Groundbreaking for new memorial benches in Riverfront Park was Oct. 26. From left: Chad Brown, City of Fort Scott public works director; Deb Needleman, City of Fort Scott human resources manager; JoLynne Mitchell, City of Fort Scott mayor; Allen Warren, Riverfront Authority board member; Becky Davied, Mercy director of home health and hospice; and Chris Welch, Mercy home health and hospice community relations coordinator.
Mercy Hospice is celebrating its fifth year anniversary with a special thank you to the community and all those who have allowed the hospice care team into their lives.
To commemorate the anniversary, Mercy Hospice is giving back to the community by placing a pair of memorial benches on a paver patio at the Riverfront Park just north of Fort Scott.
“We hope that this can be a place where families can gather to remember their loved ones,” said Chris Welch, Mercy Home Health and Hospice community relations coordinator.
To launch the project, a groundbreaking ceremony was held on Thursday, Oct. 26.
“This wouldn’t be possible without cooperation from the City of Fort Scott, the Riverfront Authority and partial funding by the Fort Scott Area Community Foundation,” Welch added.
Penny Pollack Barnes with daughter, Caroline, at Gunn Park last year. Pollack is taking over coordination duties from Frank Halsey, founder of the annual TriYakAthon, a multi-sport contest. Submitted photo.
Penny Pollack Barnes commented to Frank Halsey, organizer of the annual TriYakAthon at Gunn Park, that he ought to think about getting someone to help organize the event. This comment was in July at the annual bike race that Halsey initiated, called the Marmaton Masacre.
Halsey took her up on the offer.
Since August, Pollack has been helping to get sponsors for the event and getting t-shirts orders, she said.
“Frank does so much for the trails,” Pollack said. “He’s doing the dirty work. I’m doing logistics.”
Currently, Halsey is getting the trails marked for the event that starts at 8 a.m. this Saturday, Oct. 14.
Over the last several years, Halsey mapped out, then built the trails and continually maintains them. He is an avid mountain biker.
Pollack is a runner and has been involved with some of the events that Halsey has organized on the trails.
“I like the multi-sport aspect of the TriYakAthon,” Pollack said. “It’s a lot of fun.”
Registration starts at 8 a.m. for the 5th Annual TriYakAthon and the contest start time is 10 a.m.
There are 4 miles of running, 2.5 miles of Marmaton River kayaking, and 6.5 miles of cross-country mountain biking in the TriYakAthon.
Competitors can go solo for $35 or be part of a relay team for $60. Online registration deadline is Thursday, Oct. 12 at 5 p.m. To register, check out their Facebook page.
This year the proceeds from the event will go to a multi-sensory playground at Ellis Park, 1182 E. 12th Street, south of the middle school.
“It will be a special park that kids with disabilities will be able to use,” Pollack said.
The multi-sport event for the TriYakAthon involves running, kayaking and mountain biking. Photo taken from the event Facebook page.
Non-professional Bourbon County photographers of all ages are invited to submit a photo as part of the Gordon Parks Celebration, by Wednesday, Oct. 4.
The photo must be inspired by Park’s poem “Homecoming” and entitled “What Makes Fort Scott Special to Me”, according to a press release from the Gordon Parks Museum.
Monetary prizes of first place, $100; second place, $75 and third place, $50. All photos submitted will be on exhibit during the 14th Annual Gordon Parks Celebration, Oct. 12-14.
Photos must be submitted via email to gordonparksphotocontest@gmail.com. The file size has a limit of 2MB and must be in JPEG format. Name, address, email and phone number along with the title of their submitted photo must accompany the photo. If under 10 years of age, please include parents information.
It is the photographer’s responsibility to make sure permission is granted to use the photos subject’s image.
The audience listens to leaders of the group, Live Local BB, on Thursday.
Live Local BB is a grass-roots organization that had a public introductory meeting Thursday at Sharkey’s Pub and Grub.
BB stands for Bourbon County and Live Local BB encourages growth of local businesses in the county.
“We want to educate the community on how it benefits the community to live locally,” Geoff Southwell told the group of interested people. “Use local whenever possible. Money stays in the community. It’s creating and maintaining wealth and jobs”
Board member Geoff Southwell addresses a group of interested people Thursday at the initial public meeting of Live Local BB. Board member Melissa Wise listens in the background.
The group’s board members are Cindy Bartelsmeyer, Richard Goldston, Bryan Holt, Dave Lipe, Chris Maycumber, Andy Norris, Angie Simons, Southwell, Rebecca Sutterby and Melissa Wise.
Live Local BB Board Members Rebecca Sutterby, left, and Melissa Wise, facing away, sign in interested attendees at the initial public meeting of the organization.
Live Local BB board members from left: Andy Norris, Dave Lipe, Bryan Holt, Chris Maycumber and Richard Goldston listen as Geoff Southwell addresses the attendees at the initial meeting.
Fort Scott City and Chamber of Commerce officials “have jumped on board with us,” Southwell said.
