Clifton Leon “Cliff” Riggs Sr., 85, 
Hays, died Saturday, January 29, 2022, at the Hays Good Samaritan 
Center.&nbsp; He was born October 26, 1936, in Dennison, Texas the son of 
Corine (West) Riggs-Branch.&nbsp; 

Cliff graduated from Yuba, Oklahoma, High 
School in 1955 and was a Sergeant in the U.S. Army serving with the 
second battalion, 180th infantry.&nbsp; He was a salesman for Tennison 
Brothers for many years, serving his customers’ needs for quality 
building products across six states.&nbsp; On July 6, 1963, he was united in 
marriage to Mary A. Brungardt at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Hays.&nbsp; He
 was a member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church, the 
third-degree Knights of Columbus council #6984, the Bishop Cunningham 
Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus, the Hays American Legion, and the 
Ellis Golf Course.&nbsp; He enjoyed golfing with friends and couples golf, 
building and fixing golf clubs, and was an excellent handyman, able to 
fix almost anything for friends and family.&nbsp; He possessed a beautiful 
voice and passion for singing at a young age and that matured into 
singing for numerous weddings, funerals, anniversaries, and masses at 
his church.&nbsp; In addition to being an avid KU Basketball fan, Cliff was 
honest, hardworking, and a true man of integrity who loved his family 
and especially loved his grandchildren, giving them horsey rides, 
playing Santa at Christmas, and taking them fishing.

Survivors include his wife Mary, of 
Hays, three sons:&nbsp; Jeffrey Riggs of Wichita, Clifton Riggs, Jr. and wife
 Ramona of Hutchinson, and Cory Riggs of Tulsa, OK, a daughter:&nbsp; 
Michelle Whitlow of Oklahoma City, two brothers:&nbsp; Jack Branch and wife 
Cynthia of Salinas, CA and Roy Newman Branch and wife Vickie of Hendrix,
 OK, eleven grandchildren:&nbsp; Justin Riggs and wife Darcie, Aaron Riggs, 
Clifton Riggs, III and wife Sara, Dominic Riggs, Charles Whitlow, Corine
 Cammack and husband Dillon, Taylor Riggs, Sara Riggs, Ashley Riggs, 
Samantha Riggs, and Alley Riggs, eight great grandchildren: Atlas, Iris,
 Margot, Tre, Zeke, Braxton, Avyana, and Matthew, and one on the way in 
April.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Corine Branch, and a great grandson, Corbin Michael Whitlow.

Mass of Christian Burial will be at 
10:00 am on Saturday, February 12, 2022, at Immaculate Heart of Mary 
Catholic Church with Fr. Nick Parker officiating.&nbsp; Inurnment will follow
 with military honors by the Hays VFW #9076 Honor Guard in St. Joseph 
Cemetery.&nbsp; Visitation will be from 6:00 pm until 8:00 on Friday, 
February 11, 2022, at Hays Memorial Chapel Funeral Home and on Saturday 
from 9:00 am until service time at the church.&nbsp; A vigil service will be 
at 6:30 pm on Friday followed by a combined third and fourth-degree 
Knights of Columbus rosary.&nbsp; 

Memorials are suggested to Immaculate Heart
 of Mary Catholic Church building fund.&nbsp; Condolences and memories of 
Cliff may be shared with the family at www.haysmemorial.com

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643648117812.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Clifton Leon “Cliff” Riggs Sr., 85, 
Hays, died Saturday, January 29, 2022, at the Hays Good Samaritan 
Center.&nbsp; He was born October 26, 1936, in Dennison, Texas the son of 
Corine (West) Riggs-Branch.&nbsp; Cliff graduated from Yuba, Oklahoma, High 
School in 1955 and was a Sergeant in the U.S. Army serving with the 
second battalion, 180th infantry.&nbsp; He was a salesman for Tennison 
Brothers for many years, serving his customers’ needs for quality 
building products across six states.&nbsp; On July 6, 1963, he was united in 
marriage to Mary A. Brungardt at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Hays.&nbsp; He
 was a member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church, the 
third-degree Knights of Columbus council #6984, the Bishop Cunningham 
Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus, the Hays American Legion, and the 
Ellis Golf Course.&nbsp; He enjoyed golfing with friends and couples golf, 
building and fixing golf clubs, and was an excellent handyman, able to 
fix almost anything for friends and family.&nbsp; He possessed a beautiful 
voice and passion for singing at a young age and that matured into 
singing for numerous weddings, funerals, anniversaries, and masses at 
his church.&nbsp; In addition to being an avid KU Basketball fan, Cliff was 
honest, hardworking, and a true man of integrity who loved his family 
and especially loved his grandchildren, giving them horsey rides, 
playing Santa at Christmas, and taking them fishing.Survivors include his wife Mary, of 
Hays, three sons:&nbsp; Jeffrey Riggs of Wichita, Clifton Riggs, Jr. and wife
 Ramona of Hutchinson, and Cory Riggs of Tulsa, OK, a daughter:&nbsp; 
Michelle Whitlow of Oklahoma City, two brothers:&nbsp; Jack Branch and wife 
Cynthia of Salinas, CA and Roy Newman Branch and wife Vickie of Hendrix,
 OK, eleven grandchildren:&nbsp; Justin Riggs and wife Darcie, Aaron Riggs, 
Clifton Riggs, III and wife Sara, Dominic Riggs, Charles Whitlow, Corine
 Cammack and husband Dillon, Taylor Riggs, Sara Riggs, Ashley Riggs, 
Samantha Riggs, and Alley Riggs, eight great grandchildren: Atlas, Iris,
 Margot, Tre, Zeke, Braxton, Avyana, and Matthew, and one on the way in 
April.He was preceded in death by his mother, Corine Branch, and a great grandson, Corbin Michael Whitlow.Mass of Christian Burial will be at 
10:00 am on Saturday, February 12, 2022, at Immaculate Heart of Mary 
Catholic Church with Fr. Nick Parker officiating.&nbsp; Inurnment will follow
 with military honors by the Hays VFW #9076 Honor Guard in St. Joseph 
Cemetery.&nbsp; Visitation will be from 6:00 pm until 8:00 on Friday, 
February 11, 2022, at Hays Memorial Chapel Funeral Home and on Saturday 
from 9:00 am until service time at the church.&nbsp; A vigil service will be 
at 6:30 pm on Friday followed by a combined third and fourth-degree 
Knights of Columbus rosary.&nbsp; Memorials are suggested to Immaculate Heart
 of Mary Catholic Church building fund.&nbsp; Condolences and memories of 
Cliff may be shared with the family at www.haysmemorial.com

Clifton Leon 'Cliff' Riggs Sr.

Orchestra students, nationally board certified teachers also honored

By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays Post

The Hays USD 489 school board accepted a check for $45,000 from the USD 489 Foundation for Educational Excellence at its meeting Jan. 24.

The foundation had its annual dinner fundraiser in October.

The foundation was able to raise an additional $13,000 for the foundation's grant program.

"We were just blown away by the support of the community, the businesses, the donors, the sponsorship," said Curtis Brown, foundation board chairman.

Over four years, the foundation has raised more than $180,000 for school security upgrades, Brown said.

Other foundation grants have paid for renovations at Westside school, tech upgrades at the middle school, purchase of a laser engraver, purchase of books, to fix or replace broken musical instruments and purchase PE equipment at O'Loughlin Elementary School. 

The board also recognized Hays High students Sydney Wittkorn and Kiersten Goertzen for making All- State Orchestra.

The board recognized Laura Gaughan, Kay Shippy and Kim Schmeidler as becoming nationally board certified teachers.

Gaughan completed her certificate in 2021, while Shippy and Schmeidler finished their certification in 2020, but because of COVID, the board was unable to give them the proper recognition.&nbsp;

Gaughan has been teaching for 30 years with 27 of those years in USD 489.&nbsp; Shippy is in her 31st&nbsp;year of teaching with all those years at USD 489. Schmeidler has been teaching at USD 489 for 21 years and has a total of 25 years in education.

"We are proud of the time and effort you put into passing the National Board Certification and truly grateful you have chosen to teach the students of USD 489," Superintendent Ron Wilson said. 

"We are better because of you. Congratulations again on your achievement. Reminder that out of the 3 million teachers in the U.S., only 125,000 are nationally board certified. This is quite an accomplishment, and we are proud of you."

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643664624300.png" alt="Members of the USD 489 Foundation for Educational Excellence present $45,000 to the Hays school board on Jan. 24. " />
 <figcaption>Members of the USD 489 Foundation for Educational Excellence present $45,000 to the Hays school board on Jan. 24. </figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Orchestra students, nationally board certified teachers also honored</h2>By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays Post The Hays USD 489 school board accepted a check for $45,000 from the USD 489 Foundation for Educational Excellence at its meeting Jan. 24.The foundation had its annual dinner fundraiser in October. The foundation was able to raise an additional $13,000 for the foundation's grant program."We were just blown away by the support of the community, the businesses, the donors, the sponsorship," said Curtis Brown, foundation board chairman.Over four years, the foundation has raised more than $180,000 for school security upgrades, Brown said.Other foundation grants have paid for renovations at Westside school, tech upgrades at the middle school, purchase of a laser engraver, purchase of books, to fix or replace broken musical instruments and purchase PE equipment at O'Loughlin Elementary School. <figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643664739784.png" alt="Hays High orchestra students Sydney Wittkorn and Kiersten Goertzen" />
 <figcaption>Hays High orchestra students Sydney Wittkorn and Kiersten Goertzen</figcaption>
 </figure>The board also recognized Hays High students Sydney Wittkorn and Kiersten Goertzen for making All- State Orchestra.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643664812231.png" alt="Laura Gaughan, Kay Shippy and Kim Schmeidleras, nationally board certified teachers." />
 <figcaption>Laura Gaughan, Kay Shippy and Kim Schmeidleras, nationally board certified teachers.</figcaption>
 </figure>The board recognized Laura Gaughan, Kay Shippy and Kim Schmeidler as becoming nationally board certified teachers.Gaughan completed her certificate in 2021, while Shippy and Schmeidler finished their certification in 2020, but because of COVID, the board was unable to give them the proper recognition.&nbsp;Gaughan has been teaching for 30 years with 27 of those years in USD 489.&nbsp; Shippy is in her 31st&nbsp;year of teaching with all those years at USD 489. Schmeidler has been teaching at USD 489 for 21 years and has a total of 25 years in education."We are proud of the time and effort you put into passing the National Board Certification and truly grateful you have chosen to teach the students of USD 489," Superintendent Ron Wilson said. "We are better because of you. Congratulations again on your achievement. Reminder that out of the 3 million teachers in the U.S., only 125,000 are nationally board certified. This is quite an accomplishment, and we are proud of you."

