Stories from Thursday, July 9, 2009

Minnie Jane West, age 75, resident of Fulton, Kansas, died Tuesday, July 07, 2009, at the Fort Scott Manor Nursing Home. She was born April 1, 1934, in Bourbon County, Kansas, the daughter of John Taylor and Bertha White Taylor. Minnie married Vernon West on March 10, 1949, in Mound City, Kansas. She attended the Fulton United Methodist Church and was a member of the Osaga Historical Society...

John Paul Morrill, age 77, loving husband, father, and grandfather, passed away peacefully in his home, Friday, June 19, 2009, in Laguna Niguel, California. He was born July 16, 1931, in South Gate, California, to the late Paul and Margaret Morrill...

Lawrence Edward "Eddie" Akin, age 66, resident of 203 No. Eddy, Fort Scott, Kansas, died Monday, June 29, 2009, at the Landmark Hospital in Joplin, Missouri. He was born July 26, 1942, in Wichita, Kansas, the son of Rudolph Carlton Akin and Melba Evelyn Epler Akin. ...

The College of Technology at Pittsburg State University is in full gear this month with programs in plastics, construction and robotics -- but participating students are a little younger than the usual crowd. This summer, PSU is once again offering a variety of camps for junior high-age students. This week, camps were offered for about 30 8th grade students from Kauffman Scholars, Inc., a division of the Kauffman Foundation...

Fort Scott Community College, like many other higher education institutions across the state, is facing a budget crunch this year. But FSCC President Clayton Tatro said he is confident that the college will be able to absorb recent cuts, survive the current statewide higher education financial crisis and hopefully rebound within a couple of years...

Youth in the local area are learning how to splash their way to a safer summer. According to Bridget Keating, through swimming lessons conducted at the Fort Scott Municipal Swimming Pool each summer, area children can learn how to swim and how to stay safe while doing so...

Many teenagers across the country may be spending their summer vacation playing video games, swimming, or simply relaxing and enjoying the break from school. Thirteen-year-old Chandler Johnson, of Rome, Ga., is spending her summer traveling across the nation with her parents, visiting the 391 national parks overseen by the National Park Service. ...

Residents in the western portion of Bourbon County spent much of Thursday cleaning up brush and debris after a severe thunderstorm ravaged the area. According to a press release from the Bourbon County Sheriff's office, shortly after 4 p.m. on Wednesday, a severe thunderstorm hit the western portion of Bourbon County. The storm produced straight-line-winds that were moving 60 to 70 mph and large hail. Approximately one and 1/2 inches of rain drenched the area in a short amount of time...