may 2015
RUNNING ON INSPIRATION TIPS FOR DETERMINING IF YOUR CHILD IS READY FOR OVERNIGHT CAMP Wichita Family • May 2015 - 1
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may 2015
Inside: 6
News and Information from our partners at Wichita Public Schools
8 12 14
Kansas woman overcomes obstacles to participate in 2016 Paralympics Tips for determining if your child is ready for overnight camp Of Spring and Schedules: An Essay on Family Time
Wichita Family • May 2015 - 3
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Wichita Family Magazine is published 12 times a year by Lucky 7 Publishing LLC. Wichita Family Magazine is available free, at schools, stores, restaurants, libraries, retailers and local attractions, as well as other places families frequent. For a complete list of where to find Wichita Family, or for subscription rates, email us at publisher@wichitafamily.com or visit our website at www.wichitafamily.com. Copyright 2015 by Lucky 7 Publishing LLC. All rights reserved. Wichita Family Magazine is not responsible for errors, omissions or contest fulfillment from third parties. Reproduction in part or in whole without written permission is strictly prohibited. Wichita Family is distributed free of charge. The magazine’s advertisers make this possible, so support them! We reserve the right to edit submitted material. All submissions will be considered for publication, but we reserve the right to refuse material. Materials will not be returned. Any editorial content or advertising published is the property of Lucky 7 Publishing LLC. 4 - www.wichitafamily.com
Message from the Publisher The school year is coming to a close, and that means graduation time is at hand. This might mean Kindergarten graduation, eighth grade graduation, high school graduation or even college graduation. Regardless of the level of education your loved on is completing, this is a big deal. It is a milestone in life. It is something to be celebrated. Make sure you take the time to praise those who are moving onto the next phase of life. Time. That’s kind of the theme of this issue of Wichita Family Magazine. Essayist Ian Anderson shares his thoughts on making time with his Todd Vogts children and publisher@wichitafamily.com
family, and contributing writer Taryn Gillespie shares a story about a woman who truly understands the value of every day we are all lucky enough to spend on this Earth. Don’t waste it. Enjoy it, and make the most of it. This is important to keep in mind because with Spring fully underway and summer right around the corner, it is easy to get sidetracked by the myriad of distractions popping up with the rise in the temperatures outdoors. I know I always have a laundry list of activities I want to get accomplished when the weather becomes nicer, but it is important to build in time to do what is truly important — enjoy the company of those closest to you. Maybe that means taking a trip to a fun location, or maybe it means sending your children off to a summer camp so mom and dad can have much needed time together. No matter what it means to you, ensure you make the time to accomplish it.
For me personally, this means getting married to the woman I love. A lot of time is being spent on planning it so everything runs smoothly, but my fiance and I need to remember to enjoy the time together. There have been instances where we’ve both gotten frustrated with trying to get the guest list down to the right number or figuring out meal and tux options, but we shouldn’t allow this to cloud our vision. Even when we are frustrated, we need to take solace in the fact we are frustrated together, starting our lives as husband and wife. Also, we need to remember to be in the moment on our big day. We can’t let the details bog us down, especially if they don’t all go according to plan because, let’s face it, they probably won’t. Instead, we just need to enjoy the moment and savor the time together with our family and friends. After all, that’s what’s truly important. Wichita Family • May 2015 - 5
News and Information from our partners at Wichita Public Schools
Riverside had a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the end of their bond issue construction.
Riverside, Horace Mann celebrate improvements
Two schools celebrated their new spaces and the end of their bond project construction. Riverside Leadership Magnet and Horace Mann Dual Language Magnet hosted open houses to allow families and community members an opportunity to see their improvements. Student leaders at Riverside gave guests tours of their new spaces and shared what they liked about them. They liked their new library because there was room to move and more places to read than their old library. The Riverside Honor Choir performed for guests and a student read a paper she had written about why she liked Riverside. Riverside received a new addition that included a library, kitchen, main office with student support space and a controlled entry. The school received renovations to convert the old office into an interrelated classroom and the old library into a kindergarten classroom. Horace Mann had a school-wide Family Night celebration to mark the end of their bond construction. Students participated in games and activities in many different classrooms promoting reading, science, music and art. Superintendent John Allison and BOE President Sheril Logan read stories to families. Horace Mann’s Folklorico Dancers and Trash Can Band entertained guests. Horace Mann received a new addition that includes a middle Horace Mann’s Folklorico Dancers perform school science classroom and an instrumental music room. The the Dance of the Little Old Men during Horace Mann’s bond celebration. school also received a secured entryway. 6 - www.wichitafamily.com
Kimme Whittemore, center, received the Albert Pike Teacher of the Year Award. She is pictured with students Alec Morris and Nee Nee Benh. Back row left: Albert Pike Masonic Lodge 303 members Joe Beck, Chris Collins, Mike Ward, and Brian Byrd; and principal Lura Atherly.
