The Iola Register, Sept. 20, 2023

Locally owned since 1867

Piqua ends banking era

By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register

Piqua State Bank, a part of the local banking community since 1910, is no more.

The bank, which had branches in Piqua, Gas and Yates Center, has been acquired by Bank of Commerce, effective Sept. 1. The transition should be seamless, with most customers noting little, if any change, noted Heather Curry, who will remain as manager of both the Gas and Yates Center branches. (The Piqua branch closed its doors prior to the merger.)

Piqua State Bank customers were sent letters on Friday detailing the changeover, Curry said.

“Nothing’s really changed yet,” she said. “Eventually we’ll have new signs. They didn’t want to come in and immediately erase everything that said ‘Piqua State Bank.’”

The timeline is to incorporate Pique State Bank’s systems into Bank of Commerce by April, Curry said.

“Prior to that, customers will receive communications about what to expect,” she

said. “Debit cards will change, for example.”

Paper checks will still be used until it’s time for customers to order new ones, Curry said.

By April, Piqua State Bank customers will have a few more services at their convenience, such as access to Bank of Commerce automated teller machines sprinkled across

southeast Kansas. “There will be other benefits,” Curry continued. “They have mobile banking — where you can deposit a check by

See BANK | Page A4

Districts seek to entice students back to class

By SUZANNE PEREZ Kansas News Service

WICHITA — Three years after the pandemic sent most Kansas kids home to learn, schools have a vexing new challenge: getting them to come back to class.

Missing school has become a crisis statewide. More than one in four Kansas students were chronically absent during the 2021-22 school year, which means they missed at least 10% of instruction time. That figure nearly doubled over the previous two years.

State education leaders are still compiling data from last school year, but they expect the problem is getting worse.

“Definitely a dramatic uptick … which is not what anybody would want to see,” said Robyn Kelso, who monitors attendance for the Kansas Department of Education. “At

the same time, I don’t know that I’m necessarily surprised.”

Many older students struggled with the transition to remote learning and then back to a normal school routine. Some saw their mental health

suffer and lost the motivation to attend class.

With younger students, families are more likely to keep them home with minor cold or allergy symptoms, so the once rare sick day is becoming more commonplace.

“If our kids have the sniffles or a cough, there still is this idea out there of worry that it might spread,” said Laura Drouard, principal of Riverside Elementary School in Wichita. “We have a nurse who can check for temperatures and other concerns. So we hope the message is: If you’re not sick, be at school and create those consistent routines.”

Unlike truancy, which relates to unexcused absences, chronic absenteeism includes parent-excused absences such as those for sickness, medical appointments, family commitments and vacations.

But missing even occasional days can have a profound effect: A student who misses two days a month beginning in kindergarten will have missed the equivalent of an entire year of school by 12th

See SCHOOLS | Page A6

Carl Slaugh

Veterans can have a banner day

By VICKIE MOSS The Iola Register

Local families can honor the veterans in their lives with a banner displayed downtown for Veterans Day.

The Allen County Veterans Committee is offering the opportunity to display such banners on light poles around the town square for about a month. The cost is $100. Iola’s city electric crews will put up and take down the banners.

Carl Slaugh, a city council member, met with county commissioners Tuesday to discuss the project. Commissioners offered their support.

There’s a short window for the project, Slaugh said. Photos must be sub-

See COUNTY | Page A4

Biden exhorts world leaders at the UN to stand up to Russia

UNITED NATIONS (AP) —

President Joe Biden made his case before the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday that the world must remain united in defending Ukraine against Russian aggression, warning that no nation can be secure if “we allow Ukraine to be carved up” as he tries to rally support for Kyiv’s effort to repel a nearly 19-month-old Russian invasion that has no end in sight. The U.S. president called on world leaders to not let support for Ukraine diminish, arguing that Russia is counting on countries to

grow tired of prolonged conflict in Kyiv which will “allow it to brutalize Ukraine without consequence.” Russia alone is standing in the way of a resolution, Biden argued, saying that Moscow’s price for peace was “Ukraine’s capitulation, Ukraine’s territory and Ukraine’s children.”

“I ask you this: If we abandon the core principles of the United States to appease an aggressor, can any member state in this body feel confident that they are protected?” Biden said in his address. “If we allow Ukraine to be carved up, is the independence of

any nation secure?

He continued: “I’d respectfully suggest the answer is no.”

The president’s forceful rhetoric on Ukraine appeared aimed not just for a global audience but for Washington, where an increasingly isolationist strain of the Republican Party is jeopardizing the prospects of the U.S. successfully replenishing the steady flow of aid that has gone to Kyiv since the war began in February 2022.

The Biden administration has asked Congress to green-

See RUSSIA | Page A3

Employees who worked at Piqua State Bank remain now that is has been acquired by Bank of Commerce. They are, from left, Heath Curry, Nancy Roberts, Heather Curry, Angela Barker, Pam Hudson, Debbie Menzie and Sue Martin. Not pictured is Dalton Altis. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

More than one in four Kansas students were chronically absent during the 2021-22 school year, which means they missed at least 10% of instruction time. That figure nearly doubled over the previous two years. FLICKR CREATIVE COMMONS/CHRISTOPHER SESSUMS

President Joe Biden addresses the 78th United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York City, on Sept. 19, 2023. (TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/GETTY IMAGES/TNS)

Officers respond to gunfire

Reports of potential gunfire are keeping law enforcement officers on their toes this week.

Allen County sheriff’s deputies were called to assist with an investigation stemming from Neosho Falls Tuesday morning after a subject reportedly angrily fired several shots into the air during a dispute. The subject, who was

Mark Sutterby

not identified, left the scene, deputies said, and led investigators to believe he had headed to Allen County.

Officers were searching for the subject through the morning.

The incident was unrelated to two other calls for possible gunfire, including overnight Monday in the 400 block of Kansas Drive in north-

Mark Walter Sutterby, 55, of Redfield passed away in the early morning of Monday, Sept. 18, 2023.

Mark was born and raised in Iola. Mark loved spending his free time going on road trips for car parts and grilling down by the lake on his property. Mark will be dearly missed and remembered in the retellings of all his best stories.

Mark is preceded in death by his parents, Merle and Betty Sutterby and daughter, Aleah Sutterby. He is survived by his sisters, (Larry) Janet Buck and Becky Williams, and brothers, Richard, Raymond and Sharon, and Roland and Spring Sutterby; his partner, Angela McCain, his sons Jacob Sutterby and Caleb (Bralynn) Sutterby, and granddaughter

Allie Sutterby.

We request all Mark’s loved ones to join us in celebrating his life at Harvest Baptist Church, 2001 N.State St., Iola at 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 23.

Unity club lesson spans ‘generations’

Iola’s Unity Club members explored at their monthly meeting Sept. 11 how different generations interact in the workplace.

Ellen Thompson reported on Chuck Underwood’s book, “Understanding Generational differences in the workplace, Marketplace & Living Room.”

She detailed how workforce diversity affects human resource strategies, how marketing is tailored to specific generations and how children, parents and others are understood.

Thompson described the book as the most provocative page-turner covering the fastest-rising business and family topic in America: the story of generational differences.

She detailed each of the generations, “The Silents” or America’s last innocent generation; “Boomers,” the rock-the-world generation now taking its turn at the top of American leadership; “Gen X,” the island generation often different and misunderstood; and “Millennials,” America’s next great generation.

Each generation comes with a “bible” of tips and tactics that teach businesses how

west Iola. The noise came from fireworks, deputies said. A separate fireworks/ gunshot call came over the weekend in Humboldt, deputies noted. While fireworks are legal to be shot off in Allen County year-round, they are strictly enforced to a few days before July 4 in places such as Humboldt and Iola, deputies noted.

Cooking class offers ‘mammal-free’ recipes

As Saturday’s Register article noted, alpha-gal syndrome, caused by a lone star tick bite, has severe consequences. Potentially fatal, the syndrome requires those who have it to avoid eating anything associated with a mammal.

An event this Sunday at Iola’s Seventh-Day Adventist Church will help participants discover how to transition to a healthy, mammal-free diet.

Retired nurse Debbie Goff and

Betty Hawley will showcase a variety of dairy-free cheeses, plantbased butter, and old-time favorites like biscuits and gravy. “We hope to help teach people how to cook from scratch and encourage them to eat healthier. We want to help people learn how to eat so they don’t get sick,” said Goff.

Sunday’s free event will start at noon. The Seventh-Day Adventist Church is located at 2401 S. State St., Iola. Those interested can reach Goff at 913-683-3651.

to deal with consumers and employees as well as parents and children.

Thirteen members dined on chicken salad, croissants and a pumpkin roll served by Stacy Cakes at the Humboldt Public Library.

Mary Joseph will host the Oct. 9 meeting at 1:30 p.m. at the Frederick Funston Meeting Room at 207 N. Jefferson, Iola.

