Micheal Bryant spoke to the commission about the forensic audit the commission voted to conduct 3 weeks ago.
He referred to his question at the last meeting regarding a completed audit on the sheriff saying that the document given to him by commissioner Mika Milburn-Kee was “more of a distraction than anything.”
“There’s been no audit completed,” he said.
After multiple emails to all the commissioners, he received no response. He said that the vote taken 3 weeks ago on the forensics audit was based on inaccurate information provided by Commissioner Samuel Tran.
“This group are the only people that can hold each other accountable,” he said. “It’s incumbent on you guys to bring that back to the table with the additional information and do an additional vote on it, in my opinion. I don’t know how else to hold dishonesty accountable.”
Brad Matkin, Fort Scott City Manager, updated the commission on several changes in Fort Scott.
The Value building has sold and the new owner will start hiring in 2027, planning to bring in 60 jobs initially and more over time.
Last week the city entertained a manufacturing company from California that made an offer on the Timkin building. The company is expected to bring in 200 new jobs to the area, as well as expanding the building.
“They are a true blue manufactoring company,” said Matkin, similar to what Timkin was.
The Moody building is in the process of being donated to the city once the title paperwork is complete. An investor is considering turning it into either apartments or a hotel.
“Hopefully we can get that eyesore taken care of and turn it into a beautiful building,” Matkin said.
He also praised Mary Wyatt for her help in getting these companies to come look at the properties.
“We are very excited,” said Matkin about the new businesses moving into the area.
Executive Session K.S.A. 75-4319 (b)(4) – Motley
The executive session lasted 30 minutes and included the five commissioners, County Attorney Bob Johnson, Pamela Lenier, Rick James, Tim Shallenberger, and Brad Matkin.
Upon return to regular session, Commissioner Gregg Motley moved to allocated $10,000 for legal and title work fees to explore legal action based on a county contract. Commissioner Joe Allen seconded.
Milburn-Kee said she wants further discussion before allocating funding. Tran agreed and said they need to collect more facts before allocating the funding.
Commissioner David Beerbower agreed that the situation is critical and more information will probably come out as this thing moves forward.
Motion carried, Milburn-Kee and Tran voting against.
Senator Tim Shallenberger updated the commission on Kansas State Senate actions that directly affect the county.
Changes include a change to contract law; form changes with the State of Kansas for cities of fewer than 35,000; raising the competitive bid requirement limit to $100,000; Kansas Sport Tourism grant program establishment; increase in penalties for driver cell phone use in construction zones; several election bills that affect the county clerk; and a bill affecting the treasurer.
Asked the commission to give him a letter for the secretary of transportation to increase the speed limit between Pittsburg and Fort Scott.
Also mentioned regulation of pharmacy management companies that will help independent pharmacies and increase in scope of practice for optomotrists.
“I wish that Bourbon County could take a deep breath,” he said. He gets more calls about Bourbon County that both of the other counties he represents combined.
Stronghold Update
Adam from Stronghold Data reported that currently the county’s core systems are all stable and under active monitoring, with security tooling across the board, and a 98% security score in the Microsoft 365. After a full hardware inventory across the county, a handful of machines are scheduled for updating.
Regarding the project Stronghold was hired to do for the county, network segmentation is beginning to be implemented. They are working with the phone server and the criminal justice department.
Initiatives to highlight include configuring the conference room to better support the public live streaming. Also moving everyone to an official .gov domain for emails and the county’s website address will build trust and professionalism with the public.
“We feel that the county systems are more secure and better documented,” than a year ago, he summarized.
Tran had the Stronghold representative confirm that the project his company has been working on for Bourbon County is complete and is now in the “maintenance phase.”
Charles Gentry is a member of the Emergency Room Sales Tax Monitoring Committee, appointed by the commission. The committee’s job is to make sure that the 1/4 cent sales tax is used for the purpose of funding the emergency room.
Gentry said that 2025 taxes collected per the Kansas Department of Revenue totaled $549,675.12, in addition to the dedicated emergency room use tax of $156,053.54 for a total of $705,728.66. Those funds are in Bourbon County Fund 399. There was already money in there prior to January 1, 2025, as taxes were collected for the emergency room starting in October of 2024.
Payments to Freeman Fort Scott hospital in 2025 totaled $710,909.75, leaving $53,609.94 in the fund.
He said his committee would provide a quarterly report at the end of May.
“The promises made with respect to the emergency room sales tax have been kept. And the money is going where it needs to go and is being spent appropriately in funding the emergency room,” he concluded.
Executive Session K.S.A. 75-4319 (b)(1) – Job Performance – Allen; Five commissioners, Bob Johnson, and Sheriff Bill Martin.
Returned to session, no action.
Department Updates Payroll – Motley sponsoring Walker
County Clerk Susan Walker represented employees to the commission, speaking on their behalf to support a fair and equitable work environment for Bourbon County.
Walker said that several departments in Bourbon County have tried to work with the commission on these issues behind closed doors only to receive bribes or a response telling them that that’s just the way it is for everybody.
Walker claimed that many employees who report directly to the commission are in fear of losing their jobs.
“It seems that doing this publicly is the only way for a resolution,” she said.
She began by recounting January 18, 2022 meeting minutes where she and other employees talked to the county commission about sick leave policies. At that time the county was still struggling with Covid-19 and the need to hire more employees. New employees had to wait 7 months to use sick leave and to accrue vacation time, which affected single mothers working for the county. The commission asked her to take it back to the department heads to discuss options. Bobby Reed and Alvin Metcalf were both affected by moving from exempt to non-exempt status, which was addressed by a resolution the commission approved.
Walker explained that resolutions are used to enact laws where no state laws address the subject. Resolution 6-22 was adopted on Jan. 1, 2022 to replace the language in the 2002 handbook and was followed until Walker handed off payroll to the executive assistant to the commission, Laura Krom, at the end of December 2025.
The county commission passed resolution 51-25 on Dec. 18, 2025 stating “Any remaining vacation or sick leave will carry over at the end of 25 for the 26 fiscal year.” This was discussed at length and done to not adversely affect employees during the transition to the new policies in the handbook, according to Walker.
Currently, employees with two full years of employment with the county have their vacation is frontloaded after the second pay period of the year. The amount is based on the employee’s most recent hire date. This year, several did not have the correct amount frontloaded to their vacation and were told that an internal audit was being conducted on records due to the information not properly coming over during the conversion from the clerk’s office running payroll to Payentry.
“I have many department heads that will attest to these statements I am making,” said Walker. She said that the employee information was put in by Payentry personnel.
“It is easy to cast blame on my office for clerical errors. However, this commission rushed the transition of the payroll…and most recent accusations help me understand why,” she said.
Currently employees are locked out of being able to view their vacation or sick leave; and adjustments were made to their time without any communication to the employee about what was happening or why.
