By John Robinson john @ emporia . com

By Frank J . Buchman

Special to The Gazette

“ A model horse is the next best thing to owning a live horse . Even those who own horses get a kick out of collecting models .”

“ Breyer ’ s model horses have been the iconic American toy since the 1950s . Breyer horses are the most realistic , authentic model horses , and many are inspired by real horse heroes like Sea Biscuit and Secretariat ,” according to Kathleen Fallon , vice president of communications for Reeves International Inc ., Pequannock , New Jersey .

There will be a full slate of activities for all ages during the annual Breyer Fun Day , Saturday at Bluestem Farm & Ranch Supply in Emporia .

“ It ’ s a great opportunity for families to come and learn more about horses and model horses , too ,” said Bruce Burenheide , longtime store official .

A horse lover growing up in a family of horse trainers , Fallon speaks about Breyer horses with most-apparent affection for all horses , including the model horses which she has in her own collection .

Breyer — officially named Breyer Animal Creations , which was founded in 1950 — is a division of Reeves International , Inc . The company manufactures the Breyer brand and distributes other toys , of which Tonka might be most familiar with horse and rural people .

Interestingly , to many , Breyer first gained recognition when commissioned by F . W . Woolworth ( original dime store ) to create a horse statue to adorn a mantel clock .

Those clocks were popular in many homes , and can still be seen frequently on dining room tables and fireplace mantels . That original Breyer horse statue was 1:9 scale , known as No . 57 Western Horse .

“ Breyer now specializes in model horses made from cellulose acetate , a form of plastic , and also produces other animal models from the same material ,” Fallon said .

Popularity of the Breyer horses has created demand for the company to also produce tack acces-

Please see Horses , Page 3

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Pal-A-Mine , Breyer ’ s mascot , will greet visitors to the Breyer Fun Day Saturday at Bluestem Farm & Ranch Supply . Photo at top , Seeing , petting and talking to real live horses from Blankley Gypsy Vanner Horses , O ’ Rear Welsh Ponies and the Shooting Star Equine Rescue will be a highlight of the event .

The proposal from the Central States Pensions Fund , which would have cut monthly pension benefits to thousands of Teamsters , was denied by the U . S . Department of Treasury on Friday .

When retired teamster Ray Loomis of Emporia heard the news , he nearly jumped for joy .

” A guy here in town called me ... and I just wanted to jump up and down but I didn ’ t want my neighbors to think I was crazy ,” Loomis said . Having worked for 33 years in Kansas , Loomis was set to take a $ 1,077.89 cut from his monthly benefits starting July 1 .

According to a letter from the CSPF , the fund is in danger of running out of money in 10 years . This caused the CSPF to file the application for cuts with the Treasury Department in September 2015 as allowed under the Kline-Miller Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014 .

The Treasury appointed Kenneth Feinberg , a mediator who distributed billions of dollars to victims of the terrorist attacks on Sept . 11 , to decide if the proposed cuts meet the requirements set by MPRA . On May 6 , Feinberg ruled that CSFP ’ s application did not meet the MPRA requirements .

The ruling insures that more than 400,000 Teamsters in the fund — 200,000 of whom are retired — will continue to receive their monthly benefits in full .

“ On behalf of our union and the more than 400,000 retirees and participants in Central States Pension Fund , I would like to thank Mr . Feinberg and the Department of Treasury for denying these massive cuts that would destroy so many lives . We worked with thousands of retirees to educate Treasury and Congress on the devastating impact of the proposed cuts ,” Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa said in a press release . “ This decision means that there won ’ t be any cuts to retirees ’ pensions this July or the foreseeable future . We will find a solution to this problem that will allow members and retirees to contin-

Please see Pension , Page 3

VOL . 124 , NO . 268

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Megan Allen , a graphic design student at Flint Hills Technical College , won the Emporia Entrepreneur Challenge and placed fourth at the state-level competition . Allen received $ 3,000 to help move her company NFusion forward .

By John Robinson john @ emporia . com

Megan Allen ’ s only goal when she first became involved with business was promoting her and her mother ’ s farmer ’ s market booth .

“ It actually started when I was 12 years old , we started a farmer ’ s market booth in Council Grove and we called it ‘ Farm Girl Fresh ,’” Allen said . “ We sold baked goods mostly , but I wanted to do lip balm ... and I really just wanted to put smiles on peoples faces and draw more people into our baked goods . At the end of six months though , I had made $ 1,500 on a $ 100 investment .”

Now a student at Flint Hills Technical College majoring in Graphic Design , Allen is looking to take her idea and turn it from hobby to business with her natural cosmetic startup Nfusion .

Allen is working on a main website for Nfusion and said the best place to get additional info on her business is at he Facebook page , www . facebook . com / nfusionherbs /

“ That ’ s where I am now ,” Allen said . “ I ’ m trying to expand on that project .”

To that end , Allen enrolled in the “ Start Your Own Business ” course at FHTC . Allen said the course helped her get a big picture idea for Nfusion .

“ Insurance , record keeping , having a lawyer , all that stuff was kind of foreign to me ,” she said . “ The reason I wanted to take that course was because my dad was an entrepreneur and I think he was almost too nice . I really wanted to figure out the business side of it . I want it to be an opportunity to reach out to people but I also want it to take off as a business .”

From there , Allen entered into the Emporia Entrepreneur Challenge . Seeking experience , Allen went into the competition with low expectations and a desire to learn . She ended up walking out with a

first-place finish and $ 2,500 .

“ I had about a weekend before it was due and I thought ‘ Oh , it ’ s not going to hurt me to enter and it ’ ll be good to enter ,’” she said . “ So in a weekend I came up with my little executive summary and the rest is history .”

Allen went on to compete at the state level competition in Manhattan , where she placed fourth in the college division , taking home $ 500 .

“ It was a totally different ballgame ,” Allen said “ It seemed like they were shooting for people who were going to make the millions instead of the small businesses .”

Now , Allen is looking to increase Nfusion ’ s overall presence , both getting her products on store shelves and setting up an online storefront .

“ The next step is to get my product in local retailers and boutiques ,” Allen said . “ I guess they ’ ll be carrying my product in the ‘ Little Red Rooster ’ and ‘ Grove Gardens ’ in Council Grove . I ’ m also starting a Facebook page .”