A look back in time

40 Years Ago

July 1979

Bob Whittaker, Fifth District Congressman, was in Iola and stopped by Sterling Heights Manor to wish Ida Faddis, longtime Iola teacher, a happy 100th birthday, which she will celebrate on July 18.

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The Yates Center News has been sold to Mr. and Mrs. Emerson Lynn Jr. of Iola and will be managed by their son, Angelo Scott Lynn. Lynn will take over publication of the weekly newspaper July 28. The newspaper has been owned by Mr. and Mrs. William Krause of Peabody, publishers of the Peabody Gazette.

Sparkman leads KC to goose egg White Sox

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Glen Sparkman overcame some early struggles and settled down for his first career complete game and shutout.

Sparkman pitched a five-hitter, Whit Merrifield and Hunter Dozier both had three hits including a home run, and the Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago White sox 11-0 Tuesday night.

“My fastball command was shaky early on,” Sparkman said. “Couldn’t really locate it as much, and the curveball as well.”

He wasn’t about to leave the game before trying to finish it. Manager Ned Yost approached him after the eighth.

“He asked ‘How are you feeling?’ I said ‘I feel great,’” Sparkman said. “So, in the ninth he just said ‘Keep going.’ I was all adrenaline, and excited, so I kept going.”

Sparkman (3-5) finished with a career-high eight strikeouts and one walk in the Royals’ first complete-game shutout since June 2, 2017, when Jason Vargas beat Cleveland 4-0.

Kansas City improved to 4-1 since the All-Star break and dropped the White Sox to 0-5.

“We’re playing hard,” Chicago’s Charlie Tilson said. “Obviously, you’ve got to do a little better. It’s part of the game. I think the biggest thing is how you bounce back from it and continue to push and get back to where we need to be.”

Merrifield, hitting .379 (22 for 58) in a 14-game hitting streak, raced to an inside-the-park homer down the right-field line in the fourth inning after Cam Gallagher doubled. Plate umpire Tom Hallion initially called Merrifield out on the play at home, but it was overturned after a quick replay review. That made the score 6-0 and gave Merrifield the 100th inside-the-park homer in Royals history.

“It was kind of a line drive down the line. I had a feeling it was going to stay fair and it did,” Merrifield said. “I saw him dive and miss it and I know that corner. If it’s in that corner, it can keep rolling and I knew I had a chance.”

Dozier hit a two-run, 447-foot homer to left field in the eighth inning to cap a four-run inning and finish the scoring.

Chicago starter Dylan Cease (1-1) gave up six runs — four earned — and eight hits in six innings. He walked one and struck out seven.

The White Sox had a rocky first inning as the Royals scored twice. Merrifield led off with long fly that was caught by center fielder Tilson as he collided with left fielder Eloy Jimenez, who went down in pain next to the wall. Jimenez was taken out with a sore right elbow.

Adalberto Mondesi followed with a single, and took second on Cease’s errant pickoff attempt. Mondesi then stole third and continued home when Yoan Moncada missed catcher James McCann’s throw. Alex Gordon followed with a single and scored on Hunter Dozier’s triple to right for a 2-0 lead.

A third White Sox error contributed to the Royals’ two-run third inning. After Mondesi singled, shortstop Leury Garcia fielded Gordon’s grounder, but threw wildly past second base, allowing Mondesi to score and Gordon to advance to third. Gordon was thrown out at the plate by second baseman Yolmer Sanchez but Bubba Starling’s single drove in Jorge Soler to push the lead to 4-0.

ROYALS CATCHING PLANS

Manager Ned Yost says plans to use both Gallagher and Meibrys Viloria in relatively equal parts after the trade that sent Martin Maldonado to the Cubs for pitcher Mike Montgomery. Gallagher, who started 25 games as Maldonado’s backup, was in the lineup against the White Sox on Tuesday night while Viloria just arrived from Class AA Northwest Arkansas.

“We’ll just kind of mix it up,” Yost said. “But I think on average, one will play four games one week and the other will play four games a week the next.”

Last year Viloria jumped from Class-A Wilmington to the majors on Sept. 1 and played 10 games, including seven starts as catcher.

“To be able to handle himself the way he did at the big league level behind the plate was pretty impressive,” Yost said.

TRAINER’S ROOM

White Sox: C Wellington Castillo (strained left oblique) returned from a five-game minor league rehab, replacing Zack Collins on the roster. “Swinging was the hardest thing to do, because I can catch, I can do all the other things. Hitting was the toughest to do,” Castillo said. … There’s no timetable for the return of shortstop Tim Anderson, out for three weeks with a right ankle sprain, according to manager Rick Renteria. “His strength is improving. He’s swinging, he’s taking BP on the field. He’s actually taking some ground balls, still in a controlled environment. He’s getting better every day,” Renteria said.

