New grain-loading facility planned at Canton

A new grain-loading facility will be developed in Canton, with construction to begin this spring.

CHS Inc. and Mid-Kansas Cooperative are partners in the high-speed shuttle loading project, which will allow up to 110-car trains bound for export facilities to quickly be loaded with grain.

Constructed on the Union Pacific line, the shuttle will be able to load trains headed for the Pacific Northwest, the Gulf Coast and Mexico, according to a news release issued by the companies.

Construction is expected to take about a year, and the project will include on-site storage of more than 3 million bushels.

The facility, which is east of McPherson, will operate under a newly formed company that will become a member of Team Marketing Alliance, which will handle grain marketing services.

TMA is a limited liability company wholly owned by four central Kansas cooperatives: MKC; Cooperative Grain & Supply in Hillsboro; Farmers Cooperative Elevator in Halstead; and the Farmers Cooperative Elevator in Nickerson.

Junior Achievement Wichita to induct 3 into business hall of fame

Junior Achievement of Wichita will induct three members into the Wichita Business Hall of Fame on Tuesday.

This year’s honorees are: Patricia G. Koehler, president of JR Custom Metal Products, Inc.; Steve Clark, president of Clark Investment Group; and J.V. Lentell, vice chairman of Intrust Bank.

Criteria for the selections include business excellence, entrepreneurial spirit, inspiring leadership and dedication to the community.

The event begins at 7:15 p.m. at Wichita Hyatt.

Junior Achievement Wichita also will honor Nita Hansen of Cox Communications with the Othal Vrana Volunteer of the Year Award.

The Fran Jabara Scholarship will be awarded to Aubree Howerton of Northwest High School.

And the Velma Wallace Memorial Recognition Award will be made to Cox Communications.

Junior Achievement is a program for teenagers that involves the business community volunteers and educators, who together help teach young people about the business world.

Schuckman resigns as executive director at Nonprofit Chamber of Services

Executive director Perry Schuckman has resigned from the Nonprofit Chamber of Services of Sedgwick County, according to a news release issued Friday from Shelley Duncan, chairwoman of the organization’s board.

Schuckman said the decision to leave had been in the works for awhile. Reached by phone, he said he was thinking about running for a public office, and he didn’t think a campaign for elected office would mesh well with his duties as an executive with a nonprofit.

He said he had not decided with certainty what office he might run for.

Schuckman had served as executive director since May 2005.

“I think we did a really great job of building up our organization to where we were working with 450 in 2012,” he said, adding that the chamber had helped member organizations increase their capacity and improve services.

According to the release, the search for Schuckman’s successor will begin immediately, and Deborah Donaldson will serve as interim director.

Ambassador Hotel offers “snow rate”

The Ambassador Hotel said Wednesday afternoon it would offer a “snow rate” Wednesday night.

According to a news release from the hotel downtown on Douglas, the $89 rate is for anyone who “cannot get home or must be at work in the downtown area tomorrow.”

“Some companies or services cannot close their doors” said the hotel’s general manager Michael Frimel, “The weather makes it hard for employees in the outlying areas to get to work. This is a convenient and safe way to ensure these vital services and organizations have the staff they need.”

Call the hotel at 316-239-7100 for more information.

Newton secures additional funding for airport runway project

The airport in Newton will receive an additional $380,484 for the Newton City/County Airport’s runway reconstruction project, according to a news release.

The federal funds were distributed through the state Department of Transportation’s Airport Improvement Program.

According to the release, nearly $5.8 million from the Federal Aviation Administration already has been secured for the $6.4 million project.

Newton’s runway reconstruction was one of 46 projects around the state selected for the airport improvement program funding.

Last fall, contractor Dondlinger Construction finished the first phase of the project, replacing pavement on the south end of the 7,000-foot runway. Phases 2 and 3, which will reconstruct the middle and northern pieces of the runway, will begin this spring.

The existing concrete runway was built in 1944.

Shopportunity to benefit Independent Living Resource Center

A fundraising event that features shopping is planned for April 25 at NewMarketSquare.

The Independent Living Resource Center has announced that Shopportunity, now in its eighth year, will run from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., although stores and restaurants will be open for their normal hours.

According to a news release, new this year are Diva Club tickets, which entitle the purchaser to breakfast at Avivo Brick Oven Pizzeria from 8:30 to 10 a.m. They also receive a special shopping tote, which will be delivered to them at Avivo so they don’t have to wait in line. Diva Club tickets are $50 each.

Regular tickets are $25 each – or buy four and get one free. Regular ticket holders get a different shopping tote, coupons from participating merchants, free limo and party bus rides, a display of “Hot Cars for Hot Women,” free photos, and a variety of drawings, food and drink samples and other activities.

Proceeds from the event go to the ILRC, a nonprofit that assists people with disabilities.

Tickets are available at ILRC, 3033 W. 2nd Street North, by calling 316-942-6300, or go to www.ilrcks.org

Bunting Magnetics offers catalog on food safety

Bunting Magnetics Co. in Newton has produced a new catalog for the food industry.

