Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Sorted by date Results 51 - 73 of 73
Various Jif peanut butter items have been recalled due to concerns of salmonella contamination. On Friday, May 20, J.M. Smucker Company recalled several items after 14 people became ill and two of those cases were hospitalized, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Since then, a total of 16 individuals have reported illness. On May 31, the US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service issued a health alert for ready-to-eat salad, packaged in 14.5-ounce plastic...
April was National Autism Awareness Month and National Adopt a Pet month. Zekiel Kaiser, a preschooler at Summerland Public School, was successful bringing a light to both causes last April. Kaiser was born on Jan. 5, 2016. When he was brought home, his mother, Courtney Soper, noticed he would eat and immediately vomit everything up. "He couldn't keep anything down and progressively got worse. He wasn't gaining weight and in general, was 'cranky,'" said LuAnn Schindler, Zekiel's grandmother....
Every morning, vehicles fill the lot at Royal One Stop, where customers are greeted at the door by a group of individuals playing cards. While the town's population has dwindled over the years, Royal One Stop continues to flourish. The "Royal Centennial" outlines the history of the business. The convenience store has not always been called Royal One Stop. The business started in the early 1920s when Hiram and Louise Beal bought land from a Mr. Allen and built a service station and home on the...
Plan on a totally tubular time in Ewing, this weekend, as the 2022 version of FunFest brings an 80s vibe to the Holt County community. Events begin Friday, May 27, with a road rally scheduled to run from 5 to 7 p.m. Registration fee is $20 and will take place at DW’s Pub. The event is sponsored by the Summerland Advocate-Messenger and Ewing Young Members Club. Hole-in-one qualifying runs from 5 to 9 p.m. This event will take place at the Summerland Golf Course. At 9:30 p.m., a g...
Clearwater Public Library has an exciting summer planned, full of reading, learning, and exploring "Oceans of Possibilities." Events will begin Wednesday, June 1, at 10 a.m., at the Clearwater American Legion. Polka Dot Entertainment will present the "Balloon Animal Adventures Show – Under the Sea." The show will be a live presentation featuring animal balloons, with actors in the spirit of Jack Hanna, Steve Irwin and the Kratt Brothers. The second event, "Wildlife Encounters," will take p...
Eleven students graduated Wednesday, May 18, from St. Peter Preschool Academy in the St. Peter Lutheran Church's fellowship hall in Orchard. The graduation kicked off at 6 p.m., with preschool teacher, Jillian Henn, welcoming guests, introducing herself, saying a thank you to both of her teacher assistants, Angie Robertson and Shirley Raff, the children's parents and her mother, Sue Walmer. Graduates include Merritt Schacht, Cameron Bodhi Rautenberg, Landrie Thiele, Gracelynn Schwager, Hunter...
A boil water advisory has been in effect for the village of Orchard since Sunday, May 15, due to a loss of pressure in the water distribution system, according to village officials. A drop in water pressure can be caused by to several things, including power outages and leaks in pipes, according to Nebraska's Public Health Environmental Lab. While the cause has not been determined in Orchard, a loss of pressure, which led to power outages, following Thursday's storm, may be a culprit. Due to a...
Niobrara Valley Conference wrestling duals took place Thursday, Jan. 21 at Elkhorn Valley. The Summerland Bobcats placed fourth out of the eight teams participating. Summerland's first dual was against the West Holt Huskies. Starting with the 170-pound weight class, Kendrick Schroeder received a forfeit. Tyler Bellar, Colton Thiele, Wyatt Chipps, and Logan Mueller all earned forfeits, respectively, for the 182, 195, 220 and 285-pound weight divisions. The 106-pound class was a double forfeit....
This August, I was extremely excited to get back to college and start making up for the memories lost during the pandemic at my first year of college. The day before I left, I went to tell my grandparents goodbye. My grandpa Jim Fink, 81, hugged me extra tight as he joked about staying away from boys. Then my grandma Gladys, 87, followed me out the door, gave me multiple hugs, as tears began to roll off her cheeks. "I just hope you know how proud your grandpa and I are of you." While both my...
This year has been extremely hard on small-town fire departments. Within the past two months alone, the Royal Volunteer Fire Department has responded to six calls in the area. On a brighter note, department members recently received exciting news: They are now the proud new owners of another fire truck. On Nov. 2, the Bloomfield Rural Fire District, opened bids on a 1999 GMC Topkick 7500 Midwest Pumping Unit fire truck. Royal firefighters, with the help of the Orchard Rural Fire Board,...
O'Neill claimed the team title at the Bobcat invite Thursday, December 10. The Eagles scored 195.5 points to lead the field of 12 teams. Winside finished second, with 109.5 points. Howells-Dodge ended third with 68 points, while the Bobcats finished fourth with 66. Other schools participating included Palmer, 63; Hartington Cedar Catholic, 56; Elgin Public/Pope John, 52; Osmond, 51; Fullerton, 48; Lutheran High Northeast, 39; St. Mary's, 27; and Niobrara/Verdigre, 12. Alex Arroyo earned a gold...
