Stories from Friday, April 2, 2004

A reporter shadows State Sen. Tom Baker

Every year, it seems, the Work Ethic Camp in McCook has to prove itself to a pocket of doubting senators in the Nebraska Legislature. The first assault was launched in 2003 when Harold Clarke, the director of the Nebraska Department of Corrections, placed the camp on the chopping block as a way of complying with Gov. Mike Johanns' budget-cutting orders...

**Dear Editor, Having read your editorial concerning the Lewis & Clark Expedition, I have a suggestion. Readers who are interested will need to make a trip to the northeast corner of our state. If one drives from South Sioux City, Neb., to Sioux City, Iowa, you will find a wonderful Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center to the left of the overpass. ...

First, it was the television set and VCR, quickly followed by the DVD player which mysteriously appeared in my house. Next came the cat here and there, cuddling up next to my head in the middle of the night. Now, my home has been invaded by the most feared time-stealer -- video games...

Aug. 8, 1908-March 31, 2004 IMPERIAL -- Richard Paul Anderson, 95, died Wednesday (March 31, 2004) at Chase County Community Hospital. He was born Aug. 8, 1908, to Charles H. and Hilma A. (Anderson) Anderson. The family moved to Gordon in 1921 to farm. He went to Freedom, Minn., in the fall of 1924 and worked on a dairy farm. In the spring of 1925, he moved to Upsala, Minn., and worked on a farm. He attended ninth grade while there...

Dec. 31, 1939-March 31, 2004 HITCHCOCK COUNTY -- Eddie Gene Oberg, 64, died Wednesday (March 31, 2004) while working north of Culbertson. He was born Dec. 31, 1939, to Gustave and Maudie (Tirrill) Oberg in Red Willow County. He grew up in McCook and attended McCook High School. He graduate from Edison High School in Edison in 1958...

BEAVER CITY -- In 1910, on the square in Beaver City, George Washington Shafer opened what his family lovingly calls, "the first Wal-Mart," G.W. Shafer's. "Grandpa Shafer was the first Wal-Mart," said Jean Shafer of Beaver City. "He sold everything ... absolutely everything."...

The secret to greatness was revealed Friday afternoon by the Rev. Stan Hendershot from First Baptist Church, during the Community Lenten service at St. Alban's Episcopal Church. "Jesus had done his best to prepare his disciples for what was to come," explained Hendershot to the 137 in attendance, "but they still didn't understand, There were a lot things the disciples didn't understand."...

These are critical times in Southwest Nebraska and now, more than ever, we need the leadership of Sen. Tom Baker to help us advance economically. We know Sen. Baker can do it. He has shown his ability to get results by playing a leading role in the development of the ethanol plant in Trenton and by pushing hard to keep the Work Ethic Camp in McCook...

The April 3, 1903, McCook Tribune carried a story of the arrest of a former McCook physician ... Dr. Elbert A. Hall. He had practiced medicine in McCook, Red Cloud, Lincoln and elsewhere in Nebraska. It seems that the good doctor was caught and arrested by two detectives at Fiftieth and Campbell streets in Kansas City...

Kudos to Gloria Masoner who, in her Thursday newspaper column, took to task those who would place limitations on what a "free press" prints. Because of alarming trends in press ownership and public opinion, many newspapers have effectively been "muzzled," providing only a particular point of view that supports the conglomerate interests or the interests of a few...

The final countdown to the end of session is in effect with only seven legislative days to go. Members are arguing amiably and compromising relentlessly to get through the remainder of this session's work. While it would appear this week-long debate of the budget has been relatively unproductive, the Legislature has in fact accomplished a great deal when taking into consideration the outlook of next year's financial well being. ...