After Dark at the Den
Sunday, November 15, 2015
Delivering Change - Best Baby Shower 2015
Delivering Change - Best Baby Shower 2015
Delivering Change: Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies, in partnership with the Kansas Infant Death and SIDS ( KIDS ) Network, hosted the 2nd Luke’s Community Baby Shower last Saturday, November 7, 2015 at Washington Elementary in Junction City, KS.
The turnout for the second Luke's Community Baby Shower totaled over 300 people with 127 pregnant mothers and their support personnel. That total was up from the first community baby shower in June. Jill Nelson, Program Coordinator for Delivering Change, Healthy Moms-Healthy Babies said the focus of the shower was on safe sleep practices "We want to make sure that all of our Geary County Families know about safe sleep and how to keep their babies safe". Ashley King, Marketing Director with Delivering Change "We had a great turnout and I know our mama's that attended today, learned about how important safe sleep is". King also noted that Delivering Change is hoping to have two Luke's Community Baby Shower's a year, one in the spring and one in the fall.
The baby shower — named for local SIDS baby Luke Nelson — was an opportunity to educate pregnant women and their support systems on safe sleep and other community resources available to them in Geary County. The community baby shower provided a free Graco Pack ‘n’ Play portable playard, a free Halo Sleep Sack, and other free items to pregnant women who completed the safe sleep training at the baby shower.
The local resources featured at the baby shower are: Breastfeeding Coalition, Geary County WIC, Parents as Teachers, OB Navigator, New Parent Support, Infant & Toddlers, Pawnee Mental Health, Geary County Health Department Mother & Infant/Home Visits, Geary Community Hospital Social Work, KanCare, and Geary Rehabilitation and Fitness.
Luke’s Community Baby Shower is funded as a part of the Healthy Start Grant that Delivering Change received last year.
Delivering Change: Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies is a local collaborative established in 2011 to address health issues faced by infants and the women of chil-bearing age in order to reduce infant mortality and morbidity in Geary County.
Business After Hours Salina - November 19th
Business After Hours Salina - November 19th
Hosted By: EyeCare Associates of Salina
900 Westchester
Thursday, November 19
5:00pm - 7:00pm * $5 per person
EyeCare Associates of Salina proudly serves the Salina area with a tradition of quality service, products and a friendly staff. We take great pride in offering every patient the best in vision care – fitting them with glasses or contacts, diagnosing cataracts, glaucoma or other eye diseases, or recommending LASIK and other procedures. Our dispensary has a huge selection of frames. For more details, visit www.eyecaresalina.com.
For reservations call 785.827.9301 or email dsmith@salinakansas.org
REFRESHMENTS *TOURS *DOOR PRIZES (must be present to win)
$100 CASH ATTENDANCE DRAWING
$500, $500, $1,000 MEMBERSHIP DRAWING
MHS Abilene: Learn and Grow Depot Promoting Healthy Eating and Activity
MHS Abilene: Learn and Grow Depot Promoting Healthy Eating and Activity
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| Shown (left to right) are: Marie Malo, Learn & Grow Depot Director; Mary Cairns, Lead Toddler 2 Teacher; Brandy Staggs, Lead Toddler 1 Teacher; Debb Homman, Infant/Toddler Specialist with Child Care Aware of Kansas. The group is pictured with an informational board showing some of the healthy practices the center is incorporating. |
Learn and Grow Depot in Abilene continues to promote healthy eating and exercise to the children enrolled in the child development center. The goal is to make healthier eating and more physical activity a normal part of life
The childcare center incorporates learning new self-help skills, drinking enough water, and getting exercise into the daily routine. A recent initiative Learn and Grow Depot has added is a ‘Step It Up Challenge’ through Child Care Aware of Kansas.
The challenge involves staff attending four learning sessions during the project year to learn additional ways to emphasize healthy eating and physical activity. Debb Homman, Infant/Toddler Specialist with Child Care Aware of Kansas, makes monthly technical assistance support visits to the center. If all requirements are met by the end of the project year, Learn and Grow Depot will receive a ‘Step It Up Challenge’ grant to further support the initiative.
