The Iola Register, Sept. 30, 2023

Enter if you dare

By VICKIE MOSS The Iola Register

Welcome to LaCrone Manor. Dare to step past the sneaky snake and the skeleton who beckons you into a web of terror.

Don’t mind the suspicious spiders.

And don’t worry about the zombies. They’re safely locked in a cage. I’m sure it will hold.

Nearby, demonic babies devour an eviscerated mouse.

A wicked neon green brew bubbles in a cauldron as gleeful witches cackle and plot.

The dead crawl. Ghosts shriek. Mummies moan. Heads float.

You’ll find this house of

Newsom to pick Feinstein replacement

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) —

The Democrats’ delicate majority in the U.S. Senate puts extra pressure on California Gov. Gavin Newsom to quickly pick a replacement for Sen. Dianne Feinstein after her death.

Dianne

Feinstein

Already, names were being floated Friday in California circles. The situation is complicated and wrought with political risk for Newsom, a term-limited governor with national political ambitions of his own.

The Democratic governor has promised to appoint a Black woman. He

See SENATOR | Page A7

horror at the corner of South and Spruce streets.

It’s the work of Dustin and Sarah LaCrone, Halloween aficionados who offer their yard in a ritual sacrifice to the whims of all things creepy, crawly and bloodcurdling.

“I like the gory stuff. I’d rather make it even more scary,” Sarah said. “But last year some of the kids were too scared to walk up to the house.

“Dustin is more into the fun stuff.”

By “fun stuff,” she’s referring to a creepy carnival where a giant Ferris wheel delights the dead. Skeletons take their turn on a carousel. A wanna-be rodeo star rides a

See HALLOWEEN | Page A3

A fall vaccine primer

WASHINGTON (AP) —

Updated COVID-19 vaccines may be getting a little easier for adults to find but they’re still frustratingly scarce for young children. Health officials said Thursday the kid shots have started shipping — and reminded most everyone to get a fall flu shot too.

About 2 million Americans have gotten the new COVID-19 shot in the two weeks since its approval despite early barriers

See SHOTS | Page A2

Bricks, glass salvaged as church nears demolition

By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register

LAHARPE — In what’s better described as a disassembling than demolition, Joe Works is taking down the old LaHarpe Methodist Episcopal Church, brick by brick. Works, of Humboldt, is salvaging what he can from the 119-year-old structure, namely the church’s ornate stained glass windows and as many bricks as he can save.

“The bricks are in pretty good shape,” Works said Thursday as he pried each from the building’s south wall.

The stained glass windows were, for the most part, intact as well, but had shown signs of age from when they were installed in 1904.

“There were several broken pieces,” Works explained. And while he’s not one of them, Works said there are folks skilled at refurbishing old stained glass windows. The windows were what

attracted Works to the old church to begin with. He plans to restore them for a future building project.

“I have a vision for them, but not yet a plan,” he joked. The meticulous nature of taking down the bricks will

be time consuming. Works, co-founder and recently retired president of

See CHURCH | Page A7

A ghostly bride rises from the grave.

The LaCrone family embraces Halloween with a massive display that’s fun, creepy and scary all at the same time at their home at South and Spruce streets. From left, Evan, Dustin, Jace and Sarah LaCrone. REGISTER/VICKIE MOSS

Joe Works of Humboldt removes bricks at the former LaHarpe Methodist Episcopal Church. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

Rep. Gardner tours schools

USD 257 leaders showed Rep. Fred Gardner, R-Garnett, around district facilities on Thursday morning. Superintendent Stacey Fager, school board president Jennifer Taylor and Iola Elementary School principal Andy Gottlob gave Gardner a tour of the new Iola Elementary School building. Fager and Taylor then took Gardner to see the Regional Rural Technical Center at LaHarpe. Top left, Fager and Gardner visit the automotive program at the tech center. Bottom left, Gardner looks

Shots: New COVID shots now available

Continued from A1

from insurance companies and other glitches, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

For the first time, the U.S. has vaccines to fight a trio of viruses that cause fall and winter misery. But health officials worry that shot fatigue and hassles in getting them will leave too many people needlessly unprotected.

“We need to use them,” Dr. Mandy Cohen, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Thursday. “Right now is the right time.”

A flu vaccination and that updated COVID-19 shot are urged for just about everyone, starting with babies as young as 6 months.

Also this year, a vaccine against another scary virus called RSV is recommended for people 60 and older and for certain pregnant women. And for babies, a vaccinelike medicine to guard against that respiratory syncytial virus is expected to arrive next month.

“These vaccines may not be perfect in being able to prevent absolutely every infection with these illnesses, but they turn a wild infection into a milder one,” said Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University and the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases.

Some things to know:

WHY DO I NEED ANOTHER SHOT?

This year’s vaccine is updated to protect against newer versions of the constantly evolving coronavirus. Already there’s been a late summer jump in infections, hospitalizations and deaths. And so far the new vaccine recipe appears to be a good match to the variants currently circulating.

Protection against COVID-19, whether from vaccination or from an earlier infection, wanes over time — and most Americans haven’t had a vaccine dose in about a year. Everyone 5 and older will need just one shot this fall even if they’ve never had a prior vaccination, while younger children may need additional doses depending on their vaccination and infection history.

HARD IS IT TO

HOW

FIND COVID-19 SHOTS?

The rollout’s start has been messy. This time the government isn’t buying and distributing shots for free. Now drugstores, doctors’ offices and other providers had to place their own orders, and sometimes canceled appointments if supplies didn’t arrive in time. Some people had to wait for their insurance companies to update the billing codes needed to cover them or risk paying out of pocket.

Manufacturers Pfizer and Moderna have shipped millions of doses, and say there’s plenty of supply — and in recent days, more appointments have started opening, at least for people 12 and older. In a

WORSHIP WITH US AREA CHURCH DIRECTORY

Wednesday meeting, insurance companies told HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra they’ve largely resolved the paperwork issues blocking some patients’ vaccinations.

The shots are supposed to be provided free in-network to the insured. For the uninsured or underinsured, CDC has opened what it’s calling a “bridge” program to provide free shots at certain sites.

WHY CAN’T PARENTS FIND COVID-19 SHOTS FOR YOUNGER KIDS?

Adult doses got shipped first, CDC’s Cohen said. Doses for the under-12 set have begun shipping, and “the supply is filling out,” she said. Drugstore chain CVS said its doses for ages 5

and older began arriving last week, although supplies vary by location, while its MinuteClinic locations anticipate opening appointments for tots as young as 18 months in the coming days.

at a wall of photos featuring former schools in the district. At right, Gardner visits the elementary school library. He talked about the importance of libraries, and recalled as a teenager driving his grandmother to meetings because she was one of the leading forces to establish the interlibrary loan system. REGISTER/VICKIE MOSS

Halloween: Family’s display took months of preparation

Continued from A1

bucking black widow spider.

Some of the scarier stuff includes a cemetery and “the big guys” including a 13-foot tall Jack Skellington, a mummy, werewolves, skeletons and demons.

Nearly everything lights up and moves. Even the rug on the front porch screams when you step on it. This is the second year the LaCrones have gone all-out for Halloween. They’ve also decorated their home and yard for Christmas, as their hobby continues to grow.

“My husband cannot sit still,” Sarah said. “And he likes to work with his hands. He likes building stuff. And I’ve always liked Halloween, so he brings it to life for me.”

Dustin has grown up “turning wrenches” and tinkering with machines at his dad’s automotive repair shop. He now works as an ammonia technician who maintains refrigeration systems at Russell Stover Chocolates.

Sarah’s mom owns a craft and design store, so she focuses more on the planning and design stages.

Even their children help. Evan is 15 and Jace is 7.

Evan’s favorites are the larger-than-life characters. Jace’s favorite is “Georgie” and the freaky clown from “It,” based on the movie and book by Stephen King.

A DISPLAY like this takes a lot of time.

Dustin started working on it in January.

Inspiration comes from many sources. They look for cool Halloween items whenever they go on vacation.

Dustin came up with this year’s carnival theme.

“When I was a kid, there was this house that had a baby Ferris wheel in the yard at

McCarthy’s

WASHINGTON (AP)

— House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s last-ditch plan to keep the federal government temporarily open collapsed on Friday as hard-right holdouts rejected the package, making a shutdown almost certain.

McCarthy’s rightflank Republicans refused to support the bill despite its steep spending cuts of nearly 30% to many agencies and severe border security provisions, calling it insufficient.

The White House and Democrats rejected the Republican approach as too extreme.

The bill’s failure a day before Saturday’s deadline to fund the government leaves few options left to prevent a shutdown that will furlough federal workers, keep the military working without pay and disrupt programs and services for millions of Americans. The outcome puts McCarthy’s speakership in serious jeopardy with almost no political leverage to lead the House at a critical moment that has pushed the government into crisis.

Christmas, and I always wanted one,” he said.

He used PVC pipes and the motor from a windshield wiper — purchased online for $23 — to power the display. Colorful baskets were cut into carriages for traditional and pumpkin skeletons.

The carousel was a natural companion piece.

He painted them in primary colors — blue, red, green and orange — so they can be used for both Halloween and Christmas.

After Halloween, most of the display will be broken down “like Tetris” for storage. Then, Dustin will start working on Christmas.

The display attracts a lot of attention from passers-by. In consideration of their neighbors, the LaCrones use an au-

tomatic timer that limits the displays’ lights and sounds. Some items aren’t turned on until closer to Halloween. For those who want to see the display, the LaCrones recommend you do so on foot. There’s just too much to see on a drive-by.

last-ditch

But be careful not to cross the fence line, as the wiring for the displays can pose a hazard.

plan collapses

Ahead of voting, the Republican speaker all but dared his hold-out colleagues to oppose the package a day before Saturday’s almost certain shutdown. The House bill would have kept operations open through Oct. 31.

The federal government is heading straight into a shutdown after

midnight Saturday that would leave 2 million military troops without pay, furlough federal works and disrupt government services and programs that Americans rely on from coast to coast. Congress has been unable to fund the agencies or pass a temporary bill to keep offices open.

Besides that, you never know what might be waiting in the dark.

If you have enjoyed

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until November 1. Gift certificates and online booking are available at nativehealing.co or contact us at nativehealingiola@gmail.com.

