Close to eight and a half years ago, my family of four moved to McCook for my job at McCook Community College. Now, as our family of six prepares to move to a new opportunity in Arizona, it has given me a chance to reflect on my time here. There are a lot of great things about McCook. The people are amazing; we have many thriving local independent businesses; there is a strong foundation of pioneers from the community; and there are local institutions leading the community forward...

Seven years ago, when my family moved to McCook the advice we got was, “Find a place to live and then in the next 5-10 years you can find the home you want.” We were already committed to McCook and knew rural housing was difficult, so it was something we were willing to accept...

This last month, the MEDC board spent time looking back on what we have been working on and then looked at where we want to be in the future. Even though we live in a time of uncertainty, there are opportunities for McCook as we look forward. Two years ago, we identified business recruitment, workforce development, and housing as our top three priorities. We’ve had some wins, but a few projects have taken a little longer than expected. Here’s a few successes:...

Last week was a big week for the CARES federal stimulus act. The Paycheck Protection Program loaned out all $349 billion allocated to it. The Economic Injury Disaster Loan program continued to be overwhelmed. Most people who had tax returns electronically deposited in the last couple years received their stimulus check. It was also big as the first confirmed Coronavirus case in Red Willow County was announced...

Twice in the last two months, I’ve heard the concept of simple, complicated, and complex problems. A simple problem usually has a series of steps you can follow to solve the problem. Baking a cake with cake mix using instructions is a simple problem. ...

Personally, one of the challenges I’ve always faced deals with control. It is difficult for me to remember what I can control and what I can’t control. This can lead me to trying to change things or worry about things I really didn’t have the power to control. I think a lot of us have had a new experience with control in the last few weeks...

Dear Editor, From my viewpoint, the two biggest issues facing the state legislature this year are property tax relief and a new economic development incentive program. Both are important, but in terms of economic development in rural Nebraska, property tax relief takes priority...

One of the biggest challenges all of Nebraska and most of the country faces is a workforce shortage. It is estimated there are 56,000 more listed jobs open right now than qualified employees available in Nebraska. This is true in McCook in certain areas. Many employers have told me, it is difficult to find enough employees with the right skill set or education for the job opportunities they have available...

December is a good time to look back and look ahead. When I took the role of Economic Director a year and a half ago, I think I only understood about 15% of what the job entailed. It has been a steep learning curve. With the board’s guidance, we identified three areas of focus and I wanted to provide an update on where we are...

Raising kids is tough. On days when I’m home with my three kids all day, I’m exhausted. It is a blast to play and learn with them, but takes a lot of energy. After having kids, my appreciation for early childhood educators has increased significantly...

Over the last month, I had multiple people question me if this was the right time to merge our local chamber and economic development operations. This is a good thought and both boards had discussions and looked at the pros and cons of a merger. Through our research and conversations we decided it was not in the best interest of the community for a couple of` reasons...

Earlier this week, we hosted University of Nebraska-Omaha/University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) Chancellor Dr. Jeffrey Gold. Dr. Gold has had an accomplished career, first in pediatric heart surgery, now in higher education administration. His leadership has pushed UNMC forward nationally and earned him the chancellor position at UNO. ...

Every year the Nebraska State Chamber of Commerce travels the state talking about their priorities for the state legislature. Every year that I’ve attended, the message has been the same on the need to lower our state taxes. When they came to McCook last fall, I was ready to hear the same message. I was surprised. New State Chamber president Bryan Sloan said the lack of a qualified workforce is now the most pressing economic issue in the state...

Every year the Nebraska State Chamber of Commerce travels the state talking about their priorities for the state legislature. Every year that I’ve attended, the message has been the same on the need to lower our state taxes. When they came to McCook last fall, I was ready to hear the same message. I was surprised. New State Chamber president Bryan Sloan said the lack of a qualified workforce is now the most pressing economic issue in the state...

Last year Valmont paid $146,283.52 in property taxes. These taxes went to fund the school, city, county, ESU, historical society, Mid-Plains Community College, and the Natural Resources District. Sixteen years ago, the land where Valmont was located paid $784.12 in property tax. The addition of Valmont has brought over 150 jobs, over $8,000,000 in increased property value, and around $150,000 more in local property taxes...

A couple of weeks ago, Nicole Sedlacek, Economic Development Consultant with Nebraska Public Power District shared at our annual meeting of the members that McCook had a retail pull of 1.52. That means for communities our size in Nebraska we do 152% of the expected retail business. The only other similar sized community that has a higher pull is York. This statistic helps illustrate the concept of McCook being the hub of Southwest Nebraska...

Last spring, the college hosted a one-day leadership conference with a variety of local speakers. I still think about Clark Bates and Kyle Dellevoet talking about the thoughtful leadership transition at McCook Christian Church. They used the illustration of the 4x100 relay race and successful baton handoffs. For a relay team to be successful, they have to execute clean baton handoffs. It happens with both runners being at full speed when the exchange happens...

Our Crock-Pot ran out of juice earlier this week. I put a batch of chili in before I left for work and when my wife checked it later in the day, it was still cold. I visited Knowlen and Yates and first learned that Crock-Pot is a brand name and I was actually looking for a slow cooker. Then, I was shown a multi-cooker that was a slow cooker, pressure cooker, rice cooker, and Yogurt Maker. It is fantastic!...

During this holiday season, I have an assignment for you. When you have children or grandkids coming to McCook, or if you know people coming back, ask them a question, “What would it take for you to move back to this area?” After you ask them, let us know...

One of my favorite shows growing up was the A-Team. The show was about four Vietnam veterans, framed for a crime they didn’t commit, helping the innocent while on the run from the military. Every week, it looked like they were in over their heads and this would be the time they would be caught and sent to military prison. ...

It is always inspiring to head back to work after Heritage Days. The highlight of the week for me was the Norris Prayer Breakfast. Wallis Marsh returned from Texas to talk about how the time he spent in McCook helped shape him to become the success he is today. ...

Lewis Carroll’s book, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, contains a conversation between the Cheshire Cat and Alice: Alice asked the Cheshire Cat, who was sitting in a tree, “What road do I take?” The cat asked, “Where do you want to go?” “I don’t know,” Alice answered. “Then,” said the cat, “It really doesn’t matter, does it?”...

I’ve always been interested in history and biographies. One of the most interesting biographies I read was, Benjamin Franklin by Walter Isaacson. Franklin lived an amazing life as a printer, inventor, scientist, politician, and diplomat. He helped draft the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution and negotiated the 1783 Treaty of Paris. I read biographies not just to learn about an interesting individual, but also see what I can learn from and apply from the life of the person...

One of my goals as I start my new position as the McCook Economic Development Corporation Executive Director is to be in constant communication with the community. One effort to do this will be a monthly article that comes out the week after our board of directors meets. This is the inaugural monthly article...