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It's time for Positively Kansas, coming up.

I've definitely seen the traffic flow at farmers markets picking up.

so people really do seem to appreciate, kind of tapping back into their roots, you know, eating like their grandparents did.

It's a hot trend in both the country and city.

More and more Kansans are demanding locally produced food.

Find out what's behind this homegrown movement.

Also, 40 years in office, this small town mayor must be doing something right in the eyes of voters.

Where does he get his passion for public service for what's often seen as a thankless job?

The answer coming up.

Plus, She may be small, but she's making a big impression on the rock music scene.

Wait to hear who this young Wichitan got to jam with on stage at a recent concert, and.

I am not retired.

I work full time.

I probably work more hours a week as an artist than I did as a veterinarian.

This Hutchinson woman gave up her veterinary practice to become a full time artist.

Find out where one of her paintings ended up and why it was such a coincidence.

I'm Sierra Scott.

Those are just some of the stories coming your way.

Positively Kansas starts right now.

Everything old is new again.

A move is afoot for Kansans to produce more of their own fruits, vegetables and meats.

It's been seen as a way to enhance the rural economy and keep more food dollars from leaving the state.

But as state officials and lawmakers have been mulling over tax incentives and policy changes.

People across the Kansas countryside are taking matters into their own hands.

Jim Grawe explains why the local food movement stirs so much passion.

Fruit and vegetable farming is probably the oldest kind of farming there is.

Bill and Betsy have been making a plan for their garden.

But we Midwesterners have gotten away from it because it's become so easy to buy produce imported from other parts of the country.

What's this?

Henrys never seen anything like this before.

Looks good.

So he'll take two.

Sure, we grow a lot of wheat, but Kansans now spend 90% of their food budgets on food grown by farmers in other states.

That means a lot of money is leaving Kansas, that could be staying here if more of our food came from here.

The state has been studying how to make that happen.

Meanwhile, growers like Jessica Gnad of Pratt are taking action now and preaching the power of homegrown produce.

It starts with people understanding that we need to get back into our kitchens.

We need to be cooking not only what we're picking up from a farmer's market, from a community supported agriculture system, or even from our own backyard.

Getting that connection back to the Earth.

Growing things in your own backyard and and buying from people who are growing is going to give you that connection back to the land.

You name it, she grows it.

What she and her family don't eat ends up here at one of the many farmers markets across the state.

Gnad and several other community leaders were instrumental in reviving the farmers market in Pratt.

Their opening weekend was May 13th.

20 vendors showed up for the event and a lot of buyers.

It's a sign that the local food movement has hit Kansas.

And it's not just fruits and vegetables.

There are small scale meat producers such as the Longs near Latham, Kansas.

They sell direct to their fellow Kansans and can use environmental friendly as an added selling point.

My husband and I own “Graze, the Prairie ”, grass fed beef and lamb.

We are located in the beautiful Flint hills of Kansas.

We are on native prairie grasses.

We do not plant anything and we do not spray our pastures with any chemicals, any herbicides, pesticides or We never feed grain or concentrates.

They are 100% grass fed.

Meanwhile, Dale Family Farms Near Protection Kansas, operates with a similar philosophy.

The Dales emphasize soil health to grow the healthiest grass their cattle can possibly eat, and they issue antibiotics and synthetic growth hormones.

The Dales say their approach produces better flavor and nutrients in the beef and fowl they sell to Kansas families.

There is a big growth, with people who want to know where their food comes from.

So according to many of these homegrown foodies, the benefits of eating local go beyond just economics.

But if we each bought $5 worth of food directly from a Kansas farmer each week, a recent study says that would be $750 million more in farm income, and that would translate it into an extra $46 million a year in state revenue, 15 million for local and county governments.

If you want to get into politics, this may be your chance.

And it's an opportunity that doesn't come along very often.

After 40 years in office.

Galva Mayor Wayne Ford says he's not running for re-election.

He's believed to be the longest serving mayor in America.

Justin Kraemer has details.

Wayne Ford works his cell phone outside City Hall in Galva, where he served as mayor, helping out his neighbors for 40 years.

One year just led on to another year, and it's just been a very prosperous operation for our city, for the people.

And I'm just very delighted to been able to work with our community all these years.

Ford took over the top spot in Galvas government way back in 1977, after serving four years on the city council.

