HENRY, Neb. (AP) — A 47-year-old Nebraska Panhandle man has been killed in a rollover crash.
The crash was reported about 7:35 p.m. Tuesday just east of Henry. The Scotts Bluff County Sheriff’s Office says Timothy Garner lost control of his vehicle, which ran into a cornfield and rolled, ejecting him. Garner was pronounced dead at the scene. He lived in Scottsbluff.
Crash investigators suspect excessive speed and Garner’s consumption of alcohol were factors in the crash.
Herman Grauerholz, Jr., age 82, of Sutherland, NE, passed away on Monday, August 29, 2016, at Imperial, NE.
Herman was born October 6, 1933, to Herman, Sr. and Rose Burch Montgomery Grauerholz at Sutherland and grew up on the family farm southwest of Sutherland. He attended Pleasant Hill country school and graduated from Sutherland High School with the Class of 1951.
Herman began his career with the Platte Valley Power and Irrigation District (PVPP & ID), which later became Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD), before graduating from high school. He took a leave from work in December 1953 to serve in the U.S. Army. After completing basic training Herman was assigned to a truck driving unit in Texas. From there, he was sent to Germany and because of his job, he was able to visit many European countries. Herman was very proud of his military service.
Following his discharge in 1955, Herman returned home and went back to work, eventually retiring in 1989 after 36 years of service.
In August of 1961, Herman was united in marriage to the love of his life, Deloris Gibson, in Madrid, NE. They lived in Sutherland and raised three children.
Herman worked very hard his entire life. Along with his full time job, he farmed and raised cattle, and at one point had a Grade A dairy.
Herman was a longtime member of the Grace Lutheran Church in Sutherland and a member of the Rural Youth, a card club and the American Legion. He was also a volunteer Lutheran Brotherhood Representative, doing many benefits for people.
He leaves behind his wife of 55 years, Deloris, of Sutherland; children, Richard (Cathy) Grauerholz, of Hershey, Timothy Grauerholz, of Imperial, and Karleen (Kevin) Monheiser, of Hershey; five grandchildren, Kelsey (Jeremy) Hayden, Christine Grauerholz, Joshua (Chelsea) Grauerholz and Kortney and C.J. Monheiser; two sisters, Irma Anderson and Nona (Harley) Gries; sisters-in-law, Marlene (Joe) Estermann and Connie (Kim) Stewart; brothers-in-law, Roland McCoy, Kenneth (Beverly) Gibson and Rod (Carol) Gibson; and many nieces, nephews and other family.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Herman, Sr. and Rose; two sisters, Donna Batterman and Geraldine McCoy; brother-in-law, Leyon Batterman; half brothers, Orlo and Allen Montgomery; and an infant brother, Gerald.
Funeral Service will be 10:30 a.m. Saturday, September 3, 2016, at Grace Lutheran Church with Pastor Erin Dunlavy officiating. Burial with military honors will follow in the Riverview Cemetery. Visitation will be prior to the service at the church. Condolences may be shared at odeanchapel.com. In lieu of flowers, memorials are to Grace Lutheran Church or the donor’s choice. Odean Colonial Chapel at C & Sycamore is in charge of arrangements.
Today
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A letter from the chief executive of Omaha Public Power District says the utility will permanently shut down its nuclear plant at Fort Calhoun this fall.
That comes from correspondence it obtained from OPPD President and CEO Tim Burke to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The letter, dated Thursday, says the Fort Calhoun plant will be shuttered Oct. 24.
The utility’s board voted in June to permanently close the plant.
Once closed, a nuclear plant must undergo a decommissioning process to remove or decontaminate materials and equipment that have been exposed to radioactivity. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission requires decommissioning to be completed within 60 years of a plant’s closure.
Cleaning up the site after its closure is estimated to cost more than $1 billion.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A man accused of stripping to his underwear at an airport in Nebraska, stealing a truck and ramming it into a Southwest Airlines plane has been charged with theft and criminal mischief.
A judge on Monday set bail at $50,000 for 35-year-old Delairo Koonce. Jail records say Koonce remains in custody Tuesday.
Authorities say Koonce was acting erratically at Omaha’s Eppley Airfield Thursday when he climbed a fence to evade airport police. Authorities say Koonce stripped down to his boxer shorts, stole an airline pickup and drove it into the plane as passengers were boarding. Three people suffered minor injuries.
Court records don’t list an attorney who can comment on Koonce’s behalf.
Koonce’s father says his son has a history of mental illness and drug problems.
Evelyn Rose Frame, age 87, of Hershey, NE, passed away on Tuesday, August 30, 2016, at Great Plains Health in North Platte.
