Post Staff – Page 334 – North Platte Post Archive

Eldie David Cline

Posted on February 6, 2018

Eldie David Cline, age 48 of North Platte, passed away Tuesday January 30, 2018.

Eldie was born December 11, 1969 in Kimball, NE to Eldie and Sharon (McKenzie) Cline. He grew up in the Minatare area before moving to Alliance where he graduated from high school in 1988. Following graduation he worked construction with his brother and uncle in California for a year before returning to Alliance where he went to work on the Burlington Northern Railroad in 1989. He met his wife, Carolyn Sue Hansen through mutual friends and the couple was married at the Alliance First Presbyterian Church on July 1, 1995. The couple moved to Laramie, WY in 2000 where Eldie attended WyoTech, earning a degree in auto body restoration and repair. Upon his graduation, he taught welding at WyoTech for one year. In 2004 he went to work for the Union Pacific Railroad in Oak Creek, CO. In 2005 he was transferred to Denver, CO where they remained until the Denver shop was closed in 2016 and they relocated to North Platte. He was a “gear head” who loved cars, Chevys in particular. He also had a knack for buying run down houses and fixing them up. Eldie did all parts of the remodeling from installing ceramic tile to plumbing, he could fix anything, and wasn’t afraid to try anything. He liked to draw and read, was a WWII buff and was great at telling jokes. He will be dearly missed by his family and friends.

Eldie is survived by his wife, Carolyn; children, Henry and Ilsa; brother, Les (Pissamai) Cline of San Jose, CA; sisters, Sheralyn (Mike) Needham of Las Vegas, NV and Lenora (Doug) Waltman of Casper, WY; mother-in-law, Susan (Gene) Lore of Alliance, NE; father-in-law, John (Connie) Hansen of Alliance, NE; uncle, Chris Cline of San Ramon, CA; aunt, Hattie Grubs of Piedmont, SD; uncle, David (Sheri) Cline of Bill, Wy; as well as other extended family members, friends, and his fellow employees on the 2^nd Shift.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Eldie and Sharon Cline; and grandparents.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested in his name for his children’s future education. Online condolences may be shared at www.adamsswanson.com. Cremation was chosen and a memorial service will be held 11:00 a.m. Saturday February 10, 2018 at Church of our Savior Episcopal Church with Reverend Jeffrey Nelson officiating. Those wishing to do so may sign the register book from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Friday February 9, 2018 at Adams and Swanson Funeral Home which is in charge of arrangements.

Audit: Nebraska state colleges had accounting errors

Posted on February 5, 2018

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A state audit has found numerous irregularities and poor accounting at Nebraska’s three state colleges.

The audit reviewed records for 2016-17 at Wayne, Peru and Chadron State colleges.

Stan Carpenter is chancellor of the Nebraska State College System. He says many of the discrepancies involved the incorrect classification of items. The report says reclassifying items moved balances across different lines and didn’t change net assets.

Audit manager Kris Kucera says the numerous errors found in the report were eventually corrected.

The Auditor’s Office found that the college system needs more knowledgeable staff members to handle financial statements to meet governmental accounting standards. The report says one person was generally in charge of overseeing the statements without review procedures to ensure accuracy and consistency.

2 men charged in death of Lincoln man missing since summer

Posted on February 5, 2018

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Two men face murder charges in the death of a Lincoln man whose family reported him missing last summer.

Prosecutors on Friday charged 36-year-old Dominic G. Aguirre and 35-year-old Paul A. Clark with second-degree murder. They also were charged with kidnapping, assault and using a firearm to commit a felony.

They were arrested last week in connection with the death of 35-year-old Phillip Madlock, whose brother reported him missing in July.

Lancaster County prosecutors allege Aguirre and Clark killed Madlock on June 28. They have been jailed since Jan. 12 on marijuana charges.

Police have provided few details about how Madlock died, including whether his body has been found.

Doris May Israelson

Posted on February 5, 2018

Doris May Israelson, 87, of North Platte, passed away January 17, 2018 at Linden Court.

She was born September 6, 1930, to Richard Roy and Lois Opal (Woodruff) Bruening in Furnas County, Nebraska.

Doris married Robert Grant Israelson August 12, 1950 in Marysville KS. They were married just shy of 30 years when he passed away June 4, 1980.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert; her parents; an infant daughter, Joni Sue; an infant brother, Richard Bruening; sister, Rosemary Stutheit; father and mother-in-law, Grant and Ethel Israelson; brother and sister-in-law, Don and Helen Israelson.

Doris is survived by her loving children, Bill (Beverly) Israelson of Lincoln; Janis (Philip) Tripe of Kearney; JoEllen (Robert) McIntosh and Julie (Kevin) Piper both of North Platte; 11 grandchildren; 13 great grandchildren with 1 on the way; brother, Gene (Carmen) Bruening of Superior; sisters-in law, Nelda (Larry) Brown of Lincoln and Karen Israelson of Omaha; many nieces and nephews.

