MANHATTAN — Norton FFA team members were recognized for placing first in the State Leadership Quiz Bowl at the 91st Kansas FFA Convention, May 29–31 on the Kansas State University campus.
The Leadership Quiz Bowl gives members an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge of FFA and its foundation. The team answering the most questions correctly, in front of a live audience, is determined as the winner.
Norton FFA faced off against Ellis FFA in the final round on the opening day of the state convention. Norton FFA won, and Ellis FFA placed second. Uniontown FFA placed third and Anderson County FFA placed fourth.
Competing on the winning Norton FFA quiz bowl team were: Sarah David, Lexi Kats, Leah David, Jonah Ruder, Hadley Hauser and Mason Schultz.
The Kansas FFA Association is a statewide organization of 9,854 agricultural education students in 205 chapters in every corner of Kansas. It is part of the National FFA Organization, a national youth organization of 669,989 student members preparing for leadership and careers in the science, business and technology of agriculture with 8,630 local chapters in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Our mission is to make a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education. Visit www.ksffa.org for more information.
Two Kansas teams were among the winners at the national KidWind Challenge held in Houston, Texas last week. The Oxford Air Sharks from Oxford High School won three awards: National Champions, Power Output, and Wind Tracker Champion in the high school category. In the middle school category, The Electric Four from Lebo Homeschool Co-Op took home the Rookie Award. Eighteen states were represented in the competition.
Teams from Wheatland High School, Sterling High School, and Beloit Junior High School also earned a chance to compete in the national event. To qualify, each team had to first capture one of the top two spots in their age division at one of four regional competitions then place in the top three at the KidWind state finals held in Topeka.
“I can’t say enough about this middle school group and their enthusiasm and devotion to excel on this project” said Mike Tweedy, coach of the Electric Four team. “They represented Kansas well with their true fascination and conviction about renewable energy. They designed it, built it, competed with it and gained the knowledge to prove they were true competitors.”
The event is fun as well as educational providing lessons in physics, engineering and environmental science as students build a device that converts moving wind into energy. To prepare for competition, the teams study wind power then build a turbine using the design and materials of their choice. During the challenge, each team’s turbine is put to the test in a wind tunnel. Team are judged on their knowledge, design, and documentation as well as performance testing in the wind tunnel.
This year 159 students participated in Kansas KidWind competitions compared to 49 last year. Organizers attribute the growth to several factors.
“By offering regional competitions throughout the state, more schools were able to participate,” said Lynn Retz, KCC Energy Director. “In addition, interest in the science of wind energy is growing due to the volume of wind farm construction in Kansas communities.”
The Management Development Center at Fort Hays State University is kicking off its summer workshop series with two popular workshops in June: “CliftonStrengths Essentials” and “Supervisor Bootcamp.”
Participants of “CliftonStrengths Essentials” will discover their natural talents and learn how to develop them into strengths to be used in everyday life. Strategies will be learned to leverage natural talents, explore how talents can contribute to team success with a team talent map, and more.
“Several community members are already utilizing their strengths. Join them and take advantage of the talent development program used by more than 90 percent of Fortune 500 companies,” said Hannah Hilker, MDC training development specialist.
“CliftonStrengths,” facilitated by Hilker and Sabrina William, Management Development Center director, will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday, June 13, in the Memorial Union’s Stouffer Lounge. Registration closes on June 6.
“Supervisor Bootcamp” will provide participants with five fundamental supervisory skills: guiding the work, organizing the work, developing staff, managing performance, and managing relations. Taught by a retired Army senior NCO, participants will learn practical tools to lead, manage and develop their employees.
Hilker
“This workshop is essential for new supervisors or those wishing to improve their supervisory skills to drive performance in their organization,” said Hilker.
This workshop, facilitated by William and Dr. Seth Kastle, assistant professor of leadership studies, will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Wednesday, June 19, in the first-floor meeting room in FHSU’s Hansen Hall. Registration closes on June 12.
