Annual Christmas party features Ukrainian music

Children got their annual Christmas entertainment and candy Saturday as more than 600 of them gathered in Kansas University’s Lied Center for the Bromelsick Christmas Party.

“This is the only place big enough for us to hold it,” said Martha Rose, a Girl Scouts representative and one of the party organizers.

The 52nd annual party is the oldest continuous tradition in Lawrence for 4-H clubs, Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts.

This year’s main entertainment feature was Sergei Shapoval’s Ukrainian Cultural Kaleidoscope, from Kansas City, Mo. The show featured traditional folk music and Russian folk instruments.

The Saint Nicholas String Band performed Christmas carols for the party.

The party is held courtesy of the Bromelsick Trust Fund, set up after the 1950 death of Alfred Bromelsick. He left a large portion of his estate to local Boy Scout and Girl Scout organizations and 4-H clubs.

Holiday event

Vinland Nativity opens

Sergei Shapoval teaches Ethan Vogelsang, left, about Eastern European music at the annual Bromelsick Christmas Party.

Vinland — The Vinland Living Nativity will be open today through Tuesday at the Vinland Fairgrounds for the 28th year.

Volunteers will portray Mary, Joseph, Jesus and the shepherds. The shepherds will watch over live animals.

The Nativity will run from 6 p.m to 9 p.m. each night today through Tuesday.

The Vinland United Methodist Church is in charge of the event. Visitors to the Nativity can make a donation to Youthville Inc., an organization that provides homes and counseling for troubled youths.

The fairgrounds are a quarter of a mile east of Douglas County Road 1055 on County Road 460.

Kansas City, Kan.

Attorneys for suspect in killings withdraw

A man facing the death penalty for allegedly killing five people, including a pregnant woman, will receive a new attorney.

Wyandotte County District Court Judge Thomas Boeding agreed late last week to allow Darrell Lamont Stallings’ attorneys, both with the Kansas Death Penalty Defense Council, to withdraw from the case.

The attorneys, Alice Craig-White and Ron Evans, said they made the request because of a breakdown in communication with Stallings.

Evans said his already strained relationship with Stallings became more tense after he filed a motion to determine if Stallings was competent to stand trial.

Boeding ordered that Stallings be given an anti-anxiety drug and later found Stallings competent to stand trial.