Friday, May 28, 2010

Accident

My mom has had an accident and will not be able to blog or send email for quite awhile. I will post things on here if important,

Leighlyn

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Interesting sight in Leoti...

Yesterday, we were driving home when we saw something at the main intersection in town that we normally don't see.

Several years ago, we lost our normal stoplight and now, we only have a flashing red light which is hazardous, at least in my opinion... Then, they narrowed down our intersection to the point that it is very difficult for semi-trucks and other large loads to turn there.

Well, yesterday, a truck pulling a VERY large piece of equipment that I assume was heading for a wind farm somewhere got STUCK. There was NO movement what-so-ever for several minutes. It got to the point where I thought that the driver was going to have to run to the grocery store and purchase some butter to slick it up so that it could get through. LOL!!!

Then, today, another truck carrying another similar piece of equipment ran right into the back end of a pick-up.

I've been told that we are seeing an increase in heavy loads through Leoti on Highway 96 because of the MAJOR road construction on Highway 50 through Garden City. Today, I worked in Scott City. On my way over, I met two truck "convoys" heading to Leoti. On my way home, I met another convoy headed towards Scott City.

The summer bicyclists are on the move again. With all of the additional traffic, we all need to pay close attention to what is happening ahead of us on the road...

VLE-B

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Tribune--Movie--of--the--Weekend

The movie playing at the Star Theatre in Tribune on Memorial Day Weekend will be the BACK UP PLAN starring Jennifer Lopez and Alex O-Laughlin. It will air at 8:30 CST on Saturday and Sunday. The movie is rated PG-13 because of sexual content including references, some crude humor and language. It is a comedy-romance.

After years of dating, Zoe has decided waiting for the right guy is taking too long. Determined to become a mother, she commits to a plan, makes an appointment and decided to go it alone. That day, Zoe meets Stan--a man with real possibilities. Trying to nurture a budding relationship and hide the early signs of pregnancy becomes a comedy of errors and creates confusing signals for Stan...

Adults 13-years-old and older $5.00
Everyone else pays $4.00 each.

Next weekend's movie is IRON MAN 2.

VLE-B

Tribune--Movie--of--the--Weekend Announcement

Starting this weekend, Memorial Day Weekend, the summer hours go into effect at the Star Theatre. Movies will now begin at 8:30 CST.

VLE-B

Modoc Miracles

Need some Vegetable, herb, annuals and/or perennials, then check out Modoc Miracles Greenhouse at 2011 S. Beaver Road in Modoc (between Leoti and Scott City). They also sell ceramic pottery, seeds, pond supplies, hanging baskets and mixed pots plus a variety of gardening accessories.

Their regular hours in Mid April to Mid June are as follows:

Everyday except for Sundays 9-7:00
Sundays 1-6:00

Or make an appointment by calling
620-872-2053
620-874-2354 Sherry
620-874-2355 Matt

VLE-B

Major storms missed us

Yesterday, May 25th, was a very turbulent day in Western Kansas. Several tornadoes touched ground, heavy rans poured out of the skies causing flooding in some areas. Though it looked like Wichita County would get in on the action, we were spared. Tornadoes were seen in Morton and Stanton Counties. At least 2 tornadoes went down on the Kansas-Colorado line. Another tornado was spotted between Tribune and Leoti. At least one more landed in Wallace County. I visited with one driver who actually watched a tornado cross the highway in front of him. He was driving a semi-truck and said that the winds caused him to worry that he may not be able to keep the truck on the road.

SEVERAL weather vehicles were seen in this neck of the woods including down Main Street in Leoti. It was quite easy to realize that these were not normal everyday vehicles. They had radars, satellites, etc. on them. One driver has told me that he all but ran into one of them when the driver of the weather mobile chose to just slam on the breaks to get more information from the clouds to the north. So, beware if you happen to get behind one of these mobile weather stations!

VLE-B

Somber anniversary

Just a sad note here. Many of you remember that May 25th of 1976 was a very sad day full of turmoil in Wichita County. Police Chief Carl Simons was slain just north of the Leoti city limits. He left behind his wife and 2 daughters--one was getting ready to be married. The other was still in high school.

The following day, MANY people decided that it was time to install door locks at their homes for the first time. Way before noon, Western Hardware had sold every last lock in the building. People began locking up their vehicles also. Wichita County had lost it's much-coveted innocence...

VLE-B

Apology

As you will see, I just entered three obituaries that should have already been posted. I spent Monday afternoon planting more bushes at Mama's house. Then, yesterday, right after the girls went to school, I began adding on to our bush garden that the girls and I had planted last year on the south side of our front yard. I did not finish it until about 5:30 in the afternoon. After that, we were off to work at both locations, then dinner and I was too tired to even look at the computer. LOL!!!

Sorry for any inconvenience that this may have caused anyone.

VLE-B

Charles Lynn Ferrell-Lakin and Scott City

Mr. Ferrell was born on February 4th of 1934 and passed away on May 25th of 2010 at the Old Soldiers Home in Ft. Dodge, Kansas. He was 76.

He was a lifetime resident of Lakin.

On August 4th of 1957, he married Janet Alice Bayse in Lamar, Colorado.

He is survived by 1 son, DeWayne and Julie Ferrell of Scott City and 1 daughter, Rhonda and Jim Hubers of Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

His memorial services will be held at Lakin Cemetery at 10:30 on Friday, May 28th.

Memorials may be made to the Charles Lynn Ferrell Memorial Fund in care of Price and Sons Funeral Home.

Obituary information courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott City, Leoti and Tribune.

VLE-B

Rev. Roland G. Teubner--Leoti and Scott City

Rev. Teubner was born on April 29th of 1914 in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin and passed away on May 23rd of 2010 at Park Lane Nursing Home. He was 96.

After his retirement, he moved to Scott City in August of 2003.

In January of 1934, he married Dorothy Elizabeth Wooster. She passed away on September 7th of 1962. He then married Sharron Naomi Curtiss on March 23rd of 1963 in Rocky Ford, Colorado. She survives.

Other survivers include 1 son, 5 daughters including Elizabeth and Rodney McClery of Scott City, 15 grandchildren, 9 great grandchildren and 2 great-great-grandchildren.

His funeral services will be held on Thursday, May 27th, at 2:00 at the First Baptist Church in Scott City. Interment will be held at 1:00 MST at the Valley View Cemetery in Rocky Ford on Wednesday, June 2nd.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to the Roland Teubner Memorial Fund in care of Price and Sons Funeral Home.

Obituary information courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott City, Leoti and Tribune.

VLE-B

Vera M. Helmers--Scott City

Mrs. Helmers was born on December 17th of 1921 and passed away on May 21st of 2010 at the Scott County Hospital. She was 88.

She was a Scott County resident since 1945.. Her memberships included being a charter member of the Community Christian Church, Scott County Hospital Auxilliary, Scott County VIPS, and both the High Plains and El Quartelejo study clubs.

She was a retired teacher.

She is survived by her two sons--Tim or Plano, Texas and Greg and Linda of Scott City; 2 grandsons and 1 granddaughter, 1 sister and 1 brother.

Funeral services were held at the Community Christian Church on May 25th.

Memorials may be given to the Community Christian Church in care of Price and Sons Funeral Home.

Obituary information courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott Cily, Leoti and Tribune.

VLE-B

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Wichita County Arrest

Earlier, I posted that a washing machine, dryer, microwave, etc had been stolen from Stabel Farms south of Leoti approximately one month ago. A reward was offered. As of last week, the items have been found and an arrest of a Leoti man has come to light. I will NOT mention his name. If you live in Leoti, chances are that either you already have heard who he is or you will sometime in the future.

I do not know if the Sheriff's Office found out who it was by themselves or if someone responded because of the reward money that was offered.

VLE-B

Amazing friends

What would we be and do if it weren't for the friends in our lives? I don't ever want to be to the point where I can see that for myself. I feel sorry for the people who I see around Leoti who have no one. What a dull and sad life those people have to lead day after day...

One day last week, Dick, our mail man delivered a box to us. (Wow! Isn't it always fun to receive packages???) Chris and Peter had sent this treasure box to us! We couldn't wait to dig into it! Inside, was a vast variety of goodies! They had sent Mama a birthday gift from CHANEL which made her cry as she opened it. They knew that Leighlyn is leaving for camp on June 6th so they sent her a delightful t-shirt that is of the sort that it would be difficult to find in most parts of the U.S. Beautiful... Several flasks of drinking water that is only available in New York City and Connecticutt and a bottle of Hawaiian water. Too kool! And, if that weren't enough, they sent her a $100.00 check for camp!!! Can you believe that??? That wasn't all that came in this box. Chris and Peter sent Abigayle a totally green, not in color but in the green as to help keep our world clean and pollution-free, jump rope. It is constucted of an all-cotton rope and huge handles constructed from recycled materials. She loves it!!! Stan and I received an amazing piece of Deruda pottery which is produced in Italy and highly regarded all around the world. It was just perfect for us! As you know, we recently re-did our kitchen in a Tuscan motif. As soon as we placed the pottery in it's forever home there, it just fell into place and lit up the whole room! They also sent us the most amazing bar of soap ever... This VERY large and fragrant bar of soap was produced in a Tuscan company. It was then wrapped in a sheet of exquisite paper that looked like an amazing painting. No, the painting will not leave the soap--ever. Then, there was also a bag of CHANEL goodies waiting inside just for me!

Now, Chris is not satisfied to just send a regular everyday card and envelope. Her cards are 3 dimensional and the envelopes are decorated by her very own hands. They will NOT be discarded but will be preserved for the future...

Thank you, Chris and Peter, for such delightful forever gifts... Each is sooo very appreciated and loved!!! We love you...

VLE-B

What a day to live on in our memories forever...

Our mother celebrated her birthday on May 15th. She requested no gifts that we could purchase. Instead, she just asked that we give her one day of work in her yard. Originally, we had planned on working the Sunday after her birthday. That didn't work out. That was graduation day in Garden City and Rob and Lona Sue's son was invited to it along with several post-graduation parties and I was still very sick. So sick that I could not get out of bed. So, we decided that we would all meet last Saturday.

What a day! Leif, Lori and Lars, Rob, Lona Sue and Hunter, Stan, Leighlyn, Abigayle and myself showed up in the morning to go to work. Then, Grandma came and spent a delightful afternoon with us there.

