Sorry, you need to enable JavaScript to visit this website.
Time to read
6 minutes
Read so far

Area students mark Homecoming; Grindvold hits Century Mark

Posted in:

Sept. 11, 2019

HARTINGTON — Jesse Kruse got physical this summer.

Well, he got really involved in physics, anyway.

The double major in physics and math at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln got the opportunity of a lifetime to intern in Switzerland over the summer.

Kruse, a 2015 graduate of Cedar Catholic High School, interned at CERN in Meyrin, Switzerland, from June through August and was able to work with and learn from some of the bigger brains in the world on the subject of physics.

That happens when you work at the most renowned physics institution in the galaxy.

“It was amazing and the most incredible experience of my life,” Kruse said. “To go and interact with people and students from all around the world who come together and solve problems of common interest. It was so cool to interact with people of different cultures and have that cultural exchange.”

The European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN, is a  Europeanresearch organization that operates the largest particle physics laboratory in the world. The acronym CERN is also used to refer to the laboratory, which in 2016 had 2,500 scientific, technical, and administrative staff members, and hosted about 12,000 users. In the same year, CERN generated 49 petabytes of data, according to multiple sources.  

Sept. 11, 2019

BOW VALLEY — Organizers are already gearing up for this community’s biggest event of the decade.

Schuetzenfest, which takes place every five years, will be expanded to a two-day event when it is held Aug. 1-2, 2020.

The highlight of the event is the shooting contest, an event which originated in Germany centuries ago.

The contest gives between 30-50 area sharp shooters a chance to knock a wooden bird off a 30-foot pole. The winner is then crowned as the Schuetzenfest King and will reign as king until the next event.

Todd Wiebelhaus is the current Schuetzenfest King. He and his wife, Jean, are part of this year’s planning committee.

Planning for next year’s event began back in May when the Committee was formed. They selected the date for the event, put together promotional T-Shirts and signage, and started figuring out how to pay for everything.

Sept. 11, 2019

HARTINGTON — Matthew Meisenheimer and Aspen Jansen were crowned as the Hartington-Newcastle Homecoming King and Queen during coronation ceremonies Friday afternoon at the school gym.

The coronation and pep rally were just part of a jam-packed week of special activities.

Sept. 18, 2019

OMAHA — Having spent most of her 40-plus year teaching career at Holy Trinity Elementary School in Hartington, Nancy Hochstein took to the classroom thousands of times with a goal of simply educating the young.

She never expected to be rewarded for her efforts.

That changed Thursday when she was recognized as the Rural Catholic School Teacher of the Year at the 2019 Educator of the Year Awards for Service to Schools in the Archdiocese of Omaha.

“It was a very humbling and nice award and I was very appreciative,” Hochstein said. “Every teacher here could win the award. I’ve been here a long time, but there are a lot here that have been here a long time.

The banquet made for a great night, Hochstein said.

“Almost all the other teachers came and several others from Hartington came, my family was there. It was a very special night.”

This is Hochstein’s 41st year in education and her 38th at Holy Trinity, where she teaches fifth grade.

Considering that Jimmy Carter was President of the United States when Hochstein entered the profession, she has seen a lot of changes during her time.

Sept. 18, 2019

HARTINGTON — Veterans Dean McGregor and Dan Kathol, representing the new Hartington Veterans Memorial project, met with the County Commissioners at their Sept. 10 meeting requesting the commissioners to consider a $5,000 donation from the county toward the planned new Hartington Veterans Memorial.

After hearing the memorial plans, the Commissioners voted 3–0 in favor of making the first donation of $5,000 to help kick off this new project.

“This is a very important project for the Hartington area and especially its veterans. It is long overdue and we are excited to support it and see it get underway,” said Commissioner Dave McGregor. The county has also provided a $5,000 donation to the veterans memorial projects in Coleridge, Randolph and Wynot.

In the presentation, Dan Kathol reviewed the projected budget for the new memorial which is targeted at $175,000 with an additional $25,000 to be set aside in a reserve fund for the upkeep and maintenance of the memorial into the future.

Sept. 25, 2019

HARTINGTON — John Grindvold’s birthday won’t be just another day.

The retired Hartington farmer will turn 100 on Monday.

“It’s just another day,” John Grindvold said at first. After a little reflection, though, he admitted it is kind of neat.

“It’s special. I’ve been blessed,” he said.

Grindvold credits a healthy lifestyle for his longevity.

“A healthy lifestyle has always been a part of my life. I never drink or smoke. My parents taught me that. They were good, Christian people. My dad did smoke, but they lived an overall clean lifestyle,” he said.

Even though he will soon hit the century mark, Grindvold is not slowing down.

He recently renewed his driver’s license for another fiveyear run and told the people at the Department of Motor Vehicles, “see you when I am 105,” according to his son Marv Grindvold.

“He told them, ‘see you when I am 100,’ the last time,” Marv said. “I trust him to drive anywhere. He takes it easy, but he never did speed.”

