Lawrence Magazine | winter 2023

The Word on Walker KU scholar Maryemma Graham releases her authoritative biography on Margaret Walker, 20 years in the making

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE Fishing: The Original Simien Sport Non-Gallery Art Galleries (and Why They Matter) Lori Norwood’s Sculptures of Lines and Motion...and more!

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Welcome to the winter 2023 edition of Lawrence Magazine!

Leslie Clugston Andres CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Shirley Braunlich Amber Fraley Michael Pearce Darin M. White

Haines Eason Susan Kraus Nick Spacek

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Fally Afani Brian Goodman Michael Pearce

Jason Dailey Susan Kraus

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I need to begin with a correction. In our previous issue, our feature story on Senator Bob Dole’s legacy and relationship with Lawrence, I entered a wrong date into the story in the final round of editing which moved up the senator’s death by 10 months. Writer Marsha Henry Goff had the correct date of death, December 2021, in the same article, but for some reason her editor and his rogue copy-paste inserted the earlier and incorrect date as well. I suspect and hope that the late senator might be amused—or at least have one of his signature wry remarks at the ready—by a publication in the blue stronghold of Lawrence trying to kill him off early and twice. If you missed the story, then you can still read it (with the wrong date removed but with all the other interviews, commentary and Torren Thomas’ brilliant original illustrations) at our website, sunflowerpub.com.

Two years after Senator Dole’s death, we are about to enter into a year of a campaigning in a new political era marked by the type of division and partisan hostility that he spoke against and that the institute in Lawrence dedicated to his legacy continues to work to overcome. Politics is not the mission of this publication, but in a sense what we do focus on—people, places and events in Lawrence that unite and inspire—is an attempt to speak beyond divisions.

We always strive to bring stories from across the city, about familiar and unfamiliar aspects of Lawrence that we can visit, explore, or simply be proud of.

In this issue, our feature stories focus on a celebrated tradition—the Lawrence Old-Fashioned Christmas Parade—and how one family (whose name is immediately familiar to sports fan) has shared a love of the outdoors and of fishing across generations. We also visit with KU professor and author Maryemma Graham to talk about her biography on American writer and social commentator Margaret Walker, catch up on a new compilation of punk rock music from musician and historian Jon Harrison, stop by a coffee house and a bank to find out why these venues are also an integral part of the city’s art gallery scene, turn to Lawrence author and travel writer Susan Kraus for wise advice on planning an immersive travel experience, and more.

Whatever the holidays and the winter hold in store for you, we hope you are able to enjoy it with loved ones, Nathan Pettengill, friends, and new acquaintances doing what you love most. editor

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what’s inside?

The Word on Walker KU scholar Maryemma Graham releases her authoritative biography on Margaret Walker, 20 years in the making

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE Fishing: The Original Simien Sport Non-Gallery Art Galleries (and Why They Matter) Lori Norwood’s Sculptures of Lines and Motion...and more!

On the Cover

Author, scholar, and University of Kansas distinguished professor Maryemma Graham Photograph by Brian Goodman

features

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36 Catch it Like a Simien

10 Sharing the Stage

To some, they are a basketball family … but long before and after that, there has always been fishing

44 30 Years of Holiday Horses

Lawrence Old-Fashioned Christmas Parade Celebrates 30 Years

Lawrence musician/promoters bring together bands in person and in one amazing anthology

14

The House Where My Soul Lives

KU scholar Maryemma Graham releases biography of Margaret Walker, the highly influential Black author whose ideas continue to have ‘currency for our time.’

18 Life & Lines

The career and compositions of sculptor Lori Norwood

23

Lawrencium: Help for Families

Happy Holidays with the Ballard Center and Just Food

places

26 Immersion Travel

How to spend a month in Boquete, Panama—or anywhere—and get the most out of it

30 Alternative Galleries They are walls in banks, coffee shops, theaters, and other spaces—but they, too, play a vital role in the city’s art scene

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contributors

Fally Afani photographer

Jason Dailey photographer The former head photographer of Lawrence Magazine and Sunflower Publishing, Jason Dailey now runs an independent commercial and portrait studio in Lawrence. You can see more of his still and video images at daileyimages.com.

Michael Pearce Writer & photographer Michael Pearce is one of the region’s foremost journalists on outdoor recreation, ranching, and conservation. His work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal and numerous other publications.

His coverage of the 2017 Starbuck Fire in Clark County, Kansas, received international acclaim and was read on the floor of the U.S. Congress.

Amber Fraley writer A writer, mom and wife, Amber Fraley earned an English degree from the University of Kansas. She has a background in journalism, loves Lawrence and is a giant doofus (if you ask her daughter). She has recently released a collection of humorous essays about life in Lawrence and the Sunflower State, Kansas GenExistential.

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Fally Afani has received several Kansas Association of Broadcasters awards as well as an Edward R. Murrow award for her online work in over 20 years of journalism. She is also a recipient of the Rocket Grant Award, which she used to help develop live music events in Lawrence.

Susan Kraus writer Susan Kraus is an awardwinning travel writer and the author of the Grace McDonald book series that combines mystery and current social issues through the lens of a practicing therapist.

Brian Goodman Photographer Brian Goodman runs his editorial, landscape and stock-art photography studio in Lawrence. His work for Lawrence Magazine and Sunflower Publishing has won several regional editorial and photography awards.

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lawrence magazine winter 2023

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S T O R Y B Y Nick Spacek

sounds

Sharing the Stage Lawrence musician/promoters bring together bands in person and in one amazing anthology

OPPOSITE Jon Harrison sits in front of some of the recordings that went into his compilation of North American punk music, Blank Generation.

Living in the Aftershocks There’s a lot of reasons you might know Lawrence musician, writer, teacher, and all-around nice guy Jon Harrison. It could be through his many music groups over the years such as the Wilmas, the What Gives, or the Harrisonics, his former blog Little Hits, or his monthly music trivia nights at Lucia.

In all that he does, Harrison consistently brings a sense of historical perspective to his endeavors. He wrote the extensive liner notes for the 2020 compilation Strum & Thrum: The American Jangle Underground 1983–1987 on the Captured Tracks label. More recently, the musician has been applying his scholarly bent to compiling and curating his own collection, which released this fall via UK indie Cherry Red Records.

Blank Generation: A Story Of US/Canadian Punk & Its Aftershocks 1975–1981 is five compact discs bringing an overview of early North American punk music with a curated feel.

“At first, I pictured it like five mix tapes,” Harrison explains. “That’s why there are some tracks on the set, purposefully, that are punk bands and they have punk provenance but the tracks are not, ‘1234 go!’ kind of stuff. I included a few more of those than perhaps some people would like, but I also wanted it to have a mixtape sense of pacing, and I wanted to have some opportunities to catch your breath in the mix.”

Any anthology will also depend on the songs the creator receives permission to include. Harrison

P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y Fally Afani

was able to land some very vital and well-known cornerstones of the genre, sometimes with a bit of luck.

“For some reason, I had it in my head that we just absolutely were not going to be able to get Minor Threat,” Harrison notes. “In terms of exposure of their brand, we could offer Minor Threat nothing. But I think Ian [Mackaye, the band’s founder and frontman] liked the track list was what it came down to. He’s like, ‘Yeah, this looks great.’”

