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At the beginning of November, it was time for our second round of “Students of the Month” for the year!  This month's “Students of the Month" are Brynn Settje, Ava Kasik, and Brett Wemhoff. 

The first student is Brynn Settje. She is the daughter of Kristi and Chad Settje. Brynn’s grandparents are Judy Blessen and the late Gary Blessen, of Creston; Tom and Susan Kabes, of Clarkson; and Mike and Cindy Settje of Leigh. Her great grandparents are Joyce and the late Lavern Went, of Leigh; and Stanley and Marilyn Settje, of Leigh.

Brynn keeps herself busy by participating in Volleyball, Basketball, Track, FCCLA, FBLA, Yearbook, Journalism, One Act, and National Honor Society. 

Brynn’s favorite class this year is Culinary Arts. In the future she plans to go to Northeast Community College, and become a Physical Therapist Assistant. In her free time she enjoys playing sports and spending time with her friends and family. 

This is her third time winning this award, and she said, “It feels really great to win this award. It shows that my hard work in the classroom and in my extracurricular activities pays off. It shows that the teachers see how hard I try in school and everything I am involved in.”

The second winner is Brett Wenhoff. Brett is the son of Jon and Deana Wemhoff. 

This year he is participating in One Act, Football, Wrestling, Journalism, and YAC. His favorite class is Algebra II, and he is undecided on his future plans. In his free time, he keeps himself busy by gardening, playing cards, and watching football. 

This is Bretts second time receiving Student of the Month. Bret says that “It really motivates me knowing that my hard work does not go unnoticed.”

The third winner of student of the month is Ava Kasik. She is the daughter of Joe and Heather Kasik. Her grandparents are Lawrence and the late Marilyn Kasik and Alice and the late Frederick Krenk of Schuyler. 

Ava participates in Volleyball, Basketball, Track, Dance, FFA, FCCLA, Journalism, One Act, YAC, Yearbook, and National Honor Society. Her favorite subject in school is Science. In the future she wants to go into Pediatric Nursing. In her free time, she enjoys joining on walks or runs, shopping, practicing sports, and being outdoors. 

This is her second time getting student of the month, and she said, "I'm excited to see that my efforts in the classroom and my extracurriculars are being noticed, and it's great to be recognized as Student of the Month." 

On Monday, November 4th seven members of the Leigh High Choir—Paige Kurpgeweit, Amaiya Ross, Sydney Messerlie, Kiera Wiese, Lainey Urban, Ariyah Ross, and Vivian Bunner—were chosen to represent our community in the East Husker Conference Honor Choir held at Wisner-Pilger.

The students spent the day learning and singing in preparation of the public performance later in the day. Kiera Wiese, a freshman at Leigh, even earned a spot performing a solo with a small group.

Mrs. Sydney Wemhoff, the choir director at Leigh, said, “The EHC Honor Choir is a great opportunity for our students to work with other kids in our conference. The clinician did a fantastic job with the students and the choirs sounded great at the concert at the end of the day.”

Junior choir member Sydney Messerlie said, “I love seeing all the younger classmates enjoy choir as much as I did when I was their age. It has never failed to make me happy, seeing people all come together over something they're passionate about.”

On Tuesday, November 5, the FFA had their annual Creed Night, where all freshmen FFA members performed the FFA Creed for parents and the rest of the chapter members in order to get a top three who will represent their chapter in Creed Speaking at district LDEs on December 2nd at Cross County. 

There were a total of five freshmen who performed: Sadie Brabec, Tyce Larson, Cade Hoesly, Easton Brabec, and Caleb Settje. Top three individuals included Sadie Brabec, Tyce Larson, and Cade Hoesly. 

Freshman Sadie Brabec said, “FFA Creed Night was a great way for us to be prepared, so that when we present our Creeds at districts, we will do a good job. 

In addition to Creed Speaking seventh graders, freshmen, and juniors all received their pins for the FFA Chapter.

Seventh grade Discovery Degree recipients include Cruz Malena, Blair Wietfeld, Lexie Bruhn, Ella Hansen, Grayson Loseke, Bergan Settje, Ryan McMullin, and Korbin Hake.  

Freshmen receiving their Greenhand Degree include Cade Hoesly, Caleb Settje, Easton Brabec, Tyce Larson, and Sadie Brabec. 

Junior Chapter Degree recipients include Kyle McMullin, Ava Kasik, Brayden Loseke, Sydney Messerlie, Nevaeh Zulkoski, Karly Wendt, and Luke Eisenmann. 

The 2024 election was a monumental day for our country and results will mark a drastic change in America’s future.  Donald J. Trump is soon to be the 47th President of the United States. Donald Trump has made history by becoming the second non-consecutive term president and the first president convicted of a felony. 

