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Story package by Elsie Stormberg/Wahoo Newspaper
WAHOO – When her son’s bench honoring his life was installed along Lake Wanahoo’s trails near the disc golf course in 2017, Joni Wimmer began walking his dog Boris, a caucasion ovcharka, each day to visit the bench.
As they walked, Wimmer eventually happened upon a square plot of land on the northeast side of the lake. She had no idea what the section was for or why it was there.
The video aspect of this story was awarded eighth place out 90 students in the Hearst multimedia narrative storytelling competition in November 2020.
News coverage of ethanol plant and it's environmental impact on the surrounding area of Mead, Nebraska
Articles and photos by Elsie Stormberg/Wahoo Newspaper, published between January 22, 2021 and March 31, 2021
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MEAD – Mead’s Jody Weible has an allergy to mold.
In the summer of 2018, she remembers excessively coughing and going to the doctor to learn the cause of it. The doctor gave her medicine and sent her home. When symptoms persisted and her doctor couldn’t figure it out, Weible went to a specialist.
After a few tests, the specialist told her she had an allergy to mold. Weible said she quickly connected the dots to something that had been going on in the community she lived in.
WAHOO – Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson filed a complaint in Saunders County District Court on Monday against AltEn, an ethanol plant in Mead.
The complaint ultimately seeks that AltEn must dispose of the pesticide-ridden distillers grains and wastewater being stored on the property, conform to laws and other orders and deal with civil penalties of $10,000 per day per violation at the court’s discretion, according to a press release issued Monday from the Attorney General’s Office.
Peterson said during a press conference on Monday it was one of the largest complaints his office has made in his time as attorney general.
LINCOLN – A legislative bill preventing the use of treated seed corn in the ethanol production process was advanced on [March 23, 2021] with 43 lawmakers voting in support of the bill.
Legislative Bill 507 was introduced back in January of this year by District 23 Sen. Bruce Bostelman of Brainard and had its first public hearing in the Natural Resources Committee on Feb. 3, 2021. Because of the emergency clause, the ruling will be enacted when signed by Gov. Pete Ricketts.
MEAD – Like many people throughout the state, Dr. Elli Rogan initially learned about the problematic ethanol plant Mead residents have been dealing with for years when “The Guardian,” a British news site, broke the story in January of this year.
Now, the University of Nebraska Medical Center Department of Environmental, Agricultural and Occupational Health Department chair will be leading a comprehensive study with the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) on the area of Mead as a result of AltEn’s potential effect on Mead residents, wildlife and environment.
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Article and photos by Elsie Stormberg/Wahoo Newspaper
CERESCO – Mark Rezac usually finds himself at the St. Mary and St. Patrick Cemetery at around 5:30 a.m. on the verge of a mile-a-minute kind of day.
Armed with a carefully folded American flag stored in a Ziploc bag for protection, Rezac parks near the flagpole just as the sun breaks the eastern skyline and brisk morning air greets him.
He saunters over to the pole and begins to gingerly remove the 36-by-42-inch flag from its protective casing. Rezac then fastens the flag to the tan rope and slowly moves the colors up the pole releasing the red and white stripes and the stars as the soft breeze takes the flag in its embrace.
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Article by Elsie Stormberg/Wahoo Newspaper
WAHOO – Doris Karloff is still reeling.
The District 2 Saunders County Supervisor was and still is in disbelief after learning on July 22 her that a constituent had filed a recall petition with the intention of booting her from the county board.
On July 21, the day before Karloff learned of the petition, Rhonda Carritt of Wahoo filed a petition to recall the Yutan supervisor. Carritt’s reasoning for the filing stems from Karloff allegedly not representing “the best interests of the district.”
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Article and photos by Elsie Stormberg/The Waverly News
WAVERLY – After the Waverly Track and Field Invitational on Friday, Head Coach Brian Benson tore off a chunk of 21-year-old track and handed it to a few of his seniors encouraging them to take it home.
This seems like an unorthodox gesture for a track and field coach to do, but this invitational, in which the girls track and field team were champions and the boys track team came in runner up, was the very last event to ever happen on the old track.
“It was a little surreal,” Benson said.
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Article and photos by Elsie Stormberg/Wahoo Newspaper
WAHOO – Bishop Neumann Kitchen Head Cook Carolyn Haberman’s first conversation with Larry Mach was in early August this year and was about a proposal he had to benefit Saunders Catholic Schools.
For those that knew Mach, this was pretty on par for him – having an idea that would help others in the community he loved. And his three children Ross, Ryan and Wendy, who are all Bishop Neumann alumni, can attest to that.
“Dad pitching this program shows that he was always looking for ways to better our community and schools,” Wendy Mach said. “He always had great ideas, and to see it being brought to life is so amazing.”
On Sept. 25, 2020, about a month after Haberman spoke to Mach, he died in a car accident along with his wife, Marty.
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Article and photos by Elsie Stormberg/Wahoo Newspaper
WAHOO – As Wahoo-native Amanda Benkusky moved out of the little white house with an “A” on the door on west 10th street, she found several boxes full of old bibles, children’s books and a lifetime of memories hidden away in the home’s attic. She also finally found out what the “A” on the door stood for.
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Article and photos by Elsie Stormberg/The Waverly News
WAVERLY – It was a perfect storm, Jorge Zuniga said.
Establishing Waverly Soccer Academy (WSA) last August only happened because of the culmination of three important aspects, the club director and boys coach said.