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.

Norma Lea Curry Shafer-Yancey 1928 - 2013

LAWRENCE - Surrounded by her four children at her home, Norma Lea Curry Shafer-Yancey, 84, peacefully passed away on May 4th. Born on Christmas Day in 1928, to Leslie and Glenda Curry in Burlington, Wash., Norma Lea Curry and her family moved to Great Bend, before her second birthday. Shortly after her graduation from high school, Norma met Ted Shafer at a picnic dance. They were married in 1948, and had four children. Shafer's position ...

Sylvia M. Wagner 1927 - 2013

LAWRENCE - Sylvia M. Wagner, 86, died on May 2, at Brandon Woods in Lawrence. Born Feb. 24, 1927, in Chicago, Ill., she was the daughter of John and Marie (Wollert) Schmidt. On Nov. 17, 1946, she married Duane Wagner in Ellinwood. He preceded her in death on Aug. 13, 1991. She was a housewife and bank teller. She was an avid reader and enjoyed needlepoint.

Charles L. Curtiss 1951 - 2013

LAWRENCE - Charles L. Curtiss, 61, concluded his battle with cancer May 6, at his home. Born on July 30, 1951, in Lawrence, he was the son of Earl and Oma Lee (Coleman) Curtiss. In 1983, he married Debra Nichols. They divorced in 1994. He was an employee of Hallmark Cards in Lawrence for 38 years, retiring in 2007. Charles was intensely interested in genealogy tracing his own family back hundreds of years and also ...

Robert (Bob) Raymond Ewald 1931 - 2013

BILLINGS, Mo. - Robert (Bob) Raymond Ewald, 81, passed away on May 2, in Billings, Mo. He was born on July 30, 1931 in Great Bend. On June 4, 1954, he married Shirley Joan Ewald (Wolfe) in Ellinwood. He worked at Blount Industries for 20 years.

Benefit dinner and dance

A benefit dinner and dance for Laura Brown, who was diagnosed with cancer, will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Elks Lodge, 1120 Kansas. A silent auction will be held from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Proceeds will go to help pay medical expenses. Tickets may be purchased at the door or in advance by contacting Rick Schwager at 786-5255; Becky Sigler at 617-3321; Courtney Kelly at 282-0608; or Chadd Brown at 282-1064.

Droning On

Put on your tinfoil hats everybody. Or didn't you get the memo? Its paranoia time in America again. Maybe it's the spring that brings out the crazy in our legislators. Of course, that would assume a semblance of sanity the other three seasons, and nobody wants to bet anything more than lunch money on that proposition.

FCC Must Run Honest Auctions

"America's global leadership in mobile, and the strategic bandwidth advantage so many have worked hard to create, is being threatened by the looming spectrum crunch," recently departed Federal Communications (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski said.

Let Us Pray

GBHS Technology Challenge team wins FHSU Challenge

Larned Briefs

Welcome Board meets

Pawnee County Sheriff's Report

Monday, May 6

Larned Police Report

Sunday, May 5

RSVP selling flowers for Memorial Day

This week marks the fourth-annual Senior Corps Week, an opportunity to thank Senior Corps volunteers for their service, said Donna Baugh, Volunteers in Action director. One way folks can become involved is by purchasing their Memorial Day flowers from the Retired Senior Volunteer Program this year. The flowers are on display at the RSVP office, 1025 Main, room D114 in Great Bend, and at the RSVP Thrift Store at 158 S. Main in Hoisington.

Myers walks out of meeting

After an often heated exchange between Great Bend City Council Member Randy Myers and several fellow council members over his alleged ethics violations, Myers stood up and walked out of the governing body's Monday night meeting.

CBH celebrates nurses week

HOISINGTON- Clara Barton Hospital joins hospitals across the country in celebration of National Nurses and National Hospital Weeks, May 6-12 and May 12-18, respectively.

Bike safety

Ellinwood sports scene

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.

Thanks for new skate center

Dear Editor, I would like to publicly thank Jack and Sara Love for opening the "Up N Rollin Skate Center". I would also like to thank Karmi Green with the Prairie Enterprise Project for all the help of making this a reality for their new business. I know it took alot of family, friends and volunteers to open this fun place for our children and it takes alot of the same people to help run ...

Five students qualify to Sems at District National Qualifying Tournament

The Great Bend High School Forensics Team competed at the District National Qualifying NFL Tournament on Friday and Saturday April 19th and 20th. Twelve students competed which consisted of: Nathaniel Cheney, Kenna Dirks, Michael Gieck, Clara Kachanes, Sarah Keller, Mallorie McNett, Jordan Otten, Chase Pumford, Jesus Sandoval, Kane Schumacher, Kameko Schultz and Paige VanSteenburgh. Five students qualified to semi-finals in their events. Cheney and Schumacher placed 12th and Gieck and Schultz placed 10th in Duo ...

Syrian Swamp

Business is Booming in Perry’s Potemkin Village

You can't change the facts of an explosion. A large fertilizer factory operated next to homes, a middle school and a nursing home. The factory blew, and 14 people died. We can't change those facts, but it's up to us to decide what they mean.

Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Nation

As Mother's Day approaches, the political scene makes me think of an old spiritual: "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child."

Volunteers in Action

Dear Editor; The spirit of generosity is definitely alive in Barton County. As the new volunteer coordinator for Volunteers In Action, I have seen firsthand the example our community sets for caring about their neighbors. The Check Out Hunger Food bank drive held the first weekend of April showed our young volunteers from Holy Family, Girls Scouts and the Barton County Youth Care how much Barton County residents want to take care of each other. ...

Charles A. "Jack" Wesley 1949 - 2013

Charles A. "Jack" Wesley, 63, died April 30 at Great Bend Regional Hospital. Born Sept. 3, 1949, in Great Bend, he was the son of Ralph and Isbell M. (Moses) Wesley. On July 12, 1986, he married Thanh Tran in Great Bend. A longtime resident of Great Bend, he was the owner and operator of Wesley Vending. He enjoyed riding motorcycles and was an avid KU, K-State, and Kansas City Chiefs fan. He was a ...

Larned Correctional honors top quarterly employees

LARNED - The Larned Correctional Mental Health Facility has named Employees of the Quarter for the second quarter of the year 2013 - Tanner Lang, Uniformed, CSI; Miranda Schmidt, Non-Uniformed, Administrative Assistant; RuthAnn Snodgrass, Contract, LMSW-MHP.

Appreciation dinner held at Welcome Inn

LARNED - A Volunteer Appreciation Dinner was held April 25 at the Welcome Inn with about 40 in attendance.

Pawnee County Briefs

Fort Larned archeology activities scheduled FORT LARNED - Fort Larned National Historic Site will host archeology activities for children ages 8 to 12 from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday. A trunk from the Kansas State Historical Society, "Puzzles from the Past, Problem Solving through Archeology," will be on display and available for exploration. Kansas Archeology Association member Norman Dye will lead a field activity consisting of flagging and examining artifacts and other "finds". ...

A two-way trail

Saturday marked the opening of Travel and Tourism Week in Kansas, which runs through next Sunday. The Barton County Commission Monday morning is set to authorize a proclamation to recognize the importance this industry plays in our local, regional and state economies.