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Teresa Cummings, 53, moved with her family from California to Fort Scott in May 2020, when her husband retired. “It was the best thing I’ve ever done,” she said. “We have more conservative values than the San Francisco Bay area.”
Common Ground Coffee Shop is a place to sit a spell, have a cuppa and relax. The shop’s specialty is coffee, baked goods, breakfast and lunch.
They sell special order cookie trays as well.
It has been a community gathering place since its inception in 2013 by the Fort Scott Church of the Nazarene.
To view the first story on the business by fortscott.biz:
Common Ground Coffee Co. offers community a gathering place
New Staff
Heidi Dixon, 52, started as the new manager of Common Ground Coffee Shop on Dec. 19.
Dixon grew up in Fort Scott, moved away and moved back.
She has been a general manager for Fort Scott Taco Tico, operations manager for Dave and Buster’s Restaurant in Kansas City and worked at several other restaurants through the years.
The Fort Scott Church of the Nazarene board oversees the coffee shop and selected Dixon as the new manager.
Hired as assistant manager is Samantha Racy, 22.
“I volunteered for about a week,” Samantha said. “There was a period the coffee shop was struggling. Others from the church helped. My whole family volunteered.”
Samantha Racy is an esthetician at Healing Hands Therapeutic Massage and Salon and also works at the coffee shop.
In addition, several high school students work there.
The business is searching for an additional cook.
“There is an assistant manager and a manager to take a load off of one person,” said Stacy Racy.
Racy has taken on the scheduling of the Loading Dock, the big rental room, in the rear of the shop.
The Loading Dock
Stacy Racy is hoping to have an event in the Loading Dock at least once a month, she said. Stacy is Samantha’s mother.
In December they had two events: a 1940s Christmas Concert on Dec. 16 and a Photo With The Grinch event on Dec. 17.
The Loading Dock has a stage area and an outside patio area.
To rent the event center costs $60 for four hours during business hours, eight hours will cost $100. To rent the space during in off- business hours is $150 for six hours, she said.
For small groups there is a conference room with a large table in a private area, and it is free, she said.
Hours of operation are Monday through Friday 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Closed Sunday.
To contact the Common Ground Coffee Shop, call 620.223.2499.
Visit the shop’s Facebook page and webpage to see the shop’s latest news.
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Kevin “Skitch” Allen purchased Aunt Toadie’s Restaurant in October but officially took over the business on Dec. 12, 2022.
“My heart is on the east side of town,” he said.
Allen started his construction business and car wash on the east side of Fort Scott. Nineteen years ago he demolished a house on the west side of the Aunt Toadie’s restaurant property for the former owners Larry and Mary Jane McHenry.
That started a relationship with the McHenrys. Then two years ago he started dating their niece Alisha Jamison.
“One evening we were talking to Mary Jane and Larry and discovered they wanted to work less hours,” Allen said. “Alisha and I talked about it. She was interested in running the eating business and I am interested in eating.”
“I’ve never owned a restaurant before,” he said. But the McHenry’s have stayed on to help the transition until the end of December.
“Thankfully, Larry and Mary Jane made it a success,” he said. “It’s one more way to help out on my side of town.”
Allen has been doing work on the outside of the restaurant on East Wall since purchasing it.
The west side of the building will have an addition, which will double the size of the eating area.
“It will be called the Lily Pad,” he said. “That will be for people who enjoy watching (sport) games on TV. Possibly with beer, in the future with dining.”
Possible futuristic plans are a pickle ball court to the north of this new addition, he said.
“You’ll be able to walk out to a pickle ball court,” he said. “Playing off the idea of chicken and pickle ball.”
On the east side of the restaurant there will be table and chairs for an outdoor eating area in warmer weather.
Inside, he has purchased a new soft-serve ice cream machine and discovered an old milk shake machine which will be put to use once again.
“We plugged it in and it went,” Allen said.
Alisha Jamison is the new manager and they are keeping the current wait staff. Matt McHenry, Larry and Mary Jane’s son, has decided to stay as cook.
“That’s a blessing,” he said. “He has worked there since he was a child.”
“I’m the taste tester,” Allen said.
The hours and menu will remain the same, but there might be additional hours on Monday and Saturday in the future.
There may be some additions to the menu because “we’ve got some good cooks thinking up ideas,” he said.
“I want to thank the McHenry’s for allowing us to take over their family business,” Allen said. “We are going to work hard to keep the family food atmosphere.”
“And thanks also to Fort Scott customers for the years of patronage, we know they won’t be disappointed,” he said.
