News
Local group plans Boys & Girls Club
A steering committee is making plans to establish a Boys & Girls Club in Parsons. The committee was organized in February to assess the need and the possibility of establishing the club. The committee is made up of individuals who have a genuine concern about the issues that face the community’s youth and includes staff from USD 503, Parsons Housing Authority, Downtown Parsons Inc., Labette Community College, Public Health of Labette County, Y...
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Library plans lots of activities for summer
By Colleen Surridge csurridge@parsonssun.com Boredom is considered by some an unwarranted state of existence if one knows how to read because even when a person doesn’t have the means or opportunity to physically travel someplace, books allow the imagination to travel anywhere. The Parsons Public Library’s summer reading program offers area residents not only the opportunity to read great books to feed their imaginations, but also to particip...
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Republicans choose clerk’s replacement
OSWEGO — The Labette County Republican Central Committee on Friday nominated Deputy Clerk Peggy Minor to take over as county clerk when Linda Schreppel retires at the end of June. Schreppel announced that she would retire recently and was re-elected to her eighth term in November. She has been county clerk since December 1981. Minor has been with the clerk’s office since August 1986. She has performed many of the different functions of the off...
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News & Notes
Union Avenue closure The city of Parsons plans to keep Union Avenue from North 16th (U.S. 59) to North 21st (Ottawa Road) closed to through traffic until 5 p.m. June 21 for a street reconstruction project. A temporary access road will be provided to Aaron’s, 2826 N. 16th. All traffic to and from Flynn Industrial Park should use the north drive off of 16th. 90th birthdays The public is invited to a 90th birthday celebration for Ruby Redmond fr...
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Floor of judicial center needs work
OSWEGO — Labette County commissioners on Monday received an update on a recent visit to the Labette County Judicial Center in Parsons by an engineer. Kenny Blair of Cook, Flatt and Strobel Engineers, Topeka, toured the judicial center last week and told Commission Chairman Lonie Addis and County Counselor Fred Johnson of some of his concerns about the building. Staff have reported problems with the floor settling on the north side of the build...
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Church organ catches on fire
An early morning fire Saturday damaged the electric organ at First Christian Church, 1500 S. 29th, and Sunday services were moved to another church. Parsons firefighters were called at 2:42 a.m. Saturday to the church. An automatic alarm made the notification to authorities. Firefighters found the organ in the sanctuary on fire when they arrived. Firefighters extinguished the flames and used fans to remove the smoke, Fire Chief Larry Steeby sa...
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Valedictorian tells PHS grads to seek, pursue purpose in life
By Colleen Surridge csurridge@parsonssun.com In his speech to the Class of 2013, Parsons High School valedictorian Gabriel Nehrbass acknowledged all those who helped the graduates achieve their goal. He also acknowledged that despite all the encouragement received, the 94 seniors of the graduating class had also felt the weight of doubt throughout high school that they would ever be successful and achieve those goals. “Many can easily point o...
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Business
CST Storage, 2101 S. 21st, recognized employees with a ceremony to honor the company’s achievement of five years without a lost-time accident.  “Reaching five years without a lost-time accident is a highly elusive accomplishment for any company, but for companies in heavy manufacturing, our safety record is nothing short of incredible. It boils down to the dedication of our employees who work every day with a focus on safety, quality and effic...
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News & Notes
Library activities The Parsons Public Library will not have Story Hour next week. It will resume on June 3.  Sign-up for the library’s summer reading program will begin on Friday. The program themes are Dig Into Reading for children, Beneath the Surface for young adults and Ground Breaking Reads for adults. The calendar of events will be available at sign-up. Home school used book sale The Parsons Homeschool Group will have a used book/curri...
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Shelter helps woman get back on her feet
Editor’s note: The is the second part in a series on Safe Haven Outreach Mission. The resident in this story asked that only her middle name, Deborah, be published as she has set her life on a new, positive course and has broken ties with her past. By Colleen Surridge csurridge@parsonssun.com For the last 18 months, Safe Haven Outreach Mission Inc. has been “home” for Deborah. “I didn’t want to come here... My pride and all,” she said. “And ...