For as many tracks that have been longtime favorites of Harrison and ones that exist in the pantheon of underground music obsessives, such as Dead Kennedys’ “Holiday in Cambodia” or the Ramones’ “Rockaway Beach,” even streaming services managed to offer up something new and unique to the longtime music fanatic. While listening to Spotify one day, Harrison heard a track that became a must-include for Blank Generation.

“It turned up on one of my Spotify weeklies and it’s ‘Kate,’ by Chandra Oppenheim,” Harrison explains.

Chandra Oppenheim is the daughter of a New York City art teacher who was in with the punk underground scene and often hosted musicians at his house.

When she was 12, Oppenheim wrote a few songs, including “Kate,” that ended up being released on an EP, Transportation, in 1980. “I got to know her story by contacting her about this track. We got to talking about it and she’s like, ‘I don’t remember too much about exactly when that record came out, but I do know I wrote it while I was waiting for my pediatrician.’”

As Harrison puts it, the song itself isn’t punk by orthodoxy—it’s perhaps more no wave and electronic—but it is just one of the most terrifying, nasty, spiteful things you’ll ever hear. And there’s this real sinister electro backing to it.

“Every time I hear it, I’m just like, ‘Geez, what a brilliant record,’” muses Harrison. “Little stories like that sometimes happen, but that one’s my favorite.”

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Hearing Harrison wax rhapsodic like this on just one track makes you realize how much he must have had to cut down in order to fit the limit of approximately 80 words to summarize each band and song within the liner notes. And he did this for each of the 130 tracks.

“It gives you limited room to embarrass yourself, kind of,” jokes Harrison. “I very occasionally lapsed into editorializing, but mostly I just tried to find something interesting about the track because, on the one hand, you know, you can summarize Get Smart!’s career in 80 words, but talking about the Ramones?”

He shrugs and admits that the result is a patchwork of approaches.

“Maybe I talked about the song in particular, maybe I talked about the album that the song came from,” Harrison acknowledges. “It was challenging.”

But it comes back to the music, and Blank Generation is a joy to hear. Compact discs might be déclassé, but the act of putting one of these CDs in the stereo and letting these songs play out feels as though one of your coolest friends is giving you a crash course in music you didn’t know you needed.

“I think it’s a great listen,” Harrison concludes. “You put that track list in front of them—are you going to tell me you don’t want to listen to this? I know it’s not perfect.

The liner notes are a little goofy. The packaging is a little cheesy. But man, do you not want to listen to this?”

“We just threw shows, you know?“ – shane 13 –

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lawrence magazine winter 2023

Getting to Boom!

Musician Shane 13 promoted his first show by accident. This was back in 1990, the heyday of Lawrence punk music venue the Outhouse, where Shane 13 had just finished a show.

“This van pulls up and they’re like, ‘Is this the Outhouse?’” Shane 13 recalls. “I’m like, ‘Yeah, all the bands played, who are you?’ and this guy goes, ‘We’re the Dickies.’”

Even in 1990, California pogo punks the Dickies were still a big deal, so even at 3 a.m., Shane 13 was willing to scramble to put together a bill so the band could play the following night. “I asked like one or two people and it was like, ‘Yeah, go for it,’ so we threw like a little impromptu Dickies show. It was the first thing I ever did.”

That night was the beginning of a dual path for Shane 13—as a musician and a promoter.

As a guitarist, Shane 13 would go on to play in punk band Slackjaw and metal act Truth Cell; he is currently the mastermind behind the space-age doom band They Watch Us from the Moon. When he’s playing on stage, Shane 13 books and promotes shows as Harvest of Doom.

He says his experience as a musician provided him a basis for what it took to organize events.

“We just threw shows, you know?” the musician and promoter says.

As his bands played shows at places like the Hideaway and the Replay, Shane 13 developed contacts to help put on other shows.

“Networking is the key to booking anywhere, for sure,” Shane 13 explains. “In my early days, in the ’90s, there wasn’t but one venue per town, typically, and once you knew the dude, you knew the town.”

That connection between bands and promoters, where the person booking the show is wanting to provide a literal stage from which acts can take off, is Shane 13’s model for Harvest of Doom. While he focuses on punk, metal, and heavy rock ’n’ roll, he says he believes helping one sector of music will benefit all local musicians.

“My big goal with this is to book as many local bands as possible,” he states. “I sought out booking agents that could send us mid-tier, 250–300 drawing or capacity bands, and I told them, ‘You can send me as many people as you want on a package, but there’s going to be one local band on the bill.’”

Shane 13 doesn’t see this as a handout to local bands. If anything, he believes both national and local bands benefit from sharing a stage.

“I need one boots-on-the-ground band to do stuff for your band who doesn’t live here,” he explains. “I’m also trying to use those national acts as an example: ‘See, you could do this, too. All you gotta do is XYZ.’” Shane 13 says his ultimate goal is to see the Lawrence heavy music scene go “Boom!” and take Lawrence with it. As he puts it, the more bands get attention, the more the city of Lawrence gets attention for those bands, and thus, more bands start because they can get attention.

“As long as you just keep moving forward with stuff, everything just works out,” Shane 13 says. “There’s a lot of moving parts. You just can’t turn around and make that happen. It took some work, but it’s kind of a labor of love. I don’t mind doing it.”

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smorgasbord

P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y Brian Goodman and Fally Afani

bookmarks

The House Where My Soul Lives KU scholar Maryemma Graham releases biography of Margaret Walker, the highly influential Black author whose ideas continue to have ‘currency for our time.’

M

OPPOSITE Maryemma Graham, founder of the History of Black Writing and distinguished professor at the University of Kansas, released an authoritative biography of Margaret Walker.

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aryemma Graham, a distinguished professor of English at the University of Kansas, spent 20 years creating an exhaustive and authoritative biography of literary trailblazer Margaret Walker.

The House Where My Soul Lives: The Life of Margaret Walker (Oxford University Press, 2022) follows the life and writing career of one of the century’s most complex and prolific American authors, starting at age 10 with Walker’s early poems and extensive journaling.

Walker was born in Alabama in 1915 and graduated from Northwestern University in the early 1930s. She won acclaim in 1937 for her provocative poem “For My People,” which became the title of her 1942 poetry collection, which won her the Yale Series of Younger Poets Award.

Among Walker’s close friends were artist Elizabeth Catlett, as well as actors Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis. She worked with literary greats such as Richard Wright and Langston Hughes, whom she looked to as the “dean of Black literature.”

A teacher, professor and researcher, Walker released her novel Jubilee in 1966. The story depicts American life during Reconstruction following the Civil War, gender relations, and Margaret Walker’s family history. It became the literary predecessor to novels such as Beloved

by Toni Morrison.

Walker’s influence on American literature and Black cultural thought is strangely at odds with her comparatively low recognition in modern culture. Nikki Giovanni has said Margaret Walker is the most famous person nobody knows.

Graham’s biography seeks to recover Walker’s legacy in an engaging narrative by a supremely qualified authority. In 1983, while at the University of Mississippi, Graham founded the History of Black Writing (HBW), an interactive archive for Black literature. When she came

lawrence magazine winter 2023

to KU in 1998, she brought HBW and continued her research.

