Friends,

Lat week I called on my colleagues to deliver a comprehensive solution to our nation’s immigration system. We must end the sluggish pace at which we are addressing border security and immigration in Congress.

I also am working very hard behind the scenes to repair our trade deals. I met with both the Mexican and Cuban Ambassadors to continue to advocate for new and better trade relationships. As both self-imposed and retaliatory tariffs continue to weigh on our producers and manufacturers I want you to know I am working tirelessly on trade. Our President has promised to deliver new and better agreements, I will continue my work to ensure we achieve those.

In other news, we saw a touching story out of Salina, Kansas where a WWII vet’s family was reunited with their fallen soldier’s wartime memorabilia after more than 70 years. I’m so proud of my staff that worked hard to track down the family.

Kansas sees *pet*ential in this growing industry

I recently visited the Simmons Pet Food factory in Emporia and quickly learned how Kansas is not just a leading provider of food for Americans, but for domesticated animals as well. Simmons Feed Ingredients boasts an innovative array of proprietary animal nutrition products, serving customers in all 50 states and more than 40 countries around the world.
The reason I visit great companies such as Simmons Pet Food is because of the value they bring to our Kansas communities. Being the home to not just one but three leaders in the pet food manufacturing industry means reliable jobs for families in the area. Simmons employs more than 600 people, and recently announced a $38 million expansion to the Emporia facility.

We discussed the negative impact the steel and aluminum tariffs are having on their business, as their pet food is distributed in cans made of these materials. I have called for the Commerce Department to target bad actors in their steel efforts, not allies who supply steel and aluminum that Kansas manufacturers so desperately need.

We got the BEEF!

Kansans do the best job of telling their stories. That’s why it is always a pleasure to have folks in D.C. that take the time to come by our office. Last week attendees of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Young Cattlemen’s Conference spoke on several key issues that we have partnered on to support our state’s beef industry. Stability in trade markets, livestock transportation regulations that take consider animal welfare and the 2018 Farm Bill were items that topped their list. I’m proud to have been a vocal supporter of each of these. Kansas’ First District leads the nation in cattle sales each year, demonstrating the importance of this industry to our state’s economy.

Small Business Committee looks at barriers for veteran-owned businesses

In recent years the VA has adopted rules and policies that increase barriers for veteran-owned small businesses, adding additional requirements that can delay or prevent these small business owners from contracting with the VA.  Thursday, the Small Business Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight, and Regulations discussed the senseless road blocks imposed on our nation’s veterans.

I appreciate the Committee taking a look at such an important issue, and I look forward to continuing discussions as to how best help our veterans transition back to civilian life.

KS, AR, MN lead trade talks with Cuba Ambassador

I joined Senator John Boozman, Representatives Rick Crawford, Tom Emmer, and the Cuban Ambassador to the United States, José Cabañas, in a roundtable discussing the benefits of opening markets between Cuba and the United States. The panel mainly focused on strengthening agricultural trade between the two countries.

Improving our relationship with Cuba could lead to a stronger agricultural economy in our country. With farmers concerned about access to international markets a $2 billion potential market remains largely untouched just over the horizon in Cuba. I took time to emphasize the importance of opening more markets to export wheat and other commodities from our state and nation. Our Kansas farmers need access to opportunities to increase commodity prices. Because of Cuba’s proximity, U.S. wheat, corn, sorghum and other exports to the island have a solid advantage over competitors both in shipping costs and delivery times. If the U.S. was able to sell its goods to Cuba, Kansas could top $55 million in new sales, with a 25 percent increase in wheat sales.

Enough is enough.

I took to the House floor to address our broken immigration system. It is imperative that immigration reform provides a work visa for guest workers so that our state can continue to be an agricultural powerhouse. Working with former chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, Bob Goodlatte, such a program was developed and introduced in the Ag Act which I am proud to cosponsor. The program would replace the outdated, seasonal-only, H-2A visas with new H-2C’s for our dairy and feedlot industries. H-2C’s are much more efficient and are particularly important for our state’s livestock industry.

Later in the week we met as a Republican conference to further discuss an immigration bill, which would PRE-fund border security, so as to avoid repeating past mistakes. With members are still negotiating the details, we agreed that the remaining policies should closely follow the “four pillars” laid out by President Trump in his State of the Union speech. These pillars include securing the border, legal status for children brought here by their parents at a young age, the ending of the visa lottery, and limits to chain migration.

