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May Newsletter
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Senior Spotlight
Tanna Krueger: Future Plans: I am attending Xenon Academy in Grand Island to become an Esthetician
Favorite Class in HS: English
Advice: Everyday is a new beginning, take a deep breath, smile, and start again.
Halee Kohmetscher:
Future Plans: I plan to attend Northeast Community College and major in Animal Science and get a job with being a sales representative for a pharmaceutical company.
Favorite class in HS: Science and Art
Advice: High school is tough but is a great experience at the same time. Enjoy with your friends and classmates and make some good memories!
Jim Mackin:
Future Plans: Go to CCC and major in Diesel Technology then go into John Deere dealership as a mechanic
Favorite class in HS: Independent Welding
Advice: Live life and have fun without getting caught.
Holiday Magic
Kort
Track Santa on his journey from the North Pole: https://www.noradsanta.org
Be sure to do the follow this holiday season:
-Use cash only
-Bake from scratch
-Mail holiday cards
-Decorate with what you have
-Spend time together
-Make gifts
-Dress up
-Write thank you notes
-Share memories
-Give back to others
CHRISTMAS CANDY CRUNCH
4 cups Chex Cereal
2 cups Mini Twist Pretzels
1/2 cup Reese’s Mini Peanut Butter Cups
1 cup M&M’s Candy
1 cup white chocolate chips
- Line cookie sheet with foil or wax paper.
- Combine all ingredients except white chips in a large bowl and toss.
- Place chips in a microwave safe bowl and heat about 30-40 seconds, stir until smooth. Continue heating in 10 second intervals and stir until completely melted.
- Pour melted chips over mixture and stir until coated.
- Spread mixture onto cookie sheet and let set about 10 minutes.
- Break into pieces!
ENJOY!
Wind Turbines
Schmidt-Shaw
This summer our little town of Blue Hill got some major upgrades near by. The state energy board approved a $140 Million wind farm.
The Cottonwood Wind Project plans to have 52 turbines and a capacity to generate 89.5 megawatts of power.
Funded by NextEra Energy Resources, the nation’s biggest wind developer, the project will produce about $800,000 a year in lease payments to 35 landowners and about $864,000 a year in local taxes. They project a 7% increase in tax revenue for Webster county. It will also create five permanent, full-time jobs, and about 300 temporary jobs during their construction.
The Nebraska Power Review Board approved the project on the condition that it sign a power purchase agreement with them. It is expected to be signed by the end of the year. NPPD is currently in the process of lining up industrial and manufacturing customers that are seeking to use nature friendly energy resources. Those companies will be contracted for “renewable energy credits” to cover most of the wind farm’s generation.
At least two companies have expressed interest in buying about 65 megawatts of credits through the Blue Hill project. It’s also possible that the project will help attract a new company to Nebraska seeking to use green energy and lock in a good price for electricity through a 15-year contract. Since the developer purchased equipment prior to January 1st, the project will qualify for federal energy production tax credits.
Mrs. Bonifas, Blue Hill Teacher, speaks her mind about the wind turbines, “In many ways I think they are a good addition because of the power that we can generate without coal, and the revenue that can be generated for our school and for landowners.”
She goes on to say ”I don’t like the fact that they are permanent, so at this point there is no changing of anyone’s mind whether they want them or not.I think there are many pros and cons to the windmills, but the truth is that we as a society use a lot of power, and as the population continues to grow, and we continue to use more power, we have to prepare ourselves for new ideas in alternative sources of power and fuel.”
The new additions south of Blue Hill have already caused controversy and debate, but they will provide benefits to the community for years to come.
The Elementary had their Christmas program
Branson
On December 5 the elementary kid had their Christmas program it went band then 6th-4th-grade choir and 3-1 choir then pre-k- kindergartens choir it was cool and unique. It was very interesting to see them perform
“I love you guys” Safety Procedures
Schmidt
Blue Hill Schools are implementing new protocol to keep the school safe. These changes are happening throughout the state of Nebraska for consistency in procedures should an emergency situation arise.
The school canceled classes on Wednesday, November 22nd to train the staff and on Friday, December 1st, committee members (Mrs. Brown, Mr. Muth, and Mr. Moore) presented students with new safety procedures.
This new program came about after a dad lost his daughter in a school shooting. The program got the name “I love you guys,” because that was the last text she sent before being killed. The dad, a graphic designer, created graphics for schools to post.
Some of the new procedures include students going out back of the school for fire drills, instead of the front. Another new safety procedure is locking all doors in the school, including classroom doors. Every teacher’s room must be locked, and to get into the classroom you must knock. If a shooter were to come into the building, students would be safer, as he/she would not be able to easily enter the classrooms.
Another new rule is if anyone is in the hallway when a shooter enters the building, teachers are not allowed to let them into the classroom. It is a safety rule in case the student would happen to be the shooter or if the shooter is close enough to follow into the classroom. In the past, students and staff have been trained to stay in the classroom at all times, but the new procedures tell them to run awa
y if possible if a school is on lockdown.
Other changes include verbiage used to communicate procedures and numbers posted in all classroom windows to help emergency vehicles find students. Posters around the building show different procedures for various threats and students and staff members will continuously practice and train on what each of these mean.
Students are being taught what to do in different situations. These new rules will help keep students safe at anytime something tragic happens.
One-Act Overview
Shaw
This year, Blue Hill One-Act put on a new play written and directed by our own Mrs. Luke. Students received many awards with a terrific group of new and returning members.
The play called “872 Days” was inspired by a story told to Mrs. Luke by a friend at church last May. He talked about the Siege of Leningrad during World War II. He was using this historical story to illustrate altruism and the importance of giving, but Mrs. Luke made a self-note to look into the Siege. She did not know this story, so she started with a basic Google search and read the barebones facts of the Siege. This led her to an inspiring story about WWII refugees.
872 days takes place in September of 1941, Hitler and his allies surrounded and bombarded Leningrad, Russia. They cut off all supplies and bombed the food storage with the deliberate intent of starving the population.
Our One-Act team, lead by Mrs. Luke, went to the TVC contest at Harvard High School on November 14th. They were awarded TVC Runner-up. John Rouse was awarded Best Supporting Actor while, Jami Kirchner, Tanner Lemke, & Britney Toepfer got honorable mentions.
On November 19th, One Act held their annual Dessert and a Show at the high school. During this event, the New York City trip also hosts a silent auction to raise travel funds.
The group was awarded Outstanding Technical Theater in the Lincoln High School Play Festival on November 21st. They also received Acting Honors for John Rouse, Taylor Bonifas, and Ladelle Hazen. Through the tough competitions of Districts, they made 5th place. While this did not secure them a spot at state, the school is still extremely proud of the original play and how beautifully the students performed.
One-Act’s final performance will be at Hastings College at 7 P.M. (Scott Studio Theatre 710 Turner Ave in Hastings).
BOBCAT PRESS 