The Iola Register, May 24, 2024

owned since 1867

City, school district weigh ballfield upgrades

By SARAH HANEY

The Iola Register

Updates to ballfields at Riverside Park could be on the horizon if Iola council members give their approval at Tuesday’s meeting. On the table is a proposed contract for services from Mammoth Sports Construction of Meriden to install artificial turf. Also on the agenda is the news that the purported “flood-proof” tiles in the Community Recreation Building are being replaced because of “moisture” issues caused by heavy rains in April that flooded the building. Many of the tiles developed “bubbles,” according to Assistant City Administrator Corey Schinstock. “Not all

Borrowers struggle with credit card debt

NEW YORK (AP) — Consumers are increasingly struggling to pay their credit card bills, raising concerns about severe delinquencies spiraling and sapping consumer spending.

The share of credit card debt that’s more than 90 days overdue rose to 10.7% during the first quarter, a 14year high, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s report on first-quarter household debt.

A year ago severe delinquencies totaled only 8.2% of credit card debt. The first-quarter jump in severe delinquencies was the biggest since 2011. Meanwhile total credit card debt rose to $1.12 trillion from just under $1 trillion a year ago.

Those in their 20s and 30s are having the most difficulty paying their credit card bills. Those age groups typically have a mix of less earnings power and lower savings.

The Federal Reserve hiked its key interest rate rate to a 23-year high to combat four-decade high inflation, which peaked in June, 2022 at 9.1%. Those rate increases made borrowing more expensive on mortgages, auto loans and credit cards.

Consumer spending fuels economic growth, so trouble paying credit card bills is a worrisome signal. The direction of the labor market could determine whether debt stress becomes a bigger concern. Job and wage growth helped counter the hit to consumers wallets from rising inflation, but a continued slowdown or reversal there could tip the scales.

“While these indicators do not necessarily predict a recession, especially with a robust labor market, a weakening in employment conditions could exacerbate

See DEBT | Page A4

were damaged, but they will all be replaced,” Schinstock said Thursday afternoon. He did not have a cost for the project. The building has been closed to the public since April 28.

As to the ballfields, Mayor Steve French formed a committee in August to discuss their fate. After the second meeting, the committee invited the local school district to participate.

Ballfield No. 2 is where the Iola High School girls’ softball team plays, while ballfield No. 3 is used by the IHS boys. USD 257 officials favor the artificial turf. City staff’s concerns have been with poten-

See PARK | Page A3

Brandon Cameron is running for election as Allen County attorney. He has worked four years under County Attorney Jerry Hathaway, who is not running for re-election. Cameron said his priorities include addressing challenges related to mental health and substance misuse that are underlying factors in about 90% of the cases he prosecutes. REGISTER/VICKIE MOSS

Balancing the scales

County attorney candidate tackles impact of mental health, drug misuse

By VICKIE MOSS The Iola Register

Brandon Cameron has filed for election to be the next Allen County attorney. If successful, he hopes to build on local efforts targeting mental health and substance misuse, and educate the community about his office’s role in addressing those and other challenges.

The county attorney is the top law enforcement officer and responsible for prosecuting violations of local and state laws.

Jerry Hathaway currently serves as county attorney and has announced he will not run for re-election. Hathaway has held the position for the better part of 20 years, joining the office as an assistant attorney in 2002. Cameron has worked as an assistant county attorney for Hathaway for nearly four years. He grew up in Oklahoma,

There’s a time to treat people. A time to prevent people from using. And a time to punish those who distribute and bring drugs into our community.

— Brandon Cameron

in a family with a long line of attorneys and teachers.

In high school, Cameron competed in speech and debate, including a national tournament in 2008. That experience taught him what it takes to put forth a successful argument.

“You recognize how people use arguments for good and bad. People would abuse that and when I recognized it, there was a sense of injustice. I wanted to rectify that,” he said. “The philosophy to do good is something that primarily motivates me.”

Cameron enjoyed study-

ing history and philosophy. He’s also a Catholic and said he starts each day asking how he can best serve his vocation as a father and as a Christian, and his community. “It’s important to reflect at the end of the day if I was able to do that.”

He graduated from the University of Oklahoma, then earned a master’s degree in history at Pittsburg State University and his juris doctorate degree from Washburn University in Topeka. He began practicing law in Southeast Kansas in

See CAMERON | Page A3

By RACHEL MIPRO Kansas Reflector

TOPEKA — Families that need food assistance during the summer could see relief through the state’s new student-geared program.

The Kansas Department for Children and Families on Thursday announced Summer EBT, a program meant to help families struggling with food costs for school-aged children during the summer.

DCF Secretary Laura Howard said families sometimes felt more strain during the summer months, when children no longer have access to school-provided free and reduced-price meals.

“Children and teens need healthy food yearround to play, grow and learn,” Howard said. “Summer EBT will help families stretch their grocery budget during the summer and provide their children with the nutrition they need to thrive.” Families with a household income meeting the

Ballfields at Riverside Park are prone to flooding. The City of Iola and USD 257 are discussing possible renovations that would add artificial turf and address flooding. FILE PHOTO

2nd bird flu infection confirmed

By JARED STRONG Kansas Reflector

A Michigan dairy employee is the second known person to contract bird flu while working with infected cattle in the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The person had symptoms of an eye infection and has recovered. That is similar to the first infection that was identified in a Texas dairy worker in early April.

The CDC said the infections might have happened when the workers’ eyes were splashed with contaminated fluid or if they touched their eyes with a contaminated hand.

“Given the high levels of … virus in raw milk from infected cows, and the extent of the spread of this virus in dairy cows, similar additional human cases could be identified,” the CDC said.

The agency maintains that highly pathogenic avian influenza poses a low risk to public health because it has not spread person to person.

The virus was first

identified in Texas cattle in March and has since been found at a total of at least 52 dairy farms in nine states, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

As of Wednesday, USDA data showed that 15 Michigan farms have had infections — the most of any state. The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development listed four more for a total of 19.

The initial source of infection in Michigan is believed to be sick dairy cows that were transported from Texas before they showed symptoms. The virus has transmitted from cows to other cows and to poultry.

The virus has infected eight commercial or backyard poultry flocks in Michigan since early April. Three of them were large egg-producing operations with a total of about 6.5 million birds.

Entire flocks are culled to prevent the virus’ spread. It is highly contagious and deadly for domestic birds, but cows typically recover in 10 to 14 days.

The Michigan dairy

Public notice

24, 2024) CHARTER ORDINANCE NO. 12 A CHARTER ORDINANCE EXEMPTING THE CITY OF MORAN, KANSAS, FROM THE PROVISIONS OF K.S.A. 12-834 AND PROVIDING SUBSTITUTE AND ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS ON THE SAME SUBJECT RELATING TO IMPROVEMENTS FOR GAS, WATER, ELECTRIC LIGHT, HEATING AND STREET RAILWAY OR TELEPHONE SERVICE AND THE ISSUANCE OF BONDS FOR THE PURPOSE OF PAYING FOR SAID IMPROVEMENTS.

