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Dr. Parris Retires

Dr. Roger Parris Retires from Mercy after 37 Years

 The public is invited to a retirement reception for Roger Parris, M.D., from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, July 28, in the Mercy Hospital cafeteria.

Dr. Parris earned this medical degree from the University of Missouri – Columbia and completed his family medicine residency at Wesley Medical Center in Wichita. He specializes in family medicine and emergency medicine. Dr. Parris is board certified by the American Board of Family Medicine.

In May, Dr. Parris was awarded the coveted 5-Star Award by ranking in PRC’s top 10 percent nationally for “excellent” responses in patient satisfaction surveys. He is also a fabulous vocalist and has performed in many musicals.

Mercy, named one of the top five large U.S. health systems in 2018, 2017 and 2016 by IBM Watson Health, serves millions annually. Mercy includes more than 40 acute care and specialty (heart, children’s, orthopedic and rehab) hospitals, 800 physician practices and outpatient facilities, 44,000 co-workers and 2,100 Mercy Clinic physicians in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. Mercy also has clinics, outpatient services and outreach ministries in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. In addition, Mercy’s IT division, Mercy Technology Services, supply chain organization, ROi, and Mercy Virtual commercially serve providers and patients in more than 20 states coast to coast.

supply chain organization, ROi, and Mercy Virtual commercially serve providers and patients in more than 20 states coast to coast.

Summer Considerations for Livestock Water

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]

According to the University of Nebraska Extension Professor Bruce Anderson, while it may be uncomfortable [outside] for you and me, it is particularly hard on livestock out on pasture. To help them survive, much less thrive, under these conditions, they need plenty of good, clean water.

Not only do they need plenty of good, clean water – they need it close by. Once upon a time, it was common to make cattle walk a mile or more to water. And they’d do it.

But just think how hard it is on animals in this heat and humidity. Once they get to the water, the last thing they want to do is turn around and go all the way back to where they came from to graze. As a result, they do little grazing more than a half mile away from water.

In fact, research shows that when cattle need to travel more than 1000 feet to water, they spend less time grazing, they burn off pounds walking, and they graze distant areas incompletely.

So, how can you improve your water and grazing distribution?

More ponds, wells, windmills, and dugouts will help, but they can get expensive. Plus, they can only be placed in certain locations and can’t be moved.

So maybe a pipeline would be better. They can be put almost anywhere. And if you want to add more water locations, pipelines can be tapped into anywhere along the line. You might even qualify for cost-share dollars to help pay for the installation. Check with your local Natural Resources Conservation Service office for more information. You also can leave your pipe on top of the ground, saving trenching costs, if you only need water during the growing season. Over time, water improvements pay for themselves with better grass and improved animal performance.

Contact your local Southwind Extension District office in Fort Scott, Erie, Iola, or Yates Center for more details. I am happy to visit with you about your livestock watering systems, and am available via e-mail at [email protected], by telephone at 620-223-3720, or for on-site farm visits.

Bourbon County Commission Agenda July 10

Agenda

Bourbon County Commission Room

2nd Floor, County Courthouse

210 S. National Avenue

Fort Scott, KS 66701

Tuesdays starting at 9:00

Date: July 10th, 2018

1st District-Lynne Oharah Minutes: Approved: _______________

2nd District-Jeff Fischer Corrected: _______________

3rd District-Nick Ruhl Adjourned at: _______________

County Clerk-Kendell Mason

9:00-9:45-Jim Harris

9:45-10:00-Ben Cole

10:00-10:15-Patty Love

11:00-12:00-Justin Meeks

12:00-1:30-Commissioners gone to lunch

1:30-Lora Holdridge-Staff in her office-Executive Session

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

Obituary Of John Foulk

John Dewane Foulk, age 83, a resident of Ft. Scott, Kansas, passed away Saturday, July 7, 2018, at the Mercy Hospital in Joplin, Missouri.
  He was born October 5, 1934, Arcadia, Kansas, the son of John Foulk and Mae Swafford Foulk.
John graduated from the Bible Baptist Seminary in Arlington, Texas.  He married Minnie Walker and the couple lived for many years in Reno, Nevada, where they owned and operated several wedding chapels.  Following Minnie’s death, he married Addie Jeffrey on March 25, 2001, in Reno.  They later moved to Ft. Scott.  John was currently serving as pastor of the Brethren/New Beginnings Church.
 John enjoyed visiting with people and loved to share the gospel message. 
 
Survivors include his son, Matthew Foulk, of Ft. Scott and several step-children and step-grandchildren who he considered as his own.  Also surviving are two brothers, Larry Foulk of Wichita, Kansas and Bradley Foulk, of Sun City, Arizona and a sister, Dianna Coates, of Mulberry, Kansas.  In addition to his wives, he was preceded in death by a brother Donald O. Foulk.
 
