 The City of Neligh’s electrical case, which was heard by the Nebraska Supreme Court earlier this year, may have concluded, pending yet another appeal to the Supreme Court.
On Friday, the Nebraska Power Review Board ruled in favor of the City of Neligh on Friday and ordered payment of an additional $82,623.86 to Elkhorn Rural Public Power District. The board stated in its ruling that the municipality had the right to acquire the retail service area rights previously served by ERRPD and annexed into Neligh by Ordinances 578 and 579. Nebraska Power Review Board Chairman Frank Reida wrote that Neligh is not required to provide any compensation to ERPPD for loss of revenue of the Baker and Bomgaars customers that were annexed by Ordinance 578 because they are not “existing customers” of ERPPD under Nebraska Law. However, the customers and distribution facilities in the territory annexed from the south (Ordinance 579) shall be transferred to Neligh after payment of $82,623.86 to ERPPD. The board ruled that Neligh owed the agreed-upon sum of $490,445.90, plus the compensation for the effect of the annexation on substation 71-18, consisting of the loss of 26 percent of the substation’s load, which amounts to $82,623.86. The City of Neligh has paid the $490,445.90, which means the only amount due at present is $82,623.86. Neligh has until Nov. 16, 2019, to make this payment or the right to acquire the existing customers and distribution facilities is waived. ERPPD has 30 days to appeal the order to the Nebraska Supreme Court.  It is down to four finalists.
Educational Service Unit 8 has selected Mark Bejot (Wakefield Community Schools), Corey Dahl (Crofton Community Schools), Chester Kay (Shelby-Rising City Public Schools), and Mike Sieh (Stanton Community Schools) as finalists for their administrator position. Current administrator Bill Mowinkle is retiring at the end of the 2018-19 academic year. The Educational Service Unit 8 Board of Directors will consider selecting one of the four candidates at their Monday, Nov. 19 meeting to further discuss negotiations for the position.  The mobile food pantry, sponsored by various churches, individuals, and businesses in Antelope County, will be dispersing food on Tuesday, November 20, from 4:00-5:30 pm at the American Legion Club in Neligh.
The goal is to provide free food to those whose needs are great and resources are limited without being restricted by income guidelines. Due to liability reasons, recipients will not be allowed in the building until 4:00 pm. Please remember to bring your own boxes.  Fourteen Neligh-Oakdale FFA members travelled to the Valley County Fairgrounds in Ord on Wednesday to participate in the District X Livestock Evaluation Career Development Event. Members judged seven classes of livestock including market steers, breeding gilts, market hogs, bulls, breeding does, market sheep and breeding ewes. Members also judged a cull/keep class where they were to select four of the eight animals to keep for their herd and took a 25 question written exam. To conclude the competitive event, junior judgers presented one set of oral reasons while the senior participants delivered three sets. The top four individual scores in each division create the team score. The junior team was led to a 12th place finish by Jackson Keetle, Grace Shabram, Josey Booth and Sydney Olson. Scoring for the senior team included Kaleb Pofahl, Kyle Snodgrass, Cade Wilkinson, and Cole Belitz to finish 11th. The senior team also brought home a top 5 finish in the reasons division. Other Junior team members included Cody Booth, Ashton Higgins, and Bailey Bennett-Schrader. Rounding out the Senior team judgers were Christian Carothers, Hannah Schrader, and Cameron Wiseman. The next competitive event will be District X Leadership Development Events on January 16th in Atkinson hosted by West Holt.  After a 19-year recess, the Neligh-Oakdale Mock Trial team was back in session today. Nine students and coach Celia Van Fleet headed to the Madison County Courthouse on Friday to observe their first mock trial competition. It gave the students an opportunity to gain a better understanding of the mock trial process. Those attending were Sadie Heckert, Chloe Carothers, Lesly Luna, Shelby Pitzer, Krystal Fulsaas, Kenzie Rudlof, Ashton Higgins, Cole Jensen and Thomas Johnson. Neligh-Oakdale’s mock trial team started in 1985 and was discontinued after 1999. The 2018-19 school year marks a new beginning for the program.   