Government, Kansas

Applications Open for Community Service Tax Credit Program

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TOPEKA – Governor Laura Kelly today announced that applications are currently being accepted for the Community Service Tax Credit Program (CSP). CSP provides an opportunity for private, non-profit organizations and public health care entities to improve their ability to undertake major capital campaigns for projects involving children and family services, non-governmental crime prevention, youth apprenticeship and youth technical training and health care.

“The Community Service Tax Credit program is an incredible opportunity for nonprofit organizations to create lasting, meaningful changes for people across Kansas,” said Governor Laura Kelly. “These tax credits will foster local solutions to local challenges, and they will help improve the quality of life for Kansans now and into the future.”

Under this program, the state authorizes nonprofit organizations to offer tax credits to donors making contributions towards approved projects. Proposed projects should be unique or one-time in nature and create a lasting value for charitable organizations. For example, projects might include a capital campaign, major equipment purchase, major renovation, capacity building, etc.

Since 2019, CSP has earmarked $1 million for childcare and early childhood development projects for services to those under the age of 5.

“These tax credits help local nonprofit and healthcare organizations streamline their fundraising efforts, to more effectively improve the health and economic wellbeing of Kansas communities,” Lieutenant Governor and Commerce Secretary David Toland said. “We’re asking Kansans to tell us about their initiatives, and if they are a good fit for the CSP program, we will provide a significant resource to help bring these projects to fruition across Kansas.”

Applicants may request up to $200,000 in tax credits. Applicant organizations in rural areas (less than 15,000 population) are eligible for a 70 percent credit. Applicant organizations in non-rural areas are eligible for a 50 percent credit. The application window is open through April 30, 2022 at kansascommerce.gov/csp.

CSP is administered by the Community Development Division of the Department of Commerce. More information on the program, guidelines, and application process may be found online here.

 

About the Kansas Department of Commerce:

As the state’s lead economic development agency, the Kansas Department of Commerce strives to empower individuals, businesses and communities to achieve prosperity in Kansas. Commerce accomplishes its mission by developing relationships with corporations, site location consultants and stakeholders in Kansas, the nation and world. Our strong partnerships allow us to help create an environment for existing Kansas businesses to grow and foster an innovative, competitive landscape for new businesses. Through Commerce’s project successes, Kansas in 2021 was awarded Site Selection Magazine’s Governor’s Cup award, Area Development Magazine’s Gold Shovel award and was named Site Selection Magazine’s Best Business Climate in the West North Central region of the United States. Find the Department’s strategic plan for economic growth here: Kansas Framework for Growth.

Fort Scott, Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce

Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge Tomorrow

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CHAMBER INVITES COMMUNITY TO THE
YOUTH ENTREPRENEURSHIP CHALLENGE TRADESHOW EXHIBIT
Stop by the FSHS Aux Gym
Tuesday, March 8th between
11:30 a.m. – 12:45 p.m.
In addition to our top 3 place awards, we will have a Community Choice Award for you to vote on your favorite business!
Come check out the different business plans conceived by students, either individually or in
small groups, as part of the competition organized
by the Chamber. These students have worked hard over the last semester-plus on all aspects of their business concepts and your attendance and support would be appreciated!
Click here for the FB event.
The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce will be hosting the third annual Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge in partnership with Fort Scott High School. Thirty students, either individually or in groups of two or three, have prepared sixteen startup business ideas and will compete for cash prizes to be judged on Tuesday, March 8th. As part of the event, the students will have tradeshow exhibits displaying their business concepts in the Fort Scott High School auxiliary gym from 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. on Tuesday and the public is invited and encouraged to stop by during this time and take a look at the different booths.
Although the competition is open to any students in Bourbon County, students enrolled in the business and entrepreneurship class at Fort Scott High School with instructor Mrs. Morgan Sage have been the primary ones to enter the competition.
The Chamber organizes the program in association with the NetWork Kansas E-Community Partnership and Bourbon County is one of many communities across Kansas to host a local competition from which the students compete against each other for $3,500 in prize money with the top winner advancing to the state Kansas Entrepreneurship Challenge to be held in April in Manhattan.
The public is welcome and encouraged to stop by the tradeshow on Tuesday, March 8th to view the creative business plans and support these students who have worked on their projects over the past several months as part of their class. Both the east and west doors of the high school will be open for entry during this time.
Contact the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce for more information at 620-223-3566 or [email protected].

