As a child, we sang “America” more frequently than “The Star Spangled Banner,” in school, perhaps because it has fewer words.  My country, ’tis of thee, Sweet land of liberty, Of thee I sing; Land…

Dear editor, The City of Iola needs to fill an $800,000 hole they have dug in their budget.  Based on a $30 million city budget this would be 2.6 percent of their budget. If you…

Shirley M. Reed, 80, Swink, Colo., mother of Stephen Reed, Mildred, died Monday, June 27, 2016, at her home. Memorial services will be at 10 a.m. today at the Feuerborn Family Funeral Service Chapel in…

Mable Irene Rook Van Dam, 84, Topeka, passed away Saturday, June 25, 2016. She was born June 16, 1932, in Colony, the daughter of Claude and Ada (Hensley) Rook. She grew up in Iola, and…

The Iola Elks will once again cap Independence Day with a fireworks extravaganza Monday. But folks needn’t wait until dusk to show up for the fun. That starts much earlier. The gates to Elks Lake…

(Editor’s note: Brandon Wilmoth, Wellington, wrote this article about his son’s first turkey kill. The Wilmoths have several relatives in the Iola area.) My 5-year-old-son, Platt, and I have developed our father/son bond in many…

As the summer starts, Iola band students don’t stop practice.  Students entering middle school and wanting to learn an instrument are welcome to take lessons. Many students already enrolled in band are attending practices to…