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This week’s Friday Night Concert will feature four performers: Dan Duling on vocals and acoustic guitar, his son John adds vocal harmony and bass guitar, and Shanna Stone as lead vocalist. The trio performs a variety of country and classic rock. Addi Brown, local performer and Fort Scott Idol winner, will complement the show with some vocal solos.
“These fine musicians and singers will conclude the 2022 outdoor season,” concert-series organizer Ralph Carlson said. “The Dulings are talented local favorites and Shanna has toured with Meryl Haggard, Lefty Frizzell and other Nashville artists. Addi performs a wide variety of genres that’s sure to please the crowd. We’re expecting a great show, so come and enjoy the grand finale.”
The one-hour concert begins at 7 p.m. at the Heritage Park Pavilion at First and Main streets. The event is sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce and is free and open to the public. Dave Oas and Jim Butler provide the sound each week. Due to limited seating, attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs.
In the event of inclement weather, the concert will be moved to The Loading Dock at Common Ground Coffee Co., 12 E. Wall Street.
Daryl M. Roufs, age 63, a resident of Ft. Scott, Kansas, passed away Monday, October 24, 2022, at his home. He was born August 13, 1959, in Ft. Scott, the son of Harold J. Roufs and Catherine G. “Kay” Hill Roufs.
Daryl graduated from the Ft. Scott High School. He worked as a heavy equipment operator and maintenance-man throughout the United States. In addition, he helped on the family farm near Fulton, Kansas. One could say Daryl was a collector. He enjoyed showing off his many “treasures” to his friends and grandkids. In earlier years, he enjoyed hunting and fishing.
Survivors include his children, Lonnie Roufs (Sara) of Uniontown, Kansas, Tabitha Hardesty (Kent), Kayla Bronson (Jeff), and Erica Bolton (Jason) all of Ft. Scott, five grandchildren, Kenzi, Morgyn, Cruz, Mason and Matthew and his beloved dog, Stan. Also surviving is a brother, Gary Roufs (Cathy).
He was preceded in death by his parents and a brother, Johnny Roufs.
There was cremation. A memorial service will be held at 10:30 A.M. Tuesday, November 1st at the Cheney Witt Chapel.
Private burial will take place at the Evergreen Cemetery.
Memorials are suggested to the Heath Cannon Memorial Hunt and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 666701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.
Linda Darlene HowlingCrane, age 65, a resident of Fulton, Kansas, passed away Saturday, October 22, 2022, at her home following her battle with cancer. She was born May 16, 1957, in Ft Scott, Kansas, the daughter of Willis Sanders and Patsy Eden Sanders.
Linda attended Ft. Scott Schools. Shortly into her senior year, the family moved to Versailles, Missouri and she graduated from there with the Class of 1975. Linda will be remembered as a loving and devoted mother and grandmother. For the last several years, she has served as the primary care giver for her son and also took care of her grandchildren.
She loved taking trips to Branson with her family. She was fortunate enough to make one last trip to Silver Dollar City and enjoy the pumpkins and fall colors; she returned home on Friday morning and passed away Saturday evening. Linda loved to do crafts of all kinds. She also had a green thumb and could grow houseplants to gigantic proportions.
Survivors include two daughters, Jamye Coffman (Tom) of Ft. Scott and Patricia Brake of Mound City, Kansas; a son, Drew HowlingCrane of the home in Fulton and an adopted son, Doug Ekberg (Angela) of Independence, Missouri; ten grandchildren and a great-grandson. Also surviving are her mother, Patsy Sanders, of Ft. Scott; a brother Greg Sanders also of Ft. Scott and a sister, Pamela Owenby (Russell) of Deerfield, Missouri.
Linda was preceded in death by her father, Willis and her brother, Shannon.
Bert Severy and Robert Clark will conduct funeral services at 10:30 A.M. Thursday, October 27th at the Cheney Witt Chapel.
(Linda will do her best to be on time.)
Following funeral services, there will be cremation.
Private burial will take place at a later date in the Lath Branch Cemetery east of Ft. Scott.
Services are under the direction of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, Ft. Scott, Kansas. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.
The general election will be November 8, but those who wish to, may vote earlier.
Early voting will begin Wednesday, October 26th and will be open Monday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and will end on Monday, November 7th at noon.
People may vote at the Bourbon County Courthouse, 210 S. National Ave. in the commission room.
