News
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Old Iron Days offers history lesson
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter FREDONIA — In 1993, when Byron Githens started tinkering around with turn-of-the-century saw mills and shingle-splitters, he had no idea how much interest the machines would generate. He found it challenging and fascinating to bring the mechanically-intensive machines back into working order. The machines in question represented a peculiar time frame in rural America. Electricity had come to the city, but not to t...
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— 6 p.m. Friday, social at Chanute VFW
Class of 1972 — 6 p.m. Friday, social at Chanute VFW. — 11 a.m. Saturday, Artist Alley Parade. — 6 p.m. Saturday, social at Chanute VFW. Program begins at 7. CHS Class of 1957 — 7 to 10 p.m. Friday, Central Park Pavillion, 101 S Forest. — 10:30 a.m. Saturday, meet at Katy Park to ride in the parade. — 6 p.m. Saturday, dinner at Chanute Elementary School on 7th Street, between the hospital and the airport. — 9 a.m. Sunday, breakfast at Chanute...
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East of Chanute hit hard
Stu Butcher Tribune Editor The brunt of Tuesday’s night storm that brought winds upwards of 74 mph was east of Chanute, said Neosho County Sheriff Jim Keath. “The heaviest was a couple miles east of Chanute, and it basically made a track northeast across the county,” Keath said. In scouring the county, Keath reported a lot of outbuildings and sheds destroyed, many uprooted trees, snapped branches and campers toppled and rolled. There were no i...
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Reunion Concert at Central Park Pavilion Saturday
The Chanute Lions Club is presenting The Past Blasters 9 to midnight Saturday, Sept. 29 at Central Park Pavilion. “All money raised is going to the Santa Fe Park Lions Adopt a Park Program, which we are breaking ground this year for the Twin Falls at the entrance of Santa Fe Park,” said David Orr from the Lions Club. Tickets are $5 in advance and $8 at the door or $15 per couple. Tickets may be purchased at the Main Street office. ¬† There ...
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Thunderstorm leaves plenty of damage
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter City commissioners have been praying for rain the last couple of weeks. They got their request answered Tuesday night, with wind as an added bonus. At approximately 8 p.m. last night, Chanute experienced heavy winds as a fast-moving storm plowed eastward across the region. The Chanute Airport recorded rainfall totals of 2.25 inches from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. The station also recorded sustained winds of 54 mph, with pe...
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Blue’s Clues Live opens Friday
Joshua Vail Tribune Reporter Get a clue — and some entertainment, too. The Chanute Community Theater will present “Blue’s Clues Live: the Most Spectacular Place” at the Memorial Building auditorium this weekend. Many elements of the popular children’s show will be seen in the play, including three clues to an idea or thing that the dog, Blue, is trying to convey, and encouragement of participation from the youngsters in the audience. “We want...
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Downtown will be busy Saturday
Saturday’s 43rd annual Artist Alley in downtown Chanute will definitely be full. The vendor booths are sold out and there’s a total of 136 entries, including 12 food booths, 27 nonprofits, 13 business booths, 10 downtown retailers and 6 home-based businesses. “We have a variety of crafts and the booth area is totally full,” said Phyllis Neff, Main Street director. The day will start with a breakfast from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. at Masonic Hall, Elm...
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Work continues on building codes update
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter A discussion on updated building codes was part of Monday’s meeting of the Chanute City Commission. Community/Economic Director John Neff has been pushing for adoption since last month. What Neff thought would be a rubber-stamp approval is turning into long discussions, hesitation and an abundance of caution from commissioners. Attorney and citizen David Bideau made a second appearance to ask commissioners for a...
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Water dominates discussion at city meeting
Commission denies car wash request City holds firm on car wash restrictions Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter The nuances of beliefs, attitudes and burden were in full view at Monday night’s City Commission meeting, as Southtown Quality Car wash owner Cody Mummert asked to have his water restrictions lifted. Failing that, he threatened quick legal action against the city. Commissioners also struggled with updates to the city’s building codes, li...
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Artist Alley stage acts expanded
The Artist Alley stage will be offering entertainment with extended hours for the 2012 celebration in downtown Chanute on Saturday. Acts are scheduled from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. at the stage at Main and Highland. Completing the day’s entertainment will be 3 Legged Dawgs, scheduled for 6 to 10 p.m. on the stage. The band hails from Chanute and plays a mix of Classic Rock and original music. Jamie Moran came off the road as a long haul truck driver ...