Evelyn was born July 26, 1929, to William Jacob and Helen Papik Korbel in Kramer, Lancaster County, NE. The family moved to Hershey in 1936 and Evelyn attended Star Country School then graduated from Hershey High School in 1947.
On June 26, 1949, Evelyn was united in marriage to Gayle Leigh ‘Ruffy’ Frame at the Methodist Church in Hershey. The couple built a home on the family farm where Gayle farmed and raised hogs and cattle with his family. Evelyn and Gayle had five children in three years, two sets of twins and one in between, and were married for nearly 49 years when he passed away in 1998.
Evelyn was a member of the Hershey United Methodist Church, U.M.W. and North Platte Woman’s Bowling Association. She enjoyed gardening, sewing, bowling and researching family genealogy. Evelyn loved her family and will be greatly missed.
She is survived by her children, twin sons, James (Carol) Frame, of Hershey and John (Roseanne) Frame, of West Des Moines, IA, and twin daughters, Barbara (Gary) Pedersen, of Grand Island, NE, and Beverly (Bill) Israelson, of Lincoln, NE; brother, Robert (Patricia) Korbel, of Evergreen, CO; and two sisters, Mildred (Russell) McNeel, of Yuma, AZ, and Gladys (Carrel) White, of North Platte.
Survivors also include 10 grandchildren, Jason (Marci) Frame, Timothy (Keely) Frame, Holly (Luke) Larsen, Jacob Frame (fiancée, Stephanie Johnston), Leslie Frame, Tara (Nick) Martin, David Petersen, Jill (Dan) Vaughn, Daniel (Amber) Fleecs and Tracy (Tim) Berntson; 18 great-grandchildren; as well as many nieces, nephews and other family.
Along with her husband, Gayle, Evelyn was preceded in death by their son, Ray; her parents, William and Helen Korbel; sister and brother-in-law, Margaret and Robert Fisher; and daughter-in-law, Donna Frame.
Funeral Service will be 10 a.m. Friday, September 2, 2016, at the Hershey United Methodist Church with Pastor Mark Baldwin officiating. Burial will follow in the North Platte Cemetery. Visitation will be Thursday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Odean Colonial Chapel at C & Sycamore, which is in charge of arrangements. Condolences may also be shared at odeanchapel.com. Memorials are suggested to the Hershey Volunteer Fire Department or Hershey United Methodist Church.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska corrections officials are awarding $500 retention bonuses to prison employees who work in jobs with high turnover and vacancy rates.
The Department of Correctional Services announced the bonuses Tuesday as part of its efforts to recruit and retain workers.
Department spokeswoman Dawn-Renee Smith says the bonuses will go to roughly 1,000 of the department’s 2,300 employees, including officers, caseworkers, nurses, mental health practitioners and chemical dependency counselors. Employees will receive the bonuses on Sept. 14.
Prison officials have been trying to improve working conditions in the department amid complaints about staffing shortages and inmate assaults.
A legislative committee is scheduled to meet Wednesday to discuss staffing issues in the prisons. The union representing prison employees is set to begin negotiations for a new contract later this year.
AUBURN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a Texas man has been killed in a collision with a semitrailer in southeast Nebraska.
The crash occurred around 2:30 p.m. Monday on U.S. Highway 75 about 5½ miles north of Auburn. The Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office says a southbound sport utility vehicle pulling a camper trailer crossed the center line and struck a northbound semitrailer that was hauling a skid loader.
The SUV driver was pronounced dead at the scene. The Sheriff’s Office identified him as 72-year-old Lester Meciej, who lived in Round Rock, Texas. His wife, 70-year-old Jeanne Maciej, and the truck driver, 52-year-old Bryant Olson, of Springfield, Missouri, were taken to an Auburn hospital for treatment of what the Sheriff’s Office says were non-life-threatening injuries.
KEARNEY, Neb. (AP) — A mental health practitioner at the state youth treatment center in Kearney has been arrested.
Court records say 28-year-old Samantha Halstead is charged with sexual assault of an 18-year-old male being treated at the Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center. Online jail records say she remained in Buffalo County custody Tuesday. Court records don’t list the name of an attorney who could comment for her.
The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services says Halstead quit before her arrest.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Two local University of Nebraska institutions have teamed up to create a program to diversify Omaha’s physician population.
The Urban Health Opportunities Program will provide tuition and other benefits to undergraduate students at the University of Nebraska at Omaha who want to be doctors in Omaha, particularly in the northeast and southeast parts of the city.
Those who meet the program’s requirements will be admitted into medical school at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
The program’s goal is to produce more physicians from minority groups, more who can speak foreign languages and more who have a passion for working in low-income areas.
The program’s leaders say it isn’t an affirmative action initiative but an effort to break the typical mold from which most physicians emerge.
