New Andover 'downtown' takes shape
By Joe Stumpe
ANDOVER — A real estate development that’s changing the face of Andover might not have happened if Mike Lies hadn’t taken the long view.
The retired periodontist didn’t get discouraged when his first attempts to buy some well-positioned agricultural property on the city’s east side failed two decades ago. He was patient when city officials initially expressed skepticism over his plans. And he didn't panic when the coronavirus pandemic threw a costly wrench into the whole project.
“The COVID deal really slowed us up and made everything a lot more expensive,” Lies said. “It changed the whole paradigm.”
But, he added, “We just kept chugging along.”
The result is The Heritage, a 110-acre mixed-use development that puts homes and apartments,
in
See Andover, page 8
Gardens grow community involvment
By Joe Stumpe
For an organization called Wichita Community Gardens, Inc., community seems just as important as the thriving garden they’ve created in Riverside.
Yes, the tomatoes, peppers, lettuces, cucumbers, fresh herbs and more are a mouth-watering sight along Amidon Avenue during the growing season. Not to mention the beautiful flowers. But the group has a handful of other projects that spread its impact around the neighborhood and city.
As part of its Riverside Pollinator Project — designed to boost the bee population — members planted native pollinators along the garden’s easement and at the Kansas Wildlife Exhibit in Central Riverside Park.
Derby opens $7.3 million senior center
By Amy Geiszler-Jones
DERBY — One of the area’s most active senior centers is likely to become even more so now that it’s moved into a new $7.3 million, 13,750-square-foot home. That’s the consensus of those who’ve checked out the Derby Senior Center, which opened April 20 at 1315 S. Rock Road.
“This is a premier senior center that’s built for the next 30 years,” said Steve McIntosh, a member of the city’s Senior Services Advisory Board. “I just see it being used a lot.”
Previously located at the Derby City Hall on Mulberry Street, the new facility came about after the Cross of Glory Lutheran church donated its building and six acres of land to the city. Derby officials decided on
See Derby, page 6
The SkyLofts apartments and a park help anchor The Heritage, a 110acre development in Andover. Senior housing will open there soon.
The new Derby Senior Center has indoor and outdoor features that its predecessor lacked. restaurants, businesses and recreational opportunities within easy walking distance of each other. The development stretches from Kellogg
See Garden, page 13
From left, Betty Bak, Emily Judson and Kris Rogers harvest greens at the Riverside Garden.
Mike Lies
Last chance to enter diamond drawing
There’s still time to enter The Active Age’s drawing for a diamond necklace donated by Mike Seltzer Jewelers. Everyone who donates at least $25 to The Active Age by May 5 will be entered in the drawing. We
will hold the drawing May 6 and notify the winner immediately. You can mail your donation to The Active Age, 125 S. West St., Suite 105, Wichita, KS, 67213, or call us at (316) 942-5385 to donate.
Richard Barth
Thomas Bailey
Julia Adams
Susan Addington
Juanita Albrecht
Shelly Albright
J. Scott Allison
Margaret Anderson
R. Kent Anderson
Connie Andrews
Willard Ashcraft
Gary & Janice Augustine
Geraldine Banks
Sandra Bartlett
Jennifer Baugh
Charles Bayes
Lane Becker
Michael Behrendt
Shirley Bessette
Carol Bowen
Brenda Bowers
Jerrold Bradley Jr
Vivian Bribiesca
Daniel Brooks
Myrna Brown
Sandra Brown
Barbara Bulger
Marsha Bunting
William Burrow III
Randy Bushey
Janice Claussen
Karen Coatney
Cecilia Cole-Mamenta
M. Cook
Benita Cox
Juanita Cox
David Crane
Colleen Crawford
Sharon Crockett
Jana Abbott
Sue Abel
Danielle Achey
Ginny Alden
Donna Anderson
Raymond Appel
Marilyn Armer
Carol Ast
Jannessa Austin
Don Awtrey
Carol Bacon
Sue Bair
Michael Ball
Patricia Bason
Edward Bender
Karen Billings
Alan Blough
M. Colleen Bonar
Becky Bouska
Dixie Bridges
Joseph Burnette
Latisha Burns
Georgia Burson
Lisa Callahan
Darci Campbell
Carolyn Chambers
James Childers
Sandra Childs
Michael Clark
Mary Cole
Richard Cook
Deborah Courtney
Leonard Craig
Ruth Crispin
Michael Custer
J.C. Darmstetter
Mary Devore
Carl Donham
Linda Dorrell
Adrienne Edwards
Chong Croft
Shirley Cullop
Clarence Denton
Carolyn Denver
Linda Destasio
Valerie Dettwiler
Cathy Dierks
Dee Ann Dockery
Gerald Dooley
Douglas Dowdy
Mary Jean Dry
Annette Duncan
Waneta Dunn
Ara Ann Duty
Linda Dye
Linda Ellis
James Enz
Fred Erdman
Betty Eugene
William Ewert
John Fenili
Diane Fettke
Gwyn Fili
Karen Foster
Judy Fraser
John Frey
Leah Frye
Daniel Gamache
Clair Gard
Patricia Garland
Nancy Garrett
Linda Garza
James Gates
Linda Gehrer
Ray Gembala
Karen Gerhard
Judith Gibbs
Sonja Goering Colette Gorges
Judith Eller
Deborah Evans
Michael Farrell
Greg Fisher
Robert Fitzthum
Delbert Flaming
Ronald Floyd
Barbara Frazier
Marlin Frederick
Larry Frutiger
Philip Gamble
Linda Garrison
Col. Donald Gaylor
Kathleen Giannaris
Richard Gibson
Carole Gill
Mary Goodwin
Bruce Graber
Joe Graber
Annette Grattan
Mary Greenlee
Ross Griggs
Margaret Griswold
Nina Gunter
Daniel Haines
Susan Hale
Barbara Hansen
Barbara Hanstedt
Thank You Recent Donors!
Jeanette Graber
Caroline Gray Randy Green Gary Greenemeyer
Shirley Grimes William Harding Karen Harman Nancy Hart Margaret Haynes
Sandra Herrington Suzanne Herzberg
Edwin Hodge
Robert Holsey
Karen Horsch
Mildred Hudnall
Lynda Huelsman
Darlene Hutson
Sharon Ingrim
Judith Isbell
Darrell Jackson
Lorraine Jeter
Betty Johnson
Shirley Johnson
C.Dee Jones
Jessie Junious
Bill Kearney
DeeAnn Keffler
Janice Kelly
Susan Kempf
Trudy
Honor Roll of Donors
Mary Margaret Jobe
Nancy Johnston
Sally Jones
Robert Kailer
Carolyn Kaplan
Andrea King
Ruth Koespel
Rebecca Kohler
LaVonne Krahn
Dale Lanham
Robert Leake
Dale Maltbie
Tim Marlar
Jill Mason
Charles McClung
Joan McMinimy
Peter Meitzner
Tricia Mendoza
Phil Morgan
Carolyn Morris
Jette Mortensen
Judith Napier
Greta O'Brien
G. Oconnor
Steven Overstreet
Leticia Palacioz Nielsen
Donna Pierce
Jae Pierce-Baba
Kevin & Jolene Harper
Lynn Harrington
Delores Harris
Christine Hatfield
James Hattan
Mary Hawley
Terry Hildreth
Deanna Hoover
Susanne Howard
Corinne Hughbanks
Donald Hull
Deborah Ingram
Phyllis Pray
Rita Pressnall
Charles Price
Paul Price
Joan Proctor
Robert Puckett
Beverly Rausch
Linda Reith
Brad Rine
Marilyn Robinson
Dennis Rodgers
Karen Roth
Dwayne Rumsey
Cheryl Runyan
Daniel Runyan
Shirley Rush
Milton Sandrick
Marc Schaffer
Donald Schifferdecker
Gregory Schmidt
Sheryl Schubert
Marilyn Schulze
Pat Schwartz
Fred Schwarz
Linda Sheets
Suzanne Shields
Carole Smalley
Alan Smith
Carolyn Smith
Mariann Smith
Martha Smith
Robin Smith
David Snelson
Alan Snowden
Joan Snowden
Carol Stinson
Mark Suellentrop
Brian Sullivan
Gordon Talbert
Meredith Thompson
Throckmorton
Mary Whiteside
Larry Will
Deanna Williams
Gene Wingo
Timothy Yde
Rita Youngers
Sierra Hills Golf Club
Vickery
Weidenheimer
Bonnie Turvey
Rebecca Twietmeyer
Gary Ubben
Teresa Ulrich
Anthony Veith
Sharelle Venso
Concha Walker Muriel Walpole
Douglas Ward
Bruce Wares
Bill Warren
Donate via our QR code This QR code will take you to The Active Age’s secure PayPal donation page.
Ralph Welsby
Ruth Williams
Vonda Wilson
Stephan Winn
Michael Wright
William Wynne
Retta Wyssenbach
Carolyn Yock
Marjorie Zwiesler
CAS Corporation
Derby
From Page 1
new construction after concluding additions and a remodel would prove too challenging.
The Derby Senior Center is the second such new facility to open in Sedgwick County this year. Park City opened its new $5.7 million, 13,000-square-foot senior center in late February.
McIntosh said the new center is designed to engage seniors in different ways than the old facility did.
“We’re going to be able to expand programs, especially with this outdoor area,” he said, gesturing to the
center’s patio. “The old building was a bunch of little rooms, and it wasn’t well designed. We want to get new programming and new people out here.”
Having two fitness studios instead of one means concurrent classes can be scheduled. A larger arts-andcraft room will accommodate bigger groups for quilting, knitting and coloring classes. One of the most popular of these is a twice-weekly quilters group that sews quilts for the Wichita Children’s Home and for first responders to pass on to children.
Just inside the lobby doors, a large community room holds tables and chairs for socializing along with pool tables. An adjacent room, with a
fireplace and small seating area, can be used for small group meetings such as the monthly Alzheimer’s and dementia support group for caregivers and a grief support group. There are large and small conference rooms, a technology room with computers and a kitchen.
Jenny Foster-Farquhar, director of Derby Senior Services and Transportation, also highlighted the center’s outdoor features such as garage doors in the multi-purpose room that can be opened to extend dances and other activities to the patio.
When Senior Services started a community garden a few years ago, she said, it had to use a plot of land off site at the Derby Public Works headquarters. Now the garden, which will have raised beds of varying heights, is just a short walk from the back patio. There’s also a paved quarter-mile walking path and turf area for outside exercise classes.
“What we were missing most at our former location was that we had little-to-no outdoor space,” FosterFarquhar said.
Weaver looks forward to serving his patients from all across our region for many more years to come.
Tandra Shikata is a regular user of the center, taking line dancing and tai chi classes. She was excited after seeing the new arts and crafts room and the fitness studios, which have flooring designed to cause less strain on body joints.
The new building, Shikata said, “makes me want to get even more involved.”
Membership in the Derby Senior Center is free for those ages 55 and older. Currently about 1,300 of the more than 3,000 members are active users, Foster-Farquhar said.
