Q: What did the pencil say to the other pencil?
A: You’re looking sharp.
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Year: 2019
Western Kansas Manufacturers Association offers scholarships
DODGE CITY — Western Kansas Manufacturers Association (WKMA), sponsor of the annual 3i SHOW, has once again announced the availability of scholarships to area technical colleges, vocational colleges and universities for the 2019-2020 school year.
Scholarships are available at Barton Community College, Colby Community College, Dodge City Community College, Garden City Community College, NCK Tech (North Central Kansas Technical College), Northwest Kansas Technical College, Seward County Community College/Area Tech School, Fort Hays State University, Kansas State University and the University of Kansas.
Qualifying students are U.S. Citizens residing in Western Kansas who have graduated from a Western Kansas high school. The scholarships are for freshman students with preference given to those enrolling in Agri-Business, Industrial or Mechanical Engineering, Pre-Engineering or Business Administration. Scholarship applications should be made directly through the individual school’s financial aid or scholarship department.
WKMA scholarships are partially funded each year by the sale of three hundred limited-edition belt buckles commemorating the upcoming 3i SHOW. Buckle order forms are available online at www.3ishow.com/3ishow/merchandise. Buckles will also be available for sale March 21-23 at the 65th Annual 3i SHOW in Dodge City at the Western State Bank Expo Center.
For more information regarding scholarships, buckles or the 65th Annual 3i SHOW, visit www.3ishow.com, or contact the WKMA office directly toll-free at 877-405-2883 or locally at 620-227-8082. To receive continued updates and information about the 3i SHOW and upcoming events, follow the 3i SHOW on Twitter and like the 3i SHOW Facebook Page.
– WKMA
Consumer Corner: Avoid these most-common scams of 2018
By Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt
Next week is the first full week of March, which the Federal Trade Commission marks as National Consumer Protection Week. The Kansas Attorney General’s office and our In Your Corner Kansas campaign focuses year-round on protecting consumers from scams and rip-offs, but next week in particular we remind Kansans to be diligent and to keep yourself and your personal information safe.
One of the ways we do that is to report to you some of the most commonly-reported scams to our office over the past year. This year’s report looks very familiar, as all five scams return from 2017 list.
Card Services. Remaining atop our list for the second year in a row, the folks from “card services” took the top spot in 2018. In this scam, a robocaller placing thousands of calls at a time will ask you to “press 1” to speak to an account representative about lowering your credit card interest rate. These scammers are after information. If you press anything on your phone, that lets the scammer know they have reached a working number and you’ll get more calls. If you do speak to a representative, he or she will try to trick you into giving them more personal information, including your real credit card number. Our best advice on this or any other robocall scam is to not answer calls from numbers you do not know. If you do answer, once you know it’s not someone you know, just hang up. Never give your credit card information to someone over the phone.
Computer Repairs. In this scam, the caller claims to be from a well-known computer company telling you they’ve detected a virus on your computer and offers to help you remove it by connecting remotely to your computer. But instead of trying to fix your computer, the scam artist is actually trying to install a virus to give them access to all your files and your personal information that is in them. The scammer may also be trying to hack into your machine to send out spam emails from your account, or even to take over your computer’s camera and microphone to spy on you and try to obtain additional personal information. If your computer really does have a problem, take it to a reputable, local computer repair shop or call your computer manufacturer’s customer service number directly. Never give a stranger access to your computer over the phone.
IRS. The scam involves someone impersonating the IRS saying you owe taxes and asking you to pay immediately via your credit card or by purchasing a pre-paid debit card and calling them back with the card number. Remember, when you owe money to the IRS or any government agency, it will send you notices by mail. If you do get something in the mail, it’s a good idea to look up that agency’s number in the blue pages of a phone book or on the agency’s official website and call to make sure it’s a legitimate letter. Never give your personal information to someone over the phone.
Car Warranty. Another robocall, this scammer claims to be from your auto manufacturer or dealer letting you know that your car warranty is about to expire. They will then try to sell you an extended warranty. Usually, like the card services scam, this is a way to gather information about you that can then be sold to other scammers. And just like the card services scam, the best way to deal with these scammers is to just hang up.
