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LAWRENCE -- More than 45 faculty members on the 2002 Wheat State Whirlwind Tour of the Heartland will wrap up a six-day journey on Friday, May 24, with stops at a power plant, a stone company, an opera house, a folk art center and an agricultural research institute in central Kansas.
The sixth annual tour is sponsored by Chancellor Robert Hemenway, who established it in 1997 to take new KU faculty and staff members out into Kansas communities to enhance their understanding of the state's culture, heritage, people and physical beauty.
The final day will begin with a 7:45 a.m. tour of the Russell Power Plant, where director Don Augustine will explain how the facility trades its by-products with other industries.
As part of an integrated plan, the energy center uses its heat exhaust to generate steam for the Russell Ethanol Plant, while the ethanol plant provides carbon dioxide to be used in an experimental process of enhanced oil recovery. The plan also includes exchanges with local grain growers and cattle feeders.
At Lucas, the faculty will tour the famed Garden of Eden, at 2nd and Kansas, and the Grassroots Arts Center, 213 S. Main St.
Samuel Perry Dinsmoor constructed the Garden of Eden over the course of about 20 years in the early 1900s. The garden includes an elaborate maze, 15 trees, flags and a mausoleum all created out of concrete. The curious attraction gets its name from Dinsmoor's history of the world, which begins with the Garden of Eden.
Nearby, the Grassroots Arts Center preserves and displays folk art to preserve cultural history. Center director Rosslyn Schultz will discuss preservation of folk art and cultural history, including the sculpture collection of the late Inez Marshall, who carved post rock limestone for more than 50 years.
In Sylvan Grove, Duane Vonada, owner of the Vonada Stone Company, 540 E. Quail Lane, will give a post rock demonstration to faculty members at the quarry.
Founded in 1986, the Vonada Stone Company is located 6 1/2 miles north of Sylvan Grove. The company specializes in engravings and graphics in native stone and creates sundials, birdbaths, mantle clocks and benches, in addition to stone posts.
The faculty will have lunch in Wilson's Czech Opera "House of Memories."
Built in 1901, the opera house was dedicated as the "House of Memories" by former Gov. John Carlin in 1969. Although Wilson has been declared the Czech capital of Kansas, the museum displays artifacts from all early area settlers, including German, French, English, Dutch and Italian.
On the way to Salina, the faculty will see Ellsworth County attractions Old Fort Harker and Mushroom Rock, the smallest state park in Kansas.
In Salina, Land Institute President Wes Jackson and senior scientist Stan Cox will discuss sustainable agriculture research with the KU faculty. The Land Institute is a 20-year-old nonprofit organization dedicated to sustainable agriculture, which seeks to develop an ecologically and economically sound agricultural model.
Upon leaving Salina, the tour will make its way east to return to Lawrence about 6 p.m.
The six-day tour took the faculty and staff members more than 1,300 miles around the state to stops in more than 20 communities, including Topeka, Emporia, Council Grove, Cottonwood Falls, El Dorado, Wichita, Dodge City, Greensburg, Montezuma, Garden City, Marienthal, Colby, Nicodemus, Palco, Logan, Hays and points of interest in between.
For more information about the tour, visit the Wheat State Whirlwind Web site, or call University Relations at (785) 864-3256.
Wheat State Whirlwind tour itinerary for Friday, May 24
6:30 a.m.: Load the bus
7 a.m.: Depart for Russell
7:45 a.m.: Arrive at the Russell Power Plant for the tour
8:45 a.m.: Depart for Lucas
9:30 a.m.: Arrive at Lucas and tour the Garden of Eden and the Grassroots Arts Center
10:30 a.m.: Depart for Sylvan Grave and the Vonada Stone Company
11 a.m.: Arrive at the Vonada Stone quarry for "post rock" demonstration
11:45 a.m.: Depart for lunch in Wilson
12 p.m.: Arrive in Wilson for lunch at the Czech Opera "House of Memories"
1 p.m.: Depart for Salina and the Land Institute
2:30 p.m.: Arrive at the Land Institute for presentation
4 p.m.: Depart for Lawrence
6 p.m.: Arrive back at the Kansas Union
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This site is maintained by University Relations, the public relations office for the University of Kansas Lawrence campus. Copyright 2002, the University of Kansas Office of University Relations. Images and information may be reused with notice of copyright, but not altered. kurelations@ku.edu, (785) 864-3256.