If there has ever been a need to be adaptable, it is now.
When schools began closing down in mid-March, everyone - including myself - hoped that this pandemic would quickly pass and we’d be back to normal soon. As the weeks turned into months, there was hope that everything would correct itself over the summer. But as we head into fall, “normal” seems far off on the horizon and we are forced once again to learn how to adapt.
I don’t envy any school administrator who is dealing with this situation as the schools open this week and next. There is no good answer, no perfect answer.
As the saying goes, you can’t please everyone and those words have never been more true than right now as the circumstances change daily, even hourly.
At a minimum, we need to be gracious to those around us and to those making the hard decisions. None of us have all the information nor all the answers. So instead, we need to be flexible and ready to adapt to however we can make this work, whether it is returning to school, holding sporting events or even practicing a music lesson.
Adaptability and flexibility was never more evident that two weeks ago.
McCook High School seniors were fortunate to have an actual graduation ceremony two weeks ago, followed by prom the next evening. Both of those events very well could easily not have happened.
In the weeks and even the days leading up to the events, I was never 100 percent sure they would take place. But fortunately, the graduates were able to walk across the stage at the MCC events center. And then the following night, many of them returned to the event center in their finest duds for a couple hours of dancing and final event with their friends.
Both of those events were postponed from this past spring, but with careful planning and a lot of changes, they both were able to take place. At the end of the day, they happened because people adapted.
The graduation ceremony is usually packed with family and friends and even just members of the community who want to celebrate 12 years of hard work. Instead, graduates were limited to just eight tickets. Any ceremony with anyone in attendance was better than nothing.
As for prom, my husband and I have been prom sponsors for the past decade, spending a week with dozens of high school juniors and fellow teachers decorating for one night of dancing. This year, that week was condensed down to less than three hours and hundreds of decorations were traded for some tule and Christmas lights. With kids still on the dance floor at midnight, I’d call it a success.
As my mom often said, this too shall pass. She had a great way of putting things into perspective, particularly something that seemed difficult or perplexing at the moment. Ask yourself: Will this matter a year from now? Will this matter a week from now? Heck, will it even matter five minutes from now if you simply take a deep breath and put everything into perspective?
Yes, there are things changing in our lives that will have a long term impact from our kids’ education to the viability of our businesses. But in the end, the answer may lie in being able to adapt because change doesn’t have to be bad.
***
On a side note, today is the last day in the office for McCook Community Foundation Funds’ summer hometown intern, Lexi Gross. She has been a joy to work with this summer and I’ve learned from her as much as I hope she has learned from me, the foundation and the community.
Lexi begins her senior year at Fort Hayes State University in Kansas next week, continuing to use audio and visual mediums to capture special events.
Over the last three months, she has helped tell McCook’s story through videos, articles and social media posts as part of MCFF’s “Make It Happen Here” series. If you haven’t seen these great videos, please visit the MCFF website, mccookfoundation.org or find them on Facebook.
But along with capturing the story McCook, the purpose of the internship was to show that our young people can make it happen here. They can have those careers here that they think can only happen in a large city. They can do those activities here that they think can only happen elsewhere. They can create that business here that they have a hard time even imagining.
Lexi was probably tired of hearing it but I hope she, along with all of our young people, knows that we want them to return to their hometown and build their lives here.
Yes, we want our young people to go out there and experience all the great things our country and the world has to offer, but remember that we always want you to return home.
McCook's last hometown bakery closed this past week, leaving a void not just for donuts but for connections.
Many organizations and businesses in McCook offer the opportunity to recycle, reuse and repair items that may just end up in the trash.
Organizer for Buffalo Commons Storytelling Festival and former librarian named Oct 2025 volunteer of the month.
McCook's Third Thursdays were created to get businesses and organizations involved and designed to create life-long memories for the community.
Long-time community advocate Barb Ostrum received the Sept 2025 McCook Volunteer of the Month award.