Jardine music teacher receives Albert Pike Award
Kimme Whittemore, instrumental music teacher at Jardine, received the 2015 Albert Pike Masonic Lodge Teacher of the Year Award. She was surprised with the honor during an all-school assembly. Members from the lodge pretended to be a musical group that was going to perform. As it became obvious that they didn’t know how to play, they asked if there was someone who could teach them how to
play. A student who knew about the surprise nominated Whittemore to come onto the stage. When she walked on stage, they surprised her with the award. The Albert Pike Award is given to teachers whose lessons go beyond the classroom and into the community. She was nominated for the award by Jardine’s principal Lura Atherly and a student.
Benton students learn about life with a disability
Benton Elementary students learn what life is like for those with disabilities during the school’s Ability Awareness activities.
Students at Benton Elementary had a unique opportunity to learn what life is like for those with disabilities. The school hosted an Ability Awareness for Peers day for students to experience activities with a simulated disability. The students went through three different P.E. stations. They went through an obstacle course in a wheelchair; they tried to pick up items with a blindfold and special goggles that obscured their vision; and tested their manual dexterity while wearing gloves. Benton students interact with their peers in special education classes. The activities helped them understand what it’s like to have a disability and the challenges some of them face. “The students really enjoyed this opportunity to learn how some of their friends go through life,” said P.E. teacher Mark Ruggles, who helped coordinate the activity. “It has helped them have respect for others.” Wichita Family • May 2015 - 7
Running on inspiration
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Kansas woman overcomes obstacles to participate in 2016 Paralympics By Taryn Gillespie
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ne minute you aren’t feeling well and chalking it up to being pregnant. Then you wake up in a hospital. You’re no longer pregnant, and you look down to find your leg is gone. For Liz Willis, this nightmare came true. “I was extremely grateful to learn that I was alive after having a 1 percent chance of survival,” she said. “I didn’t know I had delivered my baby or had my leg amputated for 10 days. Up until that point, I was given medication to forget what was happening. My husband told me that our son was born and in the NCIU and that my leg had been amputated. That is when I looked down and realized what had happened.” Willis, who grew up in Sterling, is now working as a paraprofessional at Augusta Middle School where she also lives. As a mother, wife and an active runner, she goes to the gym for two to three hours per day, six days per week. Despite her missing limb, she is training to run in the 2016 Paralympics in Rio De Janeiro. Her love for running started at an early age. 8 - www.wichitafamily.com
“I started running at the age of 10 or 11. I was competing at the Sterling Grade School track meet in 5th grade, and I ran the 400 meter in 63 seconds and was quite faster than the others my age. After the meet, some coaches, as well as my parents, told me they felt I should pursue running,” she said. “I continued to run through junior high and high school, and I ran the 400 and 800 for Dan Whisler. Running in high school was a lot of fun, and I always managed to get into some trouble.” Willis enjoyed running and had success while in high school. “Liz was a cross country runner, and I worked with her all four years in both cross county and track. She is a very competitive runner. She is Sterling High School’s record holder for the 800 meter, and she went to state two times in high school as an individual runner,” Sterling High School cross country and track coach Dan Whisler said. “She’s a remarkable young lady.” Willis stopped running competitively after her first year of college, but her love for it continued as she started a family of her own. However, difficulties during pregnancy caused the her life as a runner to be altered. “I had sickness throughout my whole pregnancy, and
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one day I was not feeling good at all. I gave it a couple days,” she said. “When it continued I went to the doctor, and they told me it was just my pregnancy making me sick.” Then the illness took a turn for the worse. “A few hours after my legs started burning uncontrollably, and I called my OB/GYN. She told me I needed to go to the hospital right away,” Willis said. “When I got there, they told me they had to do an emergency caesarean section. After the baby was born, I was still having complications. They noticed I was bleeding internally, and they had to amputate my leg to buy some time to figure out what was wrong. Essentially, they found out I had Crohn’s disease.” Losing a leg caused many obstacles in Willis’ life, including caring for a baby. “Coming home from the hospital was a challenge because I went for six months with no leg. The first six months was spent going around my house with one leg and using a walker. A challenge was trying to be a new mom to my baby while I was still recovering myself,” she said. “After those six months, I was able to get a walking leg, and I really learned to walk pretty quickly because I had motivation — I wanted to be able to be mobile and be there to help my son.” Willis had to walk before she could run. “I walked for a year and got a running leg a year after,” she said. “You don’t just put on the leg and are able to run. I had a lot of muscle atrophy that I had to overcome. I started out running one minute, and everyday I increased how For Kids Entering Grades 1 - 12
