Stories from Friday, February 25, 2005

Omaha Central, Lincoln SE take team honors LINCOLN (AP) -- McCook's sister-brother diving duo of senior Jessica Hall and freshman Matt Hall put together a strong showing at the Nebraska State High School Diving Championships Thursday. Jessica Hall placed sixth in the girls competition with 310.60 points on her 11 dives...

GRAND ISLAND -- The season ended for the McCook High School girls basketball team with a 43-33 loss to Hastings in the semifinal round of the Nebraska Class B-5 District Tournament at Grand Island Senior High. Three Bison seniors played their final game -- Kim Serbousek, Natlie Brooks and Katherine Morell...

Dale Schoenfish took his Cambridge boys basketball team a step closer to repeating as state champions as they upset top seed Arapahoe 73-66 in the D1-11 sub district finals at McCook. Schoenfish won the 500th game in his storied 38-year coaching career (33 years at Cambridge)...

The McCook Community College baseball team swept a doubleheader from the Hastings College Junior Varsity Thursday afternoon at the Jaycees Sports Complex. The Indians, playing their season- and home-openers, won the first game 10-3 and the second game 12-2...

STRATTON -- While McCook's helicopter kit company is still gearing up to turn out its first product, a Stratton aircraft company has quietly produced about 300 airplane kits over the last two years. And, while Pawnee Aviation will require 10 people with skills ranging from welding and fabrication to painting, Bluejay Airplane Kits owner Lynn Latta does about all of the production himself, with the help of his wife, Sandy...

Work on the third and final project to reconstruct B Street through McCook is about to get under way. This project will begin just east of East Seventh and continue to just east of Airport Road. Work will consist of replacing all of the concrete pavement, storm sewer, water mains and roadway lighting...

Community Action Partnership of Mid-Nebraska -- Mid -- is inviting interested citizens of Frontier, Furnas and Red Willow counties to several public meetings to discuss an Affordable Housing Trust Fund grant application for housing rehabilitation. The grant, if received, would provide assistance money to renovate and rehabilitate homes for low-to-moderate income families in Frontier, Furnas and Red Willow counties...

This year, the McCook Daily Gazette began a new way of distributing the Progress Edition for Southwest Nebraska and Northwest Kansas. Instead of putting all sections together in one massive edition, the Gazette inserted one section a day throughout the week, starting Monday and concluding today...

The darkened highway stretches out in front of you for miles with no break in sight. Everyone in the vehicle is sound asleep with only an occasional snore to break the monotony. In an effort to stay alert, you start scanning the radio dial, looking for a lively song...

**Dear Editor, Most folks that work in the public domain supported by tax dollars know that it behooves us to pay attention to current legislative issues. There are always a lot of proposals that have some impact on our future. In my judgment, the most important issue that has a long-range impact on local and state government is the term-limit restriction...

July 17, 1932-Feb. 24, 2005 OBERLIN -- Joan Moore, 72, died Thursday (Feb. 24, 2005) at Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney. She was born July 17, 1932, to Frank and Fyme (Thurman) Robinson in Warsaw, Mo. She was raised in Warsaw and attended grade school there. She graduated from high school in 1949 in Warsaw...

June 10, 1916-Feb. 23, 2005 COLBY, Kan. -- Russell Lowell Childers, 88, died Wednesday (Feb. 23, 2005) at Citizens Medical Center in Colby, Kan. He was born June 10, 1916, in Tamora. He served in the U.S. Navy. He was a farmer. He was preceded in death by his wife, Martha in 1987...

Jason and Staci Meyers of McCook announce the birth of twins, Wyatt Alan and Jaci Kailyn, Sunday (Feb. 20, 2005), at the medical center at the University of Nebraska in Omaha. They each weighed two pounds, 9 ounces and were 14 inches long. Grandparents are Susan Vrbas of McCook, the late Lawrence Vrbas and Kent and Deb Meyers of McCook. Great-grandparents are Helen Meyers of McCook, Mary and Charles Vrbas of Palisade and Marilyn and Richard Koetter of McCook...

Marilyn Matson needs a new dog. For centuries, dog has been called man's best friend. After all, they are loyal, protective, unceasingly happy to see their master and they provide undemanding companionship. But Marilyn is looking for just a bit more in her canine friend...

By DAWN CRIBBS Associate Editor A mother's passion, courage and an extraordinary faith were revealed Friday afternoon by the Rev. Dr. Jeff Thurman's homily at the third in a series of seven Lenten services at the McCook First Church of the Nazarene...

Do the people of Southwest Nebraska support the expansion of the livestock industry? And, if they do, should their zoning boards and county commission members take the additional step of declaring one or more of the southwest counties as "Livestock Friendly?"...

One of the most troubling things that occurs in our society is how rumor and innuendo becomes "truth" and "fact" just because someone says it is. This column is a response to the editorial in the Wednesday, Feb. 23 edition of the McCook Daily Gazette. ...

The Wauneta-Palisade girls basketball team is Nebraska Class D1 state tournament bound after they defeated Cambridge 43-37 Friday night at the McCook High School gymnasium. Wauneta-Palisade coach Roger Lauhead said that his goal coming into the game was to play a tight zone defense to keep Cambridge's offense out of the lane, and they did exactly that...

Bison Matt Hall solid at first big competition LINCOLN -- Jessica Hall competed at the Nebraska State Diving Meet Thursday at Lincoln and placed sixth with 310.60 points. Twenty-three divers competed and performed five dives in the preliminaries. A cut was made to 16 divers for the next three dives and then to 12 for the final three dives...

BARTLEY -- The McCook Junior High School eighth grade boys basketball A and B teams both posted 7-0 records this season. The Bison squads completed their perfect seasons with a sweep at the Bartley gymnasium against Southwest Junior High. The Bison A team team won 57-24 and the B team wo 34-11. Eleven players scored for the A team and 12 for the B team...