Aug 05, 2019
SABETHA, Kan. (KSNT) – Lieutenant Governor Lynn Rogers is traveling across the state to try and make sure rural voices are heard in Topeka.
The lieutenant governor has made 11 of the 12 stops on the Rural Prosperity Listening Tour. On Monday he toured the town of Sabetha.
Rogers toured the local hospital and talked to workers.
“Getting a flavor of our community and the services that we try to provide to our patients, very important to be able to understand and know the needs of the community,” said Sabetha Community Hospital CEO, Lora Key.
Rogers also visited businesses in the area.
“There are some really exciting things happening and we want to make sure that everyone in the state knows what’s happening, and at the same point are there things that the state can do better, that we’re not standing in the way of progress,” said Rogers.
Rogers toured KSi Conveyors, a seed treating and grain handling equipment manufacturer with 45 employees.
Paul Kaeb is the company’s CEO. He said KSI is right at home in Sabetha.
“It’s not any benefit for anybody for us to move out of the rural areas to the big cities, I really think here is where innovative, development, entrepreneurship is, and Kansas has really been a leader in this,” Kaeb said.
He said better internet service and infrastructure are important to rural communities.
The lieutenant governor said in addition to those issues, housing, good healthcare, and reinvesting in downtowns are main topics that keep coming up on tours.
“We need to do that more so that younger people realize that there is a place for them, and instead of a brain drain, we’re looking at a brain gain,” Rogers said.
Rogers also visited Seneca and Bern on the tour. He ended the tour by meeting with members of the public to discuss what rural prosperity means to them.
The final tour will wrap up in Dodge City on Wednesday.
Content retrieved from: https://www.ksnt.com/news/lt-gov-rogers-looking-for-answers-through-rural-kansas-tour/.
