Month: June 2016
Ellis County featured real estate, open houses
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Listings with star symbol have weekend open houses.
Brownback names western Kansans to state boards, commissions
TOPEKA – Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback announced today new appointments to boards and commissions.
“I’m grateful for the men and women willing to dedicate their time and talent to make Kansas the best state in America to raise a family and grow a business,” said Brownback.
The Governor’s Office is always looking for qualified, interested Kansans to serve the state on commissions and boards in their areas of expertise. If you are interested in serving on a commission or board, visit https://governor.ks.gov/serving-kansans/office-of-appointments.
Western Kansas appointees include:
Commission on Emergency Planning and Response
Arlene Doll, Dighton
Kansas Board of Cosmetology
Christine Burgardt, Garden City (reappointment)
Wild West Festival 2016: Hannah Norris
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The 22nd annual Wild West Festival in Hays is scheduled for June 30 to July 4.
Hays Post is partnering with the Wild West Festival committee to offer a sneak peak at the performers taking the stage this year.
In her hometown of Hays, Hannah Norris got started on guitar at the age of 12. Two years and four more instruments later, she was writing and recording Americana-styled folk songs.
Her influences and styles have since shifted, but the electric sound remains the same. She cites her muses as T. Rex, Patti Smith, Laura Marling, Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin.
Hannah has performed live countless times, including appearances at several college radio stations, the 2015 Wild West Festival and Hays High School.
Despite her heavy involvement in music, Hannah is active in debate, journalism, and drinking good coffee. For more information, check out hannahnorris.bandcamp.com.
Norris takes the stage July 2.
Check HaysPost.com for more acts in the coming days.
Partly sunny, hot Saturday, chance of storms late
A weak cold front will cross the region today. While there could be a brief shower or thunderstorm this morning, late afternoon thunderstorms may develop near the front, with the most intense thunderstorms producing hail and wind gusts to near 60 mph. Thunderstorms should weaken by midnight.
Temperatures on Sunday will not be much cooler, as highs will still be in the low 90s. However, the humidity will be considerably less. A stronger cool front will move through Monday night and will become stationary south and west of the region. As an upper-level disturbance moves through Tuesday night into Wednesday, this could trigger scattered thunderstorms each day.
Today: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 4pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 94. South southwest wind 14 to 17 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph.
Tonight: Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly before midnight. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 67. South wind 6 to 11 mph becoming north northeast in the evening. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Sunday: Partly sunny, with a high near 90. North northeast wind 6 to 10 mph becoming east in the afternoon.
Sunday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 68. East southeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming northeast after midnight.
Monday: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 93. East wind 5 to 9 mph.
State moving some residents out of Kansas Hospital, Training Center
By ANDY MARSO
The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services is moving about 20 people with intellectual and developmental disabilities out of a facility in Parsons and into community-based services.
But some providers of those services say they’re already strained. Angela de Rocha, a KDADS spokeswoman, said the change is being made to deinstitutionalize residents of Parsons State Hospital and Training Center who don’t need the intensive support that the hospital provides.
The Parsons hospital is one of two facilities in the state that serve Kansans with intellectual disabilities.
“We have a mandate to take care of people in the least restrictive setting possible, and we had some folks out there that were not being cared for in the least restrictive setting,” de Rocha said. “So those people were placed in home and community-based living situations outside of Parsons.”
De Rocha said each person leaving the Parsons facility must be assessed by a community developmental disability organization to determine if their next step is a group home, adult day care or another form of community-based provider.
Some of them will be leaving southeast Kansas to return to their hometowns, she said.
She said KDADS will not know if it saved money by closing the facility at Parsons where the 20 people now live until the agency finds out what it will cost to serve them in home and community-based settings.
“I can’t say that we’ll save money or be spending more money, and in any event that was not the purpose,” de Rocha said. “It wasn’t a fiscal decision.” Scott Thompson is president and CEO of a community-based service provider called CLASS that operates in six locations throughout southeast Kansas. He said some of the people being moved from Parsons and their caregivers have been evaluating his organization to see if it will meet their needs.
“Presently some of those individuals are going through our local CDDO (community developmental disability organization) looking at what service options might be available to them and taking tours and trying to figure out who their provider will be in the future,” he said.
Employees from Thompson’s organization say they’ve been scrambling to aid Parsons residents in their transition from the hospital since they found out last month that the facility would be closing.
Such transitions usually take six to eight months, said Lori Hinman, an eligibility coordinator at CLASS. The Parsons residents have to be out of the hospital and into other services by Sept. 1.
“We’re in a huge time crunch,” she said, adding that the staff at Parsons has “been wonderful” in helping residents with the transition. Hinman said it’s unusual for so many people to leave the state hospital at one time and she’s working to place nine of them in community services right now.
They all require fairly intensive services, she said. “Most of them are needing 24-hour support,” Hinman said. “Not necessarily a group home, but they do need 24-hour support.
