FORD COUNTY —Authorities are investigating a suspect for allegedly impersonating a law enforcement officer.
Just before 2a.m. Saturday, sheriff’s deputies were called to report of a suspicious vehicle that had used emergency lights and pulled over a car, according to a media release.
The suspect vehicle identified as a Crown Victoria with a temporary license plate did not match any area law enforcement vehicles.
Deputies found the Crown Victoria on U.S. 50 near the Ford-Gray County line, according to the release and arrested an 18-year-old man.
He was booked the teen on requested charges of false impersonation of a law enforcement officer, according to the release. The sheriff’s office has not released the suspect’s name.
Jerome Anthony Wondra, 76, died July 20, 2019, at Country Place Senior Living, Hoisington. He was born May 11, 1943, on the family farm in rural Odin, Kansas, the son of Alfred and Regina (Kirmer) Wondra. He graduated from Odin High School in 1961.
Jerome served in the National Guard. A lifetime resident of the Odin area Jerome was a farmer and stockman, farming the family farm with his brother Ambrose.
He was a member of the Holy Family Catholic Church where he served as a Eucharistic minister, and was a member of the Knights of Columbus Council #2630.
On October 10, 1969, he married Judy Ann Steiner in Great Bend, Kansas.
He is survived by his wife of nearly 50 years, Judy Ann Wondra and their five children, Jeff (Dede) Wondra of Holyrood, John (Ashley) Wondra of Manhattan, Joe (Chrissy) Wondra of Olathe, Jennifer (Chris) Berens of Olathe, and Julie Wondra of McPherson; seven siblings, Bernard Wondra of Hoisington, Mary Rose (Victor) Oberle of Claflin, Ambrose Wondra of Odin, Leona (Jim) Canfield of Great Bend, Theresa (Wayne) Schremmer of Wichita, Norbert Wondra of Eugene, Oregon, and Doris Morgan of Wichita; and five grandchildren, Rachel, Ryan, Abby, Aubrey and Gracie.
He was preceded in death by his parents, a brother, Leo Wondra, and a sister, Ann Oberle.
Friends may call 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, with family to receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. Rosary will begin at 7 p.m. led by the Knights of Columbus, all at Nicholson-Ricke Funeral Home, Hoisington.
Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, July 24, 2019, at Holy Family Catholic Church, Odin. Burial will follow in Holy Family Cemetery.
Memorials may be made to the Holy Family Cemetery Fund, Knights of Columbus #2630, or the Independent Township Library, all in care of Nicholson-Ricke Funeral Home, PO Box 146, Hoisington, KS 67544
A grant of $22,000 from Logan’s Dane G. Hansen Foundation provided the final funding piece that enabled the Department of Applied Technology at Fort Hays State University to acquire new industrial robotic arms this spring.
The $62,000 total purchased five ScorBot ER4U educational robots to replace aging Rhino units from the 1980s.
“Small manufacturers throughout central and western Kansas are growing and now are looking for more tech savvy employees,” said Joe Chretien, associate professor of applied technology and the author of the grant.
“Manufacturers in Norton, Phillipsburg, Hays and other towns already use these technologies and are realizing their benefits,” said Chretien. “A different kind of employee is needed to operate, program and maintain these systems.”
The robotic curriculum of the department is not limited to FHSU students. FHSU faculty will also use the bench-top robotic arms to conduct workshops for high school and middle school teachers in regional communities.
“Our own KAMS students already take advantage of these types of curriculum,” said Chretien. Kansas Academy of Mathematics and Science students last spring used the ScorBot platforms for research and presented their findings at the annual Scholarly and Creative Activities Day in April.
He said the department will seek one new school district or two-year institution to form a partnership to conduct the workshops and extend the reach of the training.
“We are pursuing further additions to these systems and the larger industrial robotic systems, also,” said Chretien.
The Hansen Foundation grant was supplemented by funds from the Peter and Pamela Werth STEM initiative account and the FHSU Foundation.
Comfort Pro Inc. is looking for a self motivated, experienced HVAC/refrigeration technician to help grow our business in the Hays and Russell areas. No overnight traveling will be required. Plumbing experience is a huge plus.
Company vehicle, retirement plan, 100% employee health insurance coverage, bonuses, tool allowance, incentives and uniforms are included. Pay based on experience.
Email resume to [email protected] or call 800-937-3030 for more details.
Parents receive free school supplies last year as part of the Backpack for Kids program. Photos courtesy of Backpack for Kids.
Deadline to register for the program is today
By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays Post
When Wendy’s 7-year-old daughter gets her new backpack and school supplies every summer, she is super excited.
“She get’s so excited,” her mother said. “Her eyes light up.”
