|Arbor Day coming
“Growing Green For Our Planet” is theme of the 137th Arbor Day celebration Friday-Sunday, April 24-26.
Events include a five-kilometer run, chili cookoff, Southeast Nebraska Community Band concert, craft show and parade.
Watch for a special Arbor Day section in Monday’s Penny Press and Tuesday’s News-Press.
|Plant sale
Tree City Garden Club of Nebraska City is again hosting its Arbor Day Weekend Plant Sale on Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Woodmen of the World Youth Camp, 2005 Fourth Corso. The sale will feature exciting new perennials, annuals, vegetables and home grown offerings. Plant sale profits are donated back to the community.
Wild About Omaha
Join Mutual of Omaha in celebrating 100 years! To celebrate 100 years in a city they love, Wild about Omaha Weekend will be two days of fun-filled FREE events at several Omaha arts & entertainment venues. Friday, July 24 from 5-11 p.m and Saturday, July 25 from 9 a.m. â•„ 4 p.m. Whether youâ•˙re young, old, somewhere in between, single or want to bring the family â•„ thereâ•˙s something for everyone. Participating venues include the Henry Doorly Zoo, Durham Museum, Slowdown, Film Streams, Joslyn Art Museum and so much more! Check out www.wildaboutomaha.com for the full list of events and locations. Or contact Sephera Staley for more information (sephera.staley@mutualofomaha.com or 402-351-3096).
Lincoln Animal Ambassadors First Annual Wine and Howl Event.
Simply Miche, LLC, will be sponsoring a fundraiser event to be held on Saturday, May 2nd, from 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. at Prime Country Winery, 12120 SW 142nd Street, Denton, NE. The mission of Lincoln Animal Ambassadors (LAA) is “enriching our community through progressive thinking, education, awareness and public support.” Please join us and several vendors for a fun-filled afternoon of wine tasting, live music, food by Tico’s Restaurant, and much more! For more information about this fundraiser, please contact Shere Lynn, Simply Miche Representative, at 474-0376 or 817-9977. For more information on LAA, please visit www.LincolnAnimalAmbassadors.org.
|Chili Cook-Off entries wanted
Nebraska City Tourism and Commerce is seeking entries for their Arbor Day Chili Cook-Off to be held Friday, April 25, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Awards will be given for winners in four categories: People’s Choice, Best Overall, Alternative and Five Alarm. Members of the Nebraska City Fire Department will judge the entries. Participants are to bring one roaster full of chili and are responsible for serving their own chili. Entry fee for the contest is $15. Complete contest rules and entry forms are available at NCTC, 806 First Avenue, 873-6654.
|Historical
program at Wildwood
Historical presenter Karen Drevo will give a free program at Wildwood Historic Center at 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 26, in the classroom. Drevo will portray her great-great-grandmother Maria Rodaway, a Nebraska pioneer.
|Wine, Writers and Song Festival
On Saturday, April 25 at 4:30 p.m., Whiskey Run Creek Winery in Brownville will host a program that will tantalize the senses and offer ideas about how to best enjoy wine with food. Three chefs will each prepare an appetizer to be paired with a Whiskey Run Creek Winery wine.
Sean Cunningham, executive chef at Chez Hay in Lincoln and co-author of Dueling Chefs: A Vegetarian & A Meat Lover Debate the Plate will offer a bite-sized salmon cake encrusted with panko and black sesame seeds, served with a wasabi aioli. Maggie Pleskac, chef-owner of Maggie’s Café in Lincoln and co-author of Dueling Chefs, will present a nori-wrapped sushi roll with sweet vinegared rice and creamy avocado, served with wasabi and pickled ginger. Barbara Bond, chef-owner of The Cooking School of Brownville will offer a Roquefort-walnut terrine, served with apple salad tossed in lemon vinaigrette.
Vintner Ron Heskett will discuss how wines are made and which wines best complement which flavors as the audience samples the appetizers made by the chefs and wines Ron has chosen to accompany them. Cost is $5 per person.
A free Children’s program at the Brownville Concert Hall will be offered from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. on Saturday, April 25. There will also be riverboat rides on Friday and Saturday afternoons - $9.95 per person, children 5 and under ride for free.
The Children’s Program will feature the popular musical group The String Beans, storyteller and children’s literature specialist Royal Eckert, and James Solheim, author of It Was Disgusting & I Ate It.
This program is part of Brownville’s weekend Wine, Writers & Song Festival – a celebration of literature, food, wine and music in Historic Brownville, Nebraska. For a complete schedule of events, please visit: www.brownville-ne.com.
|Community banks topic at Lyceum forum
What makes community banks different from large financial institutions that have been tarred by the melt-down? That question will be discussed at the Brownville Lyceum forum at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 19.
The discussion will be led by Rod Vandeberg of Falls City and John Chaney of Auburn. Vandeberg is currently mayor of Falls City and has had a long career in community banking at First National in Falls City, where he currently serves on the board.
