Category Archives: Area News

Nevada Hospital CEO Responds to Lawsuit From City of Joplin

Nevada Regional Medical Center (NRMC) is a longstanding regional provider of inpatient medical and
psychiatric services caring for patients from across the state. We treat patients regardless of their economic
and housing status. There currently is a significant shortage of facilities and professionals who care for
patients with mental and behavioral health conditions in the state and the nation. Some of these patients
come from Joplin. Our duty is to care for patients regardless of their circumstances. Once treatment is
completed at NRMC and there is a safe discharge plan, patients are discharged. NRMC respects the
freedom of all patients to go about their lives following their discharge from the hospital. NRMC cannot
hold patients without a Court Order.
The City of Joplin has voiced public concerns, singled out NRMC and has filed a lawsuit about patients
discharged from NRMC who traveled to Joplin. Unfortunately, other than a threatening letter and the
lawsuit, the City has made no attempt to talk about this issue, discover the actual facts of the discharges in
question, or to resolve what they believe is the problem. It is unclear why the City of Joplin is pursuing
legal action against another governmental entity in the State that also struggles to provide services to the
homeless. NRMC emphatically denies all claims of inappropriate discharges from the hospital. The two
patients who chose to travel to Joplin in 2025 following discharge is not a material contributor to the
number of homeless in Joplin. Further, cities receive state and federal funds to assist in providing many
forms of public services in their community. This financial assistance is not limited to or intended
exclusively for citizens that originate from the community.
NRMC still invites and welcomes an open and sincere conversation with the City of Joplin. I’m confident
that there is a peaceful and cost-effective solution to this problem.

Sincerely, Jason McCormick, CEO of NRMC

Heartland REC Expands Future Foundations Scholarship Program to 12 Awards

Taken from the Heartland Rural Electric Cooperative website.

GIRARD, Kan.  — Applications are now open for the 2026 Future Foundations Scholarship Program, which provides scholarships of $1,000 each to high school seniors who live in homes served by Heartland Rural Electric Cooperative and are preparing for careers in high-demand fields.

This year marks an expansion from eight scholarships to 12, with three scholarships available in each of Heartland’s four voting districts.

The program provides financial support to students in Heartland-served households who are pursuing careers in nursing, teaching, and the skilled trades at Kansas-based schools.

“We’re seeing a critical need for skilled workers across our communities,” said Doug Graham, Heartland REC Communication Specialist. “Whether it’s nurses, teachers, or tradespeople, these careers are essential to ensuring our rural communities can continue to thrive.”

To be eligible, applicants must:

  • Be a current high school senior with a minimum 2.0 GPA
  • Live in a household served by Heartland REC
  • Plan to enroll in a Kansas-based trade school, training program, or college for fall 2026
  • Be pursuing a career in nursing, teaching, or a skilled trade including linework, plumbing, HVAC, construction, IT, and others

Applicants must submit a completed application form, two letters of recommendation, and an official high school transcript by end of day Friday, March 13, 2026. Scholarship recipients will be selected through a random drawing and notified by April 1, 2026.

Complete eligibility requirements and the application form are available at heartland-rec.com. Questions can be directed to Doug Graham at (620) 724-5526 or [email protected].

About Heartland Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc.

Heartland Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc. powers rural lifestyles throughout more than 11,000 locations in eastern Kansas. Heartland’s service area includes members in 12 counties, including Allen, Anderson, Bourbon, Cherokee, Coffey, Crawford, Labette, Linn, Miami, Neosho, Wilson, and Woodson counties.

Heartland REC is a non-profit, member-owned cooperative that traces its roots back to three original rural electric cooperatives: Cooperative Electric Power & Light Company in Iola, Sugar Valley Electric Cooperative Association in Mound City, and Sekan Electric Cooperative Association in Girard. Cooperative Electric Power & Light Company joined with Sugar Valley in 1975 to form United Electric Cooperative; United Electric Cooperative joined with Sekan Electric Cooperative Association in 1996

New Book Titles in the SEK Library System

The SEKnFind Newsletter
December 2025

We hope you enjoy this newsletter sent as a courtesy to adult patrons of a southeast Kansas library using the SEKnFind catalog.
This selection of titles are NEW at a SEKnFind library and available for a hold.
Need assistance? Your local librarian can show you how!
Happy Reading!

