PEABODY Gazette-Bulletin

Police find items stolen from the HUB

Peabody Police Chief Bruce Burke has announced the recovery of three of the laptop computers stolen Oct. 9 from the HUB in Peabody. “Information in the case has continued to be forthcoming,” Burke said. “Diligently following up on leads received in the case led to the recovery of the laptop computers.

Council hears building repairs update

Shane Marler, director of Peabody Economic Development and Peabody Main Street, brought Peabody City Council up to speed Monday evening on the progress of the American Legion repairs and the roofing project on the Baker buildings. Marler said the insurance provider for the Legion building is reviewing proposals from several engineering companies for repairs to the building. When approved by the insurance company, the engineer will develop a plan for repairs and rehabilitation. Then a contractor will do the work based on that plan.

'Father Kapaun gave his all'

In the homily given Sunday at St. John Nepomucene Catholic Church, Holy Family Parish in Pilsen, the Rev. Monsignor Frank A. Pugliese, Vicar General of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, likened Father Emil Kapaun’s service as a military chaplain to two widows who in Biblical accounts gave their all. The first account was of the woman who was asked to make a biscuit for the prophet Elijah when she had just a bit of flour and a few teaspoons of oil left for herself and her son before they would starve to death. Elijah told her that if she would prepare it for him, the flour and oil would never run out. And it was so. The second incident was of the widow who put her last two mites into the collection plate at the temple.

78 votes disqualified from election

Voters in Marion County cast 187 provisional ballots in the Nov. 6 general election, but 78 of those votes were disqualified Monday at the election canvass. There were five reasons votes were disqualified: 34 voters moved to Marion County from elsewhere and hadn’t re-registered; 29 voters simply were not registered; two voters weren’t registered before the deadline for the general election; and one voter went to the wrong polling place.

Trash pickup delayed Thanksgiving week

Peabody City Administrator Mac Manning has announced that Waste Connections will not pick up trash as scheduled on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Instead, the company will send trucks to Peabody for trash pickup on Saturday.

Changes coming to Peabody library

Roger Charles, librarian for Peabody Township Library, has announced that work has begun on digitizing older copies of the “Our web page should then have a link to this data,” Charles said. “We will be asking for help from library patrons and community donors to get the rest of the papers taken care of. The cost of the conversion for 2010 and 2011 will be $195.36 and the 53 microfilm rolls of the much earlier papers will cost $75 each to digitize.

Harla R. Cheek

Harla R. Cheek of Hamilton died Nov. 6 at KU Medical Center in Kansas City. She was born Sept. 9, 1956 to Harlan A. and Evelyn O. (Logan) Zager in Council Grove.

Donna Merwin Cook

Donna Merwin Cook, 78, of Parker, Colo., formerly of Marion, died Oct. 28. She was preceded in death by her parents, George and Juanita Merwin of Emporia, one sister, and one son. She is survived by her husband, Bob G. Cook, two sons, two daughters, and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Ellen E. Darrow

MARION — Ellen E. Darrow, 93, passed away Nov. 12, 2012, at her residence. She was born near Marion, Dec. 15, 1918, the daughter of John and Rena Conyers Hett. On Jan. 1, 1942, she was united in marriage to Lloyd L. Darrow. She was co-owner and bookkeeper of Aulne Grain.

John D. Hett

MARION — John D. Hett was born April 4, 1930 to John and Rena (Conyers) Hett of rural Marion, Kan. He passed away Nov. 10, 2012, in Marion, after a prolonged illness. John lived in rural Marion, near the town of Aulne, his entire life. As the youngest of nine children in a happy and loving family, there were many large and interesting gatherings involving relatives and friends. Stories about these events and the happenings spawned by lives filled with the joy of strong family relationships and a certain creative humor abound in the lives of those who had the privilege to experience and participate in this family.

Cleda L. Meyer

Cleda Louise Meyer, 71, of Alma died Nov. 7 at her home. She was born Feb. 3, 1941, in Fayette County, Ill., to Oscar A. and Fern (Harrison) Copple. She graduated from Council Grove High School in 1959. She married John F. Meyer on Aug. 26, 1962, at Church of Christ Christian in Council Grove.

Accidents reported

Civil cases

County jail

Criminal cases

Deeds

Emergency dispatches

Hillsboro police

Marriage licenses

Offenses

Peabody police

Traffic cases

Moran deputy to meet with residents

A member of U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran’s staff will have office hours beginning at 4 p.m. Monday in the Marion County Commission meeting room at the county courthouse, 200 S. Third St., Marion. Mike Zamrzla, deputy state director for Moran, will meet with residents who are having problems with Social Security, Medicare, Veterans Affairs, or other concerns related to the federal government.

