TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A woman is accused of stealing the pickup truck of a volunteer firefighter who had stopped to help her while she was stranded along Interstate 70 in Topeka, Kansas, then leading authorities on a chase.
The Topeka Capital-Journal reports 23-year-old Erien Knox is charged with possession of stolen property and felony obstruction.
Authorities say a man stopped to help douse a car fire Wednesday morning along westbound I-70 and allowed the stranded female motorist to sit in his pickup truck, which the woman then drove from the scene.
A Kansas Highway Patrol spokesman says a trooper spotted the stolen pickup truck a short time later and gave chase before the woman was arrested in Wabaunsee County.
Online court records don’t show whether Knox has an attorney.
Plainville’s photo entry in the 2017 Kansas Hometown Showdown.
BY BECKY KISER Hays Post
PLAINVILLE–Plainville has made it to the Final Four.
It’s Round 5 of the 2017 Kansas Hometown Showdown presented by the League of Kansas Municipalities (LKM).
Plainville’s patriotic entry in the third annual photo competition on LKM’s Facebook page is “Honoring Those Who Serve.” The picture was taken November 11, 2016 during the dedication of the veterans’ memorial in Plainville.
Plainville is the lone holdout among a handful of northwest Kansas towns that started in the competition including Hays, Lucas, Hoxie, Wilson and Ellis.
(Click to enlarge)
The Rooks County town is pitted against Marysville. In the other bracket is Haysville, which beat out Ellis in Round 4, taking on Newton. Hays was knocked out of the competition in Round 3.
The Hometown Showdown is a photo competition among Kansas cities. It’s set up to mimic a sports competition with brackets and cities going head-to-head with each other in an effort to get the most “Likes” on the League’s Facebook photo album.
BUNKER HILL – The Kansas Legislature on Smoky Hills Public Television returns Friday night with five area legislators scheduled to participate in the live call-in show.
Friday night’s program will include Senator John Doll of Garden City, Senator Randall Hardy of Salina, Senator Mary Jo Taylor of Stafford, Representative Eber Phelps of Hays, and Representative Don Hineman of Dighton.
Viewers are encouraged to call with their questions during the show, which will air Friday, March 31 at 7:00 p.m. Previous episodes are available at www.smokyhillstv.org.
Smoky Hills Public Television is the 2016 Kansas Association of Broadcasters Non-Metro Station of the Year.
Midwest Energy, Inc. awarded Catholic Charities of Northern Kansas a 2017 Community Fund Grant to the Hays location in the amount of $1,000. The funds were requested to help purchase a series of participant workbooks designed to assist expectant parents in exploring their personal circumstances, values, and goals to make a realistic plan for parenting or adoption.
“We are blessed to receive this grant from Midwest Energy. Grant funds enhance the agency’s ability to do the important work we do and assist the clients who walk through our doors,” said Michelle Martin, Executive Director of Catholic Charities of Northern Kansas. “These funds will enable the agency to enhance the services already provided to expectant parents.”
The Catholic Charities office in Hays is located at 122 E. 12th.
Catholic Charities of Northern Kansas serves 31 counties and was incorporated in 1959 in the Diocese of Salina to assist the poor and vulnerable. The agency primarily focuses on reducing poverty in rural Kansas. The agency works to develop effective alliances with parishes and communities to cooperate in its mission through the efforts of a strong collaboration with local volunteers in the communities it serves. The agency offers a variety of services including: Adoption, Counseling, Pregnancy Support, Emergency Financial Assistance, Mobile Outreach, Community Re-Entry-Homeless Prevention, Legal Immigration, and the Kansas Loan Pool Project to assist people trapped in predatory loans. Catholic Charities of Northern Kansas works in cooperation with local community agencies to meet the needs of each client.
Ron Wilson is director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University.By RON WILSON Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development
Let’s go to an amusement park in Florida. As the ride begins, some scary music begins to play. Who do you suppose helped create that musical track? It was a business consultant who’s worked on music licensing and other elements of management. But he’s not in Florida. He is now half a continent away in Kansas.
Russell Disberger is the founder and senior partner of management consulting firm Aspen Business Group. Russell has deep roots in Kansas, where his ancestors homesteaded near Council Grove. Russ’s dad taught agriculture at Hutchinson Community College. Russell was the seventh of nine children.
