NCH Cares for Communities Around the World

Employees of the Nemaha County Hospital have raised and will donate $1,466.88 to first aid relief for Haiti.
The hospital held a free will donation breakfast feed, sold Connie’s cookies and sponsored a casual Friday in which the employees paid $2 to wear jeans during work hours. All proceeds will be going to the American Red Cross relief for Haiti. NCH believes in their mission statement “Quality Care, Every Time.” The staff believes everyone around the world deserves the best care possible and helping people in need is a passion for the staff members and caring for others is something they strive to do every day.

City of Auburn Attains Recertification As A Nebraska Economic Development Certified Community

The City of Auburn recently attained recertification from the State of Nebraska as an Economic Development Certified Community. The designation was first achieved in 2006 and must be renewed every three years. The recertification was completed in December 2009. The following is a quote from Governor Dave Heineman regarding the importance of being a Certified Community:

"The Nebraska Economic Development Certified Communities certification signals a community's dedication, leadership, and vision for growing and attracting new jobs and people. This certification also better positions a community for economic development opportunities, shows a community is economic development ready, and it shows that a community is capable of marketing itself for business and industry development."
-Dave Heineman, Governor of Nebraska

While this certification takes many hours of research and preparation to complete, the benefits it returns are very well worth the work involved. This designation positions Auburn for economic growth and stability.

Awards Presented at NADAA Banquet

Written by Nemaha County Herald

Nemaha Against Drug & Alcohol Abuse (NADAA) Coalition held its fourth annual Winter Banquet January 9 at the 4-H Building in Auburn.

NADAA Director Laura Osborne welcomed attendees noting that coalition members are together in the battle against substance abuse, and for that reason, the committee worked with a battleship theme for this year’s banquet.Banquet decor included displays focusing on the coalition’s areas of work, referred to for the evening as “battle stations”, and included art from World War II posters. Flags, anchors and other patriotic decor were used to highlight the evening’s theme. This year, NADAA’s Executive Board voted to purchase perpetual plaques for the coalition’s awards which will be displayed at the Nemaha County Courthouse. These plaques will have award descriptions at the top and name plates listing the award winners for each year.

This Year’s Awards RecipientsThe year’s awards were presented as follows:

Youth Leadership in School District 29 — Brandon Petet. Brandon logged over 185 hours of volunteer time with NADAA in 2009, an amount higher than any other youth in the coalition. He is currently the President of Auburn High School chapter of NADAA’s Youth Against Drugs and Alcohol (YADA) Task Force.

Youth Leadership in School District 23 — Chelsey Mowen. Chelsey has shown growth in her leadership skills in battling substance abuse amongst her peers and is currently serving as the President of the Johnson-Brock High School chapter of NADAA’s YADA Task Force.

Partner in Prevention — Dale and Maxine Schatz. Mr. and Mrs. Schatz have volunteered their time, talent and food service equipment to the coalition’s events and activities on a number of occasions helping to further the goals of NADAA Coalition through volunteer efforts.

President’s Award — Region V Systems. Region V Systems staff members Sandy Morrissey and Amy Reynoldson have provided technical assistance to NADAA Coalition literally since its beginning. They have assisted the coalition’s volunteers and staff whenever requested with materials, technical assistance and information, making them a key component to the success the coalition has achieved to date.

Meritorious Service — Auburn Optimists Club. The Optimists have been extremely supportive of the coalition, especially the YADA Task Force. They have helped staff a youth dance and the Red Ribbon Family Festival, and they helped NADAA purchase equipment for their work with youth. They worked with NADAA to create a new partnership which allowed YADA members to work in the annual Optimists’ fireworks stand to earn funds for their projects. This partnership allowed youth an opportunity to learn skills such as counting money and salesmanship, while working alongside adults who made it clear by their actions that they truly care about the youth of Nemaha County.

Honorable Mention Certificates Johnson-Brock student Scott Riley as well as Auburn High School students Laura Teten and Brent Comstock were all recognized with Honorable Mention certificates having been nominated for the youth awards. The youth awards were presented by Kayleigh Baker, NADAA’s Youth Coordinator.

