This is McCook’s decade! I believe we’ll be sitting downtown after a Live at the Bieroc show in 2030 and look back and be amazed at what the community has accomplished. We’ll talk about how we built a new aquatics facility and new athletic fields. We’ll be excited about the improvements in programming and facilities at the Y. We’ll share about our visit with new business owners who purchased existing businesses and have kept the downtown active. Maybe we’ll even have someone at our table who is enjoying their new home in the new subdivision. It will be a great night.
2020 has been a challenging year for our nation. It is discouraging to see how the pandemic, systematic racism, and environmental crisis have affected our country. On the flip side, it has taught millions of people how to work from anywhere and longing for a higher quality of life.
This puts McCook in a great place and creates a sense of urgency to build a better community to call home. I’m proud to be part of the McCook Community Foundation Fund Advisory Committee as it is an organization that is the catalyst to move some of these initiatives forward. One of our core beliefs is we have abundance and assets in our community that we can build upon.
The idea of abundance has always been difficult for me, but I’ve had a chance to see it up close recently. I’ve been a part of the conversations with Senator Ben Nelson to create an endowment that will drastically improve our library programming. I’ve seen another large endowment gift come to the foundation. I’ve benefited from another funder who wanted to both make the Keystone Cowork Space a reality and to help MCFF get a $20,000 match to assist our local schools adapt to the pandemic.
People who live and grew up in McCook still love McCook. It is encouraging in my role as people reach out to me from across the country wanting to get updates and offer their assistance to make McCook a better place.
This being the case, we can’t wait for the calvary to save us or move us forward. For McCook to move forward, we need to move McCook forward. This will require some sacrifice as we give more of our time, talent, and treasures to our community. This will require us to examine our individual responsibilities to our community and neighborhood instead of parading around our individual rights. This will require us to invest in our community.
Rural communities that are moving forward have a vision for a better future, tell the positive side of their local story, and have strong public-private partnerships. The things we want to see happen this next decade will require the participation of city and county government, philanthropy, and our business community. The exciting thing is I know we have the people and organizations that can make it happen.
There’s big things in store for our community this decade, but we need your involvement. The McCook Community Foundation Fund has grown our endowment to be able to provide over $100,000 in grants on an annual basis. If you are a part of an eligible organization, our next grant application deadline is October 1. If you are able to give to build the endowment, let us know.
This It is our time! Help us know what you want to see a part of our vision and let us know how you can help. We have a strong heritage in McCook. Those of us working in the community today are standing on the shoulders of giants. Now is our time to move this community to the next level. I’m looking forward to that conversation we’ll be having at the Bieroc in 10 years because this is our decade.
Among his many affiliations, Andy Long is the executive director of the McCook Economic Development Corporation and a member of the McCook Community Foundation Fund Advisory Committee.
Once a month, a member of the MCFF committee will take over the Community Connection column to share why they belong to the fund and why it is important to the community.
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.