WHEREAS, Article 12, Section 5 of the Constitution of the State of Kansas (the “Act”), provides that cities may exercise certain home rule powers, including passing charter ordinances which exempt such cities from non-uniform enactments of the Kansas Legislature; and WHEREAS, the City of Moran, Kansas (the “City”) is a city, as defined in the Act, duly created and organized, under the laws of the State of Kansas; and WHEREAS, K.S.A. 12-834 is an enactment of the Kansas Legislature relating to the issuance of bonds for the purposes of purchasing, constructing or extending works for natural gas, water, electric light, heating, or street-railway or telephone service, which enactment is applicable to the City, but is not uniformly applicable to all cities within the State of Kansas; and WHEREAS, the governing body of the City desires, by charter ordinance, to exempt the City from the provisions of K.S.A. 12834, and to provide substitute and additional provisions therefor.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT OR-

DAINED BY THE GOVERNING

BODY OF THE CITY OF MORAN, KANSAS:

Section 1. Exemption. The City, by virtue of the powers vested in it by the Act, hereby elects to exempt itself from and make inapplicable to it the provisions of K.S.A. 12-834, and shall be governed by the substitute and additional provisions contained herein.

Section 2. Bonds for gas, water, electric power and light,

heat, street-railway or telephone service. Whenever and as often as the members of the governing body of the City shall vote in favor of authorizing the issuance of general obligation bonds of the City for the purpose of purchasing, extending and improving, or purchasing, constructing or extending works, for the purpose of supplying the City and its inhabitants with natural gas, water, electric power and light and, or heating, or street-railway or telephone service, it shall be lawful for the governing body of the City, by resolution duly adopted, to authorize the issuance of general obligation bonds for such purposes, which said bonds shall be issued according to law. The provisions of this Charter Ordinance are supplemental to other statutes relating to the purchase, reconstruction or extension of such improvements and shall not prevent the City from using other available statutes.

Such resolution may, but shall not be required to, contain a provision that the issuance of the bonds be subject to: (a) a provision that the resolution be published one time in the official City newspaper, and if within 30 days after the date of publication

and poultry operations with infections are located in 10 counties in the state’s lower peninsula. State agricultural officials declared an “extraordinary emergency” early this month and are requiring dairy farms to implement better biosecurity precautions and to document the vehicles and people who come and go from the farms.

The USDA recently announced it will reimburse dairy farms for costs associated with those precautions, including protective equipment for workers and heat treatments to inactivate the virus in contaminated milk.

Milk from sick cows is required to be discarded, but federal tests have detected fragments of the virus in the country’s commercial milk supply. Despite that, the Food and Drug Administration said it is safe to drink the milk, which is pasteurized to kill pathogens.

The states with bird flu infections among cattle include Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Dakota and Texas.

of the resolution, a petition in opposition to the issuance of the Bonds, signed by not less than 10% of the qualified electors of the City, is filed with the City Clerk, the City shall not have the authority to issue the bonds until such question is submitted to the electors of the City at a special election called for that purpose or at the next general election and approved by a majority of the electors of the City voting at such election; or (b) approval by a majority of the electors of the City voting on such question at a special election called for that purpose or at the next general election.

Section 3. Severability. If any provision or section of this Charter Ordinance is deemed or ruled unconstitutional or otherwise illegal or invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction, such illegality or invalidity shall not affect any other provision of this Charter Ordinance. In such instance, this Charter Ordinance shall be construed and enforced as if such illegal or invalid provision had not been contained herein.

Section 4. Effective Date. This Charter Ordinance shall be published once a week for two

Redress for ticket purchases

WASHINGTON (AP)

— The Justice Department filed a sweeping antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster and parent company Live Nation Entertainment on Thursday, accusing them of running an illegal monopoly over live events in America — squelching competition and driving up prices for fans.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Manhattan, was brought with 30 state and district attorneys general and seeks to break up the monopoly they say is squeezing out smaller promoters, hurting artists and drowning fans with endless fees.

“It’s time for fans and artists to stop paying the price for Live Nation’s monopoly,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said Thursday. “It is time to restore competition and innovation in the entertainment industry. It is time to break up Live Nation, Ticketmaster. The American people are ready for it.”

ACC trustees meet today

The Allen Community College Board of Trustees has called a special meeting at noon Friday, May 24, in the Ambler Board Room for the purpose of discussing non-elected personnel.

consecutive weeks in the official City newspaper, and shall take effect sixty (60) days after final publication, unless a petition signed by a number of electors of the City equal to not less than ten percent (10%) of the number of electors who voted at the last preceding regular City election shall be filed in the office of the City Clerk demanding that this Charter Ordinance be submitted to a vote of the electors, in which event this Charter Ordinance shall take effect when approved by a majority of the electors voting at an election held for such purpose.

PASSED with at least a twothirds (2/3) vote of the entire governing body of City of Moran, Kansas, on May 20, 2024 and signed by the Mayor.

(SEAL)

ATTEST:

/s/ Jerry D Wallis, Mayor

/s/ Lori S Evans, City Clerk (5) 24, 31

Carlyle Presbyterian

Steve Traw’s sermon Sunday at Carlyle’s Presbyterian Church was “The Spirit of Truth,” from the Scripture John 16:4-15. Where is the Holy Spirit? Does it guide us? We are the Holy Spirit’s helpers to glorify Christ and witness his works. We are his hands and feet in the world around us.

Winn Collier, an Episcopal priest, wrote, “The church — and our shared work in the world — isn’t defined by what we can do. We’re entirely dependent on what only the Spirit can do. This allows us to be both bold and restful. On this day — the day we celebrate Pentecost — may we wait for the Spirit and respond.”

Myrna Wildschuetz accompanied singing and Rita Sanders played special music on the piano. Bible Study continues on Tuesdays at 3 p.m. on ll Timothy, chapter 3.

Dairy cattle infected by highly pathogenic avian influenza have large amounts of the virus in their milk. SCOTT OLSON/GETTY IMAGES/KANSAS REFLECTOR

Food: Kansas DCF offers $120 per child to qualified families

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requirement for federal free or reduced-price school meals at Kansas schools can receive $120 per eligible child for grocery costs through Summer EBT.

The Kansas State Department of Education reported 49% of Kansas public school students, or 235,096 public school students, were approved for free and reduced-price lunch in the 2023-2024 school year. Other eligible children include any school-aged child who received food assistance, Tem-

porary Assistance for Needy Families or foster care benefits during the school year.

The program is a partnership between DCF and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service. Benefits are set to roll out in mid to late July. By the end of that month, benefits will be issued automatically to DCF-identified eligible children. For families who already receive EBT, the summer benefits will be automatically added to their EBT cards or loaded onto a card and mailed.

