Lindsay Renee Collins, age 42, of Lakewood, Colorado passed away peacefully surrounded by loved ones on July 14, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. Lindsay was born on August 5 , 1978 in Cambridge, Nebraska to Doug and Judy (Steele) Collins. She began her education in Edison, Nebraska with her mother as her kindergarten teacher. Lindsay was confirmed on May 3, 1992 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Arapahoe. In May of 1996 she graduated from Arapahoe High School and in the fall started college at Midland Lutheran College in Fremont, Nebraska. Lindsay earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in May 2000 and moved to Fort Collins, Colorado to teach. In 2002 she moved to Denver, Colorado to work at Children’s Hospital. She then worked at Jefferson Hills Adolescent Treatment Center, in Lakewood, Colorado as Case Manager for at risk youth for the next seven years. With her PAH diagnosis, she needed to find a less physically demanding job. Kids Smart was the answer. As Program Director of Children in before and after school learning activities, she found a job she loved. Lindsay worked with her kids for the next ten years until her health forced her to stop in May.

A Funeral Service for Johnny C. Nelson will be held on Friday, August 13, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. at the Trinity Evangelical Free Church in Holdrege, Nebraska with Pastor Murray Jones officiating. Interment will follow at the Moses Hill Cemetery, rural Loomis, Nebraska.

It is often said that laughter is the best medicine, yet I have never written a prescription for a funny movie, or a television comedy show, and I have no clowns or rubber chickens in my office. On the contrary, doctors are often expected to be serious and professional. Perhaps we are missing a great opportunity to help heal. What if more doctors were like Dr. Patch Adams, who is known by the medical community for his quest to inject humor and laughter into the treatment of patients?

In 2021, communism seems like a distant threat to many. Generations of Americans have learned about the atrocities committed by Stalin and Lenin in Russia. Many are familiar with Mao’s Great Leap Forward, which led to the Great Chinese Famine and starvation and death for millions.

The 2020 Olympics (held in 2021) turned out to be a bit of a dud. I am not sure if there is something in our social makeup that makes events, whether sports or otherwise, less appealing when there’s no fans in attendance, but I found it difficult to get engaged with these Olympic games.

During the Furnas County Fair, the sale committee, along with Darren and Amy Warner, held an auction for donations to benefit the newly established AJ Weatherwax Memorial. AJ was a lifelong 4-H participant.

In the fall of 2020, a national reporting analysis conducted by McKinsey & Company showed significant learning loss in the areas of Math and Reading during the COVID-19 lockdown. When Congress passed the American Rescue Plan (ARP) in March of this year, the act provided the unprecedented amount of $122 billion in ESSER III (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund) funding wrapped in red tape.

“I want the parents and community to know this will not be a wasted year.” This is the heartfelt sentiment from Arapahoe Holbrook Public Schools Interim Superintendent Brian Gegg. Gegg said he sees his role is to make sure everything is in place for the new administrator when they come on board.

ARAPAHOE – Following months of preparation that included community engagement activities and individual meetings with local businesses, the Arapahoe community is invited to attend the concept presentation for the Downtown Revitalization Project. This presentation gathering will be held in the Arapahoe City Park on Tuesday August 17 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. This is another opportunity for the Arapahoe community to see and weigh in on the design concepts for the downtown project.

Furnas County 4-H’ers exhibited their journey to success at the 2021 Furnas County Fair July 12 th – July 17 th . The Fashion and Talent Show showcased projects that exhibited the hard work and skills learned and earned by our Furnas County 4-Hers.