The Great Bend Coop has announced that Minnesota native Duane Anderson has become the company’s new General Manager. Anderson replaces Frank Riedel who retired last Friday after serving in the position for the past 21-years. Anderson brings a wealth of experience in agriculture to the position having been the auditor, controller, CFO, COO and CEO of several coops ranging from grain and supply coops to a very diversified manufacturing coop. Anderson, who started his duties on Monday, says the first order of business will be learning more about the Great Bend Coops vast trade area.

Duane Anderson Audio

Anderson has experience working with farmer cooperatives ranging in size from $30 million in revenue, to more than $500 million and says he understands that in a cooperative based business, the customer comes first.

Duane Anderson Audio

Anderson spent his youth farming near Gaylord, Minnesota which led him to begin running a custom harvesting business for 11 years which included cutting wheat in the Great Bend area.

Anderson and his wife, Kris, have seven children, three of which still live in the home. He has a daughter who lives in Olathe and another daughter who attends Benedictine College in Atchison.

One highlight of a recent conference hosted by Sunflower Diversified Services was information about how Aetna will help meet the health-care needs of people with developmental disabilities and delays, said Jon Prescott, Sunflower executive director.

Sunflower welcomed the InterHab Board of Directors and others to the quarterly meeting in Great Bend and Ellinwood. InterHab is the state association that advocates for clients of Sunflower and other agencies that serve people with disabilities and delays throughout Kansas.

“It was an honor to have them here and learn about Aetna’s new role in serving our clients,” Prescott said. “Kansas made a good decision in selecting Aetna as the new Managed Care Organization (MCO). I previously worked with Aetna in the retirement and health-insurance industries and am confident it will be responsive to our needs.”

Prescott noted that Aetna Medicaid Administration serves 2.8 million people in 15 states – Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and Texas.

“This represents a broad cross-section of our country,” Prescott commented, noting Scott Brunner represented Aetna at the local conference. “It is good to know our clients and other people with disabilities may now add Aetna to the list of MCOs they can choose from.”

Sunflower is an InterHab member because the association has a “big heart and professionally represents people with disabilities at the Kansas Legislature,” Prescott said.

For example, he added, if the state cuts funding for people with intellectual delays or disabilities, InterHab “helps its members go to bat for them. We all see first-hand the real-world results of budget cuts on our neighbors with disabilities. InterHab will always stand behind them.”

In addition, Sunflower has a long history of participating in an InterHab program called PUSH Day. “A number of our clients and staff attend this annual event where they can speak directly to lawmakers,” Prescott explained. “It is critical for us to keep up with legislative news and InterHab helps us do that.”

Almost 60 people attended the recent board meeting, which involved sessions at Perkin’s and a banquet at the Wolf Hotel; tours of the Ellinwood Tunnels were also on the agenda. Tim Graham, InterHab interim executive director, said participants have expressed a lot of positive feedback about the meeting.

“We were delighted with the leadership of Sunflower and Jon Prescott,” Graham said. “They gave us the opportunity to get to know Barton County better. Our members enjoyed catching up in the unique settings of the Wolf Hotel and Ellinwood Tunnels.

“We have often traveled to ‘the big city’ but rural Kansas was just what the doctor ordered. I have shared my experiences with a number of people.” Chad VonAhnen, InterHab board president, echoed many of Graham’s comments. “Jon and Sunflower were outstanding hosts and provided opportunities to learn about the local community. The sense of camaraderie in Barton County is something we hope to replicate when visiting other cities.”

It is through members such as Sunflower that InterHab provides leadership at the local, state and federal levels in areas such as technical assistance and advocacy, added VonAhnen, who is also executive director of Johnson County Developmental Supports in Lenexa.

Sunflower, a non-profit agency, serves infants, toddlers and adults in Barton, Pawnee, Rice, Rush and Stafford counties. It is in its 52nd year.

On Thursday, the Joint Legislative Transportation Vision Task Force will meet at the Meridian Center in Newton to discuss and hear input on the future transportation needs in the state of Kansas. The task force is assigned to develop a new long-term proposal to pitch to the Kansas Legislature on the direction for highway, rail, and air transportation.

Representatives from Great Bend will present to the task force Thursday morning in hopes of reconsidering 25 projects that were delayed in 2016, one of them being the K-96 Project from Nickerson to Lyons.

Great Bend Chamber of Commerce CEO Jan Peters says the study on K-96 Highway has been looked at for years.

Jan Peters Audio

In 1989, the Kansas Legislature approved corridor highway projects that connected Wichita to central Kansas with K-96. In 2012 the Kansas Department of Transportation identified a new diagonal passage for K-96 in Reno and Rice counties as a priority. The new stretch of road would connect Hutchinson to north of Sterling, bypassing Nickerson and Sterling. The project was dropped as K-DOT funding was pulled to balance the Kansas General Budget.

Peters hopes the regional support will show the task force that this project is still needed.

Jan Peters Audio

K-DOT’s 10-year, $7.8 billion transportation program that was created in 2010 is set to end in 2020. The task force will gather information and develop a strategy to fund a new comprehensive plan.

The task force has local representation including State Representative Troy Waymaster and Kip Spray, from Venture Corporation, representing the Kansas Contractors Association.

BARTON COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities continue their work on a major drug investigation in Barton County.

The one remaining suspect who was being sought in connection with the drug raid has turned himself in at the Barton County Jail, according to Sheriff Brian Bellendir.

Just after 11p.m. Monday, Murel D. Amador surrendered himself to Sheriff’s Deputies. He was booked on charges of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. He is being held in lieu of a $100,000 bond.

After executing nine search warrants to search homes and vehicles on Monday, authorities seized substantial quantities of illicit drugs including  200 doses of LSD, 10 kilos of high-grade marijuana, 1.5   kilos marijuana wax, 2 ounces of black tar heroin, 160 fluid ounces of liquid codeine, 1 kilo of methamphetamine, 2 kilos suspected china white heroin, 8 oz.  cocaine,6 oz. suspected Fentany, according to Bellendir.

Estimated street value of the drugs is believed to be in excess of $500,000.00.  Authorities also made six arrests.