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Twelve flag-draped caskets stood next to twelve smiling portraits of the first responders who died in last week’s explosion in West.

In front of each stood a uniformed figure. Some old and some young, some with the decorations of rank and office and some unadorned. Periodically a column of similar figures would march in front and raise a hand slowly in a salute. With a quick step to the side, the first responders change places and continue their vigil — a vigil they held from early Thursday morning until the service concluded Thursday evening.

George W. Bush shed a sentimental tear. Barack Obama mused about the burdens of the office. Bill Clinton dished out wisecracks. Jimmy Carter and George H.W. Bush chimed in, too, on a rare day of harmony at the dedication of the younger Bush’s presidential library that glossed over the hard edges and partisan divides of five presidencies spanning more than three tumultuous decades.

The Baylor Bears host the Texas Longhorns this weekend for the last home Big 12 Conference baseball series of the season. The Bears are 21-20 overall and 8-6 in Big 12 play.

The Bears are currently fourth in the Big 12 behind Oklahoma, Kansas and Kansas State.

After splitting back-to-back double headers against nonconference opponents, the No. 14 Baylor Lady Bears will resume conference play with a series against the Kansas Jayhawks today through Sunday in Lawrence, Kan.

“Going into the Kansas house, I know that they are always ready to play us,” senior center fielder Kathy Shelton said. “They always hit the ball well, so hopefully we just have it all together as a team and we go in there and get a sweep.”

Junior forward Cory Jefferson announced Thursday that he will be returning for another year and will not enter the NBA Draft.

After a breakout season, Jefferson was projected to be a late pick in the 2013 NBA Draft if he decided to enter.

After months of challenges and uncertainty, former Baylor midfielder Hanna Gilmore found a home with the Chicago Red Stars as she signed to the team’s final roster as part of the newly formed National Women’s Soccer League. As she adjusts to her new life as a professional soccer player, Gilmore answered some questions about the journey she is on and what the future may hold for her.

The fishing trip off the rugged north coast of St. Lucia was supposed to last all day, but about four hours into the journey, the boat’s electric system crackled and popped.

Dan Suski, a 30-year-old business owner and information technology expert from San Francisco, had been wrestling a 200-pound marlin in rough seas with help from his sister, Kate Suski, a 39-year-old architect from Seattle. It was around noon April 21.

An original copy of “Poor Richard’s Almanac,” printed by Benjamin Franklin himself, has been purchased by the Baylor Central Libraries.

The 1761 edition of the iconic colonial publication was purchased this week from an Austrian rare book and antiquities seller for $6,500.

With its new expansion, Baylor is becoming more residential. Most freshmen are already required to live on campus. According to Baylor’s Pro Futuris, Baylor wants to add to the on-campus experience.

In order to do this, one of the aims is to “continue to increase the percentage of undergraduate students who live on campus and who participate in living-learning and residential college communities.”

When I first arrived at college, my primary expectation toward food consisted of Ramen, dining halls and Easy Mac.

Anyone who has ever eaten at Penland can see why these thoughts contain an elevated level of gloominess. However, my outlook broadened as I made friends with people who lived off campus.

Each year, Baylor hosts the Senior Bachelor of Fine Arts Exhibition where graduating seniors can display their work.

The event began Tuesday with a reception and will run through Sunday at the Martin Museum of Art in the Hooper-Schaefer Fine Arts Center in galleries 1 and 2.

This weekend, people who wish to raise money in support of cancer patients can do so in a unique way — by running and spending time with miniature donkeys.

The American Cancer Society in Waco will host their first ever Donkey Dash, which is a 5K marathon, from 7 to 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the McLennan Community College Highlander Ranch on 223A Cobbs Ln., . Contestants can eat breakfast tacos, visit a corral of miniature donkeys and run or walk in honor of someone who has battled with cancer. Contestants may register at the event. The 5K run is $30 and the one-mile run is $25. Children may participate in the one mile run for $20.

Fans of music don’t want to miss Monday’s Wind Ensemble concert.

The performance will feature distinguished guest conductor H. Robert Reynolds and will also see the world premiere of the 2012 Baylor Composition Contest’s winning composition.

Baylor’s chapter of Delta Epsilon Psi will host its first-ever Project Come Together for Waco elementary students.

