BREAKING NEWS
UPDATED AFTER PRINT DEADLINE
The football game between Tabor College and McPherson College scheduled for Oct. 20 in McPherson was canceled Thursday, said Scott Crawford, commissioner of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference. In a written statement, Crawford said the decision was based on a desire to honor Brandon Brown, a Tabor College student and football player who was found beaten unconscious Sept. 16 in McPherson and died Sept. 22.
A 400-acre farm five miles south of Peabody has been in the Janzen family for 135 years and is a Farm Bureau Century Farm. Norm Oeding, the operator, lives in the farmhouse built in 1933. He was hired by the Janzen family in 2007 after Mark and Hennie Janzen decided to retire from farming and the family decided to transition to organic farming methods.
A second McPherson College student has been arrested in connection with the death of Tabor College junior and football player Brandon Brown. DeQuinte Oshea Flournoy was arrested Sept. 26 and charged with aiding and abetting murder in the second degree. Alton L. Franklin had previously been arrested Sept. 22 and was initially charged with aggravated battery. The charge was amended to aiding and abetting murder in the second degree after Brown died Sept. 22. The 19-year-old defendants are both from Dallas, Texas, and were on the 2011 McPherson College football team but not on the 2012 team. They remained McPherson College students until they were suspended after their arrests. If convicted, they could be sentenced to up to 493 months in prison and fined up to $300,000.
The Central Kansas Community Foundation—Butler County, an affiliate of Central Kansas Community Foundation based in Newton, has announced the establishment of the Kansas Governor’s One-Shot Turkey Hunt endowment. In 1987, former Gov. Mike Hayden and Marv McCown, former executive vice president of the El Dorado Chamer of Commerce, founded the Governor’s One-Shot Turkey Hunt with the idea of inviting people in different professions to participate as celebrities hunting wild turkeys in central Kansas.
“The City of Peabody will sponsor the annual fall cleanup during the week of Oct. 15,” said Stephanie Ax, deputy city clerk. “Curb side pickup will be Oct. 19 only, but there will be roll-off dumpsters available at First and Olive streets on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday of that week.” Dumpsters will be available from 4 to 8 p.m. Oct. 15 and 17 and from 8 to 11 a.m. Oct. 20.
Marion County will soon have a prenatal care clinic at St. Luke Hospital in Marion. Dr. Shelley Overholt, a physician with Family Practice Associates of McPherson, will be seeing patients at the clinic. Services will include preconception counseling, prenatal care visits, and postpartum checkup. Lab work and ultrasound studies also may be conducted at St. Luke Hospital under her care.
Randall Burch, 83, of Roxbury died Friday. He was born Jan. 30, 1929, in Roxbury to Raymond and Jeannette Burch. He is survived by his wife, Delores; three daughters, Marsha Howe, Coleen Minns, and Sandra Brunsell; three sons, Kent, Ron, and Justin Burch; two brothers, Clifford Burch of Lockport, N.Y., and Wendell Burch of Gypsum; 11 grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.
Luetta A. Enns, 84, of Hillsboro died Thursday at Parkside Homes in Hillsboro. She was born Nov. 8, 1927, in Goessel to C.R. and Martha (Funk) Duerksen. She was a homemaker. She married Lauren Enns on May 7, 1948, in Lehigh.
Bertha Goentzel, 94, of Hillsboro died Monday at Parkside Homes in Hillsboro. She was born Nov. 18, 1917, to Jacob Helena (Schmidt) Unruh in rural Durham. She was a housewife. She married Clarence Goentzel on Aug. 21, 1940, in rural Durham. He preceded her in death in 1989.
Pauline King died Sept. 29, 2012, at Asbury Park in Newton, Kan., at the age of 90. She was born in Perryton, Texas, on Dec. 20, 1921, the daughter of William H. and Edna Smith Stevens. For many years Pauline lived in Wichita where she worked as a beautician. She later moved to the Marion County Lake where she lived for 30 years. While living at the lake she enjoyed fishing, knitting, and making quilts.
