By BECKY KISER
Hays Post

To the displeasure of Hays City Commissioner Henry Schwaller, the other four commissioners voted Thursday night to release all $87,550 of city funding to the Ellis County Coalition for Economic Development for the 2016 fiscal year.

Schwaller’s first motion to release just half of the amount by May, failed three to two, with Schwaller and Lance Jones voting in favor.

During the 2016 budget planning, commissioners discussed whether to stop funding the Coalition.

Ultimately, they did not approve a direct allocation for the Coalition; the allocation was earmarked for “Economic Development Activities.” The funding was contingent upon the Coalition becoming more accountable to the city–the Coalition’s largest financial contributor–and for Executive Director Aaron White and the board members to establish a new action plan for presentation to the commission by the end of December.

White made a presentation during the Jan. 7 work session; Schwaller still contends “there is no plan.”

“I served on the Coalition board during that time. Other than the ‘concept’ of providing succession planning to northwest Kansas businesses owners, it is the same projects the Coalition has done since I’ve served on the city commission–since 1999–with the exception of the worker retraining program funded by the Dane G. Hansen Foundation which is on hiatus,” Schwaller said.

Jones has been unhappy with communication between White and the commission. “I’d like a more regular update than what we’ve had,” he said, “but I am happy with the improved contact over the past few weeks.”

“We need to back off,” countered Vice-Mayor Shaun Musil. “I keep hearing so many people say the way we act and treat people up here–not all of the commissioners and I’m not pointing fingers–that we think we’re so much better than anybody else and think we have a better plan.

“But we don’t have a better plan, and we have to have economic development in this community,” Musil said with a fist to the table for emphasis. “If we don’t, we’re just gonna go away. I think the way we’re acting is a huge mistake.”

“I think holding on to the funds breeds uncertainty,” said Mayor Eber Phelps. “Absolutely,” agreed Musil. “That board needs to know their funding is in place so they can proceed with economic development efforts,” Phelps added.

Musil’s subsequent motion to release all the city’s $87,550 funding to the Coalition was seconded by Commissioner James Meier, and passed four to one, with Schwaller opposed.

Prior to the voten Meier said he “absolutely agreed” with commissioners Schwaller and Jones.

“The (Coalition) plea was made back in August–‘don’t cut our funding because we don’t know where we’re going to get additional funds and we’ll have to cut things back.’ But then as soon as it seemed like you were going to get the money, it was back to business as normal, and nothing changed. There was no communication,” Meier said.

“But, I also agree with Commissioner Musil,” Meier continued, “there has to be some type of certainty.”

“Whether I like it or not, perceptions matter, and for that reason I think we should fully fund them. But there have to be changes that have to be made,” Meier admonished. “One meeting, although I felt better, is not enough.”

“August 2016 is not that far away, and there may not be a motion to put your funds into limbo. It may just be that we don’t fund you.

“We are an oil community and oil is ‘in the tank.’ We need you guys to perform like you’ve never performed before…the future of the community is relying on you,” Meier said, with a few fist taps of his own on the tabletop.

Commissioners agreed at last week’s work session to change the economic development policy so that future requests for incentives from businesses would be screened by White before they come to the city.

Meier said that was the other reason he agreed with Musil, who recently replaced Schwaller as the city’s representative on the Coalition.

“If we’re going to make that change, then we have to fund the Coalition,” said Meier.

FHSU University Relations

The Cheryl Helget Memorial Scholarship has been established at Fort Hays State University to honor the life of a dedicated, longtime university staff member who lost her battle with breast cancer last spring at the age of 54.

Several of Cheryl Helget’s former coworkers, including Mark and Dr. Patti Griffin, Mark Cook and Bev Unruh, established the scholarship honor Helget’s passion for education.

“Our goal for the scholarship fund is $10,000 because then it will become an endowed fund, meaning that the initial $10,000 is invested and the scholarship is awarded based off of the earnings,” said Mark Griffin, chief technology officer.

“Most importantly,” he said, “it means that Cheryl’s scholarship will continue to be awarded to hard-working FHSU students in perpetuity. Not only will the legacy of the life she lived be a blessing to those who receive the award, but it will also serve as a reminder to those who knew Cheryl that her memory lives on.”

