Courthouse Civil War statue condition assessed

"It's a terrific monument," said Dr. Dennis Montagna, director of the National Park Service's Monument Research and Preservation Program in Philadelphia. Monday morning, he inspected the south facing Union Civil War bronze statue located in the courthouse square.

Elm leaf beetle relatively harmless

BARTON COUNTY - The elm leaf beetle, which has recently made a reappearance in Barton County, is a relatively harmless beetle that may cause the leaves from the tree to drop, but should not cause permanent harm to a healthy tree, according to Jim Strine, Kansas Forest Ranger.

Elm leaf beetle relatively harmless

BARTON COUNTY - The elm leaf beetle, which has recently made a reappearance in Barton County, is a relatively harmless beetle that may cause the leaves from the tree to drop, but should not cause permanent harm to a healthy tree, according to Jim Strine, Kansas Forest Ranger.

Ellinwood tornado sirens sounding in error

ELLINWOOD - City tornado sirens have been randomly sounding in the middle of the night in error, the Ellinwood City Council heard as its regular meeting on Tuesday.

EGS works on anti-bullying campaign, becomes ‘No Put-Down Zone’

ELLINWOOD - Ellinwood Grade School students recently wore black to support anti-bullying. In addition, each spring semester they work on a six week course to create a positive school atmosphere.

USD 431 works on anti-bullying measures

HOISINGTON - Hoisington Middle School and Lincoln Elementary School have recently focused on anti-bullying, according to the councilor at the school Leonard Kaiser.

Council to interview candidates

HOISINGTON - Four individuals have expressed interest in becoming city council members in Ward 4, the Hoisington City Council heard Monday night. They will be interviewed at the regular Oct. 24 council meeting by the council, which meets at 7:30 p.m.

USD 112 student artwork displayed on the web

HOLYROOD - USD 112 elementary and middle school teacher Jennifer Berg has found a new way to display her student's artwork. They are all in an online gallery at www.artsonia.com where parents or grandparents who live in faraway places can see their students' art.

USD 431 receives good audit report

HOISINGTON - The Hoisington School Board learned at its regular monthly meeting that the district's finances are in very sound financial footing according to the 2010-11 audit report by Ken Beran of Adams, Brown, Beran and Ball.

ATV Riders

HOISINGTON - Hoisington's second annual ATV rodeo was held yesterday in south Hoisington on a bright, sunny day with comfortable temperatures.

Volunteers right cemetery stones

HOISINGTON - Volunteers from Superior Essex in Hoisington and from the Methodist Church spent some time on Wednesday evening at the Methodist Cemetery located outside of Hoisington restoring tombstones to their proper place. The Barton County Sheriff's Office is investigating the vandalism..

Council hears of Pride Park Project

HOISINGTON - A group of concerned citizens approached the city council with a proposal to upgrade Pride Park. They would add shelters, parking, a new playground and refurbish the restrooms and basketball court, as well as add landscaping.

St. Xavier Church celebrates 125 years

SEWARD - With a crowd that overflowed the sanctuary, St. Francis Xavier Church in Seward celebrated its 125th anniversary and the 50th anniversary of the priesthood of Father Rene Guesnier on Sunday.

Doc Witt announces retirement after 38 years of healing

HOISINGTON - Avid outdoorsmen, hunter and photographer, Dr. Dan Witt of Hoisington has announced that he will retire from his job after 38 years as a urologist. He will devote himself full-time to his first three hobbies.

ATV Rodeo to be held

HOISINGTON - The 2nd annual ATV Rodeo will be held at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 1 on the south side of the railroad tracks in Hoisington. Admission is $5. Children under 12 are free. "It's good family entertainment," said Pat Horton, Hoisington Main Street Inc. volunteer. HMSI will run and benefit from the concessions, and Kans for Kids will benefit from the gate fees and any other proceeds. The events ...

City of Ellinwood to purchase property

ELLINWOOD - The Ellinwood City Council, at its regular meeting on Tuesday, agreed to purchase 11-12 acres of property from Alfred Pohlman for $3,600. The property is located north of 7th St. It is west of Kennedy and north of the water tower.

Hoisington to host annual ‘Mud Run’

HOISINGTON - Engines will once again roar as drivers try to drive through the mud at the fourth annual Mud Run at 1 p.m. on June 1 in Hoisington, south of the railroad track on the east side of U.S. 281. It will be held in conjunction with the Kansas Mud Racing Organization.

USD 355 board taking steps for iPad initiative

ELLINWOOD - The USD 355 School Board, at its regular meeting Monday night, agreed to take another step in the iPad initiate. Currently, about twenty percent of the certified staff have iPads. The board agreed to buy approximately 30 more so that the remaining staff would have an iPad.

Foreign tourism developing in Barton County

Travel writer Matt Bates of Scotland and Lisa Weigt, International Program director for Kansas/ Oklahoma Travel and Tourism recently toured Barton County.

Living a "Glass half-Full' Life

In the early 2000s, like so many up and coming children of the prairie, Ellinwood native J. Basil Dannebohm, had the bright lights of the city shining in his eyes.

School board makes appointments

ELLINWOOD - At its regular monthly meeting, the USD 355 school board made two appointments to the new Ellinwood Recreation Commission Board of Directors. They were Mel Waite for four years, and Rob Fisher for one year. The ERC will soon begin planning a budget, hiring a director, and making plans for 2014.

Soaring with Eagles

America's Promise and DARE contest essay winners soared to the highest height on Saturday when members of the Experimental Aircraft Club in Great Bend took them on a 15-20 minutes airplane ride over Great Bend.

Just swinging

School bell rings the last time for two retiring teachers

HOISINGTON - Touching the lives and improving the minds of over a 1,000 children after three decades of service, USD 431 teachers Darla Clark and Becky Andereck will close the last book bags of their careers this month. Both began and ended their service in Hoisington.

Logical flood insurance rules finally passed

At long last, Congress, yes that gridlocked legislative body in D.C., has made changes to the National Flood Insurance Program. Astoundingly, the new rules actually make sense.

"Lulu does the Hulu in Hawaii' is a super bad baby name. Really.

What's with baby names these days?

USD 431 considers adding FBLA

HOISINGTON - At its regular meeting last night, the USD 431 School Board heard a presentation from teacher Jennifer Steinert about adding a Future Business Leaders of America organization to the school next year.

USD 431 receives grant

HOISINGTON - Hoisington Middle School was notified that they have received a grant for $4,500 to promote and educate students about composting, and they plan to use waste from the lunchroom for that. Students will be trained in waste management with real life and career applications.