A JourneySandhillsPlacesModernharvestsofseasonabundantNebraskaLife’s25thBirthday Features Power to the People SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2022 • $8.95
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UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA PRESS “That Kooser often sees things we do not would be delight enough, but more amazing is exactly what he sees. Nothing escapes him. Everything is illuminated.” —Library Journal COTTON CANDY Poems Dipped Out of the Air TED $17.95KOOSER nebraskapress.unl.edu THE WOMEN WHO BUILT OMAHA A Bold and Remarkable History EILEEN$22.95WIRTH READ LOCAL “Eileen Wirth offers Omahans a window into their history, a fuller accounting of the contributions of remarkable women who built this city.” —Erin Grace, former columnist for the Omaha World-Herald
POSTMASTER: NEBRASKA LIFE MAGAZINE, ISSN 1091-2886, is published bimonthly for $25 per year by Flagship Publishing, Inc., 5131 S College Ave, Unit A, Fort Collins, CO 80525-3968.
Story and photographs by Megan Feeney 28
Story by Joseph Weber 60
Nebraska Life Birthday Fun
The festivities continue! As Nebraska Life celebrates its 25th year, we highlight other singular Nebraskan institutions that make us a great state: the Unicameral, public power and TeamMates Mentoring Program.
NEBRASKALIFE.COM 7
26
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway, Part One: Grand Island to Dunning
As the Beef State, Nebraska has the “turf” portion handled. Now a family-owned McCook shrimp farm is delivering the “surf.” A delicious inland sea adventure in aquaculture awaits.
FEATURES
Story by Megan Feeney 94 Nebraska Harvest Time Gardeners and farmers from across the state toiled through the hottest months. In autumn, they reap bountiful harvests of apples and wheat, corn and peppers. Nebraska photographers document the visual feast.
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2022
Story and photographs by Alan Bartels 56 Clayton Yeutter
A farm boy from Eustis served four U.S. presidents and became a trailblazer in world trade. Nebraska shaped Clayton Yeutter; then, he carved a new path for American agriculture.
Story and photographs by Josh Hardin 38
Seven examples of modern Nebraska architecture shine. These inspired buildings provide Nebraskans with places to work, worship, study and play.
Modern Nebraska Buildings
Periodical postage paid at Denver, CO, and at additional offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to Nebraska Life, c/o Subscriptions Dept, PO Box 270130, Fort Collins, CO 80527-0130.
Wahoo Swap
The beautiful Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway stretches from Grand Island to Alliance. In part one of our two-part story, Nebraska Life Photo Editor Josh Hardin encounters historical artifacts, scarfs a delicious hot dog and ducks cliff swallows hunting insects over the Middle Loup River.
Story by Tom Hess 46 McCook Shrimp Farm
Story by Megan Feeney
What do antique tractor parts, vintage cowboy boots and a wooden duck have in common? They’re all up for grabs at this treasure hunt for classic car mechanics, fashionistas and DIY home decorators – and vendor fees support a good cause.
Modern Nebraska Buildings, pg. 38 Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway, pg. 28
Nebraska is strong, from all the ways we lift each other.
STORIES IN THIS ISSUE COME FROM: Above: Amber Pankonin, Steve Moseley/University of Nebraska Communications Page 7: Joshua Hardin, Paul Crosby/BVH Architecture DEPARTMENTS 82 52 A JourneySandhillsPlacesModernharvestsofseasonabundantNebraskaLife’s25thBirthday Features Power to the People SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2022 • $8.95 Omahapg.82 Gretnapg.38 Schuylerpg.38 LincolnWahoopg.26pg.60 Dunningpg.28 O’Neillpg.16 pg.Pierce16 Norfolkpg.60 Gavins Point Dam pg. 102 Wynotpg.16 Broken Bow pg. 28Mernapg.28 pg.Eustis56 Gordonpg.82 Johnstownpg.38 Beatricepg.38 GrandFairfieldpg.38Islandpg.28Cairopg.16Ravennapg.28North Platte pg. Hershey82pg.60McCookpg. 46 ChadronOgallalapg.38pg.38
by
13 Mailbox
An indoor farmers market offers oodles in O’Neill, a Wynot joint serves locally caught hot-fried fish with a side of history, a writer finds faithful lessons with her horses, and a Pierce trio makes music for webbed-footed friends. Plus: Grand Island trivia that won’t maroon quiz buffs. Answers on page 90. 52
100 Naturally Nebraska Alan J. Bartels tells the story of a gift from his deceased grandfather that paved the way for many of his most treasured outdoor adventures. 102 Last Look
the
photogenic attractions along the SandhillsScenicJourneyByway. PHOTOGRAPH BY JOSHUA HARDIN 11 Editor’s Letter Observations
Diners prepare for plant power! Peanuts get the main-course treatment with these original recipes by Amber Pankonin, a Lincoln-based registered dietitian and personal chef.
Nebraska poets rustle up Western tales and cowboy ballads that evoke a nostalgic take on the season. 82 Traveler North Platte Canteen Festival pays tribute to the town’s service and patriotism during World War II, Husker women’s volleyball leaps into another exciting season, Rathskeller Bier Haus breaks out the pretzels and lederhosen for its Oktoberfest, and Gordon residents celebrate unbendable community ties at the Willow Tree Festival.
This
NEBRASKALIFE.COM 9
ON OUR COVER red barn at Stuhr Museum in Grand Island is of many on the ‘Good Life’ Editor Megan Feeney. Letters, emails, posts and notes from our readers. Water News & Trivia
16 Flat
73
Poetry
Kitchens
Every fall, paddlefish anglers crowd the Missouri River below Gavins Point Dam. Photographer Sam Stukel is there too –but he’s not after the fish.
one
AofseasonabundantharvestsModernPlacesSandhillsJourneyNebraskaLife’s25thBirthdayFeatures Power to the People SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2022 • $8.95 STATELOVE1YEAR$252YEAR$441-800-777-6159Callorgoonlinetosubscribe The publisher of Nebraska Life magazine now has magazines for two other states. Subscribe for your home state, or discover all ColoradoLifeMag.comthree. SUBSCRIBE TODAY! NebraskaLife.com Gem Prospector Bandimere Speedway Canyons and Plains Community Garden JULY/AUGUST 2022 UtahLifeMag.com your Mountain Wildflowers This Is the Place Bears Ears Logan Foods JULY/AUGUST 2022 • $8.95
Valerie Mosley
Megan editor@nebraskalife.comFeeneyEditor
Nebraska Life Magazine c/o Subscriptions Dept. PO Box 270130 Fort Collins, CO 1-800-777-615980527 NebraskaLife.com
Memories of these relationships – and their specialness to me – resurfaced when our team was putting together this issue. We continue in these pages to celebrate Nebraska institu tions in honor of Nebraska Life’s 25th anniver sary. This time, we give kudos to public power and the Unicameral and pay tribute to the TeamMates Mentoring Program.
Tom and Nancy Osborne started the pro gram in 1991 to support and guide schoolaged youth. Adult mentors commit to spend ing one hour per week with their mentees. Mentors don’t have to have degrees in physics or psychology. They follow their mentee’s lead on how to spend the time together. They might toss a ball, put together a puzzle, or enjoy a snack. Likewise, mentees don’t need to be at-risk or meet any other qualifications to be eligible for a mentor. The idea is that every young person can benefit from the care and encouragement of an adult who’s got their back. One exceptional Nebraskan in this month’s historical feature proves the power of mentorship. Clayton K. Yeutter rose from a hardscrabble rural Nebraska life during the Great Depression to serve four U.S. presidents. But he didn’t do it alone, writes Joseph Weber, author of the fine biography, Rhymes with Fighter: Clayton Yeutter, American Statesman. Other Nebraskans who recognized Yeut ter’s raw talent cheered him on and provided him the opportunities to reach his fullThroughoutpotential. Nebraska, TeamMates has mentees on waiting lists. Meanwhile, the youth in our country are facing unprecedented mental health challenges. This year, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy said, “The future well-being of our country depends on how we support and invest in the next generation.” I wish every kid in Nebraska had a Rose, Laura, Naomi … or Tom Osborne – someone to say, “You’re great. What do you need? I have time, and I’m here forWhatyou.”if that someone was you?
Mentorship matters
SubscriptionsSUBSCRIBEHoldsworthare1-yr(6issues) for $25 or 2-yrs (12 issues) for $44. Please call, visit NebraskaLife.com or return a sub scription card from this issue. For fundraising and corporate rates, call or email subscriptions@nebraskalife.com. AdvertisingADVERTISEdeadlines are three months prior to publica tion dates. For rates and position availability, please call or email SendCONTRIBUTEadvertising@nebraskalife.com.usyourletters,stories,photosand story tips by writing to us, visiting NebraskaLife.com/contribute or emailing AllCOPYRIGHTeditor@nebraskalife.com.text,photographyandartworkare copyright 2022 by Flagship Publishing Inc. For reprint permission, please call or email publisher@nebraskalife.com.
R OSE’S HOUSE HAD a piano and homemade marinara sauce on the stove. Laura’s house had a crystal dish filled with M&Ms and doe-eyed porcelain figures. Naomi’s house had loads of books. Growing up in Omaha, I befriended the elderly widowed women in my neighborhood. Their homes and company provided a refuge from my fun-loving but rowdy house with four brothers. I’d tell Mom and Dad where I was headed and knock on doors until one of my older lady friends answered. These friends and I might enjoy a simple card game, a cool drink or conver sation. I was privileged to have loving, supportive parents, but my relationships with Rose, Laura and Naomi further enriched me. With the gifts of their patient presence and kind attention, they affirmed my selfworth and built my self-confidence.
From the Editorial Team NEBRASKALIFE.COM 11 SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2022 Volume 26, Number 5 Publisher & Executive Editor Chris Amundson Associate Publisher Angela Amundson Editor Megan Feeney Photo Editor Joshua Hardin Design Jocas A. See, Valerie Mosley Advertising Marilyn Koponen Subscriptions Lindsey Schaecher, Janice Sudbeck, Teresa Eichenbrenner, Azelan Amundson, Thaddeus
Savor the farm-fresh produce and baked treats at Union Orchard. Bring the kids for pick-your-own fruit and pumpkins, plus monthly events held in our large pa vilion. Sample a wide variety of Nebraska wines, hard ciders, and seasonal cocktails in our tasting room. Open year-round UNION ORCHARD NEBRASKA CITY’S HISTORIC AND ONLY FAMILY-OWNED ORCHARD 2405 S Hwy 75 • Union, NE 68455 8 miles north of Nebraska City on Hwy 75 unionorchard.com • 402-263-4845 Check our Facebook page for up to date events 2022 EVENTS TASTY, FRESH & FUN NEAR NEBRASKA CITY Applejack Festival Sept. 17-18 Shop all your Favorite Goodies at Both of our Locations Breakfast and Lunch from our grill (Orchard) Boxed lunches (Downtown) Art Show in our Orchard Pavilion Children’s Activities at the Orchard The Taste of Applejack Sept. 25-25 Check the events section of our Facebook page
Our community quickly rallied behind Mr. Moreno to make one of the best out door skateparks in the state. The Imperial Community Foundation Fund has also re cently helped build an art-filled park from a vacant lot and issued a challenge grant to the community to help with audio and video repairs at the municipally owned and volunteer-operated movie theater. These projects and many more help continue to create the high quality of life for all ages our residents have grown ac customed to in Imperial. Thank you for lifting up this work and that of our peers across the state.
As highlighted in the article “Elevating the Good,” McCook’s YCR group estab lished a bike loan program at Red Wil low Lake. Now they are taking on a more ambitious project: raising funds to build a permanent drive-in theater at the local fairgrounds, which they hope will benefit the community for generations. These young people are the future of McCook and the future of Nebraska. And the future looks bright as these young people work to make McCook an even better place to call home.
John Wagner Papillion Plattsmouth’s (im)possible events
Our recent success in building our un restricted endowment to a point where we soon will be able to grant back over $50,000 to our community every year is just one ex ample of the generosity and the abundance around us. As a member of our Stuart Com munity Foundation Fund, we are encour aged by NCF to continue to build our fund for the future of Stuart and rural Nebraska. We encourage others to remember your community fund in their estate planning.
Your July/August 2022 article regarding Natural Resources Districts (“Elevating the Good”) made me smile.
Tyler Pribbeno Imperial Stuart’s big splash
Thank you for lifting up the work of Mc Cook’s Youth Change Reaction (YCR) in your July/August 2022 issue (“Elevating theMoreGood”).than a decade ago, YCR was formed in McCook to provide young people with a voice to be heard in the community and the opportunity to make a difference. With the support and guidance of Nebraska Community Foundation and McCook Community Foundation Fund, YCR members are becoming leaders in the community, doing projects for others and getting things done.
Ronda Graff McCook
Joni Friberg Plattsmouth Imperial skates to good life Thank you for featuring the important work of Nebraska Community Foundation and its affiliated funds and for highlighting young Mr. Moreno’s dream of a skatepark in Imperial (“Elevating the Good”).
The article on the Nebraska Communi ty Foundation hit home (“Elevating the Good”). I’m part of a non-profit organi zation that relies on and uses the funds from our local Plattsmouth Community Foundation Fund. We use the grant money to hold events in our historic downtown and could not do it without the support and funds of the community foundation fund. They make our events possible.
As a resident of Stuart, I was proud to see our recently completed splash pad in your July/August 2022 issue that featured Ne braska Community Foundation (“Elevat ing the Good”). Stuart has been an affiliat ed community since 2000, and they have helped our entire community “Turn Up Our Dream Switch.”
Jay Wallinger Stuart McCook’s youthful impact
NEBRASKALIFE.COM 13
Nebraska was lucky to have such for ward-looking leaders.
As the article states, gifting just 5 percent of your estate will help rural America thrive for years.
When I was in law school in the early 1970s, I had the good fortune of working for Professor Richard Harnsberger, a lead ing national water law expert and a close friend of Maurice Kremer, on the legal background for the legislation to create NRDs.Senator Kremer’s profound political insight was threefold: 1. to create NRDs along natural water basin boundaries –which no other state had done, and there by alleviate the political infighting which occurred in other states with traditional non-basin boundaries; 2. to provide for locally elected directors instead of guber natorial appointments, which took NRD control out of gubernatorial politics and assured local control responsive to voters and landowners; and 3. to provide NRDs with strong powers, particularly indepen dent taxing power, which took NRDs out of the biennial state appropriations fights and provided dependable funding.
Forward-looking leaders
MAILBOX Pollinators Crystal Palace Revue Reservoir Road Trip 25 Years of NL JULY/AUGUST 2022 • $8.95
People who have a passion for firefight ers and the history of the fire service will love the Nebraska Firefighters Museum Hall of Fame Education Center and Me morial Garden in Kearney. It is dedicated to honoring the history and heritage of Nebraska’s fire and emer gency service and educating individuals from toddlers to senior citizens regarding fire prevention and safety. A change out of equipment takes place every fall, and we have many activities for children throughout the year. A must-see is the beautiful memori al garden that honors Nebraska first re sponders and those who have died in the line of duty. Bob Vogltance West Point Pioneer history I enjoyed reading the article on the Mor mon pioneers. (“Linda Meigs: Omaha’s Keeper of the Mill,” May/June 2020). My family lived in Florence in the 1940s on Young Street. It was mostly farmland back then. Our house still exists but no sign of a farm today. I don’t recall learning about a Mormon settlement when we lived there. However, I was curious about the Mormon Pioneer Cemetery when traveling on the bus to school. I do recall the Florence Mill and the Mormon Bridge, which I believe was a toll bridge back in the day.
Howard “Butch” Stitt Loomis, California Butterfly memory magic Hello from Wisconsin. We lived in Nor folk for many years relocating to Wis consin to be closer to family as we age. I receive the Nebraska Life as a gift from a long-time friend. I’ve always enjoyed the magazine with the variety of stories, po ems, recipes and illustrations, but have found a new use for it that I thought you might find rewarding. I am a hospice volunteer and many times find segments from the Nebraska Life to share with my patients.Today was no exception, but your ar ticle “Nebraska’s Parade of Pollinators” (July/August 2022) was especially a hit. I have a patient with Alzheimer’s who en joys nature, colors and patterns. I thought of her when I saw the bright cover of the recent issue. I shared this article and the beautiful, colorful pictures, including the assortment of butterflies on the cover. She always enjoys thumbing through the pag es, but she really connected with this arti cle and the pictures, looking at them and talking about the beauty over and over. It certainly added some joy to her day. This issue will be getting a lot of use with our visits. Thanks so much for the quality you put into each issue. Marsha Rotherham Oregon, Wisconsin Team effort Thank you for your beautiful magazine. It is wonderful to take a break when it ar rives and enjoy all aspects of each issue. I appreciate all the work and effort your staff puts into each issue.
A bridge tender was nice enough to let a paperboy warm up on cold winter mornings.
14 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022 Filled with the gorgeous photography you love about the magazine— ready to hang in your home or office. Order now for yourself and your family! NEBRASKALOVEEVERYMONTH? Show it in 2023 with our NEW wall calendar $12 + pershipping$295address For your order, 1-800-777-6159callorgoonlineNebraskaLife.com
SEND YOUR LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Please send us your letters and emails by Oct. 1, 2022, for possible publi cation in the November/December 2022 issue. One lucky winner selected at random will receive a free 1-year subscription renewal. This issue’s winner is Tyler Pribbeno of Imperial. Email editor@nebraskalife.com, or write by mail to the address at the front of this magazine. Thanks for reading and subscribing!
MAILBOX Red-hot heritage In the past, I read with interest articles you have written about local firefighter museums (“Museum Sparks Interest in State’s Oldest Fire Department,” July/August 2022).
Marcia Reining Hastings
CARDIAC CATHETERIZATION LAB
In the past, Columbus Community Hospital needed to transport critically ill patients to large facilities that had cardiac cath labs. With its new cath lab, staff will be able to treat those patients in-house, decreasing the time from diagnosis to restored blood flow — leading to healthier heart muscles and healthier patients.
