Looking back - 2017 in review

“Isn’t it funny how day by day nothing changes, but when you look back everything is different..” C.S. Lewis

Taking a look back at the year behind us, we see many stories of success, hope and growth and a few that we will surely be glad to leave in the past.

July 6, 2017

Potter’s Combs an initial Hall of Fame inductee

by Don Ogle

To many, he was simply “Coach.” To others, “Mr. Combs.” But to all within the Potter community, Al Combs was for many years held in high regard, both within the confines of the school and in the community.

And now, the regard Coach Combs held has landed him in the Nebraska Eight Man Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Combs, who coached at Potter High School for 20 years, from 1958 to 1978, was the first man named to the Hall of Fame during halftime ceremonies at the Sertoma Eight Man Football All Star Game in Hastings June 17. By coincidence, Combs was also the assistant coach for the west at the very first Eight Man All Star game in 1978.

The ride began when Combs, working the wheat harvest to pay his way through college, found out there was an opening for a math teacher in Potter. At that time he also accepted the football coaching position, fulfilling a long-time dream.

The opportunity to coach was one inspired by the teachings of his own high school coach, Oklahoma legend Joe Ross, who instilled not only a love for football, but impacted his approach to life as well.

In fact, as a hall of famer, Combs downplays his own part in the honor, instead shifting the credit to Ross, and the Potter High Players.

July 20, 2017

District approves student drug testing and stadium repairs

by Tonia Copeland

The (Kimball School) board updated policies for the coming year along and approved the updated handbooks for the coming school year.

One such policy, mandatory random drug testing of students, was reviewed and passed unanimously on the second reading.

Students in grades 7 – 12 who wish to participate in extra-curricular activities must have a signed consent for the test prior to involvement.

After completing further investigation, High School Principal Eugene Hanks suggested purchasing the testing kits from Western Pathology Consultants, Inc. (WPCI) and hire Kimball Health Services to conduct the tests.

Kimball Health Services reduced their price from $44.10 per test to $30, making them the most economical choice.

Aug. 10, 2017

Filling up fast

by Tonia Copeland

The newest cell at Kimball Landfill will reach capacity within the next two years and an expansion will be required by that time, at an estimated cost of $1.6 million, according to Kimball City Administrator Dan Dean.

“I want to bring the landfill to your attention,” Dean said. “We have a little over two years left in the (current) cell for trash. It is time to start thinking about increasing it.”

The engineers estimate, according to Dean, included a 50 percent multiplier from earlier estimates and a 40 percent contingency – bringing the total estimate to $1.6 million.

“I hope it can come in substantially less than that,” Dean said. “The original estimate was approximately $750,000.”

This was reported during the recent City Council meeting as part of Dean’s updated draft budget report.

“As I mentioned earlier, I reorganized the budget (report) a bit,” Dean said. “My budget approach is that you should have an ending fund balance in each of the funds. That creates a beginning fund balance for future use. I’m moving in that direction to have a better idea of where we are with our cash going forward.”

Dean drafted the landfill cell into the budget as a bonded issue beginning this year. This major expense is required to handle the waste produced by Kimball residents, but one current landfill expense is avoidable.

Green dumpsters are placed in local alleys next to the brown dumpsters to allow citizens to deposit yard waste separately from household trash. The end result should be a rich pile of usable soil.

Instead the compost pile, covering approximately five acres at the Kimball Landfill, is a mix of yard waste and household waste that renders the soil unusable in its current condition.

This presents a big problem for the City of Kimball and the taxpayers, as the cost of waste management continues to increase and makes more work for landfill crew members.

Aug. 17, 2017

Total Solar Eclipse 2017

by Dakota Kuhns

As you have probably already heard Monday Aug. 21 will be one of the most amazing events to remember.

A total solar eclipse will be making its way across the state, and of course everyone around the line of totality is expecting many different visitors. According to visitscottsbluff.com at 10:25:50 am the Partial Eclipse will be visible. Then a little over an hour later, the Total Eclipse will be visible at 11:48:11. The projected total length of totality is 1 minute and 42 seconds.

Some of the great local places to be able to watch this “once in a lifetime” event will be, Scottsbluff/Gering area, Alliance, Hemingford and Broken Bow, to name a few places.

