Stories from Thursday, February 13, 2014

Craig R. Lewis, 61, of Lawrence, Kan., passed away Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2014 in Baldwin City, Kan. He has been cremated according to his wishes. No services are planned at this time. Arrangements entrusted to Meyers Funeral Chapel, 1600 W. Main St., Blue Springs, Mo...

Waneta Madeline Beerbower, age 82, resident of Fort Scott, Kan., died Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2014, at her home. She was born June 28, 1931, in Bourbon County, Kan., the daughter of Jud and Mollie Mabery Johnson. She graduated from Fort Scott High School with the class of 1954. ...

Auditions are underway for the Fort Scott Community College spring production of "Seussical," set to take to the stage in April. More than 30 people auditioned for roles in the show on Monday at the Danny and Willa Ellis Family Fine Arts Center on the FSCC campus. More auditions are planned for 6 p.m. Thursday at the fine arts center. Tryouts are open to community members...

The USD 234 Board of Education on Monday unanimously approved a proposed compacted school calendar for next year. However, the calendar won't be official until the conclusion of teacher-faculty negotiations later this year. Under the proposed 1,116-hour calendar, students will spend seven hours in the classroom as opposed to the current six-hour and 33-minute schedule. With this change, the school year will tentatively start in late August. Classes began on Aug. 16 this year...

Weather has not permitted a contractor to begin the Uniontown water distribution system improvement project, City Council members learned during their Tuesday meeting, however, that will change as soon as the weather breaks. "They are eager to get started, they are waiting on the weather," Mayor Larry Jurgensen said...

Temperatures are expected to continue to rise this week in the Bourbon County area, reaching to the mid-50s by Friday. Tonight's low is expected to 29 -- about 30 degrees higher than a week ago.

INDEPENDENCE -- Fort Scott Middle School's boys' basketball teams won three out of four games against Independence here Tuesday. Fort Scott's seventh-grade "A" team improved to 7-4 with a 35-27 win over the Bulldogs. Matt Campbell led the Tigers with 13 points while Jordan Hall had 7 points and 6 rebounds. Alec Michaud handed out 7 assists...