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Aurora High School graduating senior Elena Kuehner has been named a National Merit Scholar. -
Aurora’s Gage Griffith threw his way into the school record books Monday at the Central Nebraska Track Championships. The Husky senior broke the school record for the discus and shot put, going 186-3 in the discus and 60-10.50 in the shot. The previous school record in the discus was held by Tom Kropp and stood since 1971 while the shot put record was set in 2017 by Dalton Peters. Griffith was selected as the boys most outstanding athlete of the event. -
Hampton teacher Tammy Wolinski, right, helps Alyssa Jacobs fill our her order during Saturday’s plant sale, organized for the first time this year by the Hampton Booster Club and Hampton Public Schools. -
Aurora senior Brekyn Papineau was one of 24 Nebraska FFA Star Award finalists recognized at the Nebraska FFA State Convention in April. -
It’s no secret that it’s dry and windy across much of Nebraska at the present time.
Kuehner a National Merit Scholar
It’s official.
Aurora High School senior Elena Kuehner has been named a National Merit Scholar.
Kuehner has held on throughout the process, where somewhere near 1.5 million high school students enter the program every year, attending schools all over the United States, and the list is slowly paired down until only the scholarship winners remain.
After taking the practice SAT approximately 50,000 of those with the highest scores qualify for recognition by the program. Students are then notified if they’ve qualified as either a “commended student” or a semifinalist.
As a testament to all her hard work, Kuehner was one of three Aurora seniors who earned said semifinalist status -- one of about 16,000 students across the United States.
Griffith resets Aurora throws records at CNTCs
Along with his throwing equipment, Gage Griffith packed one extra item on a business trip to Grand Island.
A pencil with a giant eraser attached.
The Aurora senior and Wyoming track commit completely re-wrote the school record book at Monday’s Central Nebraska Track Championships, setting new marks in the discus and shot put while becoming the CNTC athlete of the meet along the way.
By the time he was done in the throwing ring Monday, Griffith had the look of a guy who was released of all the pressure from his shoulders.
His record chasing season is complete.
“Breaking two school records, back to back on the same day is a big deal,” Griffith said. “That Tom Kropp record is historic. The Dalton Peters one I’ve chased all year. I’ve been really close so to finally do it means a lot.”
Hampton plant sale transitions to Hawk event
Saturday represented a successful passing of the baton for a plant sale fundraiser launched 15 years ago in Hampton, ending with record sales estimated at more than $50,000.
Organized for years as an event to raise money for Hampton Lutheran School, which will close at the end of the school year, the plant sale continued on this year with proceeds earmarked to benefit the Hampton Booster Club and Hampton Public School.
“We took it over from Hampton Lutheran because they graciously offered it to us to keep it in the community,” explained Christina Dose, president of the Hampton Booster Club. “Our initial goal was $24,000 so they blew that out of the water by the second day of week two, which was fantastic. The kids are loving this and we have a ton of them here today.”
Brekyn Papineau earns FFA recognition as Star finalist
Aurora senior Brekyn Papineau is accomplished at a number of things, though he may take the most pride in his flock.
The attentive care he has taken into raising and growing his chickens has taken the Husky all the way to being recognized at a statewide level.
“(In FFA) we do proficiencies and there’s all the individual categories,” Papineau began. “So then in Star it groups (them together) like agribusiness, instead of having the individual (different businesses).”
According to the Nebraska FFA Foundation, the Nebraska FFA State Star awards represent the “best of the best” among Nebraska FFA degree recipients.
Windy, dry weather cause for concern in beef industry
It’s no secret that it’s dry and windy across much of Nebraska at the present time.
While many farmers are struggling with the beginning of planting season, local beef producers are finding this season equally as full of challenge and concern.
“Every producer, it depends on their operation (for what) their ideal conditions are, depending on how diversified they are,” said Brad Schick, Nebraska Extension beef systems educator. “So, I guess you always plan for the average conditions and then you look at your forecast. Ideal conditions are rising to warm spring with ample soil moisture already and then those spring rains that we rely on.”
With significantly less precipitation at this point in April than in other years, this makes three years of below average, dry starts to spring, he added.
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