Category Archives: Fort Scott
What’s Happening in Fort Scott
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Jennifer Gum-Fowler Starts As Director of Fort Scott Public Library on January 18
Jennifer Gum-Fowler will start as the director of the Fort Scott Public Library on January 18.
“I have already begun to plan some programming for the coming year,” Gum-Fowler said. “I have many ideas that I want to try. I am also thinking of ways to make the community as excited about libraries as I am.”
“As the Library Director, I am responsible for the everyday running of the library, of course,” she said. “I am also responsible for the outreach and partnerships with the library. On top of that, I get to do adult programming and will curate the adult collections. I will also do the interlibrary loans.”
For her, the best part of being a library director is collaborating with the community and being able to bring all kinds of programming and partnerships to the library. “I love it when people come into the library and say, ‘I didn’t know that libraries did that.’ Libraries have gone through a real renaissance and are not what your great-grandparents would have thought of.”
” The biggest challenge is changing how people view libraries,” she said. “There is the idea that libraries are no longer relevant today, and that couldn’t be further from the truth. Libraries are vital parts of growing and healthy communities. They are not places one goes for shushing but for information, programs, and community connection. Books are just the beginning of what libraries offer communities.”
Gum Fowler received a Bachelor of Arts in History from Washburn University.
“When I started my library journey, I completed the state APPLE training for new directors in the Southeast Kansas Library System,” she said. “After finishing that, I realized I wanted to do more in libraries, so I returned to school and got my master’s in library science (MLS) from Emporia State University. While there, I was invited to join the Beta Phi Mu Honor Society, an international professional society for accomplished librarians.”
“In 2014, I got the library in Kincaid voted in as an actual library,” she said. “Since then, I have worked hard to get it as part of the national and state library organizations. ”
Under her direction, Kincaid Public Library has grown to be a part of the community, she said.
She has been a member of the Association of Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL) and the Kansas Library Association (KLA) since 2017. She is a part of the Intellectual Freedom Committee for the KLA and is the Southeast Kansas Library System (SEKLS) Executive Board Vice-President.
She has been married to Chad Fowler for 28 years and has three adult children “and way too many cats,” she said.
The family was an active part of 4-H when the children were younger, she said. “I personally enjoy weaving, needle felting, and watercolors. I grew up doing pre-1840 reenacting and still love primitive camping. I am also an avid geek and love Dr. Who, Marvel, Firefly, and Star Wars. All that said, I also love reading, with high fantasy and sci-fi being my favorites.”
Currently, she is commuting to Fort Scott.
“I live around 10 miles from the Bourbon line in Anderson County,”
she said. “It is a fast and enjoyable commute to work. I will use the time to listen to some audiobooks. I can’t wait to start working in Fort Scott. It is a beautiful city.”
Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration on January 17
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Tips For Winter Home Safety
Smoke Alarms: Early Warning
In Case of Water Emergency In Cold Weather
From Fort Scott City Manager Brad Matkin:
“In case of a water emergency during very cold weather, please call Emergency Communication Services at 620-223-1700 to report a leak”
“This number can also be used to determine where the shelter is located if the power is lost during a storm (Buck Run Community Center is our shelter). We have had some elderly people call us wanting to know these things and do not have Facebook.”
Simmons Retires From Care to Share
After 16 years in an organization she helped found, Lavetta Simmons is retiring.
The genesis of the organization was a Relay for Life of Bourbon County event in 2007, at that time Teresa Davenport was going through her cancer fight, Joy O’Neal was a cancer survivor and Lavetta Simmons had been a caregiver to both her parents who had died of cancer.
“Teresa Davenport said, ‘When I get cancer-free, I would like to start a cancer support group,'”Simmons said. Joy O’Neal and Lavetta Simmons volunteered to help.
That cancer support group started in 2007, with a Fort Scott family’s four-year-old daughter who had been diagnosed.
Through the efforts of Davenport and her classmates, along with O’Neal and Simmons, a fundraiser was formed and close to $7,000 was raised for the family. Today, that girl has moved into her future.
“We each had our things to do to make it happen and we made it happen!” Simmons said.
In 2008, during the group’s first meeting at Mercy’s McAuley Center, the name Care to Share was chosen and a decision was made to meet quarterly.
“Our first year, we cared and we shared, through calls, visits, and prayer,” Simmons said. “During this time we were able to see the financial suffering that our fighters were going through as we gave them emotional support.”