On October 24, 28 of the 35 Neligh-Oakdale FCCLA chapter members attended District 8 Leadership Conference (DLC) at Northeast Community College. The conference began with the installation of Lesly Luna-Duran as the district 8 president. The keynote speaker was the CEO/President of The Set Me Free Project, Stephanie Olson. The students then attended several breakout sessions and tours. The sessions included Culinary Arts of Central Community College; Jazzercise; game and parks as a career with Phil Chvala; Corps of Engineers and Forest Service; Carol Ryan with Say Yes To FCS with state officer, Hailey Bixler; state peer officer team members Jaiden Johnson and Lauren Pinkelman and tours were available for nursing, media arts and early childhood education. In addition to the breakout sessions was a community service project, where the students were able to create holiday door hangers for the Veterans Home in Norfolk. The chapters all participated in a FCCLA quiz bowl. Neligh-Oakdale participants were Emma Bixler, Meredith Wiseman, Kenzie Rudolf, Izzy Schmidt, and Sadie Heckert. The team brought home a first place award. Heckert participated in the creed speaking/interpretation event and placed third. Hailey Bixler completed the yearbook and received first. The scrapbook was completed by Skylar Long, Lesly Luna and Emma Bixler, who received first place.  The Neligh Chamber of Commerce will host its annual holiday kickoff on Sunday, Nov. 25.
The lighted parade will begin at 5:30 p.m. down Main Street. A free hotdog feed, sponsored by Stealth Broadband and Sly's, will be at the Neligh Legion from 6 to 8 p.m. The Neligh-Oakdale FBLA will host games. Santa will also be on hand with photos by the Antelope County News.  The Neligh Volunteer Fire Department is once again inviting the public to join them on Thanksgiving morning from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Neligh Fire Hall.
The department will be serving Tom and Jerrys drinks for a free-will donation.  Recently Diane Tasler approached the Atkinson Fire & Rescue and asked for help in finding AEDs for local rodeo and fair clubs. She wanted an AED that was user friendly.
Jacque Anson agreed to help her find the one that would work the best. When looking, the big concern was longevity of the batteries because that always is a problem with any device. Atkinson Fire & Rescue has always used Zoll Defibrillators, so Anson called the representative because Zoll makes an AED Plus, which has the ability to automatically read the patient once it is hooked up and will tell the user when to start CPR. The AED will also tell the user if they are doing the compressions deep enough and fast enough. It will also shock automatically so it will advise when to stop CPR and stand clear of the patient so it can deliver the shock if the patient requires a shock. This AED takes six batteries that you can buy at any parts store. Tasler saw first-hand what an AED can do to be a fast response to a person and how it can save a life. That is why she felt so compelled to get AEDs out there to help other familes in need. Tasler donated eight of these AEDs to the area. Atkinson Fire & Rescue received one for their command vehicle because they don’t always have an ambulance at a fire scene and the number one killer of firemen is heart attack. The rest were donated to Atkinson High School Rodeo Club - Jason Mathis; City of Neligh - Dean Bly; Rock County Ag Society - Eric Wegener and JW Ogier; Boyd County Ag Society; Stuart Rodeo Committee - Mike Weichman and Matt Kaup; Holt County Ag Society - Kirk Shane; and Carol McKay Rodeo - Terry Miles. All of these AEDs come with a glass front cabinet, signage, AED carrying case, adult and pediatric pads and extra batteries. Each AED retails for over $1,500 per set and with the help of Zoll and the company seeing the need for this area they were able to be purchased for $1,250.  Neligh-Oakdale’s recently halted student work release program is back on track after a misunderstanding of policy between the administrators and the Board of Education.
