John Beal
John Beal is a contributor to The Shawnee Dispatch, Bonner Springs Chieftain and Basehor Sentinel. He retired in February 2008 as editor of those newspapers.
Recent stories
- First job no walk in the park
- September 1, 2010
- I’d almost forgotten how desolate this country could be.
- Expansion of Wonderscope seen as boon to economy
- September 1, 2010
- The folks at Wonderscope Children’s Museum are in a waiting mode.
- Trip to Kansas’ Grand Canyon as near as writer’s imagination
- August 25, 2010
- It’s probably just another sign that I’ve slipped a cog, but I love driving across Kansas. Just a glance at a map, and I’m off again, without even leaving my chair.
- Museums’ futures in city tied to expansion, funds
- August 25, 2010
- Shawnee’s museums are bursting at the seams, and if city boosters want to keep them here, someone needs to step up with places for them to grow into.
- The post-visit quiet
- August 18, 2010
- The house seems awfully quiet this week. That’s been the case ever since the kids left on Saturday morning.
- Beal: 3-year-old ‘shadow’ enthralls grandfather
- August 11, 2010
- You never know how long these things will last, but for right now I have a faithful companion.
- Fond memories stirred by ‘Big Band’ sound
- August 4, 2010
- I guess I’ve always been something of a nonconformist. Put another way, I’ve usually had a penchant for doing things the hard way.
- Beal: Finch at the feeder worth two in the bush
- July 28, 2010
- I guess you could say it’s not been much of a summer for the birds. Or for bird-watching, at any rate.
- For companionship, no pet beats a dog
- July 21, 2010
- I have had occasion this past week to reflect on the relationship between people and their pets.
- Beal: City’s placement on list all about quality of life
- July 14, 2010
- Not that we needed anyone to tell us, Shawnee is a great place to live.
Recent photos
Storyteller Jo Ho leads children through a discussion about reptiles in a Story Hour performance last month at the Johnson County Museum. Officials at the Johnson County Museum and Wonderscope Children’s Museum say they need more space for their exhibits and additional programs such as these.
Longtime Shawnee civic leader and funeral home director Gene Amos died Friday at age 78. Among his many memberships was with Shawnee’s Peter Smith American Legion Post, where he served as a member of the post’s honor guard, which conducts military observances for deceased veterans.
Actress Claudette Walker portrays Annie Chambers, a legendary madam who operated a bawdy house at Third and Wyandotte in Kansas City, Mo., from 1872-1923. Walker recounted the story of Chambers' life with the assistance of a tableful of flamboyant hats and stoles that she shared with the audience of about 70 persons at Shawnee Town.
Marianne Payette Carter plays to the audience at Shawnee Town during her program, "Americana: Stories Behind Popular Folk Songs." She spoke and performed June 10 as part of the Shawnee Town Speaker Series.
Children reach out to touch the hand of Shriner Dale Schmidt, who drove a small racer in Saturday's Old Shawnee Days Parade.
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Point of View
Do you think it is important for Shawnee to be bicycle-friendly?
I think it’s important. I do love and use the paths, but it would be nice to have lanes so we could use bikes to run errands - saving gas!
