Marion County RECORD

They've only just begun

Marion High School co-valedictorians Jaclyn DeForest and Kaylyn Spencer and salutatorian Drew Maddox are excited, and a little nervous, about the transition to college. All three said the small size of MHS was beneficial for them.

Work begins on oil pipeline

Beginning this week, the first of 500 to 600 pipeline workers are at work in Marion County. A staging area for workers and equipment has been established in the northern part of the county just west of 290th and Remington Road by Sheehan Pipeline Company. The pipe supply depot is nearby. Working out of Augusta, employees are beginning work on the Keystone Pipeline System, digging trenches and laying 36-inch pipe for nearly 300 miles, beginning at 290th Road, moving south.

Construction will benefit local landowners, farmers, and businesses

What will be the economic benefits to Marion County from the construction of the pipeline? Landowners along the route are pleased with the process so far. They say the company has fulfilled all its promises.

County developer resigns from county tourism group

Marion County Economic Development Director Teresa Huffman will no longer be involved with Marion County Economic Development Council. Huffman made the announcement at the May 19 meeting.

New special ed director hired

David Sheppard of Larned has been hired as director of Marion County Special Education Cooperative. The board hired the new director May 19.

Former Peabody resident arrested

Former Peabody resident, 46-year-old Robert L. Stevens, was arrested May 17 and charged through the Harvey County attorney’s office with eight counts of sexual exploitation of a child, a level five felony offense. The Harvey County Sheriff’s office, in cooperation with the Newton Police Department and Sedgwick Police Department, served a search warrant at 101 N. Commercial Ave., Sedgwick, after information had been developed leading officers to suspect child pornography was being viewed. The results of the search and subsequent interviews led to Stevens’ arrest.

Memorial Day services

Memorial Day is Monday, and many organizations in the county are planning services and other events for the holiday. All services are Monday unless otherwise noted. Burns Burns Senior Center will have a Memorial Day event at 11 a.m. Saturday. Cedar Point Cedar Point Cemetery will host a Memorial Day service at 9 a.m. Florence A service will be held at 8:30 a.m. at the Mount Calvary Cemetery. Another service will be at 11 a.m. at Hillcrest Cemetery. The Rev. Moon-Hee Chung, of Florence and Aulne United Methodist churches, will give the address. Grant Township Grant Township Cemetery will not have organized services. Hillsboro The Hillsboro chapter of the American Legion will have a Memorial Day service at 10:30 a.m. at Memorial Park in Hillsboro. Retired Army Master Sgt. Roger Sinclair of Hillsboro will speak at the service, which will also include a roll call of departed soldiers and a rifle salute. A steak dinner will be at noon at the American Legion hall for members and guests. The dinner will cost $12. Lincolnville The Rev. Alan Stahlecker of St. John’s Lutheran Church will give an address at Memorial Day services 10:30 a.m. at Lincolnville Cemetery. There will be a rifle salute and playing of “Taps.” The Fenske Family will lead singing. Lost Springs Lost Springs Cemetery will have Memorial Day services at 10 a.m., arranged by the American Legion Auxiliary. Bill Novak II will speak. Marion The Rev. Brett Heubner of Our Savior Lutheran Church will deliver a short address and prayer at 10 a.m. at Marion Cemetery. The service will be at the Civil War Monument. A trumpet trio will play the national anthem. Veterans of Foreign Wars Ladies Auxiliary will decorate the memorial in honor of the dead of all wars. An honor guard will present military honors in memory of departed comrades and the trumpet trio will play “Taps.” After the service, Marion Kiwanis Club will provide refreshments at Marion Elementary School. Peabody American Legion Post 95, American Legion Post 95 Auxiliary, Elmer S. Madsen V.F.W. Post 6229, and Sons of the American Legion Post 95 will sponsor a Memorial Day Service at 10 a.m. Pastor Jim Pohlman of Peabody Christian Church will give the invocation, memorial address, and benediction. Members of the Peabody-Burns High School band will play the “Star-Spangled Banner,” “Amazing Grace,” “America the Beautiful,” and “Taps.” The service will be followed by the annual Memorial Day dinner at the Brown Building from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Ramona The Rev. Clark Davis will give an address at the Memorial Day service at 10:30 a.m. at Lewis Cemetery. Jean and Jill Brunner will sing, and Cole Svoboda will play “Taps.” A picnic will follow the service.

