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Storytelling through Art Session: Access to Lesson Plans
Healthy Bourbon County Action Team: 2025-2026
Submitted by Jody Love
HBCAT/RCP
President and CEO
To Our Communities and Partners:
“We’re not working to win Kansas. We’re working for Kansas to win.”
I recently heard Destany Wheeler with Elevate Kansas share this sentiment, and it perfectly captures how I feel about our work in Southeast Kansas.
We believe in abundance. We are not chasing recognition or competing for credit or resources. We are working for this region to succeed on its own terms. That belief carried us through a year marked by both meaningful progress and significant hardship.
In 2025, we navigated funding uncertainty, shifting policies, and economic pressures affecting families, businesses, and organizations across the region. We experienced pauses, delays, and moments that required us to rethink timelines and approaches. Quite frankly, this was a hard year. Each time we took a hit, we pivoted, picked ourselves up, and moved forward, guided by community need and shared responsibility.
At the Healthy Bourbon County Action Team, we remained deeply committed to our mission: increasing access to physical activity and healthy food, promoting commercial tobacco cessation, enhancing quality of life, and encouraging economic growth. These priorities are not abstract goals. They are shaped by the lived experiences of residents across Southeast Kansas.
We are equally committed to responding to priorities identified by residents who live the reality of these decisions every day. Community trust, resident leadership, and equity remain central to how we design, implement, and sustain our work.
That commitment is visible through Rural Community Partners and our work to find, connect, and engage small business owners and entrepreneurs across Southeast Kansas. We meet entrepreneurs where they are, connect them to the right expertise, capital, and networks, and ensure they are not navigating fragmented systems alone. This approach reduces barriers, builds trust, and helps entrepreneurs move forward with clarity and confidence.
Despite the challenges, we expanded small business and entrepreneurship support, delivered hands-on technical assistance, helped unlock new capital, and strengthened workforce development partnerships. Together with Rural Community Partners, the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council, and Balloon Media, we elevated regional storytelling. With support from Kansas University Medical Center, we convened partners across counties and continued building coalitions focused on practical, community-led solutions. Our role as a regional convener and backbone organization grew, not because it was easy, but because it was necessary.
We also invested in the long view by advancing the Southeast Kansas Small Business and Entrepreneurship Endowment. This commitment to sustainability allows us to lead with integrity rather than urgency, remain accountable to communities rather than funding cycles, and speak honestly when systems fall short. It is a promise to Southeast Kansas that this work will endure.
We are change agents, and with that comes a responsibility to speak up when systems no longer serve the communities they were designed to support.
What makes our work different, and why does it endure locally and regionally where many well-intended efforts have struggled? Three things have mattered most:
- We remain financially independent and are not reliant on local or regional gatekeepers.
- Our work is guided by community need rather than access, favors, or external approval.
- We are willing to say what others won’t, even when it risks relationships, status, or funding.
Looking ahead to 2026, our vision is clear.
We will continue scaling entrepreneurship and mentorship efforts, strengthened by our partnership with the KU School of Business, Kansas Food Action Network, and BCBS Pathways to Healthy Kansas, while expanding access to capital and expertise. Working alongside partners such as WorkforceONE, we will deepen workforce pathways by listening directly to local employers. By supporting locally driven solutions, we will build resilience across counties while protecting the trust and relationships that make progress possible.
This role requires resilience, clarity, and courage. As Virginia Barnes, BCBS Pathways Director, reminded me earlier this year, it means acknowledging setbacks without being defined by them. It means staying focused on long-term impact and believing in the capacity of Southeast Kansas, even when circumstances test that belief.
Thank you to our partners, funders, donors, and residents who continue to stand with us.
Together, we are not working to win Southeast Kansas. We are working for Southeast Kansas to win.
Bourbon County Commission Special Meeting, Dec. 18
The Bourbon County Commissioners will hold a special meeting Thursday, Dec. 18 at 3pm in the commission chambers.
The meeting agenda includes signing a vacation and sick leave policy resolution and a noise resolution as well as three executive sessions.
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County Commission Changes SEK Mental Health Board Members, County Employee Leave Practices
The Commission Will Not Meet on December 22nd or 29th 2025
Soldier Road Concerns– JD Handly, Osage Township Trustee
Handly told the commission that several citizens have contacted him with concerns about the condition of Soldier Road, which has been in poor condition since 2023.
“I apologize for not bringing a solution to the table, but we’ve got a real problem with that road. If you’ve traveled it, you know what I’m talking about,” he said.
