Great Plains Journalism Awards 2014 by Great Plains Awards

the 2014 great plains journalism awards

Letter From the Tulsa Press Club President

n behalf of the board and members of the Tulsa Press Club, I would like to welcome you to Tulsa for the 2014 Great Plains Journalism Awards and Distinguished Lectureship. We are honored to have such an outstanding group of journalists representing eight states. This event was designed to celebrate the professionals who hold people in power accountable, who expose injustice and who use words and images to tell stories that move us to action or change how we think about important issues. As an organization committed to quality journalism, the Tulsa Press Club is proud to celebrate your work and award-winning accomplishments. The Great Plains Journalism Awards has grown so much over the years and is now one of our premier events that support the Tulsa Press Club mission of promoting the highest standards among journalists and encouraging the exchange of ideas between members of the media. The Tulsa Press Club has been promoting these values since our founding in 1906. Thank you for joining us in our efforts to build a strong journalism community in the central United States and for sharing with us the outstanding work contained in this book. We hope you enjoy your visit to Tulsa and plan to come back again next year.

Sincerely, Nicole Burgin President, Tulsa Press Club, 2014

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Meet the presEnters

John D. Sutter

Daniel Vaughn

Tom Fox

John D. Sutter is a columnist at CNN Digital and creator of the network’s Change the List project, which aims to bring attention to bottom-of-the-list places. His work focuses on social justice and often involves readers in the storytelling process. Sutter’s project on slavery in Mauritania won the Livingston Award and was nominated for a documentary Emmy. He grew up in Oklahoma and returned to the state last year to walk the full 17-mile path of the deadly tornado in Moore.

Daniel Vaughn holds one of the coolest jobs in American journalism. He is the full-time barbecue editor at Texas Monthly magazine. It’s not something he aspired to do while growing up in a small town in Ohio. He refined his palette on the finer delicacies of dining while exploring the Big Easy and earning a degree in architecture at Tulane University. He didn’t step foot into Texas until 1998, but quickly discovered that barbecue has a whole new meaning in the Lone Star State. His newfound epicurean hobby begat a blog in 2008, Full Custom Gospel BBQ. The popularity of his online column led him to travel more than 10,000 miles to savor the flavors at 186 Texas restaurants billing barbecue as their mainstay. That led him to write a book, “The Prophets of Smoked Meat: A Journey Through Texas Barbecue” in 2013. He said goodbye to his job at a Dallas architectural firm and hello to Texas Monthly magazine, which made his title official in March 2013. Vaughn continues to live in Dallas with his wife and children.

Tom Fox is a Pulitzer Prize-winning staff photographer for The Dallas Morning News. He has been a photojournalist for almost 25 years. The Minnesota native was part of a small team of photographers at The Dallas Morning News who won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography for coverage of Hurricane Katrina. Fox also has been honored by the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors as the Photojournalist of the Year and Star Photographer of the Year by the Texas Headliner’s Foundation. Over the years, he has received accolades from POYi, NPPA’s Best of Photojournalism and National Headliners Foundation. Fox holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas – Arlington. He previously worked as a staff photographer for the Corpus Christi Caller-Times and photo editor/chief photographer for The Arlington Morning News. Fox is married to a writer, and they have a daughter.

Meet the emcee Jeff Martin

Jeff Martin’s books include The Customer Is “Always Wrong: The Retail Chronicles” and “The Late American Novel: Writers on the Future of Books.” He has written for GOOD, The Millions, Salon, Poets & Writers, and Publishers Weekly. Jeff is the founder and executive director of the literary organization Book Smart Tulsa. Jeff writes a regular column for TulsaPeople and serves as fiction editor for This Land Press.

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Agenda The Tulsa Press Club Great Plains Journalism Awards and Distinguished Lectureship 2014 8:30–9 a.m. — Registration, Crystal Ballroom Lobby 9 a.m. — Judges’ panel discussion: Cool Jobs, Mayo Museum 9:45 a.m. — BREAK 10 – 11:15 a.m. — How to Turn Your Passion into a Profession Speaker: Daniel Vaughn of Texas Monthly, Mayo Museum 11:15 a.m. — BREAK 11:30 a.m. — Awards Luncheon, Crystal Ballroom •Welcome and introduction • President’s remarks • Awards Presentation (Lunch served during the awards) • Distinguished Lectureship Speaker: John Sutter • Presentation of Distinguished Lectureship Award 1:30 p.m. — BREAK 1:45 p.m. — How to Find Unexpected Stories and Tell them in Surprising Ways Speaker: John Sutter of CNN , Mayo Museum 3 – 3:15 p.m. — BREAK 3:15 – 4:30 p.m. — Visual Storytelling, Mayo Museum Speaker: Tom Fox of the Dallas Morning News 4:30 p.m. — BREAK 4:45 p.m. — Reception, Rooftop Lounge

With appreciation Great Plains Journalism Awards and Distinguished Lectureship committee Nicole Amend Kevin Armstrong Nicole Burgin John Clanton Matt Clayton Amanda Clinton Jason Collington Michael Overall Ashley Parrish James Royal Mike Simons Christopher Smith Amanda Thrash Saint Francis Health System for printing our booklet Tom Gilbert and Tulsa World for printing our gallery Tulsa Press Club Foundation

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Table of Contents News Package Winner..................................... 8 News Package Finalists.................................... 9 Project/Investigative Reporting Winner............... 10 Project/Investigative Reporting Finalists............. 11 General News Reporting Winner........................ 12 General News Reporting Finalists...................... 13 Narrative Story/Series Winner.......................... 14 Narrative Story/Series Finalists......................... 15 Beat Reporting Winner................................... 16 Beat Reporting Finalists.................................. 17 Feature Writing Winner.................................. 18 Feature Writing Finalists................................. 19 Business Reporting Winner.............................. 20 Business Reporting Finalists............................. 21 Business Feature Winner................................. 22 Business Feature Finalists............................... 23 Sports Reporting Winner................................. 24 Sports Reporting Finalists................................ 25 Sports Feature Winner................................... 26 Sports Feature Finalists.................................. 27 Sports Column Winner.................................... 28 Sports Column Finalists.................................. 29 Review Winner............................................. 30 Review Finalists........................................... 31 Food Winner............................................... 32 Food Finalists.............................................. 33 Entertainment Feature Winner......................... 34 Entertainment Feature Finalists........................ 35 Specialty Feature Winner................................ 36 Specialty Feature Finalists.............................. 37 Special Section Winner................................... 38 Special Section Finalist.................................. 39 News Page Design Winner................................ 40 News Page Design Finalists.............................. 41 Feature Page Design Winner............................ 42 Feature Page Design Finalists........................... 43 Sports Page Design Winner.............................. 44 Sports Page Design Finalists............................. 45 Graphics/Illustrations Winner........................... 46 Graphics/Illustrations Finalists......................... 47 Editorial Cartoon Winner................................ 48 Editorial Cartoon Finalists............................... 49 Editorial Portfolio Winner............................... 50 Editorial Portfolio Finalists.............................. 51 Personal Column Winner................................. 52 Personal Column Finalists................................ 53 Headline Portfolio Winner............................... 54 Headline Portfolio Finalists.............................. 55 Great Plains Designer of the Year ..................... 56

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Great Plains Designer of the Year Finalists........... 57 Great Plains Writer of the Year ........................ 58 Great Plains Writer of the Year Finalists.............. 60 Great Plains Newspaper of the Year................... 61 Great Plains Newspaper of the Year................... 62 Great Plains Newspaper of the Year Finalists........ 63 Photo Illustration Winner................................ 64 Photo Illustration Finalists............................... 65 General News Photography Winner.................... 66 General News Photography Finalists................... 67 Spot News Photography Winner......................... 68 Spot News Photography Finalists....................... 69 News Photography, Multiple, Winner.................. 70 News Photography, Multiple, Winner.................. 71 Feature Photography, Single, Winner.................. 72 Feature Photography, Single, Finalists................. 73 Feature Photography, Multiple, Winner............... 74 Feature Photography, Multiple, Finalist............... 75 Sports Action Photography Winner..................... 76 Sports Action Photography Finalists.................... 77 Sports Feature Photography Winner................... 78 Sports Feature Photography Finalists.................. 79 Portrait Photography Winner............................ 80 Great Plains Newspaper Photographer of the Year.. 81 Magazine Photography, Portrait, Winner.............. 84

he Lobeck Taylor Family Foundation’s mission is to improve the quality of life for Oklahomans through education, community enrichment and entrepreneurialism. To fulfill this mission, the Foundation acts as a grantmaker, innovator, and convener. Since the foundation was formed in 1998, it has donated over $10 million in community investment.

Table of Contents Magazine Photography, Portrait, Finalists............. 85 Magazine Photo Illustration Winner.................... 86 Magazine Photo Illustration Finalists................... 87 Magazine Photography, Multiple, Winner.............. 88 Magazine Photography, Multiple, Finalists............ 89 Magazine Photography, Feature, Winner.............. 90 Magazine Photography, Feature, Finalist.............. 91 News Writing, Magazine, Winner....................... 92 News Writing, Magazine, Finalists...................... 93 Feature Writing, Magazine, Winner.................... 94 Feature Writing, Magazine, Finalists................... 95 Profile Writing, Magazine, Winner...................... 96 Profile Writing, Magazine, Finalists.................... 97 Column Writing, Magazine, Winner.................... 98 Column Writing, Magazine, Finalists................... 99 Page Design, Magazine, Winner........................100 Page Design, Magazine, Finalists......................101 Magazine Cover Winner.................................102 Magazine Cover Finalists................................103 Great Plains Magazine Writer of the Year Winner...104 Great Plains Magazine Writer of the Year Finalists.............................106 Great Plains Magazine of the Year....................107 Great Plains Magazine of the Year Finalists..........108 Spot News Video Winner................................109 Spot News Video Finalists...............................110 General News Video Winner............................111 General News Video Finalists..........................112

Feature Video Winner...................................113 Feature Video Finalists..................................114 Multimedia Project or Series Winner.................115 Multimedia Project or Series Finalists................116 Best Website Page Design Winner.....................117 Best Website Page Design Finalists....................118 Best Overall Website Design............................119 Best Overall Website Design Finalists.................120 Blog Writing Winner.....................................121 Blog Writing Finalists....................................122 Great Plains Website of the Year......................123 Great Plains Website of the Year Finalists...........124 Great Plains Student Photographer of the Year.....126 Great Plains Student Photographer of the Year Finalist.....................127 Great Plains Student Editor in Chief of the Year....128 Great Plains Student Editor in Chief of the Year, Finalists..................129 Great Plains Student Designer of the Year...........130 Great Plains Student Designer of the Year Finalists.131 Great Plains Student Writer of the Year..............132 Great Plains Student Writer of the Year, Finalists..134 Great Plains Student Newspaper of the Year........135 Great Plains Student Newspaper of the Year, Finalists.......................136 Great Plains Student Website of the Year............137 Great Plains Website of the Year Finalists...........138

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News Package Winner Publication: The Oklahoman By: The Oklahoman staff Judges’ Comments: Solid reporting and deft writing. Noteworthy coverage under extreme circumstances make this entry a winner. Excellent use of social media. Strong graphics and other elements enhance storytelling. Important use of real people to tell the story of Moore’s resilience in the face of adversity.

Excerpt from May 20 and 31 tornado coverage

MOORE — Dorise Stanley Biddie stood amid the rubble of her home Tuesday and had a quick reply for anyone who stopped by. “I tell ‘em, ‘I’m not giving up yet,’” Biddie said. “‘I crawled out of that hole over there, I’m not giving up.’” Like the plagues of Egypt, tornadoes keep descending on Moore. And the stouthearted citizens of Moore keep fighting back. “I think we’re pretty resilient,” said John Burruss. “I wish we couldn’t handle so much. You don’t ever get used to it. But it’s where we live and what we do.” A day after a monster arrived to match the F-5 tornado that ravaged Moore on May 3, 1999, I walked through devastated neighborhoods. I also went to chat with Burruss, who can speak as well as any about the spirit of Moore. About why people just can’t quit the community that sits between Oklahoma City and Norman. Burruss grew up in Moore, graduated from Moore High School (1979) and has worked at Moore Christian Academy or Westmoore High School most of the last 28 years. Burruss climbed under his bed in November 1973 for protection from a tornado coming through his hometown. He wanted to watch the VikingsFalcons game on Monday Night Football, but his mother gave the orders. Turns out Mom was right. When Burruss emerged from under the bed, he saw the Southgate Baptist Church

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roof in his backyard. And yet there Burruss was Monday, at Westmoore, herding students into the safe room just before 3 p.m. as yet another massive twister bore down the Main Street of Tornado Alley. The 1999 and 2013 cyclones. A smaller tornado in 2003 that still wreaked massive destruction. Moore is either the unluckiest town in America or atmospherically draws tornadoes like no other place on Earth. “Just a myriad of emotions,” Burruss said while sitting in his house unaffected structurally but clearly affected spiritually. “We laughed yesterday. We cried yesterday. We were mad.” Neither Burruss nor his wife, Donna, who teaches at Southmoore High School, slept much Monday night. “What-ifs started rolling in,” Burruss said. “Who taught here? Who lives where?” They know the drill. Most Moore residents do. Like David Teeman. He’s lived in Moore since 1994. Standing in the driveway of his damaged home in the Heatherwood neighborhood east of Interstate 35, Teeman said no way would he, his wife and his son leave. “Only three years to pay this off,” he said with a smile. “Only happens every 14 years.” Teeman and his son, who has cerebral palsy, rode out the storm in their safe room. Then Teeman went down the street and helped 30 or so neighbors free a couple buried in rubble. Teeman admits he’s not in the best of

shape yet says he somehow picked up a fully loaded dishwasher and tossed it over his shoulder. And while Teeman was gone from his house, 20 or so people came by to check on his son. “We’ve always liked” Moore, Teeman said. “Both places we’ve lived, quiet areas. This is about the most noise you hear.” That’s the kind of neighborhood Dorise Biddie lives in. She reeled off the names of her neighbors in J.D. Estates, also east of I-35. Les, Lennie, Kim. None of whom’s houses stood, either. Twenty-four hours earlier, she huddled in her bathtub, holding her Chihuahua, breathing shallow because the tornado had sucked the oxygen from the air, her knees bruised from banging against the tub. Biddie bought the house more than 20 years ago. First home she ever purchased. She raised her son there. A tornado’s not going to run her off. She, too, survived that 1973 twister. Rode it out as a teenager in a closet with her brother and sister. Kick someone from Moore, she says, and “we kick back.” And here’s why. Moore is home. Moore is where memories have been made. When Burruss and his wife are off on some grand adventure with the grandkids, “My wife always reminds us that we’re making memories. We made memories yesterday. Some of ‘em weren’t very good.”

News Package Finalists Publication: Tulsa World By: Ziva Branstetter, Curtis

Killman, Cary Aspinwall, John Clanton, Tim Chamberlin, Mike Averill, Hilary Pittman, Stephen Pingry, Matt Barnard, Michael Wyke, Steve Reckinger

Excerpt from “Fairmont Terrace: What went wrong?” The neighborhood encompassing 61st Street and Peoria Avenue needed a name, an identity - something other than the “south Tulsa ghetto” or the “South Peoria pocket slum.” After all, there are nice homes here, too, and hard-working people who wait in the rain for bus rides to work, walk their kids to school and go to church on Sundays to ask the Lord for a little help. More than a decade ago, they renamed it Riverwood. They designed new signs, defined the boundaries, had neighborhood meetings, made plans for a community center, fought for progress, improvements and carried a sense of pride. But crime and a downward economic spiral fought back against their hard-won progress. The new name never really stuck. In the wake of a brutal quadruple homicide that took the lives of four women in publicly financed apartments, locals are wondering: What happened to Riverwood, and how can we get it back? Four women - Rebeika Powell, 23; Kayetie Powell Melchor, 23; Misty Nunley, 33; and Julie Jackson, 55 - were found shot to death in the Fairmont Terrace apartments at midday Monday. Rebeika Powell’s 3-year-old son was found at the scene, uninjured. Police are still searching for the killer or killers. They have questioned several people but made no arrests, asking for the community’s help and patience as they do the difficult work.

Publication: The Argus Leader By: John Hult, Steve Young,

Jay Kirschenman, Jacqueline Palfy Klemond

Excerpt from “Patrolling the prairie” South Dakotans expect their police to be good people. In most communities, they are. They sit on the bleachers next to you at sporting events. They eat at the town café. They raise a hand in greeting along a rural stretch of highway. Rural policing can be the perfect fit for the right officer. But in some small towns, finding and keeping good police officers and sheriff’s deputies is especially difficult. Low pay, long hours and little or no backup across miles of isolated prairie combine to make the job less than desirable. And sometimes the hires go bad — especially in rural South Dakota. An Argus Leader analysis found the difficulties of finding and keeping qualified officers in small departments reflected in the ranks of officers who’ve been decertified. Of the 49 officers who’ve lost certification since 2003, 31 came from departments with 10 or fewer employees. ■ In Freeman, former police chief Eric Seitz was hired out of Las Vegas and quickly earned the respect and support of townspeople. But then he was indicted for misrepresentation to obtain a controlled substance. He pleaded guilty in July, admitting an addiction to prescription painkillers, and his request for a South Dakota certification was denied. ■ Wagner’s former police chief, James Chaney, resigned when it was discovered he’d hidden his girlfriend’s drug needles at the police department. ■ One sheriff and two deputies with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office have lost certification since 2003. Two deputies on the decertification list came from Jackson County.

Publication:

Omaha World-Herald

By: Alissa Skelton, Roseann Moring, Maggie O’Brien, Cody Winchester, Matt Wynn, Emily Nohr, Tim Sacco, Patrick Smith, Jeanne Hauser, Tim Parks, Tammy Yttri, Dave Elsesser, Matt Haney, Alyssa Schukar, Cate Folsom, Judith Nygren, Joe Brennan, Jeff Reece, Leah Becerra

Excerpt from “633 crimes, one family” Levi Levering was the respected face of his family a century ago, when he earned an impressive reputation as an Omaha tribal leader and advocate. His influence extended from Macy, Neb., to Washington, D.C., where he successfully lobbied Congress in 1920 to protect tribal members’ rights to their land. Now the face of the family is Levi’s great-great-grandson: Nikko Jenkins. Jenkins stands accused of a 10-day killing spree in Omaha last August that left four people dead. And five other relatives — two of Nikko Jenkins’ sisters, his mother, a cousin and an uncle — have also been charged in connection with the killings. A World-Herald examination of the Levering history shows that 38 descendants of Levi Levering have been convicted of 633 crimes in Omaha since 1979. Those cases have cost taxpayers at least $2.8 million in prison and jail costs, not counting the price tag of law enforcement, juvenile cases, prosecution or public defense. Family members have been involved in at least 150 other cases during that period that ended in acquittals, mistrials and dropped charges. “That family is notorious,” said William Gallup, a defense attorney who has represented some of Nikko Jenkins’ relatives.

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Project/Investigative Reporting Winner Publication: The Argus Leader By: Jonathan Ellis

Excerpt from “Trapped by insurer’s denials” Betty Beyer never wanted to leave the family farm near Flandreau. It was where she raised her sons, where she loved to spend time outdoors in her garden and apple orchard. And, after her husband, Art died, where she lived alone. That isolation on the farm began to worry family members as Beyer’s health deteriorated. By 2006, then 83 and suffering from a host of maladies, it was clear her time on the farm was coming to an end. Luckily, Art Beyer bought the couple a long-term care insurance policy years before to help pay for a nursing home or assisted living. He didn’t live to use the policy, but Betty Beyer continued to pay the premiums. Beyer didn’t know that 226 miles to the south an Omaha insurance consulting firm was reviewing some of the longterm care policies held by her company. The review had profound consequences for Beyer and, potentially, thousands of others. It concluded that with “a more robust claims management effort,” more than a quarter of all claims paid by the company could yield “savings.” To investors looking at the potential for acquiring those insurance policies, “savings” translated to profits. The confidential report, obtained by the Argus Leader, was done on behalf of Oak Hill Capital Partners, a multibillion dollar private equity firm with ties to some of the nation’s wealthiest and wellknown business people. About a year after the report was finished, the insurance executives backed by Oak Hill bought the block of long-term care policies from Medico Insurance in Omaha, including the one held by Betty Beyer, eventually changing the company’s name to Ability Insurance. When it came time for Beyer to move from her Flandreau farm into assisted living, Ability Insurance refused to honor her insurance policy. Though her family never let her know, and she would die before it concluded, Beyer became the first plaintiff to

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Lawyer Caitlin Collier works last week in Vermillion. Elisha Page/Argus Leader sue Ability Insurance in federal court for refusing to pay claims. About a dozen federal lawsuits have been filed across the country, but most have been in South Dakota, in part because Ability assumed control of more than 2,300 long-term care policies in the state. “It is one of the centers of the universe as far as this case in concerned,” said Joseph Belth, a professor emeritus of insurance at Indiana University. He also is editor of an industry newsletter called The Insurance Forum in which he chronicled Ability’s legal troubles. The Argus Leader reviewed hundreds of pages of court documents, including depositions of key executives and confidential documents obtained by subpoena in court cases. Those documents show a pattern of Ability failing to honor its policies. In December, U.S. District Court Judge Richard Cebull in Montana issued a scathing rebuke of Ability, calling the company’s conduct, in wrongfully terminating the long-term care policy of a woman there, “reprehensible.” “Defendant’s intent is clear: to reduce claim payments and increase profit for the company,” Cebull wrote. The court documents also show that

Ability broke South Dakota state laws and that regulators with the South Dakota Division of Insurance knew it. The division ordered an examination of Ability’s claims practices more than three years ago, but the company has not been publicly punished by the state, according to a lawyer with the division. “They are a licensed company in the state,” said the lawyer, Joshua Andersen. “That much I can tell you.” As the lawsuits piled up, lawyers for Ability asked judges to seal potentially embarrassing documents from the public, court records show. In some instances, judges complied with the requests, but not in all cases. Many of the most damning documents emerged during the Beyer case in South Dakota, and they’ve been used in other cases against Ability around the country. “That’s what we wanted,” said David Beyer, Betty’s son who filed the lawsuit on her behalf. “That’s the reward there.” Two South Dakota lawyers who have filed cases against Ability, Mike Abourezk in Rapid City and Seamus Culhane in Watertown, declined to comment for this story, citing an ongoing case against Ability in federal court.

Project/Investigative Reporting Finalists Publication:

Oklahoma Watch

By: Clifton Adcock

Excerpt from “How actions by governor’s staff led to weakened state justice reforms”

Publication: Tulsa World By: Cary Aspinwall, Casey Smith

Excerpt from “Facing Foreclosure: State program aiding few borrowers” The red brick home on Edinburg Drive was supposed to be Roberta Green’s permanent address on easy street. But a home equity loan the 80-year-old took from Countrywide in 2006 to pay off debt ended in foreclosure on the Norman residence, and financial woes. The Attorney General’s Resolution Oklahoma program determined Countrywide dual-tracked Green, telling her she was being considered for a mortgage modification while simultaneously filing foreclosure. For this, the state program awarded her $10,000 in restitution. That’s about $8,500 more than the check she would have gotten from a program known as the National Mortgage Settlement, an agreement between the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers and attorneys general in 49 states and the District of Columbia. Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt opted the state out of the national agreement in 2012, the only attorney general in the nation to do so. The national settlement program provided three types of aid from the five banks: billions in lump sums that officials in each state could decide how to spend; $20 billion in consumer relief to aid struggling homeowners; and nearly $1.5 billion in direct payments to those who lost their homes. Instead of accepting all types of aid, Pruitt made his own deal with the banks. He accepted an $18.7 million lump sum but rejected an additional $10.1 million in payments the banks would have made to Oklahoma foreclosure victims.

Publication: The Oklahoman By: Nolan Clay, Robby Trammell

Excerpt from “Shadid secrecy” Oklahoma City mayoral candidate Ed Shadid sought to keep possible criminal wrongdoing from coming out in his divorce by invoking his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination, The Oklahoman has learned. He’s not saying why. Shadid invoked the constitutional privilege in 2006 after hiring Josh Welch, at the time a prominent criminal defense attorney. After granting a divorce in 2007, a judge sealed from public view Shadid’s reasons for invoking the Fifth Amendment as well as dozens of other records. The judge sealed the records at Shadid’s and his exwife’s request. The divorce decree itself remained open. Shadid now is fighting at the Oklahoma Supreme Court to keep the sealed records secret. He went to the Supreme Court after his divorce judge indicated she likely would unseal the records since he is a mayoral candidate. Three Oklahoma County judges who have handled divorce cases told The Oklahoman it is extremely rare for someone in a divorce proceeding to invoke the Fifth Amendment. It is most commonly seen in criminal cases and is often referred to as “taking the Fifth.” The Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states that no person shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself. Shadid is running against Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett, who also is divorced. All the records in Cornett’s 2010 divorce case are open to the public, records show. Most divorce cases in Oklahoma are open to the public.

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General News Reporting Winner Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Alissa Skelton, Roseann Moring, Maggie O’Brien, Todd Cooper, Matt Wynn Judges’ Comments: Thorough and well-reported. Communities often ask, in cases of brutal, seemingly senseless crimes, “how could this happen?” The Omaha World Herald’s coverage helped answer that question and revealed what quite possibly were systemic failures on the part of the prisons and difficulties in dealing the mental health issues. These stories go well beyond routine police beat reporting.

Excerpt from Nikko Jenkins continuing coverage Ballistics had already linked two South Omaha homicides to a north Omaha shooting death when Andrea Kruger died in west Omaha. Then the Crime Stoppers tips started rolling in, said Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer. The tips led police to link the deaths of Jorge CajigaRuiz, Juan Uribe-Pena, Curtis Bradford and Kruger. And it led them to a suspect: Nikko A. Jenkins, 26, a robber who was released from a 10 1/2year prison stint in late July. “Crime Stoppers played an instrumental role in solving these four homicides, and I suspect there will be Crime Stopper payouts,” Schmaderer said. And they got confirmation from an unlikely source: Jenkins himself. During an interview with investigators, Jenkins — who had a history of carjackings, threats and erratic behavior — made incriminating statements about the shooting spree, Schmaderer said. Jenkins reportedly walked investigators through the slayings, in which the victims were shot in the head. Schmaderer and other law enforcement officials said Wednesday at a press conference that they are still investigating the case and expect to arrest others soon. But authorities moved quickly to detain Jenkins last week to prevent more vio-

lence as they were gathering evidence for four homicide cases, Schmaderer said. Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine charged Jenkins Wednesday with four counts of first-degree murder, weapon use and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Kleine said his office would “likely” seek the death penalty. Jenkins is accused of

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shooting Cajiga-Ruiz and Uribe-Pena on Aug. 11 in South Omaha’s Spring Lake Park; Bradford on Aug. 19 near 18th and Clark Streets; and Kruger on Aug. 21 near 168th and Fort Streets. As investigators tried to wrap their minds around the arrest of a second alleged serial killer in four months, one question loomed large over the allegations against Jenkins: Why?

Unlike their case against Dr. Anthony Garcia — in which prosecutors allege Garcia killed former colleagues over his failed career — authorities don’t have a clear motive for Jenkins’ actions. “Mr. Nikko Jenkins was an indiscriminate killer who wreaked havoc on the Omaha community,” Schmaderer said. “As to why he did these things, we have no idea.” Bradford, a friend from prison, appears to be the only victim who knew Jenkins, Schmaderer said. Kruger’s death was as random as any in the Omaha area in recent history. “I can tell you he did not know her previously,” Douglas County Sheriff Tim Dunning said. Kruger, on her way home from work, happened to pull up behind Jenkins at 168th and Fort Streets. Jenkins described being at the stop sign when Kruger’s SUV pulled up behind him. Jenkins emerged from his car, circled up to Kruger’s driver’s-side door, pulled her from the car and shot her in the head, said a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity. Investigators are still trying to piece together who else was involved in that slaying.

General News Reporting Finalists Publication:

Publication:

Oklahoma Watch

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

By: Warren Vieth, Clifton Adcock,

By: Debra Hale-Shelton, Charlie

Darren Jaworski

Excerpt from “Faces of the Uninsured” SHAWNEE—Inside a cramped clinic office, Dorthea Copeland prepares for the weekly pilgrimage of poor people seeking free health care. They’re already lining the hallway, trading tales of sore throats and bum tickers. “Some of these people just lost their insurance. Some of them work, but don’t make very much. Some of them are self-employed,” says Copeland, a feisty 85-year-old who’s been running Pottawatomie County’s free clinic since it opened 14 years ago. “You can usually tell by looking at them that most of them really need the help.” Copeland is in charge of recruiting doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other helpers who donate their time on Thursday evenings to help Pottawatomie County residents who don’t have health insurance and don’t qualify for government assistance. Coincidentally, she’s also the aunt of Gov. Mary Fallin, who grew up in Tecumseh as Mary Copeland. In November, Fallin rejected an Obama administration offer to finance much of the cost of expanding Oklahoma’s Medicaid program. If Fallin had accepted, many of the people filing into the clinic this evening would be eligible to participate. Pottawatomie County’s free clinic is a microcosm of the health coverage challenge facing Oklahoma policy-makers. Fallin’s decision to reject the Medicaid expansion has left an estimated 130,000 or more low-income Oklahomans in a coverage crater that offers few options for affordable health care.

Frago, Cameron Moix, Jessica Seaman, Sean Beherec, Lisa Hammersly, Rick McFarland, Stephen B. Thornton, Kirk Montgomery, Dusty Higgins

Excerpt from “Facing Foreclosure: State program aiding few borrowers” Federal regulators and oil and gas companies have known for at least 25 years that the type of steel pipe used in the line that spewed oil into a Mayflower subdivision in March tends to fracture along the welded seams that run the length of the pipe. Longitudinal rupture is more likely in pipe manufactured before 1970 that used a process called low-frequency electric resistance weld, according to reports from the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and other documents obtained by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Even though the pipe failures are well-known in the industry, federal regulators don’t know whether current safety tests can reliably predict potential breaks in the vintage pipelines, documents show. On March 29, a split opened along 22 feet of longitudinal seam in Exxon Mobil’s 20-inch Pegasus pipe line in Mayflower’s Northwoods subdivision, according to federal accident and investigative reports. That segment of pipeline was built in 1947 using low-frequency electric resistance weld. About 210,000 gallons of heavy, sticky crude oil gushed out of the ruptured pipe and into the neighborhood and a stream leading to Lake Conway.

Publication: The Argus Leader By: David Montgomery, Jonathan Ellis

Excerpt from “Beef plant failure reveals financial web, misspending” During his four years in charge of South Dakota’s economic development efforts, Richard Benda worked tirelessly to promote an Aberdeen beef packing plant with the potential to create hundreds of jobs and bolster the entire region’s economy. That meant approving the project for millions of dollars in grants and loans, the kind for which many large projects in South Dakota compete. But direct state aid to Northern Beef Packers covered only a small fraction of the project’s $115 million cost. Far more came from scores of Korean and Chinese investors, each of whom put $500,000 into Northern Beef Packers — on the urging and encouragement of Benda and other state officials — for the promise of U.S. citizenship. The investment-for-citizenship incentive stems from a federal program established in 1990 called EB-5. Now, with the Northern Beef plant mired in bankruptcy, many or most of those investors could lose everything they invested. And two weeks after Benda was found dead from a gunshot wound in a grove of trees, federal investigators are chasing potential criminal activity associated with the plant and the state’s role in promoting it. More than just the usual loans and tax incentives, the Northern Beef Packers project reflected an unusually close cooperation between the state and private interests — to the point where it can be difficult to tell where one ended and the other began.

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Narrative Story/Series Winner Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Michael O’Connor Judges’ Comments: All of the entries in this category were fine stories, written by obviously gifted journalists, but few of them were narratives--that is, few served up their contents in detailed scenes, using conversation rather than quotes, etc., etc. Most of these stories are pretty straight, old school features. There’s not a rotten one in the bunch, but that doesn’t win here.

Excerpt from “In the grip of Alzheimers” Mostly, though, they enjoyed simple moments at home. Listening to Neil Diamond — Liz’s favorite. Taking their dog Mazie for a walk. When the TV show ended, Terry held Liz’s hand and helped her stand. He walked her down the hallway to their bedroom in kind of a tandem shuffle, standing behind her like a shadow, holding the back of her shoulders. When Liz stepped with her right foot, so did Terry. When Liz stepped with her left foot, Terry did too. Terry hadn’t always been so patient. Earlier in their marriage, before Alzheimer’s ever affected Liz, Terry could become a little testy. Nothing dramatic. Just typical husband-wife moments. Liz might ask questions about a financial investment they made, even though Terry felt he had already explained it. Why do we need to go over this again, he’d say. Liz, too, had her quirks, her imperfections, long before Alzheimer’s. Though she loved fresh veggies, she couldn’t resist digging into a bag of chips. She snored occasionally and Terry would nudge her, and it seemed she was always searching for her car keys. Alzheimer’s forced Terry to dig deep for patience because nothing came easy for Liz, like getting dressed for bed. On this night, just like hundreds before, Liz sat on the edge of their bed. Terry knelt beside her, telling his wife to lift her foot, and then the other so he could slip the pajama leg on. Then Liz and Terry shuffled into the den, and settled into cushy arm chairs. Throughout their marriage, Liz and Terry made time each day to read scripture, then talk about how it fit their lives. As a lamp shined softly, Terry read from the Gospel of Matthew.

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Terry and Liz knew now, more than ever, that God strengthened them one day at a time. “Therefore do not worry saying, ‘What will we eat?,’ or ‘What will we drink?’ ... Strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” ••• Liz’s body trembled as she sat in a doctor’s exam room. Her eyes looked straight ahead, her body leaned forward and her legs were pressed together, almost as if they were bound. It was August 2012 — five years after her diagnosis — and Terry had brought Liz for an exam by her neurologist, Dr. Dan Murman of UNMC. Liz was nearing the seventh and final stage of Alzheimer’s. Before the doctor stepped in, a nurse practitioner asked Terry if he had concerns. Liz continues to eat less and less, and has lost weight, Terry said. He must cut

all her food into bite-sized pieces, and she can no longer feed herself. She also cannot sleep through the night, waking up as many as four times to use the bathroom with Terry’s help. The nurse checked whether Liz could follow simple instructions. Put your thumb and index finger together, the nurse told Liz. The nurse showed Liz how. Liz’s fingers didn’t move. Dr. Murman came in and asked Liz how she was doing. She remained silent. Terry asked the doctor’s opinion about their next step. He knew his wife soon would require 24-hour care in a home for Alzheimer’s patients and wanted to know if the time was right. “Now,” the doctor told Terry, “is a very appropriate time. You’ve been doing an amazing job at home.” Terry selected an Omaha home called An Angel’s Touch because he believed it had a reputation for treating patients with dignity. For the first time since their wedding on a warm California day 37 years ago, Liz and Terry would live apart.

Narrative Story/Series Finalists Publication: Lincoln Journal-Star By: Peter Salter

Publication: The Oklahoman By: Phillip O’Connor

Excerpt from “Shattered Silence, Shattered Lives”

Excerpt from “The Deadliest Day”

Arlene Brown was across town, with friends. She saw an update on the news: Four boys killed in a College View explosion. She doesn’t remember now whether she called home — or if someone from home called her. Her younger brother Donny was dead. “My dad was coming home from work, driving up the alley. He heard it but did not see it. He ran over there. He’d been in the military, and he knew things weren’t good.” When she got home, she saw the Kelloggs’ porch blown up and blown partially off. She saw gouges in the dirt and concrete. Later, at the house next to hers, she found shrapnel holes in the drain spout. Donny was the family’s daredevil. His dad would tell him to stay off the motor scooter, but the boy wouldn’t listen. “My dad told me another time he advised him not to play with the shell. And of course that didn’t work, either.” They buried him in Nebraska City. They never did talk much about him after that. “My parents were very strong in putting closure on rough situations. And there wasn’t much to talk about.” People told her parents they should sue. No, her father would say. That wouldn’t bring Donny back. Even before the boys were buried, prosecutors decided not to press charges against Master Sgt. Kenney, who brought the shells to Lincoln. He didn’t break any laws, they said. But he already was punishing himself. The explosion, the deaths of the four boys, broke the sergeant. “He never got over it,” says his wife, Lorna Kenney, now living in San Bernardino, Calif. “Sometimes, we’d see a news story where someone would get hurt, maybe in a hunting accident or burned in a car or anything that would trigger it, and he would just break down in tears.” The family left Lincoln within weeks, bound for New Mexico, where Kenney would train for his second tour of Vietnam. He would die in 1971 from exposure to Agent Orange, his wife says. Before they moved, Lorna Kenney tried to find Joyce Kellogg. “I wanted to hug her. I just wanted to hug her. I’ve been hugging her for many years now.”

Booze wants the bleeding stopped. He and his staff at battalion headquarters in Gardez have put the final touches on a plan to counter the roadside bombs wreaking havoc on his Oklahoma National Guard unit. Part of the strategy calls for employing small kill teams in areas of repeated attacks. Now he pushes the idea to his company commanders, including Capt. Howell at FOB Zormat. Howell’s unit, Alpha Company, has been repeatedly hit and lost several vehicles, but Booze feels Howell has been slow to react. These are your hot spots, Booze tells Howell. You need to consider small kill teams here and here. You have to get out there and start dealing with this problem. Howell is reluctant. He feels the team isn’t ready. They’ve done almost no training. Still, he follows orders. Planning at Zormat moves into high gear. Howell meets with two lieutenants and Kellogg to discuss who will be on the team. Kellogg will lead the mission, and Chris Horton will be the team sniper. Most of the others come from Alpha Company’s 3rd Platoon, commanded by 2nd Lt. Nathan Perdue. Kellogg, wants good, competent soldiers. Perdue, 33, of Jenks, lets Kellogg have his pick. Sgt. Curtis Semler, 25, of Sand Springs, will be the team scout. Semler had been talking with Horton and Kellogg about forming such a team before they’d even left the United States. Spc. John Coker Jr. will man the M240 machine gun. Coker Jr., 28, was a star athlete at Muskogee High School good enough to be chosen by the San Diego Padres in the 2001 Major League Baseball draft. Coker Jr. chose college instead and starred at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Coker Jr.’s friend, Pfc. Tony Potter Jr., will be the assistant machine-gunner and grenadier responsible for carrying mortar rounds and mines. Potter, 20, of Okmulgee, had gotten married not long before the unit left Oklahoma and is an expectant first-time father. Sgt. Bret Isenhower, 26, of Seminole, an Iraq veteran, is so excited to be picked as assistant patrol leader that he calls his older sister, Bridgette Hall, at her downtown Oklahoma City office to tell her. As she listens to him explain what a small kill team is, she doodles SKT over and over again on a notepad. That doesn’t sound like a very good thing to me, she tells him. Are you sure about this?

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Beat Reporting Winner Publication: Oklahoma Watch By: Warren Vieth, Clifton Adcock, Darren Jaworski Judges’ Comments: News organizations around the country have worked hard to cut through the political rhetoric and educate readers about the Affordable Care Act. Oklahoma Watch went beyond that, and through solid reporting and strong writing, held politicians accountable for their words and allowed readers to hear the human voices so often drowned out by the noisy debate.

Excerpt from “Faces of the uninsured” Standing at the head of the line in the clinic tonight is Brad Trice, 45. He’s divorced and lives with his father in Tecumseh. Trice says he has been coming to the clinic for free prescriptions since his blood pressure skyrocketed to 250/170 several months ago, landing him in the hospital emergency room. Trice says he hasn’t worked since 2010, when he lost his job as a certified nursing assistant at a Seminole nursing home. He hasn’t had health insurance since 2005, when he was working at a Walmart store. “I’m just a human being trying to survive,” he says. “But we’re all doing that.” On a previous visit, Trice asked the clinic for help with a badly ingrown toenail. He was referred to an outside physician, who wanted $250 to fix it. The clinic doesn’t offer surgical services. Trice says he couldn’t afford to pay that much. “It still hurts like a son of a gun,” he says. Expansion Plan About 28 percent of Pottawatomie County residents between the ages of 18 and 64 had no health insurance in 2011, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That compared to 26 percent statewide. Many of them would be eligible for government-paid health care under the Obama initiative, which would have expanded Oklahoma’s Medicaid program to all working-age adults with incomes up to 133 percent of the poverty level. That equates to $20,123 a year for a couple and $30,656 for a family of four. Under existing law, Oklahoma’s Medicaid program excludes adults unless they have dependent children

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living at home and their income falls below a relatively low level— $4,368 for two people and $6,996 for a family of four. Pottawatomie County is not as poor as some places in Oklahoma, but it fares worse than the state as a whole in most key economic indicators. Eighteen percent of the population falls below the poverty level. Fallin grew up in Tecumseh, a community of 6,443 just south of the county seat, Shawnee. Both her father and mother were mayors of Tecumseh, and Fallin attended Oklahoma Baptist University in Shawnee before graduating from Oklahoma State University. In a 2011 interview with the Tecumseh Countywide newspaper, Fallin said her original career goal was to be a social worker. She said she was inspired by her mother, who worked as a district supervisor for the Oklahoma Department of Human Services.

‘I Need a Job’ Marking time about half-way down the hallway are Jason and Linda Popielarski of Tecumseh. They are here to see a doctor about Linda’s sinus infection and to get her blood pressure prescription refilled. Jason, a 37-year-old machinist, says he recently lost his job at Aero Components in Oklahoma City. Linda, 58, lost her job at a Braum’s restaurant. The couple lives on Jason’s unemployment benefits, which add up to about $18,000 annually but will run out before long. “We’re barely surviving,” Popielarski says. “I need a job. All I have is my motorcycle to get around. I’m working on weekends in trade for a place to live.” Popielarski says he hasn’t had health insurance in five years. Most machine shops nowadays don’t provide it, he says. “Or if they offer it, you can’t afford it.”

Beat Reporting Finalists Publication: St. Louis Post-Dispatch By: Elisa Crouch, Jessica Bock

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Joe Duggan

Excerpt from “School transfers”

Excerpt from “Gun or no gun?

The students are among 4,500 beginning a year where roughly a fourth of their classmates will not return, transferring to higher-performing districts under a law upheld by the Missouri Supreme Court just two months ago. Superintendent Scott Spurgeon, who is in his first year with the unaccredited district, was among those greeting the kids. “It’s time for this situation to turn around, and we’re going to make it happen,” he said. “We’re going to come out of this. The support is here.” School districts across the area have wrestled with how to comply with the high court ruling. The law allows children in unaccredited school systems — such as Riverview Gardens and Normandy — to transfer to another district. It also says the failing district must cover the tuition and transportation costs. In all, 1,451 students have opted to leave Riverview Gardens, and an additional 1,189 asked to leave Normandy schools. Monday offered the first glimpse of what school might look like for those who stayed behind. Marquise Hoye, 13, pulled on his Adidas backpack and walked into Central Middle School wearing a light blue polo shirt and navy shorts. His mom wondered if the students leaving the district would mean smaller class sizes for him. “Some of the kids I know aren’t coming back,” Marquise said. “I’m hoping my favorite teachers are still there.”

LINCOLN — Johnny Rodgers calls the night he stole money from a Lincoln gas station 43 years ago a drunken mistake, an embarrassing lapse in judgment, a stupid freshman prank. One thing the Cornhusker football legend says it wasn’t: an armed robbery. In about two weeks, the State of Nebraska will hear Rodgers’ request to have his felony conviction pardoned. Where the pardon request form asks if a gun was used in the crime, Rodgers checked the blank next to “No.” But the original offense report says the gas station attendant reported there was a gun. The details of what happened inside the Derby station south of downtown Lincoln have largely remained out of the public light. Three young men arrested a year after the crime quickly pleaded guilty to felony theft and were sentenced to probation. With legal trouble behind him, Rodgers went on to have starring roles in the 1970 and 1971 Husker national championship teams. He capped his 1972 senior season by winning the Heisman Trophy. Meanwhile, Rodgers has been the only one of the three convicted to publicly discuss the theft at the gas station. Until now. The World-Herald has interviewed the two men who also carried the burden of felony convictions as a result of the theft. “The story never got out there,” said James Glass, now 62 and living in Omaha. “Most everyone doesn’t know that I never even set foot in that gas station.”

Publication: Tulsa World By: Cary Aspinwall

Excerpt from “Tulsa apartment killings: Slow arrest warrant kept felon free” The warrant to revoke his parole - which had been approved by Gov. Brad Henry and Gov. Mary Fallin - and send him back to prison was issued on Dec. 28, according to Department of Corrections records. On Jan. 7, Misty Nunley, 33; Julie Jackson, 55; and 23-year-old twin sisters Rebeika Powell and Kayetie Powell Melchor were shot to death at Fairmont Terrace, a federally subsidized apartment complex near 61st Street and Peoria Avenue.

Cedric Poore and his brother James Poore remain held without bond at the Tulsa Jail in connection with the slayings. Probation and parole officers in the Tulsa County district office wrote a report requesting a warrant to revoke Cedric Poore’s parole a few days after his October misdemeanor conviction for obstructing an officer, records show. But a process of revisions and approvals meant the paper records were

not finalized and mailed to the Oklahoma City office until Dec. 11, said Kathy King, assistant district supervisor. About two weeks after the approved warrant was returned by mail to the district office, Cedric Poore was arrested, and officials prepared to return him to the Department of Corrections’ Lexington Assessment and Reception Center from the Tulsa Jail, unaware of the role police believe he played in the quadruple homicide.

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Feature Writing Winner Publication: St. Louis Post-Dispatch By: Todd C. Frankel Judges’ Comments: The absolute class of the category.

Excerpt from “How the Aurora shooter got his ammo” T H E N O . 1 S T. L O U I S W E B S I T E A N D N E W S P A P E R

Start with the FedEx packages. Follow the trail. That’s what police in Colorado did. They wanted to learn how the gunman got his bullets, how he accumulated an arsenal of more than 6,000 rounds before he walked into an Aurora, Colo., movie theater last July, where he fatally shot 12 people and wounded 58. Where did that ammunition come from? The answer appeared to be an online company in St. Louis, a detail widely reported one year ago. But recently released search warrants and additional reporting by the Post-Dispatch have shed new light on the path traveled by those thousands of rounds. The trail leads not to St. Louis but to Knoxville, Tenn., and on to Atlanta, to a secretive 4-year-old company considered to be among the nation’s top online ammunition dealers. Its founders — a pair of former real estate developers — sell bullets using far-flung P.O. boxes, different corporate identities and online marketing tactics that have offended even some firearm enthusiasts. By last summer, these entrepreneurs stood perfectly positioned to close on a quick, legal sale to a deranged killer. The story of how the Aurora gunman got his 170 pounds of ammo — a transaction that received far less attention than how he obtained his firearms — is a journey into the divisive debate over gun violence, about how guns and ammo flow through the nation and the companies that profit along the way. Each shooting briefly revives talk about banning certain guns or magazines while another often common feature goes overlooked: the ammo stockpiles. In Newtown, Conn., authorities are looking into how the gunman at Sandy Hook Elementary School acquired more than 1,600 bullets. A thwarted plan by a former student to shoot up the University of Central Florida in Orlando earlier this year led police to 1,000 rounds of ammunition. And then there’s the 6,000 rounds in Aurora. It wasn’t always possible for someone to buy so many bullets so quickly, with so little scrutiny. And it wasn’t always so difficult to track where those bullets came from. It can feel like chasing a ghost. Just try to follow the trail.

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Zimmerman not guilty in Trayvon Martin case Prosecutors fail in bid to prove Florida man was a ‘wannabe cop’ who pursued, killed teen without cause.

BY KYLE HIGHTOWER AND MIKE SCHNEIDER Associated Press

SANFORD, FLA. • Neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman was cleared of all charges Saturday in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed black teenager whose killing unleashed furious debate across the U.S. over racial profiling, self-defense and equal justice. Zimmerman, 29, blinked and barely smiled when the verdict was announced. He could have been convicted of second-degree murder or manslaughter. But the jury of six women, all but one of them white, reached a verdict of not guilty after deliberating well into the night Saturday. The jurors considered nearly three weeks of often wildly conflicting testimony over who was the aggressor on the rainy night that Martin, 17, was shot while walking through the gated town house community where he was staying. Defense attorneys said the case was classic self-

GOT HIS AMMO

See TRIAL • Page A8

STEPHANIE S. CORDLE • scordle@post-dispatch.com

Physician assistant Dale Friesen examines patient Alberta Bean, 85, of St. Louis, on Wednesday in St. Louis at Smiley Urgent Care.

James Holmes bought thousands of rounds from an online retailer that claims it’s based in St. Louis.

New Missouri law aims to ease doctor shortage Physician assistants get more freedom to give care where and when supervising physicians are not available.

BY MICHELE MUNZ mmunz@post-dispatch.com > 314-340-8263

But the path was never that simple.

Supporting the theme parks and attractions in the tourism hub of Branson, Mo., are thousands of hourly workers manning the ticket counters, cleaning hotel rooms and waiting on tables. These residents, living among the Ozark Mountains in Taney and Stone counties, often lack health insurance. Three years ago, a group of volunteers opened a clinic in a donated building with donated medical equipment to care for them. “It was just a matter of us saying we wanted to provide this for our community because we thought it was the right thing to do,” said Rick Tallon, who volunteers as a dentist at the clinic. But for the past two months, the Faith Community Health clinic has been idle. Trying to provide care with busy physician volunteers has been unreliable and sporadic, Tallon said. “We have 500-plus patients on the waiting list.”

And the journey leads straight into the nation’s debate over gun violence. BY TODD C. FRANKEL • tfrankel@post-dispatch.com > 314-340-8110

tart with the FedEx packages. Follow the trail. That’s what police in Colorado did. They wanted to learn how the gunman got his bullets, how he accumulated an arsenal of more than 6,000 rounds before he walked into an Aurora, Colo., movie theater last July, where he fatally shot 12 people and wounded 58. Where did that ammunition come from?

The answer appeared to be an online company in St. Louis, a detail widely reported one year ago. But recently released search warrants and additional reporting by the Post-Dispatch have shed new light on the path traveled by those thousands of rounds.

See ASSISTANTS • Page A3

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The trail leads not to St. Louis but to Knoxville, Tenn., and on to Atlanta, to a secretive 4-year-old company considered to be among the nation’s top online ammunition dealers. Its founders — a pair of former real estate developers — sell bullets using far-flung P.O. boxes, different corporate identities and online marketing tactics that have offended even some firearm enthusiasts. By last summer, these entrepreneurs stood perfectly positioned to close on a quick, legal sale to a deranged killer. See AMMO • Page A6

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Feature Writing Finalists Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Dirk Chatelain

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Erin Golden

Excerpt from “Rebuilding Matthew Gooch”

Excerpt from “‘Just your normal girls, really’”

A ball and a hoop. What more could an 8-year-old want? Matthew Gooch rushes outside to the long driveway off Georgia Avenue. It’s 2003. He dribbles and he shoots, he dribbles and he shoots. Sometimes he pulls his Lego table in front of the rim and uses it for a launching pad — he wants to dunk. He saves his best for Mom, challenging her to the simplest of shooting competitions. P She’s a small-town girl with a big family and a free spirit. Half of her 41 years, she’s been a nurse here in Norfolk. She saves her best for her four kids, always buying one present too many, always testing her Rollerblades against theirs, always letting Matthew win in basketball. Well, maybe not letting him ... I He is her baby, a third-grader, ornery but charming. Soon he will move back to her hometown without her. He will find a job in Grandpa’s store and a mentor in a recovering alcoholic. He’ll cruise Main in his tricked-out pickup and run through the Devaney Center halls after everyone has gone home. G But over and over, his mind will flash to the last time he saw her in the house. He’ll try to tile over it with memories of the driveway, when her voice and his ball, bouncing against the concrete, were the only sounds in his head. The boy makes shots off the backboard, even off the house. But when he really needs a basket, when it comes down to crunch time, Matthew goes to the corner. This is his best spot. This is how he wins. Swish. Your turn, Mom. Last chance.

In the locker room cluttered with helmets and pads and giant cans of volumizing hair spray, the home team is getting pumped up. Hip-hop music is blasting out of a small set of speakers. A few of the players are bobbing their heads and dancing in between sips of Gatorade. They’re talking game strategy and trying to look tough in iPhone photos. One of the wide receivers is throwing up in a trash can, pausing to assure everyone that she’s fine, and then throwing up again. They jockey for position in front of a full-length mirror propped against the wall, readjusting uniforms that look like they’ve been stolen from beach volleyball players. A league official comes by for a final check: Mouth guards in? Earrings out? Tattoos covered? Pasties on? The players nod, though their uniforms fail to cover not a few tattoos: a cross, children’s birth dates, life mottoes (“work hard, play harder”). With 10 minutes until game time, the focus has shifted to football, and only football. The team knows that many of the 2,400 people packed into the Ralston Arena bought tickets mainly to see semiclothed women rough up each other on the turf field. But this group of former college athletes and businesswomen and mothers is hoping the crowd will see something else, too: an underdog team pulling off the biggest upset in the history of the organization once known as the Lingerie Football League. It’s the Omaha Heart’s second-ever game, and the team is expected to lose badly.

Publication: The Oklahoman By: Jenni Carlson

Excerpt from “A mother’s promise” What started the day terrorists flew planes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon — and ultimately led Michael to a remote railroad culvert in Iraq — has turned this Edmond woman into a crusader. She is fighting for a son and a system. She is fighting because she promised. It was March 20, 2009, in Fort Campbell, Ky. Michael had been denied a retrial and ordered to begin

a 25-year sentence in military prison. Family and friends gathered hastily in a gray room ringed with plastic chairs to say their goodbyes. Vicki waited for everyone else before saying hers. “Mom,” Michael said, “nobody’s ever going to know what happened here.” They saw no media present and worried that the world might never hear about his plight. Had the same thing happened to another family, that might have been the case.

But it happened to Vicki Behenna’s family. Not only is the 54-year-old a federal prosecutor, but her husband is also in law enforcement. Scott was a longtime agent with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation who now works as an intelligence analyst for the FBI. On a quiet suburban cul-de-sac, they raised three boys to know right from wrong, and Michael took those lessons to heart. He was a good kid who played lots of sports and had friends in every clique.

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Business Reporting Winner Publication: Des Moines Register By: Victor Epstein Judges’ Comments: Great reporting. Good explainer that led to regulators launching an inquiry into these funds. Victor Epstein forged ahead in his reporting, even after the funds threatened to deter him.

Excerpt from “Rule change lets some annuties firms add risk” Insurers accuse private equity firms of bringing more risk to their industry, but some state insurance regulators have already allowed a few insurance companies to take on more risk than their competitors. Regulators in at least three states, including Iowa, have made exceptions that allow struggling annuities companies to operate under less stringent requirements for maintaining reserves needed to meet promises to policyholders, The Des Moines Register has learned. The three are Aviva USA in Iowa; Security Benefit Life in Kansas, backed by private equity firm Guggenheim Partners; and Phoenix Life in Connecticut. The three were confirmed last week by Tennessee Insurance Commissioner Julie Mix McPeak, chairwoman of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ Life Insurance and Annuities Committee, and she noted that there

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could be other exceptions. The companies are being allowed to apply the more lenient reserve standards of Actuarial Guideline 43, which is meant for variable annuities, to less volatile fixed annuity policies, which are typically governed by Actuarial Guideline 33, industry experts say. The Iowa exception was made during the tenure of former Iowa Insurance Commissioner Susan Voss, who did not respond to a request for comment. Guideline 33 requires insurers to set their reserves for the worst-case scenario. Guideline 43 is less demanding and allows more money to be diverted from reserves to other uses, while requiring more capital. Insurers that are allowed to use Guideline 43 for both variable and fixed annuities have a competitive advantage over their peers. This development comes as governors like Iowa’s Terry Branstad are

competing mightily to retain jobs and create new ones. That competitive environment increases pressure on states to loosen regulations when companies ask for help. In addition, some troubled annuities companies have begun pressuring policyholders to cash out or redefine the terms of older variable annuity policies. The returns on the older policies are considerably more generous than those being sold in today’s low-interest-rate environment. This development is a black eye for an industry whose reputation rests on keeping its promises. The companies include AXA Equitable, Hartford Financial Services Group and Transamerica. Bernie Gacona, director of annuities at Wells Fargo & Co., told Investmentnews.com that 98 percent of the offer letters being sent to annuity policyholders for this purpose are not in their best interest.

Business Reporting Finalists Publication:

Omaha World-Herald

By: Barbara Soderlin

Excerpt from “A business from scratch series” Inspiration struck one night as Rachael Henderson was watching TV in her Elkhorn-area living room and “Cupcake Wars” came on. Visions of sugar, butter, eggs and flour danced in her head as two thoughts clicked: one, west Omaha needs a cupcake shop and, two, we can do better than those bakers on TV. She put on her slippers and ran outside, taking the well-worn path over the berm and through the hedge to the house next door, where her sister Sarah Alsup lives. “Dude, I’ve got it,” she told Alsup. “We’re going to do cupcakes. We’re going to open up a cupcake shop.” Henderson and Alsup, then-37year-old twins, were stay-at-home moms with professional degrees feeling a midlife itch to start their own business. They talked into that February night in 2012 about how perfect it would be to own their own cupcake shop. They were like many new entrepreneurs: giddy, nervous, confident in their abilities — but with only a vague notion of what starting a business from scratch would involve. “The hardest part about starting a business is, where the (heck) do you start?” Henderson said. (Did we mention these tanned, blond sisters have a penchant for swearing? Consider their quotes edited for publication in a family newspaper.) So, what was the first step? This week, The World-Herald will detail many of the steps the sisters took over the last 13 months to prepare for opening their own shop: product development, marketing, getting a loan, working with a contractor, hiring staff and leaning on family members for more help at home.

Publication: Tulsa World By: Kyle Arnold

Publication: Tulsa World By: Jerry Wofford

Excerpt from “Balancing act - American Airlines, US Airways work on putting both airlines in one hangar”

Excerpt from “Breaks for whom? Drilling incentives questioned”

Insiders call the process harmonization, but for American Airlines, US Airways and their employees, the process of merging two companies together won’t sound anything like a joyful chorus. Bankruptcy courts and federal antitrust regulators, assuming those processes go smoothly on their own, will be just the beginning of a potentially arduous process that will yield the new American Airlines, its 900 routes and 120,000 employees. And for the 6,200 employees at the American Airlines maintenance base in Tulsa, there will be months and years of uncertainty over job security, wages and benefits as they negotiate and discover exactly how this new company will act and compete. “These processes take on a life of their own,” said Bill Swelbar, an airline researcher from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s International Center for Air Transportation and a director for Hawaiian Airlines. “What is at the core is how quickly a merged company can reach a new bargaining agreement for the employee groups, and that isn’t always easy.” Just over three weeks ago American Airlines and US Airways reshaped the air-travel industry by agreeing to an estimated $11 billion merger to create the world’s largest air carrier after more than a year of painful bankruptcy reorganization for AMR Corp.

A high-ranking state official says tax breaks for oil and gas drilling held back more robust growth of the state’s general revenue fund in the last fiscal year, adding that legislators should examine the effect those breaks have on the state. Industry leaders say the tax incentives have provided a big push for Oklahoma’s oil boom in recent years, with the tax breaks for horizontal drilling bringing more producers to the state’s oil fields. The boom in oil production has helped with income and sales tax revenue and spread through the state economy, they contend. Not everyone in the industry supports such incentives. George Kaiser, head of Tulsa-based KaiserFrancis Oil Co., said in an email to the Tulsa World that gross production tax incentives don’t provide a strong draw for energy producers. “There are more important things that Oklahoma can do to assure the continued vibrancy of the oil and gas industry in the state and the employment it provides. Surveys of producers have revealed that gross production tax exemptions play almost no role in stimulating drilling and most of the value goes to out-of-state shareholders,” Kaiser said. The tax credits, rebates and refunds for oil and natural gas drilling totaled $321 million in the last fiscal year, according to preliminary data from the state Office of Management and Enterprise Services. Rebates and refunds were $173 million of that total, with $102 million of that associated with horizontal wells. Tax credits for horizontal wells were $148 million in fiscal year 2013, which ended June 30.

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Business Feature Winner Publication: Des Moines Register By: Victor Epstein Judges’ Comments: This entry by Victor Epstein is the complete package. — It has a fresh and fascinating approach to an old, established tradition, letting the good writing carry you throughout the story with such wonderful phrases as “transforming parents into workplace cookie dealers.” — It is interactive on many levels with a Girl Scout cookie trivia, a poll and a video. — Good display, great photos, headline and some well-done, easy-to-understand graphics. Nicely done!

Excerpt from “Cookie Monsters” Ten-year-old Katelyn LeFleur and her 7-year-old sister, Laura, are babyfaced sales assassins of the $7 billion cookie industry. The Iowa sisters and about 1.8 million of their fellow Girl Scouts dominate the cookie industry during the first quarter of each year, then completely disappear from it in March or April, in one of the business world’s most unusual seasonal events. They’re so effective that the Girl Scouts of the USA had five of the 10 best-selling cookies in the United States during the first three months of last year. The Girl Scouts generated cookie sales of roughly $785 million in the first quarter of 2012, according to the Mintel consumer research firm, which estimates a similar showing this year. That’s enough to establish the nonprofit organization as the No. 3 cookie company in the U.S. What’s the key to the girls’ success? “I just tell people they’re really good,” Katelyn said of her sales pitch. “They’re yummy.” The LeFleur sisters, who live in Norwalk, Iowa, are part of a national sales force that has been hitting the streets and transforming parents into workplace cookie dealers every year since 1936. The powerful combination pushed the Girl Scout’s flagship flavor, the Thin Mint, past Oreos in the first quarter of 2012 to make it the No. 1 cookie in the U.S. with nearly $200 million in sales. Oreos are produced by Mondelez International, formerly known as Kraft Foods Inc., a Chicagobased food juggernaut with annual revenue of $35 billion and 100,000 employees. Seven-year-old Girl Scout Laura LeFleur of Norwalk, Iowa, enjoys her favorite Girl Scout Cookie - a Peanut

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Butter Patty - with a smile. She and her sister, Katelyn, have sold nearly 1,400 boxes of the goodies.(Photo: Christopher Gannon, The Des Moines Register) For many Americans, Girl Scout cookies are an iconic product with a sentimental value that transcends many other food products. It reminds them of the days when they were Girl Scouts and when their sisters or daughters participated in the program. “The annual Girl Scout cookie sale is a force of nature at the national level,” said John Frank, a Mintel food analyst. “Big companies like Kraft know it’s coming, and they’ve learned to live with it. It’s like a storm and there’s nothing they can do but wait for it to pass, because there is no upside to marketing against the Girl Scouts.” Frank said the annual event reminds him of the times when he went doorto-door selling cookies with his own daughter years ago. He’s forecasting 15 percent growth in the U.S. cookie market through 2017 and said Girl Scout Cookie sales should expand at the same pace, lifting their sales past the $900 million mark. The Girl Scout cookies are made by

two different bakery companies, which sometimes use slightly different ingredients and names. The core group includes Thin Mints; Caramel deLites, which also are marketed as Samoas; Peanut Butter Patties, aka Tagalongs; Peanut Butter Sandwiches, aka Do-Si-Dos; and Shortbreads, aka Trefoils. Other cookies include Lemonades, Mango Cremes, Thanks-A-Lots, Dulce de Leche, Savannah Smiles, Shout Outs! and Thank U Berry Munch. “I always buy whenever a Girl Scout comes to my door,” said West Des Moines resident Kathleen Till Stange, who has purchased six boxes this year. “I want to reward them for their effort and hard work, and I like the cookies, too. They don’t last long at my house.” Till Stange said her favorite Girl Scout cookie is the Peanut Butter Sandwich, and she finds it puzzling that the Thin Mint is the bestselling sweet. Now head of investor relations at FBL Financial Group, she sold the cookies in her youth to pay for Girl Scout summer camp.

Business Feature Finalists Publication: Tulsa World By: John Stancavage

Publication: Tulsa World By: Randy Krehbiel

Excerpt from “Tulsa sees downtown revival after exodus of jobs from city center”

Excerpt from “Farming in Oklahoma must be a labor of love”

The 1970s may have been the apex in Tulsa as many energy companies swelled with employment. At lunch time, those staffs spilled out of their downtown headquarters buildings in search of lunch, a haircut or a quick shopping trip. At 5 p.m., the same individuals often left their autos parked as they walked to dinner, the Tulsa Opera or the Tulsa Philharmonic. Local public relations specialist Steve Turnbo recalls trying to find office space downtown to start his own business in 1980. Not only was he unsuccessful initially in locating a small office, he couldn’t even attract the attention of a commercial leasing agent. “They were all out on the golf course,” he laughed. Then the price of oil plummeted, and downtown Tulsa emptied faster than a storage shed in a garage sale. Energy companies that were both big in the industry and key community supporters like Parker Drilling and Reading & Bates were forced to flee to Houston, taking thousands of jobs with them. Many retailers and restaurants closed their doors, and even the Philharmonic eventually went out of business. More than a decade later, a tiny light could be seen at the end of the tunnel. It turned out to be a fiber-optic cable. The explosion in voice and data transmission set off another growth spurt downtown. Old-line pipeline builder Williams Cos. created Williams Communications and built a nationwide network. It sold that company, but the market was so hot that it created a second telecom firm and began hiring 100 people a month.

The three Conrad brothers - Vernon, Eugene and Melvin - are in their 70s and ready to retire. The Conrad family’s younger generations are not interested in continuing the operation, and the high cost of land and production are an almost insurmountable barrier to beginning farmers. And there’s the fact that farming, as Vernon Conrad put it, is “a seven-day-a-week job, out in the cold and the heat and the wind and the wet weather.” Willing and able newcomers are few. While farm income is at or near record highs, so are land prices and production costs. Prices paid for Oklahoma agricultural land have tripled over the past 15 years, to more than $1,300 per acre. In Tulsa County and the surrounding area, the price can easily reach $6,000 an acre - or more, if the farmland is converted to housing or commercial development. “I don’t think you could buy us out and make a living,” Vernon Conrad said. The confluence of urbanization, smaller families, longer life spans and higher start-up costs has pushed agriculture to a generational breaking point. Four decades ago the average American farmer or rancher was 45. Today the average age is nearly 60. One of the few bucking the trend is Brian Livesay of Porter, a 22-year-old Oklahoma State University graduate whose family farms 3,000 acres in Wagoner County. Livesay says there was never any question about his returning to the farm. “As long as I can remember, farming is what I wanted to do,” he said.

