Hugoton was abuzz with dignitaries, secret service personnel and community members Friday as Abengoa prepared for their Grand Opening! Seven years in the making, Abengoa was ready to announce and push the button for the official starting up of their Cellulosic Ethanol Plant.  Their announcement is as follows: “Global leader in the development of new industrial biotechnologies debuts advanced biorefinery for cellulosic ethanol in Southwest Kansas!”

Abengoa, the international company that applies innovative technology solutions for sustainability in the energy and environment sectors, announced Friday the official grand opening of its second generation cellulosic ethanol plant in Hugoton.

The opening was attended by United States Secretary of Energy Dr. Ernest Moniz, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback, former United States Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, Kansas Senator Pat Roberts, Mayor of Hugoton Jack E. Rowden, Stevens County Commissioner David Bozone, Abengoa’s Danny Allison and CEO of Abengoa Manuel Sánchez Ortega. Stevens County Sheriff Ted Heaton and Undersheriff T.J. Steers provided security – in addition to the secret service agents – for Dr. Moniz from the Liberal airport all the way to the grand event west of Hugoton. Read More →

Celebrate Halloween a few days early this Saturday, October 25 at the Relay for Life’s “Spooktacular” Halloween Carnival. The event will begin in the Elementary School Gym from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Guests are encouraged to come decked out in costumes for the Costume Contest at 6:30 p.m. Prizes will be awarded to the best costume in each age group. Other activities will include a fishing pond, candy, pumpkin bowling, cotton candy, poke-a-pumpkin, a photobooth and more! Attendees can help the Relay for Life say “Boo!” to cancer!

Make sure to take in the Stevens County Library’s Textile Exhibit this weekend, as the display will end Friday, October 31. The SCL is located at 500 S. Monroe. Visit www.stevenscounty
library.com for more information.

Heritage Christian Academy will host their fundraiser dinner Sunday, October 26 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Fair Office Building in Hugoton.

Hugoton FFA members Karessa Nordyke and Nicholas Goode will be receiving their American FFA Degree at the eighty-seventh annual National FFA Convention in Louisville, Ky., later this month.  They are the first Hugoton FFA members to ever receive this prestigious award, given to less than one half of one percent of the 610,000 FFA members nationwide. Only the very best are eligible to even apply for this Degree and their application goes through a rigorous certification process at the Chapter, State and National levels. In Kansas, only 55 out of 9200 members are to receive this award. Nicholas and Karessa will be presented the American Degree Saturday, November 1.

To earn this award, an FFA member must have earned at least $10,000 from their Supervised Agricultural Experience Program (SAE), previously qualified for the Chapter and State Degrees, worked at least 100 hours of community service during their FFA membership, have a record of outstanding Leadership skills, and have graduated from high school at least one year prior to the receiving of the degree.

Karessa’s SAE is Home and Community Development. She repaired/rebuilt houses and sheds here in Hugoton for hire and for free for the elderly, and she was also involved in several new construction projects ranging from yard fences to the building at the Eagle trailer park north of town. In her spare time, Karessa performed over 225 hours of community service.

Nic’s SAE was the entrepreneurship of Lawn Care in which he managed and cared for the lawns of several local residents. Nic also earned money in the Outdoor Recreation SAE by working at the Hugoton Recreation Commission and performing over 250 hours of community service.

Karessa is the daughter of Paul and Shannon Nordyke, and Nicholas is the son of Danny and Traci Goode.

    Abengoa Bioenergy Biomass of Kansas LLC will be hosting their Grand Opening Friday, October 17, at 9:30 a.m. The event will begin with a tour of the brand new cellulosic ethanol plant, located at 1043 Road P in Hugoton.

Speakers at the event will include U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Dr. Ernest Moniz, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback and Abengoa CEO Manuel Sanchez Ortega.

    Abengoa’s arrival was first announced in the August 9, 2007, issue of The Hugoton Hermes. At the time, the project was estimated to cost $300 million and was predicted to produce 30 million gallons of ethanol each year using cellulosic materials, such as corn stover.

