Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
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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...
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...
As the harvest finishes and we enter the upcoming holiday season, senators remain hard at work preparing for the looming legislative session in January. One such topic I am investigating is the future of electrical generation in Nebraska. Currently, Nebraska Public Power District's energy generation resource mix consists of the following: 42.3% nuclear, 30.1% coal, 7.4% wind, 6.4% hydroelectric and 13.8% from all other sources, such as natural gas or purchase agreements. However, as market press...
Nearly 1.2 million Americans live in nursing homes today. The vast majority of those Americans are seniors, people who urgently need the specialized care that long-term nursing facilities provide. That's especially true in small towns, where a greater percentage of the population is over 65. But this fall, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed a rule that could close nursing facilities across rural America. The rule proposed in September has the stated goal of improving care in...
This month, Antelope Memorial Hospital received both a national and state award for excellence. The hospital was first recognized for the 2023 Performance Leadership Award for excellence in quality and patient perspective as part of the National Rural Health Day celebration. Compiled by The Chartis Center for Rural Health, the Performance Leadership Award honors top quartile performance (75th percentile or above) among rural hospitals across the United States in quality, outcome and patient pers...
As the conversation and stigma surrounding mental health continue to evolve, access to care, or lack thereof, remains a barrier, even in the presence of heightened public awareness and empathy. “We need kind of both,” Dr. Marley Doyle said. “We need an increase in mental health awareness. But then we also need an increase in access to care. Because if you don’t have both, then it’s not going to really improve things.” Doyle, a psychiatrist serving as director of the Behavioral Health Education Center of Nebraska, said the shortage of mental h...
Not all gardeners are used to changing their gardens with the seasons, but the city of Lincoln has a routine for prepping its gardens for winter weather. Every fall, employees remove all the plants at the Sunken Gardens and host an event called “Put the Beds to Bed.” This year, the annual event was on Nov. 4. Every year, Lincoln Parks and Recreation invites volunteers to dump compost into the beds and turn over the soil. Parks employees remove all flowers and plants before this volunteer event. “Specifically, we try to get everything in there b...
Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird” is one of my favorite novels. Perhaps it’s because of the lyrical motion of the words she employs in telling the story of Jem and Scout and their father Atticus. Maybe it’s because of the lessons Lee imparts: don’t be judgmental, treat others the way you wish to be treated. I believe it provides a realistic portrayal of life in the deep South during the depression era. Let’s not sugarcoat it. Lee saw plenty of social injustices growing up in Monroeville,...
Their low, rumbling bellow first cuts through the silence of the Sandhills. Next comes the crunch of pointed hooves, trudging their way through tall prairie grasses. Then, the oohs of the out-of-towners watching – people up close and personal with the majestic thousand-pound mammals for the first time. This is Golden Prairie Bison, a ranch nestled in the Sandhills where Carl and Vicki Simmons raise a herd of 50 bison. Theirs is one of the dozens of bison ranches in Nebraska, one piece of an o...
Infrastructure is often the first hurdle to high-speed internet access for rural Nebraskans, but it isn’t the last. Once the wires have been laid, residents still have to pay to use the service. Subscriber fees can vary widely, but they are frequently higher for communities and households in rural areas, where long stretches of fiber optic cable reach fewer access points relative to urban settings that have more people living within a smaller space. Greater lengths of cable means higher i...
They knew the record-breaking attendance number before the rest of the world. The iconic attendance number that hovered over the northeast corner of Memorial Stadium on the night of Aug. 30 was the work of Fantasy Drone Shows, a Norfolk-based aerial entertainment company. The assistant athletic director of marketing and fan experience confirmed the final attendance number at approximately 7:50 p.m., leaving the company with less than an hour to program and launch 150 drones to announce the...
From the back of our hands to the back of our legs, pale blue blood vessels are visible just under the skin. Oftentimes these veins are flat and not painful. However when these vessels become abnormally swollen or dilated, they are called varicose veins. This swelling is caused by the valves inside the veins becoming weak and no longer sealing tightly. Varicose veins can become painful, quite large and stick out from the surface of the skin. In order for blood to return from your feet back to...
A Randolph man was recently sentenced to serve one year in the Antelope County Jail and fined $1,000 for his latest conviction of domestic assault Brennon J. Coleman, 39, previously of Neligh, was given credit for 15 days already served and was taxed $204.71 costs of prosecution when he faced the Honorable James Kube on Sept. 27. During the sentencing hearing, Coleman, who had pleaded no contest in July, contended he had not hit the victim. When asked by the judge if he recalled the incident, he answered, “Absolutely.” And, when asked why, he...
KEARNEY – Americans have recognized military veterans in vastly different ways over the past 247 years. They've thrown parades for some and scorned others. But the Pawnee scouts, who protected pioneers, freighters and railroad workers in Nebraska during the mid-19th century's great migration west, were largely forgotten outside the Pawnee Nation in Oklahoma. "Those scouts were the very first in our tribe to serve in the military, so we hold our veterans on a high pedestal, almost like c...