With such a large family, the kids learned to work. The boys ran the family’s custom cutting crew in the summer, traveling from Texas to Montana harvesting wheat. “We were up at dawn and worked until the wheat was too damp to cut,” Russell said. “We learned the importance of hard work and taking care of our customer.”
Russell’s parents invested in and operated two hotels and a restaurant in Colby. They also took Russell and his siblings to a Howard Ruff financial conference where they learned about investing. The family learned firsthand about entrepreneurship.
Russell studied finance at K-State and started several small businesses to earn his way through school. After graduation, he moved to Colorado where he worked in the finance industry and met and married his wife. In 1991, he moved to Garden City to become assistant director of the Small Business Development Center, or SBDC. There he became a student of the quality improvement process pioneered by author Edward Deming.
In 1994, Russell moved to Glenwood Springs, Colorado to become director of the SBDC, where he expanded the client base from 60 visits per year to 300. He also worked on technology transfer, serving as volunteer CFO for the Tech Transfer Society.
In 1998, Russell founded Aspen Business Group, a private sector management consulting company. Aspen seems a fitting name for a business in Colorado, but the significance of the name went beyond the location. “An aspen grove looks like a bunch of individual trees, but beneath the ground, they are all connected,” Russell said. “I wanted to make the point that we can be independent but connected to resources and each other.”
While running Aspen Business Group, Russell later started a venture capital business near Boulder through which he worked on licensing and contract issues for various industries. It was during this time that he was involved in producing the soundtrack for the scary ride at an amusement park in Florida.
Aspen Business Group now provides management consulting for all kinds of entities, from commercial businesses to cities, counties, and schools. His role is somewhat like a business therapist. “Some of my clients call me ‘the doctor,’” Russell said. He literally consults with clients from New York to Los Angeles.
“The key is to develop a structure that will enable companies to attract, retain, and grow talent. When you fully empower employees, amazing things are bound to happen,” he said.
Russell’s kids started attending K-State. Since his consulting business could operate from virtually anywhere, Russell decided to move back to Kansas. His office is now in his home which is located between Manhattan and the rural community of Wamego, population 4,220 people. Now, that’s rural.
One unusual aspect of Russ’s approach is that he is not a consultant who locks in long-term contracts for specific periods of time. He tells his clients: “If I’m not making a difference (for your company), don’t have me back tomorrow,” Russell said. That seems bold, but he’s been able to deliver. “Being a consultant does require a lifelong commitment to keep my own skills as sharp as possible.”
Russell is now working with K-State to develop an executive training program, so stay tuned.
It’s time to leave the Florida amusement park where a soundtrack developed through Russell Disberger’s work still plays. We commend Russell Disberger for helping his clients to succeed. For him and them, it has been a fun ride.
Today Cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny, with a high near 55. North northwest wind 11 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph.
Tonight Partly cloudy, with a low around 36. North wind around 7 mph becoming east after midnight.
Friday Mostly cloudy, with a high near 53. East wind 6 to 14 mph.
Friday Night Showers, mainly after 1am. Low around 40. East northeast wind 13 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
SaturdayShowers. High near 48. East northeast wind 13 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Saturday NightShowers, mainly before 1am. Low around 40. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
KEARNEY, Neb. – Fort Hays State fell to Nebraska-Kearney on Wednesday afternoon (Mar. 29) at the Buffalo County Fairgrounds by a score of 9-0. The Lopers improved to 8-7 overall and 4-2 in the MIAA, while the Tigers moved to 9-8 overall and 1-6 in the MIAA.
Laura Jimenez-Lendinez and Macy Moyers provided the most resistance in doubles play, falling at the No. 2 position 8-4. The No. 1 team of Natalie Lubbers and Lauren Lindell scored three points in a loss.
The Tigers struggled to win games in singles play. The closest match occurred at the No. 6 position, where Jessica Johnson lost 7-5, 6-1 to her opponent. All other Tigers did not generate more than two points in a set.
The Tigers get back to action on Friday, April 7 at Bethany College in a non-conference match.
SUMNER COUNTY – A seventh earthquake in March shook Kansas on Thursday morning.
The quake just after 3:30 a.m. measured 2.9 and was center approximately eight miles southwest of Belle Plaine, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
A 2.5 quake and was centered approximately 21 miles east of Caldwell on March 23, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The organization reported two quakes the week of March 13 and three quakes in Kansas the week of March 6, including two in Sumner County and one in Harper County. They were approximately all the same strength, according to the USGS.
