UPDATED AFTER PRINT DEADLINE
  • Larsen's fate to be decided Monday

    Peabody EMS crew members made impassioned pleas Monday for reinstating fired Peabody paramedic Larry Larsen, and county commissioners agreed to rule on the matter next week. Crew chief Tammy Whiteside, Brian Whiteside, and Lyndsay Hutchison met with commissioners to describe the impact Larsen has had and ask for him to be put back on the Peabody crew.

HEADLINES

  • EMS debate continues

    County commissioners were to meet Monday with an emergency medical services consultant about the future of EMS while remaining embroiled in controversy surrounding the possible reinstatement of fired Peabody paramedic Larry Larsen. Randy Dallke asked fellow commissioners Nov. 19 to put Larsen back on the Peabody crew, to which outgoing EMS director Brandy McCarty responded with allegations of patient endangerment and sexual harassment.

  • Larsen reinstatement transcript

  • Fire truck benefits from prisoners' touch

    Florence fire chief Mark Slater can be excused for resembling a kid with a new toy when showing off the department’s big tanker/pumper truck, even though the department has had it for nearly 17 months. At a glance, the truck looks new, but it represents the ingenuity and hard work of Florence firefighters, with a helping hand from inmates at the Ellsworth Correctional Facility in Ellsworth.

  • Holiday shopping spree this Saturday

  • Auxiliary plans 'Mom's Day Out'

    A day of holiday fun at Peabody American Legion for children ages 5 to 12 will give their mothers a chance to do some Christmas shopping. “Most of our members have grown children and remember how hard it could be to work all week and then try to get holiday preparations done on a weekend,” auxiliary president Myrna Wood said. “We thought this would be a fun day for children and a break for moms and dads needing to shop.”

  • Workers to receive allowance for winter work clothes

    Amid employee wage concerns, county commissioners tried Nov. 16 to get road and bridge workers to warm up to them by issuing an allowance to purchase winter work gear. More than a dozen county road and bridge workers met with commissioners at 7:30 a.m. to discuss how their jobs were going, particularly with change in supervision.

OTHER HEADLINES

  • Family can't save pet in rural fire

    A house fire caused extensive damage to a rural Hillsboro residence and claimed the life of a family pet Friday. Firefighters had to restrain homeowners who attempted to rescue their beloved pet, said Hillsboro Fire Chief Ben Steketee who was first on the scene.

  • 'Huey, Dewey, and Louie' nest at lake

    A power trio of residential ducks has quacked claim to a cozy cove at Marion County Lake. Over the past year, lake officials have noted two mallards and a hen swimming, quacking, and often scavenging food at or near what some lakegoers know as “sandy beach,” a small stretch of shoreline in a camping area on the lake’s east side.

  • Creative destruction: a block party for kids and parents

    A creative bunch of little destructors teamed up with parental counterparts to construct and annihilate multiple toy block structures last week at “Block Fest.” Rural Marion resident Emma Tajchman attended with her children and a niece.

  • Paper to return to normal publishing dates

DEATHS

  • Drew Cederberg

    Drew Cederberg, 31, formerly of Hillsboro, died Nov. 16 at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Born Jan. 12, 1984, to Kyle and Christine (McKanna) Cederberg in Hillsboro, he worked in automotive technology.

  • Manuel Luna

    Manuel Luna, 86, died Nov. 15 at Salem Home in Hillsboro. He was born Dec. 24, 1928, in Mexico City. He married Julia Nuez on Aug. 11, 1953, in Mexico City, and worked for Rock Island Railroad doing maintenance.

  • IN MEMORIAM:

    Max Dunn
  • IN MEMORIAM:

    Robert Fetrow
  • IN MEMORIAM:

    Dorothy Harms
  • IN MEMORIAM:

    Bertha Linnens
  • IN MEMORIAM:

    Warren Fike

DOCKET

EDUCATION

  • Mapping a life path

    Marion County students seem to be determining specific careers before graduation and deciding to pursue further education, school counselors say. Marion High School counselor Mark Felvus said students typically did not make informed decisions in the past.

