Andres Pro (15) and Caleb Howard (12) compete for the Nebraska City boys’ soccer team in a match earlier this season. The Pioneers improved their overall record to 8-3 after avenging an earlier season defeat to The Platte (a team comprised of students from Platteview and Plattsmouth), 1-0 on April 26. Photos by Kirt Manion
Eleven of the 14 candidates for contested offices in the upcoming primary election introduced themselves to voters at a candidate forum at Nebraska City High School Wednesday night. Present at the April 27 evening event were District 1 Otoe County Commissioner Dan Giittinger and Jim Thurman; Nebraska City Street Commissioner candidates Joe Chaney, Kurt Curtis and Graham Swanson; and Nebraska City Public Schools board of education candidates Kent Blum, Robert Elson, Christopher Ely, Stacie Higgins, Stephen Luther, and Brent Shanholtz.
Psalm 139:14 “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” The other day I was challenged to write out the top characteristics I look for in a friend. I wrote trust, can keep their mouth shut, they know when to cut me slack but also when to hold my feet to the fire, they walk with God.
The 2022 Legislative Session will go down in history as one of the Nebraska Unicameral’s finest. In just 60 days, the Legislature passed record tax relief, made critical public safety enhancements, and invested in generational water resource projects. As if this wasn’t enough, Senators also allocated $1.04 billion of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.
Wednesday night’s Candidate Forum at Nebraska City High School belonged to Stacie Higgins. The incumbent member of the Nebraska City Public School Board seeking re-election in 2022 impressed, not only with her knowledge of the issues facing the Nebraska City Public School system, but also with a compassionate, cooperative and community spirit that seeks to unify and solve problems while providing opportunities for all learners in the system.
Phil Ockinga spoke to members of the Nebraska City Rotary Club on at their regular luncheon meeting on Wednesday at Valentino’s Restaurant. Ockinga, the recently hired Head Football Coach at Peru State College, talked about his family, his ongoing efforts in hiring a staff and recruiting for the Bobcats, and the direction of the program.
Nebraska City earned fourth place finishes in both the girls’ and boys’ divisions of the Falls City Invite on Tuesday, April 26. The Pioneer boys’ team posted 94 points and the girls’ team had 71 points.
Nebraska City posted a pair of three-run innings and finished with nine runs on nine hits in a 9-3 win over Crete in home baseball action at Clemmy Holmes FIeld on Tuesday, April 26. Five of the hits by the Pioneers were extra base pokes.
The Arbor Day Foundation celebrated its 50th anniversary by ringing the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street on Tuesday, April 26. “It was an honor to be invited by the iconic New York Stock Exchange to ring the opening bell as a way to celebrate our 50 years of impact on people and the planet through trees,” said Dan Lambe, CEO of the Arbor Day Foundation.
Nebraska City High School (NCHS) recently hosted the District Music Contest and several different groups scored 1s or superior ratings. The NCHS groups scoring the rating were percussion ensemble, jazz band, concert band and City Singers. Pictured are members of the NCHS concert band performing at district music. Included in the selections for the concert band was a selection entitled “Shrine to the Fallen.” The powerful selection, which includes the Ukrainian National Anthem, was written in response to Russian aggression against Ukraine in 2014. Also pictured are members of the City Singers performing at a clinic at Midland University earlier this year. The Nebraska City students brushed up on their skills with the help of Deke Sharon, considered as a leader and promoter of the contemporary a cappella community. Sharon was the music director and arranger for the hit film series “Pitch Perfect.” The City Singers got a District Music Contest superior rating for their a cappella performance of “Take On Me.” Photos by Kirt Manion