Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Sorted by date Results 26 - 50 of 224
“Thanksgiving: When the people who are the most thankful are the ones who didn’t have to cook.” Author Melanie White nailed it with that line. By the end of most family gatherings, I’ve not only cooked and baked a majority of the dishes, but I’ve also drawn clean-up duty. No rest for the wicked, er, cook. Thankfully, Courtney has stepped up in recent years, and we now split the food prep. I don’t like turkey, so I leave that to Scott. He mans the deep fryer and somehow times it perfectly f...
Three area sites - Niobrara State Park, Magnolias Home Decor and Design in Norfolk, and Shamrock Nursery in O'Neill - have been selected for the 2025 Nebraska Holiday Passport, sponsored by Visit Nebraska. Across the state, 24 stops will be open for travelers to visit for shopping or relaxation. The fourth year of the Holiday Passport will have a few upgrades. Travelers will have from Nov. 14 to Jan. 11 to visit stops and collect stamps, a longer window than in previous years, and the 24 stops...
A longtime pastoral transition has led to a new chapter of cooperation and faith among three area congregations. Following the 2024 retirement of Pastor Dan Feusse, who faithfully served Concordia Lutheran Church in Clearwater for 26 years, members began to ask an important question: what comes next? "When a Pastor leaves or retires, the natural question for a Church is 'what is next?'" said Pastor Ryan Janke, who now serves as the spiritual leader for the newly formed tri-parish of Concordia...
Julie Montpetit didn't see it coming. Not her newfound passion for criminal justice reform, and certainly not her current predicament: blocked from talking to the man she loves, a man locked in prison thousands of miles away. Her husband, Nicholas Ely, is suing several employees in the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services, alleging that the department cut off their means of contact after Montpetit launched a podcast that aims to destigmatize relationships like theirs. She interviewed...
Are you ready for Christmas? Me, either. I ask because I recently discovered it takes 10 months for the average Nebraska household to save enough greenbacks to afford the winter holiday season. Oh crap. My family is in trouble. In a perfect world, I would select gifts throughout the year, hole them away in a closet, and bring the pile out to place under the tree in December. Except, this isn’t a perfect world, and I’m usually 10 steps behind when it comes to the holidays. Last year, I han...
Ewing village trustees set a special meeting date to discuss details for the fireworks display when they met in regular session, June 9. Ewing Young Members Club requested a donation of 10 to 15 watermelons for the July 3 celebration in Schmidt Park and asked what the fireworks budget would be set at. Chairman Kane Fry said a special meeting would need to take place to discuss and approve the items since they did not appear on the June 9 agenda. Trustee Dustin Jorgensen said in the past, the...
The people waiting their turn to rappel down the 17-story Highline Apartments building had strict instructions: Don't come up to the roof until we come get you. Most of the group, assembled there for a fundraiser, seemed content to hang back in the designated waiting area half a flight of stairs below the roof, where they'd eventually step over the edge into the blue sky high above downtown Omaha. All but one person, actually. Sister Stephanie Matcha, age 81. The octogenarian nun who does her...
The Advocate-Messenger earned 31 awards in the 2025 Better Newspaper Competition and ended in second place for the Allen & Linda Beerman Community Newspaper Sweepstakes Award, which includes weekly newspapers from all classes. The Stanton Register took top honors and the Aurora News-Register ended in third. SAM finished second in Division A, based on circulation and, in the digital sweepstakes division, SAM placed third. The paper picked nine first-place awards in categories, including building...
PROCEEDINGS VILLAGE OF CLEARWATER BOARD OF TRUSTEES APRIL 14, 2025 The Board of Trustees of the Village of Clearwater met for a regular meeting Monday, April 14, 2025 at 7 p.m., in the fire hall meeting room. Meeting opened at 7 p.m. Notice of meeting was given in advance by publication in Summerland Advocate-Messenger, was posted at US Post Office in Clearwater, Clearwater Market, and Cornerstone Bank-Clearwater and was given to board members prior to meeting. Public was informed of location of Open Meeting Act poster. Present: Kelly Kerkman,...
Parker Napier's future is as neatly trimmed as the lawns he's been mowing since age 11. The Summerland FFA standout cut through the competition at the Nebraska State FFA Convention, earning the prestigious State Star in Agribusiness and claiming the top spot in turf and landscape management-proof that his grassroots business is growing into something much bigger. Summerland FFA Advisor Jacob Goldfuss said Napier is the first Star winner from the school. The awards were presented at the 2025... Full story
Members of the Summerland junior high quiz bowl team stand, fingers poised on buzzers, waiting to answer the question. "This character utters his final words, "look at me," after failing to escape from an "enchanted cage" within the Shrieking Shack. He becomes alienated from his childhood friend Lily Evans when he calls her a "Mudblood." "Number six, Summerland," the reader announces. Within seconds, the student standing in the sixth spot replies, "Severus Snape." Correct answer. That's five...
Ruby Jenkins' name symbolizes love, strength, and protection-qualities she has embodied since birth. Born without pulmonary arteries entering her heart, she underwent open-heart surgery at four months old. Now, as she celebrates her third birthday on Valentine's Day, Ruby's resilience shines as brightly as the gemstone and great-grandmother she shares a name with. On a recent Friday afternoon, Ruby sang the ABC song and serenaded her mom, Jolene, with "The Wheels on the Bus." "What she does now...
