Submitted by Angie Bin

“There will be Drama” was the theme of this year’s International Thespian Festival and the phrase proved true for 25 Fort Scott High School Thespian troupe members who were lucky enough to attend this year’s festival for free.

FSHS Thespian troupe #7365 was selected by the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA) as a 2017 Send a Troupe to Festival Grant winner. The festival at the University of Nebraska Lincoln, June 19-24, was $740 per student which included rooming and meals each day and admittance to all the shows, workshops and late night activities.

FSHS Junior Ally Heenan said, “It was an amazing opportunity to experience and I feel extremely lucky to have been able to go. I made many friends and I feel it brought our troupe closer together as a family.”

Having never attended festival before, FSHS qualified for the grant by completing an in-depth application and providing an administrative recommendation letter from Superintendent Bob Beckham. As grant recipients, the FSHS troupe was recognized in front of more than 4,000 students and troupe directors on the main stage during the festival.

According to EdTA, the festival is a celebration of student achievement in the performing arts and a one-of-a-kind, weeklong immersion experience in singing, dancing, acting, designing, directing, creating, writing and memory-making. Festival featured workshops presented by theatre professionals, individual and group performances, programs for technical theatre students, and opportunities to audition for college admission and scholarships. Some students travelled from as far away as China and Dubai to attend this year.

“It made me have more of a passion for theatre,” said FSHS sophomore Carlee Studyvin.  “Meeting people from all over the U.S. was something that I will never forget.”

FSHS Junior Mary Gladbach added, “It was so exciting to be surrounded by people who I could share my love of theatre with, we were all complete strangers, but we still felt connected because of our shared passion.”

Theatrical make-up design, specialized choreography, playwriting and improvisational acting were some of the most popular types of workshops among the Fort Scott troupe. FSHS Thespian President Hunter Adamson, junior, also benefitted from a special class on Leadership that she attended each day. Many students attended panel discussions over productions they saw and even met the musicals’ composers.

FSHS Thespian Director Angie Bin, FSHS English teacher Mark Bergmann, and parent chaperone Mindy Bartlett also attended the festival.

After serving as part of the team at Mercy Hospital since 2010, Dr. Amy Sachau worked her last day there on July 5, after deciding to transition away from full-time and work and closer to her hometown of Overland Park.

“We have felt so loved in Fort Scott,” Sachau says, adding the rural hospital was just what she was looking for after completing her family medicine residence. “It is an honor to have worked at Mercy Fort Scott, as I feel the focus truly is on the care of our patients.”

Sachau will be starting an employee health clinic for the Shawnee Mission School District, where she attended school. There she will be able to care for the large school district’s employees and their families while spending more time with her two daughters, age 8 and 10 years, and living within walking distance of her mother.

“It was an incredibly difficult, tear-filled decision,” Sachau says, saying she wants to take advantage of the time she has with her daughters as they continue to grow up. “My new position will be part time, and will not require working nights, weekends and holidays, so I can spend that time with my family.”

While looking forward to moving closer to home and spending more time with family, Sachau said she will miss the community of Fort Scott, its slower pace and the friendliness of the residents and hospital staff.

“I love my co-workers at Mercy, and in fact, this is the very hardest part of leaving,” Sachau says. “My staff bends over backwards for our patients—and for me—day after day, and I could never thank them enough.”

Mercy staff also spoke highly of Sachau and her care for her patients.

“It has been an amazing experience working for Dr. Sachau,” says Kyla Probasco. R.N., of the Mercy Clinic. “She has always provided exceptional care for her patients. Their love and appreciation for her has been very apparent the last few months and speaks volumes for her character.

“This community is really going to miss her. I consider it an honor to be a part of her team and have always been proud to say, ‘I am Dr. Sachau’s nurse.’ I am extremely sad that Dr. Sachau is leaving, but am so happy for her and her family and all of their future endeavors together.”

The Fort Scott National Historic Site began to celebrate Independence Day over the weekend with the Symbols of Sacrifice memorial displaying thousands of American flags placed in honor of every American soldier who died for the United States since the Revolutionary War.

Other demonstrations were also given to fort visitors Saturday by volunteers dressed in period clothing. Further events and demonstrations will be available for visitors throughout the day on Tuesday. See here for another FortScott.biz article for details on the schedule of events.

Volunteers from scout troops as well as families and other individuals placed the flags Thursday and the flags will remain in place through Sunday, July 9. Fort staff invites volunteers to help remove the flags Monday, July 10.

For a third year in a row, the LaRoche Baseball Complex will host a Fourth of July event, including live music, food and beverages, a guest speaker and fireworks, while raising money for three organizations providing support for combat veterans.

“A great cause, and you can support it,” Larry Gazaway said of the event during a recent chamber of commerce event.

Gates will open Tuesday at 5 p.m., while the opening act, the Barnstormers, will perform at 6 p.m. A double-amputee veteran will speak on the topic of the struggles veterans face and how people can honor and support them in gratitude for their sacrifice.

At 8 p.m., Jason Boland and the Stragglers will perform, before the night ends with a fireworks display.

Tickets remain available for the event, and range from $20 to $35. Funds raised will be used to support Heroes’ Sports, the E3 Foundation and Combat Warriors Inc.

After years of remaining in disrepair, and transferring from one owner to another, the building at 417 S. Main Street will be torn down, with the Fort Scott City Commission’s decision to go through with the condemnation during their recent meeting.

During that meeting, Autumn Durossette and her brother, Denver Mitchell, approached the commission with a desire to purchase the home, to try to repair it and then rent it out, as they have done with 13 other structures. While the commission expressed gratitude for the work they have done, they decided not to accept that request as the building was already condemned to demolition.

“I am not in support of rescinding your motion,” Codes Manager Rhonda Dunn said, adding she is grateful for the work done in Fort Scott by Durossette and Mitchell. “This house has been a struggle for us for quite a while.”

The home has suffered damage from two fires and has structural issues that have led to uneven floors. The fire department, in their inspections, also discovered some termite damage. Delinquent property taxes are also owed.

Durossette said she had a number of inspectors and contractors examine the house, located across the street from the Unified School District Education Building, and said they believed they would be able to correct the foundation and other problems of the home and make it attractive once more.

“They need work, but these bones are good,” Mitchell said of the base structure of the home, saying most of the work needed concerns surface repairs.

The commission decided to not take any action, thus upholding the previous condemnation, stating they trust their staff’s recommendation and do not desire to set a precedent of rescinding the condemnation of homes in Fort Scott.

The commission first approved the condemnation and demolition of the house in 2016, and it is now ready for demolition as the city received a bid. The file on the building’s code violations stretch back for more than a decade.