Donna Houser will lead the program.

to District school facilities, including but not limited to: (a) classroom addition, designed as a storm shelter; (b) main entry ADA and secure entry addition, renovations and improvements; (c) existing classrooms and locker rooms renovations and improvements; (d) kitchen and cafeteria renovations and improvements; (e) new auxiliary gymnasium addition; (f) parking and entry drive improvements; and (g) all other necessary improvements related thereto (collectively the “Project”), and to pay costs of issuance and interest on said general obligation bonds during construction of the Project; all pursuant to the provisions of K.S.A. 10-101 et seq.,

K.S.A. 25-2018(0, K.S.A. 72-5457, and K.S.A. 72-5458 et seq.?

To vote in favor of any question submitted on this ballot, press the word “Yes” on the voting machine or completely darken the oval to the left of the word “Yes” on the paper ballot. To vote against it, press the word “No” on the voting machine or completely darken the oval to the left of the word “No” on the paper ballot

O YES

O NO

The polls will open at 7:00 0’clock A.M. and will close at 7:00 0’clock P.M., on November 7, 2023, the election day. The voting places in the district, and the area each voting place will serve, will be as follows:

Voters Residing In Precinct, Will vote At, Location Indian Creek Township, Colony City Hall, Colony, Kansas Lincoln Township, Welda Community Building, Welda, Kansas Lone Elm Township, Selma Kincaid Methodist Church, Kincaid, Kansas Lone Elm City, Selma Kincaid Methodist Church, Kincaid, Kansas Rich Township, Selma Kincaid Methodist Church, Kincaid, Kansas Kincaid City, Selma Kincaid Methodist Church, Kincaid, Kansas Ozark Township, Colony City Hall, Colony, Kansas Colony City, Colony City Hall, Colony, Kansas Carlyle Township, North Community Building, Iola, Kansas Deer Creek Township, North Community Building, Iola, Kansas Geneva Township, North Community Building, Iola, Kansas

The election will be conducted by the officers and/or persons provided by law for holding elections, and the method of voting will be by ballot. Registered voters are eligible to vote by advance voting ballot upon application to the County Clerk at the address set forth below pursuant to K.S.A. 25-1 1 17 el seq.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The Capital Improvement Fund (“CIF”) has been established in the treasury of the State of Kansas to assist school districts with making principal and interest payments on voted general obligation bond is-

sues, The amount of CIF funding each school district receives is based on a formula prescribed by statute and implemented by the State Board of Education (“Bond State Aid”). Based on the current formula, the District expects to receive Bond State Aid in the approximate amount set forth below to assist with making the principal and interest payments on the Bonds. No assurance can be given that Bond State Aid will continue at this or any amount in future years. The following additional information is provided by the District with respect to compliance with the provisions of K.S.A. 10-120a and K.S.A. 12-6, 122. This information has been obtained from sources deemed reliable by the District. Certain portions of this information are based upon projections. No assurances can be given that these projections will be accurate as of the date of issuance of the Bonds due to changing market conditions, any changes in assessed valuation of the District, changes in the amount of state financial aid received by the District and other matters unknown or unavailable at this time. The projected rates of property taxation to be used to pay the principal of and interest on the Bonds are based upon the current assessed valuation of the District, the assumed principal repayment schedule and the average interest rates from recent bond issues for similar types of financings and the current level of Bond State Aid the District would receive with respect to the Bonds, all as shown below.

Mark Sutterby

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light an additional $24 billion in security and humanitarian aid to Ukraine, but Republicans who control the House have all but ignored that request as lawmakers scramble to ensure government funding remains flowing beyond the end of September.

Animated by the views of former President Donald Trump, a vocal faction of House Republicans remain steadfastly opposed to more Ukraine aid, even as other GOP lawmakers, primarily in the Senate, continue to advocate support for Kyiv to dissuade Russia from spreading its attacks beyond Ukraine’s borders.

“We have to stand up to this naked aggression today and deter other would-be aggressors tomorrow,” Biden said in his U.N. address. “That’s why the United Statestogether with our allies and partners around the world — will continue to stand with the brave people of Ukraine as they defend their sovereignty and territorial integrity and their freedom.”

Other senior members of the Biden administration were making their case on Tuesday, as Defense Secretary Lloyd Austinpushed allied defense leaders in remarks at Ramstein Air Base in Germany to “dig deep” and provide more air defense systems for Ukraine to help the country wage its counteroffensive.

Indeed, the broader message is intended to resonate beyond Moscow and even Capitol Hill. Washington remains on guard against Chinese aggression in the South China Sea, where competing territorial claims have caused tension in the region. Beijing also wants to reunite the mainland with the self-governing island of Taiwan, a goal that raises the prospect of another war.

During his address, Biden described the partnerships that the U.S. government was fostering around the globe — from Africa to the Indo-Pacific — that he said were creating economic, security and other advancements, even as he stressed that those relationships were not about “containing any country” — a clear reference to Beijing.

“When it comes to

A man runs in front of a house burning after being shelled in the city of Irpin, Ukraine, outside Kyiv, on March 4, 2022. (ARIS MESSINIS/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES/ TNS)

China, let me be clear and consistent,” Biden said. “We seek to responsibly manage competition between our countries so it does not tip into conflict. I’ve said we are for de-risking — not decoupling — with China.”

Biden emphasized that Beijing and Washington need to cooperate on climate, and referenced recent natural disasters — devastating heat waves, droughts and floods around the globe — as part of a “snapshot” that tells the “urgent story of what awaits us if we fail to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and begin to climate-proof the world.”

Despite his own emphasis on climate as a priority, Biden does not plan to attend a special summit on climate that U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres will host on Wednesday, where countries are encouraged to bring new ideas and proposals on how to further cut emissions and combat climate change. Officials played down Biden’s

absence at the climate summit, and said John Kerry, the U.S. climate envoy, will attend in Biden’s place.

In his 30-minute address, Biden also repeatedly emphasized the value of institutions such as the United Nations and international coalitions that has helped the world confront significant challenges such as poverty and disease, as well as echoing his defense of democracy, a common theme of his presidency. “We will not retreat

from the values that make us strong,” Biden said. “We will defend democracy — our best tool to meet the challenges that we face around the world. And we’re working to show how democracy can deliver in ways that matter to people’s lives.”

The annual forum was a chance for Biden to showcase to other world leaders — and the 2024 U.S. electorate — that he’s reestablished U.S. leadership on the world stage that he says was diminished under Trump.

A celebration of her life will be held from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Friday, September 22 at the Masonic lodge in Iola, located next to the Sonic Drive-In. Come by and eat some cake, drink some coffee or punch, listen to Elvis and bring your happy memories and funny stories to help her family celebrate a life well lived!

“Remember me with smiles and laughter, for that is how I will remember you all. If you can only remember me with tears and sorrow, then don’t remember me at all.”

(620)365-3964 rbvs@redbarnvet.com 1520 1300th St.,Iola www.redbarnvet.com

bers of the U.N. Security Council — are all skipping the gathering. U.S. officials downplayed that fact and instead emphasized the importance that Biden attaches to showing up at the annual diplomatic forum. 24-Hour Emergency Care In-House Laboratory and Diagnostic Services Laser Surgery Professional, Caring Staff

By Darrell R. Monfort D.V.M.

It's that time of year again - not fall or football season, but what veterinarians call “Parvo Time.” I have practiced for 45 years, and parvovirus was just on the horizon when I graduated from vet school in 1976. Canine parvovirus (CPV) really arrived over the next two or three years and spread worldwide, killing thousands of puppies while millions of dogs became ill. Vaccines used to prevent parvovirus were developed in response to the rapid spread of the disease and the futility of treatment, to prevent the disease. They have been amazingly effective when used correctly.

A short course in immunology relating to CPV. When a mammal, in this case a puppy, is born and receives the first milk his mother produces, that puppy develops what is termed passive immunity. The first milk, colostrum, contains concentrated antibodies that will protect against bacteria and viruses that the mom dog has been exposed to naturally or through vaccination. The antibodies provide protection for the first 3 to 10 weeks, depending on how much was ingested during the first few feedings. However, individual mammal’s immune systems develop at their own pace, in dogs and people, meaning that a few pups will build their own immunity in response to exposure to a virus or bacteria in the form of antibodies at 6 weeks, more puppies at 8 to 10 weeks, and the majority will be able to respond by 16 weeks.

Veterinarians cannot predict when a juvenile’s immune system will become active and, to both stimulate it into response and to provide the earliest individual protection from common canine diseases, vaccinations are given in a series at intervals. Once the passive immunity from the mother’s colostrum has been used up, without vaccinations using safe vaccines, properly stored and administered, the puppy is now unprotected. A more mature immune system will jump into action creating antibodies to fight the disease, an immature or unexposed unvaccinated immune system may or may not try to respond, but often there just isn’t time before the disease, in this case, parvovirus, replicates within the puppy’s body and overwhelms them. Untreated, unvaccinated, and active parvovirus in puppies have as high as 91% fatality

TWO LOCATIONS!

IOLA PHARMACY iolapharmacy.com DELIVERING RIGHT TO YOUR DOOR! Daily Service to Iola M-W-F Delivery to Gas, LaHarpe, Moran, Humboldt and Yates Center IOLA PHARMACY CLINIC 1408 E. Madison • Iola

M-F 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. • 1:30 – 5:30 p.m. IOLA PHARMACY DOWNTOWN 109 E. Madison • Iola (620)365-3176 M-F 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. • Sat. 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. SERVING YOU AT

How can you, as an owner, keep your pup and dogs, as well as others, safe? Vaccinate puppies on the recommended schedule, and annually after that (adults may be ill without visible signs and still be shedding virus in their bowel movements). Keep your pup home in your yard where other dogs do not wander, feed quality food and deworm as your vet advises. If you are the owner of a dog and walk them in public areas, bag your animal’s feces and dispose of them safely. This will physically cut down on some levels of intestinal parasites and virus exposure in public where children and other animals also walk.

