The Iola Register, Dec. 23, 2023 by Iola Register

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Iola VA clinic to open in spring

WINTER SPORTS

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By VICKIE MOSS The Iola Register

A Veterans Administration clinic is expected to open this spring at the Family Physicians building at 1408 East St. The Iola VA clinic will absorb three other clinics — in Chanute, Garnett and Fort Scott — and offer a greater variety of services. The other entities that use the building, including the primary care group, will remain at the facility. The VA clinic will move into the clinic space, while the physicians group will move to the north side of the building. A dermatology clinic and pharmacy will remain at their current locations. Veterans can receive numerous services at the clinic, including primary care, behavioral and social health care, and women’s services. The number of female veterans is growing, which means their needs for health care through the VA system also is increasing, Yolanda Quintero, community-based outpatient clinic administrator, said. The clinic will have laboratory services available five days a week, including vaccinations. Additional services include home-based care, where nurses can meet with veterans who are unable to travel. Telehealth services also are available; veterans can See VA CLINIC | Page A5

Broken noses don’t slow Iola twosome

Jenna Morris shows her 2023 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade keepsake she received from marching in the parade as part of the Band Directors Marching Band. REGISTER/SARAH HANEY

Marching on City band director plays in Macy’s parade By SARAH HANEY The Iola Register

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is a spectacle enjoyed by millions every year, but for Jenna Morris, a local musician and music educator, it became a dream come true as she recently took part in the parade with the Band Directors Marching Band. Morris, a music teacher for the Southern Coffey County school district in Le Roy, had the opportunity of a lifetime to join the group of band directors and music educators from across North America. The band, organized by Saluting America’s Band Directors, paraded through the streets of New York City with an impressive 400 members during the an-

Jenna Morris with her sousaphone. nual parade. Morris shared, “I applied through Saluting America’s Band Directors, submitting a resume and answering

questions on my philosophy of musical education and experiences. It’s an incredible opportunity, and I was grateful to be a part of it.” With more than 900 applicants, Morris was one of the talented 400 selected. A graduate of Pittsburg State University in December 2021, Morris has been immersed in the world of music since sixth grade. Her journey led her to the bassoon, an instrument with unique scholarship opportunities. In the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, however, she played the sousaphone. Her favorite part of the Macy’s Parade experience? “The energy and the sheer scale of the event were inSee MACY’S | Page A3

Light up the season Dustin and Sarah LaCrone created a delightful Christmas wonderland surrounding their home at South and Spruce streets. The family is also known for their elaborate Halloween decorations. REGISTER/SUSAN LYNN

Vol. 126, No. 10 Iola, KS $1.00

Healthy Holidays!

PAGE B1

Number of dead in Gaza tops 20K PAGE A3

Mexico’s president offers plan for border MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s president said Friday that he is willing to help out with a surge of migrants that led to the closure of border crossings with the United States, but he wants the U.S. government to open talks with Cuba and send more development aid to migrants’ home countries. The comments by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador came a day after the U.S. announced that a delegation of top U.S. officials would visit Mexico for talks on how to enforce immigration rules at the two countries’ shared border. López Obrador confirmed that U.S. officials want Mexico to do more to block migrants at its southern border with Guatemala, or make it more difficult to move across Mexico by train or in trucks or buses, a policy known as “contention.” But the president said that in exchange he wanted the United States to send more development aid to migrants’ home countries, and to reduce or eliminate sanctions See BORDER | Page A5

Erie Family Care Clinic Family Medicine Clinic-Chanute Home Health & Hospice Orthopedic Clinic Senior Behavioral Health Women’s Health Center and coming in January

NMRMC Surgery Clinic with Dr. Matthew Leroy 629 S. Plummer Ave. Chanute, KS 620-431-4000

A2 Saturday, December 23, 2023 Study to examine Kansas turkey decline By TIM CARPENTER Kansas Reflector

TOPEKA — Biologists at Kansas State University are responding to a persistent 15-year decline in the state’s wild turkey population by launching a $1.8 million study of bird habitat, nesting, reproduction and survival to refine harvest and land management strategies. The Kansas Wildlife and Parks Commission called off the state’s fall turkey hunting season due to the shrinking population. The decision followed reduction in the fall bag limit from four birds to one bird in 2017 and restriction of the fall hunting season from 123 days to 41 days in 2019. The conspicuous erosion in availability of wild turkeys in Kansas also prompted state officials to limit out-ofstate hunting permits and cut the bag limit on turkeys in the spring hunting season. K-State researchers plan to begin work in January by capturing hundreds of Eastern and Rio Grande wild turkeys on Kansas public and private land. They will place GPS transmitters and leg bands on birds to gather detailed insight into factors contributing to the population decline. The research will be reinforced with investigation of roost tree viability and usage, food availability for breeding hens and juvenile turkeys, pesticide exposure and diseases among wild turkeys in Kansas and nearby states. “Wild turkeys are economically and ecologically valuable game

“Our goal is to determine potential factors contributing to population declines and provide focused options for management of wild turkeys in Kansas.” — David Haukos, KSU associate professor of biology

birds in Kansas, and not understanding what’s driving recent population declines is hindering management actions to reverse these declines,” said David Haukos, a KSU associate professor of biology. “Our goal is to determine potential factors contributing to population declines and provide focused options for management of wild turkeys in Kansas.” Funding of the effort to answer questions about the 60% decline in turkey population since 2008 came from the state Department of Wildlife and Parks in partnership with the National Wild Turkey Federation, a nonprofit group dedicated to hunters’ rights and habitat preservation. Kent Fricke, small game biologist at the Department of Wildlife and Parks, said Midwest and Southeast states experienced comparable patterns in production of wild turkeys. “We’re excited about this opportunity to improve our understanding of wild turkeys in Kansas,” he said.

Court news IOLA MUNICIPAL COURT Judge Patti Boyd

Convicted as follows with fines assessed: Morgan E. Gates, Iola, dog running at large, $799.45 Gelicia C.C. Goree, Moran, disobeying traffic control signal, $195 John T. Higginbotham, Iola, expired tag,

Today

$195 Angelina K.D. Kedel, Humboldt, theft, $325 Danielle Miller, Iola, dog running at large, $135 Jason E. Miller, South Range, Mich., pedestrian under the influence, $315 Michaela V. Swindell, Osawatomie, driving while suspended, $465

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Travelers queue for the Eurostar trains at St Pancras Station in London, Friday, Dec. 22. Eurostar was hit Thursday by an unofficial strike in northern France, leading to the cancellation of most services. With full trains leading up to Christmas those travelers affected by the strike will have to find alternative ways to their destination. AP PHOTO/ALASTAIR GRANT

Holiday travel off to smooth start NEW YORK (AP) — The holiday travel rush hit its peak Friday as mild weather and lower flight cancelation rates raised hopes for merrier drivers and airline passengers than last year. U.S. airlines are predicting a blockbuster holiday season and have projected confidence they can handle the crowds after hiring thousands of pilots, flight attendants and other workers, seeking to avoid the delays and suspensions that marred travel last year and culminated with the Southwest Airline debacle that stranded more than 2 million people. Airlines have canceled just 1.2% of U.S. flights so far this year, the lowest in five years, but bad weather is always a threat. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has warned the government will be holding the airlines accountable to operate smoothly and treat passengers well if there are disruptions. Earlier this week, Transportation Department announced a settlement in which Southwest will pay $140 million for its meltdown last year. Early Friday, there were less than 40 flights canceled nationwide in the U.S. and about 400 that were delayed, according to FlightAware. Auto club AAA forecasts that 115 million people in the U.S. will go 50 miles or more from home between Saturday and New Year’s Day. That’s up 2% over last year. The Transportation Security Administra-

tion expected to screen more than 2.5 million travelers Friday, the busiest projected day for air travel this season, along with New Year’s Day. That’s short of the record 2.9 million that agents screened on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, since travel tends to be more spread over over Christmas and New Year’s. Travel has been strong this year even though many Americans say they are worried about the economy. Inflation has cooled off a bit, and travelers were helped by lower average gas prices and air fares. The nationwide gas price average Friday was $3.13 a gallon, down 15 cents from a month ago and about 3 cents more than this time last year, according to AAA. Average fares in October were 13% lower than a year earlier, according to the government’s latest data. The busiest days on the road will be Saturday and next Thursday, Dec. 28, according to transportation data provider INRIX.

winds across northern Europe overnight and into Friday, bringing down trees and prompting warnings of flooding on the North Sea coast. Workers at the undersea tunnel between Britain and France held a surprise strike on Thursday, forcing the cancelation of passenger and vehicle-carrying service before an agreement with unions was reached. Eurostar, which operates passenger train services from London to continental Europe,

INTERNATIONALLY, air travel has also rebounded, though it remains below pre-pandemic levels. Airlines have sold 31% more tickets for international arrivals to global destinations between Dec. 21 and Dec. 31 compared to the similar period last year, according to travel data firm FowardKeys. Some travelers in northern Europe had a run of bad luck with bad weather and labor unrest. A storm brought heavy rain and strong

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Macy’s: Band director marches in parade Continued from A1

credible. Being at the end of a row, seeing people everywhere – the energy was so cool.” Morris shared, “We had four main practicing sessions, mostly marching rehearsals at Weehawken Riverfront Park in New Jersey. The scale of the balloons and the whole experience were something you can’t fully grasp until you’re there.” Beyond her participation in the parade, Morris is involved in her community. She teaches music to kindergarteners up through 12th grade. She also directs the Iola Municipal Band during the summers, and is actively engaged in the local Presbyterian Church choir and hand-

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Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Jenna Morris, far right, plays her sousaphone in the 2023 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. COURTESY PHOTO bell group. She also works at Fillmore Coffeehouse & Plant Cafe in Iola. In her free time, she enjoys puzzles, walks, and contributes to the community the-

ater scene. As for the future, Morris would love to participate with the band directors’ marching band again. The band has also performed in the 2022

Rose Bowl Parade with 270 members. They alternate where they perform year-to-year. “I see myself continuing to teach music and giving back to my community.”

