Attendance pledges save NAACP chapter

The Lawrence chapter of the NAACP will live on.

About 25 people showed for Thursday night’s meeting at St. Luke A.M.E. Church, 900 N.Y. That’s about an 800 percent increase in attendance from many of the chapter’s other meetings last fall, when only two or three people would attend, said Marian Brown, first vice president. All 25 pledged commitment to the chapter.

Brown, who is in her 70s, said the boosted attendance served as a wake-up call.

“What keeps an organization alive is having new and young blood,” she said.

Members also began planning a formal membership drive, a voter-registration drive and fund-raising events at Thursday night’s two-hour meeting.

Campus thoroughfare to be restricted today

Traffic on Sunnyside Avenue at Kansas University will be restricted today near Haworth Hall.

Sunnyside will be completely blocked from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., and one lane of traffic will be blocked for the rest of the work day. Contractors will provide traffic control.

Twenty to 30 parking spaces near the loading dock also will be blocked.

The work is part of KU’s ongoing efforts to improve energy efficiency. A crane will remove two cooling towers from the roof of Haworth Hall, and a new fan will be lifted to the ninth-floor.

Investigation continues into discovery of body

A witness may have seen a 29-year-old Eudora man shortly before his mysterious death Tuesday along train tracks in Leavenworth County.

Leavenworth County Sheriff’s Office investigators say that after media reports about John Schmidt’s death, someone called them and reported seeing a man matching his description Tuesday morning walking westbound on the train tracks near Bonner Springs.

Schmidt was found dead of a blunt trauma to the head between Loring Drive and the Kansas River in southeastern Leavenworth County.

Police also said Thursday that Schmidt’s car had a flat tire when it was abandoned on Interstate 435, a half-mile from the Interstate 70 interchange.

Maj. David Zoellner of the Sheriff’s Office said Schmidt’s injuries “could be consistent with being struck by a train,” but Zoellner said nothing had been ruled out.

“There’s no clear evidence to indicate foul play at this time,” he said.

Carville to speak at KU

James Carville, political commentator and co-host of CNN’s “Crossfire,” will speak March 29 at Kansas University.

“He’ll be at the Lied Center,” said KU student president Andy Knopp, who announced the event Thursday during a University Council meeting.

Carville’s appearance is sponsored by the Student Senate and Student Union Activities. Admission will be charged.

Carville managed Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential run.