When George Kolb served as the Interim City Administrator for Great Bend, he stressed the importance of the city having a strategic plan that would help the community determine “What the city wanted to be when it grew up.” Current City Administrator Kendal Francis agrees with that statement and says there are current initiatives underway in Great Bend to accomplish exactly that.

Kendal Francis Audio

Francis says another initiative to help plan Great Bend’s future is the Community Visioning Group which is being spearheaded by the Great Bend Chamber of Commerce and the Young Professionals Group.

Kendal Francis Audio

That visioning group has already spent time gathering information about the community in hopes of developing a plan to bring Great Bend into the future. The master plan is set to be revealed at the Great Bend Chamber of Commerce banquet next February.

You can learn more about the committee and its goals at gbbetter.com.

Opioids are a class of drugs that include powerful prescription pain relievers that bind to opioid receptors in the body to relieve pain. These drugs also carry significant risks for addiction and overdose. The Opioid Crisis: What You Need to Know is an eight-page fact sheet by K-State Research and Extension adult development and aging specialist Erin Yelland that provides information about Opioids and the associated risks all in one publication.

Yellend says Opioids are often prescribed as a short term pain medication following an injury or surgery but she says it’s possible to become addicted to opioids before the prescription runs out.

Erin Yellend Audio

In addition to producing the fact sheet, Yelland says K-State Research and Extension agents are hosting forums and talking to community members about opioids and the opioid crisis.

Erin Yellend Audio

According to a 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, about 54% of people misusing or abusing prescription pain relievers got them from family or friends. To prevent others from accessing your medications, especially opioids, Yelland says the American Medical Association suggests storing them out of reach of children, and in a safe place – preferably one that can be locked.

Barrett Simon, Livestock Agent

African Swine Fever is currently wreaking havoc on the foundation of China’s commercial swine production.  The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has reported nearly a five percent reduction of the Chinese sow herd, and a whole percent of that has taken place between August and September.

Animal disease outbreak is a major factor in the reduction of China’s hog populations, and African Swine Fever is just one variable in that equation.  If we follow simple laws of supply and demand, a competitor’s misfortune should be our good fortune, right?  While there is truth to that statement, large scale players in the U.S. swine industry are more focused on the vastly detrimental effects a disease outbreak in our own country could have.  Some go as far as to say it would completely cripple our current export markets.

What is African Swine Fever?  The disease is accompanied and produced by hemorrhages.  Though they are clinically unrelated, symptoms of African Swine Fever show great resemblance to those of Classical Swine Fever (hog cholera).  Clinical signs include: lethargy and increased body temperatures, yellowish stool, and discoloration to the ears, lower body, and abdomen.   Acute forms of the disease have a short incubation period followed by the previously listed signs and will most often prove fatal within five to ten days.  Throw in the fact that aborted pregnancies are usually the first sign of the disease and you can see where this becomes extremely detrimental from a financial standpoint.

For now, African Swine Fever has still not entered the United States, with the closest known case being in Haiti and dating back to the 1980’s.  However, along with other large scale, dangerous diseases such as Foot-and-Mouth, it has the pork industry on alert.  Industry experts are studying countries in Europe that have been successful in preventing an outbreak or an entry into their own food supply, even though the disease has run rampant all around them.  Dr. Liz Wagstrom, NPPC chief veterinarian, states that Poland, Denmark, and Germany are major exporting countries and that any outbreak within their production system would put global trade at a standstill.

For more information on swine production systems, diseases, and management tactics reach out to your local extension office or come visit with me in Mankato at any time.  In regards to animal disease traceability, mark your calendars for November 5^th where we are hosting an informative meeting on the current CattleTrace pilot program going on across the state of Kansas.  K-State Research and Extension is partnering with the Beef Cattle Institute, Kansas Department of Agriculture, and the Kansas Livestock Association to kick off a producer driven disease traceability program and serving as the template program for the entire nation.  If you have seen CattleTrace advertised and are curious about what it means to your operation, join us in Mankato for a free meal and great conversation about the program.  There is no cost to attend, but RSVP’s are due by Friday, November 2^nd.