On 2/9/26, resolution 6-22 was repealed. This was not made to retroactively take away sick leave from employees, but that still happened to employees hired in 2025.
ON 12/2/2025, Walker’s office printed out accruals of vacation and sick leave, employee files, all date and time stamped, which match the spreadsheet that she gave to the commission at that time.
Walker ran a report on 3/30 showing accrual balances are inaccurate.
According to the Kansas Department of Labor, accrued vacation is considered wages once it has been earned under an agreement or policy, and retroactive reduction of accrued vacation balance is generally viewed as an illegal withholding of wages. The same applies to sick leave, such as that earned under resolution 6-22, said Walker.
Under Kansas KORA laws, a county commissioner does not have the authority to unilaterally access or examine an employee’s personal records that are otherwise closed to the public. Currently a sitting commissioner, the commission’s executive assistant and another unauthorized county employee all are not keeping with the KORA laws regarding county employee records, according to Walker.
Before the payroll was completed, on Nov. 13, 2025, the clerk’s office printed off employee records to audit them. During this audit four employment dates were identified that needed to be addressed. On March 30, 2026, her office again printed the same report and identified 21 employees with an altered hire date.
This is important because hire dates are used to match resumes when calling up employment history, and for calculating KSPERS retirement and benefit eligibility.
In the Payentry system, hire dates are changed to most recent position change date, regardless of original hire date, affecting the employee’s accruals.
The employees affected by changes to their accrued vacation and sick leave were in attendance at the commission meeting. Walker said that 41 county employees have been affected by these issues.
“From 2016 to the present, the county has had numerous different payroll clerks,” she said. They handled records various ways, but all changes and the person who made them were recorded.
“For months my office and other offices have over-communicated to this governing body to get silence. If silence is your way of responding to the retention of employees and treating them fairly, then maybe you should resign your position,” she said.
The county employees deserve communication at the very least, she said.
“These employees deserve better,” said Walker as she handed the mic to employees in attendance.
One said that a retroactive handbook was unprecedented and current employees should be grandfathered in.
Another said he had an executive session with the commission to get his leave issues straightened out. He said that after 16 years working for the county, he is being treated like a 2-year employee. He is receiving silence from the commission. He spoke to the HR department and they recommended an hourly increase in his wages.
“I’m not fine with accepting a monetary, hourly increase in my wages. I want my time,” he said. His family ended up cancelling a cruise they had booked because of the errors in vacation time accrual. He claimed that he had earned 160 hours of vacation time prior to Jan. 1.
“Somebody swallow the pride pill and just do what’s right for the employees,” he said. He then thanked Susan for advocating for the employees.
Tanner O’Dell, public works employee, said his Feb. paystub has 13 hours of sick leave removed. He said he spoke to Laura Krom, the commission’s executive assistant, who told him she was told to block out the employees while she was making the changes.
“Who told her to do that?” asked O’Dell. Tran said he didn’t know.
Lora Holdridge, Register of Deeds, called Payentry for a problem with her own hire date, which is off by more than 10 years. Payentry told here they are only allowed to communicate with commissioner Mika Milburn-Kee and Laura Krom. Holdridge has asked Krom to fix it five times, as she is nearing retirement herself.
Holdridge pointed out that Milburn-Kee is not supposed to have access as a commissioner, and Krom doesn’t have the training she needs to handle payroll. She suggested that payroll go back to the clerk’s office.
Commissioner Tran said he hears a lot of issues and problems that are specific to them. He said that a supervisor failed to correctly identify a double overtime, which delayed payroll last week and Krom had to fix it.
Tran said he doesn’t believe someone is purposely messing up the system. He dealt with four pay issues last week that were caused by human error, either supervisor or employee. “Either way we fixed it,” he said. He went on to defend the Payentry system.
Walker asked to speak again, claiming he was saying false things.
“A lot of people have said false things tonight, Susan,” replied Milburn-Kee.
Commissioner David Beerbower asked for a 3 minute recess to make copies.
An argument between Walker and Tran ensued.
Tran began collecting details from employees who have issues with their vacation and sick leave accruals.
One employee pointed out that it’s wrong to retroactively enforce the new employee handbook policies and take away their vacation and sick leave. He suggested a motion be made to remove the retroactive portion.
Beerbower made a motion allowing all county employees to access their time entry and make additions and subtractions until the end of each pay period, as they do with the Sheriff’s Department and EMS. This would be instead of clocking in and clocking out. The supervisor still has to approve the time card.
Motley seconded.
Milburn-Kee is concerned with the errors that would be generated, adding to Krom’s load.
Tran expressed concern with unintended consequences of making this change.
Motley said he gets five emails about Payentry for every one he gets about another issue every pay period.
“It’s ridiculous. We have to change the way we’re doing things,” he said.
Another employee suggested that supervisors should be given training on Payentry.
Commissioner Joe Allen pointed out that there’s obviously an issue as nearly half of the county employees were in attendance at the meeting.
Terry with EMS said that not allowing the county employees to put in their own time makes it look like the commission doesn’t trust the employees.
Tran said that it’s not about trust, but having standards.
He then declared he would abstain from the vote because he doesn’t know enough about the issue yet.
Payentry also has issues with the time clock program.
Motion carried with Milburn-Kee voting against.
Beerbower moved that all sick and vacation time be made visible to the employees. Motion carried unanimously.
Beerbower then motioned that the chair contact Krom with the changes. Motion carried unanimously, Tran abstaining.
Beerbower has been working on a resolution. He read it in the meeting. It includes front-loading vacation at the beginning of the year with a carry-over maximum of 200 hours. Excess vacation for employees with 10 or more years of service may convert up to 40 hours of unused vacation to sick leave.
Sick leave hours for full time employees will be front loaded as well at 80 hours for the year. Sick leave has no carryover limits, but 180 hours is the maximum collectible.
Beerbower suggested basing their years of service on their longevity pay received at the end of 2025.
Motley asked how the resolution will impact the missing vacation and sick leave hours employees are currently dealing with. Beerbower said the resolution would frontload all those benefits.
There will be no payout of sick time and vacation if employees leave the county before retirement age.
Tran asked what would happen if an employee burned through his vacation and sick leave and then quit.
Beerbower said his resolution is a proposal, but he recognizes it needs work.
“We shouldn’t be doing this as a deep dive. This, to me, is a fix to the problems that we’ve got now,” he said.
Terry with EMS said she approved Beerbower’s resolution and the employees in the room clapped.
Beerbower asked Bob Johnson, county attorney, to look over the resolution.
Beerbower said that his understanding of Kansas labor laws leaves it all up to the county to make employment policies.
Motley said his desire is to restore everyone to the levels they had Dec. 31, 2025.
An audience member pointed out that the last resolution the commission passed in 2025 was to carry over leave earned.