Cameron: County attorney candidate pledges transparency

Continued from A1

2016 and met his wife, Kaylan. They have three boys, ages 2 through 9, and a two-month-old daughter. They live in Iola.

Cameron worked in private practice until the COVID-19 pandemic, when he took on as assistant county attorney in Bourbon County. That’s how he got to know Hathaway, and joined the Allen County office. He also serves as Wilson County attorney and plans to continue both positions if elected here.

“Mr. Hathaway has taken me under his wing and helped me a great deal,” he said. Hathaway said he hopes to continue to work with the office after the election to ease the transition.

Cameron said he appreciates the amenities offered in Iola and the surrounding area, such as its walking and biking trail system, a new state park in develop-

ment and playgrounds for his children.

“I’ve had the opportunity to live in a lot of communities in Southeast Kansas and Allen County is by far one of the friendliest I’ve ever been in. This community really bands together, especially to help the less fortunate. There are wonderful opportunities here. Iola is not living in the past. We’re moving forward.”

THAT’S NOT to say Allen County doesn’t have its problems, he said. Like the rest of the nation, Allen County is impacted by mental health issues and substance misuse.

Cameron estimates about 90% of the cases he prosecutes have some type of underlying issue regarding mental health or substance misuse or both. About 70% are drug-related. He’s particularly concerned about an increase in cases regarding fentanyl, a highly

Especially with fentanyl, I don’t think there’s ever been a drug this deadly and this prolific.

— Brandon Cameron

potent synthetic opioid linked to a rising number of overdose deaths.

“I don’t think people realize how ubiquitous this is,” he said of fentanyl. “It’s everywhere. I think our law enforcement partners would agree, fentanyl is unlike anything we’ve seen in the sense that it’s deadly at the micro level. Even the smallest contact with the skin can sometimes lead to overdose.”

Cameron praised the 31st Judicial District’s Drug Court program. It’s an example of how the community and law enforcement can work together to address and

treat root causes of substance misuse.

“There’s a time to treat people. A time to prevent people from using. And a time to punish those who distribute and bring drugs into our community,” he said.

“But in order to distribute, you have to have an end-user. Finding the appropriate level of care versus punishment is a problem I deal with on a regular basis. There have definitely been instances of triumph, where people have gone above and beyond what I thought was possible, and times I’ve watched them go to levels I never wanted to see anyone go. We want to keep those to a minimum.”

Cameron said he works with the Southeast Kansas Mental Health Center to discuss and implement programs on mental health and criminal justice. Some of his family members have mental health disorders, “so I’ve watched how people

Park: Proposal would mitigate flooding

Continued from A1

tial flooding of the fields.

A levee that was put in place in the 1930s to protect Riverside Park from the flooding of the Neosho River creates a bowl-effect in the park.

For the most part the levee has been effective in keeping the river water out of the park, but traps that which falls inside. After last month’s downpour, both of the fields under consideration were under water.

A study by Burns and McDonnell in March determined artificial turf could be installed. The engineering firm also recommended flood mitigation efforts such as re-grading the south portion of the park, installing new storm drains and three additional pumps. The park currently has two stationary pump systems and a slew of portable pumps.

The engineers said flooding would be addressed by pumping water over the levee as the flooding occurs. This is the current method used to address flooding there.

Phase one of the contract — the engineering portion — comes at no cost to the city and is expected to be completed two weeks after contract approval.

Phase two will include design and pre-construction services at a cost of $30,000 and would be completed eight to 10 weeks from completion of phase one.

The final phase cost will be determined per the outcome of phases one and two. This phase

would be established with the approval of a separate agreement.

Council members will vote on the proposed contract at 6 p.m., Tuesday, in the Riverside Park Community building.

HEAVY rainfall in late April led to extensive flooding in the park.

Currently, the city is playing a waiting game to continue the re-installation of the floor.

“We’ve got the order placed and I’m hoping

within the next couple weeks we’ll have the product in,” said Schinstock. He noted the base layer has been laid. Schinstock said the damage to the floor tiles “was surprising. In any event, we should have all the product to put it back down in the next couple weeks.”

who have these disorders in other communities get lost or set aside.”

If elected, Cameron hopes to organize some type of community outreach or perhaps a town hall to discuss those issues, how the justice system works and how his office approaches those challenges.

“With my office, typically the less you see of me the better. It’s nice to know we’re here,” he said. “But I want people to be informed about how the system works.

“Especially with fentanyl, I don’t think there’s ever been a drug this deadly and this prolific. That’s why it’s more important now than ever to be educated about what it is, where it can be found, how to be safe and make sure your kids don’t have access to it.”

Cameron praised local law enforcement for efforts to address those problems. “They do all

the groundwork.”

He encourages transparency and invites those who want to better understand how his office works to contact him.

“If I’m elected, I want people to know exactly where I stand on issues, especially where I stand on drugs. Mr. Hathaway set up a strong foundation and I want to run with that,” he said.

“I want to hear from the community. I want people to know what we do here and the expectations we set. I want to be the change I want to see in my community, and effectuate that change.”

THE DEADLINE to file for election is noon Monday, June 3, at the county clerk’s office at the Allen County Courthouse.

As of Thursday morning, Cameron is the only candidate for county attorney. He is running as a Republican.

Prior to installing the artificial turf, Mammoth said it would perform an analysis of the site to better understand its flooding issues.

They also said the new surface would assist in the mitigation of the flooding by acting as detention basins and having the ability to hold water and release it at a controlled rate.

The Kansas Department for Children and Families announced on Thursday a new program meant to help students during the summer, when free and reduced-price school lunches aren't available for Kansas students. TIM CARPENTER/KANSAS REFLECTOR

Millions in heat dome

The Associated Press Extreme heat in Mexico, Central America and parts of the U.S. South has left millions of people in sweltering temperatures, strained energy grids and resulted in iconic Howler monkeys in Mexico dropping dead from trees.

Meteorologists say the conditions have been caused by what some refer to as a heat dome — an area of strong high pressure centered over the southern Gulf of Mexico and northern Central America that blocked clouds from forming and caused extensive sunshine and hot temperatures. This extreme heat is occurring in a world that is quickly warming due to greenhouse gases, which come from the burning of fossil fuels like oil, gas and coal.

The high temperatures are stretching across the Gulf of Mexico into parts of the United States including Texas and Florida. The heat comes as thousands of people in Texas remain without power after thunder storms hammered parts of the state last week.

Shawn Bhatti, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service forecast office in Miami, said southerly winds from the tropics transported warm, moist air northward from the equator, which contributed to the unusually warm conditions.

South Florida has been hotter than normal. Miami International Airport recorded a daily high of 96 degrees Fahrenheit on May 19. That surpassed the temperatures of 86 to 88 degrees Miami normally sees this time of year.

