Stories from Tuesday, February 15, 2005

NORTH PLATTE -- The Southwest High School girls basketball team opened Nebraska Class C2-11 district play with a 47-33 win over Grant Monday night at the North Platte High School gymnasium. Southwest came out and played a solid game all night, getting up on Grant early and leading the entire game...

COLUMBUS -- The McCook High School Bison swim team had six medal winners at the Greater Nebraska Athletic Conference meet Friday and Saturday at Columbus on Friday and Saturday. Jessica Hall won two medals. She finished third in diving and fifth in the 100 yard backstroke...

**Dear Editor, I've wondered for some time who the news media insists on calling the murdering terrorists in Iraq "insurgents." Webster defines an insurgent as one who rises in opposition to authority, or a rebel. It also says in the U.S. it is one who acts contrary to the policies and decisions of a political party...

**Dear Editor, Please allow me to comment on Mike Hendricks column of 2-12 A.D. 2005. Mike, you forgot to mention a very blatant type of violence that has occurred over 50 million times since 1973, abortion. Perhaps you, and many others, just don't realize what happens during an abortion. ...

**EDITOR'S NOTE -- McCook High School graduate Tyler Bieck, now a University of Nebraska-Lincoln student, submitted the following letter to the McCook Public Schools board of education on Monday. The board did not discuss the issue after a motion to do so failed on a 3-3 tie:...

After everyone has a say about how best to fix Social Security, the person best positioned to work out a solution with President Bush and leading national lawmakers is U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson, a Democrat from Nebraska who was born and raised in McCook...

McCook Public Schools board of education members split evenly Monday evening over a motion to add an emergency item to their agenda and consider a request from a cable television network to recreate and film a class prank perpetrated in 2003. The 3-3 vote on Diane Lyons' motion meant that the board would not discuss a decision by High School Principal Jerry Smith to decline a proposal from MTV to recreate the prank inside the halls of the high school...

Red Willow County commissioners and commissioners from Frontier, Furnas, Hitchcock and Hayes counties will investigate how their counties can cooperate and and save money. Red Willow's county board started the process during its regular meeting Monday morning, inviting commissioners to a brainstorming session and creating a new committee called the "Southwest Nebraska County Cooperation Committee" or "CCC."...

The McCook Public Schools board of education formally affirmed its support of merger talks with the Culbertson school district with a unanimous vote during Monday's regular board meeting. Although specific numbers still need to be worked out, board members indicated with their vote that they agree with the basic issues hashed out by Culbertson board members and committee members representing McCook's board at meetings Dec. 8 and Feb. 7...

April 23, 1914-Feb. 13, 2005 Delmere Franklin Thomas, 90, died Sunday (Feb. 13, 2005) at Cambridge Manor Home in Cambridge. He was born April 23, 1914, to Frank and Julia Elizabeth (Halsey) Thomas in Red Willow County. He grew up on the family farm southwest of Lebanon and graduated from rural school. He attended high school in Danbury...

Aug. 28, 1931-Feb. 13, 2005 BEAVER CITY -- Vivian L. Goins, 73, died Sunday (Feb. 13, 2005) at Phelps Memorial Hospital in Holdrege. She was born Aug. 28, 1931, to Virtus and Joycie (Vise) Helton in Wilsonville. The family moved to a farm south of Beaver City in 1935 and moved into town in 1937. She graduated from Beaver City High School in 1948...

May 2, 1913-Feb. 13, 2005 Fern I. Wolgamott, 91, died Sunday (Feb. 13, 2005) at Sunset Haven Nursing Home in Curtis. She was born May 2, 1913, in Gosper County to Leon J. and Lela O. (Collins) Wilsey. She attended school at Lexington. She moved to McCook in 1995...

Aug. 15, 1918-Feb. 13, 2005 MAYWOOD -- Ula Rebecca Wood, 86, of Maywood, died Sunday (Feb. 13, 2005) at Community Hospital of McCook. She was born Aug. 15, 1918, to Morgan Downing and Ada Belle Staples Smith in White. She grew up on the farm and attended country school...

The family of Bus and June Bahl is hosting a card shower in honor of the couple's 70th anniversary. They were married Feb. 16, 1935, in McCook. Cards will reach them at 402 Missouri Ave.Cir #5, McCook, NE 69001

Chad and Kimberly Hightower announce the birth of their son, Zachary Austin, Friday (Jan. 7, 2005) at Lemoore Naval Hospital at Lemoore, Calif. He weighed 7 pounds, 12 ounces and measured 19 inches. Grandparents are Jamie and Pat Forch of Trenton and Ken and Joyce Hightower of Grant. Great-grandparents are Willard and Vernie Hoyt of Culbertson and Wilma Hightower of Hannibal, Mo. Kimberly is a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy, serving at the naval hospital in Lemoore...

The family of Fred and Nellie Jean Trosper is hosting an open house in honor of the couple's 60th anniversary Feb. 19, 2-4 p.m., at the Community Building in Cambridge.