The City of Fort Scott in conjunction with J. Richardson Company will be closing the intersection of 17th and Eddy beginning Tuesday, September 6th through Tuesday, September 13th. This includes vehicle traffic as well as pedestrian traffic.
The reason for this closure is the drainage project at 17th and Eddy. This project was started some time ago but is continuing.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. If you have any questions or concerns, please call City Hall at 620-223-0550.
Resources and Action Steps for Suicide Prevention Month
By Clara Wicoff
Southwind Extension District
Two weeks ago, I attended an agent update in Manhattan where I was presented with some sobering statistics about youth depression and suicide in the state of Kansas. According to a 2022 report from the Kansas Communities That Care student survey, nearly one in three youth surveyed in Kansas responded “yes” when asked if they had ever seriously thought about killing themselves. Youth are not alone in this.
According to that same report, suicide is the ninth leading cause of death in our state (and the second leading cause of death for those aged 15 to 34).
With the month of September designated as Suicide Prevention Month and September 10th designated as World Suicide Prevention Day, it is an appropriate time to review some of the wellbeing and mental health resources available to you as well as some of the action steps we can all take to help prevent suicide.
First of all, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline if you or someone you know is in need of immediate assistance. You can call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org/chat. This free service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in the United States.
Kansans working in agriculture may also benefit from the resources available at KansasAgStress.org. This webpage has a list of resources compiled to help Kansas farmers, ranchers, and their families with their wellbeing.
In addition to being aware of available resources, what else can we do to help prevent suicide this month and beyond?
According to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, we can all take action by talking about suicide and following up with loved ones.
#BeThe1To is the Lifeline’s five-step message for communicating with someone who may be suicidal.
The five #BeThe1To steps are: Ask, Be There, Keep Them Safe, Help Them Connect, and Follow Up. Start by asking if they are thinking about suicide. Listen to their answers, while never promising to keep their thoughts of suicide a secret. Secondly, be there for them. Next, help keep them safe by putting time and distance between the individual and their chosen method for a suicide attempt. Help them connect with ongoing supports (such as the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline as well as resources in their community). Finally, follow up to see how they are doing.
While this is a brief overview, you can learn more about these five crucial steps at bethe1to.com.
John was good hearted, engaging, and charismatic. He will be remembered for his outgoing and likeable personality and his ability to make friends with anyone – he didn’t know a stranger.
Survivors include his daughters, Bailey Lyons (Nate), Afton Hyer (Coy) and Delane Godden (Brady) and six grandchildren, Addison, Jhett, Jaxon, Blaise, Lute and True all of Ft. Scott. Also surviving are his former wife, Jill Ruby of Ft. Scott; a sister, Karletta Burrows (Steve) of Jonesboro, Arkansas and numerous, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and cousins.
A celebration of John’s life will be held at 10:00 A.M. Thursday, September 8th at the Cheney Witt Chapel.
Sen. Marshall Warns of Dangers of Fentanyl and Social Media
(Topeka, KS, August 31, 2022) – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. today released a video on International Overdose Awareness Day warning about the dangers of fentanyl poisoning and social media where counterfeit or fake drugs are often purchased and laced with fentanyl. While you may click HERE , Senator Marshall said,“Everywhere we go we try to share the message that just one pill can kill. That most every day in Kansas somebody dies from fentanyl poisoning. As kids go back to school, I want parents to understand the challenges out there: your children through social media, including through Snapchat are able to purchase one tablet of fentanyl, which can kill them. Please, parents, teachers, talk to your children about the dangers out there of fentanyl and stay in communication with your children whenever you can.”
Senator Marshall is a cosponsor of a Senate resolution to designate May 10, 2022 as National Fentanyl Awareness Day. The resolution supports the mission and goals of National Fentanyl Awareness Day in 2022, including increasing individual and public awareness of the impact of fake or counterfeit fentanyl-related substances on families and young people.
TOPEKA – Today, Governor Laura Kelly announced that her administration is launching the application process for the COVID-19 Retail Storefront Property Tax Relief program in October. She urged Kansas small business owners to verify they are registered for a federal Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) ahead of the application process opening.
“The financial assistance provided through this program will give Kansas entrepreneurs resources to continue to grow and invest in their businesses,” said Governor Laura Kelly. “Proactively verifying UEI registration will help small business owners receive this relief quickly and efficiently once the program’s application portal opens in October.”
In June, Governor Kelly signed bipartisan House Bill 2136, investing $50 million to help small businesses recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The COVID-19 Retail Storefront Property Tax Relief Program is funded through the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which requires a UEI registration to be completed for a business to be eligible to receive assistance. UEI registration ensures the accuracy of information and the security of funding being used for this program.