A heat advisory issued by the NWS was in effect for parts of Texas Thursday. Temperatures along the Rio Grande were expected to rise up to 111 degrees Fahrenheit and 95 degrees Fahrenheit in the Davis and Chinati mountains.

Debt: Younger borrowers struggle with credit cards

Continued from A1

household financial instability,” said Gregory Daco, EY chief economist. “The combination of subdued job growth, sluggish income progression, and diminished savings could lead to increased delinquencies and a potential retrenchment in consumer spending.”

Wall Street has so far brushed off concerns about rising credit debt levels and payment struggles, forecasting earnings growth to accelerate from 5.6% in the first quarter to 17.1% by the fourth quarter.

Still, retail spending unexpectedly stalled in April in a sign of

consumer fatigue and worry. Walmart, the nation’s largest retailer, has said its customers are spending more on necessities and less on discretionary goods like home furnishings and electronics.

Coffee chain Star-

bucks lowered its sales expectations for the year as people visit its cafes less often, and McDonald’s is offering more deals as people cut back on fast food and eating out. The Fed is now faced with the prospect of in-

flation remaining stubbornly high around 3%, above its target of 2%.

The mix of high inflation, expensive borrowing rates and a slowing economy has thrown more doubt around the central bank’s ability to tame inflation without causing a recession.

Credit cards only make up about 6.5% of consumer debt, according to a Bank of America Global Research report. That alleviates some concerns, but the increase in delinquencies seems to be outpacing income growth and there is likely a large group of consumers who are paying their minimum balances

and staying out of delinquency, but are too financially stressed to actually pay their full balances. A worsening of the economy could push those consumers into severe delinquency.

“If our forecast of a benign moderation in the labor market is correct, we think consumer spending will remain resilient,” wrote Michael Gapen, Bank of America Global Research analyst. “However, elevated credit card delinquencies among lower-income consumers could increase the sensitivity of these consumers to an adverse labor market shock.”

Iola High School announces fourth quarter honor rolls

Iola High School recently announced the names of students achieving the honor roll for the fourth quarter. The honor roll is divided into three sections. All A’s which requires a 4.0 GPA; Principal’s honor roll requiring 3.76-3.99 average; and regular honor roll requiring 3-3.75.

All A’s:

Seniors: Piper Aronson, Logan Brakel, Aden Cole, Rebekah Coltrane, JJ Engelhardt, Keira Fawson, Rio Lohman, Isaac McCullough, Abigail Meiwes, Rylie Olson, Molly Riebel

Juniors: Kaysin Crusinbery, Estella DeClara, Mariah Jelinek, Madeleine Wank-

er, Alyssa Williams

Sophomores: Brennen Coffield, Chloe Hoag, Bethany Miller, Briley Prather, Nicolle Puerta-Angarita, Ari

Ramirez

Freshmen: Austin Crooks, Ean De La Torre, Keegan Hill, Kinsey Jelinek, Franklin Kerr, Brock Michael, Alston Nelson, Kale Pratt, Kaydra Scheibmeir, Rohan Springer, Joshua Wanker

Principal’s Honor Roll:

Seniors: Ashton Hesse, Benjamin Kerr, Jaydon Morrison, Jenna Morrison, Kalibre Smith

Juniors: Elza Clift, Kale Godfrey, Donovan Nee, Melanie Palmer, Ethan Riebel, Kinsey

Schinstock, KC Wilson

Sophomores: MaHailie Genoble, Kandrella McCullough, Cosette Warner

Freshmen: Sofia Escalante, Diego Gonzalez-Zurita, Jase Herrmann, Zoie Hesse, Abigail Jerome, Melody Norman, Sarah Ross

Regular Honor Roll:

Seniors: Korbin Cloud, Katelyn Erbert, Jacquelyn Fager, Kolton Greathouse, Christopher Holloway, Kennedy Maier, Madelyn McVey, Briggs Michael, Shelby Peters, Kaden Priddy, Gage Skahan, William Talkington, Zane Trester, Damian Wacker, Landon Weide, Nevaeh White

Juniors: Matthew

Beckmon, Kyndal Bycroft, Cortland Carson, Reese Curry, Keaton DePaola, Kelson DePaola, Grady Dougherty, Brooklyn Ellis, Alejandro Escalante, Abbigail Hutton, Gavin Jones, Jordan Kaufman, Macey Lewis, Alana Mader, Lucas Maier, Annemariee McCullough, Maleigha Molina, Cole Moyer, Guilis Pina, Steven Robinson, Demarco Ross, Tavia Skahan, Jacob Stokes, Emalee Thompson, Amiya Walton, Kenleigh Westhoff, Kegan Wilson Sophomores: Parker Andres, Madelyn Ashworth, Harley Blankenship, Tessa Brutchin, Stephanie Fees, Baron Folk, Brooklyn Foxworthy, Layla Fry, Brett

Experts say the heat event raises concerns about ocean water temperatures and their influence on the upcoming Atlantic hurricane season.

The region is transitioning from an El Nino, where tropical cyclone activity in the Gulf of Mexico and the North Atlantic is typically reduced, into a La Nina pattern in which the likelihood of tropical cyclone activity increases, said Andrew Kruczkiewicz, senior researcher at the Columbia Climate School at Columbia University.

Kruczkiewicz said the extreme heat adds another ingredient to the risk of tropical cyclone activity this season, since these storms are fueled by warm ocean temperatures.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday there is an 85% chance that the Atlantic hurricane season, which begins June 1, will be above average in storm activity.

Heinrich, Jakolby Hill, Lizzabeth Hockenbarger, Madison Karns, Carly Kramer, Keegan Lammey, Lily Lohman, Bella Rahming, Michaela Riebel, Tayten Salzwedel, Brent Stevens, Brody Thompson, Izzy Tyson, Isaac Velazquez Freshmen: Ramon Ballin, Ruger Boren, Mahala Burris, Xavier Burrow, Sheridan Byrd, Caden Coltrane, Dally Curry, Beau Erickson, Benjamin Fager, Keegon Garner, Benjamen Heiman, Weston Helman, Lillian Hirt, Brooklyn Holloway, Vernon Klinzman, Cassandra Moore, Lainey Oswald, Broderick Peters, Keysha Smith, Kaeden Vega, Zoe Warner

The Iola Register

~ Journalism that makes a difference

Butker’s graduation speech draws strange bedfellows

Watching Harrison Butker’s speech to the graduating class of Benedictine College, I was thinking to myself that the country owes John Rocker an apology.

Rocker, for those too young to remember, was a star relief pitcher for the Atlanta Braves whose reputation and career was derailed by quotes he made to a Sports Illustrated writer in 1999.

