NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY INDUCTION OF NEW MEMBERS

Ten new members from the Junior class were inducted into the Weeping Water chapter of the National Honor Society on Tuesday, November 10th. In addition, nine members of the Sophomore class were made honorary members. Members of the National Honor Society must not only maintain above average grade point averages, but they must also demonstrate character, service, and leadership essential to citizens in a democracy. It is indeed an honor and privilege to belong to this organization. Congratulations students.

Current Active Members (Seniors)

Rebekka Hammer, Ben Dehne, Ryan Nielsen, Zachary Barrett, Jacob Kirchhoff

Ann Hyda, Shelby Wipf, Hannah Hartman, Brooke Gjerde, Samantha Gohr

New Active Members (Juniors)

Hoyt Kraeger, Joel Sahulka, Tanner Hermann, Adam Nielsen

Courtney Wissel, Katelyn Vice, Darren Mason, Loxley Grafe, Brianna Westover

Honorary Members (Sophomores)

Joshua Meyer, David Danielson, William Hoffman, Gregory Frenzel

Sydney Barrett, Jessica Randall, Taylor Wagner, William Shannon, Randy (Mack) Flanagan

President Hannah Hartman welcomes family and friends to the ceremony.

More than 85 people were treated to a dinner hosted by Farmers and Merchants Bank of Weeping Water on Thursday, November 12th.  This dinner is an annual event held by the bank to thank its loyal customers for their patronage.  The meal was catered by Annette’s Catering and featured a delicious meal featuring stuffed chicken, ham, rosemary red potatoes, Corn O'brien, rolls and butter, and a variety of cheesecakes for dessert.  Those in attendance were entertained by a fun sing-a-long accompanied by pianist Renee Thakur. 

The evening concluded with several guests leaving with door prizes including blankets, decorations, collectable coins, and the table centerpieces.

FOOD DRIVE

The students of Weeping Water Public School will once again be participating in the annual Food Drive to help stock the shelves of the Weeping Water Food Pantry.  Every year a competition is held to see which class can donate the most items of food and toiletries for the community Food Pantry.  The entire school is also working toward reaching their goal of 2500 items by November 23rd.  If they reach this goal, there will not be school on December 23rd!  Part of the food collected during the food drive will be given to folks in our community in the form of Thanksgiving food boxes complete with turkey and all the fixings for a great meal.  Please be generous as the need for food is especially great this year.  Help support those in need in our community.

The Otoe County Genealogical Society will hold its December 10th meeting at the Talmage Public Library in Talmage, Nebraska. This meeting will welcome all new members into the society, and will also cover topics of interest concerning genealogical research in the Otoe County area. This meeting is open to all who are interested in joining the society, or just wish to attend to learn more about genealogical research in general.

During this meeting, OCGS President, Curtis Wolbert, will present a class on 'Obtaining Federal Records', covering which records the U.S. Government maintains on its citizens, and how someone can easily obtain these records through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).  Visitors are also encouraged to check out the library's Genealogy Reference Area, which maintains numerous genealogical records of the citizens of Talmage, and also maintains the original copies of the 'Talmage Tribune' & 'Talmage Topics' newspapers.

Our society meets on the second Thursday of every month at 7:00 pm.  Please check out our website, or contact the Morton-James Public Library or the Otoe County Museum of Memories for more information.

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The Lofte Theatre 

The Lofte takes great pride in utilizing the performing arts to give young people self-confidence and public speaking skills.  In that tradition, the Lofte is preparing to host not one, not two, but three diffferent high school one-act play competitions this fall!  In recent years, the Lofte has become a popular location for these types of competitions.  Its central location, friendly volunteers and authentic theater environment are three reasons why school administrators keep coming back. 
 
All competitions are open to the public.  In general, the competition days begin around 9am.  Schools will take turns performing a 30 minute piece, then there is a 15 minute break to allow for set changes and judges critique.  The competition will last all day.   Concessions will be available for purchase throughout the day with tables and seating in the lobby.  Below is a list of competition dates and the schools that will be participating.
 
Wednesday, November 18th - ECNC Conference
Conestoga
East Butler
Elmwood-Murdock
Johnson County Central
Louisville
Malcolm
Mead
Palmyra
Weeping Water
Yutan
 
Monday, November 23rd - Capitol Conference
Ashland-Greenwood
Arlington
Bennington
DC West
Fort Calhoun
Raymond Central
Syracuse
Wahoo
 
Wednesday, December 2nd - District C1-1
Humboldt-Table Rock-Steinauer
Johnson County Central
Lourdes Central Catholic
Malcolm
Palmyra
Southern
Tri County
Wilber-Clatonia

COME HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS 

Weeping Water's annual "Come Home For the Holidays" will take place on Saturday, December 5th.  Santa Clause will make an appearance downtown, the United Methodist Women will be holding their Cookie and Candy Sale and Lunch at the Methodist Church, a craft show will be set up at the community building, and many other exciting activities are being planned for this fun and festive day.  More details will be coming later. 

