A Caney native now living in Jackson, Wyo., has released his second book through Simon & Schuster, Inc., of New York.

Christian Burch is the author of “Hit the Road, Manny: A Manny Files Novel” — a fiction book directed toward a juvenile audience. The book is a sequel to Burch’s first novel, “The Manny Files,” which was published in 2006.

Burch said the sequel follows one family’s road trip through the western United States and the trevails and pitfalls they encounter with the family’s “manny” — a melted word for a male nanny.

Burch said he did not anticipate writing a sequel while finishing his first book. He said the idea for the plot popped in his head after “The Manny Files” was published several years ago.

The story of the family “manny” is not necessarily biographical, Burch said, however his own experience at being a male nanny influenced the story. After graduating from Brigham Young University and locating to Jackson, Wyo., Burch worked as a full-time nanny while also working as an artistic painter and writer. Burch no longer is a nanny, and he now spends his time as an art instructor at a private school.

Burch said he does not plan on holding the writing pen soon. He plans to take time away from writing to focus on his art instruction in the Jackson area.

“I do know that I’ll be on the road for some book signings,” he said. “I’m trying to get to the Kansas region sometime before the end of the year.”

Burch’s two books can be ordered at www.simonsays.com — the official website for Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Burch graduated from Caney Valley High School in 1990. He is the son of Roger and Kyle Burch of rural Caney.

The football teams at Caney Valley and Cherryvale high schools share spots in the class 3A polls in this week’s Wichita Eagle and Topeka Capital-Journal.

The two long-time rivals in Montgomery County have 3-0 records going into the halfway point of the 2008 gridiron season.

Both newspapers listed the two teams in their “others” category for this week’s class 3A polls.

The Eagle and Capital-Journal each had undefeated Garden Plain and Silver Lake as the top two teams in class 3A. The two polls also had Holcomb (3-0), Wichita Collegiate (3-0) and Conway Springs (2-1) in the third, fourth and fifth spots in the rankings.

Then Caney Valley and Cherryvale are listed in the “others” — consider it honorable mention status — along with several other 3-0 and 2-1 football teams.

Other area teams to get the nod in the “others” section of the polls included Burlington (3-0), Riverton (3-0) and Galena (2-1).

The Caney Valley Bullpups travel to Burlington on Friday night while the Cherryvale Chargers make the trek to Burlington next week. Cherryvale will play at Yates Center this Friday.

This week’s Wichita Eagle class 3A football polls:

1. Garden Plain (3-0)

2. Silver Lake (3-0)

3. Holcomb (3-0)

4. Wichita Collegiate (3-0)

5. Conway Springs (2-1)

Others: Beloit  (3-0), Burlington  (3-0), Caney Valley  (3-0), Cherryvale  (3-0), Ellsworth  (3-0), Hoisington (2-1), Marysville  (2-1), Oskaloosa  (3-0), Riley County  (2-1), Mission Valley (3-0),  Riverton (3-0), Sabetha  (3-0), Scott City  (3-0),  West Franklin (3-0).

This week’s Topeka Capital-Journal class 3A football polls:

1. Garden Plain (3-0)

2. Silver Lake (3-0)

3. Wichita Collegiate (3-0)

4. Conway Springs (2-1)

5. Holcomb (3-0)

Others: Beloit (3-0), Caney Valley (3-0), Cherryvale (3-0),  Ellsworth (3-0), Galena  (2-1), Marysville  (2-1), Norton  (2-1), Riverton (3-0) Sabetha (3-0), Scott City (3-0).

BY ANDY TAYLOR
Montgomery County Chronicle

CHERRYVALE — USD 447 Board of Education members Tuesday gave their blessing — albeit on a narrow 4-3 vote — to allow Cherryvale Middle-High School to be featured on “The Principal’s Office,” a reality television program that airs on the truTV cable network.

The program follows school principals in their duty to issue discipline to students. According to the TV program’s website, “The Principal’s Office” is geared toward showing the humorous or lighter side of principals’ daily handling of student matters.

Earlier in September, the majority of the school board was unable to support a motion that would have allowed the school to be featured on the reality TV program. However, the board left open the possibility of pursuing the issue again with more information provided to them from school principals George Owens and Scott Lambdin.

At Tuesday’s special meeting, Lambdin presented an information sheet detailing information and comments he had solicited from school principals who had been featured on the program last season. The overall response Lambdin received from those principals was highly favorable for the TV program, with all principals saying they would pursue it again if asked.

