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Working hard to get donations ready for their trip to the food pantry after a week of collecting, Aurora fifth graders Josiah Peterson (center) and Cody Rinke (far right) spent time choosing the perfect items to balance out boxes. Parent volunteers like Kim Eberly also assisted, including helping to transport goods to their end destination. -
New Hampton basketball coach Dalton Miller runs through practice drills during preseason workouts earlier this month as the Hawks ready for the 2022-23 season, which opens Thursday. -
Gracia Huenefeld with her current horse Holy Wonder adorned with three first place and one second place dressage ribbons. Dressage means training in French, an equestrian sport that emphasizes control of a rider over their steed. -
From left to right, Marchia and Glenn Spiehs give a puzzle to Estelle and Sylvie Gibson at their candy/drugstore. The Spiehs offered penny candy and metal brain teasers to all who came into the shop. -
Paul Badgett of Aurora upped his game for this year’s lighted tractor display, combining large blow-up characters with various light displays to create an entry that tied for first place.
Aurora fifth grade CmPS crew celebrates successful Food Fight
Just before Thanksgiving a not-so-small act of goodwill had all involved feeling the spirit of the holidays.
The Aurora fifth grade Community Problem Solvers (CmPS) group culminated its week-long Food Fight Nov. 18 at Aurora Elementary School with a scale-tipping donation to the Hamilton County Food Pantry.
“Due to the pandemic, our goal was to be able to bring back food to the hallways of the school and share it with the food pantry,” said CmPS sponsor and Aurora teacher Marsha Pawley. “For the past couple of years, we had a change collection that was donated to the food pantry. It is fun to see the kids proudly lug...
Dalton Miller brings energy to Hampton bench
Dalton Miller called himself a “high-energy guy,” and he sure wasn’t kidding.
In a conversation at his desk in Hampton, the new Hawk boys basketball coach was leaned forward and intense, but in a good way.
On the basketball floor, Miller commanded the attention of nearly 20 players in purple practice jerseys with a booming voice and precise communication.
Miller is set for his first season at the helm of the Hampton boys basketball program and is excited to call the small D2 school home.
Dancing with horses: Huenefeld rides through dressage
Gracia Huenefeld has trotted and galloped her way to numerous awards and her own business in Lincoln called Legacy Dressage.
Huenefeld specializes in dressage, a French term for training, a tradition rooted when calvary riders needed perfect control of their horses on the battlefield. Now it is a sport that emphasizes that control to an art with Huenefeld comparing it to ballet.
“So it’s really neat because it’s applicable to all riders, all disciplines,” Huenefeld said. “It teaches them more about the horses. It balances self-care and to utilize their body better.”
Museum’s Christmas Boardwalk lights up Black Friday
The biannual Christmas Boardwalk brought holiday spirit together with a historical perspective as seamless as cookies and milk at the Plainsman Museum Friday evening.
Executive Director Tina Larson reported that more than 100 people came for an after-dark stroll through the exhibits which offered a peek at Aurora’s historical storefront, combining fun and education for families.
“People love to go back in time during the holidays,” Larson said. “They just really do and think about, you know, what was it like and that kind of thing. So we really feel like everybody feels like a kid when they’re here and that’s fun.”
Come Home to Christmas IV
Downtown Aurora lit up the night sky with a festive holiday glow Saturday during the fourth annual Come Home to Christmas celebration.
The main attraction was a lighted tractor display, which was expanded this year to include a wider variety of entries, including all sizes of tractors as well as lawn-mowers and four-wheelers.
“I would say it was a resounding success because there were a lot of people and everybody was cheerful,” reported Julie Wasem, who helped coordinate the event on behalf of the Aurora Chamber of Commerce. “How can we thank those energetic tractor lovers for bringing such excitement to the people to enjoy. It takes time and energy to decorate a tractor and some go beyond the imaginable scope to do this.”
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