William R. “Bill” Romain, 96, passed away Saturday, Sep. 22, 2012, at McPherson Hospital. Bill was born July 4, 1916, in South Orange, N.J., to Burchard and Mabel (Reid) Romain. Poor health plagued him until a corrective surgery repaired a chronic condition at the age of 53. With his newfound health, Bill was inspired to begin running, a passion that lasted for decades. In 1986, Bill moved to McPherson, a place he described as a wholesome, friendly, and a dynamic community.
Art Suderman, 80, formerly of Hillsboro died Sept. 26 at Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice in Wichita. He was born May 6, 1932, in Hillsboro to Dan M. and Edna (Harder) Suderman. He was a farmer all his life.
There are two sides to Ron Dies alpaca farm, Prairie Wind Alpacas, in Lehigh. In one way, raising 25 alpacas is serious business. Ron Dies said that he does not want the animals too tame, coming up and wanting attention all the time. The alpacas are livestock and they should be focused on one thing — breeding.
When Jim and the late Joan Donahue started the Donahue Corporation 50 years ago in Durham, they started with a single product, the Farm Implement Carrier. The company has broadened its product selection considerably since then, to include stock trailers, flatbed trailers, even hydraulically operated expanding trailers.
When Reno Penner of rural Hillsboro says the milo crop looks pretty dismal this year, he knows what he is talking about. He has grown milo and wheat for 59 years, starting at the age of 17 when his father passed away and he took over the family farm. A dry land farmer, he knows a bit about raising milo and wheat. “It looks worse this year than ever before, even worse than last year,” Penner said. “I think it was the heat more than the drought that really put the milo in bad shape.”
Lauren Geis of Durham won top honors in senior swine showmanship two weeks ago at the 80th Kansas Junior Livestock Show in Wichita. A total of 704 Kansas youth exhibited 1,453 head of livestock at the show sponsored by the Kansas Livestock Association, Kansas State University, and the Agri-Business Council of Wichita. Geis — who also won first place in two classes of dark market barrows and first in class 2Duroc gilt, as well as third in Chianina breeding heifers and seventh in class 2 speckled market lamb —was part of a 24-member contingent of young livestock exhibitors from Marion County. Other Results Cedar Point Cody Parmley: 10th in light crossbred market barrow. Corin Parmley: sixth in meat goat, eighth in meat goat, 10th in crossbred market lamb, and 13th in crossbred market lamb. Durham Lisa Geis: third in commercial breeding heifer and fifth in natural market lamb. Hillsboro Mesa Merrill: fifth in meat goat and 11th in meat goat. Bryce Roberts: first in crossbred market lamb, and third in crossbred market lamb. Landon Roberts: 13th in commercial ewe lamb. Sa Rae Roberts: eighth in crossbred market lamb and eighth in commercial ewe lamb. Lincolnville Callie Riffel: third in Duroc gilt and fourth in dark crossbred market barrow. Jensen Riffel: sixth in dark crossbred market barrow and seventh in dark crossbred market barrow. Kailyn Riffel: second in Yorkshire market barrow and third in light crossbred market barrow. Marion Cassidy Hill: first in commercial ewe lamb, first in Hampshire market lamb, and second in Dorset breeding ewe. Peabody Tyler Entz: fifth in dark AOB gilt. Devon Gaines: eighth in commercial breeding heifer. Morgan Gaines: second in commercial breeding heifer. Jack Parks: sixth in dark AOB gilt. Tanner Parks: fourth in Duroc gilt. Tampa Cailey Barney: eighth in natural market lamb. Jared Barney: second in crossbred market lamb. Elizabeth Meyer: eighth in natural market lamb. Nicholas Meyer: 14th in commercial ewe lamb. Kara Riffel: sixth in meat goat and eighth in commercial doe kid. Karl Riffel: fifth in Duroc gilt, sixth in AOB breeding heifer, and sixth in commercial doe kid. Kyle Riffel: second in commercial doe kid, fourth in Duroc market barrow, and eighth in meat goat.
Joyce Carlson of Lincolnville has been in the cattle-feeding business since he was a teenager. He helped his father feed cattle while growing up just one mile across the Marion County line in Morris County. When Carlson got married, he and his father partnered to buy a farm just two miles south of the home place in Marion County. He developed his own cattle-feeding operation there, where he and his wife, Ruth Ann, lived for 65 years.
