 83 gallons of water a day. That’s the same amount of water people use on average in California.

“The problem is we are the only city in Kan sas that is acting like … a city in the Mojave Desert,” Dougherty said. “And because of that, a lot of the state looks at us as the poor people that don't have any wa ter.”

In fact, Hays uses less water per capita than just about any other city in the state.

The state’s most popu lated city, Wichita, goes through 112 gallons per person each day, accord ing to the most recent statewide water use data from the Kansas Divi sion of Water Resources.

The water district that covers most of Johnson County in the Kansas City suburbs, includ

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Hays: Current drought could mean city takes more action

Overland Park and Shawnee, pumps out 135 gallons a day per person.

Kansas City, Kansas, people average 147 gal lons a day. Even folks in Lawrence — perhaps the most politically progres

place in the state —

95 gallons a day.

What about cities with population sizes similar to Hays? Derby, Emporia and Junction City use 104 gallons, 132 gallons and 115 gallons, respectively.

In western Kansas, Hays is even more of an outlier.

Colby, Garden City and Ulysses each use more than double the amount of water per person that Hays does. It’s common for towns across western Kansas — from Elkhart to Scott City to St. Fran cis— to go through more than 200 gallons of water per person each day.

Even some of the des ert cities that Hays took inspiration from haven’t caught up.

In Salt Lake City — where Hays stole its land scaping regulations from — people still go through more than 200 gallons of water a day. Each Phoe nix resident uses more than 115 gallons a day. The water district in Las Vegas has a goal to reduce its current 110 gallons per capita rate to fewer than 100 gallons by 2035.

Some of Hays’ western Kansas neighbors have begun implementing their own conservation measures. Garden City installed smart water meters that send hourly readings to the city and alert crews to fix leaks. It also opened a new aquatic center last year that uses 28.4 million gallons less per year than the leaky pool it replaced. Dodge City started irrigating its golf course with re claimed wastewater.

But every population center in western Kansas besides Hays sits atop the Ogallala aquifer. Even though the aquifer is rap idly depleting, it’s still a more steady water source than anything Hays has nearby.

And as long as there’s water readily available, it can be a challenge to change people’s habits about using it.

“The reality is (other Kansas towns) don’t re ally have to change their ways that much,” Dough erty said. “We truly are on an island in how we have to look at this.”

But as climate change pushes dry Western weather eastward, Hays could get some company.

Decades from now, the aridification of the Great Plains could lead cities like Wichita or Salina to rethink their own water use. Even cities on the Ogallala aquifer might have to borrow more tips from Hays as wells run low and the cost of buy ing more water — or run ning pumps to draw from ever deeper underground — dwarfs the cost of con serving.

The drought this sum mer has already pushed towns from southwest Kansas to southeast Kan sas to enact emergency water-saving measures as their reserves ran low.

Newsha Ajami, a wa ter expert and Chief Re search Officer at the Law rence Berkeley National Laboratory in California, sees similar dynamics play out across the coun try.

“A lot of communities are grappling with this … drier droughts, longer droughts,” Ajami said,

“and a little bit of a shift in mindset from droughts being an occasional thing to maybe droughts are our new reality.”

She and other experts say the key is for towns to focus less on increas ing their water supply and more on decreasing their water demand. And even for towns like Hays, there’s more they could do. Using effluent wa ter — water that’s been cleaned but isn’t quite up to drinking standards — to flush toilets or run showers, Ajami said, could reduce indoor wa ter use by 30%.

And she warned that building a pipeline to bring in water from an other area — like Hays plans to do — has proven to be disastrous in parts of California. For exam ple, when Los Angeles built an aqueduct to take water from the Owens Valley, it ended up with a dry lake that polluted the air and a series of law suits that became known as the California water wars.

“Ultimately,” Ajami said, “it can become more of a problem rather than a solution.”

But it’s rare and im pressive, she said, to see a small town implement an aggressive long-term plan to reduce water demand — as Hays has done — rather than cy cle through phases of short-term emergency measures each time a drought crops up.

It also shows, Ajami said, that water conserva

tion can be popular even in places like rural west ern Kansas — more than 70% of voters in Hays’ county backed Donald Trump in 2020 — rather than being cast as a lib eral issue that people will only care about in Cali fornia.

“No matter what po litical background they have,” Ajami said, “peo ple are driven by what im pacts their community.”

Running dry

In a backyard just south of Interstate 70, Dickman, the Hays water conservation specialist, crouches over a patch of surprisingly green buffa lo grass.

She plucks a seed from the ground and com pares it with another in a bag she uses to demon strate how the city pays homeowners to convert their yards to this native drought-tolerant plant.

As opposed to typical fescue lawns that need to be watered two or three times a week, buffalo grass can usually get by with just one watering a month.

“Once they get their root systems under them,” Dickman said, “you really shouldn’t have to water them at all.”

That’s the benefit of native plants. They evolved to handle the dry western Kansas climate because their species have thrived here for cen turies with no sprinkler system in sight.

And with each new

yard that gets this type of makeover, Hays’ limited water supply can stretch a bit further.

It saves Hays money, too. The city estimates that bringing in an acre foot of water — roughly 326,000 gallons — from a new source would cost Hays at least $15,000. But paying to help resi dents conserve that same amount of water — with, say, three fescue lawn conversions or 25 new low-flow toilets — costs the city far less.

