In 2014 there were 242 children entered Child in Need of Care Court cases in the 8th Judicial District. CASA ( Court Appointed Special Advocates )  volunteers served 129 children.

CASA director Tiffany Clark said the organization wants to serve every child in the district.  Donations are being sought to support the supervision and training for 53 volunteers waiting for a training class to begin.

The fundraising effort is called the 2-4-2 Campaign.

According to CASA Director Tiffany Clark, they are looking for 242 people to donate $15 per month to CASA to sponsor one CASA child and one CASA volunteer. If that goal can be accomplished the money would fund the four part-time supervisors that need to be hired to provided support and direction for CASA volunteers. The money would also cover the $6,000 needed to train those volunteers.

The 8th Judicial District covers Geary, Marion, Morris, and Dickinson counties.

 

Warmer temperatures will cause very high fire danger today and tomorrow. Wind gusts tomorrow will be 20 to 30 mph out of the south. Showers and thunderstorms will be possible tomorrow night and again later in the day Sunday. A few storms may be strong to severe late Sunday.

Today: Sunny. Highs around 68. West winds 5 to 10 mph.

Tonight: Partly cloudy. Lows around 42. South winds around 5 mph.

Saturday: Partly sunny. Highs around 71. South winds 5 to 15 mph increasing to 15 to 20 mph with gusts to around 30 mph in the afternoon.

Saturday Night: Warmer. Mostly cloudy with a 50 percent chance of thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 50s. South winds 10 to 15 mph with gusts to around 25 mph.

Sunday: Partly sunny with a 50 percent chance of thunderstorms. Highs in the lower 70s. Southwest winds 10 to 15 mph with gusts to around 25 mph.

Sunday Night: Colder. Partly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 40s.

Monday Through Tuesday: Partly cloudy. Highs in the upper 60s. Lows in the lower 40s.

Tuesday Night And Wednesday: Partly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of thunderstorms. Lows in the upper 40s. Highs in the lower 70s.

Wednesday Night And Thursday: Mostly cloudy. A 30 percent chance of thunderstorms. Lows in the upper 40s. Highs in the mid 60s.

The K-State Open House will be held on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. There are many events planned from over 250 majors and 475-plus student organizations. Around 20,000 people attend the carnival-like event, and it is free!

To see a full list of events for Saturday, you can go to www.k-state.edu/openhouse/events/!

 

The first draft of the proposed update to the Junction City – Geary County comprehensive plan did not include information on the emergency operations in the county.

There were references to the rural fire department, but not emergency management.

The problem will be corrected in a final draft, however.

Geary County Emergency Management Director and Rural Fire Chief Garry Berges told the Metropolitan Planning Commission Thursday night at the Municipal Building that emergency management is as vital as anyone else in the plan. “Whether it be the fire department, police department, because by state statute we’re here to protect the citizens of Geary County, Junction City, Grandview Plaza, and Milford.”

Grammatical issues and internal editing must still be addressed and completed on the plan, which is being done by RDG of Omaha, Nebraska. And there has been a call by the Dorothy Bramlage Public Library for some different language in the plan as well. Planning and Zoning Administrator David Yearout noted the plan acknowledges and recommends an expansion of the Library. “But she ( Library Director Susan Moyer )  felt that the manner in which it was discussed needs to be tweaked to be a little more supportive without having to do additional studies.”

The public hearing on the proposed update to the comprehensive plan was continued from Thursday night to the Planning Board’s meeting in May.

The Junction City Capital Campaign is nearing the finish line and has raised over $1.03 million to go towards economic development.

Jerry Hinson, Campaign Director updated the Economic Development Commission Advisory Committee Thursday.

“As we sit here today we have 82 investors, $1,037,750., we have some others that are pending decision. I think the goal is within sight. Can we exceed that? Yes. I think we’ve done to date what we said we were going to do,” said Hinson.

The campaign has brought investors to the table from all over the region,”from Topeka to Salina.”

The Campaign will wrap up on April 30th and the investors will meet on May 5th to elect the inaugural campaign board made up of investors to oversee how the campaign funds are distributed.

The Junction City Geary County United Way has reached 90 percent of it’s $175,000 goal with about a month left in the campaign.

