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Advance voting for the Nov. 5 general election for city and school district candidates opened Oct. 16 at the office of Ellsworth County Clerk and Election Officer Shelly Vopat.

Advance voting closes at noon Nov. 4 with the election set for the next day.

Here is a rundown of the candidates, including three who have filed to have their names written in on the ballot for Wilson mayor and city council.

Candidates without opposition are listed; those with opposition were asked to fill out short questionnaires (I indicates an incumbent).

These were the questions:

1. What do you want the voters to know about you?

2. What do you think are major issues facing your city or school district and how would you address those issues?

SCHOOLS

USD 327 (all uncontested)

Position 1, Member District 1 — Darin Holecek, Ellsworth. (I).

Position 2, Member District 2 — Gina McGowan, Ellsworth. (I).

Position 5, Member District 2 — Cynthia Edgerle, Ellsworth. (I).

Position 7, At large — Ashley Bohl, rural Ellsworth.

USD 112

Position 1, Member District 1 — Bradley Schiermeyer, Wilson (I).

Position 3, Member District 3 (contested)

Josh Wimmer, Claflin — In an interview with the I-R, Wimmer said he would have removed his name from the ballot but he was past the deadline. Instead, he has thrown his support to fellow candidate Tamara Dody.

Tamara Dody, Claflin —

No form was returned.

Melissa Hubbard —

• I am a wife and mother of three, all graduates of Central

Plains High School. My husband and I are active members of the community and care about the future of this school district.

• I believe a major issue, among others, facing U.S.D. 112 is the budget and trying to work within the constraints of that budget while providing a quality education to the students. We must continue to address that issue head-on and be proactive.

Position 7, At large — Chad Rogers, Holyrood —

• I grew up in Lorraine, Kan.

and graduated from Quivira Heights High School in 1997. I attended Fort Hays State University before returning home to begin my farming career. Now in my 19th year farming, my wife Bobbie Jo Lamia-Rogers and I reside on our farm in northwestern Ellsworth County with our five children, Callun 11; Huxtyn, 8; Harlow, 4; Gentry, 4; and Zeke, 4.

I have served on the Farm Bureau of Ellsworth County Board, Ellsworth Coop Board and the Palacky Township Board as treasurer. I am also a member of the Holyrood Park Committee and the Holyrood Fire Department. I am running for school board because I have a strong desire to see USD 112 succeed.

• I believe the largest issue facing our district is the budget. I would like to see the board of education work together to ensure good stewardship of district resources to continue to support the quality of education currently provided.

A strategic plan should be created and then acted upon to provide a stable and sustainable district.

The board needs to provide a transparent line of communication between itself and the communities involved.

The purpose of education is to develop students who will become responsible human beings and who can thrive in the outside world, this should be their top priority.

Michelle Brokes, Wilson (I) —

• I grew up in northern Barton County and graduated from Claflin High School in 1995. I went on to get my bachelor’s degree in family studies and human services from K-State and served as the Ellsworth

County Extension agent. Through my work I met and worked with families throughout the current USD 112 and also did programming in the Ellsworth, Wilson and Quivira Heights schools.

I was encouraged to run for school board eight years ago because of my diverse knowledge of the school district and I have enjoyed learning about how schools function and why things are done the way they are. We are fortunate to hve great staff and supportive families in our district and I look forward to seeing our district continue to strive to be successful.

I currently farm and ranch with my husband in the Wilson area. We have four children: Cade, 12; Lane, 10, Bo, 6; and Brock, 6 months.

• USD 112 has gone through a great deal of controversy this past year and we are seeing division amongst the families. I feel very strongly that we must work to put that divisiveness aside and remember what the school’s function is — the education of our children?

CITIES

Ellsworth City Council (three open seats)

Darcy Hansen, Ellsworth —

I was born and raised in Ellsworth County and I chose

to come back to Ellsworth after college to raise my family. I have an associate’s degree in office technologies from Fort Hays State University. I have been employed as the clinic director at Torkelson Chiropractic for 21 years. My husband Brad is a lieutenant at Ellsworth Correctional Facility. We have two daughters who are 15 and 12. We are very involved with our daughters’ activities, in our church, and various organizations. I am running for city council to help keep our city growing and a community that people want to call home and raise their families. Although I will be new to city government, I am willing to work hard to learn how our city operates and how we, as a city council, can make the best decisions for our residents and businesses.

