Governor Laura Kelly announced Monday, September 23, the 14 grant recipients of the Rural Champions program's second cohort. The selected Rural Champions will join a growing statewide network of grassroots individuals tackling critical projects in their respective rural communities.

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The Rooks County Historical Society held its regular monthly meeting on Sunday, Sept. 15th. Seven members and eight board members were present. The Omar Knoll art exhibit, planned for Sunday, Oct. 6th, was discussed, and everything seems to be falling into place. Other Old Business discussed included the Halloween Haunted House, Olde Tyme Christmas, and a Christmas movie. The Andreson grant was discussed. The grant money will be moved to the Lighting Fund with the Andresons' approval. Meeting adjourned.

The monthly meeting of the Mt. Pleasant 4-H Club was held on July 7, 2024, at Harding Hall at 5:00 pm. Emerson Lowry led the Pledge of Allegiance, and Taylor Inglsbee led the 4-H Pledge. Twenty-nine members and two leaders answered the roll call. The minutes of the last meeting were read and approved. In the leader’s report, we discussed having a summer party on July 27. The Kansas State Fair deadline is July 15. The fair setup will be on August 1 at 6:30 pm. Cleanup will be the Sunday after the fair at 8:00 am. We also discussed 48 hours of 4-H October 12-13th. The Style Review Committee will set up July 17 for the Style Review on July 18. The theme this year is the USA. The concession stand will be open for the event. The people working will be Damon Muir, Hudson Muir, Ryker Peterson, and Andy Muir. The Fair Booth theme will also be USA. The setup for the fair booth will be on August 8. There will be no August meeting due to the fair. In new business, we will change the September meeting to September 8. It was moved by Emery Peterson and seconded by Corbyn Glendening. Then, we voted on waiting until 2025 to make new sign boards for the fair for livestock projects so all members would be uniform. Then we decided to have a 4-H tour on the Thursday of the fair at 2 pm. Taylor Inglsbee moved to adjourn, and Corbyn Glendening seconded it. The meeting was adjourned. —Reporter

6 flour tortillas (soft taco size) 1-16 ounce can refried beans 1 lb ground beef 1 envelope taco seasoning 4 cups grated cheddar cheese (or cheese of your choice) 2/3 cup water 1/2 cup chopped onion 1/2 cup chopped bell pepper 1 tbsp minced garlic 1 can Rotel Lettuce, chopped Tomatoes, chopped Onions, chopped Shredded cheese Sour cream Guacamole In a large skillet, cook the ground beef over medium heat until no longer pink. (If you are using onions, garlic, or peppers, cook these with the beef at the same time).

The Kansas Highway Patrol recently released its Labor Day Weekend Holiday Activity Report. The reporting period for the holiday ran from 6 p.m.

One of the nation’s accounting standards-setting organizations has selected University of Kansas School of Business student Hannah Hageman as one of its summer 2024 postgraduate technical assistants.

The Stockton Fire Department answered a call on Saturday, September 21st, at 10:30 a.m. at North First and North Cedar Streets. An engine fire in a pickup with Norton County tags had the firemen working the scene for 45 minutes. Damage was contained to the engine and part of the cab.

Gary Kee (stopping in at the Sentinel to visit his high school classmate, Virgi): “I wish I would have learned this sooner, but people really need to take time to spend with their family and friends. I am working on that now.”

How many of you took the time to smile this week, even when you didn’t feel like it? As we said last week, smiling can be just one way to let our light shine in the world. Letting our light shine to others is our way of bringing others to a life with Jesus.