August 2015 – Page 26 – Hays Post Archive

Ronald ‘Ron’ Leon Michel

Posted on August 22, 2015

Ronald “Ron” Leon Michel, 67, died Aug. 20, 2015, at Hospice House, Hutchinson. He was born May 11, 1948, in Hays, to Leon G. and Onita Mary (Stanton) Michel.

Ron graduated from Belpre-Trousdale High School in 1966 and attended the University of Kansas as a lineman. He was employed for Cobb Cable TV in Great Bend and later became manager of Fredonia Cable TV in Fredonia. Several years later, Ron, along with business partner, Jerry McClure, purchased Murphy Electric in Fredonia, where they built a successful business. After Murphy Electric, he owned and operated Michel Electric. He then became a master electrician for KSIR. During his time in Fredonia, he served as a volunteer on the Fredonia Fire Department. Ron was an avid golfer. He also enjoyed fishing, camping, hunting, gardening and cooking.

On Feb. 14, 1992, Ron married Mary Elizabeth Gibson in Hutchinson. She survives. Other survivors include: son, Christopher Michel of Wichita; daughters, Katherine Michel of the Wichita area, Kirsten Weishaar and husband Brian of Lawrence; stepdaughters, Debra Watters of Boise, Idaho, Tricia Thompson and husband Larry of Lawrence, Tanya Rempel and husband Gregg of Wichita; grandchildren, William Ferguson, Rhiana Ferguson-Beck, Brooke Thompson, Cody Thompson, Jordan Rempel, Jacob Rempel, Kamryn Weishaar; great-grandchildren, Jayden Beck and Billy Ferguson; mother, Onita Michel-McBride of Haysville; brother, Ed Michel and wife Gloria of Derby; sisters, Jan Middlemist and husband Mark of Holton, Jeri Meier and husband Dennis of Muskogee, Okla.; and sister-in-law, Sharon Michel of Liberal. Ron was preceded in death by his father and brother, Tom Michel.

Funeral service will be 2 p.m. Monday, Aug. 24, 2015, at Elliott Chapel, Hutchinson, with the Reverend Dr. Kim Biery officiating. Burial will follow at 4:30 p.m. in Farmington Cemetery, Macksville, with Father Warren Stecklein officiating. Family will greet friends from 1 to 2 p.m. Monday at Elliott Chapel. Memorials may be made to Hospice of Reno County, in care of Elliott Mortuary, 1219 N. Main, Hutchinson, KS 67501.

James H. Piland

Posted on August 22, 2015

James H. Piland, 91, of Waldo, Kansas, died on August 20, 2015, at the Great Bend Health and Rehabilitation Center in Great Bend, Kansas.

James was born in Waldo, Kansas on September 12, 1923, the son of Elmer and Bessie (Burgar) Piland. He graduated from Waldo High School in 1941 and moved to California to build airplanes to aid in the war effort during World War II.

He returned to Waldo after the war and went on to be a farmer and rancher. He met, fell in love with and was united in marriage to Jean E. (May) Piland on June 09, 1960, in Luray, Kansas. James and Jean raised 3 children from a previous marriage, Bill, Shirley and Karen Lahar. Later in life he became the Post Master of the Waldo Post Office and retired from there after many years of service. He also enjoyed farming and ranching and spent countless hours tending to his cattle and managing the farm.

James was an active member of the Waldo United Methodist Church. He was also a former member of the Waldo Fire Department and served as a Waldo city council member and Mayor of Waldo for several terms. James and Jean were avid conservationists and bird enthusiasts. Together they constructed and placed hundreds of bird houses on their farm and throughout Russell County. He also enjoyed Royals baseball, flower gardening, building bird houses, animals, computers and his beloved cat AFLAC. Most of all he enjoyed spending time with his family. After 45 years of marriage, Jean preceded James in death on January 29, 2006.

James is survived by his son Bill Lahar and wife Barbara of Douglass, Kansas; daughter Karen Carney and husband Jim of Hoisington, Kansas; 8 grandchildren and numerous great grandchildren and great-great grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents, the love of his life – Jean, step daughter Shirley Harrington, 1 brother and 3 sisters.