• I believe one major issue Ellsworth faces is a deteriorating infrastructure, such as our water lines. I do understand that a project of this magnitude does not come without a huge price tag, which in turn may lead to a tax or rate increase, which most likely has to be passed on to the residents of Ellsworth. As a taxpayer, I do understand that no one likes to see their taxes raised, but sometimes I believe that it becomes inevitable. I currently do not fully understand what it would entail to start upgrading what we have , but I know that we cannot keep putting Band Aids on the infrastructure we currently have and expect it to sustain our city for years to come.

Michael Hunt, Ellsworth —

• I am 52 years old. I have been employed full time at Ellsworth Correctional Facility for nearly 14 years. I have resided in Ellsworth for 9.5 years. During that time, I have seen many changes in place, some good, some not so good, and I have attended City Council meetings only to witness some serious issues being improperly handled or addressed, and have even made suggestions that the current council had either not though about or proposed. My goal is to employ better solutions for issues regarding our City.

• The biggest concerns to address within our City and our school district, are as follows:

A. Various or misc. criminal acts, regarding theft, vandalism, harassment, and overall disregard for legal or civil order.

B. Drug trafficking. This issue is what fuels the above (A), and it has become an annoying thorn in our community. There are known perpetrators who continue to be incarcerated and released into the public, only to reoffend or commit other acts against others. We need to restrict these individuals with curfews and proper supervision to ensure they are either contributing to our community, or enforce ways to convince them to leave our community and not return unless they can prove themselves to be law abiding citizens.

C: Bullying and harassment in our schools, that is blatantly becoming a growing issue, and the passive enforcement by school officials needs to be addressed. Victims of bullying and harassment are being blamed for “inviting” this behavior, rather that the perpetrators being punished for their uninvited actions. This has been an ongoing issue for years, and even with their “zero tolerance” policy, some individuals remain to be disregarded as being the aggressors, just because they are related to prominent people in our community. Both the youth involved and the parents need to be held accountable for these actions, the pampering of the elite needs to end. USD 327 needs more backbone in the area of concern.

D: USD 327 needs to reevaluate holidays and days of rememberance, and stop putting “one man’s dream” ahead of our veterans. Kids are excused from classes on MLK Day and other holidays; however, they are required to attend classes on Veterans Day. This act is not respecting our veterans the same as one man who “had a dream”, and other holidays, and I suggest a change to teach our youth to show our veterans respect, not only on Veterans Day, but every day.

Regardless of the people’s choice in November, these issues (and others) remain until they are addressed and dealt with, using professional and civil actions to avoid further issues within our community.

If we were to employ “people helping people”, in regards to neighbors reaching out to, and assisting other neighbors in need, or watching out for them to ensure overall safety, then we would have a great neighborhood watch program to assist our local law enforcement in enforcing regulations and keeping others safe.

I plan to be an encouraging factor in improving our community in any way I can, and will be open to listen to citizen concerns and address them with the council whenever we meet.

Jessica Kootz, Ellsworth —

• I am passionate about Ellsworth’s past, present and future and want it to continue to be a great place to live, work, learn and play for many years to come. Healthy living is dear to my heart and I plan to ensure the Ellsworth City Council can implement ways to maintain, if not increase, a good quality of life for the residents of Ellsworth. I hope to instill in the public a sense of trust and transparency between the City Council and the residents of Ellsworth. Simply put, I want what is best for the City of Ellsworth and am running without an agenda.

• The city’s infrastructure is a concerning issue as it is well past its prime. In order to maintain our current neighborhoods and look forward to growth, intentional planning needs to be done to update our current infrastructure in a cost effective way.

As we look to the future, I will ensure responsible stewardship of city funds towards other projects that can maintain and grow the tax base.

I commit to being a good listener and neutral impartial party. This will enable me to listen to the information presented, gather more data as necessary and make an informed decision that aligns with the best interest of the City of Ellsworth.

Wayne Scritchfield, Ellsworth, (I) —

• I have called Ellsworth home for 46 years and am very interested in being a part of our community thriving into the future. Municipal planning and design are parts of what I do on a daily basis and feel that my knowledge and experience assist our city in making good decisions about our future and our infrastructure planning.

