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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Sixth-grade track meet The annual sixth-grade track meet will be held at the Sidney High School track on May 7. Additionally, Sidney fourth, fifth and sixth graders will be taking their Presidential Fitness Runs in the days following the meet. Fourth graders will do their fitness run on Thurs., May 9, between 1 and 2 p.m. Fifth and sixth graders will run the follwoing day. Sixth graders will start at 9 a.m. while fifth graders will follow immediately thereafter. The fitness runs will also take place at the high school track. Softball Tryouts...
Since this spring sports schedule has played out more like a winter sports season, area coaches and activity directors needed to become as creative as artists and flexible as a circus performers when scheduling--or rescheduling--practices and events. “The weather in western Nebraska is so unpredictable this time of year, it’s very tough for kids to get into a rhythm,” Leyton Activities Director James McGown explained. Without exception, every sports schedule in this area has been affected by weather. While many events have been posponed many...
You encounter this scenario far too often at the sports desk. Someone with a grudge objects to mention of a local high school athlete in the most disrespectful, juvenile and generally incoherent tone. More often than not, the letter arrives anonymously. These notes quickly end up in the trash. No point heard, no lesson learned. That’s how it is with us human beings. We generally respond best when approached positively. I, for one, am fond of constructive criticism. It helps me get better. Anyone who takes pride in what they do would never w... Full story
NEW YORK (AP) — A study finds that American adults rank steroid use among adolescents as less of a problem than alcohol, bullying, marijuana and sexually transmitted diseases. The study was co-commissioned by baseball’s Hall of Fame and released Thursday. Those polled ranked cocaine and eating disorders as bigger problems. While 97 percent of the respondents believe steroids cause negative health effects, just 19 percent think steroid use is a big problem among high school students. Hall President Jeff Idelson says the study shows that steroids...
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — It’s unanimous: Damian Lillard is the NBA’s Rookie of the Year. No, it never was in question. Lillard, the sixth overall pick in last June’s draft out of Weber State, led all rookies with a 19-point scoring average. He also averaged 6.1 assists and 3.1 rebounds, playing in all 82 games this season. He broke Stephen Curry’s rookie record for 3-pointers in a season, finishing with 185, and became just the third NBA rookie with at least 1,500 points and 500 assists, following Oscar Robertson and Alan Iverson. And he swept...
(AP) – The 7-year-old cancer patient who became an Internet sensation for his touchdown run in Nebraska’s spring football game has yet another fan — President Barack Obama. Jack Hoffman, his family and former Cornhuskers running back Rex Burkhead visited Obama for 15 minutes in the Oval Office on Monday. Obama presented Jack with a new football and told him he was proud of him. “I thought it was awesome,” Jack said. Burkhead, who was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday, befriende...
OMAHA (AP) — Billionaire Warren Buffett is optimistic about America’s economic future because the nation has begun to unleash the potential of women. Buffett’s views on the role of women appeared online Thursday in an editorial he wrote for Fortune magazine (http://cnnmon.ie/ZBFiri ). He says that most of America’s prosperity was created using only about 50 percent of its talent — the men. So he’s confident the country will prosper as more women excel in the workforce. “For most of our history, women — whatever their abilities — have been releg...
On May 1, members of Cheyenne County’s Brownie Troop 70 visited Golden Living Center and gifted all 51 of the residents with May baskets. Co-leader of the troop, Mary Ann Whitboldt, came up with the idea. Since Whitboldt works at Golden Age, she thought that gifting the residents with flowers would be a nice service project for the Brownie troop. The Brownies used plastic water bottles, painted them black with brightly colored designs before adding flowers. The gifts brightened the otherwise g...
Oral Cancer Awareness Month just ended without much notice. It is a disease that people should be aware of year-round. According to the Oral Cancer Foundation (OCF), oral cancer is the largest group of those cancers which fall into the head and neck cancer category. Approximately 42,000 people in the US will be newly diagnosed with oral cancer in 2013. This includes those cancers that occur in the mouth itself, in the very back of the mouth known as the oropharynx, and on the exterior lip of the mouth. This is the fifth year in a row in which...
NEW YORK (AP) – Violence, gore and gunplay were staples on prime-time television even in the most sensitive period directly following the Newtown school shooting. A study of 392 prime-time scripted programs on broadcast networks shown during the month following Vice President Joe Biden’s January meeting with entertainment industry executives on the topic revealed that 193 had some incident of violence, according to the Parents Television Council. Some are cartoonish – quite literally, with...
As I sat at home sick this weekend, my cell phone buzzed on the table next to my recliner. My good friend from back home had texted me, asking if I had had a chance to check out the new series on SyFy - Defiance. Little did I know this message would turn me onto what could become the next big hit in television. The plot of the show centers around Nolan, a former soldier who is turned lawmaker in the fledgling town of Defiance, which sits upon the ruins of St. Louis, which was destroyed decades ago by an alien race known as the Votan. The...
A comic book action hero, translated to the big screen, should produce a film worthy of many bags of popcorn consumed without noticing while eyes are glued to the story. Marvel’s Iron Man 3 delivers in this regard. Robert Downey Jr.—as industrialist Tony Stark and superhero Iron Man—drives the movie, combining wit, deep self doubt and the brashness you expect. It all starts when villains destroy his personal world and he sets out to find those responsible for the heinous crime. Through quips, introspection and action, Downey delivers perha...