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State, county unemployment rates decrease
Unemployment in Kansas and Neosho County dropped last month, according to estimates by the Kansas Department of Labor. The KDOL August report showed a decline in the unemployment rate, improvements in unemployment insurance claims and continued increases in jobs numbers since 2011. Statewide, the August unemployment rate was 6.2 percent, down from 6.7 percent in July and 6.9 percent one year ago. The seasonally adjusted rate ticked down to 6....
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Household income data released
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter Here is a surprising bit of data from the just-released U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey on Median Household Income. Neosho County appears to be closing the gap. Or perhaps the U.S. average is sliding down to meet us. In 2002, the U.S. Median House- hold Income was $53,019 against Neosho County’s $32,364. That pencils out to 62 percent of the national figure. In the latest data, the U.S. Median ...
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Kansas Main Street gone, Chanute Main Street persists
Josh Vail Tribune Reporter The Kansas Main Street program has been eliminated. The move was announced Thursday in a letter from Kansas Department of Commerce secretary Pat George. It is part of a restructuring that also combines divisions within the KDOC and effectively eliminated 18 positions. The letter states that the Kansas Main Street program – which provided training and oversight, as well as access to several grants - has been an imp...
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County to repair 100-year-old bridge
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter ERIE — Friday’s Neosho County Commission meeting was a sea-change from the last two weeks, with a short session, no public input and plenty of open chairs. Commissioners Hugo Spieker and Nick Galemore were present, with Commissioner Mike Schoenhofer absent. Linus Thuston also made his official debut as Assistant County Attorney. After Oct. 1, when County Attorney Melissa Dugan resigns, Thuston will serve out the...
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Toys for Tots volunteers needed
Stu Butcher Tribune editor Chanute resident Dick Lisman’s passion is Toys for Tots. He doesn’t want the program directed by the U.S. Marines for distributing toys at Christmas to needy programs to go away. There is a definite need when it comes time to provide for the children, however, there is a dire need for volunteers to keep the program afloat. “There’s me and a couple others, and that’s not enough,” Lisman said. “Mostly we need arms and...
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Fighting and winning the battle with cancer
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter Diana Saving is a cancer survivor going on eight years now. She is probably more comfortable talking about breast cancer than the interviewer. Some things are not easily translated between the sexes. But she has a story to tell. She subconsciously touches a small ring on her right hand. It’s not much of a ring, but it holds secrets that stretch back 60 years. And it is a symbolic, ever-present reminder of why she...
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Local autism group seeking softball playing supporters
Brian McDowell Sports Editor As the rate of children diagnosed as autistic increases, the membership grows for the local support group Autism Hope For Families. This group, that meets at First Baptist Church in Chanute, brings together families affected by autism. The group exists so people can talk to each other about the challenges involved with loving someone that has autism, and to help people find resources in this area to better deal wi...
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Whittley sentencing continued to Oct
Whittley sentencing continued to Oct. 24 The sentencing for Laura Whittley has been continued to Oct. 24. The former city clerk of Thayer pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering and one count of bank fraud at the US District Court in Topeka. She was previously scheduled for sentencing Sept. 17. She faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison and a fine up to $1 million on the bank fraud count, and a maximum penalty of 10 y...
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Old Iron Days Sept. 27-30 in Fredonia
Tim Erickson Tribune Reporter When the Old Iron Club was started in Fredonia, the idea was simple. Collect “old iron” tractors and show them off during the city’s annual Homecoming celebration. Over the past 14 years, the club’s focus has shifted. Although old iron tractors are still part of the mix, their broader focus has been to understand, preserve and demonstrate day-to-day rural Kansas living before electricity arrived. Between Sept. 27...
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Love’s in need of love today
Faith House celebrates five years as ‘hand up’ She calls out to the man on the street Sir, can you help me? It’s cold and I’ve nowhere to sleep, Is there somewhere; you can tell me? He walks off, doesn’t look back He pretends he can’t hear her Starts to whistle as he crosses the street Seems embarrassed to be there Oh, think twice ‘Cause it’s another day for you and me in paradise — Phil Collins, Another Day in Paradise Tim Erickson Tribune R...
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