And there’s still room for Hays to get even more efficient with its water.

After three decades of conservation efforts, Dickman said she still runs into folks who have lived in Hays their whole lives who don’t know about the low-flow toilet

rebates. That’s why the city continues to push its message — airing radio ads with water-saving tips, handing out shower timers, and sending Wal ly to schools and parades.

“It takes a long time,” Dickman said. “The job of education and out reach is neverending.”

That job becomes es pecially critical during a historically dry, hot year like this one.

Hays averages fewer than 24 inches of precipi tation a year. The Kansas City area gets more than 40 inches.

During a drought, that gap can get even wider. Less than a foot of rain has fallen on Hays this year — about the same amount it got by this point back in 1991, the year that led to the city’s water crisis. So far this year, parts of eastern Kansas have received roughly three times that amount.

And if the current drought keeps going, Hays might have to ramp up its water conservation efforts. More hours with no outdoor watering. Re leasing emergency water reserves. Maybe closing the city pools for a bit. These are realistic possi bilities that Hays has had to prepare for.

“It’s not 25 years down the road,” Dickman said.

“It’s a matter of how bad is the drought going to be in the next four or five years?”

Even in the aftermath of the 1992 crisis, folks in Hays wondered if con servation alone could be enough for the town to eke out a future in this particularly dry part of Kansas. So the city ex panded its main wellfield and tapped additional supply from a deeper aquifer nearby — it’s not sustainable and the wa ter quality isn’t good, but it works as a last resort.

And in 1995, the city bought the R9 ranch three counties south of here with the idea of someday building that 70mile pipeline.

This type of strate gy — known as “buy and dry” — has become common in places like Colorado’s Front Range, where fast-growing cities pay farm owners to use some or all of their water.

It’s much less common on the rural Great Plains, where agriculture drives the local economy more than real estate develop ment. But after looking at bringing water in from reservoirs like Wilson and Kanopolis or riv ers like the Saline, Hays determined the ranch’s underground water was the city’s most practical option.

Opinion

To its shame, the UN Human Rights Council fails the Uyghurs in China

If pathological optimists still think the U.N. Human Rights Council cares about human rights, they might want to note events last week. A motion was made in Gene va to debate China’s abuses against the Uyghurs in Xinji ang province, and the council voted 19-17 not even to dis cuss it.

Siding with China against the motion were regular lack eys such as Cuba and Ven ezuela, as well as countries such as Nepal, Indonesia and Pakistan, Qatar and the Unit ed Arab Emirates that don’t want to offend China or are on the hook as part of its Belt and Road Ini tiative.

The last four in that list are ma jority Muslim nations voting to ignore the documented persecution of a Chinese Muslim mi nority group. Indonesia is the world’s largest Muslim coun try, and Pakistan’s state reli gion is Islam.

dictatorship it didn’t support.

In August the U.N. High Commissioner on Human Rights published a report that drew on interviews with former detainees in Xinjiang.

“A consistent theme was de scription of constant hunger and, consequently, significant to severe weight loss during their periods in the facili ties,” it said. “Almost all in terviewees described either injections, pills or both being administered regularly.” ...

A consistent theme was description of con stant hunger, severe weight loss, forced in jections, sleep depri vation, forced labor, torture and sexual vi olence.

Routine abuses includ ed being deprived of sleep and prayer, in addition to being forced to sing patriotic songs. The re port asked Chi na to look into “allegations of torture, sex ual violence, ill-treatment, forced medical treatment, as well as forced la bor and reports of deaths in cus tody.” It said the pattern of re peated maltreatment in Xinji ang “may constitute interna tional crimes, in particular crimes against humanity.”

Lady Liberty SARAH BROWN/UNSPLASH

A crowning achievement: Welcome back, Lady Liberty

In addition to China, the other nations on the dishon or role were: Bolivia, Cam eroon, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Gabon, Kazakhstan, Maurita nia, Namibia, Senegal, Sudan and Uzbekistan. There were also 11 abstentions, including India, Mexico and Ukraine. Perhaps Kyiv hopes to keep China from giving military aid to Russia’s invaders, but this wasn’t Ukraine’s finest hour. Mexico under President Andrés Manuel López Obra dor has never met a left-wing

Pragmatists might be pleased that the motion Thursday failed by only two votes, after a fierce lobbying campaign by Beijing to defeat it. But what a disgrace. Every one knows the U.N. Human Rights Council is a sinkhole of moral equivalence. But if it can’t pass a motion merely to open discussion on China’s abuses in Xinjiang, there is no reason for it to exist, or for the United States to continue to be a member.

— Wall Street Journal

This week, after more than two-and-a-half years of COVID closure, visitors returned to the top of the Statue of Liberty, climbing the 146 winding steps up the double helix spiral staircase to reach inside her crown and look down on the har bor from the 25 windows, ex actly as intended when she was given by France to the United States in 1886.

