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Sitting all alone in the northeastern corner of the county is a country school building that has stood the test of time. Built of limestone, it still stands straight and tall, although some of the stones are beginning to separate.
Located east of Lincolnville at 290th and Bluestem Rds., Bethel country school was the eighth school district in the county.
When sheriff’s deputies Mike Ottensmeier and Bronson Shipman received a dispatch reporting possible theft and assault Thursday on Bluestem Rd. north of 160th Rd., at least they knew they weren’t going to be involved in a high-speed chase: the getaway vehicles were a pair of ATVs.
Radio transmissions indicated the man who reported the incident was following a red ATV, driven by a man in a black shirt and jeans, and a green ATV, driven by a man in overalls, headed south on Bluestem Rd. toward Cedar Point.
Hailstorms that swept through northern Marion County last week left considerable damage.
The hardest hit area appeared to be along 230th Rd. north of Marion.
Faced with Chingawassa Days set to begin Friday, the only place Marion city crews could find parts to rebuild a damaged antique sidewalk rail at Central Park was around the corner on Elm St.
A section of the park railing was destroyed when a huge oak fell on it May 19. A rotted neighboring walnut tree was removed during cleanup, although a tall stump was left.
Nearly a quarter of Kansas counties, most of them larger than Marion County, have some form of administrator, manager, or coordinator similar to what politicians here have been calling for.
Of counties with administrators, only Russell County has less population, but seven have smaller budgets, according to the Kansas Association of Counties.
Beautiful weather and flooding at other lakes in the region made for more campers over the Memorial Day weekend at Marion County Park and Lake.
Lake supervisor Steve Hudson said campgrounds were 75 percent full over the weekend. That compares to a typical Memorial Day weekend, with campgrounds 50 percent full. Tent campsites were about 50 percent full.
Aaron Wesley Biehler, 23, died May 27.
He was born May 28, 1993, at Herington to Ronald J. Biehler and Elizabeth A. (Tindle) Miller.
IN MEMORIAM:
David KlendaIN MEMORIAM:
Opal Mae Walker
Most people know that this weekend’s Chingawassa Days traces its name to a much heralded but briefly lived resort and mineral bath called Chingawasa Springs (one S instead of two), 4½ miles northeast of Marion.
Until the Panic of 1893, which led to a seven-year depression almost as severe as the Great Depression four decades later, Chingawasa Springs was a thriving hotel, restaurant and sanatorium, built in 1888 and linked to Marion by a municipally financed railway that opened July 29, 1889, according to Railway Preservation News.
The National Orphan Train Museum in Concordia features a restored version of one of two original passenger cars from the Marion Belt and Chingawasa Springs Railroad.
From 1889 to 1893, the car ferried passengers to Chingawasa Springs resort from the Santa Fe and Rock Island railroads 4½ miles away in Marion.
“I am a small town type of person,” Daniels said. “I was raised in small towns and rural areas and consider myself to have a blue-collar attitude and have a lot in common with these folks.”
It’s hard to remember when there wasn’t a Charlie Daniels Band, but Daniels first stepped into a recording studio in 1959 with a group he cobbled together called the Jaguars.
With six hootin’ and a-hollerin’ musical acts on the bill, a battle of the bands, and an open mic, Bluegrass at the Lake has the potential to be the biggest and most entertaining incarnation of itself at its 10-year history.
Last year, 700 to 1,000 attended the event at the rustic lakeside venue. This year the free festivity could draw even more.
Owner and former art teacher Jan Davis also offers her own creations for sale and gives art lessons.
“I do all ages,” Davis said. “I’ve had some from 4-year-olds to students in their 70s.”
The east side of the county lake is where Kevin Fruechting of Marion goes to capture stunning sunsets and wildflowers.
Shooting across the lake at a setting sun, Fruechting said, gives him three distinct palettes to work with: water, trees, and sky. Different textures, forms, lines, and color from each create a richer picture than any one or two elements, he said.
When Harriet Bina of Marion agreed to help Rose Mary Neuwirth conduct tours at the Pilsen Catholic church and Emil Kapaun museum, she already was enamored with the history of the army chaplain.
Becoming a tour guide let her impress on others the incredible sacrifice Pilsen’s native son, now a candidate for sainthood, made to serve others.
Bearly Makin-It Antiques, with a downtown Marion shop and a more spread-out collection in two barns and a shed at 573 Walnut St., has anything an antique seeker or curiosity hunter could want.
The array of goods runs the gamut from vintage metal lawn chairs to baby baskets, furniture in various condition, old school desks, candelabras, furniture, retail display and storage racks, high chairs, rocking chairs for kids and adults, and mismatched dining chairs.
