Women, children injured in head-on collision on K-156

Several people were hospitalized Friday after a car crossed the center line on K-156 in Ellsworth County, and struck an oncoming car. According to the Kansas Highway Patrol online crash logs, Janice A. Perkins, 53, of Ellsworth, was driving south at 2:50 p.m. when her car crossed the line and struck a car driven by Amy Nichole Rivera, 26, of Salina. Perkins was taken to Wesley Medical Center in ...

Library filled with songs of the season

In celebration of the Christmas season, the Great Bend Public Library will be filled with the sound of live music for the next two weeks.

Winter concerts feature GBHS orchestra, bands on Monday

An evening filled with holiday music is on tap beginning at 7 p.m. Monday at the Great Bend High School. Middle school and high school bands will be joined by the orchestras in presenting their combined winter concert in two different locations.

CPI presents check to United Way of Barton County

Employees of CPI Qualified Plan Consultants, Inc. present a "big check" to Julie Bugner-Smith, the Executive Director of United Way of Barton County, employees and the company match raised $33,029.28 for United Way for next year, making CPI the top contributing company in the area for 2011. Presenting the check is Erika Brining, CPI's Director of Human Resources.

Sweet gift

Barton County High Schools compete in Quest

Teams from Ellinwood and Great Bend high schools were two of 58 teams that took part in Quest Super Saturday at Washburn University Dec. 4. The contest allows teams of high school students from across Kansas to compete against one another in answering questions on topics such as art, literature, history, math and science.

The Bittersweet Christmas Band playing at Back Room

The holidays are a mixed bag and so is the Bittersweet Christmas Band, says Karen Neuforth at the Barton County Arts Council. BCB will perform seasonal music ranging from the reverent to the ridiculous, starting at 7:30 p.m. Sunday at the Arts Council's Back Room in Great Bend. Admission is $10 and advance reservations or tickets are encouraged. Tickets may be purchased weekday afternoons at the Arts Center or reserved by ...

November Marriage/Divorce Filings

November Marriage Licenses Greg Alan Axman, Olmitz and Virginia Adele Lambert, Olmitz Justin Ray Langlois, Great Bend and Kassandra Sue Marie Mead, Great Bend Steven KennethGrooms, Cary, Ill. and Ashley Elizabeth Drescher, Great Bend Dexter James Doll, Great Bend and Chelsey Rebecca Clawson, Great Bend Levi James Hapes, Great Bend and Rachelle Dawn Hazlett, Great Bend Kenneth Lynn Ward, Ellinwood and Kary Marie Newkirk, Ellinwood James Edgar Rowe Jr., Great Bend and Wendy Elizabeth Emerick, ...

Golden Belt Community Foundation Grand Awards

The Golden Belt Community Foundation recently completed its competitive grant cycle and awarded $18,155.26 to charitable agencies and projects in Barton, Pawnee, Rush, and Stafford counties.

Delta Tau Sorority Annual Christmas Auction

This Monday, Dec. 6, marks the annual Christmas Auction of the Delta Tau Sorority. A variety of items and services including Christmas items, baked goods, crafts, gift baskets, dessert of the month, holiday gift wrapping and more will be featured in the live and silent auctions. A scarf designed for the queen of England is among the special pieces that will be auctioned off. The evening will also include a quilt raffle.

BCAC to hold drawing for Chet Cale carving

The Barton County Arts Council has enough Christmas art at its gallery to fill a sleigh, and one lucky art lover will win an original Chet Cale carving this holiday season, BCAC Director Karen Neuforth said. "Mr. Cale is Great Bend's own," Neuforth said. The piece to be given away is "Whooping Crane I," a marble relief carving depicting the profile of the ...

Honored musicians

FHSU Madrigal Feaste

Tickets for the Fort Hays State University Madrigal Feaste are still left, but they are selling quickly. The Madrigal Feaste will be at 6:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday in the Memorial Union.

Sterling College annual Christmas Concert

Sterling College Music Department will be presenting "Candlelight," their annual Christmas concert, at 7 p.m. this Friday, Dec. 3 at the United Methodist Church in Sterling.