Obituary

Obituary of Elizabeth Hill

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Elizabeth A. Hill, age 84, resident of Ft. Scott, KS, died Saturday, March 5, 2022, at Via Christi Hospital, Pittsburg, KS. She was born on February 27, 1938, in Los Angeles County, CA, the daughter of Theodore Joseph Davis and May Olive Howe Davis. She graduated from the University of Idaho with dual degrees in General Sciences and Geology. Elizabeth worked in different fields during her life but mostly enjoyed being a Park Ranger. Her assignments included Ft. Scott National Historic Site and the Harry S. Truman House. She was an accomplished artist, and enjoyed crocheting, sewing, and writing children’s books. She loved family adventures and collecting all sorts of things.

Survivors include a son, Danny Roberts, Ft. Scott; 4 daughters, Jolene Matkin and husband Kenton, Ft. Scott, Heather Metcalf and husband Alvin, Ft. Scott, Laura Beerbower and husband Michael, Redfield, KS, and April Jacobs and husband Trevor, Ft. Scott; two sisters, Margaret Janson and husband Bob, Genesee, ID, and Kathleen Burton, Kerrville, TX; and numerous grandchildren, great grandchildren, and great-great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by a brother, Theodore J. Davis, Jr.; 2 sisters, Doris Wood, and Mary Seavers; a grandson, Shawn Harper; a great grandson, Elijah Miles; a great granddaughter, Paisleigh Sheriff; and her parents.

There was cremation. Kristen Carothers will conduct memorial services at 11:00 AM Thursday, March 17th, at the Cheney Witt Chapel. Memorials are suggested to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, PO Box 347, 201 S. Main St., Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.

 

Fort Scott, Schools

FSHS Talking Tigers: Three National Qualifiers

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Submitted photo.
Submitted by Angella Curran, FSHS Forensic and Debate Teacher
The Fort Scott High School Talking Tigers had five students who broke to the Final House, plus three National Qualifiers!
Competing in Senate:
Lillian Collins – 2nd place National Qualifier!
Kinsley Davis
Finals House:
Shekhar Gugnani-1st
Neil Gugnani -4th
Cadence Tuck
Joy Self
Jase Anderson
Consolation House:
Regen Wells – 4th place
Silvia Moreno
Caroline Barnes (PO House 2 in preliminary round)
2nd Place SWEEPS for the team!!!
Congratulations Talking Tigers!!!
Government, Kansas

Kansas Archeology Training Program Registration Opens

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Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site

June 3-18, 2022

TOPEKA— The Kansas Historical Society and the Kansas Anthropological Association announced that registration is now open for the Kansas Archeology Training Program (KATP), which will be held at Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site, in Topeka, June 3-18, 2022. The public can register online through kshs.org through May 31, 2022. Participation is limited per day and will be taken on a first-come, first-served basis.

The annual field school will partner with the park and the National Park Service’s Midwest Archeological Center (MWAC). The park includes the Monroe Elementary School and commemorates the 1954 U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to end the nation’s legal segregation. This landmark victory for civil rights in America helped inspire the American Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and 1960s. Monroe Elementary School was built in 1927; the previous Monroe School was built in 1874. Both were intended as segregated schools for Black children, which provide a broader historical context to the location prior to the 1954 court decision.

The goal of this year’s field school is to expand knowledge of the school property from the early years when it was purchased by John Ritchie in 1855 and later when the current Monroe Elementary School was built. This will be an opportunity to explore structures buried on the property that once stood near the earlier Monroe School. Little is known regarding the preservation of these structures. Through archeology better understanding can be gained about those who lived in the school neighborhood. This project will help tell of the crucial time between the Civil War and the Civil Rights era, which profoundly impacted people’s lives throughout the nation. Research goals will be shaped by input from the National Park Service to assist in telling this story and gaining more understanding about the surrounding community.

The annual field school is an opportunity for the public to work alongside professional and avocational archeologists in finding and excavating archeological sites and processing the resulting artifacts. This year’s artifacts found at the site will be processed in the Kansas Historical Society’s archeology laboratory. No experience is necessary—just a desire to learn. Volunteers can attend a few days or the entire field school. Participants must be at least 12 years old, and children aged 12-17 must be accompanied by a parent or sponsor.

The registration fee for members of the Kansas Historical Society and the Kansas Anthropological Association is $35 for standard participants, $25 for participants 65 or older, and $15 for all students currently enrolled at a middle school, high school, or college. For individuals that are not members of either organization, the fee is $90.

A full schedule of evening programs will be held in Topeka; a tentative schedule will be posted online. Admission to the programs is free and open to the public. Please note, the field school is closed on Mondays (June 6 and June 13), which is a great opportunity for participants to explore the area. There is potential for other scheduled programming on these days.

For more information contact Nikki Klarmann, [email protected]; 785-272-8681, ext. 266; kshs.org/katp.