Pastor Larry Stevicks will conduct funeral services at 1:00 P.M. Friday, July 13th at the Brethren/New Beginnings Church located at 1421 S. Margrave in Ft. Scott.
 Following services, there will be cremation. The family will receive friends from 5 to 7 P.M. Thursday at the Cheney Witt Chapel.
 Memorials are suggested to the Brethren/New Beginnings Church 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.

Obituary Of Lloyd Howser

Lloyd L. Howser, age 75, a resident of rural Ft. Scott, Kansas, passed away Thursday, July 5, 2018, at the Mercy Hospital in Ft. Scott.
  He was born December 4, 1942, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the son of Charles N. Howser and Virginia Maxon Howser.  Lloyd grew up in California.  He later served with the United States Army during the Vietnam War where he was in charge of NCO Clubs.  Following his military service, Lloyd worked for the Corp of Engineers in California for eighteen years where he served as park manager.
While in California, Lloyd served as a 4-H leader.
Following his retirement, he relocated to Ft. Scott where he worked for Mercy Hospital for over fifteen years.  While at Mercy, Lloyd worked as a physical therapy tech and later a pharmacy tech.  In addition to working at the hospital, Lloyd maintained his own farm and cattle operation.
  Lloyd said he was happiest when he was on his tractor.  Lloyd had served as President of the Ft. Scott Farm Bureau and was a past member of the First Christian Church of Ft. Scott. 
 
Survivors include his wife, Judy, of the home; two sons, Charles Howser and Michael DelChiaro, both of Ft. Scott and five grandchildren, Nathan Howser and wife, Allison, Chase, Hayes and Brock Howser and Bella DelChiaro.  Also surviving are two sisters, Mary Ann Dykstra and Jeannette Lovejoy.  He was preceded in death by his parents.
 
Following cremation, a graveside service will be held at 10:30 A.M. Saturday, July 14th at the Lath Branch Cemetery.  A reception will follow at the Thomas home, 2523 Locust Rd in Ft. Scott.  Memorials are suggested to the of University of Kansas Cancer Research 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.

Bourbon County In A Drought Watch

Governor Updates Drought Declarations in Kansas Counties

The Governor’s Drought Team examines continued drought conditions as summer temps climb.

Topeka – While there have been some recent rains, drought conditions for many areas of Kansas continue to worsen.  Today Governor Jeff Colyer updated the Drought Declaration for Kansas counties with Executive Order 18-16 (attached).  The update includes all 105 counties either in an emergency, warning or watch status. This order places nearly half of Kansas counties in an emergency drought status.

“Kansans need to know no matter where you live in the state, the drought is not over,” said Governor Jeff Colyer.  “I’ve heard many concerns from producers and have seen the conditions first hand. We appreciate our federal partners at the Natural Resources Conservation Service as well as the Kansas Association of Conservation Districts— when we asked them to identify additional sources of assistance they responded quickly to help producers address these extreme drought conditions.”

The updated drought declaration has 50 counties in emergency status, 27 in warning status while 28 counties are in watch status. This action was recommended by Tracy Streeter, Director of the Kansas Water Office (KWO) and Chair of the Governor’s Drought Response Team.

“With reported livestock water shortages, low flows at some of our reservoirs and monthly outlooks favoring persistent drought we know it’s imperative to monitor conditions closely,” said Tracy Streeter. “Some areas of Kansas are behind more than 15 inches in moisture for the year and outlooks favor above normal temperatures and below normal precipitation in July.”

Counties in the emergency stage are eligible for emergency use of water from certain state fishing lakes due to the KWO Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Kansas Department of Wildlife (KDWPT). They also become eligible for water in some Federal reservoirs.

Individuals and communities need to contact KWO for a water supply request prior to any withdrawals from lakes. They will, in turn, be referred to the appropriate office to obtain the necessary permit to withdraw the water.

This Executive Order and any authorized upgrade shall remain in effect for those counties so identified until rescinded by Executive Order or superseded by a subsequent Executive Order revising the drought stage status of the affected counties. Effective immediately:

  • Declare a Drought Emergency, Warning or Drought Watch for the counties identified below;
  • Authorize and direct all agencies under the jurisdiction of the Governor to implement the appropriate watch or warning level-drought response actions assigned in the Operations Plan of the Governor’s Drought Response Team.

The Governor’s Drought Response Team will continue to watch the situation closely and work to minimize the effects the drought has on Kansans.

For more detailed information about current conditions, see the Kansas Climate Summary and Drought Report on the Kansas Water Office website at www.kwo.ks.gov.

