Q: Why wouldn’t they let the butterfly into the dance?
A: Because it was a mothball.
Join fans of 99 KZ Country on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/99KZCountry
Month: February 2018
CLINKSCALES: What are your wishes?
Some of you may remember me sharing this story, but it bears repeating. I have often kidded that when I took over my grandmother’s care, she had three to six months to live, and then she went on to live ten more years. Part of the story is that along the way, she and I had significant discussions about what her end of life decisions were.
It is difficult to talk about the end of life. Years ago, I read an article explaining that it is twice as difficult for a couple to talk with their parents about end of life as it was for that same couple to talk with their children about sex education.
I am writing this article now because I had a client come in to see me with her daughters. They are a lovely family. The daughters care very deeply about their mom. She has dementia, and it is heartbreaking to her children. Actually, Mom is pretty happy; it is just her daughters that are sad.
There is going to come a point when Mom can no longer express her wishes. It is time to have a discussion with her about end of life. There are no right or wrong answers, but there needs to be a discussion.
Let me share with you my discussion with my wife and my three sons. I have told them that if I develop dementia, and if I get to the point where I generally do not recognize them or others, or if I get to a point where I can no longer communicate, not even with the blinking of my eye, or if I am in some type of persistent vegetative state, or if I have a terminal illness, then there are certain things I do not want to happen. I do not want surgeries. I do not want CPR. I do not want blood transfusions. I do not want artificial feeding (through a tube or otherwise).
I have gone further. My family knows how important it is for me to be active. If I can no longer be active, and if any of those conditions above exist, and if I get sick from something, I want nature to take its course without the interruption of any medical procedure. If I have a chance to die, then I want to seize that opportunity.
I have even gone on to state that I want complete pain relief. Even if the medication could lead to hastening my death, that is what I want. I do not want to suffer. I do not want to be locked in my body.
More especially, when that time comes, I do not want my family to feel guilty. In fact, I want my family to feel like they are fulfilling my wishes.
This is not the right thing for everyone, but it is the right thing for me.
When my grandmother was about 96, she had transitioned from assisted living to a nursing home. She was in the nursing home for less than 60 days. Along the way, we had already scaled back almost all services. One day she said to me (just a few days before she passed), “Honey, I know I’m going to die, and I am okay with that. I just need for you to be okay with that.”
I have used that phrase multiple times in other settings, but I want you to know it is one of the best gifts that my grandmother ever gave to me.
As difficult as it is, I really urge our families to talk about end of life and know what their loved ones wishes are.
Randy Clinkscales of Clinkscales Elder Law Practice, PA, Hays, Kansas, is an elder care attorney, practicing in western Kansas. To contact him, please send an email to [email protected]. Disclaimer: The information in the column is for general information purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Each case is different and outcomes depend on the fact of each case and the then applicable law. For specific questions, you should contact a qualified attorney.
KFIX House Band For Thu 2/22: The Cars
Today, enjoy at least one song an hour from the Cars on 96.9
“Like” KFIX on Facebook.
Hays Knights Council works to ‘lift high the cross’
Submitted
Hays is a Christian community. That fact is obvious by the 20 Christian churches in a city with a population slightly over 21,000. Recently, however, the Christian faith is being displayed more publically.
The Saint Mary’s Knights of Columbus council has put up 200 crosses in the yards of Christians throughout Hays, and they will remain up until April 7, the Saturday after Easter.
Stan Staab, the Grand Knight of this Catholic fraternal organization, got the idea from his brother-in-law whose Knights council in Russell worked a similar project. The Russell Knights council gave their cross project plans to Staab who took the idea to the Saint Mary’s Council. The idea was accepted, a committee of eight men were formed, and thus, the “Lift High the Cross” project began.
Five months later, on February 17, 2018, crosses were placed in yards of Christians who desired to publically display their Christian faith during this Lenten Season. Lent is a time of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, for Christians, mimicking Jesus’ 40 days in the desert before he began his public ministry.
“It fits into the pillars of what the Knights of Columbus is all about,” Staab said. “It started as a parish-oriented project that involved fraternity among brother Knights who took the crosses out into the community to evangelize.”