It's a spot he's held ever since.

I just figured I would do it two years selection and, you know, go on from there.

But year after year went by, Ford kept running and Galva kept electing him.

He believes it's because he proved he was willing to listen and willing to help anyone who asked.

We say everybody's got a pothole and listen to what their complaints are.

Not always can you satisfy everybody, but you're willing to listen.

And over those last four decades, the town has grown dramatically.

You have a close knit community of of just good, solid citizens that are willing to work hard and keep things up.

And little by little, we begin to progress and expand.

One addition after another.

And now, you know, we're fairly monitoring a community of 900 people.

The most obvious difference?

Every street is now paved with concrete, a big improving man over the dirt paths that used to line the town.

You don't have that dust flying all over and youre not in mud.

It just you wouldn't be surprised what a sand street does versus a concrete street.

But while the town is grown, Ford says, unfortunately, so is apathy.

Volunteer groups like Kiwanis aren't what they used to be.

And he says one of the reasons he stayed on so long as mayor is because fewer and fewer people want to serve their communities in office.

Public service is not in the highest priority.

Trying to get council members to run, to hold your community together, people to serve for couple of years.

And you think, well, hey, I'll groom this person to take my position one day and then they're up and gone.

As far as what Ford will miss the most, the people who've helped make Galva the place it is today.

I think the biggest thing is the Christian atmosphere of our community.

You know, the hey, we're a loving community and, care about each other.

And that's been the most rewarding thing for me.

For Positively Kansas, I'm Justin Kraemer.

The election to replace Ford after 41 years as mayor will be held next year.

So far, no candidates have stepped forward to replace him.

The Kansan in this next story decided it was time to make a change, and her new career is really turning heads.

Ande Hall has loved animals all her life.

For more than 30 years, she worked as a veterinarian.

Along the way, she became a self-taught artist, too.

Her specialty is painting pictures of animals and flowers.

She recently left veterinary medicine to devote more time to her art.

I am not retired.

I work full time.

I probably work more hours a week as an artist than I did as a veterinarian.

But Hall says it's a completely different kind of life, one she really enjoys.

It's a big responsibility to be caring for the lives of such important creatures.

So that burden of responsibility weighs heavily on many veterinarians and I think that for me, after more than 30 years of being responsible for those precious lives, I was ready to do something that was a little less serious.

Her painting, Paisley Paws de Deux was not only awarded Best of Show at the Prairie Art Exhibition in Stirling.

It recently graced the cover of the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Just before her subscription ran out.

It was, a really, poignant and fitting issue because it just so happened and this was completely serendipitous that it was my last issue of the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association that my art was on.

Two of Hall's favorite painting call attention to the Endangered Status of Rhinos and Elephants.

Since she began selling her paintings online in 2013, Halls work has been purchased by collectors from all over the US, Canada, South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and even New Zealand.

If you'd like to see more of Andy Hall's paintings, look for the link on the Positively Kansas page at KPTS.org This next story is about a musical artist who says it was a dream come true.

She got to perform with a music legend before reaching the ripe old age of ten.

Maddy Mullin of Wichita has accomplished and experienced things life long musicians would envy.

As Anthony Powell reports.

Music means much more than just bright lights and fame for this young rocker.

When you're a local musician asked to play with internationally known iconic rocker Gene Simmons, you're gonna grab some headlines.

But because Maddy Mullen, also known as ICT Rockgirl, was only nine when she played alongside Simmons.

The story became that much bigger.

It all began when someone from Simmons camp noticed Maddy playing in the venue's parking lot down in Braman Oklahoma.

Soon, Maddy met Simmons.

And then he invited you out on stage.

I mean, you had to be a little bit nervous playing with Gene Simmons, weren't you?

I was incredibly nervous.

I was just like, what if I mess up?

Oh my gosh, I really I really want to make you I really want to make you happy with my work.

Simmons was all smiles as Maddy rocked on.

While this may have been her most well-known performance.

It was just one of many in Maddy's young, amazing career.

Her grandfather, Jan Perez, a longtime Wichita musician, has been one of Maddy's biggest influences.

She's played in his band, “Crazy Heart ”.

Jan remembers the first time he introduced Maddy to his bandmates.

