Monthly Archives: December 2019

Opinion

Use Me by Pastor James Collins

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Use Me

“…but stand thou still a while, that I may shew thee the word of God.” 1 Samuel 9:27b

I am lonely for your company. For the past few years, you have promised to spend time with me. This year was no different. Why do you let others take your attention away from me?

Most resent being used, but I don’t. I want you to use me.

Use me and I will be many things to you.

When you are weary, I will be your strong staff.

When you sit in darkness, I will be your glorious light.

When you are hurting, I will ease your pain.

Use me.

When you are discouraged, I will whisper messages of hope.

When you are carrying a burden, I will give you rest.

When you are confused, I will offer clear advice.

Use me.

When the storms of life rage around you, I will be your anchor.

When you are alone, I will be your friend.

When you need knowledge, I will be your teacher.

Use me.

When you are afraid, I will calm your soul.

When you are lost, I will help you find your way.

Take hold of me, I will keep you from stumbling.

Use me.

Use me. I am crying out for you to use me. Use me and I will change your life. Use me and I will change the lives of those around you. Use me and I can change the world.

I am the Bible. Long ago, you put me away. Over and over, you have said that you were going to bring me back into your life. Around the beginning of each year, you come back to me. But in no time, something else has your focus and you neglect me. A day becomes a week. A week becomes a month. A month becomes a year. Until I am no longer really a part of your life.

The point is: I want you to use me. I’m only asking for a few minutes of your time each day. Start now. I am right where you left me.

Pick me up.

Open me.

Use me.

James Collins is the pastor of Fort Scott’s First Southern Baptist Church. You are invited to join him and read through the Bible in a year. For more information visit the website fortscottfsbc.com.

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For Sale By Owner: Small House In Nice Neighborhood

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This house at 801 Meadow Lane is near the golf course in a quiet neighborhood.

At 1,200 square feet it packs in two bedrooms,  one bath, living-dining combination, utility room with an attached single garage.

There is a walk-in shower in the bathroom.

On the northwest corner of the house is a 13-foot by 13-foot deck.

There is all new carpet, and new not water heater with a new roof on the deck.

 

The Lennox air con/heat is fairly new.

The taxes are $1,600 a year.

$88,000 is the asking price for the small house in a great neighborhood. The sellers are asking for an offer.

Contact Leo or Arla Hartman at 620-223-9981 or 620-224-6897.

Obituary

Obituary of Vicky Lynne Nation

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Vicky Lynne Nation, 57, of Fort Scott, passed away Thursday, December 26, 2019 at Ascension Via Christi Hospital in Pittsburg, Kansas.

She was born in Fort Scott, Kansas, June 15, 1962, the daughter of Fred Allen and Connie Arleata (Hanna) Pettyman.

She is survived by two sons, Bryan Nation of Fort Scott, Kansas and Blayne Nation of Reno, Nevada, her mother, Connie Prettyman, a sister, Toni Reece and two nephews, Victor and Emerson Reece all of Pomona, Kansas.

The family will receive friends, 3:00 p.m., Sunday, December 29, 2019 at the Konantz-Cheney Funeral Home, 15 W. Wall Street, Fort Scott, Kansas.

All other services will be private.

Obituary

Obituary of Patricia German

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Patricia Ann German, age 82, a resident of Ft. Scott, Kansas, went to be with her personal Lord and Savior Thursday, December 26, 2019, at the Via Christi Hospital in Pittsburg, Kansas.

She was born February 21, 1937, in Triadelphia, West Virginia, the daughter of Albert Martin King and Ruth Pauline Rhoades King.

Pat married Norman Dean German on December 23, 1968, at Miami, Oklahoma.

Pat had worked at Peerless Products for over twenty years. She enjoyed crocheting and used this talent to make hundreds of hats for the burn unit at the Shriners Hospital.