New Fiction

Best Offer Wins
by Marisa Kashino

A desperate buyer on the edge. In Marisa Kashino’s darkly humorous debut novel, Best Offer Wins, the white picket fence becomes the ultimate symbol of success–and obsession. How far would you go for the house of your dreams? Eighteen months and 11 lost bidding wars into house-hunting in the overheated Washington, DC suburbs, 37-year-old publicist Margo Miyake gets a tip about the perfect house, in the perfect neighborhood, slated to come up for sale in one month. Desperate to escape the cramped apartment she shares with her husband Ian — and in turn, get their marriage, plan to have a baby, and whole life back on track — Margo becomes obsessed with buying the house before it’s publicly listed and the masses descend (with unbeatable, all-cash offers in hand). A little stalking? Harmless. A bit of trespassing? Necessary. As Margo infiltrates the homeowners’ lives, her tactics grow increasingly unhinged–but just when she thinks she’s won them over, she hits a snag in her plan. Undeterred, Margo will prove again and again that there’s no boundary she won’t cross to seize the dream life she’s been chasing. The most unsettling part? You’ll root for her, even as you gasp in disbelief. Dark, biting, and laugh-out-loud funny, Best Offer Wins is a propulsive debut and a razor-sharp exploration of class, ambition, and the modern housing crisis.

Peter Pulaski Must Pay
by Jen Lancaster

Call to order the Friday Night Doom Crew. They’re an eclectic group of true-crime enthusiasts–a forensic psychologist, historian, and popular Instagram presence among them–dedicated to sleuthing out nefarious offenders and doing whatever it takes to set things right. But when dark secrets threaten one of their own, the Doom Crew grapples with how far they are willing to go to protect her Diana Pulaski is the crew’s meticulously organized beating heart whose physician husband, Peter, is secretly a swindler behind an illegal pill mill, not to mention a loathsome cheater involved in an online romance. When they discover the truth, the amateur vigilantes have a plan to make Peter pay. Unfortunately, the closer Diana’s friends are to hunting Peter down, the closer they get to discovering a secret Diana has been hiding–

The Wrong Sister
by Claire Douglas

In this sensational thriller from the number-one internationally bestselling author, two sisters discover that the secrets they keep from each other prove to be deadly.–Provided by publisher.

The Forget-Me-Not Library
by Heather Webber

Juliet Nightingale is lucky to be alive. Months after a freak accident involving lightning, she’s fully recovered but is left feeling that something is missing from her life. Something big. Impulsively, she decides to take a solo summer road trip, hoping that the journey will lead her down a path that will help her discover exactly what it is that she’s searching for. Newly single mom Tallulah Byrd Mayfield is hanging by a thread after her neat, tidy world was completely undone when her husband decided that their marriage was over. In the aftermath of the breakup, she and her two daughters move in with her eighty-year-old grandfather. Tallulah starts a new job at the Forget-Me-Not Library, where old, treasured memories can be found within the books-and where Lu must learn to adapt to the many changes thrown her way. When a road detour leads Juliet to Forget-Me-Not, Alabama, and straight into Tallulah’s life, the two women soon discover there’s magic in between the pages of where you’ve been and where you still need to go. And that happiness, even when lost, can always be found again–

Dead Ringer
by Chris Hauty

Set in present-day, a disgraced former Secret Service [officer] and a Jesuit professor join forces to delve into the mysteries surrounding the events of November 22, 1963. Fixated on deciphering the conspiracies behind the history-changing assassination, they are oblivious to the fact that the cabal is still active–and may face an end as bloody as the carnage in Dealey Plaza. Will they be able to uncover the truth in time? Or will they become two more footnotes in history?–

Second Chance Romance: A Harlot’s Bay Novel
by Olivia Dade

Karl and Molly were never together. There was a time, right after high school, where it seemed like they might finally cross the line from friends to lovers–but instead, a foolish misunderstanding meant they never spoke again. Molly went to LA and got married. Karl stayed in Harlot’s Bay and bought a bakery. The only connection the pair has shared over the years is painfully one-sided: now divorced, Molly narrates monster romance audiobooks, and Karl is an ever-diligent listener, clinging to his only piece of the one that got away. Still, Molly hasn’t totally left Harlot’s Bay behind. When she hears that Karl’s obituary has run in the local paper, unexpected grief prompts her to hop on the next flight to Maryland–where she finds Karl very much alive, the victim of nothing but an accidental obituary–

It Was Her House First
by Cherie Priest

Venita Rost, a former silent film star, has stayed put for the last century-fuming and raging, luring investors and ambitious DIYers to their doom in her haunted home on the cliff. But her nemesis also remains: a once-famous detective she blames for the death of her daughter. Inspector Bartholomew Sloan blames himself, too. He couldn’t save Priscilla any more than he could save his best friend from the noose. Or save himself from Venita’s wrath. Now all he can do is watch as Venita lures each new owner to their death, trapped in this house of horror he helped create and unable to do anything to stop it–

