Standard of excellence awards recognize achievement that exceeds basic curriculum standards established by KDOE.
Post offices in Florence, Lost Springs, Ramona, Burdick, Cedar Point, Durham, Cassoday, Elmdale, Potwin, and Lehigh have all received proposals to close from the United States Postal Service. “The locations were chose because they have little foot traffic and have a workload of less than two hours a day,” Central Plains postal district regional spokesman Brian Sperry said. “Obviously, people in those cities are already gong to other cities for groceries or gas.”
Angie Schwerdtfeger of Tri-County Telephone Association attended the Tampa City Council meeting Oct. 3 to explain some developments in connection with the Rural Universal Service Fund. This is a cash pool funded by a small extra charge on every customer’s phone bill to help phone companies pay expenses, assuring services to everyone, regardless of location. The Federal Communications Commission wants to change this to something they call Connect America. They want to provide less service to rural areas than to cities. Tri-County feels this is unfair.
Marion County Undersheriff David Huntley said there has been an increase of burglaries and thefts in rural areas in the county. Thefts of items like chainsaws, tool battery chargers, mower batteries, a gas powered generator, gallons of fuel, and yards of piping, all of which have been stolen from rural locations since Aug. 31, are difficult for the Sheriff’s office to solve. Huntley said it might take an owner weeks before they realize a theft has occurred. The deterioration of evidence in that time is staggering.
At its Oct. 3 meeting, Lincolnville City Council approved two contracts regarding renovation of the sewer ponds. A contract with engineering firm EBH and Associates was approved contingent on legal counsels’ concurrence. The firm has offices in Hillsboro and Marion and is helping the city with its applications for a Community Development Block Grant and bank loan.
When the Midwestern Polka Club gathers for a polka dance and hog roast Saturday at Marion County Park and Lake, the number of dancers is likely to be a fraction of what it used to be, Charlote Casey of Marion said. In recent years there have been as few as 30 dancers, compared with 100 or more in the past, she said. The reason for the decline is because few young people are taking up the traditional dance that Czech, German, and Polish settlers brought to the U.S. It used to be that children learned to polka from their parents, she said.