Stories from Saturday, December 10, 2011

Nathaniel Maurice Graham, 52, of Kansas City, Mo., passed away Nov. 28, at the VA Medical Center. He was born Aug. 1, 1959, in Fort Scott, Kan. He was preceded by his father, Paul A. Graham Sr. and son, Justin M. Graham. Nate was baptized at the First Christian Church in Pleasanton, Kan. ...

Dorothy Irene Anderson, 83, resident of rural Redfield, Kan., died Friday, Dec. 9, 2011, at the home of her daughter. She was born March 26, 1928, in Richards, Mo., the daughter of Ernest Goddard and Ruby Hazel Evans Goddard. She graduated from Richards High School. ...

Ruth Lavon Coonrod, 83, of Manhattan, died Dec. 8, 2011, at Meadowlark Hills--Collins House. She was born Oct. 10, 1928, in Manhattan, the daughter of Foster and Margaret Unice (Colwell) Blockcolsky. Mrs. Coonrod grew up in the Zeandale Community and graduated from Manhattan High School. She had lived in Wichita, Kan., Elk Falls, Kan., and Winfield, Kan., prior to returning to Manhattan...

Ina Margaret Lafferty, 87, resident of rural Bronson, Kan., died Thursday, Dec. 8, 2011, at the Wesley Medical Center in Wichita, Kan. She was born Sept. 9, 1924, in Uniontown, Kan., the daughter of Arthur Andrew Walker and Jessie Newtown McHenry Walker. ...

Billy Joe Richardson, 78, of Fort Scott, Kan., and formerly of Hillsdale, Kan., passed away Dec. 8, 2011, at his home. Graveside services will be 11 a.m., Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011, at Hillsdale Cemetery, Hillsdale, Kan. Bill was born Oct. 4, 1933, in Hillsdale, Kan., to Harold F. ...

FORT SCOTT, Kan. -- The Fort Scott Police Department wants to make sure local residents stay safe this winter and holiday season. FSPD Lt. Shaun West said the department has issued a list of "general preemptive safety tips" it recommends for the public to follow during a busy time of year for police. Some of the tips involve getting assistance from friends, neighbors and family members to help resolve issues...

New U.S. 71 interchanges in Vernon, Bates and Barton counties will be dedicated in a series of ribbon cuttings Monday, Dec. 19, the Missouri Department of Transportation said in a news release. The projects completed this year are another step toward upgrading U.S. 71 to become Interstate 49 by the end of 2012, the release said...

U.S. Reps. Vicky Hartzler of Harrisonville, Mo., and Lynn Jenkins of Topeka, Kan., say their co-sponsorship of a bill to keep farmers from being fined for stirring up dust was a "common sense" step to protect rural America from out-of-touch bureaucrats...

NEVADA, Mo. -- Vernon County has had wild pecans since the era when no one lived here but Osage Indians who used them as a form of currency, and the crop's importance has grown through the centuries to reach its current level of supplying all 50 states and a raft of foreign countries...

Herald-Tribune WARRENSBURG, Mo. -- In Brent Bartlett's opinion, his Nevada High School girls basketball team got pushed around in the first half of Friday's game at Warrensburg. It was a different story in the second half. Nevada finished strong in a 47-37 win over Warrensburg in a game with district implications...

Tigers fall to talented Warrensburg