The Southern Valley School board approved a revamp of the weight room 5 – 0 during their meeting on Monday, May 9. The board previously heard from coach Dexter Becker with a proposal to redo the weight room. The original bid for his “dream” weight room was over $80,000. The bid up for approval is $64,907.36 and includes the equipment and floor. Superintendent Bryce Jorgenson said they are not supposed to get billed until it is complete and he made clear it would not get paid for until after September with the new budget. He also said if they commit to this, they should not have to touch it for 20 years. AD Marquez said the kids are using the weight room. High School principal Jeff Linden said the kids will take some pride in it but it still takes the person getting them into the weight room. Marquez also said if they are going to do it, now is the time before things get any more expensive. Jorgenson said it is a lot of money and it could be looked at as curriculum for classes and non-curriculum 2022 Alum for athletes using it. The idea of fundraising was brought up also. Jorgenson thought they should use the money they raised for something else. Marquez also said they do the auction and plant sales to get away from all of the fundraising that had been done before.

I don’t know what I was doing last week, but remembering to do the news didn’t happen. How grateful we are for the rain we received last week.

Brie Shald presents her mother with a rose. Kassidy Wilcox shoots off confetti as Bailey Oltmer looks on.

ARAPAHOE – The Arapahoe-Holbrook school board held their monthly meeting on May 9 and approved the purchase of new chrome books for 5-12th grades with ESSER funds for the 2022-2023 school year. The plan is to purchase chrome books for K-4th grade for the 2023-2024 school year.

During the monthly Elwood School Board meeting on May 9, Superintendent Daren Hatch announced that summer school will be held from May 23-June 2. He also shared that work to improve the track field will begin in June.

Southwest Nebraska Public Health Department (SWNPHD) would like to encourage residents to plan ahead to stay healthy and avoid injuries during emergencies, including natural disasters. Depending on the type of emergency, residents can prepare to either take shelter at home or leave the area in an evacuation. Being prepared can be especially important for older adults or people with disabilities because they may have additional needs to consider, including medical issues, accessibility, transportation, and more.

Elwood City-wide garage sales are June 3rd & 4th! If you would like to hold a garage sale, please request the form by email from Ann at sabea68937@gmail.com. Forms must be returned by Friday May 27th to be included on the map! Anyone is welcome to set up their sale tables on the back Courthouse lawn after 5 pm on Friday June 3rd. Dining options in the area include a Fundraiser Lunch on Saturday June 4th, hosted by the Hi-Line Wrestling Team; or stop by the following Chamber Members: Elwood Hometown Cooperative Market, Red Barn, Canyon Lakes Brewing Co., Nautical Rose, Blue Moose in Bertrand. And be sure to travel west on Highway 23 for the Trail of Treasures taking place Saturday June 4th from Eustis to Wellfleet.

BEAVER CITY – The city council held their regular meeting on May 2, 2022 and approved the minutes from the last meeting and the claims as presented. Although the council did not take a formal vote, Randy Stalder received a green light to purchase a memorial bench to be placed in the Southeast corner of the town square in honor of his late wife, Janet.

Over the course of my career, I have performed countless pelvic exams on women of all ages from all walks of life. There are two common patient behaviors that I have observed. First, most women leave their socks on. This could be the fact that most stirrups are cold, but it also seems like one feels just a little less exposed when wearing at least one item of their own clothing. The other thing that almost every woman does in the exam room is hide her undergarments under her pile of clothes. It is interesting that almost everyone, me included, feels the need to cover and hide their “unmentionables” when they are about to bare the very areas normally covered by these garments.

I know I have been absent from these for a while and thank you to all seven that read these each time for pointing out that I need to get back to it. It has been an incredibly hectic six weeks.