Superintendent Scott Gregory told board members during their monthly meeting Monday that the longstanding cooperation between the school and Antelope County business community was squashed this year due to the school not having open campus or allowing students to drive during lunch. During the summer, the board discussed reopening campus lunch but eventually dropped the topic, and no policy change occurred. However, administrators interpreted that discussion to mean the work release program was a violation of policy. “We’re not allowing them to drive off campus,” Gregory said. “That relates to the closed campus thing. If we’re not allowing kids to drive off campus at lunch and we’re not going to trust them to do those kinds of things, then to be consistent you don’t throw open the doors and let them drive on their own.” Board members immediately questioned the correlation between driving at lunch and allowing students to work with local businesses. Vice president Ryan Koinzan said ending the work release program based on the lunch discussion was a stretch by administrators and not the directive of the board. “I have a really hard time buying that’s consistent with closed campus. The closed campus discussion that happened earlier with this board was about the noon hour. It never had any discussion about work release. I think that’s a really large assumption, Mr. Gregory, and I think that’s rather foolish to put that on closed campus.” He added, “If that is a decision that you and the principal made about not allowing students to drive for work release, that’s on you — not this board.” Gregory replied, “That’s correct, and I accept that.” When explaining the closed campus reasoning, Gregory also told the board that due to Title I grant funding, Neligh-Oakdale now must comply with those goals, which includes work-place opportunities in the community. He said having work release at Neligh-Oakdale would actually help with the Title I paperwork involved with the funding. “We will probably have to take a look at that because in order to be able to receive those funds, we’ll have to maybe create an opportunity that way and it just may be that us allowing the seniors or a few students in a class to drive. Maybe that wouldn’t be the end of the world,” he said. Board members were made aware of the work release program ending during an overview by Neligh Economic Development Director Gabe Steinmeyer. “While Neligh-Oakdale has a great track record of allowing students to participate in these internships and programs, it was recently brought to my attention there has been some recent policies put into place that are hindering the ability for our students to go to internships,” he said. Board member Cory Furstenau suggested the Economic Development office work with the school in the future as part of the curriculum committee to help the school better meet the needs of local job requirements.  The City of Neligh is announcing a water shut off today to fix a water line break. City crews are currently working north of Pioneer Homes at 6th and Q streets. Businesses and houses along the following streets will have water interruptions: From the intersection of 9th Street and Highway 14 south to 7th Street; From the intersections of 7th Street and Highway 14 east to the intersection of 7th street and P Street; and From the intersection of 7th Street and P Street south to 6th Street and P Street. If you are close to the areas listed, please be aware that your water service will be interrupted to fix the water line.  Neligh-Oakdale actors earned seven outstanding actor awards at the Niobrara Valley Conference East One Act Tournament at Elgin Public on Tuesday. Outstanding actor awards were presented to: Katie/Mindy - Haley Kerkman Mayor - Sadie Heckert Poor Old Woman - Sydney Olson Wally/Horace - Cole Belitz Asher/Rumpelstiltskin - Christian Carothers Dad - Cade Wilkinson Prince Reggie - Adan Schindler The cast performed "Bedtime Stories (As Told By Our Dad) (Who Messed Them Up)," under the direction of Sharra Lutjens and Dave Schrader, for a sixth place finish.  Anguish washed over his face. Overcome with emotion, he choked back tears and cleared his throat. But, marching on like a true foot soldier, he was determined to share his harrowing tale. The captivated audience sat motionless as they hung on every word the U.S. Army veteran spoke at the Neligh-Oakdale Veterans Day Program on Monday morning. Keynote speaker Calvin McCloy, retired Army 1st Sgt., said many people talk about sacrifice, but few know its true meaning. “We thank veterans for their sacrifices, but what sacrifices are we thanking them for?” he asked. ”I’m going to take you through a presentation. There is actual combat taking place while these pictures were taken.” While serving 21 years of active duty as an infantryman, McCloy was willing to sacrifice his life for his country and to save his fellow soldiers. He served in several third world countries, including Iraq. He proudly