SPCAD says AMR ambulance response times better than KCFD, but still not at contracted goal

American Medical Response (AMR) is still settling into their new role as the ambulance provider for the Southern Platte County Ambulance District (SPCAD). At last week’s regular monthly meeting, AMR gave an update to the board of directors on their progress of establishing a staging area out of Parkville and presented the first 90 days of data on response times.

AMR operations manager Cam Hendry’s report on response times to life threatening calls showed they were able to respond under their goal of a nine minutes 71% of the time in November, but only 55% in December. While these times do not meet the 75% standard outlined in their contract, they signal improvements over the first quarter of 2012 when the Kansas City Fire Department responded in less than nine minutes only 48% of the time.

One reason the response times are not meeting their goal is due to the pro-longed process of establishing a home base and staging area for their ambulance units. Paramedics on 24-hour shifts are required to have sleeping quarters available in between calls. Due to zoning and fire sprinkler requirements, AMR’s original location preference, an industrial space off Bell Road, did not meet code, so they needed a different location.

“We located a building at the Parkville Commons and are working with the owners. So we’re trying to make sure that building will work, it has sprinklers which the fire inspector insisted on,” Hendry said. “The previous building didn’t have a sprinkler system and the cost to install one is extremely high. We hope to have an answer on that particular space next week and I’m hopeful it will be positive.”

Since October, AMR has staged these units out of a motel off Prairie View Road, which due to lack of lodging within the district itself, was the closest viable option. Hendry said 66% of the calls out of this location have not met their response time goal.

“It’s not in South Platte or Parkville, which is where we want the station to be situated. That has had an effect on our response times. Relocating closer to the area will help correct that,” Hendry said. “That is where the largest volume of calls comes from. During the day, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (12-hour shifts) they are posted in Parkville though.”

Hendry indicated it usually takes approximately 20 weeks (approx. 140 days) to collect enough call volume data to evaluate trends and base response times off.

With two ambulances currently stationed in the district, there have only been a handful of times where a third has been needed to respond. Since mutual aid agreements have not been established with the neighboring jurisdictions of the Northland Regional Ambulance District or the Kansas City Fire Department, AMR has made plans for a third ambulance to automatically move to serve in an on-call capacity in the case two stationed ambulances are on calls.

Board President Bobby Kincaid said he was satisfied with AMR’s progress and improvement over the previous response times in their couple months.

“Everyone that we get information from says they are doing a good job,” Kincaid. “I have not heard very many complaints.” 

Park Hill, South athletic directors step down

The Park Hill and Park Hill South athletic departments will see the end of an era at the end of this school year. Last week the Park Hill Board of Education accepted the retirements of long-time Park Hill and Park Hill South activities and athletics directors Bill Sobbe and John Sedler. Both have established distinguished careers and reputations as favorites among staff and students in the district. While their accomplishments respectively stand on their own, their stories have a unique personal side that has intersected at several points over the past 30 years to form a key part to both schools’ athletic histories.

Sedler grew up in the district and graduated from Park Hill High School in 1974 before going on to Park College where he played both basketball and baseball. Following graduation in 1978, his first teaching job was in Maryville, Missouri where he coached and worked closely with the coaches at Northwest Missouri State. This is when he first met a standout athlete at the school named Bill Sobbe, a Winnetonka High School graduate.

“John Sedler was the boys basketball and baseball coach at Maryville high when I was in school so I’ve known him since then,” Sobbe said. “He would come to our practices and learn things from our coach. He’s one of the best coaches around, baseball or basketball.”

Sobbe would go on to get drafted and play three years of professional baseball with the Los Angeles Dodges in their minor league system where he and Sedler, who had recently accepted a job at Park Hill, would coincidentally share the national limelight.

“In his last year with the Dodgers, there was an article in Sporting News, which was a nationally syndicated magazine. I was head basketball coach at Park Hill and we beat Northtown in seven overtimes, which was a record at the time,” Sedler said. “So there was our article, then right above that there was an article about the first catcher in America to catch Fernando Valenzuela, a bullpen catcher named Bill Sobbe. I’ve still got it at home.”

When Sobbe decided he wanted to come home and get what he called a ‘real job’, he finished his degree and the first person he called was Sedler, even though he wasn’t sure if he would remember him or not.

“It’s hard not to remember him,” Sedler said. “I hired him the next year as my assistant baseball and basketball coach.”

Sobbe would be at Park Hill from 1982-1984 where he initially worked as an in-school suspension supervisor and formed a friendship with a young math teacher at the time named Brad Kincheloe. Sobbe eventually accepted a job at North Kansas City High School where he would teach and coach for 13 years. He was also involved with the Kansas City Royals where he earned a World Series ring as part of the 1985 team. Meanwhile, over the next ten years, Sedler would continue to coach baseball for a short period of time and as head basketball coach. In 1994, he was named an assistant principal and athletics director.

Sedler and Sobbe’s paths wouldn’t cross again until 1998 when the opening of Park Hill South High School created football and baseball coaching vacancies at Park Hill.

“When we divided high schools, he (Sobbe) was teaching at NKC at the time, but he was one of the first phone calls I made asking him if he’d be interested in the head football coaching job at Park Hill,” now Principal Brad Kincheloe said. “He said I’d like to be football coach if that comes with a baseball coaching appointment too. I said “that’d be great” because we had both open at the time.”

Sedler split time as athletic director at both high schools in 1998, but finding out a different arrangement would be better led to the naming of Sobbe as athletic director at Park Hill while Sedler exclusively went to Park Hill South. Since the split between the schools, both schools have more kids participating in activities than they ever did when they were one school. Kincheloe and Sobbe praised Sedler’s performance during the transition.

“Without his help, it wouldn’t have gone as well as it did,” Sobbe said.

“I’d say we’ve been very fortunate that before Bill was here John was, so there’s no question that for 20 years the Park Hill School District has been well supervised in athletics/activities,” Kincheloe said.

Reflecting on his career, Sobbe says people are what have made it so memorable.

“The things I remember the most are the kids, young men and women, who have grown up now and have their own kids who have gone through school here,” Sobbe said. “When you’re in education, your favorite part is seeing kids have success. It’s not always about the star players though. I enjoy seeing kids who started on ‘B’ team basketball freshmen year, but work their way into quality minutes on varsity when they’re a senior. Those are the guys you get the most satisfaction out of because they’ve come the furthest.”

Sedler and Sobbe say some of their personal favorite moments involved having their children go through the schools and being part of some the special moments watching them involved in activities. They mentioned the support of the community and growth of the district as well as some of the favorite moments they likely share with students including playoff games, state championships, and the Park Hill/Park Hill South rivalries.

While both athletic directors have their fair share of memories, they also see some trends developing in high school sports they think are discouraging.

“Too often high school sports are viewed as a vehicle to the college or pro ranks, instead of playing for their school and being part of a well-rounded experience. I think society has just driven it that way,” Sedler said. “We’re seeing so many kids feel forced into specialization where they aren’t able to enjoy some of the other activities they could be involved in. Participating in multiple sports is a lost art anymore.”

Sobbe agreed with the premise by adding that most parents realize the importance of being involved in school, but some have trouble accepting their kids won’t be division one players and don’t understand that an overwhelming majority of scholarships are not full-rides.

“I assume most kids that play enjoy what they’re doing, but if the only reason you’re playing is so you can play at the next level or get a scholarship, it’s probably not for the best reasons.”

The economy and family dynamics have also had an effect on high school sports, Sedler said.

“The economy has put a lot of pressure on family income, so that increases the pressure to capture some scholarship dollars,” Sedler said. “In reality, if you play club sports for all those years and don’t get a full-ride, then you’re barely breaking even.”

There are positive trends as well. Sedler says technology has changed education, remembering the day he was told the district was going to try this new thing called ‘email’ and when they started replacing the typewriters.

“It won’t ever replace a teacher, but it can be used to increase student achievement as a tool. In the old days, the focus used to be about what the teacher was teaching; now it’s about what the student is learning.”