Lightning skittered between the clouds, gusts of wind carried hints of the smell of rain, and gritty dust swirled up from the tractor tires into my teeth and eyes last Tuesday night as my husband and I planted wheat. The adrenaline of the moment erased earlier disasters of the day. Tuesday is my day to work late at the newspaper office and things were not coming together in an orderly fashion. My cell phone continued to jingle as my husband called about the myriad of things that were going wrong back at the farm.
Marion County Commission signed an agreement with Dickinson County for emergency medical services. The agreement states that ambulances will be dispatched by the closest county based on the corresponding cell phone call.
After asking Marion Planning Commission member Ruth Herbel whether the plans for a tower met city zoning regulations, the Marion County Commission approved a 45-foot, monopole communications tower to be constructed near the new jail. The tower will cost the county $52,384. It will extend to 45-feet with the full length of the antennae. The commission originally wanted a 92-foot tower because it provided space for multiple antennas and to provide backup in case a repeater tower failed. TBS Communications Inc. representative Mark Graber said the tower should have no problem reaching or receiving from any of the repeaters in the county at the 45-foot height. The tower will be galvanized steel. It will be surrounded by a fence to separate it from adjacent properties.
Marion County Commission approved refinancing for two road graders for the Road and Bridge Department. The commission went with a bid from Cottonwood Valley Bank for 2.74 percent interest for five years. Road and Bridge Department has a maintenance agreement with Foley Equipment for the machines.
Marion County Economic Development Director Teresa Huffman attended the Kansas Association of Resource Conservation and Development Councils annual meeting Sept. 17 and 18 in Emporia. Huffman is also president of Flint Hills Resource Conservation and Development. Huffman saw presentations by Patty Clark, state director of rural development for U.S. Department of Agriculture. Clark reviewed federal changes and cuts and emphasized the importance of water in Kansas and the need to continue conservation efforts.
There is a strange phenomenon attached to writing opinion columns for this newspaper. There is a rule with the Hoch Publishing folks that directs me to keep my comments in the local arena. Luckily for me, I am not allowed to write about our political candidates, their issues, or our political combatants unless whatever they are doing is being done in Peabody. I am not a student of political issues and have no desire to share my thoughts with you on those topics. My job is to keep the topic of the opinion column local. Seldom have the Hoch Publishing people told me I could not print an opinion I have submitted. I doubt they have found my columns impressive, but I expect they have found them adequate. I am usually concerned about what goes into the opinion column each week. I try to think of things that are important to our community, but sometimes my topics miss that mark by a wide margin.
DAYS OF YORE:
Days of yoreHOPE IN THE HEARTLAND:
Religion and policiticsLETTERS:
More facts about Peabody City Park
The Sorosis Beta Club had its first meeting of the club year on Sept. 20 at Peabody City Park. Husbands were guests of the club members for a fried chicken picnic, with 22 in attendance.
Marion County senior centers will distribute food commodities from U.S. Department of Agriculture starting on Oct. 11. Each site will set its own schedule. Commodities are available based on income eligibility. The maximum monthly gross income to be eligible is $1,211 for a single person, $1,640 for a household of two, and $429 more for each additional member of the household.
Marion City Library will have a program about “Oceans in Kansas” at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Michael Everhart of the Kansas Humanities Council will talk about how Kansas has been the source of many important fossils. From giant marine reptiles to flying reptiles and birds with teeth, many important discoveries of now-extinct species came from rocks in western Kansas. Everhart’s presentation will take the audience back to a time when the state was covered by an ocean and ruled by giant marine reptiles larger than most dinosaurs. The public is encouraged to bring any fossils they may have for Everhart to look at and describe. For more information, call Marion City Library at (620) 382-2442.
Goessel will have its annual Harvest Festival on Saturday. Events include a 5-kilometer run at 8 a.m. starting in front of Goessel High School, the firefighters’ pancake feed from 7 to 10 a.m. at the fire station, 214 E. Main St., free admission to the Mennonite Heritage and Agricultural Museum from noon to 5 p.m., 4-H petting zoo from 2 to 5 p.m. north of the library, a bouncy house and inflatables from 2 to 6 p.m., and bluegrass and gospel music by Jammin’ Biscuits from 6 to 8 p.m. at the stage south of the Goessel station.