A memorial service to celebrate James’ life will be held at 10:30 A.M. on Wednesday, August 26, 2015, at the Waldo United Methodist Church in Waldo, Kansas with Pastor Scott Tempero officiating. Cremation has preceded the service and there will be no visitation. In lieu of flowers the family has requested donations be given to the Waldo United Methodist Church or the Waldo Senior Center and sent in care of the mortuary. Pohlman-Varner-Peeler Mortuary of Russell is in charge of the funeral service arrangements.

Kansas Democrats try to regroup after chairman resigns

Posted on August 22, 2015August 22, 2015

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The resignation of the Kansas Democratic Party’s chairman has thrown the party’s mid-year convention into flux.

The “DemoFest” convention began Friday in Wichita just hours after the resignation of Larry Meeker. He stepped down amid a backlash over comments he made about rebranding the state party’s message to emphasize it is more conservative than the national party.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports that the situation was further complicated by the fact that party officials had neglected to send out formal notices that the party’s state committee would be meeting during the convention. Because of that, the committee is prevented under party bylaws from taking any action to name a new chairperson this weekend.

Instead, the committee will meet Oct. 3 in Salina to select a new chairperson.

4 hospitalized after Kansas head-on crash

Posted on August 22, 2015August 22, 2015

SENECA- Four people were injured in an accident just before 2:30p.m. on Saturday in Nemaha County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2003 Honda Civic driven by Justin Robert Gerdes, 28, Fort Riley, was northbound on U.S. 63 seven miles north of Seneca.

The driver attempted to pass another vehicle and collided with a 2006 Mitsubishi Galant driven by Kelsey Ann Bradley, 21, Seneca head-on.

Gerdes, Bradley and passengers in the Mitusbishi Bryce Brenden Bradley, 46, and Dana Elizabeth Bradley, 45, both of Seneca, were transported to Nemaha Valley Community Hospital.

All were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

Mobile app features Wetlands Education Center

Posted on August 22, 2015August 22, 2015

FHSU University Relations

Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area visitors can now guide their own tours of the state park using the Great Bend 2 Go mobile app, a free community app created by the Great Bend Tribune.

The Kansas Wetlands Education Center created a driving tour for the GB2G. The driving trail has 11 stops, each with a 2 to 5 minute video about topics such as how the water is managed, the migration of birds, hunting heritage and wildlife.

Curtis Wolf, manager of the Wetlands Center, said the tours are important because they give people more information than they would otherwise have access to.

The Wetlands Center, managed by Fort Hays State University’s Sternberg Museum of Natural History, is located at 592 NE K-156 Highway, on the edge of Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area about 10 miles northeast of downtown Great Bend. Its mission is to educate the public about the importance of wetlands and the need for their conservation using interactive exhibits and outreach programs focusing on Cheyenne Bottoms and the Quivira National Wildlife Refuge.

The Bottoms are the largest wetland in the interior of the United States, supporting hundreds of thousands of migratory shorebirds and waterfowl during nesting, staging and wintering periods.

More species of birds are seen at Cheyenne Bottoms than anywhere else in Kansas. At least 39 species of shorebirds stay there, as well as many threatened or endangered birds and at least 330 species of the 470 species native to Kansas. An estimated 45 percent of all migratory shorebirds that nest in North America feed and rest at Cheyenne Bottoms.

“It’s a huge attraction to bird-watchers, hunters and nature enthusiasts, but it’s generally unknown to most people,” Wolf said.

Cheyenne Bottoms is free and open year-round to vehicles. From April 1 to Oct. 31, the center is open Monday-Saturday from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sundays from 1-5 p.m. From Nov. 1 to March 31, the center is closed on Mondays and open Tuesday-Saturday from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sundays from 1-5 p.m. Visitors can also reserve times after hours.

For more information about the Wetlands Center, visit www.wetlandscenter.fhsu.edu.

Sheriff: Juvenile dies in off-road accident south of Russell

Posted on August 22, 2015August 22, 2015

RUSSELL — An unidentified juvenile was killed in an off-road utility-terrain vehicle accident Saturday morning in Russell County, according to Russell County Sheriff John R. Fletcher.

Dispatch received a report of an accident in a pasture south of Russell at approximately 10:37 a.m. Saturday.

Sheriff’s deputies, as well as Russell City Fire and Russell County EMS, responded. It was discovered the juvenile driver of the UTV was ejected and trapped under the vehicle. The Russell County Deputy Coroner was contacted and pronounced the driver dead on scene.

