Stories from Monday, November 25, 2002

LINCOLN -- Judging by the crowd at Memorial Stadium, half of McCook turned out to see McCook roll over Ralston in the Class B football championship at Lincoln. The other half were likely watching the game on television as the Bison defeated the Ralston Rams 39-14 to claim the Class B championship...

The pain and torment that comes with watching a loved one suffer with a terminal illness is overwhelming. The feelings of hopelessness and the knowledge of an inevitable loss often overshadow the daily tasks of just getting through another day. There is a place you can to turn for help when faced with the inevitable death of a loved one...

Well here it is the third annual Families are Special Conference last weekend and what  a success it was. I attended that conference and I saw more men this year than I ever have, and that is good. It shows me that some fathers are getting more interested in family unity than they use to...

Absolutely, positively, no question about it! The 2002 McCook High School Bison football team players are the undisputed Class B state champions and among the most dominating high school football teams in the state this year and in this area for all-time...

YANKTON, S.D. -- Kynan and Nancy Trail of Yankton, S.D., announce the birth of a son, Ryan Alexander, born Thursday (Nov. 14, 2002). He weighed 8 pounds. He has two sisters, Michaela, 7, and Jenna, 4. Grandparents are Cecilia and the late Verle Knepper and Chuck and Dian Trail of McCook. Great-grandparents are LaMoine and Elaine Keene of McCook...

NORTH PLATTE -- Jason and Abbie Benson of North Platte announce the birth of a son, Keegan Timothy, born Sunday (Nov. 10, 2002). He weighed 8 pounds, 6 ounces. He has one brother, Taten. Grandparents are David and Cathy Benson and Tim and Deb Burke all of Cambridge. Great-grandparents are Ferris and Helen Magee of McCook, Bruno and Donna Janssen of Arapahoe and Roger and Wilma Burke of Stromsburg...

The family of Marty and Jane Guthrie are hosting a card shower in honor of the couple's 30th wedding anniversary, Nov. 24. Their children are Keri and husband, Heath Wilkinson and Aaron Guthrie all of Lincoln, and Kayla and Katie Guthrie of McCook. Their parents are Grace Hanthorn of McCook and Lew and Bev Guthrie of Holbrook. Cards of congratulations will reach them at 1513 West First, McCook, NE 69001...

Dawn Caroline Petty and David Edward Salyer were united in marriage June 1, 2002, at the Evangelical Free Church in McCook with the Rev. Bruce Lester officiating. Parents of the couple are Dan and Deb Petty and Lynn and Karen Salyer, all of McCook. Grandparents of the couple are William and Janice Petty of Friendship, Wis., Sandra Maris of McCook, the late Ervin Maris, Evelyn Salyer of McCook, the late Wayne Salyer and Jim and Mae Short of McCook...

The family of Richard and Delores Burton of McCook is hosting a card shower in honor of the couple's 50th anniversary, Nov. 27, 2002. Children of the couple are Rhonda and Tom Williamson of Littleton, Colo., Richard and Laurie Burton of Aurora, Colo., and Cindy and Dave Burton of Bartley. They have seven grandchildren. Cards of congratulations will reach the couple at 1109 East First, McCook, NE 69001...

Lynette Marie Hock and Patrick Thomas Smith, both of Omaha, were united in marriage Aug. 31, 2002, at St. Patrick's Church in McCook with the Rev. Paul J. Colling of Woodriver, uncle of the bride, officiating. Parents of the couple are Bradford and Mary Jo Hock of Culbertson and Bill and Oni Smith of Council Bluff, Iowa. ...

The generosity of residents of Southwest Nebraska was again evident Sunday evening at the annual Evening for Hospice charity auction. The annual event for the McCook Hospice, raised a total of $28,100. Members of the McCook Bison football team provided a surprise auction item when they arrived with an autographed football, signed by team members...

Washington -- On Tuesday from 3-4 p.m., Rep. Tom Osborne will host a "Talk to Tom" town hall meeting in McCook, at the Community Building at Red Willow County Fairgrounds. According to Osborne, "It is critical that I stay in touch with the thoughts and concerns of Nebraskans in the Third District...