Publication: The Oklahoman By: Brianna Bailey

Excerpt from “Oklahoma’s smallest bank survives, thrives in Elmore City” With $9.5 million in assets, First State Bank in is the smallest bank in the state. By comparison, BOK Financial, the parent company of Bank of Oklahoma, has about $28 billion in assets. First State Bank had just $9,000 classified as troubled assets on its most recent financial report, and has been recognized by banking publications as one of the most financially sound banks in the country. With a population of about 700, Elmore City sits on State Highway

74, a two-lane road that runs northsouth through the rolling green hills of Garvin County. The town was the inspiration for the 1984 movie Footloose after a group of high school kids organized the town’s first high school prom despite an ordinance that banned public dances. Each year in May, the town shuts down Main Street for its annual Footloose Festival — an event that includes lawn mower races, a car show, and yes, dancing. The town boasts a recently opened

Dollar General and is also the headquarters for the rural school district of Elmore City-Pernell Public Schools, which encompasses about 200 square miles. Although Pauls Valley National Bank built a new brick branch complete with two drive-thru teller windows on Main Street a few years ago, First State Bank, with its attached post office, remains a hub of activity for the town and the surrounding farming and ranching community.

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Sports Reporting Winner Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Sam McKewon Judges’ Comments: Enjoyable read. Puts things into perspective even if you watched the game.

Excerpt from “Trying to bridge the gap” Got the Blackshirts on your mind? Bo Pelini does, too, and he plans to get his young defense up to speed. What does that mean, and how can fans fully understand his task? It’s not easy, but World-Herald writer Sam McKewon set out to explain so, good defense or bad, NU fans can at least begin to speak the same language as NU coaches. LINCOLN — John Papuchis pulls out a red marker and starts drawing X’s and O’s on a white piece of paper that’s been folded many times. He wants to explain rapidly — coaches do most things in life at the tempo of a no-huddle offense — how Nebraska’s run defense is built and why the lingering perception of NU using a “two-gap” system needs to be put to bed. “We want to get the best of both worlds,” he says at the beginning of the speedy presentation. At the end, he asks, “Does that make sense?” It does — I’ll do my level best to explain the broad picture in a minute — and as Papuchis further expounds on how NU’s 2009 defense flourished, it makes even more sense. But the run defense is faltering thus far in 2013. The numbers say so: The Huskers are 84th nationally in opponent’s rush yards per game, and 102nd in opponent yards per carry. Coach Bo Pelini’s press conference after Nebraska’s 59-20 win over South Dakota State says so. The Jackrabbits, an FCS team,

used basic power plays to run for 227 yards and nearly 6 yards per carry. “That was our worst performance defensively,” Pelini said after the game. Now, as the Huskers prepare for conference play in the Big Ten — whose teams may emphasize the power run more than teams in any other league — Pelini and Papuchis had a bye week to teach, tinker and tell it like it is. They’ve tried to address

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Nebraska’s run defense problems on several fronts. Fundamentals. Attitude. Scheme. The last of those topics is a subject of debate among Husker fans. What is the scheme? Is it too complex? Is it a “two-gap” or a “onegap” defense? When the scheme worked best — before Nebraska moved to the Big Ten — it seemed to me that NU coaches were never eager to explain. They ran something

other coaches wanted to run, knew something other coaches may not have known. Did you ever see Chip Kelly give a media clinic on his offense? Me either. But the scheme came more into view in the past week, and whether NU’s young defense can execute it — or something else — may determine how much better the Blackshirts get this year. And how much the offense may have to bail them out.

Sports Reporting Finalists Publication: Tulsa World By: John Hoover

Publication: SoonerScoop.com By: R.J. Young

Excerpt from “Should players punch in?”

Excerpt from “All of OU’s pieces fit for title run in 2013”

Some student-athletes say that after paying rent and buying food, they don’t have enough money left at the end of each month for necessary living expenses like a cell phone bill, car insurance or transportation. Some even say they run out before buying food. “You’ve got to ration and be smart with your money throughout the whole month,” said Brennan Clay, a senior on the OU football team. “That first of the month, that’s always the best.” College students running low on funds is nothing new. But the topic of student-athletes’ desire for more cash, which has long smoldered in newspaper headlines, has begun to boil over - particularly in football. From allegations of illicit payments at Miami, to players selling jerseys, rings and other gear at Ohio State, to stars living large at USC, to Texas A&M’s Johnny Manziel allegedly selling his autograph, to last week’s scathing (if not entirely documented) Sports Illustrated report on Oklahoma State football, it’s become chic to question the actual amateurism of college football and college sports in general. To clarify, these are two vastly different subjects. The first: should football players, who play the game that sells the tickets and the merchandise and the television rights that allow athletic departments to subsidize every other sport on campus and makes coaches and athletic directors rich, be paid a salary? That begets more questions. Who pays it? How much? Do starters get more than backups? Do stars get more than role players? Do seniors get more than sophomores? It becomes more philosophical than practical. A more relevant question: when can all Division I student-athletes, from football to cross country to golf, expect the NCAA to begin delivery that $2,000 miscellaneous expense allowance? Cody Wilson is a graduate student on the TU football team. Now married, he said he cut corners - buying offbrand groceries in bulk, for starters, “maybe lower-costing food that didn’t taste as good,” he said - and lived off $175-200 a month. “I was not going and getting an iTunes card, or ‘Oh, I need a new pair of headphones,’ “ Wilson said. “Like, I could use it, but I don’t really need it. Just cutting out that nonessential stuff.” The reward: Wilson saved enough money over a yearand-a-half for an engagement ring and a honeymoon to St. Lucia. “Looking back on it, it was a really good opportunity to learn about money,” Wilson said. “But, if I would have had a couple thousand dollars like they’re talking about, like a stipend, that would have been awesome.”

But Game 2 wouldn’t be her game to pitch. It’d be Michelle Gascoigne’s. It’s Gascoigne’s name next to the 4-0 series-clinching win that gave Oklahoma its second national championship in the sport. It was her who was responsible for exercising a year’s worth of demons, of the terrible memory of a national title lost. The game was placed on her shoulders, a woman who hadn’t pitched since throwing 2.1 innings against Arkansas in the Norman Regional two weeks ago; the pitcher who was relegated to second-best on the team with the nation’s best. She’s acted as OU’s closer in games Ricketts wasn’t her best. She’s filled the gap for a weekend series between Ricketts starts, and Tuesday night she started fresh with a chance to become the winner of a national championship. When Gasso apprised her pitchers of who was going to go into the circle for Game 2 just three hours before the first pitch, Ricketts came out in full support of the decision to start Gascoigne. “She’s taken on some great teams, and we wouldn’t be in this game without her,” Ricketts said. So Gascoigne entered the circle with a university, a city, a state behind her. With the ball in her hand, as in control of her fate as any ball player will ever be, Gascoigne (19-3) mustered another performance in the mold of the performances that have made her, in the simplest terms, an exceptional pitcher. She threw the full seven, surrendering three hits, zero runs and striking out 12 using just 87 pitches in what she’ll likely remember as the greatest pitching performance of her life. “It’s everything you’ve ever dreamed of,” Gascoigne said. “It really hasn’t sunk in yet.” She kept the game scoreless and allowed her offense to do what it does best. Turang earned a walk to lead off the inning. Chamberlain followed with a single to left field, and that brought Ricketts to the plate. Ricketts waited for Ivy Renfroe to throw her a pitch she could hit, and struck it toward Tulsa over the right field fence to give Oklahoma (57-4) its first runs of the game and a 3-0 lead in the top of the third inning. She did for Gascoigne what no one could do for her in Game 1: Give her a lead. Later, Ricketts, one of the great players in the game, padded that lead. After Chamberlain hit a triple off the top of the left field fence, Ricketts came up with an RBI groundout. All four runs came courtesy of the two-time USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year. “To me, she is definitely one of the greatest of all time in the sport,” Gasso said.

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Sports Feature Winner Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Dirk Chatelain Judges’ Comments: The story was wonderfully told from start to finish. The thorough reporting paid off with rich details and lively quotes. With smart decisions about pacing, flow and the most compelling characters to frame the story around, the writer grabbed my attention and didn’t let go. Great storytelling, and a memorable tale about a team and a broader community.

Excerpt from “Reaching the end of the line” On the 407th and final night of Lindsay Holy Family football, a mother bundled on the top bleacher looks out at the 35-yard line, where her son is writhing in pain. At kickoff, Sherri Frisch had cheered so loud you could hear it across the field. “Oh, we’re gonna listen to that all night?” said one of the dads. “Shut up,” Sherri fired back. “He’s a senior. I’m gonna be emotional.” Now, seven minutes into the game, she doesn’t say a word, waiting for No. 99 to move his left knee. Waiting for Ben to get off the cold grass. Sherri had grown up watching Holy Family football, like most parents on this sideline. She had hoped the school’s last season, even if it was just six-man football, would satisfy her nostalgia. One game they scored 91 — then served the opponents dinner, a Bulldog tradition. One game they played 6½ hours from home — the charter bus left Lindsay at 7 a.m. and returned after 1 a.m. The last home game, they honored the school’s best teams — 52-year-olds wore their uniforms and told stories till the lights shut off. But the finale is turning into a disaster. The Bulldogs, 6-1, are running out of players. They came to Newcastle with seven in uniform, including one emergency sub nursing an ankle. They’re gonna need him. Ben limps off the field, removes his

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helmet and sits. Sherri descends the five wooden bleachers and joins her husband at a rope line behind the bench. “Be honest with me, Ben,” says an assistant coach, examining the knee. “Don’t do it for pride.” Pride drove Lindsay to start football in 1972 — against the priest’s wishes. Pride produced two eight-man state championships. Pride stiff-armed the forces that tackled Lindsay’s peers over the past decade. Population is dwindling on the Nebraska prairie. And football teams are disappearing. Not in Omaha or Lincoln or Kearney. But out there, off the Interstate, where the only structures

taller than goal posts are water towers, grain elevators and church steeples. Out there, where Friday night games still leave the streets empty, and come Saturday morning, the quarterback is up early, vaccinating cattle. Out there, where Ben Frisch calls home. Across the field, the Newcastle Raiders are celebrating their last-ever football game, too. They score another touchdown: 19-0. Ben winces, lifts his 205 pounds off the bench and tries to loosen his knee. A tear smudges the eye black on his cheek. He knows it’s over. Unless pride intervenes one last time.

Sports Feature Finalists Publication: The Oklahoman By: Jenni Carlson

Publication: Wichita Eagle By: Tony Adame

Excerpt from “The best season ever: Why one season of T-ball meant the world to one Edmond family”

Excerpt from “Hall’s Homecoming”

The day after his 8-year-old son died, Rick Howard sat at his computer in the wee hours of the morning when sleep would not come and wrote an email. Saturday, Sept. 28, 2013 4:46 a.m. Dear Coach Fred and the rest of the 2013 Wolves, I just wanted to let you know that my son Hugh unexpectedly passed away on Friday morning. I just wanted to let everyone know that playing T-ball last summer was probably one of Hugh’s favorite activities he ever participated in. With all his physical challenges, it was the one and only time he was an actual member of a sports team. For sports fans in a state eat up with Sooners and Cowboys and Thunder, a 6-and-under T-ball team at the Edmond YMCA is way off the radar. But for a little boy who loved sports but never got to play and for a family now coping with the pain and sorrow of losing a child, that team meant the world. They had the best season ever. *** Hugh James Howard weighed over 9 pounds when he was born, but he was not the healthy baby boy that Rick and Lauren Howard had prayed for. He was born with no soft spot on his head. The sutures of his skull fused together while he was in utero and created numerous issues. Chief among them was the fluid that would collect on his brain. Doctors inserted a shunt that drained the fluid, but the shunt failed several times and had to be redone. There were other procedures that had to be done, too. By the time Hugh was 1, he’d been through nearly a half dozen surgeries. There would be more as he got older. Hugh also had a Chiari malformation, a defect in the part of his brain that controls balance and depth perception. He didn’t walk until he was 3 years old. The defect caused sleep apnea and breathing problems, too. But none of that stopped Hugh from becoming one of the biggest sports fans on the planet. He loved the Sooners and the Thunder, and when their games were on, he’d station himself directly in front of the TV. He’d yell and clap and fist pump, and whenever someone made a big play, he’d re-enact it. He would become Blake Bell. Or Kevin Durant. Or Russell Westbrook. But his love wasn’t limited to Sooner crimson and Thunder blue. He’d watch anything — baseball, WNBA, tennis — and be totally into it.

COCHRAN, Ga. — The house on Peach Street is filling up with people. There are so many of them, almost all dressed in Wichita State gear, that they spill out the front and side doors, some standing in the yard underneath a slight drizzle of rain and listening to Carl Hall’s stepfather, King Fields, as he holds court in the front yard, chain-smoking cigarettes and talking about the Shockers’ chances against Louisville on Saturday in the Final Four, just two hours up the road in Atlanta. Some stand underneath a carport, beneath a sign tacked to the back wall — “Carl Hall #22, Wichita State Shockers, We Are Proud of You!” – and joke about not knowing the person they see on television. Nobody here calls him Carl, they say. Here, they all call him Tony. He is, after all, Carl Anthony Hall Jr. “Who is Carl Hall?” one of his aunts asks. “I’m calling him Tony. I can’t call him Carl. He’s Tony to me.” Inside the house, Hall’s mother, Jackie Fields, scrambles from the kitchen to the living room when she hears screaming among the seemingly endless stream of small children running back and forth through the house. “Nobody better be messing with my baby!” Jackie says. “Nope, nope, nope, y’all ain’t doing that. What did y’all do to Tyreke?” There is laughter from the other room as Jackie comes back into the kitchen carrying her grandson, Carl’s 3-yearold son Tyreke, and sits down at the table with him in her lap. Tyreke has been living with Jackie since December. “Somebody get my baby a cupcake,” Jackie says. “You know I will toss each and every one of these little kids up out of here if they’re messing with my baby.” The women sitting around the table nod and smile. That’s Jackie, they all say. She’ll tell you what’s on her mind. And don’t mess with her kids, or else. Soon, there will be another baby. Hall and his girlfriend, Elesa Ates, are expecting another boy, due June 1. Doctors have already told her that he might come sooner because he is growing so fast. The house on Peach Street, deep in the heart of Georgia, is filling up with people.

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Sports Column Winner Publication: The Oklahoman By: Berry Tramel

Judges’ Comments: Sometimes touching, sometimes provocative, always compelling.

Excerpt from “After years of preaching calm, Bob Stoops sharpens the guillotine”

Not so long ago, some wondered if Bob Stoops had it in him to make difficult decisions. Had it in him to fire a coach, if he deemed it necessary. Seems so quaint now, with the guillotine freshly oiled. Three Stoops staff members gone in the last week, on the heels of a firing and a demotion a year ago. Perhaps the reign of terror is over for now. Robespierre rests. But there’s no rest in the OU football office. The staff is on alert. The lion has roared. The Sooners’ current status is unacceptable. So gone are James Patton, Jackie Shipp and Bruce Kittle, joining Willie Martinez and Brent Venables from the purge of last winter. Extreme Makeover: OU Football Edition. As the Sooner coaching roster stands now, Stoops has four holdovers from his 2010 staff and three veterans of the mighty 2010 Arizona staff. And with two openings left, who’s to say the ‘Zona Revolution won’t continue? Mike Stoops’ imprint on the program is gaining momentum by the second. Will the staff upheaval change Sooner fortunes? Who knows? It’s not like OU is in the dregs. The Sooners are 40-13 since losing to Florida in the Big Bowl four years ago. That’s an average season of 10-3, which will get you a statue built in Waco but a For Sale sign in your Norman yard. The Sooners aren’t so much in a slump as they’ve grown stale. The defense leaks like every other team’s in the Big 12. The offense is productive but no better than the third-most perennially feared in the conference. Stoops, a steady Eddie for his first 13 years on the job, no longer preaches calm. No longer declares that everything is fine and hey, even if it’s not, the Longhorns aren’t tearing it up themselves.

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Coaching changes often help. Often don’t, too, witness the 2012 Sooner defense and even Mack Brown’s own reign of terror a couple of years back. But it’s not like new blood has been in short supply in Norman. Let’s see. Josh Heupel and Patton in 2006. Jay Norvell in 2008. Kittle in 2011. Mike Stoops and Tim Kish in 2012. Through free-will attrition, the OU staff has been anything but stagnant. So why the dismissals of longtime lieutenants Patton and Shipp? Had to be recruiting related. Patton coached up his patchwork offensive line about as well as a guy could. Shipp’s defensive tackles seemed solid, considering that for three straight years, not a one of them was G.K. McCoy. And the firing of Kittle was necessary. Stoops hired his longtime friend with virtually no coaching experience — not OU-level, or Big 12-level, or college-level experience; virtually no experience — and it just didn’t work. Those close to the program say both coaches and players grew frustrated at

Kittle’s lack of coaching acumen. When Stoops’ critics say he’s gotten complacent and soft, the best evidence is Bruce Kittle. Stoops would have little credibility in his own staff room had he kept Kittle and jettisoned Patton and Shipp. Like it or not, the historic words of everyone from George Lynn Cross to Barry Switzer ring true. This is a monster that must be fed. OU doesn’t pay Stoops $5 million a year for his boyish charm. It pays him $5 million a year to win big, which he did for more than a decade and still does to some degree. Just not quite as big. The natives are restless, and I don’t mean the Chickasha plumber or the Shawnee druggist or the Oklahoma City writer. I mean influential boosters and donors and decision-makers, who still are loyal to Stoops but want to know why he’s not winning like the Sooners did not so long ago. Which is why the guillotine was sharpened.

Sports Column Finalists Publication: Tulsa World By: Kelly Bostian

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Tom Shatel

Excerpt from “Texas gal wins noodling contest”

Excerpt from “From mid to major”

Lucy Millsap, 19, an all-American, God-fearing Bare Knuckle Babe who cut her outdoors teeth on the water during adrenaline-filled outlaw noodling nights, won the grand daddy of Oklahoma noodling tournaments Saturday at Pauls Valley’s Okie Noodling Tournament and set the all-time big fish record with a 72-pound flathead catfish. Apparently some of the boys are none too happy. “Whenever I walked up on stage I had a good feeling and people were cheering, especially the girls,” Millsap said. “A lot of women were screaming, ‘Heck yeah, you go girl!’ Those cheesy things women say.” She wasn’t surprised by less positive feedback later. Not only did a Texan come to Oklahoma’s tournament and win, but a girl beat all the boys to boot. It started at the tournament Saturday and was amplified online in following days. “There was a lot of trash talk at the event,” Millsap said. “Men would walk by and say slurs in my ear, say ‘You couldn’t catch that by yourself.’ I had men go so far as to curse and cuss at me and stuff. I thought, ‘Really? How big was the fish you weighed in? Thirty pounds? I thought so. Nice to meet you, too.” Maybe those boys just didn’t know who they were talking to. Miss May in the 2014 Bare Knuckle Babes calendar is 145 pounds of small-town Texas country girl. She was raised on Lake Towakani, and some local folks say she and her father have walked every inch of shoreline there. Millsap first accompanied her father, Jimmy, noodling when she was 5 years old. He took second place in the Men’s division at Pauls Valley with a 67.4-pounder. If the name rings a bell, you might remember Jimmy also took second place in Claremore last week with a 69.2-pounder. Noodling was illegal in Texas until 2011, but that didn’t stop a lot of traditionalists. In the dark, they went out hand-fishing anyway. “Dad would put me up on a hole with little tiny catfish in ‘em,” Millsap said. “I’d sit on top of the slab or pile of rocks, and I could feel the vibration and feel the fight under the water. It was a cool deal.” Two years ago she caught her biggest fish ever. It was 75 pounds, although that doesn’t mean the 72-pound Lake Texoma hog was an easy thing to tackle on Saturday. Several fish were in the hole, including the fish her father turned in and another one, a real monster. “Dad said it would have gone 90. I don’t know, but we tend to trust him on stuff like that,” Millsap said.

It’s not exactly the Missouri Valley Redemption. But if you’re just returning from a trip to Mars and hadn’t heard Creighton is going to the Big East and certainly can’t understand why, let me explain in cinematic terms. There’s a classic line in the 1994 movie “Shawshank Redemption,” when prisoner Andy Dufresne explains to his friend Red why he maintains hope of escaping prison. “It comes down to a simple choice: Get busy living or get busy dying.” Andy would have jumped at the Big East, too. Creighton was not dying in the Missouri Valley. Nor was the Valley a metaphorical prison. CU has done quite well in the venerable Midwestern conference for decades. Competed for championships. Won more than its share. Had a good relationship with league officials and the other members. Built the résumé that attracted the Big East. Some would argue that Creighton had outgrown the Valley, with its money and facilities, but Creighton was not dominating the Valley. Creighton is not too good for the Valley. That’s not what this is about. And some visionaries see a world where the Valley could split down the road, with the Atlantic 10 raiding the league or possibly the trickle-down effect of college football’s realignment madness snatching up a Northern Iowa or Illinois State or Missouri State. But that’s not why you leave a perfectly good home. This is not about the Valley. This is about Creighton. This is about taking what you have and doubling down on your future. This is about walking up to that ledge and jumping, knowing you might fall, but betting that you’re going to fly. This is about taking a chance in life, when the rare opportunity comes. And if they aren’t teaching that at Creighton, they should. The Rev. Timothy Lannon, Bruce Rasmussen and all of the Creighton officials are about to give an advanced course in that lesson. The Big East looks like the proverbial no-brainer. Bigger hoops league. At least $3 million per year with a chance to grow that. A wider net, and a bigger net, for recruiting athletes and students. Expanding the Creighton brand. And getting to hang out in the Catholic/Jesuit/private/hoops club you’ve always wanted to hang out in. Membership has its privileges. This is nothing less than a transformational move for Creighton. The school and the basketball program will never be the same and will be viewed in a whole new light, nationally and here in the Big O.

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Review Winner Publication: Arkansas Democrat Gazette By: Philip Martin Judges’ Comments: Outstanding work — the writer places movies in a greater cultural/societal context and shows his depth of knowledge with references to Tolstoy, Facebook outrages and more. Like the late Roger Ebert, he comes off as both a student of film and a student of the world.

Excerpt from “Story of a dying”

MOVIESTYLE

Television work allows for mystery, or at LITTLE ROCK — What a least for the possibility of human movie does is put us in places misperception, and even for a we wouldn’t otherwise be. The certain tender poetry. But it is PREVIEWS camera is our surrogate; we New this week not meant to flatter the audience. experience what it sees, as it Amour Amour — French for “love” waits unblinking in the corner or 91 — begins with the breaking in of pushes up close to the action. In Beautiful Creatures reality on an ample and old-fashthe best movies we forget about 79 ioned Parisian apartment, where the camera, and about the layer the police find the body of an old of insulating safety it affords woman who apparently has been us. (We leap when the shark Escape From Planet dead for some time. Then we attacks.) We wake from the best Earth move back in time, to meet an movies as witnesses; we feel the elderly but alert French couple truth of what we have seen and played by two titans of the heard, and though we know it’s French New Wave, Emmanuelle only a movie — just as we know Amour takes viewers to a hard and necessary place Riva and Jean-Louis Trintignant. in lucid dreams that we’re actuAmour A Good Day to Die Hard 91 Haneke’s casting is imporally asleep — we cannot help but 78 tant here, because it allows us feel changed by what we have to imagine these old people as seen. young and fierce, as they were It should be said at the outset See AMOUR on Page 6E REVIEW Quartet in the movies that made these that while Michael Haneke’s A Good Day to Die Hard 87 A Good Day to Die Hard actors famous. For some of us, Amour is a terrific movie, it is 78 the words “Emmanuelle Riva” also a difficult and unsettling conjure nostalgia for a certain experience and one ought not Safe Haven kind of sexy intelligence — in expect to enjoy it in the way that 67 Hiroshima, Mon Amour (1959), we enjoy a tumult of puppies a very important movie to me, or the fetching smiles of little she played a French actress in children. It is the sort of movie COMING Tokyo after the war, breaking off that some people will inevitably ATTRACTIONS See DIE on Page 6E HOME MOVIES Dark Skies her brief affair with a Japanese describe as boring or tortuous. architect. Then in Leon Morin, It is a movie that will make you Priest (1961), she played a young sad and perhaps depress you. If Snitch widow engaging Jean-Paul you mean to use the movies as Belmondo’s titular priest in a an escape, as a means of temlong-running theological discusporary disengagement from the See HOME on Page 6E sion that might be read as an world’s brutality, you might be attempted seduction. Similarly, well advised to miss this one, to Trintignant became famous playof a break; he understands the petty go see John McClane cheerfully ing opposite Brigitte Bardot in Roger hypocrisies inherent in our civilization, save the world again. I am only giving Vadim’s And God Created Woman you fair warning: Amour is a tough and and he has no pity for those deluded (1956) and Anouk Aimee in A Man and by pretty lies. At his best— in 2005’s daunting film. a Woman. The last movie I’d noticed Cache, 2009’s The White Ribbon or the If you know something about the Trintignant in was Krzysztof Kieslowscurrent film — Haneke is one of our Austrian director Haneke, then you ki’s Red, nearly 20 years ago. most important difficult filmmakers, an probably aren’t surprised by that. His elliptical storyteller who questions the work is fiercely unsentimental, and at existence of a verifiable reality beyond times I have found it cold and inhuindividual perception. His irreligious mane. He doesn’t give our kind much Listings and highlights for your viewing.

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ARKANSAS ONLINE www.arkansasonline.com

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2013

PG-13 Jean-Louis Trintignant and Emmanuelle Riva play octogenarian former music teachers whose abiding love is put to the test when she suffers a partially paralyzing stroke. With Isabelle Huppert, Michael Haneke; directed by Haneke. (127 minutes) PG-13 Two star-crossed lovers — a young man (Alden Ehrenreich) longing to escape his small town and a mysterious new girl (Alice Englert) — uncover dark secrets about their respective families and their small Southern town. With Jeremy Irons, Viola Davis, Emmy Rossum, Thomas Mann, Emma Thompson; directed by Richard LaGravenese. (124 minutes)

PG Lionized astronaut Scorch Supernova (Brendan Fraser) and his quiet, nerdy by-therules brother (Rob Corddry) find themselves in a fiendishly plotted trap when they rocket off to answer an SOS from a notoriously dangerous planet. Animated, with voices of Jane Lynch, Craig Robinson, George Lopez, Sofia Vergara, Steve Zahn, Chris Parnell, Jonathan Morgan Heit, Jessica Alba, Sarah Jessica Parker, William Shatner; directed by Cal Brunker. No review available. (90 minutes)

Story of a dying

Anne (Emmanuelle Riva) is a retired piano teacher whose health takes a catastrophic turn in Amour, the powerful domestic drama by Austrian director Michael Haneke that has been nominated for a Best Picture Oscar.

PHILIP MARTIN

ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

R Bruce Willis is back as bad-guy-butt kicker John McClane, this time thrust onto an international stage when his estranged son is caught up in the daring prison escape of a rogue Russian leader. See review at blooddirtangels.com. With Jai Courtney, Sebastian Koch, Yulia Snigir, Cole Hauser, Amaury Nolasco, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Anne Vyalitsyna; directed by John Moore. (97 minutes)

PG-13 Two lifelong friends and a former colleague living in a home for retired opera singers give an annual Giuseppe Verdi birthday concert; this year, with the arrival of a former grande dame (Maggie Smith), old grudges resurface and threaten the benefit. With Michael Gambon, Billy Connolly, Pauline Collins, Sheridan Smith; directed by Dustin Hoffman. (97 minutes)

PG-13 A mysterious young woman’s reluctance to join the tight-knit community in a small North Carolina town raises questions about her past, especially when she starts a relationship with a widowed store owner with two young children. With Josh Duhamel, Julianne Hough, David Lyons, Cobie Smulders; directed by Lasse Hallstrom. (115 minutes)

In French, with English subtitles

What a movie does is put us in places we wouldn’t otherwise be. The camera is our surrogate; we experience what it sees, as it waits unblinking in the corner or pushes up close to the action. In the best movies we forget about the camera, and about the layer of insulating safety it affords us. (We leap when the shark attacks.) We wake from the best movies as witnesses; we feel the truth of what we have seen and heard, and though

Cast: Emmanuelle Riva, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Isabelle Huppert Director: Michael Haneke Rating: PG-13, for thematic material and language Running time: 127 minutes

we know it’s only a movie — just as we know in lucid dreams that we’re actually asleep — we cannot help but feel changed by what we have seen. It should be said at the out-

set that while Michael Haneke’s Amour is a terrific movie, it is also a difficult and unsettling experience and one ought not expect to enjoy it in the way that we enjoy a tumult of puppies or the fetching smiles of little children. It is the sort of movie that some people will inevitably describe as boring or tortuous. It is a movie that will make you sad and perhaps depress you. If you mean to use the movies as an escape, as a means of temporary disengagement from the world’s brutality, you might be well advised to miss this one, to go see John McClane

cheerfully save the world again. I am only giving you fair warning: Amour is a tough and daunting film. If you know something about the Austrian director Haneke, then you probably aren’t surprised by that. His work is fiercely unsentimental, and at times I have found it cold and inhumane. He doesn’t give our kind much of a break; he understands the petty hypocrisies inherent in our civilization, and he has no pity for those deluded by pretty lies. At his best— in 2005’s

PIERS MARCHANT

SPECIAL TO THE DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

Starting in 1964, British director and documentarian Michael Apted began filming the same group of people beginning when they were 7 years old and continuing every seven years since. Known as the 7 Up films (the latest installment of which, 56 Up, has just opened in selected cities), the series is an extraordinary account of the way in which our youthful vigor and limitless potential eventually give way to something a good deal more grounded, for better and worse. There’s something ultimately heartbreaking there, of course, as Apted’s subjects suffer the injuries and painful miseries of their own choices over the course of their lives. A similar sort of trajectory appears to be taking place quite unexpectedly with Bruce Willis in the Die Hard series. What started out back in 1988 as a fun, inventive action flick with a smug, irritating and incredibly resourceful NYC cop has now generated four other sequels, spread out over the course of 25 years, with the lone constant being Willis himself.

Cast: Bruce Willis, Jai Courtney, Sebastian Koch Director: John Moore Rating: R, for violence and language Running time: 97 minutes

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Jack (Jai Courtney) and John McClane (Bruce Willis) get ready to bring a couple of generations of pain to some Russian baddies in A Good Day to Die Hard.

We’ve seen him, as detective John McClane, fight desperately for his marriage (the first film); fight to save his beloved wife from airplane disaster (Die Hard 2); fight to retain his dignity after his marriage crumbles (Die Hard With a Vengeance); fight to save his daughter (Live Free

or Die Hard); and now, in what appears to be a final resolution, fight to save his grown son from his own bad choices — and all the while leaving massive wreckage and a slew of bodies in his wake. As a franchise, the Die Hard series is expected to maintain cer-

schools —often the victims of bullying — from seeing it. After squabbling for a while, Weinstein agreed to tone down the film in return for a PG-13 rating, meaning children of all ages can watch it without an adult — but watching it is not easy. Director Lee Hirsch’s earnest camera peers into homes, classrooms, cafeterias and principals’ offices to investigate the often horrific lives of five bullied kids and their families over the course of a school year. The film makes it clear that its goal is to be a catalyst for change in the way parents, teachers, children and society deal with the misery, humiliation and terror that bullying can cause. “Bully is not a great movie; it is a problematic movie that, had it not been the focus of a highly publicized ratings debate [that quite possibly was ginned up by Har-

vey Weinstein as a kind of stunt], probably would not have made much of an impression on the American consciousness,”says our critic Philip Martin. “But even so, if you are a parent or grandparent of school-age children you should see this movie. You should take your kids or grandkids to see this movie. And you should hope that what they see makes them cry.”

tain key tropes: with the exception of the weak-kneed fourth film — largely reviled by connoisseurs of the series — the R-rated action involves a fair amount of bloodsoaked (and spattered) carnage and plenty of salty language; the bad guys have to pretend to be enacting their intricate caper for some kind of political reason only to actually be in it for the cash; and, of course, McClane has to find the perfect opportune moment to belt out the series’ signature catchphrase (“Yippee-ki-yay, mother******”). What the series has never had to contend with before is a John McClane who appears to be so bedraggled and beaten down. Upon finding out his estranged

(opening dates are tentative)

, PG-13 A young suburban couple (Keri Russell, Josh Hamilton) take matters into their own hands to figure out what the unimaginably terrifying and deadly force is that is after their family. With Dakota Goyo, Kadan Rockett, J.K. Simmons; directed by Scott Stewart. Feb. 22 , PG-13 Supposedly “inspired by true events.” Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson plays a father who, determined to save his wrongly accused teenage from a long prison sentence for drug distribution, makes a deal to infiltrate a drug cartel as an undercover informant. With Susan Sarandon, Benjamin Bratt and Barry Pepper; directed by Ric Roman Waugh. Feb. 22

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Lee Hirsch Bully PG-13, 98 minutes

KAREN MARTIN

SPECIAL TO THE DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

This documentary, when it screened to a full house at Tribeca Film Festival in 2011, was originally called The Bully Project. The name referred to a website that was created to help kids and their parents unite in the battle against bullies. Distribution was a grassroots affair, with the film showing in church basements and at community group meetings. Then the Weinstein Company bought the film and rechristened it with the more aggressive title of Bully. And it got a theatrical release that gained attention when the MPAA gave the film an R rating (for language), effectively preventing kids in middle schools and high

OTHER RECENT RELEASES:

The Perks of Being a Wallflower (PG-13, 103 minutes) — A funny and realistic coming-of-age story based on the best-selling novel by Stephen Chbosky (who directs), The Perks of Being a Wallflower is narrated by Pittsburgh teenager Charlie (Logan Lerman), who describes life episodes in a series of letters to someone he does not

Lee Hirsch’s documentary Bully examines the causes and consequences of peer abuse in public schools.

Review Finalists Publication:

Omaha World-Herald

By: Sarah Baker Hansen

Excerpt from “Cozy and inviting, that’s Avoli” There’s a gaping hole in the Omaha dining scene, and Avoli Osteria in Dundee is filling it. Chef-owner Dario Schicke and chef Ben Maides have finally brought good Northern Italian to central Omaha, and they’ve done it without pretension. This is Schicke’s second Dundee restaurant — he also owns Dario’s Brasserie — and he and Maides have calculated everything at Avoli since its July opening: the ambiance, the cocktails and wine and, of course, the tightly focused menu that’s full of handmade pasta, thoughtful appetizers and rustic Italian entrees designed for sharing. Schicke doesn’t want Avoli — the name combines his two daughters’ names, Ava and Olivia — to just be for special occasions. He wants it to be a neighborhood place, warm and welcoming, and it is. On a recent blustery weeknight, diners filled the restaurant, simply decorated with marble tables, concrete floors and a mishmash of chandeliers that add flattering, golden light to the space. I appreciated that the restaurant plays music standards, including lots of Sinatra. It works, and when it’s crowded, the space comes alive. Touches of the restaurant’s history — it’s best remembered for being Trovato’s — remain. The bar is in the same place, though it’s more open now, and a brick wall to the west is still there. So are some iron decorations in the back dining room.

Publication: Tulsa World By: James D. Watts Jr.

Publication: Tulsa World By: Michael Smith

Excerpt from “Brightman’s voice soars in spacey BOK show”

Excerpt from “Evil Dead lacks charm of original”

If nothing else, Sarah Brightman’s “Dreamchaser” concert Sunday night at the BOK Center gave a whole new twist to the phrase “space opera.” Brightman, who came to fame when former husband Andrew Lloyd Webber wrote “The Phantom of the Opera” for her, is one of the pioneers of the crossover genre known as “popera,” with almost a dozen bestselling albums to her credit. The English-born soprano is preparing to be a pioneer in a very different field — she is training to take part in a 2015 mission to the International Space Station, where she plans to become the first professional singer to record a song outside the e Earth’s atmosphere. An admirable, even enviable goal. But as Sunday’s concert demonstrated, Brightman can get pretty spacey without ever leaving the ground. The “Dreamchaser” project was inspired by Brightman’s training for space, and the songs that make up the album — and which made up the bulk of Sunday’s concert — were chosen, Brightman said, for the “feelings of the songs and what they gave to me, which was something very uplifting, very open, very outward.” And while the songs themselves might not conjure up images of the stars in their courses and boldly going into the final frontier, performing them as Brightman did — in front of a gigantic screen on which was projected an impressive array of often eye-popping imagery, from orbiting planets to celestial bodies streaming past to what looked like drawings of pieces for some kind of space station being slotted into place.

“Evil Dead” isn’t so much a movie as it is a meat grinder of human flesh, and I just can’t see the point. I really don’t have to see someone taking a scalding-hot shower that melts their skin off again. Or someone slice their face off with a mirror shard. Or someone bashing their friend’s brains in with a lavatory sink. Or someone cut their own arm off with an electric meat knife. You may never think of your uncle carving the Thanksgiving turkey in quite the same way again. It’s not that we haven’t seen multiple variations of these particular bits of carnage in other movies. If I had a nickel for every mirror shard that appears in horror movies, I would have enough to buy a new mirror. A nice one. In “Evil Dead,” the point seems to be the graphic lingering on these images, as if a shot of a young woman’s vivisected viscera were not enough on its own. Future gastroenterologists may be able to stomach what they see here. “Evil Dead” is a sort-of remake of the 1981 film but without any of the action-comedy charm of star Bruce Campbell, who led a bloody good trilogy of horror flicks written and directed by Sam Raimi, the “Spider-Man” trilogy and “Oz the Great and Powerful” filmmaker. Campbell and Raimi are producers on this film, and it’s hard to know what they saw in the potential beyond the initial set-up, which is intriguing and plays out well for a few minutes.

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Food Winner Publication: The Oklahoman By: Dave Cathey Judges’ Comments: These five entries showcased the vibrant and varied food scene of Oklahoma City, and they also highlighted the writer’s ability to describe what could be unfamiliar menus to some. Not only were these reviews informative with thoughtful descriptions of the food and their origins, but they also told great stories about the proprietors. This writer made me want to eat at every one of these restaurants the next time I’m in OKC.

Excerpt from “Cafe do Brasil is a slice of Oklahoma City’s story” Cafe do Brasil, 440 NW 11, makes Oklahoma City home to something most major metropolitan areas do not have: A regional Brazilian restaurant and apple cake that will hug your taste buds like they were related. The collected wisdom on the subject of Brazilian food in this country doesn’t amount to much more than the fast-vanishing vapor trail of the churrascaria fad of the late 1990s. While most of the churrascarias survived Y2K but not Y2K+10, Ana Paixao Davis’ Cafe do Brasil was busy establishing itself as a key cog in the growth of MidTown and vital chapter in the story of Oklahoma City dining. Cafe do Brasil sprang from a 1994 partnership between Davis and her brother, Mario, called More Than Muffins. That counter-service concept served breakfast and lunch from a small storefront at 1903 Classen Blvd now occupied by the Guatemalan restaurant Cafe Antigua. “The first day, we made $65; the second day, $120 and I thought ‘Yes, yes!’ But we worked really hard cooking and cleaning, and had little money to pay ourselves after we paid our staff, which eventually grew to seven.” In 1998, Ana bought out her brother, changed the name of the restaurant and introduced native Brazilian cuisine. The change was a hit, causing her to quickly outgrow the space on Classen. She and husband Larry Davis, and immigration attorney, bought and renovated Garrison Funeral Home at 440 NW 11. Larry Davis hung a shingle in the building and Ana Davis opened her 15,000 square foot restaurant on Nov. 22, 2005. In the past seven-plus years, Ana Davis and staff have established Cafe do

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Brasil as a top spot for lunch and dinner and opened the Bossa Nova Bar in an upstairs space that boasts a rooftop patio with a view that’s second to, perhaps, only Vast. Rather than fall into the meat-faucet style of churrascarias that was trendy when she started, Davis has focused on foods from various regions of Brazil. At lunch, Cafe do Brasil is one of the downtown area’s best values, offering well-portioned dishes that offer more heart-smart choices than average, all for about $10. At night, the venerable cafe transforms into fine-dining. Dishes range from steak to seafood with tons of vegetarian and chicken dishes in between. The signature dish is Feijoada, a stew of black beans, sausage and pork served with rice collard greens and the toastedflour mixture called farofa. This rustic dish of Brazilian comfort food is derived from a portion of history Brazil shares with the United States that neither nation can be proud of: Slavery. The Portuguese Empire colonized Brazil in the 16th Century and began shipping slaves in shortly thereafter.

And just as slaves in this country showed resourcefulness by turning ingredients considered undesirable into flavor-rich comfort food, so, too, did the slaves of Brazil. Applying traditional African technique on castoff pork, rice, beans and greens, Brazilian comfort food was born. Brazilian cuisine also is greatly influenced by its proximity to the ocean and the men who sailed it. Xin-Xin is clearly founded on Asian techniques. The chicken and shrimp dish is cooked in palm oil with coconut milk, cashews, peanut paste, and dried shrimp over rice. Stroganoff de Frango features grilled chicken with mushrooms flambeed in white wine, mixed with cream and served over rice and topped with crispy potatoes. Cafe do Brasil doesn’t completely ignore churrasco fare. Churrasco Misto is marinated top sirloin, pork tenderloin and sausage are skewered and grilled before arriving on your table over white rice, black beans and collard greens. The Picanha Special is a steak served with chimichurri.

Food Finalists Publication: Tulsa World By: Nicole Marshall Middleton

Publication: Arkansas Democrat Gazette By: Kelly Brant

Excerpt from “Masters of the mix”

Excerpt from “Pear-fectly delightful”

We gathered Tulsa’s top bartenders on a sunny day just after noon. They are the innovators and the pioneers of Tulsa’s craft cocktail movement. The greetings were warm, the jokes dry. The high caliber of combined bartending talent standing on the receiving side of the bar made this snapshot in time unique. So did the time of day. The tin ceiling, chandeliers and iconic glassware of Hodges Bend coffee shop and bar gleamed in the daylight as the bartenders - creatures of the night - laughed at the relative earliness of the hour. Each works at a different bar, potentially competitors. But all say that doesn’t compare to the satisfaction of excelling in their craft. They share techniques, refer customers to one another’s bars and enjoy a playful one-upmanship that has raised the level of craft cocktails in Tulsa. They met for our photo, but the gathering promises to serve as inspiration - for future gatherings. And they stress there are many more bartenders in the city who are crafting great drinks. These artisan bartenders no longer ask, “What’ll you have?” It’s, “What do you like?” And the answer isn’t necessarily margarita or martini. It’s citrus, oak, cucumber, cinnamon, pepper and ginger. Bitter, sweet, savory, floral and spice. Then, using your ingredients of choice, they mix equal parts history and innovation to create art in a glass to the delight of the imbiber.

We’ve always wondered why apples get all of the attention when it comes to fall fruits. Pears are sweet and crunchy too. Yet the skinny-shouldered fruit in blushing hues of green, yellow and red tends to get overlooked and is often under-appreciated. But then we read this quotation from Emily Luchetti in The Flavor Bible by Karen Page and Andrew Dorenburg and it all made sense. “Apples are more popular than pears because when you go to the store, pears are all hard. You buy them, bring them home, and wait forever for them to ripen. You have to have a premeditated use for pears.” Exactly. You can buy apples and eat them right away or toss them in the crisper drawer in the fridge and forget about them for weeks. Pears are much more complicated. Pear season peaks in late summer to early fall, but because many pears have an exceptionally long shelf life — the fruits mature, but do not ripen on the tree — many varieties can be found in supermarkets through the winter months. The pears you find at the supermarket are almost guaranteed to be rock hard. Fortunately, a day or three at room temperature is usually all a pear needs to reach peak enjoyment condition. But how do you know? Some suggest gently pressing the “neck” of the pear at the stem. If it yields to the pressure it’s ripe. The keywords here are gently and yields. You’re not trying to bruise the pear and your finger shouldn’t leave an indentation. If you feel a slight give, then the fruit is likely ripe. Once ripe and ready to eat, pears can be held in the refrigerator for about five days.

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Entertainment Feature Winner Publication: Tulsa World By: James D. Watts Jr. Judges’ Comments: Thorough and strong writing here, with a great lede about the “wire.” Reading this piece makes me want to go back and listen to Guthrie’s recordings.

Excerpt from “Woody Guthrie Center opens” THE TULSA WORLD’S “I think he was the first When Nora Guthrie ENTERTAINMENT MAGAZINE mathematician ever to wants to illustrate an exwin a Grammy.” ample of the more unusual Interactive exhibits items that can be found The story of “the among the Woody Guthrie wire” is very much like Archives, she suggests, the story of the Woody “Show ‘em the wire.” Guthrie Center, the Those words prompt latest addition to the archivist Tiffany Colannino ever-growing collecto activate the mechation of art venues in the nized shelving units in the Brady Arts District. archive room of the new The center is part of Woody Guthrie Center. the Mathews WareThe shelves part smoothly, house complex, funded silently, giving Colannino by the George Kaiser access to the place where Family Foundation, and she’s stored a particular a project that helped buff-colored box. spearhead the recent She carefully unpacks explosion of growth in it and takes out a spool the Brady District. of metal. On the top is a A great deal of time, time-worn label on which is technology and effort printed, in almost childwent into capturing like capital letters, a single and preserving what word: “WOODY.” INSIDE Lucky’s on the Green 9 Infuzion 10 Scotty McCreery 28 might ordinarily be Wound around it is considered an ephemcame across these, and sent them to us,” something that “kind eral event - one live performance, one Guthrie said. “It was right after 9/11, so of looks like fishing line, doesn’t it?” collection of songs and stories shared when we got this very heavy package, Guthrie said. “But I’ll show you how with a small group of people in a certain we were a little concerned what was in thick it is.” place on a certain day, imprinted on a it.” Guthrie, Woody Guthrie’s daughter, fragile object - and transforming it into A laborious, multiyear process reaches up and plucks a single strand something tangible, something perwould follow to discover what was on of hair from her head and holds it up manent, something that might change the spools, to transfer it onto more modfor inspection. “It’s about that thick,” the way you think about a subject you ern media and to adjust the results so she said. She laughed, adding, “And it’s thought you knew well. it duplicated - as close as was humanly about the same color.” The Woody Guthrie Center seeks to and technologically possible - what that This ring of wire, wrapped around do the same thing. show in 1949 sounded like to those who a small but surprisingly heavy metal Designed by Gallagher & Associwere there. spool, is one of several that a man ates, which designed such venues as the “We had people who figured out named Paul Braverman sent to the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles and how the electric current was flowing Woody Guthrie Archives in 2001. On the Shanghai Natural History Museum in that city that night, and we found a these spools is what may be the only mathematician who worked out an algo- in China, the Woody Guthrie Center is a existing record of Woody Guthrie in flat-screen-filled, computer-driven colrithm to deal with all the fluctuations,” concert. lection of interactive stations that deal Guthrie said. “We finally released it as Braverman made the recordings uswith aspects of Guthrie’s life and times. ing a wire recorder - something typically ‘The Live Wire’ in 2007, and it ended up winning a Grammy Award. used by businessmen to dictate letters “Even our mathematician got one,” at a 1949 show in Newark, N.J. she said, obviously delighted at the fact. “He was cleaning out his closets, Volume 3, Number 45 April 25, 2013

T U L S AWO R L D.CO M / W E E K E N D

Woody Guthrie Center opens. 16

SHARED LEGACY

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Entertainment Feature Finalists Publication: The Oklahoman By: George Lang

Publication: Tulsa World By: Rita Sherrow

Excerpt from “Oklahoma City violinist finds new music in broken instruments”

Excerpt from “Busey takes ‘power that Tulsa gave’ into show”

A box of broken violins can look like a tragedy. Any shattered instrument can evoke feelings of sadness because its musical potential is usually gone, but when a violin is “broken beyond repair,” the loss is especially great. No fingers will coax Mozart from its strings, and no bow will meet its bridge. But Kyle Dillingham sees these instruments differently. The classically trained violinist has played some of the most magnificent violins ever made and shared a stage with bluegrass legend Bill Monroe when he was just 17 years old. And yet, he says that a broken violin can produce something singularly beautiful if given a chance to make music again. He picks up one violin from a box of distinctly mangled instruments he received from his friends at Inter-City Violin Studios. Its bridge is missing, so the curvature that gives the strings definition is gone. But then Dillingham drags a bow across those dusty, flat strings, and a lovely minor chord emerges. It cracks a little and is slightly offkey, but Dillingham is in love with the imperfection. “I have a violin under my chin every day, and I never hear these sounds,” said Dillingham, 35, who recently toured Taiwan’s Chi Mei Museum, home of some of the most treasured violins in the world. “I played about $100 million worth of violins in under an hour, and one violin in particular was a $16 million violin. That violin cannot produce these sounds. It cannot.”

Gary Busey doesn’t do email. He doesn’t say why, but he’s quite adamant about it. “No email,” said the actor at the start of a phone interview about his appearance on “All-Star Celebrity Apprentice” starting Sunday on NBC. Point taken. “Ask me anything you want because I have answers for everything.” “OK. So tell me something we don’t know about Gary Busey.” “I don’t wear underwear” is where the conversation started before it ricocheted off into him asking if I was wearing underwear. Shows you that even when you think you’re in control of an interview, there’s a Gary Busey to prove you’re not. Busey is an enigma. It’s no secret. Anyone who follows him in the media is aware he’s a walking stream of consciousness hidden behind a toothy grin and a mind that is always working, thinking ahead. It’s a persona that works for him. The Texan, who famously survived a near-fatal motorcycle crash and sinus cancer, is best known as an actor whose films include “The Buddy Holly Story,” “Lethal Weapon,” “The Firm,” “Point Break” and “Predator 2.” And his TV credits are pretty extensive, too. But it’s his personal, not professional, reputation that precedes him on the charity fundraising reality show.

Publication:

Arkansas Democrat Gazette

By: Philip Martin, John Deering

Excerpt from “Iris’ deep Delta soul” Starting is always the hardest thing, so maybe we can understand why it took Arkansas native Iris DeMent, one of our finest songwriters and singers and a woman who grew up steeped in music, until the age of 25 before she was able to write a song. “As far back as I could remember, I tried to write songs,” she says from her home in Iowa City, Iowa. “My mom used to have to push me out the door to elementary school and middle school because I’d be sitting at the piano — part of it was that I just loved playing the piano and music, but I was secretly trying to write songs. And I didn’t know how. I just didn’t know how to put the thing together. “And so it took me until I was 25, which, of course now that I’m 52 that seems like being a kid … I don’t know what that was, I think I just had these notions about what songwriters were, and what you were supposed to say, and what sounded good and what didn’t sound good. I was just so overwhelmed, I was kind of paralyzed by all my ideas that I couldn’t do it myself.” DeMent’s songs have always been informed by humanism and the sort of skepticism that is the inverse of the certainty generally presented by pop singers. To gather the complexity and distill it into plain words buoyed by the Starting is always the hardest thing, so maybe we can understand why it took Arkansas native Iris DeMent, one of our finest songwriters and singers and a woman who grew up steeped in music, until the age of 25 before she was able to write a song.

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Specialty Feature Winner Publication: The Oklahoman By: Jaclyn Cosgrove Judges’ Comments: An innovative and compelling take on the cancer-survivor-saga genre, using tweets to break up the narrative text and at the same time add immediacy and intimacy.

Excerpt from Young Oklahoma City woman’s cancer brings ‘bizarre’ blessings — and so many reasons to believe” It started with a cough, a persistent and seemingly normal cough.

In two years, that cough would represent the beginning of what would feel like the end. Lorelei Decker would lie in her hospital bed as her body shut down, and for the first time, she would think death was near. She always knew death was a possibility — but for several months, she had experienced a life she never dreamed cancer would bring. A family that loves her, mixed with a community that supported her, and an NBA team that inspired her. She had

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become Oklahoma City’s favorite Thunder girl, all because of the bizarre blessing that cancer had been. Decker beat the odds over and over again, telling doctors to believe in miracles. Her story starts unexpectedly. Her story starts with a funeral that saved her life. Her friend’s sister had died from septic shock, brought on during her battle with leukemia. Decker would later learn that up to 50 percent of the people who develop septic shock — when an overwhelming infection leads to life-threateningly low blood pressure — don’t make it. She would think back to this girl and that statistic. At the funeral, Decker couldn’t stop coughing, and she was so embarrassed and angry with herself that she went to the doctor. Her family demanded real answers. Friday, Jan. 27, 2012, would mark Decker’s last day as a “normal” 17-year-old girl. A self-identified nerd, she was a senior in high school, busy taking advanced placement classes, playing on the Putnam City North High School golf team and loving the Oklahoma City Thunder and her boyfriend, Brad Ross, the captain of the school’s football team before he graduated. She was preparing for graduation and her first semester at Oklahoma State University. A four-inch tumor sitting in her chest derailed every plan she had. “I would say my junior year, to this day, has been the best year of my life,” Decker said. “Because Bradley was still a senior, and I still didn’t have cancer.” They had no idea the monster they were facing. It was a Saturday, and the only option the Deckers had was either the emergency room or an after-hours clinic. At the clinic, Decker’s mother, Andrea Decker, had a “mom hunch.” Andrea Decker felt like her daughter might have pneumonia again, and she insisted on a chest X-ray. The doctor disagreed. The mother persisted and won. About six months before, Lorelei had developed pneumonia and had a chest X-ray done at a different medical office. If that X-ray had been sent to a radiologist, then this moment in January 2012 likely wouldn’t have happened. Because a radiologist might have noticed the beginnings of cancer. “In retrospect, we look back, and we go, ‘Wow, we missed so many signs,’” Andrea Decker said. “So many doctors missed so many signs.” “I did have pneumonia,” Lorelei adds. “But I also had cancer, which was compromising my immune system, which is why I had pneumonia.”

Specialty Feature Finalists Publication: Tulsa World By: Bill Sherman

Excerpt from “From Myanmar to Tulsa Zomi people establish new homes near ORU”

CHIN STATE, Myanmar - A narrow, rutted, rocky road through steep mountain canyons is all that connects northern Chin State in Myanmar to the rest of the world. From that isolated mountainous area, home of the Zomi ethnic group, have come 3,000 Tulsans. They worship in a dozen Zomi churches in Tulsa, with services in their native dialect as well as Burmese and English. They work in Tulsa businesses, and their children attend public schools. The Tulsa Zomi community is centered in the neighborhoods around Oral Roberts University. On any given day, they can be seen shopping in the Walmart at 81st Street and Lewis Avenue, or at Tulsa’s two Zomi-owned stores, the OK Asian Market and Hornbill Oriental Market, both near ORU. “We feel that ORU is the heart of the city,” said the Rev. Kham Khai, pastor of the Myanmar Christian Church that meets at Victory Christian Center. The Zomis are one of several ethnic groups in Myanmar. The nation formerly known as Burma is situated between China and India and until two years ago was under 50 years of a military dictatorship, isolated from the rest of the world and suffering from severe economic sanctions. Newly enacted democratic reforms are rapidly and dramatically changing the country of 60 million people. About a third of the 300,000 Zomis live in nearby India, and the rest are from the northern section of Chin State in Myanmar.

Publication: Tulsa World By: Nicole Marshall Middleton

Excerpt from “Rock star chefs - 10 culinary celebrities make mouths water” Knives gleaming, pans on fire. The chef’s table at a hot restaurant is a front-row seat to a culinary concert for the senses. And chefs have been described as the new rock stars. Timing. Improvisation. The passion to create and share their art. Throngs of hungry followers. They have a lot in common. Fueled by shows like “Top Chef” and “Iron Chef,” the collective celebrity status of chefs has skyrocketed. For many Tulsans, the high point of an evening out is the restaurant. And Tulsa diners follow their favorite chefs through each new venture. Here are 10 of Tulsa’s rock star chefs - in no particular order - who have current eateries and are blazing new gastronomic trails. They have kitchens for stages and a growing playlist of specialties for us to consume. *** PHILIP PHILLIPS Stage: Lone Wolf Banh Mi food truck Lone Wolf draws an audience. Most frequently, the food truck can be found downtown, often parked across from the Soundpony next to Cain’s Ballroom, a perfect venue for rock stars of the food truck scene. Phillips is a master of social media, so it’s best to follow Lone Wolf on Facebook to make sure you know where and when the food truck will be serving. “Basically, we would be the flaming food truck psychedelic rockers,” Philip Phillips joked about his food truck. “We like to take different art forms, different types of food, and bring them together.”

Publication:

Arkansas Democrat Gazette

By: Celia Storey

Excerpt from “Mean Girls” Drought-fearing Arkansans long for rain as summer reduces lush green to tan tinder. But a dry summer has one excellent advantage over a damp one: fewer horseflies. Horseflies are large flies whose biting females make life miserable for horses (duh) and other livestock. But as one exasperated poster commented on the Arkansashunting. net chat board in June, “Somebody thought by naming them horseflies they would leave us alone. It didn’t work.” They (and their cousin the deerfly) bite people, too. They are the stout little B-52s that drone at you, Mr. Hunter/Hiker/Runner/Four-wheeling ATV’er — anybody — when you’re minding your own business along a trail beside a creek, pond, marsh, ditch, puddle. ZZrrrr, ZZrrrr, they circle and circle and circle. So you go faster, but still, ZZrrrr, ZZrrrr. Stupid horsefly. What on earth does she want? What do you think she wants? She bumps into you and— hey! Ouch! These relentless females were the loudest of the biting things that kept Conway resident Charlie Dunn flapping a spare handkerchief around his head March 19 to July 3, as he hiked 1,239.7 miles from Georgia to Pennsylvania on the Appalachian Trail. “I would say it’s more dread than anything else because you know they are coming as soon as the coolness of the morning wears off,” Dunn recalls, safely indoors at home in Conway. “And, they are incessant. They are not deterred by you swatting at them. They just dodge your hand and make another pass at your bare skin. In my case it’s the skin on top of my head that does not have a protective covering of hair.”

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Special Section Winner Publication: The Oklahoman By: Mike Sherman, Ryan Sharp, Hayley McGhee, Darla Smith, Scott Munn, Berry Tramel, Jenni Carlson, Gina Mizell, Jason Kersey, John Helsley, Ryan Aber, Scott Wright, Jacob Unruh, Todd Pendleton, Kendall Matthews, Phillip Baeza, Trent Shadid, Anthony Slater, Todd Schoenthaler, Chris Brannick

SEC-opoly

THE OKLAHOMAN FOOTBALL PREVIEW

SUNDAY, AUG. 25, 2013 |

80 PAGES

How the SEC took over college football, and what OU, OSU and the Big 12 can do about it.

PART 2: CULTURE College football is different in the SEC because it matters more, and here’s why.

Empire built on pride THE SOUTH RISES | WHAT FOOTBALL DID FOR OKLAHOMA, IT DOES FOR THE SEC

n the mid-1940s, the state of Oklahoma was steeped in an embarrassing identity crisis that college football helped solve. John Steinbeck’s 1939 novel “The Grapes of Wrath” and the 1940 film adaptation told a story of fictional “Okies” whose lives were destroyed by the Dust Bowl. The tale spawned an unflattering, widespread image of ignorant and backward Oklahomans. After World War II, University of Oklahoma Jason President George Cross and the board of reKersey gents decided to invest in a football program jkersey@ that would embolden the state and make it opubco.com proud. Now imagine an entire region of the United States chasing similar affirmation through OU FOOTBALL football, and you have the Southeastern Conference, a league of universities sprawled across states that lost the Civil War and, in some ways, never stopped fighting it. So as the Big 12 — and the rest of college football — works to end the SEC’s seven-year run of national championships, it’s important to remember what they’re up against beyond Jadeveon Clowney, Johnny Manziel and Nick Saban: A football culture unlike anything else in America full of fans, administrators, coaches and players hell bent on being No. 1. That culture has manifested itself in the thousands of fans who load up SEE CULTURE, PAGE 12S

TOP: OU football helped the state move beyond the image of the Dust Bowl, shown here towering over the Panhandle town of Hooker on June 4, 1937. OKLAHOMAN ARCHIVES ABOVE: The University of Alabama, once a symbol of segregation because Gov. George Wallace blocked black students at the "school house door," is now a beacon of excellence in college football. AP PHOTO

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Special Section Finalist Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Staff

Vietnam MEMORIAL DAY 2013

Vietnam

The United States ended its combat role in the Vietnam War in 1973. American troops came home, and prisoners of war were released. Forty years later, it’s still easy to debate the war’s meaning and its lasting impact. But not on Memorial Day, a time reserved to honor service and sacrifice. Today we recount some of the stories of the Vietnam War. Of the special bond of comrades in arms. Of the unending devotion to missing servicemen. Of the incredible courage in captivity. And of the heroes who once walked among us. 6V

★

THE VIETNAM WAR

MONDAY, MAY 27, 2013

The fallen F

Americans joined South Vietnam’s push into Cambodia in 1970, attacking North Vietnamese Army installations. Heavy ﬁghting at Fire Support Base Ripcord near the DMZ resulted in heavy casualties in July.

1,000

500

Deaths by year below in parentheses

57,977

While President Nixon began withdrawing troops in 1969, casualties remained high. The communists in early 1969 began another major offensive, targeting U.S. bases across South Vietnam. The battle at Hamburger Hill cost 72 U.S. lives in May.

1,500

★

Total American deaths:1964-1973

2,000

Monthly U.S. death totals from the Vietnam War rose steadily until peaking in 1968. Casualty totals mirrored the U.S. buildup of military personnel in Vietnam, which peaked at 536,000 in 1968. Both began to decline as South Vietnam’s combat role increased.

1964 (216)

MONDAY, MAY 27, 2013

American deaths peaked at more than 16,000 in 1968, with 2,415 killed in May. The communists’ Tet offensive began in January across South Vietnam. The battle of Hue, which lasted nearly a month, and the siege of Khe Sanh took heavy tolls.

1965 (1,930)

1966 (6,354)

1967 (11,368)

1968 (16,900)

1969 (11,785)

1970 (6,174)

1971 (2,419)

1972 (765)

1973 (66)

A shifting battleground

A quarter-century of conflict in Vietnam

The Vietnam War had no battle lines. It instead was fought in hundreds of quick strikes at enemy positions. Even nations’ boundaries were blurred, with communist forces using Vietnam’s neighbors for sanctuary.

1950 With the Korean War just getting under way, President Harry S. Truman authorizes $15 million in military aid to France in its struggle to retain a grip on its former colony of Vietnam. U.S. ofﬁcials believe involvement is necessary to counter the spread of communism because of Chinese and Soviet support for Ho Chi Minh’s government.

LAOS A pro-Western government offered little opposition to North Vietnamese supplies and troops moving south within its borders on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. South Vietnamese forces drove into Laos in 1971 to attack North Vietnamese bases, but the operation was a disaster. The loss of lives, equipment and morale left the South unable to launch another major offensive.

1954 France is defeated by Vietnamese forces on the battleﬁeld and agrees to exit. The embattled country is partitioned at the 17th Parallel with the idea that uniﬁcation would follow elections. But each side blames the other for failing to follow through with elections, and North and South Vietnam begin efforts to undermine each other.

DEMILITARIZED ZONE The narrow strip of land marked the border between North and South Vietnam. North Vietnamese troops were able to launch attacks across the DMZ, then pull back without fear of U.S. and South Vietnamese forces following.

THAILAND

1957

The nation’s pro-Western government allowed the U.S. Air Force to use bases within its borders to launch most of the raids on North Vietnam. Thai troops also saw action in Vietnam and Laos.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower pledges direct U.S. military aid and training for South Vietnam’s army, as communist guerrillas begin a campaign of bombings and assassinations. Americans’ role, mostly behind the scenes, continues to grow.

CAMBODIA Officially neutral at first, the country was used as a sanctuary for Viet Cong guerrillas. Political upheaval later led to a North Vietnamese invasion to assist Khmer Rouge guerrillas fighting the pro-West government. In 1970, South Vietnamese troops invaded, followed shortly by U.S. troops.

1959 On July 8, Army Maj. Dale Buis, a native of Pender, Neb., and a soldier from Texas are killed by gunﬁre 20 miles north of Saigon. Buis’ name for years was the ﬁrst of the 58,000-plus American dead listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Other names, which had been omitted earlier, since have been added on a panel to its left.

CHINA

Hanoi Haiphong Gulf of Tonkin LAOS

DEMILITARIZED ZONE

Khe Sanh THAILAND

Dong Ha Hue Da Nang My Lai

Chu Lai

Pleiku

Qui Nhon

CAMBODIA VIETNAM

Saigon

VIETNAM

South China Sea

Guam

GUAM The Strategic Air Command launched B-52 strikes from Andersen Air Force Base on the island, about 2,600 miles from Hanoi.

Reflections The World-Herald in 2012 solicited memories from veterans for use in the book “At War, At Home: The Cold War.” Vietnam vets provided these thoughts, four decades after their tours had ended:

1962 Viet Cong guerrillas capture and kill Staff Sgt. Wayne Marchand, who attended schools in Plattsmouth and Bellevue. He is one of the first members of the Army’s elite Special Forces, the Green Berets. A World-Herald editorial later notes about his death: “The guerrilla fighting in Vietnam is not on the scale of the conflict in Korea, but the stakes are as large, or perhaps larger. Having virtually lost Laos to the Communists, the United States appears to be trying desperately to hold the other flank of the Free World’s line in Southeast Asia. We say ‘appears to be trying’ because there is no official explanation of America’s grand strategy.”

1963 A military coup, with CIA involvement, removes corrupt South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem, who is killed. But the change does nothing to provide stability, and by the end of the year, more than 16,000 American military advisers are in the country.

1964 An American destroyer comes under ﬁre in August, under disputed circumstances, during a naval operation off the coast of North Vietnam. Congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, authorizing the use of force to prevent attacks on U.S. forces and allowing for rapid expansion of the war.

1965 Viet Cong assaults in February on Pleiku and Qui Nhon lead the United States to begin Operation Rolling Thunder, a bombing campaign against North Vietnam that lasts until 1968. The Strategic Air Command unleashes its B-52s from Andersen Air Force Base on Guam as part of the effort. The 1st Marine Division, the ﬁrst major ground combat unit to arrive, lands at the Da Nang air base a month later and is in heavy action by summer. The ﬁrst major battle of the war occurs in August when U.S. Marines at Chu Lai attack Viet Cong positions, killing nearly 700 enemy soldiers. By the end of 1965, more than 180,000 American troops are stationed in South Vietnam.

T H E A S S O C I AT E D P R E S S

Hovering U.S. Army helicopters pour machine-gun ﬁre into the tree line to cover the advance of South Vietnamese ground troops in a 1965 attack on a Viet Cong camp northwest of Saigon near the Cambodian border. The U.S. used the Huey helicopter for assaults, for moving troops and equipment and for evacuating casualties during the war. About 5,000 helicopter pilots and crew members died during the war.