County: Road work delayed

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mitted no later than Sunday, Sept. 24. Each banner will be about 2 feet by 4 feet, with a photo of the veteran printed on both sides.

Only 24 brackets and light poles are available.

Those who purchase a banner will receive it after the conclusion of the display.

For more information or to submit a photo, email Slaugh at c2cslaugh@gmail.com. Include information about the branch of service, service dates or other information that might be useful, Slaugh said. He will provide information about how to make payments to the veterans committee.

IN OTHER news, county commissioners:

•Approved a bid of $20,515 from Environmental Products of Apalachin,N.Y., for 880 bags of a fire-protection chemical used to cover refuse at the landfill.

•Heard a report on road repairs from Mark Griffith, road and bridge director. He said he “may have bitten off more than I could chew this summer” regarding road repairs. He had converted some roads to gravel with the intention of repairing the base before adding a chip and seal coating, but was unable to finish many of the repairs.

He said he may have to reconsider road repairs in cities, as those efforts limit the

amount of work his crews could do elsewhere in the county. He planned to patch some areas of roads that would not be finished before winter. He also discussed problems with new dump trucks. Because of an issue with a third party, the trucks are not road worthy, he told commissioners. He is working to find replacements.

•Heard an update from Chairman David Lee who attended a recent conference. Lee wondered if the county had done an analysis of cyber threats. He also said he’d talked with other counties about funding their EMS; many use sales tax proceeds. He suggested that might be worth considering.

Bank: Piqua branch closes

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taking a picture of it — which is something we didn’t have.”

Until then, Piqua State Bank customers can still do their online banking at piquastatebank.com.

Likewise, Bank of Commerce customers will eventually be able to do business in Gas and Yates Center.

Loan payments, direct deposits and other transactions will continue as they have.

“The terms of your loans won’t change, unless you refinance or take out new ones,” Curry said.

A bank account may change in the rare instance of a Piqua State Bank customer having an identical account number as one from Bank of Commerce, Curry said.

BANK OF Commerce, like Piqua State Bank, has been locally owned for more than a generation.

Acquired by the late Virgil Lair in 1985, Bank of Commerce remains in the Lair family today and operates out of 13 locations across eastern Kansas, including its main branch in Chanute. If the Lair name sounds familiar to Piqua residents, it’s because Virgil Lair was a Piqua native who helped establish the Piqua Farmers Cooperative.

Other Bank of Commerce branches are in Burden, Chetopa, Erie, Fall River, Howard, Longton, Neodesha, Oxford, Parsons and Thayer.

Like Piqua State Bank, much of Bank of Commerce’s business is centered on agricultural and home loans.

PIQUA State Bank was organized in 1910 by L. C.Neimann.

During that same year, the Farmers State Bank was opened in Piqua by George Wille. In 1914, the Wille family purchased the Piqua State Bank and merged the two under the name of the Piqua State Bank.

John Wille, George Wille’s son, owned and managed the bank for

Prairie Rose floats into Moran parade

the next 50 years. The bank was eventually purchased by Galen L.(Jack) Curry following his retirement from the Army in 1971 and has remained with the Curry family until today, with several family members still employed there.

CURRY noted Piqua State Bank’s decision to close the Piqua branch over the summer was independent of the Bank of Commerce acquisition and based primarily on lack of foot traffic and needed capital improvements to the Piqua facility.

“It was a hard decision because it’s a little more inconvenient for some customers,” she noted. “It was so easy just to pop in. But with three locations and technology the way it is, people just don’t have to go into physical banks the way they used to.

“Customers have adjusted quickly,” she added. “They’re coming to

Yates Center or Gas now. It helps that they see the same people.”

The Yates Center branch has four fulltime employees; Gas has six full-time and one part-time employee.

Members of the Prairie Rose 4-H Club participated in the Moran Day festivities by riding the float they helped create this past Saturday. Riding on the float, from left, are Doug Dix, Lucas Owens, Kylar Botts, Natalea Elmenhorst-Heins, Kelci Botts, Mallory Heim, Catie Dix and Sara Dix. Decorating the float, from left, are Harper Gabbert, Henry Gabbert and Doug Dix. COURTESY OF PRAIRIE ROSE

FINANCIAL FOCUS®

What to know about HSAs and FSAs

Paying for health care can be challenging — but are you taking full advantage of all the resources available to you?

You might have access to a Health Savings Account (HSA) or a Flexible Spending Account (FSA), so let’s look at both.

An HSA is a personal savings account used to pay health care costs. If you’re enrolled in a high-deductible health plan, you also may be eligible to contribute to an HSA. You aren’t taxed on the money you put into this account or on the earnings generated from your contributions, as long as withdrawals are used for qualified health care costs such as deductibles, copayments and coinsurance. And there’s no “use it or lose it” provision with HSAs — the money stays in your account until you use it. In fact, you can carry your HSA with you all the way until retirement, when you can use the money to pay for qualified expenses that Medicare or Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap) doesn’t cover. In 2023, you can contribute up to $3,850 to an HSA, or $4,850 if you’re 55 or older; for family coverage, you can put in up to $7,750.

It’s important to keep in mind that your HSA’s tax benefits only apply when your withdrawals are used for qualified heath care costs. If you use the money for non-qualified expenses, it is considered taxable income, and you may also face a penalty of 20% on the amount withdrawn. However, once you turn 65, you can use your HSA funds for any purpose without a penalty, though the withdrawals will still count as taxable income.

Now, let’s turn to the Flexible Savings Account. An FSA may be available to you if you get health insurance through your employer. And because you fund your FSA with pretax dollars, your contributions can reduce your taxable income. (In 2023, you can contribute up to $3,050 to an FSA.) Your employer may also choose to contribute to your FSA. Once your account is funded and active, you submit claims with proof of your medical expenses, along with a statement that these expenses aren’t covered by your plan, and you can be reimbursed for your costs.

It’s helpful to have a good estimate of your yearly medical expenses for a Flexible Savings Account. That’s because an FSA generally needs to be spent before the end of the plan year — if you don’t use all the money, you can only carry over some of it and any remaining balance is forfeited. (You can carry over up to $610 from 2023 into 2024.)

You can't contribute to an HSA and a traditional FSA in the same year. But if you have an HSA, you might be able to use what’s known as a Limited Purpose Flexible Spending Account (LPFSA) for dental and vision expenses. You’ll need to check with your plan to see if this option is available. Managing your health care expenses should be a key part of your overall financial strategy — so consider putting an HSA or FSA to work for you.

~ Journalism that makes a difference

Helping kids reach success in school — and beyond

School here started over a month ago. And while time flies for students and their families, the school year often passes by in warp speed for teachers and administrators.

As school districts across the country settle in and set their objectives for the coming school year, many will focus on improving test scores, graduation rates and proficiency levels. But there’s a more important goal that needs urgent attention: getting students back to class.

Since the pandemic, chronic absenteeism when a student misses at least 10% of instruction time has soared. In Kansas, more than one in four students were chronically absent during the 2021-22 school year. That number was about 13.7% in 2017-2018.

This is a national problem. One recent study found that the number of public school students across the country who are chronically absent has nearly doubled from about 15 percent in the 2018-2019 school year to around 30 percent in 20212022. On an average day in America, about 10% of students are absent.

Locally, the problem is more acute. In USD 257, 44.24% of students were chronically absent in 2021-2022, well above state average. Superintendent Stacey Fager understands the challenge. “When a district has as many at-risk students as we do, it shows,” Fager told the Register.

WE KNOW what happens when students miss school. They learn less, get worse grades, and do poorly on standardized tests.

Ask any teacher: Classrooms are more chaotic when students attend one day and miss the next. Inequities can’t be addressed. Discipline issues go ignored.

But there are more pernicious effects, too. Research shows that irregular attendance can be a predictor of dropping out of high school, which has been linked to poor job prospects, diminished health, and an increased

probability of entering the criminal justice system.

Study after study has shown America’s economy is shifting to offer fewer opportunities to those without any postsecondary credentials. Young people can’t compete if they don’t have the tools.

As Hedy Chang, who runs Attendance Works, a nonprofit group focused on the problem, told The Associated Press, “The long-term consequences of disengaging from school are devastating.”

HOW did we get here? Blame the pandemic. If there’s one clear trend, it’s this: States where schools remained closed for longer during the pandemic have seen more absenteeism. That said, every single state for which data are available has seen an increase in chronic absenteeism.

Simply put, attending school now seems optional. For almost two years, school looked very different for students: they could learn at home and do classwork when they wanted. Turns out families got used to that.

Other parents and guardians will pull kids for fear of getting sick — the pandemic didn’t disappear and there’s been a notable societal shift against public education. Parents worry about unsafe school environments and think their children might be better off at home. But the more school you miss, the easier it is to miss more. And here we are.

