BOOKED: Spencer Wolfkill of Hoisington on Great Bend Municipal Court serve sentence.

BOOKED: Fernando Acosta, hold for ICE transport.

BOOKED: Christle Estabrook of Hutchinson for Great Bend Municipal Court case for contempt, bond is $836.78.

BOOKED: BJ Corter of Hoisington on a Barton County District Court warrant for failure to appear, no bond. Russell County District Court warrant for failure to appear, bond was set at $158 cash only.

BOOKED: Luis Diaz, hold for ICE transport.

BOOKED: Jason Payne of Great Bend on Barton County District Court warrant for possession of controlled substance with a bond set at $10,000 C/S. Probation violation with no bond. Probation violation, no bond. Flee and elude with a bond set at $5,000 C/S.

BOOKED: Curtis Rosas of Great Bend on Great Bend Municipal Court case for habitual violator, no proof of insurance, and illegal tags with a bond set at $1,000 C/S.

BOOKED: Elijah-River Gerbitz on Ellinwood Municipal Court case for criminal damage to property, bond in lieu of $1,000 C/S.

RELEASED: Jose Santana of Great Bend on GBMC case for serve sentence.

RELEASED: Luis Diaz of Wichita on Barton County District Court case for aggravated assault on LEO, DUI, criminal damage to property, ITOL, and interference with LEO. Released to ICE custody.

RELEASED: Fernando Acosta to ICE.

RELEASED: Luis Diaz to ICE.

RELEASED: Curtis Rosas of Great Bend on Great Bend Municipal Court case for habitual violator, no proof of insurance and illegal tags after posting a $1,000 surety bond through Ace Bail Bonding.

RELEASED: Elijah-River Gerbitz on Ellinwood Municipal Court case for criminal damage to property after posting a $1,000 surety bond through Ace Bail Bonding.

Great Bend, KS – Members of the Barton County Young Professionals (BCYP) group are invited to participate in a free leadership development series designed to help YP’s grow personally and professionally.  The next presentation, “Meet the Mayor,” will be held on Wednesday, September 26, at 12 pm at the 10th Street Pizza Hut.

Why Attend?  This is an opportunity for BCYP members to meet Great Bend’s Mayor, Joe Andrasek! By attending, you’ll meet Joe and learn why he ran for Mayor. He will share with the group his goals as Mayor, and there will be plenty of time for open dialogue between BCYP members to discuss ideas and share thoughts on how we can work together for the betterment of our community.

We hope you’ll join us for this free and informative presentation. The event will begin at 12 p.m. and will conclude with door prize drawings at 1 p.m. And remember, you get an extra ticket in the drawing for wearing your professional nametag at BCYP events! Each attendee must pay for their own buffet meal before leaving. RSVP’s are not required. For more information, visit www.BartonYP.com for find @BartonYP on Facebook.

Barton County Young Professionals (BCYP) exists to provide leadership, networking & volunteer opportunities. BCYP is a free membership organization for anyone 21-40ish who lives or works in the Barton County area. Over 750 individuals currently participate in BCYP membership. To learn more about the benefits of membership or to see an event schedule, visit www.BartonYP.com or call the Great Bend Chamber of Commerce & Economic Development at 620-792-2401.

The coach is different, but the success is familiar as twelve Great Bend High School debaters traveled to Halstead on Saturday to compete in the first debate tournament of the 2018 season.

“I was really impressed with our debaters, particularly our novices, most of whom had never even seen a round of debate,” said Kim Heath, first year debate coach at GBHS, “we finished in 4th place out 16 schools. It was awesome to see our kids start the season so strong.”

Heath has taken over for Barbara Watson who retired from Great Bend High School at the end of last year.

“Our topic this year is immigration,” said Heath, “with all of the press this topic is getting lately, our debaters have really begun to see the real-world implications of the arguments they are making in the debate rounds.”