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Sixty-four years as husband and wife. And 64 years as business and ministry partners, that’s Helen and Raymond (Chub) Bolling’s story.
Last week they celebrated their anniversary.
Chub and Helen met in high school at Bronson, KS and were attracted to each other at age 15 and 17.
Chub said he felt the Lord pointed her out to him.
They married December 14, 1958,and “she’s been taking care of me since,” Chub said.
They purchased the Bronson Locker in 1966.
“My husband’s father had a slaughter house,” Helen said. “We bought the town’s (meat)locker from Oscar Burris.”
In their business journey they sold the locker and were completely out of the business for 10 years, Helen said, then bought it back.
For 40 years of marriage they worked at both the locker and as pastors at Fulton United Methodist Church and Elsmore United Methodist, then 26 years at Paint Creek Church of the Brethren, south of Uniontown. Today their grandson, Seth Bolling, pastors that church.
Together they raised three children, Amber Ericson, Micheal and Mitchel Bolling; and now have six grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
What advice does this seasoned couple give couples starting out in marriage?
“I know one thing, you have a lot of ups and downs and you just have to work through them,” Helen said. “Remember your wedding vows and stay with them.”
Couples must be mindful of the words they say to each other, Chub said.
“When tough times come, you’ve got to see them through.” he said. “Plan on that. That’s our marriage.”
They have a little farm with livestock that Chub takes care of everyday, but he and Helen help out at the locker to “keep things moving” in the busy times, he said.
The Bronson Locker has several family members working together.
Their grandson, Garrett Ericson and wife, Mandie, are going to purchase the locker when Helen and Chub decide to fully retire, possibly in a year, Helen said. Garrett and Mandie manage the business now.
The business has expanded from 4 to 14 employees through the years, and many of them are family members.
Beside Garrett and Mandie, Amber and her other son, Ethan, and his wife, Tyler, work there. Micheal Bolling is the butcher. Then there is nephew Jim Kuns and Randall, Robert and Jessie Kuns and Mandie’s mom, Mary Ridge who all work there.
Son, Mitch and family have businesses in Allen county.
In addition, Amber and some of the women of the family opened a furniture/antique store just down the street in downtown Bronson, called THRAMS.
THRAMS Antiques, A Picker Family
“Bourbon County has been very good to us,” Chub said.
Aunt Toadies has been in business almost 20 years.
New owner Kevin Allen was doing outside work on the restaurant property this week.
He said they will be expanding the restaurant and parking lot.
There will be feature on the new owner’s plans in the near future on fortscott.biz.
Mary Jane wants the public to know that they have stayed, since the new owner purchased the business, to train the cooks the way they prepared food.
“The menu won’t change,” she said.
The most popular meal sold is their country-fried stead dinner and also their desserts, she said.
On Dec. 13, five different pies were being offered, which is an everyday occurrence. In addition, in the winter, bread pudding and cobblers are the specialties; in summer it’s their strawberry shortcake.
Kansas City, Mo., Dec. 15, 2022 – Evergy, Inc. (NYSE: EVRG) today announced it will transfer its stock exchange listing from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) to the Nasdaq Global Select Market, effective as of the opening of trading on Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022. The last day of trading on the NYSE will be Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022. Evergy’s common stock will continue to trade under the ticker symbol “EVRG.”
“Evergy prides itself on innovation and providing cost-effective power and clean energy to our customers, while bringing value to our shareholders,” said David Campbell, Evergy President and Chief Executive Officer. “Our stock exchange move will allow us to benefit from Nasdaq’s cutting-edge technology and information in serving our shareholders, and we are excited to be joining a wide range of innovative companies listed on Nasdaq.”
Evergy, Inc. (NYSE: EVRG), serves 1.6 million customers in Kansas and Missouri. Evergy’s mission is to empower a better future. Our focus remains on producing, transmitting and delivering reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy for the benefit of our stakeholders. Today, about half of Evergy’s power comes from carbon-free sources, creating more reliable energy with less impact to the environment. We value innovation and adaptability to give our customers better ways to manage their energy use, to create a safe, diverse and inclusive workplace for our employees, and to add value for our investors. Headquartered in Kansas City, our employees are active members of the communities we serve.
For more information about Evergy, visit us at http://investors.evergy.com.
