G&G
Fruits and herbs enliven
spring cocktails
What People Say...
Page 6
Why did you choose ESU?
Page 7
EGW
MARCH 26 AND 27, 2016
V V V
PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING
FAMILY OWNED SINCE 1895
V V V
WWW.EMPORIAGAZETTE.COM
Do-B’s Celebrates 5 Years
By Cathryne Scharton
[email protected]
Do-B’s at 704 E. 12th Ave. is
celebrating its fifth anniversary
this month.
“It feels great,” said Daryn
Bontrager. “It just went by so
fast, it doesn’t really feel like it
has been five years.”
The biggest change Do-B’s has
seen is food costs and staying on
top of new products, from the
products Bontrager buys to the
products he sells.
KENDRA JOHNSON/GAZETTE
Within five minutes of opening on Friday the line of customers
extended outside of Do-B’s. Do-B’s celebrates five years of
burgers, phillys and po’boys.
Bontrager said another change
the business has seen is the rising popularity of their burgers.
Cheesesteaks used to be the most
popular item on the menu when
Do-B’s first opened in 2011.
“I sell more burgers than I do
anything else,” said Bontrager.
Do-B’s uses a few different
techniques to come up with new
products. Customers provide a
lot of feedback on what things
are good or what they might like
to see the restaurant offer. Other
times, Do-B’s will run specials
with a new product to gauge customer response. Bontrager also
encourages employees to share
their ideas for products to sell.
“My own OMG Burger came
from a dream,” said Bontrager. “I
woke up and I was like I am going to make this tomorrow when
I get to work.”
The A-Bomb is a peanut butter burger that was thought of by
Bontrager’s daughter Addie, 10,
when she requested peanut butter on her burger. They now offer
a kids version and an adult version with jalapeños and pepper
jack cheese.
On Tuesdays they feature a
DAN FERRELL/GAZETTE
(Above) Daryn Bontrager, owner of Do-B’s, assists customers
on Friday. Happy and hungry customers have kept Do-B’s
“busy as a bee” for five years.
(Below) Customers eagerly pick up their orders. Do-B’s specializes in burgers, phillys and po’boys.
Please see Do-B’s, Page 3
KENDRA JOHNSON/GAZETTE
DAN FERRELL/GAZETTE
KANSAS MASONS CREATE NEW LITERACY CENTER AT EMPORIA STATE
By Jessie Wagoner
[email protected]
Masons across the state of
Kansas are partnering with Emporia State University to create
the Kansas Masonic Literary
Center (KMLC) on the Emporia
State campus. The initiative was
publicly announced by the Masons last week during the 160th
Annual Communication of the
Grand Lodge of Kansas. Kansas
Gov. Sam Brownback signed a
proclamation to recognize the
special day, March 18, 2016, as
Kansas Masons’ Day.
The $4 million gift is the largest in Emporia State University
history. Friday, Emporia State
celebrated with a bell-ringing ceremony in the Memorial Union’s
KSTC Ballroom at 4 p.m. The
literacy center is part of Kansas
Masonic Foundation’s Building
Kansas Campaign that seeks to
raise $20 million during a new
fundraising campaign to enrich
the lives of Kansans throughout
the state. The KMLC is sched-
uled to open Jan. 1, 2017.
“The KMLC’s mission is to
provide service and support
to learners from birth through
adulthood throughout Kansas
in the area of literacy,” said Dr.
Ken Weaver, dean of The Teachers College. “Our partnership
with the Kansas Masons includes
working with the teachers around
the state and hosting community
literacy events for families and
children. Thank you, Kansas Masons; the KMLC is truly a once
in a lifetime partnership that will
transform young minds and all
Kansans.”
Aiming to transform the lives
of over 50,000 children throughout Kansas in the next 10 years,
the KMLC’s goals are to provide
service and support with three
foundational pillars: service
for schools, teachers and students across Kansas; service for
families and communities at the
KMLC; and research for the betterment of literacy development.
Good Evening
Please see Masons, Page 3
DUSTIN MICHELSON/EMPORIA STATE UNIVERSITY
Mark Snider, a member of the Emporia Masonic Lodge, reads to children at the Center for Early
Childhood Education at Emporia State University on Thursday.
VOL. 124, NO. 229
Happy Easter Emporia!