Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
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ADDIE COSTELLO Flatwater Free Press Mary Terry, the longtime village clerk in Cedar Creek, shook her head no whenever Steve Sharp told her she deserved a raise. "Her answer was always the same. It was always, 'You can't afford to give me a raise,'" said Sharp, elected chairperson of the village board in 2010. What Sharp didn't know: Terry, the clerk and treasurer, was giving herself unauthorized raises. She padded her paycheck with more than $75,000 in stolen village funds over six years while...
WARSAW, Poland – The 3-year-old was too sick to leave his hotel room. He has had congenital heart disease since he was born. A second surgery was already planned for when he turned three. Then the war started. Now, as the young Ukrainian lay in his hotel bed 500 miles from home, his oxygen levels dipped dangerously low. His pulse raced. He'd spent the night feverish and throwing up. His lips and fingertips had turned purple. Downstairs, a volunteer doctor hustled from patient to patient in the h...
Many years ago (the exact number will remain a mystery), the very first food section I put together for the daily newspaper I was working for was all about strawberries. It was just about this time of year as May is National Strawberry Month, and I wanted to highlight one of my favorite berries. While a lot has changed over those years, one thing hasn't: I still love strawberries. Standing alone as the only fruit to wear its seeds on the outside, strawberries are loaded with nutrients. According...
LEO ADAM BIGA Flatwater Free Press University of Nebraska volleyball coach John Cook entered the 2009 season having won 281 of his first 300 games – a ridiculous .937 winning percentage. At age 52, he had already won two national titles. But, inside, Cook didn't feel like how you are supposed to feel when you reach the summit. Instead, even as his squad went 31-3 and reached the Final Four that year, Cook felt empty. Lost. He felt like a failure. "I thought I had it figured out and then it a...
Six-year-old Elijah Wastell started feeling anxious last fall. It came hard for the Omaha kindergartener at bedtime. His parents tried breathing exercises. They attempted to build his confidence. The anxiety got worse. It got to the point where "he wanted to be in bed with a blanket over his head before the sun went down, which can be tricky in September," said mother Anna Wastell. Elijah himself didn't tie his newfound anxiety to the pandemic that has altered the lives of everyone – i...
There is a crisis at our southern border and President Biden is only making it worse. At the end of March, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced it was on track to surpass one million encounters with immigrants illegally crossing our borders over the last six months. CBP data show there were 164,973 migrant encounters at our southern border in February, up 7% from January and 63% from February of last year. These staggering numbers do not include the number of illegal migrants who eluded...
In 2011, the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services wrote a bill that would allow well-behaved prisoners the chance to shorten their time behind bars. Eleven years later, that same department is applying the resulting law in a way neither the state senator who sponsored the bill nor the then-director of Nebraska’s prisons intended. Prison officials now shorten a prisoner’s final release date, but never change the day that prisoner becomes eligible for parole. The result: Thousands of prisoners sentenced under the law have potentially sta...
A few weeks ago, I read somewhere that March is National Peanut Butter Month. "Aha!" I thought. "Perfect topic for a column sometime soon." But when I began doing research, I discovered that whoever wrote that was wrong. As far as I can tell, there is no actual National Peanut Butter Month, although November is recognized as National Peanut Butter Lovers Month. So while peanut butter doesn't get it's own month, people who love peanut butter do. They also get their own day with National Peanut...
It’s 7:30 p.m. on a wintry Friday night and the parking lot outside Johnny’s Cafe, a South Omaha landmark, is jammed. The scent of seared steak wafts out the heavy, faux-bronze doors as they swing outward, and diners walk into a glowing, ruby-hued time capsule of Nebraska food history. To the left is the massive dining room, still crowded on weekends with silver-haired men in sportcoats and women in their best blouses being served by staff who have worked here for decades. To the right is the da...
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The Nebraska Press Association has launched a new public website to provide greater public access and notification to the workings of all government entities and courts in Nebraska. The website – www.nepublicnotices.com – is a cooperative effort of all Nebraska newspapers and is managed through the NPA. The free-access website was initiated in June 2021. Currently, more than 90,000 notices are on the site and more are posted each day. Notices are fully searchable by keyword, type of notice, by...
LEO ADAM BIGA FLATWATER FREE PRESS As fighters went through their paces one recent night at B&B Sports Academy, its co-owner, world welterweight boxing champion Terence "Bud" Crawford, got right in the mix, interacting with pros and amateurs alike. He coached boxers at the North Omaha gym, teased them, cajoled them, encouraged them. He occasionally glanced over at 11-year-old Reno Busby, a nationally ranked USA Boxing bantamweight. Busby's coaches – and Crawford himself – believe the Davis Mid...
There is a reason dips are a favorite when it comes to party food. More than one reason, actually. And with New Year's gatherings and bowl games on the calendar, this is the time to add a couple of new ideas to your recipe box. Dips are easy to prepare in advance, leaving the host free to spend time with guests. In fact, most dips (except for ones served hot), benefit from a day in the refrigerator, which gives the flavors time to develop. This is especially true if your dips involve any...
