WICHITA, Kan. (AP) A parochial school leader is set to become the new director of Wichita’s Catholic Charities. The Wichita Eagle reports that Mike Burrus will become director of the nonprofit agency on Sept. 3. Bishop Michael O. Jackels and the Catholic Charities board made the announcement Tuesday. Burrus has been president of Kapaun Mount Carmel High School in Wichita for the past 12 years. Melissa Grelinger currently is acting as the nonprofit agency’s interim director. She replaced Cynthia Colbert, who resigned in December to become the director of the Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.
Author: KMAN Staff
SALINA, Kan. (AP) Officials in Salina are happy to welcome thousands of visitors to the Bicentennial Center for conventions and sporting events every year, but there’s one group they’re trying to oust. The Salina Journal reports that several thousand bats have entered the Bicentennial Center through cracks and vents. They’ve taken up residence in the mezzanine level, right above the public restrooms. The City Commission voted unanimously Monday to pay a pest control company about $35,000 to remove the winged mammals. The company will also seal the cracks and vents and clean up the bats’ droppings, as well as a…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Some Kansas residents apparently consider the state’s list of banned words for personalized license plates a challenge. Revenue department officials say they are always on the lookout for Kansans who try to find a way around the list, which contains almost 1,200 entries. The Wichita Eagle reports that the list includes basic curse words, sexual innuendoes, racial slurs and drug references. Donna Shelite, director of vehicles, says drivers go to great lengths to get around the rules, such as using numbers for letters. And she admits she doesn’t always understand some of the applications. Shelite says the…
HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) A Hutchinson woman is seeking to withdraw the plea she made more than a decade ago in the death of her mother. Tracie Lynn Miles testified Monday that she didn’t understand the consequences of her no contest plea in the 1998 death of her mother, Sandra Miles, in Hutchinson. She says her attorney did not give her good advice. Miles and her boyfriend, Paul Nelson, both pleaded no contest to first-degree murder in Sandra Miles’ strangulation and bludgeoning death. The Hutchinson News reports Miles, who was 18 when she pleaded, said she incorrectly believed that she might…
HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) An 8-year-old Hutchinson boy is being credited with alerting his father to a house fire in time to save his two brothers. But the Hudson family lost their home and all their belongings in the Monday fire. The family says Tyler Hudson saw smoke and flames coming out of the roof of his home as he boarded the school bus. He called to his dad, who was able to run inside and rescue his 6- and 4-year old sons. The children’s mother was at work. The Hutchinson News reports the family’s cat died in the fire, which…
HESSTON, Kan. (AP) A section of interstate near Wichita is reopened after a bomb squad investigated the cargo in a truck. Interstate 135 between Hesston and North Newton was closed for six hours overnight after a trucker reported he had received a call about suspicious materials in his semi-trailer. The trucker says he parked his vehicle and called 911 after receiving the call Monday evening. KWCH reports it was unclear early Tuesday if anything was found in the truck. The Harvey County Sheriff’s office says the trucker was driving for Hobby Lobby on a route from Oklahoma to Colorado.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas legislators will reconvene Wednesday after a short break following an important milestone in the 2013 session. The Legislature remained out of session Tuesday following last week’s so-called “turnaround” deadline. That’s the day most bills must clear their chamber of origin to remain under consideration this year. Lawmakers stopped the clock on their session after Friday, the 47th day of their session. Wednesday will be counted as the 48th day. Legislative leaders traditionally assume their session will last 90 days, although it sometimes runs longer. This year, leaders are hoping to wrap up business in just 80…
SALINA, Kan. (AP) A Kansas organization for women in agriculture holds a meeting next month on crop insurance, along with a session on oil and gas leases. The meeting of Saline County Women in Ag takes place April 11 at Redeemer Lutheran Church in Salina. Mark Nelson, of the Kansas Farm Bureau, will lead the session on crop insurance. The presentation on understanding oil and gas leases will be given by Mike Irvin, also from Kansas Farm Bureau.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A Kansas House committee is preparing to take up legislation increasing the penalties for child sex trafficking and providing help for victims of human trafficking. The Corrections and Juvenile Justice Committee is scheduled to begin two days of hearings Thursday. The measure was sought by Attorney General Derek Schmidt and passed the Senate unanimously last month. The bill creates the crime of felony commercial sexual exploitation of a child, punishable by a minimum sentence of 25 years if the victim is less than 14 years old. It also establishes programs to help victims of human trafficking through…
There was back-patting all around in Wamego. At Tuesday’s City Commission meeting, Airport Board President John Hupe went over the annual report for the Commission. He said the board is in the process of updating the master plan, applying for a grant to have the runway resurfaced, and in the process of repairing the aprons. He added there is some interest in new hangers because the existing ones are all occupied, and there’s increased general aviation activity since the ‘jump’ club was ousted last year. City Manager Merl Page told the Commissioner’s, the Airport is ‘worth a look’ because the…