Mennonite Heritage and Agricultural Museum in Goessel tells how low-German-speaking Mennonites who came to the area in 1874 settled Goessel in 1874.
“The agricultural part of the museum features artifacts related to the progression of mechanization in farming from the 1800s to the mid-1960s,” museum director Fern Bartel said.
In turn, Decker was good for Burns. Although he lived in Newton and Texas most of his adult life, he was the driving force behind the Route 77 Classic Car show.
At its height, more than 100 vintage hot rods, restored production models, and late-model, high-powered speedsters gathered in downtown Burns the Saturday before Memorial Day for a show regarded as one of the best in central Kansas, thanks in no small part to Decker’s attention to detail.
Switching from pellet guns to .22 rifles will give kids an extra kick at this year’s Scott O’Dell-Steve Hett Memorial Outdoor Youth Day at Marion Reservoir.
The June 10 event teaches kids 8 to 15 about shotguns, rifles, and bows and arrows, all with an emphasis on safety.
A reception to celebrate the 50th wedding anniversary of Sam and Kathy Bernhardt of Marion will be from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday at Marion County Lake Hall.
The Bernhardts’ anniversary was May 19. They have two children, Connie and Jason, and three grandchildren, Chelsea, Cadan, and Brooke.
Looking much younger than her age, 92-year-old Irma Duerksen Groening received a gift basket Sunday as the oldest alumnus present at the Lehigh High School biannual reunion in Hillsboro.
Irma is one of two survivors of the class of 1943.
The children of former Marion resident Dorothy Helmer are organizing a card shower to honor her 92th birthday.
Dorothy and John Helmer were married and lived in Marion. Her children are Donna Robertson of Kingsport, Tennessee; Verna Rowe of Newton; Roxann Colborn of Abilene; and Doreen Hartzler of Wichita.
4H:
Lincolnville wide awakeMEMORIES:
10,
25,
35,
50,
60,
100,
125 years agoSENIOR CENTER:
Patrons celebrate birthday, hear music,
Senior menu
Take a trip back to March, to when the Marion Warriors baseball team was preparing for the upcoming season.
During that time, the number 72.4 was posted, signaling the approximate distance from the Marion High School parking lot to the site of Class 3A’s state baseball tournament at Kansas State University’s Tointon Baseball Complex.
As Thursday’s filing date for school board elections approaches, three seats remain with no candidates.
Records at the county clerk’s office indicate that
Take a trip back to March, to when the Marion Warriors baseball team was preparing for the upcoming season.
During that time, the number 72.4 was posted, signaling the approximate distance from the Marion High School parking lot to the site of Class 3A’s state baseball tournament at Kansas State University’s Tointon Baseball Complex.
Not only did junior Tyler Palic’s winning discus throw help Marion to an eighth-place team finish at this weekend’s state track and field meet in Wichita.
His throw of 175 feet 11 inches, which won in Class 3A by nearly 20 feet, would have been the best in every class except 4A.
Marion High School’s baseball team, which this year included players from Centre, dominated all-league honors announced Sunday by the Heart of America league.
Four players were named to the first team: senior outfielder Mason Pedersen, senior pitcher Payton Heidebrecht, junior utility man Cole Srajer, and sophomore pitcher Blaine Mermis.
Junior Kate Basore earned her second straight state medal and became the highest placing Centre girl since 1991 with a 128 foot 3 inch javelin toss last week at the state track meet in Wichita.
Kate had settled into fourth place after the second round of competition but improved by nearly five feet, moving into third, with her sixth and final throw.
Sophomore Madison Lueger of Centralia won the Class 1A event with a throw of 142 feet 4 inches.
As a sophomore last year, Kate medaled in seventh place No other Centre athleteearned a medal this year.
Sophomore Xavier Espinoza finished ninth in long jump with a leap of 19 feet 4½ inches. The event’s winner, senior Kian Coffey of Stockton, had a best leap of 22 feet 8 inches.
Although kids in the kitchen might sound like catastrophe in the making, kids can learn by preparing ingredients, following a recipe, and cooking a meal.
Eastmoor and Valley United Methodist churches will offer a free Wednesday evening kids’ cooking class for ages preschool through fifth grade June 14, 21, and 28.
A $15 to $20 class, completion of which could reduce auto insurance premiums, will be offered from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. June 12 and 13 at Marion Senior Center.
No actual driving or tests will be required to complete the course, which is open to all licensed drivers.
JUNE
Community picnic