Sunday, November 8, 2015
Abilene Cowboys Wins Thriller at Ulysses
Abilene Wins Thriller at Ulysses
Erik Graefe
Steve Simpson’s Abilene Cowboys traveled nearly as far
west as can be traveled in Kansas to face a very fine Ulysses Tiger football
team in the first round of the 4A-1 state playoffs last Friday night. The cold
and wind vied all night with the spectacularly entertaining play of both teams
for the attention of fans. This game boasted a number of big plays, a number of
fine players, and many surprises, as well. The defining play of the evening, at
least from the Cowboy perspective, was turned in by junior safety Ryan Wilson
on an apparent fifty yard touchdown run by Ulysses’s Ian Rudzik. At the time,
the Cowboys were leading by a score of 14 to 6. Rudzik ran nearly untouched
around Abilene’s left side, and as he reached Abilene’s fifteen yard line, he
seemed to take his foot off of the gas believing Abilene’s defense had given up
pursuit. Rudzik’s assumption was true for all but one Cowboy, Ryan Wilson.
Wilson channeled his inner Kansas City Royal, simply refusing to give up on the
play, catching an unsuspecting Rudzik just prior to the goal line. Wilson
knocked the ball from Rudzik’s hand forcing it out of the back of the end zone
and awarding the Cowboys with possession of the ball as opposed to a Ulysses
touchdown. This play epitomized the night for the Cowboys. They simply refused
to be denied a victory.
Simpson would say later of his Cowboys, “We won this game
with our hearts. A lot of mistakes, a lot of chances to fade, but our guys just
kept fighting.” Rudzik would score 5 touchdowns on the night for Ulysses; while
seniors Harley Hazlett and Trey Bender would combine for six for Abilene.
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| Click to Play Video |
The game began with Rudzik scoring on a 56 yard run on
the Tiger’s first series. Hazlett would answer with a 56 yard touchdown run of
his own on Abilene’s very first offensive play. Following a Ulysses fumble, it
was Trey Bender’s turn to carry the offensive load. He did scoring ultimately
on a 9 yard run. Ryan LaCombe completed a pass to Parker Base for the two point
conversion, and Abilene took a 14-6 lead early. It was on the following
offensive series for Ulysses when Wilson denied Rudzik his second touchdown of
the night. However, Abilene would not be able to capitalize on Wilson’s play
and were forced to punt. Rudzik, surprise surprise, fielded Parker O’Neal’s
towering punt on his own 4 yard line proceeding to outrun eleven Cowboys for a
96 yard touchdown. At the end of the first quarter, the game was tied at 14,
and fans knew they were in for a great three quarters of football.
For Abilene, the spotlight now returned to Trey Bender.
Following Rudzik’s punt return, Bender shouldered much of the weight on a drive
ending with Harley Hazlett’s second rushing touchdown. LaCombe’s kick put
Abilene back on top 21-14. Ulysses answered with another Rudzik touchdown and
two point conversion to regain the advantage, 22-21. The advantage was
short-lived. Trey Bender took the ensuing kickoff 91 yards for a
touchdown. Bender’s touchdown combined
with a Hazlett pass for the two point conversion put Abilene back in front,
29-22. Rudzik would score one more time before half making the halftime score
30-29.
The second half would feature less scoring but no less
excitement. Abilene drove deep into Tiger territory to begin the second half,
but penalties forced them in to a 3rd and long when Hazlett found senior
wideout Dylan Ford on a pass in the flat. Ford eluded several Tiger tacklers to
put his team in position to take the lead on a field goal, but LaCombe’s try
sailed just left keeping the score 30-29. Ulysses mounted an impressive drive
of their own eating most of the remaining time in the 3rd quarter. Rudzik again
scored, his fifth of the night, putting his Tigers in front by two scores,
38-29.
As the fourth quarter began, Abilene trailed, but perhaps
still inspired by Wilson, the Cowboys never quit fighting. Senior quarterback
Harley Hazlett took control of the Cowboy offense down the stretch. Hazlett
completed several passes early on in the quarter to Bender, Michael Anguiano, Ben
Veach, and others. Hazlett completed nearly 70% of his passes on the night for
154 yards while running for over 100 yards and three touchdowns, and he was
never better than when the game was on the line. The short passing delivered
the Cowboys to the Ulysses goal line, and Trey Bender scored his third
touchdown of the night. Hazlett found Ben Veach in the back of the Tiger end
zone for the two point conversion bringing the Cowboys back to within one
point, 38-37.
