100
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Salina area’s premier Magazine on People, Places & Style
MISS MAJORETTE Meg Henry Combines Art and Sport
Spring 2012 $3
We Like Ike’s Library
50 Years & Counting
table of contents
volume 03 / issue 01
Christy Underwood Kathy Malm Linda Saenger
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36
miss majorette
A young athlete champions her sport and trains new talent to twirl
photographers Lisa Eastman Larry Harwood
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e-mail Comments to sunflowerliving@sunflowerpub.com
sunflower resumes sunflower spaces
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4
local profiles out & about
Subscriptions to sunflower living
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
9
Sunflower Resume with Steve Hanson
His first band, the instruments he plays, and his tips for fellow musicians ‌
11
Sunflower Resume with Jake Dickson
A young gun of business talks about his favorite sport
table of contents
girl scouts at 100
Salina Girl Scouts join in celebrating the centennial of the nation’s premier organization for girls and young women
40
“But the interior has been transformed by Jan’s collections and art workshop”
12
16
architectual tour
32
a closer look at ike
The Great Plains Theatre building
Modest Charm
An ordinary ranch house holds an extraordinary collection of sentimental trinkets and antiques
20
‘Pure Beauty and Wonder’
Eternal questions, celestial objects and likeminded camaraderie draw members of the Salina Astronomy Club
24
The Printed Voice
A newspaper partnership between a doctor from Mexico City and a designer from Salina seeks to bridge the region’s English- and Spanish-speaking communities
28
When in Bennington, Live Like a Benningtoner
An unexpected call opens a connection between lives in Menden, Germany, and Bennington, Kansas
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
The Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum celebrates a half-century by sharing a peek into the acquisitions, preservations and research at the core of its mission
5
under the cover
from the
editor
Photo courtesy Shannon Meis
behind the lens
Larry Harwood’s cover image of twirler Meg Henry has its roots in the 19th-century motion-sequence pictures of Eadweard Muybridge with the advantages of modern lighting equipment. To capture the blurred-motion portrait, Larry set four Nikon strobes camera left and a soft box camera right. Larry’s camera was set on “bulb” with a radio control over one of the Nikon strobes, which controlled the other three strobes set on “repeat” setting. His camera shutter was set to control the soft box on the right.
from the editor I was once in their place. I, too, was once a BoGS. And being a BoGS, a Brother of a Girl Scout, is not an easy thing to be. You are told to keep away from cookie boxes, you are told not to touch shiny pins and interesting badges, and you are told to sit and wait while your sister and her fellow Brownies finish their meeting. So when we gathered nearly 100 Girl Scouts for a photo shoot to accompany this edition’s story about the upcoming 100th anniversary of the Girl Scouts of America, we also—by default—ended up inviting several BoGS. I felt sorry for the lads, because I knew what they were in for as we began, delayed, began again, delayed again and somehow went on with portraits of Girl Scouts such as Skyla and Khloi, above. But I also saw that, off-camera, some of the young BoGS were figuring out what I eventually figured out as well—being a BoGS is not all that bad. If you play your cards right, if you are not
on the cover: Twirler Meg Henry, a Salina student who has won the title of Miss Majorette of Kansas, demonstrates a jump.
6
too disruptive, then eventually you pick up on some things. You find yourself humming Girl Scout tunes and even being asked to help or participate in some events. You become some sort of kid brother, or maybe a mascot, to the troop. You realize there are far worse things in life than being accepted by a group of bright, confident girls. And though you might not admit it, you become quite proud of your sister. Of course, all camaraderie aside, the BoGS were not the focus of our story, nor should they have been with a centennial anniversary at hand. But I think it is worth noting that when a group of people gather for a good purpose—in this case when generations of women and young girls gather to help improve the lives of girls—then everyone benefits. They benefit in direct ways such as acquiring new skills. They benefit in indirect ways such as meeting new friends. And they benefit in ways that they might not realize for years to come. I hope this coming spring provides enjoyment and sends out ripples in your life that will reward you, your loved ones and others for years to come. As the Girl Scouts say, “for the girls” (and their BoGS). nathan pettengill editor
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
As Meg began moving across the floor, Larry opened his camera shutter and then triggered the strobes as soon as Meg came into the camera frame. Once Meg struck her final pose, Larry released his shutter button which triggered the soft box. This combination of lighting produced the blurred motion sequences and the final, sharp image.
“I knew it could work,” says Larry, “but I was pleased that
we actually pulled it off.” One thing Larry did not attempt was a twirling lesson from Meg. “I would have hurt myself badly,” he explains, “and probably broken half my equipment.”
Larry Harwood Free Spirit Photography
previously...
Previously... Letters, Comments and Observations about our Previous Edition
did we jinx them?
Our travel story from the winter 2012 edition featured the sport of ice fishing with advice from local experts whom we photographed fishing on ice a year in advance of our story. The veteran ice fishers kindly divulged a few of their favorite spots and shared tips for novices who might wish to join them on the frozen lakes. There was one unforeseen problem—this past winter was a winter without ice. Jim Kuhn, one of the ice fishers featured in our story, says he enjoyed fishing this winter—from a boat. “It cycles like that,” explains Kuhn of the unseasonal, too-warm-for-ice-fishing winter of 2011-12. “Back in ’80 or ’81 it was also warm all winter. So you have those years. And some years, if you’re lucky, you just get two good weekends.” There’s always next year, we hope.
Your Turn
bad bennie?
Attentive readers of our fictional made-for-magazine mystery play noticed there was some intentional ambiguity about whether Bennie, the stagehand who “had always behaved with the best of intentions,” carried out the theatrical murder or gallantly covered up for his girlfriend, the jealous understudy. Bill Weaver, the co-director of the acting troupe that performed the play, says it all depends on how you read a crucial scene at the end. If you think the stagehand and his girlfriend had a genuine lover’s quarrel in which he revealed that he committed the murder, then Bennie is guilty. If you think the stagehand and his girlfriend staged this false confession to be overheard by the house detective, then Bennie was covering up for his true love. In Weaver’s theatrical opinion, there is no doubt about the verdict and how his actor played the role. “You could see it in his eyes. Bennie was in love with her and would do anything to protect her,” says Weaver. “Oh, yeah, he was guilty.”
From Temple to Center
Representatives of the Salina Masonic Center contacted us to point out what they believed was an oversight in our architectural tour of the historic Salina Masonic Temple. Though the building does have a rich history, Masonic officials say they also want to emphasize efforts to cast the building’s future as a resource center for nonprofit groups. Director Fred Corn points to events such as the temple hosting this year’s Girl Scouts’ cookie kickoff as a model for how the center supports community activities.
Correction In our winter issue, we incorrectly identified the occupation of contributing writer Chelsey Crawford. She is a specialty medical technician in an intensive care unit … and a fine writer in her spare time. The editor apologizes for the mistake.
If you have something to share about this edition of Sunflower Living, please send an email to sunflowerliving@sunflowerpublishing.com or write to us at Sunflower Living / PO Box 740 / Salina, KS 67402. We are always eager to hear from you.
a closer look at area business people
sunflower resume
Steve Hanson Occupation: Owner, S.M. Hanson Music Job Location: 1335 South Clark St. Birthplace: Topeka name:
story by nathan pettengill photography by Larry Harwood
For Steve Hanson, it was Alley Cat. That was a tune he was playing with his mother when he was approximately 14 and had just started learning the guitar. That was his breakthrough song, the one that made him step back and think: “Wow, I can do that!” As owner of S.M. Hanson Music, the businessman runs a store that offers a range of instruments and sound systems. But Hanson has been first and foremost a guitar instructor since 1965 and continues to spend a great deal of his time instructing students—particularly adult students—and working with them on breakthrough songs at various levels. “It’s a great reward to see people have fun with the instrument and not worry how good they will be,” says Hanson. “When they don’t worry how good they will be, they will be better.”
Steve hanson
What instruments do you teach? Guitar
Bass
Dulcimer
Banjo
Q a
What was the first band you played with?