The UEI is a unique 12-character identifier assigned to all entities and is used as the primary means of entity identification for Federal awards and for those doing business with the federal government. The UEI is issued at no cost through the federal System for Award Management website (SAM.gov).
If a business is already registered in SAM.gov, no additional action is needed to obtain a UEI. UEI registration can be confirmed by logging into SAM.gov and verifying that the business’ Entity Status states “Active Registration.”
Please note that due to recent increases in the number of entities registering with SAM.gov it may take up to 25 business days for new registrations to be processed. For any issues related to registering with SAM.gov or obtaining a UEI the Federal Service Desk can be reached at 866-606-8220.
Information detailing the application process and dates for the COVID-19 Retail Storefront Property Tax Relief Program is forthcoming from the Kansas Department of Revenue. The application will provide definitions, explain the assistance process in detail, and will specify exactly what information must be submitted in support of the application.
Claimants will have until April 15, 2023, to file an application for this financial assistance.
The City of Fort Scott in conjunction with Kansas Department of Transportation will be upgrading traffic signals along Highway 69 beginning September 6th, 2022. This project will be done in four phases: 3rd Street, 6th Street, 12th Street, and 25th Street. There may be times when traffic lanes are shut down as well as the intersections at these locations.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. If you have any questions or concerns, please call City Hall at 620-223-0550.
Tom Havron, Fort Scott Community College Vice President of Student Affairs and Foundation Director, had the idea to hold a fall golf tournament.
“I thought it would be fun to do something a little different,” Havron said. “I used to play night golf when I was a high school kid in Montana and we always had a great time. After doing a little research, I thought we could make this a really special event.”
The event will be a fundraiser.
The Twilight Open Golf Night is a four-person scramble teeing off at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 29 at Woodland Hills Golf Course, just down Horton Street from the community college.
“The proceeds will go towards establishing a new golf driving range on campus,” Havron said. The short-term goal of the first annual Twilight Open Golf Night, set for Oct. 29 at Woodland Hills Golf Course in Fort Scott, is a design for long distances.”
Proceeds from the event, sponsored by Fort Scott Community College’s Foundation office, will go directly to the creation of a driving range on the FSCC campus, Havron said.
“College golfers need a driving range to work on different shots they will see on courses across the state throughout the season,” said Jeff Tadtman, head golf coach for the Greyhounds. “It has been an obstacle we have faced since the start of the golf program in 2019. We hope a driving range on campus will appeal to potential recruits looking to continue their golf career.”
The presence of a range in “their own backyard” is an immediate advantage for college golfers, said Havron, but the plan includes eventually opening the facility to community members.
“I think the community would really love to have a place to go and hit some balls,” said Havron. “Woodland Hills is an excellent course and I believe they would also see the benefits of a driving range close to their course.”
The future driving range, which is to feature a ball machine, is to be maintained by the FSCC golf team, and will provide a venue for fund-raising opportunities, Havron said.
“We would love to also be able to provide the facility to our area high school teams for practice, as well,” he said. “Details on the course are still being investigated and may take a few fund-raisers to get up and going.”
The night of the golf scramble will also include food and a silent auction.
“I’m working on having some food available for people to have during the silent auction period,” Havron said. “I will provide more information on this as soon as arrangements are finalized.”
“We will have FSCC staff and students assisting players throughout the round,” Havron said. “We will also have headlamps so players can make their way safely around the course. I have some other ideas which will provide safety features but make the event unique. I’m going to hold that information so it is a surprise at the event.’
What about inclement weather?
“We always will concern ourselves with weather in Kansas, but we are hopeful,” Havron said. “In my opinion, there is no better time to live in Kansas than October. The leaves will be turning and we hope the weather is kind to us.”
Cost of the event:
$500/team – this price includes cart and glow-in-the-dark ball
$475/team – with one cart included
$450/team – with no cart included
“To ensure safety and space between groups, we will be limited to the first 18 teams to RSVP,” Havron said.
For more information:
Tom Havron – 620-223-2700 ext. 5830 or
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The City of Fort Scott Administrative Offices will be closed on Monday, September 5th, 2022 in observance of the Labor Day holiday. The offices will reopen on Tuesday, September 6th, 2022.
The City’s tree and brush dump site located on North Hill will also be closed on Saturday, September 3rd, 2022 for the Labor Day holiday. It will be open again on Tuesday, September 6th, 2022 from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
