Julie Kepner of Chetopa has joined the staff of Chesnutt Real Estate. She is a licensed realtor and will be assisting potential home buyers and sellers in getting the most for their money in today’s competitive real estate market.
Julie is the daughter of Wayne and Kay Wolsey of Chetopa and is married to Rick Kepner. She and Rick have two children, Brooke, 11, and Braydon, 5. Julie is the manager for Bellmore Apartments in Chetopa and also works at Chetopa Elementary School as a paraprofessional in the first grade.

The Labette County Appraiser’s salary was decreased by commissioners following five executive sessions at last Monday’s meeting.
Effective July 1 of this year, commissioners Brian Kinzie and Lonie Addis approved to reduce the amount of the County Appraiser’s salary by $5,000 annually or $2,500 for the remainder of the year. This reduction in pay resulted in the Appraiser LeRoy Burk resignation of duties as Flood Plain Administrator and the 911 Addressing Administrator. These duties have been dispersed to other departments.
Also approved was a three percent pay increase for the County Appraiser based on the new annual salary amount, $52,591.80 or $4,302.65 per month.
Approval was given to increase the salary of the 911 Dispatch Supervisor Brandy Grassl $100 per month effective July 1 of this year.
A salary increase in the amount of $150 per month was given to the Road and Bridge Supervisor Sandy Krider due to additional duties of 911 addressing that the appraiser resigned from.
The commissioners removed the stipend of $500 for the County Coordinator, Jim Cook, and merge it with his new title of Emergency Management/Coordinator effectively immediately. This creates one salary amount. A salary increase of $150 per month for the remainder of the year was issued.
The commissioners stated that the salary increases are due to these individuals, Brandy Grassl, Sandy Krider and Jim Cook, achieving education and performing at a level exceeding commissioners expectations.
IN THIS WEEK’S MEETING the commissioners:
• Update from Leon Steeby, Rob Garner and John Diediker on Labette No. 9 Fire Department.
• Macey McNickle given approval to put out for Juvenile Justice Authority job posting.
• Larry Steeby, Parsons Fire Chief and Brandy Grassl, 911 Dispatch Supervisor, gave commissioners update on the City of Parsons supporting the Parsons Fire Department to be dispatched through the Labette County 911 Dispatch facility.
• Denied request from Jason Piercefield for a waste management disposal site in Chetopa at this time.
• Commissioner Jerry Carson and Jim Cook were absent from the meeting. A work session followed the meeting.
• A budget work session will be held this Friday, July 18 at 8 a.m.
• Those attending were Cecil Fish, Rick Hizey, Lowell Scott and Jack Martin.
• They gave Register of Deeds Donna Strickland a $100 raise for her work with the other departments and for the technology she is advancing into.
• Accepted  several bids for the Osage Township fire department/community center project.

Some Diamond Coach Corp., Oswego, employees and members of the Diamond Network, left Friday, June 27, took a shuttle bus to Tulsa, Ok., and flew to Phoenix.
From there the group flew to Seattle, Wash., and sailed aboard Celebrity Cruise’s “Infinity” for the following ports: Sitka, Juneau, and Ketchikan, Alaska and Victoria, British Columbia.
They saw the Hubbard Glacier, Mendenhall Glacier, panned for gold, and went whale watching. The group celebrated Dick Seybolt’s birthday on July 3.
Those attending from Diamond Coach employees were: Dick and Arlene Seybolt, president of Diamond Coach; Charlie and Patricia Mitchell; Kate Strickland,Nancy and Bill Newby, Cheryl Hanigan, Carole McKinley, Dana McKinley (daughter) and Chris Taylor (grandson); Becky and Monte Province; JR and Cassie Garrett; Kenneth and Cheryl Curnutte; Shirley George and Betty Chapman.
Members of the Diamond Network attending were: Wayne and Betty Lowe;David and Rhonda Moore Kenneth Newberry and Tiffany Evans; Holly and Tom Klein; Mike and Lynne Trahan; Bill and Sharon Gorman; Bill and Claire Flynn, Blanche Grenier, Claire’s mother, (the trip was a gift for her 80th birthday); and Rex and Lil Hoy (travel planners).
They returned to Oswego on Friday, July 4.

