By Dewey Terrill

JC Post

Junction City firefighters responded to 1902 Thompson Drive on the north side of the city at 1:15 p.m. Wednesday. Fire Chief Terry Johnson said they arrived on scene and found a grass fire behind houses in the 1900 block of Thompson Drive. “The fire is under investigation but there was no property damage other than the tall grass between the houses and the field that was on fire.”  There were no injuries.

On the distance of the fire from the houses, Johnson confirmed the fire came within four to five feet of the fence line. “But with the way the occupants are keeping their yards clean we were easily able to contain that.”

Firefighters were on scene for approximately 45 minutes.

( Photos courtesy of Sarina Irwin )

The JROTC program at Junction City high school was the focus for the JC Breakfast Optimist Club at their meeting on Wednesday.

LTC Richard Hodgson, Senior Army Instructor for he JROTC program at Junction City High School; Cadet LTC Magdalena Solis, Cadet Commander of he JCHS Blue Jay Battalion and Cadet Major Savannah Green, Cadet XO of the JCHS Blue Jay Battalion.

Hodgson said there are 150 cadets in grades 9-12 enrolled in the JROTC program. The Battalion splits their class meetings every other day with some Cadets meeting on “Blue Days”  and others on “White Days.” Cadets are required to wear their JROTC uniforms on those days, when in parades, at the military ball and other special events of the Battalion.

Optimist Club members learned from Hodgson and Solis that their role “is not to recruit students for the military, but to develop quality citizens at school and in their community.” Ways Cadets contributed to the community this school year were through projects for the Food Pantry in Junction City, toy drives for younger children and a clean-up project at the Black Jack Battlefield and Nature Park in Baldwin City, Kansas.

In addition to classes in which each student is enrolled, Cadets participate in competitions with other schools with similar programs. The competitions range from air rifle shooting and drill team to color guard and Raiders “which is the most physically demanding of all the competitions,” LTC Hodgson stated.  The JCHS Raiders team also captured first place in a national competition with 19 other programs this school year.

Another accolade for the Battalion this year was completion of their GPA, which is a rigorous review of the JROTC program held every three years. It involves an inspection of the facilities, program individual cadets and their community involvement. The Battalion received a 98% rating.

Solis plans to apply for an ROTC scholarship and attend Texas A&M with a career goal of becoming an anesthesiologist. Green will apply for an ROTC scholarship at the University of Oklahoma or enlist in the Army with a goal of eventually becoming a teacher of Biology students in USD 475.

New sod is being laid in the outfield at Rathert Field this week. It’s part of the improvement project under way at the local ballpark.

Once the sod is in officials confirm there will be a three-week waiting period before baseball play can begin on the field.

The new artificial turf for the infield and foul territories has been installed.

GEARY COUNTY — One person was injured in an accident just after 4p.m. Tuesday in Geary County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2019 Freightliner semi driven by Jerry Douglas Willhite, Jr., 47, Duncan, OK, was south bound on U.S. 77 four miles south of Junction City.

The semi traveled into west ditch, struck and bolted over a private driveway and came to rest in the west ditch on its side

Willhite and passengers Jerry Douglas Willhite, 70, and Phyllis D. Willhite, 66, both of Duncan, OK., were transported to Geary County Community Hospital.

Phyllis Willhite was sitting on the back of the bunk seat and not restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

The R2B4 Bramlage Family Foundation and the Hoover-Koken Foundation have announced that they will jointly sponsor a lecture series at the C.L. Hoover Opera House. The two local community foundations anticipate sponsoring a lecture two times a year. The lectures this calendar year will be free of charge, however, those attending will be asked to make a free-will offering to a local charity or charities designated by each speaker.

The first speaker for the lecture series will be Kevin WIllmott, who grew up in Junction City. The topic of his speech will be “WHY I LOVE JUNCTION CITY.” The lecture is scheduled Sunday, April 28th at 2 p.m. at the C.L. Hoover Opera House. After the lecture, Willmott will be available for a meet and greet in the Walker Reception Hall at the C. L. Hoover Opera House.

WIllmott recently won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for his work on the movie “BlackKkKlansman.” The two local charities designated by Willmott to split the proceeds of the free-will offering from the audience members will be St. Francis Xavier Catholic School and the Junction City Martin Luther King Committee.

The new Superintendent of Schools in Geary USD 475, Dr. Reginald Eggleston, was introduced to Geary USD 475 staff on Monday evening at the Board of Education’s quarterly celebration meeting.

“I am committed to working hard for the families of the Geary County schools community, and I am excited to collaborate with business partners, area leaders and the community as a whole while we continue to provide quality education for our children.”

During the celebration meeting students and staff were honored for their accomplishments and awards. Challenge awards were presented to Grandview, Milford, Washington and Westwood Elementary Schools, the Horizon award to Abigail Buser of Westwood Elementary, Sanford Teacher Award to Reina Cruz of Junction City High School and the Tech Innovator honor to Shane Fairchild of Milford Elementary School.

The new superintendent also participated in a two hour work session with the school board at Junction City Middle School after the celebration meeting. Earlier in the day he visited with schools and met with staff.

Summer program is looking for Kansas families to host youth

 

CLAY CENTER, Kan. – It may have seemed like an unlikely pairing.

 

In 1977, 17-year-old farm girl Rose Scott begged her parents to sign up for a 4-H program that paired Kansas families with foreign exchange students from Japan.

 

They relented, and for part of that next summer, 13-year-old Hiroe Yoshioka took up residence at the Scott’s home in rural Clay County.