Another one mentioned that the hire dates need to be corrected.
Beerbower asked that the human resources department train department heads on the handbook and that Payentry come do a work station time to fix the problems employees are having.
The north wing, east side of the Bourbon County Courthouse.
Public Comments
Susan Walker, County Clerk
Elections: Commissioners for Districts 1, 3, and 4 are on the ballots for this year and all the clerks in the townships of Bourbon County, as well as one precinct committee man in each precinct and one precinct committee man for each of the political parties.
The deadline for candidates to file is June 1 at noon. The primary will be held Aug. 4 for the precinct positions.
Commissioner David Beerbower asked about deadlines for adding questions to the ballot. Walker said she would find that information for him.
Accounts Payable Process for Internal Controls:
Walker gave a handout to commissioners to point out to the commissioners some controls to add to the county’s accounts payable process. The first is to have the commissioners sign the vouchers they are asked to review. The chairman signs the checks.
If there are issues with things not being filled out properly, the clerk’s office will ask the departments to resubmit them for coding purposes.
“In the future if we have commissioner expenses … we will just send those to the commission and you can just have your administrative assistant fill out the information and code it how it should be coded,” said Walker.
“We are probably going to be a little bit more strict in the process,” she added.
Commissioner Samuel Tran asked why the commission’s administrative assistant would code for accounts payable. Walker explained that all the other departments do their own coding of bills.
“We may need another assistant,” said Commissioner Mika Milburn-Kee.
Walker offered to continue to code the commission’s expenses.
“I asked one question. I don’t need to open up Pandora’s box, thank you very much,” replied Tran.
Walker asked if the commission wanted her office to continue to code their expenses. Tran said he would take it under advisement.
Micheal Bryant
Last week it was mentioned that there was an external audit done on the sheriff’s department. Bryant requested a copy of that audit through the clerk’s office, but was told there was no audit completed.
“Am I missing something that’s not public that was referenced?” he asked.
Milburn-Kee handed him a document (KORA Audit). He asked if it was a completed audit. No commissioners answered.
“Until I read this, I’m going to go under the assumption that it was not completed,” Bryant said.
He then referenced a 2021 audit with three discrepancies in the sheriff’s accounting where they had 100% control of those accounts, in violation of KS281004.
He said that excluding the sheriff’s department from an audit, knowing there is a history of issues doesn’t make sense.
Empirical evidence that there is fraud afoot should go to the sheriff’s department, he said, not cause the commission to spend thousands of dollars on an audit.
Then he referred to previous allegations that went through a sheriff’s investigation and referral to the county attorney and on to the state attorney general who determined that there was no fraud in that case.
The commission refused to respond to his questions about the accuracy of his recounting.
“We continue to have discrepancies in some of the facts that are presented. From a commission, that’s a huge issue. Obviously you guys can’t interact with the public, you can’t even answer emails, can you?” Bryant asked. “I would challenge this commission….to reopen the audit that was voted on last week and….at a minimum to include the sheriff.”
“How do we get a response from a commissioner on a question that we have? Do I need to be a part of the neighborhood club? What has to happen here?” He concluded.
Commissioner Joe Allen offered to take his call at any time.
Sewer Discussion with County Attorney James Crux
The commission conducted a work session about the sewer problem, however several county residents with an interest in the topic attended the regular meeting.
Tran summarized the work session saying that the codes are “very hard to enforce,” and the issue has not been resolved. They discussed adopting a new code making non-compliance a Class A misdemeanor. It would require a trained employee to enforce.
“It may end up going to the planning committee,” Tran said. “We are working the issue.”
Crux said that some civil suits have been filed about this issue as well.
Milburn-Kee said that there is also a possibility of adding assessments to properties. “Which gives a little bit of motivation to fix those things.”
Executive Session K.S.A. 75-4319 (b)(1) Subject: Employee Performance – 5 commissioners, Terry Halsey, Leslie Heron and Jennifer Hawkins for 30 minutes. Motion for session carried with Milburn-Kee opposing.
Returned to session no action.
Reentered for another 5 minute session.
Returned to session with no action.
Department Updates Clerk, Treasurer, ROD, County Attorney – Courthouse Space and Destruction of Property
County Attorney James Crux asked for clarity about the basement clean out project. Beerbower clarified that files, maps, and historical books are not included in the clean out.
Crux asked who is moving the items and where they are going.
Beerbower said that any department wanting to keep their items is fine, but the goal is to “create space where space can be used.”
Crux also clarified that the evidence room is not in the list of places to be cleared out.
Commissioner Joe Allen said the plan is to consolidate the items and then asking various county departments to take what they need before disposing of the rest. The majority of the items in question are desks, chairs, and cabinets, as well as items left behind by previous tenants of a building the ER department now has use of.
Allen asked for a week to get loose ends tied up before going ahead with moving the items.
Old Business
SEK Juvenile Detention Contract
The commission moved to end the contract last year, it was too late to end it at that time. The new commission needs to decide their action regarding the letter that will official end the agreement.
Bourbon County is part owner of the detention center, has about $450,000 in equity in the center, and pays $130,000 per year to remain part owner.
Motley mentioned that the Sheriff thinks the letter of termination should be signed.
Tran read the letter and the commission decided to bring it back at the next meeting with updated dates and commission names.
Commission Comments
Motley: Will attend the SEK RPC board meeting this week.
Allen: Stay positive and remember the meaning of Easter.
The north wing, east side of the Bourbon County Courthouse.
The commission concluded their work session on county goals to inform the budget process just before beginning their regular meeting.
Work Session Notes
Commissioner Samuel Tran read through notes.
The purpose of the work session was to discuss goals for the county.
Commissioner Mika Milburn’s goal was to lower the mill levy, proposing a 10% cutoff.
Commissioner Gregg Motley’s goal is to restore trust in the employees, the public, and the financial market.
Commissioner Joe Allen agreed with both of those positions.
Commissioner David Beerbower’s goal is to reduce property taxes by 15% and to rebalance the county’s services, including proactive road maintence and adding a recycling center.
Tran wants to maintain current tax rate, add in a cost of living raise for county employees, modernize the county’s procedures and processes, modernize equipment and standardize the county’s inventory, modernize staffing, modernize zoning and codes, and streamline the budget process. In addition, he said the commission should be keeping track of all that is presented at their table.
After reading over those notes, the commission discussed the possible need for more work sessions to refine goals further.
Mr. Parks – There’s still a lot of trash blowing out of those trucks heading to Iola. He suggested tarping it up a little better.
Parks then thanked the commissioners for their time and effort.
“I think you’re doing a fabulous job,” he concluded.
Department Updates
Culvert Permit Tuchscherer 874 210th – Kenny Allen, Public Works Director
Beerbower made a motion to allow the public works director to handle culvert applications without seeking the commission’s approval. The motion carried, Tran voting against.
