Opinion
Chamber is for continuing to move community forward
As October ends and we finally get some true fall weather, I’d like to extend a very big thank you to all the volunteers from the Chamber and from Main Street Chanute who devoted so much time and energy to make the first annual Oktoberfest a success. Under the leadership of co-chairs Shannon Uhrmacher and Greg Woodyard, an enthusiastic group of volunteers made sure that nearly 1,000 people had a great time in our city. It was again a pleasur...
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Library gears up for holiday season
As we move into the holiday season, programs continue to take center stage at the library. Several programs will be ending before Thanksgiving, with holiday programs being finalized as I write. For those needing some early holiday spirit, we have lots of new Christmas fiction as well as craft, recipe and decorating books. Plus, remember that family time is especially important at this time of year and the library has books and movies which c...
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2011 tax changes at-a-glance
Chad A. Boaz CRPC¬Æ A host of tax provisions enacted in 2001 and 2003 -- commonly referred to collectively as the “Bush tax cuts” -- expire at the end of the year. While it’s possible that new legislation could extend some or all of these expiring tax provisions, election-year politics make it difficult to predict what action, if any, Congress will take. With that in mind, here’s what you need to know about the major changes that are sche...
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FCE lesson: Book explains de-clutter process
Presented by Neosho County Family, Community & Education Council (FCE) In cooperation with Kansas State University Cooperative Extension Service. Last week we shared information on Getting Organized for Thanksgiving. This week, as part of the educational emphasis on the lesson “Cut the Clutter and Get Organized” we will be sharing ideas that will continue to help with the de-clutter process. Information from this book “For Packrats O...
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A success story
“It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.” – Theodore Roosevelt Last month I attended a conference in Wichita and had the opportunity to listen to one of the most inspirational speakers I have ever heard, Chet McDoniel. What made him such an interesting speaker was that he was born with no arms and only partial legs, yet he maintains a positive attitude towards life. He drives a van, is married, has a daughter, ow...
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Community garden plans under way
A community garden is a single piece of land gardened collectively by a group of people; a shared space in a neighborhood where residents who live in apartments or houses without suitable yards can have a place to grow vegetables; a plot of land that is gardened by a group of people to produce fruits, vegetables and/or flowers. Community gardens have many benefits. They improve the quality of life for people in the garden, produces nutriti...
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Pilot offers flight lesson humor
The Martin and Osa Johnson Safari Museum’s annual membership drive is currently under way. One-year membership dues are a reasonable $25 for individuals and $45 for families. For this vital support members receive free admission throughout the year, discounts on purchases from our Osa’s Ark Museum Shop, subscription to the quarterly “Wait-A-Bit News,” and invitation to special events. Membership forms can be picked up at the museum or throug...
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Community economic development update
“The name of the game is commitment.” — Bart Star, #15 – Hall of Fame quarterback, Green Bay Packers. Over the next several months several volunteers have agreed to write articles to keep the community updated on the Community Economic Development effort in Chanute. I drew the first straw. As everybody knows our City Commission hired PGAV and Chuck Banks & Associates to help develop strategies for community economic development. PGAV...
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The 21st Century student
We all have an image in our minds about what college students look like — the young 19-year-old with a backpack flung over one shoulder, wearing a college sweatshirt, tapping on a cell phone, and still searching for the right major. This is still fairly true for many of our students. Only now occasionally they wear pajamas to class. Ugh! Don’t get me started about their apparel choices. I’m just happy they are going to class. Choose your bat...
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For schools’ sake, vote for Holland
There is one very important reason to elect State Sen. Tom Holland of Baldwin for governor — he has pledged to keep the present formula for funding the public schools. That formula provides enough state aid to school districts such as those in Allen County and the rest of southeast Kansas to give them a chance to compete with those in rich counties like Johnson. His competitor, Sam Brownback, has not. To the contrary, Sen. Brownback appears...