I, Medusa
by Ayana Gray

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER – From New York Times bestselling author Ayana Gray comes a captivating villain origin story (People Book of the Week), reimagining one of the most iconic monsters in Greek mythology as a provocative and powerful young heroine. Out of place next to her beautiful, immortal sisters and her parents–both gods, albeit minor ones–she dreams of leaving her family’s island for a life of adventure. So when she catches the eye of the goddess Athena, who invites her to train as an esteemed priestess in her temple, Meddy leaps at the chance to see the world beyond her home. In the colorful market streets of Athens and the clandestine chambers of the temple, Meddy flourishes in her role as Athena’s favored acolyte, getting her first tastes of purpose and power. But when she is noticed by another Olympian, Poseidon, the course of Meddy’s promising future is suddenly and irrevocably altered. When her locs are transformed into snakes as punishment for a crime she did not commit, Medusa must embrace a new identity–not as a victim, but as a vigilante–and with it, the chance to write her own story as mortal, martyr, and myth. Exploding with rage, heartbreak, and love, I, Medusa portrays a young woman caught in the crosscurrents between her heart’s deepest desires and the cruel, careless games the Olympian gods play.

Cold Eternity
by S. A. Barnes

Halley is on the run from an interplanetary political scandal that has put a huge target on her back. She heads for what seems like the perfect place to lay low: a gigantic space barge storing the cryogenically frozen bodies of Earth’s most fortunate citizens from more than a century ago… The cryo program, created by trillionaire tech genius Zale Winfeld, is long defunct, and the AI hologram hosts, ghoulishly created in the likeness of Winfeld’s three adult children, are glitchy. The ship feels like a crypt, and the isolation gets to Halley almost immediately. She starts to see figures crawling in the hallways, and there’s a constant scraping, slithering, and rattling echoing in the vents. It’s not long before Halley realizes she may have gotten herself trapped in an even more dangerous situation than the one she was running from…–Provided by publisher.

Pariah
by Dan Fesperman

A NEW YORKER BEST BOOK OF 2025 – An adrenaline-fueled thriller about a disgraced comedian-turned-politician who takes on the role of a lifetime: infiltrating a corrupt Eastern European country to spy on their brutal dictator.

Wild Instinct
by T. Jefferson Parker

The hunt for the truth is the deadliest game. Lew Gale, a former Marine sniper, now an Orange County California Sheriff’s detective, is assigned to track and shoot a mountain lion that has killed a man in Caspers Park, located in the rugged country east of Laguna Beach, California. The victim is Bennet Tarlow, a rich developer and man-about-town in upscale coastal Orange County. The investigation takes a chilling turn when Lew and his new partner, Daniela Mendez, discover that Bennet was dead long before the lion got to him. And while Bennet might have been the first to die, he certainly will not be the last–

The Pride of Texas
by Dusty Richards

Twin brothers Andrew and Jackson Franks have lived and worked under the iron fist of their father, Prior, for as long as they can remember. But when a petty household argument turns violent and Prior shoots and kills their mother before turning the gun upon himself, the boys are left with nothing but each other and the family’s hardscrabble South Texas ranch. Andrew’s a planner and a thinker, while Jackson’s a workhorse with a stubborn streak a couple miles wide. They’ve both got dreams of climbing out of the dust to become real Texas cattleman, but they’ll need a hell of a lot more than hope to make it happen. They’ll need luck, too, a whole damn heap of it… and it comes in a form they never imagined.

New Audiobooks

The Tin Men
by Nelson DeMille

At a top-secret Army training facility in the Mojave Desert, Special Agents Scott Brodie and Maggie Taylor plunge into a deadly web of military intrigue, AI technology, and robot soldiers as they unravel the shocking murder of a senior scientist in this gripping thriller from New York Times bestselling authors Nelson DeMille and Alex DeMille.

Evil Bones
by Kathy Reichs

Kathy Reichs returns with a twisty, magnetic thriller featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan, who finds herself enmeshed in a series of grisly animal killings that escalate into something far more sinister.

The Tortoise’s Tale
by Kendra Coulter

Snatched from her ancestral lands, a giant tortoise finds herself in an exclusive estate in southern California where she becomes an astute observer of societal change. Her journey is one of discovery, as she learns to embrace the music of jazz and the warmth of human connection. Through each era, the tortoise remains a refreshingly honest, humble, and endearing narrator.

New Nonfiction

Every Day I Read: 53 Ways to Get Closer to Books
by Hwang Bo-Reum

From the author of the international bestseller Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop, a heartfelt invitation to reflect on your relationship with reading and celebrate the joys of books.