SOLUTIONS exist. In Iola, we are grateful for successful initiatives that keep families connected to school.

Now in its twenty-fourth year, the after-school program SAFE BASE deserves mention. Director Angela Henry said the program served more than 141 K-8 students in its summer program, while enrollment during the school year is around 350. The communication SAFE BASE facilitates between kids, teachers and staff is critical.

Free meals for students also re-

moves an obstacle. New facilities are bright and positive places, and the in-school services provided by both Southeast Kansas Mental Health Center and CHC-SEK help keep kids well and in school.

“At a district level, every service we can bring in-house helps prevent students from missing class,” said Fager. “It’s also about communication. We want our families to see all the great things going on here. We want them to attend our open houses and events. We need them to see how much we value education.”

Both Fager and Henry mentioned an upcoming Blue Plate Special dinner on Oct. 19, which allows SAFE BASE staff, district teachers, students and their families a night of fun and educational activities.

WE also need a cultural shift. The plunge in school attendance merely reflects a larger American problem

of tuning out. Take a look at church attendance, recreation league participation, civic group membership. Contrast that with the average American’s time spent on TikTok. More and more, we seem to be connected to everything and belonging to nothing. This isolation hurts. We can’t just Zoom our way into deep friendships. Research has proven how harmful the quarantines were psychologically; for too many of us, remnants of that lifestyle linger. Admittedly, the benefits of remote work are real and here to stay. No argument here.

But if we seek to address chronic absenteeism in schools, we must look at where adults are also chronically failing to show up. And if we want our schools to improve test scores, graduation rates and college acceptance percentages, we know where to start.

— Tim Stauffer

An ambitious push to help small farmers

More than two years have passed since former U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue departed, but the brouhaha he created with one callous comment in the middle of his tenure remains memorable.

Perdue, a Trump appointee, visited a Wisconsin expo in 2019, one attended by struggling dairy farmers. When asked about the industry’s future, Perdue’s tone-deaf reply was this: “In America the big get bigger and the small go out.”

Perdue caught serious flak, including from the Star Tribune Editorial Board. While some may dub it brutally honest, “defeatist” and “shortsighted” are more accurate. A stable, affordable food supply is essential to national security. For this, we need small- to medium-sized producers and processors in addition to their industrial counterparts.

The nation’s rural regions have hollowed out under the “go big or go home” approach. Fewer farmers means fewer customers for small-town businesses and fewer students in schools, a regrettable trend.

With that backdrop, current USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack’s recent visit to Minnesota was a refreshing change. Rather than throwing up his hands, Vilsack is wielding his department’s considerable resources to aid small and midsize producers,

strengthen rural communities and, for extra measure, combat climate change.

WILL Vilsack’s ambitious strategy work? Time will tell. But this is an overdue course correction for this massive agency and worth a try. The number of Minnesota farms has been in long decline.

Vilsack served as USDA secretary under former President Barack Obama and was appointed again by President Joe Biden. He visited Minnesota in late August to tout $230 million in new rural development funding for the state.

Part of Vilsack’s mission was playing political defense. Congressional grid-

lock on spending bills means a potential government shutdown on Oct. 1. Vilsack made the case to protect agricultural investments included in previous legislation, such as the $1 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022. The IRA appropriates more than $18 billion in new funding for climate-smart agriculture and forestry greenhouse gas mitigation.

Congressional Republicans in particular may look to divert some of these dollars to other purposes, such as more traditional farm supports. That’s stale thinking that would likely benefit bigger producers most.

Vilsack didn’t just have the shutdown in mind. He also had almost evangelical fervor in outlining new strategies, ones with historic funding levels thanks to the IRA and other legislation, to reinvigorate smaller producers and communities while mitigating climate change. These initiatives include:

— Working with producers and food companies to create a new market for foods grown with climate-sustainable methods.

— Providing assistance to transition to renewable energy, with farmers potentially able to sell excess energy back to utilities.

— Continuing support for biofuels, including the transition to sustainable aviation fuel, which could open up a large new market.

“What we’re now saying is here’s the alternative to getting big or getting out. It’s to get entrepreneurial,” Vilsack told an editorial writer.

In turn, that could alleviate a data point that alarms Vilsack. “There are about 2.1 million farms in America. Of these, 7.5% received 89% of farm income. So roughly 2 million farms had to share 11% of that income. The question is whether we’re OK with that.”

SO FAR, this new push has garnered a favorable reaction.

Dan Glessing, a dairy farmer near Waverly and Minnesota Farm Bureau president, said farmers are open-minded about these initiatives, particularly if new programs can mitigate the risk of transitioning to climate-smart practices. He also said farmers need more information about new programs.

Minnesota Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen told an editorial writer that the federal shift has resulted in significant investments in the state to aid small producers and processors. Petersen said he’d recently visited an apple orchard that benefited from the new push for schools to buy produce locally.

In an interview, former Rep. Collin Peterson, a Democrat who represented northwest Minnesota and once chaired the House Agriculture Committee, praised Vilsack’s efforts. As for climate-smart agriculture’s naysayers, Peterson said other countries are already moving forward on this front, leaving the U.S. at a competitive disadvantage.

“Whether you like it or not, this is the world you live in,” Peterson said. “If you don’t get on board with this, you’re going to get left behind.”

— The Minnesota Star Tribune Editorial Board

ZHENG CHENG YOU/UNSPLASH

“The long-term consequences of disengaging from school are devastating.”

—

Hedy Chang,

Attendance Works

Dan Coffman shows off some freshly-harvested kernza at Lane Ridge Farm in Saint Peter, Minn. Kernza is an innovative wheat grass grain that can act as a more eco-friendly and less glutenous substitute for flour. If small farmers like Coffman’s family can break into bigger markets, they hope for kernza to become a more well-known and well-used crop. (Angelina Katsanis/Minneapolis Star Tribune/TNS)

The nation’s rural regions have hollowed out under the “go big or go home” approach.

Schools: Absent

Continued from A1

grade.

“That’s a significant amount of time to … try and catch up,” Kelso said. Research shows that kids who miss a lot of school in the early grades are more likely to not read on grade level by third grade. That increases their chances of falling behind in middle school and dropping out of high school.

Children living in poverty, students of color and those with disabilities are two to three times more likely to be chronically absent.

The Wichita school district recently hired EveryDay Labs, a California software and consulting company, to help crack down on absences at 13 schools. The company analyzes attendance data and alerts families with letters, emails and text messages — EveryDay Labs calls them “nudges” — when their child misses too much school.

The company compares a student’s attendance to his or her classmates’ at that particular school. It’s a concept gleaned from home energy reports that compare your energy usage to the folks down the street — a dose of peer pressure intended to change behavior.

“Parents have a lot of misconceptions about attendance,” said Emily Bailard, CEO of EveryDay Labs. “Most parents really don’t keep track of the number of days our children have missed school, and when asked to estimate, get it wrong by 2x.”

Parents also tend to downplay the effect of missed school time in the early grades, figuring a day here or there doesn’t matter for a kindergartner. But the consequences add up.

“I might notice that my fourth-grader is struggling in school … but I’m really unlikely to connect that to the fact that my child has also missed school a couple days a month,” Bailard said.

According to the Wichita school dis-

Most parents really don’t keep track of the number of days our children have missed school, and when asked to estimate, get it wrong by 2x.

— Emily Bailard, CEO of EveryDay Labs

trict’s absence calculator, a student who has missed two days this school year already is chronically absent.

Kansas Education Commissioner Randy Watson has called on schools statewide to make attendance a priority, encouraging them to reach out to families about why students are missing class, and to consider offering incentives for attendance. No matter how great a teacher or curriculum might be, Watson said, schools can’t teach students who don’t show up.

“(If) you’re chronically absent, you’re missing critical instruction,” he said.

Ad Astra team celebrates

Friends

to the building and its radio technology systems are already underway. Above, Iola’s Ad Astra team includes, left to right, Mike Russell, Tom Norris, Mike Sailor, Chris Shank, Jessica Shank, Brandon Napier and Aaron Napier. Russell and Sailor are based in Iola; other team members work out of Hutchinson.

REGISTER/PAUL VERNON

Paola returns invaluable Peruvian artifacts

By RACHEL MIPRO Kansas Reflector

PAOLA — A Peruvian artifact estimated to be more than a thousand years old, wellwrapped in white tissue paper and stuck into a borrowed school duffel bag, marks the first success of a rural town’s plans to repatriate its art collection. The museum in Paola began its ongoing efforts of trying to return objects from a 38-piece collection of pre-Columbian artifacts a year ago, after first receiving the artifacts from a Kansas City couple’s trust five years ago. Pre-Columbian is a term used to describe an era of thriving indigenous art in the Americas before the arrival of Christo-

pher Columbus. “Although this is a wonderful collection, it really doesn’t have anything to do with Miami county,” said Miami County Historical Society and Museum executive board member Gordan Geldhof. “Really, the right thing to do was to repatriate them.”

The collection was authenticated in 1991, when it was determined the countries of origin were Mexico, Ecuador, Guatemala and Peru. After making little initial headway on the repatriation process, museum officials reached out to U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids’ office, which helped

them get into contact with the four embassies in Washington, D.C.