The House Where My Soul Lives places Walker’s life in the context of the New Negro Renaissance, a literary and social movement with several centers, including New York, Chicago, and the South. The accessible biography reflects deeply on the challenges faced particularly by Black women writers of Margaret Walker’s era. It includes both brief contextual notes of the events and politics and more than 80 rare photographs.

The House Where My Soul Lives also suggests Walker’s fame faded primarily because of her unflinching determination to claim ownership of her own ideas and writing. In particular, Walker brought legal challenges against Alex Haley, the author of Roots: The Saga of an American Family, which would be turned into a monumental television miniseries, on the grounds that Haley plagiarized Jubilee.

Graham says Walker was “among the most welleducated women of her time” and was highly sought as a speaker on a range of issues. Walker’s breadth of political savvy and opinions on culture and policy revealed humanist ideas that Graham notes “have currency for our time,” including warnings about fascism and bigotry in the United States that are “shockingly familiar.”

While Walker’s literary legacy faded somewhat in the years leading up to her death in 1998, she created organizations that continue to pursue work she valued.

In 1968, Walker founded the Institute for the Study of the History, Life, and Culture of Black People at Jackson State University in Mississippi; it was later renamed in her honor. She also launched the first Phillis Wheatley Festival in 1973, which brought together Audre Lorde, June Jordan, Alice Walker, Sonia Sanchez, Lucille Clifton, Paula Giddings, Nikki Giovanni, and many more.

Margaret Walker faced violent racism in the deep South but, in part, confronted bigotry on her own terms.

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“Notably, she elected to go back and spend her entire life in the South, with visits to Chicago on a regular basis,” Graham says of Walker. “She was comfortable in the South’s values and its culture.

She preferred the directness of Southern racism to the pretentiousness of Northern racism—you know your enemy and you know how to identify the enemies of your enemy.”

Insights such as this—along with extensive research, interviews, personal conversations with Walker, and inclusion of previously unpublished material—have won Graham’s biography of Walker widespread acclaim. The National Humanities Center, for example, described the biography as “required reading for all readers of biographies of American writers.”

Graham agreed to talk with Lawrence Magazine about her process and developments since the book’s release.

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Lawrence Magazine (LM): Have you come upon any discoveries or surprises during your presentations about this new biography?

Maryemma Graham (MG): How those who claimed to be feminists dropped out of sight at the very moment when Walker was being slammed by the press for her boldness in suing Haley. Oddly, why all that happened to Walker did not help her to understand the relationship between sexism and racism. Her understanding of Marxism helped her to see corporate greed, but she was still naive.

She was an eternal optimist, but believed that some people were just flawed individuals [while] most, however, given the right conditions, display their humanity in time.

LM: In addition to Margaret Walker, who are your heroes?

MG: Anyone who fights injustice without expectation of a reward.

America’s teachers today in inner city schools who remain on the job. Librarians who believe that books matter, giving knowledge and freedom.

LM: Are there local Black literary figures from Lawrence or Kansas lost to obscurity, yet deserving recognition?

MG: A number of people migrated away from Kansas and are slowly being identified: filmmaker Oscar Michaux, actress Hattie McDaniel (who starred in Gone with the Wind), Frank Marshall Davis. Better known are poet Gwendolyn Brooks and artist Aaron Douglas (both born in Topeka). We have to dig into the History of Black Writing database to find others.

LM: What attracted you to come teach at KU? MG: I was recruited to KU by the late chancellor Robert Hemenway and the late professor of microbiology Robert Sanders.

LM: Are there people or places in Lawrence that have helped you to feel rooted here and hold fond memories or stories?

MG: Too many to name. There is a peacefulness and accessibility that I appreciate about Lawrence.

LM: Would you describe your next project?

MG: Sister and Other Stories from Pine Country, a collection of Southernbased short stories from the Gullah-Geechee region; fictionalized family narratives.

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short takes The Jayhawk

Bluebirds to Tikal David Michael Hann began writing decades ago by recording vivid stories from family members; now his endeavor has returned anew in Bluebirds to Tikal: Stories of Fun, Fear & Folly (Anamcara Press, 2023). Bluebirds to Tikal chronicles true tales from family and friends, with several accounts coming from Hann’s service in the Marine Corps, offering thoughtful tribute to fellow enlisted marines who didn’t survive the Vietnam War. The opening section features travel, including the title story, which narrates a family trip to Guatemala with David, his wife Rose, and daughters Sarah and Rachel. Hann’s previous books, such as The Jayhawker Cleveland: Phantom Horseman of the Prairie (Anamcara Press, 2021), often feature historical elements.

His current project covers the life of his great-grandfather John Fuller, who rode with the Shiner Brothers as a cowboy in Texas after the Civil War before settling in western Kansas.

FROM LEFT David Hann (photograph by Brian Goodman), cover of Rebecca Ozier Schulte’s The Jayhawk, and Robert Fraga (photograph by Fally Afani).

Rebecca Ozier Schulte, former University of Kansas archivist, releases what is perhaps the most authoritative visual history of the school’s favorite bird in The Jayhawk: The Story of the University of Kansas’s Beloved Mascot (University of Kansas Press, 2023).

Drawing on the university’s official collections and images, Schulte chronicles the rise of the Jayhawk from a Civil War rallying cry to the highly merchandised and recognized face of KU. Even those familiar with the traditions of KU are likely to find new material and facts, such as the bird’s gradual displacement of the university’s previous bulldog mascot, hundreds of unofficial reimaginings beyond the university’s sanctioned six versions, the relative freewheeling use of the mascot’s image by various businesses in the first half of the 20th century, and Jayhawk’s early rivalry with his mascot nemesis Jinx. “Trying to imagine the University of Kansas or indeed the city of Lawrence without the Jayhawk is difficult to do—almost as difficult as separating the heart from the body,” Schulte writes. “Perhaps that is a bit dramatic, but KU certainly includes the Jayhawk in almost everything it does.

There will always be someone to take up the challenge of creating a new Jayhawk to be added to the mascot’s more than onehundred-year history.”

A Parade of Grief Robert Fraga is a difficult writer to define, but a rewarding one to read. A retired mathematics professor who taught extensively on international campuses at Beirut and Cairo, Fraga has released books that tackle large themes and complex issues.

His Greening of Oz: Sustainable Architecture in the Wake of a Tornado (Wasteland Press, 2012) chronicled the visionary recovery—and limitations of planning—after a tornado leveled Greensburg, Kansas, in 2007. Fraga’s Road through San Judas (PM Press, 2019) was an innovative, fictionalized documentary of the struggles of working communities near the Mexico-America border, and of the interactions between a popular liberationtheology priest, powerful family interests, and criminal forces. Now, in A Parade of Grief: Gun Violence in America (Anamcara Press, 2023) Fraga surveys the staggering regularity of gun deaths in the United States, beginning with a detailed account of a senseless and all-too-ordinary random shooting at a rest stop in Wisconsin, and how the incident affected the victim, the shooter, and their families. Fraga approaches the issue of gun violence from a local perspective, revisiting the 2017 shooting in downtown Lawrence, and from an international perspective, which leads him to explore the question of why the American political, legal, and banking systems insist on preserving laws, procedures, and culture that have woven fear, grief, and loss into the fabric of daily life.

