SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting and after asking the public for help to locate two suspects have reported an arrest.

On Thursday, authorities in Seattle, Washington arrested&nbsp;31-year-old Latrelle Sheneice Praylow 

A second suspect Todge Anderson is still outstanding, according to police spokesperson Gretchen Spiker.

Just after 11:30a.m. October 3, police responded to a call for service at a home in the 300 Block of SW Polk in Topeka for a check welfare, according to&nbsp;LT Jerry Monasmith.

On arrival, officers found 38-year-old Christopher McMillon with what appeared to be a gunshot wound. He was pronounced deceased at the scene.&nbsp;

Praylow is being held without bond in King County until she is returned to Kansas.&nbsp;

SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting and have identified the victim as&nbsp; Christopher McMillon, 38, of Topeka. 

Just after 11:30a.m. Saturday, police responded to a call for service at a home in the 300 Block of SW Polk for a check welfare, according to&nbsp;LT Jerry Monasmith.

On arrival, officers found McMillon with what appeared to be a gunshot wound. He was pronounced deceased at the scene. Police released no additional details early Sunday.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603125505902.png" alt="Praylow has previous convictions for theft, forgery and criminal possession of a weapon by a felon, according to the Kansas Dept. of Corrections -photo Topeka Police" />
 <figcaption>Praylow has previous convictions for theft, forgery and criminal possession of a weapon by a felon, according to the Kansas Dept. of Corrections -photo Topeka Police</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting and after asking the public for help to locate two suspects have reported an arrest.On Thursday, authorities in Seattle, Washington arrested&nbsp;31-year-old Latrelle Sheneice Praylow <figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603125537277.png" alt="Anderson-photo Topeka Police" />
 <figcaption>Anderson-photo Topeka Police</figcaption>
 </figure>A second suspect Todge Anderson is still outstanding, according to police spokesperson Gretchen Spiker.Just after 11:30a.m. October 3, police responded to a call for service at a home in the 300 Block of SW Polk in Topeka for a check welfare, according to&nbsp;LT Jerry Monasmith.On arrival, officers found 38-year-old Christopher McMillon with what appeared to be a gunshot wound. He was pronounced deceased at the scene.&nbsp;Praylow is being held without bond in King County until she is returned to Kansas.&nbsp;---------SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting and have identified the victim as&nbsp; Christopher McMillon, 38, of Topeka. Just after 11:30a.m. Saturday, police responded to a call for service at a home in the 300 Block of SW Polk for a check welfare, according to&nbsp;LT Jerry Monasmith.On arrival, officers found McMillon with what appeared to be a gunshot wound. He was pronounced deceased at the scene. Police released no additional details early Sunday.-----------

Suspect wanted for Kan. man's murder jailed in Seattle

Sister Edith Marie Hauser, 93, died October 30, 2020, in the 
Dominican Sisters’ convent infirmary, Great Bend.&nbsp; She was born January 
19, 1927, in Nashville, KS, the daughter of Edward and Mary (Schnittker)
 Hauser.&nbsp; She entered the Dominican Sisters Community in 1943 and 
pronounced vows in 1946.&nbsp; Sister Edith Marie ministered as an educator, 
serving as teacher and/or principal from 1946-2010.&nbsp; At that time she 
retired at the motherhouse in Great Bend.&nbsp;

Sister Edith was preceded in death by her parents, three brothers, 
and three sisters.&nbsp; She is survived by one sister, Angela Scantlin, 
numerous nieces and nephews, as well as the Dominican Sisters of Peace.&nbsp;

A private Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:30 AM Monday, 
November 2.&nbsp; A Vigil Service will be held Sunday, November 1, at 7:00 
PM.&nbsp; Both will take place at the Sisters’ Convent.&nbsp; Burial will be in 
the Sisters’ Resurrection Cemetery. 

Memorials in honor of Sister Edith 
Marie may be sent to Dominican Sisters of Peace, 2320 Airport Drive, 
Columbus, OH 43219-2098.&nbsp; Condolences may be sent and notice viewed at <a href="http://www.bryantfh.net">www.bryantfh.net</a>.&nbsp; Arrangements by Bryant Funeral Home, 1425 Patton Rd., Great Bend 67530.

Sister Edith Marie Hauser, 93, died October 30, 2020, in the 
Dominican Sisters’ convent infirmary, Great Bend.&nbsp; She was born January 
19, 1927, in Nashville, KS, the daughter of Edward and Mary (Schnittker)
 Hauser.&nbsp; She entered the Dominican Sisters Community in 1943 and 
pronounced vows in 1946.&nbsp; Sister Edith Marie ministered as an educator, 
serving as teacher and/or principal from 1946-2010.&nbsp; At that time she 
retired at the motherhouse in Great Bend.&nbsp;Sister Edith was preceded in death by her parents, three brothers, 
and three sisters.&nbsp; She is survived by one sister, Angela Scantlin, 
numerous nieces and nephews, as well as the Dominican Sisters of Peace.&nbsp;A private Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:30 AM Monday, 
November 2.&nbsp; A Vigil Service will be held Sunday, November 1, at 7:00 
PM.&nbsp; Both will take place at the Sisters’ Convent.&nbsp; Burial will be in 
the Sisters’ Resurrection Cemetery. Memorials in honor of Sister Edith 
Marie may be sent to Dominican Sisters of Peace, 2320 Airport Drive, 
Columbus, OH 43219-2098.&nbsp; Condolences may be sent and notice viewed at <a href="http://www.bryantfh.net">www.bryantfh.net</a>.&nbsp; Arrangements by Bryant Funeral Home, 1425 Patton Rd., Great Bend 67530.

Sister Edith Marie Hauser

Howard Lewis “Arkie” McNair, 80, McCracken, Kansas, died Wednesday, October 21, 2020, at Hays Medical Center, Hays, Kansas.

Arkie was born November 29, 1939, in Moro, Arkansas, the son of Homer
 McNair, Sr. and Jessamine (Shelton) McNair.&nbsp; He was a resident of 
McCracken, Kansas, since 2003, moving from Thornton, Colorado.&nbsp; He 
worked in cable maintenance for the telephone industry before his 
retirement.

He was a veteran of the United States Army.

On December 31, 1965, he married Diana F. Ochs at Fort Worth, Texas.&nbsp;

Survivors include:&nbsp; his wife, Diana F. McNair, McCracken, Kansas; two
 sons, Travis McNair (Alice), Franktown, Colorado, and Curtis McNair 
(Kelly), Thornton, Colorado; four grandchildren, Melanie McNair, 
Thornton, Colorado, Jesse McNair (Blythe), Parker, Colorado, Kristen 
McNair, Thornton, Colorado, and Tyler McNair, Highlands Ranch, Colorado;
 and one sister, Patsy Edgin, Marianna, Arkansas.

He was preceded in death by his parents; one grandson, Travis McNair,
 Jr.; seven brothers, Cecil McNair, Homer McNair, Jr., Ernest McNair, 
James McNair, Henry McNair, Leroy McNair; and Roger McNair; and&nbsp; four 
sisters, Betty Fear, Sara Desautel, Mildred Watkins, and Mary Edgin.

Per Arkie’s wishes, cremation has been chosen.&nbsp;

Memorials are suggested to wildlife or national park preservation organizations.

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.

Howard Lewis “Arkie” McNair, 80, McCracken, Kansas, died Wednesday, October 21, 2020, at Hays Medical Center, Hays, Kansas.Arkie was born November 29, 1939, in Moro, Arkansas, the son of Homer
 McNair, Sr. and Jessamine (Shelton) McNair.&nbsp; He was a resident of 
McCracken, Kansas, since 2003, moving from Thornton, Colorado.&nbsp; He 
worked in cable maintenance for the telephone industry before his 
retirement.He was a veteran of the United States Army.On December 31, 1965, he married Diana F. Ochs at Fort Worth, Texas.&nbsp;Survivors include:&nbsp; his wife, Diana F. McNair, McCracken, Kansas; two
 sons, Travis McNair (Alice), Franktown, Colorado, and Curtis McNair 
(Kelly), Thornton, Colorado; four grandchildren, Melanie McNair, 
Thornton, Colorado, Jesse McNair (Blythe), Parker, Colorado, Kristen 
McNair, Thornton, Colorado, and Tyler McNair, Highlands Ranch, Colorado;
 and one sister, Patsy Edgin, Marianna, Arkansas.He was preceded in death by his parents; one grandson, Travis McNair,
 Jr.; seven brothers, Cecil McNair, Homer McNair, Jr., Ernest McNair, 
James McNair, Henry McNair, Leroy McNair; and Roger McNair; and&nbsp; four 
sisters, Betty Fear, Sara Desautel, Mildred Watkins, and Mary Edgin.Per Arkie’s wishes, cremation has been chosen.&nbsp;Memorials are suggested to wildlife or national park preservation organizations.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.

Howard Lewis 'Arkie' McNair

By NOMIN UJIYEDIIN <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-10-30/western-kansas-is-full-of-coronavirus-hot-spots-tying-up-icu-beds">Kansas News Service</a>

For the first time during the pandemic. Dr. Drew Miller was unable to
 send a severely ill COVID patient to the intensive care unit.

Miller
 and other staff at the Kearny County Hospital, in southwestern Kansas, 
had done what they could last weekend, putting the patient on a maximum 
oxygen flow. But the closest ICU in the area was one county over — St. 
Catherine Hospital in Garden City — and it was full. The nearest open 
ICU bed was in Kansas City, seven hours away.

By the time an ICU bed opened up at St. Catherine, the patient needed to be intubated and was in much worse condition.

The
 experience was “uncomfortable. And unwanted,” said Miller, who is the 
hospital’s chief of staff and the county’s lead medical officer.

It
 brought home a reality that many in western Kansas have been trying to 
avoid: The coronavirus is here, it is getting worse and it will put a 
strain on a rural health care system that is already sparse and 
understaffed. 

Overall, Kansas has more than 85,000 cases. And as 
of Friday, five rural Kansas counties were among the top 20 U.S. 
counties with the highest number of COVID-19 cases per resident, 
according to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html" target="_blank">The New York Times</a>.

Kearny
 County is not one of them. It had opted out of the state’s mask 
mandate, as permitted this summer. But on Oct. 14, the county began <a href="https://www.kearnycountykansas.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Resolution-20-2110142020.pdf" target="_blank">requiring masks</a> in public spaces and limiting mass gatherings to 25% occupancy.

As of Friday, the county has seen 160 <a href="https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/160/COVID-19-in-Kansas" target="_blank">COVID-19 cases</a> over the course of the pandemic, 58 of them diagnosed in October. It’s <a href="https://www.kearnycountyhospital.com/covid-19-public-risk-level-guidelines/" target="_blank">currently</a> at Level 4, the highest level on a county-created <a href="http://www.kearnycountyhospital.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Alert-Guidelines.pdf" target="_blank">rubric</a>
 of pandemic severity, indicating a rapidly increasing number of people 
are testing positive for COVID-19 and seeking medical treatment.

Even so, Miller said, it’s been hard to convey the growing threat of the virus, especially with such widespread misinformation.

“Our
 county health voice has just been drowned out,” Miller said. “It’s hard
 to get people to wear a mask when they don’t feel it, when they don’t 
see what we see every day, which is more sick people and more severe 
cases.”

In nearby Finney County, <a href="https://www.finneycounty.org/755/Coronavirus-COVID-19" target="_blank">positivity rates</a>
 for the coronavirus reached 31% between Oct. 12-16. As of Friday, there
 had been 2,766 cases in the county, 700 of them reported since Sept. 
30.