A juvenile passenger also was ejected from the vehicle. The passenger was transported to Russell Regional Hospital, where he was treated and released.

The named of both occupants are being withheld pending family notifications.

Jean Wannamaker Benedict

Posted on August 22, 2015August 22, 2015

Jean Wannamaker Benedict, 56, Lenexa, formerly of Hays, died Thursday, August 20, 2015, at her home.

She was born November 15, 1958, in Hays the daughter of Jim and Agnes (Waldschmidt) Wannamaker. On September 19, 1987, she married Russell L. Benedict in Ellis, Kansas. He died January 3, 2013.

She was manager of Maurices clothing stores for over 35 years, starting as manager of the Emporia store, and then moving to Hays to manage the Hays store and finally manager of the Maurices in Ottawa, KS.

She was a member of the North Oak Community Church in Hays, the Lenexa Baptist Church, graduated from Bauder Fashion College in Dallas, Texas, and was manager of the year for her district with Maurices. She loved her work and loved shopping for clothes.

Survivors include her mother Agnes Wannamaker of Ellis, mother in law Mary F. Benedict of Hays, a brother Pete Wannamaker and wife Teri of Topeka, a sister Jackie Shubert and husband Bruce of Manhattan, four nephews JJ Wannamaker and wife Lindsey of Overland Park, Jarod Wannamaker and wife Rachel of Hutchinson, Sam Schubert and wife Lisa of Manhattan, and Ben Shubert of Manhattan, two nieces, Mattie Benedict of Gravett, Arkansas and Sonya Simpkins of Los Angeles, CA.

She was preceded in death by her father, Jim, husband Russell L., and sister, Jennifer Simpkins.

Funeral services will be at 10:00 am on Tuesday, August 25, 2015 at the North Oak Community Church, 3000 Oak Street, Hays. Burial will be at Mt. Hope Cemetery, Ellis. The family will receive friends from 5-7 pm on Monday at the North Oak Community Church and from 9:30 until service time on Tuesday at the church.

Memorials are suggested to North Oak Community Church or Lenexa Baptist Church, in care of the funeral home.

Condolences may be left for the family at www.haysmemorial.com.

Proposal would purge more than 34K prospective Kan. voters

Posted on August 22, 2015August 22, 2015

ROXANA HEGEMAN, Associated Press

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Opponents of a proposed regulation to purge the names of more than 34,000 prospective voters will protest at public hearing next month, but concede there is little else they can do.

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach is pushing an administrative rule that would allow him to throw out any incomplete voter registration forms after 90 days, most of which lack proof-of-citizenship documentation.

The number of incomplete voter registrations on hold as has grown to 34,454 names as of Wednesday. Purging it would leave just 4,202 prospective voters.

A hearing is set for Sept. 2 in Topeka over the proposal. Kobach and opponents of the move all say he has the power to unilaterally change the rule.

KDWPT receives $2.7 million grant for public access on private lands

Posted on August 22, 2015August 20, 2015

Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism

PRATT– On August 17, 2015, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) awarded $20 million in grants to 15 states to improve and increase wildlife habitat and public access for recreational opportunities on privately-owned and operated farm, ranch and forest lands. The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) received a $2.7 million grant, the largest amount awarded to the 15 states. The grant is funded under the Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Incentives Program (VPA-HIP), which is administered by the USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS).

According to Jake George, KDWPT Private Land Programs Coordinator, the funds will be used over a three-year period to lease private land for hunting and fishing access and to help landowners improve habitat on those properties. Program promotion and outreach will occur this fall, with initial enrollment beginning late-spring to early-summer of 2016.

“We were very pleased to once again be awarded VPA-HIP grant funding,” George said. “Currently, KDWPT’s Walk-in Hunting Access and FISH programs have more than 1 million acres of enrolled properties and agreements with nearly 2,300 Kansas landowners, providing numerous public hunting and fishing opportunities across the state. This additional funding will allow for further expansion and improvement of the already successful access and habitat management programs offered to Kansas landowners through KDWPT.”

