As the weather heats up, you may be thinking about taking your boat out on the water.
Consider these tips first!
Its Almost Boating Season!
Month: April 2013
Aleta R. Ducharm
Costa Mesa, CA resident, Aleta R. Ducharm, passed away Sat., April 20, at the Norton County Hospital in Norton, KS at the age of 76. She was born Sept. 1, 1936 in Gretna, Kansas to Paul & Crystal (Peterson) Gower. Aleta was a homemaker and mother.
Survivors include her husband, Alfred, of Costa Mesa; two sons, Jimmy Ducharm of Agra, KS and Kerry Ducharm of Costa Mesa, CA; her daughter, Gaylene Ducharm of Mission Viejo, CA; and seven grandchildren.
Funeral services will be held Friday, Apr. 26, at 10 a.m. in the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, Phillipsburg, with Galen Larson officiating. Burial will follow in the St. Thomas Cemetery, Stockton, Kansas.
Visitation will be Thursday from noon – 9 p.m. at the funeral home in Phillipsburg.
Memorial contributions may be given to Logan Manor Nursing Home. Online condolences to: www.olliffboeve.com.
Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, Phillipsburg, is in charge of arrangements
Alleged Heroin Dealer Arrested in Western Kansas
A 43 year old Montclair, California man is charged with allegedly possessing, with the intent to distribute, 2.5 kilograms of heroin in Trego County.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s office, the crime took place on April 15.
The San Bernadino County California Sheriff’s Office told Eagle News they also had previous experience with the suspect, Tori Phillips Scieneaux. They were not sure why he was traveling through Kansas.
If convicted on these drug charges, he faces a penalty of not less than 10 years and a fine up to $4 million.
The Kansas Highway Patrol and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigated this case.
Western Kansas Woman Honored at Credit Union Annual Meeting
Karen Hamit, CEO of the Credit Union of Dodge City, was honored with the Professional of the Year award at the Kansas Credit Union Association’s annual meeting and convention held this week in Topeka, KS.
Hamit started at the credit union in 1979 as a part time teller. Throughout her 34 year career, she worked as a delinquency control officer, loan officer and as executive vice president before becoming interim CEO in 2008. After 120 days, she was named CEO.
This past year, Hamit led her team in the expansion of new services, adding a new premium savings account and the ability for members to transfer funds from one institution to another. Under her leadership, the credit union increased membership, deposit growth and assets.
Hamit’s political involvement includes ensuring local candidates know about the credit union movement, and attending KCUA’s Day at the Capitol to talk with legislators and others throughout the state promoting credit unions.
Hamit has also been instrumental in promoting community involvement through her work with the “Coats for Kids” project, serving on the ambassador committee of the Dodge City Area Chamber of Commerce and the Crisis Center Board. She was also a charter member of the Dodge City Drovers and served on the Shared Financial Solutions board from 2011-2012.
Walter Epperson
Walter E. Epperson, 94, died Tuesday, April 23, 2013.
He was born Nov. 21, 1918, in Corder, Mo., to Hugh N. and Hattie Mae (Miller) Epperson.
He was a U.S. Army veteran, serving during World War II.
He enjoyed bowling, golfing and volunteering with the Lutheran Braille Workers.
Survivors include a son, Paul Epperson and wife, Julie; three daughters, Elizabeth Wade and husband, Don, Lynne Pullman and husband, Fred, and Judy Livingston and husband, Ray; his “adopted daughter,” Amy Moore and husband, Steve; a brother, Harold Epperson; 14 grandchildren; 25 great-grandchildren; and five great-great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents; a step-father, Roscoe D. Pearce; his wife, Gertrude, in 2009; three sisters, Florence Crabtree, Ella (Dale) Williamson and Madora (William Pearce & Harold) Stonger; two brothers, Alfred (Edith) Epperson and Hugh (Edna and Tina) Epperson; and a sister-in-law, Audrey Epperson.
Services will be at 2 p.m. Saturday at Holy Cross Lutheran Church; entombment to follow in Lakeview Mausoleum.
Visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at Lakeview Funeral Home.
