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Ruth May Butler Dyson

Ruth May Butler Dyson, 82, passed away August 26, 2019, at Medicalodges of Great Bend. She was born on September 12, 1936, at Lakin to Lewis and Mary (Forge) Moore. She married C.W. Butler on June 21, 1953, at Lakin, and later divorced in 1973. She then married Loren Dyson in 1989, at Wichita. He died in August, 1997.

A Great Bend resident since 2015, Ruth previously lived in Lakin, Topeka and Wichita. She was a long time dedicated telephone operator for Southwestern Bell. She enjoyed square dancing and traveling the world.

Survivors include two sons, Curtis Butler and wife Norma of Great Bend and Keith Butler and wife Brenda of Parsons; two brothers, Charlie Moore of Arroya Grande, Calif., and Frank Moore of Kennewick, Wash.; five grandchildren, Dr. Matthew Butler and wife Maggie, Marisa Butler and husband Lucas Hannah, Dr. Caitlin Butler, Christina Butler Raz and husband Aran Raz and Angelina Butler; two great grandchildren, Christian Butler-Francis and Bentley Hannah; and one step great grandchild, Gabby. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Loren Dyson; three brothers, Robert Moore, George Moore and Dick Moore; and a sister, Fern Weachter.

Visitation will be held from 1:00 to 9:00 p.m., Wednesday, September 4, 2019, at Bryant Funeral Home, Great Bend. Funeral Service will be held at 11:00 a.m., Thursday, September 5, 2019, at Garnand Funeral Home in Lakin, with Reverend Bill Johnson. Interment will follow at Lakin Cemetery.

Memorials are suggested to The American Lung Association, in care of Bryant Funeral Home, 1425 Patton Rd., Great Bend, or Garnand Funeral Home, PO Box 91, Lakin, KS 67860.

Arthur E. Huslig

Arthur E. Huslig, 83, passed away in Elinwood, KS on August 26, 2019. Born in Great Bend, KS on January 14, 1936 he was the son of Anton F. and Louise (Maneth) Huslig. He graduated from Cunningham High School in 1953 and later married Mercedes Hoffman in Great Bend, KS on April 27, 1963. She preceded him in death on July 16, 2016. Art was an Ellinwood resident since 1957 where he truly enjoyed his work as an auto mechanic.

Memberships include St. Joseph’s Church and St. Joseph Council 1187 Knights of Columbus and former member of the Ellinwood Fire Department and Ambulance crew. He also donated time as a scout leader for the local boy scouts.

Survivors include son, Eugene G. Huslig & wife, Chelle, Manhatten, KS; daughter, Christina D. Befort & husband Steve, Lacrosse, KS; brothers, Paul Huslig, Great Bend, KS, Jerome Huslig, Ellinwood, KS, and Charles Huslig, Ellsworth, KS; sisters, Mary Ann Wondra, Great Bend, KS and Helen Schnitther, Kingman, KS. Other survivors include grandchildren, Makenzie, Ezekiel, Finn, Rebecca, and Heather. He was preceded in death by his wife, Mercedes Huslig; brothers, Lawrence, Ervin & Marcus.

Funeral Mass will be 10:30 AM, Friday, August 30th at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Ellinwood, KS with Father Klein officiating. Interment will follow at Lakin-Comanche District Cemetery in Ellinwood. Visitation will be Thursday, August 29th from 1-6 PM at Minnis Chapel in Ellinwood, KS with K of C Rosary/Vigil at 7 PM that evening at the church. In lieu of flowers memorials are suggested to St. Joseph’s School Endowment Fund or Ellinwood Fire Dept. in care of Minnis Chapel, PO Box 246, Ellinwood, KS 67526.

Don A. Wilkinson

Don A. Wilkinson, age 77, of WaKeeney, passed away, Wednesday, August 28, 2019, at his residence.

Services are pending with Schmitt Funeral Home.

Fairways For The Future fundraiser for Rooks Co. Health Center

PLAINVILLE – Fairways For The Future, a charity golf tournament being held on September 14 to help fund the new hospital expansion project for the Rooks County Health Center, includes a whole hog roast supper after the tournament.

The event includes an evening of music and dancing provided by local band Gypsy Road.

Fairways For The Future is a 3-Person Scramble charity golf tournament that will be held at the Rooks County Golf Course five miles north of Plainville.

Golfers in the 18-hole tournament receive the whole hog roast dinner, live music, silent auction for their registration fee. Cash prizes will be awarded, plus golfers can enter for a chance to snag $50,000 in the Hole in One Contest, sponsored by Solutions North Bank of Stockton.