Campgrounds near the line of totality have been filled up for months, with local residents renting their houses for the week in many of the towns near the line. Kimball is said to be about 90 miles off the line of totality, but many folks will be trying to inch their way closer to be a part of this fantastic event. Being within the line of totality is everything.

Safety is a huge concern for this event, if you have not had the chance already to get some Eclipse Glasses please, please do so, especially for children. Looking directly at the sun is never safe, but according to NASA the only way to look directly at the un-eclipsed or partially-eclipsed sun is through special-purpose solar filters, such as “eclipse glasses” or a hand-held solar viewer. “Homemade filters or ordinary sunglasses, even very dark ones, are not safe for looking at the sun; they transmit thousands of time of too much sunlight.”

Make sure you and your children have “Eclipse Glasses” and are understanding of how to use them. With prenatal supervision, many of the glasses will not fit correctly, being made for adults, so be very attentive to be sure the lens is covering the entire eye. Eye sight damage can be caused within seconds of looking directly into the sun.

Please travel safely, wear the correct protective gear, and be a part of witnessing this spectacular event.

Aug. 17, 2017

Higher utilities due to increased usage and longer billing period

by Tonia Copeland

Following a recent increase of complaints about high utility bills, with some nearly doubling, Kimball City Administrator Dan Dean sheds some light on causes, including longer billing cycles.

“There is a combination of factors for higher bills. Primarily the higher bills are due to higher usage of water and electricity,” he said. “Also, the number of days between meter readings will vary between 28 and 35 days. This was one of the longer periods of time.”

Though the number of days between readings vary, he said that all meters are usually read every month.

“The only exceptions would be if something is blocking the meter and we cannot get to it to read it or if there is a malfunction with the meter,” Dean said.

City of Kimball staff suggested a budget billing plan to the Board of Public Works during their most recent meeting, and Dean said that while the board is supportive of the idea, more details are needed before it can be implemented.

Sept. 14, 2017

Kimball volleyball gets first win in busy week of play

by Tom Southard

Two triangulars and a tournament last week provided a lot of action and tough competition for the Kimball volleyball program. The Lady Horns split the first triangular with one loss and one win at Bridgeport on Sept. 5 and followed up at home for two disappointing losses on Thursday, Sept. 7. The Horns were back at it just two days later for the Bridgeport tournament and came home in third place with three wins.

In the first game against host Bridgeport on Tuesday, Hannah Biesecker and teammate Kate Reader were each credited with four kills, followed by two each from Justine Heeg and Hailey Paxton and one by Jenna Greenwood.

Heeg led in assists, with three, Wynne added two assists and Wurdeman one. Paxton was the only successful solo blocker in the game against Bridgeport.

Bridgeport took the game in two sets, 25-10, 25-15.

Following the Bridgeport loss, the Lady Horns won over Garden County in three sets, 25-13, 27-25 and 25-13.

Leading the Lady Horns in their first win of the season offensively was Biesecker with 11 kills, followed closely by Reader with 10, Heeg with three and Paxton with 2. Greenwood led with three ace serves, while Heeg, Paxton and Biesecker each added one. Heeg offered 14 assists and Wurdeman added four.

Defensively, Biesecker logged the sole block and no digs were recorded.

The Kimball ladies hosted a triangular just two days later and came up short with a loss to Mitchell in two sets, 25-18 and 25-13, followed by a loss to Potter-Dix in three.

Of 47 attempts, just ten kills were successful, with Biesecker totaling five, Reader and Greenwood two each and Paxton one.

Serving, which has consistently been a trouble spot for the Lady Horns, was improved against Mitchell, with Biesecker serving up two aces and Paxton one.

Just one dig was recorded, by Wurdeman, and no blocks. Heeg offered seven assists and Wynne one.

The home team rallied against Potter-Dix, narrowly losing the first set 25-23 before taking the second set 25-21 and finally losing in the third, 25-17.

Sept. 21, 2017

Kimball Cross Country earned best times at Alliance

by Dakota Kuhns

Kimball Cross Country got some good things done in Alliance this past Saturday, Sept. 16. A beautiful day, perfect temperature, not to hot not to cold.