Gaza death toll exceeds 20,000 RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — More than 20,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza during Israel’s war against Hamas, health officials said Friday, the latest indication of the staggering cost of the conflict as Israel expands its ground offensive and orders tens of thousands more people to leave their homes. The deaths amount to nearly 1% of the territory’s prewar population. The 11-week conflict has displaced nearly 85% of Gaza’s people and leveled wide swaths of the tiny coastal enclave. And more than half a million people in Gaza — a quarter of the population — are starving, according to a report Thursday from the United Nations and other agencies. Israel has vowed to continue the war until Hamas is removed from power in Gaza and all the hostages taken during its Oct. 7 cross-border attack are freed. Despite the humanitarian emergency, a U.N. Security Council vote on aid deliveries and terms for a cease-fire was delayed again late Thursday, after days of high-level negotiations. The United States, which has veto power, has pushed back against calls for an immediate cease-fire and giving the U.N. sole responsibility for inspecting aid deliveries. Israel, citing security grounds, insists it needs to be able to screen goods enter-

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ing Gaza. The U.S. said it would back a revised resolution that calls for “creating the conditions” for a cease-fire, rather than an immediate end to fighting. Other countries support a stronger text and said diplomats would need to consult their governments before a vote, which is expected Friday. Martin Griffiths, the U.N. humanitarian affairs chief, lamented the world’s inaction. “That such a brutal conflict has been allowed to continue and for this long — despite the widespread condemnation, the physical and mental toll and the massive destruction — is an indelible stain on our collective conscience,” he wrote on the social media platform X. ISRAEL, shielded by the United States, has resisted international pressure to scale back its offensive and has said it would press on until Hamas, the militant group that has ruled Gaza for 16 years, has been destroyed. The military has said that months of fighting lie ahead in southern Gaza, an area packed with the vast majority of the enclave’s 2.3 million people, many of whom were ordered to flee combat in the north earlier in the war. Since then, evacuation orders have pushed displaced civilians into ever-smaller areas of the

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south as troops focus on the city of Khan Younis, Gaza’s second-largest. The military said late Thursday that it is sending more ground forces, including combat engineers, to Khan Younis to target Hamas militants above ground and in tunnels. On Friday, it ordered tens of thousands of residents to leave their homes in Burej, an urban refugee camp, and surrounding communities, also in the south. In the city of Rafah, on the border with Egypt, an airstrike on a house killed six people, according to Associated Press journalists who saw the bodies at a hospital. Among the dead were a blind man, his wife and their 4-month-

old child, said the infant’s grandfather, Anwar Dhair. Rafah is one of the few places in Gaza not under evacuation orders, but has been targeted in Israeli strikes almost every day. The air and ground campaign also continued in the north, even as Israel says it is in the final stages of clearing out Hamas militants there. Mustafa Abu Taha, a Palestinian farm worker, said many areas of his hard-hit Gaza City neighborhood of Shijaiyah have become inaccessible because of massive destruction from airstrikes. “They are hitting anything moving,” he said of Israeli forces.

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From Doc and Kathy Monfort- Once again we come to year’s end. 2023 has flown by and we turn our thoughts and thanks to the blessings in our lives, our family, friends, co-workers, clients, community, and all of the beloved pets that enrich our days. We wish all of you the happiest of holidays and Bow-Meow to the puppies and kittens. Leon and Diane LaGalle- Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from Leon, Diane, and Elsa. Kristen Ulrey- May you all have a joyous Solstice, full of rest, renewal, and new stars to follow. Be Safe, Be Merry, Be Hopeful towards the New Year to come, and remember all the wonderful times this past year has brought us. Happy Holidays from my family to yours! Tiffany Hurlock- The cold is a beautiful reminder to offer warm wishes for a happy holiday season. May your holidays be bright. Much Love, The Hurlocks From Megan Westerhold DVM- I have enjoyed working with many of you this year and caring for your animals, both large and small. As we enter the holiday season, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas, a Happy New Year, and a healthy and prosperous 2024! From Brande Beyer DVM- It’s the time for reflection and I feel blessed to have provided care for many large and small animal patients this year. I wish you all the magic of the season. Happy Holidays from my family to yours. From Belinda Garten DVM– During this holiday season, we count our many blessings. We are thankful for the opportunity to care for your animals, both large and small. We treasure the many friendships and bonds that we have developed over the years as a result of working at RBVS. Finally, we are thankful for our many clients who allow us to share a small part of their lives and the lives of their animals. Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and many blessings in the new year! From Leann Flowers DVM- I would like to wish everyone a very Merry and Blessed Christmas season. I appreciate your business and love seeing all your furry family members. Merry Christmas from my family to yours! Christine Freelove- Wishing you all a Tail-waggin and Purr-fect Christmas. Have a paws-itively amazing New Year! Hallie McDermeit– Merry Everything and Happy Always!! Laura Boone- As we end this year, may you find happy and loving memories to cherish and hold near to your heart. May your Christmas be Merry and your New Year’s be Happy. From my family to yours! Veronnica Cumplido- May everyone’s Christmas Wishes come true and good luck with all of your resolutions this year!! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Veronnica and Fancy Cumplido! May all your sweaters be ugly and bright! Natalie DeGrado and Arabella (the hound dog) and Finn (the Fine)- May your Christmas be furry and bright!! Happy, happy holidays!

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A4 Saturday, December 23, 2023

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RSV vaccine education needed for older Kansans By AJ DOME Kansas Reflector

Kansas health care professionals say more education is needed regarding the vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. Kansas Health Institute hosted a virtual forum earlier this month to discuss the types of immunizations older adults may need and why those shots are important to get. Annette Graham, executive director of the Central Plains Area Agency on Aging, said she’s heard some confusion from older adults about what RSV is. “Historically it’s been discussed as affecting young children,” Graham said. “They don’t understand they can be susceptible to it.” RSV can cause infections in a person’s lungs and respiratory system, and for healthier people it can feel much like a common cold. Young children and babies, as well as seniors, are more vulnerable to the virus as it spreads via coughing, sneezing, or touching infected surfaces, such as doorknobs. Like influenza and other viruses, the typical season for RSV starts during autumn and peaks in mid-winter. Graham said there are “a lot” of educational opportunities statewide regarding RSV and how it infects people, as well as the potential

More people need to understand the risk of the respiratory syncytial virus, which can be mitigated with a vaccine, medical professionals said during a virtual forum hosted by the Kansas Health Institute. WIN MCNAMEE/GETTY IMAGES a case discussion for the group. The case study involved a 70-year-old person who received the COVID-19 booster shot and this year’s flu vaccine but declined to get a shingles or RSV vaccine because of a concern about overloading their body on vaccines in one day. Shah said the person was also concerned about difficulties accessing immunization information because of poor internet coverage in their

side effects associated with the RSV vaccine for adults 60 and older. For rural and frontier residents, she said, their biggest barriers to getting vaccinations are access to shots and transportation to a health clinic to receive them, on top of the sometimes-high out-of-pocket costs of immunizations not covered by insurance. As part of the call, Kansas Health Institute portfolio strategist Hina Shah offered

rural area. Kansas Pharmacy Association representative Amanda Applegate said some rural residents are less worried about receiving multiple shots in one day, simply because they may only have one day available to drive the long distances that can be required to reach a pharmacy or health facility. “It has brought in some very vaccine-confident older adults, who, as respiratory

virus season is getting underway, they’ve said, ‘Load me up,’ ” Applegate said. Brenda Groves, a quality improvement consultant with KFMC Health Improvement Partners, said her staff is working to adapt the agency’s educational materials into different languages to meet the changing needs of residents and caregivers in long-term care facilities. Kansas House Rep. John Eplee, an Atchison Republican and family physician, said during the forum that he is heartened by seeing more older people get vaccinated against infections like RSV. “We’ve got to continue to educate people, and to provide people with accurate information,” Eplee said. “We’re still dealing with some of the negative public health impacts from COVID.” Eplee said public health officials need to continue to be advocates for people, especially aging residents, who may be inundated with disinformation or negative comments regarding vaccines. The virtual call was part of KHI’s Ad Astra ECHO series covering immunization-related topics. The next session, covering vaccinations for pregnant mothers and their babies, is set for 1 p.m. Feb. 16 via Zoom.

