HILLSBORO Star-Journal

Beavers acquire land for recreation from council

Hillsboro city council members chose Tuesday to help new residents establish an addition to their home, approving the sale of a lot of bare land at 206 Willow Glen Ln. to Gary and Connie Beavers, who recently moved to Hillsboro for retirement. The Beavers already put $3,000 down on the property, located next to their home, but city administrator Larry Paine said he was not comfortable selling unless there was a commitment to building housing.

Residents vote yes, allow school to raise property taxes

Nearly 300 residents of USD 410 voted 218 to 56 Tuesday to allow the district to increase the cap for property taxes from 30 percent to 33 percent of the general fund after a special election. The vote means residents will receive around a $24 decrease in property taxes, rather than a $51 decrease on a $100,000 home, Superintendent Steve Noble said.

Write-in campaign hits speed bump

Craig Dodd, who recently announced his intention to run a write-in campaign in the Republican primary for the District 1 seat on the county commission, ran into a bit of a stumbling block last week. When he visited the county clerk’s office, he found he was registered as an independent voter. To run in the primary, he would have to change his registration to Republican before July 1.

Athlete ready for next step

Danae Bina says she is a terrible loser, which may partly explain why she did not lose much during her high school athletic career. Everything she did growing up was a competition, as she was the youngest of nine children.

Budget cuts cause concern

State budget cuts and red tape for mental health care providers “are setting these people up to fail,” Commissioner Dan Holub said Monday. Jessie Kaye, president of Prairie View, told commissioners that four mental health centers in the state have been forced to close in the past nine years.

Harvest in Marion County better than expected?

A handful of farmers across the county got out into muddy fields Tuesday to begin test-cutting wheat. “It’s been better than we were expecting,” Jess Whiteman said. “We’ve only cut 50 acres before we got rained out Saturday.”

Developer starting networking group

Young people who could become successful business owners are being invited to start a chapter of Kansas Power Ups, a networking group for people ages 21 to 39 who have chosen to live in rural areas. “I’ve been talking with people who created the group for a few months and I finally decided to see if there is any interest,” said Terry Jones, Marion’s new economic development director. “It’s basically a young professionals group, only for everyone.

Accident in Marion sends 2 to St. Luke

An injury accident at Denver and N. Cedar Sts. sent two county residents to the hospital with serious injuries at 3:45 p.m. Sunday. Police said Josephine Bartel of Hillsboro ran a stop sign in a Chevrolet Cavalier while driving east on Denver St. Her vehicle was hit by a Chevrolet Cruze driven by Whitney Christensen of Marion, who was traveling north on Cedar St.

MEDI gets 1st look at restroom project

Marion Economic Development Inc. got its first look Tuesday at a three-dimensional model of a proposed restroom and stage to replace an aging gazebo in Central Park. The facility would include a performance stage. If fundraising goes to plan, the facility could be ready for Chingawassa Days by next year.

Store cat gets his own highway

For nearly four years, Shaw the cat has been a fixture at County Seat Decorating Center earning him plenty rewards from his admirers. “The FedEx man brings him treats every day,” owner Jeannie Wildin said. “In fact he was trying some new ones this week with meaty centers and said, ‘Oh, I think he likes these better. I’m going to stick with these.’”

Snapping turtle goes on grocery run

Conner Montgomery was closing Carlsons’ Grocery Store when a co-worker, who was locking the doors, noticed a strange visitor attempting to make its way in. A snapping turtle nearly a foot in length was in front of the store’s ice machines, moving toward the entrance.

Bluegrass festival aims for low-key fun

Marion County Lake’s seventh annual Bluegrass at the Lake festival Saturday will once again be a relaxed entertainment event, lake superintendent Steve Hudson said. “We’re not trying to be another Winfield,” Hudson said, alluding to the Walnut Valley Festival in September.

Garden tour tickets available

Tickets and maps for the annual Marion City Library Garden Tour are available at the library. The tour will be from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. June 28.

