The Fort Scott Area Community Foundation is thrilled to announce that the amount of grants available for the upcoming 2017/2018 cycle totals $30,000, exceeding last year’s total by $9,000.
2016 Grant Recipients
Thanks to the generosity of all who contributed to the FSACF general fund, the interest accrued will allow the grant committee more opportunities to benefit the 501(c)3 applicants who meet the qualifications.
Monies granted to the 12 beneficiaries from last year’s cycle were used for a variety of causes, including helping to purchase a 3D mammography machine for Mercy Hospital, providing benefits to cancer patients, assisting families in purchasing swimming pool passes, and funding classes for CASA volunteers.
The FSACF 2017 Grant Applications will be released on Tuesday, August 1, at which time they will appear on the FSACF website or may be picked up in person at the Chamber of Commerce, 231 E. Wall. Nonprofits such as churches, governmental entities, or organizations with a 501(c)3 status are encouraged to apply.
Applications are due by Tuesday, August 29. Acceptance and declination letters will be mailed on Tuesday, October 24. Grants will be awarded at the Foundation’s Chamber Coffee held in the Landmark Bank lobby at Third and Main at 8 A.M. on Thursday, November 2.
Organizers of this Friday’s inaugural Hit the Bricks Wine Stroll, Art Walk and Blane Howard concert say tickets are still available. Add in a weather forecast that predict temperatures in the mid 80s and it’s a perfect combination for a night in downtown Fort Scott.
The Hit the Bricks event kicks off at 5 p.m. and has something for everyone to enjoy. Main Street will be blocked between 1st and 2nd streets for the event from early afternoon until about 8:30 p.m.
The regularly scheduled Friday night music at the pavilion will continue as usual.
The free art walk, coordinated by the Bourbon County Arts Council, is open to the public. Over 15 artists from near and far will fill the sidewalks of Main Street with their artwork and have items for sale. Food vendors will have items for sale as well.
The wine stroll check in begins at 5 p.m. at the Beaux Arts Centre located at 102 S. National.
During the stroll, pre-registered participants or those 21 years and older (valid ID required) who purchase a $25 wrist band at the Beaux Arts Centre that evening may have a maximum of 15 samples of wines from the six featured Kansas vineyards including Fort Scott’s very own Vinedo del Alamo. Other wineries and vineyards participating in the stroll include Aubrey Vineyards, Overland Park; Flustered Blonde Vineyard and Winery, Parsons; Fuga Winery, Waverly; Smoky Hill Vineyard and Winery, Topeka; and Vogel Family Vineyards, Galena.
Wineries will also have unopened bottles of wine available for purchase.
Cost for the wine stroll is $25 and includes a commemorative wine glass and tote bag for bottled wine purchases.
The Fort Scott trolley will be available in 30-minute intervals to transport participants from the check–in location to Main Street between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Beginning at 8:30, music lovers can dance the night away with a concert by Nashville-based country music sensation Blane Howard at Liberty Theatre. Concert tickets are $35 each. Tickets will also be available at the door that evening. Seating for the concert is general admission.
Advance tickets for the stroll and concert are strongly recommended. Patrons can save $10 if they purchase both the wine stroll and concert tickets for $50.
Proceeds from the Hit the Bricks event will benefit the Mercy Health Foundation Fort Scott, a nonprofit 501(c)3 corporation which supports programming and equipment at Mercy Hospital Fort Scott. For more details about the Hit the Bricks Wine Stroll, Art Walk and Blane Howard Concert, call the Mercy Health Foundation office at 620-223- 8094.
Previously named CrossFit Fort Scott, the local fitness gym celebrated remodeling, new management and a name change with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday morning as Smallville CrossFit.
Aaron and Lindsey Watts took over the gym at 13 S. National Avenue, in June after the previous owners moved out of town. Since that time, the couple has led sports and strength conditioning courses for children and high school and college through the summer, even while the gym went through a series of renovations to improve its services.
“It’s a dream come true for us,” Lindsey said, adding they appreciated the help of their family and friends who assisted them. “Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”
The changes made to the gym improved not just the appearance of the gym, but also the equipment, such as by adding ropes, rings and additional ceiling- and wall-mounted rigs. There is also more space for larger classes.
Aaron, who grew up in Southeast Kansas, said he was always involved in sports and athletics as a student and later during his time in the military, which led to his involvement in CrossFit and eventually owning the Fort Scott gym.
Aaron added their inspiration for the new name of the gym came from the nickname of Clark Kent that he picked up while in the military.
City Manager Dave Martin, a member at the gym, encourages others to try out Smallville CrossFit or one of the other fitness centers in Fort Scott as they continue to partner with the county in the Healthy Bourbon County program. Martin added people should not be intimidated by the CrossFit program.
