Stories from Monday, February 17, 2014

Last summer we all read about the terrible actions of a former inmate, Nikko Jenkins, currently charged and accused of murdering four people in Omaha within a short time from his release from prison. This subject came up last week in the Judiciary Committee where we heard testimony for LB832...

Wilma Hawkinson Oct. 28, 1924 - Feb. 7, 2014 BENKELMAN, Nebraska -- Wilma Gladys Hawkinson passed away at the Dundy County Hospital in Benkelman, Nebraska, Feb. 7, 2014, surrounded by her family. She was 89 years of age. She was born Oct. 28, 1924, to Harve L. ...

Wiley L. Wentling July 7, 1933 - Feb. 15, 2013 BEAVER CITY, Nebraska -- Wiley L. Wentling, 80, died Saturday (Feb. 15, 2014), at Phelps Memorial Hospital, Holdrege, Nebraska. He was born July 7, 1933, at Achilles, Kansas, to William L. and Alma R. (Fox) Wentling. ...

Philip D. Young May 10, 1954 - Feb. 14, 2014 CAMBRIDGE, Nebraska -- Philip D. Young, age 59, of Cambridge died at his home on Feb. 14, 2014. He was born in McCook, Nebraska, on May 10, 1954, to Eugene "Gene" and Patricia (Witte) Young. Philip attended grade school and high school in Cambridge, graduating from Cambridge High School in 1973. He was active in sports...

Nancy Kay Goodsell August 29, 1945 - Feb. 11, 2014 BILLINGS, MONTANA -- Nancy Kay Goodsell, 68, of Absarokee, Montana, passed away Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2014, due to an aortic aneurism. She was born Aug. 29, 1945, in Sioux City, Iowa, to Hal and Arlene Goodsell. After high school in Omaha and McCook, Nebraska, she attended the University of Nebraska and was always an avid fan of the Huskers...

Leo B. Miller June 16, 1949 - Feb. 12, 2014 OMAHA, Nebraska -- Leo B. Miller, 64, of Lincoln, died Wednesday, Feb.12, 2014, in Omaha. Leo was born June 16, 1949, in McCook, Nebraska, to Carl and Augusta (Andrijeski) Miller. He grew up on the family farm northwest of McCook in the St. Ann community. He attended a one room school at St. Ann through the eight grade. He graduated from McCook Senior High School in 1967 and the University Of Nebraska School of Technical Agriculture in 1969...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- From the moment he took a job selling cars ten years ago, Joel Hauxwell dreamed of having his own car lot. "I've always liked cars and when I started selling and trading cars and trucks in the early 2000's I knew this was the place for me," Joel said as he began his second month as the operator of Hauxwell Motors at 619 West B Street in McCook...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- Dennis Berry will retire as principal of McCook, Nebraska, Junior High at the end of the school year, at which time he will turn his attention to his campaign for the District 44 seat in the Nebraska Legislature. With his filing for the office Friday afternoon, Berry said, "In June I will be able to campaign full-time. If elected, serving the people of the district would become my full-time job."...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- Community Hospital is pleased to announce the name of the radiation oncology center, which is currently under construction, will be the Anderson Center for Radiation Oncology in honor of Lemoine (Andy) and the late Geri Anderson, according to Jim Ulrich, Community Hospital President & CEO...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- The Nebraska Legislature debated and heard testimony on a variety of topics this week, including legalizing casino gambling and industrial hemp, regulating BPA products, repealing the motorcycle helmet law and providing assistance for low-performing schools, among others. Here are some highlights...

Good news: The world won't end today, probably. At least it won't end at the hands of EM26, an asteroid the size of three football fields that is whizzing by at about 27,000 mph. The space rock will fly by about 8.8 times the distance from the earth to the moon, and you can watch it live, starting at 8 p.m. CST from the Slooh Space Camera at http://events.slooh.com/...

For some time we have been looking at McCook, from its beginning in 1882. Starting from scratch, those early settlers had to provide everything -- wooden structures to replace the soddies and creek bank caves that were the first homes. Businesses were either hauled in from Indianola or built from the ground up. ...

McCook Community College women's softball head coach Ben Green likes to put a special 'OKG' stamp on his recruits. He also loves to use that stamp on home-grown players. Greer begins his second season this spring guiding the Lady Indians program, and he will have a trio of former McCook Lady Bison players on the roster in freshmen Megan Ruppert, Brittany Broomfield and Madison Chitwood. ...

With the advent of spread offenses on the football field -- in the pro ranks, in college and even down to the high school game -- the fullback position is probably considered a relic, a lost art. There's always been room for, and a specific need for, a fullback in the McCook High School football scheme under head coach Jeff Gross. A tough, hard-nosed blocker and runner directly behind the quarterback has been essential and, many years a key to the success of the Bison offense...

This information is gathered at the McCook Public Safety Center, the McCook office of the Nebraska State Patrol, the Red Willow County Courthouse, the Red Willow County Sheriff's Office and the McCook Humane Society. Activity log These items are taken from reports filed by the McCook Police Department. The locations refer to block numbers, not specific addresses. If you have information about any of these reports, call the police department at (308) 345-3450...