About a dozen Paola residents, including the mayor, gathered inside the museum Monday morning to wait for Liliana Trellis, who was sent to collect three artifacts on behalf of the General Consulate of Peru in Dallas.

The artifacts are thought to be made between 200 B.C. and 200 A.D., and come from the Nazca region in Peru.

Trellis said that two of the three artifacts are likely replicas, and have been donated to the Texas consulate,

but the third, a polychrome vessel, is likely an invaluable original. She borrowed her son’s school duffel bag for transportation, lining it with cardboard and tissue paper to prepare the objects for the airplane ride back to Texas.

“I am very happy,” Trellis said. “The importance of this is that it’s people to people. Because countries, they do exist, but the care of the people that run institutions, the care of the people that are willing to see, the caring people that are willing to know — that is what unifies the world.”

A museum in Paola is in the middle of ongoing efforts of trying to return pre-Columbian artifacts. (RACHEL MIPRO/KANSAS REFLECTOR)

Sports Daily B The Iola Register

JV Mustangs host Parsons

The Iola JV football team fell to Parsons at home Monday, 26-6. Clockwise, from top left, Iola’s Gavin Jones, #52, goes for a tackle on a Parsons ball carrier. Iola’s Kyser Nemecek, #81, carries the ball. Mustang James Hunt, #6, is tackled by a Parsons defender. Iola’s #66 Trevor Tatman, left, and Easton Weseloh, #25, go for a tackle. Mustang Lucas Maier, #87, runs after a catch. The JV team takes on Anderson County next Monday in Garnett.

REGISTER/QUINN BURKITT

Wednesday, September 20, 2023

IMS falls at Prairie View

By QUINN BURKITT The Iola Register

The Iola Middle volleyball teams dropped both of their matchups with Prairie View at home Monday afternoon.

Iola’s A Mustangs dropped their sets, 25-17, 25-19 and 25-21.

Bella Wilson led the Mustangs in the opening set with a team-high eight points, followed by Shaylee Karns’ four points. Jordyn Potter and Wilson led Iola in the second set with a teamhigh five points.

Potter led the Mustangs in the third set with a team-high six points. Wilson also recorded a team-high one ace.

The B Mustangs couldn’t get the better of Prairie View either.

Iola won a nailbiter of a fourth set, 25-20, but were taken down in the other three sets, 25-15, 25-14 and 25-23.

(The Mustangs didn’t have enough players for three teams, causing the B team to play four sets.)

Humboldt Cubs roar past Neodesha

By QUINN BURKITT The Iola Register

HUMBOLDT — Humboldt’s JV football team stomped Neodesha with a dominant ground game at home Monday in a 48-0 blowout win. The Cubs scored 20 points in the opening quarter, 14 more points in the second and then eight points in the third before tacking on six more points in the final quarter. Mason Sterling accounted for five of the Cubs’ touchdowns, running in all of them.

“This was a good win for us,” Humboldt head coach Jeremy Weilert said. “Our offensive line and defensive lines were very dominant tonight. It all starts up front. Mason Sterling did a great job at quarterback. Kage Daniels had an impressive game at linebacker.”

Sterling wasted little time getting Humboldt on the board less than a minute into the game when he dashed for a 42-yard touchdown run. It was followed by a Kage Daniels two-point conversion run for the 8-0 lead.

Layne Wagner took in the Cubs’ second score when he burst into the end zone for a four-yard touchdown run. The two-point conversion was no good and Hum-

boldt led Neodesha, 14-0. Humboldt’s main scorer of the afternoon, Sterling struck again at the end of the first quarter when he broke off a 72-yard touchdown run to put Humboldt up, 20-0.

Sterling topped his earlier touchdown with an impressive 90-yard touchdown run before halftime. Layne Wagner ran in the two-point conversion and the Cubs led the Bluestreaks, 28-0. And just when the Humboldt fans didn’t think they could see anymore, Sterling rumbled his way into the end zone yet again from one yard out for the 34-0 edge.

Gavin Gunderman poked the ball across for the 42-0 lead with a minute left in the third quarter. Daniels was again successful on the two-point conversion run. A 34-yard touchdown run almost midway through the fourth gave Sterling his fifth touchdown run and a 48-0 final score for the Humboldt victory.

Sterling finished his day going for 255 rushing yards on 10 carries and the five touchdowns. Wagner had five carries for 35 yards and one touchdown. Daniels rushed for five yards and three successful two-point conversion runs.

Defensively, the Cubs

See CUBS | Page B3

Chiefs, Mahomes agree to a new, restructured deal

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes has always been content in his contract with the Kansas City Chiefs and confident that the team that drafted him in the first round in 2017 and helped him become one of the NFL’s biggest stars would always take care of him.

They did that again on Monday.

The Chiefs agreed with the reigning league MVP on a re-

structuring of his 10-year, $450 million contract that gives Mahomes a big boost in pay over the next four seasons, two people familiar with the deal told The Associated Press. The people spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the contract.

The revised agreement pushes some of the money Mahomes was scheduled

See MAHOMES | Page B3

Khloe Martin led Iola in the opening set with a team-high seven points as well as in the second set when she led the offensive charge with a team-high five points. Lauryn Tisdale had four points. In the third set, Aaliyah Lawrence had a team-high seven points.

Harlei Gregg also went for five points while Potter added four in the third set. Potter led the charge again in the second set when she accounted for a team-high nine points and Jordyn Spillman tallied seven points.

Potter went for a teamhigh three aces while Khloe Martin recorded two aces. Ainslee Glasgow also had one kill.

Iola hosts Burlington on Thursday at 4 p.m.

MVJV splits at Humboldt

HUMBOLDT — The Marmaton Valley High JV volleyball squad split a pair of matchups at HumboldtMonday

The Wildcats defeated Crestinthreesets,25-15,

20-25 and 15-10.

Taylen Blevins and Andie Carr each scored a team-high 13 points while Elizabeth Lewis had 11 points and one kill. Gabby Briggs totaled 10 points and one kill while Emma Michael had nine points and two kills. Maria Forero also

See MVJH | Page B3

Patrick Mahomes (15) of the Kansas City Chiefs reacts to winning against the Jacksonville Jaguars. SAM GREENWOOD/TNS

1304 South Main • Garnett (785) 448-2888 www.ekaellc.com

NOW HIRING FOR MAINTENANCE TECHNICIANINSTRUMENTATION & ELECTRICAL

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To

THE CITY OF IOLA

WATER TREATMENT PLANT will be conducting its annual free chlorine burnout of the distribution system. The burnout will begin September 20 and will last 3-4 weeks. The burnout consists of turning off the ammonia feed and increasing our chlorine feed in order to maintain a more uniform disinfection level throughout the distribution system.

Customers may notice a strong taste or odor of chlorine in their water. This is a normal part of the burnout process and the water is safe to drink. Any questions should be directed to the City of Iola Water Plant at (620) 365-4940.

East Kansas Agri-Energy, LLC, a fuel ethanol manufacturer in Garnett, Kansas, has an opportunity available for a maintenance technician who will be responsible for testing, calibrating, troubleshooting, and repairing various electrical equipment including flow meters, level transmitters, flow control valves and other electrical equipment as needed. Other necessary skills include: the ability to read P&ID/PFD drawings and electrical/mechanical schematics. The successful candidate will have a positive work ethic, strong motivational skills, the ability to work independently as well as in a team environment and a commitment to safety. The position requires a high school diploma or GED. Also required is the ability to lift up to 50 lbs, manage multiple tasks and priorities simultaneously, work shifts as needed, and be on call as scheduled. Experience in the maintenance of a manufacturing process is helpful but not required. The company offers a competitive pay and benefits package that includes paid vacation, health, dental insurance, and 401(k). E/O/E Apply on our website at www.ekaellc.com or in person at 1304 South Main, Garnett, KS or email to: Shelly.Newport@ekaellc.com.

PUBLIC AUCTION

Sat., September 23 • 10:00 a.m.

Location: 306 Verdigris St. • Benedict, KS

Seller: Jack Brewer

Guns, tools, tractor and collectibles Must be remove the day of the sale VISIT www.allencountyauction.com or www.kansasauctions.net for pictures and sale bill.

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302 S. Washington Ave., Iola 620-365-2111 iolaregister.com

Missing fighter jet wreckage found

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — The crash site for a stealth fighter jet that went missing during the weekend after its pilot ejected was located Monday in rural South Carolina after the military asked the public for help finding an aircraft built to elude detection.

The debris field was discovered in Williamsburg County, about 60 miles northeast of Joint Base Charleston. Residents were being asked to avoid the area while a recovery team worked to secure it.

“We are transferring incident command to the USMC this evening, as they begin the recovery process,” the base posted Monday on the X social media platform.

Authorities had been searching for the jet since the pilot, whose

name hasn’t been released, parachuted to safety into a North Charleston neighborhood about 2 p.m. Sunday. He was taken to a hospital, where he was in stable condition, Marines Maj. Melanie Salinas said.

“The mishap is currently under investigation, and we are unable

to provide additional details to preserve the integrity of the investigative process,” the Marine Corps said in a news release on Monday evening.

