RCNews June 4
 
One evening this week, Roy Conrad’s neighbor, Kerry Lacock asked him to come to his yard as he wanted to show him something.  The back gate from his car port to his yard was chewed up.  Roy thought it looked like something someone did for a prank but another neighbor, Roger McNair came and they discovered it was a beaver.  Kerry, Roy and Roger pooled their experience and found a dog caddy and got the beaver into the caddy.  When they closed the gate he fought something fierce.  They ‘stole’ another neighbor’s trash dumpster, put the caddy inside and called 911.  The sheriff personnel came and took it to a vet to make sure it was ok, wanted to make sure the flat Lander big game hunters didn’t hurt it in anyway and it checked out all right.  The ‘captors’ found a place where they let it go.  All that was damaged was Kerry’s gate and one of his buckets of white paint which the beaver chewed and had paint all over him.  Where else but in the city of McCracken can you trap beavers? It is usually limited to cats.
 
Saturday, May 2nd, Dalton North turned 3 yrs old and he had a nice family birthday party with Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes...it was a lot of fun.  The kids all got to decorate their own cupcakes with frosting and sprinkles.  Attending were: Arlyn & Jan North, Heath, Paula, Brandon, Logan & Carson North, Lester Seuser, Shannon & Megan Erb, Erin Jennings, Patrick, Shauna, Creiton & Kesalea Jennings.
 
Summer reading is beginning Wednesday, June 3 @9:30.  Bailey Morgan is the program coordinator.  It will be every Wednesday at the same time.  Please make an effort to attend.  Children K-6th are encouraged to come. 
 
Marge Sloan, Ponca City, OK, was here visiting her daughter, Norma and Roger McNair.  She also attended funeral services for her sister-in-law, June Sloan, Tuesday in Great Bend.
 
The McCracken Rodeo was featured in the 2009 Discover pamphlet that was inserted in the Hutchinson news.
 
Lola Rixon, Grandbury, Texas, Carolyn Oller, Pratt were Tuesday overnight guests of Shirley Higgins.  Sharon Lovitt joined them Wednesday morning and they motored to Hutchinson where they toured the Salt Museum and the Cosmo sphere.  Thursday Lola and Shirley were in Hays where they went to Sternberg Museum and walked through Ft. Hays State campus.
 
Jamie Varner and her daughter Rose, Chicago, were guests of her grandfather, Sylvester Conrad.  Jamie is the daughter of James Conrad. Rose found two little turtle doves in one of our evergreens, she caught them and she could hold them.  She told Sylvester one was a boy and one a girl, the girl bird just sat on her shoulder or hand, the boy bird tried to ruffle his wings and fly. 
 
The McNair brothers, Roger and ‘Arky’ and Al Albers golfed in Garden City at Buffalo Dunes this Saturday.
 
Chuck Higgins, Tammy Irvin and Kyra Horesky attended the NCAA Women’s College World Series Softball tournament in Oklahoma City this week.  They were guests of Steve and Paula Orendac.  Adam Orendac, son of Steve and Paula, gave a 1916 Reveille yearbook to the McCracken Museum.  He found it at a garage sale in Oklahoma.
 
Several boxes of books were donated to the McCracken Public Library from Byron and Martha Long, Cameron and Anna, Olathe.  Bryon is the grandson of Cecil and Bessie Johnson, son of Mazie and Bob Long.
 
May 20th was graduatation day for Cheryl Hinman, Shawnee Misson West High School, Lenexa, Ks. Cheryl is the daughter of Larry & Ellen Hinman and grand-daughter of Gladys & Wendell Hinman. Those attending graduatation were; Gladys & Wendell Hinman, Tonya & Wade Hinman and Zaccary; Ellen & Larry Hinman and Sarah, and several other relatives & friends.
 
Don’t forget that the Relay for Life survivors are invited to a Survivor Brunch, June 7, at the LaCrosse High School Cafeteria from 11:30 to 1:30.  This will be for the Survivors.  You will also receive your T-Shirts at the brunch.
 
Memorial Week end guests and visitors of Gladys & Wendell Hinman, were Lynne & Fred Reckling; Ellen & Larry Hinman & Sarah; Wade & Zaccary Hinman; Laura & Ray Wierman & Jerod; Carolyn Helmer and Randa Bloomfield.  They all attended the Wagner Reunion held in Rush Center on Sunday.  Others attending were Sheila & Greg Hinman, Jessica Hinman, Jeffrey Hinman, Jeannie Grimme, Connor & Claire; Jill & Joey Herschbach & Cindy Weirman.
 
Tayler Stull was a member of the 2 mile relay team for LaCrosse which placed 6th at the state track meet in Wichita.
 
Congratulations to Samantha Legleiter whose drawing was chosen for the McCracken Rodeo T-Shirt. 
 
If anyone has been not been contacted about a rodeo ad in the book for this year, and you would like one, please call Jerilyn Stull at 785-394-1035, or email stull1@gbta.net.
 
Those who attended the rodeo meeting Sunday evening at the Fire Station in McCracken were Barbara Rupp, Mike and Jerilyn Stull, Roger and Brenda Legleiter, Mark Brackney, Ty Elias, Gary Barnes, Colleen Kerns, Holly Gilbert, Bet McCormick, William Greenway and Stephanie Greenway.
 
The last graduating class of MHS will have their 25th class reunion during the rodeo in July.  Those that graduated were Gary Barnes, Chad Herdman, Sarena Higgins, Kenny Hughes, Jeff Scheuerman, Richard Wittman, Michele Mays, Shawn McKinney and Tonya Mangold Hinman. 
 