“This is what the Knights mission is all about,” Lester Robben, who co-chaired the “Lift High the Cross” project committee with Staab. “The mission of the Knights of Columbus is to evangelize, educate and spread the faith.”
Robben estimated that 30 Knights of Columbus members, ranging in age from 21 through 75 were involved in this project.
The Saturday before Lent the Saint Mary’s Knights had a work day where one group of men built the crosses, and another group of men cut metal posts, which were anonymously donated. The following Saturday, Father Donald Zimmerman, interim pastor at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Hays, blessed the crosses and led the men in prayer before sending them off two by two with a post driver, addresses and a map telling them where to install the crosses.
People who wanted a cross in their yard paid a $20 fee. White flags were given to the purchaser to place where in their yard they wanted the cross located. The purchaser is allowed to string the cross with lights or cloth, but they are not allowed to paint them.
For Christians, the bare cross represents victory over death. “It’s a powerful statement,” Staab said. “It’s why our Lord became incarnate – to die for our sins.”
“All around the world, Christians are being persecuted, probably more so now than any time in history. We are fortunate in the United States that we can display our Christian faith by having a cross in our front yard.”
“We’re hoping the ‘Lift High the Cross’ project spreads,” Staab said. “We’re hoping to collaborate with other Knights councils in the area next year, and we’re hoping it spreads throughout Kansas and into other states.”
If anyone is wanting a cross in their yard, they can still obtain one by calling or texting Lester Robben at 785.625.9356.
FHSU College of STM faculty publishes reference book chapter
Dr. Hendratta Ali, an associate professor at Fort Hays State University in the Werth College of STM, has published a chapter in the Springer Handbook of Petroleum Technology.
Her chapter focuses on the Fundamentals of Petroleum Geology and covers topics on the petroleum cycle, the history of petroleum, how petroleum accumulates and concentrates in the earth, how to find and locate petroleum underground, and what the future holds for petroleum globally.
Dr. Ali is a faculty member in the department of Geosciences and coordinator of the petroleum geology program. She was a 2017 recipient of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists Inspirational Geoscience Educator Award, the Oklahoma State University College of Arts and Sciences Rising Star Award, and the FHSU 2017 John Heinrichs Outstanding Undergraduate Research Mentor Award.
— Submitted
Illegal immigrant arrested for alleged Kansas rape
JACKSON COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect for an alleged sex crime.
On Wednesday, deputies arrested Antonio Ramirez-Garcia, 38, of Oaxaca, Mexico in connection to a February rape, according to Sheriff Tim Morse.
The crime is alleged to have occurred in the early morning hours on February 10, in Holton.
Detectives with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office located Ramirez-Garcia in Topeka where he was taken into custody.
Ramirez-Garcia, in the U.S. illegally, is currently being held in the Jackson County Jail for rape with bond set at $50,000.00.
Brown’s 14 second-half points pushes Kansas State past Texas
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) – Barry Brown scored 14 of his 16 points in the second half and Kansas State pulled away late to beat Texas 58-48 on Wednesday night.
In what was a cold shooting affair for both teams, the last five minutes saw Kansas State (20-8, 9-6 Big 12 Conference) close on a 16-4 run. Brown had the hot hand as he knocked down five free throws, two layups and a backbreaking 3-pointer in the final 4:49.
The Wildcats shot 42 percent but just 3 of 13 (23 percent) from long range. Texas (16-12, 6-9) shot 29 percent overall and missed 16 of 18 3-pointers.
Dean Wade added 13 points for Kansas State. Cartier Diarra had 12 points and Xavier Sneed chipped in nine with a game-high 13 rebounds for the Wildcats.
Matt Coleman scored 14 points and was a perfect 6-of-6 shooting from the free-throw line to lead Texas. Dylan Osetkowski finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Coleman made six free throws and Mohamed Bamba added a dunk during a 8-2 surge to give the Longhorns a 44-42 lead with 5:12 left before Kansas State pulled away.
BIG PICTURE
Kansas State gets back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons.
Texas, which beat then-No. 23 Oklahoma 77-66 on Saturday, has now lost four of their last five games.