Government Imposter. This one is a variation on the previously-mentioned IRS scam, where scammers claim to be from different federal, state, or local government agencies. In Kansas, we’ve seen them call and say you’ve missed jury duty and need to pay a fine. We’ve actually had scammers call impersonating the attorney general’s office saying they were going to come arrest you if you don’t pay a fine immediately. I assure you, we won’t do that. Like the IRS scam, take similar steps to verify anything you receive from someone purporting to be from a government agency is telling the truth and never feel pressured to give your personal information away over the phone.
More information on how to protect yourself from these and other scams is available on our consumer protection website at www.InYourCornerKansas.org or by calling our consumer protection hotline at (800) 432-2310.
Help available for paying winter heating bills
The Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF) is accepting applications for the federally funded Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP).
LIEAP provides an annual benefit to help qualifying households pay winter heating bills. Persons with disabilities, older adults and families with children are the primary groups assisted. In 2018, more than 36,000 Kansas households received an average benefit of $498.
To qualify, applicants must be responsible for direct payment of their heating bills. Income eligibility requirements are set at 130 percent of the federal poverty level. The level of benefit varies according to household income, number of people living in the home, type of residence, type of residence, type of heating fuel and utility rates.
Applicants must demonstrate they have made payments on their heating bills two out of the past three months.
Applications will be accepted until March 29, 2019.
If you are needing assistance filling out or submitting an application, the Northwest Kansas Area Agency on Aging can help. Call the office at 1-800-432-7422 or 785-628-8204 for an appointment.
Police arrest 3 suspects after gunshots that damaged Kansas home
SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting and have three suspects in custody.
Just after 1 a.m. Thursday, police responded to a check shots call in the 1700 block of south Waco in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson. Upon arrival, officers contacted a 21-year-old man and 24-year-old woman who live in the block.
Both reported hearing gunshots, finding damage to their residence and seeing a gray Chevy Silverado leaving the area.
Officers quickly responded, observed a gray Silverado in the area and stopped the truck at Harry and Mead, according to Davidson.
Police contacted 31-year-old Juan Rodriguez-Leal, 29-year-old Jairo Gonzales and 37-year-old Daniel Flores, all of Wichita.
All three individuals were taken into custody without incident and booked into jail.
Officers located two handguns and shell casings in the vehicle. Shell casings were also located in the street on Waco.
Rodriguez-Leal was booked on charges of criminal discharge of a firearm and possession of a firearm under the influence.
Gonzales was booked on charges of driving with a suspended license and criminal discharge of a firearm. Flores was booked on a charge of criminal discharge of a firearm. There were no injuries, according to Davidson.
One person hospitalized after Kansas house fire
MANHATTAN —One person was injured in a fire Thursday in Manhattan.
Just before 4:30p.m., crews to the fire at a home in the 400 Block of South 16th Street, according to a media release. Upon arrival they found smoke coming from the back of the residence.
Crews extinguished the blaze in approximately five minutes. Riley County EMS transported one person to Via Christi for possible smoke inhalation.
Damage to the residence is estimated at $5,500. Cause of the fire is still under investigation.
HAC sponsors production of Victoria native’s children’s book
By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Tammi Sauer, children’s author and Victoria native, is home this week for school visits that will culminate in a performance based on her book, “Your Alien,” on Friday at Beach/Schmidt Performing Arts Center.
First and second graders will see a live performance of “Your Alien” at 12:45 p.m. Friday. A public performance will be at 7 p.m., also at Beach/Schmidt. Cost is $3 for children 12 and younger and $5 for those 13 and older. All seating is general admission, so tickets will be sold only at the door beginning at 6:20 p.m.
Sauer’s school visits and the performance are being sponsored by the Hays Arts Council.
Sauer said Wednesday she was excited to be home and sharing her stories with local children. Although several of her books have been adapted into live performances, this is the first time she will be able to see one of them on stage. She has invited members of her family from Ellis County to join her in watching “Your Alien” for the first time.
“It is going to be amazing to have something that I had this idea for come to life on stage,” she said.
Sauer also presented the schools with a copy of “Your Alien Returns,” the sequel to “Your Alien.”
Sauer travels all over the country giving presentations to schools, and she has had some of her books translated into foreign languages.
