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RecordTuesday’s high: xxOvernight low: xx24 hour precipitation: 0.36Monthly precipitation: 0.56Yearly precipitation: 0.7124 hour snowfall: 7.10February snowfall: 13.1Yearly snowfall: 14.60Thursday’s Sunrise: 7:33 Thursday’s Sunset: 5:57

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

The Abilene

Abilene shut down Pets need

shelter in frigid tempsBy TIFFANY RONEY

tiffany.roney@abilene-rc.com

Animals that are always kept indoors may be snug by the fireplace, but other pets that normally live in pens outside may be shivering with cold if they are not cared for properly in the midst of sub-freezing temperatures expected across the region.

“If they have to be outside, have some type of shelter for them — a garage or a dog house to get into,” Gale Rock, longtime-secretary of Abilene Animal Hospital, said. “Or at least make some type of makeshift shelter for them — hay bales or a tarp or some-thing that would keep the ele-ments off.”

Gale said it’s best to bring pets inside, if possible. Pets that aren’t house trained would do best in screened-in porches, bathrooms or other areas that are easy to clean if they have an accident.

Gale said her guideline for bringing pets inside is when the temperature gets below freezing.

“If it’s under 32 degrees, then I feel like they should be inside somewhere,” she said. “If they can’t bring them in-side, then at least use some type of garage or barn. A dry environment would be help-ful.”

Caring for animals

Dogs, cats• Keep short-haired, very

young or old dogs inside• When taken out for

exercise, put a sweater on short-haired dogs

• For outside dogs, build or buy a dry, draft-free shelter with a partial roof, a raised floor and a doorway covered with waterproof burlap or plastic

• Use food and water bowls made of plastic instead of metal

• After walking on salted sidewalks, wipe paws with a damp towel to keep paws free of irritants

• “The best tip of all: keep your pets with you.”

Source: The Humane Society

of the United States

Storm closes businesses, schools across region

By GREG DOERINGgreg.doering@abilene-rc.com

Multiple businesses in Abilene shut down early Tuesday as a winter storm slammed the area drop-ping nearly a foot of snow. The city and much of Kansas ground to a halt well before the snow stopped falling late Tuesday night.

Minimal activity on the roads was welcomed by the Abilene Police Department, which reported only minor weather-related issues as of Wednes-day morning.

“The weather kept a lot of people home,” Lt. Mike Mohn said, noting only a couple of accidents were reported Tuesday, with no severe damage.

Mohn said the declaration of a snow emergency by Abilene City Manage David Dillner helped road crews keep the emergency routes open throughout the day.

The snow emergency was lifted about mid-morning Wednesday, allowing vehicle owners to park their cars along the emergency snow routes and in the downtown area.

Crews were expected to be working through Wednesday night to remove snow from the down-town area, according to Public Works Director Lon Schrader.

“It’s passable, but with the timing we won’t be able to haul all that off until tonight,” Schrader said of giant piles of snow in the middle of down-town streets. “It’s almost impossible to haul it off

with people moving around.”Schrader said crews have been working around

the clock since 4 a.m. Tuesday and by early Wednesday morning they were just moving into residential areas after clearing and salting emer-gency routes.

“We’ve still got a long way to go,” Schrader said. “We’ve been very, very lucky to keep our equipment together.”

Abilene is also fortunate that it was fully stocked with salt last Friday. Tuesday’s storm brought re-ports of shortages in other Kansas communities, including Wichita.

“We’ve thrown every piece of equipment that’s got a bucket on it” at clearing the roads, Schrader said.

Abilene wasn’t alone in dealing with Mother Nature Tuesday.

“Tuckered out” and “aggravated” is how County Administrator Brad Homman described county road and bridge crews Wednesday morning.

Anticipating the snow, the county went to 12-hour, 8-to-8, shifts starting last Monday to keep

Senate sends farm bill to Obama’s deskThe Associated Press

WASHINGTON — The sweeping farm bill that Congress sent to Presi-dent Obama Tuesday has something for almost everyone, from the na-tion’s 47 million food stamp recipi-ents to Southern peanut growers, Midwest corn farmers and the maple syrup industry in the Northeast.

After years of setbacks, the Sen-ate on Tuesday sent the nearly $100 billion-a-year measure to President Barack Obama. The White House said the president will sign the bill on Friday in Michigan, the home state of Senate Agriculture Chair-woman Debbie Stabenow.

The Senate passed the bill 68-32 after House passage last week. The bill provides a financial cushion for farmers who face unpredictable weather and market conditions. It also provides subsidies for rural communities and environmentally-sensitive land. But the bulk of its cost is for the food stamp program, which aids 1 in 7 Americans. The bill would cut food stamps by $800 million a year, or around 1 percent.

House Republicans had hoped to reduce the bill’s costs even further, pointing to a booming agriculture sector in recent years and arguing that the now $80 billion-a-year food stamp program has spiraled out of

control. The House passed a bill in September that would have made a cut to food stamps that was five times more than the eventual cut.

Those partisan disagreements stalled the bill for more than two years, but conservatives were even-tually outnumbered as the Demo-cratic Senate, the White House and a still-powerful bipartisan coalition of farm-state lawmakers pushed to get the bill done.

The White House has been mostly quiet as Congress worked out its dif-ferences on the bill. But in a state-ment after the vote, Obama said the bill would reduce the deficit “without gutting the vital assistance

programs millions of hardworking Americans count on to help put food on the table for their families.”

He said the farm bill isn’t perfect, “but on the whole, it will make a positive difference not only for the rural economies that grow Ameri-ca’s food, but for our nation.”

Obama praised the bill for getting rid of controversial subsidies known as direct payments, which are paid to farmers whether they farm or not. Most of that program’s $4.5 billion annual cost was redirected into new, more politically defensible subsidies that would kick in when a farmer has losses.

To gather votes for the bill, Sta-

benow and her House counterpart, Rep. Frank Lucas, R-Okla., includ-ed a major boost for crop insurance popular in the Midwest, higher sub-sidies for Southern rice and peanut farmers and land payments for West-ern states. The bill also sets policy for hundreds of smaller programs, subsidies, loans and grants — from research on wool to loans for honey producers to protections for the cat-fish industry. The bill would provide assistance for rural Internet services and boost organic agriculture.

Stabenow said the bill is also in-tended to help consumers, boosting farmers markets and encouraging lo-

Greg Doering • Reflector-ChronicleA man uses a snowblower to clear a sidewalk along N.W. Third Street Tuesday morning. Several Abilene businesses followed the path set by local schools and closed Tuesday due to a winter storm that slammed the city.

See: Farm, Page 6

By TIFFANY RONEYtiffany.roney@abilene-rc.com

People might not have to work at their jobs or sit in class when the streets are packed with snow, but even on the coldest days, they still need to eat. Local grocery store owners said they plan to do their best to stay stocked and open.

While Tuesday was slightly slower than a typical day at West’s County Mart, store manager Chris West said the store was packed on Monday.

“The day before a storm is always a very, very busy day,” West said.

Vicki Zey, of Zey’s Market, said she has noticed the weather makes the store busy before a storm and calm in the midst of it.

“The weather makes people stock up,” Zey said. “They try to get out and prepare.”

Neither Zey’s nor West’s is making any changes to their deli offerings or hours this week. Zey’s re-ceived a delivery Monday, so they are full of all products. West’s is full of every product but one.

“We will probably be out of bread, since they don’t normally work on Wednesdays anyway, so it’ll be Thursday before we get some, but we should have most everything — maybe not every type and ev-ery brand, but at least some of every product,” West said. “It just so happens that we’ll be a little bare on the bread shelf, but the bakery will have fresh bread, so we won’t be completely out.”

West’s closed early at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, while Zey’s closed shortly after sunset.

“When it gets dark out, if the customers stop com-ing in, we may close early,” Zey said. “It depends upon our customers. If they’re still coming in shop-ping, we stay open. We are here for the customers.”

Stocked up

“We’ve still got a long way to go. We’ve been very, very lucky to keep

our equipment together.”Lon Schrader

See: Storm, Page 6

Special to Reflector-Chronicle

MANHATTAN — A Kan-sas State University survey of recent graduates has found an increase in the percentage of new graduates with jobs — more than half of them in Kansas — as well as rising salaries and a broad range of career choices.

Survey results show that 93 percent of graduates who earned bachelor’s degrees in 2012-2013 are employed or pursuing further education and advanced degrees — a percentage increase from last year. The university’s latest class of graduates also had the highest employment percent-age of the last five years at 72 percent.

“Results for our most re-cent class reflect the steady success of K-State graduates in obtaining employment or continuing their education with a K-State degree,” said Kerri Day Keller, director of the university’s career and

employment services. “It’s exciting to see them taking their first steps toward their career aspirations.”

As reported by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, the national aver-age starting salary for 2013 college graduates is almost 3 percent higher than last year. The university’s survey shows that more than half of all majors saw their salary of-fers increase over the previ-ous year.

“Employer interest in this year’s class appears strong as well,” Keller said. “We have kicked off the new semester with three sold-out career fairs and are hosting about 350 employers on-campus within a 30-day time period this spring.

According to the survey results, the top corporate em-ployers of bachelor’s degree graduates are Cerner, GTM Sportswear, Koch Industries, Cargill and Burns & McDon-

nell; the top public and non-profit sector employers are Saint Francis Community Services, the U.S. Army and the U.S. Air Force. Top uni-fied school district employers are Geary County, Manhat-tan-Ogden and Blue Valley. The survey also showed that 62 percent of employed bach-elor’s degree graduates ac-cepted jobs in Kansas, while Missouri, Texas and Colorado are the top out-of-state loca-tions.

“Students know that by choosing Kansas State Uni-versity they will get an un-paralleled undergraduate experience,” said Pat Bosco, vice president for student life

and dean of students. “What’s more, they can see from their peers that the undergraduate experience will pay off when they enter the workforce or continue on to graduate and professional schools.”

People2 Wednesday, February 5, 2014 www.abilene-rc.com

Tim Horan,Editor and Publisher

Janelle Gantenbein,Associate PublisherTammy Moritz,

Advertising Jenifer Parks

Advertising Assistant

Greg Doering,Managing EditorRon Preston,

Sports Tiffany Roney,

ReporterDaniel Vandenburg,Circulation/Distribution

(USPS 003-440)Official City, County Newspaper

Abilene Reflector-ChronicleP.O. Box 8 Abilene, Kansas

67410 Telephone: 785-263-1000 Wednesday, February 5, 2014Reflector Vol. 126, No. 195Chronicle Vol. 141, No. 236

Periodical postage paid at Abilene, Kansas. Published daily Monday through Friday, except Saturday and Sunday and these holidays: Christmas, New Year’s, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day and

Thanksgiving at 303 N. Broadway, Abilene, Kansas. Subscription by city carrier or mail inside Abilene, Chapman, Enterprise, or Solomon, $7.50 monthly or $87 a year; by mail $93 per year, tax included, a zip code addressed within

Dickinson County, where carrier service is not offered; Motor Route delivery, $9.50 monthly or $110 per year.