The Marion Historical Museum will host a ghost tour, Oct. 20. Ghost trolleys will leave the museum at 7, 8, and 9 p.m. Children under the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Tickets may be purchased for $2 at the museum, Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or on Sunday from noon to 2 p.m.
Flu vaccines are available at the Marion County Health Department Office on Wednesdays, starting this week, according to health department nurse Deidre Serene. “We won’t have any shortage this year, but that doesn’t mean it still isn’t important to get vaccinated,” Serene said. “We have both the mist and the shots available.”
Two gals from Marion did their part this past year making purple baby hats to raise awareness for shaken baby syndrome. Kathryn Hein, age 94, crocheted 107 baby hats in the past few months for the Period of Purple Crying organization. Emmy Hess, age 12, did her part as well, crocheting five baby hats. Hein and Hess’s efforts, along with several other dedicated contributors, were recognized by statewide coordinator Anne Auld on Sept. 26 when she stopped at Down on the Corner in Marion to pick up the community’s collection of crocheted and knitted hats.
A woman was taken to Herington Municipal Hospital Monday with minor injuries incurred in a rollover accident on U.S. 56/77 near 330th Road in Marion County. Herington Ambulance was the first EMS service called and the first responder on the scene. Lost Springs and Marion fire departments also responded.
Retired pastors Mervin and Jane Dick will give the next presentation at Tabor College’s Lifelong Learning series at 9:45 a.m. Friday. Their presentation is “Traveling Without a Map,” about their life stories, including their battle with colorectal cancer. Both are Tabor College graduates and each holds a master of divinity degree — Mervin’s from Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary at Fresno, Calif., and Jane’s from Iliff School of Theology in Denver, Colo. They have served Mennonite Brethren churches in Kief, N.D., Weatherford and Edmond, Okla., and Fresno, Calif. They moved to Denver in 1984, and both were involved with inner-city relief work for 18 years there.
Callie and Cody Penner of Hillsboro are new members of the American Angus Association headquartered in St. Joseph, Mo. The American Angus Association is the largest beef breed association in the world with nearly 30,000 active adult and junior members.
CORRESPONDENTS:
Ammeter,
Burns
Several music groups will be performing Saturday in the Wohlgemuth Music Education Center Rehearsal Hall at Tabor College. The Tabor College Concert Choir, directed by Brad Vogel, will perform four spirited a capella pieces. Concerto Bella Voce, a new women’s choir directed by new assistant professor of choral music Janie Brokenicky, will perform three pieces, and Daniel Baldwin will direct the Chamber Strings.
Tabor College will be hosting a variety of activities during its homecoming celebration this weekend, including a fun run and Dutch lunch on Saturday. For those with young children, the education department will host activities from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. for children in pre-school through sixth grade. Former Tabor College President Larry Nikkel will conduct a book signing outside Java Jays at 10:30 a.m. Saturday for his new book, “Leading and Following.”
During his halftime speech to the Peabody-Burns High School Warriors football, coach David Pickens challenged his players to take care of their own responsibilities. His team had the slight edge, 30-28, in a tough-fought first half homecoming contest against Centre. “I just wanted them to stop the mistakes and play like I knew they could,” said Pickens. “I just said do your job and let your teammates do theirs. The rest will fall into place”
The Peabody-Burns Junior High School Junior Warriors are still in search of their first football victory this season. The squad lost Thursday to Rural Vista, 56-6. They will play at home against Little River Thursday. Rural Vista had a big first half, racking up 44 points on seven possessions.
