Iola Public Library’s new assistant director has a deep passion for service, a love of books, and a knack for community building. Laura Force stepped into her new role on April 14, bringing with her a unique blend of nonprofit leadership, outdoor education, and artistic creativity.
“I really love living here,” said Force, 41, who moved to Iola in 2021 with her husband and their eight children after years working in summer
camp operations. “We found a great place to live here and we wanted to stay in Kansas.”
Originally from the Seattle, Washington, area, Force began her career in outdoor recreation, eventually serving as operations director at Wildwood Outdoor Education Center in LaCygne, Kansas. At the 150-acre camp, she managed staff, contractors, programs, and special events. Her journey to Kansas began when job opportunities in Washington were scarce, leading her first to Oklahoma in 2011, where she
worked for the Girl Scouts.
“I met my husband when I lived in Oklahoma,” she recalled. “From there, I moved to the Kansas City area in 2014 and continued working for the Girl Scouts there with their camp programs.”
AFTER YEARS of living onsite at camps, Force and her family decided it was time for a new chapter. “In some ways, I also felt like it was a younger person’s job,” she said. “It’s a lot of hours and a
Passion fuels Hart’s bookstore venture
By SUSAN LYNN The Iola Register
HUMBOLDT — As eager as Sarah Hart is to see that her new bookstore is a success, she’s just as intent that it’s done her way.
Hart’s soft-spoken manner somewhat belies the intensity she feels for the books and merchandise she’s selected for Bridge Street Books. T-shirts and bags are emblazoned with the slogan, “Banned Book? Read twice.”
Among the standard fare of bestsellers, classics and children’s books are sections dedicated to LGBTQ+ rights, feminism, Black history, and what some would term a “liberal agenda.”
In the store window hangs a rainbow-colored flag.
From the outset, “I want people to
“I want people to be able to find something here that speaks to them no matter who they are. I want them to be able to feel they’re in a safe place where they can explore.”
~ Sarah Hart Bridge Street Books
Rainy weather has forced organizers to postpone Saturday’s grand reopening of the Allen County Country Club, complete with a golf tournament and ribbon-cutting, to June 21.
to talk fate of turf plans
By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register
While there has not yet been a formal denial, it appears Iola and USD 257 will be unsuccessful in securing a federal grant to install artificial turf atop a baseball and softball field at Riverside Park.
The matter will be discussed at Monday’s City Council meeting.
City Administrator Matt Rehder will discuss options now that it appears an Environmental Protection Agency grant will be a no-go. Had it been approved, the EPA grant would have funded much of the project, which would have included other flood mitigation elements at a projected cost of $3.7 million.
In a note to Council mem-
See TURF | Page A3 See FORCE | Page A3
Laura Force took on the role of assistant library director at the Iola Public Library on April 14. A former camp director, Force looks forward to applying her experience working with nonprofits to her new position. REGISTER/SARAH HANEY
Sarah Hart’s soft-spoken manner somewhat belies the intensity she feels for the books and merchandise she’s selected for Bridge Street Books. Below, Hart is with her mother, Jan Baker, alongside T-shirts carrying the message “Banned Book? Read it Twice.” REGISTER/SUSAN LYNN
Iola City Council members will decide Monday whether to continue pursuing a plan to install artificial turf on Diamonds 2 and 3 at Riverside Park. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN Council
Rising Waters
Iola Chamber of Commerce staff and supporters celebrated Waters Hardware with a ribbon cutting Friday morning during the store’s grand opening. With events scheduled throughout the weekend, including free doughnuts Saturday for the first 100 customers, there’s plenty of reasons to visit the new store. Joining the Chamber are store manager Jerry Watson, holding scissors, and assistant manager Nic Zimmerman. Brenda Schlief, a Waters Hardware representative, is on Zimmerman’s left. Waters Hardware, which began in 1894, now has 31 locations in Kansas, Missouri and South Dakota. With Waters in town, the shopping plaza on North State Street is now fully occupied. The store fills the site of the former Westco furniture store, which was destroyed in September 2021 when an 8-inch rain tore through its roof. REGISTER/TIM STAUFFER
Chanute renames middle school
CHANUTE — So long, Royster.
The Chanute USD 413 Board of Education recently approved a rebranding process to ensure all of the district’s attendance centers are a part of the “Chanute Blue Comets” family.
Along with adhering to the district’s blueand-gold color scheme, some centers have been renamed, the Chanute Tribune reported.
Most notably, Royster Middle School, with its red and black school colors, is now known as Chanute Middle School, the paper said.
The Lincoln Early Learning Center also
will be renamed the Chanute Early Learning Center.
Board members voiced a consensus wanting to see these changes made all at once, instead of being phased in over several years, the newspaper reported.
The changes will carry a price tag of about $124,400, for new exterior signage, interior paint, rugs, benches, gym floor repainting, gym mats, bleacher panel replacement and activity uniforms.
Superintendent Matt Koester told the paper that some changes would go into effect
Police reports
Money taken Jessica Wright told Iola police officers Wednesday evening an undisclosed amount of cash was taken from her wallet at Iola Walmart.
Counterfeits reported Community National Bank employees told police officers Tuesday the bank had received a pair of counterfeit $100 bills.
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immediately. By Thursday morning, logos and names had already be-
gun to change the impacted social media pages.
Court news
IOLA MUNICIPAL COURT Judge Patti Boyd
Convicted as follows: Jesse J. Adams, Yates Center, driving while suspended (third or subsequent conviction), $595 Seven Hill, Muskogee, Okla., driving wrong way on oneway street, $195
Diversion agreement with fines assessed: John D. Byers, Deerfield, Mo., theft, $1,031
Other dispositions: Jess A. Bolling, Iola, theft, dismissed Nevin E. Glaze, Iola, defective tail lamp, dismissed Alexis L. Lakin, Joplin, Mo., trespassing, dismissed Hunter A. Lawrence, Humboldt, no liability insurance, dismissed
Report: U.S. employers added 139,000 jobs in May
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers slowed hiring last month, but still added a solid 139,000 jobs amid uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s trade wars. Hiring fell from a revised 147,000 in April, the Department of Labor said Friday. The job gains last month were above the 130,000 that economists had fore-
cast.
Healthcare companies added 62,000 jobs and bars and restaurants 30,000. The federal government shed 22,000 jobs, however, the most since November 2020, as Trump’s job cuts and hiring freeze had an impact. And factories lost 8,000 jobs last month.
Average hourly wages rose 0.4% from April
and 3.9% from a year earlier – a bit higher than forecast.
There were a few signs of potential weakening. Labor Department revisions shaved 95,000 jobs from March and April payrolls. The number of people in the U.S. labor force – those working or looking for work – fell by 625,000 last month, biggest drop since December
2023. And the percentage of those who had jobs fell last month to 59.7%, lowest since January 2022.
Trump’s aggressive and unpredictable policies – especially his sweeping taxes on imports – have muddied the outlook for the economy and the job market and raised fears that the American economy could be headed toward
Force: Library’s new assistant director
Continued from A1
lot of commitment. I was very busy taking care of my own kids.”