This column fought for eight years after 9/11 to get the whole statue, including the crown, reopened, chal lenging successive secre taries of the interior and National Park Service direc tors face to face until Secre tary Ken Salazar, on his and President Barack Obama’s third day in office, agreed with us, ordering the NPS to open it up beginning July 4, 2009. Now, once again, the

whole monument is open. Although currently limited to 250 people a day, hopeful ly crown capacity will soon return to the pre-COVID 500 daily. Hip, hip, hooray. Also worth celebrating on Liberty’s 136th birthday on Oct. 28 (and every day) is that the illegal ticket hawk ers swarming over tourists in the Battery and pressur ing them to buy pricey boat rides that didn’t go to Liber ty or Ellis islands are gone. COVID put a big dent in their illegal racket as Lib erty and Ellis were closed down, and since the reopen ing, 80% of visitors have purchased advance tickets or online, making it not worth the hawkers’ time.

VISITORS DESERVE a better experience em barking for the islands.

Hard to believe, but things are looking up

By SHAR HABIBI Progressive Perspectives

You wouldn’t know it from watching the news, but American children are doing better than they were at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, at least when it comes to having their basic needs met. That’s according to newly released data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Even as the country suffered through a pandemic, global supply chain disruptions and ris ing inflation, child poverty rates declined to the lowest on record. As the Institute on Taxation and Econom ic Policy concluded, much of this can be attributed to last year’s expansion of the Child Tax Credit.

The child tax credit expan sion ended at the beginning of this year. Now some elect ed leaders are proposing to reinstate the expanded tax credit and, unfortunately, fund it by cutting import ant tax benefits for low- and moderate-income families rather than making corpo rations and the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes.

Regardless of what deci sion Congress makes, the success of the expansion highlights something else you wouldn’t know from watching the news: The federal government has de

monstrably improved the lives of the vast majority of Americans over the last year and a half.

Whether it’s $350 billion in budget relief for state and local governments or $1.2 trillion to fix the country’s crumbling infrastructure, Washington has repeated ly stepped up to the plate and delivered. The recently passed Inflation Reduction Act, for example, caps pre scription drug prices for se niors and offers savings on energy bills, among other policies that will likely low er the rising cost of living.

What all that investment looks like across the coun try depends on the priorities of the state or local govern ment.

Minnesota is addressing learning disruptions expe rienced by students during the pandemic. The past two summers, the state’s children have had more op portunities for field trips, preschool programming, mental health services and tutoring. In Ohio, Cleve land’s school district used American Rescue Plan funds to increase summer learning participation sev enfold.

Arkansas just committed $280 million in American Rescue Plan funds for infra structure projects that will upgrade the state’s outdated

and failing water systems. These types of investments are especially important, given ongoing water crises in places like Jackson, Mis sissippi.

Wisconsin used feder al money to strengthen its Worker Advancement Initia tive, offering subsidized em ployment and skills training opportunities with local employers to unemployed workers. Federal support for similar programs nation wide surely has something to do with the economy’s historically low unemploy ment rate.

To be sure, some states and localities have spent re lief funds in ways that do not actually improve the lives of average Americans. At least 21 states used the money to replenish unemployment insurance funding, which — as the Economic Policy Institute notes — has little impact on economic growth and effectively amounts to a tax cut for corporations. Some local governments are even using funding to build and expand jails and pris ons, rather than invest in ed ucation, affordable housing, job programs or other pro grams that address the root causes of crime.

NO PUBLIC program — like no corporate initiative — is perfect, but there are

plenty of things happening nationwide that will benefit Americans.

When it comes to infra structure, more than 5,000 projects backed with new federal money are already underway. Residents in states including California and Texas are accessing high-speed broadband in ternet access for the first time. State transportation officials are improving and expanding roadways, such as Pennsylvania’s project to connect an unfinished rural highway with Maryland. The U.S. Forest Service is planting trees in areas burned by forest fires in the largest reforestation drive in the U.S. since the 1930s.

All of this counters a com mon attitude that the gov ernment is incompetent and that government programs make us less free. Certainly, things like corruption and over-policing can happen when public institutions are captured by the powerful few. But the last few years have shown what is possible when we make government work for us.

About the author: Shar Habibi is research and poli cy director of In the Public Interest, a non-profit orga nization that advocates for a government that works for all of us.

Passengers board bobbing vessels from fixed slips, a sometimes harrowing step. Far better and safer, and more efficient, are floating platforms. Also, dump the airport-like screening fa cilities in ugly tents in the Battery and Jersey City’s Liberty State Park. Both states should install floating platforms and Govs. Kathy Hochul and Phil Murphy should move the screening inside of vacant, histor ic 1880s structures sitting right there, the Battery’s Pier A and Jersey’s Commu nipaw Terminal. Both were derelict, then refurbished, then swamped by Sandy and then repaired again.

Get it done before the semiquincentennial on July 4, 2026, celebrating 250 years of independence since 1776.

— New York Daily News

Letter to the editor

Dear editor, As we approach the 2022 general election, I write to re mind voters that the deadline to register to vote for the No vember 8 election is October 18.

Whether you are register ing for the first time, have moved, or changed your name, you must complete a voter reg istration form. Registering to vote is easy and safe! Kansans can register to vote at their county election office, at the Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV), or online at VoteKan sas.gov. This .gov site lets Kan sans know they are accessing an official, secure government website, rather than a non-gov ernmental third-party site.

To register to vote online, you must have a valid Kansas driver’s license or non-driv er’s identification card. In dividuals who do not have either form of identification can register to vote using a paper application available at sos.ks.gov under the Elections tab. Voters who cannot afford an ID card may apply for a free non-driver’s ID card through the Department of Revenue.