EIGHTH ANNUAL ALDRICH FOUNDATION

 SHORT STORY CONTEST

     Original short stories by Nebraska authors are currently being accepted for the Bess Streeter Aldrich Foundation’s 2010 short story contest.
     A new division for Intermediate School Students, Grades 3-5, is being added this year. 
Story length should be 1,000-2,000 words (there is no minimum word requirement for the Intermediate category) and submissions should be written in the wholesome spirit displayed by Bess Streeter Aldrich in her works.  No essays, please.  Books by the author that writers can read to get ideas about content and style are:

                   Short Works 1907-1919                Mother Mason
                   Short Works 1920-1954               The Rim of the Prairie
                   The Cutters                                      A Lantern in her Hand
                   Spring Came on Forever              A White Bird Flying
                   Miss Bishop                                    Song of Years
                   The Lieutenant’s Lady                  Journey into Christmas
                   The Drum Goes Dead                  The Man who Caught the Weather
 
     Prizes will be awarded at the annual Spring Banquet of the Bess Streeter Aldrich Foundation.  

 Cash prize amounts are: 

     Adult:  1st Prize  $100.00,  2nd Prize  $50.00,  3rd Prize  $25.00. 

     High School (grades 9-12) and Middle School (grades 6-8):  1st Prize $50.00,                       

             2nd Prize $25.00, 3rd Prize $15.00. 

     Intermediate School: 1st Prize $25.00, 2nd Prize $15.00, 3rd Prize $10.00.   

     Writers, please send a cover sheet with your name, address, e-mail address, phone number, title of story, and two copies of your story, one with your name and one without. Include a line telling how you learned about the contest.  For students, add age, grade, school, and teacher’s name to the cover sheet.  Please enclose a SASE for return of contest results.  Stories will not be returned.  Families of Bess Streeter Aldrich Foundation Board Members are not eligible.
The due date for submissions is the author’s birthday, February 17, 2010 (postmark date).  Send submissions to:  Bess Streeter Aldrich Foundation, P.O. Box 167, Elmwood, NE  68349.  A complete list of rules can be found at http://www.bessstreeteraldrich.org

2010 NEBRASKA HUNTING/FISHING PERMIT FEES 

2010 will be bringing about some significant changes to permitting.  All of the common hunt/fish type permits will be issued through the electronic system, even at external vendor locations. Some permit fee changes in summary:
 
The Habitat Stamp for 2010 will be $20.00 (a $4.00 increase). This also means the Lifetime Habitat Stamp will go from $320 to $400 January 1, 2010.
 
The Aquatic Habitat Stamp for 2010 will be $10.00 (a 2.50 increase)….note this adds to the cost of Fishing permits (except the 1-day).  So while no increase to the Fishing permit fees were made, their costs will increase due to the increase in the incorporated Aquatic Habitat Stamp. 
 
Nonresident Paddlefish Permits will increase $20 to the 2010 rate of $40.00
 
A Nonresident Combination Hunt and Fish permit was created for a fee of $120.00  (add the required $10.00 aquatic stamp and necessary $20.00 habitat stamp and the cost will be $150 plus the issue fee ($1.00 from NPC or $2.00 from external agent).
 
Resident Lifetime Furharvest permits were established with similar cost and age breaks as the resident lifetime hunt permit.
 
Perhaps one of the more dramatic and unprecedented moves was the creation of youth deer, antelope and turkey permits at record low price of $5.00.  This price is for either resident or nonresident participants age 15 and below.  The goal is to increase interest and participation by young hunters. 
 
Changes involving nonrefundable application fees for our new ‘lottery’ type permit offerings.  These new offerings that will become available next year, might include such things as a ‘statewide’ elk permit or a multispecies permit that would allow the harvest of a deer, 2 turkeys, an antelope and perhaps in some cases an elk.  The actual offerings will be determined in wildlife regulations.  These permits would be offered in a similar fashion as the Bighorn Sheep permit, where an individual can apply and be put in a drawing. 

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Wed., Nov. 18:

• ECNC One-Act Play Competition at The Lofte Theatre

Thurs., Nov. 19:

• H1N1 Flu Vaccinations at the Louisville Public School from 4:30 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. for those in the targeted groups in the community.
• JH Boys Basketball @ Murray @ 5:30 p.m.

Fri., Nov. 20:

• Legion Fish Fry @ 5:30 p.m.

Sat., Nov. 21:

• H1N1 Flu Vaccinations at St. John's School in Plattsmouth from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. for those in Sarpy and Cass County who are in the targeted groups.
• JH Boys Basketball @ Louisville Tournament @ 8:00 a.m.

Wed., Nov. 25:

• Weeping Water Community Thanksgiving Service @ United Methodist Church at 7:00 p.m.

Please let me know if you have any news that you would like to be featured in the weekly newsletter.  I would love to include any events, news, and/or pictures for the community to enjoy. 

Dawn Randall

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