Ramsey Gott, 27, Iola, has been charged with involuntary manslaughter while driving under the influence of alcohol in the death Feb. 18 of Iolan Nicole Sigg, 25. Sigg died in a single-vehicle traffic accident seven miles northwest of Iola.
Gott was driving when he lost control of the vehicle at 600 Street and Texas Road. Two other passengers, Jessica Rogers and Steven Warden, were thrown from the vehicle. Their injuries were not life threatening. Gott called 911 and met officers at old U.S. 169.
Allen County Attorney Jerry Hathaway said Gott would have his first court appearance April 7 at 9 a.m.
The charge is a level 4 person felony, Hathaway said, and that conviction could lead to a prison sentence of 38 to 172 months.
Hathaway said prior offenses would be considered in the sentencing phase.
Elsie Wall
Elsie Blanche Wall, 99, of Iola died Monday, March 15, 2010, at her home.
She was born Aug. 3, 1910, in Beeler, the daughter of John and Blanche (Edwards) Shover. She was an nurse before her retirement.
On Nov. 12, 1938, she married Howard C. Wall in St. John. He died in 1963.
She is survived by two daughters, Billie J. Middleton, Carter Lake, Iowa, and Karen Kaye Pope and her husband, Verne, Monroe City, Mo.; two sons, John and his wife, Beth, and Tom, Iola, 12 grandchildren; 20 great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren.
A daughter, Carol L. Hamm, son-in-law, Larry E. Middleton, two brothers and three sisters died earlier.
She willed her body to the University of Kansas Department of Anatomy.
Memorial services will be announced later.
Barbara Tibbs
Barbara Gail Tibbs, 58, of Iola died Monday, March 15, 2010, at Allen County Hospital in Iola.
She was born Sept. 6, 1951, in Detroit, Mich., the daughter of Edward Wayne and Lucille Charlotte (Osier) Berglund. She was raised by her grandmother, Alice J. Wilson, in Iola. She graduated from Udall High School and made her home in the Chicago area before returning to Iola.
She was a member of First Church of the Nazarene in Iola. She had a good sense of humor and was a fighter through all of her illnesses.
She is survived by three sisters, Nancy Evans, Warren, Mich., and Micky Kinzle and Sharon Lane, both of Iola; and many nieces and nephews
A sister, Patricia Allie, died earlier.
Cremation has taken place.
Memorial services will be at 7 p.m. Friday at First Church of the Nazarene in Iola. The Rev. Duane Copsey will officiate.
Memorials to American Cancer Society may be left at Waugh-Yokum & Friskel Memorial Chapels of Iola, which is in charge of arrangements. Online condolences for the family may be left at iolafuneral.com.
Donna Broughton
Donna M. Broughton, 73, of Independence, Mo., died Saturday, March 13 2010.
She was born Aug. 11, 1936, in Bronson, to James H. and Dollie W. Brown. She graduated from Iola High School.
She was a caregiver for more than 30 years and touched the lives of more than 100 children. She was a member of Fort Osage Church of the Nazarene.
She is survived by daughters, Cheryl Lyons and her husband, Craig, Virginia Beach, Va., Pam Clevenger, Independence, and Brenda Scarborough and her husband, Brian, Blue Springs, Mo.; a son, Larry Broughton, and a brother, Donald Brown, both of Independence; 11 grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.
Her husband, Loren Dale Broughton, three brothers and a sister died earlier.
Services will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Speaks Suburban Chapel, 18020 E. 39th St., Independence, Mo., with interment in Mount Washington Cemetery.
Condolences may be sent to the family online at speakschapel.com.
Bargain bin image sends wrong message
Kent Eckles, a lobbyist for the Kansas Chamber of Commerce, told a Kansas Senate committee that retailers in other states were “salivating” over the prospect that Kansas will raise its sales tax.
No wonder big business gets a bad name.
Believe it or not, there are many business owners who are eager that their state be known for taking care of its needy and educating its children.
Being a bargain bin infers substandard goods.
Being of good value — that’s what sells a TV, a car, and a state.
STATE SEN. Les Donovan, R-Wichita, gets it.
In a bold move Monday afternoon, Donovan, chair of the Senate Assessment and Taxation Committee, proposed a variation of Gov. Mark Parkinson’s sales tax proposal.
Donovan’s plan calls for a permanent increase in the sales tax from 5.3 to 6 percent; cigarettes up by 25 cents a pack; increased taxes on soft drinks and beer; but elimination of all taxes on food beginning in 2013. The package would raise about $350 million a year.
Fellow Republicans have been quick to dismiss Donovan’s efforts, continuing their pledge not to raise taxes even if it means sinking the state.
Kansas is nearing a $500 million shortfall for next fiscal year that begins in less than four months — a gap “too big to cut our way out of,” said Sen. Derek Schmidt, in referring to further reductions.