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S T O R Y B Y Darin White

gallery

Life & Lines The career and compositions of sculptor Lori Norwood

OPPOSITE Lori Norwood works on one of her latest sculptures at a foundry in Lawrence.

ABOVE After retiring as a world-class competitive athlete in Texas and beginning work as an artist, Norwood moved to Lawrence in 2007.

P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y Jason Dailey

S

culptor Lori Norwood grew up in whichever town or base the Army chose for her father and his family.

“We moved a lot,” she explains. Born in Panama during the 1964 anti-American uprisings, she spent her childhood in many US cities and bases, as well as in Italy, Thailand, and, most formatively, Brazil.

She lived in Brasília for three years, a comparatively long time for her family’s deployments. Here, she attended middle school, spoke fluent Portuguese and was very invested in her life.

“It’s where I started most of the pursuits I became most passionate about,” Norwood recalls.

“When I returned to the US, I was out of step with my own culture.”

But wherever she was, Norwood had an interest in art and found encouragement from teachers. At age 10 she had her first formal training at a small art school in LA. In high school, now in North Carolina, Norwood concentrated on art after being selected to attend the prestigious Governor’s School. This was where she created her first sculpture, met working artists, and realized that art could be a profession.

Looking back on that time, Norwood said the encouragement and the development of her skills went hand in hand.

“Whether I developed an interest in art, then gained skill through practice, or art was something I was innately good at and liked because I got a lot of kudos for it as a kid, is a chicken or egg question,” she says.

“Likely there was some of both at play in my formative years. Certainly, I responded to materials and the world around me long before I had any notion of art history or context. I found making art to be deeply satisfying.”

“Mammals in motion are my favorite subject and inspire countless iterations of potential works. … Organic life paired with grids is a motif I love to play with.”

– Lori Norwood – She chose the University of Texas at Austin for college, where she also developed an entire career as a pentathlete. In fact, if you look up her name online, she is most readily recognized as a world-class athlete and gold medalist in the 1989 World Modern Pentathlon Championship.

But she was also always an artist. Going on to receive her BFA at University of Texas at Austin, Norwood focused on classical art and concluded with intensive condensed studies in Italy for studio practice, art history and stone cutting.

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Formally retired from pentathlon competitions, Norwood continued to race and complete sculptures in the 1990s and early 2000s. Her first job in art, at an event company where she carved a variety of types and sizes of foam sculptures, allowed access to excellent equipment and processes, provided great training and encouraged her to work quickly. She also joined the National Sculpture Society, a professional arts organization that has promoted the craft and supported artists for more than 125 years, and received several commissions across the United States.

Arriving in Lawrence in 2007, Norwood continued to expand her skills, auditing a sculpture class at the University of Kansas from John Hachmeister, which she described as an event that “reenergized” her and introduced her to “the wealth” of nationalcaliber artists living in and around Lawrence.

“You won’t find all of them showing their work locally,” Norwood notes. “Lawrence is a small city, after all, but they are here, and I have formed friendships that I cherish.”

In her many years creating sculptures, Norwood has built her reputation on classical work, commissions, public art projects, and other types. She often works with welded steel and uses the lost wax process of cast bronze (which was championed by the late Lawrence sculptor Elden Tefft).

Perhaps unsurprising, Norwood excels at sculpting athletes, but her themes are wide-ranging and combine distinctive sense of motion and underlying structure.

“Mammals in motion are my favorite subject and inspire countless iterations of potential works. … Organic life paired with grids is a motif I love to play with,” Norwood says in describing her approach. “I am inspired by the natural world around me, of course, and by underlying structural lines in contrast to surface and volume—think trees in winter versus summer. I love trusses and bridges—things that exist as pure structure and lines.”

When working with people, Norwood incorporates life drawing as a fundamental process and base for her sculptures. She calls her sketching “3D drawing,” a combination of gesture drawing and armature building that merged during her college years and that allows her to study the form and personality of her subject.

“The interaction with other people in the process of ‘finding’ the character of the person I am portraying has been a great joy,” Norwood notes. “I find that I do love problem-solving—which is good because there is a lot of that in sculpture.”

For any problem she does encounter, Norwood brings a sense of purpose and discipline to her work. Her studio time begins with a morning routine, where she settles into work by cleaning or drawing on a chalkboard before picking up her current project.

Currently, she is experimenting with new methods and materials, including bamboo and eco resins, as she continues to expand her already acclaimed body of work.

For Norwood, the process of creating continues to capture her imagination and talent.

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lawrencium

Lawrencium Happy Holidays with the Ballard Center and Just Food

Each holiday season, local organizations such as the Ballard Center and Just Food provide much needed food and gifts to local residents. Here’s the breakdown of the number of people who will benefit and the amount of donations it takes to make the holidays happen.

BALLARD CENTER Number of families the Ballard Center will sponsor through the Holiday Bureau this year

Cost to sponsor a family

Number of individuals (mostly kids)

$150

to

Average sponsorship cost per individual

4-person family

150 to 200

$75

2-person family

$300

700 900

Most asked-for items Children—toys & clothing Adults—bedding, clothing, cleaning supplies

“The Holiday Bureau at Ballard is all about building trust with families that could benefit from our other family stabilization services,” explains Ballard CEO Kyle Roggenkamp. “Donors participating in this amazing program are giving families hope that their community believes in them, believes in their right to have an enjoyable holiday season with their children, no matter their current struggles.

That hope and belief build trust between Ballard and the most vulnerable in our community. That trust allows us to work with them on plans for future stability.

We are so grateful this community is dedicated to helping Ballard build that trust so that we can make some real magic happen in the coming months.”

lawrence magazine winter 2023

23

smorgasbord lawrencium

JUST FOOD Number of Thanksgiving meals Just Food will provide

1,335 Number of individuals those meals will feed

3,802 Pounds of food that equals

29,000

Amount Just Food must raise to provide meals for the holiday season

$100,000

“For every $1.28 donated, Just Food can purchase 1 pound of food for the Just Food pantry and Douglas County residents,” explains Charles Shively, community access manager.

The donated food distributed for holiday meals is collected through food drives, donated by area restaurants and grocery stores, and provided by local farmers and gardeners.

Number of winter holiday meals Just Food will provide

1,159

Number of individuals those meals will feed

3,191

Pounds of food that equals

25,000

Pounds of donated food Just Food must collect for the holiday season

140,000

Including regular food pantry visits, Just Food expects to distribute a total of 170,000 pounds of food over the entire holiday season. Each Thanksgiving and winter holiday meal comes with a turkey, chicken, or vegetarian shepherd’s pie. All numbers in this section are approximate or rounded.

24

lawrence magazine winter 2023

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the places around lawrence

26

lawrence magazine winter 2023

ABOVE Hiking in and around Boquete allows you to discover gorgeous, natural scenes such as this park.

