The Superior Express -

After weeks of mild weather, this week's snow caught many residents by surprise. The snow caused long time residents to recall previous snow events. Some of the memories are fill with good memories but there are also memories of frightening times.

Tuesday afternoon this newspaper invited passing their time reading social media posts to share memories of past snow events. More than expected responses were received. We will try to weave some of those responses into the story which follows.

We will lead off with a near tragic story that had a happy ending for one family.

Elma Garner reported her sister, Lin called while she was on Alexa talking to another sister, Luanne. Lin suggested the share a story from about 1958 when they were living about three miles south of Superior near the former Pleasant Valley School. The three sisters talked and pieced together the story we share here.

Their mother, Donis Fenimore Olena, had worked her full shift at Ideal Market. She planned to take groceries home when she got off work but the weather was bad.

Her father, the girls' grandpa, (Lyle Fenimore) drove her as far as he could but had to stop about two miles from the family home. She got out of his car and started walking. By the time she reached the school house, she couldn't go any further. So, she broke a pane of glass in the front door and got into the school. She spent the night inside. The next morning, she walking through the field that separated their home and the school grounds. She was able to whistle very loud and whistled as she walked. Lu remembers hearing the whistle, but didn't know what it was.

By the time she had made her way about half way across the field, Dad (Floyd Olena) realized she was coming and took the tractor to get her.

Luanne remembered she was in the second grade, so it must have been the 58-59 school year. Not only was it a time before cell phones, It was also a time before landlines served either the school or the Olena home.

Many responders told about the fun they had sledding on streets the City of Superior blocked off for the youngsters to sled on, particularly Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Streets near City Park. Jeff Jackson shared a story about what happened to him when he chose to go sledding on a street that wasn't closed. His story is next.

I believe my most memorable snow day experience may have already been reported in The Superior Express many years ago. Ironically, I believe it was January 25, 1965 (56 years ago today) that I suffered a serious sledding accident. I was returning home from my Lincoln Journal paper route when I found my friends sledding down Tenth Street between Kansas and Commercial Streets which were not blocked off. I got off my bike and jumped onto a friend's sled and sped down the hill. I was hit and run over by an automobile. I was trapped under the vehicle for several minutes in the intersection at Tenth and Commercial. The local ambulance (a hearse from Megrue Funeral home) was called and 90 minutes later I was transported to Brodstone Memorial Hospital.

The doctor at Brodstone determined my injuries (broken femur, hip and pelvis) needed to be treated at a trauma center. So they put me on a stretcher and loaded me into the back of my parents' 1960 Chevrolet stationwagon. My parents drove me to St. Elizabeth Hospital in Lincoln. I had surgery the next day to repair all my broken bones (they pinned the bones together instead of putting me in traction). I would wear two different body casts over the next five months. I missed the entire second semester of fourth grade at North Ward School. However, I completed all my homework each week from a hospital bed at home and moved on to fifth grade with my class. It was life-changing.

After Jeff told his story, his sisters Kim Young and Pam Curran joined the conversation.

Kim Young wrote, "I was going to mention the snow day when you and Pamela Jackson Curran were still at home. School was called off and we made cinnamon rolls at the kitchen counter. Mine story is not as exciting as your story. But in my store there were no broken bones and we

didn't burn the house down.

"Pamela and I were too young to remember the accident, but we saw pictures of you recovering. We grew up in a great neighborhood. I just remember lots of activity on that street and corner. Like the day my two brothers crawled down the storm drain from Kansas to Commercial! Oh Dad was mad."

Kayla Baker Crockett recalled riding with cousins 20 years or so ago while being pulled on one of the large dishes first used to receive satellite television programing.

Kim Baker-Miller remembered when Fifth and Sixth Streets were blocked for sliding and going to her grandmother's house being pulled on a car hood.

Among the current stories was this short one from Dee Urbaniak Hayden, a resident of Jewell. She said, "There is a kind gentleman who used his tractor to scoop out the end of my driveway, the part that gets buried from plowing the street. I sure appreciate it!"

Our Esbon correspondent, Kate Bock Gurika recently moved to Kansas from Texas. She is employed as a service techician in the Landmark Implement shop at Smith Center. Certain she didn't know how to drive in the snow,her employer let her stay home on Monday. Kate told us on Tuesday the 10 or so inches of snow received at Esbon was the most she had ever seen.

