A long-held Kearny County Historical Society tradition looked a little different this year when Curtis and Emily Ansel were selected to ride in the chariot of honor in the Frances Bostrom Memorial Lighted Christmas Parade. The Ansels are the youngest king and queen ever chosen. Curtis, the son of Bruce and Peggy Ansel, graduated from Lakin High School in 1999, and Emily, the daughter of Monte and Nancy Miller, graduated from Deerfield High School in 2001. They were married in 2002, have three children, and reside north of Deerfield.
After setting the Big 12 record for longest punt while playing for the University of Kansas, Curtis signed with the Detroit Lions as an undrafted rookie free agent. He played in two pre-season games then was released. The next summer he signed with the Houston Texans who later released him. He now works for Cross Bell Farms, and Emily is a math teacher for the fifth and sixth grades at Lakin Middle School.
Curtis and Emily’s roots in Kearny County are deep. Curtis’s maternal great-great-grandfather, Carl Coerber, came to Kearny County in 1892 and was known at one time as the Deerfield sugar beet king. Emily’s paternal great-great-grandfather, Willard Miller, settled with his family on a tree claim in northern Kearny County near Oanica in 1886. He was the first teacher at Columbia School (now on Museum grounds) and the one to suggest its name.
Congratulations to Curtis and Emily, our 2022 KCHS King and Queen.