Nearing the end of the season with only five meets left before districts, Coach Tiffany Johnson is sure looking forward to seeing what else will shape up. “All but one of our runners had their fastest times.”

For High School Boys in order of Kimball’s fastest times, Kaden Adrian had a fast time of 19:45, Garrett Pederson 20:39, Nicholas Thomas-Lewis 21:39, Cole Henton 23:24, Alex Flores 24:54, Jordan Cluff, 26:26:59.

High School Girls, Alex Reader had fast time of 27:02, Brandi Councilman 28:43, Kaylyn Nelson 29:39.

Coach Johnson is excited about the Junior High runners and how they are improving every meet.

Junior High Results:

Chantel Malson placed eighth with a time of 11:37, Matthew Johnson 11:38, Caelyn Long 11:43, Anabela Whitehead 13:07, James McGinnis 13:59, Xavier Thomas-Lewis 14:50, Madison Merryfield 15:14, Louise Tambanillo 15:53, Gideon Casimiro 16:18, and Alycia Vrbas 17:49.

Kimball Cross Country’s next meet is today, Thursday Sept. 21 in Ogallala.

Oct. 12, 2017

NMPP urges City to update net metering policy for consumer-owned alternate energy sources

by Tonia Copeland

As alternate sources of energy become more commonplace, the City of Kimball is considering an update to the net metering policy.

Net metering allows a consumer to “bank” energy produced by personal solar panels or wind turbines that goes unused at the time of production.

Rich Andrysik presented information about net metering at the Sept. 26 Board of Public Works meeting. Andrysik is an engineer employed by the Nebraska Municipal Power Pool (NMPP).

Customer-owned renewable energy generation may be net metered in Nebraska, but that energy must reach a minimum of 25 kW and can be generated from solar, wind, hydro or biomass sources, according to Andrysik.

In Nebraska, the renewable energy generated by the customer will serve the consumer’s needs first, reducing the draw on public energy, and the excess is sent to the utility. At the end of the month, the amount of energy sent to the utility is subtracted from the amount of provided energy and the result is billed either to the consumer or the utility.

According to Andrysik, NMPP urges all municipalities to be ready for the eventuality that a consumer wants to install solar panels. This includes having a policy in place and preparing the billing system for this possibility. The Municipal Energy Alliance of Nebraska is prepared to assist members with these updates.

Connecting a personal energy system to the grid requires that all generated energy must be converted from DC to AC to match distribution systems; the utility must be able to read output and a specialized, bi-directional meter is needed to record the flow of energy in and out of the system.

Additionally, an accessible, manual, locking disconnect is required between the generator and the grid for safety of personnel and the system, according to the information provided by Andrysik and also for safety, consumer-owned generators are required to disconnect automatically from the grid in the case of an outage or for maintenance.

The City of Kimball is currently working on updates needed to the local net metering policy and citizens are encouraged to contact the city, at 308-235-3639 or NMPP at 402-474-4759 with questions.

Oct. 26, 2017

KHS students offered a grim reminder of consequences

by Desyree Nelson

The day started off like any other. Then following the normal announcements, Kerry Ferguson, Director of Community Relations and Foundation at Kimball Health Services, announced the statistics of suicide and distracted driving.

“The leading killer of teenagers is automobile crashes. 133 teenagers die every week in traffic crashes,” Ferguson said. “Suicide is the third leading cause of death in teenagers and for every suicide among young people, there are at least 100 suicide attempts. Half of these suicides among young people are related to bullying. Bully victims are between two and nine times more likely to consider suicide than non-victims.”

Kimball Prevention Coalition (KPC), together with Kimball Health Services, offered students a grim reminder that actions come with consequences, through the Grim Reaper Project on Oct. 19.

Approximately 70 percent of the 2016 sophomore class reported being the victim of bullying and 31 percent of them had considered attempting suicide. Those numbers are shocking and that is why KPC got involved.

The percentage students who had contemplated suicide as a result of bullying was devastating to think about.

The Grim Reaper walked into classrooms each class period to reap one or two students, totaling one student every 18 minutes. The significance...every 18 minutes someone dies as a result of suicide.

As students were selected by the Grim Reaper, Jamie Soper, Director of Special Services at Kimball High School explained to classmates that student’s absence was either by automobile accident or as a result of suicide.