The virus is spreading widely throughout the community, Finney County Health Department Director Colleen Drees said.

“I
 wouldn’t say that there’s any specific outbreaks that are causing it,” 
Drees said. “We’ve had several people that have reported that they’re 
not sure where they contracted COVID because they’re unsure of who near 
them was sick.”

Earlier this year, Finney, Ford and Seward counties — home to four meatpacking plants and 25% of the nation’s beef processing — <a href="https://www.hppr.org/post/emails-show-kansas-agencies-helped-keep-meatpacking-plants-open-despite-concerns-about" target="_blank">saw a massive spike in cases</a>. According to <a href="https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/160/COVID-19-in-Kansas" target="_blank">state data</a>,
 21 clusters have been linked to meatpacking plants, as well as more 
than 3,600 cases, 113 hospitalizations and 19 deaths. Unlike in other 
places, the plants in western Kansas did not close.

Dr. R.C. Trotter, an advisor for Ford County, said its numbers (3,491
 as of Oct. 30) are no longer as concerning. To his knowledge, the 
county does not track current moving averages of positivity rates or 
case numbers, which are common measures for COVID severity.

Ford 
County does not have a mask order, but Trotter said he sees most people 
wearing masks in public places, and many indoor gatherings have been 
cancelled. He called the question of a mandate “political.”

“I sit
 on the fence, I’ll be honest,” he said. “Is it worth it for me to go 
out and fall on the sword, which quite honestly, a lot of public health 
officers are? We’re seeing the rebuttal for that.”

While other 
health officials have warned for months that the fall and winter would 
bring a rise in cases — which appears to be happening across a large 
swath of the country — Trotter said he doesn’t think there’s any 
scientific evidence that the colder weather increases cases.

“It’s conjecture. We don’t know,” he said.

Officials
 in the Finney County government and in Garden City, the largest city 
and county seat, have yet to issue any orders relating to coronavirus 
precautions, such as a mask mandate, gathering ban or social distancing 
rules. Leaders opted out of Gov. Laura Kelly’s statewide mask mandate in
 the summer.

The county’s medical director has asked the county and city governments for a mask order through the summer and fall.

The
 county commission meets next on Monday, Nov. 2. Commissioner Dave Jones
 said COVID would likely be on the agenda, but he wasn’t sure whether a 
mask order would be. Jones also said he was concerned a mask mandate 
would be too overbearing on local schools, and preferred to let the 
districts make that decision.

Finney County Commissioner Duane 
Drees supports mask wearing, social distancing and other recommendations
 of doctors, but said he doesn’t feel a mandate is necessary or even 
enforceable.

“There is a limit to what common sense and the public
 will tolerate,” he said. “You don’t need a law to protect people from 
their own self. That’s why God gave us common sense.”

Drees said 
social distancing and gathering limits also would be hard to enforce, 
especially in a county with such a large population of people from 
different ethnicities.

“African cultures, Asian cultures, 
Hispanic. Family unit is very important to most of these cultures,” he 
said. “And they tend to get together as a family unit more than the 
traditional resident.”

Families who have been in the area for "100
 years," Drees continued, “we tend to have assimilated much more and 
drifted away from the family orientation.”

He believes it’s harder to tell recent immigrants to follow social distancing rules.

“Are they going to pay attention? I doubt it,” Drees said.

Garden
 City Manager Matt Allen said the municipal government decided at the 
beginning of the pandemic to defer to the county government for a 
unified message.

While a mask mandate is tentatively on the agenda
 for the city’s Nov. 3 meeting, he said it was unclear whether the city 
would decide to depart from the county.

Finney County Medical 
Director, Dr. Lindsay Byrnes, said she often observes people going 
unmasked in public spaces. When she went to the county administration 
building to vote this week, only one poll worker was wearing a mask, she
 said. Most government employees were not.

“I think our leadership failed to take a strong stance and encourage it,” she said.

She
 pushed for a mask mandate through the summer and fall. It’s the best 
way, she said, to ensure county residents comply with health precautions
 during a critical time.

A recently published <a href="https://ipsr.ku.edu/covid19/images/MaskMandateUpdate.pdf" target="_blank">study from the University of Kansas</a>
 shows counties with mask mandates decreased their seven-day rolling 
averages of daily cases per 100,000 people, while counties without 
mandates have seen those averages increase.

“We are desperate to 
explain that this must be a community-wide effort,” Byrnes said. “It 
cannot be only the burden of the health care system. It cannot be the 
burden of a few, it has to be everyone working in concert.”

Byrnes
 said school teachers and hospital staff in the county have had to stay 
home from work because they’ve caught the virus out in the community, 
not at their workplaces. That indicates that the virus is widespread, 
and that schools and hospitals may be incapacitated just when the 
community needs them, she said.

St. Catherine Hospital in Garden 
City only has eight ICU beds. Patients in serious condition are 
sometimes transferred to facilities in Wichita, Denver or other large 
cities within a few hours’ flight, Byrnes said.

If hospitals in those areas also become full, Finney County won’t have any other options.

“It’s not sustainable,” she said. “My colleagues are saying, ‘Please, anybody do something. We can’t do this by ourselves.’”

It
 feels like health care providers have been abandoned, Byrnes said. She 
used to believe southwest Kansas, where she grew up, was a place where 
neighbors helped each other, no questions asked. But the resistance to 
masks has led her to question her community.

“These are the people
 that would go out and cut your wheat if you were in the hospital or had
 a problem in the family,” she said. “Why is this different now? What 
happened? Why aren’t people willing to take care of each other?”

Nomin
 Ujiyediin reports on criminal justice and social welfare for the Kansas
 News Service. You can email her at nomin@kcur.org and follow
 her on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/nominuj" target="_blank">@NominUJ</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1604085345802.png" alt="The coronavirus positivity rate in southwestern Kansas' Finney County was 31% from Oct. 12-16. The county's has added 700 cases in a month. Corinne Boyer / Kansas News Service" />
 <figcaption>The coronavirus positivity rate in southwestern Kansas' Finney County was 31% from Oct. 12-16. The county's has added 700 cases in a month. Corinne Boyer / Kansas News Service</figcaption>
 </figure>By NOMIN UJIYEDIIN <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-10-30/western-kansas-is-full-of-coronavirus-hot-spots-tying-up-icu-beds">Kansas News Service</a>For the first time during the pandemic. Dr. Drew Miller was unable to
 send a severely ill COVID patient to the intensive care unit.Miller
 and other staff at the Kearny County Hospital, in southwestern Kansas, 
had done what they could last weekend, putting the patient on a maximum 
oxygen flow. But the closest ICU in the area was one county over — St. 
Catherine Hospital in Garden City — and it was full. The nearest open 
ICU bed was in Kansas City, seven hours away.By the time an ICU bed opened up at St. Catherine, the patient needed to be intubated and was in much worse condition.The
 experience was “uncomfortable. And unwanted,” said Miller, who is the 
hospital’s chief of staff and the county’s lead medical officer.It
 brought home a reality that many in western Kansas have been trying to 
avoid: The coronavirus is here, it is getting worse and it will put a 
strain on a rural health care system that is already sparse and 
understaffed. Overall, Kansas has more than 85,000 cases. And as 
of Friday, five rural Kansas counties were among the top 20 U.S. 
counties with the highest number of COVID-19 cases per resident, 
according to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html" target="_blank">The New York Times</a>.Kearny
 County is not one of them. It had opted out of the state’s mask 
mandate, as permitted this summer. But on Oct. 14, the county began <a href="https://www.kearnycountykansas.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Resolution-20-2110142020.pdf" target="_blank">requiring masks</a> in public spaces and limiting mass gatherings to 25% occupancy.As of Friday, the county has seen 160 <a href="https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/160/COVID-19-in-Kansas" target="_blank">COVID-19 cases</a> over the course of the pandemic, 58 of them diagnosed in October. It’s <a href="https://www.kearnycountyhospital.com/covid-19-public-risk-level-guidelines/" target="_blank">currently</a> at Level 4, the highest level on a county-created <a href="http://www.kearnycountyhospital.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Alert-Guidelines.pdf" target="_blank">rubric</a>
 of pandemic severity, indicating a rapidly increasing number of people 
are testing positive for COVID-19 and seeking medical treatment.Even so, Miller said, it’s been hard to convey the growing threat of the virus, especially with such widespread misinformation.“Our
 county health voice has just been drowned out,” Miller said. “It’s hard
 to get people to wear a mask when they don’t feel it, when they don’t 
see what we see every day, which is more sick people and more severe 
cases.”<h2>The absence of mask mandates</h2>In nearby Finney County, <a href="https://www.finneycounty.org/755/Coronavirus-COVID-19" target="_blank">positivity rates</a>
 for the coronavirus reached 31% between Oct. 12-16. As of Friday, there
 had been 2,766 cases in the county, 700 of them reported since Sept. 
30.The virus is spreading widely throughout the community, Finney County Health Department Director Colleen Drees said.“I
 wouldn’t say that there’s any specific outbreaks that are causing it,” 
Drees said. “We’ve had several people that have reported that they’re 
not sure where they contracted COVID because they’re unsure of who near 
them was sick.”Earlier this year, Finney, Ford and Seward counties — home to four meatpacking plants and 25% of the nation’s beef processing — <a href="https://www.hppr.org/post/emails-show-kansas-agencies-helped-keep-meatpacking-plants-open-despite-concerns-about" target="_blank">saw a massive spike in cases</a>. According to <a href="https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/160/COVID-19-in-Kansas" target="_blank">state data</a>,
 21 clusters have been linked to meatpacking plants, as well as more 
than 3,600 cases, 113 hospitalizations and 19 deaths. Unlike in other 
places, the plants in western Kansas did not close.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1604085485371.png" alt="The National Beef plant in Dodge City was the site of coronavirus cases earlier this year. Bethany Wood" />
 <figcaption>The National Beef plant in Dodge City was the site of coronavirus cases earlier this year. Bethany Wood</figcaption>
 </figure>Dr. R.C. Trotter, an advisor for Ford County, said its numbers (3,491
 as of Oct. 30) are no longer as concerning. To his knowledge, the 
county does not track current moving averages of positivity rates or 
case numbers, which are common measures for COVID severity.Ford 
County does not have a mask order, but Trotter said he sees most people 
wearing masks in public places, and many indoor gatherings have been 
cancelled. He called the question of a mandate “political.”“I sit
 on the fence, I’ll be honest,” he said. “Is it worth it for me to go 
out and fall on the sword, which quite honestly, a lot of public health 
officers are? We’re seeing the rebuttal for that.”While other 
health officials have warned for months that the fall and winter would 
bring a rise in cases — which appears to be happening across a large 
swath of the country — Trotter said he doesn’t think there’s any 
scientific evidence that the colder weather increases cases.“It’s conjecture. We don’t know,” he said.Officials
 in the Finney County government and in Garden City, the largest city 
and county seat, have yet to issue any orders relating to coronavirus 
precautions, such as a mask mandate, gathering ban or social distancing 
rules. Leaders opted out of Gov. Laura Kelly’s statewide mask mandate in
 the summer.The county’s medical director has asked the county and city governments for a mask order through the summer and fall.The
 county commission meets next on Monday, Nov. 2. Commissioner Dave Jones
 said COVID would likely be on the agenda, but he wasn’t sure whether a 
mask order would be. Jones also said he was concerned a mask mandate 
would be too overbearing on local schools, and preferred to let the 
districts make that decision.Finney County Commissioner Duane 
Drees supports mask wearing, social distancing and other recommendations
 of doctors, but said he doesn’t feel a mandate is necessary or even 
enforceable.“There is a limit to what common sense and the public
 will tolerate,” he said. “You don’t need a law to protect people from 
their own self. That’s why God gave us common sense.”Drees said 
social distancing and gathering limits also would be hard to enforce, 
especially in a county with such a large population of people from 
different ethnicities.“African cultures, Asian cultures, 
Hispanic. Family unit is very important to most of these cultures,” he 
said. “And they tend to get together as a family unit more than the 
traditional resident.”Families who have been in the area for "100
 years," Drees continued, “we tend to have assimilated much more and 
drifted away from the family orientation.”He believes it’s harder to tell recent immigrants to follow social distancing rules.“Are they going to pay attention? I doubt it,” Drees said.Garden
 City Manager Matt Allen said the municipal government decided at the 
beginning of the pandemic to defer to the county government for a 
unified message.While a mask mandate is tentatively on the agenda
 for the city’s Nov. 3 meeting, he said it was unclear whether the city 
would decide to depart from the county.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1604085530551.png" alt="St. Catherine Hospital in Garden City has eight ICU beds. Corinne Boyer" />
 <figcaption>St. Catherine Hospital in Garden City has eight ICU beds. Corinne Boyer</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>‘We are desperate’</h2>Finney County Medical 
Director, Dr. Lindsay Byrnes, said she often observes people going 
unmasked in public spaces. When she went to the county administration 
building to vote this week, only one poll worker was wearing a mask, she
 said. Most government employees were not.“I think our leadership failed to take a strong stance and encourage it,” she said.She
 pushed for a mask mandate through the summer and fall. It’s the best 
way, she said, to ensure county residents comply with health precautions
 during a critical time.A recently published <a href="https://ipsr.ku.edu/covid19/images/MaskMandateUpdate.pdf" target="_blank">study from the University of Kansas</a>
 shows counties with mask mandates decreased their seven-day rolling 
averages of daily cases per 100,000 people, while counties without 
mandates have seen those averages increase.“We are desperate to 
explain that this must be a community-wide effort,” Byrnes said. “It 
cannot be only the burden of the health care system. It cannot be the 
burden of a few, it has to be everyone working in concert.”Byrnes
 said school teachers and hospital staff in the county have had to stay 
home from work because they’ve caught the virus out in the community, 
not at their workplaces. That indicates that the virus is widespread, 
and that schools and hospitals may be incapacitated just when the 
community needs them, she said.St. Catherine Hospital in Garden 
City only has eight ICU beds. Patients in serious condition are 
sometimes transferred to facilities in Wichita, Denver or other large 
cities within a few hours’ flight, Byrnes said.If hospitals in those areas also become full, Finney County won’t have any other options.“It’s not sustainable,” she said. “My colleagues are saying, ‘Please, anybody do something. We can’t do this by ourselves.’”It
 feels like health care providers have been abandoned, Byrnes said. She 
used to believe southwest Kansas, where she grew up, was a place where 
neighbors helped each other, no questions asked. But the resistance to 
masks has led her to question her community.“These are the people
 that would go out and cut your wheat if you were in the hospital or had
 a problem in the family,” she said. “Why is this different now? What 
happened? Why aren’t people willing to take care of each other?”Nomin
 Ujiyediin reports on criminal justice and social welfare for the Kansas
 News Service. You can email her at nomin@kcur.org and follow
 her on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/nominuj" target="_blank">@NominUJ</a>.