Postmaster: Address changes to Abilene Reflector-Chronicle, P.O. Box 8, Abilene, KS 67410

Member of Kansas Press Association and National Newspaper Association

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The Abilene

February 2014Wellness Monthspecial pricing

Comprehensive exam - $27 rabies - $7.50

Da2pp for Dogs or fvrCpfor Cats - $9.50

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all other wellness serviCes at a 25%

DisCount also!Abilene Animal Hospital

320 N.E. 14thAbilene, KS263-2301

ABILENETRUSS & DIST.

STAN VEAL CONST., INC.2204 Fair Rd.ABILENE, KS“Since 1959”

263-2176 CELL 280-3

034

Club newsAbilene DAR

The Abilene Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) met for their regular meeting Saturday Jan. 13, 2014, at Mr. K’s Farm House.

Regent April Barker announced the following rituals: Scripture and Pryer by Chaplain Betty Noel; the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag led by Regent April Barker; The American’s Creed led by Floy Bowers with Mary Beth Lenhart leading The National Anthem. Vice Regent Leesa Hettenbach read “The President General’”s message to the members and gave a Flag, Conservation and Commemortive moments. Leea also gave a National Defense Report.

The December meeting minutes were approved as printed and mailed. Seven members and our guest, Mary Burtzloff answered a “Favorite Kansas Site” for roll call. Treasurer Dee Marshall reported and the members agreed to send a donation to the Wichita Veteran’s Hospital. Regent Barker reported that during the holidays her business encouraged customers to sign a Christmas card and mail during her open house. She also reported on receiving a call from a local businessman who had found a metal DAR grave marker that he wanted to sell. Regent Barker will do some checking.

The following delegates were elected to the DAR State Conference in May: April Barker, Dee Marshall and Jean with alternates elected were Leesa Hettenbach, Betty Noel and Floy Bowers.

To commemorate Kansas’s 153rd birthday on Jan. 29, Dee Marshall gave a program on Kansas Statehood Ball held Jan. 25.

Betty Noel was thanked for the hostessing and the meeting and for the wheat weavings she had made for decorations and gave to the member. Members were reminded about the June 14 meeting to be held at the Eisenhower Center. The next meeting will be Feb. 8 at the Farm House Restau-rant.

— Jean Lightnr, reporter

Photo provided

Lion Kellee Timbrook introduced Dan Brown, After School Program leader, as the program at a recent Lions Club meet-ing. Brown brought students to speak about the different activities they participate in with the After School Program. Sara talked about Kiwanis K-Kids, Lizzie talked about Study Buddies, Anna talked about volunteering at Village Manor, Jacob talked about their district-wide Recycling Program and Logan talked about Japan Club. Pictured are (from left): Sara Cooper, Lizzie Juhl, Kellee Timbrook, Anna Schafer, Jacob Potter, Dan Brown, Logan Beekman.

Volunteers donate 10K hours of serviceSpecial to Reflector-Chronicle

The Memorial Health System Volun-teer Corps’ Annual Meeting was held on Jan. 30 at the First Presbyterian Church in Abilene.

New officers were elected and installed to the MHS Volunteer Corps Executive Board for 2014. They are Nancy Gugler, president; Doris Chaput, president-elect; Phyllis Welton, past president; Sue Mur-ry, treasurer; Naoma Foltz, recording secretary; Joan Marshall, corresponding secretary and Janice Roth, member at large.

The theme of the meeting was “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Volunteer.” A game of “Who Wants to Be a Million-aire” was played as Delphine Holston, MHS volunteer, asked a series of ques-tions about the MHS Volunteer Corps. Questions included “How many hours did volunteers donate in 2013?” and “For how many consecutive years has the MHS Volunteer Corps received the HAK Gold Award?”

The meal was catered by Memorial Hospital’s Food and Nutritional Services Department.

According to MHS Director of Vol-

unteer Services Michelle McClanahan, MHS volunteers donated a total of 9,626 hours in 2013 and more than 135,000 hours since its inception in 1992.

The MHS Volunteer Corps is com-prised of 83 active members. One of the Volunteer Corps’ greatest advancements of 2013 was the opening of the Caring Hearts Gift Shop, located in Memorial Hospital’s lobby.

To learn more about volunteering op-portunities available within Memorial Health System, contact Michelle at (785) 263-6692.

Courtesy photoThe MHS Volunteer Corps Executive Board Officers for 2014 are (front row, from left): Michelle McClanahan, director of volunteer services; Janice Roth, member at large; Sue Murry, treasurer; and Nancy Gugler, president. Back row: Joan Marshall, correspond-ing secretary; Phyllis Welton, past president; Doris Chaput, president-elect; and Naoma Foltz, recording secretary.

Survey: K-State grads finding more jobs

BrieflyArts Council photo contest

The Arts Council of Dickinson County is seeking entries for its annual Photography Competition and Exhibit, which is open to any amateur photographer in Dickinson County.

Photos must be submitted between 3 to 5 p.m. on Feb. 21 or Feb. 28, at the Arts Council office, 203 N. Cedar St.

All entries should be mounted on mount board available for $1 per piece from the Dickinson County Extension Office.

For more information, call 263-1884 or email director@artscouncildc.org.

Daily recordwww.abilene-rc.com Wednesday,February5,2014 3

CalendarWednesday

6 p.m.—AbileneTableTennisClub,AbileneCom-munityCenter,1020N.W.EighthSt.

6:30 p.m.—DuplicateBridge,AbileneElksClub,417N.W.FourthSt.

7 p.m.—Al-Anon,Com-munityBibleChurch,121W.FifthSt.,Abilene

7 p.m.—YouthGroup,FirstBaptistChurch,501N.SpruceSt.,Abilene

7:30 p.m.—ChapmanRebekahLodgeNo.645,ChapmanSeniorCenter

Thursday8:30 a.m. —TOPS595,weigh-in,meetingatFirstChristianChurch,SeventhandBuckeye

5:15 p.m.—TOPS444,weigh-inandmeetingFirstChristianChurch,SeventhandBuckeye

7 p.m.—NA,FirstUnitedMethodistChurch,601N.CedarSt.,upstairslibrary

7 p.m.—Bingo,Frater-nalOrderofEaglesAerieNo.2934,207EagleDrive

8 p.m.—AA,St.John’sEpiscopalChurch,SixthandBuckeye

Friday12:10 p.m.—AbileneRotaryClub,Mr.K’sFarm-houseRestaurant,407S.VanBuren.

8 p.m.—AA,non-smok-ing,CatholicParishCenter,210E.SixthSt.,Chapman

Stocks: 02/05/14 $ AM Change

DJIA 15378.08 -67.16ALCO 9.88 +0.02Apple 509.19 +0.40ADM 38.09 -0.14AT&T 32.32 -0.13BankofAm. 16.26 -0.09BP 46.22 -0.05Caterpillar 91.78 -0.72Coca-Cola 66.20 +0.05Conoco 63.34 -0.37Deere 83.82 -1.29Exxon 90.20 +0.18Ford 14.62 -0.25Harley 61.79 -0.54IBM 173.16 +0.32Johnson&Jo. 87.02 +0.40KinderMgn. 78.47 -0.37McDonald’s 92.60 -0.49Microsoft 36.23 -0.12Monsanto 105.70 -0.95

Pepsico 78.77 -0.05Pfizer 30.68 -0.5Potash 31.71 +0.06Sprint 7.60 -0.235Boeing 119.48 -2.56HomeDepot. 74.60 -0.37UnionPacific 172.09 -1.16UPS 93.69 -0.20Wal-Mart 72.75 +0.02Westar 32.48 -0.16

Source: Yahoo Finance

Grains:Pricesat9a.m.Wednesday:Wheat $6.28Wheatnewcrop $6.03Milo $4.50Milonewcrop $4.23Soybeans $12.71Soybeansnewcrop$10.67Corn $4.20Cornnewcrop $4.28

Market Watch

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Dickinson County

CommissionTheDickinsonCountyCommissionwillconveneat9a.m.Thursdayforaworksessionandaregularmeet-ingat11a.m.attheDickin-sonCountyCourthouse,109E.First.AgendaitemsscheduledasofMondaymorninginclude:9a.m.worksession•reviewitemsforconsentagenda;—minutesofJan.30worksessionandregularmeet-ingandwirepaymentsof$9,468.89;•10:30a.m.updatewithDepartmentofAgingCoordi-natorBrendaFinnBowers;11a.m.regularmeeting•calltoorder,rollcall,flagsalute,approvalofagenda;•commissionercommentsandcommitteereports;•presentationofpetitions,proclamationsandotherpubliccomments;—proclamationtodeclareFebruaryasTeenViolenceAwarenessMonth;•reportsofcountyofficers;—weeklyreportfromcountyadministratorBradHomman;•noticesandcommunica-tions;•introductionandconsid-erationofresolutions;•unfinishedbusiness;•otherbusiness;—considerapprovalofen-gineeringservicesforbridgeworkat22601300Ave.,and735TrailRoad;•adjournment.Commissionmeetingsareopentothepublic.Commis-sionerscanbecontactedbyemailingthematcommis-sion@dkcoks.org.

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ObituaryHenry Matthew GilbreathHenry Matthew Gilbreath, 83 of Salina, passed away Sat-

urday, February 1, 2014. He was born September 25, 1930 to Matthew and Pearl Gilbreath in Brookville, Kansas.

He was a self-employed mason and lifelong farmer in the Talmage area.

He was preceded in death by his parents, a brother; Chester Gilbreath and one sister; Roberta (Birdie) M. Broussard.

Survivors include his ex-wife; Rita Gilbreath of Salina, daughters; Sharon K. LaOrange (Michael) of Salina, Anita D. (Jeremy) Gilbreath-Hinkle of Leonardville a son; Michael M. (Sue) Gilbreath of Olathe, one sister; Louise Ivy of Oakdale, Louisiana, four grandchildren and four great grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be at Thursday, February 6, 2014 from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. with the family receiving guests from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Roselawn Heights Memorial Chapel, 1920 East Crawford, Salina.

Funeral services will be held at 10:00 a.m., Friday, February 7, 2014 at the Chapel.

In lieu of flowers memorials may be sent to Roselawn Mor-tuary, P.O. Box 2322, Salina, KS., 67402.

For online condolences contact Roselawn at www.rose-lawnsalina.com.