The Marine Corps announced earlier Monday it was pausing aviation operations for two days after the fighter jet’s crash — the third

costly accident in recent weeks.

Gen. Eric Smith, the acting commandant of the Marine Corps, ordered the standdown while authorities searched near two South Carolina lakes for the missing FB-35B Lightning II aircraft.

It’s the third event documented as a “ClassA mishap” over the past six weeks, according to a Marine Corps announcement. Such incidents occur when damages reach $2.5 million or more, a Department of Defense aircraft is destroyed, or someone dies or is permanently disabled.

Commanders will spend the stand-down reinforcing safe flying policies, practices and procedures with their Marines, according to the Monday release.

The first delivery batch of F-35 fighter jets are pictured at the Skrydstrup base of the Royal Danish Air Force in Denmark. RITZAU SCANPIX/AFP/GETTY IMAGES/BO AMTRUP/TNS

Colorado State safety Blackburn gets death threats for big hit

DENVER (AP) — Colorado State coach Jay Norvell said Monday that senior safety Henry Blackburn has been receiving death threats since his late hit that hospitalized Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter.

Blackburn drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty Saturday night for the blow he delivered to Hunter’s midsection on a deep pass in the first quarter of the Rocky Mountain Showdown. It was one of 17 penalties the Rams committed in their 43-35 loss in double overtime to Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes in front of a capacity crowd.

Norvell said Blackburn, who’s from Boulder, and his family had their address posted on social media. He added that police have been involved due to the serious nature of the threats.

“It’s sad that that’s the state of the world we live in. It’s a football game. Let’s not make it more than that,” Norvell said at his news conference. “We don’t want anyone to get hurt. We don’t coach that kind of football.

I’ve been talking to Henry about that — I

talked to him last night and I talked to him today.

“This kid should be worried about going to school and getting ready to play football. He shouldn’t be worried about that kind of nonsense.”

Sanders said after the game the 19th-ranked Buffaloes could be without Hunter for several weeks. That means Hunter will miss the game against No. 10 Oregon in Eugene on

Wainwright gets 200th W, Cards beat Brewers

ST. LOUIS (AP) —

With his final season winding down, Adam Wainwright was stuck on 198 wins for nearly three months.

And then in a span of seven days, he found that old form and reached a major milestone.

Wainwright earned his 200th win, pitching seven innings of four-hit ball in a vintage performance as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Brewers 1-0 on Monday night.

out, up and down.”

It was the longest outing this season for the 42-year-old Wainwright (5-11), who struck out three and walked two. He has won consecutive starts — both against first-place teams — after going 0-10 with a 10.72 ERA over his previous 11 games between June 24 and Sept. 7.

Saturday and the one at home against No. 5 Southern Cal on Sept. 30. “We will do what we must to take care of him,” Sanders said. “We’ve got to make sure he is OK. His health is more important.”

It’s a blow to the Buffaloes as Hunter rarely leaves the field. He’s put himself into the Heisman Trophy discussion by being a lockdown cornerback and a dependable re-

Mahomes: Agrees to new deal

Continued from B1

make going forward to the next four years, and the $210.6 million over that span represents the most in NFL history. Mahomes is due to make $56.85 million this season, $44.5 million next season, $50 million in 2025 and $56.76 million for the 2026 season.

At that point, the Chiefs and Mahomes — who celebrated his 28th birthday Sunday with a 17-9 win in Jacksonville — are expected to revisit his contract, which ties him to the franchise through 2031.

“I know how special it is here and I know how special of a thing we’ve got going,” Mahomes said recently. “I stay out of contract stuff, but I know I’m lucky to be in this place and I want to go out and win as many championships as I can.”

Mahomes set the market with his original extension with Kansas City, which remains the largest overall deal in the NFL. But several quarterbacks had since passed him in average annual value, which naturally put Mahomes’ deal back in the spotlight.

The rapidly inflating QB contracts began with Deshaun Watson’s $230 million deal with Cleveland last year. Jalen Hurts then agreed to a $255 million contract with the Eagles, the Ravens’ Lamar Jackson signed a five-year, $260 million extension, and the Chargers Justin Herbert reached a five-year, $262.5 million extension with the AFC West-rival Chargers.

Then, just over a week ago, Bengals

quarterback Joe Burrow — one of Mahomes’ burgeoning rivals — signed a five-year, $275 million contract making him the NFL’s highest-paid player on an annual basis at $55 million per year.

“Me, my agent and the team always keep open communication,” Mahomes said during the offseason. “We try to do whatever is the best for the team but obviously I want to do the best for myself as well. But at the same time, I’ve always said, ‘I worry about legacy and winning rings more than making money at this moment.’ But I know we keep communication.

“We see what’s going on around the league,” he added, “but at the same time, I’ll never do anything that’s going to hurt us from keeping the great players that around me. So, it’s kind of teetering around that line.”

The Chiefs were waiting to see how the market for Herbert and Burrow would develop before reworking Mahomes’ deal. They also needed to reach an agreement with All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones, who held out through Week 1, so they would know where they stood relative to the salary cap this season and beyond.

Jones agreed last week to a reworked one-year deal that got him back on the field for Sunday’s game in Jacksonville.

Mahomes was asked regularly about Jones during his holdout, and that in turn led to questions about his own contract. And the perpetually poised

Mahomes insisted he would rather have a fair deal that gave Kansas City financial flexibility to surround him with good players — and win more than the two Super Bowl titles on his resume — than be the league’s highest-paid player.

Mahomes is coming off perhaps the best season of his career, throwing for a franchise-record 5,250 yards along with a league-leading 41 touchdown passes and only 12 interceptions. He also proved his toughness once more in the playoffs, when he hurt his ankle in the divisional round against the Jaguars but the led the Chiefs all the way to the Super Bowl.

Mahomes aggravated it against the Eagles but still rallied his team in the second half to raise his second Lombardi Trophy.

The ties binding Mahomes to Kansas City have grown substantially over the year. He has an ownership stake in the Kansas City Royals, who play just across the parking lot from Arrowhead Stadium, along with Sporting Kansas City of Major League Soccer, and his wife Brittany has an ownership share of the Kansas City Current, the professional women’s soccer team.

“Well, I don’t know that there’s really a way to quantify it,” Chiefs chairman Clark Hunt said, when asked earlier this year of Mahomes’ value to Kansas City. “No matter what he makes over his career, I’m sure one way or another, he will be underpaid.”

ceiver. Hunter has an interception and nine tackles on defense this season. He’s also caught 16 passes for 213 yards from quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Hunter tried to continue to play after the

See CSU | Page B4

MVJV

Continued from B1 registeredfourpoints andtwokills.

Marmaton Valley then lost to Humboldtintwosets,25-9 and25-21.

Lewis and Michael each led the Wildcats with a teamhigh nine points, followed by Briggs’ four points and Blevins’ three points. Forero notched three points andonekill,Carrhad three points and Mahala Burris notched onekill.

Marmaton Valley travels to Northeast-Arma next Tuesdayat5p.m.

“For at least a night I was a real pitcher out there, the guy that I want to be,” said Wainwright, who plans to retire after the season. “Seven innings, shutout, a couple of hits, got through a couple of tough ABs out there and made adjustments, worked in and

“That’s as good as we’ve seen,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “If you talked to him right before the game, and if he’s being really honest, he was being held up by duct tape before the game started, and for him to go out there and do what he did is highly impressive.”

The right-hander became the 38th pitcher in NL histo-

See WAINO | Page B4

Cubs: Claw to win

Continued from B1

forced five turnovers.

Daniels had a teamhigh 14 tackles while Hudson Rees had six tackles, two sacks and a fumble recovery. Brody Gunderman accounted for Humboldt’s lone interception as well as five tackles while Tanner

King had a fumble recovery and four tackles.

Gunner Stone also had a fumble recovery and three tackles while Wagner scooped up the other fumble recovery for the Cubs.

Humboldt hosts Chanute next Monday at 6 p.m.

Colorado Buffaloes cornerback Travis Hunter (12) goes down after a hit by Colorado State Rams defensive back Henry Blackburn (11) in the first quarter during the Rocky Mountain Showdown. ANDY CROSS/THE DENVER POST/TNS

Shot put champ Crouser is on the mend, to compete at Pre Classic

By PAT GRAHAM The Associated Press

Shot put world champion Ryan Crouser measures progress at the moment not so much by distance but by the decreasing size of the two blood clots in his left leg.

In that regard, everything is trending in the right direction for the 30-year-old who was diagnosed with the clots just before his win at world championships last month. His medication has been working and shrinking the clots, along with improving the flow rate around them.

This weekend, Crouser closes the book on a season that’s seen him unveil a modernized shot-put style — dubbed the “ Crouser Slide “ — break his own world record, go through his health scare and win a world title in Budapest, Hungary, in spite of the blood clots.

Just one more meet, the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon, as part of the Diamond League final, and it’s straight into vacation mode. Soon, Crouser will be on a boat in Mexico and reeling in marlin with his fly-fishing rod.

He may even squeeze in some fishing before he competes Sunday at Hayward Field.

“I always joke that there’s a correlation between how far I’m throwing and how much fishing I’m doing,” Crouser said. “So hopefully we can bump that distance up with a couple of fishing trips.

