Author: Brandon Peoples

Manhattan High School math teacher Dedra Braxmeyer has been announced as USD 383 Manhattan-Ogden’s 2019 Master Teacher. Braxmeyer has been teaching for 19 years – 13 of which have been at Manhattan High. She earned a B.A. in Mathematics and a B.S. in Secondary Education from Kansas State University in 1999, earning her Masters in Education in 2001 from Peru State College. According to the district, Braxmeyer is involved in the community, previously serving as an officer for the Junior League of the Flint Hills. She is currently a member of a three-person team, which is part of a quarterly…

Students at 42 Kansas schools including a couple in our region will have better access to breakfast thanks to more than $142,000 in grants through the Kansas State Department of Education to help bolster breakfast programs. Area grant amounts included: Wabaunsee High School: $3,000 Washington Elementary in Junction City: $1,200 The funding is said to boost innovative breakfast delivery models, sometimes called breakfast after the bell, so breakfasts can be served in non-traditional ways like in the classroom. Students also have the opportunity to get grab-and-go breakfasts. KSDE says research show eating breakfast at school improves student performance in the…

A Manhattan woman was arrested Tuesday on a Pottawatomie County warrant for a number of charges involving forgery and theft. The Riley County Police Department says 28-year-old Sara Marie Boatman is jailed on three charges of making false writing, five counts of forgery and eight counts of theft of property or services of less than $1,500. Each charge is a nonperson felony. According to the Kansas Department of Corrections, Boatman has previously been convicted of criminal use of a financial card and theft from two previous cases in Riley County earlier this year. Boatman is confined in the Riley County…

The future of water and conservation are the key areas of focus during the governor’s water conference going on this week in Manhattan. Among Tuesday’s speakers was Tom Kula, executive director of the North Texas Municipal Water District who shared some permitting reform recommendations his agency has noticed as they began construction recently on his state’s first major reservoir in 30 years. Part of that he says is improving innovative ways to share the reservoirs and resources they already have. Part of those new approaches, he says, come in the area of floodwater management. Kula also spoke to removing some of the…

PAXICO — The Kansas Office of the State Fire Marshal has identified the man who died last week in a fire at the Wyldewood Cellars Winery in Paxico. According to a release from the Fire Marshal’s office, 32-year-old Evan Jolly of the Kansas City, Missouri area was the one who perished in the fire Nov. 8. The investigation has concluded the fire was incendiary, meaning it was intentionally set. It is believed Jolly was the one who started the fire. His body was found near the buidling’s entrance near a gas can. The damage to the winery has been estimated…

Two people were involved in an injury crash Monday in rural Riley County. According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, 21-year-old Hailey Weaver of Kings Beach, California was traveling northbound on US 77 near mile marker 187 between Manhattan and Randolph when for an unknown reason, her passenger car went off the roadway and struck a culvert. The vehicle then vaulted over the culvert, rolled and came to rest in the east ditch. The accident occurred just before 3 p.m. approximately 14 miles south of Randolph. Weaver sustained a possible injury, but according to the Highway Patrol crash log, was not…

Veterans Day was recognized Monday in Manhattan with residents pausing to reflect on the brave service men and women of the U.S. military. On the 100th anniversary of the armistice that ended World War I, Jed Dunham consultant with the Office of Military and Veterans Affairs at Kansas State University, spoke during the Veterans Day program at Peace Memorial Auditorium. His speech centered around the importance of veterans both on and off the battlefield. Dunham says when these veterans come home, they become a vital and vibrant part of the community to help bridge the divisiveness of the country. Monday’s ceremony also…

Manhattan firefighters are investigating the cause of a vehicle fire that ignited a garage fire Sunday evening. Just before 6:30 p.m. crews were called out to 2300 Vineyard Circle where they found a vehicle on fire inside the garage of a two-story residential structure. The vehicle fire was quickly extinguished but it then spread to the interior of the garage. One person was home at the time of the fire but they were able to safely escape injury. The total loss is estimated at $6,800 for the vehicle and $25,000 to the structure. The owner is listed as Nigel Hanson.…

Friday’s In Focus guests included Flint Hills Veterans Coalition President Janet Nichols, former president Dave Ekart, Veterans Day parade coordinator Chuck Tannehill and Vice President Christine Benne. We also spoke with Biosecurity Research Institute Director Dr. Stephen Higgs about ongoing research and preventative maintenance happening at the facility. Finally we wrapped our program with Manhattan Convention and Visitors Bureau Director Karen Hibbard.

Updated 2:15 p.m. Monday Wabaunsee County Sheriff Rob Hoskins has provided additional information on the man who self-immolated himself Thursday evening outside of a Paxico winery. Sheriff Hoskins posted on the department’s Facebook page that the man’s name has not been confirmed via autopsy, but he is not believed to have been local resident and had no ties to the area. The Manhattan Mercury is reporting that Wyldewood Cellars Winery Manager Beth Brewer identified the man as Christopher Jolly. Updated 8:45 a.m. Friday One person is dead following a Thursday evening fire at a Wabaunsee County winery. The Topeka Capital-Journal…