USD 489 Foundation presents district with $45,000 for security upgrades

Crude futures prices inched upward from seven-year highs Monday. The settlement price on Friday for Nymex benchmark crude was $86.82 per barrel.&nbsp; That's up nearly two dollars on the week and about ten dollars a barrel higher than at the first of the year. The last time the international crude-oil benchmark traded above $91 a barrel was in early October 2014, at the beginning of a long slide in prices. Monday morning on the ICE in London, Brent crude was fetching $91.14 per barrel. Kansas Common crude is about $12 higher than at the first of the year and up more than $34 a barrel from a year ago. Prices at CHS in McPherson start the week at $77 a barrel. Statewide drilling activity, based on spudded wells, is slightly ahead of last year in Kansas. Independent Oil &amp; Gas Service says the 60 wells spudded thus far in 2022 outpace last year by 21 wells. There are 30 active operators in the state, compared with 26 at this time last year. The Rig Count in Kansas is up one rig in eastern Kansas to 17, and up one west of Wichita at 26. Operators were preparing to spud one well in Barton County and two in Ellis County. Drilling was underway on a lease in Russell County. Kansas regulators approved 14 new drilling locations across the state last week. There are six new permits in eastern Kansas, and eight in the western half of the state, including one in Ellis County. Independent Oil &amp; Gas Service reports 32 newly completed wells in Kansas, 17 east of Wichita, and 15 in western Kansas. US crude inventories reached 416.2 million barrels as of January 21st, an increase of 2.4 million barrels. The Energy Information Administration said stockpiles are about eight percent below the five-year seasonal average. The government report contradicts weekly numbers from the American Petroleum Institute, which reported a drawdown in supplies. US crude production declined last week for the third consecutive week. The government reported we pumped just short of 11.65 million barrels per day in the week through January 21st, which is down about 6,000 barrels per day from the week before. Output is more than one and a half million barrels per day higher than the same period last year. Pump prices are on the rise nationally but dropping locally. The auto club AAA says the national average price for a gallon of regular rose three cents over the last a week to just over $3.36 per gallon. Prices in Kansas rose to an average just shy of $3.07. It dropped under $3.00 a gallon at several outlets across Hays and Great Bend. The average cost for a 15-gallon fill-up is &nbsp;nearly two dollars higher than a month ago. Oil-by-rail traffic last week was down amid a ten percent drop in total rail traffic. The Association of American Railroads reports 9,608 carloads of petroleum rolling the rails in the week through January 22nd.&nbsp; That's down 174 cars from the week before and more than 23% lower than a year ago. Canadian traffic we\as down more than 1,000 carloads for the week, marking an 11% drop year-over-year. Researchers at the University of Oklahoma are rolling out a project to repurpose abandoned oil and gas wells to provide geothermal energy to heat nearby public schools. Under the project funded by the Energy Department, they hope to bring hot, underground water to the surface to create steam to rotate turbines. The project still requires proof-of-concept and field work (about three years) before they can roll it out publicly. DOE awarded $1.7 million to fund the research.&nbsp; OPEC and its Russia-led partners have promised to increase oil production to pre-pandemic levels this year. But The Wall Street Journal reports they are falling short of those public commitments, and that's stoking fast-rising global crude prices. Last month, the OPEC-Plus group increased output by just 60% of what they promised for the month. The International Energy Agency reports the group is pumping 790,000 barrels per day below its publicly-stated targets.

By JOHN P. TRETBARCrude futures prices inched upward from seven-year highs Monday. The settlement price on Friday for Nymex benchmark crude was $86.82 per barrel.&nbsp; That's up nearly two dollars on the week and about ten dollars a barrel higher than at the first of the year. The last time the international crude-oil benchmark traded above $91 a barrel was in early October 2014, at the beginning of a long slide in prices. Monday morning on the ICE in London, Brent crude was fetching $91.14 per barrel. Kansas Common crude is about $12 higher than at the first of the year and up more than $34 a barrel from a year ago. Prices at CHS in McPherson start the week at $77 a barrel. Statewide drilling activity, based on spudded wells, is slightly ahead of last year in Kansas. Independent Oil &amp; Gas Service says the 60 wells spudded thus far in 2022 outpace last year by 21 wells. There are 30 active operators in the state, compared with 26 at this time last year. The Rig Count in Kansas is up one rig in eastern Kansas to 17, and up one west of Wichita at 26. Operators were preparing to spud one well in Barton County and two in Ellis County. Drilling was underway on a lease in Russell County. Kansas regulators approved 14 new drilling locations across the state last week. There are six new permits in eastern Kansas, and eight in the western half of the state, including one in Ellis County. Independent Oil &amp; Gas Service reports 32 newly completed wells in Kansas, 17 east of Wichita, and 15 in western Kansas. US crude inventories reached 416.2 million barrels as of January 21st, an increase of 2.4 million barrels. The Energy Information Administration said stockpiles are about eight percent below the five-year seasonal average. The government report contradicts weekly numbers from the American Petroleum Institute, which reported a drawdown in supplies. US crude production declined last week for the third consecutive week. The government reported we pumped just short of 11.65 million barrels per day in the week through January 21st, which is down about 6,000 barrels per day from the week before. Output is more than one and a half million barrels per day higher than the same period last year. Pump prices are on the rise nationally but dropping locally. The auto club AAA says the national average price for a gallon of regular rose three cents over the last a week to just over $3.36 per gallon. Prices in Kansas rose to an average just shy of $3.07. It dropped under $3.00 a gallon at several outlets across Hays and Great Bend. The average cost for a 15-gallon fill-up is &nbsp;nearly two dollars higher than a month ago. Oil-by-rail traffic last week was down amid a ten percent drop in total rail traffic. The Association of American Railroads reports 9,608 carloads of petroleum rolling the rails in the week through January 22nd.&nbsp; That's down 174 cars from the week before and more than 23% lower than a year ago. Canadian traffic we\as down more than 1,000 carloads for the week, marking an 11% drop year-over-year. Researchers at the University of Oklahoma are rolling out a project to repurpose abandoned oil and gas wells to provide geothermal energy to heat nearby public schools. Under the project funded by the Energy Department, they hope to bring hot, underground water to the surface to create steam to rotate turbines. The project still requires proof-of-concept and field work (about three years) before they can roll it out publicly. DOE awarded $1.7 million to fund the research.&nbsp; OPEC and its Russia-led partners have promised to increase oil production to pre-pandemic levels this year. But The Wall Street Journal reports they are falling short of those public commitments, and that's stoking fast-rising global crude prices. Last month, the OPEC-Plus group increased output by just 60% of what they promised for the month. The International Energy Agency reports the group is pumping 790,000 barrels per day below its publicly-stated targets.

News From the Oil Patch: Crude prices rise

Calvin Richard Ufford, 95, passed away January 28, 2022, in Overbrook, 
Ks, with his family by his side. He was born May 15, 1926, to Richard 
Herbert and Bertha Mae Peters Ufford, and raised southwest of Oberlin, 
Ks on the farm his grandfather homesteaded in 1874. He attended Addleman
 Country School and graduated from Decatur County High School in May 
1944. He also attended Kansas State University. On October 28, 1949, 
Calvin married Ruth JoAnn Lincoln in Oberlin. Two sons and a daughter 
were born to them. He was a veteran of World War II, serving in the U.S. Navy as a 
Motor Machinist Mate 3rd class, and honorably discharged on June 3, 
1946. He returned to Oberlin, and worked for the U.S. Soil Conservation 
Service, later moving to Hiawatha, Ks, for eight years, and then in 
Overbrook, Ks, for 11 years. He retired after 35 years service in 1981. 
In 1987 Calvin and JoAnn returned to Oberlin to live in the house he 
moved to 602 West Sappa Street in 1956. In 2020 he moved to Berryton, 
Ks., to live with his daughter, and later moved to Brookside Retirement 
Community, Overbrook. 
 Calvin provided leadership to Boy Scout troops in Oberlin and 
Hiawatha for many years. In addition, he served 9 years on the Overbrook
 City Council and twice served as Overbrook Mayor from April 1977 to 
April 1979, and again June 1985 to June 1987. He was well-known for his 
hobbies of hunting Indian artifacts, collecting antiques, woodworking, 
and antique tractor restoration. He was a member of the Overbrook United
 Methodist Church, the American Legion, and the Mini-Sappa Antique Club 
of Oberlin. In later years, he was often called upon to give narration of
 the last Indian raid in Kansas, which occurred in 1878 in Decatur 
County. 
 He was preceded in death by a son, Michael in 1951, his wife, JoAnn 
in 2011, and his parents. Survivors include a son, Richard Ufford and 
wife, Wendy, Carbondale, Ks; daughter, Janie Rutherford and husband, Rob
 Roy Rutherford III, Berryton, Ks.; grandchildren, Shannon Warthen and 
fiancé Joseph Pritchard, Sara Ufford, Corey Ufford and wife, Courtney, 
Rob Roy Rutherford IV and wife Isha; and James Rutherford and wife Amy; 
great-grandchildren, Colton Warthen, Casen Warthen, Stephon Johnson, 
Addison Ufford, Ember Jo Ufford, and Rob Roy Rutherford V, nieces and 
nephews.
 Services pending at Paul’s Funeral Home, Oberlin. For more information: www.paulsfh.com

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643654662142.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Calvin Richard Ufford, 95, passed away January 28, 2022, in Overbrook, 
Ks, with his family by his side. He was born May 15, 1926, to Richard 
Herbert and Bertha Mae Peters Ufford, and raised southwest of Oberlin, 
Ks on the farm his grandfather homesteaded in 1874. He attended Addleman
 Country School and graduated from Decatur County High School in May 
1944. He also attended Kansas State University. On October 28, 1949, 
Calvin married Ruth JoAnn Lincoln in Oberlin. Two sons and a daughter 
were born to them. He was a veteran of World War II, serving in the U.S. Navy as a 
Motor Machinist Mate 3rd class, and honorably discharged on June 3, 
1946. He returned to Oberlin, and worked for the U.S. Soil Conservation 
Service, later moving to Hiawatha, Ks, for eight years, and then in 
Overbrook, Ks, for 11 years. He retired after 35 years service in 1981. 
In 1987 Calvin and JoAnn returned to Oberlin to live in the house he 
moved to 602 West Sappa Street in 1956. In 2020 he moved to Berryton, 
Ks., to live with his daughter, and later moved to Brookside Retirement 
Community, Overbrook. 
 Calvin provided leadership to Boy Scout troops in Oberlin and 
Hiawatha for many years. In addition, he served 9 years on the Overbrook
 City Council and twice served as Overbrook Mayor from April 1977 to 
April 1979, and again June 1985 to June 1987. He was well-known for his 
hobbies of hunting Indian artifacts, collecting antiques, woodworking, 
and antique tractor restoration. He was a member of the Overbrook United
 Methodist Church, the American Legion, and the Mini-Sappa Antique Club 
of Oberlin. In later years, he was often called upon to give narration of
 the last Indian raid in Kansas, which occurred in 1878 in Decatur 
County. 
 He was preceded in death by a son, Michael in 1951, his wife, JoAnn 
in 2011, and his parents. Survivors include a son, Richard Ufford and 
wife, Wendy, Carbondale, Ks; daughter, Janie Rutherford and husband, Rob
 Roy Rutherford III, Berryton, Ks.; grandchildren, Shannon Warthen and 
fiancé Joseph Pritchard, Sara Ufford, Corey Ufford and wife, Courtney, 
Rob Roy Rutherford IV and wife Isha; and James Rutherford and wife Amy; 
great-grandchildren, Colton Warthen, Casen Warthen, Stephon Johnson, 
Addison Ufford, Ember Jo Ufford, and Rob Roy Rutherford V, nieces and 
nephews.
 Services pending at Paul’s Funeral Home, Oberlin. For more information: www.paulsfh.com

Calvin Richard Ufford

Lois Darlene Selle, 90, passed away on January 29, 2022, at her home 
in Great Bend, Kansas. She was born October 18, 1931, at Hudson, Kansas,
 to Willie &amp; Amelia (Erosiek) Fischer. Lois married Eugene G. Selle 
on October 23, 1949, at Peace Church, Hudson, Kansas.&nbsp; He died September
 16, 1996.

A life-time Great Bend resident, Louis worked as a homemaker. She was
 a member of the First Church of God and was an organist there. Lois was
 a known gardener, canner, crocheter, and enjoyed putting together 
jigsaw puzzles.

Survivors include two sons, Allen (Marilyn) Selle and Dwight (Carol) 
Selle, both of Great Bend, Kansas; a daughter, caregiver, and companion,
 Donna Selle of Great Bend, Kansas; sister-in-law, Juanita Fischer of 
St. John, Kansas; sister-in-law, Donna Fischer of Hudson, Kansas; and 
many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by
 her husband; son, Marvin Selle; and brothers, Glenn, Lawrence, Marvin, 
Gerald, and Leroy Fischer.

Visitation will be held from 9: 00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, 
February 2, 2022, with the family receiving guests from 5:00 p.m. to 
6:00 p.m., at Bryant Funeral Home. Funeral service will take place at 
10:30 a.m. Thursday, February 3, 2022, at Bryant Funeral Home, with 
Reverend Dick Ogle presiding. Interment will follow at Great Bend 
Cemetery. 

