LE ROY Lynn Dickey, a high school football legend from Osawatomie who went onto fame as a quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, will be in Le Roy Aug. 25 to honor his old football coach.
Dickey, at the invitation of Jennifer Freeman, will be on hand from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Le Roy Public Library to sign copies of Freemans Book, Heart of a Champion.
The book was written in honor of Freemans father, Bill Freeman, one of the most successful high school football and track coaches in Kansas history.
Bill Freeman racked up eight state titles on the gridiron in Le Roy, Osawatomie and Lawrence, while winning two other state track and field titles at Lawrence.
He coached for 35 years before hanging up his whistle and settling down in Le Roy, where he became a banker and was elected mayor. He died in 2015 of complications from Alzheimers disease.
SEVERAL other special events are planned for the 70th annual homecoming celebration, which runs Thursday through Aug. 26.
At 11 a.m. Aug. 25, Yvonne Patterson will present Wings of Love, an interactive exhibit on exotic birds set up in the Le Roy Community Building. Patterson, who has kept birds since she was 2 and has traveled to nearly 20 counties to see and photograph various exotic birds, will have a macaw and cockatoo that can roller skate, ride a bicycle, play basketball, spell words and other stunts. Admission is free.
OTHER homecoming highlights include movie night Thursday evening at the Homecoming Park Pavilion.
An alumni volleyball scrimmage, corn hole tournament and Little King and Queen Contest are on the agenda for Friday.
Saturdays day filled with activities include a 5K or 2K fun run, parade, Topeka Cruzline drumline show, hay bale toss, pie baking contest, barbecue feed, pie auction and street dance, to go with a number of craft booths set up all day.
Sundays activities include a car show, community church service, bow shoot contest, hot wheels race, horse pull, turtle race, ice cream social, Reflections of Soul Ballet Academy performance and greased pig contest.
Tobys Amusements will have a carnival set up Friday through Sunday as well.