Hours for the new center are 7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 7:30 a.m.-noon on the first, third and fifth Fridays of the month, with extended hours to 1 p.m. on the second and fourth Fridays. For more information, call (316) 788-0223 or visit derbyks. gov/243/Senior-Services
Contact Amy Geiszler -Jones at algj64@sbcglobal.net
Dr. Weaver
Journey Through Budapest , Bratislava , Melk , Durstein, Vienna , Cesky Krumlov, Salzburg, Passau, Vilshofen See our ad on page 7 of The Grandparents Guide
Real-life 'Rosie' honored
Rosie was riveting until the end. Real-life Rosie the Riveter Connie Palacioz died April 19 at age 101. During World War II, Palacioz worked for The Boeing Company on a production line for the B-29 Superfortress. Decades later, she helped drum up support for the restoration of the B-29 known as “Doc” that now serves as a flying museum. Just weeks before her death, Palacioz was honored by employees of the GAF manufacturing plant in Newton during a “Dress Like Rosie” event. The diminutive Palacioz can be seen at center in the photo above. A plant spokesman said workers were “thrilled to celebrate the remarkable legacy of people like Connie, who served our country and are the embodiment of the spirit that makes Kansas so great.”
Andover
From Page 1
the south to Douglas in the north.
Lies is quick to spread credit for the project around, starting with his wife, Lucy. “My wife has always been very supportive of me doing what I wanted to do, and that’s been a key factor in my life.”
His partners say Lies’ patience and persistence were key.
“To look at a cotton field and think this should be the premier development on the east side of the metroplex takes a lot of vision,” said Jerry Jones of Jones Commercial Development.
Lies grew up in Andale, where Lieses are numerous. He practiced dentistry for 40 years in Wichita and has long been active in real estate and other business ventures.
“When you’re in a dentist office, you’re locked up for eight, 10 hours a day, and you’re a slave to your schedule,” the longtime Andover resident said. “I enjoy this a lot more.”
Lies credits real estate veteran Marlin Penner with first alerting him to the property’s potential and eventually helping Lies and Lies’ son-in-law, Lance Biel, acquire several parcels.
“Many years ago, before anything was there, it was a pasture owned by Dr. Harvey Ellis,” Lies said of the biggest piece. “Later on, they grew cotton and milo there.”
“I didn’t know what it would be, if it would be housing or what,” he
added. “I just knew it was an ideal location.”
But for a while, nothing much happened with the property. Andover officials, Lies said, “weren’t very growth-oriented in the beginning, but they’ve been extremely helpful and very good to work with the last 10 or 15 years, I would say.”
That’s likely because the city’s own surveying of residents found that they didn’t want to drive to Wichita for all their destination shopping and dining.
Penner also introduced Lies and Biel to Jones, who had helped develop NewMarket Square, the Shops at Tallgrass and other projects. The partners worked closely with Andover officials to make The Heritage happen. The city approved needed zoning and infrastructure improvement financing while Lies donated land for Yorktown Parkway — which now runs along the east side of the property — along with right-of-way for the planned expansion of Kellogg.
The first parts of the project to open were Courtyards at the Heritage, consisting of 89 patio homes, and Heritage Commons, which has 96 single-family homes. Both were developed by Perfection Builders of Wichita and are located at the north end of the property. Since then, the five-story, 186-unit SkyLofts apartments and several buildings holding commercial tenants have followed. Tenants include restaurants, a dental office, nail salon and more.
Through the center of the development runs a linear park with sidewalks and water features that’s
known as Heritage Park Plaza, which Lies dedicated to the city. “It’s really going to be like an old downtown, except it’s brand new,” he said.
Lies also commissioned a giant bronze sculpture, called The Heritage Man, by well-known western artist Curt Mattson. It depicts a farmer bent over a spade, resolutely working Kansas sod.
“It’s a tribute to the original settlers of the Andover area, who came looking for fertile soil and a place to raise their families,” Lies said. “In a historical context, there’s nothing like it around.”
Mike and Lucy Lies, seated, are shown with family members at the opening of The Heritage last year. "The Heritage Man" sculpture commissioned by Mike can be seen in the background. ago, is far from done. “We have a number of different projects in and around Andover,” said Lies, who won the Andover Chamber of Commerce’s Legacy Award in 2025. “I just like doing entrepreneurial things.”
Lies said the SkyLofts apartments are about 85 percent full, and commercial tenants are thriving. “You go out there on a Saturday or Sunday and you can’t get into Livingston’s (Cafe),” he said. “Social Tap (Drinkery) is just knocking them dead.”
There’s more to come. The Residence at Heritage West, a 60-unit senior apartment building developed by Salina-based Overland Property Group, is expected to open later this year, and QuikTrip plans a location there. Jones is working to land a hotel and more commercial buildings are planned.
And Lies, who retired from his dentistry practice more than a decade
The Active Age nabs Kansas Press Association honors
The Active Age won several awards in the 2026 Kansas Press Association contest for work done last year.
The Active Age 55+ Resource Guide won first place for special advertising sections. The guide, which
contains information about hundreds of businesses, nonprofits and other organizations that serve seniors, is distributed throughout the year through senior centers, libraries, news racks and other means. A free copy can be obtained at The Active Age office, 125 S. West St. A copy can be ordered by mail for $5.
The Active Age won third place in
the overall news and writing excellence category, based on the submission of three complete issues, and third place in the coverage of diversity category for
Events at The Heritage
Andover will hold its second HeritageFest at The Heritage from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 16. The event will feature on old-time photo booth, music by the Diamond W. Wranglers, an ice cream social, an interactive tour of Andover Cemetery and kids’ activities. The event is free and open to the public. The Heritage will also host a farmer’s market from 8 a.m. to noon each Saturday starting May 23.
articles about the African American community.
The Active Age competes against other newspapers in the largest circulation category.
Historian explores black ‘places and spaces’ in Wichita
Donna Rae Pearson feels like she’s just scratched the surface of a topic that doesn’t get much attention: the history of black leisure in Wichita.
“Yes, we enjoy recreation and leisure activities,” said Pearson, a Wichita native and museum curator at the Kansas Historical Society in Topeka. “That’s not what you ordinarily hear about when you talk about black history — spaces and places and how it happened in Wichita.”
Pearson spoke about the topic during the Wichita Art Museum’s Senior Wednesday program April 7. WAM invited her in conjunction with an exhibit called “Safer Waters: Picturing Black Recreation at Midcentury” by artist Stephen Towns, which runs through June 14. Segregation wasn’t as pronounced in Wichita as in certain parts of the United States, but it existed both formally and informally. As a result, the city’s African-American residents often created their own places where they could enjoy themselves.
The program started with a slide show of photographs taken by Wichitans Leon and Rosie Hughes from the late 1904s through the 1970s. Pearson called them “really beautiful images of black Wichita that helped spur that conversation. It’s not the first time I’ve looked at that collection.” (The photos can be viewed online at the University of Kansas libraries
fit the concept of a “third place” — a location outside of work and home where people felt comfortable, Pearson said.
“You could go get a burger, you could go relax.”
digital collection, digital.lib.ku.edu/kuhughes/root).
Pearson said churches and Masonic organizations helped shape much African American life outside work and school. For instance, St. Paul AME Church sponsored the city’s black YMCA, which started in 1908 as the Water Street branch and later was named for black leader Walter Hutcherson. It moved to the McAdams Park area before being incorporated into the North YMCA in
the 1960s.
McAdams Park and the nearby Cleveland Street commercial hub were centers of community activity at mid century, Pearson said. McAdams featured a six-hole golf course used by black players before they were allowed onto other city course — it was torn down despite opposition in the 1970s — while Cleveland was home to businesses such as the Dunbar Theatre and Turner’s Corner Drug Store.
Turner’s, which also sold food,
Pearson, who earned a master’s degree from Wichita State University, was also scheduled to give a second Senior Wednesday talk at The Kansas African American Museum on April 29, focusing on women who played significant roles in the landmark Brown vs. Board of Education racial segregation case.
She plans to revisit the subject of black leisure at some point.
“It’s not something that’s been deeply researched or considered as a worthy topic, so that in itself was interesting to look at the history in that way.”
P.E.O recognizes 50-year members
More than 175 members of the Wichita Area P.E.O. attended its annual Spring Social last month. In addition to awarding scholarships to nine high school and college students, the group recognized nine members who’ve been members for 50 years: Mary Ruth Byerley, Barbara McClellan, Jane Spurrier, Celinda Graham, Sarah Hastings, Susan Holmgren, Emily Metzger, Carolyn Gaughan and Suzanne McKaig. Eight of them are pictured at left.
The caption for this undated photo taken by Leon Hughes reads: "Mrs. & Mr. Alvin Horn, Mr. & Mrs. Willard Lee, Mr. & Mrs. Vernon Gill after celebrating at the Mambo Club.
Donna Rae Pearson
Piloting patients a serious business, unless you’re Jerry Gillespie
By Beth Bower
“What do you get when you drop a piano down a mine shaft?” Jerry Gillespie asks.
“What?” you say.
“A-flat miner,” he responds.
If you don’t laugh, that’s okay. Gillespie will just tell you another joke. He has at least one for every occasion: get-togethers of retired U.S. Air Force pilots, church meetings, vacation lunches and flights to take people for medical help.
Gillespie has been a pilot since 1975 and a jokester even longer. He grew up on a Nebraska farm and joined ROTC while attending Kansas State University. He graduated with degrees in engineering and physics and a desire to fly for his country.
Fighter pilot slots were hard to come by after the end of the Vietnam War, but Gillespie snagged one, flying fighters and serving as an instructor pilot. He ended up in Wichita as a member of the Kansas Air National Guard flying F-16 Fighting Falcons.
Gillespie retired in 1994 and spent two years being “Mr. Mom” to his sons, Jered and Conor, before going back to work as a systems engineer for Boeing, Learjet, Bombardier and Spirit AeroSystems.
He bought his first plane, a Cessna 182, in 1987 and sold it three years later. A decade later, he took the plunge again, buying a Mooney/M20 Series 4-seater single engine aircraft.
“It’s the safest general aviation
Jerry Gillespie flew Payton Barnes and her mother, Krista Jamieson, to Colorado for treatment Barnes couldn’t receive in rural Kansas. To see more about Gillespie and one of the patients he has flown, visit Angel Flight Central’s YouTube channel and search for “ A small plane and a big heart: Dawson’s Angel Flight Central story.”
airplane out there, I was told,”
Gillespie said.
After a career flying jet fighters, some might think flying a Mooney would be boring. Many retired Air Force pilots opt for jobs with the airlines flying big planes. But the Mooney was perfect for the next stage of Gillespie’s aviation career.
In 2012, Gillespie joined Angel
Flight Central, a Kansas Citybased nonprofit that flies people to medical appointments and for other humanitarian purposes. At last count, Gillespie had almost 100 Angel Flight missions to his credit. He flies at least once a month in a 10-state area.
“We use volunteer pilots with their own planes to fly patients to
No 'catch' involved in Angel Flights
For more than 30 years, Angel Flight Central volunteer pilots and supporters have provided free flights throughout the Midwest for families who need access to specialized health care, camps for special needs, disaster response efforts and other compassionate reasons.
The organization serves Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois and Indiana. In a partnership with Southwest Airlines, it also offers free flights to patients needing care outside of the 10-state area.
Jenna Gerdes, the nonprofit’s outreach director and development coordinator, said people often wrongly assume there is some “catch” involved. She urged people in need to call Angel Flight Central tollfree at 866-569-9496 or visit its website, angelflightcentral.org, for more information.
The organization is always looking for volunteer pilots and donations to support its efforts.
appointments for chemotherapy, radiation, clinical trials and other medical or humanitarian reasons,” said Jenna Gerdes, Angel Flight’s outreach director and development coordinator. “It’s always free to passengers, no matter how many times they go.”
“The best thing about Jerry,” Gerdes added, “is he starts every ride with a joke.”
Gillespie’s jokes break the ice and help make his passengers comfortable with flying in a small plane. And they give Gillespie an opportunity to get to know the people he serves. When there’s room, Gillespie’s wife, Rebecca, goes along.
