Peekin' into the Past

Five Years Ago

March 23, 2017

Agenda Club members gathered March 14 to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the organization. Between the nine of them, current members have dedicated over 200 years to the service group.

“Cornstalked,” the book by mystery author Patricia Bremmer of Venango, Nebraska, is currently in the preliminary stages of becoming a movie.

Erin Vieselmeyer just finished an outstanding four-year college basketball career for Concordia University in the final four of the NAIA Division II national championship, on what the university describes as one of the best squads in school history.

Ten Years Ago

March 22, 2012

On March 18, nine volunteer fire departments responded to the Heartstrong Fire in Yuma County as wind gusts of 50-70 mph pushed the fast-moving fire north toward the town of Eckley. It burned an area of about 24,000 acres, completely destroyed two homes, severely injured Wages firefighter Jennifer Struckmeyer, and damaged crops and topsoil. Meanwhile, Holyoke VFD was among around seven departments providing mutual aid to the Haxtun department at a grass fire southeast of Haxtun.

On March 15, freshmen at Holyoke High School participated in the Injury Prevention Program, formerly known as PARTY (Preventing Alcohol and Risk-Related Trauma in Youth).

Twenty-Five Years Ago

March 27, 1997

Stone Motors of Holyoke is celebrating the completion of its new facility after a fire destroyed the former building last August. Grand reopening festivities are planned for March 28.

The comet Hale-Bopp can be seen for a few more weeks before it disappears again for possibly another 4,000 years. The comet drifted into view of Earth last year and will make its finest display in late March and early April. Viewing it no longer requires a telescope or even binoculars.

HHS sophomore Russell Sprague set a new school record in the quarter mile. His time of 0:49.92 was also a record for the Fort Morgan Invitational track meet.

Fifty Years Ago

March 23, 1972

Saturday, March 11, five fire departments and approximately 200 volunteers fought a fire that burned approximately 1,500-2,000 acres of grassland in the sandhills along the southern border of Phillips County. The fire started on the Dake Warren ranch and traveled east for about 4 miles.

Robert Elliott, owner of Holyoke Drug, and Lloyd Guggenmos, former owner of Holyoke Drug and now of Sidney, Nebraska, left Holyoke by charter plane March 10 with pilots Jim Bohlender and Mel Anderson and flew to Chihuahua, Mexico, where they met with a group of 30 doctors, pharmacists and interpreters. Elliott and Guggenmos, along with three doctors and an oral surgeon, spent three and a half days in the mountain village of Juan Mendoza where they treated approximately 300 patients and dispensed about 50,000 vitamins.

Seventy-Five Years Ago

March 27, 1947

The Department of the Interior has announced that the Bureau of Reclamation in Washington has awarded a contract for the construction of a power line from Brush to Sterling and a line from Sterling to Holyoke to serve the REA electrical consumers of this area.

That automobile accidents must be reported under the new law is the statement of the AAA Automobile Club. Commencing Oct. 1, all accidents involving personal injury or property damage of $50 or more must be reported by both parties to the Motor Vehicle Division of the Department of Revenue.

The Junior Federated Women’s Club, a newly organized group under the sponsorship of the El Dee Federated Club, met at the home of Mrs. Dale Reimer on Tuesday evening.