McCOOK, Neb. - Sometimes it takes stepping back and seeing your community as an outsider to really appreciate all that you have. That was one of the major themes that Matt Sehnert and Ronda Graff came away with after their recent attendance at the inaugural #WeaveThePeople conference in Washington, D.C.
Sehnert and Graff, along with Andy Long and Dale Dueland of McCook, were invited to the Aspen Institute gathering where more than 250 community “weavers” from across the country congregated to share their efforts at combating social isolation, repairing fragmentation, and uniting their communities. The conference was led by New York Times columnist and author David Brooks who traveled to McCook in March to learn more about the strengths of rural communities. Nebraska Community Foundation facilitated the rural Nebraska tour.
Brooks was impressed with what he saw and commented about his Nebraska visit, “Everybody says rural America is collapsing. But I keep going to places with more moral coherence and social commitment than we have in booming urban areas. These visits prompt the same question: How can we spread the civic mind-set they have in abundance?”
That visit led to the invitation to Washington, D.C., where Sehnert and Graff were asked to speak on the main stage along with authors, journalists and researchers, including Jonathan Haidt, Martha Welch, David Bornstein and Katie Couric. Initially, they questioned what they could offer, as “there were a lot of people there with a lot of credentials.” Ultimately they came to realize that rural areas (the Nebraska and Appalachia attendees were the only non-urban representatives) could be an example for strengthening communities throughout the nation.
“We hope and believe that what we’re doing here is working. We’re actually a good example for the rest of the United States,” Graff said. “We don’t have it so bad here. We actually have what seems like a very friendly, stable community. We don’t have the problems that a lot of the communities and the people that we met in DC; they’re facing a lot of tougher problems than we are.”
“We’re actually blessed with what we have – people and organizations and resources – that we can count on and use to our advantage.”
Sehnert found that much of the good work and processes that were presented came from people who faced some serious challenges in their lives. “A lot of people that spoke were doing what they do because of some tragedy that happened in their lives. Everything from suicide to murder to racial issues, rape – it ran the gamut. I think that the people from rural Nebraska and Appalachia were not in that mode so much. Obviously we have some of those challenges, but not near at the scale that they do. We are more challenged by poverty. We live here, so we don’t even know that we’re poor. But the wages that we all earn are not comparable.”
Sehnert also said that most of the attendees were part of a non-profit organization. It is part of their job to build communities and solve social problems. Sehnert said that the Aspen staff recognized that in McCook and Nebraska, people were creating community because it was their passion, not their jobs.
“There are some big issues out there that need to be addressed,” said Graff. “For us, we’re going to change and affect what’s within arms reach. Start small and do what we can locally and hopefully there’s a ripple effect.” Graff said that small “shifts” can help set an example for others. “It’s not a dramatic change, it’s just a subtle shift, and hopefully that’s enough for what we’d like to see happen.”
Their vision is to see more people get involved in community activities and pursuing their passions. “It takes effort on everybody’s part,” said Sehnert, explaining that a small group can put in a lot of effort to organize an event, “but what the rest of the people need to do is put enough effort in to load their kids in the car and show up.” Taking the first step and starting out as a participant, may eventually lead to greater involvement and connections. “Either find something in the community that gets you excited, but if you can’t, then create it.” They said that small efforts in “putting yourself out there” can lead to huge benefits, both personally and for the community.
They explained that McCook has the tools to help people pursue their passions. Those tools include community foundation grants, partnerships with the city, college, economic development corporation and the chamber. “The metro areas have a lot of different resources at their fingertips that we don’t have, but what we do have are the contacts and the relationships,” said Graff. Personal contacts and face-to-face conversations are keys to expanding involvement and support for community and neighborhood projects.
They also spoke about the difference between acceptance and inclusion. “That is something that I would like to personally work on,” said Sehnert, “because I feel like I’m a pretty accepting person, but am I inclusive enough? Whether that means racial or gender or religion. . . Inclusion is something I’m going to work on.”
“You only know what you know, and when we saw the challenges that other people are having in our nation, we realized how many benefits we have here in Southwest Nebraska,” said Sehnert.
Graff echoed, “When we went to D.C., we wanted to highlight that McCook and Southwest Nebraska does have a lot going for it. We do have a lot here that we can celebrate.”
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.