 

“We had been writing back and forth to the family (in Japan) to introduce ourselves and kind of learn what to expect,” Rose Scott remembers. “We met Hiroe at the extension office; she got off the bus and they said, ‘Here’s Hiroe and here’s the Scott family. Now go have some fun.”

 

That was 42 years ago, marking not only the start of a lifetime friendship for two girls who lived a half world apart, but also the first year that Kansas 4-H had participated in an exchange program with the island country.

 

“There were about 170 (Japanese students) who came to Kansas that first year,” Scott said. “They were transported to their host county via a Greyhound bus.”

 

This summer, the Kansas 4-H program’s exchange program with Japan will continue with about 25 Japanese youth expected to be in Kansas for about four weeks beginning in mid-July. Like the Scott family 42 years ago, many of the families will be hosting a Japanese student for the first time.

 

“A lot of people are afraid, particularly with the Japanese, that they won’t know enough English,” said Mary Kay Munson of Junction City , who helps to coordinate several 4-H exchange programs in Kansas.

 

“But other families have learned that the students don’t need to know English well. They find out really quickly that if they will just relax and let the kids play, do what kids do – such as go to the pool – they get along without language pretty well. They find out that the (Japanese) kid speaks a lot more than they thought.”

 

Munson notes that the program with Japan has had the longest continued success in Kansas, but the state’s 4-H office also coordinates programs with Finland, Norway, Costa Rica, Korea, Taiwan, Greece, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Russia, Belarus and several countries in Africa.

 

All told, she expects that approximately 60 Kansas families will have an opportunity to host a foreign exchange student for about a month this summer. Two Kansas kids will visit one of the foreign countries this summer as part of the outbound program.

 

“We’re always looking for more families, and especially families that will host older teens,” Munson said.

 

The state’s 4-H office has a web page for families who want more information, or those wanting to learn more can call Munson at 785-238-3631.

 

Rose Scott is now the coordinator for the 4-H Japanese Summer Inbound Exchange program in Kansas. She said she hopes to help others enjoy the excitement she felt as a soon-to-be high school senior and welcoming Hiroe into her home.

 

“When Hiroe was in Kansas, the thing that intrigued me so much was how excited she got about stuff that I took for granted, like wide open spaces, stars in the sky, and hearing a thunderstorm,” Scott said. “Hearing the thunder and seeing the lightning go across the sky…she would just squeal.”

 

The following summer, Scott traveled to Japan through the 4-H exchange program and stayed with Hiroe’s family.

 

“Again, how mom and dad agreed to it, I don’t know,” Scott said. “I was just graduating from high school. The Yoshioka family hosted me and I got to see what Hiroe’s day-to-day was like.”

 

Scott remembers the shock of going from a state with wide open spaces and 2 million people to a crowded country with 10 million people in Tokyo alone.

 

“When we went out sight-seeing, we made a point to look at what color shirts we were wearing so I could spot somebody in a crowd,” Scott said.

 

Munson notes that experiencing differing cultures helps to shape youth’s futures.

 

“People may think the value is in the kids that go abroad, but the bigger impact I think is the ones who host here, because they reach a whole family, and a lot of the families have children in preschool up to high school,” she said. “Those kids have a broader view of the world, and they have an enhanced interest in what is going on around the world.”

 

Deryl Waldren, the northwest area 4-H Youth Development specialist in Colby, said that participants reported higher scores in their ability to be independent, speak English and make friends after completing the program.

 

4-H International Exchange Program

https://www.kansas4-h.org/events-activities/global-citizenship/kansas-4-h-international-exchanges

 

Story by:

Pat Melgares

 

 

 

 

 

The prominent Glenn Miller Orchestra performed in Junction City at the C.L. Hoover Opera House. They performed such classics as In the Mood, Moonlight Serenade, Chattanooga Choo Choo, Pennsylvania 6-5000, String of Pearls and Tuxedo.

The history of the orchestra dates back 75 years.

There was a large turnout from the public for the performance on Sunday.

( Photos courtesy of Mark Ediger )

There was a concerted effort to beautify and restore the flower beds on Saturday downtown on Washington Street between 6th and 10th Streets.

City Commissioner Phyllis Fitzgerald credited volunteers with helping with the project, “Heidi Morgan and a bunch of her crew, and a bunch of my normal Saturday folks that help me volunteer. ” Flower beds were cleaned out, trimmed, weeds were pulled out, new mulch applied and some new flowers were put in place.

Amanda Rempe with Keller-Williams Hometown Professionals in Wichita called it Red Day. “That is a national thing that our whole entire franchise does where the agents in our company give back to the community that they serve.” Keller-Williams Hometown Professionals is a realty

Heidi Morgan, Robin Martino, Missy Blacketer and Alex Lewis were among agents helping with the project.

An annual tradition continued Saturday night in the Bradley Gym at St. Xavier School. Principal Shawn Augustine said the money all goes toward the school. “So anything that we need here at the school, even just ordinary operations of the school, anything that we need to do with repairs and continued improvements that’s what this all about tonight.” Augustine noted the auction typically raises close to $100,000.

One of the popular auction items was dinner with Father Kyle Berens.

Money was also raised to support lighting upgrades this summer in Buildings A and B, the facilities by the office and those running from the gym down to the preschool.

Numerous community members attend the auction. One of those was Theresa Gatza, who attends every year. “Kay, my sister-in-law always gets a table and invites family members, and it’s kind of a family affair that we do every year.”

City Manager Allen Dinkel noted he and his wife Paula are supporters of the school. He noted two of his daughters went to a parochial Catholic school in western Kansas and they want to give back. “I think it’s important because as city manager I see the need for having multiple education routes, and I think it’s great that we have a private school for those that want to use that route.”