Updates on managing many Kansas crops will be highlighted
Kansas State University’s Agricultural Research Center in Hays will provide updated management strategies for numerous Kansas crops when it hosts the annual fall field day on Wednesday, August 21.
There is no cost to attend the event, which takes place from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Lunch will be provided. The research center is located at 1232 240th Avenue in Hays.
The schedule includes a series of field tours beginning at 9 a.m., including:
Pearl millet hybrid performance
Grain sorghum hybrid performance
Occasional tillage in wheat-sorghum-fallow rotations
Integrated weed management in soybeans
Pre- and post-herbicide options for weed management in grain sorghum
Imidazolinone-tolerant grain sorghum: A new technology for weed control.
The afternoon includes a look at insect management in soybeans; and a presentation on alternative crops for western Kansas, including field peas and industrial hemp.
Organizers say that pesticide applicators and certified crop consultants can earn up to four hours of continuing education credits by attending this year’s field day.
Interested persons are encouraged to pre-register by calling 785-625-3425. More information, including a list of speakers for this year’s field day, is available online at www.hays.k-state.edu.
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
When on the move, it is always important to find the right pathway. Today we’ll learn about an organization which is helping local communities find the right pathways – in this case, toward healthier living.
During the past two weeks, we’ve learned about K-State Research and Extension’s Culture of Health initiative and local examples of initiatives to support healthy living.
Last week we learned about a food basket program in Leoti. That program was supported by a larger initiative which goes back more than 10 years.
In 2007, Wichita County launched a coalition with a great purpose and a great acronym. The name was Wichita County AIM Coalition. The AIM stands for Add more fruits and vegetables, Increase physical activity, and Minimize screen time. Those are excellent goals toward which to, um, take aim.
The AIM Coalition, including K-State Research and Extension Wichita County, has been very active. They helped start the Healthy Check Challenge, began a 5K fun walk and run, purchased equipment at the fitness center, provided healthy snacks for events, supported walking trail kiosks and exercise stations, provided swimming lesson scholarships, encouraged participation in Walk Kansas, and more.
In recent years, the AIM Coalition accessed a program launched by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas. That program is called Pathways to a Healthy Kansas. Virginia Barnes is the director of Blue Health Initiatives for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas.
According to the Pathways website, this is the largest community grant program ever funded by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas. The Pathways program is to provide community coalitions with the tools and resources needed to remove barriers and engage their communities in ways that enable healthy eating and tobacco-free, active living to become a way of life.
The grant funding for each community included a coordination grant of $100,000, with the opportunity to apply for non-competitive implementation and achievements grants amounting to an additional $400,000.
The first round of grants was made in 2016 and included the Wichita County AIM Coalition and seven others. An additional eight coalitions were awarded grants in the second round of funding in 2017.
These grants literally span the state, from Chanute in the southeast to St. Francis in the northwest. They are supporting lots of grassroots efforts to encourage healthy living. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas also offers an online community toolbox of announcements, success stories, and helpful resources.
One example of a success story is the produce basket program in Leoti, as we featured last week. “One of the best things about this program – besides promoting healthy eating and promoting the local grocery store – is that it is proving to be replicable,” said Blue Health Director Virginia Barnes.
For example: Another Pathways grant recipient, Rawlins County, chose to implement the produce basket program at Jamboree Foods in Atwood. In its first week, 95 produce baskets were ordered and the program has grown from there.
“We are proud to partner with Jamboree Foods to provide this great opportunity for our residents,” said Emily Green of K-State Research and Extension – Rawlins County. Atwood is a rural community of 1,194 people. Now, that’s rural.
“Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas is committed to the health of all Kansans,” Virginia Barnes said. “We know that access to healthy fruits and vegetables is one important way to help people live healthy lives and reduce their risk of developing a preventable condition such as diabetes or heart disease. We are thrilled to be able to support communities as they find new ways to improve the health of their residents and strengthen food access in their communities through programs such as Simply Produce,” she said.
