The annual National Day of Prayer will be celebrated at noon Thursday at the Ellis County Veteran’s Memorial at 13th and Fort streets.
The event is free and open to the public. No reservation is needed to attend.
President Ronald Regan made the National Day of Prayer an annual event in 1980 and set it on the first Thursday in May.
“This is a moment to stop and pray for our country,” Pastor Steve Dinkel said. “This is not a Democrat thing or a Republican thing. It is a day to pray for our country.”
The ceremony will include local leaders and pastors leading prayer on seven aspects of American life.
The program is as follows:
Welcome: Normadine Noone
Pledge of Allegiance Kathy Schupman of Kat’s Hallmark Shop and U.S. Veteran
Emcee: Pastor Steve Dinkel of Liberty Foursquare Church and E.C.M.A. Treasurer
Prayer Focuses:
Government: Pastor Wes Oakley of Westview Church
Military: Pastor Tim Nunnery of Westview Church
Media and Arts: Pastor Micah Sanderson of Crosspoint Church
Business: Pastor Jason Murray of Cornerstone Southern Baptist Church
Education: Chad Meitner, principal Thomas More Prep-Marian
Church: Pastor Ken and Rachel Ediger of North Oak Community Church
Family: Pastor Dave Buller of North Oak Community Church
Community Prayer: Patrick McGinnis of Breathe Coffee House/Dialogue Ministries
BALTIMORE – Former Fort Hays State standout kicker Brandon Brown has signed with the Baltimore Brigade of the Arena Football League. The organization signed Brown on April 24, 2019, just before the team’s season opener on April 26. Brown is just a year removed from his collegiate playing days at FHSU, earning All-America and MIAA Special Teams Player of the Year honors as a senior in 2017.
In two years at Fort Hays State, Brown broke the single-season kick scoring record twice, scoring 88 points in 2016 and then 94 in 2017. Brown finished his two-year career at FHSU with 31 field goals and 89 PATs for a total of 182 kicking points, ranking fourth all-time in kick scoring at FHSU.
Brown had invites to NFL rookie minicamps following his senior year, but he returned to FHSU to help coach the Tigers in 2018. He served as an assistant coach specializing in the kicking game and helped former teammate Dante Brown to All-America honors in 2018, including NCAA Division II Special Teams Player of the Year honors by the Don Hansen Football Committee. Dante Brown served as the team’s punter in Brandon Brown’s senior year of 2017, but he added kicking duties to his punter role in 2018 and led the nation in field goals with 28.
Brown had a big debut with the Baltimore Brigade in the season opener. He connected on his only field goal attempt and went 8-for-8 in extra-point attempts. The Arena Football League plays a 13-week schedule that lasts through the latter part of July.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State Softball had four players named to the All-MIAA Team for the 2019 season on Wednesday. Players to earn the distinction this year are sophomore catcher Sara Breckbill, junior pitcher Hailey Chapman, sophomore outfielder Terran Caldwell, and junior shortstop Lily Sale. Breckbill earned second-team honors, while Chapman, Caldwell, and Sale are honorable mention selections.
Breckbill earned All-MIAA status for the second straight year. Last year she earned first team honors at utility/non-pitcher by splitting time between first base and catcher. This year, she earns a second-team nod at catcher, serving as the team’s starter behind the dish in 46 of 49 games. Breckbill finished the 2019 season with a .313 average and a team-best 16 extra-base hits. She was second on the team in runs scored with 32. She ranked 10th in the MIAA in doubles with 13.
Chapman earns All-MIAA honors for the first time in her career, receiving an honorable mention nod in the pitching circle. Chapman led the MIAA in strikeouts by far with 174, finishing with 42 more than any other pitcher in the conference. She was one of only five players in the MIAA with at least 100 strikeouts this season. By regular season’s end, Chapman ranked 22nd in NCAA Division II for total strikeouts and 31st for strikeouts per seven innings (8.0). Chapman ranked second in the MIAA in complete games with 15, tied for third in saves with three, and ranked ninth in wins with 12. She had an ERA of 3.44 for the season.
Caldwell gains an All-MIAA selection for the first time in her career. Serving as the FHSU starting center fielder in all 49 games, Caldwell put together a .321 batting average with a team-best 54 hits, 34 runs scored, and 10 stolen bases. She ranked among the Top 20 in the conference in all three of those categories. She also remained errorless on 67 chances in the field this year, while adding three outfield assists defensively.
