John and Tammy Sturn live in Ellinwood but can often be found in The Slammer in Lyons.

The Slammer (thericecountyslammer.com), located in the Historic Rice County Jail, offers an escape room, historic tour, cellblock venue, a murder mystery dinner and overnight accommodations.

“It’s cool. It has been a retirement business that helps preserve an historic building,” John Sturn said.

John noted that when the building was the county jail, the sheriff and his wife lived downstairs. Chris McCord bought the building in 2020 with the idea of turning it into an Airbnb-type venue. The escape room opened after Thanksgiving in 2021. The Sturns have a partnership with McCord to manage the business.

Meeting at K-State

John worked in the natural gas pipeline industry as an engineer and field operations supervisor for 40 years, retiring in December 2020. Tammy earned a degree in program administrative recreation but went on the teach. She started as a para in the Ellinwood school district, went on to earn a teaching degree from Newman University and was a special education teacher at Great Bend High School until she retired in 2015.

“I grew up on a dairy farm near Bushton, Kansas,” John said. “I attended Holy Name Grade School for three years until it closed. I then attended Bushton Grade School and High School. I was in the last Bushton High School graduating class before it closed. I attended and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Kansas State University — but K-State did not close.”

John and Tammy met at K-State, where they both lived in the same co-ed dormitory.

“I swooped her off her feet and convinced her to marry me,” he said. “She enjoyed growing up in Kansas City, but Manhattan introduced her to life outside the city and she liked it. When we were engaged, she rode the bus from Manhattan to Ellsworth. As the bus pulled up, she was surprised how small ‘Bushton’ was, not realizing she was in Ellsworth. My mom picked her up and stopped at the Ellsworth grocery store. Pulling out of the parking lot, Mom had to wait for one car and commented about the traffic. My wife gained a new understanding of what ‘small town’ meant.”

“The day after we got engaged, I was matched with my Little Sister (in the Big Brothers/Big Sister program),” Tammy said. The girl was about 8 years old at the time and went on to be the flower girl at their wedding.

Tammy’s story

The Great Bend Tribune initially contacted John for this story but he said it should really be about his wife Tammy. “She is just more interesting than me,” he said. “She is a doer.”

“She taught kids for 33 years as a special ed para and teacher,” John said. She has been an Ellinwood pool manager for over 20 years, a summer job she shares with four other women. She has worked with the Ellinwood Food Bank for over 15 years and is now its administrator. She has served on the county zoning committee. She is a county representative on the board of directors for the Center for Counseling.

Tammy maintains her lifetime membership as a Girl Scout. She led the Girl Scouts in Ellinwood for about 20 years, serving as the Girl Scouts’ Neighborhood Chairman for a number of years. “We had a troop at every level,” she said, adding she was actively involved until the Girl Scout program faded away in Ellinwood.

Tammy said it was always her intention to be involved in youth service. Becoming a teacher provided the bonus of being able to spend evenings and holidays with her own children. Her degree in administration has served her well in all of her volunteer work.

Coming to Barton County

Northern Natural Gas had an area office at 3007 West 10th St. in Great Bend where John worked for a couple of summers as an engineering intern while he was in school.

“It was good work,” he said. He went to work there full-time after graduating.

The company reorganized, closed the Great Bend office and gave Sturn the opportunity to work in Omaha, which he did. But when the company again reorganized and closed the Nebraska office, he was given the opportunity to work in Houston, which he chose not to do.

Instead, he went to work for Kansas Gas Service in its Pratt office. Another reorganization came with the offer to work in Kansas City, which Sturn did not want to do.

“I went back to work for Northern Natural Gas at Bushton. While working in Great Bend and Bushton, we have lived in Ellinwood. I always thought we would move again and had opportunities to do so. But since moving back to the area, the best decision for our family has been to stay,” he said.

Coming home

“When we were getting out of school, we decided that the family ties and small-town living of this area were what we wanted,” John said. “Our kids grew up with their first cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents nearby. Our children are in Canada, Salina and Ellinwood. All our grandchildren, so far, are in Kansas with some only eight blocks away.

“We had a friend from South Africa who said we just cannot truly appreciate the peace that we have living in Ellinwood,” he continued. “It is kids leaving on their bikes at 1 (p.m.) and not coming home until 5:30 because they spend the day at the pool – and then going back for evening swim. The size of a small town makes it easier for all of us to feel and actually have a shared ownership in our schools, churches, neighborhoods and community organizations.”

“I really like the atmosphere of the small town,” Tammy said. “You know all of your neighbors and everyone really looks after each other.”

Community Connections

John and Tammy Sturn have stayed active in the community.

“Before we had kids, we had a Little Sister and a little brother through Big Brothers/Big Sisters and were on their board of directors,” he said. Tammy was assigned her first Little Sister when they were attending K-State and that girl joined them on their first date. She later served as a flower girl in their wedding.

When the Sturns’ kids were growing up, John helped with rec coaching. They were involved in Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, church youth groups and all the activities that kids are involved with, he said.

When their children were grown, John said, “I wanted to continue to do something for the community and have been fortunate enough to serve on the Ellinwood school board for about 10 years.”

John is also a regular blood donor. Tammy, who “hates needles,” is not.

“Donations from our Ellinwood blood drive directly prior to the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing went to help those victims,” John recalled. “Whatever shortcomings I have had in my life, at least I donate blood. For anyone who is physically able, please make the effort to donate and be part of something that makes our world a good place.”

He is a member of St. Joseph Catholic Church, where he takes his turn singing as a cantor and reading as a lector. When the kids were young, he taught religion classes for 10 years.

“I also served on the Pastoral Committee,” he said. “Mostly, I am just an active member. We all share, live, and help each other grow as a church community.”

Tammy was a member of the Ellinwood United Methodist Church, which merged with the Immanuel United Church of Christ to become one congregation, the Ellinwood Community Church, on July 2. She served on her church’s pastoral committee and currently she is on the interim committee as the church makes the transition into a combined flock.

“I tell everybody I get double-churched,” John said. The services for the two churches are at different times, so he is able to attend both.

After retiring, John joined the board at Great Bend Community Theatre.

“I never thought I had a hobby until I realized that I have done small-time community theater all my adult life,” he said. “I have done musicals and stage productions at Barton College, the Great Bend Community Theatre and summer community theatre in Ellinwood and one production in Omaha.” Earlier this year, he had a lead role as curmudgeon Norman Thayer in GBCT’s production of “On Golden Pond.”

He said he has always tried to exercise and stay physically active. While it may not qualify as a hobby, Sturn said working on his house was enjoyable and rewarding. He built most of the house he and Tammy live in.

Tammy adds that they both enjoy traveling.

No place like home

“Forty years ago, my wife and I were just what we as a rural community are looking for today — young people who choose small-town life. It was not an automatic choice and we had other options. But it has been a blessed choice for us and our family. I hope there are young people that see our story and find that same good choice for themselves.”

Community Connections is a regular feature of the Great Bend Tribune, showcasing people who live in the Golden Belt. We welcome readers to submit names of individuals who are active in the community that they would like to see featured in a future story. Send suggestions to news@gbtribune.com and explain their “community connections.”