Patty (Isaacson) Studer recalled when she was growing up in Scandia, the city would close off the hill by the tennis court for all the youngsters to sled down. She wrote, "Oh what fun it was to be able to sled and not worry about automobiles. In the evenings when we got home Dad would have a roaring fire in the fireplace and then we got to roast hot dogs."

Brenda (Snell) Hoskins recalled what it is like to grow up in Valentine.

"Growing up in Valentine, we had lots of snow. I remember making snow forts with all my neighborhood friends. Just outside of the city limits are big hills where many people would go sledding. I thought you had to be older because only my older two brothers got to actually participate in this activity. They would meet up with around 50 other high school students. All brought their toboggans, which are a very long sled with no metal runners. My sisters and I just got to watch as they barreled down the hill, walk back up, and did it all again.

"Later, we all would go ice skating at one of the fish hatchery ponds. There was a large tree in the middle of the pond. This is where skaters would like to rest. We would skate around and around that tree.

"We would definitely freeze but we really didn't care. We were just having so much fun."

J Lin Warren wrote, "I can remember when they used to block off Superior's Fifth Street and let the kids go sledding down that wonderful hill! Had so much fun when they did that!"

A Nebraska Department of Transportation worker plowing snow on Highway 81 in the York area said, "This is one of the biggest snow storms this area has seen in the last five to 10 years. Crews will be working around the clock through at least Wednesday. I was out at 5 a.m. this morning on Highway 81. By 9 a.m. (Monday) I couldn't keep up. Snow was coming down at least an inch per hour. Coworkers will be out there tonight (Monday) doing a 12 hour overnight shift to try and keep the main highways open. But there is more snow possible on Tuesday afternoon and evening. This is a wet, heavy snow. Hopefully the roads will improve by Wednesday afternoon into Thursday morning."

Marsha Mueller didn't remember what year it was, but thought it would have been after Christmas between 1978 and 1982. The Mueller family lived a mile west of Highway 14 and south of Nelson. Their farm home lost power in the blizzard but her dad, (Glen Mueller) was prepared. He had the diesel generator hooked up and ready to take over. As their water was provided by an electric pump, her dad would go out in the morning and start the generator to water the livestock. At the house buckets would be filled for flushing the toilet. Two drink coolers were filled with drinking water. Then it was time to get breakfast ready, prep lunch and dinner, wash dishes and run a load of laundry or two, then everyone went through the shower. The generator was shut down for the day. The Muellers read by the light of oil lamps, and listened to a radio operating on batteries.

Marsha read the entirety of"'The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" aloud to the rest of the family as all gathered in the kitchen around the wood heating stove. The family popped popcorn on the stove, and toasted marshmallows over the coals in the stove as well.

Mom, Dad and Big Sis would read items aloud as it was hard for more than one person at a time to see well enough by lamp light to read. Even Little Brother got to read some.

Sarah Kirchhoff remembered growing up on a farm in Jewell County and making tunnels in the drifts that formed near the entrance to the Headrick family home's walk-out basement. During this week's storm she taught her youngsters how to tunnel through the snow.

Journey Johari wrote, "I'm just moving in here. I'm utterly alone so far. I don't know a soul here in real life except the people I dealt with to buy this home. They were awesome.

"I have couple of online acquaintances.

Those who cleared snow from their driveways and sidewalks, may have been disappointed when they went out Tuesday morning and discovered their efforts on Monday had helped, but the work needed to be done again. A light wind caused some drifting and more snow accumulated. Under much of the snow was a layer of ice, which made the task more difficult. School was canceled both Monday and Tuesday.

"I'm still struggling to get moved in but I know it's my last move so that's cool. I'm pacing myself. I am currently somewhat injured or disabled and I use canes so the snow is lovely but quite a burden to remove on my own. I'll figure it out and I would rather be here than anywhere else.

"'I'm just hanging out, making soups for February meal preps, drinking coffee, listening to music, watching it snow. I love it.

"I love Superior. I can't wait to get on with my life here. Been planning this for nearly 20 years.

"As I recover, I will continue to develop my plans to film here, write here, produce here, thrive here, build a life here. I plan to embrace local sports, local talent, local businesses. I hope to be a community asset, a good citizen and a friend to all.

"I am on square one with the life I want. Finally.

"This may not be what you had in mind for your question but it will be my memory of this snow day."

And so we all have memories, a few of which we were able to share in this issue. Thanks to all who took time to share a memory with the readers of this newspaper.