The Crone Zone: How to Get Older with Style, Nerve, and a Little Bit of Magic
by Nina Bargiel

A crone-inspired lifestyle guide centered on connecting with the wisdom of age, understanding one’s own desires, and learning to do as one pleases– Provided by publisher.

The Best True Crime Stories of the Year 2025
by Book Author

Bestselling author Douglas Preston selects the best true crime writing from the past year, aided by series editor Pete Crooks, to produce an eclectic collection of intriguing, mysterious, and exciting true tales.

The Tree of Life: Solving Science’s Greatest Puzzle
by Max Telford

Taking readers inside one of science’s most ambitious projects, a leading evolutionary biologist offers a definitive portrait of life’s family tree.

Gardenista: The Low-Impact Garden: A Guide to Creating Sustainable Outdoor Spaces
by Kendra Wilson

In Gardenista The Low Impact Garden, author Kendra Wilson covers everything you need to know to create a garden that’s good for the planet, and to create beautiful and well designed outdoor spaces. This comprehensive guide to eco conscious gardening features in depth garden tours of all sorts, from a wildflower prairie in the Midwest to an indoor outdoor garden in London, a forest garden in Vancouver to a permaculture garden in Australia. There are breakouts on specific garden types, like front yards and rooftop gardens, as well as practical advice on green approaches to key garden elements, lawns, soil, trees and shrubs, water, and even pools. With three hundred and fifty full color photographs, a round up of standout eco conscious garden tools, expert advice, resources, and more, Gardenista The Low Impact Garden is the ultimate handbook for creating sustainable outdoor spaces– Provided by publisher.

Rooted in Fire: A Celebration of Native American and Mexican Cooking
by Pyet DeSpain

Next Level Chef winner Pyet De Spain celebrates her Mexican and Native American heritage in this collection of mouthwatering recipes, a vibrant fusion that ties us to the land and to one another.Star chef Pyet DeSpain rose to prominence as the first winner of Gordon Ramsey’s Fox television show Next Level Chef. Now, in her debut cookbook, she shares the joy of cooking fueled by her burning passion for Native American and Mexican American cuisine. Rooted in Fire: A Celebration of Native American and Mexican Cooking is a tribute to her dual heritage–a gorgeously crafted celebration of the diversity of food and the stories, traditions, culture, and profound philosophies of Indigenous people that season each meal.Pyet shows you how to incorporate a delicious range of key ingredients–from venison, dandelion greens, to sunchokes, bison, and native berries–into more than sixty fusion dishes. Family and friends will be excited to gather around the table to enjoy sweet and savory food such as: Three Sisters SaladBison and Sweet Corn SoupFry BreadMexican Chocolate & Mezcal CakeCorn Silk and Honey TeaWojapi BBQ SauceIn addition to her inventive and palate pleasing recipes, Pyet invites home cooks to honor the seasons on our beautiful Earth and connect with essential foodways. This is more than just a cookbook, Pyet writes. It’s giving a voice to Indigenous people, while also highlighting the fusion of my two cultures with fire and purpose.

The Heart-Shaped Tin: Love, Loss, and Kitchen Objects
by Bee Wilson

Heart-wrenching and heartwarming in equal measure. No one is so good at capturing the everyday magic of kitchens, cooking, and life as Bee Wilson. –Letitia Clark, author of Bitter Honey

Scrap Quilts from Crumbs, Strips and Strings: Use Up Every Last Piece with 15 Scrap Quilt Patterns
by Emily Bailey

Every piece must go with this practical guide to quilt making by using even the tiniest pieces of scrap fabric from your stash. No piece is too small when you follow author Emily Bailey’s advice on how to turn all your fabric crumbs, strips and string scraps into beautiful patchwork quilts and quilted projects.Includes step-by-step instructions for how to turn fabric scraps into pieces of patch-worked fabric to use in quilted projects.Author Emily Bailey explains how to use modern cutting techniques like the AccuQuilt cutter to make scrap quilting quicker and easier.Includes 15 patterns for quilted projects including full-size bed quilts, through to smaller projects for quicker makes. This is the ultimate zero waste guide to patchwork and quilting, designed to get you raiding your stash and turning your scraps into beautiful finished makes.

