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Category Archives: Business
Big Kansas Road Trip coming to Fort Scott
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Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting for The Beauty Lounge Feb. 3
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A Coummunity Evening: Watch the Pinewood Derby
Fort Scott Cub Pack 114 is having its annual Pinewood Derby on Saturday, Feb. 12 from 6-9 p.m. at Memorial Hall, Third Street and National Avenue.
This year to beef up community attendance, Scoutmaster Seth Needham is hosting a Corporate Pinewood Derby.
“It will be a night of fun and racing,” Needham said. “The Pinewood Derby is an annual scout event where we design, build, and race pinewood derby cars,” Needham, said. “Pinewood Derby cars are small-scale cars made from wooden blocks, carved and cut for unique designs, and then raced down a special track. They are powered 100% by gravity, so the design is very important, and something the scouts work hard on.”
Needham decided to make this year’s race a community event because the scouts do work so hard on their cars.
“I wanted the community to have a chance to come and cheer them on,” he said. “The scouts give back a lot to the community through various projects, so it’s nice to have an event that can bring the community out to see them.”
“The corporate race is open to local businesses and organizations,” he said. “So far, I have about 10 different businesses signed up, and they are all really excited. Also, the sheriff’s office and the city of Fort Scott will have cars entered.”
Key Apparel is sponsoring the derby by providing prizes for the fastest cars, and best designs, he said.
The corporate derby has a cost of $25 that includes one derby car kit, registration for the race, and one meal ticket, he said. Extra meal tickets are $10. Companies can register more than one car, too.
1st and 2nd place will be awarded for both categories, and the prizes are $150 and $100 gift certificates to purchase items online from Key Apparel.
“The design contest will be judged by a panel of judges,” Needham said. “Currently, Lindsay Madison from the Chamber of Commerce, Mayor Kevin “Skitch” Allen, and Kelley Zellner, city manager, are our judges.”
Dinner will be served at 6 p.m. for race contestants and their guests.
Each company that registers gets one meal ticket, and extra meal tickets are available for $10.
“If people want to come and just watch the race, we will charge $5 entry,” he said “All proceeds will go directly to Cub Scout Pack 114.”
“I decided to do the derby as a fundraiser because so many people have fond memories of these races when they were scouts,” he said. “Anytime scouts are brought up in conversation, the first thing people want to talk about is their experience with the pinewood derby.”
The Corporate Pinewood Derby
“Area companies are invited to design and decorate a car, race, and have dinner with the scouts,” he said. “You can be as creative as you want with the design of your car, as long as it complies with the official scout pinewood derby rules.”
The cost to compete in the Corporate Derby is $25 per car, and each registration will include the following:
- 1 BSA approved Pinewood Derby Car Kit
- 1 dinner ticket
- Area to display your car and company literature before and after the race.
- Features on our Facebook page.
Agenda for the Event
Check-in will begin at 5 p.m. with the official scout races starting at 6 p.m., and company races will start immediately after.
Dinner will be served at 6:30 p.m. Additional meal tickets can be purchased for $10 before the event, or $15 the night of the event.
Please make checks payable to BSA Pack 114.
Key Apparel has donated gift certificates with prizes from their business website, which is www.keyapparelstore.com
Prizes will be awarded for the following categories.
- Speed: 1st place $150, 2nd place $100
- Design: 1st place $150, 2nd place $100.
If your business would like to register, please contact Needham at (620) 215 6934, or send an email to [email protected].
“Upon registration and payment, you will receive your pinewood derby car kit and a copy of the rules,” he said. “Also, be sure to follow BSA Pack 114 on Facebook for tips and tricks that you can use to make your car faster.”
Needham provided the rules of the derby:
RULES FOR BUILDING YOUR PINEWOOD DERBY CAR
BSA’s Pinewood Derby Car Building Rules
All cars must pass the following inspection to qualify for the race:
- Width shall not exceed 2-3/4 inches.
