Happy 26th Birthday Julie.

We are sending lots of love

your way and hope you enjoy

your special day.

We are proud of you.

Dad, Mom, and John

Friday Update

I haven't mentioned this here before, but I've decided it's time to get it out there. I'm scheduled for surgery on December 22. Yep, I will be having a hysterectomy. I'm dreading it, but I guess it's got to be done. I have been debating for some time about whether or not to use the H Word on my blog. I'm hopeful that I won't feel the need to say much more about it and just focus on getting well.

For the past thirty plus years, I have used the winter break to catch up at work and at home. Guess that wont be happening. I'm trying to get all of my ducks in a row prior to surgery. There are a lot of ducks.

Anyway, yesterday at 3:40 pm was a pre-op visit with my primary doctor. Upon completion of my lab work, I returned to my office to prepare for a report about The Volunteer Center I was giving at the HCC Board of Trustees meeting last night. Dennis called at 4:30 pm to say the Med Center had called. I had left without doing my chest x-ray and EKG. Totally forgot to do it. How embarrassing.

The presentation at the HCC Board meeting went well: )

Happy Birthday Keith

Happy Birthday

Keith,

my favorite

brother-in-law : )

More from Hutchinson's Paper Ladies

The Paper Ladies currently have artwork on display at Gallery 7. The following pieces are included. Each of us chose a color and created an 18" x 24" art piece around it.

blue

by Diana Heim- Johnson

red
by Debbie Berndsen

purple
by Terri Tharp

orange
by Mary Bachand

yellow
by Sharon Hinton

pink

by Mary O Neal

green
by Jennifer Rugg



Join us for next Third Thursday, December 17th at Gallery 7

Sunday Night Post

Dennis and I drove to Oklahoma City yesterday. Julie had been driving his truck while her car was having repairs. We had a nice visit with Julie and Michael and then headed home.


I had a list of things I wanted to accomplish today. One of those was to test a new technique for creating mosaic tiles. Needless to say, not much else got done. I got into "the zone" and could not tear myself away.

Bob Rundel, a member of the Colby High School Class of 74, passed away yesterday. My sympathy goes out to his wife, Pam and his family. During the past two months his daughter, Lenay, kept us all up to date on how he was doing through a website called Caring Bridges. I am grateful that I had a opportunity to let him know he was in my thoughts and prayers. His daughter would read him the posts from family and friends. She said he enjoyed hearing them.

I so enjoyed Bob in high school. He was very creative and would think of interesting ways to have fun. One of my favorite memories from high school was Bob introducing several of us to sledding at Villa High Lake over the lunch hour and during Senior Release. Great fun! Bob was a non-conformist and while the teachers may have found that challenging, I think they all really liked him. He will be missed.


P.S. I don't know why it is called a lake, but according to Kansas Wild Life and Parks website it is a 2 acre lake.

A Few Updates

First let me start by wishing my neice, Erin, a Happy 26th Birthday: )

For a number of reasons I find it harder and harder to post to my blog these days. So here is a bit of an update:

• Julie and John left Sunday morning. Julie headed to Oklahoma City and John to Pittsburg. It is always a relief when they call to say they arrived safely.
• We had to replace the dishwasher. It arrived today.
• I got my H1N1 vaccination today.
• Nice article in The Hutchinson News today about our 2010 VITA Grant

Tax Assistance Program Wins Grant
Money means extended hours for program, new computers for volunteers.
By John Green - The Hutchinson News

A program that assists low-income Reno County residents prepare their annual tax returns will be able to expand into evening hours, thanks to a grant from the IRS.The Volunteer Center of Reno County has been a sponsor of the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance or VITA program for several years, but the assistance has been limited to the daytime, said Debbie Berndsen, Volunteer Center director.

"We've always operated from 9-to-3 during tax season," Berndsen said. "We recognize working people couldn't take advantage of the free income tax assistance because we finished at 3 p.m. Now we'll be able to extend our hours into the evening. The hope is we'll reach more working families.

"The $20,000 Internal Revenue Service grant was one of 147 awarded nationwide out of some 360 applicants, according to an IRS press release.The Volunteer Center must match the grant with local funding or in-kind services. The Hutchinson Community Foundation's Fund for Hutchinson provided $6,000 of the match, with the remainder coming from in-kind volunteer hours, Berndsen said.

A big chunk of the funding, Berndsen said, will go toward the purchase of 10 new laptop computers. Over the years, the local program has used laptops that are shipped in each season by the IRS and then returned after the tax season is over. That has presented its own problems, Berndsen said."These computers will remain with us year after year," she said. Also with the funds, the agency will be able to promote its new evening hours, as well as the VITA program in general.

Under the VITA program, partner organizations provide free federal tax return preparation and electronic filing to low and moderate income individuals. For tax year 2009, individuals and families with an adjusted gross income of $49,000 or lower are eligible for assistance. First created in 1969, the program last year assisted in the preparation of more than 3 million returns at nearly 12,000 locations nationwide.

"We're now in recruitment mode," Berndsen said. "We need more volunteers willing to work at least a four-hour shift between 3 in the afternoon and 8 p.m. They'll actually finish up about 9 p.m., but the public hours will run from 3 to 8."The center is also seeking more volunteers for daytime operating hours, she said."We have a very successful daytime program," Berndsen said. "We had the fifth largest number of returns in Kansas last year, and we operate the single largest site, where all of us work in one location. We are very grateful to the Salvation Army for letting us use space during tax season.

"Training for VITA volunteers will run Jan. 19 through 22 at the Volunteer Center on the Hutchinson Community College campus. Volunteers must pass a test at the conclusion of training to become a preparer.

"We'll put out detailed information on our hours and the site when it's closer to the time," Berndsen said. "We anticipate opening the daytime site on Jan. 26."To volunteer:Anyone interested in becoming a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance preparer, for either daytime or evening hours, may contact The Volunteer Center at 665-4960 or e-mail volunteercenter@hutchcc.edu.

Fun With Family

It was great to have Mom and Dad, John and Julie with us for Thanksgiving. Mom and Dad and John arrived on Wednesday and Julie came in Thursday morning. My Thanksgiving Dinner included turkey, dressing, gravy, cranberries, orange salad, corn, sweet potatoes, and dinner rolls. "Mrs. Dillon" made the pies.



Friday:
It was a beautiful day in Hutchinson today. Dennis and John did some work at the farm. Dad and Julie had a nice visit this morning, while Mom and I went shopping. Julie joined us for a little shopping later in the day.

I decided to change up the leftovers tonight so I made turkey and noodles for supper.

I am thankful for my family : )

A Fun Evening

Last Thursday we were fortunate to once again get to share our creations at Jennifer Randall's Gallery 7 during November's Third Thursday.

Sharon, Mary O. Jennifer, Terri, Diana and Me. Mary B. had another commitment and could not join us. However, she did have her art on display.

Fun creations by Mary O.

These are four of the pieces I had on display.

Terri had these wonderful chandelier pieces on display.

Designs by Sharon

Raging Sea performed at the Gallery which made for a very festive atmosphere.

Tara was on hand from the Reno County Chapter of the American Red Cross.

Diana's grandson, Tate is always a fun addition to a Paper Lady exhibit.

A view from outside Gallery 7 November 09's Third Thursday.

Professional artist, Claudia True, was also showing her work at Gallery 7 last Thursday. I can't believe I did not get a picture of her work. It is quite uplifting and fun. She was fun to visit with and very supportive of our efforts.

In ending this post, I must once again thank Jennifer Randall for letting us exhibit our work at her gallery. We are greatful for her support and for all she does to promote the arts in Hutchinson.