STERLING — A physician who works part-time at the Great Bend Regional Medical Center has announced his candidacy for the 113th District seat in the Kansas House of Representatives formerly held by the late Bob Bethell of Alden. Lorene Bethell will finish his term in the Kansas Legislature, but does not plan to seek a full term.
Sterling Republican Tom Simpson, a family practice doctor, established the Sterling Medical Center as a solo practitioner in 1978. He served the community for 31 years before his retirement in 2009. The clinic currently employs three full-time medical doctors, a nurse practitioner and a support staff of 16.
He works part-time as an emergency room physician at the Great Bend Regional Medical Center.
“I believe that my broad range of leadership experience over the years has placed me in an excellent position to serve the people of the 113th District in Topeka,” he told supporters at his announcement.
The boundaries for the 113th District are undetermined. The current proposal would include Rice and Ellsworth counties and part of Saline and Reno counties. The primary is scheduled in August with the general election scheduled for Nov. 6.
Bob Bethell died in a car accident May 20 while returning home to Alden at the end of the legislative session. Rep. Bethell represented the 113th District, covering all of Rice County and portions of Reno and Barton counties, since 1999. Rep. Bethell had filed to seek re-election.
Simpson served nine years on the Sterling City Commission from 1984-1989 and 1995-1999. During that time, the downtown Streetscape was redeveloped and updated, the Cottonwood Lake housing development was annexed into the city, a new fire station was built and a new water tower was erected. He served one-year terms as mayor in 1986, 1989 and 1996.
Simpson was a member of the Sterling Volunteer Fire Department from 1978 to 2009. He served as the city’s fire chief from 1981 to 1984 and from 1990 to 1992. An elder in the Sterling United Presbyterian Church since 1979, he is also a 24-year member of the Sterling College Board of Trustees, which he chaired from 2005 to 2008.
He is vice-president of Habitat for Humanity of Rice County, having been involved since its inception in 2004.
Simpson has also been active in local and national scouting, serving as a Cub Scout Cubmaster and in a variety of local and national executive and medical posts with the Boy Scouts of America.
He is a magna cum laude graduate of the College of Emporia and the University of Kansas School of Medicine. He has held numerous leadership posts in Kansas medical associations and organizations. He and his wife, Linda, are parents of four children and grandparents of nine.