My mother had six siblings, 16 aunts and uncles and innumerable cousins. She was the first of them all to be diagnosed with breast cancer. I think of my mom every time one of my patients tells me they aren’t concerned about breast cancer because it doesn’t run in their family. Unfortunately, that is true of most people who are diagnosed with the disease. I also think of my mother every time I do a breast exam or teach someone else how to do a self exam. Her breast cancer was one not det...
Area residents got a glimpse at the Summerland FFA test plot, Aug. 30, at Napier Farms near Ewing. One highlight of the plot was Preceon Smart Corn System. According to Mike Podany, of Clarkson, the short-stature corn system looks at how to evaluate population while driving yield and managing green snap. "A lot of potential and a lot learning yet to go," Podany said. The Summerland test plot is owned by Bob Napier....
Editor’s Note: This column was written and distributed prior to an Aug. 30 press conference regarding prison location. We’ve known for some time that the state wants to build a new prison because it has the most overcrowded corrections system in the country. It’s a given that state lawmakers agreed to spend at least $350 million on such a facility. A narrative change in recent months has shifted from “additional” space to a “replacement” for the existing Nebraska State Penitentiary, which has been in southwest Lincoln since the 1860s. The un...
Suicide. It's personal. Sometimes it's up close and personal. Often, it's the 800-pound gorilla in the room. Everyone knows someone who knows someone who has been impacted. I've had one of those up-close experiences and other exposure through the years. Think about it, you likely have too. Recently-released figures reveal that a record number of people in the United States committed suicide in 2022. The 49,449 deaths reflect a 2.6% increase over the prior year, government data showed. Over half...
A rural Antelope County road will stay intact following a public hearing and subsequent vote by commissioners on Aug. 1. Highway superintendent Brian McDonald said a road use study on 858 Road, between 521 and 522 Avenue was completed. "It's being actively used," McDonald said. Two individuals offered testimony in opposition of the closure. Testifying via speaker phone, Matt Klabenes, of Neligh, said, "We've got a service line down that for our stock well. It's the reason we took the trees out...
First aid kits in the Antelope County courthouse, in Neligh, will be freshly stocked each quarter, following an Aug. 1 vote by commissioners approving a new provider, Cintas, to fulfill the duties. Zee Medical formerly performed the service. County clerk Lisa Payne told commissioners, "It is nice to have someone check that. I know I can say 'I'm going to do that,' but it's usually one of the last things I do." Cintas will update any products close to or at its expiration date. To get the...
Editor’s note: The Nebraska Community Foundation is a Flatwater Free Press sponsor. It has been edited by Flatwater Free Press staff. The roughly 370 miles between North Omaha and the heart of southwest Nebraska aren’t slowing a group of Nebraskans from forging relationships that they hope will serve as a model for bridging the gulf between rural and urban communities. In less than a year, residents from either end of that span have crossed the state to experience how the other side lives – from mock cattle auctions in Ogallala to a Junet...
Some area residents have taken part in the Cornhusker State Games in the past, as well as this summer. Jeff Shabram, of Orchard, has taken powerlifters to compete in the past. In fact, Shabram mentioned he remembers Dave Mlnarik making an appearance when his nephew, Cade, competed in powerlifting. "We'd still be taking participants, but can't since the director changed powerlifting affiliation from Amateur Athletic Union to USA Powerlifting, which has more adults," remarked Shabram. "But it was...
Our family gained six new members recently. They’re cute and cuddly, afraid of getting too close to anyone but their mom. A momma cat - we call her Patches - invaded our deck early this spring. I told Scott she obviously is - or was - someone’s house cat. She’s kind of tame, kind of wild. Patches also brought several feral friends of the male persuasion with her, taking over our wrap-around porch and backyard, invading our neighbors’ homes, too. Around the first of June, Patches deliver...
Agriculture, broadband connectivity and tax savings were key topics addressed during Gov. Jim Pillen's town hall meeting, June 28, in O'Neill. Pillen opened by telling the crowd of approximately 80 that his team strives to work for "all Nebraskans. "I can't stand politics. I can't stand politicians," the governor said. "The privilege I had in the first six months, it is unbelievable how many incredible public servants we have serving the state of Nebraska." One of Pillen's goals has been to...
Area residents received the red carpet treat, June 29, as Antelope Memorial Hospital unveiled its latest updates. "We rolled out the red carpet at Antelope Memorial Hospital to celebrate the open house for our newly remodeled patient rooms/nursing floor and infusion room," said Diane Brugger, AMH chief executive officer. "More than 100 individuals from area communities attended." The $3.7 million project started in September 2021 and completed in three phases to allow the hospital to continue...