“The Techniques.” I was still in high school. We were a rock band in the early 1960s that played country clubs, Elks clubs and teenage dances.
Q a
What’s a musical term you don’t like, but often use? Ashtamangal tal Motivic transformation
The groove. It’s the feel of the music, your rhythm. Learning to have a feel for what you are doing. It’s playing with a good feel. The difference between listening to music and playing music is the difference between
the listener and being the music.
being
Kazoo
How should a guitarist handle mistakes in a live performance? Stop the show and make a full apology. Blame the accompanist.
What instrument do you play, but not teach? The tuba
Q a
The harmonica
Demand a refund. Obviously that guy back at the crossroads didn’t deliver on his end of the deal.
Keep playing and pretend it didn’t happen. You’ll make mistakes, but sometimes when you make those mistakes you’ll create some of the greatest sounds you’ll ever make in music. Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
9
a closer look at area business people
story by nathan pettengill photography by Larry Harwood
Q a
Jake Dickson
sunflower resume
What is the focus of Elite Sports? 100% 75% 50%
paintball 25%
air soft
skateboarding
0%
Q
European handball. Curling. Racewalking. Trampoline. These are all relatively obscure sports that are part of the Olympics. What do they have that paintball doesn’t?
We still have that stereotype that paintball is just people playing in the woods. But it is a sport, you have to be athletic. You have to be good at it. I think the main reason that it hasn’t been accepted is that they haven’t been able to agree on a format.
a
You might think that the best paintball players are
Jake Dickson Occupation: Co-owner, Elite Sports Job Location: 2745 Belmont Blvd. Birthplace: Salina
people who can fling the most paint, but actually, the best paintball players are the ones who are the most accurate shot.
name:
Equipment breakdown:
Though he might not have realized it, Jake Dickson’s business career was set at age 9. That was when some fellow fourth-grade friends invited him out to the woods to play paintball. From that day, says Dickson, he was hooked. At age 14, Dickson received an offer to partner at a local paintball store, where he lent his youthful expertise to preparing and repairing the paintball guns, or “markers.” After a break for studies through Kansas State University, Dickson returned to business, opening Elite Sports with his father, a silent business partner, in 2009.
Mask
1
The most important thing is the mask. You have to protect your eyes. If you don’t have a mask, you can’t play.
1
2
3 4
Which historic figure would be the greatest paintball player?
3
5
John Wayne. He would be a good, accurate shot.
hopper
After-market barrel
4
This is what feeds the These give improved distance and paintballs into your gun. improved accuracy.
6
5
shirt
I usually recommend loose, long-sleeve jackets. A hoodie is good. And maybe one with some camouflage.
Shaka Zulu Joan of Arc
6
air tank
You need this to help propel your shot.
What’s your advice to novice paintball players?
Try to find an experienced teammate to work with, move around in packs of 2-3.
A lot of people believe you need an expensive marker. But there are lower-end to middlerange paintball markers that are good and accurate.
2
Napoleon
Q a
marker
7
8
7
Pants
Long pants
shoes
I advise people to wear some type of cleats. 8
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
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Modest charm
Home of Jan & Monty Lytle story by Chelsey Crawford photography by Larry Harwood
12
An ordinary ranch house holds an extraordinary collection of sentimental trinkets and antiques
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
Lytle Home
the
details
CHARMS
Jan collected many of these charms from the 1950s1960s as a young child.
N
either Jan nor Monty Lytle was looking for anything but fun 38 years ago when they made separate calls to the KSKG rock ’n’ roll radio-broadcast party line. But the connection they heard in each other’s voices was hard to ignore. After chatting over the air, they decided to meet. This radio-inspired rendezvous led to two years of dating, marriage, two kids and the search for a home. Eventually, they settled into a modest ranch home in south Salina that fit their needs for a good neighborhood with sidewalks for the children. Decades after the Lytles moved in, this house on Glendale Road is still their home and looks much the same from the outside, but the interior has been transformed by Jan’s collections and art workshop. The collection display begins in the front room of the house, where a combination of antique and vintage items is displayed in beautiful glass cabinets that Monty refurnished and built.
TALCUM & PERFUME The Lytle bedroom holds a display of talcum powder sample holders and perfume bottles.
[Previous Page] Collections and pictures, including Bathtub Charmer in the center, decorate the Lytles’ basement. [Above, From Top] A collection of large and small toys from the 1950s and 1960s is displayed in the basement. Stuffed animals make their home in an antique Coca-Cola box.
“We really like going to flea markets, toy shows and antique stores,” Monty says, describing how the couple found these items. The display continues as you head down the hallways and into the master bedroom, where Jan keeps her collection of old-fashioned perfume bottles and powder tins. The guest bedroom features old dolls and dress forms, some more than a hundred years old. In the basement, Jan works on her displays and creates her own line of jewelry and accessories. Here, she surrounds herself with her first collection—a series of small charms. “I started collecting just charms when I was a very young girl,” says Jan. “Times were different, and when I was around 6 years old I
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
CELLULOID CHARM
A table display features celluloid trinkets manufactured in the 1930s and 1940s.
OPEN SPACE
The Lytles’ bedroom provides space with less decoration.
13
sunflower spaces 1.
2.
would spend every penny I could find on the gumball machines with the prizes in them. They were mostly just little charms, and I collected so many of those machine charms. I would then play with them in the bathtub. They all floated, and I would lay them all out in the water and play for hours in that bathtub.” Jan’s mother gave her the nickname “Bathtub Charmer” because of this hobby. In the middle of her charm collection, Jan now displays the portrait of herself, Bathtub Charmer, drawn by close friend and artist Brent Engstrom. These sentimental collections are the main additions to the Lytles’ home over the years, but there has been one major modification. Jan had always wanted a formal dining area, but for years the family sufficed with a small dining table set off from the kitchen. Monty fulfilled his wife’s dreams when he turned the one-car garage into a dining area. He spent six months laying wood flooring and constructing coffered ceilings with crown molding set off by the lighting. Of course home renovations—like collections—are never entirely complete. “I’d never be done remodeling,” says Jan. “But we’re done for a year now—maybe.” 3.
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4.
5.
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
6.
1. A guest
bedroom in the Lytle home features an Art Deco theme.
2. This dressmaker’s dummy from the late 1800s was affectionately called “Mathilda” by Monty’s aunt, who owned it for many years before giving it to the Lytles. 3. The Art Deco lamp is one of the centerpieces of the Art Deco bedroom. 4. A second guest bedroom features dolls and figures. 5. The Lytles have dressed up Mathilda for display. 6. The dining area is the most recent addition.
sunflower spaces
tour of the
great plains theatre story by Karilea Rilling Jungel
architectural tour photography by Lisa Eastman
DRAMATIC PAST
The Great Plains Theatre of Abilene is housed in a 19th-century limestone church, built in 1876 as a First Presbyterian congregation. The bell tower is one of the oldest sections of the building and was originally taller. A wooden structure rising above the current tower was destroyed in the 1870s by what was then reported as a cyclone. Marc Liby, the theatre’s executive and artistic director, says there are tentative plans to restore the bell’s system of rope pulleys and ring the bell to announce the opening of each theatre production.
16
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
architectural tour
136 years 2 congregations
1 theatre
LAYERS OF HISTORY
The building was used as a Presbyterian church until 1964, when the First Southern Baptist congregation moved into the structure. Local businessman Terry Tietjens purchased the building in 1994, then carried out renovations so that The Great Plains Theatre opened its first season in 1995. A theatre foundation purchased the building from Tietjens in 2008 and continues to operate the historic structure. The church building itself literally bears witness to the layers of ownership over the years. The church’s original limestone exterior was covered by plaster during a 1931 renovation. In 1994, a new renovation added a layer of drywall. In 2009-2010, the drywall and plaster were removed to reveal the original limestone.
brick walk
A walkway honors theatre donors with namesake bricks. Like any cultural venue, the theatre requires funding. In addition to staging plays, the theatre shows movies and hosts concerts. Organizers also rent the central hall and rooms for receptions, dances and other events.