In 2009, Lavetta announced at a meeting that she would like to help the cancer fighters financially
“That’s when The Sharing Bucket was added to the Care to Share Cancer Support Group, with the idea of fundraising with our group and our bucket never going empty,” she said. “The three of us came together, met with a lawyer to form a non-profit 501c3 organization…and chose a board of directors.”
The group introduced itself to the community at the 2009 Home and Garden Show.
“The year 2009 was a financial struggle for all of us with some very God-given moments and stories to pass on”, she said. “During this time, we added that Care To Share is ‘God Given, God Driven.'”
“In 2010, Fort Scott lost a very caring lady to cancer. She had struggled for many years,” Simmons said. “She left her memorials to us. We had never thought about receiving memorials. She was the first, and her memorials were $7,840. She blessed us with an
amount that was way beyond our dreams. The family asked that we invest a portion of it with the idea that Care To Share Cancer Support/The Sharing Bucket would go on forever. So we did, and we have grown it to a very nice amount today.”
“Our community has joined us and blessed us over and over again,” she said. “Each meeting we grew, each fundraiser we grew, each visit we grew. It has been the most amazing heart-touching God Driven; God Given thing, and has driven us all closer and closer
to God.”
“Last year we cared and shared financially 1,274 times with a total amount of $97,137.89!” she said. “That was only financial assistance, not counting the calls, texts, messages, emails, meals, rides, Ensure supplements, etc.”
“We never know where God is directing us next,” she said. ” We have followed and believe if God brings you to it, God will bring
you through It.”
The caring and sharing community made it possible, she said.
“But, I also want to mention that this could never happen without my family, and my extended family… My family has lived the journey. We were there when my parents took their last breaths. We have been there for so many cancer fighters and their families in our communities and we have been there for every fundraiser that has been put together for The Sharing Bucket.”
Her immediate family has all grown up, she said.
“They now have families of their own,” she said. “…So there comes a time when maybe we have to let go?? How do we do that? We don’t know?”
“Well, we figured it out. God, Family, Care to Share has always been our motto,” she said. Now she is caring and sharing with her family.
” I now care for two of my great-grandbabies,” she said. Daily her time is given to Lillian, 3, and Austyn, 1 month,
“Care to Share Cancer Support Group/The Sharing Bucket has blessed me over and over, through our caring and sharing with every cancer fighter and their families, and through caring and
sharing through our wonderful giving community. I will always have a place close to my heart for it.
THANK YOU FOR CARING AND SHARING,” Simmons said.
The group shares this scripture with the cancer fighters, “as we believe in it and want to give them faith as well, Matthew 17:20
IF YOU HAVE FAITH AS SMALL AS A MUSTARD SEED, NOTHING SHALL BE IMPOSSIBLE FOR YOU,” she said.
Cory Bryars, Vice President of the Care to Share Board wrote this about Simmons:
“They say charity can come in the form of time, talent, and treasure. For most of us, we have to choose which one or maybe two of those to give as we take care of the rest of our lives. Lavetta gave all three, zealously,” he said.
“As a co-founder of Care to Share and as a leader of day-to-day activities as well as the Board of Directors, Lavetta has helped generate over $1.2 million in support of our local cancer communities,” he said.“She has given her time taking countless calls at all hours of the day and night from families desperate for support during the difficulties of their cancer journeys. Lavetta has visited cancer survivors and their families in times of dire need with open arms, an open heart, and an open Care to Share wallet to help them get over whatever hurdle they were facing that day,” he said.“Lavetta’s commitment and passion brought generous giving from her family and friends, and our entire community is immeasurably better off through her efforts,” he said. “She is warm, caring, compassionate, organized and efficient and she gave those talents to SEK cancer fighters through Care to Share.”“We thank and honor Lavetta for her vision, her passion, and her dedication and support as she passes the torch to the next round of Care to Share leadership.”
Care to Share continues with Teresa Davenport as the president, Joy O’Neal died in 2022.
There will be an open house at the Care to Share new office located at 401 Woodland Hills on January 22.
To learn morehttps://fortscott.biz/?s=care+to+share+expanding
Spoiled Brat Is Moving Location
People have noticed a construction site starting at 124 E. Third, near the corner of State Avenue and Third Street.
The building going up will be Spoiled BratSalon, currently located in downtown Fort Scott at 19 S. Main.
Stephanie Anthony and Heather Engstrom are the owners of Spoiled Brat Salon.
