Stories from Friday, April 23, 2010

By Marialisa Calta EAT IN AND SAVE -- Where I live, there are three potluck seasons. There's the summer potluck, which represents a chance for neighbors to hang out in the backyard on a warm evening. There's the winter potluck, an opportunity to socialize during the holidays. Then there's the spring potluck, which is largely driven by the school calendar, sports-team celebrations, PTA evenings and awards ceremonies. Each event, it seems, warrants a potluck. This can be wearing, to say the least...

Nov. 16, 1918 - April 21, 2010 Stella Lorraine Kitzing died Wednesday (April 21, 2010) at the McCook Community Hospital in McCook, Nebraska, at the age of 91. She was born Nov. 16, 1918, in Frontier County, Nebraska, the daughter of the late Ernest and Rose (Puls) Lempp. Stella grew up in Frontier County where she graduated from the Salem Lutheran School...

Dec. 23, 1929 - April 21, 2010 Ronald Eugene McKillip, 80, passed from this temporary life on Wednesday (April 21, 2010) at his home north of McCook, Nebraska. He was born on a cold, windy, snowy Dec. 23, 1929, at the family farm south of McCook to Nile and Opal (Kelley) McKillip. He grew up around McCook and rode horses and sometimes climbed snowdrifts taller than fence posts to attend country schools. He attended McCook High, class of 1947...

Eric and Katie Sitzman of Lincoln announce the birth of a son, Wyatt Morgan Sitzman. He was born March 31, 2010, at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Lincoln. He weighed 10 pounds, 2 ounces and measured 22 inches long. Grandparents are Larry and Sally Sitzman of Lincoln, formerly of Culbertson, and Tom and Suzi Fischer of Omaha...

Mallory Main of Lamar, Missouri and Kyle Rupp of Grand Island announce their engagement and upcoming wedding. Parents of the couple are Mike and Dianne Main of Lamar and Robert and Jody Rupp of Grand Island. Grandparents of the prospective bridegroom are Bill and Norma Bryant of Curtis and Roger and Joan Rupp of Johnson Lake, formerly of Curtis...

Family and friends of Sylvia Coppin will host a card shower in honor of her 90th birthday. She was born May 3. Cards of congratulations will reach her at Box 86, Culbertson, NE, 69024

Emily Berry and Brandon Park announce their engagement and upcoming wedding. Parents of the couple Roger and Nancy Berry of Lincoln and Rusty and Jackie Park of McCook. Grandparents of the bride-to-be are Irvin and Ruth Ann (Hess) Farnum and the late Lyle and Joyce Berry...

Nick and Lindsey Koehn of Lincoln announce the birth of their son, Jalen Milo Koehn. He was born Feb. 10, 2010, at BryanLGH Medical Center in Lincoln, weighing 8 pounds and measuring 21 1/2 inches long. Grandparents of the newborn are Bob and Kathy Haag of Indianola and Frank and Vickey Koehn of Johnson Lake. Great-grandparents are Doll Nielsen and Jack and Ethel Jones, all of Lexington...

Jeremy and Danae (DeVaughn) Escher of Lincoln, McCook High School graduates in 2001 and 2002, announce the birth of a daughter, Ella Elizabeth Escher. She was born March 30, 2010, at St. Elizabeth's in Lincoln weighing 8 pounds, 13 ounces and measuring 21 inches long. Grandparents are Chet and Donna DeVaughn of McCook and Jerome and Debbie Escher of McCook...

Brittany Ann Brown and Adam David Sevenker, both of Kearney, announce their engagement and upcoming wedding. Parents of the couple are Daryl and Melody Brown of Cambridge and Lynn and Kris Sevenker of Grand Island. Grandparents of the bride-to-be are Helen McChesney of Cambridge and the late Harold McChesney, Margaret Brown of Wilsonville and the late Dean Brown...

Jeremy and Vicki (Solorzano) Lang announce the birth of a daughter, Jasmine Jayde Lang. She was born March 25, 2010, at Community Hospital in McCook, weighing 6 pounds, 12.8 ounces and measuring 18.5 inches long. She has an 18- month old sister, Eris Abbigail Lang of McCook and a 6-year old brother, Logan Michael Lang of Clay Center. Grandparents of the child are Elias Solorzano of McCook, Shari and Bob Anderson of Oberlin and Mike and Roxy Lang of Wilsonville...