That shift in priorities brought them to Iola. And it was here that Force found an unexpected source of inspiration — the library.
“I had a baby and the first thing that got me out of the house by myself was joining the library’s crochet group,” she said. “I got really connected with that. It’s a strong group that’s loyal to each other and very supportive.”
Her passion for fiber arts — she spins, dyes, crochets, weaves, and knits — led to further involvement. Last summer, Jennifer Tarter, a library staff member, invited her to present a talk about her craft.
Though she had never worked in a library, Force saw familiar skills in the job posting for assistant director: managing facilities and people, coordinating volunteers, working
with budgets — responsibilities not unlike her previous role in camp leadership. “I’ve almost always worked with nonprofits,” she said.
“This is the service-type job I was looking for.”
Despite not yet having a master’s in library science, Force’s experience and community perspective stood out. “They saw the value of my skills,” she said. “Currently, there is a lot of want for more people who are understanding of social needs, and my degree in Human Development and Family Studies helps with that.”
As part of accepting the role, Force committed to pursuing her master’s in library science through Emporia State University’s School of Library and Information Management (SLIM), a two-year online program.
THIS POSITION is more than a job change — it’s a stepping stone.
Under the mentorship of Sharon Moreland, who currently serves as director for both the Iola Public Library and the Southeast Kansas Library System, Force is being trained to eventually take over the Iola library’s directorship.
“Other library systems have done this — separated the joint director role into two positions,” Force explained. “Sharon and the Library Board agreed that this was the best path forward. The plan is for me to transition into the role after I finish my degree.”
In the meantime, she’s learning all aspects of library operations, including the business management side. “I can teach anyone to make a campfire or talk to kids about homesickness,” she joked. “But shelving? That’s something I’m still learning.”
Her vision for the library is rooted in accessibility and community
engagement. “I would like to see more participation, more people coming and using the services and programs,” she said. “The library, outside of work and school, is kind of our main community place.”
With a strong heart for families and a wealth of experience working with children, Force hopes to grow programming — particularly in the arts and for teens. She envisions collaborations with organizations like the Bowlus Fine Arts Center and more opportunities to showcase local talent in crafts such as pottery, woodworking, and fiber arts.
“I think the people have been my favorite part of the job so far,” Force said. “There are really wonderful people who work here and the patrons are great. I’m excited to help make the library even more of a hub for our community.”
Turf: Council to discuss options
Continued from A1
bers, Rehder said the city could pursue a Community Development Block Grant that would pay for $650,000 of the project with a $130,000 match. This, coupled with money from USD 257, could put turf on Fields 2 and 3 at Riverside Park at a projected cost of about $1.75 million. But for now, it’s up to the Council to decide at what level, if any, the city wishes to further pursue the matter.
ALSO to be discussed Monday is whether to extend the time during which fireworks can be sold locally.
State lawmakers extended the deadline to allow fireworks sales from temporary stands from June 20 through July 7, and year-round from permanent struc-
tures.
Iola allows fireworks sales and usage June 27 through July 5. In another matter, the Council will decide on a request to allow a fireworks show following a July 1 baseball game featuring the newly established KC/ Iola Hormigas at Allen Community College. Council approval is necessary due to the type of fireworks that will be a part of the display, with sky rockets and mortars, which are prohibited in city limits.
COUNCIL members also are expected to take final action on establishing the City of Iola Land Bank, which allows the city to take in properties for future development.
There will be several stipulations, Rehder said. The land must
be vacant, with a minimum 50-by-100 parcel, for single-family use. The land also must have a clear title and transferred to the city via quit claim deed.
ALSO on the agenda is a discussion about the city’s purchasing policy, which allows the city to
favor local vendors, provided their bid is within 7% of the lowest comparable bid.
The discussion was requested by Councilman Jon Wells Monday’s 6 p.m. meeting will be at the New Community Building at Riverside Park. The public is invited.
recession. But so far the damage hasn’t shown up clearly in government economic data.
“The job market is still standing tall even as some of these headwinds start to blow,” said Daniel Zhao, lead economist at the jobs website Glassdoor. “But ultimately we’re all still waiting for the other shoe to drop. It’s still much too early for tariff impacts to be a significant drag on the economy.’’
The U.S. economy and job market have proven surprisingly resilient in recent years. When the inflation fighters at the Federal Reserve raised their benchmark interest rate 11 times in 2022
and 2023, the higher borrowing costs were widely expected to tip the United States into a recession. They didn’t. Still, the job market has clearly decelerated. So far this year, American employers have added an average of less than 124,000 a month. That is down 26% from last year, down almost 43% from 2023, and a down whopping 67% compared with 2022.
The modest job gains and steady unemployment rate are likely to keep the Fed on the sidelines for at least the next few months, economists said. The central bank Fed has kept its key short-term interest rate unchanged this year, after cutting it three times last year.
Public notice
eting the title to the following described real property, to-wit: That part of the NW/4 of Section 11, Township 24 South, Range 18 East of the Sixth Principal Meridian,
Plaintiffs,
Kittie Wakefield and Jas. Wakefield and the
heirs, executors, administrators, devisees, trustees, creditors, and assigns of any deceased defendants; the unknown spouses of any defendants; the unknown executors, administrators, devisees, trustees, creditors, successors, and assigns of any defendants who are or were partners or in partnership; the unknown guardians, conservators, and trustees of any defendants who are minors or are under any legal disability; and the unknown heirs, executors, administrators, devisees, trustees, creditors, and assigns of any person alleged to be deceased, Defendants.
Case No. AL 25 CV 33 Pursuant to K.S.A. Chapter 60 TITLE TO REAL ESTATE INVOLVED NOTICE OF SUIT
The State of Kansas to the above named defendants and all other persons who are or may be concerned: You are hereby notified that a Petition has been filed in the District Court of Allen County, Kansas, by Colt Energy, Inc., John M. Mealey and James W. Mealey praying for an order qui-
WE’RE HIRING AT
Vice President of Finance & Operations/CFO
Salary based on education & experience
Executive Director of Strategic Expansion & Workforce Innovation
Must live in the Topeka area
Director of Student Life
Salary based on education & experience
Computer Science Instructor –9-month position
Agriculture Instructor –9-month position
Business O ce Assistant
$17 per hour for 12-month position
Head Shooting Sports Coach
Full- or part-time position
Custodian
Dr. Ryan Coffield, D.D.S., P.A. is looking for a Front Office Receptionist. Responsibilities include: communicating with patients, electronic office records, scheduling appointments and processing payments and insurance claims. Previous dental experience would be helpful, but a strong work ethic is needed. High school dipoloma or GED required.
Please submit your resume to: drc@ioladds.com or fax to 620-365-6866
8 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. M-Th in summer Fall 2025: Full-time from 2-10:30 p.m. Now hiring for the positions
Visit our website allencc.edu/contact/careers for detailed information about the openings and how to apply.
We offer an excellent benefit package including health/dental insurance, vision, KPERS, 403b with match, tuition benefits and generous leave, including opportunities for flex time and some remote work options. Allen is an EOE/AA employer.