The Peabody-Burns High School volleyball team finished third in Wheat State League play with two match victories on Sept. 18 at Elyria Christian. The team downed Solomon, 25-15 and 25-21, and defeated Elyria, 25-22 and 25-16. The team finished 6-2 in league standings behind 8-0 Goessel and 7-1 Centre and will next host Dig Pink Night at home. Solomon
BREAKING NEWS
UPDATED AFTER PRINT DEADLINE
The football game between Tabor College and McPherson College scheduled for Oct. 20 in McPherson was canceled Thursday, said Scott Crawford, commissioner of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference. In a written statement, Crawford said the decision was based on a desire to honor Brandon Brown, a Tabor College student and football player who was found beaten unconscious Sept. 16 in McPherson and died Sept. 22.
A 400-acre farm five miles south of Peabody has been in the Janzen family for 135 years and is a Farm Bureau Century Farm. Norm Oeding, the operator, lives in the farmhouse built in 1933. He was hired by the Janzen family in 2007 after Mark and Hennie Janzen decided to retire from farming and the family decided to transition to organic farming methods.
A second McPherson College student has been arrested in connection with the death of Tabor College junior and football player Brandon Brown. DeQuinte Oshea Flournoy was arrested Sept. 26 and charged with aiding and abetting murder in the second degree. Alton L. Franklin had previously been arrested Sept. 22 and was initially charged with aggravated battery. The charge was amended to aiding and abetting murder in the second degree after Brown died Sept. 22. The 19-year-old defendants are both from Dallas, Texas, and were on the 2011 McPherson College football team but not on the 2012 team. They remained McPherson College students until they were suspended after their arrests. If convicted, they could be sentenced to up to 493 months in prison and fined up to $300,000.
The Central Kansas Community Foundation—Butler County, an affiliate of Central Kansas Community Foundation based in Newton, has announced the establishment of the Kansas Governor’s One-Shot Turkey Hunt endowment. In 1987, former Gov. Mike Hayden and Marv McCown, former executive vice president of the El Dorado Chamer of Commerce, founded the Governor’s One-Shot Turkey Hunt with the idea of inviting people in different professions to participate as celebrities hunting wild turkeys in central Kansas.
“The City of Peabody will sponsor the annual fall cleanup during the week of Oct. 15,” said Stephanie Ax, deputy city clerk. “Curb side pickup will be Oct. 19 only, but there will be roll-off dumpsters available at First and Olive streets on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday of that week.” Dumpsters will be available from 4 to 8 p.m. Oct. 15 and 17 and from 8 to 11 a.m. Oct. 20.
Marion County will soon have a prenatal care clinic at St. Luke Hospital in Marion. Dr. Shelley Overholt, a physician with Family Practice Associates of McPherson, will be seeing patients at the clinic. Services will include preconception counseling, prenatal care visits, and postpartum checkup. Lab work and ultrasound studies also may be conducted at St. Luke Hospital under her care.
Randall Burch, 83, of Roxbury died Friday. He was born Jan. 30, 1929, in Roxbury to Raymond and Jeannette Burch. He is survived by his wife, Delores; three daughters, Marsha Howe, Coleen Minns, and Sandra Brunsell; three sons, Kent, Ron, and Justin Burch; two brothers, Clifford Burch of Lockport, N.Y., and Wendell Burch of Gypsum; 11 grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.
Luetta A. Enns, 84, of Hillsboro died Thursday at Parkside Homes in Hillsboro. She was born Nov. 8, 1927, in Goessel to C.R. and Martha (Funk) Duerksen. She was a homemaker. She married Lauren Enns on May 7, 1948, in Lehigh.
Bertha Goentzel, 94, of Hillsboro died Monday at Parkside Homes in Hillsboro. She was born Nov. 18, 1917, to Jacob Helena (Schmidt) Unruh in rural Durham. She was a housewife. She married Clarence Goentzel on Aug. 21, 1940, in rural Durham. He preceded her in death in 1989.
Pauline King died Sept. 29, 2012, at Asbury Park in Newton, Kan., at the age of 90. She was born in Perryton, Texas, on Dec. 20, 1921, the daughter of William H. and Edna Smith Stevens. For many years Pauline lived in Wichita where she worked as a beautician. She later moved to the Marion County Lake where she lived for 30 years. While living at the lake she enjoyed fishing, knitting, and making quilts.