Pat and Norman enjoyed traveling to various Shriners events especially parades. Pat also liked cooking and decorating cakes. Above all, Pat loved being a grandma to her three grandchildren, and made it her duty to faithfully pick them up after school. She was a past member of the First Christian Church and more recently a member of the First United Methodist Church as well as the Daughters of the Nile.

Survivors include her daughter, Dee Ann Davis and husband, Allen, of Ft. Scott and three grandchildren, Cody Allen Davis who is stationed at Al Udeid Air Force Base in Qatar; Jasmine Bradley and husband, Chad, of Ft. Carson, Colorado and Lee Patrick Davis, of Ft. Scott.

Her husband, Norman, preceded her in death on April 4, 2008.

Following cremation, Rev. Reed Hartford will conduct a memorial service at 10:00 A.M. Saturday, January 4th at the Cheney Witt Chapel.

A private burial will take place at a later date at the U. S. National Cemetery. Instead of flowers, memorials are suggested to the Mirza Shrine Transportation Fund. This money will be used to take children to hospital visits and can be left in the care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.

Fort Scott, Government

Fort Scott City Commission Special Meeting Dec. 30

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There will be a Special Meeting of the Fort Scott City Commission held at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, December 30th, 2019 at the City Hall Commission Room, 123 S. Main Street, Fort Scott, Kansas 66701. It is anticipated the City Commission will convene into Executive Session to conduct this meeting.

SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA

FORT SCOTT CITY COMMISSION

CITY COMMISSION ROOM

123 S. MAIN STREET

FORT SCOTT, KANSAS 66701

9:30 A.M.

I. ROLL CALL:

ADAMSON BARTELSMEYER NICHOLS MITCHELL PARKER

EXECUTIVE SESSION:

I MOVE THAT THE CITY COMMISSION RECESS INTO EXECUTIVE

SESSION FOR ________________________________ IN ORDER TO

(see below justification)

DISCUSS ______________________________________. THE

EXECUTIVE SESSION WILL BE ___________ MINUTES AND THE OPEN

MEETING TO RESUME AT ________________.

Justifications for Executive Sessions:

  • Personnel matters of non-elected personnel

  • Consultation with an attorney for the body or agency which would be deemed privileged in the attorney-client relationship

  • Matters relating to employer-employee negotiations whether or not in consultation with the representative or representatives of the body or agency

  • Confidential data relating to financial affairs or trade secrets of corporations, partnerships, trusts and individual proprietorships

  • Preliminary discussions relating to the acquisition of real property

X. MOTION FOR ADJOURNMENT: ROLL CALL

ADJOURNMENT:

Ascension Via Christi, Bourbon County, Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas, Fort Scott

CHC Looks At Feasibility to Preserve Mercy Hospital Building

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Krista Postai

“After almost a full year of providing services in Ft. Scott, the Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas wanted to take one last look at preserving the hospital building that was built to last through several generations. As you can imagine, transitioning almost 75 people and five clinics in a few short months was a very daunting task a year ago and, at the time, we were concerned about making it as seamless as possible. We were aware that our lease was only two years and that a long-term solution needed to be found and the easiest approach was to build from ground up. We have indeed started that process.

 

However, one can’t spend any time in Ft. Scott without realizing the impact the Sisters of Mercy have had on the community over the last century and how much their hospital meant to everyone – especially those who donated toward building it. With a year of history in the building, we thought it wise before we invested $5 million in building a new clinic, to evaluate what the actual costs of keeping the hospital building open have been. Without many of the services a hospital provides, the cost appears to have been far less than originally projected. In the meantime, there has been renewed interest in using portions of the space for health-related purposes as evidenced by the meeting held in Ft. Scott a few weeks ago.

 

As a result, CHC/SEK is doing a feasibility study to determine exactly what it will take to preserve the facility from destruction. We have approached the Mercy System about the possibility of acquiring the building and they have responded positively. At this point, everything is very preliminary and no formal ask has been made.