OPPOSITE This is one of the many beaches on the uninhabited islands in the Gulf of Chiriqui.

the places

S T O R Y A N D P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y Susan Kraus

around lawrence

Immersion Travel

I

How to spend a month in Boquete, Panama—or anywhere—and get the most out of it

t’s 4 p.m. at Casa Vieja restaurant in Boquete, Panama, and the weekly Wednesday drumming circle is warming up. About 20 women and men, most appearing to be over 60, bring out their drums, maracas and tambourines. They set aside extras for newbies or drop-ins, which allows me to pick a colorful drum and take a seat. An hour passes quickly, a mix of drumming therapy and pure kid-like fun.

The drum circle wasn’t on any must-do tourism list, but it was one of the moments that provided immense delight and came about because we set aside time to allow it to happen.

My husband and I booked a month in an Airbnb just three blocks from downtown Boquete. We had been fans of ‘slow travel’ for several years, but this was to be different.

This was immersion.

Immersion is not just travel at a slower pace. It’s about experiencing day-to-day life in a destination.

What would it be like to actually live here, even if part-time? What makes people want to return? Would language be a barrier? Would we be lonely or bored?

What would we miss?

Preparing for immersion requires a different angle on Google. Instead of searching “Top Ten Things to Do In …,” try searching whatever interests you, plus the name of the destination, and see what turns up. I found an expat Facebook group and inquired about bocce. A reply that same day gave us days and times. We asked

about live music and were directed to a music calendar site—and to the drumming circle. We learned about the Tuesday morning farmers market, a mix of veggies, organic anything, baked goods, local crafts, and even a back corner of bookcases stuffed with used books in English for $1 each. We heard about dancing at Mike’s Global Grill, jazz at The Rock, blues at Boquete Brewing.

None of these would probably qualify as tourism spots—but all of them were highlights and attractions of the daily life in Boquete.

Boquete Basics Boquete is a mountain town in eastern Panama, about 40 miles from the border with Costa Rica. At an elevation of approximately 4,000 ft. and close to the equator, it has a dreamy climate: average lows in the 60s, average highs in the 80s. Many houses have ceiling fans, but not AC or heat. There are two seasons: dry and rainy. With global warming, the rainy season is a lot less rainy, and water is a concern as coffee plantations cover surrounding mountains, their crops fine-tuned to an essential balance of rain and sun.

The extinct Volcán Barú, at 11,400 ft., is the scenic backdrop for the entire city. The Ngäbe and Búgle tribes have lived in these mountains for centuries, and their “comarca” (reservation) borders Boquete’s province of Chiriquí. Petroglyphs from the area’s early civilizations exist, but not in a museum. Instead, you hike to the field or cave where they were created.

lawrence magazine winter 2023

27

the places around lawrence

Boquete does not have a picture-perfect downtown.

Narrow sidewalks buckle and disappear in parts. There’s a central plaza with lovely fountains and seating, but no compelling architecture. Rather than growing brick by brick over centuries, Boquete mushroomed in a few decades. It feels more frontier, like Alaska.

Overall, the Boquete district (think county) has some 24,000 people, and 5,000 of them are expats.

The expat community is a fairly recent development. Boquete was a word-of-mouth destination until AARP included it in “Top Places to Retire” ratings in 2010. During Covid, Boquete was often cited as a good place for remote work. Just last January, the New York Times included it in “52 Places to Go in 2023.” All of the above have contributed to a significant increase in the cost of rentals, land and houses. Despite its recent popularity among Americans, it’s still a bargain on many fronts.

Activities Boquete is lush, green, and beautiful. Perfect for outdoor adventure, the region attracts a large contingent of active European and American tourists for whitewater rafting, hiking, mountain climbing, ziplining, trail riding, birding, fishing, and ATV touring.

This tourism has also brought a plethora of creative chefs and restaurants to Boquete. Restaurants range from upscale continental to local Panamanian staples (the latter with complete meals for about $7). Most meals, with drinks, cost about 40–50% less than here.

All day, every day, feels like happy hour.

We rented a car to explore more of Chiriquí. Boca Chica, a tiny town on the Pacific, just 75 minutes from Boquete, is a launch point for a national marine park, with protected coral reefs, in the Gulf of Chiriquí. We did a six-hour whale-watching and island-hopping tour on a small boat with just eight people. We saw whales (well, fins and humps), swam off pristine beaches on uninhabited tiny islands, and had a picnic under coconut trees. The tour included snorkel equipment, towels, a beer and water each, and a Panamanian to-go lunch: rice, beans and chicken wrapped in a banana leaf. All of the above for $40 each. (Check out Panamanian travel agency Step-by-Step Travel for other deals.)

We also spent a night at Las Lajas Beach Resort.

With only 14 rooms, the resort includes a pool, excellent open-air restaurant and bar, and space for lounge chairs under palapas overlooking the beach.

There were miles of beach and, for now, very little development. Just palm trees, woods, sand and ocean.

28

lawrence magazine winter 2023

Boquete is lush, green and beautiful. Perfect for outdoor adventures ...

Another day we drove over twisting mountain roads, through towns so small that dogs napped in the streets, to see Cerro Punta and Guadalupe, where crops grow on almost vertical slopes. By the way, the town doesn’t have Ubers because everyone uses local taxis with no set rates (yet everyone knows what to offer).

And the only car rental, Cowboy Cars, is off a gravel road south of town and only accepts cash.

We took a $4 taxi ride, however, for the short trip to one of our favorite outings, the coffee plantation tour at Finca Dos Jefes. There are large, corporate producers, but their tours focus on beans. Finca Dos Jefes is more holistic. Here, we learned not just about coffee farming and production, but about Indigenous culture, coffee myths and facts, and what mainstream coffee companies don’t advertise. We tasted different coffee as if it were wine.

How Did the Immersion Work Out? Immersion was, for us, what we did when we weren’t being tourists. It was the bulk of our stay, waking up

ABOVE Boarding options around Boquete include Selina, a new chain directed at remote workers and more immersive travelers.

OPPOSITE Boquete’s highland climate means it is slightly cooler than other areas of Panama—but still much milder than a Lawrence winter.

the places around lawrence

every day in a welcoming climate and culture, sitting on our patio with our morning coffee as clouds drifted over mountains and settled into the valley. The ever-present gurgle of a stream at the base of the garden. Fifteen-foot hibiscus. A cacophony of distinct bird calls. Practicing Spanish every day. Inhaling pure air.

We ate out a lot because there are so many good restaurants, and we could afford them. We walked everywhere because we could. My husband had some dental work and it cost a third what it would have at home. I got a library card when I discovered the local library had rows of shelves with books in English.

Immersion was a different travel experience.

We began to feel connected. People were friendly.

Restaurant and grocery store staff recognized us. We were greeted with waves when out walking. We liked learning to navigate this place where almost no streets have signage and helping confused tourists. We were surprised by how much the weather affected our mood.

We’re not moving to Boquete, not now. But we’ll return, for a month here and there, probably when Kansas is cold and icy or scorching hot and humid.

And when we get older, can’t travel anymore, and just want to have a patio that faces the mountains, a sky that dances, and taste the mist of approaching rain, we might have a place waiting for us.