1966 North Vietnamese troops cross the Demilitarized Zone in May and battle Marines at Dong Ha in the largest battle of the war at that point. SAC reports in June that its B-52s are dropping about 8,000 tons of bombs each month. By the end of the year, American forces in Vietnam number 385,000 men, with 60,000 sailors stationed offshore. More than 6,000 Americans are killed during the year, more than triple the year before.

1967 An estimated 400,000 march in April in New York City to protest the war. Appearing on Capitol Hill, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara testiﬁes that U.S. bombing raids against North Vietnam have not achieved their objectives. Years later, Leo Geyza of Omaha, a Marine lance corporal in Vietnam, described ﬁghting along the DMZ between North and South Vietnam: “We could not cross into North Vietnam or Laos, and it was frustrating for assault grunts to be defensive.”

1968 Viet Cong forces attack more than 100 cities and towns across Vietnam — including Gen. William Westmoreland’s U.S. command headquarters — on the Tet holiday in January. “We were on full alert for several days,” recalled Bill Gilmore of Omaha, an Air Force sergeant at the time. “This time frame was very scary, and I recall getting off duty and being assigned to a perimeter site with helmet, battle gear and M16.”

1970

1972

1973

Melvin Laird, newly elected President Richard Nixon’s secretary of defense, describes a policy of “Vietnamization” in congressional testimony in January. The objective is to shift the burden of ﬁghting to South Vietnam and lessen the combat role of U.S. forces.

South Vietnamese troops move into Cambodia in April, followed by three U.S. divisions two days later. Noel Knotts of Omaha, who served as an Army colonel, described a North Vietnamese ﬁeld headquarters that had been abandoned during the lightning strike into Cambodia: “They had left so rapidly that they drove away with ﬁeld telephone wires still attached to their vehicles. We found a few rice bowls with still-warm rice inside.”

Peace talks in Paris, which had begun in 1968, near an agreement in October, but South Vietnam objects to the terms. The North breaks away from the talks in early December, and Nixon orders Operation Linebacker II to begin Dec. 18. The bombing operation, directed from SAC headquarters at Offutt Air Force Base, targets transportation, power and defense facilities around the North Vietnamese capital of Hanoi and the port city Haiphong. Operation Linebacker II becomes the largest bombing raid since World War II by the time Nixon ends it Dec. 29. The next day, the North Vietnamese government requests a resumption of truce negotiations.

A cease-ﬁre is signed on Jan. 27, bringing an end to America’s combat role in Vietnam. The ﬁnal U.S. combat units exit South Vietnam in March, leaving behind only military advisers and Marines protecting U.S. installations. American prisoners of war return home.

In March, Nixon authorizes the covert Operation Breakfast bombing program to destroy enemy supply routes and camps in Cambodia. In April, U.S. combat deaths surpass the 33,742 killed in Korea from 1950 to 1953.

The city of Hue is overrun by North Vietnamese troops, resulting in the deaths of thousands of civilians, many of them executed before the city is recaptured a month later. U.S. forces end the siege of Khe Sanh in April after 77 days of ﬁghting, the war’s biggest battle at that point. While the Tet offensive is a military disaster for the Communists, it damages U.S. public support for the war. A month after the attacks, a Gallup survey indicates that 50 percent of Americans disapprove of President Lyndon Johnson’s handling of the conﬂict. Johnson announces that he won’t seek re-election. In March, American soldiers kill more than 300 unarmed civilians at the village of My Lai. News of the atrocities reaches the U.S. later, further damaging support for the war.

1969

Bill Gilmore, center, during a visit to a Montagnard village in the Central Highlands of Vietnam in 1968. The village was used for gathering and relaying enemy troop movements.

The incursion against Viet Cong bases is a military success but causes a diplomatic uproar and ignites student protests in the United States. Ohio National Guardsmen shoot and kill four students at Kent State University during a demonstration in May, and the escalating protests prompt a number of campuses to shut down. Hundreds of students occupy the Military and Naval Science Building at the University of NebraskaLincoln but leave the next day.

1975 North Vietnamese tanks roll into Saigon on April 29, marking the fall of South Vietnam. Darwin Judge, from Marshalltown, Iowa, and another Marine stationed in a guard post at Saigon’s Tan Son Nhut Airport are killed in a rocket attack. They are the last two American servicemen to die by hostile ﬁre in Vietnam. SOURCES: The World-Herald’s “At War, At Home: The Cold War,” Harry S. Truman Library and Museum, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library, Wikipedia, KoreanWar.com, PBS.org, U.S. Defense Department

“I had a lot of trouble accepting (and still haven’t totally) that the North took Saigon. For the young people out there, please respect your flag and honor the soldiers young and old who have sacrificed so much for you. Above all, don’t waste the gift of life.”

“I encountered the best of times and the worst of times, and everything in between. Most of all, I experienced the true meaning behind the phrase, ‘brothers in war.’” Daniel Joseph Kubat, served with the U.S. Army

Monte F. Marten (bottom row, third from left), served with the U.S. Army “I met some of the finest ‘brothers’ while in country. I still am in contact with many of them. The heroes are the ones who died in Vietnam.” Thomas J. Shimerdla, served with the U.S. Navy Seabees “My best memories are of all the friends I made in Vietnam, and I still keep in touch with some of them after all these years. Plus the good feelings I have of being able to help those patients there. I especially remember the flight home on a commercial flight back to the good ol’ USA.”

“If only the politicians were veterans of war, maybe there would be less war. I am happy that today the citizens of this country honor the military and recognize their sacrifices.”

Louie Kazor, served in a U.S. Army ﬁeld hospital

Dennis L. Swedberg, served with the U.S. Army

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News Page Design Winner Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Tammy Yttri Judges’ Comments: In a category stuffed with conventional thinking, it’s a pleasure to see this entry (and the secondplace entry as well) that shows unconventional, out-of-the-box approaches. Leading page one with a giant bar chart or an enormous list of crimes committed by one family? That’s different. That’s awesome. This was an awesome entry. OCTOBER 6, 2013 SUNRISE EDITION

PENSION $ SALARY $

2013 THROUGH AUGUST

DECEMBER 15, 2013 • SUNRISE EDITION

EXTRA CASH FOR RETIREES

65 Felonies

35 Assaults

14 Weapons violations

* Retired city planner Steve Jensen would return to help manage the department under a proposed contract. Shown here are his pension and proposed pay, through August, if he had been under contract this year. Figures assume a full payout in equal monthly installments. Source: City of Omaha

$142,937 $120,900

Abdullah, NU come up big What struggles? Huskers easily defeat Fighting Illini. Postgame & Omaha.com

$2,974,773.58

$1,387,659.94

I’ll TAKE 2 PAYCHECKS, PLEASE

ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD

Demand for after-hours care leads to clinics boom

More than 100 City of Omaha employees return to their jobs while drawing pensions

Urgent care centers are likely to see even more traffic under Obamacare. BY RICK RUGGLES WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Urgent care centers are popping up in greater numbers here and nationwide, driven by demand for after-hours access to medical care. The centers reflect a push toward better customer service in health care. A working parent who picks up a sick child at day care doesn’t have to wait for an appointment. A weekend athlete who twists an ankle in a pickup basketball game can go to the neighborhood urgent care center for treatment. Urgent care centers also fit with the push to reduce health care costs and insure more people. The centers provide an alternative to emergency room care, which generally costs patients twice as much or more. Millions more Americans will obtain health insurance because of the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, and some of the newly insured can be expected to use that coverage to have colds, the flu and cuts treated at urgent care centers. Family physicians generally See Urgent care: Page 5

INSIDE

From depths of despair, he clawed his way back

As Wayne cleans up, town grateful it wasn’t worse A months-long recovery is likely, but tornado spares much of the Nebraska college town. Midlands

He needs to go to the corner of 222nd and West Center. He needs to go to the dark and wet and empty field, to the site of the accident, to the spot where his life came apart. He needs to go. Now. So they drive there on a rainy night in May 2004. Ryan Wilkins slams his car door and staggers into the field. That’s when he hears the buzzing. That’s when he wonders, for the first time: What is that sound? Every day until this night, Wilkins has lived a life that looked like something very close to perfect. Homecoming king and valedictorian and student class president at Millard West High School.

Omaha weather Today’s forecast High: 55 Low: 44 Full report: Page 8B

Index Around and About.... 6E Celebrations...........11A Job listings..........5D-9D Obituaries........... 4&5B Opinion ............... 6&7B Puzzles...................... 5E TV .............................. 8E 120 PAGES

MATTHEW HANSEN

COLUMNIST A wildly popular fraternity boy and a 4.0 student and the youngest-ever student body president at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Every day after this one will be marked by every manner of tragedy: addiction and abuse. Bulimia and brain trauma. Divorce. Death. The grief will crash in tidal waves, and Ryan will be ﬂung See Hansen: Page 2

RYA N S O D E R L I N / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

The future has begun to look bright again for Ryan Wilkins, a senior associate at the Baird Holm law ﬁrm in the Woodmen Tower in downtown Omaha. The one-time college golden boy has published a book detailing how his family endured a series of tragedies starting in 2004 — and overcame them.

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NU’s midseason MVPs Do you agree with our football writers’ assessments? Sports

OCTOBER 20, 2013 • SUNRISE EDITION

LOCALLY OWNED SINCE 1885

MATTHEW HANSEN

ONE FAMILY The extended family of Nikko Jenkins has wreaked havoc on Omaha for generations

COLUMNIST

Full steam ahead into this version of the future

ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD: Nikko Jenkins is charged with killing four people in Omaha this year, but criminal activity in his family began decades ago. What’s listed above are the 633 criminal convictions against 38 members of the Levering family since 1979. An investigation into the family’s history revealed patterns of violence, child neglect and drug and alcohol abuse. The behavior has escalated from generation to generation, making the Leverings one of the city’s most notorious crime families.

A decade from now, we will use 3-D printers to make our shirts. In two decades, our brains will be directly plugged into the Internet. In thirty years, a 100th birthday won’t be a big deal because 100 won’t be old. Oh, and we’re closing in on an era when computers will become smarter than humans — so much smarter than us, in every way, that the human brain will have to join up with the computer brain because it can no longer beat it. That era is, give or take, 35 years from now, says the man predicting the future. “Thinking will be a hybrid of bio and non-bio intelligence,” he says. “We will be a hybrid.” This man is not standing outside the CenturyLink Center wearing a tattered trench coat and shaking a cardboard sign warning of the coming apocalypse. This man is standing inside the CenturyLink Center, wearing a fancy hands-free microphone and preparing to speak to hun-

‘WE’VE LOST SO MUCH’ Survivors of the slain Kellie family oppose ever freeing Simants, saying he shouldn’t have a chance to do to others what he has done to them.

Track the Levering family tree to Nikko Jenkins, Pages 8A & 9A

BY JOE DUGGAN • ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD

Investigative report by World-Herald staff writers Roseann Moring and Alissa Skelton begins on Page 8A

Omaha weather

High: 30 Low: 18 Full report: Page 10B

Index Around and About.............3E Celebrations................... 10E Jobs Listings..................5-8D Obituaries......................... 7B Opinion ........................8&9B TV .................................... 12E 102 PAGES

10 LEFT!

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5 years after transplant, she now has donor’s heart Macy Stevens, a 15-year-old Marian High sophomore, was reluctant to know much about the donor of her heart. Grateful to him and his family, deﬁnitely. But for ﬁve years since the transplant, it has bothered her that she has lived and he did not. As she explained: “I always felt, like — really, kind of guilty.” But then came a transformative journey. Macy would meet

MICHAEL KELLY

COLUMNIST her donor’s mother, who showered her with love — and in the presence of a church congregation asked Macy for one simple favor, one last personal connec-

tion to the woman’s beloved son. And that made all the difference. Macy’s parents, Jordan and Karen Stevens, had announced this fall that the family would take a pre-Thanksgiving trip, a 16-hour drive. They would meet the mother of the boy whose heart beats in Macy’s chest. Macy didn’t want to go. She asked her mom and dad why they would schedule someSee Kelly: Page 2

‘Like’ our all-statebook for football and volleyball

A new ‘cornerstone’ for Aksarben Village

Goodfellows

The places that time forgot, in photographs

Members of The WorldHerald’s all-state teams in football and volleyball players have their own social network. Sports, Pages 7C-12C To make donations: World-Herald Goodfellows 1314 Douglas St., Suite 125 Omaha, NE 68102 or at Omaha.com Donations to date: $278,835.08 Story in Midlands

The $50 million Waitt Plaza, scheduled to be completed early in 2016, adds to the vision that developers have for the property. Money

While others may drive past broken-down old homes and barns, photographer Nancy Warner stops and brings history to life. Living

UTHERLAND, Neb. — Pamela Stryker has kept one vivid memory from the day she buried her children 38 years ago. Before opening the Sutherland High School auditorium to nearly 1,000 mourners, the family said goodbye to the six loved ones shot to death Oct. 18, 1975, by a next-door neighbor. After the caskets were opened, Stryker kissed her ex-husband, David Kellie, on the forehead. Then she kissed her 7-year-old daughter, Deanna, and her 5-year-old son, Danny.“I told them I loved them and I would see them again someday,” she said last week through tears, telling her story publicly for the ﬁrst time. She remembers nothing else of the funerals. She stepped into a fog that day, one she wouldn’t emerge from for years. Until recently, the mass murder in Sutherland represented a sad but almost forgotten chapter of Nebraska history. The case made front-page news again because the man responsible, Erwin Charles Simants, now 68, is awaiting a legal decision that could free him from a state mental hospital. But some had their lives forever altered by Simants on that pitch-black October night so long ago. For them, the case never faded far into the background. One is Stryker, the mother of two of the three children who were slain that night. Another is Audrey Brown, a blood relative to all six victims, who included her parents. A third is Terry Livengood, a former State Patrol trooper who spent hours collecting evidence from the crime scene. A mother, a daughter, an investigator. One lives in fear, another with anger, See Simants: Page 10

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0 DOWN $169

BY JOSEPH MORTON WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

HENRY KELLIE

MARIE KELLIE

DAVID KELLIE

FLORENCE KELLIE

DEANNA KELLIE

DANIEL KELLIE

Age: 66 Patriarch of the Kellie family Hard-working, soft-hearted

Age: 57 Henry’s wife, mother of David Kellie and Audrey Brown Loved to laugh and cook

Age: 32 Son of Henry and Marie, recently divorced from Pamela Stryker Dedicated father and son

Age: 10 Raised by her grandparents, Henry and Marie, after her mother’s death Quiet, good student

Age: 7 Daughter of David Kellie and Pamela Stryker Chatty and outgoing

Age: 5 Son of David Kellie and Pamela Stryker 100 percent daddy’s boy

TIMELINE: Legal matters in Simants’ case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Page 10A BROTHER: Wesley Simants says if his brother is sane, he ought to be released. Page 11A

Ak-Sar-Ben crowns its king and queen

Outlet mall designers take on ghosts of past

Winning photos revealed for ‘Focus on Nebraska’

The new monarchs followed the “Golden Road to Quivira” during the annual coronation and ball Saturday. Living

As the opening nears for the revamped Nebraska Crossing outlet mall, how will this differ from the ﬁrst attempt? Money

Check out the winners in our online photography contest — a tribute to Nebraska football fans. Midlands, Page 5B

Omaha weather

Index

Today’s forecast High: 64 Low: 34

Around and About....... 5E Celebrations..............10E Job listings.............5D-8D Obituaries.............. 6&7B Opinion .................. 8&9B Puzzles......................... 7E TV ...............................12E

Full weather report: Page 10B

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WASHINGTON — A deeply acrimonious standoff over the federal budget ended last week when Republicans and Democrats came together — and agreed to ﬁght it all out again in three months. Government workers are back on the job, and the nation’s debt ceiling has been raised. But only for now. Last week’s agreement sets up new deadlines in January and early February. As the parties confront their differing visions for the country’s future, the same cast of characters is running things. It remains to be seen how hard Republicans will continue pushing to derail Obamacare. Democrats have successfully resisted attempts to radically change the Affordable Care Act. Expect Democrats to work for elimination of the automatic spending cuts known as sequestration, while Republicans will try to focus on ways to further cut spending.

RYA N S O D E R L I N / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

Pamela Stryker recalls how Erwin Charles Simants in 1975 killed her daughter Deanna Kellie, 7, her son, Daniel Kellie, 5, her ex-husband David Kellie, and three other Kellie family members in Sutherland, Neb.

ON PAGES 12A AND 13A

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Standoff is over, but for how long?

We recap the roles policymakers, including those from Nebraska and Iowa, did and/or will play.

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Drug- and alcohol-related offenses

Burglary • Burglary • Burglary • Burglary • Escape from prison • Theft by receiving stolen item more than $1,000 • Assault and battery • Theft by unlawful taking $300-$1,000 • Unauthorized use of propelled vehicle • Giving police false information • Theft by unlawful taking • Giving police false information • Theft by receiving stolen items more than $1,000 • Theft by unlawful taking more than $1,000 • Giving police false information • Marijuana possession • Theft by receiving stolen item more than $1,000 • Giving police false information • Marijuana possession • Theft by receiving stolen item more than $200-$300 • Burglary • Giving police false information • Resisting arrest • Receiving unlawful taken property • Dog running at large • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Disorderly conduct • Giving police false information • Obstruct law enforcement • Obstruct law enforcement • Possessing drug paraphernalia • Giving police false information • Giving police false information • Obstruct law enforcement • Giving police false information • Giving police false information • Obstruct law enforcement • Driving without a license • First-degree assault • Use of a weapon to commit a felony • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Assault and battery • Driving without a license • Minor in possession of alcohol • Carrying a concealed gun • Driving without a license • Possessing drug paraphernalia • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Marijuana possession 1 ounce to 1 pound • Possessing drug paraphernalia • Possession with intent to deliver • Theft by unlawful taking • Theft by unlawful taking • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Marijuana possession • Possession with intent to deliver • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting less than $100 • Theft by shoplifting less than $100 • Driving without a license • Drinking in public • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Driving under the influence • Obstruct law enforcement • Driving without a license • Disorderly conduct • Assault and battery • Obstruct law enforcement • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Disorderly conduct • Giving police false information • Disorderly conduct • Drinking in public • Driving without a license • Obstruct law enforcement • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting $200 or less • Unauthorized use of propelled vehicle • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 • Remain after closing • Possessing drug paraphernalia • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting $200 or less • Federal motor carrier safety violation • Federal motor carrier safety violation • Minor in possession of alcohol • Driving under the influence • Child neglect • Disorderly conduct • Second-degree forgery $76-$299 • Third-degree assault • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Second-degree forgery more than $300 • Driving under the influence • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Possessing drug paraphernalia • Obstruct law enforcement • Failure to appear in court • Operating a vehicle to avoid arrest • Possessing an unregistered firearm • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Gambling • Marijuana possession • Driving without a license • Manufacturing/distributing/delivery or possession with intent • Failure to appear in court • Assault and battery • Disorderly conduct • Marijuana possession • Theft by shoplifting less than $50 • Possessing drug paraphernalia • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting less than $100 • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting less than $100 • Disorderly conduct • Assault and battery • Disorderly conduct • Obstruct law enforcement • Possessing drug paraphernalia • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting $500-$1,500 • Theft by shoplifting $500-$1,500 • Failure to appear in court • Obstruct law enforcement • Giving police false information • Theft by shoplifting $500-$1,500 • Driving without a license • Drinking in public • Second-degree forgery $300 or more • Disorderly conduct • Child abuse by negligence with no injury • Child abuse by negligence with no injury • Child abuse by negligence with no injury • Child abuse by negligence with no injury • Child abuse by negligence with no injury • Driving without a license • Theft by unlawful taking less than $100 • Obstruct law enforcement • Seconddegree forgery $75 or less • Giving police false information • Open container • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Theft by shoplifting less than $50 • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Driving under the influence • Open container • Second-degree forgery less than $75 • Open container • Failure to appear in court • Assault and battery • Disorderly conduct • Assault and battery • Disorderly conduct • Driving without a license • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Request to leave • Driving without a license • Third-degree assault • Driving without a license • Driving under the influence • Driving under the influence • Driving under the influence • Theft by shoplifting less than $50 • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 third offense • Disorderly conduct • Theft by unlawful taking $201-$499 • Marijuana possession • Driving without a license • Operating a vehicle to avoid arrest • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Third-degree assault • Damage to property less than $100 • Escape from prison • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Attempted delivery of a controlled substance • Failure to appear in court • Failure to appear in court • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 third offense • Marijuana possession • Parking violation • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Operating a vehicle to avoid arrest • Receiving unlawful taken property less than $100 • Theft by unlawful taking less than $100 • Driving without a license • Damage to property less than $100 • Theft by unlawful taking less than $100 • Assault and battery • Possessing a controlled substance • Open container • Trespassing • Driving without a license • Theft by unlawful taking less than $100 • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting less than $50 • Disorderly conduct • Obstruct law enforcement • Propel projectile with explosive device • Assault and battery • Third-degree assault • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 third offense • Driving without a license • Damage to property less than $100 • Trespassing • Theft by unlawful taking less than $100 • Assault and battery • Disorderly conduct • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Obstruct law enforcement • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 • Driving without a license • Receiving unlawful taken property less than $100 • Failure to appear in court • Marijuana possession • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Leaving the scene of an accident • Receiving unlawful taken property less than $100 • Driving without a license • Trespassing • Trespassing • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Failure to appear in court • Possessing a forged instrument • Possessing a forged instrument • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Trespassing • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Possessing drug paraphernalia • Driving without a license • Trespassing • Carrying a concealed weapon, not gun • Obstruct law enforcement • Assault and battery • Disorderly conduct • Disorderly conduct • Driving without a license • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Trespassing • Assault and battery • Receiving unlawful taken property less than $100 • Failure to appear in court • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 third offense • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Failure to appear in court • Marijuana possession • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Failure to appear in court • Assault and battery • Theft by receiving stolen items $500-$1,500 • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Driving under the influence • Assault and battery • Trespassing • Damage to property less than $100 • Disorderly conduct • Obstruct law enforcement • Disorderly conduct • Resisting arrest • Driving under the influence • Giving police false information • Obstruct law enforcement • Violating a protection order • Theft by deception more than $1,500 • Violating a protection order • Obstruct law enforcement • Driving without a license • Third-degree assault • Receiving unlawful taken property less than $100 • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Driving under the influence • Theft by shoplifting more than $1,500 • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Second-degree forgery $301-$999 • Assault and battery • Theft by shoplifting less than $50 • Driving without a license • Obstruct law enforcement • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Marijuana possession • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Accessory to a felony • Attempted robbery • Attempted robbery • Attempted theft by unlawful taking more than $1,500 • Open container • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Giving police false information • Failure to appear in court • Criminal mischief less than $200 • Marijuana possession • Operating a vehicle to avoid arrest • Theft by shoplifting less than $50 • Open container • Driving without a license • Driving under the influence • Marijuana possession • Leaving the scene of an accident • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting less than $50 • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Failure to appear in court • Trespassing • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving under the influence • Theft by shoplifting $200 or less • Trespassing • Theft by shoplifting less than $50 • Driving without a license • Second-degree assault • Possessing a stolen firearm • Obstruct law enforcement • Failure to appear in court • Giving police false information • Driving under the influence • Carrying a concealed gun • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Issuing a bad check less than $100 • Driving without a license • Robbery • Theft by shoplifting less than $50 • Theft by receiving stolen items more than $1,500 • Obstruct law enforcement • Driving without a license • Operating a vehicle to avoid arrest • Theft by shoplifting less than $50 • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Minor in possession of alcohol • Open container • Driving under the influence • Assault and battery • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Assault by an inmate • Driving without a license • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Issuing a bad check less than $100 • Open container • Open container • Open container • Driving without a license • Third-degree assault of an officer • Marijuana possession 1 ounce or less • Driving under the influence • Open container • Carrying a concealed weapon, not gun • Marijuana possession • Open container • Open container • Giving police false information • Operating a vehicle to avoid arrest • Failure to appear in court • Violating a protection order • Driving without a license • Disorderly conduct • Obstruct law enforcement • Theft by unlawful taking less than $100 • Disorderly conduct • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Giving police false information • Open container • Open container • Marijuana possession • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Open container • Burglary • Theft by shoplifting $200 or less • Driving under the influence • Driving without a license • Assault by an inmate, no weapon • Minor in possession of alcohol • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 third offense • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Trespassing • Marijuana possession • Driving without a license • Third-degree domestic assault • Open container • Open container • Open container • Open container • Failure to appear in court • Marijuana possession • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Assault and battery • Violating a protection order • Possessing/distributing less than 10 grams of crack • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Damage to property less than $100 • Driving under the influence • Littering • Open container • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 third offense • Trespassing • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Minor in possession of alcohol • Carrying a concealed gun • Open container • Driving without a license • Resisting arrest • Harboring a child • Harboring a child • Disorderly conduct • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Disturbing the peace • Giving police false information • Open container • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Failure to appear in court • Open container • Possessing a forged instrument less than $300 • Open container • Disorderly conduct • Open container • Driving without a license • Possessing a controlled substance • Failure to appear in court • Failure to appear in court • Driving under the influence • Minor in possession of alcohol • Open container • Failure to appear in court • Failure to appear in court • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 second offense • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Obstruct law enforcement • Theft by shoplifting $200 or less • Theft by shoplifting $200 or less • Trespassing • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Attempt to commit a felony • Disorderly conduct • Disorderly conduct • Driving under the influence • Second-degree forgery less than $300 • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 • Assault and battery • Theft by unlawful taking • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 third offense • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 third offense • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Open container • Assault and battery • Assault and battery • Giving police false information • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Theft by unlawful taking • Theft by unlawful taking $200 or less • Trespassing • Theft by shoplifting $200 or less • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 • Theft by unlawful taking • Theft by receiving stolen items more than $1,500 • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 third offense • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Failure to appear in court • Open container • Giving police false information • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Possessing a controlled substance • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 • Open container • Open container • Open container • Open container • Open container • Disturbing the peace • Open container • Open container • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting $500-1,500 • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 • Driving without a license • Theft by shoplifting less than $200 • Open container • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Possessing a fake insurance policy • Littering • Open container • Disorderly conduct • Obstruct law enforcement • Failure to appear in court • Unauthorized use of a financial transaction device $500-1,499 • Unauthorized use of a financial transaction device $500-1,499 • Driving without a license • Failure to appear in court • Open container • Driving without a license • Negligent child abuse • Theft by shoplifting $200 or less • Failure to appear in court • Driving without a license • Giving police false information • Giving police false information • Driving without a license • Third-degree domestic assault • Driving without a license • Driving without a license • Unauthorized use of propelled vehicle • Third-degree domestic assault, first offense • Third-degree assault of an officer • Second-degree assault • Failure to appear in court • Giving police false information • Felon possessing ammunition • Receiving stolen firearms • Robbery • Robbery • Theft by shoplifting $200 or less • Unlawful transport of firearms • Unlawful transport of firearms • Use of a gun to commit a felony

1979 THROUGH 2013

112

FIRST OF A THREE-PART SERIES: NIKKO JENKINS’ FAMILY

$66,667* $75,058 $36,263 $88,034 $36,168 $82,751 $27,265 $79,001 $22,416 $78,289 $34,125 $78,105 $15,998 $73,391 $11,460 $72,978 $22,512 $71,530 $22,416 $69,521 $13,140 $69,463 SPECIAL POLICE, FIRE PROGRAM $36,332 $68,172 An additional 28 people are working $22,104 $66,178 past retirement under a program created $17,333 $64,036 by the latest police and fire contracts. They will receive their deferred pension $22,404 $63,424 payouts in a lump sum when they leave $18,660 $63,067 city employment. Page 8A $23,712 $61,532 $20,394 $61,116 $2,952 $60,309 PENSION PAYOUTS TO DOUBLE DIPPERS $9,551 $60,209 (Jan. 1 through Aug. 31, 2013) $21,384 $58,781 $13,256 $58,072 $13,032 $56,709 $32,589 $56,320 $21,636 $55,294 $21,394 $55,210 SALARY PAYOUTS TO DOUBLE DIPPERS $8,056 $55,206 (Jan. 1 through Aug. 31, 2013) $13,136 $52,859 $18,005 $52,708 $11,988 $51,281 $22,896 $51,274 $12,089 $50,950 $19,057 $49,005 $13,763 $48,549 $11,531 $48,505 $20,483 $47,698 $9,402 $47,146 $19,066 $45,640 $14,013 $45,471 $13,823 $45,224 $19,006 $45,192 $11,666 $44,399 $15,415 $43,952 $16,821 $43,173 $11,991 $42,931 $7,302 $42,903 $10,786 $42,295 $11,138 $41,803 $20,844 $40,711 $13,051 $40,586 $17,496 $40,487 BY MAT T W YNN AND CODY WINCHESTER $4,310 $40,181 ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD $16,359 $40,123 f Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert has her way, former Planning Di$5,103 $38,666 rector Steve Jensen will be back at City Hall, helping to run the $9,180 $38,226 department he retired from four years ago. He’ll work on con$10,845 $37,584 tract, receiving up to $100,000 a year assisting the new planning $15,805 $35,254 director, James Thele. That would come in addition to his annual city pension of $114,405. Jensen, who is 61, would become the $8,238 $34,835 most lucrative example of a surprisingly common City Hall practice: $12,675 $34,640 double dipping. $18,006 $34,551 More than 100 retirees besides Jensen have taken second jobs with $13,791 $34,343 the city after retiring — a practice prohibited by law until 1994. Now double dipping is seen as a way for city officials to save money $8,532 $34,167 in their annual operating budget, even though the practice also aggra$13,016 $34,134 vates long-term funding problems in its employee pension system. $13,857 $34,038 That’s one of the reasons Stothert wants to wean the city off double $6,825 $34,011 dipping, despite her plans with Jensen. “We should do as much as we can to phase out rehiring people that $6,426 $33,716 have already retired,” she said. $11,495 $33,691 The practice of double dipping is an outgrowth of a city pension sys$6,183 $33,442 tem that allows Omaha employees to retire 15 to 20 years earlier than most folks in the private sector. $9,339 $32,917 Civilian employees in Omaha can retire as early as 50 with a pension $13,146 $32,853 based on years of service. Police officers and firefighters can retire as $9,356 $32,072 young as 45 with a pension worth up to 75 percent of salary. $11,157 $31,663 The average age of the 52 civilian pensioners who are double dipping is 57; for police, the average age is about 51. $14,654 $31,454 Though city code used to prohibit retirees from returning to city $11,553 $30,974 jobs, now it’s allowed in most cases, and even encouraged in some. $9,319 $30,353 One example of how much the policy has changed is the Deferred $13,661 $30,222 Retirement Option Program (DROP), which was added to the most $15,160 $30,154 See Double dippers: Page 8

96 PAGES

633 CRIMES

Currently 101 retired City of Omaha employees collect pensions plus part-time pay from the city. Here are the pension and paycheck amounts, through August, for the 78 people who made more than $1,000 in part-time pay and took home more than $30,000 total. For a list of all 101 double dippers, Page 8A.

$76,270 $45,842 $51,771 $46,583 $51,736 $55,873 $43,980 $57,393 $61,518 $49,018 $47,105 $56,323 $31,840 $44,073 $46,703 $41,020 $44,407 $37,820 $40,722 $57,357 $50,658 $37,397 $44,816 $43,677 $23,731 $33,658 $33,816 $47,149 $39,726 $34,703 $39,293 $28,378 $38,861 $29,948 $34,787 $36,974 $27,215 $37,744 $26,574 $31,458 $31,401 $26,187 $32,734 $28,537 $26,352 $30,939 $35,601 $31,509 $30,666 $19,867 $27,535 $22,991 $35,871 $23,764 $33,534 $29,046 $26,739 $19,448 $26,596 $21,965 $16,545 $20,552 $25,635 $21,118 $20,181 $27,186 $27,290 $22,196 $27,259 $23,578 $19,707 $22,717 $20,506 $16,799 $19,421 $21,034 $16,561 $14,994

News Page Design Finalists Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Brady Jones

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Tim Parks

OMAHA.COM BREAKING NEWS FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013 • METROPOLITAN EDITION

Publication: The Oklahoman By: Felicia Murray

METROPOLITAN EDITION

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2013

LOCALLY OWNED SINCE 1885

HOMICIDAL Nikko Jenkins ‘consistently expressed’ homicidal ideas to caseworker DANGEROUS Told prison staff he was ‘dangerous’ and ‘not very stable’ SAVAGE Wrote of his ‘animalistic savage brutality’ in letter to judge

WHY WAS HE LET OUT EARLY?

Police chief says Crime Stoppers tips linked the 4 deaths and led them to Nikko Jenkins. WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS

Ballistics had already linked two South Omaha homicides to a north Omaha shooting death when Andrea Kruger died in west Omaha. Then the Crime Stoppers tips started rolling in, said Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer. The tips led police to link the deaths of Jorge Cajiga-Ruiz and Juan Uribe-Pena on Aug. 11; Curtis Bradford on Aug. 19; and Kruger on Aug. 21. And it led them to a suspect: Nikko A. Jenkins, 26, a robber who was released from a 10½-year prison stint in late July. “Crime Stoppers played an instrumental role in solving these four homicides, and I suspect there will be Crime Stopper payouts,” Schmaderer said. Jenkins has been in jail since last week on an unrelated charge. He has since made incriminating statements about the shooting spree, Schmaderer said. He was to appear in court early this afternoon to be formally charged with four counts of ﬁrst-degree murder, weapon use and being a felon in possession of a ﬁrearm. Anthony Wells, a 30-year-old ex-convict whose prison stint overlapped Jenkins’ time in the penitentiary, also was set to appear before a Douglas County judge today. He was arrested on suspicion of being a felon in possession of a weapon. Police list him among the six suspects being held in connection with the homicide investigations, but wouldn’t say how he might be tied to them.

CONTROVERSIAL ARREST CAUGHT ON VIDEO

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS

Four Omaha police officers — including a sergeant — have been fired following the controversial arrest of three brothers in north Omaha. Three additional officers have been placed on administrative leave, Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said Friday. An eighth officer has been reassigned from his or her normal duties. “I also knew regardless of my findings, public trust has been damaged, and I needed to take steps to restore that public trust,” the chief said Friday. “Many of the police actions that took place that day are in violation of our policies and do not represent

OWH IDENTIFIES THE OFFICERS The four fired Sgt. Aaron P. Von Behren Officer Bradley D. Canterbury Officer James T. Kinsella Officer Justin A. Reeve

how I want our officers to carry themselves.” The World-Herald has learned the officers who were fired are Sgt. Aaron P. Von Behren and Officers Bradley D. Canterbury, James T. Kinsella and Justin A. Reeve. Still under investigation are Officers Dyea L. Rowland, Matthew C. Worm, John D. Payne and Joseph A. Koenig. Mayor Jim Suttle and the head of the city’s police union described Schmaderer’s actions as “unprecedented.” The fallout for officers involved in the March 21 arrests might not be over. The Douglas County Attorney’s Office is reviewing the case to determine whether officers See Firings: Page 2

The four still under investigation Officer Dyea L. Rowland Officer Matthew C. Worm Officer John D. Payne Officer Joseph A. Koenig

MARCH 21: A CLOSER LOOK A timeline of events at 33rd and Seward Streets as recorded from 911 radio communications. Page 2A

VIDEO ON OMAHA.COM CHIEF Watch Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer’s press conference. A LY S S A S C H U K A R / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer, in announcing his disciplinary decisions Friday, said: “I needed to take steps to restore that public trust.”

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS

AND

Police chief fires four officers BY JUAN PEREZ JR. AND MAGGIE O’BRIEN

BY TODD COOPER AND MATT WYNN

BY MAGGIE O’BRIEN ROSEANN MORING

A frame grab from a YouTube video shows the beginning of a March 21 incident that eventually drew 23 officers, including two command officers, to 33rd and Seward Streets. Four officers have been fired, three placed on administrative leave, and one reassigned. Outside investigators have joined the Douglas County Attorney’s Office probe. “We’re going to get to the bottom of this,” Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine said Friday.

Move ‘to restore public trust’ comes as prosecutor brings in state help for criminal probe

ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD

WHY JENKINS GOT OUT OF PRISON WHEN HE DID JENKINS’ MINIMAL LOSS OF GOOD TIME Critics say the Nikko A. Jenkins case shows how difﬁcult it is for prisoners to lose “good time” credit. From 2005 to 2011, prison records show, Jenkins was written up at least eight times, including twice for assault, but he lost only about 17½ months of good time.

CONFUSION OVER WHETHER HE SHOULD GET JAIL CREDIT

FACTOR 1: BAD PRISON BEHAVIOR

Had Jenkins not received 513 days of credit when he was sentenced for assaulting a prison guard, he probably would not have been released until late 2014.

See Tips: Page 2

MARCH 21 Watch video of last month’s incident that led to the internal investigation.

MORE ON PAGE 2A

A HABITUAL CRIMINAL CHARGE DROPPED

JUDGE: A look into the confusion over whether Jenkins should receive credit for time served in Douglas County.

Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine said a habitual criminal charge usually requires a defendant to have gone in and out of prison twice before committing a third crime. “There’s a question of whether he would have qualiﬁed,” Kleine said. “We’re looking at that.”

TIMELINE: Track the story’s events from Jenkins’ release from prison to his arrest for murder.

THE VICTIMS

ON OMAHA.COM

Research gets boost from fees in health care law ■ An Iowa prof is the

first in the Midlands to tap new funding. BY RICK RUGGLES WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

A University of Iowa pharmacy professor will launch a dementia study with support from a new federal agency created by the Affordable Care Act. Ryan Carnahan will test whether activities and more thorough medical workups for dementia

100 Bancroft Street

ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD patients might reduce the use of anti-psychotic drugs, which run the risk of side effects such as strokes, movement problems and lethargy. “I think there’s not a lot of expertise in the non-drug strategies,” he said. Carnahan was the only researcher in Iowa or Nebraska with a project funded in the ﬁrst round of money granted by a new agency, the Patient-Centered See Research: Page 2

INSIDE

Omaha weather

Talkin’ ’bout my generation: Don’t pigeonhole us, please

Low tonight: 48 High Saturday: 68 Full report: Page 8B

The Millennial Generation is a giant collection of pampered, self-absorbed, fake-glasseswearing, faux-idealists who think they deserve a gold star every time they muddle through an eight-hour workday and then pedal their vintage bikes to a suitably hip bar, where they stare at their Chinese-made iPhones, make suitably ironic statements about changing the world, plan their startup companies and then Instagram their craft beer. Which would be ﬁne with me — I’m all for gross generalizations — until I realize something shocking.

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Matthew Hansen

columnist

I’m a Millennial. Thirty-two, as it turns out, is right on the oldest edge of the group that the New York Times has labeled “Generation Why Bother.” That was way nicer than CBS’s “60 Minutes,” which See Hansen: Page 2

April 6 and 7 | 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Celebrate the birthday of the founder of The LEGO® Group! Regular garden admission applies. Cake available while supplies last.

UPDATES: Follow @OWHnews on Twitter for details from court appearances and other developments. VIDEO: See law enforcement ofﬁcials announce Jenkins’ arrest at Wednesday’s press conference.

JORGE CAJIGA-RUIZ Aug. 11

CURTIS BRADFORD Aug. 19

he idea that Nikko Jenkins might be a danger was as plain to see as the tattoos on his face. In his 10½ years in prison, he committed at least three assaults — including an attack on a prison guard — that led to two felony convictions. He tried to escape. He made a knife out of a toilet brush. He twice was written up for “tattoo activity.” He proclaimed the prison yard his gang turf — and incited a riot. He repeatedly was placed in the “hole” — solitary confinement — and he repeatedly told corrections officers he was a danger. “Jenkins has consistently expressed having ongoing homicidal ideations,” his Tecumseh State Prison case manager wrote in an October 2011 report. Yet in the end, Jenkins got out in 10½ years — exactly half of the 21-year sentence he was given for two carjackings he committed when he was 15 and two assaults that occurred while he was an inmate. And now, authorities allege, Jenkins made good on those homicidal ideas. Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine charged Jenkins on Wednesday with four counts of first-degree murder in the Aug. 21 slaying of Andrea Kruger, the Aug. 19 slaying of Curtis Bradford and the Aug. 11 slayings of Jorge Cajiga-Ruiz and Juan Uribe-Pena. Jenkins — who had a history of threats, claims of mental illness and erratic behavior — was released from prison July 30. Court and corrections records obtained exclusively by The World-Herald show three factors could have — some say should have — kept Jenkins behind bars well past July 30.

ANDREA KRUGER Aug. 21

Except in certain cases such as first-degree murder and gun crimes, Nebraska law dictates that every inmate receive one day credit for one day served. In effect, the law calls for inmates to serve half of the sentence a judge announces — unless they lose good-time credits because of bad behavior. Critics say the Jenkins case shows how difficult it is for prisoners to lose good-time credit. From 2005 to 2011, prison records show, Jenkins was written up at least eight times for refusing to submit to a search, aggravated assault on a corrections officer, three episodes of using threatening language, two episodes of “tattoo activities” and creating a weapSee Jenkins: Page 2

*Photo of Juan Uribe-Pena, who also died Aug. 11, unavailable

Behind handshake, a tussle over Syria Obama, Putin and other leaders start an economic summit that’s likely to be mired in war differences. ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — The American and Russian presidents — said to have the worst personal relationship between a Washington and a Moscow leader since Cold War times — shook hands, smiled and made small talk about the scenery Thursday, a public exchange of pleasantries that belied rising tensions over the Syrian civil war. “We’ve kind of hit a wall,” President Barack Obama said of U.S.-Russia ties the day before he

Russian President Vladimir Putin greets President Barack Obama — brieﬂy — as world leaders gathered Thursday in St. Petersburg for an economic summit. Tensions over Syria’s war were likely to eclipse the usual economic disputes.

arrived here for an international economic summit. He’d already canceled earlier plans for a one-on-one chat with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. The formal greeting outside Constantine Palace was the only planned appearance for the two men together. Parsing Obama-Putin body language has become something of a geopolitical parlor game in recent years, as tensions have See Summit: Page 4

ON PAGE 4A

T H E A S S O C I AT E D P R E S S

Congressional approval for a Syria strike advances toward a Senate showdown.

INSIDE

Index

I-back is last off the practice field Husker I-back Imani Cross has impressed coaches and teammates with his work ethic. It’s all about “being the best I can be,” he says. Sports

Advice ........... 3E Classiﬁeds....3D Comics.......... 4E Movies .... 4-6go Obituaries.....3B Opinion ... 4&5B TV .................. 6E 52 PAGES

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OBAMACARE

DOUGLAS COUNTY

Next for DUIs: Prove you’re sober, twice a day A program modeled on South Dakota’s 24/7 sobriety effort seeks to cut alcoholrelated crimes.

BY CODY WINCHESTER WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Douglas County wants to keep closer tabs on drunken drivers. This fall, law enforcement ofﬁcials will pilot a program in which repeat DUI offenders will be required to prove their sobriety with twice-daily tests of their blood-alcohol

levels. Fail a test, go to jail. Skip a test, a warrant is issued for your arrest. The no-nonsense approach, called the 24/7 sobriety program, has shown results in South Dakota, where it was developed in 2005 by Larry Long, then the state’s attorney general, now a judge in Sioux Falls. “The reason we get effective results is the

same reason you get results with an electric fence: immediate consequences,” Long said. “It’s exactly the same principle.” Early results were positive — problem drinkers forced to abstain from alcohol committed fewer crimes — and the program caught the attention of attorneys general in neighboring states. See 24/7 program: Page 2

Dems, GOP do the math differentlyon plans’ costs Lower-than-projected premiums don’t sway Capitol Hill Republicans. BY JOSEPH MORTON WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

WASHINGTON — Just days from now, the government will roll out the health insurance marketplaces that form the heart of President Barack Obama’s signature domestic policy initiative — and the White House is launching an all-out sales job. Specifically, administration officials this week are highlighting the cost of plans that will be offered through the new marketplaces that go online Oct. 1. They say the costs are shaping up well below original projections. But Republicans on Capitol Hill continue pushing to pull the plug on the whole thing. The latest bid by some hard-line conservatives would risk a government shutdown in order to eliminate financing for the law. A House-approved spending measure that would block funding for the health care law cleared a procedural hurdle Wednesday in the Senate, but Democratic senators plan to strip out the health care defunding provisions before sending it See Obamacare: Page 3

ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD

Universities mine inventors’ minds BY RICK RUGGLES • WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Vietnam

ome physicians and scientists have inventive minds, but that doesn’t mean they know how to market an invention. Many universities over the past 15 years or more have created offices designed to help professors market their findings, making inventions useful to the public and profitable to the inventor and university. Those offices do patent research and try to match innovative professors, physicians and researchers with investors and companies. The effort appears to be paying off for the University of Nebraska, which was 20th nationally in license income in the most recent ranking, for 2011. Creighton University this week held a gathering in a hotel meeting room where three of its scientists and doctors showcased their innovations. The NU Medical Center will hold an open house Oct. 7 at the Durham Research Center so about eight startup companies can show off discoveries ranging from new research instruments to novel surgical tools. See Inventions: Page 2

INSIDE

Dr. Bob Kizer demonstrates a prototype of his nasogastric tube to a Creighton University audience. He says the tube minimizes patient discomfort when threaded down into the stomach. CHRIS MACHIAN THE WORLD-HERALD

Business owners are upset by slow pace of Highway 370 project

Omaha weather Low tonight: 65 High Friday: 86 Full report: Page 6B

BY EMILY NOHR WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Index

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McKinney’s Food Center, near the intersection of Highways 370 and 6, has seen sales plunge during the road widening project. “We’ll ﬁnd out if we’ll be here six months from now,” owner Bob McKinney said.

The Highway 370 widening project meant to boost economic opportunity in Gretna is choking the ﬂow of customers to some businesses. And with the Sept. 1 completion date having come and gone, business owners are frustrated that it’s still not wrapped up. Sales at McKinney’s Food Center, the grocery store southeast of the intersection of Highways 370 and 6, have declined about 35

percent. Foot trafﬁc has easily dropped by 600 people per week, owner Bob McKinney says. And at least once a day, a customer will ask McKinney when the orange barrels lining the store’s access points from Highways 370 and 6 will ﬁnally go away. “It’s just been a nightmare,” said McKinney, 70. The project, which is turning 3½ miles of two-lane highway into a divided four-lane road, is now See Highway: Page 2

A nutty idea, sure, but it has turned out pretty well A Yutan couple’s efforts to make a healthy, good-tasting spread — think Nutella or Cookie Butter, without the guilt — are paying off. Money

Heineman says no new prison needed Governor says other steps can be taken to alleviate overcrowding. Midlands

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Tenny Maker, street superintendent, looks in a manhole. Put ametueros nos dit, sim doloreet la feugait iliquat enim iriustion utat ero odion ut volut ulputpatisit praessectem nonsed doloreet wisl iliquat wis er secte conummy nonsequ iscidunt il ea facipsu scilisit num ea facilis am, consequipis duiscilisci euismodiam acinci bla facilisisit lan henim

By Ron J. Jackson, Jr. GUTHRIE – Mysteries are addictive. Long ago I fell under the spell of mystery. As an adventurous, long-haired youngster growing up during the 1970s in Northern California, I was first smitten by the legend of Bigfoot. I remember being mesmerized by the now-famous 1967 Patterson-Gimlin film of a purported Sasquatch walking through California’s Six Rivers National Forest – a mere 300 miles from my childhood home. Since then, my fascination with mystery has mushroomed. Over the years I have consumed literature not only on the endless search for the fabled Sasquatch, but also on the disappearance of Amelia Earhart, the hunt for Osama Bin Laden (mystery solved!), and the existence of Noah’s Ark. In 2008, I even had the privilege of interviewing former Kingfisher educator Pat Frost, who participated in eight expeditions to Turkey in search of Noah’s Ark atop Mount Ararat. Frost, like myself, is convinced remnants of Noah’s Ark are still buried in the ice of Mount Ararat and might someday be revealed. And so the mystery lives on, if in no other place than my fertile imagination. So when Oklahoman News Research Editor Linda Lynn – one brainchild behind the newspaper’s popular Stories of the Ages series – approached me about writing a story on Guthrie’s legendary tunnels, I was all in like Indiana Jones. Did these legendary tunnels exist in historic Guthrie? And if so, why? The challenge appeared daunting, but worth the effort for the sake of history. Besides, what is life without adventure?

The Legend

Maxine Pruitt, municipal service director, at Miss Lizzie’s in Guthrie

The Hunt continued “I’ve spent a lot of time looking for them,” said Bob Thompson, Guthrie’s executive director of economic development between 1983 and 1989. Tenny Maker, street superintendent, and Maxine Pruitt “I’m convinced they’re down there.” inspect the walkway beneath street level in downtown Thompson, 85 and now living in Columbia, S.C., spent several years working in Guthrie’s popular the- Guthrie. atrical community. He recalled a conversation he had at that time with a former city worker who helped demolish the city’s storied Brooks Opera House and adjoining Royal Hotel in 1967 at 116 E Harrison Ave. “I was told the work crew came to the basement of the hotel and accidentally unearthed a gambling den with card tables and roulette wheels,” Thompson said. “The room was filled with all sorts of gambling paraphernalia. The worker went to the foreman to see what they should do. The foreman snapped, ‘Fill that bastard in.’ And so they did. “Of course, Guthrie was rife with illegal gambling at one time. I have no doubt they were connected to

first state capital. Then, in 1910, a public vote moved the capital to Oklahoma City. Today, Guthrie is a National Historic Landmark with is large collection of Victorian buildings that harken back to its glory days. The architecture and style is a reminder of an opulent time when dreamers dared to dream big in a vast, new territory, and a place where visitors now want the past to give up its old secrets. “Guthrie is a romantic place,” Mueller said. “Few towns offer this kind of allure.” Guthrie Police Chief Damon Devereaux grew up with that allure, as well as the stories of hidden tunnels in his hometown. He smiles at the notion of hidden tunnels. “I remember as a teenager hearing the stories of the tunnels,” said Devereaux, who joined the Guthrie Police Department 20 years ago. “I’ve heard rumors they run from the Scottish Rite Masonic Temple to the downtown district, or that they run under the old children’s home … I’ve often wondered if there is any truth to the stories, but I’ve never found any proof.” Neither have Maxine Pruitt or Tenny Maker, perhaps the two people who should know whether there is any basis for the legend. Pruitt is Guthrie’s municipal services director, and her tenure with the city dates back to 1960. Maker – Pruitt’s “right-hand man” – is Guthrie’s street superintendent. He has worked 17 years for the city, and by his own estimation “has dug up just about every street” in Guthrie “at one time or another.” “I’ve heard people swear up and down the tunnels were real,” Maker said matter-of-factly. “If anyone would know whether or not there were hidden tunnels in Guthrie, it would be me.” “So,” I asked, “is there any truth to the stories, Tenny?” Maker instantly and dispassionately replied, “No.” Years of digging into Guthrie’s storied streets have left him dismissive and seemingly annoyed by the legend. Maker, like Pruitt, believes some of the “tall tales” associated with the tunnels can be attributed to Guthrie’s downtown subbasements. We toured a section of the historic downtown district along W Harrison Avenue, where construction crews unearthed the subbasements years ago while putting in new sidewalks. Some of those subbasements have been restored, exposing exterior stairways that descend to walkways below street level. The walkways are framed by brilliant, hand-carved sandstone walls, and a prime example can be found at the magnificent Victor Building, which was built in 1893. Today, the basement of the building houses the popular Gage’s Steakhouse. Our tour eventually carried us to another intriguing site south of Jelsma Stadium – a site often noted in numerous tunnel stories. The stadium was built in 1936 by WPA workers, and just south of the stadium is an underground drainage tunnel that can be accessed from a small creek. We climbed down to the entrance, an 8x10-foot opening that ran back to the north. Light from a streetlevel manhole beamed into the darkened tunnel some 20 yards away. Could this be part of Guthrie’s fabled tunnel system? Or perhaps the birthplace of the legend? The walls of the tunnel were lined with chiseled sandstone. Were they made by WPA workers in the 1930s? Or were they handcarved by territorial workers in the 1890s? “The tunnel only goes so far back before it narrows into two, 48-inch drainage lines,” Maker said. “I can see where some local kids might think this is a tunnel system, but it’s just a big drainage that eventually dead-ends. That’s all.”

In the hunt for Guthrie’s fabled tunnels, no figure has arguably played a bigger role in keeping the legend alive than Revis Wilson. Why? Wilson claims he explored the tunnels “many, many times” as a child. Wilson, now 67 and living in Ardmore, first went public with his claim in 1996 when he wrote a letter to the editor of The Guthrie Daily Leader. “I am taking this opportunity to clarify the question about the tunnels of Guthrie,” Wilson wrote in 1996. “Why certainly they exist, like they did in Les Miserables.” Wilson, the proud grandson of 89ers, contends the tunnels were extensive, running from Jelsma Stadium to the north under the old Brooks Opera House and Royal Hotel to E Oklahoma Avenue. From there, he claims the tunnels ran west before extending south “to a basement shop at the corner” of S First Street and W Harrison Street. The tunnels continued south to “the north end of Mineral Wells Park,” and could be accessed by a large concrete structure on the east bank of Cottonwood Creek. The last time he saw the entrance much of it had been “filled with sandy erosion.” As the story goes, Wilson and his older brother, Raymond, used to explore the city during the summer after selling The Oklahoman on a downtown street corner each morning. The tunnels provided the Wilson brothers – and their pals, Leroy and Jerry Barnes – endless hours of adventure. “We would tie old rags to the end of a stick and douse them with kerosene for torches,” Wilson recalled in a recent telephone interview. “I was about five at the time (circa 1950), and Raymond was seven. Every once in a while we would see some light from a manhole in the street above. I remember we were always afraid our torches would go out, and we’d get lost. “I know the tunnels existed. I walked through them many, many times.”

Associated Press file photo

President John F. Kennedy stands at the lectern behind a production slate board during a television taping in 1963 at the White House.

Kennedy was TV, pop culture president “I remember where I was that day I was upstate in a bar The team from the university was playing football on TV Then the screen went dead and the announcer L. KENT said WOLGAMOTT Lincoln Journal Star “There’s been a tragedy, there are unconfirmed reports the President’s been shot, and he may be dead or dying” — Lou Reed, “The Day John Kennedy Died.”

The Maps Undeterred, the investigation carried me to the Oklahoma Territorial Museum and Historic Carnegie Library at 406 E Oklahoma Ave. There, I met director Nathan Turner, who kindly pulled Guthrie’s oldest street plats, as well as some contemporary newspaper clippings about the mystery of the tunnels. The oldest map dated back to October 1903, and was made by the Sandstone Map Company for fire insurance purposes. A careful review of the detailed map showed specific buildings, alleys, streets, and even water lines, but no tunnels. Then again, if the tunnels were supposed to be secret, why would they appear on a public document? “I have studied the history of Guthrie, and have even looked into the tunnels myself,” Turner said. “There is no record of the tunnels ever being built – not one piece of evidence. I just think it is now an urban legend. But why not explore and have fun?”

The Eyewitnesses

Legends are easy to cast aside. In Oklahoma City, similar tunnel legends can be found in what once constituted old Chinatown. The Chinese were said to live in basements and subbasements with underground passageways from one building to the next. This subterranean culture supposedly gave rise to the legend of “Chinese tunnels.” Legends of hidden tunnels, buried treasure, and secret caves are simply places that exist somewhere in the borderland of myth and reality. Yet, every once in a while that rare discovery is made, and the legend suddenly becomes truth. Rumors of the Marlow brothers outlaw cave persisted for decades in the Stephens County town of Marlow. According to the legend, the five Marlow brothers would hide out in a cave on Wild Horse Creek and rustle stray longhorns as they were driven north along the Chisholm Trail. Generations of local children were drawn to the legend, many considering it a rite

File photos by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS; Illustration by CLARK GRELL/ Lincoln Journal Star

See WOLGAMOTT, Page F2

INSIDE/F2

Kennedy’s role in religion.

THE MOVIES

THE FASHION

THE BOOKS

Playing Kennedy fills resumes of many actors.

Jackie Kennedy’s style had a lasting impact.

JFK’s death produced about as many books as questions.

By JEFF KORBELIK

By KATHRYN CATES MOORE

By CORY MATTESON

John F. Kennedy became the first president to use television effectively as a way to communicate with the American people. So it’s not surprising the camera still loves him — in a different way. More than 20 actors have portrayed Kennedy in feature films, mini-series and TV movies, beginning with Cliff Robertson in the 1963 film “PT 109,” which was released while Kennedy was still in office. The latest is Rob Lowe, who starred in National Geographic Channel’s TV movie “Killing Kennedy,” based on Bill O’Reilly’s best-selling book. The following is a list of 10 actors who have played Kennedy, the name and year of their projects and how else we know them.

Jackie Kennedy was only 31 years old when she became first lady. She was a wife, a mom, an educated and elegant hostess and, finally, someone Americans could put up on a fashion pedestal the way Europeans did with their royalty. “After generations of matronly first ladies, Jackie Kennedy gave the American public what they never knew they needed — glamour,” author Paula Reed wrote in her book “Fifty Fashion Looks That Changed the 1960s” (Octopus Books). Historically, the idea of the masses emulating royalty goes back to the 14th century, said Barbara Trout, professor in

An Associated Press poll earlier this year concluded that roughly 59 percent of Americans don’t buy that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. And for each of those Americans, there seems to be a different JFK assassination theory book to buy. One of the big numbers showing up in anniversary stories is 40,000 — that’s the approximate number of books published about John F. Kennedy. Searching the Lincoln Public Libraries for JFK returns a little less than 400 results, with many of them focused on the assassination investigation. Here are but a fraction of the books available in the city libraries, as well as a few new releases, that point all over the place.

Lincoln Journal Star

Lou Reed, according to his song, was a junior in college, hanging out in a Syracuse University campus bar when he learned of President Kennedy’s Nov. 22, 1963, assassination. I was in the second grade in Curtis, home from school for the day because of a teacher’s convention when I heard the president had been shot. Reed and I each found out from the same source — television.

Rob Lowe (left, who plays JFK in “Killing Kennedy,” joins a long list of actors who have played the famous president.

Myth or reality?

Enchanting City Guthrie is certainly a place that invites romance and mystery. The town literally sprang up overnight with the opening of the federal land run in 1889. Thousands of boomers leapt from AT&SF Railroad cars on April 22 to stake claims on a patch of prairie designated as the Guthrie township. By nightfall, Guthrie was reportedly a town of more than 10,000 residents. In the coming months and years, Guthrie blossomed into a Victorian oasis on the prairie – an elegant place worthy of its status as the Territorial Capital and later as Oklahoma’s Early photo of Hotel Royal.

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FOR MORE THAN A CENTURY GUTHRIE HAS URBAN MYTH TUNNELS HEADLINE

some sort of tunnel system.” Colorful stories such as this have kept the legend alive. “Everyone loves a good story,” said Matt Mueller, who recently resigned as Guthrie’s city manager to take a job in Texas. “We get calls about the tunnels all the time. One paranormal group even asked me if they could spend the night in the tunnels. I said, ‘If you can find them, let me know. I’d love to see them myself.’ “The funny thing is they insisted that the tunnels existed. I’ve talked to people who swore they walked in them before; said they were big enough to drive a horse and buggy through. But not one person has been able to prove they actually exist.”

BOOKS/F3

Where you live — what you need to know

Hidden Tunnels

Whispers of their existence have fluttered in the Oklahoma wind for generations. One of the more enduring legends is that an underground tunnel ran kitty-corner from Oklahoma’s first state capitol on W Harrison Avenue to the old Blue Belle Saloon, where legislators discreetly enjoyed the company of soiled doves in a top-floor bordello. Or so the prickly story goes. Another legend speaks of Chinese immigrants moving in a labyrinth of underground tunnels. Below the city streets these immigrants supposedly engaged in their secretive subculture, which included whole textile mills and smoke-filled opium dens. Of course, the most repeated legend centers on the Prohibition era. Smugglers supposedly used Guthrie’s underground tunnels to avoid the detection of the law while transporting barrels of whiskey into the town’s numerous speak-easies. Of all the legends, this one seemed to be the most plausible. So the journey began. The investigation would include the study of early The Blue Belle Saloon was the site for an 1891 Democratic rally in downtown Guthrie. The original Guthrie maps, a tour of the city’s old Victorian haunts, and interviews with city works administrators, city frame building burned in 1895, but was replaced a officials, a local historian, and an alleged eyewitness few years later with the current brick building. to the tunnels. Yet, the first stop on this journey would take place at the Oklahoma Historical Society in a search for any written record – a letter, diary entry, official document, or any hint that the tunnels once existed. Of special interest was the state’s Indian, Pioneers Histories – a priceless collection of oral interviews collected by Works Progress Administration-era writers in the 1930s. Within this collection are the remembrances of early Oklahomans who once walked as slaves, fought in the Indian wars, participated in the land runs, helped build the railroads, and recalled encounters with legendary figures like Geronimo, Quanah Parker, and Belle Starr. Surely, someone mentioned Guthrie’s hidden tunnels, right? Wrong. The collection appeared to be mysteriously silent on the subject. So, too, did the state’s academic journal, The Chronicles of Oklahoma – perhaps less of a shock given a scholar’s general reluctance to wade into local legends.

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Courtesy UNL Historic Costume Collection

See MOVIES, Page F2

This new film that captures the Rolling Stones’ return to London’s Hyde Park this summer was just released on DVD. It’s now getting a short theatrical run, which should be the best place to see Mick, Keith, Charlie and company run through their hits in front of a huge crowd.

Playwright Janet Langhart Cohen will be in town opening night to see the Haymarket stage her play about a fictional encounter between Anne Frank and Emmett Till, two teens who share their stories about hate with each other and the audience.

FILM: “Rolling Stones: Sweet Summer Sun,” Monday through Thursday, Grand Theatre, 1101 P St.

See FASHION, Page F2

5thisthings week

great 3.

THEATER: “Anne & Emmett,” 7:30 p.m. ThursdaySaturday (continues), Haymarket Theatre, Eighth and Q streets.

to do

COMEDY: Margaret Cho, 8 p.m. Friday, Rococo Theatre, 140 N. 13th St. The Emmy- and Grammynominated comedian and actress is touring her new stand-up comedy show, “MOTHER,” her complicated and completely original take on sex, gay politics, drugs, guns, identity and madness.

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Lincoln Journal Star

See BOOKS, Page F2

The singer-songwriter brings his “Born & Raised” tour to Lincoln, with special guest and “American Idol” winner Phillip Phillips opening for him.

Sir Elton comes to Lincoln for the first time in decades to play a straight-ahead set of his hits and songs from his excellent new album “The Diving Board.” This one’s a sellout. But a few tickets always open up during the week of a show.

MUSIC: John Mayer, 7 p.m. Friday, Pinnacle Bank Arena, 400 Pinnacle Arena Drive.

•••

KYMC

MOvIeS/F2

JOURNAL STAR Sunday, November 24, 2013

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MUSIC: Elton John and His Band, 8 p.m. Saturday, Pinnacle Bank Arena, 400 Pinnacle Arena Drive.

Comments? Questions? Call Patty Beutler, 402-473-7307

Page Design: Clark Grell

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Where you live — what you need to know

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When the Bourbon Theatre announced last month that Third Eye Blind would be playing the club Nov. 26, there was an immediate, positive response, Dustin “Duff” Hunke said. About 600 tickets sold in the first three days they were available. In Lincoln, a city with a strong walk-up attendance market, that was a pretty good sign the $35 show would sell out, Hunke said. On Nov. 13, the Bourbon ran out of tickets for the band that owned 1997. “It’s nostalgia,” Hunke said. “Music’s always been about an emotional time in your life.” It’s not too difficult to spot something attempting to appeal to that human emotion across the entertainment spectrum. See NOSTALGIA, Page F2

Our nostalgia can be blamed on characters such as Zach Morris (“Saved By the Bell”), Iron Man, George Bailey (“It’s a Wonderful Life”) and Will Smith (“Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”). Third Eye Blind and Elton John recently have had Lincoln’s attention with sold-out concerts.

Illustration by CLARK GRELL/Lincoln Journal Star

MUSIC: “Fit for a King,” 4 p.m. Sunday, First-Plymouth Church, 20th and D streets. Abendmusik presents its annual performance of Handel’s “Messiah,” featuring Abendmusik’s chamber choir and orchestra.

EVENT: Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, 8 a.m. Thursday, NBC (Time Warner Cable channels 6 and 1006). The 87th parade from New York City features celebrities, marching bands, giant balloons and more. It’s as much a Thanksgiving tradition as eating turkey and a Detroit Lions football game.

5this week

great 3. things to do

MUSIC: Lil Slim, 9 p.m. Thursday, Zoo Bar, 136 N. 14th St. Shawn ‘Lil Slim’ Holt steps in for his dad, the late Morris ‘Magic Slim’ Holt, at the Zoo Bar’s annual Thanksgiving night show. Work off the turkey with some blues from Shawn, whose debut album topped the blues radio charts last month.

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KYMC

THEATER: “Anne & Emmett,” 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 2 p.m. next Sunday, Haymarket Theatre, Eighth and Q streets. Janet Langhart Cohen’s play features a fictional meeting between two victims of hate — Anne Frank and Emmett Till — in a Bobby Bonaventuradirected production.

FILM: “20 Feet From Stardom,” opens Friday, Ross Media Arts Center, 13th and R streets. This absorbing, musicfilled documentary looks at the lives, careers and ambitions of backing singers, including Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Darlene Love and Merry Clayton, who dueted with Mick Jagger in bathrobe and curlers. •••

greatplainsawards.org / 43

Sports Page Design Winner Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Tim Parks

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Good luck, Creighton men and women in the Big Dance.

ďŹ rstnational.com/creighton

Destination: big time The winningest group in Bluejay history chugs toward Philly, where rugged Cincinnati and mighty Duke stand in the way of the elusive Sweet 16 berth. No matter the outcome, the past two seasons have Creighton positioned to leave mid-major status behind. And none of it would have happened without a little bit of luck. Page 3BB

The other Mac McDermott the player is fantastic, but his father deserves more of the credit for this ride, Tom Shatel writes. Page 4BB

NCAA TOURNAMENT PREVIEW THURSDAY, MARCH 21, 2013

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Judgesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Comments: Very impressive designs and I actually ranked four people with a similar score. Great body of work from Omaha and spot-on sports design from Lincoln. These entries are among the best work we see across the nation, everyone should be proud.