Sale earns an All-MIAA selection for the first time in her career at FHSU. She finished the year with just 11 errors in the field, the second fewest among players in the MIAA with shortstop as their primary position. She started all 49 games for the Tigers at shortstop. At the plate, Sale finished with a .264 batting average, 12 RBIs, and 17 runs scored. Sale now has 301 defensive assists in her career at FHSU, becoming the fourth player in program history with 300 or more.
Eric Charron -photo courtesy Tygart Valley Regional Jail
KINGWOOD, W.Va. (AP) — An armed Missouri man accused of threatening President Donald Trump during a traffic stop in West Virginia has been sentenced to 90 days in jail.
Eric Leonardo Charron of Kansas City pleaded guilty Wednesday in Preston County Magistrate Court to reckless driving and being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm. He was given credit for 36 days served.
State police say Charron was going 130 mph (209 kph) on Interstate 68 when he was pulled over March 27.
A trooper said in a criminal complaint that the 42-year-old Charron claimed to be running late to a dinner with Trump and also wanted “to meet with the leader of the Army to return a phone.”
The final results of Saturday’s Thomas More Prep Marian 2019 Auction for Christian Education (ACE) fundraiser are still being tallied, but it was “very, very successful” according to Troy Ruda, advancement director.
Ruda said Wednesday morning he does know the popular ACE Live Auction Item #60 reached and exceeded its goal.
“With $222,000 raised, the Leo J. and Albina Dreiling Trust matching funds were added, earning a total of $422,000,” Ruda reported.
ACE Live Auction Item #60 targets different needs each year.
In 2019, the funds will be used in two areas.
First up is the replacement of the student activity bus for TMP-Marian Sr./Jr. High School and Holy Family Elementary.
“The bus was donated to us in 2011 with 900,000 miles on it and today has more than 1.5 million miles,” said Ruda. “These buses are designed to be driven for many more miles than a passenger vehicle, but it needs to be replaced. There may be some safety concerns develop and it’s not very economical (on gas.)”
Ruda says a volunteer committee is looking at a new Executive Liner coach similar to those at Fort Hays State University which can be serviced in Hays. The current bus has to be taken out of town for maintenance. He’s hoping the new bus will be on campus by the end of 2019.
Other monies are going to the junior high renovation project.
It currently operates in the northeast wing of the second and third floors.
The goal is to relocate all the junior high classrooms and junior high administration to the third floor and allow the high school to completely occupy the first and second floors.
Construction of the new library, known as the Learning Commons, is expected to get underway this summer Ruda says, and the third-floor Center for Research will be vacated.
ACE was streamed live on Hays Post. Click here to review the auction.
Norton resident Jacqueline “Jackie” Underwood passed away April 29, 2019 at her home in Norton at the age of 91. She was born Feb. 3, 1928 in Marsailles France.
Survivors include her sons, Robert & William both of Norton, 4 grandchildren & 4 great grandchildren.
Cremation was chosen. A graveside service will be held Tues. May 7 at 2:00 p.m. in the Norton Cemetery, Norton, KS with Pastor Darel Boston officiating.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Norton County Hospital.
Online condolences: www.olliffboeve.com.
Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel is in charge of arrangements.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Latest on legislative efforts to expand Medicaid in Kansas (all times local):
Republicans have blocked a move in the Kansas Senate to expedite a debate on Medicaid expansion.
The vote Wednesday was 23-13 to pull an expansion bill from committee, one vote short of the 24 needed.
The House passed the bill in March but the Republican-controlled Senate has not acted on it.
Medicaid expansion is one of new Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s priorities. Her plan for expanding Medicaid health coverage to up to 150,000 additional Kansas residents is based on a bill that passed in 2017 with bipartisan support, only to be vetoed by then-Gov. Sam Brownback, a Republican.
GOP leaders say they want to wait until next year to vote on an expansion plan and that Kelly is trying to rush the debate.
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By JOHN HANNA
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Supporters of expanding Medicaid in Kansas are looking to block passage of the state’s next annual budget to force an expansion plan through the Republican-controlled Legislature over conservative leaders’ objections.
Legislators were set to reconvene Wednesday after an annual spring break, and the state Senate expected to vote quickly on expediting an expansion debate. The Senate has yet to act on a measure approved by the House in March, and top Republicans want to delay action until next year.
The next Senate vote would be on pulling an expansion billout of the committee where it’s been stuck for weeks, and supporters are not sure of success. Their doubts have them focusing on the alternative of tying up the $18 billion-plus budget that lawmakers must pass to keep state government operating after June.
“It’s the best leverage we have right now,” said House Minority Leader Tom Sawyer, a Wichita Democrat. “There’s been a lot of discussion.”
