News
Avenue of Flags planned 7 to 3:30 on Monday
The annual Avenue of Flags will go up on Memorial Day in Memorial Park Cemetery.¬† About 500 flags will line the roads in the cemetery and surround the area where the American Legion’s memorial ceremony is held.¬† Flags will start going up around 7 a.m. on Monday, and will remain up until 3:30 p.m., weather permitting.¬† The American Legion’s Memorial Day service will be held at 10 a.m. Monday at the Memorial Park Cemetery on the corner of 14...
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County approves purchase of Code-RED alert system
Travis Hendryx Tribune Reporter ERIE — Neosho County commissioners met in regular session Friday and authorized Sheriff Jim Keath to proceed with the purchase of an automated weather alert system known as CodeRED at a cost of $12,180. Keath informed the commission that CodeRED has two components: a weather alert and an emergency alert system. “People who sign up for these systems on their cell phone would be alerted via their cell phone of b...
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Ways to spend Memorial Day
My memory is terrible. I have been known to dial my cell phone listening for its ring so I can find it. I recently read a great article on memory and how anyone can learn to memorize 300 names in a few minutes. I don’t remember where I saved the article. I’m not the only one with a bad memory. I think a lot of us do,¬†especially on Memorial -- Decoration — Day. It began in 1868 as a time to remember those who gave their¬†life¬†in combat for o...
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County, state unemployment rates drop
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for Kansas dropped slightly last month while the jobless rate in Neosho County fell by 1.2 percent. According to a Kansas Department of Labor report, the unemployment rate throughout the state was 5.8 percent in April, a decline from 6.6 percent in March and from 6.3 percent in April 2011. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Kansas was 6.1 percent, down from 6.7 percent in April of last year ...
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Secretary of State discusses voter ID legislation at NCCC
Travis Hendryx Tribune Reporter Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach was on hand for a public meeting Thursday at Neosho County Community College to discuss the voter ID law that was passed in 2011. Kobach is conducting a series of public meetings in May and June in 11 cities across Kansas. At Thursday’s meeting in Chanute, Kobach presented an overview of the new Secure and Fair Elections Act (SAFE Act).¬† “This law has three parts,” Kobac...
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Edward Jones named Firm of the Year
Edward Jones named Firm of the Year Financial services firm Edward Jones was named the Advisory Solutions Firm of the Year by the Money Management Institute as the firm that most exemplified overall excellence and contributed to the long-term success and sustainability of the wealth management industry, announced local representatives Bill Hensley and Tyson Jelinek The award was presented at the Institute’s annual Gateway to Leadership Awards...
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Late charges changed at Chanute Public Library The method by which late charges will be calculated at the Chanute Public Library is changing as of June 1
Late charges changed at Chanute Public Library The method by which late charges will be calculated at the Chanute Public Library is changing as of June 1.¬† Most public libraries throughout the United States will make late fees retroactive when the grace period has been exceeded, while Chanute Public Library has been allowing those days to remain free of charge. “Our recently upgraded circulation software will only compute fines using the mor...
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Neff ending service as NCCC international student coordinator
Joshua Vail Tribune Ann Neff, the international services coordinator at Neosho County Community College, is retiring. “I don’t ever want to be too old to meet the needs of the young, vibrant international population,” she said. Neff’s own education was in child development. She started working at NCCC in the early 80s for three years with the child care center for children of students. “It was done mainly to accommodate nursing students,” sh...
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Speiker and Keath file for re-election to county posts
Incumbent Neosho County commissioner Hugo Speiker (District 3) and incumbent sheriff Jim Keath have filed for the August 7 primary election. Incumbent Glenda Taylor has filed for the register of deeds while incumbent Charla Sands has filed for re-election to the county treasurer’s post. County attorney Melissa Dugan will not be seeking reelection. Local attorney Linus Thuston has filed for the position. Keath and Thuston have filed through ...
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Efforts to start produce giveaway under way
Travis Hendryx Tribune Reporter A local campaign to promote a produce giveaway program is being initiated by a Chanute woman. Sarah Maike, who has lived in Chanute full time since early December, says the program to start with will focus on produce items. “Just walking through the neighborhoods in Chanute, I’ve seen several people with gardens in their backyards. I’m a gardener myself and many times we tend to grow more produce than we need, ...