During a visit this week to Wilson school, Sauer introduced the children to one her characters, “Wordy Birdy,” read several books to the children, talked about the inspiration for her books and offered second graders an extended session on developing their ideas into stories.
Sauer said much of her inspiration for her books came from growing up on a farm near Victoria. She told the children her job in the family was pig chaser. When the family’s pigs got out of their pens, she had to chase them back in.
A zoo of of other animals play prominently in her books, including chickens, ducks bears, a moose and a shark among others.
She told the second-graders she finds inspiration for her books in the “weird stuff” in her life.
“I have 27 books,” she said, “and most of those have started with something weird.”
Her first book was “Cowboy Camp,” which was inspired by a young man who knocked on her door one night trying to sell her a newspaper subscription to earn money to go to a cowboy camp. Sauer thought this young man did not look like the type of person that would fit in at a cowboy camp. The struggle of her main character was born.
Another idea for a book came from a plate. It had a picture of a bear in bright red underwear on it with the words, “Cake? What Cake?”
“When I saw this picture of the big hairy bear in the giant red underpants standing in a bunch of cake crumbs, I thought I need to write a book about an animal who likes cake as much as this guy,” Sauer told the children.
The book became “I Love Cake.”
Sauer studied elementary education at Kansas State University and was teacher before she started her writing career. Even before she graduated college, one of her instructors noted her talent with words and encouraged her to consider writing children’s books. In honor of that teacher, she named a chicken in one of her books after her.
Sauer said she placed the thought of writing on the back burner until a children’s author visited her daughter’s school. That reignited that dream of being an author. She squeezed in time to write when her children were napping. Her first book was published in 2005.
Sauer told the children,”I think my job is the best job in the world. I think being a children’s book author is better than being a race car driver and vooming around the curves. I think it is more fun that being an astronaut and blasting into outer space. I think my job is the best, because I love books.
“Books can take people on adventures. You can open up any book in your library and go on a new adventure.”
Sauer has made frequent visits to Victoria to share her love of writing and books.
“I just wanted those kids to see, ‘Hey, you can go to this little school and you can go do big things. You can do whatever you want. You just have to put in the time and the heart.
“It is my favorite,” she said of visiting her former school. “I have those feelings when I was in here. I know where some of my favorite books where on the shelf. It is a nice feeling to be back. When I walk in there, it even has the same kind of smell I remember when I was a little kid.”
Sauer can still remember some of her favorite books when she was a child. She loved the golden egg book when she was in first grade because of its beautiful cover, the Ramona books when she was a little older and “Are You There God? It’s Me Margret.”
“I have always been a big reader and just didn’t ever know I was going to be a writer,” she said. “It is just great to know all that reading I was doing helps me to be a better writer even now.”
Sauer acknowledged the children’s book market is very competitive. Less than 1 percent of the manuscripts that are sent to the major publishing houses make it to print. Sauer has an agent who helps find buyers for her books. Even with a children’s literature, revisions are extensive.
“I feel most of my job is not as a writer, but a reviser,” she said. “That is the truth for every writer out there who is trying to make a good thing better.”
Learn more on Sauer and her books at tammisauer.com.
Sunny, cold Friday
Friday Mostly sunny, with a high near 36. Wind chill values as low as 4. South southeast wind 6 to 11 mph becoming north northwest in the afternoon.
Friday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 15. Wind chill values as low as 3. Northeast wind 10 to 16 mph.
SaturdayA 20 percent chance of snow after noon. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 21. Wind chill values as low as 2. East northeast wind 10 to 14 mph.
Saturday Night Snow. Patchy blowing snow after 8pm. Low around 1. Blustery, with a north northeast wind 15 to 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%.
SundayA 40 percent chance of snow before noon. Mostly cloudy and cold, with a high near 7. Blustery.
Sunday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around -8.
Fraud trial: Former Kan. lawmaker defends how he spent campaign funds
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A former Kansas legislator accused of fraudulently taking $10,500 from campaign funds for his personal use told jurors Thursday that the payments were legitimate campaign expenses.
Sedgwick County Commissioner Michael O’Donnell took the stand to defend himself in his federal trial on 23 counts of wire fraud and three counts of money laundering related to his state and county campaigns.
“It is offensive to me and outrageous to me that anybody would assume I would steal money,” he testified.
