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Author: Becky Kiser

Nearly 2,200 Drought Ememergency Water Permits Being Processed

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The Department of Agriculture’s Kansas Division of Water Resources received 2,195 applications for 2011 drought emergency term permits.
This one-time, drought-focused term permit allowed holders of existing water rights the flexibility to borrow a portion of next year’s authorized quantity in order to complete their 2011 growing season.
Drought Term Permit Applications had to be filed by December 31.

 

Ten Arrests During Hays PD New Year’s Eve Saturation Patrol

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Ten arrests were made by Hays Police during a four-hour DUI Saturation Patrol New Year’s Eve.

Chief Don Scheibler says the patrol, operated between the hours of 11:00 P.M. and 3:00 A.M. December 31, was an effort to deter and decrease the number of impaired and intoxicated drivers on the street.

Five adults were arrested for DUI; three were arrested for Underage Possession of Alcohol; one for Transporting an Open Container of Alcohol; and one for Felony Theft of a Vehicle. Two minors were also taken into custody for alcohol violations.

Scheibler described the New Year’s Eve celebration in Hays “quiet” with no major accidents or injuries reported.

The saturation patrol, consisting of one Sergeant and four Patrol Officers, was conducted in accordance with the Kansas Department of Transportation “I.D.D.P.” – Impaired Driving Deterrence Program.

 

 

Christmas is Final Day of Bethlehem Display at St. Boniface

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For the 84th consecutive year, the Little Town of Bethlehem Christmas display is drawing  visitors to St. Boniface Church in Vincent, southeast of Victoria.

The Nativity scene began as a labor of love by Father Callistus Rectenwald who came to the parish in 1927.  The “Christmas Crib” as he called it, resembles the town of Bethlehem, with trees and plants, rocks, bridges and streams, water wells, animals and of course, the Bethlehem Inn which had no room for Mary and Joseph.

The Inn and other buildings are built from wood scraps and paneling covered with pebbles from the St. Boniface Church driveway.  The pebbles were glued to the walls to resemble buildings made of stone.

The rocks and shells scattered throughout the town of Bethlehem come from 105 countries, many of the Pacific Islands, and all 50 states.  One special rock is from the cave of Lourdes where the Blessed Mother appeared to Bernadette.

The brightest stones were donated by Vincent resident Milton Wellbrock, whose hobby of rock polishing really intrigued Father Rectenwald.

The stable where Jesus was born is constructed with wood taken from a pear tree in a farm orchard near St.  Boniface.

The Three Kings statues are from Germany, as are the figures of the Holy Family and some of the shepherds.  One of the large camels  comes from the Holy Land and is made of olive wood.

Father Rectenwald also wanted to represent the many farms in the rural Vince area.  Near the stable he placed Holstein cows and a milking maid on a stool, along with chickens and other animals.

The look of the Nativity display has changed over the years.  When a parishioner took a trip or when young men were in service during war times, they always remembered to bring back a souvenir to add to the crib.

Each Christmas season since Father Rectenwald’s  death in 1980, parish members have set up the display as a tribute to its creator, and as a memorial in his name for the education of seminarians in the Capuchin order.

The display can be viewed the final time this year Christmas Day,  December 25, 1-5p.m.

Street Beat will have the story December 27.

Hays Trash Collection Resumes Following Blizzard

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Regular trash collection routes have resumed in Hays following Tuesday’s blizzard, when no collections were made.

City crews are currently collecting Thursday and Friday routes today.

Public Works Administrative Assistant Shelley Bryant says city of Hays customers do not need to place their refuse and recycling at the curb.  Normal alley and curbside pickup are being made.

Barber County Ranch Earns 2011 National Stewardship Award

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PRATT — The Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies has honored the Alexander Ranch of Barber County with the 2011 National Private Lands Fish and Wildlife Stewardship Award.   The Alexander Ranch is owned and operated by Ted, Brian, and Mona Alexander in south-central Kansas.

The Alexander Ranch became eligible for the national award by winning the 2011 Kansas Wildlife Habitat Conservation Award.

“The Alexanders’ decades of dedication to the improvement of native grasslands in an area once over-grazed and degraded by the encroachment of eastern red cedar deserves statewide recognition,” said Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism wildlife biologist Chris Berens, who nominated the Alexander Ranch for the award.

The ranch covers more than 7,000 acres and has flourished as a custom grazing operation for the past 27 years. It is home to several wildlife and aquatic species considered at-risk or in need of conservation.

The ranch has also entered into a “Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances” with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services. This voluntary agreement guarantees to address the conservation needs of a species before they become listed as endangered or threatened by specifying actions that will remove or reduce threats to the species.

The Alexanders have opened their ranch to training opportunities for public, state, and federal agency staff and have allowed many university students to conduct wildlife research, including the interaction of wildlife and grazing practices.

TMP-Marian High School To Add Jr. High Curriculum

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Thomas More Prep-Marian High School will expand next year.  The four-year Catholic high school will add a junior high program to its curriculum.

Pastoral leaders of Heartland Parishes of Ellis County, along with the Salina Diocese, gave their approval to the plan last Friday.

Principal Bill DeWitt says TMP-Marian Junior High for 7th and 8th graders will open Fall 2012 in the high school. The program addition will give Hays an inclusive Catholic education system for pre-school through 12th grade.

About half of the $3.7 million for the five-year plan for a middle school in the Kennedy building has been pledged.

