It was time to come out and play, enjoy the beauty of Main Street on a stunning spring day, and to appreciate the art that was on display, Friday, May 24, 2024. The second annual Art Walk, sponsored by Broken Spoke Boutique, featured the Sand Painters Art Guild members either showing their art inside local businesses, or outside on the sidewalk working on their vision.

It was a beautiful, blue sky day, Monday, May 27, 2024, at Mount Hope Cemetery. Many were gathered to hear the Memorial Day message that is shared by Leo Brinda Post 90 and VFW Post 5138.

It’s a given, most people don’t care much for the wind in our area, and weren’t very pleased when the windgusted79mphmanglingtrees, branches, and in one case, a roof was blown off ! Cherry County Emergency Manager Jessica Coyle said, “The storm the night of May 29 caused lots of tree damages across the north side and some structural damages on the east side of Valentine, plus power outages south of Highway 20. “There were even reports of structuraldamageeastonHighway 12 from that night.

Winds were gusty all day long Thursday, May 23, 2024. According to NOAA Weather, they gusted up to 46 mph. Then the skies grew dark and ominous in the early evening hours. Mammatus clouds gathered - which are an indication of cool, sinking air. Since they form on thunderstorm anvils, it’s possible you may see mammatus clouds without being impacted by the thunderstorm, according to www.learnweather.com Later in the evening, the rain began falling leaving behind .30 inches according to NOAA. So far, May has had 2.26 inches of rain, with the most falling on Tuesday, May 21 where .87 was recorded. All of this is great for the Sandhills to green up for the upcoming tourist season, for cattle to enjoy lush, green meadows, and the beginnings of haying season.

The 19th annual Nebraska Sandhills Cowboy Hall of Fame banquet and induction ceremony will be held June 8, 2024 at the 4-H Building at the Cherry County Fairgrounds, in Valentine. Social Hour will begin at 4:00 p.m., benefit auction will take place at 5:00 p.m., banquet at 6:00 p.m. and induction ceremony will begin at 7:00 p.m. CST.

You may have noticed the bison herd grazing in new areas this spring, north of the Fort Niobrara Visitor Center. In May 2023, the Refuge transferred their four horses to the National Forest Service in Arizona. “We no longer use the horses to round up bison and they were getting up there in age. We were fortunate to find a new home for them. Hopefully they appreciate the warmer Arizona weather,” said Refuge Manager Matt Sprenger.