STATS AND STREAKS
Xavier Sneed’s 13 rebounds was a single-game best for a Kansas State player this season.
UP NEXT
Texas hosts Oklahoma State on Saturday.
Kansas State travels to Oklahoma on Saturday.
Bob Fisher to attempt free throw record tonight in Hays
By C.D. DESALVO
Hays Post
Bob Fisher was in junior high when he fell in love with the game of basketball.
Fisher grew up on a farm just outside Vermillion, Kansas, and played basketball for Centralia High School about eight miles east of his home town. Fisher would turn to coaching a little later on in life and ended up coaching high school and youth basketball in Kansas for about 20 years.
Fisher always had a special interest in the shooting aspect of basketball, and in 2006 a book titled “The Physics of Basketball” by John Fontanella found its way into Fisher’s hands.
“In the book, he broke it down into the four factors that affect the flight of the ball. That would be gravity, drag force, Magnus force and buoyancy of the ball,” Fisher said. “I, like a lot of people, was searching for the answer to shooting. What Fontanella did was point me down a different path, and that is: ‘Is it possible to use physics to help make shots?'”
Fisher started studying physics, anatomy, biomechanics and started reading a number of books that brought him to determine all it really takes to become good in anything is knowledge, practice and time.
At 52, Fisher decided to test this theory himself.
“I went to the gym and started practicing shooting free throws. Four months later, I set my first record with 50 free throws in one minute. That got a little bit of publicity, so I started looking at the two-minute
record, and I broke that one a few months later,” Fisher said.
Fisher went on to break more free-throw records, teaching himself how to shoot left-handed and even blindfolded. To this day, Fisher has set 22 records in 14 different free-throw categories for Guinness World Records.
Fisher has been featured in a number of different TV shows, such as Inside Edition and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and has also been in the New York Times. Fisher has made instructional videos and is close to finishing his first book.
Fisher will be at Gross Memorial Coliseum at Fort Hays State University tonight to attempt to break another free-throw record at halftime of the Tiger men’s game. The record he goes for will be determined right before the event.
General admission tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for kids and will be available at all gates at the coliseum.
Governor closes state offices due to winter storm
TOPEKA —Due to safety concerns regarding the winter storm forecast for the state Wednesday evening and continuing through late Thursday afternoon Feb. 22, Gov. Jeff Colyer has ordered the closing of state government for all state agencies.
#ksleg #kswx pic.twitter.com/rnpoemkIIc
— Governor Jeff Colyer (@GovJeffColyer) February 22, 2018
The closing is effect from midnight Thursday morning until 5 p.m. State employees are advised to tune to local television and radio stations or visit their websites for further information as the storm progresses.
Morris helps No. 13 Wichita State hold off Tulane
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) – Shaquille Morris had 25 points and nine rebounds to help No. 13 Wichita State outlast Tulane 93-86 on Wednesday night.
Conner Frankamp scored six of his 18 points in the final four minutes, Markis McDuffie had 15 points and C.J. Keyser added 11 for the Shockers (22-5, 12-3 American Athletic Conference). Wichita State was without leading scorer Landry Shamet, who missed the game due to illness.
The Shockers led by 16 at halftime but were forced to make clutch free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.
Melvin Frazier scored 16 of his 22 points in the second half to lead the comeback for Tulane (13-14, 4-11). He also had 11 rebounds and his 3-pointer with 39 seconds remaining pulled the Green Wave to 90-86.
Samir Sehic scored 16 for Tulane, Cameron Reynolds had 14 points, Ray Ona Embo scored 12 and Caleb Daniels added 11.
Wichita State led 47-31 at halftime, making 14 of its last 22 shots in the opening half. Morris had 12 points in the first 20 minutes, making all five of his free throws.
BIG PICTURE:
Tulane: The Green Wave stayed right with a top-15 team on the road, a good sign for a rebuilding program currently tied for 10th place in the conference.
Wichita State: The Shockers survived and are two road games away from a regular-season finale against No. 11 Cincinnati.
UP NEXT
Tulane: The Green Wave visit South Florida on Saturday.