Memorials can be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
 or First Church of God, in care of Bryant Funeral Home.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643648178600.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Lois Darlene Selle, 90, passed away on January 29, 2022, at her home 
in Great Bend, Kansas. She was born October 18, 1931, at Hudson, Kansas,
 to Willie &amp; Amelia (Erosiek) Fischer. Lois married Eugene G. Selle 
on October 23, 1949, at Peace Church, Hudson, Kansas.&nbsp; He died September
 16, 1996.A life-time Great Bend resident, Louis worked as a homemaker. She was
 a member of the First Church of God and was an organist there. Lois was
 a known gardener, canner, crocheter, and enjoyed putting together 
jigsaw puzzles.Survivors include two sons, Allen (Marilyn) Selle and Dwight (Carol) 
Selle, both of Great Bend, Kansas; a daughter, caregiver, and companion,
 Donna Selle of Great Bend, Kansas; sister-in-law, Juanita Fischer of 
St. John, Kansas; sister-in-law, Donna Fischer of Hudson, Kansas; and 
many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by
 her husband; son, Marvin Selle; and brothers, Glenn, Lawrence, Marvin, 
Gerald, and Leroy Fischer.Visitation will be held from 9: 00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, 
February 2, 2022, with the family receiving guests from 5:00 p.m. to 
6:00 p.m., at Bryant Funeral Home. Funeral service will take place at 
10:30 a.m. Thursday, February 3, 2022, at Bryant Funeral Home, with 
Reverend Dick Ogle presiding. Interment will follow at Great Bend 
Cemetery. Memorials can be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
 or First Church of God, in care of Bryant Funeral Home.

Lois Darlene Selle

Greg Anderson, 57, died on Wednesday, January 26, 2022, at Lane County 
Hospital in Dighton. He was born on October 30, 1964, at Dighton the son
 of Jackie L. &amp; Fran L. (Kenoyer) Anderson. He married Chelle 
Marsteller on February 8, 1992. 
Greg graduated from Healy High School in 1983. He attended Fort Hays 
State University before going to work for Pilkington Construction. He 
moved back to Dighton and worked at Farmers Co-op Elevator, Lane County 
Feeders, Sexton at Dighton Memorial Cemetery and currently was an 
Equipment Operator for Kansas Department Of Transportation. Greg 
enjoyed fishing, hunting, golfing and always having his pet dogs. 
He is survived by his Wife- Chelle Anderson, Mother- Fran Ross of Ellis,
 Brother- Harold &amp; Eileen Anderson of Hays, Step-Mother- Yvonne 
Anderson of Lincoln, Nebraska, 2 Step-Sisters- LaFonda &amp; Dan Sharp 
of Healy and Rhonda &amp; Jeff Koehn of York, Nebraska and Step-Brother-
 Byler Sunley of Colorado Springs, Colorado. He was preceded in death 
by his Father. 
Memorial Service will be at 11:00 AM Thursday at United Methodist Church
 in Dighton with Rev Darrin Hammond officiating. There will be a 
private family burial at Dighton Memorial Cemetery. Memorials are 
suggested to the Greg Anderson Memorial Fund in care of Boomhower 
Funeral Home. Condolences may be posted at www.garnandfuneralhomes.com Boomhower Funeral Home Box 891. Dighton, Ks. 67839. 620-397-5792&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643637520252.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Greg Anderson, 57, died on Wednesday, January 26, 2022, at Lane County 
Hospital in Dighton. He was born on October 30, 1964, at Dighton the son
 of Jackie L. &amp; Fran L. (Kenoyer) Anderson. He married Chelle 
Marsteller on February 8, 1992. 
Greg graduated from Healy High School in 1983. He attended Fort Hays 
State University before going to work for Pilkington Construction. He 
moved back to Dighton and worked at Farmers Co-op Elevator, Lane County 
Feeders, Sexton at Dighton Memorial Cemetery and currently was an 
Equipment Operator for Kansas Department Of Transportation. Greg 
enjoyed fishing, hunting, golfing and always having his pet dogs. 
He is survived by his Wife- Chelle Anderson, Mother- Fran Ross of Ellis,
 Brother- Harold &amp; Eileen Anderson of Hays, Step-Mother- Yvonne 
Anderson of Lincoln, Nebraska, 2 Step-Sisters- LaFonda &amp; Dan Sharp 
of Healy and Rhonda &amp; Jeff Koehn of York, Nebraska and Step-Brother-
 Byler Sunley of Colorado Springs, Colorado. He was preceded in death 
by his Father. 
Memorial Service will be at 11:00 AM Thursday at United Methodist Church
 in Dighton with Rev Darrin Hammond officiating. There will be a 
private family burial at Dighton Memorial Cemetery. Memorials are 
suggested to the Greg Anderson Memorial Fund in care of Boomhower 
Funeral Home. Condolences may be posted at www.garnandfuneralhomes.com Boomhower Funeral Home Box 891. Dighton, Ks. 67839. 620-397-5792&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;

Greg Anderson

Virginia E. Taylor, 96, Alexander, Kansas, passed away Wednesday, 
January 26, 2022, at Rush County Memorial Hospital, La Crosse, Kansas.

Virginia was born November 9, 1925, in Alexander, Kansas, the 
daughter of Frank Avery and Josephine Myrtle (Foster) Thompson.&nbsp; She was
 a resident of Alexander, Kansas, for 60+ years.&nbsp; A 1943 graduate of 
Alexander High School, Alexander, Kansas, she was a homemaker.

She was a member of the United Methodist Church, and Golden Keys, both of Alexander, Kansas.

On October 10, 1948, she married Stanley S. Taylor at a friend’s home in Morton, Texas.&nbsp; He preceded her in death May 28, 1981.

Survivors include:&nbsp; two sons, Steven Taylor (Andrea), Phoenix, 
Arizona, and Michael Taylor (Shelly), Wickenburg, Arizona; one&nbsp; 
daughter, Carla Strobach (William), Raymore, Missouri; six 
grandchildren; and five great grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; two brothers, 
Duane Thompson, and Ural Thompson; and one sister, Darlene Werhahn.

Funeral service will be Monday, January 31, 2022, at 10:00 A.M. at 
the Janousek Funeral Home, La Crosse, Kansas, with Pastor Deb Harvey 
officiating.&nbsp; Interment will be in the McCracken City Cemetery, 
McCracken, Kansas.

Memorials are suggested to the Alexander Fire Department, Alexander, Kansas, or the McCracken Library, McCracken, Kansas.

Condolences or remembrances may be left for the family at www.janousekfuneralhome.com.

Arrangements were by Janousek Funeral Home, 719 Pine Street, P O Box 550, La Crosse, Kansas 67548, 785/222-2517.

Virginia E. Taylor, 96, Alexander, Kansas, passed away Wednesday, 
January 26, 2022, at Rush County Memorial Hospital, La Crosse, Kansas.Virginia was born November 9, 1925, in Alexander, Kansas, the 
daughter of Frank Avery and Josephine Myrtle (Foster) Thompson.&nbsp; She was
 a resident of Alexander, Kansas, for 60+ years.&nbsp; A 1943 graduate of 
Alexander High School, Alexander, Kansas, she was a homemaker.She was a member of the United Methodist Church, and Golden Keys, both of Alexander, Kansas.On October 10, 1948, she married Stanley S. Taylor at a friend’s home in Morton, Texas.&nbsp; He preceded her in death May 28, 1981.Survivors include:&nbsp; two sons, Steven Taylor (Andrea), Phoenix, 
Arizona, and Michael Taylor (Shelly), Wickenburg, Arizona; one&nbsp; 
daughter, Carla Strobach (William), Raymore, Missouri; six 
grandchildren; and five great grandchildren.She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; two brothers, 
Duane Thompson, and Ural Thompson; and one sister, Darlene Werhahn.Funeral service will be Monday, January 31, 2022, at 10:00 A.M. at 
the Janousek Funeral Home, La Crosse, Kansas, with Pastor Deb Harvey 
officiating.&nbsp; Interment will be in the McCracken City Cemetery, 
McCracken, Kansas.Memorials are suggested to the Alexander Fire Department, Alexander, Kansas, or the McCracken Library, McCracken, Kansas.Condolences or remembrances may be left for the family at www.janousekfuneralhome.com.Arrangements were by Janousek Funeral Home, 719 Pine Street, P O Box 550, La Crosse, Kansas 67548, 785/222-2517.

Virginia E. Taylor

WASHINGTON (AP) — A measure of prices that is closely tracked by the Federal Reserve rose 5.8% last year, the sharpest increase since 1982, as brisk consumer spending collided with snarled supply chains to raise the costs of food, furniture, appliances and other goods.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bea.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/pi1221.pdf" target="_blank">report Friday from the Commerce Department</a>&nbsp;also said that consumer spending fell 0.6% in December, with purchases of cars, electronics, and clothes declining. Higher prices might have discouraged some shoppers, along with a wave of omicron cases that kept many Americans from traveling, eating out or visiting entertainment venues.

At the same time, incomes rose 0.3% last month, providing fuel for future spending.

Stubbornly high inflation has hammered household budgets, wiped out last year’s healthy wage gains and posed a severe political challenge to President Joe Biden and Democrats in Congress. It also led the Federal Reserve to signal Wednesday that it plans to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-interest-rates-inflation-1dd9283e46162b3c0d29a2c55a2934d1">raise interest rates multiple times</a>&nbsp;this year beginning in March to try to get accelerating prices under control.

Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, so-called core prices rose 4.9% last year, the biggest increase since 1983. That was up from a 4.7% year-over-year rise in core prices in November.

From November to December, prices rose 0.4%, down from a 0.6% increase from October to November. Core prices rose 0.5% for a second straight month.

The economy is expanding at its fastest pace in decades, and job creation reached a five-decade high last year. But the rebound occurred so quickly after the pandemic shutdowns that it left many companies flat-footed, with fewer workers and supplies than they needed.

Besides raising interest rates, Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that the Fed will move to shrink its huge $8.9 trillion of bond holdings this year, another step that will likely tighten credit, slow spending and potentially weaken the economy.

Speaking at a news conference, Powell acknowledged that inflation has gotten “slightly worse” in the past month. He cautioned that higher prices “have now spread to a broader range of goods and services,” after initially affecting sectors of the economy, like factory-made products for homes, that were most disrupted by the pandemic.

Powell also said the Fed is increasingly focused on the question of whether rising wages are acting as a primary driver of inflation, by forcing companies to charge more to cover their higher labor costs. Such a “wage-price spiral,” which the United States hasn’t experienced since the 1970s, can make inflation difficult to cool.

A&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/eci.pdf" target="_blank">separate report Friday</a>&nbsp;said that workers’ salaries and benefits jumped 4% last year. It was the biggest increase in 20 years. Powell has said that a sharp rise in pay and benefits, reported in November, was a key reason why the Fed began shifting its policy toward higher interest rates. While rising wages are good for employees, they can also elevate inflation if they aren’t offset by efficiency gains.

The inflation figure that the government reported Friday is its personal consumption expenditures index. Though the consumer price index is a better-known barometer, the Fed tends to track the PCE in setting its interest rate policies. The PCE index tracks actual purchases consumers make each month, while the CPI follows a fixed market basket of goods.

Earlier this month, the government said the CPI&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/consumer-prices-inflation-c1bfd93ed1719cf0135420f4fd0270f9">jumped 7% last year</a>, also the fastest pace in nearly four decades.

Prices have jumped in the past year as Americans have spent freely, helped by large stimulus checks in the spring and higher pay. Spending on autos, electronics and other goods jumped 12% in 2021, the government reported Wednesday, the biggest increase since 1946.

At the same time, bottlenecked supply chains and shortages of components, notably semiconductors, have left many retailers and auto dealers with fewer cars and other goods to sell. Powell has blamed mainly ongoing “supply and demand imbalances” for driving inflation.

On Thursday,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-earnings-368ae566f355df5bf5b150a4145fea3b">McDonald’s said that while sales last year grew</a>&nbsp;at a healthy pace, higher costs for food and paper products and the need to raise pay to attract and keep workers eroded profits even after it had raised prices 6% last year.

Likewise, Procter &amp; Gamble said last week that it plans to raise prices for detergents like Tide, Gain, and Downy and for personal care products. The company anticipates price increases for chemicals and other commodities this year.