BOARD OF BARTON COUNTY COMMISSIONERS Agenda Meeting
Monday, October 22, 2018  9:00 a.m. Until Close

I. OPENING BUSINESS:
A. Call Meeting to Order.
B. Recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
C. Consider Approval of the Agenda.
D. Consider Minutes of the October 1, 2018, and the October 8, 2018, Regular Meetings.
E. Any citizen wishing to make statements during the discussion of any item must first be recognized by the Commission Chair. After being recognized, that person should state their name and the name of any organization represented. Statements should be limited to five minutes.
F. Cell phones and other electronic devices, other than those used by the media and law enforcement, should be shut off.

II. APPROVAL OF APPROPRIATIONS:
-An Accounts Payable Register will be submitted to the Commission for the period of October 1, 2018, and ending October 15, 2018.

III. OLD BUSINESS – Items tabled, or scheduled, from previous Commission Meetings, will be heard at this time.
-There is no Old Business at this time.

IV. NEW BUSINESS – All new business to be considered by the Commission will be heard at this time.

A. COUNTY CLERK’S OFFICE: Request for Approval – Added / Abated / Escaped / Refunded Taxes:
-Donna Zimmerman, County Clerk, will present a listing of Added / Abated / Escaped / Refunded Taxes. Orders for these actions are kept on file in the County Clerk’s Office. These are used to correct assessments and are requested by the County Appraiser’s Office or the County Clerk’s Office.

B. SUNFLOWER DIVERSIFIED SERVICES: Letter of Support:
-Sunflower Diversified Services has requested a Letter of Support for a Kansas Department of
Transportation (KDOT) grant application. Monies provided by KDOT would be used to
continue the operation of the General Public Transportation System. Steve Long, Sunflower
Diversified Services, will provide details.

C. KANSAS ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES: Annual Meeting Report:
-The Kansas Association of Counties (KAC) held its Annual Meeting beginning October 15,
2018, in Overland Park. One item of note determined at the meeting was the Legislative Policy
Statement for 2019. It is anticipated that the attendees will join in providing a public report.

D. APPRAISER’S OFFICE: International Association of Assessing Officers:
-Barb Esfeld, County Appraiser, is the President of the Kansas County Appraiser’s Association
(KCAA). As such, the KCAA sponsored her attendance at the 2018 Annual Business
Conference of the International Association of Assessing Officers. Ms. Esfeld will detail her
experience.

E. REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL: Barton County Computers and Laptops:
-Extended support for Microsoft Windows 7 sends January, 2020. It is prudent to plan for
computer replacement at this time. As such, the County issued a Request for Proposal for the
purchase of 27 desktop- and 12 laptop-computers. Since that time, another desktop has been
added to the replacement list. After reviewing bids, the Information Technology Department
recommends that the SHI bid of $35,366.08 be accepted. John Debes, Information Technology
Director, will provide details.

V. ENDING BUSINESS – After new items are heard by the Commission, the following items,
including announcements, will be heard.

A. ANNOUNCEMENTS:
-Following the close of the Agenda Meeting, the Commission will consider the authorization of
personnel changes for classified positions, sign any documentation approved during the agenda
meeting or sign any other documentation required for regular County business. Similar action
may take place throughout the day.

-The Annual Tax Sale will be held at 10:00 a.m., Tuesday, October 23, 2018, in the Conference
Room of the Barton County Courthouse. Commissioner Kenny Schremmer will conduct the
auction. Parcels can be viewed on-line at www.bartoncounty.org.
-County officials have been invited to a Ribbon Cutting at Kensington Square, 2408A Adams,
Great Bend, Kansas, by Housing Opportunities, Inc. The event begins at 1:30 p.m. and includes
a tour and refreshments.

APPOINTMENTS: OCTOBER 22, 2018
9:45 a.m. or after the close of the Commission agenda meeting – Proposed revisions to the
Floodplain Resolution – Judy Goreham, Environmental Manager, and Barry McManaman,
County Engineer
10:15 a.m. – Training the Trainer for ACEs and Trauma Informed Systems – Shelly Schneider,
Health Director; Amy Boxberger, CKCC Director; and Marissa Woodmansee, Juvenile Services
10:30 a.m. – Reinvestment Grant, Kansas Department of Corrections – Ms. Woodmansee
10:45 a.m. – Program Update – Cottonwood Extension District
11:00 a.m. – Rebuild of a scraper – Phil Hathcock, County Administrator
11:15 a.m. – Regular Business Discussion – Mr. Hathcock and Donna Zimmerman, County
Clerk
THE COUNTY EDITION, KVGB-AM – Thursdays at 11:05 a.m. Members of the Juvenile
Services Department are scheduled for October 25, 2018.