Those students were not allowed to interact with anyone for the remainder of the day. A somber portrayal of a day without a classmate. For many, this was a very hard situation.

Alandalynn Prather tells NBC Nebraska, “It felt so real.They can’t look at you, they can’t talk to you, but you can still feel their presence. As if they actually did die.”

Students returned to class in white face paint, white sunglasses and a white Grim Reaper Project shirt. Along with this ghost-like look, they were handed a red placard that revealed the more detailed circumstances of their death.

One sign read, ‘My parents are going through a divorce. It seems like it’s my fault so I got rid of the problem.’ Another, ‘My girlfriend texted me asking if I was almost home. I looked for 2 seconds and before I knew it...I was going through the windshield.’ One placard included both scenarios, ‘I was texting and driving. I didn’t see the children crossing the street… I swear it was an accident. I couldn’t handle the guilt anymore.’

These three were just a few of 20 different scenarios, 10 were circumstances of suicide and the other 10 were car crashes.

Following the ‘reaping’ Dr. James Broomfield of Kimball Health Services addressed the student body. He recalled that three fellow high school graduates took their own life as did three college classmates had committed suicide within five years of graduation.

Nov. 2, 2017

Coyotes sweep Indians on the season 3-0

by Dakota Kuhns

Potter-Dix gets a big home win on Morrill last Thrusday in a 3-1 set.

Morrill took the first set with a 25-22 victory but the Lady Coytoes battled back to win the last three sets with scores of 25-11, 25-13, and 25-21.

Senior Trinity Langley stepped up once again in this match helping the Coyotes with 19 kills, six blocks, as well as, some great digs.

Potter-Dix is leading the D2 District 12 standings 7-1 over Leyton 6-1, Creek Valley 5-2, Banner County 2-3 and Minatate 0-7.

Langley also leads district in kills with 270, right behind her is Audrey Juelfs with a total of 230 for second.

In the assists district stat leaders Brooke Moench is sitting third with 281, followed by Payge Hoffman with 106 and Makayla Merz with 78.

Ace Serves, Freshman Kelsey Hoffman is tied for second with Creek Valley’s Samantha Schmid with 48, and sitting in fourth is Payge Hoffman with 43.

In total blocks, Langley is on top again with 160, Kelsey Hoffman in fourth with 51.

Digs for the district stats, Juelfs is in second with 360 followed by P. Hoffman with 340 and Trinity Langley with 300.

Nov. 30, 2017

New communication system for the KCSO

by Dakota Kuhns

The Nebraska Statewide Radio System is a must for all Sheriff’s departments along Interstate 80 in the state of Nebraska, according to Kimball County Sheriff, Harry Gillway, and Kimball is now one of many using the state-of-the-art system.

The State of Nebraska made it clear that all Sheriff’s departments along I-80 needed to be using this new system, with an out-of-pocket cost around $10,000 each. However, the state paid for them, meaning Kimball County didn’t see any of cost for purchasing the new radios.

This new system, unlike any the county has had before, boasts crystal clear transmission and the ability to use it absolutely anywhere in the state.

“We can talk on our handheld portable from the prison in Lincoln back here to Kimball just perfectly,” said Sheriff Gilway.

During a recent demonstration, Gillway was able to connect with KCSO Deputy Anthony Osborn from inside the Sheriff’s office and again with Gillway’s portable radio, and Osborn, who was just outside of Kearney, was able to hear everything coming through just fine from here at home.

Along with crystal clear audio, this new system increases safety. “Officer safety is first and foremost,” Gillway said. This system has a emergency button that, when pressed, will connect with the Nebraska State Patrol and transmit the location where more help is needed.

The Kimball Sheriff’s Office has had this new system for about four weeks now and it was already been put to great use several weeks ago, during the search for Elijah Dunning of Commerce City, Colo.

Dunning had fled from the Nebraska State Patrol, making his way through several Panhandle counties along I-80. The KCSO used the new state-wide system to stay in constant contact with the State Patrol as well as Cheyenne County Sheriffs.

The new system doesn’t replace the old system it just adds a better layer, according to Gillway.

According to Gillway there is hope that the Kimball Police Department will be receiving this new system in the near future.