SW Kansas is full of coronavirus hot spots, tying up ICU beds

Evelyn Marie Griffiths, 92, passed away October 29, 2020. She was 
born October 4, 1928, in Long Island, Kansas to Henry and Hattie (Van 
Kooten) Erickson. 

Evelyn grew up in Long Island and graduated from Long 
Island High School in 1946. She attended Brown Mackie Business College 
in Salina and later worked for the Bureau of Reclamation in Indianola, 
Nebraska. On June 10, 1949, she married Bernard Griffiths. Evelyn and 
Bernard raised their two sons in Long Island and were proud owners of 
the Commercial State Bank there for many years.

Evelyn loved to travel and enjoyed trips with friends and family 
throughout the United States and Europe. Evelyn's home was always open 
for family gatherings and holidays and, later in life, she regularly 
hosted aunts, uncles, sister, brother, cousins, sons and friends for 
Friday morning coffee and sweets. A grand time was always had by all as 
they reminisced about family and discussed the future of America. Evelyn
 was always fond of her five grandchildren, and made sure to reward them
 for every good report card they showed her. Evelyn was an active 
volunteer in the Long Island community and devoted her time to the Long 
Island Library and Community Center. She was baptized and a Life Member 
of the Luctor Christian Reformed Church.

Evelyn is survived by: her sons, Douglas (Karen) Griffiths of Norton 
and Scott (Robbie) Griffiths of Long Island; four grandchildren Tara 
Griffiths of Milford,Ne., John (Kenzie) Griffiths of Norton, Joel 
(Hillary) Griffiths of Overland Park, and Henry (Meredith) Griffiths of 
Long Island; five great grandchildren; one great great grandchild; 
sister Ilene Johnson; brother Norman Erickson; eight nieces and nephews;
 and other relatives and friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband of 42 years, 
Bernard, infant daughter Pamela, sister in law Rose Erickson and brother
 in law Paul Johnson.

Graveside services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Monday, November 2, 
2020, in the Long Island Cemetery, Long Island, KS with Reverend Shawn 
Richardson officiating.&nbsp; The services will be streamed live on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Funeral-Service---Cemetery/Olliff-Boeve-Memorial-Chapel-158648587502325/">Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel Facebook page.</a>

Mrs. Griffiths will lie in state from noon until 9 p.m. Sunday at the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, Phillipsburg.

In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to the Andbe Home, Long Island Community Building or Long Island Library.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1604081819130.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Evelyn Marie Griffiths, 92, passed away October 29, 2020. She was 
born October 4, 1928, in Long Island, Kansas to Henry and Hattie (Van 
Kooten) Erickson. Evelyn grew up in Long Island and graduated from Long 
Island High School in 1946. She attended Brown Mackie Business College 
in Salina and later worked for the Bureau of Reclamation in Indianola, 
Nebraska. On June 10, 1949, she married Bernard Griffiths. Evelyn and 
Bernard raised their two sons in Long Island and were proud owners of 
the Commercial State Bank there for many years.Evelyn loved to travel and enjoyed trips with friends and family 
throughout the United States and Europe. Evelyn's home was always open 
for family gatherings and holidays and, later in life, she regularly 
hosted aunts, uncles, sister, brother, cousins, sons and friends for 
Friday morning coffee and sweets. A grand time was always had by all as 
they reminisced about family and discussed the future of America. Evelyn
 was always fond of her five grandchildren, and made sure to reward them
 for every good report card they showed her. Evelyn was an active 
volunteer in the Long Island community and devoted her time to the Long 
Island Library and Community Center. She was baptized and a Life Member 
of the Luctor Christian Reformed Church.Evelyn is survived by: her sons, Douglas (Karen) Griffiths of Norton 
and Scott (Robbie) Griffiths of Long Island; four grandchildren Tara 
Griffiths of Milford,Ne., John (Kenzie) Griffiths of Norton, Joel 
(Hillary) Griffiths of Overland Park, and Henry (Meredith) Griffiths of 
Long Island; five great grandchildren; one great great grandchild; 
sister Ilene Johnson; brother Norman Erickson; eight nieces and nephews;
 and other relatives and friends.She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband of 42 years, 
Bernard, infant daughter Pamela, sister in law Rose Erickson and brother
 in law Paul Johnson.Graveside services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Monday, November 2, 
2020, in the Long Island Cemetery, Long Island, KS with Reverend Shawn 
Richardson officiating.&nbsp; The services will be streamed live on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Funeral-Service---Cemetery/Olliff-Boeve-Memorial-Chapel-158648587502325/">Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel Facebook page.</a>Mrs. Griffiths will lie in state from noon until 9 p.m. Sunday at the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, Phillipsburg.In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to the Andbe Home, Long Island Community Building or Long Island Library.

Evelyn Marie Griffiths

WASHINGTON —First Lady Melania Trump used her social media account to recognize a group of Kansas high school students.

In her tweet, she wrote, "The STAND Coalition at Newton High School in Kansas is comprised of 70 students committed to <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BeDrugFree?src=hashtag_click">#BeDrugFree</a>.

Embracing a substance-free life isn’t just healthy, it is laying the foundation for a brighter future for all! Thank you for setting a wonderful example!&nbsp;

The school retweeted the First Lady's statement and wrote, "Awesome job STAND!"

Dozens of youths at schools in Harvey County participate in STAND to promote substance prevention education, participate in community service projects and positive alternative activities, according to USD 373.

WASHINGTON —First Lady Melania Trump used her social media account to recognize a group of Kansas high school students.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">The STAND Coalition at Newton High School in KS is comprised of 70 students committed to <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BeDrugFree?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BeDrugFree</a>. Embracing a substance-free life isn’t just healthy, it is laying the foundation for a brighter future for all! Thank you for setting a wonderful example! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PreventionMonth?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PreventionMonth</a> <a href="https://t.co/PRsN83Yng0">pic.twitter.com/PRsN83Yng0</a>&mdash; Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) <a href="https://twitter.com/FLOTUS/status/1321911155799912448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 29, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>In her tweet, she wrote, "The STAND Coalition at Newton High School in Kansas is comprised of 70 students committed to <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BeDrugFree?src=hashtag_click">#BeDrugFree</a>. Embracing a substance-free life isn’t just healthy, it is laying the foundation for a brighter future for all! Thank you for setting a wonderful example!&nbsp;The school retweeted the First Lady's statement and wrote, "Awesome job STAND!"Dozens of youths at schools in Harvey County participate in STAND to promote substance prevention education, participate in community service projects and positive alternative activities, according to USD 373.

First Lady recognizes Kan. high school student organization

Mark Alan Jarvis passed away on October 27, 2020 at the Rooks County 
Health Center in Plainville, KS, at the age of 70. 

He was born on August
 3, 1950 in Lamar, MO to Olan and Marie Jarvis. Mark attended the Lamar 
School District and graduated with the Class of 1968. After graduating, 
Mark joined the United States Army and fought in the Vietnam War. After 
being honorably discharged from the military, Mark began his career as a
 Corrections Officer and worked for the Stockton Correctional Facility 
for 30 years.
 Upon Mark’s retirement from the correctional facility, he stayed 
busy with contract freight hauling, appliance repairs, and installing 
Dish TV. Mark was a lifetime member of the VFW Post #8873 in Stockton 
and was also a lifetime member of the NRA. 
 Left to cherish his memory is his daughter, Shelley Dempsey and 
husband Erin of Blue Springs, MO; sister, Connie Moore of Joplin, MO; 
and three grandchildren as well as some nieces and nephews.
 Mark is preceded in death by his parents, Olan and Marie; brother, Ernest Jarvis; and sister, Mary Hurrell.
 Private family services will be held at a later date in Lamar, MO. 
 Memorials are suggested to VFW Post #8873 and may be sent in care of
 Plumer-Overlease Funeral Home, 723 N. First, Stockton, KS 67669.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603899670872.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Mark Alan Jarvis passed away on October 27, 2020 at the Rooks County 
Health Center in Plainville, KS, at the age of 70. He was born on August
 3, 1950 in Lamar, MO to Olan and Marie Jarvis. Mark attended the Lamar 
School District and graduated with the Class of 1968. After graduating, 
Mark joined the United States Army and fought in the Vietnam War. After 
being honorably discharged from the military, Mark began his career as a
 Corrections Officer and worked for the Stockton Correctional Facility 
for 30 years.
 Upon Mark’s retirement from the correctional facility, he stayed 
busy with contract freight hauling, appliance repairs, and installing 
Dish TV. Mark was a lifetime member of the VFW Post #8873 in Stockton 
and was also a lifetime member of the NRA. 
 Left to cherish his memory is his daughter, Shelley Dempsey and 
husband Erin of Blue Springs, MO; sister, Connie Moore of Joplin, MO; 
and three grandchildren as well as some nieces and nephews.
 Mark is preceded in death by his parents, Olan and Marie; brother, Ernest Jarvis; and sister, Mary Hurrell.
 Private family services will be held at a later date in Lamar, MO. 
 Memorials are suggested to VFW Post #8873 and may be sent in care of
 Plumer-Overlease Funeral Home, 723 N. First, Stockton, KS 67669.