“(Flying for AFC) makes him very happy,” she said.
“They both get involved in the life of the passenger,” Gerdes said. “Once (they) fly someone they tend to develop a relationship with the passenger.” Rebecca often makes cookies for them.
One of 350 pilots who donate their time to Angel Flight Central, Gillespie was surprised to be honored as its 2024 Volunteer Pilot of the Year at an awards gala.
Gerdes called Gillespie’s mission count “a lot. The highest flyer sits at 300. Gillespie is in the top 10 percent.”
Along with a plaque, Gillespie was presented with a book, “100 Dad Jokes.” Seems like everyone knows his reputation.
“I think,” Gerdes said, “he’s just so compassionate and willing to give — to say yes to a stranger. He takes things to a whole other level.”
Contact Beth Bower at goodlifeguy. com.
Donate for chance to win Botanica membership
Donate at least $50 to The Active Age, and you could win a family membership to Botanica. The Active Age holds a drawing for a family membership each month from among people on our Honor Roll list of donors. This month's winner is
Sharelle Venso. Donations may be made by calling 316-9425385; through our website, theactiveage.com; by mail to The Active Age, 125 S. West St., Suite 105, Wichita, KS, 67213; or in person.
are uncertain. Your funeral plans don’t have to be. Call 316-682-4553 for information about pre-planning a funeral. www.dlwichita.com
Jerry Gillespie
Chef brought passion for food with her from Croatia to Wichita
Vedrana Barbir’s trips to Croatia follow a tasty theme.
“When we go back home, all we do is eat,” she said.
There’s time for family and friends, of course, but it’s easy to see why food plays such a prominent role.
For one thing, Barbir worked as a chef in Croatia and still has friends in the restaurant business there. Then there’s the setting of her hometown on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Just over a coastal mountain range lie gardens, orchards and vineyards. The Adriatic teems with seafood, and sea salt is harvested on the beach.
The food, Barbir notes, is close in spirit to Italian cuisine, like her accompanying recipe for Pollo alla Romano. Italy is a two-hour ferry trip across the Adriatic from her hometown.
Barbir and her husband, Ivan, left because of war of the early 1990s and landed in Wichita thanks to a family connection. Here, they’ve raised their own family and thrived in the hospitality business. Vedrana works as
May Theatre
By Diana Morton
The American Theatre Guild, Broadway in Wichita, Century II, Clue, Live on Stage! Murder, blackmail and humor are on the menu when six mysterious guests assemble at Boddy Manor for a night they’ll never forget. Based on the 1985 movie and inspired by the classic Hasbro board game. May 15-17. Call for times and tickets, 816421-7500
Mosley Street Melodrama, 234 N. Mosley. My Big Bad Rad 80’s Wedding by Ryan Schafer and Molly Tully. When a bride and groom accidentally book their bachelorette and bachelor parties at the same Chili’s, the celebration spirals into a chaotic comedy of love, lies and lunacy. NowMay 15. Tickets, dinner, and show $44; show only $33. 316-263-0222
Next: Butch Cassidy and the Can’t Dance Kid, written by Tom Frye. May 29-July 11.
a personal chef and caterer. Ivan works at the Wichita Country Club and helps with Vedrana’s catering.
For some clients, she prepares a full week of easily reheatable meals, many influenced by healthy Mediterranean diet guidelines.
Occasionally, her talents are called upon for pull-out-all-the-stops charity fundraising dinners, like the 10-course feast for 12 lucky diners that raised thousands of dollars for a local nonprofit.
Either way, it’s a little taste of home.
Prairie Pines Playhouse, 4055 N. Tyler. Wait Until Dark, a murder mystery dinner theatre production. Through May 10. For tickets, visit prairiepinesplayhouse.com or call (316) 303-2037.
Roxy’s Downtown, 412 E. Douglas, cabaret-style theatre. Dear Evan Hansen. Seventeen-year-old Evan Hansen has felt invisible his entire life. When tragedy shocks his community, Evan is given the chance to be somebody else — but the price may be more than he bargained for. Doors open at 6:30; curtain time is 7:30. May 8-June 13. 316-265-4400
Wichita Community Theatre, 258 N. Fountain. Medea by Euripides, translation by Robin Robertson.; directed by Misty Maynard. Griefstricken Medea seeks solace in destroying Jason, her unfaithful husband. Now – May 3, at 8 pm with Sat and Sun matinees, 2 pm. Tickets $20 for adults, $18 for military/senior/ students. 316-686-1282
Contact Diana Morton at dianamorton12@sbcglobal.net
Pollo alla Romano (Chicken with Peppers)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (see note)
Salt, pepper and oregano
1 cup diced onion
2 cups diced bell pepper, preferably a mix of red and orange or yellow
1 teaspoon minced garlic
Splash of dry white wine
1 cup chopped tomatoes, fresh or canned
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 tablespoon capers, optional
1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley
Directions:
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat in a 10- or 12-inch nonstick skillet. Season chicken to taste with salt, pepper and oregano. Saute chicken in oil until lightly browned on both sides. Transfer chicken to a plate.
Heat remaining tablespoon of olive oil in the skillet. Add onion and bell pepper and sauté until soft, adding garlic near end of sautéing time. Deglaze pan with white wine, then add cherry tomatoes and tomato sauce. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes or until bell pepper and chopped tomatoes begin to break down into a sauce.
Return the chicken to the skillet. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and cover, simmering about 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Stir in the capers and parsley and serve with rice or pasta.
Note: If using bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, increase the amount of time the thighs are simmered by about 10 minutes or until they are cooked through.
Source: Vedrana Barbir
Going paperless?
A free digital copy of The Active Age is now available. The digital copy can be “flipped through” like a regular newspaper, and the type can be enlarged on your phone or computer. To have the digital version emailed to you each month, call (316) 942-5385 or email joe@theactiveage.com
Vedrana Barbir
Adventerous Kansas couple pioneered wildlife movies
Martin and Osa Johnson Safari Museum worth a trip to Chanute
By Joe Norris
In 1917, a young Kansas couple found themselves on a South Sea island 7,000 miles from home, surrounded by cannibals.
Martin and Osa Johnson had been taken prisoner by a tribe called the Big Nambas. The natives gathered in a tight circle around the strangers, staring intently at them. Martin and Osa feared that by the time the tribe had finished feasting their eyes, they’d be ready for a somewhat more substantial feast.
Just then, a British patrol boat appeared on the horizon, sending the Big Nambas into a panic. Martin and Osa used the distraction to make a break for it. They fled back through the jungle to their boat and escaped.
If you think that sounds like the far-fetched plot of an old movie, you aren’t far wrong. Martin and Osa Johnson were, in fact, on the island to film a motion picture. They were capturing the first footage of cannibals that movie audiences had ever seen. Their feature documentary “Among the Cannibal Isles of the South Seas” was a sensation when it hit movie theaters in 1918.
The story of the filmmakers is fascinatingly told in The Martin and Osa Johnson Safari Museum. It’s inside a beautifully restored 1903 Santa Fe depot at 111 North Lincoln Avenue in Chanute, the town where Martin and Osa first met.
As a teenager, Martin had grown bored in Independence, Kansas. He craved adventure. So he quit school and stowed away on a ship to Liverpool, reading Jack London novels along the way. When he heard that the author was planning a new
12th in a series about day trips around Kansas
worldwide expedition, Martin wrote an impassioned telegram to London, saying he would “undergo any hardship” to join the crew.
London telegrammed back, asking simply, “Can you cook?”
Martin responded, “Just try me!” He got the job, joining London in 1907 to sail the world on a 45-foot boat called The Snark. The expedition was cut short when London grew ill, but Martin didn’t return to Kansas empty handed. He had a collection of photos from exotic faraway places, and began showing them to paying audiences around the state.
After a show in 1910 in Chanute, he met a beautiful 16-year-old local girl named Osa. They fell in love and eloped. And they began an adventure of shooting wildlife documentaries that lasted until Martin died in an airline accident in 1937.
“For 27 years, we devoted our lives to capturing a vanishing world,” Osa wrote. “We assembled a vast film library of wild animals, savage human beings and landmarks of natural beauty, so that posterity might be able to recall it as it existed in its last & greatest stronghold.”
The Johnsons’ silent films were enormously popular. And after sound came along, audiences heard a lion’s roar for the first time in the films Martin and Osa shot in Africa. With popular movies like “Congorilla” and “Baboona,” the Johnsons had invented the wildlife documentary category. Their footage of stampeding elephants and charging lions was so riveting, it was spliced into early Tarzan movies to add authenticity to scenes shot in
Hollywood.
By the way, the Johnsons returned to the Big Nambas’ island to show them the film they’d shot. The cannibals were delighted, shouting out the names of tribe members as they appeared on the screen. But they grew agitated when tribal elders who’d died somehow came flickering back to life in the movie.
Osa remarried after Martin’s death, but it didn’t last. She continued to scratch her itch for adventure in a number of different ways. She led an expedition to East Africa in 1938 to shoot footage for the movie “Stanley & Livingstone” with Spencer Tracy.
After that, health issues kept her mostly in the United States, where she wrote wildlife books for children, designed wildlife toys and developed a wildlife TV series called Osa Johnson’s Big Game Hunt, using footage she and Martin had shot. The series premiered in 1952, a year before Osa died of a heart attack in New York. She’d been planning another trip to Africa.
The museum opened in 1961. Osa’s mother, Ruby Isabelle “Belle” Leighty, gave Osa’s personal artifacts to the museum and was a driving force behind its formation. Belle had inherited the huge collection of films and photos from her daughter and dedicated herself to keeping her Osa and Martin’s memory alive. Belle died in 1976 at age 100.
In the museum, you’ll see everything from Martin’s old cameras and Osa’s zebra skin shoes to pages from
a Martin & Osa comic book. There are also extensive collections of hand-made tribal masks, weapons and tools, all brought back from the same remote villages and areas visited by the Johnsons. The artifacts are displayed with the kind of thoughtful design that might make you think you’re in the Smithsonian. But this great little museum is just a two-hour drive east from Wichita. It’s open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, closed Sunday and Monday. Admission is free.
If you need an additional incentive to make the trip to Chanute, Howard’s Toys for Big Boys is also here. It’s an antique car museum. And there's an interesting tribute to Octave Chanute, the French-born civil engineer who helped bring the railroad to town. Chanute was also a technical advisor to Orville and Wilbur Wright. In a small park on Main Street, he's honored wtih a giant aviation-themed weather vane. Contact Joe Norris at joe.norris47@ gmail.com
Photos courtesy of Martin and Osa Safari Museum
Above left, Osa and Martin Johnson set up their cameras accompanied by native assistants. Above right, Osa poses with a slain rhinoceros. She was considered a deadly shot.
An aviation-themed weather vane honors Octave Chanute in the town that's named for him.
Summer Reading at Wichita Public Library
Welcome to our 4th Annual Grandparents Guide to Fun!
By Teresa Schmied
At The Active Age, it’s our mission to educate, empower and entertain, and we believe this special section does just that. Inside, you’ll find a wonderful mix of local advertisers and out-of-town attractions — perfect for day trips or weekend adventures with your grandchildren.
We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to our 2026 sponsors. Music Theatre Wichita has been a valued supporter since the very beginning—joining us for our first Grandparents Guide in 2024 and continuing to stand behind this publication each year. The
organization's generosity, including providing tickets for participating grandparents, helps create lasting memories for families.
