TOPEKA – A federal court in Texas ruled yesterday that money collected as part of Obamacare, known as the Health Insurance Provider fee, be returned to the states by the Federal government. Kansas and five other states were part of this legal action, in which $142-million was ordered to be returned to the state of Kansas.
“This is just another example of the monumental failure of Obamacare and the expensive toll it has taken on our state,” said Governor Jeff Colyer, “This fee has been illegally collected for far too long, and I am grateful to Attorney General Derek Schmidt for going to bat for Kansas and ensuring that a legal remedy was made for returning millions of dollars that should have never been taken from taxpayers in the first place.”
Attorney General Schmidt said in a statement earlier today that an appeal is likely, so the funds should not be counted just yet, but he feels confident in the strength of the case should it be appealed.
Fifteen 4-H members had the opportunity to represent the Southwind Extension District at the annual Kansas 4-H Livestock Sweepstakes at Kansas State University. Their skills and knowledge were challenged by participating in Livestock & Meats Judging, Livestock Quiz Bowl and Livestock Skillathon contests. Those attending were (from left to right) Front Row: Kolby Seested, Gavin Fry, Haydon Schaaf, Brody Nemecek, Jillian Keller, Clay Brillhart, Danielle Nading, Sadie Marchiano, Carla Nemecek, Coach & Southwind District Director. Back Row: Brooklyn Pruitt, Dylan Hazelbaker, Aidan Yoho, Kristy Beene, Gwen Fry, Carly Dreher and Zach Snyder.
SOUTHWIND 4-H MEMBERS WIN 3 STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS
4-H members from the Southwind Extension District excelled at the annual Kansas 4-H Livestock Sweepstakes event on August 18-19 in Kansas State University’s Weber Hall. Participants from the Southwind Extension District were Gavin Fry, Sadie Marchiano, Danielle Nading, Kolby Seested, Clay Brillhart, Jillian Keller, Brody Nemecek, Haydon Schaaf, Carly Dreher, Brooklyn Pruitt, Zach Snyder, Aidan Yoho, Kristyn Beene, Gwen Fry and Dylan Hazelbaker representing 4-H Clubs from Allen, Bourbon and Woodson Counties.
4-H members learned gained new knowledge and worked on livestock skills in order to be competitive in the Sweepstakes event which consisted of blending scores in four contests. Southwind Extension District completed the weekend by being named the 2018 Champion and 3rd Overall Kansas State 4-H Sweepstakes Teams. Top ten individual Sweepstakes winners for Southwind were Clay Brillhart 8th, Brody Nemecek 5th, Gavin Fry 4th and Haydon Schaaf was named High Individual Overall after excelling in all contests.
The Livestock Quiz Bowl started with a qualifying exam. The eight teams with the highest average scores advanced to the quiz bowl competition. Southwind #2 (Seested, Fry, Schaaf, Nemecek) was seated first after the test and was later named the Champion Quiz Bowl Team where they won the final match 265 points to 40 points. Southwind #1 (Nading, Keller, Brillhart, Marchiano) also scored well on the quiz and were seated as the #2 team.
The Livestock Judging contest consisted of nine judging classes and four sets of reasons with 227 contestants and 42 teams from across Kansas. Southwind #2 (Brillhart, Nemecek, Keller, Schaaf) was 1st in Sheep/Goats; 1st in Swine; 1st in Cattle and 1st in Reasons and named Champion Team Overall. Southwind #1 (Gavin Fry, Marchiano, Seested, Nading) was 4th in Sheep/Goats; 2nd in Swine; 2nd in Cattle; 2nd in Reasons and named Reserve High Team Overall. Individually, Clay Brillhart was High Individual in Swine, 4th in Sheep/Goats, 4th in Cattle, High Individual in Reasons and 2nd High Individual Overall; Kolby Seested was 5th in Swine, 10th in Sheep/Goats, 8th in Reasons, and 8th Individual Overall; Haydon Schaaf was 4th in Swine; Brody Nemecek was 3rd in Swine, 2nd in Sheep/Goats, 8th in Cattle, 5th in Reasons and 3rd High Individual; Danielle Nading was 2nd in Swine, 8th in Sheep/Goats, 3rd in Cattle, 3rd in Reasons, and 4th High Individual; Jillian Keller was 6th in Swine, 9th in Sheep/Goats, 6th in Cattle, 6th in Reasons, and 6th Individual Overall; Sadie Marchiano was 10th in Reasons. As the State Champion Livestock Judging Team, Southwind District will represent Kansas 4-H at the National Western Stock Show in Denver, CO next January.
