June 2015 – Page 49 – North Platte Post Archive

Phyllis M Lewis

Posted on June 3, 2015

Phyllis M Lewis, age 78, of North Platte passed away June 3, 2015 at Linden Court. She was born on August 3, 1936 in Kearney, Nebraska to Joseph and Mary (Domandle) Miller.
Phyllis graduated from Kearney High School. While living in Kearney she worked at the Good Samaritan Hospital. She married Gary Lewis on February 11, 1956. The couple lived in Kearney, Lexington, Broken Bow, and settled in North Platte. They built Cody Land Mobile Home Court and have owned and operated it since. Phyllis was a very active member of St. Patrick’s Catholic Church and was a lifetime member of the PTA. She enjoyed bowling and was passionate about helping at the church. Phyllis loved following her grandchildren’s activities throughout the years and very much enjoyed the countless hours visiting and traveling with her sister Carolyn. She kept up a relationship with the Buffalo PTA, and had much fun socializing and attending birthday dinners. Her faith, family, and friends were the center of her life.
She will be dearly missed by her sons, Rick (Ronda) Lewis and Randy (Donna) Lewis all of North Platte; grandchildren, Michelle (Jeremy) Weigel of Lincoln, Amy (Matt) McMurtry of Elkhorn, Terra (Heath) Vejraska of Papillion and Tanner (Rachel)Lewis of Lincoln; great-grandchildren, Brandon, Kaylee, Taryn, Austin, Logan, Ty, Karsyn, and Jack; and a sister, Carolyn Zwibecker of Aurora, CO.
She will be reunited in Heaven with her parents; her husband, Gary; brother-in-law and sister -in –law, Hank and Marge Hinrichsen.
Memorials may be made to St. Patrick’s Catholic Church or the North Platte Catholic School Endowment, and online condolences may be shared at www.adamsswanson.com.
Mass of Christian Burial will be 11:00 a.m. Friday, June 5, 2015 at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church with the Reverend James Golka as celebrant. Burial will follow in Fort McPherson National Cemetery near Maxwell. Christian Wake Services will be 7:00 p.m. Thursday, June 4, 2015 at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church. Visitation will be held 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. today at Adams & Swanson Funeral Home which is in charge of arrangements.

Baxter Auto is paying $4 million for UNO arena naming rights

Posted on June 3, 2015

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Omaha-based Baxter Auto is paying $4 million over 10 years for naming rights to the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s new arena.

The university on Wednesday announced the 7,500-seat facility will be called Baxter Arena. Opening is set for October.

The arena will be the home of the Mavericks’ hockey, basketball and volleyball teams.

Baxter Auto president Mickey Anderson said at a ceremony that his family’s association with the school began in 1957, when his father Tal went to what was then known as Omaha University and played baseball and basketball. Tal Anderson began working for Baxter when he was in college and became company owner in 1984.

Baxter Auto has 21 dealerships in Omaha, Lincoln and Kansas City.

Problem Drinking Affects 33 Million-14 Pct of US Adults

Posted on June 3, 2015

CHICAGO (AP) — Alcohol problems affect almost 33 million adults and most have never sought treatment. That’s according to a government survey indicating that rates have increased in recent years.

It’s the first national estimate based on a new definition of “alcohol use disorders” in a widely used psychiatric handbook that was updated two years ago. Fourteen percent of adults are affected.

The new definition combines alcohol abuse and dependence, which had been two separate disorders. It adds craving as one symptom and eliminates alcohol-related legal problems as another. Problem drinkers have at least two of 11 symptoms, including drinking that harms performance at work, school or home and frequent hangovers.

The study was published Wednesday in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.

Nebraskan Claims $97,589 Lottery Jackpot in South Dakota

Posted on June 3, 2015

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — A woman from Rushville, Nebraska, has claimed a $97,589 Dakota Cash lottery jackpot in South Dakota.

Laura Landreth won the money in the May 13 drawing with a ticket she bought at a store in Spearfish. She collected the prize on Tuesday.

Landreth says she’ll use her winnings to pay off some bills, maybe purchase a vehicle and save for retirement.

Dakota Cash is played only in South Dakota. The jackpot sits at $24,000. The odds of winning the top prize are 1 in about 325,000.

