MeDALLION HUNT 2023
CLUE #7
FIND IT HERE! Friday, October 20, 2023
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Energy line project readies for next phase
Two arrested after officer attacked By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register
By VICKIE MOSS The Iola Register
Starting next month, NextEra Energy Transmission Southwest is expected to start clearing trees for a new transmission line project that will connect a substation near Wolf Creek to one in southwest Missouri. It’s one of the first steps toward construction, which will require upgrades to several rural roads in Allen County. NextEra project director Nick Fuhr met with county leaders Tuesday to discuss the project, particularly a road agreement currently in development by attorneys representing the county and NextEra. NextEra will pay for the costs of improving the roads. The county is reSee PROJECT | Page A3
Allen soccer ties with Southeast
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Gabe and Myra Gleason, from left, meet with Lt. Gov. David Toland, an Iola native, at a ceremony in Wichita on Oct. 12, where they were recognized for their retail business. Jonathon Goering, former economic development director for Thrive Allen County, is shown in behind them. COURTESY PHOTO
Gleasons earn state honor By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register
WICHITA — Talk about your good first impressions. Iola’s Gabe and Myra Gleason, owners of Fillmore Coffeehouse and Plant Cafe, were recognized earlier this month by the Kansas Department of Commerce with a Merit Award of Excellence. As a nominee in the retail/ service division, the Gleasons were invited to an Oct. 12 ceremony in Wichita. “It was great. We got to finally meet David Toland,” Gabe Gleason said. Toland, an Iola native, is both Kansas lieutenant governor and commerce secretary. The award came barely a year after Fillmore opened its doors in the fall of 2022.
From left, Jonathon Goering, Myra and Gabe Gleason, and Lt. Gov. David Toland. COURTESY PHOTO Gleason noted neither he nor Myra are from southeast Kansas, making the award even more special. “It’s not why we do this, but it was nice to feel that acknowledgement,” he said. Also on hand for the cer-
emony was Jonathon Goering, former economic development director for Iola through his work at Thrive Allen County. Goering now works in economic development in the Wichita area.
A bizarre series of events led to the arrest of two people, after they were accused of attacking a police officer Brandon in Missouri David earlier in the week. Allen County Sheriff Bryan Murphy said Brandon L. David and Raven C. Gomez are being Raven held without Gomez bond after they were picked up at a farm southeast of Moran Wednesday. How they got there is quite the story. David and Gomez were sought after attacking a female officer at a Jasper, Mo., convenience store on Monday evening. The initial call came after Jasper officers were summoned to the convenience store due to a disturbance, said the Jasper Police Department. There, an officer found the couple in a car and ordered Gomez out of the vehicle for a pat down. As she was checking Gomez for weapons, Gomez punched the officer in the face, causing her to fall and hit her head on the ground. David then exited the pasSee ARRESTS | Page A4
Study asks: Where’s the ‘Midwest’? By HOLLY EDGELL KCUR/Midwest Newsroom
Michael Kaeshammer. COURTESY PHOTO
Pianist, singer will take Bowlus stage on Saturday By the Register staff Michael Kaeshammer has invested a lot — countless hours at the keyboard, hundreds of recordings, thousands of live performances, millions of miles in the air and on the road — all in pursuit of a mastery of 12 notes across 88 keys. But for the acclaimed CaVol. 125, No. 268 Iola, KS $1.00
nadian pianist and singer, there is no set destination, no achievable end point on his path; it’s all about the journey itself, and that journey will always be ongoing. Over the course of decades as a professional performer, Kaeshammer has developed See MUSIC | Page A3
CLUE
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A research journal called the Middle West Review released the results of what it describes as the “largest-ever study on who considers themselves to be Midwesterners.” Researchers collected about 11,000 responses. “The big conclusion is that, indeed, Midwestern identity is very strong,” said study leader Jon Hauck, editor-in-chief of the Middle West Review. “I think there is a general belief that the strongest regional identity in the country is Southern identity, and that perhaps the weakest regional identity is in the Midwest, because the borders are a little more amorphous.” The research covered 22 states, including the 12 designated as Midwest by the U.S Census bureau, and 10 on the fringes of what might typically be considered the Midwest. Lauck decided to include states like West Virginia, Tennessee and Colorado, to determine just how far the
Residents stretching from Idaho to Kentucky regard themselves, to varying degrees, as Midwesterners. KCUR VIA THE MIDDLE WEST REVIEW
Midwestern identity reaches. “As I started to organize the survey I said, ‘Well, this isn’t going to be super helpful unless we know what the state next door thinks,’ and that’s why it’s so useful to have these comparables.” Iowa and Minnesota residents expressed the strongest sense of Midwestern identity, with 97% of respondents in each state considering themselves to live in the Midwest. Many Americans would
consider Ohio and Michigan strongly Midwestern, but fewer respondents from those states claim the identity. Compare that to Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska, where more than 90% of respondents consider themselves Midwesterners. Many Oklahomans also identify with the Midwest — 66% in the poll. “There are doubters out there who believe that the Midwest doesn’t exist, or it’s not a place where people
One in the hand is worth more in the bush, I fit in your palm but keep that hush hush. 2023 Hunt sponsored by
See MIDWEST | Page A4