LuElla Bartel

LuElla Bartel, 91, of Ooltewah, Tenn., died May 21 at Ooltewah. Born Sept. 19, 1918, at Tampa, to Henry and Amelia (Hass) Hoffman, she graduated from Durham High School in 1937.

Alva Buller

Alva L. Buller, 92, of Omaha, Neb., died May 20. Born Sept. 19,1917, at Fairview, Okla., to Benjamin and Anna (Loewen) Buller, he married Martha Mae Eck on April 26, 1942, at Meno, Okla. She died Aug. 5, 1991.

Ernest M. Dramer

Word has been received of the death of Ret. Colonel Ernest M. Dramer, 89, of Albuquerque, N.M., who died May 19. He is the brother-in-law of LaVaughn Klose of Marion. A memorial reception was Thursday morning at French’s Funeral Home in Albuquerque, with interment at the National Cemetery in Santa Fe, N.M.

Eugene Klassen

Eugene W. Klassen, 77, of Ulysses, died May 23 at Satanta District Hospital in Satanta. Born Aug. 21, 1932, in Marion County, to Pete P. and Anna Victoria (Wiebe) Klassen, he graduated from Lehigh High School.

Leonore Klassen

Leonore Grace Klassen, 89, of Newton, died May 20 in Newton. Born June 25, 1920, in Keams Canyon, Ariz., to Karl and Frieda (Balzer) Friesen, she was a teacher.

Agnes Mitchell

Agnes Mitchell, 82, died May 19 at St. Luke Hospital, Marion. Born April 7, 1928, in Mobridge, S.D., to Jake and Margaret (Bosch) Schmaltz, she married John Mitchell on Nov. 8, 1948. She retired from the restaurant business in 1991, owning restaurants in Ransom and Bazine, and had lived in Ness City. She moved to Marion to be close to family.

Richard Wooley

Richard C. Wooley, 89, died May 18 at Legacy Park, Peabody. He was born Nov. 2, 1920, and had lived in Wichita, Marion, and Herington.

Accidents

Civil division

County jail

Criminal division

Deeds records

Domestic division

Marriage licenses

County officials take first step to pave road into Tampa

Marion County Commissioners voted Monday to hire engineering firm Kirkham Michael Inc. to do preliminary work for an asphalt road from K-15 into Tampa on 330th Road. Kirkham Michael bid $8,500 for the preliminary work. Cook, Flatt & Strobel Engineers, P.A., bid $14,600.

County commissioner is recovering after surgery

Marion County Commissioner Bob Hein, of Hillsboro, is recovering quickly from surgery to remove a cranial blood clot. Hein hit his head on his garage door. He didn’t think it caused any problems, but while working at the concession stand at a Hillsboro High School baseball game April 9, he fell. He fell again April 11 and went to a hospital. Doctors discovered he had a cranial blood clot and performed surgery to remove it.

Holub: MCEDC may need fresh start

It might be time to start over with Marion County Economic Development Council, Marion County Commissioner Dan Holub said Monday. The group worked well for many years because volunteers were happy to help one another’s communities. “But now it’s political,” Holub said.

Tourism volunteers: Carpe diem

It was clear that the county economic development director caught some members of Marion County Economic Development Council by surprise May 19 when she said she was no longer going to be associated with the volunteer group; at least she caught me off guard. It’s a sad day in Marion County when a paid professional cannot get along with a group of volunteers — some of them her peers — and vice versa.

Another day in the country

When we built my mother’s house, one of the things she wanted installed in the bathroom was a set of grab bars. She had an idea where she’d need them and we even went so far as to practice getting in and out of the shower to see where she would just normally reach so that we knew where that bar was supposed to be. Grab bars are pretty important — not just in the bathroom, but in life in general.

Random Thoughts

When I was in my 40s, I thought I should get my creative bubbles working. I had been reading a lot of novels and I thought I should get busy and write a book. I had some characters in mind and some places too. I knew some things about jealousy, envy, greed, and love. I had an idea about how to put it all together. I actually had some real people in mind.