It has standing water and reverse crowning and takes a lot of heavy logging traffic from Missouri.
“I believe they’re doing the best they can with the training that they have and the equipment they’ve been working with,” he said of the county’s public works department.
His goal is to get it on the radar and begin to have a conversation about it with the county.
Dustin from Public Works acknowledged that the road does need some attention and receives a lot of truck traffic which is causing damage.
Benefit District – Dustin
Kenny, who was out sick, wrote up an estimate for the benefit district that Dustin hasn’t seen. The county also needs a waiver restoration letter and more clarity about what the district wants regarding the distance paved and the width of the road. There are also culverts involved and a city fire hydrant requiring a 60-foot easement, per commissioner Samuel Tran. Commissioner Mika Milburn-Kee said she would reach back out to the homeowners to get the details hammered out.
Public Comments
Mike Houston from Mapleton: Observation and Attitudes
Houston addressed the commission as “a citizen and taxpayer.” He commended them for conducting the meeting this week better than in the previous week.
He also said it seems like the commission has forgotten that Susan Walker, County Clerk, is an elected official, too. She is to follow the guidelines from the state, just like the commissioners need to. In a public forum and meeting, remember that the commission is meeting for the sake of the community and the county’s employees as well as other elected officials.
Department Updates
Bill Martin – Sheriff
“I was incorrect,” said Martin, regarding the previous discussion about the commission’s approval of funding for phones and technology updates for his department. The board did approve the phones for the sheriff’s department in the Sept. 15 meeting. “My apologies,” he said.
The new phone system cost the sheriff’s department $693 less than the original estimate.
Sheriff Martin commented on the confusion about Stronghold and the county’s lack of an IT department.
Milburn said the county has hired Stronghold as managed services for the county as well as for special projects.
Martin reiterated his open-door policy and asked the commissioners to come to him with anything they need to discuss.
Susan Walker – County Clerk
Resolution 44-25 R&B Sales Tax to R&B $600,000 Road and Bridge Sales Tax Transfer for work completed. Approved.
Tran asked if the commission would continue to do their business in resolution form, and they agreed to do so at Milburn’s suggestion.
Resolution 45-25 EMS Equip to EMS $26,530.06
Moving the reserve over to their operation fund. Approved.
Resolution 46-25 Jail Sales Tax to Law Enforcement $250,000 Approved.
Resolution 47-25 Inmate Fees to General $60,200
This is done to cover the longevity pay. Approved.
Payroll
Walker asked about the timeline for the implementation of pay cuts to the County Clerk and Register of Deeds from the commission’s decision to take payroll duties from the Clerk’s office and road record duties from the Register of Deeds office.
The county is in the process of hiring a person to do payroll and will have a special meeting with executive sessions to conduct interviews on Thursday, Dec. 18 at 3 p.m.
The commission said to implement the new pay rate January 1, 2026.
Benefits Termination Timeframe
The commission voted to terminate employee benefits at the time of employment termination, not carry it through the end of the month, as has been the previous policy.
“Supervisors either have to be timely on their terminations, or we go to this [benefits end at termination date, no longer carry through the end of the month],” said Walker.
Motion carried, Commissioner David Beerbower opposed.
Old Business
SEK Mental Health Board Members – Tran
Tran brought up the subject of serving SEK Mental Health as a board member.
Beerbower said he too, had heard from other counties and there’s concern about how the SEK Mental Health Board is being run, particularly with the salaries of the leadership.
Milburn said that she had a call from the CEO of Mental Health saying they are making adjustments to salaries. He also sent her a text highlighting the collaboration of SEK Mental Health with Freeman Hospital.
She read an email from one of the Bourbon County volunteer board members asking that the commission call him and his fellow Bourbon County board member to the table and discuss it.
“If you can’t have a transparent NGO (non-government organization), then it’s not a service to the people the way the people need it,” said Tran. Information should be provided freely, especially since the organization takes federal taxpayer dollars.
Beerbower moved to terminate the volunteer board members representing Bourbon County with the SEK Mental Health Board, effective immediately.
Milburn asked that the commission allow those board members to attend and be terminated in person.
The motion carried, Milburn voting against.
Beerbower moved to appoint himself and commissioner Tran to the open positions, to be revisited when the new commissioners are added to the board in January. Motion carried.
Resolution for Courthouse Space – Milburn-Kee
“We really need to clean up the space before we start allocating new space,” said Tran. He pointed out that before they allow departments to expand into new spaces, they need to clean up the courthouse because there is stuff everywhere.
