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Lovina Enjoys Mother’s Day and Looks Ahead to an Eventful Week

By
tammiehoeme
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Photo credit: Robin Riat

May 18 is daughter Lovina’s 19th birthday. It is unbelievable at how fast time seems to go. She only has one more year of being a teenager. Her birthday is also on Ascension Day this year. This Amish community keeps this day as a holiday. We have a fast and prayer day until lunch time, so everyone will be home from work. 

Daughter Elizabeth was explaining to her daughter Abigail, 6, that Ascension Day was the ascent of Jesus Christ into heaven on the fortieth day after his resurrection. She told her that the Amish children will stay home from school but the other children will still go to school. When her dad Tim came home from work, Abigail told him that she knows what Ascension Day is. She said it’s when all the Amish children stay home from school and the rest still go. Children in their innocence can say the cutest things. 

Grandson Timothy (T.J.) is released from doctor’s care and only has a Band-Aid on his finger. 

Church services on Sunday were held in the tent at niece Elizabeth and Manuel’s house. In honor of Mother’s Day, the mothers were all seated first for lunch except a few of us who were serving. After lunch the men washed the dishes so the women could sit and visit. This was quite funny, seeing how those men washed dishes. They were all joking about what they are planning for Father’s Day. We will see what they come up with.

Yesterday was a work day at daughter Verena’s house. Sisters Verena and Emma, nieces Elizabeth, Emma, and Crystal (nephew Benjamin’s wife), daughters Elizabeth, Loretta, and Lovina, and I assisted with the work. Of course all the little children were there as well, except for the ones in school. Daughter Susan and Ervin went with granddaughter Jennifer on a field trip. They came after that and helped, too. They worked on flower beds, etc. Walls, ceilings, windows, and furniture were cleaned in the bedroom, living room, dining room, and kitchen. Verena was so happy that all was so refreshed. With her handicap, it’s hard for her to do some of those jobs. Now today I will wash her laundry when I wash mine.  

Joe and I plan to attend the 5:30 p.m. wedding dinner of neighbor Paul and Regina. They will exchange vows on Ascension Day. We have wedding invitations from two neighbor girls as well, with their weddings being in June. Then also a wedding invitation from nephew Menno for a July wedding. Congratulations to all the couples—Paul and Regina, Mervin and Beth, Michael and Rose Ellen, and Menno and Diane. We wish you all God’s blessings!

It is with great sadness that I share the news that Joe had another aunt pass away. Aunt Rachel Hershberger, age 69, from Trail, Ohio, died Monday, May 15. She leaves to mourn three daughters, a son, nine grandchildren, and six great grandchildren. We are hoping to make it to her funeral on Saturday, but with it being 4 1/2 hours away we are having a hard time finding a ride there. Oure sympathy goes out to the family. Rachel was a very friendly person to all who knew her. She will be missed greatly. Rest in peace, dear Aunt Rachel. 

This was the fifth of our (Joe and I) aunts and uncles to pass away since January. Four of those were from the same family. 

God bless you!

Strawberry Pizza

1 cup flour

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

8 ounces cream cheese

1/2 cup sugar

1 quart fresh strawberries, cut in half

 

Glaze:

1 cup berry juice (cook a few strawberries in enough water to make 1 cup juice)

4 tablespoons sugar

4 tablespoons clear jel

In a bowl, mix flour, powdered sugar, and butter as for pie crumbs. Spread evenly over 12- or 13-inch pizza pan. Press firmly. Bake at 325 degrees for 12–15 minutes. Let cool.

In a separate bowl, cream together cheese and 1/2 cup sugar. Spread over cooled crust. Let chill.

Arrange cut berries on cream cheese. Bring berry juice to a boil, then add the clear jel followed by the sugar. Boil until thickened and spread over berries. 

 

Lovina’s Amish Kitchen is written by Lovina Eicher, Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife, and mother of eight. Her newest cookbook, Amish Family Recipes, is available wherever books are sold. Readers can write to Eicher at Lovina’s Amish Kitchen, PO Box 234, Sturgis, MI 49091 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply); or email [email protected] and your message will be passed on to her to read. She does not personally respond to emails.

