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Bates new production manager at Sunflower Diversified
Shawn Bates Sunflower production manager
The collection and baling of materials continues at Sunflower Diversified Recycling Center, with Shawn Bates at the helm. Bates is the new production manager at Sunflower, a non-profit agency that serves children and adults with special needs.
Published: May 6, 2020, 4:13 PM

        Shawn Bates has been on the job at Sunflower Diversified Services for just a short time but he already knows “every day is a chance to do something different while making a difference.”

            Bates is the new production manager at the non-profit agency that serves children and adults with intellectual disabilities and delays in central Kansas.

            “Working with people with special needs is very rewarding,” Bates said. “Sunflower has a profound impact on people’s lives as they become more independent and confident in their abilities.”

            In Bates’ new job, he oversees production and recycling operations that employ dozens of adult clients at Sunflower.

            “Our recycling facilities and manufacturing plant provide rewarding jobs for people who take great pride in earning their own paychecks,” Bates said. “Their smiling faces warm my heart every day. This makes the job worth everything.”

            Unfortunately, he noted, COVID-19 has caused an interruption in clients’ day-to-day employment.

            “People have been staying home during this difficult time,” Bates said. “We want to ensure they are safe and healthy and ready to come back to work when everything gets back to a more normal schedule.

            “We have a fantastic staff that has stepped up to assume many responsibilities that are not usually part of their day,” he added. “Their teamwork has helped fill in the gaps and they should be commended.”

            For example, Barton County residents asked Sunflower to re-open the recycling drop-off site at 5523th 10th. “This great staff made it happen,” Bates noted.

            Self-service hours are 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Materials can be placed in containers in front of the west garage door; Sunflower personnel will sort the recyclables.

            “I want to thank not only the staff but local and area recyclers for keeping the business running during this public-health crisis,” Bates said. “We will get through this and come out stronger than ever.”

            Manufacturing plant employees create welcome mats for customers, as well as wrap about 2,000 hoses per week for Flame Engineering in La Crosse.

            Bates’ other responsibilities include job scheduling; inventory; oversight of equipment and plant facilities; quality assurance; customer service; and providing a safe work environment.

Bates grew up on a farm north of Lucas. He started his career as a production manager in a high-volume, injection-molding and blow-molding plant in St. Louis. He has studied various types of machine operations and process training and is a member of the Society of Plastic Engineers. He also has a background in facilities technology and management.

            Sunflower serves infants, toddlers and adults in Barton, Pawnee, Rice, Rush and Stafford counties. It is in its 54th year.

 
Pawnee Valley Community Hospital now offers proven PAD treatment
pvch-set-pad
Sayra Santacruz, respiratory therapist, and Dusty Thacker, director of Cardiopulmonary Services at Pawnee Valley Community Hospital, demonstrate supervised exercise therapy for patients with peripheral artery disease.
Published: Apr 3, 2025, 1:50 PM

Anyone who has a diagnosis of peripheral artery disease (PAD) now has access to a “proven, effective treatment” at Pawnee Valley Community Hospital (PVCH), said Dusty Thacker, director of Cardiopulmonary Services.

The treatment is called supervised exercise therapy (SET) and is specifically tailored to PAD, a condition in which blood vessels to the legs and feet become narrowed or blocked. This is due to a build-up of fatty deposits inside the arteries that limits blood flow.

“SET is a structured workout program designed to help people improve their physical health under the guidance of a trained professional,” Thacker said. “Sessions are tailored to the person’s needs and focus on improving strength, endurance and mobility.

“The treatment also helps improve circulation, which can reduce or eliminate pain while walking.”

Exercise sessions typically involve a combination of aerobics, strength training and stretching. This includes walking on a treadmill at a moderate pace, with an incline, until the patient begins to feel mild to moderate leg pain.

The patient then rests until the pain subsides before resuming the exercise during up to 36 sessions with a registered respiratory therapist.

“SET is a key treatment approach that focuses on improving blood flow, reducing leg pain and enhancing overall mobility,” Thacker summarized.

Smoking and diabetes are the strongest risk factors for PAD, Thacker noted. Other factors include being over 75; high blood pressure and/or cholesterol; not enough physical activity; stress; diets high in saturated fats; obesity; chronic kidney disease; and family history.

“A few classic symptoms of PAD are pain, burning or cramping in your legs and feet during an activity that improve with rest,” Thacker said.

Others are leg and foot pain at night or while lying down, as well as coldness or numbness in the legs or feet. Additional possibilities are leg weakness or heaviness, slow-healing sores on feet or legs, discolored skin and leg-hair loss.

The therapist offers education about smoking cessation, a heart-healthy diet, weight management, blood pressure control and increasing physical activity.

“We are pleased that we now offer this important exercise therapy,” Thacker commented. “Many of our patients have benefited from our Cardiac Rehab and Pulmonary Rehab services by gaining control of their symptoms, improving their quality of life and reducing the risk of future hospitalizations.

“SET is a similar service. Patients with PAD now have a treatment that can help them manage symptoms and improve overall vascular health.

“We are excited to expand our cardiopulmonary services and incredibly fortunate to partner with HaysMed and the DeBakey Heart Institute. This collaboration connects our Larned community with any necessary advanced services and direct access to cardiologists. It allows us to offer specialized care close to home, significantly enhancing the quality of care and positively impacting our patients’ health and well-being.”


Pawnee Valley Community Hospital, 923 Carroll in Larned, is a 25-bed facility, offering many services not typically available in a smaller facility. Included are 24/7 emergency care; acute, skilled and specialized nursing; surgery; high-tech imaging and laboratory tests; wound care; rehabilitation; and sleep and diagnostic center. PVCH Family Medicine provides the full range of family-medicine services; physician-assisted weight loss; and women’s health services. The hospital’s number is 620-285-3161; the clinic’s number is 620-804-6007.