Everything is set for the opening of the Labette County Fair which is scheduled for July 28-Aug. 2.
Labette Avenue will print its annual special edition next week to promote the 97th year of the fair.
Editor Rena Russell said everyone should look for this edition which will go to press on Monday evening and will be inserted into next week’s newspaper.
FAIR FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW
The Labette County Fair and Livestock Sale is celebrating its 97th year. This traditional fair event has grown tremendously because of its strong ancestry and monetary support from area businesses, organizations, and individuals.
The sale can only prosper through the support of the businesses and individuals who contribute so generously.
The FFA and 4-H youth involved in this sale have given endless hours of work on their project, and these young people feel these hours of work have been vital to their future.
This year’s Labette County 4-H and FFA Livestock Sale is set for Friday, Aug. 1 at 5 p.m. in the new sale ring arena. This will be the fourth year for the Friday evening sale.
If you are not able to attend the premium sale but would like to continue financially supporting the sale, call Mary Jane Houston, (620) 236-7371. She will be at the sale on Friday afternoon with pledge money from Chetopa merchants and interested people. You can also call Labette Bank at 795-2121 or Matt George from the Oswego Locker (620) 795-4723 who will be collecting pledges from Oswego merchants.
Contributers are guaranteed this money will be well spent on Labette County’s leaders of tomorrow.

The 4-H Foods and Nutrition and Food Preservation judging will be held on Thursday, July 24 at the First Baptist Church in Altamont from 3-7 p.m.
All 4-H Food (Division F20, and F21 and F 22) exhibits will be judged ahead of the Fair. All participants need to check the fair book for complete guidelines on exhibiting their food items.
All participants need to remember to have a picture taken with the exhibits before having them judged. This picture will be on display at the fair. Gift baskets, educational exhibits, and food preservation exhibits can be displayed at the fair.

In an effort to continue to upgrade the facilities of the Labette County Fairgrounds the fair board has constructed a new barn where the sheep and hog barns have been previously. The building will be used for this year’s fair.
Individuals, families and groups have the opportunity to donate money which will be used to finish the building and help provide with racks and pens. Five participation levels have been set:
Bronze - $100; Silver - $250; Gold - $500; Platinum $1,000; Diamond - $2,000.
An engraved plaque will be displayed in the barn listing all contributors in this project at the different levels. For more information on how you can help with this project call:
Dan Peterson - 784-5646; Tom Nading - 226-3384; Keith Martin - 784-5337; Clint Hanigan - 226-3361; Ron McNickle - 336-3385.

Altamont’s Itchin’ for Stitchin’ Guild will sponsor an award to the most outstanding quilted item in the Arts & Crafts Division.

Labette Avenue is planning to attend the fair each day and take pictures for the annual “Scrapbook” edition which will be published two weeks after the fair has concluded. Watch for our staff at the fair — they would all like to meet you.

Day & Zimmerman will be the first major occupant of the newly formed Great Plains Industrial Park located between Parsons and Oswego.
Members of the Kansas Army Ammunition Plant’s Local Redevelopment Planning Authority met last Thursday to sign an agreement with D&Z, assigning it space in the industrial park and assuring the company’s presence for many years in the future.
Day & Zimmerman began operated at the Labette County site in 1970 as a manufacturer of conventional munitions, detonators, anti-armor cluster munitions and ACM bombs. D&Z is a major manufacturer of sensor-fused weapons for the U.S. military for many years.
Official closing of the KAAP started in 2005 when the Base Realignment and Closure Commission recommended the base’s phasing out. A focal point of the transition team, over the past three years, has been keeping Day & Zimmerman in Parsons where it will continue to be a contract manufacturer of munitions. The base will no longer be an asset of the U.S. Army, but will be under the auspices of the Local Redevelopment Planning Authority.
LRPA Executive Director Dan Goddard Thursday’s meeting was a giant step to insure that D&Z will continue to hold a major presence in the Great Plains Industrial Park.
Overall, the park comprises 13,727 acres which lay south and east of Parsons, or north and west of Oswego.
D&Z will occupy approximately 4,000 acres in the park and the remainder will be available for industrial or other development.
There will be parcels as large as 3,000 acres and a large number of operations and storage buildings available for development.  There is a 7,000 square foot office building outside the security perimeter and the facility has its own water and sewage treatment systems, with over 100 miles of roadway and 33 miles of improved rail lines.
Goddard said Day and Zimmerman will complete its production operation contracts with the U.S. Army which will expire on Dec. 31 of this year. Future operations of D&Z will be handled strictly as a munitions contractor, not a manager of Army assets.
Labette County Commissioners were on hand for the signing and they have passed a charter resolution outlining the powers of the LRPA and the LRA which eventually will become the sole community-involved entity.
Goddard said the LRA then will become the single point for the environmental cleanup, economic development, land use and other services once the plant is transferred to the community.
A consultant group, Matrix Design, was brought on board to help in every detail of the infrastructure and create a business plan that would lead the future development of the plant. A master plan will be presented by Mattrix on Aug. 5, according to Goddard.
“It takes a while to get these things done, but we’re getting there,” Goddard said.
Great Plains Industrial Park has a new website (greatplainsindustrialpark.com). Goddard said the website’s purpose will be to provide industry a location for obtaining information to help them make decisions about a potential relocation to southeast Kansas and to keep the citizens of the region informed about the progress of the transfer.

