Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
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Leadership in Holt County will remain the same. Supervisors elected Bill Tielke, of Atkinson, to serve as chairman for 2024. The vote was taken Friday when the group met for an organizational meeting at the courthouse in O'Neill. Doug Frahm, of Amelia, will lead the board of equalization. In addition to designating committee assignments for the year, supervisors set salaries and/or hourly wages for county employees. Sheriff Ben Matchett said a three-year plan for deputies' wages, with a $2...
Great news. That's how Summerland Schools Superintendent Kyle Finke described the district's statewide assessment results. The results, released prior to Thanksgiving, were presented to school board members in December, as part of the district's annual report. The data, released by the Nebraska Department of Education, assesses a school's proficiency using annual statewide tests taken by students in third to eighth grade, in addition to ACT scores for junior-class members. The accountability...
Will Summerland Schools be part of a new activity conference? Board of education members will answer that question when they meet Wednesday, Jan. 17. The meeting will be held in the board room at the school at 7 p.m. Discussion about a potential conference, which could include Elkhorn Valley, Hartington-Newcastle, Laurel-Concord-Coleridge, Lutheran High Northeast, Neligh-Oakdale, Plainview, West Holt and Summerland has taken place at board meetings since November. In December, Superintendent...
Election season is officially underway in Nebraska. Individuals who plan to run for state or federal office in the May 14 primary were able to file beginning Jan. 5. Incumbent candidates will have until Feb. 15 to file. This includes any individual currently holding office, including those who currently hold an elected position and are running for a different office. Non-incumbents must file by March 1. Any candidate who does not meet the filing deadline will not appear on the primary ballot. A...
Two pediatric influenza-related deaths have been reported to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. One of the deaths occurred within the North Central District Health Department service area. “NCDHD shares our deepest condolences with the families impacted,” said Heidi Kuklis, director of NCDHD. Nationally, 20 children have died from flu this season according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Nebraska, there have been a total of three flu-related deaths so far this season. Protect yourself from the flu by: ...
Applications to fill a vacancy on the Upper Elkhorn Natural Resources District Board of Directors in subdistrict seven will be accepted until Feb. 1. Keith Heithoff, who currently serves in the role, submitted his resignation after announcing he will be moving from the state next month. The subdistrict includes Clearwater, Ord, Stanton, Elgin, Oakdale, Burnett, Lincoln, Logan, Cedar and Grant townships, which includes the villages of Clearwater and Oakdale and the city of Elgin. A description of the position, including timeline for re-election...
Were you part of the mad rush at Target stores, trampling others or being pushed out of the way, to snag one of the hottest items in the retail world? Were you part of the Stanley stampede, where the lucky prize, if you were able to snag it, was a limited Target and Starbucks collaborative cosmo pink tumbler? Don’t confuse this particular tumbler with the winter pink shade also sold at Target. Seems that one is difficult to find, too. Don’t worry, I wasn’t standing in line on New Year’s Eve to...
Wednesday, Jan. 3 marked the first day of the 108th Legislature, Second Session. This session also marks the beginning of the second year that I am serving as the representative of the 40th Legislative District. The 40th District covers the counties of Antelope, Cedar, Dixon, Holt, Knox and Pierce. Legislative sessions in even-numbered years last for 60 days. During the short session, senators will make any necessary adjustments to the two-year budget that was developed during the 90-day session...
The hole keeps getting deeper. Remember when I suggested someone should give the governor a shovel so he could dig a deeper hole for himself? That was when he had refused to read a published report on high levels of nitrates on his pig farms because it was written by "someone from Communist China." He subsequently refused to apologize to the reporter with a Chinese surname who is a graduate of an American university and has been working for news organizations in the United States for several yea...
In life and legislative work, a new year brings new opportunities and new undertakings. As we enter 2024 and the second session of the 118th United States Congress, there is much work to do and I’m optimistic we can achieve results for the American people. Commonsense policies promoting economic growth and productivity in our communities can benefit our country as a whole. With no shortage of obstacles to overcome to curb wasteful spending, deliver tax relief and manage federal programs, it i...
Former Neligh chief of police, Michael D. Wright, was fined $500 last week for firing his service weapon and injuring 38-year-old Josie Auld of Norfolk, while on duty in Neligh in May 2022. Wright pleaded no contest to a Class 1 misdemeanor, third-degree assault, when he faced the Honorable Ross Stoffer in the Antelope County courtroom in Neligh. Wright was represented by Gary Young Jr. of Lincoln and the case was prosecuted by assistant Nebraska Attorney General David Bydalek. The case was investigated by the Nebraska State Patrol. Bydalek...
Every two seconds, someone needs blood products, according to the American Red Cross. Individuals in the Ewing area will be able to donate blood, Tuesday, Jan. 30, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the city hall. To schedule an appointment, contact Nancy Harpster at 402-340-0326 or visit redcrossblood.org. Donors will be automatically entered for a chance to win a trip for two to Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas. The prize includes travel, hotel, a $1,000 gift card, pregame activities and more. To learn...
UPDATE: JAN. 13, 3:30 P.M., The mobile food pantry, scheduled for Jan. 16, in Neligh, has been canceled due to weather conditions. The mobile food pantry, sponsored by the Neligh Faith Community Church, as well as various other churches, individuals and businesses in the area, will be dispersing food on Tuesday, Jan. 16. Hours for the pantry will be 2 to 3:30 p.m., at the American Legion Club in Neligh. This is a time change for the new year....