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A zombified “Georgie” from Stephen King’s “It” is accompanied by his red balloon and taunted by the freakish clown, above. At right, a redneck skeleton sings the blues about his untimely demise.

Above, a creepy carnival brings the fun to the LaCrone’s Halloween display. At right, demon babies play in their crib.

Ask the builder: How to fight mold, mildew

By TIM CARTER Tribune Content Agency

Days ago, Jerry stopped by my website, AsktheBuilder.com, perplexed by algae growth on the exterior of his home. Jerry hales from Chesterton, Indiana, the gateway to the massive sand dunes at the south end of Lake Michigan.

Here’s what he wrote: “My vinyl-sided home has a northern exposure that gets an algae-like film on it. It gets dark enough that I have to power wash it every year. What’s really confusing is that the south side of the house, the sunny side, doesn’t have this problem. With one-foot eaves, the north side never gets any sun. The south side gets diffused sun shade by honey locust trees. Do you have any idea what causes this?”

It just so happens that I know exactly what’s going on. In fact, I have this exact same problem at my home in central New Hampshire.

Algae, mold and mildew are quite similar to fire. You may think that’s an odd analogy. To create a fire, you only need three things: fuel, oxygen and heat. That’s it, nothing more.

For algae, mold, and mildew to thrive, they just need three things — and sometimes just two! Typically, some algae, mold and mildew need: the spores, food and water. There are some algae that create their own food and only need carbon dioxide and water to create their own food.

It’s far easier to control the growth of the three organisms inside than outside. I say this because inside your home, you often can minimize the presence of water. You have mold and mildew spores

everywhere in your home, and food sources are abundant. Add water and in a short amount of time you’ll have mold and mildew proliferating. You may struggle with mold and mildew in your tub and shower area. You can prevent it from growing with some effort. All you have to do is to dry the tub and shower walls and floor each time you get them wet. I know that’s a huge ask. Most people will never do it. At the very least, squeegee as much water to the drain, shake off the shower curtain, and leave the shower door and shower curtain open as well as the bathroom door to get everything to dry out as fast as possible.

Controlling algae, mildew and mold growth outdoors is very hard. You can’t control the water part of the equation. Rainfall, dew and water vapor coming up out of the soil provide a nearly constant supply of water.

As Jerry observed, he has no algae on the south side of his house. He recognized that the sun’s rays hit that wall. The small amount of sunlight in the morn-

ing and early part of the day is enough to evaporate any dew or fine dew haze that’s on the siding.

All Jerry has to do to prevent the growth of algae, mold and mildew is to take the food away from the growth triangle. Your body is no different. If you don’t want to have offensive body odor and filth on your skin, you typically have to take a shower each day. You rub your skin with soap and water to remove the bacteria that create body odor. That same soap and mechanical agitation of your skin with your hand gets rid of dirt.

Jerry just needs to increase his cleaning schedule from once a year to possibly three or four times a year. Here’s what not to do. Avoid using chlorine bleach outdoors in an effort to clean or kill the organisms. Chlorine bleach will poison any valuable landscaping or prize trees in your yard.

Years ago, I advised a neighbor against using bleach. Each spring she’d pour three gallons of chlorine bleach on her concrete patio to remove the algae. She-

Obituaries

Billie Keller

Billie Jane (White) Keller, 68, of Wellington passed away Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023.

Billie was born Dec. 16, 1954, in Liberal, to Edwin L. White and R. Katherine (Harris) White.

In 1972, Billie graduated from Liberal High School and continued her education at Seward County Community College graduating with an associate degree.

Billie Keller

Billie married Allen E. Keller on Dec. 21, 1974, in Liberal. To this union four beautiful children were born: Adam, Erin, Allison and Evan.

During their married life, opportunities took them to Minnesota, Wyoming and California before ultimately settling in Iola.

had a magnificent maple tree overhanging the patio that provided much-needed shade. I said, “Barbara, the chlorine bleach will kill the tree.” She thought I was dumber than a box of rocks. After all, I was just a blue-collar builder.

Each year the tree got sicker and sicker. She spent thousands of dollars with an arborist trying to feed and care for the tree. I often wondered if Barb told the professional about her chlorine treatments. My guess is the arborist never thought to ask.

After about 10 years, the arborist came out with his chainsaws and crew and cut the tree down.

When you go to clean the outside of your home, just use regular liquid dish soap and water. Rub the siding with a sponge just as you’d wash your car. Avoid pressure washers because they can damage your home, and they don’t always remove all the dirt and food that feed the organisms.

Subscribe to Tim’s FREE newsletter at AsktheBuilder.com.

Feeling the pinch: Americans have less savings

By ALEX TANZI Bloomberg News/TNS

Americans outside the wealthiest 20% of the country have run out of extra savings and now have less cash on hand than they did when the pandemic began, according to the latest Federal Reserve study of household finances.

For the bottom 80% of households by income, bank deposits and other liquid assets were lower in June this year than they were in March 2020, after adjustment for inflation.

All income groups have seen their balances decline in real terms from a peak in 2021, according to the Fed survey. But among the wealthiest one-fifth of households, cash savings are still about 8% above their level when COVID-19 hit. By contrast, the poorest twofifths of Americans have seen an 8% drop in that period. And the next 40% — a group that roughly corresponds with the U.S. middle class — saw their cash savings drop below pre-pandemic levels in the last quarter.

The figures point to dwindling firepower

available for U.S. consumers, whose resilience has kept the economy growing at a rapid clip this year and staved off the recession that many expected. Some analysts warn a downturn is still in the cards as households run low on spare cash.

The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco estimates that the aggregate stock of excess savings will likely be depleted in the current quarter.

Overall, household net worth jumped by

some $5.5 trillion in the April-June period to a record high, the Fed data show. The increase was driven by housing — a less liquid form of wealth — and gains for stocks, whose ownership skews toward richer households. The Fed numbers also highlight the unusual trajectory of household finances after the COVID slump, compared with previous recessions. Large-scale financial support from the government, and enforced savings under lockdown

conditions, helped Americans amass stockpiles of extra cash. Their spending power fueled a rapid recovery, though it may now be running out of steam.

Market place

iolaregister.com/marketplace

Billie graduated from nursing school in 1991 and began her career at Allen County Hospital. She moved to a clinic setting at the Family Medical Center working for Drs. Hull, Walter and Stone. During her 10 years there, Billie developed lifelong friendships. In 2005, she and the family moved to Wellington. She retired from Sumner Regional Medical Center in Wellington after 24 dedicated years as a Registered Nurse.

Billie enjoyed reading, playing cards, antiquing, and traveling, especially cruising. Her grandchildren were the joy of her life. She never missed an event.

Billie’s family and friends will remember her humor, generosity, and love for others.

She will be greatly missed by all.

She is survived by her husband Allen of 48 years; her children, Adam Keller (Jennifer), Goddard, Erin Fenn (Bob), Derby, Allison Patton (Erick), Goddard, and Evan Keller, Kansas City, Mo.; beloved grandchildren, Makayla Keller, Isaac Keller, Easton Fenn, Carter Fenn, Carson Fenn, Brooke Patton and Paige Patton; sisters, Priscilla Taggart, Kay Hatfield, Jolyn Apsey and Sonja Sutherland. She was loved by many nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and cousins.

Billie is preceded in death by her parents.

A funeral service will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 3, at First Baptist Church in Protection. Viewing will be held from noon until service time on Tuesday. Interment will immediately follow the service at Protection Cemetery.

Billie’s family will welcome friends and family back at the church for refreshments and snacks after the interment service.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Wellington Humane Society, 203 W. Hillside Rd., Wellington, KS 67152.

Arrangements are under the care of Hatfield-Prusa Funeral Home, Coldwater.

Ginny Reaves

Mary Virginia (Ginny) Reaves, 100, Humboldt, died Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023.

She was born March 24, 1923, in Florence, to Otto A. Powers and Cora M. Stroup Powers. She graduated from Iola High School in 1941 and married Ronald E. Reaves in 1941. He precedes her in death as does a daughter, Rosemary Cannon. Survivors include a son, Philip Reaves. Visitation is from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 6 at The Venue at Feuerborn Family Funeral Service, 1883 US Highway 54, Iola.

To combat mold on the outside of his house, this homeowner just needs to increase the cleaning schedule from once a

year to possibly three or four times a year. Warning: Avoid using chlorine bleach. TNS FILE PHOTO

Oil spills into creek near Quivira refuge Retired teachers to meet

By RICHARD LUKEN

The Associated Press

Time will tell whether an oil spill upstream on Rattlesnake Creek will harm the birds that flock to Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, a migratory bird stop in Stafford County.

Its manager, Mike Oldham, said the refuge, owned by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, had deployed absorbent barriers to catch any oil in case it made it downstream.

“We’re watching,” Oldham said. “We’re waiting. We’re monitoring.”

So far, the refuge hasn’t seen any oil reach its waters or contaminated birds fly in.

The spill took place earlier this month a few miles from the refuge where a lead line crossed Rattlesnake Creek. Linda Berry, spokeswoman for the Kansas Corporation Commission, which regulates oil and gas, said in an email that the wells using the line had previously been abandoned. When the wells turned back on, the line burst from the weight of the fluid.

About 10 barrels — or 420 gallons — of oil and

1,500 barrels of saltwater spilled into the creek.

Berry said the remediation is 99% complete, but staff will continue to inspect and take samples. She said no regulations had been violated in connection with the spill.

The spill poses another risk to the Quivira refuge, which is already threatened by insufficient water supply on Rattlesnake Creek.

Because of groundwater pumping upstream on Rattlesnake Creek, Quivira is not getting all the water it’s entitled to. Farm irrigation reduces the amount of groundwater that flows into the creek and becomes surface water.

The creek flows into the refuge, which con-

Bargains for a cause

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tains more than 22,000 acres of grass, sand prairies and inland marshes.

The facility has a right to water under Kansas law that was established in 1957, making its water rights older than most others in the area. Under Kansas’ “first in time, first in right” policy, the refuge takes priority over junior water rights.

Quivira is entitled to

more than 14,000 acrefeet of water each year, but has been impaired in about two out of every three years between 2008 and 2021.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service filed a request to secure water with the Kansas Department of Agriculture in February, a move criticized by Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly and Republican members of Congress.