Billy Burke

Services for Billy Franklin Burke, 78, of Park City, who died Sunday, will be at 2 p.m. Friday, at Peabody Christian Church. Burial will follow at Prairie Lawn Cemetery. Born June 27, 1935, in Albertville, Ala., to Oliver and Margie (Gorham) Burke, he married Avis Louisa Graham on in 1957 at First United Methodist Church of Newton. She died in 1995, and he married Sandra Knoll-Burke in 2001 in Park City.

Maynard Janzen

Maynard D. Janzen, 79, died June 7. He was born Feb. 21, 1935, to Otto R. and Irma L. (Klassen) Janzen at his grandparents’ home in Hillsboro. He grew up east of Goessel and attended a one-room school before graduating from Goessel High School. He was heavily involved in music.

Treva Kellogg

Treva C. Kellogg, 93, of Herington died June 10 at Peabody Care Center. She was born Feb. 18, 1921, in White City to William W. and Rosa (Blum) Adam. She was a homemaker and a member of the Church of God in Herington and attended Herington Senior Citizens Center while her health permitted.

Otto Regier

Peabody-area farmer and stockman Otto S. Regier, 88, died Saturday at his home in Elbing. Born July 21, 1925, near Elbing, he was preceded in death by his parents, Cornelius and Margaret (Epp) Regier, and siblings Mildred, Menno and Howard Regier.

IN MEMORIAM:

Accidents reported

County Jail arrests and bookings

Criminal division cases

Deeds recorded

Emergency dispatches

Marriage licenses issued

Police incident reports

Traffic division cases

Elder care has changed dramatically

Since registered nurses Dawn Luna and Peni Ens started working in elder care as nurse aides — in 1979 and 1986, respectively — they have seen tremendous changes in long term care for the elderly. Ens said that when she began working, nursing homes were much more institutional; a nursing home dictated how residents would live rather than the other way around. She said nursing homes now really try to make things more homelike.

Discounts vary across county

Getting older may mean getting more bargains. Many county businesses offer a discount when customers reach a certain age. Each business has its own bargain, and the age at which customers can collect varies. Carlsons’ Grocery, Dale’s Supermarket, and Heartland Foods offer a 10 percent discount to people age 65 and older every Wednesday on store items not on sale.

Senior housing may bring glut of homes for sale

The availability of affordable housing is encouraging some seniors to consider putting their houses on the market. This in turn may cause more housing to become available for families. “We do have a lot of homes for sale,” real estate agent Lori Heerey said Tuesday. “But I can’t directly attribute the abundance to the housing projects going on in town, at least not yet.”

Senior centers need volunteers

Senior centers around the county are always looking for volunteers to help deliver and serve meals, but some are hurting for volunteers more than others. “We have several people in the summer who take vacations,” Hillsboro director Brenda Moss said. “We like to have backups that can help give volunteers time off.”

Weaker eyesight is common in seniors

When you walk into Marion Senior Center, like other senior centers around the country, it is common for nearly every patron to have a set of glasses. “I’ve had glasses for about 75 years,” one patron said. “I have astigmatism, and my parents wore glasses. Just something I have to live with.”

ANOTHER DAY IN THE COUNTRY:

Hett to celebrate 90th birthday

The family of Mary M. Hett will honor her 90th birthday with a reception from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday at Eastmoor United Methodist Church in Marion. In lieu of gifts, cards may be sent to 115 Eisenhower, Marion, KS 66861.

Bulldog alumni to meet

Chase County High School’s 2014 alumni weekend will be June 27-29 in Cottonwood Falls. The theme will be “Bulldog Pride,” and those attending are being asked to wear black and red to events.

Leadership class concludes

Members Dainne Cyr, Ashley Herpich, Roger Schroeder, and Karen Williams finished the Leadership Marion County class June 5 with a graduation banquet at Morningstar Ranch. Guest speaker Ron Wilson of Manhattan performed cowboy poetry. During their final class May 15, members met at the Florence city building to learn of Mennonite history from Peggy Goertzen.

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