The work day included mowing which she has A LOT of area to mow so, at one time, her riding mower, Rob's riding mower and our pushmower were running at the same time. Leif and I went over and picked up a rototiller from friends of ours. Leif used it to till up areas where I would be planting a multitude of bushes and flowers. Some of those included holly, rosemary, coral bells, etc. The day was extremely windy and hot so we weren't able to get all of the plantings done then. I returned yesterday afternoon and planted the rest of her bushes and the coral bells on the west side of her house. I plan on returning tomorrow to plant her begonias and some odds and ends flowers.

Mama had bought a really nice patio table complete with chairs and umbrella a few days earlier. Rob, Lona Sue and Hunter put that together for her. While we were working, she covered it with all kinds of meat: salami, roast beef, ham, turkey, cheeses and other condiments along with loaves of white, wheat and sourdough bread. Grandma brought over homemade potato salad and chips. What a feast! We all gathered around the table and on her patio to eat and most importantly, to converse about happenings of today, yesteryear and what the future holds for the next generation. Hunter will be a junior next year...

Anyway, I wish that all families were able to be so close and to share such outstanding days together as we did.

If you get a chance, drive by and look on all sides of her house. We have one pocket between her house and garage that we will be planting lilacs and irises out of our yard someday this week also. I still have two ground covering junipers to plant on one of the corners of her yard.

Happy birthday, Mama!!! Thank You, Lord, for blessing me with the greatest mother ever!!!

VLE-B

Monday, May 24, 2010

Prayer Requests

I ask that you pray for two citizens of Leoti as they face serious health issues.

Margit (Mrs. Jack) Dizmang is in the hospital in McPherson. Ginger (Mrs. Ron) Blose was life-watched from Leoti to Hays Medical Center last night.

Thank you!

VLE-B

Rain total for May 23rd at our house

Rain and some small hail made their appearance in Leoti shortly before dark. Then, we had rain off and on all night. It is now 7:30 a.m. According to our rainguage (YES, we finally got ours fixed!!!), we have had 1/2 inch. It doesn't look like it is over yet. It is extremely cloudy and windy and more rain is very possible.

To my knowledge, the hail did not cause any damage in Leoti last night. I took our herd outside this morning. While we were out there, I scanned the flower gardens for any damage. They looked great to me! Hopefully, no farmers had any major damage either.

VLE-B

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Plants in downtown Leoti's planters

This past week, new plants were planted in the brick planters along the business district of Main Street. They are beautiful and should be blooming very soon. Modoc Miracles are the producers of these fine plants.

Modoc Miracles usually sets up tables at the Leoti Farmers Market on Main Street every Wednesday afternoon with their products for you to purchase or you can go to their greenhouse in the country. The Farmers Market is always held in front of Western Hardware and fans out on either side as necessary.

I would also like to take the time to mention how much I enjoy our brick planters, trees that are planted in front of the businesses, benches and the decorative lights downtown. They really add a lot to our little town. Thank you to all of you who have brought these to light in Leoti!!!

VLE-B

Thinkin' of trying something new.

When Duckwall's was still open for business in Leoti, a lady from Colorado was there and mentioned that instead of digging "trenches", etc to plant flower seeds, she merely picks a location in her yard, spreads peet moss over it then sprinkles flower seeds of her choice onto the moss. After that, she sprays water on it a couple to a few times a day to keep it damp continuously until plants appear. After that, she waters as often as she deems necessary. She said that it saves alot of wear and tear on her back and knees. Have any of you heard of doing anything like that? If so, does it work pretty well?

Thanks for any comments and advice!

VLE-B

Saturday, May 22, 2010

More information on yesterday's track regionals

Received additional information on the high school track regionals which were held in Sublette yesterday, May 21st. Thank you, K!!!

The girls who qualified for State from the WCHS team were Riley Matteson, Hannah Mehl, Rachel Busch, Paige Wells, Sarah Ridder, Nicole Huber and Cynthia Turley. Girls who competed but unfortunately did not qualify for state were Traci Brown, Makenna Clark, Javen Zellner, Kayla Graff and Allison Miller.

Their amazing coaches include Janee Porter, Shad Mehl, Kevin Clark and Allen Baker. All four of these people go so far to help these kids excel as they have. Thank you!!!

Something else that I want to point out to everyone is that Riley Matteson suffered with a severe knee injury this season. It took her away from practicing and competing for THREE WHOLE WEEKS! But, as you see, that didn't stop her from going on to have a very successful trip to Sublette! Riley qualified for State in both events that she competed in!

The State Track Meet will be held next weekend. As soon as I know how the girls did, I will let you know.

I also want to commend these girls' parents for all that they do to support their children whether it be in sports, educational, music, etc endeavors. There's nothing like looking out at the crowd and seeing your folks cheering you on!!!

Good luck, girls!!! You'll do just great!!!

VLE-B

Friday, May 21, 2010

Wichita County High School Girls Track Team Results

Today, May 21st, the Wichita County High School track teams went to Sublette to show what they're made of at the Regional Track Meet. The girls team took FIRST PLACE!!! Unfortunately, at this time, the only girl who I know of on this team is Riley Matteson, freshman daughter of Aaron and Kelly Matteson of Leoti. If any of you know who the other girls are, please post their names under this post OR email them to me at slblaus@gmail.com OR call me at 375-4584.

At this time, I do not know how the boys team ranked.

I spent the evening with people tonight who cannot remember the last time, if ever, when Leoti held this prestigious honor!

Way to go, girls! You've done us good!!!

VLE-B

Prairie Flower Quilt Company's Memorial Day Sale

Leoti's Prairie Flower Quilt Company is having a 3-day Memorial Day Weekend Sale on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, May 27th, 28th and 29th.

They will be offering 20% off on all yard goods storewide (cut from the bolt) and
an additional 20% off on fabric that is already on sale.

Babylock Grace Sewing Machines are on sale for $349.99 while supplies last!

Go to their website and check out their June classes and Christmas in July Shop Hop.

PFQC is located at 102 S. Indian Road. (Just south of the high school) Their phone number is 620-375-2044

www.prairieflowerquilts.com

Happy quilting!!!

VLE-B

Need something cool and refreshing???

If you do, make a quick trip to the Mexican grocery store just south of the post office here in Leoti. They have just brought in the most delicious popcycles that I have EVER eaten!!! I had a pineapple pop. It was loaded with pineapple chunks and juice. Mmm, good! Others that our family chose were Pina-Colado, Pistachio pops, etc.

And while you're picking out your popcycle, don't forget to take a look around the rest of the store. Choose from HOMEMADE flour or wheat tortillas, tamales, etc. Starting this Sunday, they will also be selling chili rellenos. They also have a wide assortment of Mexican candies, pastries, fresh farm eggs... So much is sold there that I cannot begin to mention everything here. You just need to check it out! They're open 7-days-a-week.

VLE-B

Wichita County Graduations

Seniors at Wichita County High School will graduate on Saturday, May 22nd, at 2:30 cst in the afternoon.

Wichita County Junior High School 8th graders will graduate at 8:00 p.m. cst on Monday, May 24th.

Both graduations will be held at the high school gym.

All are welcome to attend!

If you still need to buy some last-minute gifts, let me suggest that you check out The Lady Bug Flowers and Gifts. They have a wide selection of goodies that graduates would really appreciate! They have anything from Wichita County School tee shirts and memorabalia to Angels which they can carry with them for the rest of their lives and remember this very special day to other gift items. Need to have something delivered, call 620-375-2172.

Also, check out the Western Hardware. They ALWAYS have something new and different to select from! Call 620-375-2227.

And, of course, who doesn't appreciate CASH? If you need a cash card, drop by Dollar General and purchase one for 50 cents or $1.00. Maybe you're interested in buying a gift card for your graduates to eat out when they get to college or maybe just a VISA gift card that can be used just about anywhere.

There's much to be said for shopping right here at HOME!

VLE-B

Update on Tribune--of--the--Weekend movie

Folks, I haven't forgotten to let you know what will be playing this weekend. I just haven't heard from the people whom usually tell me. As soon as I do hear, I will post it right here.

Sorry for any inconvenience that this may cause you...

VLE-B

Update on rain totals from Monday's storm

As you know, it really rained A LOT here on Monday night. I've been hearing from people about just how much we got. Here in Leoti, the general amount that people have reported is 2-2 1/2 ". Others in Southwest Kansas close to Wichita County received anywhere up to 4 1/2". Today, there is still a considerable amount of standing water. We definitely shouldn't have to water for a day or two. LOL! Temperatures are expected to climb into the 80s and 90s this weekend so much of the water will evaporate.

I know of a semi-truck accident in Wichita County that happened during the storm. It is laid on it's side and because of the extremely muddy conditions, people have not been able to set it back up on all wheels yet.


VLE-B

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Gordon Neil Carlisle--Leoti

Mr. Carlisle was born on June 11th of 1920 and passed away on May 19th of 2020. He was almost 89.

Mr. Carlisle was a very much loved and appreciated retired postmaster and letter carrier. He was a resident of Leoti ince 1927. He moved to Lawrence in 2008.

He was a World War 2 veteran who served in the U.S. Army Air Corp.

He married Marie Chambers on September 20th of 1947 in Wichita. She passed away on April 13th of 1995 in Garden City.

His memberships included the United Methodist Church, VFW Post #6752 and was a charter member of the Leoti Municipal Golf Course. He also held memberships in the National Association of Rural Letter Carriers and the National Association of Retired Federal Employees.

He is survived by his son, Michael and Gerri of Lawrence , Kansas; 2 grandsons and 1 great-grandson.

Funeral services will be held in Leoti on Monday, May 24th, at 2:00 at the United Methodist Church. Buriel will be in the Leoti Cemetery.

Memorial gifts may be given to the United Methodist Church in care of Price and Sons Funeral Homes.

Obituary courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott City, Leoti and Tribune.

VLE-B

City of Leoti Employees

Just wanted to come on here and say a BIG thank-you to the people of our City Department who make such a great difference in our town each and every day! Unfortunately, just as with everyone and everything, we tend to lose sight of just what they do...Ah, human beings!!! Love 'em or leave 'em...