Because there is virtually no streamflow from Rattlesnake Creek into the refuge, Oldham said, the oil and contaminated water hasn’t made its way to the refuge.

Flows into the refuge have generally been less than a cubic foot per second, Oldham said. But in early September, the water stopped flowing at all.

“As far as how it’s going to affect us, we don’t really know right now until we start getting a little more flow coming down the creek,” Oldham said, “and we’ll see if any oil comes our way.”

Allen Community College President Dr. Bruce Moses will speak Wednesday to the Allen County Retired School Personnel organization.

Following a noon meal, the meeting begins at 12:15 p.m. in the Mary Ellen Stadler Conference Room in the ACC Student Center. All retired school personnel are invited to attend.

Storms flood NYC subways

NEW YORK (AP) —

A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area on Friday, shutting down some subways and commuter railroads, flooding streets and highways, and delaying flights into LaGuardia Airport.

Up to 5 inches (13 centimeters) of rain fell in some areas overnight, and as much as 7 inches (18 centimeters) more was expected throughout the day, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Friday morning.

By midday, although there was a break in the downpour, Mayor Eric Adams urged people to stay put if possible.

“It is not over, and I don’t want those gaps in heavy rain to give the appearance that it is over,” he said at a news briefing. He and Hochul, both Democrats, declared states of emergency.

No storm-related deaths or critical injuries had been reported as of midday, city officials said. But residents struggled to get around the waterlogged metropolis.

Traffic hit a standstill, with water above cars’ tires, on a stretch of the FDR Drive — a major artery along the east side of Manhattan. Some drivers abandoned their vehicles.

Priscilla Fontallio said she had been stranded in her car, which was on a piece of the highway that wasn’t flooded but wasn’t moving, for three hours as of 11 a.m.

On a street in South Williamsburg, Brooklyn, workers were up to their knees in water as they tried to unclog a storm drain while cardboard and other debris floated by. The city said that it checked and cleared key drains, especially near subway stations, ahead of the storm.

Hope Unlimited, an organization dedicated to serving survivors of domestic and sexual abuse, hosted a rummage sale Thursday and Friday, one of several fundraisers the organization sponsors each year. Among the workers putting the sale together are, from left, Kayla Knavel, Alex Gumfory, Alondra Exiga and Lori Holman. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

Powerball jackpot nears $1 billion

DES MOINES, Iowa

(AP) — Another Powerball drawing Saturday night, another chance at a jackpot that is inching toward $1 billion.

The estimated $925 million prize is the world’s ninth-largest lottery jackpot, behind earlier Powerball and Mega Millions prizes that all topped $1 billion.

The prize has grown so large because there have been 30 consecutive drawings without a big winner, dating to July 19. That streak without a jackpot winner is due to the game’s long odds, 1 in 292.2 million, that are designed to make winning rare so grand prizes can grow large.

The $925 million prize is for a sole winner who chooses an annuity, with annual payments over 30 years. Winners almost

always take the cash option, which for Saturday’s drawing would be an estimated $432.4 million. Federal taxes will eat into those winnings,

and some states also tax big lottery prizes.

Powerball is played in 45 states, as well as Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

IN THE CLASSIFIEDS

Most has been cleaned, FCC officials say

A flock of green-winged teal settle on the marsh at Quivira National Wildlife Refuge. USFWS/RACHEL LAUBHAN

A6

Saturday, September 30, 2023

~ Journalism that makes a difference

ESU’s weak defense of 13% enrollment drop

Dion Lefler

The Wichita Eagle

A year after new president Ken Hush took a scythe to the faculty of Emporia State University, fall enrollment figures paint a bleak picture of what his “realignment” has done to what once was the little college that could.

Figures released Wednesday show a year-to-year drop of 512 full-time equivalent students, a whopping 13% enrollment decline from last year.

Current FTE enrollment at ESU, 3,431, is the lowest in the past 20 years, which is as far back as statistics are available from the Kansas Board of Regents.

It’s also the largest year-toyear percentage drop on record for any state university. It nearly doubled the worst decline at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the small K-State veterinary school, which is counted separately from the larger university, posted a 6.6% enrollment loss between 2020 and 2021.

Lest you may think this is just symptomatic of a general decline in four-year college education, the next largest decline this year was at Fort Hays State, a more-orless status-quo drop of only 1.1%. The only other enrollment loser in the state system was Wichita State, which dropped a minuscule 0.5%.

KU led enrollment gains with a hefty 7.5% increase and the rest of the universities were basically stable, with increases less than 1%. K-State was up a bit, its first increase in nine years.

So we can safely conclude the massive enrollment decline at Emporia falls squarely on the shoulders of Hush and the Kansas Board of Regents, which appointed him to his position and unanimously approved his chainsaw approach to university (mis)management last year.

Hush, a tennis standout at ESU in the early 1980s, had no experience in higher education management or teaching when he was hired as the interim president of the university in 2021.

At the time, he was run-

ning a company called BLI Rentals, an Emporia-based company that specializes in rent-to-own backyard storage sheds.

But it seems Hush’s primary qualification was that he’d held a variety of executive positions with Koch Industries, including president of its minerals and carbon division.

Koch has donated millions to ESU and other Kansas universities to promote the economic and public-policy goals of the company’s billionaire owner, Charles Koch, and it wields outsize influence throughout the system.

Hush’s tenure has been roiled with controversy.

Just before the regents made his interim job permanent, he shut down the university’s Center for Early Childhood Education, which provided on-campus day care for employees and gave students experience working with young learners. It was a weird flex for a university that has always prided itself on being one of the nation’s premier teacher colleges.

In an interview with the university newspaper, the Bulletin, Hush said he laughed at the criticism of the decision to close the center. Then he tried to walk the comment back, and when the student reporters didn’t let him, he told them “I think this interview today will de-

What’s been going on at Emporia State this past year is a mockery of what a state university should be. Why would students go to a university where their major can be canceled?

termine how our relationship is going to exist on a go-forward basis — and I’m meaning the whole newspaper on campus,” the Bulletin reported. It was a foreshadowing of much larger controversy to come.

During the pandemic, the Board of Regents put forth a new temporary policy allowing its institutions to dump faculty, regardless of tenure or length of service.

None of them did, so the regents extended the policy to late 2022, long after widespread availability of vaccines and new treatments had blunted the COVID threat.

Hush took advantage of the policy extension to lay off 33 of the approximately 230 faculty members at the university, shuttering entire degree programs, mostly in arts and sciences.

Among the casualties was the university’s national powerhouse debate team, which in the world of college debate would be about equivalent to KU dropping basketball.

Oh, and Hush made good on his threat to those pesky journalism students who insisted on quoting him accurately. He’s refused to speak to reporters from the school paper ever since, and it’s no surprise he eliminated the journalism degree program and fired their professor and newspaper advisor, Max McCoy.

What’s been going on at Emporia State this past year is a mockery of what a state university should be. Why would students go to a university where their major can be canceled and their favorite professor sacked, at the whim of a university president who thinks he has all the answers because he was a big success in minerals trading and selling prefab garden sheds?

An investigation by the American Association of University Professors called what’s going on at Emporia State “a direct assault on tenure and academic freedom,” and concluded that the regents, Hush and his cabal “are unfit to lead.”

In an “open letter,” re-

leased a day in advance of the disastrous enrollment report, Hush tried to put the proverbial cosmetics on the porcine omnivore he’s raising in Emporia.

“The fall semester is off to a great start with students back and signs of progress all over campus including construction on our new Nursing + Student Wellness Center, Cybersecurity Research + Outreach Center, Esports Arena and Feltner Student Union Square,” the letter said.

Sorry, Ken, but it’s going to take more than a few Alienware computers and new picnic tables to bring back the students you chased off.

Also in the open letter, Hush sought to deflect responsibility in any direction he could.

Some highlights: “Enrollment trends are changing and declining across the nation,” and “The national workforce shortage is a new competitor in the higher education landscape, pulling students directly into the workforce after high school graduation.”

And this: “As an industry, higher education is at a crossroads and can no longer afford to ignore the signs of the times: the popularity of online education, lucrative alternatives to higher education, corporations offering on-the-job training and national campaigns urging students and employers to forego higher education — paired with a shortage of workers and the increasing cost for students to attend.”

Then there’s the obligatory promise that the steep decline in enrollment was all part of the plan from the start, and better days are just over the horizon.

“As we forecasted 18 months ago, enrollment this fall will be down. Considering this news, as our valued community, supporters and friends, I wanted to connect with you to reinforce that we remain optimistic and excited about our path forward,” Hush wrote. “We are in the middle of a full-scale transformation, and change of this magnitude takes time … During our transformation, Emporia State will have declining enrollment before stabilizing in 2025.”

Or, like the sign on the wall at Joe’s Crab Shack says: “Free crab tomorrow.”

Florida’s Ron DeSantis keeps dodging on Ukraine

Ron DeSantis did well overall at Wednesday night’s GOP presidential debate, with one glaring exception that could cost him support as the alternative to Donald Trump. To wit, he keeps ducking and covering on U.S. aid for Ukraine against Russia’s invasion.

“It’s in our interest to end this war. And that’s what I will do as President,” the Florida Governor said. “We are not going to have a blank check. We will not have U.S. troops, and we’re going to make the Europeans do what they need to do,” details unavailable. He then careened into the non-sequitur of talking about the U.S. border. Consider his scripted answers one by one. Everyone wants to end the war, but there’s a hitch: Vladimir Putin. Would Mr. DeSantis deliver peace by caving to the Russian’s demands, the way that Donald Trump is suggesting he would?

The Governor’s “blank check” line is a red herring, since no one is offering one. Europe should do more, but that is beside the point of U.S. help. If the U.S. abandons Kyiv, Russia wins.

Period. Pitting a defense of the U.S. border against aid for Ukraine is a false choice, since the U.S. can do both if it has the will.

Pitting a defense of the U.S. border against aid for Ukraine is a false choice, since the U.S. can do both if it has the will.

Mr. DeSantis seems to be courting the minority of GOP primary voters who want to cut off Ukraine, and 104 House Republicans did vote this week to strip Ukraine aid out of a spending bill. But is that how Mr. DeSantis wants to lead — by following strategists Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene?