The City of Fort Scott presented a $500 check to the group Thursday evening at the initial meeting.
To get the word out, the 65 businesses who have joined so far are encouraged to tell about their business on the local radio station.
“There will be 2 to 3 radio spots a day for the first twelve months,” Southwell said. “Talk in microphone, they will edit that. KMDO brings it together and it’s good. Volunteers are needed to get the word out.”
The group also has a Facebook page, Live Local BB.
Live Local BB is a grass-roots organization just formed in Fort Scott to encourage residents to buy from local businesses.
If all goes as anticipated, the recently moved John Deere Tech Program at Fort Scott Community College should have all parts of the facility completed in December.
The facility is located at 2223 S. Horton, formerly the Kansas National Guard Armory.
“They are building a bigger shop for big machinery,” Kent Aikin, one of the program’s two instructors, said Wednesday. A second instructor is Dale Griffiths, hired around one month ago.
The building being constructed is just to the east of the current tech program facility. The general contractor for the project is Tri-State Building, Pittsburg.
The current building is used for instruction on smaller machines and classrooms, Aikin said. The instructor’s offices are housed in this building as well.
The auditorium of the current facility is used for instruction on smaller engines.
“John Deere sends us three to six machines every year, for training purposes,” Aikin said.
Renovation of the current building started a month ago with the addition of new air lines and electrical lines.
Even though all is not completed in the facility, classes began in August with 13 first-year students and 10 second-year students.
Three first-year John Deere Tech Program students work on lessons in a classroom Wednesday.
Students who fulfill all requirements for the program have options of electrical, hydraulic or service advisor certification.
The program’s students must be sponsored by a John Deere dealership, and go through an interview process, Aikin said.
Aikin and Griffiths help the students through the whole process.
“We help locate a dealership to sponsor them,” Aikin said.
“There is a high demand for these jobs,” Aikin said. “The job prospects are good. I’d say over 90 percent have a job waiting for them.”
The move from Frontenac to the repurposed facility on the FSCC campus was precipitated by the selling of the building they were leasing, FSCC Director of Public Relations Heather Browne said.
Students have more accessibility for living in the dorms now, Browne said.
They also have easier accessibility for completing their general education classes, Griffiths said.
An open house for any interested students will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, November 2 and 8 a.m. to noon, Friday, November 3.
Following completion of the new part of the facility in December, a grand opening for the public will be in February, Aikin said.
A whole power-train for a John Deere 8300 tractor is used in instruction during the tech program.
Fort Scott Community College’s Ellis Arts Center is the venue for the 14th annual Gordon Parks Celebration. The Gordon Parks Museum is located in the arts center.
As part of the annual Gordon Parks Celebration
scheduled for October 12-14, at Fort Scott Community College, there will be a “Parks Poetry Out Loud” contest this year. Participants will pick one of seven selected poems written by Gordon Parks and will present it in front of an audience at noon on Friday, October 13 in the Gordon Parks Museum in the Ellis Fine Arts Center on campus.
“I have wanted to do this for years,” said Jill Warford, Gordon Parks Museum Director. “We hope a lot of people take part in the poetry contest, it will be a lot of fun.”
There is no fee to enter and participants will be judged on how they present the poem through voice, diction, and interpretation. Cash prizes will be awarded: first place will win $100; second, $75 and third, $50.
“You don’t have to register to enter,” Warford said. “Just show up.”
It is open to anyone and both students and adults alike, are encouraged to take part, she said. The seven poems are available on the Gordon Parks Museum website: gordonparkscenter.org .
Select poems from the website, then print them out for use, she said.
On Saturday afternoon, the utility pole in front of the library fell into National. Police said it was not hit by a car and the base had just rotted away. The street was blocked with police vehicles and cones while public works employees made sure the wires were not hot.
The Bourbon County Arts Council hosted a Downtown Art Walk Friday evening in downtown Fort Scott, drawing together local artists as well as shoppers and viewers interested in enjoying those items on display.
A collection of photographers, painters, potters and other artists displayed a variety of items in numerous forms, giving Fort Scott residents an opportunity to enjoy and celebrate the arts in their community.
Another Downtown Art Walk will be held July 15. Artists are encouraged to sign up for a booth at the event.
Fort Scott and Bourbon County welcomed the Vinedo del Alamo Winery Friday afternoon with a ribbon-cutting ceremony provided by the Chamber of Commerce, inviting other business owners and community leaders to see the new business.
Located east on Poplar Road north of Fort Scott, the name of the winery is Spanish for poplar vineyard, a tribute to the business and vineyard’s location as well as the owners’ Texas heritage.
Bobby and Denise Duncan have been residents and active members of Fort Scott for several years, but also hold roots in Texas, where Denise grew up and Bobby also lived for a time. But, admitting that vineyards do not grow well in Texas, the Duncans said they looked into starting one in Fort Scott after they purchased land off Poplar.
“I like wine,” Bobby said of his reason for first considering this venture.