The Meats Judging contest was based on the identification of thirty retail cuts, six placings classes and three sets of reasons. Haydon Schaaf was named 2nd in Retail ID, 3rd in Placings and 2nd High Individual Overall; Gavin Fry was 9th in Retail ID, 10th in Placings and 8th Individual Overall; Sadie Marchiano was 3rd in Reasons; Aidan Yoho was 11th in Reasons; Clay Brillhart was 10th In ID; Southwind #2 (Schaaf, Fry, Brillhart, Nemecek) was 2nd in Reasons, 2nd in Retail ID and Reserve Champion Team Overall. Southwind #1 (Keller, Marchiano, Nading, Seested) was 3rd in Reasons and 7th High Team Overall.
In the Livestock Skillathon, 4-H members rotated individually through stations that addressed six areas of animal science. Those included feedstuffs, breed identification, equipment identification, meat identification, and a written test. There was also a team component where members worked together on evaluating a performance Angus genetics scenario, understanding livestock biosecurity, and understanding issues in livestock reproduction. Individually, Brody Nemecek was 5th in the Practicum, 4th in the Exam, and 3rd Individual; Gavin Fry was 3rd in the Practicum, 1st in Exam, and 2nd High Individual Overall; Clay Brillhart was 10th Individual Overall, and Haydon Schaaf was 7th Individual Overall.
This group worked hard and studied a great deal of material to prepare for four state contests. Carla Nemecek, Southwind Extension District Director coaches all of these teams. To be named the Champion and Reserve Champion Livestock Judging Teams, Reserve Champion Meats Judging Team, Reserve Livestock Skillathon Team, Champion Livestock Quiz Bowl Team, and Overall Champion Sweepstakes Team at the state contests shows how hard these 4-H members pushed each other to “Make the Best Better.”
The Southwind District is proud of their accomplishments and looks forward to future growth and learning.
CELEBRATE LABOR DAY WEEKEND WITH FORT SCOTT NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE
Celebrate the Dignity and Importance of Labor, 1840s style
Fort Scott KS – Saturday, September 1 through Monday, September 3, 2018, Fort Scott National Historic Site (FOSC) will commemorate Labor Day weekend with artillery, horses, music, living history demonstrations and a series of interpretive programs. All programs are free.
Saturday, September 1st
10:00 a.m. “Flour, Sweat, and Tears”: 1840s Bakehouse Program
11:00 a.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demonstration
12:00 p.m. “Hardy Dashing Fellows” Dragoon Soldier Program
1:00 p.m. Guided Tour of Fort Scott National Historic Site
2:00 p.m. “Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: 1840s style” –Officers’ Wife Program (letter writing)
3:00 p.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demo
4:00 p.m. Flag Retreat
Sunday, September 2nd
11:00 a.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demo
12:00 p.m. “Saws and Scalpels: Civil War Medicine”
1:00 p.m. “Crack Post of the Frontier” Guided Tour-Construction History of Fort Scott
2:00 p.m. “The Griffith Trial: A Marais des Cygnes Conviction”
3:00 p.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demo
4:00 p.m. Flag Retreat
Monday, September 3rd
11:00 a.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demonstration
12:00 p.m. “Fort Scott Soldier Ants” 1840s Construction Demonstration
1:00 p.m. Guided Tour of Fort Scott National Historic Site
2:00 p.m. Musical Program-Holmes Brigade Minstrels
2:30 p.m. Free ice cream, served to honor all those who have worked hard to build America, courtesy of the Friends of Fort Scott National Historic Site.
3:00 p.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demonstration
3:30 p.m. Musical Program -Holmes Brigade Minstrels
4:00 p.m. Flag Retreat
The thunder of artillery will sound each day at 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. with a short program explaining how the gun is fired.
Other programs offered throughout the weekend are Guided tours at 1:00 p.m. and a flag retreat ceremony at 4:00 p.m. occur each day.
On Saturday, living history interpreters will be cooking in the mess hall and baking bread in the bakehouse with an interpretive program about the bakehouse at 10:00 a.m.
At 12:00 p.m. a program about dragoon soldiers titled “Hardy Dashing Fellows” and at 2:00 p.m. an officer’s wife will be sharing the latest gossip in the program “Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: 1840s style.”