It’s a new year which leads into new garden ideas. Visions of growing, blooming plants come to mind while a coat of snow coats the backyard as I look out my kitchen window. Garden seed catalogs have started arriving and flipping through to favorite categories I can’t help but notice the price of seeds has not come down. Will that stop us? Probably not. It means reading more and being a bit more careful when placing those tiny seeds we plant. The first step to planting seeds comes before we pur...
Troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol removed from the road 65 impaired drivers during the holiday season. During the final two weeks of 2023, troopers participated in the national Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign, which ran from Dec. 15 to Jan. 1 and included hundreds of law enforcement agencies across the country. “The holidays are always a busy time of year on Nebraska roadways, and with a winter storm right in the middle this year, our troopers were working around the clock to keep roads safe,” said Colonel John Bolduc, sup...
TAYLOR – Bailley Leibert walks into civics class and plops her sunflower-print backpack onto an empty table. The 15-year-old rummages for her notebook and colored pens. Around her are enough chairs to seat 10 students. But today, and every day, there are nine empty seats. It's just the ninth-grader and social studies teacher Ken Wright – an unintentional private lesson for the only freshman in this school. At Loup County High School, Bailley is the sole member of the class of 2027. The cla...
Six Bobcat wrestlers earned medals, Saturday, at the Summerland Invitational. The team finished third in the 15-team field, scoring 110 points. Ravenna took top honors, with 177 points, while Wisner-Pilger ended second, with 136. Ethan Kester flawlessly worked his way through the 138-pound bracket, pinning WP's Gabe Liemann in :44 and the Bobcat's Connor Thomson in 1:20. In the semifinal, he defeated Trevor Steffen, GACC, 6-3 and in the championship match, claimed an 11-7 decision over Grady...
Summerland's girls' basketball team got off to a slow start when they met Plainview, Jan. 2, in a home contest. By the second quarter, the Bobcats were back on track, en route to a 37-33 win. Plainview pounced in the first quarter, sprinting to a 9-3 lead. Summerland scored 12 points in the second quarter to knot the game at 15 at the half. Plainview held on to a 25-23 lead at the end of the third quarter, but the Bobcats outscored the visitors, 14-8, in the final eight minutes of play to...
An unproductive second quarter led to a Jan. 2 Bobcat loss to the Plainview Pirates, who returned to Pierce County with a 50-41 win. The two teams battled to a 12-12 tie at the end of the first quarter. Plainview's defense held Summerland to a single point in the second quarter, leading 22-13 at the half. The Bobcats added seven points after the break, while the Pirates extended the margin to 37-20. In the final eight minutes, the Bobcats added 21 points. The Bobcats shot 15% from the...
Spring turkey season permits are now available from the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Hunters also should reacquaint themselves with major changes from 2023. Those spring season changes that began in 2023: • Hunters may purchase up to two spring permits instead of three. • A hunter may harvest no more than one turkey per calendar day during the spring season. • 10,000 spring permits are available for sale to nonresident hunters. • All turkey harvests must be reported via Teleche...
Summerland won a Jan. 4 road contest against North Central, 50-34, after jumping to a 20-6 lead in the first quarter and extending the margin to 31-12 at the half. Adyson Mlnarik led the Lady Cats with 19 points and eight rebounds. Lydia Robertson added 16 points. Caydence Schumacher and Preslie Robertson pulled down seven rebounds apiece. The Bobcats shot 31% from the three-point range and 75% from the free-throw line....
The Summerland boys’ basketball team rebounded from a loss earlier in the week and defeated North Central, 66-41, in a Jan. 4 road contest played in Bassett. Sam Cheatum, Michael Koenig, Alec Schindler and Preston Hoke ended in double figures, scoring 17, 15, 11 and 10 points, respectively. The Bobcats shot 41% from beyond the arc and were 50% from the two-point range. Statistics vs North Central Parker Napier: 6p, 1r, 1a, 3s, Cheatum: 17p, 8r, 5a, 4to Schindler: 11p, 6r, 4a, 1s, 1bl, 3to C...
Holt County Sheriff’s office investigated a Jan. 1 accident located a quarter mile north of 887 Avenue on 485 Road, near Emmet. At approximately 7 a.m., a white 2018 Chevy Silverado K 1500 LT pickup, driven by Lawson Hoefer, was northbound on 485 Road, approximately four miles north of Emmett. According to Deputy Ed Nordby, the vehicle entered the east ditch, struck an embankment and rolled, coming to rest north of where it first entered the ditch. Hoefer was wearing his safety belt. He suffered minor injuries. The vehicle is a total l...
Military veterans interested in agriculture are invited to attend a series of on-farm and virtual workshops highlighting farm stores, onsite and off. This course is free for active military service members and military veterans. Hosted by the Center for Rural Affairs, the 11-session series, “Agritourism Through Farm Stores,” starts Feb. 19 and runs through August. The workshops will rotate between online classroom sessions and on-farm sessions with an online option. “In our classroom sessions, participants will hear from experts, learn busin...
Antelope County Judge Donna Taylor recently signed warrants authorizing the arrest of two Lindsay men on allegations of the theft of a 2000 Ford Ranger pickup, registered to James Meuret and a 2023 Polaris Ranger ATV and tires belonging to Meuret Grain Co. of Brunswick. Warrants were issued Dec. 11, for Derek L. Birman, 44, and Shane R Farrier, 31, on Class 2 felony charges of theft by unlawful taking. Taylor set bond at $20,000, 10% cash, for each of them. Meuret reported the theft of the Polaris and tires Nov. 14 but, at that time, he...