BY SAM MCKEWON â&#x20AC;˘ WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

INCOLN â&#x20AC;&#x201D; They ran off the field with wide eyes, their tales a little taller than the game film would later tell. â&#x20AC;˘ Nebraska defensive line coach Rick Kaczenski had never played so many redshirts and freshmen in a game. Five of those, plus two sophomores with virtually no experience. And as the Husker defense struggled in its season opener to stave off Wyoming, the night became an adventure in communication as he asked for updates from his players. â&#x20AC;˘ â&#x20AC;&#x153;Just to be able to tell us and talk our lingo (was hard),â&#x20AC;? Kaczenski said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Not â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Hey, this guy did this.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Well, whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;this guy?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Not every guy can be double teamed. Sometimes you get these young guys and all kinds of crazy stuff happened out there. Every guy got double teamed? No.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;˘ Kaczenski shared the story with a survivorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;˘ See Huskers: Page 10

SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI AT NEBRASKA 5 p.m. Saturday Memorial Stadium, Lincoln Big Ten Network 1110 AM KFAB

MORE INSIDE

FLORIDA QB AMONG HUSKER VISITORS A touted quarterback recruit from Florida joins the list of visitors for todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s game. Page 9C

MORE ONLINE

NEW HUSKER GAME DAY PAGE Check out our new page to get instant updates, track live stats and more. To chime in, use the #NUvsUSM Twitter hashtag. Omaha.com/gameday

Kids on defense are one thing, but vetsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; early play worrisome A survival kit of thoughts for today, as Nebraska tries to bounce back from devastating victory: 1. Bo Pelini said earlier this week that the Wyoming opener coming down to the last play would serve as a â&#x20AC;&#x153;wake-up callâ&#x20AC;? for his team. Why would the Huskers need one? When the last season ended with defeats by 70-31 and 45-31, do you really need a wake-up call? When you havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t won a championship in forever, do you really need Wyoming to slap you to attention? Is being No. 18 in

TOM SHATEL

COLUMNIST the nation good enough? Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an army of young football players on this team, being thrown into the deep end, most of them on defense. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t expect them to know what college football is all about. See Shatel: Page 10

GOING TO THE â&#x20AC;&#x2122;SHIP: The Storm Chasers finish a sweep of Oklahoma City to advance to the PCL championship series. Page 3C

IN THE DEBIT, THE GLORY.

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Sports Page Design Finalists Publication: Lincoln Journal-Star By: Clark Grell SPORTS/C3-C7

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Margaret Riedel

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Ian Lawson

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THE BEST OF BARRY

WEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;LL JUST BE MORE CONSISTENT WITH IT. | ITâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S A LOT LIKE HOUSE TRAINING A PUPPY DOG. YOU KNOW WHAT? WHEN THE DOG DOES SOMETHING WRONG ... BAD DOG. WELL, WA WA ATT THEM, THEM BUT BAD DOG, GET ON THE Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;M NOT GOING TO HIT THEM. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;M NOT GOING TO SWAT TREADM TREADMILL. THATâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S PROBABLY WHAT WE NEED TO DO. | IF WE COULD PRACTICE BY THE R D GO HOME AND PRACTICE TONIGHT. GHT. BUT B WE CANâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T BECAUSE OF THE NCAA RULES, WEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;D SE THAT? WE HAD GUYS FALLING RULES. | THERE WAS A SNIPER IN THE GYM. DIDNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;TT YOU SEE WE HAD HAD A GUY GUY SNIPERED SNIPERED AT AT HALF-COURT. HALF-COURT. TWO GUYS G DOWN. WE SNIPERED AT HALF-COURT. UNBELIEVABLE. I THOUGHT, THOUGHT, I WOULDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;VE WOU VE THOUGHT NAVY SEAL TEAM 6 WAS OUT IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE. THERE. | WE HAD A SAYING AT KANSAS ... SNIPER. | GUYS DIDNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T LISTEN AT HALFTIME M STRUGGLING WITH THIS CREW RIGHT NOW, THEY WONâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T LET ME COACH â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;EM. ANY ... Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;M TIME I COACH SOMEBODY, THEY PUT THEIR HEAD DOWN. WEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;RE SOFT...Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;VE GOT A BUNCH M TIRED OF COACHING A GUY AND HAVING HIM ROLL OF MAMAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S BOYS RIGHT NOW. | Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;M HIS EYES OR PUT HIS HEAD DOWN OR FEEL SORRY FOR HIMSELF. | Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;VE BEEN TELLING MY WIFE THIS FOR YEARS, SIZE DOESNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T MATTER. | MARCUS [FILLYAW] WAS ABSOLUTELY AWFUL. THATâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;SS ABOUT AS PG-RATED AS I CAN SAY IT. HE WAS AWFUL. OUR GUARDS WERE AWFUL. OUR THREE STARTING GUARDS HAD ONE ASSIST AND SEVEN TURNOVERS. THEY MUST THINK ITâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S A TAX CREDIT. ITâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;SS UNBELIEVABLE HOW OUR STARTING GUARDS PLAYED. | LETâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;SS TALK ABOUT OUR BIG GUYS. TWO FOR 11. HOW CAN YOU GO TWO FOR 11? MY WIFE ... MY WIFE ... CAN SCORE MORE THAN TWO BUCKETS ON 11 SHOTS BECAUSE I KNOW MY WIFE WILL AT LEAST SHOT FAKE ONE TIME. THOSE GUYS ARENâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T LISTENING. THEY THEYâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;RE UNCOACHABLE RIGHT NOW. | EVERYIME THEY DONâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;TT WANT TO DO SOMETHING WHAT WE WANT TO DO, IN PRACTICE, WE JUST PUT THEM ON THE TREADMILL OR PUSH-UPS. WE WEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;VE LL JUST BE MORE CONSISTENT WITH IT. | TO ME, WHEN DONE THAT A LITTLE BIT, BUT WEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;LL YOU GOT A YOUNG TEAM, ITâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;SS A LOT LIKE HOUSE TRAINING A PUPPY DOG. YOU KNOW WHAT? WHEN THE DOG DOES SOMETHING WRONG ... BAD DOG. WELL, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;M NOT GOING TO HIT THEM. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;M NOT GOING TO SWATT THEM, BUT BAD DOG. GET ON THE TREADMILL. THAT THATâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S PROBABLY WHAT WE NEED TO DO.â&#x20AC;? IF WE COULD PRACTICE BY THE NCAA RULES, WEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;D GO HOME AND PRACTICE TONIGHT. BUT WE CANâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T BECAUSE OF THE RULES. | THERE WAS A SNIPER IN THE GYM. DIDNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T YOU SEE THAT? WE HAD GUYS FALLING DOWN. WE HAD A GUY SNIPERED AT HALF-COURT. TWO GUYS SNIPERED AT HALF-COURT. IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE.

A lot on their minds Husker defense determined to atone for another bruising defeat, and Rose says knowing assignments wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t matter without play-making BY SAM MCKEWON

Net gains

NCAA LINCOLN REGIONAL SCHEDULE

FRIDAYâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MATCHES AT THE DEVANEY SPORTS CENTER

Nebraskaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Robinson and Pollmiller are prime examples of how transfers can make an immediate impact in college volleyball.

AMERICAN (34-2) VS. TEXAS (25-2) 5 p.m. RADIO: None

BY BRENT C. WAGNER

SAN DIEGO (26-3) VS. NEBRASkA (25-6)

LINCOLN JOURNAL STAR

MORE ONLINE

Track our live coverage during the game, then join staff writer Jon Nyatawa one hour after the ďŹ nal whistle to break down the contest in our postgame chat. Omaha.com/gameday

The battle looks uphill for Bo, but thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s still time for a surge You never forget that ďŹ rst hot seat. For this correspondent, it was November 1977. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t recall how Al Onofrio was ďŹ red as Missouri football coach. But Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll always remember how he left. As the beleaguered coach boarded the bus after his ďŹ nal game, a loss to 3-7-1 Kansas, he was accosted by a drunk fan. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re a lousy coach,â&#x20AC;? said the fan. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re a lousy drunk,â&#x20AC;? Onofrio said. The fan said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Yeah, but tomorrow Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be sober.â&#x20AC;?

TOM SHATEL

COLUMNIST In four decades of press box living, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve seen enough hot seats to ďŹ ll Nebraska Furniture Mart. Most of this came from covering the Bermuda Triangle of the Big Eight â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Kansas, Kansas State See Shatel: Page 11

m DNP A OK

It happens every year, Nebraska coach John Cook says. Prob-

Cook added two transfer players in the past 12 months, and they changed the

IN THE DEBIT, THE GLORY.

If you havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t wondered how this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s team wouldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve fared if senior

outside hitter Kelsey Robinson and junior setter Mary Pollmiller had not transferred from Tennessee, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d

8 p.m. TV: ESPNU (303, HD 1303)

MORE INSIDE

BROWN STILL UPBEAT AFTER NUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S BRUISING The 2013 Huskers â&#x20AC;&#x153;have a chance to be very special,â&#x20AC;? NU assistant Ron Brown says at the Big Red Breakfast. Page 11C

COCAINE ALLEGATIONS: One of Carl Peliniâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s assistant coaches at Florida Atlantic says he saw the former Husker assistant using cocaine. Page 3C

his is the time of the year when letters start stacking up in the Nebraska volleyball office. lists as a potential landing spot.

prospects of the entire season.

SATURDAYâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S FINAL

2:30 p.m. Saturday Memorial Stadium, Lincoln Big Ten Network (Cox 80) 1110 AM KFAB

Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be from college players looking to transfer to a different program, and Nebraska is on their

ably 20 or more each year.

7 p.m. RADIO: 107.3

NORTHWESTERN AT NEBRASKA

WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

INCOLN â&#x20AC;&#x201D; They dined on August optimism. They gave the unit a captain and each position its own assistant captain. They handed out Blackshirts before the first game. They soothed doubters after the first game was a near-disaster. They used the words â&#x20AC;&#x153;weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re closeâ&#x20AC;? as a reminder of progress. They celebrated two good performances to start the Big Ten season. Perhaps they relied on a track record established by their head coach: Everywhere Bo Pelini had ever preached his word on stopping college football offenses, his guys had improved as the season wore on. â&#x20AC;˘ See Huskers: Page 11

GWYNETH ROBERTS/Lincoln Journal Star

Just a season ago, Kelsey Robinson (left) and Mary Pollmiller were playing for Tennessee. Now theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re looking to get Nebraska back to the NCAA Final Four.

probably be in the minority.

Open the doors to exclusive fan experiences and ticket opportunities.

See VOLLEYBALL, Page C7

800.642.0014 | Member FDIC |

VISA

INSIDE/C2: Huskers confident, relaxed heading into Fridayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s match against No. 8 San Diego; team capsules. @HuskerExtra.com: Watch video from Thursdayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s news conference, featuring John Cook and the Huskers. Follow on Twitter: Get updates on the Huskers from NU volleyball writer Brent C. Wagner (@LJSSportsWagner).

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KYMC

SPORTS MONDAY, DECEMBER 16, 22013 0133 01 SECTION C

Saturday, September 21, 2013

lincoln journal Star

On Dec. 6, Kyle Korver broke an NBA record by hitting at least one 3-pointer in 90 straight regularseason games. He passed Dana Barrosâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; previous record that stood for almost 18 seasons.

Section e

GATOR BOWL: NEBRASKA VS. GEORGIA

11 a.m. Jan. 1 â&#x20AC;˘ EverBank Field â&#x20AC;˘ ESPN2 â&#x20AC;˘ 1110 AM KFAB

NU has no fear of another fade in fourth quarter BY RICH KAIPUST

South Dakota State (3-0) at Nebraska (2-1)

WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

2:30 p.m. Saturday | Memorial Stadium | TV: BTN (24, HD 1333) | RADIO: 1400, 98.1

LINCOLN â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The way the last two Capital One Bowls played out, you could deduce that Nebraska wore down against more physical and talented Southeastern Conference opponents. Last New Yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Day, the Huskers led Georgia 31-23 midway through the third quarter before the Bulldogs tallied the last 22 points. That included Aaron Murray throwing for 141 yards in the fourth. The year before, South Carolina held NU to negative yardage and one ďŹ rst down in the fourth quarter. The Gamecocks held the ball for more than 10 of the

@HuskerExtra.com >>> Follow the game during a live chat; watch the live postgame news conference.

ďŹ nal 15 minutes. In reďŹ&#x201A;ection, however, Nebraska players said the problem was more their own breakdowns in those two games than any physical or mental fatigue. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We just kind of lost our way with what we were doing,â&#x20AC;? receiver Quincy Enunwa said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It had nothing to do with anything else. I think we just lost focus toward the end of the games. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hopefully coming into this game we know that that was our fault the last two years, and we come in with a different attitude this time.â&#x20AC;? Nebraska will see Georgia again Jan. 1, this time in the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Fla. See Gator Bowl: Page 2

PREGAME SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2013 SECTION C

Long shot bet paid off for Jays, in NBA Altman knew Korver could shoot,

Taylor, linebackers could emerge in â&#x20AC;&#x2122;14 LINCOLN â&#x20AC;&#x201D; You might have assumed running back Adam Taylorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s choice to redshirt his ďŹ rst year at Nebraska pointed to a lack of on-ďŹ eld readiness or a need to polish his skill set. Senior defensive end Jason Ankrah will assure you: Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not the case. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s going to be a special kid,â&#x20AC;? Ankrah said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And he redshirted this year â&#x20AC;&#x201D; thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a very smart decision on his part. He has a lot of football ahead of him.â&#x20AC;? We start this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s version of The Hope Report â&#x20AC;&#x201D; a look at Huskers who didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t play much or at all in 2013 but who could emerge as major playmakers in 2014 â&#x20AC;&#x201D; by revisiting the 6-foot-2, 210-pound Taylorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s potential impact on the team next year. The starting defenders who faced

SAM MCKEWON

HUSKER REWIND During the season, Sam McKewon breaks down NU football news and previews the next opponent. him on Nebraskaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s scout team certainly were impressed. NU players voted him the offensive scout team player of the year. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Physical,â&#x20AC;? nickel back Ciante Evans said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;He runs downhill. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been giving us a good look all year. He tries to be a bruiser. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s going to lower that shoulSee Rewind: Page 2

but no one saw a pro record-setter. BY STEVEN PIVOVAR

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

ana Altman needed a shooter. Altman was four seasons into rebuilding Creightonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s basketball program when, during the summer of 1998, he and assistant Greg Grensing headed to an AAU tournament in Las Vegas hoping to fill that pressing need. One of their targets was a young man from Pella, Iowa, by the name of Kyle Korver. The thing was, Korver was an under-the-radar prospect. While the big-time prospects played center stage, Korver and his team were performing in a basketball version of off-Broadway. â&#x20AC;&#x153;He wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t playing in any of the main gyms,â&#x20AC;? Altman said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We had to go find him. As we watched him play, Greg and I kept saying, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Gosh, he really shoots it.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;˘ See Korver: Page 6

MORE INSIDE

Eichorst denies report NU sent feeler to Brown BY LEE BARFKNECHT WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD AfTER A suRREAl WEEK, NEBRAsKA GETs BACK TO THE Xâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s AND Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s.

after last weekâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s humbling defeat, Huskers must put the words of summer into action.

QB dilemma may be Boâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new challenge

By BRIAN CHRIsTOPHERsON

It appears Nebraska might have a little situation on its hands. One that doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t involve fourletter words, but does include two compelling letters: Q and B. UCLA essentially dared NU quarterback Taylor Martinez to run the ball last week. He usually Steven M. didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t bite. Sipple We now know why, or at least Lincoln Journal Star have a good idea: Taylorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s big toe apparently was throbbing. His shoulder may still be sore. If South Dakota State dares Tommy Armstrong to keep the ball on option plays, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m betting heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll bite. And he might bite off sizable chunks of yardage. Yeah, this could get interesting. We need a little quarterback drama to liven things up around here. With Martinez ailing, the 6-foot-1, 220-pound Armstrong, a redshirt freshman from Cibolo, Texas,

LINCOLN JOURNAL STAR

he mottos are always born in the summer. Football teams everywhere come up

with them. Some catchy slogan to hang on a

Journal Star file photo

meeting room wall. Some bullet points to summarize the mission for the fall ahead. The Huskers of 2013 came up with something they call R.A.C. Relentless. Accountable. Competitive. The athletic department even put out a YouTube video about the team motto in August. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got to be relentless every day,â&#x20AC;? safety Corey Cooper said in that video.

PElINI POsTs lETTER TO fANs Nebraska football coach Bo Pelini posted a letter Friday, apologizing to Husker fans following the release of a profane 2011 audio recording. In the letter, the sixth-year head coach thanks the fans for their support of the program. Read the letter, Page E3

See HUSKERS, Page E3

Follow our writers on Twitter >>> Steven M. Sipple (@HuskerExtraSip)

Illustration by CLARK GRELL/Lincoln Journal Star

LINCOLN â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The Nebraska athletic department Sunday night disputed a Texas newspaper report that a person representing NU contacted the agent of ex-Longhorn football coach Mack Brown to gauge Brownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s interest in coaching the Huskers. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Deny!â&#x20AC;? was the text from Nebraska Athletic Director Shawn Eichorst to The World-Herald. Eichorst offered no other comment and didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t respond to a follow-up text. On Sunday afternoon, Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman tweeted information he got from an interview with Joe Jamail, who is Brownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s agent, one of the nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pre-eminent trial attorneys and a multi-million dollar donor to UT athletics. The tweet: Joe Jamail said he got a call from someone saying he represented Nebraska seeking Mackâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s interest. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not going to Nebraska,â&#x20AC;? JJ said.

Brown, 62, resigned at Texas on Saturday after 16 seasons with the Longhorns. The Austin American-Statesman quoted Jamail as saying Brown likely will stay at Texas as a special adviser to the president through 2020. Attempts by The World-Herald to reach Jamail on Sunday night were unsuccessful. Bohls said he planned to incorporate the information he tweeted about the Nebraska contact into his column for Monday. Bohls has worked at the Austin paper for 40 years and been the lead columnist for the past 19. Eichorst issued a statement in support of Nebraskaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s football athletes, coach Bo Pelini and the staff after the Huskersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; ďŹ nal regular-season game, a 38-17 home loss to Iowa. The last line of the statement: â&#x20AC;&#x153;We very much look forward to our upcoming bowl game and coach Pelini continuing to lead our program in the future.â&#x20AC;?

ENOUGH?

Kyle Korver says he has â&#x20AC;&#x153;zero doubtsâ&#x20AC;? that Creighton star Doug McDermott can thrive in the NBA. Page 6C

While NU offense is shaky, Abdullah is a sure thing KORVERâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S ROLE IN BLUEJAY HISTORY

BY RICH KAIPUST â&#x20AC;˘ WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Steven Pivovarâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;Road to the Big Timeâ&#x20AC;? tells how Creightonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s centurylong dream of big-time basketball led to the Big East. The 250-page book features hall of fame coaches and legendary Bluejay players, along with the work of The World-Heraldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s award-winning photo staff. The book is available for $29.95, plus shipping and handling, online at OWHstore.com or by phone at 402-444-1014.

NN ARBOR, Mich. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; A lot was expected of the Nebraska offense back in August, and a lot has happened to it along the road to a date at Michigan Stadium. â&#x20AC;˘ And not a lot of it is good. â&#x20AC;˘ Âť NU is down two offensive linemen, including an AllAmerica candidate. â&#x20AC;˘ Âť The Huskers have played four games without their fourth-year starter at quarterback, and Saturday will be the fifth. â&#x20AC;˘ Âť Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been missing their only veteran tight end for a month and pulled off their fantastic finish last week without two top receivers on the field. SEE ABDULLAH: PAGE 11

NEBRASKA AT MICHIGAN

2:30 p.m. Saturday Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Mich. ABC â&#x20AC;˘ 1110 AM KFAB

MORE INSIDE LOTS OF DEFENSE Michigan will offer multiple looks on third downs. Page 11C BIG TEN PICKS Minnesota still has title hopes, Lee Barfknecht writes. Page 12C

MORE ONLINE Track our live coverage during the game, then join staff writer Rich Kaipust to discuss the game in our postgame chat. Omaha.com/gameday

NU-Michigan: A rivalry that never got started This is no sport for old romantics. Like me and Jeremiah Sirles. Nebraska plays at Michigan today, in a place they call the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Big House,â&#x20AC;? and thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a good chance I wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t write that nickname for another ďŹ ve years. Unless Rutgers has a Big House. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the last time the two historic Nebraska and Michigan programs will meet until 2018. After three years, the series will take a break. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not even enough time to call anyone arrogant. This was not the reason Nebraska joined the Big Ten in 2010, but the Michigan game certainly didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t hurt.

TOM SHATEL

COLUMNIST It made the move north and east a whole lot more exciting. But what college realignment giveth, it also taketh away. The unwieldy monster has swallowed up bigger games than this. Texas vs. Texas A&M comes to mind. See Shatel: Page 11

Creighton Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Basketball vs Arkansas-Pine Bluff Tomorrow Night, 7 PM Limited Tickets Still Available. NU, CU HOOPS ON THE MARK: Both Nebraska and Creighton open the basketball season with decisive wins Friday. Page 3C

Game tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.com, charge by phone at 1-800-745-3000. Also available at Ryan Athletic CenterTicket OfďŹ ces during normal business hours.

THERE IS NO PLACE. Member FDIC |

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See SIPPLE, Page E4

Brian Christopherson (@HuskerExtraBC)

10_1E-12-9-3102-RATS_SJL

KYMC

Brian Rosenthal (@HuskerExtraBR)

â&#x20AC;˘â&#x20AC;˘â&#x20AC;˘

greatplainsawards.orgâ&#x20AC;&#x192; /â&#x20AC;&#x192; 45

Graphics/Illustrations Winner Publication: The Oklahoman By: Todd Pendleton Judges’ Comments: It’s a real challenge to tell a visual news story when you have inadequate photography to work with. Illustrating a hard news event in comic-book fashion is a very risky choice and it must be done with just the right amount of finesse — and fact-checking. The Anatomy of an Attack page is a wonderful, wonderful piece of visual journalism at its finest. The urban transformation piece and the Monopoly sports illo are wonderfully top-notch as well. This entry was a set of three masterpieces. Amazing stuff.

For multimedia interactive graphis, go to http://www.oklahoman.com/thedeadliestday/part-two The Oklahoman

Interactive timeline and anatomy of attack furthur down the page. Thank you.

http://archive.newsok.com/Default/Scripting/PagePrint.asp?ski...

Publication in The Oklahoman; September 30, 2013

Publication: The Oklahoman; Date: Dec 8, 2013; Section: OKC Transformed; Page: 6S

For multimedia interactive graphis, go to http://newsok.com/business/maps-turns-20 Interactive overview when click widget. Thank you. Publication in The Oklahoman; December 8, 2013

MAPS An Urban Transformation A

20-year look back, and a glance at what’s ahead, demonstrates how major investments in Oklahoma City’s urban core triggered a wave of development that is ongoing. A canal and ballpark sparked a string of restaurants, shops and entertainment venues in Bricktown that then inspired development of an entirely new neighborhood in adjoining Deep Deuce.

North door

After a fruitless night hunting for enemy fighters planting roadside bombs, the team of Oklahoma Guardsmen fall back to an abandoned building to rest during the day.

Central Business District

N HUD SO

Ronald J. Norick Downtown Library

N SO

BIN RO

RO KE BE RR RT

D M EAN cG EE A.

1993: A fledgling urban entertainment district anchored by several restaurants and a couple of nightclubs. More than half of the buildings are empty, and many are boarded up. The biggest attractions are O’Brien’s bar and Spaghetti Warehouse.

ACM@UCO

Harkins Theatres

MICKEY MANTLE

Hampton Inn

Coker Jr.

North door

Horton

Block 42

ELL

RR Y

NE 4

th Nor The Hill

Deep Deuce Grill

Music Hall

ON DS

What’s next: At least three different housing projects are being eyed for properties surrounding the Civic Center Music Hall. More restaurants and shops are likely to follow.

Legacy Apartments

ALK W

LINCOLN

Right: The North Canadian River, now known as the Oklahoma River, is shown in this 1998 photo. The Boathouse District is just west of Eastern Avenue.

EASTERN

North

2013: The waterway, renamed the Oklahoma River, is lined with boathouses and recreational venues on the east end (at Lincoln Boulevard), and hotels on the west end (near Meridian Avenue). The waterway is an official Olympic training venue, and the river’s transformation is featured in national publications including The New York Times, USA Today and Architectural Record. The river is a source of pride for the community.

What’s next: A white water venue, grandstands, restaurant, gift shop and wind screens, all courtesy of MAPS 3, and quite likely a water sports resort similar to Great Wolf Lodge. Two more boathouses will be built, and housing is likely to follow.

WSKY

RA L

1993: A blighted stretch of former car dealerships with nothing left but a Mercedes operation, a couple of used-car lots and a couple of restaurants. 2013: Automobile Alley is home to restaurants, housing, offices and 17 retail shops. Every building has been renovated, most to historic standards. The district has a strong property owners association, and has used Business Improvement District funds to create landscaped entryways and special Christmas holiday lighting displays. The district also recently launched a monthly festival, Shop Hop. Ninth Street, an extension of Automobile Alley just east of Broadway, is an eclectic mix of shops, restaurants and an art gallery hosted by The Flaming Lips.

701 N Broadway Schlegel Bicycles

NW 9 Oklahoma City Community Foundation

1015 N Broadway building

t ard Rich elopmen dev Future own McK Calvary Baptist Native Church Roots Market

Aloft Hotel

Hotel Marion

NW 10

What’s next: Housing has been fairly limited to date, but that will change with construction of the 330-unit Metropolitan apartments set to be built next year at NW 8 and Oklahoma. Expect intensive development at NW 10 and Broadway, and more infill development on side streets like NW 9.

Illustrations by Todd Pendleton, The Oklahoman Graphics

MAPS TIMELINE

December 1993: Voters approve MAPS. Assistant City Manager Jim Thompson is named to oversee it.

Early 1996: Bids come in millions over budget for ballpark. Spring 1996: Work begins on horse barns, arena at State Fair Park. Fall 1996: Plans for a 2.7-mile passen-

Cartoon by The Oklahoman’s Jim Lange about the 1998 MAPS sales tax extension.

One of the first bullets strikes the assault pack of Pfc. Tony Potter Jr. igniting an incendiary grenade.

He follows the wall to the corner, where he sees the insurgents, who look to be reloading. He shoots and one enemy fighter drops. The others turn and run, firing as they retreat.

Spc. Shane Cox fires two mortars.

Staff Sgt. Duane Kellogg and others return fire toward the collapsed wall. Kellogg then fires through a southfacing window at the fleeing enemy.

Kellogg radios for help. Cox and Pfc. Matt Ferguson guard against another attack.

Three are dead. Two are seriously wounded. Spc. Christopher Horton

Pfc. Tony Potter Jr.

7 Sgt. Bret Isenhower Todd Pendleton, The Oklahoman Graphics

46 / greatplainsawards.org

1995: Oklahoma City bombing slows MAPS planning.

ger rail system are abandoned after a $10 million U.S. Senate appropriation is blocked by Rep. Ernest Istook, who argues the transit line would carry too few passengers. Istook later works with the city to match the $3 million in MAPS transit money with federal funding for a rubber-tire trolley system.

Early 1997: Estimates for the Civic Center, canal and Myriad Convention Center projects show construction will cost more than budgeted.

Summer 1997: Convention center expansion and canal construction begin.

November 1997: Mayor Ron Norick announces he will not seek re-election.

January 1998: City Manager Don Bown retires and is succeeded by Glenn Deck.

April 1998: Ballpark opens to rave reviews.

sistant City Manager Jim Couch is named new director of MAPS program. Also, Ward 8 Councilman Guy Liebmann and former Putnam City School Board President Kirk Humphreys battle for mayor’s office. Liebmann wants to “shelve” arena to end budget shortfalls.

April 1999: Work begins on first of three dams along the North Canadian River.

July 1999: Canal opens.

Summer 1998: Humphreys launches campaign to extend MAPS sales tax. The city is $10 million short after revenue from naming rights, ticket surcharges and revenue bonds doesn’t meet expectations.

Park improvements are completed, Civic Center Music Hall reconstruction begins and voters approve extending the MAPS tax by six months.

May 1999: Construction begins on arena.

August 2000: Library/ learning center construction begins.

June 2002: Arena opens.

September 2001: Civic Center Music Hall reopens.

Late 1998: State Fair

February 1998: As-

Spring 2004: North Canadian River is renamed the Oklahoma River at the behest of Ray Ackerman. Work is completed.

August 2004:

August 1999: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers contributes $15 million toward river project. Convention center reopens.

Oklahoma City Mayor Kirk Humphreys arrives in a 1901 Ford race car for the opening ceremony of the Ford Center.

April 2002: Ford Auto Dealers agree to an $8.1 million deal to name arena “Ford Center.”

Ronald J. Norick Downtown Library opens.

December 2003: Oklahoma City Council names new library after former Mayor Ron Norick.

Bullets tear into five of the team members, killing some instantly.

Pfc. Maxx Robinson, the team medic, runs out the north doorway. A bullet tears though his left thigh pocket.

After the enemy is gone, Robinson returns to the building and begins treating the wounded.

NSO

Collapsed wall

A look at some key events in the development of MAPS in Oklahoma City.

Three insurgents appear over the broken down wall and fire AK-47s into the building.

1993: The North Canadian River was the cultural heart of Oklahoma City in its early days, home to Delmar Gardens Amusement Park, the city’s first zoo and ballpark, theaters and beer gardens. But flooding destroyed those attractions, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers responded by straightening the river, lining it with rocks, and turning it into what many referred to as a drainage ditch. In 1993, the waterway is an embarrassment to the city that helps cement the divide between north and south. It’s often used as an illegal dump.

Pfc. Tony Potter Jr.

American Choral Directors Association

Ferguson

Central Avenue Villa

ALN W

Cox

RD Civic City

What’s next: Up to 1,000 more residences, the Aloft Hotel, more restaurants and bars (including an “urban” Johnnie’s), a coffee shop and dentist’s office.

Isenhower

Oklahoma CIty Museum of Art

COLCO

Automobile Alley

2013: A vibrant mixed-use downtown anchored by a renovated Calvary Baptist Church (now home of Dan Davis Law Firm), several hundred apartments and owner-occupied homes, three restaurants, a grocery, a cigar and whiskey lounge, and a wine store.

Robinson

Myriad Gardens

Oklahoma City National Memorial

Rendering of future KD’s Restaurant

Deep Deuce 1993: A blighted old neighborhood with a scattering of boarded up buildings, the Calvary Baptist Church and dozens of empty lots.

Semler

2013: The Oklahoma City Museum of Art, moved to a new home downtown in 2002, draws crowds year-round, and its theater remains a popular draw for independent film fans. A makeover of the Myriad Gardens succeeds at making the park a popular draw for locals and visitors. The Civic Center Music Hall, rebuilt from the inside as part of MAPS, is a vibrant hub for concerts and plays. The Oklahoma City National Memorial, meanwhile, has become an international draw for visitors hoping to learn about the community’s response to the tragedies experienced in 1995.

1. Chesapeake Boathouse 2. Chesapeake Finish Tower 3. Devon Boathouse 4. Sand Ridge Sky Trail 5. Future CHK/Central boathouse 6. Future OU boathouse 7. Future white water center

Future Steel Yard apartments, hotel and retail Bricktown Canal

Potter Jr.

Kellogg

JOE CARTER

SHERIDAN

Bass Pro Shops

Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark

1993: Very little art is going on in the arts district other than Philharmonic concerts, Oklahoma City Ballet performances and occasional plays at the Civic Center Music Hall (and Carpenter Square Theatre). The annual spring Festival of the Arts is the one event that continues to bring thousands back downtown. The Crystal Bridge Botanical Gardens draws decent attendance, but the outdoor areas of the Myriad Gardens are sparsely used.

What’s next: Steel Yard apartments, hotel and retail, Hilton Garden Inn, Holiday Inn Express, House of Bedlam clothing and gift shop, restaurant and entertainment center, Mideke Building apartments.

Future Holiday Inn Express

As temperatures rise, they move around to stay out of the sun and remove their helmets and body armor.

Sonic Corp.

REN

Spc. Christopher Horton

FU TU UL RE EV AR

Abandoned building views.

2013: Oklahoma’s premier urban entertainment district, visited by millions each year. Major attractions include the Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark, the Bricktown Canal, Toby Keith’s I Love this Bar and Grill, Harkins Theatres, Red Pin Bowling Lounge, Mickey Mantle Steakhouse, Hampton Inn, Residence Inn and Bass Pro Shops.

North

KD’s Restaurant

Downtown aerial 2013

Oklahoma River

Bricktown

Toby Keith’s

Spc. John Coker Jr.

What’s next: G. Rainey Williams is set to announce plans for a new office tower on the current site of Stage Center. A redevelopment plan for the block north of Stage Center (and west of Devon Energy Center) is likely to follow. The long-languishing First National Center may finally also be targeted for redevelopment with potential adaptive reuse.

View from the south.

N or th

Collapsed wall

Devon Energy Center

Continental Resources Skirvin Hotel SandRidge Commons

2013: The Central Business District is home to a couple hundred residences, a string of hip restaurants and shops that have opened up at street level. Leadership Square and every other Class A office property is virtually fully leased. Older office buildings are either torn down or converted to housing. A 50-story Devon Energy Center has changed the skyline.

235

40 Downtown aerial 1990

Arts District

Chesapeake Arena Cox Convention Center Renaissance Hotel

1993: The Central Business District is pock-marked with vast surface parking lots and undeveloped parcels left over from the stalled Urban Renewal era of the 1970s. Activity is limited to a workforce that leaves for the suburbs at quitting time Monday through Friday. Most restaurants and shops are found in the Underground pedestrian tunnels. Only one hotel, the Sheraton, is left open, and it loses its franchise. Several aging office towers are empty. Office vacancy tops 30 percent, and the newest office complex, Leadership Square, is more than half vacant, with much of the space never built out a decade after it opened.

235

Looking ahead, if such trends continue, new life may be coming soon to the area around Farmers Public Market, the Classen-10-Penn neighborhood and beyond.

A makeover of the Civic Center Music Hall and construction of a new arena and library, meanwhile, triggered redevelopment in the Arts District and Central Business District.

Bricktown Canal

Pictures taken inside the building by soldiers the day of the attack.

The renewed interest in downtown, combined with federal relief following the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah building, led to the revival of Automobile Alley. The domino effect continues, with the urban core revival hitting Film Row, Uptown 23rd, Midtown and the 16th Street Plaza District.

DW AY

On Sept. 9, 2011, nine members of a reinforced sniper team come under attack by three insurgents. The resulting firefight lasts less than 15 seconds.

BR OA

Anatomy of an attack

Spc. John Coker Jr.

Sgt. Curtis Semler

1 of 1

1/20/14 5:39 PM

Graphics/Illustrations Finalists Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Dave Croy MONEY

A good spot for a data center

OMAHA WORLD-HERALD SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 2013 SECTION D

Nebraska’s March unemployment rate of 3.8 percent matches the revised rates for the three previous months, the Nebraska Labor Department said Friday. The rate is two-tenths of a point lower than in March 2012 and half the current national rate of 7.6 percent. In Iowa, the March jobless rate dropped to 4.9 percent from 5 percent in February, Iowa Workforce Development said. The seasonally adjusted rate was 5.4 percent a year ago. Nebraska’s rate remains the second-lowest ﬁgure in the country, trailing only North Dakota’s 3.3 percent for March. In Omaha, the rate dropped to 4.3 percent from 4.6 percent in February, and Lincoln’s to 3.5 percent from a revised 3.8 percent in February. The rates for Lincoln and Omaha are not seasonally adjusted.

Nissan is recalling more than 19,000 Nissan and Infiniti SUVs because a brake part can fail and make it harder for the driver to stop the car. The recall affects Nissan Pathfinder and Infiniti JX SUVs from the 2013 model year.

teams to a hope to drive their Big Ten coaches out what Indianapolis. Find conference title in and Leaders team in Legends car represents each 27K. and 26K Pages on Divisions analysis s

t Lee Barfknecht’ Car numbers represen of finish. predicted order

FAMILY FUNDS

Norfolk newspaper post stays in family

14,547.51 (+10.37)

S&P 500 1,555.25 (+13.64)

THE LOS ANGELES TIMES

ESTFIELD, Mass. — The envelope factory where Lisa Weber works is hot and noisy. A fan she brought from home helps her keep cool as she maneuvers around whirring equipment to make her quota: 750 envelopes an hour, up from 500 a few years ago. There’s no resting: Between the video cameras and the constant threat of layoffs, Weber knows she must always be on her toes.

NASDAQ The drudgery of work at National Envelope Co. used to be relieved by small perks — an annual picnic, free hams and turkeys over the holidays — but those have long since been eliminated. “It’s harder for me to want to get up and go to work than it used to be,” said Weber, 47, who started at the factory at 19. “It’s not something I would wish on anybody. I’m worn out. I get home and I can barely stand up.”

3,206.06 (+39.70)

Bloomberg Midlands 610.99 (+5.81)

Crude oil (NYMEX) 88.01 (+0.28) World-Herald 150, 2D

The relentless drive for efﬁciency at U.S. companies has created a new harshness in the workplace. In their zeal to make sure that not a minute of time is wasted, companies are imposing rigorous performance quotas, forcing many people to put in extra hours, paid or not. Video cameras and software keep tabs on worker performance, tracking their computer See Harsh work: Page 2

OMAHA.COM/ MONEYTALKS

Keep up with the latest news on our business blog.

ST.

Hot Springs Hot Springs National Park

Grand Promenade

Hot Springs Rehabilitation Center

ST.

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Good news for sellers: Home prices and sales continue to climb in Omaha and Iowa BY CINDY GONZALEZ WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Home sales and prices continue to climb in the Omaha area and in Iowa — with the state of Iowa this summer hitting its highest median sales price since at least 2005. According to a new housing trends report released by the Iowa Association of Realtors, the number of home sales

that closed in July was up 18 percent over last July. Since the start of the year, sales are up about 8 percent compared with 2012. Meanwhile, the median price of Iowa homes that sold in July rose to about $143,000, a 7 percent increase over last July. Don Marple, association president, said the last two months marked the highest average and median sales

prices since the association began its current data tracking system in 2005. He said the average number of days a sold home stayed on the market has dropped 20 percent since last year, to about 78 days. That turnaround time is the quickest since the summer of 2005. “Properties are moving fast,” Marple said. In the Omaha area, the number of home sales that closed so far this year

is up about 6 percent over last year, while the number of homes signed to a contract in July jumped 19 percent over the previous July. The median sales price increased about 3 percent last month compared with the year before, to $148,000, according to the Omaha Area Board of Realtors. The average time a sold home stayed on the market in the Omaha area has

dropped more than 20 percent from last July’s level, from 55 to 43 days. Lower inventory likely has contributed to the faster turnaround in today’s seller’s market, agents say. In both Iowa and Omaha, the number of homes for sale is about 8 percent lower than in July 2012.

Screen height at eye level, not having to look up, down, left or right.

Cervical curve

Don’t drive your posture by pulling your shoulders up and back. That will give you neck and shoulder pain. The muscles that hold you upright are the muscles between your ribs and your hips in the front and the back. Those are your primary stabilizers.

Thoracic curve

Elbow is at 90 degrees and you’re not having to reach away from your body. Your arms are supported (chair arms).

ERGONOMICALLY SOUND The first thing any office worker can do to improve back health is make the workspace “ergonomically sound.” (Ergonomics is the study of efficiency in the workplace, including the bodily motions required to do a job.) Some large companies offer free ergonomic assessments through their human resources or occupational health departments, Orellano says. For those not lucky enough to work for such a company, she offers these tips: m The computer screen should be at eye level so that the user is not having to look up, down, left or right. If a document holder is used, it should also be at eye level next to the computer screen. m The mouse should be placed so the user’s elbow is at a 90-degree angle and the arm isn’t having to reach away from the body. The user’s arms should be supported. m The user’s back should be supported so he’s not slumping. “You should maintain the three normal curves of your spine — the inward cervical curve, the outward thoracic curve and the inward lumbar curve,” Orellano says. m The user’s feet should touch the floor. Short workers should use a footrest for comfort. m A wrist rest should be used to avoid carpal tunnel syndrome, and the keyboard should be in front of the worker, not off to the side. m While talking on the telephone, the worker should use a headset or the speaker phone function rather than cradling the phone between his head and shoulder.

90º Lumbar curve Wrist rest for keyboard to avoid carpal tunnel. Keyboard should be in front of you, not to the side.

Sit on your ischial tuberosities — also called “sit bones.”

SIT UP STRAIGHT

Feet touching the ﬂoor. SOURCES: M.J. Orellano, rehabilitation program manager for outpatient therapy at University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences; Cyclopedia Anatomicae

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/DUSTY HIGGINS

Once a workspace is set up for bodily comfort and convenience, it’s important not to burrow in and work all day. According to Orellano, every office worker should set a reminder to do two things throughout the workday. m “Stand up every hour, even if it’s just for 60 seconds or 30 seconds,” she says.

See BACK on Page 6E

Hogeye Marathon lops off a few hills CELIA STOREY

GRAND PROMENADE Arlington Hotel

Lions and tigers and SUVs? Zoo partnership revs up

SECTION D OMAHA WORLD-HERALD TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

A typical day in the life of an American office drone: Get up. Go to work. Sit at a desk for eight hours. Go home. Slouch in front of the television, chat with a few Facebook friends. Go to bed. Do it again the next day. Sedentary jobs and lifestyles are among the key causes of back, neck and shoulder pain. Sitting in the same position day in and day out weakens muscles and causes spinal degeneration, says M.J. Orellano, rehabilitation program manager for outpatient therapy at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock. “We are not designed to sit eight hours, drive home, sit on the couch for another four hours and then go to bed and sleep eight hours at night,” she says. “You’re not going to do that and be healthy — not posturally or any other way.” Sitting at a desk all day can cause hip flexors and hamstrings to become too tight and weaken core muscles, back extensors and gluteal muscles, creating inadequate support for the spine. “Muscles are what hold you upright,” Orellano says. “If you don’t use your muscles, you end up hanging on your ligaments.” This, in turn, causes ligaments to get overstretched and decreases the space between your vertebrae. There is hope for the average office drone, however. There are even activities to do while sitting at a desk that can help maintain a healthy back and reduce the risk of developing back pain.

Back should be supported so you’re not slumping. You should maintain the three normal curves of your spine — inward cervical curve, outward thoracic curve and inward lumbar curve.

Use a headset or speaker phone so that you’re not pinching the telephone between your shoulder and your ear.

Happy trails

E RESERV

MONEY

m Set a reminder to stand up every hour, even if it’s just for 30 seconds. m Sit actively, meaning get off the back of the chair. Weight should be distributed through pelvis and through your legs and feet. Sit up tall with your ribs lifted away from your hips. Feet touching the ﬂoor. Relax the shoulders. m Breathe ﬂuidly and rhythmically. Many people hold their breath at their desks. It increases muscle tension, which increases their pain.

See ASK on Page 3E

CENTRAL AVE.

Dow Industrials

2013

THE HEAT IS ON

Some employers push for more and more, and it’s wearing down workers

MARKETWATCH

Money. Oh, sweet money. The time has come to teach my oldest about the green stuff, and we are not exactly sure what we are doing. Admittedly, we may be overcomplicating it a bit, but the world and our view of finances are different than they were 10 years ago. Like many others who were taught personal finance before the 2008 crash, my wife and I had learned that debt wasn’t all bad. We were warned not to go spending like crazy but also told that things like mortgages and student loans could help us get a start in life and that credit cards were convenient credit builders. And we had it all — car payments, a mortgage, student loans. We were an all-too-typical Gen X couple. But then the market tanked, I lost one job, and then two and, I will not lie, that period was rough. Due to my income’s sudden and drastic reduction, our debt was no longer “helping” us do anything, so we were forced to relearn some personal finance basics. The credit card was no longer an option, and we dramatiSee Donnelly: Page 2

PREVIEW

D AV E C R O Y / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

BALL COLLEGE FOOT

— From wire reports

Chris Donnelly

Tough times can offer lessons for kids

T 25, • SUNDAY, AUGUS SECTION THREE

Another member of the Huse family has become publisher of the Norfolk (Neb.) Daily News. Jerry Huse has stepped down in favor of his son, Bill. Jerry Huse will remain president of the Daily News. Bill Huse’s greatgreat-grandfather, William Huse, in 1888 became publisher and owner of the Daily News in partnership with his son, W.N. Huse. W.N. Huse followed as publisher until he died in 1913. His son, Gene Huse, took over until 1956, when Jerry Huse became publisher.

TRACY M. ROGERS

Creating an ergonomic workspace

JANET ROGET SPECIAL TO THE DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

Some people thrive on regular exercise. These enthusiasts can be fanatical about scheduling their workouts and making sure that nothing gets in the way of their exercise sessions. These fit specimens view exercise as their joie de vivre and rely on this daily tonic to relieve stress and renew energy. And without it, they fall to pieces. It’s no wonder that, having found happiness and a sense of well-being through exercise, they want to spread this good news. It’s like discovering religion for the first time. But, as George Carlin said, “Religion is like a pair of shoes … find one that fits you, but don’t make me wear it.” In other words, what is good for the goose is not always good for the gander. Sometimes, in our enthusiasm to inspire our loved ones to live healthier lives, we push too hard, alienating them. The harder we nudge and implore, the deeper their resolve not to change. I am not a behavioral psychologist, but in my time as a personal trainer I have learned a thing or two about what motivates people to start an exercise program. And it is almost never their spouse or partner. In fact, an overzealous partner can be the reason a couch potato chooses to stay glued to the tube. A few years ago, I received a call from a well-intentioned husband who wanted me to work with his wife. She was depressed after the birth of their third child, and he wanted me to help her lose weight and regain her energy. Basically, he wanted the return of his pre-pregnancy fit and happy wife, and he was convinced that she wanted the same thing. But after meeting with her, I knew she was not ready to adhere to an exercise program. She could barely get out of bed in the morning, much less run a household while nursing and taking care of a newborn and two older children. She was exhausted, and to make matters worse, her husband traveled all the time and managed to maintain his exercise program and fit physique even as hers deteriorated. At that period in her life, the last thing on her mind was starting an exercise program. A year later she called me and initiated a session in which we developed a workout plan that fit her lifestyle. She followed through with her exercise routine, lost weight and regained her confidence. She did this on her own initiative and in her own good time.

See CREW: Page 4

Nissan recall tied to brakes

Activities keep back strong for sedentary workers

Personal trainer Janet Roget answers questions submitted by readers of ActiveStyle.

Race to Indy

McDonald’s said Friday that a global sales figure declined in the first quarter and warned that it was expected to dip in April as well.The last time the quarterly sales figure declined was in 2003. A monthly sales figure also fell for the first time in nearly a decade late last year. For the quarter, McDonald’s said global sales at restaurants open at least 13 months fell 1 percent. That included a 1.2 percent drop in the U.S., where it has been trying to boost sales by touting its Dollar Menu, a strategy that analysts warn could eat away at profit margins.

MONDAY, APRIL 8, 2013

Don’t just sit there

Prodding won’t get your spud off couch

BY BARBARA SODERLIN AND CINDY GONZALEZ

McDonald’s quarterly drop is first in decade

ASK THE TRAINER

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS

The Internal Revenue Service will close all of its public operations on ﬁve days from now through August because of employee furloughs, acting commissioner Steve Miller told employees in a memo Friday. The tax agency will be closed and almost all employees will be furloughed on May 24, June 14, July 5, July 22 and Aug. 30. The closing will affect operations such as the IRS tollfree lines and taxpayer assistance centers.

ACTIVESTYLE

ARKANSAS ONLINE www.arkansasonline.com

estate professionals hears that Omaha is well-positioned.

Furloughs prompt IRS closings

By: Dusty Higgins Matt Parrott adds an upper body element to your indoor cycling. PAGE 6E

■ Gathering of real

The chilly breeze blowing through Omaha on Friday was just one reason the Omaha-Council Bluffs metro area is well-positioned for the continued expansion and addition of data centers, experts told a gathering of real estate professionals. Cool conditions, which lower energy costs for the power-hungry computing hubs, along with low electricity rates and isolation from natural disasters will make the region attractive as growth in demand for data centers outpaces growth of supply by 2-to-1, said Tim Huffman, an executive vice president at Colliers International and the national director of the firm’s Data Center Solutions Group, based in Atlanta. He spoke as part of the 24th annual CREW Commercial Real Estate Workshop, attended by about 500 brokers, attorneys, lenders, contractors and others in the industry. Brokers have opportunities to work with companies to bring more data centers to the region, but brokers should know that finding the perfect site for a data center takes far more attention to detail than for a typical commercial site, said Courtney Dunbar of Olsson Associates. There can be as many as 75 different “site characteristics” a firm will consider before deciding on the best location, Dunbar said. She said brokers can assess possible sites ahead of time and be prepared to market them when opportunity knocks. Local and state economic development leaders are “aggressively” targeting data centers, which don’t require a large workforce but do impact the availability of land. Google, Yahoo and Fidelity are among the firms that operate their own data centers, while CoSentry and the Scott Data Center are available

Publication:

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Master class

BUSINESS BRIEFS Nebraska jobless rate steady; Iowa’s dips

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Matt Haney

BY JANICE PODSADA

part of the yearlong partnership, a half-dozen Chevrolet vehicles — including the new 2014 Impala sedan — will be located at any one time throughout the zoo’s 130-acre expanse. The cars, trucks and SUVs will feature special signs to provide visitors with facts about the vehicles as well as about some of the zoo’s most popular animals. “We are really excited about our zoo partnership,” said Gregg Young, president of Heartland Chevy Dealers, a group of 13 Chevrolet dealers serving the greater Omaha and

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

The Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium will add an Impala to its collection this year. The new addition, however, won’t be a member of the sleek African antelope group, but the fourdoor Chevrolet sedan with the same name. Heartland Chevy Dealers is partnering with Henry Doorly to help support the institution’s new exhibits, special events and worldwide animal conservation programs. As

Lincoln area. He said the dealers can’t think of a ﬁner local venue to show area families new Chevy cars and trucks. Last year, 1.7 million people visited the Omaha zoo. Heartland, which initiated the partnership, also will sponsor several zoo events throughout the year, including “Spooktacular,” the zoo’s annual Halloween event; the Zoo Run; and Zoofari, a twice-yearly fundraising event. The Omaha Zoo Foundation in concert with Dennis Pate, the zoo’s executive director and

chief executive, approved the partnership, said Tina Cherica, the foundation’s executive director. “We purposely select partnerships with strong roots in our community, that ﬁt within our family-friendly environment and appreciate the importance of our overall mission as an organization,” Cherica said. This isn’t the ﬁrst time vehicles have been displayed at Henry Doorly Zoo. During this year’s Father’s Day event, “Zoom 2013,” See Partnership: Page 2

Location: The south trailhead steps are on Hot Springs’ Reserve Street just east of Central Avenue. Length: The wide, historic brick pathway is a halfmile long between Reserve and Fountain streets with several dirt and gravel offshoot options for

longer, more strenuous hikes. Main attractions: One of the loveliest walkways in the nation, the mostly level trail passes gurgling hot springs

ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/MICHAEL STOREY

Hot Springs’ Grand Promenade is a natural stroll just a block from busy Central Avenue.

and shady areas just a block east of busy Central Avenue. Hazards: Watch small hands. The thermal springs bubble out at 143 degrees and your child could be parboiled quickly. Dog, bike, tyke friendly? No bikes, but dogs and kiddies love it. Rating (out of five): ..... — Michael Storey Know a good trail for a hike? E-mail mstorey@arkansasonline.com

MONEY

MARKETWATCH Dow Industrials 15,010.74 (-70.73)

See HOGEYE on Page 3E

NWA Images file/WILLIAM MOORE

Half-marathoners (from left) Nancy Weber, Vina Hyde, Debra Callaway and Mary Edwards, all of Kansas, cheer as they reach the peak of the hill on Block Avenue near the end of the 2012 Hogeye Marathon. New courses for 2013 mean racers will not have to climb the long, long hill to reach their finish lines.

FOOD

In Family A gallery with a goal.

PAGE 4E

Contact the writer: 402-444-1224, cindy.gonzalez@owh.com

The biggest change in store Sunday for racers in the 37th annual Hogeye Marathon and Relays is less change — in elevation. The 26.2-mile footrace and its shorter sibling races (four-person relay, Corporate Challenge, 5K Run/ Walk) have new, less hilly courses in Fayetteville, and all of them finish on relatively level ground in the Dickson Street Entertainment District. Race director Tabby Holmes expects to hear some rejoicing. “Yes, there should be, and there has been, and there will be more,” Holmes says. “We’ve been wanting to finish downtown, down on Dickson Street for a couple of years,” she explains, but with the city working

ARKANSAS ONLINE www.arkansasonline.com

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2013

FRONT BURNER

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2013 • SECTION D

S&P 500 1,646.06 (-9.77)

NASDAQ

THE NEW SHAKEDOWN

3,589.09 (-13.69)

Bloomberg Midlands 636.65 (-1.53)

Crude oil (NYMEX) 107.10 (-0.36)

BUSINESS BRIEFS

4th straight drop for stocks U.S. stocks dropped for a fourth day in a row Monday as investors continued to worry about the recent rise in bond yields. Banking stocks also dragged down the broader market. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.88 percent from 2.83 percent Friday. Yields are at their highest level since July 2011. The quick rise in bond yields has worried some investors because it leads to higher interest rates on many kinds of loans, including home mortgages and corporate loans. Monday’s losses come after the Dow posted its worst week of 2013. The benchmark index fell 2.2 percent last week, and the S&P 500 lost 2.1 percent. The Dow and the S&P 500 have not had a four-day losing streak since December 2012.

Samsung’s new phone a giant Smartphones are getting bigger as people use them more to watch movies and play games. A new one from Samsung is beyond big. With a screen measuring 6.3 inches diagonally, the Galaxy Mega is almost as big as a 7-inch tablet computer. AT&T Inc. says it will start selling the Mega on Friday for $150 with a two-year service contract. The Mega is also coming to Sprint and U.S. Cellular. Dates and prices weren’t available for those carriers.

Zillow buys competitor Zillow Inc., operator of the largest U.S. real estate website, agreed to acquire StreetEasy for $50 million in cash to expand its coverage of the New York market. StreetEasy has about 1.2 million monthly unique users, primarily residential real-estate shoppers in the New York region, the companies said in a statement Monday. Separately, Zillow also announced a secondary stock offering. — From wire reports

RETAIL WRAP-UP

D AV E C R O Y / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

Fed up with harassment, debtors turn the tables on overly aggressive bill collectors BY RUSSELL HUBBARD

few years ago, Lexington, Neb., resident Jeremy Walton got tired of bill collectors, so he turned the tables and ﬁled a half-dozen lawsuits against them, collecting several thousand dollars and erasing a substantial chunk of debt in the process. “Fair is fair,” Walton said. “They were working me, so I worked them. I got to where I would push and prod them on the phone to get them angry.” And at some point, Walton hoped, to get them to commit a violation of the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, a 1970s law passed to protect debtors from harassing, abusive or unethical bill recovery efforts. It happened often enough, Walton said, that he collected several hundred dollars per suit after the bill collectors agreed to settle and slash or forgive amounts allegedly owed rather than ﬁght it out in court.

ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD

Walton, who says the debts in question were incurred by an ex-girlfriend under his name, is not alone in his use of the federal law to silence collection efforts. Federal court records show a sharply increased willingness by Nebraska consumers to take their bill collectors to court. In 2009, court records indicate, there were eight such suits filed the whole year. The number has steadily risen, with more than a dozen in 2010 and successive years. There have been 19 so far this year. The intensified willingness to take bill collectors to court, according to interviews with debtors and their attorneys and collectors and their attorneys, is attributable to an increased awareness of debtors’ rights, the ease of finding an applicable attorney via the Internet and more lawyers actively pursuing such cases in See Debt: Page 2

NEBRASKA LAWSUITS AGAINST BILL COLLECTORS 2013 so far: 19 19

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

SOURCE: U.S. District Court THE WORLD-HERALD

Shadow Lake on a roll with tires, more BY JANICE PODSADA WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Work crews at Shadow Lake Towne Center are busy constructing two new buildings that will welcome several new retailers over the next few months. A Firestone Complete Auto Care Store, which is expected to open by the end of October, will occupy one of the buildings. The 7,600-square-foot store will have 10 bays and offer a variety of automotive services and products, including vehicle inspections, oil changes, engine repair and new tires and batteries. The second building, a 7,700-square-foot structure, will house a Sprint store and two additional tenants that have not yet been named. The building’s planned completion date is October. Sprint is expected to open before the end of the year, said Kim Jones, the center’s marketing director. See Retail: Page 2

Shonda Knop of Fremont, Neb., is concerned that magnets in iPads could cause the valve in a shunt in son Jacoby’s head to malfunction.

Family targets tablets’ magnets

KELLY BRANT

Pumpkin soup recipe a delight for vegetarians Chances are your menu for Thursday’s feast is all set. But in the event you’re still working on the final touches, or you need a last-minute replacement, this spiced pumpkin soup is ready to serve in less than 30 minutes. And the best part is it can be made with ingredients you probably have in your pantry — canned pumpkin, onion, chicken broth, curry powder, cumin, heavy cream and coconut milk. OK, so you might not have coconut milk. But it isn’t too late for a quick trip to the grocery store. If you wanted to turn this vegetarian-friendly soup into a meat-eaters main dish, it is delicious with leftover chicken or turkey added.

BY BOB GLISSMANN WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

The computer tablets that are so helpful to students across the country also may pose a health risk to some if they get too close to magnets in the tablets. Shonda Knop’s 6-year-old son, Jacoby, likes to use his first-generation iPad, and Knop considers iPads a great educational resource. But the Fremont, Neb., mom is concerned that magnets in newer versions of the Apple device — the ones his classmates use — could cause a pressure-control valve in the shunt in Jacoby’s head to malfunction. That could lead to too much or too little fluid being drained from around his brain, possibly causing seizures. So Knop is calling on Apple to take the magnets out of iPads to remove any risk. Jacoby was born with spina bifida, an opening in the spinal column through which the spinal cord can protrude. Complications can range from minor physical problems to severe physical and mental disabilities. Jacoby is unable to walk and has hydrocephalus, which is a buildup of cerebrospinal fluid in See Magnets: Page 3

Shoes stay on in Eppley’s new PreCheck lane BY PAIGE YOWELL WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

As Donna Yost headed through Eppley Airﬁeld’s south security checkpoint Wednesday on her way to Nashville, Tenn., the process was surprisingly hassle-free. She left her shoes and light jacket on as she passed through the metal detector in the far right security lane with the “PreCheck” sign hanging above it. That’s because Yost was randomly selected to use the Transportation Security Administration’s new PreCheck lane, now available at Eppley’s south security checkpoint in Terminal A. PreCheck allows pre-approved passengers to pass through some security checkpoints without having to remove their shoes, light outerwear and belt, laptops from cases and carry-on liquids and gels from carry-on luggage. “It was evidently random,” Yost said, noting that her husband was not selected for PreCheck, probably because his ﬂight reservations were booked separately. “It’s great,” she added. “I hate taking my shoes off.” The agency announced last month it would be expanding the expedited screening program to 60 new airports, including Omaha. Omaha’s PreCheck lane was made available to passengers on Oct. 10. Earlier this month, TSA began randomly selecting passengers to be eligible for PreCheck See PreCheck: Page 2

Curried CoconutPumpkin Soup

TWILIGHT OF THE LANDLINE

Telecom firms’ response to a hurricane may be a peek at the future: the end of traditional phone service THE NEW YORK TIMES

NEBRASKA TELEPHONE SUBSCRIPTIONS 1.50 million

1.33 million LANDLINE

1.25

1.00

1.04 million

0.75

WIRELESS

740,787

0.50

394,045 0.25 ‘98

‘00

‘02

‘04

‘06

‘08

‘10

‘12

SOURCE: Nebraska Public Service Commission THE WORLD-HERALD

MANTOLOKING, N.J. — Superstorm Sandy devastated this barrier island community of multimillion-dollar homes, but in Peter Flihan’s view, Verizon Communications has delivered a second blow: The telecommunications giant did not rebuild the landlines destroyed in the storm, and traditional telephone service here has now gone the way of the telegraph. “Verizon decides then and there to step on us,” said Flihan, 75, a retired toy designer and marketer. Verizon said it was too expensive to replace Mantoloking’s traditional copper-line phone network — the kind that

has connected America for more than a century — and instead installed Voice Link, a wireless service it insisted was better. Verizon’s move on this sliver of land is a look into the not-too-distant future, a foreshadowing of nearly all telephone service across the United States. The traditional landline is not expected to last the decade in a country where nearly 40 percent of households use only wireless phones. Even now, less than 10 percent of households have only a landline phone, according to government data that count cable-based phone service in that category.

ON PAGE 2D Telecom companies that serve the Midlands see a demand for landline phones that should last past the end of the decade.

In Nebraska and Iowa, the number of SEE LANDLINE: PAGE 2

M AT T H A N E Y / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

MARKETWATCH Dow Industrials 15,413.33 (-54.33)

S&P 500 1,746.38 (-8.29)

NASDAQ 3,907.07 (-22.50)

Bloomberg Midlands 638.11 (-2.96)

Crude oil (NYMEX) 96.86 (-1.44) World-Herald 150, 2D

BUSINESS BRIEFS

FedEx expects increase in holiday deliveries FedEx predicts a happier holiday season this year, with shipments rising from 2012. The company said Wednesday that it expects to carry more than 22 million shipments on the busiest day of the season, which it believes will be Monday, Dec. 2, the ﬁrst workday after the Thanksgiving weekend. FedEx predicts that shipments in the ﬁrst week of December will rise 13 percent over last year’s peak week, to more than 85 million shipments.

Buffett has conﬁdence in IBM

Reser’s food recalled

Warren Buffett, who invested more than $11 billion in International Business Machines Corp., said he is conﬁdent in the computer-service provider’s prospects after the stock slumped last week. “They will have record per-share earnings this year,” Buffett, 83, said on the “Charlie Rose” show on PBS this week. IBM is seeking to expand in more proﬁtable markets like software and services to make up for the deterioration of its older hardware business. The company reported its sixth straight quarter of declining sales last week.

An Oregon company is recalling about 109,000 cases of refrigerated prepared salads and other ready-to-eat foods because of possible listeria contamination. The items were produced at Reser’s Fine Foods’ plant in Topeka, Kan., and were distributed across the U.S. and in Canada. A list of the recalled products can be found at the Food and Drug Administration website, http://1.usa.gov/1cYFy8A.

Nissan recalls SUVs over brake problem Nissan Motor Co. is recalling more than 188,000 Nissan and Infiniti SUVs worldwide to fix faulty brake control software that could increase the risk of a crash. The recall covers some Nissan Pathfinders from the 2013 and 2014 model years, as well as the 2013 Infiniti JX35 and its successor model, the 2014 QX60.

2 teaspoons coconut oil OR olive oil 1 clove garlic, minced ¼ cup minced onion 1 tablespoon hot madras curry powder ½ teaspoon ground cumin 2 tablespoons brown sugar 1 (15- to 16-ounce) can pumpkin puree 1 cup vegetable OR chicken broth 1 (15-ounce) can coconut milk (I used “lite”) Salt and ground black pepper ¼ cup heavy cream Shredded or diced cooked turkey or chicken, optional Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish Heat oil in a medium pot over medium-low heat. Add garlic and onion and cook, stirring frequently, until onion is translucent. Stir in curry powder and cumin and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Add the brown sugar and pumpkin and whisk in the broth and coconut milk, whisking until well combined. Season with salt and ground black pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook 15 minutes. Stir in the cream (and turkey if using) and continue cooking just until heated through. Garnish each serving with cilantro. Makes 4 to 6 servings. Recipe adapted from David Venable of QVC

An American in Paris Plan to serve French friends traditional meal sets off frantic search for turkey, cornmeal, Crisco

REBECCA SABOUNCHI SPECIAL TO THE DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

While living in Paris for several years, my husband and I faithfully traveled back to Arkansas every Thanksgiving to join the family at my parents’ house for a traditional Thanksgiving feast. Our Thanksgiving menu has been exactly the same for as far back as I can remember (as it still is today): baked ham, turkey with cornbread dressing, mashed potatoes, candied yams, broccoli and rice casserole, green beans, creamed corn, assorted salads and hot, buttered rolls. As always with our family dinners, the meal is followed by a critical mass of desserts, including, for Thanksgiving and Christmas, homemade pumpkin and

pecan pies. The definition of Thanksgiving chez nous: a veritable feast that renders one practically lifeless for the remainder of the day and into the next. In other words, a true American holiday. The many friends we met while living in Paris — not only French, but many other nationalities from the far corners of the world — were fascinated with the idea of “La Fête du Thanksgiving.” For the French in particular our Thanksgiving meets all of the French criteria for a grand holiday event: “un grand repas” (a great meal), a family gathering, and a reason to celebrate that is both traditional and, in a sense, patriotic. “Le patrimoine” is the French word that describes the shared sense of tradition, cultural heritage and his-

tory that surrounds and envelops our Thanksgiving celebration. As it turns out, our Thanksgiving is not only the most American, but the most French, of all our holidays. One November evening in Paris, over dinner with friends, the subject turned to the forthcoming Thanksgiving holiday. I was pleased to learn that the non-Americans among us were not only aware of the significance of the holiday for Americans, but well-versed in its history and tradition, its connection to the Pilgrims and Plymouth Rock, even the differing opinions

See PARIS on Page 3E Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/DUSTY HIGGINS

GADGETS & GIZMOS

A menu mainstay: Mashed potatoes KATHLEEN PURVIS

from home and they’re inviting their boyfriend [or] girlfriend over for Thanksgiving, the turkey and the mashed potatoes are the two critical items. And a lot of times, they weren’t in the kitchen watching how they were made. So it’s a panic call: ‘How do I make mashed potatoes?’” We’ve got you covered on that.

THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER

— From wire reports

We’ve baked a number of pie shells “blind,” unfilled but weighted down with foil and dried beans, rice, etc. The Pie Weight Disc from Williams-Sonoma tops them all. This new tool looks like a daisy with its silicone petals and handle, and has a perforated steel center. Designed to fit 9- to 11-inch diameter pie pans, those silicone flaps fit nicely up the sides of the shell, preventing shrinking and puffing. The perforated metal deters a soggy bottom crust and promotes browning. $12.95 — Chicago Tribune

What is it with you people and mashed potatoes? Mention comfort food and they’re always on the list. Ask almost anyone for their favorite dish and mashers will come up. Lastmeal requests by prisoners? Mashed potatoes (with brown gravy) make that list, too. “The popularity is amazing,” says Don Odiorne, the vice president of food service for the Idaho Potato Commission. “One of my favorite quotes is from a chef who said, ‘I could serve a brick if I paired it with mashed potatoes.’” Consumption of all potato dishes fell for a few years in the early 2000s (thanks, Dr. Atkins). But numbers released early this year show they’ve been going back up (thanks, recession). Since restaurant visits also slowed for a few years, that

WHICH POTATOES?

