Stories from Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Wow, how much excitement can a stargazer handle at once? The Perseid meteor shower last week with blazing fireballs crossing the sky...the total eclipse of the Moon next week...all the glory of the heavens at our beck and call on warm, cloudless August nights. It doesn't get much better than this. Well, a blazing total solar eclipse thrown in for good measure might do it. Too bad we have to wait until 2017 before one is visible from the United States...

The 2007 edition of the McCook Community College volleyball team dropped a tough five-game match Tuesday night to the MCC Alumni squad. The Indian alums defeated the current Indians 30-20, 30-24, 30-26, 25-30, 7-15. The 2007 MCC squad features eight freshmen and two sophomores. Coach Gary Payne said the squad's inexperience showed against the alums...

The 2007 fall sports season gets under way Thursday around the McCook Daily Gazette coverage area. Three area football teams -- Maywood, Southwest and Cambridge -- play "zero week" games on the road. Maywood plays at Stapleton Thursday. On Friday, Southwest travels to Bayard and Cambridge visits Garden County...

The 2007-08 budget for the Middle Republican Natural Resources District was narrowly passed by board members Tuesday night, including a $3 million increase due to new property and occupation taxes that will be levied to implement LB701. By 6 to 5, MRNRD members barely approved a $4.93 million budget that includes occupation taxes of $7.13 per irrigated acre and 0.47 cents in property taxes. The budget for 2006 was $1.4 million...

Red Willow County commissioners learned during their meeting Monday morning that pretrial diversion for juvenile offenders in the county will now be provided by Lutheran Family Services of Nebraska Inc. Chris Berry of CEDARS in McCook told commissioners that until the end of 2007-2008, in McCook and Red Willow County, CEDARS will subcontract its pretrial diversion program to Lutheran Family Services. ...

INDIANOLA -- An Indianola woman was listed in serious condition in a Kearney hospital after being forced to jump from her second-floor window by a house fire Tuesday night. The woman, Judy Stark Hall, was taken by Indianola ambulance to Community Hospital in McCook before being transferred to Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney...

The sales tax ballot committee is coming closer to drafting language for the upcoming election concerning the renewal of the city sales tax. The McCook City Council appeared enthusiastic about the committee's proposal to have the ballot include extending the one-cent tax to 10 years with a sunset at the end of that period...

There's something wrong about this picture. It's been rainier than usual this year, so people have had to water their lawns less than usual. That means they'll have to pay more for the water they do buy from the city. Utility Director Jesse Dutcher told the city council as much Monday night, saying that instead of the 4.25 percent increase originally anticipated for October, water users can expect to pay 10 percent...

Monday, children across McCook stood still for one final inspection before heading out the door, putting summer sunshine behind them in lieu of chalk dust and the inimitable squeak of markers on a dry erase board. New jeans, barely softened in the wash, chafed suntanned legs while shoes and socks entraped wiggly toes that had only the day before enjoyed the tickle of summer grass...

The family of Iola (Owens) Berger is hosting an open house Saturday, beginning at 2 p.m., at the TCDC Building in Trenton in honor of her 90th birthday. She was born Aug. 27, 1917. Her children are Dana and Dennis. She has two grandchildren. Cards of congratulation will reach her at 36639 Road 708, Trenton, NE 69044...