Project Come Together, which was created 14 years ago by a Delta Epsilon Psi chapter in Austin, celebrates the accomplishments of elementary students completing their standardized tests for the year.

Medical and recreational marijuana may be legal in Colorado, but employers in the state can lawfully fire workers who test positive for the drug, even if it was used off duty, according to a court ruling Thursday.

The Colorado Court of Appeals found there is no employment protection for medical marijuana users in the state since the drug remains barred by the federal government.

By Greg DeVries Sports Editor Junior forward Cory Jefferson announced today that he will be returning for anther year. After a breakout year, Jefferson was projected to be a late pick in the 2013 NBA Draft if he decided to enter. “Everything went into this decision,” Jefferson said. “It was probably one of the biggest decisions of my life. Before this time, I’d say it was the redshirt, but that decision was a breeze compared to this one.” During the season, Jefferson averaged 13.3 points and eight rebounds per game while shooting better than 70 percent from the free throw…

The Baylor men’s choir will host the White Sock Benefit Concert at 7:30 p.m. today in Jones Concert Hall to gather socks to donate to the Maasai Girls School in Kenya. They ask all audience members to come bearing white socks.

“Danny from North Korea” will be screened at 6:30 p.m. today in the Bill Daniel Student Center Den to help bring awareness about the North Korean human rights and humanitarian crises.

The White House has announced several changes to today’s memorial service that will honor the 10 firefighters killed April 17 in the West fertilizer explosion.

Doors will now open at 11 a.m. and close at 1:45 p.m. or whenever the Ferrell Center reaches capacity, which is 10,284 people. In a statement released Wednesday night, the university said it expects more than 4,000 uniformed first responders to attend and are planning for a capacity crowd.

Delta Delta Delta hosted a race of 1,440 ducks — rubber ducks, that is — who swam to the finish line Wednesday at the Baylor Marina to raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Sorority members sold $5 tickets for a rubber duck so that on the day of the race ticket-holders could match their ticket to the winning ducks.

Applications for a teaching in Thailand program will be available to May graduates until this Saturday, less than a month before they are selected to leave for Bangkok.

The Chitralada Palace School teaching program will allow Baylor graduates the opportunity to teach English as a second language to Thai children from May 20, 2013 to March 31, 2014.

After 35 years of paper evaluations, students can grade their professors and classes online from home.

Course evaluations began Monday and will end May 8. Students can access their online evaluations through Blackboard and will be directed to a third-party vendor that compiles the data.
For security reasons, these evaluations will not be available for professors or department chairs to see until after final grades are posted, and there will be no identifying features on how students rate their professors in the evaluation, unless they identify themselves in the open comment sections.

The investigation into poisoned letters mailed to President Barack Obama and others has shifted from an Elvis impersonator to his longtime foe, and authorities must now figure out if an online feud between the two men might have escalated into something more sinister.

Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, was released from a north Mississippi jail on Tuesday and charges against him were dropped, nearly a week after authorities charged him with sending ricin-laced letters to the president, Republican U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi and an 80-year-old Lee County, Miss., Justice Court judge, Sadie Holland.

Two former Baylor receivers are hoping to hear their names called at the NFL Draft that starts today and ends Saturday.

Terrance Williams, the unanimous All-American performer, is expected to be the earliest Baylor player selected in the NFL Draft. Another Baylor receiver, Lanear Sampson, is also expected to be selected in the NFL Draft.

The Baylor men’s golf team participated in the Big 12 Men’s Golf Championship in Hutchinson, Kan., at the Prairie Dunes Country Club this week.

The Bears finished sixth overall, shooting 55-over-par with a total score of 895.

The Bears joined a field of eight other Big 12 schools that included every school in the conference except West Virginia.

Less than 48 hours before the 4-1 thrashing of Real Madrid, it was announced that Borussia Dortmund midfielder Mario Götze would join rival team Bayern München. Immediately, fans began to call him Judas and burn his jerseys.

The apparel design and product development students are preparing to present their clothing at the annual Family and Consumer Sciences fashion show May 5. The Lariat sat down with one of these students, London, UK, senior Helena Stefanowicz. She is graduating in December and is showcasing her senior collection at the fashion show next month. She is one of nine senior designers taking part in the show.