News
County transfers funds to balance budget
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter ERIE — Neosho County commissioners spent their last meeting of the year wrapped in the nuances of language, needing help from County Clerk Linda Powers to discern the difference between adjusting budgets, amending budgets, transferring funds, making resolutions and offering motions — all this in an effort to balance out the county books for 2012. Commissioners spent much of the meeting looking over the ledger she...
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City hears long-term water strategy
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter When Chanute Vice-Mayor Kevin Berthot thinks about the Neosho River as the city’s sole source of drinking water, he gets concerned. Not just because the taps might run dry, but for other reasons that could render the water undrinkable. “I have concerns about contamination from upstream,” he said after Thursday night’s commission meeting. “What if there was an industrial accident, or something happens at Wolf Cree...
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Chinese, pizza offered on Christmas as option
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter While the vast majority of Chanute’s residents enjoyed Christmas day dinner at home on Tuesday, those looking to go out were reduced to one choice – Eastern Chinese Buffet on West Cherry St. Unlike characters in A Christmas Story ¬≠¬≠¬≠— who were forced to eat duck at a local Chinese restaurant after dogs stole the family turkey – Jean Wang said her restaurant served Crab Leg Buffet, reserved for special occasion...
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Fire inspection notices sent out
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter Over the past few weeks, businesses on Main Street have been receiving Self Inspection Worksheets from Chanute’s Fire Department. According to Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Jones, the courtesy notices are a prelude to mandatory inspections that will begin after the first of the year. “This is not the first time for the program,” Jones said on Thursday, “but we have not had a fire inspection program in several years.” J...
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— City Commission, 7 p
Thurday, Dec. 27 — City Commission, 7 p.m., Memorial Building, 2nd floor. Monday, Dec. 31 — Chanute Do-Si-Do, 8 p.m., Central Park Pavilion, New Year’s Eve Dance and breakfast. — Casino Night on the Serengeti at the Venue. Dinner will start at 7:30. Tickets are $50 for couples and $25 for individuals, and all ticket sales benefit the museum. Seating at the event is limited. Tickets are available at the Safari Museum or through Talk of the To...
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Budget balancing act at end of year
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter Across Kansas, cities and counties are performing their annual dance, balancing their budgets in preparation for year-end accounting. For many of these taxing entities, it remains a challenge, balancing income and expenses projected 18 months earlier (during budget hearings for the upcoming year) and squaring those expenses and revenues at year’s end. Both Chanute and Neosho County are facing end-of-year reconcil...
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Crash of stolen sheriff’s truck injures family
A Chanute man was arrested following a wreck in which he crashed a stolen Neosho County sheriff’s pickup into a family of four with Chanute connections Saturday evening on the north edge of Moran. The Neosho County Sheriff’s office said Charles E. Bruce, 29, was involved in a fight on U.S. 59 about 13 miles east of Chanute about 6:45 p.m. Bruce told a sherrif’s deputy he had been attacked. As the unidentified deputy investigated the incident,...
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Fire put out at vacant Main Street building
Chanute Fire and Police departments responded to an early morning fire at 203 E. Main Christmas Day. Rebecca Wood, public information officer, said the fire was put out and no injuries are reported. The building was vacant. The cause of the fire is under investigation, Wood said. City’s final meeting of year on Thursday Chanute’s City Commission is meeting one final time to close out 2012 on Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Memorial Building. Agend...
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Community Christmas dinner offers respite from lonely holiday
Brian McDowell Tribune Approximately 50 area residents enjoyed food and fellowship at the Zion Lutheran Church on Christmas. This was the first community Christmas Fellowship Dinner hosted by the church, and featured a turkey dinner and a bingo game where names of dinner attendees were used instead of numbers, and prizes were awarded. The idea for this event came from Betty Stich, who helps run the GriefShare support group that meets at the ch...
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The Grinch steals Christmas at the courthouse
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter ERIE — Self-proclaimed Grinch Rodney Burns was back before Neosho County Commissioners on Friday morning, delivering news that was probably expected but disappointing never-the-less. “I feel like the Grinch,” said the auditor with Schlotterbeck & Burns LLC as he placed a single sheet before commissioners. “It is not what you want to see, but that’s the way it is.” Burns told commissioners their General Fund balan...