It’s lifesaving care, right here at home. For more information on the new cath lab and its comprehensive cardiology services, visit columbushosp.org. HEART CARE
There’s a saying in cardiology: “Time is muscle.”
In laymen’s terms, the saying means that the sooner doctors restore blood flow after a cardiac event, the healthier the heart muscle and the patient will be.
Columbus Community Hospital’s new cardiac catheterization lab puts time on a patient’s side. The hospital’s new cardiac cath lab is fully equipped with advanced technology to perform minimally invasive tests and procedures that will diagnose and treat heart disease on-site.
The Silhacek brothers’ love for woodworking traces back gener ations. Their grandfather Lonnie Wickett is a woodworker by trade and the first person they sought advice from when they began crafting the calls. Wickett lent them a 1970 Craftsman lathe and some tools to get started. The Hammer Calls’ shop location bounced around a few times but now operates out of Cody’s garage. The Silhaceks and Halpin grew up fish ing bass in Maskenthine Lake in Stanton County, Buckskin Lake in Hooker and Chalkrock Lake by Crofton. Once they reached their early 30s, they decided to try out waterfowl hunting to extend their season outdoors together. The only problem was the steep price tag on duck calls – so they decided to make their own. Their love for Nebraska’s great outdoors energizes their work. The trio handcrafts each call down to the barrel, reed and insert. Every team member tunes it to ensure they hear the same sound before shipping it out. They also try them out in the field. From hunt ing in big open water along the North Platte to smaller areas like Maple Creek in Leigh, the team travels all over the state to hunt ducks and test their products. They use the knowledge they gain to refine their duck and goose calls. They’ve experiment ed with meaningful custom calls, too. One good friend, AJ Schahrer, had a hunting dog named Tank who died sud denly from cancer. Schahrer had his dog cremated and passed the ashes along to Hammer Calls. They made him a match ing set of duck and goose calls with the
dog’s ashes integrated into the calls so Schahrer could always have his hunting buddy with him. As the sun sets on an autumn day in duck season, Tank is still bringing in birds. As it rises, the men at Hammer Calls are preparing to ship their Nebras ka-made products to hunters around the United States.
Who let the ducks out? Quack, quack, quack, quack! The Silhacek brothers and their friend
16 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2021
Noteworthy news, entertaining nonsense
Aaron Halpin, all of Pierce, help hunters bring in the ducks with handmade duck calls.Hammer Calls Duck, duck, goose calls
Pierce product attracts the fat birds
BY LAURYN HIGGINS
In the quiet farming community of Pierce, there’s a business making a lot of noise – a lot of quacking noise, to be exact. Brothers Kenley and Cody Silhacek and their friend Aaron Halpin founded the award-win ning hand-crafted duck and goose call business Hammer Calls in 2015. Duck and goose calls attract flocks of birds close enough to make a clean kill. A good call is not unlike any other reeded instru ment. It requires skill to craft one that sounds good.
Filled with seasonal vegetables, locally grown meat, cheese, honey, eggs and Har tington’s Burbach’s Countryside Dairy’s fresh milk in glass bottles, Wildflour Grocers provides patrons healthy food options while supporting local food en trepreneurs.Localcitizens came together to open the store in 2018. These “managing mem bers” varied by age and eating style, but they shared the common belief that local food was important and local producers deservedVendorssupport.from the surrounding area bring in fresh greens, eggs and sweet po tatoes. Shoppers are welcome to browse items a la carte or join the community supported agriculture group, which pro vides fresh weekly produce from sever al local growers for $10 a week for 22 weeks.Shoppers can clearly see the origin of their food and how it was grown. The food hub labels its organic produce and hor mone- and antibiotic-free meat and eggs. By cutting out the middle distributors, Wildflour sells these usually expensive items at more affordable prices. Farmers and ranchers bring their products directly to the store where they are sold to con sumers along with a personal touch and the stories carried with them. (Vendors make 80 percent, Wildflour makes 20 per cent) The store operates solely on the fi nancial and time investments of members who are Holt County food advocates. In the commercial kitchen, members prepare, bake, pickle and dry foods and herbs. Anyone who sells their fare at the store is welcome to use the commercial kitchen for free. Each year, Wildflour hosts an ice cream social using ice cream prepared in the kitchen using Burbach’s
Jennifer Troester
The spice of Barbara Bailey’s cinnamon rolls and the rich aroma of Jim Bean mi cro-roasted coffee perfumes the air at Wildflour Grocers in O’Neill. The two O’Neill-based vendors are among 50 who sell their local products at the communi ty-established grocery store.
Jennifer Troester
Wildflour Grocer offers Nebraska eggs, milk, honey, vegetables and fruit, as well as baked and canned goods created in the onsite commercial kitchen. Smiles are free.
FLAT WATER
An indoors farmers market offering local food blossoms in O’Neill milk. Customers eagerly wait to see what flavors will be at the social. Will it be strawberry made with a local farmer’s bounty or coffee ice cream made with lo cally roasted Jim Bean Coffee? There has even been a vanilla ice cream with George Paul Raspberry Vinegar drizzled over it. At Wildflour, food is more than suste nance. It is memory. During a chamber of commerce coffee event, an older woman told cinnamon roll baker Kate Popke that the treat brought back warm recollections of her Wildflourgrandmother.alsopromotes the talents of localDenimmakers.and floral aprons by O’Neill res ident Ann Schneider hang ready for pur chase. Local artist Ranell Otte’s watercolor flowers brighten the walls with tulips, peo nies, lilies and sunflowers. Otte also creates beautiful Nebraska wreaths using boxwood from her back yard and milkweed and thistles from Holt County ditches – a fresh new take on com monWildflourweeds. Grocer connects the commu nity to food, land and one another while giving locals a taste of Nebraska’s best.
BY JENNIFER TROESTER
FLAT WATER NEWS 17
FLAT WATER Deb Monfelt
Artist Deb Monfelt grew up on a farm east of Wymore. She enjoys painting all Nebraska seasons, but the autumnal light at the end of a growing season, the way the dust clings to the humid air, feels especially poignant. She was driving the country roads east of Odell when she came upon the scene she would paint in “Hot Sultry Sunday,” which received the Nebraska Life Art Award at the Association of Nebraska Art Clubs 2022 conference, held in Broken Bow this summer. In the foreground of Monfelt’s oil color painting, beautiful shades of Nebraska grasses catch the sepia light. Trees in the background frame a church’s steeple. In her paintings, Monfelt likes to reflect on one day, place and moment. “Hot Sultry Sunday” expresses this meditative quality of peaceful attentiveness.
BY MEGAN FEENEY
NL Art Award goes to a warm winner
18 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2021
Nebraska Life chose Deb Monfelt’s oil color painting,“Hot Sultry Sunday” as the winner of the 2022 Nebraska Life Art Award, given at the Association of Nebraska Art Clubs annual conference. Monfelt’s painting evokes the scents and feelings of a fall day.
FLAT WATER NEWS 19 The fun of the Harvest Celebration lasts all fall season at Arbor Day Farm. Go apple and pumpkin picking, experience Treetop Village®, savor the tastes of the season, visit a historic mansion, and enjoy a stay at Lied Lodge. Your autumn adventure awaits. Find it at arbordayfarm.org Nebraska City | 800-546-5433 | arbordayfarm.org It’s more than a destination. It’s where memories are made.
It’s another fish fry at History Hall in Wy not, and Dennis Promes is busy cooking up carp and buffalo for a crowd of hungry people. The laughter of old friends and the clink of forks fill the air. He grins. When he purchased the vacant building a few short years ago, this was his vision. Growing up, Dennis relished fishing with his dad on the Missouri River and fondly remembers long evenings spent frying and feeding “rough” river fish to area folks. “Rough” fish are common freshwater fish that have traditionally been considered less valuable. It doesn’t make them less tasty.
Brooke Steffen-Kleinschmit
celebrateWynothistoryandfriedfish?
20 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2021 experience Stunning shows within a drive. Omaha Performing Arts brings the best of touring Broadway, music, comedy and more. ticketomaha.com | o-pa.org extraordinary NOV. 8-13, 2022 FEB. 7-12, 2023 APR. 19-30, 2023 ©Disney
Photo: Joan Marcus Richard Thomas in To Kill a Mockingbird. Photo: Julieta Cervantes
Dennis Promes grew up fishing the Missouri River with his father. Now he brings the bounty of “rough fish,” or freshwater fish, to folks in Wynot at his newly opened History Hall.
BY BROOKE STEFFEN-KLEINSCHMIT
Friendship, history
Those delicious memories – and a bit of free time – inspired Dennis and his wife, Rose, to revive the area’s fish fry tradition every Friday during Lent and on select other Fridays about once a month for the rest of the year. With sides, a meal is $15, but the atmosphere is priceless.
History Hall boasts a mix of modern rustic decor and Dennis’ ever-growing collection of local memorabilia, ranging from his father’s World War II uniform to images of Wynot when it was a fledg ling town. A giant hand-painted mural pays tribute to Rogers #83, the train that put Wynot on the map. Originally slated to pass through Saint James on the way to Rapid City, unforeseen issues suddenly had the train turning around in a less de veloped area to the southwest, and “Wyn ot” sprang to life. Dennis points to a photo of a street packed toe-to-toe with hundreds of dap per men and ladies in long dresses. “My mom said this is what every weekend was like in those days. The farmers would come to town to sell their eggs, and every one would socialize.”
History
History Hall in Wynot, Friday fish frys every week during Lent, other select Fridays through out the year. (402) 357-2131
and local
Brooke Steffen-Kleinschmit lessons art, mural, at Hall fish attraction.
including a train
in Wynot, but the freshly caught
is the main
Parties and live music are also on the horizon. On a busy night, Dennis looks around at the people he’s serving and knows he’s right where he should be. “It’s important to keep the town alive. And when you’ve fed 400 people that night, and the street is full of cars, you know you’re doing the right thing.”
are also on offer
Just as the train fed people and life into the small community, Dennis’ river fish sustain it. “People still love rough fish – it’s nostalgic. And we’re one of the only places you can get it. We love that we’re bring ing people something from their past that they can’t get anymore.”
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FLAT WATER
Author’s faith, love of horses inspires memoir
22 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2021
BY MEGAN FEENEY Cara Whitney’s new horse Gus didn’t like her. She didn’t particularly like him, ei ther, she writes in her new book Country Soul: Inspiring Stories of Heartache Turned to Hope. But instead of breaking him the traditional way, she took her horse to a natural horsemanship trainer. The trainer taught Whitney to take it slow with Gus and create trust. Whitney could tell Gus, “I’m going to put pressure on you … this is what’s best for you. I am your safe place.”
Erik Johnson
Author Cara Whitney finds solace and inspiration in her relationship with God and in her friendships with her horses. Horse training and faith take work, she writes in her new book.
FLAT WATER HN programming includes: Capitol Forum on America’s Future Governor’s Lecture in the SpeakersPrimeNebraskaNebraskaMuseumHumanitiesonMainStreetChautauquaWarriorWritersTimeFamilyReadingBureau
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Whitney not only marveled at her progress with Gus but also felt aston ished by the training’s resonance to her journey with the Christian faith. “Even though we were created in the image of God,” Whitney writes, “we were also created with these wild human hearts.” And yet Jesus stands by, Whitney concludes, ready to gently lead us back. He doesn’t try to break us; he asks us to be unafraid. For her fourth book, Whitney’s husband, Dan Whitney, aka Larry the Cable Guy, once again pens the foreword. He is from Pawnee City, and the couple lives on land outside of TheLincoln.author divides the essays, pho tography, Bible verses and prayers into six parts: “God’s Spirit Makes Us Loving and Happy”; “God’s Spirit Makes Us Peaceful and Pa tient”; “God’s Spirit Makes Us Kind and Good”; “God’s Spirit Makes Us Gentle”; and “God’s Spirit Makes Us Self-Controlled.”Chaptersdivide each of the six sections, creating time to reflect. Photographs feature pictures by Ne braskan Erik Johnson, whose work has also appeared in this magazine. (“First & Last Light: Lincoln photog rapher races sun and moon across Nebraska’s ‘prairie sea,’” Nebraska Life, September/October 2021.) Whitney and Gus formed a part nership in the end. It makes for some beautiful rides. Country Soul: Inspiring Stories of Heartache Turned to Hope by Cara Whitney published by Thomas Nelson Hardcover, 218 pp, $18
FLAT WATER NEWS 23
GENERAL No peeking, answers on page 90. AJ Dahm Alan J. Bartels Challenge your brain with our Nebraska quiz. Questions by MEGAN FEENEY GRAND ISLAND 1 This Grand Island attraction stirs visitors with its main building’s stunning architecture and its reconstructed prairie town. 2 Visitors to Grand Island can view an original stretch of this U.S. highway named after an honest American leader. 3 Unscramble the letters of these two words – Awl Mofenrecent – to apprehend the _____________ Training Center, which trains Nebraskans to protect and serve. 4 This Grand Island Irish American tenor who shares a last name with Nebraska Life’s editor (no relation) often sang on the Lawrence Welk show. 5 Odds are good that construction on what major new Grand Island attraction will begin after the conclusion of this year’s State Fair. 24 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022 Photo by Chris Helzer Now ShowiNg in a Prairie Near You Did you know many of The Nature Conservancy Nebraska properties have hiking trails and other recreational opportunities? Visit us out at nature.org/Nebraska! Experience the THROUGH OCTOBER 30 Open 9 am - 5 pm 7 days a week! stuhrmuseum.org Stuhr Museum 3133 W. US Hwy 34 Grand Island, NE 68801 (308) 385-5316
6 Husker Harvest Days, held annually in Grand Island, showcases the newest equipment and technology, as well as livestock handling demonstrations. This year, at least two autonomous machines will be in operation each day of the show. Talk about hands-off!
11
Grand Island, Nebraska
This iconic Grand Island eat ery run by three generations of the Katrouzos family hosts an annual hot dog eating contest. a. Go Dogs, Go b. Coney Island Lunch Room c. Nebraska Hot Dog Company 12 Interactive paintings of _____ on buildings throughout Grand Island allow visitors to pose as though they’re about to _____. a. antlers … charge b. toenails … scratch an itch c. wings … take flight 13 Fred Schritt owned a Grand Island body shop and created whimsical car and cartoon sculptures that he erected on poles. Which one of these is not among his creations? a. Snoopy fighting the Red Baron and the Germans b. Shrek hanging out of a Model-T c. Herbie the Husker driving a Lamborghini 14 Awful weather hit Grand Island and unleashed death and destruction in June 1980. The debris from that time is now a mound popular with sledders called:a.Tornado Hill b. Cyclone Cliff c. Twister Mound 15 Before Western arrivals, the grasslands stretched to the horizon and earth lodges dotted the landscape. Which Native Amer ican tribe lived in the area, culti vating corn and hunting bison until disease from Europeans decimated their population? a. Lakota Sioux b. Pawnee c. Ponca
TRUE OR FALSE
7 Grace Abbott, a native of Grand Island, helped draft the Social Security Act and was the first woman nominated (but not confirmed) to a presidential cabinet position. Her bust is in the Nebraska Hall of Fame.
8 Grand Island was named for the French island from which its first Western inhabitants came.
Bettmann/Corbis/AP Images
9 Grand Island-born Henry Fonda starred in films such as 12 Angry Men, The Fugitive and The Grapes of Wrath 10 Since its inception, the Nebraska State Fair has always been held in Grand Island. ISLAND SINCE 1872
MULTIPLE CHOICE
TRIVIA 25 NEBRASKA’S FAVORITE
Nebraskans mingle at Saunders County Fairgrounds. Vendor fees from the event fuel scholarships. for youth in the community
T HE VINTAGE WOODEN children’s wagon can’t handle the truck ruts. With a bang, it crashes onto its side on the grassy path of Saunders County Fairgrounds. The wagon puller, Melany Lockhart from Fremont, kneels to right it. Members of her group also crouch to gather the spilled contents. Laughing, Lockhart, her mom, sister and friends collect the toppled items, in cluding a pair of horseshoes; a trolling motor; rusty rings from an old whiskey barrel; an antique toolbox; a three-legged stool; and a wooden duck.
For many Nebraskans like the Lockhart family and their friends, visiting the bi annual Wahoo Swap Meet is a tradition. Hundreds of vendors and buyers crowd the Saunders County Fairgrounds. There are motorcycle and automotive parts, historical appliances, well-loved cowboy boots, funky toys and items to upcycle for home décor projects. But many casual visitors may not realize they’re supporting a more significant cause. Proceeds from the swap meet entry fees return to schol arships and community betterment in Saunders County.
For three decades, the Saunders County Auto Association ran the swap meet. A few years ago, its aging members discussed the need to change the event’s oil. The Saunders group had noticed the impact another local car club, Seven Mile Ridez, was making on the community with its annual Mitchell Ostry Memorial Show N Shine car show. They asked Seven Mile Ridez to take over the swap meet in 2018.Seven Mile Ridez had named its car show for Mitchell Ostry, a young man who’d died his senior year of high school
26 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
Wahoo Swap Meet teems with community ties and treasures
story and photographs by MEGAN FEENEY
Old friends reunite for lighthearted banter, trades and sales. Finding just the right item is invigorating, but getting finds to the car can be tire-ing. Good thing he’s on a roll. before he had the opportunity to attend college for custom automotive resto ration. To honor him, the club created a scholarship for high school graduates in terested in pursuing a career in the auto motiveSinceindustry.2014, Seven Mile Ridez has awarded 12 students the Mitchell Ostry Memorial Scholarship. Later, the club added another scholarship, the Jacob Smaus Superhero Scholarship, after an other club friend died from injuries re ceived in a motor vehicle accident. It’s awarded six of those scholarships. The club has also supported fundraising ef forts to help with a local woman’s cancer treatments. And it prohibits food vendors at the Wahoo Swap Meet so that local Boy Scouts can sling hot dogs, chips and pop to raise money for their troop. On a warm day at a fall swap meet, the scent of those hot dogs wafts in the breeze as vendor David Redding, from Omaha, relaxes behind his table filled with items that haven’t passed his two-year test. (If it’s been sitting in the garage for two years and he hasn’t touched it, it’s destined for a swap meet.) Redding has been doing swaps for years and travels to Iowa and Wisconsin, but the Wahoo Swap Meet is his favorite. He sells items to finance his pet“It’sprojects.hayfor horses,” Redding said. That day, no one enjoys the hot dog fragrance more than Redding’s white and brown bulldog Max (Redding’s best buddy who’s “afraid of a paper bag”). From Redding’s open truck window, Max watches with longing and drools as people pass by with lunch in hand. Soon, one of Redding’s old friends comes to visit. “We’re both ironmen,” Redding said by way of “Blacksmiths.”introduction.The friend corrects him. “Ironmen,” Redding insists. “And I’ve bought stuff from him, and he’s bought stuff from me.” Who’s made the most money off the other?“We’ve probably come up even,” Red dingFriendshipsaid. is a recurring theme at the swap meet. Sometimes it feels more like a class reunion than anything else. At a nearby table, Ernie Abariotes and Rex Medley, both graduates of Omaha North High School’s class of 1959, hang out but do not buy from one another. Abariotes, whose friends call him “The Greek” because of his heritage, is a Pon tiac man. Medley is a Studebaker guy. Still, they work in concert to try to sell the items on Abariotes’ table, mostly Interna tional tractor parts. “You need this,” Medley said to a wom an“No,browsing.Idon’t.” She laughs, putting the item down as if it suddenly turned hot. Medley turns back to his friend and shrugs.“Well, there’s always eBay,” Medley said. Abariotes smiles and shakes his head. That just wouldn’t be as fun.
