Hillsboro teachers get lodge honors

By MELVIN HONEYFIELD

Staff writer

Area students and teachers were honored for their achievements April 18 at the Florence Advance Lodge #114 annual awards night at the Florentine Center.

Exemplary teacher awards went to elementary special education teacher Gloria Winter and preschool special education teacher Linda Peters, both of Hillsboro.

Dennis Kear of Kansas Masonic Literacy Center at Emporia State University presented exemplary student awards to Centre fourth-grader Devin Felpel and third-graders Gracie Steele-Meyer and Konner Stahlheber; Cassidy Bernhard of Hillsboro; third-grader Brody Coleman of Marion-Florence; and first-grader Makinna Kangas of Peabody-Burns.

Marion High School junior Sebastian Carranza received an exemplary student award and a complimentary Masonic T-shirt.

Payton Harms of Centre, Colin Williams of Marion-Florence, and Tyler Entz of Peabody-Burns won essay awards.

Scholarship awardees were Jacob Bittle, Lincolnville; Brendon Bina, Marion; Jayden Hallowell, Ramona; Paige Burkhart, Strong City; Tori Burkhart, Manhattan; and Kassady Griffin, Strong City.

The lodge also presented a $3,000 donation for improvements to Florence library to board president Susan Reid.