Holiday care packages for soldiers

At an American Legion Auxiliary meeting this past week the topic of holiday care packages to soldiers on active duty came up. The official report was that we wouldn’t be sending any this year because the only active duty soldier we had listed would be home shortly. But then someone said, “Wait, weren’t there a couple listed in the paper two or three weeks ago?” And another said, “Yeah, you’re right and what about so-and-so?” It seems that while we had one soldier on the official list, we had an idea there might be others who had been overlooked. Not good.

BALANCING ACT:

HOPE IN THE HEARTLAND:

Collision shuts down K-15

An early morning collision resulted in critical injuries for a Wichita man and shut down K-15 highway Nov. 7. A Goessel High School student, Kevin Moon, was on his way to an honor math contest when he pulled his 1988 Chevy pickup onto the highway from the east after stopping at the stop sign. He proceeded into the path of an oncoming truck driven by Robert Earnst, 56, of Wichita. Earnst swerved to miss the youth and lost control of his 2005 F150 pickup. The vehicle flipped several times before coming to rest on its side in the middle of the highway just south of Alexanderwohl Mennonite Church. Alberto Morales-Ceniceros, 61, also of Wichita, was a passenger in Earnst’s vehicle.

Peabody Achievers earn purple seal

Peabody Achievers 4-H Club met Nov. 4 at Peabody-Burns Elementary School. Brandon Entz, president, called the meeting to order and Alex Young and Morgan Gaines led the flag salute. Twenty members, 10 parents, two leaders, and two guests answered roll call with “Your favorite Thanksgiving side dish.”

Goerzen donates cash from scrap to charity

Not too many people plan to make a career out of cleaning up others’ junk and then giving away the profits, but then not too many people are as good-hearted as Willis Goerzen of rural Goessel. Goerzen, a licensed heating and air-conditioning mechanic, and part-time van-driver for Bethesda Home, collects and takes apart air conditioners, dehumidifiers, or anything not in working order that might have aluminum, copper, or other metals of value inside.

CDDO meets Monday

The Board of Directors of Harvey-Marion County Community Developmental Disability Organization will meet 4 p.m. Monday at 500 N. Main St., Suite 204, Newton. There will be opportunity for public forum.

Lifelong lecture to address technology

Retired Illinois State University professor Emerson Wiens will address the positives and negatives of technology during Tabor College’s Lifelong Learning series at 9:45 a.m. Friday in the Wohlgemuth Music Education Center. Wiens attended Tabor College for a semester before transferring to Bethel College and earning a degree in industrial arts education. He taught for 23 years at Bethel and earned a doctorate in vocational and technical education at the University of Illinois. He taught technology in society courses for 12 years at Illinois State University.

Watch out for CO buildup

With the arrival of colder weather, there is an increase of fuel-burning appliances being used in the home. These appliances include furnaces, ovens, space heaters, generators, indoor grills, and fireplaces, and they can cause dangerous levels of carbon monoxide to build up in the home. According to a study from 2004 to 2006, children younger than 5 years old have the highest estimated rate of CO-related visits to the emergency room each year among all age group in the United. Nationally more than 25 children die from CO poisoning every year. In Kansas, over 500 people have been hospitalized and four people have died from CO poisoning over the past 10 years.

Alexanderwohl church invites public to Thanksgiving service

Leaders of Alexanderwohl Mennonite Church invite the public to attend a Thanksgiving service on Nov. 22., at the church, one mile north of Goessel on K-15. Marcia Brubaker will play organ prelude music at 9:45 a.m., and Kyle Unruh will provide special music. Pastor Linda Ewert will bring the message, “The Grateful One Sees God.”

Benefactors offered matching donations to PCF

Two individuals who wish to remain anonymous will help the Peabody Community Foundation expand its growth with the Grow II Match from the Kansas Health Foundation. The two pooled their resources and created a fund that will match each dollar donated or pledged to the foundation, up to $20,000.

Cowboy songs illustrate man's life

Jack Griffith’s recent days have started to mirror the melancholy cowboy songs he sings any chance he gets. Unlike the drovers in many of those tunes, Griffith is not dying, but he is gradually hanging up his spurs. Griffith and his wife Leona used to host Roundup Suppers at their ranch north of Walton. He would take people out in a coach, pulled by two Belgian horses he raised, to a place in his pasture. During the trek, he would tell cowboy stories. In the pasture, Griffith had fashioned a wooden stage and picnic tables. As his guests ate their meal of barbecue brisket, he would strum his guitar and belt out songs like “Cowboy Jack” and “Streets of Laredo.”

