Drought keeping wheat crop hopes in limbo

Written by John Schlageck Tuesday, 15 January 2013 14:22

Travel anywhere in the Sunflower State and people will tell you it’s dry. It’s so dry the U.S. Department of Agriculture declared last week that all but one of the 105 Kansas counties is in a drought disaster. This clears the way for farmers and ranchers to seek low-interest emergency loans.

While many areas of the state have been blessed with 8 to 10 inches of snow, the winter wheat crop still needs moisture. Limited moisture in most areas of Kansas caused the winter wheat condition to decline through December.

As of the first of the year, 9 percent of the crop was rated very poor, 22 percent poor, 45 percent fair, 23 percent good and 1 percent excellent, according to Kansas Ag Statistics.

Estimates place the number of wheat...

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New facility will help local company expand services

Written by Jerry Engler Tuesday, 15 January 2013 14:20

The new 9,600-square foot building on the campus of Ag Service Inc. on Kanza Road two miles from Hillsboro will help the company expand its services to include bulk-seed sales and environmentally sound agronomic applications of pesticides and nutrients, according to owner Mike Kleiber. An extension into farm bulk-seed sales has led Ag Service Inc., located on Kanza Road southeast of Hillsboro, to greatly expand its facilities with the addition of a new 60-foot by 160-foot building.

Mike Kleiber, owner and manager of ASI, said the building will help the company also expand its services in supplying and applying environmentally sound agronomic applications of pesticides and nutrients.

He will schedule a grand opening for the building soon.

Although most company trucking will continue to operate from Hillsboro, Kleiber said he expects business expansion also at the company’s branch operations center at Whitewater.

The company, established in 1975, is adding two employees to its average 40-person workforce, Kleiber...

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Do we need a whack on the head?

Written by John Schlageck Tuesday, 08 January 2013 15:53

There’s an old saying that sometimes you need a good whack on the side of the head. Nothing could be truer today in this speeding world of instantaneous communication.

While there are countless ways of doing so, many of us remain tied to the comfort of doing something in the same way. As a result, it becomes more difficult to think about doing it any other way.

It’s time for all of us to break out of this rut of familiarity. Let’s begin by looking somewhere else.

Finding new ideas or a new way of doing something is akin to prospecting for gold. If you look in the same old places, you’ll find tapped out veins. On the other hand, if you venture off the beaten path, you’ll improve your chances of discovering new ideas.

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Bartlett to direct theological education at Tabor

Written by Hillsboro Free Press Tuesday, 08 January 2013 15:43

Bartlett Rick Bartlett, Fresno, Calif., has been named the first director of the theological education program at Tabor College.

Bartlett also will serve as an assistant professor of ministry and provide direction to the Christian ministry undergraduate program and the newly created master’s degree being offered in entrepreneurial ministry leadership.

“We are blessed to have Rick Bartlett provide leadership and expertise as we begin a new chapter at Tabor College,” said Jules Glanzer, Tabor president. “Rick has a rich understanding of our Anabaptist heritage and brings practical experience in ministry and theological education.”

The graduate theological program, which Bartlett will be developing and implementing beginning with the...

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