The brokenness of our immigration system and border security is on full display. Last month the Department of Homeland Security apprehended 50,000 people crossing illegally. I am looking forward to what we expect will be several votes on immigration in the House and keeping my promises to the people of the first district. This reform is crucial to our economy, our security, and our future!

WWII Veteran finds dog tags of Fallen Beloit soldier

Military veterans and their stories are a topic particularly close to my heart, which is why a recent story that has taken root in our district regarding a Kansas-born WWII war hero is so touching.

In February, our office fielded a call from a friend of 1st Lieutenant James Garberg, a WWII vet from Minneapolis, Minn. While going through his war time memorabilia Mr. Garberg found the dog tags of one of his soldiers, Ernest Childers Jr. from Beloit, Kan. Mr. Garberg and Mr. Childers, Jr. were part of the 32nd infantry regiment that retook Attu Island back from the Japanese in 1943. Lt. Garberg had carried Childers from the battleground after he suffered injuries that he later died from.

When Lt. Garberg’s friend, Lt Col. (Ret.) Mike DePuglio, contacted the office for help with finding Childers’ next of kin or any living descendants to return the tags to, we were glad to help. After a search, our caseworker found the fallen soldier’s nephew who was overwhelmed with emotions by the news of his uncle’s Lieutenant finding and returning the dog tags.

Friday, June 8 in our Salina District Office, Ernest Childers accepted the dog tags, marking the first time these tags have been in the possession of a member of the Childers family in over 70 years. What an incredible honor it is to have witnessed this story unfold firsthand over the course of the week!

Kansas Opportunity Zones

On the House floor I discussed one specific aspect of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act – Federal Opportunity Zones, which are designed to promote economic development and job creation in communities throughout our country. The Treasury Department recently selected 29 opportunity zones in 17 different counties across the 1st District of Kansas. When a tract is deemed an opportunity zone, it allows taxpayers to defer capital gains tax if they invest in prioritized local projects. This is a win-win scenario for both businesses and communities that will spur growth and expansion.

Because of construction projects and other clutter in my life (sounds like someone needs to revisit their priorities) Joyce wrote this week’s column for me. Steve Gilliland

Over the years, Steve and I have attended several Storm Spotter meetings in McPherson. Ever since I can remember I’ve had a fascination for storms. I think it began when I was about eight or nine and visiting my sister in Hillsboro, when all of a sudden my brother-in-law rushed my sister and myself out of the house. There was a storm brewing and possibly a tornado. I didn’t know what all that meant, but we were in the car trying to see it. I don’t recall that we ever did set eyes on that tornado, but it was exciting and fostered my fascination with storms (read on and you’ll see that is what NOT to do.)
 
Years passed and as a teenager I moved to northwestern North Dakota. As a rule, there are not many tornados up there, but one year while I lived there a tornado hit and overturned several trailer houses, one where one of my friends lived with her six siblings. Thankfully none of the children were at home when the tornado struck. I remembering looking at the devastation and wondering how that could happen and how it only hit that small area and the rest of the town was spared. It was then I learned that trailer houses are not the safest places to be during high winds of any sort. That was long before the weather men and women were able to identify potential areas where tornados might develop. But alas, I did not get to see that tornado either. When I moved from North Dakota to Denver it never occurred to me that tornados would ever hit a city of that size. But again to my amazement there were tornados in Colorado, but they were few and far between, so my interested in tornados waned. When I moved back to Kansas I felt I was uninformed and did not recognize the danger and potential for damage and death due to those unpredictable high winds, so I set out to educate myself in order to be safe and protect my family and property.
 
The potential for damage and/or loss of life from a tornado is high and the chance of a tornado in Kansas is high. Those are two reasons it is good to be educated on what NOT to do when in a tornado warning or tornado watch area.
1.    DO NOT get in your car and go riding. You may not think that would be dangerous, but you are focused mainly in front of you when in a car looking for the storm. A tornado could come from above, either side, or from behind and you would not have a chance to escape.
2.    DO NOT ignore the warnings. There are reasons we have meteorologists watching the radar and reporting the weather (interrupting your TV show). They want to save lives.
 
