BREAKING NEWS
UPDATED AFTER PRINT DEADLINE
A blue-green algae warning for Marion Reservoir and a less serious watch for Marion County Lake were continued Friday by Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
This will be the sixth consecutive week for the reservoir to be under an algae warning. This week, nine other bodies of water in Kansas — including Herington Reservoir and portions of Milford Lake — are subject to warnings.
Anyone who wants a COVID-19 vaccine free of administration fees needs to arrange for one through the county health department before the end of the month.
As of Aug. 1, the county will begin to charge an administration fee for COVID-19 vaccinations.
Working with metal to create classic scenes of rural Kansas ran in Tracy Hett’s blood.
The inspiration for Hett’s artistic works — sold at Trace of Copper on US-56 as well as at Kansas travel information centers and Kansas Originals in Wilson — was inherited from his grandfather.
Todd Winter, 44, Marion, is in surgical intensive care at Wesley Medical Center, Wichita, after he was seriously injured when a utility terrain vehicle he was riding entered a ditch and turned on its side.
An accident report was not yet available Tuesday, but Marion police chief Clinton Jeffrey said preliminary investigation indicated that Russell Hake, 52, lost control of the 2021 Polaris Razor XP while eastbound on Kellison and it entered the street’s north ditch and rolled.
As last surviving member of an original Mexican-American fast-pitch softball team started by Newton railroad workers, Angel Torres had been looking forward to this year’s tournament Friday. He died while attending the event.
Torres started working for railroads in high school. After coming home from serving in the navy in world War II, he resumed working for the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe until retiring after 40 years.
FLOOD OF '51:
'51 flood never to be forgotten,
First-hand memories of flood survivor
Marion’s lack of fully accessible downtown parking despite a recent streetscape project has resulted in a warning from a lawyer representing a disabled Marion resident.
The lawyer’s letter demands the city tell, by Tuesday, what it plans to do to resolve the problem.
Three pop-up tents and a crowd of 30 joined city officials in opening Hillsboro’s new walking path Friday.
The concrete hiking and biking trail took four years to arrange and four months to build after it received 80% funding from Kansas Department of Transportation.
July 4 typically is a weekend many people celebrate with alcohol as well as fireworks, but Goessel seemed to be the weekend hot spot.
No one could be reached to speak about Goessel emergency activities, but scanner reports showed repeated calls to Goessel, one of which involved a neighbor with a gun and another of which involved young people harassing an old woman.
Union Pacific Railroad soon will get a letter from county counsel Brad Jantz asking the company to pay for road improvement to allow traffic to bypass roadway at Ramona the railroad routinely blocks for as long as an hour at a time.
“This is not only an issue for cattle and grain semis and local traffic, but a major safety issue for fire, EMS, and law enforcement,” commissioner David Mueller said. “There have been multiple occasions when the crossing was blocked and public safety had to be dispatched from Dickinson County. This puts property and lives at risk.”
A Lake Elsinore, California, man was arrested Thursday on a warrant alleging indecent liberties with a 15-year-old and lying to police.
According to the charges filed May 12 against Glenn Acevedo, he fondled a 15-year-old child March 2 in Marion County and lied to police on the same day.
Recent rains and mild temperatures have most of the county’s corn crop looking good, but the next few weeks could be critical.
Storms that soaked areas of the county with up to 6 inches of rain were a welcome respite from 100-degree heat that hit early in June.
Marion County residents were in the mood to party as they flocked to area Fourth of July celebrations in record numbers this weekend.
Nearly 5,000 packed Peabody’s City Park Sunday after a full day of events to celebrate the town’s 150th birthday and the 100-year anniversary of its annual fireworks show.
For more than two decades, Don Skinner has been collecting stories.
The longtime journalist has written about everything from water policy to crime during a 20-year career for newspapers including the Topeka Capitol Journal and the Orange County Register.
Cremation and services for Michael E. Jensen, 71, who died Friday at his residence in Hillsboro, will be scheduled later.
Born Dec. 12, 1949, in Manhattan to Lloyd and Marian Jensen, he was survived by wife Margie Tilton; sons Rick Jensen, Michael Jensen Jr., Mike Mallory, Tyler Swank, Brandon Jensen, and Ryan Jensen; daughters Trula Jensen and Brenda Jensen; and brother Glen Jensen.
IN MEMORIAM:
Tracy Hett
IN MEMORIAM:
'Ace' Torres
Deciding to grow produce in Kansas, fighting rough weather and temperamental plants, is not something done on a whim.
Ron Jirak, owner of Jirak Brothers Produce in Tampa, certainly thought hard on it.
Despite heavy rain around harvest, this year’s wheat crop seems to have come in without bad effects.
Dick Tippins, grain coordinator for Cooperative Grain and Supply in Hillsboro, Marion, and Lehigh, said most farmers were done with harvest for the season.
If you ever need an inspiring story of people coming together to recover from tragedy, look no further than the historic ’51 flood, the 70th anniversary of which we observe this week.
Devastating deluges left towns throughout eastern Kansas in ruins. Although modest amounts of disaster aid and loans were available, communities for the most part had to pull themselves up by their own soggy bootstraps.
As proud as we might be of patriotic celebrations at Aulne, the county lake, Ramona, and Peabody, it’s sad that law enforcement officers had to spend most of the Fourth of July weekend dealing with sometimes dangerous or violent disturbances involving drunken celebrants.
Surely, the Fourth of July should be more than a day to celebrate our freedom to become intoxicated, risk-taking, and belligerent. Much as we hate the scourge of drug-related crime in our county, it pales in comparison to the number of incidents linked to alcohol.
ANOTHER DAY IN THE COUNTRY:
What are the odds?
IN MY OPINION:
Would founders view America as a car wreck?
Libraries usually are quiet places, but Marion City Library will be sponsoring Will Parker, a Texas-based singer and songwriter who encourages singing, dancing, high-fiving, and improvisation in his performances.
Parker will perform at 10 a.m. July 16 in the Marion Community Center ballroom.
A card shower and an open house from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. July 18 at the bank annex in Hope will honor the 100th birthday of Pilsen native Beatrice “Betty” (Silhan) Riedy of Hope.
Birthday cake will be served.
Donna Rosiere has been trying to take care of her customers from a hospital bed.
The owner of Marion Dry Cleaning and Laundry is seeking a buyer for the business she no longer is able to run as she undergoes treatment for lung cancer.
Volunteers are needed to help with Peabody’s vacation Bible school 9 to 11 a.m. Monday through Thursday of next week at Peabody United Methodist Church.
Classes will be available for pre-kindergartners through sixth graders. More information is available by calling or texting Michele Gossen at (620) 381-4329.
“Good Day Kansas,” a hybrid news and advertising program on KSNW-TV (Channel 3), Wichita, will set up for a live broadcast from Peabody at 11:30 a.m. Monday.
Weekly meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous are planned for 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays at Peabody Baptist Church, 402 N. Vine St.
MEMORIES:
10,
25,
40,
55,
70,
100,
140 years ago
Hillsboro’s Dillon Boldt was among 13 graduating seniors statewide selected as scholar-athletes last week by the National Football Foundation.
Boldt, a wide receiver, defensive back, and kicker, was recognized for excellence in academics, football, and community leadership.
September’s Old Settlers Day weekend will celebrate 200 years on the Santa Fe Trail.
Marion Kiwanis, which organizes Old Settlers Day, set the theme at its meeting last week.