With their personal history and professional achievement, Park Hill and Park Hill South will be missing two significant figures next school year that have established quite a standard. Kincheloe, who worked with both over the years, says there are certain qualities an activities director must have which make them a unique part of a high school, which Sedler and Sobbe exemplify.

“Activities Director has a whole different set of priorities than most assistant principals. It’s the guy who doesn’t mind getting up at an assembly to lead a cheer, a guy that shouts out against the cafeteria to someone to let them know they did a good job. They’re integral to all the things that make a high school in America different than a high school anywhere else.”

Honoring Veterans and Those Who Help them

I’ve always respected veterans for a number of reasons. I admire their courage, dedication, sacrifice, and selflessness. Since the attacks on 9/11 several of my childhood friends and classmates have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, my grandfather, Harold, who passed away last week at the age of 83 was the closest personal connection I had to a veteran. He was the epitome of a humble veteran and quiet hero. His story is unique, just like the millions of veterans which we are grateful to have among us.

Shortly after Harold and my grandmother Jean were married in 1950, he entered the U.S. Army. Leaving for boot camp in August 1951, he was sent to Korea in February 1952 as a member of the 780^th Field Artillery Battalion. Starting out as a Private, he was later promoted to Corporal, and saw combat action leading up to the armistice agreement signed in July 1953. In addition to his role as an infantryman, having been a farmer, he was also a natural at operating bulldozers, transport trucks, and heavy artillery. He earned three service stars, having participated in three different campaigns, and a Meritorious Achievement Award.

This was the furthest extent our family knew of my grandfather’s service, because other than his military records and a few pictures, his experience was something he would later keep to himself as a private matter. Only in short, off-hand comments would anyone be able to understand the horrors of war he experienced. Matter-of-fact mentions about Koreans building bombs out of something as small as a ‘pop can’ or how he’d once seen a man’s hand cut off when firing a piece of artillery were about all. No more than a sentence or two at a time for nearly 60 years.

In a day and age where people have trouble keeping anything to themselves, much less the traumatic experiences of war, our family respected the inner-peace he had and he went on to live a life defined by his hard work ethic and light-hearted personality. Some openly tell wartime stories, share lifelong friendships with army buddies, or proudly display their service, which is certainly well-earned. My grandfather did not. His home and family were in Platte County and in his final months he said the efforts he’d put in during his life were all he ever cared about.

The second part of my grandfather’s veteran experience would come nearly 60 years after he first entered boot camp. Until recently, Harold had not taken advantage of many of the benefits afforded to veterans in our country. The G.I. Bill was in place for higher education when he came home, but he chose instead to farm the family homestead.

As Harold's health began to deteriorate in 2011, his military service qualified him to receive the highest degree of senior care available, which led him to the Missouri Veterans Home in Cameron, Missouri. The level of dignity and respect he was cared with was probably most evident in his final hours.

A team of nurses ensured his transition was comfortable and peaceful as his breathing slowed. The common bond fellow veterans hold never shined brighter than when they offered their respects. Harold's roommate symbolically held guard outside his door early that morning. Residents were eating breakfast when the announcement was made that one of their comrades had passed into eternal rest. As his body was transported through the building, the sounds of a normally busy cafeteria were still. Staff members lined the hallway; residents who were able to stand did so in a moving moment of silence, some offering one final salute. Harold was going Home in the deserving manner he had earned.

Veterans and the services provided to them are all too often politicized rather than properly prioritized. The families and care-givers of our veterans know each soldier has their own unique story that contributes to the collective strength of our proud country.

On this Veterans Day, I celebrate the service of my grandfather as well as those of your family from any generation who have contributed to the peace and prosperity of our nation, but also to those who serve our veterans to ensure their life journey is full, extending many years, and ends comfortably surrounded by loved-ones.

SPCAD encounters permit obstacle with Parkville

Approximately three weeks into their contract as the ambulance provider for the Southern Platte County Ambulance District, American Medical Response (AMR) says the welcome they’ve received from the community has been with arms wide open as they work to introduce themselves to local residents. But it hasn’t been without its hiccups AMR operations manager Cam Hendry reported to the district’s board of directors at last week’s regular meeting.

The main obstacle AMR has experienced so far is occupying the space they have leased in Parkville at the Bell Road Industrial Park from which to base their operations. AMR briefly moved in before learning of a requirement to obtain a conditional use permit from the City of Parkville. Intending to stage living quarters on the property for their paramedic teams overnight and store their ambulances, the intended use does not meet the approved zoning. Until the permit is issued, AMR cannot occupy the space and has been staging their units out of the nearest overnight venue available, which a motel outside and north of the district off Prairie View Road, near Barry Road.

“Right now that is the biggest culprit,” board president Bobby Kincaid said.

Parkville Acting City Administrator Sean Ackerson says the property owner has submitted an application for a conditional use permit to allow dwelling units within an industrial zone and that a hearing is scheduled.

“They are wanting to move into the Bell Road Industrial Park, which is predominantly zoned industrial,” Ackerson said. “Per municipal code they need a conditional use permit for the use, particularly the living quarters. I’d describe their use as fire department-like in that they have both habitable space as well as the garage function.”

The hearing on the permit will be held October 30^th. If action is taken, it would then go to the board of aldermen for final approval on November 6^th. Hendry said the proximity to the intersection of Highway 45 and Highway 9 in Parkville is most ideal, but would be open to all options if an arrangement could not be reached with the landlord and City of Parkville.

Another topic covered at the meeting was response times, which was one of the main factors in switching ambulance providers in the first place. Hendry provided a report to the board of all emergency calls and responses placed in the month of October. Kincaid expressed concern over some complaints he had personally received about response times, but those were cleared up by how the data is measured. Hendry noted that meeting the nine-minute average response time in AMR’s contract is based off the time between when a call is received and an ambulance arrives to the scene, not the time it takes to respond to the scene and then potentially transport a patient to an emergency room.

“They’re meeting the response times called for in the contract. We don’t want to see anyone lose their life due to an ambulanace, it’s very important to me and the rest of the board,” Kincaid said. “They (AMR) are going to do everything they can do make sure that happens, where the Fire Department in the past had not.”

The board also welcomed news of strong cooperation between AMR and bordering jurisdictions, which had been a particular concern in regards to the Kansas City Fire Department who previously held the service contract. AMR is still in negotiations with KCFD and the Northland Regional Ambulance District (NRAD) for mutual aid assistance should the situation call for it.

Sanchez resigns from Park Hill board

A simple mistake. That's what long-time Park Hill school board member Fred Sanchez says caused him to wear a concealed weapon to last week's regular board meeting. While licensed to do so in the state of Missouri, Park Hill School District policy says firearms are not permitted on school grounds. Sanchez resigned on his own accord, saying he believes he should be held to the same standard he has held students to in his many years as a board member which is a policy of zero tolerance.

"I do not have to do this," Sanchez said as he addressed the board Tuesday evening. "The integrity of the policy means the protection of the district cannot be undermined if everyone under it lives the same way."

In a call with The Citizen and once again at Tuesday's meeting, Sanchez said he arrived late to last week's meeting after being under the weather all day. He went on to say following the conclusion of the public meeting when the board was preparing to go into closed session, a fellow board member pointed out to Sanchez that he had been carrying a concealed firearm, which he had forgotten to remove in his hurry to make it to the meeting.

"It took me aback, almost like being in a near car crash, because I immediately realized the situation," Sanchez said to board members.

While Sanchez removed the firearm from the building and placed it in his car, it still did not meet the criteria of moving the gun off district grounds. After seeking clarification with the Platte County Prosecutor's office, district officials, and personal counsel, it was concluded that Sanchez broke no laws. Though, with the lingering realization he had made a serious oversight and mistake, Sanchez made the decision to resign.

"I've had calls and emails telling me not to do this (resign)," Sanchez said. "After spiritual prayer, what came to mind were the heart-wrenching experiences over the years of children sitting right here, good kids being stupid one day, but because of my votes I changed their lives forever. What is the difference? How can I conduct myself as a board member and be guilty of breaking policy? I cannot."

