JUNIOR CLASS ATTENDS COUNTY GOVERNMENT DAY
State Patrolman Bill Bryce Guest Speaker
On Thursday October 6, the American Government class traveled to Neligh for a look at how county government operates. The day was sponsored by the American Legion. The students gathered in the district court room to hear the reasons for county government day. The first speaker in the morning activities was Ron Marshall. He told us the reasons the American Legion started and continues to support County Government Day. He spoke on the importance county workers serve in helping meet the needs of the residents of our county. He encouraged students to be open to the idea of serving the county or state once they have reached adulthood. American Legion Commander from District 2 then discussed the history of County Government. We were surprised to learn that the program was started in the 1940's in Nebraska and then spread to the rest of the United States.
The students then went to the various offices to gain a better understanding of the workings of county government. They were reminded that most of their contacts with government will occur at the county level. After a fine lunch supplied by the Legion Auxiliary the students had an opportunity to listen to Bill Bryce, a representative of the State Patrol. He discussed responsibilities when operating motor vehicles. He emphasized that distracted drivers has now become the number one killer of teenagers. The day concluded with Taylor Kester of Clearwater telling of her experiences in the Junior Law Cadet Program. She spent a week in the program in Grand Island and encouraged others to participate as well.
Here is the list of county offices and the students that attended.
Attorney: Angela Richart
Clerk: Blake Anderson
Treasurer: Ashlyn DeWald
Sheriff: Cordell Waterbury
Judge: Alex Grosserode
Veterans Service Officer: Juliana Dunn
Department of Social Services: Andrew Heithoff
County Supervisor: Micheal Braband
Farm Service Agency, Executive Director: Levi Kerkman
Planning and Zoning Administrator: Garet Schindler
County Assessor: Nick Heithoff
Extension Educator: Mykil Copeland
Student Point of View:
On October 6th we attended County Government Day in Neligh. We started our day in the Court Room where Ron Marshall talked to us about the American Legion. For this day, we were all assigned a member of the court to learn about. I got to learn about what the County Treasurer does. For example, she showed us how you register new cars and how much something like that can cost. She also showed us a website on how you can see where people live and it even showed your house which is a little creepy. I do not wish to enter into a criminal justice program when I am older, but her job does interest me and did teach me new things that I probably should know. We were each with our assigned person for an hour until we were sent to the Legion to have lunch. After our lunch, Bill Price from the State Patrol showed us a powerpoint on causes of car crashes. The biggest cause was distractions. Some people laughed at some of the information in the powerpoint but it really is not a laughing matter. Accidents cause so much grief for families and friends. Taylor Kester of Clearwater also spoke to us about a Criminal Justice training academy that she did in the summer. It was very interesting to learn about but I don't think I would be able to handle it like she did. Overall, I enjoyed County Government Day and had a great experience with the information that I learned.
Ashlyn DeWald
