Iola police are seeking the public’s help in resolving a series of car burglaries Sunday morning, while the vehicle owners were at church.
The incidents were reported to vehicles parked at St. John’s Catholic Church, 310 S. Jefferson Ave., and Wesley United Methodist Church, 301 E. Madison Ave.
Rebecca Ritch and Susan Waldman told officers someone had broken their windows and stole several items from each vehicle. Karen Lee and Marshall Barnhardt reported broken windows, but nothing apparently missing.
A photo of a suspect wanted for questioning has been released. The heavy-set man was wearing a khaki shorts and a dark shirt.
Warner declined to say where the photo was taken.
The suspect was believed to be driving a red sport utility vehicle, although the make and model are not known.
People with information regarding the case are encouraged to contact the Police Department, 365-4960.
Humboldt JV goes 1-2-1
Humboldt High’s junior varsity volleyball team went 1-2-1 Saturday at the Iola Invitational Tournament.
The Lady Cubs dropped their first match, 25-23, 25-17 to the host Fillies, then split a two-set match against Central Heights, winning the first set, 25-14, then losing the second, 25-16.
Humboldt fell, 25-14, 25-16, to Girard, before ending the day with a 25-19, 25-17 win over Prairie View.
Kasey Beeman and Tilar Wells each had two kills against Iola, while Beeman and Megan Hudlin both had two assists. Hudlin had two aces.
Beeman had two kills and four aces against Central Heights. Hudlin had two assists.
Briana Ames had two aces to lead the way against Girard. Hudlin had nine aces to spearhead the attack against Prairie View. Beeman had two assists, while Ames had three aces.
Crest Middle School rolls
COLONY — Crest Middle School kicked off the 2013 season in fine fashion Thursday, scoring two touchdowns before their opponents from Pleasanton took an offensive snap, in a 46-0 victory.
Gage Adams took the opening kickoff 60 yards for a touchdown. Caleb Stephens’ two-point conversion pushed the lead to 8-0.
The Lancers recovered the ensuing kickoff, followed shortly thereafter by a 15-yard touchdown run by Adams, during which he broke four tackles. Adams completed his first-half hat trick with a touchdown to put Crest up 20-0 — three minutes into the game.
Caleb Stephens got into the act in the second quarter on a 55-yard touchdown run. Chad Classen added the two-point conversion.
Hayden Seabolt’s fumble recovery put Crest back on offense, leading to a 10-yard touchdown by Classen.
It was Kadyn Utley’s turn early in the third quarter, scoring on a 75-yard run.
Adams recovered a fumble on the subsequent kickoff, leading to Classen’s final touchdown of the day, ending the game with a 46-point spread.
Crest takes on St. Paul this Thursday.
Red Devil volleyball squad stays even in tournament
HIGHLAND — A weekend filled with success, drawbacks and plenty of challenges has Allen Community College in a familiar place on the young 2013 season — at .500.
The Red Devils went 2-2 at the Highland Invitational Tournament, losing heartbreakers to Southwestern College and Cloud, but winning thrillers against Pratt and Longview.
“We were able to ruffle some feathers and make our presence known,” ACC head coach Jessica Peters said.
The roller-coaster ride began Friday with a rough patch, a 25-18, 25-23, 27-25 loss to Southwestern.
“We had opportunities to take the lead, but chose to play along,” Peters said, noting the Red Devils struggled when Southwestern tipped the ball at the net instead of taking full swings.
Sidney Keith led the Red Devils with 16 kills and 17 points, while Adriee Munoz had 16 assists. Sarah Charbonneau and Keith had 13 and 10 digs, respectively.
Allen’s struggles continued early in the next match against Pratt, dropping the first set, 25-15 and prompting Peters to make a few lineup adjustments.
“Ashlyn Meyers came in for us and did an excellent job running a successful offense.”
While the Red Devils dropped the second set, 25-17, the momentum had shifted.
Allen took advantage of several Pratt errors from there, rolling to a 25-11 win in the third set, 25-21 in the fourth and taking the decisive set, 15-12. Pratt committed a whopping 44 errors in the match.
Keith’s 14 kills and 16.5 points led ACC, while her 17 digs were one behind teammate Halley Scott. Keith and Lizzy Huey had two solo blocks apiece. Meyers had three aces and 17 assists. Munoz had 24 assists and two aces.
ALLEN FOLLOWED a familiar pattern Saturday.
The Red Devils had several opportunities against Cloud, but were done in by unforced errors in a 25-16, 25-17, 20-25, 25-23 defeat.
Keith had 13 kills and 14.5 points to go with 14 digs. Charbonneau had 28 digs.
Allen’s resolve improved considerably during the day, Peters said, and was nowhere near as evident as in the final match of the competition, a 25-16, 25-29, 19-25, 25-16 win.
“We were done losing by two and working hard for a loss,” Peters said.
Keith and Huey were catalysts from the start. Their stuff block was good for the winning point in the first set. Allen continued to roll after that in the 25-19, 25-16, 19-25, 25-16 win.
