HILLSBORO Star-Journal

HEADLINES

Escapee found in the attic
Police beat bounty hunters to a fugitive hiding in a Hillsboro woman’s attic last week, convincing him to surrender after threatening to send in a police dog. “He had somehow escaped and they wanted him pretty badly,” chief Dan Kinning said.
County paying more for same legal advice
Marion County’s new county counselor position, begun as a way of clearing up lingering civil matters at a time of transition, is evolving into a larger and more costly undertaking. Not only is the county paying an additional lawyer to handle civil matters that the county attorney used to handle.
Groomsmen die in wreck a day before wedding
At a wedding Saturday in Whitewater, flowers on the floor took the places meant for Kameron Wiebe and Caleb Neal, cousins of the groom. Wiebe, 21, and Neal, 22, died Friday in an automobile accident near the Marion-Butler county line.
The people behind the fireworks
People run Fourth of July fireworks stands for various reasons. Paul Morrison of Hillsboro was looking for a way to earn a little extra money when he contracted with a wholesale company to sell fireworks out of a trailer at the Hillsboro American Legion building.
Retired official to help out at lake
Continuing resigned lake superintendent Steve Hudson’s campaign against zebra mussels invading the county lake is among the key reasons retired register of deeds Jo Ottensmeier agreed Friday to temporarily help out at the lake. She will be paid $10 an hour —minimum wage for county employees — to serve as a part-time, temporary aide in the lake office for up to 60 days.
Pool slides shut down by new law
Slides at swimming pools in Hillsboro and Marion have been shut down as administrators grapple with uncertainty created by a law that went into effect Saturday requiring professional inspections and permits to operate amusement rides. Hillsboro’s slide was closed Saturday even though city administrator Larry Paine said he wasn’t aware of any injuries caused by the slide in 13 years of operation.

OTHER HEADLINES

Tax rebates may go, sales tax may be extended
County commissioners seem poised to eliminate tax incentives for residential construction and to hire a consultant to help sell the public on using the county’s jail sales tax for other projects. More than 300 properties have benefited from more than $200,000 a year in tax rebates for improvements made under the county’s Neighborhood Revitalization Program.

DEATHS

Bill Worford
A private service is planned for retired draftsman and flight instructor Billy K. Woford, 84, who died June 28 at his residence in Hillsboro. Born Nov. 14, 1932, at Okemah, Oklahoma, to Kyle W. and Martha Irene (Wilson) Woford, he was an Army veteran, Free Mason, and life master bridge player.
IN MEMORIAM:
Betty Jost

DOCKET

FARM

Harvest down 25%
Fewer acres planted this year and damage from recent storms reduced this year’s wheat harvest by as much as 25 percent. Compared to an estimated 2.3 million bushels Cooperative Grain and Supply reportedly took in 2016 from all their elevators, total wheat harvested substantially dropped this year.
Burns ranch wins place on historic registry
Surrounded by rolling hills of green grass northeast of Burns, a 20-acre historic ranch homestead first settled in 1881 has been approved for the Kansas Registry of Historic Places and has been nominated for the national registry. Co-owner Rick Grace filed the paperwork, and a photographer took more than 100 pictures of the buildings, inside and out.
Harvest can help charities, too
Harvest can be a time of plenty, not just for farmers but also for charities they support. In June, a Marion couple’s wheat harvest helped St. Luke Hospital and Living Center’s capital campaign fund.

OPINION

A shining example
Forget Vegas. You can see all the drama of heroes and villains, of fortunes being secured or squandered, by attending a county commission meeting. We won’t try to deal with everything here but will say that this week’s hero to emerge out of our a commissioners’ meeting is Jo Ottensmeier.
A veil of secrecy
While in some ways it’s like a Vegas show, watching county commission meetings may in more ways be like watching a show on local TV. All the boring setup and commercials come in fine, but when the climax nears, some overly coiffed meteorologist suddenly appears, gesturing wildly at colorful globs on a map and speaking excitedly about some not-so-dangerous thunderstorm hundreds of miles away. In the commission’s case, it’s not weather that takes away the key moments. It’s closed-door sessions, when the public is shut out of hearing about the public’s business.
More dollars than sense
There was plenty of activity at the county commission’s nickel and dime slots this week, with employees continuing to buy all manner of interesting items in June. Emergency management had perhaps the most interesting expenditures: $683.60 for air fare plus $88.84 for a seat upgrade, $25 for excess baggage, $48.28 for travel insurance, $20 for liability insurance on two drones, and $104.88 for doughnuts for training sessions.
Corrections and Clarifications
Peabody mayor Larry Larsen’s name was misreported in some editions last week.
ANOTHER DAY IN THE COUNTRY:
Living a day ahead

PEOPLE

Kids cook up summer fun
Having 40 kids in a kitchen might sound like a nightmare, but not for kids at a series of evening sessions sponsored by two local churches. The kids ranged from preschool to fifth grade.
Site shares local genealogy
Melissa Stuchlik of Tampa has translated a long-time interest in her family’s history into a free website devoted to Marion County genealogy. Her Marion County page is part of genealogytrails.com, operated for free by the Genealogy Trails History Group which began in Illinois in 2000.
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UPCOMING

Calendar of events

HILLSBORO Star-Journal

Police beat bounty hunters to a fugitive hiding in a Hillsboro woman’s attic last week, convincing him to surrender after threatening to send in a police dog. “He had somehow escaped and they wanted him pretty badly,” chief Dan Kinning said.

Marion County’s new county counselor position, begun as a way of clearing up lingering civil matters at a time of transition, is evolving into a larger and more costly undertaking. Not only is the county paying an additional lawyer to handle civil matters that the county attorney used to handle.

At a wedding Saturday in Whitewater, flowers on the floor took the places meant for Kameron Wiebe and Caleb Neal, cousins of the groom. Wiebe, 21, and Neal, 22, died Friday in an automobile accident near the Marion-Butler county line.

People run Fourth of July fireworks stands for various reasons. Paul Morrison of Hillsboro was looking for a way to earn a little extra money when he contracted with a wholesale company to sell fireworks out of a trailer at the Hillsboro American Legion building.

A private service is planned for retired draftsman and flight instructor Billy K. Woford, 84, who died June 28 at his residence in Hillsboro. Born Nov. 14, 1932, at Okemah, Oklahoma, to Kyle W. and Martha Irene (Wilson) Woford, he was an Army veteran, Free Mason, and life master bridge player.

IN MEMORIAM:

Harvest can be a time of plenty, not just for farmers but also for charities they support. In June, a Marion couple’s wheat harvest helped St. Luke Hospital and Living Center’s capital campaign fund.

Forget Vegas. You can see all the drama of heroes and villains, of fortunes being secured or squandered, by attending a county commission meeting. We won’t try to deal with everything here but will say that this week’s hero to emerge out of our a commissioners’ meeting is Jo Ottensmeier.

Peabody mayor Larry Larsen’s name was misreported in some editions last week.

ANOTHER DAY IN THE COUNTRY:

Having 40 kids in a kitchen might sound like a nightmare, but not for kids at a series of evening sessions sponsored by two local churches. The kids ranged from preschool to fifth grade.

Melissa Stuchlik of Tampa has translated a long-time interest in her family’s history into a free website devoted to Marion County genealogy. Her Marion County page is part of genealogytrails.com, operated for free by the Genealogy Trails History Group which began in Illinois in 2000.

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