It was clear by the outcome of the election that more people around the country supported Donald Trump than the mainstream media predicted.  No matter which candidate you voted for, now that Trump has been elected, I predict a time for the return of Trump policies dealing with immigration, the economy, and foreign relations. Trump is going to work on making America more of an independent country by raising tariffs and aiming toward a stronger economy. 

President Trump plans on working to improve the United States and has outlined clear ways to do it, but he will probably have a large amount of criticism to manage during his presidency.  For starters, many non-Trump supporters believe he is not fit to be president because of his legal issues.  He may later pardon himself to get rid of these legal issues. This issue shows that the Democratic Party is facing tough questions about what they are going to do to approach the future. Trump’s opponents say he will further divide Americans, but Trump and his team believe his policies will unite America.  No matter what people believe, I think it is clear to everyone that it is time to unite Americans from all walks of life and all beliefs. 

Donald Trump's vision for his second term is to continue his “America first” agenda. This agenda consisted of building the economy, dealing with the immigration issues, reshaping education policies, increasing the military, and lessening tension with foreign countries. First, Trump plans on increasing manufacturing jobs in the U.S. and also plans on reducing dependency on foreign countries such as China. Next on his agenda is to increase border security and increase deportation. He plans on expanding the U.S.-Mexico border wall, and plans on trying to lessen illegal immigration. Continuing with his agenda, Trump plans to reshape the education system and policies. He wants to promote a “patriotic education” by limiting the discussion of race and gender in the classroom. Trump plans on instilling American values and traditions in students. The last part of his agenda is to increase the military and reduce foreign affairs. Trump plans on strengthening the military, while wanting to reduce American involvement in foreign conflicts. He wants to rebuild the NATO compact and other alliances to strengthen America’s presence in the world.

Overall, Trump plans to change many policies and reverse many practices of the last four years. And his supporters are ready for this change of American society. Many others may argue that these policies and changes are not going to be good for America, but Trump’s agenda shows he is ready to redefine America and he is ready to “Make America Great Again.”

After a tremendous season and fantastic 29-4 record, the Patriot volleyball team’s hopes for another state run were dashed on Saturday, November 2 when they fell just short of winning their sub-state district final match-up against the Gothenburg Swedes held in Leigh. This marked the 

Their journey to a district final began on Monday, October, 28.  This was the first time Leigh has ever participated in Class C-1 volleyball.  When the Patriots entered their Sub-District, they were ranked #1 and defeated the Wayne Blue Devils in the first round. They started off strong defeating Wayne in the first set 25-14. They then defeated them again in the second set 25-15 and third set 25-19.    

Next, on Tuesday, October, 29, the Patriots faced the Laurel-Concord-Coleridge Bears. The Bears were a great team, but the Patriots swept them in three sets.  The Patriots had a close score against the Bears in the first set, but they pulled through, defeating them 28-26. They won again in the second set 25-21, and in the third set with another close score of 25-23. The Patriots season continued, leading them into the district finals on Saturday. 

Sophomore Vylet Hollatz said, "Seeing a large crowd in the bleachers had us coming out against Wayne with a lot of energy. We had already watched them play LVSS earlier that night, so we knew we were prepared and we took care of business in three sets. Then on to LCC on Tuesday night. We understood they were a top team with some big hitters. We still continued to have great energy and determination to make it to the next round. We came out with another huge win in three sets to keep our season going."

On Saturday, November, 2, the Patriots faced Gothenburg Swedes in the district finals. This was a very challenging yet exciting game for the Patriots. The match against the Swedes went into five sets; the Patriots winning two of the five sets. They started off strong in the first set leading the Swedes by a score of 25-22. The Swedes won the second with a score 25-18. The Patriots came through and won the third set with a score of 25-21. The Patriots fell short in the fourth set ending 25-19, and again in the fifth set with a close score of 16-14.  This match ended their successful season in C1! 

Senior Baylee Settje said, “I’m proud of how our team played this season and how much closer we have all gotten! Even if we didn’t have the outcome we hoped for, we can proudly say we fought until the very last point, left everything out on the court, and ultimately played patriot volleyball. We proved that we can be in C1 and compete with any team that we play. Overall, we had great defense on Saturday, which helped our setters get the ball to the hitters to attack, but in the end, we came up a little short!”