Sanchez was referring to his participation in decisions made on student disciplinary actions where a zero tolerance policy applied and how it would be difficult not to apply the same accountability to himself in a similar circumstance.

"I cannot in good conscience put myself above the same consequences," Sanchez said. "I'm guilty of breaking policy in place to protect student safety and behavior."

Another factor in Sanchez's decision was the progress he said the school district is making and the important issues it currently faces.

"I'm removing myself as a distraction and target, which the district would be ill-served by."

In Sanchez's closing remarks, he asked the board to revisit the zero tolerance policy because of the potential effect it has had on so many children's lives resulting from one simple mistake, sometimes having been no fault of their own. Following Sanchez's remarks, board members unanimously accepted his resignation. There was then brief discussion on zero tolerance as well as whether there was a policy precedent for how to deal with the situation had Sanchez not chosen to resign. There was not and Superintendent Scott Springston said it would be handled on a case by case bases.

PH South students, community share magical night

It can sometimes be difficult to find tangible examples which provide euphoric happiness over the positive qualities of the human spirit. As Park Hill South celebrated Homecoming last week, the student body made the crowning of their queen one of those rare moments.

There was no debate needed. Hands down, the loudest roar of cheers from the crowd at last Friday’s game wasn’t for any one of 10 Panther touchdowns, although there was plenty to celebrate in the team’s 70-6 blowout victory over Ruskin.

When Park Hill South senior Allyssa Brubeck’s name was said over the loud speaker at Park Hill District Stadium announcing that she had been voted the school’s Homecoming Queen, the almost instantaneous reaction from the crowd left no doubt the overwhelming sense of excitement the news brought. Mixed in with the screams and yells were tears and hugs, which extended well after the announcement was made, bringing realization to any outsider that the new Homecoming Queen was viewed as a unique combination of adored, respected and deserving — the kind of qualities Hollywood movies never reward, but ought to.

Brubeck, who is a special needs student at Park Hill South, was diagnosed with Down syndrome at birth and underwent heart surgery at the age of two. Nevertheless, she has been a favorite of the Panthers cheerleading team going on four years now and can often be found on the sidelines of Park Hill South sporting events doing what all cheerleaders do: shake pom-poms, yell out chants and sport a big smile. The difference between Brubeck and her fellow teammates, though, is that rarely does a team find such a high level of drive and inspiration from one person.

“The team really comes together with her and accepts her,” parent-guardian Michael Small said. “She can’t do stunts or cartwheels or anything of that nature, but hopefully she’s an inspiration, not only to her squad of cheerleaders, but to other youth throughout this school.

Despite the difficult obstacles she has faced, coach and teacher Christy Davis says Brubeck has used her time to the fullest at Park Hill South and earned her crown.

“She doesn’t see herself as different, she’s always felt like she’s a part of the regular population,” Davis said. “She’s been involved in every activity she could have been involved in since she was a freshman and everyone knows her, so her peers voted her Homecoming Queen."

Before last week, Allyssa and her mom were planning on being out of town for the weekend, but the whole family was ecstatic when she came home from school with the note explaining she’d been named a queen candidate. When his daughter was announced, Small was short on words.

“What is there to say? It really says it for itself; the student body has come forth and voted her queen,” Small said. “This is exciting (for us); it’s exciting for individuals with developmental disabilities. It really goes back to the student body at Park Hill South who nominated her and voted for her.”

While certainly a reflection on Brubeck, it also serves as an indictment on the student body as a whole.

“I’m really proud of her. She is an outstanding young lady and she’s been a joy to have in class,” teacher Sarah McDaniels said holding back tears. “I think it’s outstanding that the Park Hill South students have embraced our students the way they have and made them as much as a part of this school as anyone else. Park Hill South has always been very supportive.”

The pomp and circumstance of Homecoming as well as the superior feeling that comes after beating your opponent by such a convincing margin will eventually fade. Weeks and months will pass, but hopefully what mother Cindy Small would later describe as a ‘magical night’ is something Park Hill South will be able to hold onto for years to come.

New King of the Hill

Students and teachers are wrapping up their summer break to return to the classroom next week, but there probably is not anyone more excited to start the 2012-13 school year than new Park Hill Superintendent Scott Springston, whose first day on the job was July 1st.

After nearly a five month selection process, Springston emerged as the final candidate to replace retiring Superintendent Dennis Fisher in February when he accepted a contract from the Park Hill Board of Education. Describing himself as a person with high passion and a focus on continually improving, Springston is now the top official overseeing the 15-school district responsible for the education of more than 10,000 students.

Educating and preparing students to become a part of a 21st Century workforce is what Springston said is one of his top goals for the Park Hill School District. It is a challenge schools are facing across the nation, but Springston believes it will require a working relationship with the business community to implement an effective strategy.

“We need to have conversations with businesses and industry to ask them what they need from their employees and how we can prepare them for that,” Springston said. “A lot of employers I’ve talked to in the past are saying they can teach the technical skills needed themselves, but soft skills are what employees need coming in.”

Like most school districts, Park Hill’s priorities are outlined in its annual budget and since the budget for the 2012-13 school year was developed and approved before Springston took office, a lot of what he will be doing in his first year is an evaluation of what works and what needs to improve.

“We want to be proactive, not reactive to issues,” Springston said. “It goes back to the question: if we want to be the best, what do we need to do? In this first year, I want to meet as many people as possible and help our staff get better. I want to meet with the kids to ask them how we’re doing, because they are our end-user and it’s their education.”

For Springston, coming to Park Hill is another opportunity to continue what he found to be a passion at an early age. Growing up in a family where his father was a teacher and coach, Springston shared an interest in working with young people and seeing their development take place.

“I did some volunteering and coaching in high school and really enjoyed seeing the growth take place,” Springston said. “When you take the teaching and learning aspect combined with system organization, this is a natural fit.”

After graduating from Gardner City High School and then Fort Hays State University in 1992 with a degree in biology education, Springston started working on his master’s degree right away while working as a teacher in the Hays Public School District.

“I started my master’s pretty quick because I knew this was what I wanted to do,” Springston said.

He went on to serve as an assistant principal and principal in the Blue Valley School District in Johnson County, Kan. from 1996 to 2004. But the accomplishments he is most proud of came from his work from 2004-12 in the Valley Center School District just outside Wichita, Kan. After earning his doctorate from the University of Kansas in 2006, he was named superintendent and identified two challenges facing the district that needed to be addressed. The first was a top-down focus from the administrative level, not bottom-up from the teacher-student level. The second was a rapidly growing student population that was beginning to grow beyond the district’s facility capacities, some of which were decades old.

“It was a very top-down culture that we needed to flip the other way,” Springston said. “We began to focus more on professional development for our teachers and staff, implemented a late start day to allow students extra attention they needed it, and created data based performance measures to compare our scores to state standards.”

To address the district’s growth, following a reported commissioned by Wichita State University outlining future growth projections and the critical need for more classroom space to keep class sizes as low as possible, in 2008 Springston along led an effort to pass a nearly $58 million bond issue. The comprehensive improvements included a new high school which opened last fall, additional classrooms to elementary schools, new transportation and administrative facilities, and increased security and access to technology throughout the district. Springston says it wasn’t just a matter of campaigning to pass the bond; it was about building a vision for the entire community, one which will affect students and teachers for years to come.

“We established a standard of excellence at Valley Center,” Springston said. “Park Hill is a high performing, high level district, and I want to work to make it better every day.”

When asked how the district could match and exceed the successes it has achieved by being honored with several prestigious state and national awards over recent years, Springston emphasized the classroom experience.

“Our focus needs to be on the teacher-student level and what happens in the classroom,” Springston said. “Awards just reflect that and will follow over time.”

Although the process which led to Springston’s hiring was somewhat continuous between the board members who led it and a group of active parents who voiced opposition to it, he didn’t take it personally. In fact, Springston believes it was a positive reflection of the district and showed a hint of the passion and improvement-oriented leadership Park Hill can hope to look forward to him uniting the district under in the future.