Chess club to meet Saturday

Florence Chess Club will meet from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at 726 Marion St., Florence. The Kansas Chess Association president will join the club for games and lessons.

Pancakes help pay for 4-H opportunity

A fourth-place finish at the state 4-H livestock judging contest in August was something to be proud of for several Marion County 4-H club members. However, with only the top three teams slated for national competition they thought that was the end of this year’s judging season. A recent development changed that, and Nick Meyer, Lauren Geis, Bryce Roberts, and Karl Riffel found themselves frying and flipping pancakes Saturday morning to raise money to help pay their expenses to judge in the national 4-H livestock-judging contest in January in Fort Worth, Texas.

Muscial comedian coming to Canton

First Baptist Church of Canton will be hosting an evening with Greg Strange, musical comedian, at 6 p.m. Dec. 2. The program will be held at the church located at 4th and McPherson streets in Canton. Strange performs over 200 concerts per year, visiting churches, inner-city schools, rescue missions, prisons, and Indian Reservations.

CORRESPONDENTS:

DAYS OF YORE:

USD 398 hires bookkeeper

USD 398 Board of Education approved hiring Lisa Burnett as an assistant central office secretary and bookkeeper for Peabody-Burns High School and Junior High School. Superintendent Ron Traxson said Burnett’s primary responsibility would be as a bookkeeper for activities, lunches, day care program, and other expenditures.

Area schools participate in math competition

On Nov. 7, the seventh annual MC2: McPherson College Math Competition invited 265 high school students from 18 area schools to put their math skills to the test. Goessel, Hillsboro, Marion, and Peabody-Burns high schools all participated in the competition.

Players named to WSL football team

Several county athletes were named to the Wheat State League football team. Senior Justin Deines and junior Kyle Methvin were named to the first team from Centre High School. Seniors Trey Schmidt, Nicolas Buller, and Shane Goerzen were named from Goessel High School. Seniors Hunter Pickens, Tommy Morris, and Lucas Larsen were named from Peabody-Burns High School.

Police find items stolen from the HUB

Peabody Police Chief Bruce Burke has announced the recovery of three of the laptop computers stolen Oct. 9 from the HUB in Peabody. “Information in the case has continued to be forthcoming,” Burke said. “Diligently following up on leads received in the case led to the recovery of the laptop computers.

Council hears building repairs update

Shane Marler, director of Peabody Economic Development and Peabody Main Street, brought Peabody City Council up to speed Monday evening on the progress of the American Legion repairs and the roofing project on the Baker buildings. Marler said the insurance provider for the Legion building is reviewing proposals from several engineering companies for repairs to the building. When approved by the insurance company, the engineer will develop a plan for repairs and rehabilitation. Then a contractor will do the work based on that plan.

'Father Kapaun gave his all'

In the homily given Sunday at St. John Nepomucene Catholic Church, Holy Family Parish in Pilsen, the Rev. Monsignor Frank A. Pugliese, Vicar General of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, likened Father Emil Kapaun’s service as a military chaplain to two widows who in Biblical accounts gave their all. The first account was of the woman who was asked to make a biscuit for the prophet Elijah when she had just a bit of flour and a few teaspoons of oil left for herself and her son before they would starve to death. Elijah told her that if she would prepare it for him, the flour and oil would never run out. And it was so. The second incident was of the widow who put her last two mites into the collection plate at the temple.

78 votes disqualified from election

Voters in Marion County cast 187 provisional ballots in the Nov. 6 general election, but 78 of those votes were disqualified Monday at the election canvass. There were five reasons votes were disqualified: 34 voters moved to Marion County from elsewhere and hadn’t re-registered; 29 voters simply were not registered; two voters weren’t registered before the deadline for the general election; and one voter went to the wrong polling place.

Trash pickup delayed Thanksgiving week

Peabody City Administrator Mac Manning has announced that Waste Connections will not pick up trash as scheduled on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Instead, the company will send trucks to Peabody for trash pickup on Saturday.

Changes coming to Peabody library

Roger Charles, librarian for Peabody Township Library, has announced that work has begun on digitizing older copies of the “Our web page should then have a link to this data,” Charles said. “We will be asking for help from library patrons and community donors to get the rest of the papers taken care of. The cost of the conversion for 2010 and 2011 will be $195.36 and the 53 microfilm rolls of the much earlier papers will cost $75 each to digitize.