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
17
sunflower spaces
STRUCTURAL BLEND
The interior combines two separate sections of the building: the original portion and the south and east sections added in 1931, encasing the exterior walls of the original church. Stained-glass windows, matching the tulip pattern of the original 1876 stained-glass windows, were placed in areas that became an interior hallway. The church’s original roof was also encased by the new structure and can be seen from within the attic.
fast facts
STAIRS OF TIME
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The main beams in the sanctuary ceiling, now the theatre hall, were part of the original structure and designed by hand. The craftsmanship of 1876 was such that the acoustics in the room were so true that no other amplification was required.
This interior stairway was replaced during the 1994 renovation. It now leads to the theatre-hall section of the church, which originally housed the Sunday school classrooms. The window behind this stairway was originally part of the church’s exterior.
architectural tour
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clippings
A collage of theatre production advertisements decorates the interior walls of the building and reminds visitors of the building’s core focus. “The professional theatre program will always be the mainstay of what we do,” says Liby. “The other events allow new people who haven’t been in the door to come into the door, and that hopefully leads to an interest in live theatre—there’s nothing better than it.”
SEELEY SPOT
This original pew from 1876 came to be known as the Seeley Sisters Pew, after the members of the prominent Abilene family who sat there regularly. It was originally located in the back of the sanctuary, behind the other pews. Though there was no sign on the pew indicating that it was set aside for the sisters, the pew was known to all as being reserved for the Seeleys nonetheless.
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Or call us at (785) 822-1467 / (800) 827-6464 ext. 347 Or e-mail at mpurcell@salina.com Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
local profiles
‘pure beauty &
wonder’
story by Sarah Hawbaker photography by Larry harwood
Eternal questions, celestial objects and like-minded camaraderie draw members of the Salina Astronomy Club
S
ome people say that looking up at the night sky— full of stars and mystery— makes them feel small and insignificant. But Steve Blosser says the night sky “makes me realize how truly significant we are by being given such a wonderful gift of the pure beauty and wonder of the heavens.” For Blosser, stargazing brings back the childlike awe of his younger days. And after years of focusing on his career, the Salina resident says he finally took the time to simply look up. In looking up, he also looked around for help in learning how to use his telescope. This led him to a circle of people with similar interests: the Salina Astronomy Club.
20
1.
Dale Smith, left, and Victor Smith stand near the 16-inch Ealing Cassegrain Telescope housed in Kansas Wesleyan University’s observatory.
2. Salina Astronomy Club member Jim Zanardi took this picture of Comet Hale-Bopp. (Photo courtesy Jim Zanardi) 3. A laser beam from club member Jeff Whithorn’s portable telescope points toward the sky.
This gathering of astronomy enthusiasts from many backgrounds began in 1986 when Halley’s Comet was set to reappear in the skies. A group of Salina residents collaborated with Kansas Wesleyan University, which allowed them to use the institution’s 16-inch Ealing Cassegrain Telescope to conduct watches and talks. When the comet faded from view, the observers continued to gather for meetings and watch the night sky, attracting new enthusiasts along the way. The club’s current secretary, Jeffrey Kasoff, traces his interest in astronomy back to childhood. In fact, he says he was born with an interest in science. After many years of a demanding schedule as a mechanical engineer, Kasoff set aside more time to return to an interest in astronomy. Joining the club in 2009, he contributed to repairs and upgrades of the Kansas Wesleyan telescope and developed a computer program to assist observers in using the telescope’s settings to observe objects in the sky. But the viewings are not the club’s only appeal, say many of the regular members. The diversity of the group and a common interest in science is what makes the club so interesting. Members run the gamut from college professors to physicians, jewelers, home remodelers and those long retired. One retiree travels 250 miles from McDonald, Kansas, to attend meetings and special presentations. Another retiree, Marge Streckfus, says the combination of both casual and welltrained observers makes for “a very happy situation.” She describes learning the basics of astronomy as a basis for knowing “who we are and what we are” and says that the club’s discussions benefit from the input of specialists and others with backgrounds outside of astronomy.
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
Salina Astronomy Club 1.
2.
see the
timeline on page 22 for sac’s important dates
“makes me realize how truly significant we are by being given such a wonderful gift of the pure beauty and wonder of the heavens.”
3.
-Steve Blosser Blosser agrees that the diversity of the people in the club itself is part of what makes the club so interesting. He says the club is a good place to start if you have ever simply wondered: What is up there? And it’s a good place to begin conversations about these types of questions. “There is a very natural and soothing beauty to it all,” says Blosser. “And if you are not careful, you might just learn something in the process.”
21
local profiles
timeline}
Selected events in astronomy from the past 500 years
1543 REVOLUTION!
1609 GALILEO
Nicolaus Copernicus’ book, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, seeks to prove that Earth and other planets revolve around the Sun
Galileo Galilei begins using telescopes to discover moons of Jupiter, examine craters on the moon, and impress dinner guests.
1781 - comet
A farmer and astronomer in Dresden spots an unusual object in the sky that turns out to be the comet whose return was predicted in 1705 by Edmund Halley. The comet becomes commonly known as Halley’s Comet.
178
18
1
77
1
197
1543
160
9 1986
1990 2008
2010 2013
Source: Salina Astronomy Club members and The Cambridge Illustrated History of Astronomy, Cambridge University Press, 1997
Salina Astronomy Club
1877 - MARS
Italian astronomer G.V. Schiaparelli observes dark lines on Mars that he names canali (channels). A translation error fuels interest in Martian canals.
1986 - sac
Return of Halley’s Comet spurs the founding of the Salina Astronomy Club
Mid-1990s to 2010 repairs Extensive repairs are made to the KWU telescope optics and the surrounding dome and platform
1971 Telescope
A 16-inch Ealing Cassegrain Telescope is installed in the observatory at Kansas Wesleyan University’s Peters Science Hall.
2008 stunning
SAC member Jim Zanardi captures this image of the Andromeda Galaxy. (Photo courtesy Jim Zanardi)
2010 reopening!
The restored KWU telescope re-opens to the public
The Salina Astronomy Club, in partnership with the university, holds monthly meetings and a public SkyWatch program from September to April that features presentations on various themes. The club organizes public and private star-viewing parties at various
locations and as community outreach programs. Regular members enjoy a variety of benefits, including use of the Ealing Cassegrain telescope, observing privileges in the observatory and use of the club’s portable telescopes.
For more information on upcoming events and membership, visit the club’s website at www.orgsites.com/ks/salina-astronomy-club Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
2013 - LIFE GOES ON
Putting aside Mayan-calendar-inspired beliefs that world is to end in 2012, SAC continues to plan events for 2013 and beyond
23
local profiles
the printed voice story by Patricia E. Ackerman photography by Larry Harwood
A newspaper partnership between a doctor from Mexico City and a designer from Salina seeks to bridge the region’s English- and Spanish-speaking communities
W
hen Lucy Corley and her two daughters arrived from Mexico City to Salina 13 years ago, they did not expect to maintain a strong connection to Spanish-speaking communities. Then they went to church. “It was a surprise to us when we went to the Catholic Church and saw all of these Hispanic people,” says Corley.
