The Pratt Farmers Market at Merchant Park organization is extending the welcome mat to all area home-produced vendors by waiving fees for the 2022 season of selling. The new season begins the first Saturday in June at the corner of Fourth and Main streets in Pratt, and extends through the last Saturday of October.
“A library is like an island in the middle of a vast sea of ignorance, particularly if the library is very tall and the surrounding area has been flooded.” – Lemony Snicket Come experience an “Ocean of Possibilities” at Pratt Public Library this summer! We have programs, special guests, and competitions for people of all ages and interests – completely free! Our hours are: Monday-Thursday 10:00-7:00; Friday 10:00-6:00; and Saturday 10:00-2:00. Summer Reading Program for all ages! May 16-July 30 May 16-July 30 3 Years Old-Fourth Grade Fill out reading charts to win prizes! Fifth-Twelfth Grade Build a “stack” of books to see who reads the most! Adults Fill your library passport with stamps as you travel through books on an adventure cruise! Thursday Afternoon Adventures Every Thursday @ 2:00 p.m.
Kansas Municipal Utilities, the statewide asswociation for municipal utilities, announced today that Tyler Markus of Pratt, Kansas was named the recipient of the 2022 Lineworker Award of Excellence. This awad is given to the electrical lineworker who best exemplifies the core values of their community and their craft.
On February 12, 1985, I climbed in the passenger seat of an International truck that was green with a yellow stripe. We had a load of National Gypsum Wallboard going to Colorado Springs. On the 13th, we were hooking up to a Dallas load.
All wrapped up with graduation ceremonies and celebrations these past two weeks of May are preparations for Memorial Day which comes next Monday. The two events seem to come crashing together like ocean waves in my mind as I consider what advice might young people heed or need and what does Memorial Day actually mean to me.
Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States, established to remember and honor those who died while serving in the military. In most local communities, remembrances are not limited to soldiers buried there but rather, flowers are placed on the graves of family and friends as well. I have always taken the time to honor this service and sacrifice of soldiers of the United States of America by finding a story to share of one such life, but first some facts.
Our Nation began observing a national day of remembrance on May 30, 1868. It was first called Decoration Day and was kept at Arlington National Cemetery [ANC] by decorating the graves of Confederate and Union soldiers with symbols of patriotism. Today the decorative tradition at ANC consists of placing flags on all graves (Schauffler). Decoration Day was renamed Memorial Day during the Second World War and was proclaimed to be a day to commemorate all Americans who died in military service. In 1971, it became a national holiday by congressional orders (Merchant).
Residents and visitors to Kansas can still hear some primal sounds that speak to attentive humans the very essence of wildness. One is the clatter of migrating Sandhill Cranes, rising with the sun in their thousands from their roosting areas at Quivira National Wildlife Refuge or Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area and returning at dusk.
During a 2014 symposium marking the 60th anniversary of the Brown v. Topeka Board of Education decision, a statement from one of the plaintiffs offered what today feels like prescient insight. Many of the Virginia plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit, feared integration and would have preferred separate and actually equal.
2022 Seniors . . . Well, here you are about to graduate. I’m sure you’re pinching yourself at the prospect of reaching your goal of the last 12 years. I think of you all as caterpillars. You’re about to leave your cocoons; your high school and homes, to emerge as butterflies and fly away to your futures.