The risk of this political tightrope is that voters con-

clude the Governor has no fixed worldview. Some GOP voters are isolationist and want America to withdraw from the world, but they will vote for Mr. Trump or Vivek Ramaswamy. A much larger share of the primary and general electorate is not opposed to supporting Ukraine on principle. But those voters are concerned about the awful and slow fight, even after sending money and weapons, and they’re frustrated by President Biden’s failure to explain the cause or U.S. interests in Ukraine.

A BETTER election strategy is to prosecute Mr. Biden’s handling of the war. The Biden Administration has calibrated its support on fear

of Vladimir Putin’s response, a cowering that GOP voters don’t like.

The President has slowwalked advanced weapons for Ukraine time and again, and now the White House is trumpeting to the press that it managed to start delivering Ukraine a few dozen tanks in eight months. The alternative to this failure isn’t selling out Ukraine, but explaining why defeating Russia is essential to U.S. interests and to deterring China in Taiwan.

Gov. DeSantis was on target when he said the threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party is “fundamental” to U.S. security. But how will the U.S. persuade Europe to scale back trade and ties with Beijing if America says Mr. Putin on the march isn’t a U.S. problem?

This gets to Chris Christie’s point that Ukraine and Beijing are “connected.” The “Chinese are paying for the

Russian war in Ukraine,” and the North Koreans and Iranians are contributing weapons. “The Chinese-Russian Alliance is something we have to fight against, and we are not going to solve it by going over and cuddling up to Vladimir Putin.”

Gov. DeSantis told voters a compelling story about his decision to serve in the military after 9/11, and he’s well positioned to explain to Americans why it makes more strategic sense to send weapons abroad today rather than having to send U.S. troops later.

Mr. DeSantis is competing with Nikki Haley and perhaps one or two others to see who can emerge as the main challenger to Mr. Trump in Iowa and beyond. Ms. Haley is gaining support because she shows conviction. A bob and weave on Ukraine doesn’t look good by comparison.

— Wall Street Journal

Ken Hush was appointed president of Emporia State University in 2022 after serving as its interim president in 2021. Hush has no prior experience in education or its management. Of the six universities in the Kansas Board of Regents System, ESU tops the list in declining enrollment, doubling that during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. MARGARET MELLOTT/KANSAS REFLECTOR

Church: Demolition likely to take about a month

Continued from A1

B&W Trailer Hitches in Humboldt, recalled a similar demolition project about 20 years ago at an old church there.

Then, he fabricated a metal plate affixed to a lift, capable of prying a layer of bricks from a wall in one piece.

“But as they fell, the bricks hit each other and broke apart,” Works said. “Lesson learned.”

THE CHURCH was a centerpiece of LaHarpe’s history for more than a century, but has been largely vacant since 2007.

The Methodists had been a part of the LaHarpe community dating back to the 1880s at a site just east of LaHarpe.

As LaHarpe grew, so did the hopes for a new building. Allen County’s gas boom days saw the local population explode to more than 2,000. The Methodists eventually moved to the northwest corner of South Third Street (Ninth Street today) and South Washington, where they quickly discovered they needed a larger venue.

The first cornerstone was laid in 1904, and construction was completed a year later. The new church was dedicated the last Sunday in July 1905. Gas was piped in about five years later; the building was wired for electricity in November 1921.

The building underwent an extensive remodel in 1960.

In its heyday, the church was a sight to behold, filled with ornate woodwork and

curved wooden pews.

But as LaHarpe’s population steadily decreased over the last half of the 20th century, so did the church’s membership.

The church united with Neosho Falls in 2000, but that did little to keep the numbers from plummeting. The final Methodist service was held in 2007.

In the years since, the building has sat empty, minus a few months when a young couple owned the building as a residence, and renamed it LaHarpe Revival Church.

They moved away because of legal troubles,

without ever reopening the venue for services.

The church subsequently was sold to a company that marketed it as a haunted church, offering customers the opportunity to stay in the building on spooky overnight adventures. Few took up the offer, however, as the build-

Strike expands

ing’s condition steadily deteriorated.

A gaping hole in the roof developed, accelerating the building’s decay.

Works is preserving what he can, but the wood won’t be salvaged.

He pointed to several pieces of exposed wood

Senator: Feinstein death leaves void

Continued from A1

has also promised to avoid the field of candidates already running for Feinstein’s seat, which was set to expire at the end of next year and includes Rep. Barbara Lee, one of the state’s most prominent Black women currently serving in elected office.

In filling the Senate vacancy, Newsom has the sole authority to name a successor. He could even pick himself, though that is unlikely.

Newsom made no mention of Feinstein’s replacement in a statement he issued marking her death Friday morning.

“Dianne Feinstein was many things — a powerful, trailblazing U.S. Senator; an early voice for gun control; a leader in times of tragedy and chaos. But to me, she was a dear friend, a lifelong mentor, and a role model not only for me, but to my wife and daughters for what a powerful, effective leader looks like,” Newsom said. “There is simply nobody who possessed the strength, gravitas, and fierceness of Dianne Feinstein.”

On Capitol Hill, Feinstein’s death leaves Senate Democrats with no margin for error until a successor is appointed.

Democrats now have a functional majority of just 50 seats in the Senate, while Republicans hold 49. At the same time, many Democrats are calling for the res-

ignation of the indicted Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., although the embattled Democrat has vowed not to step down.

And while Democrats continue to control Congress’ upper chamber, Feinstein’s absence will make it harder to advance Biden’s judge

nominees in the Judiciary Committee. Newsom’s choices all run political risks.

Should he follow through on his pledge to avoid picking from those already running in the Senate primary, he could select a true caretaker who would be

for a community forum on

that showed extensive termite damage. “That makes me feel a lot less guilty about not saving the lumber,” he said.

Once the brick is removed, Works said work crews will bring in heavier equipment to finish the demolition. He expects the teardown to take about a month to complete.

replaced by whomever voters select in next year’s election. A handful of Black women in office have been floated as possibilities, including Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell.

by:

Please call 620-365-2111 for more information. This event is free and open to the public.

(AP) — The United Auto Workers expanded its two-week strikes against Detroit automakers Friday, adding 7,000 workers at a Ford plant in Chicago and a General Motors assembly factory near Lansing, Michigan.

DETROIT

Union President Shawn Fain told workers on a video appearance Friday that negotiations haven’t broken down, but the strikes were escalated because Ford and GM have refused to make meaningful progress in contract talks.

Jeep maker Stellantis was spared from the third round of strikes.

The GM plant in Delta Township, near Lansing, makes large crossover SUVs such as the Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave. A nearby metal parts stamping plant with 300 workers will remain open, Fain said.

The Chicago Ford plant makes the Ford Explorer and Explorer Police Interceptors, as well as the Lincoln Aviator SUV. The Explorer interceptor is the nation’s top selling police vehicle.

“Sadly, despite our willingness to bargain, Ford and GM have refused to make meaningful progress at the table,” Fain said in explaining the new strike locations.

Fain said union bargainers are still talking to all three companies, and he’s hopeful they can reach deals.

Stellantis, he said, made significant progress “moments” before the Facebook Live broadcast by agreeing to unspecified cost-of-living pay raises, the right not to cross a picket line and the right to strike over plant closures.

Stained glass windows have been removed from the former LaHarpe Methodist Episcopal Church, above, while extensive roof damage is shown at right. The building is being demolished, brick by brick.

Saturday, September 30, 2023

Sports Daily B

Iola, Crest and MV run like the wind

By QUINN BURKITT The Iola Register

RICHMOND — The Iola, Crest and Marmaton Valley cross country teams competed at Central Heights in Richmond Thursday.

Josie Walter of Crest finished fourth in the girls varsity race while teammate Peyton Schmidt followed her in fifth place. Iola’s Cole Moyer and Crest’s Gunner Ellington took 14th and 15th place in the varsity boys race, respectively.

Even with the fourth place finish, Walter still wasn’t ecstatic about her finish.

“It wasn’t my best race and I got discouraged once I got passed, but it wasn’t my worst race either,” she said. “Being patient with my training has been key. This year, I came out and thought I’d be drastically better than last year but I realize I just have to trust my training.”

IMS splits against Prairie View

By QUINN BURKITT The Iola Register

The Iola Middle football team split a pair of matchups with Prairie View at home Thursday.

The eighth grade Mustangs responded from a tough loss last week and shut down the Buffalo for a 40-0 drubbing win while Iola’s seventh-graders were shut out in a 36-0 loss.

Eighth grade

Even with the loss of one of the Mustangs’ most reliable players, Reginald Davis, Iola was still able to take down Prairie View with relative ease, 40-0.

Kevon Loving led Iola offensively when he rushed for three touchdowns on 176 rushing yards. Reed Clift also chugged in for two touchdowns and totaled 49 ground yards. Colton Thompson also had a rushing touchdown along with 55 rushing yards.

Iola’s boys varsity team took a sixth place finish with 122 points. The varsity runners competed in a 5000-meter run.

Iola Moyer led the Mustangs in the varsity boys race, a 14th place finish in 18:30. Keegan Hill finished in 26th place with a time of 19:34 while Brennen Coffield took a 31st place finish with a time of

HMS rocked at Caney Valley

CHERRYVALE — Humboldt’s Middle School football team was met with a harsh awakening when they dropped a 44-12 loss at Cherryvale Thursday.

The Chargers scored six touchdowns on the Cubs (3-2). Humboldt could only find the endzone a couple of times, a rushing touchdown from Ty Shaughnessy and Remington Strickler for the 44-12 final.

Humboldt went down early when Cherryvale scored two touchdowns in the first quarter for the early 14-0 deficit. The

See CUBS | Page B3

20:08.

“I’ve never done this course before but I felt good and was able to beat my time by 40 seconds,” said Hill. “Coach Daugharthy has pushed me in every race to do my best and my team cheers me on throughout the race which helps me race better than I think I can.”

Kaiden Vega finished 43rd with a time of 22:18 and Caden Coltrane finished in 47th

place with a mark of 22:39. Joshua Wanker came in 48th place with a time of 22:39. For the girls, Lynsie Fehr came in 30th place with a time of 26:11 and Mahailie Genoble placed 36th with a time of 27:58.