She started playing “Give Me Three Steps ” by Leonard Skinner, and you should have seen their heads.

All three of them just turn their heads.

Is this really coming out of this little girl?

Jan says when Maddy was just one year old, he could tell she was gifted.

Just by the way she was able to keep a beat while listening to music and clapping along.

But he never thought it would turn out like this.

I was just hoping that everything would be fine with her just growing up as a kid.

But then this got thrown in and man is just blown up really fast She's fearless.

Jordan Bollig is another veteran musician who never ceases to be amazed by Maddy.

The two often get together to jam.

Jordan, so blown away by her talent that he's had Maddy play with his group called “The Band ”.

It's just pure energy, ya know?

She's up on stage in front of all these people and, like, she's not nervous, she's not shy, or if she is, it doesn't come across.

But as proud as Maddys family and friends are of her musical talent, they are equally or more impressed with her intellect and insights.

Sure, Maddy says she loves performing in the roar of the crowd.

But even more important is helping people with her playing.

Music can tell you emotions and how you're feeling, and it can even it can even make people more happy or about themselves or less insecure, because some people are really sad about themselves.

Maddy also says music has helped her overcome her shyness, and she's using that empowerment to be a role model to other young girls to show them, it's not just boys who can play electric guitar.

One thing she doesn't like is people wanting to be her friend because of her fame.

When before, they were mean to her.

She'd be friends with everybody.

You should treat everybody nicely and not be disrespectful to someone, because nobody has more value than you, and nobody has less value than you.

Everybody's valued the same.

As for the future, Maddy of course, hopes it will include music, but she really doesn't want to move to a place like LA or New York or Nashville.

She's fiercely loyal to Wichita and the opportunities she's had in the air capital, so this is where she'll stay.

As for a plan B, she wants to go to WSU.

I want to be an engineer or a guitar builder.

Talent, intelligence, caring and kind.

Maddy Mullin has it all and despite her age, has already achieved so much.

Her future, it would seem, is absolutely limitless for Positively Kansas.

I'm Anthony Powell.

As you might imagine, Maddy is in high demand.

To find out about her upcoming performances, look for the link on the Positively Kansas page at KPTS.org.

Great performances have been the mainstay of Kansas playwright Joyce Markley's career, and one of the highlights has been her collaboration with a local military veteran.

Now, the two are hoping to work together once again.

As Jim Grawe reports.

The story of the American soldier has been a relevant generation after generation.

Hey, buddys.

here!

Buddy!

Hey, buddy!

And Wichita playwright Joyce Markley has integrated that story into some of her most popular works.

I knew so many people that had been in service.

They are just so giving.

That's so big.

It almost makes me cry sometimes.

And I think about what they went through.

What if you have to kill somebody?

Really honest.

Lift up aim and pull the trigger.

This is a performance of Markley's play The Supper Table, performed at Butler Community College.

You see two eyes, white stick that way.

Blood starts oozing out.

It's the story of a Korean War veteran in the 1950s who returns to his family in Kansas.

He encounters both personal and financial challenges as he tries to integrate back into civilian life.

Joyce.

Joyce get's it.

One of Markleys biggest fans is Army veteran Kevin McKelvey.

McKelvey.

is a Wichita North High grad who starred in one of Markleys plays while he was serving in the reserves.

I kind of showed up.

I knew that I wanted to, to get in the show.

That's why I come back to Wichita.

And, you know, I auditioned, and I do remember the song I sang.

It was, kind of a tear jerker, Like a ranger so beaten by the storm.

Finds some shelter safe and warm.

Like a child so gripped by pride by outlast the curse of life.

This man.

This man.

Does come alive.

Come alive!

Come alive!

This led to a collaboration between Markley and McKelvey.

to write a new play together.

I told him I wanted to portray four, military guys, in the story.

Would you like to help write it?

It was a story whose intent was to, was to celebrate the military of all ages and of all services and kind of acknowledge that that common thread that if you've been a member of the fighting services, at any time in history or in any service, there's certain things that you understand and there's certain connection that you understand.

But the project hit a roadblock when McKelvey moved to New York and started a new career and family.

Life just takes a look at some of those chances away, but I think I will write him and ask is, do you think we could do a long distance?

Maybe we ought to try it as see.

McKelvey says he's up for that and would love to resume work on the play and then bring it to life on stage.

