Bourbon County Inter-Agency Coalition — General Membership Meeting Minutes
November 4, 2026
Welcome: Seventeen members from seventeen agencies attended the meeting in the Scottview Apartments Conference Room.
Coalition Board News: Jalaine Davis is filling the open board seat. There will likely be another open seat soon on the Coalition Board. Reach out to Nick if you are interested.
Member Introductions and Announcements
Jennifer Gum-Fowler – Fort Scott Public Library: The library will have a variety of activities during Christmas on the Bricks. Staff have made progress on ongoing projects and hope to finish by year’s end.
Craig Campbell – Good Neighbor Action Team: GNAT builds wheelchair ramps with fast turnaround and no charge for labor, and sometimes donated materials. They also work with the codes department on yards. The E3 Foundation is seeking help purchasing a car for a client who needs transportation to work. Craig is also assisting a client possibly being taken advantage of by a solar company; contact Craig if you know of resources for either situation.
Becky Johnson – SEK MultiCounty Health Department: Welcome to WIC bags are available for new WIC clients (see attached flyer). The health department now offers DOT physicals. A new grant for a youth heart screening program will fund an EKG machine, providing free heart screenings for youth ages 8–23. Flu shots are also available.
Amanda Portwood – Ward/Kraft Corporate Recruiter: Ward/Kraft is hiring and expanding, with openings in production and sales accounts. They work with second-chance employees who are willing to work and remain clean/sober. Hiring packets are available from Amanda.
Kelly Stammer – Department for Children and Families: LIEAP begins November 30, with flyers coming soon and nine LIEAP events scheduled around southeast Kansas. Contact: kelly.stammer@ks.gov.
Janie Aita – Angels Care Home Health: Angels Care is focusing this month on patients with dementia/Alzheimer’s and can offer support and resources to struggling caregivers.
Rene Hibdon – Patient Resource Specialist, CHCSEK: Medicare and Marketplace enrollment is rolling. Rene works with moms and babies, and flu shots are available at CHC.
Jalaine Davis – CORE: Praise Fest was a success and CORE is already planning future events. CORE members will volunteer at Christmas on the Bricks, offering gift wrapping with donations benefiting the CORE program. The current CORE class is full with 20 participants.
Sandy Haggaard – K-State Extension: Sandy is offering a sheet pan meals program, recently working with CORE. A homesteading series is underway in Chanute this fall, and Sandy will lead a noodle-making program in Fort Scott on Saturday, November 14.
Theresa Amershek – Safehouse (CEVC): Safehouse held multiple activities last month for Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Star Culp – Parents As Teachers: PAT is a free early learning program for parents expecting or with young children, with one opening in the USD 234 school district area.
Janelle – Early Childhood Block Grant: No program updates. Janelle brought an example shoebox for the Operation Christmas Child Shoebox program; reach out with questions.
Michelle Stevenson – Fort Scott Early Childhood Program: Michelle works with families with children prenatal through age 6, encouraging child development, free of charge.
Shelby Moore – Families Together FAST Program: Shelby works with families of special needs children, assisting with the IEP process.
Shelly Tridle – Crawford County Health Department: Shelly leads a pregnancy maintenance program for expecting mothers.
Program: Christmas on the Bricks
Diane Striler, Christmas on the Bricks Chair, announced the event will run December 3–6 in downtown Fort Scott, marking its fourth year. It kicks off with the Christmas parade on December 3, followed by the lighting of the mayor’s Christmas tree. The goal is to provide reasonably priced entertainment for families and attract visitors to town.
Activities throughout the weekend include horse carriage rides, a synthetic skating rink, a hay climb, a fire pit with Adirondack chairs, a live nativity, a kids’ train ride, wreath making and painting classes, an outdoor movie sponsored by the library at the Lowell Milken Center, gift wrapping sponsored by CORE, multiple photo opportunities, a bake-off competition, Singo at Hometown Pub, a Sunday brunch at Crooner’s, live reindeer, a brick hunt, 3D printed ornaments and story time at the library, and a teen scavenger hunt sponsored by SparkWheel. Christmas characters will be walking around downtown throughout the weekend.
Visit fortscott.com/christmas-on-the-bricks to sign up or for more information.
The chamber is hoping to keep the skating rink open until February this year and is looking for groups willing to work the rink in exchange for a portion of proceeds on certain weekends.
Open Forum
Nothing further came before the coalition.
Adjournment
The next General Membership meeting will be December 2, 2026.
Community Flyers
Let’s Make Noodles! Join Southwind Extension Master Food Volunteers and Nutrition, Food Safety & Health Agent Sandy Haggard on Saturday, Nov. 14, 10 a.m.–noon, at First Southern Baptist Church, 1818 S. Main (US Hwy 69) in Fort Scott. $5 program fee payable that day via cash/check. Register by calling 620-365-2242 or emailing sjhaggard@ksu.edu. Limited to 20 participants.
Rooted & Ready: Practical Skills for Home, Land & Homestead — a hands-on learning series in Chanute led by Southwind District Extension agents and K-State specialists. Remaining sessions: November 10, “The Laying Line: Poultry for Reliable Food Supply”; Thursday, November 19, “Deep Roots: Soil & Forage Strategies for Resilient Farms.” Programs begin at 6 p.m. with a meal provided by Cleaver Farm and Home, at Central Park Pavilion, 2nd St. and Forest Ave. in Chanute. Call 620-223-3720 for information or to reserve a seat.
Welcome to WIC — the SEK Multi-County Health Department encourages pregnant women, new mothers, infants, and children up to age 5 to make an appointment to see if they qualify for WIC. New clients receive a Welcome to WIC bag with helpful items. Bourbon County Health Department, 524 S. Lowman St., Fort Scott, KS 66701, (620) 223-4464.
Now Offering DOT Physicals at SEK Multi-County Health Department locations, including Bourbon County Health Department, for CDL applicants and commercial motor vehicle drivers. Call your local health department to schedule: Bourbon County (620) 223-4464, Allen County (620) 365-2191, Anderson County (785) 448-6559, Woodson County (620) 625-2484.