Stories from Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Rufus P. the chocolate Lab poses for the Six of Hearts on the deck of playing cards created in 2015 by the teen volunteer group "The Cat Pack" as a fundraiser for the McCook, Nebraska, Humane Society and animal shelter. The cards, $5 a pack, would make wonderful stocking stuffers and last-minute Christmas shopping gifts. ...

In the immortal words of the W. Clement Moore's poem, "The Night Before Christmas, "he writes, "The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow, gave a luster of midday to objects below." One reason for that luster was probably a full moon and we are going to have that same view of a full moon on the snow at Christmas this year; an event that occurs rarely. We haven't seen one since 1977 and won't see one again until 2020...

Don' forget our local YMCA swim team. A portion of the swimmers that the high school receives for their swim team are molded in their younger years of competition. The YMCA coaches have two seasons of practice competition spanning throughout the year. There is a short summer section and lengthy winter section...

You've heard about the gender pay gap? The reasons are open to debate, but women generally receive lower pay for the same work -- even Hillary Clinton paid women on her staff 72 cents for every dollar the male employees got in her Senate office. But the disparity doesn't end there, according to the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs...

Local holiday bakers have been receiving a big lump of coal in their stockings for the past week, as the entire community seems to be suffering from an almond bark shortage. The candy coating that comes in several flavors is in high demand, as it is a quick and easy sweet addition to pretzels, popcorn, cookies, and candies. This simple item usually gets bottom shelf real estate at groceries, but during the holiday season, it is in center aisle stacked several feet tall...

McCOOK, Neb. -- City leaders approved a zoning ordinance modification earlier this week after receiving assurances a new crematorium on West C Street wouldn't have a negative impact on the neighborhood. "There was a question at one point in time, as far as whether or not, there could be some particulates. ...

Volunteer firefighter Larry Davis carries a dog from a smoke-filled mobile home on the 1500 block of West 10th in McCook, Nebraska, this morning. Several pets were given oxygen and taken to a veterinarian for treatment after firefighters responded to the scene about 10:40 a.m. today. The owners were apparently not home at the time. More information will be published as it becomes available...

McCOOK, Neb. -- Minutes before crashing to his death in a military plane near Minot, North Dakota, Major General Charles M. Eisenhart had made it a point to visit with an Air Force sergeant from Southwest Nebraska. The general's meeting with the sergeant, which took place in 1968, was remembered this week by Bill Witt of McCook. The visit came to mind Wednesday after Bill read the newspaper article in the Gazette which told of Mary Lou Ross' encounter with Gen. Eisenhart at the Culbertson Bank...

McCOOK, Neb. -- A commercial well service business operating south of McCook since the 1930s is moving to a new home just north of town. Richard and Lisa Wilcox with Wilcox Well Drilling were granted a special exception Monday evening allowing their business to operate in an agricultural district north of McCook. City staff indicated the request wasn't unusual and the only questions remaining pertained to highway visibility and whether ingress or egress issues existed...

Christmas lights highlight the architecture of homes in McCook, Nebraska, in stark contrast to the humble stable that was the birthplace so many years ago of the Christ Child. Though General Electric sponsored community lighting competitions during the 1920s, it would take until the 1950s for the use of outdoor Christmas lights to be adopted by average American households. ...

McCOOK, Neb. -- A local sex offender was ordered back on probation last week and to have no unsupervised contact with anyone under the age of 18. The man, 76-year-old Robert "Bob" Burton of 1310 W. Circle Drive, was similarly ordered to have no contact with children in 2010 when he was convicted of third degree sexual assault...