Multimedia Reporting (Bradford-Noland)

After a car accident in 1995, Jarvis Stirn thought he would never be able to play sports the way he used to. “I liked regular basketball, but I didn’t think wheelchair basketball was going to be the same thing,” Stirn said.

Then one night, it all changed. Stirn, 32, Lawrence resident, got a call from the Kansas Wheelhawks wheelchair basketball team to come check out a practice in Topeka. The Kansas Wheelhawks are comprised of players from eastern Kansas, including the Topeka and Lawrence area.

“I came down here to play and practice and I knew I would keep on coming back. There’s such a heart racing feeling to get out there and be active and compete against other people on wheelchairs.”

The U.S. Surgeon General issued a health warning in 1996 recommending that every person should include at least 30 minutes of physical activity all or most days of the week to maintain or lose weight. However, people with disabilities are more sedentary than the average person, causing them to get less physical activity than the recommended amount.

A new study, Project Workout on Wheels, will assist people who have mobility impairments by helping to increase their weekly physical activity. The researchers are looking to recruit up to 180 participants, ages 18 to 65, from the Kansas City, Mo., area over the next three to five years, starting in 2007. During the study, participants will first receive a manual including the importance of physical activity, and then learn how to integrate an exercise plan into their daily schedule.

“We’d like to have an aerobics class three times a week, but people have different schedules. Our goal is to help people find activities that they like to do, in their own homes and neighborhoods. They can wheel around their neighborhood or go to a local recreation center, because that way they can sustain the activity after the study is done,” said Dot Nary, University of Kansas doctoral student in applied behavioral science and research assistant for the study.

Participants will be a part of the study for 12 months. They will first set goals for daily exercise, for as little as 15 minutes a day, a few days a week. As the participants stabilize their activity after a couple weeks, they can increase their goals, Nary said. In addition to exercise on their own time, participants are also required to take an exercise and fitness test at the KU Med Center.

The exercise test will examine weight and height to determine a participant’s Body Mass Index. Then the participants will lift hand weights increasing in weight as well as a stationary arm cycle with different levels of resistance. These tests measure a participant’s strength. The study will also use equipment that measures the amount of oxygen exerted while exercising, which will measure how the heart is working. The participants will also be required to take a written test that asks questions pertaining to how they feel about their physical activity, depression, and their ability to participate in the community. The test will be administered four times during the study: at the beginning of the study, after 12 weeks, 6 months and 12 months, to measure the improvement of weight, strength, and psycho-physiological effects.

A pilot test group of seven participants started the study in August, but no tangible data is available yet. However, Nary said that the pilot study showed that participants got more physically active. Project Workout on Wheels will launch its official first group of about 30 participants in January 2007.

Nary named health benefits of daily physical activity, such as keeping your heart healthy, relieving depression and preventing diabetes. “It’s important to adopt these health habits, and it’s important that we have programs out there for people to learn that health can exist in the context of disability,” Nary said.

Another purpose of the study is to educate people of their options, although these options are still limited. When asked what sort of exercise a person who uses a wheelchair is able to do, the average person and many physicians don’t know how to respond, Nary said.

“When we think of physical fitness, activity, and exercise, we don’t think of people in wheelchairs and what they can do. But it’s even more important, because people in wheelchairs are not getting the exercise from walking, so we need to make sure we get it some other way to get our heart rate up,” Nary said.

The study will suggest different ways to involve physical activity in a routine, including: wheeling in the neighborhood or indoor mall, seated aerobic videos, using equipment at a local fitness center, lifting light hand weights, swimming or treading water, and stretching. Others might want to participate in more rigorous wheelchair sports, such as basketball, softball or tennis.

Stirn and the Kansas Wheelhawks have found a way to keep their heart rate up and have fun. The Kansas Wheelhawks works with Kansas Accessible Sports, Inc., a non-profit organization to try to get other wheelchairs sports in the Eastern Kansas area. Ray Petty, president of Kansas Accessible Sports, Inc., has been working to raise enough money so that people who don’t have enough disposable income can participate in wheelchair athletics.