Fulton Keynote Speaker

The keynote address was given by State Senator Tony Fulton. Fulton is an Auburn High School graduate who currently lives and works in Lincoln, where he is serving in the Nebraska Unicameral. Fulton spoke about legislation that he recently championed to require ignition interlock use by convicted DUI [Driving Under the Influence] offenders. He described how the ignition interlock system works in a vehicle to prevent someone whose been convicted of DUI from being able to start their vehicle if they have too high of an alcohol concentration level in their breath.Fulton related the story of a little girl and her father, Kaniyah and Joseph Richardson, who were walking to a McDonald’s restaurant in Chicago near their home on a warm spring evening in 2008. During their walk, a convicted repeat drunk driver whose license had been suspended was once again driving under the influence, lost control of the vehicle, and crashed into the little girl’s father killing him. Fulton said that as the father of a little girl himself, he was compelled by this story to take action to prevent convicted DUI offenders from continuing to re-offend. Fulton also noted that ignition interlock legislation came into the spotlight when Nebraskans Larry and Rita Bellar and Edward and Alice Ramaekers were killed by a repeat offender drunk driver in New Mexico. The vehicle in which those Nebraska couples were travelling that day was displayed by NADAA at the 2009 Nemaha County Fair parades. Fulton explained that the ignition interlock system is one more weapon available for use in the battle against substance abuse.

Others Recognized at NADAA’s Winter Banquet were volunteers who have contributed over 100 hours to NADAA in 2009 including Mary-Jo Parker, Susan Kruse, Josh Osborne and Brandon Petet.The coalition also took time to recognize two individuals who have completed terms of service on the NADAA Executive Board. Jackie Kelsay and Kay Oestmann received certificates of appreciation for their dedicated service.

These current Executive Board members were introduced: Monty Lovelace—chairman, Bob Cole, Brent Lottman, Susan Kruse, Carie Allen, Paul Lillenas and Holly Riley.The meal, prepared by Jackie Gfeller and Maxine Schatz, was supported by Pelican’s Meat Processing, Sun Mart, Glenn’s Corner Market and Sonic. The banquet included a slide show of 2009 coalition activities and events in photos. Banquet planning was conducted by Jackie Gfeller, Carie Allen, Laura Teten, Kayleigh Baker, Laura Osborne and Ashleigh Boeve — NADAA’s Office Clerk.

Next Meeting on Jan. 19

Osborne concluded the evening by reminding everyone that the next coalition meeting was set for Tuesday, January 19th, 4 pm at Auburn High School. More information about NADAA can be found by clicking www.nadaaonline.org.

Snow Removal Task Strains Personnel, Resources of Auburn and Nemaha County

Written by Nemaha County Herald

While the song “White Christmas” is meant to help people get into the holiday spirit, a large portion of the nation has had its fill of snow after two heavy snowfalls were recorded during December.

The most recent storm struck Nebraska on Christmas Eve day and continued with scattered snowfall through Sunday, although accumulation was much lighter on the last day. Snow Removal in AuburnAuburn City Street Commissioner Harry Bridgmon said the Christmas weekend snow again taxed his crew and equipment after having dealt with nearly a foot of snow just two weeks earlier. The latest snowfall estimate was approximately 14 inches in Nemaha County, although blowing snow from accompanying strong winds left drifts several feet high, especially out in rural Nemaha County. The highest measured wind gusts in this area were about 46 miles per hour. Bridgmon said his crew of four full-time and three part-time personnel logged long hours over recent days. He said 12- to 14-hour workdays weren’t uncommon and snow removal typically began between 4 and 6 in the morning.

Bridgmon told the newspaper Monday that city snow clean-up efforts were still focused on parking along streets, and would next emphasize seeing to it that all city streets had received at least two passes through so there would be room to push any additional snow if the area was to receive a light snowfall predicted for Tuesday evening and possibly into Wednesday. After that stage has been completed, crews will return to clearing snow around intersections where the vision of drivers has been compromised due to the height of the snow piled on the curbs. “Everyone needs to be especially careful driving with so much snow remaining near the intersections and with the potential for icy roadways. We want everyone to be extra cautious until we are able to get our work done. We have been and continue to work long hours, but there is just so much we can get done. We get tired too and need to get some rest,” Bridgmon said. When asked about what effect the long hours would have on the City Street Department’s budget, Bridgmon said, “I’ll leave that up to the City’s Budget/Finance committee and the rest of the Council. It’s not going to be cheap with all of the overtime added to the fact that it takes about $100 a day in fuel for each dump truck and the loader can use about $70 of fuel per day. We’ll just do what needs to be done and the city will need to determine where the funding will come from.” County’s PerspectiveMonty Lovelace, District 2 Nemaha County Commissioner and Board Chairman, updated the newspaper on the status of the county roads crews work as of Monday evening. Nemaha County has 15 roads employees in three districts.Lovelace said, “A majority of the county roads that have residences along them had been opened as of Dec. 28. Roads being opened referred to at least one pass through the middle having been made. However, a return trip will be needed to push the snow further into the grader ditches in case this area receives more snow. Lovelace said roads crews would likely be busy the next couple of days continuing the process of further opening the county’s roads.” Lovelace said roads crews worked all day Saturday, Sunday and Monday trying to get it to a point where people would have access to roads away from their rural homes. The most recent snowstorm differed from the one earlier in the month as it was accompanied by strong winds which led to some cleared roads becoming drifted again and much higher drifts to break through this time. The chairman said, “I believe our roads crews did an outstanding job. We realize people need to get back on the roads when the weather improves and I believe our crews accomplished that.”Lovelace has heard from local residents that this was the first time in quite a while that the road graders used the “V” plows to tackle the large drifts. Some drifts encountered were about seven to eight foot high and took considerable time to clear a path through. When asked what impact the snow removal might have on the county’s budget, the chairman responded, “It’s a little early to tell. While our expenses for fuel will be more than expected at this point for snow removal and our hours worked above average, we utilize compensatory time off for our employees instead of paying overtime. What might be a problem later on is the condition of our roads when spring arrives as they will require a considerable amount of attention and rock to return the road surfaces to the condition which is desired.”Light snow fell again Tuesday night into Wednesday, but wasn’t expected to create many additional problems.