When on the move, it is important to be on the right pathway. We commend the Wichita County AIM Coalition, Emily Green, Virginia Barnes of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas, and all those who are making a difference by encouraging healthy behaviors in their communities. Committed individuals, local coalitions, and supportive philanthropy can help keep us on a healthy path.
This year’s event addresses the timely and relevant topic of climate change and will look at how the current model of annual agriculture negatively contributes to the emission of greenhouse gasses. We seek to answer through our research and educational efforts, how we effect positive change to a perennial landscape.
Other presenters include: Eliza Gilkyson, twice Grammy-nominated musician; Ana Porzecanski, director of the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation at the American Museum of Natural History; Carolyn Finney, storyteller and author; Amory Lovins, co-founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute; and Francesca Cotrufo, associate head of the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences at Colorado State University.
The Festival offers a unique opportunity to interact with some of the world’s most compelling authors, thinkers, artists, and advocates focused on agriculture, food, the environment, science, sustainability, and social and environmental justice.
The Institute’s science staff provides research plot tours and an in-depth update on current plant breeding efforts, ecology work, and partnerships.
There will be food trucks, live music, a Friday night barn dance, sunrise yoga, and more. Come to the event that The New York Times called an “intellectual hootenanny” and what has become a remarkable can’t-miss event on the prairie.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Mike Montgomery outpitched Noah Syndergaard, and the Kansas City Royals ended their scoreless drought Friday night in a 4-1 victory over the New York Mets.
The hottest team in the majors until this week, the Mets have lost four of five after a 15-1 stretch propelled them into the crowded NL wild-card race. They dropped the series opener in a rematch of the 2015 World Series won by Kansas City in five games.
Montgomery (3-5) pitched six strong innings and allowed just one unearned run on five hits while striking out three and walking two. It was the second consecutive start in which he didn’t permit an earned run, following seven smooth innings Saturday in a 7-0 win over Detroit.
The left-hander is 2-3 with the Royals since they acquired him from the Chicago Cubs.
Ian Kennedy tossed a scoreless ninth for his 21st save in 24 opportunities. He retired Amed Rosario on a bases-loaded grounder to end it.
The Royals, coming off back-to-back shutout losses to the St. Louis Cardinals, finally snapped a 22-inning scoreless string in the fifth. And it was the bottom three guys in the lineup who came through. After Ryan O’Hearn singled, Meibrys Viloria and Nicky Lopez followed with consecutive RBI doubles off Syndergaard to give Kansas City a 2-1 lead.
The Royals added a couple of insurance runs in the eighth when Brett Phillips drew a bases-loaded walk from Edwin Díaz, and Bubba Starling singled home a run.
Outside of the fifth, Syndergaard (8-6) gave up little else. He threw six innings and allowed just the two runs on five hits with six strikeouts, snapping a streak of six consecutive starts of at least seven innings. But after an RBI single from Michael Conforto in the third, the Mets couldn’t generate anything else on offense.
SOLER ON A TEAR
Jorge Soler extended his torrid streak at the plate. The Royals’ designated hitter reached base in all four plate appearances with a double and three walks. Over his last nine games, he is hitting .450 with a .639 on-base percentage and a 1.292 slugging percentage for a 1.930 OPS. In that span, Soler has eight home runs and 12 RBIs.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Royals: LHP Danny Duffy (left hamstring strain) threw a two-inning simulated game and looked good, according to manager Ned Yost. The team will see how Duffy feels on Saturday, then decide whether to have him pitch another simulated game or send him out for a rehab assignment. … SS Adalberto Mondesi (left shoulder) took batting practice on the field for the first time since getting hurt July 16.
Mets: Left fielder J.D. Davis exited with a calf problem after beating out an infield single late in the game. … RHP Robert Gsellman was unavailable due to triceps soreness he’s been dealing with for a couple of days. … OF Brandon Nimmo was scheduled to begin a rehab assignment with Class A St. Lucie. Nimmo, on the 60-day injured list, hasn’t played since May 20 because of a bulging disk in his neck.