I encourage all eligible Kan sans to register to vote or up date their voter registration before the October 18 deadline and exercise their right to vote in the upcoming election on Tuesday, November 8.

Respectfully submitted, Scott Schwab, Kansas Secretary of State

ACC: Board approves keyless entry, considers roof repairs

technology fee is where the board faced a lengthy debate.

Moses suggested they move forward with the tuition rate increase for next year and continue to research and discuss whether to change the technology fee.

Keyless entry

Buildings around the campus will get a securi ty upgrade with keyless entry for doors, as the board approved a pro posal from INA Alert, a company based in El linwood that provides security technology for clients across the coun try and has installed systems for Colby Com munity College as well as Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo.

The system will cost ACC about $180,000 and should be installed over the semester break in December and January.

Board members agreed the security in vestment was necessary.

“Safety and security of our students should be at the top of the list,” board member Lonnie Larson said.

The system uses a card to open doors, which allows it to track who is coming in and out of the building. It can work hand-in-hand with the current camera system.

Jake Strecker, INA Alert owner, deliv ered a presentation to the board. He said ACC buildings could

be locked down in sec onds with the push of a button on a cell phone, which would be vital in the event of an active shooter.

Board member Rob in Schaille shared her personal experience as a former college in structor, when an ac tive shooter on campus walked past her class room.

“That stays with me. I encourage the college to take this seriously,” she said.

“We can’t afford to not do something for safe ty,” board member Vicki Curry said.

The board unani mously approved the purchase.

Roof repairs

Two ACC roofs — over the main building

and the Horton Hall dor mitory — received an F grade in a recent inspec tion.

The failing grades didn’t surprise anyone.

“It’s leaked basically since it was built,” Cur ry said of the roof over the main building.

The newest roof, over the Student Center built in 2019, scored an A. The theatre building, which has a metal roof, scored a B-minus. The North building, a dormitory, scored a C-minus.

Repairs could cost $1.8 million, but the roofing company that did the inspection, Co ryell Commercial Roof ing of Oklahoma City, Okla., could apply for insurance on ACC’s be half.

Numerous hail strikes were identified

Parkland school shooter sentence to life

FORT LAUDER DALE, Fla. (AP) — A jury spared Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz from the death pen alty Thursday for kill ing 17 people at a Park land high school in 2018, sending him to prison for the remainder of his life in a decision that left many families of the victims angered, baffled and in tears.

The jury’s recommen dation came after seven hours of deliberations over two days, ending a three-month trial that included graphic vid eos, photos and testi mony from the massa cre and its aftermath, heart-wrenching testi mony from victims’ fam ily members and a tour of the still blood-spat

tered building. “We are beyond dis appointed with the out come today,” Lori Al hadeff, whose daughter, Alyssa was killed, said at a news conference after the jury’s decision was announced.

“This should have been the death penalty, 100%. Seventeen peo ple were brutally mur dered on Feb. 14, 2018. I sent my daughter to school and she was shot eight times. I am so be yond disappointed and frustrated with this outcome. I cannot un derstand. I just don’t un derstand.”

Under Florida law, a death sentence requires a unanimous vote on at least one count. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scher

er will formally issue the life sentences Nov. 1. Relatives, along with the students and teachers Cruz wounded, will be given the opportunity to speak at the sentencing hearing.

Cruz, his hair un kempt, largely sat hunched over and stared at the table as the jury’s recommendations were read. Rumblings grew from the family section — packed with about three dozen par ents, spouses and other relatives of the victims — as life sentences were announced. Many shook their heads, looked an gry or covered their eyes, as the judge spent 50 minutes reading the jury’s decision for each victim.

on the roof of the main building, which could potentially be covered by insurance. Coryell is able to use previous in spections and weather records to identify spe cific storms that likely caused damage. Much of the hail likely hit the building on May 5, 2018, they said.

ACC Maintenance Di rector Ryan Sigg deliv ered the report from Co ryell, using photos and records they provided. He pointed out several areas of hail damage, stress fractures, clogged drains, areas where wa ter tends to pool, plac es where the roof had been patched and even old cables left lying on the roof. He also showed places where vents or air conditioning units were located, and the

FARM

“curbing” required to connect the roof to those items. Those plac es are especially vulner able to leaks.

“I’ve been on this roof, and there are a few sections where you walk on the membrane and you can hear a sound like crunching leaves,” he said.

All community col leges were required to have a roof inspection, Moses told the board. Cloud and Concordia, like ACC, have insur ance claims.

“This is an area where Ryan spends the most time trying to maintain,” Moses said.

Curry criticized the flat roof as being prone to problems, and asked if there was anything the roofing company could do to rectify it.

There is, Sigg said. The roof does have small tapered areas that direct water to drains.

Coryell could add sty rofoam pieces under a membrane to create slightly larger tapered areas to divert water “but you can only raise it so high.”

The board agreed to move forward and ask Coryell to explore the option for insurance claims, without com mitting to a full roof re placement.

IN OTHER business:

• ACC hosted an El evator Challenge on Tuesday, where students pitched business start up ideas to kickstart the

Allen Entrepreneurial Challenge planned for next semester.