If you could get close enough to read the sign on the door, you would see that Auburn State Bank was closed for the Christmas holiday. The snowstorm’s occurring over a holiday weekend proved to be fortunate timing and gave people extra time to remove the approximately 14 inches of snow and considerably higher drifts.

Ready For Christmas?

Written by Nemaha County Herald

Calvert Elementary Kindergarten & 1st Graders held their first Christmas Program in the new elementary gymnasium this past Monday night.
Under the direction of music teacher Mrs. Mary Stukenholtz and accompanied by Mrs. Laurie Schulte the students performed several Christmas Songs for a packed house!

Third Annual Nemaha County Gives Back Raised Over $17,200

Written by Nemaha County Herald

The Nemaha County Gives Back festival was held Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 5 and 6th and it was a huge success! There were over 400 people who attended during the two-day event.

Bobette Guenther is excited to report that the event, with the inclusion of the business/individual donations, free-will offering meal, and the Christmas tree/wreath/wall hanging auction we raised $17,212 and some donations are still coming in. The money will be used to help provide food baskets, toys, gifts, and clothing for the SENCA clients, SENDS clients, the elderly, disabled and challenged in Nemaha County, according to Guenther. “Nemaha County Gives Back will also be recognizing a challenge in our community by offering a heartfelt hand to the Armstrong Cabinets employees and their families. With all of the proceeds from the festival, we, as a community, will be reaching out to over 500 families/individuals during this holiday season. At the holiday season, bringing people together for fellowship, food, and entertainment for a great cause is what community is all about,” she said.A free-will offering meal was served which included chili, chicken noodle, and potato soups, relishes, desserts and drinks.There were three local entertainment groups which performed each night. On Saturday night, the performers were Spirit Wave from the United Methodist Church in Auburn, St. Joseph Catholic Church Choir and Sum Guise. On Sunday night, the entertainers were Brent Comstock, Cross+ Walk (a quartet from Johnson), and The Good Intentions Group. All of the local performers provided excellent entertainment. The crowd really enjoyed the festival-like atmosphere. A Christmas tree and wreath auction was held both nights. The trees were all decorated by local civic organizations (Auburn Chamber Ambassadors, Auburn Civic Women’s Club, Auburn High School FBLA, Auburn Optimists, Auburn Rotary, Beta Sigma Phi, Christian Church Youth Group, Community Builders, Ray & The Sunshine Girls and SENCA employees). Individuals/groups decorated the wreaths. Wreath decorators were AHS Cheerleaders, Carin Gerdes, Girl Scout Troop #263, Laura Lea Fossenbarger, Paint It Priceless, and the United Methodist Youth Group. Two hand-quilted wall hangings were also donated for auction – one was made by Linda Hug/Ranae Hug and the other one was donated from the Nemaha County Courthouse employees.“It was amazing to see all the creativity that developed in the decorating of the trees, wreaths, and wall hangings. Eight of the Christmas trees and four Christmas wreaths were donated back to needy families,” Guenther said.Marv and Mark Caspers served as auctioneers on Saturday night, and Mark Caspers conducted the auction Sunday night.

