Monthly Archives: October 2020

Obituary

Obituary of Robert Kibble

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Robert E. Kibble, 90, of Fort Scott, Kansas, passed away Monday evening, October 5, 2020, at Guest Home Estates. He was born May 4, 1930, in Uniontown, Kansas, the son of Donald Vance and Beulah (Ramsey) Kibble. He married Irene Natalie Hitchcock July 5, 1978, in Miami, Oklahoma. She preceded him in death January 24, 2017.

Bob served in the US Navy, and worked in Maintenance at the Farmers Co-Op.

Bob is survived by his son, Steve Kibble and wife Julie, of Fort Scott; two step-sons, Roy Daniel and Dale Daniel, Both of Bolivar, Missouri; two step-daughters Della Orender of Frontenac, Kansas, and Jan Daniel of Bolivar, Missouri; five grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, and his special friend Teresa Wunderly. In addition to his wife Irene, Bob was also preceded in death by his parents, two sisters, Donaldeen Rye and Sue Thorpe, a son, Alan Kibble, and a grandson, Jason Bolinger.

Following cremation, graveside services will be held at 1:00 p.m. Thursday, October 15, 2020, at the West Plains Cemetery in Fort Scott. Condolences may be submitted to the online guestbook at konantz-cheney.com.

Bourbon County, Business, COVID-19

Ponderosa Farm: SPARK Grant Recipient

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Chet Bowers moving produce on his farm.

Chet and Linda Bower received news that they are a recipient of the Kansas SPARK Grant.

The Strengthening People and Revitalizing Kansas (SPARK) Taskforce is leading Kansas forward in recovery from the effects of COVID-19. They are responsible for statewide distribution of the U.S. Coronavirus Relief Fund.

The Bowers own five acres northwest of Fort Scott, of which one acre is in garden produce.

The Bower’s grant will be used for repairing or updating farm equipment, Linda said. “The equipment must be repaired or purchased by Dec. 31, according to the grant.”

“This will allow us to effectively increase produce to supply to local people,” she said.

The Bower’s have been vendors at the Fort Scott Farmer’s Market for many years.

In addition, they supply produce to Papa Don’s Restaurant, Fort  Scott and Emory’s Restaurant in Missouri.

“Excess produce is donated to the Beacon,” Linda said.  “Also local assisted living facilities. We hate to throw anything away.”

The Fort Scott Farmer’s Market ends the last Saturday in October.

“Right now there is squash, tomatoes, watermelon, cucumbers, potatoes, zucchini, pumpkins, baked goods, pies, chicken, eggs, honey, and crafts,” Linda said.

The market is located on Skutbitz Plaza, in front of the Fort Scott National Historic Site, at the end of North Main Street.

The vendors set up shop on Tuesdays from 4-6 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon.

 

Chet and Linda Bowers on their Ponderosa Farm.
Bourbon County, Business, Fort Scott, Government

Future of Eco Devo In Bourbon County

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Jody Hoener, Bourbon County Economic Development Director. Submitted photo.

The following is a statement from Jody Hoener, the Bourbon County Economic Director, in regards to recent activities of the Bourbon County Economic Development Corporation.

For more info see:

https://fortscott.biz/news/bourbon-county-unification-committee-forms

“Currently, there are three economic developers in our community.  The City of Fort Scott employs two, with community and economic development directors, and Bourbon County employs me as the county-wide economic development director.

 

“Consolidating services between the City of Fort Scott and the County has been discussed in depth with departments like public works, human resources, and economic development.

 

A group of community members researched potential cost savings in addition to best practices as modeled by similar communities.

 

A recommendation was presented to BEDCO to develop a private/public partnership in order to consolidate economic development to one director, under a single entity, with broad representation from each of the six cities, the county, and taxing entities.

 

Bourbon County has committed to funding this position. I believe it is the hope that all entities, including the City of Fort Scott, will see the benefit in this model and participate likewise.

 

While I am fully aware that my current position will be eliminated, and have no preconceived notion that I will be gainfully employed in the new position, I fully support the decisions made by the county commissioners and BEDCO Board.  I have been encouraged to apply for the new position, along with other incumbents in Bourbon County, once it is posted.

 

The move is in the best interest of the entire community and is one step in the right direction toward building a better business climate.

