Though they aren’t running mates or even running for the same office, Heather Guernsey and Dr. Jen McKenney were joined at the hip Thursday evening in their messaging.
Whether it’s education or healthcare, rural Kansas must not be overlooked.
Guernsey, Chanute, is running for the Kansas Board of Education while McKenney, Fredonia, is the running mate of Curt Skoog, a candidate for governor.
The two Democratic candidates addressed a healthy gathering at Iola’s John Silas B. Bass Community Building and sponsored by Allen County’ Blue Dot Club.
As a physician, McKenney said she hoped to bring her knowledge about healthcare to the Skoog-McKenney ticket and the fact that Kansas “can’t afford to lose one more hospital.”
In Southeast Kansas, the cities of Independence and Fort Scott have each witnessed the closure of their hospitals and the ongoing struggle of making ends meet.
Guernsey is a former teacher who currently serves on Chanute’s 413 District school board as well as the board of the ANW special education cooperative.
If elected, Guernsey, age 45, would replace Jim Porter of Independence, a Republican who has served on the state board for the past 12 years.
Guernsey said she doesn’t see the issue of education through a political lens. “I don’t believe in a Republican education or a Democrat education. I believe in a good education for Kansas kids, and that all kids deserve an excellent education and a strong voice to represent them.”
A strong educational system “doesn’t just lift the child, but also families, community and our whole state,” Guernsey said. “My campaign is not about politics, but about possibilities.”
MCKENNEY, age 47, is a family physician in her hometown of Fredonia.
The daughter of Filipino immigrants who made their way to rural Kansas, McKenney joked, “I just say there was a direct flight from Manila all the way to Fredonia International Airport.”
Fredonia’s population is 2,000.
McKenney’s father, Dr. Oswaldo Bacani, now retired, was a general surgeon and had his own practice, Fredonia Family Care, which McKenney now owns and operates. She is also on the medical staff at Fredonia Regional Hospital.
Joining her father to practice medicine in Fredonia, “Was the best decision I ever made,” she said. “Something happened where I started seeing that this town is everything that I wanted growing up. It’s everything I want for my own kids.”
McKenney has been active in community affairs as well, including serving on the local school board for nine years, including as board president for two.