Mark A. Jarvis

Ervin L. Kuhlman, 86, passed away Wednesday, October 28, 2020, at Trego-Lemke Memorial Hospital - Long Term Care, WaKeeney, KS. 
 Ervin was born May 25, 1934, in rural Smith County, KS, the son of 
Louis H. and Emma (Grauerholz) Kuhlmann.&nbsp; He married Florence M. Lohman 
on June 4, 1954, at St. John Lutheran Church, Athol, KS, to this union 
they were blessed with four children, Connie, Marsha, Chris and 
Michelle. He was preceded in death by his parents, wife Florence and a son Chris. 
 Ervin &nbsp;is survived by three daughters, Connie (Keven) Strutt of Hays, 
Marsha (Andy) Oldham of WaKeeney, Michelle Reichard of Lansing; daughter
 in law, Wendy Kuhlman of Oberlin; a brother Arthur Kuhlmann of Athol, a
 sister Marlene Kuhlmann of Kensington; eight grandchildren, Shawn 
Strutt and friend Alicia Pfeffer, Brian Strutt, Joshua (Taner) Nixon, 
Jack Farr, Antonio and Dillon Kuhlman, and Matthew Reichard; and ten 
great grandchildren, Paige Strutt, Damian, Devon, Jackson and Melissa 
Strutt, Carson and Rylee Pfeffer, Oliver and Myles Lee Reichard and 
Joseph Nixon. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m., 
Monday, November 2, 2020, at St. John Lutheran Church, Athol, KS, with 
Pastor Bob Sinclair officiating.&nbsp; Visitation will be held on Sunday, 
November 1, 2020 from 2:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. at All Faiths Funeral 
Chapel, 113 S. Madison St., Smith Center.&nbsp; Burial will be in St. John 
Lutheran Church Cemetery, Athol with military honors.&nbsp;

Memorials may be 
given to the church and can be sent in care of the funeral chapel.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1604063979998.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Ervin L. Kuhlman, 86, passed away Wednesday, October 28, 2020, at Trego-Lemke Memorial Hospital - Long Term Care, WaKeeney, KS. 
 Ervin was born May 25, 1934, in rural Smith County, KS, the son of 
Louis H. and Emma (Grauerholz) Kuhlmann.&nbsp; He married Florence M. Lohman 
on June 4, 1954, at St. John Lutheran Church, Athol, KS, to this union 
they were blessed with four children, Connie, Marsha, Chris and 
Michelle. He was preceded in death by his parents, wife Florence and a son Chris. 
 Ervin &nbsp;is survived by three daughters, Connie (Keven) Strutt of Hays, 
Marsha (Andy) Oldham of WaKeeney, Michelle Reichard of Lansing; daughter
 in law, Wendy Kuhlman of Oberlin; a brother Arthur Kuhlmann of Athol, a
 sister Marlene Kuhlmann of Kensington; eight grandchildren, Shawn 
Strutt and friend Alicia Pfeffer, Brian Strutt, Joshua (Taner) Nixon, 
Jack Farr, Antonio and Dillon Kuhlman, and Matthew Reichard; and ten 
great grandchildren, Paige Strutt, Damian, Devon, Jackson and Melissa 
Strutt, Carson and Rylee Pfeffer, Oliver and Myles Lee Reichard and 
Joseph Nixon. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m., 
Monday, November 2, 2020, at St. John Lutheran Church, Athol, KS, with 
Pastor Bob Sinclair officiating.&nbsp; Visitation will be held on Sunday, 
November 1, 2020 from 2:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. at All Faiths Funeral 
Chapel, 113 S. Madison St., Smith Center.&nbsp; Burial will be in St. John 
Lutheran Church Cemetery, Athol with military honors.&nbsp; Memorials may be 
given to the church and can be sent in care of the funeral chapel.

Ervin L. Kuhlman

Tiffany Renee (Basgall) Kyer, age 46, 
of Little Rock, AR, formerly of Schoenchen, KS passed away on Thursday, 
October 22, 2020. She was born November 24, 1973, in Hays, KS to Pam 
(Dinges) Basgall and Theodore Basgall. She graduated from Hays High in 
1992.

Tiffany was a loving mother to her 
children who meant the world to her. She was a community volunteer who 
enjoyed gardening, nature walks, being outdoors and she loved Tom Petty.

She is survived by her parents, Ted 
Basgall of Hays and Pam (Dinges) Basgall and LaVerne J. Dreiling of 
Schoenchen; two sons, Gavin and Cannon Kyer of Little Rock; a brother, 
Brad Basgall and wife April of Hays and their children, Emma, Braxton 
and Ella.

She was preceded in death by her 
maternal grandparents, Isidore and Loretta Dinges and her paternal 
grandparents, Clarence and Regina Basgall as well as an uncle, LeRoy 
Herrman.

Funeral services will be 11:00 AM 
Friday, October 30, 2020 at St. Anthony Catholic Church in Schoenchen. 
Burial will follow in the church cemetery.

Memorial visitation will be 10:00 AM until service time with a rosary service at 10:30 AM all at the church.

Memorial contributions are suggested to the Gavin and Cannon Kyer Education Fund.

Condolences may be left by guest book at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com or by email at keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com

Services in care of Brock's-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory, 2509 Vine Street, Hays, KS 67601.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603567638781.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Tiffany Renee (Basgall) Kyer, age 46, 
of Little Rock, AR, formerly of Schoenchen, KS passed away on Thursday, 
October 22, 2020. She was born November 24, 1973, in Hays, KS to Pam 
(Dinges) Basgall and Theodore Basgall. She graduated from Hays High in 
1992.Tiffany was a loving mother to her 
children who meant the world to her. She was a community volunteer who 
enjoyed gardening, nature walks, being outdoors and she loved Tom Petty.She is survived by her parents, Ted 
Basgall of Hays and Pam (Dinges) Basgall and LaVerne J. Dreiling of 
Schoenchen; two sons, Gavin and Cannon Kyer of Little Rock; a brother, 
Brad Basgall and wife April of Hays and their children, Emma, Braxton 
and Ella.She was preceded in death by her 
maternal grandparents, Isidore and Loretta Dinges and her paternal 
grandparents, Clarence and Regina Basgall as well as an uncle, LeRoy 
Herrman.Funeral services will be 11:00 AM 
Friday, October 30, 2020 at St. Anthony Catholic Church in Schoenchen. 
Burial will follow in the church cemetery.Memorial visitation will be 10:00 AM until service time with a rosary service at 10:30 AM all at the church.Memorial contributions are suggested to the Gavin and Cannon Kyer Education Fund.Condolences may be left by guest book at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com or by email at keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.comServices in care of Brock's-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory, 2509 Vine Street, Hays, KS 67601.

Tiffany Renee (Basgall) Kyer

NORTON — The Norton County Health Department on Monday announced an increase in COVID-19 cases in the county.

There are now 668 reported cases of coronavirus in the county, including clusters at the <a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/e4299112-0fe4-40da-ac7e-a0c62f0df35b">Andbe Home long-term care facility</a> and the <a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/8aceae0e-6208-4b61-ad14-0d88f43ba07b">Norton Correctional Facility.</a>

<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/015655ab-0eb5-4cff-af37-2914c2170bd0">RELATED:&nbsp;Norton nursing home removed from Medicare program, fined</a>

Fifteen coronavirus-related deaths also have been reported.

The county had reported just a handful of cases until the early October spike.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603999240777.png" alt="KDHE" />
 <figcaption>KDHE</figcaption>
 </figure>NORTON — The Norton County Health Department on Monday announced an increase in COVID-19 cases in the county.There are now 668 reported cases of coronavirus in the county, including clusters at the <a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/e4299112-0fe4-40da-ac7e-a0c62f0df35b">Andbe Home long-term care facility</a> and the <a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/8aceae0e-6208-4b61-ad14-0d88f43ba07b">Norton Correctional Facility.</a><a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/015655ab-0eb5-4cff-af37-2914c2170bd0">RELATED:&nbsp;Norton nursing home removed from Medicare program, fined</a>Fifteen coronavirus-related deaths also have been reported.The county had reported just a handful of cases until the early October spike.&nbsp;See below for more:<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FNortonCountyHealthDeptandHomeHealth%2Fposts%2F3776254805719625&show_text=true&width=552&height=233&appId" width="552" height="233" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowTransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media"></iframe></div>

Norton Co. COVID-19 case count up to 668

Sharon B. Langer, 66, Hays, died Thursday, October 22, 2020, at HaysMed.

She was born February 26, 1954, in Hays,
 the daughter of Alfred and Catherine (Nusbaum) Wasinger. &nbsp;Sharon worked
 in environmental services and health care for Hadley Hospital and later
 for HaysMed.

Survivors include two brothers: Tom 
Wasinger and wife Rita of Hays and Alfred Wasinger, Jr. of Tuttle, OK,&nbsp; and twelve nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her 
parents, two brothers: Norman Gene and Roger Wasinger, one sister: 
Louise Walters, and one sister-in-law: Vida Wasinger.

A private graveside service will be in 
St. Joseph Cemetery. &nbsp;Memorials are suggested to the family to assist 
with costs, payable to Kelly Cole, in care of Hays Memorial Chapel 
Funeral Home. &nbsp;Condolences and memories of Sharon may be shared with the
 family at www.haysmemorial.com

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603995378934.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Sharon B. Langer, 66, Hays, died Thursday, October 22, 2020, at HaysMed.She was born February 26, 1954, in Hays,
 the daughter of Alfred and Catherine (Nusbaum) Wasinger. &nbsp;Sharon worked
 in environmental services and health care for Hadley Hospital and later
 for HaysMed.Survivors include two brothers: Tom 
Wasinger and wife Rita of Hays and Alfred Wasinger, Jr. of Tuttle, OK,&nbsp; and twelve nieces and nephews.She was preceded in death by her 
parents, two brothers: Norman Gene and Roger Wasinger, one sister: 
Louise Walters, and one sister-in-law: Vida Wasinger.A private graveside service will be in 
St. Joseph Cemetery. &nbsp;Memorials are suggested to the family to assist 
with costs, payable to Kelly Cole, in care of Hays Memorial Chapel 
Funeral Home. &nbsp;Condolences and memories of Sharon may be shared with the
 family at www.haysmemorial.com

Sharon B. Langer

John Arlin Keeler, 79, passed away October 28, 2020, at his home in 
Great Bend. He was born June 25, 1941, at Great Bend, to Claude Leo 
Keeler, Sr. &amp; Iva Mary (Wetig) Keeler. He married Beverly Kuhn and 
they later divorced.

A Great Bend resident since 1972, John previously lived in Liberal, 
Russell, and Hutchinson. He was a tree crew foreman for Mid West Energy,
 retiring in 2000. He was a member of Prince of Peace Parish in Great 
Bend. John loved to hunt and fish, garden and do yard work, and in his 
younger years, was a motorcycle enthusiast.

