LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) — A transgender soldier serving 35 years at a Kansas military prison for leaking classified information to WikiLeaks is asking President Barack Obama to commute her sentence to the 6 1/2 years she has already served.
Chelsea Manning says in her application for commutation that she’s a “far different person” than she was in 2010, when her name was Bradley Manning and she was struggling to fit in as a male.
A military court convicted Manning in 2013 of leaking more than 700,000 secret military and State Department documents to WikiLeaks. She has acknowledged guilt but says she wanted to raise public awareness about the impact of war on civilians.
She’s imprisoned at Fort Leavenworth.
Supporters argue the sentence was too harsh for something that caused little more than military embarrassment.
Rural Park resident Dennis Leroy Walker passed away November 7, 2016, at his residence. He was born July 14, 1944, in Akron, Colorado, to George and Vera (McFarlin) Walker.
In February of 1965, Dennis was united in marriage to Carol Harrington. To this union, three sons were born. They later divorced. In June of 1986, Dennis married Joane Dible. She preceded him in death on January 28, 2010.
Dennis was an avid hunter. He especially enjoyed hunting pheasants and quail. He was known for raising Brittany Spaniel bird dogs. He loved to trap shoot. In his younger days, he and family loved to compete in demolition derbies and drag races. Dennis will be missed by many friends and family.
Survivors include three sons, Jay L. and wife Julianna of Suffolk, Virginia, Jamy L. and wife Tammie of Louisburg, Kansas, and Jobie L. and wife Sallyann of Norfolk, Virginia; six grandchildren, Courtney and husband Brandon Condarco of Phoenix, Arizona, Cassie Walker of Norton, Brittany Walker of Muskogee, Oklahoma, Rachel Walker and Meagan Walker both of Louisburg, Kansas, and Maximus Walker of Norfolk, Virginia; one great-grandchild, Isla Condarco of Phoenix; a brother Delmon of Mississippi; and two sisters, Delores Eikenberg and Dorothy Walker, both of Colorado.
He was preceded in death by his parents; a sister, Doris Chadwick-Lockard, and two brothers, Dean and Duane.
Memorial service will be 10:00 a.m., Thursday, November 17, 2016 at Schmitt Funeral Home, Quinter. Private inurnment will take place.
There will be no visitation as cremation was chosen.
Memorial contributions are suggested to the Dennis Walker Memorial Fund. Donations to the fund may be sent to Schmitt Funeral Home, 901 South Main, Quinter, KS 67752.
Condolences may be sent to the family by signing the online guest book at www.schmittfuneral.com.
SALINE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in central Kansas are investigating a suspect after a Monday morning high-speed chase.
Just after 3a.m. on Monday, deputies were notified that a Chevy Camaro stolen from Morris County was heading to Saline County from Dickinson County on Magnolia Road, according to Saline County Undersheriff Roger Soldan.
The chase turned onto Cunningham Road to Kansas 4 Highway, where the car went westbound.
The Camaro ran over stop sticks placed by a Saline County Sheriff’s Deputy at K-4 and Old 81 Highway before going north on U.S. 81.
The driver got out of the car and ran east about a mile north of the K-4/81 intersection near McReynolds Road and was apprehended after twisting his ankle.
Steven Fuller, 45, was taken to the Saline County Jail to be held on a Kansas Department of Corrections warrant. It is likely he will charged in Dickinson County in connection with the pursuit, according to Soldan.
Roy Alcorn, right, was discharged a month ago from Osawatomie State Hospital so he could receive home and community-based services in Topeka from Equi-Venture Farms. Now he lives with a host, Donald “Mitch” Mitchell, left, and another person with a developmental disability. CREDIT ANDY MARSO / HEARTLAND HEALTH MONITOR
Roy Alcorn shot pool with friends last week as sunlight streamed through the open door of a small building at Equi-Venture Farms.
A month earlier, Alcorn was living at Osawatomie State Hospital 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Alcorn’s new arrangement is part of a pilot program spearheaded by Ben Swinnen, executive director of Topeka-based Equi-Venture, and Tim Keck, head of the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services.
The program is targeted at an underserved population: Kansans with intellectual and developmental disabilities who also have severe and persistent mental illnesses. It is one of several initiatives Keck has launched to reintegrate some Osawatomie State Hospital residents into their communities.
The idea was to do a comprehensive review of patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities at Osawatomie State Hospital and determine if their mental illness was controlled enough that they could be discharged to organizations that could provide home and community-based services to support their disabilities.
“It’s a lot of work for a lot of people,” Swinnen says. “But at the end of the day if we can move someone out of a state institution, I think it’s worth it.”
Osawatomie State Hospital, one of two state-run facilities for Kansans with mental illness, has hadlimited capacity for more than a year amid renovations and a loss of federal funding.