“I don’t think it was ever about one particular person,” Springston said. “We all have more in common than we don’t in the end. I’d rather have parents with passion compared to apathy. Park Hill is more important than any one person.”

South Platte ditches KCFD, goes for better coverage with cheaper AMR

The Southern Platte County Ambulance District will have a new service provider effective October 1, 2012. Americal Medical Response (ARM) will take over the coverage area currently be serviced by the Kansas City Fire Department at that time. AMR's contract was approved unanimously at Wednesday evening's meeting after being previously narrowed down as the final candidate at last week's board meeting where board President Bobby Kincaid was given approval to negotiate the contract. Wednesday was the first time AMR had been named publicly as the selected service provider.

Prior to the board going into closed session Wednesday night to review the contract with a representative of AMR, Kansas City Fire Chief Smokey Dyer addressed the board. In his statement he threatened to cut a mutual aid agreement with any selected contractor should the Southern Platte County Ambulance District decide to choose another provider. In the end, it did not deter the board and sets in motion the end to a relationship which has been on unsure ground since the district's previous provider, MAST, was merged with the Fire Department in 2010. Tensions have escalated over recent months as response times have continued to deteriate with KCFD response times with the recent report indicating ambulance calls only met contract standards 42% of the time. KCFD will be issued a 90-day cancellation as outlined under their current agreement.

Under the newly approved contract with AMR, SPCAD will pay an annual amount of $437,000 for ambulance services with a medical price index adjustment each year. The $437,000 contract price with AMR compares to the price of approximately $478,000 being paid currently to KCFD. Coverage under the new contract is also scheduled to increase as the district will have the 24 hour a day ambulance dedicated to the district it already has along with another ambulance which will be on-duty during the 12-hour period which has historically had the highest call volume.

"Having the ambulance dedicated to Platte County, and not other areas outside of Platte County, will mean they are just servicing the South Platte Ambulance District," AMR Operation and Communications Manager Cam Hendry said. "We didn't submit our proposal with only one ambulance, we felt it was important to have at least one and a half to meet the response time needs we were given."

Over the next 90 days, AMR will be responsible for making arrangements so the transition is smooth.

"I've asked for an operational plan to be added as an amendment to the contract, but it takes time for them to figure how many calls are placed in a year from a certain area to determine where to locate," Bobby Kincaid said. "As far as mutual aid agreements and other issues, this is AMR's contract so they will need to iron those issues out."

Hendry did not see a reason why Dyer and KCFD would not cooperate with the transition and hoped to work together in order to ensure everything is handled professionally as it has been in the past.

"We will need to work with both the KCFD and Platte County Sheriff's office to make sure the dispatch is transitioned well," Hendry said. "We expect to work with them as we have in the past to make sure the transition is smooth."

SPCAD to consider proposals

Board members of the Southern Platte County Ambulance District will meet Wednesday evening for their regularly scheduled June meeting. They plan to consider proposals submitted in response to the board’s request for proposals (RFP) for ambulance services to the district. According to the unofficial draft of May’s board meeting minutes, bids were requested from four local service providers. They included the Northland Regional Ambulance District (NRAD), the Weston Fire Department, American Medical Response (AMR) of Independence, and Heartland Medical Center of St. Joseph. The minutes, which are scheduled to be approved as drafted at Wednesday’s meeting, indicate Board President Bobby Kincaid’s belief that AMR and Heartland Medical were the two most interested in the opportunity to provide services in southern Platte County, but as detailed in last week’s Citizen, NRAD has also submitted a bid proposal while the Weston Fire Department has decided to turn down the opportunity to bid.

The proposals will be evaluated in addition to the Kansas City Fire Department’s proposal to revise the contract for services currently in the place between the district and KCFD. Since the district’s previous service provider, MAST, was merged into the KCFD in 2010, response times have failed to meet the standards outlined in the contract. Recently SPCAD board members began to explore alternatives which would lead to the nine minute standard response time to be met a higher percentage of the time. Whether a revised contract with KCFD or contracting with a new emergency medical service provider is the answer has yet to be determined.

NRAD wants to expand south

The Southern Platte County Ambulance District (SPCAD) appears to be moving forward with its exploration of possible alternatives to improving its current ambulance service.

This became evident last week as the Board of Directors of the Northland Regional Ambulance District (NRAD) approved a proposal for ambulance service to submit to SPCAD in response to a recent SPCAD request for proposals (RFP). NRAD, which is based in Platte City, services the Camden Point, Dearborn, Smithville and Central Platte Fire Districts, and provides emergency medical services to much of northern Platte County.

“Our neighbors to the south have asked for our help and we are excited about the opportunity,” NRAD executive director Scott Roy said. “We’ve worked with them (SPCAD) in the past and provided some services to their current provider. We think we can help them. We share the same passion for great ambulance care. We know how important it is.”

While the Kansas City Fire Department is the current contract provider of ambulance services for SPCAD, poor response times have led to debate on what options are available to provide improved service. Currently, KCFD is under a five-year contract — that began on May 1, 2011 — to provide ambulance service to SPCAD. The cost is $453,165 per year. But the contract includes a cancellation clause which can terminate the contract with notice of 30 days, 90 days or 120 days.

SPCAD April meeting minutes obtained by The Citizen detail that KCFD will no longer provide the board with a monthly record of response times and has no plans on moving forward with the current contract as a performance based service despite violating language in the contract which makes it a requirement. SPCAD documents also show discussion was held concerning whether KCFD had the legal right to discontinue services leaving the district without a provider, which had previously been implied by Chief Smokey Dyer. SPCAD Board President Bob Kincaid mentioned he would explore other options and RFPs would be sent to other ambulance service providers.

When contacted by The Citizen, Kincaid declined to comment on the details of the situation or offer what other area ambulance service providers had been solicited, citing possible legal concerns. SPCAD’s next regularly-scheduled monthly meeting is June 20.

In addition to NRAD, other ambulance service providers which may have been solicited include the West Platte Fire District and Heartland Health Clinic, which operates an ambulance service in St. Joseph and is constructing a new clinic in Parkville. West Platte officials said it has not submitted a proposal. Calls to Heartland by The Citizen were not returned as of The Citizen’s Tuesday evening deadline.

Roy, who took over for retired former executive director Tom Taylor June 1, was not able to disclose the specific price included in the approved NRAD proposal, but did indicate it was higher than the one currently in place between SPCAD and KCFD. Roy said the increase was needed to meet the same standards and goals NRAD provides its current coverage area.

“The RFP proposes that we provide them with the same level of service and dedication that we provide our current district,” Roy said. “In the price, we offered to match the same response time standards and reliability that we currently provide, which would be at a higher price than they currently have.”

Roy emphasized that any contract with SPCAD would not affect service NRAD currently gives to its coverage area.

“We are a tax appointed entity, so we have to be responsible to our home base and the citizens we’re already committed to,“ Roy said. “We take that very seriously, so we couldn’t jeopardize that level of service. The proposal takes all those factors into mind, the amount reflects that. There are a lot of things we have to weigh as an organization. We have to make sure we’re not giving a service somewhere else that’s going to neglect what we’re already committed to.”
When asked why MAST, the district’s service provider prior to 2010, was able to provide a high quality service at a lower price, Roy believed it could stem from several different reasons.

“I think there was a small benefit with the economies of scale they had with resources in close proximity back then. They could maybe move ambulances in easier,” Roy said. “Changes in economic times and changes in the reimbursements from private insurance, Medicare and Medicaid can go a long ways in describing the situation.”

While the SPCAD is a smaller, more densely populated area, it shares a border with the current NRAD service area and the call volume is similar which leads them to believe they can help meet their goals in several areas.

“We would dedicate an ambulance to their popular center and make it a priority when that ambulance goes out to use our collaborative resources to fill in its place. That is what we took into account when we put together our cost estimate,” Roy said. “They run about 1,000 calls a year, we run about 1,000 calls a year, so we looked at what we already do to meet that nine minute response times. Not every call will be met in nine minutes, but we’d like for the average to be nine minutes.”