Beerbower said it is quite evident that the board needs to do a walk-through and make some decisions about items currently stored in the courthouse.
They adopted the resolution delineating the current use of space in the courthouse.
108 W 2nd Street Realtor Selection – Milburn-Kee
Milburn-Kee said she asked realtors if they would be willing to sell the building in question. She said it is quite evident that local realtors have a “bad taste in their mouths” from previous work with municipalities, particularly the City of Fort Scott and the sale of lake lots.
She does have one realtor who expressed interest. She recused herself from the voting process.
Tran motioned to allow Stuart Realty Company to list the building for $200,000. Motion carried. Milburn abstained.
Handbook Approval – Milburn-Kee
Dr. Cohen, Bourbon County’s HR department, recommended that the commission approve the vacation and sick leave accrual policy of 1/12 per month of the amount allocated for the employee, rather than giving them the full amount on January 1 of the year, as is the current policy, removing the county’s liability for all of the sick leave or vacation pay should an employee terminate.
Payroll and benefits are to be figured from the employees most recent hire date.
These changes are to be implemented prior to the new handbook implementation, which is taking longer than anticipated.
Milburn-Kee handed out a resolution based on his recommendation.
Historically the county has had a use-it-or-loose-it policy regarding vacation time. Both vacation and sick leave have been front-loaded in January as well.
Beerbower said that vacation is an earning that increases with time. Not front-loading it means that vacations will all be taken at once in the second half of the year, after employees have accrued enough leave to take time off.
He said that one or two people who may quit early in the year shouldn’t mess it up for the whole group.
Walker said that the county doesn’t have the financial means to fund carry-over vacation. It’s built into their wages.
“You can adopt it, but you’ll find out within a year that you can’t afford it,” said Walker. The county’s financial statements must show that the county can fund the liability of vacation time.
Terry from EMS suggested that those who have years of service are being penalized by only allowing 1/12 per month. This is particularly apt in the first responder world. Currently, salaried employees and elected officials don’t log their sick time or vacation time, and have no cap, but supervisors can deny them leave.
Milburn said they are moving to standardize it for now until the handbook is approved, which gives them the option to adjust it later.
Undersheriff Davidson spoke to the commission, saying it is disrespectful to the employees of the county to make this change. He questioned the commission’s need to control how people take their vacations. He questioned the idea that Dr. Cohen independently brought up this issue on his own. He also accused the commission of attempting a power grab.
Sheriff Bill Martin asked what the hurry is to push the changes through. He also pointed out that they should wait until the other commissioners are sworn in.
Regarding the handbook he said, “Let’s not pick and choose. Let’s do it all together.”
Walker said that the payroll process has the vacation of 2025 available until the second week of January, giving the board some more time.
Tran said it’s not a power grab, but an effort to follow the recommendation of the county’s HR specialist to create a rule-book you can live by. He also mentioned the ability to ask for advanced leave.
Beerbower said that the message of this change is that the county commissioners don’t trust the employees not to take advantage of the county by quitting at the beginning of the year, requiring payout of all their front-loaded vacation time. He said he’s in favor of slowing down and not making big changes.
Beerbower said that the carryover is to cover times when employees can’t use their leave because of their duties.
Tran pointed out that policies are not laws and have exemptions.
Parliamentarian Kaety Bower said there are middle-ground options that could apply here.
Tran said he spoke to a constituent during a meeting recess and pointed out that the county should not do harm to employees by removing their vacation time, jeopardizing the plans they have made by purchasing vacation tickets, and causing them to lose the cost of the tickets.
He proposed front-loading half of their vacation in January with the stipulation that if a county employee leaves before the end of June, he or she will pay back unspent vacation time. This is a compromise that will get the county through 2026, with the understanding that there will be no front-loading at all starting in 2027.
Beerbower said he doesn’t think the issue needs to be rushed. He wants to wait to make any changes until after the new year.
Sheriff Bill Martin said it doesn’t look good to make this change and then not meet for two weeks.
Milburn moved to approve Resolution 49-25 as amended by Tran. Tran seconded and then explained that the county hired a functional expert in the person of Mr. Cohen to guide them in this matter, but the clerk is also warning about the financial feasibility. He thinks the compromise he proposed is the best option.
Motion passed with Beerbower voting against.
U.S. Senator Jerry Moran Newsletter
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Schedule Your Chamber Coffee for 2026
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The Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office Daily Reports Dec. 16
FSCC Notice of Trustees Attendance at Events
More than three Fort Scott Community College (FSCC) Board of Trustees members may be present during a reception honoring outgoing board members on Monday, December 15, 2025 from 5:00 pm – 5:30 pm, but no official business will be conducted during that time. The regular board meeting begins at 5:30 pm.