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| Click to Play Video |
Nathan Howard’s defense forced another Tiger punt
following Bender’s touchdown. On a night when Howard’s defense seemed to have
no answers to stop the Tigers, Howard and his guys made adjustments that held
Ulysses to only eight second-half points and zero in the fourth quarter.
Following the Tiger punt, the Cowboys again rode Hazlett to the end zone. The
senior quarterback would score his final of three rushing touchdowns to
conclude the drive giving the Cowboys a 43-38 lead. Ulysses made the final act
interesting by marching the ball into Abilene territory, but fittingly, it was
Ryan Wilson who knocked away the last Tiger pass of the game in the end zone
with 7 seconds remaining. The Cowboys knelt one time, and the game was over.
The Abilene Cowboys celebrated with their regional championship trophy amid a
very impressive Abilene crowd who braved the cold and distance to see their
Cowboys win their first playoff game.
Coach Simpson’s assessment of his team’s performance was
spot on. This game was won, not with Xs or Os, not with adjustments, not with
trickery. This game was won with heart. Perhaps it sounds cheesy to those who
didn’t drive 270 miles to witness all of it, but not to those who did. The
Cowboys continue their quest for a championship at Andover Central this Friday
night at 7 p.m.
A Traditional Farm Life - Toasted Zwieback
A Traditional Farm Life
By Shasta Hamilton
Greetings from Enterprise, dear friends. How novel it is to have the calendar page
change to November and still be comfortable in shirtsleeves! That little voice of reality in the back of
our minds tells us it’s too good to be true, but we might as well enjoy it
while it lasts, right?
Yet even knowing that “all good things must come to an end”
somehow fails to motivate me this year to accept and prepare for the reality of
winter.
In these modern times, of course, there is less to prepare
for than for our pioneer ancestors. It
is very easy for us to forget how the seasonal cycle dictated the activities
for farm and city folks alike for hundreds if not thousands of years.
While we may still be motivated to lay in a certain amount
of supplies for emergency situations, we are often lulled into a false sense of
security these days, I’m afraid. When
the supermarket has everything we could possibly want to eat—and more--ready
for us to purchase at our whim to supply the day’s need, it’s easy to forget
how our ancestors spent three seasons of four preparing for the cold, dark days
of winter when fresh food would be scarce.
Those among us blessed with the wisdom of white hair
remember the large gardens and the stifling heat of canning winter’s supply of
vegetables in the height of a Kansas summer.
Other methods were—and still can be—employed to preserve the harvest.
Before the advent of water bath canning, pickling was done
by lactic fermentation in those large heavy crocks now often used for nostalgic
decoration around our homes. Root
cellars not only housed the pickles but potatoes, carrots, onions, apples and
other fruits and vegetables that were “good keepers” into the winter.
Summer sun and heat also provided the means to preserve food
for later use by drying. Sliced apples
and apricots first come to mind, but some vegetables were also prepared in this
manner. Dried corn can be prepared in a
myriad of ways, and indeed was a pioneer staple. Perhaps you’ll be surprised to know that
green beans were suspended in hot attics by needle and butcher’s string, dried,
and these “leather breeches” were later rehydrated, cooked, and served.
Let’s not forget about salting, smoking and curing. Family, friends, and neighbors used to gather
for hog butchering bees when temperatures remained cold enough in the late fall
to safely process the meat. Our pioneer
ancestors “used everything but the oink” to frugally prepare for the weeks and
months to come. Salt pork, bacon, smoked
sausage and ham, pickled pig’s feet, and head cheese were just a few examples
of delicacies prepared from the humble hog.
Butchering day often included spare ribs fried in the newly rendered
lard—what a treat after a day of hard work and fellowship!
Preservation methods could also be employed to “extend the
shelf life” of some baked goods. My
Mennonite ancestors regularly “toasted” zwieback, as this homemade bread stales
quickly. The top “double bun” was pulled off and cut in half vertically to
create two half-moon-shaped pieces. The
larger bottom was also cut vertically into three equal pieces. In days gone by, the zwieback was toasted
after regular baking was completed, as the brick ovens held heat well and
slowly cooled down over a period of several hours—perfect for slowly
dehydrating the soft bread into a crisp cracker-like treat.
