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SATURDAY • SEPTEMBER 12 • 2015
Bible study meets in Kobach’s office
Lawrence JAYHAWK BOULEVARD IS BACK heroes honored for valor ——
Annual awards shine light on first responders’ life-saving acts
Secretary of state’s team denies firing employee for not attending group
By Conrad Swanson Twitter: @Conrad_Swanson
In August 2014, Lawrence Police Officer Nathan Haig responded to a report of an unresponsive woman. Arriving on scene, Haig performed CPR on the unconscious woman until paramedics arrived and took over. She regained consciousness several hours later. Friday night, Haig and dozens of other area first responders were recognized for their exemplary and often life-saving actions taken in the line of duty during the 2015 Valor Awards at Crown Toyota, 3430 Iowa St. “I didn’t save her life, I just kept her heart beating,” Haig humbly insisted. “It’s just a part of what I signed up for.” The annual Valor Awards are meant to honor Lawrence and Douglas County’s 17 first responder agencies and “to show our appreciation for the selfless men and women who serve our Please see VALOR, page 2A
“
It’s just a part of what I signed up for.” — Nathan Haig, Lawrence police officer
By Roxana Hegeman Associated Press
Mike Yoder/Journal-World Photos
KANSAS UNIVERSITY CHANCELLOR BERNADETTE GRAY-LITTLE and other KU staff and visiting dignitaries line up Friday to ceremonially cut a ribbon across Jayhawk Boulevard in front of Strong Hall following a multi-year reconstruction of the roadway.
‘Iconic’ roadway’s reconstruction mostly done By Sara Shepherd Twitter: @saramarieshep
F
or Kansas University Student Body President Jessie Pringle, the moments that reinforce that she not just attends but “belongs” at KU happen on Jayhawk Boulevard. They’re when she’s walking along the welltrafficked, picturesque main artery of campus and KANSAS gets to wave at someone UNIVERSITY she knows, she said. “This is one of the single most supportive things for our education here at KU ... it’s so integral,” Pringle said. Pringle and KU Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little spoke Friday at a ribbon-cutting for KU’s Jayhawk Please see JAYHAWK, page 2A
FROM LEFT, KU FRESHMEN Chelsea Green, of Edmond, Okla.; Allison Ryburn, of Grainfield; Jaclyn Benoit, of Damar; and Riley Graves, of Poplar Grove, Ill., enjoy some KU150 cupcakes after the formal dedication ceremony for Jayhawk Boulevard.
BANDS PARADE TODAY
T
he 68th annual Kansas University Band Day is today and will include a midday parade through downtown Lawrence. Thirty-three high school bands from across Kansas and Missouri are expected to participate in the event, along with the KU Marching Jayhawks. The parade begins at
Manhattan (ap) — Fans have started an online fundraising campaign to support the Kansas State University marching band, which drew criticism over its halftime show at a football game. The school said band director Frank Tracz will miss the November game against KU and that university officials also must approve future halftime shows. The college added it will pay a self-
— Sara Shepherd
INSIDE Business Classified Comics Deaths
Low: 46
Today’s forecast, page 10A
2A 7C-12C 6A 2A
Please see BIBLE, page 2A
SPEAKING OF BANDS ...
12:30 p.m. at Seventh and Massachusetts streets and will travel south on Massachusetts, ending at South Park. Visiting bands will gather for a mass rehearsal at 2:30 p.m. in Memorial Stadium, then perform at halftime of the KU vs. Memphis football game, which kicks off at 6 p.m. in the stadium.
Sunny, cooler
High: 70
Wichita — The Kansas secretary of state’s office acknowledged Friday in a court document that it sporadically hosts Bible study sessions, but denied firing an employee for not attending them. The court filing comes in the office’s formal answer to the civil lawsuit that Courtney Canfield filed last Kobach month in U.S. District Court in Topeka. Canfield alleges she was terminated from her clerk’s job after declining to attend prayer services held in the office. In its response, the state told the court that all were welcome to attend the Bible study, but no staff member was required to attend. It noted that the majority of the staff did not attend the sessions. Canfield also contends in her lawsuit that invitations to the religious services at the office were distributed during normal business hours, and that they
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imposed $5,000 fine after the Big 12 Conference warned of potential sportsmanship and ethical conduct violations. Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby said the problem with the band’s routine was the use Kansas University’s mascot and a phallic-looking Starship Enterprise. As of Thursday evening, the fundraiser had brought in more than $13,000 in donations for the K-State band.
Vol.157/No.255 30 pages
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A group of Catholic nuns known for their political activism will be in Topeka today carrying the pope’s message of social and economic reform. Page 3A
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