Buyers of the trees were:

• Auburn Chamber Ambassadors tree – Dennis Wittmann

• Auburn Civic Woman’s Club tree – Bob and Carol Hemmingsen

• Auburn High School FBLA tree – Pete Eggers

• Auburn Optimist tree – Bob and Carol Hemmingsen

• Auburn Rotary Club tree – Marty Fattig

• Beta Sigma Phi tree – Sherry Black

• Christian Church Youth Group tree – Neil Kerr

• Community Builders tree – Dr. Darren Wright

• Ray & The Sunshine Girls tree – John & Stacy Taylor

• SENCA Employees tree – Sherry Black

Buyers of the wreaths were:

• AHS Cheerleaders wreath – Monty Lovelace

• Carin Gerdes wreath – James & Deanne Gerking

• Girl Scout Troop #263 wreath – John & Stacy Taylor

• Laura Lea Fossenbarger wreath – Dan Hanson

• Paint It Priceless wreath – Dr. Darren Wright

• United Methodist Youth Group wreath – Nancy Fuller

Buyers of the Christmas and patriotic wall hangings:

• Linda Hug/Ranae Hug Christmas wall hanging – John and Stacy Taylor

• Nemaha County Courthouse Employees Patriotic wall hanging – Vernon and Carin Gerdes

Robert Lowrey and Bobette Guenther were the chairpersons for the event. An important portion of the event was to recognize the military men and women who serve our country and are away from family at Christmas time. During the past month, pictures and brief information were collected from family members. There were 16 military men and women who were recognized and many of their family members were among those in attendance one of the evenings. A special bulletin board was created with pictures and information about the individual and was on display during the event. Mandy Hall Photography made a DVD that was played during the event with all the military pictures and information on it as well. Now, the bulletin board will travel to different businesses during the holiday season and will be on display at the following businesses:

Dec. 7 through 15: Nemaha County Hospital

Dec. 15 to Jan. 4th: Glenn’s Corner Market

Jan. 4th to Jan. 10: Carson National Bank

If your business would like to display the military board as we support our troops, please contact Bobette at 274-8919.Dale Thomas closed the programs both Saturday and Sunday nights by singing “God Bless the USA” and then everyone sang “Silent Night” in recognition of all our military people.

An important portion of Nemaha County Gives Back Winter Festival is to recognize the military men and women who serve our country and are away from family at Christmas time. During November, pictures and brief information were collected from area family members. There were 16 military men and women who were recognized. A special bulletin board (pictured above) was created with pictures and information about the individual and was on display during the two-day event. Mandy Hall Photography made a DVD that was played during the event with all the military pictures and information on it as well. Now, the bulletin board will travel to different businesses during the holiday season and will be on display at the following businesses: Dec. 7 through 15-Nemaha County Hospital, Dec. 15 to Jan. 4-Glenn’s Corner Market and Jan. 4th to Jan. 10-Carson National Bank.