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Neosho to get money for detours
ERIE — The Kansas Department of Transportation will pay Neosho County for use of a few roads as detours while a bridge on K-39 is being replaced. Neosho County commissioners approved an agreement with KDOT during their regular Friday morning meeting. Under the agreement, KDOT will pay the county an amount not to exceed $22,000 as compensation to assist in maintenance of unofficial detour routes that are being used because of KDOT’s closure of...
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City plans to decide tethering issue Monday
By Jamie Willey jwilley@parsonssun.com A local animal advocacy group wants the city of Parsons to poll its utility customers on their opinions about an anti-tethering ordinance, but city commissioners seem set to vote down the proposed ordinance on Monday. During a Thursday work session, the commission confirmed an earlier decision to vote during Monday’s regular meeting on whether or not to direct city staff to prepare an ordinance. Basic An...
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PALS cares for dog injured by trap or gun
By Colleen Surridge csurridge@parsonssun.com The hard, black cast on Ziva’s front right paw added a limp to her gate as she made her way into the lobby of the Proud Animal Lovers Shelter, but it didn’t handicap her wagging tail or her excitement over getting more attention from the volunteers. “The vet said it was either a gunshot wound or a trap,” PALS manager Angela Gatton said of the injury the 1-year-old female Labrador/German shepherd mi...
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News & Notes
Senior center events The Parsons Senior Center will host Memory Makers for those writing their life stories with mentor John Coughlin of Labette Community College from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Monday. LCC art teacher Joan Allen will present a watercolor painting display at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at the center. The senior center will host a dance from 7 to 10 p.m. Tuesday with 100% Cotton Westhoff playing polka, country, waltz and big band music. The cost of ...
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Police look into animal cruelty incidents
Parsons police are investigating two recent incidents in which someone shot cats with a small crossbow. Police Chief Scott Gofourth said the first incident was reported Friday, May 10, and the second report came in the next week, but the cat was injured on Sunday, May 12. Both incidents occurred in the same neighborhood, one at 1230 Appleton and the other at 1218 Appleton. Gofourth said a woman reported at 6 p.m. May 10 that her cat had been i...
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Shelter director addresses accusations
Editor’s note: This is the first part of a two-part series regarding Safe Haven Outreach Mission Inc., accusations made against the homeless shelter by former residents and the continued focus of the shelter on its mission to offer those in need a hand up. The second part in the series will focus on how Safe Haven has affected the life of one person who reached “the bottom.” By Colleen Surridge csurridge@parsonssun.com When asked how many re...
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Pickers plan to look in Kansas
The “American Pickers” are headed to Kansas, and they are looking for leads — interesting characters with interesting items and lots of them. “American Pickers” began airing on the History Channel in 2010. “Pickers like Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz are on a mission to recycle America, even if it means diving into countless piles of grimy junk or getting chased off a gun-wielding homeowner’s land. Hitting back roads from coast to coast, the two m...
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Scout completes his Eagle project
By Jamie Willey jwilley@parsonssun.com Meadow View Grade School teachers will no longer have to squint into the sunlight to monitor their students running around on the playground thanks to a soon-to-be Eagle Scout. Justin Sexton, a former Meadow View student who just completed his freshman year at Labette County High School, completed his Eagle Scout project during spring break and now must complete paperwork and get approval from a board of...
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EMS chief resigns
Chris Way, the former chief of emergency medical services for Labette Health, resigned effective Tuesday morning. Labette Health CEO Jodi Schmidt confirmed that she accepted Way’s resignation Tuesday morning and that she wished Way “the best in his future endeavors.” Terry Staggs, the EMS division chief, will be the operations manager in the interim, Schmidt said in response to an e-mail inquiry. Staggs has been with the hospital since 1995. W...
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Big Hill to host governor’s tourney
By Jamie Willey jwilley@parsonssun.com Big Hill Lake will be the home of this year’s Governor’s Fishing Classic, featuring Gov. Sam Brownback paired with the B.A.S.S. 2012 angler of the year. Labette County Tourism Bureau director Jim Zaleski and Charles Black, Kansas Wildscape Foundation executive director, announced on Wednesday in Parsons that the 17th annual event will be hosted on June 29 in the county. Black said Kansas Wildscape sponso...
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