Month: May 2016

Alcott to present Saturday art exhibit with comic book theme

Alcott Arts Center, 180 S. 18th, will present a second Saturday art exhibit and reception at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, May 14.

Zachary Hill will present acrylic paintings, “DC Comic’s Heroes and Villains,” said Chris Green, executive director of the Alcott Center.

Hill is a junior at the University of Kansas, where he is studying illustration and graphic design.

He painted superheroes and villains, then took some of his paintings and made them face cards in a deck of cards, Green said.

His show at the Alcott runs until June 3.

A similar theme will be at the “Comic Book and Sports Art Exhibit” June 11 at the Alcott Arts Center, she said.

Artists Darryl Woods and Anthony Oropeza will present their artworks then. They have both done some sports and comic book art.

Woods is a 1975 Wyandotte High School graduate. Oropeza, an Argentine area resident, with Strong Avenue Studios, has created a Latino superhero, Amigoman.

Oropeza is now getting a comic book published, Green said. He enjoys talking to students in area schools about art and Amigoman.

Woods and Oropeza are expected to be at ComicCon next weekend at Bartle Hall, she added.

Also this weekend, the Alcott is having auditions for the Shakespeare play, “Twelfth Night,” from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, she said. There will be cold reading from the script.

The Alcott Center is not ADA accessible yet. For more information visit www.alcottartscenter.org or call 913-233-2787.

KCKCC and Lansing grad Lendway to Alaska-Fairbanks

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC

Kansas City Kansas Community College star Joe Lendway is taking his basketball career all the way to Alaska.

A sophomore from Lansing, Lendway has signed a letter of intent to attend the University of Alaska-Fairbanks.

“They saw me in the national tournament and really liked me,” said the 6-7 power forward, who was offered a full scholarship immediately after the Blue Devils were eliminated in the national tournament in mid-March. “I’m excited. Besides receiving a full ride, I’ve wanted to live on my own. I’ve never been able to experience dorm life.”

One of the best benefits is that while he’ll be living in the nation’s coldest state, he’ll begin his career in Hawaii where the Nanooks will be taking part in an early season jamboree.

The son of Krista and Paul Hudalla, Lendway and his mother visited the Fairbanks campus which is the flagship of the Alaska school system. Founded in 1917, it has 7,562 students and is a member of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.

“I really liked the team and the coaches and it’s so beautiful up there,” Lendway said.

“We’re really excited about Joe joining our program,” Nanooks coach Mick Durham said. “Joe will bring a physical presence on the inside for us but has also demonstrated a pretty solid skill set as well.”

Fairbanks is coming off an outstanding 22-8 season that saw the Nanooks reach the Great Northwest championship game for the first time in history and set a record for the most conference wins in a season (15-5), a feat that earned them selection as HERO Sports’ NCAA Division II Breakout Team of the Year.

While Lendway played power forward at KCKCC, Durham said he will be moved to the post at Fairbanks.

“We lost both of our centers to graduation this spring so Joe will help fill that void for us,” Durham said. “Joe has been on three very successful teams over the last three seasons and been the main force on the inside for all those teams. He will bring a lot of competitive experience to our team next season.”

As a high school senior, Lendway helped lead Lansing to an undefeated season and the Class 5A state championship and then started every game in his two years at KCKCC, leading the Blue Devils to a 23-9 record last year and 22-13 mark this season and the Blue Devils’ first ever appearance in the NJCAA Division II national tournament.

As a freshman, Lendway finished second in scoring (13.2) and led the Blue Devils in rebounding (5.1), field goal percentage (.599) and blocked shots. A first team All-Region VI selection this season, he led the region in field goal accuracy (.583) and was fourth in rebounding (6.6) while averaging 12.9 points and 1.2 assists.

“He’s been the key to our success the last couple of years,” KCKCC coach Kelley Newton said. “One of our captains, he’s been a leader and a rock in our program. Very consistent, you knew exactly what you were going to get game in and game out. He will truly be missed and leaves big shoes to fill for whomever comes after him.”

In addition to his play on the basketball court, Lendway immersed himself in campus life at KCKCC. Vice president of the Student Senate, he took part in numerous non-athletic activities on campus all the way from serving pancakes to decorating for the holidays.

“I hope to get as involved as I was here (at KCKCC),” Lendway said.”I’ve had a great time at KCKCC. The first year I didn’t know very much but got to know everyone and really got involved in school.”

Lendway is the fifth player to sign with Alaska-Fairbanks, joining two other transfers and two freshmen.

Sentence handed down in cold case

A 37-year-old Olathe, Kan., man was sentenced to 17.6 years for attempted first-degree murder and 12.9 years for rape on Thursday in Wyandotte County District Court.

Jibri Liu-Kinte Burnett was sentenced in a plea agreement. The sentences will run concurrently, according to the Wyandotte County District Attorney’s office. Burnett also was ordered to register as an offender for life.

A DNA match brought about the conclusion to the cold case.

According to the district attorney’s office, a victim was sleeping in her home in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Kansas City, Kan., on Aug. 17, 1999, when an unknown male intruder broke into her home, violently raped her, and stabbed her multiple times.

The victim crawled to her neighbor’s porch for help, and she was unrecognizable because of the severity and extent of her injuries, the district attorney’s office stated. The neighbor called 911, and the Kansas City, Kan., police and EMS responded. The victim was in critical condition and was taken to a hospital, where she underwent life-saving surgery. A sexual assault kit was performed and evidence was entered into a database.

A “John Doe” case was filed in 2001 using the unique DNA profile recovered from the sexual assault kit, prosecutors stated. The investigation was never closed, but there were times when no leads meant the investigation was inactive.

The case was examined again beginning in late 2014 by Wyandotte County assistant district attorneys and Kansas City, Kan., police detectives as part of the Wyandotte County District Attorney’s office unresolved major case initiative, a spokesman said.

During the review, it was discovered that a “hit” in the database later matched the DNA profile of Burnett. The discovery of the “hit” caused detectives to follow up on numerous newly developed leads. Detectives ultimately took Burnett into custody on May 27, 2015, and he confessed, the district attorney’s office stated.

The sentence was imposed by Judge Bill Klapper in Division 8 of the Wyandotte County District Court. The case was investigated by the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department and prosecuted by assistant district attorneys Kristiane Bryant and Jennifer Tatum.