A very special thank you to our newest sponsor, Wichita Public Library, for its generous financial support
We would also like to recognize Valley Print Logistics for their support as our print sponsor, helping ensure this guide reaches the hands of thousands of readers in our community.
A special thank you goes out to the families who contributed photos and stories of their “littles.” Your memories bring this publication to life.
Summer Reading at Wichita Public Library
What began as a simple idea has grown into a meaningful community tradition — one that brings generations together and celebrates the special bond between grandparents and their grandchildren. Putting this guide together is
truly a joy. As a grandmother to 11 grandchildren myself, I know first- hand that there is always something to do, somewhere to go and memories waiting to be made. Teresa Schmied is advertsing director at The Active Age.
May 21-July 30, 2026
Pre-Readers: Birth-K
Summer Reading at Wichita Public Library
Kids Read: Grades K-5
Teens Read: Grades 6-12
May 21-July 30, 2026
Pre-Readers: Birth-K
Kids Read: Grades K-5
Teens Read: Grades 6-12
May 21-July 30, 2026
Pre-Readers: Birth-K
Scan for more info: Scan for
Andover Historical Museum
937 N Andover Rd, Andover
Augusta Historical Museum
303 State St, Augusta
Blast Off Bay
435 N Crowne Dr, Goddard
Botanica
701 Amidon St, Wichita
Butler County History Center & Kansas Oil Museum
383 E Central Ave, El Dorado
City Arts
334 N Mead, Wichita
Clearwater Historical Society
149 N 4th, Clearwater
Coutts Memorial Museum of Art
110 N Main St, El Dorado
Derby Historical Museum
710 E Market St, Derby
Douglass Historical Museum
318 S Forrest St, Douglass Dyck Arboretum of the Plains, 177 W Hickory St, Hesston Exploration Place
300 N McLean Blvd, Wichita
Great Plains Nature Center
6232 East 29th St N #2200, Wichita
Great Plains Transportation Museum
6232 East 29th St N #2200, Wichita
Halstead Historical Museum
116 E 1st St, Halstead
Harvey County Historical Society
203 N Main St, Newton
Wichita
and surrounding area attractions
Kansas Aviation Museum
3350 George Washington Blvd, Wichita
Kansas Firefighters Museum
1300 S Broadway St, Wichita
Kansas Sports Hall of Fame
515 S. Wichita, Wichita
Kauffman Museum, North Newton
2801 N Main St, North Newton
Lake Afton Observatory
25000 W 39th St S., Goddard
Mark Arts
1307 N Rock Rd, Wichita McCormick School Museum
855 S Martinson St, Wichita
Mid-America All-Indian Museum
650 N Seneca St, Wichita
Mulvane Historical Museum
300 W Main St, Mulvane Museum of World Treasures
835 E 1st St N, Wichita
National Baseball Congress Hall of Fame
3700 E Douglass #70, Wichita
Old Cowtown Museum
1865 Museum Blvd, Wichita
Rolling Hills Zoo
625 N Hedville Rd, Salina
Rose Hill Historical Museum
106 S Main St, Rose Hill
Sedgwick County Zoo
5555 West Zoo Boulevard, Wichita
Sewing Histoy Museum
1230 N Waco, Wichita
Strataca
3504 E Avenue G, Hutchinson
Tanganyika Wildlife Park
1000 S Hawkins Ln, Goddard
The Garage-Educational Automotive
Museum of America City Arts
134 S 4th St, Salina
The Kansas African-American Museum
601 N Water St, Wichita
Towanda Area Historical Museum
401 Main St, Towanda
Ulrich Museum of Art
1845 Fairmount, Wichita
Warkentin House, Newton
211 E 1st St, Newton
Wichita Art Museum
1400 Museum Blvd, Wichita
Wichita Boat House
515 S Wichita, Wichita
Wichita Ice Center
505 W Maple St, Wichita
Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum
204 S Main St, Wichita
Wichita Toy Train Museum
130 S Laura Ave, Wichita
WWII History Center
119 W. Central in downtown El Dorado
13th St Sports Park
1008 E 13th St., Andover
Andover Central Park
1607 E Central Ave Andover
Athletic Park
700 W 1st St, Newton
Brown Thrush Park
533 N Country Acres, Wichita
Buffalo Park Water Playground
10201 Hardtner Road, Wichita
Caperland Park
1501 E 9th, Newton
Castle Park
2923 Ohio #2829, Augusta
Chapin Park
2400 E MacArthur Rd, Wichita Central Riverside Park
720 Nims, Wichita
College Hill Park
304 S Circle Dr, Wichita
Dalton Palmer Park
612 State St., Augusta
Dorner Park
400 W 79th St S., Haysville
Dr. Glen Dey Park (Grove Park)
2801 N. Grove, Wichita
Eastborough Park
33 Willowbrook Rd, Eastborough Edgemoor Park
5815 E. 9th, Wichita
Playgrounds and parks for kids in and around Wichita
Evergreen Park Splash Pad
2700 Woodland N, Wichita
Friends at Watson Park
3022 S McLean Blvd, Wichita
Goddard Linear Park
108 N Main, Goddard
Herman Hill Park
101 E Pawnee, Wichita
High Park
2801 E. James Derby
Kechi Park
442 N Oliver, Kechi
Kiwanas Park
5101 W 2nd St N, Wichita
Lincoln Park
400 W 6th St., Newton
Lions Park
316 S Abilene, Valley Center
L.W. Clapp Memorial Park
4611 E Harry, Wichita
Madison Avenue Central Park
722 N Derby, Derby Main Park
1000 N. Main El Dorado
Maize City Park
401 S Khedive, Maize
McLaughlin Park
716 McLaughlin Dr, Valley Center
Oak Park
1100 W 11th St N, Wichita
Orchard Acres
1200 E Dirck, Haysville
Orchard Park
4808 W 9th St N, Wichita
Osage Park
2121 W. 31st Street S., Wichita
O.J. Watson Park
3022 S. Mclean Boulevard, Wichita
Pawnee Prairie Park
2625 S. Tyler Wichita
Quail Creek Park
500 S Quail Ct, Newton
Respit Park
100 Random Rd
Riggs Park
706 Sarah Ln, Haysville
Rivers Bank Orchard Park
2911 E 43rd Ave, Hutchinson
Riverside Park
720 Nims N, Wichita
Schweiter Park
900 Chautauqua, Wichita
Sedgwick County Park
6501 W. 21st St., North Wichita
Summit Park- El Dorado
201 N. High El Dorado
Sycamore Park
3637 W 15th St. N., Wichita
Warren Riverview Park
321 W Mkt St, Derby
W.B. Harrison Park
1300 S Webb Rd, Wichita
Simple ways to share your stories with your grandchildren
By Jill Wilson
When I was in fourth grade, my grandmother and I sat at her kitchen table on a rainy afternoon while she taught me to play gin rummy. She told me how when she was growing up, after it rained, their dirt yard was full of puddles. She and her brother would have huge water fights with the neighborhood kids, using buckets to scoop the water up out of the puddles and throw it on each other. Afterward, her mother made them wash off in the cow tank before they were allowed inside.
When you spend time with your grandchildren this summer, look for opportunities to share a little bit of your history with them. You don’t have to plan it. The best stories can come out of everyday moments, and they don’t have to feel especially deep or meaningful. In fact, lighter moments —a funny memory or detail from everyday life —a re often the ones kids enjoy most.
When something in your grandchild’s world connects to your past, that’s your opportunity. A visit to
the pool could spark a memory, like, “In the summertime, my friends and I spent all day at the pool. There was a tall high dive, and we would dare each other to jump. My stomach fluttered when I climbed the ladder and stood on the edge of the board, looking down before I jumped. One time my friend tried diving and did a belly flop — she never did that again!”
Memories connected to something tangible — like a quilt, family recipe, or a piece of furniture — can make a lasting impression. “My mother rocked me in this chair when I was a baby” or “When I was your age, these were my favorite cookies.”
Let these moments be part of a conversation. While it may seem like the big events in your life are the most important, it’s often the ordinary details that are the most interesting. Tread carefully when drawing comparisons between then and now. It’s easy to fall into a “Back in my day…” way of saying things. If a memory starts to sound like a lecture, kids will tune out — even if there’s a good story hiding underneath.
Sharing your stories isn’t just
about preserving memories. It’s a way of building connection with your grandchildren and giving them a sense of where they come from. Young children may not show much interest at first. That’s normal. Often, it’s not until children grow older that they recognize the value of their family’s stories. The goal is
to share small pieces of your life as part of your time together. As your relationship grows, those moments will add up. And over time, they may become some of the most meaningful ones you share.
Jill Wilson is owner of Personal Legacy Memoirs.