Higher prices may be weighing on some Americans’ willingness to spend. Still, last month’s drop in consumer spending is likely to be temporary. Americans are already showing signs of heading back out to restaurants and movie theaters as the huge jump in omicron infections has started to decline.

JPMorgan Chase says spending on its credit cards for hotels, travel, and entertainment venues has rebounded this month, after falling in December. Spending has risen more in states where COVID-19 cases have come down the most.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/6/1623947660841.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — A measure of prices that is closely tracked by the Federal Reserve rose 5.8% last year, the sharpest increase since 1982, as brisk consumer spending collided with snarled supply chains to raise the costs of food, furniture, appliances and other goods.The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bea.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/pi1221.pdf" target="_blank">report Friday from the Commerce Department</a>&nbsp;also said that consumer spending fell 0.6% in December, with purchases of cars, electronics, and clothes declining. Higher prices might have discouraged some shoppers, along with a wave of omicron cases that kept many Americans from traveling, eating out or visiting entertainment venues.At the same time, incomes rose 0.3% last month, providing fuel for future spending.Stubbornly high inflation has hammered household budgets, wiped out last year’s healthy wage gains and posed a severe political challenge to President Joe Biden and Democrats in Congress. It also led the Federal Reserve to signal Wednesday that it plans to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-interest-rates-inflation-1dd9283e46162b3c0d29a2c55a2934d1">raise interest rates multiple times</a>&nbsp;this year beginning in March to try to get accelerating prices under control.Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, so-called core prices rose 4.9% last year, the biggest increase since 1983. That was up from a 4.7% year-over-year rise in core prices in November.From November to December, prices rose 0.4%, down from a 0.6% increase from October to November. Core prices rose 0.5% for a second straight month.The economy is expanding at its fastest pace in decades, and job creation reached a five-decade high last year. But the rebound occurred so quickly after the pandemic shutdowns that it left many companies flat-footed, with fewer workers and supplies than they needed.Besides raising interest rates, Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that the Fed will move to shrink its huge $8.9 trillion of bond holdings this year, another step that will likely tighten credit, slow spending and potentially weaken the economy.Speaking at a news conference, Powell acknowledged that inflation has gotten “slightly worse” in the past month. He cautioned that higher prices “have now spread to a broader range of goods and services,” after initially affecting sectors of the economy, like factory-made products for homes, that were most disrupted by the pandemic.Powell also said the Fed is increasingly focused on the question of whether rising wages are acting as a primary driver of inflation, by forcing companies to charge more to cover their higher labor costs. Such a “wage-price spiral,” which the United States hasn’t experienced since the 1970s, can make inflation difficult to cool.A&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/eci.pdf" target="_blank">separate report Friday</a>&nbsp;said that workers’ salaries and benefits jumped 4% last year. It was the biggest increase in 20 years. Powell has said that a sharp rise in pay and benefits, reported in November, was a key reason why the Fed began shifting its policy toward higher interest rates. While rising wages are good for employees, they can also elevate inflation if they aren’t offset by efficiency gains.The inflation figure that the government reported Friday is its personal consumption expenditures index. Though the consumer price index is a better-known barometer, the Fed tends to track the PCE in setting its interest rate policies. The PCE index tracks actual purchases consumers make each month, while the CPI follows a fixed market basket of goods.Earlier this month, the government said the CPI&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/consumer-prices-inflation-c1bfd93ed1719cf0135420f4fd0270f9">jumped 7% last year</a>, also the fastest pace in nearly four decades.Prices have jumped in the past year as Americans have spent freely, helped by large stimulus checks in the spring and higher pay. Spending on autos, electronics and other goods jumped 12% in 2021, the government reported Wednesday, the biggest increase since 1946.At the same time, bottlenecked supply chains and shortages of components, notably semiconductors, have left many retailers and auto dealers with fewer cars and other goods to sell. Powell has blamed mainly ongoing “supply and demand imbalances” for driving inflation.On Thursday,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-earnings-368ae566f355df5bf5b150a4145fea3b">McDonald’s said that while sales last year grew</a>&nbsp;at a healthy pace, higher costs for food and paper products and the need to raise pay to attract and keep workers eroded profits even after it had raised prices 6% last year.Likewise, Procter &amp; Gamble said last week that it plans to raise prices for detergents like Tide, Gain, and Downy and for personal care products. The company anticipates price increases for chemicals and other commodities this year.Higher prices may be weighing on some Americans’ willingness to spend. Still, last month’s drop in consumer spending is likely to be temporary. Americans are already showing signs of heading back out to restaurants and movie theaters as the huge jump in omicron infections has started to decline.JPMorgan Chase says spending on its credit cards for hotels, travel, and entertainment venues has rebounded this month, after falling in December. Spending has risen more in states where COVID-19 cases have come down the most.

A key inflation gauge rose 5.8% in 2021, most in 39 years

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A state legislator has been charged with two traffic violations over his late November arrest on Interstate 70 in northeast&nbsp;Kansas&nbsp;but not with driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, the potential crime initially listed by the Highway Patrol.

Democratic state Rep. Aaron Coleman, of Kansas City, also still faces a misdemeanor domestic battery charge in a separate criminal case in the Kansas City area over an Oct. 30 fight with his younger brother. Coleman pled not guilty, and a scheduling hearing in that case is set for Wednesday in Johnson County District Court.

In neighboring Douglas County, home to Lawrence and the main University of Kansas campus, Coleman faces charges of speeding and failure to yield to an emergency vehicle as required by law over a Nov. 27 stop. A complaint filed Jan. 21 by an assistant district attorney says Coleman was driving 92 mph when the post speed limit was 75 mph Together, the charges could result in several hundred dollars in fines.

Coleman is scheduled to have the charges formally read to him and enter a plea on April 15, during a break in the Kansas Legislature's annual session. His attorney did not respond to a telephone message and the lawmaker did not reply to a text seeking comment.

Coleman has been embroiled in controversy since he ran for the House in 2020, when he acknowledged past abuses against girls and young women. A legislative committee reprimanded Coleman in writing in February 2020 over those abuses. After his two arrests within a month, six female Democrats in the House filed a complaint against him with the House designed to lead to his ouster.

The Kansas Highway Patrol initially said he had been arrested in Douglas County on suspicion of DUI, but a decision on charges waited on the report to the district attorney's office from the patrol on the substances in Coleman's body at the time of the stop. Coleman has said he wasn't under the influence.

Jill Jess, a spokesperson for the Douglas County district attorney's office, said the charges were “based on evidence presented,” without elaborating. The Associated Press has requested a copy of the patrol's report.

“Mr. Coleman faces no further charges in Douglas County at this time,” she wrote.

Coleman is free on bond in both criminal cases. At the Statehouse, he's been pursuing a liberal agenda and earlier this month introduced a bill to reduce criminal penalties for possessing or distributing psychedelic mushrooms. But Democratic leaders have refused to give him any committee assignments.

The complaint filed against him by six fellow Democrats revived the committee of three Republicans and three Democrats that admonished him in writing last year. But its chairman has said it doesn't plan to meet again until Coleman's criminal cases are resolved.

In the Johnson County case, Coleman was ordered to undergo a mental health exam. Court documents said Coleman, who is Jewish, had a fight with his younger brother over the brother's plans for a Christian baptism.

A police sergeant wrote in an affidavit that Coleman was uncooperative and “extremely erratic,” and that he reported not sleeping for three days. Coleman tweeted Nov. 25 — two days before his arrest in Douglas County — that he's suffered from chronic insomnia “my whole adult life.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/11/1635804497310.png" alt="Coleman as shown in his October booking photo in Johnson County" />
 <figcaption>Coleman as shown in his October booking photo in Johnson County</figcaption>
 </figure>By JOHN HANNATOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A state legislator has been charged with two traffic violations over his late November arrest on Interstate 70 in northeast&nbsp;Kansas&nbsp;but not with driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, the potential crime initially listed by the Highway Patrol.Democratic state Rep. Aaron Coleman, of Kansas City, also still faces a misdemeanor domestic battery charge in a separate criminal case in the Kansas City area over an Oct. 30 fight with his younger brother. Coleman pled not guilty, and a scheduling hearing in that case is set for Wednesday in Johnson County District Court.In neighboring Douglas County, home to Lawrence and the main University of Kansas campus, Coleman faces charges of speeding and failure to yield to an emergency vehicle as required by law over a Nov. 27 stop. A complaint filed Jan. 21 by an assistant district attorney says Coleman was driving 92 mph when the post speed limit was 75 mph Together, the charges could result in several hundred dollars in fines.Coleman is scheduled to have the charges formally read to him and enter a plea on April 15, during a break in the Kansas Legislature's annual session. His attorney did not respond to a telephone message and the lawmaker did not reply to a text seeking comment.Coleman has been embroiled in controversy since he ran for the House in 2020, when he acknowledged past abuses against girls and young women. A legislative committee reprimanded Coleman in writing in February 2020 over those abuses. After his two arrests within a month, six female Democrats in the House filed a complaint against him with the House designed to lead to his ouster.The Kansas Highway Patrol initially said he had been arrested in Douglas County on suspicion of DUI, but a decision on charges waited on the report to the district attorney's office from the patrol on the substances in Coleman's body at the time of the stop. Coleman has said he wasn't under the influence.Jill Jess, a spokesperson for the Douglas County district attorney's office, said the charges were “based on evidence presented,” without elaborating. The Associated Press has requested a copy of the patrol's report.“Mr. Coleman faces no further charges in Douglas County at this time,” she wrote.Coleman is free on bond in both criminal cases. At the Statehouse, he's been pursuing a liberal agenda and earlier this month introduced a bill to reduce criminal penalties for possessing or distributing psychedelic mushrooms. But Democratic leaders have refused to give him any committee assignments.The complaint filed against him by six fellow Democrats revived the committee of three Republicans and three Democrats that admonished him in writing last year. But its chairman has said it doesn't plan to meet again until Coleman's criminal cases are resolved.In the Johnson County case, Coleman was ordered to undergo a mental health exam. Court documents said Coleman, who is Jewish, had a fight with his younger brother over the brother's plans for a Christian baptism.A police sergeant wrote in an affidavit that Coleman was uncooperative and “extremely erratic,” and that he reported not sleeping for three days. Coleman tweeted Nov. 25 — two days before his arrest in Douglas County — that he's suffered from chronic insomnia “my whole adult life.”

Kansas lawmaker charged with traffic violations but not DUI

Lucine Harris, age 95, passed away on Wednesday January 26, 2022, at the 
Smith Center Health &amp; Rehab Center in Smith Center, KS. She was 
born the daughter of August &amp; Emma (Bierman) Carstens on October 30,
 1926, in Agra, KS.
 She is survived by her sister Lorraine Bridges of Frisco, TX; a nephew Sam (Linda) Rice of Rural Athol, KS.

Arrangements are pending with Rentschler Family Mortuaries.

Lucine Harris, age 95, passed away on Wednesday January 26, 2022, at the 
Smith Center Health &amp; Rehab Center in Smith Center, KS. She was 
born the daughter of August &amp; Emma (Bierman) Carstens on October 30,
 1926, in Agra, KS.
 She is survived by her sister Lorraine Bridges of Frisco, TX; a nephew Sam (Linda) Rice of Rural Athol, KS.Arrangements are pending with Rentschler Family Mortuaries.

Lucine Harris

Robert “Bob” J. Dellinger, 74, died Wednesday, January 26, 2022, at Western Plains Medical Complex, Dodge City.

He was born October 31, 1947, at Plainview, Minnesota, the son of 
Clarence “Otis” and Lorraine (Graff) Dellinger.&nbsp; He was a longtime Dodge
 City resident and a 1965 graduate of Dodge City High School.&nbsp; He 
received his Bachelor’s Degree in Business from Ft. Hays State 
University.&nbsp; On August 2, 1969, he married Connie Rooney at Sacred Heart 
Cathedral in Dodge City.