Memorials are suggested to Holy Cross Lutheran Church or Lutheran Braille Workers, 600 N. Greenwich, Wichita, KS 67206.
Condolences can be sent to the family at www.MyLakeviewFuneralHome.com.
Tragedies, technology reshaping free press, speech
Tragedies, technology reshaping free press, speech
By Gene Policinski
Inside the First Amendment
Two national tragedies separated by six years and a day – the April 15 bombing at the Boston Marathon and the April 16, 2007, mass shooting at Virginia Tech University – also are notable in marking how technology is reshaping some uses of our freedoms of press and speech.
Six years ago, 32 people were killed in the Virginia Tech rampage by a lone gunman. The incident was marked by an unprecedented call by news organizations for cell phone images and video from the public. Some major newsrooms created special “desks” to receive e-mails and images from students and others on the scene, even as regular staff scrambled to reach the campus in Blacksburg, Va.
As a result, we received in near-real time, and for the first time in such magnitude, photos and video of armed police running through the campus, of students huddled in locked rooms for safety, and echoes of the last gunshots fired.
Seven years later, citizen camera-phones again came into play along with official video surveillance and news photos and video of the Boston bombing. Joining in the news reporting process was a newer tool – tweeting. As a manhunt for the second bomber went into day two, the combination of networks, online news sites and social-networking offered continuous bursts of text updates, photos and live streams on police activity from hundreds if not thousands of sources.
Even as broadcast pundits provided perspective, tweets gave us street-by-street updates on the search and images from rooftops and backyards of black-clad SWAT teams stalking the remaining suspect.
Still, it was Virginia Tech-plus: More information, more images, in more ways. What is noteworthy from the Boston bombing is how some of that information was used.
Local police eventually sought help from the online community – effectively, from the world – in identifying two suspects, later identified as the bombers: Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, age 19, and his older brother Tamerlan Tsarnaev, age 26. Some credit that tactic with igniting the search effort that led police to the two men.
But even as police were in the early stages of scanning video and still photos for clues to what occurred, what now seems more like on-line and in-print vigilantism than anything else was gearing up.
The New York Post’s front page of April 17 showed a photo of two men watching the race – a pair ultimately never connected to the investigation. The image was published under the screaming headline: “BAG MEN: Feds seek these two pictured at Boston Marathon.” The Post later noted that it received the photo and others from the FBI, and pulled it off-line immediately when authorities began to point to others.
On some social-networking sites there was an interactive version of the same unwarranted “blame game:” On Reddit, users were shown faces in marathon crowd photos, with added markings that created at least the suspicion of being suspects, sometimes just because those pictured were wearing backpacks. The site focused attention on a missing student from Rhode Island as possibly being connected to the explosions, an erroneous “report” later carried internationally and promulgated on other networking sites like Buzzfeed.
By Friday, Reddit’s general manager Erik Martin said he had apologized to the student’s family, noting that “crowd-sourced investigation is something that’s really new and extreme in this case,” he said – and also promised an internal review aimed at preventing such mistakes.
Thankfully, there’s been no call for government-imposed regulations or even the oft-used Congressional hearing to spank the offending news and social network outlets.
Thus far, criticism of the Post and online abuses has been from journalistic peers. For example, USA TODAY media columnist Rem Rieder slammed Reddit for its “shameful witch hunt that mindlessly smeared the reputations of people guilty of nothing more than attending the Boston Marathon.” He also noted Reddit’s apology.
A free press must be free to gather and report the news without official restraints, if only to give the public an independent account of how well the authorities respond to such incidents. Such freedom occasionally will invite excess, error, and experimentation that go wrong.
What’s important in the aftermath is examining what worked and what did not, and remembering those lessons for what – sadly but inevitably – will be the next round of newsgathering, reporting and the online national conversation about a tragic event that seizes the nation’s attention.
Gene Policinski is senior vice president and executive director of the First Amendment Center. Email him at[email protected]
Moran Questions Homeland Security Sec. Napolitano (Video)
This week, U.S. Senator Jerry Moran asked Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano for her assessment regarding the need for the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) during a U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security Hearing.
