RCNews
June 25

Friday night guest of Roy & Phyllis Conrad was Louise Zordel.  On Sunday we
went to Wichita to attend the 7th Annual Kansas Masters BBQ Championship at
Cowtown.  Again Chris Zordel of Spearville was one of the 36 contestants
from Kansas and Illinois. Chris took 6th place in Chicken, 8th place in Pork
Ribs, 7th place in Pork Butt and 10th in his Brisket. He placed 6th overall
in the competition. After the competition he was selected with two others to be
judges for the chicken that the Wichita Mayor BBQued.
  On their way home they went through Ellinwood and were half way
between Ellinwood and Great Bend when they had to turn around and return to
Ellinwood. There was a storm that hit the area during that time.  They stopped at a filling station to seek shelter and were told to go to the Catholic Church as
it was open for anyone who wanted to get out of the storm.  This was reported by the news to seek shelter and by this filling station attendant as he soon locked
the station and said he was leaving.  Luckily it was just hard rain and
plenty of hard wind but no hail.  After an hour and half we went on our way
back home.  Seeing lots of wheat fields down either from the hard wind and
rain and a few fields looking like hail hit them.
In closing we felt very comfortable and safe in the St. Joseph's Catholic
Church of Ellinwood.

Maurice Klee has been a patient at Stormont-Vail Hospital in Topeka. Addie Mills was a recent visitor of Maurice and his wife, Callie and also their children, Patty Klee Schmitt, Michelle Klee Peregon, Jackie Klee Colgan, Nan Klee Williams, Jay Klee and Kevin Klee.  Maurice has been transferred to McCrita Plaza Acute Care in Topeka.
 
The alumni received a letter from Karen Norlin Simmerman this past week.  She said she would love to be here ‘rodeo-ing’ with us this year, but she and her husband Mel will be in Cleveland, Ohio for a national Interfaith Marriage Encounter Board Mtg. They have been a team couple for Marriage Encounter for 11 years. They will be married 25 years in November. Their son Zach completed his 2nd year of college and this fall semester he studied at a university in Puerto Rico; their daughter Kristina will be a HS senior next year and will continue her special education at a school-run ‘Light Industries’. Karen is on Facebook if you wish to be in touch with her.
 
Congratulations to Jacob Townsend who graduated last week from Saline High School, Saline, Michigan.  Those present for the graduation party on Saturday evening were Bet and Jeanette McCormick, Mark and Lucas McCormick, Jeff and Julia McCormick and Mary McCormick. 
 
Addie Mills flew to San Antonio, Texas last week for a visit with a former classmate, Loa Ruth Anderson Straw.  She was an overnight guest of Jim and Trenna Klee in Wichita going to and from San Antonio. She also saw Karen Klee Beebe and her daughter-in-law, Mary Beebe and small daughter, Hailey.
 
Those who attended the all-star baseball game in Manhattan on Wednesday afternoon were Chuck and Zach, Cameron, Tammy, Shirley and Zach’s baseball coaches, Tim Schremmer and Joel Mason. Zach played on the purple squad, Matt Cunningham and Dylan Pfeifer from Ellis played for the white squad.  The score ended in a tie, 3-3.
 
Howard and Ruth Ann Sissel, Ponca City, returned to McCracken this week-end, Marge Sloan had stayed with her daughter, Roger and Norma McNair for two weeks and she rode back home with Howard and Ruth Ann. They all golfed and helped Roger and Norma get ready for the GBTA golf tournament which McCracken hosted on Saturday. There were 32 golfers and everyone was happy with the golf course. Some of the golfers even played 37 holes.  We thank all of them.
 
 
 
June 17, 2010 News
 
Birthdays:  June 17, Clay North, Jessica Casey, Matt Casey; June 18, Chad Irvin, Mickey Hopper, Sarah Washaliski; June 19, Diz Washaliski, Cheryl Werth, Matthew Groff; June 21, Harold Herdman, Joyce Luft; June 23, John Moran, Bernadette Taylor, Scott Wittman, Arlene Schmidt, Jennifer Wierman, Jerod Wierman; June 23, Mike Stull, Sarah Hinman, Carson North.
 
Anniversaries:  June 19, Joey and Jill Herschback; June 20, Mike and Mary Beth Peach; June 22, Martin and Cathie Shapiro.
 
The Foster Cousins Reunion was held on Memorial Day at the Boondocks.  Those attending were Gin Taylor, Alexander; Betty Richardson, Brownell; her sister Donna of Ellis; Sonja Conner, Augusta; Josh Miller, Andover; Joe Conner and Sonia Mae, El Dorado; Mike Conner, McCracken; Mitchell and Nikki Conner and two children, LaCrosse; Christi and Rob Schneider and two children, WaKeeney, Glenn Conner, McCracken; Alice Foster, Great Bend; Peg and Bud Parker, Colorado; Doug Keady, South Lake, Texas and Gail Keady, Goddard. 
 
Brett Higgins, son of Doug and Mary Higgins, Lyons, graduated from Kansas State University in May with a B. A. in Business.  Wilfrid and Twila Higgins, Doug and Mary and family and Nancy and Mike Wiebe attended the graduation ceremony.  Wilfred and Twila returned with the Wiebes to Blue Springs, Missouri for a visit for several days.
 
Anya Foos-Graber had cataract surgery this week and she says she sees better than she has in 21 years. 
 