Crest The Lady Lancers have carved out a spot as some of the top runners in the Three Rivers League and state. That began with Walter taking a fourth place finish in

20:39 while Peyton Schmidt earned fifth place with a time of 21:13. Aubrey Allen rounded out the lead trio for Crest with a 16th place finish in 23:15. Kaylee Allen came in 27th place with a finish of 25:28.

“As I’ve been running these meets, I’ve realized I just have to trust my training and be consistent so that I keep getting better and better,” said Walter. “It’s not just going to

See LOCAL | Page B2

MVJH hits hardwood at Yates Center

YATES CENTER — The Marmaton Valley Junior High volleyball teams traveled to Yates Center on Thursday for some Three Rivers League action. The Wildcats A team fell to

Yates Center in two sets, 25-12 and 25-15.

Alayna Cook scored a teamhigh six points in the first set before Jetta Mathews had a team-high five points in the

second set for Marmaton Valley.

Marmaton Valley’s B team lost to Yates Center in three sets, 25-13, 23-25 and 6-15.

See MVJH | Page B2

“The boys came out aggressive and kept it up for most of the game,” Iola head coach Scott Ellis said. “Noah Anderson playing fullback came off the ball hard and hit the holes quickly along with Kevon (Loving) at tailback running to the outside. Reed Clift orchestrated a tough offense also making some positive yardage.”

Loving’s 62-yard touchdown run was the longest of the game.

Clift was also comfortable under center, completing three passes, the longest going for 22 yards.

Defensively, Clift brought in a team-high six tackles while Anderson had four tackles. Colton Thompson and Dean Kheeliant each had three tackles. Hunter Bernsten collected a team-high two fumble recoveries while Aidan Cheney also scooped up a fumble.

“Defensively, we were relentless and didn’t let them breathe for the

See MUSTANGS | Page B2

Wildcats outsling Yates Center in thriller

By QUINN BURKITT The Iola Register

YATES CENTER — The Marmaton Valley Junior High football team came out on top in a high-scoring back and forth game at Yates Center Thursday, 62-46.

Marmaton Valley (4-1) sprung out to an early 14-0 lead and only missed out on scoring on three drives in the first half. Yates Center proved

their physicality in the first half and rallied to make it an even game, forcing two turnovers on MV in the first half.

Marmaton Valley and Yates Center were knotted at halftime, 24-24. Yates Center was unable to stop Marmaton Valley’s offense in the second half while MV’s defense made some crucial stops.

“The second half they

Iola’s Cole Moyer, left, and Crest’s Gunner Ellington, right, near the finish line at Central Heights. REGISTER/QUINN BURKITT

Crest’s Elijah Taylor is followed by other runners. REGISTER/ QUINN BURKITT

Marmaton Valley’s Sophia Heim, left, and Humboldt’s Danica Modlin, right, at Central Heights . REGISTER/QUINN BURKITT

Marmaton Valley’s Ethan Lawson powers through the line but gets caught by a Cherryvale defender.

PHOTO BY HALIE LUKEN See MV | Page B3

No Rodgers as Chiefs and Jets set to play

EAST RUTHERFORD,

N.J. (AP) — The NFL figured it had a marquee made-for-TV matchup when it announced the league’s schedule in May.

Aaron Rodgers’ New York Jets would square off at home against Patrick Mahomes and the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in prime time on Sunday night. Well, then came quite a plot twist.

Rodgers was lost for the season just four snaps into his debut with the Jets — and now all the hype has shifted off the field, with fans wondering whether Taylor Swift will show up at MetLife Stadium to support Chiefs star tight end Travis Kelce again.

The pop superstar attended Kansas City’s victory over Chicago at home last Sunday, but the All-Pro tight end wouldn’t divulge any details about their relationship. And neither would Mahomes.

“Like Travis said, I’m going to let them have their privacy and keep it moving,” Mahomes said this week.

That’s what the Chiefs (2-1) intend to do when they face a struggling Jets (1-2) team that’s now led by Zach Wilson in place of the injured Rodgers, who’s healing at home in California after having surgery on his torn left Achilles tendon.

Mahomes and the offense appeared in top form last week while romping past the winless Bears. The reigning league MVP threw three touchdown passes, including one to Kelce and two to Jerick

Mustangs:

Continued from B1

most part,” said Ellis. “Our linemen played their best game, be ing very physical. I am very proud of our Mustangs tonight.”

Seventh grade

The Mustangs showed no signs of offensive life when they lost to Prairie View, 36-0.

Coach Ellis laid the blame o a lack of confidence.

“It was a rough game for our seventh grade crew tonight,” Ellis said. “I thought we got down quickly mentally. The boys need to play with more confidence and a whole lot better execution on both sides of the ball.”

Hunter McDan

iel led Iola run ning the ball with a team-high 67 ground yards while Lucas Boeken went for 15 rushing yards. Hen ry Kramer also went for seven rushing yards. Keithly led the way passing and had the only pass of the game, a 20-yard touchdown throw.

Spencer Sargent and McDaniel col lected a team-high six tackles while Kramer had five tackles and a fumble recovery. Ethan Hunt also had four tackles.

“It seems like ev ery week we are deal ing with injuries and

McKinnon, while Isiah Pacheco and Clyde Edwards-Helaire added TD runs. Mahomes, who surpassed 25,000 yards passing last week, has 199 career touchdown passes. If he gets one against the Jets in his first appearance at MetLife Stadium, he would reach 200 in his 84th game — five faster than Dan Marino’s NFL record.

“Patrick Ma-homie? He’s a special talent,” Jets coach Robert Saleh said. “Some of the throws he makes are disgusting from a defensive perspective, but they’re super talented.”

Andy Reid’s Chiefs rank fifth in overall offense, fifth in passing, 10th in rushing and ninth in scoring.

“Sometimes I wonder if he just draws it in the dirt as the game goes on, with some of the concepts that they have,” a smiling Saleh said of Reid. “But it’s going to be a challenge, for sure.”

Especially with the

embattled Wilson under center for at least another week. After a solid showing in the Jets’ season-opening win over Buffalo in overtime, the offense has sputtered. And a lot of it is on Wilson, who has been unable to get anything going — while frustrated fans are calling for him to be benched.

Even Joe Namath went all in this week, saying during a radio show he has seen enough of the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 and suggested wholesale changes to the organization.

Saleh and the Jets have reiterated their confidence in Wilson, but acknowledged he must improve — and fast.

“It’s a long season,” Wilson said after New York’s 15-10 loss to New

KU guard Arterio Morris charged with rape

By DAVE SKRETTA The Associated Press

England last Sunday. “We’re all going to look in the mirror, find out how we can be better and learning and improving. Having that short-term memory, understanding that we lost this week — oh well, we have to learn from this and move on and get better.”

GOOD MEMORY OF A BAD MEMORY

Mahomes remembers just about every interception he has thrown, mostly because there haven’t been many.

And when it gets returned for a touchdown? Those really stand out, even if they happened in college.

So it was easy for him to recount D.J. Reed’s pick-6 against him on Oct. 8, 2016 — when Mahomes was playing

See

| Page B6

Cubs: Lose to Cherryvale

Continued from B1

Chargers then rumbled in for a touch-

Strickler then rumbled in for a nine-yard touchdown run to cut

Kansas basketball player Arterio Morris was charged Friday with one count of rape and dismissed from the Jayhawks’ program, the latest in a string of legal trouble that has followed the former prep standout from his days at Texas. Morris was booked in Douglas County and his bond was set at $75,000, public records showed. His arrest came after an incident report came to light this month that detailed an alleged rape that occurred at McCarthy Hall, which houses the men’s basketball team along with other residents and is located near Allen Fieldhouse. The criminal complaint alleged that a sexual assault involving an 18-yearold victim occurred on Aug. 26.

Morris was not named in the incident report, but he was subsequently suspended from the basketball program.

“We are now aware he has been arrested and charged, and he was dismissed from the program,” Jayhawks coach Bill Self said in a statement to The Associated Press. “As this is an ongoing legal matter, we are not able to comment further at this time.”

No attorney is listed for Morris in online court records and he didn’t have a listed phone number. Morris transferred to Kansas despite facing a misdemeanor assault charge in Texas, where he spent his freshman season playing for the Longhorns. According to Frisco police, he was arrested after officers were called to his ex-girlfriend’s house, where she told police

See KANSAS | Page B3

Local: Cross country

Continued from B1

be immediate. I’ve just been working on being patient and not starting out too fast. Just staying positive throughout a race is really important.”

Crest’s boys were led by Ellington’s 15th place finish in 18:30. Elijah Taylor came in 32nd place with a

finish of 20:19 while Ryan West rounded out the Lancers with a 49th place finish in 22:42.

Marmaton Valley

Marmaton Valley only fielded a JV team at the Central Heights meet. Results were not available at the time of publication.

I would like to thank Allen County Public Works and Allen County Road & Bridge for 39+ years of employment. I will miss all my bosses and co-workers and thank them for all of the experiences together over the years.

- Terry J. Johnson

Kansas City Chiefs offensive tackles Jawaan Taylor (74) and Donovan Smith (79) warm up with teammates. EMILY CURIEL/THE KANSAS CITY STAR/TNS

MVJH: Volleyball falls to YC

Continued from B1

Grayce Dodson scored a team-high 11 points in the first set while Kaylee Burris and Kenna Boone each had four points in the first set.

Burris had a teamhigh seven points in the second set while Harlie Cook had five points. The Wildcats C team fell to Yates Center in one set, 25-13.

Kinsley Vance recorded a team-high nine points in the lone set.

Marmaton Valley travels to Uniontown on Saturday at 8:30 a.m.

MVJH: FB

Continued from B1

didn’t stop us one time and we made a few stops,” Marmaton Valley head coach Dan Uhlrich said. “They had a really good back and I thought we tackled very well and pursued the ball with intensity. We controlled both lines of scrimmage in the second half.”

Marmaton Valley travels to Southeast Cherokee next Thursday.

Kansas: Guard dismissed

Continued from B2

that he had grabbed her arm, pulled her off a bed and caused an injury to her neck.

The 20-year-old Morris was scheduled to appear at a jury trial next week, but it was canceled earlier this month, when he entered a no contest plea to a Class C charge and ordered to pay a $362 fine.