Leading the Panther Debate squad at Halstead were Geoffrey Pafford and Daniel Abbott who finished in 8th place with a 4-1 record. Pafford is a 4th year debater and Abbott, although a junior, has never debated before this year.

“I was so proud of Daniel and Geoffrey. For them to go 4-1 at Daniel’s first ever tournament is a testament to both the potential of Daniel and the leadership of Geoffrey. I am really excited to see how they develop throughout the season,” said Heath.

The other experienced duo on this year’s squad is Bayle Sandy and Patrick Heath, both third-year debaters. Sandy and Heath went 3-2 on the day, but faced some of the toughest competition the tournament had to offer. The duo defeated the eventual tournament champs from Sterling, lost to the 2nd and 3rd place teams, and defeated the 4th place team.

“Rarely does a team face all four of the top medal winners in a tournament,” said Coach Heath. “Their 3-2 record is amazing, considering the talent they were facing in every round.”

In the novice division, the team of C.J. Gibson and Robby Brining placed 8th out of 26 teams from 16 schools, winning 3 rounds and dropping 2. Also going 3-2 was the team of Skylar Fletcher and Malachi Wasson. Other novices competing included the team of Paige Byerly and Tia Mitchell going 2-3 and the team of Isaiah Smith and Dalton Ruble who finished 1-4.

Attending the tournament, but not debating was the team of Natalie Bayona and Citraly Torres. The novices will next debate on Tuesday at Ellinwood and both experienced and novice debaters will travel to Hays High on September 29.

A Claflin man died in an accident early Monday morning in Stafford County.

According to the Stafford County Sheriff’s Office, Trevor R. Cates of Claflin died in the one vehicle accident four miles west of Hudson on NE 10 Avenue when his 2002 Pontiac left the roadway and overturned in the west ditch facing north. Cates was ejected from the vehicle and he was found pinned beneath the passenger side of the car. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The accident remains under investigation.

Mega Motor Weekend is less than two weeks away in Great Bend, and the closer the weekend gets, the more anticipation is built. The weekend of September 28-30 will cram a pair of Lucas Oil races at the SRCA Dragstrip, the Hahn Brothers’ Supercross Shootout, and Airfest all at Great Bend Municipal Airport and the Great Bend Expo Complex.

Community Coordinator Christina Hayes says there has been some confusion with people believing there is one gate fee to cover all the events. This is not true.

The Great Bend Airfest is charging $10 per person per day with children under 12 admitted free. Three-day passes are available for $25. The Hahn Brothers’ Shootout will cost $20 per day or a weekend pass for $35, and those under 12 years old getting in free.

The contract between the City of Great Bend and the Great Bend Chamber of Commerce was drafted in 1999 and there have been no changes to the agreement since.

City Administrator Kendal Francis felt it was time to renegotiate the contract with the Chamber to get better clarification of what the City wants from the Chamber and the economic development the governing body wants to pursue.

Kendal Francis Audio

The contract with the Chamber automatically renews January 1, and in order to renegotiate the contract the City must give the Chamber 90 days notice. The Great Bend City Council voted in favor allowing the City to move forward with the renegotiation.

Kendal Francis Audio

Part of the Chamber’s funding comes from the special city sales tax. Through the General Fund and transfers to the Economic Development Incentives Fund, the Chamber was approved $203,000 in the 2019 budget.

On Saturday, just after midnight, an officer with the Great Bend Police Department observed a subject, who later was identified as Charles Bower, age 25.

Bower was riding a bicycle in the 3000 block of 20th Street with no lights. The Officer also observed Bowers littering. During the stop, the officer located illegal narcotics on Bowers.

The officer arrested Bowers for possession of methamphetamine, possession of marijuana, criminal littering and no bicycle lights. Bowers was booked at BTSO in lieu of bond with charges pending in Barton County District Court.

If you have any information regarding this crime please contact the Great Bend Police Department at 620-793-4120 or Crime Stoppers at 620-792-1300.