• The infrastructure in most of the city is

beyond its design life and or capacity. If we are going to continue to grow and keep that existing neighborhoods vibrant, we need to make major investments into our infrastructure. None of these improvements are cheap so significant planning needs to be done in order to fund these projects and get them done in a cost effective manner. We need to attract and retain young people and families. We need to be planning for what these individuals need from our community as they build careers and families here.

Holyrood (uncontested)

Mayor

Brandon Koch, Holyrood (I).

Council (two open seats)

Alison Koch, Holyrood.

Tanner Dahlke, Holyrood.

Kanopolis (uncontested)

Mayor

Anthony Hopkins, Kanopolis (I).

Council (three open seats)

Michelle Schwerdtfeger, Kanopolis (I).

Matthew Munoz, Kanopolis.

Patrick Perez, Kanopolis.

Lorraine

Mayor (contested)

Kimberly Travnichek, Lorraine —

• I have lived in Lorraine for 38 years. my ancestors were Lorraine citizens. They helped start the church, coop, the fire department, cafe and city council. My husband Joe and I choose to move back to this town because we wanted to raise our children around family and the community that I grew up in. I graduated from Quivira Heights High school in 1994 and went to Barton County Community College and received an Associate’s Degree in Applied Science in 1997 while remaining in the town of Lorraine.

I am currently on the Lorraine Fire Department and am employed in Ellsworth.

• I feel the City of Lorraine has stood on its own in a lot of ways. We still have a bank, a coop, fire department and a city council. Some things that I would like to see happen in Lorraine is the fixing of our roads and to ask the community what they need and want in the City of Lorraine, not just have someone decide what needs to be done. I hope to help the community with my past history and knowledge that I have accumulated through the years with other projects I have been involved in.

Joe Togersen, Lorraine —

• Lived in Lorraine 16 years, served on city council one full, four-year term, served on fire department, led and organized three city fundraisers, currently hold a spot on the Futures Committee for USD 112. Hardworking-dependable-honestcaring.

• Streets are a big concern. Our finances are a concern that desperately needs to find ways to save. I would like to find people that may be looking for a place to start a business. I would like to make the twn more appealing to young families to move here knowing their kids will be safe and happy as well as a quiet place for the retired to rest and relax.

Vernon Donbraska, Lorraine —

• I am a hard worker, honest and do the best to my ability. If elected mayor of Lorraine, I would do the best job possible for the greater good of the city.

• We have a couple of major issues!

1. Street repairs — In order to address this issue, I would first look at the city budget, then the cost of repair, then make a determination how to get the repairs done.

• Abandoned properties — I would look at what can be done legally to get the buildings repaired or removed and to get either the owners to do this or have someone take the properties so they can be take care of properly.

Wilson

Mayor (contested)

Michael Peschka, Wilson —

• I believe that most voters know me and I have had some type of interaction with most of them. My wife, Karen, and I have lived in Wilson for over 45 years. I am a homeowner, property owner,

operate a small business and am currently president of Wilson Economic Development. I am a candidate for the mayor of Wilson because I believe our community is at a crossroads and the next couple of years will clearly define whether Wilson is able to sustain our current population and businesses, find growth in these areas to continue to decline. I am willing to work hard for the residents and business owners in our community in an attempt to prevent that decline.

• There are several critical issues that we are facing in Wilson today. We lost one of our primary businesses this year when Eschbaugh Advertising closed. There is also an on-going issue with maintaining our school. I believe the city’s role in both the school and businesses is to be fully engaged. We cannot wait until after the fact before looking at solutions. Another issue is the lack of suitable family housing. The success of businesses and the school are dependent on maintaining and growing our population base. The city needs to be pro-active in the support of housing development opportunities and in the utilization of existing vacant properties. Many of the vacant properties are blighted properties that can be addressed by the enforcement of existing ordinances or passing new ordinances. We need to ensure that Wilson is a community that families want to move to and live in, even if they are employed in surrounding communities.

Larry Ptacek, Wilson (I) —

• My name is Larry Ptacek. I am the incumbent running for mayor. I have served as council person for five years. I have served non-consecutively for 11 years as mayor. I served 37 years on the fire department, retiring recently. I have lived all my life in Wilson.

I volunteered in numerous groups that worked on projects to improve the city. I represented the city while mayor in front of the Kansas Supreme Court for the right to supply city water in the Hunter Estates addition. I helped in getting the grant to re-cement main street. I have maintained a constant tax level while operating the city.