Forgive George Barnes if he looks a little grim. That day in 1887, ol’ George had ample reason to mean-mug photographer Solomon Butcher, and homesteader life in general. The night before the family photo, it had rained. Hard. The rain had soaked the roof of their soddie. The decaying pole holding the roof had snapped. The whole thing had come down on itself, like a bad metaphor, ruining everything the family owned. The year before, George Barnes’ wife had died of an unknown illness. Barnes was raising three children by himself while he tri...
When my writing career started more than 30 years ago, I spent months establishing a freelance career. After long days of teaching and coaching, I stayed up late at night, crafting query letters and sending them via snail mail, hoping to get a bite from local publications ... or a big break with a national news outlet. It seems amazing, considering it was in the dark ages - er, I mean pre-internet times. It was hard work, but I was determined to form partnerships with trusted publications and...
JARROD McCARTNEY RED CLOUD - It's not unusual to catch sight of a celebrity in Red Cloud, population 962, especially during the annual Willa Cather conference. First Lady Laura Bush has appeared here. So has writer Maya Angelou, Golden Globe-winning actor Paul Giamatti and a drumbeat of talk show hosts, TV stars, novelists and artists. And yet a tiny, energetic, elderly woman often stole the celebrity spotlight, holding court about the life and times of Nebraska's famed novelist. Antonette...
GRAND ISLAND - The question rolled around in Laban Njuguna's mind long before he took action. Coffee? Really? Upend his life to sell Kenyan coffee? In Nebraska? He daydreamed about the idea as he hauled grain for farmers in the Grand Island area. It spilled out in long late-night conversations with his wife, Cora. Friends and family grew coffee in his native Kenya. He lived in the United States, the largest consumer of coffee in the world. Njuguna's logical side told him that he knew nothing...
Retired social studies teacher Laura Nelson is used to seeing her small town send its children, and its dollars, off to bigger cities. "We tend to go that way," to Lincoln and the Omaha metro, where her nieces and many former students live and shop. But lately, from her seat at the cafe table where she meets friends most mornings for coffee and an omelette, she's witnessed a reversal of fortune. City folks are spending their money in her hometown. "The cafe has managed to bring them up here,"...
Pairing pears - Pears are good in salads, where they partner well with greens, especially the bitter ones, and be sure toss in a few nuts and goat cheese for creaminess. Try slices of pear with leaves of prosciutto for an appetizer, and pair them with blue-vein cheeses and nuts on a cheese platter. Surprise guests with sautéed pears as a garnish for grilled or fatty meats such as pork and duck. - Seasonal dessert menus welcome pears, too. Poach them in red wine, then serve with their reduced...
It's early summer and a Lakota woman stares into the trees, deep past the leaves and their shadows, her dark eyes misting up. Norma LeRoy tries to understand why a school secretary cut her two little girls' hair without her consent in the spring of 2020. The secretary was checking for lice, LeRoy was told - lice the mother said they never found. LeRoy feels like few in this remote region of Cherry County understand what they took. It's why the 36-year-old Rosebud Sioux has to turn away from her...
Anyone who has grown zucchini in Nebraska knows that a little planting goes a long way. Zucchini jokes abound and there is even a National Sneak Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbor's Porch Day (more about that later), but zucchini is really a versatile vegetable that can be prepared in a myriad of ways. Let's start with some tips and tricks from Cami Wells, an Extension Educator in Hall County. "Whether purchasing or picking zucchini," Wells says "choose firm, slender zucchini with a bright green...
I don't know about you, but every year when back-to-school time rolls around, I look back and wonder just what happened to summer. It seems like Memorial Day was last week and the Fourth of July was yesterday, but yet here it is: The first day of school is looming right around the corner. And with school starting soon, it's time to think about what all those hungry kids are going to eat when they get home from school. "Healthy snacks can help children get the nutrients they need after a long day...
It's BLT season and I couldn't be happier By Terri Hahn Friday, June 18, was marked on my calendar for weeks. I was literally counting down the days. The anticipation grew. So what important event was happening on the day? Not a birthday. Not an anniversary. Not the day I would inherit a lot of money. It was the day my favorite area produce stand opened for the summer. And that means it's BLT season. Because we all know that tomatoes are the most important ingredient in BLTs. Bacon, lettuce, may...
Ken Paulson Director of the Free Speech Center at Middle Tennessee State University When government fails, it’s the rare public official who says, “Oops. My fault.” That’s human nature, particularly for officials in the public eye who may have to run for office again. No one wants to be held directly responsible for letting the public down. Case in point is the recent catastrophe in Texas, when unexpected winter storms left 4 million homes without power, ruptured pipes and tainted the water supply for many. Texas’ energy grid essential...
I know all too well how easy it is to either: 1) skip breakfast, or 2) grab something on the run that isn't exactly the most nutritious food in the world. When I do make time for breakfast, I have a tendency to grab a couple of frozen breakfast burritos or one of those sandwiches made up of a croissant, sausage patty, egg and cheese. I'm afraid to look at the nutrition label on either one. That alone should be my first clue I need to do a better job of choosing my breakfast menu. And with the...
