Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
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Holt County’s coffers have an extra jingle following the March 4 tax sale, held at the courthouse annex in O’Neill. County supervisors learned the results at the board's March 18 meeting. “We actually had a lot less on the sale then we typically do,” said Shelly Ross, county treasurer. “I don’t know if that’s because of the names being in the paper, that people came in.” A new state statue requires property owners’ names to be included in the delinquent tax list, which is printed in the co...
Typically, at the end of the legal notices that run in the paper, I add the phrase, "The public has the right to know." You do. The premise is etched into our statehouse's north wall, "The Salvation of the State is Watchfulness in the Citizen." Now, more than ever, you should educate yourselves on the ins and outs of freedom of information laws. Now, more than ever, there's a need for citizens to become involved. This is Sunshine Week, a time to highlight the necessity of open government. In...
Thoughts that keep a news publisher awake at night: Would Benjamin Franklin cringe at the tardiness of mail delivery? Franklin, publisher of “The Pennsylvania Gazette,” first ran Philadelphia’s post system and, in 1753, was appointed joint postmaster for the 13 colonies. By 1758, Franklin’s actions established a means to send newspapers via post service. Winifred Gallagher, in “How the Post Office Created America: A History,” gives Franklin credit for instituting an order that newspapers...
It still looks like winter out my kitchen window but I’m totally admiring pastel colors and cute little bunnies on everything I seem to look at the past week. Is this just because I’m tired of the gray winter scene outside, or is it because we are in Lent? I’m researching plants for the garden, shuffling my seed packages and asking friend gardeners if they have started seeds indoors. With another birthday being marked off, I find myself thinking of my garden bucket list. The bucket list chang...
Sam Cheatum races past Boyd County's Hudson Hoffman, Friday, during an out-of-town contest against the Spartans. The Bobcats claimed a 54-38 win, with help from three Bobcats who finished in double figures. Alec Schindler led the offensive charge with 14 points. Cheatum pitched in 13, while Preston Hoke finished with a dozen. Carter Bergman pulled down eight rebounds. The Bobcats were scheduled to meet Valentine, Tuesday, in the opening round of boys' subdistrict basketball action. The paper...
The price tag for January's snow removal in Antelope County isn't tallied, but it may be a slippery path en route to the final figures. "I don't want to put a number out until we know," county road superintendent Aaron Boggs said during the Jan. 6 Antelope County Commissioners meeting. "Hopefully we get some help from the state." County clerk Lisa Payne said some of the incoming claims did not have a set fee. "I think we're going to get in trouble," she said. According to Boggs, he set a fee...
What does it mean to be authentic? Credible. Trustworthy. Real. Genuine. These synonyms for the 2023 word of the year, as selected by the folks at Merriam-Webster, make an important statement about the times in which we live. In an interview with the Associated Press, editor-at-large Peter Sokolowski said searches on the dictionary’s website for the definition of “authentic” are normally high. But in 2023, Sokolowski reported searches were “boosted to new heights.” “We see in 2023 a kind of cris...
Summerland Public School Superintendent Kyle Finke will not be returning when his contract expires June 30, 2024. The administrator submitted his resignation, Dec. 13, following a 93-minute executive session, for discussion on his evaluation, during the board of education's regular monthly meeting. Discussion on Finke's biannual evaluation was listed on the board's agenda under new business. Two additional agenda items were added Dec. 12, as required per state statute, prior to the 24-hour...
SECTION 00 10 00 INVITATION TO BID Antelope County, Nebraska, Pavement Repair Sealed proposals for the construction of “2023 Pavement Repair for Antelope County, Nebraska,” JEO Project No. 230778.00, QuestCDN No. 8873232, will be received by the county clerk at 501 Main Street, Rm. 6, PO Box 26, Neligh, NE 68705-0026, until 9:30 a.m., on the 2nd day of January 2024, and thereafter will be read aloud. The work is generally described as follows: pavement repair. Opinion of Probable Cost $375,000.00 Proposals will be taken for said con...
So, how about we rethink Thanksgiving? Oh, I don't want to take away the tradition of turkey and football and listening to Uncle Harold's stories about the big war in which he never fought but he does remember what life was like back then. Those are family legend, just like Harold. I'm not going to disrespect the traditional gathering or what we learned in school about the Native Americans and the pilgrims getting together to eat and drink and talk about western expansion and what kind of corn...
“Clothes make a statement. Costumes tell a story.” I read this quote, by author Mason Cooley, recently and it made me think about Halloween traditions and costumes from my childhood and ones my kids wore. Mom loved Halloween. She’d decorate our house with pumpkins and black cats and ghosts. Then, on Oct. 31, she’d create a tablescape by the front door, with a kitschy orange plastic pumpkin overflowing with candy, black taper candles and a notebook with parchment paper, so trick-o...
PROCEEDINGS VILLAGE OF CLEARWATER BOARD OF TRUSTEES Oct. 9, 2023 The Board of Trustees of the Village of Clearwater met for a regular meeting Monday, Oct. 9, at 8 p.m., in the fire hall meeting room. Meeting opened at 8 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, Mar...