We need to celebrate our young people while they are here and encourage them to return.
While some like myself appreciate a rainy day, others dread them for a variety of reasons. We need to be empathetic as interact with others.
MCFF Fall Grant Deadline is Oct. 1. Complete list of former recipients on MCFF website
With so much going, it is time for a “This, That and the Other Thing” column, where we will cover several topics, not very deeply but hopefully with a sense of humor as we clean up and prepare for a busy week in McCook. *** McCook again made state and national news this week for ice. This time, it was in the form of hail that pounded the community for hours upon hours. Conversations this week begin with “where were you….?” or “how many windows did you lose?” And while they may be legitimate and are offering their services, it is like vultures with all the roofing repair and dent removal businesses which have descended upon McCook following the storm. As city officials noted, do your due diligence with any company doing repairs for you and follow the old adage, which is old and still around because it’s true: If something seems to be too good to be true, it probably is. And one last note on the storm, we need to be careful what we ask for. As storm after storm approaches McCook and then splits in two to go around the town, we finally got one to roll right over us. The storm liked McCook so much it slowed down and just there. I was in Lincoln during the storm and trying to determine when I would drive home. I thought the weather app had frozen or the radar was broken because every time I looked, the storm was still sitting over McCook, doing its damage. I guess we can be thankful the next time a storm seemingly just goes around us. *** We are in the thick of McCook’s Heritage Days celebration. Congratulations to all the Heritage Days Royalty, which was announced at the MNB Bank Mixer this week. A special shout-out to Bill Donze, better known as Mr. Bill and his wife, Kathy, who were honored as royalty for their impact in McCook. As many know, Mr. Bill is fighting cancer and the prognosis isn’t good. The chances of him selling snow-cones and candy out of his van next summer near the McCook Aquatic Center are not good. One judge of his impact was the response to my column about Mr. Bill a few months ago. The post was shared thousands of times, viewed nearly 70,000 times with just as many comments by people sharing their fond memories of Mr. Bill. So when you see Mr. Bill riding down Norris in the convertible this weekend in the Heritage Days parade, send extra prayers and well-wishes to the man who has brought so much joy to so many kids - and adults too - over the years. *** Continuing on the Heritage Days theme, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the McCook Rotary Club is tossing all egos and formality out the window this weekend. As the president of the McCook Rotary Club, I invite everyone to at least watch, if not participate, in the Rotary’s first inflatable costume relay race on Saturday as part of the festivities in Norris Park. These are those giant, blow-up costumes you usually see around Halloween. The first costumes were usually T-Rexes but now there is everything imaginable available as a design. With the idea for the race originally conceived by Melanie Goodenberger, she has purchased everything from corn on the cob to a cowboy riding a chicken. This is a fund-raiser for the Rotary Club with a cost of just $20 for a team of four to participate in the relay race. But it is also a chance to giggle, perhaps make a fool of yourself and just have fun. Come to the park Saturday afternoon for the Wiener Dog races and stay for the Rotary Relay races. While the dogs will already be close to the ground, the relay race participants will likely just end up on the ground. *** With so much going on in McCook this week, I debated whether there should be another activity the next week but the response has already been great for the Lied’s Arts Across Nebraska’s next production in McCook. Hosted by the McCook Creative District, the Omaha Street Percussion ensemble will perform at the Fox Theater on Wednesday, Sept. 24. There is a matinee showing at 10:30 a.m. but I will be up-front…we are testing the capacity of the Fox with every seat already claimed with students. If that is the only show you can make, please come and we’ll find you a seat but it may be those up in the rafters. Otherwise, please plan to attend the 7 p.m. show on Sept. 24. And even better, there is no cost thanks to the Kimmel Foundation and the Friends of the Lied. This is a busy week and a busy weekend but this is a great opportunity to sit back and enjoy a fun, entertaining evening of live music.
Most likely, we aren't going to be good at something at the start. But that shouldn't stop us from trying.
