Dear Chamber Supporters:
It’s a big day in the Miller household as Mrs. Makayla gets one year older (picture of the birthday girl this morning)! This was taken after her run this morning, a whopping 18 miles. She has been training for a marathon since her half-marathon back in March (which also included several months of training before as well). She’ll tell you it gives her an immense amount of joy to run long distances… it hurts my body just thinking about it! She continues to amaze me every day, whether it’s her addiction to running or her general desire to better herself personally or professionally. She’s a keeper for sure!
Not to steal Makayla’s day, my cousin just had her baby yesterday (July 13th, just one day apart). You can see a picture here of not-so-little Knox Warren Drucker. Coming in at 10lbs 2oz! He’ll likely be taller than Makayla here in just a couple of years. I imagine my cousin Lauren will be relieved for multiple reasons that baby Knox has entered the world… we can’t wait to meet him. Exciting times all around!
Ottawa City Band
The Ottawa City Band had their last performance of the summer this past Tuesday (picture here). Usually taking place at City Park under the gazebo, their last concert is often held indoors (more importantly in the air conditioning). With the Ottawa Memorial Auditorium under construction, they were able to utilize the new Performing Arts Center at OHS. A great space for the concert to take place, thanks USD290 for the collaboration. The show included an assortment of songs for the 150+ in attendance, all played by different wind and percussion instruments. After being treated to the concert there was ice cream waiting outside to finish off the warm day.
Fun Town RV
Yesterday morning we had a huge gathering of Chamber members at the newly rebranded Fun Town RV off East Logan Street. With a huge remodel inside, the Ribbon Cutting yesterday officially started the grand opening (pictures here). Though the building has existed in Ottawa for some time, Fun Town has officially arrived as the premier recreational vehicle dealer in the community. General Manager Justin York shared with me that they currently have around 170 units on site, this number will increase drastically as we move on through the year, eventually plateauing around 300-400 campers! A truly incredible number of choices at their location. Along with updates to the inside, they also graveled much of their property to better store their merchandise. If you’re interested in looking at their options, one of their eight salespeople would be happy to work with you. If you already have an RV and are no longer in the market, they also have a full-service department along with parts, attachments, and accessories for your moveable home. If you haven’t stepped on site before, this weekend is the perfect time to check it out with a full agenda of activities over the next few days (schedule here), including an exotic car show on Saturday. A beautiful store at one of the major gateways into the City of Ottawa, what a great location!
My family grew up taking annual trips in our pop-up camper, sometimes venturing to other states and other times staying close by in Missouri/Kansas. Oftentimes the destinations were overshadowed by the journey. The memories my family made together still get brought up today in stories… though the camper didn’t make the memories, it was a part of so many. My parents recently sold that same camper to Makayla’s brother and sister-in-law, and their four kids. Plenty of memories are yet to be made in it!
Cornerstones of Care
This morning Chamber members were hosted at Cornerstones of Care at 429 S Main. Not to be confused with Cornerstones Bookstore or Corner Market, Cornerstones of Care is a nonprofit dedicated to helping families in all walks of life. With services from youth and family support like prevention and intervention resources, as well as foster care and adoption. Their organization started its Ottawa branch at the end of 2019 and joined the Chamber right away. What they didn’t realize was that the pandemic was just months away, preventing us from doing any kind of welcome event for some time. All this to say this Coffee has been a long time coming!
Shelli Walrod, the Director of Family Preservation Services was able to share the ways they are currently serving our community (pictures here). Their biggest focus is on the prevention side of family support, when DCF (Department for Children and Families) sends over cases, Cornerstones of Care will assess the needs and meet in person to assist. These needs include mental health issues, child behavior challenges, abuse/neglect from parents, and even poverty. Based on the level of support needed, these families/children will be supported for as little as six weeks to six months. It's important to note that in any continued abuse situation, they do not settle the case after the allotted time and continue to serve. This includes in-person visits at least once a week with an agent and their case family. Cornerstones of Care realize that the current foster care system is broken in many ways, with that in mind, their efforts always work towards keeping kids with their family, whether that's parents, grandparents, or extended family. There are exceptions when a child's safety is in danger, but this is thankfully not the preferred or desired method. If you see signs in families around you or your own that are currently facing similar challenges, reach out to our local office for sound advice. They can walk families through options of support that can drastically change the course of events for the children in question and the families they are a part of. Along with referring people, providing others with general education of this service will undoubtedly help the cause. For more information on this organization, check out their website here. Thank you Cornerstones of Care for doing what your name describes, caring for those in times of need.
Wellsville Ambulance Groundbreaking
Exciting news up in Wellsville this morning as the groundbreaking took place for Franklin County’s new EMS station (pictures here). A project that has long been in the works is finally seeing dirt move (you can read the full press release here). There are none more excited than County Commissioner Don Stottlemire, who represents Wellsville in his territory and has been pushing for this addition for years. Though the need for this facility has been present for some time, financial barriers have prevented the project from moving forward. With the allocation of federal ARPA dollars to lift the project up, Franklin County can now in good faith make it a reality. This use of COVID recovery funds means there are no ad valorem tax dollars being spent on this project, which many will appreciate. It is worth mentioning that this wouldn’t be possible without the collaboration with the City of Wellsville, which donated the location, sitting next to (and eventually attached to) the Wellsville Police Station. As well as all the infrastructure leading to the building. All this is happening in close proximity to the major bridge construction on HWY 33, the main road running through this community. With that project also nearing completion, there is a lot to be excited about in north Franklin County.
Plenty of celebrating is left to take place today for the birthday girl. I hope to see you around, talk to you soon!
Ryland Miller
President/CEO
Ottawa Area Chamber of Commerce
ryland@ottawakansas.org
785-242-1000