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much I was running until about a month later I was running a 5K.” Even with her progress, Willis wasn’t considering running competitively, at first. Eventually, though, her improvements caused her to look at running as more than just a hobby. “I was invited to a running competition by my prosthetic company, Scott Sabolich. I competed at the UCO Endeavor Games in Edmond, Oklahoma,” Willis said. “I ran the 800 and the 5K because those were my strongest events. There were recruiters from the Paralympics there, but I didn’t even know they were there. I was just having fun and running with different amputees.” Her performance caught the eye of those recruiters. “After the meet, the recruiter called me up and asked me if I was interested in running in the Paralympics. I said yes. He came to Wichita to watch me run,” Willis said. “While he was watching, he asked if I had ever thought about running the 100 or 200 meter. I told him, ‘No, I don’t sprint, and I’m short. I just don’t have the correct build for a sprinter.’ He agreed and let me continue my drills. A little while later he asked me what I was wanting to run in the Paralympics, and I said the 5K. He asked if I knew that the 5K was not an event in the Paralympics.” Upon learning this, Willis reached out to a former running mentor. “I went and met up with Dan Whisler and talked to him
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about the situation, and he had me sit down and write down my goals,” she said. “They were little things — like learn to ride a bike, swim, find a coach — and way down at the bot-
Courtesy Photo 10 - www.wichitafamily.com
tom there was go to the Paralympics.” With Whisler’s connections in the running world thanks to his career as a coach, Willis started to see everything lining up. “Dan put me in contact with Jim Helmer, the cross country coach at Southwestern College, and I went and ran for him,” she said. “It wasn’t three days in and he told me I should really be running the 100 and 200. I agreed but was still kind of adamant about sprinting not being right for me. I met with the sprinting coach, T.J. Harris, and started training for the 100 and 200 meter about a year ago.” For Willis, training quickly turned into competing. “I had a decent season,” she said. “I competed in Arizona, Oklahoma, Virginia and here in Kansas. I ended up placing fourth in the United States for the leg amputees in the women’s category for the 100 meter dash.” Willis cares about others and makes it a priority to pick people up when they are down, and, without realizing it, she is inspiring those around her. “Liz has been dealt a set of cards many others have not had to deal with. She doesn’t complain or feel bad for herself. She works for what she wants and inspires others to want to have the determination that she has. The fact that she is so goal-oriented and willing to do whatever is necessary to get what she wants makes her a special person,” Harris, her sprinting coach, said. “She continues to show up everyday, and she works extremely hard to make her goals possible with a smile on her face.” Harris isn’t the only person to see the effect Willis has on others. “Liz is a great example of the quote I often use saying, ‘Life is 10 percent what happens to us and 90 percent how we respond to it’. She has made remarkable progress and bounced back so quickly. She is an inspiration,” Whisler said. Willis said she feels blessed by those who have supported her and continue to support her. You too can support her as well by helping her get a new prosthesis made for sprinting. Visit www.gofundme.com/ lizwillis to donate to her fund, as well as read updates as she gets closer to competing for the 2016 Paralympics. “I thank God every single day of my life,” Willis said. “I look at my life and I know how close I was to not getting to experience life essentially. Everyday is a blessing. I have gained happiness in my life through motivating and inspiring others. I saw how communities like Sterling came together to raise money on my behalf. Seeing communities gather together to help in a time of need just breaks you, and it humbles you to know how good our society really is. Having experienced this myself, it brings me joy to inspire others through my running. Showing people that they are worth something and they can accomplish their dreams and aspiration just like I did is my motivation to continue.”