Dec. 7, 2017

Longhorns get wrestling season underway

by Tom Southard

The 2017-18 Wrestling Season is underway for the Kimball High Longhorns. They opened up with a home dual with Bayard on the final day of November and despite the losing score of 40-5, Coach Wade Brashear saw some good wrestling from some of his limited squad. The Tigers won 4 matches by forfeit as Kimball could not fill the weight classes. The Horns could put only 5 wrestlers on the mats against Bayard and their lone win on the evening was by Jordan Cluff at 120 with a technical fall over Hunter Kildow 18-2 at 120 pounds.

At 126 senior Garrett Pedersen took highly touted Alex Araujo into overtime before losing 9-7 by sudden victory. It was really a solid opening match for Pedersen who is looking for a return trip to the State Tournament in his final season with the Horns.

Jaden Mohr at 138 lost a 15-2 major decision to state ranked Mitch McKibbin but the score is not indicative of how well Mohr performed either. At 152 Ethan Ratzlaff, shown left, lost 7-2 to Leonard of Bayard, and at 285 Stephen Bateman lost by pin to Jones.

Kimball took part in the Chuck Anand Invitational in Akron, Colorado this past Saturday and according to coach Brashear, “We wrestled pretty well for our first tournament. I believe this was the most team points we have scored in Akron, and with only 6 wrestlers” he said.

Jordan Cluff has a record of 3-1with 3 pins wrestling at 120. Connor Cluff, also wrestling at 120, was 2-2 and placed 4th, with Jordan ending up in 2nd place, Garrett Pedersen also finished 2nd with a 3-1 record at the 126 pound weight class. Jaden Mohr had a 2 win 2 loss day at 138 but failed to place. Ethan Ratzlaff and Stephen Bateman both went 1-2 on the day and did not place, but to their credit, all Kimball wrestlers had wins!

“We will continue to improve on technique, conditioning, and aggression” said coach Brashear. “There will be many more tough matches to come, including at the Banner County Invitational this Saturday” said Brashear. Wrestling at Harrisburg on Saturday will begin at 9:30 am.

Dec. 21, 2017

Proposed eligibility requirements face strong opposition at recent school board meeting

by Tonia Copeland

How do we raise the bar for academics locally? That is the question the Kimball Board of Education has asked themselves for a number of years.

Following a presentation by local teachers at the end of the 2016-17 school year, the board revisited the question and came up with an answer – reforming the eligibility policy.

Proposed changes met with some opposition at the Dec. 11 board meeting from parents, educators and coaches.

Some of the changes were applauded, such as those made to the grading system that could potentially help students in the classroom and when applying for scholarships.

Under the current grading system, any student earning 93 – 100 percent will receive an “A” and that student’s G.P.A will be 4.0. Likewise a “B” grade is given for work ranging from 85 – 92 percent with a 3.0 equivalent; a “C” is given for work ranging from 77 – 84 percent with a G.P.A of 2.0 and a “D is given for work in the 70-76 percent range with an equivalent G.P.A of 1.0. Any work that is graded lower than 70 percent is given an “F” with no credit on the G.P.A scale.

The proposed changes lower the minimum percentage required for each letter grade, so “A” work is anything that ranges from 90 – 100 percent. A “B” is given for any student earning 80 – 89 percent and the G.P.A equivalent of 3.0. A “C” is given for any work earning 70 – 79 percent and the equivalent G.P.A is 2.0 while grades in the 65 – 69 percent range is assigned the letter “D” and the G.P.A of 1.0. Any grade lower than a 65 is an “F” with no G.P.A equivalent.

Educators are happy with this change, but not with the attached eligibility change, though students would not become ineligible to attend events unless grades fell below 70 percent – as the policy currently reads, that percentage would be a “D”, not an “F”.

“I just want to make it clear that right now the policy reads that if they currently have one grade less than a 70 (percent) they are ineligible,” board member Brad Reader said. “The proposed policy says that if they have one grade less than a 70 (percent) they are ineligible.”

Dec. 21, 2017

Two plead guilty to harboring an alien for financial gain

by Tonia Copeland

Two managers of the Kimball Super 8 motel pled guilty in federal court in Omaha to harboring an unlawful immigrant for financial gain and conspiracy, according to federal authorities.