Keith’s 23 kills led the way, while Munoz and Jessi Sennett had 29 and 25 assists, respectively. Sennett also had four aces. Charbonneau had 31 digs. Danielle Goodman added 12 1/2 points. Keith also had 20 digs.
“Longview stepped up its blocking,” Peters said, leading to the third-set loss. Rather than fret, however, the Red Devils rebounded with 14 kills in the final set.
“We came home confident in what we saw, but we know we need to improve,” Peters said. “This team is an excellent example of teamwork. Their chemistry on the court is contagious. We see the highs and feel the lows.”
Allen (3-3 overall) opens its home schedule Wednesday against Highland, starting at 5:30 p.m.
Jamboree action
Scores of youngsters offered up their gridiron skills during the Allen County Youth Tackle Football League Jamboree at Riverside Park. Above, Humboldt and Yates Center players scramble for a fumble. At lower left, Kyler Mittelmeier is tackled by Aysha Houk. At bottom right, Iolan T.J. Taylor tries to disrupt a Humboldt handoff. More photos are available at www.iolaregister.com
Iola JV squad goes 1-3
Iola High’s junior varsity volleyball team went 1-3 at its own tournament Saturday.
The Fillies defeated Humboldt, 25-23, 25-17, before falling to Girard, 25-9, 25-23, Burlington, 25-15, 25-17, and Wellsville, 25-17, 25-11.
Leaders in the win over Humboldt were Shelby Smith and Taylor Sell with three kills each, Taylor Heslop and McKayli Cleaver with 17 and 13 assists, respectively, Cassie Delich with 14 digs and Jessica Oakley with two solo blocks apiece. Cleaver had 13 digs, Sell 12.
Cleaver had 16 assists and 13 digs in the loss to Girard. Smith had two blocks. In the loss to Burlington, Cleaver had two kills, 15 assists and 13 digs.
Smith led the way against Wellsville with three kills. Cleaver had 21 assists, while Sell racked up 16 digs. Cleaver had 14 digs and Dellich 10. Oakley had two kills. Heslop had 10 assists.
Results from Humboldt’s JV contests were unavailable by press time.
The Fillies JV resumes play Sept. 16 at Burlington. Humboldt’s JV squad will be in Moran Saturday for another tournament.
Fillies stay even in tourney play
RICHMOND — Iola High’s volleyball team took on some tough competition Saturday at the Fillies’ first tournament of the year.
And as in their season opener two days earlier, the Fillies continue to show signs of improvement, head coach Emily Sigg said.
Iola brought home fourth in the Central Heights tournament, courtesy of its 2-2 record.
Humboldt High’s Lady Cubs also competed in the tournament, going 1-3.
The Fillies dropped a tough opener to Class 3A power Burlington, falling 25-21, 25-23, and then fell to Waverly, 25-17, 25-20.
The struggles continued early on against Central Heights, before the Fillies found their footing midway through the match and captured a come-from behind, 23-25, 25-23, 25-16 victory.
Iola capped the day with a 25-22, 25-22 win over Prairie View.
“The girls played great against Burlington,” Sigg said. “We struggled against Waverly and half of the Central Heights match, but we finished the day well. I’m happy with the continued improvement.”
Addie Haar, Kyra Moore and Emery Driskel led the way against Burlington with five kills apiece. Moore also had 18 assists. Emma Piazza delivered eight kills, six assisted blocks and eight assists. Driskel had two solo and nine assisted blocks. Emma Sigg had eight digs, Allie Cleaver had three, and Moore and Piazza both had assists.
Driskel kept up her hot hand against Waverly with six kills, three digs and four solo blocks, while Piazza had seven assists with two kills. Ashlie Shields also had two kills. Moore notched five assists. Allie Cleaver finished with three digs and two aces. Haar and Halie Cleaver each had three digs. Haar also had two aces.
Driskel was a powerhouse against Central Heights, pounding down 20 kills in the three-set thriller. Haar notched four kills, while Moore, Piazza and Shields had three apiece. Moore and Piazza led the way with 20 and 10 assists, respectively. Driskel and Shields each had blocks. Allie Cleaver had six digs. Driskel also served up four aces.
Driskel was a powerhouse in the win over Prairie View, pounding down 10 kills with two solo blocks, while Moore and Piazza had eight and four assists, respectively. Lower, Driskel and Moore each had two aces at serve.
HUMBOLDT ALSO had its struggles at the start, but improved as the day went along, head coach Stephanie Splechter said.
The Lady Cubs fell to Wellsville, 25-4, 25-23, to Rossville by scores of 25-15, 25-15 and to Prairie View, 25-17, 25-20.
Humboldt rebounded to knock off the host Vikings in three sets, 25-14, 21-25, 25-11.
“We started off really rough,” Splechter said, noting that senior setter Anna Setter missed the competition with an injury.