“Usually with disability, comes poverty and comes under-employment,” Petty said. But Petty said he believes that participating in sports is imperative for anybody, especially children with disabilities. Petty said that children growing up with disabilities could have a lack of social skills and confidence.

“This is an opportunity to get kids together for competition. The camaraderie and the confidence they develop carries over to their mental state,” Petty said.

No matter what is going on or what work you have, Petty said, if you have a scheduled regiment of exercise with a team, you become dedicated to that. “It’s not just fitness. It’s an opportunity to be regular.”

Petty and Stirn both play wheelchair basketball for exercise and competition. Stirn said that exercise for people in wheelchairs helps keep the weight off as well as increase circulation to legs, feet, and toes.

“Seventy percent of your energy is burned up through your legs. So, when you’re in a wheelchair, you’re not using that energy. You’re eating the same amount that you’re used to, but then you’re not burning those calories up,” Stirn said.

Wheelchair basketball is not the only option for people who use wheelchairs. Bob Mikesic, 55, Lawrence resident, enjoys swimming and wheeling on nature trails.

“I do it for personal enjoyment because it seems to improve my concentration and the ability to get me through the day with enough energy to get myself motivated,” Mikesic said.

Mikesic, Petty, and Nary have been working with Tim Laurent, of Lawrence parks and recreation, to get the City of Lawrence more accessible to wheelchair users, including public buildings, swimming pools and recreation centers. Mikesic said that after examining the city recreation centers, many of the centers have accessible parking and entrance to the building, but not the adequate equipment for people who use wheelchairs.

“It’s not quite the same set-up as what fitness centers purchase for common practice for others in the community. There’s a different approach. Equipment needs to be purchased with a seated user in mind,” Mikesic said.

Laurent said that the city of Lawrence has been working to improve the amount of accessible equipment available. The city purchased two Vita-Glide Promachines, which is a machine that is made especially for seated users. The first machine was delivered to the East Lawrence Recreation Center, 1245 E. 12th St., on Dec. 6, and the second machine will be installed at the Community Building, 115 W. 11th St., in January 2007.

After the purchase of the Vita-Glide Pro machines, Laurent said there are no more plans to purchase new equipment specifically for wheelchair users. However, the city is still examining the removal of benches at certain weight machines so that seated users may have easier access to other equipment.

As local recreation centers become more accessible, Nary said participants in the Workout on Wheels study may use this option for their weekly exercise. The study will use self-monitoring and goal setting for participants to integrate physical activity into their lives, whether it’s in the comfort of their own home or shooting hoops with a wheelchair basketball team.

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University of Kansas astronomers and engineers have worked on designing and building the first lightweight optical telescope, ULTRA, and will start testing its use and accuracy by the end of the year.

Instead of telescopes that are made of steel and glass, which would weigh approximately 1,000 pounds, ULTRA contains mirrors made of lightweight carbon fibers, the same material that Air Force jets are made of, said Stephen Shawl, professor of astronomy. The use of this new technology will make the telescope approximately 100 pounds, Shawl said. The advantages of a lighter telescope makes it easier to move around, to replicate, to build, and will hopefully make it easier for space launch.

Not only will the technology of a lightweight telescope be useful for the greater astronomy community, but also the actual telescope will be used specifically for the KU department of astronomy for personal research, since there are no usable telescopes on campus.

“This will be the first time that KU will have a research telescope of its own. We have never had the freedom to have access for personal use,” said Barbara Anthony-Twarog, professor of astronomy.

