By JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT
Hays Post

As Nebraska residents continue to recover from the devastating flooding, area residents are collecting donations in an effort to lend a hand.

Adam Brobst, a farmer and rancher in north-central Kansas, is leading an effort to collect and deliver donations to central Nebraska.

As of Tuesday evening, Brobst said he had a load of hay and a second and possibly third trailer full of donations ready to deliver to the Lincoln, Neb., area. Brobst said they will deliver they items to Davey, Neb., and then from there the items will then be packed back onto trucks and delivered to the region that needs them.

Brobst said he decided to put together the effort because many Nebraska farmers and ranchers lent a hand just a couple of years ago when many Kansans were in need during a string of wildfires.

“It thought it was our duty, and we needed to return the favor,” Brobst said. “because I know a lot of hay from Nebraska came down for the Kansas wildfires and Oklahoma wildfires.”

Brobst said anyone wanting to donate items in the Phillipsburg area can drop their items off at the Farmers & Ranchers Outlet in Phillipsburg. He will also pick up items at the co-op in Stockton and Midland Marketing in Plainville if anyone wants to leave donated items at either location.

RELATED: Floodwaters threaten millions in crop and livestock losses

They are currently collecting items to leave Phillipsburg at 8 a.m. Thursday and are planning a second trip to take a another round of supplies to the region next week.

Officials in Nebraska said they are currently in need of bottled water, non-perishable food, hygiene products and bedding, among other items. Farmers and ranchers are also in need of calf milk replacer, vet supplies, electric fence supplies and feed.

“They are going to send all the ag supplies to the west out of Davey, more toward central Nebraska where the majority of the ag stuff is affected and then north toward Columbus will go the household stuff,” Brobst said.

Brobst said he has friends in Nebraska who have been affected already by the flooding and others down river that could be affected in the coming days as floodwaters continue to move down river but said this disaster is going to hurt the agricultural industry across the board.

“There is a big area that’s been affected and its going to hurt the ag economy this year because you are talking billons of dollars of loss,” Brobst said.

Brobst said anyone wanting to make a donation can get in contact with him at 785-302-0621.

This is a massive amount of water and destruction. Again photos do not do it justice. This is Maple St going west towards Waterloo. #Flood2019 #NebraskaFlood2019 pic.twitter.com/D9OGgJUJjY

— Ofc. Mike Bossman (@OPDOfcBossman) March 17, 2019

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

Fort Hays State University students Gabe Warrick and Matt Hastings have been helping record Tiger athletic events for several years.

Last weekend’s NCAA Division II Women’s Central Region Basketball Championships might have topped them all.

Warrick is a senior from Larned, majoring in informatics with an emphasis in media studies. He is a member of the sports production crew for Tiger Media Network, FHSU’s convergent media hub.

Hastings, a native of Topeka, is working on a master’s degree in sport management and works as a graduate assistant in the FHSU Sports Information Office.

They are just two of hundreds of Fort Hays State students who helped make the regional tournament a success.

Warrick’s duties included camera operation, replay, directing, technical directing and graphics work, while Hastings put to good use his expertise in recording statistics, running the video board and generally making sure everything was running smoothly.

Some students returned to campus early from spring break week to work in several areas: concession stands, taking tickets, as parking lot attendants and ushers and with the maintenance crew. Also participating in the event were members of the Tiger pep band; the university’s dance team, the Tiger Debs; and the FHSU cheer squad.

“We rely heavily on student support for all of our operations. We simply wouldn’t have the manpower without them,” FHSU Athletic Director Curtis Hammeke said. “Not only is this necessary for our ability to put on these events, it also serves as great experience for these students moving into their future.”

And then, of course there were the students who returned from spring break in time to help cheer on the Tigers in Monday’s regional championship game. They added to the raucous crowd of 5,000-plus fans as FHSU battled Southwestern Oklahoma State University, which came out on top of the 88-77 score.

“Hosting an event like the NCAA Central Regional once again brings to light the tremendous community support we have here in Hays,” Hammeke said. “Visiting institutions and representatives from the NCAA are in awe of our crowd sizes and the support we have for facilitating such events.”

Warrick and Hastings are two students who felt privileged to help facilitate the regional tournament. They both are transfer students who chose Fort Hays State to continue their education following graduation from community colleges.