Paula Young

Paula J. Young, age 69, went to be with Jesus on Wednesday, July 10, 2019, at her home in LaHarpe.

She was born to Roy and Pauline Blevins in Toronto on May 9, 1950. She was the second oldest of three children. Paula loved the outdoors, especially camping and fishing, and also enjoyed watching her hummingbirds and furbabies.

She was preceded in death by her parents, eldest sister Glenna Harclerode and grandson Bruce Damron.

Survivors include her siblings, Gloria Swift, Norma McDaniel, and Sam, Clinton and Mike Blevins; her daughter, Penny Lee, seven grandchildren and 31 great-grandchildren.

There will be a celebration of life at noon Friday at Baptist Mission Church, 901 S. Main St., LaHarpe. There will be a luncheon following the service.

Police report

Arrests reported

Iola police officers arrested John Zahm, 47, Iola, for suspicion of domestic battery, criminal damage to property and disorderly conduct Saturday in the 1000 block of North Cottonwood Street.

Officers arrested Chelsie Gibson, 27, Moran, for suspicion of driving while intoxicated Friday in the 500 block of North Chestnut Street.

A disturbance Thursday in the 200 block of South Third Street led to the arrest of Christopher Cooper, 30, Iola, for suspicion of aggravated domestic battery, officers said.

 

Battery reported

Aubrie Bancroft, 15, Chanute, and Iolans Kaden Griffeth, 15, and Marissa Van Houden, 16, reported being battered Sunday in the 500 block of South Walnut Street. Iola police officers said they are pursuing charges against a 17-year-old juvenile through the Allen County attorney’s office.

 

Trailer stolen

John Lord told Iola officers July 10 his utility trailer was stolen from the 400 block of South First Street.

 

Break-in reported

Anthony Wickey told officers July 9 that his blue camouflage backpack, a camera, neoprene phone case, a set of collapsible night sticks and a McDonald’s pay card were stolen from the 600 block of North Chestnut Street. A suspect was identified, officers said.

 

Yard of the Month sign stolen

Dirt Diggers Garden Club members told officers July 8 their “Yard of the Month” sign was stolen from the 500 block of North Third Street. The sign is posted on a steel frame.

 

Building struck

Sharon K. Brooks, 75, was eastbound in the Fast Lube parking lot at 207 N. State St. when she struck the building. Brooks was not hurt.

 

Vehicle struck

A vehicle driven by Deanna L. Wright, 63, struck the rear end of a vehicle driven by John J. O’Mara while both vehicles were northbound in the 700 block of North Carpenter Street July 3.

Neither driver was injured.

 

Parked cars hit

Steven L. Heimberg, 56, was northbound in the 600 block of South Jefferson Avenue July 6 when he struck a parked car owned by Jacque L. Thummel. Thummel’s car was then pushed into the front of a parked car owned by Kansas City Budget Rental.

On July 9, Donna S. Heath, 74, was backing from a parking stall in the Allen Community College parking lot when she struck a parked pickup owned by Janice Jones.

On July 10, an unknown motorist was traveling through the Allen Community College parking lot and collided with a parked vehicle owned by Kattia D. Andrews. The motorist left without reporting the incident.

 

Items recovered

Iola officers said they recovered a blue suitcase filled with miscellaneous Christmas items and a plastic cigarette butt receptacle in the 100 block of South Third Street Saturday.

Long rebuild awaits OKC

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Yosef Maaroof wanted one more Russell Westbrook memory in Oklahoma City.

When he learned Thursday night the Thunder were planning to send Westbrook to the Houston Rockets for Chris Paul and draft picks, the 20-year-old Tulsa resident planned to make the two-hour drive to Oklahoma City with friends. They wanted to take videos and photos in front of the large images of Thunder players that adorn Chesapeake Energy Arena during the season, hoping Westbrook’s photo would still be up on Friday morning.

It wasn’t, so Maaroof came up with a different tribute. In a video he posted on Twitter, he put on the Westbrook jerseys he’s collected since 2012 , took them off one by one and laid them side by side in front of the arena. He wore 18 in the video, which has been viewed more than 85,000 times.

Maaroof said Westbrook has always been his favorite player. And the next addition to his collection will be a Rockets jersey.

“He was never perfect, but just the emotion he showed — he was very relatable, I feel like,” Maaroof said. “He was the underdog. People have always just not appreciated him the way they should have.”

