Around and about

Ryan and Lisa Graves, Lawrence, announce the birth of their son, Benjamin James Graves, born Oct. 8, 2007, at Lawrence Memorial Hospital.

Benjamin has a brother, Kyle, 1.

His maternal grandparents are James and Eilleen Milam, Riverside, Calif. Paternal grandparents are Richard and Barbara Graves, Oceanside, Calif.

¢The Old West Lawrence Applause Committee an-nounces the final round of awards for 2007. Awards are given to neighborhood residents who have made significant improvements to their property, thus benefiting the neighborhood as a whole.

Steve Lopes and Lois Orth-Lopes, 704 Ohio, found that large trees inhibited the growth of their lawn. They replaced the grass by creating terraces of rock and mulch, accented with small shade plants. The couple also planted dozens of bulbs in the mulch.

Mark Kramer, 736 Miss., for the second time receives an Applause award for rehabilitating a turn-of-the-century house. His work includes an addition of a screened-in porch.

Angie Blair, 740 Miss., has brought life to her Cotswold Cottage-style house with a peach exterior, accented by a sky blue front door, the committee noted. She also added a wrap-around deck, tile roof and new shrubs.

Sally Howard, 811 Ala., painted her home a Cape Cod blue, complemented by white trim and a bright red front door.

¢Daniel Flick, a patrol officer with the Baldwin City Police Department, graduated from the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center near Hutchinson on Oct. 12.

The course fulfills the state requirement for law enforcement training and includes classroom lectures and hands-on applications. Students began the 14-week basic training program July 9.

¢Alan Parker Martinez has been accepted to the Kansas University School of Medicine and plans to begin medical studies in fall 2008.

Martinez is a 2003 graduate of Free State High School, and he plans to graduate from KU in May 2008 with a degree in biology.

He is the son of Dr. John Martinez and the late Pamela Martinez.

¢Cordley School captured the first-place trophy in the K-6 division, and Southwest Junior High School claimed the second-place trophy in K-8 at the Washburn Rural High School Chess Tournament on Oct. 20 in Topeka. Individual first-place winners from Lawrence were Southwest’s Andrei Elliott in K-8; and Wakarusa Valley School’s Robert Newman in K-6.

Other Lawrence medal winners include:

K-12: Kellen Cross, Free State High School, second.

K-8: Jason Chang, Southwest, second; Cal Young, South Junior High, third; Zack Curran, Central Junior High, fifth.

K-6: Roscoe Bradt, Cordley, second; Aaron Simon, Quail Run School, third; McCarthy Fitch, Cordley, sixth; Ting-Ting Shi, Quail Run, 10th; Byron McClelland, Cordley, 11th; George Wedge, Cordley, 12th; and Colin Bradt, Cordley, 26th.

¢The Lawrence Sustainability Network is hosting a community potluck with Ken Lassman, author of “Wild Douglas County.” The event is set for 6:30 p.m. today at Ecumenical Christian Ministries, 1204 Oread Ave. A donation of $2 is suggested to cover rental costs.

Lassman will discuss insights into our relationships with the natural world from a bioregional perspective, and his book will be available for purchase.