He worked for Landmark National Bank in Dodge City for 40 years, 
starting as a Loan Officer and retired as an Assistant Vice President.&nbsp; 
He was a member of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe and a 3rd
 Degree member of Knights of Columbus Council 2955 both in Dodge City.&nbsp; 
He enjoyed fishing, camping, and traveling to Texas as well as working 
on anything mechanical.&nbsp; He also enjoyed playing cards with family and 
friends and having shed parties.&nbsp; Bob and Connie had a love of music and
 attended many Bluegrass festivals together.&nbsp;

Survivors include:&nbsp; his wife of 52 years, Connie; 2 daughters, Amy 
Woydziak and husband Matt, Hays, and Wendy Dellinger, Dodge City; 2 
grandchildren, Wade Woydziak and wife Emily Sue, Hays, and Emily Anne 
Woydziak, Overland Park, Kansas; a great granddaughter, Addison 
Woydziak; 2 brothers, Hal David Dellinger and wife Ramona, Wichita, and 
William “Bill” Dellinger, Salina; and 2 sisters, Dinah Goolsby, Wichita,&nbsp; and Mary Gall and husband Brad, Rye, Colorado.

He was preceded in death by his parents, a sister, Donna Trent and a brother, Dickie Dellinger.

Rosary will be at 10:00 am Monday, January 31, 2022, at the Cathedral 
of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Dodge City.&nbsp; Funeral Mass will be at 10:30 am 
Monday at the church with Fr. Rudin Din presiding.&nbsp; Burial will follow 
in Maple Grove Cemetery, Dodge City.&nbsp; Visitation will be Sunday from 
1:00 pm to 6:00 pm at Ziegler Funeral Chapel, Dodge City.&nbsp; The casket 
will remain closed.

The family suggests memorials to the Sacred Heart School Endowment in care of Ziegler Funeral Chapel, 1901 N. 14th Ave., Dodge City, Kansas 67801.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643382022608.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Robert “Bob” J. Dellinger, 74, died Wednesday, January 26, 2022, at Western Plains Medical Complex, Dodge City.He was born October 31, 1947, at Plainview, Minnesota, the son of 
Clarence “Otis” and Lorraine (Graff) Dellinger.&nbsp; He was a longtime Dodge
 City resident and a 1965 graduate of Dodge City High School.&nbsp; He 
received his Bachelor’s Degree in Business from Ft. Hays State 
University.&nbsp; On August 2, 1969, he married Connie Rooney at Sacred Heart 
Cathedral in Dodge City.He worked for Landmark National Bank in Dodge City for 40 years, 
starting as a Loan Officer and retired as an Assistant Vice President.&nbsp; 
He was a member of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe and a 3rd
 Degree member of Knights of Columbus Council 2955 both in Dodge City.&nbsp; 
He enjoyed fishing, camping, and traveling to Texas as well as working 
on anything mechanical.&nbsp; He also enjoyed playing cards with family and 
friends and having shed parties.&nbsp; Bob and Connie had a love of music and
 attended many Bluegrass festivals together.&nbsp;Survivors include:&nbsp; his wife of 52 years, Connie; 2 daughters, Amy 
Woydziak and husband Matt, Hays, and Wendy Dellinger, Dodge City; 2 
grandchildren, Wade Woydziak and wife Emily Sue, Hays, and Emily Anne 
Woydziak, Overland Park, Kansas; a great granddaughter, Addison 
Woydziak; 2 brothers, Hal David Dellinger and wife Ramona, Wichita, and 
William “Bill” Dellinger, Salina; and 2 sisters, Dinah Goolsby, Wichita,&nbsp; and Mary Gall and husband Brad, Rye, Colorado.He was preceded in death by his parents, a sister, Donna Trent and a brother, Dickie Dellinger.Rosary will be at 10:00 am Monday, January 31, 2022, at the Cathedral 
of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Dodge City.&nbsp; Funeral Mass will be at 10:30 am 
Monday at the church with Fr. Rudin Din presiding.&nbsp; Burial will follow 
in Maple Grove Cemetery, Dodge City.&nbsp; Visitation will be Sunday from 
1:00 pm to 6:00 pm at Ziegler Funeral Chapel, Dodge City.&nbsp; The casket 
will remain closed.The family suggests memorials to the Sacred Heart School Endowment in care of Ziegler Funeral Chapel, 1901 N. 14th Ave., Dodge City, Kansas 67801.&nbsp;

Robert 'Bob' J. Dellinger

Michelle Critchfield was born August 29, 1963, to Joyce McDowell Ober. 
She was the youngest of three, following Sandra (1946) and Micheal 
(1951-1983). Joyce married Charles T. Graham, a civil engineer and this 
new little family began to travel the world, calling Abqaiq, Saudi 
Arabia, Yuso, South Korea, Pazanan and Tehran, Iran, Bramenhaven, 
Germany and Cardon, Venezuela their home. Due to the extensive travel 
from job site to job site, Michelle was sent to Saint Catherine’s 
Boarding School in Bramley, United Kingdom from 1976-1980. She was the 
only American in the all girls Church of England School built in 1885. 
She completed Cambridge board O level exams. 
 From 1980 to 1985, she attended FHSU in Hays, Kansas, and received 
her bachelor’s degree in Animal Science. She met Wade Critchfield at 
the stable, where they both kept their horses in the spring of 1983. 
They were married October 15, 1983. The loves of her life were her two 
children Hylan Koby, born December 14, 1988, and Bryce Kannen, born 
March 19, 1993. 
 Michelle stayed busy with many jobs: inventory clerk, stable hand, 
vet tech, sales assistant, housekeeper, residential painter, dispatch 
for Superior Mobile Homes, florist, wife, mother, grandmother, and 
caregiver. 
 On April 17, 2011, Michelle was baptized as one of Jehovah's 
Witnesses and wondered why she wasted so much time before dedicating her
 life to Jehovah God, as he had blessed her with so much peace and 
happiness. She felt blessed to have a wonderful daughter-in-law when 
Hylan married Samantha Cano in 2009. Further blessings came with the 
birth of Kael and Kaden, who she loved dearly. Michelle was blessed with
 the help and moral support of Bryce. She had a beautiful smile on her 
face while holding her newest grandson Kasyn, born December of 2021, the
 son of Bryce Critchfield and Kaci Davignon. She loved Jehovah, His 
organization, creation, her husband, family, friends, traveling, 
learning new things, horses, and organizing events. Everyone knew who to
 ask for the best party ideas. She succumbed to the wretched illness of 
cancer on January 24, 2022. With joy, she looked with eyes of faith to 
the time when she is resurrected back here on paradise earth. May she 
rest in peace.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643216555934.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Michelle Critchfield was born August 29, 1963, to Joyce McDowell Ober. 
She was the youngest of three, following Sandra (1946) and Micheal 
(1951-1983). Joyce married Charles T. Graham, a civil engineer and this 
new little family began to travel the world, calling Abqaiq, Saudi 
Arabia, Yuso, South Korea, Pazanan and Tehran, Iran, Bramenhaven, 
Germany and Cardon, Venezuela their home. Due to the extensive travel 
from job site to job site, Michelle was sent to Saint Catherine’s 
Boarding School in Bramley, United Kingdom from 1976-1980. She was the 
only American in the all girls Church of England School built in 1885. 
She completed Cambridge board O level exams. 
 From 1980 to 1985, she attended FHSU in Hays, Kansas, and received 
her bachelor’s degree in Animal Science. She met Wade Critchfield at 
the stable, where they both kept their horses in the spring of 1983. 
They were married October 15, 1983. The loves of her life were her two 
children Hylan Koby, born December 14, 1988, and Bryce Kannen, born 
March 19, 1993. 
 Michelle stayed busy with many jobs: inventory clerk, stable hand, 
vet tech, sales assistant, housekeeper, residential painter, dispatch 
for Superior Mobile Homes, florist, wife, mother, grandmother, and 
caregiver. 
 On April 17, 2011, Michelle was baptized as one of Jehovah's 
Witnesses and wondered why she wasted so much time before dedicating her
 life to Jehovah God, as he had blessed her with so much peace and 
happiness. She felt blessed to have a wonderful daughter-in-law when 
Hylan married Samantha Cano in 2009. Further blessings came with the 
birth of Kael and Kaden, who she loved dearly. Michelle was blessed with
 the help and moral support of Bryce. She had a beautiful smile on her 
face while holding her newest grandson Kasyn, born December of 2021, the
 son of Bryce Critchfield and Kaci Davignon. She loved Jehovah, His 
organization, creation, her husband, family, friends, traveling, 
learning new things, horses, and organizing events. Everyone knew who to
 ask for the best party ideas. She succumbed to the wretched illness of 
cancer on January 24, 2022. With joy, she looked with eyes of faith to 
the time when she is resurrected back here on paradise earth. May she 
rest in peace.

Michelle Critchfield

Robert A. Rein, age 81, passed away on Thursday, December 16, 2021, 
in Scott City, Kansas.&nbsp; He was born on July 13, 1940, in Sugar City, 
Colorado, the son of Henry and Marie Herman Rein Jr.&nbsp; A resident of 
Scott City, Kansas since 1975 moving from Sugar City, Colorado, he was 
an advertising salesman for the Hi-Plains Journal and B&amp;B 
Advertising.

He was a member of the Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Scott City, Kansas.

On September 11, 1964, he married Shirley J. Hasty in Roswell, New 
Mexico.&nbsp; She passed away on October 7, 2013, in Scott City, Kansas.

Survivors include his Two Daughters - Charlene Murphy of Paola, 
Kansas, Teresa &amp; Scott Noll of Scott City, Kansas, One Brother - 
Alvin Rein of Fowler, Colorado, One Sister - Janice Rogers of Fowler 
Colorado, and Five Grandchildren - Legacy Murphy of Paola, Kansas, 
Amelia Noll, Alivia Noll, Avery Noll and Addison Noll of Scott City, 
Kansas.

He was preceded in death by his Parents, Wife, One Son - Bryan Rein, One Brother - Ronnie Rein, and One Sister Eleanor Schiro.

Funeral services will be held at 10:30 am&nbsp;on Saturday, January 29, 
2022, at Price &amp; Sons Funeral Home in Scott City, Kansas with Steve 
Payne presiding.

Memorials can be written to the Holy Cross Lutheran Church in care of
 Price &amp; Sons Funeral Home, PO Box 553, Scott City, Kansas, 67871.

Inurnment will be in the Scott County Cemetery in Scott City, Kansas.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643119298406.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Robert A. Rein, age 81, passed away on Thursday, December 16, 2021, 
in Scott City, Kansas.&nbsp; He was born on July 13, 1940, in Sugar City, 
Colorado, the son of Henry and Marie Herman Rein Jr.&nbsp; A resident of 
Scott City, Kansas since 1975 moving from Sugar City, Colorado, he was 
an advertising salesman for the Hi-Plains Journal and B&amp;B 
Advertising.He was a member of the Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Scott City, Kansas.On September 11, 1964, he married Shirley J. Hasty in Roswell, New 
Mexico.&nbsp; She passed away on October 7, 2013, in Scott City, Kansas.Survivors include his Two Daughters - Charlene Murphy of Paola, 
Kansas, Teresa &amp; Scott Noll of Scott City, Kansas, One Brother - 
Alvin Rein of Fowler, Colorado, One Sister - Janice Rogers of Fowler 
Colorado, and Five Grandchildren - Legacy Murphy of Paola, Kansas, 
Amelia Noll, Alivia Noll, Avery Noll and Addison Noll of Scott City, 
Kansas.He was preceded in death by his Parents, Wife, One Son - Bryan Rein, One Brother - Ronnie Rein, and One Sister Eleanor Schiro.Funeral services will be held at 10:30 am&nbsp;on Saturday, January 29, 
2022, at Price &amp; Sons Funeral Home in Scott City, Kansas with Steve 
Payne presiding.Memorials can be written to the Holy Cross Lutheran Church in care of
 Price &amp; Sons Funeral Home, PO Box 553, Scott City, Kansas, 67871.Inurnment will be in the Scott County Cemetery in Scott City, Kansas.There will be no calling times.