Council, BPW Board Met to Discuss Possible City Administrator Position

Written by Nemaha County Herald

Members of the Auburn City Council and Board of Public Works Board of Directors met in a Nov. 30 joint session to discuss the possibility of creating a city administrator’s position.
Approximately 20 local residents attended the meeting in the Auburn Council Chambers to make their opinions known, to ask questions and to become better informed about the proposal. Mayor Bob Engles told those gathered late that afternoon that the joint meeting was held to continue discussions which have taken place over the last several months and at various periods throughout the years. The first audience member to speak was a former city councilwoman. Mary Kruger said, “The current form of city government isn’t broke. We are doing okay. We don’t need to rush a decision this important. The recession is here. Also, having a 5 p.m. meeting time eliminates some people from attending. Let the public vote on creating a city administrator position. You might be surprised with the outcome.”“Our budget is set and it’s a workable one. People are hurting financially and in other ways. It’s time for the general public to be heard,” Kruger added. Scott Kudrna stated, “It needs to be demonstrated to the public why a city administrator is needed. I understand that the cost would be roughly $85,000 per year, with $20,000 coming from the City of Auburn and the rest from the BPW. This could amount to possibly $300,000 over three years. What else could that amount of money be used for?” Kudrna stated his opinion that the idea should be put up to vote with the citizens of Auburn, possibly on the next General Election ballot.Paul Fleming said he believes that a city administrator would be able to “push through projects and take politics out of important decisions.” He also asked if the responsibilities listed in an earlier job description were actually ‘a starting point and not the finished document’ and if they would be like those of communities which are similar in size as Auburn. Fleming said the timing might not be right to hire a city administrator for Auburn.Mayor Bob Engles said, “This person [city administrator] would manage every aspect of city government.” He also mentioned several other communities which utilize a city administrator. Regarding the proposed job description distributed previously and made available again for the Nov. 30 meeting, Councilman Dennis Wittmann said the document isn’t all inclusive and was only a starting point for discussion.Lynn “Mac” Erisman, who served four terms on the council from 1984 to 2000, said, “I believe the city administrator position is the way to go. The subject has been talked about for many years here. Now, fortunately there is training available for it. It’s true that we’ve received some grants, but how many may we have missed since we don’t have a city administrator?” Councilman Bill Snyder said, “I view this as a work in progress. Some work has been done, but more remains. Timing is a big factor. Aurora’s officials told me they rely heavily on their city administrator and are better able to move forward on city services and utility projects. They use this person to plan better and to avoid mistakes.” Engles commented, “We haven’t scratched the surface on applying for and possibly receiving Community Development Block Grants. We need a person in charge of this and a city administrator position will pay for itself several times over. Also, the city could save money with better coordination of projects.”Glen Krueger said, “I believe this position would be very helpful. Street Department projects require lots of follow through. The local hospital and school district both have administrators, and I believe we should have one too.” BPW Board member Doug Glenn said, “We still have a lot of working out of details to do on this. The position could pay for itself with successful grants. The Board will continue as it is.” Brenda Draper asked, “How can someone handle all of the possible tasks mentioned in the job description? Also, who will hire the individual selected?” The mayor proposed the formation of a committee to study the matter further. He suggested having two representatives from each the council and the utility study the possibility. Engles added that in his opinion, if a city administrator is hired, he foresees his role and that of future mayors as lessened. While the mayor would still be seen in city hall regularly, it may not be on a nearly daily basis as is the case at present. Engles would not have his own office at city hall, he said. Katy Billings asked if the Board of Public Works’ services for other communities would be affected if the change takes place. She also asked where the city’s annual share of roughly $15,000 to $20,000 for filling the position would come from? Engles said the individual hired as the city administrator would have to be “a manager’s manager.” Wittmann expressed his agreement that a planning board comprised of council members and BPW directors could be charged with coming up with more details regarding the proposed change. He also stated his opinion that waiting a year would be too long in his opinion. Engles stated that there is never a time when change isn’t possible regarding composition of the Auburn City Council and BPW Board. He mentioned there would be council seats up for election next year and that two BPW posts would be up for possible reappointment next month. “It’s always evolving,” Engles commented. Larry Draper said, “This process needs to go slower. I and other people don’t understand what has taken place and why there is a need to move so quickly.” He also questioned if any decisions involving the city administrator’s position have already been made.Engles reassured the Auburn resident, “There have been no deals made under the carpet. As this time, the Auburn City Clerk is being asked to do more than she should be.”Wittmann said, “I believe creating this position would be a way to move forward in a positive, proactive manner. I’m in favor of the concept, but just not sure of what the final product will be.” Mark Kubik with the BPW Board said, “I can see some efficiencies with this proposal, but have some real reservations. Maintaining the reserves are very important. Political and business decisions can sometimes vary.” Council President Annie Thomas said, “People want to know why we are looking to create this city administrator position now, where the money is coming from and why the decision on whether to add a city administrator is not going to a vote of the people?” Councilman Larry Holtzman said, “I’m in favor of the concept, but we need to ‘nail down’ the job description. We need to move forward, but not too quickly.” Board Chairman Richard Schneider said, “The BPW is very satisfied with the management we have. We believe our manager would make a great city administrator.” Engles mentioned the city’s support in keeping its money in reserves at a “healthy level”. Glenn said he believes creating a city administrator position could be beneficial to the city. “We’ve got a person who could do the job, too,” he commented. Councilman Frank Critser said, “We are now using our City Engineer more. There is no guarantee that a city administrator will eliminate all of our problems. How is this going to benefit the Board [BPW]? I don’t want to take a strong entity and weaken it.” BPW Board member Dan Snyder said, “I spoke to city administrators and council members in Nebraska City and Beatrice, and both of them said their having city administrators has created efficiencies. We need to inform the public how and why this would be beneficial for the city.” Councilman Chris Erickson said, “I believe there could be some efficiencies and less duplication of services. There are several big projects involving the BPW going on right now. It might not be the best time to add on work to those in charge. I am interested in finding a solution to the city administrator question.” Engles reminded those present that there needs to be strong support from both the Council and BPW. A committee will be named later. Thomas credited City Clerk Sherry Heskett and Deputy City Clerk Denise Eggers, and Accounting & Finance Manager Betty Filbrandt with the BPW and the utility board with all doing excellent work.