Our Voice in Topeka

The session is about to end. Sine Die — official final day of the session — will be Friday, and we don’t expect fireworks. I thought you might want to know that before January 2010, the legislature and Governor had cut more than $1 billion — yes, a billion dollars — from state spending. Since then, we have trimmed about $200 million more from spending in the upcoming budget. OK, it doesn’t trim; it whacks off another $200 million. That’s about $1.2 billion in cuts before we addressed the issue of a tax increase.

One Woman's View

When I was a child, many of the older people referred to the holiday we are now approaching as Decoration Day because it was a time to decorate graves of loved ones, especially of veterans. You seldom hear that term now. Now we call it Memorial Day. I like that term because it is much more important to cherish our memories of loved ones than it is to stick flowers on a grave — although of course we can do both. Memorial Day is my weekend to revisit old haunts and visit the cemetery where my parents, brothers, and other relatives are buried. The Veterans of Foreign Wars conduct a service to honor veterans and that little cemetery probably has more than its share of veterans graves from the Civil War through the Korean War. I don’t believe there are any from Vietnam. I remember my brother and some cousins were veterans. However, it is also possible to “remember,” in a sense, people I never knew. My grandfather, a Civil War veteran, died long before I was born but I place a flag and flowers on his grave. A cousin I never knew was killed at Leyte during World War II.

Foundation makes quilts for wounded soldiers

During the Civil War, women who wanted to show their support of soldiers did it the best way they knew how — by quilting. After the war, the tradition died down, but in 2004 it was revived by the Quilts of Valor Foundation. Quilts of Valor volunteers make quilts to help comfort wounded soldiers. Sew What Quilt Shop owners Jan Meisinger, Paula Perry, and Carol Riggs of Hillsboro are involved with the Kansas Bee of Quilts of Valor. Meisinger and Perry have been at it for several years, and Riggs recently became involved. Betty Stenzel of Marion is also involved in Quilts of Valor.

County lake features improvements

Since Labor Day 2009, several improvements have been made at Marion County Park and Lake. Among the improvements are a wheelchair accessible fishing pier, a community fire ring, a portable fire ring, “Lincoln Log” guardrails and benches, and renovations to the lake hall.

Butler director will retire in June

Pauline Holub, of rural Marion, has spent the past 21 years helping students realize their dreams of an education. And now, it’s her turn to fulfill some of her dreams.

Lincolnville native named 'Outstanding Young Alumnus'

John Stika, a 1989 graduate of Centre High School, was honored earlier this month at Kansas State University. He received the 2010 “Outstanding Young Alumnus Award” at the K-State Agricultural Alumni awards banquet. Stika is in his fourth year as president of Certified Angus Beef, a not-for-profit division of the American Angus Association. He has been successful in increasing the brand’s market share every year, which in turn has increased beef industry profits.

Do-it-yourself home program finds renewed interest in Hillsboro

Meetings in April and May have renewed interest in a program that would allow homebuyers to work together building one another’s homes in Hillsboro. Mennonite Housing Rehabilitation Services Inc. proposed the idea in August, but the proposal was met with tepid interest and resistance from property owners in the Willow Glen subdivision who worried it would lower their home values.

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Preschool celebrates end of school year

Students of Sunshine Country Preschool celebrated the end of the school year this past week. The 12th graduating class had a program May 19 and graduation ceremony in Marion City Building basement. The students presented a music program followed by an awards ceremony.

Schedule will be more flexible for MHS students

Marion High School may offer College Algebra, College Speech, and Jazz Band to students at 7:30 a.m. as part of the move to a seven-hour day starting in the 2010-11 school year. For students who take the classes, USD 408 school board approved an option May 12 for students to take a free hour somewhere in the middle of the day. MHS principal Brenda Odgers said students would most likely take the free time an hour before lunch, an hour after lunch, or an hour before school is scheduled to end.

Marion jumpers, throwers dominate regional competition

Heading to state By BEN KLEINE Staff writer The Marion High School track team members qualified for the state championships — placing in the top four — in 18 different events Friday at its regional track meet in Fredonia.

Hett first MHS golfer to go to state four years

Landon Leiker and Lindsay Hett competed in the 3A state championship golf tournament Monday at Smoky Hill Country Club in Hays. Hett shot a 92 and Leiker shot a 93 in conditions that included 25 to 40 mph winds. Neither golfer placed in the top 20. It was Hett’s first time playing the course.

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