He said a lot of things in that article, but what stuck like glue was this comment about the New York Mets and their fans: “Imagine having to take the [Number] 7 train to the ballpark, looking like you’re [riding through] Beirut next to some kid with purple hair next to some queer with AIDS right next to some dude who just got out of jail for the fourth time right next to some 20-year-old mom with four kids. It’s depressing.”

And this: “The biggest thing I don’t like about New York are the foreigners. I’m not a very big fan of foreigners. You can walk an entire block in Times Square and not hear anybody speaking English. Asians and Koreans and Vietnamese and Indians and Russians and Spanish people and everything up there. How the hell did they get in this country?”

Even in those days, long before social media and when less than half the country was connected to the Internet, it went viral. It even sparked a website, rockersucks.com, where people could complain about him on what were then called “bulletin boards” online.

Rocker was pretty much universally excoriated for his comments. If anyone agreed with him, they generally had the decency to keep it to themselves.

Dion Lefler

Wichita Eagle

May 24, 2024

Even his exhortation for male grads to take care of the kids they father (which I actually agree with) came off as a backhanded slap to single moms, who according to Butker are too weak to control children by themselves.

“As men, we set the tone of the culture,” he said. “And when that is absent, disorder, dysfunction and chaos set in. This absence of men in the home is what plays a large role in the violence we see all around the nation.”

Butker’s tone was polite and he didn’t go everywhere Rocker did — I didn’t catch any mention of foreigners in his commencement address. But two out of three ain’t bad (except when you kick field goals for a living).

Like Rocker, Butker’s taking heat for his pronouncements. But the big difference from then to now is how many people are defending Butker’s outdated intolerance, including our own U.S. senator from Kansas, Roger Marshall. He tweeted: “I stand with Harrison Butker. Families, babies, and strong mothers and fathers are a BEAUTIFUL thing. No amount of liberal gaslighting and manufactured ‘outrage’ will change our convictions. Christ is King.”

Butker’s address pined for the 1950s version of “Leave it to Beaver,” advising the graduates, ‘I can tell you that my beautiful wife, Isabelle, would be the first to say that her life truly started when she began living her vocation as a wife and as a mother.’

As it turned out, John Rocker was just a man ahead of his time. His comments about queer people, single mothers and foreigners invading America are essentially the Republican Party platform of 2024.

Which leads us to the graduation speech by Butker, the placekicker for your Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs.

His commencement address at Benedictine was a weird mix of pining for the 1950s as depicted in “Leave it to Beaver” coupled with the Catholic Church of the Dark Ages.

The son of an accomplished female medical physicist, Butker told the women of the Class of 2024 essentially that they needn’t worry their pretty little heads about careers because it’s better for everyone if they stay in their lane, get married, meet their husbands’ needs and bear him many strong children.

That got a lot of attention.

Less attention was paid when he sidesniped the LBGTQ rights movement as “the deadly sin sort of pride that has an entire month dedicated to it” and claimed someone (he didn’t say who) is “pushing dangerous gender ideologies onto the youth of America.”

I’m guessing the senator didn’t listen to the whole speech. If he did, he’d have heard Butker kicking dirt on the kind of modern-day Christian worship practiced in the non-denominational Protestant church that Marshall attends.

In Butker World, Christian liturgy must be delivered in Latin instead of English because “I believe, just as the God of the Old Testament was pretty particular in how he wanted to be worshiped, the same holds true for us today.”

He also criticized clergy for being friendly with their congregations, instead of aloof and standoffish like the good old days.

Butker also had harsh words for the institution where Marshall serves: “Congress just passed a bill where stating something as basic as the biblical teaching of who killed Jesus could land you in jail.”

Beyond that being a dog-whistle way of saying “Jews killed Jesus,” Butker is just plain wrong. The House recently passed a resolution expanding the definition of antisemitism, and urging the Department of Education to withhold federal funding from educational institutions that discriminate against Jews. No mention of jail time and it’s still awaiting a vote in the Senate. So to Sen. Marshall, you may think you stand with Harrison Butker. But I don’t think he’s standing with you.

Wildfire threat is growing in America. Just look at Kansas

By JOHN HERRON Guest essay for The Washington Post

In the 1980s and 1990s, I worked eight long seasons for the U.S. Forest Service. I crisscrossed the country fighting wildfires with axes, shovels and chain saws. I labored on hundreds of fires, but rarely was I outside the spine of the Rocky Mountain West.

It was a truism that the region’s biggest blazes were nearly exhausted by Labor Day. No longer. Today, wildland firefighting is a yearround occupation — now, even in the Midwest.

The Kansas Forest Service earlier this year announced that the state is facing dramatically elevated risks of wildfire. And fires, even in Kansas, no longer burn only during the summer.

In 2021, just 10 days before Christmas, fire raced through central Kansas. The Four County Fire burned more than 120,000 acres and caused dozens of car crashes, three of them fatal. The 2017 Starbuck Fire was bigger still. It started in Oklahoma during an unusually dry spring, spread quickly into Kansas, killed 8,000 farm animals and caused tens of millions of dollars in damage. By the end of the year, 2 million acres across the Plains — more than twice the size of Rhode Island — were reduced to ash.

In response, Gov. Laura Kelly in 2022 created the Wildfire Task Force, the first serious attempt to understand the state’s changing fire landscape. Such committees are not unusual; most Western states have had similar initiatives in place for decades. The California version, massive in reach and budget, sets the standard for resources dedicated to preventing and mitigating fire damage. The same year Kansas established its task force, Gov. Gavin Newsom committed more than $1 billion to improve forest health and $2.8 billion to reduce the threat of fires across the Golden State.

The Kansas task force is modest by comparison, but its creation is still signifi-

cant. The growing fire danger in Kansas is tied to climate change, a reality not easily accepted by many of the state’s residents. In a December political survey, a majority of Midwesterners stated that climate change poses “little to no risk” to the region. Kansas’s Republican senators, Roger Marshall and Jerry Moran, also remain skeptical of climate change.

Still, the fires burn.

If anything, the wildfires in Kansas are a grim preview of what is coming elsewhere. A changing climate is driving fire eastward across

now seems naive. Removing cedars is common sense, but it is also difficult. In Kansas, less than 1 percent of the state is public land — unlike more western states, where the percentage is often in the mid-double digits. Eradicating the trees takes more than money; it takes widespread permission and cooperation. Such collective action is rare, but when it happens, it works.

IF KANSAS wants to succeed in wildfire prevention, it won’t be just because of a top-down mandate from the government. Instead, it

One of Kansas’ biggest focus is on reducing the fire-prone, invasive Eastern redcedar. Earlier Kansans planted the dense, woody evergreen as windbreaks, but its rapid spread created fuels that burn hotter, faster and deadlier.

the United States, with fires beginning earlier in the season and lasting into winter. As a result, more states face a growing danger to people and property.

The governor’s task force made several recommendations to mitigate the threat, including improving weather monitoring and statewide communications.