In announcing that Morris had transferred to Kansas, Self said the school was aware of the charges he was facing

in Texas, and that administrators had spoken with compliance officers at the University of Texas and within its athletic department.

“Based on these discussions, we are comfortable welcoming Arterio to the University of Kansas,” Self said at the time, “and he is well aware of the high standards and expectations that come with being a member of the Kansas men’s basketball program. We fully expect him to meet those daily.”

PS I

MV’s Grace Dodson. PHOTO BY HALIE LUKEN

Public notice

Case No. AL-2023-CV-000039

NOTICE OF SUIT

NOTICE OF SERVICE BY PUBLICATION

No. Tax ID: 086-23-0-00-00002-00-0-01, Parcel KS-AL-040) Service by Publication, Defendants.

The State of Kansas to the above-named Defendants and any unknown corporations, partnerships, persons, and other legal entities that may derive or claim any unrecorded title or interest in the property, their successors, assigns, heirs, trustees, legal representatives, and all other persons, including any unknown spouses, corporations, partnerships, legal entities, beneficiaries, or successors claiming by, through or under them or claiming under a person, firm, corporation, or trust named in the Petition, and any tenants residing or having an interest in or possession of the Property at issue and all other concerned persons: You are notified that a Verified Petition for Condemnation has been filed in the District Court of Allen County, Kansas, Civil Division by Nextera Energy Transmission Southwest, LLC,, the object and general nature of which is to condemn the following real property and to obtain an easement to construct and maintain a high voltage, direct current transmission line and associated facilities on the property. The real property parcels are legally described as: THE FOLLOWING REAL PROPERTY LOCATED IN THE COUNTY OF ALLEN, STATE OF KANSAS: THE WEST HALF OF THE NORTHEAST QUARTER (W/2 NE/4) OF SECTION TWENTY-TWO (22) TOWNSHIP TWENTY-FOUR (24), RANGE NINETEEN (19) EAST OF

THE SIXTH PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN, ALLEN COUNTY, KANSAS and THE NORTHWEST QUARTER (NW/4) OF SECTION TWENTYTHREE (23), TOWNSHIP TWENTYFOUR (24), RANGE NINETEEN (19) EAST OF THE SIXTH PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN, ALLEN COUNTY, KANSAS, LESS THE FOLLOWING TWO TRACTS: THAT PART OF THE NORTHWEST QUARTER (NW/4) OF SECTION TWENTY-THREE (23), TOWNSHIP TWENTY-FOUR (24), RANGE NINETEEN (19) EAST OF THE SIXTH PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN, ALLEN COUNTY, KANSAS, DESCRIBED AS BEGINNING AT A POINT 433.4 FEET EAST OF THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF SAID SECTION, THENCE EAST 899.1 FEET, THENCE SOUTH 855.6 FEET, THENCE WEST 212.1 FEET, THENCE WEST 212.1 FEET, THENCE NORTH 493 FEET, THENCE WEST 437 FEET, THENCE SOUTH 10 FEET, THENCE WEST 250.5 FEET, THENCE NORTH 372.3 FEET TO BEGINNING, ALL MORE OR LESS AS PARTIALLY SHOWN BY PRESENTLY EXISTING FENCES BOUNDING SAID PREMISES ON EAST AND SOUTH. A TRACT OF LAND IN THE NORTHWEST QUARTER (NW/4) OF SECTION TWENTY-THREE (23), TOWNSHIP TWENTY-FOUR, RANGE NINETEEN (19), EAST OF THE SIXTH PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN, ALLEN COUNTY, KANSAS DESCRIBED AS FOLLOWS: COMMENCING AT THE NORTHEAST CORNER OF THE NORTHWEST QUARTER (NW/4) OF SECTION TWENTY-THREE (23), TOWNSHIP TWENTY-FOUR (24), RANGE NINETEEN (19), THENCE SOUTH ON THE QUARTER SECTION LINE A DISTANCE OF

The names of all parties to said action are those stated above in the caption, as well as any unknown Defendants and their unknown heirs, successors, devisees,

Child's name draws unfair mockery

Dear Carolyn: At a back-to-school event, a teacher stumbled over my child’s name. My child gave the correct pronunciation, and that was that.

Or I thought it was, until afterward on Facebook I saw a parent had posted, “Who thought naming a child [my child’s name] was a good idea?” I was astonished. It was a woman I am friendly with who has a child in the same class as my child.

The name is unusual in this country but is common in the country my grandparents come from, and was chosen as a tribute to them. My child likes the name, and has never asked to go by a nickname or given any indication that other kids make fun of it. As far as I know, this other parent is the only person who has a problem with it.

Should I say something to her? Another parent I consider a friend clicked “like” on her post, and anoth-

Carolyn Hax

er commented, “This post is unkind of you.”

Should I thank that parent? Confront my friend about why she “liked” a post mocking my child’s name? I just have no idea how to deal with this. — Mocked Mocked: Every once in a while, there’s an outbreak of mass public scoffing over an unusual name — two pileons come to mind, over ABCDE (“Absidy”) and ESPN (“Espin”). Thank you for the reminder of how smug, mean-spirited and presumptuous it is to do this, no matter how unwise a name seems to the person scoffing at it. Your story perfectly captures why:

The poster thinks she’s absolutely justified in her criticism, or else she wouldn’t go public — and you ab-

Public notices

(Published in The Iola Register Sept. 30, 2023)

ORDINANCE No. 3522

AN ORDINANCE ADDING IOLA MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 15 PERTAINING TO RENEWABLE RETAIL CUSTOMER CREDIT AND BILLING.

BE IT ORDAINED BY THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY OF IOLA, KANSAS: SECTION 1: Chapter 15,

solutely believe it’s a meaningful, appropriate name, or else you wouldn’t have chosen it. And there you have it, the baseline eye-ofthe-beholder transaction behind every name ever given.

Therefore, the only rational, non-obnoxious conclusion is that no one gets to decide they’re the ones drawing the line in the “right” place between good and bad name ideas. (Except with the very few names that are legally prohibited.)

Therefore, the only un-smug response to someone else’s name, any name, is to make a good-faith effort to pronounce it correctly. Period.

Humility is a beautiful thing.

If you’re so sure a kid will suffer for it, then:

(a) Be equally assured a kid can change it. (b) Why would you want to inflict that suffering yourself?

Which brings me to your options regarding

the smug, mean-spirited Facebook post. If I’d seen your question in the live-chat queue, I’d have advised you to comment on the post: “I thought that name was a good idea! Still do, and my child agrees.” In taking ownership, you would have owned — in the juicier sense — this rude parent. If you didn’t respond then, I encourage you to talk to each of the people you mention.

To the original poster: “I hope you grasp there was a real person at the other end of your Facebook post, singled out for your ridicule.” To the one who clicked “like”: “I saw you liked that post mocking [child’s] name. That hurt.” The one who stood up for you: “Thank you for calling that Facebook post unkind.”

Why do this when it’s “just” a stupid social media post, easily ignored? Because the remedy to antisocial media cowardice is a human face. You can put yours right in front of theirs, holding the mean ones to account. I so hope you do.

(First published in The Iola Register Sept. 23, 2023)

Affidavit of Publication for the Allen County Historical Society, Inc.

The annual Allen County

than four percent (4%) of the customer’s previous monthly peak kW usage during the previous annual billing period. A utility may credit such compensation to the customer’s account or pay such compensation to the customer’s account annually.

A. Parallel Generation. A customer will be billed for all kilowatt hours delivered by the utility to the customer under the applicable utility standard retail rate and for fuel adjustment and other charges. For electrical energy delivered by the customer to the utility from the renewable energy resource, the customer shall be credited 150% of the utility’s prior yearly system average wholesale cost of energy per kilowatt.

B. Regardless of whether the customer generator is entitled to receive financial credit for excess electrical energy from a prior billing period, customer generators

Historical Society, Inc., business meeting will be held at the Stadler Room at the Allen Community College (1801 N. Cottonwood St. Iola, KS) on Monday, October 16, 2023 at 6:30 p.m. Following the business meeting, John Masterson will be presenting the his-

remain responsible for all charges incurred during each billing period including, but not limited to: customer charges, facilities charges, demand charges, environmental charges, transmission charges, any late payment charges, and any requirements for deposits or special charges or fees that may be applied.

SECTION 2: This ordinance shall take effect for the first billing cycle after its publication in the official City newspaper. Passed and adopted by the Governing Body of the City of Iola, Kansas, this 25th day of September, 2023.

ATTEST:

ZITS by Jerry Scott and Jim

Borgman

BEETLE BAILEY by Mort

Walker

/s/ Steve French, Mayor

/s/ Roxanne Hutton, City Clerk (Seal)

(9) 30

tory of ACC at 7 p.m. The meeting is free and open to the public to attend. For more information contact the historical society at (620) 365-3051, email achsdirector@ outlook.com

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE by Chris

Browne

BLONDIE by Young and

Drake

Yesterday’s Cryptoquote: I like to say, take the shot, even if your knees are shaking. — Robin Roberts

MUTTS

by Patrick McDonell

MARVIN by Tom Armstrong

LOIS by Chance Browne

Acuña gets chance to shine in playoffs

ATLANTA (AP) — The last time the Braves made a run to the World Series championship, Ronald Acuña Jr. could only watch.

Now, after a historic season that defied all conventional norms of the national pastime, Atlanta’s slugging speedster — or should we say speedy slugger? — has a chance to really shine in the playoffs.

October, after all, is where reputations are made for the ages.

Acuña has already established himself as baseball’s most thrilling performer, a guy who stormed right on through the 40-40 club — a group occupied by only five players in the history of the game — to set up his own exclusive cliques.

The 40-50 club. Come and gone. The 40-60 club. Ditto.

Finally, he settled on the 40-70 club.

“It’s one of those numbers that wasn’t impossible but seemed impossible,” Acuña said, summing up perfectly the enormity of his accomplishments.

Indeed, he is the first player in baseball history with 40 homers and 70 stolen bases in a single season, which goes against everything we’ve been led to believe about playing the game.

Sure, there are plenty of muscle-bound boppers capable of knocking the ball over the fence. And, yes, there’s always been a place for lithe little guys who can swipe many a base.

But one player? Do-

ing it all? We can’t wait to see what Acuña does in the postseason, which for the MLB-leading Braves begins with the NL Division Series on Oct. 7.

