Peekin' into the Past

Five Years Ago

Jan. 11, 2018

Holyoke Elementary teacher Kimberlee Bennett was recognized as Teacher of the Year by Colorado’s District 4 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars at an awards luncheon in Brush on Jan. 14.

A total of 25 teams in grades 1-8 made up of nearly 100 players competed in the Dragons 3-on-3 basketball tournament at Holyoke High School on Jan. 15. Sponsored by the city of Holyoke’s recreation department and the Dragon Booster Club, the event brought in teams from Holyoke and a number of other communities, some traveling from Nebraska.

Ten Years Ago

Jan. 10, 2013

Within the last year, Matt Newman has kicked off Newman Adventures — guided hunts, a hunting lodge and facilities to raise birds for the hunting preserve. For about a year, Newman Adventures has been raising thousands of pheasants, quail and chukar for use on their hunting preserve south of Paoli. The birds are also sold to repopulate other areas and preserves.

As of the beginning of January, Jackie Reynolds has returned as the director of Phillips County Social Services. Reynolds held the director position for about six years before moving to Sterling, where she served as the executive director for Rural Solutions for the last seven years.

Following a public hearing at the Jan. 2 city council meeting, three ordinances involving parking of motor vehicles in residential areas, public nuisances and prohibiting marijuana facilities were adopted with unanimous approval.

After doing heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration work on the Front Range and in this area for the past couple of years, Ken Hoch of Holyoke is now focusing his business venture in northeast Colorado. Hoch LLC offers HVACR service and installation.

Twenty-Five Years Ago

Jan. 15, 1998

Chas Reynolds and Phillip Wirges have consolidated their accounting business and are both working under Chas’ Accounting at 126 N. Interocean Ave. Reynolds opened his Holyoke office in October of 1994 and still continues with his Sterling business, AgTax Services, which started in 1981. Wirges has been working as a public accountant out of his Holyoke residence for just over 10 years.

The development of West Holyoke will be treated as a new subdivision. That decision, which was handed down by the city council on Jan. 6, means would-be developers Jim Kienholz and Harry Brinkema will have to jump through a few more hoops.

Fifty Years Ago

Jan. 11, 1973

Mr. and Mrs. George Sumpter have sold their variety store in Holyoke to Mr. and Mrs. Carl Gorsuch. The store name will be changed to Holyoke Variety. George opened his Ben Franklin store on Oct. 1, 1962, changing the name of the store to Sumpter’s Variety in 1971.

The Re-1J district school board at the Jan. 9 meeting voted that the district hire an aide to help high school math and social studies students, if a suitable person can be found.

Seventy-Five Years Ago

Jan. 15, 1948

Henry T. Gassert and C.W. Donahue of Sterling recently purchased the Minneapolis-Moline dealership from August Dubbert. Dubbert has been the MM dealer for the past eight years and had it on his farm northeast of Holyoke when he first started in the business. In the spring of 1943, he moved to the place north of town, where he has been since that time. 

The first public showing in Holyoke of the new 1948 model Ford trucks — the first post-war products of the Ford Motor Co. — will take place Jan. 16 at an open house to be conducted by the Holyoke Motor Co. 

The student body was entertained Jan. 5 by J.L. Turner, representing the National Assembly. He thrilled all of the students by writing with both hands at the same time, writing words backward and upside-down, and writing with both hands while reciting a poem. He also wrote with his mouth while writing with his right and left hands.