WAHOO SWAP MEET 27 Specializing in the management and sales of farm and ranch land. sales@mwlmllc.com www.MidwestLandManagementllc.com BEN FRISCH BROKER 402.649.7030 HUNTER FRISCH SALES ASSOCIATE 402.649.9097 ROBBIE FRISCH SALES ASSOCIATE 402.741.2964 Check out our progress and additional spaces on AirBNB! Book now for the holidays! #CodyFarrallPhotography ROAD 6 FARM
story and photographs by JOSHUA HARDIN The Rails, the River and the Road Sandhills Journey National ScenicPartByway,One
“You come here for the rails, the river and the road,” said Terry Licking, byway president. “And you get rest, relaxation andInrejuvenation.”thistwo-part series, Nebraska Life travels the byway to discover the hidden natural wonders, human-made land marks and fascinating personalities that make the Sandhills one of the nation’s most pristine reminders of how open the West once was (and still is in many plac es). We begin our two-part story with the first stretch, from Grand Island to Dun ning, a journey of 121 miles. We embark knowing we aren’t the first to, as the highway’s slogan goes, be “on 2 something.” CBS News journalist Charles Kuralt was among the byway’s biggest ad mirers, ranking it as one of America’s 10 most beautiful highways.
Opening spread: A collection of 30 windmills towers above the plains at Downey Well Co.
IKE A BRIDGE suspended over a grassy sea of glittering emeraldand-gold-lined waves, a 272-mile stretch of Nebraska Highway 2 called the Sandhills Journey National Scenic Byway connects Grand Island to Alliance. The highway begins in soybean and corn country and proceeds through the state’s rolling Sandhills, an expansive ancient prairie dotted with cattle. It concludes on a sweet note among sugar beet cropland and golden wheatfields. Early settlers in the Sandhills drawn to the area by the 1862 Homestead Act faced immeasurable challenges in building a better life. But now caravans pass through for different reasons.
Above, Robert Dudley demonstrates carpentry at Stuhr Museum in Grand Island.
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway
RavennaCairo Broken Bow Nebraska DunningMerna Alliance
Halsey Thedford EllsworthMullen Hyannis Antioch 272 miles 121 miles L
This beautiful byway runs from Grand Island to Alliance. In the first section of Nebraska Life’s journey, we explore the history, culture and natural beauty of the first 121 miles. Grand Island Part One Part Two
The sculpture centerpieceArrowmaker”“TheisaofStuhr’sFonnerRotunda,whichtellsthestoryoftheWest.
32 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
Travelers find Grand Island’s Stuhr Muse um of the Prairie Pioneer an ideal place for an orientation to the voyage. The 200-acre museum includes a reconstructed 1890s railroad town. Living history reenactors guide visitors through historic buildings, like actor Henry Fonda’s birth home, while demonstrating trades of the era, including blacksmithing, cooking and carpentry.
George still serves the restaurant’s signa ture dish, the “coney” hot dog topped with loose, finely ground beef and a unique chili seasoning, often paired with french fries and a chocolate malt made from real ice cream mixed in a classic mixer.
The byway begins two miles away at Veterans Park on Old Highway 2. A Lock heed T-33A Shooting Star jet stands along a path where dozens of American flags flutter in the breeze. The park provides a peaceful moment for reflection on the sac rifice of servicepeople who paved the way for the freedoms we enjoy today, including driving on postwar highway projects.
A sculpture of a camel and pyramid welcomes visitors. Another whimsical nearby road sign marks the direction of and distance to nearby towns and world capitals – as well as directions to Heaven and “The Other Place.” Across the highway, Jenna and Joel Kaczor renovated the century-old Farmers State Bank of Cairo into the Medina Street Vault coffee shop. Passion and “high levels of caffeination” fueled a restoration project that revealed the original tin ceilings, bank vault and plaster walls. Diners delight in the shop’s sandwiches, soups and brews. Traveling onward to Ravenna, a his torical marker highlights Solon Borglum, who took over his family’s ranch near this Flags wave at Veterans Park in Grand Island on Old Highway 2, where the scenic byway begins. At Coney Island Lunch Room, owner George Katrouzos serves the same classic American favorites his grandfather did. At right, motorists enjoy a byway visitor center and a county historical museum in Broken Bow and an authentic sod house replica in Anselmo.
“From the first time I ever drove along it, I’ve been in love with Highway 2. It’s not that there’s a special something to see along Nebraska’s Highway 2. There’s a spe cial nothing to see,” he said in one of his famous On the Road reports. “Like the sea, the emptiness of the sandhills gives the traveler a strange sense of comfort, there’s a feeling that as long as these two things are in order, the earth and the sky, all the rest can be forgotten until tomorrow. Highway 2 is not just another highway that goes somewhere; Highway 2 is somewhere.”
EXPLORING GRAND ISLAND
CAIRO TO BROKEN BOW Beyond Grand Island, travelers find familiar Nebraska scenes of fertile farmland and friendly small towns.
The Leo B. Stuhr Building and Gus Fon ner Memorial Rotunda display tempo rary and permanent collections focused on Nebraska’s settlement history. Stuhr is most popular during the summer months, but it’s open year-round. There’s fall color in autumn, a synthetic ice-skating rink in winter and colorful blooms in spring. In downtown Grand Island, drivers stop at Coney Island Lunch Room for a meal worthy of an epic road trip. Owner George Katrouzos’ grandfather bought the busi ness during the Great Depression for $600.
spot at 17. Solon dabbled in sketches and sculptures of Western life. Local newspa pers reported that Solon carved a large image of an American Indian in the bluffs near the ranch. An 1890 visit from older brother and full-time sculptor John Gut zon Borglum changed their lives. Some believe John was first inspired to sculpt Mount Rushmore after seeing his broth er’s carving in the bluffs and convinced his younger sibling to take up sculpture permanently. Solon would travel from California to Paris, gaining recognition as a “sculptor of the prairie” for his works inspired by ranching. An artist working in a different medi um who was less successful during his
The name of nearby Kinkaider Brew ery is also a nod to Broken Bow’s early settlers, who, like the homesteaders, oc cupied free Nebraska land under terms of the 1904 Kinkaid Act allowing each settler 640 acres upon payment of a filing fee of $14. Kinkaider’s small-batch, hand-crafted beers are made with locally grown ingre dients like pumpkins, corn and jalapeños.
lifetime shared Borglum’s prairie inspi rations. Homesteader Solomon Butcher followed his family west from Illinois to Custer County to occupy a sod house, a simple structure constructed from thick ly rooted prairie grass since the region lacked more expensive building materi als like wood or stone. Butcher had little interest in farming. His trade of photog raphy would become his legacy instead. In 1886, he began work on a pictorial history of the county. His father provid ed him with a team and wagon, which was converted into a mobile photo lab. Butcher crisscrossed the county in the wagon for the next several years, taking photographs and recording his subjects’ lifeItstories.would take 15 years for Butcher to complete the book due to a series of set backs, including economic depressions and a house fire that destroyed his first recorded narratives and prints. Luckily, Butcher’s glass plate negatives stored in a granary during the fire survived. He even tually sold the bulk of his collection to the Nebraska State Historical Society for $600. More than 3,000 of Butcher’s negatives survive today, a third depicting sod hous es and their occupants stoically gathered with their livestock and possessions in front of their abodes. The Custer County Historical Society Museum in Broken Bow displays prints of Butcher’s work, provid ing a time-machine-like window into pi oneer life. Museum director Tammy Hen drickson eagerly leads visitors through the exhibit or helps those with local connec tions track their ancestry in the society’s extensive records library.
MERNA TO DUNNING Continuing westward, the shining pati na of Dave Downey’s collection of more than 30 windmills rises on the east end of Merna. Downey’s well-drilling business helps repair windmills statewide and dug the well for the windmill at the byway’s Broken Bow Visitor Center. At the sug gestion of a cousin, Downey raised vin tage windmills he had been gifted as an added attraction for passing motorists and people staying at his Cuzn Eddyz Campground. A mural in downtown Ravenna reflects upon its early days. A cabin with mirrorlike waters offers a restful retreat at Victoria Springs State Recreation Area, 6 miles east of Anselmo.
Across the street from the museum, the Arrow Hotel, built in 1928, intrigues history buffs and train fans. The attached Bonfire Grill seats diners in repurposed railcar booths. The resilient community bounced back after a devastating fire on the adjacent eastern block. Local business es exclusively contributed furniture, car peting and handiwork for reconstruction efforts on the block, which became the hotel’s new wing.
Its “Frame the Butcher,” a hoppy India Pale Ale, pays homage to Custer County’s famousBrokenphotographer.Bowhosts the byway’s Visitor Center featuring displays of local rail roading, ranching and rodeo lifestyle. The center is housed in a 150-year-old barn that formerly stored golf carts west of town but was trucked through the city to its east end, remodeled and painted from white to bright red. Motorists use this rest stop to study sightseeing oppor tunities ahead.
34 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
The belltower and bright limestone spires of St. Anselm’s Catholic Church tower elegantly over the village. Known as the “Cathedral of the Sandhills,” this late gothic revival building features vivid bur gundy brickwork and stained-glass win dows. Visitors might be tempted to think the village was named for the saint, but railroad official Anselmo B. Smith is the namesake.Theelevation gently increases as the byway curves northwest. The once-level ground begins to undulate as the region’s namesake sandhills rise more and more prominently like flowing waves over the horizon, revealing clues to the nature of the terrain to come.
East of Dunning, a rancher works a horse. In NL’s May/June 2023 issue, the next segment of the journey will take readers farther west, into the heart of the Sandhills.
The drive has traversed about 120 miles as the Middle Loup begins to dance alongside the route. Though we have ex plored much cuisine, nature and history, the journey into the Sandhills has only just begun. Watch for the second part of our Sandhills Journey in our May/June 2023 issue of Nebraska Life.
“We have people pull in here, and they act like they are scared to come in, but it’s OK,” Downey said. “I always say, take all the pictures you like, just leave your footprints.”Aspurroad just south of the camp ground leads to Victoria Springs State Recreation Area. Visitors savor this oasis of tree-lined hikes around a tranquil lake lined by rentable rustic cabins, colorful paddleboats waiting for water enthusiasts and picnic areas ready for family cook outs. Opportunities abound for watching wildlife like waterfowl and deer. Once part of the homestead of Custer County judge Charles R. Mathews, the park includes two original log cabins he built, one as his home and the other as the county’s first postFromoffice.the recreation area, State High way 21A diverts drivers 6 miles west back to the byway and the town of Anselmo.
In displays of adept flight, clouds of cliff sparrows hunt for insects around bridg es bisecting the two rivers, mesmerizing birdwatchers who take the time to leave their cars and stretch their legs.
36 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
The highway crosses the effervescently bubbling Dismal and Middle Loup Riv ers, which converge just east of Dunning.
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“Center Of It All” on scenic Highway 2, along the Sandhills Journey National Scenic Byway.
Welcome to THIS IS A PLACE where tradition has nothing to do with being resistant to There’schange.a kind of identity that’s inherent in the agricultural tradition. The straight plowed rows would still be familiar to the long-ago settlers who found their way to this place. It’s a way of life with its roots planted deep in the earth, not by chance, but by the dedicated work of many hands. And it’s a way of life that endures in Broken Bow and Custer County. The roots are deep. The roots are strong. But they don’t keep us earthbound. They keep us growing.
For
Experience #CRANETRUST 9325 S Alda Rd • Wood River, NE Trust Nature & Visitor Center just off of I-80 at Exit 305. View native wildlife exhibits, bison diorama, interactive flyway map, and educational videos. View beautiful artwork and photographs by local artists and check out our gift shop which has a variety of items for all nature lovers. Items include books, cards, toys, jewelry, apparel and more! Venture outside to see our butterfly garden and herd of American bison along the path to a 35-foot observation tower. Two footbridges take you across the north channel of the Platte River to roughly 10 miles of tallgrass prairie nature trails. the (308) 382 1820 cranetrust.org
• Numerous
BROKEN BOW. ROOTED, BUT NOT STANDING STILL. Broken Bow has something for everyone. total acres of parks New Aquatic Center Fishing pond and camping facilities playgrounds paths and walking trails our downtown merchants and breweries galleries and museums County Historical Society Sandhills Journey National Scenic Byway Visitors Center more information: brokenbow-ne.com
• Restaurants
• Art
• Picnic
SANDHILLS JOURNEY: PART ONE 37
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BROKEN BOW
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Seven inspiring places to play, study, work and worship
NEBRASKAMODERNBUILDING
by TOM HESS
Beloved buildings like the State Capitol in Lincoln will always stir Nebraskans’ pride. Now a new generation of structures inspires. These seven places show how design can fulfill Nebraskans’ needs, nurture dreams and honor history.
1
Modern structures provide Ne braskans with places to study, worship and reconnect with friends and the natural world. Michael Robinson (both)
The day-lit thoroughfares feature gather ing spaces with tables and chairs. These cheery nooks encourage collaboration.
The building’s terra cotta flourishes wink at the area’s history. Terra cotta was of ten used in special buildings in the re gion, such as the 1904 Beatrice Carnegie Building in Gage County and the 1892 courthouse and tower in neighboring Jefferson County.
“We wanted it to be a marvel outside, with connectivity inside,” said Bob Mor gan, campus director. Inspired by their building’s warm earthen touches and natural light, South east Community College students face a bright future.
TERRA COTTA TOUCHES Southeast Community College Academic Excellence Center, Beatrice ARCHITECTS AND SCHOOL leaders at Southeast Community College in Beatrice wanted to create a modern expansive feel for this 60,000-square-feet multipurpose building. Used by tradi tional students and members of the com munity and local industries, it needed to be open and inviting. Natural sunlight streams into the class rooms, science labs and common areas.
The main inspiration, though, is Kansas University’s Earth, Energy and Environ ment Center in Lawrence, clothed in terra cotta for its durability and beauty. About 25 percent of campus enrollment is from Kansas, just 12 miles away. The terra cotta wall on the Beatrice center’s west side, which is also the main entrance, brings the outside in, with terra cotta facing the interior stairwell and lin ing half the ceiling of the building’s large multipurpose room. Outfitting the school with technology was also a top priority.
AJ Dahm (both) Corey Gaffer 2 3
The 45-foot-high shrine off Exit 432 offers an unimpeded view of the Platte River Valley through enormous glass win dows. Its wood arches resemble grain stalks. An ornamental stream flows through a channel from outside the chapel to inside.Theshrine projects a Catholic perspective with its crucifix and portrait of Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus.
One school in Fairfield maximized this peeking idea. Glass classrooms allow students to see each other at work. Furniture is movable. Even the walls can be written on. The design sparks new energy and ideas. It only took a tornado to make these futuristic changes happen. After a 2016 twister tore off the front of the school and dam aged the roof, South Central Nebraska’s Unified School District 5 reinvented its high school’s look with an open house design and flexible interior spaces. The curriculum changed, too. The district’s high school is the only Center for Advanced Profes sional Studies school in Nebraska. The nationally recognized CAPS program encourages students to pick from career path ways including transportation, healthcare, or construction and provides mentorship with real-world training. The school’s curriculum and the design lure students who may be reluctant learners in traditional classrooms. At the Ne braska Center for Advanced Professional Studies, one student has committed to the real-world enterprise of laser printing and engraving. Other students are launching a sports market ing business for small college athletic departments. The way forward is wide open in the hip new futuristic envi rons – just don’t accidentally walk into the glass.
TORNADO
“It’s like a beacon, inviting you to come to see it,” Everson said. “Because it’s a glass structure, you absorb the nature around you. The stream of water that flows right into the chapel evokes living water.” Visitors may discover their cups runneth over.
40 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
The architects wanted to attract thousands of I-80 motor ists. They first inquired about property on Ruff Road in Sarpy County. The county assessor misunderstood the request and showed them a site a mile north on Pflug Road. The founders did not consider the confusion a mistake; instead, they saw it as the Lord’s direction for their project and chose the Pflug RoadTomlocation.Everson, an Omaha Catholic, stops by, driving the milelong gravel road off I-80 to the shrine whenever he’s in the area.
CURIOSITY COMPELS STUDENTS to peer through small classroom windows at a traditional school. Do their friends look engaged? Is the teacher interesting? What’s being written on the whiteboard?
INTERSTATE 80 ACROSS Nebraska offers 25 official rest areas. Consider Holy Family Shrine number 26.
Nebraska
I-80 BEACON Holy Family Shrine, Gretna TURNAROUND Center for Advanced Professional Studies, Fairfield
The founders prefer anonymity. They want God alone to re ceive the credit for the shrine’s location, beauty and tranquility, said shrine manager Matt Sakowski.