County Drought Stage Declarations:

Drought Emergency: Barber, Barton, Butler, Chase, Clark, Clay, Coffey, Comanche, Cowley, Dickinson, Edwards, Ellsworth, Finney, Ford, Geary, Grant, Gray, Greenwood, Hamilton, Harper, Harvey, Haskell, Hodgeman, Kearny, Kingman, Kiowa, Lincoln, Lyon, Marion, McPherson, Meade, Morris, Morton, Osage, Ottawa, Pawnee, Pottawatomie,  Pratt, Reno, Rice, Riley, Saline, Sedgwick, Seward, Shawnee, Stafford, Stanton, Stevens, Sumner, Wabaunsee

Drought Warning: Allen, Anderson, Atchison, Brown, Chautauqua, Doniphan, Douglas, Elk, Ellis, Franklin, Greeley, Jackson, Jefferson, Lane, Leavenworth, Montgomery, Nemaha, Neosho, Ness, Rush, Russell, Scott, Trego, Wallace, Wichita, Wilson, Woodson

Drought Watch: Bourbon, Cherokee, Cheyenne, Cloud, Crawford, Decatur, Gove, Graham, Jewell, Johnson, Labette, Linn, Logan, Marshall, Miami, Mitchell, Norton, Osborne, Phillips, Rawlins, Republic, Rooks, Sheridan, Sherman, Smith, Thomas, Washington, Wyandotte

Note to Editor:  The Americans with Disabilities Act, (42 U.S.C. 12101), requires the Kansas Water Office to print the reasonable accommodations messages.

# # #

As the state’s water office, KWO conducts water planning, policy coordination and water marketing as well as facilitates public input throughout the state.

The agency prepares the KANSAS WATER PLAN, a plan for water resources development, management, and conservation.

Chamber Downtown Business Meet and Greet July 10

Join the Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce this Tuesday, July 10th
for the Quarterly Downtown Meet & Greet at Papa Don’s 10 N. Main from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.

The Quarterly Downtown Meet & Greet is hosted by the Chamber for downtown business owners, representatives and any community members to attend to network and share ideas on events, promotions and anything related to downtown!
Coffee, juice and light refreshments will be served.
Contact the Chamber at 620-223-3566 with questions
or for more information.
See you there!
Special thanks to Brita Rygmyr, Tom Rygmyr & staff for hosting!

Woe, by Patty LaRoche

A psychiatry professor was teaching the introductory lesson on emotional extremes to his college class. Starting with the basics, the professor asked a student from Arkansas, “What is the opposite of joy?” and the student immediately replied, “Sadness.” The teacher moved on to a young lady from Oklahoma and asked, “And the opposite of depression?” to which she responded, “Elation.” Then, turning to a young man from Texas, the professor said, “And you, friend, what is the opposite of woe?” In the blink of an eye the young Texan replied, “Sir, I believe that would be `giddy-up.”

(I hope you are smiling.) In reality, spelled “Whoa” or “Woe,” both are warnings. In the Bible, “Woe” in Greek is “ouai” and is a judgment that typically signifies impending doom and/or the wrath of God. It is worse than using the middle name of your child to get his/her attention. In Jesus’ day, those three letters caused knees to shake and sweat to pool on more than one forehead, which is why Jesus used “Woe” with the legalistic Pharisees.

In Matthew, chapter 23 alone, he recites the warning word eight times. Seven of them read like this: But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites. One refers to them as blind guides. Each “Woe” carries with it its own description of ungodly behavior. So, what did the religious Pharisees do to invoke such anger from Jesus? Let me count the ways.

Okay, I can’t. There are too many. Most, however, share one theme: the Pharisees are prideful. They humble the multitudes while elevating their own status. If there were a Hall of Fame in Jesus’ day, they would have duked it out to have their names inscribed on the plaque. Their self-importance causes them to demand attention and submission, a behavior despised by Jesus whose very words “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God” points to their sin.

For goodness sakes, Jesus stands nose-to-nose with these leaders on an almost-daily basis, yet they fail to recognize Truth when they smell it. Even when Jesus repeatedly traps them in their own game of “Trick the Rabbi,” the majority sulk instead of opening their hearts to hear what he was trying to teach them about their pride.

The message is just as relevant today. We are equally guilty. All we have to do connect on social media where we are afforded the perfect place for a relatively new term: “humblebrag.” You know what I’m talking about.

Closet-cleaning day ahead. Losing those 40 pounds has forced me to donate all of my XL sizes.”

Some days I feel so guilty about my parenting skills, but then my sweet little prince brings me iced tea by the pool and I know there is hope.”

Just bought several more acres but dread the taxes that will follow. Are you with me?”

Hidden within the humble words are subtle (?) ways to boast. Jesus might have a “Woe” or two for these people, don’t you think? But before I find too much comfort in writing about someone else’s pride, I should stop giddy-upping on my high horse and admit I deserve a thunderous “Woe” admonition for criticizing anyone for their pride (like I just did with my social media quotes).

If I truly were pride-less, I would know that in pointing to others’ arrogance, I am elevating myself as just a little more righteous, a little more Pharisee-like (and a lot less Christ-like), probably giving new meaning to the phrase, “Oh, woe is me!”