As you know, we had a substantiel storm in Leoti a couple of days ago. I STILL have not heard how much rain we received but I can tell you that it was a BUNCH. Just a few years ago, our gravel streets and alleys would have been just terrible. People would have been fish-tailing and getting stuck all over the place. Oh, how well I remember those days... Stan and I along with other neighbors spent a considerable amount of time those days either pushing someone else's vehicle or having ours pushed. Today, that is no longer an issue thanks to the great maintenance that our City employees do practically each and every day.

I drive through other towns--small and big-- and see how poorly the employees handle (better word, UNhandle) their daily trash needs. Here, we can depend on our trash being removed every trash day which is always the same day every week unless, there is a holiday. Until a few years ago, if your trashday fell on a holiday, you had to wait until your next trashday to have it picked up. In other words, it was nothing if your trash was not hauled off for two weeks! Not anymore. If your trash day is on a holiday, I guarantee you that your trash will be picked up on the very next work day. It is sooo very nice that we can depend on these people to keep our lives running smoothly!

So, a big thank you goes out to EVERYONE on our City crew!!!

Signed,

A person who doesn't miss slipping and sliding...

VLE-B

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

WCHS Class of 1980 30th Reunion

A potluck BBQ to reunite the members of the class of 1980 will be held at Terry and Jana Bloedorn's house at 7:00 cst on the Friday of the fair. Afterwards, we will all decorate the float for the parade which we will ride down Main Street at 10:00 on Saturday morning!

I am looking forward to seeing all of you there!!!

Please send me an email at slblaus@gmail.com or call me at 620-375-4584 to let me know whether or not you'll be able to be with us.

VLE-B

Damaged roofs in Wichita County

I have heard through phone calls, etc this morning that our roof was definitely not the only one that was left with leaks in it. Some people are extremely angry about this because of the fact that they had just replaced them last summer after the major June storm. It does not neccesarily mean that your roofers did a poor job. The very strong winds just drove the heavy rain right on through the roof shingles, etc.

I have been told that after the roofs dry up, that it is entirely possible that the roofs will once again seal back up on their own. If you have doubts in that happening, I urge you to call your roofing company or house insurance agent or both if you so desire.

Wichita, Greeley and Wallace Counties are under a flood warning until 4:00 this afternoon and it is raining again as I write this. So, irregardless of whether or not you decide to contact anyone, I would strongly recommend that you place buckets, etc under the roof where you have had leaks. LOL!!!

VLE-B

Leoti--ahead of the time

More often than not, whatever happens in Leoti, actually happens in larger cities first. In many cases, that is a GOOD thing. But, last night as I was watching the Wichita news, I learned that government leaders there are proposing laws to prohibit anyone under the age of 18 to purchase cans of spray paint. I'd say its about time!!! The grafitti there in several places is awful. Fortunately, those laws have been in place in Leoti for awhile now. And, I for one, am happy about it!!! Not long ago, "artists" in our community went on a trail of rampage through town and plastered their artwork on school buses, the exterior of homes, businesses and even the southern wall of no other than the Leoti's city attorney's office! Now, THAT takes guts and A LOT of disrespect.

Another major reason that underaged people are not able to legally buy spray paint is because of the threat of "huffing" which is commonly known as being able to literally rot the human brain and eventually causing death. Hopefully the high that is produced is worth that...

Actually, I have seen grafitti on train cars, etc that is simply amazing. Some of these people have great talent--just too bad that they are displaying it on others' property...

Way to go, Wichita County and Leoti government personnel for stepping up to the plate when you did! Leoti's a much nicer place to live in today!!!

VLE-B

Mae Pfanenstiel--Leoti and Scott City

Mae was born on May 10th of 1925 in Vermillion County, Illinois and passed away on May 18th at the Scott County Hospital. She was 85-years-old.

On February 1st of 1945, she married Louis Daniel Pfanenstiel in Ordway, Colorado. He survives. They later moved to Wichita County in 1961. She was a certified reflexologist who worked out of her home for 20 years. The couple moved to Scott City in 2005.

She is survived by one daughter, Linda and Terry Eddy of Aztec, New Mexico, 4 sons; Phil and Sharon of Elk City, Oklahoma, Dr. Dave of Naples, Florida, Stewart Fabrega of Naples, Florida and Jerry and Dana of Scott City; 17 grandhildren and 21 great-grandchildren.

Her memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 22nd, at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Scott City at 10:30. Inurnment will be held at the Scott County Cemetery.

Memorials may be given to St. Joseph's Catholic Church or to Park Lane Nursing Home in care of Price and Sons Funeral Home.

Obituary courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott City, Leoti and Tribune.

VLE-B

And the rain came down...

Last evening, my daughter, Leighlyn, read on Weatherbug that Wichita County had a 100% chance of rain. It just didn't mention anything about the rain falling for 100% of the night. LOL! With it, came much lightning and thunder. At one point, 50 mph winds were forecast. I don't know if they were that high or not. At least at our house, we never noticed anything like that. The roof on the golf course building east of town lost it's ridge cap. It is now lying in the ditch. I am sure that as the day progrsses, much more damage will be discovered.

Our herd was frightened by the storm. The little ones seemed to take it fairly well, but you also have to realize that they were curled around my neck so they should have felt pretty secure. But, even the bigger ones snuggled up to us in bed as well as they could. I awakened sometime in the night to hear one of them literally crying in my ear. She was even shaking! Our queen-sized bed was FULL last night!!!

Yeppers, we noticed rain and small hail sometime around 9:00. Fortunately, the hail did not seem to last long at that time. It may have hailed later but if it did, I didn't notice it. Earlier in the evening, baseball-sized hail bombarded southern counties such as Stevens County. People in Wichita County remember what that did to us last June--ruined roofs, many totalled vehicles, broken windows, destroyed crops and gardens, broken trees...

I have not heard how much rain we received here yet, (I still haven't gotten around to replacing our rainguage that was destroyed by a hailstone earlier), but I can tell you that it was a hefty amount! Here in our house, we discovered that we now have roof damage. Winds helped to drive the water through roofs. Thank goodness for the invention of buckets! LOL!!! I seriously doubt that we are the only ones who will be doing major roof repair very soon! Water is everywhere!!! The gutters runneth over and I have to dump outdoor flower pots or else they'll be a-drownin'. Stan told me that water is flowing in creeks south of town and in Kearney County that he has never seen before. A Seaboard Truck accident also happened south of Leoti. The truck flipped over on it's side causing the driver to sustain shoulder injuries.

When we got up this morning, we discovered beautiful blue skies. But as of now, 8:40a.m., clouds have moved in and winds are again beginning to blow. I'd say that if we get another significant amount of rain today, there will be a good chance of some minor flooding in our area.

For the past couple of weeks, area farmers were discovering major dry spots in their fields. After last night, I doubt if that will be a problem for awhile. I just hope and pray that this moisture and hail did no major damage. Folks, it is so wonderful that our drought has broken!!! I, for one, will not be complaining of too much rain for a long time to come!!! We went without it for far too long...

VLE-B

Words of Advice

Don't believe everything you hear that comes out of someone's mouth, and, by all means, don't believe everything you read in the newspapers. Though they are SUPPOSED to print only the truth, some reporters don't have the intelligence to see a story from ALL angles AND report it that way, the necessary scruples to be an effective reporter nor the backbone to be totally honest. People should know that by now... Shame on you if you do not.

Sincerely,

VLE-B

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

City Council Meetings

As many of you know, the Leoti City Council met in regular session last night at 7:00. Of course, the public is always invited to attend these meetings. Today, I received phone calls and email to see how everything went. I was NOT able to go to this meeting. I do not know when I will be able to go to the meetings again. But...I urge each and every one of you to go to these meetings. Be heard! What you say may actually help to bring a resolution to this problem in Leoti that everyone appears to be conversing about. The next meeting will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, June 1st, at City Hall. Mark your calendars.

I do NOT plan on ever making any other personal comments on this matter on my blog. What I wrote the last time caused too many hurt feelings. I will tell you that three new employees have been hired to the department. They include Kasper Lechtenberg who is the new City Clerk and Ricky Harp who is the new Code Enforcer. I understand that the new City Superintendant has also been hired. Unfortunately, I cannot tell you his name. I only know that he is moving here from Arkansas City. I do not know when he begins his duties in Leoti.

I hope that the public will join me and welcome these fine men to their positions.
And, PLEASE remember this issue in your prayers!!!

VLE-B

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!

Earlier, I posted that kids from GAP in Wichita County are planning on attending Bible camp at New Life Ranch just outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma in June. To help raise funds for the tuition, etc., a Schwans'sale and burrito sale were planned. The Schwan's sale was even better than was expected!!! I urged you to contact us or other kids who are going to pre-order burritos. Well, the sale was totally OUTSTANDING!!! People were totally stunned at how many dozens of burritos were ordered!!! The future-campers who were armed with potato peelers assembled at Christ Covenant Church on Sunday afternoon to peel the necessary potatoes for the burritos. Then, yesterday, adults met at CCC to put the burritos together. Though they spent MUCH time on the assembly, there were so many burritos that still needed to be made and time was running low that phone calls were sent out for people to come in and help after school.

A bunch of burritos were not picked up yet. I am certain that people just forgot about them. They were put in freezers to preserve them for you. If you are one of those people, you can go to CCC today at 5:00 and pick them up. If you are not able to be there at that time, please call 375-4228 and set up arrangements to pick them up later.

Anyway, I want to thank each and every one of you who are helping these kids reach their goal so that each of these kids can go to camp!!! Each one deserves to go to this totally outstanding camp! It literally changes lives...

If you want to donate money to this cause, please contact Youth Minister Kevin Larson at CCC at 620-375-4228. If he is not there, please leave a message for him. He'll call you back!

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Eat Pringles???

Do you eat Pringles or other chips that come in that thin long can? If you do, would you mind saving them? Christ Covenant Church is saving these cans for Bible School in the first part of June. If you live in Leoti and have some that you want to donate for this wonderful cause, please call me at 375-4584 and I will run by and pick them up or else you can take them directly to CCC.

Thank you for your assistance!!!

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All School Reunion in Wichita County

Some people have contacted me to find out if this year is an all school reunion in Leoti. The answer is NO. Recent all school reunions were held in 2000, 2004 and 2008. The next reunion will be held in 2012. Many classes are planning their individual class reunions for this year.