On Sunday, September 2, in the program “The Griffith Trial: A Marais des Cygnes Conviction”, Park Ranger Robert Thomas will lead a reenactment of the trial of William Griffith, the only man to be convicted of the Marais des Cygnes Massacre.
Also on Sunday, you can learn about Civil War medicine in “Saws and Scalpels.”
“No work is insignificant. All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.”
This quote from Martin Luther King can be applied to the workers of modern times as well as those who labored to build and maintain Fort Scott.
A special tour on Sunday “From the Crack Post of the Frontier:” will focus on the labor force, building materials, architectural styles, and construction techniques used in the building of Fort Scott.
Programs on Monday, September 3 will include a Labor Day construction demonstration, musical programs offered by the Holmes Brigade Minstrels and free ice cream at 2:30 p.m., served to honor all those who have worked hard to build America. The ice cream is being offered courtesy of the Friends of Fort Scott National Historic Site.
FORT SCOTT, Kan. – If you’ve got a classic show car you’d like to show off, Fort Scott Presbyterian Village is giving you an excuse September 13. The senior living community will be hosting a car show from 4 to 7 p.m.
Shine up those whitewalls and polish that chrome because prizes will be awarded for first, second and third place winners. Come out and enjoy hot dogs, chips, and drinks while wandering through a collection of classic cars.
RSVP to Becky Kellum, marketing director, by Sept. 4 at 620-223-5550 or [email protected].
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Fort Scott Presbyterian Village has been offering independent and assisted living apartments for seniors from southeast Kansas and southwest Missouri since 1994. Learn more at FortScottPresbyterianVillage.org. It is a member of the nonprofit Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America network of 17 communities and 2 hospices in Kansas and Missouri. Learn more about PMMA at PresbyterianManors.org.
Earl Clifford Pritchett, Jr., age 78, a resident of Uniontown, Kansas, passed away Tuesday, August 21, 2018, at the Nevada Nursing and Rehab in Nevada, Missouri.
He was born April 20, 1940, in Bonneterre, Missouri, the son of Earl C. Pritchett and Etta Uleny Cooper Pritchett. Earl first married Mary R. Knapp on December 26, 1965. She preceded him in death on September 7, 2006. He later married Carole Ganer on December 12, 2008.
Earl had served with the United States Army and the United States Air Force and retired from the Air National Guard with twenty-three years of service. He later worked as a truck driver. He had attended the Uniontown United Methodist Church.
Survivors include his wife, Carole, of the home in Uniontown and his children, Danny Pritchett and wife, Christy, of Uniontown, Heather Culp and husband, Edward, of Wichita and Bryan Ganer and wife, Jennifer, of Liberal, Missouri; seventeen grandchildren and twenty great-grandchildren.
In addition to his first wife, Mary, he was preceded in death by a daughter, Connie Pritchett and a brother Daniel Frank Pritchett.
Rev. Marty Dewitt will conduct funeral services at 1:30 P.M. Friday, August 24th at the Cheney Witt Chapel.
Following funeral services, there will be cremation with burial in the U. S. National Cemetery in Ft. Scott.
Memorials are suggested to the Uniontown City Park Fund and may be left in the care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.
Christopher Petty, M.S. Extension Agent ,Livestock Production and Forage Management, K-State Research and Extension, Southwind Extension District, 210 S. National, Fort Scott, KS 66701, (620) 223-3720 Work, (620)224-6031 Cell, [email protected].
Join the Southwind and Wildcat Extension Districts, The Natural Resources Conservation District, and the Neosho County Conservation District for a Fall Burning Demonstration.
This event, free to the public, will be held at 2:00 p.m. on September 11th, with a rain date scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on September 18.
Dr. K.C. Olson with Kansas State University will discuss the advantages of fall burning for serecia lespedeza weed control.
Additional experts from NRCS, KSRE, or KDWPT will discuss burn safety, protocol and burn equipment. Following the discussions, we will burn several acres of expired CRP ground, with the intent of reducing weed pressure. This pasture is slated to eventually be placed back into livestock production.
Directions to the Duff farm: From Erie, Kansas take 59 south approximately 3 1/2 miles to 100th Rd, and then west approximately 8 ½ miles to farm site. From Thayer, Kansas take 169 north approximately 1 ½ miles to 100th Rd, then east approximately 2 ½ miles to the farm. Signs will be posted.
For more information contact Christopher Petty with the Southwind District Extension Office at (620) 223-3720 or by e-mail at [email protected].