Sept. 25, 2019

HARTINGTON — Tom Moser earned the honor of a lifetime.

As a member of Nebraska’s National Resources District (NRD), he is one of three people inducted into the organization’s Hall of Fame in Kearney.

The honor is given to individuals who have made “significant contributions to improving the state’s natural resources,” according to an NRD press release.

“What made me proud was that it was some of my peers that thought I had done a good job,” Moser said. “Over the years, I would share my information because that’s how I learned to do my job. I was surprised and tickled that I was selected. I knew some of the previous winners and thought they deserved it.

“I never knew if I deserved it or not. It wasn’t something you put as a goal in your life,” he said.

Moser, Hartington, was inducted as an NRD employee.

He is the former general manager of the Lewis & Clark Natural Resources District, retiring in 2016 after 43 years with the NRD.

Moser guided the Lewis and Clark NRD in Hartington since its inception.

Oct. 2, 2019

HARTINGTON — Miranda Becker wants to make a difference.

Becker was hired this week to do just that as she became Hartington’s new Economic Development Coordinator.

After long-time coordinator Carla Becker resigned the position earlier this year, the Hartington Economic Development Board and City Council members sat down to iron out a job description and determine how many hours a new coordinator would need each week.

It was decided in order for Hartington to stay competitive in the world of economic development, the position should transition from a parttime post to a full-time one.

The Verdigre native, who has lived in Hartington with her husband, Eric, for the past 15 years now, said she is excited to take on this new role.

Oct. 2, 2019

WYNOT — During Wynot High School Coronation ceremonies Katelyn Heine and Hunter Heimes were crowned as the 2019 Homecoming King and Queen.

Oct. 2, 2019

HARTINGTON — Cedar Catholic held its annual Homecoming celebration Friday with Chase Lammers and Jayda Berneker being crowned as the Homecoming King and Queen during coronation.

Oct. 9, 2019

MILWAUKEE — The Cedar County News was just one of three Nebraska newspapers to take home national recognition for news and editorial coverage during the three-day National Newspaper Association convention here last weekend.

News Publishers Rob Dump and Peggy Year were honored with four national awards in the National Newspaper Association Better Newspaper Contest.

Dump earned the first-place plaque for a column he wrote about the death of a Bow Valley native — former Congressman and Governor Charlie Thone.

For the second straight year, the News was the only Nebraska newspaper to garner a first-place plaque.

The column pointed out Thone’s importance to not only the Hartington area, but to the state and the country.

Judges were impressed with Dump’s writing style and his knowledge of the former governor.

“The anecdotes on the former governor, the quotes, the reflective style of writing make this a column for reflection on what appears to be a great man,” judges wrote.

One of Thone’s most notable moments during his three terms in Congress came in 1977, as a member of a five-person House committee that investigated the assassination of John F. Kennedy. He earned praise from CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite as the “conscience of the committee” for insisting on open meetings.

Dump also earned a thirdplace plaque for a column he wrote about walking his daughter down the aisle at Holy Trinity Catholic Church.

Oct. 9, 2019

HARTINGTON — After toiling and working her way up the career ladder, Hartington native Ashley Dendinger is ready to make a big jump.

The long-time pharmacist who currently works at Steffen Drug – where she has been employed for seven years – is purchasing the Plainview Pharmacy, and will take ownership Dec. 2.

“The pharmacy world is a small world and I heard through word of mouth that it was for sale,” Dendinger said. “I had always had an interest of owning my own place eventually down the road and it was a good opportunity to pursue.”

Dendinger made the call to the Plainview owner and the two talked for a few hours and agreed to continue with their talks.

“We met up and spent two to three hours together and he showed me the pharmacy,” she said. “When time was up, we both felt that it was a good fit: The pharmacy for me and me for the pharmacy and we went from there.”

When she begins her new job a few weeks before Christmas, Dendinger plans on renaming the business as Plainview Family Pharmacy.

Oct. 16, 2019

HARTINGTON — City Council members all agreed Monday there is a need to increase water rates, but could not agree how much those rates should be raised.

Mayor Mark Becker said the rate has to go up.

“We’ve been discussing this for quite awhile. Currently, we are at the bottom range of what other communities are charging for these services,” he said. “We want to move our rates so they are more of an average rate rather than at the bottom to better cover our costs.”

Becker said the city has no rainy day fund right now in case a well breaks down or major work needs to be done at the water treatment plant. Raising the rates will allow the city to begin to build that fund, he said.

After a 20-minute discussion, the Council decided they needed to get more information and talk further about rate increases before raising the rates.

Oct. 16, 2019

HARTINGTON — Hartington-Newcastle School Board members agreed to make some changes Monday to their fleet of vehicles.

The Board agreed to purchase a new van from Pearson Motor Company for $28,100. This replaces a Ford Expedition that was being used at the Newcastle site. That vehicle recently blew an engine.

The Board also approved the purchase of a new 59-passenger bus from Bluebird for $87,499. They expect the bus to be delivered some time in November.