VI. OTHER BUSINESS:
A. Discussion Items.
B. Citizens or organizations may present requests or proposals for initial consideration.
C. The Commissioners are available to the Public on Mondays during regular business
hours.
D. The Commissioners may, individually, schedule personal appointments related to County
business at their discretion.
E. The next Regular Meeting will be at 9:00 a.m., Monday, October 29, 2018.

VII. ADJOURN.

by Mary Lou Peter

“Go East, young man, and grow up with the country.” Actually, that is the opposite of the original saying made famous by editor Horace Greeley, who told his readers to go west in 1865. But in 1994, one entrepreneur found that his path to growth was to go east, and that led him to rural Kansas.

Dan Senestraro is the owner of Eastside Dairy in Stanton County, Kansas. Dan is the westernmost Kansan on the Board of Directors of the Dairy Farmers of America.

Dan grew up on a dairy farm in California. He went to veterinary school at the University of California at Davis. “I was determined not to be in the dairy business,” he said with a smile. He graduated in 1986. By 1989, he found himself in the dairy business again.

“I was in a partnership on 800 dairy cows in rented space in southern California,” Dan said. As California became more crowded and urbanized, he looked to relocate and grow.

Western Kansas was actively seeking to attract dairies, touting such advantages as dry climate, abundant feed, and a pro-agriculture state economy. In 1994, Dan moved to Kansas and became part of the dairy expansion.

Today, Dan and his partner Clayton Winger own and operate Eastside Dairy on the east side of Stanton County. They milk approximately 3,400 cows and have that many heifers being raised for future production, so they have roughly 7,000 total head of cows.       Their heifers are custom raised up to four months of age. Each year they farm more than 800 acres of crop ground in corn, sorghum and wheat.

“We’re sustainable,” Dan said. “We have a closed loop system and we reuse all the waste water and nutrients. We catch every drop of runoff.” For example, water that is used to clean off pens is captured and fed through the water pivots to irrigate crops.

“We do nutrient recycling,” Dan said. “We do export some manure to neighbors who grow corn and silage for us. It’s a good business practice as well as environmentally sound.”

In 2000, Dan got involved in the governance of the dairy industry. Dairy Farmers of America, the nation’s largest dairy cooperative, is organized into several regions. All of Kansas was in the central region, but dairies in southwest Kansas were more similar to the ones in Texas and New Mexico so the regions were reorganized. Today in the DFA organization, Dan is chair of the southwest area, chair of the Global Trade Committee, and vice-chair of the overall organization’s Board of Directors.

Dan has seen many changes through the years, involving trade and other factors.  “Fifteen or twenty years ago, we exported maybe three to four percent (of our production),” he said. “Today, 17 to 18 percent of production on a solids basis is being exported. We’re moving more and more into world markets.”

The DFA organization has also grown and changed. For years, the DFA headquarters was in a leased building in Kansas City, Missouri. In 2017, DFA built a building in the Legends area of Kansas City, Kansas. “The Kansas people bent over backwards to help us,” Dan said.

As milk production grew in southwest Kansas, opportunities grew for further processing.  In September 2017, DFA opened a new milk processing plant in Garden City. “It handles four million pounds of milk a day,” Dan said. The milk is converted to whole milk powder which goes into the export market.

“We’ve made lots of progress out here,” Dan said. He serves on the city council and airport board at his rural community of Johnson City, population 1.495 people. Now, that’s rural. “Everybody needs to be involved to make things work,” he said.

“Go East, young man.” That’s the direction which Dan Senestraro took from California, and it has made it possible to grow the dairy industry. We commend Dan Senestraro, Clayton Winger, and all those involved with Eastside Dairy. Their move has enabled them to go and grow.

In coming weeks, we’ll learn more about the growth of the dairy industry in western Kansas.