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Sunbeam Preschool Receives SPARK Funds To Keep Doors Open
As with life in America at all levels, the COVID-19 Pandemic has affected schools.
Sunbeam Christian Preschool received SPARK funds to help them continue to teach young children, said owner Lindsay Hill.
“We are very thankful for the SPARK grant as it helped keep our doors open for another year,” she said. ” We are a private preschool, so we rely on tuition to pay bills and staff. We did not collect tuition after March but continued to provide online services for our preschoolers. This grant allowed us to continue to pay our staff and bills.”
“Although enrollment is down this fall because of COVID, Sunbeam Christian Preschool continues to provide a Christian learning experience for all their Sunbeamers,” she said.
“Sunbeam Christian Preschool has taken extra precautions to make sure their students can continue in-person learning, with extra cleaning, temperature checks at the door of children entering the building, no parents or adults allowed in the building, and much more,” Hill said.
History of Sunshine Christian Preschool
Sunbeam has been in operation since 1985, 30 years under the direction of Marilyn Barker.
Sunbeam Christian Preschool is now owned by Lindsay Hill and directed by Tonya Defebaugh.
The preschool has 3-5-year-olds and offers three different class times:
Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 8 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.; Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 12-1:30 p.m. and Tuesday and Thursday from 8 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
“We are extremely blessed to be apart of the Fort Scott community and thankful for First Baptist Church, where our classroom is located,” she said. The church is located in downtown Fort Scott at the corner and Second and State Streets.
SPARK, The Strengthening People and Revitalizing Kansas program, is federal COVID-19 Pandemic recovery money that was given to the states and then to local entities.
Wichita Earthquakes Investigation Complete
KCC completes investigation of Wichita area earthquakes
TOPEKA –The Kansas Corporation Commission has completed an investigation into whether the recent string of earthquakes occurring in the Wichita area are related to oil and gas industry activity. The KCC regulates oil and gas production and exploration in the state.
“Based on our investigation, KCC staff does not believe the seismicity in Wichita, Kansas is tied to any oil and gas activities in the area,” said Ryan A. Hoffman, Director of the KCC Conservation Division.
The KCC’s investigation examined many factors including:
- A review of historical disposal well records for Arbuckle or Granite Wash injection wells within a six-mile radius of the earthquakes. Five wells were located in the radius. No recent volume increases were found.
- Any new drilling activity within three miles of the epicenters. No new wells were recently completed within the area.
- Spot checks of the wells within the radius area to verify compliance with permit conditions.
This investigation procedure is outlined in the Seismic Action Plan developed in 2014 in collaboration with the Kansas Geological Survey and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. An investigation is triggered whenever an earthquake of M 3.5 or higher occurs in the state or when an earthquake scores a 17 or higher Seismic Action Score which takes into account variables such as risk, clustering and timing.
The KCC will continue to monitor the situation and consult with the Kansas Geological Survey and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment as necessary.
The Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office Daily Reports Dec. 23
The Fort Scott Police Department Daily Reports Dec. 18-22
COVID 19 Relief Legislation Passed
Marshall Issues Statement on COVID Relief Legislation Passed on Dec. 21
WASHINGTON – U.S. Congressman Roger Marshall, M.D. issued the following statement and details on the new COVID relief legislation.
“Millions of COVID-19 vaccine doses are being distributed and administered, bringing the hope and possibility of widespread immunity by mid-March. However, our nation still needs a bridge to help us to the spring. With that in mind, I’m supporting the $900 billion COVID relief bill. Since the summer, Republicans have called for a targeted relief package that prioritizes refunding the Paycheck Protection Program, funding for vaccine distribution, additional support for unemployed Americans and resources to allow our children to safely return to the classroom. This relief legislation delivers on all of those priorities and leaves out the unnecessary funding for cities and states and socialist priorities of the left.
This bill repurposes more than $500 billion in unused CARES Act funds to help hardworking Kansans make it through these next winter months. By reopening the highly successful Paycheck Protection Program, which saved more than 500,000 Kansas jobs this year, we will ensure that assistance is again available to struggling small businesses and improvement are made to address issues raised by lenders and business owners.
