ELLSWORTH — Law enforcement authorities and USD 327 officials have determined that a possible threat made Thursday at Ellsworth Junior/Senior High School was not credible.
In a news release Thursday morning, Ellsworth Police Chief Emil Halfhill wrote that on “November 14, 2019 a possible perceived threat was vocalized at the Ellsworth Junior/Senior High School. An investigation both by law enforcement and school staff was conducted and it was determined the threat was not credible. The juvenile who made the statement was removed from the school as a precaution.”
Halfhill noted that “law enforcement personnel will continue to monitor the situation and will provide extra patrol in and around the High School in the following days.”
The chief also reminded citizens that if they see something to say something.
ELLIS COUNTY — One person was injured in an accident just before 10a.m. Thursday in Ellis County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2006 Harley Davidson motorcycle driven by William Kirk Sauer, 52, Victoria, was eastbound on Old Highway 40 two miles west of Gorham. The motorcycle struck a deer.
Sauer came to rest in the roadway. The deer and motorcycle came to rest in the south ditch. EMS transported Sauer to Hays Medical Center. He was not wearing a helmet, according to the KHP.
COWLEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting in Cowley County.
Just before 10p.m. Saturday, police were dispatched to a residence in the 500 block of South D Street in Arkansas City for a report of a gunshot victim, according to city spokesman Andrew Lawson.
First responders arrived and located a 17-year-old Arkansas City boy with a gunshot wound. He had been struck in the face with a bullet from a 9-millimeter handgun, according to Lawson.
Police determined the victim was shot unintentionally by a family member who was handling the gun. He was transported by the Arkansas City Fire-EMS Department to South Central Kansas Medical Center and later airlifted to a Wichita-area hospital for treatment of his injuries.
The boy died Wednesday from complications related to his gunshot injury, according to Lawson. An autopsy is pending.
Joseph Gerstner, age 88, passed away on Wednesday, November 13, 2019 at the Scott County Hospital in Scott City, Kansas.
He was born on March 6, 1931 in Trego County, Kansas, the son of Jacob J. & Marcianna Rohleder Gerstner. A resident of Scott City, Kansas since 1966 moving from Trego County, Kansas, he was a Soil Conservationist and was the owner and operator of Joe Gerstner Terracing since 1966 retiring in 1999.
He was a member of the St. Joseph Catholic Church, Knights Of Columbus Council #5212 in Scott City, Kansas and the Kansas Land Improvement Contractor Association. Joe was a US Army Veteran of the Korean War.
On June 13, 1959 he married Sandra Crowl in Scott City, Kansas. She survives.
Survivors include his Wife – Sandra Gerstner of Scott City, Kansas, Two Sons – Terry Gerstner of Hutchinson, Kansas, Denis & Angela Gerstner of Scott City, Kansas, One Daughter – Sonia Baker of Leoti, Kansas, Two Brothers – Rudy & Pam Gerstner of Sun Valley, Arizona, Wendy Gerstner of Trego, Kansas, One Sister – Caroline Klaus of Hays, Kansas, Ten Grandchildren, Two Step Grandchildren and Nineteen Great Grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his Parents, Eight Brothers & Sisters and One Infant Daughter.
Vigil Services will be held at the St. Joseph Catholic Church in Scott City, Kansas at 7:00 p.m. Sunday, November 17, 2019 with Fr. Tim Hickey presiding.
Funeral Mass will be held at the St. Joseph Catholic Church in Scott City, Kansas at 10:30 a.m. Monday, November 18, 2019 with Fr. Warren Stecklein presiding.
Memorials can be made out to the Joseph Gerstner Memorial Fund in care of Price & Sons Funeral Homes.
Interment will be in the Scott County Cemetery in Scott City, Kansas.
Visitation will be from 2:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. Saturday and 1:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m. Sunday at Price & Sons Funeral Home in Scott City, Kansas.
Great Bend Community Theatre will present “Church Basement Ladies”, a musical, Nov. 14-17 at the Barton Community College Fine Arts Auditorium.