John Clapper and Angela Burns of McCook announce the birth of a daughter, Jacquelyn Lucille Clapper. She was born April 6, 2010, at Great Plains Community Hospital in North Platte, weighing 7 pounds and measuring 20 inches long. She has three sisters, Megan, 14, Haylee, 11 and Hannah, 7. Her grandparents are Nancy and Craig Burke of Loveland, Colorado, Pat Burns of McCook and Ralph and Lynn Clapper of Oberlin. Great-grandparents are Betty Pohl and Bob Johnson of Holbrook...

Josh and Carla Taylor of Grant announce the birth of a son, Lane John Taylor. He was born March 2, 2010, at Great Plains Regional Medical Center in North Platte weighing 7 pounds, 10 ounces and measuring 20 1/2 inches long. He has three brothers, Nathan 10, Clifton 10 and Ryan 2. Grandparents are Ron and Dena Taylor of Champion and Wayne and Marlyn Ferguson of Parks. Great-grandparents are John and Wilma Ferguson of Parks and Darlene Day of Yuma, Colorado...

Brock and Mindy Rogers of McCook announce the birth of a son, Caleb Stephen Rogers. He was born Jan. 11, 2010, at McCook, weighing 7 pounds 13 ounces and measuring 19 inches long. He has a brother, Isaac, 11, and two sisters, Gabriella, 6 and Aubrey, 3. ...

Kristin Maassen and Mitch Friehe, both of Sioux City, Iowa, announce their engagement and upcoming wedding. Parents of the couple are Terry and Cheryl Maassen of Lincoln and Mark and Donna Friehe of Council Bluffs, Iowa. Grandparents of the bride-to-be are John and Marie Maassen of Orange City, Iowa, Bernard and Berdena Grady of LeMars, Iowa, and the late William Bleeker...

Elton and Lisa Butterfield of McCook announce the birth of a son, Max Michael Butterfield. He was born April 5, 2010, weighing 5 pounds, 7 ounces and measuring 19 inches long. Grandparents are Mike and Millie Cuellar of Indianola and Larry and Sandy Cornett of Cambridge. Great-grandparents are Max and Reba Tomlin of Cambridge, Charlie and Helen Hatfield of Apache Junction, Arizona, and Marilyn Cuellar of McCook...

The Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice was established in 1969. Better known as the Nebraska Crime Commission, it is lead by Mike Behm and today serves as an umbrella agency for criminal justice programs in the state. The main responsibilities of the Crime Commission include overseeing the training of Nebraska's law enforcement officers and administering state and federal grants for criminal justice and crime victims programs. ...

On Tuesday, April 20, NASA's space shuttle Discovery and her crew of seven astronauts ended their 15-day, 6 million-mile roundtrip to the International Space Station with a picture perfect landing at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida...

Life is filled with choices and the difference between the successful and unsuccessful people in the world is often based on those very choices we make. It's important to understand that there's no such thing as "not making a choice." We make good decisions and bad decisions but there's no such thing as making "no decision." If we decide not to act, it's simply a choice of omission rather than commission...

"To say the truth, reason and love keep little company together nowadays." Bottom's line, recited by Ethan Poore in McCook Community College's production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream," is as true today as when Shakespeare penned it more than 400 years ago...

An open house for Nancy Mortimer's 85th birthday will be Sunday, May 2, 2010 at Parkside Manor, 209 Nelson in Cambridge, from 2-4 p.m. Cards of congratulations will reach her at 209 Nelson, No. 7, Cambridge, NE 69022

Declan and I were watching a preview for that new movie "Diary of a Wimpy Kid," the preview featured one young grade-schooler attempting to educate his social misfit of a friend, on how to move up the popularity ladder. The misfit, of course, misunderstands his friends direction on complimenting other popular kids, and very publicly tells a more popular classmate, "nice butt" as if it were an everyday greeting. ...