Stories from Monday, February 22, 2010

This week, I'd like to share information with you about the Nebraska Department of Roads and what the department does for you and our state. The Department of Roads provides a valuable service to citizens and thousands of travelers each day in Nebraska...

Both the winter and recession are far from over, but the calendar and this week's Progress editions in the McCook Daily Gazette both show that there's plenty of hope for the end of both. Small businesses need all the help they can get, but no stimulus plan or low interest loan can substitute for old-fashioned ambition and ingenuity, as evidenced by the number of small start-up businesses that have survived and grown into established local institutions...

Paul Claus, the 52-year-old son of John Claus, has been flying in Alaska since he was 13, and had logged some 15,000 hours (by 1998) of flying in some of the roughest, most remote territory on our continent. In some 39 years of flying he has earned the respect and admiration of his friends and colleagues -- the Alaska Bush Pilots, some of the most daring and skilled flyers of small planes of anyplace on the planet...

Like you, I'm concerned our nation relies on foreign sources of energy. The longer we continue to depend on other countries for the energy which drives our economy, the greater the likelihood of again facing sky-high prices. This is why I am working to develop oil and natural gas exploration here in the United States as well as expand research into renewable biofuels...

I spent the last week in Nebraska reconnecting with many of you throughout the state. Your informed views help to shape my approach in Washington, and always serve as a refreshing reminder of why I love to serve this great state. I was shown many examples of just how closely all of our lives are tied to actions taken by the federal government, which makes it all the more important that we take a thoughtful, open-minded approach when it comes to making laws...

Don't be surprised if the Beach Boys hit, "Fun, Fun, Fun" is blaring through the McCook High School boys basketball team locker room this week. Head coach Tim Garcia is trying to get his team to relax and have fun on the basketball court as the Class B-5 District Tournament is just over the horizon. The Bison had an enjoyable experience in the fourth quarter of last Saturday's contest at Cozad, as McCook pulled away for a 62-52 victory to snap a four-game losing skid...

OMAHA -- The third time was the charm for a McCook High School senior at the 2010 Nebraska State High School wrestling championships. Nate Morgan had placed at the Class B state meet twice before. But he had never reached his goal of winning a state championship...

Re: article in Feb. 5 McCook Daily Gazette by Stuart Grant on Santa Claus Lane in McCook: I hate to throw cold water on this article, but some salient facts are in order. First of all, Grant said his father began to build what he later called Santa Claus Lane in 1953. Bill Grant might have built the sets, but the name he gave them wasn't original...