Mary Jean HasselmanMary Jean Hasselman, a lifelong resident of the Chapman

community, passed away at Chapman Valley Manor in Chap-man on Monday, Feb. 3, 2014, at the age of 87.

Jean was born May 12, 1926, in Junction City. Her parents were William and Agnes Kent McLaughlin. She attended Fairview Grade School and she graduated from Chapman High School with the Class of 1944.

She was married to Donald William Hasselman on Aug. 20, 1946 at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Chapman. They lived on the family farm, south of Chapman, from 1947 until 2001.

They moved into Chapman and Jean continued to drive a bus for the Chapman School District, retiring in 2006 after 50 years. She had been a resident at Chapman Valley Manor since December of 2013. She was a member of St. Michael’s Catholic Church, the Altar Society and she enjoyed playing bridge with her friends.

She is survived by her husband, Donald, of their home; two sons:

William (Bill) Hasselman of Abilene, and Gary Hasselman and his wife, Pam, of Chapman; four daughters: Donna Pitts of Sterling, Janet Bower and her husband, Bill, of Chapman, Judy Sanford and her husband, Dave, of White City, and Sheila Hummel and her husband, Roger, of Hope; 21 grand-children, and 25 great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by three sisters: Louise Meek, Margaret Weyrauch and Rosanna Schuler; and three broth-ers: Edward McLaughlin, Harold McLaughlin and Bill McLaughlin.

Funeral services will be held at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Chapman on Saturday, Feb. 8, 2014, at 10:30 a.m. Father Henry Baxa will officiate. Burial will be at St. Pat-rick’s Cemetery. The family will have a visitation at St. Mi-chael’s Catholic Church on Friday, Feb. 7, from 4 to 7 p.m. with the Rosary beginning at 6. Memorials may be given to St. Michael’s Catholic Church or Birthline of Junction City. Memorials may be sent in care of the Londeen Funeral Cha-pel, Box 429, Chapman, KS 67431.

NoticeLaVera Willey

Funeral services for LaVera Willey, age 88 of Topeka, are pending with Martin-Becker-Carlson Funeral Home in Abilene. Mrs. Willey passed away Monday, February 3, 2014 at Grace Hospice in Topeka.

TheAssociatedPress

TOPEKA — An American Indian tribe that has been trying for years to build a reservoir near its northeast Kansas property is consid-ering seeking federal help to secure land for the project.

Efforts by the Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas to build Plum Creek Reservoir have been stalled by the water district that oversees the land close to the tribe’s property 50 miles north of Topeka, The Topeka Capital-Journal reported. The tribe has been able to acquire only about half the land needed to build the reservoir.

A federal court ruled Dec. 20 after seven years of litigation that the tribe cannot com-pel the Nemaha-Brown Watershed Joint District No. 7 to use its powers of eminent domain to obtain private property needed so the reservoir can move forward.

Tribal chairman Steve Cadue and vice chairman Curtis Simon met with Gov. Sam Brownback on Friday to discuss their efforts

to build the Plum Creek Reservoir and how they plan to enforce federal treaty rights to end the decades-long standoff.

“I said we’ve exhausted state law,” Cadue said. “We have yet to pursue federal treaty water rights, (which are) senior water rights superior to the state of Kansas.”

Cadue and Simon left Brownback a letter saying they will ask the federal government to acquire the land through eminent domain by invoking treaty agreements.

“Our Indian treaties are the supreme law of the land and we ask for protection from the State of Kansas taking our water,” Cadue wrote.

He said the tribe needs water for farming and other uses.

“We want a water supply for economic de-velopment and irrigation,” Cadue said.

They also asked Brownback to include the tribe’s water needs in the Kansas Water Plan that state experts are developing to deal with droughts and the depletion of the Ogallala Aquifer.

Kickapoo Tribe will seek feds help on reservoir

Airline gets $2.5M in subsidiesTheAssociatedPress

WICHITA — Southwest Airlines received $2.52 mil-lion in subsidies from Kansas’ Affordable Airfares program to help underwrite losses from its service out of Wichita during the first quarter of the fiscal year.

The Dallas-based airline, which began service in June from Wichita, has daily flights from Wichita to Dallas, Chi-cago and Las Vegas. South-west received $2.52 million in subsidies for it service pro-vided during July, August and September, said Chris Chro-nis, Sedgwick County chief

financial officer.Southwest is eligible for up

to $6.5 million per fiscal year to help underwrite losses on its Wichita service. Southwest hasn’t applied yet for funds for service after September, Chronis told The Wichita Eagle.

Kansas allocates $5 mil-lion a year for its Affordable Airfare program, which was formed to provide more flight options, more competition for air travel and more affordable airfares. Funding must be approved by the Legislature each year.

Above the state’s portion of the funding, the city of

Wichita and Sedgwick Coun-ty equally contribute the bal-ance.

Southwest spokesman Chris Mainz said the airline has been pleased with the Wichita market so far and the Afford-able Airfare program “is sig-nificant and substantial in a relatively new market for us.”

“It helps us get our footing and helps establish Southwest in the market,” he said. “We do hope demand will warrant our level of service.”

Mainz said Southwest has set its overall schedule through Aug. 8 and isn’t plan-ning service changes in Wich-ita during that time.

Keyston XL waiting list grows for shippersThe Associated PressBISMARCK, N.D. —

TransCanada Corp. says it has a growing list of U.S. oil shippers signing up to use a proposed connector to the proposed Keystone XL pipeline that would run from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico.

The Calgary-based com-pany announced in 2011 that it secured five-year contracts to move crude from the oil-fields of North Dakota and Montana via a proposed five-mile-long pipeline known as the Bakken Marketlink. The $140 million project, designed to carry 100,000 barrels of crude daily from the rich Bakken and Three Forks formations, would meet with the Keystone XL in Baker, Mont.

TransCanada spokesman Shawn Howard said Mon-day that the contracts, which are confidential, have since been renegotiated in antici-pation of U.S approval of the long-delayed Keystone XL, which would be primar-ily used to transport crude

from Alberta’s oil sands to refineries in Oklahoma and Texas. It cleared a big hur-dle last week when the State Department raised no major environmental objections to its construction.

“We have not lost custom-ers,” Howard said. “In fact, we have a waiting list.”

TransCanada initially balked at allowing U.S. oil companies to tap into the Keystone XL but reversed its stance in 2010 after po-litical pressure from officials in Montana and North Da-kota, which has seen soar-ing oil production in the past few years and is now the nation’s No. 2 oil producer behind Texas.

Howard said TransCanada now views the link to the states’ oil fields “as a very important underpinning for the whole (Keystone XL) project.”

When TransCanada first sought shipping commit-ments for the pipeline spur in 2010, North Dakota was producing about 342,000 barrels of oil daily. The state

now puts out nearly 1 mil-lion barrels daily.

Northern producers have increasingly turned to ship-ping oil by train as the Key-stone is debated. North Da-kota oil began being shipped by trains in 2008, when the state reached its then-capac-ity for pipeline shipments of 189,000 barrels per day, said Justin Kringstad, director of the North Dakota Pipeline Authority. About 60 percent of the state’s crude is cur-rently being moved by rail.

Kringstad said TransCan-ada’s Bakken Marketlink project remains a critical part of the state’s ability to move crude to market.

“It’s still important, no doubt,” he said. “It improves long-term access to large re-fining markets,” he said.

Howard said that produc-ers using trains are expected to return to pipelines when they become available. They are “fully committed to moving that volume with us,” he said.

Lyona Supper postponedThemenofLyonaUnitedMethodistChurch’s70thannualGroundHogSupperhasbeenpostponedtoMonday,Feb.10,atthechurchfellowshiphall,locatedsixmilesnortheastofWoodbineat1850WolfRoad.Servingwillbeginat3:30p.m.andcontinuethroughtheevening.

4 Friday,February5,2014 www.abilene-rc.com

The Grizzwells

The Born Loser

Frank and Earnest

Beetle Bailey

Alley Oop

For Better For Worse

Baby Blues

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb.19) -- You should involveyourself inphysicalactivitiesthat will help you get intoshape.Youwillalsofindtimetocatchuponoverduecor-respondence.

PISCES (Feb.20-March20)-- Improve your surround-ings. Invest in items thatwilladdtoyourcomfort.Useyour skills to gain respectand recognition. Invest inyourselfinordertoexcel.

ARIES (March21-April 19)-- You can outtalk and out-

smartanyonewhochallengesyou.Present your ideasandconcernsbeforeyouagreetotakeonajoborresponsibil-ity.Getwhateveragreementyoumakeinwriting.

TAURUS (April 20-May20) -- Your best efforts willbe appreciated and lead togreater opportunity. Followthedirectionthatisbestsuit-edtoyourtalentsandskills.Keep your private affairs toyourself.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20)-- Rise to the occasion. Put

your energy to good use.Take the extra step if itwillhelp you finish what youstart. Your versatility andquick action will attract aninterestingsomeone.

CANCER (June21-July 22)-- Confusion or uncertaintymust not be what standsbetweenyouandadecisionthat can alter your future.Evaluate your position andmake a move. Avoid exces-siveindividuals.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) --Getreadyforactionandtake

on responsibility. Your lead-ership ability may be chal-lenged, but in the end youwill come out on top. Showenthusiasmifyouwanttoat-tractattention.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)-- Deal with personal busi-ness that has the potentialtoinfluenceyourfinancialfu-ture.Anolderfriendorrela-tiveislikelytochallengeoneof your decisions. Patiencewillberequired.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23)--Travelforbusinessorplea-

surewill lead to informationand the ability to make agood decision. Don’t sharetheinformationthatyoudis-coveruntilyoufeelyouareinastrongposition.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov.22) -- Do whatever it takestosecuremoneymattersandpending legal affairs. Lend-ingorborrowingwill leadtotrust issues. Listen carefullyto what’s being offered andrespondaccordingly.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-

Dec.21)--Mixbusinesswithpleasure, network, shareideas and -- most of all --build good relationships. Anadventure or business tripwill grab your attention andoffernewpossibilities. Jumpintoaction.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan.19)--Getdowntobusinessandsmoothoutanywrinklesinapresentationyouwanttomake.Attentiontodetailwillmakethedifferencebetweensuccess and failure. Avoidjointventures.

DEAR DOCTOR K: What is mononucleosis, and why is it called the “kissing disease”?

DEAR READER: Mono-nucleosis, or “mono,” is an ill-ness caused by several viruses, primarily the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Mono was nicknamed the “kissing disease” because EBV commonly is transmitted during kissing. The virus lives in differ-ent parts of the body, including the throat. The virus can leave throat cells and enter the saliva.