Rest assured, no one is looking forward to this moment more than him.

In 2021, Acuña’s season ended in July when he tore up his right knee attempting to make a catch in Miami. The Braves rebuilt their outfield through several shrewd moves ahead of the trade deadline, giving them enough punch to win their first World Series title in more than a quarter-century.

For Acuña, it was a bittersweet moment. He was thrilled for his teammates, but longed for a chance to celebrate on the field.

Now, he’s got it.

The Braves have

stormed through the season with a fearsome lineup headed by Acuña at the top of the order. They moved into the final weekend of the regular season with 103 wins, having already locked up home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Their starting pitching is a bit suspect, but they’re certainly one of the favorites to win it all.

“I can’t wait for when we get that thing going, to see what he can do,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “The great ones, they have a penchant to love that spotlight. And he’s one of the great ones.”

Acuña provided a glimpse of that fondness for the big moments during his very first postseason appearance back in 2018.

As a 20-year-old rookie for a team that surprisingly made the

Europe strikes back at Ryder Cup

GUIDONIA MONTECELIO, Italy (AP) — Europe had the stars, all the pivotal shots and a delirious home crowd pushing them to a record-tying lead Friday in the Ryder Cup, an opening day performance so dominant the Americans never won a match.

history. The last time it was a five-point margin after just eight matches was in 2004 at Oakland Hills, where Europe won easily.

playoffs, he became the youngest player ever to hit a postseason grand slam off the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Division Series.

Acuña struggled in the 2020 NL Championship Series, hitting just .167 as the Braves squandered a 3-1 lead to the Dodgers, and he wasn’t on the field at all for Atlanta’s World Series triumph a year later.

The injury, in fact, slowed Acuña for another entire year. Struggling to regain confidence in his rebuilt knee, he had just 15 homers and 29 stolen bases in 2022 — numbers that look downright puny compared to this season. He wasn’t much of a factor as the Braves were knocked off by the Phillies in the NLDS.

He’s likely to have a much bigger impact in this postseason.

Chiefs: Match up with Jets on SNF

Continued from B2

for Texas Tech and Reed for Kansas State.

“That’s stuff you really have to be aware of when you play quarterback,” said Mahomes, who’ll see Reed on the opposite side again Sunday night. “I think he was supposed to get blocked by a receiver and jumped it and got to the house.”

Reed’s Wildcats won 44-38.

“Just from watching the tape back then I knew he was going to be special,” the Jets cornerback said. “He’s a generational quarterback with his off-rhythm throws.”

THIRD DOWNS

The Jets’ struggles on offense could be largely attributed to what they’ve done — or haven’t done — on third down. New York was 1 for 10 in those situations against Dallas in Week 2 and 2 for 14 last Sunday against New England. For the season, the Jets are 8 for 37, a 22% conversion rate that ranks them last in the NFL.

“It’s all of us,” offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett said. “I think that we put our entire offense into some really bad situations. Doesn’t matter who’s back there at quarterback, who’s playing, when you’re behind the sticks, when you’re third-and-extra-long

continuously, it’s not going to be good, and we have to be better.”

TACKLE TROUBLE

Rarely does Reid criticize officials, but he doubled down on his critique of them after last week’s rout of Chicago, during which they continued to pe-

nalize Chiefs right tackle Jawaan Taylor.

Taylor had been thrust into the spotlight after Week 1 when he appeared to continually line up too deep in the backfield, and was flagged five times for various infractions the following week. Yet replays showed

that Taylor lined up no deeper than any other offensive tackle in the league last week, leading Reid to conclude Taylor was being picked on.

“They got their point proved,” he said. “Now let’s make sure we’re staying consistent.”

It was a rude welcome and a harsh reminder to the Americans why it has been 30 years since they last won the Ryder Cup away from home. And if Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Viktor Hovland keep this up, that drought is sure to continue.

Europe swept the opening session for the first time, winning all the foursomes matches before they even reached the 18th hole. Three of the fourballs matches in the afternoon that did reach the par-5 closing hole at Marco Simone all went in favor of European blue. Rahm chipped from deep rough across the green for eagle on the par-4 16th and then holed a 35-foot eagle putt on the 597-yard 18th hole as he and Ryder Cup rookie Nicolai Hojgaard earned a halve against Scottie Scheffler and Brooks Koepka.

Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth, undefeated in three previous Ryder Cup fourballs matches, were 1 up and looked to have a red point in hand until Hovland poured in a 25-foot birdie putt on the 18th that took one last turn before dropping. When thousands of flag-waving fans headed for the exit, Europe had a 6 1/2-1 1/2 lead, matching the largest in Ryder Cup

It was even bigger than the U.S. lead over Europe at Whistling Straits two years ago, when Europe had hardly any fans because of travel restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“A great day in front of some amazing home fans,” said McIlroy, the only player to win both his matches.

There were plenty of American fans at Marco Simone. They just didn’t make much noise because there was so little reason to cheer.

The final blow came from 43-yearold Justin Rose, the oldest player in these matches. Rose made an 8-foot birdie putt on the 18th to earn another halve with Robert MacIntyre against Max Homa and Wyndham Clark.

“I didn’t want us to be the only one to let red on the board,” Rose said, illustrating how ruthless Europe felt with a home crowd on its side.

European captain Luke Donald looked like a genius by leading off with foursomes, the more difficult format of alternate shot. Europe has started the Ryder Cup at home with fourballs every time since 1993, which also was the last time Europe lost at home.

He felt his side statistically was stronger in foursomes and he wanted a fast start. McIlroy said Donald had Europe play three-hole matches in practice to develop a sense of urgency.

See RYDER | Page B7

Atlanta Braves catcher Travis d’Arnaud (16) congratulates Ronald Acuña Jr. MIGUEL MARTINEZ/THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSITUTION/TNS

Monday: Tennis v. Paola, 3 p.m.

Tuesday: Volleyball at Prairie View, 4:30 p.m.

Thursday: Cross country at Louisburg, 4 p.m.

Friday: Football at Girard, 7 p.m.

Saturday: Tennis regionals

Tuesday: Volleyball at Neodesha, 5 p.m.

Thursday: Cross country at Osage City, 4 p.m.

Friday: Football v. Osage City, 7 p.m.

Tuesday: Volleyball v. Crest, St. Paul, 5 p.m.

Thursday: Cross country at Pleasanton, 3:45 p.m.

Friday: Football v. Crest, 7 p.m.

Saturday: Volleyball at Uniontown, 7 p.m.

Tuesday: Volleyball at Marmaton Valley, 3 p.m.

Thursday: Cross country at Pleasanton, 4 p.m.

Friday: Football v. Marmaton Valley, 7 p.m.

Saturday: Volleyball at Uniontown, 8:30 a.m.

Tuesday: Cross country at Eureka, 3:45 p.m.; Volleyball at home, 5 p.m.

Friday: Football at Sedan, 7 p.m.

Monday: Volleyball v. Northeastern Oklahoma A&M, 6 p.m.

Wednesday: W/M soccer at Johnson CC, 5/7 p.m.; Volleyball at Kansas City Kansas CC, 6:30 p.m.

Friday/Saturday: Volleyball at Columbus, NE, 5/7 p.m. and 3/7 p.m.

Solutions growing for soccer burnout

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Less is more. That is the message coming from within soccer at a time when demand for the sport has never been higher.

At least, that’s the message from those on the front line, who claim they are putting their bodies and minds at risk over the increased demands being placed upon them.

Congested schedules, along with new and/or reformed competitions have raised concerns about the number of games the world’s top players are being asked to play.

Last season Manchester United and Portugal midfielder Bruno Fernandes made 70 appearances for club and country, including a run of 20 consecutive games.

Manchester City and Spain midfielder Rodri played in 10 different competitions.

Such statistics have led to fears over the physical and mental health of players, the potential for burnout and the premature curtailing of careers.

On Thursday, Vincent Kompany, the former Manchester City captain and now manager of Premier League Burnley, offered a potential solution to the issue.

“I think that for the players at the very, very top, who are playing in national teams and all of these other competitions... it should just be capped appearances for a player to play within a season,” he said. “You’re not going to keep a player away from finals, you’re never going to do that, or important games. But I think if you decide that physiologically that 65 or 70 games is beyond healthy then that should be the cap and after that you start juggling around like you do when you have an in-

Ryder Cup: Europe ties wins records

Continued from B6

Whatever the plan, it worked to near perfection.

“All week, all we’ve been talking about is getting off to fast starts ... something Luke has drilled into us,” McIlroy said. “We were ready to go from the first tee shot, obviously, as you can see in how everyone played.”

Rahm holed a 30-foot putt from off the second green and hit a tee shot that banged off the bottom of the pin at the par-3 seventh. Hovland got his side going early, chipping off the tight

grass of the fringe, over a ridge and into the cup on the opening hole.

McIlroy delivered the final dagger, a tee shot to 2 feet on the par-3 17th hole as he and Tommy Fleetwood — “Fleetwood Mac” for this Ryder Cup — handed Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele their first loss in foursomes.

U.S. captain Zach Johnson also had a plan for the five sessions, only this beating was so thorough it brought to mind what heavyweight Mike Tyson once said of Evander Holyfield: “Everyone has a plan until

they get punched in the mouth.”

The Americans were bloodied, all right.

It took six hours and 25 minutes after the Ryder Cup began for the Americans to lead in any match. That came on an 8-foot birdie putt in the afternoon by Thomas, and the lead lasted as long as it took Hovland to birdie the next hole.

Even so, the Americans were poised to keep the deficit at 5-3, which would salvage the day and perhaps swing momentum in their favor.

Inter Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender. As the sport surges in popularity, elite soccer players are playing too many games. AL DIAZ/MIAMI HERALD/TNS

jured player.”

Disruptions caused by the Covid pandemic and a mid-season World Cup last year have contributed to hectic scheduling to enable clubs to meet fixture commitments.

Poland defender Kamil Glik was back into action for Italian team Benevento just four days after his country was eliminated from last year’s World Cup, which was staged in November and December. The tournament was moved from its traditional time of June-July because temperatures would be too high during those months in the host nation of Qatar.

Raphael Varane, who was injured on the eve of the tournament but recovered to help France advance to the final, waited eight days after that match to play again for his club Manchester United.

