News

Hey partner, here’s hoping you had a chance to check out all of the activities going on for Old West Days over the weekend of April 25-27, 2025. If you didn’t here’s what Committee Member Yvonne Hollenbeck said of the event, “It was a huge success. The Melodrama kicked it off in fine fashion with a great crowd of attendees on Thursday night.”

The Niobrara Council met April 17, 2025 at the Cherry County South Building meeting room, at 202 North Main, in Valentine. Attending were: Jason Appelt, Karl Connell, Les Hall, Wade Hollenbeck, Rich Mercure, Mike Murphy, Nina Nelson, Don Painter, Matt Sprenger, Tony Tiefenthaler, Scott Wessel.

The period surrounding the death of a loved one can be difficult to navigate. Mourning a recently deceased family member or friend can dominate individuals’ thoughts, compromising their ability to devote much time and energy to anything else.

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is among more than 60 local, state and federal partners responding to the Plum Creek Fire, which escaped containment during a prescribed burn April 21 west of Johnstown in Brown County.

Members of the Valentine Rotary Club traveled to Johnstown to assist Hot Meals USA, of Kearney. “We didn’t make any of the food, we served it,” said Rotarian Nadeane Allard.

A prescribed fire taking place west of Johnstown in Brown County escapedcontainmentonMonday, April 21, and has since burned an estimated 12,000 to 14,000 acres. (Which was later reduced to more than 7,000 acres.)

LINCOLN, NE, April 24, 2025 – Governor Jim Pillen has authorized the Nebraska National Guard to mobilize 29 soldiers and airmen to assist local volunteer fire departments, which are currently battling the Plum Creek Fire near Johnstown, NE, in Brown County. Nebraska Army National Guard aerial resources have also been authorized to support the firefighting mission.

The Plum Creek fire began Monday, April 21, 2025 when a prescribed burn was blown out of proportion due to high wind gusts west of Johnstown. In all, over 7,000 acres were consumed in the deep, rough terrain. According to reports, from the Ainsworth Fire Department there were two planes dropping retardant and two helicopters dropping huge baskets of water trying to stifle the spread. An exact number of responding departments hasn’t been shared yet, but a Nebraska Game and Parks press release says there were more than 60 local, state, and federal responders.

Kirk Barnes Construction is removing the existing concrete shoulder of the northbound lane between Edna Street and Wood Street. This removal will be completed in the next few days.

The non-profit Valentine Bike Share has opened back up for its sixth season! This year, there are two e-bikes available for checkouts and we are currently fundraising to replace all of the Classic Bikes with e-bikes. For more information on the program, please visit www.valentinebikeshare.org Bike Share is located on the corner of First and Main Street - look for the kiosk.