Now, what you SHOULD KNOW and DO to be prepared for a pending tornado/storm.
1.    Identify your safest place before the crisis such as a small room in the basement, or if you have no basement a closet or a bathroom without windows. You can use your unused luggage to store your supplies during tornado season. It is easy to move from one room to another.
2.   Have an emergency kit ready in your safe area. In this kit, you should have a 3-day supply of nonperishable food, a manual can opener, 3-day supply of water per person, portable radio or TV with batteries, a cell phone charger, flashlight, batteries, first aid kit and manual, hand sanitizer, matches in a waterproof container, a whistle, extra clothing and blankets, photocopies of identification and credit cards, cash and coins, prescriptions, eye glasses, and specialized supplies for your family along with a pair of shoes for each family member.
3.   Use blankets, sleeping bags, etc. to cover yourselves during the storm. When tornados hit they carry lots of debris and that can be very dangerous. Keep your eyes and vital organs protected.
4.   Keep your cell phone close, as they can be very helpful. Make sure your phone is charged and ready for use. This can help locate help.
5.    Monitor the storm by portable radio or TV while in your safe area.
 
I finally saw my first tornado in 1991 when one destroyed several homes in the Hutchinson community of Willowbrook. As my cousin and I stood in the garage watching the ever blackening sky, it was so wide and so close I couldn’t even tell it was a tornado. At the time, I had no idea how dangerous that could have been, but I do now. I think, as a rule, women are more willing to take shelter, but men… well behind every man is a woman yelling “get in the basement now!”
 
Take heed and continue to Explore Kansas Outdoors…. from a safe distance.

The London Blitz involved nine months of German bomber-induced devastation that drove people who lived in that city into a state of constant awareness regarding the location of the nearest bomb shelter. While the banks of Big Creek won’t echo with the drone of mechanical motors and sound of carpet bombs exploding one right after another, one locale faces a dive bombing hawk intent on scoring a fresh chicken dinner.

With its military-like forays, this bird of prey forced my six hens and one rooster into a life of focused attention unlike anything they’ve experienced before. Typically, these contented free-range fowl wander only as chickens can over acres of grassland searching out crunchy grasshoppers and other insects that go in the beaks as bugs and emerge from the other end as rich, yellow-yolked eggs.

Every since my flock came to this particularly relentless hawk’s attention, my once free- spirited hens now cower and creep about in the shadows of lilac bushes or tree rows around the property. When they hear the red tail’s distinctive high pitched “scree” or see its shadow, their contented clucks and cackles turn to strident squawks as they run for cover.

Even without stress, chickens don’t run gracefully—think miniature feathered and beaked dinosaurs lumbering frantically for safety. Awkward is the only way to describe their agitated movements. I must give the rooster some credit. After sounding his unique alarm, he stands back like a good commander to make sure his graceless harem reaches the safety of their hen house or protective shrubs.

The other morning our camouflage Jack Russell terrier and I took advantage of the cool temperatures to water flowerbeds. Intent on soaking plants, I barely noticed when Buster, our feisty watch dog, leapt up barking as he raced toward alarmed and noisy chickens about twelve feet away. Jumping to the wrong conclusion, I thought he was chasing a chicken. I scolded and called him back until I saw the red tail swoop down in an attempt to snag with its outstretched talons a young Rhode Island red.

Buster knew his duty. Ignoring his inattentive mistress, he yipped and leapt heroically after the invader’s signature tail. Inspired by his bravery and wanting to keep dog and chickens safe, I turned the hose into a water cannon and began spraying the whole noisy group. Under the veil of water, the little hen dashed desperately toward the lilacs while Buster sounded like Patton giving the Germans heck. At last, the raptor acknowledged defeat and turned to ride a thermal in the blue Kansas sky.

The war wasn’t over. I shooed the hawk away every day when he buzz bombed the yard. The chickens lived restricted lives as a form of self-preservation, and Buster, the watchdog, scanned the heavens like an air raid warden waiting for the next assault. Just as London survived the German Blitzkrieg, our hilltop also did due to the aid of a yappy terrier and garden hose artillery.

Native Kansan Karen Madorin is a local writer and retired teacher who loves sharing stories about places, people, critters, plants, food, and history of the High Plains.