Photo courtesy of the Idaho Potato Commission

Mashed potatotes are a Thanksgiving favorite.

also has meant an increase in people cooking at home, and in tough times, we reach for things that are familiar, cheap and comforting. Odiorne says traffic on the Idaho Potato Commission website doubles from

Nov. 15 to Dec. 15: “We have the same effect that Butterball turkey has.” The biggest question on their “Ask Dr. Potato” section, he says, is about mashed potatoes. “If someone moves away

Potatoes and their mashability fit into three categories: Baking potatoes. Usually called russets or Idaho, they’re longer and flatter. They are higher in starch, so they have a drier texture when cooked. They make fluffy mashed potatoes. Boiling potatoes. These usually have red skins and

See MASHED on Page 8E

greatplainsawards.org / 47

Editorial Cartoon Winner Publication: Tulsa World By: Bruce Plante Judges’ Comments: A strong package of cartoons by Bruce Plante. Special recognition for his cartoon on gay marriage that first presents the issue, and proceeds to express his own viewpoint with a completely visual “punchline”. It’s a creative, subtle, and powerful combination of idea and artwork.

48 / greatplainsawards.org

Editorial Cartoon Finalists Publication: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette By: John Deering

Editorial Page

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Jeff Koterba

t works for all

ention of Baptists in Housmore right to demand that outs of America remove the BSA has to force Bapto sponsor a Scout troop. ms up in Rhode Island, aptists what John Wesley ists, would surely underremember our American he was a champion of the religious and civil spheres .

E’S a single, illuminating that should guide all in immering controversy, it’s pect for freedom of assoe newspapers (ahem) dended the Baptists’ rights hen they started kicking outs to the curb. For those urches have the same edom of association that e all have in this country. a church feels the BSA has t it in an untenable posin, it has every right to pull s Scout troop. h churches, or their nationn, can’t or at least shouldn’t BSA it has to live by their he way they think, or fire use they hold different beSouthern Baptist Conven-

Editorial Page

he Southern Baptist Conan overwhelming vote— freedom of association in tates of America when it hes to disassociate themhe national Boy Scouts of when it comes to the Boy freedom? Like the right to good.Not But a not-soders? sothen much. likesays, the law involved. ng yougot can go your u can even go your own H. The attorney general of g your finger at the heaansas, Mcsagree namely with you.Dustin What you iel, issued an opinion writin this country, is impose f hison staffers iefs others.last week that districts can’tScouts arm teachers some Boy in Armembersthat under a lawjust that learned lesson ateOthers, securityincluding on campus. y. some the agency eed state to learn it, too.in charge g private security agencies esignating districts UR part, weschool can’t close toompanies carefuliscussion so of some this continuteachers or staff couldand be uhaha without noting, the opinion from statement madethe at AG’s that schoolIt districts are n that Houston. came from divisions, not private orgaDale, a representative of go, theFirst sound of screeching rings Baptist Church ama, the lone speaker at hool districtstoare (1) defive gathering oppose the private, andthe(2) definitely enouncing Boy Scouts he help more than ever. bdivisions. Therefore, the Noting that the Scouts disGAO’s report says that the eral’s office reasoned, they xual activity in general on nt also paid out more than ed to beDale licensed asthe securiys, Mr. said of hoto more than people qualified arm 1,100 teachers or s: deadto een a year or more. eink logic of for the genwe’d kickattorney such a boy ad the report at gao.gov. If nSunday strikes us as impeccable. I don’t ar to. the Schools. ange ould holdlaw. the Boy Scouts ernment’s investigators don’t n’twe seem to be too difficult. would not on our Department ofput Agriculture ssion of theneeds Legislature, the ch achecks boy ourfarmers. love. ding dead ed for next to year, isBiblical a fiscal them what real evenchange call on might the government any have to bout checks and lovetothem.” ding farmersyou who uary of 2015. (Though ale even drew some apdead for more than a plantabout special the crowd. He sessions.) certainly harvestning, as growing feasible, and lawmakers season.making What the GAO ting a statute it clear points is thatcarry the USDA may letout staffers firedoesn’t have any policies setting down appropriatein place that could raise So red s, like firearms training. flags when a farmer covered n license school districts to by one of its programs dies. ty agencies for the purpose the department hasn’t gFor their campuses. Problem patent exclusivity, Justice been matching listcourt, of paromas wrote forits the armers Secuhe law with andthe don’t ng discovery isreality aSocial naturally istration’s records. It should ignore law. Change it. ng. Isaacthe Newton couldn’t t somebody at the USDA our he kids and teachdrotect the apple watched fall erkansas. a phone call to if the That’s reasonable. nor the theory ofsee gravity uld keep goingItout. n reasonable. needs to be ntly developed. He could, y.e patented a new tool that in the federal bureaucracy athematically rigorous unthink that $36 million is just of gravity. nding error in the scheme s of the court’s stand say fter all, $36 million in a $20nted patent barriers will

e law

makers

COLUMNISTS

Chicken scratching

miss my chickens. As my wife and I go about relocating to central Arkansas, we gave away our small backyard flock. We especially miss our barred Plymouth Rock rooster Myles, who has awakened us every morning for the past five years. I like having chickens for several reasons, not the least being that it provides a tangible link to firms began specializing in transporting live an earlier era. Our ancestors—even town resi- chickens to markets in Kansas City and St. dents—kept chickens as a source of inexpensive Louis. Willis Shaw of Elm Springs established a protein, both eggs and meat. Each time I reach trucking company that took poultry to the Midinto a nest and retrieve a handful of beautiful west. Charles George was another early hauler, brown eggs, I experience a sense of wonderment, and in 1930 he started a hatchery to provide and I would not be surprised if generations be- chickens to a growing number of producers. The Roosevelt New Deal paved U.S. 71 from fore me had the same satisfying sensation. Few Arkansans grow chickens today, but Kansas City through Northwest Arkansas to those who do often produce 10,000 or more New Orleans, further opening markets. The Great Depression was rough on farmers birds in long metal houses. Arkansas is among the country’s top chicken-producing states. Ex- in general, but poultry production increased cepting the razorback hog, no animal is more as struggling farmers were attracted to poultry emblematic of modern Arkansas. It did not as an income supplement. Between 1933-1936, poultry production in Benton County alone happen overnight. The first Arkansan to raise poultry commer- grew from one million to three million birds. Poultry nutrition in these early years was not cially will probably never be known. University well understood. Steve Strausberg of Arkansas historian Brent E. Riffel, described the usual feed regimen author of the entry on poultry in as “a special dry mush from feed the Encyclopedia of Arkansas Histocompanies or semi-solid mush conry & Culture, noted that Springdale businessman Millard Berry acquired COLUMNISTS taining skimmed milk or semi-solid buttermilk. After six weeks the an incubator for large-scale chicken chickens were fed cracked corn and production in 1893. In 1897 Berry mash until the 12th week. They were helped found the Arkansas Poultry finished on a wet mash.” Breeders Association. Disease has always been a major threat to Northwest Arkansas has been the center of hen is a coup notthe a coup? WhenRiffel it’s ”a poultry, especially when chicks were grown in poultry production from beginning. andOzarks difficultwere issue.” was large numbers. The National Poultry Improvenotes that complex the western notThat conduthe unconvincing word White ment Plan, with strong support from Northwest cive to widespread row cropping, sofrom diversificaHouse secretary he was Arkansas hatcheries, gradually eliminated nution waspress common, withJay theCarney averagewhen Northwest asked about Egypt’s latestcattle, coup. growing Poor Jay Carney. Arkansas farmer having apples merous egg-borne diseases from hatchery flocks. He may the least White House press In 1938 a group of poultry producers and and otherbe fruits, and credible raising poultry. secretary since Ziegler,the who had the Agristicky businessmen formed the Northwest Arkansas For more thanRon a century, Arkansas job of defending theStation indefensible Nixon might lend needed Coup is Show,some which helpedperspective: promote cooperacultural Experiment at theRichard University of Broiler as the truth on his boss duringpoultry the late tion short for the producers. French coup d’état, literally a blow between Arkansas hasclosed been in promoting modern unpleasantness known as Watergate. state. The firstnever use ofreached the term have it has theseems levelsto found husbandry. One early Experiment Station publi- of Though When is afarmers coup not coup? When “a very in been in connection not with overthrow of a Northwest Arkansas, the the poultry industry cation urged toaconstruct wellit’s ventilatfluid according Stategood Department legitimateinto rulerSouthwest but with the restoration his Arkansas duringofthe ed andsituation,” clean chicken houses,toselect breeds expanded spokeswoman Jen Psaki, demostrating that you full and rightful authority: such as Plymouth Rocks or Wyandottes, and 1930s. In north central Arkansas, J.K. Southercansick always count on Foggy Bottom to evade a landWhen the young Louis XIII, all of 8 years of Batesville was a poultry pioneer. As old an cull individuals. question. in 1610,man, succeeded his assassinated father, Henry Southerland recalled transporting The late Stephen F. Strausberg in his histo- elderly When is aincoup not anoted coup?that To quote the chickens IV, to thein throne of France, his mother, Marie“so de’ an old truck without a heater, ry of poultry Arkansas the early president himself, who’s supposed to be a great Medici, became regent. But the real befire and growth of the poultry industry in Northwest we had to heat a brick or a rock in thepower speaker, when it’s“the “a transition to democracy.” hind it the throne andsacks the villain ofitthe story was with burlap and put in the truck Arkansas grew as apple industry suffered wrap The way dictatorship leads to freedom? That ra- to her fellow Florentine, keep it from freezing.”the notorious schemer from insect and worm infestation, blight and tionale sounds likeaa year party in slogan outthe of George Concini, whose finewas Italian handprowas All of this poultry activity a mere drought.” In 1927, which apple Concino Orwell’s 1984. Who says our leader doesn’t have much resented both at court throughout of theand poultry indusorchards were destroyed by a severe freeze, De- logue to the vast expansion a sense of irony, even if unintentional? France. in Arkansas, subject for another column. catur grocer Lloyd Peterson raised 500 Rhode try By Reds now, in eagernesshis to avoid calling a So when Louis achieved his majority at 13 Island to its supplement small income. coupwas a coup, has turned the and chafed at the—–––––❖–––––— interference of this interloper, This to bethis the administration first of many instances where English language every which way but loose. By his boon companion the Duke of Luynes arTom Dillard is a historian and retired archivist. struggling farmers turned to poultry. myDuring ringsidethe count, it’s lost three falls ranged haveArktopia.td.@gmail. Concini dispatched new to email: 1920s, Springdale farmer and Please note his out of three with the language, but by the Royal Guard on a bridge over banker Jeff Brown extended credit to aspiring com. An earlier version of this column appeared keeps coming back more punishpoultry growers. A for number of small trucking June 22, 2008.the Seine. (The official version was ment. Rather than accept the simple COLUMNISTS that the hated Concini was killed meaning of a word. attempting to escape. Some things Last week, our secretary of state don’t change in the annals of politidutifully echoed the president’s line, cal intrigue.) explaining that a coup is no coup The story may be a little more BLOOMBERG NdemocraEWS Which iscomplicated not to say that the rebels when it’s just “restoring thanarming that, but suffice COURTLAND MILLOY save enough keep themselves relatively resident Obama’s decision to arm isn’t risky. Arms might up in the hands ofsecy.” That wasBarack John Kerry speaking it totosay thatend it had a happy ending. WASHINGTON POST cure in old age. for rebels in Syria too late Victory thewould rebelsbecome might produce during a stopover incomes Pakistan. Pre-and carries al-Qaida. Louis XIII king in I couldn’t reverse roles with them if my life nwith a recent evening, Ithe fixed my 87-yearenormous It’s also right thing to a new Sunnimore regime that’s anti-American and sumably arisks. straight face. The than name and go on to be depended on it. as oldasmom of do—so long its aimamust isglass to go bring about a blended politi- turn Syrian territory into a haven Sunni exshow, or rather farce, on.freshly known Louis the for Just—but not But to according a report released January broccoli, spinach and juice. Good tremists cal settlement, not victory theapple rebels. rekindleto the civil war in Iraq.inOr U.S. Webster’s defines coupfor as “a sudden decisive

Tom Dillard

Editorial Page

people

t program

d that

Today’s dirty word: Coup

Paul Greenberg

The president’s strategy Parent risky sitting

greatplainsawards.org / 49

Editorial Portfolio Winner Publication: Arkansas Democrat Gazette By: Staff Judges’ Comments: These editorials are written in a unique, engaging style with passion and authority. They take a strong position, and they achieved positive results.

Excerpt from “The Fayetteville Follies” THAT WAS fast. Tuesday morning our editorial about the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, specifically about its refusal to share its financial review of a $3.37 million shortfall in its fund-raising division, landed on doorsteps all across Arkansas. Before the day was out, Chancellor G. David Gearhart had requested an independent audit of the division’s operation by not one but two outside authorities: the statewide university system and the Arkansas legislature, which has a Legislative Audit Division at its disposal. It’s all most impressive, this whirlwind of apparent efforts to inform the public. Our compliments to the chancellor on his quick PR reflexes. At this stage of the investigation, his flurry of requests for audits may amount to only a gesture toward open government, but we’ve always appreciated a nice gesture, however empty it may turn out to be. And it is only a gesture. For the chancellor is still withholding a public document from the public—namely, that financial review. The one the university has been sitting on for months now. But maybe nobody will notice that minor detail in all the activity out of the chancellor’s office. He’s a whiz, he is. Like the parlor magician who diverts his audience’s attention from his sleight of hand—or is it sleight of law in this case?—by lots of activity elsewhere. Whether the public will ever lay eyes on that financial review it’s entitled to see may depend on the auditors down in Little Rock if and when they release it, weeks or maybe months from now. If ever. In the meantime, if you’ll notice, We the People still aren’t being allowed to glimpse it. The public has every right to know how well its employees—remember when they were still called public servants?—are doing their job. Especially when they come up $3.3 million short. And the public is entitled to know it without undue delay. For much like

50 / greatplainsawards.org

justice itself, public information delayed is public information denied. And the university’s high muckety-mucks have denied the taxpaying public this information long enough. LEST WE forget, this deficit was discovered last July. The university’s official review of this massive shortfall, how it happened and what should be done about it, began later that month and was delivered to the chancellor October 17th. He briefed the university’s trustees about it November 2nd, but only in closed session. Not till Arkansas Business revealed the deficit in an article published December 3rd did it become public knowledge. Only at that point did the chancellor announce that the shortfall exceeded $3 million, and that he had disciplined those said to be responsible for it, however lightly. For both were being allowed to stay on the public payroll till the end of this fiscal year in June, one of them at the same impressive salary—$348,175 a year. That molasses-like timeline is revealing. One thing it doesn’t reveal is any great rush to account to the public, or even report to it. Questions abound that this review might be able to answer, or at least address. Such as: Just who in the university’s power structure was instrumental in keeping this public information private? Inquiring minds want to know, and the public—that’s you and me—deserves to know. Call it accountability. But short of the auditors’ making it available someday, the university is keeping its review of this whole mess confidential, as if a public document was no business of the mere public’s. (We the People only foot the bill for all these goings-on. Why are we sticking our nose in the university’s business?) If this is open and accountable governance, what would secret and unaccountable be? Chancellor Gearhart “explains” that the university is keeping its financial review of this fiscal train wreck confidential because state law “prohibits the univer-

sity from releasing it.” Prohibits? That’s a debatable assertion, to say the least, for the legal provision cited by the university says that “all employee evaluation or job performance records . . . shall be open to public inspection only upon final administrative resolution of any suspension or termination proceeding ...” And the chancellor’s administrative decision to separate these two officials from the university’s employ, though not till the end of the fiscal year, would seem quite final. Or is he thinking about changing his mind after all this? USING the chancellor’s logic, could any public agency keep its financial records secret simply by mixing them with disciplinary actions against an employee or two? Or is that privilege reserved for the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville? Only a court, not a chancellor at that selfsame university, could offer an authoritative answer to that question. Maybe it would go for this ploy, but we certainly hope not. Or a curtain of secrecy would have been drawn over how the public’s money is spent by its supposed servants. Are we in the press, and you in the taxpaying public, not to mention the students, faculty and generous alumni of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, supposed to just shrug our shoulders, sigh, suppress our curiosity, and go on about our business? But in a self-governing republic, this is our business. It is public business, not the private preserve of university administrators. As the wizard tells Dorothy in the wonderful land of Oz, “Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.” Which leaves us inky wretches of the press to play the role of little Toto, reduced to yipping away at what’s going on behind the scenes. It’s called being a public watchdog, a humble role perhaps, but there are those of us who think it vital in an open and accountable society.

Editorial Portfolio Finalists Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Michael Holmes

Publication: Sedalia Democrat By: Bob Satnan

Excerpt from “A decision on Hagel, not delays”

Excerpt from “Defender ought to review ‘speedy trial’ ”

We get it. Chuck Hagel isn’t going to be chosen “most popular nominee” by the United States Senate, but he should be confirmed as the nation’s next secretary of defense. The “don’t-call-it-a-filibuster” stalling of Hagel’s nomination — the first time a defense secretary’s nomination has ever been, yes, filibustered — is Washington political game-playing at its worst. And it couldn’t come at a worse time. The departing defense secretary, Leon Panetta, has one foot out the door. North Korea test-fired a new rocket and detonated a nuclear bomb. Some 68,000 U.S. troops are engaged in a shooting war in Afghanistan. Chinese and Iranian cyberattacks on U.S. computer networks are intensifying. There is civil war in Syria. The Pentagon faces some $46 billion in automatic spending cuts starting March 1, just days after senators return to Washington from their latest vacation. So what is keeping the former Nebraska senator from receiving the up-or-down vote that would most certainly make the decorated combat veteran the nation’s next secretary of defense? >> Hagel’s critics, his fellow Republicans, said the White House should provide more details about its actions in the aftermath of the attacks on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11, 2012. There is no doubt that the administration’s explanation of those events has been muddled at best. But the attack that killed four American diplomats has nothing to do with Hagel’s qualifications. If senators wanted to hold a nominee hostage to get these answers, why didn’t they do it with the president’s nominee for secretary of state — the official who oversees U.S. diplomats? Oh, wait. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., was a popular member of the Senate club. And senators voted 94-3 to confirm him. Kerry’s nomination was approved, incidentally, only hours after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee recommended him. Yet critics said two days wasn’t enough additional time to ponder Hagel’s positive recommendation from the Armed Services panel. >> Hagel’s critics also say they want Hagel to provide more details about his finances — even though he provided everything required of a nominee — including two years of financial information and the committee’s requirement to disclose transactions with a foreign government going back further.

While the Second Amendment has been hogging the spotlight of late, the Sixth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States deserves consideration in the wake of a local homicide case. Jamauhle Brown, 32, is facing charges of first-degree murder, armed criminal action, committing a felony in furtherance of street gang activity and other offenses related to the 2010 death of Michael E. Smith, of Sedalia. During a pre-trial conference Tuesday, Brown ripped off an expletive-filled rant after his public defender, Kathleen Brown, requested a continuance for his trial, which had been scheduled for March 5. Regardless of the defendant’s guilt or innocence on the charges he faces, we understand his frustration with the process. As the Democrat’s Emily Jarrett reported, “This marks the third time the trial has been pushed back and, according to Pettis County Prosecutor Jeff Mittelhauser, comes two years after Brown was indicted.” The Sixth Amendment states: “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defense.” And while it is argued that the amendment helps protect those who have been accused but not convicted of crimes, the Missouri Bar views it as a protection for the general public, as well. According to the bar’s Civics Library (members.mobar. org/civics/SpeedyTrial.htm): “(I)t can easily be seen that this provision likewise is to the benefit of society. Persons in jail have to be supported at considerable public expense. In many cases, their families must then rely on public assistance while a breadwinner is in jail. It is clearly in the public’s best interest to provide speedy trials, so that the accused can either be convicted and begin to serve out his sentence, or be acquitted and set free.” State public defender director Cat Kelly told the Associated Press last month that “public defender offices in 20 judicial circuits around the state had been under a limited ability to accept new clients because of the caseload limits,” AP wrote. Still, two years should be enough time to prepare such a case.

greatplainsawards.org / 51

Personal Column Winner Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Matthew Hansen Judges’ Comments: Outstanding, literary writing here — the columnist is unafraid of difficult subject matter and fleshes his characters out with an eye for detail.

Excerpt from “Artist enlists science to answer nagging question — who am I?” Bart opens up his laptop and clicks open an email that will tell him something he’s wanted to know for decades. He will have to wait only one second longer ... OK, five seconds ... OK, 30. “Of course the Internet is slow right now,” Bart Vargas says and smiles a tense smile. If Bart seems a little nervous, that’s because the hot lights of a documentary film crew shine down upon him and because there is a boom mike a foot from his head and because multiple cameras are pointed at him, poised to capture his expression when he finds out. And if Bart seems a bit tense, that’s because the question that is about to be answered has followed him around his whole life. It has trailed at his feet and nipped at his heels like an overzealous puppy. It’s a basic question. It’s maybe the most basic question. “I can’t imagine it changing my life,” Bart said the day before he opened the email. “But I will have an answer. I will finally have a solid answer.” It started when Bart was a boy growing up in Bellevue. He would go to the playground, and the other boys would call him confusing names. “What’s a Jew?” Bart wondered. “And what does that ‘k’ word mean anyway?” Are they calling me a kite? “The memory is of knowing I was disliked, but not knowing exactly why,” Bart says. This was the first time, but most certainly not the last, that strangers looked at Bart and assumed something about his race, his ethnicity — his very identity — that was fantastically, almost laughably wrong. But here’s the catch: Bart couldn’t tell them what was right. Not exactly. He drove to Grand Island for a wedding. The father of the bride got a little drunk.

52 / greatplainsawards.org

“Where’d you park yer camel?” he slurred at Bart. He walked into a Barnes and Noble. An African man came up to him. “Are you from the North?” he asked Bart. “You mean Canada?” Bart asked back. “No. Morocco.” He walked down the street. A man walked up to him speaking a language Bart didn’t understand. “I’m sorry?” Bart said. The man switched to English. He seemed angry. I’m speaking fluent Greek, the man said. The least that a Greek like yourself could do is acknowledge that. Bart never knew exactly how to respond. He knows that his dad was a firstgeneration immigrant from Mexico. (He died in 2005, of stomach cancer.) He knows that he taught his four boys, including Bart, the youngest, to take pride in that. “He would say, ‘Don’t ever hide the fact that you are Mexican.’ And I

would think, ‘Like I would.’ Vargas is a traditional Hispanic name. There is no way to hide it, and I never felt any need to hide it.” He knows that his mom is a white woman from Michigan. He knows that his grandmother decided that Bart’s father — her son-in-law — was black enough to “call him the n-word.” He knows that he never felt Mexican enough for the father’s side of his family in Texas, who took to calling him “Anglo.” He never felt white enough for his white family in Michigan. And he never felt like this was the whole story: A grandmother on his mother’s side had grown up in an orphanage, and she didn’t look white, not exactly. And what of that Mexican heritage, anyway? Was he Native American? Spanish? African? All of the above? And so it went, for 40 years of life. Bart graduated from Bellevue West High School. He joined the Nebraska Air National Guard and fixed planes and equipment in both the United States and Europe.

Personal Column Finalists Publication:

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

By: Paul Greenberg

Excerpt from “Suicide of a newspaper” When a city, or a state, loses its daily newspaper, something of its soul is lost with it. It’s as if ancient Athens had lost its agora, the forum at its center where scholars taught and great debates were held. Or if Jerusalem lost its Western Wall, its last standing connection with the ancient Temple where sacrifices were offered and prayers still fill the air. So imagine New Orleans, another storied locale, without the newspaper William Faulkner and Sherwood Anderson read when they were habituÃ©s of the French Quarter back in the Roaring Twenties, and had their doings chronicled in the old Times-Picayune. (Recommended reading: “Dixie Bohemia” by John Shelton Reed, dean of Southern sociologists, aka the De Tocqueville of Dixie.) Without its daily newspaper and ritual read, even the outward appearance of a place seems to change, along with its self-awareness. Its skyline, its gated courtyards and modest neighborhoods, its landmarks and unnoticed places, no longer seem to have the same reality. A daily newspaper, besides providing a chronicle of events, validates a community, testifying to its existence every day. ... It was sad to watch the Des Moines Register draw back from its state’s borders; it was like watching a whole state shrink. At least the Fort Worth Star-Telegram retained its authentic cow-town character after Amon Carter’s heyday in the last century, when aeroplanes used to drop bundles of newsprint way out on the high plains or along the dusty arroyos of West Texas to demonstrate its statewide circulation.

Publication: Lincoln Journal Star By: Cindy Lange-Kubick

Excerpt from “A son’s love for his dying mother” The son’s eyes are tired. He is fixing breakfast in the small kitchen of the apartment on G Street. Potatoes cooked soft in a skillet, spooned onto a plate. Chunks of mild cheese and pats of pale butter. Heated honey poured into a dish. Pita bread. Hot tea in a jelly jar, sweetened with two scoops of sugar. His mother is sleeping down the hall in a small bedroom with white curtains and two twin beds. Her name is Sultana, the name of a princess. His mom is like a princess, Hussein Al Khazraji says Tuesday. “She is a special mom.” And she is dying. Last night, she was in pain. That is why her son is tired. When she is awake, he is awake. Her stomach keeps her awake. So he gave her the pills. He massaged her skin to help her digest. At 3 a.m. when she closed her eyes, he went to sleep. *** Hussein came to Lincoln last year. Catholic Social Services helped the 44-year-old and his mother get this apartment on the first floor of a brick building with green trim. They gave them a table and chairs, a couch, beds. Sultana had her first seizure four days later. He took her to the hospital until they couldn’t do any more to make her well. For more than six months, she has been in Tabitha’s home hospice program. Nurses come twice a week. A home health aide comes every afternoon. Social worker Kerri Denell comes every week. “My true opinion is she is still alive because of his care.”

Publication:

Omaha World-Herald

By: Michael Kelly

Excerpt from “5 years after transplant, she now has donor’s heart” Macy Stevens, a 15-year-old Marian High sophomore, was reluctant to know much about the donor of her heart. Grateful to him and his family, definitely. But for five years since the transplant, it has bothered her that she has lived and he did not. As she explained: “I always felt, like — really, kind of guilty.” But then came a transformative journey. Macy would meet her donor’s mother, who showered her with love — and in the presence of a church congregation asked Macy for one simple favor, one last personal connection to the woman’s beloved son. And that made all the difference. Macy’s parents, Jordan and Karen Stevens, had announced this fall that the family would take a pre-Thanksgiving trip, a 16-hour drive. They would meet the mother of the boy whose heart beats in Macy’s chest. Macy didn’t want to go. She asked her mom and dad why they would schedule something like this without checking with her. But she dutifully joined them, with her two younger sisters. Along the way, according to her dad, Macy braced for the meeting and for learning more about her donor, whose name was Cameron. “People will start crying, and I don’t like people crying,” she said. “I think stories about him will make me feel worse.” On Nov. 23, a Saturday, the Stevens family pulled up to a Baptist church in Gulfport, Miss. Once inside, her dad said, Macy seemed calm and content. A woman in a colorful dress eventually rose, scanned the congregation and said, “Where’s Macy? Where is she?”

greatplainsawards.org / 53

Last boys standing

‘‘

Leigh Panthers. Clarkson Red Devils. Dodge Pirates. Howells Bobcats. • For generations, towns with three-digit populations valued independence above winning. But as numbers drop, they’re merging with rivals. Surrendering identity. • Webster’s Cedar Rapids Tigers

are now the Cedar Valley Mavericks. “My old maroon and gold is out the window.” • Up Headline Portfolio the road, a Catholic school in a factory town is Winner giving up its blue and white. Lindsay Holy

EXPLORE THEIR JOURNEY: View an interactive map of high school football’s changing landscape, trace Holy Family’s cross-state trip and watch an interview with coach Bill Mimick. Omaha.com/holy-family

Family football was born 41 years ago in the back of a pickup. The Bulldogs marked their

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Tim Sacco fragile, but small-town spirit is stronger than ever. Read their story on Pages 6&7A

final season with a 700-mile bus trip. • Along the way they proved that teenage bodies are

Judges’ Comments: Great range here, from briefs to single-topic covers. Word play was creative and clever without being too cute or cliche. Well done.

Ellis endures a lot every Christmas, but he’s got no beef

ther

ast :1

Ellis seems ill. Now mind you, I’m no doctor, nor have I ever stocked grocery shelves, but the symptoms are obvious. Ellis has long lived with a pronounced dent in his side, suffered when Ed Lueninghoener accidentally sat on him while vacationing at the Grand Canyon. He lives with numerous scratches and marks, the result of being baked inside a birthday cake by Phyllis Lueninghoener and being hidden beneath Christmas trees and taking trips to Georgia, Michigan, Iowa and then always back home to

ut ...... 5E .....8&9E ...... 5-8D .......... 4E ..........5B .... 6&7B ........12E $2.50

MATTHEW HANSEN

COLUMNIST Omaha. And worst of all, Ellis is — I don’t know if there is any pleasant way to say this — well, he’s oozing. He has done so much in his 40 years in this world. He has graduated from Troy State University, according to the school’s

Happy Holidays 2A

• SUNDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2013

✩✩✩

CONNECT TODAY

Midlands, Page 4B Donations, fundraisers and other charitable activities. Good Deeds

alumni directory. He has met Hillary Clinton, according to a photo in the Lueninghoener home. Most importantly, Ellis Lueninghoener, as he is known, has brought Christmas cheer to the lives of an Omaha family since 1974. But now an invisible-butsticky liquid is oozing from his insides and grossing out everyone who touches him. It might be time for Ellis to take Liberty Mutual up on the life insurance offer they mailed to him last week. There’s only one problem with Ellis buying life insurance, a See Hansen: Page 2

MAIN NEWS

Ellis the canned meat, only a little worse for wear at age 40, currently resides with Phyllis and Ed Lueninghoener in Omaha. But with Christmas fast approaching, another extended visit to Bill Ryan’s house in Iowa seems certain. RYA N S O D E R L I N / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

402-951-9292 OMAHA WORLD-HERALD

FROM FR RROM OOM M

9203 92 203 3 S. 14 145TH 45 4 45T 5T 5T TH HS ST ST, T,, O T OM OMAHA MAH MA MAH AH HA A

RIPLE FACTORY REBATES! Hansen: Did Ellis secretly wed a bagnnceAuto.com of frozen PerformanceAuto.com Performan ceAuto compeas, then split?

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Se habla español Pregunte por Rosendo Robles

@OWHCRIME

ON OMAHA.COM

Click on the calendar for listings of live music, the arts, family events and more. Home Page Share your photos and catch up on news you won’t ﬁnd anywhere else. Community Connection

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POWERBALL Saturday, Dec. 21: 25-36-40-45-51. Powerball: 8. No jackpot winner. Jackpot for Wednesday, Dec. 25: $74 million. MEGA MILLIONS Friday, Dec. 20: 3-4-31-49-57. Megaball: 6. Megaplier: 2. No jackpot winner. Jackpot for Tuesday, Dec. 24: $22 million. NEBRASKA Pick 5 — Saturday, Dec. 21: 5-14-24-31-35. No jackpot winner. Jackpot for Monday, Dec. 23: $66,000. MyDaY — Saturday, Dec. 21: 2-17-49. 2by2 — Saturday, Dec. 21: red 4-26; white 13-17. Pick 3 — Saturday, Dec. 21: 9-1-9. IOWA Cash Game — Saturday, Dec. 21: 1-3-7-13-29. Hot Lotto — Saturday, Dec. 21: 9-16-18-25-35. Hot Ball: 19. Pick 3 — Saturday, Dec. 21: midday 2-8-0; evening 2-1-5. Pick 4 — Saturday, Dec. 21: midday 1-7-3-0; evening 8-9-6-7.

Omaha Daily Herald founded 1865 Omaha Daily World founded 1885 World-Herald 1889 (USPS 408-280) Published Sunday at the Omaha World-Herald Building, 1314 Douglas St., Omaha, NE 68102-1811 402-444-1000 Copyright © 2013, Omaha World-Herald Periodical postage paid at Omaha, Neb., and at other mailing ofﬁces. Basic weekly home delivery subscription rates, $4.45 daily and Sunday, $2.20 Monday-Saturday, $1.75 Monday-Friday, $3.05 Friday, Saturday and Sunday, $2.25 Sunday. Single copy rates are $0.75 daily and $2.50 Sunday. Fifty-two week mail subscription rates in surrounding counties are $154.44 daily, $117.00 Sunday only, $268.84 daily and Sunday. For other rates, please contact us at 1-800-234-6942 or CirculationCustomerService@owh.com. Both the weekend and Sunday-only home delivery subscriptions include delivery on the following 2013 holidays: New Year’s Day 1/1/2013, President’s Day 2/18/2013, Memorial Day 5/27/2013, Independence Day 7/4/2013, Labor Day 9/2/2013, Columbus Day 10/14/2013, Veterans Day 11/11/2013, Thanksgiving 11/28/2013 and 11/29/2013, and Christmas 12/25/2013. The Omaha World-Herald is a copyrighted publication. All of the information published herein, including, but not limited to, articles, photographs, graphics, illustrations, listings, labels and trademarks is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws, both state and federal. You may not reproduce, publish, transmit, transfer, sell, create, make derivative works from, distribute, post on the Internet, publicly display or in any way commercially exploit any of the material or infringe upon the trademarks of the Omaha World-Herald without expressed written permission of the Omaha World-Herald Co. Postmaster: Send change of address to Omaha World-Herald, the Omaha WorldHerald Building, 1314 Douglas St., Suite 800, Omaha, NE 68102-1811. Please recycle this newspaper

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Continued from Page 1 problem that Phyllis clearly enunciated to a credit card salesman several years ago. The persistent salesman kept calling and insisting to talk to Ellis. Finally, Phyllis couldn’t take it any more. “Ellis is just a can of lunchmeat!” she yelled into the phone. “I don’t think he understood,” she says of the salesman. But it is true: Ellis is but a can of lunchmeat, and a discount one at that. He’s also the centerpiece of maybe the strangest Christmas tradition you will ever hear. The Story of Ellis begins all the way back in 1974, when newlyweds Phyllis and Ed were packing up their Omaha apartment to move to Macon, Ga. In preparation for their move, Phyllis was taking food out of the fridge and cupboards and putting it in a box to give to other relatives. Phyllis’ brother, Bill Ryan, had been staying at their apartment. He was helping them pack. He saw Phyllis put a can of Ellis Danish Luncheon Meat into the box. “Don’t give that away!” he said. “They will probably feed it to their kids!” To understand why the notion horriﬁed Bill, you need to understand exactly what Ellis Danish Luncheon Meat was. It was Spam. But not regular Spam. Knockoff Spam. Ellis Foods once upon a time sold a whole line of food products, many of which were knockoffs of products like Spam, which were already really cheap. “I ate Ellis brand spaghetti once,” Ed says. “It was worth it to pay the extra dollar for SpaghettiOs.” Ellis, based in Denver, eventually merged with Stokes, another Denver-based food company, which specializes in Mexican and Southwestern foods. Through a strange series of events and one overzealous operator, I eventually found myself on the phone with Jeff Nieder, president of Stokes-Ellis Foods. I found myself explaining that I was writing a column about a 40-yearold can of knockoff Spam made by a previous incarnation of his company. “I’m not at all familiar with that product,” Nieder said of Ellis Danish Luncheon Meat, after he somehow resisted the urge to hang up on me. “We’re going back too many years for me. Never even heard of it.” But in 1974, Bill Ryan knew all about Ellis Danish Luncheon Meat, and he watched, horriﬁed, as his sister Phyllis put it in the “foods to give away” box. When she wasn’t looking, he pulled it out of the box. He snuck it into a bag and took it south as he helped his sister and brother-in-law move to Macon. And once they were there, in the Lueninghoeners’ new home, he took the can and hid it under his sister and brother-in-law’s bed. Ed and Phyllis returned the favor by baking a cake, hollowing out the center and hiding the can of Ellis Danish Luncheon Meat inside. The Tradition of Ellis — the strangest Christmas tradition — had been born.

54 / greatplainsawards.org

RYA N S O D E R L I N / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

This well-traveled 12-ounce can of a Spam-like meat product has been the gag Christmas gift that Phyllis and Ed Lueninghoener of Omaha have exchanged back and forth each year for 40 years with Phyllis’ brother, Bill Ryan.

Ellis Lueninghoener is a proud alum of Troy State University. Proof? His name appears in the Troy State University alumni directory. Among his other accomplishments, he has been photographed with Hillary Clinton, and vacationed at the Grand Canyon. changed his name to Ellis Lueninghoener and moved to Omaha. Sure enough, the Lueninghoeners started to receive mail for Ellis. Credit card applications. Insurance offers.

as if Ellis had secretly married a bag of frozen peas. Then, years later, the Lueninghoeners noticed that the “Mrs.” had been dropped. “Must have gotten divorced,” Ed

... and then a jokester Photoshopped the family member out and stuck Ellis in her place. In the photo, it looks like the woman who may be the ﬁrst female president in U.S. history has thrown her arm jovially around a giant can of knockoff Spam. Just before Christmas 2012, Bill called the Lueninghoeners with bad news. He had packed up all his belongings, moved to a different house in Iowa, and unpacked. And now he couldn’t ﬁnd something important. I lost Ellis, he said. The Lueninghoeners were a bit sad. After all, Ellis has been with them, on and off, for four decades. They have taken calls on his behalf, and opened his mail, and put him in a Ziploc in their basement fridge when he got old and started to ooze clear liquid. And so they were delighted in March when Bill sent them a gift basket for their 40th wedding anniversary. In that basket: a certain can of knockoff Spam. I found him, he said. So now Ellis Lueninghoener is back where he belongs, back in the crisper in the basement refrigerator, which is

Headline Portfolio Finalists Publication:

Publication:

The Oklahoman

Omaha World-Herald

The Oklahoman

By: Pat Gilliland

By: Rich Mills

By: Felicia Murray

Sun brings fun out of the shadows

Afghanistan: A lot offer tourists. Mainly warnings

Vapor Barrier: Ada to ban e-cigarette use on public property

Golden promise: Will wheat deliver? New sewing machine keeps Chandler woman in stitches

April 13, 2036, just got a lot less interesting

Upset about long wait for driver’s license tests? Get in line Flying in the face of critics, Inhofe to run again

greatplainsawards.org / 55

Great Plains Designer of the Year Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Tim Parks 8A

â&#x20AC;˘ SUNDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2013

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2013 â&#x20AC;˘

MEET THE LEVERINGS

Levi Leveringâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s connection to Nikko Jenkins

Rose Springer Woodhull

Picture unavailable

A name that was respected in Nebraska 100 years ago has become synonymous with lawlessness as generations of Leverings succumbed to alcohol, drugs and violence.

Levi Levering (about 1860-unknown) Respected Omaha Tribe leader. First Native American commissioner to the Presbyterian general assembly in 1911. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The presbytery knew what it was doing when it chose Mr. Levering, as a man better qualiďŹ ed to represent it would be hard to ďŹ nd,â&#x20AC;? The World-Herald wrote.

Elizabeth Webster Levering

Lincoln Levering (about 1900-1956) Accused of fatally beating a man in 1944 in Omaha after the manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s friend made a racist comment in a bar. Levering admitted he hit the man but was acquitted after the defense argued someone else must have also punched the man. Accused in 1956 of pushing his wife off a second-story balcony, breaking her back. Arrested; unclear whether charged. Died a few months later when hit by a car.

Conceived children Compiled by World-Herald staff writers Roseann Moring and Alissa Skelton, based on Nebraska criminal and juvenile court records, U.S. District Court records for Nebraska, other public records, World-Herald ďŹ les and family interviews.

Great use of typography in Omaha and creative storytelling through design. Particularly liked the crime family designs.

ROOTS OF A CRIME FAMILY

Vena Bartlett Levering (unknown-1910) From the Bannock Tribe. Married Levi Levering while he was teaching at Fort Hall, Idaho. Died of typhoid fever in Nebraska, leaving behind her husband and ďŹ ve young children.

This family tree is not comprehensive. Some Leverings have minimal or no criminal history. The 50 individuals named include the clanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s worst criminal offenders and others who are important to telling the familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s story.

Judgesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Comments:

BY ROSEANN MORING AND ALISSA SKELTON â&#x20AC;˘ WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS

(1912-1956) Died soon after her husband, of complications from the broken back. Her children grew up in mission schools.

evi Levering was the respected face of his family a century ago, when he earned an impressive reputation as an Omaha tribal leader and advocate. His inďŹ&#x201A;uence extended from Macy, Neb., to Washington, D.C., where he successfully lobbied Congress in 1920 to protect tribal membersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; rights to their land. Now the face of the family is Leviâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s great-great-grandson: Nikko Jenkins. Jenkins stands accused of a 10-day killing spree in Omaha last August that left four people dead. And ďŹ ve other relatives â&#x20AC;&#x201D; two of Nikko Jenkinsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; sisters, his mother, a cousin and an uncle â&#x20AC;&#x201D; have also been charged in connection with the killings. A World-Herald examination of the Levering history shows that 38 descendants of Levi Levering have been convicted of 633 crimes in Omaha since 1979. Those cases have cost taxpayers at least $2.8 million in prison and jail costs, not counting the price tag of law enforcement, juvenile cases, prosecution or public defense.

Mose Cayou Frank Valentine

Adeline Valentine (1934-2009) Born on the Omaha Reservation in Macy. Later moved to Omaha. No criminal record.

Nine children

Family members have been involved in at least 150 other cases during that period that ended in acquittals, mistrials and dropped charges. â&#x20AC;&#x153;That family is notorious,â&#x20AC;? said William Gallup, a defense attorney who has represented some of Nikko Jenkinsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; relatives. This is one of a handful of families that Omaha police recognize as habitual lawbreakers, said John Wells, president of the Omaha police union. â&#x20AC;&#x153;What sets (the Leverings) apart is a few very, very high-proďŹ le incidents,â&#x20AC;? he said. Public records and interviews with the family, acquaintances, law enforcement ofďŹ cials and academic experts paint the portrait of a family that has deteriorated through escalating violent crime, drug and alcohol abuse and child neglect. Authorities have removed at least 20 children from various Levering family homes. Many families struggle with poverty without resorting to criminal activity. The Leverings are an extreme examSee Family: Page 10

OMAHA.COM/ LEVERING

View an interactive timeline of the familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s history.

OMAHA.COM/ JENKINS

Read more stories about the crimes tied to Nikko Jenkins.

Four others Ellen Big Bear Levering

George Jenkins

(1926-2005) Famous boxer from Macy, Neb.; 1947 Midwest Golden Gloves Champion and Kansas State Welterweight Champion. Inducted into American Indian Hall of Fame in Kansas. Fought on a boxing card with Joe Louis. After his boxing career was over he worked at the Omaha Tribeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s education department.

Jimmy Harris

(1943-2004) Grew up on the Omaha Reservation. No criminal record.

(1939-2009) Moved to Omaha after her parents died; several sisters followed. Convicted of robbery in her early 20s. Shot at age 31. Later became active in Native American community in Omaha and was elected to several boards. Mother of nine. Dropped off son Garland, wrapped in a blanket, with her sister Adeline and brieďŹ&#x201A;y moved to Denver. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My grandma was a partyhard little lady,â&#x20AC;? said granddaughter Lori Sayles.

Nelson B. Levering Sr. 11 children

Maxine Levering

Unknown Norma Ann Levering

Lucille Bordeaux

Unknown Phyllis Wagner

(1946-) Grew up on the Omaha Reservation. Brought up in a mission after her parents died. Later moved to Minnesota, then Omaha.

Arnett Wagner

Herbert Jones

Delphine Levering (1950-2002) Grew up on the Omaha Reservation. Stayed in a mission after her parents died. Later moved to Omaha. Found guilty of child abuse in 1997. Was raising her grandchildren when she died, and then they went into foster care.

65 Grew up on the Omaha Reservation. Brought up in a mission after her parents died. Later moved to Omaha. Her husband, Arnett, raised their children.

Unknown James Jenkins 48 Convicted of two felony theft charges in the 1980s and about a dozen misdemeanors since. Most recently charged with missing child support payments.

Patrick Sayles (1966-1995)

Lori Jenkins 47 Convicted of eight nonviolent crimes and one felony shoplifting charge, in 1997. Had ďŹ rst child when she was 16 and her boyfriend, David Magee, was 31. Each has ďŹ led at least one protection order against the other. Has worked as nurseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s assistant and telemarketer. Currently charged with being an accessory in three of the homicides in the Nikko Jenkins case; she denies any involvement.

David A. Magee Sr.

Jeffrey Jenkins

Merwyn Levering

(1951-2009) Had relationships with Lori Jenkins and Ida Levering, who both alleged he beat them while they were pregnant. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Me and (Magee), we had a lot of violence in our relationship,â&#x20AC;? Lori Jenkins said. Convicted of a 1978 manslaughter, but conviction later set aside.

45 Convicted of 65 crimes, mostly trafďŹ c cases and misdemeanors. Served prison time in ďŹ ve cases, including for drug dealing and theft.

42 Shot a man in 1989 at age 18. In and out of prison most of his adult life. Was caught in 1993 with a car stolen from then-Gov. Ben Nelsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s garage. Arrested in 1999 for punching a woman. After kicking out the police cruiser window and escaping, he was found hiding in a doghouse. Later convicted of felony escape and two misdemeanors. Currently seven years into a 21-year federal prison sentence for ďŹ rearms offenses.

Lori Sayles

Sophia Jenkins

Melonie Jenkins

18 Says she was â&#x20AC;&#x153;spoiledâ&#x20AC;? growing up. Has worked as a lifeguard and was attending Metropolitan Community College. Charged with accessory to a felony in connection with Nikko Jenkins case. Father, Patrick Sayles, died when she was a baby; considered David Magee to be her father.

30 Helped raise her siblings while her mom was working. Criminal history involves only misdemeanors, mostly drugrelated. Her two children are being raised by their father.

25 Stay-at-home mother. Criminal history includes felony robbery conviction from 2005, and she was found responsible for 2003 carjacking. A son was brieďŹ&#x201A;y taken away because she couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t provide for his special needs, but he has been returned to her home.

Nikko Jenkins 27 Charged with ďŹ rst-degree murder in the August slayings of Jorge Cajiga-Ruiz, 29; Juan Uribe-Pena, 26; Curtis Bradford, 22; and Andrea Kruger, 33. Had been released from prison July 30 after serving almost 10 years for two robberies and two assaults (one against a correctional ofďŹ cer). At 7, he had taken a loaded .25-caliber handgun to school. He was taken from his mother, the beginning of two decades in and out of group homes, juvenile detention and state prison.

Bunnie Levering

Garland Levering Sr.

57 Raised by his aunt Adeline.

53 Has about 30 convictions dating back to the 1980s, including for felonies such as burglary, theft and unlawful transport of ďŹ rearms. Currently serving time for shoplifting and obstructing an ofďŹ cer.

Alicia Levering Watkins 39 Married to Dr. Sanford Watkins. They have ďŹ ve children and are raising her cousinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s child; the mother was convicted of manslaughter. Started an ambulance company in East Texas this year. Raised by her maternal grandmother. No criminal history.

Erica Jenkins 23 Charged with ďŹ rst-degree murder in Aug. 19 slaying of Curtis Bradford. Faces two counts of criminal conspiracy connected with the Aug. 11 slayings of Jorge Cajiga-Ruiz and Juan UribePena and the Aug. 21 killing of Andrea Kruger. Charged with an unrelated robbery charge, assault of a corrections ofďŹ cer and assault of a fellow inmate. Also found responsible for a 2003 carjacking she committed with her sister Melonie and cousin Vaylez Levering.

Tyrone Wells

Unknown Robert Lincoln Levering

See Aliciaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s story in Mondayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s World-Herald

MEMORIAL DAY 2013

Warren Levering 51 Grew up in foster care after being given up for adoption. Met his sister, Lori, when he was 16. Has served prison sentences in Nebraska and elsewhere, including Oklahoma, where he was convicted of assault with a dangerous weapon, kidnapping and domestic abuse in 2009. Currently charged with ďŹ rst-degree murder of Andrea Kruger.

Constance â&#x20AC;&#x153;Connieâ&#x20AC;? Levering

Sonia Levering

Unknown

Tonia Levering 43 Fined or sentenced to jail or probation for 11 theft charges since 1990. Convicted of assault and battery in 2011.

Bonita Levering Martinez

Christine Bordeaux

Robert Wagner

39 Gave birth to a daughter in 2002 with cocaine in her system. Baby was removed from the home temporarily. Sanctioned by the Omaha Housing Authority in 2009 because her son and a friend were shooting a BB gun at people. Convicted of nearly 30 crimes, including three felonies. Charged with conspiracy to commit robbery in connection with the Nikko Jenkins case.

37 Suing the City of Omaha and Omaha police ofďŹ cers, alleging ofďŹ cers used excessive force while arresting him at Creighton University Medical Center the night Jimmy Levering was killed in 2011. Convicted of assault and battery in 1998 and possessing, receiving or disposing of a stolen ďŹ rearm in 2008. This year he launched Keep North Omaha Safe for Everyone, which patrols north Omaha neighborhoods to try to deter gang violence.

Unknown

Ida Levering

Toni E. Levering

47 Connie was arrested on suspicion of stabbing her sister Tonia in the neck in 1996. Charges were later dropped.

43 Handful of criminal convictions, mostly alcoholrelated. She and her sister, Tonia, are one of several sets of twins in the family.

Vaylez Levering

Dexter Levering

Tyrone Wells Jr.

Cornelius Levering

Desiree Levering

26 Sent to a juvenile detention center for assaulting and carjacking a woman with Melonie and Erica Jenkins in March 2003. Victim was giving them a ride home from Westroads Mall when they assaulted her with a stun gun and stole her purse and her car.

27 Has been convicted about 45 times, including one felony assault charge.

21 Was removed from his birth motherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s home. His adoptive mother later left him to move to Texas. Convicted of robbery and burglary. Has been charged with nine felonies after allegedly sitting on the steps of Miller Park Elementary School and shooting at police ofďŹ cers.

20 Removed from birth motherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s home. His adoptive mother later left him to move to Texas. No criminal record. Attends University of Nebraska at Omaha.

20 Abandoned by mother, remained in foster care until aging out. At 14 she and two other teens were accused of beating a woman and stealing her car in 2007. Charges dropped after victim couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be found to testify. Spent about a year in prison for assaulting a juvenile corrections ofďŹ cer while awaiting trial. Judge said she had history of antisocial behavior. OfďŹ cers noted she and her friends laughed, joked and danced when arrested.

41 Helped raise her nephew Jimmy Levering. Moved to Denver after Jimmy died. Stepped into family matriarch role after her mother and some aunts died. Completed her GED and attended Metropolitan Community College.

Jimmy â&#x20AC;&#x153;Jimboâ&#x20AC;? Levering (1989-2011) One of Omahaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most notorious gang members. First shot at age 14. Charged with ďŹ rst-degree murder at 17; charge dropped after witnesses backed out. Convicted of two felonies; served 30 months in federal prison. Family members say he was trying to get out of the gang life when he was fatally shot outside Club Seville when he was 21.

BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY SHAREHOLDERS MEETING

41 Lengthy list of misdemeanors. She and David Magee and one of his sons (not Nikko Jenkins) were accused of beating, stabbing and shooting a man in 1998. She was convicted of use of a weapon to commit a felony. The next year her children were removed after a daughter was born with cocaine in her system. Gave birth the next year to a son who also had cocaine in his system. She says she was dealing with alcohol problems at the time.

See Corneliusâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; story in Mondayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s World-Herald

37 Left her two young children without supervision at a friendâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s trailer in Lexington, Neb., in 2001. Relinquished parental rights in August 2002. Son born with fetal alcohol syndrome. Served almost six months in jail this year for domestic assault against her boyfriend. Convicted of carrying a concealed weapon in 2010.

AME PREG 7, MBER SEPTE DAY, TION C SEC

SATURDAY, MAY 4, 2013 SECTION D

2013

SATUR

Canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t touch this Even after a week of soul-searching, Husker coaches express steadfast confidence that the defense will take a big step forward

BY SAM MCKEWON â&#x20AC;˘ WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

Vietnam

The United States ended its combat role in the Vietnam War in 1973. American troops came home, and prisoners of war were released. Forty years later, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s still easy to debate the warâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s meaning and its lasting impact. But not on Memorial Day, a time reserved to honor service and sacrifice. Today we recount some of the stories of the Vietnam War. Of the special bond of comrades in arms. Of the unending devotion to missing servicemen. Of the incredible courage in captivity. And of the heroes who once walked among us.

Mint condition

With Berkshire Hathawayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stock price riding high, Warren Buffettâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s investment strategies are paying off for the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s shareholders. PAGE 2D

SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI AT NEBRASKA 5 p.m. Saturday Memorial Stadium, Lincoln Big Ten Network 1110 AM KFAB

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FLORIDA QB AMONG HUSKER VISITORS A touted quarterback recruit from Florida joins the list of visitors for todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s game. Page 9C

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NEW HUSKER GAME DAY PAGE Check out our new page to get instant updates, track live stats and more. To chime in, use the #NUvsUSM Twitter hashtag. Omaha.com/gameday

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Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Brady Jones

OMAHA.COM BREAKING NEWS

Want to pair beer and cheese deliciously? Local brewers suggest, from left, Nebraska Brewing Company’s India Pale Ale with Gorgonzola; Empyrean Brewing Company’s Dark Side Vanilla Porter with Gruyère; and Lucky Bucket IPA with an aged sharp cheddar. Turn to Page 2E for recipes and tips on palate-pleasing beer and cheese pairs.

METROPOLITAN EDITION

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2013

LOCALLY OWNED SINCE 1885

WHY WAS HE LET OUT EARLY?

A woman who died in the early 1900s is the ghost at the Opera House, according to stories told about the building today.

Police chief says Crime Stoppers tips linked the 4 deaths and led them to Nikko Jenkins.

OPERA HOUSE At the Opera House, there are tales of a spectral presence wandering the upper balcony of the old theater. Ron Lutz, who was involved with the Pierre Players and spent countless hours in the historic building on upper Pierre Street, said the group quickly came to the consensus that there was something eerie about the space. “They just had the feeling that there was someone else in here besides themselves,” he said. But Lutz has more to go on than the uneasy feeling of those working late at night; he has seen it firsthand. “One night I was up in the sound booth and I saw what I perceived to be smoke, but it always stayed in a form; it didn’t dissipate. And it moved across the top of the balcony up here and disappeared into the cry room. And there was another person in the booth up there with me who saw it also. And we both looked down and the hair was standing up on our arms,” he said. Lutz began asking around and found that others working in the theater had seen the same thing: a column of smoke that always seemed to drift toward the back corner of the balcony, which once had been a cry room, or a place to take fussy children during a show. Intrigued, he and others began researching who might be haunting the theater. As best they can tell, the ghost is a woman who was part of a traveling company that did a production at the Opera House in the early 1900s. While working on the show, she fell to her death from a fly space onto the stage. When they also found out the woman’s child was left in Pierre, adopted by a local family, they thought they might have stumbled onto the reason her spirit remains at the Opera House. “The theory is this woman, her spirit, is still here and is looking for her child,” he said, “And I suppose that’s why we see her a lot around the cry room up there.”

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS

The

perfect pairing

BY NIZ PROSKOCIL | WORLD-HERALD CORRESPONDENT

For Jim Engelbart, a hunk of smoked Gouda plus a glass of Burning Skye Scottish Style Ale equals snack-time bliss. With its creamy texture and smoky, buttery ﬂavor, the cheese pairs perfectly with the slightly sweet, malty, subtly smoky beer, said Engelbart, operations and production

manager of Lincoln’s Empyrean Brewing Co. An increasingly popular combination, beer and cheese is getting more attention as people move beyond the traditional matchup of wine and cheese. As sales of craft beers continue to grow, along with the prevalence of beer dinners and tasting

events, so too has interest in pairing beer with cheese. The delicious duo is the focus of beer-and-cheese pairings held at local craft breweries, bars, supermarkets, liquor retailers and restaurants. Nebraska Brewing Company, a craft brewery and restaurant in

PHOTOS BY JUSTIN JOINER

or millennia, wherever humans have lived and died, stories of ghosts – unquiet spirits unable to find rest after death – have arisen. The Old Testament recounts the witch of Endor supposedly conjuring the spirit of the prophet Samuel. Roman author and statesmen Pliny the Younger, writing in the first century, tells of a haunted house in Athens. And from medieval Germany come reports of evil spirits who threw rocks, lit fires or shook farmhouses, giving us the word “poltergeist;” German for “noisy ghost.” And while Pierre does not have ruined castles overgrown with ivy or abandoned mansions covered in cobwebs, it can boast a few locations where the supernatural is said to have touched the world of the living.

CONFUSION OVER WHETHER HE SHOULD GET JAIL CREDIT

A HABITUAL CRIMINAL CHARGE DROPPED

MORE ON PAGE 2A

JUDGE: A look into the confusion over whether Jenkins should receive credit for time served in Douglas County. TIMELINE: Track the story’s events from Jenkins’ release from prison to his arrest for murder.

KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD

THE VICTIMS

UPDATES: Follow @OWHnews on Twitter for details from court appearances and other developments.

OMAHA FASHION WEEK

MOMAHA

‘Wonderful, wonderful feeling’ on opening night

Readers, grab a hankie, tell us which mom is most deserving

BY CARA PESEK

The spring and summer looks from local boutiques featured Tuesday were all modeled by cancer survivors. The event runs through Saturday night at Kaneko, 1111 Jones St.

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

The looks that Omaha boutiques sent down the runway at Kaneko on Tuesday night — the opener of the spring Omaha Fashion Week shows — were all about color. Bright blue, and green, and coral — especially coral — were all over the runway, as were animal prints, ﬂoral designs, statement necklaces, ﬂowing scarves and ombré shading. Fifteen Omaha boutiques showcased their spring and summer fashions during the show, giving the audience a glimpse of what’s to come, See Fashion: Page 2

A LY S S A S C H U K A R / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

Mom. Mommy. Mother. There is no greater joy — or responsibility — than being a mother. So in my opinion, everyone who entered momaha’s “Mom-To-Be” contest is most-deserving. Unfortunately, contests don’t work that way. Sigh. I was charged with an extremely difficult task: selecting three finalists. When the “Most Deserving Mom-To-Be” contest applicant stories filtered in, I was impressed with all the different kinds of See Momaha: Page 2

VIDEO: See law enforcement ofﬁcials announce Jenkins’ arrest at Wednesday’s press conference.

JORGE CAJIGA-RUIZ Aug. 11

CURTIS BRADFORD Aug. 19

ANDREA KRUGER Aug. 21

Register Today! Free Screening for Varicose Vein Treatment Totally Vein is holding free screenings during the month of March that include an exam by a Registered Vascular Technician and an ultrasound screening. Weekday, evening and Saturday hours available. Space is limited. Call Totally Vein at 934-VEIN (8346) today! Stephen D. Torpy, MD FACS

*Photo of Juan Uribe-Pena, who also died Aug. 11, unavailable

Behind handshake, a tussle over Syria Joseﬁna Loza momaha.com editor

FACTOR 1: BAD PRISON BEHAVIOR

Had Jenkins not received 513 days of credit when he was sentenced for assaulting a prison guard, he probably would not have been released until late 2014.

See Tips: Page 2

See Beer & cheese: Page 2

ON OMAHA.COM

The Opera House isn’t the only place where Lutz said he’s experienced the paranormal. His former business, The Flame Room, a nightclub which stood on the corner of Coteau Street and Dakota Avenue, was rumored to have a persistent poltergeist named Max. The spirit was supposedly that of Max Kehr, who ran a grocery in the building and shot himself there. Although Lutz has heard a more salacious version of events involving a mistress and financial improprieties, the Capital Journal article recounting his death on April 11, 1936, attributes the suicide to his failing business and health. While the building stood, Max could be routinely heard walking up stairs, pacing across the floors, opening doors and generally being noisy and boisterous. He even frightened away an employee. The woman who cleaned in the morning and tended bar in the afternoon called Lutz one day and said she couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching her. At one point she got ice from the machine downstairs, but when she walked upstairs she swore somebody put a hand on her shoulder, just as the door slammed behind her. Two days later she quit. Lutz said he even had a few running fights with the ghost, especially in his second-floor office, Find where Max’s apartment had been. video “One night I was at up there working capjournal.com and he just kept opening my door. I would get up and close it, and he would open it. It happened several times, and finally I decided that he probably didn’t want me there. I got up and I left, closed the door behind me, and when I came back the next day the door was standing wide open,” he said. The building was torn down in 2002, but a new set of buildings now sits where the Flame Room once stood. “I would be curious to ask those people who work in these buildings if they’ve had any experiences that look a little supernatural,” Lutz said.

DAVID.ROOKHUYZEN@CAPJOURNAL.COM

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS

FLAME ROOM

STORY BY DAVID ROOKHUYZEN

BY TODD COOPER AND MATT WYNN

BY MAGGIE O’BRIEN ROSEANN MORING

AND

HAUNTED

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Obama, Putin and other leaders start an economic summit that’s likely to be mired in war differences. ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — The American and Russian presidents — said to have the worst personal relationship between a Washington and a Moscow leader since Cold War times — shook hands, smiled and made small talk about the scenery Thursday, a public exchange of pleasantries that belied rising tensions over the Syrian civil war. “We’ve kind of hit a wall,” President Barack Obama said of U.S.-Russia ties the day before he

ON PAGE 4A

T H E A S S O C I AT E D P R E S S

Congressional approval for a Syria strike advances toward a Senate showdown.

INSIDE

Index

I-back is last off the practice field Husker I-back Imani Cross has impressed coaches and teammates with his work ethic. It’s all about “being the best I can be,” he says. Sports

Advice ........... 3E Classiﬁeds....3D Comics.......... 4E Movies .... 4-6go Obituaries.....3B Opinion ... 4&5B TV .................. 6E 52 PAGES

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See GHOSTS, C8

The voice of central South Dakota since 1881 DECEMBER 15, 2013 • SUNRISE EDITION

Thursday, October 24, 2013 www.capjournal.com

habitat in crisis

112 Drug- and alcohol-related offenses

Epizootic hemorrhagic disease has claimed the lives of 700 deer so far this year

BY DAVID ROOKHUYZEN

Felonies

A disease that hit the state’s deer population hard last year, killing off thousands of animals, so far has not had near the same impact in 2013. According to the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish and Parks, there have been 700 reported deer deaths from epizootic hemorrhagic disease so far this year. That compares to 3,700 reported deaths last year. Those led the GFP to eliminate unsold licenses in seven counties and offer refunds to those who had already purchased a license. The disease, known as EHD, is a virus spread by a biting midge that causes lesions, swelling and in some cases death within one to three days. While the virus is not known to affect humans, it will spread through whitetailed deer, mule deer, bighorn sheep, elk and pronghorn antelope populations. It usually affects deer in South Dakota during the late summer and early fall. Chad Switzer, a wildlife program administrator with the GFP, said in addition to the lower numbers, the cases are appearing in a more narrow geographical area this year. The majority of reported EHD deaths this year are in Perkins, Corson, Bennett and Todd counties plus some parts of the Black Hills. Switzer said the lower numbers this year are most likely a result of the cyclical nature of a disease after it has spread through a population. Also, the right environmental factors are necessary to produce the number of midges and deer to cause the die-off numbers seen last year, he said. The GFP is also reporting this year an equal number of cases of EHD and blue tongue, a similar disease also spread by midges. The large number of blue tongue cases is unusual for South Dakota, as the virus is more common in the southeast part of the country, Switzer said. But the big question raised by the reported deaths each

DAVID.ROOKHUYZEN@CAPJOURNAL.COM

Assaults

Frank Beck of St. Paul, Neb., hunts a grassland near Pierre for pheasants on South Dakota’s opening day. (Lance Nixon/Capital Journal)

THE CROP INSURANCE CONNECTION

The scientists’ view of grassland conversion: What’s driving the plow? BY LANCE NIXON

LANCE.NIXON@CAPJOURNAL.COM

BY ALLISON JARRELL NEWS@CAPJOURNAL.COM

HEN LYLE PERMAN was younger, in a different era in farm policy, he and his father converted some of their grassland into crops. Perman, now a Walworth County rancher and crop insurance agent, recalls government agencies assisting them with designing drainage ditches Day four in and blowing holes in wetlands. a five-part “You have to understand that series this is the environment that a lot exploring of us were raised in,” Perman grassland said. “We were raised draining conversion wetlands. Farming and erosion and the were just part of the business. effects of You didn’t like it, but it was just habitat loss part of what you did.” That grassland conversion is part of what made South Dakota what it is today. But researchers, ranchers and conservation organizations have found that high commodity prices are driving today’s farmers to plow land that yesterday’s farmers deemed unsuitable for planting. These marginal, highly erodible lands – home to many of the state’s pheasants, ducks and other wildlife – are vanishing largely because planting crops on poor land and collecting insurance when the harvest fails is more profitable than keeping native grassland. In Walworth County, Perman said, an acre of farmland will rent for more than an acre of grassland will gross. That’s not necessarily because the land is less valuable as grassland, and on fragile lands, leaving it in grass may be the wiser move financially if the producer takes

See EHD, A8

Weapons violations

The two graphs above show the relative grassland-tocorn/soy conversion rate in eastern South Dakota and the region. (Graphics courtesy of Christopher Wright and Michael

See INSURANCE, A8

South Dakota State University scientists Christopher Wright and Michael Wimberly titled a paper they published in the important Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences earlier this year, “Recent land use change in the Western Corn Belt threatens grasslands and wetlands.” One of their maps illustrates vividly what is taking place – an estimated loss of 1.3 million acres of grassland from 2006 to 2011. “High corn and soybean prices, prompted largely by demand for biofuel feedstocks, are driving one of the most important land cover/land use change (LCLUC) events in recent US history; the accelerated conversion of grassland to cropland in the US Corn Belt,” Wright and Wimberly write. “In the Corn Belt, nearly all tallgrass prairie has been converted to agricultural land uses, whereas conversion of mixed grass prairie exceeds 70 percent. As a consequence, populations of grassland nesting birds are declining faster than any other group of birds in North America.” Of course that affects game birds such as pheasants. And that change in land use is not merely a private landowner decision because the taxpayers remain deeply invested in supporting American agriculture – traditionally, in exchange for such benefits

Wimberly, SDSU)

The extended family of Nikko Jenkins has wreaked havoc on Omaha for generations

The push to build a water park in Pierre is inching forward, but has yet to make a big splash. A handful of members from The Pierre Area Water Park Committee met Wednesday night to discuss the progress of the citizen-led project, which will replace the aging pool in Griffin Park. Two small accomplishments were unveiled at the meeting, the first being an official logo for the newly christened Capital Cove Water Park. With an image to now take to the public,

(Courtesy logo)

Area News A2-A3

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To reach us, call 224-7301 or e-mail us at news@capjournal.com

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Tommy Armstrong’s cool, conﬁdent play was just what his coaches expected.

