Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
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Local resident Tom Hewitt proves the saying that age is just a number. Hewitt is the fastest duelist in the world for people ages 65-69. He gained this title by participating in the Huntsman World Senior Games in October of 2012 in St. George, Utah. The Hunstman Senior Games began in 1987 as the World Senior Games and was founded by Daisy and John H. Morgan, Jr. with the idea that the golden years were better when good health and physical fitness became an way of life instead of an occasional...
The gas line that burst in the early hours of May 4 north of Bushnell near where County Road 17 and County Road 48 intersect has been repaired and is currently running at a limited capacity. Residents of Bushnell and the surrounding area in Kimball county had been rocked out of their sleep the morning of May 4 by a loud boom that caused them to call their neighbors to see if a house had exploded, according to statements previously made by Kimball County Highway Superintendent Dave Hottell....
Elementary students at Mary Lynch and West Elementary have been participating in a program entitled “Links of Love” the past month in order to raise money for the Kimball Relay for Life. Quite incredibly, the elementary students raised a total of $1,349.60. Mary Lynch second grade teacher Amy McManigal, who sits on the Relay for Life committee, came up with the idea for “Links of Love” after looking through the Relay for Life website in order to find a way to get kids involved. After browsing through different ideas on the website, McManig...
The City Council and the Board of Education approved a motion to let the Kimball Police Department move forward with acquiring a School Resource Officer at the their meetings the nights of May 7 and May 13, respectively. However, the approval comes with a few conditions. Most notably, the position’s salary must be funded by grant money. Police Chief Darren Huff has already found a potential grant that would cover the position for the first three years. “This is a 2013 grant that will cover up to 75 percent of the approved entry level sal...
“This new hotel is a great addition to Kimball, and it is safe to say that Kimball people appreciate it. The furniture, carpets and in fact the hotel as a whole, is equal to those of the large cities.” – The Western Nebraska Observer, Thursday, January 9, 1919. The brick-covered Wheat Growers Hotel has long since been vacated, and is devout of any of its former glory that was detailed over 90 years ago. This iconic building was a marvel to the public when it first opened in early 1919 under...
A loud boom rocked residents north of the Bushnell area out their peaceful slumbers in the early hours of Saturday, May 4, as a gas line burst in Kimball county. Kimball County Highway Superintendent Dave Hottell brought the matter to the attention of the Board of County Commissioners at their May 7 meeting. According to Hottell, he discovered people working on the line as he was driving around inspecting the county roads. “There’s a gas line that runs catty corner across the county. It’s like...
The new Economic Development Director for the city of Kimball, Wilson Bowling, started work here in city offices April 29. Bowling, a longtime resident of Alabama with undergraduate and graduate degrees from Auburn University, was originally informed about the job listing in Kimball through the Nebraska Economic Development Association’s website. “The city here posted the job quite a few places in order to attract outside talent. I found it on there, applied, and for some reason they hired me,...
Construction on Highway 71 and Highway 30 has left roads bare for the past couple weeks, leaving many residents to wonder when the recent maintenance will be completed. According to Kimball Street Superintendent Jim Ryschon, residents will not have to wait much longer to drive down the roads without the fear of running into unexpected bumps. “They’re going to start overlaying the asphalt downtown Saturday morning weather permitting, and then continue that Monday and finish the downtown. I don...
Brian Evertson, a Senior at the Kimball High School, was recently accepted into the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. This was no easy feat as Annapolis receives 20,000 or more applications every year and only accepts just 1,200 students in each Freshman class. Not only is it an arduous application process, but in order to get in to the academy one has to put in a lot of work in school to be considered for the academy. “Once you get all your forms completed, it’s just a waiting game. It’s a lot of work. It’s not just all the a...
Carma Weisbrook’s fifth grade classroom at Mary Lynch Elementary has been ranked a Top 100 classroom in the Pizza Hut BOOK IT! Program. The BOOK IT! Program is a sixth month reading program for elementary students that focuses on motivating children to read more and helping them develop a lifelong love of reading. Weisbrook’s classroom logged 143,760 minutes of reading this past run of the program to place 65th on the Top 100 list. With over 14 million students in 680,000 classrooms across the...
The City of Kimball has found a new police chief to take over the spot vacated by former Police Chief Mark Simpson. Captain Darren Huff, who has worked in law enforcement for approximately 16 years, was approved by the City Council at their April 22 meeting to take over the Kimball Police Department as police chief. “I had the option as the mayor of opening this up for people to apply for the position of chief of police or go within our own ranks and assign someone to that,” Mayor James Sch...
Mark Simpson, the Chief of Police for the city of Kimball, has turned in his letter of resignation from his position, according to Mayor James Schnell with a copy of that letter being released to this paper. “It is truly with a heavy heart that I resign as Chief of Police of the City of Kimball,” Simpson’s resignation letter began. “I want the council to know that it has been a privilege for me to be able to be part of your lives and the lives of the citizens of Kimball.” The letter goes on t...
The idiom “any port in a storm” certainly applies to the many travelers who were brought into town to stay overnight, because of the closing of I-80 during the recent snow storm that hit the area. However, out of the unfortunate circumstance that led people having to pull off the interstate for the night comes a story that shows just how much heart and kindness residents of Kimball county truly have and show to their fellow man. Joe Trujillo and Jess Valdez of Pueblo, Colorado had been traveling west along I-80 trying to get to Cheyenne to get...