- Length shall not exceed 7 inches.
- Weight shall not exceed 5 ounces.
- Axles, wheels, and bodies shall be from the materials provided in the kit.
- Wheel bearings, washers, and bushings are prohibited.
- No lubricating oil may be used. Axles may be lubricated with powdered graphite or silicone.
- The car shall not ride on any kind of spring.
- The car must be free-wheeling, with no starting devices.
- No loose materials of any kind are allowed in the car.
- A double-elimination method is used to determine the winner.
This method uses a “winner’s bracket” system that begins with every car filling one spot. At the end of each heat, the winning car advances to the next level of the winner’s bracket while the other cars are entered in the loser’s bracket. Those cars then race against one another, with the winners of each heat advancing. The final car of each of the two brackets competes with the other for first place.
Each judge will give each car a score of 1-10, with 10 being the best. The car with the highest score wins.
T-Mobile Opens Storefront in Fort Scott Jan. 28
This Friday a T-Mobile wireless network store opens in Fort Scott in the strip mall on South Main Street.
The store is located in the former Cash 2 Go storefront at 2400 S. Main and has 1,300 square feet for the sales floor.
The hours will be 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday. They have seven employees.
January 28, 2022, is the soft opening date, with a grand opening in the future.
The store’s phone number is 620.644.0347.
Why Fort Scott?
“T-Mobile is the leader in 5g, bringing cellular service to the entire nation,” said Scott Hunsaker, manager of the Fort Scott store.
“T-Mobile wants to service communities that have been historically dis-served within the cellular community,” Hunsaker said. “Fort Scott was chosen because of its geographic location and the City of Fort Scott had been approved to receive a $50,000 Hometown Grant. This gave us a reason to invest here.”
To view the prior story on the Fort Scott Hometown Grant:
T-Mobile Awards Green Space Grant and Will Open New Retail Store in Fort Scott
T-Mobile History
T-Mobile US, Inc. is a wireless network whose headquarters are located in Bellevue, Washington, and Overland Park, Kansas.
“When we purchased Sprint, Overland Park became our second corporation headquarters on August 2, 2020,” Hunsaker said.
T-Mobile had a record high, 5.5 million customers, in 2021, according to the company’s website.
Timken Hiring Event Jan. 28-29
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Shop local retailers celebrating Kansas Day, January 29th, 2022
The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce announces participating retailers that will be offering a shopping promotion to celebrate Kansas Day on Saturday, January 29th. Patrons wearing apparel with Kansas or a sunflower will receive 10% off their purchase. Participating stores will have a Kansas Day poster in their place of business.
Kansas Day commemorates The Sunflower State being the 34th state to enter the Union in 1861. The Chamber encourages shoppers to celebrate Kansas Day and thank a local store owner for doing business in our great state.
In addition to this local shopping promotion organized by the Chamber, Kansas Tourism invites Kansans to Give a Toast to the Sunflower State on Kansas Day and post their own tribute to the 34th state to social media using the hashtag #ToTheStarsKS Contact the Chamber for more information at 620-223-3566.
The Washateria Revamps Community Closet Ministry
Carol Oakleaf and Lori Lovelace, owners of Fort Scott Washateria, 501 S. National Avenue, started the Fort Scott Community Closet when they opened the laundromat in September 2019.
Recently they have been revamping their clothes-give-away operations to be more accessible to the people of Fort Scott.
“After Saturday, Jan 29th, we will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday,” Lovelace said. “Those interested in finding clothing or household linens and bedding can sign in at the laundromat front desk and will be able to go into the closet and pick out needed items.”
“We will have bags at the front desk to put items in after sign out,” she said. “As always, our items are donated by the people of Fort Scott and are available to all in need.”
“We will be open on Saturday, Jan 29th as we are finishing up the retooling and welcome all who wish to come by,” Lovelace said. “We have a good selection of coats and cold weather items as well as clothing and bedding.”