Medicaid expansion is one of new Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s priorities and its approval would be her biggest victory so far in her first months in office. Expansion has enjoyed bipartisan support for at least several years, but Kelly’s conservative Republican predecessors were vocal critics of the 2010 federal Affordable Care Act that encouraged it.
During an Associated Press interview, Kelly brushed aside top Republicans’ concerns about needing more time to consider the details of an expansion as “just a stall tactic.”
“I don’t really believe that they can come up with a better product, given a year,” she said. “I think they are really not that interested in expanding Medicaid. They never have been, but I think they’re starting to recognize the inevitability of it.”
Top Republicans argue that Kelly is trying to rush the debate and that they want to avoid pitfalls that could drive up the state’s costs.
“It needs a lot of due diligence and structure to protect the patients as well as the taxpayers,” said Senate Majority Leader Jim Denning, a conservative Kansas City-area Republican.
Kelly’s plan for expanding Medicaid health coverage to up to 150,000 additional Kansas residents is based on a bill that passed in 2017 with bipartisan support, only to be vetoed by then-Gov. Sam Brownback, a Republican.
Denning called the House-passed expansion bill “regurgitated” and said the state needs policies in place to curb health costs and encourage Medicaid participants to seek preventative care. GOP lawmakers also have mentioned imposing work requirements and even drug testing.
Denning said he agrees with Kelly that expansion “is inevitable” but added, “She’s going to have to wait, I hope, until the second year so we can do the massive and complicated plan correctly, rather than in a rush.”
The Affordable Care Act was Democratic former President Barack Obama’s signature domestic policy and it encouraged states to expand Medicaid by promising that the federal government would cover most of the cost. Thirty-six states have expanded Medicaid or seen voters approve ballot initiatives.
If you are in Topeka, please join us in fighting for Medicaid Expansion in Kansas! The vote is today, and 150k people will get coverage if it passes……✊🏼✊🏼✊🏼✊🏼🗣🗣🗣🗣 pic.twitter.com/3n7R0UuUMQ
Kelly’s administration has projected that the first full year of Kansas’ expansion would come with a net cost of $34 million to the state. Some supporters believe the influx of federal dollars will spur economic activity, generate new state tax revenues and offset those costs. Many Republicans are skeptical and believe the state’s next costs could be much higher.
Kansas Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley -photo Kansas News Service
The Senate’s top Democrat, Minority Leader Anthony Hensley, of Topeka, notified colleagues the he would try to pull the expansion bill from committee. Under Senate rules, he needed 24 of 40 votes to do so. Supporters then needed 27 of 40 votes to put the bill at the top of the debate calendar against GOP leaders’ wishes.
Democrats hold only 11 seats in the Senate and must rely on Republicans to bypass the normal committee process. It could be a tough sell to some moderate GOP senators who lead committees themselves and don’t want to face a similar tactic in the future.
Blocking the budget is “all we have left,” said Rep. Susan Concannon, a moderate Republican and expansion supporter from western Kansas.
“If we support Medicaid expansion, that’s our leverage,” she said.
Michael Roger Goscha, 73, of McPherson, Kansas, passed away at 8:08 a.m., Monday, April 29th, 2019 while in the company of family members, at Wesley Medical Center, Wichita, Kansas.
Michael was born in Wichita, Kansas on May 29, 1945, a son of Raymond W. and Monica M. (Campbell) Goscha-Zodrow.
Mike attended St. Johns grade school, Hoisington, Kansas and graduated from Hoisington High School, Hoisington, Kansas in 1963, Mike then attended Fort Hays State University, Hays, Kansas.
He was a member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in McPherson, where he was a member of the Knights of Columbus.
He served in the U.S. Air Force as a Sgt in the Vietnam War.
Through the years Mike worked for various machine shops in Kansas, he then worked for American Maplan, McPherson, Kansas, while operating his own machine shop “Triple M”, McPherson, Kansas.
Mike was a member of American Legion Post 24 of McPherson.
Mike was an avid outdoorsman and enjoyed playing pool, cards, was an excellent machinist and loved spending time in his man-cave, spending time with family and grandchildren.
Michael Roger Goscha was united in marriage to Rita M. Huslig on April 16, 1966 in Odin, Kansas. The young couple established their first home together in Wichita, Kansas. This union was blessed with the birth of two children, a son and a daughter, Chad and Richelle.
He is survived by his loving and devoted wife Rita Goscha, of McPherson, Kansas; his children, Chad Goscha and his significant other Karen Brown, of Olathe, Kansas, Richelle Barkdull and her husband Ryan , of Andover, Kanas and Scott Taylor and his wife Lori, of Monte Vista, Colorado; his siblings, Ron Goscha and his wife Darlene, of Carbondale, Colorado, Gary Goscha and his wife Stephanie, of Overland Park, Kansas, Sheryl Hays and her husband Jim, of Wichita, Kansas and Gregg Goscha and his wife Marie, of Wichita, Kansas. He is also survived by his grandchildren Abigail Goscha, Alexis Goscha, Kylie Goscha, Ashton Barkdull, Bryce Barkdull.
