Stories from Monday, June 10, 2013

James Fischer Wight May 3, 1924 - June 7, 2013 BARTLEY, Nebraska -- James Fischer Wight, age 89, of Bartley, died at his home on June 7, 2013. He was born near Maywood on May 3, 1924 to Benjamin H. and Lydia (Fischer) Wight. "Wighty," as his friends called him, graduated from Bartley High School in 1941. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1943, serving in the Asiatic and the Pacific Theatres as a signalman...

Orville Widger WAUNETA, Nebraska -- Orville Widger, 87, longtime resident of Wauneta, died Thursday (June 6, 2013), at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney, Nebraska. Survivors include his wife, Ila of Wauneta; sons, Dan Widger and wife, Deb, of Wahoo, Nebraska and Sam Widger and wife, Michelle, of Kearney, Nebraska; brothers, Marlin Widger of Imperial, Nebraska and Dean Widger and wife, Diane, of Fort Morgan, Colorado; daughter-in-law, Carrie Widger of Ashland, Nebraska; 10 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.. ...

Orval Albert Harold Nov. 16, 1916 - May 13, 2013 COLUMBIA, Missouri -- Orval Albert Harold, 96, of Columbia, Missouri, died Friday (May 31, 2013). He was born Nov. 16, 1916, on a farmstead near Dresden, Kansas, to Albert Harold and Vera Bates Harold...

Courtesy photo Robin Wolvin cut 10 inches of Lanie Overton's hair for the Locks of Love program, which provides wigs for children who have suffered hair loss for medical reasons. Lanie, 10, is the daughter of Robb and Mary Jo Overton of McCook.

Patricia L. Peters McCOOK, Nebraska -- Patricia L. Peters, age 70, of McCook, Nebraska, died on June 7, 2013. She was born in McCook, Nebraska, to P. V. and Verna June (McGraw) Hays. She attended St. Patrick's Catholic Schools and graduated from McCook High School in 1961. Pat went to McCook College for one year...

Erin Brockovich, made famous in a movie by the same name, has apologized for drunken boating. The environmental activist was arrested after a game warden noticed she was having trouble docking her boat at Lake Mead near Las Vegas, and she was found to have a blood alcohol level just over twice the legal limit of .08 percent...

The 1920s were quite appropriately dubbed "The Roaring '20s." It was a time of change, after World War I, a time of young people changing the morals in America -- the time of flappers, illegal booze, wild speculation on Wall Street, and yes, a time when the country embraced a new phenomenon, commercial radio, which operated with a minimum of government regulation...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- With the approach of June 14, Secretary of State John Gale is reminding all Nebraskan's to fly their flags with pride on National Flag Day. "Most people remember to get their flags out on Memorial Day and the Fourth of July," said Gale. "But we don't always honor that on National Flag Day."...

WILSONVILLE, Nebraska -- Results of the annual Wilsonville, Nebraska, Saddle Club rodeo indicate that local competitors took home some top honors after the two-day event June 1 and 2. Wyatt Clark of Wellfleet won first place in the barebacks, scoring 76 points and taking home $269. Andy Miller, also of Wellfleet, took second place, with Tucker White of Hershey, in team roping. The pair roped their steer in 8.5 seconds and earned $192 each...

OXFORD Nebraska -- The American Legion has named Marjean Schultz as Elementary School Teacher of the Year. According to a release from the American Legion Department of Nebraska, Schultz is the K-6 vocal Music teacher for the Southern Valley Elementary School in Oxford...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- Omaha, Nebraska poet Sarah McKinstry-Brown used her own poem, "The Farmer's Heaven," to inspire young poets to envision their own heaven during McCook's annual "Buffalo Commons Storytelling Festival" May 31 and June 1. Sarah wrote, "He closes the gate and walks into that acreage of night, rubbing his hands against the cold." McCook children wrote, "The children wake in the morning to the smell of chocolate fields being harvested."...

On Saturday morning, members of Palisade's American Legion and VFW posts performed their annual duties as the color guard that led the village's Pioneer Days parade down the community's Main Street.

Colorado pro golfers claimed the top prizes in the 25th anniversary John Mullen Pro-Am Tournament. The tournament celebrated its silver anniversary June 7-9, 2013, at Heritage Hills Golf Course in McCook. Dustin Mills of Arvada, Colo., claimed the top prize check in the fan-friendly Ron Coleman Memorial Horserace Friday night. ...

April 18, 1954 - June 8, 2013 McCOOK, Nebraska -- Margaret Mary Hanna died Saturday, June 8, 2013 in McCook. She was 59 years old. "Little Margaret" (as she was called by her family), was born April 18, 1954, on Easter Sunday, at Fort Riley, Kansas, to Mary Pauline (Gieber) and Rex I. Hanna, Jr. She moved to McCook in 2006...

Former McCook residents enjoyed a special family weekend with old friends and good memories celebrated at the Heritage Hills Golf Course. Bernie and Nona Mullen started the John Mullen Pro-Am Tournament in 1988 to honor the memory of their son. John, a former PGA assistant pro at the McCook course, lost his life to cancer in 1986 when he was just 23 years old...