Wichita State: The Shockers visit Southern Methodist on Saturday
Cloudy Thursday with chance for freezing rain
Today A slight chance of freezing drizzle before 1pm, then a slight chance of freezing rain between 1pm and 3pm. Cloudy, with a high near 31. East wind 7 to 13 mph becoming south southeast in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Tonight Mostly cloudy, with a low around 22. Southeast wind 5 to 9 mph becoming north northeast after midnight.
Friday Mostly sunny, with a high near 42. North wind 5 to 9 mph becoming east in the afternoon.
Friday Night A chance of freezing rain after midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 28. East wind 8 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%.
SaturdayA chance of freezing rain before 10am, then a chance of rain between 10am and noon. Partly sunny, with a high near 43. Breezy. Chance of precipitation is 50%.
Saturday NightMostly clear, with a low around 20.
Police investigating alleged school threat in Hill City
GRAHAM COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities and USD 281 officials are investigating an alleged school threat.
On Wednesday, the Hill City Police Department received information that a student may have made a threat of violence involving students at The Hill City Jr-Sr High School, according to the police department.
While investigating, all parents and students involved were contacted. The results of that investigation are inconclusive and there is no evidence that any threat occurred.
As a precaution, The Hill City Police Department, along with The Graham County Sheriff’s Office, will have officers present at The Hill City High School Thursday.
Kansas communities may apply now for designation as an Opportunity Zone
KDC
TOPEKA – On Tuesday, Governor Jeff Colyer, M.D. announced that the Kansas Department of Commerce is now accepting proposals from communities to designate eligible low-income census tracts as Kansas Opportunity Zones under the new Federal Opportunity Zones program. Opportunity Zones are a new economic development tool enacted by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 designed to encourage long-term investments in low-income urban and rural communities.
“One of the primary focuses of my administration is helping boost urban and rural communities that have been struggling with population decline, lack of jobs, and crumbling infrastructure,” said Gov. Colyer. “The Opportunity Zone program is a great opportunity for those who want to invest in their communities and be a proactive part of the solution.”
Opportunity Zones provide a tax incentive for the re-investment of unrealized capital gains into Opportunity Funds. The purpose of these funds is to invest in economically distressed areas designated by the Governor. The program provides deferral and reduction of capital gains taxes when the gain is invested in a Qualified Opportunity Fund and maintained for at least five years. Additional tax incentives are available for investments held for periods of seven and 10 years.
Based upon the number of low-income communities identified by the Federal Census, the Governor can designate 70 census tracts in Kansas as Opportunity Zones. Census tract eligibility is based upon population and income. Information about census tract eligibility for this program may be found at https://kansascommerce.gov/opportunityzones.
In addition to the federal eligibility criteria, the State will consider several other factors in determining which census tracts will be designated as Kansas Opportunity Zones. These factors include an indication of community interest and support for additional investment, the potential of at least one “ready to go” or otherwise identifiable project, and whether the identified project addresses one of the following target uses: industrial/business development, housing or agriculture. While these factors will be considered during the designation process, eligible communities that do not meet one or more of these criteria may still be considered for Opportunity Zone designation.
“We encourage Kansans to take advantage of this special opportunity to invest in their communities and stimulate economic growth in our state’s rural and economically disadvantaged areas. I am excited to see the impact this will have on our state,” said Robert North, Interim Secretary for the Kansas Department of Commerce.
Communities interested in submitting proposals to be considered as a Kansas Opportunity Zone should submit a letter of interest by March 1, 2018. Letters of interest should be on official local government or economic development organization letterhead and must include:
- The eligible census tract number;
- A statement of community interest and support for additional investment;
- A brief description of the tract and note whether it is predominantly commercial, industrial, residential or a mix;
- A description of any recent development activity, such as business or housing developments or other investments in the area, or any anticipated new developments or investments;
- The proposed targeted use of the area; and
- At least one identified or potential project.
Letters of Interest should be addressed to the Kansas Department of Commerce, Attn: Business Development, 1000 SW Jackson, Suite 100, Topeka, KS 66612. Letters may also be submitted by email to [email protected].
Kansas has until March 21, 2018 to submit the Opportunity Zone recommendations to the U.S. Department of Treasury