FSHS Select Ensemble Director Meredith Reid welcomes the attendees to the Christmas performance.
In its’ first performance of the Christmas season, the Fort Scott High School Select Ensemble entertained the attendees of Community Christian Church’s open house Monday at lunch.
The ensemble is the direction of Meredith Reid and was accompanied by Pat Harry.
This Thursday, Dec. 13, the FSHS choir, band, and orchestra will perform a Christmas concert at the high school gym, 1005 S. Main, at 7:30 p.m.
On Sunday, Dec. 16 at 3 p.m. the FSHS Select Ensemble will perform during a fundraiser that provides for attire, music, travel expense and guest conductors for the music group.
The concert entitled “Classic Christmas” is $10 for adults, $5 for children and includes homemade cookies and coffee following.
Also featured in the concert is Dan Duling and the Stone Country Band, a group of local musicians.
Crooners & 56J Productions are Hosting a New Year’s Eve Party at The River Room!
Come celebrate with us on Monday, December 31st, 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the
historic River Room
3 W. Oak, Fort Scott
Please join us for a festive evening as we ring in the New Year. Tickets are $50 per person in advance, $75 after December 15th. Price includes dinner, live entertainment, and a champagne toast at midnight!
A task force began in October 2018 following the announcing of the closure of Mercy Hospital Fort Scott.
That task force has been meeting weekly since, to work on issues regarding the need for emergency medical services following the closure of Mercy.
“There is a statute that counties are to provide EMS services,” Dave Bruner, a member of the task force said.
“What is in concrete at this point is that the county and the city have signed a contract to provide a service for a year,” Bruner said.
Since both the City of Fort Scott and Bourbon County Commission had already set their budget for 2019 prior to the announcement of Mercy closing, it put them in an uncertain financial position to provide those emergency medical services.
Fort Scott City Hall
“We said ‘let’s put this together and after a year, look at the contract’,” Bruner said.
“When Mercy announced the closure, they have to give 180 days notice,” Bruner said. “So April 1 is when we will be fully Bourbon County EMS.”
“In the meantime from Jan. 1 to April 1, there will be a change of labels on the ambulances,” he said. “Mercy is obligated until April 1. They will still be employees of Mercy.”
There are currently six full-time employees and 16 part-time employees of Mercy EMS.
“We are going to do our best to retain all of them,” Bruner said. “The city will run the day to day operations of the service-the staffing of ambulances and dispatch.”
The county will pay a subsidy to the city and handle the billing.
“There is a goal to establish a third-party entity to do the billing for the county,” Bruner said.
“The first responders (in emergency situations) in the small towns will continue to be local volunteer fire departments and EMT’s,” he said.
This provides help until the ambulance can arrive on sight of the emergency.
“The goal is to keep the same familiar faces,” Bruner said. “The only thing that will change will be the names on the ambulance and the uniforms.”
“My goal is to give the EMS a place to call their own facility,” he said
Currently, the task force is in negotiations.
“We don’t have a list of what Mercy is donating yet,” Justin Meeks, Bourbon County Legal Counselor said.
“We hope donations will be finalized by Dec. 18,” Meeks said.
Under discussion in negotiations are vehicles, equipment and facilities.
The task force is comprised of Nick Ruhl, Meeks, Jody Hoener from the county; Dave Martin, Bruner, Robert Uhler, Paul Ballou, Rhonda Dunn and Deb Needleman from the city; and Christi Keating from Mercy.
Temperatures hovering at the freezing mark did not stop the Chamber of Commerce’s Fort Scott Christmas parade Tuesday, Dec. 4.
Following are some snapshots of the event.
Feel free to add photos.
Bethel Community Baptist Church provided a living nativity in downtown Fort Scott Tuesday evening.Parkway Church of God’s float in the Fort Scott Christmas parade Tuesday evening.Fort Scott High School Band students entertained the crowd at the Christmas parade.The Buck Run Community Center staff offered free hot cocoa at the parade.Customers view the offerings at Christmas At the Empress, a sale of local vendors, who set up a temporary shop Tuesday evening at the same time as the parade. The Empress Event Center is located at 7 N. Main.
Saturday, December 8th, marks the end of the regular Trolley Tour schedule in Fort Scott.
To celebrate, the Fort Scott Convention & Visitors Bureau offers free regular tours of Fort Scott on “Dolly the Trolley” this Saturday.
Tours will leave the Fort Scott Regional Tourism Center at 231 E. Wall every hour, on the hour, beginning at 10:00 am, with the final tour departing at 3:00 pm. Seats are first come, first served.
During the offseason, the Fort Scott CVB, with assistance from the Tourism Advisory Board and local volunteers, will reevaluate the tour, adding new stories and new routes.
The 2019 season for “Dolly the Trolley” begins on Saturday, March 9th.
Free tours do not include the “No Humbugs Allowed” Christmas Lights Tours. For more information call 620.670.2750.
The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce announces a Re-Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony will be held at McDonald’s on Friday, December 14th, 2018 at 2224 S. Main Street in Fort Scott.
The event will begin at 8:00 a.m. with remarks and the ribbon cutting ceremony starting at 8:15 a.m. Chamber of Commerce members will be invited to stay for refreshments and two drawings following the ceremony.
Owners Mark and Mo McCoy are re-opening McDonald’s after major refurbishment. With this significant construction investment of the NEW McDonald’s of Fort Scott, the transformed restaurant will feature:
• A modernized dining room with globally and locally inspired décor, new furniture and refreshed exterior designs
• An enhanced customer experience, with digital self-order kiosks that make ordering and paying for a meal easier. The kiosks will empower guests to browse the menu, find options and tailor their meal just the way they want
• A remodeled counter that allows for new table service, offering guests the opportunity to relax while their food is being made
• Bright and easy to read digital menu boards inside and at the drive-thru
• New designated parking spots for curbside pick-up through mobile order and pay
• Expanded McCafé counters and larger display cases
For more information contact the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce at 620-223-3566.
The Fort Scott High School Thespians present their holiday children’s theatre production of “A 21st Century Christmas Carol” by Lori M. Myers.
Performances are at 7 p.m. on Dec. 14 and 15 and at 2 p.m. on Dec. 15 at the Fort Scott High School Auditorium. Doors open 30 minutes prior to show time and seating is limited.
“A 21st Century Christmas Carol” is a new twist on a familiar tale. “Eleanor Scrooge, a greedy old spinster, spends her days barking orders at her gift shop employees. Though the mall will be closed, she still wants them to work on Christmas Day! Then she’s visited by the ghost of her old boss, Mr. Marley, and a parade of zany spirits who materialize from cheesy collectible figurines. … With great humor, contemporary references, and crazy characters, … audiences will fall in love with the classic story all over again,” according to Pioneer Drama Service.
Characters in the production are played by area children in 1st-8th grades. Regen Wells, a 7th-grade student at Fort Scott Middle School, plays the lead character of Eleanor. Eighth graders Anna Laubenstein, Kinsley Davis and Kaitlyn Leavell play the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future. All are also members of the FSMS Drama Club which meets weekly at the Middle School.
The play is directed by FSHS senior Karina Kantilal and sophomore Ashanti Green. Music is led by freshman Christina Ramirez and sophomore Noah Martin with choreography from junior Mesa Jones and sophomore Avery Dorsey. About thirty other high school students are assisting with the direction and design of the show as a fundraiser for the State and International Thespian Festivals under the supervision of Thespian Director Angie Bin.
Tickets for “A 21st Century Christmas Carol” are $5 and available at the FSHS Office, 1005 S. Main; Common Ground, 116 S. Main; and at the door.
