Joe Starita of Lincoln talks about his latest book, “A Warrior of the People,” at the Seward County Historical Society Museum in Goehner Oct. 21.
Joe Starita wanted to do a good job on his latest book. He really wanted to do a good job.
“I would lay in bed twitching because I knew I hadn’t done justice to what I’d written about her 12 hours earlier,” he told a group of about 40 people at the Seward County Historical Society Museum in Goehner Oct. 21.
Starita was talking about “A Warrior of the People,” his biography of Dr. Susan LaFlesche Picotte.
Picotte was a member of the Omaha tribe in Nebraska and was 24 when she earned her medical degree. She attended a college in Philadelphia, the only medical college in the world where women could study, Starita said. After earning her degree, Picotte returned to Nebraska and spent the rest of her life serving the Omaha people.
“She won’t allow self-pity,” Starita said.
Starita is a professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Among his classes is narrative non-fiction, which is the use of a fiction writer’s tools to write nonfiction.
He told the crowd “A Warrior of the People” covers three main themes or pillars. First is changing the view of the American West.
“Our view is always shaped through a male lens,” he said. “It’s different through the eyes of a 24-year-old woman.”
To read more about Dr. Susan LaFlesche Picotte and Starita's writing process, click here.
Election results show that Seward County will have a new sheriff, Mike Vance.
Vance defeated incumbent Joe Yocum 3,907 votes to 3,090, winning just over 55 percent of the vote.
Vance said he was happy with the results and that his goals going into his new job in January will be the same as what he campaigned on.
“I want to establish community policing with the sheriff’s department with all the communities in the county,” he said. “School safety is still my priority, which goes into community policing. Establish deputies in county schools and doing some preventative police work for the communities instead of reactive.”
Yocum said the election was a way for people to give their opinions.
“It’s obviously less than what I hoped for, but it is the will of the people and that’s what this is all about,” he said. “The process is that the citizens vote for the person they feel is the most qualified candidate and they did that on Tuesday. I’m proud of the campaign that we conducted and I am ever so grateful for the support and the votes that I received from the citizens of Seward County. I can’t thank them enough.”
To read more about the election results, click here.
At its Nov. 8 meeting the Milford Chamber of Commerce heard from
Derek Dibbern of Bluestem Fiber who announced the company had broken ground in the downtown Milford business district that week.
Dibbern said the fiber optic network will be branching out from the Advanced Association Management building located at 521 1st Street and will be installing in more businesses and some homes within the next couple of weeks.
Dibbern said the company hopes to have the first section of the network completed before the end of the year.
The city of Milford approved the fiber optic network proposal for internet April 4, 2017. Originally, business owners and residents were supposed to have had service within three to six months after the approval, but installations have been delayed.
In other news, the Chamber is hosting a holiday home decorating contest. Community members are encouraged to nominate friends, family and coworkers. Submissions will be judged in five categories, and the winner will win $50 in Chamber bucks.
Souper Saturday will take place at Milford Elementary Jan. 19. More information will come later.
The GFWC Seward Junior Women’s Club will host its 38th annual holiday craft show Saturday, Nov. 17, from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Seward County Ag Pavilion and Harvest Hall. Those attending are encouraged to bring a non-perishable food item or personal item to assist FoodNet and Blue Valley Community Action Partnership.
The fifth annual Home for the Holidays craft and vendor fair will be Saturday, Nov. 17, from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the 4-H Building at the Seward County Fairgrounds. Lunch will be hosted by the Seward Illusion softball team. The Pour Horse offers hot drinks, as well.
Dates have been set for the winter farmers market, which will be at the Seward Memorial Library. The market will go from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturdays, Nov. 17, Dec. 22, Jan. 19, Feb. 16, March 16 and April 20.
The second part of a free two-week series called A Parent’s Survival Guide to Living with Teens will be presented Tuesday, Nov. 20, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Seward Civic Center. Brenda K. Jennings, president of Motivate 2 Communicate LLC, will be the presenter. She will talk about how to best balance family and work life, manage stress and challenging teens and how to set your teen up for success. Contact the Pretrial Diversion Office at (402) 643-3055 for more information.