Rural Kansas museum returns artifacts By RACHEL MIPRO Kansas Reflector

PAOLA — Cartons of Mexican artifacts, which could be priceless, worthless or somewhere in the middle, sit in storage at a rural museum in Kansas, waiting to be picked up. The museum in Paola began its ongoing effort to return objects from a 38-piece collection of pre-Columbian artifacts more than a year ago, after receiving them from a Kansas City couple’s trust a few years earlier. Museum officials decided to repatriate the items and use the space to display more local history. After making little headway on their own, museum board members worked with U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids’ staff for guidance on how best to contact the involved embassies. The move resulted in the return of three Peruvian artifacts in September. While two of the three artifacts were found to be replicas, the third was described as a potentially invaluable original. On Thursday, Davids took a tour of the remaining collection. “From today, one of the things I would say is continuing to work on making sure that people have a better understanding of how much history there is in this area,” Davids said, standing outside the museum. “It’s important, but it’s also cool and exciting. … It’s like this mystery we can keep unfolding.” The artifacts, consisting of pottery and figurines, are thought to come from an era of indigenous art in the Americas before the arrival of Christopher Columbus. The original collection named Mexico, Ecuador, Guatemala and Peru as the countries of origin.

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The artifacts are thought to come from an era of indigenous art in the Americas before the arrival of Columbus. Following the return of Peruvian items, Miami County Historical Museum executive board member Gordon Geldhof said the museum is now in talks about returning the Mexican artifacts, of which there are more than 30. He said efforts to contact Guatemala and Ecuador haven’t garnered replies yet. “I’m real, real happy we got the Peruvian artifacts back; it looks like we’re right on the cusp of getting all the Mexican things back,” Geldhof said. “The two countries, Guatemala and Ecuador, we haven’t had any response from them. And we’re very upset about that. If I knew somebody had an artifact from my family that’s 2,000 years old, I would be jumping over backwards to get it, and they don’t seem to be interested.”

Jana Harrington-Barcus, Miami County Historical Museum executive director, points to stored artifacts. Rachel Mipro/ Kansas Reflector

Geldhof said the current plan is to return all authentic artifacts and auction off any fake or replica pieces to raise money for the museum, which is stuffed full of historical items waiting to be displayed. Jana Harrington-Barcus, the museum’s executive director, pointed to the mammoth bones stored in one of the museum rooms as an example of intriguing local history. “It’s been fun, because coming to the museum, we’re just constantly learning, learning, learning,” she said.

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Biden pardons thousands convicted of marijuana crimes WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is pardoning thousands of people who were convicted of use and simple possession of marijuana on federal lands and in the District of Columbia, the White House said Friday, in his latest round of executive PIXABAY.COM clemencies meant to rectify racial disparities for release as a result of Friday’s action. in the justice system. But the order expands The categorical pardon Friday builds on a the grounds on which similar round issued pardons are issued. In just before the 2022 the last round, people midterm elections that were pardoned for simpardoned thousands ple possession under convicted of simple only one criminal statpossession on feder- ute. Friday’s pardons al lands eligible. Fri- also apply to several day’s action broadens other criminal statutes, attempted the criminal offenses including covered by the pardon. simple possession. Biden’s order apBiden is also granting clemency to 11 people plies only to marijuana, serving what the White which has been decrimHouse called “dispro- inalized or legalized in portionately long” sen- many states for some tences for nonviolent or all uses, but remains a controlled substance drug offenses. Biden, in a statement, under federal law. U.S. said his actions would regulators are studying help make the “promise reclassifying the drug of equal justice a reali- from the category of drugs deemed to have ty.” “Criminal records for “no currently accepted marijuana use and pos- medical use and a high session have imposed potential for abuse,” needless barriers to em- known as “Schedule I,” ployment, housing, and to the less tightly regueducational opportuni- lated “Schedule III.” The pardon also does ties,” Biden said. “Too many lives have been not apply to those in the upended because of our U.S. unlawfully at the failed approach to mar- time of their offense. Biden’s proclamaijuana. It’s time that we tion effectively pardons right these wrongs.” No one was freed the covered people, but from prison under last they will need to subyear’s action, but the mit applications to the Department’s pardons were meant to Justice help thousands over- pardon attorney office come obstacles to rent- to receive certificates of ing a home or finding a pardon that can be used job. Similarly, no feder- for housing and emal prisoners are eligible ployment purposes.

This building will become the site of a new Veterans Administration clinic, targeted to open in May 2024. The clinic will use space previously home to the Family Physicians clinic, which is moving to th enorth part of the builidng. A dermatology clinic and Iola Pharmacy will remain in their current locations. REGISTER/VICKIE MOSS

VA clinic: To open in spring of 2024 Continued from A1

come to the office to receive audiology, vision and other services through the VA’s medical center in Topeka. “We’re going to be able to offer these services to veterans more quickly” by opening the Iola clinic, Quintero said. THE IOLA CLINIC provides 5,200 squarefeet of space for VA services. That’s significantly larger than those currently in operation: Fort Scott has 1,700 square feet, Garnett has 1,900 and Chanute, 1,200. Those clinics will close. The new space will need some remodeling, but is tentatively expected to open in May 2024. Architect drawings are being finalized before construction begins. “The advantage of going into an existing building is we’re able to open our clinic soon-

er rather than later,” Quintero said. The VA looked at several sites around the area and considered building a new structure before agreeing to a 10-year lease for the clinic space. The new location is conveniently located on U.S. 54 and about half a mile from the U.S. 169 interchange. Currently, 856 veterans utilize the three clinics. Veterans can choose where they receive health care. Quintero expects most will choose to go to the Iola clinic. The VA will host public meetings, likely starting in February, to help area veterans with the transition. For those who prefer to use a different office, such as Wichita or Kansas City, the VA offers “a soft handoff” so they don’t have to go through enrollment. “We’re trying to make this change a little bit easier on our vet-

erans,” Quintero said. The VA also will reach out to veterans who may qualify but don’t currently use the services. “There is a large veteran population in Iola, and you have a Guard unit,” she said, referring to the 891st Engineering Battalion. Those who are deployed receive five years of VA services after deployment. For some, eligibility could continue after that. Also, some veterans who travel to Iola for National Guard activities may prefer to seek services or information here as well. “We know our veterans go through hardships, both pre- and post-deployment, and with rising health care prices the VA would be a great benefit for those returning from active duty,” she said. The VA clinic also could have a positive effect on the community in other ways,

Quintero said. If the VA is not able to provide services in a timely manner, they might be referred to local providers. Veterans also could utilize area pharmacies that accept the VA’s health plan. Iola also offers a number of amenities, such as restaurants, for veterans and their families who will drive to the clinic from other communities. QUINTERO encourages area veterans to attend the community meeting in February, though details are still being arranged. The hope is to bring a variety of state and federal representatives to answer any questions brought by both veterans and others in the community, she said. “We’re working pretty diligently right now and we’ll be bringing information to all our communities in the first part of 2024,” she said.

Border: Mexico wants US to help Cuba, migrants’ countries Continued from A1

against Cuba and Venezuela. “We are going to help, as we always do,” López Obrador said. “Mexico is helping reach agreements with other countries, in this case Venezuela.” “We also want something done about the (U.S.) differences with Cuba,” López Obrador said. “We have already proposed to President (Joe) Biden that a U.S.-Cuba bilateral dialogue be opened.” “That is what we are going to discuss, it is not just contention,” he said at his daily morning press briefing. Mexico is apparent-

ly offering to negotiate with Venezuela, whose people make up a large part of the surge of migrants at the U.S. southwestern border. That surge has led U.S. officials to pull immigration officers away from two Texas border rail crossings that are vital to Mexico’s economy. López Obrador has long opposed U.S. sanctions on Cuba, whose migrants are also streaming to the U.S. border. And the Mexican president has long pressed the United States to contribute to a tree-planting program and to youth scholarship and apprentice programs that he has

been pushing for Central America. López Obrador said the development aid will help stem residents’ need to migrate. The Mexico-U.S. meetings come as Republican and Democratic lawmakers are debating border policy changes as part of a larger conversation over U.S. assistance for Ukraine and Israel, which are top foreign policy priorities for the White House. Pressure mounted on Mexico following the closure of two railroad crossings in Texas earlier this week. U.S. officials said personnel assigned to the locations

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needed to be redeployed to help with large numbers of migrants illegally crossing the border. Mexican businesses warned the closures were hampering trade. López Obrador spoke by telephone with Biden on Thursday and agreed that additional border enforcement was needed so the crossings can be reopened, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said. Kirby said Biden asked Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and White House Momeland Security Advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall

to travel to Mexico for talks with López Obrador and his team. A U.S. official said the trip would likely happen the Wednesday after Christmas. “Their visit will really be about getting at the migratory flows and talking to President López Obrador and his team about what more we can do together,” Kirby said at a White House briefing. Mexican companies are so eager for the border points to reopen that the leader of the Industrial Chamber of Commerce wrote on his social media accounts late Wednesday that a deal had been brokered

to get them reopened. A U.S. Embassy spokesperson quickly denied that, saying they remained closed. The Mexican Employers’ Association described the closure of railroad crossings into Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas, as a “failure of migration policy.” The organization said the situation was causing losses of $100 million per day in delayed shipments. Mexico receives much of the corn and soy products it needs to feed livestock on trains from the United States. Auto parts and automobiles also frequently are shipped by rail in Mexico.

