April 4th, 1941 – July 13th, 2019
An obituary is pending with Janousek Funeral Home, La Crosse.
Click HERE for service details.
Year: 2019
Merle Dean Ellner
Merle Dean Ellner (better known as Dean), age 89, of Hays, Kansas, died Sunday, July 14, 2019, at Hays Medical Center, Hays, Kansas. He was born November 7, 1929, on a farm near Lebanon, Kansas, to Lewis Merle Ellner and Frances Mable(Finch) Ellner.
On December 18, 1955, Dean and Jennie Lee (Klingenberger) were married at the First Baptist Church, Superior, Nebraska. They moved to Smith Center, Kansas.
Dean graduated from Lebanon High School in 1947. He served in the U. S. Army during the Korean Conflict. Upon his discharge he was employed as a crane operator for the Smith County Road Department. In 1959 they moved to Hays where Dean joined Bob Finch Construction. In 1960, he received his real estate license with Bob Finch Real Estate. He was also licensed with Equitable Life Insurance Company. He and his uncle, Bob Finch formed Ellner-Finch Insurance in 1960. In 1965, he graduated from the Missouri Auction School, also graduate from Realtor® Institute, and Certified Residential Specialist.
Dean was a charter member of the Hays Board of Realtors®. He was President in 1972 and 1990. In 1981 and 1991, he was honored as Realtor® of the year. He served as Zone VII Vice President of the Kansas Association
of Realtors® from 1989 to 1992. Dean received his Broker license January 1, 1974 and on May 1, 1974, Dean founded Dean Ellner Realtors®. The firm became Ellner-Bickle, Inc., Realtors® when he was joined by partner Donald G. Bickle in 1978. The firm also joined Electronic Realty Associates (ERA), a national franchise. In May, 1989, the corporate stock was purchased, and the firm again became Dean Ellner Realtors®.
Dean is a member of the First Presbyterian Church, a Deacon, and an Elder, a life member of the Hays V.F.W. Post No. 9076, a life member of RPAC, Hays American Legion, and Past member of Rotary and Jaycees, Hays Chamber of Commerce, past member of Junior Chamber of Commerce, he served as a fund raiser for Fort Hays State University, Benefactor of Thomas More-Marian High School, Past Board of Directors St. Johns, past member of Ellis County Coalition for Economic Development, charter member of Hays Board of REALTORS®, President, Hays Board of REALTORS® in1972, and 1990, President Elect, Hays Board of REALTORS® in 1989, Vice President, Hays Board of REALTORS® in 1988, Treasurer, Hays Board of REALTORS® in1987, Secretary-Treasurer, Hays Board of REALTORS® in 1970, Secretary, Hays Board of REALTORS® in 1988, Director, Hays Board of REALTORS® in 1974, REALTOR® of the Year, Hays Board of REALTORS® in 1980, and 1991, Chairman, Hays Multi-List in 1989, Zone VII Vice President – KAR from1989 to1992, Kansas Association of REALTORS®, National Association of REALTORS®, and retired in 2007. Dean has been a resident at the Good Samaritan Society of Hays since 2013.
Survivors include his wife, Jennie Ellner, of the home; three daughters, Kristi Jean Duncan, Hays, KS; Kelly Lee Leiker, Hays, KS; Robyn DeAnn Kisner, and husband, Craig, Hays, KS; one brother, Delbert Lee Ellner and wife, Marilyn, Holdrege, NE; one sister in law, Gladys Marie Dederman, Lincoln, NE; five grandchildren, Michael Dean Duncan, Melissa Dawn Oldfield, Hope Catherine Kisner, Cooper Dean Kisner, and Jenna Grace Kisner; two step grandchildren, Jeff Duncan and wife, Megan, Dianna Wright and husband Tom; four great grandchildren, Aireyana Skye Oldfield, Kamani Syncere Jones, Caliyah Unique Jones, and Lileigh Jean Duncan.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his in-laws, John and Elva Klingenberger; a son-in-law, Paul Duncan; a brother -in-law, Arthur Dederman; and a nephew, Patrick Ellner.
Services are 11:00 A.M. Saturday, at The First Presbyterian Church, 2900 Hall Street, Hays, Kansas. A private family inurnment will be at Mount Allen Cemetery, Hays, Kansas.