In February, the agency recorded six Kansas earthquakes. They measured from 2.5-3.3 magnitude.
A 4.1 magnitude quake was recorded at 10:37 a.m. Wednesday in Grant County about 95 miles north of Oklahoma City. The USGS initially rated the temblor at magnitude 4.4.
There have no reports of damage or injury from Thursday’s quake.
GEARY COUNTY – A Kansas man was injured in an accident just after 7p.m. on Wednesday in Geary County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1990 Nissan Skyline driven by Elijah D. Lewis, 25, Fort Riley, was eastbound on Interstate 70 at the Fort Riley exit.
The driver lost control of the vehicle when it hydroplaned. It struck a guardrail, re-entered the roadway and was hit by a Mack truck.
Lewis and a passenger Kody M. Seiler, 19, Wilton, CA., were transported to Geary Community Hospital.
The truck driver from Missouri was not injured. All three were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
SALINE COUNTY – Officials are working to determine the cause of a Wednesday evening fire at a home in Salina.
Just after 7p.m. fire crews were dispatch to the residence at 1125 E. Beloit, according to Fire Marshal Roger Williams.
They found heavy smoke rolling from the house upon arrival, prompting crews to make a quick attack on the interior.
They entered to find visible flames and heavy smoke.
“From what crews have told me, the fire made it all the way into the attic space,” Williams said. “It sounds like there will be pretty extensive fire damage to the house.”
The only resident was able to escape without assistance or injury.
SALINA, Kan. (AP) — A 22-year-old Kansas man will be sentenced in June in the killing of a Lincoln, Nebraska, man at a Salina motel.
The Salina Journal reports DiAntre Lemmie was found guilty Wednesday in Saline County of first-degree murder and five other charges in the April 2016 death of 32-year-old Adonis Loudermilk at the Starlite Motel. Lemmie will be sentenced June 19.
Loudermilk’s body was found at the north Salina motel parking lot.
Prosecutors say Loudermilk was shot during a botched robbery committed by Lemmie and a co-defendant, Amber Nicole Craig.
Craig pleaded guilty in February to second-degree murder, aggravated robbery and conspiracy to commit aggravated robbery.
TOPEKA – The Kansas Cold Weather Rule ends this Friday, March 31. That means Kansans who are behind on electric and natural gas utility bills will be subject to disconnection of service unless they contact their utility company to make payment arrangements.
The Cold Weather Rule, in effect November 1 through March 31 each year, provides protection to residential customers who cannot fully pay winter utility bills from companies under the Kansas Corporation Commission’s (KCC) jurisdiction. That protection ends on Thursday. Failure to make arrangements or failure to adhere to an already established payment plan could result in service disconnection. Reconnection may require payment in full.
The Cold Weather Rule requires utilities to set up 12-month payment plans for customers who cannot afford to pay their full bill. As part of this arrangement, the customer must make an initial payment of 1/12 of the overdue amount, 1/12 of the bill for current service, the full amount of any disconnection or reconnection fees, plus any applicable deposit owed to the utility. The balance will be billed in equal payments over the next 11 months in addition to the regular monthly bill.
The KCC adopted the Cold Weather Rule to protect customers during cold winter weather by providing a reasonable and organized method of paying past due and current bills. The Cold Weather Rule applies only to residential customers of electric and natural gas utility companies under the KCC’s jurisdiction. For a complete list of utilities regulated by the KCC visit: https://www.kcc.ks.gov/pi/jurisdictional_utilities.htm.
More information about the Cold Weather Rule is available at: https://www.kcc.ks.gov/pi/cwr_english.htm. Kansans may also contact their local utility company or the KCC’s Office of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at (800) 662-0027.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man has been ordered to spend 22 years in prison for running over a woman after an argument, though that’s not the sentence he had recommended to the judge.
The Wichita Eagle reports that 61-year-old Randal Keesling told the judge during Tuesday’s sentencing hearing in Kansas’ Sedgwick County that “if there was justice, I should be taken out back and stoned or shot.”
The Derby man already had pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death last November of 32-year-old Amber Lehman, a Wichita mother of two women.
Lehman’s father, Craig Lehman, told the judge on Tuesday he regrets that he didn’t grab a deputy’s gun and kill Keesling that day for running over his daughter.
Friday Mostly cloudy, with a high near 53. East wind 6 to 14 mph.