Program Helps Nebraska Inmates Communicate, Connect with Others

Posted on June 3, 2015

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts and several officials have visited with inmates participating in a club that helps them connect and communicate with others.

The governor, the director of the state Department of Correctional Services and a Nebraska senator joined a Monday meeting with around 15 inmates at the State Penitentiary to watch some of them deliver speeches.

Sponsors of the INnovators Club say it helps build inmates’ confidence and communication skills. Ricketts pushed the inmates to stick with the group and shook hands with some of them.

Members of the club say it’s still struggling to pay the dues needed to make them official with its parent organization, Toastmasters International. INnovators president Jose Rodriguez pushed officials to make sure the club stays afloat.

Johnson County Attorney Leaving for New Job in Lincoln

Posted on June 3, 2015

TECUMSEH, Neb. (AP) — The Johnson County attorney has announced that she’s leaving her elected post for a new job in Lincoln.

Julie Smith said Tuesday that her resignation is effective June 19. She says she’ll continue to live in Cook.

Smith did an internship at the Johnson County attorney’s office while in law school in 2003 and then joined the office as a deputy county attorney in 2004. She was elected in November to her third term as county attorney.

Her brother Rick Smith is deputy county attorney, and he will be the acting county attorney. The county board is expected to appoint someone within 45 days to serve the rest of Julie Smith’s term.

Lincoln Residents Awoken by Thunder Alert Neighbors to House Fire

Posted on June 3, 2015

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Members of a Lincoln family escaped a lightning-caused fire after being alerted by neighbors who were awakened by a blast of thunder.

Officials say firetrucks were dispatched just before 4:50 a.m. Wednesday to the south Lincoln home.

Patricia Zigante said told the Lincoln Journal Star (https://bit.ly/1AKhSEZ ) that when the thunder awoke her daughter, Teri Wright, Wright went to check on her daughter. Looking through a window in her daughter’s bedroom, Wright saw smoke at the neighbor’s house. Zigante says Wright went to the house and began pounding on the front door and ringing the doorbell while Wright’s daughter called 911.

Douglas Thorpe answered the door, saw the flames and soon got his wife, two sons and a dog out safely.

Firefighters estimate the blaze caused more than $100,000 damage.

Lincoln Man Who Killed, Dismembered Wife Gets Life in Prison

Posted on June 3, 2015

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A 34-year-old Lincoln man has been given life in prison for killing his wife.

Kevin Miller was sentenced on Tuesday in Lancaster County District Court. He’d pleaded no contest and was convicted of first-degree murder and use of a firearm.

Police arrested Miller on Dec. 7, just more than a week after his 28-year-old wife, Kelsey Miller, was reported missing. Her body parts were found the day before in a storage shed in northeast Lincoln, where police say they also discovered four hand saws, a knife, air fresheners, a machete, buckets and several plastic containers.

Miller told investigators he hit his wife with a baseball bat before firing shots into her head, chest and left arm. Police say Miller dismembered his wife’s body in their home.

Marines to Honor Troops Killed in Nepal Helicopter Crash

Posted on June 3, 2015

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Marine Corps will honor six Marines who were killed in a helicopter crash while on a rescue mission for earthquake victims in Nepal.

The memorial ceremony will be held Wednesday afternoon on the flight line at Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton, north of San Diego.

The six Marines and two Nepalese soldiers were aboard the U.S. military’s UH-1 “Huey” helicopter that went down May 12. The Marines were part of the Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 469 of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.

An investigation into the cause of the crash continues.

The Marines were helping with humanitarian efforts after recent earthquakes in Nepal that killed more than 8,600 people.

Man Arrested on Suspicion of Armed Robbery in Hastings

Posted on June 3, 2015June 3, 2015

HASTINGS, Neb. (AP) — A man has been arrested after an armed robbery in Hastings.

A 26-year-old man was arrested Tuesday for armed robbery and using a firearm to commit a felony earlier that day.

Sgt. Steven Murphy said the suspect went into a local store with a shotgun and demanded money. An employee complied and gave him access to the cash register.

Murphy said two other people were in the store at the time of the incident but were not injured.