The family will receive friends from 5:00 to 8:00 P.M. Friday, at Cline’s-Keithley Mortuary of Hays, 1919 East 22nd Street, Hays, Kansas 67601, and from 10:00 to 11:00 A.M. Saturday, at The First Presbyterian Church. The family suggests memorial to the Good Samaritan Society of Hays.
Services are entrusted to Cline’s-Keithley Mortuary of Hays, 1919 East 22nd Street, Hays, Kansas. Condolences can be sent via e-mail to [email protected] or left at guestbook at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com
Randy Lee Kitzman
Randy Lee Kitzman, age 58, of Ellis, Kansas passed away July 16, 2019, at the KU Medical Center in Kansas City.
Celebration of life services will be 11 AM on Saturday, July 20, 2019, at Celebration Community Church in Hays.
A complete obituary is pending with Brock’s-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory, 2509 Vine Hays, KS 67601.
Police: FBI assisting with Kansas financial crime investigation
POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are conducting a felony criminal investigation of multiple incidents of financial crimes involving credit and debit cards in Pottawatomie County.
The FBI, Kansas Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Secret Service are assisting with the investigation, according to Wamego Police Chief Michael Baker, Sr.
He urged victim of the identity theft and or credit card fraud to file a police report with his department or another local agency.
Driver hospitalized after he falls asleep on I-70
RUSSELL COUNTY — One person was injured in an accident just after 6:30a.m. Wednesday in Russell County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1999 GMC truck driven by Dennis Michael Butcher, 46, Pahrump, Nev., was eastbound on Interstate 70 just east of Dorrance.
The driver fell asleep and struck a guardrail. The truck then traveled back across eastbound lanes of I-70 and rolled.
Butcher was transported to the hospital in Russell. He was properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
Betty L. Froelich
Betty L. Froelich, age 84, died Sunday, July 14, 2019, at The Shepherd’s Center in Cimarron, Kansas. She was born July 26, 1934, in Gorham, Kansas to Celestine and Clara (Bieker) Hammersmith.
Betty was a cook for over 60 years, starting at the age of 14 at the Coffee Shop in the Gorham Motel, and then cooked with her father at the C & D Café in Gorham. She retired at the age of 75 in 2009, and moved to Cimarron, Kansas. She owned and operated the TEE BOX in Hays, and cooked at the Hungry Farmer in Hanston, Hays American Legion, Hays V.F.W. and the Gorham Café.
She grew up in Gorham, and was a 1952 graduate of Gorham High School. She was a member of the St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Gorham, and lived in Gorham and the Ellis county area. She enjoyed her cooking and her cooking lessons over the years, and making others happy with a full meal. Betty enjoyed playing bingo, trips to the casino, her family, and all the activities of her grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Survivors include three sons, Howard Froelich, Wichita, KS; Stewart Froelich, North Carolina; Steve Froelich, Hays, KS; three daughters, Deb Lewis, and Denise “Dee Dee” Rupp and her husband, Dave, both of Hays, KS; Audrey Campbell and husband, Curt, Cimarron, KS; one brother, Joe Hammersmith, Hays, KS; two sisters, Doreen Smith and husband, Mike, Centennial, CO; Barbara Haggerty, Lawrence, KS; 20 grandchildren, 43 great grandchildren, and 2 great great grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents; one son Richard Froelich and his wife, Barbara Jean Froelich; one brother, Robert Hammersmith; and one sister-in-law, Firma Hammersmith.
A Celebration of Her Life Service is at 2:00 P.M. Saturday, July 20, 2019, at the Gorham Senior Center, Gorham, Kansas. A private family Inurnment will be at Winterset Cemetery South of Gorham.
The family will receive friends from 1:00 to 2:00 P.M. Saturday, at the Gorham Senior Center. The family suggests memorial to the Shepherd’s Center of Cimarron, Kansas.
Services are entrusted to Cline’s-Keithley Mortuary of Hays, 1919 East 22nd Street, Hays, Kansas 67601.
Condolences can be sent via e-mail to [email protected] or left at guestbook at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com
Linus I. Berens
Linus I. Berens, age 84, of Victoria, Kansas died Monday, July 15, 2019, at Hays Medical Center, Hays, Kansas. He was born September 9, 1934, in Oakley, Kansas to Ignatius H. and Sophia (Kuhn) Berens.