A completion certificate and 7.0 continuing education units will be given to each workshop participant. The workshops will cost $219 each. A 15-percent discount applies for all Hays Area Chamber of Commerce Members for a single session.
Kastle
Registration is available online through the Registration link in the sidebar on the page at www.fhsu.edu/mdc. To learn more about these workshops or additional upcoming trainings, contact Hilker by phone at 785-628-4121 or by email at [email protected].
Friday Sunny, with a high near 83. Light and variable wind becoming south 6 to 11 mph in the morning.
Friday Night A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms between 10pm and 11pm. Partly cloudy, with a low around 59. South southeast wind 5 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Saturday Sunny, with a high near 84. West southwest wind 7 to 10 mph becoming north northeast in the afternoon.
Saturday NightIsolated showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 57. Northeast wind around 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
SundayScattered showers and thunderstorms after 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 77. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Sunday NightShowers and thunderstorms likely, mainly after 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 59. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
THOMAS COUNTY—One person was injured in an accident just after 10:30a.m. Thursday in Thomas County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a Harley Davidson motorcycle driven by Michael B. Cash, 70, Ridgecrest, CA., was westbound on Interstate 70 one mile west of Brewster.
The motorcycle left the roadway to the left and entered the median. The driver lost control and the motorcycle rolled several times before coming to rest in the median.
EMS transported Cash to the hospital in Colby. He was wearing a helmet, according to the KHP.
WAKEENEY—A Silver Alert has been issued in Trego County for Russell Adair Hearting, 71, WaKeeney, according to a post of the WaKeeney Police Department’s Facebook page.
The post describes Hearting as 5’10 and 160 pounds. He was last seen wearing a red, long-sleeve shirt, blue jeans, and high-top tennis shoes.
Hearting was last seen at 10:20 p.m. Wednesday on 190th and C Road when an individual stopped to speak with Hearting and offered to give him a ride and Hearting refused, according to the post.
Hearting is believed to be on foot and possibly suffering from dementia.
The department is asking for anyone with any information to please contact the Trego County Law Enforcement Center at 785-743-5711.
A group of Hays area bicyclists have organized a bike ride that will feature tours of the area’s historic and picturesque churches and a celebration of the Volga German heritage.
The Tour die Kapellen, which is German for Tour of Chapels, will start and end at the Union Pacific Plaza, 10th and Main, Hays, on Saturday, June 22.
The event will include options for a 3-mile fun ride in addition to 13-, 30-, 50-, metric century 62-, and 75 plus-mile rides.
Depending on the length of ride you choose, you can see different churches along the route.
Churches along the supported routes include Catharine, Victoria, Pfeifer and Munjor.
“We feel it is important to show off our churches — the architectural beauty of them, the beauty and what we have in our surrounding little towns and in Hays,” organizer Kathy Rome said.
“Two or three of us were riding and we were like ‘Hey, we ought to put together a ride. We could show off our churches in our communities and our German heritage,’ so that is how it started.”
Photos courtesy Hays Area Bicyclists
Fellow organizer Kay Werth said, “It is really a marriage between the wellness community, the Volga German culture and ethnic things and a little bit about the historical architectural structures in our area. In addition, we are promoting the music in our area.”
There will bike SAGs at each of the churches with free snacks and beverages. Volunteers will be on hand to offer church tours and answer questions about the architecture and history of the churches. Music will be provided at the churches by members of the Hays Symphony and Hays City Band.
The 100-mile route also includes Schoenchen and Antonino. These last two stops will be self-supported. No tours or SAGs will be offered at those stops.
The event wraps up at the Downtown Pavilion with a German meal and music from the Tim Anthony Band, which is included in the registration. Beer will be available for those 21 or older. Registration includes two drink tickets.
The entry fee is $20 for the fun ride and $45 for the distance rides through the June 10 early-bird deadline. Fees after June 10 will be $25 for the fun ride and $55 for the distance rides. Registration also includes a free T-shirt and a swag bag from the Hays Convention and Visitors Bureau, which will contain promotional items and special offers from local businesses.