Harla R. Cheek

Harla R. Cheek of Hamilton died Nov. 6 at KU Medical Center in Kansas City. She was born Sept. 9, 1956 to Harlan A. and Evelyn O. (Logan) Zager in Council Grove.

Donna Merwin Cook

Donna Merwin Cook, 78, of Parker, Colo., formerly of Marion, died Oct. 28. She was preceded in death by her parents, George and Juanita Merwin of Emporia, one sister, and one son. She is survived by her husband, Bob G. Cook, two sons, two daughters, and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Ellen E. Darrow

MARION — Ellen E. Darrow, 93, passed away Nov. 12, 2012, at her residence. She was born near Marion, Dec. 15, 1918, the daughter of John and Rena Conyers Hett. On Jan. 1, 1942, she was united in marriage to Lloyd L. Darrow. She was co-owner and bookkeeper of Aulne Grain.

John D. Hett

MARION — John D. Hett was born April 4, 1930 to John and Rena (Conyers) Hett of rural Marion, Kan. He passed away Nov. 10, 2012, in Marion, after a prolonged illness. John lived in rural Marion, near the town of Aulne, his entire life. As the youngest of nine children in a happy and loving family, there were many large and interesting gatherings involving relatives and friends. Stories about these events and the happenings spawned by lives filled with the joy of strong family relationships and a certain creative humor abound in the lives of those who had the privilege to experience and participate in this family.

Cleda L. Meyer

Cleda Louise Meyer, 71, of Alma died Nov. 7 at her home. She was born Feb. 3, 1941, in Fayette County, Ill., to Oscar A. and Fern (Harrison) Copple. She graduated from Council Grove High School in 1959. She married John F. Meyer on Aug. 26, 1962, at Church of Christ Christian in Council Grove.

Accidents reported

Civil cases

County jail

Criminal cases

Deeds

Emergency dispatches

Hillsboro police

Marriage licenses

Offenses

Peabody police

Traffic cases

Moran deputy to meet with residents

A member of U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran’s staff will have office hours beginning at 4 p.m. Monday in the Marion County Commission meeting room at the county courthouse, 200 S. Third St., Marion. Mike Zamrzla, deputy state director for Moran, will meet with residents who are having problems with Social Security, Medicare, Veterans Affairs, or other concerns related to the federal government.

Holiday care packages for soldiers

At an American Legion Auxiliary meeting this past week the topic of holiday care packages to soldiers on active duty came up. The official report was that we wouldn’t be sending any this year because the only active duty soldier we had listed would be home shortly. But then someone said, “Wait, weren’t there a couple listed in the paper two or three weeks ago?” And another said, “Yeah, you’re right and what about so-and-so?” It seems that while we had one soldier on the official list, we had an idea there might be others who had been overlooked. Not good.

BALANCING ACT:

HOPE IN THE HEARTLAND:

Collision shuts down K-15

An early morning collision resulted in critical injuries for a Wichita man and shut down K-15 highway Nov. 7. A Goessel High School student, Kevin Moon, was on his way to an honor math contest when he pulled his 1988 Chevy pickup onto the highway from the east after stopping at the stop sign. He proceeded into the path of an oncoming truck driven by Robert Earnst, 56, of Wichita. Earnst swerved to miss the youth and lost control of his 2005 F150 pickup. The vehicle flipped several times before coming to rest on its side in the middle of the highway just south of Alexanderwohl Mennonite Church. Alberto Morales-Ceniceros, 61, also of Wichita, was a passenger in Earnst’s vehicle.

Peabody Achievers earn purple seal

Peabody Achievers 4-H Club met Nov. 4 at Peabody-Burns Elementary School. Brandon Entz, president, called the meeting to order and Alex Young and Morgan Gaines led the flag salute. Twenty members, 10 parents, two leaders, and two guests answered roll call with “Your favorite Thanksgiving side dish.”

Goerzen donates cash from scrap to charity

Not too many people plan to make a career out of cleaning up others’ junk and then giving away the profits, but then not too many people are as good-hearted as Willis Goerzen of rural Goessel. Goerzen, a licensed heating and air-conditioning mechanic, and part-time van-driver for Bethesda Home, collects and takes apart air conditioners, dehumidifiers, or anything not in working order that might have aluminum, copper, or other metals of value inside.

