News

The Fairfield Fire and Rescue Departments will once again be hosting their annual pancake and pork sandwich feed this Saturday, Feb. 29.

Pancakes will be served from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., with the pork sandwich feed beginning at 4 p.m., running through 7 p.m.

On hand for the annual event will be several Husker football players, as well as former Nebraska volleyball standout setter Lauren Cook-West.

Football players that will attend include Vaha Vainuku, Jeramiah Stovall, Reid Karel and Fyn Anderson.

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During the Harvard Fire and Rescue’s annual banquet Feb. 22, Clint Schwenk was named as EMT of the Year, while Joe Hester was named Firefighter and Ambulance Driver of the Year. *See more photos on pg. 3A.* RITA BRHEL | CLAY COUNTY NEWS

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Auctioneer Colt Pope, far left, auctions off a painting, held by Emily Overturf, during the 30th annual Rainwater Basin Pheasants Forever Banquet Saturday, Feb. 22, at the Sutton Community Center. Several items were bid on during the live auction, including guns, vintage-looking tin wall hangings, paintings, and a 2020 Chevy Silverado, among other items. ASHLEY D. SWANSON | CLAY COUNTY NEWS

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Clay County will eventually need a new jail, but the likelihood that it would be built in Clay Center is slim.

The Clay County Board of Supervisors revisited this discussion during its regular meeting on Feb. 18, at the courthouse in Clay Center.

The board had last delved into the issue during a regular meeting on Feb. 26, 2019, during which Clay County Sheriff Jeff Franklin reported the Clay County Jail—housed in a now 98-year-old building—had long been short of state standards including being handicapped-accessible, having a nurse on site, and being located near an emergency medical department.

“We’re grandfathered in,” Clay County Clerk Deb Karnatz said at the Feb. 18 meeting. “If we build a new jail, we’d have a problem.”

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In the Feb. 19 article, “Harvard Foodmart closes its door,” it was mis-stated that the elevator/co-op requires a co-op card to purchase gas. The elevator takes all forms of payment and a co-op card is not required for gas. Co-op is open from 7:15 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday through Friday. A card reader is expected to be installed at the pump at the end of March (currently estimated to be March 26). The Clay County News apologizes for this mis-information.

On Sunday, Feb. 16, the Harvard Foodmart closed, ending a 32-year run sitting at the corner of N Clay Ave and W Walnut St.

This marks the third grocery store to close in Clay County within four years, following Fairfield’s in 2016 and Clay Center’s in 2018.

Current owner Kim Mollenberndt helped the former owner build the store up in 1987 after the previous building burned down earlier that year, officially opening in December 1987.

Harvard’s Foodmart also serves as a gas station, with the only other gas option in town being the elevator, which takes all forms of payment and is open from 7:15 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday through Friday. 

Mollenberndt managed the store until 2007 when he and his wife, Carol, purchased it. The couple and their two daughters, Jade and Emily, have run it since then, making it difficult to close the doors for good.

February in Nebraska typically means cold temperatures and a lack of sunshine, but for Sunday’s Redneck Golf Tournament in Deweese, the sun shined bright and the weather reached 55 degrees. The tournament was fun for all ages including those pictured above. At the left: Jean Menke tries her luck at one of the many uniquely-designed holes for redneck golf.

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COLUMBUS—With a career of more than 40 years with Nebraska Public Power District, including the past nine as president and chief executive officer, Pat Pope announced he plans to step down as president and CEO.

He expects to remain available to assist with transition and continue working on the district’s generation options for the future and rural e-connectivity initiatives.

In making the announce ment to the board Pope said, “I didn’t know how long I would stay with NPPD when I began working here. As the years went by the opportunities kept coming, I stayed with the district and learned to appreciate what public power really means to our customers and the state.”

Fiber internet service could soon become a viable reality for Sutton, as Superior iNET, based out of Edgar, is hoping to bring the high speed internet option to Sutton, after going through a few more hurdles, according the Jeff Shuck and Todd Wilson.

“The engineering hurdles is completed,” Wilson said. “The next step is approaching the funding aspect of introducing fiber service to Sutton.

The firm, outside of securing the funding to bring fiber to Sutton, will also need to get the blessing of the Sutton City Council before it can for sure lock in on moving completely forward with the service options in Sutton.

“We recently mailed out a survey in which we received an 18 percent return on the survey, which we were thrilled about,” Wilson said.

“We’d certainly like to convey how helpful the survey results were and we truly appreciate that people in Sutton took the time to take part in the survey,” he added.

The 30th annual Rainwater Basin Pheasants Forever banquet is set for this Saturday, Feb. 22, at the Sutton Community Center.

The banquet, which will feature a large number of live and silent auction items to be bid on throughout the evening will begin at 5:30 p.m., with a social hour, running from 5:30-7 p.m. Dinner is slated to begin at 7 p.m. Meal tickets are $15 each, while a membership to the Rainwater Basin Chapter costs $35.

Much like in years past, a live auction will feature some big ticket items, including a 2020 Chevy Silverado Crew Cab 4x4 pickup donated, for the eighth straight year, by Friesen Chevrolet of Sutton.

In addition, the chapter has added a Montana trip for two families to the line up of live auction items. The trip will take those that win the auction item to the Canyon Creek Guest Ranch in Southwest Montana for a five-day, fournight stay, where the winners can hike, fish and explore the Beaverhead National Forest.