Most viruses that infect us enter our body, maybe cause tempo-rary illness, and then get killed by the immune system. EBV is dif-ferent. It is a member of the her-pesvirus family, a cousin to the virus that causes cold sores and genital sores. Once any member of the herpesvirus family infects you, it remains in your body for the rest of your life. The immune system can suppress it, but can-not eliminate it.

In the United States, most people get infected with EBV when they are teenagers or young adults. When a person is first in-fected with EBV, the virus does not always cause mononucleosis. Sometimes EBV causes only a mild illness or no illness at all. When EBV does cause mono, the first symptoms typically include fever, headaches, muscle aches and unusual fatigue. The fatigue may be overwhelming, compel-ling a person to sleep for 12 to 16 hours at a stretch.

These symptoms are quickly followed by sore throat, enlarged lymph nodes, joint aches, loss of appetite, a red rash (usually on the chest), abdominal pain and an enlarged spleen.

The spleen is a small organ near the stomach. In rare cases, an enlarged spleen can rupture, causing life-threatening inter-nal bleeding. It is important to protect the spleen from rupture.

A person who develops mono should avoid strenuous activi-ties, especially contact sports, for at least four weeks. They should wait even longer if their doctor finds their spleen is still enlarged.

Symptoms usually are most intense during the first two to four weeks of the illness. But some symptoms, especially fa-tigue, can last for several months or longer. A study published in 2006, organized by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), found that 11 percent of people with new EBV infections leading to mono devel-oped chronic fatigue syndrome and remained ill a year or more after the initial infection.

There is no medical cure for mononucleosis. Most treatment focuses on making the person more comfortable. Recovery usually calls for getting plenty of rest and fluids and treating symp-toms. Cold drinks, frozen des-serts and gargling with salt water can help to relieve minor sore throat pain. Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) or acetaminophen (Tyle-nol) can help fight fever and body aches. Prednisone can shrink ex-tremely swollen tonsils.

This disease is most contagious during its acute stage, when the affected person still has a fever. The patient does not need to be kept isolated from others, but he or she should avoid kissing others while feeling ill. Also avoid shar-ing food, drinks or eating utensils during the first few weeks of the illness.

So the “kissing disease” is real. But kissing is rarely a danger to your health.

(Dr. Komaroff is a physician and professor at Harvard Medical School. To send questions, go to AskDoctorK.com, or write: Ask Doctor K, 10 Shattuck St., Second Floor, Boston, MA 02115.)

Family Circus

Kit ‘n’ Carlyle

AskDOCTOR K.

Prolonged fatigue can accompany mononucleosis

by Bernice Bede Osol

Big Nate

Long suits are worth long points

BRIDGE by PHILLIP ALDER

I n “ T h e M e r c h a n t o f Venice,” William Shakespeare wrote, “At the length, the truth will out.”

Whenever you play bridge, dwell at length on your long suits because, in truth, they will usually generate extra tricks. Some players are too wedded to high-card points and forget to add value for a long suit.

When I watched this deal being played, I liked South’s one-no-trump response. His hand was so soft, with defen-sive, not offensive, values. (He thought about passing, but no one would do that to-day.) Then North surprised me by raising to two no-trump. Yes, he had only 17 high-card points, but he should have add-ed two points for his six-card suit and jumped to three no-trump.

True, if West had been psy-chic and led a diamond, the contract would probably have gone down two. But he under-standably chose a spade, se-lecting the 10, showing zero or two higher honors by partner-ship agreement.

South won with his queen and played a club to dummy’s

queen.East should have ducked

this, which would have per-haps tempted South into an indiscretion. (He might have, for example, played a heart to his queen. Then West could have won and returned to a heart.) However, East won the trick and shifted to a low heart. West won with his ace and re-turned a heart. In the fullness of time, declarer took nine tricks.

It would have been much better play for South to have led his club jack at trick two, so he could have stayed in his hand to repeat the club finesse if it were winning (or, here, East ducked).

© 2014 UFS, Dist. by Universal Uclick for UFS

Public Notices 310

Classifiedwww.abilene-rc.com Day,MonthDate,Year 5Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Auctions 550

REAL ESTATE AUCTION2,000+ ACRES OF CLAY AND WASHINGTON COUNTY,

KANSAS CROPLAND, PASTURE & HABITATTHURSDAY FEBRUARY 20TH, 2014 - 2:00PM

United Methodist Church – Family Life Center, 5th and Clark Streets, downtown Clay Center, Kansas

­­TRACT­1:­Emick­­pasture,­­OFLP­(tenant­is­Dan­Pfizenmaier)

Legal­Description:­The­N2­&­SE4­of­Section­15-10-1,­in­Chapman­Township,­Clay­County,­Kansas­consisting­of­475.52acres­according­to­FSA­records.­This­tract­is­all­very­good­native­pasture­with­2­large­ponds­and­very­good­fence.From­the­south­edge­of­Clay­Center­go­13­miles­south­to­4th­Rd.­(Longford­Rd.­#422)­then­9­miles­west­to­thesoutheast­corner­of­the­tract.

TRACT­2:­Hedderman­Farm,­ICEF(tenant­is­Jerry­Rothfuss)­­

Legal­Description:­The­N2­and­the­N2N2SW4­of­Section­17-8-1­in­Five­Creeks­Township,­Clay­County,­Kansasconsisting­of­356.36­acres­according­to­FSA­records.­This­farm­is­cropland,­pasture­and­habitat­near­Cloud­County.From­the­west­edge­of­Clay­Center­follow­Highway­24­for­11­miles­west­to­Buffalo­Rd.­then­go­1­mile­south­to­thenorthwest­corner­of­the­tract.

TRACT­3:­Shea­farm,­ICEF­(tenant­is­Steve­Zenger)

Legal­description:­Section­32-1-1,­ in­Union­Township,­Washington­County,­Kansas­consisting­of­629.75­acresaccording­to­FSA­records.­This­farm­is­cropland,­pasture­and­habitat­south­of­Mahaska.­From­Washington,­Kansasgo­13­miles­west­on­Highway­36­to­Deer­Rd.­(Highway­22)­then­go­3­miles­north­to­20th­Rd.,­then­west­2­miles,through­Haddam,­to­Bismark­Rd.­(County­Rd.­#658),­then­north­4­miles­to­24th­Rd.­and­the­southeast­corner­of­thetract.­This­tract­comprises­an­entire­section­with­roads­on­all­4­sides.

TRACT­4:­August­Carlstrom­farm,­ICEF(tenant­is­Steve­Peterson)

Legal­Description:­Part­of­the­W2­of­Section­18-8-3,­in­Blaine­Township,­and­part­of­the­SW4­of­Section­7-8-3,­in­ClayCenter­North­Township,­Clay­County,­Kansas­consisting­of­224.09­acres­according­to­FSA­records­and­subject­to­asurvey­to­be­completed­prior­to­the­auction.­This­is­a­river­bottom­farm.­From­the­south­edge­of­Clay­Center,­Kansasgo­1­mile­south­on­Highway­15­to­16th­Rd.­then­.75­miles­west­to­the­southeast­corner­of­the­tract.

TRACT­5:­Bertrand­farm,­OFLP(tenant­is­Corey­Pfizenmaier)

Legal­Description:­The­SW4­of­Section­31-6-1­in­Mulberry­Township,­Clay­County,­Kansas­consisting­of­157.78­acresaccording­to­FSA­records.­This­farm­is­on­the­Cloud­County­line­southwest­of­Clifton­and­is­nearly­all­cropland.­Fromthe­west­edge­of­Clay­Center,­Kansas­go­7­miles­west­to­Frontier­Rd.­(Clifton­Rd.­#827)­then­7­miles­north­to­25thRd.­and­4½­miles­west­to­the­southeast­corner­of­the­tract.

TRACT­6:­Oliver­Marty­pasture,­ICEF(tenant­is­Bob­Bartley)

Legal­Description:­The­SW4­of­Section­22-9-1,­in­Oakland­Township,­Clay­County,­­Kansas­consisting­of­160.43­acresaccording­to­FSA­records.­From­the­south­edge­of­Clay­Center,­Kansas­go­8­miles­south­to­9th­Rd.­(Oak­Hill­Rd.­#404)then­9.5­miles­west­to­the­southeast­corner­of­the­tract.

TRACT­7:­Hedderman­small­pasture­&­habitat,­ICEF(tenant­is­Jerry­Rothfuss)

Legal­Description:­The­NW4NW4­of­Section­16-8-1­in­Five­Creeks­Township,­Clay­County,­Kansas­consisting­of­38.84acres­according­to­FSA­records.­From­the­west­edge­of­Clay­Center,­Kansas­take­Highway­24­west­11­miles­to­BuffaloRd.­then­1­mile­south­to­17th­Rd.­and­one­mile­east­to­the­northwest­corner­of­the­tract.­This­tract­is­across­the­roadeast­of­Tract­2.

TERMS: 10% down day of sale. Balance due in 30 days or upon delivery of a merchantable title. Title insurance and escrowfees are to be paid ½ each by the seller and the buyer. Seller to pay 2013 and all prior years’ property taxes. 2014 taxes tobe paid by the buyer. New buyer to receive all mineral rights. New buyers to receive landlord’s share of 2014 wheat crop.Sellers to pay landlord’s share of expenses on growing wheat which are incurred prior to the closing date. Contract, deed,and down payment for ICEF Oberg, Inc. properties to be escrowed at Republican Valley Title Co., 707 5th Street, ClayCenter, Kansas. Contract, deed, and down payment for Oberg Farms LP properties to be escrowed at Clay County Abstract& Title, 509 Court St., Clay Center, Kansas. New buyers to receive possession of the wheat ground upon completion ofthe 2014 wheat harvest. Buyers to receive possession of all other property on March 1st, 2014. These farms are sold subjectto tenant’s rights. All of these farms are in total compliance with FSA program requirements. Tracts are listed in the orderin which they are to sell. Announcements made sale day take precedence over printed matter. Sellers and agents are notresponsible for accidents. The auction firm is working for the sellers.NOTE: This auction includes very good farms which have been in the Oberg family for many years. Many of these farmshave great habitat with ample wildlife and have been popular hunting destinations. Go to kretzauctions.com orkansasauctions.net for auction listing, FSA tract maps, and a separate tract by tract list of additional information. Manyof these tracts have been combined as farm units by the FSA and local taxing authorities and the divisions of propertytaxes and the DCP will be made following the auction. In the event of severe weather the auction will be held TuesdayJanuary 14th at the same time and place.