A federal indictment alleges a scheme whereby O’Donnell allegedly wrote a series of checks in 2015 and 2016 from his “Michael for Kansas” and “Michael for Sedgwick County” campaigns to various people who would cash the checks. Prosecutors alleged some of the money went into his personal checking account and some went to friends.
But O’Donnell contended the payments were made to staffers who worked on his campaign and helped him with his official government duties. To make his point he said his campaign still owes him $3,618 for unreimbursed mileage that he could write a check for to himself if he wanted.
“I am not in public service to make money, but I do have legitimate debts that are owed to me by my campaigns,” he said.
O’Donnell, a Wichita Republican, was elected to the Kansas State Senate in 2012 for a term that ended in January 2017. He did not run for re-election and instead ran for and won a term on the Sedgwick County Commission that began in 2017 and is set to expire in 2020.
He repeatedly insisted the checks he wrote were “all legal under Kansas law” — drawing at one point a wry remark from Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Smith during cross examination that O’Donnell could append that comment to all his answers. The judge rebuked the prosecutor for the comment.
O’Donnell detailed for hours his payments to staffers, including some which he claimed were bonuses and retainers to friends who worked for him.
But prosecutors grilled him on checks made out to people who had testified earlier in the trial that they either did no work for the campaign or who were not actually working at events such as ball games as O’Donnell had claimed. He said some games were part of his official duties because he was invited to them by the university and had meetings with school officials later.
At one point he tried to explain a friend’s testimony that he was not working by saying that his staffer “didn’t realize what he was doing is work, I should have explained it better… I saw value in having a staffer there.”
Tigers pull away late to beat No. 25 MissourI Southern
HAYS, Kan. – Marcus Cooper and Devin Davis both hit two free throws in the final seven seconds and Fort Hays State scored the final six points to edge No. 25 Missouri Southern State 89-84 Thursday night at Gross Coliseum. The Tigers rallied from a 12-point first half deficit for their fifth straight home win over the Lions and lock up a fourth place finish in the MIAA.
Mark Johnson Postgame Interview
Game Highlights
The Tigers (17-10, 11-7 MIAA) led by four early but a 10-0 Lions run put them eight with 11 minutes to play in the first half. On strength on red-hot 3-point shooting, MSSU (22-6, 13-5 MIAA) extended their lead to 12 at the 5:11 mark. FHSU closed the half on a 12-4 run and pulled within four on Nyjee Wright’s tip in at the horn.
Marcus Cooper scored the first two baskets of the second half to tie the game 41-41. A Brady Werth jumper gave the Tigers their biggest lead at 65-60 with just under 10 minutes to play but Southern answered with back-to-back threes to pull within one.
The last nine minutes saw seven ties and seven lead changes with the Tigers taking the lead for good a Trey O’Neil layup with 20 seconds to play.
Marcus Cooper got a key steal in the lane and was intentionally fouled with seven seconds to play. After hitting both free throws. Devin Davis was fouled on the ensuing inbound and hit both of his free throws with six seconds left to seal the win.
Brady Werth led the Tigers with 19 points and nine rebounds before fouling out with a little over two minutes to play. Marcus Cooper added 18 points and seven boards. Jared Vitztum scored 11 and had six rebounds and Kyler Kinnamon scored all 10 of his points in the second half and dished out seven assists with one turnover and four steals.
Cam Martin led the Lions with 29 points and eight boards. Braelon Walker scored all of his 17 points in the second half while Kinzer Lambert added 16.
The Tigers close out the regular season Saturday afternoon against Pittsburg State where they will honor seniors Brady Werth, Kyler Kinnamon, Marcus Cooper, Trey O’Neil and Grant Holmes.
Late rally lifts Russell past TMP Lady Monarchs
HOISINGTON – The Russell Lady Broncos outscored the TMP Lady Monarchs 10-2 down the stretch in the fourth quarter as they put an end to a four-game losing streak to TMP and beat the Monarchs 51-48 in the 3A sub-state semifinals in Hoisington.
In the first quarter TMP took an early three-point lead on several occasions and led by five at 14-9 after the first quarter.
After building that five-point first quarter lead the Monarchs were held scoreless for a six-minute stretch to end the first and begin the second quarter but Russell wasn’t able to take advantage of the Monarchs’ offensive struggles and still found themselves behind on the scoreboard.