 

This is something we can’t do alone. We have also approached other possible major tenants in the building including Ascension/Via Christi and may have enough to sustain and maintain the facility. Again, everything is in the discussion stages with no firm commitments or contracts. We will also be talking with the city and county over the next few weeks. The last thing we want to do is raise false hopes so please know this is just an evaluation of what may be possible.

 

I will be presenting a recommendation to my Board at their January 16th meeting. Time is of the essence so a decision whether to formally approach the Mercy System for the donation must be made prior to February 1. Two building projects have already been initiated for a new clinic and an new ER and decisions have to be made quickly if we are going to reverse course.  That leaves little time to work out all the details and talk with everyone so my apologies to anyone who we may miss over the next few weeks.

 

We do want people to be aware of our efforts and will be happy to talk to anyone with an interest that we haven’t already spoken with.  The concept of a ‘medical mall’ is a promising one but, at this point, is only an idea. The best way to reach me is via email at [email protected].”

Submitted by:

Krista Postai

President & CEO

Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas

3011 N. Michigan

Pittsburg, KS 66762

 

 

 

 

 

Opinion

New Years and Complaining by Patty LaRoche

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Patty LaRoche

Do everything without grumbling and arguing, (Philippians 2:14 NIV)

Last month at church we were handed a paper leaf. On it, we were to write a list of things for which we are grateful. The elderly lady who handed it to me said that there was a problem. She had so many things to list, they never would fit into such a small space. She needed dozens of leaves. Author Max Lucado would love her outlook. He wrote this: “We live in an art gallery of divine creativity and yet are content to gaze only at the carpet.” Have you noticed that being thankful appears to be in short supply, while griping is plentiful? Grudgery and gratefulness daily compete for the attention of our thoughts, even though developing an attitude of gratitude has the potential to completely change the way our day will go. Picture two glasses, side-by-side. The larger glass is half-full, the smaller glass is full, and an arrow points from the larger to the smaller glass. The adage underneath speaks liters: “If you see your glass as half empty…pour it into a smaller glass and stop whining.” Ann Voskamp would agree. She wrote the book One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are, challenging her readers to list 1000 things for which they should be grateful. (I highly recommend her book.) Ann knows that sometimes that is not easy. As a child, she and her mother watched her young sister be crushed under a truck. Her mother ended up in a psychiatric hospital, and her father turned from God. As an adult, Ann stood beside her brother-in-law as he buried his first two sons. In spite of her setbacks, she chose to believe that God is joy, and on that she would rely. So, here’s the New Years’ challenge. At some time during each day, make a list of 10 typically-taken-for-granted things for which you should be grateful. Avoid the obvious like “family,” “health,” “a job,” etc. To make it a little more challenging, make it things from the past hour. Here’s my list, created this morning when I woke up: 1. A working thermostat 2. A morning devotional from my daughter-in-law 3. An indoor bathroom 4. A cup of coffee and a chocolate chip cookie (no comments necessary) 5. A quiet lake 6. A husband who wakes up and makes me laugh 7. A text from a friend celebrating her weight loss 8. A car that starts 9. Janice Allen organizing Pickleball 10. Buck Run

Let’s take it one step further. The next time you find yourself complaining, look for a blessing instead. For example, while shoveling snow, thank God that you have arms and legs, since many don’t. Thank Him that you have eyes to see the path of your shovel, and thank Him that you have a home with a sidewalk. Thank Him for a warm coat and snow boots and hot cocoa waiting for you inside when your job is finished. And thank Him for you being alive to thank Him. In the meantime, I am giving Him thanks for you readers who (most of the time) encourage me to keep writing. To God be all the glory for giving me this opportunity. May 2020 be filled with an art gallery of blessings for us all!

 

Government, Kansas

Why KDOT uses beet juice, how it works

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CAPTION: A KDOT truck sprays a brine/beet mix on Thursday, Dec. 26, on U.S. 56 between Larned and Pawnee Rock. Crews in that area were spraying bridges and other areas vulnerable to freezing in anticipation of possible ice and snow Friday morning. Beet juice helps brine stick to pavement.