Keith North, 82 years, 11 months and 9 days died May 23, 2009 at Ness City.  He was born June 15, 1926 in LaCrosse to Dewey Kent and Bessie Mae Taylor North.  He married his beloved Wilma “Billie” Scott on July 15, 1948.  They had a 61 year marriage. 
His son Dan North sang at the funeral and his daughter Joy gave the eulogy.  He is survived by Billie, sons, Larry and Daniel; daughters Joy Schell and Ann Betz; brother Harley North; 14 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.  Memorial may be given to the American Lung Association, Mennonite Church, Ransom; and the McCracken Library. In his memorial card was a poem “Just a Farmer” by Helen G. Coon.  A part of that poem fits all farmers, “To sow and to plant; to buy and to sell; to go to the market, with cattle and well-“
 
 Memorial weekend guests of Marge Moran were Michele Moran, Rush Center; Clark, Nicole and Maddie Moran, Burrton.  John, Ellen and Josh Moran, Great Bend, spent Sunday and Monday; weekend visitors were Wes and Sherleen Shannon of Ellis, Sherry Stephens of LaCrosse; Bill Potter, Junction City and Jason Moran, Rush Center.
 
Sunday after church, Lorraine Ryan, June Bell, Pat Derr and Addie Mills had dinner together at Four Corners.
 
The Museum has purchased the book “Tales of a Sod House Baby”, stories of the Kansas frontier as told by the mother of Ellen Verell, Helen McCauley Merkle.  Helen was born ten miles northwest of the present town of Fowler.  She was an only child.  She was born October 13, 1899 and on her 90th birthday remarked, “I must be one of the last living sod house babies left in this country”.
 
David, Michele, John and Ellen Moran took Marge Moran to Las Vegas for her birthday.
 
Don Bergquist says he has a fruit tree just loaded with blooms and black and yellow bees are in abundance in his yard. 
 
Western Plains 4 x 400 Relay team is composed of Michael Greenway, Trevor Jenner, Riley Klitzke and Eric Dysinger.  They qualified for State with a time of 3:36.27.
 
Spencer White, son of Mike and Kelly (Funk) Weber and Ed and Vicki White, was on the Ness City State Track team.  He graduated from Ness City High School on May 17.  Ness City won the 1A title.
 
Whitley Taylor qualified for the State Track meet.   She represented Ellis High School.  Ellis girls won the 2A girl’s title.  Whitney won the discus with a 144-2 which is a new record.  She was second in the 100 with a 12.44 and second in the 200 with a 25.83.   Their 400 meter relay finished sixth.
 
Marge Moran had successful gallbladder surgery at Wichita on Monday. 
 
Those from McCracken who attended the goodbye pot luck for Sister Martina on Sunday were G. T. and Signe Barnes, Francis and Julia Zeller, Shirley Higgins, Jean Schutte, Roy and Phyllis Conrad, Joann Micheli, Carolyn Thompson, Twila Higgins.   Father Ultan Murphy of Olmitz also attended.  He said that Father Kenny is back from Ireland.  The entertainment in honor of Sister Martina was enjoyed by all.  Sister will be living in Oxford, Michigan, after August.  We wish her well and will miss her.
 
McCracken History Notes
 
June 1899
J. T. Ford, chairman of the cemetery committee, repaired the fence and was assisted by Charley Burgner.
 
There seems to be considerable excitement about the wonderful gold mine up on the Smoky.  Our opinion is, if you have money to invest, you had better put it in a Kansas steer.
 
June 1909
It is rumored around that Entre Nous college is laboring under financial difficulties, and it remains to be seen whether the college will be continued.  It is to be hoped that Prof. Barnard will untangle his financial difficulties.
 
The Elmore Lumber Company has moved its office equipment to its new location this side of the depot, and if you want to do business with the company you will find them there.
 
June 1919
Traveling men who come over the territory say that the Norlin building is just about the best between Salina and the state line.
 
John O’Brien has purchased the Wahl vulcanizing equipment and has opened out in business for himself in the Edelen building just north of the Warden hardware.
 
June 1939
The baseball game between McCracken and LaCrosse was a very one-sided arrangement.  McCracken won 26-0.  Chester Irvin was the winning pitcher.  He fanned 11 men and made two home runs.  Marion Foster pitched the last two innings for McCracken.  LaCrosse used three pitchers, Ross, Ruder and Humburg.  Elias and Higgins were on base when Freddie Foster made a two base hit.  Then the fireworks opened and McCracken made sixteen scores.
 
Francis Lovitt, whose singing talent is well known to local people, will broadcast Saturday, June 10, over radio station KVGB at Great Bend from 4:15 to 4:30.
 
June 1959
The total cost of contracts for construction of the new dial exchange of the Golden Belt Telphone was $95,400.  GBTA has exchanges in Albert, Alexander, Nekoma, Rozel, Rush Center, Timken, Lewis and Bazine.
 
Tornado activity, heavy rain, hail and strong winds causes damage west of McCracken and north of Bazine in the Ness-Rush county area Thursday night.  Hail the size of hen eggs was reported in the McCracken area.  A tornado hit the Thomas Barnes farm and the Ralph Thompson farm doing extensive damage.  The May precipitation was above average in the county.
 
June 1979
Patricia M. Littler and Terry Miller were married Sunday, May 27, in the United Methodist Church.  They will make their home in Cimarron.  (Happy belated 30th)
 
Worthy Matron, Joyce Rogers, presented 25 year pins to Adelaide Mills, Donald and Carrie Davis.