Robert A. Rein

WASHINGTON (AP) —The conservative-dominated Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a challenge to the consideration of race in college admissions, adding another blockbuster case to a term with abortion, guns, religion and COVID-19 already on the agenda.

The court said it will take up lawsuits claiming that Harvard, a private institution, and the University of North Carolina, a state school, discriminate against Asian American applicants. A decision against the schools could mean the end of affirmative action in college admissions.

Arguments are expected to take place in the fall.

Lower courts rejected the challenges, citing more than 40 years of high court rulings that allow colleges and universities to consider race in admissions decisions. But the colleges and universities must do so in a narrowly tailored way to promote diversity.

The court’s most recent pronouncement was in 2016, in a 4-3 decision upholding the admissions program at the University of Texas against a challenge brought by a white woman. But the composition of the court has changed since then, with the addition of three conservative justices who were appointed by then-President Donald Trump.

Two members of that four-justice majority are gone from the court: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died in 2020, and Justice Anthony Kennedy retired in 2018.

The three dissenters in the case, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, remain on the court. Roberts, a moderating influence on some issues, has been a steadfast vote to limit the use of race in public programs, once writing, “It is a sordid business, this divvying us up by race.”

The court already has heard arguments in cases that could expand gun and religious rights and also roll back abortion rights in a direct challenge to the Roe v. Wade ruling from 1973.

On Thursday, the justice’s weighed in for the first time on President Joe Biden’s vaccine policies, halting a rule requiring a vaccine or testing at large businesses while allowing a vaccine mandate for most of the nation’s health care workers.

The affirmative action case probably will be argued in the spring. Both suits were filed by Students for Fair Admissions, a Virginia-based group run by Edward Blum. He has worked for years to rid college admissions of racial considerations, and the court’s new lineup breathed new life into his project.

The group is calling on the court to overturn its 2003 ruling in Grutter v. Bollinger, which upheld the University of Michigan’s law school admissions program.

The Biden administration had urged the justices to stay away from the issue, writing in the Harvard case that the challenges “cannot justify that extraordinary step” of overruling the 2003 decision.

The Supreme Court has weighed in on college admissions several times over more than 40 years. The current dispute harks back to its first big affirmative action case in 1978, when Justice Lewis Powell set out the rationale for taking account of race even as the court barred the use of racial quotas in admissions.

In the Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, Powell approvingly cited Harvard as “an illuminating example” of a college that takes “race into account in achieving the educational diversity valued by the First Amendment.”

Twenty-five years later, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor likewise invoked the Harvard plan in her opinion in the Michigan law school case.

Now the Harvard program is under fire from opponents of race-based affirmative action.

Students for Fair Admissions claims that Harvard imposes a “racial penalty” on Asian American applicants by systematically scoring them lower in some categories than other applicants and awarding “massive preferences” to Black and Hispanic applicants.

Harvard flatly denies that it discriminates against Asian American applicants and says its consideration of race is limited, pointing out that lower courts agreed with the university.

In 2020, the federal appeals court in Boston ruled that Harvard looked at race in a limited way in line with Supreme Court precedents.

Harvard’s freshman class is roughly one-quarter Asian American, 16% Black and 13% Hispanic, Harvard says on its website. “If Harvard were to abandon race-conscious admissions, African-American and Hispanic representation would decline by nearly half,” the school told the court in urging it to stay out of the case.

The Trump administration had backed Blum’s case against Harvard and also filed its own lawsuit alleging discrimination against Asian Americans and whites at Yale. The Biden administration dropped the Yale suit.

North Carolina’s flagship public university prevailed in a federal district court in October. U.S. District Judge Loretta Biggs ruled that the school’s program was intended to produce a diverse student body and had shown the benefits of doing so.

The court accepted the North Carolina case for review even though it has not been heard by a federal appeals court. Blum filed a Supreme Court appeal with the hope that it would be bundled with the Harvard case so that the justices could rule on public and private colleges at the same time.

WASHINGTON (AP) —The conservative-dominated Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a challenge to the consideration of race in college admissions, adding another blockbuster case to a term with abortion, guns, religion and COVID-19 already on the agenda.The court said it will take up lawsuits claiming that Harvard, a private institution, and the University of North Carolina, a state school, discriminate against Asian American applicants. A decision against the schools could mean the end of affirmative action in college admissions.Arguments are expected to take place in the fall.Lower courts rejected the challenges, citing more than 40 years of high court rulings that allow colleges and universities to consider race in admissions decisions. But the colleges and universities must do so in a narrowly tailored way to promote diversity.The court’s most recent pronouncement was in 2016, in a 4-3 decision upholding the admissions program at the University of Texas against a challenge brought by a white woman. But the composition of the court has changed since then, with the addition of three conservative justices who were appointed by then-President Donald Trump.Two members of that four-justice majority are gone from the court: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died in 2020, and Justice Anthony Kennedy retired in 2018.The three dissenters in the case, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, remain on the court. Roberts, a moderating influence on some issues, has been a steadfast vote to limit the use of race in public programs, once writing, “It is a sordid business, this divvying us up by race.”The court already has heard arguments in cases that could expand gun and religious rights and also roll back abortion rights in a direct challenge to the Roe v. Wade ruling from 1973.On Thursday, the justice’s weighed in for the first time on President Joe Biden’s vaccine policies, halting a rule requiring a vaccine or testing at large businesses while allowing a vaccine mandate for most of the nation’s health care workers.The affirmative action case probably will be argued in the spring. Both suits were filed by Students for Fair Admissions, a Virginia-based group run by Edward Blum. He has worked for years to rid college admissions of racial considerations, and the court’s new lineup breathed new life into his project.The group is calling on the court to overturn its 2003 ruling in Grutter v. Bollinger, which upheld the University of Michigan’s law school admissions program.The Biden administration had urged the justices to stay away from the issue, writing in the Harvard case that the challenges “cannot justify that extraordinary step” of overruling the 2003 decision.The Supreme Court has weighed in on college admissions several times over more than 40 years. The current dispute harks back to its first big affirmative action case in 1978, when Justice Lewis Powell set out the rationale for taking account of race even as the court barred the use of racial quotas in admissions.In the Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, Powell approvingly cited Harvard as “an illuminating example” of a college that takes “race into account in achieving the educational diversity valued by the First Amendment.”Twenty-five years later, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor likewise invoked the Harvard plan in her opinion in the Michigan law school case.Now the Harvard program is under fire from opponents of race-based affirmative action.Students for Fair Admissions claims that Harvard imposes a “racial penalty” on Asian American applicants by systematically scoring them lower in some categories than other applicants and awarding “massive preferences” to Black and Hispanic applicants.Harvard flatly denies that it discriminates against Asian American applicants and says its consideration of race is limited, pointing out that lower courts agreed with the university.In 2020, the federal appeals court in Boston ruled that Harvard looked at race in a limited way in line with Supreme Court precedents.Harvard’s freshman class is roughly one-quarter Asian American, 16% Black and 13% Hispanic, Harvard says on its website. “If Harvard were to abandon race-conscious admissions, African-American and Hispanic representation would decline by nearly half,” the school told the court in urging it to stay out of the case.The Trump administration had backed Blum’s case against Harvard and also filed its own lawsuit alleging discrimination against Asian Americans and whites at Yale. The Biden administration dropped the Yale suit.North Carolina’s flagship public university prevailed in a federal district court in October. U.S. District Judge Loretta Biggs ruled that the school’s program was intended to produce a diverse student body and had shown the benefits of doing so.The court accepted the North Carolina case for review even though it has not been heard by a federal appeals court. Blum filed a Supreme Court appeal with the hope that it would be bundled with the Harvard case so that the justices could rule on public and private colleges at the same time.

Supreme Court to hear challenge to race in college admissions

Juanita was born on September 21, 1934, in Hays, Kansas, to Leo and 
Pauline (Arnhold) Bieker. She never met her mother due to complications 
following birth from which Pauline died. She was raised in the loving 
family of John and Mary (Bieker) Arnhold of Victoria, Kansas... always 
known as Mom and Dad. She was the youngest of nine children in her 
Arnhold family: Leona (Felix Werth), William (Anna), Alfred (Regina), 
Florence (Richard Gerstner), Helen (Bernard Pfeifer), Norine (Edmund 
Kuhn), Albert, and John (Frances). She was the youngest of five children
 in the Bieker family: Generose (Jim Bergman), Lenore (Mike Billinger), 
MaryAnn (Gilbert Leiker), and LeRoy, all of whom proceeded her in death.

She married a handsome young man, one year her elder, whom she met at
 their hometown high school in Victoria, Kansas. Five months after she 
graduated, they married. Edwin L. Hoffman became her life partner on 
October 11,1952 at Saint Fidelis Catholic Church in Victoria a.k.a. 
Cathedral of the Plains.&nbsp; They had five children, whom she will be 
lovingly remembered by: Kerri Waldner, (Dennis) of Lakewood, CO, Eddie 
Hoffman, (Judy), Russ Hoffman, (Nancy), John Hoffman and Lisa Tausan, 
(Brian) all of Westminster, CO.

Juanita's young life was full of taking care of her family and home, 
and a faithful member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church. She was a 
tremendous cook, seamstress, and housekeeper, and a tireless mother.

After her children flew the nest, she loved spending time with her 
beloved husband at the family cabin. They spent 50 blessed years 
together, until the loss of Ed, in 2002. She filled the enormous gap by 
continuing to volunteer at church and the hospital. She enjoyed 
shopping, trips to Black Hawk, movies, meeting with friends at Bible 
study and most of all being with her family and close friends.

Others who will miss her dearly include 18 grandchildren, 13 great 
grandchildren, many nieces and nephews, her loved neighbors and many 
other close friends who knew her sweet smile and great hugs.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Alzheimer’s Association Colorado Chapter, Alzheimer’s Association of Colorado, 455 Sherman Street, Suite 500, Denver, CO 80203.

Online:<a href="https://www.alz.org/co/donate" target="_blank"> https://www.alz.org/co/donate</a>

Click <a href="https://cfcscolorado.org/obituaries/">HERE</a> for service details.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643033003868.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Juanita was born on September 21, 1934, in Hays, Kansas, to Leo and 
Pauline (Arnhold) Bieker. She never met her mother due to complications 
following birth from which Pauline died. She was raised in the loving 
family of John and Mary (Bieker) Arnhold of Victoria, Kansas... always 
known as Mom and Dad. She was the youngest of nine children in her 
Arnhold family: Leona (Felix Werth), William (Anna), Alfred (Regina), 
Florence (Richard Gerstner), Helen (Bernard Pfeifer), Norine (Edmund 
Kuhn), Albert, and John (Frances). She was the youngest of five children
 in the Bieker family: Generose (Jim Bergman), Lenore (Mike Billinger), 
MaryAnn (Gilbert Leiker), and LeRoy, all of whom proceeded her in death.She married a handsome young man, one year her elder, whom she met at
 their hometown high school in Victoria, Kansas. Five months after she 
graduated, they married. Edwin L. Hoffman became her life partner on 
October 11,1952 at Saint Fidelis Catholic Church in Victoria a.k.a. 
Cathedral of the Plains.&nbsp; They had five children, whom she will be 
lovingly remembered by: Kerri Waldner, (Dennis) of Lakewood, CO, Eddie 
Hoffman, (Judy), Russ Hoffman, (Nancy), John Hoffman and Lisa Tausan, 
(Brian) all of Westminster, CO.Juanita's young life was full of taking care of her family and home, 
and a faithful member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church. She was a 
tremendous cook, seamstress, and housekeeper, and a tireless mother.After her children flew the nest, she loved spending time with her 
beloved husband at the family cabin. They spent 50 blessed years 
together, until the loss of Ed, in 2002. She filled the enormous gap by 
continuing to volunteer at church and the hospital. She enjoyed 
shopping, trips to Black Hawk, movies, meeting with friends at Bible 
study and most of all being with her family and close friends.Others who will miss her dearly include 18 grandchildren, 13 great 
grandchildren, many nieces and nephews, her loved neighbors and many 
other close friends who knew her sweet smile and great hugs.In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Alzheimer’s Association Colorado Chapter, Alzheimer’s Association of Colorado, 455 Sherman Street, Suite 500, Denver, CO 80203.Online:<a href="https://www.alz.org/co/donate" target="_blank"> https://www.alz.org/co/donate</a>Click <a href="https://cfcscolorado.org/obituaries/">HERE</a> for service details.