• Dealing with noncompliant vehicles and structures that don’t meet city ordinances.

Bringing in businesses and employment opportunities.

Needing families to move into Wilson to help with the tax base and school growth.

I will support and encourage groups that deal with these issues.

Ron Bouska, Wilson — Did not fill out form.

Jessica Loveland, Wilson, write-in —

• I grew up in a small town just like Wilson. Have held many offices over the years from president of the county council in 4-H to most recently president of the Public Accountants

Association of Kansas in 2017. Have been active in the Czech Fest committee over the years as well as Wilson Economic Development.

• Revitalize the city by: cleaning up vacant lots and houses, restoring downtown buildings and energy efficient street lights; Promote Wilson by: school — small student to teacher ratio, closeness to the airport, I-70, lake and bike and hiking trails, cultural heritage by painting murals and installing signs on I-70; Provide incentives for business to come to town: geared towards young professionals and their families and grants to invest in businesses.

City council (two open seats, contested)

Steve Claussen, Wilson —

• I like to push on projects or people’s request for improvements to the city or city workers. I’d really like to find a way to bring new businesses to Wilson to help with new employment, which would help bring kids to our school to help with population. Would like to push for reclaiming roads as needed rather than chip seal every year, improve some graveled roads for smoother travels such as the one by the school, which I tried for last time I was on council.

• As I said, I would like to find a way to bring more population to Wilson by work. Housing has been a big push by others but don’t need houses if there isn’t anyone to fill them. I think getting new businesses to somehow com to Wilson and build would be the biggest thing to help establish the population that would keep our school a success.

Wilson has a lot of houses up for sale and no one to fill what’s here now because there isn’t enough jobs to bring people here to live.

David Criswell, Wilson —

• With wife Kim Criswell have four children ages 11, 14, 17 and 20. Owner of Kansas Foods LLC and Kansas Wildflower Honey.

Developer/ part-owner of Czech Cottages apartments. Leader in building Wilson’s spray park.

Former employee Wilson Family Foods & Hardware. Wilson mayor 2011-13. Recently purchased former Soukup and Kyner elevators from the Union Pacific Railroad to clean-up and repurpose.

• Winston Churchill once said,“He who fails to plan is planning to fail.” This is as true today as it was when Churchill said it during WWII. The City of Wilson has no plan in the key areas of business, jobs and housing. Effective planning is essential to the success of any community. The failure of our city government to plan has had serious consequences for our community. Businesses, jobs and housing in Wilson are all in a state of decline. Our city government’s lack of planning is a serious deficiency that I will work hard to correct if elected to the city council.

Gary Everett, Wilson (I) —

• I have experience on City Council in most every area, but especially on finance and budgets.

• The major issue to me is funding of current city services along with ongoing upkeep repairs and improvements of City equipment and facilities, both at the present and into the future. This will involve curbing current spending and probably increased fees and taxes. My goal would be to maintain what the city currently has, while building reserves for future needs and paying off current loans.

Along with other candidates and citizens, I feel the school problems and issues are a very big concern. I cannot think of anything though, that the city can do directly to address those issues. Indirectly the city needs to provide a safe, clean, affordable town, with well-maintained services, that will be attractive to businesses, and individuals to live and work and attract visitors for tourism.

Jerry Florian, Wilson —

Did not return form.

Anne Piper, Wilson —

• I have lived in Ellsworth County with my husband since 2002, moved to Wilson in 2005 and have worked at Wilson Communications since 2006.

• My hope is to see the town of Wilson continue to strive and grow bringing in new residents along with businesses and tourism. We also have a wonderful school that I hope our community and district will continue to support. When I put my name in the running there didn’t seem to be much interest from others wanting to run, seemed like the same few people running year after year ... since then, there are many people who are qualified and have shown interest in the City Council position. I just want what is best for our town and our residents. So vote for me if you want, I will do my best if elected.

Ryan Stoppel, Wilson —

• I am born and raised in Wilson and have lived here the majority of my life. I work in the agriculture field as a sales representative, a job that has allowed me to establish relationships throughout many communities that are much like our own. I am also a third generation farmers and work with my dad and brother to keep this tradition and way of life going. I have a wife who is a nurse in our local health care facility, and two kids that attend Wilson Elementary. I want to keep this town and community strong not only for my kids, but for many generations to come.