For more information, see the July 16 issue of Labette Avenue. Previously posted death notices can be located by entering the decedent’s last name in the archives search box on Labette Avenue’s home page.

Portia L. Nowell

CHETOPA—Portia L. Nowell, 90, of Chetopa, Kan., passed away Tuesday, July 8, 2008, at St. John’s Regional Medical Center, Joplin, Mo., after an illness.

The body was cremated and a private family burial will be held at a later date.

Arrangements entrusted to Jim Thomas, Thomas Funeral Home, Welch, Okla.

Betty Lou O’Conner

VINITA, Okla.—Betty Lou O’Conner, 81, of Vinita, Okla., formerly of Welch, died Thursday, July 10, 2008, at St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Okla., after an illness.

Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m., Monday, July 14, 2008, at the Thomas Funeral Home, Welch, Okla., with Rev. Bob Whitchurch officiating. Interment will follow at Williams Timberhill Cemetery, east of Welch.

Services under the direction of Jim Thomas, Thomas Funeral Home, Welch, Okla.

Maynard “Gene” Davis

OSWEGO—Maynard “Gene” Davis, 71, of Oswego, Kan., passed away Wednesday, July 2, 2008, at Oswego Medical Center following a period of illness.

Graveside funeral services were held Monday, July 7, at Oswego Cemetery with Rev. John Stone of the First Baptist Church in Oswego officiating.

Memorials may be made to the First Baptist Church in Oswego with the church or funeral home serving as custodian.

Ray A. Hunley

COLUMBUS—Ray A. Hunley, 71, of Columbus, Kan.,died Tuesday, July 8, 2008, at St. John’s Regional Medical Center, Joplin, Mo.

Funeral services will be 10:30 a.m. Friday, July 11, at Derfelt’s Baxter Chapel. Family will receive friends Thursday evening from 6 to 7 p.m. at Derfelt’s Baxter Chapel. Rev. Alan Abel will officiate the services.

Donations me bade to the National Kidney Foundation.

Arrangements are under the direction of Derfelt’s Baxter Chapel, Baxter Springs, Kan.

Marjorie L. Seger

EDNA—Marjoie L. Seger, 81, of Edna, Kan., died Sunday, July 6, 2008, at Oswego Medical Center, Oswego, Kan.

A private family service was held Thursday, July 10, at the Thomas Funeral Home, Welch, Okla. Interment was at Walker Cemetery west of Welch.

Services were under the direction of Jim Thomas, Thomas Funeral Home, Welch.

Rose Marie Houston

PARSONS—Rose Marie Houston, 78, of Parsons, Kan., died Wednesday, July 9, 2008, at Saint Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Okla.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m., Thursday, July 17, 2008, at Forbes-Hoffman Funeral Home in Parsons. Burial will be in Oakwood Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 7 to 8 p.m., Wednesday, at the funeral home.

Memorials are suggested to the Macedonia Baptist Church. These may be left at or mailed to Forbes-Hoffman Funeral Home, P.O. Box 374, Parsons, KS 67357.

Anna Bell Huertas

BETHLEHEM, Penn.—Anna Bell (Hemming) Huertas, 77, of Bethlehem, Penn., died April 30, 2008. She had been seriously ill since October 2007.

Anna grew up and went to school in the Labette City and Oswego, Kan., area.

Graveside services were held Saturday, July 12, at the Labette City, Kan., cemetery with the Reverend Eddie Williamson officiating.

Robert E. “Bob” Webster, Sr.

ALTAMONT—Robert E. “Bob” Webster, Sr., 82, of Altamont, Kan., died at 9:15 a.m., Friday, July 11, 2008, at Labette Health.

Funeral services are scheduled for 2 p.m., Tuesday, July 15, at the Center Bethel Union Church. Burial will be in Sherman Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 7 to 8 p.m., Monday, July 14, at the Bath-Forbes-Hoffman Funeral Home in Altamont.

Bath-Forbes-Hoffman Funeral Home of Altamont is in charge of arrangements.

James Albert Griggs

PARSONS—James Albert Griggs, 82, of Parsons, Kan., died at 2:10 p.m. Thursday, July 10, 2008, at Good Samaritan Society of Parsons.

The service will be at 10 a.m. Monday at Forbes-Hoffman Funeral Home. Burial will be in Oakwood Cemetery with military honors given by Brown-Bishop Post No. 704, Veterans of Foreign Wars. Friends may call at the funeral home after noon on Sunday.

Memorials are suggested to the American Heart Association or Assembly of God Church. These may be left at or mailed to the funeral home, P.O. Box 374, Parsons, 67357.

