Local briefs

National Guard honors KU student

A Kansas University student has been named the state’s “soldier of the year” by the Army National Guard.

Spc. Gabriel Bailey, from Ellsworth, is a medic assigned to the 127th Field Artillery based in Lawrence. He’s studying human biology at KU and hopes to become a physician’s assistant with the Guard.

Bailey was selected last month by a board of noncommissioned officers who judged him on navigation skills, marksmanship and other military protocols.

He now advances to the regional level in the Guard competition April 8 in Fort Dodge, Iowa.

Tour to teach children about artifacts

The Watkins Community Museum of History will have a discovery course to allow children to find out more about the museum and artifacts housed at the museum, 1047 Mass.

The session is open to children ages 5-7 and will teach them about pioneer days, electric-powered automobiles and Kansas University basketball.

Scheduled from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. March 24, the session costs $8 per child for members of the Douglas County Historical Society; $10 for nonmembers of the Douglas County Historical Society; and $5 for members of the Boys & Girls Club. To register, call 841-4109.

Coast Guard Auxiliary offers boating class

The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary will conduct a one-day safe boating class for the public on Saturday.

The class will be from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Hospital Auditorium, 325 Maine. The class is free.

Topics covered by the course include boat types and marine motors, pre-underway activities and trailering, boat handling and navigation rules, legal requirements, boating emergencies, operator responsibilities and water sports. An open-book examination will be administered at the conclusion of the course.

Completion of the boating class will satisfy the educational requirement of the state for people operating a motorboat, sailboat or personal watercraft.

To preregister for the course, call Shirley Higgins at 841-1419, or David Chaffee at (785) 887-6868.

Filmmaker donates documents to KU

An official with the former Centron Corp. has donated documents related to the 1969 film “Leo Beuerman” to the Kansas University department of theater and film.

Russell Mosser, co-founder of the Lawrence-based film company, donated the papers in February.

The film, which was nominated for an Academy Award for short-subject documentary, was about Beuerman, a Douglas County resident who was deaf, nearly blind and only about 3 feet tall. He became known for driving a tractor into downtown Lawrence, lowering himself into a homemade cart and selling pens and pencils on Massachusetts Street.

Oldfather Studios, which occupies Centron’s former facilities at 1621 W. Ninth St., is home to the department of theater and film.

“Acquiring these valuable documents will help our students better appreciate the tie to the tradition of excellence established by Centron, which for decades was one of the country’s top producers of educational films,” said Chuck Berg, chairman of theater and film at KU.