UPDATE: NebraskaLand Days in North Platte has announced that Luke Combs and Toby Keith will be back in 2021! Luke Combs will be on June 25th and Toby Keith will be on June 26th. For more go to www.nebraskalanddays.com
UPDATE: The Grand Island YMCA has announced the 2020 Nebraska State Fair marathon has been canceled.
Kearney Cinema 8 has reopened! For movie listings go to www.kearneycinema.com
NEBRASKA GOOD NEWS ABOUT THE GOOD LIFE:
UPDATE: More key partners of the Nebraska State Fair are discussing their plans for 2020. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission has not made any final decisions its presence at the 2020 State Fair. They will evaluate what will be available and will provide updates as able. The University of Nebraska says its Raising Nebraska will be open. The Nebraska Cattlemen Beef Pit plans to be open, with modified operations to meet health requirements.
UPDATE: The Nebraska Beef Council is doing their part to ensure all families have the opportunity to enjoy beef this summer. The need for food has shot up quickly, according to local food pantries. The Nebraska Beef Council is selling shirts, all proceeds will go to Foodbank for the Heartland and the Lincoln Food Bank to distribute Nebraskan beef to over 600 pantries in all 93 counties across the state.Prior to the COVID pandemic, approximately 235 thousand Nebraskans were considered food insecure. That number jumped to an estimated 330 thousand people. For this reason both the food banks and the Beef Council hope Nebraskan’s continue to rally around the grill and this promotion. Both children and adult shirts can be ordered here, now through July 12.
UPDATE: “Dear Stranger,” a new letter-exchange program, organized by Humanities Nebraska (HN) will allow Nebraskans to write a letter to a stranger, get a letter in return and make a new connection. Humanities Nebraska will match each letter received with a counterpart from a different part of the state for the first letter. After the first anonymous exchange, each pair of letter writers is free to share contact information to continue the conversation.Further details about the project can be found at humanitiesnebraska.org.
The Hastings Museum is open NOW exclusively for members. The museum will open to the general public on July 14.
The Kearney Area Children’s Museum is carrying on with their summer camps. The museum has made some adjustments to their camps due to the coronavirus but they are still trying to fit in 42 days of summer camps before the middle of August and they are about halfway already. Winscot said this is an opportunity for the kids to express their creative side while seeing old friends and making new ones because interaction is important during this time.
Tom Dinsdale Automotive Nebraska Greats Golf Classic presented by 1st State Bank at Riverside Country Club, Grand Island is on July 24. The Nebraska Greats Foundation provides emergency medical and financial assistance to any former athletics letter winner from ANY of the 16 4-year schools in the state. These are former sports heroes from Nebraska to Chadron State who need emergency medical attention and can’t afford it. Please sign up a foursome (space is limited) to play. The donation is $325 per person which includes golf, cart, lunch, prizes, awards, dinner, special gifts at Riverside and a chance to play with a celebrity. Among the celebrities committed are former Huskers Eric Crouch, Johnny Rodgers, Mike Rozier, Johnny Dorn, Jared Crick, Brendan Stai and Jay Moore.For non golfers, there is a limited amount of space available (to comply with social distancing) for the evening DINNER event which includes a celebration of all 16 member schools, unique auction items and a Q/A with each of the celebrity former athletes. Sign up at www.negreats.org.
UNK’s combined 2020 Spring and Summer Commencement will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, July 31. To support COVID-19 directed health response, it is being planned as an outdoor event on Foster Field at Cope Stadium. The event will begin at 10 a.m. In support of current safety protocol and to meet facility capacity requirements, in-person attendance will be limited to no more than three invited guests per graduate.
Drive-in movies in Kearney will continue at sundown when The World Theatre will team up with the Buffalo County Fairgrounds. The World plans to book family-oriented films and old drive-in favorites, such as “Goonies,” “E.T.” and “Grease.” The World will sell advance tickets, the cost which has not been determined, for $20 or $25 per car. Gates will open at 8 p.m. and the movie will begin at sundown. Films will be shown Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights through the summer.
Enjoy an outdoor adventure with family or friends. and engage in healthy recreation — and possibly win prizes. The Great Park Pursuit is a free program encouraging participants to visit up to 20 official sites across the state, consisting of community, regional, state and federal parks. Participants register a team of up to 10 people online and then follow clues from the website or Great Park Pursuit mobile app to find a program post located somewhere within a park area. Once they find the post, the team can use the mobile app to mark their visit, or make a pencil impression of the post to prove they were there. A number of prizes are up for grabs, including Nebraska state park entry permits for 2021, an iPad and the grand prize, an outdoor recreation package valued at $1,500. Prizes and entry into drawings are based on the number of post impressions that teams collect, or the number of park visits they mark on the mobile app. For more information and to register, visit negpp.org. The Great Park Pursuit app is available at the Apple iStore and on Google Play for Android.
The Nebraska Passport for 2020 program is underway. Travelers will have through October 31 to visit attractions and receive stamps, according to Nebraska Tourism. Due to COVID-19 some stops have had to adjust their business hours so check for updates before beginning your travels. Passports are available at participating stops or can be ordered at NebraskaPassport.com.
The Archway in Kearney has will reopened to visitors. The hours will be 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday and noon-5 p.m. Sundays. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the opening of The Archway.
The Sumner 4th of July Celebration is still on with revisions due to COVID-19. The whole celebration will kick off on Saturday, June 27th with the traditional Co-Ed Sand Volleyball Tournament and the 2nd Annual Cornhole Tournament. On Sunday the 28th, we will have the Commercial Club Dinner (Picnic), Toad & Turtle Race and Ice Cream Social with the Sumner EMT’s. Cool off with the SEM Cross Country team during the Splash Run 5k and 1 mile at 5 pm on the 28th. An evening cruise night on the 4th (starts at 6 pm) we hope you will come cruise and stick around for the Fireworks! There are two performances of the Rodeo on the 3rd at 7:30 pm and on the 4th at 1:30 pm. The afternoon of the 4th starting at 3 pm there will be Bingo at the Community Hall and Live Entertainment in Sumner Park. And FOOD TRUCKS – BBQ and FUNNEL CAKES The celebration will wrap up with the Fireworks at the Sumner Ball Field at dusk. There will be concessions from Kappel Electric 8-9:30. Visit their Facebook for more.
Keep yourself safe in these times, show your Husker spirit, AND help Nebraska Food Banks. Husker Face Masks are on sale right now at the shop at NRG sister property huskermax.com. The masks are handmade, available in four styles! GO HERE: http://www.shophuskermax.com/houndsmax-huskers-ma