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Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Alan Vance, Broce Broom

Posted on by Mary Lou Peter

A major road construction project is underway in North Africa. An industrial sweeper is being used to prepare the road surface for the application of asphalt. Where do you suppose that sweeper was built? Would you believe, halfway around the globe in Kansas? Today we’ll learn about a remarkable ruralpreneur and his company who is building these sweeper machines for markets across the nation and beyond.

Broce Broom

Alan Vance is CEO of Broce Broom, the company which produces these industrial sweepers. Mark Chalfant is chief operating officer.

The history of this company goes back to Alan’s grandfather, Ray Broce, who was born in 1902 in the rural community of Attica, population 626 people. Now, that’s rural.

Mr. Broce worked for the Kansas Highway Department and then went into business for himself in Dodge City. “He mortgaged his home and bought his first piece of construction equipment in 1937,” Alan Vance said.

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Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Dusty Turner, Cedar Vale

Posted on by Mary Lou Peter

Let’s go to a party. No, not a birthday party or bowl game party. This is a special event in a very rural community.  This party is helping to promote peace in the world, one personal encounter at a time.

In 2018, the “Peace Party” was held in Cedar Vale, Kansas

Last week we learned about Dusty Turner, organizer and promoter of annual motorcycle rallies including one in Cedar Vale, Kansas. These yearly motorcycle rallies have brought dozens of people to Cedar Vale and raised money for local community needs. These rallies are promoted through an online forum of Moto Guzzi motorcycle enthusiasts.

The fun of the motorcycle ride and the interaction with the community has been a win-win relationship. “The mayor of Cedar Vale said she has seen an uptick in civic pride because outsiders are showing an interest in their little town,” Dusty said.

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Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Dusty Turner, Moto Guzzi

Posted on by Mary Lou Peter

A motorcyclist rides into town – and then another, and another. It’s a motorcycle rally – and not just any rally, but a rally to support a rural community and ultimately, to bring people together.

Moto Guzzi motorcycle

Dusty Turner is an organizer and promoter of special events in Kansas and Oklahoma. He grew up in northeastern Oklahoma where, at an early age, he discovered a passion for motorcycles.

One year he and a teenage friend decided they wanted to take a motorcycle trip. They calculated how far they could go on the gas money that they had and looked at a roadmap. “We saw the name Cedar Vale on a map and decided to go,” Dusty said.

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Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Trent Boaldin and Becki Richardson, EpicTouch in Elkhart

Posted on by Mary Lou Peter

The touch of a button. In modern times, it is possible for the touch of a button on a computer keyboard or other electronic device to connect us to anywhere, if we have quality internet access. Today we’ll learn about an innovative broadband company which is making such high-quality internet access available through fiber optic service to 100 percent of its community.

Trent Boaldin

Last week we learned about Laura and Ronn Martin who recently moved to the Morton County town of Elkhart, Kansas. Ronn has an information technology job so he was able to work from anywhere with good internet access. He found such access in his former hometown of Elkhart. The company which is providing this service is EpicTouch.

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Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Kansas Firsts

Posted on by Jason Hackett

“We’re number 1!”  That cry goes up in sports arenas across the country. Today, around Kansas Day, the state of Kansas can point to many Kansas firsts. These are accomplishments in addition to sports where our state was number one in historic developments.

Kansas flagMarci Penner is executive director of the Kansas Sampler Foundation, author, and passionate advocate for rural Kansas. Her organization’s website, www.kansassampler.org, plus Kansapedia and other online sources list numerous cases where Kansas was number 1.

For example, the first U.S. patent for a helicopter was issued to Kansans William Purvis and Charles Wilson of Goodland. They invented the helicopter in 1909. A replica of their original helicopter can be viewed at the High Plains Museum in Goodland.

In addition to helicopters, other Kansans made their mark in aviation. The booming airplane production in Wichita led to that city being called the “air capital of the world.”

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Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Clara Reyes, Dos Mundos

Posted on by Mary Lou Peter

Two worlds. When a person from one country comes into a different country, it can feel to them like they have entered another world. That feeling caused one woman to create a bilingual newspaper so as to help others through such

Clara Reyes

transitions. She has gone on to provide outstanding leadership for the Hispanic community in the Kansas City region.

