Donations still needed for holiday parade

Organizers of the Lawrence Old-Fashioned Christmas Parade still are seeking donations to keep the downtown event within its budget.

Parade organizers have received only about half as many donations as needed to fund the all-horse-drawn parade, which is expected to cost between $14,000 to $16,000. The parade will be at 11 a.m. Dec. 4 on Massachusetts Street between Seventh and 11th streets. Above is a scene from last year’s parade.

The organizing group is seeking donations from businesses or other parade enthusiasts. A $200 donation entitles the sponsor to a banner to be hung from a wagon or carriage in the parade.

Anyone interested in donating can stop by CornerBank, 4621 W. Sixth St., call the bank at 838-9400, or e-mail its president, Jim Adams, at jima@cornerbanks.com.

Donations are needed by Friday to ensure banners can be made in time for the parade.

Police report

Salvation Army kettle stand taken at store

Salvation Army officials said they were short-changed in their Red Kettle campaign because someone walked off with a kettle stand.

Mike Adams, bell ringer coordinator, said he discovered that the kettle stand was missing from the east door at Dillons, 1015 W. 23rd St.

“I just can’t believe it,” Adams said. “Why anyone needs a kettle stand is beyond me.”

The kettle stand costs about $150. A new one will have to be ordered if the stand doesn’t surface, said Adams and local Salvation Army director Rich Forney.

A report was filed with Lawrence Police, but Forney said no questions would be asked if the stand were returned.

“We would just like it back,” Forney said. “We need the extra dollars that having a kettle there would bring us.”

The local Red Kettle campaign began Nov. 13. About $16,300 has been collected, which is about $2,000 less than this time last year, Forney said.

Forney said this was the second year in a row that a kettle stand had been taken.

Recreation

State history museum to be open on Friday

Topeka — Looking for something to do the day after Thanksgiving?

The Kansas Museum of History and Center for Historical Research will be open during regular hours Friday.

The museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; the research center is open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The museum is at 6425 S.W. Sixth Ave. Admission is $4 for adults, $3 for seniors and $2 for students.

Police issue report in traffic fatality

The police report from a wreck that killed a motorcyclist Saturday afternoon on West Sixth Street has been forwarded to prosecutors, who will decide whether charges should be filed.

The written police report from the accident that killed 23-year-old Matthew L. Thompson was finalized Wednesday, when a summary was released to the public. The report indicates police drew blood from Heather Nguyen, 22, the driver of a pickup truck that struck Thompson.