24
Not only was there a Spanish-speaking community in Salina, Corley—who had served for 25 years in Mexico as a doctor of gynecology and obstetrics— learned it was one struggling with recognition. While working with Salina Catholic Charities, Salina Regional Health Center and the Salina-Saline County Health Department, Corley discovered a need for improved dialogue within Salina’s Spanish-speaking
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
la voz: The Printed Voice
Lucy Corley and Bret Wallace talk with a reader as they deliver an issue of La Voz.
community. Controversial issues, health concerns and community events were not being communicated in an understandable manner to bilingual citizens. “I looked around and saw that community information published in Spanish was really limited,” explains Corley. “And some of the people who were translating these publications did not have a clear understanding of the different reading levels of Hispanic people.” Seeking to fill that gap, Corley reached out to a Wichita-based Hispanic newspaper with a proposal to include Salina in their coverage. When this was rejected, she decided to publish her own Spanish-language newspaper. Corley was aided by a chance meeting with Bret Wallace, a graphic designer who had enrolled in a Spanish class Corley was teaching through the Salina Public Library’s education program, CLASS. Wallace and Corley agreed to publish as business partners. “If it succeeded, we both succeeded; and if it failed, we both failed,” says Wallace. “I thought it was a worthwhile venture.” As business partners, Corley and Wallace found they had much to share. “We did not know each other well, so we had to learn how to work together,” recalls Corley. “I had to learn about layout and publication deadlines. Bret had to learn more about the Hispanic culture, because the purpose of this publication was to engage people in the Hispanic Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
community. So, I invited him to Mexican parties.” At his first party—an extended family celebration for a 15th birthday, or a “quinceañera”—Wallace recalls “laughing more that night than I had ever laughed my entire life.” Though his Spanish was still shaky, he was establishing common ground. Soon, Wallace and Corley chose the name La Voz, or “The Voice,” to match their mission. “We wanted to give a voice to a community of people who had no voice,” says Corley. Additionally, say Corley and Wallace, they hoped their publication would build bridges between the Hispanic and Anglo communities. Dividing responsibilities, Corley and Wallace worked tirelessly to release their first edition in September 2006. Corley remembers standing outside the Salina Journal, which prints the paper, waiting for the first copy to roll off the press. Then, they hand-delivered the newspaper to every store, restaurant and place where they knew Hispanic people would go. “I was so excited,” says Corley. “The whole community seemed really happy with our newspaper.” Since 2006, La Voz has published biweekly editions, distributing approximately 3,000 copies in Salina, Manhattan, Wichita and Great Bend with additional deliveries to other cities in Kansas. “In every publication we feature life in the local Hispanic community, the culture, families and their values,” says Corley. “We also try to include information that will help the people live better lives here in Salina, Kansas.” The standard newspaper practice of highlighting accomplishments of community members has particular importance for the Hispanic community, Corley explains. Her readers, often first-generation citizens, want the community to know when their children become the first generation of their family to graduate from college or achieve other milestones. Taking this recognition a step further, La Voz features include entrepreneurof-the-year, volunteer-of the-year, weddings, anniversaries and an array of celebratory moments in the community. The publishing duo have also recently served as a community liaison by making arrangements for a collaborative dialogue between the local police chief and members of Salina’s Hispanic community. Over time, Corley and Wallace began to realize that younger members of the Hispanic community might not read Spanish, even if they speak it fluently. La Voz started including stories in both Spanish and English to ensure that important information was reaching a larger cross-section of the community. Corley
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local profiles Data on the Hispanic community in Kansas supplied by: State Data Center, State Library of Kansas / Kansas Hispanic and Latino American Affairs Commission
“In every publication we feature life in the local Hispanic community, the culture, families and their values.” -Lucy Corley
14.4%
6,185
Hispanic American veterans live in Kansas
of Hispanic Americans in Kansas are enrolled in college or graduate school.
says they have learned this bilingual strategy “helps Spanish-speaking readers learn English and English-speaking readers learn Spanish.” Some high school teachers have begun incorporating La Voz into their English as a Second Language classes. Corley and Wallace say they are aware of the history of many immigrant-language newspapers in the United States—the Hebrew-language papers in New York or the German-language papers across the Midwest that died out as immigrant communities integrated into the fabric and language of the larger population. But the founders of La Voz say at this point in time they want to fulfill a need in representing Spanish-speaking citizens and bringing people closer to one another. “We are proud of the message we deliver,” says Corley. “La Voz changes lives, builds community, teaches, informs and celebrates life.”
Lucy Corley and Bret Wallace run La Voz from their offices in the back of their retail business, ETC Boutique, in downtown Salina.
Dra. Lucila Cazares Rivera y Bret Wallace Manejando La Voz desde sus oficinas, en la parte de atrás de su negocio, la boutique ETC, en el centro de Salina.
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Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
72,026
Hispanic households in Kansas (average 3.35 people per household).
la voz: The Printed Voice
there are
300,042 Hispanic citizens in Kansas (10.5% of state population).
56.3%
of Hispanic Americans in Kansas own their own homes.
La Voz Impresa La sociedad de un periódico entre una doctora de la ciudad de México y un diseñador de salina buscan conectar la región entre las comunidades que hablan Ingles y español. Cuando Dra. Lucila Cazares Rivera y sus dos hijas llegaron desde México a Salina, treinta y tres años atrás, no pensaron que mantendrían una conexión tan fuerte con la comunidad habla hispana. Entonces cuando asistieron a la Iglesia. “Nos sorprendimos cuando fuimos a la iglesia católica y vimos toda esta gente hispana,” dijo Lucila. No solo había personas que hablaban español en la comunidad de Salina, Lucila (mejor conocida como Lucy Corley)—quien ha trabajado por 25 años en México como doctora de obstetricia y ginecología—se dio cuenta que había una lucha reconocida con el idioma. Mientras trabajaba con Salina Catholic Charities (Caridades católicas en español), Salina Regional Health Center (Salina Centro Regional de Salud) and The Salina-Saline County Health Department (Departamento de salud del Condado de Salina), Lucila encontró una necesidad para mejorar el dialogo con la comunidad hablaespañola. Temas controversiales, asuntos de salud y eventos de la comunidad que no eran comunicados en una manera legible a los ciudadanos bilingües.
“Mire al rededor y vi que en la comunidad la comunicación en español era muy limitada,” explica Lucila. “Y algunas de las personas que estaban traduciendo estas publicaciones no tenían un entendimiento Claro, de los diferentes niveles de lectura en la gente hispana.” Buscando llenar el vacio, Lucila se acercó a un periódico – con base hispana en la ciudad de Wichita con una propuesta de incluir en su cobertura a Salina. Cuando esta propuesta fue rechazada, ella decidió publicar su periódico de lenguaje-hispano. Lucila fue apoyada por Bret Wallace un diseñador grafico quien había conocida por casualidad, cuando el se inscribió en la clase de Español que Lucila estaba dando en la Biblioteca Publica de Salina (Salina Public Library) con el programa educacional CLASS Bret y Lucila acordaron publicarlo, como socios de negocios “ Si esto es un suceso, los dos habremos triunfado; si esto falla, ambos fallamos,” dijo Bret, “Pensé que era una aventura que valía la pena.” Como socios del Negocio, Lucila y Bret se dieron cuenta de lo mucho que tenían para compartir. “No nos conocíamos bien, así que teníamos que aprender como trabajar juntos,” recuerda Lucila. Tuve que aprender sobre las fechas límites de publicaciones y de las formas de crear páginas para un periódico. Bret tenía que aprender mas de la cultura Hispana, por que el propósito de la publicación era de captar gente en la comunidad hispana. Así que, lo invite a fiestas Mexicanas.” En la primera fiesta—una celebración de una familia cercana para unos 15th, o una quinceañera—Bret recuerda “esa noche, me reí mas que nunca antes en mi vida.” y aunque su español era vacilante, El estaba establecimiento un buen fundamento. Muy pronto Bret y Lucila, escogieron el nombre de La Voz, para igualar su misión. “Queremos darle una voz a la gente de la comunidad que no tiene voz,” dijo Lucila. Además, dicen Lucila y Bret. Esperan que su publicación pueda crear un Puente entre las comunidades Hispana y Anglo. Dividiendo responsabilidades, Lucila y Bret and trabajaron arduamente para sacar su primera edición en Septiembre del 2006. Lucila recuerda estar parada afuera de el “Salina Journal” (El diario de salina), esperando a que la primera copia saliera del rollo de prensa. Entonces, Ellos entregaron personalmente el periódico a cada tienda, restaurant y lugares donde sabias que la gente hispana podría ir. “Estaba tan emocionada,” dijo Lucila. “La comunidad se vei feliz con nuestro periodico.” Desde el 2006, La Voz se ha publicado con Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
una edición cada dos semanas, se distribuyen aproximadamente 3,000 copies in Salina, Manhattan, Wichita and Great Bend con entregas adicionales a otras ciudades en Kansas. “En cada Publicación presentamos la vida de la comunidad hispana local, la cultura, la familia y sus valores,” dice Lucila. “También tratamos de incluir información que puede ayudar a la gente a vivir mejor aquí en Salina.” La norma practica del periódico es de realzar los logros de la comunidad Hispana, explica Lucy. Sus lectores, frecuentemente ciudadanos de primera generación, quieren que la comunidad sepa cuando sus hijos de esta primera generación se graduaron del colegio, o lograron llegar a aniversario. Dando reconocimiento a esto y dando un paso adelante, La Voz presenta al empresario del año, bodas aniversario y celebraciones de ocasiones especiales en momentos importantes en la vida de las persona. La publicación doble también ha servido recientemente como un variable servicio a la comunidad hacienda arreglos para colaborar con un dialogo entre el jefe de la policía local y los miembros de la comunidad hispana. Con el tiempo, Lucila y Bret Se dieron cuenta que los miembros jóvenes de la comunidad Hispana probablemente no leían en español, aunque fueran fluidos en el idioma español. La Voz comenzó a incluir historias en Ingles y Español para asegurarse que la información importante alanzara a una larga comunidad intermedia. Lucila dice que ha aprendido esta estrategia “Ayuda a los que hablan español aprender ingle y a los que hablan ingles a aprender Español.” Algunos maestros de preparatoria han empezado a incluir La Voz en su clase de Ingles como Segunda Lengua. Lucila y Bret dicen que están consientes de la historia sobre periódicos de lenguainmigrante (diferentes idiomas) en los Estados unidos—El periódico en hebreo en Nueva York, o el de lenguaje alemán atreves de medio-oeste que desapareció ya que las comunidades inmigrantes se integraron a las fabrica y al lenguaje de la mayor populación. Pero el fundador de La Voz en este tiempo queremos llenar la necesidad de representar a los ciudadanos que habla español y acercar a la gente unos a otros. “Estamos orgullosos de llevar este mensaje,” dice Lucila. “La Voz cambia vidas, construye comunidades, enseña, informa y celebra la vida.” Spanish-language translation by Egla Eikleberry.