By RACHEL QUEDNAU
Strong Towns

Kenmore Boulevard in Akron, Ohio is in the process of a street redesign which may involve the loss of some on-street parking spots in order to create protected bike lanes. This sort of transition is happening all over the country as more and more cities recognize the transformative impact that bike lanes can have on their city, as well as the prosperity that impact can create.

But still, there’s no doubt that installing bike lanes can feel like a big change. When you’ve owned a business on the same street for years and suddenly the view outside your window looks different, it makes sense that you might wonder whether the outcome will be positive or negative for your customers and your bottom line.

Today I want to share several reasons why business owners can rest easy about the addition of bike lanes—and, even better, celebrate their new infrastructure. In city after city, business owners are seeing more customers come through their doors and more revenue flowing into cash registers when streets are redesigned to be more walk- and bike-friendly.

CUSTOMERS WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE PLENTY OF PARKING OPTIONS

Concerns about parking are absolutely valid. Business owners who are used to having lots of open parking spaces right outside their door may be concerned when their street is redesigned. It’s natural to feel worried about the impact of that sort of change. But let’s zoom out just a tiny bit to get a fuller picture.

In the above aerial image of Akron’s Kenmore Blvd (the main street running east/west in the illustration) from approximately 16th to 13th Street, I’ve highlighted all available street parking in orange that will not be removed as a result of the street redesign. As you can see, there are a ton of parking spaces no more than 1-2 blocks (about 150-300 feet) away from each Kenmore Blvd business that will be easily accessible for customers after the redesign.

Today I would like to talk about soil aggregate stability. A soil aggregate is a whole bunch of individual soil particles that are bound, or glued, together. How well those aggregates hold up to disruptive forces like tillage and erosion tells us how stable that soil aggregate is. When these disruptive events occur if soil particles stay bound together the more stable the soil aggregate is.

Aggregate stability is critical for water infiltration and in dryland cropping systems it’s all about water. The more we can capture and store in the soil profile the better chance we have a growing a good, productive crop. Stable soil aggregates, that don’t break apart when water enters them provide more pore space for water to enter into. This increases the soil’s water holding capacity. Good aggregate stability also helps in root development, which helps the plant take up more water and nutrients. The soil is also more resistant to erosion.

In low aggregate stability soils soil particles break away from each other when water enters into an aggregate. The individual soil particles fill surface pore spaces and can form a hard crust on the soil surface when the soil dries. Water has difficulty penetrating this crust and it typically runs off, which causes erosion. The crust can also restrict seedling emergence.

Good aggregate stability is highly dependent on soil organic matter and biological activity in the soil. Certain fungal groups help plant roots gather water and nutrients and help bind soil particles together. Other organisms, like earthworms, secrete glue like substances the help hold the particles together. Decomposing soil organic matter also provide organic glues.

Certain soil labs can complete tests to tell you how stable your soil aggregates are. But a simple quick way is to dip an air dried soil clod in a cylinder of water. If that clod breaks up quickly you have low stability because there are no glues holding those aggregates together. If the clod stays together 30 minutes or longer you have high stability.

So how do we improve our soil aggregate stability? The simple answer is to reduce tillage. Excessive tillage physically breaks down soil aggregates and disturbs the fungal groups that secrete glues that hold soil particles together. Over time it also depletes soil organic matter which is also important to aggregate stability.

For more information about this or other soil health practices you can contact me at [email protected] or any local NRCS office.

Dale Younker is a Soil Health Specialist with the Natural Resources Conservation Service in Jetmore.

By RON WILSON
Huck Boyd National Institute

What is being built by this business? In the case of one Kansas company, it might be decorative metal railings for a Big 12 football stadium or for Oklahoma City’s Bricktown entertainment district. These are among the key projects of this entrepreneurial company in rural Kansas.

Ted Bender is founder and owner of Bender Steel in Whitewater, Kansas. He grew up between Newton and Hesston, and took agricultural education classes at Moundridge from agricultural instructor Larry Goering. Here he learned to weld. That skill would become the basis of his career.

During the following years, Ted worked for a local manufacturing company and for various local farmers, including Mr. Goering. Then Ted married his wife Amy and moved to the Whitewater area, northeast of Wichita.

In 2003, Ted started his own business, primarily doing farm equipment repair. He also had a hay business and traded in antique tractors.

