Local communities mark anniversary of 9/11
Remembering 9/11
Overland Park and Olathe are among the local communities that will mark Monday’s anniversary the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Overland Park will conduct a memorial service in the morning, and Olathe will host a 9-hour, 11-minute Patriots Run beginning at noon.
The Overland Park Police Honor Guard will lead that city’s service beginning at 7:30 a.m. Monday at the Fire Training Center, 12401 Hemlock St.
After the American flag is lowered to half staff and “Taps” is played, a wreath will be placed in front of the 3,000 names of 9/11 victims while “Amazing Grace” is played.
Bells will mark the times when planes struck the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, when another plane crashed in Pennsylvania and when the World Trade Center towers collapsed. Some will be accompanied by a flower ceremony.
The Olathe Patriots Run will take place at Mid-America Nazarene University, 2030 E College Way, from noon to 9:11 p.m. on Monday. About 300 runners and walkers registered last year.
Held on a one-mile, flat concrete loop, it’s billed as a family-friendly event suitable for runners of all ages and skill levels with plenty of music. Many participants can run when and as long as they like, but the marathon and half marathon start at noon. The 5K begins at 6:30 p.m.
Visit patriotsrun.org for more information about specific events and to sign up.
Overland Park will mark 9/11 with an early-morning memorial service.
Old Settlers event this weekend
Continuing a tradition that dates to the late 1890s, the Johnson County Old Settlers Association will present its annual festival this weekend in downtown Olathe.
The event begins Thursday and concludes on Saturday.
The event includes carnival rides, antique cars, arts and crafts, horseshoes, treats like ice cream and Grange pups, evening entertainment and, at 10 a.m. Saturday, what’s billed as the largest parade in Kansas.
The fun starts at noon Thursday, 10 a.m. on Friday and 9 a.m. Saturday, and continues until well past dark each evening. The crowning of little “Sweet Six” will take place at 6 p.m. Thursday.
Find details at johnsoncountyoldsettlers.com and the group’s Facebook page.
Spinach Festival sprouts up Saturday
Once upon a time, back in the 1930s, the Lenexa area became known as the Spinach Capital of the World.
Truck farmers, many from Belgium, grew the stuff in fertile soil well-suited to the purpose. With railroads close by, these entrepreneurs shipped spinach and other produce to Chicago and other points east
On Saturday, the community will celebrate that heritage with its annual Spinach Festival, held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Sar-Ko-Par Trails Park, 87th Street Parkway and Lackman Road.
Those who visit the free event will see the world’s largest spinach salad and enjoy food, music, arts and crafts and activities for kids, including baby-crawling and rock-skipping contests.
Also on tap is a spinach recipe contest with four categories, including dessert.
Parking is tight at the park so free shuttles will run every 10 minutes or so from the Lenexa Public Safety Complex, 12500 W. 87th St. Parkway and the business parking lot on southeast corner of 95th Street and Lackman Road.
Learn more at the city website, www.lenexa.com. Click “Things to Do” then “Festivals & Events.”
Wonderscope nearly halfway in capital campaign
Wonderscope Children’s Museum, now at 5700 King St. in Shawnee, says it has raised 40 percent of $12 million capital campaign in advance of the museum’s move to the Red Bridge Shopping Center in south Kansas City.
The total so far includes two major pledges have been received from The Regnier Family Foundation and The Sunderland Foundation.
The money will help Wonderscope expand programming and update exhibits in its new, larger location. Current plans are to break ground for the building early next year and make the move in mid-2019.
“Without such strong community involvement, Wonderscope would not be able to achieve its mission of sparking a lifelong love of learning through the power of play,” Roxane Hill, executive director of Wonderscope, said in a news release.
The museum was founded in 1989. Officials there hope a more central Kansas City area location will provide greater visibility and accessibility, leading to more participation by schools, families and children — including lower-income communities.
Vintage car event will help the color-blind
Brill Eye Center will host an event from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday that’s designed to raise money for EnChroma eyeglasses that can brighten the world for people who are color-blind.
The Plymouth Owners Club will bring more than 50 vintage cars to the Brill parking lot at 5820 Lamar Ave., where food and beer will be served as the center tries to raise $5,000 for the glasses.
Red-green color blindness affects 8 percent of men and 1 in 200 women – about 85,000 people in the Kansas City area and 13 million nationwide, the Brill Eye Center said in a news release. To those who are color-blind, the world appears dull and washed out. Some colors cannot be distinguished, which can make it difficult to interpret color-coded information in school or at work.
The glasses don’t cure color-blindness, but enhance color perception. They work for about four in five color-blind people.
This story was originally published September 5, 2017 at 3:44 PM with the headline "Local communities mark anniversary of 9/11."