“They will make it fit what you can do,” Martin said, saying they will modify exercises for individual people and their abilities. “Come and give it a try and you might find something you like.”
The gym will host a Grand Reopening event Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., allowing visitors to come for information on classes as well as to watch a variety of classes to see what they look like.
Fort Scott Hurricanes took second place in the league swim meet with 1049 points to Chanute’s 1065.5. Independence came in 3rd with 505.5 points followed by Coffeyville 274.50, Iola 154.50, Erie 92, and Humbolt with 72 points.
With the county’s asphalt program nearing completion, the Bourbon County Commission and Public Works Director Jim Harris discussed Tuesday morning which roads would be worked on next in the county.
The commissioners created a list of about 18 miles of road in need of a chip and seal, and then moved 11 miles of those roads to the top of the to-do list, based on the traffic and condition of the road. Harris said he believes they have enough funds budgeted to complete those roads and then reconvene to decide if they have finances remaining to do the others.
Some of the roads to be worked on first include three miles of road near the lake, Maple Road near Uniontown, Jayhawk Road east of Highway 69, 125th Street between Osage and Range roads and Highway 10 towards 55th Street.
“We’ll get it done,” Harris said of the projects assigned to his crew.
Some of the lower priority roads not completed this year could be done in 2018, though commissioners said Industrial Park roads will be a big project to be done next year.
After months of preparation and the hard work of a number of leaders, volunteers, parents and youth, the Bourbon County Fair came to a close Saturday after a week of festivities at the fairgrounds in Fort Scott.
“It was the smoothest running fair of my extension career,” Extension Agent Christopher Petty said. “This wouldn’t be possible without the tremendous volunteer support from the community. I want to thank each and every person who helped out in any way.”
About 150 youth and children of Bourbon County participated in events that displayed their skill in more than 1,100 exhibits showing animals, cooking, gardening, sewing, photography and a number of other activities displaying their creativity and hard work over the past year.
The fair provided not just an opportunity for participants to display those talents, but also to receive criticism and compete while learning how to demonstrate good-sportsmanship whether they won or lost, receiving good reviews or poor.
Check the FortScott.biz Facebook page here to see more photos taken of those students who participated throughout the week.
Today, July 14, the dog show was held at the Bourbon County Fairgrounds.
Fort Scott Community College is pleased to welcome Adam Borth as the FSCC Vice President of Academic Affairs.
“I am extremely excited to join the FSCC team and immerse myself into the Fort Scott community,” said Borth. “The opportunity to work with the faculty, staff and administration to continue providing a quality education to meet the needs of Fort Scott and the surrounding areas, while creating new and innovative opportunities, continues to build my passion and enthusiasm for FSCC.”
Before joining FSCC, Borth was the dean of humanities and social sciences at Seward County Community College (SCCC), where he also taught humanities and social science courses. He previously served as the director of research and assessment at SCCC. Before his time at SCCC, he was the communications director and humanities department instructor at Cowley County Community College for seven years. Borth also previously worked at Northwestern Oklahoma State University as an admissions representative.
Since November 2014, Borth has served as the president of the Kansas Association of AQIP Schools. In this role, he provides guidance and leadership for quality improvement for accreditation purposes, facilitates meetings and serves as a liaison for institutional communications.
Borth was a recipient of the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development Excellence Award in 2012. He has participated in the Kansas Community College Leadership Institute and the Seward County Community College Emerging Leadership Experience. He served as a board member of the Baker Arts Center and as a member of the Winfield High School advisory committee, Arkansas City High School advisory committee and the Kansas Association of Broadcasters. Borth has also volunteered for Habitat for Humanity.
Borth holds a bachelor of science degree in mass communications and a master of education degree from Northwestern Oklahoma State University. He is currently completing his dissertation for a doctor of education degree in educational leadership from Baker University.
Dr. Larry Seals Earns Another Five-Star Excellence Award
For the third consecutive year, Dr. Larry Seals and the Mercy Clinic Fort Scott OB/GYN team, have earned the Professional Research Consultants, Inc. (PRC) Five-Star Excellence Award for Provider Services and Overall Care.
For the third consecutive year, Mercy Fort Scott OB/GYN Dr. Larry Seals and RNs Trina Arndt (left) and Crystal Roberts have earned the prestigious PRC Five-Star Excellence Award. Photo Credit and cutline: Mercy Hospital.
The recognition honors Seals for scoring in the top 10 percent nationally for “excellent”
responses in patient satisfaction surveys.
After 30 years in practice – and thousands of beautiful babies delivered into his hands – Seals gives credit for the award to teamwork.
“I’m happy because my nursing staff does a great job of treating patients with superb clinical skill and unmatched compassion,” he said.
Seals contributes his practice’s success to being grounded and down to earth.
“When precious life is in your hands, it’s important to remain humble and share genuine care for everyone.”
