A graveside funeral service for longtime Prowers County farmer and rancher, Ray Hays, was held at 10:00 AM Monday April 25, 2016 at the Fairmount Cemetery in Lamar.  Bon May  officiated the service.

Visitation for Ray was held at the Peacock Family Chapel on Sunday April 24, 2016 from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM.

Ray was born on January 26, 1927 in Wiley, Colorado to Clarence Arthur Hays and Merle Gertrude Brown-Hays and departed this life on Tuesday April 19, 2016 at Prowers Medical Center in Lamar at the age of 89.

A celebration of life for longtime Lamar resident, Winnie Wilson was held at 10:00AM on Saturday April 23, 2016 at the Lamar Methodist Church with Barbara Johns-Schieicher officiating.

Visitation for Winnie was held on Friday April 22, 2016 from 4:00PM until 7:00PM at the Peacock Family Chapel.

Winnie was born on November 21, 1926 at Liberal, Kansas to Dewey and Janet (Sutton) Wilson and passed away on April 14, 2016, with his family at his side, at the Weisbrod Memorial Hospital’s Extended Care Unit at the age of 89.

Report shows visitor spending supports six jobs in local economy

A new National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 5,887 visitors to Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site in 2015 spent over $337,000 dollars in communities near the park. That spending supported six jobs in the local area.

By Slim Randles

Herb Collins was back out in the yard again Saturday. The noise made the neighbors go to the windows and peek out to see what was going on, because yard work and noise and Herb have never gone together.

Mystery solved. Herb has a new gas-powered lawn mower. Last Saturday was the final outing for his quiet electric lawn mower, as he once again ran over the cord and cut it. The cord finally had more patches than a quilting bee, and Herb had opted for a gas mower that didn’t require an umbilical link to the front porch.

By Chris Sorensen

After a few weeks of cooler temperatures, rain, and even some late-season snow last Friday, temperatures will begin climbing to levels more like spring by the middle of the week.

First, a few more days of cooler temperatures start the week. Sunday’s high will be in the upper 40s with a chance of afternoon showers continuing into the evening. Look for north winds 15-25 miles per hour and an overnight low near freezing.

Monday and Tuesday’s highs will be in the mid-50s to mid-60s, with overnight lows in the 30s.

Summer fun in Colorado often involves some time cooling off in a local lake or swimming pool or boating on high mountain lakes and rivers. To help you and your family stay safe around bodies of water, follow these tips:

Water Safety Tips               

•                Practice the buddy system. When swimming make sure someone is available to assist you or go for help if an emergency does happen.

By NWS Staff

Only two years ago major flooding in September resulted from over eight inches of rain that fell over a large area from northern Jefferson County to the Wyoming border. This rain caused flash flooding in a number of creeks and rivers, causing considerable flash flooding. Runoff from area streams combined to cause major flooding along the South Platte River. Mitigation is still ongoing to repair flood damage along the streams and rivers in and near the foothills from Larimer County to El Paso County and along the tributaries to the South Platte River.

By Pastor Rich Z

HOW TO BECOME WISE

“Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise.” Proverbs 19:20

One of our most popular features from the past 15 years - a full-page color photo on the front of the Kiowa County Press showing various impressions of life in Kiowa County. While a limited number of copies continue to be printed and distributed each week at Kiowa Healthmart, COOP C-Store in Eads, Haswell Propane, and Thunderbird Petroleum, we wanted to bring this feature to our online readers as well.

Shown below - the front page of the April 29, 2016, Kiowa County Press - The grain elevator at Haswell. Photo by Jeanne Sorensen.

By NWS Staff

The threat of tornadoes in Colorado increases rapidly in May and continues through August. Ninety percent of Colorado tornadoes occur during this four-month period, but tornadoes have been reported as early as February and as late as October. At least two tornadoes were spotted in Kiowa County in mid-April this year.