HILLSBORO Star-Journal

HEADLINES

Leak forces 2.5-hour evacuation
Residents of Homestead Senior Residences in Marion were evacuated for more than nearly three hours Tuesday after a city crew struck an unmarked natural gas line while replacing electrical equipment. Electric crews were replacing leaning poles and moving transformers to the ground when a backhoe struck the line, city administrator Brian Wells said.
A second chance builds a fire department
In 2001, after three years as a star volunteer firefighter, he was elevated by then-Mayor Delores Dalke to take the paid helm of the department. But he felt obligated to unload a troubling fact on her: “There’s probably something about me you don’t know — I’m a convicted felon,” Steketee told her.
158% tax increase is really only 3.8%
Sifting through a notice of proposed property tax increases and public hearings, there’s a figure that’s, well, eye-popping. The document states that Chisholm Trail Extension District is proposing a 158.66% increase in taxes.
Reporter gets $850,000 in raid suit
Three years to the day after police raided the Record newsroom and two Marion homes, former reporter Phyllis Zorn’s attorney filed documents Tuesday indicating that she had settled her claims against the City of Marion for for a reported $850,000. The settlement in federal court for violation of the 1st and 4th Amendment and Privacy Protection Act along with aggravation of a seizure disorder is in addition to $600,000 she already received from Marion County for the sheriff’s department’s involvement in the raid. That brings the total she has received to $1.45 million.
Marion's oldest business no longer fully locally owned
Marion’s longest-standing business is no longer fully locally owned. Effective Aug. 1, Case & Son Insurance has partnered with Iron Insurance Partners, bringing in outside resources to the insurance agency of 158 years.

OTHER NEWS

Peabody councilman quits after two calls to cops
Andy Rosine was absent from the Monday’s Peabody city council meeting. He resigned Aug. 7, but says his resignation was unrelated to two sheriff’s office calls involving him Aug. 4 and 5. “I am putting my time and efforts into some other projects that will take me away from efforts the council deserves, so out of respect for the position, I am stepping down,” Rosine said. “I stand behind any actions regarding those calls.”
Law broken while learning it
Peabody city council members may have violated the Kansas Open Meetings Act while receiving a lesson on how to comply with it. Council members Linda Martinez, Rodney Hague, Trevor Hamm, and Jennifer Bush; Mayor Bailey Penner; city administrator Paul Leeker; and city attorney Tim Hodge emerged together from a closed room immediately before Monday’s council meeting.
Lake hall has been flooding
County commissioners voted Monday to order drainage work before more damage is done to the Marion County Lake hall, which flooded Friday. The hall has been prone to flooding as of late, lake superintendent Isaac Hett said. It had “another big flood” after recent heavy rain.
Marion police won't have 5 full-timers
Marion residents could see a new part-time police officer or two on patrol in 2027, but the city won’t go back to having five full-time officers. It hasn’t had five full-time officers since 2022.
Hillsboro hospital to get new CT scanner
Hillsboro Community Hospital has been awarded $837,000 in restricted federal money to purchase a new, more powerful CT scanner, hospital chief executive Malea Hartvickson said Tuesday. The money comes through the Rural Health Transformation Program, a $50 billion initiative.
New lawyers delay former chief's trial over raid evidence
Former Marion police chief Gideon Cody replaced his defense team Aug. 5, prompting Judge Ryan Rosauer to postpone Cody’s Aug. 24 trial to allow Cody’s new attorneys time to prepare. Ashley Repp of SRC Law Group in Kansas City entered her appearance on Cody’s behalf during the hearing. Attorney James Brun also will represent Cody but was traveling and unable to attend, Repp told the court.

DEATHS

Mary Griffith
Mass for Mary Griffith, 79, who died Aug. 3 at Hillsboro Community Hospital, was Aug. 8 at St. Mark Catholic Church, Marion. Burial was in Griffith Cemetery in Cedar Point.
Dale Stoner
A committal service for Dale David Stoner, 91, Burns, who died Aug. 3, was Friday at Leavenworth National Cemetery. Born April 30, 1935, in Flint, Michigan, he came to Kansas City, Kansas, at age 11 to live with his aunt and uncle, Hazel and Everete Stoner, and brother, Vaughn.
IN MEMORIAM:
William Carr
IN MEMORIAM:
Bobby Herren
IN MEMORIAM:
Rick Hodges
IN MEMORIAM:
Kenneth Novak

EDUCATION

No-phone law won't be a hangup for most
As summer break reaches its muggy conclusion, parents, students, and school districts are grappling with a two-pronged state law aimed at banning cell phone use during school hours and restricting teacher-student communication through social media. Signed by Governor Laura Kelly on March 19, the law prohibits “students from using personal electronic communication devices during the school day” and “school employees from communicating with students through social media platforms for official school purposes.”
Communities help students with back-to-school needs
Community groups, churches, and businesses across Marion County are helping students return to classrooms with everything from pencils and headphones to backpacks, paid lunch accounts, and free haircuts. A school supply drive at Jayson Hanschu’s American Family Insurance agency in Hillsboro grew out of an effort started during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Centre weighs adding schools to league
Wheat State League, which Goessel, Centre, and Peabody-Burns High Schools are a part of, could accept two new members as early as the 2028 school year. Ell-Saline High School in Brookville and Bennington High School are looking to join the 11-school league of class 1A athletics.
School tech group to meet
Directors of Technology Excellence in Education Network, which provides online services to area school districts, will meet at 6 p.m. Aug. 19 at the Marion school district office, 101 N. Thorp St. More information is available from Lena Kleiner at (620) 877-0237.
College degrees and honors

