Stories from Thursday, December 28, 2006

WASHINGTON -- Teddy Chancellor, a member of the U.S. Navy's full honor burial guard, will accompany the late President Gerald Ford's body from California, to the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on Saturday and later on to Ford's final resting place in Michigan...

LINCOLN -- By a narrow, 3-2 vote, the Nebraska Public Service Commission ap-proved Wednesday a rate increase sought by Kinder Morgan. Commissioners Rod John-son of Sutton and Jerry Vap of McCook opposed the ap-proval. The new rates will become effective Jan. 1...

Happy, blue-eyed Isaiah Charles Kendall will pass his crown as the Gazette area's "New Year's Baby" of 2006 to the next little one born on the first day of the new year. Isaiah was born at 7:59 a.m., Jan. 1, 2006, to April and Michael Kendall of McCook. He will share "first baby of the new year" honors with the first baby born after midnight, Jan. 1, 2007...

Two thousand six was quite a year, and but we're sure 2007 will be just as remarkable. Serious local issues were settled in the old year, but others have arisen and some we thought were settled are bound to come up again. Water is the overarching issue for McCook and Southwest Nebraska, and will continue to be for the foreseeable future...

Sure see a lot of big shots speaking of the water problem, boy do they like meetings. I have always found the only reason the government doesn't solve a problem is because (it doesn't) want to. We at the bottom of the dollar pile know better than any rich person about water trouble. My family, 34 years ago, paid $2 a month for water in McCook and now we have over $50 a month bills...

There are a lot of ways to judge our age -- our mortality. For some, it's their chronological age. For some it's the condition of their body -- for still others it's the age of their children. My oldest is 25 today. That's a quarter of a century and that means it's going to be hard to convince anyone that I'm still 29...

BEAVER CITY -- Bessie Pauline John, 99, died Tuesday (Dec. 26, 2006) at Beaver City Manor. She was born March 1, 1907, at Beaver City to Edd and Jessie (Vroom) Breuning. She grew up in Furnas County and attended Mount Rastus School graduating from the eighth grade...

ARAPAHOE -- Madge Merna Hill, 93, formerly of Arapahoe, died Saturday (Dec. 23, 2006) at Hillcrest Nursing Home in McCook. Funeral services will be Friday, 2 p.m., at First United Methodist Church in Arapahoe, with the Rev. Michael Flury officiating. Interment will be at Arapahoe Cemetery...