Thank you!!!

Reservation status with Hi-Plains Motel

I have had people ask me for information in regards to reserving rooms or camper hook-ups during the fair. I just called Bruce Endorf who is the owner and the manager of Hi-Plains Motel. He told me that at this time, he does not have any room availability for the Fair. He does have hook-ups available for your motor homes or campers. He urges people who wanted to stay in Leoti to call him at 620-375-2239 or 375-4438. He will then put your name and contact information on a list. If someone cancels a reservation, he will then call you and let you know that there is an availability.

Thank you!!!

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What to do with prescription or over-the-counter drugs that you cannot take

I am having MAJOR adverse reactions to a new drug that I am taking. I started out with 2 days worth of extreme drowsiness and horrible dizziness. The drowsiness is better but the dizziness is getting worse. So, today, I called my pharmacist. He checked into it and advised me to contact my doctor right away which I did immediately after hanging up from him.

Once I got a hold of her, she told me that the increasing dizziness was just not acceptable so she told me to quit taking the drug. Once the medicine is out of my system, we can start a new drug.

Before we hung up, I asked her if it was okay for me to just flush the extra pills down the drain. She recommended to me that anytime that anyone has any problems with their meds, prescription or over-the-counter, and have cleared it with their doctor to discontinue them, that we should NEVER throw them into the trash or flush them down the sinks or stools/toilets. By doing this, we stand to have just that much more contamination in our drinking water somewhere along the line.

Instead of doing this, either take these out-dated or whatever drugs to your personal pharmacist or Wal-Mart or Walgreen Pharmacies. Then those pharmacies will throw these drugs into their drug incinerator for proper disposal. In our area, Garden Pharmacy at Third and Kansas in Garden City has an incinerator that is used for any and all drugs even if you do not purchase drugs from them. But, if you do take them to other pharmacies, they will more-than-likely take them to Garden Pharmacy, take them to another pharmacy with an incinerator or will dispose them in their own incinerator if they have one.

Just thought that you might want to know this so that we can do even more to protect and clean our environment.

VLE-B

Monday, May 17, 2010

Naomi Yager--Scott City

Mrs. Yager was born on January 7th of 1925 in Scott City and passed away at Park Lane Nursing Home on May 13th of 2010. She was 85.

Her memberships include First Christian Church, 4-H, Church World Services as Area Representative, Colorado Christian Home, Lakeview EHU and Christian Women's Fellowship. She was the head of the church bazaar and the church's funeral meal coordinator.

Naomi married Leslie J. Yager on June 19th of 1943 in Scott City. He passed away on February 22nd of 2007 in Scott City.

She is survived by two sons--Thomas L. and Linda of Dighton and Dr. James A. Yager and Shauna of Fresno, California; 5 grandsons, and 3 granddaughters.

She was preceded in death by her parents, husband, 13 siblings and 2 half-siblings.

Her memorial services will be held at 10:30 on Friday, May 21st, at First Christian Church in Scott City.

Memorials may be given to Park Lane Nursing Home of the First Christian Church in care of Price and Sons Funeral Home.

Obituary courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott City, Leoti and Tribune.

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Sense of Humor

A few years ago, the girls had been going to Bible School all week. They brought home a picture of Jesus who was smiling and appeared to be enjoying a hardy laugh. They showed their pictures to about everyone who walked through the door. One such person was an elderly family member who was becoming more and more grumpy as time went on. He was doing very little laughing by that point in time. He replied that that was the first time that he had ever seen a painting that was done to show Jesus laughing. Until that day, he said that he had only thought of Jesus as a serious person. Made quite a change in the way that this man saw various things.

Today, we receved an email from our dear youth pastor at our church, Mr. Kevin Larson. At the bottom of his email, he included this simple 6-worded phrase. Though I had heard of it before, I felt the urge to pass it on to all of you as it might be as important to you as it is to me.

"God has a sense of humor."

Boy, doesn't that make your heart smile???

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Kindness

Mark Twain is famous for the books that he wrote including TOM SAWYER, and many very notable quotes that all of us can use today to help the world move more smoothly. Here is one that I thought you might appreciate as much as I do!

"Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see."

Go out and help others to acheive a lovely day, TODAY.

VLE-B

FACEBOOK Warnings

Last week, Consumer Reports.org released the following information:

1. Do NOT use a weak password even with numbers at the end of it. Instead mix upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols. It should have at least 8 letters in it. It is also a great idea to incorporate numbers, characters, etc somewhere in the middle of the password.

2. Do NOT leave your full birthdate in your profile. This provides a GREAT target out there for people who want to steal your identity for such things as how to get your credit card, bank account information, etc. JUst include your birth month and date--no years. It might even be a better idea if you just keep your birthdate off of your profile.

3. Only post your photos for your family and absolute friends to see--no others.

4. Do NOT post your child's name in photo tags or captions for others to see. If someone else posts that information about your child, DELETE IT IMMEDIATELY!

5. To help protect and to prevent strangers from accessing your page on FACEBOOK, go to the SEARCH section of FACEBOOK's privacy controls. Be sure that the box for public search results is NOT.

6. Don't allow youngsters to use FACEBOOK when unsupervised. Legally, no one under the age of 13 is allowed to use it but many do anyway. To provide oversight, list YOUR email address as the contact for their account so that you can receive their notifications and monitor their activities.

7. Don't ever mention on FACEBOOK that you will not be at home during a certain period of time. Otherwise, burglars, etc will regard this as an open-door invitation to come on in.

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Wichita County 8th Grade Graduation

Wichita County students who are graduating from 8th grade will be doing so on Monday, May 24th, at the Wichita County Junior/Senior School. It will be held at 7:00 CST.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Upcoming school events in Wichita County

Dr. James R. Hardy, School District 467 superintendant for Wichita County made some announcements that I think many of you will appreciate knowing.

On, Wednesday, May 19th, at 1:00, The ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Junior-Senior High Multi-Purpose Dome will take place. After the brief ceremoney, the public can tour the new facility. He also sent out a special thank you to Sharla Droste-Krenzel and the Wichita County Economic Development Committee for making the difference so that this new facility can be possible.

Then, on Wednesday, May 26th, at 7:00, parents of students who will be in 7th through 12th grades in Leoti for the 2010-2011 school year, are invited to attend this meeting to learn what is in store for the students. Also, parents will learn about the new Wichita County Junior High/Senior High Fitness Program. Parents can also tour the facility and try out the new excercise equipment. Hopefully, the parents will encourage their teen-aged students to attend the summer fitness program it its safe, supervised and healthy environment that will be open every weekday evening from 6-9:00.

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Saturday, May 15, 2010

Cocoa Mulch

Thank you, L, for sending this email to me! By doing so, many animals may be saved from severe illness or even death.

Cocoa Mulch is made from the cocoa shells that the Hershey Choclate Company discarded. The shells are then shredded and packaged and sent out to various stores such as Home Depot, Foreman's Garden Supply and other garden supply stores. These shells contain chemicals that can be extremely dangerous to the pets and wildlife who find the chocolate odor to be attractive enough to eat. The smaller the animal, the worse the effects tend to be.

As we already know, chocolate--especially dark and baker's varieties-- can kill dogs or at least make them very sick. Animals who eat this mulch may show the following symptoms: acting restless, excited and can eventually have tremors and serious seizures.

Some manufacturers such as the Cocoa Mulch brand now proclam that their products are free of the chemicals and are pet-safe. Read the label carefully before you buy it and then decide what is best for you and your indoor and outdoor best friends.

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No-Kill Shelters

Until just recently, when city employees were forced to pick up a dog or cat off of the streets, the animal was given a few days in which the owner or someone else who wanted to give it a home showed up. If no one came along in the few days, there was no other choice, it had to be euthanized, put down, KILLED!

Now, people who love animals the way that I do, have organized groups to care for the fellers until their forever family comes along and adopts him/her. Many of these dogs who show great signs of intelligence and gentleness are transported to area prisons where the animal is trained to be a service pet. These are later sent to blind and/or deaf individuals or even to people with certain mental and physical health needs. Remarkably, many of these dogs can actually sense that his/her master is getting ready to have a seizure. They actually know that before us humans see the seizure coming! The dog then helps the master get to safety so that he/she is not harmed in any way. Simply remarkable...

I am happy to say that the City of Leoti is one such no-kill facility. Once picked up, the dog has a few days here while the animal's family can find it. After the allotted time period, individuals transport the dog or cat to either Silent Angels in Leoti or the Northwest Animal Center in Goodland.

I urge you to go onto the following websites for more information. While you are there, you will find pictures and stories of the individuals looking for families. You will see how old the animal is, his breed, personality, etc.

Northwest Animal Shelter--
www.petfinder.com/shelters/k594.html

Silent Angels--
www.adoptapet.com/adopion_rescue/17683.html

Maybe you're not in the market for a new friend but would like to make a donation which will go to care for these animals. That information is also included on these websites. No donation is either too small or too large. Just give what you can.

Hope that you will find your next forever friend on one of these websites soon...

VLE-B

Wichita County Fair Information

Summer is just around the corner and with it, come local fairs. The Wichita County Free Fair, which becomes more and more popular each and every year, is scheduled for Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, July 28th, 29th, 30th and 31st. Now, in June, I should be able to send out a complete list of when and what is scheduled for each day and evening. So be watching for that so that you can make plans to attend. For more information, please go to the following websites:

www.wichitacountyfair.com

leoti.info

I also want to let out-of-town people know that Leoti's very own Hi-Plains Motel is open and the owners, Bruce and Rhonda Endorf, have no intentions of closing for many years. Room reservations need to be made as soon as possible so that you can still book a room. Recently, more updates have been made to rooms. You'll also love this! Whomever stays at Hi-Plains is invited to enjoy FREE breakfast after every night spent at the motel! The private restaurant is located in the motel and excellent cooks prefer a dandy breakfast buffet that includes everything that you'll need to get your day started off right!

To make your reservations, please call 620-375-4438 or 620-375-2239.

Hoping to see you at the fair!!!

VLE-B

HUGE step for people who enjoy TV and Movies!

Do you enjoy watching movies? What about regular TV episodes? Well then, you simply have to read the rest of this post...