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Wichita Family • May 2015 - 11
‘Is my child ready for overnight camp?’ By Shay Robbins
For many kids, summer camp is a right of passage to the first taste of sweet independence. For many parents, summer camp is a sign that a child is growing up. Camp gives kids an opportunity for growth in a new but safe place where they can make their own decisions. First-time camp families can question when the best age is to begin sending little ones to camp. Although there is no exact science to it, at Kanakuk we have learned a few key ways to tell a child is ready. Let’s start with the telltale sign—he or she asks to go! As we raise our children there is a short timeframe in which we are the overwhelming voice in their lives. At some point, the voices and influence of others begin to increase and, seemingly, infringe on our territory! This when the old adage, “it takes a village to raise a child” becomes real. I believe this is the best indicator that a child is ready to go to summer camp. If your child is beginning to reach for others through slumber parties or extracurricular activities, it is important to find external influences that reinforce our faith and family values. While every child is unique, there are some things they all have in common. Kids love to laugh. Kids love friendship. Kids long to know God. Kanakuk is built to invest in these commonalities while celebrating campers’ unique talents and personalities. It does this through life-changing experiences that are fun and help kids grow in faith and community. When a child has 360-degree accountability like they do at summer camp, “iron sharpens iron,” meaning they experience growth through community. Kids and staff come to Kanakuk and go home more confident, humble and compassionate because others challenge and encourage them. So, if your kid needs friends, summer camp can provide laughter, memories and opportunities to overcome new challenges alongside peers. We believe this is a recipe for
lasting friendships—that’s why we say, “Camp friends are the best friends!” If your kid needs a mentor, summer camps like Kanakuk travel the country to meet, interview and select the most loving and servant-hearted college students around. These humble leaders help campers develop into dynamic Christian leaders themselves. They are eager to passionate about investing in the next generation. Camp is a place for incredible growth—and unrivaled fun. All of the anticipation can build a long list of questions. There are a few things you can do during the countdown to camp to help build excitement and prevent homesickness. First, involve your camper in the preparation process! Let them help pack trunks and pick out swimsuits and theme party costumes. Most importantly, follow along with your camp on social media to see all the fun! Make use of the months leading to camp by preparing yourself, especially if this is the first time your camper is leaving home. Learn how you can communicate with your camper while he or she is gone. Write letters and plan to send a fun package. Get to know their schedules beforehand and approach the week with a game plan. Summer camp can also be a gift of quality time for you and your spouse or close friends. Plan a vacation or date nights that are more difficult to make time for when kids’ schedules dominate the week. Finally, make it a point to get to know the mission and leadership of the camp before you send your child. Is there a child protection plan? Do the camp’s foundational principles align with yours? Do they have a track record of success? Since 1926, we’ve seen campers walk away with the life-changing experiences, Godly relationships and spiritual training needed to become dynamic Christian leaders. Camp season is almost here—get ready for the best weeks of summer!
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taken care of,” said Garrett Named in honor of former President Ronald Reagan, the carrier is longer than 3 football fields, at nearly 1,100 feet long. The ship is 252 feet wide and weighs more than 100,000 tons. Two nuclear reactors can push the ship through the water at nearly 35 mph. As a sailor with numerous responsibilities, Garrett said he is proud to serve his country aboard an aircraft carrier. “My favorite parts about serving here are the people and the chain of command is supportive,” said Garrett.
Garrett also said he is very proud of the work he is doing as part of USS Ronald Reagan’s nearly 3,000-member crew, helping protect America on the world’s oceans. “I never cease to be impressed with the type and quality of work that goes on aboard the carrier each day,” said Capt. Christopher E. Bolt, the carrier’s commanding officer. “If you pick up a newspaper in any city and examine what other 19- and 20-year-olds are doing, there is no comparison to the level of responsibility our Sailors hold.”
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Wichita Family • May 2015 - 13
~ A Family Time Essay ~
Of Spring and Schedules
I
By Ian Anderson
can’t seem to get away from the pressure building across my shoulders (and sinuses) as the weather changes; for all of the winter months I anticipated the bare branches once again filling out with green or white or pink, and now that the colors are reemerging, all the plans to restructure the garden have transformed themselves into wagging fingers. I know you feel the pressure, too, because it happens every spring, and I can see it in the bloodshot eyes of everyone around me — bloodshot from pollen or overwork or both. And we not only want to get outside again, but we also have plans to work around the house, travel, and accomplish more than is humanly possible. The stillness of winter fools us into thinking that once the thaw is complete, we will be able to progress more than ever before. That pressure, that weight, is at odds with actual life. Awhile back I came across this in my journal: “When I schedule my days out, I find that my children become my enemy.” That hurts. It happens to us all: we ponder the day to come — or entire seasons to come — and we imagine that this is the day, this is the time of year, that everything I have yet to do will be done. And for those of us who have children (for others it’s a neighbor who wants to talk, or
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a coworker who apparently finishes work with inhuman speed and accuracy), all it takes for our frustration level to rise is a simple question like, “Daddy, will you read this book to me?” The problem comes when I can no longer see this question in its innocence — the request for shared time — and I see it as a drain on my day’s work. My day’s work. My — and there it is, that word that assumes the day or the season is my own. You see we’ve planned and planned so much that the expectations grow in our minds into a kind of certainty; I will go here, I will do this, I will get this done. And then, “Hey, do you have a minute?” No, I don’t. I don’t have a minute when the wagging fingers point out that the grass won’t plant itself, or the papers won’t magically be graded on time, or my book won’t write its own ending, or, or, or… But I don’t want my boys to be my enemies. And so, today, this spring, I will imagine my schedule, and I will make my plans, but one of them will be to create room for baseball in the backyard where there’s plenty of dirt waiting for grass seed. Ian Anderson is a teacher, a husband, and a dad. He lives with his family in Central Kansas. Occasionally, he tweets here: @ian_writes.
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