Jenni Armstrong, an undecid ed freshman from Mo ran, won Judge’s Choice for her business, “Lieta Custom Blankets.” Bret Hawkesworht, a com munications sophomore from Burlington, won Top Pitch for “Puppuc cino,” a dog-themed coffee shop. Paulia Ard, a business administra tion freshman from Mo ran, won Top Idea for “Cafe Botanic,” a plantthemed coffee shop.

• Tosca Harris, Inter im Vice President for Academic Affairs, sub mitted a list of new and revised courses, includ ing proposals for new certificate programs in business technology and leadership, as well as a revision for the Ear ly Childhood Education certificate.

• The college current ly does not have any pos itive COVID-19 cases.

• Cynthia Jacobson, Vice President for Stu dent Affairs, talked about efforts to work with high schools on ed ucational pathways, and new options for students to securely upload docu ments.

• The board agreed to add an assistant technol ogy director position.

• Moses asked the board to consider the best way to review and update policies for all departments, after real izing many are outdated and some haven’t been reviewed in decades.

Allen Community College President Bruce Moses, left, listens as Phil Cook of Baxter Springs addresses the 23rd annual Allen Community College scholarship luncheon Wednesday. A 1989 ACC graduate, Cook is superintendent of schools at Carl Junction, Mo. REGISTER/GRACE GARNER

Sports Daily B

Allen women win, men fall at Pratt

PRATT — The Allen Community College men’s and women’s soccer teams competed at Pratt Community College on Wednesday afternoon.

The women’s team came up with a thrilling 2-1 overtime victory while the Allen men’s soccer team fell by two goals, 2-0.

Women’s Soccer Rebecca Lord saved the day for the Lady Red Devils (9-4; 3-1) when she scored a goal in the 107th minute of the second overtime to defeat Pratt, 2-1

The victory marked a fourmatch winning streak for the Lady Devils, (8-4; 2-1-1).

Allen allowed Pratt to get by them and score the opening goal only one minute and 17 seconds in.

“We started the game with a lot of energy while controlling the pace of play and connecting passes and having good chances to go to goal,” said Allen women’s soccer head coach Jeremy McGinnis. “We answered by having a near goal after a set piece was awarded.”

The Lady Red Devils missed a perfect chance at the back of the net right before halftime as Pratt took the 1-0 edge to the locker room.

Allen and Pratt went back and forth in the first half with the Beavers taking 12 shots and Allen five shots.

A Jessica Allen goal immediately following the halftime period put the Lady Red Devils on the board 20 seconds into the second half, knotting the match at 1-1.

“They started the second half with more energy,” said McGinnis. “The energy and run of play did not waiver. All the girls were focused and determined to put the game away.”

Neither team scored the rest of the second half before Lord found the bottom right corner of the goal in the second overtime period to propel her Lady Red Devils to a 2-1 win.

The Lady Red Devils kicked 15 shots on goal while the Beavers totaled 12 shots on goal. Allen also managed 16 total shots as opposed to Pratt’s 12 shots taken.

Allen and Lord led the Lady Red Devils offensively with three shots on goal and three total shots apiece. Andrea Gutierrez, Tanika Rother and Kate Giblin also each footed two shots on goal and two total shots.

Daniela Gonzalez had a busy day in goal making four big-time saves.

Men’s Soccer

The Allen men (9-3-1; 3-2) couldn’t find the back of the net through 90 minutes of action while the defense allowed a pair of goals.

The Beavers scored both goals in the opening half.

Allen’s Leonardo Andognini had three shots on goal and four shots total even as the Red Devils went scoreless. Methembe Mzizi kicked two shots on goal and two shots total while Yuto Kamakura managed one shot on goal and one shot total.

Alvaro Lopez made three saves in goal for Allen as Pratt got off five shots on goal.

Red Devil Patrick Alouidor was also called on a yellow card in the first half after becoming frustrated in the match.

Allen will host Hesston Community College on Sophomore Night on Saturday at 2 and 4 p.m., respectively.

No. 19 Kansas looks for rare win at Oklahoma

The Associated Press No. 19 Kansas (5-1, 2-1 Big 12) at Oklahoma (3-3, 0-3), Saturday, noon ET (ESPN2)

Line: Oklahoma by 9, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

Series record: Oklahoma leads 79-27-6.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

Kansas has a chance to post one of its best seasons ever and make a run at a spot in the Big 12 title game. But the Jayhawks are coming off a loss to TCU, and a loss to Oklahoma puts those high hopes in jeopardy. Oklahoma is likely already out of the running for the conference title, but a victory over Kansas would be a first step towards salvaging something from a disappointing season for first-year coach Brent Venables.

KEY MATCHUP

Oklahoma QB Dillon Gabriel vs. Kansas DE Lonnie Phelps. Gabriel missed last week’s game against Texas

while in concussion protocol. He’s expected to play Saturday as long as he gets through testing during the week. His condition makes it

critical that the Sooners keep Phelps, who ranks second among Big 12 players with six sacks, away from him.

PLAYERS TO WATCH Kansas: RB Devin Neal leads the Jayhawks with 421 yards rushing and has four touchdowns on the ground.

His support will be critical to Jason Bean, who likely will start at quarterback because Jalon Daniels suffered a right shoulder injury last week against TCU.

Oklahoma: WR Marvin Mims. He’s one of the best players in the Big 12 if the Sooners can get the ball to him, and that seems likely if Gabriel plays. He has 23 catches for 436 yards but had just one catch for minus-2 yards against Texas.