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Community National donates $50,000 to performing arts center at PSU
Pittsburg State University’s new Fine and Performing Arts Center is closer to becoming a reality thanks to a donation from Community National Bank & Trust. Bank officials last week presented the university with a $50,000 donation which will be used to help construct the new center. “We’re fortunate to have great partners such as Community National Bank & Trust,” said Brad Hodson, vice president for university advancement. “This gift is anothe...
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Esslinger Mfg. provides nationwide molding services 
Travis Hendryx Tribune Reporter David Esslinger has molded his Chanute-based business from the ground up. Esslinger has operated his own molding company since 1996 and his products have garnered a nationwide demand. He moved his business from El Dorado to Chanute in 2003. Esslinger provides molds for electrical and industrial parts for everything from bearings, spacers and rollers for amusement park rides to lenses and gears for safes on crui...
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Annual Stark Days begin on Friday
STARK — It’s that time of year, again. The annual Stark Days’ Celebration begins on Friday, May 25 at 6 p.m. with the free bean feed at the ball field followed at 7 p.m. by bluegrass gospel music performed by Michael and Lita Miller and Bruce Kiddoo with local jamming to follow. On Saturday, the day starts with the bake sale on Main Street at 8 a.m. followed with the parade starting at 100. Starting at 9 a.m. and continuing until 2 p.m., th...
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Rural home damaged by fire
A house fire occurred at Udall Road and K-39 Highway on the north side of the road early Saturday morning. Chanute firefighters were dispatched around 1:28 a.m., and the Buffalo fire department was first notified around 1:40 a.m. The fire started in the second story of the home of the Gerard Rousch family. The cause is undetermined at this time. No one was injured, but there was extensive damage to the house. City holding work session this ...
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NMRMC receives outstanding Medicare report score
A preliminary Medicare report last week shows Neosho Memorial Regional Medical Center surpasses hospitals nationwide in providing quality care to Medicare beneficiaries. NMRMC received a score of 98 out of 100 in the Medicare report, which helps educate hospitals on Medicare’s new incentive payments. “Medicare’s Value-Based Purchasing (VBP) program is a new and different way to pay hospitals,” said Neosho Memorial CEO Dennis Franks. “To lear...
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Chamber of Commerce hosts cash mob
The Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a cash mob 5 p.m. Thursday, May 24. A cash mob, a play on “flash mob” where a group of people gather to do something unusual for a short time, is an event where people go all at once into small local businesses to shop. The intent is that this will give the business a financial boost and familiarize people with a business they may not know of or know much about. For this reason, the business is kept se...
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Former city clerk pleads guilty
WICHITA – A former city clerk of the City of Thayer in Neosho County has pleaded guilty to embezzling $120,000, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said on Monday. Laura Whittley, 49, Thayer, pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of money laundering. In her plea, she admitted she used more than one method to steal money from the city including: – Pocketing cash paid by citizens for utility bills, municipal court payments, parks and ...
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Trip to earning college diploma filled with medical obstacles
Colleen Surridge Parsons Sun ST. PAUL — Emotions overwhelmed Suzie Diskin as she watched her son, Gerald Diskin, walk across the stage at Pittsburg State University May 12 to receive his diploma — his final steps as an undergraduate before heading to medical school this fall at Kansas City University of Medicine & Biosciences. “I’m very proud of him. Last week when they started playing ‘Pomp and Circumstance,’ I just felt so emotional, I can’...
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Chanute native graduates with Obama as speaker
Stu Butcher Tribune editor Former Chanute residents Trisha and Jeff Williams have been looking forward to high school graduation of their youngest, Sam. The milestone event was dialed up a notch when it was announced President Barrack Obama would be the commencement speaker for Monday night’s ceremony for Joplin High School at Leggett and Platt Arena on the campus of Missouri Southern State University. The Williams family moved to Joplin thre...
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Secretary of State to conduct public meetings on Voter ID
TOPEKA – In order to help educate the public about the new voting law passed in 2011, Secretary of State Kris Kobach is conducting a series of public meetings in May and June in 11 cities across Kansas, including Chanute. In Chanute, the meeting is scheduled 3:30-5 p.m. Thursday, May 24 at Sanders Hall Auditorium at Neosho County Community College. At each meeting, Kobach will present an overview of the new Secure and Fair Elections Act (SAFE...
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