The cassette

E LIVING THE TAP E OF its fans. THE TALmonth , and it still has

turned 50 this

Sports

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2013 • METROPOLITAN EDITION

24/7 ON OMAHA.COM

OBAMACARE

DOUGLAS COUNTY

Next for DUIs: Prove you’re sober, twice a day A program modeled on South Dakota’s 24/7 sobriety effort seeks to cut alcoholrelated crimes.

BY CODY WINCHESTER WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Dems, GOP do the math differentlyon plans’ costs Lower-than-projected premiums don’t sway Capitol Hill Republicans. BY JOSEPH MORTON WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD

Universities mine inventors’ minds BY RICK RUGGLES • WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Investigative report by World-Herald staff writers Roseann Moring and Alissa Skelton begins on Page 8A

INSIDE

Omaha weather

High: 30 Low: 18 Full report: Page 10B

See VIEW, A8

Louisburg, Kan. However, the group faces considerable challenges before being able to begin serious talks about building the project, the first and largest of which is the cost. The 2008 study of a water park idea showed the features the majority of people want – a lazy river, water slides and splash pad – will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars each. A leisure pool and Olympic-sized 50-meter competition pool will cost $1.6 million and $1.8 million. A water park with all those amenities

Around and About.............3E Celebrations................... 10E Jobs Listings..................5-8D Obituaries......................... 7B Opinion ........................8&9B TV .................................... 12E 102 PAGES

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‘Like’ our all-statebook for football and volleyball

A new ‘cornerstone’ for Aksarben Village

Members of The WorldHerald’s all-state teams in football and volleyball players have their own social network. Sports, Pages 7C-12C

The $50 million Waitt Plaza, scheduled to be completed early in 2016, adds to the vision that developers have for the property. Money

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The places that time forgot, in photographs

To make donations: World-Herald Goodfellows 1314 Douglas St., Suite 125 Omaha, NE 68102 or at Omaha.com Donations to date: $278,835.08 Story in Midlands

While others may drive past broken-down old homes and barns, photographer Nancy Warner stops and brings history to life. Living

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Business owners are upset by slow pace of Highway 370 project

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A nutty idea, sure, but it has turned out pretty well A Yutan couple’s efforts to make a healthy, good-tasting spread — think Nutella or Cookie Butter, without the guilt — are paying off. Money

Heineman says no new prison needed Governor says other steps can be taken to alleviate overcrowding. Midlands

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Tom Shatel says many people now agree with State Sen. Ernie Chambers, who ﬁrst urged pay for college players in 1981.

Track the Levering family tree to Nikko Jenkins, Pages 8A & 9A

Index

the committee can set up a website to accept donations. Committee member Becky Burke said she has been contacted by many people “chomping at the bit” to donate to the project this year for tax purposes. The second step was three requests for information from various architectural groups gathered by committee member Lance Fravel. The group has received feedback from Denverbased Ohlson Lavoie Collaborative, who designed Spearfish’s aquatic center, WTI, which built a water park in Aberdeen and also prepared a proposal for one in Pierre in 2008, and Aquatic Design Consultants Inc. from

ONE FAMILY

Pierre water park concept has logo, looking for support BY DAVID ROOKHUYZEN

RIGHT ON THE MONEY FIRST OF A THREE-PART SERIES: NIKKO JENKINS’ FAMILY 1979 THROUGH 2013

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633 CRIMES

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Great Plains Writer of the Year Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Matthew Hansen Judges’ Comments: Matthew Hansen is a storyteller in the best traditions of that tribe. His submissions feature an amazing array of subjects -- from an emotional exploration of the death penalty to an engaging “investigation” that solved an Internet mystery. Hansen meets the ultimate test: He made me want to read more.

Excerpt from “Omahan grossed out by unwelcome new neighbors — turkey vultures”

Dan Nedved is calling, and he’s wondering if I’m interested in his problem. “What’s your problem, Dan?” I ask. “Turkey vultures,” he says. I have received phone calls about a great many topics, but never one regarding turkeys, or for that matter one regarding vultures. A couple seconds of confused Googling later, I determine that a turkey vulture is in fact a real thing. Dan says they live in his neighborhood trees. They moved in and now,

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like an old college buddy crashing in your spare bedroom, they will not leave. “But what’s the problem, Dan?” I ask again. There is a slight pause, as if Dan can’t quite believe there is still room for confusion. “These things are ... gross,” he says finally. “These are maybe the most disgusting things I’ve ever seen.” I’ll be there soon, I say, and hang up the phone. ***

We stand in the rain as darkness closes in on a recent weeknight, and we stare up at an old gnarled tree planted long ago a few blocks north of 81st and Maple. To be more precise, we stare at the dozen or so turkey vultures sitting in the tree. There is a flash of movement in the dusk, a flapping of wings, and a lone turkey vulture struggles into the sky. It is red-faced and gargantuan, with a wingspan maybe 6 feet across. After it gets airborne it makes one pass, then two, then three around the Nedveds’

yard. It is circling. It is circling directly above our heads. “It feels like we’re in the middle of a Hitchcock movie,” I say. “That’s the first thing I said!” Dan says. “That one movie, ‘The Birds.’ Like that.” Dan Nedved’s own personal psychological thriller began Friday, April 12th, when he and wife April Nedved came home after work. At some point in the evening April looked at the tree across the street. She saw birds, giant birds, birds unlike any the Nedveds had ever seen since they moved into this neighborhood in 1985. April Nedved went outside and started to count. She counted 27 turkey vultures. At first the vultures seemed an exciting novelty, but the novelty quickly wore off, Dan says. Every morning, they flutter and flap. Sometimes they land on the top of nearby rooftops and sun themselves. They take off during the day, but return every night to nest in the same tree. Turkey vultures do not have vocal chords, so turkey vultures do not squawk. Turkey vultures hiss. Dan researched the birds, and learned their diet mostly consists of carrion, which is a polite way of saying that they eat roadkill and other assorted dead animals. He read more, and learned that turkey vultures produce droppings so potent that they can kill trees and permanently stain houses. In fact, that problem has gotten so bad in Beatrice, Neb., that the City Council recently gave a tentative OK to a plan to shoo vultures off a cellphone tower in that town. A U.S. Department of Agriculture expert is going to shoot nonlethal lasers at the vultures. That’s right: Lasers. Dan has no problem with lasers, lethal or otherwise. “I mean, jeepers, they live on dead carcasses,” Dan says. “How clean can they be?” Dan called Fontenelle Forest, and the naturalists there told him the vulture is no threat to him or others, and is, in fact, far cleaner than most people

assume. They also told him the turkey vulture is protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which means no shooting a gun or throwing a rock at the massive, red-headed creatures. “Well, you wouldn’t shoot a gun at them, anyway,” I say helpfully. “I wouldn’t?” Dan says. Dan has tried standing beneath the tree and clapping, and that tends to rouse the turkey vultures from their perch. They always come back. He has considered knocking blocks of wood together, or banging pots or pans, but he’s a little worried about what the neighbors would think of that. Maybe a starter pistol? Maybe a very loud cap gun? “Do they even still make cap guns?” Dan wonders. Mostly, Dan has stood out here in the growing darkness, like we are right now. Another turkey vulture swoops into the sky, and we stare up into the darkness and the rain as the bird makes long, lazy loops over our heads. “There is something about these vultures,” Dan says. “Something about death.” *** The next day I call Fontenelle Forest myself. I tell naturalist Elizabeth Chalen about the turkey vultures hanging out near Maple Street, and I list the various and highly scientific complaints against them: Dirty. Ugly. Gross. She sighs loudly. “They get such a bad rap,” she says. Turkey vultures are relatively clean birds, she points out. They don’t harbor any more diseases than other animals do. And they actually perform a crucial function, one that a neighborhood should welcome, she says. Just like the college buddy crashing at your house eats the week-old pizza, so, too, does the turkey vulture eat the decomposing dead animals sprinkled around an area. They don’t kill anything, and they don’t tend to move a dead animal from one place to another. Instead, they clean up what we don’t want to. “They are nature’s recyclers,” she says. “Without them, we’d have a

whole lot of carcasses rotting on the side of the road.” The turkey vulture is actually a close cousin to the condor. Everyone loves the condor and wants to save it, but everyone hates the vulture and wants it go away, she says. She has a theory about why. “We have this innate fear of death, of ourselves. And the vulture is so blatantly out there eating dead things. They represent that to us, represent our own deaths.” Then she delivers news that Dan will not be happy to hear. Flocks of turkey vultures are generally uncommon in Omaha neighborhoods, because of a lack of old trees. But when the vultures do find a tall tree to call home, sometimes they decide to stay for the entire summer. It appears that Dan Nedved will have to grow comfortable with the angels of death that circle his home every night. Either that, or he’s going to need to go shopping. Maybe a nonlethal laser, Dan. Maybe a really loud cap gun.

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Great Plains Writer of the Year Finalists Publication: Oklahoma Watch By: Warren Vieth

Publication: Oklahoma Watch By: Clifton Adcock

Excerpt from “In Governor’s Home County, a Harbor for the Uninsured”

Excerpt from “How Actions by Governor’s Staff Led to Weakened State Justice Reforms”

SHAWNEE—Inside a cramped clinic office, Dorthea Copeland prepares for the weekly pilgrimage of poor people seeking free health care. They’re already lining the hallway, trading tales of sore throats and bum tickers. “Some of these people just lost their insurance. Some of them work, but don’t make very much. Some of them are self-employed,” says Copeland, a feisty 85-year-old who’s been running Pottawatomie County’s free clinic since it opened 14 years ago. “You can usually tell by looking at them that most of them really need the help.” Copeland is in charge of recruiting doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other helpers who donate their time on Thursday evenings to help Pottawatomie County residents who don’t have health insurance and don’t qualify for government assistance. Coincidentally, she’s also the aunt of Gov. Mary Fallin, who grew up in Tecumseh as Mary Copeland. In November, Fallin rejected an Obama administration offer to finance much of the cost of expanding Oklahoma’s Medicaid program. If Fallin had accepted, many of the people filing into the clinic this evening would be eligible to participate. Pottawatomie County’s free clinic is a microcosm of the health coverage challenge facing Oklahoma policy-makers. Fallin’s decision to reject the Medicaid expansion has left an estimated 130,000 or more low-income Oklahomans in a coverage crater that offers few options for affordable health care. The problem tends to be more pronounced in smaller towns and rural areas, where incomes often are lower and employers less likely to offer benefits. Asked to comment on the clinic operation, Fallin praised the work that Copeland and others are doing, describing her aunt as “a wonderful lady who has spent much of her career dedicated to helping other Oklahomans.” The governor said she is looking for ways to address the coverage crater, but remains convinced that the Obama initiative is “unaffordable and unworkable.” Even with the federal government picking up much of the tab, Fallin’s office contends the expansion would increase state spending by $689 million over 10 years. Advocates of expansion counter that the cost to the state would be minimal. Fallin said she would propose a “substantial increase” in health funding when the Legislature convenes in February. State health officials, meanwhile, have hired a Utah consultant to make recommendations for possible legislative action this year.

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Behind-the-scenes moves by Gov. Mary Fallin’s senior staff members helped lead to a severe weakening of a program designed to cut the state’s high incarceration rates and save taxpayers more than $200 million over a decade, according to interviews and records obtained by Oklahoma Watch. The efforts by the governor’s staff, assisted by legislative leaders, to take control of the Justice Reinvestment Initiative took place during periods when staff members met with representatives of private prison companies, which stood to gain or lose depending on how the initiative was implemented, emails and logs of visitors to Fallin’s offices show. During that time, private-prison company representatives also made donations to Fallin’s 2014 campaign as well as to legislators, Oklahoma Ethics Commission records indicate. Steve Mullins, Fallin’s general counsel, said private prison groups and lobbyists played no role in the approach that he and other staff members took in regard to the initiative. “I know for a fact I’ve never recommended a private prison as a JRI solution, so I know that it wouldn’t have influenced anything because it didn’t influence my recommendations,” Mullins said. Mullins also pointed out that the Justice Reinvestment Initiative, or JRI, did not die. Several reforms, such as public-safety grants, received state funding and have been implemented. But the JRI’s biggest supporters say the program was left in near shambles after the governor’s office delayed carrying it out, reversed itself on seeking a federal grant and orchestrated a move to keep former House Speaker Kris Steele, who led the initiative effort, from leading a group overseeing implementation. Steele said he believes a political desire to appear “tough on crime” and pressure from private prison groups ultimately curbed any serious reform efforts. Throughout the JRI process, Fallin has expressed support for the program and its goals. The goal of the JRI was to steer nonviolent offenders away from prison, lowering the state’s incarceration rates and costs and using the savings to pay for public-safety efforts, such as law-enforcement grants. But the planned funding dropped, sentencing alternatives aren’t being carried out, fewer pardon and parole officers to monitor offenders were added, and crime-reduction strategy training for local law enforcement agencies didn’t occur. The initiative also has no official coordinator.

Great Plains Newspaper of the Year Less than 75,000 circulation Publication: Wichita Eagle Judges’ Comments: Compelling content paired with a clean design. The three papers in this newspaper’s entry showcase the newsroom’s enterprise reporting, its ability to cover breaking news and its commitment to civic journalism. Loved the primary voters guide on Feb. 12. A simple concept but it takes a lot of organization and planning to pull it off when more than a dozen candidates are involved.

greatplainsawards.org / 61

Great Plains Newspaper of the Year Greater than 75,000 circulation Publication: The Oklahoman

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Great Plains Newspaper of the Year Finalists Greater than 75,000 circulation Publication: Omaha World-Herald MIRACLE AT MEMORIAL See Jordan Westerkamp’s can-you-believe-it catch from every angle in Postgame DECEMBER 15, 2013 • SUNRISE EDITION

Drug- and alcohol-related offenses

65 Felonies

35 Assaults

14 Weapons violations

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COLUMNIST her donor’s mother, who showered her with love — and in the presence of a church congregation asked Macy for one simple favor, one last personal connec-

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Members of The WorldHerald’s all-state teams in football and volleyball players have their own social network. Sports, Pages 7C-12C

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SECOND OF A THREE-PART SERIES: NIKKO JENKINS’ FAMILY

BREAKING AWAY FROM CRIME CLAN

Senators are lobbied to reject the budget deal over its reduction in the cost-of-living adjustment. BY JOSEPH MORTON WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

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To make donations: World-Herald Goodfellows 1314 Douglas St., Suite 125 Omaha, NE 68102 or at Omaha.com Donations to date: $278,835.08 Story in Midlands

BY CASEY LOGAN

The $50 million Waitt Plaza, scheduled to be completed early in 2016, adds to the vision that developers have for the property. Money

The places that time forgot, in photographs While others may drive past broken-down old homes and barns, photographer Nancy Warner stops and brings history to life. Living

is ﬁrst name is Cornelius. His last name is complicated. He sits in a quiet corner of a crowded student center on the campus of the University of Nebraska at Omaha, looking like an ordinary second-year student: solid T-shirt and plaid shorts, black socks and light-brown boat shoes, a camouﬂage Yankees cap turned backward. He has the bright eyes, goofy smile and slight frame of a 20-year-old who could pass for 16. Asked how he spends his spare time, he says playing Xbox and hanging out with

friends. “I like to talk to pretty girls,” he says with the goofy smile. For most of his 20 years, he’s gone by Cornelius Kincaid. He took the name from the woman who became his foster parent when he was 6. His memories before then are hazy but stark. He remembers ﬁghting, and ﬂashing red and blue lights. He has a scar on his chest, over his heart, though he doesn’t know how he got it. “I had my nipple burned off at a very young age,” he says. Court records provide details that he doesn’t recall. Pan out to his extended family, and a largSee Cornelius: Page 3

Oil revolution turning U.S. into ‘Saudi America’ The ﬁrst in a four-part series on the nation’s energy boom. Money

Still wowing ’em in NBA No one ever imagined how good a shooter Kyle Korver would become. Sports

Nebraska and Iowa have a lower-than-normal chance of a white Christmas this year. Although a surprise dusting could occur, the chances are greater that it will be a cold rather than snowy Christmas morning, according to AccuWeather.com.

Today’s forecast High: 40 Low: 22 Full report: Page 6B

NOVEMBER 3, 2013 • SUNRISE EDITION

INSIDE ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD

1970: Wha t robbery victi m

GUN OR NO GUN?

tells police

Police report, witness accounts are at odds with Rodgers’ pardon request. est. BY JOE DUGGAN

ers Johnny Rodg 2013: What

WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

LINCOLN — Johnny Rodgers calls the night he stole money from a Lincoln gas station 43 years ago a drunken mistake, an embarrassing lapse in judgment, a stupid freshman prank. One thing the Cornhusker football legend says it wasn’t: an armed robbery. In about three weeks, the State of Nebraska will hear Rodgers’ request to have his felony conviction pardoned. Where the pardon request form asks if a gun was used in the crime, Rodgers checked the blank next to “No.” But the original offense report says the gas station attendant reported there was a gun. The details of what happened inside the Derby station south of downtown Lincoln have largely remained out of the public light. Three young men arrested a year after the crime quickly pleaded guilty to felony theft and were sentenced to probation. With legal trouble behind him, Rodgers went on to have starring roles in the 1970 and 1971 Husker national championship teams. He capped his 1972 senior season by winning the Heisman Trophy. Meanwhile, Rodgers has been the only one of the three convicted to publicly discuss the theft at the gas station. Until now. The World-Herald has interviewed the two men who also carried the burden of felony

tells Pardon

Look out world, here they come

Board

CU hopes to conquer the Big East in its debut. NU basketball has a new look. Special Section

How young is too young? With concerts by Pink, Jay Z and other pop artists on the calendar, it’s a question parents are asking. We offer some answers. Living

Back to standard time Daylight saving time is over, so be sure all your clocks are turned back an hour.

Index Celebrations...........6E Job listings..........5-8D Obituaries.............. 5B Opinion .............6&7B Puzzles....................7E TV ......................... 10E Weather................. 8B

James Glass, left, and Johnny Rodgers today. In telling his side of the story of a 1970 gas station robbery for the ﬁrst time, Glass recalls that Rodgers had a gun, which Rodgers denies.

See Rodgers: Page 2

112 PAGES

RACHAEL ROETEN FOR THE WORLD-HERALD

ACORN FELL FAR FROM THE TREE: Single mom Alicia Levering Watkins married a doctor, moved to Texas and runs her own business. Page 3A

COLD CHRISTMAS MORE LIKELY THAN A WHITE ONE

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WASHINGTON — Military veterans associations are charging into the fray after what they described as a surprise attack on retirement benefits for those in uniform. Their lobbying efforts could affect support among senators for a budget agreement passed by the House last week. It’s a fight that highlights just how politically charged any changes to military compensation can be. At issue is a part of the budget deal that would cut cost-of-living adjustments 1 percentage point annually to military pensions being paid to working-age retirees. It was sold to House members as a modest trim that would save billions of dollars and help ease the burden on the Pentagon of automatic budget cuts known as sequestration. The pension change, which would be effective Dec. 1, 2015, would apply only to those retirees younger than 62. The idea is that those who retire in their 40s often have jobs in the private sector and can deal with military pensions that do not grow at the same rate as inflation. The change would not apply to those who have left the military because of injury or disability. But the Military Coalition, a consortium of associations repSee Military: Page 2

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‘Modest’ tag on military pensioncuts is disputed

Some Leverings put distance between themselves and notorious family

Investigative report by World-Herald staff writers Roseann Moring and Alissa Skelton begins on Page 8A

Omaha weather

Charismatic actor Peter O’Toole, who died at 81, is recalled for not leaving much of life unlived. Living, Page 2E MONDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2013 • SUNRISE EDITION

Cornelius Kincaid’s birth name is Levering, but for most of his 20 years he has kept some space between himself and his infamous family. The sophomore at the University of Nebraska at Omaha had a hardscrabble life that might have discouraged many, but he is determined to prove that the name Levering can be associated with good.

Track the Levering family tree to Nikko Jenkins, Pages 8A & 9A

High: 30 Low: 18 Full report: Page 10B

Flamboyant on and off the screen

A LY S S A S C H U K A R / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

ONE FAMILY The extended family of Nikko Jenkins has wreaked havoc on Omaha for generations

Handmade tags and fancy trimmings make holiday gifts wrapped in brown craft paper stand out. Living

1979 THROUGH 2013

112

TAGS. THEY’RE IT.

FIRST OF A THREE-PART SERIES: NIKKO JENKINS’ FAMILY

CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD

633 CRIMES

Most promising commercial market for drones: agriculture PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Idaho farmer Robert Blair isn’t waiting around for federal aviation officials to work out rules for drones. He and a friend built their own, outfitting it with cameras so Blair can monitor his 1,500 acres. The aircraft is under 10 pounds, and 5 feet long from nose to tail. Blair uses it to get a bird’s-eye view of his cows and fields of wheat, peas, barley and alfalfa. “It’s a great tool to collect information to make better decisions, and we’re just

scratching the surface of what it can do for farmers,” said Blair, who lives in Kendrick, Idaho, roughly 275 miles north of Boise. While Americans are abuzz about Amazon’s plans to use drones to deliver packages, most future unmanned aircraft may operate far from the nation’s large population centers. Experts point to agriculture as the most promising commercial market for drones because the technology is a See Drones: Page 2

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Omahacrimereport.com Check out our new website with the Omaha police, where you can track crime rates — like the uptick in holiday season burglaries — in your neighborhood. Midlands

Goodfellows To make donations: World-Herald Goodfellows 1314 Douglas St., Suite 125 Omaha, NE 68102 or at Omaha.com Donations to date: $285,034.19 Story in Midlands

Index Advice .............................3E Classiﬁeds......................6D Comics............................4E Movies ............................3E Obituaries.......................3B Opinion ..................... 4&5B TV ....................................6E 32 PAGES

75 CENTS

PAY AND BENEFIT COSTS RISE, TROOP NUMBERS DON’T

ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD

Spiraling military pay, benefits get noticed An effort by Congress to pare personnel costs pits budget constraints vs. sacrifice of service members. BY STEVE LIEWER WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

America asks its military members to risk injury and death in the line of duty and to endure stressful separation from their families. In exchange, we provide them with pay, free housing and medical care, wholesale prices at commis-

saries, all or most of their college expenses and more. After they retire, we give them health care at a fraction of what it costs civilians and pensions equal to at least half of their military salary, even if they retire at age 40. When they die, we bury them for free in national cemeteries, with honors.

2014

But America’s support for its military comes with a hefty and growing price tag: $413 billion in 2013 pay and benefits for service members and retirees. That’s about twice as much as in 2001. Even after adjusting for inflation, military pay and benefits are up 30 percent during the past 12 years. Some analysts fear that spending on service members’ compensation will soon crowd out spending on the tools they need to fight

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Military pay and benefits (Department of Defense only*) In billions, not adjusted for inflation

$180 $160

wars. “There’s a war within the defense budget,” said Mackenzie Eaglen of the conservative American Enterprise Institute, where she is a resident fellow specializing in military spending and strategy. “You have to tackle this issue. Personnel costs are now pushing out defense power.” This week a bipartisan panel created by Congress will hold public hearings on military pay and See Military: Page 4

Volkswagen Passat S

DOWN

$200

$140 $120 * Does not include VA and other federal benefits

$100 ’01

’02

’03

’04

’05

’06

’07

’08

’09

’10

’11

’12

’13

’05

’06

’07

’08

’09

’10

’11

’12

’13

Number of troops In millions 2.3 2.2 2.1 2.0

FISCAL YEAR ’01

’02

’03

’04

SOURCE: Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission D AV E C R O Y / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

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Photo Illustration Winner Publication: Tulsa World By: Christopher Smith

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Photo Illustration Finalists

Publication: The Oklahoman By: Chris Landsberger

Publication: Tulsa World By: Christopher Smith

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General News Photography Winner Publication: The Oklahoman By: Chris Landsberger

Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Honor Gurard members David Hughes, left, and Johnnie Loudermilk fold the American Flag during the funeral service for K-9 Deputy Eron at Precious Pets Cemetery on Thursday, July 25, 2013 in Spencer, Okla. Deputy Eron started with the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s office in 2004, serving eight years as a Bomb Detection K-9 before his retirement. Eron’s last call of service for his career was tracking and capturing a suspect for the Choctaw Police Dept. Eron was buried with a 4by4 piece of wood that was his favorite toy.

66 / greatplainsawards.org

General News Photography Finalists Publication: Tulsa World By: Mike Simons Sgt. 1st Class Ricardo Pineda wipes a tear from his son Cameron’s face as they are reunited during a ceremony for soldiers from the 120th Engineer Battalion returning home from Afghanistan May 15, 2013. More than 150 soldiers 120th Engineer Battalion were greeted by hundreds of family and friends Wednesday morning, nine months after the unit deployed to Afghanistan.

Publication: The Oklahoman By: Jim Beckel Tears rolling down his face, this boy screams out as a deputy gets right into his ear to tell him he needs to stop crying and finish the physical activity he was assigned to do. Knees bent in a semiseated position, the boy leans against a locker and is told to push his arms out in front of him while holding a weight. Reality Check is a program that allows at-risk students to spend an afternoon in the Oklahoma County jail and tour the jail while inmates try to scare them straight.

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Spot News Photography Winner

Publication: Published by various local and national outlets By: Sue Ogrocki

A woman carries a child after the Moore tornado.

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Spot News Photography Finalists Publication: The Oklahoman By: Steve Gooch

Police take a suspect into custody in connection to the robbery of MidFirst Bank in Oklahoma City, Friday April 12, 2013.

Publication: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette By: Rick McFarland A Little Rock Police officer uses a Taser to stop an unidentified man who was cutting his arms with a knife behind a building at 1801 E. 22nd St. on Tuesday. Little Rock police reached the distressed man about 11:30 a.m. and once he was struck by the Taser, several officers swarmed over him to get the knife away and to subdue him so paramedics could treat him.

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Chris Machian

A tornado touches the ground near El Reno, Okla., just south of Interstate 40 on Friday, May 31, 2013. Several tornadoes in the area caused damage and injuries.

greatplainsawards.orgâ&#x20AC;&#x192; /â&#x20AC;&#x192; 69

News Photography, Multiple, Winner Publication: Tulsa World By: Michael Wyke, James Gibbard, John Clanton, Mike Simons, Matt Barnard, Garett Fisbeck

Tulsa World’s coverage of the aftermath of the f5 tornado that hit Moore, Oklahoma.

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News Photography, Multiple, Finalist Publication: Tulsa World By: Mike Simons

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Feature Photography, Single, Winner

Publication: The Oklahoman By: Sarah Phipps

Hayle Savage dances with her soon-to-be stepfather, Darwin McDaniel ,at The Children’s Center’s prom in Bethany, Okla., Thursday, May 9, 2013.

72 / greatplainsawards.org

Feature Photography, Single, Finalists

Publication: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette By: Melissa Gerrits Publication: The Oklahoman By: Bryan Terry Jett Hix, 4, holds a balloon as he waits to get his picture taken during a family portrait session in the Paseo Arts District in Oklahoma City on October 6, 2013.

Dekota Sage, 7, yawns while announcements are made at Historic Park Hill Fire Station’s 75th Anniversary Celebration off Magnolia Street in North Little Rock on Tuesday. Dekota, along with Devon Straw (left), Blake Brothers, 8, (right), and their pack leaders (back left to right) Brenda Kennedy, Shane Straw, and Larry Seiferth, marched a flag to the station before singing the national anthem for guests.

Publication: The Oklahoman

By: Steve Gooch

The “Grim Reaper” walks in the rotunda of the state Capitol in Oklahoma City, Tuesday February 19, 2013. The “Reaper” attended Governor Mary Fallin’s announcement for plans to put tobacco regulations aimed at reducing second-hand smoke to a vote of the people. greatplainsawards.org / 73

Feature Photography, Multiple, Winner Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Alyssa Schukar

Nebraska’s Big Rodeo

“This may be a small town, but it’s got a big rodeo, and it’s got a really big heart,” 2013 Miss Burwell Rodeo Olivia Hunsperger said. In its 92nd year, the rodeo continues strong and serves as an economic stronghold for a small community in the Sandhills of Nebraska.

74 / greatplainsawards.org

Feature Photography, Multiple, Finalist Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Alyssa Schukar

A lingerie league of their own

greatplainsawards.org / 75

Sports Action Photography Winner

Publication: Arkansas Democrat-Gazete By: Benjamin Krain

Judges’ Comments: XXXXXXXX

Tom Whitlow, with team Flying W from Plainview, leads other racers during a heat in the Classic division of the National Championship Chuckwagon Races.

76 / greatplainsawards.org

Sports Action Photography Finalists

Publication: The Oklahoman By: Bryan Terry Caleb Bennett holds on during the bareback competition in National Circuit Finals Rodeo at the State Fair Arena, Saturday, April 6, 2013.

Publication: The Oklahoman By: Nate Billings

Oklahoma City’s Derek Fisher is hit in the face with the ball during a preseason NBA basketball game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Utah Jazz at Chesapeake Energy Arena A fan uses his cap to catch a home-run ball as Oklahoma State’s Gage Green tries to to make the catch during a baseball game between Oklahoma State and West Virginia. greatplainsawards.org / 77

Sports Feature Photography Winner Publication: Tulsa World By: John Clanton

“Sweet Breath”

Sand Springs football player Shane Lawson sprays breath spray in his mouth moments before kissing homecoming queen Amy Camargo during Sand Springs homecoming festivities on Sept. 27.

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Sports Feature Photography Finalists Publication: The Oklahoman By: Sarah Phipps Tennessee’s Lexi Overstreet (19) walks off the field as Oklahoma celebrates their championship during Women’s College World Series softball game between Oklahoma and Tennessee at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City,Tuesday, June, 4, 2013.

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Alyssa Schukar “This may be a small town, but it’s got a big rodeo, and it’s got a really big heart,” 2013 Miss Burwell Rodeo Olivia Hunsperger said. In its 92nd year, the rodeo continues strong and has served as an economic stronghold for an otherwise sparsely inhabited town. Members of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association hold their hats as Hunsperger passes by during the opening ceremonies on Saturday, July 27, 2013.

Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Alyssa Schukar

Omaha Heart’s Ashley Lambrecht, at center, dances with teammates including, from left, SarahJane Thompson, Linsey Noble, Morgan Anderson, Lindsay Burnham, Shawnte’ Bunting and Kelsey Lane, before the team’s opening game against the Atlanta Steam in Gwinnett, Ga., on Saturday, April 13, 2013. The Heart lost 42-6.

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Portrait Photography Winner Publication: The Omaha World-Herald By: Matt Miller

“Warren Buffett”

Judges’ Comments: None

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Great Plains Newspaper Photographer of the Year Publication: Omaha World-Herald By: Alyssa Schukar

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Magazine Photography, Portrait, Winner Publication: Slice Magazine By: M.J. Alexander

“Ora Reed Holland”

Ora Reed Holland defies expectations on her 112th birthday. At 105, she said: “I had bone troubles. When I was five, they didn’t think I’d live to be 10. When I was 10, they said I wouldn’t live to be 15. Boy, they’d be surprised now.”

FEBRUARY 2013 // SLICE 57

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Magazine Photography, Portrait, Finalists Publication: Sunflower Publishing By: Jason Dailey

“Chef Carl Thorne-Thomsen”

Publication: TulsaPeople By: Michelle Pollard

“Mending offenses: Charlette Cohee”

Part 1 Oklahoma ranks poorly

in many national categories, leading us to explore six of these rankings and the reasons behind them.

Mending offenses Oklahoma incarcerates more women per capita than anywhere in the world. TulsaPeople asks, “why?” All stories by JENNIE LLOYD

“I don’t have any secrets anymore,”

Charlette Cohee, 37, has spent the past six years at Eddie Warrior Correctional Facility in Taft, Okla. She was charged with Robbery I, a violent felony conviction, and sentenced to 30 years in prison for her role in a Lawton bank robbery. Twenty-two years of her sentence were later suspended. Cohee’s tentative release is set for late 2013. 46

TulsaPeople MARCH 2013

Charlette Cohee says. February marked the 37-year-old Lawton woman’s sixth year behind bars. Cohee is remarkably open about her life in prison, a place masked in secrecy. Correctional facilities are tucked away in nowhere towns; families hush-talk of loved ones who are locked up; the stigma of the convicted felon persists. Many have preconceptions about people behind bars. But Cohee — and many like

her — defies these notions. She is bright and polite with an easy smile. She is shyly beautiful; she laughs often and talks softly. For an inmate with a violent felony conviction (Robbery I), she appears awfully angelic. By her release late this year, Cohee will have spent most of her 30s in a blur of courtrooms and prisons and in frantic worry over her two children. In prison, Cohee became an avid runner. Every day at 5 a.m., she runs in the pre-dawn light of the prison yard of Eddie Warrior Cor-

rectional Facility in Taft, about an hour south of Tulsa. Running, she says, “is the only thing I can control.” So, she runs and keeps her eyes on the future, on the rolling flatlands beyond the high, barbed-wire fence. Taft is an economically depressed, formerly all-black town chopped into a pair of prisons: the women’s minimum-security prison to the north, and the men’s minimum-security prison (Jess Dunn Correctional Facility) to the south. TulsaPeople.com

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Magazine Photo Illustration Winner Publication: Dainty Obsessions By: Chef Jeni & Company, Icon Lounge & Event Hall, Jeff Sampson Photography, World Market

“Four Course Affair”

DO food & drink

A Four Course Affair CHEF JENI & COMPANY | SIOUX FALLS, SOUTH DAKOTA

Appetizer

Roasted sweet potato and sausage skewer with a green goddess dipping sauce

104 | DO ^

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Photos: Jeff Sampson Photography; Table Settings: World Market

A four-course dining experience is the ultimate indulgence. Treat your guests to a truly memorable meal with an appetizer, soup, salad, and entrée to celebrate your special occasion. Don’t feel obligated to stop there. We recommend concluding your four-course spread with a delightful fifth course of cake!

Magazine Photo Illustration Finalists Publication: Arkansas Life By: Arshia Khan

“The Root Cafe’s skillet cornbread”

SPREAD SOME HOLIDAY CHEER, COURSE AFTER DELECTABLE COURSE.

s the season for presents of the gourmet kind. From our aged prime beef and artfully crafted cuisine, custom cocktails and an extensive wine selection, we’re serving up treats all season long. We can even bring the party to you by fully catering your holiday get-together no matter the size.

good taste

The baTTle for cornbread puriTy Savory, or Sweet? By eMILy vaN ZaNDt | photography By arShIa khaN

0 Cantrell Rd. | 501-375-5351 CajunsWharf.com

14502 Cantrell Rd. | 501-868-7600 Capersrestaurant.com

300 E 3rd St., No.101 | 501-375-3333 Coppergrilllr.com

When it comes to cornbread, there’s plenty of room for debate. A little sugar or none at all? Castiron skillet or baking dish? White or yellow cornmeal? Fluffy and light or crumbly and dense? A nice buttermilk tang? Each person’s take is nuanced, and their loyalty, extreme. Preference can usually be tracked to a person’s hometown—the farther South, the more savory the cornbread. And Southerners love the fight.

NOVEMBER 2013 ARKANSAS LIFE 79

Publication: Arkansas Life By: Dero Sanford, Justin Bolle, Stephanie Pyle, Kimberly Cyr Calhoun

“The Family Man”

The Family Man ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON, pack up the car and make your way up to Greers Ferry Lake. Expend some of that cooped-up energy on the many amenities offered by the wyndham resort at Fairfield bay (110 Village Lane; (501) 884-7000)—crafts, makeovers and square dancing, among other things—so you’ll be able to turn in early. Set the alarm early and head to the Fairfield bay marina ((501) 884-6030), rent a boat and make your way to sugar loaf mountain, located in—wait for it—the middle of the lake. Consider bringing along some chalk so the kids can make their mark on the rocks at the top of the hill. Hiking the 1.6 miles to the top might be a bit strenuous for some of the younger families, but benches along the route and a looping trail that cuts away should offer some respite. For lunch, dock the boat at the famous Janssen’s lakefront restaurant (9999 Edgemont rd.; (501) 723-4480). If you’ve got another walk in you, consider heading along the trail back to the Indian Rock Cave to admire the petroglyphs and the place where De Soto searched for the Fountain of Youth. From there, make your way to woodlands miniature golf for a few holes of low-intensity fun at the Harris Cup-certified 18-hole course (522 Dave creek Parkway, Fairfield Bay; (501) 884-6008). For dinner, head over to the Top of the Rock (337 snead Dr.; (501) 884-6008) scheduled to open the beginning of June, for sliders and hot dogs, with kids’ meals served on Frisbees. On the offhand chance that it’s too early to head to bed, see if there’s anything happening at the community Arts center, which regularly offers family-friendly productions that include puppet shows and the like. On Sunday, head to the eastern part of the lake, overshooting Heber Springs by just a bit to stop by bridal veil Falls (off Bridal Veil Falls Road). From there, head up to the greers Ferry national Fish hatchery (349 Hatchery rd. in Heber springs; (501) 362-3615), where you can learn about the life cycle of trout, then see it for yourself in the cold-water raceways. Head to the red Apple inn (1000 club rd.; (800) 733-2775) for lunch before picking up some of the locally made Lambrecht Toffee (we suggest the newly added Fleur de Sel) on your way out of town.

Pictured: dad’s shirt: evolve, Little Rock. dad’s hat and shoes: dillard’s. boy’s clothing: dillard’s. vintage props: hillcrest cottage (hillcrestcottage. etsy.com). girls’ bathing suits: models’ own. 52 ARKAnSAS LIFe

www.arkansaslife.com

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and Be all.”

Magazine Photography, Multiple, Winner Publication: Oklahoma Today By: James Pratt

“At Home on the Range”

Home Range At At Home ononthetheRange TEST-dRIvE THE WESTERn LIfESTYLE AT THREE OkLAHOmA guEST RAnCHES THAT OffER A WARm WELCOmE, pLEnTY Of ROOm TO SWIng A ROpE, And A unIquELY AuTHEnTIC AgRITOuRISm ExpERIEnCE.

By Sheilah Bright PhotograPhy by JameS Pratt alf past sunset, a glee club of pond frogs singsongs across the hay meadow, where a hundred cattle glide through firefly beams in a shadow ballet. On the porch, the wisteria sugarcoats the air with a reminder to lean back in the glider a little longer and savor every drop of sweetness that has settled to the bottom of a tin cup filled with iced tea. Welcome to the ranch.

EARLY TO RISE Oklahoma’s guest ranches give visitors a chance to try on the cowboy lifestyle, if only for a weekend. At Howard Ranch near Woodward, it’s not unusual for owner Justin Howard and attendees of his Cowboy & Cowgirl School to be out and about before sunrise gathering cows and calves.

September/October 2013

OklahomaToday.com

Rylan and now works alongside him in the family cattle business. Their daughter, Martha, a toddler, just got her first horse. Almost thirty years ago, when Carl and Mary first invited guests to explore their expansive cattle operation—established “I had no preconceived notion what Oklahoma soil, her children pull on their by Carl’s grandfather W.H. Huntsberger Oklahoma was like, but I’m really taken cowboy boots, complete with dude spurs. in 1893—the ranch concept was relatively new. The couple marketed it with the pioneer spirit,” says Ann. “Coming home every summer with the by reaching out to friends and business associates particularly the around ranchtheisworld, their Ken, a thrill seeker who spent years skykids is essential, because in Germany, where Carl once trained roots,” she says. diving and racing motorcycles, smiles as dogs for the United States Army. Mary, of the first Snow Whites Guests make their one own memories in employed at he finishes his chicken-fried steak, mashed Disneyland, grew up in nearby Enid but ten rooms that have private baths and potatoes, and cinnamon cake baked from had extensive contacts in the entertainment industry and once owned a travel two double beds withcompany headboards made a recipe nearly a hundred years old. that specialized in western European trips.The Island from cedar trees on the ranch. “At the heart of every man is a little “Mary had this infectious personality,” Ranch brand—a long-horned “W”—is cowboy,” he says. says Carl of his wife, who died in 2010. wanted to open be in theto room carved into each one.“People All rooms a with One cowboy, Rylan, and his sisters her. She never met a stranger, and she cershaded porch. A swimming surGretchen and Jordy grew up listening to tainly didn’tpool want our guests to leave feellike strangers. no doubt she was rounded by a customing stick fenceI have is steps their parents explain Oklahoma’s heritage the reason so many kept coming back.” Friends like Ken Ann Nelson of away. Next year, a bunkhouse willandopen to Germans, Australians, and Italians Bridgehill, County Durham, England, next to the lodge. are across one of the long wooden tables in part of the reason the White family honors Mary’s memory by continuing Guests can help work cattle, hunt, the lodge. to operate Island Guest Ranch. For two nearby “It was a fantastic way to grow up,” says shoot skeet, swim, ride weeks down in June, theto Nelsons visited for the third time in as many years. for Hoyle Creek in a horse-drawn buggy Jordy. “Mom and Dad would teach us “We read about ranch stays in a a romantic picnic ormagazine,” canoe says ride, sit in really to love this land but also that there was a Ken.or “It sounded good, but whereas Ann likes the Hilton a porch glider and listen to the crickets. world outside it.” life, I like the ranching life. This seemed a compromise.” This is the life for more than 45,000 from its history to the modern realities of returns to the “We drew upStories the plans inabout 1983 for the Marylikecalling coyotes to Every summer, Gretchen The first year, they stayed a week at ranching operations across Oklahoma, continuing the ranching legacy. lodge and started building ten double the out edge of and thecot-yard so she before could hear ranch from her ishome inlikeRome, where she the ranch heading to the Skirvin whether they involve raising a handful “Our ranch product very much units constructed of cedar in Oklahoma The next year, of Herefords on a few acres or running the Oklahoma experience—authentic,” says Carl, whoor livesan on the them sing earlyHilton ranch hand City. who lives with her husband Luca Campello tonwood logs,” they stopped in Chicago before joining 1,100 cow/calf pairs on land spread he says. “We do not create activities to ranch in a hilltop Spanish-style hacienda. slept antheentire winter their two Giorgia and MatWhite family to work cattle and ride across multiple counties. Several of those and see. We introduce youchildren, to the real deal.” “We built itunknowingly as a family-type vacation the horses they now knew by name. ranches are willing to let guests pull place, because this is where we were raisteo. Gretchen and Luca met when the “Andmatteo this year, we skipped the city and on their boots and round up a western ancHeR caRl WHite, his late ing our family, too. We’ve stuck with that, Clockwise from top left: just came straight to the ranch,” experience that will make them long for Italian wifeAir Mary,Force and his children Jordy, and I guess folks like it, because they keep test pilot was training at Campello watches his mother saddle says Ken. “It was Ann’s idea. She’s got the hang of a ranch of their own or appreciate all the Gretchen, and Rylan probably coming back.” at Island Ranch near Ames; Vance Air Force Base Altus. She’s livedA young up this ranch life.” hard work it takes to bring beef to the have showcased Oklahoma ranch in life to Englishwoman namedguest Lisa Howard separates atherhis Ann socattle loved riding first ranch table. Or both. more international touriststhan than anyone first came toJustin visit in 2005 after a disapabroad for more ten years and hopes horse, Bailey, that she took Todd Stallbaumer, consumer and trade in the state. Their Island Guest Ranch, pointing stay at a dude ranch in another Carl Woodward ranch; White and his lessons while to eventually make ranch the family’s on vacationand in theJordy Canary Islands. marketing director for the Oklahoma located on 5,000 acres of whatthe was once state, wherechildren the horse ridingRylan, was, she says, gretchen, at The couple fell hard for the cowboy lifestyle Tourism & Recreation Department, says an island in the Cimarron River near “simply nose to tail on the same trail.” Island guest Ranch permanent home. As soon as they land on guest ranches are living examples of the Ames, is one of the state’s oldest dude Island Guest Ranch was different—Lisa and are learning more about Oklahoma’s early history. importance of Oklahoma’s first industry, ranches still in operation. felt at home there. In 2012, she married

“ i gueSS folkS like it, BecauSe they keep coming back.”

Carl White’s grandfather W.H. Huntsberger, a wagon freighter and cattle drover, camped many nights along the Cimarron River in the 1880s. Thanks to the Cherokee Strip Land Run in 1893, he was able to claim a piece of the western Oklahoma landscape he had come to love. Today, guests enjoy the same area on horseback.

Dudes and Don’ts

OklahomaToday.com

Seven Ranch Rule uleSS to make youR you R S tay betteR bette R than an a ugu uguSS t cold fR f Ront.

1. Be honest about your

horse sense. If you’re inexperienced, don’t claim to ride like Roy Rogers. Trigger down that ego and ask for a trail horse you can handle.

eep in tHe Buffalo Valley of

southeastern Oklahoma near Talihina, Dave and Darleen Shaw raised two boys on rolling pastures and woodlands nurtured by Shaw ancestors since 1889. At the base of Buffalo Mountain, the family ranch stretches across roughly a thousand acres, the site of a working cattle operation and several agriculture-related businesses that include Buffalo Creek Guest Ranch. “I’ve been walking on this place since I was two,” says Dave as he sits in one of five swings on the wraparound porch and points out the buffalo-shaped mountain to the north. “I’ve got a lot of tracks here.” The family’s decision to share their home with strangers was born from a dilemma. In 2005, the Shaws wanted to get away from their to-do lists and celebrate their twentieth wedding anniversary at a bed and breakfast or guest ranch, but everywhere was booked. They ended up in a Tulsa hotel, where they spent the entire weekend coming up with a plan to build a dream house spacious enough for a guest ranch and practical enough to serve as their new family home. In 2011, they opened the 5,800-square-foot lodge with guest quarters in an adjoining wing. It includes two spacious guest suites—one with a king bed, the other a queen—appointed with fireplaces and double whirlpool tubs. A massive common area has a great room with a twenty-one-foot cedar tree centerpiece, a theater room big enough for a football watch party, and a commercial kitchen, where Darleen cooks Belgian waffles, pancakes, and biscuits and gravy. Guests have access to the entire property, including a swimming pool

“ gueSt rancheS are living examPleS of the imPortance of Oklahoma’s first industry.”

September/October 2013

electricity, but Howard can help visitors set up camp. The tradeoff? Wild turkeys and coyotes may be guests’ wake-up call. The wildlife is only part of what makes Howard Ranch feel so genuine. “We’re not trying to be anything but who we are, and our guests seem to like that authentic experience,” says Howard. “It’s important to show people what it takes to make it in this business, because farmers and ranchers built this state.”

2. Do bring along a cowboy

hat or baseball cap. When it’s 103 degrees in the shade, you’re going to appreciate that broad brim.

3. Rein in the urge to unhitch your inner rhine-

stone cowboy. Settle on sensible duds like jeans and boots or tennis shoes. Flip-flops and shorts might be okay for hanging around the watering hole, but even your horse will laugh if you show up for a trail ride dressed like Malibu Barbie.

4. Don’t wear out your

welcome with unreasonable demands. You may be a paying guest, but this is no Four Seasons. Most

with a rock grotto and a party barn for “I was raised in Lousiana, and my September/October 2013 was a chef there, so I had to larger gatherings. Along with testing their grandfather balancing skills across the ranch’s unusual put a little Cajun influence in my catersuspension bridge and riding trail horses ing,” says Darleen. “We put about 4,000 through woods once traveled by General shrimp from Texas in our pond in late May, and they’re ready for our shrimp Robert E. Lee, visitors learn about ranch practices designed to support the family’s boil the first Saturday in October.” business now and for future generations. The annual event features live music and is open to the public. It’s one of sev“There are no better stewards of the land than agriculturists,” says Dave, who eral special events held at the ranch each recently finished a four-year term as vice year, along with a dozen weddings. president of the Oklahoma Cattlemen’s “We didn’t expect to get into the wedding business, but people started asking Association southeast district. “We love the land. We take care of the land because from the time we first opened,” says Dave. it takes care of us.” “We thought it would be families coming to ride horses and shoot skeet, but most of A pride of barn cats and nine horses share the ranch with some two hundred our business is weddings, the second-most head of cattle and Laney, a congenial being wedding anniversaries.” Catahoula with a bad rap: Dave calls her Regardless of why guests visit Buffalo “the most worthless cow dog on the face Creek Guest Ranch, it can be a challenge of the earth.” And thousands of shrimp. to see them as customers.

guest ranches are extensions of people’s homes, so unpack your manners along with your sunscreen.

5. Take the time to get to

know the ranch owners, who are happy to explain what it takes to bring food to your table. Most ranchers grew up on the land they now cultivate, so Oklahoma history lessons, ghost lore, and cowboy legends are sprinkled into their stories.

“It sounds extremely corny, but one of the most difficult things, especially early on, was taking people’s money,” says Dave. “It always seemed like by the time they got ready to check out, they were more like family than paying guests.”

ust befoRe sunRise, an amber haze

gently settles onto the pasture, and the horses lift their heads from the grass to watch the golden hour unfold. Someone’s frying bacon. The biscuits are nearly ready. For a few moments, it’s just a porch swing, a cup of strong coffee, and a sea of gold as far as the eye can see. Welcome to the ranch.

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Island Guest Ranch is open April through October. Stays are $155 per person per day, which includes ranch activities and three

6. Sometime during your

stay, try to get up before the chickens and stay out after the cows come home. Early-morning light softens the landscape, and Mother Nature’s midnight melody should be on everyone’s bucket list.

7. Don’t worry about being

too city slicker. Do ask for help. And whatever you do, never kick a cow chip on a hot day.

It’s easy to find a peaceful spot at Buffalo Creek guest Ranch. Creeks and ponds interspersed with stretches of green offer plenty of opportunities for fishing, canoeing, and leisurely walks.

OklahomaToday.com

meals a day. (800) 928-4574 or islandguestranch.com. Rates at Howard Ranch vary depending on cowboy training. Guided hunts also are available in season. The average rate starts at $200 per day, lunch included. Howard Ranch is located ten miles north of Woodward on State Highway 34 where it intersects County Road 30. (580) 254-5552 or howardranchenterprises.com. The shrimp boil at Buffalo Creek Guest Ranch is October 5 at 6 p.m. $30 for adults, $20 for kids. Packages start at $200 a night. The ranch is located eight miles west of Talihina on State Highway 1. (877) 527-4207 or buffalocreekguestranch.com. OklahomaToday.com

Magazine Photography, Multiple, Finalists Publication: St. Louis Magazine By: Whitney Curtis

“High Hopes”

While living on the streets in his native Nepal, Devi Gurung States knew that one day he would help kids like himself. Now, with the Himalayan Family Healthcare Project, he finally can.

High Hopes

PhotograPhy by Whitney Curtis

There were supposed To be jeeps. Then the monsoon season lasted longer than expected, so the small band of healthcare professionals and porters trekked three hours to the village of Tilche in Manang district, Nepal, one of the poorest places on earth, where scattered villages are isolated by a rugged landscape and reaching the nearest hospital is a day-long journey. This is where devi Gurung states (left) grew up. when he was 15, his parents died. he was too young to work and soon ended up homeless. devi developed a friendship with another homeless boy, and together they eked out a life, until devi’s friend fell ill. “I couldn’t take him to the hospital,” he recalls, “so I lost him.” eventually, devi became a dishwasher at a local restaurant. There, he met his future foster father, dr. james h. states, who was visiting Nepal to climb Mount everest. The doctor took an interest in the teen, who told him about his dreams to own a restaurant and “do something that would improve the health of children that were suffering as I was.” After moving to st. Louis, devi opened everest Café & bar in 2004. Five years later, he founded the himalayan Family healthcare project, which started as a two-week visit from healthcare professionals to the Manang district. Now, with help from the st. Louis–based nonprofit wings of hope, devi plans to build a 15-bed hospital. In an area where dental chairs are made from school desks and doctors wear headlamps to work past dusk because there’s no electricity, the facility could have a huge impact. —Rosalind Early 106 d ece m b e r 2 0 13 |

himalayan Family healthcare project volunteers Cybill esguerra (left), a fourth-year medical student at saint Louis university, and puktu Grg hike to dharapani, in the Manang district in northern Nepal. | december 2013 107

Publication: Moore Monthly By: Rob Morris, Armand McCoy, Fred Wheelbarger, Luke Small, Christiaan Patterson

“May 20, 2013”

May 20, 2013 “This is the worst tornado, damage-wise, in the history of the world.” –Mike Morgan, Newschannel Four Meteorologist

6 | MOORE MONTHLY | JUNE 2013

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Magazine Photography, Feature, Winner Publication: Oklahoma Today By: Shane Bevel

“The Eagles Have Landed”

Native americaNs iN oklahoma are followiNg a calliNg to protect the NatioN’s most majestic and emblematic birds.

The 54

July/August 2013

Eagles

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have Landed

By Megan RossMan PhotogRaPhy By shane Bevel

Thanks to the efforts of Oklahoma tribal members, injured eagles and birds of prey will forever have a safe haven. This golden eagle is at Grey Snow Eagle House in Perkins.

OklahomaToday.com

Magazine Photography, Feature, Finalists Publication: Arkansas Life By: Wesley Hitt and Stephanie Pyle

StateofPlay

On the evening of Sept. 20, as the sun went down and the Friday night lights flickered on, Bentonville High took to the field cast as David against a bigger, stronger Lonestar State Goliath. With 3,500 Tiger fans looking out from the stands, Bentonville prepared to emerge from a Texas-sized shadow.

By Evin Demirel • Photography by Wesley Hitt

60 ARKANSAS LIFE

Game. On.

NOVEMBER 2013 ARKANSAS LIFE 61

www.arkansaslife.com

Publication: Oklahoma Today By: Mark W. Nault

Storm Watch Oklahomans love thunderstorms. For springs immemorial, the state’s skies have been dramatic canvases for

squall lines, supercells, and lightning strikes. In these thirteen images, three photographers capture the season’s

mark w. nault

power, volatility, and rare beauty. In this photo, a cumulonimbus towers over the Okarche area.

May/June 2013

OklahomaToday.com

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News Writing, Magazine, Winner Publication: TulsaPeople By: Jennie Lloyd, Nellie Kelly, Scott Wigton Judges’ Comments: Everything about this series is stunning. The concept, the execution, the design (repetition of the opening black and white imagery), the sidebars and infographics—all add up to an incredibly readable and important piece of magazine journalism.

Excerpt from “Unacceptable” For too many kids in Tulsa’s classrooms, the specter of food insecurity — not knowing where their next meal is coming from — looms large. In fact, of the approximately 41,000 students in Tulsa Public Schools, an astounding 88 percent qualify for free or reducedprice lunches based on their families’ incomes. That’s more than 36,000 students. Without this program, many or most of these kids would probably experience hunger during the school day that impairs their ability to focus and learn. During the summertime when this program isn’t available, it’s likely many eat less, or eat cheaper, poorerquality foods, unless they participate in programs such as the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma’s Food for Kids Backpack Program, which sends students home with backpacks of food. Not only are most students on the student lunch program, many of their families also rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps). Getting by on SNAP isn’t easy. Last December, Dr. Keith Ballard, TPS superintendent, took what was called the SNAP challenge. For two days, he lived on the typical SNAP benefit of $4.23 for a member of an Oklahoma family in need. “It impacted me, and I was surprised,” Ballard reports. “I really didn’t get enough to eat. I had that hungry feeling — it gnaws at you — and it affected how I felt overall. But I had people helping me. I thought of those who don’t have help and no access to a grocery. It could be a disaster for them.” Ballard has no doubt that food insecurity and hunger in the classroom are detrimental to learning and to the future prospects of many. “We must solve hunger issues in the urban setting,” he says. “We have

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to make sure that kids’ needs are being met. It’s inexcusable to just say that they are on free and reduced lunch. “They are children, and they ought to be fed, and they ought not to have to worry about food. Providing a good education is what helps break the cycle of poverty and hunger.” Groceries on the go Consider this scenario: The cupboards are bare. The refrigerator is nearly empty. The kids are hungry. Groceries are only four hours away. Huh? Four hours? Maybe you’re thinking this hypothetical family lives out in the country somewhere. Wrong. This is a real-life example from right here in urban Tulsa. “This is approximately how long it takes, roundtrip, for someone without their own vehicle living at about 56th Street North and Martin Luther King Boulevard to get groceries from the Gateway Market at Pine Street and Peoria,” says Katie Plohocky, a local entrepreneur and chairwoman of the Tulsa Food Security Council. Katie Plohocky, a local entrepreneur

and chairwoman of the Tulsa Food Security Council, and her business partner, Scott Smith, are rolling out a mobile grocery store to meet the needs of people in Tulsa’s food deserts, particularly in north Tulsa. Katie Plohocky, a local entrepreneur and chairwoman of the Tulsa Food Security Council, and her business partner, Scott Smith, are rolling out a mobile grocery store to meet the needs of people in Tulsa’s food deserts, particularly in north Tulsa. “They have to catch the bus, go downtown, wait, catch another bus, get dropped off at the store, do their shopping then catch a bus back home with their groceries.” Too many Tulsa residents reside in food deserts — areas where reasonably priced, healthy food remains largely unavailable. This forces residents in these areas, most of whom tend to be low income and often lack their own vehicles, to travel a considerable distance for access to a full-service grocery that offers fresh produce and meats.

News Writing, Magazine, Finalists Publication: St. Louis Magazine By: Jeannette Cooperman

Publication: Slice By: John Parker, Scotty O’Daniel, Mia Blake, Elizabeth

Excerpt from “A tragedy no one saw coming” September 2009. Six weeks after her premature birth, Jennifer and Shane Umphress’ daughter was sent home from the hospital with well wishes and packets of SimplyThick. Soon after she got settled in her comfy new crib, though, the diarrhea started. She was clearly in pain, and she started having trouble breathing. Her parents raced her to a nearby hospital in Las Cruces, N.M., which airlifted her to the University of New Mexico Children’s Hospital in Albuquerque. Diagnosis: NEC, or necrotizing enterocolitis, a condition that kills the tissue that lines the intestinal wall. She lived, but her parents say her stomach remains distended, and she’s often in pain. November 2009. Kim Petroni gave birth to a premature son. In February, he was sent home with packets of SimplyThick. Days later, his stomach bloated painfully. Diagnosis: NEC. After another six weeks in the hospital, he recovered. Once again, he was sent home with instructions to use SimplyThick. The NEC came right back. This time, he had to have a portion of his intestines surgically removed. His parents say that his stomach, like the Umphress baby’s, is permanently distended, with increased risk of bowel obstructions. December 2009. SimplyThick received its U.S. patent. May 2010. Devon Addonizio’s premature daughter was fed SimplyThick during her last few days at Weill Cornell Medical Center, then sent home May 4 with instructions to continue use. Addonizio ordered more thickener right away from the company’s website. By May 7, she says, her daughter was screaming in pain, moaning in her sleep, and passing large amounts of gas. On May 13, Addonizio found her grunting for air and deathly pale, the skin around her mouth bluish.

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Excerpt from “Housing market madness” Real estate professionals describe the metro market with adjectives worthy of the most gushing of real estate ads: “wonderful,” “fantastic,” “crazy.” Black’s colleague Keith Taggart, managing broker of Coldwell Banker Select in Mustang, says his office’s record-setting sales are up more than 20 percent over last year, which were already up more than 20 percent over the year before that. “Now we have so many more buyers than we do houses for sale that it’s not uncommon that a property will have multiple offers on it. And the sales price will be above the list price if they get into price wars over them,” Taggart said. Central Oklahoma’s housing market has been in recovery for about two years – and is hotter than ever. Taggart, also president of the Oklahoma City Metro Association of Realtors, attributes that to years of pent-up demand still left over from the Great Recession. Buyers with doubts about an economic reawakening are no longer holding back. “We’re as busy now as we were at the height of things seven or eight years ago,” Taggart said. “As soon as people started feeling better about their jobs and better about the economy, they came out in droves.” A red-hot metro economy is driving the clamor. Central Oklahoma was the nation’s No. 1 job market for 13 months in a row until it slipped to No. 2 last summer. OKC Mayor Mick Cornett notes in speeches across the country that an average of 2,000 people move into the metro every month.

Publication:Sync Weekly By: Shea Stewart

Excerpt from “Up for the count” You know Reddin. Or you should. He’s the driver of The Van, part of the nonprofit The One, Inc. and a mobile, grassroots answer to central Arkansas’ homeless challenge. Reddin keeps driving me into the weirdest spots in The Van, searching for the area’s homeless with the mission of supplying them with a little hope, whether it be food, soap, socks or just a friendly face, and I keep riding merrily along. Nearly two years ago, Reddin drove me into the

woods within sight of the Arkansas State Capitol to a homeless camp. Presently, I find myself riding in a patio seat jerry-rigged behind the driver’s seat of The Van. Arshia Khan, Sync’s photographer, is riding shotgun. Reddin roams the Highway 10 corridor and parts north of the Arkansas River helping with this year’s Point-inTime Homeless Count, a 24-hour census of the local sheltered and unsheltered homeless population in Lonoke,

Prairie, Pulaski and Saline counties. Every two years, member organizations of the Central Arkansas Team Care for the Homeless, volunteers and some homeless individuals count the number of unsheltered and sheltered homeless in the area with the numbers being reported to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for federal-funding purposes. (A count of only sheltered homeless individuals is conducted every year.)

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Feature Feature Writing, Writing, Magazine, Magazine, Winner Winner Publication: Oklahoma Humanities Magazine By: Howard Faulkner, Author, Carla Walker, Editor, Oklahoma Humanities Council, Publisher Judges’ Comments: Editor Carla Walker introduces the narrative of Howard Faulkner, who is chronicling his battle with kidney cancer in an online blog. These published blog excerpts reveal the day-to-day costs of a terminal illness—financial, physical, and emotional—and surprising moments of humor, love, and reflection. One of six feature articles on the topic of “Medicine: The Humanities Prescription,” exploring how the humanities [history, literature, ethics, philosophy, etc.] influence the field of medicine.

Excerpt from “Rabbit Punched – An Atheist’s Guide to Living with Cancer” Topeka, Kansas, circa 1996. As a nontraditional student (collegespeak for “older”), Dr. Howard Faulkner was the first professor at Washburn University to present a speed bump in my straight-Ahonors-student cruise toward graduation. I can’t remember the precise grade he gave my initial essay for his American Lit. class, but anything less than an A would have had me in a dither. I marched myself into his office hours to find out, What gives? My recollection is fuzzy (it’s been a few years or twelve since then), but the upshot was that I was editing myself too much. He counseled that good writing must balance brevity and style with the need to tell the reader enough—advice that stood me in good stead, as (little did either of us know) I would build a career on my tendency to edit. In his class I learned to think critically and to appreciate poetry; in particular, to opeka, Kansas, circa As a non-traditional student (collegeTopeka for an1996. alumni awards event. My understand Emily Dickinson (all those speak for “older”), Dr. Howard Faulkner was the first professor at mentorUniversity and college Tom dashes and capital letters!). As a student, Washburn to presentadviser, a speed bump in myAverill, straight-Ahonors-student cruise toward graduation. I can’t remember the hosted a celebration dinner at his home I was in awe. He was a Fulbright Scholar precise grade he gave my initial essay for his American Lit. class, but anything thanFaulkner an A would was have had me in amy dither. I marched andlessDr. among former who had traveled the world (summer myself into his office hours to find out, What gives? My recollection professors who attended. It was a lovely sabbaticals in Paris, leaves of absence to is fuzzy (it’s been a few years or twelve since then), but the upshot was that I was editing myself too much. He conversation. counseled that good evening of reminiscing and teach in Macedonia, France, Bulgaria, writing must balance brevity and style with the need to tell the reader I learned that weekend that and Morocco. Who does that?!). He enough—advice that stood me in good stead, as (littleHoward did either of us know)had I would builddiagnosed a career on my tendency to edit. four been with stage was intellectual, well-read, utterly the In his class I learned to think critically and to appreciate poetry; in kidney cancer; nevertheless, hedashes looked English professor. Before his long tenure particular, to understand Emily Dickinson (all those and capital As a student, I was in awe. He was a Fulbright Scholar who well, was happy and full of vigor. His at Washburn, he did graduate teaching letters!). had traveled the world (summer sabbaticals in Paris, leaves of absence Bulgaria, and Morocco. Who does useinofMacedonia, a cane France, and considerable graying, and completed a Ph.D. at the University to teach that?!). He was intellectual, well-read, utterly the English professor. both our parts, were the only visible of Oklahoma. And, of course, there were Beforeon his long tenure at Washburn, he did graduate teaching and a Ph.D. at from the University of Oklahoma. And, of course, differences the dashing professor of his own forays into writing and editing, completed there were his own forays into writing and editing, including, with memory. Shortly after that trip, I learned including, with his colleague Virginia his colleague Virginia Pruitt, the correspondence of ground-breaking psychiatrist Menninger.friend that Howard was fromKarl a mutual Pruitt, the correspondence of groundI had only that one class with Dr. Faulkner and we didn’t writing living cancer. breaking psychiatrist Karl Menninger. communicate for a theblog dozen on years after hewith sent me on my way with an anything-but-easy A. But I had the happy occasion to renew our What I found was anything but I had only that one class with Dr. acquaintance a year ago while in Topeka for an alumni awards event. My mentor and college“I adviser, Tomcancer, Averill, hosted a celebration the typical have woe is me” dinner Faulkner and we didn’t communicate at his home and Dr. Faulkner was among my former professors who narrative youevening would expect.and He is a for the dozen years after he sent me on attended. It was a lovely of reminiscing conversation. consummate storyteller. In addition to my way with an anything-but-easy A. 24 Fall 2013 candid revelations of the day-to-day But I had the happy occasion to renew fight and costs— financial, physical, and our acquaintance a year ago while in

By Howard Faulkner

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arT by John fox I learned that weekend that Howard been diagnosed with emotional—of dealing with ahad terminal stage four kidney cancer; nevertheless, he looked well, was happy and disease, are stories about coming full of vigor. there His use of a cane and considerable graying, onof both our parts, were the only visible differences from the dashing professor of age in a small Iowa town; the lifechangmemory. Shortly after that trip, I learned from a mutual friend that Howard was writing a blog living with cancer. ing revelations he on was forced to make to What I found was anything but the typical “I have cancer, woe avoid the Vietnam draft; the weekends is me” narrative you would expect. He is a consummate storyteller. In addition candid revelations of the day-to-dayCity fight and costs— he spenttoin Tulsa and Oklahoma financial, physical, and emotional—of dealing with a terminal disease, in the late ’60s, going house to house to the lifethere are stories about coming of age in a small Iowa town; changing revelations he was forced registration. to make to avoid theThere Vietnam draft; encourage black voter the weekends he spent in Tulsa and Oklahoma City in the late ’60s, is humor, commentary, and There is going house to too, house and to encourage black voter registration. humor, too, and commentary, and opinions—plenty of opinions: film opinions—plenty of opinions: film and and book reviews, rants on politics, thoughts on the latest Supreme Court cases, and the rants importance love and friendship as disease book reviews, on ofpolitics, thoughts narrows life to home, doctors’ visits, and the daily quandary, Can I on the latest Supreme Court cases, and stomach sushi or Kraft mac-n-cheese today? Now and again he includes a favorite poemof and, ever the teacher, an explication (collegethe importance love and friendship speak for “explanation”) of its relevance to the season, his life, or the as disease narrows life to home, docissues of the day. When Howard agreed our publishing blog excerpts, tors’ visits, and thetodaily quandary, Can he had already outlived his initial prognosis. It’s a year later and his entries Iarestomach orare Kraft mac-n-cheese increasinglysushi hopeful (as we who care about him). I’m happy to report that he’s facing each day with courage and determination and, today? Now and again he includes a at this writing, has just married his beloved partner, Mohamed, whose name you’ll see mentioned, andthe again.teacher, an favorite poem and,again ever So make yourself a cup of tea or pour a glass of wine, settle in, and explication (collegespeak for “explanasavor a bit of narrative from one man’s extraordinary life. tion”) of its relevance to the season, his life, or the issues of the day.

