This last weekend I participated in the Victorian Festival Parade in Superior, NE, where I am from.

This Memorial Day I participated in Memorial Services with Valley of Paradise Post 371 Valparaiso at Touhy, Raymond, Agnew and Valparaiso. The pictures below are of the Memorial Day address at the Valparaiso Cemetery.  I want to again thank and honor all those who have served and sacrificed for our Country.

On Wednesday, May 16th I attended the ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the official opening of G and G Storage in Mead, owned by Josh and Cortney Girmus. G and G Storage can store RV and trailers and will hold up to 280 units. It’s great to see these business’s operating in and serving the communities of District 23.

http://www.wahoo-ashland-waverly.com/news/local/new-business-offers-options-for-parking/article_19a4442e-53c9-11e8-9024-63ec9d97f872.html

I wanted to share these opportunities to serve on Boards and Commissions Appointed by the Governor and encourage anyone interested to apply. The application form can be completed at: https://governor.nebraska.gov/ under “Constituent Services.”  Serving on a board or commission is a great way to stay involved in our communities!

I enjoyed the opportunity to attend the 2018 Governor’s Arts Awards in La Vista this week on the evening of Tuesday, May 8^th. The Governor’s Arts Award ceremony is an opportunity to celebrate Nebraska arts organizations, arts professionals, and the people and businesses that support the arts in Nebraska. Two of the honorees this year are from District 23. Anna Nolan and Allen Covault of David City. They received the Thomas C. Woods III Partner in the Arts Award for their support and work in the arts and the Bone Creek Museum. The awards highlighted the Bone Creek Museum of Agrarian Art which opened in 2008 and brought national attention to the art of David City native Dale Nichols and others. Anna and Allen formed the Nolan Covault Foundation to assure future growth and success of the museum’s mission to connect people to the land through art. I appreciated the opportunity to witness the well-deserved recognition of these District 23 constituents and others for their contribution to the arts.

Senator and Ruth Nichols

Senator and Gabrielle Comte (center) and Ruth Nichols (left)

Senator with Anna Nolan (right) and Allen Covault (center) at the Governor’s Arts Awards

I traveled to Chadron State College last week to attend a meeting as a member of the Building and Maintenance Committee. The purpose of the Building and Maintenance Committee is to exercise oversight of the deferred and preventive maintenance activities for state operated buildings across the state. The Committee met on Tuesday, May 1^st to obtain updates on the 309 Task Force for Building Renewal Projects and Chadron State College funded projects and requests.  The Committee members also recieved a tour of Chadron State College.

Over the last two weeks my office has met with several groups involved in juvenile justice and human trafficking.  I attended a human trafficking task force meeting and took part in discussions on juvenile justice across the district. Juvenile justice and human trafficking are important issues in our society and our district and I enjoyed the opportunity to meet with these groups and to update them on the statutory changes from this session affecting juvenile justice and human trafficking. I appreciate the work all members of these groups do in an effort to tackle these important issues.

The legislature was visited this week by students from St John’s Elementary and Yutan Elementary. St. John’s 3rd and 4th grade students from Weston visited the Capitol on Monday, April 23rd and Yutan Elementary 4th grade students toured the Capitol on Thursday, April 26th. I enjoyed the opportunity to speak with both groups of students about the legislative process and our unique Unicameral.