More than three FSCC Board of Trustees members may be present during the end-of-semester employee dinner on Wednesday, December 17, 2025, from 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm, but no official business will be conducted during that time.
Juley McDaniel
Director of Human Resources
Fort Scott Community College
K-State to Host Calving School in Southeast KS
Southwind Extension District
Livestock Production Extension Agent
1006 N. State St.
Iola, KS 66749
Office: (620) 365-2242
Cell: (620) 473-3298
[email protected]
K-State to Host Calving School in Southeast KS
Program focuses on calving management and handling difficult births.
Kansas State University’s Department of Animal Sciences and Industry and K-State Extension’s Southwind District, Wildcat District, and Cherokee County will host a Calving Management School in Erie as part of a statewide educational effort preparing producers for the upcoming calving season.
The event will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 7, at the Neosho Valley Event Center, 321 N. Wood, Erie, Kansas. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m., and the meal and program will begin at 6:00 p.m. Producers are asked to register online at: https://bit.ly/SEKCalvingSchool2026 or call 620-244-3826. Thanks to the generous sponsorships from the Community Foundation of Southeast Kansas, Cleaver Farm & Home, Merck Animal Health, and Zoetis, producers can attend the program at no charge.
The program will cover overall calving management, including the stages of normal labor and practical tips for managing difficult calving situations. A.J. Tarpoff, K-State Extension beef veterinarian, said the goal of the program is to increase producer knowledge and hands-on skills to support more successful births when assistance is needed.
“We want producers to leave better prepared for calving season,” Tarpoff said. “We will discuss timelines on when to examine cows for problems, when to call your veterinarian if something isn’t progressing normally, and how to provide proper calf care during the first hours of life. It’s an excellent program for all experience levels.”
Dr. Tarpoff will also demonstrate the proper use of calving equipment using a life-size cow and calf model. Local extension agents will also cover Body Condition Scoring and a Calving Tool-Kit.
For more information, please contact Hunter Nickell, Livestock Production Agent, (620) 244-3826, [email protected].
The Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office Daily Reports Dec. 15
Two Pennies and a Nickel by Carolyn Tucker
Keys to the Kingdom
By Carolyn Tucker
Two Pennies and a Nickel
My normal routine is to go to my late-husband’s grave every winter, spring, summer, and fall, in addition to other special dates, to switch out the floral arrangements. He died on 02-21-2021, exactly two weeks after my 63rd birthday. Sometime later that year I found a nickel on his headstone. I knew someone had placed it there on purpose so I left it there. Four years later, I noticed two pennies had been added. My heart was warmed as I examined them and took note of the years: 2014 and 2018. I suppose the dates meant nothing to the individual who thoughtfully placed them there, but Jimmy was diagnosed in 2014 and 2018 was our last family vacation at our favorite spot in Gulf Shores, Alabama. People leave coins on a headstone to demonstrate that the departed are loved, appreciated, and respected long after their passing. The language of coins left on a loved one’s headstone is a time-honored tradition. I don’t have words to say what these coins mean to me — only tears.
It is a reality that one day we’re all going to exit this world one way or another. “And because by God’s law, death comes to men once and after that they are judged“ (Hebrews 9:27 BBE). When our appointed time comes, we won’t be taking anything with us, but we will leave our testimony and legacy behind. The most important thing we will ever do is accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord. And after that, it’s all about how we loved and lived like Jesus told us.
The words and music to “All That Really Matters,” written by Marcia Henry and recorded by Jeff & Sheri Easter, really sums up life in a few short words: “They’re talking about him, he isn’t even there. His best friends and family, what a way to show they care. Haven’t mentioned his money or the kind of clothes he wore. But they say he loved his family and he proudly served the Lord. All that really matters when it’s all said and done, all that really matters when your time to go has come — Did you know Jesus, and show Him to anyone?”
Jesus is the best at presenting a straightforward message; the parable of the rich fool is no exception: “Then He [Jesus] told them a story: A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don‘t have room for all my crops.’ Then he said, ‘I know! I‘ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I‘ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I‘ll sit back and say to myself, ‘My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?‘ Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.” (Luke 12:16-21 NLT).
Jesus is not speaking against being wealthy; he’s telling us to be wise in handling our abundance. And He’s advising us to work at keeping our priorities straight by daily walking with God like Enoch and being God‘s friend like Abraham.
The Key: What we do while living affects our best friends and family forever. Think about that.