REGULAR PROCEEDINGS VILLAGE OF CLEARWATER BOARD OF TRUSTEES Jan. 13, 2025 The Board of Trustees of the Village of Clearwater met for a regular meeting Monday, Jan. 13, at 7 p.m., in the fire hall meeting room. Meeting opened at 7 p.m. Notice of meeting was given in advance by publication in Summerland Advocate-Messenger, was posted at US Post Office in Clearwater, Clearwater Market and Cornerstone Bank-Clearwater and was given to board members prior to meeting. Public was informed of location of Open Meeting Act poster. Present: Kelly Kerkman,...
Imagine 30 minutes in a warm, soothing environment that claims to deliver health benefits like easing chronic pain, reducing stress and even promoting weight loss. Thanks to 26 Renew, area residents can now experience these perks by booking time in an infrared sauna located in the heart of Orchard. Owned by Alexa Simons, 26 Renew operates out of the former girls' locker room at the Orchard Community Center. Simons, originally from Sutton, moved to Orchard in 2023 with her husband, Tristan....
That simple, snappy motto - We sell the best and recycle the rest - perfectly describes Ewing's Sunset Store. Originally opened in 2008 in the village's vacant lumber yard, the thrift shop has thrived through two relocations in its 16-year history. Now, volunteers are putting the finishing touches on the store's forever home in the former Ewing school building. Finding the store is as easy as ABC. Visitors can enter the former high school building through the southeast entrance, then proceed to...
A quick trip to Comstock on Saturday reinforced why I love Nebraska. The village, nestled against the Middle Loup River and situated on the Custer and Valley county line, boasts a population of 97 souls. I’m guessing on Saturday, the population may have doubled, as out-of-town visitors strolled or drove by the massive Christmas light displays stretching from one “Welcome to Comstock” sign to the other. Organizers boast the display contains more than a mile of lights, a dozen themed build...
Members of Girl Scout Troop 00127 recently held a Christmas party and made porch pots at The Office in Clearwater. Scout members and siblings Jozzy Mack, Jaden Robinett, Cadi Soper, Topanga Cook, Elwood Mack, Elly Boschen and Chase Boschen display porch pots they designed....
As Christmas draws near and holiday cheer fills the air, one figure looms large in the imaginations of children and adults alike: Santa Claus. With his twinkling eyes, rosy cheeks and hearty "Ho, ho, ho!" Santa is now synonymous with the spirit of giving, but few are aware that his origins stretch back centuries, through a rich history of generosity, religious devotion, and evolving cultural traditions. The Saint Behind the Legend The story of Santa Claus can be traced all the way back to the...
While I am not a big fan of Charles Dickens’ novella “A Christmas Carol,” I feel the ghost of Christmas past likes to visit every night in December. Some memories make me laugh, others are best buried under a blanket of fluffy snow. As I contemplated which gifts to purchase for the grandkids, my mind wandered to our Wausa grandparents. First, Grandma required we make a wish list of five items. In pure Grandma fashion, we would usually get most of them. Spoiled, I know. Then, I didn’t realize...
As I look out my kitchen window, there are lights twinkling, greenery and red bows filling what was flower pots. Inside my table is filling with seed catalogs. I’m usually anxious when they arrive the end of December but this year they arrived a bit early. Believe me, I still quickly flip them open, scanning what might be new in the garden world. Perhaps I should change what’s new in the garden world to, what’s new to me. I spotted some rainbow broom that could be interesting in Fall bouquets. I...
Summerland Public School students in grades 7 - 12 visited Clearwater, Ewing and Orchard, Dec. 20, and sang Christmas carols. In Clearwater, they braved seven-degree temperatures, to serenade a crowd of residents who gathered near Cornerstone Bank. In Ewing, students stopped by city hall, and in Orchard, they sang at TJ's parking lot. This is the second year students have traveled to Summerland communities to sing carols....
Gail Rock credits an unusual collaborator that inspired a 1970s holiday season staple and launched her career as an author: a mouse. The mouse, which scurried atop the stove in a friend's home, triggered a series of events that birthed "The House Without a Christmas Tree," a television movie that aired each Christmas season on CBS from 1972 to 1977. It eventually became a novel, written by Rock, and led to several TV movie spinoffs. The story centers on a young girl who longs for a Christmas...
In a heartwarming blend of holiday cheer, tradition and talent, Summerland Elementary School students recently took the stage to perform "North Pole Revue," the annual Christmas musical directed by music teacher Sarah Kesting. From kindergarteners to sixth graders, more than 200 voices filled the air with joy, showcasing months of dedication and creative energy under Kesting's seasoned guidance. This year marks a special milestone for Kesting-her 20th year of teaching and directing the...
Summerland junior and senior high school music students presented their versions of Christmas music in a Dec. 16 concert. Students performed a variety of musical numbers in front of a large crowd in the school's auxiliary gym....
White Star Oil Company, in Ewing, held its customer appreciation day, Monday, Dec. 23. Visitors were treated to a hot-dog lunch and cookies. Megan Masat and Nancy Charf of White Star Oil in Ewing, presented a giant Christmas stocking to Rhett Napier, son of Connor Napier and Jasmine Minnig. His name was drawn from those who registered to win the oversized holiday stocking. The youngster received his prize Monday morning, in time for Christmas....