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Sentencing, and delay in child rape case
One of two people convicted in connection with a child rape that occurred in November 2008 were sentenced in Neosho County District Court on Friday. The sentence was handed down by 31st Judicial Court Judge Daryl Ahlquist. Byron C. Johnson, Chanute, was sentenced to 24 months of intensive probation, continued treatment in a sex offender program out of Wichita and a host of other conditions in connection with his conviction. Sentencing was del...
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Stark woman wins Legion drawing
It was an early Christmas present for Carol Hill of Stark, whose name was drawn in the American Legion drawing Friday night. The winnings were advertised at “more than” $10,000, but an exact figure was not available Friday night. There was a reported run on ticket sales this week as numbers were reported at nearly 1,300 sold. The American Legion Riders were hoping to sell 4,000 tickets to add to the already-raised $170,000, which would have ...
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Staff Sgt. Gray military mechanic
Staff Sgt. Steffan Gray of Chanute is a proud member of the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing, a provisional unit of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command. His unit was featured on the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing website: http://www.380aew.afcent.af.mil/ Gray’s 380th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron Vehicle Management flight assists aircraft and refueling in southwest Asia. “It gets everybody where they need to go,” said Senior...
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Toys for Tots wrapping up Christmas campaign
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter Although Marine Toys for Tots has been around nationally since 1947, its presence in Chanute only dates back to 2005. That was the year Dick Lisman, almost on a whim, decided to hold a bake sale in front of his Main Street building and donate proceeds to a Toys for Tots program. He collected almost $500 on that night in early December. When he called up the Lawrence office to figure out where the money should go,...
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Students bring Christmas cheer through holiday song
Joshua Vail Tribune reporter Christmas spirit was in the air at Chanute Health Care. First through sixth grade students from Chanute Christian Academy sang Christmas carols for the residents on Wednesday. The students, led by CCA music teacher Janice Gordon, sang classic Christmas hymns and performed spoken pieces for the residents, many of whom sang along. Tonya Hurst, Chanute Health Care assistant activities director, said the children bro...
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THE ACCIDENTAL COFFEE GROWER
Armstrong continues to support Honduras from hometown Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter After living in Honduras since 1998, Chanute native Lisa Armstrong, along with her two adopted Honduran children, was forced to flee for her life in May 6 of this year. South American drug cartels had infiltrated her small village and focused their efforts on recruiting – or killing – her. She had one hour to pack and leave town. Since a military coup in 2009,...
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Zion Lutheran plans dinner for Christmas day fellowship
Joshua Vail Tribune Reporter Zion Lutheran Church is sponsoring a community Christmas Fellowship Dinner at noon on Christmas day at the church, 1200 W. Main, Chanute. This is the first year Zion Lutheran has had a dinner on Christmas day. The idea came from Betty Stich, who leads the Grief Share group at Zion Lutheran. Church member Mari Hutson, who is in charge of the dinner, said Stich’s children are all grown and their Christmas is cele...
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City checks out alternate water supplies
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter There may be only six days before Christmas, but the weather in Chanute remains decidedly un-December like, with temperatures in the low 60s expected through Wednesday. Thursday will see a chance of snow as Kansas catches the tail end of a Colorado storm moving into the Great Lakes, but blue skies are expected to return through the weekend. Christmas Day may see rain showers as well, but NOAA and the Kansas Wate...
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Area woman celebrates 101st birthday
Jamie Willey Parsons Sun ST. PAUL — Agnes Parker has never had a surgery, doesn’t take even one daily pill and just moved from an assisted living facility to a nursing home early this year — not bad for a woman who celebrated her 101st birthday on Saturday. “I feel good,” Parker said during a reception in her honor at Prairie Mission Retirement Village on Saturday. She sat at a table eating her cake with her son, Tom Parker of Thayer, and his...
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NCCC board of trustees updates sick leave policy
At their December regular meeting, the Neosho County Community College board of trustees completed the following business: • Approved a series of language clean up items in the board policy manual. • Approved a change in the board policy on sick leave that was discussed at the November meeting. This creates a flat rate of 8 hours of sick leave earned per month for full time employees, where previously the rates were less for employees with m...
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