Oberg Farms LP and ICEF Oberg, Inc., SellersJo Oberg, Manager

Donna J. Long, Attorney representing ICEF Oberg, Inc.Michael W. Ryan, Attorney representing Oberg Farms LP

Auction conducted by Clay County Real Estate

Greg Kretz, Salesman & AuctioneerPhone: (785)456-9724 Cell: (785)630-0701

Help Wanted 370

Marketing and Public Relations Specialist

For a complete description of this position, itsrequired qualifications, and to apply, see us on-line.

www.gchks.org

Geary Community Hospital maintains a tobacco-free campus andgives hiring preference to non-tobacco users.

Geary Community Hospital is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Geary Community Hospital in Junction City is seeking a dynamic Marketing and Public Relations Specialist to join our team. This person will work with the director, senior management, as well as program and department managers to develop and carry out day-to-day marketing and public relations activities that promote a positive image of the hospital, its services, and its staff in support of the organization’s strategic needs and goals.

• Bachelor’sdegreefromanaccreditedcollegeoruniversityinmarketing,publicrelations,journalism,orrelatedfieldrequired.

• Musthavestrongcommunicationsskills.

Services Offered 790 Need to send a letter and/or docu-ment? Let us FAX IT for you. $2.00for 785 area code; $2.50 outside 785area code; $3.00 for out of state.Customer must provide fax number.Abilene Reflector-Chronicle, 303 N.Broadway.

Real Estate For Rent 800 OAK CREEK STORAGE units avail-

able 10x10 & 10x20. 280-1113.

PHOTO COPIES - 20 cents percopy. Abilene Reflector-Chronicle Of-fice, 303 N. Broadway.

FREE PICKUP and DELIVERY inAbilene, for Spring tune-ups on allmakes and models of Lawn & Gar-den equipment until February 15th.Abilene Rent-All & Sales, Inc.785-263-7668.

Miscellaneous 270

Do you have a product or service tosell? For $300, your 25-word CLAS-SIFIED AD will be placed in over 100newspapers across Kansas with areadership of over 500,000! ContactThe Abilene Reflector-Chronicle,785-263-1000 for details.

Announcements 330

For more information and assistanceregarding the investigation of financ-ing, business opportunities and workat home opportunities, The CentralMarketplace urges its readers to con-tact the Better Business Bureau, Inc,328 Laura, Wichita, KS 67211,1-800-856-2417.

Help Wanted 370 Abilene High School has an OPEN-ING for a DEBATE/FORENSICSTeacher beginning the 2014-2015school year. This position will also in-clude Personal and Lifetime Finance.This is a certified position with quali-fied candidates holding a currentKansas teaching license. Pleasesubmit resume and letter of interestto: Abilene Public Schools, PO Box639, Abilene, Ks. 67410.

EXPERIENCED HVAC & APPLI -ANCE service person. Must have ex-perience. 785-258-3355 Herington.

PART TIME (28 hours a week) cleri-cal position available in Abilene area.Submit cover letter and resume toBox 81 C/O Reflector Chronicle,P.O. Box 8, Abilene, Ks. 67410

Help Wanted 370 GARDEN CENTER SUPERVISORKaw Valley Greenhouses is bringinga Garden Center to Abilene and islooking for a PM Supervisor. Sea-sonal posit ion working lateMarch-late June. 32-45 hours aweek working outdoors. Must beable to run cash register, put up mer-chandise, water plants and work withcustomers. Must be available from3:00pm to 7:30pm M-Sat and 10amto 6pm on Sundays, able to com -plete daily bookkeeping, sales re -porting and bank deposits. Pays$11.50/hr. For more information andonline applications visit kawvalley-greenhouses.com or contact800-235-3945.

Rock Springs 4-H Center, located 8miles south and 4 miles west ofJunction City is accepting applica-tions for a full time lead cook as wellas a part time cook. We are a 4-Hcamp as well as a facility for confer-ences, retreats, weddings and familyreunions. Benefits are offered for theFT Lead Cook position. Successfulcandidates will have 3-5 years of ex-perience preparing great food andshould have knowledge of safe foodhandling regulations. ServSafe certi-fication a plus. Applications are avail-able online at www.rocksprings.netand must be submitted with a coverletter to: 1168 Hwy K157, JunctionCity, KS 66441, Attn Bev Knopp.Questions regarding the positionsshould be forwarded to Andra Thur-low, Food Service and Hospitality Di-rector at athurlow@rocksprings.net.No phone calls, please.

TAKING APPLICATIONS to FILL aposition that requires a C.N.A. certifi-cation, is compassionate, easy goingand has extreme patience. Requiresspending time with dementia typepatients in the evenings, doing craftsand games. The position is part time4pm-10pm including every otherweekend. Please apply in person atEnterprise Estates Nursing Center inEnterprise, Kansas. Pre-Employmentdrug screen and background checkis required. EOE.

THE CITY of ABILENE, Abilene FireDepartment is accepting applicationsfor Volunteer Firefighter this is aon-call position only. An employee inthis position performs duties combat-ing, extinguishing and preventingfires. As well as operating and main-taining fire department equipmentand apparatus. Applicant must be atleast 18 years of age with a validKansas Driver's License, high schooldiploma, or GED. Applications canbe obtained at the City Office, 419 N.Broadway in Abilene, Ks or online atwww.abilenecityhall.com Position isopen until filled.

Musical Instruments 440 PIANO of the WEEK: Like-new Ever-ett Console, cherry. Comparablenew, over $6,500. SPECIAL: $2,488!View online at piano4u.com.Mid-America Piano, Manhattan.800-950-3774.

Misc For Sale 530 SEASONED FIREWOOD for SALE!!!

Call 785-577-5863 or 479-6591.

Automobiles 680 ENTERPRISE CREDIT UNION isaccepting sealed bids on a 2007Chevy Equinox. 91,303 miles. Bidform may be obtained at, and vehiclemay be seen at 109 E. 1st Street,Enterprise, KS. Bids accepted untilWednesday, February 19, 2014. En-terprise Credit Union reserves theright to reject any and all bids.

FREE QUOTE INSURANCE, SR22,pay by credit or debit card monthly &discounts. 785-263-7778.

Rooms, Apts. For Rent 740

1108 N. WALNUT, 2 BEDROOM,WATER, trash, & cable furnished.No smoking, No pets. 785-479-1955.

ApArtments for rententerprise estates Apartments

1 Bedrooms Available301 south factory

enterprise, Ksphone: 913-240-7155

WOW!!LOOK AT THIS1 Bedroom Apts.

Water & Cable PaidWalk-in showersOn site laundry

Senior Community

(55yrs. +)

NEW YEAR SPECIAL RATE$0.00 to move inFirst month rent freeNo security depositNo application fee

Chisholm Manor

CALL 785-210-9381 for more information

Office Hours:Mon - Thurs 1pm - 3pm

ONE BEDROOM UPSTAIRS apart-ment all bills paid, stove & refrigera-tor furnished $450. 785-263-2034

Rooms, Apts. For Rent 740 TWO BEDROOM LOFT apartmentson the corner of 3rd & Cedar inAbilene. Recently reduced prices - Ifinterested, please contact DarcyHopkins. 785-827-9383.

Houses For Rent 770 (2) HOUSES, LARGE 3 bedroom/2bathroom, fenced yards, pets ok,large garage/basements, 503/521Layton, Enterprise. Pictures/Info @ahrn.com, 785-280-2024.

1 BEDROOM DUPLEX, 109 NE12th. $615 rent,all utilities paid, car-port & storage shed.785-479-0806.

1 BEDROOM DUPLEX, 321 NE12th. $450 RENT & $450 deposit +References. No pets/No smoking.263-5838.

1 BEDROOM DUPLEX, central air,stove, refrigerator, dishwasher, extrastorage in basement wi thwasher/dryer hookups. $400 rent,water & trash paid. No pets.785-452-0331

EXTREMELY NICE 3 BEDROOM,brand new appliances, kitchen, etc.$725 month/rent to own option. Nosmoking. 785-479-0806.

One bedroom, two bedroom, threebedroom & four bedroom (price re-duced, $950) HOUSES FOR RENT!Call 785-263-2034.

6 Wednesday,February5,2014 www.abilene-rc.com

The Abilene Reflector-Chronicle

&Businesses servicesCalendar Month Rates:

One Line $27.50 • Two Lines $55.00Three Lines $82.50

Call 785-263-1000 To Place Your Ad Today!

AutomotiveJohn’s Service - 263-4444

Auto Lockout Service

Computer ServicesChristner Tech - 280-2599The Teck Shop - 263-3424

GutteringGorilla Guttering - 785-280-1814

HearingMidwest Hearing - 263-2117

HousecleaningMerry Maids - 263-2779

InsuranceAmerican Family - 263-2512

Barbieri Insurance Serv. - 263-2287Smart Insurance - 263-1920

State Farm Insurance - 263-2230

Mini StorageNorthwood - 263-3322/263-1829

MonumentsLynn Peterson - 479-0122

Oil Change/LubeDon’s Tire - 263-7838

FasTrack Lube - 263-4341

Real EstateEtherington & Co. - 263-1216

Black & Co. Realtors - 200-6300Biggs Realty Co. - 263-4428

RemodelingADM Construction - 479-0765

RoofingBest Roofing - 200-4595

Everett Larson - 263-7760Jesse Howard Roofing - 280-3411

Security/AlarmsCrossroads Electronics &

Security LLC - 785-829-1223

Small Engine RepairAbilene Rent-All - 263-7668

Trash Pick-upSuperior Sanitation - 263-3682

&Businesses servicesSAVE UP TO 40% ON NAPA GOLD FILTERS AND FARM ITEMS!ALL

HUGEHUGEFILTER SALE

Coming Feb 10th - 15thAccepting Pre-orders Immediately

cal food production.“We worked long and hard

to make sure that policies worked for every region of the country, for all of the dif-ferent kinds of agricultural production we do in our coun-try,” she said.

The regional incentives scattered throughout the bill helped it pass easily in the House last week, 251-166. House leaders who had ob-jected to the legislation since 2011 softened their disap-proval as they sought to put the long-stalled bill behind them. Leaders in both par-ties also have hoped to bolster rural candidates in this year’s midterm elections.

Conservatives remained un-happy with the bill.

“It’s mind-boggling, the sum of money that’s spent on farm subsidies, duplicative nutrition and development assistance programs, and spe-cial interest pet projects,” said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. “How are we supposed to restore the confidence of the American people with this monstrosity?”

McCain pointed to grants and subsidies for sheep mar-keting, for sushi rice, for the maple syrup industry.

The $800 million-a-year savings in the food stamp pro-gram would come from crack-ing down on some states that seek to boost individual food stamp benefits by giving peo-ple small amounts of federal heating assistance that they don’t need. That heating as-sistance, sometimes as low as $1 per person, triggers higher benefits, and some critics see that practice as circumventing the law. The compromise bill would require states to give individual recipients at least

$20 in heating assistance be-fore a higher food stamp ben-efit could kick in.

