Rabies Alert

In the past month, there have been numerous sightings around town of raccoons, skunks, and cats that appear to acting erratically.  Rabies has not been officially confirmed but seems likely according to some experienced Barnard residents.  Please take precautions and make sure your animals have their shots.

Barnard School Alumni Bring Life to Downtown Barnard

On a hot Sunday on Memorial Day weekend, many alumni of Barnard High School made the trip to Barnard to reconnect with old friends and find out about others who were not able to make it.

Lunch was prepared and served by the Barnard Lions Club.

The Watson Family

A group of Wallaces and Peppers at the right.

 Mr. and Mrs. Delmar Wolting

Dottie Pepper and her cousin Kenny Wallace

Dottie Pepper, Jeff Wallace (son of Kenny), and Kenny Wallace.

 Joann Loy

Mr. and Mrs. Gary Pepper

Peggy Saunders Blanding and Carol Clark

Ed and Anne Wallace (closest to the camera) and a table of friends.

 Pat Tatum Simpson, Beth Saunders, and school mates.

Arlene Murray, the last teacher to teach in Barnard.  Mrs. Murray today (above) and 1957 below.

Jan Dowlin, Barnard's busiest volunteer.

Carol Clark, Secretary/Treasurer of the alumni association.

 Gary Pepper, President.

Helen Wallace

Class of 1962 50th Reunion with their first and second grade teacher Arlene (Abrams) Murray and their 5th and 6th grade teacher Helen Wallace.  Left to right:  Judy (Keeler) Prater, Arlene, Sherry (Biggs) Dillon, Carilynn (Pruitt) Gustafson, Helen, and Bob Wallace.

 The gymnasium of the school still stands as a reminder of the school days in Barnard.

 The scoreboard has not kept scores of games in years but is a record of the passing of time.

 The Class of 1948 was the first class to graduate on this stage...the last was the Class of 1966.

Many students were fed out of this kitchen.

United States Postal Service Probably Won't Close the Smallest Post Offices But Will Still Consolidate Mail Processing Sites

In an announcement earlier this month, the USPS says it has developed a strategy that will not require the closing of thousands of post offices, mainly those serving rural areas.  The plan would use customer use statistics to determine new shortened business hours.  Lobby access and box access as well as zip codes and community identity would not be affected.  This strategy would be implemented over a two year timeline and is projected to be finished by September of 2014.  Projected savings would be $500,000,000 (five-hundred million dollars).  The Postal Service is estimated to lose $14 billion dollars for the fiscal year of 2012.

Post offices in rural America will not be closed unless the community affected has a preference for other options that will be offered by the USPS.  Community meetings will be conducted to educate affected communities of these options.  The options include providing mail delivery by rural delivery or highway contract route, contracting with local businesses for a Village Post Office, or offering services from a nearby postal office.  An early retirement plan for 21,000 non-executive postmasters has also been announced.

However, the mail processing centers have not been spared.  The first phase of 140 consolidations will happen by February of 2013 with 89 more consolidations beginning one year later.  These consolidations are projected to save $2.1 billion annually and will reduce the postal workforce by 28,000 people.

It is unknown what the effect will be on the Barnard Post Office.  As per USPS policy, local postal employees are prohibited from discussing policy changes and making statements.

Caleb Abell Graduates from Kansas State University

Caleb Abell, son of Brett Abell of Barnard and Tom and Shanna King of Minneapolis, graduated on May 12th from KSU with a B.S. in mechanical engineering.  Caleb's grandparents are Bob and Mary Jo Abell of Barnard and Randy and Barb Rathbun also of Barnard.

Alumni Weekend in Barnard, Kansas

The Barnard Cardinals will commence the 54th reunion on May 27th in Barnard at the Barnard Community Building.

The Barnard Lions Club will be serving lunch at 12:30 p.m. with memories being served all afternoon.  There will be a program and Alumni Association meeting later in the afternoon at two.

Local Couple Will Celebrate Golden Anniversary

On June 3, Wade and Janice Gregg of Barnard will celebrate 50 years of marriage.  May they and their family continue to be blessed.

Lincoln Business Closes but Barnard's Salt Creek Cafe Booms.

In mid-May, a familiar fixture on Main Street in Lincoln, Kansas closed.  Owners cited unforeseen circumstances.  A sampling of Lincoln County residents expressed different views on the closing.  Some were surprised that it had closed and will miss breakfasts and lunches at a favorite dining establishment.  Others were not so surprised because of declining quality in food, and service with an increase in prices.

However, another Lincoln County eatery has had a different story.  The Salt Creek Cafe in Barnard has continued to thrive and business continues to increase.  A motorcycle group of about 25 riders recently visited the cafe and said that Barnard has quite a gem.  Other cafe customers compare the Salt Creek Cafe to its predecessor, Betty's Place.  They express that they are glad that Barnard has been able to re-establish itself as a place to come for good food.  Recently, owner Cathy Brockway started Steak Night on the first and last Saturdays of the month.