  Head Coach Rebecca Schneider said, “We are extremely proud of the way our girls battled in the district final against Gothenburg!  Going into that match, we knew it was going to be tough as we felt we were very evenly matched, but we had all the confidence in the girls and believed that they could win!  Unfortunately, it did not end that way, but our girls definitely didn't go down without a fight!  It was absolutely amazing to see them battle back from behind, down 2-9 in the 5th and have the opportunity to win it at 14-13.  They showed a tremendous amount of grit and perseverance, and we couldn't be prouder of them.  They played outstanding volleyball, which made the loss hurt a little bit more because of the fact we were playing so well; we were just not ready to be done! C1 didn't phase these girls one bit and they left it all on the court!”  

Although this year marks the first time in five years the Patriots have not qualified for the state tournament, they still had a fantastic season with a final season record of 29-4!

Clarkson-Leigh vs Wayne 

Set 1 Set 2 Set 3

Clarkson-Leigh:    25    25    25  

Wanye:    14    15    19  

Individual Stats vs Wayne (kills, assists, blocks, aces, digs)

Izabel Hollatz: 12, 19, 2, 1, 11; Maizie Stoklasa: 4, 1, 5, 0, 2; Kendall Schneider: 5, 14, 0, 0, 8; Cadence Indra: 0, 4, 0, 1, 4; Brynn Settje: 9, 1, 1, 1, 10; Baylee Settje: 10, 0, 2, 0, 0; Vylet Hollatz: 0, 1, 0, 2, 8; Ava Kasik: 5, 4, 2, 2, 7

Clarkson-Leigh vs Laurel-Concord-Coleridge:

Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 

Clarkson-Leigh:   28    25    25

L-C-C:     26    21    23

Individual Stats vs Laurel-Concord-Coleridge (kills, assists, blocks, aces, digs)

Izabel Hollatz: 12, 18, 4, 0, 13; Maizie Stoklasa: 7, 0, 7, 0, 2; Kendall Schneider: 3, 19, 1, 0, 11;Cadence Indra: 0, 1, 0, 0, 9; Brynn Settje: 11, 0, 3, 0, 11; Baylee Settje: 9, 0, 3, 0, 1; Vylet Hollatz: 0, 1, 0, 1, 8; Ava Kasik: 3, 2, 1, 2, 17

Clarkson-Leigh vs Gothenburg

Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5

Clarkson-Leigh:   25    18    25    19    14

Gothenburg:    22    25    21   25    16 

Individual Stats vs Gothenburg (kills, assists, blocks, aces, digs)

Izabel Hollatz: 6, 22, 0, 0, 15; Maizie Stoklasa: 9, 0, 4, 0, 0; Kendall Schneider: 2, 28, 0, 1, 10;  Cadence Indra: 0, 0, 0, 0, 9; Brynn Settje: 13, 0, 1, 2, 13; Claire Holoubek: 0, 0, 0, 0, 1; Baylee Settje: 8, 0, 5, 0, 1; Vylet Hollatz: 0, 0, 0, 0, 19; Ava Kasik: 13, 1, 0, 2, 4 

Congratulations to the October 2024 Leigh Elementary Students of the Month!  These students were recognized this past month for being good students, friends, and helpers! 

Keep up the great work!

Front row: Jude Gall, Paxton Wietfeld, Alexia Magsamen, Declan Urbanek, Daxten Beller, Stella Reichmuth, RyeLynn Oeltjen, Matthew Amezcua
Back row: Brecken Ohlde, Khloe Kabes, Tyler VanDerslice, Brantley Higby, Kinlee Olson
The preschoolers receiving this honor are Hunter Machmueller, Parker Svehla, and Riggs Sayers

The Leigh One-Act Play team is selling Krispy Kreme donuts again! Use the link below to order yours today! Original glazed, chocolate iced, lemon-filled, raspberry-filled, and kreme-filled are all available, as well as Krispy Kreme House Blend and Decaf coffee.

Donuts will be baked fresh the morning of Sunday, December 1 and delivered to Leigh! Pick up and pay at the Leigh High School gym entrance between 9:30 am and 12:30 pm or pick up after the Drama and Desserts performance that night! Delivery is also available if you are unable to pick up!

We have 60 students involved in this year's play - nearly 100% of the entire high school! As always, thank you for your continued support of the arts at LCS!

https://forms.gle/9K56Z7GKXgYm8ZwR9

Walking out to the goat yard every day brings me so much joy. Seeing my favorite type of bovidae so often is absolutely amazing. Goats are definitely the best farm animal to have. In many ways, goats are easy to care for, relatively cheap, and make a great addition to any farm. 

Goats are one of the easiest farm animals to care for. They don’t require intense physical care or a lot of medication. The attention you give them determines how friendly and docile they will be toward someone. Goats don’t need much food either. They love eating weeds and browsing on branches, so they’re perfect for keeping weeds and other unwanted plants under control. During the winter, they will be happy with a bit of hay and a scoop of grain.