Before emigrating in 1874, my ancestors baked and toasted
bushels upon bushels of zwieback to sustain them on the long trip from the
Ukraine to central Kansas. How
comforting this taste of home must have been in the dark, dingy confines of a
steamer slowly chugging across the Atlantic toward an uncertain destination of
unbroken prairie!
Making zwieback for our family gathering last weekend
inspired me to carry on the tradition of simple food, simply prepared for our
own family. A table simply set in the
tradition of our humble forefathers with zwieback, sliced bologna, wedges of
cheddar, and sheet cake shared among family can draw us together just as well
as the finest fare a king could offer—and perhaps even better.
Toasted Zwieback
zwieback, as many as
desired
1. Preheat oven to
300 degrees.
2. Pull zwieback
apart; cut smaller upper bun in vertically in half and bottom bun vertically
into three equal pieces. Place in a single layer on baking sheet.
3. Bake for about 90
minutes or until zwieback have dried out completely all the way through and
have browned slightly. Remove from oven
to cool. Delicious served warm with
butter. Cool completely before storing
in an airtight container.
Copyright © 2015 by Shasta Hamilton
Shasta is a fifth generation rural Kansan now residing in
Enterprise, Kansas. She and her husband
own and operate The Buggy Stop Home-Style Kitchen with their six home-schooled
children. You can reach The Buggy Stop
by calling (785) 200-6385 or visit them on the web at www.thebuggystoprestaurant.com.
GPT Announces 2016 Season
GPT Announces 2016 Season
Great Plains Theatre is excited to announce its 2016 season which is full of a wide variety of plays and musicals sure to please everyone.
Renowned in the Wild West as a sharpshooter, Annie Oakley meets her match, both romantically and professionally, in the form of fellow ace gunslinger, Frank Butler. While Annie and Frank are performing as part of the famous traveling show headlined by the legendary Buffalo Bill, the two compete and flirt, with plenty of ups and downs along the way. The delightful musical comedy features a memorable score including "Anything You Can Do (I Can Do Better)", "You Can't Get a Man with a Gun" and the greatest of all showbiz anthems, "There's No Business Like Show Business".
At the height of World War II, two boys are sent to stay with their estranged, tough-as-nails grandmother and their loving but emotionally-challenged Aunt Bella. In a small apartment above the family candy store in Yonkers, NY, the boys learn that their quirky relatives are each hiding something and soon find themselves comically caught in the middle of all their secrets. This heartwarming comedy by Neil Simon, about the importance of family and forgiveness, won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize
Drive a ways outta town, somewhere between Frog Level and Smyrna, North Carolina, and you'll come to a filling station run by L.M. and Jim. Across the blacktop is the Double Cupp Diner, operated by Rhetta and Prudie Cupp. To look at it, you wouldn't know that this little stop on Highway 57 is where all the action is, but trust us - once the boys get that guitar and bass fiddle revved up, you won't want to be anywhere else. Pump Boys and Dinettes is a countrified musical packed with entertaining tope-tappers such as "Drinkin' Shoes," "Farmer Tan," and "The Night Dolly Parton Was Almost Mine!"
Songs and stars of the 1940s come to life in G.I. Holiday Jukebox. If you're looking for a seasonal alternative to The Nutcracker and A Christmas Carol, with WWII nostalgia, great old standards, Christmas songs and comedy, then G.I. Holiday Jukebox is for you.
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There will be some changes to the Great Plains Theatre schedule for next year. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday performances will be matinees only. Evening performances will be held Friday and Saturday nights, and we will keep our popular Sunday matinees.Ticket packages are available now. Check out our website www.greatplainstheatre.com for more details on packaging and pricing.
Join us on January 30th for an exciting night of murder, mystery and masquerade. Winter Wonderland Murder Masquerade is Great Plains Theatre's gala fundraiser, a memorable night of interactive theatre complete with a catered Italian dinner and cash bar. Guests are encouraged to come dressed in evening wear, ball gowns, suits and tuxes, and of course no masquerade is complete without a stylish Venetian mask. There will also be an exciting raffle. The event starts promptly at 6:30 pm. Tickets are $50 a person. Contact 785-263-4574 for more details and to get your tickets for the fundraiser that people are "dying" to get into.
Proceeds benefit Great Plains Theatre.
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