displayed slideshow pictures of his 37-soldier platoon during his deployment there. “These are the guys I’m responsible for, to make sure I bring them back alive and they get everything they need,” McCloy said. The slideshow photos continued: blinding sandstorms, grids of landmines covering roadways and a bombed-out Iraqi police station where his platoon stayed. “There were car bombs, drive bys,” he said. “People would just drive by the buildings and shoot machine guns at us, hoping they got lucky and killed an American soldier.” As a photo of the bullet-ridden building flashed up on the screen, McCloy pointed out the area just outside where he slept. “You can see all the bullet holes in it,” he said. “These are the sacrifices I’m talking about. Not everybody gets the opportunity to serve in combat and be shot at. It’s not fun. It’s not a fun experience, but it is a humbling experience.” More images were displayed: children standing outside the U.S. Army compound and Iraqi men cheering in the streets. “In this picture, it appears that everybody just loves American soldiers,” McCloy said. “This is what the really hard thing was. Who is the bad guy? One time they may be out in the street clapping and the next time, they may have an AK47 shooting at you.” In addition, he said the terrorists often created IEDs, or improvised explosive devices, by raiding ammunition storage buildings, digging holes in the road, dumping in all the ammunition and detonating it with cell phones when American soldiers came by. They even used their own children on suicide missions because they knew American soldiers loved children. “They would arm them with explosives, they would put suicide vests on the children and send them in...anything these terrorists could do to kill an American soldier,” McCloy said. While running sniper operations on the Iraqi border, he said he was faced with a similar situation. “I ended up shooting a kid,” McCloy said as he struggled to speak. “He was an armed combatant, but the point is, that he was a child...I ended up engaging and shooting the kid. At the time when you’re looking through a rifle scope, 800 to 1,000 meters, I didn’t know he was a kid. You know, we don’t look at faces, we try not to look at faces, because those are the faces that you see in your sleep.” The slideshow clicked forward: Soldiers carrying mine detectors and shovels while walking in front of Bradley Fighting Vehicles. “We would see wires sticking up, and we would pull some wires up until we actually found a bomb and then we would dig the bomb up and dispose of it or disconnect it, whatever the case may be,” he said. McCloy said these routine patrols happened near Yusufiyah, an area known as the “triangle of death.” After prisoners were released from the Iraqi prison, Abu Ghraib, he said these terrorists moved into this area and the fighting intensified. A final photo illuminated the screen. The charred remains of McCloy’s Bradley Fighting Vehicle. “Here’s where I’m going to try to get through the story,” he said. “What happened was we crossed a bridge, and once we crossed the bridge, an IED went off. It was the mother of all IEDs. It was huge. It actually lifted my Bradley into the air and threw us off to the side a little bit.” McCloy said he was standing up when the IED with a penetrator blasted through the hull of the vehicle. “It hit me in the bottom of the feet and actually threw me out of the Bradley,” he said. “So, when it threw me out, it shattered my ankle and probably hurt a few other things.” McCloy said he looked around, but none of the other soldiers were outside. “Nobody else came out,” he said. “I have five soldiers in the back, I have a driver, and there’s also a gunner that’s left in this vehicle.” McCloy decided to go back in. He dropped down through the turret on top. “When I dropped in, I was up to here in the Bradley Fighting Vehicle,” he said showing himself up to his chest. “And what happened was a fuel cell exploded or ruptured, however you want to say it, and it covered me from here down with JP-8 diesel fuel and it ignited.” While he was on fire, McCloy went underneath, grabbed the gunner, pushed him up through the turret and off of the vehicle. “I then exited the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, of course, yelling and screaming and so forth and tried to put out my clothes,” he said. “And as soon as the wind blew, I would just light back up.” McCloy entered the vehicle a second time and went to the driver’s hatch. “PFC Nelson, who accuses me of breaking his back to this day, was unconscious in the Bradley,” he said with a soft chuckle. “So I kind of reached in, grabbed him, pulled him out and threw him off. And when I threw him off, I cracked his back.” McCloy said he moved around the vehicle because there were still soldiers in the back of it. “I kicked on the back door and we finally got the back door open,” he said. “Everybody in the back got out of the vehicle.” By this time, McCloy said he