Some Democrats still ob-jected to the cuts, even though they are much lower than what the House had sought. The Senate-passed farm bill had a $400 million annual cut to food stamps.

“This bill will result in less food on the table for chil-dren, seniors and veterans who deserve better from this Congress, while corporations continue to receive guaran-teed federal handouts,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said. “I cannot vote for it.”

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, a longtime member of the Agriculture Committee, also voted against the bill. He cited provisions passed by the Senate and taken out of the final bill that would have re-duced the number of people associated with one farm who can collect farm subsi-dies. Grassley has for years fought to lower subsidies to the wealthiest farmers.

The bill does have a stricter cap on the overall amount of money an individual farmer can receive — $125,000 in a year, when some programs were previously unrestricted. But the legislation otherwise continues a generous level of subsidies for farmers.

In place of the direct pay-ments, farmers of major row crops — mostly corn, soybeans, wheat and rice — would now be able to choose between subsidies that pay out when revenue drops or when prices drop. Cotton and dairy supports were over-hauled to similarly pay out when farmers have losses. Those programs may kick in sooner than expected as some crop prices have started to drop in recent months.

The bill would save around

$1.65 billion annually over-all. But critics said that under the new insurance-style pro-grams, those savings could disappear if the weather or the market doesn’t cooperate.

Craig Cox of the Environ-mental Working Group, an organization that has fought for subsidy reform for sev-eral years, said replacing the direct payments with the new programs is simply a “bait and switch.”

“The potential for really big payoffs” is huge, he said.

FarmContinuedfromPage1

county roads passable from snow that started Monday night. Because of a couple illnesses some employees work double shifts, Homman said.

“Snow removal, then a little bit more snow removal, but things went really well through the night,” Homman said. “I think we have all the paved county roads opened up. We are working on the secondary roads now and working on our parking lot.”

Dillner said the work of clearing the downtown area would begin as the busi-nesses closed Wednesday evening.

Despite the remaining work, Dillner was pleased with the progress workers had already made.

“I think the effort was very, very good,” he said. “Espe-cially since the snow just kept coming and coming.”

Even with the removal efforts of county and city crews, businesses, govern-

ment agencies and schools remained shuttered Wednes-day.

The Dickinson County courthouse opened two hours late, at 10 a.m., Wednesday morning.

The Eisenhower Presiden-tial Library and Museum and the Abilene Public Library

were both closed on Wednes-day.

On Tuesday, several area businesses started closing their doors at noon, including the Reflector-Chronicle.

Tim Horan contributedtothisstory.

StormContinuedfromPage1

Tiffany Roney • Reflector-ChronicleBrianTajchmanclearsthesidewalkWednesdaymorningout-sidehisbusinessonN.E.ThirdSt.indowntownAbilene.

Analysts say ACA means fewer on jobTheAssociatedPress

WASHINGTON — Several mil-lion American workers will cut back their hours on the job or leave the nation’s workforce entirely because of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, congressional analysts said Tuesday, adding fresh fuel to the political fight over “Obamacare.”

The workforce changes would mean nationwide losses equal to 2.3 million full-time jobs by 2021, in large part because people would opt to keep their income low to stay eligible for federal health care subsi-dies or Medicaid, the Congressional Budget Office said. It had estimated previously that the law would lead to 800,000 fewer jobs by that year.

Republican lawmakers seized on the report as major new evidence of what they consider the failures of Obama’s overhaul, the huge change in U.S. health coverage that they’re trying to overturn and planning to use as a main argument against Democrats in November’s midterm

elections.It’s the latest indication that “the

president’s health care law is de-stroying full-time jobs,” said Repub-lican Rep. John Kline of Minnesota, chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee. “This fatally flawed health care scheme is wreaking havoc on working families nationwide,” he said.

But the White House said the pos-sible reduction would be due to vol-untary steps by workers rather than businesses cutting jobs — people having the freedom to retire early or spend more time as stay-at-home parents because they no longer had to depend only on their employers for health insurance.

The law means people “will be empowered to make choices about their own lives and livelihoods,” said White House Press Secretary Jay Carney.

CBO Director Douglas Elmendorf said the top reasons people would reduce work would be to qualify for subsidized coverage and an expand-

ed Medicaid program but that lower wages — because of penalties on employers who don’t provide cover-age and looming taxes on generous health care plans — would also be a factor.

The agency also reduced its es-timate of the number of uninsured people who will get coverage through the health care law. The budget experts now say 1 million more people will be uninsured this year than had been expected, partly because of the website problems that prevented people from signing up last fall.

However, it wasn’t all bad news for the Obama administration. The CBO’s wide-ranging report predict-ed that the federal budget deficit will fall to $514 billion this year, down from last year’s $680 billion and the lowest by far since Obama took of-fice five years ago.

The new estimates also say that the health care law will, in the short run, benefit the economy by boosting de-mand for goods and services because

the lower-income people it helps will have more purchasing power. The report noted that the 2014 premiums that people pay for exchange cover-age are coming in about 15 percent lower than projected, and the health care law, on balance, still is expected to reduce the federal deficit.

However, the budget experts see the long-term federal deficit picture worsening by about $100 billion a year through the end of the decade because of slower growth in the economy than they had previously predicted.

As for health care signups, the website woes have largely been cleared up, but the nonpartisan con-gressional analysts estimated that about 1 million fewer people will enroll through the new insurance ex-changes than had been expected this year, for a total of 6 million.

Enrollment is predicted to pick up, topping 20 million in 2016. The ex-changes, or online marketplaces, of-fer subsidized private coverage and cater mainly to middle-class people

who don’t have health care on the job.

The Congressional Budget Office also revised its Medicaid enroll-ment projection downward by about 1 million, for a new total of 8 mil-lion signups in 2014. About half the states have accepted the health law’s Medicaid expansion.

What about those people whose de-cisions about work might be affected by the new law?

Lower-wage workers are more likely to reduce their hours or quit their jobs because of Obamacare in-centives, the report said.

Although some employers will choose not to hire additional work-ers, or will reduce hours, the budget office said that does not appear to be the main factor.

“The estimated reduction stems almost entirely from a net decline in the amount of labor that workers choose to supply, rather than from a net drop in businesses’ demand for labor,” the report said.

Bill extends beyond farmTheAssociatedPress

WASHINGTON — It isn’t just farmers who will benefit from the sweeping farm bill that Congress has sent Presi-dent Barack Obama. There’s also help for rural towns, gro-cery stores in low-income ar-eas and, most notably, the na-tion’s 47 million food stamp recipients.

After years of setbacks, the Senate passed the nearly $100 billion-a-year measure Tuesday on a 62-38 vote. The White House said the presi-dent will sign the bill Friday in Michigan, home state of Senate Agriculture Chair-woman Debbie Stabenow.

Farmers in every region would still receive generous subsidies — from Southern peanut growers to Midwest corn farmers and dairies around the country. The sup-port is designed to provide a financial cushion in the face of unpredictable weather and market conditions.

But the bulk of its cost is for the food stamp program, which aids 1 in 7 Ameri-cans. The bill would cut food stamps by $800 million a year, or around 1 percent.

House Republicans had hoped to reduce the bill’s

costs even further, pointing to a booming agriculture sector in recent years and arguing that the now $80 billion-a-year food stamp program has spiraled out of control. The House passed a bill in Sep-tember that would have re-duced the cost of food stamps five times more than the even-tual cut.

Those partisan disagree-ments stalled the bill for more than two years, but conser-vatives were eventually out-numbered as the Democratic Senate, the White House and a still-powerful bipartisan co-alition of farm-state lawmak-ers pushed to get the bill done.

The White House had been mostly quiet as Congress worked out its differences on the bill. But in a statement after the vote, Obama said the legislation would reduce the deficit “without gutting the vital assistance programs millions of hardworking Americans count on to help put food on the table for their families.”

He said the farm bill isn’t perfect, “but on the whole, it will make a positive dif-ference not only for the rural economies that grow Ameri-ca’s food, but for our nation.”

Obama praised the bill for getting rid of subsidies known as “direct payments,” which are paid to farmers whether they farm or not. Most of that program’s $4.5 billion annual cost was redirected into new, more politically defensible subsidies that would kick in when a farmer has losses.

To gather votes for the bill, Democrat Stabenow and her House counterpart, Rep. Frank Lucas, R-Okla., included a major boost for crop insurance popular in the Midwest, higher subsidies for Southern rice and peanut farmers and land payments for Western states. The bill also sets policy for hundreds of smaller programs, subsi-dies, loans and grants — from research on wool to loans for honey producers to protec-tions for the catfish industry. The bill would provide as-sistance for rural Internet ser-vices and boost organic agri-culture.

Stabenow said the bill is also intended to help consum-ers, boosting farmers mar-kets, encouraging local food production and seeking to im-prove access to grocery stores in low-income communities.

Opinionwww.abilene-rc.com Wednesday,February5,2014 7

Tee TimeTim Horan

What’sYourWord?Each year, many organizations go

through a strategic planning ses-sion. From large corporate entities

to small home-owned businesses, many types of organizations take time to look inward, reflect on what they’ve done, and make decisions regarding what they want to do in the future. The Chamber of Com-merce just completed its annual strategic planning session this past Monday. I’d like to thank the board of directors for giving an afternoon of their time into this impor-tant Chamber activity.

Let’s look a little more into what strate-gic planning actually is. With a word like “strategic” thrown into the mix, it can not only get a little confusing, but leave you wondering if I’m talking about an organi-zation or a football play! Simply put, stra-tegic planning is looking at where you are now, deciding where you want to go, and mapping out how you’re going to get there. This is done by defining the mission, vision, and then outlining goals that you’d like to accomplish in a given period of time. In most organizations, the mission & vision statements remain the same from year to

year to continue being a guiding force for the organization.

The Chamber of Commerce’s mission is to positively impact the economic vitality of the Abilene area through advocacy and servant leadership. The Chamber of Com-merce’s vision statement is to be a strong, collaborative community organization for improving the economic vitality of the Abilene area. Both these statements are part of what leads the board and myself through our daily functions as representa-tives of area business.

As the governing body of the Chamber, the board of directors and I lead the Cham-ber in its actions. Part of the planning ses-sion is also to talk about leadership. Lead-

ership is a challenge for everyone, and it takes a strong person to dig deep and con-template what kind of leader they want to be. In the planning session, we were chal-lenged to come up with a word and a quote that represents us as leaders and share why it resonated with us. I’d like to extend that challenge to you, and share my own word and quote.

My leadership word is enthusiastic. I be-lieve that it represents not only my person-ality, but also my leadership style. I think that leaders need to be excited for projects and for who they work with, and I believe that I am! My leadership quote is, “Find out who you are, and do it on purpose,” by Dolly Parton. Knowing yourself is so im-portant. If you know yourself, you can lead more effectively. Once you find out who you are….then just do it on purpose!!