The musical is a celebration of the church kitchen and the women who work there, as they organize the food and the problems of a rural Minnesota church. From the elderly matriarch of the kitchen to the young bride-to-be learning the proper order of things, the show provides
a touching, funny look at their lives as they handle a record breaking Christmas dinner, the funeral of a dear friend, a Hawaiian Easter fundraiser and a steaming hot July wedding. They stave off potential disasters, share and debate recipes, instruct the
young, and keep the pastor on due course while thoroughly enjoying (and tolerating) each other.
Karen Kline-Martin, stage director, said the cast and the team of directors has been great to work with.
“We are incredibly fortunate and grateful to have Vern Fryberger, musical director, and Laura Klima-Fehr, choreographer. They take the show and put it over the top, truly,” said Kline-Martin. “The energy the cast brings each and every night is contagious. I can only imagine
the energy they will take to performances and how audiences will respond. They will have a blast.”
Performances will be Nov. 14, 15 and 16 at 7:30 p.m. with a matinee on Nov. 17 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $12 and may be purchased in advance online at www.gbct.net or in the lobby of the Fine Arts Auditorium beginning one hour prior to each performance.
The show is taking place at Barton Community College, 245 NE 30 Rd., Great Bend, while construction is ongoing at the Crest Theatre, GBCT’s normal location, for installation of a new HVAC system.
“The college has been incredibly generous in allowing us to be there. We have access to a terrific stage,” said Kline-Martin. “We’ve been made to feel very much at home and we are incredibly grateful for the hospitality they are showing GBCT.”
The cast includes Ruth Van Pelt, Karen Reddig, Carol Beck, Ashley McHenry, and Matt Mazouch. Karen Gore designed the set. Luke Abbott and Jacob Disque will assist with lights and sound, Karen Neuforth will serve as stage manager and Bonnie LeRoy served as assistant
director.
Kline-Martin said she hopes the community will take advantage of this chance to see GBCT present a musical for the first time in many years.
“I am thrilled that GBCT is doing a musical. We hope to look to diversify what we are offering our audiences, and starting the season with a musical is the best way,” said Kline-Martin.
The show has been produced with the assistance of underwriters American State Bank, Community Bank, Farmers Bank and Trust, First State Bank, Central National Bank, and Brad and Sarah Shirer.
For questions regarding tickets, please contact Great Bend Community Theatre at 620-792-4228 or [email protected].
It’s sign up time for Ellis Food Pantry free Christmas Food Boxes.
Residents of USD 388 Ellis who might want the help that a food box brings may sign up through the deadline on Friday, November 22, by calling 785-726-1278.
Those registered for boxes may shop for free Christmas gifts to give to their children ages 13 years and younger on either Saturday, November 23, or on Monday, December 2, from 2:00-4:00 p.m. at the Ellis Food Pantry, 210 Madison.
Pickup and/or delivery of the Christmas boxes will be Wednesday, December 18, from 2:30 to 6:00 p.m. at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 1009 Washington, Ellis.
Players show off the new uniforms for the Wind Surge at the team’s brand unveiling Wednesday. Nadya Faulx / KMUW
BY TOM SHINE Kansas News Service
If Wichita’s new baseball team can draw fans to the stadium like it did Wednesday night for the unveiling of its name and logo, it will be in good shape.
Before a packed house at Wave, the new team was officially christened the Wichita Wind Surge.
Team officials say the name is a play on the city’s ever-present wind and because Wichita is taking “an exponential surge forward,” according to an introductory video with soaring music and quintessential images of Kansas and Wichita.
The logo features the winged horse Pegasus soaring through a red W. The team’s primary colors include navy blue and red, a nod to the colors in the Wichita flag, which will appear on the uniforms.
Logo designer Todd Radom helps introduce the Wind Surge at an event at Wave. Credit Nadya Faulx / KMUW
“I think we got it right,” said Todd Radom, a nationally recognized graphic designer who created the Wichita logo. “I hope the reaction is good. Building a foundation is so important.”
Although the name was panned by many on social media after the announcement, those in attendance cheered loudly. And they formed long lines afterward to buy Wind Surge merchandise.
“Today does feel like Christmas,” said team president Jay Miller, who has been working to market a team with no name since earlier this year.
It also felt like Opening Day at the ballpark.
There were hot dogs, peanuts and beer. Elected officials roamed the crowd, along with members of the Wind Surge’s staff.
Players in the Miami Marlins’ organization — the parent club for Wichita — modeled the new uniforms.
Miss Kansas and Miss Wichita obligingly posed for photos. A barbershop quartet sang “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.”
“Make no mistake folks, Wichita is a baseball town,” said Wind Surge senior vice president Cookie Rojas.
Team owner and managing partner Lou Schwechheimer thanked Mayor Jeff Longwell for his efforts to bring the team to Wichita.
“The mayor called me three years ago and said, ‘This city deserves affiliated baseball, and we need to bring it back,’” Schwechheimer said.
Longwell was criticized for a lack of transparency in the city’s dealings with the team and the rapid decision to knock down Lawrence-Dumont Stadium and build a new $75 million baseball stadium on the west side of the Arkansas River.
The Wind Surge will take the field in April for its inaugural season in the Pacific Coast League. Wichita will be the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins, the highest level of minor league baseball. The city has not had a Triple-A team since 1984, when the Wichita Aeros left for Buffalo, New York.
When city leaders announced in September of 2018 that the New Orleans Baby Cakes were moving to Wichita, they said the team would get a new name. The team solicited suggestions from the public and received thousands of submissions, but it said team officials would make the final decision.
The team began releasing a series of names and logos in August, even though it said none would be the team’s new name. Those included the River Riders, Linemen and Doo-Dahs.
But Radom told Sportslogos.net that team officials wanted a more major-league feel.
“Wichita is the biggest city in the state of Kansas; it’s kind of a regional powerhouse,” Radom said. “So they wanted a look with a little bit more of a classic feel. We were going to look for something that would represent the team for the long term.”
A resolution to begin condemnation proceedings of private properties included in the North Vine Street Corridor improvement plan will be considered by Hays city commissioners tonight.
Since May, WSP Engineers has been developing design plans for the construction of improvements to North Vine between 32nd and 41st Streets.
Appraisals and compensation estimates were prepared. On September 26 the city commission authorized making offers to adjacent property owners for the necessary easements and rights of way to construct the project.
According to a memo from John Bird, city attorney, city staff has not been able to successfully negotiate the acquisitions and the city now finds “it is necessary to adopt a resolution authorizing the steps required to begin condemnation proceedings.”
A resolution has been prepared by Bird declaring the necessity to acquire by use of eminent domain certain real property and to authorize a survey and description of the land and the interest to be acquired.
If the resolution is adopted tonight by the city commission, the next step would be passing an ordinance of eminent domain proceedings pursuant to K.S.A. 26-201, et seq. and K.S.A. 26-501, et seq.
Adoption of that ordinance would likely be considered at the Nov. 21 work session for action at the Nov. 26 regular meeting. The commission will meet Tuesday rather than Thursday, Nov. 28 due to the Thanksgiving holiday.
Other agenda items for the Nov. 14 meeting include:
Consideration of a resolution setting a public hearing on Dec. 12, 2019, regarding establishment of the Saffron West 43rd Community Improvement District (CID) for a proposed new hotel
Approval of construction of the fire/rescue training facility classroom
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Prosecutors have announced plans to retry a Kansas priest who was suspended from the ministry after he was accused of inappropriately touching a young girl on two occasions.
Kallal photo Wyandotte Co.
Wyandotte County District Attorney’s Office spokesman Jonathan Carter said on Wednesday that the Rev. Scott Kallal’s new trial will likely be held in May. The 37-year-old faces two felony counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child. He was accused of inappropriately touching a 10-year-old girl in 2015 at a Kansas City, Kansas, church gymnasium and again at a graduation party in Bonner Springs.
His original trial ended in mistrial in September after the jury couldn’t agree on a verdict.
KANSAS CITY (AP) -A federal grand jury has indicted a former northwest Missouri police chief accused of striking a handcuffed man after the chief helped rescue the man’s infant daughter from a pond.
Greg Hallgrimson photo courtesy Fox4KansasCIty
Federal prosecutors said 50-year-old Greg Hallgrimson, of Kansas City, was charged Wednesday with violating the man’s civil rights. The indictment identifies the man only as “J.Z.” but Hallgrimson had previously been accused of using excessive force against Jonathon Zicarelli. Hallgrimson resigned in June.
Visitors left Colleen Taylor’s house with a full belly and an unburdened heart. Colleen loved caring for people, and she did that by listening to and cooking for them as well as sharing laughter and tears. Her husband and children relied on her strength, support, specialty pecan pies, and green bean dumpling soup to see them through a lifetime of celebrations and challenges. On many summer days, Colleen could be seen investigating the waters searching for creatures only grandsons would enjoy at Big Creek Stepping Stones Park. Mama Colleen’s kindness and generosity spread to countless others and she always had plenty of time, energy, and room in her heart to nurture an extended group of non-biological family members that she collected over the years. An extraordinary gift that she shared with others was to make each person she cared about feel seen, accepted, and loved. Although Colleen’s passion was to build community through hospitality at home and work, she was also committed to wringing as much fun out of life as she could. Her fully stamped passport, and Dolly Parton ticket stubs are a testament to her adventurous spirit.
Colleen Kae Taylor (née Hovey) was born on June 9, 1950 in Trenton Nebraska to Wilma Lucille and Robert Louis Hovey. She graduated in 1968 from Downs High School, and then went on to earn her civil service certification in Manhattan, Kansas. Colleen began working in the Department of Art and Design at Fort Hays State University in 1971. This marked the beginning of an amazing 45-year career as a senior administrative assistant of which she retired in 2016. During her time at FHSU, she encouraged and mentored a myriad of students and faculty that will never forget her kindness and lively spirit. Colleen married her true love, Paul Taylor, on March 6, 1982. Together they raised five children—each of which had their own unique strengths and personalities. As a mother, Colleen created a secure, loving, and supportive space for each of them to discover their path in life and was always there to provide open arms and incredible advice whenever you needed it.
On November 9, 2019, at age 69, Colleen passed away in Hays, Kansas. Colleen will be forever remembered by her husband and best friend Paul, and their children, Nicole, Andrea, Joel, Charles, and Paul II, and her grandchildren River and Castle. She will also be remembered by her brother and sister-in-law, Bob and Bette, numerous friends, and loyal service dog Nikka. Per usual, Colleen never wanted anyone making a fuss about her and requested not to have a funeral. Instead, the family will hold a celebration of her life at a later date (TBA). In lieu of flowers or other gifts, Colleen requested any gifts should be in the way of scholarships for the thousands of students she loved and the thousands of lives she touched. She lived with a giving and full heart, and after all her years at the Art and Design Department, it was clear her heart was truly for the students and the people she worked with. Her family wishes to honor her request. Colleen, thank you for everything. We will miss you forever. Luv u and HUGS!
If you would like to make a memorial donation to the Art and Design scholarship fund in Colleen’s name, you can do so in two ways.
Donations can be mailed to:
FHSU Foundation
P.O. Box 1060
Hays, KS 67601
*Please state the donation is in honor of Colleen Taylor on the memo line of your check.
Donations can also be made online:
www.foundation.fhsu.edu/donate/
*Please designate “Other/Memorial” donation in honor of Colleen Taylor.
Condolences may be left by guest book at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com or by email at [email protected] Arrangements in care of Brock’s-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory 2509 Vine Hays, KS 67601
