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OWNERS OF THE KANBULANCE, from left, Paul Wallen, Kitcha Paranjothi, Adrienne Paranjothi, Lisa Leroux-Smith, Wes Smith, Amy Clark and David Clark, all of Lawrence, stand next to their pride and joy: an ambulance that has been converted into the ultimate Jayhawk tailgating machine.
By Scott Rothschild
Kanbulance is the life of the party “You can tell who has never seen it,” Amy Clark said. “They go ‘oh my god’ and fumble for For three years, the crimson their phone to take a picture.” and blue decorated Kanbulance With lights flashing and KU has been the hit at Kansas Uni- fight song blaring, the convertversity football tailgates. ed ambulance joined thousands The emergency vehicle turned Jayhawk mobile has been the backdrop of Christmas cards and admired by fans of opposing teams. It’s been named best tailgate of the week at Memorial Stadium and on ESPN. So last Sunday night when the Kanbulance took a victory lap down Massachusetts Street to celebrate the KU men’s basketball team’s win against North Carolina, its owners were a bit stunned by how much attention it received. “I was surprised by how many people haven’t seen it,” Wes Smith said. “It was pretty fun.” By Christine Metz
cmetz@ljworld.com
of fans downtown to celebrate the KU team’s appearance in the Final Four. “People were taking photos and asking questions, ‘Can I get a picture? Can I sit on the back?’ It was an incredible thing,” Kit-
cha Paranjothi said. Three years ago, the Kanbulance was purchased by four Lawrence families: Wes Smith and his wife, Lisa Leroux-Smith; Kitcha and Adrienne Paranjothi, David and Amy Clark; and Paul and Jana Wallen. The group has nine children among them, ages 8 to 13, and has ties to KU. The families started tailgating the traditional way, out of the back of SUVs. But, the men in the group were looking to expand their tailgating opportunities. Some of them were considering an old school bus. “But then we thought where in the heck can you park a bus?” Paranjothi said. Please see FANS, page 2A
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Amendment would bar court order srothschild@ljworld.com
TOPEKA — Still angry over a past ruling on school finance and facing the possibility of a future one, Republican House leaders on Tuesday took aim at the Kansas Supreme Court by advancing a proposed constitutional amendment that would prohibit the judicial branch from order- LEGISLATURE ing the Legislature to spend money. House Speaker Mike O’Neal, R-Hutchinson, described a 2005 state Supreme Court ruling on school finance as a “rogue decision” that was forcing the Legislature to reassert its authority over government’s purse strings. The Kansas Supreme Please see COURT, page 2A
Job seekers look to career expo for full-time opportunities By Shaun Hittle sdhittle@ljworld.com
Job seekers at Tuesday’s Northeast Kansas Career Expo at the Spring Hill Suites shuffled between about a dozen prospective employers including Garmin, the city of Lawrence and Lawrence Memorial Hospital. The goal for Lawrence resident Gary Singer, who made the rounds handing out resumes, was simple: a permanent, full-time job. “I’m pretty experienced,” said Singer, who simply gave his age as “over 40.” Singer currently has a temporary job with an employment service but was hoping to snag a prized 40-hour-a-week job, or
more. “I’m used to working a lot of overtime.” Singer was one of about three dozen attendees during the lunch hour. Some, such as Lawrence resident Aaron Jones, were finding the job market more difficult than they’d expected. Jones had taken a few years off to take care of her children, but, with a geography degree from Kansas University, she thought things would be a little easier. “I didn’t believe it,” said Jones of all the talk about a tight hiring market. “Until I started applying.” Jones made the rounds as well, but was most interested in the GPS-specialty company Garmin. She spent some time
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chatting with their recruiters, including Glenn Watson. Watson said Garmin was mostly hiring in the customer service department and said he spoke to a wide range of job seekers Tuesday, from the young to the middle-aged, looking for full-time work or internships. “All over the spectrum,” he said. Watson said the mood from job seekers seemed to be changing some, for the good, during the past few months as unemployment numbers tick downward. “People do seem a little more hopeful,” he said.
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JASMINE TURNER, of Lawrence, visits with Lisa Kutait, recruitment manager at Lawrence Memorial Hospital, during Tuesday’s Northeast Kansas Career Expo at the Spring Hill Suites.
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