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Feature Feature Writing, Writing, Magazine, Magazine, Finalists Finalists Publication: St. Louis Magazine By: William Powell

Publication: Oklahoma Today By: Nathan Gunter

Excerpt from “The Fifth Quarter”

Excerpt from “Rolling in the Deep”

You will know them by their hands. Thick and strong, Kaleb Summer’s didn’t know he had a staph infection. long and wide enough to swallow footballs, to send titanic He was under a gigantic piece of concrete in chest-deep men crashing to the ground. They dole out handshakes water, and a flathead catfish—a female that recently had that reverberate in your wrist, the way fathers teach their spawned—had just swallowed his arm past his wrist. The sons—look ’em in the eye and make it firm—but with the monster started to spin and thrash. Sum- mers was runamplifier turned up to 11. ning out of air and had to get away. So he punched her. You’ll also see scars: knobs where broken bones couldn’t “I was trying to get her off me,” he says. “I was blowquite figure out the right way to fuse back together. Knucking bubbles, fighting her, and pushing her back.” les swollen and smashed, mangled and misshapen. Fingers His team was holding his legs, helping him dive aturday, January 28, 2012 Four reasons why I’m not afraid of his life. Andthen Jacques, who are ran arings, Nicolas wine shop in Paris. jutting in unnatural directions. And there deeper into the catfish’s lair. Conceding the battle for a death (which is not to say that I’m not afraid of dying). Reason #1: When I came back to Paris one time, Jacques’ partner said tokens from hall be ofsofame moment, Sum- mers let go and swam out. see dead people.”Story City, Iowa, where I grewchampionships up, was a town thatand he would happyinductions, to see me, that he’d been, for some about 1600 inhabitants, mostshimmering of them Norwegiantrinand Lutheran. When Jacques and I met for dinner at one of “I came out of the water, and I said, ‘We’ve got a tourkets hungreason, fromdepressed. the wreckage. nfortunately, I can still recall of the odor from the semi-annual my favorite restaurants in Paris, I knew instantly from his gaunt theseroughly hands startappearance talking,what lookwasout. Try toGustavo—one main- year a gorgeous nament winner this time,’” he says. efisk and lefse dinners.) In myWhen class, which held wrong. And eady at 33, there was an Anderson, Carlson,poise Johnson, model in Paris, the next wasting away a in legal his hospital bed. And too He told the members of his team with him that day— tain your asKnutson, they demonstrate the head slap, rson, Matson, Nelson, Olson, Paulson, Peterson, Samson, and many more. maneuver in theand National Football ofthan the just 1960s andI know that I’ve two buddies from his college days at Oklahoma State ompson. My best friends were Bobby Knutson Kathy But it’s League about more survival. hnson. Kathy’s cousin, Liz Larson, was the daughter of the been very lucky in my life. For 45 years, I taught literature and ’70s. Don’t flinch as they recount a particularly brutal fight University and a childhood friend from his hometown of wner of the local funeral home. The key word was “home,” since language—a career that I loved. Randall Jarrell once said that if e Larsons lived there. It was one of the biggest houses in town, he wasn’t paid by others to teach, he’d pay to do so. I felt that between teammates in training camp. You won’t doubt the Claremore—to pull him up when he kicked his right leg. d Kathy and I spent many happy afternoons there. way too, though I didn’t say that aloud till the last year, since the punch these fists could pack, even in retirement. After taking a breath, he sank beneath the muddy water, I still remember the layout of the house. When you entered, administration might well have taken me at my word. How lucky ere was a formal staircase on theGlance right thatat ledthe to the second if you to getdare. paid toSome talk about thingsthe that Syou love! And lucky too that knees, carry thrusting his hand at the flathead. or. To the left was a large room, sparsely furnished because Karl Menninger (“long considered the elder statesman and dean shaped scar from surgeries to repair torn ligaments in the hen there were funerals in the house it would be filled with of American psychiatry,”as noted by The New York Times) was here “Sure enough—whap!—she hit me real hard, and when ding chairs for the service. Beyond that to arthroscopy. the left was what Many in Topeka, who was still brilliant age before havea man been replaced alto- (if very cantankerous) she did, I grabbed the bottom of her mouth,” he says. e’d now call the family room with the TV. Behind the largest into his nineties, which allowed me to produce four books of his a few more than once. om were the dining room andgether, the kitchen. lettersWith and a enough monograph,procedures, as well as articles on literary subjects Summers clamped down and held There were two rules for us kids: one, when a funeral was more closely related to my own field. they cease to look like knees atI was all—they’re balloons filled on, working his hand deep into the fish’s throat to grab king place, we had to stay outside. Since most Story Citians lucky in that two sisters, whom I never knew, endowed d funerals in one of the three Lutheran the one that a summer fundcould that enabled me to spend seven its or gills. Locking his fingers with jelly.churches You’llormarvel a pairsabbatical of shorts possibly ethodist church, this proscription wasn’t very difficult. The other summers in Paris. It seems that every fourth year I got pass floor, overwhere such a father largedidandeight lumpy e was that the room on the second Liz’s restless andmass. took a semester or, more often, a year off to teach tightly, he kicked his right foot, and the team pulled e actual embalming and other preparations, was want off limits. abroad, first in Macedonia, Bulgaria, and finally “You ever toI’m see something ugly, gothen to aFrance, golf then tourhim out. re we must have been tempted to sneak a peek or test whether Morocco. Those four years were some of the happiest and most nament with NFL retired players,” says one such player. e door was unlocked, though I don’t remember that we ever interesting of my life. I learned how much I loved languages and “I’d been under close to a minute with this fish rolling d so. how language opens the way to immersion in the culture. “I’m not kidding you. It looks like Star Wars, half-moon around,” he says, “so when I broke the surface, the only But I’ve omitted one room. If, when you entered, you turned And I’ve been very lucky in that for the last five years, I’ve scars back and big globs of cottage cheese in the word I was able to gasp was, ‘Help!’” ither to the left nor right, there was in front of you forth, the viewing loved and been loved despite what began as a very long-distance om, where the dead lay so that others could view the body. relationship for me and Mohamed. I want(ed) to live longer, of knees. Guys with knees this big [he indicates the size of a Summers and his team wrestled the catfish onto the uring all the years that we played in that house, there were often course. (The past tense seems depressingly fatalistic; the present dies nicely laid out in this room. As kids we trying thought nothing basketball] to walk.”tense perhaps naively optimistic.) I wanted many more years on bank, tied it to a ski rope, and left it in the water overit. It seemed perfectly natural—not an object of fear or even a new page in my life. But even if that’s not to be, I do know that The football franchise moved to St. Louis from night. Less than twenty-four hours later, they hoisted their riosity, except when we might know theCardinals person who was lying I’ve had a happy and lucky life. ere. That people died seemedChicago just a part ofin the1960 way things andare. then bolted for Arizona after the 1987 catch onto the scale at the Okie Noodling Tournament in Nearly 30 years later, I met Kathy again. She was returning Thursday, February 2, 2012 Reason #3: I’m an atheist. A season. Though the team is gone, many Big Red players Pauls Valley. It weighed in at 70.46 pounds, a tournament nursing and wanted to work with AIDS patients, this at a time Muslim friend in Morocco was upset by the subtitle of the blog: hen a diagnosis of AIDS meant almost certain death. of us Why did I haveleaving to be so aggressive it? Was this a guide only for have stayed here,Both forging lives after their about violent, record. reed that our experience in the funeral home gave us a healthy atheists? (I’m not sure that so far it’s even much of a guide.) In part, fleeting profession. No matter what rspective on death and its familiarity. the choice wasthey’ve a reaction accomplished to a specific event: I was watching my As Summers lifted his trophies and checks—the spoils When I told this story to a good friend, she said that it would favorite morning show, Up with Chris Hayes. One of the panelists in the years since, they continue to be defined by the game. totaled $2,500—for wins in two categories, the crowd ake a great short story. But my point was the opposite: there was a liberal black woman. I was nodding and agreeing with as no story there—no tension, no epiphany, just lifesuing in all itsthe NFL everything sheconcussions said when the subject of the death of Christopher And even while over or fighting roared. Marion Kincaid, a star of the reality show Mudcats lness and completeness. Hitchens came up. The panelist said that she didn’t understand for workers’ compensation, their bodies battered, they say and the tournament’s previous record-holder, shook each why atheists didn’t just shut up and stop being so in-your-face uesday, January 31, 2012footReason #2: I survived the AIDS about their lack of belief. She was a Christian, and ... On and on team member’s hand and offered congratulations. idemic, while so many of the people I cared about did not. she went, and higher and higher went my blood pressure. She ball has given them far more than it has taken away, as early thirty years ago, my undergraduate roommate—funny, didn’t see any reason why she shouldn’t expound on her beliefs, That night, things looked less rosy. Summers had cut mart, good-looking, young—was the as firstthey I knew who died. those atheists! cliché would neverbut admit that sounds. his leg on a boulder on an earlier fishing trip. On a later ch had gone to San Francisco to join, he thought, the American God, prayer, spirituality, heaven, hell—they have no Dandidn’t Dierdorf was to play football, a 10-pound baby expedi- tion, he overlooked a broken branch in the water, onservatory Theater. They ultimately take him, and born to purchase, either emotionally or intellectually. And I find that very rvive he became a male prostitute. I visited him once in perhaps comforting. Without God, the supposed stages of grieving can be in Canton, Ohio, a pigskin-obsessed town in a pigskinwhich stabbed the wound. e most depressing trip I ever took. Rich lived in a fleabag hotel ignored entirely. Anger? There’s no one/nothing to be angry with. the Tenderloin. The rooms had single, shadeless Bargaining? Ditto. There’s no fruitless asking, “Why me?” No one “It was the worst pain I ever had,” he says. “I got a obsessed state,bulbs thehanging birthplace of professional football. When m the ceiling. There was one toilet in the hallway on each floor. will answer, and no answer would make sense. Dan 13,I was he afraid and tohis went to the groundbreaking staph infection the night we won Pauls Valley, and it went eed in the sink in my room at nightwas because go fatherLife takes meaning from its shape, and the idea of hell and, o the corridor. Rich and I barely saw each since heHall plied of Fame. more so, of heaven are beyond my ken. What would eternal life at the Proother, Football into my foot.” s trade at night and slept during the day. I never saw him again. even mean? As Wallace Stevens says in one of the most beautiful Summers, who healed quickly, was told to stay out of And there was Ken, whom I took to Paris for the last summer poems of the twentieth century,“Sunday Morning”: the water for a week and a half. Luckily, he didn’t miss Oklahoma Humanities 25 any noodling tournaments during his recovery.

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Profile Writing, Writing, Magazine, Magazine, Winner Winner Profile Publication: St. Louis Magazine By: Jeannette Cooperman Judges’ Comments: Tackling the ultimate profile of an iconic and controversial civic figure is always ambitious. This unflinching yet seemingly (to an outsider) well-balanced piece must be the best thing ever written about

Excerpt from “The Complex Legacy of Father Biondi” On May 4, Saint Louis University tricks out Chaifetz Arena like a ballroom, bleachers hidden behind curtains of SLU blue and not a whiff of basketball sweat in the air. Black-tied benefactors walk through a curtain of light, the fleur-de-lis emblem shimmering in their silvered or foiledblond hair, and join the guest of honor, the Rev. Lawrence Biondi, for cocktails. The fall semester was rough for him, with letters being leaked, alumni waving protest banners behind him at a Billikens basketball game, no-confidence votes coming from both faculty and student governing bodies, the new law dean bailing, and the chair of theological studies stepping down on moral grounds. But tonight’s not the time to think about any of that. This is a celebration. Granted, it’s hard to miss the students and profs in bright orange T-shirts who’ve gathered behind the arena. They’re calling their party The Alternative Gala—tickets $1 instead of $1,000—and making impassioned speeches demanding Biondi’s resignation. Longtime trustee Joe Adorjan sees them and clamps off a spurt of rage. His friend endured a firestorm of criticism all fall and winter, lit, in his opinion, by a few insurgents on the faculty and fanned by media. Now this? What an insult. Biondi’s inside, hugging people, thanking donors. There’s a lovely dinner. After the dessert flight is cleared and glowing tribute has been paid to his accomplishments over the past 25 years, he steps to the podium. All eyes

turn, and the benefactors wait, halfsmiles already on many of their faces, for him to talk about the transformation of their beloved university. Only the trustees know what’s coming next. Biondi’s not talking to reporters, but his accomplishments are easy to piece together. Over the course of a quartercentury, he has more than doubled Saint Louis University’s acreage and increased both the number and quality of its faculty and students. Along the way, he’s stabilized a huge swath of the city, made the Grand Center arts district

possible, and extended SLU’s influence throughout the city and the world. “Father has raised more money and spent more money than his last several predecessors combined,” says Mayor Francis Slay. “Those who remember the SLU at which he arrived and examine the one from which he will retire know the truth: Larry Biondi is one of America’s greatest college presidents.” So why do so many of his faculty, staff, alumni, and students want him gone? From the outside, it looks like a clash over tenure and an unpopular academic vice president. That’s way too simple. A few ill-conceived proposals and a stubborn refusal to betray a man who’d done his bidding? Those are just struck matches. The kindling’s been stacking up for years, dry and brittle and some of it drenched in gasoline. Still, people keep hoping Biondi will douse the fire himself. Instead, his response turns even the mildest intellectuals on campus into revolutionaries. “He is one of the most singularly complex people I have ever met,” remarks a former administrator. “He is a man of walking contradictions.” A visionary who micromanages. A linguist who’s never learned to soften his words. A priest who’s an aggressive CEO. A pragmatist who wields power over thousands of idealistic intellectuals. Biondi used every one of those contradictions to push Saint Louis University into a new century, a new identity. Now they’ve started to work against him.

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Profile Writing, Writing, Magazine, Magazine, Finalists Finalists Profile Publication: Oklahoma Today By: Randy Krehbiel

Publication: Inspired Home Omaha Magazine By: Chris Christen By: Chris Christen, Matt Miller

Excerpt from “Sky Changer”

Excerpt from “The Artificial Florist”

The way Devon Energy executive chairman J. Larry Nichols tells it, he might have stayed in Washington, D.C., if it hadn’t been for Richard Nixon. He might not have come back to Oklahoma, might never have gone into the oil and gas business, might not have seen that business rise, quite literally, to new heights. Few places in Oklahoma are untouched by the company Larry Nichols and his father John started in 1971 with two-anda- half employees. Devon Energy holds mineral leases in all seventy-seven counties and operates 2,100 wells in Oklahoma. In 2011, it paid $33 million in gross production ad valorem taxes, spent $900 million on goods and services, and disbursed $125 million to state royalty owners. In 2012, the company expected to spend $1.3 billion to drill three hundred oil and liquid natural gas wells in the state. From the roughnecks working Devon wells to the 1,800 employees in the new 850-foot-tall, 1.8-million-squarefoot Devon Energy Center—the company’s downtown Oklahoma City headquarters complex—Devon’s impact on the state is almost incalculable. But it’s not all about money. Devon’s statement of core values includes “Always do the right thing” and “Be a good neighbor.” Over the years, the company and its employees have contributed thousands of hours and millions of dollars to Oklahoma charities, schools, and universities. The boss is not excluded. Larry Nichols’ community service includes stints as chairman of the Oklahoma Nature Conservancy, the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, and the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber and State Chamber of Oklahoma. His directorships include the Dean McGee Eye Institute, the Arts Council of Oklahoma City, and the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. Mostly, Larry Nichols gets things done. As the Devon Energy Center project unfolded, he went to Oklahoma City with a proposal: Use the additional tax revenue generated by the headquarters complex to pay for $224 million in improvements to downtown streets and a rejuvenation of the Myriad Botanical Gardens, located across from Devon’s new campus. It was an unusual arrangement. Tax increment finance districts—or TIFs, as they are called—typically benefit the property from which the revenue is derived. In other words, Nichols and Devon could have demanded the TIF money be spent on something directly related to their headquarters complex. “Larry would have qualified for a lot of the money from the TIF,” says former Oklahoma City mayor Ron Norick, chairman of the Downtown Oklahoma City TIF Review Committee. “What he did was say, ‘I don’t want one penny of it. As I upgrade my building, I want the city to upgrade its infrastructure, too.’” “Larry set the standard for the rest of the business community,” says Oklahoma City mayor Mick Cornett. “It’s hard to say you’re too busy if Larry Nichols has time to get involved.” But all this might never have happened without Richard Nixon.

Ted Kooser is a master at finding the beauty in ordinary things. Take silk flowers, for example. “I can’t stop buying them,” says Nebraska’s Pulitzer Prize-winning poet. The window display at his artist’s studio in tiny Dwight, Neb., bears testimony to the obsession that began innocently enough. “A group of women wanted to have a book club meeting here years ago, so I went to every thrift shop in the area and bought silk flowers to dress up the place.” Before long, he had reason for new business cards: Ted Kooser, Artificial Florist. Kooser doesn’t do much writing in his one-room studio in Dwight. Instead, he comes here mostly to paint or read, or to take a trip down memory lane with Hoagy Carmichael, Faron Young, Webb Pierce and hundreds of other vintage artists in an extensive collection of LP record albums. “I play a polka album from time to time, too. After all, this is a Czech town.” A few times a year, someone mistakes the studio for an antique or thrift store and pops in for closer inspection. The cheery “Poetry Made and Repaired” lettering on the window dupes visitors, as do Kooser’s porcelain dolls, used books, antique desk and assorted items relating to the building’s early days as a grocery store and then a craft shop. The studio is across the street and around the corner from Cy’s Café, Kooser’s regular lunch spot. “I’ll bet it’s the only restaurant in Nebraska that serves roast pork and creamed potatoes,” he says. Kooser is married to Kathleen Rutledge, former editor of the Lincoln Journal Star. They live with a slow but faithful yellow Lab named Howard on an 1880s farmstead along a curving road about a dozen miles west of Dwight. Known as the Bohemian Alps for the Czech and German immigrants who settled here, the area has been the poet and essayist’s inspiration for more than 30 years. A typical day for Kooser starts before the sun breaks the horizon. He gets up at 4:30 a.m., makes a pot of coffee, answers his mail and email and writes in his journal. An overstuffed chair in a corner of the living room is a favorite spot for settling in with pad and pen. “Some of my best work is done before dawn,” he says, when the brain is just starting to awaken and random thoughts and observations spill onto his page.

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Column Column Writing, Writing, Magazine, Magazine, Winner Winner

ast Word

Publication: Tulsa People Magazine By: Connie Cronley

Commentary on Tulsa life

CONNIE Judges’ Comments: Connie Cronley seems up for any adventure.by Whether it’s getting CRONLEY her portrait painted in a frilly shirt or smoking a hookah, she approaches her column writing with an openness and wit that’s endearing, honest and human. I love the references to art and literature that she sprinkles into these pieces, but I really fell for her sense of humor and her willingness to poke a little fun at herself, often by putting herself in somewhat-awkward or vulnerable situations. I laughed out loud at these pieces, and they made me think. Excerpt from “Dab of humility, Hooked on hookah and The learning curve”

Lives there a human with ego so humble she doesn’t beam at the idea of having her portrait painted? Not in my house. When I was asked if I would sit for the “Faces of Tulsa” art project, I fairly swooned with delight. Surely I would join a celebrated galaxy of famous portraits: “Madame X” by John Singer Sargent, Jan Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring,” Gustav Klimt’s glittering “Adele Bloch-Bauer” and perhaps Andy Warhol’s “Marilyn” with emerald green eye shadow and scarlet lipstick. I bought a white blouse ruffled at the neck especially for the occasion. A hint of Emily Dickinson, I thought, timeless and poetic. Plus, the tiniest suggestion of strength and royalty from Elizabethan ruff collars. And, the ruffles just might hide surplus chins. Some 15 painters with easels and drawing boards were set up in the sunny ballroom at the Tulsa Historical Society. “Oh, ruffles,” one of them said, “what fun.” I took my place — a chair on a small platform — and the timekeeper called out, “Twenty minutes — begin.” They would paint, and I would sit motionless, for about four hours with breaks every 20 minutes. I fixed my eyes on a distant tree bough and pasted on an expression intended to be both charming and intelligent. Instantly I had to sneeze. My ear itched. I had a tiny cramp in my back. “You’re turning to the right,” one painter barked. “A little more to the left,” another said. “All we’re getting is a profile.” During the break, as they talked amiably with me, they revealed some hard truths: “It’s hard to paint teenagers,” one said. “They’re pretty but don’t have any character in their faces. We’re so happy you’re here.” “You see a lot when you look at a person for four hours.” I began to get an uneasy feeling. The

painters began to grumble about the ruffles. “Too much white,” somebody murmured. At the next break, I asked timidly if I could peek at their works in progress. It was a sobering experience. In an array of media — oil, pastels, pencils, charcoal — I was depicted as a cross between “Whistler’s Mother” and George Washington with a vague resemblance to the Pillsbury Doughboy and a profile to rival Alfred Hitchcock. The white, ruffled blouse ballooned around me as if I were parachuting slowly to earth. Someone, weary of too much white and blonde, had painted the blouse — and my face — green. Sargent said famously, “a portrait is a likeness with a little something wrong with the mouth.” Picasso turned portraits into geometry and animal parts. Were these painters, chattering quietly like a flock of merry birds, venturing where no artist had dared before go? In the spring of 1985, I did the publicity for what the legendary Angie Debo called her “public hanging.” It was the unveil-

ing of her portrait by Charles Banks Wilson in the state Capitol — the first portrait of a woman to be hung there. Wilson told me he discarded his early sketches of the famed historian. “She looked like an old woman whose highlight of her life was picking green beans in a garden,” he said. The final portrait depicts her as I knew her — wearing a Mexican jacket given to her by historian friends; sitting in her favorite, vintage mauve armchair; and behind her, a shelf of her books like the rugged landscape she wrote about. Her expression is proud, strong and fearless. This was the Angie Debo the world knew. Midafternoon I limped off the platform, stiff from sitting motionless, and the artists went off to work on my portraits for two months. The “Faces of Tulsa” project was begun three years ago by Joan Hauger and Paula Vestel, who chose to paint Tulsans with various occupations. Each subject’s portraits hang for two months in the Tulsa Historical Society’s gallery, open to all visitors.

A dab of humility

here a human

“A little more to the left,” another said. “All with we’re getting is a profile.” she doesn’t beam at the idea of During the break, as they talked amiably trait painted? with me, they revealed some hard truths: house. When I was asked if I “It’s hard to paint teenagers,” one said. he “Faces of Tulsa” art project, I “They’re pretty but don’t have any character in with delight. their faces. We’re so happy you’re here.” uld join a celebrated galaxy of “You see a lot when you look at a person for ts: “Madame X” by John Singer 98 / greatplainsawards.org 102 / Read the full stories and view winning at greatplainsawards.org four photos hours.” Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl I began to get an uneasy feeling. The paint-

hung the early sket “She lo light of h garden,” The fi — wearin historian mauve ar her book

Column Column Writing, Writing, Magazine, Magazine, Finalists Finalists Publication: St. Louis Magazine By: Ray Hartmann

Publication: Oklahoma Today By: Debby Kaspari

Excerpt from “Think Again”

Excerpt from “Sketchbook”

I’m not sure whether to laugh or cry, but it was no less than 41 years ago that I began an editorial with the following paragraph: “It is ironic that the Board of Curators feels a need to lock itself into something of a closet to discuss the subject of homosexuality.” The issue of that day was whether a fledgling group of brave souls calling themselves Gay Lib should be provided recognition as a student organization at the University of Missouri in Columbia. All it would have meant was that tuition-paying students at a public university could have held meetings on their campus to discuss being gay. The university wanted no part of it. As I observed at the time (as editor of The Maneater, the university’s student newspaper), the curators weren’t even willing to discuss such an untoward subject publicly. Privately, they would eventually decide to commission an expert study on the possible effects of recognizing Gay Lib and a similar group in Kansas City, and they hired Cullen Coil, a respected Jefferson City attorney, to find the facts. After a six-month process—listening to both sides in open hearings—he concluded that recognition would “reinforce the personal identities of the homosexual members of these organizations and will perpetuate and expand an abnormal way of life,” thus discouraging them from seeking the “treatment” they needed. As we at The Maneater reported in November 1973, Coil also said having Gay Lib on campus would: • “tend to cause latent or potential homosexuals who became members of either proposed organization to become overt homosexuals” • “tend to expand homosexual behavior in violation of Missouri law” • “be undesirable because homosexuals would counsel other homosexuals... The sick and abnormal would be counseling others who are similarly sick and abnormal.” I don’t even know what to say about all that now, but I did then, in an editorial 18 months after the first one. I began by calling the report “one of the unworthiest pieces of garbage we have ever seen publicized at the university,” and I concluded that “this issue deserves more than consideration by fools and in the case of Mr. Coil’s report, it got less than that.” I guess I was a shy kid.

Bluffs Calling Along the Cimarron River, travelers find history, biodiversity, and salt. I came in search of nature and a little Old West glory— the very name, “Cimarron,” breathes romance. Salt springs along this stretch feed the big river, and its banks are rimmed white like a margarita glass. Buffalo Creek Chronicles by Gary Lantz, Don House, and Sue Selman tells of an early Kansas-bound cattle drover who kept his thirsty longhorns from drinking the deadly brine by stampeding them across it. Sunset paints Cimarron Bluff in glowing colors, caught and mirrored in the placid waters below. I bend my ear to catch the whisper of history and hear instead the cheerful natter of mountain bluebirds ending their day with a song. Get There: The Cimarron Bluff Wildlife Management Area is four miles south of the junction of State Highway 34 and U.S. Highway 64 north of Woodward on County Road E0150. (405) 990-7206. ike a badger, the Cimarron River digs its bed in the rolling grassland of Harper County, where western meadowlarks top fence posts, bobcats stalk rats, and prairie chickens stomp bare-dirt circles in the bluestem. The sky up here is vast, making the 3,440-acre Cimarron Bluff Wildlife Management Area a cloud watcher’s heaven. Routes | Sketchbook

ere. Wilson told me he discarded his tches of the famed historian. bluffs Calling ooked like an old woman whose highher life was picking green beans in a L he said. inal portrait depicts her as I knew her ng a Mexican jacket given to her by friends; sitting in her favorite, vintage greatplainsawards.org // 103 99 rmchair; and behind her, a shelfRead ofthe full stories and view winning photos at greatplainsawards.org ks like the rugged landscape she wrote Debby Kaspari

Along the Cimarron River, travelers find history, biodiversity, and salt. By Debby Kaspari

ike a badger, the Cimarron River digs its bed in the rolling grassland of Harper County, where western meadowlarks top fence posts, bobcats stalk rats, and prairie chickens stomp bare-dirt circles in the bluestem. The sky up here is vast, making the 3,440-acre Cimarron Bluff Wildlife Management Area a cloud watcher’s heaven. I came in search of nature and a little Old West glory—the very name, “Cimarron,” breathes romance. Salt springs along this stretch feed the big river, and its banks are rimmed

white like a margarita glass. Buffalo Creek Chronicles by Gary Lantz, Don House, and Sue Selman tells of an early Kansas-bound cattle drover who kept his thirsty longhorns from drinking the deadly brine by stampeding them across it. Sunset paints Cimarron Bluff in glowing colors, caught and mirrored in the placid waters below. I bend my ear to catch the whisper of history and hear instead the cheerful natter of mountain bluebirds ending their day with a song. Get There: The Cimarron Bluff Wildlife Management Area is four miles south of

the junction of State Highway 34 and U.S.

Highway 64 north of Woodward on County Road E0150. (405) 990-7206.

OklahomaToday.com

Page Page Design, Design, Magazine, Magazine, Winner Winner Publication: Dainty Publication: Dainty Obsessions Obsessions By: Alana Snyder By: Studio Blu Photography, Confetti Creative Co., Modtro, Amaro Boutique, The Flower Mill, The Cake Lady, Rug and Relic, World Market Judges’ Comments: In a very strong category, this entry was full of fun surprises. The splashes of color were like a breath of fresh air. Immaculately thought out.

^^^

Dainty

Styled Shoot

How to throw an engagement party:

Rainbow

In today’s tech-savvy age where text messages, Facebook, Instagram, and e-mail are running our lives, it’s sometimes tough for a newly-engaged couple to take a minute to breathe and unwind. With most brides reflecting on how fast the wedding day comes and goes, along with news spreading as fast as you can blink, formally announcing and celebrating your engagement is a must! This is a chance to bring together both sides of your closest friends and family to rejoice your love, style and future life, so here are some tips to make it a party to remember!

Engagement Part y Modtro, Sioux Falls, South Dakota Photography: Studio Blu Photography Styling: Confetti Creative Co.

20 | DO ^

Who Hosts While the parents of the bride traditionally will host the party, in these untraditional times anyone from extended relatives to friends of the bride and groom to even the newlyweds themselves can host. This could potentially lead to two parties: one for family and one for friends. Whatever you choose for your fete, always give parents the opportunity to host first as this is a special event in their lives as well.

When The timing of the party should be as soon after the engagement as possible while the excitement is still fresh and before the couple gets too deep into planning. Be sure to check with close family and friends on availability and get invites out about a month in advance.

daintyobsessions.com

104 / Read the full stories and view winning photos at greatplainsawards.org 100 / greatplainsawards.org

| 23

Page Page Design, Design, Magazine, Magazine, Finalists Finalists

DouglAs Co.

We all love a parade, right? Discover your perfect parade match with this FindYour-Douglas-County-Parade Flow Chart.

loves A PArADe! start here

AnimAl HumAn

A horse, of course.

Turtle

Horse? Turtle? Pet? Farm Animal?

Animal

Then you’ll be the star of the parade at Lawrence’s annual Old-Fashioned Christmas parade. Held each December and featuring riders, wagons and dozens and dozens of horses, it is the premier horse parade of the Midwest. www.lawrencechristmasparade.org

Pet Make like a rabbit and win the annual Box Turtle race at the Vinland Fair in August. www.vinlandfair.blogspot.com

Farmin’ & I Love It

Human

From show pigs to well-dressed llamas, the annual Douglas County Fair is the place to strut your stuff if you’re a groomed and beautiful farm animal. www.dgcountyfair.com

Just checking, are you elvis?

Neither

I am. Are you lonesome tonight?

Marching Bands

No.

Then you must come to the Elvis Ends Polio charity run/walk. Held in June at Lawrence. www.elvisendspolio.org

play or watch?

ok, then what speaks to your soul?

Join wheeled spaceships, surfboard bicycles and other wacky things on wheels for Lawrence’s annual vroom-vroom mobile art parade held in early summer. www.arttougeau.org

Play

There’s always room in the band for one more player at the Lawrence Mardi Gras day parade. Nature

Listen to dozens of bands march through Lawrence for the annual KU Band Day parade. www2. ku.edu/~kumband/ band-day

National

Championship

Stars & Stripes It’s hometown hospitality at its best as nearly the entire town comes out for these parades: Eudora CPA held in late July (www.facebook.com/ EudoraCPA), Lecompton Territorial Days held in late June (www.facebook.com/ lecomptonterritorialdays), and Baldwin’s Maple Leaf Festival held in mid-October (www.mapleleaffestival.com).

Mother Nature’s top choice for you: Lawrence’s Earth Day parade https://lawrenceks.org/wrr/earthday

Hot rods. Rat rods. Muscle cars. Oh, yeah! Lawrence’s annual Rev It Up Hot Rod Hullaballo held in September. www.revitupcarshow.com

Zombie

Beauty (with speed)

Beauty on Wheels

Get jolly with your own kind, boss elf! It’s Lawrence’s annual parade/pub crawl for St. Nick. www.santaconlawrence.com

Santa Claus

2013/2014

Speed (with beauty)

Leprechaun

It doesn’t happen every year, but it might. When KU’s men’s basketball team advances in the NCAA tournament, thousands of fans parade through the streets of Lawrence. Raucous but civil.

then what are you?

Zombies of all ages shuffle through Lawrence each October. www.lawrencezombiewalk.blogspot.com

Watch

Community

Low-key but elegant. Children wave flags and parade under a canopy of trees in the Old West Lawrence Fourth of July Parade.

Of course you are, my wee magical one. And Lawrence has the big St. Pat’s party parade just for you. www.lawrencestpatricksdayparade.com

Dogs lead off the parade at Lawrence Humane Society’s annual Mutt ’n’ Strut each summer. www.lawrencehumane.org If you’re a cat, let’s be honest— you’d rather stay home and nobody is going to get you to march in line—but there is an annual parade of feline beauties at the annual ACFA cat show held at the Douglas County Fairgrounds each summer. www.acfacat.com

Photographs: Jason Dailey for Sunflower Publishing, Shutterstock and Kevin Anderson, Richard Gwin, Nick Krug and Mike Yoder for Lawrence Journal-World.

Publication: Sunflower Publishing By: Jenni Leiste

Douglas County Newcomers Guide

Douglas County Newcomers Guide 2013/2014

Publication: Oklahoma Today By: Steven Walker

The sporT ThaT preceded s T a T e h o o d s Ti ll rides s T r o ng in o k la h o m a . By Holly ClANAHAN HeNdrix | Photography by reBekAH WorkmAN illustrations by SteveN WAlker

CIRCUIT CITIES Rodeo is as Oklahoma as red-dirt dust rising from a hot arena floor. Above, participants warm up their horses at the 2012 Ram Prairie Circuit Finals Rodeo in Duncan.

September/October 2013

OklahomaToday.com

Read the full stories and view winning photos at greatplainsawards.org greatplainsawards.org // 105 101

Magazine Cover Cover Winner Winner Magazine Publication: St. Louis Magazine By: Lindsay Timme Judges’ Comments: Love the bold simplicity of this cover. A quiet promo or two in the lower left wouldn’t have hurt, but overall this cover stood out.

991 106 /Cover0413.indd Read the full stories and view winning photos at greatplainsawards.org 102 / greatplainsawards.org

2/28/13 2:51 PM

Magazine Cover Cover Finalists Finalists Magazine Publication: Publication: Kansas! Kansas! By: Jason Dailey, KatyBy: Ibsen, Shelly Bryant, Jennifer Haugh Jenni Leiste

Publication: Arkansas Democrat Gazette Magazines By: Stephanie Pyle, Jon Wisniewski

ARKANSAS LIFE Inside: arkansas ghost stories

Take it

outside ways to tame trails, conquer caves, tromp swamps and enjoy a year’s worth of out-in-the-open adventures expert advice on where to paddle, hunt, climb and more

No.

af s t

id er

’s

br e

Summit Flatside Pinnacle

OctOber 2013 ArKANSAS LIFe

Read the full stories and view winning photos at greatplainsawards.org / 107 greatplainsawards.org / 103

Great Plains Magazine Writer of the Year Publication: St. Louis Magazine By: William Powell

“Get Real: Coolfire Media Brings Reality TV Close to Home”

EntERtainmEnt

Coolfire Media president and CEO Jeff Keane in a company editing bay

Get Real

became fast friends, eventually starta dressing room. Out in the kitchen, Have you ever done an interview ing a vlog (that’s video blog, for you which is presently serving as the set, a on a bed, with two beautiful women?” film crew sets up cameras, sound equip- Luddites) called Lipstick n’ Laundry. Kate Frisina-White asks me. The With help from Coolfire Originals, a TV ment, and lights. Production manager J. fortysomething mother of two works Gibson arranges some discount Thanks- development-and-production comat a grocery store and lives on a quiet By William PoWell • PhotograPhy By kevin a. roBerts pany based in St. Louis, they’ve spun giving decorations. residential street in Creve Coeur. Quiet, that website into a reality show, MFF: Diamond, a petite, blue-eyed that is, except for Frisina-White. Mom Forever, airing as part of redhead, and Frisina-White, a tall, We are lying on her bed, along with ave you ever done an interview on a bed, with two beautiful manager J. Gibson arranges some Friends discount Thanksgiving decorations. the redhead, new NickMom blockaof brown-eyed brunette with blonde Judi Diamond, a DJwomen?” for local countryKate Frisina-White asks me. The fortysomething Diamond, a petite, blue-eyed and Frisina-White, tall,late-night brownmother of two worksisat a groceryhighlights, store and livesknew on a quiet brunette with blondeprogramming highlights, knew ofon oneNick another Jr. before (It’s athey bit like of oneeyed another before music station 92.3 WIL-FM. “This residential in Creve Coeur. Quiet, that is,met. exceptTheyactually met. They to Swim Missourion after workingNetwork; as actors in the Adult Cartoon they actually both moved toboth moved where we do our best work!”street Frisinafor Frisina-White. Los Angeles, both drove white minivans, both had two kids. As Diamond slogan is “motherfunny.”) Missouri after working as actors in Los White howls, more or less setting the We are lying on her bed, along with Judi Diamond, a DJ for local counputs it, people kept telling them “that we would just…” “…love each other,” Breitbach, Coolfire’s viceinpresiAngeles, both drove white minivans, tone fortry-music the day.station 92.3 WIL-FM. “This is where we do our best work!” Frisina-White chimes in. They Tim tend to finish each other’s sentences, a dent original programming, serves both two kids. As Diamond puts to be both “Watch TV and howls, comemore up with way that manages cuteof and a bit creepy. Frisina-White or less setting the tone forhad the day. “Watch TVclarifies. and come up with ideas,” Diamond When theywe finally met, as thethe women became fast friends, eventuallyHe show’s executive producer. it, clarifies. people kept telling them “that ideas,” Diamond Frisina-White ignores thatcomment comment entirely.would “Once a just…” month, if Jack’s starting a vlog (that’s video comes blog, for you Luddites) called Lipstick into the bedroom justn’asLaunthe “…love each other,” Frisina-White ignores that dry. With help from Coolfire Originals, a TV development-and-production nice boy,” she quips, referring to how often her husband gets lucky. ladies are wrapping up their back story. Frisina-White chimes in. They tend to entirely.a “Once a month, if Jack’s a nice We’re in bed together because, for today, this isn’t a bedroom at all. It’s company based in St. Louis, they’ve spun that website into a reality show, Today, they’ll be shooting a special finish each other’s sentences, in a way boy,” she quips, referring to how often a dressing room. Out in the kitchen, which is presently serving as the set, MFF: Mom Friends Forever, airing as part of the new NickMom block Thanksgiving for the Swim NickMom that manages to be both cute and a bit her husband gets lucky. a film crew sets up cameras, sound equipment, and lights. Production of late-night programming on Nick Jr. (It’svideo a bit like Adult on website, rather than a full-blown epicreepy. We’re in bed together because, for sode. Breitbach runs through the game When they finally met, the women today, this isn’t a bedroom at all. It’s

Coolfire Media brings reality TV close to home.

| ja nua ry 2 0 1 3 57

104 / greatplainsawards.org

plan, listing off the topics that he thinks the women should cover. Once they’re ready, the ladies make their way into the kitchen, taking their customary seats on stools behind the breakfast bar. To seem taller, Diamond sits on a phone book. A member of the crew claps his hands and says, “Mark, wave two.” Cameras roll. After a bit of profane small talk, just to clear their throats, the women launch into a rollicking 20-minute conversation (which will eventually be edited down to a couple of minutes) about what they’re thankful for (mostly each other), canned cranberry sauce (Diamond prefers it), and the tryptophan in turkey (as a vegetarian, Diamond avoids its alleged soporific powers). They exaggerate the emotion in their voices, laugh way too hard at their own jokes, and make theatrical hand gestures to accent their mostly ordinary stories. But it just works. As Breitbach says, “They have the thing together. There’s an alchemy that happens between Judi and Kate.” He shouts “cut” occasionally to nudge the banter back on track, and the ladies use the lulls between takes to make suggestive jokes about the shapes of the plastic gourds sitting on the bar. Eventually, the conversation turns to pot brownies. When Diamond was a kid, one of her cousins brought some to Thanksgiving dinner, giving them to the adults as a prank. But while she and Frisina-White have no problem using countless sexual double-entendres, they awkwardly avoid the word “marijuana,” calling them “California brownies” instead. “About two hours later, my mom was eating everything in sight. She was giggling like crazy,” Diamond says, giggling herself. When they’ve finished, Breitbach gives them some feedback, and they start the entire conversation again, from the top. *** Reality TV ain’t easy. “There is a huge gap between an idea for a TV show and a TV show,” Luebbert says. “We are the gap.” You don’t just show up at somebody’s house and turn on a camera. To use the mom friends as an example, it took more than two years from the time

the Coolfire guys met Frisina-White and Diamond until the first episode aired. That process started with a lot of talking. Coolfire needed to figure out what was going on in the women’s lives and how to create story-lines from those events. This is the specialty of Breitbach, who co-wrote Dopamine, an indie film that won the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize at the Sundance Film Festival in 2003. “I’m a story guy,” he says. He wants to learn his characters so well that he can predict how they’ll react in a certain situation and how others will respond. In that sense, mapping out an episode of reality TV is like screenwriting—only the actors don’t have to listen to you. Filming presents an entirely new set of challenges. The biggest is what insiders call “managing the talent.” It takes a lot of shooting, sometimes a full week of eight-hour days, to produce a half-hour episode. Even for people who volunteered, the intrusion can grow tiresome. “You also have to respect the fact that they have no idea what they signed up for,” Breitbach says. “Until you’ve done it, you have no idea, and it’s not easy.” It’s a situation that requires empathy, patience, and quite a bit of gentle prodding. This is where it’s fair to question just how much reality is involved in reality TV. The guys at Coolfire think of their shows as falling toward the real end of the reality spectrum, but that doesn’t mean they don’t play an active role in shaping how things play out on screen. For instance, in MFF, Frisina-White was having trouble relating to her son Max, who was shutting her out. But a kid and his mom stewing at opposite ends of a house doesn’t make for great TV. So Breitbach encouraged them to talk it out. For him, the difference between reality TV (he prefers the terms “nonscripted” and “docuseries” because of the genre’s less-appealing associations) and less-than-reality TV comes down to “authenticity.” He doesn’t ask his characters to do anything they wouldn’t normally do, per se. He just puts them in situations where they can be themselves, amplified. These lines are especially blurry with the mom friends. They’re former actors who decided to turn their vlog into a

reality show. If it seems like they’re acting phony on camera, well, that’s fairly natural for them. And in the end, who cares? If the show entertains a few moms winding down after a long day, does it really matter whether the crew asked one of the kids to put on the same shirt he was wearing yesterday to refilm a conversation? *** For MFF’s Thanksgiving video, Frisina-White heckles Diamond about celebrating the holiday with tofurkey. In response, Diamond challenges Frisina-White to an impromptu blind taste test. (Given the fact that the producers already had turkey and tofurkey in the oven, I have my doubts about the challenge’s spontaneity.) They decide to use the scene as an alternate ending. One of the show’s running gags is that its leading ladies, especially Diamond, are not particularly gifted cooks. As it turns out, neither is Gibson, the production manager; her turkey and tofurkey are inedible. But the women improvise, turning this misfortune into comedic gold. After making a few bondage jokes while blindfolding her partner, Diamond feeds Frisina-White a piece of the turkey. “I can already tell that’s that tofurkey,” Frisina-White exclaims. She refuses to swallow. “Get it out of my mouth. I mean it. I refuse to eat that, Judi. I don’t know how you think that’s food. That is not food, Judi. I don’t even need to taste the other one.” Then Diamond gives her a bite of the actual tofurkey. “What is that, bark?” Frisina-White yells. “We’ve established something,” Diamond responds. “We’ve established that A. I can’t cook turkey, and B. I can’t cook tofurkey.” Breitbach calls “cut,” then they all take a few laugh-filled moments to reflect on the horrible food. “I’ve never been around as many women that don’t know how to cook as you guys,” Breitbach says. He checks with the crew to make sure they got enough closeups of the repulsive cuisine. Then he says every actor’s three favorite words: “That’s a wrap.”

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Great Plains Magazine Writer of the Year Finalists Publication:

Publication:

TulsaPeople

Slice Magazine

By: Jennie Lloyd

By: M.J. Alexander

Entry text not available.

Excerpt from “77 Counties: Cimarron County”

Publication:

Be Magazine for Women

By: Marnie Butcher Piehl

Entry text not available.

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The shed is long gone, collapsed and consumed by the soil of the far western Panhandle of Oklahoma. The sand has settled or blown away. The parched tenant farm itself has been absorbed by a larger operation, made green through irrigation and indistinguishable from the miles of fields that surround it. But the legacy of the historic photograph of a farmer and his two sons leaning into the wind of the Dust Bowl, hurrying across the drifts past a ramshackle shed, remains. The image was taken by Arthur Rothstein in April 1936, one year after the epic storms of Black Sunday, and published that month in newspapers across the nation. The family fleeing the storm has become one of the most recognizable moments of the 20th century. Writing for The New York Times in 2009, documentary filmmaker Errol Morris noted: “It’s an iconic photograph. It’s a photograph that will be around for a long, long, long time, and captures something so powerful ... In the ’30s it was a plea for help; now it is a story of triumph over adversity. It is how we have come to see an entire era.” When first published – 77 years ago this month – the names of the farmer and his sons were not included in the caption: “Farmer and Sons Walking in the Face of a Dust Storm, Cimarron County, Oklahoma, April 1936.” They were everymen, caught up by elements beyond their control. The components of the image have long since faded, returning to the Oklahoma dust. The shed. The fenceposts. Even the father and sons themselves, buried near one another beneath the prairie not far from where the photograph was made. But a legacy of true grit lives on in the family it immortalized: The Cobles of Cimarron County. The farmer, Arthur Coble, started his life June 10, 1896, in Sailor Springs, Clay County, Illinois. He was the fourth of eight children, and oldest son, of William Allison Coble and Mattie Ellen Armstrong Coble and moved to Oklahoma with his family soon after 77 COUNTIES: CIMARRON COUNTY Oklahoma’s True Grit Dust Bowl Family, 77 Years Laterstatehood. Arthur was mustered to fight in World War I out of Guymon in 1918, but Armistice Day arrived before he had a chance to ship out. He married schoolteacher Mable Kelly in Boise City on May 14, 1927. By the time Rothstein visited their farm nine years later, the couple had four children, all born on the land: Ona Ozzelee, Milton Garth, Darrel Arthur and Beverly Ann. Darrel, the little boy in the photograph, was asked two years before he died about growing up in the Dust Bowl. “Ah, it kind of scared me, best I can recall,” he said with a chuckle. “I thought maybe the world was coming to an end, I didn’t know.” Why would he stay rooted in a place where day-to-day survival was such hard work? “It’s just home. Dad always says, ‘Anybody ever come out here and wear out two pairs of shoes here, they’d never leave.’”

Great Plains Magazine of the Year Publication: ALIVE Judges’ Comments: This is a vibrant, cosmopolitan and cool magazine. Fashion and style is a real strength, and I was impressed by the overall design, photography, writing and the rest. There are a lot of great ideas in this publication. It’s national magazine quality. STL NOW

Things

YOU MU ST DO T H IS M O N T H

Spread the Word

Discover the satirical Broadway hit “The Book of Mormon” as it opens at The Fox Feb. 19-March 3. This irreverent musical production by the makers of “South Park” and “Avenue Q” has been honored with nine Tony Awards, including one for Best Musical in 2011. It’s chock full of raw religion-based humor that’s sure to have missionaries and agnostics alike in stitches. For tickets and more info, visit fabulousfox.com.

For tickets and more info, visit mardigrasinc.com.

Lady Gaga Born This Way Ball Tour

Go Gaga Experience the pop sensation Lady Gaga as she brings her Born This Way Ball World Tour to Scottrade Center on Feb. 2. Watch as the five-time Grammy Award winner performs such hits as “Marry the Night” and “You and I” complete with her electrifying dance numbers and ever-eccentric costumes. For tickets, visit scottradecenter.com.

Get Romantic

Saint Louis Ballet brings to life the tragic love story of “Romeo and Juliet” at Touhill Performing Arts Center Feb. 8-10. First performed in the late 1500s, this Shakespeare classic has been reinterpreted as a ballet, featuring a score by 20th-century Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev and choreography by Saint Louis Ballet artistic director Gen Horiuchi.

For more info, visit scosag.org.

For tickets, visit touhill.org.

ALIVEMAG.COM

Be the Buzz

Rub elbows with St. Louis’ most influential people of the year at ALIVE’s 2013 Buzz List Reunion Party, Feb. 8 at Lucas Park Grille. Presented by Budweiser Black Crown, the party brings together the individuals featured on this year’s Buzz List (p.58) as well as previous years’ lists—making for a who’s who crowd of the movers and shakers in St. Louis. For tickets, visit alivemag.com/buzzlist.

Have a Ball

Catch the 10th anniversary of Saint Louis City Open Studio and Gallery’s annual arts fundraiser, Wall Ball, at Third Degree Glass Factory on Feb. 9. Watch as 30 of St. Louis’ top artists create original works of art before your eyes, from paintings to sculptures and more. Then, bid in the silent auction for the chance to take home your favorite pieces.

Feel the Passion

One of St. Louis’ go-to radio stations for rock music, 105.7 celebrates its 20th anniversary on Feb. 26 at Peabody Opera House with a concert featuring Passion Pit and Matt & Kim. Dance along to tunes from Passion Pit’s 2012 album, “Gossamer,” and feed off the endless energy of Brooklyn duo Matt & Kim and their new album “Lightning.” For tickets, visit peabodyoperahouse.com.

Lady Gaga photo courtesy of Picture Group. “Book of Mormon” photo courtesy of The Fox.

Eat, Drink and Be Mardi

Stock up on beads, don your most festive purple, green and gold and head to Soulard to take part in St. Louis’ annual Mardi Gras celebration. With a variety of events Feb. 2-12, from the Fat Tuesday Parade to the Taste of Soulard and the Wiener Dog Derby, there is plenty of food, drink, entertainment and good company to be had for all.

FEBRUARY 2013

STL NOW / COLUMN

specific body. An example of specific body is paid employees from a company.” It definitely seems like he is outsourcing his task of “first date” to a distributed group of people. For example, when Igor and I had planned to go to a concert one night, I got a text asking if he could bring his date with us. What? Ah...no, as in “hell no.” This method of crowdsourcing implies that Igor’s problem is now my problem. It is not. When I asked him why he does this, his answer was simple and annoying, “What if I get bored?” Bored? If you get bored, do what normal people do, and start drinking. Or, gracefully bow out with a lame excuse. No harm, no foul. Date dumping is now such a habit for Igor that all of us are pretty accustomed to it. It still begs the question: Doesn’t your date deserve at least two hours of your attention? For Igor, and all the other guys and girls out there making dating a team sport, here are a few pieces of advice: FRIENDS ARE FRIENDS, NOT SURROGATE PIMPS. Your tireless adventure to get laid,

or whatever it is you are trying to do, is not on your friends’ agenda. We don’t care. Stop imposing it on us. SUCK IT UP. Stop being a baby and man up.

Two is Company… Three’s a Crowdsource Why outsourcing the act of dating is one big fat no. by PAMELA RAYMOND

IN THE NORMAL WORLD, boy meets girl. Boy

asks girl on date. This simple anthropological event has gone on since men first realized women are nice and soft to the touch. But lately, I’ve been seeing a curious deviation from the standard dinner and a movie. The dinner and movie (or the binge drinking for two) are still in play—but with a twist. Let me start from the beginning. My friend, Igor, is one of the reasons I wish for death and can also be so hopeful about life. Sometimes he’s a lunatic, and I happen to be on the business end of his antics. But in general, he’s pretty cool. Now that he’s back on the dating scene, he has a troubling pattern in how he dates. His stand-

ALIVEMAG.COM MARCH 2013

ard method of operation is to ask out a nice, barely-legal grad student (they are always grad students!), and then proceed to bring her to events with all of his friends—on the first date! Am I missing something, or shouldn’t the first date be reserved for getting to know your date’s craziness and assess accordingly? I call what Igor does crowdsource dating. Why? If you believe anything on Wikipedia, then the definition of crowdsourcing is: “A process that involves outsourcing tasks to a distributed group of people. This process can occur both online and offline. Crowdsourcing is different from an ordinary outsourcing since it is a task or problem that is outsourced to an undefined public rather than a

Yes, it sucks when someone doesn’t turn out to be all that you wanted, but that’s life. Heaven forbid that you’d have to be the interesting one and impress someone for a night! TREAT YOUR DATE WITH A MODICUM OF DECENCY. Spend two hours trying your best to

understand them. If after two hours your mind is numb, by all means ditch them in a humane manner. Don’t dump them on your friends. The bottom line is this: You can count on friends through thick and thin. You can even count on the very closest to bail you out of jail or give you a ride to the airport. Just don’t count on them to share your dating responsibilities. Ok, Igor?

XXRayVision Pamela Raymond keeps a hectic social schedule, so she sees a lot of relationship dilemmas. A native of New Orleans, Pamela infuses a mix of Southern sass and Yankee tough love in her columns. Pamela is a seasoned writer, public relations specialist and social media guru in St. Louis.

ILLUSTRATION BY SARAH QUATRANO

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Great Plains Magazine of the Year Finalists Publication: TulsaPeople

Publication: Inspire(d)

Publication: Sync Weekly

Inspire(d)

food truck vendors MEALS ON TRUCK WHEELS Local redefine dining out September 2013

DRIFTLESS MAGAZINE

NO. 33 • SPRING 2013

free!

POSITIVE NEWS FROM THE DRIFTLESS REGION.

Musicians Dustin Pittsley and Jesse Aycock were instrumental in the birth of the New Tulsa Sound

E USIC ISSU THE eM SCENE and artists 10 local bands sa’s musical legacy carrying on Tul

Behind th

10 QUESTIONS WITH ROY CLARK

Scott Sutton

TALKING TREES HUG THE EARTH!

Holiday Events Guide

7 LOCAL LEGENDS

Senior Living

Finding a home for your golden years

The Culturist

Living Arts gets festive November 2013

SAPPY SCIENCE!

IOWA NATURAL HERITAGE FOUNDATION THE ANGRY PICKLE

PLUS

Komen Tulsa ® Race for the Cure ed 2013 Remodel Tulsa Tour

Locker Room

WARD & JACKY BUDWEG

HOT CLUB OF SAN FRANCISCO PIZZA!

Like Media Inspire(d)eboo on Fac k! XOXO

ELKADER BOXED (IN)

. Inspire(d) “HEY GNOMIES! PLEASE LIKE INSPIRE(D) MEDIA ON FACEBOOK!” <

DRIFTLESS MAGAZINE

NO. 34 • Summer 2013

free!

POSITIVE NEWS FROM THE DRIFTLESS REGION.

Learn to make a paper gnome hat! “The only things we keep permanently are those we give away.”

THE LEGACY OF

WAITE PHILLIPS

LOVING ARDVAR & MORE BOXED (IN): CEDAR RAPIDS BIJOUX JEWELRY SOLAR POWERED HOMES ITALIAN COOKIN’

UNSUNG VEGGIE HEROES NORSLAND LEFSE SCIENCE, YOU’RE SUPER: GARLIC! SPUD BOY DINER PROBIT: ARMELLA ZWEIBOHMER

PLUS

Philbrook celebrates 75 years

GOOD AS GOLD: BOK Financial Corp. President and CEO Stan Lybarger retires

Q&A: After 32 years with OCCJ, Nancy Day bids farewell December 2013

AL NE IOWA LOC CTORY FOOD DIREE! INSID

. POSITIVE NEWS FROM THE DRIFTLESS REGION.

HOLIDAY FOOD GUIDE Festive treats to buy locally, prepare for a party or place under the tree

2014 MEDICAL GUIDE

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IRON LEAF PRESS: DANIELLE AMELING + BUSINESS PLAN CONTESTS • WISCO POP! TAKE THE (ARTY) TOURS • ARTIST TONYA BALIK • WISCONSIN GREAT RIVER ROAD • CHEESE! FOUR DAUGHTERS VINEYARD • RING OF FIRE Q&A • PAPER PUMPKINS! • CARBONATION



Spot News Video Winner Organization: KTUL By: Burt Mummolo, Bryan Clemmer

“Moore Aftermath”

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Spot News Video Finalists Organization: Tulsa World By: John Clanton

“Going back home after Moore Tornado”

Organization: KFOR By: KFOR staff

“Tornado wipes out homes, schools, businesses in Moore”

Organization: Moore Monthly By: Rob Morris

“Tornado Survivors”

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General News Video Winner Organization: KFOR By: KFOR staff

“6 months of healing for Moore tornado victims and what is to come”

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General News Video Finalists Organization: Tulsa World By: John Clanton

“#Nathanisdressingout”

Organization: The Oklahoman By: Tim Money

“Joyful Renuion”

Organization: KTUL By: Burt Mummolo, Rob Collett

“Benevolence Over Bullets”

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Feature Video Winner Organization: Tulsa World By: John Clanton

“Stories from 61st and Peoria”

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Feature Video Finalists Organization: Omaha World-Herald By: Alyssa Schukar

“Omaha Legends Football League players are all heart”

Organization: Tulsa World By: Mike Simons

“Homeless Teens”

Organization: Tulsa World By: Mike Simons

“Grateful on Mother’s Day”

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Multimedia Project or Series Winner Organization: The Oklahoman By: Phillip O’Connor, Richard Hall, David Morris, Paige Dillard, Greg Singleton, Kyle Roberts, Todd Pendleton

“The Deadliest Day”

Judges’ Comments: Deadliest Day and Plaza Towers are examples of solid, web-based storytelling that engage the reader through interactive design that delivers large, compelling visuals for breaks in the text co-mingled with informative graphics (Plaza Towers) and video stories or interviews. In the case of Plaza Towers some work on the navigation consistency between parts would be helpful as well as some consistency in navigation among elements within each part.

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Multimedia Project or Series Finalists Organization: The Oklahoman By: Nick Tankersley, Richard Hall, Todd Pendleton, Phillip O’Connor, William Crum, Carrie Coppernoll

“Plaza Towers: Survival Stories from the May 20, 2013 Tornado”

Organization: Lincoln Journal Star By: Lincoln Journal Star staff

“Building an arena: A special presentation”

Organization: Tulsa World By: Micah Choquette, Kelly Bostian, Mike Simons

“Get inside a boat at the Bassmasters Classic” Image not available

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Best Website Page Design Winner Publication: The Oklahoman By: Nick Tankersley, Richard Hall

Plaza Towers: Survival Stories from the May 20, 2013 Tornado Judges’ Comments: The design and concept on Plaza Towers are ambitious on this important story. The navigation needs

some work. It should be consistent from page-to-page with multiple points to go back and forth. Consistency in how to navigate between the elements on each page is important for inexperienced users as well. The use of data for Ark. Online’s Right2Know is a public service all newspapers strive for. Introducing additional video or other multimedia elements would be a nice touch.

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Best Website Page Design Finalists Organization: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette By: ArkansasOnline.com Staff

“Arkansas Online - Right2Know”

Organization: The Oklahoman By: Richard Hall

“The Deadliest Day”

Organization: Omaha World-Herald By: Graham Archer, Dirk Chatelain

“The disappearance of small-town football”

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Best Overall Website Design Organization: The Oklahoman NewsOk.com Judges’ Comments: The NewsOK site redesign has surfaced elements that are important to a web audience in breaking news, what’s trending on the web, sports and entertainment. It would be great to see multimedia and visuals hold a higher priority near the top of the page since those elements tend to hold a customer’s attention longer.

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Best Overall Website Design Finalists Organization: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Arkansas Online

Organization: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, WholeHogSport.com

Organization: Topeka Capital-Journal, CJOnline

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Blog Writing Winner Organization: TulsaKids Magazine By: Betty Casey Judges’ Comments: In taking on the powers-that-be in the Oklahoma educational system, hard-hitting journalist Betty Casey throws down the gauntlet, revealing an acerbic wit in her velvet glove. Her passionate advocacy for children and better educational opportunities is clear in her writing. She gets an “A” on all counts.

“We’re Number 44! Let’s Give Our Policy-Makers an F” The Education Week Quality Counts report card on American public schools is out and Oklahoma ranks 44th in per-pupil spending. I had high hopes that Oklahoma’s embarrassing ranking would be a call to action by our lawmakers to increase school funding. What business, what family, what organization wants to come to a state that doesn’t fund its public schools? And what teacher would want to teach in Oklahoma? We also have a teacher shortage. Hmmm. Could there be a connection? Rather than stepping up and calling for decent school funding, we have two Oklahoma Legislators, Reps. Jason Nelson, R-Oklahoma City, and Tom Newell, R-Seminole, who want to funnel public school money to private schools by providing funds for poor children to go to private schools. Well, there’s an idea. Not a good idea, but an idea. It almost sounds reasonable until you start thinking about it. It’s wrong-headed on so many levels that I don’t know where to begin. I guess the first point might be that it’s unconstitutional. Next, they’re making a huge leap of logic. Their premise is that schools in high poverty areas are bad; therefore, if these same students were able to go to a private school, they would be better students. This is simply not the case. How many students would this bill actually help? Are there private schools in every community in Oklahoma? What if I live in Perkins, Oklahoma? Would I be driving my child to Tulsa or Oklahoma City to go to school every day? Are these legislators aware of the number of children who live in poverty just in Tulsa? What if the number of parents who want to send their children to private schools exceeds the available private school classroom space? A voucher system would open the door for educational corporations to come to Oklahoma to establish for-profit schools with our tax dollars. Oh, maybe that’s the point. It could be what Reps.

Nelson and Newell wish to do. I assume the parents would be responsible for their children’s transportation to and from school. Transportation is often difficult for families living in poverty. Also, I don’t think that private schools provide free lunch and breakfast. And would the private schools be required to take every student like the public schools are required to do? I think not. Not only that, will this money that is being set aside for students to go to private school actually be enough to pay for the tuition? If not, who comes up with the remainder? The parents who are living in poverty? Before we start diverting public school dollars to private schools, why don’t we try giving public schools a fighting chance by funding them? Putting more mandates on schools while at the same time taking valuable funding away is a recipe for disaster. And diverting public money to private schools will only exacerbate the problem. Why can’t the Legislature provide funding for the following: 1. small class sizes; 2. support for teachers to develop interesting, engaging and challenging curricula; 3. money for enriching classroom spaces with quality books and materials; 4. money for higher teacher pay; 5. extra, meaningful, professional on-going help for students who struggle with cognitive or physical disabilities; 6. year-round schools and after-school activities; 7. specialists for students who are English language learners; 8. mental health/social services support in every school; 9. high-quality early education for all children. Would these things cost money? Yes. But we can do it if we make high quality public education a priority for every child, not just a few.

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Blog Writing Finalists Organization:

Organization:

St. Louis Magazine

The Oklahoman

By: D.J. Wilson

By: Andrew Wyatt

By: Richard Hall

Excerpt from “St. Louis’ Foster-Care Approach Works, But the Rest of Missouri Lags Behind”

Excerpt from “Pacific Rim: When Titans Clash, Everyone Loses”

Excerpt from “5 interesting facts about 5 Oklahoma celebrities”

It should be impossible to botch a summer popcorn movie about inter-dimensional leviathans battling colossal human-piloted robots. Pacific Rim’s deliriously geeky high concept—Godzilla vs. Gundam!—seems designed to appeal to the blockbuster filmgoer’s inner 8-year-old kid. (Who didn’t stage inter-brand crossover conflicts with their action figures at some point?) Although not known for gritty science-fiction action, director and co-writer Guillermo del Toro (Cronos, Hellboy, Pan’s Labyrinth) knows a thing or two about warped childhood fantasies. Unfortunately, Pacific Rim amounts to little more than bland heap of clichés, one that provides all the requisite smashbang mayhem and not much else. Unlike many contemporary sci-fi flicks, the film at least dispenses with its background mythology in the first five minutes. In the near future, enormous sea monsters (Kaiju) begin emerging from a wormhole beneath the Pacific Ocean, prompting humankind to develop military robots (Jaegers) helmed by neurally linked co-pilots. The details don’t really matter much, given that the film’s raison d’être is to pit alien behemoths against nuclear warbots with the best digital effects that 2013 can muster. And, admittedly, the city-leveling brawls between the factions are suitably ferocious, and at times even gorgeous. However, the story that surrounds the monster-on-metal action is so trite and insipid that it torpedoes even the elemental pleasures of the film’s Saturday matinee spectacle.