ULTRA, Ultra Lightweight Telescope for Research in Astronomy, is a project that KU astronomers Shawl, Anthony-Twarog and Bruce Twarog, the principal investigator for the project, helped propose in December 2001 to the National Science Foundation. The astronomers, alongside two KU engineers, Composite Mirror Applications, Inc. in Tucson and San Diego State University, received a grant from NSF, and a matched research allocation from KU, that equaled about $1 million to kick off the research and development of ULTRA. The telescope is still in its final stages of construction at CMA, Inc. and should be installed at Mount Laguna Observatory in San Diego by winter break. KU and San Diego State University will share access to the telescope. KU astronomers will access the telescope remotely and receive images electronically.

Bruce Twarog, the principal investigator, said that others have attempted at a lightweight telescope in the past, but have not succeeded. Other groups gave up before because the carbon fibers used to make the lightweight structure of the mirrors were “printing through” onto the actual mirror, Twarog said. Other researchers did not discover how to get rid of the fiber prints on the mirror, which was distorting the data and images. Twarog said that their group resolved this issue, though. CMA, Inc. is using a pure resin that helps reduce the fiber-appearance to almost nothing.

“When people first started thinking about this in the 60s, they were thinking about observatories in the moon. It’s got to be light and maybe even foldable for a successful launch,” Twarog said. ULTRA will cut down costs for launching into space. Twarog said that the cost of a launch is driven by weight and if you cut down the weight, you can cut down the cost.

Once CMA, Inc. correctly makes a mold for the mirrors, more mirrors can be easily reproduced from the mold. A glass mirror would take months to create, whereas the new carbon fiber mirrors would take up to a week, Shawl said.

There are two main goals the group is trying to accomplish at this moment, Anthony-Twarog said. The first is to set up the telescope in the observatory and test it. The second is to demonstrate that this telescope performs as well as any other telescope.

“We need to be sure it’s accurate and functioning, and the optics themselves are properly aligned. We will test on certain stars, the quality of images, and if the camera system obtains images correctly,” Shawl said.

After testing is done, the telescope system will work automatically. KU astronomers will be able to remotely operate the telescope and collect data and images here in Kansas, Shawl said.

“Ideally, the telescope would work robotically. Once the sun goes down, the dome will open, and the telescope will proceed to observe automatically,” Shawl said.

Anthony-Twarog said the group is looking forward. The success of this telescope will be great for the KU astronomy community and program because KU will have access to a telescope for the first time, as well as for the national astronomy community, because a lighter telescope could change the way that telescopes are used, she said.

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After rushing from the Student Involvement and Leadership Center, where she works during the day, to her Big Brothers, Big Sisters interview, then to Body Boutique to do her four-times-a-week workout, Angela King, 27, took a deep breath and exhaled. She stood with a bare rounded-face, hair pulled back in a low ponytail, and her skin glowed after coming straight from the gym. She heads to her apartment to relax by finishing "The Best Kept Secret" by Kimberla Lawson Roby, an African-American fiction novel. It had been a busy day.

King is a new member of the University of Kansas and Lawrence community. After finishing her masters in higher education at Old Dominion, she moved to Lawrence this summer to become the new assistant director for Fraternity and Sorority Life this fall.

“KU really brings me to Lawrence, not the other way around. I thought that it’d be a different experience because I attended a HBCU for my undergrad, a historically black college and university,” King said.

As a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Inc., a historically African-American sorority in the National Pan-Hellenic Council, and going to Hampton University, an HBCU private college, King brings fresh ideas and diversity to KU. Lawrence’s community brings King something a little different as well.

“I don’t have to be surrounded by black people. But not seeing people that look like me, is not a struggle, but something that I am very aware of,” King said.

King said that she went to the store to buy some products for her hair, and she could not find any. The store said that another could order it for her, but that they did not carry it regularly.

King is looking to join a graduate chapter of her sorority in Kansas City, to meet people that she can relate easily with. She also just joined the Lawrence planning committee for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s “Juneteenth Celebration.” These events celebrate the ending of slavery.

With her experience as a member of NPHC, she brings fresh eyes to the KU greek community, where she works with many student leaders and advises the three greek councils: Interfraternity Council, NPHC, and Panhellenic Association. The members of NPHC, an umbrella organization of historically-black greek letter fraternities and sororities, have connected with Angela because of her experience with NPHC in her undergraduate years.

