State pride showing for opinion leader

When it comes to shaping public opinion in Nebraska, no position in Nebraska carries more weight than the editor of the editorial page at the Omaha World-Herald. Every day of the week, the World-Herald goes into more than 190,000 homes and, on Sunday, the World-Herald's coverage soars to above 240,000 homes, with a potential total readership in excess of 500,000 people.

Because of the wide reach of the World-Herald, the newspaper's publisher, John Gottschalk, holds the editor of the editorial page to very high standards. He has been fortunate in recent years to have Frank Partsch in that position. When Gottschalk was at Sidney as publisher, Frank was the editor there, and -- coincidentally -- McCook's current mayor, Dennis Berry, was a reporter on the Sidney newspaper staff.

Partsch attempted to retire several years ago, but came back on an interim basis as a favor to Gottschalk. Among John's reasons was to give Frank time to groom his successor as the editorial page editor.

The editor-to-be is Geitner Simmons, a gifted writer from North Carolina. However, skill with words is not enough. Before moving Simmons into the top spot on the editorial page, Gottschalk and Partsch want to be sure Simmons knows the people of Nebraska ... and understands what their needs and desires are.

As a step in that direction, Simmons is touring the state, visiting medium-sized communities in all sections of the state. Tuesday, his travels brought him to McCook, where he met with city, county, college, hospital and business and industry representatives. The group gathered at the Ben Hormel Business & Technology Center for the luncheon discussion, which was arranged by Pam Harsch, executive director of the McCook Area Chamber of Commerce.

So what did the McCookites have to say? What was their advice to the man who will soon direct the most powerful opinion pages in the state?

Number one, the spokesmen and women said Simmons should come to know that Nebraska's greatest treasure is the quality of the people and their openness and honesty.

In Nebraska, Simmons was told, you will also come to see the great pride that Nebraskans have in the state and their home communities. Here in McCook, for example, community representatives spoke of their great affection for McCook Community College, the state's first junior college, and Community Hospital, a growing medical center offering service to the region.

We salute the World-Herald for letting citizens throughout Nebraska express their feelings and philosophies. It's important to know how hometown people feel, because -- in the end -- editorial ideas touch everyday lives.