In a special meeting held on April 1 by the Board of Education, the board moved to accept the resignations and approve the buyout offers of four teachers of the Kimball School District. Among the teachers who have resigned are Emily Brooks, Junior-Senior High Art teacher, Kathleen O’Brien, Theresa Fiorelli, and Linda Mihm with O’Brien, Fiorelli, and Mihm accepting buyout offers from the district. The resignations come from an offer that Superintendent Troy Unzicker extended to veteran teachers in order to avoid the termination of the newer tea...
The Kimball Police Department and the Kimball County Sheriff’s department were called to Motel Kimball Saturday night to investigate a report of terroristic threats that ultimately led to the arrest of two suspects. “There was a complaint of a terroristic threats made, the party was at Motel Kimball. The officer on duty requested assistance to back him up going and speaking to this individual. We proceeded to do so, and they did find a small amount of what they expected to be methamphetamine,” Sheriff Harry Gillway said. Bo Fernandez a.k.a...
The County Commissioners will allow the Visitors Committee to pursue property after hearing the result of research into purchasing the old Burger King building near I-80 for the purpose of converting it into the new High Point Welcome Center. According to County Tourism Director Jo Caskey, she and her team met with the owner of the property Friday, March 29, in order to discuss possible options for leasing or buying the building. “He made a fairly generous offer to do the property as a contract for deed. He’s willing to amortize the deal at...
Kimball Police Chief Mark Simpson, who has served the city of Kimball for approximately two years, is under investigation by city officials, according to Mayor James Schnell. “The Kimball County Sheriff asked Simpson to go on administrative leave because he made accusations,” Schnell said. “I have to do an investigation with City Administrator Ortiz to find out if they are of merit. We will do what the law requires and investigate.” The investigation stems from a letter received by the City of Kimball sent by Sheriff Harry Gillway proclai...
Kimball’s County Commissioners approved a motion to pursue more information on the establishment of a visitors center after hearing a presentation from Tourism Director Jo Caskey. The location currently being considered by Caskey is the old Burger King building that currently sits by the Interstate. “This building is excellent there. The infrastructure is in place. The property is available for lease or purchase. It includes a large paved parking area on 4.9 acres,” Caskey said. The location would serve as the new High Point Welcoming Cente...
George Risk Industries, Inc. has chosen their replacement for former President and Chairman of the Board Ken Risk, who passed away February 27 after a brief battle with pancreatic cancer. Stephanie Risk-McElroy, Ken Risk’s daughter, was chosen by GRI’s Board of Directors to take over the position on March 5. “I’ve kind of been trained to do his job for several years, and I just kind of fell into it. It’s stuff I’ve done already. It’s just signing off on some higher level purchases, an...
A Wyoming man wanted for felony warrants in Laramie County, Wyoming was arrested here in Kimball last week. Matthew Michael Huelsman, 37, wanted on three felony warrants for stalking, one for burglary, and a misdemeanor for a probation violation with an original charge of battery, and a second warrant violation for a protection order, was taken into custody by Sergeant Brandon Loy of the Kimball County Sheriff’s Office. Huelsman was considered dangerous. Surprisingly, the arrest stemmed from a Facebook post by Laramie County law enforcement t...
Kimball law enforcement was led on a pursuit that ended in Pine Bluffs, Wyoming last Wednesday, February 27. According to Kimball Chief of Police Mark Simpson, the pursuit started out as a child abduction. “It was the father taking his son, and a pursuit ensued. We followed the vehicle to Pine Bluffs. Pine Bluffs PD joined in and was able to stop the individual,” Simpson said. The suspect in the pursuit, though a name has not been disclosed by local authorities, was confirmed to have a restraining order in effect against them at the time of the...
The City Council awarded a $1,500 grant to the Accelerated Reader Program at the Kimball Junior-Senior High School at their February 19 meeting. The Accelerated Reader Program focuses on increasing literacy among students, assisting teachers with their curriculum, and contributing to students’ joy of reading. The program is overseen by 7th and 8th grade teacher Lani Heeg. “You take books from the library and books from home, and if there is an accelerated reader test on the system that we have, you take a comprehension test over it. If you get...
The City of Kimball has parted ways with Economic Development Director Larissa Binod. Binod, who has worked as Economic Development Director for the City of Kimball since November 1, 2011, was terminated from her position on February 13. “I went in to the office to have a discussion to formalize the agreement to move forward with the rail spur process. In the discussion and conversation, the hand writing was on the wall, and by the time I left that office, I no longer had a job,” Binod said. According to Binod, her termination stems from a diff...
The Board of Education has started the process of finding a replacement for departing Superintendent of Kimball Public Schools Troy Unzicker. The board held a meeting in the DL room of Kimball Junior-Senior High School Friday, February 15, in order to decide upon a search firm to do the leg work in lining up candidates for the position during which time they were given a presentation by Don Hague and Jeff West of McPherson and Jacobson, LLC. Hague and West emphasized the benefits of hiring a local firm for the job. “We’re right here. We...