Lifelong Sharon Springs resident Howard Marshall Finley, 86, passed away at his home in Sharon Springs on Wednesday, July 31, 2019.
Howard was born on December 26, 1932 at home in Sharon Springs to Marshall Joseph and Lena Roberta (Reed) Finley.He was one of four children.Howard attended school in Sharon Springs, and graduated from WCHS in 1951.He joined the military and served in the United States Navy from 1952 until 1956.After serving four years in the Navy, Howard then went on and completed four years of college at Fort Hays State University and graduated from there in 1960.
On June 8, 1959, Howard married Norma Jean Montgomery in Sharon Springs.To this union, three daughters were born; Sheryl, Carolyn and Deborah.
From 1960 to 1966, Howard taught Elementary School in Brewster and McDonald, Kansas.After those six years, Howard decided that he wanted to become a full time farmer and rancher.Howard retired from farming and ranching in 2006.He was a member of the Sharon Springs United Methodist Church and the VFW.
Preceding him in death were his parents, his brother Benjamin Finley, his sister Mattie Jackson and one grandson Andrew Newton.
He is survived by his wife Norma of their home in Sharon Springs, his three daughters, Sheryl Finley of Topeka, KS, Carolyn (Scott) Crontinger of Carbondale, KS and Deborah (Danny) Newton of Salina, KS.He is also survived by his seven grandchildren; Angela Beach, Jerad, Dustin, James and Tyler Crotinger, Collin and Garrett Newton, fourteen great grandchildren, one brother Delgar (Phyllis) Finley of Sharon Springs, a sister-in-law Alice Baehler of Sharon Springs, one brother-in-law Junior (Rosalie) Montgomery of Sharon Springs, KS; as well as numerous nieces, nephews, great nieces and nephews and friends.
Funeral services were held on Saturday, August 3, 2019 at 10:30 AM MT at the Sharon Springs United Methodist Church with Pastor Galen Crippen officiating.Burial followed in the Sharon Springs Cemetery.
Visitation was held on Friday, August 2, 2019 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM MT at Koons-Russell Funeral Home in Sharon Springs.
Memorials may be designated to the Wallace County Ambulance Service or to the Sharon Springs United Methodist Church and may be left at the services or mailed to Koons-Russell Funeral Home, 211 N. Main Ave., Goodland, KS 67735.
Mrs. Pete Monaghan came into the newsroom to pay for her husband’s obituary. She was told by the kindly newsman that it was a dollar a word and he remembered Pete and wasn’t it too bad about him passing away.
She thanked him for his kind words and bemoaned the fact that she only had two dollars. But she wrote out the obituary, “Pete died.”
The newsman said he thought old Pete deserved more and he’d give her three more words.
Mrs. Pete Monaghan thanked him and rewrote the obituary: “Pete died. Boat for sale.”
Northwest Kansas Juvenile Service is currently seeking to hire 2 Family Support Workers to provide support to youth and families that are involved with the criminal justice system. One office will be based in Colby and one in Hays.Applicant must have a bachelor’s degree, valid driver’s license, pass a background check and random drug testing.
Family Support Worker’s responsibilities will be to provide cognitive based interventions to children and families and to assist in over-coming barriers to success.Does involve travel to counties within the districts. Worker will also facilitate parenting classes 1 to 2 evenings a week.
40 hour work week with flexible scheduling. $40,000 yearly salary. KPERS, paid single BCBS policy. A vehicle will be provided.If interested, contact Lisa Schlegel, Family Engagement Supervisor,785-874-4219 or send a resume to Lisa Schlegel at [email protected].Resumes are due by August 15th.
SEDGWICK COUNTY — A Kansas registered sex offender is in custody on new sex crime allegations after a Monday arrest in Sedgwick County.
Long Van, 38, Wichita, was convicted in 2018 for commercial sexual exploitation of a child for a crime that occurred in 2017.
He was sentenced in December, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections and had been on parole.
Police arrested him again Monday on requested charges of aggravated human trafficking involving a victim under the age of 18, according to the Sedgwick County booking report. He also faces two probation violations, according to online jail records. Van is now being held on bond of $350,000.
The city of Hays plans to offer an admission discount at the Hays Aquatic Park (HAP) to Ellis residents after the Ellis swimming pool was unexpectedly closed Wednesday morning.
Henry Schwaller, Hays mayor, made the suggestion during Thursday’s city commission work session.
The Ellis municipal pool was losing almost 30,000 gallons of water every 2 to 3 days according to Mayor Dave McDaniel and city officials decided to shut it down ahead of the season closing date.
Ellis is planning to build a new swimming pool and has received $1.3 million in grant funding towards the $1.8 million dollar project.
In the meantime, Hays city commissioners want to show their support of the neighboring town.
