KEARNEY, NEB. (November 14, 2008) -- More than 200 community volunteers and leaders celebrated their efforts at successfully promoting and encouraging economic and community development as part of the 45th Annual Nebraska Community Improvement Program (NCIP) awards banquet in Kearney. The event capped the inaugural Governor's Conference on Rural Development.

NCIP awards reflect outstanding community and economic development projects. A program of the Nebraska Department of Economic Development, NCIP is sponsored by Northern Natural Gas, Glenwood Telephone, Inc., SourceGas, Northwestern Public Service, and Black Hills Corporation, which help support the program year-round and provided plaques and cash prizes for the following 2008 award winners:

The Otto Hoiberg Award for top overall community development went to Farnam. People of all ages are involved in Farnam and the community works hard to make newcomers feel welcome at the annual Welcome to Farnam Banquet. According to judges, Farnam was a model community for NCIP as it worked from the planning process to implementation to project evaluation. Other projects in Farnam included downtown improvement, and the Youth Community Improvement Program (YCIP) that encourages greater youth involvement and activity. Farnam and the neighboring community of Eustis also were awarded with the Good Neighbor Award for their partnership efforts.

The Founders Award, which honors an outstanding intergovernmental project in Nebraska, went to the school districts of Laurel-Concord, Newcastle, Coleridge and Wynot. These four northeast Nebraska communities formed a unique, new relationship. The four school districts first contracted with innovation labs to facilitate a joint school/community workshop that reviewed program options, revenue, and expenditure projects. Following the workshop, staff was challenged to develop and implement quality shared programs, reduce budgets and increase efficiency to offset state aid decreases. The project offers more than 70 distance education classes to schools statewide and provides the resources and class offerings at no additional cost. While the schools continue to be cornerstones in each community, they also are exhibiting unprecedented levels of cooperation and trust, sharing staff and taking advantage of distance education to cut costs.

The Marilyn Ristine Leadership Award went to Kathy Worrell of Ainsworth. Worrell has been involved with the NCIP program since 1991. Year after year she has demonstrated leadership in many ways. She has chaired the Ainsworth NCIP and spent many hours to ensure the Report Book is submitted on time. She also has presented at NCIP conferences and served as a past NCIP judge. Former Ainsworth Mayor Sid Salzman nicknamed her "Mrs. NCIP Ainsworth" because of her years of involvement and the many awards the community has earned under her leadership. Outside of NCIP, Worrell has been active with Brown County Hospital, the Cattlemens' Ball, the National Country Music Festival, and played a key role in passage of LB840. Worrell and her husband, Rod, operate the Ainsworth Star-Journal, and have two grown children and three grandchildren. The award, named in memory of Marilyn Ristine (1928-1992), an outstanding community leader in Gothenburg, was created in 1993 to recognize a long-time, community volunteer who exhibited exemplary leadership qualities.

The Youth Leadership for Outstanding Community Service Award recognizes outstanding youth who develop and lead projects and peers for the betterment of their communities. Following are this year's youth leader awardees in their respective NCIP population categories:
Class I (Pop: 1-800) - Kevin Ripp, Pleasanton. Kevin's versatility, communication skills and dedication make him an invaluable leader in Pleasanton. He has empowered Pleasanton youth to engage in several new and innovative community service projects and encouraged Pleasanton to join NCIP by attending a village trustees meeting and requesting a resolution be passed. Kevin has been active in FBLA, and convinced several community groups to save the town's 1890 Union Pacific Railroad Depot. He helped write a successful $174,000 grant from the Nebraska Department of Roads, and raise matching funds.
Class II (Pop: 801-5,000) -Christina Rice, Ravenna. Christina, who attended Ravenna High School her first three years, was active in the community. The community was saddened when the Rice family moved to Kearney for her senior year. Christina served as class treasurer and president, was an honor roll student, a member of the speech team and the pep band, an FBLA officer, a member of the youth advisory board and Buffalo County Youth Advisory Board, and also a Governor's Youth Council representative, among other things. One of her biggest achievements in Ravenna was starting a community-wide food pantry. During the initial stage, she organized the fundraising and went door-to-door to collect food. It is now a community-wide project.
Class III (Pop: 5,001+) - Neil DeVorss, Nebraska City. Neil's mission and passion is to educate and serve youth in Nebraska City. Recently he began his freshmen year at Lincoln's Southeast Community College, and is focused on initiating legislative and behavioral change related to curbing underage drinking and adults contributing to minors. He has been active in school-based and community efforts and is fast becoming involved in his new community of Lincoln. From athletic letter winner to Otoe County Youth Leadership member, to spokesman testifying before the Nebraska Legislature in favor of LB336 that increases punishments for adults who supply alcohol to youth, Neil has become an active leader in Nebraska.