A memorial service will be 1:00 p.m. Saturday, February 10, 2018 at Carpenter Memorial Chapel with Deb Dishman officiating. Online condolences may be shared at www.carpentermemorial.com. Carpenter Memorial Chapel is in care of arrangements.

Bernard “Bernie” Francis Pieper

Posted on February 5, 2018

Bernard Francis Pieper “Bernie”, age 90 of North Platte, passed away Thursday February 1, 2018.

Bernie was born April 14, 1927 to Ernest A. and Elizabeth (Holtkamp) Pieper in Houghton, IA. He entered the US Marine Corps September 15, 1945 and served until September 20, 1946 after which he returned home and graduated from St. John’s High School in 1947. He met his future wife, Mary Evangeline Hahler, while she was visiting a friend in Iowa, and they were married on August 30, 1952 in North Platte, NE at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church. The couple lived in Iowa briefly before moving to North Platte where Bernie farmed with his father-in-law John Hahler. He later began farming on his own. The family business continued until shortly before his death. He was “Someone who would bale a family together with the soft strong bonds of sharing, who would laugh and then sigh, and then reply, with smiling eyes, when his son says ‘I want to spend my life doing what dad does’.” He was very involved in his community, being a member of St. Patrick’s Catholic Church and passing his Catholic faith to his family. He served on the church’s finance committee, was a regular greeter at Mass and volunteered at the annual St. Pat’s BBQ since it’s beginning. He was on the NPCS School Board and was a 4^th degree in the Knights of Columbus, serving as 3^rd degree Grand Knight and 4^th degree Faithful Navigator. He and Mary are Wall of Honor recipients at the North Platte Catholic Schools as tireless volunteers and supporters.. He was named Outstanding Young Farmer by the North Platte Jaycees in 1957, was a past chair of the Nebraska Pork Producers, served as an original member of the Twin Platte NRD board, and past member of the Osgood School board. He helped begin the pork breakfast for NebraskaLand Days and was a supervisor for the Lincoln County Soil and Water Conservation District. His innovative hog confinement system design earned national recognition and the June 1969 cover of Hog Farm Management magazine. Bernie’s greatest joy was to leave everyone smiling ~ so smile!

In addition to Mary, his wife of 65 years, Bernie is survived by his 11 children; Mary F. Wyatt of North Platte; John (Lyn) of Polk City, IA; Lisa of Anchorage, AK; Dr. Kent (Marilyn) of Farnam, NE; Kurt (Jeanne) of North Platte; LynnAnn Scharf of Lincoln; Mark (Michelle) of Lincoln; David (Ann) of North Platte; Dr. Jay (Cindy) of Lincoln; Kati (Rich) Odbert of Columbus; and Adam (Pam) of Richland; 35 grandchildren and 27 great-grandchildren; brother William “Bud” (Glorine) Pieper of Ft. Madison, IA: as well as other extended family members and many many friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents; infant twins; in-laws John and Mary Hahler; sisters Marge and Agnes; brothers Henry, Bob and John; 1 grandson; and 1great grandson.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to St. Patrick’s Catholic Church or the NPCS Endowment Trust and online condolences may be shared at www.adamsswanson.com. Christian Wake Services will be 3:30 p.m. Sunday February 4, 2018 at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church. Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:00 a.m. Monday February 5, 2018 at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church with the Reverend Josh Brown as Celebrant. Burial will follow at Ft. McPherson National Cemetery with military honors. Visitation will be from noon until 6:00 p.m. Saturday February 3, 2018 at Adams and Swanson Funeral home which is in charge of arrangements.

Nebraska Ed Department seeks summer food program sponsors

Posted on February 4, 2018

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Education Department is seeking sponsors to operate its Summer Food Service Program.

The program provides meals and snacks to children at schools, churches, playgrounds and parks during summer and other school breaks. It was created to ensure children in low-income areas can get meals when they don’t have access to school lunches or breakfasts.

Eligible sponsors include public or private nonprofit schools, residential camps and local or state government sites. Program sponsors may apply for up to $15,000 a year for non-recurring expenses. The deadline to apply for a grant is March 2.

Grant applications may be downloaded from the Nebraska Department of Education Nutrition Services’ web page at: http://www.education.ne.gov/NS/SFSP/news.html.

Driver of fatal crash of van in Omaha sentenced to prison

Posted on February 4, 2018

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A 32-year-old man who was driving a speeding van that crashed last year in Omaha, killing a passenger in the cargo area, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Nemias Garcia-Velasco was sentenced Friday in Douglas County District Court. Garcia-Velasco is in the country illegally and faces deportation to Mexico when he’s released from prison.

Garcia-Velasco pleaded no contest in November to vehicular homicide while driving under the influence of alcohol.

Police say the van he was driving July 5 was speeding when it entered a curve at the Interstate 80/680 interchange. The van left the roadway and hit a guardrail and a bridge support, then burst into flames. The crash killed 58-year-old Silvano Torres, who was riding without restraints in the van’s cargo area.