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Government

U.S. Legislators Call For Putin to be Held Accountable

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Sens. Moran, Marshall Call for Vladimir Putin to Be Held Accountable for War Crimes

 

WASHINGTON – Kansas U.S. Senators Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall, M.D. joined Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and 16 of their Senate colleagues in introducing a Senate resolution calling for Vladimir Putin and members of his regime to be held accountable for the numerous acts of war, aggression and human rights abuses that have been conducted under his command.

 

“The appalling attacks on civilians in Ukraine are the latest in a long line of Vladimir Putin’s unjustifiable orders,” said Sen. Moran. “From indiscriminate bombings in Chechnya and Syria to targeted assassinations in London and Berlin, Vladimir Putin and those who obey his commands are not just thugs, they are war criminals. The United States and international community should hold them accountable.”

 

“Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine has caused widespread destruction and substantial loss of life,” said Sen. Marshall. “The United States must stand with the people of Ukraine and hold Vladimir Putin accountable for his war crimes against innocent civilians.”

 

The Senate resolution:

  • Strongly condemns the ongoing violence, war crimes, crimes against humanity and systematic human rights abuses continually being carried out by the Russian Armed Forces and their proxies and President Putin’s military commanders, at the direction of President Vladimir Putin.
  • Encourages nations to take any and all action to investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the Russian Armed Forces and their proxies, and President Putin’s military commanders, at the direction of President Vladimir Putin.
  • Supports any investigation into war crimes, crimes against humanity, and systematic human rights abuses levied by President Vladimir Putin, the Russian Security Council, the Russian Armed Forces and their proxies, and President Putin’s military commanders.
  • Encourages the United States Government and partner nations to use its voice, vote, and influence in international institutions in which they are members to hold President Vladimir Putin, the Russian Security Council, the Russian Armed Forces and their proxies and President Putin’s military commanders accountable for their sponsorship of ongoing violence, war crimes, crimes against humanity and systematic human rights abuses.

 

The resolution is also cosponsored by Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Angus King (I-Maine), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.).

 

Full text of the resolution can be found HERE.

 

Obituary

Obituary of Melisa Wunderly

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Melisa Wunderly, age 47, a resident of rural Fulton, Kansas, passed away Saturday, March 5, 2022, at the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas.

 She was born September 28, 1974, in Ft. Scott, the daughter of Randy Reasoner and Penelope Sue Combs Reasoner. Melisa married Hugh Wunderly on February 14, 1995, at Miami, Oklahoma. Melisa and Hugh had just celebrated their 27th wedding anniversary. They enjoyed many adventures throughout their lives together. Melisa enjoyed cruising around in the old pickup, whether it was to go out to dinner, feed the cattle, or check on the crops. She also enjoyed her dogs which she thought of as her own children.

Melisa adored her grandchildren, Easton “Easty” and Jaycee who both loved coming to see their “E” and making crafts with play-doh and glitter. She also enjoyed afternoons with Joseph and his family.

Melisa can be remembered for her collection of Kenny Chesney albums and the happiness his music brought her.

She is survived by her husband, Hugh, of the home; her son, Joseph Wunderly (Allyson) of Ft. Scott and her daughter, Amber Johnson (Tanner) of Franklin, Kansas; and two grandchildren, Eastonn and Jaycee Johnson. Also surviving are her parents, Randy and Sue Reasoner of Ft. Scott.

There was cremation. A celebration of life service will be held at a later date. Memorials are suggested to the Melisa Wunderly Memorial Fund and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.

Bourbon County, Business

Lassoed Memories Opens New Studio:Grand Opening March 12

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Lassoed Memories-Erica George Photography is located at 116 S. Main. Submitted photo.
Erika George, 26, owner of Lassoed Memories – Erika George Photography has opened a new studio in downtown Fort Scott.
Erica George. Submitted photo.
She started her business in 2016 and provides portraits, family photos, headshots, children, newborns, boudoir, Western lifestyle, and weddings photo sessions.
She chose the new location for her business, at 116 S. Main because of the ambiance.
Lassoed Memories-Erica George Photography is located at 116 S. Main Submitted photo.
“It is the old Common Ground Coffee Company and the old Hound Nutrition location,” she said. “I loved all of the different walls and aspects of the building. There is lots of room for different types of sessions within the area.”
George will be hosting a  grand opening at the studio on March 12 from 2-4:30 p.m.
As a part of her grand opening, she will be offering $30 mini-sessions, local vendor shopping booths, and giveaways, she said.
“I love to connect with other people and capture memories that they can hold onto forever,” she said. “I especially love kid’s sessions and to interact with all of the different ages! I meet all different types of people and get to interact with all ages through many steps of life and love every minute of it!”

To contact George,  phone: 620-381-4783  her Facebook page: Erika George Photography  or by  email: [email protected]

Bourbon County Local News