Wendy is brought to tears. She tears up because she is humbled by the gift.
Volunteers pack items for the Backpack for Kids program. Donations are still need. See a list below.
Wendy’s daughter is one of about 650 children who annually receive new backpacks and school supplies from the Backpack for Kids program, which is sponsored by First Call for Help.
The deadline to register for the program is Monday.
Students entering grades pre-K through high school, who reside and attend school in Ellis County, are eligible to receive a free backpack filled with school supplies and a hygiene bag through the program.
The backpack distribution day is Thursday, Aug. 1, at the National Guard Armory, 200 Main St., Hays. Pick up your backpack between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m.
Wendy, a single mom, has been out of work because of medical issues. Child support from her daughter’s father is sporadic.
This will be the fourth year she has used the Backpack for Kids program.
A previous distribution day for Backpack for Kids. All of the items for the program are donated or purchased with monetary donations.
Wendy regularly delays or forgoes things for herself, like a haircut or clothes, to provide for her daughter.
When back to school rolls around, Wendy has to make choices. Does she buy school supplies? Buy her daughter shoes to replace the ones she has outgrown? Does she pay other bills?
“It is very humbling to go and ask for help,” she said. “I am humbled when she goes to get her backpack with the other kids. The community helps a lot. I usually get teary eyed. I am thankful to see that they are willing to help, so [my daughter] can go to school with a backpack instead of a pillowcase.
“I am so grateful. It takes a little worry off my shoulders, especially when I see her face and she is so excited.”
Wendy’s daughter, who is a student at Roosevelt Elementary School, has special needs. Not only has First Call helped the family, but so has the school. A program sends food home for her daughter on the weekends.
She also had help with some new clothes for her daughter.
“She went through a growth spurt,” Wendy said. “I kept thinking, ‘We can hold out.’ I got super teary when that happened.”
Wendy said her daughter loves going to school, and a new backpack and supplies is a great start to her school year.
Volunteers packing backpacks at First Call for Help. Between 600 and 650 Ellis County children receive new school supplies through the program each year.
“She is not a stranger to anyone,” Wendy said. “She is very loving and very active. She is very high energy. She is on a first-name basis with her principal. She has been so good with her. She moves at her own pace.”
Wendy said she thinks her daughter is learning important lessons through Backpacks for Kids.
“[She] knows it is not just mom and me,” Wendy said. “Everybody is in this together. We give back and volunteer when we can. I say a lot of prayers. I want to make sure I can give [my daughter] what I don’t have. I am grateful for the help. It think that program is awesome.”
Contact Project Coordinator Laura Shoaff at First Call For Help if you have questions or are interested in volunteering to fill backpacks or assist on distribution day.
The Backpack for Kids program takes donations year round.
Right now the program is low on the following items:
Beginning at 7 a.m. Monday, West 27th Street in Hays will be closed to through traffic between Thunderbird and Englewood for installation of stormwater drainage infrastructure.
Work should be completed and the street back open to traffic by the end of the day Friday.
For more information, call the City of Hays Public Works Department at 628-7350.
PRATT – A survey conducted in March in Rooks County has confirmed the presence of the fungus, Pseudogymnoascus destructans (Pd), known to cause white-nose syndrome (WNS) in bats. Though the fungus was detected, no bats showed signs of white-nose syndrome at the time of the survey.
WNS is not known to pose a threat to humans, pets, livestock, or other wildlife and fish.
White-nose Syndrome
White-nose syndrome is a fungal disease that affects hibernating bats. The fungus is spread through bat-to-bat contact, but not all bat species are affected equally. WNS is named for the white fungal growth observed around the nose of infected bats. The fungus can invade the skin of hibernating bats and cause damage to the wings. It triggers hibernating bats to use up fat reserves, forcing them to leave the hibernacula in search of food. This occurs in the middle of winter when outside conditions are harsh and food (insects) is scarce, ultimately leading to death by starvation and/or dehydration. To date, white-nose syndrome has been confirmed in 33 states and seven Canadian provinces. White-nose syndrome was first detected in Kansas in 2018 in Barber, Cherokee, Comanche, Kiowa, and Pratt counties.
Surveys and Observations
Surveys in Kansas were conducted in 2019 between February 22 and April 18, and samples were tested by the U.S. Geological Survey National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wis. Counties surveyed included Barber, Comanche, Crawford, Geary, and Rooks. Sites surveyed in Geary and Crawford counties were negative for Pd; however, negative results do not guarantee the absence of Pd at a location, as small amounts of Pd may evade detection by the diagnostic test. Conversely, survey results confirmed the spread of WNS at sites known to have Pd in Barber and Comanche counties. In these areas, biologists observed an increasing number of symptomatic cave myotis and tri-colored bats, with tri-colored bats most affected.
