Peekin' into the Past

Five Years Ago
March 24, 2016

Live demonstrations, guest speakers and interactive activities ruled the day March 17 as HHS hosted the Prevent Alcohol and Risk-Related Trauma in Youth, or PARTY, program for freshmen for the 11th year running.

A March 9 mediation session in Denver between the city of Holyoke and Rupert and Claire O’Neal proved unsuccessful, moving the lawsuit filed by the O’Neals closer to trial, which has been set to start Oct. 3 in Phillips County District Court. At the core of the dispute is the property on which the city drainage pit is located at the intersection of Johnson Street and U.S. Highway 385.

Holyoke’s new cityofholyoke-co.gov website should soon be up and running after discussion at the March 15 city council meeting.

Ten Years Ago
March 24, 2011

First United Methodist Church in Holyoke will host an evening with Todd Burpo of Imperial, Nebraska, and his family on April 3 at the HHS auditorium. Burpo and son Colton will share their “Heaven is for Real” experience, which is the title of the New York Times bestseller.

After losing nearly all of their possessions in a fire at their home March 8, the Rich and Yolanda Wittman family has been completely overwhelmed with the support they have received from Holyoke and its citizens.

Two-time state wrestling champion Mark Edmonds was nominated and selected to wrestle in the 125-pound weight division on Colorado’s team in the National Wrestling Coaches Association/USA Wrestling National Scholastic Duals Championship in Crawfordsville, Indiana, April 14-16.

Holyoke Elementary physical education instructor Scott Dille, decked out in a retro throwback basketball uniform, climbed atop the school to lead students through a series of exercises before they headed inside for CSAP testing each morning last week.

Twenty-Five Years Ago
March 28, 1996

Jerod Michael Beier was sentenced to 18 years in the Department of Corrections on March 25 for the Sept. 23, 1995, murder of Chad Harvey. The sentence was part of a Feb. 1 plea agreement that reduced the weight of the Class 2 felony charge of second-degree murder.

A unique shot of Phillips County history in the early 1920s has been reproduced in a collection of 70-plus framed pictures of homes, schools, businesses, churches, railroad depots and more. In a project of the Phillips County Historical Society, the Heginbotham Trust and photographer Al Wall, the 5-inch-by-7-inch negatives (which are believed to have been taken by local photographer Ralston 70 years ago) were printed, matted and framed.

High winds allowed less than a quarter of an inch of snow to shut down much of the area on Sunday. The violent winds closed both Highway 6 and Highway 385 while snow and dirt drifted together.

An ordinance was passed by Holyoke City Council at its regular meeting on March 19 authorizing the sale of land to Highline Electric Association to accommodate the relocation of their offices. The ordinance also provides for the city’s purchase of HEA’s current facilities.

Fifty Years Ago
March 25, 1971

Holyoke was hit last Wednesday evening by another heavy snowstorm that dropped 6-8 inches of new snow. The storm continued most of Thursday, and schools could not open because of drifting snow.

Tonight a benefit basketball game will be played by the Northeastern Sports and the Denver Broncos basketball team at the Holyoke High School gym. The game is sponsored by the Dragon Quarterback Club. There will be a smorgasbord before the game sponsored by Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and Bronco Bill Van Heusen will address the group.

Northeastern Junior College will offer baton twirling classes at the Haxtun High School student lounge, starting March 30. Persons from age 3 and above with various levels of ability are encouraged to enroll.

Seventy-Five Years Ago
March 28, 1946

Three workmen for a Denver neon sign company are installing a 1,500-pound neon-lighted marquee on the front of the Peerless Theatre building in Holyoke. The sign proper is 29 feet tall and extends 14 feet above the roof of the two-story building. The letters in the sign “theatre” are 30 inches tall and are painted in white on a broad background of red with a yellow trim. On either side of the marquee are panels for displaying the names of the films being shown in the theater.

Rev. P.H. Evans tendered his resignation as pastor of the First Baptist Church at services on Sunday morning. He has accepted a call to the Baptist church in Bennett and will move there sometime in April.

Because of not having a floor on which to roller-skate, Holyoke has lost a recreational activity. Casting about to remedy the matter, those interested in providing a roller rink have begun to believe that the solution lies in starting a community building which may result in an auditorium for Holyoke. By making a basement first with foundation on which a superstructure, an auditorium, may be built later, the immediate need, a floor for a skating rink, would be provided.

Raymond M. Drew, manager of the United States Employment Service, Julesburg, announced that employers in Holyoke will be solicited for job openings to be filled by returning veterans, former war plant workers and others. The local job development campaign parallels state and national campaigns to promote the listing of jobs for approximately 6,200,000 returning service men and women, former war plant workers and other job seekers.