2008 marked a turning point in his business. “A guy from our church asked me if I wanted to do some welding on a handrail for a project he was working on,” Ted said. Ted took on the project and it went so well that this type of custom welding became a major part of his business.

Today, Bender Steel is a full service metal fabricator of products such as steel fencing, architectural steel structures and custom design elements. “We’ve built everything from bike racks to trash cans to decorative fences,” Ted said. Among the company’s most popular products are the custom, ornamental handrailings.

The company’s website says: “Our team can handle everything from the beginning stages of design to the installation of the completed project. Our technicians have experience in AutoCAD to begin the design process and produce professional shop drawings. We have the ability to fabricate plasma-cut projects as well as bend, shear, and roll steel. Our experienced welders can weld everything from aluminum to steel. Once the project is produced, we can sandblast, paint and install it.”

From Ted Bender’s one man shop, the company has expanded to include 14 employees. Bender Steel has worked on projects from Kansas City to Oklahoma City. For example, the company’s products can be found near the Wichita riverfront, a bridge over Interstate 70 near the Kansas Speedway, bus stop shelters in downtown Wichita, a unique new waterfront park called A Gathering Place for Tulsa, and Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan.

“We built every piece of exterior rail (on the KSU west stadium renovation),” Ted said. “It’s fun to think that everybody touches our product and our customers are happy.”

What are the keys to the growth of the business? “We owe it all to the Lord, one hundred percent,” Ted said.

What about advice to other small businesses? “Building relationships with customers is really important,” Ted said. “We need to meet and exceed expectations and make sure things are right in the end.”

He pointed out the importance of going the extra mile for the customer. “Long after the pain fades from your extra effort, the customer will remember that you took care of them,” Ted said. “It’s all about people, not about money.”

Ted reflected on the basis for his business today. “It starts with faith and family,” Ted said. “My wife Amy has been very supportive through all of this. We have seven beautiful children, and I thank God every day for them.”

He also gives thanks for the agricultural education instructor who taught him to weld. “Larry Goering was a fantastic ag teacher and a fantastic mentor for a lot of us,” he said.

All this has led to this successful business located near the rural community of Whitewater, population 718 people. Now, that’s rural.

For more information about this company, see www.bendersteel.com.

What is being built by this business? There are lots of products, but more than that. We salute Ted Bender and the people of Bender Steel for making a difference with their craftsmanship. In the end, this is not only about metal products.

“We don’t just build rails, we build relationships,” Ted said.

Ron Wilson is director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University.

I just wanted people to know this this roundabout will affect several businesses on Vine, maybe more than Pheasant Run Restaurant. We have operated our business on this corner for 36 years and always been operated by the Jordan family.

Many businesses have come and gone, but we held in there. Sometimes not so well. When the City of Hays did Vine Street for beautification, it took six months. I know this will take longer.

The construction part will kill us. They will take one of my entrances. I know 32nd and Vine is a bad intersection — I myself have been hit there.

Pheasant Run has great employees and customers. There are not many family-owned restaurants around. I would love to keep mine in my family. I have worked hard for this little corner and so has my family.

It just seems to me that the city is wanting to do the roundabout for developing where the old Ramada Inn was and not thinking of the existing businesses.

This doesn’t mean I can do anything about the roundabouts, but I must say what I feel. Maybe that is all I can do.

Sue Jordan and the Jordan family

RELATED: City hires engineer for roundabout project.

This is it. The end. I’m not going to be around anymore to nag you about low birth rates, shrinking populations out west, and the inevitability of change and its costs and responsibilities. No more scoffing at ridiculous claims about the sanctity of free enterprise without government interference while watching lobbyists, entrepreneurs, and local boosters line up every year in Topeka to get the legislature to expand, maintain, or create another avenue for private benefit at public expense.

Instead, I want to tell you about the good impressions Kansas has made on me in my 20 years of living and working here. First and foremost it has been my great privilege to personally interact with some remarkably fine people. Many of them have been public figures, and those people have reinforced in me the belief that the crudeness, vitriol, and visceral animosity expressed by so many of the sensation-mongering, babble-first and feel no remorse faces and voices that dominate our public sphere are of no importance. Pay attention to the people who go about their work with seriousness, good will, and knowledge. Ignore the loudmouths, me-firsters, fear-thy neighbor and us-against-them nitwits who are always available to distract and incite.