ADM Agreement Transfer Station – Kenny Allen, Public Works Director
In 2025 the county lost about $4,000 on the bean program. If they continue with the same amount they will loose $34,000 because of the need to buy a tractor to turn the beans with annual payments of about $30,000 per year. They need a tractor that is 120 HP with creeper gears to go slow enough not to destroy the transmission or clutch.
“I don’t see why we’re doing this,” he said. “To get on board and do it right, we need to get sawdust from the Amish, which is free – no big deal – but it takes seven guys, a skid steer, a loader, five dump trucks, and five to seven days, when it’s available.” They also have to haul manure from Fort Scott Community College. All of these components are necessary to properly compost the beans.
“Without the tractor we took in $73,343 last year in beans, but it costs us $7,416.” he said.
Kenny Allen said that dedicating someone to the flipping the beans reduces the number of workers available for all the other jobs at the transfer station. Tran said that it will take an additional employee to water and flip the beans. Historically the beans have stayed behind and the process was never complete.
“I’m asking you to do away with it,” said Kenny Allen to the commission. He said that the people who work out there also want to do away with it. He said they have plenty of dirt, which is preferable to the beans in his opinion.
Tran agreed.
Beerbower asked how much the county is paid to use the beans, because it would have to be enough to pay for a fifth employee and a new tractor.
Kenny Allen also said that the rest of the landfill equipment is in poor shape and it doesn’t seem wise to pour so much money into the bean system.
Beerbower made the motion to stop doing the bean program. Motley seconded it. In discussion, Milburn said she would want outside counsel before making the change.
Motion carried with Commissioner Joe Allen and Mika Milburn opposed.
Next, Kenny Allen, Public Works Director, mentioned that they had to take a load of trash to Arcadia for a cost of $1,602 because the regular place in Iola, Allen County was closed due to wind. The cost of that same load at Allen County would have been $630. He said that if the wind is closing their regular drop off, they will have to close the Bourbon County Transfer Station as well in order not to completely blow their budget.
Milburn asked how closing due to wind serves the people. Beerbower suggested raising rates for the Bourbon County Landfill if the Iola location is closed. The commission decided that it was logistically impossible to make that change.
Kenny Allen also brought up the need for a new excavator, as all the parts for the one they currently have must come from Korea. He said he has spent $30,000 on it to get it ready to remove the overburden from another blast at Blake Quarry.
He found a 2019 excavator with 4,000 hours on it for a yearly payment of $34,000 at a 4.9% interest rate. It can be paid for from the sales tax and road and bridge, $17,000 from each account per year.
Motley asked if he had checked with local banks to see if he could get better rates. He offered to call the five banks in Fort Scott that could bid on it and see if they can beat the 4.9% rate.
Commissioner Joe Allen moved to allow Motley to make those calls, followed by a brief meeting of the commission to vote on the lease agreement.
Motion passed with Milburn voting against.
Old Business
Elevator Package – Tran
Tran said he spoke to Otis and they are going ahead with to “roll with it.”
Vending Machine Placement – Allen
Commissioner Allen said that after discussing it with those who work in the courthouse, consensus was to install a new machine on the first floor of the courthouse, where more people will use them.
Title IV-E County Reimbursement Opportunity – Motley
Asked permission to apply for the grant which covers 23% of the cost of foster care services for children in need of care including attorney’s fees and social workers. Motley said there’s a substantial number of children in need of care in Bourbon County.
Beerbower moved to allow him to apply for the grant and the motion carried unanimously.
Audit RFP – Tran
Tran read a list of potential person’s of contact outside the county, which included several law enforcement personnel from counties in the region.
The commission said they preferred going with best value rather than sealed bids. Tran then explained how the best value method works.
Motley said he has a problem with Baker Tilly bidding, as they drew up the RFP. Tran said they would deal with that at the time of the bid. Motley also has a problem with a county employee being the point of contact. He suggested choosing someone like Kaety Bowers, Republican Party Chair for Bourbon County, since she is outside the system.
Tran asked the vice-chair of the Republican Party, Tim Emerson, who was at the meeting, if he would work with Bowers on the process. Tran had already spoken with Bowers and gotten her verbal consent. Emerson also agreed.
Motley was concerned about the hourly cost of a “fishing expedition,” and suggested the commissioners list the transactions they want audited instead.
Allen expressed a like concern regarding cost and the idea of a fishing expedition as well as using Baker Tilly.
Tran said the minimum cost estimate he was given by Baker Tilly is $20,000.
Motley motioned to use the Greenwood County Sheriff, Heath Samuels, as the outside POC on the recommendation of Bourbon County Sheriff Bill Martin. The motion carried.
Tran then moved to be allowed to start the RFP process using the following dates:
Issue date of April 6.
Deadline for written questions of April 20.
Answers will be due April 27.
Proposal due date will be May 4.
Intent to award will be May 18.
Allen asked why the Sheriff’s department and corrections were not on the list of auditable departments per the RFP. Tran said that those departments had already been audited by Baker Tilly. Allen then said if they are left off, he wants to know why the others are included. Tran said that would drive up the cost of the bid.
“I think everybody should be listed,” said Allen.
The motion carried with Allen voting against.
Update on Benefit District on 190th St. – Motley
Kenny Allen said the price the county quoted the neighborhood to improve their road was $144,000. That information was shared with the residents and they did not get back to the county with a decision. Motley said he would tell his constituent that.
New Business
Hay Bids – County Clerk
Susan Walker said she would post it and then the county would take sealed bids to be opened April 20th in the commission meeting. The Elm Creek location has been removed from the list of available locations because of its proximity to the quarry.
Future Agenda Topics
Intent to terminate contract for Juvenile Detention Center in Gerard
Auction
Work session for sewer
Commission Comments
Joe Allen: A bus driver sent her thanks to public works for cleaning up her route so quickly.
Also, he attended the CORE Community graduation and was very impressed with the program.
Clint Walker: Walker said he has been attending county commission meetings for decades and is distressed by the condition of the flags at the courthouse. They are in shreds.
“You all set the standards. You all let me down,” he told the commission.
County Clerk Susan Walker: Walker addressed the commisison about personnel records. Citing Attorney General Opinion 94121 on whether an individual commissioner has statutory authority to look at “otherwise discretionally-closed personnel records,” she said that the authority to do so is given to the board as a whole, but not to individual members. The opinion continued by saying that elected officials in the state of Kansas have the right to keep their own personnel files, which are “often exempt from public disclosure requirements.”
In addition, Attorney General Opinion 2003-15 talks about the authority of county commissioners to adopt budgets, but says that they should not be allowed to micromanage the employees of other elected officials, which would render those officials’ authority meaningless. If the commissioners target the pay of an individual employee in elected office, intending to improperly affect the employment status of the particular employee, it would exceed the county commissioners’ authority, per the Attorney General’s opinion.