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the places

S T O R Y B Y Darin White

around lawrence

P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y Jason Dailey

Alternative Galleries They are walls in banks, coffee shops, theaters, and other spaces—but they, too, play a vital role in the city’s art scene

P

since the late 1960s, she is probably best known to lacing a work of art within a traditional Lawrencians for her dancing red figure outside the white box gallery—on a pedestal or Lawrence Arts Center and her Bloom sculpture outside wall, unencumbered by any other visual the Lied Center. The City of Lawrence has also distraction—is like looking at an object with commissioned her for sister-city sculptures donated to the “remove background” feature on in an app Hiratsuka, Japan, and to Eutin, Germany. or graphic design program. The stark, clean view of the Printer, photographer, and collage artist Janet object—and the object alone—is the ideal presentation Satz has been in Lawrence of art for art’s sake. It’s like hearing the mezzo soprano’s “Every artist has a couple since 1989 and is known for landscapes of design, urban perfect note held alone in goals in mind: for the noir scenes, environmental perfect isolation. commentary, and bold strokes But a recent exhibition work to be seen and of colors creating interlocked

by Jan Gaumnitz and Janet [purchased]. Every artist scenes of energy and Satz reminds us that original, movement. exciting creations should be needs to pay bills.”

Both artists have exhibited part of the landscape of our – Jan Gaumnitz – and continue to be shown in daily life. They can be, thanks galleries across the nation, but to a few non-gallery venues Gaumnitz says showing at an alternative venue such around town that regularly host curated and selective as Landmark Bank has advantages. By its nature, the art shows. bank will draw in people—regular customers—who Gaumnitz and Satz’s exhibition runs until the end might not otherwise attend her show at an art gallery. of December at Landmark National Bank, 4621 W. 6th This allows the artist to reach potential new patrons.

Street. It is a powerhouse showing from two of the city’s “Every artist has a couple goals in mind: for the most accomplished artists. work to be seen and [purchased],” Gaumnitz notes.

Gaumnitz creates paintings, photographs, prints “Every artist needs to pay bills.” and sculptures. A leading figure in the local art scene

OPPOSITE Jan Gaumnitz and Janet Satz view their exhibition at Landmark National Bank.

lawrence magazine winter 2023

31

The bank also provides elements of traditional gallery support to the exhibiting artists.

“They are very good to work with,” Gaumnitz says of Landmark. “They pay for the design, printing, and mailing of the promotional postcards and providing food for a reception. It’s a very nice space to exhibit.”

To other artists interested in showing at the bank, she says, “I would certainly recommend it.”

There are many places around Lawrence serving as nontraditional galleries, some that are well known, particularly in the Downtown region. These include Wheatfield’s Bakery, Lawrence Public Library, the Bourgeois Pig, La Prima Taza, Grounded Coffee and other coffee shops. Other venues, such as eXplore Lawrence visitors center on Massachusetts Street, have small sections dedicated to exhibiting work as well. In addition to spaces in the Downtown and East

32

lawrence magazine winter 2023

Warehouse Arts District, Theater Lawrence and S & S Artisan Coffee Shop (near Iowa and 23rd Street) both offer exhibit space. Unmistakably Lawrence has a partial list of venues that display work for Final Fridays on their website.

Artist, curator and art coordinator, Molly Murphy says that she found alternative spaces to show her work when she started out as an artist. She has shown with collectives such as LOLA (Lovers of Lawrence Artwork), which hosts pop-up locations around Lawrence. She has also shown her work with different groups at coffee shops, bars, retail spaces and more. Since she began curating, she estimates she has coordinated more than 200 shows in Lawrence.

One alternative venue that Murphy has coordinated for 12 years is the Bourgeois Pig. Murphy says the beauty of “The Pig” as an art venue is that it

ABOVE Janet Satz (left) and Jan Gaumnitz are two of the city’s distinguished artists who have exhibited at nontraditional galleries.

lawrence magazine winter 2023

33

can lean into smaller works more easily shown in an intimate setting. As an example, Murphy points to a show by ceramicist Kim Brooks. She brought in raw porcelain flowers with gold glaze in the center that were suspended from the rafters so they fell at different heights. The work was to commemorate the victims of school shootings.

“It was stunning and impactful in that space,” Murphy says.

She says a place that’s a part of Lawrence’s history and daily life like The Pig can reach more people than a traditional show and can interrupt the visual field of customers. That disruption “was very appropriate” for this theme, Murphy notes.

Murphy has also shown at Landmark National Bank, in a two-person show along with painter Clare Doveton in 2013.

Murphy says that Brad Chindamo, Landmark’s executive vice president (who was a credit risk manager at the time of the show), has been a big supporter of the arts and artists. Their team has brought in groups such as Leadership Lawrence to talk about supporting artists.

The bank’s unique space, originally built as Corner Bank, lends itself to showing artwork in a grand setting.

The high, multistory space is set on a diagonal clad in glass with aluminum frames. There is a lot of space for artwork, so senior vice president Tim Metz recommends that artists show at least in pairs or small groups.

The bank is always looking for new Douglas County and Jefferson County artists to exhibit work and currently has a 5-quarter list of shows on the calendar. Mertz, Rachael Meyer and Lindsay Brewer are all part of the current Landmark National Bank team helping to schedule artists for the space, which is now titled Gallery 4621—a reference to the numbers of the physical address at 4621 W 6th Street.

Of course, no matter how strong the venue or how many viewers it brings, some things will always be left to the artist—even beyond creating the work.

“You should do your own promotion,” advises Gaumnitz, whose personal, hand-written invitations to the opening of her latest Landmark exhibition led to these conversations.

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Like a Simien catch it

To some, they are a basketball family … but long before and after that, there has always been fishing

lawrence magazine winter 2023

37

If you’ve spent much time around local waters, you’ve probably seen the three brothers fishing together.

They’re now ages 8 to 13, but they’ve been avidly angling since they were big enough to hold a fishing rod.

And if you know fishing, you’ll recognize the boys are accomplished anglers, as they launch long, accurate casts, catch fish when others are not, and tie on lures faster than most youth tie their shoes. If their older sisters show up, it’s obvious they’ve fished a lot, too, as has their mother.

Now, if you also happen to know Jayhawk basketball, you’ll recognize one of the two men usually with the boys is Wayne Simien Jr. Twenty years ago, he was #23, one of Kansas’ best-ever big men.

Before and after his career as a consensus All-American basketball player at the University of Kansas and then as an NBA world champion, Simien has been dedicated to fishing.

He says some of his happiest times these days are passing his love for the sport along to his five children, like his father, Wayne Simien Sr., passed it along to him.

“Man, it’s like fishing is in our DNA,” says the younger Simien. “We’ve had fishermen in my family for generations, who keep passing it along.

My dad grew up fishing with his dad, and I grew up fishing with him.”

38

lawrence magazine winter 2023

Katie, during his NBA days with the Miami Heat. She, too, had grown Wayne Jr. spent days afloat with his father as soon as he was out of up doing serious fishing with her father. diapers. He won a fishing tournament before he won his first organized Wyane Jr. was playing professionally in Spain when he and Katie basketball game. Media guides from his college days showed his favorite decided it was time to focus on more important parts of his life. place in the world was Table Rock Lake. He says his best-ever day as a “We had two little kids and another on the way. Katie and I were youth was the first time he out-fished his father and uncle. looking for a place to raise them,” Wayne Jr. explains. “I told her ‘I Outfishing your elders is pure championship stuff in the Simien know a place, a really good place.’ family because it is no easy feat.