“They’ve been very supportive of us in our pursuit of water (from the R-9 Ranch in Edwards County),” Schwaller noted. “They also have water needs and they pump from the Big Creek Aquifer as Hays does.
“Their decision to shut the pool and not waste water, not only benefits them, it benefits us.”
Schwaller, who was participating in the meeting via phone, suggested offering a 50% discount to HAP for Ellis residents showing proof of residence. The expense would come from the city commission contingency fund.
Toby Dougherty, city manager, said he would tell Jeff Boyle, Director of Parks, to contact the Hays Recreation Commission (HRC) and offer the half-price admission to Ellis residents and the people with them. HRC manages the two Hays swimming pools.
Although the commission cannot take action during a work session, Dougherty explained that “with the consensus of all five commissioners, under my spending authority I can approve this.”
Dougherty said the agreement would be on the agenda for next week’s regular meeting “for formal action to authorize it just to cover the bases.”
The Hays Aquatic Park will close for the season Aug. 11.
CANTON, Ohio (AP) — For a while Thursday, Vic Fangio didn’t know if his long-awaited debut as a head coach would happen in the Hall of Fame game.
Fangio finished team meetings, then headed to a hospital because of a kidney stone. Though determined to lead his new team, the Denver Broncos, against Atlanta, “I didn’t know if I would make it.”
He did, and he was made a winner thanks to a late rally.
Fangio, an NFL assistant coach for nearly two decades, saw a late interception set up rookie Juwann Winfree’s 15-yard touchdown catch, and his team edged the Falcons 14-10 to open the NFL’s preseason.
Yes, it was an exhibition game — the real first test comes Sept. 9 at Oakland. Still, Fangio was getting his chance to run a team. So this truly was a debut.
“Winning has cured more things than penicillin,” joked Fangio, who still had not passed the stone when he met with the media after the game. “Nobody is doing backflips and cartwheels like in the regular season.”
Trey Johnson’s interception of Matt Schaub’s pass after the Atlanta backup quarterback was pressured set up Denver at the Falcons 38 with 5:21 remaining. A 14-yard pass interference call on fourth down against Rashard Causey kept Denver in it, but the Broncos were hurt by a holding penalty against rookie Ryan Crozier.
Unfazed, rookie Brett Rypien hurled a pass into the right corner of the end zone, where it was deflected and Winfree latched onto it with 1:26 remaining.
“Trey made a nice play at the end, and Winfree made an acrobatic catch,” Fangio said. “It’s always good to be here for this game. It’s always great to be around great ex-players and owners.”
Fangio also became the first coach to utilize the new rule allowing challenges of pass interference calls. Late in the second quarter, Linden Stephens was called for a 43-yard defensive penalty. Officials upheld the call.
“I made a statement I’d be the first to throw the flag on defensive pass interference,” said Fangio, one of the premier defensive coordinators the league has seen.
Both teams had eight-play first-half drives for touchdowns. Denver’s was finished by Khalfani Muhammad’s 3-yard run up the middle. Atlanta tied it with a precise two-minute drill guided by first-year quarterback Kurt Benkert, who is seeking a backup job to Matt Ryan. Benkert took the Falcons 61 yards in 1:17, hitting running back Brian Hill with a 3-yard touchdown pass.
Benkert conducted another impressive series in the third period, going 56 yards in 12 plays to Giorgio Tavecchio’s 27-yard field goal for a 10-7 lead.
Benkert headed to the locker room early in the fourth quarter with a toe injury. He went 19 of 34 for 185 yards.
Otherwise, it pretty much was a slopfest marred by dropped passes, penalties and missed assignments. Then again, how much can be expected in such an early preseason game?
CLASS OF 2019
The class of 2019 was introduced before the game and walked across the 50-yard line flanked by players from each team. The loudest cheers went to former Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey , which was predictable considering all the orange-clad folks in the stands. Former Chiefs and Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez gestured and joshed with the Atlanta players as he strode through. Ed Reed , Ty Law,Kevin Mawae , Gil Brandt,Johnny Robinson and the family of late Broncos owner Pat Bowlen also received loud ovations from the crowd of 20,802.
LOCK IT UP
Drew Lock, Denver’s second-round draft pick and perhaps its quarterback of the future — Joe Flacco , acquired from Baltimore, if the starter but sat Thursday night — got plenty of action. He rarely impressed and finished 7 of 11 for 34 yards.
INJURIES
Falcons: Atlanta, which was ravaged by injuries last season, saw fourth-year DT Ra’Shede Hageman go down in the first quarter with a groin problem. Hageman has not played an NFL game since 2016. … WR Marcus Green left in the third period with a groin injury.
Broncos: Denver third-year LB Joe Jones hurt an arm in the second quarter and did not return.
Asked for further updates on injuries, Fangio smiled and concluded: “I am more concerned about my injury update.”
Beginning Tuesday, seal coating will begin on various street throughout the city. Door-to-door notification will be made the day prior to street closure.