Roy also says one of NRAD’s biggest advantages comes from their dispatch being shared with the primary service answering point at the Platte County Sheriff’s department. This means the same person who dispatches the ambulance is the one who answers the 911 call and there is little time between the call be placed and an ambulance being dispatched.

“The amount of time between when the call is answered and the ambulance dispatched is a very short period of time because there is no delay, which is the case with the KCFD,” Roy said. “We’ll see a little bit of savings in time in that regard. As we know thirty seconds to a minute is a big savings. It’s more of a simple system.”
Although competing for a possible contract award, Roy says all the ambulance districts work together from time to time and the goal is the same for all of them.

“If as elected representatives, they decide to go a different way, we’ll still be their biggest supporters and still provide any assistance we can. We’ve worked with them in the past and provided some services to their current provider,” Roy said. “We have nothing but good things to say about all these providers, even the current one, SPCAD is just looking for alternatives right now. Either way, we share the same passion for great hospital care. We know how important it is.”

Heartland Medical out of St. Joe and the West Platte Fire and Ambulance District are rumored to also have submitted proposals in response to the RFP, which are likely to be considered at the next SPCAD board meeting.

SPCAD doesn’t have to put up with KC response times

Nine minutes or less.

That’s the amount of time southern Platte Countians should expect to receive emergency assistance from an ambulance. Often times it could be a situation where each passing minute could literally mean the difference between life and death. As important as it is, it’s a standard which is consistently not being met by the Kansas City Fire Department, leaving the board of the Southern Platte County Ambulance District (SPCAD) in recent months no choice but to demand better service or make a change.

For those unfamiliar with SPCAD, it was a board formed in August 2006 to oversee and carry out ambulance services in the increasingly growing areas of unincorporated and rural southern Platte County. It serves all areas outside the city limits of Kansas City including Parkville, Houston Lake, Northmoor, Lake Waukomis, Platte Woods, and Weatherby Lake (District 1) along with Ferrelview and Farley (District 2). The first ambulance service provider for the district was long-time emergency responder, Municipal Ambulance Services Trust (MAST), and provided superior service for the district, reporting response times of nine minutes or less 85-90 percent of the time until 2010.

In 2010, the City of Kansas City decided to merge MAST with the Kansas City Fire Department. It was a controversial decision made by the mayor and city council, opposed by many, including SPCAD board members, but one which left the district with few options other than to contract with the newly merged entity. Since that time, response times within the district have dropped dramatically with only 48 percent of the emergency calls placed from District 1 in the first quarter of 2012 being responded to in nine minutes or less. It’s also important to note, KCFD is reportedly not meeting response times within the actual limits of Kansas City (north or south of the river), either.

Causes for the poor response times include traffic issues, weather conditions, types of calls they don’t include in their service (life alerts or touch technologies), and how much information the dispatcher needs before a unit can respond. Some people believe the main problem is simply the fact that a single ambulance, regularly stationed out of the Price Chopper parking lot in Parkville, can’t effectively service all of southern Platte County. It provides little room for chance, or in one recent case, a GPS error. MAST similarly dealt with these issues, yet met their contract obligations nonetheless.

With an unacceptable level of service, SPCAD board members recently engaged Kansas City Fire Chief Smokey Dyer by demanding response times be improved. Coming off a handful of budget cuts and political setbacks of his own within Kansas City, Dyer does not seem too eager to fix the problem and has only presented two implausible solutions to amending the nearly $39,000 monthly contract to meet MAST performance levels: lowering the coverage period from 24 hours to 12 hours or more than doubling the price of the contract. One will leave southern Platte County without a primary emergency provider 12 hours a day; the other will require an increase in taxes. Neither is acceptable at this point, nor should they be.

Thankfully, SPCAD is not limited to those options alone though. They actually have several options. First, they could contract with another provider, either exclusively or with more than one. There are several area providers credible and qualified enough to exceed KCFD’s performance, which can’t get much worse. Second, the district could create and implement their own ambulance service. Third, SPCAD could continue negotiations with Smokey Dyer hoping an unlikely agreement can be reached resulting in neither a cut in coverage or increase in taxes. Each option comes with a different set of concerns and complexities.

The board members of the ambulance district recognize this isn’t a frivolous political battle, they know their role is to provide a service that ensures lives can be saved. Being a part of a new entity in a fairly unique situation, there are few precedents for them to draw parallels. Unlike areas within the city limits of Kansas City who have no choice but to accept decisions and failures by their elected and bureaucratic leaders, the good thing is south Platte doesn’t have to and likely won’t continue accept sub-par emergency service any longer. It certainly won’t be bullied by someone who’s just walked out of City Hall with their tail between their legs.

Park Hill race has little to do with education

The Park Hill School Board race has been an interesting one so far. Oddly enough, the things which have made it interesting have had absolutely nothing to do with the policies, taxes, curriculum or management of the School District. In fact, it’s actually had very little to do with education at all.

Even though his name will still appear on the ballot April 3, when Park Hill school board candidate Casey Beane ended his campaign by announcing he was dropping out of the race, it left more than a couple people scratching their heads. With support of his candidacy from a solid block of parent and teacher groups including several endorsements, it seemed untimely to end his bid just two weeks before Election Day. In the end, though, Beane’s stated reason for leaving the race in deciding to focus on his growing family is admirable. The remaining four candidates, Fred Cox, Chris Seufert, Edward Stephens and Allison Wurst, will contend for two open seats on the Board. The real issue though, doesn’t arise from Beane’s exit from the race, but the effects it leaves behind.

Those who have followed school board elections in the past know how difficult it is for candidates to reach out to voters. School board campaigns don’t tend to have the drama, excitement, or controversy that fuels more partisan races to grab voters’ attention. With that in mind, the local media has announced and made clear Beane’s decision to end his candidacy over the last week. Despite a week-long delay, as we go to press it has been realized the Park Hill School District has also finally noted this on their Web site. As a primary source of information for patrons and voters through the district’s web site, television channel, and email correspondence, news that a leading candidate on the ballot has withdrawn and will not serve if elected is fairly significant. This should have been more proactively communicated by the district. Though as the saying goes: better late than never.

A similar situation happened in 2011, when candidate Victor McCance dropped out of the school board race. Demonstrating the effects a withdrawn candidacy can have, on Election Day he still received 272 votes, a margin candidates Chris Seufert and Fred Sanchez know firsthand could affect their candidacies as both fell short by close margins that same year. Nonetheless, this year it still leaves open the possibility of a couple hundred votes being cast for Beane, a withdrawn candidate who had significantly more support prior to dropping out than McCance did in 2011. The thought of this making a difference in a close election result would be unfortunate.

Out of the four candidates remaining, three have remained fairly uncontroversial, but Edward Stephens has more than made up for it. On the surface, Stephens might appear as an ideal school board candidate: a district graduate, college educated, professional career, well-spoken and well-dressed. But as you may have read in several previous editions of The Citizen, his seemingly insensitive comments and opinions on a variety of subjects including diversity and special needs students have caused quite a stir. Not surprisingly, there’s something about the words ‘White’ and ‘History’ when placed together in a sentence that project a cultural and political disconnect with the average voter. Not understanding that continually using those words would draw negative attention to him reinforces that. Misjudging the negative attention as positive publicity, as Stephens had done, is another example.

While his candidacy deeply troubles some, gauging the level of support Stephens actually has is difficult. The same can be said for all the candidates’ support, as yard signs and social media don’t always prove to be the winning formula in school board contests. As is the case in many elections where candidates are not identified as Democrats or Republicans, it’s hard to tell what will eventually draw voters to a particular candidate.

Election night is shaping up to be the culmination of a fairly active time for the Park Hill School District. With the selection of a new superintendent, approval of new elementary school boundaries, and election of two new board members all in the last 60 days, things should slow down over the next couple months in terms of highly political and sensitive decisions, calmly reverting back to what Park Hill does best, a focus on education.