Mercy Kids Health Fair and Teddy Bear Clinic Scheduled for Saturday, August 12
Making healthy choices begins with good mentoring. Help steer your children down the right path by bringing them to the Mercy Kids Health and Safety Fair on Saturday, August 12, at Mercy Hospital Fort Scott. From 9 a.m. to noon, the clinic will provide free health screenings, fitness fun, education and learning opportunities, a chance to see emergency vehicles and meet with community agency representatives.
All screenings and events are free and open to the public.
The Teddy Bear Clinic is a highlight of the event. Young children are encouraged to bring their teddy bear or doll for a check-up. Surgeons will be on hand to mend minor cuts or tears to your child’s favorite stuffed animal.
Just a few of the scheduled activities include: health screenings (eye, vision, blood pressure, height and weight, and dental checks), nutritional information, details about vaccines, hand-washing tips, healthy snacks, preventing colds and the flu, exercise stations, as well as a bounce house and photo booth. Also on site will be Mercy EMS staff, Fort Scott police and fire department personnel, the Bourbon County Sherriff, as well as Kansas Wildlife and Parks.
Kids may register to win a backpack stuffed with school supplies. Winner need not be present to win, but registration the day of the event is required.
For more information about the Mercy Clinic Kids Health and Safety Fair, call Amy Budy at 620-223-8093.
Mercy Health Foundation Fort Scott Awarded $50,000 for Ultrasound Upgrade
Mercy Health Foundation Fort Scott was recently awarded a $50,000 grant from The Timken Foundation of Canton, Ohio, to replace ultrasound equipment at the hospital.
On Monday, July 24, at 10 a.m., Jack and Joy Timken of the Timken Foundation of Canton, Ohio, will tour Mercy Hospital Fort Scott and view the imaging services area where the new equipment will be installed in fall 2017.
Media is invited to participate in the tour. After the tour, the media is encouraged to ask questions pertaining to the donation from The Timken Foundation and about ultrasound.
A common plant problem for tomatoes is blossom-end rot. Blossom-end rot causes tomatoes to have a sunken, brown leathery patch on the bottom of the fruit. This problem is most common on tomatoes, however, it can also affect squash, peppers and watermelons.
Blossom-end rot is not a disease. It is caused by a lack of calcium in the developing fruit. Many people often assume that this means there is a corresponding lack of calcium in the soil, but that is not necessarily the case. So what causes blossom-end rot then? There are several possible causes.
Tomato tops often outgrow the root system during cooler spring weather. As long as it is cool, the root system can keep up. Once the weather turns hot and dry, the plant has a problem. Water, with the calcium it carries, goes to the leaves and bypasses the fruit. This causes a spot on the bottom of the tomato to form. The plant will respond with new growth, and the condition corrects itself after a couple of weeks.
Heavy fertilization, especially with ammonium forms of nitrogen, can encourage blossom-end rot. Heavy fertilization encourages more top than root growth and the ammonium form of nitrogen competes with calcium for uptake.
Disturbing the root system, such as hoeing too deep, can also encourage blossom-end rot. Inconsistent watering could also be a factor. Try to keep the soil moist but not waterlogged. Mulching will help because it keeps the soil surface cooler and provides a better environment for root growth.
But, some years you can do everything right and the condition still shows up because of the weather. Remember that blossom-end rot is a temporary condition and plants should come out of it in a couple of weeks. You might want to pick off affected fruit to encourage new fruit formation.
Another tomato plant culprit is stinkbugs. Stinkbug damage appears as golden-yellow, pink or white spots on fruit. Stinkbugs are shield-shaped insects that emit a foul odor when disturbed.
Stinkbugs injure the fruit by using its mouthparts to probe. Color development is affected where probing occurs, which results in the off color or cloudy spots. Heavy feeding causes spots to spread and because of that, tomatoes may develop a golden color. If you look closely, you can see pinprick-sized puncture wounds in the middle of the spots. Hard, whitish tissue develops beneath the skin of the area of wounding.
By the time you notice the spots, stinkbugs are often gone. That makes control impossible. The good news is that affected tomatoes are still safe to eat.
Spider mites are also starting to cause significant damage. They love hot, dry weather and the conditions have been favorable for them. Look for leaf stippling (tiny white spots that causes the leaf to appear silver in color) and for webbing on the underneath side of the leaf.
A good strong jet of water will knock them off the leaves. If that doesn’t work, horticulture oils or insecticidal soaps can be used. However, these need to be applied early in the morning when temperatures are cooler and the plant can rehydrate.
As a reminder, the Extension services are free of charge! Take advantage of our expert knowledge to help get your plant questions answered.
