BREAKING NEWS
UPDATED AFTER PRINT DEADLINE
Hillsboro’s Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market will close Jan. 28. It is one of 154 U.S. stores being shuttered by the retail giant.
Hillsboro mayor Delores Dallke said she received a call from company officials Friday morning.
Members of Mid-America Indian Center came to Peabody-Burns Elementary School Tuesday to share about Indian cultures with students. Peabody-Burns Parent Teacher Organization arranged for the visit.
“Students in each class have selected a country to study for the entire year,” PTO vice president Ann Jones said. “The United States is one of the countries selected and we thought this would give all the students some background on Indian culture and history.”
The county EMS service is without a permanent director, the state hasn’t been forthcoming about pending suspensions and possible investigations, and surveys of EMS personnel indicate they are concerned about leadership.
Uncertainties abound, and it’s no surprise what commissioner Dan Holub had to say about what he’s been hearing.
Randy Dallke, in his first act as new Marion County Commission chairman, resurrected an old issue involving a current commissioner.
Before outgoing chairman Dan Holub could make a motion to nominate Lori Lalouette, who was absent from Monday’s meeting, for vice-chair, Dallke interrupted him.
Music doesn’t just soothe the savage beast. Domesticated animals fall under its spell, too, but they might just be a touch more discerning.
Marion resident Jerry Kline leaves a radio playing for 50 chickens he keeps in a coop east of town.
Candidates seeking to fill open council positions in Aprl 1 elections in Burns, Hillsboro, and Marion have until noon Jan. 26 to file.
As of Monday, the only person to file was John Wheeler of Marion.
Ebenfeld Mennonite Brethren Church is in the middle of receiving a much needed “faith” lift to the sanctuary.
The church, located outside of Hillsboro on Kanza Rd., hasn’t been renovated since the ’70s, and hasn’t had this many renovations done at once since the building of the sanctuary in 1927.
With a $1.3 billion jackpot for tonight’s Powerball drawing, lottery tickets are flying off the rolls at local convenience stores.
In anticipation, Ampride stores in Marion and Hillsboro will have a “lottery hostess” on hand today to expedite sales.
Cooperative Grain and Supply’s Marion elevator stores millions of bushels of grain, creating grain dust with explosive potential if ignited. Anhydrous ammonia tanks and a fuel station present additional potential hazards if accidents occur.
Elevator employees regularly train and work to prevent mishaps and ensure safety, but Thursday’s fire gave emergency responders reason to test their capabilities.
The prospect of an explosion during Thursday’s fire at the Cooperative Grain and Supply grain elevator in Marion led to a precautionary evacuation of people within a two-block radius.
Marion fire chief Mike Regnier ordered the evacuation shortly after 11 a.m., about 30 minutes after arriving at the scene.
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire, right? Not necessarily at Marion County Jail.
Sheriff Robert Craft, undersheriff David Huntley, deputies, Marion and Hillsboro police, and Marion fire were called Sunday to a possible fire at the jail after a jailer discovered smoke around 4 a.m.
Stories of personal achievement often include epiphanies born of dramatic life-changing events.
Rob Scott found his epiphany in a bad kettle of beef noodle soup.
Anna Anita Madsen, 89, died Saturday at Peabody Health and Rehab.
A funeral service will be 1:30 p.m. Friday at Baker Funeral Home, Peabody, and internment will follow at Prairie Lawn Cemetery. Visitation will be 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.
IN MEMORIAM:
Marshall Pierce
Of all the farms in Kansas, it’s possible that none smell like Jason Wiebe’s. The sour scent of whey coming from the small outbuilding on his property is different from earthier smells from pastures and manure.
But it’s what goes into Wiebe’s signature cheeses. The final product is a smooth bite with a creamy mouth-feel, and even a sliver can leave the consumer feeling as though they’ve just guzzled a glass of fresh milk.
He might sit atop an organization that has almost a quarter million members and affiliated members, but no one could be more grassroots than Tracy Brunner.
He already had spent three hours on horseback gathering cattle for market when he took the time to sit down in his office Friday morning to talk about his tenure as president and spokesman for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.
When veterinarian Jessica Laurin joined the Academy of Veterinary Consultants early in her practice in 1993, the group had 250 members who mainly served feedlots.
Laurin now is president of the organization, which has grown to more than 900 members and includes cow/calf operators and teaching veterinarians in the U.S., Canada, and Australia.
Since we are safely into the New Year, I suspect that my six regular readers and a few others out there all have made 2016 resolutions and have not forgotten them already. I hope everyone reading this column made a resolution or two to look after troublesome health issues. In fact, there are a couple I would like to mention.
First is smoking. Kick it. Yes, quitting is hard. It will make you edgy and cranky. So what? Most smokers are edgy and cranky anyway. I will say again — probably for the hundredth time in this space — if I could do it, you can do it. I was a 37½-year smoker, but it has been 12 years since I drew that junk into my lungs. One day at a time. Really, you can do it, you should, and you will be glad you did.
Included in the past week’s Peabody Gazette-Bulletin were several events in the 50 Years Ago portion of the newspaper’s “Days of Yore” column. One noted “Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Craig and son Ted of Topeka and Mrs. Barbara Hodges, Nancy, Ricky, and Dorry of Lincoln spent the Christmas holidays with their mother, Mrs. Dorothy Craig, and their sister, Susan. They returned to their homes Sunday.”
After the newspaper went online Wednesday afternoon, an email was received at the Gazette office from “Ricky,” now Rick Hodges of Topeka, regarding that 1966 mention of his family’s Christmas gathering at his grandmother’s Peabody home.
I’ve managed to wend my way through life without being tagged with a lasting nickname, and there’s been just one that I’ve actually embraced.
I ran around with guys in junior high who had cool nicknames like “Smoothy” and “Rocky,” however the only one I picked up at the time I was glad to lose. One week while attending church camp with four other Davids, someone decided we needed nicknames to tell us apart, and I was ingloriously dubbed “Daisy” for the week. When I came home, that one stayed at camp.
Mr. and Mrs. Jay Pavlik of McPherson and Mr. and Mrs. Rodney Gerhardt, also of McPherson, announce the engagement of their children, Courtney DeAnne Pavlik and Levi Joshua Gerhardt.
The future bride is the granddaughter of former Marion residents Bruce and Sandra Hett of McPherson, and Karel Pavlik and the late Jackie Pavlik of Coldwater.
BURNS:
Belated holiday events sharedDAYS OF YORE:
10,
25,
50,
100 years ago
Peabody-Burns Lady Warriors won Tuesday night against Rural Vista 43-40.
Coach Scott Bauer was happy with the win.
Superintendent Ron Traxson announced at Monday’s school board meeting that the Peabody-Burns coop with Hillsboro for baseball will also have enough players to field two teams.
“We will have enough to run a JV program if all these guys go through with what they say,” Traxson said.
Peabody-Burns Elementary students will compete Friday for three spots in the annual Marion County Spelling Bee Jan. 27 at Goessel.
Students in fourth and fifth grades competed in their classrooms Jan. 7 to see who would represent classes in the PBES spelling bee Friday.
Two longtime teachers resigned their positions at Monday night’s Marion School Board meeting.
Chad and Michelle Adkins, both teachers with USD 408 for 17 years, submitted resignation letters to the board. Chad Adkins is a middle school social studies teacher and head wrestling coach. Michelle Adkins is a third-grade teacher.
Senior Citizens of Marion County will meet at 9:30 a.m. Friday at Hillsboro Senior Center.
Mill levy requests, SCMC 2016 scholarships, and reports from committees and boards are on the agenda.