Jo Hardesty, Lawrence, announces the birth of a daughter, Emma Lee Hardesty, born April 11, 2004, at Lawrence Memorial Hospital. Maternal grandparents are J and Janice Hardesty, Tecumseh.

• Phyllis (Long) LaRue, Topeka, formerly of Lawrence, will be honored at a retirement celebration from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday at Wakarusa Valley School, where she has taught for 21 years.

• The family of Agnes V. House, Eudora, announces a card shower for her 80th birthday, which she will celebrate Tuesday. Cards may be sent to her at 1407 Oak St., Eudora 66025.

• Plans are under way for the 102nd annual Overbrook Rural High School Alumni Banquet. It will be at 6 p.m. May 29 at the Overbrook Methodist Church. The cost of the meal is $10. The deadline for reservations is May 25. Reservations should include names of those attending and year of graduation or attendance. They should be sent to ORHS Alumi Assn., P.O. Box 277, Overbrook 66524. Anyone who attended or taught at the school may attend. The classes of 1929, 1934, 1939, 1944, 1954 and 1964 will be honored.

• Chelsea Chaffin, Lawrence, received the President’s Academic Scholarship from Bethel College, Newton, for the 2004-2005 academic year. Chaffin is a senior at Free State High School. Academic scholarships are based on high school grade-point average and college entrance exams.

• Washburn University student Mary Hammel, Lecompton, is one of two students who recently received the True Blue Bod Award during the Student Organization Achievement Recognition banquet at Washburn University. The award is presented to the student who has contributed time, energy and support to the organization and its members.

Hammel is a senior at Washburn majoring in mass media. While at Washburn, she has been a member of the National Broadcasting Society and editor for the Washburn Review. She is the daughter of Bradley and Glenda Hammel, Lecompton.

• Mark Lawrence, an active member of the Lawrence Unitarian Fellowship, received the Prairie Star District Social Justice Award at the district meeting April 23-25 in Kansas City. Lawrence was selected for his work with a variety of environmental and social justice causes as well as his work with a small village in El Salvador.

• Washburn University students Thaddaeus Giddens and John Swinford, both of Lawrence, are two of 61 Washburn University students exploring new cultures by participating in several study abroad programs during the summer and fall 2004. Giddens received a scholarship to participate in a study abroad program in Cuba this summer. He is a junior majoring in business. Swinford, a junior majoring in criminal justice, will focus on criminal justice studies in England.

• Rupert Pate, Lawrence, was named Distinguished Educator of the Year at Benedictine College, Atchinson, where he teaches history. He received the award April 21 during a banquet at the college.