Stories from Monday, August 15, 2011

March 18, 1919 - Aug. 13, 2011 MINDEN, Nebraska -- Nila "Fern" Powell age 92, formerly of Cambridge, died at the Bethany Home Nursing home in Minden, Saturday (Aug. 13, 2011). She was born March 18, 1919, in Holbrook, Nebraska, to Clarence and Iva (Henry) Robesun. She graduated from Holbrook High School in 1937. She moved to California, where she worked for Lockheed Douglas Aviation. In 1939 Fern married Ralph Freeborn, Sr. To this union two sons were born, Ralph Jr. (Bob) and Gary Freeborn...

Aug. 28, 1978 - Aug. 12, 2011 OBERLIN, Kansas -- Ian Hoft, 32, died Friday (Aug. 12, 2011). He was born Aug. 28, 1978, at Norton, Kansas. Survivors include his wife Summer; daughter Lilly; step-son Cole Tyrell; his mother Beth; his father Terry and wife, Lisa; brothers, Aaron and T.J.; sister Tessa; nephews, Noah and Ollie; and other friends and family members...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- Have you ever been tested by God? Really tested? If you have -- as has almost every thinking human being -- you will be intrigued; you will be entertained; and you could even be transformed by "God's Favorite," a theater-in-the-round comedy which opens Thursday evening at the Weeth Theatre on the McCook Community College campus. ...

Mel Nelson of Dannebrog, Nebraska, and his International tractor "Centsless" scream down the track, belching black smoke, during the Hitchcock County Fair's truck and tractor pull on the fairgrounds in Culbertson Friday evening. Nelson's pull measured 326.66 feet. Nelson and other members of Nebraska Truck and Tractor Pullers provided the pulling action, pitted against the "X Factor" pulling sled of Bungart Motorsports of Jefferson City, Missouri...

A crew from Hixson Construction of McCook, utilizing the company's heavy-duty crane, lifts McCook High School's new air-conditioning unit off the back of a semi-truck's flat-bed trailer, which was parked behind the gymnasium Monday morning. Installation of the unit, which was brought in from Virginia, was scheduled to continue throughout the day...

While Nebraskans love those miles of "peaceful prairie land," all that distance can make life tough, whether it's traveling to visit Grandma, fighting a blizzard to watch a basketball game or, as U.S. Rep. Adrian Smith knows well with his expanding 3rd District, conduct a political campaign...

McCook lost a familiar face recently, with the passing of Evert "Mo" Mosher. He was a fellow who delighted in bringing a smile to everyone he met, whether it was in bringing garden produce to friends and acquaintances in town, or delivering his home-crafted novelties -- such as his "tax' shelters and "stool samples," or showing pictures of his "Pride and Joy." His was a welcome presence everywhere he went. ...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- In response to a question from the Gazette, State Sen. Mark Christensen said providing health coverage for domestic partners of city employees would not be appropriate. McCook City Councilman Aaron Kircher has put just such a proposal on tonight's City Council agenda. ...