Families will receive another stimulus check, and federal unemployment benefits have been extended for both full-time and contract workers. Finally, this legislation includes essential funding for the continued manufacturing and distribution of the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine. This package not only will help families, small businesses, and communities still struggling with the impacts of COVID-19, but it also gives us the tools we need to defeat this virus.”
The COVID Relief bill does the following:
- Adds $280 billion to the Paycheck Protection Program to support small and mid-size businesses impacted by COVID-19, allowing them to retain employees and keep their door open
- Gives businesses with 300 employees or less experiencing severe revenue reductions an opportunity to apply for a second PPP loan
- Includes 501(c)(6) organizations but excludes unions from PPP eligibility
- $15 billion in funding for entertainment venues, movie theaters, and museums that are experiencing significant revenue loss
- Codifies federal rules that ensure churches and faith-based organizations are eligible for PPP loans
- Makes expenses businesses covered with funds from the Paycheck Protection Program tax deductible
- Provides $68 billion to ensure continued manufacturing and distribution of safe, effective COVID-19 doses to all Americans, regardless of their ability to pay
- Delivers $600 in direct payments to both adults and children, with reduced payments for high-earning families
- Provides $300 per week federal unemployment benefits until March 14, 2021, to help those still struggling to reenter the workforce
- Extends and phases-out Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, which is a temporary federal program covering self-employed and gig workers, to March 14 (after which no new applicants) through April 5, 2021
- Sets aside $13 billion for the USDA to continue support of farmers, ranchers and the biofuels industry
- Provides $82 billion in funding for schools and universities to assist with reopening for in-person learning that also includes $2.75 billion in designated funds for private K through 12 education
- Extends the deadlines for states and cities to use CARES Act funds by one year
- Provides $25 billion in temporary and targeted rental assistance for individuals who lost their source of income during the pandemic
- Extends the eviction moratorium until January 31, 2021
- Allocates $7 billion in broadband funding that includes funding to build out rural networks and telehealth
“As a physician I often tried to share a message of hope to patients facing a tough diagnosis,” said Rep. Marshall “Over the past 11 months, I’ve learned even more about how important hope is to all of us. With the vaccines being distributed and given, and now this next phase of COVID relief, I believe hope is visibly there for all Kansans. This Christmas season, I encourage those of us with more than enough to reach out to our neighbors who might benefit from some encouragement and a message of hope.”
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Christmas Eve with Santa and Friends Dec. 24
Christmas Eve with Santa and Friends !!
It’s at 806 S. Barbee Fort Scott, Thursday, Dec. 24th starting at 5 pm until the hosts run out of cocoa !!
It’s hosted by John Willis and Travis and Jennifer Sawyer.
The public is invited for hot cocoa and cookies which is Sponsored by Sawyer Automotive.
No Bourbon County Commission Meeting on Dec. 29
Agenda
Bourbon County Commission Room
1st Floor, County Courthouse
210 S. National Avenue
Fort Scott, KS 66701
Tuesdays starting at 9:00
Date: December 29, 2020
1st District-Lynne Oharah Minutes: Approved: _______________
2nd District-Jeff Fischer Corrected: _______________
3rd District-Clifton Beth Adjourned at: _______________
County Clerk-Kendell Mason
MEETING WILL BE HELD IN COMMISSION ROOM. ANYONE ATTENDING THE MEETING WILL BE REQUIRED TO WEAR A MASK PROVIDED BY THE COUNTY. MUST MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING.
NO MEETING
Freeman Donates to CHC/SEK
Freeman Health System donates to CHC/SEK’s new John Parolo Education Center
PITTSBURG – On Tuesday, Freeman Health System invested in the next generation of rural healthcare professionals through a $1,000,000 donation to the new John Parolo Education Center building at Community at Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas, Pittsburg.
The building project, set to break ground in May, expects to grow the number of primary care physicians in the region as well as other healthcare disciplines. By 2025, Kansas is projected to need an additional 290 primary care physicians just to meet current needs; many rural counties no longer have a dentist. Kansas is experiencing a major exodus of its under-30 population seeking professional opportunities elsewhere.