Walker then requested that all past and present personnel records be forwarded to her office. She will send any payroll changes to the payroll clerk.
Sheriff Bill Martin: Asked for permission to speak to Payentry directly about issues with his employees.
Department Updates
EMS Update: Teri Hulsey, EMS Director
KRI has removed what they want from the building that EMS is supposed to have access to. It still has a lot of stuff that needs to be moved out to make it usable. Commissioner David Beerbower said there are plans for an auction forthcoming.
Cintas
A representative from Cintas came to discuss providing the hygiene products in the courthouse bathrooms. He said he can save the county 10 percent over the current provider, Osborn. This would be in addition to the mat service Cintas already provides for the courthouse.
Commissioner Mika Milburn said she would be in favor of letting the building maintenance crew make the decision.
Vending Machine
Bernard Streeter, operator of SNS Vending in Fort Scott, manages vending machines on the second floor of the courthouse near the county attorney’s office. He said he is loosing more products on them than he is making money. He wants to pull them and suggested putting a combination machine on the first floor instead.
The commission decided to collect information and work on the issue in the next meeting.
Old Business Sewer issue
Kaety Bowers spoke with the commission about the communication she has received for the state of Kansas regarding sewage seeping into and in some cases being drained directly into the lake. She represents an HOA spanning two counties, Bourbon and Lynn, at the lake.
Bowers said there is only one septic pumping service on the lake. There are 30-40 homes in the neighborhood that are not getting pumped. At least one is draining directly into the lake. KDHE is pushing the HOA to do something about it, but they have no authority to assess code violations. Because of their bylaws, the soonest they can make any changes is 2033.
KDHE is adamant that Bourbon County needs to prosecute, she said.
Based on the $200/day fine currently in place, there is potentially $7,000 per day in fineable sewer violations in Bowers’ neighborhood alone. She said that adds up to $2.5 million over the course of one year.
Commissioner Gregg Motley said that the solution is for the commission to ask the county attorney to enforce the state statute.
Bower ssaid she recognizes the challenge of enforcing codes in the county.
Tran confirmed Bowers’ information regarding the unpumped homes.
“As county officials, we need to make sure that we are doing what we are supposed to be doing to safeguard the lives of people in this county,” he said.
“Sounds like we need to work on our resources, quickly,” said Beerbower.
“We will try to do something about it,” said Tran to Bowers.
Audit RFP
Tran passed around a draft of an RFP (Request for Proposal).
Motley and Beerbower each requested to table it for a week to evaluate it and make the decisions about details of the RFP. The point of contact is the commission’s administrative assistant.
They voted to table it until next Monday.
Salary Resolution – Gregg Motley
There was a transposed number on one of the salaries. The correction was made.
CIC Hardware Support
Computer Information Concepts provides the accounting software for the county. The commission approved paying the cost of $2,500 annually to cover the installation and maintenance on all machines at the county that need it.
Auction update
Commissioner Joe Allen said he is planning to come through the county building and confirm with everyone that they have marked the items currently stored in the basement that they want to keep for their departments. Then he will look at ways to auction the remaining items.
“I’m assuming that by doing this auction, we’re going to open up space,” said Allen.
“I need to identify how much stuff we have to do an auction,” Allen said.
New Business ADM Agreement
Public Works Director Kenny Allen said the transfer station doesn’t have the equipment to turn the beans and cover the trash. The tractor has been at the repair shop since last June, and they have been making do with a backhoe.
Allen suspects that they are being given more beans then they need. Allen said they loose money when transferring tires.
The commission discussed changes that need to be made to the county’s contract with ADM and updates the landfill needs.
Allen will come back next Monday with information for the commission about the suggested changes and updates.
Property Tax Relief – 1111 Beech
Voted to approve 100% of the value of the structure for abatement.
Title IV-E County Reimbursement Opportunity
Commission moved to have Motley look into it and report back at the next meeting.
Commissioner Comments
Mika Milburn thanked the board for their willingness to work together.
Joe Allen said he thought communication went well this week within the county.
Samuel Tran thanked everyone for working together to get the county’s business done.
When approving the accounts payable, Commissioner Mika Milburn moved to change the listing for $54,542.03 called Commissioner’s Wages to be labeled as Walker Settlement, since that’s what it is.
Jennifer Hawkins, County Treasurer and Susan Walker, County Clerk, both explained that it cannot be changed because it’s already been processed and the name of the account the money is paid from is called Commissioner Wages.
“It’s run through accounts payable because you process payroll outside of accounts payable. So you would have to void it and reissued it,” said Walker.
Commissioner David Beerbower said he had received questions from constituents about the same item in the accounts payable.
“We make about $4,000 between the five of us in a pay period,” Beerbower said.
Commissioner Samuel Tran offered to clarify, saying that the payment is not commissioner’s wages, but a pay out of a settlement.
Public Comments
County Clerk Updates
Susan Walker read a statement to the board and the public. She welcomed a review of the claims made against herself and her office. She said she welcomes transparency and they will fix any clerical errors that are found.
“You will not find manipulation of numbers and you will not find my office illegally processing payments,” she said. The allegations of illegal activity are unfounded and serious, especially when made to law enforcement.
Walker went on to explain that she has documents and recordings pertinent to the allegations of the commission, but advised that they be heard in executive session. (PDF of documents presented.)
Mike Wonderly
Wonderly said he does not believe cutting the commissioner’s pay is the right thing in light of all that is going on in the county. He offered respect to Beerbower for standing by his original position.
“Sometimes we need to remind ourselves that we don’t always need to go with the lowest bid,” he said. He said that the amount of time involved in serving as a county commissioner deserves adequate pay.
“I am concerned that reducing the pay of commissioners could discourage good candidates from running in the future,” he said.
Owensby
Owensby thanked the commissioners and other courthouse people for their patience. He thanked Motley for bringing forth the comprehensive audit plan, which will build public trust.
“Please keep up the honesty, the transparency, and the try,” he said.
He invited those who are critical of the commission to run for the office themselves.
Executive Session K.S.A. 75-4319 (b)(1)
Five commissioners and Laura Krom, 10 minutes, returned to session, no action.
Department Updates Public works- hard surface road plan
Milburn expressed concern about the lack of a hard surface road plan this year, in light of the county’s 1% hard surface road tax.
She said the commission needs to offer Public Works Director Kenny Allen help and support since he is new to the position and no longer has a second in command who is familiar with the county.
Beerbower said that the previous Public Work Director brought his hard surface road plan to the commission for approval in late April of 2025.
Since the county was unable to complete most of last year’s hard surface road plan, Milburn suggested they start with that plan and modify it as needed for 2026.
Commissioner Gregg Motley said that the 1% tax represents the priorities for the county.
