by Marc Beja

NEW YORK (AP)—The cast and crew of “The Lion King” is trying to save the life of one of its own.

Eleven-year-old actress Shannon Tavarez was forced to quit the Broadway show in April after she was diagnosed with leukemia. Her physician, Dr. Larry Wolfe, said Tavarez needs a bone marrow transplant, but has been unable to find the perfect match. A partial match has been found, but a better one is being sought.

NEEDS DONOR—Eleven-year-old Shannon Tavarez, who starred in the Broadway musical “The Lion King,” relaxes in her room in the Bellrose section of Queens, N.Y. Tavarez has leukemia.

More than 700 people showed up to a bone marrow donor registration on July 23 at the Minskoff Theater, where the show is performed, and hundreds more signed up online. Members of the cast and crew helped the potential donors swab the inside of their cheeks to see if their tissue type matched Tavarez’ or anyone else needing a transplant.

“Charlie has done as much for this community as any politician has for theirs or maybe more,” Herbert Collins, a retired transportation worker, said after Rangel gave a speech on health care. “He deserves another term because I don’t see anyone out there who can do any better.”

EMBATTLED CONGRESSMAN—Rep. Charles B. Rangel, D-N.Y., is greeted by a supporter as he arrives at a health care forum at Harlem Hospital, July 24, in New York.

MARSEILLE, France (AP)—Hospital authorities say Grammy-winning singer Al Jarreau will stay hospitalized in the French city of Marseille for three or four more days.

The Marseille Hospital Authority said July 25 that Jarreau is getting better and in good spirits but will stay in La Timone hospital for monitoring.

ON THE MEND—Al Jarreau, seven-time Grammy Award winner, performs during a concert at Festival Jazz des Cinq Continents in Marseille, southern France, July 21.

Jarreau’s manager, Joe Gordon, says he will undergo tests in Marseille and “hopes to resume his tour at the end of the coming week.”

The 70-year-old Jarreau was hospitalized in the Alps July 23 after suffering breathing problems in the mountains that forced him to cancel several concerts. He was moved to Marseille by helicopter Saturday.

by Brent Kallestad

ALBANY, Ga. (AP)—Former Agriculture Department official Shirley Sherrod, who was forced to resign after a blogger posted comments she made to an NAACP audience about race, is unsure about returning to a government job, she said July 23.

President Barack Obama told Sherrod he regretted her forced resignation and asked her to consider coming back. He also said in a nationally broadcast network interview he believes Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack “jumped the gun” in sacking her after just a few months with the USDA.

ANSWERING QUESTIONS—Shirley Sherrod answers questions during an interview at her home July 23, in Albany, Ga. Sherrod was fired from her job at the Agriculture Department amid accusations of racism.

She’s not so sure about returning to government work but would like to talk more with Obama about promoting togetherness across the country.