FACTS & FIGURES

Oklahoma has won 17 straight against Kansas. The Jayhawks last beat the Sooners in 1997. ... This will be the first time since 1992 that the teams have met when Kansas is ranked and Oklahoma is not. ... Kansas is ranked heading into the matchup for the first time since 2009. ... This will be just the sixth game since the start of the 2010 season that Oklahoma is unranked. ... Oklahoma has scored at least 34 points in its past 13 games against Kansas.

Allen women’s soccer player Blair Clark goes for a kick in a home match earlier this season. REGISTER/QUINN BURKITT

Kansas Jayhawks wide receiver Quentin Skinner (83) celebrated a touchdown against TCU at Booth Memorial Stadium last Saturday. TNS

Allen women’s soccer player Claudia Zahui (10) controls the ball. REGISTER/QUINN BURKITT

CLASSIFIEDS

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

THE PRESIDENT

Jan. 6 panel shows congressional leaders asking for help

WASHINGTON

6 Committee neared a vote

Thursday to subpoena former President Donald Trump to testify, as it pre sented interviews with his aides and new documents detailing his unflagging multi-part efforts to over turn his 2020 election loss.

The vote seeking Trump’s testimony comes as the panel is producing vivid new details and evi dence of Trump’s state of mind as he refused to con cede his loss to Joe Biden, resulting in the 2021 at tack at the Capitol.

Before that, the panel showed previously un

seen footage of congres sional leaders phoning of ficials for help during the assault.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Demo cratic Leader Chuck Schumer can be seen talk ing to governors in neigh boring Virginia and Mary land. Later the footage

shows Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and other GOP leaders as the group asks the acting attorney general for help.

“They’re breaking the law in many differ ent ways — quite frankly at the instigation of the president of the United States,” Pelosi is heard

saying at one point.

Also, in never-beforeseen Secret Service mes sages, the panel produced evidence of the way ex tremist groups provided the muscle in the fight for Trump’s presidency, plan ning weeks before the at tack to send a violent force to Washington.

fav ite flav s f fall.

and Pumpkin

O’Shaughnessy Liquor

Jewel

BY GEORGE DICKIE

he’s fabulous. He is generous. He’s always on He’s the kind of person says, you know, if you’re minutes early you’re late. (Laughs) So he’s always on he’s overprepared and knows ever ybody’s name he’s there to work, which love. There is no diva-ness

Victor Garber He is to work and he’s always prepared, so I love that about and he makes ever ybody up to that. So we all have show up willing to work and super-prepared.

also really fun. He’s got a sense of humor and he’s ver y sardonic, ver y sarcastic and self-deprecating and I love all of those things about him. So we all have a similar

Many of your scenes are Victor Garber who plays your character ’s estranged father How is as a scene partner?

Avoiding friend because of her predatory dad

Dear Carolyn: When I was 18, I rented a room from my friend’s fam ily. What I know hap pened is that one night when I came home, my friend’s father was wait ing for me, naked. I was able to avoid him and walk straight into my bedroom and pretend it never happened. What I suspect also happened another time was that he drugged and raped me.

I had enough doubt and denial that I contin ued to pretend nothing happened for years. I was able to interact with my friend and deal with seeing her father on rare occasions I had to.

The past few years, this has become more and more difficult. When my friend calls or texts, I can’t stop thinking about what happened 10 years ago. I’m fear ful her father is nearby, and I don’t want him to know anything about me. So I’ve stopped re sponding to her.

She has started ask ing my family about me and continues to try to contact me. I don’t want

Tell Me About It

Carolyn Hax

to hurt her or make her think she did anything wrong. But I’m not com fortable telling her the truth. I’m afraid she’ll gaslight me. I’m afraid she’ll tell her family and they’ll all gaslight me.

Is it OK to continue to ghost her? Is there a way I can tell her to stop contacting me without telling her the truth or making her feel like she did something wrong? — Feeling Trapped, Scared, and Sad Feeling Trapped, Scared, and Sad: What a sick feeling to have to carry around with you. I am so sorry that hap pened to you.

The issue of your friend is important and worth exploring, but even with her persis tence — some thoughts on that in a moment — it’s still not as urgent as your emotional health. That’s what your body

is telling you with its repetitive thoughts. It’s asking you to get some help dealing with it and finding ways to feel safe again.

There is infrastruc ture for this, and it’s free: The National Do mestic Violence Hotline (thehotline.org) and the Rape, Abuse and In cest National Network (rainn.org) will hear you out and refer you as needed to ongoing local care.

Self-care supersedes friend care. However, just as you left your trauma unaddressed, ghosting someone leaves an emotional rupture unaddressed, which can not only pre empt healing but also prolong or intensify pain — for both of you. You don’t need to revive the friendship or tell her the truth, certainly not before you’re ready, or not ever. Your call. But a quick, “It’s not you. I have stuff to work out. Thank you in advance for respecting that,” would be a kindness to you both, pressing pause on the renewable

Nighttime showers don’t increase stroke risk

DEAR DR. ROACH: I’m a senior, and I show er in the evenings, re gardless of what time I go to sleep. There are times I shower after midnight as well.