Dog Only Knows: The Dog Portraits of Alison Friend
by Alison Friend

A NATIONAL BESTSELLER Dog Only Knows is the perfect gift for dog lovers, featuring over 125 irresistible portraits by acclaimed artist Alison Friend–each uniquely mischievous, funny, and full of personality. Meet Midge, who keeps her mind sharp with a Rubik’s Cube. Alan, who looks like a million dollars in his new harness. Lola, whose motto is People to see, bums to sniff. Chupa Chops–how did he unwrap that lollipop? The oh-so-earnest Clive, who does everything–biscuit eating, squirrel chasing, ball fetching–with a single-minded focus. Irrepressible Debbie, who loves cocktail night, and Little Louis, a chain-smoking existentialist who can’t stop chewing over the canine condition. Usually with an espresso. Welcome to Alison Friend’s world of dogs, a singular and very special place created by an artist with a unique gift for depicting that ineffable thing we call character–dog characters, actually–using oil paint, empathy, techniques of the Old Masters, and an imagination like no other. With their big expressive eyes and Mona Lisa smiles, charming habits and childlike pleasures, the subjects of these portraits seem all too human yet fantastically doglike. Perfectly capturing–as Little Louis would tell you–the canine condition, like you’ve never seen it before.

Brothers of the Gun: Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and a Reckoning in Tombstone
by Mark Lee Gardner

Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday: legendary gunfighters and friends who gained immortality because of a thirty-second shootout near a livery stable called the O.K. Corral. Their friendship actually began three years before that iconic 1881 gunfight, in the rollicking cattle town of Dodge City. Wyatt, an assistant city marshal, was surrounded by armed, belligerent cowboys. Doc saw Wyatt’s predicament from a monte table in the Long Branch saloon and burst out the door with two leveled revolvers shouting, ‘Throw up your hands!’ The startled cowboys did, and Wyatt and Doc led them off to jail. Wyatt credited Doc with saving his life, and thus began their lasting–and curious–friendship. In this … dual biography, … the lives of these two men, one a sometime lawman and the other a sometime dentist, are chronicled in a swirling tableau of saloons, brothels, gambling dens, stage holdups, arrests, manhunts, and revenge killings–

Even more reading suggestions

NextReads Sneak Peek
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Must-Read Books

A Bitter Wind by James R. Benn
Good Spirits by B. K. Borison
Conform by Ariel Sullivan

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CHC/SEK Announces New Pharmacy Residency Program

PITTSBURG, Kan. – The Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas (CHC/SEK) has expanded its graduate medical education offerings with the addition of a community-based pharmacy residency program.

CHC/SEK, with a long-standing commitment to clinical education, also offers a family medicine residency developed in partnership with the University of Kansas School of Medicine. Both residency programs were created to address the healthcare workforce shortage by cultivating a new generation of professionals committed to delivering quality, compassionate care to rural communities.

Located in Pittsburg, Kansas, the 52-week program enables residents to build upon the skills learned in pharmacy school and provides them with hands-on experience caring for underserved and rural populations. Each year, CHC/SEK will welcome two pharmacy residents, and the first class will arrive in June 2026. The residents will join the team at Apothecare, CHC/SEK’s in-house pharmacy.

“Residents will become an integral part of our healthcare team, learning not just by observation but by taking an active role in patient care,” said Amanda Treiber, PharmD, CHC/SEK Director of Pharmacy. “Supported by dedicated preceptors and a culture of continuous learning, residents will receive structured training that empowers them to grow as empathetic, skilled, and community-focused pharmacists.”

Residents will develop expertise in patient-centered care, education, leadership, administration, pharmacy practice, professional development, specialty pharmacy, and the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program, which helps ensure patients have access to lower-cost medications.

“One of the standout features of this program is the opportunity it offers residents to explore many different aspects of community pharmacy practice,” said Megan Martin, PharmD, CHC/SEK Pharmacy Residency Program Director. “It’s our goal to help residents find fulfillment in their careers while equipping them with the skills and experiences they need to excel as pharmacists.”

The program features a personalized approach to professional development, giving residents the flexibility to explore and expand their expertise in their areas of interest. “We’ll tailor each resident’s experience by aligning their training with their personal career goals. For example, if a resident has an interest in specialty pharmacy, we’ll include additional time and mentorship with our specialty pharmacy team,” said Treiber.

Through this residency program, CHC/SEK strives to nurture a strong commitment to caring for all patients, regardless of their financial circumstances, and ensuring they have the medications they need. “This program provides the foundation for a career defined by leadership, compassion, purpose, and lifelong learning,” said Martin. “This is a wonderful opportunity for residents to grow their clinical skills while making a meaningful impact on countless patients’ lives.”

The CHC/SEK pharmacy residency program has an accreditation pre-candidate status with American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.

CHC/SEK is currently accepting applications into the program. For more information, contact Megan Martin at 620-258-5731 or [email protected], or visit chcsek.org/pharmacy-residency.