Survivors include, three sons, Scott Keeler and wife Amy, Mike Keeler
 and wife Melissa, and Kevin Keeler, all of Great Bend; six brothers, 
Claude L. Keeler, Jr., Donald Keeler, Charles Keeler, and Larry Keeler, 
all of Great Bend, Ivan Keeler of Colorado City, Colo., and Marvin 
Keeler of Salina; and two sisters, Connie Eilts, and Marilyn 
Luenberger-Frank, both of Great Bend; and two grandchildren, Mason 
Keeler, and Kylynn Keeler. He was preceded in death by his parents; and 
two brothers, Darrel Keeler and Eldon Keeler.

Visitation will be held from 9:00 a.m. until 9:00 p.m., Monday, 
November 2, 2020 at Bryant Funeral Home, with family to receive friends 
from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Graveside Service will be held at 11:00 
a.m., Tuesday, November 3, 2020, at St. Francis Xavier Cemetery, Seward,
 with Father Don Bedore presiding. Memorials are suggested to Prince of 
Peace Parish, in care of Bryant Funeral Home.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603994726182.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>John Arlin Keeler, 79, passed away October 28, 2020, at his home in 
Great Bend. He was born June 25, 1941, at Great Bend, to Claude Leo 
Keeler, Sr. &amp; Iva Mary (Wetig) Keeler. He married Beverly Kuhn and 
they later divorced.A Great Bend resident since 1972, John previously lived in Liberal, 
Russell, and Hutchinson. He was a tree crew foreman for Mid West Energy,
 retiring in 2000. He was a member of Prince of Peace Parish in Great 
Bend. John loved to hunt and fish, garden and do yard work, and in his 
younger years, was a motorcycle enthusiast.Survivors include, three sons, Scott Keeler and wife Amy, Mike Keeler
 and wife Melissa, and Kevin Keeler, all of Great Bend; six brothers, 
Claude L. Keeler, Jr., Donald Keeler, Charles Keeler, and Larry Keeler, 
all of Great Bend, Ivan Keeler of Colorado City, Colo., and Marvin 
Keeler of Salina; and two sisters, Connie Eilts, and Marilyn 
Luenberger-Frank, both of Great Bend; and two grandchildren, Mason 
Keeler, and Kylynn Keeler. He was preceded in death by his parents; and 
two brothers, Darrel Keeler and Eldon Keeler.Visitation will be held from 9:00 a.m. until 9:00 p.m., Monday, 
November 2, 2020 at Bryant Funeral Home, with family to receive friends 
from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Graveside Service will be held at 11:00 
a.m., Tuesday, November 3, 2020, at St. Francis Xavier Cemetery, Seward,
 with Father Don Bedore presiding. Memorials are suggested to Prince of 
Peace Parish, in care of Bryant Funeral Home.

John Arlin Keeler

Mary R. (Erbert) Kuhn, 98, Hays, died Thursday, October 29, 2020, at HaysMed.

She was born July 25, 1922, in Ellis, 
the daughter of Engelbert and Regina (Geschwentner) Erbert.&nbsp; Mary 
attended Ellis schools and worked at Erbert Hotel, Cottage Hotel, and at
 Ellis Bakery.&nbsp; After raising her children, she worked at Sweetbriars 
Dress Shop and also at Four Seasons Dress Shop, both in Hays.&nbsp; On 
November 18, 1947, she was united in marriage to Gilbert N. Kuhn at St. 
Mary’s Catholic Church in Ellis, and they celebrated nearly 57 years of 
marriage before he preceded her in death on October 26, 2004.&nbsp; They 
lived in Victoria and later moved to Hays in May of 1960.&nbsp; She was a 
member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church.&nbsp; Mary made wedding 
flowers and wedding and birthday cakes.&nbsp; She also made quilts, crafts 
and clothes for her grandchildren.

Survivors include two sons: Don Kuhn 
and Keith Kuhn and wife Connie, both of Hays, a daughter: Marian Light 
and husband Fred of Kansas City, MO, a brother: Joseph Erbert and wife 
Arlene of Ellis, a sister: Shirley Pitner and husband Ralph of Hays, 
seven grandchildren: Claire Albert of Dodge City, KS, Neil Kuhn of Hays,
 Scott Kuhn and wife Cassi of Topeka, Taylor Kuhn and wife Viktoria of 
Leavenworth, Katie Kuhn of Salina, Bethany Kuhn of Gas City, IN, and 
Nicholas Light and wife Alanna of East Flat Rock, NC, and five great 
grandchildren: Anika, Trevor, and Kolby Albert of Dodge City, KS and 
Adeline and Klaus Kuhn of Leavenworth.

She was preceded in death by her 
parents, her husband Gilbert, and two sisters: Rose Erbert and Bertha 
Bieker and husband Albert.

Mass of Christian Burial will be at 
10:00 am on Monday, November 2, 2020 at Immaculate Heart of Mary 
Catholic Church with Fr. Nick Parker officiating.&nbsp; Private family burial
 will be in St. Joseph Cemetery.&nbsp; Visitation will be from 5:00 pm until 
7:00 on Sunday and from 9:00 am until 9:45 on Monday, all at Hays 
Memorial Chapel Funeral Home.&nbsp; A vigil service and rosary will be at 
6:30 pm on Sunday at the funeral home.&nbsp; The family is requesting that 
attendees wear masks and practice social distancing for the public 
services.&nbsp; 

Memorials are suggested to Immaculate Heart of Mary Church or
 for masses.&nbsp; Condolences and memories of Mary may be shared with the 
family at www.haysmemorial.com&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603995251312.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Mary R. (Erbert) Kuhn, 98, Hays, died Thursday, October 29, 2020, at HaysMed.She was born July 25, 1922, in Ellis, 
the daughter of Engelbert and Regina (Geschwentner) Erbert.&nbsp; Mary 
attended Ellis schools and worked at Erbert Hotel, Cottage Hotel, and at
 Ellis Bakery.&nbsp; After raising her children, she worked at Sweetbriars 
Dress Shop and also at Four Seasons Dress Shop, both in Hays.&nbsp; On 
November 18, 1947, she was united in marriage to Gilbert N. Kuhn at St. 
Mary’s Catholic Church in Ellis, and they celebrated nearly 57 years of 
marriage before he preceded her in death on October 26, 2004.&nbsp; They 
lived in Victoria and later moved to Hays in May of 1960.&nbsp; She was a 
member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church.&nbsp; Mary made wedding 
flowers and wedding and birthday cakes.&nbsp; She also made quilts, crafts 
and clothes for her grandchildren.Survivors include two sons: Don Kuhn 
and Keith Kuhn and wife Connie, both of Hays, a daughter: Marian Light 
and husband Fred of Kansas City, MO, a brother: Joseph Erbert and wife 
Arlene of Ellis, a sister: Shirley Pitner and husband Ralph of Hays, 
seven grandchildren: Claire Albert of Dodge City, KS, Neil Kuhn of Hays,
 Scott Kuhn and wife Cassi of Topeka, Taylor Kuhn and wife Viktoria of 
Leavenworth, Katie Kuhn of Salina, Bethany Kuhn of Gas City, IN, and 
Nicholas Light and wife Alanna of East Flat Rock, NC, and five great 
grandchildren: Anika, Trevor, and Kolby Albert of Dodge City, KS and 
Adeline and Klaus Kuhn of Leavenworth.She was preceded in death by her 
parents, her husband Gilbert, and two sisters: Rose Erbert and Bertha 
Bieker and husband Albert.Mass of Christian Burial will be at 
10:00 am on Monday, November 2, 2020 at Immaculate Heart of Mary 
Catholic Church with Fr. Nick Parker officiating.&nbsp; Private family burial
 will be in St. Joseph Cemetery.&nbsp; Visitation will be from 5:00 pm until 
7:00 on Sunday and from 9:00 am until 9:45 on Monday, all at Hays 
Memorial Chapel Funeral Home.&nbsp; A vigil service and rosary will be at 
6:30 pm on Sunday at the funeral home.&nbsp; The family is requesting that 
attendees wear masks and practice social distancing for the public 
services.&nbsp; Memorials are suggested to Immaculate Heart of Mary Church or
 for masses.&nbsp; Condolences and memories of Mary may be shared with the 
family at www.haysmemorial.com&nbsp;

Mary R. (Erbert) Kuhn

SEDGWICK COUNTY—Kansas man accused in the death of a woman whose body was found at a motel made his first court appearance in the case Tuesday.

Ricky Hollins, Jr., 40, Wichita, was charged with&nbsp;first-degree murder and buying sexual relations, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office. 

Just after 10a.m. October 22, police responded to a call of an unresponsive woman in a room at the Budget Motel in the 1300 Block of South Broad in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.&nbsp;&nbsp;A staff member of the motel located&nbsp;33-year-old Stephanie Duran of Wichita in the room and called the police.

She was pronounced dead at the scene. The following evening, police arrested and booked Hollins into the Sedgwick County Jail, according to online jail records. He remains jailed on $200,000 bond.&nbsp;

Kansas Department of Corrections records show Hollins has prior drug convictions.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603833413290.png" alt="Hollins photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Hollins photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY—Kansas man accused in the death of a woman whose body was found at a motel made his first court appearance in the case Tuesday.Ricky Hollins, Jr., 40, Wichita, was charged with&nbsp;first-degree murder and buying sexual relations, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office. Just after 10a.m. October 22, police responded to a call of an unresponsive woman in a room at the Budget Motel in the 1300 Block of South Broad in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.&nbsp;&nbsp;A staff member of the motel located&nbsp;33-year-old Stephanie Duran of Wichita in the room and called the police.She was pronounced dead at the scene. The following evening, police arrested and booked Hollins into the Sedgwick County Jail, according to online jail records. He remains jailed on $200,000 bond.&nbsp;Kansas Department of Corrections records show Hollins has prior drug convictions.

Kan. man charged for woman's murder while buying sex

Kansas City (AP) —&nbsp; The new surge of the coronavirus was evident on Thursday, with record hospitalizations in St. Louis and Columbia, and the Kansas City metropolitan area experiencing its worst month ever for COVID-19 deaths.

The number of coronavirus deaths in the metro Kansas City area, which includes Kansas City as well as counties in Missouri and Kansas, was at 176 in October, the most of any month since the onset of the pandemic.

Deaths in the region have risen sharply during the fall. The metro area recorded 80 deaths in August but 172 in September.

“We would predict that November will be worse than October,” Kansas City Health Department Director Rex Archer told the Star. “December’s going to be worse than November and January’s going to be worse than December. We will continue to set records.”

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services' COVID-19 dashboard shows Missouri had the seventh-highest number of per capita deaths over the past seven days, and the 12th highest number of new cases per capita. The statewide positivity rate of 11.6% is more than twice the World Health Organization's 5% benchmark for reopening.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/6b46885a2495c6b6e9503cd2a549fda2">allowed the state to reopen</a>&nbsp;in mid-June. He has urged Missourians to take personal responsibility in preventing the spread of the virus, but there is no statewide mandate for masks or social distancing. Many local jurisdictions have implemented their own requirements.