Click below for the Fort Scott Police Department daily reports. The FSPD is located at 1604 S. National, Fort Scott, KS 66701 and can be reached at 620-223-1700.
Registration Opens for 2018 Kansas Governor’s Energy Conference
Registration is now open for the 2018 Kansas Governor’s Energy Conference, which will be held October 11 and 12 in Manhattan.
“Our state’s energy sector has brought billions of dollars of capital investment and thousands of quality jobs to Kansas,” said Kansas Governor Jeff Colyer, M.D. “We remain committed to supporting energy producers in Kansas and delivering a high-quality workforce to fill these key positions. The Kansas Governor’s Energy Conference brings leaders in the Kansas energy industry together to explore opportunities for expanding oil, gas and renewable energy in Kansas.”
WHAT: The day-and-half conference will feature three general sessions and several breakout sessions focusing on wind generation, community initiatives, solar, transportation innovations, biofuels and energy storage. Visit http://www.kansascommerce.gov/energyconference for an overview of the 19thAnnual Program including Tim Unruh, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Renewable Power for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, US Department of Energy.
WHERE/WHEN:8:30 a.m. – 4:45 p.m.October 11, and 8 a.m. – noonOctober 12 at the Hilton Garden Inn, 410 S. Third Street, Manhattan. Exhibits are open 9:45 a.m. – 6 p.m.October 11 and 8 a.m. – noonOctober 12. A reception is planned from 4:45 p.m. – 6 p.m. on October 11.
REGISTRATION INFO: A complete itinerary and online registration is available at http://www.kansascommerce.gov/energyconference. Early bird registration is available for $100 per person through September 19. Regular registration is $125 and is effective September 20.
HOTEL ACCOMMODATIONS: A block of rooms has been reserved at the Hilton Garden Inn in Manhattan. For more information about reserving a room, call (785) 532-9116 and reference the Kansas Energy Conference. The rate is $112.
10:30-10:45-Commissioners to discuss Health Insurance
11:00-12:00-Justin Meeks
Executive Session-Privileged in the attorney-client relationship-15 min.
Handbook-10 min.
NRP-5 min.
1:30-4:30-Commissioner to work on 2019 Budget
Justifications for Executive Session:
Personnel matters of individual non-elected personnel
Consultation with an attorney for the body or agency which would be deemed privileged in the attorney-client relationship
Matters relating to employer-employee negotiations whether or not in consultation with the representative(s) of the body or agency
Confidential data relating to financial affairs or trade secrets of corporations, partnerships, trusts and individual proprietorships
Preliminary discussions relating to the acquisition of real property
Matters relating to the security of a public body or agency, public building or facility or the information system of a public body or agency, if the discussion of such matters at an open meeting would jeopardize the security of such public body, agency, building, facility or information system
Joycelyn N. “Jo” Stogsdill, age 82, a resident of Ft. Scott, Kansas, passed away Friday, August 17, 2018, at the Hospice House of Olathe in Olathe, Kansas.
She was born August 30, 1935, in Englewood, Kansas, the daughter of Charlie Newton Withrow and Doris Mae Crosby Withrow.
She married Billie Joe “Bill” Stogsdill on January 16, 1951, at Liberal, Kansas.
Jo had worked at both Foodtown and Safeway grocery stores in Ft. Scott, but was primarily a devoted wife and mother. She was an exceptional seamstress and made many of her daughters’ dresses. She liked to paint and do crafts. She also enjoyed reading and was an avid Kansas City Chiefs and Royals fan. Tennis was also a sport she enjoyed.
Survivors include three daughters, Debra Jo Butland and husband, Stephen, of Olathe, Kansas; Kim Green and husband, Steven, of Nixa, Missouri and Susan Farmer of Ft. Scott; and eight grandchildren and sixteen great-grandchildren. Also surviving is a brother, John Withrow, and wife, Barbara, of Hutchison, Kansas.
Her husband, Bill, preceded her in death on October 22, 1996. She was also preceded in death by her parents, a brother, Charlie Withrow, Jr and a sister, Sally Quesada Caffey as well as her beloved dogs, Chelsea and Mandy.
Funeral services will be held at 10:00 A.M. Thursday, August 23rd at the Cheney Witt Chapel.
Burial will follow in the U. S. National Cemetery.
The family will receive friends from 5 to 7 P.M. Wednesday at the Cheney Witt Chapel. Memorials are suggested to the Paws & Claws Animal Shelter and may be left in cthe are of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.