had probably been on fire three times already. “So, at that point, I had absolutely nothing left,” he said. “Thank God it happened on a bridge. I moved down to the canal and I jumped into the canal. The water enlarged me, but because I was still wearing all of my gear, I went straight to the bottom.” McCloy undid his vest and gear, and emerged from the water. “I actually set up a hasty defense, I called in my own medevac,” he said. All of the soldiers from the vehicle ended up being safely medevaced. “The crew chief said that I’m the only medevac he’s ever known that was wearing only a T shirt and boots,” McCloy said. “My pants actually burned off of me. Everything actually burned off of me. My gloves actually melted to my hands. I suffered first and second degree burns to my face. I suffered third degree burns to more than 40 percent of my body. I shattered my ankle. I blew my ears out. I wear hearing aids now. Just a list of stuff. I had a traumatic brain injury.” He has since made an incredible recovery. “When I was medevaced and sitting in the hospital, the first thing they told me is that I would never walk again,” McCloy said. “And here I am...It took me two or three years to recover to the point where I felt normal again. I have a lot of skin grafts. I have scars over 60 percent of my body.” Looking back at the blown up vehicle photo on the projection screen, he said, “I just thank God that all of the soldiers survived.” As he concluded his story, a loud standing ovation filled the Neligh-Oakdale gym and the audience left with a better understanding of what true sacrifice means.  Two Neligh-Oakdale graduates and their families were recognized during the school's Veterans Day program in high school gym on Monday.
Blue Star Banners were presented to Mike and Tami Kester and Ray and Deb Branstiter, all of Neligh. Their sons are currently active in the military: Zachary Kester, serves in the U.S. Air Force, and Brett Branstiter, is serving in the U.S. Army. Chad Shabram, commander of Legion Post 172, presented the service banners to the families. It is a long-time tradition to give Blue Star Banners to military families to hang in their windows. The service flag includes a white field on a red banner, and a blue star for each family serving on active duty in the U.S. military, and can include up to five stars.  It's beginning to look — and definitely feel — a lot like Christmas around the Antelope County Courthouse thanks to the combined efforts of the Neligh-Oakdale FBLA and Neligh Chamber of Commerce.
Despite the low temperature, FBLA students and parents turned out Sunday afternoon to place decorations around the courthouse as one of their annual service projects to assist the Neligh Chamber of Commerce, which organizes the community's annual Christmas kickoff celebration. The Christmas decorations will officially be lit on Sunday, Nov. 25, following the lighted parade. The parade line-up starts at 5 p.m. with the parade through Main Street at 5:30 p.m. The lights will be turned on immediately following the parade. Children are encouraged to gather around the gazebo to sing Christmas carols prior to the lighting. The community is then invited to the American Legion for a free hotdog feed sponsored, games from the FBLA and, of course, a visit with Santa Claus. The Antelope County News will be taking photos with Santa at the event.  Grace Lutheran Church in Neligh will host its 23rd Annual Grace's Gracious Giveaway on Saturday, Nov. 10.
The public is invited to come and get what they want, for free. The event will be held 8 a.m. to noon at the Grace Lutheran Church. Leftover items will be taken to the Rescue Mission.  The Neligh-Oakdale gym looked like a sea of red on Friday morning. Wearing red, the Neligh-Oakdale elementary students were entertained by the high school drum line, as well as sang songs, shouted chants and formed a circle to perform the "Chicken Dance" as they celebrated the culmination of Red Ribbon Week. Elementary guidance counselor Becky Kerkman was joined by elementary principal Mary Schrader and title teacher Jennifer Korus donned mustaches and held up signs, asking the kids to join their chant, "We mustache you to make healthy choices." Adhesive mustaches were handed out to the kids as well.  The Neligh Friends of the Library is giving patrons three ways to support their local library. The annual silent auction is underway now through December 3 and features a wide variety of items to bid on. From Nov. 12-26, there is a "Thankful for Books" Book Fair at the Neligh Library. Library patrons may shop for themselves or purchase books for the library. The Cards for a Cause fundraiser is also in full swing. Boxes of 30 handcrafted greeting cards - your choice of all occasions, kids birthday or thank yous and blank cards - are available for just $30. Stop by the library for more details!  Neligh-Oakdale's Nate Metschke recently was named the Nebraska Loves Public Schools Touchdown for Teachers winner.