Seal coat is spray applied in two coats with a dry time of two to three hours per pass, so the streets being sealed will be temporarily closed during this time. On the date scheduled for treatment, all cars need to be moved from the street by 8 a.m. Streets being sealed will be closed from approximately 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Access can be achieved in cases of emergency.
Parking on adjacent streets is recommended during the daytime. Parking in driveways is okay if you do not plan on moving the vehicle between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.
The seal coat treatment should not be driven on until it has dried. It will stain surfaces such as concrete, carpet or flooring if tracked from construction areas.
All lawn watering devices should be turned off the evening before the scheduled date to help keep the streets clean and dry for a smooth and lasting project. Traffic control will be set in areas of work being completed and picked up by the end of the work day. The project is scheduled to be completed within two weeks, pending weather conditions.
The City of Hays regrets any inconvenience this may cause to the public. If there are any questions, please call the Office of Project Management at 628-7350 or the contractor, Circle C Paving at (316) 570-4652.
Ellis swimming pool tour May 6 (Photo courtesy Travis Kohlrus)
Timeline for new pool construction likely to be moved up a year
By JAMES BELL Hays Post
ELLIS — The city of Ellis announced the permanent closure of its municipal pool about two weeks before the end of the season Wednesday after water loss at the facility became unacceptably high, but with the announcement comes a little light at the end of the tunnel; the city council is likely to move forward with the new pool construction a year ahead of schedule.
“The council will take action to move this forward quickly so we don’t lose a year’s worth of the pool,” Ellis Mayor David McDaniel said Wednesday.
The surprising ending of the existing pool caught many off guard in the community, but throughout the season staff at the pool had been fighting a losing battle against water loss that was also likely causing algae growth at one end of the pool.
Joe Kreutzer, a Kansas certified pool operator, gave the city council a report on the pool at its meeting on July 15, but at that time was hopeful the pool would be able to remain open through the current season and be repaired for one more year’s worth of use.
During the meeting, he reported algae growing on the pool liner was able to be contained by shocking the pool with chlorine, but several cracks had appeared during the season as well as a 3-foot depression in the bottom of the pool, where water was likely seeping through the liner and allowing algae to enter.
At that time, Kreutzer did not believe the pool was a health risk and was closely monitoring chlorine levels along with water loss and algae growth.
But even then, Kreutzer said he was getting frequent questions from the public about the constant filling of the pool and told the council the city had pumped almost 840,000 gallons of water into the pool including the initial 385,000 gallons for the initial fill.
It was estimated the pool was losing 30,000 gallons of water every two to three days.
“It’s gotten steadily worse since then,” McDaniel said. “There is water apparently leaking under the liner that is creating an issue with algae. They have been able to shock it and contain it up until the last week — now it is out of control.”
That led to the recommendation from Kreutzer to close the pool.
“We are just trying to cope with what we have to work with here, but we cannot tolerate that much water loss,” McDaniel said.
He did not have total water loss numbers available Wednesday, but said the more recent water loss was “massive.”
While McDaniel also said there was no chance the old pool would reopen, they were planning to remove the liner and try to determine what was causing the water loss.
Even with the possibility of moving the new pool construction ahead by one year, at the city council’s meeting on July 1, Amy Burton, speaking on behalf of the pool improvement committee, said through grants the cost of the new pool was almost covered. She was confident the remaining funds could be raised through other grants and direct fundraising efforts.
The total cost of the project is estimated at $1.85 million with the city council agreeing to fund $500,000 of the project.
“We have now been awarded a total of $1.3 million to put toward the swimming pool improvement project,” Burton told the council at the meeting, noting that is over 70 percent of the funding needed for the project.
“Right now, we only lack $50,500 of the $500,000 benchmark that the council talked about in April,” she said.
The committee was working at that time to develop ideas for community involvement that would raise the remaining funds, including some area sports tournaments and a Splash Bash that would be held at the pool.
“I think it is safe to say the pool committee is very eager to make this happen,” Burton said.
At that meeting, Burton also shared with the council some of the problems the pool had been facing this season.
Most notably, the liner in the baby pool had come off the bottom pool, causing it to close for two days in June.
“Essentially, we had a patch fail,” Burton said.
The facility also had to close sporadically during the season as chlorine levels were too high after treatment for the algae.
Burton told the council it was not a matter of if the pool will become unrepairable, but rather a matter of when.
“We know that this pool is on its last leg. We are 30 years over life expectancy,” she said.
Following her report, the council voted unanimously to approve fundraising efforts not to exceed $1,000 that would be used for materials to assist in the fundraising, such as food, raffle prizes and supplies for the Splash Bash.
While the fundraising will continue if the committee comes up short, McDaniel said Wednesday the city would cover the difference to make sure the city has a pool next summer
“Whatever is left, we will make up some way,” he said.