With their emotional sparkplug gone, the Thunder, as we knew them, are no more. Westbrook was the last remaining player from the team that moved from Seattle to Oklahoma City in 2008.

Kevin Durant, James Harden, Serge Ibaka, Paul George and others, all gone. Now Westbrook. The trade to Houston was made official Tuesday.

He spent his entire 11-year career with the Thunder, despite earlier chances to leave. With Westbrook, the Thunder won at least 45 games for 10 straight years and reached the Western Conference Finals four times, including a run to the NBA Finals in 2012.

“It’s a lot of heartbreak,” Maaroof said as he recalled recent conversations with his friends. “Not to be dramatic, but it really feels like someone died. We’re all 20 years old, so we all grew up with Russ, grew up with this team, pretty much through middle school, high school, college now.”

Sure, Westbrook was a league MVP, two-time scoring champion and two-time All-Star MVP. Yes, he was a freakish athlete and triple-double threat every night. And against the odds, he evolved from perceived ball hog to two-time assist leader.

But it goes beyond that for Thunder fans. Westbrook is from the Los Angeles area, and with it came the flash and style one might expect. But he adopted Oklahoma and supported the community with his reading rooms, basketball camps, comedy shows and his yearly Thanksgiving meal at the Boys and Girls Club in Oklahoma City. The night everyone learned Westbrook was being dealt, he was at a comedy club in Tulsa for a benefit show.

“He’s like the staple of the franchise,” Tulsa comic Hynni B said. “He makes you want to stand up, he makes you want to have heart. You know where he came from, you know what he’s doing for the community. It’s hurtful to see him to leave.”

Most of all, he’ll be remembered as the one who had stayed. He signed an extension in 2016, then signed a long-term deal in 2017, forever endearing himself to Oklahoma City fans who felt burned by Durant’s departure for rival Golden State.

“When he stuck it out, it was like bro, this is our leader,” said Jerry Manna, a Tulsa resident at the comedy show. “This is our guy. After he did that, I didn’t care what nobody said. I wasn’t accepting no Westbrook slander. No sir.”

Westbrook teamed up with Durant and Harden to introduce the Thunder as a league power early this decade. At their height, the young trio led the franchise to the finals seven years ago, a loss to the Miami Heat. Now, Westbrook will be re-united with Harden.

The run in Oklahoma City wasn’t supposed to end yet, but George left first for the Los Angeles Clippers, opening the door for an earlier-than-expected reboot. Thunder forward Jerami Grant was traded before Westbrook, and now Oklahoma City has added multiple first-round picks for its rebuilding project. It will take time and coach Billy Donovan will get plenty of chances to tinker with his lineup and give young players experience.

The Thunder haven’t been in this mode since the 2008-09 season, but Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt said it is time to embrace it. He notes that the same general manager who brought the success — Sam Presti — is still running the show. And that offers a sliver of hope for aching Thunder fans.

“We’re getting a king’s ransom for that,” Holt said of the Westbrook trade. “He’s taking what would have been a nuclear winter at the end of their contracts and quite possibly jumping us into a new chapter a lot faster than we might have expected.”

Westbrook is one of the most accomplished current players without an NBA title. In the three seasons after Durant left, Westbrook’s Thunder never made it past the first round of the playoffs, even with George. And Westbrook often found his way into conflict. His spark ignited the Thunder, but he often was among the league leaders in technical fouls in recent years. He has stubbornly defended his tendency to shoot more 3-pointers than his percentage indicates he should.

All was forgiven once the news broke. Thunder fans have spent the past several days reminiscing about Westbrook’s biggest moments

Westbrook will still have his fans in Oklahoma City.

“I’m still going to be a Thunder fan, but I don’t plan on missing a Rockets game this season, either,” Maaroof said.

City council takes on 2020 budget tonight

Iola City Council members will discuss the city’s spending plans for 2020 when they gather tonight for a budget workshop.

The meeting begins at 6 o’clock in the New Community Building at Iola’s Riverside Park, and is expected to spill over to a second night. If necessary, Council members will return to the park at 6 p.m., Thursday.

The public is invited.

Fans of USA Women’s soccer team deliver petition to US soccer fed.

CHICAGO (AP) — Fans of the women’s World Cup championship soccer team delivered petitions to U.S. Soccer Federation headquarters in Chicago that demanded equal pay for the players.

Wearing a red women’s team jersey, 12-year-old Greta Lindall on Tuesday told fans that members of the women are heroes. She added no one can criticize their skills because they are the best in the word, and the next step is “to pay them like it.”

