Marion County RECORD

Council member taken to task

City council member Ruth Herbel was taken to the woodshed Monday by both a future city council member and mayor David Mayfield. Councilman-elect Zach Collett said during public comment time that Herbel had cited only part of a city code when she objected two weeks ago to hiring lawyer Brian Bina as city attorney and warned that city code requires the actual city attorney, not an associate, to attend council meetings.

Leaky vents force family to evacuate

A Hillsboro family was temporarily barred from their home Monday evening after a carbon monoxide detector sounded an alarm. “There are lots of problems with the venting system,” Hillsboro fire chief and building inspector Ben Steketee said afterward.

Schools sued over parking lot injury

A December 2019 fall in a parking lot at Marion Performing Arts Center is the center of a lawsuit filed Friday against the school district. Marion resident Peggy Blackman was leaving the center after a program when she tripped over a parking block, the petition states.

50 blazing bales battled for 5 hours

Durham firefighter spent five hours battling 50 burning hay bales Monday evening near 300th and Eagle Rds. Durham fire chief Mark Wiebe said the bales apparently were caught on fire by exhaust from a hay grinder being used at the time.

Walking across the state to foster awareness

Glenn Koster hiked Monday from Cottonwood Falls to the city of Marion — more than 20 miles —to raise awareness for foster care. Koster, from Hutchinson, has been walking every other Monday since 2016 as part of his Charity Steps program.

Goessel to get more expensive rescue equipment

After voting last week to pay $26,000 out of county rescue funds toward purchase of $29,590 worth of rescue equipment to make Goessel fire department a full-fledged rescue squad, county commissioners voted Tuesday to allow the department to make a more expensive purchase, albeit with the same contribution from the county. The equipment Goessel fire chief Matt Voth now wants is $5,350 more expensive, but a donation to the department will cover the additional cost, county clerk Tina Spencer said.

Brass concert planned at Peabody church

Sunflower Theatre is renting out St. Paul Lutheran Church in Peabody for a by-donation concert Sunday by McPherson Brass Band. The 3 p.m. concert will be followed by free desserts made by or donated to the Sunflower Theatre Foundation.

COVID numbers lower

New COVID-19 cases in Marion County rose only slightly above numbers reported last week. As of Monday, the county health department reported 37 active COVID cases in the county, down from 52 last week.

Meal to help cancer victim

A hamburger and hot dog meal Saturday will raise money to help a Hillsboro man battling cancer. Donovan Funk, owner of Horseshoe Metal Works, was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year. Treatment has limited his ability to run his business and created extraordinary medical expenses.

Chief judge no longer interim

Benjamin Sexton was reappointed Monday to serve as chief judge of the 8th Judicial Circuit, encompassing Geary, Dickinson, Marion, and Morris Counties. Sexton has filled in since August for retiring judge Michael Powers. Sexton was a prosecutor and in private practice before being appointed a district judge in 2001.

Hillsboro to celebrate season Saturday

Hillsboro plans a slate of Christmas activities Saturday. Activities include: 9 to 11 a.m. — Midway Motors will sponsor a visit from The Grinch. Free digital photos with kids will be taken and sent to parents.

Santa to visit Florence

Santa Claus will make his annual visit to Florence this weekend at the Masonic Center. Bennie Holtsclaw will begin the festivities, sharing music and leading the singing of carols at 5:30 p.m. Saturday.

Peabody to offer afternoon and evening of holiday fun

Peabody’s third Come Home for Christmas celebration Saturday will last from early afternoon until late in the evening. Last year’s event was canceled because of COVID-19.

Public invited to sing hymns

Favorite hymns, old and new, will resound at a community “hymn sign” 6:30 p.m. Sunday at Parkview Mennonite Brethren Church, 610 S. Main St., Hillsboro.

Goessel concert set

The 16-piece McPherson Community Brass Choir will perform a Christmas brass concert at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 12 in the Goessel High School gymnasium. The concert will include Goessel High School’s Elbiata Singers.

Christian trio to sing

Contemporary Christian trio Selah will perform at 7 p.m. Saturday at McPherson Opera House. Tickets are $35 to $59 for adults and $20 for students and are available from the box office at (620) 241-1952.

Janice Goertz

Services for retired Concrete Products co-owner and former high school and college business educator Janice (Plett) Goertz, 83, Hillsboro, who died Sunday, will be 11 a.m. Saturday at Shari Flaming Center for the Arts at Tabor College. Masks are requested. She married Glenn Goertz on May 30, 1960, at Johannestal Mennonite Church near Hillsboro.

John Holub

Services for Marion native John Richard Holub, 68, who died Saturday at his home in Udall, will be 11 a.m. Saturday at St. John Nepomucene Catholic Church in Pilsen, preceded at 10:30 a.m. by a Rosary. He was born July 8, 1953, in Marion to Theo and Dora Mae (Thomas) Holub.

Aileen Miller

Services for Aileen Miller, 92, who died Sunday at Newton Medical Center, will be Friday. A graveside service will be 10 a.m. at Durham Park Cemetery, rural Durham, followed by a funeral at 11 a.m. at Hillsboro United Methodist Church.

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Cattle start their winter grazing - on turnips

As fall winds down and winter gets ready to come, many cattle in Marion County are grazing on crops planted for the dual reasons of soil conservation and feed. Tim Kaufman’s cattle contentedly munched on oats Friday. Long radishes planted along with the oats were mostly sticking out of the ground with the leaves shorn off.

Mom's picture 2nd in state

A spur-of-the-moment smart phone photo of her son getting excited about a tractor won Amanda Pagenkopf of Lost Springs second place in the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s 2021 rural photo contest. “My husband’s brother was out planting beans in the field next to our house,” Pagenkopf said. “I had gone over to talk to him and grabbed Augustus and his wagon. He is just crazy about tractors and stuff like that, so while he was smiling, I took a photo.”

4-H offers activity guide

A new 4-H guide to holiday activities includes 20 cookie recipes and 15 at-home activities for children. It is available online at https://4-h.org/about/4-h-at-home/holidays/ and in person from county extension offices.

Questions and answers on city dysfunction

In an attack reminiscent of some leveled in the past at former mayor Mary Olson, current mayor David Mayfield and incoming protégé Zach Collett, whose candidacy Mayfield strongly endorsed, pilloried council member Ruth Herbel in not-so-subtle tones Monday night. “That needs to stop,” he told Herbel in a manner best described as scolding. “That needs to stop right now.”

ANOTHER DAY IN THE COUNTRY:

Senior center menus

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