 

Senior Citizens Encouraged to Apply to Receive Coupons

By
Guest Columnist
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Senior Citizens Encouraged to Apply to Receive Coupons to Buy Fruits, Vegetables, Herbs and Honey at Farmers Markets in Reno County.

Hutchinson, Kansas–Low-income Kansas seniors may be eligible for a program that provides coupons to purchase fresh, unprocessed fruits and vegetables and honey at farmers markets in selected counties throughout the state.

The Kansas Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program (KSFMNP) is providing seniors who
meet age and income requirements with $50 in coupons to purchase fresh fruits, vegetables, herbs and honey from authorized farmers at local participating farmers markets, June 15 through September 15, 2023. Coupons are available in $5 increments.

To be eligible to receive KSFMNP coupons, the following criteria must be met:
1. Age: A senior must be 60 years old or older, or at least 55 years old and a member of an
Indian Tribal Organization, on the day the money is issued.
2. Income level: A senior’s annual gross household income (before taxes are withheld)
must be at or below 185% of the federal poverty level. For example, a household of one
must have an annual gross income at or below $26,973, or a monthly gross income at or
below $2,248.

The Kansas Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program application process in Reno County will again be conducted by telephone only – no walk-ins. The application period begins June 14, 2023.

To apply, Seniors may call 620-694-2911 beginning June 14, 2023, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. M – F. No early calls will be accepted. Please leave a voice mail message if
necessary due to high call volume. Funds are limited and benefits will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information about the Kansas Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program, call the Reno County Department of Aging at 620-694-2911.

Eligible foods to purchase with the KSFMNP coupons from authorized farmers at participating farmers markets are defined as “fresh, nutritious, unprepared, locally grown fruits, vegetables, locally produced honey and herbs for human consumption that are produced in Kansas under normal growing conditions.”

The Senior Farmers’ Market Program is a project of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). The program is coordinated by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), which is collaborating with local partners to identify and distribute coupons to eligible seniors.

The program is currently available in the following counties: Allen, Anderson, Atchison, Barton, Bourbon, Brown, Butler, Clay, Cloud, Chase, Cherokee, Cheyenne, Coffey, Cowley Crawford, Decatur, Dickinson, Doniphan, Douglas, Ellis, Ellsworth, Finney, Franklin, Geary, Harvey, Hodgeman, Jackson, Jefferson, Jewell, Johnson, Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas, Labette, Leavenworth, Linn, Lincoln, Lyon, Marion, Marshall, McPherson, Miami, Mitchell, Morris, Nemaha, Neosho, Norton, Osage, Osborne, Ottawa, Pawnee, Pottawatomie, Prairie Band Potawatomie Nation, Rawlins, Reno, Republic, Rice, Riley, Russell, Saline, Sedgwick, Shawnee, Sheridan, Sherman, Stafford, Smith, Sumner, Thomas, Wabaunsee, Washington, Wilson, Wyandotte.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