27
local profiles
Andere L채nder, andere Sitten When in Bennington, Live Like a
Benningtoner
story by Chelsey Crawford photography by Larry Harwood
An unexpected call opens a connection between lives in Menden, Germany, and Bennington, Kansas Tom Frese, center, an exchange student from Menden, Germany, plays a game of football with his host family.
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Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
exchange student
L
ise and Ross Ostenberg and their two sons had never discussed the idea of hosting a foreign exchange student in their home. So when a call came through late one August from a stranger asking if the family would be interested in hosting a student from Germany, Lise was surprised. She was even more surprised when the caller said she would need an answer by morning. Mary Beth Winters was that stranger on the other end of the line. She and her husband, Robert Winters, have been exchange
student coordinators through the national program SHARE! (a division of the nonprofit Educational Resource Development Trust) for nearly 30 years. This year, though the organization had placed nearly 600 students in homes, it still needed to locate hosts for 12 remaining students. As part of that final push, Mary Beth had contacted area schools for the names of families that might help. Bennington High School responded with the name of the Ostenbergs, setting up that phone call that took Lise by surprise. Lise’s sons, Ian, a 17-year-old senior at Bennington, and Ryan, a 16-year-old sophomore at
Bennington, were on board with the idea right away. The trick was running the idea through Ross, a chemical consulting engineer who travels almost every week. When the family received the call, Ross was on an airplane. Finally, Lise got in touch with Ross at an airport, and he agreed to the idea as well. After paperwork, a background check and a home visit from the Winters, it was decided a boy similar in age to Ian and Ryan would be placed in the family’s country home north of Salina. Within a week, Tom Frese, a 17-year-old from Germany, had officially joined the Ostenberg family. Arriving on the
Far from home, Tom playfully devises a way to counter host brother Ryan Ostenberg’s home-venue advantage at the family pool table.
Big Surprises Like many exchange students living in the United States, Tom Frese says he has been most surprised by some of the daily aspects of American life that he was not familiar with from the Hollywood-exported version of the country. Below are three of his biggest surprises.
1
That the central streets in American towns are not pedestrian zones. That you can drive down “Main Street” in most any American town.
3 2
The popularity and widespread use of pickup trucks.
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
How comparatively simple it is to own and shoot a firearm.
29
local profiles
Friday before Labor Day weekend, he had only three days to get unpacked and situated before starting school at Bennington High. “Living out in the country was different for me,” explains Tom, whose hometown of Menden has a population of approximately 60,000. Another big adjustment for him was living with numerous pets. “I don’t like cats, I don’t like the way that they rub against you. I keep the door closed so they can’t get in my room,” Tom says, speaking of the three cats that are part of the Ostenberg family. But he welcomed the family’s dogs, amused that one of them went by the typical German name of “Fritz,” and he enjoyed taking his first horse ride on the family’s horse Smokey. One of Tom’s favorite events so far is attending football and women’s basketball games at Kansas State. “In Germany we really like to watch American football, but it is on for us in the middle of the night, so it is hard,” says Tom. But nonspectator events also have kept Tom busy since his arrival. He has sailed and fished at Milford and Wilson lakes and was introduced to shooting on the family property. “I was very surprised on how active Americans are,” Tom says, “You hear all the time that Americans are very overweight and eat a lot of fast food. So when I came here I was very happy because I like sports so much as well.” Tom’s interest is shared by the family of active cyclists, who also are involved in the YMCA. Ryan and Ian are lifeguards and are involved in Bennington High sports, Ian with track and Ryan with baseball. Tom, who has played golf since he was 9, plans to join the Bennington team this spring. Tom and his host brothers joined a high school recreational basketball league in the winter. The sport teams are one of the big differences Tom notes between the U.S. and German educational systems. “There are no organized sports teams for schools in Germany. This is one thing that I really like at Bennington High School,” Tom
30
Menden, Germany Bennington, Kansas
Tom, center, says he is fortunate that his host brothers Ian, left, and Ryan, right, share an interest in sports.
explains. “The whole school experience is actually very different. In Germany I am out of school by no later than 1:30. We do not eat lunch at school, and I really do not like the school lunches.” He also explains that the grade system is different. German youth typically go through 10 years of school and then spend three years testing to get into a university. Another big difference Tom noticed was the use of computers in the school system. Every student at Bennington is issued a laptop. Though German students use computers for projects, they submit most lessons in handwritten form. “Handwriting is one of the first things that you are taught in school,” says Tom. “It is practiced and practiced. Your handwriting is a very high expectation, and you receive points on your handwriting all through school.” Tom says he does miss his family in Germany greatly, but keeping busy helps him. He also talks to his family back home frequently and has introduced his two families to each other through online video links. The importance of family is one of the main similarities Tom sees between his life in Germany and life in Bennington. Tom and the Ostenbergs say they value what they have learned from one another as an exchange family. As the time approaches for Tom to return home, the Ostenbergs say they might consider hosting another exchange student, but only if it could be someone as pleasant as Tom. Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
exchange student
The Ostenberg family did not plan to host an exchange student, but they say the experience of having Tom, center, in the home has been an unexpected reward for them.
Recipes
exchange
Home Cookin’ Tom Frese’s exchange leads to culinary discoveries Tom says a love of good food is something shared by both his German and U.S. friends. While in the Salina region, he has enjoyed discovering new foods such as Cozy Inn sliders and the rich amounts of Mexican food available. But his favorite culinary discovery is an unusual American standard: Pop-Tarts. Food discoveries go both ways for Tom and his host family. He has shared with them new favorites and conversations about different recipes. The Ostenbergs say they were surprised that Tom has never heard of many of the foods that Americans might attribute to Germany, such as German chocolate cake. But they have been delighted to enjoy Tom’s authentic dishes such as Schweineschnitzel.