Cattle can trample grassland to dust. Rotating cattle by season and moving them from one prairie patch to another preserves healthy soil and air. Proper livestock management adds organic material, half of which is carbon, back into Nebraskan soil. No one should have a beef with that.
360° VIEWS Rangeland Laboratory, Chadron State College, Chadron 4
BUILDING MODERN NEBRASKA 41
Paul Crosby (all)
“Mom and dad bring their kids to the building, look out the window, and see rangeland in any direction,” said Jim O’Rourke, founder of Chadron State College’s Range Management program. “Walk out the door, do some field demonstration or a measurement on the hillside.”
The college’s Rangeland Laboratory sits atop a hill, a glass cathedral looking out over the short-grass prairie. Architects modeled it after traditional ranching facili ties, aligning its structures to form a windbreak. Geothermal, solar and wind power help power the site. Corn crib siding, metal-clad walls and cedarwood siding nod to the region’s ranching roots. The location impresses parents who visit with their prospective students.
CHADRON STATE COLLEGE’S Rangeland Management Program competes with other top programs for students. Like other Nebraska schools, the college uses its architecture to give it an edge.
The lab hosts fall and spring semester classroom studies and summertime field work in five areas: range ecology; wildlife management; equine management; fire ecology; and range livestock production. Students staff deer check stations, work with horses, assist with firefighting and move cattle.
AN OASIS OF TRANQUILITY St. Benedict Center, Schuyler 5
The center offers overnight and daytime accommodations open to peo ple from any faith tradition. Locals receive a $25 discount. Offerings of peace are freely given to all.
42 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
Joe Gehr (both)
WATER IN THE form of a small lake is central to the tranquility that St. Benedict Center offers, nestled into bluffs 5 miles north of Schuyler off Nebraska Highway 15 and what feels like a million miles away from the state’sLocatedcities.on 160 acres of farmland, the center has a low, simple, elegant profile. Its reflection shimmers in the adjoining lake, with concrete piers lining the water’s edge. Through the windows of a library and sitting room, guests see a gentle fountain at the center of the lake and on the opposite shore a bigger-than-life statue of St. Benedict, a fifth century Italian priest, dressed in simple clothes, his hands and head lifted to heaven – the picture of Fatherpeace. Thomas Leitner runs the center, and sometimes leads “contem plative” prayer retreats, in which he trains participants “to receive the pure and simple light of God directly into the summit of our souls.” Among his teaching techniques, he instructs how to “divest” the mind of distracting thoughts and to breathe in prayer. During the holiday season, the retreat displays nativity scenes created and imported from Africa, Asia, South America and Europe.
IGNITED DROUGHT-DRIED tinder in north-cen tral Nebraska in 2012. The Fairfield Creek Fire burned 74,000 acres, includ ing homes, fencing separating 500 bison from 2,500 cattle, and parts of the Niobrara Valley Preserve. The Nature Conservancy owns the preserve, an ancient biological cross roads that straddles Brown, Cherry and Keya Paha counties. After the fire, the conservancy decided to build a new visitor center that would blend into the environment and be fire-resistant. Architects choose a Japanese technique, Yakisugi – also known as Shou Sugi Ban – which treats cedar building planks with fire. “Once you burn something, it creates a fire resistance,” said Mark Bacon, principal designer for the Lincoln architectural firm BVH, which designed the new center. The fired wood also repels pests. BVH chose repurposed cedar planks from an old onsite horse barn and living red cedar, which grows like a weed. “It pops up where you don’t want it,” Bacon said. “Har vesting and milling the red cedars turn a disadvantage into an advantage. It’sClearingupscaling.”red cedar prevents it from fueling future fires, protecting the area’s mature ponderosa pines. The center is at the end of a 16-mile gravel road drive off Norden Road in Keya Paha County. Its deck offers an expansive view of the Niobrara Riv er and trees like the ones Native Americans and homesteaders witnessed more than a century ago.
LIGHTNING
Nature Conservancy Niobrara River Valley Preserve, Johnstown 6
BUILDING MODERN NEBRASKA 43 WHAT ARE YOU WISHING FOR? “I’M EAGER TO LEARN ABOUT YOUR DREAMS AND HELP YOU MAKE THEM REALITY. LET’S WORK TOGETHER TO FIND THE HOME YOU’RE TRULY MEANT TO LIVE IN. GIVE ME A CALL TODAY!” TAMI WHITE 402-613-1278RIS Is it time to sell? WE CAN HELP. 402.434.4498 | ufarm.com Lincoln, Kearney, Norfolk & North Platte, NE ONLINE LAND AUCTIONS | AG REAL ESTATE LISTINGS 1031 EXCHANGES | APPRAISALS
AJ Brown Imaging (both)
FIGHTING FIRE WITH FIRE
44 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022 Located 5 miles south of North Loup on Ashton Avenue For more information, visit LLNRD.org or call 308-728-3211 To reserve a campsite, visit ReserveAmerica.com FALL for Davis destinationYourRecreationCreekAreafallcamping Amenities Plenty of scenery and starry night skies • Playground and new tent campground • Picnic tables/shelters/fire rings Handicap-accessible campsite and fishing pier • Two spacious RV campgrounds with 30- and 50-amp hookups Protecting Nebraska’s naturalsinceresources1972
The cabin is the first cross-laminated timber (CLT) building in Ne braska. CLT elements (wall, floor and roof) provide an alternative to concrete and steel and sequester carbon from the atmosphere instead of producing it. The outside of the building is clad in locally sourced cedar. A solar panel provides electricity to power a few LED lights and charge a smartphone inside. Louvered windows keep it cool during hot summer days. Bug screens help occupants sleep better at night. Other wise, there’s no reason to be inside. Outdoor learning awaits.
DR. MARK BAXA’S dying wish was for other students to find joy in learning as he had done at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Cedar Point Biological Station near Ogallala. Many years earlier, after being discharged from the Navy in 1979, the Columbus native enrolled in a five-week course at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Cedar Point Biological Station near Ogallala. He dove to the floor of Lake McConaughy and found a previously unidentified freshwater clam. He wrote about it for a peer-reviewed journal, Nautilus. Baxa later linked his professional achievements to his experiences at Cedar Point. He created a scholarship fund and provided financing for a new cabin to house other scholars.
The Baxa Cabin was built through the collaboration of the Cedar Point Biological Station and the College of Architecture’s design-build program, PLAIN Design Build, led by associate professsor Jason Grif fiths at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
PLAIN Design Build
Angel Coleman A DYING WISH Baxa Cabin at Cedar Point Biological Station, Ogallala 7
Make Burwell your warmRelaxNebraska’sdestinationoutdoorthisyearintheheartofSandhills.atCalamusLakeandtakeinthebeautyoftheLoupRiversScenicByway.GreatrestaurantsandhospitalityawaityouinBurwell. EscapeYourPlan 888-328-7935 visitburwell.com Order a FREE TraveltodayGuide Discover Main Street Gallery Open Wed-Sat, 10 am-5 pm or by appointment. dynomitered.61@gmail.com 308-219-0382 • Join us on 414 1st St • North Loup, NE Main Street Gallery is brimming with new artwork from area artists, plus a curated spattering of wonderful collectibles and gift items. Explore the heart of Nebraska’s fine art at Main Street Gallery. For everything you need, visit Anderson Pharmacy Downtown Ord Visit our friendly store for a huge selection of collectibles and gifts. Featuring Jim Shore Heartwood Creek, Wild Wings, Yankee Candles, Foundation Angels and more! Plus, gifts from local artisans and authors. • Gifts and collectibles • One-hour film developing • Full-service pharmacy ANDERSON PHARMACY 1429 M St. • Ord • 308-728-5922 Store: www.ordpharmacy.com Photos: www.ordpharmacy.lifepics.com 204 Grand Ave • Burwell • 308-346-5200 • burwellpizzapalace.com FRESH • HOT • LOCAL Life’s too short, enjoy pizza! Satisfy your taste buds in Burwell with hot, fresh pizza! Dine in for lunch buffets, carry out or take home from our grab and go freezer VALLEYRIVERLOUP NEBRASKALIFE.COM 45
McCook farm family raises saltwater shrimp
The McCarty family nets one of their farm-raised shrimp. Raising small protein has resulted in big sales for this McCook-area family.
EEF MAY BE what’s for dinner in Nebraska, but in McCook, it’s served medium-rare with a side of locally grown jumbo shrimp. The winter wind swirls around the McCarty farm atop M Hill south of Mc Cook. The grassy landmark is named for the 78-foot-tall letter M made from white painted stones that has overlooked the community since 1957. The exposed es carpment receives the full blast of winter’s fury, but no bundling up is needed when checking livestock or water at the McCa rtyThefarm.barn is buried to its roof in mixed grass prairie sod. Twelve-foot-tall concrete block walls help keep the facility almost tropical no matter the weather. Livestock animals feed and grow here like on other Nebraska farms, but owner Tyler McCarty doesn’t consider himself a farmer, not yet. Tyler works the barn with help from his wife Carrie, their children Cruz and Eva, and his father, Dave. Their uncountable troupe numbers in the tens of thousands. Surrounded by a sea of cattle, corn, soy bean, alfalfa and wheat production, this McCook farm family produces jumbo shrimp for a burgeoning inland seafood industry that they hope to help build on their hilltop island. They call their opera tion Saltwater Hills. Chores begin early for the McCa rty family. Before they leave for school, 12-year-old Cruz and 9-year-old Eva serve a breakfast of commercial fish food - a mixture of squid, fish and kelp - to the family’s crustaceans. Grandpa Dave takes water samples from the eight 4,000-gallon saltwater shrimp tanks. Smaller than those repurposed aboveground swimming pools, two nursery tanks house week-old baby shrimp over nighted from southern Florida. The eye lash-size shrimp, collectively called fry, Three generations of the McCarty family work together to raise shrimp at Saltwater Hills south of McCook.
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M c COOK SHRIMP FARM 49
lieves that an overnight spike in nitrates may have been the culprit. “You can look across the feedlot or pasture and see if your cows are healthy,” Tyler said. “With tens of thousands of tiny shrimp, all we can do is feed them and take care of the water. And like a rancher losing a cher ished heifer or calf, a tank of dead shrimp is a hit to the wallet.”
A silent microscopic partner is critical to the family’s shrimping success. Bene ficial bacteria, introduced by the McCa rtys, break down the shrimp waste and any leftover food. The result is an edible protein that makes up 25 percent of the shrimps’ diet. The McCartys take care of this bacteria almost as much as they pro vide for their shrimp.
After being transferred to the produc tion tanks, the shrimp grow to jumbo eat ing size in only five months. “We don’t eat a lot of shrimp at home. I wish we did,” said Cruz, who likes his shrimp fried with garlic and butter.
Chores begin early for the family. Repurposed swimming pools serve as saltwater tanks. Grandpa Dave checks the water quality. Before leav ing for school, the McCarty kids, Cruz and Eva, feed the shrimp. Their father, Tyler, supervises the biological filtration and monitors growth.
The science behind the operation in cludes three levels of biological filtration. No chemical or mechanical filters are used. The shrimp barn and lab are not heated. The comfortable atmosphere in side comes from the water tanks that are kept at a balmy 85 degrees year-round.
The water is recirculated and reused. The family hopes someday to use solar power to heat it.
are so small that only their eyes are visi ble. Five feedings a day cause the shrimp to shed their protective exoskeletons three to four times a week as they grow, chang ing from iridescent blue green to brown and eventually transparent white. When fully grown, each shrimp has 20 legs. Used to doting on the young shrimp, Tyler was testing water quality one morn ing early in his shrimp adventure when he noticed something terribly wrong in theHenursery.wasgrowing shrimp from a new genetic line and was excited to see how fast they would grow. High hopes turned to heartbreak upon discovering that the 10,000 fry in the tank were dead. He be
50 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
Starting in the family business at a young age is tradition for the McCartys. Grandpa Dave was 5 when he began working at Mac’s Drive-In in McCook, stepping up on a wooden box so he could reach the sink to wash the dishes. Six de cades later he owns the business known for its fresh fast food. Customers still place their orders from phones mounted in each booth or park in one of 18 driveup stalls outside. Tyler grew up in the restaurant, too, taking orders and whipping up malts, shakes and ice cream cones. Now Cruz and Eva help at the restaurant when not in school or feeding shrimp. They are the fifth generation of the McCarty family to work at the restaurant found ed by patriarch Rhea McCarty (pro nounced Ree) in 1948. Mother Carrie helps as a carhop. The restaurant’s beef is from Nebraska, and the onion rings are hand breaded. What you won’t find on Mac’s menu board is shrimp from Saltwater Hills. “Serving our homegrown premium shrimp at the drive-in would be like serving Wagyu beef at Carl’s Jr.,” said Tyler, who moved home to McCook from Omaha in 2018 to help with the restaurant and start his shrimp farm. The shrimp is available at a pair of local dining establishments. Tyler said that two McCook chefs have extensive ex perience with seafood. “McCook has a very independent spir it, and there is high-quality dining here in my hometown,” Tyler said. “We’re not a big enough market for most chains, so lots of independent restaurants here are doingWhenwell.”they produced their first crus tacean crop, the McCartys put some shrimp on ice and took it to Adam Sieg fried, owner of the Coppermill Steak house & Lounge. The McCook native and former Alaskan deckhand knew his way Fresh Nebraska shrimp don’t need much preparation to taste great. A few minutes in a hot pan with butter and garlic will do it. The company doesn’t freeze its shrimp.
Up and running since 2019, the McCa rtys personally deliver their shrimp on ice to restaurants within a 5-hour radius of McCook. They have accounts in McCook and Kansas City, among other communi ties, Tyler said that McCook sits in a sweet spot between Omaha and Denver.
to raise meat rabbits and chinchillas for the fur trade. Their poop was used to grow bait industry fishing worms. Some unsa vory tenants moved in after he moved out.
“Every feral cat in Red Willow County and some skunks were living in here, and the office looked just like the workers had just left for the day,” Tyler said. “It needed a lot of work, but the bones were good.”
“The farm is exactly 278 miles from each of those cities, and I think we’ve got a product here that Nebraska can be proud of, just like our state’s beef.” Tyler said. “I don’t consider myself a farmer, not yet. But I think I can get there from here,” he said. Customers wishing to order Saltwater Hills shrimp may visit saltwaterhill.com/shop. It’s also on the menu in McCook at Citta Deli, 110 W. First St., (308) 345-1515, and Coppermill Steakhouse, 202 N. U.S. Highway 83, (308) 345-2296. around quality shrimp straight out of the ocean. “He remarked at how fresh our shrimp was and he ate it raw,” said Tyler. Cooking shrimp well is simple but takes some know-how. “If you want to take $18 a pound shrimp and have it turn out like cheap grocery store shrimp, all you have to do is cook it for 30 seconds too long,” Tyler said.
The McCarty family also owns Mac’s Drive-In in McCook, which serves local beef but not Saltwater Hills’ shrimp. Two high-end restaurants in town feature shrimp on their menus.
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Bill Lesko, who owns Citta Deli with his wife, Jade, is known for cooking Ital ian recipes passed on from his mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. When the Leskos opened the restau rant, they wanted it to be the town deli for McCook. They reached that goal. Their restaurant with Italian art above the booths and an arched entryway had to evolve quickly into a true New York-style deli to meet their customers’ needs. Shrimp is a component of many of their entrées. “Here we are in the middle of Nebraska and I can get live shrimp whenever I need it. I’ve lived on the coast and know what fresh shrimp is. This is amazing for Ne braska,” Lesko said. “I bought everything Tyler had for Fat Tuesday and we sold out. People came out in droves for our creole shrimpBeforefettuccini.”Tylerand Dave found the build ing to launch their operation, the struc ture had sat empty and abandoned for 30 years. It had once been used by an oilman
A S HUSKER FOOTBALL fans prepare their tailgating coolers, peanuts are an easy and delicious grab-and-go snack. But with a little extra prep, this lip-smacking legume (not a nut but it sure works as one!) packs a mighty protein punch and an incomparable crunch to vegetarian burgers, chicken tenders and power bowls. These recipes by registered di etitian and personal chef Amber Pankonin of Lincoln pave the path for peanut perfection.
POWER-PACKED PEANUTS
Peanut Power Bowl
1/4 cup +1 Tbsp water 1/2 cup peanut powder 2 tsp low sodium soy sauce 1 Tbsp lime juice 1 Tbsp brown sugar 1 tsp finely minced garlic cloves Serves 4 recipes and photographs by AMBER PANKONIN
Dinner comes together in a snap – and everyone makes their own customized bowl to taste – in this nutrient-dense and flavor-packed meal. The lime, garlic, peanut dressing makes for a lovely creamy mouthfeel that complements the snap of the vegetables, the softness of the grain and the richness of the meat. For each bowl, build base with 1/4 cup whole grains. Add 4 oz lean protein source, which can include lean beef, chicken, pork, eggs or beans. Add preferred veggies. Dress with spicy peanut dressing. Top with peanuts. Bowl 1 cup quinoa or brown rice 1 lb lean protein source (beef, chicken, pork, eggs or beans) Different types of vegetables, chopped Crushed peanuts for topping
This meaty, crunchy legume is ready for the main course
KITCHENS 53
Dressing
Chicken 1 ¼ lbs chicken breast tenders
54 NEBRASKA LIFE | S EPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
Parents know that chicken tenders appease even the pickiest kids. But sometimes your average chicken tender can be a little boring for adults. This recipe takes tenders from workable to wow. A crunchy peanut crust adds a satisfying bite, especially when dipped in a honey mustard sauce. Move over, junior. Mommy wants another one. Lightly season both sides of chicken tenders with kosher salt, pepper and small amount of cayenne pepper. Combine 3/4 cup flour with 2 tsp kosher salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Set aside. Com bine 1 cup crushed peanuts with 1/2 cup bread crumbs. Set aside. Combine eggs and milk. Set aside. Set up breading station using seasoned flour, eggs and peanut mixture. Dredge each chicken tender in flour, then dip in egg mixture. Coat with peanut mixture. Place on aluminum-lined baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes at 400° until golden brown or the internal temperature reaches 165°. Once fully cooked, remove from baking sheet and sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serve with lemon wedges and honey mustard sauce.
