Peekin' into the Past

Five Years Ago — Jan. 30, 2014
    Ardie Besse’s retirement will be featured on Kevin Torres’ 9News Storytellers segment. Torres came to Holyoke Friday morning to interview Besse and her crew and to film her appointment with her last customer, Ruth McMurdy, who was also her first customer when she started out in 1963.
    Representatives from the City of Holyoke and Phillips County gathered at the Phillips County Event Center to discuss possible rail opportunities on Jan. 14. Richard Payne, rail business development manager at CHS Inc., proposed that a variation of a public-private partnership between CHS Grainland and Phillips County and local governments to develop rail services would be mutually beneficial.
    As the one-year anniversary of Kelsie Schelling’s disappearance approaches on Feb. 4, a crowd of more than 100 gathered at Holyoke City Park for a prayer and candlelight vigil.
    
Ten Years Ago — Jan. 29, 2009
    Dr. Stephen Bohrer resigned from his position as superintendent of Holyoke School District Re-1J, effective at the end of his current contract, June 30.
    A bid from Garsite totaling $70,838 to install the new Avgas fuel farm at Holyoke Municipal Airport was accepted by Holyoke City Council members at their regular meeting Jan. 20. Approval of the bid is contingent upon the final acceptance of the state aviation system grant.
    A new second-hand consignment store, Second Thoughts, will soon be opened by Barb Kreider and Summer Maloney inside J’s Home Furnishings.
    Rather than rebuild the City’s storage garage that was heavily damaged in high winds on Nov. 6, 2008, Holyoke City Council will replace it with a new building to be located just east of the City office buildings.
    
Twenty-Five Years Ago — Feb. 3, 1994
    Performing a scene from “Little Shop of Horrors,” Travis Pittman and Asa Ginapp took second-place honors in duet acting/humorous literature at the State Speech Festival.
    Senior Lori Johnson’s project “I Dream of Genes” earned best overall honors in the senior division at the HHS Science Fair on Jan. 29, and sophomore Mindy Deselms took top junior-division honors with her project “The Effect of Music Vibrations on Daphnia.” Johnson’s project, which involved genetically making bacteria resistant to antibiotics, was judged as best in the microbiology category, while Deselms’ was the best in zoology.
    
Fifty Years Ago — Jan. 30, 1969
    Phillips County medical and health agencies in cooperation with the Colorado Department of Health and the Colorado Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease Association are making free chest X-rays available to Phillips County residents.
    Police Chief Paul Plummer’s 1968 report to the town council points out the many varied duties and functions performed by the department for the citizens of Holyoke. The police investigated 136 miscellaneous cases during the year. Some of these cases, not necessarily in the category of law enforcement but expected by citizens, are skunks, ammonia escaping from a storage tank, dog and cat complaints, and taxi service. The squad car made 340 taxi trips in 1968 and delivered 73 packages of blood to the hospital.
    
Seventy-Five Years Ago — Feb. 3, 1944
    The Midwest Hereford Association has raised the necessary money among its members to construct a pavilion for its livestock shows and sales and has completed plans for the work. The building will be located between the two cattle barns on the Phillips County Fairgrounds and will be available to the 4-H clubs and other groups for the promotion of the livestock industry within the county.
    Those who have old papers and magazines to contribute to the scrap paper campaign of the government may take the bundles to the building first door east of the Clover Blossom Creamery in Holyoke. The recent one-day scrap paper drive netted over 7 tons.
    The excellent condition of Phillips County real estate tax status is revealed in a report, made this week by county treasurer Ray E. Crosby, in which the tax roll of 1942 totaling $206,575.82 has been paid to the high percent of 99.4. The remaining 0.6 percent due is principally taxes on vacant town lots in Holyoke and Haxtun.
    Stunts, band music and short talks will be free to everyone in the Peerless Theatre here Saturday. While the program is in progress, everyone will be invited to buy War Bonds, but it is not necessary to buy a bond in order to stay through the entertainment of the Bond Rally.