To view the sample ballot:
“We provide early voting to allow everyone the opportunity to vote, which is why we started offering Saturday voting,” said Ashley Shelton, Bourbon County Clerk. “We had a good turnout in the primary for early voting and a lot of positive comments regarding Saturday voting. We will continue to offer Saturday voting as an option if people continue to utilize it.”
In addition to selecting candidates, there will be two questions on this ballot, one about the election of sheriffs and one about Kansas legislative oversight.
Taken from the ballot:
County Sheriff Question
This amendment would preserve the
right of citizens of each county
that elected a county sheriff to continue
electing the county sheriff. The
amendment would also provide
that a county sheriff only may be
involuntarily removed from office
pursuant to either a recall election
or a writ of quo warranto initiated
by the attorney general.
A writ of quo warranto is a common law remedy which is used to challenge a person’s right to hold a public or corporate office, according to https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/quo_warranto
A yes vote for this proposition would
preserve the right of citizens of
each county, to
continue electing the county sheriff
via popular vote. The amendment
would also direct that a county
sheriff only may be involuntarily
removed from office pursuant to
either a recall election or a writ
of quo warranto initiated by the
attorney general.
A no vote against this proposition
would not make any changes to
the constitution and would retain
current law concerning the election
of a sheriff and the procedures for
involuntary removal of a sheriff from
office.
The amendment states:
County and township
officers. (a) Except as provided
in subsection (b), each county
shall elect a sheriff for a term of
four years by a majority of the
qualified electors of the county
voting thereon at the time of voting
designated for such office pursuant
to law in effect on January 11, 2022,
and every four years thereafter.
(b) The provisions of subsection
(a) shall not apply to a county
that abolished the office of sheriff
prior to January 11, 2022. Such
county may restore the office of
sheriff as provided by law and such
restoration shall be irrevocable.
A county that restores the office
of sheriff shall elect a sheriff by a
majority of the qualified electors
of the county voting thereon for a
term of four years. Such sheriff shall
have such qualifications and duties
as provided by law. The time of
voting for the office of sheriff may
be provided for by the legislature
pursuant to section 18 of article 2 of
this constitution.
(c) The filling of vacancies and the
qualifications and duties of the
office of sheriff shall be as provided
by law.
(d) The legislature shall provide for
such other county and township
officers as may be necessary.
§ 5. Removal of officers. (a) Except
as provided in subsection (b), all
county and township officers may
be removed from office, in such
manner and for such cause, as shall
be prescribed by law.
(b) A county sheriff only may be
involuntarily removed from office by
recall election pursuant to section 3
of article 4 of this constitution or a
writ of quo warranto initiated by the
attorney general.
From Bourbon County Counselor Justin Meeks,
“A yes vote would require counties to maintain a sheriff as an elected official,”
The Question of Legislative Oversight
The purpose of this amendment is
to provide the legislature with
oversight of state executive branch
agencies and officials by providing
the legislature authority to establish
procedures to revoke or suspend
rules and regulations.
A yes vote for this proposition would
allow the legislature to establish
procedures to revoke or suspend
rules and regulations that are
adopted by state executive branch
agencies and officials that have the
force and effect of law.
A no vote against this proposition
would allow state executive branch
agencies and officials to continue
adopting rules and regulations
that have the force and effect
of law without any opportunity
for the legislature to directly
revoke or suspend such rules and regulations.
Legislative oversight of administrative rules and
regulations.
Whenever the legislature by law has
authorized any officer or agency
within the executive branch of
government to adopt rules and
regulations that have the force and
effect of law, the legislature may
provide by law for the revocation
or suspension of any such rule and
regulation, or any portion thereof,
upon a vote of a majority of the
members then elected or appointed
and qualified in each house.
From Bourbon County Counselor Justin Meeks,
“This will basically allow the legislature to overturn regulations created by agencies, environmental agency for example,” Meeks said. “It would take away some of the governor’s administrative powers.”
Minimum-custody resident Joshua W. Renfro walked away from Lansing Correctional Facility
TOPEKA, Kansas. – Minimum-custody resident Joshua W. Renfro was placed on escape status at approximately 9:00 p.m. after it was reported that he walked away from Lansing Correctional Facility on Sunday, October 23, 2022.
Renfro, a 39-year-old white male, was reported missing when the resident could not be located at the minimum-security unit. This walkaway does not impact the security or operations of the medium-maximum secure compound.