William R. “Bill” Romain, 96, passed away Saturday, Sep. 22, 2012, at McPherson Hospital. Bill was born July 4, 1916, in South Orange, N.J., to Burchard and Mabel (Reid) Romain. Poor health plagued him until a corrective surgery repaired a chronic condition at the age of 53. With his newfound health, Bill was inspired to begin running, a passion that lasted for decades. In 1986, Bill moved to McPherson, a place he described as a wholesome, friendly, and a dynamic community.
Art Suderman, 80, formerly of Hillsboro died Sept. 26 at Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice in Wichita. He was born May 6, 1932, in Hillsboro to Dan M. and Edna (Harder) Suderman. He was a farmer all his life.
There are two sides to Ron Dies alpaca farm, Prairie Wind Alpacas, in Lehigh. In one way, raising 25 alpacas is serious business. Ron Dies said that he does not want the animals too tame, coming up and wanting attention all the time. The alpacas are livestock and they should be focused on one thing — breeding.
When Jim and the late Joan Donahue started the Donahue Corporation 50 years ago in Durham, they started with a single product, the Farm Implement Carrier. The company has broadened its product selection considerably since then, to include stock trailers, flatbed trailers, even hydraulically operated expanding trailers.
When Reno Penner of rural Hillsboro says the milo crop looks pretty dismal this year, he knows what he is talking about. He has grown milo and wheat for 59 years, starting at the age of 17 when his father passed away and he took over the family farm. A dry land farmer, he knows a bit about raising milo and wheat. “It looks worse this year than ever before, even worse than last year,” Penner said. “I think it was the heat more than the drought that really put the milo in bad shape.”
Lauren Geis of Durham won top honors in senior swine showmanship two weeks ago at the 80th Kansas Junior Livestock Show in Wichita. A total of 704 Kansas youth exhibited 1,453 head of livestock at the show sponsored by the Kansas Livestock Association, Kansas State University, and the Agri-Business Council of Wichita. Geis — who also won first place in two classes of dark market barrows and first in class 2Duroc gilt, as well as third in Chianina breeding heifers and seventh in class 2 speckled market lamb —was part of a 24-member contingent of young livestock exhibitors from Marion County. Other Results Cedar Point Cody Parmley: 10th in light crossbred market barrow. Corin Parmley: sixth in meat goat, eighth in meat goat, 10th in crossbred market lamb, and 13th in crossbred market lamb. Durham Lisa Geis: third in commercial breeding heifer and fifth in natural market lamb. Hillsboro Mesa Merrill: fifth in meat goat and 11th in meat goat. Bryce Roberts: first in crossbred market lamb, and third in crossbred market lamb. Landon Roberts: 13th in commercial ewe lamb. Sa Rae Roberts: eighth in crossbred market lamb and eighth in commercial ewe lamb. Lincolnville Callie Riffel: third in Duroc gilt and fourth in dark crossbred market barrow. Jensen Riffel: sixth in dark crossbred market barrow and seventh in dark crossbred market barrow. Kailyn Riffel: second in Yorkshire market barrow and third in light crossbred market barrow. Marion Cassidy Hill: first in commercial ewe lamb, first in Hampshire market lamb, and second in Dorset breeding ewe. Peabody Tyler Entz: fifth in dark AOB gilt. Devon Gaines: eighth in commercial breeding heifer. Morgan Gaines: second in commercial breeding heifer. Jack Parks: sixth in dark AOB gilt. Tanner Parks: fourth in Duroc gilt. Tampa Cailey Barney: eighth in natural market lamb. Jared Barney: second in crossbred market lamb. Elizabeth Meyer: eighth in natural market lamb. Nicholas Meyer: 14th in commercial ewe lamb. Kara Riffel: sixth in meat goat and eighth in commercial doe kid. Karl Riffel: fifth in Duroc gilt, sixth in AOB breeding heifer, and sixth in commercial doe kid. Kyle Riffel: second in commercial doe kid, fourth in Duroc market barrow, and eighth in meat goat.
Joyce Carlson of Lincolnville has been in the cattle-feeding business since he was a teenager. He helped his father feed cattle while growing up just one mile across the Marion County line in Morris County. When Carlson got married, he and his father partnered to buy a farm just two miles south of the home place in Marion County. He developed his own cattle-feeding operation there, where he and his wife, Ruth Ann, lived for 65 years.