Goats also have many uses besides just weed eating. They also provide delicious and nutritious milk, if you want to use them for that. Their milk is low in fat, and is great for people who are lactose intolerant since it rarely upsets the digestive tract. Goat milk can also be made into tasty cheese, butter, or cream. Goats are also used for their meat, which is easy to prepare and is very tender.

Spending time with your goats will often make them friendly and interactive. They will let you pet them, feed them, and brush them. They make great pets, with a calming presence and a fun way to sit outside and watch them play. Baby goats are especially adorable and fun to watch, since they are always energetic and playful.

Whether your goats are used as pets or for their products, they make amazing farm animals. So, if you really want something extra and easy to add to your farm, you should definitely consider getting a goat.  I know they are definitely special to me. 

Last school year marked the first time in many years that the Patriots had a cheerleading squad.  This year, the Patriots have continued the new tradition, and have six dedicated members on the team!  

This year’s squad consists of two juniors, one sophomore, and three freshmen. The juniors are Lexis Gleason and Karly Wendt. Our sophomore is Ella Higby. The freshmen are Ariyah Ross, Kiera Wiese, and Ellison Koehn. 

The girls are coached by Andrea Sortino. They cheer and pump up the crowd for basketball, volleyball, and football. They also help promote school spirit and put on pep rallies. 

When asked about how the season has gone and will continue to go, Lexis Gleason said, “As a cheer group of mostly new faces, I am proud of how far we have come. We are always pushing ourselves to be better as a squad and there are a lot of new things coming our way in the future. We will continue to cheer on our sports teams and students alike. GO PATS!” 

The Leigh High School One-Act play production team’s season is in full swing, preparing for their upcoming performances and competitions. 

This year’s team is one of the biggest teams in history with 60 cast and crew members!  This year’s production is the Broadway classic, “Anything Goes” by Cole Porter. 

The story features the madcap antics aboard an ocean liner bound from New York to London in the 1930s.  Billy Crocker, played by Luke Eisenmann, is a stowaway in love with the famous heiress Hope Harcourt, played by Reese Wietfeld. The problem is that Hope is engaged to Lord Evelyn Oakleigh, played by Wyatt Langhorst.  Nightclub singer Reno Sweeney (Brianne Kuhr) and Public Enemy #13, “Moonface” Martin (Trevor Hoffman) join Billy in his quest to win over Hope.  

Other notable roles in the performance include Hope’s gold-digging mother Evangeline Harcourt (Baylee Settje), Billy Crocker’s boss who has a great love of alcohol (Tyce Larson) the man-eating temptress Erma (Sydney Messerlie), the ship’s Captain (Blake Loseke) and Purser (Kyle McMullin), a reverend (James Moore) and his two newest religious converts Spit and Dippy (Liz Hoffman and Cade Hoesly) a reporter and photographer (Izzy Hollatz and Carmen Malena) as well as Reno Sweeney’s “angels” (Lexis Gleason, Kammy Held, Karly Wendt, and Easton Brabec).  

This student director for this year’s play is senior Emily Stender.  She will also be the head lighting coordinator.  

The play is directed by Mrs. Justine Fischer and assisted by Mrs. Megan Hillen, Mrs. Michelle Held, and Mrs. Kamin Held.  Dennis and Linda Hillen are helping once again with set design and construction, and Loretta Tejkl is helping with set design and costuming.  Special thanks to Mr. Jarrod Bazata’s shop class for all their help with set pieces as well. 

“We are all really excited about this year’s play!” Mrs. Fischer said. “We often do pieces with a lot of magic or fantastical elements, and “Anything Goes” does not have any of that.  So that will be our biggest challenge this year to make real-life people really come to life in a big way.  We have a fairly young cast and crew this year with many new people in large speaking roles. So there is a lot of learning to do, but they have all had amazing attitudes so far, so we are excited about where we can take this show!  We are fortunate to be able to host districts in Leigh again this year, so we hope everyone will make plans to join us at one of our performances!”

The performance schedule is as follows:

--Friday, November 15 – Afternoon Matinee Performance – 2:15 pm (Admission: Freewill donation)

--Tuesday, November 19—East Husker Conference Play Competition at Howells-Dodge – Please begin at 8 am—LHS performs at 1:15 pm (Admission: EHC admission price)

-Sunday, December 1—“An Evening of Drama & Desserts” –Join us for coffee, cider, hot cocoa, and dessert at 6:30 pm with the show performance beginning at 7 pm! (Admission: Freewill donation)

-Wednesday, December 4—“Class D-1 District One-Act Competition at Leigh—plays begin at 9 am, LHS performs LAST at 2:45 pm with awards to follow (Admission: NSAA admission price)