A Face only a mother could love

By
Steve Gilliland
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Turkey vultures serve as Nature’s cleanup crew, so they get a bad rap on several fronts. But if you can get past how they look and what they eat, they really are amazing birds. Some years back, Joyce and I found that an old ramshackle shed in the middle of a wheat field, owned by a farmer at church, had been a vulture nursery for many years, and decided to see if we could watch the process of raising young turkey vultures first hand.
The old shed sat ¼ mile into a wheat field near a clump of trees surrounding an old windmill. A shelterbelt of overgrown cedars separated it from the field on one side. In one corner of this shed was a granary; the kind our granddads used with boards that slid into slots in the door frame to hold loose grain that was hand-shoveled off a wagon. One corner of this 4 x 6-foot granary had been the birthplace of numerous baby Turkey Vultures over the years.
On our first trip we cautiously entered the creaky old building, all the while scanning the rafters and dark corners around us, hoping not to be surprised by “mom” vulture or the bobcat the owner had chased from the shed that winter. We clamored over piles of old lumber and peered into the granary to find 2 solitary eggs lying on the floor in the front corner amidst several years’ worth of dirt and filth. Talk about a humble beginning!
The following week we again picked our way over the lumber to peer into the granary, and there sat mom on the nest. She sat perfectly still and showed no signs of fear, or of moving for that matter. To see under her, I literally had to pry her up in the air with an old board. Can you imagine standing 2 feet away from a wild adult turkey vulture? The 2 eggs still lay beneath her. Our next couple of weekly visits found mom absent but the eggs still intact.
The next time we checked in, we began hearing hissing sounds from the “nursery,” and as we stuck our heads around the corner, we were greeted by 2 hissing white balls of fuzz with black heads that were much too big for the rest of their bodies. They locked their stubby little featherless wings together, one facing forward and the other facing backwards, lowered their heads in a sort of defensive posture, and hissed like banshees! Subsequent visits were all met with the same greetings, but those white balls of fuzz got a little bigger each time. Black splotches began appearing here and there over their bodies as feathers slowly replaced the fuzz. I erected one of our hunting blinds nearby in an effort to observe the adults coming and going as they fed and cared for their chicks. I tried all times of the day but never succeeded, yet the chicks still grew and actually took on the form of turkey vultures.
On the next visit, as we silently approached the old shed, we were startled by 2 huge forms swooping out the side of the building in front of us. Figuring we had just missed our chance to see the adult birds interacting with the chicks, we walked on inside to find the nest empty. Back outside, a glance around found one immature vulture sitting on the windmill and the other in the shelterbelt. It had been the 2 chicks that swooped from the shed at our approach! They were fully grown and fully feathered but still lacked the unsightly red head that gives them the name Turkey Vulture.
A couple days later I made one last trip, trying to catch the youngsters on the ground and in the building to see what kind of response I’d get. I parked along the road and hiked the ¼ mile across the field attempting to sneak up on them. Numerous times when we had looked in on the growing chicks, not a vulture would be visible in the air as far as our eyes could see…until we exited the shed. Then from out of nowhere one or more would suddenly be circling above us. I still remember sneaking in that one last time and finding no vultures were around, but when I left the shed, both youngsters sat watching me from an old dead snag in the shelterbelt.
I wish we had been able to watch the young vultures learn to fly. How does that work anyway? You don’t just push a baby Turkey Vulture from the nest and hope they get it right before they hit the ground. They’re already on the ground! Turkey Vultures; God’s cleanup crew, with a face only a mother could love! Continue to Explore Kansas Outdoors!
Steve can be contacted by email at [email protected].

Sausage, Potato and Spinach Soup

By
Debbie Dance Uhrig
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Last week I was afraid I would not find my recipe sketch for this week’s column. I am quite happy to note I found it while cleaning the kitchen. There it was in all its’ glory written on the back of an envelope. Unfortunately it has been my habit to pen recipes on the nearest thing there is to write upon, it’s become my ‘M-O’. I’ve even made endeavors at work to break this nasty habit by using a steno pad. Is it working? Sometimes yes, and sometimes no.

Last week a couple of my papers didn’t receive the column, for this I do apologize. It is not me this time, it’s the computer. Every so often it will lose things out there in computer space. I go back and see I’ve sent them, but somehow in transition they don’t all arrive.

Let’s talk about the soup. I tried to be very specific as I set the recipe for you, keeping several suggestions and comments, in order to have a great outcome. Evidently this soup dish does have an origination in Italy. After I wrote the recipe I went back on line and reviewed several versions. Some may compare it to one of the soups served at Olive Garden. I don’t see much resemblance, but I can see where the idea might surface. Spinach could fade away and you could use turnip greens, some might even go as far as to implement kale. Certainly not my choice, but it’s a possibility. I would not switch out the potato to something different. The reds with the skins on add their own specific flavor. No one complained over the 2 types of onions being used. The green onions at the end could actually be removed and used as a garnish instead. The choice of cheese, well, I would stick with a creamy white cheese and not detour to a yellow cheese. Gruyere or Havarti could be interesting, even an old-fashioned farmer’s cheese would melt nicely, and enhance without take-over.

The soup ends up being nice and thick and it should yield enough for 6 persons and then some.
I would estimate there was about a full gallon plus.

Next week I will run the new asparagus bacon spread for you. So if you’re going to town and want to try it next weekend be sure and place bacon, green onion, cream cheese and asparagus on the grocery list. The other ingredients most cooks will have already.

I’m preparing for a little road trip to celebrate my birthday and Mother’s Day, with family up in Cameron, Missouri. We are having a bonfire as long as rains stay at bay. I can hardly wait, camping and cookouts are like one of my favorite things ever! Not to mention having family around.