Park Hill South grad big part of Ohio's March Madness

While the basketball season has ended for most area high school and college players, Platte County still has one local player competing on the hardwood, and he’s doing it on college basketball’s biggest stage. Ohio University junior forward Ivo Baltic, a 2009 Park Hill South graduate, has been a key member of a Bobcat squad that has amassed a 29-7 record and Mid-America Conference (MAC) conference tournament championship this season. It earned them a trip to the NCAA Tournament where last week, as an underdog 13^th seed, the Bobcats fueled March Madness with not only an upset over the fourth seeded Michigan Wolverines 65-60, but two days later another win over 12^th seeded South Florida 62-56. The wins propel them towards an unlikely trip to the Sweet Sixteen and matchup against perennial power house, number one seeded North Carolina this Friday night in St. Louis.

“I don’t think seeding really means a lot. Our mindset was we just wanted to advance,” Baltic said of the upsets. “In the locker room, we have this board that says: graduate from Ohio University, win the MAC championship (regular season and tournament), make it to the NCAA Tournament, and advance in the tournament. These are our goals and we’ve been able to pretty much accomplish them so far.”

Averaging 8.9 points and 5 rebounds per game this season, it’s Baltic’s second appearance in the NCAA Tournament. In 2010, as a freshman he played every game in a season where 14^th seeded Ohio upset the third seeded Georgetown Hoyas in the first round.

“We weren’t expected to do good things then, this year is a little different because we’ve been pretty successful the whole season,” Baltic said. “This year we’re in the Sweet Sixteen, which hasn’t been done since 1964 so it’s been a good year for us, but we just have to stay hungry and humble.”

It’s a scenario the Ohio University coaching staff painted for Baltic when he was recruited out of high school and one that stood out compared to other schools he was being pursued by at the time. Baltic says Ohio told him not just the positives, but also the potential negatives of college basketball life.

“The whole coaching staff, they pretty much told me we could do some special things with my time here,” Baltic said. “The difference was they told me the ups and downs of what could happen instead of just the positives.”

The former Park Hill South standout was nominated as a McDonald’s High School All-America his senior year when he averaged 23 points and 15 rebounds per game for the Panthers. His talent and ability is still visible around Park Hill South in the form of plaques and recognition as he remains the school’s all-time scoring and rebound leader. Long-time Athletic Director John Sedler says Baltic is the best he’s ever watched.

“In my opinion, he is the best player to graduate from the Park Hill School District,” Sedler said. “He is a multi-skilled (hybrid) player that is effective on the perimeter as well as in the post area.  Today’s game really fits his skills; with all of the spread sets and dribble penetration being used he is very comfortable.”

Baltic echoes the description by calling his playing persona as a ‘versatile big’ by being willing to play whatever role the team needs.

“I can be whatever my team needs me to be. I think that’s a sacrifice anyone on our team is willing to make.”

Sacrifice is something Baltic is very familiar with when it comes to basketball. ‘Basketball junkie’ and ‘gym rat’ are just two of the words used to describe his work ethic, both past and present. At a young age, Baltic knew basketball was his way to college.

“Growing up, my parents didn’t really have a lot of money. We came from overseas. Just getting into college was going to be pretty hard,” Baltic, who was born in Bosnia, but has lived in Kansas City since second grade, said. “I didn’t think I could just get in by academics or money by themselves. I just worked my butt off every day. Fridays and Saturday nights when kids were out going and stuff, I was in the gym.”

Rattling off nearly a half dozen of his former Park Hill South coaches, Baltic gave credit and appreciation (both big and small) for the support he’s received in the past and to this day.

“I just appreciate all the love I’ve gotten from my family, former teammates, former coaches, and all the people who really helped me get here,” Baltic said. “Even people like the janitors at my high school, who would sometimes turn on the lights for me just so I could shoot in the gym. It’s just the little things like that I’m real thankful for and blessed to have the opportunity to be doing what I’m doing.”

Even at 21 years old and a possible professional career ahead of him, he offers a lesson in discipline, as he commonly does with his ability to solve a Rubik’s cube in nearly a minute, mentioning his desire to continue playing the game after college before quickly returning to the immediate task in front of him.

“I just want to stay around the game after I’m done here (at school),” Baltic said. “To be honest, I’m just focused on this season and winning. Too many times people think too much about the future and they forget to live in the present.”

All Park Hill Board is guilty of: lack of communication

Being so close to an incompetent and chaotic Kansas City Missouri School District, it’s easy to understand the pride southern Platte County has in the quality and reputation of the Park Hill School District. As a Park Hill graduate myself, I’m very supportive of the district and know the value it represents to our community. At times it can seem the educational priorities and culture established here over a long period of time can be fragile and gone in an instant. With something important to so many, it’s easy to get emotional and jump to conclusions if someone causes us to believe the district may be in jeopardy. The recent controversy over the Park Hill School Board’s handling of their selection of the replacement for retiring Superintendent Dr. Dennis Fisher is a good example.

There are a few things which seem pretty clear to me. First, the board took their responsibility of picking a superintendent very seriously, putting countless hours into the selection process. Second, many Park Hill patrons wanted the job to go to Deputy Superintendent Mark Miles, who by most accounts is a stand-up guy and has done many good things for the district. Third, when the field was narrowed, the board did not solicit public input as it had at the beginning of the process nor did it effectively communicate updates to patrons on their progress. This was not in an effort to be disingenuous. Fourth, Dr. Scott Springston was selected as the final candidate and will be the next Superintendent, not the internal candidate Dr. Miles. This resulted in a social media frenzy fueled by an upset contingent of parents, former board members and a handful of elected officials.

Having participated in my share of interviews both as the interviewee or the interviewer, including a recent public appointment, I understand conducting such a search process can have limitless formats. It can be a very difficult task to narrow the field to one candidate in the end. Ultimately, any process chosen can be scrutinized. The difficult job Park Hill had at hand in this case was keeping candidates’ consideration private in respect to their current employment. The delicate legal aspects in regards to personnel matters like this can only be explained by their potential for lawsuits, another area we don’t want to be like Kansas City. Nonetheless, maintaining private considerations for the candidates while keeping patrons updated on the progress could have been achieved.

With that said, the process was not illegal, unethical, immoral or rushed. It was simply a political mistake: a failure to communicate. The board wholly admits it. So, as many people have asked me over recent days, why are some so upset? Aren’t there worse things by far that happen in our county and municipal governments where no one even cares to notice? Yes, but it really comes down to the intricate world of school board politics — those who participate in it, and those who unknowingly become a pawn in it.

There may be parents who were disappointed in the lack of communication and involvement. This expectation was set by regular examples of district outreach on things ranging from simply naming a new school to the input solicited on targets for tough budget cuts. When you ask what color the drapes should be, be prepared to be told how the whole room should look. There are also parents who’ve developed a close relationship with Dr. Miles and truly see him as the best choice, despite not knowing the alternatives. This is all understandable to a certain degree, but this was hardly the coup d’état of the school district some may infer. In fact, many administrators have worked in the district since Dr. Fisher’s predecessor and will continue to. A new superintendent is rarely the dramatic house cleaning we commonly see with a new President or Governor.

Either way, there were an influential few who wanted to fight this battle. Whether it was current or former board members, or other elected officials, claiming the process was done in “secret” and with “closed doors” was like yelling fire in a theater to Park Hill patrons. The process, started in October, had never been questioned until word spread Dr. Miles was not selected two weeks ago. Had their preferred choice been selected, there likely would not have been any scrutiny.

In a country where education scores are falling compared to the rest of the world, Park Hill must continue to expect more than being the best according to state standards, because they are just that, standard. Former Ambassador to the United Nations Adlai Stevenson once said, “All progress has resulted from people who took unpopular positions.” In their decision, that’s what board members did in this case. They knew their decision would be unpopular, but still thought it best. At every level of government we ask our leaders to have backbone and do the same. In this situation, we’re seeing why it doesn’t happen often. It’s not easy to do, especially when you listen to the emotional disapproval. Threats of redemption in April’s school board elections were sharp, but hollow, as the two seats on the ballot are held by members not seeking re-election.