EMPLOYMENT WANTED
Will buy copies of The Annals of Iola and Allen County, 1868-1945, Vols. 1 and 2. Call the Iola Register, 620-365- 2111 or email susan@iolaregister.com
Supreme Court asked to keep layoffs in place
WASHINGTON (AP)
— President Donald Trump’s administration on Friday asked the Supreme Court to pause a court order to reinstate Education Department employees who were fired in mass layoffs as part of his plan to dismantle the agency.
The Justice Department’s emergency appeal to the high court said U.S. District Judge Myong Joun in Boston exceeded his authority last month when he issued a preliminary in-
N. Korea raises capsized warship
SEOUL, South Korea
(AP) — North Korea said Friday it had righted a capsized destroyer and moored it at a pier in the northeastern port of Chongjin as it continues to repair the new warship leader Kim Jong Un has described as a significant asset for his nuclear-armed military.
The report by North Korean state media aligned with South Korean military assessments and recent
commercial satellite images.
North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said experts will closely examine the ship’s hull before beginning the next phase of restoration, which will take place at a dry dock at the neighboring port of Rajin and is expected to last seven to 10 days.
Satellite images taken Thursday by Planet Labs PBC analyzed by The Associated Press
showed the stricken destroyer upright and floating. It wasn’t immediately clear from the image just how much damage had been done to the vessel, which had been in the water for days after the failed launch. However, the ship did not appear to be noticeably listing, meaning Pyongyang is likely able to send it onward to the other port to inspect the vessel’s electronics.
junction reversing the layoffs of nearly 1,400 people and putting the broader plan on hold.
Joun’s order has blocked one of the Republican president’s biggest campaign promises and effectively stalled the effort to wind down the department. A federal appeals court refused to put the order on hold while the administration appealed.
The judge wrote that the layoffs “will likely cripple the department.”
But Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote on Friday that Joun was substituting his policy preferences for those of the Trump administration.
The layoffs help put in the place the “policy of streamlining the department and eliminating discretionary functions that, in the administration’s view, are better left to the states,” Sauer wrote.
He also pointed out that the Supreme Court in April voted 5-4 to block Joun’s earlier order seeking to keep in place Education Department teacher-training grants.
Wife’s ‘raunchy’ writing rankles hubby
Dear Carolyn: My wife, “Lisa,” and I have been happily married for 30 years, raised three great children and look forward to a very comfortable retirement. I couldn’t have asked for a better wife and partner.
Over the years, besides her day job, Lisa has made many forays into creative writing and has been pretty successful. She’s published articles and several short stories. Her blog is popular, so she decided to attempt the novel she’s always talked about. She told me I could read it anytime, and now that it’s in the hands of her agent, I did. The novel is about a “wild child” of the late 1980s, and I immediately knew Lisa had based it loosely upon herself. It is very entertaining but quite raunchy, so I mentioned that she must have embellished quite a lot — but she said no, she left a lot out.
I am stunned. Lisa told me when we were dating that she had a “misspent youth,” and I
Carolyn Hax
Tell Me About It
knew she had a lot more partners than I did, but I never imagined anything like this.
I have two problems now: First, her past is bothering me, and I know that’s stupid after all these years. Second, she’s completely unconcerned that our friends, relatives and, worst of all, our kids might figure out this isn’t exactly a work of fiction.
How am I to deal with this without coming right out and forbidding her to publish this nonsense? — Stunned
Stunned: Whoa. I was nodding along with you there — it’ll be “gently amused sympathy” in my fictionalized memoir — till “forbidding” and “nonsense.” Then you lost me faster than a wild child’s impulse control.
The two most efficient ways to detonate your snow-globe mar-
riage are to control your beloved wife and talk down to her.
So, no to those offensive blunt instruments. Plus, why use them when there are simple, obvious, low-drama options that target your specific concerns respectfully?
For your fear of everyone’s discovery, simply talk to your wife again. Ask whether she ever intends to reveal publicly what she told you. A calm ask, not an aggressive one. She may have no intention of deviating from the line that her book is fiction, even if, say, her kid asks her point-blank.
If she hadn’t thought this far, then suggest she ask authors who’ve been there? A calm suggestion, not an aggressive one.
If she responds that she has nothing to be ashamed of or hide — then, ideally, you would agree that’s both a fair point and her prerogative. But if you don’t, then better to say, “I need time to clear my mind” — calmly — than to try aggressively
Charges filed in Boulder attack
BOULDER, Colo. (AP)
— A man accused of yelling “Free Palestine” and throwing Molotov cocktails at demonstrators calling for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza was charged with 118 counts including attempted murder in a Colorado court Thursday.
Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, who has been jailed since his arrest following Sunday’s attack, was advised of the
CRYPTOQUOTES
charges during a hearing in Boulder, where he appeared in person. Investigators say Soliman, who posed as a gardener, planned it for a year.
The 118 counts include attempt to commit murder, assault in the first and third degrees, use of explosive or incendiary devices and animal cruelty. He has also been charged with a hate crime in federal court and is jailed on a $10 million cash bond.
Soliman’s attorney, Kathryn Herold, waived a formal reading of the charges Thursday. A preliminary hearing has been set for July 15 to determine whether the
state has enough evidence to move forward.
“The charges reflect the evidence that we have regarding this horrific attack that took place and the seriousness of it,” Michael Dougherty, the Boulder County district attorney, said at a news conference after the hearing.
Authorities have said 15 people and a dog were victims of the attack. Not all were physically injured, and some are considered victims for the legal case because they were in the area and could potentially have been hurt. The dog was among the injured, Dougherty said.
to change hers. You may have noted a theme.
Pushing your distress onto her will only make things worse. I say this even though I don’t agree it’s “stupid” for you to feel bothered. I mean, it’s not smart or useful, let’s not get carried away — but not everyone is ready to read their spouse’s youthful sex diaries, so I think you can let yourself feel normal for flinching. Then forgive yourself.
Then decide the bad feelings are too stupid to risk dwelling on at the expense of everything you’ve built. Because remember, your wife’s entire past — not just the parts you’re okay with — made her into the person you love and trust.
So discuss your wife’s plans with the book, yes. But it’s not her job to make you feel better about her life before she met you. A few solo therapy sessions might help you — since I assume you won’t run this by friends.
Yesterday’s Cryptoquote: To say I’m an overrated troll, when you have never seen me guard a bridge, is patently unfair. -- Tina Fey
ZITS
by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman
BEETLE BAILEY by Mort Walker
HAGAR THE HORRIBLE by Chris Browne
MARVIN by Tom Armstrong
HI AND LOIS by Chance Browne
BLONDIE by Young and Drake
MUTTS by Patrick McDonell
Saturday, June 7, 2025
Lessons in humility
Equipped with a bucket and rag, I went down to the creek’s bank Wednesday evening seeking atonement.
Early last summer, I had planted two viburnum bushes about eight feet from the water’s edge.