“We’ve been wanting a new space of our own,” Anthony said. “We will be offering basically the same services, with the possibility of adding new stylists/services,” she said. They are hoping for a spring move to the site, she said.
Engstrom Construction LLC is the builder.
“My wife Heather and I bought the property under Peacock Properties LLC,” Scott Engstrom said. “We purchased it in July and did the demolition on the property. We got tired of renting and wanted to own.”
The building will be a 35-foot by 50-foot, 1700 square-foot wood frame with a metal facade and front porch, he said.
“There will be seven stations in the salon and a massage therapy room,” he said.
“On the west side, there will be two concrete handicap vehicle spots, specifically for van accessible handicap,” he said.
“We are still considered downtown, but outside the historic district,” he said.
He and his sons, Taylor, 24, and Brayden, 21, are helping in the build.
Engrstom Construction LLC can be reached at 620.202.1881.
Spoiled Brat Salon’s number is 620.223.2155.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration Rescheduled Due to Forecasted Weather
Fort Scott, Kan. – With inclement weather and severe cold in the forecast for Jan. 15, the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration at Fort Scott Community College is rescheduled to Wednesday, Jan. 17.
In making the announcement, Kirk Sharp, executive director of the Gordon Parks Museum noted that the “Day of Service” (in honor of King’s birthday) begins with a food drive for the Beacon Food Pantry of Fort Scott.
Canned goods and non-perishable, non-expired items can be dropped off from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the museum, located in the Danny and Willa Ellis Family Fine Arts Center.
The celebration, with all events open to the community, features a free soup lunch at noon. The lunch, provided by Great Western Dining, includes soup, drink, dessert and birthday cake. The celebration lunch also includes a “I Stand for …” photo promotion, sponsored by the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes.
An afternoon of celebration and tribute through music, “Celebrating Every Voice,” begins at 1 p.m. in the theater and features choirs from the Apostolic Christian Church and the United Missionary Baptist Church, both of Fort Scott, and blues guitarist Lem Sheppard from Pittsburg. All events are free to attend.
For more information, go to https//www.gordonparkscenter.org/events or call the museum at (620) 223-2700, ext. 5850 or email [email protected]
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USD 234 Board of Education Met On January 8
Unified School District 234
424 South Main
Fort Scott, KS 66701-2697
620-223-0800 Fax 620-223-2760
DESTRY BROWN
Superintendent
BOARD OF EDUCATION REGULAR MEETING
NEWS RELEASE
Monday, January 8, 2024
Members of the USD 234 Board of Education met at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, January 8, 2024, for their regular monthly meeting at the board office.
President David Stewart opened the meeting.
President Stewart welcomed the new board members to their first board meeting.
The board appointed Danny Brown as board member for the next two years.
Stewart Gulager was nominated and appointed as Vice-President of the USD 234 Board.
The board approved the official agenda, and the consent agenda as follows:
Board Minutes
12/11/23 Board Minutes
Financials-Cash Flow Report
Check Register
Payroll – December 18, 2023 – $1,689,996.80
Activity Fund accounts
USD 234 Gifts
CTE Math 2023-2024 Fundraising
Update Officers
Appoint KPERS Designated Agent
Resolution 23-11 KMIP Signers
Resolution 23-12 Bank Account Signers
Classified Tiger Team Members of the Month were Tim Button and Tim Coyan.
Mr. Coyan is a preschool driver and was recognized by Superintendent Brown for not missing one day of work this last semester. He was also thanked for his willingness to be available and helpful whenever needed.
Mr. Button is in his tenth year driving for USD 234. He also was recognized for not missing one day of work last semester. Superintendent Brown stated that he is thankful for safely transporting students to and from school.
Superintendent Destry Brown reported on a Principal opening at Winfield Scott. USD 234 is taking applications until the end of January. He also shared results of building climate surveys and parent surveys that were taken last semester. Snow Day procedures were shared with the board in the event of inclement weather. Mr. Brown shared information about the events happening with the proposed new preschool building. Also, the new board members were invited to a New Board Member Training that would be held in Columbus, Kansas.
Assistant Superintendent Dalaina Smith gave an update to the board on the Essential Standards. She said we have “amazing teachers” that are working very diligently to use interventions that would increase the students’ education. This is an evolving document that will be shared on the district’s website sometime this week. USD 234 is seeing remarkable results.
Tonya Barnes, Special Education Director, gave a report on the Speech Department within Special Education. The need is growing, and she was able to share how USD 234 is working to fulfill those needs. She acknowledged the demanding work the Speech Team is doing to meet the requirements for each student.