Metschke, who teaches band at Neligh-Oakdale, will be honored Saturday, Nov. 17, prior to the University of Nebraska football game against Michigan State. He will receive two tickets to the game, tailgate passes, pre-game on-field experience, quarterback poster and an "I Love Public Schools" shirt. The prize package is valued at $200. People were encouraged to nominate a teacher who goes above and beyond.  The Neligh United Methodist Church will host is annual soup lunch and supper on Wednesday, Nov. 14
Soup will be served 11 a.m to 1 p.m. and 5 to 7 p.m. at the Neligh American Legion Hall. The meal will include soup, sandwich, drink and dessert. The cost is $6 for adults and $3 for children 10 and under. A big bake sale will be held as well.  A man accused of murdering a former Neligh woman has been found mentally competent to stand trial.
Saline County District Judge Vicky Johnson ruled Wednesday that Aubrey Trail, 52, is competent for trial June 2019 in the death of Sydney Loofe, a Neligh-Oakdale graduate. Judge Johnson made the ruling after reviewing a competency evaluation from psychiatrist Dr. Klaus Hartmann of the Lincoln Regional Center. Trail remains at the Saline County Jail in the general population. Bailey Boswell, who is also charged in Loofe's murder, still has no jury trial date. She has not entered a plea in the case since her attorney is challenging the death penalty. They both face the charges of murder in the first degree, a class 1 or class 1A felony, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison (Class 1) or the death penalty (Class 1A); and improper disposal of human skeletal remains, a class IV felony, which carries up to 2 years in prison and a fine.  Neligh-Oakdale kicked off its one act season Tuesday at the St. Edward One-Act Festival. Six local actors brought home outstanding actor awards from the first competition of the season which was held at Central Community College in Columbus. Awards were presented to Haley Kerkman, Cade Wilkinson, Cole Belitz, Christian Carothers, Griffin Claussen and Sadie Heckert. Neligh-Oakdale performed "Bedtime Stories (As Told by Our Dad) (Who Messed Them Up)" written by Ed Monk. Judges ranked the performance in a tie for fifth place overall. Cast members are Dad-Cade Wilkinson; Wally/Horace-Cole Belitz; Katie/Mindy-Haley Kerkman; Asher/Rumpelstiltskin-Christian Carothers; Prime Minister-Griffin Claussen; Queen-Lesly Luna-Duran; Prince Reggie-Adan Schindler; Prince Wolanda-Meredith Wiseman; Wilbur-Gage Dawson; Mayor-Sadie Heckert; Mom-Hannah Schrader; Father-Trey Svatos; Intern-Vanessa Parra; Prince 2-Ashton Higgins; Poor Old Woman-Sydney Olson; Daughter-Hailey Bixler; Betsy-Dani Beyer; Sheep-Emma Boggs, Krystal Fulsaas, Evelyn Vasquez and Josey Booth; Villagers-Hannah Vraspir and Ethan Gregory; Lights-Isiac Kurpgeweit; Hair and Makeup-Skylar Long and Shelby Pitzer; Crew-Cole Jensen, Grace Shabram and Isabella Smidt. Neligh-Oakdale, along with all of the other Antelope County schools, will compete in the NVC East One-Act Competition at Elgin on Tuesday, Nov. 13. 
Hood was entered as a missing/endangered person in the state of Washington by the Chelan County Sheriff's Department on Thursday night, according to his family. Hood had been last seen Sunday, Oct. 28, at around 7 a.m. at his aunt and uncle’s home in Entiat, Wash. He was believed to be driving a 1999 teal-colored Honda Civic with a ski rack on top and Washington license plate with the number BIC2590.