Two things prompted their placement. That spring, a flood had swept away a fledgling aspen and we’d also lost an ancient cottonwood that reigned supreme over the lower yard.
In my eagerness to make up for those losses, we planted a swamp white oak and the infant viburnum.
The tree was dutifully staked and surrounded by fencing as much to protect it from wildlife as the elements. The bushes — now about a foot tall — were on their own.
AS THE WATERS rose Tuesday evening from that afternoon’s pounding rains, I kept watch over the bushes’ fate. Though they struggled valiantly to keep their heads above water, ultimately they were no match. By nightfall, the creek had breached its banks and was well up into the yard.
On Wednesday morning, I was afraid to look.
But there they were, their branches bowed by the drying mud and other detritus carried by the floodwaters. I felt so bad.
They hadn’t asked to be planted there. It was my vanity that insisted they’d be fine.
Though I don’t typically think of plants as sentient beings, I sensed their shame of looking so disheveled and drab.
And it was no small feat to bathe them. The cakedon mud required that I gently scrub back and forth, careful not to tear the leaves
Susan Lynn Register editor
underneath. After a while I discovered a soft toothbrush worked better than the clumsy rag. Leaf by leaf, I freed the bushes of their ghastly shrouds. Such work, naturally, takes one’s thoughts astray. I thought back to 2010 when the BP Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded off the Gulf Coast, coating thousands of pelicans, herons and other birds with oil. Of the more than 8,000 birds collected, an estimated 1,246 were ultimately rescued. Before long I was extrapolating the plight of my plants to that of mankind. How politicians are showering the rich and powerful with tax cuts at the expense of adequately providing for the poor and elderly. How we’re sacrificing our planet to industries that rely on fossil fuels rather than investing in green energy. How innocent migrants are being rounded up in detention centers to meet an arbitrary goal of 3,000 a day. And how the lives of men, women and children are sacrificed for the vainglory territorial quests of leaders.
AS I TENDED the bushes, I didn’t come up with any answers to those weighty issues. But as each leaf came clean, my guilt eased. We can atone for our mistakes, but it requires humility, which feels undervalued in today’s “warrior” culture. It all depends on who we answer to.
~ Journalism that makes a difference
The Iola Register
Was Robert Frost’s neighbor right?
By MARGARET RENKLE Guest essay for The New York Times
“Something there is that doesn’t love a wall, / That wants it down,” Robert Frost observed in his poem “Mending Wall.” I am one of those somethings. When the speaker of Frost’s poem wonders what use a wall might be that encloses no livestock, I wonder that, too. When he asks his neighbor just how it is that good fences make good neighbors, he is asking the question of my own heart.
I was irked 30 years ago when our neighbor said she intended to install a free-standing fence between our driveways. “For privacy,” she said. My husband and I raised no objection, but we disliked the very idea of the fence, which would block our view of the woods behind our neighbor’s house and make things unnecessarily difficult for the creatures that came and went from there. It seemed unneighborly to humans and wildlife alike.
We were a family who spent more time outdoors than in, always nearby when our neighbor pulled into her driveway. Once the fence was up, she was no longer obliged to speak to us. This, we suddenly understood, was the whole point of a privacy fence. Not to keep anything in or anything out but to render invisibility. To offer some approximation of solitude.
We never became close, but as the years passed, we settled into an ordinary sort of neighborliness, stopping to chat when we happened to meet on the street, helping each other out in emergencies. She mostly stayed on her side of the fence, and we mostly stayed on ours.
Though oftentimes erected for privacy, fences can provide
for flowers.
During our 30 years in this house, we have given over more and more of this yard to the needs of our wild neighbors. The large brush pile in back is a place for them to hide. The pollinator beds are filled with nectar-producing flowers and the host plants of butterflies. Fruit-bearing trees grow alongside one street on this corner lot, and the yard on that side of the house is a miniature meadow.
up, I finally understood that my late neighbor had gone to some expense to make the fence she built as attractive on our side as on hers. This choice was her version of neighborliness. I was just too caught up in my own contrary definition of neighborliness to see it.
All this long, lovely spring, I’ve been thinking of her, and of Robert Frost and his neighbor. I thought of them while the carpenter we hired was building a trellis made from
The young families here must see all this unnecessary trellis-building, this house-hiding activity, and think of me the way I once thought of my late neighbor. I am now the opinionated old woman on the street.
A look back in t me. A look
65 Years Ago June 1960
back in t me.
The familiar pealing of the bell on the old courthouse clock may reverberate over Iola again tonight. The clock is in its new ground-level case on the south side of the courthouse lawn and may be telling time before sunset. This will complete the project started 18 or more months ago by the Allen County Historical Society to save the clock which topped the old courthouse tower for over 50 years and was visible for several miles in each direction.
*****
For the past few days Camp Cofachique, on the bluff at the west end of Humboldt Hill, has been trimmed and groomed in preparation for the Girl Scout day camp opening June 20. The campsite is owned by Walter Wulf, who has permitted Girl Scouts from Allen County to camp there for several years. The work crew included Mr. and Mrs. John Coleman, Mr. and Mrs. Dudley Henderson, Mr. and Mrs. Dale Tharp, Mr. and Mrs. Tom Heller, Mr. and Mrs. Bud Sifers, Mr. and Mrs. Chauncey Christian, Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Hastings, Mr. and Mrs.
Dean Tweedy, John Foust, Ray Pershall, Clem Griffith, Walter Crossen and Sam Hagerman. *****
The construction of a 30,000-bushel crib type elevator, costing approximately $35,000, has been approved by the board the Farmers Union Cooperative Association of LaHarpe. Howard Wade is board president. On July 7, members will begin an intensive campaign asking farmers to purchase the building bonds which will be issued in multiples of $100. *****
Iola Molded Plastics, Inc., which began the manufacture of Red Fish boats about 15 months ago, plans to double its capacity by the spring of 1961, Ben Ellis, president, reported. The firm plans to erect a fourth building in the fall on the side west of the original structures. Ellis says the additions will enable the firm to mold its fiberglass hulls in one building, trim and polish them in a second and complete fitting the boats in the third. The company is now making eight boats a day and employs about 32 men and women. Ellis expects to also double payroll by spring of 1961.
By the time she died two years ago, the unbeloved fence had become the scaffolding for pokeweed and native vines. Some of them I planted, and some came courtesy of our avian neighbors. Good fences, it turns out, make good perching places for birds with bellies full of berries and seeds.
The fence had been built in a shadowbox style, and the gaps between the boards gave reaching vines room for twisting. Their flowers fed pollinators, their leaves fed caterpillars, and their berries fed birds and other animals. Carpenter bees nested in the fence’s wood, and small birds nested on its crossbeams, perfectly camouflaged by vines.
Whatever I might have feared, the wild world made good use of the fence. Much better use than wildness had ever made of the strip of grass the fence replaced.
After our neighbor passed, a developer bought her modest, meticulously maintained house and reduced it to rubble. The backhoes took her flower beds and her flowering trees with them. For the past 18 months, a shiny three-story McMansion has been rising in their place.