Billie is two years older than Bertie, and Billie says she always, always picked on her little sister. And always bossed her around. And forever denied everything. "It pleases her no end that I've finally owned up to it," Billie chuckled, explaining that it's obvious in her new book -- "Bertie and Me: Kids on a Ranch" -- that she and Bertie "fussed" at each other, each one trying to outdo the other...

The McCook High School band (above, marching to Thursday's downtown pep rally) will join thousands of other Bison football fans at Memorial Stadium at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for Saturday's state title match against Ralston. Kickoff time is 7:30 p.m...

Six more rural hospitals across the state, including Community Hospital, have the opportunity to install interactive video systems for improved access to medical and educational programming, thanks to the availability of funds totaling $336,000. Fund commitments include a $165,000 Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant to the Heartland Health Alliance from the Rural Utilities Service (RUS), a division of the U.S. ...

North Platte -- General Registration for the 2003 Spring term will begin Monday at all campus locations including McCook Community College, North Platte Community College, Broken Bow, Ogallala and Valentine Extended Campuses -- all divisions of Mid-Plains Community College...

CURTIS -- Amy Nicole Luke, 22, of Curtis, died Saturday (Nov. 23, 2002) at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney. Services will be 1 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 27, at Medicine Valley High School in Curtis with Father Robert Barnhill officiating. Burial will be in the Oxford City Cemetery, Oxford, Neb. Visitation will be Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Blasé Funeral Home in Curtis. Memorials are suggested to the Amy Luke Memorial Fund...

OBERLIN -- Clarence E. Perrin, 86, died Saturday (Nov. 23, 2002) at Cedar Living Center in Oberlin. He was born Oct. 29. 1916, to Dillard H. and Nancy M. (Thayer) Perrin at Allison, Kan. He was raised on a farm near Allison in Decatur County and attended school at Jennings...

Vera Delores Scott, 84, died Friday (Nov. 22, 2002) at her home in McCook. She was born Dec. 8, 1917, to George Washington and Cora Jane (Jewell) Stoumbaugh, on a farm near St. Francis. On Sept. 30, 1933, she married James L. Scott at Oberlin. They lived in the McCook community most of their married life...

OXFORD -- Avis Marie Johnson, 71, died Friday (Nov. 22, 2002) from injuries sustained in a motor vehicle accident. She was born Feb. 7, 1931, to Marvin and Inez (Severns) Taylor on a farm near Almena, Kan. She attended grade school first at Cedar School near Almena and then in Norton, Kan., and finally, moving with her family from Norton to Oxford, graduating from the eighth grade from Buffalo District 17. ...

Gas rationing became a reality in Southwest Nebraska on Dec. 1, 1942. To prepare for this, every operator of a passenger car or motorcycle had to register in order to be eligible. Registration took place on Nov. 19 and 20 at the following Red Willow County high schools: McCook, Red Willow Consolidated school, Indianola, Bartley, Lebanon, Danbury and Marion...

It sometimes seems as if we've been overrun by "reality" television. We all know how Hollywood is. Anything that works is replicated over and over until the genre has saturated the market, at which time it begins to fade away. This is what has happened with reality television programming. It all started with Survivor, then Big Brother, The Great Race, and several others. One of the most intriguing is " Fear Factor."...

Wayne Bryant of McCook, is a quiet, gentle man. His face is unscarred. His nose is straight and his ears are not deformed. It is hard to believe that for more than 50 years the sport of boxing has been such an important part of his life, first as a boxer himself, then later as a coach, promoter, and ringside official, on the national scale...

BEAVER CITY -- The Rev. Frank C. Bobbitt, 73, died Wednesday (Nov. 20, 2002) at his home in Beaver City. He was born April 18, 1929, at Peru to Ben and Helen (Fletcher) Bobbitt. He grew up in many communities as his father was a minister. He graduated from Roosevelt High School in Des Moines, Iowa in 1947...