BREAKING NEWS
UPDATED AFTER PRINT DEADLINE
Two Hillsboro residents were injured when a dump truck towing a pup trailer slammed into the back of their car Tuesday morning at US-56 and Industrial Rd. in Hillsboro.
Wesley Hiebert, 68, was slowing his gray Honda CR-V to make a right turn from US-56 onto Industrial Rd. when his car was struck by a trailing International dump truck, driven by Gary Davis of Hillsboro and owned by J.L. Unruh LLC of Newton.
American Legion post commander Josh Plenert got his wish for this year’s Memorial Day service at Hillsboro Memorial Park.
The annual observation ordinarily has light attendance but Monday’s service drew a crowd of 200 onlookers who listened in respectful silence as names of deceased servicemen from Hillsboro were read.
When sheriff’s deputies Mike Ottensmeier and Bronson Shipman received a dispatch reporting possible theft and assault Thursday on Bluestem Rd. north of 160th Rd., at least they knew they weren’t going to be involved in a high-speed chase: the getaway vehicles were a pair of ATVs.
Radio transmissions indicated the man who reported the incident was following a red ATV, driven by a man in a black shirt and jeans, and a green ATV, driven by a man in overalls, headed south on Bluestem Rd. toward Cedar Point.
A former Marion man accused of rape got a mixed verdict after a three-day trial last week.
Edwin M. Klenda, 56, was charged with rape and aggravated sexual battery in connection with an incident Feb. 3, 2015, in Marion.
Beautiful weather and flooding at other lakes in the region made for more campers over the Memorial Day weekend at Marion County Park and Lake.
Lake supervisor Steve Hudson said campgrounds were 75 percent full over the weekend. That compares to a typical Memorial Day weekend, with campgrounds 50 percent full. Tent campsites were about 50 percent full.
Not satisfied to have a tractor like everybody else’s, Wilbert Bartel of rural Hillsboro got the notion to modify a D John Deere to run like no other two-cylinder John Deere.
“No amount of explanation can exceed my ability to mess things up,” Bartel said. “I figured I could mess up a John Deere.”
Nearly a quarter of Kansas counties, most of them larger than Marion County, have some form of administrator, manager, or coordinator similar to what politicians here have been calling for.
Of counties with administrators, only Russell County has less population, but seven have smaller budgets, according to the Kansas Association of Counties.
Aaron Wesley Biehler, 23, died May 27.
He was born May 28, 1993, at Herington to Ronald J. Biehler and Elizabeth A. (Tindle) Miller.
IN MEMORIAM:
David KlendaIN MEMORIAM:
Opal Mae Walker
Most people know that this weekend’s Chingawassa Days traces its name to a much heralded but briefly lived resort and mineral bath called Chingawasa Springs (one S instead of two), 4½ miles northeast of Marion.
Until the Panic of 1893, which led to a seven-year depression almost as severe as the Great Depression four decades later, Chingawasa Springs was a thriving hotel, restaurant and sanatorium, built in 1888 and linked to Marion by a municipally financed railway that opened July 29, 1889, according to Railway Preservation News.
The National Orphan Train Museum in Concordia features a restored version of one of two original passenger cars from the Marion Belt and Chingawasa Springs Railroad.
From 1889 to 1893, the car ferried passengers to Chingawasa Springs resort from the Santa Fe and Rock Island railroads 4½ miles away in Marion.
“I am a small town type of person,” Daniels said. “I was raised in small towns and rural areas and consider myself to have a blue-collar attitude and have a lot in common with these folks.”
It’s hard to remember when there wasn’t a Charlie Daniels Band, but Daniels first stepped into a recording studio in 1959 with a group he cobbled together called the Jaguars.
With six hootin’ and a-hollerin’ musical acts on the bill, a battle of the bands, and an open mic, Bluegrass at the Lake has the potential to be the biggest and most entertaining incarnation of itself at its 10-year history.
Last year, 700 to 1,000 attended the event at the rustic lakeside venue. This year the free festivity could draw even more.
Owner and former art teacher Jan Davis also offers her own creations for sale and gives art lessons.