Krista Harding is a K-State Research and Extension Agricultural agent assigned to Southwind District. She may be reached at 620-244- 3826 or [email protected]
Their world has gone to the dogs. Correction: dog. Mollie hit the mongrel jackpot when she was adopted by parents who are giving her every opportunity to succeed in the canine world. Mollie is a rescue dog, which makes her parents sort of foster heroes because they chose a reject instead of purchasing a full-blood. Their home is a shrine to their baby, and even though she is only three years old, scrapbooks fill the fireplace shelves. Should you ask, a slide show is available in the family room. Okay, perhaps that is an exaggeration.
Then again, maybe not.
My friend Debbie is Mollie’s “grandmother.” She visited Dave and me over Memorial Day weekend, and we all cracked up when she pulled out the most recent photos of Mollie. We began with swim lessons. Yes, you read right. I questioned if Mollie’s parents paid extra for poochy to learn the back stroke and the butterfly. Seriously! What ever happened to tossing a dog off a dock to teach him to doggy paddle? If it was good enough for my kids…
The next snapshots were at Mollie’s day care center’s graduation. (See photo.) This is no normal pup school. The interview process assures an appropriate fit. Not just anyone is accepted, nor would just any faculty be right for Mollie. (Thank goodness Sunbeam Pre-School wasn’t as selective.)
Debbie shared that she was flabbergasted after receiving a graduation announcement listing a gift registry at Petco. As if that weren’t enough, at the ceremony Mollie was awarded a separate certificate for finishing her pre-school education as “a good citizen.” Since Mollie is the only “child” of Debbie’s only child, “Grandma” coughed up $50 to purchase doggie dental floss.
Mollie is fed better than I fed our children. Her diet is controlled with nutrients I can’t even pronounce. No ballpark hotdogs or frozen pizza or leftover pb&j’s for this mutt, and
Heaven forbid if her parents ever received a phone call from Sonic telling them that “yet again” their dog was mooching off of their patrons. Mollie’s diet is organic. Our pooch never saw a
preservative he didn’t like. Then again, neither did our kids.
I must be honest here. I’m not a dog lover. I’m a dog liker, but there is a difference. I have two girlfriends—let’s call them Marti and Sally because…well, that’s their names—who have saved more animals than the Humane Society. Not me. I will stop my car to help a turtle cross the road, but I have no desire to sleep with a dog or pick up their messes or buy a stroller so my pet can vacation with me.
That being said, I do believe God created animals to be protected and cared for. We know there was a bond between Adam and the creatures because Adam was told to name the animals…not the trees or plants. Proverbs 12:10 states, “Whoever is righteous cares for the life of his animals.” However, God declares in Genesis 1:26-30 that humans have the responsibility to rule over the nonhuman creation. There is a balance in there somewhere.
I’m just not sure swim lessons were what He had in mind.
Wednesday the 12th, Fort Scott Hurricanes competed in Iola. Fort Scott won with 532 points to Iola’s 139. Saturday the Hurricanes will be back in Iola for the league meet.
Fort Scott Community College welcomes Lana Ross as the new FSCC Head Softball Coach.
“We’re thrilled that Coach Ross will be joining the Greyhound family. She has been a champion throughout her entire career and brings a tremendous amount of experience and success to the softball program. Adding a coach of her caliber to our staff will improve our entire department,” said Tom Havron, FSCC Dean of Students and Director of Athletics. “Coach Ross is already off and running, and we couldn’t be more excited about the future of our softball program.”
Ross served as head softball coach, game management coordinator and chief ticketing officer at Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, Iowa, from 2002 to 2016. During her tenure at IWCC, she had a 544-238 record, and the team won five regional titles, three district titles and made three appearances at the NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) national tournament. She coached 62 First Team All-Region players, 43 Second Team All-Region players, 11 NJCAA All-Americans, 17 NFCA (National Fastpitch Coaches Association) All-Americans, 25 NJCAA Academic All-Americans and 96 NFCA Academic All-Americans. For thirteen consecutive years, her team was recognized as the NFCA Academic Team of the Year.
For the past two years, Ross has served as a private softball instructor and provided pitching, hitting and defensive lessons to 30 athletes. From 2000 to 2002, she served as assistant softball coach at the University of Oregon in Eugene, Ore. She served as assistant softball coach and instructor at Blinn College in Brenham, Texas, from 1999 to 2000.
Ross is a five-time Region XI Coach of the Year. In 2013, she was recognized as the NFCA Coaching Staff of the Year. She was selected as the coach for the 2015 NJCAA All Star Team. Ross has been a member of the NFCA since 1999 and has attended the NFCA Convention for the past eight years. She is a member of the NFCA Awards Committee and Rules Committee and serves as the Division I Coaches Representative for both the NFCA and NJCAA. Ross was named among the 2004-2005 Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers. She has also served as a keynote speaker for numerous leadership conventions.
Ross earned her bachelor of science degree in education from Oklahoma City University in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