When KDOT crews treat highways for ice, especially when it is the coldest, motorists might notice darker trails on the pavement instead of the usual white trails left by brine.

It’s beet juice. It tends to leave a brownish or grayish residue.

Here’s why KDOT sometimes mixes beet juice with brine (saltwater) that it applies to roadways to melt ice or to slow its formation.

–The properties of beet juice, when mixed with brine, allow the melting agent to be effective at lower temperatures. Based on the level of concentration, beet juice mixed with brine can help control ice when it is as cold as around 0 degrees.

Beet juice also allows brine and salt to adhere to pavement longer.

On bridges, which tend to get icy, beet juice bonds to the salt crystals in brine and helps the brine stick to a bridge deck longer, says Jim Frye, Field Maintenance Manager/Emergency Coordinator with KDOT.

Another beet-juice benefit, says District Five District Engineer Brent Terstriep, is that when beet juice is added to brine, the combination makes ice-fighting more efficient because crews don’t have to drive out as often to apply brine.

Frye gave this additional explanation of how beet juice works and how it has been used:

–As moisture on pavement starts to freeze, the juice slows the process so that the liquid remains slushy longer. That gives crews more time to clear highways before the liquid turns to solid ice.

–One problem with spreading salt or spraying salt brine on a highway is that it will bounce away or scatter with traffic or the wind. “When the beet juice is added to the salt or salt brine, with its sticky texture, it will hold the salt or salt crystals on the highway longer, allowing it to work in our favor,” Frye said.

KDOT began experimenting with the beet juice it uses now during the winter of 2015 in northwestern Kansas. Since then, KDOT has made beet juice available at more than 20 locations across Kansas.

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Government, Kansas

Juvenile Justice Reforms

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Annual Report on under Juvenile Justice Reforms Senate Bill 367 released

 

 

The Juvenile Justice Oversight Committee (JJOC), established under 2016 Senate Bill 367 (SB367) to oversee the implementation of reforms intended to improve the state’s juvenile justice system, has released its 2019 annual report.

 

The report presented annually by the JJOC to the Governor, President of the Senate, Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court is an assessment of the progress made in implementation of juvenile justice reform efforts. The report is also made available to the public at https://www.doc.ks.gov/juvenile-services/committee/2019-annual-report/view

 

“I would like to thank the JJOC for their continued stewardship of this essential work to implement these juvenile justice reforms,” Acting Secretary Jeff Zmuda, Kansas Department of Corrections, said. “Courts, local juvenile justice agencies, defense attorneys, prosecutors, law enforcement, educators, service providers, child welfare and KDOC have been steadfast in their work to ensure that Kansas improves the effectiveness of the juvenile justice system, and this report reflects successes in that effort.”

 

Three years into reform of the juvenile justice system, Kansas has established statewide standards to reduce disparate outcomes, prohibited out-of-home placement for lower-level youth, focused intensive system resources on the highest-risk young people and provided for sustaining effective practices through a process of oversight and reinvestment in evidence-based services in the community.

 

“Of the many improvements to our state’s juvenile justice system, I am most encouraged to see the continuum of resources that now focus on serving kids and their families in the community, instead of removing them from the home and hoping the family can change,” Deputy Secretary Hope Cooper said. “The system is improving as a result, as is reflected in the JJOC’s annual report.”

 

Several factors motivated state officials to craft the SB367 juvenile justice reforms. They recognized that filling beds in out-of-home placements with lower-risk children was out of step with research showing that residential commitments generally fail to reduce — and can even increase — the likelihood of re-offending. Limiting out-of-home placement to only those youth posing an immediate risk of harm to others or themselves would help focus intensive system responses and resources on the children who need them most and assist in breaking the cycle of incarceration. And reinvesting resources in evidence-based programs would better serve children, families and communities, and ensure more consistent practices, across the state.

 

The Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) has three members on the 21-person JJOC, which is made up of representatives from the legislative, judicial and executive branches of state government and local officials.