“Younger girls filling in let their nerves get the better of them,” Splechter said. “I saw some good things and we improved as the day progressed. We learned a lot about ourselves today, and I am confident we are going to continue to get better.”
Breanna Kline and Sheri Middleton had four kills apiece against Wellsville. Middleton also had two blocks and six points.
Middleton led the way against Rossville with three kills and flour blocks. Kayle Riebel had five digs and two kills. Kline also had two kills.
Middleton’s four kills and 2 1/2 blocks led Humboldt against Prairie View. Annalise Whitcomb had eight assists.
Kline was the kills leader in the win over Central Heights with 10. Middleton was close behind with nine with seven blocks and three digs. Kline also had three digs.
THE FILLIES resume action Saturday at home with the annual Iola Invitational Tournament. Humboldt hosts Neodesha and Oswego Tuesday.
A magnificent manor
Moran Manor Administrator Ashley Vogel, left, accepts the PEAK award from Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services Secretary Shawn Sullivan. PEAK (Promoting Excellent Alternatives in Kansas) awards are given only to facilities with the highest marks and improvements in the field, Sullivan said. Moran Manor was selected from more than 330 nursing homes across the state.
State should keep promise to KPERS
Despite a robust return on its investments, the Kansas pension program is getting deeper in debt.
The KPERS pot can meet only 56.4 percent of its future obligations to teachers, fire fighters and judges, according to a report by Alan Conroy, executive director of the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System. That’s down from 59.2 percent in 2011, an additional $1 billion in the red.
Financial gurus recommend a state’s retirement budget be funded at 80 percent of its commitments. Anything below 60 percent should raise a red flag.
Conroy said deferred losses from the recession of 2008 continue to plague the fund, which now has a market value of $14.4 billion, up from $8.8 billion at the recession’s nadir in 2009, but still far below the amount needed to carry the system into the future. To date, KPERS is $10.2 billion under-funded if it is to keep its commitment to public employees up through 2033.
THE LOGISTICS of a healthy retirement plan go against politics. It’s much easier for politicians to promise a healthy retirement plan than to fund it. For the past 20 years legislators have neglected to adequately fund KPERS.
The lure of a retirement plan is what brings and keeps many public-sector employees on the payroll, many who accept several times below in pay what they could earn in a private sector job. A biology teacher, for example, could parlay that knowledge into a higher-paying medical profession, which is another reason we want our best and brightest teaching our children.
That said, most in today’s private sector must rely on their own financial savvy to build a nest egg.
Today, only 20 percent of non-government employees enjoy any kind of corporate pension plan. The steep jump in the cost of health insurance premiums -— double-digit increases for many of the past 10 years — is the biggest reason corporate America can no longer provide pensions for its employees.
The demographics of today’s America also explain why current pension programs are growing more unbalanced.
Simply said, a healthier populace wreaks havoc on a retirement plan. The majority of today’s government employees are retiring at relatively young ages at 85-90 percent of their pre-retirement income.
The “plan,” just like Social Security, was to provide for senior citizens in their last few “golden years.”
To add to the dysfunction, those retiring are not being replaced by new hires.
Budget cuts, especially in education, result in fewer people paying into KPERS to support a greater number of retirees.
Today, 31 percent of Kansas teachers are 50 and older. The prospect of them retiring anytime soon presents two hurdles: A teacher shortage, because the number of possible retirees far outpaces the number of graduates from the state’s universities and colleges to take their places; and a bigger drain on the KPERS pot.
LEGISLATORS have entertained implementing a 501(k) retirement plan where employees, rather than the state, handle the investment of their benefits. So far, that’s been opposed by a majority of legislators in favor of a hybrid cash balance plan, where both the state and employees share in the financial risk of investments.
Ultra-conservatives are still fighting for the state to go whole hog with the 501(k) model. That would be sound logic only if salaries were raised substantially to weather the ups and downs of the stock market. With the take, there’s got to be some give.
— Susan Lynn
Ed Bideau, 1950-2013, a servant to the end
Rep. Ed Bideau was a most unassuming man whose mild demeanor belied the passion he felt for his state.
At a time when most would take down the shingle, Bideau re-entered state politics after a hiatus of 25 years during which he practiced law, farmed, and helped wife Margaret raise their three children.
Bideau was a moderate Republican, believing in the state’s responsibility to its citizens. He voted against reducing the state’s income tax rates, against allowing firearms in public buildings, (though it should be noted he was a strong advocate for gun rights) and against the state budget.
By evidence of his voting record, he was OK with being in the minority. He lived by his conscience.
From this outsider’s perspective, he must have been a good husband, by evidence of his loyal wife, Margaret, who in addition to her teaching duties managed his campaign and marketing directives. Together, they made a most admirable couple.
His death Thursday leaves a hole in our hearts for his family.
Ed Bideau was a leader. We will miss his sound judgment, his humble ways, and his steadfast conviction that Kansas is a worthy cause.
May he rest in peace.
— Susan Lynn