SCHWEINESCHNITZEL Cooking Time: Approx 45 minutes
CURRYWURST Feeds 6
Cooking Time 1 hour,
Ingredients 4 pounds pork loin roast, cut in 1/4 inch slices 1/4 cup yellow mustard salt and pepper to taste 4 eggs 1 tablespoon oil
Feeds 6
Ingredients 1 cup bread crumbs 1 cup sliced mushrooms (champignons) 1/2 chopped yellow onion 2 tablespoons butter 1 cup cream
Cooking Instructions 4Brush each piece of pork loin with a small amount of yellow mustard, then salt and pepper to taste. Place seasoned meat in a bowl and mix with eggs and bread crumbs. Place in a skillet and pour in oil. Heat on medium high until meat has browned (approximately 8 minutes for each side).
sauce:
4Sautee the onions in butter, then add mushrooms. Cook for 2 minutes on medium high, then add cream. Continue heating until sauce approaches a boil. Serve over schnitzels.
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
2 1 4 1/2 1/2 1 1/2
pounds pork sausage 15 oz can tomato sauce tablespoons curry powder cup white sugar teaspoon Tabasco sauce tablespoon butter cup finely chopped yellow onion salt and pepper to taste
Cooking Instructions 4Cut sausage into ½-inch-thick pieces and place in a skillet on medium high to brown. Drain any fat and remove. In a separate sauce pan, sauté onion in butter on medium high. Stir in tomato sauce, curry, Tabasco, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir until ingredients blend. To serve, pour sauce over the browned sausage. Goes best with french fries.
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out & about
A closer look at ike
The Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum celebrates a half-century by sharing a peek into the acquisitions, preservations and research at the core of its mission
A portrait of President Dwight Eisenhower and his wife, Mamie, sits on the desk of the “President’s office” display of the Eisenhower Presidential Library.
Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home 200 SE Fourth St. / Abilene Hours: 9 a.m.-4:45 p.m. daily Cost: $10 for adults with discounts for seniors and children; free admission for active military and ages 7 and under www.eisenhower/archives.gov
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Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
The Eisenhower Presidential Library
Eisenhower Presidential Library story by Cecilia Harris photography by Lisa Eastman
M
[From Top to Bottom] The original conceptual drawing of the Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum and Boyhood Home is displayed for the exhibit marking the library’s 50th anniversary. A large binder displays many of the library’s program brochures from the 1970s and 1980s. This Dictaphone recording device captured sounds by slicing grooves into a plastic belt and was considered advanced technology when the library first opened. A display of memorabilia includes books and oral histories from the library collection.
uch of the Eisenhower Presidential Library in Abilene is off-limits to visitors. Though the library is a key component of the federal complex that includes a museum, President Dwight Eisenhower’s graveyard and his boyhood home, only one library gallery is generally open to the public, leaving many to wonder what goes on beyond the library’s beautiful interior walls. That mystery is unlocked by a new display, The Library’s 50th Anniversary, which details the intensive cataloging and preservation work that goes on behind the scenes in the structure that holds nearly 27 million pages of original manuscripts from the former president and 450 of his associates, over 500,000 photographs, 33,000 pages of oral history transcripts, more than 25,000 books, 767,000 feet of motion picture film, over 1,000 hours of audio recordings and more than 70,000 other objects. A video in the anniversary exhibit features staff members discussing preservation techniques while rare documents and artifacts from the massive collection are brought out for visitors to see an even greater portion of the expanding archives. “Our collections continue to grow,” says Karl Weissenbach, director of the Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home. “It’s a very progressive library in that we continue to expand our holdings.” Because the library’s primary focus is research, the anniversary exhibit includes a mock research area with a work table and replica archive stacks where the historical items are stored to protect them from environmental damage. Weissenbach says 800 researchers were on site last year. The research already has contributed to the publication of 18 books and major articles related to the nation’s 34th president.
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
33
out & about 2.
1. A RECORDAK microfilm viewer was an essential tool for researchers when the library opened. 2. This statue based on Life Magazine’s famous “Kiss” picture was part of the military gallery renovation. 3. President Eisenhower used this 1942 Cadillac during World War II and for a period after the war ended. 1.
The anniversary exhibit also narrates the history of the library itself, including the architect’s original concept drawing and the grassroots fund-raising campaign. The lobby, often used as an exhibit space in the past years, features a display explaining the presidential library system. The Eisenhower Library is unusual in that it is part of a complex that includes the simple Victorian farm cottage where Ike was reared, a museum built to honor his military career, the Place of Meditation where the president is buried and a visitor’s center. “We have three buildings with museum artifacts,” Weissenbach says, “which is quite remarkable.” For the anniversary celebration, the museum and library buildings will feature supplementary exhibits focusing on research materials in the library. These include,
34
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
The Founding Fathers Collection; The King and the Presidents; Civil War: Lincoln, Lee and More! and Jackie Cochran: Pioneer Aviatrix. A fourth exhibit, Elvis at 21: Photographs by Alfred Wertheimer, will incorporate items from the Eisenhower library and other collections, including the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery. Thanks to Eisenhower, who was born in Denison, Texas, but chose to make his boyhood home of Abilene his official hometown, researchers have arrived in central Kansas for a half-century to pore over original material from the library. And thanks to the only U.S. president from Kansas, residents continue to have the chance to enjoy and be educated by exhibits from the nation’s capital without traveling too far from their hometown. “You don’t have to go to Washington, D.C., to see world-class exhibits,” says Weissenbach.
The Eisenhower Presidential Library
Steam
&Sarsaparilla
A b i l e n e ’ s o t h e r At t r a c t i o n s
Within walking distance of the Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum are four additional attractions: the Abilene and Smoky Valley Railroad Excursion Train, the Greyhound Hall of Fame, the Heritage Center and Carousel, and Old Abilene Town.
The Greyhound Hall of Fame features free exhibitions dedicated to the history of greyhounds and the history of greyhound racing. Plaques honor Hall of Fame inductees that include a mix of humans and greyhounds. Perhaps the biggest attractions, however, are the center’s two greeters—retired greyhounds with friendly dispositions. The Abilene and Smoky Valley Excursion Train consists of a 1902 wooden
“You don’t have to go to Washington, D.C., to see world-class exhibits.” -Karl Weissenbach 3.
passenger car, two open-air gondola cars with canopy tops and a caboose. The train takes passengers through the Smoky Hill River valley on the original Rock Island rail laid in 1887. The restored steam engine operates on a limited schedule; otherwise, a diesel-electric engine pulls the train.
The Heritage Center and Carousel
allows visitors to ride the hand-carved C.W. Parker carousel built in Abilene at the turn of the century. It also contains the Historical Museum, which tells the story of Dickinson County, and the Museum of Independent Telephony, which depicts the development of the independent telephone companies through several interactive exhibits. On the grounds are also a log cabin, barn, blacksmith shop, machine shed and general store that depict pioneer life on the prairie.
The Old Abilene Town offers the chance to enjoy can-can dancers and watch cowboys reenacting a gunfight. Visitors can also shop for unique merchandise at the General Store and then enjoy a sarsaparilla at the Alamo Saloon or a bite to eat at the Hitchin’ Post restaurant. The complex also includes a one-room schoolhouse, barn, jail, log cabin church, print shop and depot for the excursion train. Information on hours and costs can be found at the following sites. www.facebook.com/Abilene5star www.salinafyi.com/marketplace (then search for Abilene and Smoky Valley Train) www.greyhoundhalloffame.com www.heritagecenterdk.com www.oldabilenetown.webs.com
Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
35
MISS
story by Patricia E. Ackerman photography by Larry Harwood
MEG HENRY
MAJORETTE A young athlete champions her sport and trains new talent to twirl
It’s a full-body
workout …
W
hen Meg Henry, then 8 years old, walked into Shannon’s Stars Twirling Club for her first lesson in 2006, she did not know what twirling was. She recalls her third-grade imagination envisioned the sport as “some type of ballet where people would twirl and spin around.” Six years later, Meg is on her way to mastering baton twirling, the individual and team sport where athletes jump, leap and spin through a routine all while tossing, flinging and juggling batons. Meg has competed in National Baton Twirling Association events across the Midwest. In her individual competitions, she has won the title of State Solo Champion for three consecutive years as well as six national top10 medals in her age category. She is also currently the reigning Miss Majorette of Kansas for her age bracket. Behind all these accomplishments is a fierce dedication and discipline. Meg practices twirling for at least one hour each day. “If you stop practicing for a while, it will hurt when you start back into your routine,” she says. “It’s a full body workout.”