Forward Looking Statements
Statements made in this Document that are not based on historical facts are forward-looking, may involve risks and uncertainties, and are intended to be as of the date when made. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to Evergy, Inc.’s strategic plan, including, without limitation, those related to earnings per share, dividend, operating and maintenance expense and capital investment goals; the outcome of legislative efforts and regulatory and legal proceedings; future energy demand; future power prices; plans with respect to existing and potential future generation resources; the availability and cost of generation resources and energy storage; target emissions reductions; and other matters relating to expected financial performance or affecting future operations. Forward-looking statements are often accompanied by forward-looking words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “expects,” “estimates,” “forecasts,” “should,” “could,” “may,” “seeks,” “intends,” “proposed,” “projects,” “planned,” “target,” “outlook,” “remain confident,” “goal,” “will” or other words of similar meaning. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking information.
In connection with the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Evergy, Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Evergy Companies”) are providing a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ from the forward-looking information. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to: economic and weather conditions and any impact on sales, prices and costs; changes in business strategy or operations; the impact of federal, state and local political, legislative, judicial and regulatory actions or developments, including deregulation, re-regulation, securitization and restructuring of the electric utility industry; decisions of regulators regarding, among other things, customer rates and the prudency of operational decisions such as capital expenditures and asset retirements; changes in applicable laws, regulations, rules, principles or practices, or the interpretations thereof, governing tax, accounting and environmental matters, including air and water quality and waste management and disposal; the impact of climate change, including increased frequency and severity of significant weather events and the extent to which counterparties are willing to do business with, finance the operations of or purchase energy from the Evergy Companies due to the fact that the Evergy Companies operate coal-fired generation; prices and availability of electricity and natural gas in wholesale markets; market perception of the energy industry and the Evergy Companies; the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on, among other things, sales, results of operations, financial condition, liquidity and cash flows, and also on operational issues, such as supply chain issues and the availability and ability of the Evergy Companies’ employees and suppliers to perform the functions that are necessary to operate the Evergy Companies; changes in the energy trading markets in which the Evergy Companies participate, including retroactive repricing of transactions by regional transmission organizations and independent system operators; financial market conditions and performance, including changes in interest rates and credit spreads and in availability and cost of capital and the effects on derivatives and hedges, nuclear decommissioning trust and pension plan assets and costs; impairments of long-lived assets or goodwill; credit ratings; inflation rates; the transition to a replacement for the London Interbank Offered Rate benchmark interest rate; effectiveness of risk management policies and procedures and the ability of counterparties to satisfy their contractual commitments; impact of physical and cybersecurity breaches, criminal activity, terrorist attacks, acts of war and other disruptions to the Evergy Companies’ facilities or information technology infrastructure or the facilities and infrastructure of third-party service providers on which the Evergy Companies rely; Impact of the Russian, Ukrainian conflict on the global energy market; ability to carry out marketing and sales plans; cost, availability, quality and timely provision of equipment, supplies, labor and fuel; ability to achieve generation goals and the occurrence and duration of planned and unplanned generation outages; delays and cost increases of generation, transmission, distribution or other projects; the Evergy Companies’ ability to manage their transmission and distribution development plans and transmission joint ventures; the inherent risks associated with the ownership and operation of a nuclear facility, including environmental, health, safety, regulatory and financial risks; workforce risks, including those related to the Evergy Companies’ ability to attract and retain qualified personnel, maintain satisfactory relationships with their labor unions and manage costs of, or changes in, wages, retirement, health care and other benefits; disruption, costs and uncertainties caused by or related to the actions of individuals or entities, such as activist shareholders or special interest groups, that seek to influence Evergy, Inc.’s strategic plan, financial results or operations; the possibility that strategic initiatives, including mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, and long-term financial plans, may not create the value that they are expected to achieve in a timely manner or at all; difficulties in maintaining relationships with customers, employees, regulators or suppliers; and other risks and uncertainties.
This list of factors is not all-inclusive because it is not possible to predict all factors. You should also carefully consider the information contained in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Additional risks and uncertainties are discussed in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, filed by the Evergy Companies with the SEC, and from time to time in current reports on Form 8-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed by the Evergy Companies with the SEC. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of the particular statement. The Evergy Companies undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
Investor Contact:
Pete Flynn Director, Investor Relations Phone: 816-652-1060
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Media Contact:
Gina Penzig Manager, External Communications Phone: 785-508-2410 Media line: 888-613-0003 |
The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce invites members and guests to a Chamber Coffee event this Thursday, December 15th at 8 a.m. hosted by The City of Fort Scott, 123 S. Main Street.
At this week’s Coffee, the City staff will provide a recap of the year 2022, and give a preview of what is to come in 2023.
Coffee, juice, and light refreshments will be served in addition to door prize drawings.
Any member business or organization wanting to host Chamber Coffee in 2022 is encouraged to contact the Chamber to save a date by calling 620-223-3566 or emailing [email protected].