Spaces at Osawatomie State Hospital are in demand, but discharging Kansans with disabilities is complicated by a gap in community-based psychiatric care for them.
Still, by working with Keck and the three insurance companies that administer Kansas Medicaid, or KanCare, Osawatomie State Hospital staff helped identify seven patients who might be ready for discharge with the right supports.
Swinnen says KDADS deemed one patient not eligible and an evaluation is pending for another, but the other five have been discharged. Two are receiving day support services at Equi-Venture in west Topeka and the other three found providers through Community Developmental Disability Organizations in other parts of the state.
“It was a happy ending,” Swinnen says. “I credit Secretary Keck for that. He was open to exploring what can be done to increase the returns to home and community-based services.”
Alcorn is one of the two Osawatomie patients who now receive services at Equi-Venture, which also served him before his stint in the hospital.
Alcorn was being treated for mental illness at Valeo Behavioral Health Care when he stepped out of a moving Valeo vehicle into traffic.
That incident — endangering himself and others — landed him at Osawatomie, where he stayed for nine months.
Swinnen says that once Equi-Venture and KDADS started looking into discharging Alcorn, the hospital staff “did a wonderful job” preparing Alcorn for it, in part by implementing Equi-Venture’s focus on positive reinforcement, rather than restrictions, to modify his behavior.
Swinnen also praises the KanCare companies. He says another challenge of getting people discharged from the state facilities is that they lose their Medicaid coverage for home and community-based services when they’re admitted.
Equi-Venture and KDADS were able to work with the three companies — Amerigroup, UnitedHealthcare and Sunflower State Health Plan — to get coverage restored for the five being discharged from Osawatomie so their support services would be reimbursed immediately, he says.
For Alcorn, getting out of Osawatomie meant getting day services at Equi-Venture plus a shared living arrangement with one other person with a developmental disability and a host, Donald “Mitch” Mitchell, who supports the two of them.
Mitchell also accompanies them to Equi-Venture during the day.
As he watches Alcorn shoot pool there, Mitchell says the move out of Osawatomie was a difficult transition for Alcorn, in part because he didn’t know how to react to the personal attention he was getting from his roommates.
“That’s what he told me: ‘I’m not used to this,’” Mitchell says.
But now, Alcorn says he likes living with Mitchell and being out of the hospital.
“(I) like to go to the movies,” Alcorn says. “Go for a Coke.”
The other former Osawatomie patient now receiving day services at Equi-Venture was on so many medications when she was discharged that she was nearly catatonic, staff member Sarah Feldhausen says.
Feldhausen and the rest of the staff helped wean her off some of the medications and found that she loves hip-hop music.
“We just had a dance party with her,” Feldhausen says.
That client is scheduled to move to shared living in Newton, where Equi-Venture has another office. She will also meet with her local Community Developmental Disability Organization to discuss other provider options in that area.
Meanwhile, Swinnen says he’s receiving inquiries about helping patients move out of the state’s other mental health facility in Larned, as well as the Parsons State Hospital and Training Center, which is one of two state-run residential campuses for Kansans with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
“I can’t guarantee the outcome in the long-term,” Swinnen says.
“But it’s worth a try,” Feldhausen says, and Swinnen agreed.
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
John Clarence Ross answered God’s call November 11, 2016 and went to heaven to rejoin his wife of nearly 70 years.
John was loved as a dad, a granddad, and as a friend. He lovingly served his family as a Christian, a leader, mentor, and hero. He accepted Jesus as his savior early in life and never wavered in his faith, his prayers, or his scripture readings.
Guy and Edna Ross gave birth to John on October 11, 1922 in Chicago, Illinois. At age seven, he was orphaned and—with his brother, Guy, and sister, Nellie, was raised by members of the family. Later circumstances separated the three siblings. John’s cousins, Edgar and Lora Simonson, cared for him as he worked on the family farm. As a young boy, John rode five miles to school on his pony and herded cattle.
During 1944, he entered the U.S. Army and eventually served in two wars. During World War Two, John was a member of a forward artillery observer team that supported the battle for Luzon and assisted with the liberation of a prisoner-of-war camp. He was later stationed in Manila, Guadalcanal, the Solomon Islands, and Tokyo. He witnessed—first hand—the surrender of the Japanese Emperor in Tokyo Bay.
When the Korean War started, Staff Sergeant Ross served with the Army Engineers. During his time in Korea, his unit received the Army Meritorious Unit Award and the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation for their work in rebuilding the Kilra-shon Railroad Bridge. John was called a soldier’s soldier.
John loved only one lady. After returning home from World War Two, he married Lorraine Bell on September 22, 1946. He loved her with all his heart. In all the years of their marriage, John and Lorraine always held hands, shared a passionate love for each other, cared for one other, and laughed together.