“This was a bigger production than what I was used to,” said Warrick, who came to FHSU in 2017 after two years at Hutchinson Community College. “I got a good start at Hutch, but when you have a building like Hammond Hall here at FHSU, where you have two studios and three different sets, it was really cool to come and see. It was a step up, and I was excited.”

Warrick was particularly intrigued with FHSU’s TriCaster, a product that merges live video, graphics, special effects, etc., into one polished production for viewers.

“The technology we have here is unrivaled,” he said. “Our production team and live-streaming I’d put up against any in the country.”

Warrick said he would even put FHSU up against Division I schools, where underclassmen have to wait their turn for hands-on experience.

“That’s the great thing about Fort Hays State,” he said. “You can come in as a freshman and start working with a camera right away. And it doesn’t matter what your major is. We have some in political science, geoscience, music, among others. If they want to come and help, we will teach them. We are here to help them learn.”

Warrick was one of 14 TMN students who helped with the three-day tourney, putting in approximately 25 hours while broadcasting seven games. All that came less than a week after many of the same students worked a six-day shift producing the MIAA tournament at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.

The students involved in the sports production elements of TMN are under the guidance of Russell Heitmann, news and sports director for the organization.

“The work these kids do is amazing,” Heitmann said. “Our crew comes from multiple academic backgrounds, majors and interests. However, they have been able to come together and put on numerous quality productions throughout the year. I am incredibly proud of the growth from the first home football broadcast to putting on an NCAA regional broadcast event.”

Hastings echoed Warrick’s thoughts on the real-life opportunities available for FHSU students early on in their college careers.

“As a D-II SID worker, I’ve been more exposed to all the sports,” said Hastings, who began working with SID Ryan Prickett during his junior year as an undergraduate student. “In D-II, I’m the guy who does a little bit of everything.”

A big share of Hastings’ duties are performed behind-the-scenes. He is responsible for accumulating statistics and writing stories for men’s soccer, men’s cross country, wrestling and baseball.

But when it comes to Game Day in GMC, Prickett calls on several student workers to help out.

For the Central Region Championships, Hastings could be seen working all around the coliseum, from running the video board to making sure the teams had everything they need, and everything in between.

“I want to make sure everything goes right,” he said, “so I become vested in it.”

Although FHSU lost the regional title game, the Tiger women will no doubt remember the tournament experience for a long time. So, too, will fellow FHSU students who had the opportunity to be a part of the event.

“Events like this are a great opportunity for kids to see what it takes to put on a high level tournament weekend,” said Brian Flax, an employee in the Athletics Department who is in charge of concessions. “It takes a lot of pieces falling into place, and the students are a big part of that. Besides getting to see their fellow athletes do well, they get the chance to be involved, too.”

After five years of working as a student under Prickett as an undergrad and graduate student, Hastings is set to graduate in May and hopes to continuing working in sports information at the D-II level. He said he is glad he attended FHSU because it gave him a completely different outlook of working at a D-II school than what he had growing up.

“Being from the Topeka area, I’m used to the big city, and a lot of people don’t know much about Washburn,” he said of Washburn University, a D-II school and a fellow MIAA member with FHSU.

“In Hays, everybody is fully vested in this university,” Hastings continued. “Farmers from around the whole area and people around town, everyone knows Fort Hays State. That’s one thing I really love about Hays. The community is so involved in the university and its athletic teams.”

By JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT
Hays Post

A 34-year-old Ellis man has been charged with premeditated first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of a Hays man last month.

According to Ellis County Attorney Tom Drees, Ryan Paul Thompson was charged Tuesday in Ellis County District Court with allegedly shooting 26-year-old Diego Gallaway on Feb. 27 in the 2700 block of Indian Trail.

Thompson is alleged to have shot Gallaway in the back of the head while having him in a chokehold, according to Drees.

If convicted, Thompson faces a minimum of 50 years in prison for intentional and premeditated first degree murder.

Thompson was also charged with possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute. He allegedly possessed 23.9 grams of the drug. If convicted, he would face between 92 and 144 months in prison.

He was also charged with criminal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Thompson allegedly possessed a .22 caliber handgun. He was previously convicted of aggravated endangerment of a child in Russell County in 2018.

At preliminary hearing will be scheduled at a later date. Thompson is being held in the Ellis County jail in lieu of $750,000 bond.

The filing of criminal charges are merely allegations of criminal wrongdoing, Drees said. The defendant maintains a presumption of innocence unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law.