T-shirts and meal tickets are available for extra guests and family members and can be ordered with your registration.
The event already has bicyclists registered from as far away as Kansas City. The event is hoping for at least 50 riders in this first year.
Werth and Rome said organizers hope a portion of the proceeds for the ride can be used to keep the ride going in subsequent years. The ride would also like to make a donation this year to St. Fidelis Church, Basilica of the Plains parish in Victoria for upkeep of the church.
Registration starts at 6:30 a.m. with the main ride starting at 7:30 a.m. The fun ride will begin at 9 a.m. and run along the Big Creek dam through the FHSU campus. The fun ride will be family-oriented and include a short presentation from local law enforcement on bicycle safety. See below for a complete schedule.
Those who are younger than 18 will need to have a parent ride with them for the main ride. Children younger than 12 must be accompanied by a parent on the fun ride.
TOPEKA — The owners of the Plainville Livestock Commission in Rooks County have been charged with carrying out a check-kiting scheme that cost banks millions of dollars, U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said Thursday in a news release.
Tyler Gillum, 47, and his wife, Camden Gillum, 50, both of Plainville, are charged with 31 counts of bank fraud, one count of making a false statement to the Small Business Administration in an application for a $1.5 million loan, and one count of making a false statement to Almena State Bank in an application for a $500,000 line of credit.
The indictment alleges the Gillums defrauded Almena State Bank in Almena; Landmark Bank in Manhattan; Colorado East Bank and Trust in Lamar, Colo.; Astra Bank in Scandia; TBK Bank in Dallas; Guaranty State Bank in Beloit; and The Bank in Oberlin.
The indictment alleges investigators examined unfunded checks and wire transfers totaling more $2 billion sent by Tyler Gillum as part of the scheme. That included 409 wire transfers and 7,584 checks. Tyler Gillum, formerly a loan officer for Montezuma State Bank, owned and operated with his wife Plainville Livestock Commission. In advertisements for the business, they said: “The sale barn facility was first established in 1950 and is situated in the heart of Cow-Calf Country. We pride ourselves in offering individualized attention to marketing your livestock.”
The indictment defines check kiting as a form of check fraud that takes advantage of the time between presentment of a check and the actual receipt of funds (“the float”) to make use of non-existent funds in a checking or other bank account. The purpose of check kiting is to falsely inflate the balance of a checking account in order to allow written checks to clear that otherwise would bounce.
Investigating agencies included the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Office of Inspector General, the FBI, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation – Officer of Inspector General, the Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Small Business Administration – Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Rich Hathaway is prosecuting.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
— Office of U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister
Check Hays Post for more as details become available.
The first Hays citywide garage sale is scheduled for this weekend and the community has embraced the event, with sales planned across the community.
Event organizer Laurie Mortinger said she wanted to organize the event in Hays after seeing successful events elsewhere.
“I know a lot of people that go to garage sales, and a lot of people that have them, and we thought we go out of town, and we go to those sales all the time in the surrounding communities they are kind of fun,” she said. “You take a day and go out and eat with the girls, goof off and garage sale. It is just a blast so I said ‘Let’s do it in Hays.’ ”
After asking around, she found others in the community were interested, so she began planning.
“Hays never gets one going, so we got a few people together that wanted to have a sale and we picked out some dates and we said ‘Let’s do it,’ ” Mortinger said.
And now the event that started as a simple idea has gained a lot of traction in the community.
“I think we have had a pretty good response this year, so far I think there is over 70 in Hays,” she said.
And with the significant interest, Mortinger said she hopes the event will continue every year.
“That’s the goal, to continue to do it,” she said.
With so many people registering their sales, Mortinger said there are several places to get a listing of all the sales.
Flyers are currently being printed that should be available Thursday at the Hays visitor center, 2700 Vine; Kwik Shop, 1301 Vine; and Love’s, 2500 Vine.
