Locally owned since 1867
Kelce, Mahomes enjoy kinship
Tuesday, November 24, 2020
Trump bows to reality of election By EVAN HALPER, TRACY WILKINSON AND DON LEE Los Angeles Times
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COVID strains Kansas hospitals PAGE A2
LaHarpe VFW gives thanks PAGE A5
City wraps up budget matters By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register
A few budget matters will be on the city’s plate to wrap up 2020’s business. Iola City Council members discussed items Monday, including year-end budget transfers for the library, industrial and major projects (sales tax) funds. The Council scheduled a Dec. 14 budget hearing to set year-end transfers necessary to balance the city’s books by year’s end. Council members must increase their budget authority to support Allen County Regional Hospital by $50,000 to $350,000, to reflect additional sales tax revenue the city received for the year. This is the last year Iola is supporting the hospital with its sales tax proceeds. The industrial fund needed a higher authority to accommodate a $125,000 See COUNCIL | Page A3
iolaregister.com
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration yielded to the reality Monday that the presidential election will not be overturned, finally authorizing the start of formal transition proceedings as President-elect Joe Biden moved to make good his vow to appoint a historically diverse Cabinet. Soon after Michigan certi-
President-elect Joe Biden. (MARK MAKELA/GETTY IMAGES/TNS)
fied its vote for Biden, a major blow to Trump’s efforts to contest the vote, the General
Services Administration official who has blocked the start of the formal transition for three weeks formally recognized Biden as winner of the election and said she would provide office space, access to government officials and other logistical resources to assist his team. In a two-page letter to Biden, GSA Administrator Emily Murphy wrote that she decided “independently” to withhold the official nod until now and was not pressured
“directly or indirectly” by the White House as Trump unsuccessfully fought the election in court with false claims of fraud. She denied that she had withheld the aid “out of fear or favoritism.” “To be clear, I did not receive any direction to delay my determination,” Murphy wrote. “I did, however, receive threats online, by phone, and by mail directed at my safety, my family, my staff, and even my pets in an effort to coerce See ELECTION | Page A3
Bowlus, USD 257 plan big moves By VICKIE MOSS The Iola Register
The Bowlus Fine Arts Center officially sold a house to the school district for the grand sum of $1. The house will be moved from its location near the Bowlus to a spot near Iola Middle School, where it will be renovated by the construction trades class and sold. Once the house is moved, which will likely occur in the next couple of months, the property will become a parking lot. The Bowlus has very limited parking and patrons typically must park across the street or on the street. USD 257 board members approved the deal at Monday’s meeting, which was held at the Bowlus instead of the usual location at the board office. The house was purchased several years ago when Susan Raines was director, with the idea of expanded parking. The idea of moving the house and renovating it came up a few months ago, as the board considered changes with the construction trades class at the Rural Regional Technical Center at LaHarpe. The goal was to build a new house on property owned by the district, but it would be difficult to start a house from the ground up as most of the work would need to be done in the winter months. The remodel project will still teach students useful
Dan Kays, director of the Bowlus Fine Arts Center, updates USD 257 board members on plans for the performing arts facility. At right is a house that will be moved from its location near the Bowlus, and renovated by construction trades students. REGISTER/ VICKIE MOSS
skills. The board at a previous meeting approved spending up to $100,000 to move and remodel the house. City officials agreed to waive costs and fees associated with moving the house and attaching utilities. Superintendent Stacey Fager thanked the board, Bowlus Director Daniel Kays and the district’s maintenance director Aaron Cole for their efforts. “When this came up this
summer, it seemed like a very worthwhile project for our students. It will be neat seeing a two-story house moved from this location to the middle school,” Fager said. The remodel is expected to start in January, when students return from winter break. Ideally, it will be mostly completed in one semester. THE BOWLUS was featured in much of Monday’s discussion. Kays updated board mem-
bers on activities and performances, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. He also introduced the Bowlus commission volunteers and staff, each who spoke a few moments about their position and why they joined. Kays also asked the board to consider scheduling a reSee BOWLUS | Page A6
Idea of ‘self-care’ evolves By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO and SOPHIA ROSENBAUM The Associated Press
Making music The Iola Symphony Orchestra gathered for its first practice of the season. Allen Community College music director Jeffrey Anderson is conducting the orchestra this year. The first performance will be in February. REGISTER/VICKIE MOSS Vol. 122, No. 274 Iola, KS 75 Cents
NEW YORK (AP) — These days, with a pandemic raging, this is what life can look like: Staring at your face on Zoom for hours instead of occasionally glimpsing it in the mirror. Living out the days in loungewear. Wearing minimal makeup because no one sees much of you. Considering an investment in home exercise equipment because gyms are closed or restricted. The pandemic has forced people to spend more time with themselves than ever.
Along the way, it has reshaped and broadened the way many think about and prioritize how they treat themselves — what has come to be called self-care. The pandemic-era incarnation of self-care isn’t about buying a signature outfit, wearing a trendy shade of lipstick or getting a perfect haircut. It has, for many, put the purpose and meaning of life front and center, reconfiguring priorities and needs as the virus-inflected months drift by. No longer are worries about longevity and fears of mortality mere hypotheticals. See CARE | Page A3