FOR THE RECORD

OPINION

The more things change . . .
When Ty Masterson interrupted his no-work-for-plenty-of-pay Koch-funded job to win the Republican gubernatorial nomination, we thought there might be at least a brief pause in his commercials, paid for by big-money interests out of state. But they’ve come back with a die-hard vengeance, once again using half-truths and Photoshopped pictures to portray his opponent as Wicked Witch of the East. When Roger Marshall stepped out of his palatial Florida home, redocked his Titanic campaign to his tiny vacation cabin in Kansas, and again secured the Republican nomination for Senate, he replaced his old shtick of sticking up for the president with new rhetoric about Democrats being Commies. And candidates further down the ballot followed suit, bridging over to a new game of “no Trump.”
ANOTHER DAY IN THE COUNTRY:
Eating from the dog's dish
AMERICA AT 250:
An ever more perfect union requires an ever wider 'we'
LETTERS:
Marion's ethics, Social insecurity

PEOPLE

Skinner descendants meet
Nearly two dozen descendants ofWilliam and Margaret Skinner and James and Amanda Skinner attended the 80th Skinner reunion Saturday at the home of Judy and Jim Ahrens in Manhattan. William and James were brothers who migrated from Iowa to Peabody and La Harpe in 1896.
Senior Center menus
MEMORIES:
10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 110, 150 years ago

MORE…

HOVER OVER IMAGE TO ENLARGE IT

Hillsboro Fire Chief Ben Steketee explains how a pump works on a "brush truck," a specialized fire engine that can shoot water from its hoses as it rolls through brush. He is retiring as fire chief after 25 years.

County commissioners Kent Becker (right) and Clarke Dirks (middle) help Warren Kreutziger unveil a "Purple Heart County" sign Friday morning at Marion County Lake. It is one of four signs to be displayed around the county.

A three-wheel scooter sits unused on the south sidewalk of Marion's middle school gym. By this time next week, the same sidewalk will be filled with kids walking onto campus for a new semester of classes.

A large house that is being built at Lawrence and Freeborn Sts. in Marion has caught the attention of city officials. Don and Donna Bredemeier have employed Prairie Building Systems in Hesston for construction. Wooden beams have gone up, and construction workers have begun adding metal siding.

HILLSBORO Star-Journal

Sifting through a notice of proposed property tax increases and public hearings, there’s a figure that’s, well, eye-popping. The document states that Chisholm Trail Extension District is proposing a 158.66% increase in taxes.

Marion’s longest-standing business is no longer fully locally owned. Effective Aug. 1, Case & Son Insurance has partnered with Iron Insurance Partners, bringing in outside resources to the insurance agency of 158 years.

County commissioners voted Monday to order drainage work before more damage is done to the Marion County Lake hall, which flooded Friday. The hall has been prone to flooding as of late, lake superintendent Isaac Hett said. It had “another big flood” after recent heavy rain.

Marion residents could see a new part-time police officer or two on patrol in 2027, but the city won’t go back to having five full-time officers. It hasn’t had five full-time officers since 2022.

Hillsboro Community Hospital has been awarded $837,000 in restricted federal money to purchase a new, more powerful CT scanner, hospital chief executive Malea Hartvickson said Tuesday. The money comes through the Rural Health Transformation Program, a $50 billion initiative.

Mass for Mary Griffith, 79, who died Aug. 3 at Hillsboro Community Hospital, was Aug. 8 at St. Mark Catholic Church, Marion. Burial was in Griffith Cemetery in Cedar Point.

A committal service for Dale David Stoner, 91, Burns, who died Aug. 3, was Friday at Leavenworth National Cemetery. Born April 30, 1935, in Flint, Michigan, he came to Kansas City, Kansas, at age 11 to live with his aunt and uncle, Hazel and Everete Stoner, and brother, Vaughn.

IN MEMORIAM:

IN MEMORIAM:

IN MEMORIAM:

IN MEMORIAM:

Wheat State League, which Goessel, Centre, and Peabody-Burns High Schools are a part of, could accept two new members as early as the 2028 school year. Ell-Saline High School in Brookville and Bennington High School are looking to join the 11-school league of class 1A athletics.

Directors of Technology Excellence in Education Network, which provides online services to area school districts, will meet at 6 p.m. Aug. 19 at the Marion school district office, 101 N. Thorp St. More information is available from Lena Kleiner at (620) 877-0237.

ANOTHER DAY IN THE COUNTRY:

AMERICA AT 250:

LETTERS:

Nearly two dozen descendants ofWilliam and Margaret Skinner and James and Amanda Skinner attended the 80th Skinner reunion Saturday at the home of Judy and Jim Ahrens in Manhattan. William and James were brothers who migrated from Iowa to Peabody and La Harpe in 1896.

MEMORIES: