Just over 5 months ago I learned that our Cottonwood Extension District - Great Bend office, would need to find new office space at the end of the year. Our home for the past 26 years has been the southeast corner of the old Boogardts supermarket located at 12th and Baker. We are grateful for the space that has been provided by the Barton County Commissioners and understand the need they have to provide additional offices for court services.
We went to work immediately checking out several properties for rent or sale in the area and have found one that will fit our needs. Our new office will be located at 3007 10th Street. Some of you will remember when it was the driver’s license renewal office many years ago or the Kansas Lottery office. While we won’t be moving everything until the week after Thanksgiving, it is time to start going through our cabinets and closets to sort items that we want to recycle, discard, or keep. Earlier this week our Cottonwood Team members met in our office to move the process along.
So far, the oldest publication I have found in my stash is a bulletin titled, “The Care of Leather” from 1920. Another publication from the 1920’s talks about making and using cottage cheese. I also found some Family Circle magazines from the 1940’s that I delivered to the Barton County Historical Society to display. While some of these publications discuss topics that have become a lost art, it is time to move on. Even much of the nutrition information that was pre-2010 needs a quick review since we follow the MyPlate guide for healthy eating instead of the Food pyramid.
Twenty-six years in one spot, creates an accumulation of notebooks, program materials, equipment and files that could easily fill a semi-truck. After all, when we moved from the courthouse in July of 1995, we were still using typewriters, and had barely heard of the internet. K-State Research and Extension continues to provide unbiased research-based answers to your questions related to agriculture and natural resources, horticulture, family life and youth development. With the move to our new location, the publication room will be transforming the most as we print the most recent information on demand.
I know you will all bear with us as our moving date gets closer. We will likely find some treasures that will need to find a new home, so stay tuned. I will keep you posted!
Donna Krug is the District Director and Family & Consumer Science Agent with K-State Research & Extension – Cottonwood District. You may reach her at: (620)793-1910 or [email protected] K-State Research and Extension is an equal opportunity employer and provider.