 

Bourbon County

Ft. Scott Area Community Foundation Announces 2020 Grant Recipients

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NEWS RELEASE DATE: October 9, 2020

CONTACT: Carla Farmer, Chair –620-224-6500
Frank Halsey, Marketing Chair – 620-704-2730

FORT SCOTT– The Fort Scott Area Community Foundation announces the recipients of the
12th annual granting cycle. This year, $36,250 is being awarded to 18 non-profits in the
community.

Of the total amount, $5,000 is restricted to youth projects. In total, the Foundation received requests for grants totaling $73,146.

“We have the privilege of seeing the heart and soul of our non-profits through the review of their grant applications. We read their goals to meet the most basic needs of our citizens from food, to
clothing, to just keeping on the lights and heat. And then, we read applications that represent aspirational goals to improve the quality of life we all treasure. It reaffirms to all of us the importance of the work of the Foundation through its granting program”, said Gregg Motley, chairperson of the granting committee.

Applicants were required to provide proof of their 501(c)3 status in order to be considered.

Additionally, applicants responded to questions regarding their programming and how it responds to the specific needs of the community.

They also provided a plan for the sustainability of the project, groups with whom they collaborate, and a budget.

The 18 non-profits receiving grants include

U-234 third grade music program,

City of Ft. Scott
Fire Department safety trailer refurbishing,

Beacon,

KSU Extension Aging with Attitude expo,

Ft. Scott/Bourbon County Riverfront Authority walking trail enhancements,

CASA volunteer training during pandemic,

Lowell Milken Center Ft. Scott Front Line Heroes,

Special Olympics Kansas meals for athletes,

Bourbon County Inter-Agency Coalition rent/utilities assistance,

Fort Scott Community College Martin Luther King celebration.

Other agencies receiving grants are

Care to Share transportation vouchers,

Gordon Parks Museum Learning Tree Film Trail,

City of Ft. Scott/Kiwanis friendship swing at park,

Faith Christian Center school supplies for all Ft. Scott students,

Pioneer Harvest Fiesta fairgrounds seating,

First United Methodist Church Feeding Families In His Name,

U-234 first grade virtual community experience, and

Compassionate Ministries ID and winter warming project.

The funds for these grants are derived from interest earned each year from the Foundation’s unrestricted endowment. Currently, this endowment stands at $650,677.

“It is through the generosity of our community that the unrestricted endowment has grown significantly to where we are today,” said Carla Farmer, FSACF chair. “The principal from this
endowment is never touched allowing the interest to be used in its entirety for grants to our
hardworking non-profits.”

The Good Works Forever Campaign, which begins in November, is the primary way in which citizens can contribute to the unrestricted endowed fund. For more information on how to make a gift to the Campaign call 620-224-6500 or visit fsacf.com.

A complete listing of the grants is available on fsacf.com.
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Bourbon County Sheriff's Office, COVID-19

Confirmed COVID-19 cases at Bourbon County Law Enforcement Center

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Wm K. Martin, Sheriff, Benjamin E. Cole, Undersheriff
Office of the BOURBON COUNTY SHERIFF, 293 East 20th Street
Fort Scott, Kansas 66701
[620] 223-1440 (office) or [620] 223-0055 (fax)

October 9, 2020

Bourbon County announces 33 confirmed cases at the Bourbon County Law Enforcement Center. This includes 24 inmates and 8 correctional officers and one deputy.

Testing for all residents and staff was completed this past Tuesday (October 06, 2010).

The Bourbon County Law Enforcement Center officials has been in consultation with officials from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) on next steps to address these circumstances.

As a result of that consultation with KDHE, the following steps were implemented:
• Outline any movement of residents
• Additional testing will take place as we continue to work to control the spread
• Bourbon County will remain diligent in monitoring other staff and residents for symptoms

The Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office will continue to provide services to the public when called.

Fort Scott, Government

Five Openings On Board of Fort Scott Parks Committee

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  • Five openings (Five City residents)

The function of the Fort Scott Parks Board Committee is to provide suggestions to the City Manager and Governing Body regarding all the parks within the City of Fort Scott.

If you have a desire to serve on this board and meet the above requirements, please submit a letter of interest to the City Clerk, Diane Clay, 123 S. Main, Fort Scott, Kansas 66701. The names will be submitted for consideration to the City Commission. All of the boards and commissions serve on a volunteer basis and are not compensated. If you would like more information on this board, please contact Diane Clay, City Clerk at 620-223-0550 or [email protected]. Please submit your letter of interest by October 30th, 2020.