One of its biggest focuses, however, is on reducing the fire-prone, invasive Eastern redcedar. Earlier Kansans planted the dense, woody evergreen as windbreaks, but its rapid spread created fuels that burn hotter, faster and deadlier.

The Great Plains were once the most frequently burned lands in North America. Like other savanna ecosystems, the region experienced regular low-intensity burns that contributed to ecological health and stability. Over the past century, though, fire-suppression efforts, urban development and the conversion of grasslands to agriculture resulted in the near-total elimination of Midwestern wildfires.

But the extreme conditions under which fires now begin have upended conventional thinking. Hoping for a return of more natural and manageable fire cycles

will take a lot of individuals working together. Such a model is already proving successful in the Kansas City region, where more than 1,000 volunteers and elected officials have organized to solve local emissions issues. The group doesn’t lobby for new laws, opting instead for regional partnerships to effect change.

The nation’s fire problem requires a similar approach. In states like Kansas, this means unusual alliances — farmers and bankers, utility companies and rural landowners, ranchers and suburban developers — each addressing the wildfire (or flood or drought) threat through shared responsibility. A generation ago, Kansans would never have considered such a proposition, but climate change is not just remaking our environment; it is changing our politics.

Climate advocates have long sought new federal regulations to protect our warming planet with little to show for it. Fire in unexpected places suggests that a better solution is public will.

About the author: John Herron is president and chief executive of Outreach International, a nonprofit in Kansas City, Mo.

In April, wildfires forced evacuations in Riley and Pottawatomie counties, consuming thousands of acres and at least one home. KANSAS FOREST SERVICE

Rob Jewell, Regional Manager of Starkey Hearing Systems, will be in your town to demonstrate the newest, award winning hearing aid technology in the industry. If you cannot attend this day, call for other appointment options.

Sports Daily B

Red-hot Royals sweep Detroit

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Cole Ragans allowed one hit in six innings and Freddy Fermin drove in three runs as the Kansas City Royals beat the Detroit Tigers 8-3 on Wednesday for a series sweep.

Ragans (4-3) struck out a career-best 12 while holding the Tigers hitless until Riley Greene’s two-out single in the sixth.

“In the fourth inning I kind of had an idea what was going on,” Ragans said of the no-hit bid. “We kept having a good mix and going

See ROYALS | Page B2

Friday, May 24, 2024

Fewins celebrates improvement

By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register

MORAN — The 2023-24 school year was a magical one for boys athletics at Marmaton Valley High School.

It started in the fall when the Wildcat football team won its first Three Rivers League championship in a decade.

Then in the winter, Marmaton Valley’s basketball team overcame a 4-10 record on Feb. 1, to rip off a 6-1 finish to qualify for the state tournament for the first time in 23 years.

A similar pattern followed on the baseball diamond.

The Wildcats — after an 0-7 start — ended the season as one of the hottest schools around, ending the regular season on an 11-game winning streak.

At the centerpiece of all three was MVHS senior Daniel Fewins, who was impressed, but not surprised, by the successes.

“I saw the talent we had,” Fewins said. “A lot of it was just a matter of believing in ourselves.”

Fewins, a senior, offered more than just inspiration for his younger teammates. He ended the season with

a whopping .552 batting average, racking up 40 RBIs after April 1 and stealing 17 bases. His work on the field led Iola Register readers to vote him as the Male Athlete of

The Dallas Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving (11) drives to the basket against the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Rudy Gobert (27) during the second quarter in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals at Target Center on Wednesday. GETTY IMAGES/STEPHEN MATUREN/TNS

Dallas jumps out to 1-0 lead over Wolves

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Luka Doncic led a strong finish for the Dallas Mavericks, swishing crucial shots down the stretch, drawing a couple of fouls and even playing strong defense.

The Mavericks might not be the favorites in yet another series, but they stole home-court advantage from the Minnesota Timberwolves with this promising start.

Doncic had 15 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter and Kyrie Irving scored 24 of his 30 in the first half to lift the Mavericks to a 108105 victory over the Timberwolves in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals on Wednesday night. Dallas had a 62-38 advantage in points in the paint to offset a 6-for-25 shooting performance from deep.

“We made important ones,” said Doncic, who scored seven straight points over 63 seconds early in the fourth quarter to fuel a 13-0 run by the Mavericks for a 97-89 lead. The Mavericks trailed 102-98 after a 3-pointer by Anthony Edwards with 3:37 left, before an 8-0 run the Wolves didn’t stop until a tip-in with 10.5 seconds to go. For the first time in six tries under coach Jason Kidd, the Mavericks won the first game of a playoff series.

Jaden McDaniels had his third straight 20-plus-point game with 24 points for the Wolves, but Edwards — who earned his first All-NBA selection prior to the game, on the second team — was stifled for 19 points in a team effort from the Mavericks. Karl-Anthony Towns needed a late burst to get to 16 points and finished 6 for 20 from the floor.

The star power in this series is strong, and for the first night at least the Mavericks got what they needed from their leading duo while the Wolves largely struggled to run the offense around theirs.

the Month.

THE BIGGEST key to the baseball season was getting the players to believe they could win, Fewins said.

“Once we finally won that

first game, we realized we could go a long way,” he said. “It was a difficult start.” Fewins took it upon himself to stress the importance

NCAA closer to approving deal to settle antitrust claims

By RALPH D. RUSSO

The NCAA and Big Ten Conference leadership approved a $2.8 billion settlement of antitrust claims Wednesday, moving college athletics closer to some of the most sweeping changes in its history.

The NCAA completed its three-part approval process late Wednesday, with its 15-member Board of Governors voting unanimously to accept the proposal — with one member abstaining — according to two people with direct knowledge of the vote who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the NCAA was not publicly revealing its internal process.

The settlement could resolve three major antitrust lawsuits against the NCAA that carry the threat of some $20 billion in damages, a blow that would cripple the organization. The settlement includes dramatic changes to the NCAA’s amateur sports model, including revenue-sharing by schools with their athletes.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs in House v. the NCAA gave the defendants a Thursday deadline to agree to a settlement. Southeastern Conference and Pac-12 presidents were scheduled to meet during the day to consider the settlement agreement.

The Big 12 and Atlantic

Coast Conference presidential boards voted to move forward with the settlement on Tuesday. Big Ten presidents voted to approve the deal Wednesday during spring meetings in Los Angeles, a person with direct knowledge of the decision told AP on condition of anonymity because the conference was not making its internal discussions public.

As the leagues and NCAA marched toward the settlement, a fourth antitrust case will also be part of the agreement.

Attorneys in Fontenot v. the NCAA said they would like their case to the stay in federal court in Colorado instead of being moved to California and combined with another antitrust lawsuit involving college sports. They said they won’t know whether their claims would be covered by the settlement until they have all the details of the proposal.