Kansas City (AP) —&nbsp; The new surge of the coronavirus was evident on Thursday, with record hospitalizations in St. Louis and Columbia, and the Kansas City metropolitan area experiencing its worst month ever for COVID-19 deaths.The number of coronavirus deaths in the metro Kansas City area, which includes Kansas City as well as counties in Missouri and Kansas, was at 176 in October, the most of any month since the onset of the pandemic.Deaths in the region have risen sharply during the fall. The metro area recorded 80 deaths in August but 172 in September.“We would predict that November will be worse than October,” Kansas City Health Department Director Rex Archer told the Star. “December’s going to be worse than November and January’s going to be worse than December. We will continue to set records.”The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services' COVID-19 dashboard shows Missouri had the seventh-highest number of per capita deaths over the past seven days, and the 12th highest number of new cases per capita. The statewide positivity rate of 11.6% is more than twice the World Health Organization's 5% benchmark for reopening.Missouri Gov. Mike Parson&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/6b46885a2495c6b6e9503cd2a549fda2">allowed the state to reopen</a>&nbsp;in mid-June. He has urged Missourians to take personal responsibility in preventing the spread of the virus, but there is no statewide mandate for masks or social distancing. Many local jurisdictions have implemented their own requirements.

KC-area experiencing  worst month for COVID-19 deaths

KANSAS CITY (AP) — Federal agencies warned that cybercriminals are&nbsp;<a href="https://us-cert.cisa.gov/ncas/alerts/aa20-302a" target="_blank">unleashing a wave of data-scrambling extortion attempts</a>&nbsp;against the U.S. healthcare system designed to lock up hospital information systems, which could hurt patient care just as nationwide cases of COVID-19 are spiking.

In a joint alert Wednesday, the FBI and two federal agencies warned that they had “credible information of an increased and imminent cybercrime threat to U.S. hospitals and healthcare providers.” The alert said malicious groups are targeting the sector with attacks that produce “data theft and disruption of healthcare services.”

The cyberattacks involve ransomware, which scrambles data into gibberish that can only be unlocked with software keys provided once targets pay up. Independent security experts say it has already hobbled at least five U.S. hospitals this week, and could potentially impact hundreds more.

The offensive by a Russian-speaking criminal gang coincides with the U.S. presidential election, although there is no immediate indication they were motivated by anything but profit. “We are experiencing the most significant cyber security threat we’ve ever seen in the United States,” Charles Carmakal, chief technical officer of the cybersecurity firm Mandiant, said in a statement.

Alex Holden, CEO of Hold Security, which has been closely tracking the ransomware in question for more than a year, agreed that the unfolding offensive is unprecedented in magnitude for the U.S. given its timing in the heat of a contentions presidential election and the worst global pandemic in a century.

The federal alert was co-authored by the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Health and Human Services.

The cybercriminals launching the attacks use a strain of ransomware known as Ryuk, which is seeded through a network of zombie computers called Trickbot that Microsoft&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-malware-elections-crime-cybercrime-913ee5d56affa97fc5d9c639c4a284ab">began trying to counter</a>&nbsp;earlier in October. U.S. Cyber Command has also reportedly taken action against Trickbot. While Microsoft has had considerable success knocking its command-and-control servers offline through legal action, analysts say criminals have still been finding ways to spread Ryuk.

The U.S. has seen a plague of ransomware over the past 18 months or so, with major cities from Baltimore to Atlanta hit and local governments and schools hit especially hard.

In September, a ransomware attack&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/media-archive-21ebb97dc7b9e2a7c06244069a35b7e6">hobbled all 250 U.S. facilities</a>&nbsp;of the hospital chain Universal Health Services, forcing doctors and nurses to rely on paper and pencil for record-keeping and slowing lab work. Employees described chaotic conditions impeding patient care, including mounting emergency room waits and the failure of wireless vital-signs monitoring equipment.

Also in September, the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-hacking-europe-cf8f8eee1adcec69bcc864f2c4308c94">first known fatality related to ransomware</a>&nbsp;occurred in Duesseldorf, Germany, when an IT system failure forced a critically ill patient to be routed to a hospital in another city.

Holden said he alerted federal law enforcement Friday after monitoring infection attempts at a number of hospitals, some of which may have beaten back infections. The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

He said the group was demanding ransoms well above $10 million per target and that criminals involved on the dark web were discussing plans to try to infect more than 400 hospitals, clinics and other medical facilities.

“One of the comments from the bad guys is that they are expecting to cause panic and, no, they are not hitting election systems,” Holden said. “They are hitting where it hurts even more and they know it.” U.S. officials have repeatedly expressed concern about major ransomware attacks affecting the presidential election, even if the criminals are motivated chiefly by profit.

Mandiant’s Carmakal identified the criminal gang as UNC1878, saying “it is deliberately targeting and disrupting U.S. hospitals, forcing them to divert patients to other healthcare providers” and producing prolonged delays in critical care.

He called the eastern European group “one of most brazen, heartless, and disruptive threat actors I’ve observed over my career.”

While no one has proven suspected ties between the Russian government and gangs that use the Trickbot platform, Holden said he has “no doubt that the Russian government is aware of this operation — of terrorism, really.” He said dozens of different criminal groups use Ryuk, paying its architects a cut.

Dmitri Alperovitch, co-founder and former chief technical officer of the cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike, said there are “certainly lot of connections between Russian cyber criminals and the state,” with Kremlin-employed hackers sometimes moonlighting as cyber criminals.

Neither Holden nor Carmakal would identify the affected hospitals. Four healthcare institutions have been reported hit by ransomware so far this week, three belonging to the St. Lawrence County Health System in upstate New York and the Sky Lakes Medical Center in Klamath Falls, Oregon.

Sky Lakes acknowledged the ransomware attack in an online statement, saying it had no evidence that patient information was compromised. It said emergency and urgent care “remain available” The St. Lawrence system did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment.

Increasingly, ransomware criminals are stealing data from their targets before encrypting networks, using it for extortion. They often sow the malware weeks before activating it, waiting for moments when they believe they can extract the highest payments, said Brett Callow, an analyst at the cybersecurity firm Emsisoft.

A total of 59 U.S. healthcare providers/systems have been impacted by ransomware in 2020, disrupting patient care at up to 510 facilities, Callow said.

Carmakal said Mandiant had provided Microsoft on Wednesday with as much detail as it could&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fireeye.com/blog/threat-research/2020/10/kegtap-and-singlemalt-with-a-ransomware-chaser.html" target="_blank">about the thr</a>eat so it could distribute details to its customers. A Microsoft spokesman had no immediate comment.

KANSAS CITY (AP) — Federal agencies warned that cybercriminals are&nbsp;<a href="https://us-cert.cisa.gov/ncas/alerts/aa20-302a" target="_blank">unleashing a wave of data-scrambling extortion attempts</a>&nbsp;against the U.S. healthcare system designed to lock up hospital information systems, which could hurt patient care just as nationwide cases of COVID-19 are spiking.In a joint alert Wednesday, the FBI and two federal agencies warned that they had “credible information of an increased and imminent cybercrime threat to U.S. hospitals and healthcare providers.” The alert said malicious groups are targeting the sector with attacks that produce “data theft and disruption of healthcare services.”The cyberattacks involve ransomware, which scrambles data into gibberish that can only be unlocked with software keys provided once targets pay up. Independent security experts say it has already hobbled at least five U.S. hospitals this week, and could potentially impact hundreds more.The offensive by a Russian-speaking criminal gang coincides with the U.S. presidential election, although there is no immediate indication they were motivated by anything but profit. “We are experiencing the most significant cyber security threat we’ve ever seen in the United States,” Charles Carmakal, chief technical officer of the cybersecurity firm Mandiant, said in a statement.Alex Holden, CEO of Hold Security, which has been closely tracking the ransomware in question for more than a year, agreed that the unfolding offensive is unprecedented in magnitude for the U.S. given its timing in the heat of a contentions presidential election and the worst global pandemic in a century.The federal alert was co-authored by the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Health and Human Services.The cybercriminals launching the attacks use a strain of ransomware known as Ryuk, which is seeded through a network of zombie computers called Trickbot that Microsoft&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-malware-elections-crime-cybercrime-913ee5d56affa97fc5d9c639c4a284ab">began trying to counter</a>&nbsp;earlier in October. U.S. Cyber Command has also reportedly taken action against Trickbot. While Microsoft has had considerable success knocking its command-and-control servers offline through legal action, analysts say criminals have still been finding ways to spread Ryuk.The U.S. has seen a plague of ransomware over the past 18 months or so, with major cities from Baltimore to Atlanta hit and local governments and schools hit especially hard.In September, a ransomware attack&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/media-archive-21ebb97dc7b9e2a7c06244069a35b7e6">hobbled all 250 U.S. facilities</a>&nbsp;of the hospital chain Universal Health Services, forcing doctors and nurses to rely on paper and pencil for record-keeping and slowing lab work. Employees described chaotic conditions impeding patient care, including mounting emergency room waits and the failure of wireless vital-signs monitoring equipment.Also in September, the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-hacking-europe-cf8f8eee1adcec69bcc864f2c4308c94">first known fatality related to ransomware</a>&nbsp;occurred in Duesseldorf, Germany, when an IT system failure forced a critically ill patient to be routed to a hospital in another city.Holden said he alerted federal law enforcement Friday after monitoring infection attempts at a number of hospitals, some of which may have beaten back infections. The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.He said the group was demanding ransoms well above $10 million per target and that criminals involved on the dark web were discussing plans to try to infect more than 400 hospitals, clinics and other medical facilities.“One of the comments from the bad guys is that they are expecting to cause panic and, no, they are not hitting election systems,” Holden said. “They are hitting where it hurts even more and they know it.” U.S. officials have repeatedly expressed concern about major ransomware attacks affecting the presidential election, even if the criminals are motivated chiefly by profit.Mandiant’s Carmakal identified the criminal gang as UNC1878, saying “it is deliberately targeting and disrupting U.S. hospitals, forcing them to divert patients to other healthcare providers” and producing prolonged delays in critical care.He called the eastern European group “one of most brazen, heartless, and disruptive threat actors I’ve observed over my career.”While no one has proven suspected ties between the Russian government and gangs that use the Trickbot platform, Holden said he has “no doubt that the Russian government is aware of this operation — of terrorism, really.” He said dozens of different criminal groups use Ryuk, paying its architects a cut.Dmitri Alperovitch, co-founder and former chief technical officer of the cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike, said there are “certainly lot of connections between Russian cyber criminals and the state,” with Kremlin-employed hackers sometimes moonlighting as cyber criminals.Neither Holden nor Carmakal would identify the affected hospitals. Four healthcare institutions have been reported hit by ransomware so far this week, three belonging to the St. Lawrence County Health System in upstate New York and the Sky Lakes Medical Center in Klamath Falls, Oregon.Sky Lakes acknowledged the ransomware attack in an online statement, saying it had no evidence that patient information was compromised. It said emergency and urgent care “remain available” The St. Lawrence system did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment.Increasingly, ransomware criminals are stealing data from their targets before encrypting networks, using it for extortion. They often sow the malware weeks before activating it, waiting for moments when they believe they can extract the highest payments, said Brett Callow, an analyst at the cybersecurity firm Emsisoft.A total of 59 U.S. healthcare providers/systems have been impacted by ransomware in 2020, disrupting patient care at up to 510 facilities, Callow said.Carmakal said Mandiant had provided Microsoft on Wednesday with as much detail as it could&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fireeye.com/blog/threat-research/2020/10/kegtap-and-singlemalt-with-a-ransomware-chaser.html" target="_blank">about the thr</a>eat so it could distribute details to its customers. A Microsoft spokesman had no immediate comment.—-