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Opinion

The Iola Register

Saturday, December 23, 2023

Why the weather always comes up; it’s a safety valve I’ve missed only one Christmas with some sort of family. Even today I can remember the pangs of loneliness while trying to steel myself with a cavalier attitude. I was 20 and attending school in the north of England. A dorm mate invited me to spend the day with her family down south. At the time I was sharing a house with two older gentlemen who kept rigid control of a thermostat that never allowed your clothing to get drier than damp. Eager for warmth on all levels, I hopped a series of trains to my friend Carol’s house. Their hospitality remains with me to this day. We pulled the traditional Christmas crackers, wearing the flimsy paper hats the rest of the day. We played games. Carol’s younger sisters found everything I said absolutely hilarious. The next day I took a boat across the Irish Sea to Dublin where I met a classmate from Colorado to spend the rest of the holiday touring the southern coast. I don’t think I dried out until March, the cold and wet were so pervasive. It also didn’t help that everything we wore — this was the 1970s — was denim. My shoes were likely tennis shoes with cotton tops. AMERICANS disproportionately talk about the weather, according to my Salvadoran daughter-in-law Violeta, where the temperature generally ranges from 70 to 90 degrees year-round. Salvadorans can best distinguish the seasons in their Camelot by an increase in the night-time rains.

Susan Lynn Register editor

Earthquakes are their primary concern, which is no small thing, but don’t occur enough to bring up in casual conversations. Which is the point of talking about the weather. It’s a universal launch pad when greeting others because in most parts of the world it changes from day to day, and the older you get it oddly takes on more significance; which I can’t explain. Perhaps it’s an escape mechanism. Increasingly, at day’s end I find myself looking at the world’s weather patterns. Thursday evening I noted how little rain the world in general was receiving, with only Brisbane, Australia, the United Kingdom, California and the Midwest registering any significant rainfall. Earlier that day, I had held off sending the newspaper to press until the last minute with the hope we could update the news that the United Nations Security Council had passed a resolution to send desperately needed aid to the Gaza Strip. It didn’t happen. For five days, representatives have been debating the terms of the relief while an estimated 2.22 million Palestinians are on the brink of starvation due to the horrific war between Israel and Hamas. CHRISTMAS has a way of bringing up long-repressed memories. And unattainable hopes. But I’ll never stop praying for world peace.

A woman pushes a pram past a symbolic Christmas tree made from spent shells casing and other spent ammunition erected outside a cafe in downtown Kyiv on Monday, Dec. 18, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (SERGEI SUPINSKY/AFP/GETTY IMAGES/TNS)

Congress takes a holiday from history The Senate skipped town for the holidays without a deal to aid Ukraine and bolster border security, but Members claim they can regroup and pass something in the New Year. Let’s hope they do, because failure would be a disaster for U.S. interests and security. Senate leaders Chuck Schumer and Mitch McConnell all but held hands this week as they pledged to compromise enough to pass the supplemental funding bill. “While we’ve made important progress over the past week on border security,” Mr. Schumer said, it’s “going to take more time.” Senators appear to have made progress on fixing the incentives for asylum at the southern border. But a sticking point is how much to limit the President’s use of humanitarian parole to wave migrants into the U.S. The details are worth getting right, and lawmakers think that Ukraine can hang on for another month while a deal is worked out. The Ukrainians are dug in and holding the line against Russian forays. The Russians are paying dearly for small advances. But Vladimir Putin hasn’t aban-

doned his original aims, and there’s a risk the Russians regain momentum. U.S. intelligence suggests that Ukraine destroyed an astonishing 90% of Russia’s prewar army. But the Russians “have replaced those manpower losses and are ramping up their industrial base to make good their material losses at a rate much faster than their pre-war capacity had permitted,” the Institute for the Study of War noted recently. It’s still possible the war ends in victory for Mr. Putin, with a Russian military that is larger and sharpened by combat experience. One of Mr. Biden’s biggest mistakes in Ukraine was a monthslong delay in arming Kyiv for its spring offensive, which allowed Russia time to build hard defenses. Another pause would be a second unforced error. The Senate’s holiday from history also means more delay before the U.S. gets moving on making the weapons that American forces need. Ukraine’s critics on the right have complained that helping Kyiv is burning through U.S. weapons stockpiles that may someday be needed in

the Pacific or elsewhere. But that’s another reason to pass the supplemental. Take Patriot air defenses. An Army general told Congress this month that Patriots are in “unprecedented operational demand.” The supplemental includes some $750 million to help expand Patriot interceptor production to about 650 missiles a year, from 550 now. Anyone worried about the U.S. running out of crucial munitions should support the package, not trash it as wasted on Europe. The political risk in the New Year is a right-left political whipsaw against a deal. Progressives are trying to build grass-roots opposition to any immigration compromise, while Donald Trump is likely to denounce a compromise as a sellout because he wants to campaign against border chaos next year. But migrant flows are reaching new and alarming highs, and both Mr. Biden and Republicans have a political stake in reducing that surge while helping Ukraine and Israel. Much is riding on doing so — for the U.S. and the world. — Wall Street Journal

Blinken gets it exactly right in case against Hamas In this space we do the talking, about what the Daily News deems important and worthy. But today we are giving a good chunk of our space to Secretary of State Tony Blinken. America’s top diplomat gave his year-end press conference Wednesday before he left for another trip to the Mideast for the Israel-Hamas war that the terror gang launched from Gaza on Oct. 7. Meanwhile, here on the East Side, the United Nations Security Council postponed yet again a vote on an United Arab Emirates-drafted resolution calling for a pause in the fighting to bring in aid to Gaza and allow for the hostages kidnaped by Hamas to be released. The Monday vote became the Tuesday vote became the Wednesday vote became the Thursday vote and is now the Friday vote because the U.S. is rightly insisting that Hamas be named as instigators of this awful war that has killed Israelis and Palestinians. Give credit to Blinken and President Joe Biden for demanding that the Security

Everyone would like to see this conflict end as quickly as possible, but if it ends with Hamas remaining in place and having the capacity and the stated intent to repeat Oct. 7 again and again and again ... it’s not in the interests of the world. — Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is right to insist that the Security Council name Hamas as the instigator of this terrible war and call a terrorist a terrorist. ( JACQUELYN MARTIN/ POOL/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES/TNS)

Council must call a terrorist a terrorist. Here is Blinken: “We’ve talked about Israel and Gaza. Let me just say this. We believe that, as we’ve said from the outset, Israel has not only a right but an obligation to defend itself and to try to make sure that Oct. 7 never happens again. Any other country in the world faced with what Israel suffered on Oct. 7 would do the same

thing. “We’ve also said — and we’ve been very clear — that how Israel does it matters and matters tremendously. And there, too, we’ve been very deeply engaged with them to maximize protections for civilians, to maximize humanitarian assistance, to minimize harm to people in Gaza. “One of the things that’s striking to me is that, under-

standably, everyone would like to see this conflict end as quickly as possible, but if it ends with Hamas remaining in place and having the capacity and the stated intent to repeat Oct. 7 again and again and again, that’s not in the interests of Israel, it’s not in the interests of the region, it’s not in the interests of the world. “And what is striking to me is that even as, again, we hear many countries urging the end to this conflict, which we would all like to see, I hear virtually no one saying — demanding of Hamas that it stop hiding behind civilians, that it lay down its arms, that it surrender. This is over tomorrow if Hamas does that. “This would have been

over a month ago, six weeks ago, if Hamas had done that. And how could it — how can it be that there are no demands made of the aggressor and only demands made of the victim? “So it would be good if there was a strong international voice pressing Hamas to do what’s necessary to end this. And again, that could be tomorrow. “And again, I come back to this basic proposition. There seems to be silence on what Hamas could do, should do, must do if we want to end the suffering of innocent men, women, and children. It would be, I think, good if the world could unite around that proposition as well.” Well said, Mr. Secretary. — New York Daily News

iolaregister.com

Saturday, December 23, 2023

The Iola Register

Holiday traditions stand test of time, but also evolve The Iola Register invited area citizens to share what will make this Christmas special. Clara Wicoff Misenhelter