Tran said the county’s asphalt tank is not repairable, which has taken some months to find out. Thus the county can either purchase asphalt somewhere else or lay down chip and seal.
Motley and Commissioner Joe Allen said they would like to see last year’s hard surface roads plan.
They decided to schedule a work session with Kenny Allen.
Old Business 108 w 2nd listing
Beerbower moved to lower the selling price of 108 W. 2nd and adjacent property to $170,000. Motion carried unanimously.
Salary Resolution
Commissioner Joe Allen brought up some information he collected from six different counties similar to Bourbon County: Lynn, Allen, Neosho, Anderson, Cherokee and Labette counties all have three commissioners. They all offer their commissioners benefits and pay them in the range of $21,000 to $29,700 annually. They all have either the county clerk’s office or an HR department as support for the commission.
Allen said that if those counties chose to go to a five-member commission and split the pay among the five, it would be about $15,000 per year for each commissioner.
“I think that should be taken into consideration if we’re looking at changing salary for us here,” said Allen.
“Most five-person commissions are in bigger counties,” he said.
Allen said that he has received a lot of feedback from his constituents saying not to change the commissioner’s pay. Tran said that he has heard the same message from lots of people. Motley agreed that he had heard the same thing.
Tran read a resolution setting annual salaries for elected and appointed officials.
MIlburn moved to approve, Motley seconded.
Beerbower then read a statement going over the history of the move from three to five commissioners and maintaining his position.
Motion passed with four voting for it and Beerbower abstaining.
Forensic Audit POC
Tabled until Sheriff Bill Martin is available to discuss the issue.
New Business
KORA (Kansas Open Records Act)
Beerbower said it appears that there’s a war going on regarding who is responsible and how KORA requests are processed in the county.
He and Motley both said that KORA requests should be handled entirely by the clerk’s office, since that’s where all records are kept.
Requests for records not kept in the clerk’s office would be forwarded by the that office to the appropriate department.
Tran said that the commission’s administrative assistant is part time. He expressed concern about her getting inundated and keeping her from her primary duties.
“I understand the law says 72 hours, but she’s not the POC (Point of Contact) for KORA,” he said.
Beerbower pointed out that the taxpayers foot the bill for KORA requests.
Jennifer Hawkins, County Treasurer, said that the new Sunshine Law has changed the allowable charge on KORA requests and the county should rework it’s fee schedule accordingly.
She also said that all KORA requests do need to go through the clerk’s office because those requests themselves are “requestable” so the record of them needs to be with the clerk.
$26,000 Walker Settlement Invoice
Commission voted to allow Tran to sign it.
CODE Red with Louella Howard Emergency Manager
Code Red is the public emergency alert system the county has used historically. Howard asked to switch to Genesis Alert System. Code Red currently costs the county $11,577 annually, split with the City of Fort Scott.
A three year contract with Genesis would be $15,465 for the entire three years, and could also be split with the City of Fort Scott. The Emergency Management budget can cover it.
The motion to change carried, full cost to be covered by the county.
Future Agenda Topics
Tran said the commission needs to hold a work session for county goals. He asked each commissioner to come to the table with at least three goals. This would be both for the budget purposes and to focus the efforts of the commission.
Beerbower said they need to have a work session with the elected officials to collect information about who has access card readers and access cards and clean it up for the future.
They scheduled a hard surface road plan work session for 4:30 PM Monday, March 23.
Commissioner Comments
Gergg Motley attended the SEK RPC board meeting last week. Bourbon County’s one loan with them is now current.
Joe Allen gave kudos to the courthouse custodial staff, who helped him today.
Commissioner Samuel Tran passed around the stacks of checks he, as chairman, is supposed to sign for review by the other members of the commission. He said that is how he intends to do county business as long as he is chair. The commissioners all approved the checks they reviews and the Accounts Payable in the amount of $437,772.71.
Public Comments
Nick Graham from Uniontown said he felt compelled to speak by information gathered from Facebook regarding accusations of waste, fraud, and abuse made by the commission. A private citizen posted two letters from the commission to the attorney general’s office detailing these accusations.
Graham said the commission should immediately vote to put out an RFP for an independent forensic audit of payroll to be conducted by a vetted firm with no previous connections to the county to head off accusations of bias. The report should be made available to the public. The public should also be informed whether or not the attorney general or the county attorney has found any of the accusations to be actionable for prosecution as soon as the commission is notified. The cost of the audit may be significant, but compared to the loss of public trust if it is not done, it is a cost worth incurring.
Graham also warned from his own experience that citizens who are passionate and willing to speak out need to be cautious about posting anything to social media on behalf of any political figures that those figures aren’t willing to post themselves.
Kyle Parks came to show his support the commissioners, especially those who had been serving longest. He believes they should be paid. Tran ran for office saying he would not be “one of the good old boys,” and Parks is grateful that he has not been.
He also said of those who attend commission meetings but only have negative things to say about the commission, “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.” Respect and courtesy are still needed.
“I think that’s ridiculous,” he said of citizens demanding resignations and recalls because of their disagreements with the commission.
“I think our commissioners are … trying to do their best for Bourbon County and it is much appreciated,” he concluded to applause from the gallery.
Dan Doherty from district 5 asked if the citizens remembered the challenge of getting the commission to five commissioners rather than three and how hard the worked to accomplish it. Concerning the call by some for certain county commissioners to resign or for a recall, he likened it to “calling for us to suffer from a shortage of commissioners for our county” with no way to know if the replacements will be any better than those in office now.
“It takes us in a backward direction,” he said. Complaints are counter-productive. He called the conflict within the county “relatively minor administrative friction points,” that happen in all kinds of organizations. He encouraged the commissioners not to get caught up in that game but to keep doing what they are doing and keep moving forward. More applause followed his comments.
Mike Wonderly: Commented on the attacks on commissioners Milburn, Tran, and Beerbower. He said that they are making decisions in open, unlike previous commissions. All three of them were voted in by healthy margins.
Wonderly was disappointed at the hypocracy of those who attacked the commission last week. He pointed out that jumping on Tran for his “feelings” comment, but letting Register of Deeds Lora Holdridge call Beerbower names in an open meeting without reprimand is a double standard.
“I may not agree with every decision these commissioners make, but they were elected to ask and deal with tough issues. I just think we should let them do the job the voters elected them to do,” he concluded to further applause.
Department Updates Sewer – Matt Quick, County Appraiser
There is no training required for codes enforcers in the appraisers office at this time. The current codes officer has done online training.
Tran confirmed that the code requires a county permit for those who update their septic systems. New septic installs give a drawing of the system to the county to file.
Tran also asked what keeps people from modifying their systems without getting a county permit.
“We have no way of policing that,” answered Quick.