Board members selected for what is not likely Dr. Springton's resume, but his intangibles. In other words, it is not on where he’s been, but where he wants to take us. It’s now up to him, not the Board, to prove to us he was the right selection. One thing not in doubt, even from those most critical, is the support he’ll receive towards his success once he arrives. Park Hill patrons can’t afford anything different.

Fox faces Park on visitor’s side of the soccer field

October is traditionally a month of homecomings. Parades, dances, football games and the crowning of a queen. While those are the symbols and events typically associated with homecomings, it is sometimes the ones with less pomp and circumstance with the most meaning for those involved. This was the case recently during the American Midwest Conference college soccer game between William Woods and Park University as a small group of friends and family gathered to support former Park Hill soccer player and now William Woods assistant coach Zak Fox. The game was more than a rare opportunity for Fox to roam the sidelines of the same field he once played on during high school, but also a chance to compete against his former youth coach and Park University head coach Efrem Shimlis.

“It means even more now to coach against my old coach,” Fox said. “Just driving up to the stadium and realizing its all still here the way it was before is really cool.”

“He really likes being back here,” said Zak’s father Pride Fox, a Platte City business owner. “He likes that trip down memory lane.”

Growing up Fox fell in love with soccer at a young age and the coaching staff at Park University enhanced that by exposing him to the game by participating with the team. Fox’s mother Cathi pointed to the young ball boys on the field which reminded her of her son at their age.

“When Zak was little, just about that size,” she said pointing towards the boys on the sidelines, “he and several of his friends would come be ball boys for the Park games. I think they were in second grade. He has just loved soccer since he was four years old.”

Shimlis became the head coach at Park University in 2001, but prior to that he was an assistant coach and also coached the competitive youth team Fox played for. It was then when Shimlis became a huge influence and developed a close player-coach relationship with Fox that remains strong today.

“He’s one of my mentors,” Fox said of his former youth coach. “I stay in contact with him and we’ve talked quite a bit over the years,”

“I was telling him I have a picture in my office of him and the kids I coached when they were younger,” Shimlis said. “There were a lot of good kids on that team. I’m proud of him and so happy to see him.”

“It makes me feel old,” Shimlis joked when asked about Fox joining him in the coaching profession. “He’s loves the game and he’ll do fine. I’ve got a lot of respect for him and wish him all the best.”

Fox, a 2005 Park Hill graduate, played for two years at Neosho County Community College where he was a part of a conference championship team. After that he thought his playing days were over, but later received a call from former Neosho County assistant coach Nathan Mason, now head coach at William Woods, asking him to play for him. With two years of eligibility left, he had received the chance to continue playing the game he loved. He finished his senior year receiving several Player of the Week awards in the AMC before graduating with a bachelor’s degree in 2011.

Having exhausted his college eligibility and knowing that playing at the pro level was a long-shot, despite several chances to tryout, Fox decided he wanted to stay in the game and pass his knowledge on to future players as a coach.

“I had a couple of chances to try out at places, but I just decided to hang up the boots. I knew my time was up,” Fox said of his decision. “Just anything to be around soccer. I live and breathe it, so anything to stay in it.”

“He couldn’t contribute anymore as a player, but thinks he can build people. He’s always liked building things since he was a little kid, so this kind of makes sense in the fact that he’s now building people,” Fox’s father said.

Fox is currently in his first season as an assistant at William Woods. He’s also working towards his master’s degree in education, a degree which parallels his interest in working with other people and passing his experiences onto others. While Fox still finds it frustrating not to be able to make a difference on the field, he hopes to take his coaching career to the next level once he receives his master’s. With the Kansas City region lacking major collegiate soccer programs, Fox would like to make his return home permanent someday, but knows his pursuit may first take him further away before it brings him closer.

“I’m not going to pass up any good opportunity,” Fox said. “If I can come back home I’d love it, but the higher the better, I mean it’s really ‘shoot for the stars’ right now.”

Even though the chilly October night left William Woods with a 1-0 overtime loss to the Park Pirates in front of a light crowd, the lack of publicity didn’t lessen the personal significance it had for those supporting their friend and family member whose presence may vary, but whose heart remains at home.

'In shape' a relative term

From skipping and jumping to pushups and sit-ups, these basic physical activities are what we were taught from an early age as healthy exercise suggestions. So why is it that a routine encompassing all this and more without the use of standard gym equipment left this writer, who had previously considered himself in decent shape, completely and utterly exhausted? Maybe because what I, like many others, consider ‘in-shape’ isn’t quite what we thought it was when we compared it to our daily schedule.

When you imagine your local gym, you’re probably like most people who envision rows of treadmills, a variety of weight machines, and of course, bench presses and dumbbells. It could be your 24-hour fitness or even the YMCA down the street. This is become the imprinted idea we’ve come to know as exercise and path to life-long fitness. Although it may be the default for many, a spin on the traditional workout regime has emerged across the country in recent years, and as of this week the Northland will have a location for those looking to switch their fitness routine up a bit.

Crossfit Northland is a new training facility that provides programs based on the strength and conditioning brand, CrossFit, which incorporates a wide range of sports and fitness training. While basic definition of CrossFit can be simply described as varied, high intensity, and functional movement, the basic idea involves having a program designed around things you actually do in the real world.

“Every day you bend down and pick things up, you put things over your head, squat down, stand up, run after your kids or jump over a puddle. CrossFit prepares you for all that and then some by performing those exact movements into our workouts,” said Brian Martorana, one of three founding partners for the Northland location. “When was the last time you saw someone walking down the street doing dumbbell flys?”

Martorana along with partners Dustin Sollars and Manny Catano, all in their mid-30’s, were looking for something different from their regular workout routines so they attended several classes offered in downtown Kansas City where their interested was sparked. The group sessions include between 15-25 people on average and combine exercises from areas like weightlifting, gymnastics, track and field, plyometrics, and strength building.

“Here’s how I look at it. I was paying $40 a month at the ‘Y’ without any results. I looked into a trainer, but it was really expensive especially over the long-term. If I did that weekly, it could be close to $50 a session in certain cases,” Martorana said. “This is really a happy medium.”

While Sollars, an English teacher, and Catano, a firefighter, were already familiar working with athletes as head coaches of the boys and girls soccer teams at Park Hill High School, Martorana knew the key to success would first be an interest and motivation to teach.

“It wasn’t about just starting a business, turning on an open sign, and hoping people showed up. I wanted to see if I actually liked teaching first,” Martorana said.

He was hooked immediately just like his college classmate and fraternity brother Sollars, who had an early realization.

“It’s addictive. I felt real bad after my first workout, because I thought I was in good shape, but it was a different kind of training than I’d ever done before,” Sollars said. “Most people feel like they can do certain exercises pretty easily. Once you go through it though, it’s actually pretty humbling. I got the bug to get better.”

Not only do the principals full-heartedly buy into the program, they have a core group that’s stuck with them since casual workouts started earlier this year and continue to show up on a regular basis now that their facility has opened in Platte Woods.

“I think it’s one of the more attractive things to people. I mean a trainer will give you a set routine, it’s pretty much the same handful of exercises from week to week, but here we won’t have the same workout for maybe three months,” Sollars said.

Since the CrossFit brand took off in 2005, physically demanding professions like firefighters, police officers, and members of the military have taken to this type of training as it parallels the work they do daily.

“A lot of those institutions receive grants to update or build places to work out and they turn their facilities into CrossFit gyms,” Martorana said.

The programs are intended to be scalable based on each participant’s fitness level, but simultaneously provides group motivation.

“We (the trainers) are going to give you the fundamentals and be there with you throughout the workout,” Martorana said. “Some people like a person to be with them like a personal trainer the whole time, while others in any given session, we won’t even need to talk to because they’re comfortable with the workouts and pushing themselves on their own.”

CrossFit Northland hopes to position themselves separately from other well-known gyms by maintaining that they don’t measure weight, bench press, or mile time. Those are all by-products, not ultimate goals, of the workouts.

