Stories from Friday, October 28, 2016

Are the PC police fashion police as well? Apparently they are, in the tiny town of Bulverde, Texas, 30 minutes north of San Antonio. Brett Bartlett Mauthe arrived to vote wearing a hat supporting Donald Trump and a "basket of deplorables" T-shirt -- a reference to Hillary Clinton's remarks that half of Trump's supporters were "a basket of deplorables" such as racists, sexists, homophobes or xenophobes, a generalization she later said she regretted...

Property taxes are high on the mind of everyone in the state of Nebraska right now, especially our agricultural producers. With the collapse in commodities markets, many agricultural producers are concerned about their viability to stay in business next year. ...

Folks, when all of you need to present at the poll to vote for the President of the United States of America, to prove you are a valid citizen of the United States, is a drivers license or photo ID, that is wrong! The current party in power is stacking the deck to allow undocumented people to have a drivers license, then those people will vote for the party that allows them to pick up all the "freebies" provided them...

Josh Brown, former kicker for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and up until last week, the current kicker for the New York Giants professional football team, was dismissed after domestic abuse events between him and his wife came to light. This had been reported several times over the past few years before definitive action was finally taken and it's a bad mark against the NFL for their continued slow response to a nationwide problem...

Briella Wendkouni Yelkouni Barto and Tenielle Yelkouni of McCook announce the birth of their daughter, Briella Wendkouni Yelkouni, born July 19, 2016, at Sharp Mary Birch Hospital in San Diego, Calif. She weighed 6 pounds, 7 ounces and was 18 3/4'' inches long. Grandparents are Tim and Michelle Lytle of McCook and Jean-Baptist Yelkouni and the late Marie Tebda-Yelkouni of Sogtenghin, Burkina Faso, West Africa. Briella's middle name "Wendkouni" means God's gift in Barto's tribal language...

The Order of the Owls, founded in South Bend, Ind. by John W. Talbot, stated as its' purpose "to assist each other in business, to help each other in obtaining employment, to assist the widows and orphans of our brother, to give aid to our brother in any way that they may need, and to assemble for mutual pleasure and entertainment." Built around the central bird, the organizations' local groups were called nests, one of which existed in McCook during 1909...

FAMILY FEATURES -- Hay rides and pumpkin carving aren't the only time-honored traditions of fall. This time of year also brings the opportunity to enjoy spooktacular and hair-raising seasonal treats. Whether served alone in a glass or incorporated in tasty recipes, limited edition TruMoo Orange Scream can help you whip-up festive sips and snacks. ...

HUGH BUTLER LAKE, Neb. -- Red Willow State Recreation Area will feature half-price camping at $10 a night for an electric pad site and $4 a night for tent site this weekend. Other events include camper-to-camper trick or treating, a Kayak Kids Essay Contest awards ceremony at 2 p.m. ...

McCOOK, Neb. -- The number of commercial passengers flying out of McCook airport continues to increase as the airport reported its best third quarter since 2007 recently. Boutique Air boarded 544 commercial passengers during July, August and September of this year at McCook Ben Nelson Regional Airport, according to city reports. By comparison, Great Lakes Airlines boarded 89 and 156 passengers during the same time period in 2015 and 2014, respectively...

McCOOK, Neb. -- In its effort to promote pet responsibility, the McCook Humane Society's fourth annual "Dog Day in the Park" on Oct. 22 raised $700 for animal shelter operations. Shelter director Lorie Prestes said the day would not have been possible without volunteers and supporters who donate their time and talent to the shelter's efforts...

In an annual rite of raking, the Scollard and Babcock kids toss leaves at each other after gathering up all the fallen leaves in the Scollard front yard in McCook Saturday. The Scollard siblings are Annaliese, Jake, Isabella, and Nora and Kyla; the Babcock boys are Ray and Sam...

A "line stop" installed on the 16-inch water line buried at the corner of West Fifth and D in McCook allows for the replacement of a very stubborn and leaky water valve on the same water line a block south in the intersection at C Street. The ram -- the devise poking above street level at the line stop -- removed a section of the pipeline (laying upside-down on the street in the foreground of the picture) so that a rubber plunger could be inserted to temporarily stop the flow of water, and then a new valve, a block south, could be installed by the city utilities crew, which included Pat Fawver, in the hole, and from the left, Seth Province, Trevor Van Pelt and Ken Keslin.. ...

McCOOK, Neb. -- After a string of slow starts to close out the regular season, the McCook Bison came roaring out the gates for a 48-7 win over Grand Island Northwest in the opening round of the Class B playoffs...