As workers came and went, I thought about my fiercely independent neighbor, who had spent so much time tending her flower beds. Over the years, her fence had become, in my mind, an emblem of the many principles and beliefs that separated us. She was different from me in nearly every way imaginable, except for our mutual love
Ours is a carefully tended but scruffy-looking place, at odds with what is fashionable in home landscaping. After the workmen next door tore the old fence down, I had no doubt that a new fence would go up in time. The developer understands that anyone who buys his sort of house will want boxwoods and turf grass. They will want to be visibly isolated from the wild yard next door.
AGAINST MY NOBLEST inclinations, I found myself hoping he would install an even taller fence, something that would hide the villa rising high above the old fence line. When I look out the window above my writing table, I have grown accustomed to seeing hummingbirds darting among climbing vines. I want to keep my focus on them. Not on the monstrous house behind them.
The new fence sits on top of a concrete wall — taller than the fence it replaced, as I had hoped, but far less neighborly. Unlike the old shadowbox fence, this new fence has a front side and a back side, and it’s the back side that faces us. Worse, its unbroken expanse gives climbing vines no purchase.
It took 30 years for the realization to dawn, but once the new flat-board fence went
framed-out cattle panels that he installed on our side of the new fence. I thought of my neighbor again as I shopped for vines at the new native-plant nursery, aptly called Wonder, just outside Nashville. Now native honeysuckle and Carolina jasmine and pipevine, among others, grow in place of the vines that did not survive the construction next door.
The young families here must see all this unnecessary trellis-building, this house-hiding activity, and think of me the way I once thought of my late neighbor. I am now the opinionated old woman on the street. I still number myself among the somethings that do not love a wall, for too many of them interrupt wildlife patterns at a time when wild creatures are already struggling, but I’ve also lived long enough to know that love is a mutable thing. Truth sometimes dawns too late. Time shifts more than stones. Tumbled-down walls can’t always be mended. Surely even Frost could not fault a wall made of leaves and flowers. I think my late neighbor would have loved this fence that feeds bees and butterflies and glittering emerald hummingbirds and all manner of winged creatures that will never love a wall.
the perfect habitat for flora and fauna. ROXANA ZERNI/UNSPLASH
Youngsters flock to Family Safety Night
Throngs of youngsters turned out Thursday for the annual Family Safety Night extravaganza alongside the Allen County Farmers Market in downtown Iola. On top of bounce houses and other inflatable attractions, above, the events included live music from The UnChosen, shown at right, where Jennifer Luna, center, provides the lead vocals alongside bandmates Nathan Studebaker, from left, Paul Vernon and Josh Lyons. At lower left, Mike Aronson of the Iola Police Department hands out bike helmets. At lower right, Remington Weatherbie, 5, takes part in a chalk art project. The event was once again sponsored by the Allen County Multi-Agency Team. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN
Veterans commemorate D-Day anniversary
COLLEVILLE-SUR-
MER, France (AP) — Veterans gathered Friday in Normandy to mark the 81st anniversary of the D-Day landings — a pivotal moment of World War II that eventually led to the collapse of Adolf Hitler’s regime.
Along the coastline and near the D-Day landing beaches, tens of thousands of onlookers attended the commemorations, which included parachute jumps, flyovers, remembrance ceremonies, parades, and historical reenactments.
Many were there to cheer the ever-dwindling number of surviving veterans in their late 90s and older. All remembered the thousands who died.
Harold Terens, a 101-year-old U.S. veteran who last year married his 96-year-old sweetheart near the D-Day beaches, was back in Normandy.
“Freedom is everything,” he said. “I pray for freedom for the whole world. For the war to end in Ukraine, and Russia, and Sudan and Gaza. I think war is disgusting. Absolutely disgusting.”
Terens enlisted in 1942 and shipped to Great Britain the following year, attached to a four-pilot P-47 Thunderbolt fighter squadron as their radio repair technician.
On D-Day, Terens helped repair planes returning from France so they could rejoin the battle.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth commemorated the anniversary of the D-Day landings, in which American soldiers played a leading role, with veterans at the American Cemetery
overlooking the shore in the village of Colleville-sur-Mer.
French Minister for the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu told Hegseth that France knows what it owes to its American allies and the veterans who helped free Europe from the Nazis.
“We don’t forget that our oldest allies were there in this grave moment of our history. I say it with deep respect in front of you, veterans, who incarnate this unique friendship between our two countries,” he said.
Russia continues aerial assault
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia struck Ukraine with a thunderous aerial bombardment overnight, further dampening hopes that the warring sides could reach a peace deal anytime soon days after Kyiv embarrassed the Kremlin with a surprising drone attack on military airfields deep inside Russia.
The barrage was one of the fiercest of the three-year war, lasting several hours, striking six Ukrainian territories, and killing at least four people and injuring about 50 others, Ukrainian officials said Friday. Among the dead were three emergency responders in Kyiv and someone who was pulled from the rubble of an apartment building in a northwestern city.
The attack came after U.S. President Donald Trump said his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, told him Moscow would respond to Ukraine’s attack Sunday on Russian military airfields. It was also hours after Trump said it might be better to let Ukraine and Russia “fight for a while” before pulling them apart and pursuing peace. Trump’s comments were a remarkable detour from his often-stated appeals to stop the war and signaled he may be giving up on recent peace efforts.
Ukrainian cities have come under regular bombardment since Russia invaded its neighbor in February 2022. The attacks have killed more than 12,000 civilians, according to the United Nations.
“Russia doesn`t change its stripes,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
The war has continued unabated even as a U.S.-led diplomatic push for a settlement has brought two rounds of direct peace talks between delegations from Russia and Ukraine. The negotiations delivered no significant breakthroughs, however, and the sides remain far apart on their terms for an end to the fighting.
“The Kremlin continues efforts to falsely portray Russia as willing to engage in good-faith negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, despite Russia’s repeated refusal to offer any concessions,” the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said late Thursday.
Further peace talks between Russian and Ukrainian are expected in coming weeks, as is another exchange of prisoners of war. Homes are struck
The attack involved 407 Russian drones and 44 ballistic and cruise missiles, Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat said. Ukrainian forces said they shot down about 30 of the cruise missiles and up to 200 of the drones.
The Kyiv emergency workers were killed while responding to the strikes.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said it aimed at Ukrainian military targets with “longrange precision weapons” and successfully struck arms depots, drone factories and repair facilities, among other targets.
But fitting a pattern for Russian attacks throughout the war, Friday’s bombardment also struck apartment buildings and other non-military targets, Associated Press reporters observed.
Hart: Brings passion to bookstore
Continued from A1
know who I am,” Hart said. “I’m a pretty direct person. I think that’s the best way to operate.”
Hart sees her bookstore as “a small resistance” in today’s political climate, especially in Southeast Kansas.
“I feel like we’re put in a box in rural America. But we’re not all alike. I want people to be able to find something here that speaks to them no matter who they are.”
I want people to feel they’re in a safe place where they can explore.”
Books, said Hart, open people’s minds.