Wichita and surrounding area pools
Aley Park Swimming Pool
1800 S. Seneca, Wichita Andale City Swimming Pool
350 Sherman St, Andale Augusta KS Municipal Pool
1501 Dearborn St., Augusta Bel Aire City Pool
7350 E Central Park Ave, Bel Aire
Buhler Public Swimming Pool
501 Parkside Dr., Buhler
Clear Water Aquatics
145 N 4th, Clearwater
College Hill Pool
304 S. Circle Dr., Wichita
Douglass Kansas Pool
301 E 5th St., Douglass El Dorado Municipal Pool
900 N. Taylor St., El Dorado
Goddard Community Pool
200 S. Main, Goddard Halstead Swimming Pool
300 North St., Halstead
Harvest Park Swimming Pool
9500 W. Provincial, Wichita
Haysville Community Pool
525 Sarah Lane, Haysville Hesston Aquatic Center
300 N Ridge Rd, Hesston McAfee Public Pool
1240 E 14th St. N., Wichita Minisa Swimming Pool
1350 N. Jeanette, Wichita Mulvane Swimming Pool
990 E. 111th St. South, Mulvane Newton Pool
401 Santa Fe St., Newton Orchard Park Pool
1062 N. Clara, Wichita Salt City Splash Aquatics
1601 S Plum, Hutchinson Sedgwick Community Pool
403 N Franklin, Sedgwick Towanda City Pool
2405 SW River Valley Rd, Towanda Valley Center Swimming Pool
255 E Allen St., Valley Center
Wellington Family Aquatic Center
1101 W Harvey Ave, Wellington
Splash pads
Andover 13th Street Sports Park
1008 E 13th St, Andover
Augusta KS Splash Pad
2923 Ohio St. #2829, Augusta
Boston Park Splash Pad
6655 E. Zimmerly St., Wichita
Buffalo Park Water Playground
10201 Hardtner Road, Wichita
Edgemoor Splash Park
5815 E 9th St N, Wichita
Evergreen Park Splash Pad
2700 Woodland N, Wichita
Fairmount Splash Park
1647 N. Yale St. Wichita
Haysville Splash Pad
525 Sarah Ln, Haysville
Rock River Rapids
Idlewild Park Splash Pad
2937 Oaklawn Dr., Wichita
KS Firefighters Memorial Park
1323 S. Topeka, Wichita
Madison Avenue Central Park
722 N Derby, Derby
Maize Splash Pad
401 Khedive, Maize
Osage Splash Park
2121 W. 31st Street S., Wichita
Riverside Central Park
720 Nims, Wichita
Valley Center Splash Pad
716 McLaughlin, Valley Center
W.B. Harrison Park
1300 S Webb Rd, Wichita
Wichita area water parks
1900 E. James Street, Derby, Kansas 67037
The Greater Wichita YMCA Waterparks
•Andover YMCA, 1115 E US Highway 54, Andover, 67002, 733-9622
•North Wichita YMCA, 3330 N Woodlawn, Wichita, 67220, 858-9622
•Northwest Wichita YMCA, 13838 W 21st St N, Wichita, 67235, 260-9622
•South Wichita YMCA, 3405 S Meridian Ave, Wichita, 67217, 942-5511
Walking and bike trails
Sedgwick County Park
Redbud Trail
Swanson Park Loop
Pawnee Prairie Nature Park
Meadows Park
Great Plains Nature Center
Chisholm Creek Park
Indoor Great Plains Nature Center
Oak Park Trail
South Lake Loop W B Harrison Park
• Advanced Learning Library
• Aloft Wichita
• B-29 Doc Hangar
• Berry Companies (x2)
• Berry Material Handling
• Bradley Fair Shopping Center
• Buffalo Park
• Cambridge Market
• Cargill Protein Headquarters
• Carson Bank
• Clapp Memorial Park
• Clifton Square Village
• Credit Union of America
• College Hill Park
• Colvin Elementary
• Cox Machine
• Cozine Life Events Center
• Dold Foods
• Douglas & Washington
Look for the Keepers on Parade around Wichita
• Dr. Glen Dey Park
• Eastview Park
• Envision
• Emprise Bank
• Exploration Place
• Evergy
• Fairmount Park
• Fidelity Bank
• First Tee of Greater Wichita
• Former Wichita Eagle Building
• Friends University
• Hall's Culligan of Wichita
• Hotel At Old Town
• House of Schwan
• Hutton
• ICTeeth Pediatric Dentistry
• INTRUST Bank
• INTRUST Bank Arena (x2)
• JR Custom Metal Products
• Kansas Perio & Dental Implants
• KSN-TV
• KU School of Medicine-Wichita
• KWCH
• Law Offices of Morris Laing
• Learning Lab Wichita
• Lincoln Heights Village Shopping Center
• Marriott International
• McConnell AFB Visitor's Center
• McCurdy Real Estate & Auction
• Medical Society of Sedgwick County
• Mid-America All-Indian Center
• Minisa Park
• NetApp
• Old Cowtown Museum
• Orchard Park
• Osage Park
• PepsiCo
• Planet Fitness (x2)
• Pracht Wetlands Park
• Prairie Ridge Animal Hospital
• Rainbows United Inc
• Scheels
• Stucky Middle School
• Sedgwick County Zoo
• Stryker Sports Complex
• The Looking Glass
• The Monarch
• The Workroom
• Transitions Group
• West Douglas Park
• Wichita City Hall
• Wichita East High School
• Wichita Heights High School
• Wichita Northeast Magnet School
• Wichita Public Schools Administration
• Wichita Regional Chamber of Commerce
• Wichita South High School
• Wichita Southeast High School
• Wichita State University
• Wichita Symphony Orchestra
• Wichita West High School
• White Star Machinery
Explore the Wild Side of Wichita
A day at the Zoo is more than just a visit—it’s a shared adventure filled with wonder, laughter, and moments that become core memories. Explore each new habitat, make new discoveries, and spark curiosity that lasts long after the day is done. Spend time together and visit Sedgwick County Zoo today!
Garden
From Page 1
Each April, they give away native plants, seed packets and vegetable and herb starts to other gardeners.
They raise and donate over a 1,000 pounds of produce each year to the ICT Food Rescue program (through the Sedgwick County Extension Center’s Plant A Row project) and to Linwood Senior Center and also make a herb garden available to neighbors. They hold monthly “Coffee & Dirt” get-togethers for educational and social purposes.
“It’s really turning into a community space, which is the beauty of the thing,” said Kris Rogers, a retired educator who helped start the garden.
The Riverside garden is one of at least a dozen active community gardens in the area, according to Abbey Draut, a horticulture agent with the extension center. Draut said there are probably more but that’s how manyhave listed their contact information with the extension center.
“We get a lot of calls from organizations trying to put them in, (like) a senior care center that might try to put one in,” Draut said. “They’re just popping up all over.”
Community gardens may not be as convenient as a backyard plot, but they’re a great alternative for an apartment dweller or homeowner whose yard is too shady or otherwise occupied to hold a garden. Some offer
participants individual plots or raised beds; Riverside, for instance, has 38 raised beds. Others offer a space in a communal garden and may share the harvest. Most charge a small fee but offer free water in return.
And if you’re a novice gardener, there’s usually somebody around willing to offer advice on just how often and deep you should water those tomatoes.
The Riverside garden is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. It got its start when the owner of a vacant lot on Riverside Avenue offered it for a community garden. It thrived there until the owner wanted the property back in 2021; fortunately, the city offered use of a double lot at 802 Amidon, directly across the street from Botanica to the south and Sim Golf Course to the west.
Draut said the Riverside garden “is kind of like the premier” one that she advises other community garden organizers to use as a model. Its members have worked closely with the extension center and Sedgwick County Master Gardeners from the start.
Rogers and others also formed the nonprofit Wichita Community Gardens, Inc., in order to qualify for grants. This year, a grant from AARP led to the construction of two wheelchair accessible garden beds, which are surrounded by a sidewalk and raised higher than normal for easier access.
Earlier this year, Rogers was named the recipient of the Wichita
2026 Garden Tour set for June 5-7
The 2026 Garden Tour hosted by Sedgwick County Master Gardeners will feature six private landscapes across the Wichita area ranging from lakeside settings and shady retreats to a sprawling country garden. The tour is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, June 5, and Saturday, June 6, and from noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday, June 7. Tickets are $10; children 12 and under are admitted free with an adult.
The tour highlights a number of approaches to gardening, including water-wise design, habitat for pollinators for wildlife and the integration of ornamental and edible
Park & Recreation Distinguished Public Service Award for her work on the garden, which also features fencing for security and a gaily painted shed for storing gardening tools.
Not surprisingly, the garden is popular, with all but one of the wheelchair-accessible plots spoken for. Draut said that’s not unusual. “A lot of them don’t have any openings,” she said, mentioning the Hilltop Community Garden as one that “always has a wait list.” Hilltop is located at 1329 S. Bluffview and run by Dear Neighbor Ministries.
But some do have openings. The
The featured gardens are:
plantings. Visitors will see a range of water features, native grasses and drought-tolerant plantings, shade gardens and outdoor living spaces. Master Gardeners will be on site at each location to answer questions. Advance tickets are available at the Sedgwick County Extension Education Center at 21st and Ridge Road and online at: www.sedgwick. ksu.edu/gardentour. Tickets will also be available at the gardens on the days of the tour. Proceeds benefit the Master Gardener educational community outreach programs. For more information, call (316) 660-0100.
• Where Waters Wander, 2209 N. Amardo St.
• Gardens of Wonder and Whimsy, 19 W. Rolling Hills Dr.
• Charming Cottage Garden with Cozy Gathering Spaces, 401 S.
Garden of Eat’n, run by the South City Community Association, currently has room for about 15 people. A 10 x 20 lot can be rented there for $20 a year, which includes free water and electricity.
“If you’re willing to work, you can get a lot of produce out of it,” said Ron Lawrence, who’s worked a plot there about 20 years. “We’re looking for good people who want to put in a good garden.”
For more information about community gardens, call the Sedgwick County Extension Office at 316-6600142 or email abbeyd@ksu.edu
Holyoke St.
• Shady Oak Retreat, 410 N. Roosevelt St.
• A Celebration of Water, Rock and Colorful Plantings, 24 Sandpiper Ct.
• A Sprawling Country Native Garden, 3246 S. 154th St. E.
The Riverside Garden makes use of raised beds, including two new higher raised beds that are wheelchair accessible.
Former Wichitan pens book about life in the CIA
“In True Face: A Woman’s Life in the CIA, Unmasked,” by Jonna Mendez with Wyndham Wood (Public Affairs, 2024, 295 pages, $30.00)
By Ted Ayres
Jonna Hiestand graduated from high school in Wichita and attended Wichita State University, majoring in English literature. She spent most of her childhood in a large house on 20 acres that butted up to the city limits. When she was 20 years old, she was invited to the wedding of her best friend from Wichita, which was taking place in Germany. The wedding invitation changed her life, leading her into the shadowy world of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Hiestand, whose last name is now Mendez, recounts all that followed and some that preceded in a fascinating book, “In True Face: A Woman’s Life in the CIA.” It’s been designated a Kansas Notable Book by the State Library of Kansas.
Mendez decided not to leave Germany after the wedding. She was working at a bank in Frankfurt when a co-worker, John Goeser, proposed. Goeser confessed that his bank job was a cover; he actually worked for the
May Quiz:
CIA.
Or as Mendez writes, “I was discovering that I hadn’t married just John Goeser; I had married the CIA as well.”
As Mrs. John Goeser, she was eligible to be hired as an entry-level CIA contract employee — a “contract wife,” as they were then called. It was the start of a 27-year career with the agency. After beginning with clerical work, she worked in clandestine photography. She was then given a choice of assignments and became a specialist in disguise and identity transformation. In 1988, she was promoted to deputy chief of the Disguise Division and in 1991, she became the Chief of Disguise. She retired from the CIA in 1993 and she was awarded the CIA’s Commendation Medal.
While in the CIA, she lived under cover and served tours in Europe, the Far East, the Africa subcontinent and at CIA headquarters. Her work took her to some of the most difficult operating areas in the world, where she
Name these World Heritage Sites
By Nancy Wheeler
World Heritage Sites are cultural and natural landmarks designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as among the most important for preserving around the globe. See if you can use these clues to identify 15 of the best-known ones. The answers appear on page 20.
1. What massive structure stretches thousands of miles and features walls, watchtowers and fortresses?
2. Constructed from millions of stone blocks, what man-made Egyptian structures served as tombs for ancient pharaohs?
3. What prehistoric monument in Wiltshire, England, is famous for its circular arrangement of massive standing stones?
4. What name is given to the ancient Roman amphitheater, famous for gladiator games?
5. What ancient Greek citadel features the Parthenon and other historic temples that were built during the Golden Age of Athens?
6. What Incan city was hidden in the Andes mountains and discovered by Hiram Bingham in 1911?
matched wits with the Soviet Union’s KGB, East Germany’s Stasi and Cuba’s DGI.
She once participated in a meeting in the Oval Office with then President George H.W. Bush (a former CIA director) disguised as an AfricanAmerican women to demonstrate the effectiveness of a hyper-realistic mask. It worked.
Mendez recounts many CIA accomplishments but also details its negative treatment of women during her tenure. After her divorce form Goeser, she married another CIA agent, Tony Mendez, who successfully got six American diplomats out of Iran during the Iran hostage crisis (a story told in the Academy Award-winning movie Argo.) Tony Mendez died of complications from Parkinson’s disease in 1991.
In the closing chapters of her book, Mendez writes about her life after the CIA, including her efforts on behalf of the International Spy Museum in Washington.
“It was a career I loved,” Mendez writes of her time as a professional spook. “I was doing work that mattered, work that made a difference — making history in some small way.
It wasn’t a path I’d ever imagined for myself. I was, after all, just a girl from Wichita, Kansas, seeking adventure, never dreaming that would translate into a life that was both covert and trailblazing.”
Contact Ted Ayres at tdamsa76@ yahoo.com
More about Mendez
Jonna Mendez appeared on a 2023 episode of the “Forward Together” podcast hosted by Wichita State President Rick Muma. To watch the episode, visit wichitastate.tv and search for Episode 13 – Former CIA Master of Disguise.
7. What white marble mausoleum, built as a symbol of love, is located in Agra, India?
8. In what country would we find Angkor Wat, a vast Buddhist temple complex and symbol of the Khmer civilization?
9. Where would we find the medieval abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel located on a tidal island in Normandy?