NRP – Matt Quick
Quick gave a brief explanation of Neighborhood Revitalization Program tax rebates. The rebate is is determined by the property’s value increase based on what improvements are made. The checks were problematic this year due to problems with CIC (the county’s accounting software). Quick has to go back through all 242 NRP’s in Bourbon County and recalculate them to make sure they are accurate.
“This is an across the state issue for whoever has CIC,” said County Clerk Susan Walker.
“We appreciate everybody’s patience with this,” said County Treasurer Jennifer Hawkins. She said her office is double-checking what’s already been checked to make sure everyone receives the correct amount.
Appraisal update – Matt Quick
Appraisal values are locked in for 2025, but for 2026 there’s still time for changes. The appraised value went up $45 million in total across the county, with the majority of homes seeing approximately a 7% increase in valuation.
County Clerk Updates — Susan Walker
Candidate filings are due June 1. July 14 is the deadline to register to vote or update voter registrations in order to vote in the primary. A full calendar will be available once the county gets more information from the secretary of state.
The county has been through a KPRS (Kansas Public Employees Retirement System) audit of the entire employee pool for 2024 and 2025.
There were minimal errors totaling 0.009%. Walker praised her employees for their work on payroll. “My payroll clerk did a really good job,” said Walker.
Old Business Salary Resolution – Beerbower
This annual resolutions requires review by the Kansas Board of County Commissioners. Commissioner David Beerbower took responsibility for the tardiness of getting the resolution handled.
While the previous commission, which put forward the proposition of moving the county from three to five commissioners said that there would be no salary increase, that was not the language in the question on the ballot when it passed.
Beerbower said that while he was in favor of going to five commissioners, he cautioned those whose only concern was cost to vote against it.
“I’m not in it for the money. I didn’t do it for the money. But I do agree that we should get paid,” he said.
Beerbower acknowledged that he is the only remaining member of the board of commissioners which said they would accept a reduction in pay. He stood by his original promise and said he would take a 40% cut, from $21,416 to $12,849.
Commissioner Joe Allen spoke first, saying that he didn’t know the position was even paid when he offered to take the job. His question was what will happen to the money that would not be spent on commissioner salaries if they vote the reduction in.
Beerbower said that there’s a pay increase schedule in the works for county employees but it won’t be ready for 60 days. He suggested creating an employee salary reserve fund inside the general fund to begin the pay raises.
“If its going to be moved somewhere, I want it to go to the employees,” said Allen.
Commissioner Mika Milburn proposed another resolution. She invited Beerbower to take on changing the salaries of some county officials back to what they had been in 2024, since he voted against the salary resolution that gave big increases in the 2025 salary resolution.
Beerbower said that those officials have had a whole year at the new salary level and it wouldn’t be good to change it back.
Milburn said she doesn’t want the position of county commissioner to be undervalued either and handed out a salary resolution for a different amount than Beerbower proposed.
Several members of the audience said they think the commissioners should be paid.
Sheriff Bill Martin spoke to the commission. “Shouldn’t this be a work session with the elected officials,” before being brought to a vote, he asked.
“As the sheriff, I carry the biggest liability of the county,” said Martin in argument against the pay reduction that one of options proposed for him.
“I can guarantee you: this is not right,” said Martin.
Allen asked the purpose of the chart Milburn had distributed, which shows a what a 40% reduction in pay would look like for various elected officials.
Beerbower explained that when the county went from three to 5 commissioners, the overwhelming majority of voters didn’t want to pay more for more commissioners. He took the combined salary of the three commissioners and divided it by five to arrive at the amount in his proposed salary resolution.
Beerbower first resolution only reduced the commissioners salary. He also offered a resolution that keeps their pay at $21,000.
Milburn presented a resolution with no one getting a pay cut and one where most of the departments take a cut, including the commissioners.
Tran said he considers the proposed salary resolutions “political gamesmanship.”
“I don’t want to make a decision that affects somebody after,” said Tran. He also pointed out that a pay raise wouldn’t go into affect until 2026.
“I think it should be status quo,” said Tran.
Michael Hoyt pointed out that the commission discussed the commissioners salaries during budget time.
Milburn moved to adopt a salary resolution leaving things as they are, “And if a commissioner wants to donate theirs back, they should do that.” Beerbower seconded.
Tran read the resolution aloud.
Commissioner Gregg Motley said that he remembered being told by Michael Hoyt that the plan was to divide the salary of three among the five before the county moved to a five-district commission.
Allen said he can see it both ways and is worried about getting good people to replace current commissioners in the future if the pay is cut too much.
The motion died; Tran and Milburn voting for, Beerbower, Allen, and Motley voting against.
Allen moved to table it for a week. Motion carried.
Forensic Audit – Gregg Motley
Motley moved to create an RFP (Request for Proposal) to look for an independent auditor to do a forensic audit on any transaction that the commissioners choose. He moved that longest tenured commissioner Beerbower and shortest tenured commissioner Allen work on the RFP.
Beerbower seconded it. Tran said he already had an RFP and didn’t want it given to Beerbower and Allen. His RFP was created by Baker Tilly. Motley said that the RFP needs to be created by an independent accountant if the resulting forensic audit is to be credible.
“This is about the community being comfortable with what’s going on in the courthouse,” said Motley. “I think the whole process needs to be independent all the way along.”
Motley said that he wants the “transaction that was blatantly public audited.” He also said that other commissioners can add what they want to have audited to the RFP.
Allen said he is ready to “move past it,” and if this is the next step then he’s for it.
“I don’t need to discuss it. I already know what I’m going to vote,” said Milburn, refusing to comment further.
Tran asked that they include categories of: cash receipts and disbursements, concerns raised through internal review whistleblower allegations, procurement and vendor payment abnormalities, grant compliances and allowability concerns, payroll and time-keeping irregularities, in what the audit covers.
Tran said he’s been working on it for a while.”I would like to take this and roll with it.”
Martin offered to find a law-enforcement officer from another county to be the point of contact for the auditor.
Motley amended his motion to include the Sheriff’s idea.
Milburn asked to table it for a week. Motley refused to pull his motion.
Motion carried: Motley, Allen, and Tran voting for, Beerbower and Milburn voting against.
New Business
Resolution 51-25, 06-22, 48-25 discussion – Joe Allen
Resolution 48-25 refers to the use of courthouse space. County Treasurer Jennifer Hawkins asked who had removed the use of key cards in the hall her office is on. There were multiple employees throughout the courthouse that couldn’t access her office space. Tran said no one authorized the change. When he had called Stronghold about it, they said it was working and then he heard back for county employees that it was working.
Clerk Susan Walker said they were told it was because of resolution 48-25 that access was restricted. Milburn said that no one had authorization to make a change like that.
Walker also requested an audit log of that day. Tran said that was reasonable.
He reminded everyone in the county that security and computer problems should be immediately referred to Stronghold.