Vishnubhai Chaudhari, 50, and Leelabahen Chaudhari, 44, of Kimball pled guilty to the charges on Monday, Dec. 18, following their arrest on March 30, 2017.

According to court documents the two admitted to holding an Indian national at the local motel from October 2011 to February 2013, when the unnamed victim escaped with the help of local law enforcement and a motel guest.

Prior to the escape, the victim was forced to work long hours, seven days a week, at the motel performing duties such as cleaning rooms, shoveling snow and doing laundry. Though pay was promised, the defendents claimed instead to apply those wages to a debt the victim owed.

Not allowed to leave the motel, the victim was isolated and abused, verbally and physically, according to a recent press release.

At the Monday hearing, upon changing their pleas to guilty, the defendents paid the victim $40,000 in restitution.

The defendents face a possible sentence of up to 18 months in prison, according to their plea agreements, and they are expected to be removed from the United States when their sentences are completed. Sentencing is scheduled for March 19, 2018.

Dec. 28, 2017

Council rejects Mayor’s appointment to City Treasurer and Board of Public Works positions

by Tonia Copeland

As the City of Kimball moves into the new calendar year, Kimball Mayor Keith Prunty is charged with appointing citizens to certain boards, committees and positions for the City of Kimball.

Prunty appointed newcomer Mike Coleman as Board of Public Works chairman, but council was not having it. Though they had earlier applauded efforts for term limits on certain committees, the council was reluctant to let go of 16 years of experience current board chairman, Jim Cederburg, brings to the table.

Coleman has resided in Kimball for approximately two years and currently serves on the LB840 committee as well as the Planning Committee.

“I feel that Coleman is a better fit in that position moving forward in our community,” Prunty said. “I am looking forward to the advancement of our community.”

“You are telling us that someone who just went through everything with us to get Keep Kimball Beautiful to work with us, someone who is heavily involved with at our landfill and our electrical projects – that is pretty rough to say there is someone better suited,” Schnell said.

Council questioned Prunty’s reasons, to which he simply stated that he understood if they did not want to approve the appointment. He added that he was looking for new ideas and a new perspective moving forward.

“You are asking us to back your decision, but you have not given us any information as to why,” council member Christy Warner said. “We are in the middle of some huge projects right now.”

Council voted to approve or disapprove each board appointment separately, with council member James Shields the sole dissenting vote. Warner moved and Schnell seconded to deny the appointment of Coleman as the chairman of the Board of Public Works – again Shields was the sole dissenting vote.

“I just think the timing on this stinks,” council member Kim Baliman said.

Though council wants Cederburg to remain on the board, his term is up and the Mayor is expected to name a new appointee at the next council meeting.

All other appointments, which were reappointments, were approved until the council came to the reappointment of City Treasurer Laurie Sisk.

“What we had for episodes during our budget and problems we have had on park and rec areas, bookkeeping there and on our payroll too, that it would be best that, upon approval, that we have guidance from you two (City Administrator Dan Dean and Prunty) to make sure this all gets straightened out,” Schnell said. “For the dollars we are spending, we need a professional job.”

Dean explained that separate spreadsheets were maintained and changes to some of those did not get copied into past budgets.

“At the time, Rosie (Russell, retired City Clerk) was here, she was the one who handled it all,” Prunty said. “I don’t believe that information was shared.”

“Given the information that the Mayor shared with each of us, and given that we approved (Dean’s) contract, so we have confidence in what he is supposed to be doing, so let’s put it to a vote,” Shields said.

Council allowed the attempt to reappoint Sisk die for lack of a second to Shields motion to reappoint Sisk, who then left the meeting to gather her personal belongings.

“I am disappointed in the outcomes at the city council meeting Tuesday evening. I had only been recently informed of concerns regarding Laurie Sisk. Immediately following that, the City Administrator and I had an independent audit done to see if there were further concerns that needed to be investigated. That audit came up with no glaring issues and no misappropriation of funds was indicated,” Prunty said. “This information was given to the council as well as the plans to monitor the council’s concerns. Three members of the council did not give Laurie that opportunity. It was sad to have this happen at Christmas time and I wish Laurie and her family the very best.”