“The students on NPHC value and respect her background, and she has developed a good working relationship with the students. But it’s not just that. It’s her ability to challenge them and support them,” said Laura Bauer, the director for Fraternity and Sorority Life.

Just as King brings diversity to KU, the university has given her a lot of diversity in her career as well. Not only does King work with Fraternity and Sorority Life, she teaches an “Orientation Seminar” class and will be apart of a leadership program for students, called LeaderShape.

“KU is better than I expected and gives me a wide range of experience. And this isn’t just fluff, I actually like coming to work. If I didn’t like a job, I’d know it by now,” King said.

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Third time's a charm for David Vertacnik, University of Kansas associate professor of ceramics. After applying for the Lawrence Percent for Art program twice before, he never imagined that he might get the opportunity to provide an original art piece for the new fire station on Wakarusa.

The Lawrence Arts Commission sponsors the Percent for Art program in Lawrence. A percentage of the construction funds are set aside to support an artist to design and construct artwork to accompany every new municipal building. Vertacnik is one of three finalists to create art for Fire Station No. 4.

"I'm a farm boy. The body and nature of my work shows a relationship to the land; it has a connectedness. This piece of work I am working on typifies that. I'd be honored to have it here in Lawrence," Vertacnik said.

With 40 applicants from around the country, the Percent for Art committee narrowed the selection down at the end of September. The three artists are now busy at work to create their proposals for presentation.

This specific committee is formed of "art experts" in the area, including a Lawrence arts commissioner, the fire chief, and an architect for the station.

"We are very fortunate in Lawrence to have such a successful Percent for Art program. We have a very high percentage of the construction money that each piece of art gets. The new project has $38,000 to work with, which is about two percent of the funds," said Liz Kowalchuk, co-chair of the Percent for Art committee and Lawrence arts commissioner.

The fire station is set to be complete in late November. With construction complete, Kowalchuk and the rest of the committee will evaluate the artists on Dec. 1. The evaluation will include a presentation of each artist's proposal and a model of the artwork. It will also include a timed question and answer period. From this, the committee will decide on the artist whose work will portray what will be best for the new fire station and its surrounding area.

"I think our local society really enjoys art. For the new station, not only will it be art, it will also represent a profession. We are hoping for it to be more abstract to incorporate our profession, the community, the area of eastern Kansas and Lawrence," said Rich Barr, Lawrence fire marshal and committee member.

This is the third station that will have an accompanying piece of artwork. At Station No. 5, the new headquarters for Lawrence Douglas County Fire Medical, the Percent for Art program just completed its commission for a bronze firefighter statue. It will be installed before the end of the year, Kowalchuk said. The Percent for Art program has provided 17 other art sculptures and displays around Lawrence since 1988.

Julee Kessinger, Overland Park senior, took ceramics one and two, both taught by Vertacnik. The classes were required for her textile design major, but she said she was thankful to have Vertacnik as a teacher.

“He was amazing. He loves his work and cares a lot about the success of his students. I think this is a great opportunity for him to show off his talent,” Kessinger said.

Vertacnik could not agree more. When he first started a career as a professor, he did not have much time to create a lot of work of his own.

“I guess I didn’t have the luxury to really venture out on my own. But, as my studio grew here, I was given the opportunity to work on bigger projects. I have always been interested in large scale art, especially in the public,” Vertacnik said.

In December, the Percent for Art committee will announce the chosen artist, and the original art piece will be installed summer 2007, Kowalchuk said.

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For three years, Mindy Mies, 34-year-old Lawrence resident who is visually impaired, has lived in a duplex that’s so small she doesn’t have room for a seeing-eye dog. In their two-bedroom duplex, Mies watches her three-year-old twin sons without the aide of anyone else. She has to fully trust in herself and her husband.

“When we moved, I gave up my dog. I gave up my freedom,” Mies said.