I’m one of those people who wants to put their Christmas decorations up on November 1st because Christmas is my absolute favorite time of the year. I was so excited when the city put up the Christmas lights around town, and even more excited to get my own Christmas tree put up in my house the day af-

ter Thanksgiving. This will be the first for my husband and me as a married couple, and I am excited for both the continuation of our families’ traditions as well as the start of our own traditions together. One tradition that I am most excited for is attending the candlelight Christmas Eve service at Wesley United Methodist Church. Until then, I will be singing along to Christmas songs by myself at home nonstop. Cindy Jaro

Christmas has always been a favorite holiday for our whole family. I have enjoyed creating special traditions and memories for our children. We always attend Christmas Eve Mass at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. In recent years, we have begun playing the Saran Wrap game on Christmas Eve and again, it’s on the schedule. I always enjoy baking and cooking a traditional Christmas meal for Christmas Day. As a hairstylist, Christmas is a very enjoyable —

and busy — season. I enjoy asking my clients about the places they are traveling, family and guests they are expecting, their favorite recipes and gift ideas for their loved ones. Patti Boyd

Both daughters will be home for Christmas. Emily and her husband, Zach, will come from Pasadena, California. Clara and her fella, Nick, will join us from Denver. International culinary themes are our holiday tra-

dition. This year we will be cooking with a French flair: croissants, cassoulet, macarons, baguettes, beef bourguignon, coq au vin. Who knows, maybe even French fries. We hope Emily, our pie artist, will create both French silk and cherry pies. Mark’s folks, Bob and Shirley, will join us right after Christmas for charcuterie, a board game marathon and, of course, Clara and Shirley’s beautiful voices singing carols. Joyeux Noel!

Rick Bevard

The extended family of Mary Kay and David Heard enjoy Christmas dinner last year. Below, Leanna Flory, age 11, and Hazel Flory, age 2, the Heards’ great-grandchildren, with the Santa from Western Auto. Mary Kay Heard

One tradition we have is to display the “old” Santa that came with the Western Auto store. My folks purchased the business in 1944. That Santa was on display in the front window when the store was located at 15 W. Madison. Dad moved the store to 320 W. Garfield in 1963. My mom especially loved that Santa and all of our family does too. Each year we try to remember to take a picture of the little kids with that Santa. Another tradition we have is to read Luke 2:4-14, when we gather around the table for Christmas dinner. Many years ago I typed the passage up and cut it into individual sentences, labeled from 1 to 14. Before we eat, we go around the table reading each part. At the end, the littlest kid says “Happy Birthday, Baby Jesus.” That part will go to Hazel Ann Flory this year as Jayde has learned to read and she must move on. Some years there are more parts than we have people and some years there are more people than parts. We adjust and enjoy. We have often recorded the reading and that has become special as we move through the years and look back. My special joy is to celebrate Christmas and every season with our family and the people of Iola and Allen County. This community supported our family by trading at the Western Auto Store for 65 years. We are all very grateful. Merry Christmas from the Heard family.

PHOTO GALLERIES iolaregister.com/photos

It’s a joy to behold the wonderment that Christmas brings to our littles and see the magic and joy through their eyes. Along with a glimmer of hope, thoughtfulness of others, and brighter twinkle around us that we carry into the year ahead. Christmas is a season and language that continues to transcend all differences and demographics and clarify the “do unto others” message. It makes us grateful, glad, and inspired. We spent the weekend prior to Christmas celebrating with my family in Iola and sharing gifts of the heart, and their services. We also assisted in the cookie factory that is part of Amy’s Wheeler family annual tradition, now in its fourth generation! Peace and goodwill

Rick Bevard and his daughter, Elowyn, age 2, above, at Kansas City’s Union Station. At left, is Rick and Amy’s son, Caspian, age 6, decorating cookies.

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The Iola Register

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day Services

Assembly Of God

Midpoint Baptist Church

St. Martin’s Catholic Church

Christmas Eve special service at 6:30 p.m.

Christmas Eve - Special service at 10:30 a.m.

Christmas Eve Mass at 7 p.m.

Grace Lutheran Church

St. John’s Catholic Church

1020 E. Carpenter, Iola Pastor Paul Miller

St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church 202 S. Walnut, Iola Deacon Oliver Bunker

On Christmas Eve, the fourth Sunday in Advent, service begins at 10 a.m., with Deacon Bunker presiding. At 6 p.m., a Eucharistic service will be held. Rev. Nancy Shank and Deacon Oliver Bunker will lead the service.

First Presbyterian Church 302 E. Madison, Iola Rev. Dan Davis

Christmas Eve services at 9:30 a.m. A 7 p.m. service on Christmas Eve will feature special music and children’s program. Sunday Soups will be held at 5 p.m. on Dec. 24 and 31.

Colony Christian Church 306 N. Maple St., Colony Pastor Chase Riebel

Christmas Eve candlelight service at 5 p.m.

Carlyle Presbyterian Church 29 Covert St., Carlyle Pastor Steve Traw

Christmas Eve service at 6 p.m. with communion and candlelight.

Covenant of Faith Christian Center 407 N Chestnut St, Iola Pastor Philip Honeycutt

Our congregation will gather for Christmas Eve service at 10 a.m. All are welcome.

Waypoint Church 329 S. 1st St., Iola

Christmas Eve - 10:45 a.m. candlelight service.

St. Joseph’s Catholic Church

3965 US Highway 54, Moran Pastor Mathew Kalmeta

117 E. Miller Rd., Iola Pastor Bruce Kristalyn

Traditional Sunday morning service will be held at 10:30 a.m., with a special Christmas Eve service at 7 p.m. On Christmas Day, we will gather at 10:30 a.m. for service.

Harvest Baptist Church 2001 N. State St., Iola Pastor Tony Godfrey

Christmas Eve family-style joint service at 10:30 a.m. Traditional service follows at 6:30 p.m.

First Baptist Church 118 N. 7th St., Humboldt Pastor Jerry Neely

Dec. 23 - 3 p.m. caroling at Arrowood Dec. 24 - 6 p.m. candlelight service

Humboldt United Methodist Church

806 N. Ninth St., Humboldt Rev. Blake Stanwood

Christmas Eve service at 11 a.m. with a candlelight service at 7 p.m. At Big Creek Church, no regular service. A candelight service will be held at 5 p.m.

Rivertree Christian Church 301 W. Miller Rd., Iola

Christmas Day Mass at 10:30 a.m.

St. Joseph’s Catholic Church 105 E. Bell St., Yates Center Father David Michael Christmas Day Mass at 8:30 a.m.

St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 910 Amos St., Humboldt Pastor Matthew Jennings

Christmas Eve - 6 p.m. service with special children’s program Christmas Day - Traditional Christmas service at 9:30 a.m.

Community Church of the Nazarene 1235 N. Walnut St., Iola Pastor Kelly Klubek

Christmas Eve services begin with Sunday School at 9:45 a.m. Worship follows at 10:45 a.m. In the evening, the congregation will gather at 5:30 p.m. for cocoa and cookies and a 6 p.m. service.

Wesley United Methodist Church 301 E. Madison Ave., Iola Rev. Dr. Dyton L. Owen

Christmas Eve services at 9:30 a.m. 4 p.m., and 7 p.m.

First Christian Church

Fellowship Regional Church

1608 Oregon Rd., Iola Pastor Kenyon Kaehr

Christmas Eve services at 10:30 a.m. and 7 p.m. No Sunday school.

First Baptist Church 801 N. Cottonwood, Iola

Our traditional Christmas Eve service will be held at 10:30 a.m.

214 W. Madison Ave., Iola Pastors Luke Bycroft and Jared Ellis

Our traditional Christmas Eve service will be held at 10:30 a.m.

Faith Assembly of God 21019 N 9th St., Humboldt Pastor Cameron Carter

Christmas Eve donut breakfast at 9 a.m. and a 10 a.m service, with a candlelight service at 5 p.m. No service on Christmas Day.

Christmas Eve Mass at 7:30 p.m. Christmas Day Mass will be held at 9 a.m.

Wishing you and your family a safe and joyful season.

310 S. Jefferson, Iola Father David Michael

All are invited to attend a traditional Christmas Eve service at 10 a.m.