THIS IS Hart’s first venture into retail. Her love of reading “all kinds of books” inspired her to open a bookstore. Hart noted self-help books, nonfiction and fiction, romance “and even kids’ books, sometimes,” have helped launch her interest in biographies and other areas.
Illustrative of her generation, Hart, age 42, said she learns of new authors not so much from traditional literary journals but more from booksellers and groups that post on TikTok and Facebook, as well as suggestions from those who drop in the store.
“I love learning what people want to read,” she said, noting that will help dictate the store’s collection.
“It will be a natural growth,” she said.
Hart is especially looking forward to her book club gatherings.
Wednesday evening’s session filled up so fast that she’s also scheduled one for Thursday evenings.
IN OPENING the store, she is transitioning from her position as general manager of the Honeybee Bruncherie, where she’s been since it opened three years ago.
Before that, she worked as a paraprofessional and school secretary at Humboldt Elementary, a memory she holds dear.
this without her,” Hart said.
Baker and her husband, Roger, were responsible for finishing the store’s numerous bookshelves among other jobs.
Jan will share duties with Hart in tending the store.
Local craftsman Patrick Haire’s plant pressings decorate the walls.
“We want to incorporate the talents of as many local people as possible,” said Hart, noting the graphics for the store’s swag are by Cutting Edge Graphics in Stark.
Area-based authors are also in high demand, she said, noting Kansas City author M.A.
Kilpatrick of the fantasy series, “The Dúbailte Chronicles,” was at the store’s grand opening last Saturday to meet with customers.
Next up is D.A. Power, formerly of Baxter Springs and now living in Joplin, author of the “Asher Chronicles” young adult series.
Hart tapped into her restaurant experience for her interest in stocking cookbooks, noting she’s already sold half of her inventory.
HART said her bookstore helps diversify downtown Humboldt.
“I wanted to bring something that was unexpected and broadened its appeal,” she said. “I
Lander crashes
By MARCIA DUNN The Associated Press
A lunar lander from Japan crashed while attempting a touchdown Friday, the latest miscue in the commercial rush to the moon.
The Tokyo-based company ispace declared the mission a failure several hours after communication was lost with the lander. Flight controllers scrambled to gain contact, but were met
with only silence and said they were concluding the mission.
Communications ceased less than two minutes before the spacecraft’s scheduled landing on the moon with a mini rover. Until then, the descent from lunar orbit seemed to be going well. This is the second lunar strikeout for ispace. Two years ago, the company’s first moonshot ended in a crash landing.
also want the store to become part of the ‘walkable’ business area here. I like the idea of people having dinner at Cozy’s, then stopping here to browse the books, then heading to Halsey’s for a frozen custard or a drink at the Hitching Post.”
Hart rents the space at 808 Bridge St., from A Bolder Humboldt.
The bookstore is currently open seven days a week, including evenings, to determine which days experience the heaviest traffic.
“It needs to be open when it’s convenient for people,” she said. “I don’t want people to say they never come here because it closes before they get off work.”
“I loved reading to the students,” she said. A highlight was seeing first-graders grasp the concept of reading.
Hart and her husband, Josh, who works at Monarch Cement, have four children, ranging in age from 14 to 25.
Hart is also serving her first term on the Humboldt Council, though has decided not to run for re-election in order to attend to their youngest child, daughter Carlin’s, high school activities.
“I hate to choose between my kids and the city council because I want to do what’s best for both,” she said.
Hart’s unofficial partner in the store is her mother, Jan Baker, 72, who Hart gives the credit for the store’s décor.
“I couldn’t have done
Sarah Hart keeps Bridge Street Books open seven days a week, including evenings, to determine which days have the heaviest traffic. REGISTER/SUSAN LYNN
Sports Daily B
Cubs named All-Tri-Valley
By JIMMY POTTS
Less than a week removed from competing for a state title, Tri-Valley League o cials recognized ve Humboldt High School baseball players as members of the All-TriValley League team.
Seniors Blake Ellis, Cole Mathes, Kyler Isbell, Logan Page and Colden Cook received the recognition after winning the Tri-Valley League title in May, then following it up with a regional title and taking fourth at the state tournament.
Earlier this week, KSHSAA o cials recognized Page with a place on the All-State First Team for his contribution to Humboldt’s state run. Page ended the season in Manhattan as the Cubs’ starter in the state quarter nals, where he posted ve strikeouts and an RBI in a 10-3 victory over Russell-Victoria. Page ended the year with a 6-2 record while tallying 94 strikeouts and boasting an ERA of 1.392. He also ended the season with a .376 batting average with 32 hits, 15 doubles, a triple and 35 RBIs.
The Cubs’ second starting pitcher Isbell may have been a snub for the recent allstate selection considering his four-RBI performance at state against Russell-Victoria and a clutch performance while relieving Page in the same game. He had a 7-2 record overall, pitching the second most innings on the team while posting 42 strikeouts for a 1.87 ERA. Isbell also reached base on nearly half of his at-bats this season with a .327 batting average. He had 18 hits, four doubles and 17 RBIs.
Mathes seemed the wildcard of the bunch by showcasing his skills on the mound, in the batter’s
Rodgers, Tomlin kindred spirits
By WILL GRAVES The Associated Press
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Aaron Rodgers and Mike Tomlin share a competitive stubbornness. An inherent arrogance, too.
While that hardly makes them outliers in the alpha-driven NFL, their ability to keep the realities of the game they have helped dene at bay for so long does.
Coaches aren’t supposed to go nearly two decades without experiencing a losing season. Tomlin has. Quarterbacks aren’t supposed to recover from an Achilles injury in their 40s and return to throw for nearly 4,000 yards. Rodgers did.
Maybe they have long sensed this shared “otherness.” Maybe that’s why they’ve made it a point during their occasional professional meetings to make GIF-worthy eye contact, a non-verbal way of saying “game recognize game.”
So perhaps it’s tting that two men who believe the rules don’t necessarily apply to them will share the
Saturday, June 7, 2025
Although ending the year earlier than anticipated, Tri-Valley League o cials recognized three Humboldt Lady Cubs after a strong 2025 campaign.
Senior Shelby Shaughnessy, as well as juniors Laney Hull and Skylar Hottenstein each received a spot on the TVL All-League softball team after the Lady Cubs wrapped up the year 17-10 in the regional tournament quarter nals and felt just short of a TVL title.
Senior Shelby Shaughnessy seemed the most likely player to receive postseason honors while leading the Lady Cubs on the mound and in the batter’s
box. Shaughnessy racked up six wins as Humboldt’s ace, with a 3.80 ERA and 86 strikeouts. She also had a team-leading 37 hits while carrying a batting average of .416 with 10 doubles, ve triples, three home runs and tied Hull for the teamlead in RBIs with 34 each.
Lady Cubs fans have plenty to look forward to next season as incoming seniors Hull and Hottenstein return. Hull wrapped up the year with a .400 batting average over 90 attempts with 36 hits. She had a team-leading four home runs, nine doubles, a pair of triples and second
By WILL GRAVES The Associated Press
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Kansas City Royals rookie out elder Jac Caglianone got a pair of rsts out of the way with one swing of the bat Thursday.
