Lawrence schools shine at chess championship

Two Lawrence schools won trophies at the Kansas State Chess Scholastic Championships that were March 9 at Blue Valley Northwest High School, Overland Park.

Quail Run School finished first, and Wakarusa Valley School placed fourth in the Elementary Division of the Kansas State Chess Championships.

Individual Winners from Lawrence schools:

High School Division

14th place: Ben Chapin, Southwest Junior High

Middle School/Junior High Division

Sixth: Jed Borovik, Quail Run

12th: Stephen Klamet, Quail Run

Elementary Division

Third: Anjali Datta, Quail Run

Fourth: Daniel Wolff, Quail Run

Fifth: Jesse Madrigal, Quail Run

Sixth: Benjamin Harms, Wakarusa Valley

Eighth: Roy Wedge, Wakarusa Valley

Ninth: Sean Stenseng, Quail Run

15th: Ricky Bellinger, Broken Arrow

Islam to be topic of forum

Unitarian Fellowship of Lawrence, 1263 N. 1100 Road, will be host to a presentation by two members of the city’s Islamic community to discuss the faith and current issues related to Islam.

David and Naima Omar of Lawrence will lead the discussion at 7 p.m. Wednesday. David Omar is a businessman, and his wife is an assistant professor of African and African-American Studies at Kansas University. She is from Lebanon.

“We’re doing it because we want to foster greater understanding and tolerance in the community, and to support our neighbors of different faiths,” said Graham Kreicker, fellowship board member.

The event, which is open to the public, is part of an ongoing series about the religions of the world.

For more information, or directions to the fellowship, call 842-3339.

Cottonwood artists to present exhibit

“A Closer Look,” the fourth annual art show presented by Cottonwood Retirement Services, will be presented from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Lawrence Arts Center, 200 W. Ninth St.

Fourteen artists will show about 70 pieces of artwork, including paintings, puppets and pressed-flower collage cards. The artwork will be sold through a silent auction.

Cottonwood is a nonprofit organization that helps individuals with developmental disabilities by providing residential, employment and community support.

Stovall to testify against Colorado reservoir expansion

Kansas Atty. Gen. Carla Stovall is in Washington, D.C., today to testify against a bill that would authorize a study on the feasibility of expanding the Pueblo Reservoir on the Arkansas River in eastern Colorado.

Stovall’s testimony before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Water and Power is expected to begin at 10:30 a.m. Kansas sued Colorado in 1985, accusing Colorado irrigators of taking more than their fair share of the river’s waters headed to Kansas. In 1995 the court ruled against Colorado, and in 2001 ordered Colorado to pay Kansas for damages. The amount to be paid is the subject of hearings set for June 2002.

In a statement issued Monday, Stovall said allowing Colorado to increase withdrawals into Pueblo Reservoir “Â threatens to undermine our efforts as we prepare for final adjudication of our 17-year battle.”