Michael A. Smith is a Professor of Political Science at Emporia State University.I can perceive the increasing anxiety among my students. Today, they come to the office not only to discuss courses, internships, and post-graduation plans, but also to apologize for missed classes and changing behavior due to new doses of medication, personal and family drama, and other stressors. My colleagues and I are receiving more and more training about warning signs, counseling referrals, and conducting interventions, alongside the usual degree reports and add/drop slips. K-12 teachers tell me they see this as well, and I also see it in my younger colleagues.
The data show it, too. Anxiety is on the rise. The American Psychiatric Association ran a 1000-respondent poll in 2017, finding that two-thirds of respondents identified themselves as extremely or somewhat anxious– a 36% jump from 2016. These answers were most common among the millennial generation. Health and safety for self and family were the most common concerns. The poll was repeated in 2018 and found another 5% increase. Surveys in other developed countries also show increases.
Why should political scientists be concerned? First, professors are, first and foremost, teachers, and our first responsibility is our students’ well-being. Second, research should explore the rising anxiety levels and our divisive, fear and anger-driven political climate, manifested in figures like former Kansas Secretary of State and current U.S. Senate candidate Kris Kobach. Third, labeling anxiety a public health problem is a public policy issue.
Labeling anxiety as a public health problem would benefit those struggling with it. One feature of American culture–particularly rural culture —is to treat all health problems as resting with the individual, and solvable only by the individual. Thus, many people with anxiety wonder if there is something “wrong” with them. Acknowledging the public health aspect lets sufferers know that they are not alone and removes the stigma from seeking help. This is a good start, but we can do more.
K-12 schools, universities, and employers may need to consider developing codified procedures for handling the increasing number of claims asserting that classes, assignments, deadlines, and work days were missed due to changes in medication. Handling such claims on a case-by-case basis may no longer be feasible. Of course, insurance coverage for mental health is also a policy issue, requiring a balance between data-driven best practices, on the one hand, and flexibility on the other, since there is no one-size-fits all treatment that works for everybody. Unfortunately, many anxiety sufferers are treated primarily through trial and error, particularly with types and doses of medication. Funding for new research — for example, at KU Medical Center and its extensive research facilities — may help us find a better way than just seeing what sticks.
Finally, changes in our culture may be required. Many of my students, for example, see it is a badge of honor to cram in as many courses as possible, as well as to spend long hours at off-campus, part-time jobs, while also intervening to deescalate family dramas. The inevitable results are high stress and chronic sleep deprivation, which mutually reinforce one another into a toxic spiral. We need to re-think our cultural messages. While achievement is great, within reason, a shift in cultural norms toward balance and self-care is needed, too.
Michael A. Smith is a Professor of Political Science at Emporia State University.
THOMAS COUNTY — Authorities in Thomas County are investigating after a skunk tested positive for rabies, according to the Thomas County Health Department.
This is the fourth animal that has tested positive for rabies in Thomas County for 2019. Two skunks and a cow tested positive for rabies previously.
Thirty-five cases of animal rabies have been reported in Kansas in 2019, according to the health department. The rabid animals included 22 skunks, five bats, three cats, one cow, one dog, one horse, one raccoon, and one sheep.
According to the health department release, the risk for human exposure to rabies is real, but preventable. Animal rabies is common in Kansas and skunks are the animals most likely to have the disease. However, skunks can pass the virus to other animals and those animals can then pass the virus to people. People may not realize that bats can have rabies too. Prevention of human rabies depends on maintaining an adequate buffer zone of vaccinated domestic animals, eliminating human exposures to stray and wild animals, and providing exposed persons with prompt post-exposure rabies treatment.”
The Thomas County Health Department reminded the public to make sure their animals are vaccinated against rabies by their veterinarian. Vaccines are available for dogs, cats, ferrets, horses, cattle, and sheep. Vaccinated animals need to have periodic boosters of vaccine to maintain proper protection.
They also offers these tips to prevent rabies.
• Have your veterinarian vaccinate all dogs, cats, ferrets, horses and valuable breeding stock (cattle and sheep) against rabies.
• If bitten by an animal, seek medical attention and report the bite to your local health department or animal control department immediately.
• If your animal is bitten, contact your veterinarian for advice.
• If you wake up in a room with a bat present, regardless if there is evidence of a bite or scratch, seek medical attention. If at all possible, trap the bat for testing. Do not release the bat.
• Do not handle or feed wild animals. Never adopt wild animals or bring them into your home.
• Do not try to nurse sick wild animals to health. Call animal control or an animal rescue agency for assistance.
• Teach children never to handle unfamiliar animals, wild or domestic, even if they appear friendly.
Lifelong Sharon Springs resident Howard Marshall Finley, 86, passed away at his home in Sharon Springs on Wednesday, July 31, 2019.