CDDO meets Monday

The Board of Directors of Harvey-Marion County Community Developmental Disability Organization will meet 4 p.m. Monday at 500 N. Main St., Suite 204, Newton. There will be opportunity for public forum.

Lifelong lecture to address technology

Retired Illinois State University professor Emerson Wiens will address the positives and negatives of technology during Tabor College’s Lifelong Learning series at 9:45 a.m. Friday in the Wohlgemuth Music Education Center. Wiens attended Tabor College for a semester before transferring to Bethel College and earning a degree in industrial arts education. He taught for 23 years at Bethel and earned a doctorate in vocational and technical education at the University of Illinois. He taught technology in society courses for 12 years at Illinois State University.

Watch out for CO buildup

With the arrival of colder weather, there is an increase of fuel-burning appliances being used in the home. These appliances include furnaces, ovens, space heaters, generators, indoor grills, and fireplaces, and they can cause dangerous levels of carbon monoxide to build up in the home. According to a study from 2004 to 2006, children younger than 5 years old have the highest estimated rate of CO-related visits to the emergency room each year among all age group in the United. Nationally more than 25 children die from CO poisoning every year. In Kansas, over 500 people have been hospitalized and four people have died from CO poisoning over the past 10 years.

Alexanderwohl church invites public to Thanksgiving service

Leaders of Alexanderwohl Mennonite Church invite the public to attend a Thanksgiving service on Nov. 22., at the church, one mile north of Goessel on K-15. Marcia Brubaker will play organ prelude music at 9:45 a.m., and Kyle Unruh will provide special music. Pastor Linda Ewert will bring the message, “The Grateful One Sees God.”

Benefactors offered matching donations to PCF

Two individuals who wish to remain anonymous will help the Peabody Community Foundation expand its growth with the Grow II Match from the Kansas Health Foundation. The two pooled their resources and created a fund that will match each dollar donated or pledged to the foundation, up to $20,000.

Cowboy songs illustrate man's life

Jack Griffith’s recent days have started to mirror the melancholy cowboy songs he sings any chance he gets. Unlike the drovers in many of those tunes, Griffith is not dying, but he is gradually hanging up his spurs. Griffith and his wife Leona used to host Roundup Suppers at their ranch north of Walton. He would take people out in a coach, pulled by two Belgian horses he raised, to a place in his pasture. During the trek, he would tell cowboy stories. In the pasture, Griffith had fashioned a wooden stage and picnic tables. As his guests ate their meal of barbecue brisket, he would strum his guitar and belt out songs like “Cowboy Jack” and “Streets of Laredo.”

Chess club to meet Saturday

Florence Chess Club will meet from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at 726 Marion St., Florence. The Kansas Chess Association president will join the club for games and lessons.

Pancakes help pay for 4-H opportunity

A fourth-place finish at the state 4-H livestock judging contest in August was something to be proud of for several Marion County 4-H club members. However, with only the top three teams slated for national competition they thought that was the end of this year’s judging season. A recent development changed that, and Nick Meyer, Lauren Geis, Bryce Roberts, and Karl Riffel found themselves frying and flipping pancakes Saturday morning to raise money to help pay their expenses to judge in the national 4-H livestock-judging contest in January in Fort Worth, Texas.

Muscial comedian coming to Canton

First Baptist Church of Canton will be hosting an evening with Greg Strange, musical comedian, at 6 p.m. Dec. 2. The program will be held at the church located at 4th and McPherson streets in Canton. Strange performs over 200 concerts per year, visiting churches, inner-city schools, rescue missions, prisons, and Indian Reservations.

CORRESPONDENTS:

DAYS OF YORE:

USD 398 hires bookkeeper

USD 398 Board of Education approved hiring Lisa Burnett as an assistant central office secretary and bookkeeper for Peabody-Burns High School and Junior High School. Superintendent Ron Traxson said Burnett’s primary responsibility would be as a bookkeeper for activities, lunches, day care program, and other expenditures.

Area schools participate in math competition

On Nov. 7, the seventh annual MC2: McPherson College Math Competition invited 265 high school students from 18 area schools to put their math skills to the test. Goessel, Hillsboro, Marion, and Peabody-Burns high schools all participated in the competition.

Players named to WSL football team

Several county athletes were named to the Wheat State League football team. Senior Justin Deines and junior Kyle Methvin were named to the first team from Centre High School. Seniors Trey Schmidt, Nicolas Buller, and Shane Goerzen were named from Goessel High School. Seniors Hunter Pickens, Tommy Morris, and Lucas Larsen were named from Peabody-Burns High School.

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