For those who don’t play golf but want to join the after-tournament party, tickets are available for $25 per person for the supper and music. Tickets for the after-tournament party can be purchased at Carmichael True Value and Ruder Oil in Plainville and Solutions North Bank in Stockton or by calling 785-688-4428.

The golf tournament begins play at 9:00 a.m. Admission for the hog roast supper and music begins at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 14.

Golfers can register before Aug. 31 for early registration discount. On line registration is available at www.fairways4thefuture.com or by calling Eric Sumearll at 785-688-4428.

 

Federal lawsuit in Kansas City: Mom says Juul targets teens

KANSAS CITY (AP) — A  mother is suing Juul Labs, Inc. in federal court, accusing the electronic cigarette company of developing a marketing strategy that targets teenagers.

VAPING 360 / FLICKR

The lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Kansas City seeks class action status. It contends Juul sought to portray its e-cigarettes as trendsetting and stylish.

Juul denies the allegation, saying it never marketed to youth and doesn’t want non-nicotine users to try their products. California-based Juul said in a statement that it launched an aggressive plan last year to combat underage vaping.

Mindy Boyd of Clay County, Missouri, alleges in the complaint that her 14-year-old daughter started vaping with Juul products in 2018. The lawsuit claims the teen became addicted to nicotine and hasn’t been able to quit.

Autopsy: Kan. woman’s toddler overdosed on methadone

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — An autopsy has found that a Wichita toddler who died at a motel overdosed on the addiction treatment medication methadone.

Compass photo Sedgwick Co.

The autopsy results for 2-year-old Zayden JayNesahkluah were released Wednesday.

Kayden’s body was found May 31 at a Wichita motel. His mother, 23-year-old Kimberly Compass , was charged earlier this month with first-degree murder. Her next court date is scheduled for Sept. 5.

Zayden is at least the ninth child age 5 or younger to die in the Wichita area under suspicious circumstances since 2017. Several of the children died after state welfare officials had contact with their families.

Welcome to Hays, Fort Hays State students

By DIANE GASPER-O’BRIEN
FHSU University Relations and Marketing

In somewhat of a surprising scene Tuesday night, only a handful of 300-plus college students gathered in the Downtown Pavilion were on their cell phones. And the majority of those were either snapping selfies with their friends or video recording the band.

That’s the kind of captivation Sara Bloom wants Hays businesses to continue to provide for post-secondary students, including those attending Fort Hays State University.

Bloom, executive director of the Downtown Hays Development Corporation, held the students’ attention as she called out ticket numbers for $4,000 worth of prizes. It was all part of the annual March 2 Main welcoming event to get college students familiar with what downtown has to offer them.

After marching to Union Pacific Park from the FHSU campus, students from Fort Hays State, the Hays campus of North Central Kansas Technical College, and Hays Academy of Hair Design were treated to boxed dinners and swag bags.

While waiting for the band to begin playing and a drawing for prizes, students played outdoor board games provided by the Center for Student Involvement and hung out around and in the pavilion. The Hays Police Department handed out ice cream sandwiches. Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland gave out free boxes of Girl Scout cookies.

A whiteboard with the winning ticket numbers sat on an easel near the stage, and the intent was for all to feel like winners on the pleasant late-summer evening.

“My job is taking care of visitors to Hays,” said Melissa Dixon, executive director of the Hays Convention and Visitors Bureau. “Tonight, you are our special visitors.”

If Bloom has anything to say about it, college students will be frequent visitors to downtown Hays.

Inside each of the student’s bags were discount or gift incentives to visit downtown businesses through Sept. 12. They will then be entered in a drawing for additional prizes the next day.

Sarah Cearley, owner of Simply Charmed on Main Street, said she always looks forward to students returning to town after the summer months. This year, she added more FHSU clothing and jewelry to her selection of women’s and baby clothing, accessories and gifts. And student traffic has picked up because of it.

“We touched on Tiger gear before, but we have a lot more assortment this year,” she said. “Even the weekend prior to students moving in, we noticed a pick-up in business.”

Bloom told the newcomers to town just how vital the college students are to the Hays community, using the history of the pavilion to stress that point.

The pavilion with a cathedral ceiling and clay tile roof was designed and built by FHSU students from the Department of Applied Technology. An electrical technology class from NCK Tech installed the electrical wiring and lighting.

It was finished in the spring of 2018 and is used weekly for numerous events.