Opinion

After COVID Passes by Patty LaRoche

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Patty LaRoche

After this Covid-19 virus passes, I hope we learn a few things.

Like the importance of saving. Proverbs 21:20 offers advice we cannot discard. The wise store up choice food and olive oil, but fools gulp theirs down. According to Bankrate.com, more than one in five Americans don’t save any of their annual income. For those who do, twenty percent have put back only five percent or less of what they make. What would have happened if our government had not bailed us out? My widowed mother raised three of us on minimum wage. She believed in putting a little money away each month “for a rainy day.” The day she received her paycheck, she set aside her tithe. If she did not have enough money to purchase something, we went without, including a television and a car. We rented until she saved the cash to buy a home. She never had a credit card. Had this virus hit when we were young, we probably would have been much better off than some of my friends’ families…you know, the ones with the impressive homes, the Country Club memberships, and, oh yes, a huge amount of credit card debt.

I am grateful that we live in America where Uncle Sam is looking after us. My Hispanic friend from Mazatlán recently sent an email sharing that, since the Mexican government is doing NOTHING to bail out businesses or individuals, people are figuring out ways to help each other. She shared that fishermen catch fish and offer them to anyone who was hungry. Department stores host giveaways. “If you need something, take it; if you could donate something, leave it.” My friend ended with this: “By my place 3 days ago a lady was passing by, yelling, ‘Tamales, 2 per person for free.’ Senora Patty, this kind of things make my heart feel good.”

We in America could learn from our Southern neighbors.

Proverbs 6:6-8 encourages us to learn our saving habits from the lowly ant: “Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.” The Bible has much to say about saving. For one, our money is not ours; it is God’s. In times such as this, how nice would it be to help our neighbors because we had “stored” some provisions and not lived above our means? Instead, I’ve met too many Americans who save only to relax when their working days are over. A leisurely “Retirement” becomes their payoff, yet even Jesus admonished the person whose goal was to save in order to have a comfy life instead of taking care of real needs as a thank-you for God’s provisions given to them.

In Luke 12: 16-21, Jesus shares a parable about a rich man who had so many crops, he tore down his barns and built bigger ones to store his grain and goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” But God said to him, “Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

Christians, saving for retirement should not be self-centered. It should be the time when we devote ourselves to serving others.

Please don’t get me wrong. I am grateful that we live in the United States where businesses can be saved and families can eat because of the bail-out. I just hope that when this virus is over, we all might rethink our financial priorities and learn from the lowly ant…the wise, working, lowly ant.

Bourbon County

American Legion Oratorical Contest

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The American Legion Oratorical Contest exists to develop deeper knowledge and appreciation for the U.S. Constitution among high school students.

The overall national contest winner gets a $25,000 scholarship. Second place takes home $22,500, and third gets $20,000.

The American Legion assigns new topics based on Constitutional Amendments each year and all contestants must use the assigned national topics in their orations.

Your Fort Scott American Legion is seeking Bourbon County students to participate in a program to prepare for the February 2021 Fort Scott oratorical competition.

Interested students must be in grades 9 – 12 and can be enrolled in public, private or homeschooled.

Ideally, each oratorical contestant should be willing to meet one Saturday morning a month through January and present both an 8 – 10 minute prepared oration and a 3 -5 minute assigned topic to three judges, who will evaluate their orations and provide feedback to prepare for their next presentation.

There is no reason why a local Bourbon County student, with preparation, cannot go all the way to National for the top American Legion oratorical prizes.

The American Legion Oratorical competition is unique in that competitors can compete each year until they graduate high school or win the national competition.

Any student who is interested in participating in the local American Legion competition should email American Legion Post Commander Carl Jowers at 620.215.1688 or email him at [email protected] for more information.

 
Bourbon County, Elections

Deadline To Register to Vote is Oct. 13

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Deadline to register to vote in the November National Election on November 3rd, is October 13th.
You can register to vote at the County Clerk’s Office, online at many websites.
BUT if you assistance to register, have any questions or concerns on residency, where to vote, former or pending criminal charges, your registration status – ANY CONCERN YOU HAVE THAT PREVENTS YOU FROM VOTING please call us at 620-222-0075, leave a confidential message with at least a phone number where we can reach you.
TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE but you may also write us at Advocates, P.O. Box 1009, Fort Scott, KS 66701, and we can assist to find answers at NO COST.
This is not legal advice nor is an attorney-client relationship implied. All information will be private and confidential.
Submitted by Michael J. Hoyt