Lightning skittered between the clouds, gusts of wind carried hints of the smell of rain, and gritty dust swirled up from the tractor tires into my teeth and eyes last Tuesday night as my husband and I planted wheat. The adrenaline of the moment erased earlier disasters of the day. Tuesday is my day to work late at the newspaper office and things were not coming together in an orderly fashion. My cell phone continued to jingle as my husband called about the myriad of things that were going wrong back at the farm.
Marion County Commission signed an agreement with Dickinson County for emergency medical services. The agreement states that ambulances will be dispatched by the closest county based on the corresponding cell phone call.
After asking Marion Planning Commission member Ruth Herbel whether the plans for a tower met city zoning regulations, the Marion County Commission approved a 45-foot, monopole communications tower to be constructed near the new jail. The tower will cost the county $52,384. It will extend to 45-feet with the full length of the antennae. The commission originally wanted a 92-foot tower because it provided space for multiple antennas and to provide backup in case a repeater tower failed. TBS Communications Inc. representative Mark Graber said the tower should have no problem reaching or receiving from any of the repeaters in the county at the 45-foot height. The tower will be galvanized steel. It will be surrounded by a fence to separate it from adjacent properties.
Marion County Commission approved refinancing for two road graders for the Road and Bridge Department. The commission went with a bid from Cottonwood Valley Bank for 2.74 percent interest for five years. Road and Bridge Department has a maintenance agreement with Foley Equipment for the machines.
Marion County Economic Development Director Teresa Huffman attended the Kansas Association of Resource Conservation and Development Councils annual meeting Sept. 17 and 18 in Emporia. Huffman is also president of Flint Hills Resource Conservation and Development. Huffman saw presentations by Patty Clark, state director of rural development for U.S. Department of Agriculture. Clark reviewed federal changes and cuts and emphasized the importance of water in Kansas and the need to continue conservation efforts.
There is a strange phenomenon attached to writing opinion columns for this newspaper. There is a rule with the Hoch Publishing folks that directs me to keep my comments in the local arena. Luckily for me, I am not allowed to write about our political candidates, their issues, or our political combatants unless whatever they are doing is being done in Peabody. I am not a student of political issues and have no desire to share my thoughts with you on those topics. My job is to keep the topic of the opinion column local. Seldom have the Hoch Publishing people told me I could not print an opinion I have submitted. I doubt they have found my columns impressive, but I expect they have found them adequate. I am usually concerned about what goes into the opinion column each week. I try to think of things that are important to our community, but sometimes my topics miss that mark by a wide margin.
DAYS OF YORE:
Days of yoreHOPE IN THE HEARTLAND:
Religion and policiticsLETTERS:
More facts about Peabody City Park
The Sorosis Beta Club had its first meeting of the club year on Sept. 20 at Peabody City Park. Husbands were guests of the club members for a fried chicken picnic, with 22 in attendance.
Marion County senior centers will distribute food commodities from U.S. Department of Agriculture starting on Oct. 11. Each site will set its own schedule. Commodities are available based on income eligibility. The maximum monthly gross income to be eligible is $1,211 for a single person, $1,640 for a household of two, and $429 more for each additional member of the household.
Marion City Library will have a program about “Oceans in Kansas” at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Michael Everhart of the Kansas Humanities Council will talk about how Kansas has been the source of many important fossils. From giant marine reptiles to flying reptiles and birds with teeth, many important discoveries of now-extinct species came from rocks in western Kansas. Everhart’s presentation will take the audience back to a time when the state was covered by an ocean and ruled by giant marine reptiles larger than most dinosaurs. The public is encouraged to bring any fossils they may have for Everhart to look at and describe. For more information, call Marion City Library at (620) 382-2442.
Goessel will have its annual Harvest Festival on Saturday. Events include a 5-kilometer run at 8 a.m. starting in front of Goessel High School, the firefighters’ pancake feed from 7 to 10 a.m. at the fire station, 214 E. Main St., free admission to the Mennonite Heritage and Agricultural Museum from noon to 5 p.m., 4-H petting zoo from 2 to 5 p.m. north of the library, a bouncy house and inflatables from 2 to 6 p.m., and bluegrass and gospel music by Jammin’ Biscuits from 6 to 8 p.m. at the stage south of the Goessel station.