That could be in their own home. Some people move in with family and they get it that way.” It can be a challenge for home and community-based providers to find qualified staff in southeast Kansas, according to CLASS officials. Cliff Sperry, CLASS vice president for administration, said no new providers are getting into the business of serving people with developmental disabilities because the pay, most of which comes from Medicaid, is so low.
“The capacity is dwindling would be a good way to put it,” Sperry said.
Andy Marso is a reporter for KHI News Service in Topeka, a partner in the Heartland Health Monitor team. You can reach him on Twitter @andymarso
Kansas teen hospitalized after SUV rolls
SALINE COUNTY – A Kansas teen was injured in an accident just before 3a.m. on Saturday in Saline County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1997 GMC Jimmy driven by Ramses Jimenez, 16, Salina, was northbound on Simpson Road two miles east of Salina.
The driver fell asleep and the vehicle entered the east ditch striking a ditch embankment and a mailbox.
The driver overcorrected and the vehicle rolled multiple times.
Jimenez was transported to Salina Regional Medical Center.
He was properly restrained a the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
LETTER: Ellis Co. treasurer candidate introduces herself
To the citizens of Ellis County, I would like to spend a few moments introducing myself as I announce I will be running for Treasurer in November. My professional background includes several years of work experience in Higher Education, physical fitness, the banking industry, and more. During my undergraduate education, I was in the top 2% of students at FHSU in the College of Business and Leadership, and was nominated for the Torch Award when I graduated. I have a Bachelors degree in Leadership Studies, and I earned my Master’s degree from KU, where I graduated with Honors in 2011.
After earning my degrees and learning more about the world through full-time work and travel, I became certain I wanted to make my home in Kansas. My hobbies include traveling, spending my free time with my family and pets, and doing physical fitness, hiking, and gardening. Having grown up in Ellis County, a farmer’s daughter, I feel a great affinity for the people and the environs of Kansas. I was born in this place for a reason, and I want to stay here to contribute my efforts and talents to Ellis County, the place my family has called home since my ancestors came to the U.S. in the late 1800s.
We are at a time in history, I believe, is especially poignant. Our city, county, and nation need to pick leaders with integrity, courage to make tough decisions, and common sense as we move thoughtfully onward. As a new candidate for Treasurer I aim to make our county stronger by working in the spirit of togetherness with other county employees to make the best decisions we can to strengthen and unite our county. Ellis County citizens can count on me to perform the duties of Treasurer with excellence and integrity. I invite citizens to vote for me in November to serve a 4–year term as Treasurer of Ellis County.
Lisa Schlegel
‘Hispanic Stars’ tell their stories at FHSU HCI
By RANDY GONZALES
FHSU University Relations and Marketing
Oscar Rodriguez, who was an all-conference safety for the Tiger football team more than a decade ago, wanted to make sure he was part of Fort Hays State University’s inaugural Hispanic College Institute. That’s why he was one of 14 “Hispanic Stars” who volunteered to share their success stories with almost 90 campers in small groups on Thursday.
“A part of me wants to give back to the institution that’s given me so much,” said Rodriguez, a 2005 Fort Hays State graduate who played for the Tigers in 2003 and 2004 after transferring from a community college. “Just seeing it change in a diverse way doesn’t mean it still can’t thrive. If I can be part of the growing process, I want to have a seat at the table when it really changes and be a part of that process.”
Rodriguez, 34, knows all too well about change. Early in a successful coaching career, Rodriguez learned he had testicular cancer, which spread to a kidney, in 2012. A few years later it came back, and Rodriguez is now a two-time cancer survivor.
“I didn’t beat cancer; God spared me,” said Rodriguez, who finished his first season as the defensive coordinator for University of La Verne in La Verne, Calif. “You don’t lose to cancer because you die. It’s just part of the process. You’ve got to embrace it.”
Because of cancer, Rodriguez founded the Coaches Against Cancer Foundation four years ago. It has a free football camp and charity golf tournament every summer in his hometown of Liberal.
“I have a platform; that’s why HCI is such an important deal to me, to give back,” Rodriguez said. “We raise money to give back to these people who have medical expenses. One thing I learned going through cancer, I had insurance, I had a support system. But not everybody has that.”
Rodriguez was a student teacher under legendary Liberal football coach Gary Cornelsen when he moved to Texas to coach. That’s when Chris Brown — who is also from Liberal and played there with Rodriguez under Cornelsen — asked Rodriguez to join the staff at Washburn University, where Brown was the defensive coordinator. When Brown left Washburn to become head coach at Fort Hays State, Rodriguez also left to take the defensive coordinator position at Emporia State University. After his second year there came his first bout with cancer. Now, he’s a coach at a school near Los Angeles that serves the Hispanic population.
Life didn’t go according to plan — but that’s the plan, Rodriguez said.
“It’s all about the process,” Rodriguez said. “The process never goes according to our plans. One thing I’ve learned through cancer is that everything is so much bigger than ourselves.”
Rodriguez said FHSU hosting its first HCI is an important step in helping Hispanic students. The HCI brought almost 90 high school juniors and seniors to the FHSU campus from Wednesday through Saturday this week. The institute is a free, four-day residential program that prepares Hispanic students for success in higher education. It was the goal and dream of FHSU President Mirta M. Martin to bring the HCI to Fort Hays State after starting a similar program when she was involved in higher education in Virginia.