An attempt to locate was issued for Hood by the sheriff's department on Thursday, according to Hood’s uncle Adam Jones. Hood is the son of Tim Hood of Neligh and Rowena Redli of Okanogan, Wash. Jones and Redli are siblings, and Hood has been living with Jones and his family for about seven months. Jones said his nephew left his home on Sunday morning with plans to help his sister Kathryn, who also lives in Entiat, a community of 1,100 people located between the eastern foothills of the Cascade Mountain range, Lake Entiat and the Entiat River. Jones said he later discovered that Hood never arrived at his sister’s home on Sunday, located about three miles away, and had assumed Hood spent several nights at her house rather than returning to Jones' home. Jones said it was unusual that no one heard from Hood during that time and he missed work. According to his uncle, Hood was working for US Aluminum Castings, a precision aluminum casting foundry in Entiat. Jones said Hood’s job entailed pouring aluminum into casting forms. Jones said he had a detailed conversation with Hood on Saturday evening, and Hood was in “high spirits” and didn’t seem upset about anything.   Tucker Hood was last seen driving this 1999 teal-colored Honda Civic with a ski rack on top and Washington license plate with the number BIC2590. A Neligh-Oakdale graduate who has not been seen or heard from in nearly a week is now considered a missing/endangered person, according to his family.
Tucker Hood, a 2014 graduate of Neligh-Oakdale, was entered as a missing/endangered person in the state of Washington by the Chelan County Sheriff's Department on Thursday night, according to his family. Hood was last seen Sunday, Oct. 28, at around 7 a.m. at his aunt and uncle’s home in Entiat, Wash. He is believed to be driving a 1999 teal-colored Honda Civic with a ski rack on top and Washington license plate with the number BIC2590. Hood's family is continuing to work with law enforcement in the search. There is no other update at this time for the missing 23-year-old, and his family is continuing to ask for assistance from the public in locating him. An attempt to locate was issued for Hood by the sheriff's department on Thursday, according to Hood’s uncle Adam Jones. Hood is the son of Tim Hood of Neligh and Rowena Redli of Okanogan, Wash. Jones and Redli are siblings, and Hood has been living with Jones and his family for about seven months. “(Tucker) moved in with us in March. He called me up and said he was ready to come home,” Jones said. Jones said his nephew left his home on Sunday morning with plans to help his sister Kathryn, who also lives in Entiat, a community of 1,100 people located between the eastern foothills of the Cascade Mountain range, Lake Entiat and the Entiat River. Jones said he later discovered that Hood never arrived at his sister’s home on Sunday, located about three miles away, and had assumed Hood spent several nights at her house rather than returning to Jones' home. Jones said it was unusual that no one heard from Hood during that time and he missed work. According to his uncle, Hood was working for US Aluminum Castings, a precision aluminum casting foundry in Entiat. Jones said Hood’s job entailed pouring aluminum into casting forms. Jones said he had a detailed conversation with Hood on Saturday evening, and Hood was in “high spirits” and didn’t seem upset about anything. Jones said Hood left Sunday morning in a small compact car that would have difficulty on roads in the forest outside of Entiat, which he said is located in a valley but about five or 10 minutes from forest areas. Considering Hood has been missing for six days, Jones said Hood could be anywhere in the U.S., including in Nebraska, where his father and many friends still live. “He could be anywhere, so we’d really like everyone to share his photo and the photo of his car. We would like as much help as possible in finding him,” Jones said. Anyone with information on Hood’s whereabouts is encouraged to contact the Chelan County Sheriff’s Department at (509) 667-6851.  The Neligh-Oakdale gym will be filled with crafters, vendors and shoppers this weekend.
The 34th Annual Rafts of Crafts, sponsored by the Neligh-Oakdale TeamMates Program, is set for this Saturday, Nov. 10. The event is scheduled for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will feature a wide-variety of 45 crafters and vendors. Admission is free. A soup luncheon will be available. |
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