ROSTER MOVES
Royals: Designated OF Billy Hamilton for assignment and recalled outfielder Brett Phillips from Triple-A Omaha. The speedy Hamilton, who signed a one-year deal with the Royals in the offseason, hit .211 in 93 games and stole 18 bases. Phillips appeared in 36 games for Kansas City in 2018 after coming over in a trade with Milwaukee, but had spent all of this season at Omaha before making his season debut on Friday. In those 36 games, Phillips hit .188 with two home runs.
Mets: Selected the contract of RHP Paul Sewald from Triple-A Syracuse and optioned RHP Drew Gagnon to their top farm club. In addition, RHP Tim Peterson was designated for assignment. This is Sewald’s third stint in the big leagues this season.
UP NEXT
Mets ace Jacob deGrom (7-7) faces Jakob Junis (8-10) in the second game of the series Saturday.
HOUSTON (AP) — A federal appeals court on Friday cleared the way for the U.S. government to forbid Central American immigrants from seeking asylum at the two busiest stretches of the southern border in a partial legal victory for the Trump administration.
In June, migrants who crossed the Rio Grande near McAllen, TX, surrender to U.S. Border Patrol agents. From here, they will be transported to a processing center.- photo courtesy U.S. Customs and Border Patrol
The ruling from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals allows President Donald Trump to enforce the policy in New Mexico and Texas, rejecting asylum seekers who cross from Mexico into either state. Under Friday’s ruling, U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar’s July 24 order stopping the policy would apply only in California and Arizona, which are covered by the 9th Circuit.
The two busiest areas for unauthorized border crossings are in South Texas’ Rio Grande Valley and the region around El Paso, Texas, which includes New Mexico. Nearly 50,000 people in July crossed the U.S. border without permission in those two regions, according to the U.S. Border Patrol.
The policy would deny asylum to anyone who passes through another country on the way to the U.S. without seeking protection there. Most crossing the southern border are Central Americans fleeing violence and poverty, who would largely be ineligible. The policy would also apply to people from Africa, Asia, and South America who come to the southern border to request asylum.
If the policy is implemented, ineligible migrants who cross in New Mexico and Texas could be detained and more quickly deported. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.
Under American law, people can request asylum when they arrive in the U.S. regardless of how they enter. The law makes an exception for those who have come through a country considered to be “safe” pursuant to an agreement between the U.S. and that country.
Canada and the U.S. have a “safe third country” agreement. But the U.S. doesn’t have one with Mexico or countries in Central America. The Trump administration has tried to sign one with Guatemala, but the country’s incoming president said this weekthat Guatemala would not be able to uphold a tentative deal reached by his predecessor.
The U.S. government is already turning away many asylum seekers at the southern border.
About 30,000 people have been returned to Mexico to await asylum hearings under the government’s Migrant Protection Protocols program. Tens of thousands of others are waiting in shelters and camps to present themselves to U.S. border agents at official ports of entry that have strict daily limits on asylum seekers.
Mexico’s asylum system is itself overwhelmed, and there are widespread reports of migrants being attacked and extorted . Border cities across from New Mexico and Texas include Juarez, Nuevo Laredo, and Reynosa, all of which are well-known for their violence and gang presence.
Tigar had ruled the policy could expose migrants to violence and abuse, deny their rights under international law, and return them to countries they were fleeing.
The appeals court ruled that Tigar’s order hadn’t considered whether a nationwide order was necessary and that there wasn’t enough evidence presented yet to conclude that it was. The court instructed Tigar to “further develop the record in support of a preliminary injunction” extending nationwide.
Judges Mark Bennett and Milan Smith voted to limit Tigar’s order. Judge A. Wallace Tashima dissented.
Tigar is a nominee of former President Barack Obama. Trump previously derided Tigar as an “Obama judge” after Tigar ruled against another set of asylum restrictions last year. That comment led to an unusual rebuke from Chief Justice John Roberts, who said the judiciary did not have “Obama judges or Clinton judges.”
Trump nominated Bennett, while Smith was nominated by former President George W. Bush. Tashima was nominated by former President Bill Clinton.
The American Civil Liberties Union and other legal groups sued the Trump administration after it announced the restrictions last month.