“Thank you to all of the people who have donated,” Lovelace said.
“We started the Community Closet when we opened the Washateria in September 2019 because there was limited availability for obtaining donated clothing for folks since Beacon( a local helping agency) had ceased taking clothing donations,” she said. “We thought that a laundromat was a logical place, as we wash the clothes and we have a large outreach within the community.”
The clothes and bedding are free to those in need.
Then In March 2020, the COVID-19 Pandemic hit.
“While the laundromat has remained open as an essential service, we limited access to the closet, taking requests over the phone and gathering clothes for people to pick up at the laundromat,” she said.
“We are ready to move out of the COVID restrictions and the number of calls has increased, making it difficult to keep up,” Lovelace said. “So, we have redesigned the closet for folks to be able to come to the laundromat, sign in and go to the closet to gather clothing and household linens as needed during the closet open hours.”
She said they have had a large number of items donated and are trying out the self-service idea.
“The kick-off is Saturday, Jan 29th and we will see how it works,” she said. “Our mission has always been to be a middleman for a flow of items from folks willing to donate to folks in need and we have been learning how the best way to efficiently do that over the past two years.”
Fort Scott Washateria Services
“Fort Scott Washateria continues to provide a clean place for people to do their laundry and we have been doing a lot of laundry in our Wash/Dry/Fold Service,” she said. “We still have free pick and delivery for the WDF service including hotels and campgrounds in the area and we provide commercial laundry service to local businesses.”
“We have some new promotions and services set up for this year, stay tuned for more information on those,” Lovelace said.
The laundromat is open seven days a week, Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and on Sunday from noon to 8 p.m.
“We also starch and press, steam, and do some limited alterations,” she said.
Rules for the Community Closet
“The rules for the closet are, for folks looking for items, to sign in at the front desk and when they are done looking to come back in for a sack and to sign out,” Lovelace said. “We ask for respect in going through the items, returning them to their tubs and shelves so the next folks can easily find what they need.”
To Donate
For people interested in donating, they accept clothing, bedding, and coats.
“We can’t handle shoes or items other than the clothing due to space limitations,” she said. “You just have to bring your items to the front desk in bags, boxes or loose, we will take care of them from there. We take donations during all hours the laundromat is open.”
Lori Lovelace can be contacted through the laundromat Facebook page, phone-620-644-9834, [email protected], or [email protected]
Chamber Networking Workshop: How to Build Professional Relationships by Tammy Wellbrock
Wednesday, January 26, 2022 @ 9am to Noon the
Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce Presents the Chamber Networking Workshop: How to Build Professional Relationships by Tammy Wellbrock.
Join us at Empress Event Center located at 7 N. Main St., Fort Scott, KS on Wednesday, January 26, 2022 at 9 am until 12 pm. to take advantage of this workshop.
From her days of selling advertising for the newspaper industry, increasing alumni memberships at her alma mater, creating customer networks in the telecommunications industry, or teaching for FHSU, Tammy Wellbrock is passionate about connecting, enlightening, and empowering others. Tammy served 8 years as the President/CEO for the Hays Area Chamber of Commerce. Under her direction, the Chamber was a 2013 ACCE Finalist for Chamber of the Year.
In 2019, Tammy launched her professional training and coaching business, Girl Twin Solutions, LLC, which focuses on Women and Leadership. Another aspect of her business includes serving as Interim President/CEO’s for several different positions over the years, including Fort Hays State University Alumni Association, Colby/Thomas County Chamber of Commerce and Pratt Area Chamber of Commerce. She enjoys the challenge of leading organizations through transformational change.
This workshop begins with the philosophy that all people have unique value to offer others as well as a foundation of skills and successes. Being able to present yourself in an authentic, genuine, and engaging manner is the most effective tool for professional networking and building relationships.
The objectives of this workshop are Networking with Purpose and Intentionality, Develop Stronger Communication, and Strategically Build & Maintain a Personal Network.