Currently, Meg is working on juggling four batons—she already regularly juggles three batons in her routines. Meg’s hard work and dedication carry over into other areas of her life as well. She maintains her spot on the middle school honor roll, takes honor classes, plays flute in the Central Kansas Honor Band and maintains an active role in her church’s youth group. She also helps her coach, Shannon Meis, teach younger twirlers. “Twirling feels natural to me, so I have to stop and think for a moment to remember how I learned this,” says Meg in describing the challenges of moving from learning to teaching. “I enjoy seeing their excitement, seeing them get better each week and add on to their routine.” Meg also offered to teach twirling to her 10-year-old brother, Dylan. But apparently a love of twirling isn’t genetic. “He doesn’t like it,” explains Meg. According to Meis, Meg is a positive role model and ambassador for the twirling club. “Meg works hard, but she does not tell people about it. Her humbleness makes her friends and teammates want to rally around her.” In December 2011, Meg was given an opportunity to share her talents during halftime of a middle school basketball
game. Since most of her competitions take place outside of Salina, very few of her classmates had seen her perform. Hearing the crowd cheer as she twirled multiple batons or caught a spinning baton under her leg was exciting for the young athlete. “It definitely made me feel very special.I’ve worked really hard, and I was really glad that I was able to show all of my friends and my teachers what I really love doing, because at this age students don’t normally see very many twirlers around,” says Meg. While there are no opportunities for her sport in middle school, Meg hopes to audition for a twirling position with the Salina South High School Band for her first year of high school. She has, however, been able to compete at a higher age bracket as a team member. In 2010, Meg performed as a member of Shannon’s Stars Senior Team, which earned a second-place trophy in the National Championship Team Competition at the University of Notre Dame. Twirling, which Meis describes as “artistry mixed with athleticism,” consists of routines ranging from 30 seconds to 2 1/2 minutes for individual routines and up to seven minutes for group performances. According to Meis, “Twirlers receive points for showmanship, presentation, technique, skill, routine, choreography and general handling.” In some categories, twirlers are also required to participate in structured interviews as part of the competition, reinforcing poise and communication skills.
37
”
I used to be a lot quieter, and over the years twirling has given me confidence…
“
Meg says this combination of sport and poise has helped her grow. “I used to be a lot quieter, and over the years twirling has given me confidence and helped me become a little more outgoing.” For the future, Meg hopes to earn that spot on the high school twirling team but also tap her twirling skills to earn a college scholarship. Two of Shannon’s Stars students, Lauren Meis and Katelyn Bradbury, currently twirl for Kansas State University. Looking even further beyond college, Meg has hopes for herself and her sport. “I really love this sport, and I think it should become an Olympic sport. I understand that it is a unique sport, but I’ve always thought the Olympic Committee should take more time to recognize all types of sports,” says Meg. “Everyone should try twirling.” RIGHT: A stop-motion photograph tracks movements that Meg Henry might make in a typical twirling routine. BELOW: Meg receives positioning assistance from her team instructor, Shannon Meis. Meg’s individual instructor, Lauren Meis, is Shannon’s daughter and currently the top twirler for Kansas State University.
“Meg works hard, but she does not tell people about it. Her humbleness makes her friends and teammates want to rally around her.” -Shannon Meis
a
b
FISHTAIL CUTBACK This is a more advanced, combination roll. Both steps are difficult, but Meg says the “B” portion is slightly more troublesome.
a
Roll baton to back of wrist, then move the arm forward and back to “b” position
b
After forming baton into triangle position with arm, roll it left to right to return “fishtails” position
a
b
BACKHAND CATCH This type of catch can be performed by releasing the baton either horizontally or vertically.
a
Release baton with a thumb flip of one hand.
b
Prepare to catch with the other hand by turning fingers outward and twisting the wrist backward.
ROLLS
a
b
Required elements of any routine, a roll is a hands-free movement of the baton.
a
Elbow Roll: One elbow is formed in a triangle, and the baton rolls across the other elbow.
b
Mouth Roll: A backhand grip releases and rolls the baton onto the mouth. This is technically more difficult than the elbow roll, but it is one of Meg’s strongest rolls as she has practiced this one from a young age.
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Girl Scout Slogan:
Do a Good Turn Daily story by nathan pettengill photography by Larry Harwood
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Salina Girl Scouts join in celebrating the centennial of the nation’s premier organization for girls and young women
T
he cheering that you can easily imagine from the photograph on the left came loudest from the youngest Girl Scouts, the blueuniformed Daisies who had bounded up the stairs and into the balcony’s prime spots.
These Daisies gathered to mark 100 years of Girl Scouts with their sister scouts, including senior members such as Lois Orchard, who you can see in a blue shirt standing on the left, Kay Bachofer and Charlene
Meidlinger, sitting together on the far right, and Shirley Andrews, standing just off camera. These senior scouts came into the organization in the late 1940s-1950s, before there was ever a Daisies program. They were part of Girl Scouts when it celebrated 50 years and now, a half-century later, they lend their voices to the organization as it seeks to redefine itself to ensure that Girl Scouts will be alive and relevant when the cheering Daisies in this picture become adult leaders.
Rite of Passage When these four women grew up, entering Girl Scouts was something akin to a rite of passage. For Bachofer, entering second grade in the late 1940s at Wichita meant finally being able to wear the coffee-cream one-piece dress, the matching socks, and the matching beanie that were the uniform of a Brownie. “I was very proud to put it on,” says Bachofer. “It was the idea that you were part of something and got to wear your uniform to school once a week.”
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[1] Girl Scout Motto:
Be Prepared
[2]
[3]
In Salina, both Meidlinger and Orchard experienced this same sensation as they joined troops—Meidlinger at Sacred Heart Grade School and Orchard at Hawthorne School. At that time in Knoxville, Iowa, Orchard joined as well. In this small community, girls “were either 4-H or Girl Scouts, and since we didn’t live on a farm and I didn’t have any animals, I joined Girl Scouts,” says Orchard. These women came into Girl Scouts at its golden era in regards to the membership numbers and growth. From a handful of members in 1912 to more than 3 million girls at its 50-year anniversary, the Girl Scouts had become an American institution. More importantly, it was an institution that changed the lives of these four women.
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Journeys Meidlinger says it is important to understand just how transforming Girl Scouts was at that time. “In the 1950s, the world was much different. It was safer, but opportunities were not there. Women were not encouraged to venture into science and math and engineering—that was not the world we knew,” she explains. “If you wanted to push out of that box, just a little bit, then you needed something to encourage you that it was OK. And that’s what girl scouts did together.” Meidlinger adds that this pushing of the boundaries was not anything shocking by modern standards. It included camping, having popcorn at midnight and watching the stars. These activities
[1] Brownie Girl Scouts from Troop 20944 include, clockwise from top, Amaya Lakkari, Maci Sutton, Anjoelina Bonilla and Kylee Carter. [2] Across the nation, Girl Scouts is seeking to retain older scouts, such as JaNesa Edwards, and recruit younger scouts, such as Mykayla Cunningham, into the Daisies program. [3] Skyla Jost, left, and Khloi Bird attend their first year of Brownies together in Troop 20945. [4] The Daisies and Brownies programs are the most popular Girl Scout programs in the Salina region. Their members include, clockwise from top, Lainey Valentine, Olivia Wright, Alesiya Valentine and Shinobi Williams. [5] Many families continue a tradition of Girl Scouts from one generation to the next. The Orchard-Middleton family represents three generations. They are, clockwise from back left, Dawn Middleton, Grace Middleton, Lois Orchard and Heidi Middleton.
[4]
[5]
family tradition
weren’t forbidden, but without Girl Scouts they would likely not happen, at least not for the girls she knew. “As a girl at home in the 1950s, you wouldn’t have had that camaraderie,” says Meidlinger. “You just wouldn’t have someone to go camping with. It just wasn’t part of that era.” These four senior scouts recall trips across the nation and globe with Girl Scouts. But sometimes the organization helped them traverse boundaries close to home. For Andrews, growing up in a poorer section of Salina, Girl Scouts gave “an opportunity to do things that my own family and many of my friends’ families would not have been able to afford.” Even the annual cookie sale led her into new territory as she marveled at selling three boxes of cookies at 35 cents each and then handling the proceeds. “I was amazed anyone could spend $1.05 on cookies,” she recalls.
over the past decades—but particularly with the growth of sport leagues for girls following the historic Title IX Educational Amendment in 1972—Girl Scouts became one of many activities competing for a young girl’s time. “Like everything,” says Bachofer, “I think the opportunities have just opened up and expanded beyond measure.” Work opportunities also expanded for their mothers, which meant a decrease in the amount of stay-at-home troop moms who had formed the core of Girl Scout adult leaders. Even in smaller towns, Girl Scouts was no longer the only alternative to 4-H or Future Homemakers of America. It was becoming one of many options—and one that walked around in an outdated green outfit at that. Sara Nettleingham, development leader for the organization’s Salina office, says a national survey on Girl Scout uniforms and image in the early 2000s brought grim results. “The harsh, brutal truth was that girls didn’t think Girl Scouts was cool,” says Nettleingham. On the national level, even with numerous uniform updates, these – kay bachofer changes have been particularly Looking back, Meidlinger says the biggest apparent in falling membership for older age scout-inspired journeys were internal: brackets—a trend reflected for the Salina “Becoming self-confident, knowing you had region (see information graph on page 45). a voice in an all-girl environment where your But while the Girl Scouts might have a opinions matter, and learning to have that slower growth, the organization’s count of confidence.” 3.2 million adult and girl members is still impressive for a national organization. And the Perils of Success Girl Scouts have responded by changing their The very aspects of Girl Scouts so essential focus at the youngest and oldest ends of their to the women of this generation became part program. of the fabric of American girlhood. At the youngest ages, the organization With the growth of school programs, has created the Girl Scout Daisies program church groups and other activities for youth for girls in kindergarten and first grade.
“It was the idea that you were a part of something.”
Like the older groups, the Daisies follow a series of activities, or “journeys” devised to complement school curriculum and appeal to their interests. For girls in junior high and high school, says Nettleingham, the organization has evolved beyond “cookies, camping and crafts” and positioned itself a leadership program that teaches teen girls how to identify a need in the community and go through the steps to meet it. In this approach, Girl Scouts is less focused on retaining full-standing members who choose troop meetings over sport teams or other extracurricular groups and more focused on providing programs and training sessions. Nettleingham points to a recent “Girl M.D.” medical event that the Girl Scouts sponsored to introduce young women to health career options. With this approach, says Nettleingham, the focus is not on expanding membership among older girls, but on offering older girls more opportunities to participate in “a Girl Scout experience.” ‘The Core’ The older scouts say that they have mixed feelings about the organization being, in some part, a victim of its own success. Orchard says she has two goals for the 150th anniversary in 2062: “to still be around” and to see the organization retain older girls. Perhaps the new approach of the “Girl Scout experience” will fulfill her second wish. But even if the innovations still leave the Girl Scouts competing for membership, these senior scouts are heartened that the organization they love is now only one of so many possibilities open to American girls. Meidlinger says the Girl Scouts have succeeded at integrating values of “preparing girls, women to make the world a better place” into so much of the fabric of life for American girls. “The core has always been there—a sisterhood of girls learning in a safe and confident environment,” says Meidlinger. And she notes having transformed opportunities for older girls, the organization can turn its attention to working with younger groups— such as the Daisies who surrounded her for the centennial photo with their loud cheers. “It’s just like being a mother. You hope that from the time you have had them in your care you have been able to instill in them values and confidence. You hope you’ve had an influence on them,” says Meidlinger. “If we can prepare girls through the world of Girl Scouting, then we have done our job.”
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March 12, 1912 Juliette Gordon Low, who had organized groups of Girl Guides in Scotland and England, founds the American Girl Guides in Savannah, Georgia
1934 Girl Scouts
of Central Kansas is formed, and troops begin operating from Salina region
1913
Organization name is changed to “Girl Scouts�
1941-1945 Girl
Scouts assist with American efforts in World War II by collecting scrap metal, working in victory gardens and at farms
1917 First Girl
Scouts troop west of the Mississippi River is formed in Hutchinson, Kansas
1952 Lady Baden-Powell, World Chief Guide, visits Kansas
1917 First Lady Edith Bolling Wilson becomes the first honorary president of Girl Scouts and establishes a continuing tradition of the First Lady serving as honorary president.
1917-1918 Girl Scouts assist American
e a short timelin
efforts in World War I by selling war bonds, volunteering in hospitals and collecting peach pits for use in gas mask filters
1920 1912
1934 1920 Girl Scouts reach 70,000 members across the United States and including territory of Hawaii 1924 Norman
Rockwell draws Girl Scout cover for Life magazine
1929 Girl
Scouts reach 200,000 members in the United States
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1996 Girl Scouts
adopt current wording for Girl Scout Law
1987
75th anniversary of Girl Scouts
YEARS
100
st to be I will do my be ir, fa d an st hone lpful, friendly and he d caring, considerate an strong, and courageous and do, hat I say and w r fo responsible and to and others, respect myself , ity respect author ly, ise w es rc ou use res ce, and ld a better pla make the wor t. ou Sc rl Gi y er be a sister to ev
1972 Girl
On my honor, I will try: To serve God and my country, To help people at all times, And to live by the Girl Scout Law.
Scouts adopt new wording for the Girl Scout Promise and Law
1957
April, 2012
Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland celebrate 100 years in Greensburg, Kansas
2007 1972
1957 Girl Scouts
reach 3 million members in the United States
1969 Girl Scouts launch national “Action 70� program to combat racism across the U.S.
2012 2007 In a nationwide reorganization, Salina region Girl Scouts are assigned to the Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland that covers 80 Kansas counties and includes approximately 12,500 girl members
1962
50 50th anniversary of Girl Scouts
YEARS
Number of active Girl Scouts in Salina and Saline County Group name Grades Number Daisies K-1 212 Brownies 2-3 240 Juniors 4-5 162 Cadettes 6-8 87 Senior 9-10 8 Ambassadors 11-12 9 Timeline information, photography and artwork courtesy: Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland, Salina Office Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland, Girl Scouts of the United States of America
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Photo contest
the judges
Shelly Bryant Art Director, Sunflower Publishing
jason dailey Chief photographer, Sunflower Publishing www.daileyimages.com
Lisa Eastman Photographer, Sunflower Living www.prophotoks.com
Photo Contest photograph by Larry Harwood
We want to feature your photograph in Sunflower Living magazine. Each issue, we will announce a theme and accept photograph submissions from readers with a permanent address within the delivery region of Sunflower Living magazine. Our panel will judge the submitted photographs and select a winning image, which will run on this page in the following edition. The winning photographer will also receive a prize of $50. Theme for the 2012 Summer Edition:
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“Roadside”
Submission Guidelines: A) Email the image to sunflowerliving@sunflowerpub.com
with a heading of “Photo Contest” B) Submission must be made before May 20 C) Only submit the image if you are the photographer and the copyright holder of the image and if you live in the delivery region of Sunflower Living magazine D) Files should be in digital form, either JPEG or TIFF, that can be printed up to 8X10 at 300 dpi E) By submitting an image, you consent to having the image published in the magazine and posted online in connection with the magazine Sunflowerliving / Spring 2012
Larry Harwood Photographer, Sunflower Living www.larryharwoodphoto.photoshelter.com
Jenni Leiste Designer, Sunflower Living