Superintendent Brown reported on end of year finance reports.
Cherri Walrod, Community Liaison for Core Community Bourbon County (CCBBCO), gave an update to the board Monday evening. This program began in November of 2023 and has fifteen adults in the 20-week Phase One Program, with most being within the USD 234 School District. She recognized Janice Lamb, Community Coach, for working each week as a leader for the participants. She has helped with filling out applications, groceries, and being a listening ear when needed. “Core Community has been nothing but an amazing program to be a part of…It has brought my family closer together” was a testimony from a current participant. Visiting Core Community Bourbon County on Facebook will give updates, testimonies, and more information for anyone interested.
The board approved the following items:
- To publish board seat #1&4 in the Fort Scott Tribune.
- Open Enrollment Policy.
- Regular Board Meeting dates for 2024.
- Move the election of Board Officers until the July board Meeting.
- Personnel Report following
The board went into an executive session for personnel matters.
President Stewart adjourned the meeting.
PERSONNEL REPORT – APPROVED EMPLOYMENT
January 8, 2024
RESIGNATIONS/TERMINATIONS/RETIREMENTS:
Center, Ronette – Retirement
Charter, Shelly – Resignation
Lynch, Tabitha – Resignation
Satterfield, Cindy – Retirement
Smith, Dalaina – Resignation
Witt, Randi – Resignation
TRANSFERS/REASSIGNMENTS/LEAVE OF ABSENCE:
For the 2023-24 school year:
Certified:
Farrington, Jannah – Mentor for Anna Anderson for the remainder of school year
Underwood, Elizabeth – Paraprofessional to full time Speech Paraprofessional Winfield Scott
EMPLOYMENT:
Classified Recommendations for the 2023-24 school year:
Foulk, Joe – Help Desk Technician
McGehee, Sarah – Preschool Paraprofessional
Robinson, Angela – Payroll Clerk
Yarick, Gail – Business Manager
Strategies to Prevent Sex Trafficking Presented to the Community This Month
January is Sex Trafficking Awareness Month.
A special presentation on strategies to prevent sex trafficking will be happening on Wednesday, January 31 at 6 p.m. at Fort Scott Community College Ellis Arts Center, 2108 S. Horton.
Children under 18 years of age are not allowed to this presentation “due to some of the explicit videos and information that will be shared that evening,” said Shanda Stewart.
“I just retired in November after 29 years with the State of Kansas, 6th Judicial District as a Probation Office,” Stewart said. “I got to hear Russ Tuttle’s presentation at a conference I attended in October and was so blown away with the information; I thought we have got to get him to Bourbon County. I was able to network with the right people to make it happen!”
“Your perception of sex trafficking and what it is, will be completely changed,” she said.
Youth will get a version for themselves the next day and faculty and staff will have a presentation at an in-service day in USD 234.
“On Thursday, February 1st the presenter, Russ Tuttle will be doing age-appropriate assemblies at all four of the USD 234 schools,” Stewart said. “On Friday, February 2nd he will do a presentation for all faculty and staff during their teacher in-service day.”
BeAlert® is the awareness and prevention strategy of The Stop Trafficking Project® to end domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST)before it starts by disrupting the exploitation of vulnerability.
This adults-only community presentation focuses on the role of life online (the internet) for students, to educate and empower caring adults in our community to prevent sex trafficking, according to a press release.
Caring adults in the community who are invited to attend:
- Law enforcement
- Firefighters and EMT’s
- Medical professionals
- Counselors
- Faith community leaders
- School personnel
- Parents, guardians, and all other adult family members
Students are enamored with social media and “life online,” according to the press release from Stewart.
The event will provide practical advice to caring adults to guide and make them aware of vulnerabilities that can be exploited such loneliness, isolation, depression, suicide, sexting, sextortion, pornography, cyberbullying, exploitation, sexual exploitation, and domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST)
The presentation will be a fast-moving PowerPoint.
The presenter, Russ Tuttle, is an active abolitionist who has command of the topic and speaks with energy that grabs and keeps the attention of attendees, according to the press release.
The presentation will have images and videos to provide insight into the role of technology in exploiting vulnerabilities, identify the demand in this high-demand business of sexual exploitation, provide the option to engage with the BeAlert® Strategy, the Stop Trafficking App, and the ‘top ten practical steps’ for adults to keep students safer.
No children, please at the January 31 presentation.
For more information, contact Stewart at 620.215.2681.
