BREAKING NEWS
UPDATED AFTER PRINT DEADLINE
Information about what led to the arrest of Marion County’s former economic development director may be delayed another week at the request of her attorney, who in court filings has raised the issue of whether she may have confessed.
Wichita lawyer John Stang on Wednesday filed court documents saying he will represent former Marion County economic development director Teresa L. Huffman, charged with felony misuse of public funds.
Former Marion County economic development director Teresa L. Huffman was arrested Monday on a charge of misuse of public funds.
Huffman, who posted a $10,000 surety bond and was released from jail four hours after her arrest, was charged in district court Thursday.
It’s time for fall cleaning, getting rid of the stuff you’ve not used and been storing all year.
Waste Connections will make one pass through town Saturday to pick up waste from Peabody sidewalks.
The Tour de Florence, an area bike event that has continued for 20 years, has been postponed to Oct. 21.
The event was originally scheduled for this past weekend, but was moved due to weather concerns.
Daily workouts on weights, basketball and volleyball skills, scrimmaging two nights a week, and making time to help others kept members of the Peabody-Burns women’s sports teams busy this summer.
“They put their efforts toward the gym and the community,” basketball coach Travis Schafer said.
Friday night and Saturday morning’s chilly rain may have dampened enthusiasm for the fifth annual open class car show at Marion County Park and Lake, but it only made chili-lovers want their chili all the more.
Six vehicles lined the driveway for the car show, compared to 30 last year.
Marion County commissioners gave a unanimous vote of approval to submit an application for bridge reconstruction to the Federal Highway Administration Monday.
If accepted, FHA will pay 80 percent of costs, with the county paying the remaining bill.
Marion County should take advantage of its location near other population centers and develop more businesses with between 10 and 99 employees, the founder of a rural entrepreneurship center told area leaders last week.
The county lags in attracting younger residents and is having trouble attracting retirees in part because necessary services, including basic shopping, aren’t widely available, said Don Macke of the not-for-profit Center for Rural Entrepreneurship. He and the other founder of the center are both officials of a for-profit group that sells investment and philanthropy services.
A family-owned farm in Marion County doesn’t sound like the typical location for a national cheese company, but Jason Wiebe Dairy is just that.
Located in Durham, the Wiebes ship cheeses to more than 16 states across the country.
A bridge on US-50 at Newton is now reopened after being closed since Aug. 27.
According to Kansas Department of Transportation, the bridge deck was milled and patched in July and August. It was closed Aug. 27 for placement of a concrete overlay, application of masonry coating to bridge rails, and removal of a lighting system.
The economy may be booming, but people in the ag industry are tightening their belts. For some, that isn’t enough to survive.
Kent and Amy Sterk of Goessel are sad to be selling their dairy cows after 22 years in business.
Orlin Ensz of Hillsboro has a contract with Livestock Services, Inc., of Great Bend to grow hogs for market.
Ensz provides the buildings, labor, and utilities. The company provides the pigs, feed, and medication.
Dairy farming is not a common practice in Marion County. For Jason Wiebe, of Jason Wiebe Dairy, it’s in his blood.
“My dad worked the dairy before me, so it never stopped,” he said.
Farmers who have been hauling water to pastures since May have one less daily task now that substantial rain has fallen. As of 8 a.m. Tuesday morning, Marion Reservoir had recorded 3.85 inches of rain since early Saturday morning, with more to come.
Elevator managers in Marion and Hillsboro reported that most corn kept for grain had been harvested, and soybean harvest had begun.
Kansas specialty crop growers who attend the Great Lakes Expo Dec. 4-6 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, can apply for $100 reimbursement for registration and a $750 travel stipend — both available on a first come, first served basis — from Kansas Department of Agriculture.
Oct. 30 is the application deadline for both awards.
As if Marion County hadn’t been disappointed enough about economic development comes the news this past week that the county’s former development director is accused of misusing nearly $47,000.
No amount of feel-good ads and generic platitudes about supposed opportunities can erase the ugly truth that one of the biggest challenges the county faces is not just a largely unskilled work force and decaying infrastructure but government that seems hopelessly mired between rosy ineptitude and dark shadows of fraud.
ANOTHER DAY IN THE COUNTRY:
Seasons change, garden goodies going awayLETTER TO THE EDITOR:
Stream bank stabilization money available
Florence city council held a 45-minute executive session at Monday’s meeting to discuss the lease regarding Crystal Springs.
City attorney Randy Pankretz joined the council in the session.
Marion County democrats met Oct. 5 at Marion Community Center.
Ellen Sieger attended DemoFest in Wichita.
Jerry Keen, a woodworker from Wichita, will be guest speaker Oct. 18 at the 58th annual meeting of Senior Citizens of Marion County at Marion Senior Center.
Keen is editor of the newsletter, “The Knothole,” for Sunflower Woodworkers Guild in Wichita. He will share pictures of his wood projects from over the years.
The Peabody-Burns school district is seeking public input regarding decisions made with Gemini II Redesign Project. The project is backed by the Kansas State Department of Education and encourages schools to reimagine how education can be best administered.
Patrons of the district will receive a survey asking how the district can better serve its students, their families, and the community. It will give them opportunity to share what Peabody-Burns does well, what areas it can improve, and where the district should be headed.
A 22-point eruption out of the gate by the visiting Bennington Bulldogs, combined with turnovers, proved too much for the Warrior football team to overcome Friday.
While the Warriors knotted the game at 30-30 in the third quarter, a combined 44 points in the first and fourth added up to a 76-42 setback for Peabody.
Harvey-Marion County Community Developmental Disability Organization will meet at 4 p.m. Monday at 500 N. Main St., Suite 204, Newton.
A public forum will be available at the beginning of the meeting.
UPCOMING:
Calendar of eventsSENIOR CENTER:
Peabody Senior Center menuSCHOOL:
Peabody-Burns school menu