McCracken Public Library has received a computer donated by Gerald Crotinger, Hays.  Gerald is a 1957 graduate of McCracken High School.  He worked for 4000 hours and one year to prepare a program on Family Tree Maker of McCracken and Hampton people.  It contains 11,989 individuals.  It is entitled McCracken-Hampton Library Database.  A program on Legacy contains all the cemetery records in Barton County.  When asked why he made this contribution to the library he said, “I wanted to give back to my community”.  If you have information that you wish to add to this program, please e-mail him at  jercro@eaglecom.net.  He will make the necessary additions or corrections.
 
Guests on Memorial Day of Wilfrid and Twila Higgins were Doneta Parsons, Vic and Susie Parsons of Spearville and Jeff and Shannon Fouquet of Topeka.
 
As a follow up on Gerald Crotinger’s grandson, Benjamin Glaze.  He is home and in therapy at Hays.  He still has no feeling in his feet and walks with a walker.  We wish him great success with his therapy.
 
Richard Higgins is recovering from by-pass surgery.  The surgery was done in Wichita and he is doing great.
 
Vara LaFoy, the author of “Remember Me, Wayne Seiling” (written in 2006), sent some exciting news about a new book entitled “Baby of Bataan – Memoir of a 14 year old Soldier in WW 11” by Joseph Quitman Johnson.  Vara’s nephew, Lott Hall, found the book on the internet.  In it he mentions Wayne Seiling several times.  Vara contacted the author and spoke to him about Wayne.  He had been a good friend of Wayne’s and wanted to go to Albert, Kansas, on his return home to see where Wayne had grown up.  The two privates were on Angel Island and on the same ship going to the Philippines.  Wayne had joined the Army at age 18.They finally became acquainted when they were assigned to the 31st Infantry Regiment, Co. D.  They shared a 7-man tent for six weeks of rigorous training before going to separate quarters in Manila.  Wayne, since he loved tinkering with the farm vehicles, was sent to the motor pool.  Johnson mentions Wayne in regard to an unused motorcycle that Wayne dug out.  He took Mr. Johnson for a ride and showed him the mechanics of driving one.  They frequented the big YMCA swimming pool together.  Then came Pearl Harbor - December 8, 1941 there in the Philippines.  Mr. Johnson was quoted in the book as saying, “Have Seiling go with you as much as possible.  He’s a pretty smart mechanic, and he can fill you in on the nomenclature of the vehicle and stuff.”  The two were in D Co. during the fight to hold Bataan as a delaying action.  It was the dry, hot season.  Johnson told Vara that there was little food or medicine, but the lack of water was the worst.  Nearly all the men were ill with malaria, dengue fever and dysentery.  They had no toilet paper, soiled their clothing, could not wash or change them, wore the same clothes for months.  Several days before Bataan surrendered, Johnson hung on a rope on the side of a boat and floated the four or so miles to Corregidor Island, but it fell within a few days.  The POW’s from Corregidor went to a different prison camp from those who suffered the Death March after surrendering on Bataan.  Johnson heard that Wayne had died.  Johnson endured years of torture and ill treatment.  We assume Wayne suffered greatly also, but he succumbed only two months after the surrender.  Vara went to Corregidor from her post in Vietnam, only to find an island grown high with trees planted by the Japanese and riddled guns and barracks.  She later went to Manila and found his grave at the American Military Cemetery.    Wayne’s twin brother, Wendell, was wounded in Normandy after D-Day, when hit by shrapnel which wounded his lungs.  Vara’s brother, Gene, was hospitalized for months with frozen feet after the Battle of the Bulge.  Kind Belgians hid him in the basement of a barn for eight days while the Nazis occupied the area.  Vara has visited that area near Wiltz, Belgium and searched for the barn, stream and village described by Gene, but could not find it.  She has recently compiled a large military history record of her family beginning with the Revolutionary War.  It includes all the war letters of Wayne, Wendell and Gene and many of her mother’s during that period.   The book “Remember Me, Wayne Seiling” is at the McCracken Public Library.  Wayne and his twin brother Wendell, nephews of Lott and Blanche Hall, became a part of their family in 1929, when the twins were six years old.
 
The Jail/Museum will have a display of military memorabilia, pictures and articles during rodeo time.  Please share what you have for this display.  Our thanks to Vara LaFoy for sharing the above about Wayne Seiling.
 
 
 
McCracken History Notes
 
June 1910
There will be no fishing or swimming allowed on Sunday below  Young’s barn, Alexander, known as the old swimming hole, as there are six days in which to do this.  Mrs. Ora Young.
 
There has been half dozen new threshing outfits unloaded from cars here in the last two or three weeks.
 
June 1940
A girls’ softball team was organized this week for the summer season.  Hunt’s Rexall Store will sponsor the team, and Miss Marie Wierman is manager.
 
The city park, which has been the scene of considerable improvement work this spring, will be appropriately dedicated with a community get together next Tuesday evening. The school band will be on hand to play some numbers.  
 
June 1960
Mr. and Mrs. Pete Rogers were hosts at a lawn supper family reunion Sunday evening at their home.  Those present were all of their children and families and guests.
 
Bill Harper, Ray Grumbein, Philip Richolson and Glen Smith attended the golf tournament in Palco on Sunday.
 
June 1980
The following participated in a track meet on Saturday – Kaira Miller, Dixie Bott, Jeff Scheuerman, Sean Miller, Shawn McKinney, Doug Elias and Craig Stull.
 
Kris Bromlow and John Moran attended the FHSU Tiger basketball camp.