Those principals told Lambdin that Leftfield Productions allows school principals to have “veto power” on any subject that is deemed sensitive, controversial or too personal to a specific student matter. Once a principal tells the camera crews to stop filming a specific segment in the principal’s office, the crew must leave.

Lambdin also said several principals commented how the camera crews on their own volition stopped production of a segment because of issues they believed were too confidential or sensitive for their audience.

Lambdin did say that Leftfield Productions would be on site at the middle-high school for a period of one to two weeks — enough time for the producers to capture the daily life of principals in a middle-high school setting in rural Kansas.

Students who are featured in segments of the reality TV show will have to sign waivers (their parents also will have to affix their signatures on the waivers) that would release the school district from any potential liability.

However, school district attorney Tim Emert of Independence, who was present at Tuesday’s meeting, said he had concerns about the program, regardless if a student signs or does not sign a waiver.

“From a personal standpoint, if I were on the school board, I would not pursue it,” Emert said of the reality TV project.

“I weigh everything in terms of what am I getting and what I am giving,” Emert continued. “I have a hard time believing that the Cherryvale school district is going to gain anything from this. From a legal aspect, I can tell you that if anybody has a problem with what will been shown on this program, they will sue you guys (the school board) and this company (Leftfield Productions). It isn’t worth it.”

School board president Lance Carter said he was against the project based upon the advice from Emert. Carter said that prior to Tuesday’s meeting, he consulted Jeff Chubb, an Independence attorney who is a member of the Independence School Board and represents the Elk Valley School District as legal counsel, and Pat Baker, chief litigator for the Kansas Association of School Boards (Chubb also is a co-partner with Emert in their Independence-based law firm). Both attorneys issued the same concerns as Emert’s: that USD 447 would be opening itself to a potential lawsuit by allowing students and principals to discuss personal discipline issues on air.

“My issue here is liability and legal wise,” said Carter. “You have three attorneys who have said they would not pursue this project. Mr. Emert’s job is to protect the school district.  This board member is not going to go on the opposite side of three attorneys.

“Why on earth would you have a camera in the principal’s office when discipline is being doled out?” Carter asked.

Board member Tina Cunningham said she understood why attorneys would tend to shy away from such a project.

“This is something very new to schools, and it’s something a lot of people are scared to death of,” she said. “Most people are wanting to run away from it.  But, I have faith in our principal and vice principal to know that they would not put themselves, the students or the school district in a situation that would be careless. If we had a different administration and we didn’t have faith in them, then, yes, my attitude would be different.”

Lambdin said he was in total support of the project, knowing that he would use strong and careful judgment in knowing when discipline issues cross the line from humorous to serious.

And, principal George Owens said that he, too, favored the project.
“I don’t think we would do anything that would put us in a litigious situation,” said Owens.

Cherryvale Middle-High School was nominated for the program by senior Austin Smith. Smith, who was present at Tuesday’s meeting, said he thought the programs featuring Cherryvale’s principal would dispel myths about most principals.

“A lot of kids in other schools say that their principals are the meanest people on earth, but you won’t hear that in Cherryvale,” said Smith. “I nominated Cherryvale because we have principals here who treat us like human beings. Our principals listen to both sides . . . and they often provide advice, counsel and guidance. I think that would be a really good thing to show.”

While board member Sharon Wadman said she appreciated Smith’s nomination, she also said she had concerns about what she would believe to be “negativity” surrounding the program and its image of Cherryvale.

“I would rather see us on a show that puts us in a positive light,” she said. “I would rather see cameras in the classroom showing teachers providing excellent education. There are more positive things to show rather than negative.”

In the end, board members voted 4-3 to accept the program with attorney Tim Emert and superintendent Randy Wagoner to hammer out the details of the contract with Leftfield Productions. Voting in favor of the program were board members Tina Cunningham, Michelle Loganbill, Cody Smith and Bruce Thornton. Voting against the measure were board members Lance Carter, Sharon Wadman and Gina Booe.

BY ANDY TAYLOR
Montgomery County Chronicle 

CHERRYVALE — About 50 people got a rare, behind-the-scenes look at one of television’s funniest comedic teams on Saturday night when the careers and friendship of actresses Lucille Ball and Cherryvale’s own Vivian Vance were retold.

“We Love Vivian” was the theme of the event, sponsored by the Cherryvale Chamber of Commerce, which included presentations from Vance’s youngest sister, Lou Ann Graham of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Wanda Clark, a Disney, Okla., resident who serve as Ball’s personal assistant for 27 years.

