This week's top stories

  • Flag football photos can be found in this week's ANR
    Flag football photos can be found in this week's ANR
  • Future site of the Hamilton County Inclusive Playground
    Future site of the Hamilton County Inclusive Playground
  • Weekend rains slowed work on 1st Street Monday morning, though crews are expected to be on site this week. This was the scene Monday near the Park Lane intersection, where the pavement currently ends.
    Weekend rains slowed work on 1st Street Monday morning, though crews are expected to be on site this week. This was the scene Monday near the Park Lane intersection, where the pavement currently ends.
  • The Giltner High School Homecoming royalty court includes, front from left, Avery Reeson, Kailyn Wilson and Gracie Kreutz; back row, Aiden Almquist, Owen Nuss and Ayden Scott.
    The Giltner High School Homecoming royalty court includes, front from left, Avery Reeson, Kailyn Wilson and Gracie Kreutz; back row, Aiden Almquist, Owen Nuss and Ayden Scott.
  • Danielle Bamesberger
    Danielle Bamesberger
  • The Leadership Center Executive Chef John Boeder, center, works the serving line at TLC's prime rib sandwich booth at Husker Harvest Days.
    The Leadership Center Executive Chef John Boeder, center, works the serving line at TLC's prime rib sandwich booth at Husker Harvest Days.
  • Volunteers prepare to hold up a new 10-foot American Flag for the playing of the National Anthem at the beginning of the Aurora Huskies girls softball game at the Diamond Complex Thursday evening.
    Volunteers prepare to hold up a new 10-foot American Flag for the playing of the National Anthem at the beginning of the Aurora Huskies girls softball game at the Diamond Complex Thursday evening.

    See all the teams and the thrilling action from the Saturday morning rumble at Husky Field as ANR presents three full pages of this year's flag football teams plus action photos from a recent Saturday. You'll find team photos on Pages C7-8 and highlight photos on B6 of this week's ANR.

    Although dirt work has already begun at the future home of the Hamilton County Inclusive Playground along Old Creek Road, an official groundbreaking ceremony is set for next Wednesday, Sept. 24. The groundbreaking to be attended by community officials and which is open to the public will take place at 4 p.m. 
     

    Progress continues on the 1st Street renovation project in Aurora, though work was stalled Monday due to wet conditions left in the wake of weekend storms. A report from JEO Consulting indicated that a majority of the work on the south portion of the project, from the railroad tracks to West L Street, has been completed. Mid-Nebraska anticipates having the north half of 1st Street substantially completed in eight to 10 weeks.

    Giltner High School has announced its Homecoming royalty court, which includes Avery Reeson, Kailyn Wilson, Gracie Kreutz, Aiden Almquist, Owen Nuss and Ayden Scott. The Homecoming king and queen will be crowned during Giltner’s pep rally Friday afternoon.

    Even though Dylan Bamesberger resigned from the Hampton Village Board last month, there will still be a D. Bamesberger on the board of trustees. Hampton welding shop owner Danielle Bamesberger was appointed at the September meeting of the board to take the former chairman’s place and was also elected to serve as vice chair. Dylan Bamesberger, who has been the board chairman since the first of the year, resigned at the August meeting because he and his family are moving to the family farmhouse outside the city limits, rendering him ineligible to serve on the village board. Former chairman James Parsley was elected last month to serve as chairman.

    Visitors to the Beef Showcase area of Husker Harvest Days last week didn’t have far to go to find a delicious beef prime rib sandwich. For the first time, The Leadership Center (TLC) from Aurora was set up at the west end of the beef area to serve up lunch to the visitors to the annual event and they had to beef up their staff and call in volunteers to help with the huge task. They also cooked up hundreds of pounds of Nebraska beef and had thousands of customers. Read about the months of planning and the volunteer staffing it took to pull it off on Page A5.

    A new 10-foot American flag and a taller pole were donated to the Aurora Diamond Complex by Aurora VFW Post #4993 and a ceremony was planned with the American Legion Post #42 Honor Guard to dedicate both items and observe Sept. 11 Patriot Day at the same time. However, due to a malfunction with the flag-raising mechanism on the pole, volunteers had to hold the flag up during the dedication ceremony, the National Anthem and the rifle salute. According to VFW Commander David McKimmey, the plan is to fly the flag throughout the baseball and softball seasons.

    For these stories and more, plus all the local high school sports action, see the print or e-editions of this week's Aurora News-Register.