Kosher salt CayennePepper pepper 3/4 cup flour 2 tsp kosher salt 1/4 tsp pepper 2 large eggs, beaten 2 Tbsp milk 1 cup lightly salted roasted peanuts, crushed 1/2 cup bread crumbs 2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped Dressing 2 Tbsp honey 2 Tbsp dijon mustard 2 Tbsp Servesmayonnaise4
Peanut Crusted Chicken Tenders
We’re ravenous to taste your favorite family recipes. Nebraska-sourced ingre dients and stories that accompany beloved dishes feed our stomachs and our souls. Please submit by emailing kitchens@nebraskalife.com, and thanks!
KITCHENS 55
Peanut burger
For a fun dinner switcheroo, here’s a peanut burger mixed from superfood quinoa and gar banzo beans and dressed with a zingy raspberry coulis – a thin fruit puree. Nebraska beef lovers needn’t fret – this is just a burger variation, like using chicken or pork, and not a permanent replacement. It’s great on a bun or on top of a salad.
For burger: Cook quinoa as directed. Sauté onion and garlic until onions are carmelized. In food processor, add peanuts and beans. Process into smaller pieces. Add other ingre dients (except coulis ingredients) and blend until ingredients hold together. Split burger mix into four sections and pat into four large burgers. Heat skillet medium low with small amount of oil in pan. Cook patties 7-10 minutes each side until golden brown. Serve with raspberry coulis, onions, tomato slices and lettuce.
1 cup peanuts 1 cup garbanzo beans 1/4 cup quinoa 3/4 cup water 1 Tbsp peanut butter powder 2 Tbsp basil, dried 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce 2 Tbsp soy sauce 1 Tbsp garlic, minced 1 medium onion, diced 1/2 tsp kosher salt 1 tsp black pepper 2 Tbsp flour Raspberry coulis 6 oz raspberries 2 Tbsp water 1 Tbsp powdered sugar Cornstarch slurry, optional Serves 4
Won’t you dish with us?
Raspberry Coulis Peanut Burger
For coulis: Heat raspberries, water, powdered sugar in small sauce pan. Berries should pop and reduce. For thicker sauce, mix in cornstarch slurry and boil for three minutes. Strain and set aside to top burgers.
and
FighterwithRhymes
by JOSEPH WEBER
Nebraska-born Clayton Yeutter claimed wins for farmers free markets
Omaha
CLAYTON YEUTTER 57
O N WINTER EVENINGS, a boy carried newborn calves into the family farmhouse. He placed them on the door of a wood-burning stove. That’s one way Clayton K. Yeutter helped keep his family’s Eustis corn-andcattle operation going through the Great Depression and the Nebraska Dust Bowl. These farming trials, his whip-smart mind, and fellow Nebraskans’ help pro pelled Yeutter as a trailblazer in world trade and U.S. politics. He served four presidents and was a U.S. trade representa tive and the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, but he never forgot his Nebraska roots. Like many Nebraska farm kids, Yeutter began building the foundation for suc cess in 4-H, where he showed cattle and learned public speaking. Impressed by young Yeutter, one Dawson County ex tension agent was the first to encourage him to go to college. Years later, another of Yeutter’s 4-H connections, Gov. Nor bert T. “Nobby” Tiemann, hired him in a leadership role. Yeutter earned his bachelor’s degree in 1952 at the University of Nebraska and met his future wife, Lillian “Jeanne” Vierk. They married after her graduation and lived in Florida for three years, where Yeutter served in the Air Force. Afterward, they moved back to the family farm in Eu stis. Yeutter loved the farm, but his wife encouraged him to attend law and gradu ate school at the University of Nebraska. He ranked first in his law school class in 1963 and was named the university’s out standing graduate in agricultural econom ics in 1966. With a world-class education from the University of Nebraska, Yeutter’s biggest adventures were about to begin.
Jeanne, Clayton and their four young children spent two years in Bogota, Co lombia, where Yeutter directed an ambi tious multi-university agricultural mis sion for the University of Nebraska. The experience underscored the Yeutters’ concern for the disadvantaged. In Bogota, Jeanne set up a program to improve nutri tion for Colombians. Clayton Yeutter (right side) grew up a farm kid and ascended into positions of national prominence, but he never forgot his Ne braska roots or lost touch with Nebraskans. World-Herald
Later, back in the States and working in an ag post for President Richard Nixon, Yeutter helped create a program so that no mother or young child might go hungry.
58 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022 FOUR LOCATIONS IN LINCOLN, NEBRASKA The Haymarket | 800 P Street College View | 4736 Prescott Avenue Innovation Campus | 2021 Transformation Drive Telegraph District | 330 S 21st Street COFFEEESPRESSOROASTERBARTEAHOUSEBAKERY Meet me at The Mill! www.millcoffee.com One Stop Shop FOR ANY OCCASION Bring this ad in for a free bag of Baker’s Chocolates with purchase. Plants, garden decor, educational toys, and so much more. (402) 873-5000 1120 Central Ave • Nebraska City firstclassflowersgifts.comfirstclassflowersgifts.com
THE IPHONES AMERICANS carry in their pockets, the low-cost clothing they buy at big-box stores, and the high prices Nebraska farmers command on corn are all possible because markets went global over the last four decades. Yeutter had a lot to do with it. As President Ronald Rea gan’s point man, he set the stage for years of international bargaining that led to sharp cuts in tariffs. Yeutter kicked off and helped guide bargaining among nations that delivered economic opportunity to hundreds of millions in countries ranging from Chi na and Mexico to Vietnam and Malaysia. The expansion lifted legions worldwide from abject poverty – attacking the kind of destitution that the Yeutters saw in Co lombia. His moves also spurred growth in the United States in everything from ag ricultural exports to professional services that he opened to the globe. Still, as he reached his career peak in the early 1990s and beyond, Yeutter faced professional and personal tests. His time leading the Department of Ag riculture was tumultuous. For example, in a fight over a chemical additive on apples, Yeutter squared off against ac tress Meryl Streep, who called for sus pending it. Defending the Alar additive, he labeled her “a self-proclaimed nutri tionist who ought to stick to acting.” In the end, the EPA sided with Streep and bannedWorse,Alar.Yeutter and the nation’s farmers struggled with a dismal farm economy. Bumper crops worldwide meant low pric es, infuriating farmers. But Yeutter held fast to his conviction that farmers relied too much on Washing ton. He led the way in passing the most market-oriented Farm Bill since the Great Depression.Next,President George H.W. Bush called on Yeutter to restore order to a troubled Republican National Committee (RNC). A self-described “pragmatist” and non-ideologue, Yeutter steered the RNC away from extremists he loathed, such as former KKK leader David E. Duke, a Re publican Louisiana legislator. Bush then brought Yeutter into the White House for a new cabinet-level job, counselor for domestic policy. Yeutter held that post until Bush asked him to serve as deputy chairman for the BushQuayle re-election effort for a few months until the November 1992 election. Despite Yeutter’s efforts, Bush lost to former Ar kansas Gov. Bill Clinton.
The Special Supplemental Nutrition Pro gram for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides federal grants to states for food, health care referrals and nutrition education for low-income pregnant and postpartum women and infants and chil dren. Since 1972, it’s helped millions. But for Yeutter, it was just a start on the impact he’d make on the world.
Soon after that political disappoint ment, Yeutter faced the greatest loss of his life. Jeanne died of a presumed heart attack in August 1993. “When someone commented … that Jeanne was ‘one in a billion,’ a lady standing nearby intervened to comment that such a ratio did her a disservice,” Yeutter wrote a friend in the following year. Yeutter Archives and Special Collection, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries
CLAYTON YEUTTER 59
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Still vibrant and charismatic in his 60s, Yeutter found someone to share his life with anew. His marriage to Cristena Bach opened a new domestic chapter in Yeutter’s life. The couple adopted three girls. He prioritized raising them over hisForcareer.Yeutter, it was a second chance to be a father. He had often been away from his first family because of work. As his in fant daughters grew into toddlerhood, he joined them for tea parties, wearing a pink feather boa around his neck and clip-on earrings dangling from his ears. Later, he attended their school and sporting events, volunteering to help on school trips and giving the girls driving lessons – though he was a notoriously bad driver. He asked his daughter Elena at age 14 whether she wanted to take the wheel, and she then routinely did so when he came to pick her up at school – a fa ther-daughter secret kept from Cristena. He gathered all his children to watch Husker football games on TV. Devoted to the team, the university and the state, Yeutter and Cristena even named an ad opted rescue dog “Husker.” Though he ratcheted down his profes sional activities, Yeutter remained con nected in business, law and politics. He served on corporate boards, gave paid speeches and worked at a Washington law firm. Yeutter died at 86 in March 2017 of colon cancer. He and Jeanne are buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Today, a stretch of road between Eustis and Cozad – a road Yeutter often drove as a teen – bears his name. Yeutter and Cris tena also endowed an institute in his name at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. It trains students to work in Yeutter’s most beloved arena, international trade. That realm – his most significant professional legacy – is something he would have nev er dreamed of if not for the Nebraskans who helped him along the way.
Adapted from Rhymes with Fighter: Clayton Yeutter, American Statesman, University of Nebraska Press, 2021 Lance Cheung/USDA Yeutter met his first Nebraska mentors through participation with 4-H. These Nebraska connections set him on a path of academic and professional excellence. 92% of 2020 grads found work or continued their education. 91% of 2020 employed grads are working in Nebraska. 83% of 2020 grads are continuing their education in Nebraska. southeast.edu Beatrice Milford
POWER TO PEOPLETHEInhonorof Nebraska Life’s 25th birthday, we’re recognizing other distinctive Nebraska institutions that have served our people–with political representation, public electricity and empowering partnerships. A SPECIALFEATURINGFEATURE PublicTeamMates•Power•Unicameral by MEGAN FEENEY
Nebraska Public Power District runs the coal-powered Gerald Gentleman Power Plant at Sutherland. Nebraska is the only state that relies 100 percent on public power. Chris Amundson
Joshua Hardin
January/February2001•2004
March/April • 1999 July/August •
A VERY SPECIAL farm glimmers on U.S. Highway West 275 in Norfolk. Residents recently celebrated the completion of the state’s largest solar farm – and now par ticipating community members who pur chased shares are reaping the benefits of low-cost, clean energy. More than 26,000 solar panels and intentionally planted pollinator species dot 70 city-owned acres of wellfield on the west side of town. The city of Norfolk, which owns half the solar farm shares, expects to save $170,000 on its electric bill annually. The Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD) SunWise Community Solar proj ect – which also has locations in Scotts bluff, Venango, Ainsworth and Kearney, among others in development – is the result of years of effort and community
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EGALITARIANISMELECTRIC input, said Brittney Koenig, retail account manager for NPPD, who worked on the Norfolk solar project. Nebraska has abundant renewable en ergy resources, and the state’s three larg est electric utilities have established car bon-free generation goals. “It made sense to rely on energy in our backyards,” said Josh Moenning, Norfolk’s mayor.Nebraska is a state that runs exclusively on public power – a singular distinction since 1949. The Norfolk project illustrates how public power works. Norfolk city officials began discussing the possibility of a solar farm in 2015. Technology and a maturing industry have made renewable energy costs more feasi ble. Next, the city reached out to NPPD and held a series of public forums to test support for the idea. Support was over whelming. Finally, NPPD helped the city find a private developer and entered a Men work on the outlet tower structure at Kingsley Dam, which releases water from Lake McConaughy and produces hydropower. Petersburg’s wind farm created jobs for residents.AlanJ.Bartels
POWER TO THE PEOPLE 63
Greg Latza/Northeast Community College
64 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
purchase agreement with the developer to provide Norfolk residents a fixed cost of energy for decades. Unlike a top-down corporate approach, public power gives consumers the power of democratic participation. All books and records are open to public inspection. Nebraskans elect their district boards or city councils, which run the power utili ties and cooperatives. Consumers may at tend power board meetings and provide comments; they have a say. Not only is Nebraska’s communi ty-owned energy reliable – it has one of the shortest outage durations anywhere – but it’s affordable, too. Nebraskans pay one of the lowest rates for electricity in the U.S. That’s a good thing because the state’s major industries – agriculture, food processing and chemical manufacturing – require a lot of energy. As a result, per capita, Nebraska is one of the top 10 ener gy consumers in the nation. Public utilities don’t pay taxes but make payments to the state that fund social services, like public schools. And since there are no stockholders, there’s no profit motive. Utilities reinvest revenue in Nebraskainfrastructure.has121 municipals, 30 public power districts and 10 electric coopera tives. NPPD is the state’s largest electric utility. Other utilities include Omaha Public Power District, Lincoln Electric System, Tri-State Generation & Transmis sion and Nebraska Municipal Power Pool, amongTodayothers.Nebraskans in urban and rural areas enjoy equal access to electricity, but a previous disparity helped fuel the devel opment of public power in Nebraska. In the earliest days, municipal electric companies began providing power in the 1880s. By the 1920s, some rural coop eratives had formed, but most people in agricultural areas were still living in the dark. Private electric holding companies with Wall Street bank-backing began tak ing over municipal systems. Developing low-paying rural projects disinterested them. There wasn’t enough profit. Still, the holding companies pushed against new public utility developments – even the little guys. Students in the utility line program at Northeast Community College get hands-on training in Norfolk.
Nebraskans pushed back. They passed an initiative in 1930 that allowed for rev enue bond financing for municipal utili ties, which aided capital raising efforts.
November/December • 2007 September/October • 2008 January/February • 2010
Three years later, Nebraska’s Enabling Act allowed 15 percent of voters to petition to form a public power or irrigation dis trict with its local board of directors. In 1933, the Nebraska Legislature also cre ated the Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District, also known as the “Tri-County Project,” which endeav ored to bring water and electricity to South-Central Nebraska. Federal legislation also helped propel the state toward its public-powered future. Nebraska Senator George Norris, a NewDeal Republican, sponsored the Tennes see Valley Authority Act (1933), allowing public hydroelectric power ownership. (Norris was also a fierce advocate of the Tri-County Project and often labeled a so cialist for his support. He believed no cor porate interest should profit off essential services like electricity or water.) The Pub lic Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 broke up corporate electricity monopolies, and the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 provided loans to rural utility projects. As a result of legislation and labor, by the mid-1940s, Nebraska had 16 public power districts and 35 rural electrifica tion districts. Three districts’ hydro plants could meet 85 percent of Nebraskans’ power needs. By 1949, every resident re ceived their electricity from a communi ty-owned“Everyoneinstitution.hasa voice in decisions,” NPPD’s Koenig said. “We are Nebraskans serving Nebraskans. When you live and work in the community you serve, you consider everyone.” At top, the Columbus Powerhouse is one of Nebraska’s oldest and largest hydoelectric plants.
Nebraska Public Power District POWER TO THE PEOPLE 65
Loup Power District empoyees replace a turbine bearing at Monroe Powerhouse.
Stacy Wemhoff/Loup Power District
TWICE A WEEK, first-grade teacher Andrea Wilson uses her planning time at Hershey Elementary for a different purpose than lesson prepara tion. She’s preparing her two TeamMates Mentoring Program mentees for life. For Wilson, TeamMates is a family af fair. Her three children and husband have also participated in the program, which matches mentors with students to support them and help them reach their full poten tial. What began as a Nebraska program in 1991 has since expanded to Iowa, Kansas, South Dakota and Wyoming and touched the lives of more than 43,000 students. The first mentors to make an outsized impact were outsized people. Twenty-two University of Nebraska-Lincoln Husker Football players heeded Coach Tom Os borne’s call to team up with Lincoln mid dle school students to show them they cared and had their backs. Among those kids, 21 graduated high school, and one pursued a Motocross career. Osborne and his wife, Nancy, formal ized the statewide TeamMates Mentoring Program in 1998. Mentors don’t have to be star athletes. They don’t have to have degrees in child hood psychology or education. They just have to show up – and keep showing up. Spending time with someone might look like helping with homework, playing a game, or just offering a listening ear. “A mentor,” Osborne said, “can provide a vi sion of what’s possible.”
ISMENTORINGMAGICAL
RIVER POINT POPPY’SSTAND-UPOKTOBERFESTDISTRICTCOMEDYPUMPKINPATCHCAMPING
There are no requirements for a child to be eligible for a mentor. The idea is that every child can benefit from anoth er supportive adult in his or her life. The program matches each mentor-mentee pairing based on the results of a strengths assessment test. The ripple effects of a mentor-men tee relationship can benefit generations. Osborne felt the impact on his life. As a child, Tom Osborne’s grandfather moved from Illinois to Western Nebraska with
MENTORINGOF
TeamMates 66 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022 402.371.2932 EXPLORE & S TAY AWHILE REQUEST A VISITOR’S GUIDE AT VISITNORFOLKNE.COM Boyhood
YEARS31
The TeamMates Mentoring Program matches school-aged children with adults who can meet once a week to cheer kids on to become the best versions of themselves. Home of Johnny Carson
March/April • 2012 May/June • 2013 July/August • 2014 Tom Osborne and his wife, Nancy, started TeamMates in 1991. In his family, Osborne wit nessed firsthand the positive impact that mentorship can have on generations. AJ Dahm POWER TO THE PEOPLE 67
TeamMates 68 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022 4550 West Husker Highway PO Box 1687 Grand Island, NE 1-800-579-3019 southernpd.com Powering a brighter future for our customers and communities while supporting public power in Nebraska
his mother, father and three siblings to homestead in the 1870s. It was a difficult life. The farming was bad, and his father drank too much. But Osborne’s grandfather was a gift ed speaker, and a traveling preacher no ticed. The preacher encouraged Osborne’s grandfather to use his gift and pursue his education. Because of this, Osborne’s grandfather went to high school, then college at a time when this was rare. Os borne’s grandfather also met his wife and Osborne’s grandmother, a fellow college graduate. After the couple had children, they also expected their kids to graduate from university, which they did during the Great OsborneDepression.saidhisgrandfather was his most significant role model. Osborne’s grandfather’s mentor ultimately influ enced not only generations of Osborne’s family, but that relationship also impacted how Osborne coached more than 2,000 young men.