He was a District Food Supervisor for Path-Mark Supermarkets for 28 years. He started out as a baker, and worked his way up as a District Supervisor overseeing a number of stores in New Jersey and the East coast when he retired. He was a cattle breeder for John Metlar of New Jersey for ten years. Linus grew up in Monument, Kansas, and was a 1952 graduate of Monument High School. He attended Kansas State University, and was a US Army veteran serving during the Korean Conflict. He was a member of The Basilica of St. Fidelis, V.F.W. Post No. 1751, and moved to Victoria in 2000.
Survivors include two son, Linus J. Berens and wife, Lucille, Ocean, NJ; Paul S. Berens and wife, Laura, Raleigh, NC; one daughter, Venera A. Berens, Asheboro, NC; four brothers, Manire Berens and wife, Laurine, Derby, KS; Denis Berens and wife, Gerry, Austin TX; Leroy Berens and wife, Berniece, Wichita, KS; James Berens and wife, Patty, Topeka, KS; two sisters, Jeanice Boody and husband, Gordon, Wichita, KS; Alvera Vail, Bethany, OK; five grandchildren, Elizabeth, Melissa, Elizabeth, Catherine, and Anna; and six great grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents; and one infant brother, Gerald Berens.
Funeral services will be at 10:00 A.M. Friday, July 19, 2019, at The Basilica of St. Fidelis, Victoria, Kansas with military honors by the Victoria V.F.W. Post #1751. A private family inurnment will be held at St. Fidelis Cemetery, Victoria, Kansas.
Visitation will be 6:00 to 9:00 P.M. Thursday, and from 8:30 to 9:45 A.M. Friday, at
Cline’s-Keithley Mortuary, 412 Main Street, Victoria, Kansas.
A vigil service with a V.F.W. rosary will be at 6:30 P.M. Thursday, at Cline’s-Keithley Mortuary Victoria, Kansas. The family suggests memorial to The Basilica of St. Fidelis.
Services are entrusted to Cline’s-Keithley Mortuary, 412 Main Street, Victoria, Kansas 67671. Condolences can be sent via e-mail to [email protected] or can be left by guestbook at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com
Kan. felon accused in girlfriend’s murder; 4 children also in the home
SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating the murder of a Kansas woman in her home and have a suspect in custody.
Just after 8p.m. Tuesday, police responded to report of a shooting in the 3100 Block of South Elizabeth in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.
Police found a woman later identified as 25-year-old Elsey Puente inside the residence with a gunshot wound. EMS transported her to a local hospital where she died.
Investigators learned a domestic violence disturbance occurred in the residence between Puente and her boyfriend 29-year-old Victor Castro and she was shot once in the upper body, according to Davidson.
On Wednesday, police arrested Castro and booked him on requested charges of second-degree murder and criminal possession of a firearm, according to Sedgwick County online jail records.
Puente’s four children under the age of nine were also inside the residence at the time of the disturbance and were not injured, according to Davidson. They are currently with family.
Castro is not the children’s father, according to Davidson. He has prior convictions for aggravated assault and criminal threat, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.
🎥 Solid waste fee likely to increase for Hays customers
By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
The proposed 2020 budget for the city of Hays includes an increase in the solid waste fee for Hays customers.
The last time the fee increased was in 2006 in anticipation of the move in 2007 to a new automated collection system using blue polycarts. The rate was set at $15.20 thirteen years ago and hasn’t changed since then.
“We’re at the point where we’re eating into our reserves every year and that’s not very good for sustainability,” says Toby Dougherty, Hays city manager, “so a rate increase is required.”
The city’s Solid Waste Fund is an enterprise fund, acting like a business.
“Expenses necessitated by the fund are covered by the rates,” Dougherty explained. “The Solid Waste Fund doesn’t get subsidized by the General Fund or any form of taxes. It is solely based off user fees. And right now user fees are not supportive of the overall cost of the fund.”
Dougherty attributes the need for a rate hike to the increase in the cost of living. “Fuel increases, higher hauling and sorting fees for recyclables, salaries, and higher tipping fees at the Ellis County landfill are all factors,” he said.
Revenues from the sale of paper/cardboard recyclables have also been declining, from $63,000 in 2011 to $5,000 in 2018. The city must to pay another entity to take the rest of the recyclables.
“That’s the state of the recycling market. We’re lucky it doesn’t go into a landfill. We’ve gone from getting $60- to $70-thousand dollars a year, to paying $18,000 a year to have our recycling hauled off.”