No matter where you live--in the city, small town or the country and have or can get internet, possess TV game console such as WII, PLAYSTATION, PS3, Xbox 360, etc, then, YOU have all of the following at your fingertips available:

UNLIMITED Comedies, comedy skits, mind-benders, Science Fiction, Crime, Drama, Kids-Family, Horror, Romance, STARZ, Documentary, Action/Adventures, Foreign, Classics, Thrillers, etc.. We're not just talking about old movies. We're talking about brand new movies that have just become available for sale such as at Wal-Mart.

It is so SIMPLE to get this started right away! Just call NEXFLIX at 866-716-0414. After the phone is answered, you will have the option to type in a 6-digit number to receive even quicker service! That number is 797 529 . If you'd prefer, just wait on the phone for an associate to help you. Or go on to their website which is www.netflix.com for all of the information that you will need. Once you are signed up, your small FREE computer piece will be mailed to you immediately. We signed up on Thursday and received it on Saturday! Once the piece arrives, you just simply drop the piece into your game console. Once your NETFLIX appears on the tv screen, you will then be instructed to go to your computer, go to the NETFLIX website. Once there, you just type in your 4-digit code that you will find on your TV screen. Once it has been typed in to the computer, you are totally ready for action! Folks, we are talking that it takes LESS THAN 5 MINUTES to complete this procedure!!!

Go back to your TV and float through the extensive movie and TV episode menu. You then pop your corn, fix yourself a drink, sit back down with your throw and get comfortable THEN choose which movie you want to watch, click on it. Immediately, your movie begins playing. Then, you can watch as many movies as you want to and anytime you want. Watch as many movies as you want over and over at no additional cost! No longer, do you have to make a trip to your local DVD store and rent movies NOR do you have to wait for the movie to be mailed to your home.

Now, you are probably wanting to know how much an exceptional service like this is going to cost you... The answer to that is LESS THAN TEN DOLLARS EVERY MONTH. There is NO contract. You can choose to cancel any time that you want. But, WHY would you want to delete this delight from your life???

You owe it to your family, friends and yourself to go to the website and read about this great new service! You can pay for this with checks, money orders or simply use your debit or credit card online or over the phone. Can't get much easier that that, huh? Plus, these movies can also be played on your computer screen!

If you have any questions that you want to ask me, call me at 620-375-4584 or email me at slblaus@gmail.com .

VLE-B

Additional information on Scott City Road Run

Just got some much-needed information on this popular event from a reader. She told me that letters were just sent out and received this week. Thank you, Linda!!!

As you know, it will be held on Saturday and Sunday, August 21st and 22nd.

Pre-registration needs to be sent in along with $25.00 as soon as possible. After August 1st, the fee will increase to $30.00.

There will be a hog roast which includes a tasty feast that Saturday evening for all participants in the run. On Sunday, there will be a big buck road run which great ideas have formulated.

To register or ask questions, please call Joe Richardon at 620-872-5001 or send an email to lakescottcarclub@hotmail.com

Enjoy!!!

VLE-B

Friday, May 14, 2010

Gas Stove Needed

A family in Leoti is looking for a good used gas cook stove. If you happen to have one and are willing to sell it, please leave a comment here or email me at slblaus@gmail.com OR call me at 620-375-4584 so that I can forward your information to the party. This family lives in Wichita County, have a pick-up and will be very happy to come and pick the stove up themselves.

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Wanted-to-buy

If you happen to have a hospital bed or the equivalent of one that has the mechanism to lift and lower the person's head and upper body and want to sell it, could you please email usadanes@gmail.com ?

Thank you!!!

VLE-B

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Need to raise some money???

Just talked to a man who works for the Scott City Pizza Hut. He told us that P.H. now has the capability to go out of their towns to help raise money for churches and other organizations, etc. The pizzas are prepared and cooked in the town where the funds are being raised. For more information, please call 620-872-5301.

Personally, I think that this is a wonderful idea!!!

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Good home needed

Does anyone out there need a good 2-year-old Golden Retriever? Golden Retrievers are known to be excellent best friends for adults AND children. At this time, I do not have much information about him other than his current family is not able to spend as much time with him as they think that he deserves. With work and 3 children, it is oftimes difficult to find time to do everything. I can DEFINITELY understand that.

I have requested additional information. If you are interested in this dog, please email me at slblaus@gmail.com or call me at 375-4584. I THINK that this dog is in Scott City.

Thank you!!!

VLE-B

Current cold weather in Leoti

By this time of the year, people in Western Kansas are already using their air conditioners on a regular basis. This Spring has been different though. It has been much cooler than normal except for a few days when air conditioners were actually needed.

Last night, meteorologists in our area were warning us out here of possible and probable freezes overnight. To MY knowledge, that didn't happen. As of right now, 9:45 a.m., the temperature is 42 degrees outside. There is not a cloud in sight and we have only a slight breeze. Just BEAUTIFUL!!! So, even if it did freeze, it looks like the temperature will bounce to a nice level today. As you already know, if we have a freeze but the temperatures climb to at least a warm number, our plants have a good chance of being able to survive the prior freeze.

But, I also want to give you some advice for in the future. If you are expecting very cool weather either long-term or short-term, water your plants very well BEFORE the cold arrives. By doing so, the water causes the dirt to come together better around the plant's roots and the cold temps cannot do as much harm to the plants. If you have only a few plants to be concerned about, cover them with those little hoods or if you have fairly large gardens, cover them with old sheets or light blankets. But, don't forget to take them off as soon as the freezing temps have dissipated. The plants still need the sunshine and you don't want to leave much pressure on the plants that could cause them to bend or break.

Just thought that you MIGHT want to know this...

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Needed

My lovely mother, Donna Lou Elder, will be celebrating her birthday this Saturday, May 15th. Instead of regular gifts, she has asked her 3 daughters, 2 sons and 3 grandsons and 2 granddaughters to help her with her yard this weekend. We are all really looking forward to it! But here is the problem. When she and Daddy bought their house and moved it onto their new lots in 1994, there was basically nothing but grass and some elm streets. Since then, I have planted some butterfly bushes, a sage plant and that is all that will come up from year to year. Lona Sue has come up and helped me plant annuals every spring. The only problem with them is that after the first hard freeze, they die never to make a comeback. LOL!!!

We're wanting to plant as many perennials as we possibly can this year so that she can look forward to them year after year. I have a bunch of different colored irises that I am going to transplant into her yard. Though she and I both love irises, they just bloom in the spring unless you buy the newfangled ones that bloom much more often. (I wanna get some of those!) We also have several lilac seedlings that we are going to give her. I also have some tall perennials that produce beautiful purple flowers for most of the summer that I am also going to transplant over there. But, at this time, I cannot think of any other perennials that I have a surplus of except for some yarrow that we'll also plant there.

Her yard is large and so it would be prettier if we had more plants planted. By now, many of us have walked through our gardens and discovered what plants need to be thinned out. As you know, if we don't thin them out, they either take over a garden or they become unhealthy. If you come across something that could use some thinning, would you please let me know? We are more than willing to come and dig them out for you! You just tell us what you want dug out and we'll do it! Also, I still have some gorgeous iris plants to trade or give away. And, believe me, she is not choosy about plants. Like me, she loves them all!!!

If you have something that you want to share or need something from me, please leave comments here or call me at 375-4584 or email me at slblaus@gmail.com

Thank you sooo much for any help that you can give to us!!!!!!!

VLE-B

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Beautiful website

A dear lady who reads my blog, has also read that I am not well right now. She took the time today to send a web address to me that she enjoys. I checked it out and it is great! At the webpage, you will see that they also have a prayer line that is open 24 hours a day--7 days a week.

www.dailyword.com

Thank you, Terri!!!

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Elizabeth J. Daniels--Scott City

Elizabeth J. Daniels was born on March 22nd of 1927 in Rozel, Ks and passed away on Monday, May 10th, at Park Lane Nursing Home in Scott City. She was 82.

Mrs. Daniels married Lee R. Daniels on May 13th in 1946 in Dodge City. They also moved to Scott City that same year. She had been a clerk, homemaker and a volunteer at Park Lane Nursing Home.

Mrs. Daniels was a member of the United Methodist Church, Eastern Star and VFW Auxilliary--all of Scott City.

She is survived by two sons: Ron of Great Bend and Daryl of Topeka, 2 brothers, 6 grandchildren, 11 great grandchildren and 1 great great grandchild.

Her funeral services will be held on Friday, May 14th, at 2:00. Interment will be at Scott County Cemetery.

The family requests that instead of flowers being sent that people make memorials to Park Lane Nursing Home in Scott City in care of Price and Sons Funeral Home.

Obituary courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott City, Leoti and Tribune.

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Lake Scott Rod Run

Many people look forward to attending the Lake Scott Rod Run. Just so that you know, it will be held on August 21st and 22nd. If I learn anything more, I will report it in my blog.

Have fun!

Scott County Fair

To those of us who live near and for those of you who live far, the annual Scott County Fair will be held on July 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th and 25th. I will be updating you on the happenings involved as soon as I know more. At least this way, you can get your calendars marked.

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Lake Scott Dedication for the new Visitor's Center

This is scheduled for June 12th. I will try to relay more information on this when I know more.

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Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Healing website

One of my very dearest friends sent this website to me to devour. It is beautiful and is such a God-send... Thought you might appreciate it also!

www.InspiringThots.net

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Wanna brighten someone's day...

Wanna brighten someone's day? Wish someone a happy birthday or anniversary? Want to let someone know that you're hoping they are feeling much better soon? Give your support to a loved one who just lost an important person (or even a much-loved 4-legged family member?) If you want to pass your feelings to someone in Wichita County, call the Ladybug Flower Shoppe in Leoti at 620-375-2172. They accept major credit cards, checks and even CASH. You'll be very pleased with the quality of their flowers and plants at very inexpensive prices. Maybe you want to send an angel--they have some beautiful angels on hand.

Give 'em a call. Your friends and/or family members will really appreciate your love and thoughtfulness...

They're open every day except for Sundays.

VLE-B

Donald W. Bremer--Leoti

Donald W. Bremer was born on February 1st of 1938 in Florence, Missouri and passed away on Monday, May 10th at the Wichita County Health Center in Leoti. He was 72.

