Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
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Thursday afternoon, people started to gather at the west side of Sidney. It had the feeling of something expected, almost supernatural, as the American Freedom Convoy trucks were anticipated. Early this year, Canadian truckers protested the vaccine mandates in Canada. The protests and blockades were against the COVID-19 vaccine requirement to enter the country. The protest evolved into a protest against COVID-19 mandates in general. “Many around the world have watched the Freedom Convoy and p...
Almost two years ago, the normal television feeds of news, sitcoms and game shows was interrupted by Breaking News. A deadly virus was identified in China. We can fill in our own story line based on the news sources each of us subscribes to, and we might be right, or we might be part of the flock. Since then we’ve seen restrictions, social guidelines, varying mask and vaccine requirements, variants and a generally higher level of fear. The political cartoonists are not wrong to point out just as...
On February 22, the Sidney City Council held a changing of the guard in a matter of speaking. February 22 was councilman Joe Arterburn's last day as a seated councilman. He had submitted his resignation in the January 25 council meeting. His resignation came with his wife Kathy retiring and they were spending less time in the Sidney community. On February 22, Mayor Roger Gallaway announced the City had received two applications for Arterburn's seat. “We had a couple of people apply,” Gal...
The Sidney City Council approved pursuing a contract to support solar energy generation in the community. If a solar field is established, Sidney's electricity superintendent Mike Palmer said, it won't affect the cost to the city much. Solar production is only about 5 percent of the energy purchased by Sidney. “No matter what we do, it's not going to be a big windfall,” he said. The concept was first brought before the council Dec. 14, 2021. MEAN (Municipal Energy Agency of Nebraska), the who...
Few people expect life to be perfect with no scrapes and bruises, no illnesses or any other physical challenges. Likely even fewer expect to wake one day as active as any other period in life, and the next like someone has rewritten the story line of your life. That is where Crystal Hall's life is now. Early in 2021, Hall's life changed. She went from working full time and golfing to muscle movements that no one could explain. “I started having my head turn to the right,” she said. She then fel...
Six more volunteers have joined the ranks of PlainsWest CASA. One of the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs) is returning to the office in a different role and the second is a first-time volunteer. Five of the new CASAs were sworn in as CASAs Thursday, Feb. 24, in Cheyenne County District before the Honorable Judge Randin Roland. Training includes 32 hours of training as set by the National CASA organization. The 32 hours includes self-lead work and classroom instruction. Topics covered...
On a trip to Central America several years ago, the group I was with was encouraged to be careful giving money to panhandlers and beggars. A little background. For as dysfunctional as American society is becoming, there are places we are still as a Shangri-la. I remember leaving the airport terminal and being greeted, almost accosted, by children trying to sell what looked like origami from nearby plants. “Only a dollar,” still rings in my memory. One of our group shooed them away like stray dog...
The Cheyenne County School District No.1 board of education accepted the resignation of Sidney High School Principal Chris Arent. In his resignation letter, Arent said he has accepted the superintendency of Potter-Dix schools. “I look forward to my next challenge as the superintendent at Potter-Dix. The change will be bittersweet as being a member of Sidney Public Schools for the past 10 years has been the greatest experience of my career,” Arent said. Arent has 28 years in education. His chi...
Nebraska candidate for governor Brett Lindstrom stopped in Sidney Saturday, Feb. 19, for a meet and greet event at the Sidney Elks Lodge. Lindstrom grew up in Omaha and was a walk-on for the Huskers following high school. In 2014, Lindstrom ran for the Nebraska Legislature from the 18th District in northwestern Omaha. In the 2015 Legislative session, Lindstrom was appointed to the Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee, and to the Natural Resources Committee. Lindstrom is an avid outdoorsman...
My wife and I recently had dinner with a collection of people; most we knew, some more than others. There were the conversations like old friends meeting again, and of newcomers gently entering the conversation.. One common thread went through the room: each person has had to confront loss through death. Death is an unfortunate fact of life. Biblically, biologically, and just the random roll of the dice living on this planet -- we all will face it at some point, on our own and when someone...
The idea might sound little bit like a fish out of water, but Sidney and Cheyenne County have some of the characteristics to be home of one of the first inland port authorities Adams Industries is seeking designation as an Inland Port Authority (IPA). Kim Matthews, Business Development Manager at Adams Industries, met with the Cheyenne County Commissioners and the Sidney City Council for support of Adams Industries receiving Inland Port Authority designation. An Inland Port Authority is a...
Sometimes lunch is on the run, a quick sandwich and a drink. Sometimes “quick” is a street corner vendor, but what are the options when the vendor has days when the daily receipts aren't much more than the daily fee to operate an approved food cart? That is the question Stephen Wood brought before the Sidney City Council in the February 8 meeting. Wood asked to be on the agenda to gain clarification on licensing for “transient merchants,” those who include food trucks and carts and tempora...