Let’s enjoy the week and keep extra stress and worry at a distance. Simply yours, The Covered Dish.

 

Golden Fork, golden surplus

By
John Marshall
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john marshal

As mentioned here last month, lobbyists spend a lot of money entertaining legislators at Topeka and other venues. At the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission, statistics for 2022 are now complete; Martin Hawver, dean of the statehouse press and his wife Vickie, of Hawver’s Capitol Report, have captured special flavors in the numbers.
For the 5th consecutive year, Senate President Ty Masterson, an Andover (Wichita) Republican, has won the Report’s “Golden Fork Award” for accepting the most food and drink bought for a Kansas legislator. Lobbyists spent $5,460 on meals, drinks and sporting events for Masterson last year ‒ about $100 more than was spent on him in 2021.
In the past five years, lobbyists have spent $22,165 entertaining Masterson. He was not alone.
Last year, an election season, lobbyists spent $760,000 entertaining and schmoozing Kansas legislators and associates ‒ $311,000 more than they spent in 2021. Much of that expense was for food and liquor, but the amount includes expenses for recreation, entertainment and gifts, and media advertising to lobby issues or benefit lawmakers.
The numbers: Food and beverage, $545,829; recreation $12,418; entertainment and gifts, $12,187; mass media, $88,089; communications, $88,896; “miscellaneous”, $12,525.
Lobbyists generally spend more on legislators with the most power ‒ in Kansas, the Republican leadership and chairs of influential committees. The Top 25 included 22 Republicans and only three Democrats ‒ ten senators, 15 House members.
Among the top five with Masterson last year were House Speaker Dan Hawkins, R-Wichita (majority leader in 2022), $5,339; Rep. Brenda Landwehr, R- Wichita, chairman of the House Health and Human Services Committee, $4,538; then-Speaker Ron Rykman (retired) of Olathe, $4,720; and House majority leader Chris Croft, R-Overland Park, $4,474.
*
Who spent that money?
At the top were:
‒ The Kansas Association of Realtors, $86,710 , from most of it on mass media; the remainder, $12,697, for food and drink.
‒ Americans For Prosperity (a Koch-sponsored league), $58,498, most of it on communications, the rest ($5,743) on food and drink.
‒ The Kansas Bankers Association: $38,716, all but $240 on food and drink.
Another 16 organizations and their lobbyists spent from $10,000 to $20,000. They are:
Kansas Beer Wholesalers Association, $19,907; Heartland Credit Union Association, $18,876; Kansas Contractors Association, $17,924;
Frederico-Duerst Consulting Group: $16,772; Kansas Electric Cooperatives Inc., $15,759; Kansas Medical Society, $14,919; Evergy, $13,995;
Convention of States Action, $13,456; Kansas Hospital Association, $13,081; Kansas Chamber of Commerce, $12,442; Kansas Wine & Spirits Wholesalers Association,$12,388; Kansas Cable Telecommunications Association, $12,336;
Kansas State Council of Fire Fighters, $11,376; AT&T Inc. and Affiliates, $10,688; Kansas Automobile Dealers Association, $10,660; Kansas Trial Lawyers Association: $10,600.
Expenses listed for individual legislators do not include the big parties. Large events are often sponsored by lobbying organizations. Lobbyists spent more than $345,000 last year on receptions and other large hospitality events attended by legislators. Senators and House members may frequently attend these affairs but they are not listed individually. (Specific spending, though, conveys the personal touch.)
*
Expect a lot of that personal contact during the election season next year. Lobbyists will be campaigning for a long list of benefits and issues encouraged by a robust $9.4 billion state operating budget.
The estimated balance is nearly $2 billion, expected to increase to $2.6 billion in the budget year that starts July 1. And this is atop the state’s $1.7 billion emergency reserve (“rainy day”) fund.
Republicans, who dominate in the legislature, can thank Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly and a handful of moderates for this golden surplus. Kelly six years ago led efforts to pull the state from near bankruptcy and yawning debt piled up during the no-tax Brownback years of borrow-and-spend.
Republicans will feel free to spend the Democrats’ savings. Tops on their list are tax cuts, once a Brownback favorite and the kind of favor hard to ignore in an election year. Lobbyists will be ready to help with spending of their own.

 

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