The two women spoke how Vance, who died in 1979, and Ball, who died in 1989, had an unusually sharp chemistry, not only on the television set of the “I Love Lucy,” “Here’s Lucy” and “The Lucille Ball Show” television series but also off the Desilu studio property.

“Lucy and Vivian had the same timing,” said Graham. “They could start at one spot in a block, go in opposite directions, and return at the same point at the exact same time. That’s the part of comedy that is so difficult, probably more so than drama: knowing when to take those pauses, knowing when to come in with the laugh line, knowing when to expect what your partner is going to do next.

Prior to Graham’s and Clark’s presentations, guests were treated to an 18-minute video prepared by Bob Blackard, technology teacher at Cherryvale Middle-High School. The video retold Ball’s and Vance’s early beginnings, including Vance’s birth in Cherryvale in 1909, and their start in the show business industry. The video also included rare footage of Vance receiving the 1953 Emmy award for best supporting actress in a television series. It was the first time that the best supporting actress award had been presented.

Later in the presentation, guests were treated to a second video which was produced for a Vivian Vance tribute held in 2007 at the Lucy-Desi Center in Jamestown, N.Y., the birthplace of Lucille Ball. The video was devoted strictly to Vance’s career and showed film footage of Vance performing in a variety of television programs and movies not affiliated with the Lucy television series. Among the television programs in which Vance had a role included “The Red Skelton Show,” “Love American Style,” “Rhoda,” “Toast of the Town,” and a 1960 version of today’s “Dancing With the Stars” called “Arthur Murray’s Dance Party.”

Clark said Vance’s influence was felt far beyond her best-known role as Ethel Mertz on the “I Love Lucy” television show. She said Lucy Arnaz, Jr., who is Lucille Ball’s and Desi Arnaz’s daughter, credits Vance for giving the younger Arnaz her start in theatre. Arnaz is an accomplished actress and entertainer, primarily in theatre circles.

Graham gave personal insight into Vance’s own life, including Vance’s battle with breast cancer in 1979. The cancer soon moved into her bones, and Vance made the decision to no longer fight the disease. Graham was by her side each day in her final month of life.

“I look back at that time and recall that it was an incredibly moving event for me,” said Graham. “In 1979, no person wanted to die of cancer, but Viv didn’t have any fight left in her. There were some humorous times during that period, including the one time I went into her bedroom and asked her if she needed anything and she quipped,’Yes, get me a new body.’ She didn’t lose her humor . . . or her timing . . . in her final days.”

Graham said was currently writing a theatrical drama about Vance’s final month and plans to have it prepared for production for the Albuquerque Little Theatre, where Graham serves as an instructor and where Vance got her start in the theatre business.

While in Cherryvale, Graham was reunited with several family cousins, including Imogene Littell and Carilyn Clark, both of Cherryvale. Both women are Graham’s second cousins. They examined old photos of Vance’s parents, the late Robert and Euphemia Mae (Ragan) Jones and other relatives when the Joneses lived in southeast Kansas.

Graham said Vivian changed her name from Vivian Jones to Vivian Vance because she thought the Jones name sounded “too common.”

Next year would have been Vance’s 100th birthday, and Graham challenged Cherryvale to hold an event in her honor.

“If think if there is something that should be done to honor Vivian on her 100th birthday, it should be here in Cherryvale,” said Graham, vowing to return to Cherryvale with Clark next year for the celebration.

BY ANDY TAYLOR
Montgomery County Chronicle

Changes in staff and policies have been undertaken at the Caney Nursing Center following a state survey that showed deficiences in various operations and resident care.

Becca Hess has been named corporate administrator consultant and will serve as the administrator at the present time. Hess told the Montgomery County Chronicle that among the changes that have been undertaken is the hiring of a new director of nursing, maintenance director, certified dietary manager, and an environmental services director, which includes housekeeping and laundry services. A new activities director has been promoted from within the existing staff.

Hess said she has been and will be interviewing more candidates for various positions at the nursing center.

Hess and the new directors have been revisiting admission policies and procedures so that a more selective admission process can be adopted.

Various other changes to policies as well as physical and system changes are being undertaken, Hess said. Staff members have also been educated on a myraid of details and functions — ranging from meal preparation to paperwork documentation to proper handling of sanitation and laundry.

The changes were prompted by a state survey on March 27 that found 43 health deficiencies at the center. To compare those numbers of local deficiencies with others found across the state and nation, the average number of health deficiencies in Kansas is 11 per survey. The average number of health deficiencies in the United States is nine per survey, according to the Kansas Department of Aging, which inspects and regulates nursing centers in Kansas.