SEDGWICK COUNTY — One person died in an accident just after 10:30p.m. Sunday in Sedgwick County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2001 Suzuki motorcycle driven by Travis JB Bryson, 29, Wichita, was southbound on Interstate 135 at K-15. The driver lost control of the motorcycle after hitting the wall.
The passenger identified as Christopher L. Monk, 45, Wichita, was ejected from the bike and the driver and the bike slide for about 1/4 mile.
Monk was pronounced dead at the scene. EMS transported Bryson to St. Francis. They were not wearing helmets, according the KHP.
A new website design for Developmental Services of Northwest Kansas makes it easier for people to understand the variety of services provided by DSNWK, how to apply for services and how to donate.
The newly designed website is viewable at the same web address as before, www.dsnwk.org.
“Anyone seeking to understand who we serve and what we do can visit our new website and will find it very easy to navigate,” said Steve Keil, DSNWK director of development.
DSNWK added a new way to make online contributions. Donors can make one-time gifts or enroll in monthly giving. Donors also have the ability to designate the fund, and indicate if it is a memorial gift. DSNWK is raising money for the Stronger Forever Together campaign and all the funds listed on the donation page go towards the campaign.
In Kansas, anyone seeking services must be determined eligible through the Community Developmental Disabilities Organization. Information on how to apply is located on the bottom of the DSNWK website.
ACCESS Transportation in Hays is a division of DSNWK, which the newly designed website provides riders quicker navigation to the bus hours, fair prices, and phone number.
DSNWK is a 501(c)3 nonprofit with a mission to advocate with persons with disabilities and those who care about them by planning and supporting a life of dignity, interdependence, and personal satisfaction in the community.
We have all had to deal with bullies throughout our lives, and I have had my share. One fall day, coming home from school, I saw two guys from my third-grade class beating up on a smaller kid and was moved to step in to help. I was chagrined but not surprised when the victim ran home, and I became the new target. The beating I took that day was minimal, however, the sense that I did the right thing by standing up against bullies has propped up my self-worth my whole lifetime.
Bullies and abuse are everywhere. While in medical school, I was in an Atlanta emergency room when a woman came in with a broken nose and other broken bones and bruises that were explained away as the result of a fall, when we knew full well the injuries were inflicted by her spouse. Since coming to this prairie town 38 years ago, I have seen several cases of parents who physically and emotionally abused their children, and of adult children who physically and emotionally abused their parents. I remember numerous cases where women came into my office, explained their husbands were physically beating them, and despite my recommendations to escape and seek shelter, they stayed married to the scoundrels.
The American Psychiatric Association defines domestic violence and abuse as control by one person over another in any relationship. Control is the operative word. The means of this control can result from physical, sexual, emotional and economic abuse, including threats of isolation.
The number of American troops killed in Afghanistan and Iraq from 2001 through 2012 was greater than 6,000, and the number of American women murdered by male partners during that time was about 12,000. The Center for Disease Control estimates that in the U.S., one out of every four women and one out of every seven men will have experienced severe physical violence from a bully in their lifetimes.
The National Coalition for the Homeless estimates ten million children are exposed to domestic violence every year, and that people exposed to such hostility as children are three to four times more likely to become abusive or be abused than people raised in families without it.
Sometimes it’s right to stand up to a bully, and when there is danger, it’s right to escape and get help. And it’s always right to save your children from a lifetime of abuse by not allowing it in your family.
For free and easy access to the entire Prairie Doc® library, visit www.prairiedoc.org and follow Prairie Doc® on Facebook, featuring On Call with the Prairie Doc® a medical Q&A show streamed most Thursdays at 7 p.m. central.
RUSSELL – Open auditions for the Russell Community Theater production of Four Old Broads will be held July 31 and 31 from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. Auditions will be held at the RCT Playhouse at 5th and Kansas, Russell. Prepared audition materials are not required.
In Four Old Broads, retired burlesque queen Beatrice needs a vacation from Magnolia Place Assisted Living. A Sassy Seniors Cruise sounds perfect if she can convince her best friend, Eaddy Mae, to join her. Other residents are facing their own issues – including memory loss, soap opera obsession, and unrequited love. And things just haven’t been the same since Nurse Pat began working there. Adventures unfold as the gals try to outsmart the evil Nurse Pat and solve a multitude of mysteries. Hilarity ensues as they try to throw Nurse Pat off their trail and make it to the cruise ship after all.
Roles are available for 6 adult women and 1 adult man. Production dates are Tuesday through Saturday, October 8-12, 2019. Four Old Broads is presented by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc.
For more information, contact RCT at 785-483-4057.