FBI warns of cyberattack on U.S. hospitals, facilities

Elizabeth Huegel, fondly called Bette, 78, of York, Nebraska died on 
October 23, 2020 at Tiffany Square in Grand Island, Nebraska.&nbsp; Bette was
 born in Russell, Kansas on May 29, 1942 to her loving parents, George 
and Vivian Baxter.&nbsp; George was the business teacher and football coach 
at Russell High School and Vivian taught calculus at Fort Hays State. Bette
 graduated from Russell, Kansas High School and then graduated from 
Kansas State University.&nbsp; After graduation, Bette moved to Denver, 
Colorado and was an oil and gas buyer and marketer for Shell Oil and 
then Permian Oil for 28 years.&nbsp; She married Dick Huegel in 1978 and 
assisted him in his career as an antique watch and clock specialist - 
buying, selling, collecting, and fixing.&nbsp; Dick and Bette moved to York, 
Nebraska, Dick’s hometown, in 2000 to assist Dick’s mother.&nbsp; Bette and 
Dick loved York and spent many happy years there. Bette was the 
family historian and did a great deal of research and writing on the 
Baxter family history.&nbsp; She still found time to do the New York Times 
and the LA Times crossword puzzles every day.&nbsp; Left to cherish 
her memory and remember her great wit and bountiful kindness are her 
brother and sister-in-law, James and Gail Baxter; step-daughter Brenda 
Vogel and husband Ron, step-son Charles Huegel, step-granddaughter, 
Hailey Vogel, niece Laura Harrison and husband Scott and sons Elliott 
and Grant, niece Suzanne Baxter and husband Andrew Slopsema, and niece 
Sue Schutte and husband Alan, cousin and caregiver, Liana Steele and 
husband Roger Steele, and other cousins and many lifelong friends.&nbsp; She 
was preceded in death by her parents, husband in 2009, and sister, 
Virginia Baxter Wright of Washington, D.C. in 2015. There are no
 services scheduled at this time. Cremation. No viewing or visitation. 
Private inurnment at Greenwood Cemetery, York. A memorial scholarship 
will be set up for Elizabeth Baxter Huegel at the Russell High School 
Foundation.&nbsp; Memorials may be sent to Liana Steele at PO Box 5104 Grand 
Island, Nebraska 68802. <a href="mailto:metz@metzmortuary.com">Condolences may be emailed to Metz Mortuary</a>.&nbsp;Messages will be given to the family.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603981134261.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Elizabeth Huegel, fondly called Bette, 78, of York, Nebraska died on 
October 23, 2020 at Tiffany Square in Grand Island, Nebraska.&nbsp; Bette was
 born in Russell, Kansas on May 29, 1942 to her loving parents, George 
and Vivian Baxter.&nbsp; George was the business teacher and football coach 
at Russell High School and Vivian taught calculus at Fort Hays State. Bette
 graduated from Russell, Kansas High School and then graduated from 
Kansas State University.&nbsp; After graduation, Bette moved to Denver, 
Colorado and was an oil and gas buyer and marketer for Shell Oil and 
then Permian Oil for 28 years.&nbsp; She married Dick Huegel in 1978 and 
assisted him in his career as an antique watch and clock specialist - 
buying, selling, collecting, and fixing.&nbsp; Dick and Bette moved to York, 
Nebraska, Dick’s hometown, in 2000 to assist Dick’s mother.&nbsp; Bette and 
Dick loved York and spent many happy years there. Bette was the 
family historian and did a great deal of research and writing on the 
Baxter family history.&nbsp; She still found time to do the New York Times 
and the LA Times crossword puzzles every day.&nbsp; Left to cherish 
her memory and remember her great wit and bountiful kindness are her 
brother and sister-in-law, James and Gail Baxter; step-daughter Brenda 
Vogel and husband Ron, step-son Charles Huegel, step-granddaughter, 
Hailey Vogel, niece Laura Harrison and husband Scott and sons Elliott 
and Grant, niece Suzanne Baxter and husband Andrew Slopsema, and niece 
Sue Schutte and husband Alan, cousin and caregiver, Liana Steele and 
husband Roger Steele, and other cousins and many lifelong friends.&nbsp; She 
was preceded in death by her parents, husband in 2009, and sister, 
Virginia Baxter Wright of Washington, D.C. in 2015. There are no
 services scheduled at this time. Cremation. No viewing or visitation. 
Private inurnment at Greenwood Cemetery, York. A memorial scholarship 
will be set up for Elizabeth Baxter Huegel at the Russell High School 
Foundation.&nbsp; Memorials may be sent to Liana Steele at PO Box 5104 Grand 
Island, Nebraska 68802. <a href="mailto:metz@metzmortuary.com">Condolences may be emailed to Metz Mortuary</a>.&nbsp;Messages will be given to the family.

Elizabeth 'Bette' Huegel

Ervin L. Kuhlman, 86, passed away Wednesday, October 28, 2020 at Trego-Lemke Memorial Hospital, WaKeeney, KS.

Arrangements are pending with All Faiths Funeral Chapel.

Ervin L. Kuhlman, 86, passed away Wednesday, October 28, 2020 at Trego-Lemke Memorial Hospital, WaKeeney, KS.Arrangements are pending with All Faiths Funeral Chapel.

Kenneth Eugene Tygart, age 90, passed away peacefully on October 21, 
2020 at Topside Manor in Goodland.&nbsp; He was born March 7, 1930.&nbsp; &nbsp; Ken 
loved spending time with his family, fishing, hunting, golf and cooking.
 Dad will be greatly missed.&nbsp;

He was preceded in death by his devoted wife Gladys.&nbsp; &nbsp;

Ken is survived by his five children; Harold (Kristy), Larry (Kathy),
 Mary (Terry), Sheila ( Terry), Dana, and step daughter's, Katherine 
(Mark ) Mary Ken has numerous grand children and great grand children.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603978233111.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Kenneth Eugene Tygart, age 90, passed away peacefully on October 21, 
2020 at Topside Manor in Goodland.&nbsp; He was born March 7, 1930.&nbsp; &nbsp; Ken 
loved spending time with his family, fishing, hunting, golf and cooking.
 Dad will be greatly missed.&nbsp;He was preceded in death by his devoted wife Gladys.&nbsp; &nbsp;Ken is survived by his five children; Harold (Kristy), Larry (Kathy),
 Mary (Terry), Sheila ( Terry), Dana, and step daughter's, Katherine 
(Mark ) Mary Ken has numerous grand children and great grand children.Private services are planned.

Kenneth E. Tygart

WICHITA — As Halloween 2020 approaches, KDHE Secretary Dr. Lee Norman wore his Colonel Sanders outfit and offered some ideas on things that you can do to celebrate safely, get creative and have fun.

In addition, AAA Kansas is raising concern for a dangerous traffic safety trifecta – increased pedestrian activity, drunk driving, and drowsy driving – all of which converge this Halloween weekend. The ghostly holiday falls on a Saturday this year, followed a few short hours later by “falling back” at the end of Daylight Saving Time (DST) at 2:00 a.m. Sunday, November 1.

Halloween festivities amid the COVID-19 pandemic will likely look different for many communities, parents, trick-or-treaters, and party goers. Traditional indoor activities, like costume parties for children and adults, can move outside in small, socially distanced settings. However those planning to celebrate should not lose sight of safety first.

A scare in good fun is expected on Halloween, but AAA Kansas warns, not when it comes to child pedestrian safety.

Creative costumes, trick-or-treating and bags full of goodies are top Halloween priorities, but safety often becomes an afterthought. Excited trick-or-treaters can forget about safety, so drivers, party-goers and parents must be even more alert, as the risk of kids being injured by moving vehicles increases.

“With an increased risk of pedestrian crashes on Halloween night, AAA Kansas urges parents to take the time to make trick-or-treaters and their costumes safer and more visible to motorists,” said Shawn Steward, AAA Kansas spokesman.&nbsp; “In addition, motorists must eliminate distractions, slow down and watch for children, as well as have a completely sober designated driver if drinking is part of a Halloween celebration.”Halloween is also a statistically dangerous night for drunk driving. The combination of drinking and increased pedestrian traffic on Halloween is a deadly combination. AAA and the&nbsp;National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSTA) found that:

WICHITA — As Halloween 2020 approaches, KDHE Secretary Dr. Lee Norman wore his Colonel Sanders outfit and offered some ideas on things that you can do to celebrate safely, get creative and have fun.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">I love Halloween, and there are things that we can do to celebrate safely this holiday season. Get creative and have fun. Follow your county&#39;s guidelines, and find more ideas on our website: <a href="https://t.co/7KEvXPCPa6">https://t.co/7KEvXPCPa6</a>. <a href="https://t.co/E8fnwszBQy">pic.twitter.com/E8fnwszBQy</a>&mdash; Lee Norman (@SecNorman) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecNorman/status/1320748334852747264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>In addition, AAA Kansas is raising concern for a dangerous traffic safety trifecta – increased pedestrian activity, drunk driving, and drowsy driving – all of which converge this Halloween weekend. The ghostly holiday falls on a Saturday this year, followed a few short hours later by “falling back” at the end of Daylight Saving Time (DST) at 2:00 a.m. Sunday, November 1.Halloween festivities amid the COVID-19 pandemic will likely look different for many communities, parents, trick-or-treaters, and party goers. Traditional indoor activities, like costume parties for children and adults, can move outside in small, socially distanced settings. However those planning to celebrate should not lose sight of safety first.A scare in good fun is expected on Halloween, but AAA Kansas warns, not when it comes to child pedestrian safety.<ul>
 <li>According to Safe Kids Worldwide,&nbsp;children are more than twice as likely to be hit by a car and killed on Halloween as any other day of the year.</li><li>The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that&nbsp;Halloween is consistently one of the top three days of the year for pedestrian injuries and fatalities.</li>
 </ul>Creative costumes, trick-or-treating and bags full of goodies are top Halloween priorities, but safety often becomes an afterthought. Excited trick-or-treaters can forget about safety, so drivers, party-goers and parents must be even more alert, as the risk of kids being injured by moving vehicles increases.“With an increased risk of pedestrian crashes on Halloween night, AAA Kansas urges parents to take the time to make trick-or-treaters and their costumes safer and more visible to motorists,” said Shawn Steward, AAA Kansas spokesman.&nbsp; “In addition, motorists must eliminate distractions, slow down and watch for children, as well as have a completely sober designated driver if drinking is part of a Halloween celebration.”Halloween is also a statistically dangerous night for drunk driving. The combination of drinking and increased pedestrian traffic on Halloween is a deadly combination. AAA and the&nbsp;National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSTA) found that:<ul>
 <li>One-fourth of all pedestrian deaths ranging in age from 5-14 occurred in the four days leading up to Halloween (October 28-31) in 2017.</li><li>On Halloween night 2017, 89 people were fatally injured in a traffic crash, with 13 percent involving alcohol.</li><li>In 2017, more than half of pedestrian fatalities on Halloween occurred with the pedestrian outside of a marked crosswalk.</li><li>From 2013 – 2017, 158 people were killed in drunk-driving crashes on Halloween night (NHTSA)</li><li>From 2013 - 2017, 22 percent of pedestrian fatalities on Halloween night involved a drunk driver. (NHTSA)</li><li>During that period, 42 percent of all people killed in motor vehicle crashes on Halloween night were in crashes involving a drunk driver. (NHTSA)</li>
 </ul><h2>AAA Halloween Safety TipsMotorists</h2><ul>
 <li>Do not use your phone while behind the wheel, so you can focus on the road and trick-or-treaters.</li><li>Slow down in residential neighborhoods and obey all traffic signs and signals. Drive at least 5 mph below the posted speed limit to give yourself extra time to react to children who may dart into the street. Broaden your scanning by looking for children left and right into yards and on front porches.</li><li>Look for children crossing the street. They may not be paying attention to traffic and may cross the street mid-block or between parked cars.</li><li>Carefully enter and exit driveways and alleys, taking extra care if you are backing up or turning.</li><li>Turn your headlights on to make yourself more visible – even in the daylight.</li>
 </ul><figure>
 <img src="https://us.vocuspr.com/Publish/523962/vcsPRAsset_523962_94848_e6aa352c-2292-413f-b873-8720597d00e4_0.jpg" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Parents</h2><ul>
 <li>Make sure Halloween costumes are flame-retardant and light in color to improve visibility.</li><li>Be bright at night – have trick-or-treaters use glow sticks or wear retro-reflective tape on costumes and on treat buckets.</li><li>Ensure disguises don’t obstruct vision and avoid full facemasks.</li><li>Create face masks that coordinate with costumes rather than regular costume masks.&nbsp; This won’t obstruct vision and follows health and safety guidelines for COVID-19.</li><li>&nbsp;Instead, use nontoxic face paint. Also, watch the length of billowy costumes to help avoid tripping.</li><li>Ensure any props are flexible and blunt-tipped to avoid injury from tripping or horseplay.</li><li>Ask an adult or older child to supervise children under age 12.</li><li>Instruct children to travel only in familiar areas and along established routes.</li><li>Teach children to stop only at well-lit houses and to never to enter a stranger’s home or garage.</li><li>Review trick-or-treating safety precautions, including pedestrian and traffic safety rules.</li>
 </ul><h2>Trick-or-Treaters</h2><ul>
 <li>Stay on sidewalks and avoid walking in streets if possible.</li><li>If there are no sidewalks, walk on the left side of the road, facing traffic.</li><li>Look both ways and listen for traffic before crossing the street.</li><li>Watch for cars turning or backing up.</li><li>Cross streets only at the corner, using traffic signals and crosswalks, and never cross between parked vehicles or mid-block.</li><li>Trick-or-treat in a group if someone older cannot go with you.</li><li>Tell your parents where you are going.</li><li>Carry a flashlight containing fresh batteries. Never shine flashlights into the eyes of oncoming drivers.</li>
 </ul><h2>Party Goers</h2><ul>
 <li>Arrange a safe ride home and/or designate a driver before partaking in any festivities.</li><li>Always designate a sober driver.</li><li>If you are drunk, take a taxi or ride share service, call a sober friend or family member, or use public transportation.</li><li>Before leaving for a party, load ride share apps or put numbers of local cab companies or your designated driver(s) into your phone.</li><li>Walking impaired can be as dangerous as drunk driving. Designate a sober friend to walk you home.</li><li>If you see a drunk driver on the road, contact local law enforcement.</li><li>If you know someone who is about to drive or ride impaired, take their keys and help them make safe travel arrangements to where they are going.</li>
 </ul>