John Chaney is CEO and cashier of the Auburn State Bank.
Each panelist will give a brief overview of recent financial news and will then answer questions from the audience.
|Bluebirds group convention
Bluebirds Across Nebraska will host a conference April 18 at the Beatrice Country Club. A bluebird basics workshop will kick off the event. Featured speaker is Dick Turpin, who does the “Turpin Time” feature on Lincoln television stations. Don Brockmeier will present on photographing birds. Lois Herbal will share results of bluebird projects with high school students. Jack and Judy Daniel, beekeepers, will present a program and Jesse Bolli, resource management specialist for the National Park Service, will present on the Homestead National Monument.
A field trip is Friday, April 17, and will focus on homesteaders. A pre-conference dinner is that evening.
|Benefit
auction for DJ Madsen
A benefit auction for DJ Madsen is Saturday, April 25, at 514 Central Ave. Silent auction is 9 a.m-2 p.m. Live auction preview is at 3:30 p.m. The live auction is at 4 p.m.
The Otoe County Saddle Club is sponsoring the event. Anyone interested in contributing new or like new items, please call Lisa at 402-209-1151.
All proceeds will go to the Madsen family.
Madsen, a Lourdes Central Catholic High School graduate, is the son of David and Dianne Madsen. He was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer. Madsen attended Ralla University in Missouri and is on his way to completing his engineering degree. He was a coop/student engineer with Nebraska Public Power. Madsen is undergoing chemotherapy, which requires daily trips to Lincoln.
|Jazz pianist to give concert
First Evangelical Lutheran Church in Nebraska City will host “Salute to American Jazz: Jim Elsberry & The Master Singers,” at 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 3. Nebraska City native Jeff Jenkins, jazz pianist and composer, will be the special guest.
Tickets for the concert are $15 for adults, $13 for seniors and $7.50 for students/children. Children under 10 are free. Group rates are available. Tickets may be reserved in advance or purchased at the door. For more information or to order tickets, contact ewage@earthlink.net or 402-991-1035.
|‘The Glass
Menagerie’ at
Peru State College
Members of the Peru State College Speech and Theatre Club will perform Tennessee Williams’ “The Glass Menagerie” Friday-Sunday, April 17-19 at the College Theatre. The theatre is at the south end of Hoyt Science Hall.
Performances are April 17-18 at 7 p.m. and April 19 at 2 p.m. Doors will open an hour before each performance. There is a nominal admission charge.
For more information about the performances, please contact Joshua Young at 402-872-2285 or jyoung@peru.edu.
|Gourd
workshop
Devis Fruchtl, nicknamed the “gourd girl,” will be leading a workshop on decorating gourds on Saturday, April 18, at the Gallery owned and operated by Janet Palmtag, 1024 Central Ave. The workshop will begin at 9 a.m. and will last until mid afternoon. Participants are encouraged to bring a sack lunch.
Fruchtl, daughter of Kathryn Nelson, is a native of Nebraska City.
Cost to attend the workshop is $37.50 and includes all materials needed for making the gourd art. Some of Fruchtl’s gourds are currently on display at the gallery. The public is invited to come by and take a look. For more information or to register, please contact Janet Palmtag at 873-3343.
|Geocaching activity
Youth and Adults in Action is sponsoring a geocaching activity for Arbor Day and donating global positioning devices for checkout at the Morton-James Public Library.
The geocaching activity and demonstration is scheduled at 9:30 a.m. at the Kimmel Education & Research Center on Saturday, April 25. Steve Zimmers, University of Nebraska extension educator, will demonstrate use of the GPS units. Six units will later be available to the public for checkout at the public library.
Geocaching is an outdoor travel activity where participants use global positioning devices to locate caches that have been placed by other geocachers worldwide.
Caches can include a variety of small items that can be shared or just a pencil and logbook for the geocacher to sign.
|Friendship Bingo
Friendship Bingo will be played at Morton House Assisted Living, 1500 14th Ave.
It will be played the last Thursday each month at 2:30 p.m. Anyone interested may attend.
|Old-time dance at Avoca
schoolhouse
Greenblatt & Seay's Schoolhouse Performance Series features an old-time dance Sunday, May 10, at 2:30 p.m., with Greenblatt & Seay & Their Fine Audience.
The afternoon festivities will encourage and instruct the audience in the art of circle dances, contra dances, waltzes, polkas and a few surprises.
Greenblatt & Seay will provide the live music for the dances, and will provide a little background music and vocalizing between the dances, so that the dancers can catch their breath.
The dance will be followed by light refreshments, and a chance to chat and even jam with the performers. There is a nominal admission fee.
For more information, call 402-275-3221 or e-mail g-s@alltel.net.
|Twin brothers to perform at
Brownville
Will and Anthony Nunziata, twin brothers, will perform “Broadway and Beyond” in cabaret and concert Friday-Sunday, April 17-19, at the Brownville Concert Hall. It is part of the Brownville Concert Series.