I was excited to start a campus It’s common family lore that ministry, and I wanted Katie and Wayne Sr. purchased a small boat my kids to be around my family.” he could haul atop his car when Wayne Jr. is currently with he got his first paycheck from the University of Kansas Athletic Hallmark, shortly after hanging up Department as the associate his college basketball sneakers and athletic director of engagement graduation from Avala College. and outreach.

Of his father, Wayne Jr. once He, Katie and their five joked, “He’d throw a [lure] into children now live on a quiet cula mud puddle. He couldn’t help – WAYNE SIMIEN JR. – de-sac. His parents, Wayne Sr. and himself.” His father was as good Margaret, live in the house next door, built on the lot Wayne Jr. gifted at fishing as he was avid. He once won a completely outfitted Ranger them so they could be close to their grandkids: Selah, Rael, Simon, Boat in a bass fishing tournament championship.

Shepard, and Emmaus.

Wayne Sr. sold that dream boat to buy the van that carted his son all It’s quite the life for the kids, with their grandparents living just over the country for assorted basketball teams, tourneys and activities. a few steps away. Margaret Simien jokes the kids eat a breakfast their Wayne Jr. lived up to the family motto of “never marry a woman mother has made them, then hurry over and have her make them who can’t bait her own hook,” when he met and married his wife,

“Man, it’s like fishing is in our DNA. We’ve had fishermen in my family for generations, who keep passing it along. My dad grew up fishing with his dad, and I grew up fishing with him.”

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another. Regular fishing trips with their grandfather will be some of those kids’ best and most frequent memories of growing up in Lawrence.

And the grandkids have already started making their mark among the Simien family fishing legends.

The family’s best-ever fish, a 48-pound flathead catfish, was hooked on lightweight fishing pole two-year-old Emmaus was using for crappie or small bass at a pond northwest of town.

“The fish was so big it started pulling little Emmaus towards the water, so Wayne handed the pole to Simon. When it started to pull him into the pond, we knew it was a serious fish and Wayne took over the fishing pole,” remembers Wayne Sr. “We didn’t have a net, so I had to wade out and try to get that big catfish with my bare hands. I had a hold of it twice but had to let it go. I finally got a good enough grip the third time and Wayne waded in to help me.”

Adding to the memory, Wayne Sr. said, was listening to his two granddaughters up on the shoreline, making up cheerleading cheers, encouraging their father and grandfather throughout the battle with the big catfish.

Now teens, deep into sports with traveling teams, the daughters don’t get to fish as much as Wayne Jr., or they, would like. On annual family vacations, to places like Table Rock Lake, or to see their maternal grandparents in Florida, Selah and Rael pick up fishing poles and give their brothers a serious challenge.

For the time, Wayne Jr. and Wayne Sr. have their angling hands full with the younger kids.

“I’m telling you, there literally is nothing else they’d rather do,” Wayne Jr. says.” “They probably go fishing 80 to 100 days a year, but I know they’re talking about it 365 days a year. They like fishing for anything big, but they’re perfectly happy catching small bluegill for five hours.”

Like their father and grandfather, the Simien sons are far above average comes to interest and skills in angling. Part of their limited access to television is watching fishing shows with their grandfather. Anytime family or friends stop by, the boys usually grill them about recent fishing trips. The intensity, and depth, of their questions would make a detective (and, of course, any angler) proud.

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The enthusiasm of the boys for all things piscine can be a bargaining chip with quick results.

The boys once showed an interest in baseball. Their parents thought their schedules were already crammed enough with many youth sports.

“I just said, ‘Hey boys, if you don’t go out for baseball, we’ll be able to get you out fishing two times a week, all spring and summer,” said Wayne Jr. “They all three said, ‘Deal!’ It helps that they’re homeschooled, so they have some flexibility for fishing time. Katie uses Here’s the the deal. deal. fishing as that carrot on a string in front of the Here’s boys. Threatening to I’ll there I’llto be be there take away fishing time is a great way to get them do their studies.” for you. for There are usually fishing poles in the family van you. anytime they

The future has a lot of what ifs, and it’s a good feeling to have someone in Here’s the deal. your corner and around the I’ll be there corner to help you plan for for you. them. Call me today.

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30 Years of Holiday Horses Lawrence Old-Fashioned Christmas Parade Celebrates 30 Years

T

here are parades and then there are parades.

This December, the Lawrence OldFashioned Christmas Parade marks 30 years as one of the region’s most popular holiday traditions. Its long run is made possible by a core of dedicated volunteers, groups of regular attendees and wagonloads of support from the Lawrence community.

If you are not familiar with the parade, this tradition is a trip back in time to the era of horse-powered travel. Paradegoers can expect an hours-long procession of 19th- and early 20th-century–stagecoaches, pioneer wagons, buggies, and individual riders, in most cases dressed to the period and decorated in full Christmas flair.

The richness of this event has resulted in a loyal following, with thousands of guests lining Massachusetts Street and the surrounding route. The enthusiasm for this event has been so strong, not even Covid could snuff it out.

“That’s right. We still did a one-show parade that year on the day,” says Marty Kennedy, who, with his wife, Patty, and a corps of volunteers, has kept the parade going for most of its history. “Robin [Dunn] brought her stagecoach in, and we hooked it up and we went down Massachusetts Street and back up by ourselves. We had to keep that going, had to keep the routine going. We couldn’t break up that. Not even for Covid.”

Lawrence-local, regional draw Parade participants travel from Wyoming, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Missouri, and other nearby states, but locals are also well represented.

Miami County resident Leslie Owen and her donkey Esther have become a parade fixture and treat parade crowds to a period governess cart no newer than 1900.

“It came from Pennsylvania. I saw it online and had it shipped out here,” Owen says. “And then I had a gentleman who’s expert in carriages look at it. I personally didn’t know if it was like a 1940 or older. But, no, based on the nails and a bolt, he said 1880, 1890, no later than 1900.”

Owen’s cart is almost fully original, including its wicker backrests—just a little linseed oil and turpentine and she says they looked like new. And Owen’s cart is one of many

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wonderfully restored vehicles that punctuate the parade.

Owen estimates this is her 12th parade. She participated with miniature horses for four years, missed a few years, and then returned with Esther seven years ago.

“They just keep improving the experience for the entrant and keep it safe and fun,” Owen says of why she returns. “And they communicate.

If you have any questions, you can reach out to any of the people. And the same thing, day of the parade, even. They just keep finding the positivity and go, ‘Okay, let’s go again. Now we’re going to do it this way.’

I never see all the stuff they go through, but it’s a lot.”

Behind the scenes, often in the morning dark Long-time Kennedy Glass employee Angela Humpal is one of the many unsung volunteers who take on the massive challenge of setting up the parade route in the early dawn hours when most attendees are still asleep. But, her work begins weeks earlier.

“The preparation, there is so much to do,” she says. “Preparations, like building the platforms, all the signs.”