Renfro is serving a 30-month sentence for a 2020 Violation of an extended protection order conviction in Allen County. Renfro has four prior convictions dating back to 2001.
Renfro is 6 feet 1 inches tall, 175 pounds with Hazel eyes and brown hair. He has tattoos on his torso, neck, hands, arms and legs.
Anyone with information on Stroede can call the Kansas Department of Corrections at 913-727-3235 ext. 58224, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation at (800) 572-7463 or local law enforcement at 911.
The walk-away is currently being investigated. New information will be released as it becomes available.
The Lansing Correctional Facility, formerly the Kansas State Penitentiary, opened in 1867. Serving only males, the facility maintains maximum and medium units totaling 1,920 beds and a 512-bed minimum security unit.
Keys to the Kingdom
By Carolyn Tucker
Close Enough to Hear
The other day I heard a woman say that she and her husband had agreed that they wouldn’t try to talk to each other if one of them was in another room. It’s just a fact that if you’ve been married 40+ years, you can’t hear as well as you did when you first said, “I do.” My normal speaking voice is “loud and clear,” but when I would spend the day with my Dad in his later years, I had to talk really loud so he could hear me. By the time I hugged and kissed him goodbye and drove home, I was worn out from basically yelling all day.
God will not use His “outside voice” when He speaks to His children. He chooses not to yell because He knows we can hear Him if we choose to. His normal voice is a “gentle whisper” (ref. 1 Kings 19:12). In fact, since God’s voice is kind and nonabrasive, it’s possible we could miss what He’s saying to us. But if we set our hearts to listen, we will hear Him. “God has given me the capacity to hear and obey…” (Psalm 40:6 AMP).
My family and friends know that I welcome their visits and phone calls. Healthy interactive conversation consists of, “Talk, Stop, Listen“ over and over until the conclusion. It’s hard to visit with someone who isn’t a good listener. It’s also hard to visit with someone who doesn’t talk. It takes two to tango in order to have a satisfactory conversation. I would suspect God is disappointed when His children don’t have a ready ear toward His voice. We’re eager to tell Him what we need, but we often don’t wait to hear what He has to say. If we’re guilty of not being a good listener, we should repent for our selfish and ungrateful attitude.
I had a brief conversation with a fellow believer that said, “God doesn’t speak to me.” I wonder if this individual is simply in another room when God speaks. In our energetic culture, believers may have trouble being quiet (which invites our Best Friend to talk to us). “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10 NKJV). We can miss God by living a hurried lifestyle, doing our own thing, and not making room for His voice. From the beginning night of Jesus’ earthly life, there wasn’t room for Him back then either. It’s definitely our responsibility to create a welcoming atmosphere so we can hear God‘s voice.
I’m certainly not wise enough to orchestrate my own life. I’d be yelling “Gee” when I should be yelling “Haw.” (These are unique voice commands to tell a workhorse to turn right or left when pulling a plow.) Christ followers want to live productive lives and bear good fruit for the Kingdom of God, but we desperately need God’s help to accomplish this goal. Jesus tells the crowd to listen to the explanation of the parable about the farmer planting seeds: “The seed that fell on good soil represents those who truly hear and understand God’s Word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” (Matthew 13:23 NLT). I want to be good dirt and grow a big crop for Jesus — but first I have to listen and understand so I can produce.
The Key: Stay in the same room with God so you can hear and obey His voice.
Fort Scott American Legion Post 25 will host National Vice Commander Glen Wahus of Watford City, North Dakota, on his four-day tour of Kansas with a Reception on Tuesday, 25 October, 2022 at 9:30 AM. During his tour National Vice Commander Wahus will visit eleven American Legion Posts while in the State.
Glenn Wahus is a member of American Legion Carl E Rogen Post 29 in Watford City, North Dakota, and is a U.S. Navy veteran (1983-87). Wahus served as Department of North Dakota Commander (2018-2019), and has served on several Post, Department and National committees, including the National Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation Commission (2015-2022). Most recently he has served as the North Dakota Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation chairman. He was instrumental in bringing back the “courage carries on” suicide awareness and prevention program to veterans and youth in North Dakota. Wahus was picked by Governor Doug Burgum to serve on North Dakota’s Administrative Committee on Veterans Affairs.
Wahus and his wife Tina have two sons. He is retired from the oil industry.