By contributing to the scholarship, friends and family who knew Helget have the opportunity to honor her life, her service and her love for education.

“Cheryl was a huge advocate for education,” said Unruh, an administrative associate in the Department of Mathematics and a longtime friend and coworker of Helget’s. “She was a very giving person and would be honored to know that people were giving back to students in need — helping them to get an education with her name attached.”

Helget spent many years as a member of the Ellis school board, including service as board president. She fought for support for the budget and for keeping up with, and meeting, standards set by the Kansas Board of Education.

Helget will be remembered for her value of others and her attitude of service.

“As most people know, Cheryl had many close friends,” said Mark Griffin. “What I always found interesting was the varied and diverse backgrounds of her friends. Cheryl had friends that were both very wealthy, and those that were not very well off financially. She had friends in politics, in education, higher ed and K-12, in farming and ranching, musicians and artists, oil field workers, railroaders and lots of other industries.”

She loved to see other people succeed and was willing to do what was required to serve them. Her abilities to listen, articulate and encourage others were a blessing to all who knew her.

“Cheryl was a loyal and caring friend with a great sense of humor,” said Unruh. “Rather than dwelling on her battle against cancer, she cared deeply about what was happening with her family, friends and their lives. She was a strong woman with great faith and courage. She was beautiful, inside and out. Many people didn’t even know that she was battling cancer.”

“Cheryl rarely met a problem she couldn’t solve,” said Cook, a computer support technician. “Through hard work and her diligent, get-it-done attitude, she helped build the reputation of FHSU’s Computing and Telecommunications Center as an outlet that helped solve problems and see that projects were completed to the end.”

“I think it would be a great way to honor Cheryl and her service to FHSU by funding an endowed scholarship,” said Mark Griffin. “But, Cheryl would tell all of us that it is far more important to provide academic scholarships to people looking to educate and improve themselves than it is to remember her. Perhaps she’s right, but I think both goals of this scholarship are important, and that is why I hope people will donate to this scholarship fund,” he added.

Supporting the Cheryl Helget Memorial Scholarship online is easy and secure. Simply make your gift by visiting https://foundation.fhsu.edu/ and clicking on “Make a gift today.” After filling in the necessary information, type “Cheryl Helget Memorial Scholarship” as your area of designation.

To learn more about the Fort Hays State Foundation, contact the office at 785-628-5620 or email [email protected].

Tim McGraw and Dierks Bentley are among the highlights of the 2016 Kicker Country Stampede.

The complete lineup for the annual music festival — scheduled forJune 23 to 25 at Tuttle Creek State Park in Manhattan — was announced Friday and can be found HERE.

Fort Hays State University will host an interdisciplinary workshop titled “Educational Approaches to the Holocaust” from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Jan. 18, in the Stouffer Lounge of FHSU’s Memorial Union.

The workshop, facilitated by the Kansas Center for Innovative Education, is partially funded by grant money from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Midwest Center for Holocaust Education. The grant was written by Dr. Paul Nienkamp, assistant professor of history at FHSU.

About 55 middle and secondary teachers and teaching candidates are registered to attend. The workshop will bring in participants from the counties of Barton, Dickinson, Ellis, Kearny, Lane, Norton, Pratt, Rooks, Rush, Russell, Saline, Seward and Wabaunsee. Several members of the Eisenhower Foundation and Library are also expected.

Office of U.S. Senator Jerry Moran

U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) has announced he will visit Oakley and Grainfield as part of his Kansas Listening Tour on Monday, Jan. 18.

Area residents are encouraged to attend and share feedback with Sen. Moran on the critical issues facing Kansas and the nation. The issues Sen. Moran focuses on and the work he does in Washington, D.C., are significantly based on the conversations he has with Kansans during these town hall meetings.

Moran will be in Oakley from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. at the Logan County Courthouse, 710 W. 2nd Street, in the basement meeting room. The senator will then travel to Gove County for another town hall meeting. It will be held from 9 until 10 a.m. in the Grainfield American Legion, 235 Main Street.

Questions about the events may be directed to Katie Niederee at [email protected].