The Marion Historical Museum will host a ghost tour, Oct. 20. Ghost trolleys will leave the museum at 7, 8, and 9 p.m. Children under the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Tickets may be purchased for $2 at the museum, Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or on Sunday from noon to 2 p.m.
Flu vaccines are available at the Marion County Health Department Office on Wednesdays, starting this week, according to health department nurse Deidre Serene. “We won’t have any shortage this year, but that doesn’t mean it still isn’t important to get vaccinated,” Serene said. “We have both the mist and the shots available.”
Two gals from Marion did their part this past year making purple baby hats to raise awareness for shaken baby syndrome. Kathryn Hein, age 94, crocheted 107 baby hats in the past few months for the Period of Purple Crying organization. Emmy Hess, age 12, did her part as well, crocheting five baby hats. Hein and Hess’s efforts, along with several other dedicated contributors, were recognized by statewide coordinator Anne Auld on Sept. 26 when she stopped at Down on the Corner in Marion to pick up the community’s collection of crocheted and knitted hats.
A woman was taken to Herington Municipal Hospital Monday with minor injuries incurred in a rollover accident on U.S. 56/77 near 330th Road in Marion County. Herington Ambulance was the first EMS service called and the first responder on the scene. Lost Springs and Marion fire departments also responded.
Retired pastors Mervin and Jane Dick will give the next presentation at Tabor College’s Lifelong Learning series at 9:45 a.m. Friday. Their presentation is “Traveling Without a Map,” about their life stories, including their battle with colorectal cancer. Both are Tabor College graduates and each holds a master of divinity degree — Mervin’s from Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary at Fresno, Calif., and Jane’s from Iliff School of Theology in Denver, Colo. They have served Mennonite Brethren churches in Kief, N.D., Weatherford and Edmond, Okla., and Fresno, Calif. They moved to Denver in 1984, and both were involved with inner-city relief work for 18 years there.
Callie and Cody Penner of Hillsboro are new members of the American Angus Association headquartered in St. Joseph, Mo. The American Angus Association is the largest beef breed association in the world with nearly 30,000 active adult and junior members.
CORRESPONDENTS:
Ammeter,
Burns
Several music groups will be performing Saturday in the Wohlgemuth Music Education Center Rehearsal Hall at Tabor College. The Tabor College Concert Choir, directed by Brad Vogel, will perform four spirited a capella pieces. Concerto Bella Voce, a new women’s choir directed by new assistant professor of choral music Janie Brokenicky, will perform three pieces, and Daniel Baldwin will direct the Chamber Strings.
Tabor College will be hosting a variety of activities during its homecoming celebration this weekend, including a fun run and Dutch lunch on Saturday. For those with young children, the education department will host activities from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. for children in pre-school through sixth grade. Former Tabor College President Larry Nikkel will conduct a book signing outside Java Jays at 10:30 a.m. Saturday for his new book, “Leading and Following.”
During his halftime speech to the Peabody-Burns High School Warriors football, coach David Pickens challenged his players to take care of their own responsibilities. His team had the slight edge, 30-28, in a tough-fought first half homecoming contest against Centre. “I just wanted them to stop the mistakes and play like I knew they could,” said Pickens. “I just said do your job and let your teammates do theirs. The rest will fall into place”
The Peabody-Burns Junior High School Junior Warriors are still in search of their first football victory this season. The squad lost Thursday to Rural Vista, 56-6. They will play at home against Little River Thursday. Rural Vista had a big first half, racking up 44 points on seven possessions.
The Peabody-Burns High School volleyball team finished third in Wheat State League play with two match victories on Sept. 18 at Elyria Christian. The team downed Solomon, 25-15 and 25-21, and defeated Elyria, 25-22 and 25-16. The team finished 6-2 in league standings behind 8-0 Goessel and 7-1 Centre and will next host Dig Pink Night at home. Solomon