A follow-up survey on July 27 found continued deficiencies, which thereby prompted a corrective action plan. State inspectors were at the center this week to evaluate the performance of the center’s staff in correcting and rectifying the violations found in the surveys.

“We are looking forward to this final revisit by state surveyors to clear all deficiencies,” said Hess. “Once the nursing home officially clears these deficiencies, we will be allowed to continue forward providing care for the residents.”

Hess said she planned to attend the Caney City Council meeting next Monday night at 7 p.m., Monday, Sept. 15 to update the council and local patrons about the corrective actions that have been taken at the nursing center.

The nursing center, which has 58 beds, is located at 615 S. High and is owned by James and Michelle Laidler of Pittsburg, Kan. The center is not affiliated in any way with the Guest Home Estates, which is an assisted living center located at 400 S. McGee.

Persons who wish to view the surveys from the Caney Nursing Center (or any other nursing facility in the United States) can do so by going to www.medicare.gov and click on the “Compare Nursing Homes in Your Area” link found at the bottom of the webpage.

CHERRYVALE — Area television buffs will be entertained on Saturday when two people connected with the “I Love Lucy” TV series of the 1950s come to Cherryvale to honor Vivian Vance, best known for her role as Ethel Mertz on that early-TV era sitcom.

Lou Ann Graham of Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the youngest sister of Vance and will be making her pilgrimage to Vance’s birthplace along with Wanda Clark of Tulsa, Okla. Clark was the personal secretary to actress Lucille Ball prior to Ball’s death in 1989.

The two women will appear in a presentation sponsored by the Cherryvale Chamber of Commerce at 6 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 13, in the Cherryvale Middle-High School Commons Area. Admission is $2.00 for children (age 5-18) and $3.00 for adults (children under the age of 5 are free) and will include a chicken noodle dinner. The public is invited to attend.

Following the dinner and presentations by Graham and Clark, guests will view various episodes of the “I Love Lucy” series that featured Vance.

“It should be a great evening for people who enjoyed watching the Lucy shows on television or who have an interest in local history,” said Tina Cunningham, president of the Cherryvale Chamber of Commerce.

Vance, who died in 1979, was born in Cherryvale in 1909, the second child to Robert and Euphemia Mae (Ragan) Jones. The Jones family lived in various locations in Cherryvale while Robert owned and operated the Bob Jones Cafe located at 218 E. Fourth in downtown Cherryvale. The Joneses resided in various locations in Cherryvale until the family moved to Independence in 1915, where Vance attended school and cut her teeth into the acting profession as a student at Independence High School.

There were six children born to Robert and Euphemia Mae Jones, however Vivian was the only one of the six who was born in Cherryvale. An older sister, Venus, lived in Cherryvale during her youth years. Other siblings included Dorothy, or “Dot” as she is known in the family; Maxine, Robert Max Jones, Jr., and Lou Ann.

While they lived in Independence, Robert Jones and brother Ralph owned and operated the Jones Brothers Grocery located at 16th and Myrtle streets, two blocks west of Mercy Hospital. Vivian left home in 1927 to start her acting and entertainment career. The Jones family moved to New Mexico one year later so that Euphemia Mae Jones, who was diagnosed with an asthmatic condition, could live in a drier climate.

Lou Ann Graham was only an infant when the Jones family moved from Montgomery County to New Mexico. Except for a return trip to southeast Kansas to visit family when she was 3 years of age, Lou Ann has not been back to the Cherryvale-Independence area in almost 70 years, Cunningham said.

Memorabilia about the “I Love Lucy” television series will be on display at Saturday night’s dinner and presentation with most of the items coming from a private collection belonging to Cunningham, who is an avid collector of Lucy and Vance mementoes.

Prior to the Saturday evening dinner and presentation with Graham and Clark, Lou Ann Graham will visit privately with distant cousins who still live in the Cherryvale area. Among them are three people from Cherryvale, including Imogene Littell, Jack Ragan and Carilyn Clark. Another distant cousin is Marilyn Goodwin of Bartlesville, Okla. Those four area residents are second cousins to Lou Ann Graham.

The family-only event will be held at noon at the Big Hill Lodge.

BY ANDY TAYLOR

CANEY — Caney Valley High School junior Trevor Buster swallowed a strong dose of medicine during the summer — and he liked the results.