4th person charged in northeastern Nebraska killing case

Posted on February 4, 2018

WEST POINT, Neb. (AP) — A fourth person has pleaded not guilty in the case of a northeastern Nebraska man whose body was found in his burned home.

31-year-old Jenna Merrill, of Oakland, Nebraska, pleaded not guilty Thursday to being an accessory to a felony. Her trial is set for May 8.

Investigators say Merrill told police that another man charged in the case, Jody Olson, had been stabbed in a bar fight. Investigators say he was actually wounded in a fight with 64-year-old Ernest Warnock, whose body was found March 11 in rubble of his Rosalie home. He’d been fatally stabbed before the fire.

Olson and his son, Derek Olson, both of Oakland, have pleaded not guilty to murder, arson and related charges in Warnock’s death. Becky Weitzenkamp has pleaded not guilty to first-degree arson and being an accessory.

Repeal of individual mandate could raise Nebraska premiums

Posted on February 4, 2018

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska residents could see their health insurance premiums spike in future years now that Congress has gutted the legal requirement to purchase coverage, but advocates say it’s too early to know how much prices could rise.

The individual mandate was effectively repealed under the Republican congressional tax plan signed by President Donald Trump, who called it “the core of disastrous Obamacare” in his State of the Union speech last week.

The mandate was a key part of the Affordable Care Act because it required all residents to buy coverage or pay a tax penalty. Congressional Republicans ended the tax penalty, rendering it toothless.

Nebraska groups that support the law said they’re concerned that without the mandate, healthy people who help subsidize everyone’s coverage will leave their plans, resulting in higher premiums for those who remain.

Nebraska has one provider of individual health insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act, Minnesota-based Medica. Two other insurers, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska and Aetna Health, dropped out of the federal marketplace this year, citing multimillion dollar losses and uncertainty in the markets.

“The mandate was intended to keep healthy people in the market and its repeal, which goes into effect next year, will not help lower premiums,” said Medica spokesman Greg Bury. “We need to see the full picture of who is in the market and who has already left the market to determine the impact” of the repeal.

The problem could be especially pronounced in rural Nebraska, which has high enrollment because many of those residents don’t get insurance through their job, said Molly McCleery, deputy director of health care access for Nebraska Appleseed, a public interest law firm that supports the health care law.

“The big question is whether people will enroll in market coverage without the penalty,” McCleery said.

McCleery said some residents who have signed up mistakenly believe that they can drop coverage right away, even though the mandate repeal doesn’t go into effect until 2019.

Even if premiums increase, many Nebraska residents will see little difference in what they pay because federal subsidies for individuals will rise to offset the additional costs. Residents who make too much to qualify for the subsidies are most likely to see a big change.

Ending the mandate will leave an additional 13 million Americans uninsured between 2019 and 2027 while reducing the federal deficit by $338 billion during that time period, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Roughly 28 million Americans were uninsured as of last year.

Average premiums in the individual market would increase by about 10 percent in most years during that period, the report found.

The CBO hasn’t broken down its estimates by state, but one national advocacy group predicted that Nebraska residents could see sharp increases in their premium costs between 2019 and 2027.

A 40-year-old Nebraskan who doesn’t get subsidies in the individual market could pay an additional $1,264 per year for coverage by 2027, according to the Commonwealth Fund, a nonprofit that seeks to improve access to health care. A 60-year-old in the same situation would pay an additional $2,684, the group found.

Nebraska Department of Insurance Director Bruce Ramge said his agency hasn’t analyzed how many people will opt out of coverage once the repeal takes effect. But he said plan prices and the availability of subsidies for low-income residents are likely to play a larger role than a potential tax penalty.

“There are many important factors” that play into purchasing decisions, Ramge said.

Nebraska’s Eppley Airfield will likely soon be upgraded

Posted on February 4, 2018

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Upgrades are on the horizon at Omaha’s Eppley Airfield as it nears capacity following its busiest year ever.

About 4.6 million people traveled through the airport last year, a 6 percent increase from 2016. The increase is the biggest annual percentage jump the airport’s seen since 2005. It’s also the airport’s fourth consecutive year of growth.

New routes, more flights, and airlines flying larger plans contributed to the increased traffic, airport officials said. Omaha’s strong economy contributed to the demand for air travel, economists said.

“The airlines have definitely been willing to invest in Omaha,” said Eppley Executive Director Dave Roth. “And in Omaha, with the economy, folks are picking up that capacity and actually flying.”

Eppley officials will begin planning for improvements outlined in the airport’s 20-year master plan that’s driven by demand. Specific projects are trigged when the airport hits certain passenger milestones.

Projects to be considered include improvements to the north concourse and renovations to the airport’s main terminal.

“We’re in the right timing right now to start looking at this,” Roth said. “I don’t think we’re too fast or too slow. We’re working through this methodically to make sure we get the right process in place and also to build the right facilities.”

Roth expects Eppley will hit the plan’s next milestone of 4.75 million passengers this year.

The airport is currently constructing a new parking garage, which is expected to be completed in the spring. It’s also adding security lines to both security checkpoints and will likely renovate the existing parking garage.