On June 28, 1947, they welcomed their daughter Linda Jean into their family. During December 1955, John and Lorraine gave birth to their son, John Allan. After returning from the Korean War, John helped build the Cedar Bluff Dam. From the late 1950’s through the mid-1970’s John worked for Midwest Marketing and the Turman Chemical Company. Farmers still remember John for his work on their balers, swathers, and combines. He was also a member of the WaKeeney Volunteer Fire Department and served as a volunteer driver for the WaKeeney Public Transportation bus. John could operate any type of heavy equipment while working for the Kansas Department of Transportation from 1973 to 1993. He helped maintain our highways until retiring at age 70.
John loved life. Mr. Ross was a lifetime member of the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He served as the commander of Moore American Legion Post #102 at WaKeeney for nine years. During 2016, he received his American Legion 25 year Distinguished Service certificate and a Quilt of Valor.
John enjoyed having coffee with his friends, shopping with Lorraine, working with his son on different home construction projects, and traveling with his wife and John’s family. He always knew the right way to build almost anything. John held a special love for his granddaughters, Serena, Emily, and Janae and could not wait to hug and talk with them. He looked forward to visiting with Linda and her husband, Chuck, while living at Good Samaritan in Ellis, Kansas.
John leaves a family legacy of Godly example, love, kindness, consideration, and compassion. He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife, and his brother, Guy. He is survived by his sister, Nellie Gerdes, of Oberlin, Kansas, his daughter, Linda J. Menges (Chuck) of Woodland Park, Colorado, his son, John A. Ross (Sharon) of Ellis, grandchildren Chris Menges, Jenifer Menges, Tyler James Menges, Brian Menges, Serena Ross, Emily Ross, and Janae Ross, and great-grandson Wyatt Gardner.
Funeral services will be at 11:00 am on Thursday, November 17, 2016 at the North Oak Community Church, 3000 Oak Street, Hays. Burial with military honors by the Hays VFW Honor Guard will be at 2:00 pm in the WaKeeney City Cemetery. Visitation will be from 10:00 am until service time at the church.
Memorial contributions may be made to Moore American Legion Post #102, in care of the Hays Memorial Chapel Funeral Home, 1906 Pine Street. Condolences may be left for the family at www.haysmemorial.com or via email at [email protected].
U.S. Army Cpl. Wayne Minard-photo courtesy Bruce Stubbs
FURLEY, Kan. (AP) — An American soldier has been buried in rural Sedgwick County after dying in a North Korean prisoner of war camp in 1951.
The Wichita Eagle reports that the U.S. Army and Cpl. Wayne Minard’s family buried him Saturday outside unincorporated Furley. Authorities say Minard starved to death.
He was laid to rest next to his mother, Bertha, who died nine months after his death.
A military search and recovery team found Minard’s remains in 2005 and identified them earlier this year.
Looking for Christmas presents and opportunity to help local human service agencies?
United Way of Ellis County has 67 businesses who’ve donated 92 items for the auction! The online auction ends the evening of Tuesday, November 15 and is sponsored by Rocking M Radio of Salina. There is a link for the auction on the United Way website, www.liveunited.us.
Another Christmas shopping opportunity is with Couture for Men and Women, hosting their third annual “Shop to Give Back” event on Thursday, November 17 from 5 to 8 p.m., 1109 Main Street, with 20% off regular priced items throughout the entire store. Please come out to show support for the United Way at this fun shopping event.
The United Way has also partnered with the Golden Q and Whiskey Creek Wood Fire Grill for “Feed the Pumpkin” dine-out days. Please go to www.liveunted.us for upcoming dates. Special thank you to Wendy’s and Taco Shop for previously hosting a dine-out day!
If you would like to give to the United Way of Ellis County, please mail donations or stop by the offices at 205 E. 7th Street, Suite 106. Donations can also be processed through the “Donate” button at our website www.liveunited.us.
After meeting with interested parties last month, to discuss extra-territorial jurisdiction (the 3-mile zone surrounding Hays), the chair of the planning commission and the County Zoning and Planning Administrator will report Monday to the Ellis County Commission.
The Ellis County Commission asked Karen Purvis, County Zoning and Planning Administrator, to talk with real estate agents, bankers and other residents about potential changes in the 3-mile zone surrounding the city of Hays.
Purvis and Planning Commission Chair David McDaniel are scheduled to present their report on that meeting, which took place Oct. 19.
The county and the city of Hays are in talks about changing the 3-mile zone.
The commission will also canvass the results of last Tuesday’s general election.
Monday’s meeting starts at 5 p.m. with the Public Building Commission at the Administration Center, 718 Main.