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About Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas
The Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas (CHC/SEK) serves as a healthcare hub for communities in Kansas and Oklahoma. CHC/SEK delivers quality, integrated care to nearly 90,000 patients each year with a goal of improving health, sustaining rural communities, and providing purpose-driven work to 950 staff members. Beyond healthcare, CHC/SEK finds innovative ways to improve lives by focusing on education, housing, and transportation. Regardless of income or insurance status, CHC/SEK ensures everyone receives the care they need. For more information, visit chcsek.org.

This email and any attachments may contain confidential information subject to protection under the Federal Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information (45 C.F.R. Parts 160 and 164). If you or your organization is a “Covered Entity” under the above mentioned regulations, you are obligated to treat such information in a manner consistent with the regulations. If it appears that this email was sent to you in error, (1) you are prohibited from utilizing or disseminating this email or any attachments; (2) please immediately delete it from your computer and any servers or other locations where it might be stored and (3) email [email protected] or call 620.231.9873 advising that you have done so. We appreciate your cooperation.

CHCSEK Announces New Pharmacy Residency Program 12-18-25.docx

NRMC Welcomes Neurologist

 

Nevada Regional Medical Center (NRMC) is pleased to announce the addition of Dr. Thomas Zabiega to our team of specialty physicians.  Dr. Zabiega is Board Certified in Neurology and completed his residency at the University of Chicago Hospitals.  He has over 20 years’ experience and can provide care for the following:

  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Brain injuries
  • Epilepsy
  • Headaches (including migraines)
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Nerve disorders
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Stroke related issues

 

Dr. Zabiega will provide services one week a month and his office will be located in the Specialty Clinic at NRMC.  He is accepting new patients and self-referrals are welcome.  Appointments can be made by calling 417-448-2121.

 

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New Community Foundation of SEK Operations/Donor Support Coordinator

COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF SOUTHEAST KANSAS ANNOUNCES SAMANTHA GUY AS NEW OPERATIONS AND DONOR SUPPORT COORDINATOR

The Community Foundation of Southeast Kansas (CFSEK) is excited to announce the hiring of Samantha Guy as the new Operations and Donor Support Coordinator!

Sam comes to CFSEK and its affiliates, the Columbus Area Community Foundation, Fort Scott Area Community Foundation, and the Girard Area Community Foundation, with a deep love of Southeast Kansas and a drive to be involved. She will support CFSEK’s operations and donor efforts, including assisting with communications and marketing, community engagement activities, donor relations, and providing program support.

“We are excited to have Samantha join our team,” said Devin Gorman, CFSEK Executive Director. “Her marketing experience, strong community connections, and genuine passion for Southeast Kansas will be of tremendous value for our organization. We’re confident she will make a meaningful impact for our team, our donors, and our partners.”

A native of Walnut and a graduate of Girard High School, Sam attended Pittsburg State University, receiving her undergraduate degree in strategic communication. She spent several years in journalism and advertising before joining the community foundation.

“I want my children and family to experience my community the way I did growing up,” Sam said, “and I am a believer that if you want big things to happen, you have to do big things!”

When Sam is not in the office, she can be found serving as President of the Girard Medical Center Foundation board, serving on the Walnut Events Committee, or volunteering for Walnut. She also previously served on the Girard Area Community Foundation board as a trustee before taking this position. If she has the time, she also enjoys reading and relaxing with her boyfriend, dog, and two cats.

When asked about her new position, Sam had this to say, “I’m excited to join the team and work with nonprofits to benefit our communities, and I am looking forward to the unique challenges that brings!”

The Community Foundation of Southeast Kansas has awarded over $2.5 million in grants from all foundation funds in 2025 and has facilitated over $25 million in grants since its inception in 2001. CFSEK serves the region by providing donors with a wide variety of charitable interests and encouraging charitable giving, which addresses present and future needs in our area. More information about CFSEK is available at SoutheastKansas.org.

 

Seeing Risk Clearly: Navigating Danger, Poverty, and Perception

Presented by the Kansas Department for Children and Families and University of Kansas Center for Public Partnerships and Research

Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025 | 10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

You’re invited…

At our previous community gatherings, many of you shared that we need to keep digging into how we see and respond to families’ circumstances. Whether you joined us before or are coming for the first time, this is your chance to be part of that ongoing conversation.

DCF and the KU Center for Public Partnerships and Research are continuing their partnership to bring you Seeing Risk Clearly: Navigating Danger, Poverty, and Perception—a session designed to explore real-life scenarios, challenge assumptions, and strengthen how we respond to families in our communities.

Through interactive activities and discussion, we’ll look at:

  • What safety really means—and how to distinguish between risk, danger, and safety concerns.
  • How poverty differs from neglect, and why that distinction is important.
  • How perceptions influence decisions in child welfare and community response.
  • Ways to strengthen compassionate, consistent approaches to supporting families.