FHSU freshmen Jason Pineda and Emily Maldonado from Emporia are glad they participated in March 2 Main as well as other activities with Forty Days at the Fort, a welcoming program with a variety of events to help students get connected to organizations.

“What a great start to the school year,” Maldonado said. “We’ve met a lot of great people already.”

They were part of a group that stayed to the very end Tuesday, waiting for the drawing for several larger prizes.

Pineda shouted and hurried to the front when his number was called for a 32-inch television. He smiled as he maneuvered the large box into the back of his car, saying it might go to Maldonado, his girlfriend, who gave him a TV she won in a drawing a couple of years ago.

Pineda lives in McMindes Hall, and Maldonado lives in Victor E. Village as a member of the All Rise!
Learning Community. All Rise! is geared toward students intrigued by legal issues and is considering a career in law.

Whoever lays claim to the new TV set, Pineda and Maldonado are here to stay.

Maldonado first heard about Fort Hays State when she received an acceptance letter from the Kansas Academy of Math and Science, the state’s premier early college program for high school juniors and seniors.

She decided not to attend KAMS but kept Fort Hays State in the back of her mind as a destination for college.

Maldonado liked FHSU’s political science program, and Pineda was just as impressed with the psychology department, his program of choice.

“I did research,” Pineda said, “and Fort Hays State looked like the place to be. Very affordable.”

“It just felt right,” Maldonado agreed.

New rollback for climate-changing releases from oilfields

WASHINGTON (AP) — Oil and gas companies would face looser controls on emissions of potent climate-changing methane gasunder a proposal expected from the Trump administration as soon as Thursday, oil industry and environmental groups say. The government’s plan would ease requirements on oil and gas sites to monitor for methane leaks and plug them.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s move would be the latest in a series by the administration easing Obama-era emissions controls on the oil, gas and coal industries, including from methane leaks.

The oil and gas industry is the nation’s primary source of methane emissions, according to the EPA, accounting for nearly one-third in 2016.

Methane is a component of natural gas that’s frequently wasted through leaks or intentional releases during drilling operations. The gas is considered a more potent contributor to climate change than carbon dioxide, although it occurs in smaller volumes.

A study by the Environmental Defense Fund , an advocacy group, concluded that the oil and gas industry was emitting far more of the heat-trapping gas than is reported to the EPA.

Police arrest 2 teens in Manhattan for alleged social media threat

MANHATTAN — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a social media threat and have made an arrest.

Snapchat

Just after 8a.m. Wednesday, the Riley County Police Department arrested two juveniles on felony criminal threat offenses stemming from posts on social media.

A 15-year-old boy was arrested on 3 counts of aggravated criminal threat, criminal use of a firearm, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and vehicle burglary. A 15-year-old girl was arrested on two counts of aggravated criminal threat and criminal use of a firearm.

According to the Riley County Police department arrest report Malachi Rendel Fielder, 15, Manhattan, was arrested for “Aggravated criminal threat; Cause terror, evacuation or disruption, Aggravated criminal threat; Cause terror, evacuation or disruption, Criminal use of weapons; Barrel of firearm < 12 in and person < 18 YOA, Aggravated criminal threat; Cause terror, evacuation or disruption, Burglary; Vehicle with intent to steal a firearm; Theft from Motor Vehicle, Possession of marijuana and Use/possess w/intent to use drug paraphernalia into human body”

They also arrested 15-year-old Ladaisha Renee Ransom on requested charges that include “Aggravated criminal threat; Cause terror, evacuation or disruption and Criminal use of weapons; Barrel of firearm < 12 in and person < 18 YOA and Aggravated criminal threat; Cause terror, evacuation or disruption”

“You regularly hear the phrase, ‘see something, say something’, “Assistant Director Kurt Moldrup said. “I think this case demonstrates the continued importantance of acting on that. Citizens can be confident RCPD will take every report of a possible threat seriously.”

Aggravated criminal threat is a severity level 5, person felony. The teens are confined in the North Central Kansas Regional Juvenile Detention Facility.

NOTE: Kansas state law allows law enforcement to release the names of juveniles age 14 and older involved in criminal cases

——————–

RILEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a teen after an alleged threat.

Just before 7:30 a.m. Monday, police filed a report for aggravated criminal threat in the 1900 block of Lincoln Drive in Manhattan, according to the RCPD activity report.

Officers listed a 15-year-old boy as the victim and a 15-year-old girl as the suspect when it was reported she threatened the victim on social media while displaying a weapon.  Police have not reported an arrest.