I did bring some (fishing) flies with me — just in case.”

There will be plenty of star power around the track for the Diamond League finale. Noah Lyles and Sha’Carri Richardson, the men’s and women’s 100-meter world champions, will be there.

So, too, are 400-meter hurdles world champions Karsten Warholm and Femke Bol, along with 1,500-meter winner Faith Kipyegon and pole-vault champ Mondo Duplantis. One last go-around before taking a breather and getting ready for the Paris Olympics next summer.

The Prefontaine Classic is almost like a home meet for Crouser, who grew up in Oregon, went to school at Texas and lives in Arkansas.

He’s right at home at Hayward, too, breaking the world record for the first time at the 2021

U.S. Olympic trials.

Just don’t expect that world record to be broken this weekend after a long season. But don’t bet against the world record falling, either.

“Physically, I’m past my peak. But you can always have outlier throws,” Crouser said. “Just go out there and just compete, compete my best on the day and throw well and hopefully go out there and surprise myself.”

He certainly surprised himself in Budapest. He wasn’t even sure he was going to make it to the meet after being diagnosed with blood clots.

He did.

He wasn’t sure if he could defend his title, either, after missing training time.

He would.

“I had a lot of factors going against me,” said Crouser, who turned in a championship-record

Saints defense shuts down Bryce Young

CHARLOTTE, N.C.

(AP) — Tony Jones Jr. is making the most of his elevation from the Saints’ practice squad, while Chris Olave continues to make plays for unbeaten New Orleans.

Jones ran for two touchdowns, rookie Blake Grupe kicked two field goals and the Saints beat the Carolina Panthers 2017 on Monday night, improving to 2-0 for the first time since 2013.

Jones replaced the injured Jamaal Williams late in the first half and ran for 34

yards on 12 carries.

“It was awesome,” Saints coach Dennis Allen said. “He was great. We ran the ball effectively. I think we blocked it up front and he made the right cuts. You know, two touchdowns on the game. It was big for him and big for us.”

The Saints’ defense did the rest, holding Panthers rookie Bryce Young to 153 yards passing in his home debut. New Orleans limited Carolina (02)to 239 yards and sacked Young, the top overall pick in the

See SAINTS | Page B6

attempt of 23.51 meters (77 feet, 1 3/4 inches). “So to do that? Have that performance? It’s probably the (medal) I’m the most proud of out of anything in my career.”

For Crouser, the season really began last December when he tinkered with his mechanics and found success with a revamped technique. He shifted his starting position about 60 degrees clockwise inside the shot-put circle. He also started with a quick step early in his approach — almost like a sprinter’s burst — to generate more speed and create more radius and more rotation.

With that, the “Crouser Slide” was hatched.

Ever since, he’s been honing it in. The twotime Olympic champion broke his own world record in May with his attempt of 23.56 (77-3 3/4). These days, he’s

See CROUSER | Page B6

Waino: Gets 200th win in storied career

Continued from B3

to reach 200 wins, and the 24th major leaguer to achieve the milestone since 2000.

Wainwright said the feeling was comparable to his emotions while closing out the 2006 World Series as a rookie reliever.

“Tonight, for me, this is tied for first,” he said.

Willson Contreras homered off Freddy Peralta (12-9) in the fourth. Milwaukee lost its second straight, and its magic number to clinch the NL Central remained at seven. The Brewers hold a six-game lead over the Chicago Cubs with 12 to play.

Contreras was especially emotional about Wainwright once the game ended.

“I know he’s been battling a lot of stuff and he’s been pitching the best that he can this year,” Contreras said. “And I’m glad that he was able to reach out to reach the 200 mark on wins. And I’m glad that I was back behind the plate for him.”

John King induced a double play in the eighth and Ryan Helsley worked 1 1/3 innings for his 12th save in 16 opportunities.

Wainwright got Carlos Santana to ground into a pair of double plays and left to a standing ova-

CSU: Player threatened

Continued from B3

but was ruled out in the second half and was taken to a hospital.

Norvell reviewed the play and concluded that “it’s a play that happens sometimes.”

“When you throw a deep ball and you’ve got a guy playing middle safety, he’s got to react on the boundary and he’s going full speed, it was a bang-bang type of a play,” Norvell said. “It’s certainly not something that we teach or coach. It happens in football sometimes. Seems to have been a lot of attention about that play, but it’s a play that happens.”

Norvell added: “I hope Travis gets healthy and gets back out there. We certainly don’t want to see anybody get hurt.”

Shedeur Sanders took exception to the blow by Blackburn along the Colorado sideline and confronted Blackburn.

“When Travis went down, it made me feel some type of way honestly. You took one of my brothers on offense, so it really hurt me,” said Shedeur Sanders, who

led the Buffaloes on a game-tying 98-yard touchdown drive in the final minute of regulation and threw for touchdowns in both overtimes. “Knowing the work he put in and everything just leading up to the game and knowing you could always count on him in those moments.”

The late hit caught the attention of several athletes on social media, including Los Angeles Lakers great LeBron James who posted: “Like I don’t understand the difference between targeting and what I just witnessed. I’ve seen others get thrown out for far less. That was blatant and uncalled for IMO!”

Hall of Famer Champ Bailey, who played both ways at Georgia, said it’s risky to play both offense and defense, especially playing almost all of the snaps.

“You got a target on you,” Bailey said Sunday at the Washington Commanders-Denver Broncos game. “When people see you on the field all the time, they’re coming after you.”

tion from the crowd of 33,176 after pitching around a leadoff single by Mark Canha in the seventh.

“I didn’t want to tip my hat or anything because I didn’t know if I was done,” Wainwright said. “But I did feel that crowd and it was a special walk off.”

Wainwright’s first strikeout of the game, against Rowdy Tellez, was the 2,200th of his career. His last two punchouts moved him past David Wells for

65th on the all-time list.

“He just kept guys off balance,” Marmol said. “He didn’t have what he had last time as far as the (velocity) being there, but there weren’t a whole lot of comfortable swings or hard-hit balls for the most part. He went through that lineup and was in control the whole time. It was just fun to watch him out there competing.”

Contreras lined a sinker from Peralta just

inside the left-field foul pole for his 20th home run of the season.

Peralta gave up four hits in six innings and struck out six.

“I didn’t have my best stuff today, but it worked,” he said.

Sal Frelick had two singles for the Brewers and robbed Tommy Edman of an extra-base hit with a running catch in deep center field. Frelick caught the ball on a full sprint and held on after crashing into the wall.

Ryan Crouser of the United States competes in the Men’s Shot Put Final during the World Athletics Championships at National Athletics Centre on Saturday, Aug. 19, 2023, in Budapest, Hungary. DAVID RAMOS/GETTY IMAGES/TNS

Adam Wainwright of the St. Louis Cardinals pitches in the first inning against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park on Thursday, Sept. 7, in Atlanta. KEVIN C. COX/ GETTY IMAGES/TNS

GOP sets impeachment inquiry date

WASHINGTON (AP)

— House Republicans plan to hold their first hearing next week in their impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden.

The hearing — scheduled for Sept. 28 — is expected to focus on “constitutional and legal questions” that surround the allegations of Biden’s involvement in his son Hunter’s overseas businesses, according to a spokesperson for the House Oversight Committee.

Republicans — led by

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy — have contended in recent weeks that Biden’s actions from his time as vice president show a “culture of corruption,” and that his son used the “Biden brand” to advance his business with foreign clients.

The spokesperson also said Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chairman of Oversight, plans to issue subpoenas for the personal and business bank records of Hunter Biden and the president’s brother James

Biden “as early as this week.” McCarthy appointed Comer to lead the inquiry in coordination with Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan and Ways & Means Chairman Jason Smith. The White House has called the effort by House Republicans in the midst of the presidential campaign “extreme politics at its worst.”

“Staging a political stunt hearing in the waning days before they may shut down

the government reveals their true priorities: To them, baseless personal attacks on President Biden are more important than preventing a government shutdown and the pain it would inflict on American families.,” Ian Sams, a White House spokesman, said in a recent statement.

McCarthy announced the impeachment inquiry last week after facing mounting pressure from his right flank to take action against Biden or risk being ousted from his leadership job.

Gifted sibling oversteps boundary

Adapted from an online discussion.

Dear Carolyn: I have two daughters. “A” is 16, a junior in high school. “B” is 15, a freshman. B showed a gift for music at a young age. We encouraged her gift, and she works incredibly hard. When B was in junior high, she outgrew the resources we had in our town. B was accepted into a performing arts high school on partial scholarship, but this required a move to a new city. My husband and I got approval to work remotely from the new city, A is attending the public high school, B is at the performing arts school. B is absolutely thriving at her new school.

At a concert, A met a boy in B’s section and they started dating. B has the kind of focus and intensity that a lot of gifted people have, which makes them really wonderful at their gift but not always able to see the big picture. B sees this relationship as a threat to her music and wants A to break up with him and date somebody at her own school. A refuses. A and B are now engaging in

verbal barbs constantly, and it’s getting very difficult to live with. My husband just ignores them and says they’re “doing teenage stuff.”