Your perspective matters. We hope you’ll join us in creating solutions that reflect the needs, strengths, and realities of the communities we serve.

Lunch will be provided, please RSVP using the button below.

Button: RSVP Here

 

Map of Fort Scott Nazarene church.Location

Fort Scott Nazarene Church

1728 Horton

Fort Scott, KS 66701

Thank You!

We hope you’ll take this opportunity to learn more about ongoing efforts to help build support for children and families in Kansas. Thank you for being a part of these important conversations!

Thank you to our partners:

 

Kansas Department for Children and Families logo    Family Strong Logo

 

The University of Kansas Center for Public Partnerships and Research logo  

 

 

Kansas DCF FB LogoKansas DCF X logo Kansas DCF Instagram Logo Kansas DCF LinkedIn Logo

Match Week 2025; A Rousing Success!

 

The Community Foundation of Southeast Kansas (CFSEK) and its affiliates in Columbus, Fort Scott, and Girard achieved record-breaking results during Match Week 2025, raising over $1,066,000 in combined donations for charitable funds benefiting Southeast Kansas!

Match Week took place November 10-14, 2025. Thanks to a generous matching challenge from the Patterson Family Foundation, additional matching funds were available for each foundation to amplify community contributions.

CFSEK brought in an outstanding $437,227 in community donations to support 48 local organizations. Columbus donors stepped up in a big way, with over 100 contributors giving $145,992, while Fort Scott supporters raised $67,452 for 13 different organizations. Girard donors kept the momentum going with $72,423 raised for 10 participating funds. And the excitement doesn’t stop there—the Patterson Family Foundation’s matching challenge is adding another $339,875, amplifying the impact for nonprofits throughout our region.

“We were blown away by the generosity of our community,” said CFSEK Executive Director Devin Gorman. “Expanding from Match Day to Match Week significantly increased support for local nonprofits in our area, and we are so pleased to help them grow their endowments while also providing immediate matching funds. We want to extend our sincere gratitude to all of the donors for their incredible generosity and steadfast support of their communities.”

Next year’s Match Week will take place November 9-13, 2026.

Visit SEKMatchWeek.org to see a full list of participating funds and updates about next year’s Match Week!

 

To view Fort Scott’s donations

https://www.fortscottgives.org/

 

Applications for 2026 Boys State of Kansas Session Open

 

 

December 1, 2025 — The American Legion Boys State of Kansas is accepting applications for its 2026 session. The event is set to be held Sunday, May 31, through Saturday, June 6, at Kansas State University in Manhattan. This will be the program’s 34th consecutive session at KSU and 88th overall.

Traditionally, Kansas Boys State has been for individuals who will complete their junior year of high school in the spring just prior to the start of each session. However, the ALBSK program will again expand the pool of applicants for this year’s session to also include those who will complete their sophomore year of high school this spring.

 

The American Legion Boys State of Kansas program provides a relevant, interactive, problem-solving experience in leadership and teamwork that develops self-identity, promotes mutual respect and instills civic responsibility to inculcate a sense of individual obligation to community, state and nation. Boys State is a “learning by doing” political exercise that simulates elections, political parties and government at the state, county and local levels, providing opportunities to lead under pressure, showcasing character and working effectively within a team. It’s also an opportunity to gain pride and respect for government, and the price paid by members of the military to preserve democracy.

The cost to attend the Boys State of Kansas program is $375; however, in many instances, sponsors pay the majority of the fees, with the delegate or his family paying $50. Those wishing to attend the 2026 session should visit ksbstate.org to apply. The deadline to apply for the 2026 program is Thursday, April 30; applications are accepted after that date, but on a space-available basis. In addition, those who register by Saturday, Jan. 31, will receive a KBS sweatshirt or polo. Furthermore, delegates who are returning for a second year have the opportunity to attend the 2026 session for just $50 total, provided they get at least three people from their school (or another school) to attend.

Kansas Boys State attendees are eligible to receive a three-hour course credit (Introduction to Political Science [POLSC 110-C]) through Kansas State University at a 72% discount, as well as earn merit badges to attain the Eagle Scout rank through Boy Scouts of America. Additionally, attendees can apply to win a Samsung American Legion Scholarship. The American Legion Department of Kansas finalist is guaranteed a $1,250 scholarship, with the opportunity to receive up to $10,000 as a national scholar.

 

Potential sponsors, such as American Legion posts, civic organizations, businesses, clubs and interested individuals should visit ksbstate.org/sponsor. Questions? Contact the ALBSK at [email protected] or (785) 550-6492.  For complete information about the American Legion Boys State of Kansas program, visit ksbstate.org.