“We feel like if you stick with us for three months, you’ll look different, you’ll feel different, and you’ll be stronger than you were before,” Martorana said.

With several membership packages to choose from and uniquely named workouts such as Barbara, Fran, and Nancy, variety is not lacking when it comes to CrossFit routines. There was even a workout named 31 Heroes after the 31 service members who lost their lives in Afghanistan last month. All a part of the unique fitness culture the new owners of CrossFit Northland hope people will try first hand with the opening of their new location.

“I mean you can play in recreational basketball leagues to get into shape and other things, but it’s not quite the same,” Sollars said. “This is just more exciting to be a part of; it makes you feel like an athlete again.”

Park Hill South head basketball coach resigns

Park Hill South High School varsity head basketball coach Anthony Perry has resigned from his coaching and physical education teacher positions with the school. He also served as an assistant coach on the track and field teams.

Park Hill South Athletic Director John Sedler confirmed the resignation earlier this week only saying it had been issued two weeks ago and at the time he had been on vacation. With this week being the first in a new school year, questions have arisen to the circumstances behind Perry's sudden departure and whether the resignation was on personal grounds or from a situation involving his responsibilities with the school. Calls to district administrators went unreturned as of Tuesday evening.

As far as the basketball program is concerned, Sedler said there were still some things to be sorted out, but indicated there would be a new head coach in place by the beginning of preseason workouts in November. He did not say whether a new coach had been decided upon, if a search was underway internally within the school, or if the position would be opened up to outside applicants. Sedler also did not rule out the possibility of an interim head coach filling the position for the 2011-2012 season until a more long-term replacement would be named.

Chubby's: Popular downtown KC diner opens Northland location

One of the great things about living in parts of Platte County is the bustling streets, tall skyscrapers, and swarms of people usually associated with Kansas City’s downtown can be as near or far away as you want.

Chubby’s on Broadway, which has grown into a Kansas City icon for many, recently brought the all-day breakfast menu and old-style cooked burgers associated with their long-time downtown location to the Northland. Not known to have a high supply of breakfast or diner-oriented restaurants, the Northland is now home to a 24-hour diner that has served Kansas City for 23 years and opened its first satellite location on May 23 in the Boardwalk Shopping Center at 6332 NW Barry Road.

Chubby’s, a spin-off name of the favorite hangout “Tubby’s Drive-in” from the 1980’s movie Hollywood Knights, was started by the LaBruzza family in a small diner on Independence Avenue in 1988. The business later moved to a storefront space on Broadway before eventually expanding to the location it’s now called home for ten years. Nick and Vito LaBruzza took over the family business a couple years ago from their father, also named Nick. However, the Northland location is owned and operated by Vito’s brother-in-law, Vince Frew, whose sister married into the family several years ago.

Frew, a lifelong Northlander, had thought about and talked through several different ideas for an expansion, one of which included a Gladstone location and smaller concept of a 6am-2pm Chubby’s Express. But when 54th Street Bar & Grill opted to move across the interstate into Zona Rosa in 2010, they left a location already fitted to serve another quality restaurant. Having worked in AmeriStar Casino’s restaurants for nearly 11 years, it was in 2009 that Frew started working with his brother-in-laws at their Broadway location to learn the business better.

“I wanted to learn how they did things. They’ve been in business for 23 years, obviously they’re doing something right,” Frew said. “We had talked about putting one up here (Northland), but that one (on Broadway) keeps them busy enough, so I just licensed the name from them.”

While the concept and menu are identical, Chubby’s on Barry hopes to capitalize on the area’s breakfast and late night voids not only by serving breakfast all-day, but also staying open 24-hours on the weekends to capitalize on the handful of bars in the area open until 3 a. m.

“There’s very limited breakfast around here. I’d like to think our food is better than IHOP or Waffle House,” Frew said. “In that regard, I don’t think anyone can compete with us in terms of portion size and quality of food in my opinion. With the overnight crowd, we’ve got the potential to do really well.”

One difference between the Broadway and Barry locations is that the Northland location will soon have a liquor license and carry a limited selection of wine and beer.

“Hopefully sometime in August, we’ll have beer and wine,” Frew said. “A limited selection, because this isn’t a bar and grill, but we’ll have it available for people that want it.”

A veteran of the food service industry, Frew says they’ve gone through the same things any new restaurant goes through which explains his cautious approach to opening the business. He wanted all the kinks worked out before aggressively marketing the new location.

“We’ve had our ups and downs, but that’s expected and why we’ve gone light on our advertising with a softer opening. I’m a little more comfortable now and we’ll probably start advertising more soon,” Frew said.

Even with a presence that spans over two decades in Kansas City, Frew says there are as many people exciting about the opening of their restaurant as there are those who aren’t as familiar.

“There are a lot of people that were excited to get one up north after going to the one downtown, but we still get a lot of people that don’t know we’re here yet,” Frew said. “For as long as Chubby’s has been in Kansas City, there are still some people who’ve never heard of it.”

As far as menu items, Chubby’s will feature their old-style hamburgers, which are cooked on a flat-top, not on a grill, so as Frew says “all the juice stays in the burger, not a drop of seasoning on it like it has been all along.” To go with it, chocolate shakes and malts. And of course, the all-day breakfast menu features omelettes, biscuits and gravy, and other traditional morning choices.

Park Hill grad killed in action on eighth combat tour

The first words of the United States Army Ranger Creed include “Recognizing that I volunteered as a Ranger, fully knowing the hazards of my chosen profession, I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige, honor, and high esprit de corps of my Ranger Regiment.” Those are the first that begin to embody and form a picture of the kind of solider Staff Sergeant Jeremy Katzenberger was. The 26 year-old Weatherby Lake native, in his eighth tour of duty oversees, was conducting a mission supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan’s Paktika Province last week when he died of wounds suffered in a heavy firefight from an insurgent attack on his unit.

Before Katzenberger committed himself to his country, he had a love for being on the water. As a young boy he could be found every summer at Weatherby Lake’s C-Point where he took up sailing and fishing. He passed his passion on when he taught other young sailors and lifeguarded at the local pool. Naturally this led him onto the swimming, diving, and water polo teams at Park Hill High School. He was also active in track, Young Life, Junior Assembly, and 4H Character Council before graduating in 2003.

Jeremy was the youngest of four boys, two of which are also in the Army, and growing up was a favorite among their friends and neighbors around the lake with a welcoming smile.

“We are so proud of these boys, and prayed this sad day would never come,” former neighbor Shawn-Marie Simmons said. “The Katzenberger family has always had our utmost respect for their amazing patriotism, with three of their boys in the Armed Forces.

Katzenberger had previously served four tours in Iraq before embarking on his fourth deployment to Afghanistan. After enlisting in October 2004 he was assigned to Company B, 1st Ballion, 75th Ranger Regiment based just outside Savannah, Georgia. A highly decorated soldier, he advanced through the enlisted ranks to Staff Sergeant and was leading his squad in the June 14th mission that claimed his life. Staff Sergeants are often said to be the elements of which the backbone of the Army is made and that their success, more than any other grade of the non-commissioned officer rank, lead the path to the Army’s success.

Hundreds of members of the Patriots guard participated in Katzenberger's funeral procession which stretched nearly a mile long down 64th Street on June 26th (via http://www.shadesofgray.com/)

In a release, 75th Ranger Regiment commander Col. Michael E. Kurilla talked about Katzenberger’s deep commitment to his country.

"I wish the American people could truly understand the dedication and sacrifice that Staff Sgt. Jeremy Katzenberger made for his country. Since early 2005, Jeremy has either been in combat or training for combat. This was his eighth combat deployment. He was the epitome of a Ranger squad leader; he is a hero to our nation, the Army and his family."

He is survived by his wife, Colleen, seven-month old son Everett, both of Richmond Hill, Georgia, outside Savannah, GA, parents Robert and Peggy Katzenberger of Weatherby Lake, MO, and three brothers. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations be made to the Special Operations Warriors Foundation.