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Sports Daily

The Iola Register

Saturday, December 23, 2023

SEE 2024 INSIDE FOR

Iola High School: Girls basketball

WINTER SPORTS

Who are those masked girls? Nose injuries don’t slow Mustang duo By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register

Don’t let anyone convince you girls basketball is anything but a full-contact sport. Iola High’s Elza Clift and Keira Fawson can attest, all too painfully. Both suffered broken noses in the early going of the 2023-24 basketball season, and thus will continue to wear protective masks for the foreseeable future. Clift, a junior reserve guard, broke her nose during a Dec. 5 practice when she and teammate Kyndal Bycroft collided while going for the ball. It was an inadvertent collision, Clift noted afterward. “It definitely hurt,” she said with a chuckle. “I went into the locker room to look in the mirror, and said, ‘Oh, that doesn’t look right.’” Fast-forward a week, to the evening of Dec. 12, when the Mustangs were warming up for a road game at Burlington. Fawson, Iola’s starting center, was practicing post moves in front of the basket. Little did she know teammate Bethany Miller, another post player, was doing the same. “We both turned at the wrong time, and I caught her elbow right on my nose,” Fawson said. The impact was a bit messier than Clift’s. Fawson’s nose started bleeding almost immediately, as she retreated to the locker room. “I looked in the mirror and saw that it looked really crooked,” she recalled. “So I popped it back into place.” That part hurt as much as the collision, Fawson admitted. “It was bleeding for a long time,” she noted. “Eventually, it stopped. Kind of. By the third quarter.”

At first, Fawson’s plans were to try to play that night. But by the time the bleeding stopped, the pain was throbbing. “I’d been icing my nose all night, and I really hadn’t been able to watch much of the game,” she said. “I was starting to get a little light-headed. I thought, if I got hit again, I’d be more of a hindrance than a help.” Because Clift’s injury occurred during practice, she was able to recover enough to play two more games that week (even without a mask.) “We weren’t able to see the ENT (ear, nose and throat doctor) until the following Monday,” Clift said. “It didn’t really affect me, but by then, my nose was hurting a lot, all of the time.” Clift secured a pair of protective masks from Allen Community College’s athletics department, and wore the coverings against both Burlington and Prairie View in Iola’s final two games before the Christmas break. She even offered one of the masks to Fawson after her mishap. By the time the Prairie View Iola High’s Keira Fawson, above, and Elza Clift, below at game arrived two nights later, left, have donned protective masks after each suffered a See MASKS | Page B7 broken nose in the early portion of the 2023-24 basketball season. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

TO THE

WINTER SPORTS 2024

Hoops:

K-State topples Shockers By DAVE SKRETTA The Associated Press

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Tylor Perry scored 17 points, including a pair of clinching free throws in the final minute, and Kansas State held on to beat in-state rival Wichita State 69-60 on Thursday night at the T-Mobile Center. Cam Carter added 15 points, David N’Guessan had 13 points and nine rebounds, and Arthur Kaluma scored 11 for the Wildcats (9-3), who bounced back from a lousy shooting night in a loss to Nebraska to beat the Shockers for the fifth consecutive time. “These games are always tough for a lot of different reasons,” Kansas State coach Jerome Tang said. “The game before Christmas, you’re always concerned — Did your guys go home and not tell you? Some are flying out tomorrow morning and you wonder if they’re already home for Christmas or not. But I just thought our guys were locked in.” Quincy Ballard scored 12 points to lead Wichita State (8-4). Colby Rogers and Xavier Bell added 12 apiece. The game, played just across the state line in Missouri, was a reunion for Tang and Wichita State counterpart Paul Mills. The duo were part of Scott Drew’s original staff at Baylor, helping to turn one of the worst programs in the Big 12 into a peSee K-STATE | Page B6

NFL: Las Vegas Raiders (6-8) at Kansas City Chiefs (9-5), Monday, noon, CBS

Chiefs aim to lock up AFC West with win over Vegas By DAVE SKRETTA The Associated Press

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The one-sided nature of the Chiefs’ recent history with the Las Vegas Raiders perhaps appropriately mimics the way the AFC West has turned into a one-team division since Andy Reid arrived in Kansas City just over a decade ago.

After second-place finishes in his first three seasons, Reid has led the Chiefs to seven straight division titles, and they could clinch their eighth on Monday with a victory over the Raiders — or a tie if the Broncos lose to the Patriots the previous night. The only streak longer in NFL history belongs to the Patriots, who won 11 straight AFC East championships from

2009 to 2019. “That’s something we talk about at the beginning of the year: Our first goal is to win the AFC West,” Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes said. “We have to be ready this week, and that would clinch our first goal if we are able to do that.” The Chiefs (9-5) also are trying to keep their hopes alive of earning the AFC’s No.

1 seed and lone first-round playoff bye. They head into the weekend two games back of the Ravens and a game behind the Dolphins, whom they have already defeated. They Chiefs have an easier finishing stretch than either of those teams, and it begins with Las Vegas (6-8), which they have beaten six straight times and 11 of the last 12 in a series dating to Sept. 16,

1960, when the Chiefs were in Dallas and the Raiders in Oakland. In fact, the Raiders have won only once at Arrowhead Stadium since Oct. 28, 2012. “It’s a team that I’m just tired of losing to,” said Raiders cornerback Amik Robertson, who thought back to their 31-17 loss to the Chiefs See CHIEFS | Page B6

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B2 Saturday, December 23, 2023

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Dodgers sign Yamamoto to $325 million pact LOS ANGELES (AP) — Prized free-agent pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the Los Angeles Dodgers have agreed to a $325 million, 12-year contract, according to multiple reports. Yamamoto is set to join Japanese countryman Shohei Ohtani with the Dodgers, who signed the two-way superstar to a record $700 million, 10-year deal last week. The Dodgers did not confirm the agreement with Yamamoto on Thursday night. MLB. com and ESPN were among the outlets citing anonymous sources in reporting the deal. The New York Yankees and New York Mets were among the many clubs that pursued Yamamoto. It’s the third major Yoshinobu Yamamoto of Team Japan pitches during pitching coup for the NL the Tokyo Olympic Games in August 2021 in YokohaWest champion Dodgers ma, Japan. GETTY IMAGES/KOJI WATANABE/TNS this offseason. In addition to Ohtani, the team pitch to Glasnow to join drew Friedman said at signed right-hander Ty- him in Hollywood. Ohtani’s introductory ler Glasnow to a $136.5 “It was important to news conference last million, five-year con- Shohei that this wasn’t week. tract after he was trad- the one move we were Yamamoto was 16-6 ed from the Tampa Bay going to make,” Dodg- with a 1.21 ERA this Rays to Los Angeles. ers President of Base- season, striking out Ohtani made a video ball Operations An- 169 and walking 28 in

164 innings. He is 7029 with a 1.82 ERA in seven seasons with the Orix Buffaloes. Yamamoto struck out a Japan Series-record 14 in a Game 6 win over Hanshin on Nov. 5, throwing a 138-pitch complete game. Orix went on to lose Game 7. Orix posted the 25-year-old righthander on Nov. 20 and Major League Baseball teams had until Jan. 4 to sign him. Yamamoto’s deal with the Dodgers would be the largest and longest ever guaranteed to a big league pitcher. Ohtani was a twotime AL MVP with the Los Angeles Angels before becoming a free agent this offseason and moving to the Dodgers. Yamamoto pitched his second career no-hitter, the 100th in Japanese big league history, on Sept. 9 for the Buffaloes against the Lotte Marines. The game, watched by MLB executives, extended his scoreless streak to 42 innings. A two-time Pacific League MVP, Yamamo-

to also threw a no-hitter against the Seibu Lions on June 18 last year. His fastball averaged 95 mph and topped out at 96.6 mph in Japan’s semifinal win over Mexico at the World Baseball Classic in March. He threw 20 fastballs, 19 splitters, six curveballs, six cutters and one slider in a 3 1/3-inning relief outing. Batters swung at 11 of his splitters and missed four. Following hardthrowing 21-year-old sensation Roki Sasaki, Yamamoto gave up two runs and three hits in 3 1/3 innings with four strikeouts

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Departing Pac-12 schools reach revenue deal By RALPH D. RUSSO The Associated Press

Oregon State and Washington State announced Thursday they have reached an agreement in principle with 10 departing Pac-12 schools on revenue distribution for 2023-24 that ends a legal battle sparked by conference realignment. Last week, Oregon State and Washington State were given control of the Pac-12 and assets when the state Supreme Court of Washington declined to review a lower court’s decision to grant the schools a preliminary injunction. Financial terms of the settlement were not released, but in a joint statement Washington State and Oregon State said the departing members will forfeit a portion of distributions for this school year and guarantees to cover a specific portion of “potential future liabilities.” “This agreement ensures that the future of the Pac-12 will be decided by the schools that are staying, not those that are leaving. We look forward to what the future holds for our universities, our student-athletes, the Pac-