Sen. Moran asked Secretary Napolitano to update the subcommittee regarding what the state of Kansas is doing to make this project more affordable for the federal taxpayer. He also asked Sec. Napolitano to discuss the immediate need and threat Americans face if construction of the facility fails to move forward.
A Kansas Senate committee is preparing to weigh a proposal authorizing additional state bonds to help finance construction of the federal biosecurity lab in Manhattan.
The Senate Ways and Means Committee scheduled a hearing on the proposal today. The full Legislature reconvenes May 8 to wrap up the year’s business.
President Barack Obama’s proposed federal budget includes $714 million to build the National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility at Kansas State University. The installation would replace a lab on Plum Island, N.Y.
The project’s total cost is $1.15 billion, and Kansas already has issued $105 million in bonds. Kansas officials haven’t yet said how much in additional bonds the state would issue for NBAF.
The lab will study animal diseases and develop measures to protect the food supply
USD 489 Facility Needs Committee Consensus Summary
The USD 489 Facility Needs Committee will meet on Friday Morning. They will hear presentations on Special Education from Mark Hauptman and on HVAC/lighting at all buildings from Francis Hammerschmidt.
Facilities Needs Committee Building Consensus Summary
April 2013
The committee has reached a consensus that the mission of this group is a ‘think tank’. This committee was charged with forming a recommendation of how to address current and future structural needs of the district. No timeframe for action has been set.
The committee has reached a consensus that their immediate focus is not the construction of a new school. This conclusion was based upon the enrollment projections over the next five years, as well as the structural soundness of the current buildings. These factors, coupled with the additional information the committee was provided, allowed the committee to conclude that there does not appear to be a need to build an additional school within the next five years in Hays. The consensus of this committee is to build on to or upgrade current facilities to accommodate educational needs in existing buildings. Understanding the educational needs in each building has helped this committee form its consensus.
o O’Loughlin Elementary
- Entry/Front Office
- Cafeteria/kitchen – storm shelter Could be expanded into current gym if new one built
- Gym/Storm Shelter
- Additional Classroom Space–2 rooms(addition of 2 SPED rooms will open up 2 rooms
- Parking/Traffic Flow
- Additional Classrooms – 2 SPED rooms.o Lincoln
- Office/Entrance
- Cafeteria/kitchen and full-sized gym
- Additional classrooms – 3 6 rooms
- Storm Shelter Current Lunch Room could serve as storm shelter IF elevator installed
- ADA Accessibility
o Elevator – 3 Floor
Window upgrade – efficiency increase/noise reduction
o Roosevelt
- Security: Secure facility to include key readers at all doors, limited glass in doors
- Cafeteria/kitchen
- Gym – storm shelter
- Classrooms: Construction of 10 new classrooms (to accommodate 5 sections)Updating of current classrooms to include lights, heat, air, technology, restrooms, storage area
Kansas Mayor Announces Support for Gay Marriage
(AP) Salina Mayor Barb Shirley has joined a national group of mayors who support gay marriage.
Shirley’s announcement Wednesday that she had joined Mayors for Freedom to Marry came six months after Salina voters repealed protections from discrimination for people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered.
The mayor says she has no tolerance for any type of discrimination, and she wants all people to have the same civil rights.
Shirley joins more than 350 other mayors across the country in the group. She is believed to be the first mayor in Kansas to join the group.
In November, Salina residents voted to repeal anti-discrimination protections in the city’s codes.
Ellis County Relay for Life Information
Lonny Claycamp visited with the Eagle Radio stations this morning about Ellis County Relay for Life and events supporting the relay.
A Survivor Supper will be held at Victoria Elementary Saturday, May 4, 2013 at 6:30 pm. All cancer survivors and a guest are invited to attend free of charge. Please RSVP to 785-735-2878 or [email protected].
A benefit breakfast will be held at the Hays VFW on Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 12, 2013. Tickets must be purchased in advance to benefit Ellis County Relay for Life. Please call 785-635-0772.