SALINE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Saline County continue to search for a suspect involved in a Sunday high-speed chase with a stolen vehicle.
Just before 2p.m. on Sunday, a deputy was northbound on old U.S. 81 north of Salina when he saw a blue 1987 Toyota pickup traveling southbound toward Salina, according to Saline County Undersheriff Roger Soldan.
The deputy noticed the truck’s license plate came back as a vehicle reported stolen.
The deputy turned his vehicle and the pickup driver took off at a high rate of speed into Salina.
Officers from the Salina Police Department and troopers from the Kansas Highway Patrol became involved in the chase at close to 100 miles-per-hour that covered several streets in north and central Salina.
The pursuit was called off in the area of Crawford and 5th Street, according to Soldan.
The pickup was found in the 700 block of N. 3rd early Monday morning. Officials are still looking for the white male who driver.
At 6:30 p.m. Monday at Rockwell Administration Center, the Hays USD 489 Board of Education will hold a public hearing for alternative construction delivery and the administration will provide an update on the request for proposal for the district’s new HVAC systems.
According to a state statute, which was passed in 2015, the board must hold a public hearing that allows the community to voice concerns, if any, if a school board chooses to work with a construction management at-risk firm.
Board clerk Sarah Wasinger said about half of school districts utilize CMAR firms for bond issues and, this year, USD 489 has decided to go this route for the next bond issue.
The public hearing is open to all community members and will be the first item on the agenda to start Monday’s meeting.
In the last board meeting of the month of October, the board approved the RFP for the total replacement of the Hays High School HVAC system.
Integrated Consulting Engineers Inc. is the firm the board hired to write up the RFP. The idea is to use the RFP on all buildings in the district starting with Hays High.
The administration will provide an update to the board regarding the pre-qualification meeting with interested contractors to the board during the meeting.
The board will also be looking at the KESA surveys and post bond election surveys.
The administration will present the results to the board from the surveys which were completed this fall.
At 3:42 p.m. Saturday, the Ellis County Rural Fire Department was dispatched to a structure fire south of West 27th.
Nineteen firefighters from the Ellis County Fire Department responded to the scene. This included 3 engines, 3 tankers, and two utility vehicles from county fire companies 4, 5, 6 & 9.
Upon arrival at 3:50 p.m., command was established and reporting the structure to be fully engulfed. Due to initial reports and close proximity to other structures, the City of Hays Fire Department was requested to provide mutual aid. Water supply was provided by tanker relay operations. No injuries were reported and no other structures were damaged.
The fire was under control at approximately 4:13 p.m. At 4:45 p.m., overhaul was complete and fire companies were started to be released from the scene. Company 5 remained on scene until 6:30 p.m. when the scene was turned over for an investigation by the Office of the State Fire Marshall. The Office of the State Fire Marshall concluded the fire to be accidental with an undetermined cause.
Other responding agencies were the Ellis County Sheriff’s Department, Ellis County Emergency Medical Services, Hays Police Department and the American Red Cross.
Francis A. Pfannenstiel, age 73, of Bunker Hill, Kansas passed away Thursday, November 10, 2016 in Bunker Hill. He was born May 17, 1943 in Wallace, KS to Linus and Veronica (Schlitter) Pfannenstiel.
He was a construction worker building homes and enjoyed woodworking.
He is survived by five sons, Derrick Pfannenstiel (Amy) of Phoenix, AZ, Francis Anthony Pfannenstiel (Manuela) of Bunker Hill, KS, Trent Pfannenstiel (Lorrena) of Phoenix, AZ, Brent Pfannenstiel (Jinny Wagner) of Russell, KS and Walter Addrulis (Tammy) of Great Bend; two daughters, Christina Lamar (Barry) and Amy Moreso (George) all of Russell, KS; three brothers, Vincent Pfannenstiel (Gayle) of Salina, KS Arnold Pfannenstiel of Kansas City, KS and Jerry Pfannenstiel of Phoenix, AZ; four sisters, Kathy Brungardt of Burlington, KS, Mary Zulcoleski of Grand Island, NE, Inez Tauscher of Arkansas City and Serina Pfannenstiel of Salina, KS as well as 29 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents; a daughter, Sarah Hearld and three brothers, Joseph, Mike and Bernard.
Memorial services will be 11:00 AM Monday, November 21, 2016 at the First Southern Baptist Church 386 S. Fossil street Russell, KS.
In lieu of flowers memorials are suggested to be used per the wishes of the family and may be sent in care of Brock’s-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory 2509 Vine Hays, KS 67601
Condolences may be left by guest book at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com or emailed to [email protected]
UWEC
The United Way has also partnered with the Golden Q and Whiskey Creek Wood Fire Grill for “Feed the Pumpkin” dine-out days. Please go to 