Orchard residents consider it a fortunate town when it comes to preserving the history that has taken place hundreds of years ago. Those who have toured the District 57 Schoolhouse or visited the Rex Theatre, have found stories about the places incredible. In 1914, the lot of land north of the Commercial Hotel went up for sale, so Austin C. King, Jr., a banker at the time, along with Lloyd M. Drayton, purchased the land. The two men were interested in progressing the community and they thought...
Freshman year cut short. These four words pretty much sum up what my college experience, being sent home, meant to me. Don’t get me wrong; I absolutely love it back home. In the same sense, it would be an understatement to say I’m bummed. This is the time we’re supposed to start spreading our wings and figuring out where we want to go and who we want to be. Freshman year of college includes a lot of new experiences. While attending Wayne State College, I have already created many life-long frien...
Throughout the past few months, the world has seen many challenges circling around. However, when things get tough, there is always something positive to come out of it. After undergoing the call process, Pastor Ryan Janke accepted the call to preach at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Orchard and St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Venus. Originally from Winside, Janke attended Wayne State College for social sciences, graduating in 2012. Two weeks later, on May 19, he married Danielle. The couple moved t...
The St. Peter Lutheran Church, in Orchard, has been going through the process of calling a new pastor. At the quarterly congregational voter's meeting, Jan. 26, discussion was held about updating the church's parsonage, located directly south of the church. The parsonage is over 40 years old. Around 20 volunteers began to update the parsonage just a few days after the meeting. Church member Lynae Stelling said, "Many of the volunteers were farmers who were happy to have a warm place to work on s...
Multiple sightings of bears have been reported across the area. A nationwide movement to hunt bears is underway, since schools have been closed due to COVID-19. Based on the popular children's book, "We're Going on a Bear Hunt," by Michael Rosen, participants are urged to place a teddy bear in a front window of a neighborhood or business district. Then, families can entertain little ones with the viral pastime. The book tells the story of three children and their parents, who, along with the...
Elvis Presley once sang, "Take my hand, take my whole life too, for I can't help falling in love with you." As trends and fads fade, it seems people still gravitate toward finding good careers, a soulmate and creating families of our own. Luckily, young people like me have grown up with people in our community to be some of the best role models for future generations to look up to. Marvin and Maxine Haswell, a couple from Orchard, are well-known for being high school sweethearts. Although the...
Keeping small-town businesses alive seems to be a concern, especially when it comes to selling a business. After having their business on the market for awhile, Cliff and Shirley Erb are excited about turning over the keys to new owners, Tammy and Glen Cheatum. “They have some energy and ideas, and they are going to continue to keep the doors open on Main Street,” said Shirley. For 52 years, the Erbs owned Corner Hardware Store in Orchard. They bought the building in 1968 Throughout the yea...
W.T. Ellis stated, "It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air." The Orchard Historical Society seems to keep the community involved by hosting events for people to partake in. On Sunday, Dec. 15, they hosted a tour of homes, with six participants. Each destination featured a different thing to intrigue visitors with the holiday season. First on the list to visit was the old schoolhouse in Orchard. The Historical Society has put a lot of time and effort into restoring the school...
Getting kids involved with other cultures and people from different countries is one way many schools benefit in the United States. Orchard Public Schools is blessed with a second foreign exchange student for the 2019-20 school year. Silvia Bode-Garcia, an 18-year-old from Margarita Island, Venezuela, joins Madleen Repein, from Germany. Bode-Garcia will reside with Sam and Barb Schwager during the school year and will be a member of the senior class. Silvia wanted to become an exchange student...
Not every day do you get to talk to someone from a different country, but students from several communities will get the opportunity every day. Maddy Repein is a foreign exchange student from Cologne, Germany, and she is living with Bob and Bev Krutz of Orchard until June 2020. Repein is only 15 years old, and she will be a senior at Orchard Public Schools. Maddy would be a sophomore back in Germany, and she does not receive credit for spending a year in America. When she returns to Germany,...
Many things make a town look attractive, but Loretta Foote of Orchard knows exactly how to catch the eye of other gardeners with her beautiful flowers and shrubs. Foote took an interest in gardening at a very young age. She received a small packet with wildflower seeds as a present when she was four or five, and she fell in love with gardening. The packet of this kit is even placed in Foote's scrapbook. "My grandma and my mom have inspired all of our family," says Foote. Not only does she raise...
Every summer, the Orchard swimming pool opens with hopes of bringing together people of all ages for great swimming and a safe place full of entertainment. Pool personnel try to get everyone involved, including babies. Moms and tots is a program that was created several years ago by former pool managers. The goal is to offer an opportunity for small children, ages newborn to four, who are too young to take swimming lessons to become more comfortable with the water. Children are taught several...