10. In what country would we find the ancient Mayan city of Chichen Itza with the famous El Castillo pyramid?
11. What name is given to the reddish rock-cut city and archaeological marvel found in southern Jordan?
12. What Italian city is famous for its canals, architecture and historic palaces?
13. Where is the iconic Opera House and performing-arts venue that attracts 8-10 million visitors annually?
14. In what country would we find the Palace of Versailles where the Treaty to end World War I was signed?
15. Where would we travel to see the archaeological ruins of Pompei, Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata?
Tina Leu Photography Joanna Mendez
By Starla Criser Seniors
Seniors on the Go schedule for May
on the Go holds its monthly organizational meeting at Linwood Senior Center at 1:30 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month. Highlighted events are ones that SOTG members have expressed special interest in attending.
SENIOR DAYS/COFFEE CONNECTIONS
May 4 Mo
9 am – Coffee Connection: Amphibians and @ Sedgwick County Zoo - Free May 14 Th
10 am – Senior Thursday: @Kansas Aviation Museum – Free
10 am – Empowered Seniors: The Untold Art of Keeping Your Marbles: Creativity, Play, and the Aging Brain @ Botanica - Free
OTHER LECTURES
May 3 Su
2:30 to 4 pm – Birdwatching Basics @ Westlink Branch Library
May 8 Fr
10:15 am – Sugar Avoiders Club @ Linwood
May 14 Th
5 to 7 pm – Cocktails with the Curator: short captivating talks on history’s quirkiest moments and socializing @ Museum of World Treasures - $7
May 21 Th
9 to 10 am – Coffee with the Curator: Reading the Ancient Egyptians in Art and Artifact @ Museum of World Treasures – Free for members, $4 nonmembers
THEATRE SHOWS/CONCERTS
Apr 17 to May 10
7 to 10 pm - Wait Until Dark @ Prairie Pines Playhouse - $46.85 dinner & show (general seating), $51.95 (front seating)
May 10 – 12:30 to 4 pm Mother’s Day Matinee with stroll in lavender gardens- $46.85 or $51.95
May 1 to 3
7 pm May 1 & 2, 2 pm May 3 – Empire House Players: “The Clock Runs Out for Isabelle Tyme…” @ Old Cowtown - $16.50
May 1 to 30 (Fridays & Saturdays)
8 pm – Live Improv Show @ Flying Pig Improv, 2320 E Douglas Ave - $16.95
May 2 Sa
7 pm – Jazz Finale Concert @ Friends Univ, Sebits Auditorium - $5 May 3 Su
3 pm – Delano Chamber Chorale @ The District Church – donations
3 pm – Oratorio Concert (choral ensembles and orchestra) @ WSU, Miller Concert Hall - $6-$12
May 6 We
5:15 pm – Annual Pops Concert on the Marcussen Organ @ WSU Wiedemann HallFree
May 8 to Jun 13
7:30 pm Th-Sa - Dear Evan Hansen @ Roxy’s – $42 (2 pm May 16, May 30, Jun 13)
May 9 Sa
7:30 pm – Pops: Byron Stripling’s America the Beautiful – Wichita Symphony @ Century II - $29+
May 10 Su
7:30 pm – Whose Live Anyway?
(improvised comedy and song based on audience suggestions) @ Century II - $69-$80
May 15 Fr
6 pm - Symphony in the Gardens @ Botanica - $135 (includes garden admission, performance, hors d’oeuvres and 2 drinks)
May 15-17 Fr-Su
7:30 pm Fr & Sa; 2 pm Sa; 1 pm Su – Clue: Live on Stage @ Century II Concert Hall - $55$119
May 21 Th
7 to 9:30 pm – Poetry Night @ Simply Sangria, 243 N Cleveland - Free
May 22 Fr
12 to 1 pm – Bloomfield Carillon Concert: Jule Ann Troutman @ Wichita Sedgwick County Historical Museum, Clock Tower Carillon - Free
OTHER EVENTS
May 1 Fr
1 to 3 pm – 5th Annual Cinco De Mayo Fiesta @ Orchard Park - $10 (an extra $3 for an early reserved seat)
May 2 Sa
Origami in the Garden opening
7 am to 1 pm – Spring Garden Fair @ Sedgwick County Extension, 4-H Hall, 7001 W 21st St N - Free
8 am – Blossom Fest @ Elderslie Farm, 3501 E 101st St N Kechi – Free
11 am & 2 pm – Tea Time in the Country @ Fulton Valley Farms - $41.20
12 pm – Local Author: Abigail Linhardt @ Derby Library – Free
12 to 5 pm – Local Artisan Fair @ Grace Hill Winery – Free
12 to 9 pm – Tacos and Tequila 2026 @ Wichita Boathouse - Free
May 3 Su
12 to 6 pm – Cinco de Mayo Celebration
@ Sedgwick County Zoo – zoo admission
12 pm – Open Streets ICT – Nomar @ Evergreen Park - Free
May 7 Th
9 am to 2 pm – PBS Kansas Senior Expo @ Sedgwick County Extension Education Center, 7001 W 21st St N - Free
May 9 Sa
11 am to 10 pm – Mediterranean Festival @ St Mary Orthodox Christian Church, 344 S Martinson
1 pm – College Hill Walking Tour @ begins on Douglas Ave in front of St James Episcopal Church, 3750 E Douglas - $22
May 10 Su
9 am to 5 pm – Mother’s Day @ Sedgwick County Zoo – mothers free with another paid admission
May 16 Sa
12 pm – Local Author: Beatrice Fishback @ Derby Library - Free
2 to 4 pm – Farm Encounters: Wool
Production and Sheep Sheering (participants work with raw wool, learning to card and spin it into yarn) @ Old Cowtown Museum - $5 members, $15 nonmembers
5 to 11 pm – Asian Night Market @ Equity
Bank Park - Free
May 21 Th
8:30 am to 3 pm – Trip to Kansas Oil Museum tour and hear period clothing expert with Linwood – El Dorado - $12 admittance, $5 lunch -carpool
May 22 Fr
1 to 3 pm – Parents Day Celebration –Mother’s and Father’s Day all in one with stories, food and more. Showcasing some of our talented artists @ Orchard Park
May 23 Sa
10 am to 5 pm – Time Travelers Vintage Expo (diverse traveling vintage market) @ Century II Expo Hall - $13
May 28 Th
8:30 am to 3 pm – Trip to Yoder (Thrift Shop, Carriage Crossing, more) with Linwood - carpool
6 to 7:30 pm – Wandering Wildflower Walk @ Great Plains Nature Center – Free
May 30 Sa
10 am to 2 pm – Walk with Wildlife –experts share knowledge about live species of native Kansas animals @ Chisholm Creek Park - $3 online; $5 at gate
ONGOING
Exploration Place – Dome Theater (Free if member; $18, online discounted 65+ $13)
Kansas: An Immersive Experience – 11:45 am The Stellars – 11 am, 12:30 pm Laser Shows – 2 pm, 4:15 pm
Penguins A Love Story – 1:15 pm, 3:30 pm
Backyard Wilderness – 10:15 am, 2:45 pm
FOODIES/EATING WITH FRIENDS
May 1 Fr
9:30 am – First Friday Coffee with DSC @ Country Café, 2804 S Seneca
May 6 We
1 to 4 pm – Mother’s Day Tea @ Linwood
May 13 We
11 am – Linny Llama’s Eating Around the World with Linwood @ El Rancho, 1601 Pawnee
May 14 Th
9 to 10:30 am – Egg-cellent Breakfast Club with Orchard Park @ The Big Biscuit, 2330 N Maize Rd
May 18 Mo
1 pm – Lunch Bunch Social Club with DSC @ N & J Mediterranean, 8448 W Central Ave
May 19 Tu 10:30 am – Coffee Chat Conversation @ Orchard Park
May 28 Th 11 am to 1 pm – Good Grub Lunch Club with Orchard Park @ Mexico Viejo, 6960 W 21st
Meals on Wheels says need for local funds ‘has not changed’
A $70 million donation to Meals on Wheels America doesn’t significantly impact the Meals on Wheels program here, at least not in the short term.
In Wichita, Senior Services, Inc., operates and raises funds for Meals on Wheels independently of the national organization, which is based in Virginia. Meals on Wheels America hasn’t provided any funding locally
except for the PetPals program, which delivers food to the pets of some Meals on Wheels recipients.
About two-thirds of the funds for the local Meals on Wheels program come from local, state and federal grants. Senior Services, Inc., raises the rest from private donors and foundations.
“The needs in our community remain significant, and local support
St MAY RIVERFEST – May 29 to Jun 6
Wichita Riverfest – buttons $15-$20 @ QT
May 29 Fr
11:20 am to noon – Grand Opening Ceremony
6:30 to 8 pm – Sundown Parade
6:30 to 8:30 pm – Hot Air Balloons
9 to 11 pm - Jacksons @ Crossland Construction Kennedy Plaza Stage –admission with RiverFest button
10:45 to 11 pm – Opening Night Fireworks
May 30 Sa
7 to 8 am – Hot Air Balloons
11 am to 2 pm – Fiesta Del Rio Live Performances
11 am to 6 pm – Helicopter Rides
1 to 3 pm – Cowboy Bathtub Races
6:30 to 8:30 pm – Hot Air Balloons
8 to 11 pm – El Fantasma – Mexican music @ Crossland Construction Kennedy Plaza Stage – admission with RiverFest button
May 31 Su
11 am to 6 pm – Helicopter Rides
11 am to 6 pm – Artfest Pop Up Market
1:30 to 4 pm – Cardboard Regatta
5:30 to 6:30 pm – Fimmel Cake Eating Contest
OTHER SENIOR SPECIALS
Movies
Derby Plaza Theater - $6 matinee/ evening (55+)
OUT OF AREA EVENTS/FESTIVALS
May 2 Sa
9 am to 5 pm – Millfest @ Lindsborg Old Mill and Swedish Heritage Museum, Lindsborg 10 am to 5 pm – Flint Hills Festival @ 315 S 3rd St, Manhattan, KS
May 9 Sa
10 am to 7 pm – Lenexa Art Fair @ Lenexa, KS – Free
2 to 6 pm – Atchison Porchfest: walkable music festival with 20 regional bands performing on historic front porches – along 4th St in Atchison, KS – Free
May 15 to 17 Fr-Su
6 pm to 10 pm daily – 2026 Sunflower Balloonfest @ 227 W Main St, Anthony, KSfree
May 16 Sa 10 am to 3 pm – Rustic Treasures Market @ Burlingame, KS, on Main St – Free 10 am to 4 pm – Turkey Creek Festival @ Antioch Park, Merriam, KS – Free May 22 to 23 Fr-Sa 8 am to 10 pm – Sana Fe Trail Days @ Larned, KS – Free May 22 to 24 Fr-Su Lawrence Busker Festival 2026, with live performances of circus on the streets @ Lawrence, KS
Starla Criser helped start Seniors on the Go. For more information, contact her at starlacriser@ gmail.com.
expand their capacity.
continues to be essential to ensuring we can serve every older adult who relies on us,” the nonprofit said in a statement.
The $70 million unrestricted gift was made by philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, former wife of Amazaon co-founder Jeff Bezos. Meals on Wheels America is deciding how to use the gift, and one option is helping local Meals on Wheels programs
Senior Services, Inc, said the need for Meals on Wheels here “has not changed. Here in our community, seniors are still facing hunger and isolation, and resources have not kept pace. Local fundraising ensures we can meet those needs today.”