USD 489 voted earlier this year to close Kennedy Middle School next May, leaving a single public middle school in Hays.  The Kennedy building is owned by Saint Joseph Parish and was leased to the Hays school district.

An information night about the new TMP junior high program will be held January 8 with enrollment beginning January 31.

Kansas Drug Prescription Firm to Add 620 Jobs

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OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — A mail-service drug prescription company in Overland Park has announced an expansion that will include adding 620 jobs to its current round of hiring, making the firm Johnson County’s fifth largest private employer.

OptumRx is expected to have about 2,100 employees at its mail and customer service center in 18 months, according to The Kansas City Star.

OptumRx has handled 48 million prescriptions since it opened its Overland Park facility in 2006. The 313,000-square-foot site was expected to process 13 million prescriptions this year.

“We are adding employees in virtually every position, from entry-level to highly experienced, from shipper to pharmacist,” said Larry C. Renfro, CEO of Optum, the parent company of OptumRx.  Company officials announced the expansion Wednesday.

OptumRx, which is part of UnitedHealth Group, has 13 million customers and expects to fill $23 billion worth of prescriptions this year. Besides Overland Park, the firm’s other large mail service center is in Carlsbad, Calif.

Wichita Allows Guns in City Buildings

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The Associated Press

WICHITA – The Wichita City Council has voted to allow people with permits to carry their handguns in 111 city-owned buildings.

The Wichita Eagle reported that the 4-3 vote Tuesday came four months after the Sedgwick County Commission opened about 80 of its more than 100 buildings to concealed carry. People with permits were previously barred from taking their guns inside any buildings owned by the city and county.

Among the places where concealed-carry guns still won’t be allowed include anywhere the City Council meets, such as City Hall.

Places where the concealed weapons now will be allowed include 82 park and recreation sites, 19 fire department buildings, four public works and utilities buildings and five parking garages.

The change is effective immediately.

Kansas Democrats Name New Director

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The Associated Press

TOPEKA – A Kentucky Democratic party organizer has been named executive director of the Kansas Democratic Party.
Joan Wagnon, chair of the Kansas Democrats, said in a press release Wednesday that Jason Perkey, a regional field director with the Kentucky Democratic Party Coordinated Campaign, will begin work with the Kansas Democratic Party on Jan. 3.

Perkey is a lawyer and has worked on presidential, gubernatorial, congressional and state legislative campaigns in Kentucky, Illinois and Virginia.

As executive director, Perkey will manage the Kansas Democratic Party’s programs and fundraising activities

Historian, Former FHSU Vice Provost Jim Forsythe Dies

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Former Fort Hays State University Vice-Provost,  Dr. James Forsythe, died Friday in Russell at the age of 77.

Forsythe served 36 years at FHSU and was also Dean of the Graduate School and Chairman of the History Department.

He wrote two histories of Fort Hays State , and co-authored a book on the Volga German settlement of western Kansas.  Forsythe retired in 1999.

Funeral services were Wednesday in Hays.

Otis Woman Killed in Blizzard-Related Traffic Accident

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Blizzard conditions are a factor in a two-vehicle fatality accident Monday afternoon just west of LaCrosse.

According to Rush County Sheriff Ward Corsair, 52 year old Sharon L. Royer of Otis died at the scene.

Royer was eastbound in a pickup on Highway 4 just before 3:30p.m. when she lost control on the ice and slid sideways.   A westbound pickup, driven by 51-year-old John Moravek of Hays, struck the passenger side of Royer’s pickup, which then  came to rest on the driver’s side in the north ditch.

Moravek was transported to Rush County Memorial Hospital and then to Hays Medical Center.  His passenger, 23-year-old Aaron Moravek of  Hays, was also transported to Hays Medical Center.

43 Counties Now Offering Student Loan Reimbursement

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(TOPEKA)–Chautauqua, Gove and Pawnee counties have joined the Rural Opportunity Zones (ROZs) student loan reimbursement partnership in the past month, bringing to 43 the number of counties participating.

The Kansas Commerce Department has received 158 applications from across the country.

The ROZs program offers student loan reimbursement of up to $3,000 per year for five years for individuals that graduate from an accredited post-secondary college or technical school. In addition, people moving from out-of-state could be eligible for 100 percent state income tax reimbursement, if they have lived outside of Kansas for at least the past five years and have had Kansas source income of less than $10,000 per year over the past five years.

Quinter City Administrator Ericka Gillespie says “Our commitment to ROZs is a clear message that not only reflects how the Kansas Legislature feels about rural Kansas, but how counties like Gove can take the opportunity to invest in themselves by adding student loan repayment into their incentive packages to bring people into their regions.”

The counties participating in student loan program, so far, are Barber, Chautauqua, Cheyenne, Clark, Cloud, Decatur, Edwards, Gove, Graham, Greeley, Greenwood, Hamilton, Harper, Hodgeman, Jewell, Kearny, Kingman, Kiowa, Lane, Lincoln, Logan, Marion, Mitchell, Morton, Ness, Norton, Pawnee, Phillips, Pratt, Rawlins, Rooks, Rush, Russell, Scott, Sherman, Smith, Stafford, Stanton, Thomas, Trego, Wallace, Wichita and Woodson.

The program designates 50 counties as ROZs counties. In addition to those already listed above, the others are Comanche, Elk, Osborne, Republic, Sheridan, Washington and Wilson.

 

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