Please join us at the historic Portal Schoolhouse on Thursday, January 9th at 7 pm for our General Membership meeting.  We will be discussing our activities, plans for the future, and celebrating two of our members.

We are celebrating Jim Miller’s 90th Birthday.  Jim is one of our long time volunteers. Jim has over 70 years of volunteer service to Sarpy County and the Papillion Community.  Jim is a lifelong resident of Papillion.  Jim, together with his brothers George and Jack, inherited ownership of the Papillion Times, Gretna Breeze and Springfield Monitor from their father and covered central and western Sarpy County until the early 1980s when the papers were purchased by the Omaha World-Herald.  He is able to tell us about life in Sarpy County during the Depression, World War II, the Cold War, and so much of our history in Papillion.  Jim currently helps the Historical Society with its historical artifacts.

We are also celebrating Bob Olson, our Treasurer and Board member who will be honored at the Midlands Community Foundation Reflection Ball on January 18th.  Bob has over 55 years of volunteer service to Sarpy County and the Papillion community, particularly in the area of emergency medical services. Bob is a lifelong resident of Papillion. After graduating from the University of Nebraska Lincoln, Bob built a multiple unit office building in Papillion and owned a State Farm Insurance Agency for 35 years. Bob served 6 years in the Army Reserve, 34 years on the Papillion Volunteer Fire Department serving as Chief, Asst. Chief, Paramedic Supervisor, Rescue Capt., President and Treasurer. He was in the first paramedic class in Nebraska, and in 1980, obtained the first Advanced Life Support license in Nebraska for a Volunteer Fire Department. Appointed by the Governor, Bob worked with State Senators to merge the Ambulance Board and Advanced Life Support Board, then became Chairperson for 10 years of the new State EMS Board. Bob served on the Midlands Emergency Medical Services Council, Civil Service Commission, PLV School Foundation, Tri Mutual Aid Firefighters (Pres.), NE Stroke Foundation Board, Critical Incident Stress Management Debriefing Team and Foundation, and NE State Vol. Firefighters Association. Bob is Chairman of the Sarpy County Hospital Authority (1974), President of the Monarch Villa Board (1976), Treasurer of the Papillion Area Historical Society, serves on the Papio 150/2020 Papio Sesquicentennial Historical, Steering, and Selection Committees. Bob has been awarded the National Transportation Award, State Firefighter and EMT Award, and PLV Outstanding Alumni Award. The Olsons served as Grand Marshals of Papillion Days, and received the “Evening with Friends Award” from Midlands Hospital for Outstanding Volunteers. Bob has been married to Karen for 57 years and they have three children and eight grandchildren.

We will begin our general meeting at 7 pm and follow up with a celebration after our meeting.