Mike was preceded in death by his parents and a brother Craig Goscha.
Visitation will be held on Monday, May 6, 2019 at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church from 6:00 p.m to 7:00 p.m. with a Rosary at 7:30 p.m..
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church on Tuesday, May 7th, 2019 at 10:00 a.m., with Fr. Ben Shockey officiating.
Burial will be at McPherson Cemetery McPherson, Kansas with military honors presented by the American Legion Post 24 and the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2715, both of McPherson.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Leukemia and Lymphoma Society or St. Joseph’s Catholic Church and they can be sent to Glidden-Ediger Funeral Home; 222 W. Euclid St., McPherson, Ks. 67460..
Roy Lambert Quiett, of Hill City, Kansas and Casper, Wyoming, passed away surrounded by his loving family Sunday, April 28, 2019 at the Graham County Hospital, after a brief battle with liver cancer.
Roy was born February 18, 1939 to Ellis and Annette (Brewster) Lambert in Marshall, Texas. He was later adopted by Roy Carl and Grace (Brewster) Quiett of Shawnee, Oklahoma.
Roy graduated from Ponca Military Academy in Ponca City, Oklahoma in 1957. He was an accomplished marksman, taking first place in the 1957 Oklahoma ROTC State Rifle Championship. In 1958 he joined the U.S. Army and was stationed at Fort Campbell before being deployed to France.
Roy was united in marriage to Leah Rolleen Anderson in Colby, Kansas August 2, 1959. They were deeply committed to each other and were looking forward to celebrating their 60th Anniversary later this year. Their union was blessed with two children: Roy Carl II (R.C.) and Terry Everett. Roy adored his family and relished the times they could all be together.
Known as a jack-of-all-trades, Roy pursued many professions before finding his calling. In 1969 he graduated from Bethany Nazarene College in Bethany, Oklahoma and became an ordained minister in the Church of the Nazarene. He spent most of his professional life pastoring Kansas churches in Oakley, Phillipsburg, Kirwin and Concordia; and he also pastored in Lander, Wyoming. He even came out of retirement years later to pastor the Hill City Church of God.
Eventually, he and Rolleen retired to Woodland Park, Colorado where he worked as a real estate broker before his health issues forced them to really retire to Canyon, Texas.
Roy loved working with wood, including building log homes in Wyoming and Colorado. In his later years, he became an avid pen maker, turning beautiful wood pens and selling them strictly by word-of-mouth and friendly conversations.
Never one to keep still, there were few things Roy enjoyed more than traveling. Personal highlights included Alaska, the Redwoods of California, and Silver Dollar City at Christmas. He and Rolleen were often joined in these excursions by their special traveling companions Ralph and Jeanine Ray and Dana and Steve Edwards.
Roy was preceded in death by his parents Ellis Lambert, Annette Hardy, Roy Carl Quiett, Grace Quiett and Lorraine Quiett. Roy is survived by his loving wife Rolleen Quiett of the home; sons: R.C. (Nancy) Quiett of Casper, Wyoming, and Terry (Amy McWhirt) Quiett of Winfield; brothers, Ellis “Alec” (Suze) Quiett of Alpine, Texas and Larry (Linda) Lambert of Montgomery, Alabama; sister Jane (Ronald) Bear of Columbia, Mississippi; half-sisters, Nannette (William) Morrisett of Dawsonville, Georgia, and Darlene (Keith) Burney of Water Valley, Mississippi; sisters-in-law: Jean (Ralph) Ray of Morland, Kansas, Rita Anderson of Hill City, Donna Anderson of Minneapolis, and Betty (Gene) Ryan of Scott City; and three grandchildren: Chelsey (Dalton) Toland of Casper, Wyoming and Evie Quiett and Copeland Quiett of Winfield.
According to Shawnee County Sheriff’s Captain Danny Lotridge, a Subaru Legacy driven by an adult female was westbound in the 4700 Block of SE 69thStreet in rural Shawnee County.
The driver lost control of the vehicle. It slid sideways into the ditch and struck a tree.
The driver was pronounced dead at the scene. AMR transported a juvenile male passenger who had been in the front seat to a Topeka hospital with serious injuries, according to Lotridge.
The names of the driver and passenger are being withheld at this time pending family notifications.