This workshop is for anyone wanting to increase their social impact and reach.
Contact the Chamber for more information about this event at 620-223-3566
Rygmyr Retires From USB
A press release from Union State Bank
Residents and customers are asked to please join Union State Bank as they wish Sheila Rygmyr all the best as she retires from Union State Bank.
Sheila has worked at USB since October of 2003.
She has done nearly everything on the deposit operations side and served most recently as the New Accounts Representative in Fort Scott.
Union State Bank will hold a reception honoring Sheila on Wednesday, January 26, from 12:30 to 2:30 pm at the Fort Scott Union State Bank, 1009 S. Clark location.
Refreshments will be served.
Chamber Coffee hosted by Spyder, Inc. Jan. 20
The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce invites members and guests to a Chamber Coffee this Thursday, January 20th at 8 a.m. hosted by new Chamber member Spyder, Inc., located at 102 W. 2nd Street.
Coffee and light refreshments will be served.
Spyder, Inc combines their experience of solutions, compliance, and technology together to launch an eCommerce portal and document storage solution purpose-built for insurance agents and financial service providers that makes their job of selling, growing, and managing their business easier.
Spyder is a female-founded business whose leaders offer deep fintech experience, both designing software and growing companies. They are passionate about their products and what they can do for the insurance and financial service industries. Their belief is to improve the lives of their clients, their employees, and their community by serving them in the highest level of regard. Transparency, honesty, and kindness are values that they hold dear.
Join the Chamber in welcoming this new company to Fort Scott. Visit their website spyderloop.com for more information. 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].
Proofreading/Copy Editing Business Starts in Fort Scott
Fort Scott native Kim Carpenter, 56, is the owner of a new business called Writer’s Edge, LLC.
Carpenter’s business provides proofreading and copyediting services for a variety of written materials including ads, reports, books, articles, blog posts, and more.
Her Background
She has 14 years of experience as an elementary school teacher.
Carpenter earned her Associate of Science degree from Fort Scott Community College, a Bachelor of Science in Education degree from Pittsburg State University, and a Master of Education degree in Curriculum and Instruction from William Woods University.
Her hometown is Fort Scott.
She is married to Jon Carpenter and has four children, two that live in Fort Scott: Jana Johnson, and Jon T. Carpenter.
She is a member of the Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce and is an active member of Faith Church.
“In my free time, you might find me hiking the Gunn Park trails, kayaking the local waterways, or shopping at area flea markets,” she said.
A New Adventure
“Writer’s Edge was born out of a passion to read, write, and a desire to pursue a new career,” she said.
“I have been an elementary educator for 14 years,” Carpenter said. “I loved the opportunity to be a constructive influence in children’s lives. Yet, I felt the pull to pursue a different path in which I can also have a positive impact. As I am a strong advocate of reading and writing, this adventure felt like a perfect fit for me”.
After extensive research, Carpenter learned what was needed to transition from full-time teacher to full-time proofreader, copyeditor.
First, she graduated from an educational course with certification in professional proofreading and editing and confirmed her grasp of advanced grammar as well as strong oral and written communication skills, she said.
Next, Carpenter converted a spare room into an office space, and with the help of her friend and fellow entrepreneur, Lori Sherrell Cable, built her LinkedIn profile, resume, and her website.
In addition, she attended meetings with the Healthy Bourbon County Action Team (HBCAT) and the Kansas Small Business Development Center (SBDC) to make the dream a reality. The team of Jody Hoener, Dacia Clark, and Rachel Carpenter worked with her to formalize her business and develop a business plan.
“The whole process was very easy, and the team was so great to work with. They explained everything and answered all of my questions. They truly have a heart to see people succeed and are very knowledgeable in the process,” Carpenter said.
She also looks forward to working with students, researchers, and business owners to improve written communications from social marketing to printed materials and no project is too big or too small, she said.
Carpenter’s website www.writersedge.page will be up soon, but for now, she can be reached at [email protected]