POWER TO THE PEOPLE 69 S A F E L O W C O S T R E L I A B L E B U T L E R P U B L I C P O W E R D I S T R I C T 1 3 3 1 N 4 T H S T D A V I D C I T Y N E 6 8 6 3 2 8 0 0 2 3 0 0 5 6 9 W W W B U T L E R P P D C O M POWERPUBLICSAFERELIABLELOCALAFFORDABLE 275 S Main • PO Box 406 Nelson, NE 68961 402-225-2351 • southcentralppd.com NebraskaLife.com A JourneySandhillsPlacesModernharvestsofseasonabundantNebraskaLife’s25thBirthday Features Power to the People SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2022 • $8.95 1 $25YEAR 2 Call1-800-777-6159$44YEARSorgoonlinetosubscribe SUBSCRIBE NOW!
TeamMates takes this Osborne strategy to heart: the best way to better society to improve culture is one person at a time. Hershey teacher Andrea Wilson’s mid dle child, Addilyn, is going into her senior year of high school. Addilyn has had a mentor since fifth grade. Addilyn credits her mentor Karen Troyer with helping her learn how to speak more confidently and encouraging her to believe “I had something to say, even though I’m from a small town in Nebraska.” Addilyn has used her voice to promote TeamMates in her role as Miss Omaha’s Outstanding Teen. As a youth ambassa dor, she’s raised $7,000 for TeamMates scholarships through organizing Dad nection be one of the cures in a nation fractured by a youth mental health crisis? Yes, says Wilson. It changes a child's life to know that someone cares and will always be there for them.
WITH JUST weeks before elec tion day in 1934, U.S. Senator George Norris embarked on a Nebraska road trip that wore out two sets of tires and changed the state’s politics forever.
On the eve of the election, the McCook Daily Gazette reported that their home town senator Norris “told approximately a thousand southwestern Nebraska vot ers that he would rather death close his eyes before a check is made of today’s ballots if the vote brings defeat to his pro posal to install a Unicameral Legislature in NorrisNebraska.”didn’t invent the unicamer al, and he wasn’t the first to support it.
YEARS85 UNICAMERALOF NEBRASKA’S UNIQUE ONE-HOUSE LEGISLATURE
Many Nebraskans worked to make the legislature unicameral, but none championed the idea more than U.S. Senator George Norris. The legislative chamber bears his name.
Nebraskans had just suffered through the hottest summer on record. Economic depression and drought made the future uncertain. Support for an amendment to make Nebraska a single-house state legis lature – or unicameral – also felt tenuous. But Norris had been fighting too hard for too long to give up. Along with his son-in-law, John Rob ertson, Norris traveled as many as 200 miles a day throughout the state, giving dozens of speeches in a few weeks. Norris argued that a unicameral state legislature made government more transparent and accountable. It diminished the influence of lobbyists and partisan interests. And as Nebraskans struggled with the impact of depression and drought, there was also a pragmatic appeal to the economic benefit.
“Why should we then have two bodies instead of one and burden our taxpayers with the necessarily increased expense to attain the object that can be fully attained by one house instead of two? “
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Harris & Ewing/Library of Congress
Thomas Paine’s 1776 essay Common Sense advocated for a republic governed by a unicameral legislature. The Articles of Confederation, written in 1777, adopt ed a one-house legislature, but it didn’t go into effect until 1781 after all 13 states agreed. At the Constitutional Conven tion in 1787, delegates restructured the government into a two-house, or bicam eral, system. At the state level, proposals for onehouse legislatures became popular in the 1910s, driven by the ideals of the Pro gressive Movement, including in Nebras ka. Stromsburg native John N. Norton, a Democrat who later worked with Norris to promote the unicameral, was one of the state’s earliest one-house supporters when he served in the Nebraska House of Rep resentatives from 1911 to 1919. His at tempts to make the legislature unicameral were unsuccessful, but he remained con vinced of the superiority of a one-house legislature. John Senning, the chair of po litical science at the University of Nebras ka-Lincoln, also championed it. Most Nebraska papers were distinct ly less impressed. The Beatrice Sun pro claimed in a headline, “Unicameral Plan is Strange All Around.” Even more em phatically, The Nebraska Beacon wrote, “The whole idea is communistic.” Only The Lincoln Journal and The Lincoln Star and a few others expressed support for the so-called “Norris amendment.” Much to Norris’ relief, Nebraskans vot ed in favor of making Nebraska a onehouse legislature. And on Jan. 5, 1937, the state’s first unicameral legislative session opened with 43 senators, each represent ing a district. Senning drew the first dis trict map. Norton wrote the house rules and left a federal position to serve one two-year term in the new Unicameral be fore returning to work in D.C. Later, the district – and the senator count – grew to today’s 49. Each senator represents one district that’s home to 39,000 people. Despite efforts by other states to adopt a one-house legislature, Nebraska remains the only unicameral state legislature in the United States. Its senators run on nonpar tisan ballots – a feature not inherent to a unicameral but a condition that Norris insisted on when the parties were drafting theStill,amendment.lawmakers generally announce their affiliation and receive party endorse ments for seats. They also tend to align themselves with national party positions. Though much is made of how fractious our current political moment is, even Norris was considered a maverick in his day for breaking with his fellow Republi cans on specific issues. This fall, voters from even-numbered districts head to the polls to vote for their state senator. The first Nebraska Unicameral Legislature opened session on Jan. 5, 1937. Nonparti san senators serve Nebraska together.
AJ
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TO THE PEOPLE 71
Unicameral Information Office Nebraska State Historical Society Dahm POWER
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The deep snow pushes so hard on the line, I hear you whisper your pain, I see your decline.
I’ll be with you my friend, with the brace and the nail, We all have a purpose, and we must not fail.
The vines and the mud all took a big toll, I’ll surely fill in all these old gopher holes. Now the posts are all straight and the wires are tight, Our goal has been reached, but now comes the big Sofight.keep the barbs clean and prepare to stand firm, The scouts have come back and they have a concern.
Somewhere between the Rocky Mountains and the wide Missouri, I call home, An area for many years Native American Indians and Buffalo could roam. About halfway between Texas and the Dakotas, they call the Great Plains. Early settlers crossed rivers and streams, in search of finding a place of their dreams. The state of Nebraska with tall grass prairie, rolling hills and fertile farmland, With miles and miles of rolling hills covered in grass that is anchored in sand. It is called the Nebraska Sandhills, where horses and cattle are King. I have no interest in living on the East Coast or the West, This part of the United States suits me best. Hard work and long hours is just the way of life, and also having some fun, We have a reputation of great work ethic second to none. My roots grow deep in the Cornhusker State, But when God calls me home, His timing will be right, not too early, or too late.
Think of the wildlife, the slow winding creek, From you, old fence, your protection they seek.
A boot on a fence post, like this one at Ash Hollow Historical Park, can signify honoring a loved one or indicating direction. POETRY
The rust and the rot from the wind and the rain, Be strong old fence, there’s much to regain. See the birch that grow so free in the hollow, The pastures so green, the hill’s yellow flowers.
73
I remember your youth; you never stood straighter, With four strands of barb, a real gladiator.
Ah’ old fence, I see you kinda’ leaning and bent, I know your life’s rough, but you must not relent.
GOOD LIFE Poetry
The Cornhusker State Harvey Jorgensen, Lexington Standing Tall Nivan Hornik, Norfolk
N ebraska poets delivered tales of fences and cattle, rolling hills and gopher mounds, new boots and old barns. They invite readers to settle in for evocative stories of simple pleasures.
Now we know we will have a real two-fold bout, That’s to keep the cows in and the city out.
Alan J. Bartels
Derrald Farnsworth-Livingston
While Mama lit the coal oil lamps Dad and I pretended it was me That pulled off his dusty boots. I set them up, straight as could be, Left the long-roweled spurs still attached. Traced the graceful stitching of green, blue and red; stepped in, teetered on underslung heels, and, as always, hopefully said, “Next time let’s order the ones with yellow stars and butterflies.” Heard, “Cost too much. These wear better.” An answer we both had memorized. Teasing now… “Who’d see ’em anyhow? Only dudes tuck pant legs in.” I sighed, turned a dog-eared page in the Blucher catalog, and pointed out my favorites once again. Then clomped around the kitchen to the tune of frying taters, twisted an ankle, finally fell down in a jingling tangle, scrambling amid Ma’s orders to please go fetch the broom and quit tracking up her floor.
Alan J. Bartels
Unfinished Business Lyn Messersmith, Alliance Memories of Fall 1962
NEBRASKA LIFE IS seeking poems about the beauty and challenge of change. We prefer poems that mention Nebraska in some way. Send to poetry@nebraskalife.com or to the mailing address at the front of this magazine.
Allan Urkoski, Silver Creek
74 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
Dad growled, “What the hell? It’s gold dust, nothing more!” I never quite grew into the boots and frequently fell behind while attempting to follow his tracks, living out Dad’s dreams and mine. Never owned any custom built Bluchers, just others with names long forgot. But I pitched ’bout a ton of gold dust. Blucher’s out of business now, which seems odd, because we’re not. Memories of a special time When I was a boy Fall was finally in the air It always gave me joy Got up early morning Chores and cows to feed Making sure that everything Was ready up to speed Smoke out of the chimney From cobs and burning wood Walking across the barnyard That smell was oh so good Daddy’s ready for harvest Corn picker out of the shed Mornings getting frosty Leaves are turning red Poorman cribs are ready Wagons set to go Mamma is canning apples Love this season so Geese and ducks are flying Everyone’s heading south There’s no time a wasting That’s what fall is about You hope the crops are good ones They’re what pays the bills Thankful for what’s given Believing in God’s will Straight Arrow Bison Ranch in Broken Bow makes good use of every part of the animal. This skull tells its own Western tales.
NEBRASKALIFE.COM 75 Celebrate Cozad Delight in small town shopping, savor the flavors of dining, hunt for barn quilts, and tour our museums and outdoor art. Cozad’s outdoor art projects celebrate our art heritage while making art accessible at all times of the day. • Barn Quilts of Dawson County Trail • 50 States Barn Quilt Display • • Wilson Public Library sculpture garden • Rhakenna’s Wings • • “Cozad Creates” paint palette icons • For more information and maps, visit barnquiltsdc.com Also visit roberthenrimuseum.org and cozadhistory.org Paid for by Cozad Tourism Funds Cozad Tourism • P.O. Box 411 • Cozad, NE 69130-0411 MUSEUM OF NEBRASKA ART Bringing the art of Nebraska to you . . . Visit us at mona.unk.edu experience the art of Nebraska from wherever you are! Stuart Chittenden, Mike, Russel & John - Dannebrog - 8.17.15 digital photograph (1/2), 2015 (printed 2017), Gift of the Peter Kiewit Foundation, Museum of Nebraska Art Collection MONA ONLINE
NEBRASKA MUSEUMS
NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2021
The Durham Museum, p 76 Joslyn Castle & Gardens, p 78 Omaha Children’s Museum, p 79 ST. PAUL Museum of Nebraska Major League Baseball, p 79 WEEPING WATER Weeping Water heritage Trail, p 79 WINNEBAGO Angel De Cora Museum and Research Center, p 78 YORK Clayton Museum of Ancient History, p 79 Wessels Living History Farm, p 80
ASHLAND Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum p 78 BANCROFT John G. Neihardt State Historical Park, p 81 COZAD Robert Henri Museum, p 75 100th Meridian Museum, p 75 CHADRON Museum of the Fur Trade, p 80 DAVID CITY Bone Creek Museum of Agrarian Arts, p 80 FREMONT Louis E. May Museum, p 81 GOTHENBURG Gothenburg Pony Express Station, p 80 GRAND ISLAND Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer, p 24 HENDERSON Henderson Mennonite Heritage Park, p 93 KEARNEY Museum of Nebraska Art, p 75 The Archway, p 77 LA VISTA Czech and Slovak Educational Center and Cultural Museum, p 81 LINCOLN History Nebraska , p 77 International Quilt Museum , p 81 MADISON Madison County Museum, p 81 NEBRASKA CITY Wildwood Historic Home, p 78 NORFOLK Elkhorn Valley Museum, p 80 OMAHA Boys Town Visitor Center, p 75 76
Gering celebrates tubers at fall festival by FEENEY
roots and
MEGAN
Megan Feeney CORN, SOYBEANS AND sugar beets get a lot of love as major Nebraska crops, but the mighty potato will have its day this autumn at the Legacy of the Plains Museum in Gering. Every year on the third weekend of September, the muse um’s Harvest Festival highlights a differ ent crop grown onsite and showcases its collection of historic agricultural equip ment and implements in action. This year’s festival will feature a pickyour-own potato patch, demonstrations of horse-drawn plowing, and tractor rides. Most spud-tacularly, a Nebras ka-born invention – the Lockwood Grader – will illustrate the dawn of me chanical sorting.
Born in Albion in 1913, Thorval John Lockwood invented his first potato grader as a 17-year-old farm kid. Before he turned 30, he’d developed more than 100 models of potato and onion handling equipment. Not only will the museum’s vast collec tion of machines hum to life – there will be living history, too. Longhorn cattle roam in a nearby pasture with Scotts Bluff as the backdrop. Goat kids play in the yard. De scendants of the Wiedeman family, which has a 1930s-1950s homestead on museum grounds, and of the Gentry family, which has an 1890s log cabin there, will be pres ent to answer questions and tell stories. They might even be willing to swap po tato recipes. Spudtacular!
The 2022 Harvest Festival is Sept. 17-18, 9 am-4 pm. 2930 Old Oregon Trail, Gering, (308) 436-1989
NEBRASKALIFE.COM 77 Image by Amy Toensing via National Geographic SEPTEMBEROPENINGEXHIBIT 03 2022 OPEN ALL YEAR | 308-237-1000 | ARCHWAY.ORG The I-80 EXIT 275 • KEARNEY
museum
78 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2021 TOUR THIS 10-ROOM BRICK historic home built in 1869 for the Ware family. Guided by docents in period dress, learn about the family and the era. Stroll through the Victorian Garden anytime, the perfect place for weddings or special events accommodating up to 100. 402-873-6340 • wildwoodhistoriccenter.org In Wildwood Park • 420 Steinhart Park Road • Nebraska City WildwoodHistoricCenter Visit the art gallery and gift shop for Nebraska-made gifts, souvenirs and art from regional artists. Open Daily: April 26-Oct. 31 Mon-Sat, 10-5 Sun, 1-5 toAdmissionthehouse: $5 Adults • $2 Children Travel BACKTIMEIN IN NEBRASKA CITY Wildwood HISTORIC HOME Omaha, NE • 402-595-2199 • joslyncastle.com CREATE HISTORY TOURS | PROGRAMS | RENTALS Imagine • Innovate • Inspire Open Daily 9am-5pm West of I-80 at Exit 426 www.sacmuseum.org 402-922-2631 601 E. College Road Winnebago, NE 68071 Monday-Friday, 9 am-5 pm Saturday, 10 am-2 pm Closed all major and federal holidays DISCOVER ART & ARTIFACTS FROM THE WINNEBAGO TRIBE OF NEBRASKA Learn about the Tribe’s history and how we came to be in this area.
In downtown St. Paul, explore memorabilia of American Major League Baseball players from Nebraska. View displays on our seven MLB Hall of Fame players, plus information and memorabilia on over 160 players born or raised in Nebraska. We are now open on Saturdays and Sundays by appointment only, otherwise, Open Mon-Fri, 10 am-4:30 pm St. Paul, NE 308-754-5558 • nebraskabaseballmuseum.com
Paid for in part by a grant from the York County Visitors Bureau 402-363-5748 • 1125 E 8th St • York
A Home Run for Baseball Fans!
MajorofMuseumNebraskaLeagueBaseball
Open Tues-Fri, 10 am-5 pm • Sat 1-4 pm claytonmuseumofancienthistory.org 1125402-363-5748E8thSt•York,NE o
at York College, Nebraska View rare artifacts from the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia and Roman Empire! Young and old can experience the museum’s Little Kingdom interactive area. Uncover objects in an archaeological dig, “live” in an ancient house and “shop” a Roman market. Admission is FREE with donations always accepted. Located in the lower level of the Mackey Center on the York College campus
Paid for in part by a grant from the York County Visitors Bureau
Explore ancient Rome, the Near East and much more. Special Bible exhibit shares the story of scripture from scroll to modern translations. Children’s interactive Little Kingdom now opened! ADMISSION IS FREE Open Tues-Fri, 1 - 5 p.m. Call for group tours. claytonmuseumofancienthistory.org
Lower level of the Mackey Center on the York College campus
at York College, Nebraska
NEBRASKALIFE.COM 79 SPECIAL EXHIBIT NOW OPEN through January 8, 2023 THIS EXHIBIT WILL TRANSPORT CHILDREN TO A WORLD INSPIRED BY THE CURRENT REALITIES AND THE FUTURE DREAMS OF SPACE TRAVEL!
80 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2021 Paid for by the York County Visitors Bureau Oct. 2 Oct. 8 Oct. November29 Dec. 2-4, 9-11, 16-18 and 23 Ag Hall of Fame Boo on the Farm Adult Boo on the Farm Closed to decorate for Christmas House tours from 12-4 pm and drive through lights from 6-9 pm 402 710 0682 • LivingHistoryFarm.org 1 mile south of I 80 exit 353 • York, NE MUSEUM Explore at Wessels Living History Farm FARM LIFE educational resource family destination venue From the early 1900s to 2022, looking back at over 100 years of farm life, history comes to life through the barn, outbuildings, farmhouse, rural church and school house. Visit the animals and learn through hands-on activities. Shop the Wessels Mercantile – a GROW Nebraska store! OPEN REGULARLY MAY-SEPT. See the history of the first business in North America -the fur trade. 10 Unique items to view! John Kinzie’s gun HBC Officer’s sword Brass Handle Cartouche Knife William Clark Fabric Samples Chief’s Coat Kit Fox Society Lance Russian American Co. note Oldest dated trap 1755 Parchment HBC Officers Certificate Andrew Henry’s Leggings MUSEUM OF THE FUR TRADE Open 8-5, May 1 to October 31 3 miles east of Chadron, Nebraska on US Highway 20. www.furtrade.org 308-432-3843 • museum@furtrade.org NORFOLK Hispanic Heritage Festival September 17 Hauntingly Historic October Various events throughout October Verges Holiday Festival and Tour of Historic Homes December 11 402-371-3886 515 Queen City Blvd • Norfolk For program details, visit: ElkhornValleyMuseum.org Open Tues-Sat, 10 am-5 pm Featuring the newly renovated Johnny Carson Gallery, The Nebraska Music Hall of Fame, Children’s Discovery Zone, Historic Verges Park and more!