Juanita M. Hoffman

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes found Travis Kelce in the corner of the end zone from 8 yards early in overtime, and the Kansas City Chiefs rallied to beat the Buffalo Bills 42-36 on Sunday night in a sizzling finish to a wild divisional-round weekend.

The lead changed hands three times in the final two minutes of regulation before Harrison Butker, who earlier missed a field goal and extra point, drilled a 49-yarder for Kansas City as time expired to force overtime.

The Chiefs won the coin toss, marched swiftly downfield against the NFL's top-ranked but exhausted defense, and right into their fourth straight AFC title game. They'll play the Bengals next Sunday night for a spot in the Super Bowl.

Mahomes finished with 378 yards passing and three touchdowns, including a 64-yarder to Tyreek Hill during the thrilling final minutes of regulation. The Chiefs ended the Bills' season inside Arrowhead Stadium for the second straight year.

Josh Allen did everything in his power to prevent it. He threw a go-ahead touchdown pass to Gabriel Davis with 1:54 left in the regulation, then another to Davis — his playoff-record fourth TD catch — with 13 seconds remaining.

Allen finished with 329 yards passing, and Davis with eight catches for 201 yards, as the Bills — who had beaten the Chiefs soundly in October — lost their ninth straight road playoff game dating to their last victory in the 1992 season's AFC championship.

In a playoff game for the history books Sunday night, the Bills and Chiefs played 58 minutes that few will remember. And about two minutes and an overtime that few will forget.

The Chiefs were leading 26-21 when Allen, who had been nearly perfect all night, connected with Davis for the third time in the game — a fourth-and-13 dart that gave the Bills the lead.

Not to be outdone, the Chiefs answered when Mahomes found Hill over the middle. The fleet-footed wide receiver ran away from cornerback Levi Wallace for a 64-yard touchdown that gave Kansas City the lead back.

Then it was the Bills’ turn. Allen threw a 28-yard pass to Davis, hit him again for 12 yards, then found Emmanuel Sanders to give coach Sean McDermott’s team a chance with 17 seconds on the clock.

Allen hit Davis right between the numbers, their 19-yard strike giving him the postseason-record, but not the victory.

Mahomes wasn’t done conjuring up playoff magic. He found Hill for 19 yards, then hit Kelce for 25 more. That gave Butker a chance to try a 49-yarder into a slight, chilly breeze as time expired.

A fitting way to end a divisional-round weekend filled with last-second heroics.

Bills: CB Micah Hyde left with an undisclosed injury he sustained on the final play of regulation.

Chiefs: Tyrann Mathieu left on the opening drive with a concussion after the Pro Bowl safety was hit by teammate Jarran Reed’s knee. ... CB Charvarius Ward was hurt trying to tackle Allen with 5 1/2 minutes left in the game.

The Chiefs get a visit from Cincinnati next Sunday, becoming the first franchise in NFL history to host four consecutive conference championship games. The 49ers play the Rams for the NFC title in the nightcap.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes found Travis Kelce in the corner of the end zone from 8 yards early in overtime, and the Kansas City Chiefs rallied to beat the Buffalo Bills 42-36 on Sunday night in a sizzling finish to a wild divisional-round weekend.The lead changed hands three times in the final two minutes of regulation before Harrison Butker, who earlier missed a field goal and extra point, drilled a 49-yarder for Kansas City as time expired to force overtime.The Chiefs won the coin toss, marched swiftly downfield against the NFL's top-ranked but exhausted defense, and right into their fourth straight AFC title game. They'll play the Bengals next Sunday night for a spot in the Super Bowl.Mahomes finished with 378 yards passing and three touchdowns, including a 64-yarder to Tyreek Hill during the thrilling final minutes of regulation. The Chiefs ended the Bills' season inside Arrowhead Stadium for the second straight year.Josh Allen did everything in his power to prevent it. He threw a go-ahead touchdown pass to Gabriel Davis with 1:54 left in the regulation, then another to Davis — his playoff-record fourth TD catch — with 13 seconds remaining.Allen finished with 329 yards passing, and Davis with eight catches for 201 yards, as the Bills — who had beaten the Chiefs soundly in October — lost their ninth straight road playoff game dating to their last victory in the 1992 season's AFC championship.In a playoff game for the history books Sunday night, the Bills and Chiefs played 58 minutes that few will remember. And about two minutes and an overtime that few will forget.The Chiefs were leading 26-21 when Allen, who had been nearly perfect all night, connected with Davis for the third time in the game — a fourth-and-13 dart that gave the Bills the lead.Not to be outdone, the Chiefs answered when Mahomes found Hill over the middle. The fleet-footed wide receiver ran away from cornerback Levi Wallace for a 64-yard touchdown that gave Kansas City the lead back.Then it was the Bills’ turn. Allen threw a 28-yard pass to Davis, hit him again for 12 yards, then found Emmanuel Sanders to give coach Sean McDermott’s team a chance with 17 seconds on the clock.Allen hit Davis right between the numbers, their 19-yard strike giving him the postseason-record, but not the victory.Mahomes wasn’t done conjuring up playoff magic. He found Hill for 19 yards, then hit Kelce for 25 more. That gave Butker a chance to try a 49-yarder into a slight, chilly breeze as time expired.Naturally, it split the uprights.Overtime.A fitting way to end a divisional-round weekend filled with last-second heroics.INJURIESBills: CB Micah Hyde left with an undisclosed injury he sustained on the final play of regulation.Chiefs: Tyrann Mathieu left on the opening drive with a concussion after the Pro Bowl safety was hit by teammate Jarran Reed’s knee. ... CB Charvarius Ward was hurt trying to tackle Allen with 5 1/2 minutes left in the game.UP NEXTThe Chiefs get a visit from Cincinnati next Sunday, becoming the first franchise in NFL history to host four consecutive conference championship games. The 49ers play the Rams for the NFC title in the nightcap.

🏈 Chiefs rally past Buffalo in OT in wild playoff game

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for the 2017 killing of an 18-year-old Topeka woman. 

Twenty-year-old Javon Amond Smith was sentenced Thursday for second-degree murder and other crimes linked to the death of Kianna Cherise Hodges.

Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay said Topeka police were called on March 4, 2017, after a man on foot shot into two separate vehicles, killing Hodges and wounding four other people. New information emerged during a cold case review in 2020, leading to Smith's arrest. Smith pleaded guilty in October to second-degree murder and criminal discharge of a weapon into an occupied vehicle.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1601575530743.png" alt="Javon Smith photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Javon Smith photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for the 2017 killing of an 18-year-old Topeka woman. Twenty-year-old Javon Amond Smith was sentenced Thursday for second-degree murder and other crimes linked to the death of Kianna Cherise Hodges.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1601570234524.png" alt="Kianna Hodge photo Penwell Gable Funeral Home" />
 <figcaption>Kianna Hodge photo Penwell Gable Funeral Home</figcaption>
 </figure>Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay said Topeka police were called on March 4, 2017, after a man on foot shot into two separate vehicles, killing Hodges and wounding four other people. New information emerged during a cold case review in 2020, leading to Smith's arrest. Smith pleaded guilty in October to second-degree murder and criminal discharge of a weapon into an occupied vehicle.

Man sentenced in cold-case killing of 18-year-old Kan. woman

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve on&nbsp; released a highly anticipated&nbsp;<a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/money-and-payments-discussion-paper.htm" target="_blank">report on central bank digital currencies</a>&nbsp;that suggested it is leaning toward having banks and other financial firms, rather than the Fed itself, manage digital accounts for customers.

A central bank digital currency would differ in some key ways from the online and digital payments that millions of Americans already conduct. Those transactions are funneled through banks, which wouldn’t be necessary with a digital dollar.

The Fed’s paper stressed that no final decisions about a digital currency have been reached. But it suggested that a digital currency that “would best serve the needs” of the nation would follow an “intermediated model” under which banks or payment firms would create accounts or digital wallets.

The Fed characterized the potential introduction of a digital currency as a step that could have far-reaching consequences for banks and other financial firms as well as for the central bank itself.

“The introduction of a (central bank digital currency) would represent a highly significant innovation in American money,” the study said. The Fed said it “could fundamentally change the structure of the U.S. financial system, altering the roles and responsibilities of the private sector and the central bank.”

The report comes at a time when digital money is proliferating in a variety of forms. Millions of people own cryptocurrencies, though they are often used more as investments than as forms of payment. But so-called stablecoins, which are often pegged to the dollar, have also soared in use in the past year, mostly for cryptocurrency transactions.

And most central banks around the world are studying government-backed digital currencies. China’s central bank has already tested a digital version of the yuan. The European Central Bank began exploring a digital euro in October and said its “investigation period” would last two years. Some Caribbean nations have already issued digital currencies.

China’s action and the explosion of stablecoins, which can be used in place of dollars in international transactions, have raised pressure on the Fed to consider a digital currency. Last March, Chair Jerome Powell said that while the Fed needed to keep pace with financial innovations, it would proceed cautiously.

“As the world’s principal reserve currency...we have an obligation to be on the cutting edge of understanding the technological challenges,” Powell said then. “But...we don’t need to rush this project. We don’t need to be first to market.”

The Fed is likely years away from actually issuing a digital currency, if it decides to do so. The paper released Thursday kicks off a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/forms/cbdc" target="_blank">120-day comment period</a>, during which the Fed will seek input from the public. The Fed also said it would proceed only with support from Congress, “ideally in the form of a specific authorizing law.”

And officials at the central bank aren’t all in agreement about whether a central bank digital currency is needed. Lael Brainard, who serves on the Fed’s Board of Governors and has been nominated by President Joe Biden to be vice chair, has, for example, expressed support for the concept, while Christopher Waller, another board member, has been skeptical.

A digital dollar could bring a host of benefits as well as risks. It would be a safer form of digital payment, because the Fed, unlike a bank or the companies issuing stablecoins, can’t go bankrupt. It could be easier and less expensive to access for people without bank accounts.

At the same time, a digital currency could pose privacy risks because it would be issued by the government. The Fed’s paper suggests, though, that banks and other third-party firms would shield consumer data from the Fed while also implementing existing rules against money-laundering and other illicit activity.

Such a government-issued digital dollar could also have major consequences for commercial banks because many Americans might prefer to hold such currency in a “wallet” issued by a payment provider like PayPal or Venmo, potentially cutting into bank deposits.

The Fed could even seek to influence the economy through a digital currency, as it now does by controlling interest rates. It could pay interest on a digital dollar, for example, or even have it decline in value, as a form of a negative interest rate. An interest payment could make a digital dollar more attractive than money in a bank.

“This substitution effect could reduce the aggregate amount of deposits in the banking system,” the Fed report said.