And your sons and daughters are great! I’ve taught 20 years at a small, public institution that continues its existence in the Kansas soil of its founding over 150 years ago. The greatest share of the kids I’ve taught have been products of the local K-12 educational systems. There are not a lot of class valedictorians, or National Merit Scholars, or kids “born with a silver spoon” in their mouths. We get more of those three types than most people know, but by-and-large we get the kids who ‘hoped’ they’d go to college rather than knew it all their young lives.

Kids today are more distracted and less academically able in some ways, however, they use and understand communication technologies that are making such sweeping changes that a new social and economic revolution is at hand. They are certainly more conscious of and concerned about what is happening to this tiny blue space ship we call Earth than my generation was on the first Earth Day. The Great Recession of a decade ago deeply affected them. Many of these kids are much more vocational and economic security oriented than I, as an academic, would wish they were.

I worry that many are missing this never to be repeated opportunity of having four years to explore as much of the world’s knowledge as possible before taking up the mundane chores of their next forty or forty-five years. Having seen most of them accomplish great things in this transitional period of college life, I have great confidence. If the rest of you have the good sense to make a space for them and give them the room to prosper, this will be the generation that raises the angle of the line marking the future progress of the Sunflower State.

Good luck to you all.

Dr. Mark Peterson has been teaching political science for thirty years and writing for Insight Kansas since 2012. He is retiring and this is his last column.

Soil, the substance that makes up the ground in which we walk, is often thought of and referred to as dirt. Actually, “dirt” is the substance that you sweep up off of the floor and then discard.

Soil, however, can actually be regarded as a living organism. To begin with, soil consists of three basic components; the component being 45% mineral particles (sand, silt or clay), the second is 50% pore space (for water and/or air), and the last is 5% organic material (decomposed vegetable and animal matter). These three components will vary in percentages according to its mineral make up, its age, location, etc., of any given soil.
What is intriguing is that within these 3 components, a team of life exists in the forms of both micro- and macro-organisms.

Micro-organisms found in soils for the most part consists of bacteria, but there is also fungi, algae, and protozoa to be found. Macro-organisms on the other hand may include earthworms, nematodes, slugs and snails, and various insects, like millipedes, pill bugs, spiders, mites, and the like. These organisms sustain life both below and above ground. 

Fred Magdoff and Harold van Es in their book “Building Soils for Better Crops” described soil as a diverse community of over 100,000 living organisms. Bacteria, fungi, insects, and even small animals like moles all play an important role in the soil ecosystem and in plant health. Soil organisms, whether they be small or large, keep ecosystems in balance, move nutrients around, break down organic matter, make nutrients available and aerate the soil.

For examples, earthworms may not seem important to soil health, but they are one of the most important soil organisms. According to Magdoff and van Es, earthworms can create 800,000 underground channels per acre of soil that allow water to reach greater depths and provide more efficient infiltration rates during rain events. Earthworms are also remarkably good at moving soil particles. They state that in a 1 acre area, earthworms can move 1,000 tons of soil per year. That is a lot of soil for such a little critter.

Click this link (https://bit.ly/1MiGJT5) to view a fun and informative short video called “Soils Are Living” from the Soil Science Society of America as part of their 2015 Year of Soils effort. If you want to read more about soil organisms, follow this link (https://bit.ly/2x31l2N) to the “The Living Soil” chapter in “Building Better Soil for Better Crops.”

Rip Winkel is the Horticulture agent in the Cottonwood District (Barton and Ellis Counties) for K-State Research and Extension. You can contact him by e-mail at [email protected] or calling either 785-682-9430, or 620-793-1910.



My job as an Extension Educator switches gear during the summer months and I have the opportunity to spend time supporting youth activities.

This past week, our office was literally buzzing when 12 youngsters signed up to learn how to be a responsible babysitter. Our four-hour class touched on understanding the ages and stages of children, safety issues, first aid, and nutrition. Marissa, our summer intern, and McKinna, from the Rec. Center staff, helped with leading some of the activities. We made sure to include a quiet game as well as making shaker pudding which is always a favorite.