Northwestern Printers, 114 W. Ninth, donated the printing of the flyers, Mortinger said, and a friend donated the paper.
“So we didn’t have to charge anybody to do the flyers,” she said. “That was very nice of them. We want to thank them.”
She hopes the flyers can be continued for future events.
“Sometimes when you get into printing you have to start paying for those things unless we could find a sponsor,” Mortinger said. “Hopefully we will continue to be able to get somebody to sponsor us, or help us out, so we won’t have to charge people to advertise it.”
Mortinger said there are also sales planned that missed the printing deadline that can be found online.
Those online listings will also provide specific items for sale.
While the citywide sale is a prime opportunity to find deals or unload some unwanted items, some are using the day to fundraise for community organizations.
“I think that is great,” Mortinger said, noting she was aware of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Ellis County Cancer Council were holding sales as fundraisers.
Mortinger said she hopes the event is a positive experience for the community and offered advice to participants.
“Get everybody you know and go out and have fun,” she said. “If you want to go and have a garage sale, let somebody watch your booth and you can go garage selling and come back.”
The citywide sale is scheduled for Friday from 8 a.m. to dark and Saturday 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
As tornado sirens sounded in Hays late Tuesday afternoon, the Ellis County Rural Fire Department was dispatched to fight a tank battery fire in rural Ellis County after a lightning strike.
At 5:13 p.m., the department responded to a fire at Toulon and Catharine Road, finding the tank battery on fire, But with the recent heavy rains, trucks were unable to get close to the fire, according to Darin Myers, Ellis County Fire Chief and Emergency Manager.
Instead, responders ran over 400 feet of water lines through a field to get to the tank.
Myers
“It seemed that the fiberglass top burnt off,” Myers said.
The crew was able to extinguish the fire using foam and water and had left the scene at 6:39 p.m.
With severe weather in the area, Myers said sometimes a decision needs to be whether the fire crew continues to fight a fire, or rather move to a safe location and let the fire burn until the situation is safe.
“We’ve had to do that,” he said, noting putting out a rural tank battery fire when the battery is already destroyed often does not necessitate risking firefighters’ safety.
“There is no reason to risk a lot to save a little,” Myers said.
With this fire, however, the crew was able to put out the fire before any weather hit the immediate area.
“They were able to get out of their trucks and fight the fire without the danger of another storm,” he said.
But a few weeks ago during a similar incident, crews were forced to wait for a storm to pass to put out the fire.
“Obviously, the best option is to put the fire out, but the primary concern for us is the safety of our personnel,” Myers said.
With a tank battery fire, there are sometimes concerns with not being able to put a fire right away that must be considered.
“The risk you have to look at by not putting the fire out right away (is) what else is going to happen?” he said, noting the possibilities oil leaking outside or a fire spreading to other tanks make the situation is more critical.
“In these cases, that didn’t happen,” he said.
Another risk with these types of fires is an explosion, which could spread to other tanks nearby.
“You have to be careful about accessing the situation to make sure you are not putting a firefighter up to a tank that is close to exploding,” Myers said.
Gonzales -photo Ellis Co.By JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT Hays Post
A Hays man pleaded no contest to three sex-related crimes Wednesday and is expected to be sentenced to more than two and a half years in prison.
Hunter Gonzales entered the no contest pleas to two counts of reckless aggravated battery, a level five person felony, and one misdemeanor count of sexual battery in Ellis County District Court.
As a result of the pleas and evidence presented by the Ellis County Attorney, District Judge Glenn Braun found Gonzales guilty.
Gonzales originally was charged with rape and aggravated criminal sodomy after a Hays woman said Gonzales forced himself on her in November 2017.
Under the agreement, Gonzales is expected to be sentenced to 32 months in prison for one count of reckless aggravated battery. Once he has served out his sentence, he will be placed on probation for five years.