Ellis County Relay for Life will be held at the Hays Middle School Friday, June 7, 2013 starting at 6 pm and continuing until midnight. To form a team, purchase a luminary, make a donation or get more information, please call Claycamp at 785-635-0772 or go online to: https://www.relayforlife.org/elliscoks
The Eagle Radio Drive for Cancer golf tournament will also support Ellis County Relay for Life on Friday, June 14, 2013. For more information on the golf tournament, please contact Todd Lynd at 785-625-2578.
Proceeds from Ellis County Relay for Life go to the American Cancer Society.
KSU to Award Honorary Doctorate
Kansas State University is awarding an honorary doctorate to a former CEO of agribusiness giant Cargill Inc.
Warren Staley, of Edina, Minn., will receive the honorary degree during a May 17 commencement ceremony in Bramlage Coliseum. Staley also is the commencement speaker.
Staley graduated from Kansas State in 1965 with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. He went on to receive a master’s degree in business administration from Cornell University in 1967.
Staley joined Cargill in 1969 and became president and chief operating officer in 1998. He was named CEO a year later and chairman of the board in 2000. Staley retired in 2007.
Kansas State says Staley and his wife, Mary Lynn, have contributed money for academic programs, scholarships and facility improvements.
All You Need to Know About the Spring Gallery Walk
According to the Hays Arts Council (HAC) Facebook page, “WHOA, BABY! Things are really looking good for one awesome Hays Arts Council Spring Art Walk tomorrow evening – with many sites holding over their features on Saturday.
2013 Hays Arts Council Spring Gallery Walk – Friday, April 26, 6:30 to 9:30pm
Below is the list of Gallery Walk Locations
Hays Arts Center, 112 E. 11th
The Spring Art Walk will feature the HAC’s 44th Annual Smoky Hill Art Exhibition – Kansas’ longest-running, annual art competition!
Fox Pavilion, 1202 Main
Sculpture, Painting, Drawing & Photography by Cole Arthur, Allen Craven,
Stephanie Doyle, Renilda Dreiling, Candy Fisher & Dennis Fisher
Emprise Bank, 1200 Main
Photography by G. Lamar Roth
Hays Public Library, 1205 Main
Photography Exhibition by Tori North
Astra Bank, 11th & Fort St
Photography Exhibition by Jolie Green, Micala Jamison, & Monica Casarez-Donaldson
GoodWin Sporting Goods, 109 W. 11th
Hays Photography Club Exhibition
Tri-Central Office Supply, 1101 Main (window display)
Prairie Garden Club Youth Environmental Posters
Nex-Tech Internet Solutions, 210 E. 12th
Metal & Acrylic Paintings by Amy Normandin
Metal Sculpture & Paintings by Dustin Sypher of TallGrass Forge
Gella’s Diner & Lb. Brewing Co., 117 E. 11th
“Collaboration with Soil” by Rhonda Janke
Live Music by Shaun Cole – 9:30-11:30pm
ARC of the Central Plains, 116 E. 11th
Sculpture by Jim Hinkhouse
Scrollsaw Art by Erik Warren
Pinterest Inspired Creations
The Brass Rail, 114 E. 11th
Hays Community Theatre presents:
Culinary Art Demonstrations by Matt Smith
Dennis Hahn DJ Services & Karaoke Contest Registration
Karaoke Contest – 9:00pm
Madd Matter Frame Shop & Gallery, 112 E. 11th
“Nature’s Sounds of Silence” collage & ccrylic paintings by John C. Thorns, Jr.