Don was an avid KU athletic fan, and enjoyed bowling and golfing. He was a butcher.

His memberships included Christ Covenant Church of Leoti.

On November 9th of 1971, he married Vicki Lynn Shearmire in Scott City. They later divorced.

He is survived by 2 sons; Ron and Chrissy, of Hutchinson, Ks., Marti and Brenda Bremer of Holcomb, Ks. and 1 daughter, Mindi Bremer of Leoti, 11 grandchildren, 1 brother, 2 sisters and his previous wife, Vicki, of Scott City.

His memorial service will be held at 10:30 on Friday, May 14th, at Christ Covenant Church in Leoti. Rev. Bob Everest will be officiating. Inurnment will be at the Leoti Cemetery.

Memorials may be given to Christ Covenant Church in c/o Price and Sons Funeral Home.

Obituary courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott City, Leoti and Tribune.

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Bobby Ray Van Norden--Leoti

Bob Van Norden was born on September 23rd of 1925 in Marshall, Texas and passed away on Tues., May 4th, at the Wichita County Health Center in Leoti. He was 84.

He was a mamber of Leoti's United Methodist Church, served as a lay minister, was a Rotarian, served 2 terms as Leoti City Councilman and 2 terms as Mayor of Leoti from 1996-2005.

Bob married Malee Koehn in North Hollywood, California. She passed away on September 23rd of 2005.

He is survived by three sons; Stephen in Wichita, Randal in Yuma, Colorado, Rodney of Garden City and one daughter, Janelle Jones of Leoti, 2 brothers, 1 sister, 7 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren.

His funeral was held at 10:30 on Friday, May 7th at Christ Covenant Church in Leoti. Rev. Bob Everest officiated. His graveside services were held at 3:00 at Cimarron Cemetery in Cimarron, Kansas.

Memorials may be given to the United Methodist Church and Christ Covenant Church, both of Leoti, in care of Price and Sons Funeral Home.

Obituary courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott City, Leoti and Tribune.

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Sunday, May 9, 2010

Wichita County Ribbon Cutting

Mark your calendars to attend the ribbon cutting ceremony which will mark the completion of the new Wichita County School dome on Wednesday, May 19th at 1:00 CST.

This first 2,900 square foot dome which is connected to the north side of the Wichita County High School will contain locker rooms for visiting football and basketball teams, public restrooms and an area for strength training.

The public will be allowed to tour this new building after Patty Clark, director of USDA Rural Development along with school district and local eco-devo officials will be on hand for the ribbon cutting and to offer a few remarks.

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Scott City named as All-America City finalist

Scott City is among 27 finalists NATIONWIDE who emerged from a pre-screening process. The only other Kansas finalist is Lenexa.

Contributing factors to be considered in this are the fact that Scott Citians take pride in their community--from a newly renovated high school to a new business development on South US83 Highway including the new renovations and additions to St. Joseph Catholic Church and the Scott County Library.

A committee consisting of School Superintendant Don Wells, Ryan Roberts, Karma Huck, Brenda Davis, Jeannie Cutler, Barbi Winderlin and Katie Eisenhour compiled the necessary information for the AAC application. Deva Cupp prepared the written report which highlighted Scott City's accomplishments.

The committee focused a great deal of attention on new construction ranging from the El Quartelejo Inn to the Law Enforcement Center and downtown Streetscape project. The report showcased plans for the new Scott County Hospital and renovation of Park Lane Nursing Home.

Scott County will send a delegation along with the other 25 finalists to Kansas City where they will give presentations to a panel of civic experts and participate in an interview process.

The 10 All-American Cities will be announced June 18th.

More than 500 communities have been designated as All-American City since the program began 61 years ago.

Go, Scott City!!!

VLE-B

Information courtesy of the May 8th, 2010 edition of The Tri-County Advocate.

Volunteers needed to help with Scott Community High School Reunion

People are needed to help with the Scott Community High School Reunion which is scheduled for the weekend of July 2nd, 3rd and 4th. If you have some time that you can help with the activites, please call the following numbers:

Kate Macy 620-872-3788
Sara Goodman 620-872-3571
Sharron Storm 620-872-3303

or send an email to schsalumniscks@wbsnet.org .

VLE-B

A BIG thank you!!!

About two weeks ago, I wrote on the blog that Leoti youth are preparing for a church camp close to Tulsa, Oklahoma. This is an AMAZING opportunity for anyone whoever has the chance to attend New Life Camp. Leighlyn went two years ago and still mentions information that she learned then very often. The camp lasts for 6 days and costs a significant amount of money. But every penny is so well-spent. To help the youth pay for their individual tuition, GAP sponsors under the direction of Mr. Kevin Larson, who is Christ Covenant's youth pastor, are now conducting a burrito fundraiser. Mrs. Jose (Isabel) Rito will be teaching everyone how to prepare this food. (By the way, she is an EXCELLENT cook!)

So, anyway, Leighlyn has been able to sell over 20 dozen burritos to family and friends! Don't forget that you do NOT pay for your burritos until you pick them up on May 17th at Christ Covenant Church.

We all so very much appreciate all of you who have reached into your pockets to help these kids go to camp! You will probably never know just how much this $12.00 donation from you will go to open doors into Chrisianity for these Leoti kids!

Bless you!!!

VLE-B

Leoti Spring Clean-Up

This week is the time to clean things up! If you have anything that needs to be hauled off, place them in your alley or on the street. Please sort these things out according to wood, metal, etc. They will also rid your property of non-working vehicles. If you want them to perform this service for you, it is mandatory that you provide the City with your vehicle's registration BEFORE it is hauled off.

This is a very well-appreciated service that our City employees offer to us at no additional charge and we should take advantage of it whenever possible. I can also tell you that you simply cannot put out too little trash or too much garbage for this. A few years ago, I noticed that some people who live in our neighborhood actually piled up LARGE pile after pile. The crew had no problem moving these piles from Leoti to the junkyard. Yes, it took load after load but they got it all cleaned up. I'm talking about used appliances, LOTS of yard waste, tree branches, old toys, clothes, old carpet--you name it, it was probably be there. If it had not been for the City of Leoti employees, these items would probably either still be laying in this yard or would have blown around the neighborhood and landed in yards which it would not have been welomed in. LOL!!! The family did not even own a car let alone a pick-up to cart everything to the junkyard.

If you have any questions, please call Kasper at 375-2341.

Happy spring cleaning!!!

VLE-B

Wichita County Health Fair

Just a reminder that this week, the health fair will take place in Leoti. If you have not already done so, this is the time to make sure that you make your appointment(s). Again, each patient will have to pay $40.00 that insurance companies will NOT pay. Many tests will be done including a battery of blood work, prostate tests, etc. Folks, this is an excellent and VERY inexpensive time to check to see if all is well with your body. In the past, more than a few people here have discovered through the fair that they had some major issues that needed to be addressed right away. These health fairs are real life-savers.

The blood tests require that you fast through the night before your blood work is done. In other words, no drinking or eating. I do NOT know what time you must cut off drinks and food, but Mandy at this hospital can tell you. Call Mandy at 375-2222 to get your appointment scheduled.

VLE-B

Chris and Peter

Chris and Peter returned to the United States last month after continuing their much-needed work in Africa. Chris told me that each trip is quite emotional for her, but this past trip was even more so. Problems continue to be just terrible. This time while they were there, a kidnapping also took place in the camp where they were staying. Nobody from their group was kidnapped. At this time, I have no other details on this particular situation. Though Chris and I have spoken several times this past week, we never had time to discuss this very unfortunate event.

VLE-B

Continuance on current ant problem

More and more, I am hearing from people out there who are having worse problems with ants in many years. I don't know if the fact that we have had more moisture this year than in several years is the reason for this or not. Anyway, I have written before that nothing that we have tried--baits, powders and sprays--have solved our particular issue. Yesterday, Stan tried Raid Ant Spray in the golden can. Immediately after he sprayed, all in our sight died. So far, none have been seen again. So...maybe you'll be interested in trying it out. For people in Wichita County, I don't know if Mel's or Western Hardware sell it but Stan bought ours at Dollar General. I have spoken with others who hired professional exterminators. They said that once the professionals had sprayed, their ant problems were also solved.

VLE-B

Friday, May 7, 2010

THE LEOTI STANDARD

Just bought the latest edition of THE STANDARD yesterday. Thought that you might be interested in purchasing the online subscription for yourselves or other loved ones who no longer live in Wichita County. The paper edition comes out on Wednesdays unless a holiday falls on a Wednesday. I ASSUME that the online edition also comes out then also. If that happens, the newpaper comes out either earlier or later the same week.

The price is $20.00 per year. To subscribe or to receive more information, please call 620-375-2631.

VLE-B

Thoughts from my heart...

In the past few days, I have been approached by many-a person in Leoti. One thing that so many of those people believe is that it is becoming more and more difficult for any citizens of Leoti to remain neutral on the current crisis that we are going through. You are either totally for the City employees' opinions or for the opinions and movements of City Council. Irregardless of where you stand, I am sooo happy and proud that in these good ol' United States of America, it is still our right to state our opinions privately and publicly!!! Wouldn't it just be awful to live in a country where we had to keep our anguish bottled up inside of us festering away???

It is important for all to know that I did not use my blog as a weapon. I had absolutely NO intentions of hurting anyone!!! There was absolutely NO idividual or group of people in attendance that night who I disliked, dis-respected or meant any harm to. Those people were all good people and have every right to their own opinions. I just wish that we could find a peaceful way of coming to terms with the problems so that no one else gets hurt in any way. MANY prayers need to be sent upwards to help that to come to reality! I definitely do NOT know what the answer(s) is/are but our Heavenly Father does.

The Leoti City Hall has a large room with many chairs for citizens to attend any and all meetings held there. I urge every adult in town to come to the next meeting so that you can be better educated on the entire issue at hand. I will be there.

Sincerely,

VLE-B

Financial support

Some of you who do not live in this area have either called or emailed me about the Leoti kids' trip to New Life Ranch around Tulsa, Oklahoma the first part of June. As you know, Leighlyn is one of the kids who will be returning to this AMAZING Christian camp. Since the callers and emailers do not live nearby, they were unable to help support the campers by purchasing Schwans Foods last weekend or next week's burrito sale. They do want to donate money to that fund. If you are wanting to donate to Leighlyn, you can send her a check or money order at the following address:

Leighlyn Blau
c/o Stan and Lynn Blau
703 N. Second Street
Leoti, Kansas
67861

Leighlyn is extremeley trustworthy. I will take her to the bank immediately where she will cash it and then we will take it to the youth pastor to be placed in her particular fund.