Another fun activity which will be held twice this summer is “StoryWalk.” Wednesday, June 20th, we’ll be setting up the book, “What Pet Should I get?” This fun book will be displayed on white boards and placed around the perimeter of My Backyard Playground located at 2715 18th Street from 9:30 -11:30 am. Besides reading the book, kids will have a chance to learn about caring for and approaching a pet dog. The July StoryWalk book is titled, “Count on Pablo.” It is another fun story which will reinforce the counting and money. Children pre-school age through age 12 are welcome to join us for our StoryWalks.

4-H camp at Rock Springs Ranch and a Day camp in Barton County on June 21st to introduce 4-H projects to younger children are all great learning activities. Barton County pre-fair activities are just around the corner too. 4-H’ers are busy finishing up project work and filling out pre-entry forms. One activity I am involved with is the Clothing Construction, Fashion Revue and Fiber arts judging. Mark your calendars for the Public Fashion Revue, which is set for Thursday, July 5th, at 7:00 p.m. at the Trinity Lutheran Church Fellowship Hall.

And while you are filling out the summer calendar make sure you note the Barton County Fair dates: July 11-15. I hope to see you there!

Donna Krug is the Family & Consumer Science Agent and District Director with K-State Research and Extension – Cottonwood District. You may reach her at (620)793-1910 or [email protected]

In early May, Fort Hays State University held a news conference to help announce and celebrate a deferred gift to speech-language pathology programs from retired FHSU professor and department chair Dr. Marcia Bannister.

What an amazing impact story.

Here is an excerpt:

The initiator of the speech-language pathology program and its rich heritage was Geneva Herndon, a farm girl from western Kansas who came to Fort Hays State for her undergraduate degree in the 1920s. After teaching in western Kansas and obtaining a master’s at the University of Colorado, she came to a faculty position here in the 1940s hoping to teach theatre and direct productions. Later, while on leave to earn a Ph.D. in theatre at Northwestern University, she discovered the emerging profession of “speech therapy.” To our good fortune, she combined study in that area with her theatre studies.

Coming back to Hays with the coveted degree in 1948, she discovered that the Institute of Logopedics, a residential therapy program in Wichita, had just worked out an agreement with the college to offer services to the Hays community using a small portion of the basement of Picken Hall. Aha! To Dr. Herndon, that meant that if Fort Hays State could develop a degree in speech therapy, there would be a place for a practicum.

Three years later, in 1951, Fort Hays State approved Herndon’s proposal to develop a curriculum in speech therapy. Her first two graduates – in 1955 – devoted their entire careers to clients and students.

Speech-language pathology programs in the ‘50s, as now, had to have both academic and clinical faculty. Our first clinical instructor was Velma Wooster, who had become the wife of President Lyman Wooster. That marriage occurred sometime after he took his developmentally delayed grandson from Russell over to Picken Hall to be evaluated for speech therapy services.

Herndon and Wooster were great models of professionalism. Geneva was my professor and mentor; Wooster my clinical instructor. Immediately after earning a bachelor’s degree in May 1961, I enrolled in the master’s program in speech therapy. Discovering that discipline was life changing for me!

After receiving my master’s degree in 1962, I spent five years in western Kansas schools helping students correct speech sounds, develop their language skills and become less fearful of their stuttering. Those were great years working with students and their caring parents.

In 1969, when Herndon retired, I had a Ph.D. well underway and was offered an opportunity to join the FHSU faculty. Over the next 35 years there were moments of blood, sweat, and tears, but we were ever striving forward.
From having essentially no program space initially, Malloy Hall was built in the mid-‘60s allocating four tiny rooms to the program. Our first expansion was accomplished in about 1974 by subdividing a classroom into small rooms. What an improvement but, continuing to grow, we were soon quite crowded again!

In 1981 radio, TV, and film departed Malloy Hall – and we got the space! Even though none of those rooms had windows, and using the piano elevator to get immobile clients to second floor was a challenge, we made it work! Then in 2000, faculty and students excitedly made many trips across the street carrying books and clinical materials to our new digs in the newly reconstructed first floor of Albertson Hall.

But no matter how limited our space and resources had been, we persisted with program improvement, benefiting from talented, motivated and caring students. In 1986, two significant events occurred: First, we became nationally accredited and, secondly, the Board of Regents approved a request to name our clinical service component the Geneva Herndon Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic.