I was told that show ering late, and then go ing to sleep isn’t good for seniors because it overstimulates the body and is not conducive to good sleep. Plus, it can cause a stroke. Is there any truth to this infor mation? Or, is it just an old wives’ tale? Because I’m 82 years old, and I love showering at night, just for the want of feel ing clean. — L.A.

ANSWER: Some peo ple do get energized by a bath or shower, but most people get relaxed.

CRYPTOQUOTES

Dr. Keith Roach

stress of her outreach.

About her persistence, which could be lovely or telling or both:

At face value, she cares about you a lot. If true, that is a promising counterweight to your fear she will gaslight you. (Unless she’s done this to you or others, in which case, bye!)

Beneath the surface, it seems possible she has picked up more about her dad’s predation than you realize, and suspects he’s connected to your silence.

That doesn’t mean she’d be a sympathetic confidante; she’ll have her own process for sure. However, her possible role in your recovery — and yours in hers — are points at least to consid er (in due time) in the se cure confines of therapy. Plus she might have chil dren, nieces, nephews someday.

The larger point be ing, you have opportu nities to replace past denial and current ter ror with exploration and healing you direct. Grab the reins, make the call and take care.

ZITS by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

Yesterday’s Cryptoquote:

The question isn’t who’s going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me. — Ayn Rand

To Your Good Health advertise

There is some evidence that increasing the body’s core temperature a little by a hot bath or shower improves sleep, so I would say that un less you find difficulty sleeping, you can take your shower at night time.

I did find people claiming that shower ing at night increases risk of stroke, although there is no good evi dence that this is true.

The major risk factors for stroke are the ones most people know: high

blood pressure, elevated cholesterol levels, poor diet, smoking and ex cess alcohol. Showering doesn’t make sense as a risk factor, so you can shower anytime you like.

In The Classifieds your Auction

BEETLE BAILEY by Mort Walker

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE by Chris Browne FUNKY WINKERBEAN by Tom Batiuk BLONDIE by Young and Drake

MARVIN by Tom Armstrong

HI AND LOIS by Chance Browne

D N J E J L O G T D N L G B I J D D J E D N Z G Z C E L J G U , Q G W J O O L D L O Z C E L J G U M L D N R N T R T W Z D J . — W L G U Z B E Z P O T G

USWNT legend Chastain talks coaching high school

By Lia Assimakopoulos

DALLAS — Since scoring the game-winning penalty against China in the 1999 World Cup Finals, USWNT legend Brandi Chastain has gone on to coach, commentate and advocate for women’s leadership in sports.

Her most recent speaking endeavor brought the two-time Olympic gold medalist to Texas Woman’s University in Denton to discuss how sports have impacted her life and the connection between women’s leadership and athletics.

Chastain spoke with The Dallas Morning News before the event about what she’s been up to since she concluded her decorated career in 2010 as well as some of the most pressing issues in women’s soccer today.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

— What has your experience been like coaching high school soccer?

— Chastain: “Nothing has replaced playing in my heart, but I found a lot of things that bring me a lot of joy, and parenting and coaching are pretty close to one and two to fulfilling that void that was left from being with your teammates all the time.

“I love high school sports, and I believe that every person should have a high school sports experience. I say that because not everybody’s gonna go on to play college sports, and not everybody’s gonna go on to play in the World Cup or in the Olympic Games and have a professional career. The things that I learned about myself, the confidence that I could build, the pride I had wearing my school colors and my school logo or uniform were really powerful. I think high school sports don’t always have to live up to the professional side of things. It has so much to offer.”

— How has coaching boys soccer differed from being involved in women’s soccer?

— Chastain: “I coached boys in high school, so that was an experience, being able to learn the profile of

the players and the mentality and the emotions of the players. I happen to be a mom of boys, so I had at least a little experience in that, but to see really an action, and then to bring those things back to when I coached girls and then to bring the things I thought were really good about the girls over to the boys.

“It was really this great cross-pollination of concepts of caring for your teammates more and a little less about yourself for the boys. And on this side for the girls, how can you see yourself more, put yourself out there more in an individual way that’s not conceded? It’s more about building your own confidence and saying you can do it.”

— What was it like to watch the USWNT sign its historic collective bargaining agreement in May to achieve equal pay?

— Chastain: “I think all of us who have been in this conversation for the last 25 years of playing for the national team, we’ve been exhausted by the conversation. Getting there was such a battle, so having to have that conversation for multiple decades was exhausting. I think the first thing I felt when it was done was a sense of relief. And of course, there was joy that came along with that. But I think it was just this exhaustion that was kind of the overarching emotion at first.

“We knew that it would have this great impact, and that this watershed moment would not just be for the U.S. Women’s National Team, but for so many other people in different places, whether that be in sport or not. And it would be another example of why things don’t have to be the way they’ve been. Change is good. Change is important. Change can be hard, but it also can be really great. So, let’s get out of the fearful part of this and get on with the good things that we can do.

“It took a lot of people doing a lot of hard work and never giving up. I think there’s a lot to be said about that. This was a four-decade long arm wrestle. We’re very pleased with the outcome, but we also

still have to be diligent.

Look at what’s been going on. Whatever your beliefs are, things can be taken away, so we have to be diligent, and we have to stay present and aware and make sure that we don’t regress.”

— How does the NWSL move forward after the surfacing of the abuse allegations around the league?