The demonstrators later delivered a petition with 200,000 signatures to USSF employees inside.

The Soccer Federation has come under fire for paying the women’s team less than the men’s team, which failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.

USSF spokesman Neil Buethe said the organization is moving toward negotiations with the women’s national team, and both parties have agreed not to discuss anything further with the media.

Sorority installs officers

The Kappa Alpha Chapter, Phi Tau Omega Sorority, met at Bolling’s Meatery and Eatery Monday for its monthly social. Connie Rutledge and Carla Hunt hosted 17 members.

Following dinner, the group met at Community National Bank for the installation of chapter officers for 2019-2020. Roberta Ellis installed Lucinda Stanley as president; Janet Wilson, vice president; Carla Hunt, treasurer; Rhodenia Rowe, associate scribe; Jolene Boeken, social secretary; Susan Locke, recording secretary; and Sharon Bland, sergeant-at-arms. Barbara Anderson was unable to attend, but will be installed as historian at a later date.

Lucinda Stanley set up new committees for the upcoming year.

She brought up for discussion the newly elected National President’s platform, Down Syndrome Awareness.

Members brought up several ideas for ways to honor her platform.

The next business meeting will be held at 7 p.m., Aug. 5 at the bank.

Bill Hawk

William Clarence (Bill) Hawk, age 70, died Sunday, July 14, 2019, at the Veterans’ Home, Cameron, Mo. He was born March 2, 1949, in Iola, to George W. Hawk and Marjory (Bash) Hawk.

He served from 1970 to 1976 in the U.S. Army, Army Reserves, and Kansas Army National Guard. 

He was preceded in death by a son, James Hawk, and other relatives.

Survivors include a son, Jonathon “Jonny” Hawk, Waterloo, Iowa; two daughters, Gayla Hawk, Taylors, S.C., Bobbie Jo Hawk, Shakopee, Minn.; and numerous other relatives.

A graveside service with military honors will be at 10:30 a.m. Friday in the LaHarpe Cemetery, 2521 Nebraska Rd., LaHarpe.

Helen Drake

GREAT BEND — Helen J. Drake was born in Sterling on June 29, 1931. Her parents were Carl P. Handy and Daisy V. (Dixon) Handy. Helen married George F. Drake on Sept. 8, 1951 in Iola. To this union were born two children, Jeff Drake and Susan Drake Stout. George and Helen lived in Great Bend for over 54 years.

She was a member of the First United Methodist Church of Great Bend. A lifetime member of the Girl Scouts, Central Kansas Council of Girl Scouts President, was on the Girls Scout nominating committee, and Great Bend cookie chairman for a number of years. She was a Girl Scout leader on all levels, Brownie, Junior and Senior Scouts. Helen was a volunteer for Red Cross Blood Mobile, a long-time member of the Cemetery Board, a lifetime member of the Great Bend Zoological Society helping bring the tigers, lions and wolves, among other things to the zoo. Helen was an avid tennis player and was a long-time member of one of the local bridge clubs. 

She enjoyed watching all of her grandchildren in their many activities. Watching her great grandchildren Sean and Joshua Urban and Drake Brewer wrestling, numerous baseball, basketball, and football games and track.

George and Helen traveled a lot during George’s tenure as mayor of Great Bend, including a trip to our sister city in Germany and trips to New York City. They went on many cruises, trips abroad and trips to the East Coast to see their son and family. She was such a large part of our family and will be missed tremendously.

Survivors include, Jeff and Kathleen Drake of Ringwood, N.J., Susan and Wayne Stout of Hoisington; grandchildren, Ian and Timothy Drake, Ringwood, N.J., Mandy and Shane Konzem of Salina, Kyle and Shani Stout of Hoisington, and Molly and Darin Brewer of Hoisington; great grandchildren, Sean Urban of Lawrence, Joshua Urban and Izaac Konzem of Salina, Ryker, Dahlia, and Osiris Stout of Hoisington, and Drake, Marly, Mya, Dashel and Miry Brewer of Hoisington. She was preceded in death by her husband, George F. Drake; her parents, and also a brother, Phillip Handy. 

Visitation will be from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursday, at Bryant Funeral Home, with family receiving friends from 5 to 7 p.m. Funeral services will be at 10 a.m., Friday at Bryant Funeral Home, with Reverend Seong Lee presiding. Interment will be in the Great Bend Cemetery. Memorials are suggested to Great Bend Zoological Society or Golden Belt Community Foundation, in care of Bryant Funeral Home.