But in the final two minutes of the first half Russell’s Camille Dortland poured in her first of two threes on the night and Megan Peeler added her only field goal of the second quarter to put Russell up 19-18 at the break.
Russell took their biggest lead of the night on back-to-back field goals to open the second half to put the Broncos up 23-18. But after a timeout Adell Riedel knocked down a 15-foot jumped and the Monarchs would outscore the Broncos 13-7 over the final 5:31 of the third quarter to take a 31-30 lead into the fourth quarter.
After Russell took the lead on a pair of free throws to open the fourth quarter Riedel put TMP up 33-32 and then Jillian Lowe hit her only three of the night and converted on a three-point play for six straight points as the Monarchs again matched their largest lead of the night at five points at 39-34.
With just over four minutes to play the game was again tied, this time at 40 and 41 before the Monarchs Emilee Lane converted a three-point play that sparked a mini 5-0 run that gave TMP a 46-41 lead. But it was a lead they were unable to hold on to.
Russell ended the game on a 10-2 run that saw Camille Dortland convert on her second three-pointer of the night and her sister Tiffany Dortland scored 12 of her game-high 24 in the fourth quarter as Russell went on to pick up the 51-48 win.
TMP senior Jillian Lowe finished her night was a career-high 17 points and freshman Emilee Lane recorded her second career double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Russell’s Camille Dortland also scored in double-figures with 13.
Game highlights
TMP finishes the season 16-6.
Russell improves to 18-4 and will face Norton in Saturday’s sub-state championship game in Hoisington.
Norton defeated Southeast of Saline 55-23 Thursday.
Hays boys season ends in Salina
Hays High opened the postseason with a trip to #9 Salina Central on Thursday evening. The Indians entered as the #12 seed while the Mustangs the #5 seed. The two teams met January 25th in Hays which was won by Central 52-39.
The first time the two teams met the Mustangs made five three pointers. Thursday night was a carbon copy as Central knocked in five threes and took a 19-9 lead. The game was tied at two a piece over two minutes in. Central then went on an 8-0 run. Hays trailed 16-9 following a Cade Swayne basket but the Mustangs made their fifth three of the quarter as time expired for a 19-9 edge.
Hays missed their first five shots of the second quarter as Central went on another 8-0 run to build a 27-9 advantage. Braiden Meyers and TJ Nunnery made back to back three pointers to close the gap down to 27-15 with the Indians getting the ball back following Mustang turnover. The Indians though turned it over which led to a three point play for Central and a 30-15 halftime lead over the Indians.
Highlights
The Indians could never gained much ground in the second half. Central used an 11-0 third quarter run to lead by 25 and pushed the lead up to 30 at 53-23. Central led by 28 entering the fourth quarter then went on a 17-0 run starting the continuous fourth quarter clock finishing with a 70-27 victory.
Coach Rick Keltner
Hays finishes the year at 9-12 dropping their final five games. Central improves to 16-5 and will play in the sub-state championship on Saturday.
Third-ranked Tiger women cruise past Missouri Southern
HAYS, Kan. – Belle Barbieri had her third double-double of the season and led four Tigers in double figures as Fort Hays State cruised to a 79-59 win over Missouri Southern State Thursday at Gross Coliseum. Barbieri scored 18 and had 11 rebounds, Kacey Kennett added 17 points, Tatyana Legette scored 14 and Whitney Randall had 10.
Tony Hobson Postgame Interview
Game Highlights
The Tigers (26-1, 17-1 MIAA) raced out to a 9-0 lead and never led by less than six. A 12-0 run pushed their lead to 18 midway through the second quarter and were up as many as 23 on a couple occasions in the second half.
FHSU shot 47-percent from the floor and outscored the Lions (13-15, 5-13 MIAA) 25-14 off of turnovers and 17-8 on second chance points.
MSSU was led by Chelsey Henry’s 12 points. Layne Skiles came off the bench to add 10.
The Tigers, who received their MIAA Championship trophy at halftime of the men’s game, close out the regular season at home Saturday afternoon against Pittsburg State. It will be Senior Day as the honor Tatyana Legette and Carly Heim.