Oklahoma is the birthplace for many a celebrity, but not all of them are all that interesting (I’m looking at you James Marsden*). There are a handful, however, that have interesting factoids about their lives that are worth sharing. It could be because they’re funny or inspiring, or maybe it’s because they’re downright embarrassing (just wait until you get to the Dr. Phil part of this read). In any case, here are five interesting facts about five Oklahoma-born celebrities that you may or may not know. 5. OH, WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN Who he is and what he’s famous for: If you don’t know who that man is and why he’s awesome, then I’m done with you. The interesting fact: Ryan, Okla., is a small town just north of the Red River and southwest of Ardmore, but it definitely ushered in one of the most important people of the last century: Chuck Norris. Norris has been in countless movies and TV shows, and is a black belt in being awesome. If you believe the rumors, Norris never has to use an umbrella because raindrops dodge him. But the interesting fact about Norris is that he was offered the role of Red Forman in the popular sitcom “That ’70s Show.” Sadly, Norris had to turn down the role because he was busy kicking ass and taking names as “Walker, Texas Ranger.” Being a fan of “That ’70s Show” and also being completely happy with how the character of Red Forman was written (ultimately portrayed by Kurtwood Smith), I can’t help but think the original draft of the character was written specifically for Norris.

The city of St. Louis is often vilified for any number of real and imagined shortcomings: faulty schools, frequent crime, uneven neighborhoods... Yet one societal barometer reveals the city is doing better than the rest of Missouri in dealing with children at risk for abuse or neglect—though the state seems reluctant to follow the city’s lead. For the past 10 years, the city office of the Missouri Children’s Division has used a strategy that involves intensive, early meetings to explore the best option for the child, whether it be placement with a family member, with someone who knows the child, or in the foster care system. Called “Team Decision Making,” the approach emphasizes extensive meetings when the child first comes into state care. The meetings include the immediate family and caseworker, but also can extend to relatives, neighbors, other state staff members, teachers, and even members of the religious community. Over the past decade, the number of children in foster care in St. Louis has dropped dramatically, from 3,141 in 2002 to 618 this past June— an 83 percent decrease. Like any complex social problem, there is not just one reason for this sea change. Yet Team Decision Making seems to be getting most of the credit. The strategy was started in the city around 2003, prompted by training, direction, and financial assistance from The Annie E. Casey Foundation. Its use was pioneered in Cleveland, Ohio. According to the foundation, the method was pushed to help child welfare agencies “improve the quality and consistency of their placement decisions.”

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Great Plains Website of the Year Organization: St. Louis Magazine, stlmag.com

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Great Plains Website of the Year Finalists Organization: The Oklahoman, NewsOK.com

Organization: Omaha World-Herald, omaha.com

Organization: Tulsa Kids Magazine, tulsakids.com

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STUDENT CATEGORIES

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Great Plains Student Photographer of the Year Publication: The Oracle, Oral Roberts University By: Austin St. John Judges’ Comments: This student has a good understanding of sports photography though they really need to branch out and be more well rounded by being able to shoot beyond just sports.

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Great Plains Student Photographer of the Year Finalist Publication: The Daily O’Collegian, Oklahoma State University By: Jackie Dobson

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Great Plains Student Editor in Chief of the Year Publication: The Journal, Webster University By: Megan Favignano I’d like to think that somewhere out there its making a difference in a young Muslim girls life

“ I’d like to think that somewhere out there it’s

making a difference in a young Muslim girl’s life. Kavahn Mansouri The Journal News Editor

”

“ Once my hands kind of learn the form

it’ll just do it. I don’t even have to think. Karen Miller Owner of Binx Ceramics

Page 4

has taught me how to “Cheerleading be a leader in a follower’s position. ” Steward Stiles Male Gorlok cheerleader

The News Source For Webster University

the journal

Page 6

Volume 67 Issue 13

the journal November 20- November 26, 2013

Bail revoked after Esparza rejects prosecution’s deal By Gabe Burns Managing Editor

websterjournal.com

‘My life in a rubble pile’ Tornado destroys student’s home By Macy Salama Multimedia Editor

PEORIA, IL - Molly Brennan’s family piano was handed down from her grandmother. The light brown grand piano is now tangled amongst rubble in a neighbor’s yard about 500 feet away from Brennan’s Peoria, Ill. home. The EF-4 tornado that ripped through the Washington, Ill. area on Sunday, Nov. 17 dropped the piano in the neighbor’s lawn and flattened Brennan’s childhood home. Brennan, a junior art major at Webster University, returned home that day with her roommate to help her family retrieve their belongings. Tom Brennan, Molly’s father, kept his spirit positive as he sorted through the wreckage. “There’s always a glass half full … everybody’s safe,” Tom Brennan said. Molly Brennan saw posts on Facebook Sunday afternoon saying a tornado was heading toward her hometown. She had trouble contacting her family after seeing the news. When Molly Brennan got a hold of her mother, she found out the tornado had collapsed her two-story, brown house and attached back patio. Lost belongings and scraps covered the neighborhood. The debris scattered on the ground included remains of car parts, stuffed animals, clothing, furniture, books, walls and photographs. Families warned each other to wear thick boots and gloves, because glass and nails littered the ground. Nobody was home when the tornado hit. Molly Brennan’s two sisters, Morgan and Abby, were at work and school, respectively, while Tom Brennan was on a business trip in Phoenix, AZ and Claire Brennan, Molly’s mother, was at the movies. “It’s just devastating…we’re still in survival mode,” Abby

Webster University Geneva professor Norma Patricia Esparza was taken into custody on Thursday Nov. 21 in connection with a 1995 murder, following a pre-trial hearing in Orange, Calif. Esparza is accused of helping to plan the murder of Gonzalo Ramirez, whom she alleges raped her. Esparza previously pleaded not guilty and was released on $300,000 bail and allowed to return to Geneva, Switzerland in late 2012. Esparza is one of four defendants being tried for the murder, and she was the only one who was offered bail. Farrah Emami, a spokesperson for the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, told The Journal that Esparza was offered bail because she had been cooperative and planned to testify against the others. But Emami had told Esparza that the deal was dependent on Esparza’s guilty plea and some form of jail time. “Whatever the charges are that they are asking me to plead guilty for, it’s essentially something I cannot accept because it would essentially be a lie,” Esparza said the day before her hearing at a press conference in Orange, Calif. But when Esparza denied the prosecution’s plea bargain of three years in state prison on Nov. 21 2013, the prosecution considered her uncooperative and the court revoked her bail. “(Esparza) has not plead guilty or held responsibility. So we thought it was time to take her into custody,” Emami said. Esparza felt she had helped build the prosecution’s case against the other defendants. By asking her to plead guilty, Esparza feels they violated her trust, she said in an article she wrote for the Huffington Post. Esparza said that her conflict with Ramirez was not the first time she had been sexually assaulted. Esparza alleges her father sexually abused her as a child and that this incident made her more vulnerable. “Rape and abuse are not only a violation of your body, but a violation of the trust you place on another human being. I trusted my father. For a fleeting moment, I trusted my rapist,

my father. “ I trusted For a fleeting moment, I trusted my rapist, letting him into my room. Then I trusted the man I dated. Now, I have trusted the prosecutors.

”

Norma Patricia Esparza

Webster Geneva professor and suspect in murder case

letting him into my room. Then, I trusted the man I dated. Now, I have trusted the prosecutors,” Esparza said in the article. A preliminary hearing is set for Dec. 23, 2013. At this hearing, the court will decide if there is substantial evidence to move forward to a jury trial. If convicted, Esparza will face life in prison without chance of parole. Support groups such as End Rape on Campus and Project HOPE Geneva have asked the District Attorney’s office to drop the charges against Esparza. Project HOPE Geneva started a petition to release Esparza on Change.org to send to the District Attorney has received more than 4,000 of the 95,579 signatures needed. The murder Esparza met Ramirez at a bar in Santa Ana, Calif. while visiting her sister in 1995. They met Ramirez the next morning for breakfast, and he offered to drive Esparza back to her dorm at Pomona College in Claremont, Calif. While in her dorm, Esparza alleges that Ramirez overpowered and raped her. “Despite struggling with him, I could not stop a man from taking me against my will by direct force. At 4’ 9” and weighing 95 pounds, he found it easy to overpower me,” Esparza said in her article. “I tried to keep the horrible incident to myself. But the rape opened up an old wound that had not healed, taking me back to times of helplessness and submission as a child.” Esparza said she went to the bar where she met Ramirez See Esparza

By Kavahn Mansouri News Editor

Page 2

Allen J. Schaben / L.A. Times Jorge Mancillas listens to his wife, while their daughter Arianna Mancillas, four, hugs her mom, Norma Esparza, while speaking during a press conference outside the Central Justice Center in Santa Ana, Calif. Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2013.

Academic freedom protects pornography at Webster library By Darra Cunningham Staff Writer

Webster University’s Emerson Library allows students to view pornography on library computers under the protection of academic freedom. The policy states that if anyone makes a complaint related to a student’s viewing of pornography, the library staff will ask the offending student to move to a different area. Director of Public Relations Patrick Giblin said he agrees with the library’s policy. “If a student is caught viewing porn, we’re not going to ask them what class it’s for,” Giblin said. “That’s overly intrusive and it ends up creating road blocks for research.” Dean of the Emerson Library Laura Rein said the university opposes putting filters on computers because it has a strong commitment to

academic freedom. “Filters are very restricting and obscene material is often subjective,” Rein said. Rein said the university does not want to distract students from conducting legitimate research. Giblin agrees with Rein, saying that the university has to assume everyone in the library is there to do research. Elizabeth MacDonald, dean of library services at Lindenwood University, wasn’t aware of any policy prohibitng porn at Lindenwood but said their library had more problems with people viewing pornography before it began to use filters. “I don’t believe students were researching only for academic reasons,” MacDonald said. “We would find too much stuff.” Leah Simms, video production major at Webster,

said the library shouldn’t allow people to view porn at all. “If students need to research anything obscene, it should be in the privacy of their own home, not at school,” Simms said. Sharon McCaslin, lead librarian at Fontbonne University, said there is no policy addressing the viewing of pornography. She said if there was a problem, that it would fall under Fontbonne’s “conduct in the library” policy. The University of Missouri- St. Louis also doesn’t have a policy that addresses viewing pornography either. University libraries and public libraries do not abide by the same rules. “Public libraries are in a different situation where they have children that come and they’re required to get filters,” Rein said. See Library Page 2

Library responses to pornography viewing

Illustration by Victoria Courtney

Information from the Student Handbook

The News Source For Webster University

BILLY SUKOSKI / The Journal Webster University student, Molly Brennan discovered her house had been destroyed in a EF-4 tornado, Sunday afternoon. “You really find out what is important,” Molly said as she scavenged through her collapsed house in Peoria, Ill.

Brennan said. Abby Brennan compared the search for her belongings to a treasure hunt. One of the treasures salvaged was her mother and grandmother’s wedding dresses — undamaged. Molly Brennan said the search made her realize what is important. “We are mostly looking for memories. Things that aren’t replaceable,” Molly Brennan said. The Brennan family paid little attention to replaceable items like clothing and furniture. Molly Brennan said it was fun to find the things worth keeping. Claire and Molly Brennan

“

We are mostly looking for memories. Things that aren’t replaceable. Molly Brennan Webster University student

were especially anxious to find their missing cat, Oliver. They found their other two pets, a cat and dog, between collapsed pieces of the house, which protected them from injuries. The family found Oliver two days later. Molly Brennan’s aunts and uncles traveled into town to help the family recover their belongings. Her aunt, Norma Walling

”

lives in California but was in St. Louis when the tornado hit. After hearing about the tornado, Walling texted her sister Claire Brennan and light-heartedly asked her if she had seen any tornadoes. Claire Brennan responded, “I think my house is gone.” Walling arranged her travel plans. “You never think anything like this is going to happen, until

it actually happens to someone in your own family,” Walling said with tears in her eyes. When Claire Brennan returned from the movies, she found a pile of debris where her home once stood. She searched for her jewelry box. It held her wedding ring and her mother’s handed-down jewelry. “My life in a rubble pile,” Claire Brennan said as she looked around the site where her home stood two days prior. A Facebook page was made to post items people found in the tornado’s aftermath. As Molly Brennan searched through the page, she noticed pictures of

THE JOURNAL September 25-October 1 , 2013

Volume 67 Issue 5

cused on the I-70 billboard’s concept. He said the idea to place the billboard near the University of Missouri -— Columbia athletic billboards was inspired by the slogan “Webster Football: Undefeated since 1941.” Costello showcased several billboards the university has designed with the same “Our Top Recruits are” tag. The future billboards include “Our Top Recruits receive Tony’s,” and “Our Top Recruits perform at the MET.” Costello said the university designed more billboards with the slogan after the first billboard’s success. “We think this has been, by any standards, a huge success,” Costello said at the presentation. Director of Communications Dominik Jánsky said the university did not intend to offend students. He said no one should take the billboard literally. “We thought there would be some pushback, but we didn’t understand the pain some people would feel from this,” Jánsky

websterjournal.com

‘The tipping point’ University, Eden sue the city

To see more photos of the devastation and the Brennan family visit websterjournal.com

By Dan Bauman Senior Editor

Webster University and Eden Theological Seminary sued the City of Webster Groves last week. The university and seminary allege the city unlawfully denied the university’s request to use property it had purchased from Eden. Webster had hoped to use two buildings on Eden’s property for university activities and demolish a third. An attorney for the university and seminary said his clients believe damages could reach $5 million, around what the university paid Eden for the three buildings and land. “To me, it’s the city saying ‘we know you bought a house on this street, but we’re not going to let you move into it because we don’t like you and we don’t want you to live there,’” Gerard Carmody, the university and seminary’s attorney. The lawsuit is the latest development in a dispute between the institutions and the city. Since the university announced its intentions to expand across Lockwood Avenue in 2009, it has faced resistance from a group of Webster Groves residents and the city council. If a settlement is not reached, a ruling against the city for $5 million would represent nearly a quarter of all the revenue the city predicted it would collect in 2012-2013. For Eden, the sale and lease of its property has allowed the seminary to generate revenue. In September 2012, Eden President David Greenhaw told The Journal the sale or lease of Eden property would allow the seminary to reduce the size of its campus to fit its declining student enrollment. Conversely, Webster University’s desire to expand its campus boundaries and create more space for university activities would be hindered if the court ruled in the city’s favor. See Lawsuit Page 3

herself. Pictures from the Brennan household were found more than 100 miles away. Some houses near the Brennans’ still had pieces left intact and others had little to no See Tornado

Page 2

Marketing justifies chess billboard to students Student Government Association (SGA) hosted an open forum with Webster University’s Global Communications and Marketing Office in response to backlash from a university billboard along Interstate-70 that states, “Our Top Recruits are Chess Players.” The billboard, that follows the University of Missouri — Columbia’s billboards, shows two Susan Polgar Institute of Chess Excellence (SPICE) players next to the slogan. The advertisement was supposed to be taken as playful banter between Webster and the University of Missouri – Columbia while promoting Webster, Director of Public Relations Patrick Giblin said in an Oct. 31 article for The Journal. In a presentation at the open forum, Director of Creative Services John Costello explained Creative Services and Giblin discussed his department’s role in marketing the university. Costello’s presentation fo-

websterjournal.com

November 27 - December 3, 2013

Geneva professor held in murder case

The News Source For Webster University

Volume 67 Issue 12

Page 3

Page 5

”

A danger to our children, or harmless fun? Journal editors debate Black Friday.

Inside

• University calls suit ‘last resort’ • Residents torn on expansion • Eden students, unheard voices

To read past coverage of the billboard controversy visit websterjournal.com said at the presentation. “We just ask that you also see the context that the billboards are one percent of our outreach. It’s not supposed to be taken literally as ‘our top recruits are X.’” SGA Vice President Katie Maxwell said she feels administration needs to understand it made a mistake in the execution of the billboard. “I think what would be most beneficial is that the university is empathizing with the students in this situation,” Maxwell said See Forum

Page 3

MACKENZIE WILDER / The Journal Wesbter University Global Communications and Marketing presented to students at a Student Government Association open forum on Nov. 19 in Sunnen Lounge. The department answered questions regarding Webster’s chess billboard located on Interstate-70.

Illustration by Victoria Courtney

Dec. 9, 2009 University announces its intent to purchase property from Eden.

Late 2009, Early 2010 Residents FOR Webster Groves is formed.

128 / greatplainsawards.org

How the university and Eden got here Aug. 1, 2010 University finalizes purchase of Eden property.

Feb. 21, 2012 University presents its plan for the Eden property to the city.

Sept. 4, 2012 City council places regulations on owners and lessee of the Eden property.

Aug. 20, 2013 City votes to not approve the university’s application for a conditional use permit.

June 3, 2013 City Plan Commission recommends the city allow the university to use the Eden property.

Sept 18, 2013 Webster University and Eden file a joint suit against the City of Webster Groves.

Great Plains Student Editor in Chief of the Year, Finalists Publication: The Baker Orange,

Publication: The Oracle,

Baker University

Oral Roberts University

Publication: The Collegian, South Dakota State University

By: Sara Bell

By: Hannah Covington

By: Marcus Traxler Wednesday • December 4, 2013

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Oral Roberts University · Oct. 24, 2013 Tulsa, Okla. · Vol. 48, No. 5 www.oruoracle.com

November 22, 2013

Baker University Student Media/Baldwin City, Kansas

Lennon’s Letter

vol. 121 [issue 4]

Is the letter from John Lennon to Oral Roberts authentic? PAGE 10

Carrying the Weight a brother’s story

Lauren Bechard SPORTS EDITOR

It had been just over a year since Charlie Coleman was awakened by the sound of his mother screaming. Charlie tried to forget the sound of that cry, but on this morning he couldn’t shake the feeling that something terrible had happened again. Instinct led him to his bathroom, which was locked. When he didn’t get a response after knocking, Charlie knew his hunch was right and broke down the door. Rape, depression and a month’s worth of antidepressants left his younger sister Daisy, who was 14, lying unconscious in front of him. Charlie immediately picked up the limp girl, carried her to the car and sped off to the hospital. He was overcome with the terror of losing his sister.

Painting by Vanessa Sweet

Jump to pg. 2 MARYVILLE

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

SPORTS EXCLUSIVE

LOOKING BACK

New to ORU? Get familiar with Tulsa’s best hot spots pg 10-11

Your guide to picking this season’s winning roster pg 14

ORU professor reflects on landmark civil rights event pg 17

Welcome to T-town

Tera Lyons/The Baker Orange

Fantasy football

‘I Have a Dream’

October 18, 2013

Baker University Student Media/Baldwin City, Kansas

vol. 121 [issue 3]

A S E A S O N O F CHANGE October yielded an historic win in a rivalry game, the retirement of a cherished nurse and the addition of an educational resource center. Top - The BU football team ended its 13-year losing streak against MidAmerica Nazarene University on homecoming weekend ... Pg 9

Photo by Austin St. John

RED TAPE

Oral Roberts University

Tulsa, Okla.

Aug. 23, 2013

Vol. 48, No. 1

By Kristy Sturgill and McKensie Garber About 270 ORU students are international students, representing 68 different countries. Each student has a unique journey with varying obstacles, but they all have one thing in common — they came to the U.S. by choice. RED TAPE TO GET HERE Imagine the anxiety of sitting outside the doors of the U.S. Embassy after months of waiting for an appointment. That’s how junior Sam Bako felt as he sat outside the U.S. Embassy in Ghana with his bank statements and identification in hand. When Bako was allowed in the embassy to obtain his visa, the next layer of red tape emerged — the interview. “They want to know why you want to get an education in the U.S., rather than staying in your own county,” Bako said. “I have seen other students not get a visa because they were too nervous, or because the interviewer didn’t like their answers.” For senior art major Evelina Lundqzist from Sweden, months of preparation were not an option when she heard the voice of God and decided to attend ORU two months before classes started.

Jacks march into “The Inferno” at E. Washington

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See SPORTS • B1

S O U T H DA K O TA S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y ’ S S T U D E N T - R U N I N D E P E N D E N T N E W S PA P E R S I N C E 1885

Game day rules rankle commuters

Differences of opinion Admin, SA see potential stadium fee increase differently

By JORDAN SMITH Managing Editor On basketball game days at SDSU, parking lots near the Frost Arena are closed off in the evening for season ticket holders to park in. The rule isn’t new but some students claim it makes it more difficult to find parking in close proximity to the events that bring them to campus. Parking Services Director Derek Peterson has been with parking services since it began about three years ago and said game day parking precedes parking services, as it has been around for about 10 years. “Parking is critical to events on campus so the parking committee voted to continue the relationship with athletics,” Peterson said. The athletic department approached parking services and asked them to enforce the parking regulations for the event Peterson said. The lots have always been reserved for season ticket holders who donate $500 or more annually, it is just being enforced now due to the growing number of fans that qualify for priority parking passes and the limited space in the lots, Associate Athletic Director of Tickets & Marketing Christi Williams said. Lots north, south, and east of Frost Arena are open until 5:10 p.m. on game days. After that they are reserved for season ticket holders who also donate $500 or more annually. There are 485 priority ticket holders this season, according to Williams. The lots need to be vacated by 5:10 p.m. on game days during the week, and 2:10 p.m. for weekend games. Parking services has been working with athletics on the signage to let commuters know when the lots are closing for the season ticket holders with premier parking passes on game days. An email was also sent out to parkers on campus to let them know of the policy. “The big thing is that it is not new,” Peterson said. Parking Services first asked athletics staff to vacate the lots for the games before going to students and faculty. Parking Services has been taking calls on questions from students and staff said Kimberly Engelmann parking services program assistant. Parking services has mostly had questions from departments and faculty asking if the policy applied to them. So far, Engelmann has personally not received any complaints from students on the lot closures. This year, new signage was created and warns people parking in the lot after it is reserved for basketball games that they will get a citation. The signs are put out early morning on game days. The old signage said that vehicles would be towed; this new signage is a lot friendlier, Peterson said. So far, there have been three events with parking attendants writing warnings on cars without the correct parking pass to notify them to relocate. Eventually parking attendants will write citations, and the parking committee is also having a meeting to decide whether to give a

ARTIST’S RENDERING

The plans for the new stadium project have been submitted to the Board of Regents. Students’ Association expressed that they would consider a $1 general activity fee increase if it was needed. Despite previous conversations, university administration expressed that the increase would be $1.75. By HEIDI KRONAIZL News Editor

tudents’ Association has passed Resolution 13-08-R, a document that shows they will consider a $1 general activity fee increase to cover the operational costs of the new stadium if it is needed. The resolution passed 18-6 at their Nov. 25 meeting. “The most important thing to portray is we haven’t agreed to support a fee increase of any amount at this time,” Students’ Association President Ben Stout said. The $1 amount was created as a starting point where SA and legislators can talk about if it will be needed. However, university administration has proposed a $1.75 increase to the Board of Regents along with the rest of the new stadium planning and funding. “Some models [from the adminis-

tration] have a student fee in them, and some don’t. The one that got submitted to the board has an example of $1.75 in it,” Stout said. If there were to be a fee increase, it would start in the fiscal year of 2017. Currently, Athletics receives $10.13 per credit hour to help keep up facilities and so Title XI can be intact. “Programs can’t run without funding, and the funding will not be decided upon until March,” said State and Local Chair Caleb Finck at the Nov. 25 meeting. “Because we aren’t saying yes or no, it is considered an arbitrary amount … it could be less it could be more.” When creating Resolution 13-08-R, SA went into executive session to talk about the potential resolution. “We wanted to that because … when you start a negotiation process, it’s important to have everyone on the same page … so the purpose was to get everyone on the same page be-

fore,” Stout said. The SA executive board had the opportunity to see the resolution before it was completed. “Eventually we are going to have to make a decision,” said Agricultural and Biological Sciences Senator Matt Dahle at the Nov. 25 meeting. In order to allocate the increase for the GAF, it has to take three steps. First, there will need to be a formal request from the University Activity Fee Budgeting Committee. From there it will go onto President David Chicoine to be approved and will then move onto the BOR to be approved. The last GAF increase was this year, where $1 per credit hour was allocated for The Union expansion. Resolution 13-05-R, which expresses SA’s support for the new stadium project, has been submitted with the other documents to the BOR. “I think it’s good to have support

from all different areas of campus,” Stout said on the effectiveness of 1305-R. Discussions about the stadium project will be going on from this point forward. “We probably have been meeting once a week if not every other week and I expect that to continue,” Stout said. If the project is passed Director of Athletics Justin Sell will create a task force comReport mittee that will consist of stusheds dents along with SA members that light on will be involved in the process of financials the new stadium A7 project.

INSIDE:

SDSU’s favorite treat Campus banquet rallies for ranchers gets a fresh look By HEIDI KRONAIZL News Editor

By JORDAN SMITH Managing Editor From start to finish, SDSU creates, manufactures and sells their trademark SDSU Ice Cream. To go along with it, there’s a new face on the packaging. The Dairy Science department, along with University Marketing and Communications, has redesigned the way that the ice cream containers look. The SDSU Dairy Farm has its own cows that produce the

raw milk that is used to make SDSU Ice Cream. The milk is separated into skim and cream and then is combined back so that they meet the federal standards. All SDSU Ice Cream is made and packaged in the SDSU Davis Dairy Plant. The sweetening ingredients are then added to give the ice cream either a vanilla or chocolate flavor. The mixture is then pasteurized to kill all of the pathogens. After the mixture reaches the high temperature for pasteurization, they are sent to the ice cream tank. From there, the ice cream goes to the flavor tank where the base flavor is added. The base then goes to the ice cream freezer. From the freezer, the ice cream goes through the fruit feed where fruit or nuts can be added as well as the See DAIRY A6

See PARKING A6

An event sponsored by the Students’ Association raised over $12,500 for the South Dakota Rancher Relief Fund sponsored the Rancher’s Relief Banquet Friday, Nov. 22 in the Volstorff Ballroom to help raise money for the South Dakota Rancher Relief Fund, which totals over $1.9 million. The event had over 450 people in attendance and raised over $12,500 for ranchers that were affected by Winter Storm Atlas in October. The fundraiser included a banquet with a wide menu, a silent auction with donated items from several sororities, fraternities, clubs, departments, area businesses and faculty members. Although the banquet was held nearly two months after the blizzard, planning began when tragedy had

struck. “The week after the blizzard, [I’d] been out west for a different meeting,” dean of the Agricultural and Biological Sciences Barry Dunn said. “I contacted Ben Stout about something to be done. [He was] ‘Already on it’.” Dunn along with Master of Ceremonies Jim Woster, Students’ Association President Ben Stout, President David Chicoine and beef producers Riley and Jimmie Kammerer spoke at the event. The Kammerers spoke of the devastation they experienced first hand because of Atlas. “Beef production is not what we do, it’s definitely who we are,” Jimmie Kammerer said. “Their [ranchers] bodies lay lifeless as those of their cattle.” The Kammerers noted that several families went hundreds of miles to help gather any live cattle that

possibly survived the storm. During the previous week, the Kammerers had finished burying their cattle. They also received a check in the mail. Jimmie said the donor noted, “Not for charity … but for the future of beef production.” After the Kammerers spoke, they received a standing ovation and were wrapped with quilts -- a Lakota tradition that represents wrapping arms around one another. The video that was shown gave details of Atlas and the aftermath it left. Atlas started on Oct. 3, covering five states as freezing rain then turning into snow. The snow continued for over 60 hours, with wind gusts up to 70 mph. Snowfall totals were as high as 56 inches. Despite the government being shut down at the time, the U.S. Weather Service came to work, watching the radar, despite having to See RELIEF A7

C M Y

Wednesday • October 2, 2013

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Todd Helton says goodbye. See SPORTS • B3

Continued on page 3

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Bottom Left - Ruth Sarna, director of health services, announced her upcoming retirement. Sarna is an avid BU sports fan and pumps up the football team before every home game ... Pg 4

S O U T H DA K O TA S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y ’ S S T U D E N T - R U N I N D E P E N D E N T N E W S PA P E R S I N C E 1885

Nichols becomes finalist in Idaho presidential search

Bottom Right - A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the campus speech center celebrated an opportunity for students to improve their oral communication skills ... Pg 2

By STAFF REPORTS

Oral Roberts University · Oct. 4, 2013 Tulsa, Okla. · Vol. 48, No. 4 www.oruoracle.com

GREAT HEIGHTS

SDSU Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Laurie Nichols is one of five finalists for the presidential opening at the University of Idaho. It would not be the first time Nichols has served as a president, albeit on an interim basis. For the 2008-09 academic year, Nichols served as the interim president at Northern State, with the understanding that she would return to SDSU after one year in Aberdeen and after NSU found a president of its own.

The opportunity at Idaho, which is located in Moscow in the northern Palouse region of the state on the Id a h o - Wa s h i ng ton border, would bring back Nichols Nichols to old stomping grounds. She was an associate professor at Idaho from 1988-1994. SDSU President David Chicoine briefed university employees of Nichols’ candidacy as a finalist in his

“Monday Morning Message” on Sept. 30. “Many of us have benefited from Laurie’s work,” Chicoine wrote. “Her leadership and experience make it seem inevitable that she will serve as a university president someday. I wish her the best as the process unfolds.” From 1994 to 2008, Nichols served as both dean and professor in the College of Family & Consumer Sciences at SDSU. During that time, among other items, her college raised $3 million annually for scholarship programs, retention within the col-

lege went up 8 percent and created a new Ph.D. program in nutritional sciences. Nichols graduated from SDSU in 1978, earning a bachelor’s of science degree in Home Economics Education and then received her Master’s and Ph.D. degrees from Colorado State and Ohio State University, respectively. The other finalists include Donald L. Birx, the chancellor at Penn State University – Erie; Jack McGillen Payne, the senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources at the University of Florida; James L. Applegate, a consultant for the Lumi-

Teaching Learning Center relocates

Nika Mostahinic soars above the net for a spike in a recent match.

By SARA BERTSCH Reporter

PAGE 14

COLLEGIAN PHOTO BY JOHN SCHMIDT

Before accepting the position of College of Nursing Dean, Nancy Fahrenwald worked for two years with the Malawi government to educate the public about AIDS prevention. She began research in the realm of public health in 1996 and received her Ph.D. in 2002.

Aspirations high for Fahrenwald, College of Nursing By JOHN SCHMIDT the University of Nebraska Medical Web Editor Center on Omaha Neb. In between

NEWS Murder trial postponed to January 2014 Pg. 3

FEATURES Two ORU grads use Instagram fashion photos for a cause Pg. 11

na Foundation for higher education and Chuck Staben, provost and vice president for academic affairs at the University of South Dakota. Idaho has 11,408 students on its main campus and is the state’s landgrant school with 130 undergraduate degrees and 126 graduate degrees. The school’s Board of Regents is expected to name a replacement this month after each candidate participates in open forums and receptions around the state. The university has been without a president since Duane Nellis left for Texas Tech University in March for the same position.

Photo by Austin St. John

SCENE Find out why you dress like your mother Pg. 12

Recently appointed College of Nursing Dean Nancy Fahrenwald has big plans for the future of health care education at SDSU. Fahrenwald’s office walls are covered with photos of her past, like most offices. Her diplomas, photos from her Peace Corp trip and posters from her work with the Living Kidney Donation program all tell different stories about Fahrenwald’s life work. However what is not up on the walls are her goals and intentions of the College of Nursing with her new position. A 1983 SDSU alum, Fahrenwald practiced and taught public health at Presentation College and obtained her master’s degree in 1988 from the University of Portland, then finally her doctorate degree in 2002 from

her education, Fahrenwald spent some time in Malawi, Africa where she worked as an AIDS coordinator. “I knew I wanted to be in the Peace Corps since I was 8 years old,” Fahrenwald said. Fahrenwald worked for two years with the Malawi government to help educate the public about AIDS and AIDS prevention while her husband taught secondary school there as well. While in Africa, Fahrenwald’s husband talked her into coming back to SDSU. “I was still in Africa while I was being interviewed,” Fahrenwald said. After her time in the Peace Corps, Fahrenwald took a position at the SDSU College of Nursing where she taught community health and in 1996 started her Ph.D. program. She start-

ed research in the realm of public health and educating the public about how to avoid health issues later in life. “I’m an upstream thinker,” Fahrenwald said. She likes to educate to avoid rather than tend to an issue at hand. In order to increase health awareness of the public, Fahrenwald plans on doubling research funding and is a part of the College of Nursing’s strategic plan. “In order to improve health we have to work as a team,” Fahrenwald said. With the idea to improve health comes with having people who are as eager to change it as Fahrenwald. With that in mind she plans on doubling the number of scholarships nursing students receive. She plans on looking to alumni for fundraising to fulfill this goal. “We have great students and we

want to help them financially,” Fahrenwald said. “Working in [health care] is a perfect career.” With SDSU expanding as rapidly as it is, Fahrenwald is excited to be a part of the myriad of programs the Impact 2018 plan is launching. “Impact of 2018 is a great marker for President Chicoine’s leadership,” Fahrenwald said. When she was attending SDSU, Fahrenwald said she “never got lost,” but now with the new residence halls and academic buildings, it makes things more difficult. Fahrenwald claimed she didn’t always know she was going to come back to SDSU, however she’s back now and plans on making a huge impact in the things she loves most. “[SDSU] is home for me,” Fahrenwald said.

Students win NASA grant for research projects By PATRICK BOWDEN in East Africa. Winning these felReporter lowships has opened many new

This year, two determined SDSU Ph.D. students Christopher Moran and Woubet Alemu applied for and won the international NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship award. This award grants the students each a $30,000 sum to help further their aspiring research plans for the future. The grant also allows the students to utilize NASA’s research recourses that are typically unavailable to the public such as satellites, telescopes and planes. Moran is out west studying fuel treatments that deal with forest fires. Alemu, is well on his way to organizing multiple data collection systems for agriculture production

doors for the students in terms of completing their Ph.D.’s, and help them to be a part of solving larger, worldwide problems. “Woubet and I met in 2009 when we first went to Ethiopia (Woubet’s home country) for a project under the National Institutes of Health,” said Alemu’s Ph.D. advisor Dr. Geoffrey Henebry. “Since 2011, I have advised him by checking research progress alongside him as his graduate research assistant.”

Alemu’s research deals indirectly with the future prediction of grain production in Ethiopia, South Sudan and Tanzania. The extremities of these countries climate variables, along with their “very incomplete infrastructure,” make crop production nearly unpredictable and difficult to maintain. Alemu uses passive microwave data from special sensors (2003-2011) onboard NASA’s Aqua satellite to measure air temperature, surface moisture, and vegetation optical depth through clouds at night. While these specific data points

are not commonly used, they are important variables for exactly what Alemu plans to do with his research. “For the first year [of research] we do crop vegetation modeming for land surface phenology. For the second year, we will use this data to predict crop productivity in these countries,” Alemu said. “We will use this type of data for the research as a whole in the future.” If Alemu’s research goes the way he plans it to, this process will gradually narrow down exactly how to effectively increase the grain production in East Africa. On the opposite, more familiar side of the globe, Moran is spending part of his fall semester See GRANT • A6

In mid-September, the Teaching Learning Center, which is a resource dedicated to the faculty of SDSU, was relocated to a more spacious office in Briggs Library where the Honors College used to be. The Honors College was moved to its new location in the Honors Hall on campus. It was located in Briggs Library Room 126, which is now the new home of the TLC. The center has held various small and cramped locations throughout the library, but now this new move into a bigger and better office area is hoped to be its last. For three years, the center has had one full time employee, Kevin Sackreiter who serves as the director. He also has two work study students there as well. Before, the center only employed parttime and this decreased its overall performance. The TLC works specifically for faculty of SDSU and works indirectly to students. This includes faculty at the Sioux Falls, Pierre, and Rapid City University Centers. According to Sackreiter, the center has four main focal points: faculty development, service learning, scholarship of teaching and learning, and the active learning cloud. These are achieved by holding events for faculty to improve themselves. Last year alone, there were around 80 events held. “The faculty views it as a place they come to get info, resources, and brainstorm ideas and focus on professional development,” Sackreiter said. With its new location in Briggs Library, Sackreiter hopes to have even more events and improve the center’s effectiveness to the Sackreiter faculty. As stated on SDSU’s website about the center, there are year round on-campus workshops and professional development opportunities. Also, services such as web-based tutorials, workshops, and virtual professional development opportunities through the TLC InsideState Website are available for faculty. With the center and the resources it provides, SDSU is a leader of faculty development in South Dakota according to Sackreiter. “It is one of the real strengths of SDSU,” he said. “The center is 100 percent dedicated to the faculty.” “The impact of the Teaching Learning Center is far-reaching,” Elizabeth Tolman, professor in the Communication Studies and Theatre department said. Most of the events put on by the center are held in The Union and sometimes in a specific department if they request it. All the resources, however, are located at the TLC. Randy Clark, Associate Professor in the department of Visual Arts says the Teaching Learning Center is one of the many things that set SDSU apart from other universities. “When Kevin came to the center, he seemed to breathe life into it. He made it so faculty looks to it and appreciates as an excellent resource,” Clark said. Even though the center works strictly for faculty only, they also do extensive work with teaching assistants. This includes education based projects and additional support for many of them. “Kevin’s knowledge spans from service-learning, online instruction, instructional methods, the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, and how to provide instructional support for Graduate Teaching Assistants,” Tolman said.

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greatplainsawards.org / 129

Great Plains Student Designer of the Year Publication: The Daily O’Collegian, Oklahoma State University By: Emily Farris Judges’ Comments: This newspaper has a strong base/library of typographic styles and overall use of white space. There

is minimal clutter. The designer shows good thinking and has a solid understanding of page hierarchy and the value of contrast in typographic use. Generally, the designer uses type well but watch for “rivers of type” when justifying columns. There is good balance between visuals and text. Photography is good and the use of photography is also strong. Stories such as “Bond Issue 2013” could use quick bullet points to help quickly communicate information. It seems the editor, reporters and visuals staff work well together.

Wednesday Thursday January 16, 2013 October 10, 2013

Wednesday Thursday January 16, 2013 October 31, 2013

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THE DAILY O’COLLEGIAN

WednesdAY, JAnuArY 16, 2013

PAge 3

Ten years have passed since Oklahoma State played in the Final Four. Over that time, Gallagher-Iba Arena and the tradition of OSU basketball lay dormant, failing to meet expectations. It drove away a once-passionate fan base that longed for the glory days of yesteryear. In the spring of 2013, that began to change. An exciting team started to win with an energetic coach, and it won big. A freshman became a star, fans waited in line to attend games and people realized 2004 wasn’t all that long ago. When Marcus Smart, Markel Brown and Le’Bryan Nash decided to return for another year, it seemed the stars aligned. Now, with the regular season right around the corner, one question remains: Is this the best Cowboy team since 2004?

JOHN LUCAS III

JOEY GRAHAM

TONY ALLEN

If Allen was the toughest, Bobik was the grittiest. He started all but one game in 2004 and was an excellent help-defender.

IVAN MCFARLIN

COURTESY OF STOCKXCHANGE

MARCUS SMART Wednesday Thursday January 16, 2013 November 21, 2013 www.ocolly.com www.ocolly.com

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ocolly.com

New chief wellness officer settles in

LE’BRYAN NASH

THE DAILY O’COLLEGIAN

WednesdAY, JAnuArY 16, 2013

At an athletic 6 feet 7 inches and 235 pounds, Nash is a matchup nightmare. A model hybrid; without him, this team loses an edge.

BRIAN WILLIAMS An elite-level defender, Williams can guard four positions and has a presence on offense. Williams gets it done.

MARKEL BROWN A rare combination of uncanny leaping ability and deadly longrange shooting, Brown is the team’s most efficient offensive player.

MICHAEL COBBINS A lengthy center known for his shot-blocking, Cobbins is also a threat to score inside and has steadily improved over his career.

Fan favorites. Team players. Each has showed the moxy that holds teams together through the challenging games.

O’COLLEGIAN FILE PHOTOS

PAge 3

By MICAH PARNELL Staff Reporter She has never been in place long enough to call it hers. But after a month as Oklahoma State University’s new HARRINGTON chief wellness officer, Suzy Harrington feels at home in Stillwater. Harrington was hired by President Burns Hargis to oversee and coordinate all the health and wellness activities and initiatives, which includes the Oklahoma City and Tulsa campuses along with the county extensions. “My goal is to create a foundation for healthier living by instituting a systemic approach to the way we approach our health and wellness programs,” Harrington said. A real-world example of Harrington’s job would be the Seretean Wellness Center and the Student Union creating walking paths. But they’re marketing the paths independently, and Harrington said she wants to promote them as one OSU system of walking paths. For the past six years, Harrington has lived in Texas, Germany, Washington D.C. and Stillwater. Growing up, her father was in the military — so they moved a lot, she said. Before she came to OSU, Harrington worked in Washington for the American Nurses Association. While at the ANA, Harrington worked on initiatives for health and safety and drafted national interprofessional standards that provided the foundation for a congressional bill. “I helped get a bill drafted,” Harrington said. “Bill 2480 helps improve safety standards for nurses and patients while improving quality of care.” The bill hasn’t passed in either the Senate or the House of Representatives, but it was only introduced in June. In Washington, Harrington also met Michelle Obama, she said. Even though Harrington has moved to Oklahoma, a big portion of her life is still in the nation’s capital. Her husband, Col. Sean Harrington, still lives in Washington and works as an intelligence officer at the Pentagon. “I followed my husband’s career for years around the world,” Harrington said. “But now I’m focusing on my career.” Despite big parts of her life still back in Washington, she has jumped head first into her work. She wants to give back to the community that gave her a home, she said. “I invite all students and faculty to stop by my office and tell me their ideas for health and wellness for OSU,” Harrington said. Her office is 224 Student Union. “I don’t know where anything is, but anytime I’m driving back into Stillwater it feels like home.”

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224 SU The room number of Harrington’s office

130 / greatplainsawards.org

See SMOKE Page 3

As a capable scorer, proficient passer, physical defender and AllAmerican talent, Smart is OSU’s undoubted leader.

There’s no way to measure what these overlooked players add to their teams. At the end of the game, they have trusted hands.

Mr. Everything. One of three at OSU to leave with 1,000 points, 700 rebounds, 100 steals and 100 blocked shots.

PAge 3

By KYLE HINCHEY Managing Editor

Rev. Michael Bartley first realized there was a problem after seeing the flood of cigarette butts surrounding the newly placed ashtrays in front of his ministry. When Oklahoma State University banned oncampus smoking in 2008, students and employees began walking to surrounding businesses to smoke. Because the Wesley Foundation, 823 W. University Ave., is close to hot spots such as the Student Union and the Strip — a collection of bars and restaurants on Washington Street — the ministry became a prime target for smokers. “Initially, I thought this won’t be a big deal,” Bartley said. “We’ll put up ashtrays, and they’ll use the ashtrays, and it won’t be a problem.” To his surprise, ashtrays didn’t improve the situation at all. It became worse. “Whenever we put up ashtrays, they actually didn’t put their cigarette butts into them,” he said. “Then they start thinking, ‘Well, we’ll use it as a trash can,’ and they start bringing all of their lunch trash with them, and we end up having three times the amount of trash.” Realizing ashtrays wouldn’t be enough, Bartley tried adding trash cans — with no success. Loiterers would throw their trash at the cans, he said, rather than into them, forcing Bartley to get rid of the receptacles altogether. Five years later, the problem is out of control. Bartley estimates between 45 and 50 people litter on his property each day, leaving behind hundreds of cigarettes and other trash. Nicer weather results in more employees frequenting the Wesley Foundation during lunch breaks. With the near-constant warm weather Stillwater has experienced this fall, he spends an hour to two hours daily cleaning up the mess. “It’s not everybody,” he said. “There’s been some really considerate people, and there’s been some great people out there smoking, and I’ve enjoyed talking to them. I don’t mind people smoking there. I just wish they’d clean up after themselves.” Earlier this year, Bartley contacted the Stillwater Police Department, asking for help. Police implemented a $249 fine about three weeks ago to discourage the excessive littering — but Exterior Code Enforcement supervisor Paul Bostick said it won’t be enough. “We’re outnumbered,” Bostick said. “There’s hundreds, if not thousands, of smokers. We can go out there and write tickets all day long and still not make an impact.” So far, about 12 people have been ticketed, he said. Bartley also contacted OSU for help but was disappointed by the response. About once or twice a year, he said, the university sends people caught smoking on campus to clean up the Wesley Foundation property. He said he appreciates the gesture, but it’s not enough to fix the problem. The university also dismissed Bartley’s proposal to install two or three ventilated smoking huts around campus for faculty and staff. “I don’t think (OSU President Burns Hargis) or the administration would go back on the position that we’ve taken that we are smoke free on campus,” Student Affairs Vice President Lee Bird told The Daily O’Collegian on Monday. “So I don’t think a smoke booth is appropriate, and I don’t think that anybody would advocate for that.” Despite the trouble that OSU’s smoking ban has caused him, Bartley said he is a strong supporter of the university’s policy. “I would love to have a no-smoking policy, also,” he said. “I’m actually one who doesn’t agree with public smoking. I would love to see a city-wide nosmoking policy that could be enforced on our corner as well.”

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If defense wins championships, Allen and Williams are the heart of a winning team. They’re comfortable as the go-to man each night.

DANIEL BOBIK

Local ministry grapples with littered cigarettes

THE DAILY O’COLLEGIAN

Postal Plaza Gallery Open House

These are highly athletic 6-foot-7-inch power forwards playing head and shoulders above what ther nightly matchups would suggest.

One of the toughest players to come along in the Eddie Sutton era. Allen is a legitimate asset on an NBA starting lineup.

The Oklahoma State University Postal Plaza Gallery commences its soft opening with a community open house Thursday. The open house for the museum of art, 720 S. Husband St. will be from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. to jumpstart the museum’s two-month soft opening period. OSU President Burns Hargis and Ann Hargis will host the event, which is free to attend and does not require an RSVP. Marketing and communications coordinator Jordan Griffis said the museum’s long-awaited “Sharing a Journey” exhibition will be previewed at the event. Although the entire exhibit will not be on display until the gallery’s grand opening Jan. 14, the open house will allow the community to get a sneak peek of what is to come. “It’s going to be very exciting for people to come and get their first look and see what we are doing here … and see the historic building in Stillwater that we have transformed into an art gallery,” Griffis said. “Sharing a Journey” consists of pieces from the permanent OSU collection, which, up until now, have not been on display because of space issues, she said. The display will contain about 45 objects at the open house, with the full collection on display from Jan. 14 to May 25, Griffis said. In addition, an exhibition provided by Elliot + Associates Architects will also be on display at the open house. Griffis said this exhibit will help the community understand the transition from historic post office building to art museum. “They have archival documents, architectural renderings and photos from along the way, capturing the whole two-year process,” Griffis said. Postal Plaza Gallery’s soft opening period will extend from Oct. 11 to Dec. 20. During this time, the Gallery will be open weekdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. “It is very important to us that we allow people in our community to observe our process of becoming and the process of installing our first exhibition as we get ready for our grand opening in January,” Griffis said. Although some artwork will be displayed, the gallery will still be under construction. “It will be our transition time in which we are allowing everyone to come watch us and be a part of it with us,” Griffis said. “This is the community’s first look inside the Postal Plaza Gallery. We’ve been working on this renovation for about three years, and this is the first chance for visitors to come inside and walk around and look it over to see what we are doing as we lead up to our grand opening in January.”

When: Thursday 4-6 p.m. Where: 720 S. Husband St. Cost: Free

Natural leaders. Playmakers. They’re more than ball handlers; they’re deadly scorers and All-Americans to boot.

The power on this 2004 team. Graham didn’t just get into position, he scored. The last agile, powerful big man OSU has had.

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WednesdAY, JAnuArY 16, 2013 By KAELYNN KNOERNSCHILD Staff Reporter

By CODY STAVENHAGEN Sports Reporter

Few players of his size had a bigger impact on the court. Lucas was a deadly shooter from any spot and a shut-down defender.

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Postal Plaza Gallery to host open house

SMOKED OUT

THE REVIVAL

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TYLER DRABEK/O’COLLEGIAN

The once-banned comedy “Tartuffe” opened to the public Wednesday.

Rhythm & Rhyme

JACKIE DOBSON/O’COLLEGIAN

Tartuffe, the play’s antagonist, attempts to seduce Elmire.

“Tartuffe” is being performed in the Vivia Locke Theatre this week. By TYLER DRABEK Staff Reporter A smile is just a frown turned upside down. Oklahoma State University welcomed a guest director as the theatre department’s latest performance, “Tartuffe,” premiered Wednesday. Originally written in French by playwright Molière, “Tartuffe” was first performed in 1664 before becoming one of the most performed works of Molière. Stillwater native Jennifer Sampson was given the opportunity to direct one of the toughest performances of the season. “It’s rhyming verse in iambic pentameter,” Sampson said. “It’s like

music. If you learn the wrong note, the song is off. Anytime the students get tripped up, people can tell because if you get off beat, you can’t make it up. It takes incredible focus.” Written almost completely in rhyming couplets, “Tartuffe” is a difficult performance for many due to its consistent rhythm and iambic pentameter. “Tartuffe: The Imposter” is a story about a girl, Mariane, who is forced to marry Tartuffe at her father’s demand, even though she is engaged to another man. A fight over marriage becomes something capable of tearing a family apart in this comedy for the ages. “We aren’t doing some boring, straight-out-of-the-textbook

period comedy,” Sampson said. “I’ve created a really exaggerated, expansive, distorted, wild world that this play lives in. We tried to take who the characters are and exaggerate them as well.” Although many believe love to be true, “Tartuffe” shows deception can easily mask the truth behind a web of lies. “I want it to come out and grab you,” Sampson said. “It’s funny. It’s wild. People will be hard-pressed to see anything like this in the area. I think it will be an experience.” The main character of “Tartuffe” doesn’t make an appearance until just before intermission, but he makes his presence known with his sexual habits

‘Tartuffe’ When: Thursday-Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Where: Vivia Locke Theatre Cost: $5 and insatiable hunger for love. The role of Tartuffe caused theatre major Jansen Patterson to completely change his persona in order to meet Tartuffe’s sexual appetite. See TARTUFFE Page 3

University to offer safe walks to students By TARYN SANDERSON Crime Reporter

KENDRA NIPPER/O’COLLEGIAN

Sen. Trevor Steward listens to the debate over the Pledge of Allegiance.

SGA discusses typhoon, Pledge of Allegiance By LOGAN SMITH SGA Reporter Wednesday’s Student Government Association meeting rendered a 30-second moment of silence in remembrance of the four who died in the 2011 plane crash, John F. Kennedy’s death and the Moore tornado victims. Chance Imhoff, member

of the Freshman Representative Counsel, presented a new program designed to help the less fortunate families of Stillwater during the holidays. Helping Hands and Meal Plans has come up with an alternative for freshmen to spend their leftover meal plans on donations. See SGA Page 3

Campus just got a little safer. Oklahoma State University has created a Safe Walk program to provide additional campus safety. A trained public service officer will accompany any student to and from campus locations from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. seven days a week. “This helps students and their parents feel safe and secure, and that’s extremely important,” chief of public safety officer Michael Robinson said. In addition, Safe Walk will also assist the OSU Police Department as a presence on campus. “I was excited about the possibility of having extra eyes on the campus at night to help deter thefts and auto burglaries and to increase the general security of the campus,” Robinson said. The building process of the program began in the summer. Senior police officer

Safe Walk Program When: 7 p.m.-3 a.m. daily Get a PSO: Call 405-744-6523 Become a PSO: www.hireosugrads.com

Leah Storm runs the program. “Leah has exceeded our expectations,” Robinson said. “She has been passionate about making sure the program is well organized and efficient. “She also does a great job of relating to our student employees. We couldn’t be happier with the job she’s done on this project.” Interviews for PSOs were held in September, and training started Oct. 14. There are six blocks of training, and each block must be completed before moving on to the next. See SAFE Page 3

Great Plains Student Designer of the Year Finalists Publication: The Oracle, Oral Roberts University

Publication: The Collegian, South Dakota State University

Publication: The Collegian,

By: Bruce Dixon

By: Ryan Bowden

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University of Tulsa

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Elected President Inauguration Last day as President Age 49, born 1918

within churches are an eventual possibility. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not sure of all the things that will happen, we just know that God is calling us to extend our mission around the world,â&#x20AC;? Wilson said. of chemistry, connecting with international professors is key to globalize ORU. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t go out to the world until the world comes to us,â&#x20AC;? Collier said. Collier had two sabbaticals overseas during his time at ORU, one through the Fulbright Program. â&#x20AC;&#x153;ORU is one of those places that from the outside, people donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t [understand], but from the inside, everything opens up,â&#x20AC;? Collier said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;People realize how remarkable what we have is and want to take it back to their countries.â&#x20AC;? This is Wilsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hope. â&#x20AC;&#x153;By 2025, 10 years after our 50th anniversary, we will be able to have a viable presence of Oral Roberts University on every continent in the world,â&#x20AC;? Wilson said. Satellite campuses or campuses al perspective is going to support [our efforts] on campus,â&#x20AC;? said Gallagher. During the forum, Wilson said streaming lectures online is a way to showcase ORU through partnerships and contacts with educational institutions and churches all over the world. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I want ORU not to be a university in Tulsa that reaches the world, but a global university that [happens to be] in Tulsa, Okla. Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a definite difference in that,â&#x20AC;? he said. The whole person curriculum will still be infused in the online class, with physical and spiritual components built into the curriculum. Gallagher said this type of â&#x20AC;&#x153;intellectual application of technologyâ&#x20AC;? is important in a college atmosphere where students thrive on social media. For Dr. William Collier, professor planes, has made the world more accessible. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Globalization is a process happening in the world, with or without ORU,â&#x20AC;? he said. Wilson, along with the globalization task force, discussed implementing this process in seven steps to put the university on the global map by 2025. These steps bring global focus on ORUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s campus through an emphasis on study abroad, expanded online and distance learning efforts and increased international student recruitment. Members of the ORU faculty heard Wilson explain globalization goals at a forum earlier this month. Rhonda Gallagher, assistant professor of Communication, Arts and Media, attended the forum. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Stretching ourselves in a more glob-

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E 2nd St

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Staff Writers

S Peoria Ave

GISELLE WILLIS OSCAR HO

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S Owasso Ave

Unveiled Wednesday, Josh Buttsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Pearl District-themed mural heralds the growth of this shining Tulsa neighborhood.

Tulsa

From the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest oil man, to the Sixth Street warehouse where TU stores its unneeded goods, this big issue of the Collegian shows that size really does matter.

Big

Big man off-campus: the rise of the Golden Driller Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s big, golden and looming over the QuikTrip Center? p. 6

Big secrets at 1635 E. 6th St. A graveyard of TU memories hidden in plain sight, p. 3

Big loss & big mess

TU football drops the ball; Aloft students still dropped off by shuttles, pp. 4, 6

Attack of the Clones!

Biodiversity be damned! Cloned trees rock TU landscaping scene, p. 2

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greatplainsawards.orgâ&#x20AC;&#x192; /â&#x20AC;&#x192; 131

Great Plains Student Writer of the Year Publication: The Oracle, Oral Roberts University By: Hannah Covington

Excerpt from “The Beatle and the preacher” Oral Roberts received a three-page letter in November 1972. The sender enclosed a gift of 10 pounds in English currency. The letter, written in sprawling cursive, opens with an unusual apology: “Let me begin to say I regret it that I said ‘The Beatles’ were more popular than Jesus.” Skip to the end and find the signature of self-proclaimed “ex-Beatle” John Lennon. Roberts read this signed Lennon letter aloud in chapel in front of a rapt audience in the Mabee Center on Jan. 26, 1973. The televangelist wrote back multiple times but never received a reply from the John Lennon of the letter. Since Roberts first dictated Lennon’s message to ORU students and faculty, the letter has encountered equal parts awe and skepticism. Questions over the letter’s authenticity have been raised as recently as this week when Beatles experts in England responded to a request from The Oracle for a handwriting analysis and concluded the script resembles nothing Lennon has written before. Often lambasted in Beatles forums, the letter has been cited in national publications and in books like Steve Turner’s well received “The Gospel According to the Beatles” and David Edwin Harrell, Jr.’s biography, “Oral Roberts: An American Life.” The New York Times even used the Beatle-preacher correspondence in Roberts’ obituary as an example of the minister’s scope and renown at the

132 / greatplainsawards.org

Oral Roberts University · Oct. 24, 2013 Tulsa, Okla. · Vol. 48, No. 5 www.oruoracle.com

Lennon’s Letter Is the letter from John Lennon to Oral Roberts authentic? PAGE 10

Painting by Vanessa Sweet

height of his influence in the 1970s. Janet Carlton, a 1976 graduate, remembers being in chapel the day Roberts read the famous letter. Many in attendance, like Carlton, had grown up listening to the shaggy-haired musicians from Liverpool. She first experienced Beatlemania in sixth grade after purchasing a magazine with their pictures and learning the words to every early song. In terms of cultural influence, she said the Beatles are peerless. “They had a huge impact,” Carlton said, referring to Beatles members John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. “They just

captured a whole generation.” She remembers students and faculty rejoicing in chapel at the tone of the letter to Roberts. The writer confesses to forging checks and using dope and says his “life as a Beatle hasn’t been all that great.” He then describes his search for his wife’s, Yoko Ono, missing daughter, explaining, “Yoko’s going crazy.” He also admits being under the influence of pills while writing the letter. Then, the most well-known lines: “The point is this I want happiness. I don’t want to keep up with the drugs…. Explain to me, what Christianity can do for me. Is it phony, can He love me? I

want out of hell.” “Part of me instantly believed that,” Carlton said. “But then later I wondered, ‘Was that really John Lennon? Did he really write that? Was it ever confirmed?’ I guess we all assumed it was.” This is where authenticity gets tangled up in assumption. After Roberts received the letter in November, he sent the original, handwritten copy to be transcribed so he could read it aloud in chapel. Before sending it for transcription, a Xeroxed copy of the original was made. The university still has the Xeroxed copy, but the original never made it back to archives, said Roger Rydin of the University Archives Department. The author of the letter said he was staying with a cousin, Marilyn McCabe, and listed her address on the envelope. Roberts sent future letters to this address. Beatles experts say it’s possible Lennon fabricated this name and address for privacy concerns. “My understanding is that all four members of The Beatles would be quite vague about where they were writing from because postmen would tell people who would track them down and know where they were and where their relatives were,” said Richard Hector-Jones, a representative of The Beatles Story, a museum in Liverpool. Recent handwriting analysis comparisons have also cast new doubt on the author’s identity. The Oracle emailed a scanned copy of Lennon’s signature to Beatles memorabilia experts in England. They did not hesitate in their analysis. “Without question, that is not John Lennon’s handwriting. It’s wildly different,” said Jason Cornthwaite. Cornthwaite works as a memorabilia specialist for Tracks Ltd., a Lancashire business that handles hundreds of Beatles’ signature and handwriting verifications each year. Cornthwaite has been authenticating Beatles’ autographs for 23 years. He compared the handwriting in the letter to Lennon’s signature on signed albums from 1971 and 1973. “John’s signature changed massively from the early point in the Beatles

career up until his death in 1980, where his signature was totally different. Out of any of the Beatles, it was John’s signature that changed the most,” he said. Though Lennon’s writing style evolved, Cornthwaite said he is “110 percent certain” the letter sent to Oral Roberts isn’t in the famous musician’s handwriting. However, it could have been written on his behalf. “Normally, when it’s a forging, you see the same kind of handwriting, but this is not a hand I’ve ever seen, which I find pretty unusual as well. ” He suspects that perhaps Lennon’s cousin referenced in the letter, Marilyn McCabe, wrote the message. “In the 1970s and 1980s, if you came across something like that letter in archives, people would just assume it is Lennon’s writing; but now, people have become more educated about fakes, and everything is studied.” Some, however, remain convinced the letter came from the Beatle. Dr. William Epperson, professor of English, has been teaching at ORU since 1968. He was also in the Mabee Center for chapel that day and can recall students’ amazement that Lennon would write to Roberts. “I think it was real,” Epperson said. “I think John was reaching for something at the time, at least it seemed like he was.” Few can argue Lennon’s music was informed by his complex and probing spirituality. In his book, Turner calls Lennon a “television addict” and said he frequently tuned in to the programs of America’s famed televangelists, including Pat Robertson, Billy Graham, Jim Bakker and Oral Roberts. By 1977, Lennon told his inner circle he had become a born-again Christian and took Yoko to church on Easter that spring. According to Turner, Lennon’s “personal interest in Jesus” waned after several months spent at a Japanese hotel while Yoko visited relatives. For ORU students, however, the writer of the mythic letter seemed acutely interested in what Christ could offer. After the January chapel service,

Roberts rolled out a sprawling banner of butcher paper for students to sign. The top, in thick blue marker, reads, “As the Spirit leads, write a personal note to John and Yoko.” About 130 students wrote messages. Some tell of personal struggles with drugs, many calling them a “bad trip.” Others quote lyrics from popular songs. Some cite scripture. Carlton remembers her peers flocking to the banner in the cafeteria. She signed it as well. The elementary education major became a Christian at age 21. Before then, Carlton said she experimented with drugs and found interest in George Harrison’s music as she researched Eastern religions. In her banner note to John, she writes, “I had listened to your albums before I met Jesus Christ and identified with your frustration.” In his letter, the self-described ex-Beatle talks of not “wanting to face reality.” In Roberts’ response, the preacher calls Christ “the only reality” and says Jesus “is not hard to face.” The alleged correspondence between the two iconic men remains one of the most intriguing of the 20th century, especially for Lennon, whose battles and questions fascinated a generation. “John is a more flawed character, and I don’t think he was interested in putting up a façade, as a lot of pop stars do,” Hector-Jones said. “That’s what made him more interesting than other pop stars and even other members of The Beatles. He openly tried to overcome his flaws in public and knew he was a flawed character.”

greatplainsawards.org / 133

Great Plains Student Writer of the Year, Finalists Organization:

Organization: The Oklahoma

Organization:

Daily, University of Oklahoma

The Collegian, University of Tulsa

By: Dan Bauman

By: Joey Stipek

By: Kyle Walker

Excerpt from “Former student attends class with pending default on student debt”

Excerpt from “Few arrests accompany bike thefts on campus”

Entry text not available.

The Journal, Webster University

Bill Stephens sits at his desk in Webster Hall Room 323, listening to the teacher’s aide explain the finer points of conversational French. Stephens has attended the class since the beginning of the fall semester, and like his classmates, he’s able to banter fairly well in French with the aide. Unlike his classmates, though, Stephens is not enrolled at Webster University. “He’s motivated and he participates a lot,” said Teacher’s Aide Laetitia Pages. “I really do appreciate his presence in class. He is a very good element.” Bill Stephens sits at his desk in Webster Hall Room 323, listening to the teacher’s aide explain the finer points of conversational French. Stephens has attended the class since the beginning of the fall semester, and like his classmates, he’s able to banter fairly well in French with the aide. Unlike his classmates, though, Stephens is not enrolled at Webster University. “He’s motivated and he participates a lot,” said Teacher’s Aide Laetitia Pages. “I really do appreciate his presence in class. He is a very good element.” “I want the student population to understand that this office cares a lot. We’re here to serve,” Myers said. “That’s what it is all about. It’s all about the student.” Myers hopes to set up a default management system by January, which will alert the Financial Aid Office when students stop paying their loans. His staff will then contact the borrower in question, letting them know about available options. Myers said internal support systems like these, coupled with on-campus information sessions, will allow his office to cut the number of students in three-year default by half.

134 / greatplainsawards.org

There have been three arrests related to 109 reported bicycle thefts on OU’s campus in the past year, according to OU Police Department reports. From Aug. 1, 2012 to Aug. 31, 2013, $40,492.35 worth of bikes was stolen, according to reports. OUPD spokesman Major Bruce Chan said the department investigates all thefts reported, and in those cases in which there are leads, police try to identify the offenders. With regard to only three arrests being made concerning the bicycle thefts, Chan said bike theft investigations generally involve checking pawnshops and seeking other leads. “When applicable, information is presented to prosecutors,” Chan said in an email. Bike thefts fall under the category of larceny, according to Oklahoma law. Grand larceny is a felony punishable by jail time not exceeding five years if the value of the property is $500 or more, according to the Oklahoma State Court Network. If the value of the property is less than $500, the theft is punishable by less than one year of jail time in the county jail. Of the three people arrested for thefts, Sean Said, 22, was arrested and dismissed with costs of $151.50 and Nathan Kitson, 19, pled guilty and received a oneyear deferred sentence, 75 hours of community service and $50 for victims’ compensations. Jesse Beaty, 24, was arrested May 20, and charges are pending. None of those arrested are current OU students.

Great Plains Student Newspaper of the Year Publication: The Journal, Webster University By: Megan Favignano, Gabe Burns Judges’ Comments: Nice overall design -- photography and stories are presented well. I’d like to think that somewhere out there its making a difference in a young Muslim girls life

“ I’d like to think that somewhere out there it’s

making a difference in a young Muslim girl’s life. Kavahn Mansouri The Journal News Editor

The News Source For Webster University

THE JOURNAL September 25-October 1 , 2013

Volume 67 Issue 5

websterjournal.com

‘The tipping point’ University, Eden sue the city By Dan Bauman Senior Editor

”

“ Once my hands kind of learn the form

it’ll just do it. I don’t even have to think. Karen Miller Owner of Binx Ceramics

Page 4

”

Page 6

The News Source For Webster University

the journal November 20- November 26, 2013

Volume 67 Issue 12

websterjournal.com

‘My life in a rubble pile’ Tornado destroys student’s home By Macy Salama Multimedia Editor

“

We are mostly looking for memories. Things that aren’t replaceable. Molly Brennan Webster University student

”

To see more photos of the devastation and the Brennan family visit websterjournal.com herself. Pictures from the Brennan household were found more than 100 miles away. Some houses near the Brennans’ still had pieces left intact and others had little to no See Tornado

Page 2

Marketing justifies chess billboard to students By Kavahn Mansouri News Editor

Student Government Association (SGA) hosted an open forum with Webster University’s Global Communications and Marketing Office in response to backlash from a university billboard along Interstate-70 that states, “Our Top Recruits are Chess Players.” The billboard, that follows the University of Missouri — Columbia’s billboards, shows two Susan Polgar Institute of Chess Excellence (SPICE) players next to the slogan. The advertisement was supposed to be taken as playful banter between Webster and the University of Missouri – Columbia while promoting Webster, Director of Public Relations Patrick Giblin said in an Oct. 31 article for The Journal. In a presentation at the open forum, Director of Creative Services John Costello explained Creative Services and Giblin discussed his department’s role in marketing the university. Costello’s presentation fo-

Page 3

Inside

• University calls suit ‘last resort’ • Residents torn on expansion • Eden students, unheard voices

has taught me how to “Cheerleading be a leader in a follower’s position. ” Steward Stiles Male Gorlok cheerleader

Page 5

A danger to our children, or harmless fun? Journal editors debate Black Friday.

Page 3

The News Source For Webster University

the journal

Page 3

Volume 67 Issue 13

websterjournal.com

November 27 - December 3, 2013

Geneva professor held in murder case Bail revoked after Esparza rejects prosecution’s deal By Gabe Burns Managing Editor