Students at Elk Valley High School are celebrating homecoming week in anticipation of the homecoming festivities that will be held this Friday night, Jan. 30.

Spirit week has been held all week with Monday designated as “PJ Day”, Tuesday as “Big Hair Day”, Wednesday as “Disco Color Day”, Thursday as “NFL Super Bowl Day”, and Friday as “Orange and Black Day”.

Coronation will be held Friday evening during halftime of the varsity boy’s basketball game verses the Argonia Raiders. The homecoming theme for this year is “Disco Nights.”

Homecoming candidates this year are junior Joey Englebrecht, senior Derrick Fisher, senior Briar Baty, sophomore Heather Beoughter, sophomore Monique Wade, and junior Denise Beaumont.

NIOTAZE — Tim Tucker, a rural Chautauqua County beekeeper, has reason to be proud this week: the honey produced at his farm near Niotaze was judged Best of Show at the American Beekeeping Federation convention in Reno, Nev., last week.

Tucker, whose honey is branded Tuckerbee’s Honey, said he submitted eight different varieties of honey for the national honey competition and earned high honors all but one of the classes. Tucker’s light amber and amber honey each garnered first place honors in their divisions, and the amber light entry eventually won the top award in the national convention: Best of Show.

He also won a second place award and three third-place awards in other entries.

“I was pleased to win Best of Show not just because of the high honor but because the top honey usually is a lighter quality,” said Tucker. “My amber honey is a bit darker but met all of the qualities that the judges looked for, including taste and color, clarity, moisture content, and consistency when placed in a jar.”

For six years in a row, Tucker has earned highest honors in at least one of the classes in the national competition. But, the Best of Show honor has only been earned twice by Tucker: 2005 and 2009.

Dozens of beekeepers from across the United States compete each year in the ABF’s annual honey show, which is regarded as the Super Bowl in the honey industry.

Tucker said the downturn in the economy has had a slight impact on the honey industry, including on the price of honey as a commodity.

However, he said the American Beekeeping Federation and other bee-related organizations were striving to inform consumers about the healthy qualities of honey as well as its low cost on a consumer’s grocery bill.

He said consumers can view information about the benefits of honey at two websites: the American Beekeeping Federation at www.abfnet.org and at an updated honey-industry news site at http://apixinfosource.com.

Consumers can go to http://apixinfosource.com to find more than 150 recipes in which honey can be used.

Tuckerbee’s Honey can be purchased at a variety of area grocery stories and gift shops.

“We’re expanding each year,” said Tucker. “We now sell our honey in stories from east of Coffeyville to north of Wichita.”

Anna Beth Fish will be honored with a public retirement reception this Friday, Jan. 30, in the West Elk High School cafeteria.

Anna Beth has served as clerk of the USD 282 Board of Education for the past 24 years. Because of KPERS regulations, she will come back March 4 and spend two days a week through the end of June.

Everyone is invited to attend the reception which will be held from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m.

Succeeding Anna Beth as board clerk will be Paula McAlister who has been training for the past year to assume the post.

McAlister resides in Moline with her husband, Gary. They have a daughter Abby who lives at home and a son Scott who is a student at Kansas State University.

“I will truly miss all the friends I have met during my years in this job,” Anna Beth said. And she will miss seeing all the students each day.

She started her role as board clerk in 1984 while Charles Hill was superintendent. She and her husband, Richard, moved to Howard from Bethany, Mo., where she worked in a vocational school. Richard is president of Howard State Bank.

They have a son, Scott, who resides in Smithville, Mo., with his wife, Katy, and their two daughters, Regan and Riley; as well as a daughter, Robin, who lives in Overland Park.

Anna Beth plans to start a new career in the field of insurance, working with her friend Diana Bredehoft at Independence. She recently passed her insurance tests and will specialize in working with clients on the Cafeteria 125 plan.

She hopes everyone continues to support the West Elk school district as they have in the past. “More than anything I hope everyone remains positive,” she said. “Times are difficult right now and we all need to move forward.”