Stories from Friday, March 17, 2006

McCook High School's Josh Cherry made an official verbal commitment Friday morning to play football at Kansas State University. Cherry, who also received interest from the University of Nebraska, has not signed anything and cannot sign until the official signing period in Feb. 2007...

CULBERTSON -- Hitchcock County Fairboard officials have announced that a carnival will return to fair this year for the first time in about 10 years. In support of the fair, a pancake feed is set for 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday at the school in Trenton. Fairboard president Jim Lewis said the last time the fair had a carnival was in 1996 or 1997. The owner of the carnival that year got out of the carnival business and went on to other endeavors...

Marian Lieske takes advantage of the warm weather on Wednesday and cleans up the leaves that have accumulated around her daffodils. She said she had already watered her lawn once because of the lack of moisture Southwest Nebraska has been experiencing. Residents are more likely to be scooping snow than gardening this weekend, if the weather forecasts are correct...

Significant progress has been made in reducing costs of Medicaid and other public assistance programs, Sen. Tom Baker said in his conference call Thursday morning at the McCook Chamber of Commerce. More than 10,000 people have left public assistance programs, he said, but some programs are still operating inefficiently. More intervention programs are needed to reduce welfare roles and break the cycle, he said, such as prenatal classes and education requirements...

There's an old story with several versions, but most of them go something like this: A woman calls her brother, who lives near their parents, and he blurts out "The cat died!" The sister, upset at his insensitivity, scolds him for being so blunt. Asked how the news could have been broken more gently, the woman suggests a lie: First the cat was stuck on the roof. In a later call, the firefighters are responding. Still later, Fluffy was killed in a tragic accident...

It looks like it is finally time for the silent majority to speak out. Whether you support Bingham or not the real issue boils down to a council who works in secret. If the City Council thought it was such a good idea to hire Bingham back why didn't they inform the public?...

After several decades of observing the local political scene, it never fails to amaze me how governing boards can create controversy by trying to avoid controversy and take the easy way out. Case in point: the John Bingham saga. It's quite apparent that the McCook City Council was trying to avoid an uproar by keeping the fact that Bingham was being considered to fill the city manager's post a secret, a post he had just left...

Dear Senators: This is mainly to those of you attacking Sen. Foley's integrity. Give me a break, especially Sen. Johnson and Sen. Don Pederson! I love Sen. Chambers for a lot of reasons, but his wild rants about the white man being the cause of all evils and discrimination are not exactly full of integrity...

Jan. 21, 1927 - Feb. 27, 2006 CRANBROOK, B.C. -- Dr. Bernard Leroy Lundberg, born Jan. 21, 1927 in McCook, died suddenly in Cranbrook B.C. on Feb. 27, 2006. Survived by beloved daughters, Marcia Huckstep and Grace Scott; and his beloved sister Carol Lundberg Petersen, brother-in-law Gene Stuart Peterson; and nephews Roger and Steven Roscko; granddaughters Rachael Harriman, Leah Bodker, Lyndsey Bodker and Launi Bodker...

Aug. 2, 1905 - March 14, 2006 ATWOOD -- Dora C. Michel, 100, died Tuesday (March 14, 2006) at the Good Samaritan Center in Atwood. She was born Aug. 2, 1905, at Ludell, Kan., to Christian Wicke and Meta nee (Behrens) Wicke. She was baptized at Trinity Lutheran Church on Aug. 13, 1905 and was confirmed on March 29, 1920, also at Trinity...

June 18, 1918 - March 16, 2006 ARAPAHOE -- Martha Bertha Mock, 93, of Arapahoe died Thursday ( March 16, 2006 at C.A. Mues Good Samaritan Center of Arapahoe. She was born June 8, 1912, at Arapahoe to Edmond C. and Lydia M. (Hemann) Mock. She grew up on the family farm west of Arapahoe. ...

July 19, 1925 - March 14, 2006 ATWOOD, Kan. -- Guy Alden Billington, 80, died Thursday (March 14, 2006) at the Rawlins County Health Center. He was born July 19, 1925, in Cheyenne County, St. Francis, to Guy and Chessie Ezelle Billington. On June 12, 1956, he married Arlene (Anderson) Billington on June 12, 1956 in Max in the United Methodist Church...

July 31, 1918 - March 11, 2006 TRENTON -- Evelyn M. Moses, 87, died Sunday (March 11, 2006) in Trenton. She was born July 31, 1918 in Grand Island, to Carl and Bonnie Anderson. She grew up in North Platte and later lived in Sutherland, where she worked at the Sutherland Hospital as a nurse...

For nearly four complete days, I became something hadn't been in nearly 10 years -- childless. Those with grown children, you have probably blocked out all memories of waking up with small bodies in your bed, loading and unloading into car seats or buying extra items at the store because either something got broken or you didn't notice the item in the grocery cart until after everything was rung up...

Oct. 29, 1925 - March 15, 2005 HASTINGS -- Bernice E. McManigal, 80, died Wednesday at the Mary Lanning Memorial Hospital. She was born Oct. 29, 1925 to Dean Leroy and Cecil Gertrude (Graves) McManigal. She attended rural elementary school near Stratton. ...