🎥 Halloween weekend safety tips from Dr. Lee Norman

Virgil Nickolas Wasinger, age 88, of Hays, Kansas passed away October 20, 2020, at Hays Medical Center. He was born November 19, 1931, on the farm north of Hays to Nick J. and Mary (Wittman) Wasinger. On February 11, 1988, he married Marilyn S. (Fury) in Hays. She preceded him in death January 15, 2019. Virgil was an electrician and motor rewind specialist owning his own business, Wasinger Electric Machinery. Virgil was a US Navy veteran serving in Korean War as a RM2- Radio Operator. He was a member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, Hays VFW, Hays Bowling League, and the Rohr Jacobs Lake Association. Virgil is survived by step daughters, Cyd McElhaney of Anadarko, OK, Lynne Van Dyke of Zurich, KS, Barbara Goetz of LaCrosse, KS, Eldena Monroe of Berryton, KS, Glenda Pearson of Ord, NE; a step son: Jerry Schrock of Emporia, KS, a brother, Eddie Wasinger of Buffalo Grove, IL and a sister, Bernita Degenhardt of Great Bend, KS. As well as numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Gayle (Stice) Wasinger, wife, Brothers, Marion Wasinger and Alvin Wasinger, and Sisters, Leona Sander, Georgina Sander, Marcella Berens and Lorraine Wolf. Funeral services will be 1 PM Thursday, October 29, 2020 at Brock’s-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory 2509 Vine Hays, KS. 67601. Services will be live streamed via the Keithley Funeral Homes Facebook page. Inurnment with military honors at the Kansas State Veterans’ Cemetery at WaKeeney courtesy of the Hays VFW Honor Guard. Memorial contributions suggested to the Hays VFW. Condolences may be sent by guest book at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com/">www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com</a>&nbsp;or by email at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com">keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com</a>

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603490309757.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Virgil Nickolas Wasinger, age 88, of Hays, Kansas passed away October 20, 2020, at Hays Medical Center. He was born November 19, 1931, on the farm north of Hays to Nick J. and Mary (Wittman) Wasinger. On February 11, 1988, he married Marilyn S. (Fury) in Hays. She preceded him in death January 15, 2019. Virgil was an electrician and motor rewind specialist owning his own business, Wasinger Electric Machinery. Virgil was a US Navy veteran serving in Korean War as a RM2- Radio Operator. He was a member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, Hays VFW, Hays Bowling League, and the Rohr Jacobs Lake Association. Virgil is survived by step daughters, Cyd McElhaney of Anadarko, OK, Lynne Van Dyke of Zurich, KS, Barbara Goetz of LaCrosse, KS, Eldena Monroe of Berryton, KS, Glenda Pearson of Ord, NE; a step son: Jerry Schrock of Emporia, KS, a brother, Eddie Wasinger of Buffalo Grove, IL and a sister, Bernita Degenhardt of Great Bend, KS. As well as numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Gayle (Stice) Wasinger, wife, Brothers, Marion Wasinger and Alvin Wasinger, and Sisters, Leona Sander, Georgina Sander, Marcella Berens and Lorraine Wolf. Funeral services will be 1 PM Thursday, October 29, 2020 at Brock’s-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory 2509 Vine Hays, KS. 67601. Services will be live streamed via the Keithley Funeral Homes Facebook page. Inurnment with military honors at the Kansas State Veterans’ Cemetery at WaKeeney courtesy of the Hays VFW Honor Guard. Memorial contributions suggested to the Hays VFW. Condolences may be sent by guest book at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com/">www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com</a>&nbsp;or by email at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com">keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com</a>

Virgil Nickolas Wasinger

Ronald D. Miller, age 85, of Scottsbluff, Neb., passed away on Sunday, October
 25, 2020. Cremation has taken place. Online condolences may be made 
by viewing Ronald’s memorial page at <a href="https://memorials.bridgmanfuneralhome.com/ronald-miller/4374413/obituary.php">www.bridgmanfuneralhome.com</a>. 
Bridgman Funeral Home and Cremation Services is entrusted with 
arrangements. 
 Ronald Dewayne Miller was born on May 16, 1935 in Hope, Kansas to 
Edna and Gordon Miller. A child of the Great Depression, Ron’s youth 
growing up on the family farm led to a life-long love of the land and 
family that wove itself though out his lifetime. 
 That enthusiasm for the land led him to Fort Hays State, where he 
majored in soil sciences, receiving a bachelor’s degree and becoming the
 inaugural recipient of the Bush Gross Award, in recognition of 
outstanding athletics, scholarship and leadership. Following 
graduation, he took a job as a range scientist with the Bureau of Indian
 Affairs in South Dakota, where he met the other love of his life, 
Sonjia Anne Moul, of Gettysburg, S.D. They married in Dec. 1959, and 
raised daughter, Wendy, and son, Scott, before moving to Scottsbluff, 
Neb. in 1970. 
 Ronald became a local business owner, operating Miller Farm Home 
Oil Service, and when his children were in school, Ronald and his wife 
were involved in numerous organizations supporting local education and 
youth sports. Ronald kept a hand in the agriculture industry by 
supporting local youth involved in FFA and 4-H. 
 Ronald ultimately returned full-time to his love of the land, crop 
advising through Whole Farm Environmental Living Energy Services and 
promoting the advantages of healthy soil in crop production. He also 
continued to operate the family farm in Kansas, which he used as his own
 laboratory to experiment with different methods and materials to 
improve the life in the land. 
 Ronald’s family was always an important part of his life, and with 
his wife Sonjia, they reveled in the years of their grandchildren from 
Wendy and Steve Getzfrid, Stosh, Maggie and Emma, as the trio grew up. 
As those children became older, they reveled in the activities and 
family brought into their lives through Scott’s marriage to Polly Crist 
and her local extended family; son Brian, nieces and nephews Jesse, 
Justin and Tyler Baird, and Jada Ellsworth. And they even found some 
time for themselves, with frequent trips for casino gambling – what he 
lost at cards (usually), she almost always made up and then some with 
the slot machines. 
 Ron is survived by his sister Marylyn, daughter, Wendy (Steve) 
Getzfrid, grandchildren Stosh (Whitney), Maggie, Emma (Logan Bovill) 
Getzfrid, son Scott (Polly) Miller and their extended family. 
 He is preceded in death by his wife, Sonjia and his parents.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603919533054.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Ronald D. Miller, age 85, of Scottsbluff, Neb., passed away on Sunday, October
 25, 2020. Cremation has taken place. Online condolences may be made 
by viewing Ronald’s memorial page at <a href="https://memorials.bridgmanfuneralhome.com/ronald-miller/4374413/obituary.php">www.bridgmanfuneralhome.com</a>. 
Bridgman Funeral Home and Cremation Services is entrusted with 
arrangements. 
 Ronald Dewayne Miller was born on May 16, 1935 in Hope, Kansas to 
Edna and Gordon Miller. A child of the Great Depression, Ron’s youth 
growing up on the family farm led to a life-long love of the land and 
family that wove itself though out his lifetime. 
 That enthusiasm for the land led him to Fort Hays State, where he 
majored in soil sciences, receiving a bachelor’s degree and becoming the
 inaugural recipient of the Bush Gross Award, in recognition of 
outstanding athletics, scholarship and leadership. Following 
graduation, he took a job as a range scientist with the Bureau of Indian
 Affairs in South Dakota, where he met the other love of his life, 
Sonjia Anne Moul, of Gettysburg, S.D. They married in Dec. 1959, and 
raised daughter, Wendy, and son, Scott, before moving to Scottsbluff, 
Neb. in 1970. 
 Ronald became a local business owner, operating Miller Farm Home 
Oil Service, and when his children were in school, Ronald and his wife 
were involved in numerous organizations supporting local education and 
youth sports. Ronald kept a hand in the agriculture industry by 
supporting local youth involved in FFA and 4-H. 
 Ronald ultimately returned full-time to his love of the land, crop 
advising through Whole Farm Environmental Living Energy Services and 
promoting the advantages of healthy soil in crop production. He also 
continued to operate the family farm in Kansas, which he used as his own
 laboratory to experiment with different methods and materials to 
improve the life in the land. 
 Ronald’s family was always an important part of his life, and with 
his wife Sonjia, they reveled in the years of their grandchildren from 
Wendy and Steve Getzfrid, Stosh, Maggie and Emma, as the trio grew up. 
As those children became older, they reveled in the activities and 
family brought into their lives through Scott’s marriage to Polly Crist 
and her local extended family; son Brian, nieces and nephews Jesse, 
Justin and Tyler Baird, and Jada Ellsworth. And they even found some 
time for themselves, with frequent trips for casino gambling – what he 
lost at cards (usually), she almost always made up and then some with 
the slot machines. 
 Ron is survived by his sister Marylyn, daughter, Wendy (Steve) 
Getzfrid, grandchildren Stosh (Whitney), Maggie, Emma (Logan Bovill) 
Getzfrid, son Scott (Polly) Miller and their extended family. 
 He is preceded in death by his wife, Sonjia and his parents.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;