Buster was named to the National Youth Leadership Forum — a nationwide symposium for high school students who want to enter the fields of medicine, criminal science, or national security. Buster chose the area of medicine, and he spent nine days in Houston, Texas, with dozens of other peers who were taking a closer look at medicine as a career choice.

While in Houston, Buster visited the Texas Heart Institute where he viewed an open heart surgery from an observation booth, and he also witnessed a knee replacement surgery.

Buster also went to the Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, where professors and doctors told the students about the expectations of learning the medical practice.

“They cautioned us that it’s a long process — from undergraduate work, medical school, internships, and residency,” he said.

While Buster said it was exciting to view the surgical procedures from an observation area, he has his heart set on learning more about the area of stem cell research.

“The bio-medical field is really growing right now,” he said. “I think I would like to look into stem cell research and medicine as a career area.”

• “This Is My Montgomery County” is a new series of stories written by Montgomery County Chronicle editor Andy Taylor, a lifelong native of Montgomery County.  His journeys across Montgomery County will be featured on a regular basis in the Montgomery County Chronicle.

HUTCHINSON — The Montgomery County 4-H Skillathon Team won first place at the Kansas State Fair on Sunday.

Not only did the Skillathon team finish as the best in Kansas, but each person on the four-person team finished among the top 15 in individual scores. Mary Reilly of the Happy Hustlers 4-H Club had the best score among all participants and finished in first place while Erin King of the Happy Hustlers 4H Club finished in sixth place overall. Levi Clubine of the Flying Frontiers 4-H Club won ninth place inidivudally, and Tina Voelker of the Valley Victors 4-H Club had the 13th-best score among all Skillathon participants.

At the event, the Skillathon members were quizzed on a variety of topics related to agriculture, including livestock breed identification, meats judging, and equipment judging.

The Montgomery County team will now represent Kansas at a national competition in Louisville, Ky., in November.

Team coaches include Phil Reilly and Chuck Voelker.

CHERRYVALE — A proposal to have Cherryvale Middle-High School featured on a reality television show did not receive the blessing of the USD 447 Board of Education on Monday.

At their monthly meeting on Monday night, school board members were presented with a proposal from Leftfield Pictures of New York City, N.Y., to feature Cherryvale Middle-High School in episodes of “The Principal’s Office” on the truTV cable television network. The reality-based television program follows school principals in their daily duties and goes behind the scenes in showing how principals deal with a multitude of student matters.

A Cherryvale High School student nominated the school for the episode, and producers from the show recently contacted and interviewed George Owens, principal, and Scott Lambdin, assistant principal, for the program. Leftfield Pictures liked the prospects of featuring the Cherryvale school on the program and sent the school board a contract for its consideration at Monday’s meeting.

However, the majority of the board members had issues with the program and the possible liability it could create for the local district.

“I think there are too many unknowns at this time,” said Superintendent Randy Wagoner after the meeting. “It sounds exciting to have the school featured in the program, but there are too many issues concerning liability.”

Among the chief concerns posed by school board members was the issue of student confidentiality. Schools are now guided by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, also known as FERPA, which guarantees confidentiality to student records, grades, and behavior matters. Although Leftfield Pictures would have required students to voluntarily sign a release forfeiting their confidentiality to their identities and behavior issues, the school board felt that the reality TV show would go too far and, as a result, put the district at risk of legal entanglements.

However, board member Tina Cunningham presented a motion to accept the contract with Leftfield Pictures. Cunningham’s motion failed for lack of a second. No other motions were presented.

Wagoner said school district attorney Tim Emert of Independence examined the proposed contract prior to the meeting.

Wagoner said several school board members requested to have more information concerning the other school districts that have been featured in the program. And, Owen and Lambdin have indicated that they would see if Leftfield Pictures could provide information that could alleviate the board members’ concerns.

“As of Monday’s meeting, the issue of whether to accept the contract was rejected due to lack of support for a motion,” said Wagoner. “But some of the board members have indicated that they might revisit the issue later.”

According to the trueTV website, “The Principal’s Office” is described this way: “Your heart races, your palms are sweaty, your eyes begin to twitch—will you survive a trip to The Principal’s Office? Capturing all the fear, paranoia, blatant lying and transparent brownnosing, this series will capture the most outrageous excuses from students and parents as they try to avoid detentions, suspensions or worse from these high school principals who have heard it all before.”

Previous episodes have featured high schools in Arkansas, North Carolina, New Jersey and Ohio.

Cherryvale subscribers to Cox Cable can find the truTV cable network on channel 64.