It’s Friday, so let’s start with the fun one, shall we? They bought the homes because they loved the porch or the price was right or it felt like the perfect size for their families. But then these Nebraskans, east and west, living in cities and small towns, heard from neighbors, or their real estate agent, or discovered for themselves a startling fact about their casas.
Their homes, often a century old, had been designed by and bought out of a catalog.
You may think a mail-order house would be flimsy. Shoddy. Think again, say historians and the homeowners.
Speaking of fun: We’re having a party to celebrate and benefit Nebraska journalism on Sept. 14, and I would be overjoyed if you would party with us.
It’s a barn party, held in a repurposed dairy barn in Bennington. It’s a party with fantastic food trucks and good cocktails and a few very special guests who are journalism superstars with Nebraska roots.
And it’s a party to aid an important cause, I think — continuing to build the next chapter in Nebraska journalism. Nebraska stories are important. We’ll tell some at the Flatwater Festival, aka FlatFest, on Sept. 14. And your attendance will help us fund the writing and telling of far more stories, both investigative projects and stories that bind Nebraskans together, in the years to come.
Learn more, reserve your spot and I will see you there.
17,000 and counting: That’s the number of Nebraskans who have lost their health care in recent months. Some no longer qualify for Medicaid. But many thousands are losing coverage because of things like missed deadlines or messed-up paperwork.
Dan Golden, in a story we published this week, explains the problem happening in Nebraska and around the country. He lists solutions, and practical ways to get help. And he cites experts’ increasing worry that these 17,000 are merely the tip of a massive iceberg.
Thanks to our sponsor: This week it’s History Nebraska, which supports our telling of Nebraska’s important history stories. Thank you to our state’s historical society for supporting the mission of nonprofit news.
Questions wanted: Some of our best story ideas come from readers, and they typically start with a burning question that just cries out for an answer. Have a question that our reporters need to look into? Complete this form or reach our newsroom at [email protected].
Sincerely,
—Matthew Hansen, Executive Editor
Here’s what we’re into this week: News from around Nebraska
Every week we like to share great Nebraska journalism, no matter who made it. Here’s what caught our eye this week:
- Several media outlets are following up on our stories about Seward County’s seizures of motorists’ money through a process known as civil asset forfeiture. KLKN in Lincoln had an interesting interview with longtime Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Wagner.
He defended the practice, and also called out unnamed law enforcement agencies who “don’t go the extra mile to prove that those funds or those proceeds are from criminal activity,” he said. “If they don’t take that extra step and if they don’t make the case that that money is part of a criminal enterprise, shame on them.” - KLKN also got a statement from Seward County Sheriff Mike Vance. Here it is. Vance didn’t respond to interview requests from FFP this month.
- Some breaking news this morning: Lincoln Police Chief Teresa Ewins has resigned, the Journal Star reports. Ewins was hired two years ago following a national search. Details are scarce but 1011NOW has a statement from Ewins, who said she was “moving on” and that it “was not an easy decision, but … it is the best one.”
- Speaking of Lincoln police, the department has refused to release body cam footage of a Lancaster County chief sheriff’s deputy’s collision with a 9-year-old riding a bike, which sent the girl to the hospital. Story by the Journal Star’s Andrew Wegley.
- The Guardian this week released a story with the headline, “The US village blighted by toxic waste.” They are talking, and writing about, Mead, Nebraska. And the Journal Star’s Chris Dunker, who has led local coverage of the disaster in Mead for years, reports that methane gas has been found in monitoring wells, but that discovery doesn’t concern an expert on the ground.
- Were you coughing this week? Were your eyes burning? Your asthma worse than usual? The culprit is Canadian wildfires tied to climate change, Omaha’s WOWT reports.
- Lab-grown meat? Not so fast, Nebraska Public Media reports.
- Bona fide Nebraska bada** alert … a UNL researcher has helped map the entire genome of corn. Story by The World-Herald’s Julie Anderson.
- A quarter million Nebraskans work full time without paid sick days, the Nebraska Examiner’s Aaron Sanderford reports. A new petition drive is seeking to change that.
