Peekin’ into the past

Five Years Ago

March 3, 2016

Holyoke Police Department assisted with a coordinated two-state sweep in Nebraska and eastern Colorado on Feb. 23 to apprehend 64 individuals on federal and state drug charges. The bust represented the largest ever in Nebraska.

Students of Holyoke Elementary School donated 1 million grains of rice to needy people by practicing academic skills using the freerice.com website. In just two weeks, from Feb. 16-29, Holyoke Elementary students correctly answered 100,000 questions to meet their goal. For every correct answer, the online sponsor donated 10 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program.

Holyoke fifth grade girls Jimena Nuñez and Tamara Penzing are honored to have their artwork displayed in Denver and Chicago, Illinois, as part of National Youth Art Month. Among entries in the Colorado Youth Art Month Flag Design Competition, Nuñez won first place in the elementary student category.

On Feb. 26, U.S. District Judge Christine M. Arguello threw out the lawsuit filed by Laura Saxton of Yuma and Doug Schelling of Holyoke, parents of Kelsie Schelling, regarding her disappearance from Pueblo three years ago. The lawsuit alleged a claim for wrongful death against the Donthe Lucas family and accuses members of the Pueblo Police Department of “tampering with or destroying evidence material to any wrongful death claim, by deliberately disregarding compelling leads and evidence pointing to the homicide of Kelsie Schelling by Donthe Lucas.”

Ten Years Ago

March 3, 2011

Curt and Brenda Lebsack became the new owners of Jake’s Feed and Supply in Holyoke on March 1 after purchasing the business from Randy and Jackie Hale.

The ground has been broken in the process to hopefully help an interested student through school in order to move back to Holyoke and work at Melissa Memorial Hospital. East Phillips County Hospital board members agreed at their Feb. 21 meeting to work with Melissa Memorial Hospital Foundation to help “grow their own physician.”

Doug Schelling and Tess Blake began moving Smith Wholesale-Hardware from its location in Haxtun to the old Holyoke Community Church building after Thanksgiving. They are currently just over halfway done moving items to the new location.

Steve “Young Eagle” Putra, a Native American dancer, recently moved to Phillips County and is looking forward to educating the area on the heritage and art of dancing. Putra — Chippewa for “Young Eagle” — grew up in Wyoming and Montana where his family ranched. Young Eagle was the 2001 world champion traditional Native American dancer.

Twenty-Five Years Ago

March 7, 1996

Purchase of a 21-ton-per-day-capacity Pactherm incinerator was confirmed recently by Phillips County commissioners when they signed a contract for $458,905 with the manufacturing company Crochet Equipment Co. in Louisiana. Commissioners reported at their month-end meeting last Thursday that they’re shooting for June 10 to have the new unit up and running at the landfill.

A 1-800 crisis line, funded with money obtained through the 13th Judicial District, is now available to residents of Phillips and Sedgwick counties. The volunteers manning the phones have been in training for approximately five months and are trained to handle a variety of calls and to refer the caller to a vast number of resources in the area.

Martin Angus Ranch recently incorporated elk into their operation southeast of Holyoke.

A group of Holyoke youths has begun presenting skits and songs to area churches. Youth Challenge has formed the team of six teens from five different churches to increase its ministry to teenagers.

Fifty Years Ago

March 4, 1971

Billy P. Duncan, the new minister of the Holyoke Church of Christ, Interocean and Denver, is a graduate of Phillips University where he majored in physics.

S and H Trucking and Car Pressing, Denver, in cooperation with the Phillips County commissioners and the town of Holyoke, plan a countywide cleanup of old car, truck, combine or tractor bodies. The firm will set up their car press at the old town dump on March 9. Holyoke High School students will canvass the area, asking persons with old car bodies to help in the cleanup by giving their junkers to the drive.

It is interesting to note that during 1970 there were a lot of Broncos football fans but there were more fishermen. A total of 468,403 Broncos fans paid $2,343,200 to watch three exhibition games and seven league games last season, but during the same year 496,000 fishermen paid $3,082,710 to participate in 365 days of fishing.

Seventy-Five Years Ago

March 7, 1946

This community and much of the surrounding country received the first heavy snowfall of the season on March 5. It is estimated that had the snow not partly melted as it fell, the ground would have been covered by at least a foot in depth.

The organizational committee of the Northeast Colorado Cooperative Hospital Association reports that very satisfactory progress is being made in the drive for members in the proposed hospital at Haxtun.