“The overwhelming support and generosity of Freeman Health System most certainly demonstrates their true commitment to the future of healthcare in southeast Kansas,” said Krista Postai, CHC/SEK President and CEO. “This is an investment not only in health education, but in the lives of hundreds of our young people who will now have the opportunity to train locally and then serve the communities in which there were raised.”
Since inception, CHC/SEK has served as a medical training site for healthcare students from all disciplines. It has affiliation agreements with 50 different organizations dedicated to healthcare education and more than 400 students receive training annually within its walls.
Southeast Kansas is critically underserved in all areas of healthcare and, like all of rural Kansas, is seeing its health resources erode and is challenged to recruit health professionals who typically practice within 75 miles of where they have trained. Studies show that only 2 percent of new doctors want to practice in town with less than 25,000 residents.
To bring training opportunities to southeast Kansas, CHC/SEK is building a state-of-the-art $5 million, 16,000 sq. ft. facility which will include learning laboratories, classroom and conference rooms designed to support medical and dental residents.
There will be a rural medicine training program for physicians and physician assistants, and post-graduate clinical training for licensure of multiple professionals including pharmacists, social workers and psychologists among others.
“This is indeed a dream come true and we are honored that Freeman CEO Paula Baker – who grew up just a few blocks from where this health education center will be built – shares our vision of training health professionals that are fully committed to the people they serve,” Postai said. “We are extremely appreciative for their willingness – especially in the midst of a worldwide pandemic – to look beyond today to a better, healthier tomorrow.”
About Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas
Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas (CHC/SEK) is a non-profit Federally Qualified Health Center dedicated to providing affordable, high quality medical, dental, behavioral health, and pharmacy services to everyone, regardless of income or insurance status. For more information, visit www.chcsek.org.
About Freeman Health System
Locally owned, not-for-profit and nationally recognized, Freeman Health System includes Freeman Hospital West, Freeman Hospital East, Freeman Neosho Hospital and Ozark Center – the area’s largest provider of behavioral health services – as well as two urgent care clinics, dozens of physician clinics and a variety of specialty services. For more information, visit www.freemanhealth.com
Charles Baker retires from KDOT
Charles Baker has retired from the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) following 41 years of service to the agency.
Baker was hired in 1979 as an Equipment Operator at Erie. He was promoted to Equipment Operator Specialist in 2002 and became Highway Maintenance Supervisor in 2006. As the supervisor at Erie, Baker directed a maintenance crew that worked on state highways throughout the area.
In retirement, Baker said he was planning to put family first and then work on his hobbies. He and his wife, Janice, live in Hepler. They have two children and four grandchildren.
Death Notice of Joyce Wilkins
Joyce Elaine Wilkins, age 72, a resident of Bronson, Kansas, passed away Saturday, December 19, 2020, at the Research Medical Center in Kansas City, Missouri.
Services for Joyce Wilkins will be announced by the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, Ft. Scott.
Obituary of Bobby Dennis
Bobby John Dennis, age 89, a former resident of Ft. Scott, Kansas and more recently of Blue Ridge, Texas, passed away Thursday, December 17, 2020, at his home in Texas.
He was born March 21, 1931, in Mapleton, Kansas, the son of Hollie J. Dennis and Ella Blodgett Dennis.
He married Raylene Hall on August 5, 1951, in Ft. Scott.
Because of his service with the United States Air Force, Bob and Raylene made their home at various bases throughout the United States. He later worked as an inventory specialist for the Civil Service for forty years.
He was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Survivors include his children Michael Dennis and John Dennis, both of McKinney, Texas, Mary Johnson of Hurricane, Utah and Holly Dennis, of Blue Ridge, Texas.
Bob’s wife, Raylene, preceded him in death on May 28, 2014. He was also preceded in death by his parents, two brothers, H. L. “Kid” Dennis and David Dennis and three sisters, Fern Shipley, Hazel Stoughton and Erma Clayton.
Private burial will take place in the U. S. National Cemetery in Ft. Scott, Kansas.
A memorial service will be held at a later date. Arrangements are under the direction of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, Ft. Scott, Kansas. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.