Initially, the couple planned to sell the fruit from their vineyard to other wineries and businesses, but none showed interest right away as their product volume is not high at the moment, though Bobby said they look forward to an increase as they move forward.
But instead, the couple looked into opening their own winery, the first official one to open in the area.
“This is the first winery ever in Bourbon County,” chamber of commerce director Lindsay Madison said.
The business’ doors will be open Friday through Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. each week, although it is also open for Labor Day this week. The winery also has an outdoor, covered area with tables and opportunity for live music.
The Duncans requested that visitors sign a guestbook, hoping to get enough signatures to receive highway signage for the business.
The fort again welcomes visitors Monday for its annual Highlights in History event after scores of Fort Scott residents and visitors from out of town visited the national historic site Saturday and Sunday.
Visitors could take part in guided tours, witness musket and artillery demonstrations and visit with participants dressed up as figures from history such as soldiers, officers, laundresses, cooks and physicians.
Those activities and others will be featured again on Monday, including special presentations from the viewpoint of a surviving soldier from the Marais des Cygnes Massacre and how the Bleeding Kansas events affected other areas of the community and its government.
Activities at the fort begin again at 10 a.m. Monday and will continue until 4 p.m.
For just over a month, New Wave Broadband of La Harpe has provided wireless internet services to the Fort Scott area.
“We had a lot of folks who had requested it,” said David Lee, a member of the company that has been run by his family for about 65 years.
First run by his grandfather, Lee’s father now runs the company that expanded from a telephone company with a switchboard in the early 1950s to an internet, cable and cell phone service provider as technology continued to develop. Their business was also one of the first to reach into rural areas of Kansas.
Since receiving an invitation from the city of Fort Scott to come to the area more than six months ago, Lee said they have placed broadband equipment on each of the three water towers in Fort Scott, located near the hospital, middle school and water treatment plant.
Currently, New Wave Broadband can only provide services to those within line of sight of those three water towers. Lee said they plan to increase that reach by constructing a tower near the southwest side of the lake.
“We’re going to be building on what we have now,” Lee said.
So far, Lee said they have received very positive feedback from those in the Fort Scott area they are providing services for.
“The city of Fort Scott has been extremely pleasant to work with and very accommodating,” Lee said, saying the hospital has also worked with them. “Both organizations have really bent over backwards. They’ve been awesome.”
The Bourbon County Conservation District hosted the weekly Chamber Coffee Thursday morning, sharing about their own organization while other entities gave updates on upcoming programs and events.
Board chairperson Kathy Valentine first asked if anyone in attendance knew what the conservation district does, and few did, although just this year the district celebrated its 70th year of existence.
“A lot of people think it’s just about farmers,” Valentine said. “It’s not about farmers, it’s about landowners…We care about water. We care about soil.”
The district sells grass and other seed as well as has different equipment on hand for rent. They also focus on training young members of the community through educational events such as a conservation day at Gunn Park, speech contests and other programs.
Other announcements given for the price of $1 towards Dolly the Trolley included:
Bumps and Bruises clinic will start Saturday, hosted by the Mercy orthopedic department and sports medicine. A sports massage clinic will also be provided for area athletes for $20 for a 15 minute session.
Next Thursday, the Fort Scott National Historic Site will start putting in the almost 7,000 flags for the Symbols of Sacrifice event starting on Sept. 11. Volunteers are welcomed to help with the flags as well as to read names of those killed in the line of duty during the event on Saturday.
This year, the Pioneer Harvest Fiesta will include an auction for machinery or other items on Friday, Sept. 25, at 1 p.m. Those wanting to sell items can participate as well as buyers.
The Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes is participating in a seminar workshop for teachers concerning the Civil War and civil rights, in collaboration with the fort on Sept. 19. Two spots remain available.
The Meals on Wheels program for area senior citizens is in need of volunteers who can deliver meals. A route would take about 45 minutes in the mid-morning hours.
The Circles program continues to offer classes each Wednesday evening against poverty in Fort Scott. The program is also looking for volunteers who could serve as mentors with Circles leaders, donating one to four hours a month.
The Fort Scott Police Department and Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office will sponsor a drug take-back event Sept. 26, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., allowing members of the community to get rid of old prescription drugs and other medications.
In the spring, the Kansas State extension office will participate in a statewide barbecue university program, providing training sessions with meat specialists and others.
City Manager Dave Martin said the city is continuing to look for ways to provide better transportation system in Fort Scott. One area gentleman is interested in starting such a program but is looking for partners.
The Fort Scott Farmers’ Market continues on Saturday, featuring fresh peaches while pumpkin season approaches.
Mercy will be offering a flu vaccine drive-through on Sept. 19, from 8 a.m. until noon, for $25.
The Townwide Garage Sale will occur Sept. 11-12, with registrants welcome through Wednesday if they want their home to be featured on the map that will be distributed.
A naturalization ceremony will be held Sept. 25, at 10:30 a.m.