• Community pride — I want everyone who lives in Wilson to be proud of where they come from. I really want to promote community projects, cleanups, fundraisers and events. I think the key is to start with things that draw business into town, such as our ballfields and parks. When people visit Wilson, they need to have a good perception of the town and want to stay in Wilson, visit our businesses and shop local.

2. Safety — The benefit of living in a small town is that you should always feel safe. I would like to partner with local law enforcement and our fire department to enforce basic laws that would promote this type of environment. I would like to review and develop our current town ordinances to promote a clean and safe town.

Melinda Merrill, Wilson, write-in —

• I own three businesses in Wilson as well as owning a house here. All three businesses bring sales to the area. The Midland Mercantile and the Midland Railroad Hotel pull customers both regionally and nationally. The Czech Apartments house local citizens and workers from the surrounding area. I am currently working to increase moderate income housing by building duplexes in the town. Since being in Wilson I have been active in tourism and have authored several grants which have been awarded. I am dedicated to preserving the small town rural lifestyle. I have sat on several nonprofit boards including the Estes Park Environmental Center. I taught school for nearly 20 years in small school districts where educational and financial challenges needed to be addressed for the districts to succeed. My daughter has joined me from Colorado to help with the businesses.

• I believe that the growth and financial stability of our community is crucial as political agendas come and go. We need to revitalize our community and clean up abandoned and empty buildings and houses. Additionally we need to expand our tax base to enable changes to happen. I believe this can happen through the partnerships of many organizations and municipalities. Tourism is a way to bring additional funds to Wilson. However, a plan needs to be designed, implemented and evaluated for its successful. This plan should have input from community, nonprofits, municipal entities and be built with collaborative partnerships within the region and state. Wilson’s website should not only inform but engage visitors to the area. I would like to see a growth of festivals geared to outside guests such as an Egg Festival, Rockwell Christmas Festival, Storytelling, BBQ Festival to join our already popular Czech Fest. The idea is slow and steady growth of activities so that they are successful. The Kansas Movie Commission needs to be part of our tourism plan. Staycation, Praycations, Wilson Lake, the Lucas Art Community, and the Post Rock Scenic Byway should be included in the plan. We need to break the bubble and work with other communities to bring visitors to the area.

We need to work with venture capitalists to help with tourism as a product then bring in more jobs through new businesses. A workshop could include what are possibilities of futures industries? What are millennials looking for in a living and work place? Wilson has wide open spaces, plenty of space to develop recreational facilities and opportunities for business. We need to get involved with the state legislature as it relates to rural communities.

Our schools provide wonderful opportunities for students to experience low student/teacher ration while participating in a wealth of activities. More moderate, clean housing for teachers can keep the teachers living and spending in our community. Our schools can grow with other schools and districts by collaborating on best practices. As the town is revitalized more young families will look toward Wilson for quality of life living conditions.

Public safety must also play a large part in quality of life in Wilson. Young families must feel their children are safe whether on the street or in the school. We should develop emergency preparedness for natural disasters like fires from a few years ago and preparedness in case of school issues. Codes need to be developed to provide safe places to live and work such as Russell’s Ordinance 1903 and these codes must be enforceable by the Health Department. Again collaborating with cities and states on best practice ordinances and safety policies will help attract more families and visitors to our area.

Aubrey Ptacek, Wilson, write-in —

• I grew up south of Dorrance and after becoming Wilson alumn in 2008, I ventured to Manhattan Kan. but always found myself returning home to be near family and attempting to stay active in the community. I had the honor of representing the town’s celebrated heritage after being crowned Miss Czech/Slovak Kansas in 2009. The birth of my daughter in 2017 prompted the move back to Wilson. I could not think of a better place to raise my daughter and give her the opportunities and values that only a small town can provide.

• I believe that the biggest issue our small community faces is the lack of career building opportunities. As high school graduates leave the area, many of which would like to move back, we have little career choices to draw them back compared to that of larger communities. Many companies and industries are looking to expand and offer options of work from home or satellite locations. Capitalizing on opportunities such as these in addition to taking advantage of our natural surroundings we could draw in youth that enjoy being close to the open outdoors and promote small community lifestyle to individuals and growing families. This would not only help our local economy but will also bring new outlooks to the community and help maintain a solid and promising school system.