“One way or the other, they have to deal with us or I just don’t see how a settlement ultimately gets done,” said George Zelcs, one of the plaintiffs’ attorneys. “They have to either include us or get an order that requires us to be involved in it. All of which we have arguments against as well.”

The NCAA and five major college conferences named

Marmaton Valley High’s Daniel Fewins has been voted as the Iola Register’s Male Athlete of the Month. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

See FEWINS |

The Associated Press

Will buy copies of The Annals of Iola and Allen County, 1868-1945, Vols. 1 and 2. Call the Iola Register, 620-365-2111 or email susan@iolaregister. com

Entry Level Laborer

The Monarch Cement Company is seeking to ll the position of Entry Level Laborer for the Humboldt, KS plant.

Monarch is a rewarding place to work and o ers an excellent bene t package including medical, dental and vision insurance, company paid life insurance, 401K with a company match, an educational assistance program, and an employee assistance program (EAP). This is a union position and starting wage begins at $27.28/hour with additional pay for working shifts. Shift work is a good probability. To be considered for the position a candidate must be 18 years of age, have a high school diploma, GED or equivalent, successfully complete a pre-hire physical, drug screen and background check, and possess a valid state-issued driver’s license. This position also requires the candidate to be capable of following oral and/or written instructions and able to accomplish duties in a safe and systematic manner. A college education and/or technical certi cation and WorkReady Certi cate through KansasWorks is preferred. Some of the day-to-day duties will include, but are not limited to, clean-up and housekeeping of the plant and surrounding plant properties, motors, dust collectors, conveyor belts, hoppers, and piping. The candidate must be able to work from sca olds and ladders as required to reach areas to be cleaned, work inside hot and con ned spaces such as inside the rotary kilns, grinding mills and dust collectors. This position is required to operate forklifts, skid steer loaders, vacuum truck, street sweepers, man lifts, telehandler, jackhammer, chipping hammer and other equipment e ciently and safely. This type of work requires considerable walking, lifting up to 100 lbs., bending, pushing, pulling, climbing and working at elevated areas and con ned spaces.

Candidates interested in testing for the WorkReady Certi cate through KansasWorks can register by calling 620-432-0320 or contacting Jim Jenkins or Samantha Cole at the Mitchell Career and Technical Center at 4101 S. Ross Lane, Chanute, KS. Applications can be obtained either online at monarchcement.com or by stopping by the plant o ce between 7 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. or at the Corporate O ce between 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Completed applications can be dropped o at the Corporate O ce, by email at hr.dept@monarchcement.com or by mailing the application to The Monarch Cement Company, Att. Entry Level Laborer Position, P.O. Box 1000, Humboldt, KS 66748. Previous applicants must complete a new application.

Applications are to be submitted by June 7, 2024.

The Monarch Cement Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer and encourages quali ed minority, female, veteran and disabled candidates to apply and be considered for open positions.

Royals: Ragans shines in victory

Continued from B1

after guys.”

“I was looking at the pitch count, not the hits,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “In the sixth I started to do the math. When I saw it was no hits, then I’m starting to think how far can we take this.”

Ragans fanned seven of the first ten batters.

“His stuff was great right out of the gate,” Quatraro said. “We know how good (his changeup) is. He’s getting swing-and-miss on the fastball. They had to honor the changeup, so he got them in between, ringing up a lot of strikeouts early.”

“He’s got a good heater with some run,” Greene said. “He was commanding with his heater and threw his slider off it.”

The Royals opened

the scoring on Fermin’s second-inning RBI double off the top of the left-centerfield wall. One out later, Garrett Hampson followed with an RBI double for a 2-0 lead.

“Freddy’s been swinging the bat really well,” Quatraro. “He put a great swing on that pitch and Hampson had a great at-bat. I’m really happy for those guys.”

Nelson Velázquez hit his fourth home run into the left-field fountains to lead off the fourth.

Kansas City took a 4-0 lead in the fifth on three consecutive singles with Vinnie Pasquantino’s RBI hit scoring Maikel Garcia, who extended his hitting streak to 10 games.

Tarik Skubal (6-1) threw five innings, allowing four runs on six

hits with two walks and six strikeouts.

“They did a tremendous job of putting the ball in play when they needed to,” said Tigers manager A.J. Hinch.

“They used the middle of the field a lot, they put the ball in play, they did some damage. They put a good attack plan on him.”

The loss snapped Skubal’s 14-game unbeaten streak dating to Aug. 29 last year.

“They had some good at-bats and fouled off some good pitches,” Skubal said. “Too many pitchers’ counts led to 3-2 counts and that’s a credit to their hitters. I’ve got to be better at finishing those at-bats.”

Andy Ibáñez cut the deficit to 4-2 with a twoout, two-run double in the seventh.

Bobby Witt Jr. and

Fermin delivered tworun hits in the bottom half of the frame, extending the lead to 8-2.

The Royals won their first series against the Tigers since September 2022. It was Kansas City’s first sweep of Detroit since July 2021.

The Royals have won six straight.

“The boys are playing some ball and we are really enjoying this,” Fermin said.

Colt Keith recorded seven of the Tigers’ 19 hits in the series.

Detroit has lost four straight.

UP NEXT

Tigers RHP Jack Flaherty (1-3, 3.79 ERA) opposes Blue Jays (undecided) on Thursday in Detroit.

Royals RHP Seth Lugo (7-1, 1.79) opposes Rays (undecided) on Friday in Tampa.

The Detroit Tigers’ Tarik Skubal pitches against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on Wednesday. GETTY IMAGES/JAMIE SQUIRE/TNS

Q: With “Young Sheldon” over, what will Iain Armitage do next?

A: The young actor – who turns 16 in July, and has posted on social media that he’ll be getting his pilot’s license – didn’t have definite professional plans at the time this was written, though having had a weekly series commitment for the past seven years (minus last year’s actors’ strike), we suspect that something of a more regular school schedule might be in his immediate future. Of course, there was tutoring on the set of his just-ended CBS series, but it’s not the same going-to-class situation that most youngsters experience.

Armitage has built such an identity with viewers as the youthful incarnation of brainy Sheldon Cooper, also of “The Big Bang Theor y” fame, it’ll be interesting to see what sort of role he tackles next and how soon. When identification with one character is that strong, the given performer sometimes waits a while before tr ying something else, so the audience has a chance to recalibrate and accept the actor as someone else.

Still, Armitage came into “Young Sheldon” already having notable acting experience. He had such television credits as HBO’s “Big Little Lies” (as the Shailene Woodley character’s son) and NBC’s “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.”

Additionally, Armitage worked on such films as “Scoob!” (as the voice of the young Shaggy, of the “Scooby-Doo” franchise) and “PAW Patrol: The Movie,” as well as “The Glass Castle” and “Our Souls at Night.” Armitage – who speaks Russian fluently, possibly opening him up to roles of that nationality – is the grandson of Richard Armitage, who ser ved as a deputy secretar y of state in the administration of President George W. Bush.