Zoo news: Brit Spaugh Zoo is on the move

The biggest news this week at Great Bend's Brit Spaugh Zoo was the arrival of a new animal on Wednesday. (See story on page 1.) Seems like the zoo is always adding new animals, especially if one counts the hundreds of migrating birds that visit every December. White domestic geese can be found at the zoo year-round, but flocks of Canada geese start their noisy southern migration in the fall, ...

Holiday Art Open House

Student artists from Bickerdyke and Simpson Elementary Schools in Russell will host Holiday Art Open House, an exhibition of holiday inspired artworks, from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday at the Deines Cultural Center, 802 N Main Street in Russell.

Dance by Design presents Winter Wonderland

Dance by Design presents Winter Wonderland, a winter dance recital with a whimsical twist. This 8th Annual Winter Show has tap, jazz, and lyrical dance routines performed by local youth from Great Bend, Hoisington and Larned. Owner/Instructor Lee Ann Bashor says, "This adventure will take you down the rabbit hole and off to a curious land. I'm so proud of all my dancers. They have worked hard and we want to share our joy of dance."

Studio 653

On Friday student artists enrolled in the ART 653, Professional Development course will host Studio 653, an exhibition in Moss-Thorns Gallery of Fine Art in Rarick Hall on the FHSU campus. All are welcome to join these student artists and their instructor in a celebration of their achievements in the Bachelor of Fine Arts Program.

Great Bend Children’s Learning Center holds food drive for local food bank

Great Bend Children's Learning Center held a food drive for the local food bank the past couple weeks. The kids were very excited to help out families that may be in need this holiday season. The kids brought in a total of 366 items to donate.

Program deals with holiday grief

Golden Belt Home Health & Hospice will offer a free community program, "Getting Through the Holidays When a Loved One Has Died." It is scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 9 in the Thelma Faye Harms Room in the basement level of St. Rose Ambulatory & Surgery Center in Great Bend.

Golden Belt Community Foundation announces November Grant recipients

The Golden Belt Community Foundation recently completed the November competitive grant cycle awarding $17,694.42 to charitable organizations in Barton, Pawnee, and Stafford counties.

Tree of Life supports hospice patients at Golden Belt Home Health & Hospice

While the Thanksgiving and Christmas season is a time for gathering with family and friends, it is also a time for remembering loved ones who have passed away.

St. Rose offers Blue Christmas memorial service to public

The Rev. Angela DeVore realizes that sometimes people are not feeling particularly merry at Christmas time. Instead, they may be feeling blue because of a significant loss in their lives.

Every Christmas Story

Last year, Great Bend Community Theatre's holiday gift to the community was "It's A Wonderful Life, a Radio Show." This year director Sally O'Connor will deck the halls with "Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some)." The play opens Thursday, Dec. 5, with nightly shows at 8 p.m. through Dec. 7, and ends with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, Dec. 8, at the Crest Theater, 1905 Lakin Ave. The box office will be ...

Fall exercise classes forming at GBRC

For those wanting to avoid adding pounds during the holidays, the Great Bend Recreation Commission is forming its late fall exercise classes.

Girl gives birthday gifts to zoo

Nine-year-old Haley McCormick recently surprised Brit Spaugh Zoo Director Scott Gregory with a donation for the zoo.

Russell Area Artists Exhibit at the Deines Cultural Center

Preparation for the Russell Area Artists Exhibit at the Deines Cultural Center has begun. The exhibit will run from Jan. 10 through Feb. 7th. The show is open to any adult artist within a 60-mile radius of Russell.

Study shows health care impact

A good local health care system may itself be part of the prescription for maintaining a healthy rural economy.

Auction, tourney raise $45,025 for Heartland Cancer Center patients

Those who donated money and time, and played in the golf tournament collaborated to raise more than $45,000 for local cancer patients. The recent St. Rose Auction & Golf Classic proceeds will benefit the Heartland Cancer Center Patient Care Fund.

Library announces Food for Fines and other events

The Great Bend Public Library is once again holding Food for Fines to support the local food bank. From Dec. 2 until Jan. 4, bring in one non-perishable food item for every $1 in late fines on library materials. Food may be dropped off inside the library anytime during library hours.