Thank you to all of you who wish to support her and the other campers!!! No donation is ever too small...

VLE-B

Kindergarten and First Grade's trip to Scott State Park

I am happy to report that I just received two phone calls from school. Today's trip has been POSTPONED due to the high winds. It will be held on Monday, May 10th.

Thank you!!!

VLE-B

Your love

I began responding to all of the comments on the prior post (where I announced that I was putting my blog out of it's misery.) Please go to 14th comment to see what I wrote and feel. The next thing that I knew, my response was going on and on and all of you needed to know what I was writing. So, please go the 2nd comment and read it.

I am very pleased to tell you that several of you have taken the time to send me copies of my post or have told me how to retrieve them, myself. I knew that copies of the post were out there floating around town because the coffee clubs here in town had read them yesterday. Thank you to all of you who sent your copies to me. I did NOT want them for "wonderful memories". I had other uses for them.

God bless...

VLE-B

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Important

If anyone out there happens to have a copy of the post that I wrote about the May 3rd Leoti City Council meeting, could you please contact me right away???

I would sooo very much appreciate it!!!

slblaus@gmail.com
620-375-4584 (HOME)
620-376-8922 (CELLPHONE)

Thank you!!!

VLE-B

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Update on earlier post

Late this morning, I posted information about the Leoti City Council Meeting that took place on Monday, May 3rd. Since then, I have received a threat of bodily harm against me. The person who sent it allowed me to know who he was. The man was angry with me for comments that I made at the meeting that he had also attended.

I also received an email a few minutes ago from a family member of a person who was at the meeting that evening. That person promised to sue me for defamation of character of his/her loved one.

So, I have decided that it is time for me to kill my blog once and for all. It is time that I go on with the rest of my life and allow the rest of the world to go about it's merry way also.

Sincerely,

VLE-B

Monday, May 3, 2010

Burrito Sale

As I've mentioned before, there are 23 kids in Wichita County who are planning on attending New Life Ranch which is a church camp in June. Those kids range from 3rd grade through seniors in high school. A respectable amount of money is required for each child to attend the 5-day camp. The Baptist Church in Leoti is paying for all of the kids going from the Baptist Church. All other kids are relying on their parents and community fundraisers to furnish their tuition.

Last weekend, the Schwan's Food fundraiser took place. Schwan's donated 20% of the profits to the kids. Last year, this fundraiser had produced $500.00 for the campers. Thanks to you out there, the money has risen to $800.00 for the 2010 camp!

Now it is time for the Burrito Fundraiser. Mrs. Jose Rito, Jr. will be helping the kids to prepare the burritos to be sold. (By the way, she is an EXCELLENT cook!) The burritos will consist of beef, potatoes and cheese all wrapped up in a flour tortilla--no beans. Delicious!!!

This is where you come in. If you are interested in buying some burritos from GAP kids, please contact Leighlyn or any of the other kids who will be going to camp or you can call Kevin Larsen at Christ Covenant if you want to order from him. A dozen burritos will cost $12.00. Please pick up your burritos at Christ Covenant Church on May 17th. Your money is NOT due until you pick up the burritos.

Thank you!!!

VLE-B

Is common courtesy making a come-back?

Back when I was a little girl, the early 60s, I can remember that whenever a man met a lady on the sidewalk, he would remove his hat from his head, and then would speak to her. Back then, men simply did not wear a hat or cap into a house or building. It was always removed at the door. Since then, those courtesies have been lost in society. However, it looks as if they may actually be making a comeback in our culture.

Yesterday, I was listening to a conversation. The people were talking about 2 young men who are currently starring in THE GREAT RACE on TV. The two are brothers who never leave their hats on in any building. They are also very polite to others whom the meet. Kudos go to their parents who have raised their sons to become the polite men whom they are!!! Hopefully, when kids see this show on TV, they will follow suit of these men and become courteous themselves.

One of the conversing people mentioned that just recently they have noticed men behaving much more gentleman-like than they have in many a year.

As for me, I say "thank-you" to these men who are making a real effort to revive the manners of yesteryear!

VLE-B

$1,000 reward is being offered

Thieves have struck again in our area. Someone managed to steal a washing machine and dryer, air compressor, microwave, etc from Stabel Farms south of Leoti. If you think that you might know who is responsible for this theft, please call any supervisor from any Seaboard Foods office or call the Wichita County Sheriff's Office at 375-2723.

If your information results in an arrest, you will be given the $1,000 reward.

Thank you for doing the right thing by coming forward!!!

VLE-B

To plant or not to plant--THAT is the question...

At one time, anyone who had access to even a tiny portion of land, was just expected to plant a garden. Many of those people planted enough vegetables to last through the following winter. The excess was either frozen, canned or kept in underground cellars. In recent years, fewer and fewer gardens have been planted for a variety of reasons. Some people no longer found it to be a necessity since they could run down to the local grocery and purchase whatever they needed at home. Now that more amd more women are having to be a part of the work force, they had no extra time to devote to raising a garden. Then, of course, the price of water has been on the increase causing people to question whether or not it was financially a good idea to garden.

But, now with fuel prices at all-time highs that are causing food prices to soar, more people are choosing to produce any and all food that they possibly can. This Spring, I have been conversing with people who sell vegetable plants about what kind of trends they are seeing in their current market. Everyone who I have talked with on the matter tells me that they are seeing major increases in vegetable plant sales. One person told me that their supplier has recommended that they pre-order more vegetable plants than they have in the past few years so that the producer knows in advance just how many seeds they should be planting in time for spring sales.

This is the first time since 1981 that we have planted a vegetable garden. When we planted the first time, we were too lazy to water and weed the garden. This time, the girls were very excited about planting vegetables so they, hopefully, will be interested in taking care of the garden also! LOL!!! But, now, more than ever before, I fear that we may have theft problems. It seems that theft around the country has climbed significantly for everything else. Years ago when crime was beginning to climb in our neck of the world, we asked Wheatland Electric to erect a street light in our backyard. We have never had any regrets for doing so! If you are interested in having your "very own" light that comes on at dusk and goes off at dawn, call Wheatland at 375-2632. They will come and put one up for you. There is a small monthly charge approximately $10.00. To us, the added security is well-worth the money!!! Our light is right east of where we planted our garden so our veggies should be safe! LOL!

Anyway, just thought that you might be interested in all of this...

VLE-B

Ants, ants, ants and even more ants...

I have heard from several people in the Leoti area about how they (us, too) have been under a major attack of these troublesome little pests. I am referring to those little itty, bitty brown ants that travel in long, single-file lines. They seem to have attacked late in the winter.

We have tried those little packs of ant bait and the big-named ant sprays AND house and garden sprays also. Nothing has worked for us or for the others whom I have heard from. Ours first appeared on our kitchen countertops. Today, I found a "flock" of them in our main bathroom which is approximately 20 feet from the kitchen. The only thing that I have learned that is ridding homes and other buildings from these little nasties is calling professional pest exterminators. So, if you have just discovered that you are sharing your space with them, I suggest that instead of spending money on over-the-counter pesticides that you just call your local exterminator. While they are at your home, they can also spray for spiders, roaches and any other bugs that may be secretly living in your home.

VLE-B

Who's crying--he, or I???

As you know, our children are our lives. One of our daughters brought a bookmark home from school last week. Once I read it, I could feel cracks forming in this ol' heart of mine. I think that other parents will feel the same twinge in their hearts...

TEDDY BEAR POEM
by Judith Viorst

I threw away my teddy bear,
The one that lost his eye.
I threw him in the garbage pail
(I thought I heard him cry.)

I've had that little teddy bear
Since I was only two.
But I'm much bigger now and
I've got better things to do.

Than play with silly teddy bears.
And so I said good-bye
And threw him in the garbage pail.
(Who's crying--he, or I?)



Enough said...

VLE-B

Need to send some love???

I know of NO ONE who doesn't enjoy receiving gifts from family members, friends, etc. It has always been a thrill for me to answer a knock or bell at the door and discover someone there who is delivering flowers or a plant to us!!!

Mother's Day is Sunday. I remind you that The Ladybug Flower Shoppe in Leoti is here to serve you and the ones you love! Give them a call at 620-375-2172. You can either tell them exactly what you want to send someone or just give them a price range. They will be very happy to tell you what that amount of money can purchase. Then...they will deliver your gift of love to that person when you want it to be delivered.

I promise that you will discover that they only sell the finest quality products at very inexpensive prices.

Give them a call today!

They are open every day except for Sundays.

Thank you!!!

VLE-B

An oversight or on purpose???

The Leoti Task Force invited grade school students, parents, teachers and adminstrators, our sheriff's department's officers, firemen, EMTs, county commissioners, Mayor and County Judge to the festivities of the National Day of Prayer at the RBSES gym doors on Thursday. It looks like they left the Leoti City Council Members off of the list. I SINCERELY hope that this was just a mistake and NOT a slap in the Council's face for the current problems between the Council and the employees. It would be dreadful to learn that this Christian organization is judging our Council...

VLE-B

Lucy Blough

If you have not already purchased last week's edition of THE LEOTI STANDARD, I would recommend that you buy it today or tomorrow. Mrs. Lucy Blough went on record to stand up for the current City Council of Leoti. And, I, for one, am VERY proud to stand WITH her not BEHIND her on this matter!!!

Anyone who lives in Leoti knows what I am referring to here. This strife between the Leoti GOVERNMENT and it's employees has gone on way too long! I cannot begin to tell you just how ANGRY I am with everyone who has chosen to go against the council members. We chose these people to make the decisions, the easy ones AND the difficult ones, when we met at the polls. If we thought that we could have made better decisions, then WE should have run for this very NON-glamourous position!!!

I have kept my opinion off of my blog for way too long out of respect for my sister, Lori Elder-Christensen, who is one proud to serve Leoti citizens through her partnership with other city council members. She has asked me over and over NOT to voice my opinion here.

So, if you want to know what my feelings are, buy THE LEOTI STANDARD and read what Lucy had to write...

