News

Anthony Kling, 12, and his brother, Atreyu, 11 have found the stability of a good home.

They were adopted officially by Nancy Tilton at a ceremony in the Pawnee County Courthouse recently.

She took them into her home three years ago as a foster parent. She has helped eight kids over the last few years since getting her foster parent license. Foster parents are contacted by foster agencies when a child is in need of a good home. They place the child, though it has to be approved by the foster parent. Nancy took these two because they were local kids. They actually had a sibling brother who lives with the father.

Being a foster parent is something she has wanted to do for a long time. She saw the need for safe havens for children who have been removed from the home. She talked the adoption of the boys over with her daughter Hannah and they both agreed it was a good idea, so they took the necessary classes for the foster license.

The Southeast Community College SENCAP program started at Pawnee City High School in school year 2017-18. Over the past two years, the program has been very successful. In school year 2017-18, 31 juniors and seniors, 52% of all students in those grades, took dual credit courses through SCC. Those courses were either part of the SENCAP career academy, or were traditional courses such as College English and Algebra. That rate of participation by juniors and seniors was the highest of all high schools in ESU 4. This past school year, 24 out of 43 juniors and seniors (56%) took dual credit courses through SCC. For next school year, 22 out of 31 juniors and seniors (71%) have pre-enrolled for SCC dual credit courses. It’s also important to note that many of the students who take SCC dual credit courses, take multiple courses in a school year.

The Republican contacted the Nemaha Natural Resources District and the Game and Parks Commission to check on our recreation lake areas.

Bob Hilske of the Nemaha Natural Resources District gave us an update on Kirkman’s Cove and Iron Horse Recreation Areas.

He said two new concrete restrooms were recently installed at Kirkman's Cove; one on the day use loop and another near the boat ramp area. They are replacing old wooden structures. The NRD has been working with Game and Parks on removing invasive trees such as cedar, locust and Osage orange (hedge). “We had planned to do that over the past winter/spring, but it could not be done as a result of poor weather. That work will now be done between July and October. It will not impact the use of any recreation facilities. There will some new signage at both areas including a new entrance sign at Kirkman’s and signage on the loop trail around the lake at Iron Horse,” he said.

Stealing from local businesses is a continuing problem, whether it be shoplifting, writing bad checks or other ways of stealing.

Kacey Holroyd, manager at Dollar General in Pawnee City, said it is fairly common to walk around the store and find empty boxes that shouldn’t be empty. That means someone has stolen the item(s).

She said she finds a least a dozen empty boxes every couple of days, sometimes more, sometimes less. She guesses that some of the thieves have money issues, while the rest just don’t want to pay for the product. Medications are the main items that get stolen due to their high price, she said.

Thank you all for being here today to recognize and remember those who have paid the ultimate price fighting for our country. I’m reminded of a verse from the Bible, John 15:13, which reads: Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. Indeed, the brave men and women we honor today paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom, and for that, we are all forever grateful.

Memorial Day weekend is a time that many of us spend with friends and family, hosting barbeques and visiting cemeteries. We cannot forget the true meaning of this special day and may we never forget the freedoms we enjoy because of those soldiers who have died fighting for their country. I call these brave men and women the ultimate heroes, and I pray for their families and friends that they may find comfort knowing their loved one’s passing is a result of their utmost act of patriotism.

A diner remarked to the waitress as he was leaving Shirley’s Place Monday morning that he missed the Subway, but after eating breakfast there considered that it had been a “trade up.”

Shirley’s Place opened Thursday morning in the old Subway building. That business was shut down after a fire and many wondered if the town would ever have another business in there, let alone a place to eat.

And boy is it a place to eat! Many people have remarked on how good the food is and how fortunate the town is to have another good place to eat out. Shirley’s is run by Rich Dietrich and his wife, Shawna. They have a staff of 11, including Shawna’s mom, Ann and their daughters Abby and Hailey and their classmates.

They are open Monday through Saturday from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday is breakfast only.

The Mission Creek Cemetery Association is pleased to announce its new entrance gate dedication on Sunday, May 26, 2019 at 10:30 A.M. The ceremony will be part of the Memorial Weekend observances to be held at that time at the Mission Creek Cemetery. It is located two miles south of Nebraska Highway 8 on 608th avenue which is the junction of 608th Avenue and 703rd Road in Mission Creek Precinct, Pawnee County. A limestone sign is on the south side of Highway 8 at 608th Avenue. It is also four miles west of Summerfield, KS on the KS/NE state line (702nd Road) and north one mile on 608th Ave.

Shamar Willey of Pawnee City High School won the Class D 110 High Hurdles at the state track meet last week. See more details about how the track teams did in the sports section.

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Hadley Sejkora, fifth grade teacher at Pawnee City Schools, always wanted to come back to this community. He graduated PCHS in 2012 and Midland University in 2015.

“I feel blessed to be teaching in the school and grade I want,” he said.

At the end of the year, he was selected Teacher of the Year by the students. President of the Pawnee City Public Schools Education Foundation Jason Vetrovsky made the announcement at the high school graduation ceremony May 11. Sejkora could not be at the graduation and was awarded his plaque the following Wednesday. Not only does Sejkora get the designation of Teacher of the Year, he gets a $250 stipend to enhance his classroom for the 2019-2020 school year.

This is an email interview News Editor Ray Kappel did with Sen. Julie Slama on guns and the second amendment. We wanted to do the interview after we learned she has obtained a conceal and carry permit. The interview was done prior to the shooting in Tecumseh. Q: How long have you been around guns and how did you get started using them? A: I've been around guns since childhood. My parents believed that an early introduction to firearm safety was essential. Q: Do you hunt or shoot clay or using a firing range? A: I typically use a firing range, but also shoot clay on occasion. Q: What are your favorite guns and why? A: It's unclear if I can endorse a specific firearm in my current position, but my personal concealed carry weapon is a Ruger LC9s. Q: What do you think of the Second Amendment? A: The Second Amendment has my strong and unapologetic support. Q: Are you doing anything in the legislature that has to do with the second amendment?