During the annual volunteer appreciation luncheon Aileen Cray, United Way Director announced that they have raised $156,100.

“We will continue obviously doing any additional fundraising or collecting any surprises that come in the mail, which happens periodically when you have a national corporation and you won’t get numbers from the exactly until they send you a check,” said Cray.

Cray said that Junction City and Geary County is more than capable of helping them reach their $175,000 goal, and is hopeful they will receive more donations over the next month.

The campaign benefits 15 local agencies serving the community in many different capacities.

This year 44 percent of the funds were invested in Healthcare through agencies such as Delivering Change, JC Pacesetters and the JC YMCA; 29 percent of the funds went towards safety net services such as American Red Cross, Food Pantry and Open Door; 11 percent went to Education through agencies such as Big Brothers Big Sisters and Girl Scouts; and 16 percent went towards income stability through agencies  such as Housing and Credit, Counseling and Kansas Legal Services.

The Fort Riley Middle School Wellness Committee has announced their annual Wellness Fair will be held April 15, 7:50 a.m. until 2:50 p.m. It’s designed to provide students the opportunity to learn about several different dimensions of wellness, including social, emotional, spiritual, environmental, occupational, financial, and physical wellness.

Different area clubs, businesses, and individuals have been invited to present to the students in their area of wellness.

Some of the vendors from the local communities that are planning to attend include Hackerott’s Leadership Academy, DENTAC, Irwin Army Hospital, Ft. Riley Fire Department, Chapman Middle School Archery Program, U.S. Tennis Association, Army Substance Abuse Program, Hildebrand Dairy, JCHS Jr. ROTC, Central National Bank, and Cloud County Community College Agri-Biotechnology Mobile Science Laboratory.

The annual fundraiser for the Geary County 4-H / Senior Center building is Saturday, April 11.

The entertainment will be provided by cowboy poet, Glen Brunkow.

Doors open at 5 p.m. with a silent auction. Dinner will be served from 6-7 p.m. followed by  a live auction.

Tickets are $12 and are available from the Geary County Extension Office, Senior Citizens Center, or members of the Building Committee. They include Ron Strauss, Diana Gauntt, Jack Rider, Ray Kruse, and Roger McKibben.

Funds raised will support maintenance and improvements to the building, which serves as home to many activities ranging from the Geary County Free Fair and 3rd Grade Ag Day to rentals.

An answers for older Kansans workshop, “Health Care Decisions,” will be held Thursday, April 16, at 11 a.m. at the Geary County Senior Cener at 1025 South Spring Valley Road.  The workshop is sponsored by the North Central-Flint Hills Area Agency on Aging.

Those who attend will be able to hear from Paul Shipp, a managing attorney with Kansas Legal Services, about healthcare decisions. You can learn about durable powers of attorney and living wills, and meet with an attorney to set up or review documents. Appointments are required.

Lunch will be provided, and donations accepted. You need to register by noon the day before the event to reserve lunch. Attorney appointments begin at 1 p.m.   For information or to register contact Cindy Brake at 800-432-2703 or 785-776-9294, or send an email to cindyb@ncfhaaa.com.

The lack of a landscape ordinance in Junction City was brought up again during Tuesday mornings Economic Development Commission Advisory Committee meeting.

Committee Member Gary Schoenrock explained that he feels the city needs at least a minimal landscape ordinance on the books.

“I think Junction City is to the point in its life and beauty of the community that we really need to have some minimum requirements for landscaping these new developments and new commercial areas,” said Schoenrock. “We’re primed for some great growth and now is the time, before we have anymore concrete only parking lots with no tree’s and no green areas, that for the future of this community and the appearance of our community it’s time to get something on the books.”

The Committee passed a motion to send the discussion on to the City Commission where it will likely go back to city staff to address the issue.

Other communities in the area that compete with Junction City for new business do have some type of ordinance on the books according to Dave Yearout, Zoning and Planning Administrator,”just in the immediate area Salina has standards, Manhattan has some standards.”

A landscape ordinance has been discussed before in the past and has not gained much support from city staff or the commission.

Yearout expects the matter to be on a City Commission agenda within the next couple of weeks.