  • Pitfalls to avoid in your college search

    It was only five years ago that I was a first-semester freshman, bright eyed and ignorant of most of what gets me through the day anymore. College is a glorious time of personal growth and leaving your parents and hometown behind to start living on your own. And if you’re calling mom or dad twice a day, hey, it still counts. There’s no right way to do college, but there are a bunch of wrong ways. I write here to help prospective students avoid a few pitfalls that could turn the college years into a steaming pile of regret and sadness. 1. Don’t follow.

OPINION

  • Helping during the holidays

    You and my six regular readers are waiting for me to announce that it is time to think creatively about your holiday and year-end giving, weren’t you? So here I am to do just that. Few of us need more stuff. I am happy to report that The Daughters have finally conformed to my way of thinking about gaily-wrapped packages of things I may or may not want. In recent years, I have instead received clever notifications of donations in my name to non-profit organizations I support. Many are local, and others involve statewide organizations that I think serve Kansas well. I also contribute to my college and several scholarship funds. I provide The Daughters with a list, and they choose where to make a donation in my name.

  • The relativity of thanks

    Thanksgiving is a relatively simple celebration for most folks, when you take away the technical aspects of preparing turkeys and fixings. Families and friends gather in homes or restaurants for a meal. More often than not, someone recites a lengthy but sincere prayer as communal affirmation of things for which thanks is given. Some groups call on individuals to name something they are thankful for. Everyone eats, most more than they should, and then they spend time enjoying each other’s company, napping, or in recent years mapping out shopping strategies for Black Friday.

  • Letting citizens decide for themselves

    This newspaper faced a difficult decision in deciding how to report last week’s county commission meeting, which after a call to reinstate a fired paramedic devolved into a torrent of allegations against him. Since the seemingly abrupt firing 16 months ago of ambulance director Steve Smith, controversy has surrounded the department. The director’s position was downgraded, the physician who initially served as medical director resigned, Tampa’s ambulance crew was forced to select a new chief, complaints were lodged with state regulators, the Peabody crew chief was fired, and the director who replaced Smith abruptly resigned.

PEOPLE

SCHOOL

  • What those darling preschool students are thankful for

    I am thankful for hot dogs, pumpkin pie, and grapes. —Tavin Tindall I am thankful for my books, drawing on paper, Max, mommy and daddy, and Thanksgiving. —Rylin Smith

  • Delk helps Bluejays grind out win in playoff game

    Tabor head coach Mike Gardner is no prophet, but he couldn’t have given his team a more fitting mantra in the week leading up to its first ever home playoff game Saturday. “I talked to my guys all week about how these games come down to 10 plays or less,” he said.

  • Lehigh student accepted to veterenary school

    Valerie Klassen, Lehigh, has been accepted into the College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University after satisfactory completion of the 64 hours of pre-professional requirements and at least three years of undergraduate work.

  • Local students make all-league team

    Honorable mentions included junior Brendon Bina from Centre, senior Luke Unruh from Goessel; and junior Austin Reynolds from Peabody-Burns.

  • School menus

UPCOMING

  • Calendar of events

  • Chef to conduct cooking class

    Chef Rob Scott will conduct a Christmas cooking class from 6 to 8 p.m. Nov. 30 in the Hillsboro Middle and High School teachers workroom. The class, for high school freshman through adults who are looking for creative ideas for cooking, is sponsored by the Hillsboro Recreation Commission.

  • Free children screening in Florence

    Marion County Early Intervention Services will conduct free screenings for children ages 5 and younger Dec. 8 in Florence. Appointments, which are required, will be available from 12:30 to 3 p.m.

  • Open gym planned through mid-March

    Hillsboro Recreation Commission will sponsor open gym from 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays and 2 to 5 p.m. Sundays through mid-March. Open gym is for youths and adult basketball players who would like to play pickup basketball games or practice shooting.

  • Hillsboro to sponsor Christmas light contest

    Hillsboro Convention and Visitors Bureau will sponsor an outdoor Christmas light contest. Twenty-five percent of up to 100 registered participants will win $100 in Chamber Bucks. Winners will be announced Dec. 22.

  • Chase County plans weekend celebration

    A concert by Kevin Roth at 6 p.m. at Strong City Depot and the lighting of the Strong City Caboose will begin Chase County’s Christmas Celebration Friday. Saturday events will feature a 5k and fun run at 9 a.m. in downtown Cottonwood Falls.

MORE…

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