Humpal and about a dozen volunteers from Kennedy Glass join dozens of others in the weeks and days before to lay the groundwork with tasks such as setting up animal pens at the fairgrounds. On the

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day of the parade, Humpal says, there are the barricades to place and road markings to put down.

“I’m so glad they have it though,” she says. “It’s just really special.

It brings out so many people. Everybody gets together—and the horses, the carriages, they’re just so amazing.”

Making the most of the parade Parade communications point person Julie DeYoung suggests thinking of the parade as one part of your day, and planning the rest of your day around it to get the most out of it.

“What’s really nice is that people can plan a whole morning or create an afternoon—come down early, go to the Watkins, go to one of any of the many restaurants that offer breakfast and lunch options,” she suggests.

DeYoung says that the Watkins Museum of History and many other downtown businesses and organizations plan activities and events just for the parade day. And, she definitely suggests getting downtown early, getting that great parking space, planning to shop, planning to go to one of the many businesses offering activities and sales. This year, The Eldridge is also hosting free photos with Santa for all parade attendees.

lawrence magazine winter 2023

49

“Either come down early and do things downtown early and enjoy the parade, or come to the parade or stay after and have lunch and then shop,” DeYoung says. “It’s a real nice way to have a whole holiday outing with your family and friends right here in downtown Lawrence.”

Lastly, DeYoung says a lot of parade-goers forget about the city’s parking garages. She says people gravitate to the parade routeadjacent side streets. Rather than building a day around the hope of getting one of those spaces, consider instead planning to park in a garage or a few blocks away from the route and bringing a wagon for the gear you’ll need to enjoy a few chilly hours on a crowded sidewalk.

No matter your plan—staying the day or just for an hour or so— you’ll be treated to a free experience and as many holiday greetings as you wish to give and return along the way.

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lawrence magazine winter 2023

By the Numbers

240

average number of horses in the parade

120

average number of riders in the parade

50-75 average number of parade entries

40-50 average number of horse-drawn vehicles

40-45

average number of outriders (single riders alongside wagons)

10-14

average number of riding groups

20

different types of vehicles, including doctors’ buggies, stagecoaches, covered wagons and more

Exp. 2/1/2024

Exp. 2/1/2024

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events winter 23-24

Christmas Bird Count December 16 jayhawkaudubon.org The Lawrence Bird Alliance hosts an all-day event to record the variety and number of species observable in the Lawrence region.

Heavy Petty Holiday Show December 16 thegranada.com Lawrence’s own Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers tribute band performs at The Granada because Tom Petty sounds even better in a Santa hat.

Ashley Davis Winter Solstice Celebration Festival of Trees

KU Vespers/ Jazz Vespers

November 24–December 3 oconnellchildrensshelter.org/festival-of-trees Annual holiday showing of decorated holiday trees, from the classic style to the wildly creative.

A benefit for the O’Connell Youth Ranch.

December 3 and 6 music.ku.edu and lied.ku.edu | 785.864.2787 KU School of Music presents its annual celebration of holiday classics with choral music Vespers on December 3 and swinging holiday tunes of Jazz Vespers on December 6.

Adornment: Van Go Holiday Art Sale November 25–December 20 van-go.org/adornment | 785.842.3797 Van Go holds for-purchase exhibition of holiday-themed artwork created by artists in its teen-work programs.

A Christmas Story (The Musical) December 1–17 theatrelawrence.com 785.843.7469 Theatre Lawrence presents family musical based on the hit movie.

Lawrence Old-Fashioned Christmas Parade December 2 lawrencechristmasparade.org Lawrence’s signature holiday parade featuring authentic horse-drawn carriages.

December 17 lied.ku.edu | 785.864.2787 Lawrence’s Irish/Roots singer-songwriter hosts her annual concert at the Lied Center.

Laura Jane Grace December 29 thegranada.com Punk rock musician and activist Laura Jane Grace performs at The Granada.

The BLACK Lawrence Open Mic Holiday Farmers’ Market December 9 lawrencefarmersmarket.org The grower-vendors of Lawrence Farmers’ Market present their annual one-day sale of holiday gifts, baked goods, fresh foods, handmade crafts and more at the Douglas County Fairgrounds.

Director’s Winter Solstice Tour December 11 spencerart.ku.edu/calendar | 785.864.4710 Saralyn Reece Hardy, director of the Spencer Museum of Arts, continues her annual tradition of leading tours through selected works; this year’s event offers two free public tours on the theme of light and illumination.

ABOVE KU Vespers concert. Photography courtesy University of Kansas School of Music.

January 5 lawrenceartscenter.org BLACK Lawrence creative guild and alliance hosts its monthly open mic night at the 10th and Mass.

Studios.

Beyond the Rushes Tall January 12–February 4 lawrenceartscenter.org Lawrence’s acclaimed cut-paper artist Angie Pickman exhibits her nature-themed work at the Lawrence Arts Center. Artist talk on January 16.

Lawrence Restaurant Week January 18–24 lawrencerestaurantweek.com Approximately 40 restaurants and cafes across Lawrence present a week of special dishes at discount rates.

lawrence magazine winter 2023

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events winter 23-24

Dead Man’s Cell Phone January 19–28 theatrelawrence.com | 785.843.7469 Theatre Lawrence presents a story about modern connections, through technology, public spaces, and human warmth.

Final Friday January 26 explorelawrence.com/events This and every other final Friday of the month, Lawrence galleries and studios open for new exhibitions and showings.

Organic Virtuosity January 26 mapaa.org The Midwest Performing Arts Alliance presents organist Kalle Toivio at the St. Lawrence Catholic Center. Donations accepted.

Langston Hughes Creative Writing Awards February 1 langstonhughesaward.submittable.com The Raven Book Store and Lawrence Arts Center hold their annual literary celebration of the birth of Langston Hughes, groundbreaking poet, playwright and author who spent some of his childhood years in Lawrence.

St. Patrick’s Day Parade Bowling Tournament February 10 lawrencestpatricksdayparade.com One of the several charity events in the run-up to the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Proceeds benefit the parade’s selected charities, and the 2024 charities include Baby Jay’s Legacy of Hope, Lawrence Community Nursery School, Lawrence Unchained Bicycle Co-Op, Positive Bright Start and River City Rock Camp.

Indigo De Souza

Sweeney Todd February 16–21 kutheatre.com | 785.864.3982 KU Theatre stages the musical about the revenge of a wrongfully convicted Victorian-era barber.

Postmodern Jukebox February 21 libertyhall.net Popular multi-artist and YouTube-famous ensemble presents its reinventions of past and modern classics at Liberty Hall as part of its 10-year anniversary tour.

February 12 thebottlenecklive.com Brazilian American singer-songwriter appears at The Bottleneck.

Prairie Winds Festival with the Westerlies February 3 lied.ku.edu | 785.864.2787 Popular jazz- and rock-influenced brass quartet performs with local ensembles at the Lied Center.

Ovation February 4 lied.ku.edu | 785.864.2787 The Lawrence Schools Foundation hosts its annual fundraiser featuring the talents of Lawrence students.

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lawrence magazine winter 2023

ABOVE The Westerlies appear at the Lied Center on February 3. Photograph courtesy Lied Center of Kansas.

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