States and regions often celebrate a defining cuisine. Clam chowder comes to mind when you think of Massachusetts, for example, and chicken fried steak smothered in white gravy appears on just about every roadhouse menu in Texas. Barbecue narrows down geographic identity even further--Memphis, Kansas City and so forth. Then there’s New York and Chicago style pizza, Cincinnati chili, Rice-A-Roni, the San Francisco treat. OK--that was more of an advertising ploy. But even Indiana has breaded p... Full story
Lincoln’s Empyrean brewery has never feared jousting with the many flavors and genres of beer, from India Pale Ales to Extra Special Bitters to darker porters and stouts. Their Fallen Angel is an attempt at the old milk stout, a robust, silky and sweet style. And it indeed lounges on the palate, plush as a suede jacket. On the nose it promises a roasted, bittersweet, evening by the hearth with a cup of hot cocoa experience. Aromas of espresso, chocolate, toast and sugary malt dominate—all expressions you would expect from a stout on the swe... Full story
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Since Florida’s mortgage crisis began about six years ago, banks have agreed to pay millions of dollars to settle allegations that they wrongfully foreclosed on thousands of homeowners. Prosecutors have charged loan servicers with filing fraudulent documents on behalf of banks. But the law firms and lawyers that homeowners and judges contend took part in those same practices? Some critics are accusing Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Florida Bar of not going after them hard enough. More than two years after wrongdoing by...
Summer isn’t here yet, but it’s getting close. And for many people, the arrival of summer means it’s time for swimming at the local pool or lake. If you’re just a casual swimmer, you probably don’t have to adjust your diet before jumping in. But that’s not the case with competitive swimmers, who must constantly watch what they eat and drink, particularly in the days and hours preceding their races. While you may not ever have to concern yourself with your 400-meter individual medley “splits,” you can learn a lot from swimmers’ consumption patte...
“Personal charm may be Obama’s last best hope” headlined the Washington Post on Monday. That charm was on ample display at the annual vanity fest called the White House Correspondents Association dinner over the weekend. The dinner always features two comedians — one professional, and the other, the occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Skilled joke writers contribute the one-liners, but delivery counts, too, and President Obama has clearly improved over the course of four years. In 2009, some of his jokes were in bad taste. He said Dick Cheney...
As a U.S. Senator, I have the privilege and responsibility of nominating Nebraska students to our nation’s service academies: the U.S. Military Academy, the U.S. Naval Academy, the U.S. Air Force Academy, and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Nebraskans have a long and proud history of military service. Since our state’s founding, our sons and daughters have served our country with valor. This legacy, passed from one generation to the next, is foundational to America’s strength. As the war in Afghanistan winds down, new challenges face the n...
Five cubic yards of sand. It hardly seems like much to talk about—common grit moved from one spot in Sidney to another.Earth movers accomplish this simple task at just about every construction site. At the end of April, however, the folks at Peeley Landscaping & Irrigation donated that small but significant amount of sand—with the full support of Milestone Ready Mix—to complete the playground at Here Wee Grow Child Development Center. Not only did they donate the material, Peeley staff members moved, poured and spread everything. This is just...
The Compassionate Friends Sidney Chapter has begun its summer break and will not hold regular meetings until this coming fall. They will resume again with the start of the Annual Balloon release in August. Feel free to contact Randy Flamig at 308-254-4450 or Rob Robinson at 308-254-6354 for any needs or questions....
ALBION, Neb. (AP) — A woman believed to have been Nebraska’s oldest resident has died at the age of 112. Alice Packard with Levander Funeral Home in Albion said Thursday that Mabel Steiner Ragan died Tuesday at Wolf Memorial Good Samaritan Center in Albion. “She was a grand lady,” her nephew, Russ Nore, told The Grand Island Independent. Ragan worked into her 80s at the city library, then volunteered. She often would sit on the library floor and read to children. “She did it because she liked it, not because it was a part of her job,” Nor...
NORTH PLATTE (AP) – North Platte has just experienced its driest 365-day period in recorded history, according to National Weather Service records. The service said 7.23 inches of rain fell between April 28, 2012, and Saturday. The office recorded 1.22 inches on April 27 last year and less than an inch on any rainy day since. Weather service meteorologist Bill Taylor told The North Platte Telegraph that North Platte hasn’t been this dry since the Dust Bowl years. “The last time that happened was from June 10, 1931, to June 9, 1932, when they...
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The National Rifle Association has spent much of the past year under siege, ardently defending gun rights following mass shootings in Colorado and Connecticut and fighting back against mounting pressure for stricter laws in Washington and state capitols across the country. Now, after winning a major victory over President Barack Obama with the defeat of a gun control bill in the U.S. Senate, the powerful gun-rights lobby will gather in Houston this weekend for its annual convention. Organizers anticipate a rollicking, T...
Cabela’s Incorporated officials announced in April a change in command as the company’s original pioneer, co-founder and chairman, Richard N. Cabela, is set to retire his role as Chairman and become Chairman Emeritus. The change will commence on June 5 during the company’s annual meeting of shareholders. His brother, co-founder and Cabela’s Vice Chairman, James W. Cabela will take over the role of Chairman following the meeting. Tommy Millner, Cabela’s Chief Executive Officer, said that the... Full story