The Chamber’s Eckles suggested the state’s next target should be furloughing state employees, a measure “I haven’t seen discussed seriously in the Legislature this session,” he said.
Let’s see. We’ve had teachers and paraprofessional positions cut, school days eliminated, educational programs hacked, district court staffs reduced and social services positions and services slashed to the point that our state is neglecting its primary duties to its citizens.
KANSAS KIDS and the disadvantaged are being the hardest hit by the cutbacks. All-day kindergarten is the most recent program to go on the chopping block.
The state’s per-pupil funding directly supports only the half-day program with districts making up the difference. The saving grace — don’t laugh — for Iola and its neighboring districts is that they are so poor that they qualify for extra per-pupil state aid, which will permit them to save the all-day K programs.
Wealthier districts such as Wichita, however, likely will be forced to discontinue the programs, even though they have demonstrated a far superior learning environment for their youngest and most impressionable wards.
DONOVAN DESERVES praise for his efforts not only to fill the immediate shortfall, but to take the state on a path toward long-term solvency. It’s been a long time coming.
— Susan Lynn
ACCC baseball team goes 1-1
Allen County Community College’s baseball team opened Jayhawk Eastern Division play Saturday on the road.
The Red Devils lost 10-3 to host Coffeyville then bounced back to win 16-7. No details on Saturday’s games have been reported to the Register.
The Red Devils are 1-1 in Jayhawk East play and 7-5 overall.
Today at 3 o’clock, the Red Devils host Cowley County, which is 2-0 in conference play and 8-5 overall, for a Jayhawk East doubleheader.
Area man arrested for rape
Randall Bauer, 60, was arrested Monday on a warrant charging him with rape of a six-year-old girl.
The incident allegedly occurred in the Savonburg area late last week and was investigated by Allen County officers on Friday, at which time they interviewed Bauer. He is being held without bond in the Allen County Jail.
Murphy told the Register Bauer previously was convicted of a sexual offense in another state for which he served time in prison.
He has lived in Savonburg one year, although he has lived “in and out of the area for the last 15 years,” a relative said.
Vision Iola looks at enhancing square
Iolans will discuss at length potential improvements to the city’s downtown business district at the next Vision Iola meeting Thursday at the Senior Citizens Center.
The 6 p.m. meeting will include a walking tour of the square, said Dale Stafford, a designer with Landworks Studio of Olathe. Landworks and Thrive Allen County are working with the city on the Vision Iola process.
Participants have already studied community identity and potential signage improvements.
The walking tour will allow participants to fill out their own assessments of Iola’s downtown square, Stafford said, and identify ways in which it can be improved.
Input from Thursday’s meeting will be processed by Landworks with enhancement ideas offered at another meeting later this month.
Vision Iola’s focus in April will be on parks and trails, including sidewalks.
Weide services
Memorial services for Shirley Jean (Boyce) Weide of Toronto, whose death Jan. 24, 2010, at her home was reported previously in The Register, will be at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Coyville Christian Church.
Margery Donald
Margery Donald, 94, died Saturday, March 13, 2010, at Neosho Memorial Regional Medical Center in Chanute.
She was born Aug. 7, 1915, in Mildred, the daughter of George Clair and Anna Marie Smith Adams. She was graduated from Mildred High School in 1934.
On June 21, 1937, she married Howard Raymond Donald at the church parsonage in Selma. He died Dec. 29, 2006. After living in Texas the first two and one half years of their marriage, they moved to Moran where they lived and raised their family. Later they also lived a few years near Cherokee and in Humboldt. After his death she moved to Chanute where she was a resident of Guest Home Estates II.
She was a Sunday school teacher in Moran and was involved with the Willing Workers 4-H Club, serving as a community and project leader. She liked reading, gardening, quilting and cooking. She was an avid sports fan, following the Kansas City Royals, Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas State University Wildcats.
She is survived by two sons, Dwight and his wife, Judy, Platte City, Mo., and Dale and his wife, Sherry, Knoxville, Tenn.; two daughters, Karen Hack, Pineville, Mo., and Dee Ann Parsons and her husband, Steve, Chanute; 10 grandchildren, Steven, Andrea, David, Dana, Amy, Laura, Justin, Jennifer, Ashley and Blake; and 20 great-grandchildren.
A brother, Stanley W. Adams, and a great-grandson, Nicholas Parsons, died earlier.
Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Humboldt United Methodist Church with burial in Fairview Cemetery in Mildred.
Visitation will be from 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Penwell-Gabel Humboldt Chapel.
Memorials to Fairview Cemetery or Kincaid Fair Association may be left at the funeral home. To leave a message for the family online visit PenwellGabelHumboldt.com.