Hays Arts Center Annex, 1010 Main
“Artistic Flavor” BFA Exhibition of David Barnum
Photography & Paintings by Bruce Burkholder
Classic Rock ‘n Roll Concert & Club Posters
Live Music by Slyridge/Tempest
Diamond R Jewelry, 1008 Main
Photography by Mary Ladd Dague
HAC Alley Exhibition, Main between 10th & 11th
“Safety First” forging demonstration & art by Lance Wadlow & Nicole Thibodeau
Salon 1007, 1007 Main
“Earthbound Journeys” FHSU Advanced Ceramics Exhibition
Paintings by Laurie Grahs
Live Music by Mike Ferguson and Friends
White Chocolate, 810 Main
Photography by Jesse Jensen
Kris Kuksi Fine Art, 807 Main
Works by Kuksi and local artists
Live Music
Northglen Antiques, 801 Main
BFA Photography Exhibition of Carrie Burgoon
“Second Time Around” paintings by Jack Flagor
Digital Art & Pastels by Joseph Borra
Cartoon Illustrations by John Borra
Commerce Bank, 718 Main
“Pinwheels for Prevention” Casa Advocacy Exhibition by Children & Families
Artists @ Work Studio, 717 Main
Paintings by Jin Lim
Moss Thorns Gallery, FHSU Rarick Hall
Michael Knutson MFA Thesis Exhibition
Early or Extended Hours
Chestnut Street Kitchens, 1310 Main – 5:00-8:00pm
“Reconstructed Memories” photography by Danielle Garcia
Elements of Massage, 1308 Main – 5:00-8:00pm
Ceramics, Photography, Jewelry & Drawings by
Izzy Bowman, Tori North, Katy Hopson, & Brian Andreas
Ellis County Historical Society, 100 W. 7th – 5:00-9:00pm
“Foundations of Faith: Churches of Ellis County” models, objects & vestments
Midland Marketing, 201 E. 8th – 6:00-8:00pm
“Farming…and of course, Tractors” paintings by Dennis Schiel
The Robbins Center, One Tiger Place, FHSU – 6:00-8:00pm
“Toe Bee and the Bee’s Knees Sculpture Emporium”
Thirsty’s Grill & Pub, 2704 Vine – 5:00-10:00pm
“House Call” by Matt Miller – portraits, landscapes & interactive installation
** Courtesy of the Hays Convention & Visitors Bureau, the CVB Trolley will shuttle guests between Union Pacific Park (10th & Main) and the Moss Thorns Gallery (FHSU) from 6:30 to 9:30pm
Saturday, April 27 – Viewing Continues
The following locations welcome you to visit our extended
Spring Gallery Walk during these designated times
Hays Arts Center, 112 E. 11th 10am – 2pm
Chestnut Street Kitchens, 1310 Main 10am-5pm
Elements of Massage, 1308 Main 10am-2pm
Hays Public Library, 1205 Main 9am – 5pm
Tri-Central Office Supply (windows) 10am – 5pm
Madd Matter, 112 E. 11th 10am – 5pm
Hays Arts Center Annex, 1010 Main 10am – 2pm
Diamond R Jewelry, 1008 Main 10am – 4pm
Salon 1007, 1007 Main 9am – 1pm
White Chocolate, 810 Main 11am-6pm
Kris Kuksi Fine Art, 807 Main 10am-2pm
Ellis County Historical Society, 100 W. 7th 9am-6pm
Moss Thorns Gallery, FHSU 10am – Noon
Thirsty’s Brill & Pub, 2704 Vine 11am – 10pm
Conceal & Carry Group on Campus Hears from State Legislators
Students for Conceal and Carry on Campus had a meeting Wednesday evening at FHSU
State Representatives Sue Boldra and Travis Couture-Lovelady attended the event. Couture-Lovelady wrote on his FaceBook page, “I enjoyed speaking at the FHSU Students for Concealed Carry on Campus this evening. Rep. Sue Boldra and I gave an update and fielded questions on gun bills passed this session. It is great to see college students standing up for their Constitutional rights!”
In February, the FHSU Student Government Association approved a resolution opposing any measure that would allow concealed carry weapons on campus.
Tyler Clark, a conceal and carry advocate on campus told Eagle News, “Just to set a few things straight, at the time of the vote taken by SGA there were 80 students in attendance who supported concealed carry who told SGA not to pass their poorly researched resolution. FHSU will never be able to implement security measures that are better than concealed carry policies. Currently all students are invited to sign a petition on campus in support of allowing carry on campus in August, this has been prepared by students for concealed carry. The best thing that the Regents can do for us is to allow concealed carry on campus to protect our students and Constitutional Rights.”