According to a news release from the company, the catalog is dedicated to safety products in the food industry.

Bunting produces magnetic products for the worldwide food, printing, automobile, plastics and electronics industries.

More information is available at buntingmagnetics.com

Black Hills Energy buys Longford natural gas system

Black Hills Energy announced it has purchased the municipal natural gas system in Longford, which is northwest of Junction City, and will now provide natural gas service for the community.

The purchase follows approval by the town’s voters and the Kansas Corporation Commission, according to a news release from the energy company, which also serves Wichita.

“We are pleased to welcome Longford into the family of 59 communities we now provide with natural gas service in Kansas,” said Vance Crocker, the general manager of Black Hills Energy in Kansas.

Longford is located 30 miles west of Milford, whose natural gas system was also recently acquired by Black Hills. The town’s 58 customers will be served by a full-time technician who has relocated to the area and will be supported by Black Hills Energy’s Wichita office, according to the news release.

Cerebral Palsy foundation surpasses fundraising goal for its wheelchair clinic

A clinic that custom-builds wheelchairs is moving ahead with its expansion plans after the Cerebral Palsy Research Foundation of Kansas exceeded its goal of $605,000 by raising $613,260.

In a news release Tuesday, the foundation said funds will be used to expand and modernize its wheelchair seating clinic.

At the Daniel M. Carney Rehabilitation Engineering Center, wheelchairs are custom-made for each client. The process involves such steps as conducting evaluations, determining levels of activity and molding each chair’s seat to fit the user.

Because the personalized approach takes time, the news release stated, the foundation wanted to make sure the clients and their families or friends were comfortable while waiting. So the expansion will include a spacious waiting area for the person receiving services and their families to interact and relax in a non-restrictive space. The family area also will have recliners, a big-screen television (complete with a gaming system), computers with Internet access, a kitchenette and more.

The Carney Center is one of four seating providers used by Medicaid recipients younger than 21, and one of two clinics available to Medicaid recipients older than 21. More than 700 people with disabilities from more than 80 counties across Kansas receive services each year from the Carney Center, making it the largest volume outlet for customized wheelchairs in the state, according to the foundation.

Greteman Group to handle outreach for aviation-training project

Greteman Group, a Wichita marketing agency, has announced that it has been selected to handle outreach for a $14.9 million effort to develop training curricula for the aviation industry.

In September the Wichita Area Technical College announced that it would be the lead partner in the project, which involves five community colleges across the country that comprise the National Aviation Consortium. The effort also is expected to involve private-sector employers that could potentially provide jobs to workers trained using the curricula that is developed.

WATC officials said in September that the local portion of the $14.9 million grant from the federal government was worth about $9 million.

Greteman Group announced in a news release Tuesday that it would handle outreach for the project. The agency’s efforts will include “research, campaign messaging and creative, identity and brand development, website, search engine optimization, television, radio, print, outdoor, email and social media,” according to the release.

Steve Hunt to speak at K-State’s Cattlemen’s Day on March 1

A sponsored lecture is the newest feature of Kansas State University’s Cattlemen’s Day, scheduled for March 1 in Manhattan.

Marking the 100th year of the event, K-State has a number of exhibits and a commercial trade show planned, starting at 8 a.m. in Weber Hall.

It also will start the Henry C. Gardiner Lectureship, with inaugural speaker Steve Hunt of U.S. Premium Beef.

Gardiner, widely considered a pioneer in beef genetics, is founder of Gardiner Angus Ranch in Ashland, Kan., according to a news release from the K-State Department of Animal Sciences and Industry.

Hunt was CEO of U.S. Premium Beef from 1996 through January 2013. He now serves as an adviser to the company.

Other topics and presenters will include: Keeping Your Farm in the Family for the Next Generation – Ron Hanson, University of Nebraska-Lincoln; and Cattle Market and Industry Short-Run Outlook and Long Term-Prospective, Ted Schroeder and Glynn Tonsor of K-State.

There also will be breakout sessions and a dedication ceremony for the new Stanley Stout Center.

More information and online registration are available at www.asi.ksu.edu/cattlemensday.

Agri-Women program looks at integrating agriculture into school curriculum

A women’s group interested in agriculture plans a program Feb. 16 about incorporating agriculture in elementary school curriculum.

Kansas Agri-Women said in a news release that it will meet from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Walton, which is on U.S. Highway 50, northeast of Newton.

The meeting will start at the Whistle Stop Café, then move to the Walton 21st Century Rural Life Center, an elementary school that integrates agriculture into its lesson plans. The program also will include a question-and-answer session with kindergarten teacher Rhonda Roux.

The meeting and tour are free, but there is a cost for lunch. Anyone interested is invited to attend.  To register, contact Lesley Schmidt at 785-639-7744 or kansasagriwomen@gmail.com

More information is available at http://americanagriwomen.org/kansas-agri-women