To donate, volunteer or sign up for Meals on Wheels, visit servicesofwichita.org or call (316)2670302.
Return to Earth: At the Cosmosphere, I came in search of what we
By Max McCoy Kansas Reflector
HUTCHINSON — Stare into the open hatch of Odyssey, the scarred Apollo 13 command module in which three American astronauts made their improbable return to Earth from a seemingly jinxed lunar mission, and ponder the fragility and strength of humanity.
Recently I did just that and whispered thanks to the universe for bringing back another set of astronauts. I had not realized the depth of my anxiety over the Artemis II lunar flyby mission. When the crew safely splashed down off the coast of San Diego on April 10, my sense of relief surprised me. It was as if I’d carried the worry on my shoulders and the weight was lifted.
To explore this reaction, I embarked on a civic pilgrimage to the Cosmosphere space museum in Hutchinson.
Odyssey is displayed there, tilted at an angle as if re-entering the atmosphere, its pockmarked skin bearing witness to its journey. The hatch is open so you can see the cramped quarters inside, just enough room for all the needed gizmos and
control panels and the three astronaut “couches” made of tubular steel and fireproof cloth.
Apollo 13 failed to land on the moon as intended because, on April 13, 1970, some 56 hours into the flight, a cryogenic oxygen tank on the service module exploded. The blast blew a hole in the side of the service module, leaving the Odyssey crippled, without adequate power or breathable oxygen.
What was intended to be the third lunar landing became a rescue mission, as the crew temporarily abandoned Odyssey to shelter in Aquarius, the lunar module, while they sling-shotted around the moon. They returned to the Odyssey for splashdown.
That was 56 years ago.
Artemis II made essentially the same trip.
But the four-member crew didn’t just repeat history, they made it. They went farther into space than anyone before, at 252,756 miles, according to NASA, beating the previous record set by Apollo 13. It was also the first time for a woman or a Black astronaut to fly a lunar mission.
“As humans, we have this dream to explore,” Ector Diaz, the Cosmosphere’s director of marketing, told me as we stood in front of
nearly lost
Odyssey. “So we are pushing ourselves to go back to the moon so we can use it as a base for future explorations to Mars and beyond.”
Apollo 13 — and in later decades the Challenger and Columbia disasters — reminded us of the inherent risks of space flight. The Apollo 13 crew made it back safely, splashing down April 17, 1970.
I had been apprehensive about the Artemis II flight because of the capsule’s imperfect heat shield, which one expert gave a 1-in-20 chance of failing. But my reaction at splashdown was more than just relief.
Center in Kansas City. Their show runs through May 29.
Wichita artists transform Kansas City gallery with interactive works
By Torin Anderson KMUW
KANSAS CITY, MO — Inside an art gallery in Kansas City, a man with a child attached to a BabyBjörn is pedalling on an old bike that is connected to a contraption that shoots out confetti, much to the baby’s delight.
The bike sits inside a giant yurt made of tie-die bed sheets and inflated with blowers. And there are giant hands.
Artist Megan Miller, who created the piece with her husband, Mike, picks confetti off the floor.
“[I’m] showing people how to run the confetti blower and how to reposition the hands because they have Velcro,” she said. “You can make different gestures, nice things and rude things, whatever you’re feeling.”
The Millers’ works of art are known for being interactive and fun. Almost everyone entering the gallery at the Leedy-Voulkos Art Center immediately smiles with curiosity. The smiles get bigger when they start playing with the pieces.
General manager Erin Woodworth said watching the Wichita couple install the show meant long days.
“They’re here when we get here, and they’re here later than we leave,” Woodworth said. The exhibit is up until May 29.
TJ Hanscum was gallivanting about First Friday and stopped to turn a crank.
“[I] have no idea what this thing is,” Hanscum said. “I’m twisting this like a little cog because I saw someone else doing it. So I think I can do it too, unless that was the artist. Then in that
case, I guess I can’t do it.
“It seems to be twisting some sort of long spring type thing, and it’s making some weird little counterweight wobble; this piece of driftwood with all of these giant long antennas with seed things attached to the ends. It’s like a wiggle machine. It’s like a big, giant wiggling contraption.”
Hanscum moves to another work of Miller’s.
“What we have here is some sort of giant rock,” Hanscum said. “It’s covered in lichen, and I’m moving it with a surprising degree of ease. It seems to be on springs, and there’s a horizontal and a vertical hand grip to move this big, giant boulder.”
“You grab that hand, and you’re driving the Earth,” Mike Miller said. “I didn’t have that idea until after it was done.”
It was something I hadn’t felt in a while.
I harbored a small sense of optimism for the future.
The Apollo program represented the best of what America can do, from a technological and aspirational standpoint. It was about collective effort, courage, creativity and resilience. While space flight will not solve every problem on Earth, it encourages the kind of thinking — and perhaps more importantly, the kind of spirit — that just might solve most of them.
A longer version of this article can be found at kansasreflector.com.
KSHL: 2026 session ‘challenging’
Leaders of the Kansas Silver Haired Legislature called the 2026 Kansas legislative session a “challenging” one on senior-related issues.
“While several concerning measures—including changes to Medicaid and voter registration laws —ultimately became law, KSHL’s advocacy helped remove more harmful provisions and ensured that the voices of older Kansans were heard directly by lawmakers,” a KHSL news release stated.
“Although property tax relief legislation did not pass this session, and medical cannabis proposals did not advance, both remain important issues moving forward.
“The reality is, much of this session was about stopping or improving legislation. And in that work, our delegates made a real difference.”
KSHL is inviting seniors across the state to share the issues that matter most to them. To do, contact:
• KSHL Speaker Leroy Burton: 316-670-4127, leburton@cox.net; or
• Chuck Schmidt: 620-330-4576, cschmidt3131@gmail.com
Artists Mike and Megan Miller, above left, created immersive works for the Leedy-Voulkos Art
Photo by Max McCoy
The Apollo 13 command module is displayed at the Cosmosphere.
seDgwick counT y senior cenTers
BEL AIRE
7651 E Central Park Ave 744-2700, ext 304 www.belaireks.org
BENTLEY/EAGLE 504 W Sterling, 796-0027
CHENEY 516 Main, 542-3721
CLEARWATER 921 E Janet, 584-2332
DERBY 611 N Mulberry Rd, 788-0223 www.derbyks.com
DOWNTOWN
200 S Walnut, 267-0197 www.seniorservicesofwichita.org
EDGEMOOR 5815 E 9th, 688-9392
GARDEN PLAIN 1006 N Main, 535-1155
GODDARD 122 N Main, 785-398-1255
HAYSVILLE 160 E Karla, 529-5903
KECHI Kechi City Building, 744-0217, 744-1271
LA FAMILIA 841 W 21st, 267-1700
LINWOOD 1901 S Kansas, 263-3703
MCADAMS GOLDEN AGE 1329 E 16th, 337-9222
MT HOPE 105 S Ohio, 667-8956
MULVANE 632 E Mulvane, 777-4813
NORTHEAST 2121 E 21st, 269-4444
OAKLAWN 2937 Oa klawn Dr, 524-7545
ORCHARD PARK 4808 W 9th, 942-2293
PARK CITY 1811 Stuart Dr, 744-1199
VALLY CENTER COMMUNITY CENTER 314 E Clay, 755-7350
senior weDnesDays
www.seniorwednesday.org
May 6
10:30 am Wichita Art Museum 1400 W. Museum Blvd., $2 admission. See Alex Katz: Theater and Dance.
1:30 pm Museum of World Treasures 835 E. 1st St. Enlightenment And Revolution In The Atlantic World.
May 13
10 am Sedgwick County Zoo, 5555 Zoo Blvd. (316) 266-8213, $4 Hadal Zone Habitat.
1:30 pm Advanced Learning Library, 711 W, 2nd, (316) 2618500, Free. Jllian Forsberg.
May 19
10 am Ulrich Museum of Art, 1845 Fairmount St. Dean of the College of Fine Arts and internationally recognized artist Marie Bukowski
May 27
10 am Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum, 204 S. Main. “Let’s Talk Shop” Documentary Screening
1:30 pm Mid American All-Indian museum. 650 N Seneca (316) 3503340, $2 + tax admission; free for MAAIM members. Info not available.
Dances
Derby Sr Center, 611 Mulberry. 3rd Tuesday 7pm-9:30 pm.
El Dorado Jam & Dance, Senior Center, 210 E. 2nd.
Linwood Golden Age, 1901 S Kansas. Every Saturday 7pm-9:30pm. Call Jim 316-945-9451
Minisa Golden Age, 704 W 13th. Info 617-2560. Every Thursday 7pm9:30pm. Call Rita 316-364-1702 Oaklawn Activity Center, 4904 S. Clifton. Contra Dance1st Saturday of each month. 7pm-9pm. Call Amanda at 316-361-6863. Orchard Park Golden Age, 4808 W 9th. Every Friday 7pm-9:30pm. Call Casey 316-706-7464
BuTler counT y senior cenTers
ANDOVER 410 Lioba Dr, 733-4441 www.andoverks.com
AUGUSTA 640 Osage, 775-1189
BENTON Lion’s Community Bldg, S Main St
DOUGLASS 124 W 4th, 746-3227
EL DORADO 210 E 2nd, 321-0142
LEON 112 S Main, 745-9200 or 742-9905
ROSE HILL 207 E Silknitter, 776-0170
TOWANDA 317 Main, 316-536-8999 Open 10:30 am-5 pm Mon, Wed, Fri
WHITEWATER Legion Hall, 108 E Topeka
Harvey counTy
BURRTON 124 N Burrton, 620-463-3225
HALSTEAD 523 Poplar, 835-2283
HESSTON Randall & Main, 620-327-5099 www.hesstonseniorcenter.com
NEWTON AREA SENIOR CENTER 122 E 6th, Newton, 283-2222 www.newtonseniorcenter.com
SEDGWICK 107 W. Fifth, 772-0393
TransporTaTion
Sedgwick County
Sedgwick Co Transportation, 6605150 or 1-800-367-7298. Information: 8 am-5 pm, Mon-Fri; closed most holidays. www.sedgwickcounty.org/ aging.
Community Meals
Here are the menus that will be used for Meals on Wheels and congregate meal sites at Huston, Linwood, Orchard Park, Northeast, Sheridan Village, Maple Gardens, Oaklawn and La Familia.
WEEK OF MAY 1
Fri: Sweet-n-sour chicken over steamed rice, fajita blend vegetables, apple cobbler
WEEK OF MAY 4
Mon: Turkey Cacciatore w/rigatoni pasta casserole, baby carrots w/ oregano, whole grain roll, mized fruit.
Tue: Parmesan crusted tilapia, potato wedges, yellow squash, biscuit, cinnamon applesauce
Wed: Goulash, green beans, almondine garlic knots, pineapple chunks
Thu: BBQ pork on wheat bun, steamed broccoli, lemon peaches.