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Vote for 8 Wonders of Kansas, PEOPLE
There have already been articles in the media announcing the Voting for the “8 Wonders of Kansas, PEOPLE.” The PEOPLE category is only one of 8 categories in which Kansans have been asked to vote for their favorite nominee(s). However, anyone can vote, no matter where they live. PEOPLE is the last category to be named. Other categories were: Architecture, Art, Commerce, Cuisine, Customs, Geography and History. This program is sponsored by t...
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Kansas school lawsuit, elections collide
John Milburn An AP News Analysis TOPEKA. (AP) — Kansans are hearing a lot from the campaign trail and interim Statehouse meetings about the desire by some to change the scheme for funding public schools to avoid a lawsuit. Suggestions range from scrapping the formula, making minor tweaks or just putting more money in the education pipeline. The talk generates uncertainty about what school funding will look like once new leadership takes o...
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Programs, contests, treats part of October fare
October is a busy month here at the library. We have book discussions, programs, contests and treats to share as we usher in the fall season. Also, we need your help. The library has the chance to win $500 in audiobooks, but we need you to vote for us at www.TapedEditions.com. Vote today for our local library. “Welcome to the Melting Pot : Kansas Immigrants and Westward Migration” will be presented by Isaias McCaffery, Independence Communit...
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Tales of the state orphanage in Minnesota
On our visit to a State Orphanage Museum in Owatonna, Minn., our guide was able to relate, first hand, what life was like in the state institution where he and his brother resided during the major part of their childhood. When children first arrived at the orphanage, they were held in one cottage for several weeks to make sure of their health situation. They were then placed in a cottage, according to age. The children were referred to by C...
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Hizey
Hizey The Hizey Reunion was held Sunday, Sept. 19, at Tony’s Function Junction in Erie. Those attending were: Jack and Nancy Donahoe, Rogers, Ark., Steve and Melody Drummond, Peculiar, Mo., Wayne and Juanita Ward, Geneva, Neb., Megan Hizey, Carl Junction, Mo., David and Cynthia Bolinger, Warsaw, Mo., Ted, Jennifer, Brooke and Bailey Culberton, Lawrence, Mike and Diane Kiser, Bob Hizey, Augusta, Nelva Drummond, Cecil and Tish Matlock, Chan...
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Judging judges
Kansas voters now have access to a valuable tool to improve judicial accountability. The Kansas Judicial Report Card is an educational, non-partisan evaluation available to Kansas voters in judicial retention elections. The report card is based on independent, confidential surveys of lawyers, jurors, witnesses and others who have had direct experience with a judge’s professional performance. Judges are also asked to evaluate their own perfor...
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How do you want mail?
Washington, February 26, 1923 – Will you have your mail delivered at your front door, or will you call at the post office for it? That is the question city dwellers, who have equipped their residences with some receptacle in which the postman can deliver mail, will have confronting them, according to John H. Barlett, first assistant postmaster general, Thursday, March 1. “The crusade in the Post Office Department for installation of mail bo...
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4-H – Who we are
As the 4-H community celebrates National 4-H Week, Oct. 3-9, what a great time to share exactly what 4-H is. 4-H is the nation’s largest youth development organization. It prepares young people to step up to the challenges in their community, workplace, and the world. The “4-H Study of Positive Youth Development,” a longitudinal study conducted by the Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development at Tufts University shows youth engage...
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Ourpouring of community love, support awe inspiring
Here we are already into October! And it’s been several months since this column has appeared. So, the Chamber column would normally be about all the August and September happenings – a successful Chamber golf tournament, an inspiring Jesse Jackson Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast, another great Chamber Pancake Feed as well as an I Love Chanute t-shirt booth during the Artist Alley Festival – and the upcoming Oktoberfest event the Chamber is doing w...
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Advocacy
“Action is the catalyst that creates accomplishments. It is the path that takes us from uncrafted hopes to realized dreams.” Thomas Huxley Advocacy is one area where people with developmental disabilities, their families and employees of agencies who support them struggle. It is a subject that most people do not have any experience in, the need to approach others and campaign on behalf of a belief is something foreign to them. According to...
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