Delores Kay Davis

COLUMBUS—Delores Kay Davis, 51, of Columbus, Kan., passed away at 3:39 p.m. Friday, July 11, 2008, at Maude Norton Memorial Hospital following a short illness.

Graveside services will be 10 a.m. Tuesday, July 15, at the Edgmand Cemetery in Cherokee County, Kan., with Rev. Dennis Johnson officiating. Family will receive friends from 7 to 8 p.m. Monday, July 14, at the Bath-Naylor Funeral Home in Columbus. Friends may call after 2 p.m. on Monday.

In lieu of flowers the family ask expressions of sympathy be in the form of memorials to the Grandchildren College Fund. Friends may drop off or mail memorials to Bath-Naylor Funeral Home, 611 SE Avenue Columbus, Kan., 66725. E-mail condolences may be left at www.bathnaylor.com .Arrangements and services are under the direction of Bath-Naylor Funeral Home, of Columbus.

Laura Glasgow

COLUMBUS, Kan. — Laura Glasgow, 61, of Columbus, Kan., passed away Thursday, July 10, 2008, at St. John’s Hospital in Springfield, Mo.

Services will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday at First United Methodist Church, Columbus, with Janet Maxwell DS officiating. Burial will be in Park Cemetery, Columbus. Visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday at Simpson Funeral Home, Columbus.

Arlene R. Baker

COLUMBUS—Arlene R. Baker, 91, of Columbus, Kan., passed away Friday, July 11, 2008, at the Medicalodge of Columbus.

Services will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Simpson Funeral Home, Columbus. Burial will be in McKee Cemetery, Hallowell, Kan. Visitation will be from 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home.

Thelma McKee

COLUMBUS—Thelma McKee, 88, of Columbus, Kan., passed away Saturday July 12, 2008. at the Sunset Manor Nursing Home in Frontenac, Kan., after an illness.

Family will receive friends from 5 to 6 p.m. Tuesday, July 15, at the Simpson Funeral Home, Columbus. Funeral Services will be 10 a.m. Wednesday July 16, at the Simpson Funeral Home with Pastor Gary Burrows officiating. Burial will be in the Park Cemetery Columbus, KS.

Geneva E. Manar

OSWEGO—Geneva E. Manar, 88, of Oswego, Kan., died Saturday, July 12, 2008, at Oswego Rehabilitation Center in Oswego.

Graveside services will be held at 10 a.m., Tuesday, July 15, at the Oswego cemetery with Lloyd Davolt officiating. Burial will follow.

Memorial donations may be made to the Bible Holiness Church, Oswego, in care of Murdock Funeral Home, Oswego.

Arthur L. Hill Sr.

PARSONS—Arthur L. Hill Sr., 97, of Parsons, Kan., died Sunday, July 13, 2008, at his home in rural Parsons.

Funeral services will be at 10 a.m., Thursday at Carson-Wall Funeral Home. Burial will be in Memorial Lawn Cemetery. The family will revieve friends from 7 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the funeral home.

Memorials are suggested to either the Parsons Public Library or the Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice. They may be left at or sent to the funeral home, P.O. Box 942, Parsons, 67357.

Sarah E. ‘Sally’ Lowe

PARSONS—Sarah E. “Sally” Lowe, 97, of Parsons, Kan., died Sunday, July 13, 2008, at Labette Health in Parsons.

Funeral services will be at 2 p.m., Thursday at the Carson Wall Funeral Home with the Revs. Darrell Biggs and Robert Brown officiating. Burial will be in Memorial Lawn Cemetery.

Memorials are suggested to First Christian Church and can be left at or sent to the funeral home, P.O. Box 942, Parsons, 67357.

Juanita Irene Wilkerson

PARSONS—Juanita Irene Wilkerson, 89, of Parsons, Kan., died Sunday, July 13, 2008.

Funeral services will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Carson-Wall Funeral Home with the Rev. Steve Schulze officiating. Burial will be in Memorial Lawn Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 7 to 8 p.m. today (Tuesday) at the funeral home.

Memorials are suggested to Parsons Foursquare Church and may be left at or sent to the funeral home, P.O. Box 942, Parsons.

Albert F. Lewellen

OSWEGO—Albert F. Lewellen, 78, of Oswego, Kan., passed away Tuesday, July 15, 2008, at the Oswego Nursing and Rehabilitation Center following a period of illness.

Funeral services will be 2 p.m. Thursday, July 17, at the Murdock Funeral Home with Chaplain Wayne Mason of Harry Hines Hospice officiating. Interment will follow in the Oswego Cemetery. Visitation will be from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at the Murdock Funeral Home in Oswego. Mr. Lewellen may be viewed after 1 p.m. Wednesday.

Memorials may be made to Harry Hines Hospice with Murdock Funeral Home, 203 Illinois, Oswego, KS 67356, serving as custodian.