“We will continue fighting to end the ban entirely and permanently,” said Lee Gelernt, a lawyer for the ACLU.
BARTON COUNTY — One person died in an accident just before 5:30p.m. Friday in Barton County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2001 Dodge Ram driven by Ashley Bowles, 25, Great Bend was eastbound on U.S. 281 one mile north of Hoisington.
The driver was distracted by cellphone and rear-ended a 1999 Buick LeSabre driven by Lee Depperschmidt, 84, Rush Center, who was stopped waiting to make a left turn into private driveway.
EMS transported a passenger in the Buick Ida John, 78, Lincoln, California. to the hospital in Hoisington where she died. Depperschmidt was transported to a Wichita hospital. Bowles was not injured. All three were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
If you have a concern your child may have a developmental delay or be in need of special education services, call for a free developmental screening with the Hays Interagency Coordination Council on Aug. 23.
Children from ages birth to school age who live in Ellis or Rush counties are eligible to be screened.
Speech, language, vision, hearing, thinking, self-help, behavior and motor development will be checked.
The developmental screenings will be held Friday, Aug. 23. Call 785-625-3257 to set up a free screening appointment for your child.
These developmental screenings are offered monthly and sponsored by the Hays Interagency Coordination Council and Hays USD 489.
The RPM Speedway’s pit concession stand was destroyed during a storm that went through Ellis county Tuesday. (Photos courtesy Jill Pfannenstiel)
By JAMES BELL Hays Post
As cleanup continues across Ellis County from heavy sustained winds during a storm Tuesday, the Ellis County Fair Board is seeking help at 10 a.m. Saturday to begin work to clean up the heavily damaged fairgrounds.
“It took a whole set of bleachers and lifted them up over the rodeo arena and smashed them against the crow’s nest and bucking shoots,” said Jill Pfannenstiel, fair board president. “They are totally destroyed.”
Trees and light poles were also destroyed, along with Rolling Plains Motor Speedway buildings.
The track grandstands were damaged, as well as the commercial building.
“In the race track pit area, they had a scale house that was totally destroyed, along with their concessions building,” Pfannenstiel said.
Damage at the track forced the cancellation of Mod Invasion night planned on Aug. 24, which was one of the larger events for the track with the planned inclusion of NASCAR legend Kenny Schrader.
There is a lot of trash across the fairgrounds, and the board wants to get the destroyed buildings cleaned up in the pit area, Pfannenstiel said. Once the cleanup starts, the full scope of the damage can be assessed.
“We are going to try to salvage what we can, but we want to get them off of there to see what kind of damage we have,” she said.
They are also awaiting an evaluation from their insurance adjuster and are hopeful insurance will cover the cost of repairs.
“It should be (covered), but at this point, I don’t know that if they are going to depreciate stuff so if we will get our money back to replace the bleachers,” Pfannenstiel said.
Even if insurance covers the repairs, planned revenue from the three race events planned at RPM Speedway will not arrive and will hurt not only the track but will have larger economic impact, according to RPM Speedway president Glenn Unrein.
“It’s a blow to the racers and our community,” he said. “Like with the Fall Nationals, you have people travel a long distance — last year from 13 states and Canada — they all come in and rent motels shop here and spend money lodging, food and everything else. It’s a real blow to us.”
Unrein is hopeful repairs can be completed before championship night scheduled for Sept. 21 — the final night for track points for the racers before Fall Nationals on Oct. 4.
“It’s a major event for this community and our race track,” he said of the nationals event.
Around 225 to 250 races cars typically participate in that event and the event cannot be moved to another track.
“No facility in several hundred miles of us could handle the amount of cars and people that come in for that,” Unrein said.
While the rodeo grounds were damaged more significantly, there were no more events planned there for the year.
“We’re lucky there,” Pfannenstiel said.
During the cleanup Saturday, she said she hopes they can get the rodeo bleachers off of the crows’ nest and bucking shoots and is asking that anyone that wants to participate in the cleanup bring gloves, power tools, impacts, socket sets and quick-e saws.