 

For information about the 2026 American Legion Auxiliary Sunflower Girls State, which will be held Sunday, May 31, through Friday, June 5, at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, visit ksgirlsstate.org.

— #KSBoysState —

 

The American Legion Boys State of Kansas is an interactive simulation that teaches high school seniors-to-be the value of democracy and civic duty. Participants form mock governments and campaign for positions at the city, county and state levels. After the elections, participants find out firsthand the difficult decisions made daily by those in government through a series of challenging simulations. Delegates, nominated to attend by their high school counselors and other influential people in their lives, are sponsored by American Legion posts and various civic organizations from across the state. All delegates demonstrate outstanding leadership qualities in student government, athletics and/or other activities.

The Boys State program was founded by Legionnaires Hayes Kennedy and Harold Card in Illinois in 1935, and was first held in Kansas two years later in Wichita. The Kansas program moved to the University of Kansas in Lawrence in 1963 and remained there until 1991. The following year, it moved to its current location at Kansas State University in Manhattan. For more information about the American Legion Boys State of Kansas, visit ksbstate.org.

NRMC Foundation Tree of Shining Memories 

 

Where Every Life is Extraordinary & Honored as Sacred

 

The holiday season is a time to take pause, come together, and create memories with those around us. The NRMC Foundation Tree of Shining Memories provides a unique opportunity for our community members to come together and honor the special people in their lives by participating in this annual tribute ceremony. By doing so, participants are also supporting a worthy cause that will strengthen the quality of healthcare services provided to the community by Nevada Regional Medical Center.

 

The Tree of Shining Memories program began in the early 2000’s as a way to benefit Hospice services.  It has continued through the Foundation for nearly twenty five years.  NRMC Foundation Director Jennifer Eaton said, “the holidays are a natural time to think about family and loved ones who are no longer with us.  The Tree of Shining Memories is a great way to honor their memory in a positive and meaningful way.”

The sparkling lights of the Tree of Shining Memories honor the memory of our loved ones as their legacy continues to shine.  Lights can be purchased from the NRMC Foundation for $10.  Registration forms are available at the hospital information desk, clinic lobbies, or can be printed off the hospital website at www.nrmchealth.com/tosm. The names will be displayed in the lobby of the hospital throughout the month of December.  Those received by Monday, December 15th will also be printed in the holiday edition of the Nevada Daily Mail Saturday, December 20th.

An evening of remembrance will take place on Friday, December 5th in the hospital lobby at 5:15 pm.  Eaton noted “family and friends are welcome to gather for this special naming and lighting ceremony.  We are moving this ceremony inside at the hospital this year so that attendees can appreciate this reading of solitude in a climate controlled environment and still have time to return to the square to enjoy the annual Christmas parade afterwards.”

EVENING OF REMEMBRANCE             

Friday, December 5th

              NRMC Main Lobby

              Reading to begin at 5:15 p.m.

 

For further information about the Tree of Shining Memories, call the NRMC Foundation at 417-448-3710.

 

 

Voice Your Opinion on the Atmos Energy Rate Increase Request

Kansas Corporation Commission to hold a public
hearing on Atmos Energy rate increase request

TOPEKA – The Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC) will hold a public hearing on December 2nd to give Atmos Energy gas customers the opportunity to learn more about the company’s rate increase request, ask questions and make comments before the Commission. Atmos is requesting approval to increase rates by $19.1 million to recover costs already incurred by the company to support safe and reliable service for its Kansas customers.

If approved, the average residential bill would increase by 11.2%. For a residential customer with average usage, that equates to an increase of approximately $9.12 per month. Atmos is also proposing a rate increase for commercial, public authority, school, large industrial, and transportation customers.

The public hearing will be held at Regnier Hall Auditorium on the KU Edwards Campus located at 12610 S. Quivira Rd in Overland Park beginning at 6 p.m. To make the hearing accessible for Atmos customers across the state, a virtual option through Zoom is available, giving remote participants a chance to comment and ask questions as well. Zoom participants must register in advance on the KCC’s website  by noon on December 1. The hearings will also be broadcast live on the KCC’s YouTube channel and recorded for later viewing. Registration is not required to view on YouTube.

The Commission is accepting written comments through 5 p.m., January 20, 2026. Comments may be submitted on the KCC’s website, by mail to the Commission’s Office at 1500 SW Arrowhead Rd, Topeka, KS 66604-4027 or by calling the KCC’s Office of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at 785-271-3140 or 800-662-0027.

The Commission will issue an order on the application on or before March 24, 2026.

 

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Bourbon County Local News