News

The Clay County Veterans Services Office is seeking better ways of connecting with younger veterans.

Mike Irons, Clay County’s Veterans Services officer, requested financial backing for future outreach activities from the Clay County Board of Supervisors during its regular meeting on April 16 at the courthouse.

Irons is scheduled on parttime hours at the Clay County office, splitting his time with Hamilton County’s Veterans Services. He explained that older veterans, generally those who served in the Vietnam War or earlier, are comfortable with coming in-person to the office to apply for veterans benefits. However, Irons sees very few veterans who served after the Vietnam War.

To read more please log in or subscribe to the digital edition. http://etypeservices.com/Clay%20County%20NewsID530/

Clay Center and Sutton and Volunteer Fire Departments responded to a tractor fire and vehicle accident Tuesday, April 16, just south of Highway 6 Highway 14 North.

Sutton Fire Chief John Schurman said while they are not 100 percent sure of the cause of the fire, they believe it was caused by something electrical under the hood.

The tractor, owned by Johnson Farms, was completely engulfed by the time both fire departments arrived on scene.

To read more please log in or subscribe to the digital edition. http://etypeservices.com/Clay%20County%20NewsID530/

In light of a recent drug find in Glenvil, which took place Wednesday, April 17, Clay County Sheriff Jeff Franklin, like his law enforcement counterparts throughout the county and area, notes that Clay County has seen an upswing in drug-related cases and issues.

“It’s become as bad as I’ve ever seen in all my years as a law enforcement officer,” Franklin shared. “Drug cases and incidents are affecting every town and area of our county and it’s really consuming officers time all over our county and for that matter, all over the state and country.”

Franklin shared that meth and marijuana are the most prevalent, but adds that his office has seen an abundance of other drugs, including opioids and even liquid forms and gummy bear forms of illegal substances that have shown up.

To read more please log in or subscribe to the digital edition. http://etypeservices.com/Clay%20County%20NewsID530/

Now Petr Jezek can say he’s been to Nebraska.

An attaché of the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Washington, D.C., Jezek toured Blue Valley Aquaculture near Sutton and the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center near Clay Center on April 15 during his three-day visit to the region.

“I call it a fact-finding mission,” he said. “I’ve not been here. I came here to see what kind of opportunities there are.”

To read more please log in or subscribe to the digital edition. http://etypeservices.com/Clay%20County%20NewsID530/

If you ask Sutton Police Chief Tracey Landenberger and officer Mitch Meyer about drug related crimes not happening in Sutton, or small-town Nebraska for that matter, they will both open your eyes to that thorough process.

An arrest on April 8 of two Thayer County individuals sparked Landenberger and Meyer to reach out to the community and ask for help, as in the eyes of Meyer, “This is an epidemic problem that has gone from bad to much worse.”

“It’s a double edge sword for me,” Meyer said. “I really like working drug cases, because I want drugs and illegal substances off of our streets. But in hindsight, I wish we didn’t have to work drug cases.”

Currently, according to Landenberger, the Sutton Police department alone is working 12 to 14 active drug related cases, including the latest case, which took place in the filling station area at CPI in Sutton.

Lillian and Bruce Larsen swing dance during the HART Legacy event Saturday, April 13, at the Clay County Fairgrounds. The event, Boots and Blue Jeans Ball, featured a prime rib meal, silent auction, wine pull, kids area, and dancing. Lillian was named the winner of the best boots with her white, sparkling pair.

To read more please log in or subscribe to the digital edition. http://etypeservices.com/Clay%20County%20NewsID530/

After about 10 hours of hearing witness testimonies and deliberating, the Harvard School Board voted 4-2 to terminate Jermaine Guinyard’s contract, effective at the close of the 2018-19 school year.

Guinyard, Harvard Public School’s current physical education teacher, was terminated on the grounds of unprofessionalism toward administrators and co-workers; failing to meet district standards in lesson plans and in the classroom; and was viewed as unsafe to supervise students.

More than 100 people witnessed the special meeting of the HPS Board, which began at 6 p.m., Wednesday, April 10.

Guinyard first came to Harvard during the 2015-16 school year and had a great performance year, with only proficiencies found on his evaluations.

During his time at HPS, he was viewed as an exceptional leader who was diligent in establishing hard work and teamwork within students, as noted by Ed Harms, one of the witnesses to testify for Guinyard.

Sutton High School senior Megan Fehr, the daughter of Bruce and Karla Fehr, was named a 2019-20 Nebraska State FFA officer during the 91st annual Nebraska FFA State Convention, held in Lincoln, April 3-5.

Fehr is the first state officer from Sutton since 2007, when then senior Matt McElfresh served as an officer.

Each year seven students from across Nebraska’s 189 total FFA chapters are chosen serve as state officers. This year, joining Fehr as an officer is Kooper Jelinek of West Holt, president, Savannah Gerlach of Tri County, secretary, along with five vice-presidents.

To read more please log in or subscribe to the digital edition. http://etypeservices.com/Clay%20County%20NewsID530/

The staff of the Clay County News was honored with 11 awards during the Nebraska Press Association’s 145th annual convention held Friday and Saturday, April 5 and 6, at the Kearney Holiday Inn Convention Center.

The CCN staff, during the Better Newspaper Contest Saturday night in Kearney, had a strong showing, finishing in the top three for the first time since 2014, placing in a two-way tie for second place with the Neligh News & Leader, with the Aurora News Register winning the Class C division, which is the second largest class in the NPA membership.

Saturday evening, Edgar’s Fire and Rescue Departments gave thanks and honors to their members during the annual honors night banquet. At the left, Chris Tripe shakes hands with Gene Babcock after earning Firefighter of The Year. This year’s EMT of the Year was given to Brad Brennfoerder, show at the right, shaking hands with Darrell Beck, while Chantel Anderson claps.

To read more please log in or subscribe to the digital edition. http://etypeservices.com/Clay%20County%20NewsID530/