Ellis County Attorney Tom Drees said if Gonzales violates his probation, he could face an additional 32 months in prison for the second reckless aggravated battery charge and 12 months for the misdemeanor sexual battery.
The 32-month sentence is contingent on a pre-sentence investigation.
He will also have to register as a sex offender for 15 years.
Randy ClinkscalesI have a family trip planned. All the family is going. It involves airplane flights with several changes. It involves coordinating the schedules of seven different people.
I am writing this the morning after my dreams were filled with nightmares: the fear of missing my flights, and one of the flights being rescheduled which ruined our trip.
My dream involved me not being able to get away from the office at the last minute; or some other personal issue that prevented me from getting to the airport on time. Try as I may, it seems like I was stuck in tar and the harder I tried to get free, the more tangled I got. As it got closer and closer to the departure time, the more I felt trapped, unable to untangle myself. I wondered what would happen if I missed the trip altogether and my family went on it by themselves. I woke up in a sweat. So I wrote this article.
From an objective standpoint, I know that whether I get to the flight on time is really up to me. I am several weeks out from the trip. I can adjust my schedule so I can be there on time.
On the other hand, if the flights get changed or delayed there is nothing I can do about that now. No amount of worry is going to “fix” whether the airlines have some change over which I have no control.
It really boils down to what can I fix and should plan for; and what can I not fix or plan for? For the former (me being on time) I can plan; for the latter (the airline changing its schedules), my worrying does not fix anything.
Objectively, it seems pretty simple; in practice, when it is you, it is not so simple.
The last couple of weeks have been emotionally draining, while in the end, they ended up being uplifting. A couple of families came to see us. In one case, the children and the parents were both in the room. Dad has dementia, and he knows it. He fears not being able to care for his family, of losing his memory, of becoming something that he has never been, and his loss of dignity and his pride. The family is heartbroken for dad. They are heartbroken for mom as she journeys with Dad. They fear for her safety, both physically and financially.
In another case with another family, Dad has gone through a series of health issues. Not only does he have some dementia, he has lost his eyesight and has lost a lot of functioning of his extremities. He is no longer able to bathe, feed, or dress himself. But he still knows the family. He knows that things are not good. He is angry; he is depressed; and he is terribly frustrated at his plight. His family is heartbroken at the plight that they find their father. He has always been a good, strong man. A good father; a good husband. But now the end of life is being so difficult for him. At times the entire room was sobbing in the heartbreak that they expressed to me.
With both families we visited. We broke down what kind of things we could control. We addressed those issues: financial fears; caregiver issues; short term plans for healthcare; long term plans for healthcare; and creating tools for the caregivers.
We also talked about those things we cannot control. In both cases Dad is on a journey. We need to accept that he is on this journey. We need to fix the things that we can fix, and stop worrying about the things that we cannot fix. We need to be with Dad and appreciate our opportunity to be with him on this journey.
In the end, the families were very relieved that they had a plan; and the fear was replaced by peace of mind.
Frankly, we could write books about fear and how to address it. But I know that when people come into my office fear is very real; it is tangible; whether they can control it or not, it is controlling them.
With the two families that I met with, I think part of the key to getting rid of the fear that they had, was accepting that each had a loved one on a journey with a difficult end; that they should be ready for that; and to not fear what they could not control.
Unfortunately, we can let fear paralyze all aspects of our lives. Sometimes it is difficult to step back and figure out what we can fix and what we cannot fix. Fear can throw a dark cloak over all aspects of your life.
On a lighter note, I will be at the Hays airport two hours prior to my trip departure, even if the airport is not yet open.
Randy Clinkscales of Clinkscales Elder Law Practice, PA, Hays, Kansas, is an elder care attorney, practicing in western Kansas. To contact him, please send an email to [email protected]. Disclaimer: The information in the column is for general information purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Each case is different and outcomes depend on the fact of each case and the then applicable law. For specific questions, you should contact a qualified attorney.
Road when an individual stopped to speak with Hearting and offered to give him a ride and Hearting refused, according to the post.