Fri: Breaded chicken cutlet w/ cream sauce, brown rice, green beans, whole grain roll, mandarin oranges
WEEK OF MAY 11
Mon: Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables, whole wheat roll, tropical fruit
Tue: Sliced Ham, macaroni & cheese, corn on the cob, garlic knots, wogurt w/ fruit
Wed: Honey mustard chicken, wild brown rice, collard geens, wheat dinner roll, hawaiian fruit cup
Thu: Turkey and Brown Gravy, cornbread dressing, parsley, buttered carrots, peach cobbler
Fri: Tuna noodle casserole, stewed tomatoes, whole grain roll, tartar sauce, apricots
WEEK OF MAY 18
Mon: Beef tips, sweet cornbread,peas, apple cinnamon slices
Tue: Hawaiian beef meatballs, cubed sweet potatoes, roasted cauliflower, garlic bread, mixed fruit
Wed:Chicken chili w/ shredded cheese, corn, whole wheat dinner roll, tortilla chips, mango papaya cup
Thu: Lemon Garlic Cod mediterranean, brown rice, green beans, whole grain roll, fruit cup
Fri: Chicken Cordon Bleu, scalloped potatoes, roasted broccoli, wheat dinner roll, peaches
WEEK OF MAY 25
Prairie Wind Dancers: Plymouth Congregational Church, 202 N Clifton. Joyce, 683-1122.
Village Steppers Square Dance, Oaklawn Activity Center, 4904 S Clifton. 2nd and 4th Saturday of each month September through May 7:30 - 10:00 pm. Info: Mike Huddleson 316-650-2469
Westside Steppers Square Dance, 1st and 3rd Sunday of each month, 6-8:30 p.m., West Heights United Methodist (entrance "D"), 745 N. Westlink Ave. Info: Sheldon Lawrence (316) 648-7590.
Butler County Transit Weekday transportation in El Dorado, Augusta and Andover. Rides to Wichita on Wed, Thu. Information: Augusta, 775-0500; El Dorado, 3224321; toll free, 1-800-279-3655. 48-hr notice required.
Harvey County Transportation reservations or information: 316-284-6802 or 1-866680-6802. Round-trip: $8 Newton (wheelchair only), $12 Harvey County, $20 outside Harvey County. AVI to Newton: Tue, 12:30-4:30 pm from Burrton, Sedgwick, Halstead, Hesston, Walton.
Mon: HOLIDAY
Tue: Chicken Aloha, potato wedges, wegetable blend, whole wheat roll, crushed pineapple
Wed: Beef country fried steak, mashed potatoes, country gravy, glazed carrots, whole grain roll, mandarin oranges
Thu: Chicken salad croissant, vegetable pasta, spiced apricots
Fri: Spaghetti and meat sauce, garlic knot, blackberry cobbler, coleslaw
* Milk or grape juice is served with all meals. Meals fall within the following ranges: Calories 650-750; protein 25 grams or higher; fat 20 to 30 percent of calories; calcium 400 mg or higher; sodium 1,000 grams or less; fiber 9 grams or higher. FUNDING
Classified advertising
Lakeview Cemetery Garden of Memory.
6 plots: 2 spaces in Lot 60 adjoining 4 spaces in Lot 80. One companion marker with vase and 3 vaults. Valued @ $36k+ will sell for $22k OBO. Contact Nathan Howard at ndh74@icloud.com or 704-519-9552
Lakeview, Two side-by-side plots. Located in the Memory Garden. Lot 94, spaces 1&2. $6,500 for both. Seller pays transfer fees. 608-408-9252.
Resthaven Garden of the Good Shepherd Family Plot #70-D, Spaces #1-4. Highly desirable easily accessible plot. Valued at $21,000+. Will sell for $12,500 with Seller paying transfer fee. Contact Dale @ dadpe@comcast.net.
Resthaven Cemetery. Garden of Faith. Prime Location. 2 Lots on Center Aisle 40 B spaces 3&4. Sold together. 1Granite Base, 1Marker, 1 Opening/Closing. $7,750. 316-617-8581
Two plots at Resthaven, Garden of the Cross, valued at $11,000 asking 5,000 for both. Seller pays transfer fee. 316-993-6105
Single Plot – Resthaven Cemetery – Garden of the Cross 46A1 $5000 OBO Email: arkpegram@cox.net OR 479-644-6680 Serious inquiries only
Lakeview Cemetery in Garden of Meditation. Lot 157 spaces 5&6. Retail value $4,595. Will sell for $4,000 OBO. Seller pays transfer fee. 620-615-1647
Lakeview two joint plots at Meditation Garden. Retail value $9,190 will sell for $6,750 OBO. 860-481-5921
2 single, double stacked plots, ($5,698) with $499 processing/transfer fees. Contact current owner @ 316-883-5737 for additional information.
2 spaces side-by-side at Lakeview in Garden of Gethsemane. 1 two-piece vault. Seller Pays transfer fee. Was $10,000 Now Asking $8,000. 316-522-1659
Single Crypt in Historic White Marble Old Mission Mausoleum. Original asking price $10,000 OBO. $500 transfer fee can be negotiated between seller and buyer. If interested please call 903-427-5019. Please leave a message.
Lakeview Everlasting Life Lot 102 Spaces 3&4 Sell both for $4500 OBO Seller pays transfer fees. Cash, cashiers check or certified check only. Call 316 259-4446 please leave a message.
True Companion Double Burial Crypt-Lakeview Cemetery, Wichita, KS $6,000. Contact leilag1970@gmail.com
Wichita Park, Old Mission In Lake View Cemetery.
3 plots side by side, valued at $15, 600 selling for $11,000. Lot #170 space 4 and lot #133 space 1&2. For inquiries call 325-660-2312, leave a message, or email zickefooseb@acu.edu
4 plots White Chapel cemetery located in Good Shepherd Section. Lot 91a spaces 1,2,3&4. $3,000 each. Can sell separately. Buyer pays transfer fee of $499. 316-640-0480.
FOOT CARE IN YOUR HOME
Handyman RX- We have a remedy for almost all of your “fix-it”
tons. What you need done I can probably handle. Call for HELP! Brian 316-217-0882. Free Estimates
MOBILE GLASS REPAIR Windows * Patio * Doors Windows won’t stay up, Crank Outs, Patio Rollers and Lock Latches, Morris Glass & Service, 316-946-0745
Derby, Haysville, Mulvane, Rose Hill, Wichita
Exterior & Interior. House painting, siding, decks, and fences. Build, repair and stain ramps. Free Estimates. Be Blessed. Thank you KC KIMBALL 316-250-2265
Classified advertising
Five budget-friendly bedroom upgrades
Family Features
Making changes to a bedroom doesn’t have to break the bank. Simple swaps, a little DIY and some inexpensive purchases can go a long way toward freshening up the place you lay your head.
Better Bedding
If you can’t remember the last time you bought a new comforter, it may be time to snag one. Think beyond the luxury home stores and check out discount home decor retailers and even thrift stores, where you can often find new, unopened bedding at a fraction of the cost. A fluffy throw blanket in a dynamic new color might be the perfect way to rejuvenate your bed.
Playful Pillows
Few things spruce up a bedroom more than new throw pillows. Available in myriad sizes and shapes — from squares to rectangles to asymmetrical — there is no shortage of ways to use these functional pieces to brighten up a space.
Uplifting Light
Old-fashioned lamps, ancient wall sconces and dusty chandeliers can make a room feel stale. Scouring consignment stores and estate sales for new lighting can take a bedroom from dated to delightful without spending a ton of cash. If big box stores are more your thing, you can find budget lamps in unexpected departments; for example, try the back-to-school sections for dorm-friendly finds like
twinkle lights and small bedside lamps. These little pops of light can both brighten and cozy up a room with minimal effort.
Punchy Paint
Repainting a room is a doable DIY project, and it can make a huge difference in how a room looks and feels. Give yourself time to peruse the countless paint swatches at specialty paint stores or home improvement stores. If you’ve always gravitated toward earthy tones, maybe opt for a color with a little more depth or saturation. If brighter hues are your thing, go a little darker. If you love the idea of painting but worry about buyer’s remorse, start with an accent wall.
Heavenly Hardware
money. Secondhand stores, online marketplaces and even furniture boutiques can be a goldmine for offbeat and unique hardware. Be sure to think beyond your bedside, too. Wardrobe handles, closet rods, sconces, wall hooks and hinges can be swapped out easily and inexpensively.
Source: eLivingtoday.com
Memorial
Mary Alice Gass Krieger was born on May 24, 1952, to Richard and Alice Gass, and moved to Wichita in 1954 with her family. Mary graduated from North High School and then Wichita State University with a degree in elementary education. Mary taught at schools in Belle Plaine, Valley Center and Wichita. She is survived by her daughter, Whitney (husband Jesse), her two grandchildren, Ryan and Kaylie, brother, Larry (wife Lynda), and nieces and nephews and their families. Services were held April 28 through Baker Funeral Home and burial was at Ascension Cemetery.
Functional hardware like drawer pulls and doorknobs can be replaced without much effort or
Memorial and Celebration
announcements
Memorial and Celebration announcements can be emailed, sent by regular mail or delivered by hand. The email address is tammara@ theactiveage.com, and we are located at 125 S. West St., Suite 105, Wichita, KS, 67213. Information should be submitted on or before the 15th of the month preceding publication. The Active Age is published on or before the first of each month. The Active Age will maintain Memorial notices online, organized alphabetically at theactiveage.com. Online Memorials may be longer than the printed version at no extra charge. The price of Memorial and Celebration announcements start at $50 for a 1-inch photo and up to 50 words. More information can be found by calling (316) 942-5385 or visiting theactiveage.com.
May Quiz Answers from page 14:
Great Wall of China
Great Pyramids of Giza
Stonehenge
Colosseum
Acropolis
Machu Picchu
Taj Mahal
Cambodia
France
Mexico
Petra (the Rose City)
Venice
Sydney, Australia
Photo courtesy of Shutterstock
Find yourplace.Landing
LARKSFIELD LANDING IS SELLING OUT!
Only a few remain for select floor plans. Call for an appointment to view the latest floor plans and details.
DISCOVER THE MAGIC WITH JOSH FARLEY
Thursday, May 14
RSVP for event details, space is limited. Experience award-winning illusionist Josh Farley , whose headline performances have wowed audiences from Atlantic City to California. Join us to experience the magic, and see firsthand what makes our community the place to be.
LUNCH WITH LARKSFIELD
Wednesday, May 13 at 12:00 p.m. Thursday, June 11 at 11:30 a.m.
Now is the time to secure your future at Larksfield Place and reserve your place in the few remaining homes in the Larksfield Landing expansion. Join us to meet our team and discover how we offer the perfect opportunity to start planning.
To RSVP, scan the QR code or call 316-202-4074. Stay informed about upcoming events and expansion updates.
Win tickets to The Jacksons
The Active Age is giving away two pairs of VIP tickets to The Jacksons show at Riverfest 2026.
To enter our drawing for tickets, visit theactiveage.com and fill out the entry form, or email your name,
address and telephone number to joe@ theactiveage.com; put “The Jackson” in the subject line. We will hold a drawing for the tickets May 15. The show is 6-10 p.m. Friday, May 29, at Kennedy Plaza in front of Century II.
*Availability subject to change.
Do you suffer from leg pain, heaviness, swelling, fatigue, bulging veins??
Do you suffer from leg pain, heaviness, swelling, fatigue,
Dr. Cheatum and Sean Prolago, PA, take a comprehensive, nonsurgical approach to treating varicose veins. This includes using Duplex Ultrasonography for diagnosis and guiding treatment, as well as Dr. Paul Cheatum, MD, RVT, DABVLM
Endovenous Laser Treatment (EVLT), Radiofrequency Ablation (RF) (Venclose), Varithena ablation, and Injection Sclerotherapy. By combining these therapies, they can effectively address the needs of all their patients, from small spider veins to larger, rope-like varicose veins.
Schedule a consultation at one of our 3 locations by calling 316-425-7980 to schedule at the Main Office or 316-213-7327 for Dodge City or West Wichita offices