12 Conference and millions of fans,” Oregon State President Jayathi Murthy and Washington State President Kirk Schulz said in a statement. The conference, which Oregon State and Washington State intend to keep alive and hope to rebuild, will retain its assets and all future revenues. “This agreement allows OSU and WSU to maintain control of the hundreds of millions of dollars coming into the conference in future years, as we have always maintained they would, while calling for the vast majority of funds earned in 2023-24 to be distributed equally among the 12 members,” the 10 departing schools said in a joint statement. The schools said the “fine details” of the agreement would be worked out in the coming days. The Pac-12 was ripped apart this summer after the league’s leadership failed to land a media rights agreement that would keep it competitive with other power conferences. Next year, USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington will join the Big Ten; Arizona, Arizona State,

Colorado and Utah will join the Big 12; and Stanford and California will join the Atlantic Coast Conference. Oregon State and Washington State were left behind. The schools sued the conference and the 10 departing schools in September, claiming they should be the sole board members of the Pac-12. Oregon State and Washington State said the other members relinquished their right to vote on conference business when they announced their departures and a Superior Court judge in Whitman County, Washington, agreed. The departing schools appealed the ruling, but the Washington Supreme Court passed on hearing the appeal. Oregon State and Washington State plan to operate as a two-team conference, allowable for two years by NCAA rule, and then rebuild. They have a scheduling agreement in place with the Mountain West for football next season and are working on a deal to have an affiliation with the West Coast Conference for basketball and other Olympics sports for two years. Oregon State and

Washington State are in line to receive tens of millions in revenue over the next two years from current agreements the Pac-12 has with the College Football Playoff and Rose Bowl. There are also potential liabilities. The Pac-12 is named as a defendant in an antitrust lawsuit along with the NCAA and other power conferences that could cost billions in damages.

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and two walks, allowing Alex Verdugo’s RBI double. Yamamoto was charged with a second run when Isaac Paredes hit an RBI single off Atsuki Yuasa. Under the MLB-NPB agreement, the posting fee will be 20% of the first $25 million of a major league contract, including earned bonuses and options. The percentage drops to 17.5% of the next $25 million and 15% of any amount over $50 million. There would be a supplemental fee of 15% of any earned bonuses, salary escalators and exercised options.

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The Register will not be published on Tuesday, December 26.

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The Iola Register

Saturday, December 23, 2023

Jayhawks, Rebels to square off in Phoenix By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Kansas will face UNLV in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl, the first meeting between the schools since the Jayhawks won 46-24 in 2003. The Jayhawks clinched bowl eligibility with a 38-33 upset of then-No. 6 Oklahoma and have won at least eight games for the 11th time in school history. UNLV is coming off a 44-20 loss to Boise State in the Mountain West championship and will make its fifth postseason appearance. The Rebels seek their Running back Daniel Hishaw Jr. (20) of the Kansas Jayhawks carries the ball first bowl win since during against the Kansas State Wildcats Nov. 18. GETTY IMAGES/JAMIE SQUIRE/TNS beating Arkansas 31-14 in the 2000 Las Vegas passed for 2,794 yards per contest. Bowl. and 14 TDs with eight UNLV led the Mouninterceptions, ranking tain West conference in TOP PLAYERS fourth in the Mountain scoring at 34.3 points Kansas: QB Jason Phoenix, Ariz., 8 p.m. Tuesday West. per game. The Rebels TV: ESPN Bean took over for inare coming off a 44-20 NOTABLE jured Jalon Daniels and Kansas (8-4) Kansas clinched loss to Boise State in the has led four wins, passvs. UNLV (9-4) bowl eligibility with conference championing for 1,681 yards and a 38-33 upset of then- ship. 12 touchdowns. RB DevNo.6 Oklahoma and LAST TIME on Neal has rushed for zano set school records is appearing in conKansas won 46-24 in 1,209 yards and 15 TDs, with six field goals in secutive postseasons 2003 to even the series ranking fifth in the Big a game and 127 points for the first time since at a game each. 12, while safety Ken- along with 19 consecu2007-08. The Jayhawks BOWL HISTORY ny Logan Jr. recorded a tive made attempts over Kansas is 6-7 all-time one stretch. Freshman ranked seventh in Big team-high 86 tackles. 12 offense at 434 yards in bowls. UNLV is 3-1. QB Jayden Maiava has UNLV: Kicker Jose Pi-

Guaranteed Rate Bowl

Clark’s triple-double lifts Iowa women IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Caitlin Clark scored 35 points on the way to the 13th triple-double of her career as No. 4 Iowa recovered from a slow start to defeat Loyola Chicago 98-69 on Thursday night. Clark, the nation’s leader in scoring and assists, had a career-high 17 rebounds to go with 10 assists. Clark, who has had 30 or more points in six games this season, was 12 of 21 from the field, making 4 of 12 3-pointers. The last assist came on Jada Gyamfi’s layup with 2:51 left that gave Iowa a 94-69 lead. Iowa coach Lisa Bluder immediately called a timeout to get Clark out of the game. “I knew we were going to make some bunnies,” Clark said when asked if she was concerned she wouldn’t get that last assist before coming out. “Ten assists is all because of my teammates. I’m thankful for them, and for Coach Bluder for allowing me to get (the triple-double). It’s always cool when you get one of those.” Loyola coach Allison Guth said there was no elaborate defense the Ramblers were going to come up with to try to slow Clark. “She’s really hard to play against,” Guth said. “Her range is insane. I’ve seen teams try to box-and-one her, send two players at her. And she can do it all. We were going to stay pretty pragmatic

to what we did, and try to slow them down with our pressure. Once they lit that up, it hurt us defensively.” Hannah Stuelke had 20 points for Iowa (12-1). Kate Martin had 19, and Sydney Affolter had 10. Iowa trailed by as much as seven points in the first half before closing with an 8-2 run to lead 51-46 at halftime. The Hawkeyes, who won their ninth consecutive game, took control with a 19-3 run in the third quarter. Iowa held Loyola (6-5) to just five field goals in the quarter. “The second half, we were much more locked in on defense,” Clark said. Iowa’s zone defense controlled the Ramblers in the second half. “We tried to make some adjustments in the second half, take advantage of some of the things we saw,” Guth said. “We just got stagnant with the ball. We liked the way we were making it hop in the

first half.” Emma Nolan led Loyola with 15 points. Sam Galanopoulos had 14. “Our defense wasn’t very good at the beginning of the game, but got a lot better in the second half,” Bluder said. “Loyola shot the ball extremely well (in the first half) — too well — and that’s on us.” BIG PICTURE Loyola: The Ramblers came in with a fourgame winning streak and controlled the game for most of the first half against the Hawkeyes. The shots they hit in the first half, though, didn’t fall in the second half — Loyola shot just 26.7% in the half. Iowa: The Hawkeyes definitely missed Gabbie Marshall, the team’s best defender, who missed the game because of illness. It showed in the first half as the Ramblers hit four 3-pointers and constantly beat the Hawkeyes down court. “We’re always a work in progress,” Bluder said. “I

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feel like we’re good right now, but I think we can get a lot better.” UP NEXT Loyola: At St. Bonaventure on Dec. 30. Iowa: The Hawkeyes get back into Big Ten play with a home game against Minnesota on Dec. 30.

Our hearts are full as we reflect on the blessings of another year. Your valued support continues to sustain us in our work to support adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities, as we have since 1977.

UNLV wide receiver Jacob De Jesus (21) runs out of bounds with the ball during a game against Colorado State Oct. 21. LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOPURNAL/MADELINE CARTER/TNS

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The Iola Register

Saturday, December 23, 2023

DREAMSTIME/TNS

Insulting stay-at-home moms Adapted from an online discussion. Dear Carolyn: I need guidance on how to recover from a perceived insult. I have a friend whom I met teaching years ago. We had kids around the same time, and she decided to stay home while I returned to teaching. We still hang out quite a bit, and I love our friendship. I enrolled my kids in camp this summer and got a taste of her stayat-home life. When we were hanging out the other day, I said I could never stay at home, because I would get tired of drinking coffee and hanging out at home all day. She said: “I don’t sit at home all day. I do more than that.” She abruptly got up and walked away. When I contacted her, she texted back saying that her feelings were hurt and that she’s feeling as if her husband doesn’t appreciate what she contributes at home. She also said she needs time to recover. What should I do? Should I continue this friendship? I do think she has it easier, because she has one kid and she has all that time when her daughter is at school to get things