Community Development Awards, given for overall excellence in community and economic development, were presented as follows:

Class I: (Pop. 1-800)-Farnam (227). Farnam continues its downtown development efforts by using the Community Development State Tax Credit Program for downtown landscaping and signage. The Youth Community Improvement Program (YCIP) continues to encourage youth to get involved in the community. Second place went to Potter. Third place was awarded to Bassett.
Class IIa: (Pop. 801-1,700)-Laurel (986). Laurel promoted its recycling center and created an outreach physical therapy department that's available to people throughout the region. Volunteers of all ages were involved in cleaning and updating two major parks. Second place was awarded to Scribner and third went to Hartington.
Class IIb: (Pop. 1,701-5,000)-Imperial (1,982). Imperial passed LB840 city sales tax for economic development and initiated a "shop local" campaign to encourage and promote community growth. Sales tax revenue will go toward completion of a new city and school recreational complex. Wahoo received second place and third place went to Ainsworth.
Class III: (Pop: 5,001 and over)-Alliance (8,064). The Retired and Senior Volunteers Program helps connect seniors with volunteer opportunities in the community, and four individuals were presented Presidential Lifetime Service Awards for their efforts. Volunteers of all ages promoted the Box Butte health fair, and a Read to Ride campaign that encouraged youth to read during the summer break. Second place went to South Sioux City. Third place was awarded to Papillion.
Class IV: (Multi-Community)-Pawnee County. After completing Business Retention and Expansion surveys with area businesses, Pawnee City campaigned to pass LB840 to fund future business development needs. More than $4,000 per month is expected to be raised from LB840. Seward County received second place.

This year's 2008 NCIP Special Award Recipients are:

Volunteer & Leadership Development
Class II: Deshler - Friendship Garden
Class III: Alliance - Lifetime Presidential Volunteer Service Awards
Class IV: Furnas/Harlan Partnership - Leadership Plenty Class
(tie) Seward County - Volunteer Leadership

Youth Involvement & Leadership Development
Class I: Farnam - YCIP
Class II: Ravenna - United Methodist Youth Group Love in Action Food Pantry

Business Assistance & Development
Class I: Petersburg - Economic Development and Growth for Petersburg
Class II: Ainsworth - Building Our Future One Business at a Time
Class III: Alliance - Box Butte County Health Fair
Class IV: Valley County - VCED Business Development

Tourism Promotion & Development
Class I: Farnam - Farnam Founders' Days Improvements
Class II: Hartington - Hartington Q125: A Spectacular Success
Class III: Seward - Tourism
Class IV: Garfield & Valley County - Loup River Valley Tourism Coalition Marketing Campaign

Workforce Development
Class II: Kimball - Kimball Hospital Foundation Scholarship
Class III: South Sioux City - 21st Century Learning
Class IV: Dawson County - www.dawsoncountycareers.com

Technology, Infrastructure & Planning
Class I: Petersburg - Improvement of Water, Sewer & Streets
Class II: Wisner - Downtown Improvement District
Class IV: Dawson County - Dawson Area Housing Market Study

Parks, Recreation & Environmental Awareness
Class I: Pilger - Pilger Pool Project
Class II: Hartington - Felber Park and Community Complex Enhancements
Class III: Seward - Environmental Projects 2008
Class IV: Scottsbluff/Gering - Earth Day Celebration

Arts & Humanities
Class I: Bassett - Cemetery Directory Kiosk
Class II: Stromsburg - "For the Record" Recordings of Veterans' Stories
Class III: South Sioux City - The Wall That Heals in Siouxland

Community Services
Class I: Potter - Potter-Dix Early Learning Facility
Honorable Mention: Farnam - Library
Class II: Loup City: Parental Involvement Program at Loup City Public Schools
Class III: Nebraska City - Growing Greater Kids for Otoe County
Honorable Mention: Alliance - Read for a Ride

For information, or to obtain a script from the awards ceremony, contact: Lindsay Papenhausen toll-free at 800-426-6505 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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CONTACT: Patty Wood at 402-471-1559, or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it