Cabaret performances are Friday-Saturday, April 17-18, at 7:30 p.m. A concert performance is Sunday, April 19, at 2 p.m. For tickets and reservations, please call 402-825-3331 or 402-274-3661. The Lyceum Cafe’ is open for lunch, dinner and desserts before each performance. The Whiskey Run Creek Winery in Brownville is also open.
The Nunziatas perform standards, Broadway, Italy and beyond. For more information on the Brownville Concert Series, please visit www.brownvilleconcertseries.com.
|Longtime Peru
state artist,
professor to
be honored
The life and work of Leland “Shorty” Sherwood, longtime Peru State College professor and artist, will be celebrated Saturday, April 18.
There will be an open house from 3-5 p.m. in the Peru State art facilities at the A.V. Larson Building. A reception is from 5-6 p.m. in the Student Center. A dinner and program is at 6 p.m. An auction of Sherwood’s water color paintings follow.
Anyone is invited to attend, though advance reservations are required. Reservations must be made by Friday, April 10. Tickets may be obtained by contacting Krystal Nolte at the Peru State College Foundation, 402-872-2304 or knolte@peru.edu.
|Sightreading workshop
A Sightreading Workshop is Saturday, April 4, from 1-3 p.m. in the Old Avoca Schoolhouse, in picturesque Avoca.
There is no preparation necessary. Pre-registration is required. For more information, please call 402-275-3221 or e-mail g-s@alltel.net.
This will be a wonderful opportunity to play with other
music students, and sightread music that you've never seen before, and don't have to ever see again. During the workshop, musicians will discuss how to negotiate new compositions with minimum stress and maximum music.
|Paws for a Cause during Arbor Day
The inaugural Paws for a Cause is Saturday, April 25, from 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. at Steinhart Park, Nebraska City.
Registrations are urged before Monday, April 6, to ensure a T-shirt. Pre-registration for a participant and their dog is $10 per dog plus $7 optional for a T-shirt. Registration April 25 is $12 per dog. Checks for contributions and registrations should be made to Nebraska City Rotary Club No. 1529. For more information, including how to become a corporate sponsor or vendor, please call Debra Kuhn at 402-209-1000 or ask any Rotarian.
The walk is the north side of Steinhart Park next to west Central Avenue, next to the horseshoe and tennis courts. Participants will walk through Steinhart Park and finish the walk back by the vendor festival.
The half-mile walk will raise funds for the Nebraska City Rotary Club No. 1529 Global Polio eradication fundraiser; the Nebraska City Police Department K-9 unit and Hearts United For Animals.
Registration is at 9:30 a.m. The dog walk and ribbon cutting is at 10:30 a.m. Vendor festival is 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. All participants and their dogs are welcome to join the Nebraska City Rotary Club in walking in the Arbor Day Parade at 1 p.m. Participating dogs must have current license and rabies vaccinations. An adult age 18 or older must control the dog at all times. Dog must be on a 6’ or shorter leash at all times. All participants must clean up after their dogs and sign a waiver.
Registrations are available at Woltemath’s Bank Avenue, NC Tourism & Commerce, Arbor Valley Animal Clinic, American National Bank, The Ambassador Wellness Center or the Animal Hospital.
There will be entertainment, contests, demonstrations, expert advice, pet information, vendors and food available.
|Garden tractor pull to be part of
cow pasture
golf tournament
The Huff-n-Puff Garden Tractor Pull will be an additional attraction to the Sunday, April 26, Cow Pasture Golf Tournament sponsored by the Deer Creek Sodbusters.
The tournament is at the show grounds, 72927 610 Avenue, four-and one-half miles south of Sterling. Sunday, May 3, is rain date.
Weigh-ins are at noon. The pulls are at 1 p.m. There are weight classes for children and adults. Trophies will be awarded for first through third placings in each class. For more information, please contact Troy Walters Jr. at 402-335-7117 or Ben Walters at 402-335-7086.
The pasture golf is a four-person, nine-hole scramble. Prizes will be awarded for first through third places, plus flag prizes. Tee times are at 8 a.m. There will be a beer garden for participants and spectators of legal drinking age, and soft drinks, iced tea and lunch will also be served.
A portion of the proceeds will fund the Deer Creek Sodbusters Scholarship. Friday, April 10, is scholarship deadline. For applications, contact high school guidance counselors or write: Deer Creek Sodbusters, P.O. Box 221, Sterling, NE, 68334 or visit www.deercreeksodbusters.org.
The $250 scholarship is awarded to a graduating senior of a Southeast Nebraska high school who is pursuing higher education in an agricultural related field.
|Comedian headlines fundraiser
Henry Cho, comedian, will headline the Saturday, May 9, Child Saving Institute fundraiser at the Holiday Inn Omaha Convention Center.
For information, please call 402-504-3664 or visit childsaving.org.
Proceeds will benefit Child Saving Institute’s emergency shelters for children and youth, substance abuse intervention, intensive family preservation, adoption, therapeutic foster care and developmental childcare.