This last installment of my analysis as to why rural America is shrinking has to do with the growing cultural trend towards a preference for entertainment experiences and the electronic filter of relationships through social media. The evaluation is more experiential than it is statistical, but certainly current lifestyle trends lend themselves more toward urban living than the traditional rural experience.
Case in point, my fondest memories from my youth are of sitting on the front porch of my grandparent’s home overlooking the bandstand in the center of the town square in a farm community of 1,300 people. We shucked corn, snapped beans, hulled peas, and cleaned fish while we listened to the St. Louis Cardinal on the radio. My most magical summer was the “Phold of 1964,” the year the Phillies collapsed in the last two weeks of the baseball season and were overtaken by my red-hot Cardinals. It was an experience that gelled families and communities all over the Midwest.
My seven city-raised children would blanch at the prospect of spending a summer of listening to the radio and in idle conversations on the topics of religion, politics, world and local news, and sports. My eleven grandchildren would ask about the strength of the WiFi signal on the porch, and tolerate the scene until allowed access to their gaming console again. Do I sound like I have lived during 70 decades?
Most of us can identify with this great generational divide on one side or the other. Whether social media, gaming, exotic vacations, movies, bingeing TV shows, etc. are more healthy and constructive than front-porch-sittin’ remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: the change in culture has seriously impacted the perceived value of small communities. The “brain-drain” of our best and brightest to major universities and big jobs in big cities continues, with no end in sight.
What can, or should, rural communities do about this megatrend which is contributing significantly to our population loss? We certainly cannot compete with the entertainment and shopping venues of major metropolitan areas, and we would be foolish to try to a large degree. We would have a difficult time recruiting Fortune 500 companies to our county in order to offer the next generation world-class job options. We should do all we can to make high-speed Internet access broadly available across the county.
I believe we need to be who we are: a place that offers time for community and contemplation; a place that has the advantages of nature and the social and recreational aspects that come with it; a place that has history and played an important role in one of the most critical periods of American history; a place with time to love and to be loved. Sounds like heaven to me.
We need to be the best Bourbon County we can be. We need to lean into each other, support each other, and cultivate county-wide trust together. Someday, our culture will again want what we have, which I think represents the best of human nature. In the meantime, we wait, we work, we pray, we relate, and we build…together.
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Agenda
Bourbon County Commission Room
1st Floor, County Courthouse
210 S. National Avenue
Fort Scott, KS 66701
Date: October 25, 2022
1st District–Nelson Blythe Minutes: Approved: _______________
2nd District–Jim Harris Corrected: _______________________
3rd District–Clifton Beth Adjourned at: _______________
County Clerk–Ashley Shelton
MEETING HELD IN THE COMMISSION ROOM BEGINNING at 9:00AM.
Call to Order
• Flag Salute
• Approval of Minutes from previous meeting
• Jerry Witt – FS BBCO Riverfront Authority Appointment of Committee Member
• Ashley Shelton – Gas Price Lock In
• Jim Harris – Executive Session KSA 75–4319(b)(1) to discuss personnel matters of individual nonelected personnel to protect their privacy
• Transient Guest Tax
• Susan Bancroft – KSA 75–4319(b)(1) to discuss personnel matters of individual nonelected personnel to protect their privacy
• Justin Meeks – County Counselor Comment
• Susan Bancroft – Chief Financial Officer Comment
o Financial Report
• Shane Walker – Chief Information Officer Comment
• Eric Bailey – Road & Bridge Report
• Public Comment
• Commission Comment
Justifications for Executive Session:
KSA 75–4319(b)(1) To discuss personnel matters of individual nonelected personnel to protect their privacy
KSA 75–4319(b)(2) For consultation with an attorney for the public body or agency which would be deemed privileged in the attorney–client relationship
KSA 75–4319(b)(3) To discuss matters relating to employer–employee negotiations whether or not in consultation with the representative(s) of the body or agency
KSA 75–4319(b)(4) To discuss data relating to financial affairs or trade secrets of corporations, partnerships, trust, and individual proprietorships
KSA 75–4319(b)(6) For the preliminary discussion of the acquisition of real property
KSA 75–4319(b)(12) To discuss matters relating to security measures, if the discussion of such matters at an open meeting would jeopardize such security measures.
Bank Reconciliation Ending September 30, 2022.22.10.21