    As of July 2014, there are 29 cellulosic ethanol plants in the United States, eight of which are operational, 15 proposed plants, and six plants under construction—including Hugoton’s. States currently producing cellulosic ethanol include Missouri, Louisiana, Tennessee, Virginia, Iowa, Florida, New York and Oregon. Kansas will soon join that list, using crop residue. Other biomass used includes wood sugars, energy grasses, switchgrass and corn stover, mixed hardwood, and other waste materials.

Hugoton and the entire surrounding area were stunned into disbelief over the weekend. Four young people were involved in a horrific accident east of town Saturday evening, October 4, 2014.

According to Stevens County Sheriff Heaton’s report, Montana Beesley was driving her 2004 Chevrolet pickup east bound on County Road P. She lost control and her vehicle rolled. Montana and one of the back seat passengers were ejected from the vehicle. The emergency crews were called out at approximately 6:00 p.m. All four occupants were transported to Stevens County Hospital. All four were under the age of 18 and included Montana, Martha Rubio, Yaczeny Gastelum and Conner McCollum. Montana and Conner were both Life Watched to Wichita where Montana later passed away.

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It is time for the annual Hugoton United Methodist Church Women’s Autumn Bazaar Saturday, October 11. the Bazaar is arriving early this year. If you’ve been hankering for some delicious homemade food or need a nice handmade gift, look no further than the Autumn Bazaar. The bazaar will be at the Memorial Hall, Sixth and Monroe, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.

There will be baked goods, jams, jellies, cinnamon rolls, candy, soup mixes, Schermer pecans, and more for sale.

The dinner menu consists of turkey, dressing, gravy, ham loaf, potato casserole, green beans, salads, hot rolls and desserts. There will be a freewill offering accepted for the meal.

Former United States Senator and presidential candidate Bob Dole was in Hugoton last Wednesday as a part of his Gratitude Tour through all 105 Kansas counties. Memorial Hall was filled with people eager to meet and visit with Senator Dole.
Bob Dole is an attorney and retired United States Senator from Kansas. He served in the Senate from 1969 to 1996, and set a record as the longest serving Republican leader during his time as United States Senate Majority Leader.
Mr. Dole is actively seeking all World War II Veterans who have resided in Kansas to include in his WWII memorial at the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. If you or a loved one served in World War II and have lived in Kansas for any length of time, you are encouraged to do the following: Read More →

The American Red Cross encourages eligible donors to give blood during Liver Awareness Month this October. They will be in Hugoton Tuesday, October 7, from 12:00 noon to 6:00 p.m. at the  Stevens County Fairgrounds on Highway 51 and Washington Street.
According to the American Liver Foundation, more than 6,000 liver transplants are performed each year in the United States making it the second most common transplant. Liver transplant patients may require in excess of 30 pints of blood during surgery. Volunteer donors are the only source of blood for those in need of transfusions during surgery.
Donors with all blood types are currently needed, especially those with types O negative, A negative and B negative. All those who attempt to donate blood during October will be eligible to win a $5,000 Visa gift card, courtesy of Suburban Propane.
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Law enforcement officers across the state will be collecting unused leftover medications for safe disposal  Saturday, September 27, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.  Medications will be accepted at drop-off sites across the state from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Saturday. The Hugoton drop-off site will be the Stevens county Law enforcement center at 505 South Monroe.
To find another location, visit www.ag.ks.gov and click on the “Got Drugs?” icon.
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The 2014 Fall Homecoming festivities began Monday, September 22. Spirit Days for the week were Monday – Pajama Day, Tuesday – Hat Day and Wednesday – Red/Blue Day. Thursday there will be a parade at 7:30 p.m. on main street. The parade will begin at the park and will proceed down Main and stop at the fairgrounds in preparation for the Bonfire to begin at 8:00 p.m. The king coronation and pep rally will take place at the bonfire. Friday night, Citizens State Bank will host a Tailgate Party/Hamburger Feed from 5:00 to 6:45 p.m. CSB will close at 4:00 p.m. to host the party. Coronation will begin at 6:00 p.m. with the game to follow at 7:00 p.m. There will be a free homecoming dance for the high school students and their dates in the old high school gym from 9:00 to 11:30 p.m.