“I do all ages,” Davis said. “I’ve had some from 4-year-olds to students in their 70s.”
The east side of the county lake is where Kevin Fruechting of Marion goes to capture stunning sunsets and wildflowers.
Shooting across the lake at a setting sun, Fruechting said, gives him three distinct palettes to work with: water, trees, and sky. Different textures, forms, lines, and color from each create a richer picture than any one or two elements, he said.
When Harriet Bina of Marion agreed to help Rose Mary Neuwirth conduct tours at the Pilsen Catholic church and Emil Kapaun museum, she already was enamored with the history of the army chaplain.
Becoming a tour guide let her impress on others the incredible sacrifice Pilsen’s native son, now a candidate for sainthood, made to serve others.
Bearly Makin-It Antiques, with a downtown Marion shop and a more spread-out collection in two barns and a shed at 573 Walnut St., has anything an antique seeker or curiosity hunter could want.
The array of goods runs the gamut from vintage metal lawn chairs to baby baskets, furniture in various condition, old school desks, candelabras, furniture, retail display and storage racks, high chairs, rocking chairs for kids and adults, and mismatched dining chairs.
Mennonite Heritage and Agricultural Museum in Goessel tells how low-German-speaking Mennonites who came to the area in 1874 settled Goessel in 1874.
“The agricultural part of the museum features artifacts related to the progression of mechanization in farming from the 1800s to the mid-1960s,” museum director Fern Bartel said.
In turn, Decker was good for Burns. Although he lived in Newton and Texas most of his adult life, he was the driving force behind the Route 77 Classic Car show.
At its height, more than 100 vintage hot rods, restored production models, and late-model, high-powered speedsters gathered in downtown Burns the Saturday before Memorial Day for a show regarded as one of the best in central Kansas, thanks in no small part to Decker’s attention to detail.
Switching from pellet guns to .22 rifles will give kids an extra kick at this year’s Scott O’Dell-Steve Hett Memorial Outdoor Youth Day at Marion Reservoir.
The June 10 event teaches kids 8 to 15 about shotguns, rifles, and bows and arrows, all with an emphasis on safety.
Looking much younger than her age, 92-year-old Irma Duerksen Groening received a gift basket Sunday as the oldest alumnus present at the Lehigh High School biannual reunion in Hillsboro.
Irma is one of two survivors of the class of 1943.
NORTHWEST OF DURHAM:
Seniors meet for potluck
As Thursday’s filing date for school board elections approaches, three seats remain with no candidates.
Records at the county clerk’s office indicate that
Sophomore Wes Shaw and junior Kaden Ward each medaled in multiple events to lead Hillsboro’s 12 athletes at this week’s state track and field meet in Wichita.
“We had an exceptional two days of competition,” coach Dennis Boldt said. “Our community should be extremely proud of these young people. Those athletes returning next year will be able to build upon a great foundation from this year.”
Goessel sophomore Stephany Meyer, who competed in three individual events at this weekend’s state track and field meet in Wichita, became a bit anxious after two fouls in the triple jump.
Her third jump put her in seventh place and allowed her to advance to the final round of nine jumpers, each getting three more jumps.
Goessel quarterback and defensive back Joshua Schmidt will play in this year’s eight-man all-star football game at Beloit.
An all-league first-teamer in Wheat State League competition this past fall and an honorable mention all-stater at two positions, Schmidt’s career stats include 2,026 passing yards, 2,000 rushing yards, 27 passing touchdowns, 29 rushing touchdowns, 91 solo tackles, 62 assists, 6½ tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 2 safeties, and 3 interceptions.
Goessel High School graduates Gentry Thiesen and Joshua Schmidt are the latest recipients of Goessel Community Foundation scholarships.
Thiesen, a pre-med major at Wichita State University, received an $850 Joyful Noise Child Care scholarship.
New Hillsboro recreation classes in water aerobics and yoga for kids will begin in June.
Holly Nickel, a certified group instructor, will teach the one-hour water aerobics class at 9 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, starting June 6, at Hillsboro Family Aquatic Center.