— Chastain: “It’s devastating on so many levels for so many reasons whether you’re a fan of the sport or not. Just having that type of environment so detrimental to the health of people, that’s awful.

“I honestly believe this is a tipping point. There’s always these moments in time where you have to decide how you make this better. I feel like this is a chance for us to take something that’s really good at its core and the essence of what it is and now we can uplift it. Unfortunately, there’s been some tragic history, but if you look at any history, you see that big change usually comes when these themes happen.

“I’m not saying for one moment that something like this should happen or needs to happen. I would love for things to evolve in a natural way that is always progressive and positive. But we are where we are, and we can make better, and we will do better. Because of this, things will be better.”

— With such progress being reached in some regards like the Title IX anniversary or the CBA coinciding with steps backward like the NWSL abuse scandal and the overturning of Roe v. Wade, are we in a period of progress or regression for women and women in sports, in particular?

— Chastain: “I honestly believe we were meant to work, and we’re meant to make change, and we’re meant to inspire. It’s not always going to be easy. But I know we’re strong enough. I know we’re capable enough. And we need allies, and we need advocates. We cannot do it on our own.

“But I think it also is just a reminder of being present and being aware, and not taking things for granted, and that we stay diligent.”

Avalanche raise banner

DENVER (AP) — Mikko Rantanen and his teammates logged a lot of extra ice time in the opener.

Well worth it, of course, to take part in the emotion-stirring, banner-raising ceremony before the game that lasted 20 or so minutes.

Artturi Lehkonen and Valeri Nichushkin each scored two power-play goals, Rantanen had four assists and the fast-skating Colorado Avalanche began their Stanley Cup title defense with a 5-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday night.

Shortly after raising their newest banner to the rafters, the Avalanche went to work. Andrew Cogliano scored Colorado’s first goal of the season, the only goal in the game that wasn’t on the power play. Nathan MacKinnon, fresh off a new lucrative contract, contributed two assists, while new goaltender Alexandar Georgiev stopped 15 shots.

“Our championship team is in the rafters forever,” said Rantanen, who turned in the 12th four-point night of his career. “You don’t think about it too much (now), but I think we will appreciate it later.”

Jonathan Toews and Max Domi had goals as Luke Richardson made his coaching debut for the Blackhawks.

Petr Mrazek finished with 30 saves against an Avalanche team that won the title last season by dethroning Tampa Bay in six games.

“Obviously it’s special to see that banner go up there, to contribute to history,” Toews said. “But I think once the puck drops the attitude is it’s behind you and nobody really cares. You got to go out there and try to win the game.”

Colorado moved defending Stanley Cup champions to 60-26-16 in openers.

The crowd was revved up well before the puck even dropped.

The appetizer: A highlight video of Colorado’s run to the franchise’s third Stanley

Cup title. Then, some music as Mark Hoppus of the Blink-182 led a sing-along of the band’s tune “All The Small Things,” which became an anthem for the Avalanche.

There also was captain Gabriel Landeskog hoisting the Cup and skating around with the trophy (he missed the game with a lower-body injury). Of course, there were plenty of onice pictures, including a memorable shot of the team with Blackhawks defenseman Jack Johnson joining in. Johnson was with Colorado last season.

Finally, the feature attraction — the banner raised to the rafters. As it climbed higher and higher, the cheers got louder and louder.

“I got pretty emotional actually when they’re doing the video beforehand,” said Johnson, who was wearing his championship ring in his postgame interview. “Some day I can bring my grandkids or my kids, if they don’t believe that dad played, and show them.”

Once the pregame celebration concluded, Colorado’s title defense got underway.

The Avalanche took a little bit of time to find their rhythm, but once they did they were flying around the ice.

They scored four power-play goals, including two by Lehkonen in the second period, for a 4-1 lead.

“Pretty emotional, but I thought we came out really well,” Lehkonen said.

After a summer filled with parades, parties and celebrations with the Cup, the Avalanche embark on the difficult

task of becoming a back-to-back champion.

In the NHL’s salary cap era that began in 2005, only Tampa Bay (‘20, ‘21) and Pittsburgh (‘16, ‘17) have accomplished the feat.

“Raising that banner, I only think it’s going to motivate us more to do it again,” said defenseman Cale Makar, who had two assists.

“Knowing that we all accomplished that together and being on the ice together again, it’s only going to drive us forward.”

SMALL THINGS

It’s got to be the tune. Or at least that’s the opinion of Hoppus, whose band’s song was belted out at Ball Arena all the way to the title.

“Because they played our song, they won the Stanley Cup,” Hoppus cracked before the game. “Every other team didn’t play our song. No Stanley Cup.”

RING CEREMONY

The Avalanche held a private dinner and ring ceremony Monday night for their players, coaches and team members. Among those on hand was Johnson, who played in 13 playoff games for Colorado last season.

“Ideally, you’d love to have all your guys here. It’s not possible, obviously,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. “To be able to have Jack here and have dinner with us the other night ... and then obviously the banner, it’s pretty special.”

UP NEXT Blackhawks: At Vegas on Thursday night.

Avalanche: At Calgary on Thursday night to face former teammate Nazem Kadri.

The 2022 Colorado Avalanche Stanley Cup banner is raised. The DENVER POST/AARON ONTIVEROZ