Offer a cause $10 in support and you get a smile and a thank you. If 100 people each offer $100 to the same cause, change happens. That is the goal of “One Hundred Women Who Care.” 100 Women Who Care is a national organization, although affiliation might be a better description, according to Amber Kerkman. The concept is one of combining resources for a selected cause. There is no treasurer, no dues. Members of the group meet quarterly for an evening of fun and socializing, and of choosing bet...
In April 2021, Cheyenne County stood in line with numerous other municipalities expecting yet another round of federal recovery funds. The county's share of Fund 2580 COVID American Rescue Plan funds was expected to be about $1.7 million. The challenge from the beginning is no one knew what the county can or should do with the funds. The lack of direction came back before the Cheyenne County Commissioners Feb. 7 when the board was approached with a funding request they didn't know if they could...
Family and friends plan to keep her memory alive with a gazebo in the park near her home. In the Jan. 25 Sidney City Council meeting, Mike Palmer, son of Houser, asked the council for permission to build a gazebo in San Marino Park in her memory. Location of the gazebo is yet to be determined. In his memo to the council, Palmer said the family would work with the Parks Department on where is the best place for the gazebo. During his presentation to the council, Palmer said it was his mom's...
The Cheyenne County Chamber of Commerce is going digital. The Chamber has a program that encourages exchanges between member businesses. Chamber Bucks are designed to be given as gift certificates, for drawings and other gift efforts. The concept is purchase a value of Chamber Bucks and they can be used for goods or services, as long as it is with a member business. In the January 25 meeting of the Sidney City Council, Cheyenne County Chamber of Commerce President and CEO McKailie...
The Bill of Rights, the first 10 Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, outline basic rights of citizens and most importantly limits of the government. “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. (First Amendment)” It is clearly written what the government, Congress spe...
What started out as an interest in the process and trying to stay informed, is closing after nearly a decade of service. Now in his tenth year on the Sidney City Council, councilman Joe Arterburn has decided to do something else. In the closing minutes of the January 25 city council meeting, Arterburn announced his plan to resign and submission of a formal letter that he is stepping down. He plans for his last council meeting to be February 22. “I would like to thank the voters of Sidney for p...
What areas of Sidney should be defined as "blighted," and what areas should be removed from the blighted definition? That is a question proposed to the Sidney City Council on Jan. 26. Bobbi Pettit, Five Rule Rural Planning of Kearney, explained to the city council with City Manager David Scott how the city can have no more than 33 percent of the city defined as blighted. Pettit said cities like Sidney need to consider when to designate an area blighted, and when to "de-blight" a neighborhood. A...
When the concept of chicken and waffles came out, my first thought was somewhere in time a family, probably a mom struggling to assemble a family dinner, combined what was left from the night before with what remained in the pantry. The same could probably be said when steak and eggs were introduced in the morning I can almost hear the “Well, we’ve never done this before but what the heck,” or “This is what we have so this is what’s for dinner (or supper depending on the region).” It became c...
In June 2018, Kevin Howard was hired as the new tourism director for Cheyenne County. He came with the presence of a man who sits down with a stranger and a cup of coffee and later get back on the road as friends. In exchange, that random driver with a curiosity prompted by the welcome sign may stop at other locations in the county, or on his next trip through. In the Jan. 18 Cheyenne County Commissioners meeting, Howard announced he is reaching the point where he is more interested in fishing...
The Cheyenne County Commissioners signed off on a sports event grant approved by the Visitors Committee. The Visitors Committee recently wrote a grant process designed to support sporting events. Tourism Director Kevin Howard said the tournament is a three-day event with more than 40 teams and exceeding 2,500 spectators. “It's right in line with our way to spend funds,” Howard said. The commissioners also approved the Sidney High School FFA chapter hosting an event at the Cheyenne County Fai...
It is often said parenting is one of the hardest jobs you'll love. The love is for the child or children you are raising. The difficulty is the next cliché: parenting is one job that comes with no job description. When should you the parent be stern and when should you be gentle? Should you let your child freely explore life, or set boundaries? How do you set results for wrong decisions? These are some of the questions parents are faced with when raising children, and among the topics to be...
The days of Andy Griffith and Mayberry RFD are gone. They are not a memory, except with previous generations. Even the scripts once seen as a distant dream are viewed humorously. Don Knotts has gone on to the next life. Andy Griffith and the gang have moved on. What’s left now decades later is a mentality even the writers of the show probably couldn’t have imagined. I was in a discussion recently when I was reminded we, this part of the country, is in a squeeze play. The West and East Coast pop...
It started as a dream based on need, and now includes the City of Sidney. Table of Grace is a food pantry and thrift store located on Alvarado Street in Sidney. It's primary focus is to offer food to families in need. Some of their offerings are without income guidelines and others follow specific income scales. The Table of Grace has partnered with Sandhills Global. The goal is to secure a building that could better help meet the needs of the people Table of Grace serves. In the course of...