To add to the pressure on players, world governing body FIFA and the Premier League have imposed measures that have led to extended amounts of added time at the end of matches. Designed to give a more accurate reflection of stoppages in play, it has led to games lasting 100 minutes and beyond.

Varane posted his own concerns on X, formerly known as Twitter, saying, “there are too many games, the schedule

is overcrowded, and it’s at a dangerous level for players physical and mental well-being.”

“As a player I feel very privileged to do the job I love every day but I feel these changes are damaging our game,” he added. “We want to be at our maximum level, the best we can be and put on amazing performances for fans to celebrate every week.”

Varane retired from international soccer after the World Cup, at the age of 29.

It is not likely to get any easier for overworked players.

European soccer’s governing body UEFA has announced changes to the Champions League from next season that will see two additional games as a result of the group stages of the competition being switched to a league format.

A new 32-team Club

World Cup will kick off in 2025, replacing the current format, which involves seven teams and a maximum two games for representatives from Europe and South America.

The World Cup and European Championship have also expanded in recent years to allow more nations to qualify, while the Nations League is growing as well.

A report this year by FIFPRO, the world players’ union, analyzed the impact of what it described as “extreme calendar congestion” last season.

It said 43% of World Cup players surveyed had experienced “extreme or increased mental fatigue.”

FIFPRO said the congestion “posed a pressing danger to the physical and mental health of players.”

Drought threatens Mighty Mississippi’s fresh waters

BATON ROUGE, La.

(AP) — A mass inflow of salt water from the Gulf of Mexico creeping up the drought-stricken Mississippi River is threatening drinking water supplies in Louisiana, prompting Gov. John Bel Edwards to ask President Joe Biden for federal help.

Edwards sent a letter

Monday evening saying the issue “is of such severity and magnitude” that state and local authorities can no longer manage it on their own. Federal assistance is “necessary to save lives and to protect property, public health and safety or to lessen or avert the threat of a disaster,” Edwards wrote.

Biden approved the request to declare an emergency, helping Louisiana secure federal money and logistical assistance from partners such as the Federal Emergency Manage-

ment Agency. For the second year in a row, salt water from the Gulf of Mexico has moved further up the Mississippi to threaten drinking water in communities that rely on the river for fresh water, including New Orleans.

Typically, the river’s mighty flow keeps mass amounts of salt water from reaching too far inland, but hot and dry conditions across the country this summer triggered drought that slowed the Mississippi’s flow and lowered its water levels.

For months, drinking water advisories have been issued for some communities in southeastern Louisiana, warning people the water is unsafe to drink, especially for people with kidney disease, high blood pressure, those on a low-sodium diet, infants and pregnant women.

In parts of Plaquemines Parish, residents have relied on bottled water for drinking and cooking since June.

“We have had discussions with FEMA about the unique challenges

RACING THIS WEEK

AUTOTRADER ECHOPARK AUTOMOTIVE 400

we face with this event,” Edwards said in a news release. “We are optimistic the President will approve our Federal Emergency Declaration, which will be crucial to help our communities.”

Edwards said 23,515 residents in Plaquemines Parish have been affected by the salt water, including those at a military base, a nursing home, 11 schools, a prison and citrus farms.

Residents have reported skin irritations and damaged appliances, including water heaters and washing

XFINITY BURNOUT ALERT!

John Hunter Nemechek, driver of the #20 Romco Equipment Toyota, celebrates after winning the Andy’s Frozen Custard 300 at Texas Motor Speedway Saturday. (J. Bachman/Getty)

William Byron’s win marked the 300th victory for Hendrick Motorsports – the most in NASCAR history for a Cup Series team. It was Byron’s personal-high single-season sixth victory of the year.

Byron gets a big win for the team and Playoffs

FORT WORTH, Texas – Hendrick Motorsports driver

William Byron took the lead on a restart with six laps remaining and held off the field to claim Sunday’s AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400 victory on a steamy-hot highly-dramatic afternoon of Cup Series Playoff action at Texas Motor Speedway.

It marks a historic 300th victory for the championship Hendrick Motorsports organization – the most in NASCAR history for a Cup Series team – and is the series-best, personalhigh single-season sixth victory of the year for the 25-year-old Charlotte native Byron. He came from third place on the final restart to drive away from the field and take a 1.863-second victory ahead of Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain to claim an automatic berth in the Playoffs’ Round of 8, which starts in three weeks.

Those final six laps out front were the only laps Byron led all day. He turned in a fabulous final re-start in the race to pull ahead of 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace, who was out front on that start after leading a race-high, career-best 111 laps in his No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota. Wallace finished third, ahead of Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin. All five drivers among the 2023 Playoff contingent.

“I finally got a good re-start at the end, and number 300 for Hendrick Motorsports, but [teammate] Kyle [Larson] really deserved this one, I’ve got to say, those guys were really fast all day and I hate it for them in the end,’’ Byron said, noting his teammate Larson’s crash while leading with 20 laps remaining.

As for the historic 300th win for his team, Byron grinned, “I don’t’ know if I can even put it into words, I was such a Hendrick Motorsports fan growing up as a kid, watching Jimmie Johnson and became really fond of Jeff Gordon as I got to know him. Just thankful for all the men and women back at Hendrick Motorsports.’’

Wallace, who turned in a career day in his first career Playoff stint, was obviously disappointed in the final outcome. He started from pole position and his triple-digit laps out front were a personal best.

Larson had been out front for 34 laps and was racing alongside Wallace when his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet got loose with 17 laps remaining and flushed into the outside wall. He looked strong all day leading 99 laps himself as Wallace’s strongest competitor for most of the afternoon.

“We just went in there side-by-side and I lost it,’’ said the 2021 series champion Larson, who finished 31st.

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick, Roush Fenway Keselowski driver Brad Keselowski. – also a Playoff driver, Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suárez, JTG Daugherty Racing’s Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and SHR’s Chase Briscoe rounded out the top 10.

There were 11 caution periods on the day and multiple issues

William Byron, driver of the No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet, takes the checkered flag to win the Cup Series Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400 at Texas Motor Speedway Sunday. (Jonathan Bachman/Getty)

for the 12 Playoff drivers competing in this three-round series of races to decide which eight will advance to the next round. Byron’s victory is an automatic ticket. Several other Playoff drivers had impactful days – for the good and bad – as well.

Among the other Playoff competitors, RFK’s Chris Buescher finished 14th and JGR’s Martin Truex Jr. – the regular season champion – finished 17th. Defending race winner Tyler Reddick – Wallace’s 23XI Racing teammate – was 25th.

Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney (28th), Hendrick’s Larson (31st) and Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch (34th) all suffered DNFs – all involved in incidents.

It was indicative of the afternoon with 10 Playoff drivers experiencing some sort of setback – from crashes, to pit road penalties to pit road issues.

Bell had jack issues early. Hamlin had a pit road door-todoor collision with his JGR rookie teammate Ty Gibbs but was able to continue, while Gibbs’ Toyota suffered enough damage he had to retire early.

Busch’s No. 8 RCR Chevrolet slammed into the outside wall only a couple laps after the two-time series champion had radioed to his team that he thought he had a front tire going down. Busch drove it backwards all the way around the track and onto pit road, but the team was unable to repair it.

With the victory, Byron earned the automatic ticket to the next round. Hamlin now leads the points standings by 37 points on the ninth place elimination line. Buescher (plus-22), Bell (plus-20), Truex (plus-19), Chastain (plus-12), Keselowski (plus-8) and Larson (plus-2) round out the top eight.

Wallace is the first driver below the elimination line –two points behind Larson. Reddick is three points off the elimination line, followed by Blaney (-11) and Busch (-17) heading to the always unpredictable Talladega Superspeedway Sunday for the YellaWood 500 (2 p.m. ET, NBC).

machines, from salt exposure.

The salt water is expected to reach other drinking water supplies further upriver — including Orleans, St. Bernard and Jefferson parishes — by mid-to-late October, Edwards said.

Officials are addressing the issue in multiple ways, including raising the height of an underwater levee used to block or slow the salt water and bringing in 15 million gallons of fresh water to treatment facilities in impacted areas.

CUP PLAYOFFS: 5TH RACE

YELLAWOOD 500

Talladega Superspeedway

2 p.m. ET Sunday, NBC Talladega Superspeedway, nicknamed “Dega,” is the longest NASCAR oval, with a length of 2.66 miles, compared to the Daytona International Speedway, which is 2.5 miles long. The total peak capacity of Talladega is around 175,000 spectators, with the main grandstand capacity 80,000.

Length: 2.66 mi (4.281 km)

Surface: Asphalt

Banking: Turns 1 & 2: 33°; Turn 3: 32.4°; Turn 4: 32.5°; Tri-oval: 16.5°; Back straight: 3°

CUP PLAYOFF NOTES

After the fourth race of the 2023 Cup Series Playoffs, here’s a look at the playoff picture. The Round of 12 opener at Texas is in the books, with two more races — Talladega (Sunday) and Charlotte’s road course (Oct. 8) — remaining before the championshipeligible eld is trimmed from a dozen drivers to eight. William Byron sprang into Victory Lane with a late-race maneuver that left him in front for just the nal six laps of the 267-lap contest at Texas Motor Speedway. The win marked a milestone with Hendrick Motorsports’ 300th Cup Series victory and his sixth of the 2023 campaign. The 25-year-old speedster is now safely into the next round of the postseason, and he reached double digits with career win No. 10. WHO’S HOT?

• Bubba Wallace. The 23XI Racing driver ranked last among the 12 remaining playoff-eligible drivers entering the round but converted a solid performance with a third-place nish. Wallace led a career-best 111 laps on the hot Texas track. He’s still below the provisional elimination line, but it’s just a two-point gap rather than a 14-point de cit.

• Denny Hamlin. Make it three consecutive top- ve nishes for the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing veteran. Hamlin continued after an early pit-road collision with teammate Ty Gibbs to claim fth at the checkers. He now ranks second in the playoff standings, with a hefty 37-point pad over the elimination mark.

Chase Elliott ripped his way to 'Dega Victory Lane last year.

CHRIS GRAYTHEN/ GETTY IMAGES

levels invite intrusion of salt water from Gulf Coast