It was 1994 when we became a free-standing academic department. Financial resources were limited, but we benefited from an endowment gift made many years before. The program stands today as the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders in the College of Health and Behavioral Sciences. Program space and status have grown!

I think you can see that my career as a speech-language pathologist has touched my heart and soul – and now my pocketbook! I want to help the program educate students in an exceptional manner. Very recently, this graduate program was recognized by SpeechPathologyGraduatePrograms.org as offering exceptional quality and value.

I am proud of the work being done by faculty to maintain that status. I know our students must be the most personable and remarkable on campus! I am thankful for our partnerships with the Kansas Masonic Foundation and the Scottish Rite Masons in making clinical services available to more adults and children.

The speech-language pathology program will continue to touch many lives in the future! It will prepare students for careers in assisting clients – young and old. It will benefit from additional financial resources. Thus my gift! With the continued support of the FHSU administration, our quality will shine out!

From my perspective, Dr. Bannister epitomizes all that Fort Hays State stands for – from discovering her passion and vision as a student, then practicing her skills and serving communities as an alumna, to returning to Fort Hays State as a professor who mentored and inspired the next generation of speech-language pathologists while building a highly respected program and, finally, making a significant deferred gift to sustain the department beyond her years. Amazing!

Her passion for speech pathology, her drive to “pay it forward” and her deep gratitude make up one of the many stories that weave together an incredible tapestry of the people and community of Fort Hays State University.

On Friday while most news media were watching to see who is filing for whatever state office, the Kansas Department of Revenue released a near-shocking report on receipts into the State General Fund (SGF)—the checking account for state government.

That little-read document shows that last year’s income tax increase is working to put the state back into budget balance. And that builds on the previous year’s sales tax increase that is finally kicking in and making state government more economically stable than Kansans have seen in the past seven years (yes, you can go ahead and call it the Gov. Sam Brownback/now-Gov. Jeff Colyer era).

What was the report? It was May revenues from all sources, and it showed that in May, the state received $542.9 million in taxes, $101 million more than predicted, and a dramatic $92.5 million of that unexpected cash was from personal income taxes.

Last year, recall, and who doesn’t, there was that massive income tax increase, retroactive to Jan. 1, 2017, six months before lawmakers overrode Brownback’s veto of the measure designed to raise $1.2 billion over two years.

It was that measure that eliminated the income tax exemption for so-called “non-wage income” (often LLC or self-employment income) that some 330,000 Kansans had enjoyed for four years.

Well, there’s one month—June—remaining in this fiscal year, and the income tax increase appears in the first 11 months of its life to have raised individual income tax receipts by about $1.077 billion. That’s not the $1.2 billion estimate, but there’s a month left, and, well, the tax law has been in effect long enough for some to have probably found a kink or two in it that can be exploited to save a few bucks.

So, what’s the good news…that the tax increase has apparently worked in boosting state revenues?

It’s early yet, but it appears that the state may, probably not in the upcoming fiscal year but at least the year starting July 1, 2019, have enough money to finance a new highway plan, and, probably under court order, increase the funding for public schools.

That revenue report—strange what sorts of behavior you can track when different taxes are split out by specific levy—also shows, for example, that Kansans probably spent a fair amount of time on the porch smoking. Yep, in May Kansans paid $11.9 million in taxes ($1.29 a pack) on cigarettes, about $2 million or 19 percent more than predicted. Now that’s more money for the state, but you gotta figure that long-term, Kansans would be better off if they hadn’t smoked more than predicted in May. Best nuance from the Revenue Department’s report on cigarettes probably was that Kansans smoked less this May than they did last May…

Another of those nuances from the report was that Kansans increasingly like to buy stuff over the Internet or in other states to bring home. While sales tax revenues in May were a sizable $189 million, about what was expected, Kansans spent more on “compensating use” taxes. Those are essentially sales taxes paid on purchases out of state, or over the Internet, where just a portion of those purchases by Kansans carried the state’s sales tax. The news there? While it’s nice that some of those out-of-state and Internet taxes were collected (about $32.3 million in May and $372 million since last July), it’s still revenue that didn’t go through Kansas merchants’ cash registers, which keeps stores open and increases retail sales jobs.

So, Kansas is apparently moving back toward a budget that won’t call for year-after-year cuts in spending. Or…lawmakers might start the tax-cut era again…

Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver’s Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com