MUSEUMS NEBRASKALIFE.COM 81 • Museum • Bookstore • 1890s Historic Study • Sacred Hoop Garden Free and open to the public. Tues-Sat 10 am-4 pm 306 W Elm St • Bancroft Visit the John G. Neihardt State Historic Site Nebraska’s Poet Laureate in Perpetuity 402-648-3388 • neihardtcenter.org Special Exhibit: Dr. Susan LaFlesche Picotte, the nation’s first Native American doctor, featuring her professional artifacts 8106 S. 84th St. • CzechAndSlovakMuseum.org402-686-9837LaVista Visit this unique cultural experience in LaVista! Explore our exhibits featuring the Immigration Room, Music Room, Sokol Room and Josef Lada calendars from the 1940s. Our gift store offers many beautiful Bohemian items from the Czech land. MayMuseum.com 402-721-4515 | 1643 North Nye Ave | Fremont Open late April-late Dec. Wed-Sat, 1:30-4:30 pm | Final tour available at 3:30 pm Louis E. May Museum Dodge County Historical Society Admission: $5 for Adults, $1 for Students Free for ages 5 and under The May Museum takes you back to turn-of-the-century Fremont life. Tour the landscaped grounds, a Nebraska Arboretum Site. ArchitectureGeorgianExplore Fremont’s 1523 N 33RD ST, LINCOLN, NE • WWW.INTERNATIONALQUILTMUSEUM.ORG402.472.6549Tuesday-Saturday10AMto4PM FUTURE OF TRADITION madisoncountyhistory.orglearning24hrs@gmail.com 212 S. Kent St. • Madison, NE (steel building behind Carnegie Library) Tour our redesigned displays including: Madison’s Suni car, Military, Medical, Communications, Richie Ashburn, Orphan Train, 1880 Pumper, Lewis & Clark, and much more! Hours 1:30-5 pm Mon-Fri or call 402-454-2313appointmentfor Trace historyin Madison
SEPT. 10-11 • GORDON foods from the many food trucks and join strangers at picnic tables for small talk and common ground. Art lovers mean der through 60-plus arts and craft booths representing a five-state area. The city blocks off the entire park and some side streets for a car-free zone. Three stages feature performances: the gazebo stage; the children’s stage; and the indoor stage. Kids romp through the children’s space with supervised activities. Mornings begin with biscuits and gra vy at the Tri-state Old Time Cowboys’ Museum. Ice cream and pie sweeten the afternoons. Visitors glimpse the past at Scamahorn Museum. When the festivi ties close, the branches of a nearby willow seem to say, “come back again soon.”
WHERE TO PLAY MODISETT BALL PARK
WHERE TO EAT THE TWISTED TURTLE PUB
TAKING TO THE ROAD FOR FOOD, FUN AND FESTIVITIES Nebraska Traveler by BECKY McCARVILLE COMMUNITY
WILLOW TREE FESTIVAL
The late Dave Sweley, a minister at the Presbyterian church and experienced fes tival planner, founded the festival in 1983. Now In its 38th year (canceled in 2020), this year’s festivities are Sept. 10-11. Board member Jean Hess returned to her hometown to attend her first Willow Tree Festival in 1986. At the time, she lived on the West Coast and dabbled with art. She didn’t know what to expect from her hometown, but she was so amazed that she decided to be part of it.
The Rushville community restored this historic park and added modern amenities and facilities. The Sheridan County Regulators American Legion team takes the field on their home turf. Play ball! 302 W. 2nd St., Rushville
After a full day enjoying golf or rodeo in the rugged beauty of Sheridan County, guests at Jefco Inn enjoy quiet, comfortable rooms. 308 S. Cornell, Gordon (308) 282-2935
The sun rises and sets on a hardy willow tree rooted in the banks of Antelope Creek near Sheridan County Fairgrounds. From Nebraska’s early roots, this lone willow tree provided a gathering place for Indigenous Americans, fur traders, cowboys and set tlers. Today, the land is private property, but the tree’s symbolism in Gordon as a gather ing place has endured. Every year people gather under Win ship Park’s leafy shade to celebrate com munity at the Willow Tree Festival. The event features artists, local and region al performers, professional musicians, Native American storytellers and fancy dancers, food trucks and children’s ac tivities.Likethe stalwart willow tree, the festi val has endured because of the hard work of its 20 volunteer board members, robust community engagement and financial backing from businesses and residents, and grants from the Nebraska Arts Coun cil, Nebraska Cultural Endowments and Humanities Nebraska. Not much has changed from its origin.
Twenty-five years later, Hess still helps the well-oiled organization spread the word to surrounding Panhandle towns and bring in vendors. Festival magic is in the air from sun up to sundown. Visitors grab fun festival Willow Tree Festival
WHERE TO STAY JEFCO INN
Hometown hospitality and wood-fired pizza warm hearts and bellies. Cute decor, funky green chairs and exposed brick walls keep it feeling cozy. 129 Main St., Rushville (308) 327-2233
WHERE TO EAT VIS MAJOR BREWING CO.
Vis Major Brewing Co. has won the hearts of its beer-loving neighbors and beyond. Truffle popcorn, pretzels and specialty pizzas pair well with its artisan craft beers. Neighbors make friends here. 3501 Center St. (402) 800-8846
From Aksarben Village, cyclists hit the Keystone Trail, the backbone of Omaha’s 120-mile trail system that connects to various trails, including the South Omaha Trail and Field Club Trail. Walkers, joggers, bikers, skaters and even cross-country skiers coast the paved paths. It’s a busy place. On your left! a special treat – stuffed with corned beef and melted Swiss cheese and drizzled with Russian dressing and a homemade kraut mixture. But first, bar-goers drink beer and play games. Chaz, ever the showman, grabs a full stein and immediately starts a one-man stein holding contest – arm outstretched, elbow locked, not spilling one drop of beer for five minutes. He beats the previ ous record-holder at Rathskeller by about 20Winnersseconds. of stein holding and other Ba varian games like pretzel and bratwurst eating contests, nagel schlagen (driving nails into a wood board), the boot drink ing game, keg tossing, darts and bags will take the stage and compete at this year’s Oktoberfest celebration at Rathskeller, scheduled Sept. 9-10. There might be beer drinking, but this is a family-friend ly event and will offer fun for all. (402) 991-7724
WHERE TO PLAY KEYSTONE TRAIL
NEBRASKA TRAVELER 83
WHERE TO STAY ALOFT AKSARBENOMAHAVILLAGE Aloft’s modern and whimsical design springs to life in Central Omaha, with easy access to the Interstate. Close by are major corporate headquarters, the University of Nebraska at Omaha, Baxter Arena, nightlife, local eateries and shops, and green space that holds events. 6201 Center St. (877) 462-5638
SEPT. 9-10 • OMAHA Rathskeller Bier Haus owner Charles “Chaz” Kline is dancing in his lederho sen again. It’s the lead-up to Oktober fest, and the 1915-era brick building at 4524 Farnam in Omaha’s Blackstone District throbs with polka music and rings with laughter. Staff garbed in traditional German dress carry fists of frothing beer steins and platters of steaming pretzels. In German culture, a rathskeller is a bar/community gathering place for wed ding parties and family events, typically in the basement, or cellar, of a city hall or bank. Located on Farnam Street, with abundant indoor and outdoor seating, Rathskeller Bier Haus creates a communi ty and cultural experience. There are hefty wooden tables and community benches. People sample from an enormous menu of German and lo cal and regional beers A menu spotlights “Germerican” food. The Reuben pretzel is Becky McCarville
DINING RATHSKELLER OKTOBERFEST
CANTEEN FESTIVAL
blend of entertainment and education. This year’s new production in the North Platte Community Playhouse, A Senti mental Musical Journey, tells the story of the canteen while paying tribute to the traditional dance and music of the era. The streets come alive with activity as a band performs 1940s hits and dancers of all ages let loose. Vendors peddle unique wares next to businesses in the historic district, and the area becomes almost as busy as it was for four years during World War II. Amanda Connick, the event organizer, loves seeing people react to experiencing the story firsthand. “Tears well up in their eyes.” By the war’s end, nearly 8,000 troops passed through the Canteen a day, more than 6 million soldiers in all. They came from all corners of the country, but their stop in North Platte was a compassionate moment in a journey into the unknown. – Mason Lee
84 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
HISTORY
WHERE TO EAT LUIGI’S Generous plates of pasta, piping hot homemade rolls and warm service make this casual Italian eatery a pop ular spot for families. Locals swear by the specials, like osso buco. Seafood and meat entrees also wow. 502 S. Jeffers St. (308) 221-2961
On Dec. 17, 1941 – just after America entered World War II – a rumor spread like a wildfire through the town of North Platte. Nebraska National Guard company D was on a train destined to make a stop in town. The townspeople assembled anx iously at the depot to give their boys gifts as a sendoff. Surprised looks crossed their faces when Kansas National Guardsmen stepped off instead. Without hesitation, the Nebraskans passed out presents anyway. Thus began a tradition of Nebraska hos pitality during World War II. For over four years, the citizens of North Platte, primar ily young women with their daughters and sons, banded together to open a can teen at the depot. Soldiers on their way to war, many teenagers, received tasty treats and a dose of optimism. This fall North Platte once again wel comes visitors to the North Platte Canteen Festival held at the Historical Downtown Canteen District. The festival features a Lincoln County Historical Museum
WHERE TO STAY HUSKER INN This cozy budget hotel is close to attractions like the North Platte Children’s Museum, Cody Park and the Lincoln County Historical Museum. 721 E. 4th St. (308) 534-6960
OCT. 7-8 • NORTH PLATTE
WHERE TO GO BUFFALO BILL’S STATE HISTORICAL PARK Guests learn about the man, the myth, the legend Buffalo Bill Cody. This complex and fascinating Pony Express Rider, Army scout, bison hunter and showman lived an out sized life. The house and barn tell his story. 2921 Scouts Rest Ranch Rd. (308) 535-8035
nelottery.com Must be 19. Free problem gambling help for Nebraskans at problemgambling.nebraska.gov. Bringing Nebraska to life since 1993. RAISING FUNDS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT, EDUCATION AND STATE FAIR. Come celebrate the largest volunteer e ort of WWII that served over 6 million service men and women! Friday, October 7, 2022 A Sentimental Musical Journey theater production Saturday, October 8, 2022 Canteen Festival Vendor & Art Show A Sentimental Musical Journey theater production Big Band Street Dance for more info, go to: VisitNorthPlatte.com/north-platte-canteen-festival/
DEC. 15, 17 • OMAHA At the Bob Devaney Sports Center in Lin coln, a sold-out crowd roars as the Uni versity of Nebraska-Lincoln Cornhuskers women’s volleyball team bumps, sets and spikes their way to another win. Husker volleyball fans have cheered their team on to claim five NCAA championships –and nearly a sixth last year. The team has something to prove this year, especial ly since the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Tournament will happen in Nebraska. In 2021, the team fell short in a heart breaking title match with Wisconsin in Ohio. This year, the team plans to go all the way again but seize the win – and fans would get to see it happen in Omaha. The CHI Health Center will host the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Tournament on Dec. 15 and That’s17.good news for a program that owes much to its Nebraska fans. They love good volleyball, no matter the outcome, said assistant coach Kelly Hunter, who also once played for the team and was a three-time Husker All-American and two-time national champion. For Hunt er, it runs in the family. Her mom, Lori (Melcher) Hunter, played for the Husk ers from 1977 to 1980. Back then, crowds were much smaller. Since then, fans have discovered the excitement of this wom en’s sport and become loyal fans – even though it coincides with the football sea son, debatably Nebraska’s most supported sport. The high pressure of a packed audi torium fuels the team’s success. “It’s electric,” Hunter said. “High pres sure and high expectations can bring out the best in you.” The big push now is to create more op portunities for television coverage, like men’s sports have typically enjoyed. This year, the Big Ten Conference will televise a record 55 volleyball games. The Huskers will have 18 games televised, including 14 games that will air on national television. Whether watching it live at 1600 Court St. or on the screen at home, fans leap to their feet with every ace serve to cry with gusto, “Go Big Red!”
WHERE TO PLAY SPEEDWAY MOTORS MUSEUM OF AMERICAN SPEED
Situated in the heart of Innovation Campus, The Scarlet Hotel is as much a fan of Nebraska as Huskers are of their Big Red teams. From guest rooms and suites named after featured home towns to design that pays tribute to the state’s legends and innovators, The Scarlet Hotel celebrates Nebraska. 2101 Transformation Dr. (531) 300-6300
This homey water hole features twists on classic pub fare and local brews in a 130-year-old building that harkens back to the Haymarket’s historic rail station days. Guests tucks into hearty sand wiches, salads and fish & chips. 301 N. 8th St. (402) 261-8849
SPORTS HUSKER VOLLEYBALL
WHERE TO STAY THE SCARLET HOTEL
86 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
Visitors peruse automotive history at the Speedway Motors Museum of American Speed, a 150,000-square-foot building that houses a speed-fueled collection curated by “Speedy” Bill and Joyce Smith. Kids enjoy racing around the building using their own horsepower. 599 Oakcreek Dr. (402) 323-3166 Molly Houser/University of Nebraska Communications
WHERE TO EAT LEADBELLY
NEBRASKA TRAVELER 87 VISIT DUNDY COUNTY, the cornerstone of Nebraska. Enjoy the small town atmosphere of Haigler as you take in the sights of our area. VISIT THE OF NEBRASKA ORNERSTONE Haigler Seasonal Events Apr. – Tractor Show & Rodeo May – Dundy Roo Art & Craft Show Aug. 21 – Music/Bluegrass Festival Oct. 22 – Tumbleweed Festival Nov. 19 & 20 – Gun & Craft Show Dec. – Winter Holiday Festival FoundationCommunityHaigler Visit haigler.blogspot.comformoredetails. 15th Annual Sept. 17, 2022 11 am-11:30 pm • Greeley, Nebraska Halfway to Pat’sSt.Day irishfestival@centercable.tv308-428-5595greeleyirishfestival.com Buy tickets on or before Sept. 6, 2022 Omaha Pipes & Drums Dowd’s Irish Dance Academy NU vs Oklahoma Football Game Wild Colonial Bhoys The Town Pants The Kelihans Dublin City Ramblers Greeley I r ish Festival FrKellyRay NEW NAME, SAME FUN! The new name comes from the camp’s split oak tree that was a seedling in 1846. We look forward to learning and sharing the vast history of the area. Zipline • Barrel Train • Pedal Karts • Giant Slide • Bounce House Fort Jones Laser Tag • Hayrack Rides • and more! >> OPEN SATURDAYS AND SUNDAYS TO OCT. 30 << 9677 County Road 3 • Fontanelle, NE 402-478-4296 • CountryFun.org (FORMERLY CAMP FONTANELLE’S PUMPKIN PATCH AND CORN MAZE) SPLITOPENINGHOLLOWOAKDAYSEPT.18, 1 PM 2022 Design
Plum Creek Literacy Festival Sept. 23-24 • Seward This reading festival begins with an all-day children’s books festival hosted by Concordia University. Nationally renowned children’s book authors and illustrators host interactive workshops with kids to encourage the love of reading and writing. On Saturday, adults mingle, talk books and rub elbows with authors. (402) 643-7483
Tim Sullivan in Concert Sept. 16-18 • Brownville Western songwriter Tim Sullivan brings his storytelling style and guitar chops to the Brownville Concert Series. The series, held in the charming historic church turned concert venue, provides an unpar alleled intimate experience with killer acoustics. Sullivan, who’s played with Willie Nelson, Vince Gill and Tammy Wynette, takes audience members on a lyrical journey through heartbreak and triumph. (402) 825-3331
Greeley Irish Festival Sept. 17 • Greeley It’s halfway to St. Patrick’s Day, which means it’s time for Greeley to green up their garb and their gear. A family clan parade kicks off the day, which features Irish step performances and music. Sounds like a lucky way to spend an autumn day. greeleyirishfestival.com Lincoln Calling Sept. 22-24 • Lincoln Celebrating music, art and education, this annual fall festival highlights local rockers, graphic designers, and fun-lov ing folks of all ages and abilities to dance, build, sing and create. Community mem bers also gather to discuss how they’d like to change or improve their hometown of Lincoln. lincolncalling.com
Continental Drift Music Festival Sept. 24 • Fremont This free music festival at Fremont Lakes State Recreation Area only requires a daily parking pass. The one-day grass roots music festival features rock, folk, powerpop and Americana in the great outdoors. Guests can also watch from boats. continentaldriftmusicfestival.com
Other events you may enjoy SEPTEMBER 88 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022 800-658-4390 I-80 Exit 126, OGALLALA, NE VisitKeithCounty.com Cool off at Lake McConaughy, Nebraska’s largest lake Petrified Wood & Art Gallery Ancient woods, fossils, Western art and artifacts + New Cowboy Capitol Rodeo exhibit! Boot Hill Cowboy Cemetery Front Street Cowboy Museum Mansion on the Hill Museum Eat at great steakhouses and grills Plan theOgallalavisityourto–CowboyCapitol! 308-324-5504 • lexcoc.com Lexington Convention & Visitor’s Bureau Antiques • Lodging • Unique Dining Museums • Winery • Brewery • Camping Recreation • Events • Celebrations LexingtonWehavesomethingforeveryone! Photo: Arturo Banderas Paid for by Lexington CVB NEBRASKA
Quarter Horse Show Sept. 7-10 • Lincoln Lincoln hosts the fifth-largest quarter horse show in the nation, with more than 90 classes of competition featuring rop ing, English, jumping, trail riding, West ern pleasure, halter and reining. Open to public viewing, youth, open and amateur classes will compete. (402) 441-6545
Visit
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Living History Weekend Sept. 24-25 • Nebraska City Guests to the Arbor Lodge Mansion and grounds enjoy watching demonstrations of costumed actors blacksmithing, fabric dyeing, printing, seeding, weaving, leather crafting, and cooking. Mansion admission $9 adults, $7 youth. (402) 873-7222
Adventure tourism awaits you in Knox County. Join us for outdoor recreation, culture, and history in our ‘neck of the woods’. Visit Knox County seek your adventurefrom sunrise to sunsetin Knox county For vacation ideas, events and lodging contact us: knoxcountynebraska.com • 402-288-5619 Knox County
Nebraska Bazile Mills • Bloomfield • Center • Creighton • Crofton • Lindy Niobrara • Santee • Verdel • Verdigre • Wausa • Winnetoon1.877.223.NABB | nebraskabb.com Stray from the Ordinary!