Carolyn Hax Tell Me About It

done. — Insulted a Friend Insulted a Friend: Omg. That wasn’t a “perceived” insult; that was a massive, quacking, wing-flapping, deck-befouling duck of an insult. My goodness. You just told your friend that her life was an empty, caffeinated waste of time that was utterly beneath you. Your apology needs to be even bigger than the giant bird you just gave her, and absolutely abject. Like: “I don’t know what I was thinking. I can’t believe I insulted your life choices like that. Please forgive me.” I’m curious. You say you’re a teacher. You haven’t noticed that the most productive learning partnership in schools tends to be between the teachers and the parents who have time to provide extra support — volunteering, fundraising, school-board lobbying, snack wrangling, chaperoning, plus the usual reading aloud, homework lassoing and pret-

ty much everything outside the classroom that is seen as essential? The bulk of it done by athome parents, largely still moms? READERS' thoughts:

∙ Umm. What if someone said to you that, as a teacher, you get all those summers off and are done at 3 p.m., so you don’t really work as hard as others? It is insulting and massively rude and just wrong. Everyone (generally) works incredibly hard at what they do and how they live. We would be in better stead if we just supported each other’s choices and intervened only when they affected our lives directly. ∙ Too bad she didn’t say: “I could never be a stay-at-home mom, as I have just proved to myself that I would fall victim to my own inertia by drinking coffee and hanging out at home. I don’t know how you have the willpower and strength to do all you do.” ∙ So now you know absolutely everything about every aspect of her life? I don’t think you need to decide whether to “continue this friendship,” because I don’t think

your stay-at-home mom friend will ever speak to you again. I know I wouldn’t. ∙ The friend acted like a genuine friend: named the insult, named its source (the husband, thus relieving “Insulted” of some of the burden of guilt) and asked for time to recover. Friend put on a goodfriend clinic. “Insulted” — not so much.

ZITS

by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

BEETLE BAILEY

by Mort Walker

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE

by Chris Browne

CRYPTOQUOTES U O I IYT Z H X H A

BLONDIE

by Young and Drake

MUTTS

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HI AND LOIS

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E H SYY R AY N Z T B SY J H O A P C S C H JQMHJ YZ PCAMJSUOJ HXH. — T Z Q ZY N Z Yesterday’s Cryptoquote: Charity is not a bone you throw to a dog, but a bone you share with a dog. — Chinese proverb

B6 Saturday, December 23, 2023

The Iola Register

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K-State: Knocks off Wichita State CALENDAR

Continued from B1

rennial power. “I really wanted to win,” Mills said with a smile. “You may have a friend on the other side but your loyalty is to your players.” Kansas State was relentless getting to the rim in the first half, and the result was a bunch of fouls and a parade of free throws. Mills was forced to juggle some atypical lineups in the closing minutes to protect five Shockers with two fouls apiece, and the Wildcats went 13 of 18 from the foul line over the first 20 minutes to take a 3329 halftime lead. “We shot a ton of free throws, and we shot it well from the free-throw line,” Carter said, “so why not keep doing it?” Kansas State eventually established breathing room early in the second half on a fivepoint trip down floor. Carter was fouled and converted a three-point play, and Perry made both free throws after a technical foul on Wich-

Football — Thursday, Pop Tarts Bowl in Orlando, Florida vs. North Carolina State, 4:45 p.m., ESPN

THE UNIVERSITY OF

KANSAS

Football — Tuesday, Guaranteed Rate Bowl in Phoenix, Arizona, vs. UNLV, 8 p.m., ESPN Basketball — Saturday, Dec. 30, vs. Wichita State at Kansas City, Mo., 3 p.m., ESPN

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Wichita State forward Isaac Abidde, center, blocks a shot by Kansas State forward David N’Guessan (1) Thursday. AP PHOTO/CHARLIE RIEDEL ita State’s bench. “It was about just staying together for 40 minutes. It’s a long game,” Perry said. “We knew it would be game of runs.”

Chiefs: Play Raiders Christmas Day Continued from B1

in late November. “We’ve got the pieces. We’ve got the guys to be able to beat that team, and unfortunately we took an ‘L.’ That’s something I thought about for a long time. I’m happy that it’s back, that we’ve got an opportunity.” Despite the lopsided nature of the rivalry, the Chiefs and Raiders remain just that: rivals. There is a mutual hatred between the franchises, borne of the days of Len Dawson and Jim Otto, nurtured through the era of Bill Kenney and Jim Plunkett, and continuing into the present. Mahomes is 10-1 in his career against the Raiders. “Any time you play a team like this,” Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell said, “you got to stay within yourself. Play one play at a time. Obviously there is history between the two teams, but I think any game you have to lock in on each play, each situation, try to stay ahead of the sticks and just make smart decisions.” HO HO HO This is not the first time the Raiders and Chiefs have played on Christmas Day — the Chiefs won 31-30 in 2004, when Larry Johnson and Tony Gonzalez had two TDs apiece for Kansas City. The Chiefs also have a Dec. 25 win over the Broncos in 2016 and a Christmas loss to the Dolphins in the divisional round of the playoffs in 1971. PLAYING SANTA Mahomes gives his offensive line gifts each year, and this year it was tricked-out golf carts that the big fellas whipped around the Arrowhead Stadium parking lot. Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams heard about it and was impressed, but noted that his own rookie QB probably won’t have anything quite so extravagant lined up for his guys. “It’s a lot better than some gifts that I’ve seen quarterbacks give

across the league. That’s a hell of a gift,” Adams said, “but Aidan’s bank account I don’t think is ready for that. So he’ll do that when he’s ready.” FLUKE OR FABULOUS The Raiders raised p eyebrows a week ago, when they set a franchise scoring record in their 63-21 victory over the Chargers. They scored a club-record 42 points in the first half, and eight different Raiders reached the end zone. Now, they need to prove that it was not a one-off occurrence.

“We’re not expecting to have 60 points every time we go out there, but it was more the style and togetherness that we played with,” Adams said. “When you can go out there and play together like that and everybody does their job and play at a high level, it’s fun.” FINISHING MATTERS The Raiders have gotten off to good starts in two of their last three games against Kansas City, jumping out to a 17-0 lead in their October 2022 matchup and

Perry added a couple of 3s a few minutes later as the Wildcats pushed their lead to 58-47 with 7 1/2 minutes to go. And despite Ballard’s best effort in the paint, the Shockers never could cut far enough into their deficit to give Kansas State a scare. “We just have to be more disciplined,” Mills

said. “You can’t foul, obviously, and give yourself a chance. You can’t have a lot of turnovers and give yourself a chance.” UP NEXT Wichita State plays No. 2 Kansas on Dec. 30 at the T-Mobile Center. Kansas State returns home to play Chicago State on Jan. 2.

leading 14-0 earlier this season. In both cases, As another year comes to a close, the Chiefs rallied for vicwe remain grateful for the support tories. of a wonderful community. SPEAKING OF FINISHING The Chiefs are last in Sending all our best the NFL in fourth-quarwishes this Christmas ter scoring, averaging 2.8 points per game — a season, full point behind Arizona, the next-to-last team. They were shut out by New England last week and managed only a field goal the previous week against Buffalo. Mon.-Fri. 8:00 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. “We’ve got to do better Sat. 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. there,” Reid said. “BotCome see us at our new location for all your tire & mechanic needs! tom line, you have to 1304 East St. • Iola, KS score.”

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The Iola Register

Saturday, December 23, 2023

Masks: Broken noses don’t slow down Mustang pair Continued from B1

Fawson had her own mask. PLAYING in a mask requires some adjusting, the players said. “It doesn’t really affect me, although the first one I wore squeezed the top of my head,” Clift said. “But I think that’s because I wasn’t wearing it right. And for whatever reason, it makes me super sweaty.”

Fawson said it took a bit longer to get used to hers. “It felt awful, because I could barely breathe,” she said. “I sounded like Darth Vader.” She suspects that she still had dried blood up in her nose. “I got most of it out that night, and it was much better.” Both players’ masks are transparent, although Fawson’s has thick white pads above and below each eye. “It gives me good

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enough peripheral vision,” Fawson said. “The bottom is the only thing I can’t see. I have to kind of twitch my head to look down.” BOTH players are recovering nicely. The pain has largely subsided, unless something hits their noses directly. Both also credit their masks for allowing them to play with their customary reckless abandon.

Clift had no qualms diving for balls on the floor against Burlington. Likewise, Fawson, who came off the bench against Prairie View, appeared comfortable posting up against a herd of physical Buffalo defenders. With games resuming Jan. 2, both also are optimistic brighter days lie ahead for the 1-5 Mustangs. “We have a lot of aggressiveness,” Fawson said. ‘We just have to

channel it, and keep it up the whole game. We have moments of momentum. We’re doing a good job of focusing on our skills and working together as a team.” Clift agreed. “We have great relationships on our team, but there were times we were a little tentative,” she said. Both jokingly note their masks may give them a psychological advantage. I pretend mine’s a su-

perhero mask,” Fawson laughed. EACH said doctors prescribed wearing the masks for six weeks to allow their noses time to fully heal. For Clift, that means she could be mask-free by the middle of January. “Probably during the War on 54 (tournament),” she said. Fawson’s mask will remain a week longer, until the third week in January.