Stories from Wednesday, December 3, 2008

By Michael Pommier The Fort Scott Tribune Representing the Bourbon County Economic Development Council Inc., Steve Buerge addressed the commission with an update and an annual request for funding Tuesday night at the Fort Scott City Commission regular meeting. Buerge stated BEDCO has had a difficult time receiving grants due to the economy. He also said the cost of legal fees, insurance, taxes, miscellaneous expenditures and the industrial park expansion has totaled to $103,397.17 for 2008...

The Fort Scott Tribune The Gordon Parks Center at Fort Scott Community College will celebrate the anniversary of Parks' birthday with a special tribute event on Thursday. Starting at 7 p.m., the center will host a screening of the filmed version of the ballet "Martin: A Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.," which Parks wrote. The event is free of charge and open to the public...

By Jason E. Silvers The Fort Scott Tribune The 121-year-old Chenault mansion, 812 S. National Ave., will be one of the featured stops on the 29th Annual Homes for the Holidays Tour this weekend. The recently-restored Victorian mansion, currently owned by Dale Blocker, was built in 1887 by Walter Chenault, who at the time had recently moved to Fort Scott from Kentucky. ...

The Fort Scott Tribune Following the success of their first Skate Date, the Fort Scott Skate Park Committee is at it again. The Fort Scott Skate Park Committee is set to host an indoor Skate Date from 5-10 p.m. Dec. 5 at the National Guard Armory, 2301 Horton St...

The Fort Scott Tribune America's National Parks were the theme of last year's White House holiday decorations and thanks to Iola artist Gary Hawk, Fort Scott National Historic Site was represented. From 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. on Saturday, December 6 and Sunday, December 7, Mr. ...

By Jason E. Silvers The Fort Scott Tribune As the nation heads into the busiest toy-buying season of the year, parents and caregivers are reminded to practice careful shopping to avoid products that could potentially be dangerous to children. According to the Safe Kids Kansas organization, more than 65 percent of the toys bought in the United States will be purchased between Black Friday and Christmas. ...

A week ago, Fort Scott Community College's women were drubbed on the road by Northern Oklahoma-Tonkawa, 83-54. Wednesday night at Arnold Arena, the Greyhounds paid back the Mavericks in kind by routing them, 81-56. What accounted for the difference? Focus, apparently, based on the answer from Fort Scott head coach Stasha Richards...

The Fort Scott Tribune GIRARD -- Judge Donald Noland upheld a second death sentence for a man who raped and murdered a Pittsburg State University student more than 12 years ago. A jury in September recommended that 52-year-old Gary Kleypas be given the death penalty, by lethal injection, for the March 1996 slaying of 20-year-old student Carrie Williams in her apartment. On Wednesday afternoon, a Crawford County judge upheld that sentence...

By Rayma Silvers The Fort Scott Tribune Help is on the way for families in Bourbon County who are having a difficult time preparing for cold weather. Wal-Mart Supercenter and The Bourbon County Chapter of the Red Cross, in conjunction with the Beacon and Mother to Mother Ministries will be conducting an assistance program for the first time this year beginning Dec. ...

By Jason E. Silvers The Fort Scott Tribune A mother and daughter with ties to the local community have co-written a book detailing farm life during the Great Depression and World War II. Linda Duff Niemeir, of Camden, Ark., and her mother Lillian Laird Duff, Bastrop, La., are the co-authors of "Sharecropping in North Louisiana -- A Family's Struggle Through the Great Depression," a non-fiction account of Duff's experiences growing up on a farm during the 1920s, '30s, and '40s. ...

By Michael Pommier The Fort Scott Tribune As temperatures continue to fall and the threat of snow and ice grows so to do the dangers of winter weather effecting vehicles. With AAA is anticipating 27,000 road side assistance calls in Kansas during the winter motorists are encouraged to take precautionary measures to ensure the safety of their vehicles...

From Tribune Staff and AP Reports WASHINGTON -- The government has recommended a site in Kansas for a new $450 million laboratory to study biological threats such as anthrax and foot-and-mouth disease, officials said Wednesday. The Homeland Security Department's choice of Manhattan, in central Kansas, beat out intense competition from sites in Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina and Texas...