Caglianone ripped Miles Mikolas’ curveball into the right- eld corner for an RBI double that scored Salvador Perez in the fourth inning of the rst game of a doubleheader against the Cardinals. It was the rst
career hit and RBI for the highly touted prospect who was selected sixth overall by Kansas City in the 2024 amateur draft.
“He’s a very decorated pitcher, a veteran and all that, so I knew his command was really good,” Caglianone said. “So, he started o two heaters up, get down 0-2, and luckily, just saw the curveball pop.”
Caglianone also added a nice running catch in right eld to rob Alec Burleson of
box
Humboldt High School senior pitcher Shelby Shaughnessy throws a strike during a game against Central Heights in May. REGISTER/JIMMY POTTS
Humboldt High School senior shortstop Blake Ellis throws a runner out during a game against Anderson County in April. REGISTER/JIMMY POTTS
Aaron Rodgers (8) of the New York Jets looks to pass against the Los Angeles Rams during the rst quarter at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in East Rutherford, New Jersey. LUKE HALES/TNS
The Iola Register
Rodgers: Tomlin
Continued from B1
sideline this fall in a season that could serve as a symbolic last stand for their worldview.
Rodgers is eager to move past two weird years in New York, where he generated more headlines than victories.
Tomlin has kept churning out winning seasons, potentially at the expense of nding the franchise quarterback that rival teams — teams the Steelers have been so frantically, if futilely, chasing for years —have in abundance.
‘Our business is winning’
Yet rather than keep Russell Wilson or Justin Fields — both of whom Pittsburgh let walk in free agency after leading the Steelers to a 10-7 mark last fall — or roll the dice with Mason Rudolph or use a rst-round pick in April’s draft on the most important position in the game, by signing Rodgers the Steelers are doing what they have always done for the last 50-plus years.
They’re trying to win. Now. There is nobility in that, to be sure. Glory, however, is another thing entirely.
And while Rudolph made himself a quasi-folk hero after coming o the bench down the stretch in 2023 to lead Pittsburgh to the playo s, there’s little doubt that Rodgers is the best option available, even if watching the Steelers spending two-plus months hatin-hand waiting for him to commit caused franchise icon and Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw to call his old team’s pursuit of the four-time MVP “a joke.”
Yet losing is no laughing matter to a coach who counts “our business is winning” among his many Tomlin-isms.
Riding with Rudolph or (eventually) rookie sixth-round pick Will Howard would have come with a high risk/ reward. Either they would have been successful and the Steelers would have found “their guy” or they would stumble and the club would land inside the top 12 in the draft without having to trade to get there for the rst time since taking Ben Roethlisberger 11th overall in 2004.
Gambling, however, is not Tomlin’s way. Playing it safe
For all of his inherent swagger, Tomlin’s approach remains cautious. In a league where scoring is paramount, Tomlin remains xated on winning the turnover battle and avoiding mistakes, hoping in the end his team will be on the right side of a 20-17 game.
A little more often than not, it does. Until the playo s come around anyway. Then the Steelers often nd themselves going against a team with a better quarterback, at least on that given day, than the one they employ, the defense struggles, and all the talk of a run to a seventh Super Bowl title quickly
vanishes.
Enter Rodgers, who is hoping to put a more positive coda on the end of his career than what would have been tacked on had he decided to step away after a miserable 5-12 slog with the Jets last season.
Rodgers stressed during his methodical decision-making process that he wouldn’t commit to any team until he was sure he could fully invest.
Apparently, Rodgers reached that point Thursday, conveniently a few hours after his soon-to-be teammates wrapped up two weeks of voluntary organized team activities. He will likely pass the physical that will ratify his one-year deal in time to trot out onto the practice eld at the Steelers’ facility for the start of mandatory minicamp next, where the angst over his future will morph into angst over how much life remains in his 41-year-old legs. An age-old debate Rodgers turns 42 in December. The list of quarterbacks who have won a playo game at 42 or older starts and stops with Tom Brady.
For Rodgers to join that list, he’ll have to stay healthy behind a young o ensive line that struggled at times to protect Wilson and Fields, develop chemistry with a wide receiver group that is largely unproven outside recently acquired two-time Pro Bowler DK Metcalf and try to make sure the volume on the noise that accompanies him wherever the frequent “Pat McAfee Show” guest and avid conspiracy theorist goes doesn’t drown out the teamrst tone Tomlin is trying to set.
It’s a lot to ask, though Rodgers will likely come in motivated, well aware that a portion (albeit a small one) of his legacy is at stake.
The pressure Tomlin faces will be different.
Cubs: Last honor for Humboldt seniors
Continued from B1
and in the out eld.
Despite primarily serving as a reliever and closer, Mathes showed he had the endurance to take on starting duties this season, ending the year with a 6-1 record. Boasting an ERA of 1.14, Mathes allowed the second fewest hits among Humboldt pitchers while having the second most strikeouts with 52. He had a team-leading 37 hits for 21 RBIs including a double and a triple.
Shortstop Blake Ellis was more than a reliable in elder this season. Ellis made the most of his opportunities in the batter’s box with an on-base percentage of .550 and a .333 batting average. He had 25 hits, six doubles, a home run and six RBIs. He also had a pair of strikeouts in a limited appearance on the mound.
Another reliable inelder for Humboldt was rst baseman Colden Cook. After breaking 1,000 career points on the basketball court, Cook proved he also had talent on the baseball diamond. He had 33 hits including six doubles and a triple and drove in 27 RBIs.
White omitted Crest Lancer Henry White also received All-Three Rivers League rst-team honors, but was inadvertently left o in Friday’s article. White set a state record for most runs scored in a season with 61 while carrying a .477 batting average, including 41 hits, 10 doubles, three home runs and 47 RBIs.
Clockwise, from the top, Humboldt senior rst baseman Colden Cook slides across home plate. Senior pitcher Logan Page throws a strike while tossing a no-hitter against Anderson County. Senior pitcher/out elder Cole Mathes drives the game-winning run over Iola during the regional semi nals. Senior Kyler Isbell takes the mound at in the regional tournament championship game against Burlington despite nursing a knee injury for most of the season. REGISTER/JIMMY POTTS
@IolaSports
@TheIolaRegister
sports@iolaregister.com
June 12.
June 13.
POTTS
Tri-Valley: Lady Cubs honored
Continued from B1
to Hottenstein for the team-lead in stolen bases with 22.
Hottenstein finished in the top three of nearly every batting category, and was also one of Humboldt’s most reliable infielders with only six errors. She also was a demon on the base paths with a team-leading 28 stolen bases. She wrapped up the season with a .407 batting average with 35 hits, six doubles, six triples and 20 RBIs.
With only two seniors, Shaughnessy and senior catcher Chanlynn Wrestler, the Lady Cubs will be a force to reckon with when they return in the spring of 2026.
Beckham bends the knee
By STAFF REPORT
LONDON (AP) — David Beckham, the former England soccer captain who has been an ambassador for the U.N. children’s fund for two decades, is to receive a knighthood in next week's honors list from King Charles III, according to U.K. media reports Friday.
Without citing sources, the BBC said Beckham is set to receive further recognition both for his soccer career,
and his contributions to British society.
The knighthood will make Beckham “Sir David” while his wife since 1999, former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham, will become “Lady Beckham.”
In 2003, Beckham was awarded the Order of the British Empire, or OBE, for services to soccer. Victoria Beckham got the same honor for services to the fashion industry in a later New Year Honours list.
Honors are awarded twice a year, once at
New Year's, and then in June to mark the king's birthday. They are mostly made on the recommendation of the government, though the monarch has input too. Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office would not confirm the press reports, as is custom. Buckingham Palace declined to comment. The Associated Press has not been able to independently confirm the award of the knighthood, which was first reported in The Sun tabloid newspaper.
Fighter swears off drugs, hair dye
By DAN GELSTAN The Associated Press
MORRISTOWN, N.J.
(AP) — Sean O’Malley lost a title fight that could have stamped him the true face of UFC and decided it was time for a makeover.
O’Malley realized to truly be at his best — as a fighter, as a family man — he needed to make difficult lifestyle sacrifices to round himself into peak form.
So he weeded out his bad habits.
O’Malley said he’s on a complete detox of all his vices. He’s cleansed himself of scrolling social media, stopped the hours of gaming each day — though he dabbles a bit more in poker — and said he even quit smoking marijuana.
The 30-year-old contender also ditched his trademark dyed hair. No more cornucopia of colors that turned his locks into rainbows or cotton candy tops. O’Malley sported brown, braided hair this week and had no plans to brighten it on Saturday night.
O’Malley is all business as he trained for his 135-pound title fight against Merab Dvalishvili in the main event of UFC 316.
O’Malley, with his flashy knockouts and flashier style that made him pop as a character in a sport currently devoid of over-the-top personality, was unbeaten in seven straight fights and held the UFC bantamweight championship when he fought Dvalishvili last September. Dvalishvili, a 34-year-old from the country of Georgia, won the belt in a convincing — though not aesthetically pleasing
— unanimous decision over O’Malley.
Dvalishvili (18-4) successfully defended the championship in January against Umar Nurmagomedov and is a slight betting favorite to win at the Prudential Center over O’Malley, per BetMGM Sportsbook.
“I’m ready for the best version of Sean O’Malley,” Dvalishvili said.
He seems poised to get it if O’Malley truly has squashed his distractions in his personal life.
“I never felt like I was in a bad place, or sad place or dark place,” O’Malley said.
“I always felt pretty good. I always felt like I could feel better. Whether it helps the performance or not, I feel better. That’s all that matters.”
O’Malley and his wife recently welcomed their second child, a boy named Matteo, another defining moment where the fighter realized he had become almost addicted to his “Suga" persona.
His life is now “slowed down” without the constant need to check his phone or the paranoia he said he felt from regular marijuana use.
“I’d catch myself driving, surfing Instagram, and it was like, what the (heck) am I doing?” he said. “I’d be playing with my daughter, surfing X, and it’s like, what am I doing here? I feel like just limiting those distractions definitely made me more present with the family. With training. With friends. In general.”
He also found some solace in that fact that he’s pretty good in UFC at rematches. O’Malley has two losses since his 2017 debut; to Marlon Vera in 2020 and he rebounded to beat him in March 2024 in 135-pound title fight, and to Dvalishvili. O’Malley fought Dvalishvili the first time with a torn labrum in his hip and needed surgery after the fight.
“He didn’t get the best version of me,” O’Malley said.
SIT AND BE FIT MON., WED., & FRI. 10:30 A.M.
This 30-minute class is a safe and e ective way to improve your life through functional fitness. Each participant will have a chair to utilize during the class along with dumbbells, bands, mini bands, medicine balls, and other equipment as needed. Come join the fun and in the process, ease inflammation, improve energy, and promote overall better health.
BODY BLAST MON. 5:30 P.M. By training with dumbbells, resistance-bands, and body weight this workout will give you an exciting range of strengthening, balance, and core exercises while improving cardiovascular health.
POWER PILATES TUES. 5:30 P.M.
This low-intensity muscle-strengthening workout will focus heavily on building strong core muscles. Using light weights, bands, and Pilates rings, this class promotes strength, flexibiliN ty, mobility, and posture.
RUMBLE: PUNCHES, KICKS, & STICKS WED. 5:30 P.M.
This authentic cardio mixed martial arts class is designed for group fitness fun. Using the RUMBLE stick, you’ll create a higher degree of training and is an extension of your body, which enhances spatial awareness and overall movement. No martial arts experience required.
YOGA WED. 6:15 P.M.
Our yoga class is a mix between the slow-paced style of yin restorative yoga and vinyasa flow yoga. This yoga class will put you in poses that apply moderate stress to the connective tissues of the body—the tendons, fasciae, and ligaments—with the aim of increasing circulation in the joints and improving flexibility. POWER
Merab Dvalishvili takes a punch to the stomach from Sean O’Malley in their bantamweight title fight during UFC 306: Riyadh Season Noche at the Sphere on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. L.E. BASKOW/LAS VEGAS JOURNAL/TNS
Humboldt High School infielder Laney Hull pulls back for a hit during a game against Central Heights earlier this season. REGISTER/JIMMY
The Associated Press
Humboldt High School infielder Skylar Hottenstein gets on base with this hit during a game against Osawatomie. REGISTER/JIMMY POTTS
an extra base hit in the fth in the Royals’ 6-5 loss.
“He tracked that ball really well,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “I mean, it’s hit hard and going towards the line, so it was a really nice play.”
Caglianone went 0 for 5 in his major league debut on Monday, but he came close to picking up hits during three of those at-bats. Cardinals center elder Victor Scott II raced 92 feet
to make a running catch just steps away from the out eld wall on his rst career at-bat and 10-time Gold Glove Award-winning third baseman Nolan Arenado made a pair of o -balance throws to nail him at rst base later in the game.
“It’s the big leagues,” Caglianone said. “These guys are really good at what they do. Yeah, it’s been good so far. A lot of hard contact, and just going to keep building on it.”
Caglianone had to wait an ex-
tra day to get his rst hit after rain washed out Tuesday night’s game.
“I was able to have a nice dinner with my family,” Caglianone said. “Had a good night’s sleep, so I was good going into 18 innings today.”
The 22-year-old Caglianone hit .319 with nine home runs and 43 RBIs in 38 games with Triple-A Omaha after playing the rst 12 games of the season with Double-A Northwest Arkansas.
“He’s going to impact a lot of games
for us,” Quatraro said. “We’re pretty con dent in that. You know, he’s been swinging the bat ne. Squared the ball up his rst time as well, but for him to get that rst one out of the way and kind of get that relaxation, that feel, is good for him, and it’s good for us.”
Caglianone said he was thinking about his father when he got the hit. The ball will go home with his dad, who was in the stands to watch the milestone.
