News

Our office has received several inquiries regarding the proposed use of the Work Ethic Camp (WEC) in McCook as a detention facility in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security, so I wanted to address some of those questions in this week's column. My experience has been that good information and communication can often alleviate much discord.

Things really quiet down in the yard after the breeding season is over. There are still robins around, but they are quiet for the most part. The mourning doves and collared doves continue to nest, but they are not as vocal as they were earlier in the year.

Custer County Salvation Army presented checks totaling $17,300 to Custer County schools, area food pantries, Prairie Pioneer Center and the Children’s Christmas Fund at their meeting on Aug. 26.

Superintendent Ronald Hemphill announced the policy for free milk for Oconto school children unable to pay the full price of milk served under the Special Milk Program. Local school officials have adopted the family size income criteria for determining eligibility.

A new corn pest is creeping into the Midwest, and Nebraska growers may soon have to contend with its arrival. In 2024, corn stunt disease and its insect vector — the corn leafhopper (Dalbulus maidis), which transmits the pathogen — were reported for the first time in Oklahoma and Kansas.

The Paradox of Our Times The paradox of our times is that we have taller buildings, but shorter tempers; wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We buy more, but enjoy it less.

September is Suicide Prevention & Awareness Month, and Callaway District Hospital’s Senior Life Solutions is committed to raising awareness about mental health and preventing suicide by hosting a WALK/RIDE EVENT. This event will take place at Morgan Park in Callaway on Sept. 16, from 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. Walkers, bike riders, golf carts, or UTV riders are encouraged to make their way around Morgan Park. The Callaway District Hospital and Senior Life Solutions will be serving free pork sandwiches, chips and water by the cookshack in the park from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. or until gone.

Today marks the 24th anniversary of the terrorist murders at the World Trade Center and the hijacking of a plane carrying innocent Americans that eventually crashed in a Pennsylvania field. It’s hard to believe that we now live among an entire generation who were not alive yet when that happened; to me, it only seems like three or four years ago!

One may think that a small community like Callaway would be immune to the housing shortage that seems to be impacting the majority of the country. You would be wrong.

The 2025 high school cross country season is off and running for the South Loup Bobcats, who traveled to Burwell on Friday, Aug. 28, for the first meet of the year.