What’s your word? _____Torey Berndt is the executive director

of the Abilene Area Chamber of Com-merce.

Chamber ConnectionTorey Berndt

“The Third R”— (a)Rithmetic

Tony is buying a used car. He will choose between two cars. The table below shows information

about each car.

• Tony wants to compare the total costs of buying and using these cars.

• Tony estimates he will drive at least 200 miles per month.

• The average cost of gasoline per gal-lon in his area is $3.70.

• Tony plans on owning the car for 4 years.

Calculate and explain which car will cost Tony the least to buy and use.

After touching on two or the three Rs (reading, and (w)riting in the last couple of weeks, I thought it might be inter-esting to give you an idea of what (a)rithmetic is like these days! The story problem above, taken from the state as-sessment sample, is indicative of what middle school students have to be able to understand and do in their study of mathematics.

In order to meet the Common Core Standards, our school district uses a com-prehensive elementary (K-5) curriculum, Everyday Math, which connects concep-tual understanding with real world appli-cations. Students develop understanding of concepts in the following ways:

• Real world examples and concrete objects: Throughout the resource, real world examples are used to relate math concepts to real life.

• Pictorial representations: These are used to visually display the problem to understand the relationships between items and/or groups.

• Discussion of ideas and methods: Discussing or writing about how prob-lems are solved can help to deepen the understanding of numbers and how they are related.

Our sixth to 12-grade teachers are now researching new curriculum. Assistant Superintendent, Chris Cooper reports, “We are currently looking at several options for math resources 6-12. The committee has several requirements for any resource considered. The material must help staff teach the Kansas Col-lege and Career Ready standards, lever-age the one-to-one iPad environment through 21st century learning strategies, and address the needs of diverse learn-ers through tiered instructional materi-als. Several of the options are offered digitally and would not require the pur-chase of a “hard textbook.””

Oh, and just in case you haven’t solved the story problem, here’s the answer: The total cost of the car and immediate repairs for Car A is $3900 and the total cost of Car B is $5000. After 4 years of driving, Car A costs $1973 in fuel and Car B equals $1480. So the total cost of Car A is $3900 plus $1973 or $5873 and the total cost of Car B is $5000 plus $1480 or $6480. So the best deal is Car A.

____________Dr. Denise Guy is superintendent of

USD 435 schools.

Abilene SchoolsDr. Denise Guy

Back to theFuture

Who would have guessed 20 years ago that a tablet would replace a tablet as the key tool in education?

The chalk slate and the chalkboard revolu-tionized education in the 1700s. Today the same can be said for the iPad tablet, the educa-tional tool of today and the future.

Reading, writing, math, history, photography, video editing; there isn’t much today’s tablet can’t do. It can even be used as a chalk-like slate.

Few had visions of those things 20 years ago.The year 1994 brought us a number of famous

women: Tonya Harding, Lorena Bobbitt, Whit-ney Houston and Amy Fisher. Who can forget the scene on the TV screen as police chased a Bronco carrying O.J. Simpson around Los An-geles County?

Twenty years ago, most computer users had made the switch from the “C prompt” of DOS to Windows 3.1. It was a year later when Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones bellowed “Start Me Up” in announcing the Windows 95 op-erating system. AOL was rolling along at that time as users discovered “chat rooms.”

Aside from new classrooms at Kennedy (2006) and McKinley (2010), not much new construction has occurred in the Abilene school district in those 20 years. The high school add-ed math and tech rooms in 2004 and Garfield received a makeover in 2005.

So, what does the next 20 years hold in the field of education? Where is Kansas headed?

Well, if the Kansas Legislators continue in the direction started by Gov. Sam Brownback and ignores the state constitution, education in the Sunflower State is headed “Back to the Fu-ture.”

It appears our state leaders want to privatize education. Everything the Legislature is doing appears to be taking the word “public” out of education.

The Topeka Capitol-Journal reported that the Kansas State Department of Education, which doesn’t regularly produce inflation-adjusted figures, documented base-state aid of $4,400 in fiscal year 2009. That was followed by re-ductions to $4,012 in fiscal 2010 and $3,937 in fiscal 2011.

Base aid under Brownback slipped to $3,780 in fiscal 2012 but reset to $3,838 in fiscal 2013 and for the current fiscal year.

Kansas’ spending on education is down 16.5 percent since 2008, according to a study.

In response to the cuts, a coalition of students and school districts sued the state in what has become the current case, Gannon vs. Kansas. A district court in January ruled in favor of the Gannon plaintiffs and the case is now before the Supreme Court on an appeal by the state.

A similar lawsuit was successful in 2005, forcing the Legislature to increase funding for education. The Gannon vs. Kansas lawsuit is one of the key issues facing this legislative ses-sion.

While the Kansas Supreme Court has yet to rule, many educators fear the Legislature will just ignore a court order.

Ray Merrick, the Republican speaker of the House told The Kansas City Star he did not see the Kansas Legislature “going along with what the courts say.”

And yes, there is more.Last month Senate Majority Leader Jeff

King introduced a bill that would alter the way school districts receive additional funding re-lated to capital improvements approved by lo-cal voters.

This comes at a time when Abilene USD 435 is seeking a bond issue for school improve-ments. A key component of that bond issue is the 39 percent of state aid to pay off the 25-year bonds. King’s changes would not apply to districts that approved bond issues before July 1, 2014 thus would not impact the Abilene bond issue if it’s approved on April 1.

With new technology driving advancements in education almost on a daily basis, one should question why Kansas’ leaders want to go backwards.

Theendoftheline?In some areas of western Kansas

the winter wheat crop continues to show signs of stress. Constant windy

conditions and a lack of snowfall or other moisture is turning the crop bluish brown in color.

Hamilton County crop and stockman Steven Hines says the winds have been ter-rible.

“Gusts from 40 to 60 miles per hour seem to sweep through our country nearly every other day,” Hines says. “Temperatures have been one roller coaster ride after another. For a few days its 50 or 60 degrees then we’ll experience a cold snap in the teens or near zero.”

How well the wheat stands up depends on how well the crop is rooted, Hines says. It could winter kill if it isn’t rooted firmly in the soil. The ground will heave until it pulls the roots lose and the wheat will die.

“Most of ours is pretty well rooted down with the moisture we received in August and September,” the southwestern Kansas farmer says. “That drink of water started our wheat crop with a bang.”

Unfortunately the moisture ranging from one to three inches in August and one-half to four inches in September wasn’t enough to provide much needed subsoil moisture. Until more moisture arrives this year’s wheat crop is living on borrowed time.

February can be a really good month, if wet snows blanket the crop. The ground is generally thawed enough so the snow melts and the moisture insulates the wheat.

On the other hand, if moisture continues to be scarce this does not bode well for the young crop.

Blowing soil has been another problem this winter. When this happens farmers chisel their ground in an attempt to keep their fields from blowing. Hines, his two brothers and nephew chiseled 240 acres of their winter wheat ground recently.

“There’s not enough cover on the ground to keep the soil from moving when it’s dry like this,” Hines explains. “We had to run pretty deep with the chisel to pull up any clods, but I feel good about what we ac-complished.”

Certain regions of western Kansas have been in some degree of drought since 2007. The Hines family farm didn’t harvest any fall crops to speak of last year. The 2013 wheat crop was a total bust.

“We harvested 1246 bushels from 2,200 acres planted,” Hines says. “Last year was the first time in 40 years I had to buy wheat

seed to plant back in the ground.”Hines hopes February will bring snow

and spring rains. He understands if his wheat receives moisture at the right time his region of the state can raise a tremen-dous crop on 10-12 inches of moisture – if temperatures don’t get too hot.

Because of the sparse fall harvest, the Hines family kept its entire milo crop to use for cattle feed. This grain shortfall hit them hard in the pocketbook.

The extended drought has also resulted in downsizing their momma cow herd.

“We’re down between 50-75 head,” Hines says. “Any cows that haven’t pro-duced calves were sold and we haven’t re-placed them.”

Other Kansas cattlemen have been forced to liquidate or down-size their herds as well. Hines fears cattlemen in his region will not restock their herds when, and if, better times return.

“A lot of the guys that sold their herds are older and some will retire or find it too difficult to take a chance with cattle again,” he says.

John Schlageck is a leading commentator on agriculture and rural Kansas. Born and raised on a diversified farm in northwestern Kansas, his writing reflects a lifetime of ex-perience, knowledge and passion.

Kansas Farm BureauBy John Schlageck

Sports8 Wednesday,February5,2014 www.abilene-rc.com

Sports shorts:

Basketball StandingsNorth Central

Kansas LeagueBoys LeagueOverallWamego4-0 6-8Concordia5-19-3Abilene3-1 8-4Marysville2-4 3-10ClayCenter1-4 3-10Chapman0-5 1-12Girls LeagueOverallWamego4-0 14-0Marysville4-2 8-2Concordia3-3 8-4Abilene2-2 7-5ClayCenter2-3 4-9Chapman0-5 4-9

Wheat State League

Boys LeagueOverallSolomon3-0 7-6RuralVista4-1 11-3Goessel2-1 6-6Wakefield2-2 6-8LittleRiver1-1 10-3Centre 0-2 7-5Peabody0-2 4-9ElyriaCh.0-3 0-14

Girls LeagueOverallLittleRiver2-0 8-5ElyriaChr.2-1 7-7RuralVista3-2 8-6Wakefield2-2 3-11Centre 1-1 10-2Goessel1-2 4-8Solomon1-2 4-9Peabody0-2 2-11

Flint Hills LeagueBoys LeagueOverallCouncilG. XX14-0OsageCity XX 7-4Lyndon XX 8-4WestFranklin XX 6-8ChaseCounty XX 7-7MissionValley XX4-10N.Heights XX 1-9Herington XX0-12

GirlsLeagueOverallCouncilG. XX12-2ChaseCounty XX 9-5Lyndon XX 7-6N.Heights XX 6-3MissionValley XX 5-8WestFranklin XX 4-6OsageCity XX 1-7Herington XX 2-8

Mother Nature interrupts schedules

TherecentsnowstormsthathavehitcentralKansashavehadhighschoolath-leticdirectorsscramblingtoreschedulepostponedevents.TheAbileneHighSchoolbasketballgamesoriginallyscheduledlastFridayver-susConcordiahavebeenrescheduledforFeb.27intheAHSgym.ThestormthathittheareaTuesdaycausedcancellationsandpostpone-mentsforallDickinsonCountyschools.Sometentativeresched-uleddateshavebeenannounced:AbileneatWamegowillbeThursday,Feb.6ChapmanatClayCenterismovedtoFeb.17RuralVistaatWakefield,TBDSolomonatCentre,TBD

Big 12 switches 3

games IRVING,Texas(AP)—TheBig12hasmadethreechangestoits2014footballschedule.TwoOklahomagamedateshavebeenswitched.TheSooners’gameatTulsahasbeenmoveduptwoweekstoSept.6,thesecondSaturdayoftheseason.ThatgamehadbeensetforSept.20,whenOklahomawillnowplayatWestVirginiainagamethatwasoriginallysched-uledaweeklater.SECchampionAuburn’sgameatKansasStatehasbeenmovedtoSept.18,aThursdaynight,foranationalESPNbroadcast.Thatgamehadbeensetfortwodaysafterthat.