Beerbower asked for a list of who has access so they can have a meeting with the elected officials.
“If we’re going to restrict it, then who are we restricting and why?” he asked.
51-25 and 06-22
These resolutions are regarding vacation and sick days. Allen said employees are finding that some of their days are missing, despite the resolution passed by the commission that they carry over their sick days from 2025.
“How do they get their time back?” asked Allen.
Tran said that they should do an executive session with the time keeper. He agreed with Terry from EMS, who said that employees should be notified when there are changes to their time.
Sixth judicial request: Picnic Area
Asked for permission to put a picnic area in behind their building.
Motley moved to allow it. Motion carried.
Culverts for 1152 Unity Road, Mapleton and 1130 Eagle Road, Ft. Scott
Approved.
Commissioner Comments
Motley thanked Rural Water District No. 2 for working to resolve the fire hydrant issue for those at Lake Fort Scott.
Allen thanked the Treasurer’s Office for helping him with a complicated question regarding his tag.
As spring break approaches, families across the Southwind District have a new reason to get excited. k_State Extension is rolling out Passport to Fun: Spring Break Edition,k an immersive, hands-on learning adventure designed especially for youth ages 7 to 12.
This four-day program invites young explorers to “travel the world” without ever leaving their community. Each session highlights four different countries and blends movement, creativity, science, and cuisine to give participants a rich, memorable cultural experience. From crafting and cooking to interactive activities and global discovery, the camp aims to spark curiosity and broaden horizons.
A Four-City Tour Across the District
To make the program accessible to families throughout the region, the K-State4 Extension team is hosting sessions in four different communities:
March 16 – Ft. Scott @Buck Run, 1010 Park Avenue
March 17 – Chanute @ City Park pavilion, 101 S. Forest Avenue
March 18 – Yates Center @ Community Building, 711 S. Fry St.
March 19 – Moran @ Iola extension office, 1006 N. State St.
Each session runs from 1-4 PM, offering an afternoon packed with global exploration and hands-on fun.
Encouraging Curiosity Through Experience
The program’s design reflects K-State Extension’s commitment to experiential learning. By blending physical activity, creative expression, scientific inquiry, and culinary exploration,k Passport to Fun gives kids a chance to learn in ways that fell like play. It’s an opportunity for youth to build confidence, try new things, and develop a broader understanding of the world.
Registration Now Open
Families interested in securing a spot can register online at the following link provided by K-State Extension: https://bit.ly/PassportToFunCamp. Space is limited, and registration closes March 10, 2026.
With its blend of education and adventure, Passport to Fun: Spring Break Edition promises to be a highlight of the season for young learners across the Southwind District.
Patty LaRoche. 2023. Author: A Little Faith Lift…Finding Joy Beyond Rejection www.alittlefaithlift.com AWSA (Advanced Writers & Speakers Assoc.)
“Rivers do not drink their own water; trees do not eat their own fruit; the sun does not shine on itself, and flowers do not spread their fragrance for themselves. Living for others is a rule of nature. We are all born to help each other. No matter how difficult it is…Life is good when you are happy but much better when others are happy because of you.”
The same day I read this quote from Pope Francis, someone sent me this post: “If God is making you wait, then do what waiters do. Serve.”
The photo to the left shows a man who stands outside the church Dave and I attend in Las Vegas. Faithfully, each Sunday, he is on the corner after the service, smiling to every exiting vehicle. Granted, he’s not on the stage preaching or singing, but his service is no less appreciated.
Ephesians 2:10 (TLB) says this: God . . . has made us what we are and given us new lives from Christ Jesus; and long ages ago he planned that we should spend these lives in helping others. I have met people who say they “serve” in their church. When I ask them how, they answer “by going to church” or “attending a Bible study.” Those are good things to do, of course, but that’s not the message Paul intended for the Ephesians.
What makes people prone to take care of their own needs and no one else’s? Fortune Magazine ran an article and referred to Faith Popcorn, a New York City marketing expert, as the “Nostradamus of Marketing.” Ms. Popcorn addresses a shift since Covid: “One of the major changes that is taking place in American culture is the ‘cocooning of America.’ It is looking for a haven at home – drawing their shades, plumping their pillows, clutching the remotes. Hiding . . . and everybody is digging in.”
Churches reflect this behavior as Christians choose to stay at home and “play it safe” on Sundays instead of obeying Hebrews 10:24-25 (ESV): And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
The bottom line is that we Christians must be inconvenienced for the Gospel. We must be willing to sacrifice so that others may come to know Jesus. Why is it so hard to think of others first, to remember that every person we see is someone Jesus thought enough of to die for?
Even praying for someone becomes an after-thought instead of an intentional, purposeful opportunity to bombard the thrones of Heaven to plead for them. And Heaven forbid we take the time to mentor someone with the good news of eternity. In Romans 10:14, Paul asks how people will come to believe in Christ. Answer: through us.
Three Scriptures in Romans pave the road to sharing the gospel.
1. 3:23—For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God
2. 5:8—God shows his love for us that while we were sinners, Christ died for us.
3. 4:4-5—Salvation can’t be earned (or else Jesus wouldn’t have died.) We need to believe in Christ.
Reread the quote by Pope Francis and ask yourself this simple question: “What is the best thing I can do sacrificially to make others happy?” I pray that leading others to Christ is at the top of your list.
Ticks are more than just a nuisance—they can carry diseases and,
in some cases, trigger long-term, life-altering health conditions
such as Alpha-Gal Syndrome. Join Southwind Extension to learn
how to protect your family and navigate life after an Alpha-Gal
diagnosis.
The program will feature two K-State experts:
Priscilla Brenes, MPH, Ph.D. will talk on how Alpha-Gal affects the body and nutritional strategies for managing life with AGS.
Raymond Cloyd, Ph.D. will talk on tick species, life cycles, and behavior, diseases associated with ticks, and prevention and personal protection tips
Whether you spend time outdoors for work, recreation, or everyday
life, this program offers practical, research-based information to
help reduce risk and increase awareness.
Monday, March 23
Fort Scott Community College
Ellis Meeting Rooms
6:00 p.m.
Call 620-244-3826 by March 20 to register.
Learn to make both drop and rolled biscuits while building
practical, from-scratch baking skills. This Southwind
Extension Food Volunteers class explores ingredient function,
simple techniques, and the benefits and tradeoffs of
homemade versus mix-based options.
Saturday, March 7, Noon – 2pm
First Southern Baptist Church
1818 S. Main in Fort Scott
$10 supplies fee
Contact Sandy Haggard to register:
620-365-2242 or [email protected]
The photo to the left shows a man who stands outside the church Dave and I attend in Las Vegas. Faithfully, each Sunday, he is on the corner after the service, smiling to every exiting vehicle. Granted, he’s not on the stage preaching or singing, but his service is no less appreciated.