“Dr. Martin has an unbelievable vision and a plan,” Rodriguez said. “They’re lucky to have her.”
Rodriguez also had a sibling as one of the program’s “Hispanic Stars.” His sister, Mirta Chavez, is the director of multicultural programs and services at Kansas State University. She is also a Fort Hays State graduate. Chavez stressed to the students the importance of finding a school that takes seriously the role of multicultural education.
“You want to go to a university where they will invest in you,” Chavez said. “Think about that as you move forward to your college campus visits.
“This has been one of my best days in a very, very long time,” she added. “It’s just great to see you all here, motivated to learn and to move forward. You guys are our future.”
Yasmin Salazar, who will be a junior in high school this fall at Erie, decided to attend the HCI because she wanted to check out Fort Hays State. She enjoyed meeting the “Hispanic Stars.”
“It was pretty interesting,” she said. “I liked what they all had to say. They had really interesting stories that motivated me.”
That was the purpose, said Hector Villanueva, a multicultural recruitment admissions counselor at FHSU.
“We want students to picture themselves on the other side,” he said. “All the professionals we have here, everyone has a college degree. (The students) can see themselves going somewhere, doing something with their lives, after high school.”
Moran Questions Fed Chair Janet Yellen on Strength of Economic Recovery
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), member of the Senate Banking Committee, this week questioned Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen about the value of the U.S. dollar, its impact on commodity pricing, and the strength of our economic recovery. Watch the exchange here
“Kansans aren’t seeing our economy recover,” said Sen. Moran. “In my conversations with Kansans, I haven’t talked to many who see their economic future as brighter. They don’t feel more secure in their jobs. They’re worried about having opportunities for their kids when they graduate from school and about whether or not their kids can pay back their loans. They’re worried they can’t save for their own retirement or for healthcare emergencies. The sense of an economic recovery is far from being felt universally.”
In her testimony and again in response to Sen. Moran’s questioning about economic strength and the value of our dollar, specifically in relation to prices for agricultural commodities, Chairwoman Yellen admitted that business investment outside the energy sector has been “surprisingly weak.” She cited “slow growth and a less rapid increase in the labor force” as possible explanations for generally overall weak investment spending.
Sen. Moran continued, “Chairwoman Yellen’s testimony helps us understand the Federal Reserve’s thinking on how to strengthen our economy. It’s clear that when business owners are hit with regulation after regulation, when the Department of Labor ignores productivity and free market wages, and when potential entrepreneurs can’t see a path to success, Americans will remain out of work and worried about their futures.”
Larks edge Derby; increase lead in Jayhawk League
HAYS, Kan. – D.J. Carr allowed one earned run on six hits over eight innings and Chad Smith pitched a scoreless ninth to lead the Hays Larks to a 3-2 win over Derby in their series opener Friday night at Larks Park. Carr (4-0) struck out five and walked none and didn’t allow a run past the third inning.
The Larks (17-2, 13-2 JL) scored a run in the first then two in the third after the Twins (4-13, 4-11 JL) tallied two in the top of the second to take a 2-1 lead. Austin O’Brien’s double scored Connor Ross to tie the game 2-2. Nate Olinger’s single scored O’Brien with the go-ahead run.
The Larks increased their lead atop the Jayhawk League to 3 1/2 games over Dodge City who lost at Haysville 12-8.
The Larks and Twins play the middle game of the three-game series Saturday night at 7 pm. Nex-Tech is the buyout sponsor for the annual Larkstoberfest game which will feature authentic German food and music.
Springer hits slam as Astros pound Royals, Volquez
By ALAN ESKEW
Associated Press
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — George Springer hit a grand slam and a triple in Houston’s nine-run first inning against Edinson Volquez, and the Astros routed the Kansas City Royals 13-4 on Friday night.
Springer finished with five RBIs, and Colby Rasmus had four hits, including a homer in the eighth, scored three runs and drove in two.
Marwin Gonzalez, Carlos Gomez, Jason Castro and Rasmus all had RBI singles in the first off Volquez (7-7), who retired only three of the 15 batters he faced with 12 scoring, ballooning his ERA more than a full run to 5.15. He gave up eight hits and walked three.
The last time the Astros scored nine in the first inning was July 10, 2003, against Cincinnati. The Royals last allowed nine or more in the first on Sept. 23, 2006, when Detroit scored 10.
Dallas Keuchel (4-9) picked up only his second victory since April 15.
Hays Eagles knock off Wabaunsee
The Hays Eagles Senior American Legion scored four runs in the first inning then added three in the second to beat Wabaunsee 10-2 Friday night. Ryan Ruder, Ricky Hockett, Jared Haynes, Jace Armstrong and Cole Murphy all had two the Eagles 14 hits. Marcus Altman tripled and drove in three runs.
Cole Murphy pitched two scoreless innings with two strikeouts to pick up the win.
The Eagles are now 11-5 on the season.