Stories from Monday, July 26, 2004

HOLDREGE -- Because of the dominating pitching that the McCook National Bank Senior baseball team received throughout the Class B Area 6 American Legion Tournament, the air under MNB's sails flew to full mast with a three-run home run via Jared Muehlenkamp in the first inning...

HOLDREGE -- After a sour beginning in the Class B Area 6 Juniors district tournament, the First Central Bank baseball team stormed back to utterly dominate Holdrege in the final games of the best 2-of-3 championship series. The Area 6 championship catapults FCB to play in the American Legion Juniors state tournament in Lexington...

Feb. 4, 1942-July 7, 2004 Jon Douglas Almquist passed away suddenly on Wednesday, July 7, 2004. His journey in this life was filled with joy, fulfillment, hardships and laughter. He battled diabetes most of his life and heart problems the last few years. He was a true champion as he fought to keep active and happy...

The family of Dale and Sharon Warner is hosting an open house in honor of the couple's 40th anniversary, July 31, 6:30 p.m., at the home of Bruce and Darla Blickenstaffs, 7 1/2 miles south of Hendley on Road 420. The couple married Sept. 18, 1964. Their children are Sheila R. Worlow and husband, Cline of Weleetka, Okla., and Gina K. Wise and husband, Shay of Midland, Texas. They have four grandchildren...

Ashley Sis of McCook and Aaron Eskew of Imperial announce their engagement and upcoming wedding. Parents of the couple are Martin and Denise Sis of McCook and Greg and Kay Eskew of Imperial. The bride-to-be is employed with WalMart and the prospective bridegroom is employed with Greg Hayes. The couple is planning an Aug. 6, 2004, ceremony at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in McCook...

WAUNETA -- Heidi Lyn Nordhausen and Jason Timothy Anderson were united in marriage March 27, 2004, at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Wauneta with the Rev. Keith Wellman of Wauneta officiating. Parents of the couple are Monte and Deb Nordhausen of Wauneta and Carl and Dana Kelley of Golden, Colo., and Tim and Nancy Anderson of Ft. Collins, Colo...

With national attention focused on the 9/11 Commission's recommendations for fighting terrorism, Sunday's anhydrous ammonia incident is a good reminder that local preparation is key to emergency response. And, despite criticism and some minor kinks in communication, that preparation paid off. No member of the public was injured and the situation was under control quickly...

**Dear Editor, Three small boys came up the the van/store. They were splattered with mud, head to toe. They proudly told of riding their bikes across the creek north of the college, not once but several times. Then, they stopped here before going home. They asked me for some paper towels to clean up so their moms wouldn't find out. I gave them a roll, but said "there isn't enough paper in the world to clean you and your clothes off."...

**Dear Editor, Enclosed is a picture of the East Pediment of the Supreme Court building in Washington D.C., the area above the rear of the building. As we can see, in the center is Moses holding the Ten Commandments, carved in stone. Also, according to Alabama Attorney general Bill Pryor, there are more than 20 artistic depictions of Moses or the Ten Commandments throughout the Supreme Court building...

The low-lying fog and an unpredictable breeze complicated the approach to the anhydrous ammonia tank that spewed an ominous white cloud of stinking, burning vapor over South McCook early Sunday morning. McCook Police Chief Ike Brown said this morning his officers are investigating the incident as vandalism or criminal mischief...

Two stories in Friday's Gazette show just how far we have come -- and offer a glimpse of how far we might go. The first, a release from McCook native U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson, noted that $3 million was included in the defense bill to continue development of a software program that may be just as important to winning the next war as musket balls or smart bombs were to wars past...

Nov. 7, 1921-July 23, 2004 CAMBRIDGE -- Leola Ilene Premer Ruf, 82, died Friday (July 23, 2004) in Cambridge. She was born Nov. 7, 1921, to Frank Premer and Ellen (Nellie) Daniels Premer south of Bartley in Red Willow County. She graduated from Bartley High School in 1938 and attended classes at Kearney State Normal College. She taught country school in the Lebanon area for seven years and at Lebanon for one year...