National signing day — 5 things to know By RALPH D. RUSSOAPCollegeFootballWriter

Officially, national signing day allows high school foot-ball players to start signing a letter of intent with the col-lege of their choice.

In reality, national signing day is not a starting block but a finish line. All the flip-flop-ping, committing, de-com-mitting and re-committing stops.

“It’s the end of the fiscal year of college football,” said former UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel of the Pac-12 Net-work. “Truthfully, the next year has already started. It’s a culmination of lots of work, two and three and four years of work to get these guys into the boat.”

Sure, there are occasional stragglers among the blue chippers. Some kids get cold feet and need a little extra time. Or maybe mom flips out, and needs to be reassured

that her baby is in good hands. But for the most part, by the time Wednesday is over, the vast majority of FBS teams will have their latest haul of players locked up.

“It’s a long day,” Neuheisel said.

For a coach, the best signing days are drama-free.

“The last thing any coach wants at the 11th-hour is a surprise,” Neuheisel said.

Five things to know about signing day 2014:

S-E-C!: The reason why the Southeastern Conference wins all those national cham-pionships and bowls is appar-ent every signing day. When it comes to quality and quan-tity, the Deep South is the most fertile football recruit-ing territory in the country. SEC schools are sinking big bucks into coaches’ salaries and facilities to make sure all those studs stay close to home. Heading into signing day, the leading recruiting news sites — Rivals.com,

Scout.com, ESPN.com and 247sports.com — all had nine SEC teams ranked in the na-tional top 20. That includes Tennessee, which finished 5-7 last season and Kentucky, which won two games. Ex-pect Alabama to be crowned recruiting national champs — again — by most experts. The Crimson Tide has had the No. 1 class according to Rivals each of the last three seasons. Coach Nick Saban has com-mitments from five of Rivals’ five-star recruits. No other school has more than three. Those schools? Alabama’s SEC West rivals Auburn and Texas A&M.

SIGNING DAY STARS: Most of the top prospects have already made solid verbal commitments. Sign-ing day is a formality. But a few of the most-sought after recruits in the nation are still undecided:

— Defensive back Adoree’ Jackson, from Gardena, Ca-lif., took late trips to USC and

UCLA and is also considering Florida and LSU. “That’s a family fight,” said Mike Far-rell, national recruiting ana-lyst for Rivals.com.

— Running back Malik McDowell from Southfield, Mich., appears to be leaning Michigan State, though his parents aren’t. “That’s a pret-ty publicized family battle,” Farrell said.

— Wide receiver Malachi Dupre from River Ridge, La. He and two of his teammates took a late trip to UCLA. Far-rell says LSU is still his best guess on where Dupre lands, but watch out for Florida State.

FLIP-FLOPPERS: Last season, three of Rivals’ five-stars flipped on signing day, including Florida State star defensive back Jalen Ramsey. Farrell said running back Joe Mixon of Oakley, Calif., is a candidate to pull a simi-lar move this season. He’s committed to Oklahoma, but maybe UCLA can change his

mind.MAD HATTERS: The rou-

tine is familiar to most col-lege football fans. Recruit sits at a table with a microphone and announces his college choice by grabbing a hat with the logo of the winner. A few turn to props, like a live bull-dog puppy to choose Georgia. Oh the drama! But some-times the prospect’s future coach knows what is coming. “Two nights before (sign-ing day), there’s a bunch of what we call secret commit-ments,” Neuheisel said. “No one knows but the coach and (player) because they want to make a big splash and big surprise.”

PERSPECTIVE: Se-ahawks quarterback Russell Wilson was a two-star recruit, according to Rivals, when he signed with North Carolina State in 2007. The top-rated QB in that class was Jimmy Clausen. This is not an exact science.

Season filled with highs, lows for BroncosBy ARNIE STAPLETON APProFootballWriter

DENVER (AP) — Terrance Knighton summed it up for so many Broncos fans when he sat stone-faced after Seattle’s 43-8 drubbing of Denver in the Super Bowl and said, “It doesn’t feel real. It almost feels like a nightmare.”

Following an otherwise spectacular season that ended in such stunning fashion, here is a look at some of the best and worst moments for the Broncos:

Best Game: AFC Champi-onship. The Broncos domi-nated the New England Patri-ots 26-16 in what turned out to be the crowning achieve-ment of a record-shattering season that came up short.

Worst Game: Super Bowl. Peyton Manning had never played as poorly in the two years since joining the Bron-cos as he did at MetLife Sta-dium after the Broncos fell behind with a safety 12 sec-onds into the game and never recovered.

“We’ve been through a lot and had a lot of injuries to key players, and I’m still proud of the team with how far we got and how hard we fought,” Knighton said. “The score doesn’t tell how hard we worked all year. Hats off to Seattle.”

Best Play: Manning throw-ing a nifty touchdown pass at Houston to tight end Ju-lius Thomas that broke Tom Brady’s record of 50 set in 2007. He’d finish with 55 TD throws to go with a record 5,447 yards passing, surpass-ing Drew Brees’ mark by a yard.

Worst Play: Manny Ramirez’s snap over Man-ning’s head to start the Super Bowl that Knowshon Moreno smothered in the end zone for a safety. “Nobody’s fault,” Manning said. “It was just a noise issue.” Coach John Fox, who was lambasted for taking a knee and playing for over-

time in Denver’s playoff loss to Baltimore a year ago, will long be second-guessed for not going with a silent count instead of a cadence that his team couldn’t hear.

The 2-0 deficit wasn’t a big deal, except that it turned into a 36-0 hole by the time Demaryius Thomas scored his TD to keep Denver’s dud from being a humiliating shutout.

“It’s hard to get things turned around against a great defense like that,” said Bron-cos boss John Elway, who endured three Super Bowl blowouts like this one before winning back-to-back titles to cap his Hall of Fame play-ing career. “They are a great defense. So, that’s why you can’t afford to lose the mo-mentum because to try to flip it on a great defense is always hard.”

Biggest Surprise: Denver’s self-destruction in the Su-per Bowl after such a stellar season in which the Broncos averaged 37.9 points and their three losses were by a combined 16 points. They trailed by more than that at halftime against Seattle, then the Seahawks needed just 12 seconds to score again in the second half on Percy Har-vin’s 87-yard TD return when one of Matt Prater’s patent-ed touchbacks — he had a league-best 93 of them com-ing into the game, including 12 in the playoffs — would have been the best way to keep the ball out of Harvin’s hands.

“We were hyped up, saying we were going to come out and get a stop, let’s get three-and-out and then they’re like, ‘Boom!” defensive end Shaun Phillips said. “We got kicked in the chin.”

Biggest Disappointment: Failing to win a third Lom-bardi Trophy behind the best offense in NFL history a year after their crushing loss to Baltimore in the playoffs.

This one hurts more, line-backer Wesley Woodyard

said.“This is the biggest game,

the biggest stage ever,” he said. “It (stinks) to come all the way to New York and not leave with a victory.”

What’s Next: Figuring out how to parlay this defeat into a championship next sea-son with a roster that could

lose Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Knowshon More-no and Eric Decker to free agency and that will need a makeover on defense even if Von Miller, Chris Harris Jr., Rahim Moore, Derek Wolfe and Kevin Vickerson, starters who were on IR by season’s end, come back and regain

their form. They’ll have to look at taking a cornerback high in the draft, too.

Decker’s 32 TD grabs over the last three years are tops in the league, but the Broncos have to think about contracts looming soon for the two Thomases, who are unique talents at their positions.

Kansas bounces back with win over BaylorSportsXchange

WACO, Texas — No. 8 Kansas bounced back to earn a split in its Big 12 two-step through Texas.

After the Jayhawks fell to No. 25 Texas on Saturday, guard Naadir Tharpe led a rejuvenated Kansas team to a 69-52 win over Baylor on Tues-day at the Ferrell Center.

Tharpe tallied 22 points, four as-sists and five rebounds, and he came up with the big baskets when Kansas needed them.

He hit a 3-pointer with 1:05 left in the first half, then made another 10 seconds into the second half. In be-tween, Kansas guard Andrew Wiggins tossed in a half-court shot at the first-

half buzzer. Tharpe’s trey to open the second half

finished a 9-0 run that gave the Jay-hawks an 11-point cushion.

Baylor fought back, cutting the deficit to 45-42 after forward Taurean Prince made two free throws with just under 13 minutes remaining. Tharpe answered with a 3-pointer on the next trip down the floor, and Baylor wouldn’t get that close again.

Wiggins finished with 14 points, and forward Perry Ellis had 14 points and 10 rebounds for Kansas (17-5, 8-1 Big 12).

Baylor (14-8, 2-7) failed to keep up the momentum from a win at No. 8 Oklahoma State on Saturday.

Kansas dominated the boards 46-31

and clamped down on Baylor 3-point-marksman guard Brady Heslip in the second half. Heslip made four 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes but didn’t score after halftime, ending up with 2 points.

Forward Cory Jefferson paced the Bears with 14 points.

After Kansas looked lethargic in the first half at Texas on Saturday, the Jay-hawks matched Baylor’s game-open-ing intensity Tuesday.

Tharpe, who scored just three points against the Longhorns, drove the Jay-hawks in the first 20 minutes against the Bears. He scored 14 points and dished out three assists before half-time. Tharpe’s 3-pointer with 1:05 left in the half put Kansas ahead by five.

Heslip hit three consecutive 3-point-ers midway through the half, igniting an 11-4 Bears run. Jefferson made a jumper to cap the surge that gave Bay-lor a 24-21 lead with 5:31 left in the half. However, Baylor scored only three more points before the break.

NOTES: Kansas defeated Baylor 78-68 in Lawrence on Jan. 20. That completed the Jayhawks’ run of four consecutive wins against ranked op-ponents, as Baylor was rated No. 24 at the time. That game came in the middle of the Bears’ five-game con-ference losing streak that dropped Baylor from No. 12 to out of the top 25. ... Baylor was the only conference team that defeated Kansas in both the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons.

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