Stories from Thursday, July 19, 2012

The emergency release of Conservation Reserve Program acreage for grazing or haying in most Kansas counties was announced last week. Those on our email list received this announcement on Thursday of last week. This development was covered by several media sources as well. Read on for more information about this opportunity...

County fair season is here, the week that nearly every 4-H member has worked and waited for since the fair ended last year. It is a time of year when youth from across the county get together to showcase their projects, but more importantly, it is a time for 4-H families to be together...

The Bourbon County Fair Dog Show was held Saturday, July 14. Results of the show are as follows: Grand Champion -- Kendall Madison Reserve Champion -- Abigail Humble Beginning Agility -- Anna Guilfoyle Intermediate Agility -- Christin Guilfoyle Senior Agility -- Meredith Hill...

The Pittsburg Area Friends of NRA annual banquet will be held on July 28 at the Lamplighter Inn in Pittsburg. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. for a social hour and dinner will be served at approximately 7 p.m. Games and live and silent auctions continuing until 10 p.m...

Fairgoers will notice a difference in the way ribbon placings are awarded to the exhibits in the 4-H Building and in open class. Open class exhibits are judged using the American system. Not all exhibits receive a ribbon. All entries within a class are compared and a blue, red, and white ribbon is awarded for first, second and third places. Purple ribbons are awarded for champion exhibits...

An important part of a county fair is good food to eat. Fairgoers at the Bourbon County Fair will have an opportunity to choose from a variety of delicious home-cooked foods at the 4-H concession stand inside the air-conditioned 4-H Building. Food will be served 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Friday of fair week...

100 YEARS AGO (1912) The contracting firm of Thogmartin & Gardiner was last night at Nevada awarded the contract for the construction of three blocks of brick pavement that are to be put in this year. Work on the contract will be started during the next few weeks. The firm will also put in the concrete curbing and guttering, as well as a number of sidewalks...

Hopefully the scathing report from former FBI Director Louis Freeh about the scandal at Penn State will be read by every administrator, trustee, alumni, and student at the college, because according to reports and actions coming out of this learning institute they are still in a state of denial. Paterno's son Jay continues to defend his father which I guess is what offspring would do but in the face of the report, he should just drift back into the relative obscurity from which he appeared...

The Hemphill Family and Friends Band will perform at 7 p.m. Friday at the Heritage Park Pavilion as part of the Friday Night Concert Series. The band, which plays old-time country and rock music, fun songs and gospel, consists of Jack Hemphill, Brad Hemphill, Sandy Hemphill, Kristen Hemphill Weeks, Gary Thompson and Jeff Han...

The Bourbon County Clerk's Office will offer late hours for advance voting leading up to the Aug. 7 primary. The clerk's office will be open from 8:30 a.m.-7 p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 1, through Friday, Aug. 3, for advance voting. Advance voting will run through noon Aug. 6. Residents may vote in person at the clerk's office, or apply to have a ballot mailed to them...

So far this week, numbers at the Bourbon County Fair have been good from the livestock to the clothing and food. "It's going great," Fair Board President Darrel George said. "It's how it always goes. We always have worries. The people in Bourbon County just come together for the fair and make it operate. ... We've just got a great bunch of volunteers."...

Local law enforcement personnel, firefighters and EMS personnel will do "battle" next month to benefit the American Red Cross. The annual Battle of the Badges Blood Drive is a friendly competition between local law enforcement, fire and EMS personnel to see who can donate the most blood. The drive is scheduled for 12:45 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 9, and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Friday, Aug. 10, at Buck Run Community Center, 735 Scott Ave...

By Angelique McNaughton The Fort Scott Tribune A special exhibit this year at the Bourbon County Fair chronicles the birth of the annual event and the various locations it has occupied through the years. Local historian Arnold Schofield, who has completed extensive research, reviewing past newspaper articles since his retirement from the Kansas Historical Society, said he accidentally stumbled upon information about the first Bourbon County Agricultural Society...

One of three Democratic hopefuls running for the U.S. Representative District 2 spot currently held by Republican Lynn Jenkins is convinced he has what it takes to make the job his in November. Tobias Schlingensiepen of Topeka will first have to get past fellow Democrats Robert Eye, of Lawrence, and Scott Barnhart of Ottawa. ...

Rina and Atit Desai, Fort Scott, are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter Anaya Desai at 9:43 p.m. July 17, 2012, at Mercy. Anaya Desai weighed 6 pounds and 14 ounces at birth. Maternal grandparents are Satish and Vina Bhakta, India. Paternal grandparents are Dilip Desai, India, and Suuidya Desai, Ghana...