Despite the devastation to the grounds, Pfannenstiel was grateful it was not worse.
“We are thankful that it did not happen during the fair and that nobody got hurt,” she said.
Coffey County Sheriff Randy Rogers says a fourth person suffered severe burns Friday morning while escaping from the home in Burlington. The survivor was flown to an area burn center.
Rogers didn’t identify any of the victims, pending notification of their relatives. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
HOXIE – The Main Street Arts Council, based in Hoxie, invites all area art enthusiasts to the annual “Main Street Art Walk” scheduled for Friday, Aug. 23 from 5 to 8 p.m. in downtown Hoxie.
Enjoy an evening of art, food, fresh air and fun as you make your way through Main Street viewing the artworks of more than 20 area artists.
New this year, a raffle drawing for three great prizes will be held in conjunction with the evening’s event. Those interested can pick up a map at the check-in table (to be located on the corner of Equity Bank), visit all artists and acquire his/her signature, then drop off the map (with participant name and contact information) at The Living Room, 721 Main St. for a chance to win. Prizes include a $35 gift card to The Elephant Bistro & Bar, a Patron-level membership with the Main Street Arts Council, and an art supplies gift basket.
A silent auction featuring donated works from the participating artists will be set up and available for bidding from 5 to 7:45 p.m. at The Living Room. Funds raised help support area student scholarships to study the arts and music.
Food vendors, including Mama Deb’s Cookin’, Christie’s and Dustin & Kylie Bell’s BBQ will be set up throughout the evening.
Artists participating this year with their designated business host location include Kay Azzara, The Elephant; Sally Cameron, First State Bank; Bonnie Cameron and Abby Killingsworth, Community Impact Center/Hoxie Rec; Jackie Campbell and Jessica Campbell, Eland Law Office; Jana Getz, Hoxie State Insurance; Charlie Hein and Shirley Popp, Farm Bureau; Diane Pratt, Helaina Heskett, Hilde Heskett, Brylie Lindeman, Taegen Lindeman, Bailynn Moser, and Adleigh Ziegler, The Living Room; Terence Koehn, The Sheridan Sentinel; Michelle Morris, Cressler Creations; Kenzie Nondorf and Emma Weiner, Oscar’s; Karl Pratt, Pratt Real Estate; Bonnie Stasser, Equity Bank; Alvin Wildeman, Jennifer’s Cuts; and Thomas Zimmerman and Rodney Zimmerman, The Hoxie Times.
The Hays Area Planning and Development Commission will meet at 6:30 p.m. Monday in Hays City Hall, 1507 Main.
Agenda items for Aug. 19 include discussion of proposed changes to the Unified Development Code regarding a reduction in development density requirements and changes in parking requirements.
City staff is considering some changes to the UDC that would remove specific requirements for development density.
Minimum landscaping area, floor area, lot area, street frontage, and maximum building height are all regulated within the UDC and can directly impact density.
According to a commission memo, staff has found that the UDC has various requirements that can be too restrictive and create the need for unnecessary larger property lots. Making changes to the regulations would provide developers more options for more dense developments.
Staff recommends setting a public hearing for Mon., Sept. 16, 2019 to consider changes to UDC Table 3.1.301A, Development Standards, and Sec. 2.2.306 (C) (9), Hotel/Motel Compatibility Standards.
Staff has also considered a change that would add flexibility to parking requirements for small business owners.
Allowing a limited amount of on-street parking to be counted towards the total parking required could help reduce costs for some developments.
A second public hearing is being recommended for Sept. 16 to consider adding proposed language to the UDC allowing limited on-street parking to be counted towards total parking requirements.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — The first Catholic priest in the U.S. to be labeled sexually violent when he was convicted in Illinois was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison for abusing two boys in Missouri in the 1990s.
75-year-old Fred Lenczycki photo courtesy child Sex Offender of Illinois
Fred Lenczycki, 75, pleaded guilty in May to two counts of sodomy for crimes that occurred from 1991 to 1994, when he served a parish in north St. Louis County. He was sentenced to 10-year sentences for each count, to run concurrently.