VLE-B

National Day of Prayer--May 6th

As I understand, the federal government has decided that the 2010 National Day of Prayer will be the last. Urgghh! So many of our rights are being taken away just to satisfy the few citizens who do not believe in God. That, folks, is one of the major reasons that the United States of America is going to hell in a hand basket. I hope and pray, that someone, somewhere, somehow will get this reversed in Congress!!!

In the meantime, it is scheduled for Thursday, May 6th. EVERYONE is invited to meet in front of the Robert Bruce Stewart Elementary School in front of the gym doors at 8:00 a.m., cst. The officers of the Wichita County Sheriff's Department, Firemen, EMTs, County Commissioners, Mayor and Judge have also been invited to meet the grade school students there. On a personal note, I WOULD HOPE that our City Council Men and Women are also invited to this. The information that I received did not include these people in the invitation. Hopefully, that is just an oversight...

See you there! Our prayers are VERY MUCH NEEDED in our country today!!!

VLE-B

Health Fair in Wichita County

Now is the time for you to be scheduling your appointment to have a full battery of blood tests, etc for next week's health fair in Wichita County. Men will also be having a prostate exam. These tests will provide much needed information to you and your doctor. More than one life has definitely been saved with these fairs!

The total cost is $40.00, yes, just forty dollars. If you were just to have one thyroid test done, it would cost you $27.00! Everythng will be done at the hospital. Please call Mandy at 375-2233 to set up your appointment(s). The fair will run from May 10th through the 13th.

FYI, these tests do NOT go through the billing system, thus, your insurance company will NOT pay for these tests. You will need to pay your $40.00 at the time of your appointment.

Here's to great health--yours and mine!!!

VLE-B

Prayer Request

It has come to my knowledge of a young family who is going through hell on earth. While the mother was expecting their third child, the father left town and has no plans on returning to his family. Since then, their third beautiful daughter has been born. The mother is working a full-time job plus taking care of her family at the same time--no easy task.

I would greatly appreciate any and all prayers that are sent upwards for this struggling family.

Thank you!!!

VLE-B

RBSES VOCAL AND INSTRUMENTAL SPRING CONCERT

Tomorrow at 7:00 cst on Tuesday, May 4th, the grade school's spring concert will be given at the high school auditiorium. The band will perform first followed by the vocal concert.

Hope that we will see you there!!!

VLE-B

Lewis Elder

My paternal grandparents, Roy and Helen Elder, had twelve children. The 11th child was Lewis. He was less than 2 years older than my Daddy. He, like Daddy, had faced life at a very young age without either of his parents. Later, he married Jeanette Askey. Together, they gave life to three sons, Van, Jerry and Royce Elder and one daughter, Linda. All three sons were taken from them in two seperate awful car accidents. Today, their daughter and seven grandchildren remain. He was also struck down from cancer which has proven to be a horrible inheritance in Daddy's family. Five of the six sons died from cancer.

For most of Lewis' adult life, he farmed and lived around the Richfield, Kansas area. He touched the lives of so many people around him. A short time ago, the people of Richfield honored him with a memorial at the ballfield there in town which is directly east of his home there. Yesterday, we went to Richfield between the time that we left church at Big Bow and went to Uncle LaVere and Aunt Yvonne's house in Johnson. The whole purpose was to see the memorial. To say that it was an emotional time for us, is a definite understatement. We took pictures of the monument constructed out of a large piece of limestone that is laden with fossils. I am going to try to figure out how to place it in my blog. If you are interested in me emailing it to you, please leave comments after this post or send me an email at slblaus@gmail.com . I will only be too happy to pass it one!

VLE-B

A friendly reminder

Yesterday, Sunday, May 2nd, was our 29th wedding anniversary! We spent the occassion with a great group of loved ones. We picked up Grandma and Mama and then headed out to a small country church just south of Big Bow which is east of Johnson, Kansas. We did this so that we could "sneak up" on my Aunt Yvonne Pepper who did not know that she was going to be receiving a wonderful award that day for the many years' worth of work that she continuously and lovingly does for her Jesus Christ.

Their church, Bethel Church of the Nazerine, is a small church that recently went through an amazing renovation plus a very large addition was built that connects a quite large and beautiful fellowship hall, kitchen, restrooms, sitting area, offices, etc to it. Though there are only about 12 pews in the sanctuary, the love for Jesus Christ is bursting at the seams. Normally, there are only 30 church members present on Sunday but each of them is faithful to their Lord and come to church every Sunday unless there is an illness or they must leave town for some important purpose.

Shortly after church started, my beautiful aunt was called to the front of the church. I watched her get the news. She was TOTALLY caught off guard. She grasped my uncle's hand and quietly said something to the effect of not having any idea that anything was going on like this. (To back up, their one and only child, Allyn, had contacted our family a month ago to share the news that she was to be honored and wanted to invite all of us to attend this surprise celebration. Aunt Yvonne had simply no idea that we were going to be at church until she walked into the church and saw us standing there! Allyn and his family, Karen, Kyle and Kendra, had told her that there was a possibility that we might show up on Sunday. Allyn and Karen's family lives in Oklahoma City. They had told Uncle LaVere and Aunt Yvonne that they would be coming to Johnson to celebrate an early Mother's Day since they would be unable to be there on the actual holiday. Allyn had also mentioned that we might be there so that we could visit Allyn and his family.)

The pastor and a lady from the church presented Aunt Yvonne with a framed award for all that she does. They told all of us of the many beautiful things that Aunt Yvonne does every single day. Allyn eventually moved to the front of the church to give a message that pulled tear after tear from the eyes of everyone there that day. He mentioned that he was so thankful for having this opportunity to speak of the wonderous things that his parents have not only done for the church but for the things that they have done for him as parents. There is absolutely nothing that parents can give their children that is anything any more important that teaching them of Jesus Christ! He was so happy to be able to do this while both were still so very alive.

He mentioned that he was able to learn of the Lord at a very young and impressionable age through his parents. Believe me, there was NO dry eye in the place. After he gave a very moving talk, his lovely wife, Karen, stood up and sang the most beautiful song that was perfect for Aunt Yvonne. After church, all congregated in the brand new fellowship hall to enjoy each other and a delicious potluck dinner. Honestly, it was a beautiful day that I absolutely will NEVER forget!!!

I want to tell you of something that we discovered on the bathroom vanity when we later went to Uncle LaVere and Aunt Yvonne's house. Abigayle found it first and called my attention to it. It is such a small detail in physical size, a picture frame that is probably only 3" x 5" or 4" by 6", but is profound in the very few words that are printed on the paper inside the picture frame. I am going to do the same thing at our home now and thought that you might want to also do it as it is something that all of us need to be reminded of. Here it is:


"Dear Yvonne,

There is no need for worry. I have everything under control.

Jesus Christ"


This message only contains 15 words but put together, their message is so wonderful.

There is no need for a fancy picture frame or expensive paper to type or write the message on. The beauty of the message is all that really matters. Then place the frame anywhere in your house where you and others can read it each and every day to be reminded of God's power and love. Wouldn't it be a beautiful idea to make up other picture frames with this message in them to give to loved ones??? I think so! Of course, place your name or whomever the person's name is who you will be giving this tiny but amazing gift to.

And, oh-so-generous and loving Lord, thank you for blessing me with Uncle LaVere and Aunt Yvonne in my life...

VLE-B

Plumbing problem

Whenever I learn of something good or bad that can affect all of you, I do my best to post it here. Here is something else that I think that you need to know just in case you don't know it already.

Two or three weeks ago, we began noticing a foul odor in our kitchen and utility room. To begin with, it was centered in our kitchen and utility room which are side by side in our home. We looked and "sniffed" everywhere but could simply not discover where this obscene smell had originated. Over time, it continued to get worse and worse. Last week, it became so bad that as soon as you opened our front door which is located on the opposite side of our house than the kitchen and living room, the odor slapped you in the face!

Finally, Saturday, Stan decided to look under the house. Come to find out, our drainline which exits drainwater from our dishwasher and kitchen sink and washing machine AND the sink water in our main bathroom had come undone causing whatever went through this line to just spill into our crawl space instead of into the sewer which it should have been doing.

We have a garbage disposer which is quite handy. We use it at least once every day. Well...it seems that something that I had put through the disposer was responsible for the line coming apart! We had eaten spaghetti one evening. As usual, we had spaghetti left over in our pot so I just "flushed it through our disposer". The spaghetti accumalated in the drainline until it caused it to burst. Come to find out, left over spaghetti noodles and potato peels should NEVER be sent through a disposer! The potato peels will do the very same thing or will just cause your drains to clog up. I learned that several years ago...

Anyway, Stan cleaned up the mess and reconnected the pipework. Our house is coming close to smelling good again. I have also learned that whenever there is any kind of sewage spill under a building or on the outside of the building, bags of lime can be purchased at local hardware or lumber yards. Just spread the material over the raw sewage and leave it alone. It naturally absorbs the extra water and removes the nasty odors.

Just thought that you may want to know...

VLE-B

Willa Kleymann--Correction

Last week, I reported that Willa Kleymann, formerly of Leoti, had passed away and told everyone that her memorial service was to be held at the Leoti Municiple Golf Course. Thankfully, several of you corrected my information! Instead of her passing away last week, she actually passed away last November.

Sorry for any problems that this may have caused anyone. And, a big thanks to everyone who let me know when she had actually passed away! I definitely appreciate it!!!

VLE-B

Saturday, May 1, 2010

My thoughts about your memories of Daddy

I just have to tell those of you who have sent me your memories of Daddy, that I have enjoyed each one so very much! And, as for you who mentioned Daddy's co-worker, Shorty, I all but died on my laughter!!! You really brought a lot of sunshine into my heart!!! I don't know who Shorty would have been unless he was a Lauber. I'll ask Mama if she remembers who he was.

I also heard from my cousin, LeeRoy Kiefer. He nor I realized that Daddy had died on 22nd anniversary of a life-threatening accident that just almost claimed his life. He joked that maybe us of the Elder family should just stay in bed on furutr April 29s. LOL!

PLEASE keep sending me your memories. If you do not want me to share them here, I will not. I just look forward to hearing from more people whose lives were touched in one way or another.

Love to all of you!!!!!

VLE-B