Snapchat

On August 21, a citizen alerted the Riley County Police Department that a video had been posted to the social media messaging phone app Snapchat which depicted a 15-year-old boy and 15-year-old girl holding what appeared to be a gun and making threatening statements, according to Captain Josh Kyle.

Preliminary investigation indicates the video was directed at a different 15-year-old boy and a 17-year-old boy.

All the parties mentioned are students at Manhattan High School West Campus.

Suspect wanted for burglary at Kan. Islamic Center captured

DOUGLAS COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a burglary at the Islamic Center of Lawrence and after releasing security camera images of the suspect have made an arrest.

Amadou Oury Bah -photo Omaha police
Surveillance images courtesy Lawrence Police

On Tuesday night, police in Omaha arrested 32-year-old Amadou Oury Bah for the recent burglary of the Islamic Center, according to officer Patrick Compton.

Just before 4a.m. August 13, an unknown individual burglarized the Center on Naismith Drive and through the course of the investigation detectives were able to link Bah to the crime.

Bah remains in Omaha pending an extradition hearing scheduled for Thursday, according to Compton.

MASON: Storms awaken us to the presence of blessings

Dr. Tisa Mason, FHSU president
I am sure I will remember the storms of the summer of 2019 for a long time, not as a whipping from mother nature but as an opportunity to witness the resilience, the kindness and the blessings of living in this community.

The storms arrived with a fierceness – and frequency – that required us to stop our busyness, even if just for a moment. Perhaps, if you are like me, you actually stopped to count your blessings.

In those moments of blessing counting, other things began to occur. We stopped to check in with our loved ones and renewed our gratitude for our friendships. We shared a common experience that facilitated sharing stories and building relationships with a wider circle of people. That fierce storm created moments for us to help others or to be helped.

And no surprise to me, people in this community stepped up.

My “day” began the evening of fierce storm No. 1 with a phone call from our VP of Administration and Finance Mike Barnett letting me know he and his team (university police, energy plant personnel, and the facilities and ground employees) were all on campus making sure our students were safe, actively conducting assessments, and managing vulnerabilities.

Throughout the night I learned about the implosion of the wall at the Akers Energy Center, the efforts put in place to restore electricity and ensure our students had access to hot water, and reports of water damage and trees down. Our crews worked throughout the evening and early morning safeguarding our campus, removing debris and repairing damage.

By early morning the campus was fully operational. We were ready to help new students move in to their residence hall as well as welcome our faculty and staff to a new academic year.

As the day continued, I learned that the roof was torn off of Celebration Community Church, and I heard stories of blessings and miracles and how people rallied to help. We were reminded that a church is not a building – it is people. The same can be said for the university, businesses and families.

I was grateful, thankful and happy for the kindness and selfless service all around me. The storms continued to arrive in bursts and so did the resilience and kindness of our community. Frequency did not wear us down. People still showed up.

Here in Western Kansas, we believe in the value of strong families, hard work, innovation and compassion. These characteristics also define who we are at Fort Hays State University. When one of our neighbor’s faces challenges, we all pitch in to help.

Upon reflection, I think what I grew to understand most is that although moments of adversity tend to shine a spotlight on our compassion and resilience, when such moments pass and we return to our everyday lives, we still watch over one another. We just do it without the need for a spotlight.

I came to realize that people who seem to be extraordinary in moments of disruption – our employees, students, and neighbors – are actually extraordinary every day. We are not perfect, but we are humble, reliable and kind.

I am so grateful to be surrounded by extraordinary people and small acts of kindness every single day. Thank you to my Fort Hays family, my church family, and my Western Kansas family for your own unique way of being everyday heroes.

Blessings counted. Roses smelled.

KRUG: Medicare basics program planned

Donna Krug

Are you turning 65 in the next six months to a year? Or do you assist your parents with their medical options? Perhaps you are confused about your options and what to expect once your insurance changes.

If you answered “yes” to any of the questions above, then the Medicare Basics Program is for you. This free class will help you gain the knowledge you need to make informed decisions about your health care coverage.

The Medicare Basics program will be presented Friday, September 13th, at the basement of the Ellis County Administrative Center, 718 Main. The program will be presented twice to accommodate those working around their lunch hour. The first presentation will run from 11:30 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. and the same information will be presented at 12:30 to 1:30.

Donna Krug, Cottonwood Extension District Agent and her husband, John, will be the presenters. They have been certified SHICK counselors the past five years. They received update earlier this summer and are happy to share those updates with the public.

The workshop is free and open to everyone, but pre-registration is helpful so that enough handout materials are available.

Interested participants may call (785) 628-9430 or email [email protected] with questions or to register.

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