That hasn’t gone unnoticed by banks. The Bank Policy Institute, a lobbying group, asserted in a&nbsp;<a href="https://bpi.com/legal-authority-to-issue-a-u-s-central-bank-digital-currency/" target="_blank">blog post last June</a>&nbsp;that the Fed doesn’t have legal authority to pay interest on a digital dollar.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve on&nbsp; released a highly anticipated&nbsp;<a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/money-and-payments-discussion-paper.htm" target="_blank">report on central bank digital currencies</a>&nbsp;that suggested it is leaning toward having banks and other financial firms, rather than the Fed itself, manage digital accounts for customers.A central bank digital currency would differ in some key ways from the online and digital payments that millions of Americans already conduct. Those transactions are funneled through banks, which wouldn’t be necessary with a digital dollar.The Fed’s paper stressed that no final decisions about a digital currency have been reached. But it suggested that a digital currency that “would best serve the needs” of the nation would follow an “intermediated model” under which banks or payment firms would create accounts or digital wallets.The Fed characterized the potential introduction of a digital currency as a step that could have far-reaching consequences for banks and other financial firms as well as for the central bank itself.“The introduction of a (central bank digital currency) would represent a highly significant innovation in American money,” the study said. The Fed said it “could fundamentally change the structure of the U.S. financial system, altering the roles and responsibilities of the private sector and the central bank.”The report comes at a time when digital money is proliferating in a variety of forms. Millions of people own cryptocurrencies, though they are often used more as investments than as forms of payment. But so-called stablecoins, which are often pegged to the dollar, have also soared in use in the past year, mostly for cryptocurrency transactions.And most central banks around the world are studying government-backed digital currencies. China’s central bank has already tested a digital version of the yuan. The European Central Bank began exploring a digital euro in October and said its “investigation period” would last two years. Some Caribbean nations have already issued digital currencies.China’s action and the explosion of stablecoins, which can be used in place of dollars in international transactions, have raised pressure on the Fed to consider a digital currency. Last March, Chair Jerome Powell said that while the Fed needed to keep pace with financial innovations, it would proceed cautiously.“As the world’s principal reserve currency...we have an obligation to be on the cutting edge of understanding the technological challenges,” Powell said then. “But...we don’t need to rush this project. We don’t need to be first to market.”The Fed is likely years away from actually issuing a digital currency, if it decides to do so. The paper released Thursday kicks off a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/forms/cbdc" target="_blank">120-day comment period</a>, during which the Fed will seek input from the public. The Fed also said it would proceed only with support from Congress, “ideally in the form of a specific authorizing law.”And officials at the central bank aren’t all in agreement about whether a central bank digital currency is needed. Lael Brainard, who serves on the Fed’s Board of Governors and has been nominated by President Joe Biden to be vice chair, has, for example, expressed support for the concept, while Christopher Waller, another board member, has been skeptical.A digital dollar could bring a host of benefits as well as risks. It would be a safer form of digital payment, because the Fed, unlike a bank or the companies issuing stablecoins, can’t go bankrupt. It could be easier and less expensive to access for people without bank accounts.At the same time, a digital currency could pose privacy risks because it would be issued by the government. The Fed’s paper suggests, though, that banks and other third-party firms would shield consumer data from the Fed while also implementing existing rules against money-laundering and other illicit activity.Such a government-issued digital dollar could also have major consequences for commercial banks because many Americans might prefer to hold such currency in a “wallet” issued by a payment provider like PayPal or Venmo, potentially cutting into bank deposits.The Fed could even seek to influence the economy through a digital currency, as it now does by controlling interest rates. It could pay interest on a digital dollar, for example, or even have it decline in value, as a form of a negative interest rate. An interest payment could make a digital dollar more attractive than money in a bank.“This substitution effect could reduce the aggregate amount of deposits in the banking system,” the Fed report said.That hasn’t gone unnoticed by banks. The Bank Policy Institute, a lobbying group, asserted in a&nbsp;<a href="https://bpi.com/legal-authority-to-issue-a-u-s-central-bank-digital-currency/" target="_blank">blog post last June</a>&nbsp;that the Fed doesn’t have legal authority to pay interest on a digital dollar.

The Federal Reserve wants your input on US digital currency

By DAN MARGOLIES <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2022-01-19/an-armored-car-company-busted-for-hauling-legal-weed-money-across-kansas-is-now-suing-the-feds">Kansas News Service</a>

An armored car company used by licensed marijuana dispensaries in 
Missouri and other states is suing the federal government, claiming law 
enforcement agents have illegally seized dispensary cash the company was
 transporting.

The federal lawsuit, filed in California last week 
by Empyreal Logistics, comes after a sheriff’s deputy in Dickinson 
County, Kansas, stopped one of Empyreal’s vehicles last year on 
Interstate 70 for an unspecified traffic violation and <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2021-10-26/feds-seized-a-van-carrying-166-000-from-legal-marijuana-sales-in-kansas-city-and-no-one-knows-why" target="_blank">seized nearly $166,000 in cash</a> it was transporting from marijuana dispensaries in Kansas City, Missouri, to a credit union in Colorado.

The
 U.S. Attorney’s Office in Kansas subsequently filed a civil forfeiture 
action against Empyreal, arguing the seized cash was traceable to sales 
that violated the federal Controlled Substances Act. (Cannabis is 
classified as a Schedule I drug under the act.) That case is pending.

In
 October, KCUR sought records related to the stop from the Dickinson 
County Sheriff’s Office under the Kansas Open Records Act. Doug 
Thompson, the Dickinson County counselor, responded by saying that the 
records were in the hands of the Drug Enforcement Administration.

KCUR
 then sought the records from the DEA in November under the federal 
Freedom of Information Act. The DEA has yet to respond to KCUR’s 
request.

Empyreal's lawsuit, however, alleges that Dickinson 
County Sheriff’s Deputy Kalen Robinson pulled over Empyreal’s vehicle, a
 Ford Transit van, as it was heading east on I-70 because the Colorado 
license plate tag was slightly covered by the license plate holder. 
Robinson stopped the vehicle a second time the next day as it was 
heading west toward Colorado and seized the cash.

Empyreal’s 
lawsuit accuses Robinson as well as sheriff’s deputies in California of 
acting in concert with the DEA to conduct "pretextual stops" of 
Empyreal’s vehicles, “searching them, and seizing the cash contents — 
covering up their surveillance cameras and sometimes damaging Empyreal’s
 vehicles to access the cash in their secured vaults — and are then 
turning the seized cash over to federal law-enforcement for forfeiture 
proceedings under the federal equitable sharing program.”

Under 
the federal equitable sharing program, the federal government shares 
assets seized in civil forfeitures with state and local law enforcement 
agencies.

Empyreal says that not a single traffic citation was 
issued to an Empyreal driver during any of the five traffic stops 
mentioned in its complaint.

It says federal and state law 
enforcement agencies are targeting its armored cars “because it is very 
profitable for those law enforcement agencies to seize the cash proceeds
 that Empyreal is transporting and keep that money using civil 
forfeiture.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1642629586838.png" alt="A complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Kansas seeks the forfeiture of $165,620 found in a van that was transporting the money to a credit union in Colorado. Carlos Moreno / KCUR " />
 <figcaption>A complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Kansas seeks the forfeiture of $165,620 found in a van that was transporting the money to a credit union in Colorado. Carlos Moreno / KCUR </figcaption>
 </figure>By DAN MARGOLIES <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2022-01-19/an-armored-car-company-busted-for-hauling-legal-weed-money-across-kansas-is-now-suing-the-feds">Kansas News Service</a>An armored car company used by licensed marijuana dispensaries in 
Missouri and other states is suing the federal government, claiming law 
enforcement agents have illegally seized dispensary cash the company was
 transporting.The federal lawsuit, filed in California last week 
by Empyreal Logistics, comes after a sheriff’s deputy in Dickinson 
County, Kansas, stopped one of Empyreal’s vehicles last year on 
Interstate 70 for an unspecified traffic violation and <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2021-10-26/feds-seized-a-van-carrying-166-000-from-legal-marijuana-sales-in-kansas-city-and-no-one-knows-why" target="_blank">seized nearly $166,000 in cash</a> it was transporting from marijuana dispensaries in Kansas City, Missouri, to a credit union in Colorado.The
 U.S. Attorney’s Office in Kansas subsequently filed a civil forfeiture 
action against Empyreal, arguing the seized cash was traceable to sales 
that violated the federal Controlled Substances Act. (Cannabis is 
classified as a Schedule I drug under the act.) That case is pending.In
 October, KCUR sought records related to the stop from the Dickinson 
County Sheriff’s Office under the Kansas Open Records Act. Doug 
Thompson, the Dickinson County counselor, responded by saying that the 
records were in the hands of the Drug Enforcement Administration.KCUR
 then sought the records from the DEA in November under the federal 
Freedom of Information Act. The DEA has yet to respond to KCUR’s 
request.Empyreal's lawsuit, however, alleges that Dickinson 
County Sheriff’s Deputy Kalen Robinson pulled over Empyreal’s vehicle, a
 Ford Transit van, as it was heading east on I-70 because the Colorado 
license plate tag was slightly covered by the license plate holder. 
Robinson stopped the vehicle a second time the next day as it was 
heading west toward Colorado and seized the cash.Empyreal’s 
lawsuit accuses Robinson as well as sheriff’s deputies in California of 
acting in concert with the DEA to conduct "pretextual stops" of 
Empyreal’s vehicles, “searching them, and seizing the cash contents — 
covering up their surveillance cameras and sometimes damaging Empyreal’s
 vehicles to access the cash in their secured vaults — and are then 
turning the seized cash over to federal law-enforcement for forfeiture 
proceedings under the federal equitable sharing program.”Under 
the federal equitable sharing program, the federal government shares 
assets seized in civil forfeitures with state and local law enforcement 
agencies.Empyreal says that not a single traffic citation was 
issued to an Empyreal driver during any of the five traffic stops 
mentioned in its complaint.It says federal and state law 
enforcement agencies are targeting its armored cars “because it is very 
profitable for those law enforcement agencies to seize the cash proceeds
 that Empyreal is transporting and keep that money using civil 
forfeiture.”Dan Alban, an attorney with the Institute of Justice,
 which represents Empyreal, said Empyreal had initially viewed the 
Dickinson County stop as a one-off event. But since then, its vehicles 
have been stopped four more times in California, three of them in the 
last two months alone. The vehicles were transporting cash from 
state-licensed cannabis businesses in California.“I think they 
began to become very concerned that this was an ongoing pattern of 
activity and that they were being targeted. And so they wanted not just 
to have to defend against these forfeiture actions after the fact” but 
to seek legal relief preventing future seizures, Alban said.In 
addition to alleging violations of the Fourth Amendment and due process,
 the lawsuit seeks to block future stops, searches and seizures of 
Empyreal’s vehicles “based solely on the actual or suspected presence of
 cash earned by state-legal cannabis dispensaries without reasonable 
suspicion or probable cause.”<h2>'Writing on the wall' </h2>“Empyreal
 could see the writing on the wall,” Alban said. “They could tell they 
were being targeted — all of these stops and searches — five in total so
 far. And so in order to continue operating their armored car business, 
they needed not to be targeted by the feds or local sheriffs for these 
continued stops, searches and seizures.”Empyreal is still seeking
 to recover the money that was seized in Kansas in the pending civil 
forfeiture proceeding. The U.S. Attorney’s Office has declined to 
comment on the case.The forfeiture action is being prosecuted by 
Colin D. Wood, a retired KBI senior special agent who now serves as a 
federal contractor with the U.S. Attorney’s Office with the title of 
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney. He did not respond to a request for 
comment.The traffic stop in Dickinson County took place last May.
 The U.S. Attorney’s Office filed the civil forfeiture action three 
months later.Attorneys not involved in the case have questioned 
why it was brought, given that it doesn’t involve the seizure of 
marijuana but rather proceeds from its sale and given that the 
dispensaries whose money was seized are licensed under Missouri’s 
medical cannabis program.During the Obama administration, the 
Department of Justice issued a memorandum stating that federal 
prosecutors would not enforce the federal prohibition against marijuana 
in states that had legalized it. And federal legislation enacted in 2014
 prohibits the Justice Department from spending funds to interfere with 
the implementation of state medical cannabis laws.The 
legislation, known as the Rohrbacher-Farr amendment, must be renewed 
every year. It was renewed last year and remains effective through Feb. 
18.In its lawsuit, Empyreal says it has been forced to suspend 
its operations in San Bernardino, County, California, has stopped 
transporting cash through Kansas, has lost customers and has been unable
 to roll out new services in multiple states because of concerns about 
the stops and seizures.“If these incidents continue to occur — 
and there is every indication they will — it will threaten Empyreal’s 
business model and its ability to continue providing financial 
infrastructure for the state-legal medical cannabis industry by safely 
moving cash from business premises into the legal banking system for 
greater transparency,” the lawsuit states.The lawsuit names as 
defendants the U.S. Department of Justice; Attorney General Merrick 
Garland; the FBI; FBI Director Christopher Wray; an assistant FBI 
director overseeing the bureau’s Los Angeles field office; the DEA; DEA 
Administrator Anne Milgram; and San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon D.
 Dicus.