When we started started writing it, we thought, oh, it's really timely now.

it's even more so now.

I think that the polarization that has happened over the last, you know, few years, some of the challenges that have happened in the world the last few years, have, have made it even more timely.

If the project comes to fruition, it'll be the latest play bearing the name of this local playwright who has lived through a span of American history, riddled with war and the stories of human triumph and tragedy that are the inevitable result.

For Positively Kansas, I'm Jim Grawe.

One of the best parts of my job is I get to meet people that are absolutely, incredibly talented because I'm not.

So I get to share in their talent just by knowing them.

I've known Brett Valliant for quite some time now.

I don't even remember how many years it's been a while.

It's been a while.

but I will tell you, this man has played organ all over the world.

He's one of the most talented organ players, probably, I don't know, ever.

You're you're just amazing.

I've had the wonderful opportunity to play with you.

You make me sound better than I actually am.

But to talk about.

Let's let's talk a little bit about you and how you got started playing organ.

How old were you?

Gosh.

Well, I was inspired to do it when I was probably about three years old, but I started playing piano when I was four and organ when I was, I don't know, 6 or 7 somewhere in there.

So it's been a while.

What attracted you to the organ?

What was interesting about it to you?

Because, I mean, that's really a young age to start it.

It is.

When I first heard an organ, I was amazed that one person could make so many different sounds like an orchestra, but it was just one person playing, and I was instantly attracted to that.

This organ, because you tried to get us there earlier.

Tell us about it.

What makes it so special?

Where was it found and how did it end up here?

This great Wurlitzer organ was built in 1926 for the New York Paramount Theater, which was in Times Square.

And, in the late 60s, it was taken out of the theater and brought here to Wichita, where Century II was being built.

And it has really been in the building as long as the building's been open.

So, it's been here a long time, but, this was the flagship Wurlitzer organ, of the Wurlitzer company who built theater organs all over the world.

Now, it was originally used to play along with silent movies, correct?

Yes, absolutely.

So who are some of the people that have played this organ that are kind of names that you that we might know?

Well, certainly the great, famous silent film organist, probably of all time, Gaylord Carter, who grew up in Wichita, Kansas, and, then went off to California and had a great career, but he certainly came back many times and played this organ.

other people, performed with this organ like Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland and, this organ accompanied them at the New York Paramount Theater.

Now, we brought up Gaylord.

But first, before we continue with the interview, I really want you to play something because I want to hear because I have never actually heard this organ played.

And, boy, to hear you play, it's going to be great.

So would you please play something for us?

Absolutely.

Wow.

I tell you what.

That was amazing.

You.

You couldn't see this.

I can't not dance.

That was a fun song.

That was amazing.

And, you know, going back to Gaylord Carter, we actually have.

Because KPTS did a series, called Loss Theaters of Kansas.

we have some video of Gaylord Carter actually playing.

And so I want you to take a look at that.

That was actually taken the last performance at the Miller Theater.

And it's really kind of interesting to to look back at that.

That's amazing to me to see that kind of history.

What advice would you give to somebody out there who maybe wants to learn to play organ?

What would you tell them?

Because it almost seems like a lost art now.

Yes.

I would tell them that it is certainly not as mainstream as it once was.

However, there are many, areas where it's still, needed and valued, and there is a place for anyone who wants to learn how to play.

And speaking of needed and valued, you actually play at a church here in Wichita.

So if you want to hear him, he's not there every Sunday because you're traveling a lot, but you are there quite a bit.

Quite a bit.

Talk about how that happened, how long you've been playing there and how that started.

Well, I started playing there when I was a teenager, thinking I would be there maybe a year, maybe two.

Who knew?

And here we are about 19 years later, and I'm still, at First United Methodist Church.

I love it.

I think it's amazing.

It's so fun to hear you play.

And Brett, thank you.

And as a friend, I'm so grateful that you took time because, again, you're not in town much that you took time out of your schedule.

I'm thrilled to, I'm glad too.

And if you want a copy, we talked about, the wonderful Show.

It was a documentary on KPTS the Lost Theaters of Wichita.

If you would like to get a copy, this is the information, and, we look forward to seeing you on future Positively Kansas episodes.

Have a great day.

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The preceding program was brought to you by tz productions.

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