Paper/cardboard recycling from Hays goes to Tamko in Phillipsburg where it is used in the manufacturing of roof shingles. The rest of the co-mingled recyclables – glass, plastic and aluminum – go to Stutzman’s recycling facility near Hutchinson, where it is sorted and sold to other commercial recyclers.
During tomorrow’s work session, city commissioners will consider a recommended series of annual rate increases over five years rather than one large rate increase.
The recommended rate increases are 15% to $17.48 starting August 2019. Further smaller increases are recommended annually in 2021 through 2024 of 5%, 3%, 2%, and 2%.
Public Works Director Jesse Rohr will present several other options for the commission at their July 18 work session.
Solid Waste services include refuse collection, recycling collection, compost operations, annual alley cleanup, and tree disposal for customers.
Commissioners will also look again at the funding requests in the 2020 budget by outside agencies, including Fort Hays State University city scholarships, Grow Hays, Care Council and Downtown Hays Development Corporation.
The July 18 agenda is available here.
The work session begins at 6:30 p.m. Thursday in Hays City Hall, 1507 Main.
Pigs fall from truck; Kan. officer thinks dispatch said kids
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Confusion about whether pigs or kids had tumbled out of a vehicle in Kansas led to a humorous exchange between a dispatcher and an officer.
Police in Riley County posted audio of the exchange on Facebook under the hearing, “Just a typical day in Kansas.”
It starts with a dispatcher telling an officer, “We evidently have a truck that is losing pigs out the back. The officer then attempts to clarify, saying “Kids, as in children?” The dispatcher then clarified, “No, pigs. As in little pink animals with curly tails.”
Body-camera video shows the officer then arriving at the scene to find two people who had apparently captured the pigs holding them with leashes.
Nathalie Bean
Phillipsburg resident Nathalie Bean passed away Saturday, July 13, 2019 at the Phillips County Hospital in Phillipsburg at the age of 95.
She was born February 28, 1924 in Lucas, KS, the daughter of James Libal & Veda (Maupin) Libal. She married Olin Bean on June 25, 1944; he preceded her in death. Nathalie was the head cook at the high school in Phillipsburg for 35 years.
She is survived by her son, Dennis & wife, Sandy, of Overland Park, KS and a brother, Jerry Libal of Loveland, CO.
Cremation was chosen per her wishes and her family will have a graveside service 10:00 a.m. Monday, July 22, 2019 in the Lucas Cemetery, Lucas, KS, with Pastor Les Rye officiating.
Memorials in remembrance of Nathalie may be given to Lucas and Phillipsburg K-18 Baseball, and sent to Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, PO Box 563, Phillipsburg, KS 67661.
Indictment: Stolen guns, drugs were in Kansas man’s garage
WICHITA, KAN. – A Kansas man was indicted Tuesday on a federal firearm charge, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.
Andrew Patrick Rizzo, 26, Wichita, is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. The crime is alleged to have occurred July 11, 2019, in Wichita.
According to court records, investigators served a search warrant at Rizzo’s home in the 4800 block of east Gilbert. They found methamphetamine, heroin, marijuana, a digital scale and pipes for smoking narcotics. They also found a 9 mm Smith & Wesson handgun that had been reported stolen and a bulletproof vest.
If convicted, Rizzo could face a penalty of not less than five years in federal prison. The Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Andrusak is prosecuting.
Hispanic heritage will be celebrated Saturday at Fort Larned
By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
LARNED — The Fort Larned National Historical Site is celebrating Hispanic heritage with a special event Saturday, July 20. Sienna Cordoba is an intern this summer at Fort Larned and says the celebration is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will include food, dance, nature activities, and living history demonstrations.
“We’ll have mariachi players, folklore dancers, a Zumba class, regular living history, and a migratory butterfly and bird component,” said Cordoba.
Cordoba has been teaching history for years, most recently in Baltimore, but wanted to get more involved with museums. She received an internship through the Latino Heritage Project and has been researching information on the Hispanic traders that frequented the Santa Fe Trail in the past.
“History is so cool and powerful, but teaching it in a classroom setting can be really isolating,” Cordoba said. “If you are at a museum, you can interact with so many different types of people.”
The event is for all ages and will especially engage children. Fort Larned is located on Highway 156, just west of Larned.