She’s grown tired of ‘foodie groupies’

Carolyn Hax is away.

The following first appeared June 4, 2010.

Dear Carolyn: Husband is a local celebrity chef who quickly gained notoriety during our first four years of marriage. This created some conflict with “foodie groupies” and my husband’s inability to lay down boundaries when they hug, kiss or hit on him at local events.

I am accused of being jealous and insecure when I mention that it makes me uncomfortable. Duh.

Husband has now received a job offer with even more notoriety and recognition on a national level. I will have to appear with him at social events that I despise.

How does one act at such events, especially when women elbow me out of the way to get to my husband?

— J. J.: This isn’t about how to act at events.

(Duh.)

This is about your resentment, and finding a place to put it.

Tell Me About It

Carolyn Hax

And that, in turn, is about how you can reconcile your husband’s delight in his fame with your utter contempt for it. It can be a short answer, really: If you can’t be happy for him, and dismiss groupies as a minor annoyance, then his fame will come between you.

I realize that makes it sound as if you’re the only one with responsibilities here, which of course is never true in a marriage.

But your husband has made his position clear: He likes the attention. He likes these events. He likes life as a rising star. Admittedly, his way of telling you sounds petulant and defensive; “J, this is the ride of a lifetime, and I want you to enjoy it with me” would have gone over a lot better than “You’re just jealous and insecure.”

Nevertheless, his position delineates your options. It says the boundary question is asked and answered: He’s not setting the one you want. It says you might as well get used to these events and, if you attend, get elbowed. It says that, no, this isn’t the marriage you thought you signed up for — but it’s the marriage you’ve got. If your husband can’t show any sympathy for your discomfort, much less stand up for you, then maybe it isn’t much of a marriage.

But I don’t think you can demand something you aren’t willing to give — and your letter has zero sympathetic words for his good fortune. There isn’t an “I’m really proud of him” or “He’s living his dreams” or even just “I know I should be happy for him.” Maybe your choice of words wasn’t quite this deliberate, but even “notoriety” comes with a negative (notorious) pitch.

It bears repeating that your husband will

It’s official: Nadal a go for French Open

PARIS (AP) — Rafael Nadal is in the French Open field, after all, and Thursday’s draw set up the 14-time champion for a challenging first-round matchup against No. 4 seed Alexander Zverev.

“That’s going to be hard, but he is a warrior,” tournament director Amélie Mauresmo said. “Anything is possible with Rafa.”

This is expected to be Nadal’s last appearance at Roland Garros,

CRYPTOQUOTES

K

F

O

Yesterday’s Cryptoquote:

If you prioritize yourself, you are going to save yourself. -- Gabrielle Union

and he had been coy about whether he would compete this time after two seasons of offand-on action because of injuries, including a surgically repaired hip that forced him to miss his favorite tournament a year ago.

After a loss at the Italian Open this month, Nadal said he needed to think about whether to play in Paris. But the Spaniard, who turns 38 on June 3, has been practicing on the red clay at Roland Garros this week and his name was officially in the bracket.

The French Open begins on Sunday.

The Nadal-Zverev winner could be on a

path toward a potential semifinal meeting against No. 1 seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic, whose opening opponent is French wild-card entry Pierre-Hugues Herbert.

The potential men’s quarterfinals are Djokovic against No. 7 Casper Ruud — who lost to Nadal in the 2022 final and 24-time major champion Djokovic in the 2023 final — and Zverev or Nadal against No. 5 Daniil Medvedev in the top half of the bracket, and No. 2 Jannik Sinner against No. 8 Hubert Hurkacz, and No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz versus No. 6 Andrey Rublev in the bottom half.

need to do his part to hear and heed you — a significant variable. But you have the more pressing need to make peace with fame as an uninvited third party to your marriage — so you need to speak up.

Instead of focusing on events and strange women, seek your husband’s help with the bigger issues — namely, why does his career threaten you so, and where do you fit in? Is the problem really his groupies, or his dismissiveness of you?

Collaborating on a solution will boost your confidence in that solution. Right now, you aren’t confident, and without confidence, skipping these events becomes punitive, and going demurely becomes doormat-y, and cleaving to Mr. Fame demotes you to groupie in chief.

With confidence, though, any one of these approaches becomes viable — if he’ll make it with you, it’s a joint statement on how you’ve both adapted to fame.

ZITS

by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

BEETLE BAILEY by Mort Walker

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE by Chris Browne

BLONDIE by Young and Drake

MUTTS by Patrick McDonell

MARVIN by Tom Armstrong

HI AND LOIS by Chance Browne

Fewins: Senior will play in all-star football game June 8

Continued from B1

of staying focused, not only as the lone senior, but as Marmaton Valley’s starting catcher.

Through his baseball career, Fewins preferred staying behind the plate.

“When you’re back there, you’re the person in charge,” he not-

ed. “You want everybody to know where they’re going with the ball, and you have to make sure the pitcher’s in the right mindset.”

He carried that same philosophy as a starting offensive lineman in football and then as a power forward in basketball.

The baseball roster took a hit even before the season started when classmate Chase Smith injured his knee at the end of the basketball season, sidelining him for the year.

in the House v. NCAA lawsuit that is at the center of settlement talks have asked U.S. District Judge Charlotte Sweeney in Colorado to combine the Fontenot case with Carter v. the NCAA, which is being heard in the Northern District of California. Under terms of the proposed agreement, the NCAA will pay $2.77 billion over 10 years to former and current college athletes who were denied by now-defunct rules the ability to earn money from endorsement and sponsorship deals dating to 2016. The NCAA and conferences also would agree to establish a revenue-sharing system, with schools allowed to spend up about $21 million a year on their athletes.

RECYCLE

“It was definitely challenging not having another senior to lean on and help hold everyone accountable,” he said. “And it was difficult because Chase was a really good player, too.”

Fewins attributed his improved bat-

ting to a few tweaks his coaches offered midway through the season.

“It started to click for me once I figured out

how to keep my eye on the ball,” he chuckled.

“Our coach was pretty good about not overthinking things, to just

play naturally.”

FEWINS has no plans to pursue athletics in college, which means his high school sporting career will come to a close officially on June 8 at a Kansas eight-man all-star football game in Beloit.

Despite not donning

pads in more than six months, he’s relishing the thought of representing the Wildcats one final time.

“I’m a little nervous to see how I do,” he said. “It’ll be a matter of getting acclimated to the heat. It’s gonna be a mid-day game in June, so it’ll probably be hot.”

Marmaton Valley High’s Daniel Fewins (65) will play in an all-star eight-man football game in Beloit June 8. PHOTO BY HALIE LUKEN/MVHS