After Habitat approved the Mies family in February through an application and interview process, it will still wait four more months for construction to start on their house. Comfort Neighborhood, the new Lawrence Habitat project, is coming to life with volunteers working on the building of two sponsored homes so far. But with the rising cost of materials and supplies to build a house, sponsors are becoming harder and harder to find.

Since purchasing the four-acre site in 2004, developers have spent $520,500 to complete the payment, planning, sewers, streets, and preparation for the 16-house neighborhood. The original plan was to start the first house in spring 2006, but the preparation took longer than expected. By August, the neighborhood was ready for development.

Aug. 19 marked the first nail-driving ceremony for the Comfort Neighborhood, and volunteers started the construction of the second house on Sept. 16. Habitat needs to complete seven houses by June 30, 2007 with the remaining nine by summer 2008. Habitat for Humanity is facing a challenge trying to get enough sponsors to build that many houses on a short timeline.

“After Hurricane Katrina, the cost of building materials has increased so much that it now takes $60,000 to build a home,” said Ginger Ratzlaff, chair of fund development for Lawrence Habitat.

In 2004, the cost to build a Habitat house was $40,000. The cost increased to $50,000 in July 2005 and to $60,000 this year. This increase is affecting families who are living in less than accommodating conditions. It causes families to wait for organizations to sponsor the cost and building of a home. It will take a total of $385,000 for Habitat to build the projected seven houses, with $540,000 left for Habitat to complete the neighborhood.

The difference between the Comfort Neighborhood builds and most Habitat for Humanity builds, is these houses are not being “blitz-built,” which means from the first nail-driving to the finishing touches, volunteers build the house within about seven days. These houses will take 12-14 weeks to complete each, Ratzlaff said.

Mark Brooks, construction manager for Lawrence Habitat for Humanity, said that he does his job because of the amazing people that he encounters every day. Brooks is in charge of design and construction for the Comfort Neighborhood builds. Each house has the same design, with three bedrooms, one large bathroom, kitchen, dining area and living room. The homes are about 1100 sq. ft. Each home does not come with a garage, but Brooks designs different sheds for each house’s storage space. All sheds are 10 feet by 12 feet, which is the largest size of a building that does not need a building permit, Brooks said.

Brooks said volunteers work on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturdays starting at 9 a.m. On Tuesday, about 15 people volunteer to help build, 6-10 on Thursdays, and 30-35 on Saturdays. Outside of volunteers, Brooks said he hires professionals like electricians, cable and phone wirers, plumbers, and cement layers to make sure everything is perfect. Brooks said that the families have a big hand in helping as well. Each family member has to donate 225 total hours to Habitat for Humanity. The families must complete 50 hours before its house starts construction, 150 hours on its own house, and 25 hours after.

“This shows that Habitat is a continual process. We are all helping out each other,” Brooks said.

Mies will do most of her hours in the Habitat office because of her visual impairment. Mary Gordon of the Lawrence Noon Lions Club, an organization that provides care for the visually impaired, has been Mies’ mentor ever since Mies first started classes with Gordon after her eyes were removed as a toddler. The Lawrence Lions Club is working on sponsorship for the Mies’ new home. With all 58 clubs in the Northeast Kansas district, they are working to raise $13,500. Lions International will match its efforts at $11,500 and Habitat will double their efforts as well, Gordon said.

“Mindy is like a daughter to me. We want to help her in any way we can,” Gordon said.

Mies hopes that construction will start in January. “We are just so crowded. The older the boys get, the bigger they get. We really need room to stretch out. If we get this new house, I’ll be able to have a dog again. I want ownership and a sense of community,” Mies said.

Other families are still waiting for sponsors. The Priest family, whose house is said to start in November, is still unsure what organization will be able to provide sponsorship. Ratzlaff said that the University of Kansas student chapter and House that Greeks Built, the Greek community’s Habitat chapter, might sponsor the Priest home.

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