With respect to hunting, the focus for the funds will be on enrolling new or recently enrolled Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) properties. Participating landowners must be willing to allow public hunting access on the property for the duration of the CRP contract and enroll in wildlife-friendly conservation practices. Landowners are encouraged to enroll or re-enroll their properties in CRP between the continuous signup and the general CRP signup, which begins Dec. 1, 2015. KDWPT expects to add an estimated 40,000 to 60,000 new acres of quality access properties over the next three years.

KDWPT will also use the funds to improve fishing and paddle sports access, enrolling prime stream reaches, as well as quality privately-owned impoundments. Public access to these streams would provide a multitude of angling opportunities and open up recreational paddle sports access, which is limited in the state because most of the 10,000 miles of streams and rivers in Kansas are privately owned.

“This project with the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism shows how good partnerships and land management will lead to sustainable recreational and economic opportunities for years to come. Connecting outdoor recreation to private lands conservation is good for wildlife, people, and rural economies,” said Eric B. Banks, state conservationist for the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

For more information on VPA-HIP and other FSA programs, visit www.fsa.usda.gov/vpa.

SOS breast cancer support group changes meeting location

Posted on August 22, 2015August 17, 2015

Submitted

The meeting location for Sisters of Survivorship breast cancer support group has changed. According to group leader Iris Lang, starting Sept. 2, 2015, SOS will meet at Thirsty’s Brew Pub and Grill, 2704 Vine Street, Hays.

SOS meets the first Wednesday of each month at 6 p.m.

For more information, call Lang at (785) 735-2823.

Area 4th & 5th graders invited to Constitution Day

Posted on August 22, 2015August 22, 2015

Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home

ABILENE–Constitution Day programs will be held again this year at the Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home in partnership with the Eisenhower Foundation. The interactive event, designed for 4th and 5th grade students, will be offered during the week of Sept. 14-18. Kansas recognizes the week containing Sept. 17, the date the U.S. Constitution was signed, as Celebrate Freedom Week.

The program helps students honor and celebrate the privileges and responsibilities of U.S. citizenship, as well as commemorate the signing of the Constitution. Space is still available for schools to participate. Reservations from teachers should be made by Sept. 3 by calling (785) 263-6754 or emailing [email protected].

The event will include four 30-minute participatory student activities. Groups of 20-25 students will rotate through the four stations:

Activity 1: “Holding History” – Students will examine copies of letters kids wrote to President Eisenhower. Discussion will include topics of that period in history and how citizens can interact with the Executive Branch of government.

Activity 2: “Dear Mr. President” – Following a discussion of several current topics, students will write their own letter to President Obama.

Activity 3: “The U.S. Flag” – Students will look at flag artifacts and hear about the changes to our flag under President Eisenhower when Alaska and Hawaii were added as states.

Activity 4: “Presidential Pics” – In the Presidential Gallery of the Museum, students will create a collage on their school iPad app, Pic Collage. (If the school does not have iPads available for their visit, a gallery scavenger hunt will be substituted.)

The Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home, a nonpartisan federal institution, is part of the Presidential Libraries network operated by the National Archives and Records Administration. Presidential Libraries promote understanding of the presidency and the American experience. We preserve and provide access to historical materials, support research, and create interactive programs and exhibits that educate and inspire.

Kansas murder suspect captured

Posted on August 22, 2015August 22, 2015

MCPHERSON- Law enforcement authorities in McPherson County reported a suspect wanted for murder is in custody.

Samuel N. Darrah, a former McPherson resident, is wanted in connection with the murder of James Amery Croft in November of 2014 near Galva.

In July, authorities issued an alert and asked the public for help locating him.

Darrah was located and is in custody, according to the McPherson County Crime Stoppers.

He was arrested and is being held in Sedgwick County after an anonymous tip to law enforcement.

Kan. geologist: Earthquakes linked to saltwater injection

Posted on August 22, 2015

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A scientist with the Kansas Geological Survey says an increase in earthquakes in two Kansas counties is linked to saltwater injection from oil and natural gas drilling.

The agency has said in the past that there was a “reasonable probability” that injection wells were linked to an uptick in earthquakes in Harper and Sumner counties in southern Kansas.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that KGS scientist Tandis Bidgoli used more definite language Thursday, telling the Kansas Environmental Conference that the two are “certainly linked.”

Bidgoli said the agency wants to more study of the relationship between the increased underground pressure and the quakes. She says scientists want to see if the pressure needs to be dialed back to reduce seismic activity.