John Heaston opens the door to a brick warehouse next to Johnny's Cafe in South Omaha and walks through rooms holding his life's work. "It's kind of a hot mess," says the 52-year-old longtime publisher of Omaha's alternative newspaper, "The Reader." Here's a garage bay holding empty green newspaper boxes emblazoned with the word, "FREE." Here are floor-to-ceiling shelves stacked with yellowing copies of "The Reader" and "El Perico," a separate publication that Heaston owns. Sticky notes...
Due to the Labor Day holiday, the deadline for advertising and news items for next week's edition of SAM will be Friday, Sept. 1, at noon. The printing schedule will remain the same and newspapers will arrive in mailboxes on the usual delivery days. The SAM office will be closed Monday, Sept. 4. Individuals who need to contact the paper should email lschindler@summerlandadvocate.com or call 402-851-0054....
REGULAR PROCEEDINGS Village of Clearwater BOARD OF TRUSTEES August 14, 2023 The Board of Trustees of the Village of Clearwater met for a regular meeting Monday, Aug. 14, at 8 p.m., in the fire hall meeting room. Meeting opened at 8:05 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...
Since Scott and I have been married, we've had one pet, a chocolate lab named Copper. When she died a few years ago, the thought of bringing another pet into our home never crossed our minds. How could she be replaced? She'd been a loyal companion ever since someone dropped her off in our driveway at the farm. A few years ago, Elizabeth and I suggested we adopt a dog from the local shelter. The newsroom could use a news hound. Someone to keep us company while we pound out the paper on deadline...
Thomas Jefferson wrote, "Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost." After last Friday's raid on the "Marion County Record," a family-owned newspaper covering a county situated approximately 60 miles north of Wichita, I am worried that freedom of the press - a fundamental principal of democracy - may be eroding in rural America. Since Sunday, I've scoured every news report covering the raid, which included all five members of Marion's police...
The cost of a potential outdoor storage shed to be built at Summerland School dominated a majority of the school board’s Monday evening meeting. Superintendent Kyle Finke said the “price tag might be getting up there.” Finke told the board he contacted Bob Sukup, an architect, who visited the site of a proposed 40 x 75 foot building, outfitted with a drain, water and electricity. “Do we still want that in the building?” Finke asked. The proposed structure would house pole vault and high jump...
Attention area youths. Get creative in the kitchen (or nearby fire pit) and devise an entry in the first SAM S'more contest. Scheduled for Aug. 10, at 2 p.m., individuals are asked to bring three samples to the SAM office, at 522 Main Street, in Clearwater, for a friendly competition. A trio of area judges will taste test each creation and deem who has the best tasting and most creative entry in three grade categories: preschool through grade three, fourth through sixth grade and seventh...
While there is no debate as to WHO created the original chocolate chip cookie, there is some "controversy" as to HOW this classic cookie came to be. According to a story on nestle.com: "It all started back in 1938. Ruth Wakefield, who ran the successful Toll House restaurant in Whitman, Massachusetts, was mixing a batch of cookies when she decided to add broken pieces of Nestlé Semi-Sweet chocolate into the recipe expecting the chocolate to melt. Instead, the semi-sweet bits held their shape...
Another year, another milestone. The volume number on page one's flag notes a flip of the calendar. This edition marks the beginning of what will culminate in our fifth year of publishing the "Summerland Advocate-Messenger." It's been a whirlwind. It's required late and/or early hours. It's meant hard work, occasional frustration and an intense amount of laughter. Plus, it's been some of the most rewarding work in which we've played a part. We believe in the power of community journalism, how a...
In a rare move, seven months into the Jim Pillen reign, I'm going to suggest we cut the new guy some slack. Seems that a social media tweet raised concerns about First Amendment rights and dredged up the decades-long discussion on brain drain. Pillen tweeted from the governor's official account that he hoped the 31 Nebraska high school graduates who had perfect scores on the ACT would "return and utilize your talents here" after college. Remember, it was Twitter and other social media that...
July in the garden brings on another pace for me. I sort of slow down and look at what is blooming out my kitchen window. I've hustled through the previous months planting, watering and weeding. The weeding and watering doesn't stop, but on this particular morning, the chores don't seem as demanding. Sitting under the patio awning I'm placing flower blooms on the paper of phone books. It's time to preserve some of those special blossoms. Pressing flowers is an old art and I'm hoping an...
The Summerland Public Schools Board of Education discussed lawn care, board policy and tech upgrades at its June 13 meeting. During public participation, the board learned more details about the pep rally honoring the Summerland SkillsUSA national qualifiers, sponsored by the “Summerland Advocate-Messenger.” Superintendent Kyle Finke outlined mower equipment available from Lazy T, with board members receiving information on lawn mowers in a range of prices. AKRS has also been contacted to give m...
Seward County routinely seizes money from motorists on Interstate 80, keeps the cash – and never convicts the drivers of a crime. The county's sheriff's department and county attorney use this practice, known as civil asset forfeiture, so often that a third of all cases of this kind in Nebraska state courts come from Seward County, population 17,962, a Flatwater Free Press analysis of court records shows. The county has hauled in $7.5 million in forfeited cash in the past five years, some of i...