Local Recognition submitted by Jeff Wallace

A few months back, there was recognition in the Lincoln Sentinel of Lincoln County undergraduate students who had done very well on grades at Fort Hays State University.  It didn't list graduate students.  Barnard has a graduate student who has done well at Fort Hays State University.

Barnard Banter editor, Travis Zirkle, a member of the Wallace family, has completed 27 of 36 hours required for his Masters in Adaptive Special Education from Fort Hays State University.  During that 27 hours, he has maintained a 4.0 grade point average and received an invitation to join the Honors Society.  This has been done in addition to his full time job in education, writing for the Barnard Banter, putting in hours trying to save the water tower, and pushing for growth in Barnard.

Barnard Community Movie...Save the Date

There will be a community movie shown on June 22. More details will follow.

Another Great Movie Qoute...

"If people swept in front of their own front doors, the whole world would be clean."-Queen Latifah from "A Joyful Noise (2012)."

My Apologies

I have not posted for a while because I have been away because of an illness and death in the family. I do have quite a bit to post and will be back in Barnard in a couple of days. Thank you for your patience and for your continued interest in the Barnard Banter.

Barnard Banter Nearing One Year Anniversary

The Barnard Banter started chronicling Barnard, Kansas on June 8, 2011.  At that time it was expected to possibly get an okay local following.  It was not really expected to become what it is today.

The Barnard Banter was started because Barnard was pretty much ignored by other media, even though Barnard has quite a bit going on and is a great place to live.

Now the Banter has a readership of over 6,500 scattered over all seven continents in 30 different countries.

The countries and provinces in which the Banter is read includes:

United States
Russia
Germany
Sweden
India
Puerto Rico
Australia
Czech Republic
United Kingdom
Latvia
Malaysia
Taiwan aka Republic of China
Venezuela
France
Indonesia
Columbia
Canada
Ukraine
Bulgaria
Cote d'Ivoire
Italy
Brazil
Tunisia
Egypt
Hong Kong
Slovakia
South Korea
Jamaica
Trinidad and Tobago
Spain

Thank you for reading the Barnard Banter.  I am glad that it has served a purpose within and outside of our community.  Hopefully it will continue to do so for many years to come.

Barnard Main Street Receives Some Much Needed Attention

Main Street in Barnard received some much needed attention today when the state had some asphalt remnants that they were willing to let the city have.

Randy Pickering, Crystal Pickering, Kenny Wallace, Marilyn Switzer, and Travis Zirkle were out cleaning out the damaged areas and filling them with asphalt.

A Few Words of Wisdom...

"When the jury box is packed with foxes, the chicken is always guilty."-Dolly Parton from A Joyful Noise. Gotta love her.

"You Took My Parking Place at Church" submitted by Charlene Watson

"You Took My Parking Place At Church"

Submitted by Charlene Watson
(This should wake us up.)

One day, a man went to visit a church. He got there early, parked his car and got out. Another car pulled up near the driver got out and said, "I always park there! You took my place!"

The visitor went inside for Sunday School, found an empty seat and sat down. A young lady from the church approached him and stated, "That's my seat! You took my place!" The visitor was somewhat distressed by this rude welcome, but said nothing.

After Sunday School, the visitor went into the sanctuary and sat down. Another member walked up to him and said, "That's where I always sit! You took my place!" The visitor was even more troubled by this treatment, but still said nothing.

Later as the congregation was praying for Christ to dwell among them, the visitor stood up, and his appearance began to change. Horrible scars became visible on his hands and on his sandaled feet. Someone from the congregation noticed him and called out, "What happened to you?"

The visitor replied, as his hat became a crown of thorns, and a tear fell from his eye,

"I took your place!"

When you read this, say a prayer... That's all you have to do. This is powerful. If we share this will our family and friends...Maybe, just maybe, we can get the world to start thinking about who took our place...

Barnard Weather Instantly Thanks to Randy Longino

Randy Longino, one of Barnard's weather spotters, sent in an addition to the Barnard Banter.  Weather is now available instantly on the front page of the blog.  The weather link is in the upper right hand side of the blog under "Information to Share."  The current conditions are listed for Barnard including temperatures (high, low, and current), wind speed and direction, precipitation, and more.  This information updates every five seconds or so.

Barnard Jam and Card Party May 5, 2012

The Barnard Music Jam and Card Party will be on Saturday, May 5th at the Barnard Community Building. Marilyn will be serving up smoked pork roast at noon with music to follow at 1 p.m. Cardd games will start at 7 p.m.