Lenczycki admitted grabbing the genitals of one boy and trying to force the other to expose himself. Though the crimes occurred more than 25 years ago, Lenczycki wasn’t charged until February.
Lenczycki apologized in a brief statement in court. His attorney, Matthew Radefeld, called the sentence “disappointing” because Lenczycki has been undergoing counseling and “made great strides.”
St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell, in a statement, called Lenczycki a “monster whose actions have affected countless victims and stolen the lives of countless children.”
One of the victims, Charlie Gensler III, now 37, called the sentence “a great step toward our healing and exposing the sexual abuse that occurs within the Catholic Church.” But, he said, the pain will never go away.
“Even though I’m happy with the sentence, it is basically all of us who are condemned to a life sentence of pain, grief and suffering,” Gensler said.
Lenczycki was removed from the ministry in 2002, when he was charged with sexually abusing three boys in the 1980s at a church in Hinsdale, Illinois. Those victims told authorities “Father Fred” repeatedly molested them, often using the pretense of swaddling them in “Baby Jesus” costumes for pageants that never took place.
Lenczycki pleaded guilty in 2004 and was sentenced to five years in prison. In 2008, a year before his release, he became the first U.S. priest to be labeled sexually violent when he was committed under Illinois’ Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act.
Church and court files show that Lenczycki admitted abusing up to 30 boys in Illinois, Missouri and California over 25 years. He now lives in suburban Chicago.
Victims of clergy sexual abuse have demanded more accountability and transparency from the Catholic church since last year, when a Pennsylvania report detailed seven decades of child sexual abuse by predator priests. The Vatican convened a sexual abuse summit in February to hear the testimony of several victims.
In addition to the criminal cases, Lenczycki is named in several lawsuits.
Gerald Green, son of Joe & Josephine (Diederich) Green, was born on December 28, 1930 and he departed this life on August 12, 2019 at the age of 88.
Jerry grew up on a farm north of Herndon, KS and later moved in to Herndon. He attended grade school at St. Mary’s in Herndon and graduated high school from Herndon Public School in 1949. He served in the United States Army, during the Korean War, from 1952-1954, stationed in Japan.
On January 17, 1959, Jerry was united in marriage to Dorothy Baron. They became parents of six daughters, Catherine, Anne, Angela, Christina, Stephanie and Victoria and one son, Gerard. During these years, he drove the Herndon School bus and later drove the bulk mail truck from McCook, NE to Sterling, CO, besides farming and raising livestock. Later he became a route mail carrier from Oberlin, KS. In 2002, he married Mildred Barnett.
During his life he thoroughly enjoyed his children and his Catholic faith. Over the years he was an active member of St. Mary’s Assumption Catholic Church in Herndon. After moving to Colby, he became a member of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, was a 4th degree member of the Knights of Columbus and a member of the VFW.
Preceding him in death were his parents; his wife, Dorothy; two brothers, infant Giles and Joseph Green and one stepson.
He is survived by his wife Mildred; children, Catherine (Dan) Horinek, Sisters, OR; Major Anne Green, Augusta, GA, Angela (Gary) Shields, Topeka, KS; Christina (Greg) Flaming, Berryton, KS, Stephanie (Igor) Nikishin, Canton, OH; Victoria (Rod) Holdsworth, Paola, KS and Gerard (Cheryl) Green, Rosalia, KS; two stepsons; one step daughter; 23 grandchildren; 24 great grandchildren; 8 step-grandchildren and 15 step-great grandchildren.
Visitation is 5-7:00 p.m. Sunday, August 18, 2019, at Baalmann Mortuary, Colby, with a Vigil at 7:00 p.m. Funeral Mass is 10:00 a.m. Monday, August 19, 2019, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Colby, with burial at 2:30 p.m. in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Herndon. Memorials are suggested to St. Mary’s Cemetery, Herndon, or for Masses and can be sent in care of Baalmann Mortuary, PO Box 391, Colby, KS 67701. For information or condolences visit www.baalmannmortuary.com