Clara Reyes is the founder and owner of Dos Mundos, which literally translated means Two Worlds. Dos Mundos is the Spanish and English language newspaper in Kansas City.

Clara grew up in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. She wanted to pursue a career as a dentist and graduated from the University of Guadalajara. In 1964, she traveled to Kansas City to explore pursuing her education in dentistry. While there, she met Manuel Reyes and a romance ensued.

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Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Mike Pray and Jake Trummer, Friendship House

Posted on by Mary Lou Peter

Friendship and food. That’s what a person can expect to find in a special restaurant and bakery in a pretty small town setting in a northeast Kansas community. This enterprise has also significantly expanded its catering business in the region.

Friendship House is a restaurant, bakery and catering business based in Wamego, Kansas.

Mike Pray and Jake Trummer are co-owners of the Friendship House in Wamego, Kansas. The rich history of this eating establishment goes back to the 1980s.

In 1988, an old Dutch windmill was relocated into Wamego’s City Park and used as a site to grind flour. The production of the stone-ground wheat flour gave birth to an idea:  Why not bake the flour into a finished product for Wamego’s visitors and residents?  Three Wamego women purchased a house adjoining the city park to establish such a place.

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Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Blake Lynch

Posted on by Mary Lou Peter

Does a little guy have a chance in football? The game of football is obviously populated with big, strong players. For example, the players on the Kansas State University offensive line in 2018 averaged 6 feet 5 inches tall and 306 pounds in weight. Those are some big guys. But sometimes I like to

Blake Lynch

cheer for the underdog – the little guy. Today we’ll meet a young man from rural Kansas who is small in stature but has made a big mark on K-State’s football season.

Blake Lynch from Goddard, Kansas was the starting placekicker on the K-State football team during the past season. His was one of the feel-good stories of 2018.

Blake grew up west of Wichita at Goddard, a rural community of 4,746 people. Now, that’s rural. His parents are Jason and Kim Lynch. Jason has a roofing and construction business in the Wichita area. Kim attended K-State and Bethel College.

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Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Crawford County Fried Chicken

Posted on by Mary Lou Peter

Some call it a major rivalry in Kansas. It was even mentioned by ESPNU announcers during a college football broadcast in fall 2018. But this wasn’t K-State versus KU. It was about fried chicken. These announcers were talking about the preferences of one football player who pointed out that there are lots of places to get good fried chicken in southeast Kansas, but

Crawford County, Kansas has some of the best fried chicken in the region. Restaurants like Chicken Mary’s and Chicken Annie’s helped put them on the map.

people’s restaurant choices can get competitive. Some people like a restaurant called Chicken Annie’s. Other people prefer a restaurant called Chicken Mary’s. Whatever the preference, it all means that there’s great fried chicken in southeast Kansas.

The southeast region of Kansas, and particularly Crawford County, has long been known as a great place for fried chicken. Historic restaurants have helped establish this tradition.

According to the Kansas Guidebook 2 for explorers, written by Marci Penner and WenDee Rowe of the Kansas Sampler Foundation, the tradition goes back to 1933. In that year, a coal miner named Charley Pichler suffered a disabling accident in Yale Mine No. 13 near Pittsburg, Kansas. His wife Annie needed a way to support the family, so she started selling fried chicken dinners out of their home.  In addition to mouth-watering fried chicken, she offered German potato salad, German coleslaw, a strip of green pepper, and a slice of tomato.

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Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Richard Baker, Perspective

Posted on by Mary Lou Peter

Perspective. One’s perspective on how he or she sees things can make all the difference. Today we’ll meet a Kansas broadcaster who has shared an educational perspective with hundreds of students and thousands of listeners across our state.

Richard Baker

Richard Baker is a longtime news director for the K-State Radio Network where he produced daily news plus a weekly radio program called Perspective. Richard is also an instructor in the Department of Communications and Agricultural Education.

Richard’s father was career military and served in World War II and Korea.  Richard was born in the rural community of Seneca, population 2,039 people.  Now, that’s rural. The family later moved to Manhattan when his father served at Fort Riley.

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