I think this is way beyond normal teenage arguments and there are some very hurt feelings. I want to talk to the girls separately and together about this. My husband refuses to, but also won’t stop me if I try. Do I talk to them, or just let it play out?

— Parent Parent: Firmly to B:

“You do not get to tell other people who they can date. Not your sibling, not anybody. You don’t have to like it, but you don’t get to decide.”

Nip the bud of this egocentric thinking immediately. B already feels the power of moving an entire family to serve her interests. This happens sometimes, and can be for good reasons, but it still introduces an urgent need for balance when the opportunities

for it arise organically, lest your household fall under the tyranny of her “gift.” This is one of those opportunities. Tell the tail it does not wag this dog.

To A, the only talking to is, “I have made it clear to B this is not her business, and my advice for you now — and my request — is not to engage when she oversteps into your business.” And: “Stay out of hers, too. No payback.” (Full accounting for adolescent tastes.)

So, yeah. Good luck.

A reader’s thought:

∙You reeeeaaaaallllly need to take a step back and evaluate how you treat and view your kids in general. You have allowed one daughter’s needs to determine a whole lot of choices about what your entire family does — which, given her gifts, isn’t inherently a bad thing, but which does mean you need to make sure you’re showing your other child you value her as well. Instead, you’re bending over backward to justify your younger daughter’s incredibly inappropriate response to this situation by framing it as just

a part of her giftedness. It sounds as though your older daughter has gone along with all this without complaint. If you want her to spend time with you willingly 10 or so years down the road, you need to view her as someone equally as important as your musician.

ZITS

by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

BEETLE BAILEY by Mort Walker

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE by Chris Browne

BLONDIE

by Young and Drake

MARVIN

by Tom Armstrong

HI AND LOIS by Chance Browne

MUTTS by Patrick McDonell

Spire is a key player in NASCAR’s charter game

CHARLOTTE, N.C.

(AP) — Nobody wanted a charter back in 2018, when Barney Visser wanted to sell the most valuable current franchise in NASCAR.

Visser had won the 2017 Cup Series title with Furniture Row Racing and Martin Truex Jr.

A heart attack followed by bypass surgery kept Visser from the final two races of the year, when Furniture Row became the first single-car team since 1992 to win a championship. He was still too sick to travel in December that year to pick up the hardware.

So he decided to get out of the game.

Visser couldn’t find any takers for the charter he’d purchased from NASCAR under

a new revenue model designed to give race teams something tangible for their participation, so he asked Spire Sports + Entertainment to help him find a buyer.

The motorpsports marketing agency found the market was dead. Undeterred, Visser convinced Spire a charter one year removed from a championship

Saints: Stop Panthers offense

Continued

draft, four times.

“They play hard and very physical,” Young said. “They know exactly where they are supposed to be, and the play well together. Obviously we didn’t do enough offensively. ... Their defense definitely got the best of us.”

The Saints nearly made it two full games without allowing a touchdown before giving up a 3-yard scoring toss from Young to Adam Thielen with 1:16 left in the game. Young’s 2-point conversion pass to Thielen got the Panthers within three, but the Saints recovered the onside kick and ran out the clock.

Derek Carr, who threw for 305 yards in the Saints’ Week 1 win over Tennessee, struggled early. He had a badly underthrown interception into triple coverage and missed several other open receivers as the Saints limped into the locker room at halftime with a 6-3 lead.

But Carr improved in the second half.

He found Olave, who made the play of the game when hauled in a diving one-handed grab along the left sideline late in the third quarter for a 42-yard gain. That set up Jones’ 2-yard touchdown run to give the Saints a 13-6 lead.

“When things aren’t quite going exactly the way you want it to, you’re just one explosive play away from making something happen,” Allen said. “I thought his concentration there and focus all the way through the

catch point and to the ground maintaining possession was a progress for him.”

Olave had another short grab leading to Jones’ second TD with about three minutes to play. He finished with six catches for 86 yards.

Carr finished with 228 yards passing and the one pick. Changeof-pace quarterback Taysom Hill was the Saints’ leading rusher with 75 yards on nine carries.

“There’s so much that we have to clean up,” Carr said, “but it feels good to get to do it when we’re 2-0.”

The Saints pulled even with unbeaten Atlanta and Tampa Bay atop the NFC South, while the Panthers fell into an early hole.

Young spent a good portion of the night under pressure as the offensive line struggled. Carolina couldn’t get much going in the running game; Miles Sanders was limited to 43 yards rushing. The Panthers’ offensive night was marred by miscues, penalties and mental errors.

In the third quarter, the Panthers brought in Young’s backup, Andy Dalton, presumably to run a quarterback sneak on fourthand-inches. But before Dalton could take his first snap of the season, guard Cade Mays jumped offside. Eddy Pineiro bailed out the offense with a 54-yard field goal, one of his three on the night.

The Panthers had a chance to tie the game just before halftime while facing third-

and-6 at the Saints 18, but Carl Granderson sacked Young and forced a fumble that Paulson Adaebo recovered.

“We wanted to be able to stop the run and make it where he was going to have to beat us throwing the ball,” Allen said. “I felt like we might be able to get some pressure and make him uncomfortable a little bit.”

Panthers coach Frank Reich knew there would be some growing pains with a rookie quarterback, but he thinks his offense is showing signs of breaking out despite totaling 27 points in two games.

“It’s not that far away,” Reich said. “I know it looks bad, but it’s not that far away. You make a few plays and you’re at 28 points.”

INJURIES

Saints: Williams left the game in midway through the second quarter and did not return.

Panthers: Veteran LB Shaq Thompson was carted off the field late in the first quarter with a right ankle injury that Reich said after the game was “significant.” He said Thompson is likely to miss extended time. Saints offensive lineman Trevor Penning and Panthers defensive lineman DeShawn Williams were engaged in a block and rolled up on the back of Thompson’s leg as he was attempting to make a tackle in the first quarter.

UP NEXT

Saints: At Green Bay on Sunday.

Detailer/Lot Porter

would earn back its $6 million 2018 purchase value in two years of NASCAR payouts guaranteed for chartered teams. And that’s how Spire Motorsports got into the business of racing cars and collecting charters in a way that has kept the revenue flowing while creating significant value in the business of NASCAR.

Spire last weekend at Bristol was part of a convoluted deal in which it purchased the charter from Live Fast Motorsports on behalf of Trackhouse Racing. Under the deal, Spire will run Zane Smith in a third Cup car while Trackhouse works to ex-

pand to three full-time cars. Smith will eventually join Trackhouse, and that charter will likely follow him to to his new team.

It’s worth? The Athletic reported that Live Fast received $40 million in the transaction.

Live Fast plans to scale down to a part-time team and run without a charter.

And Spire? Well, it will have an overhauled three-car lineup next season that includes recently extended Corey Lajoie. It also will certainly get some of that Trackhouse money; the team in one week signed the deal with Smith and a development deal with Shane van Gisbergen out of New Zealand.

There’s no doubt that Trackhouse is making bold moves, but none of it would be possible without Spire. When Trackhouse owner Justin Marks got into ownership, Spire leased the team its first charter. When Kaulig Racing moved from an Xfinity Series team to a Cup team, it bought a pair of charters from Spire.

Spire has single-handedly jumpstarted the charter market and driven up the value of the franchise tag.

“I think if you look down the list of organizations in the Cup Series, you’d be hard pressed to find any that are more transparent about their ambitions and intentions than these two organizations,” Spire President Bill Anthony said of Trackhouse and Spire.

He praised Spire owners Jeff Dickerson and TJ Puchyr for the deal with Trackhouse, which Anthony said is consistent with their ambitions.

“We’ve proven and come through in each of those circumstances; that is certainly a double-down on the future of the sport,” he said. “That’s not to say there isn’t work to be done with NASCAR and the charter agreement, but I think we believe in all the people in the garage and all the people in the NASCAR.”

The charter maneuvering comes as NASCAR and its teams are in a labor battle of sorts, with the latter calling for a better revenue model. A major ask remains the teams’ desire for charters to become permanent. The charters are currently renewable and revocable, and NASCAR seems unwilling to compromise on the issue.

Crouser: To compete at Pre Classic

Continued from B4

fielding calls to see if he might be available to teach his technique.

“The thing with the step-across technique is that I don’t think it’s a beginning technique,” Crouser said. “I see kids wanting to do it, but if anyone is wanting to try it, I would say really hammer the fundamentals and get your classic spin down before trying the step-across.”

Crouser just makes it seem easy. And he was gearing up for a

big distance in Buda-

pest until the blood clots.

He said he’s been responding well to treatment and a recent medical checkup revealed good news that the clots were decreasing in size. He could be off blood-thinning medication sometime in October and back to his regular routine as he prepares to defend his Olympic title in Paris.

Crouser said the medication has left him feeling “a little bit

more flat. My training is down a little bit.”

He’s looking forward to getting away for a bit with his cousin and catching some fish in Mexico (a bucket-list trip, Crouser explained). He also just treated himself to a new lithium battery for his boat as a reward for winning at worlds.

“Shot putting is really getting in the way of my professional bass-fishing career,” Crouser said with a laugh.

Kyle Larson, driver of the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet leads the pack at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Oct. 9, 2022. JARED C. TILTON/GETTY IMAGES/TNS