Antiques Show Sept. 29-Oct. 2 • Omaha Antique, garden and art lovers converge on Omaha’s unique collector’s experience to browse booths selling furniture, fine art, home décor, estate jewelry, table ware and fashion accessories. Luncheons feature talks by designers, illustrators and authors. omahaantiqueshow.org Sidney Oktoberfest Sept. 30-Oct. 2 • Sidney Watch the wienerdogs do their wurst in a race celebrating Oktoberfest. Three days of entertainment, food, live music and beer bring out the German in every one. A car show, Saturday parade, craft show and high school band competition draw visitors from surrounding Western Nebraska. sidneyoktoberfest.com
Walk For the Animals
This year’s Harvest Moon Festival will hit a little differently. A drum line battle encourages local schools to win best band. Audience applause determines the winner. Games, food and festivities also included. harvest moonfallfestival.org Great Pumpkin Festival Oct. 1-2 • Crete Knives out, pumpkin carvers! Will it be a grinning face, a leering sneer, or a goblin-like grimace? Pumpkin carving demos inspire ideas. Car nival games, a food court and a car show will inspire fun. Firefighters and police will be on hand to meet the kids and community. (402) 826-2136
Harvest Moon Festival Oct. 1 • Chadron
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Sept. 25• Omaha It’s a pawfect day to raise money for homeless pets. Participants in the Ne braska Humane Society walk can bring their pup. Vendors, games, food and beverages are offered. No dog? No prob. Rescue organizations introduce a new best friend. (402) 905-3483
Kearney Craft Show Oct. 22 • Kearney Handcrafted items delight shoppers as vendors supply a plethora of repurposed, crafted, up-cycled, canned and baked goods at Buffalo County Fairgrounds. Admission is free. (308) 379-9272
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Trivia Photographs 1 The MuseumStuhrof the Prairie Pioneer 2 The HighwayLincoln 3 Law Enforcement 4 Joe Feeney 5 Casino 6 True 7 True 8 False. It was named for an island on the Platte River. 9 True 10 False. The fair relocated to Grand Island in 2010 after a 2008 bill passed in legislature.the 11 b. Coney Island Lunch Room 12 c. takewings…flight 13 c. Herbie the Husker driving a Lamborghini 14 a. Tornado Hill 15 b. Pawnee TRIVIA ANSWERS 90 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022
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Oct. 8 and 15 • Ponca State Park Guests spooked by the dark enjoy takeand-go crafts, pumpkin carving and a pumpkin roll race during the day, as well as campsite decorating. Once night falls, who-who-who will dare board a hayrack ride with scary surprises. (402) 755-2284
Hallowfest
Oct. 23 • Lincoln Runners lace up their shoes. The 13.1mile course winds through Lincoln and ends in the Historic Haymarket District, where organizers serve Runzas and local brews to the runners. goodlifehalfsy.com on p 24-25 interpreters at Stuhr. Page Ribbon-worthy produce. Page Henry Fonda, Grand Island hunk.
NEBRASKA TRAVELER 91 VisitSidneyNE.com Travel with you in mind Get refreshed and refueled in County,Sidney/CheyenneNebraska.We offer every comfort a road-tripper needs right off Interstate 80, including restaurants, hotels, gas stations, convenience stores and more. Escape the long stretch of road with us. Dalton • Gurley • Lodgepole • Potter • Sidney TAKE TIME TO UNWIND Discover Neligh Your guide to the world’s only Neligh Discover the rich history of Neligh, NE. or check out: discover.neligh.org Scan the QR codes L E T ' S M E E T I LN E T ' S M E E T I N NEBRASK NEBRASK Platte Cou F I N D S O M E T H I N G G O O D H E R E Meet Meet Stay SStay Shop Phop Play lay Ag Park, Columbus TRAVELER
92 NEBRASKA LIFE | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022 Parade FLAGSof SEWARD Located East of Seward on Hwy 34 • Display of all 50 states flags and flags from the five military branches and POW • Flags lit at night for spectacular viewing opportunity • Entire display is handicap-accessible and open year round • Additional donations to assist with maintenance would be greatly appreciated Made possible by Visitors Committee of Chamber of Commerce For more information or to donate contact: Seward Kiwanis Foundation Attn: Marv Taylor c/o Parade of Flags • PO Box 245 Seward, NE 68434 Welcoming Visitors to the 4th of July City Explore Lincoln’s Best Treasure hunt 25,000 sq-ft-plus of antiques and collectibles. You’ll find something for everyone at the Aardvark Antique Mall. Lincoln’s best kept secret! Located off I-80 and Exit 405. Open daily, 9 am-8 pm aardvarkantiquemall.com 402-464-5100 5800 Arbor Rd • Lincoln Morrill Village has everything a family vacation needs. Just 20 minutes from the bustle of Scottsbluff, you can hit the range at the public 9-hole golf course, go for a dip at the community swimming pool, stroll through the city park or pick-up a tennis match at the courts. And don’t forget to pack your tackle box and poles for some fishing at the sand pit ponds! VILLAGE OF MORRILL 118Mon-Fri,308-247-2312VillageOfMorrill.com7:30amto4:30pmSCenterMorrill,NE a recreator’s dream MORRILL the village of START PLANNING YOUR GETAWAY TODAY
TRAVELER NEBRASKA TRAVELER 93 Step back in time as you explore the general store, country school house and railroad depot. Heritage Day • Sept. 10, 2022 HENDERSONHERITAGE.ORG Henderson Mennonite Heritage Park and History Museum 1 mile south of Henderson, I-80 Exit 342 Paid in part by a grant from York County Visitor’s Bureau. MENNONITE WAY 402-723-4252 Experience life the Tue-Sat,May-Sept.1-4pmoropenuponrequest 402-363-8926 501 East Sixth St. • www.bbonsixth.comYork Set amidst the quiet, small town of York, each light-filled guest room has a private bath and comfortable furnishings. A personal lodging experience tailored just for you. Book your stay today! York County Visitors Bureau 601 N Lincoln Ave • York 888-SEE-YORKyorkvisitors.org Visit York County this fall for an abundant lineup of festive events your family will enjoy. Annual Yorkfest Celebration Sept 8-11 Heritage Day Sept 10 • Henderson Mennonite Heritage Park Mustang Round-Up Days Sept. 16-18 • McCool junction Sip & Stroll Oct 6 • Downtown York Boo on the Farm Oct 8 • Wessels Living History Farm Annual October Czechfest Oct 16 HarvestandHistory in York County 402-723-4228 | HendersonNE.com Produced in part by a grant from the York County Visitors Bureau Experience HENDERSON Enjoy the good life in Henderson. Come for a visit or come to live –you’ll appreciate the beauty and all the opportunities our York County community has to offer.
Harvest time is a season of abundance and preparation. As days shorten and temperatures cool, gardeners comb beds for the final fruits of their labor.
by MEGAN FEENEY
AbundantNebraska’sHarvests
Kyle Mock
At left: Jodie and Kevin Borer farm west of Loretto in Boone County. Below: Perfectly golden kernels ornament an ear of dry corn in a field south of Eustis. Don Brockmeier
Apple trees sag with fruit in shades of green, gold and red. Older children hop and reach, yelping with excitement as they fill bags, careful not to bruise the fruit. Parents lift younger children to grasp ap ples. Tiny hands grip and pluck. Delight ed giggles erupt. Next, it’s a trip to the pumpkin patch to find the perfect porch decorations or jack-o-lantern. And what a selection of pumpkins it is – there are warty gourds, smooth green and white ones, deep burnt orange oblongs, and cream-colored orbs. Haystacks and chrysanthemums perfume the air. Above, honking geese form a v headingNebraska’ssouth.winery and brewery guests enjoy the season’s treats, too. On the patio, guests toast the beautiful fall colors with glasses of Nebraska-grown wine, beer or cider as they watch the sunset. For Nebraska farmers, though, there’s no time for sitting around – unless they’re Cox’s Pumpkin Patch, west of Champion, bursts with color every autumn. Mama’s little pumpkin finds a gourd to take home, but first it’s playtime in the leaves.
AJ
AJ Dahm Nebraskans feast on fresh vegetables and fruits, work long hours in the field and make time to celebrate the season. Dahm 96
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ANNERS PREPARE JARS and lids. Kitchens thicken with steam as they fill pantries with tomatoes, green beans, sauces and jellies, anticipating the welcome taste of the gar den in the depths of winter. Soup season has arrived – and the butternut squash, carrots, garlic and sweet potatoes are just on time. But it’s not yet cold enough to just cozy up at home. The weather invites Nebraskans to enjoy the outdoors. Families pile into their cars with picnic lunches. An autumnal trip to one of Ne braska’s orchards is a favorite tradition.
AJ Dahm
Union Orchard visitors sample apples. The Langenberg family works together outside Norfolk. At right: Who wouldn’t want a pumpkin as big as theirAaronhead?Beckman
AJ Dahm
Farmers work long hours during the harvest season. They continue their toil after sundown. Geese, too, have an arduous task ahead as they migrate south.
Farnsworth-LivingstonLoriEisenmenger
Derrald Farnsworth-Livingston
Derrald
Little things can show support – like drivers slowing down when farmers need to use the highways to travel to another field. As they plunge into working anoth er area, the farmers’ machines stir up dust that coats the air.
The dust drifts in a filmy haze onto wooded areas, where another harvest is underway. Nebraska birds and mammals feast on a bounty of ripe wild grapes, el derberries, wild plums, pawpaws and per simmons, and a variety of nuts, like wal nuts, shagbark hickory nuts, American hazelnuts and Chinese chestnuts. These items, properly prepared, are edi ble – and delicious – for foraging humans, too. The trick is beating the finches, tur keys, foxes and deer to the wild feast. There’s more than enough to share. A family takes a break from harvesting wheat in Banner County to enjoy a birthday supper. Little things can show Nebraska farmers support during a busy time of
sitting in a combine from the dark hours of the morning until late at night. The state’s corn, soy and wheat farmers often skip dinner to put food on American ta bles.For these farmers, family support is crucial. Photographer Alan Nash and his wife bring dinner to his brother-inlaw and crew during the wheat harvest in Banner County a few times a season. They pack rotisserie chickens, macaroni salad, a couple of watermelons and cold drinks. Dessert is brownies or cake. They set up tables and chairs right in the field. The farmers enjoy a nourishing supper before going back to work. Nash and his wife work in town, so it’s one way they can support the farmers’ efforts, he said.
The Harvest Moon Festival at the Dawes County Fairgrounds features games, food, performances and gourds galore.
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Think of the Nebraska hometown you love. This is your opportunity to enrich its future. We’re asking you to consider leaving just five percent of your assets to your favorite Nebraska hometown or to Nebraska Community Foundation to benefit all of our communities. When we all leave five, our hometowns thrive!
Volunteers in Keith County were thrilled when they learned of a charitable estate gift exceeding $7 million. This is big money, but it’s just a fraction of the $565 million that will transfer from one generation to the next in Keith County over the next 10 years. Harnessing just a small percentage of the massive transfer of wealth could be a gamechanger for every hometown in Nebraska. How much is transferring your county? And how can we ensure some of those precious resources remain instead of leaving the state with heirs who live elsewhere? Find out at fivetothrivene.org. fivetothrivene.org ■ 402-323-7330
A GAMECHANGER For Our Hometowns
Alan Bartels once knocked a rooster pheas ant out of the sky with a .22 ... or did he?
One of Grandpa’s guns often rested on the front seat of my unlocked car in the Greeley High School parking lot, parked in a row of fellow students’ pickups with rifles and shotguns hanging in their back windows. Other times, I’d walk from our house through town, gun in hand, on my way to see what I could kick or flush from Stanley Johnson’s shelterbelt, pond or field. Small game was not safe there. But I admit here for the first time that – think ing it was a squirrel – I shot a reddish spot on a tree trunk, twice.
But I know that during countless outdoor excursions on the edge of the Sandhills in Greeley County, with one of his cherished guns in hand and an inherited sense of ad venture in my heart, Grandpa was always hunting with me.
One is a Springfield/J. Stevens Arms single barrel 20 gauge with a stiff hammer and hair trigger. The other firearm is a Remington Model 34 .22 rifle, the compa ny’s first repeater of that caliber.
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T HE COOLER DAYS of September and October inspire me to un pack my fleece jackets, lace up my hunting boots and rub a thin layer of oil on my grandpa’s guns. Grandpa, Denver Lyle Haines, was a mountain of a man – at least that is how I remember him. He was born Oct. 28, 1913, and became a World War II hero, a husband, father and grandfather. He was my mother’s dad and an outdoorsman. I only remember one outdoor adven ture with him, a family gathering along the Missouri River near Grandpa’s home in Iowa. We lived hours away in Nebraska and usually only saw each other on hol idays. I’m envious of cousins who lived near Grandpa and grew up knowing him much better than I did.
Grandpa’s Guns
by ALAN J. BARTELS
An inheritance of life in the great outdoors
The $13.25 it cost when new was a lot more money then, built during the De pression when owning a straight-shoot ing rifle meant being able to put food on the table. The tube magazine can be loaded with .22 short rounds, but I only ever used .22 long since a box of 50 was $1.50 at Callahan’s ACE Hardware/IGA store in Greeley. When smalltown bore dom set in, friends and I would walk a mile north of Greeley to the town dump. We’d spend hours in that divide between farmland and sand hills devising contests – like shooting through the screw holes on discarded license plates or seeing who could shoot the caps off bottles at increas ingThedistances.gun’ssmooth bolt action allowed me to fire in quick succession at cans, bottles and discarded appliances. I rarely shot at moving targets with the .22, but my best friend swears I knocked a rooster pheasant out of the Nebraska sky on his uncle’s farm 5 miles south of Greeley with one stellar shot from this rifle. You’d think I’d remember an amazing shot like that, but I don’t. Maybe, after all these years, I should accept my friend’s memory as his long-overdue admission of my marks manship superiority. Those shooting competitions were hit and miss, but when it came to hunting small game, some innate instinct took over as I raised the rifle – my aim was al most always true. The early 1980s was a different time.
As my interest in hunting grew, my dad, who hadn’t hunted in decades, be gan coming along. Mom wasn’t overly enthusiastic about Dad and me bringing home the squirrels and rabbits that fell to the .22, or the pheasants that the 20-gauge brought down, but she cooked them for us. Thanks, Mom. I never got to go hunting with Grandpa.
I learned the basics of aiming and trig ger pull thanks to Dad’s marksmanship lessons. As a teenager, Grandpa’s guns became my constant hunting season com panions. The sleek .22 was and is my fa vorite.Grandpa took great care of that gun.
I was 11 in 1982 when Grandpa died. When his belongings were divided among his children, grandchildren and other family members, we returned home with Grandpa’s two guns. I have no memories of anything else.
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This image was created with a Canon EOS 7D Mark II camera with a Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens at 150mm, exposed at ISO 320, f/5.6 for 1/1000 of a second. photograph by SAM STUKEL
LAST LOOK
EDITORS’ CHOICE
E VERY DAY IN October, paddlefish anglers descend on the Missouri River by the Nebraska Tailwaters Boat Ramp below Gavins Point Dam. They have one month to catch a whopper.Paddlefish can weigh as much as 100 pounds (that’s like reeling in an averagely sized 13-year-old boy), so excited crowds of fishermen and women line the bank and buzz the river in boats – even in the early hours of the day. Many mornings, photog rapher Sam Stukel is there too, but it’s not fish he’s trying to Instead,capture.he’scollecting shots that reflect both the excitement and the serenity of Nebraska’s paddle fish season. If he turns to shoot one way, there will be a crowd on the bank. If he angles his camera a different way, it looks like a tranquil scene. The cooler October nights create a mystical fog on the river that’s only briefly visible at dawn. Photogra phy is like life, Stukel says. What you focus on in fluences your perception.
IN EACH ISSUE, Last Look features a reader’s pho tograph of Nebraska – landscapes, architecture, attractions, events, people or wildlife. Submit your best photographs for the chance to be published in Nebraska Life. Send digital im ages with detailed photo descriptions and your contact information to photos@nebraskalife.com or visit nebraskalife.com/contribute.
$8.95 DON’T JUST SIT THERE. DO SOMETHING. Find your fun in historic Nebraska City! We are the perfect place to bring the family on a mini-vacation or come alone if you are looking for space to relax and recharge. Nebraska City has something for everyone ... check out the timeless Kregel Windmill Factory Museum, bring the kids to the Museum of Firefighting, or learn some cool history at the Missouri River Basin Lewis & Clark Center. Shop our unique downtown stores or walk the trails at the Tree Adventure at Arbor Day Farm. Goodies galore await you at any one of our fabulous apple orchards – from pies to ciders to wines. There’s more, but it appears we’ve run out of room! Find out more about the Home of Arbor Day at NebraskaCity.com. www.NebraskaCity.com(402)873-6654 Paid for in part by the Otoe County Visitors Committee
