Somewhere in Omaha Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh’s home sits a neglected trunk. It was handed down by her mother and is filled with the relics of a previous life of “free time”—before having children and before deciding to run for the Nebraska Legislature.
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Sen. Dave Murman of Glenvil does not often watch the late evening news. But he was watching one night in mid-February 2018 when it was reported that his predecessor in the District 38 seat had announced that he would not seek reelection.
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While the other members of the 2019 freshman class of state senators were learning the basics at new member orientation, Omaha Sen. Steve Lathrop was becoming reacquainted with the building where he spent eight years serving the people of District 12.
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When Adams Sen. Myron Dorn was sworn into office Jan. 9, he represented one of four generations of his family gathered in the legislative chamber that morning.
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There are moments when Sen. Wendy DeBoer catches herself mid-sentence. She’s earned four advanced degrees, and is pursuing a fifth, and knows she can give more details in response to a question than the asker might have expected.
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Sen. Tom Brandt never envisioned being a politician. The fourth-generation farmer from Plymouth was content working his 1,100 acres, but the misconceptions that some Nebraskans had about rural life bothered him.
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Peru Sen. Julie Slama should probably be in class right now. While most new state senators are learning to balance their public service with work responsibilities, Slama is figuring out how to serve the constituents of District 1 and finish her spring semester legal writing course.
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In November, Sen. John Arch of La Vista stepped down as director of the Boys Town National Research Hospital in Omaha after 25 years there.
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Sometimes it can get a little loud at Sen. Mike Moser’s place of business, but that’s part of the deal. Moser, the former mayor of Columbus, has owned Columbus Music Company with his wife, Jan, for the past 42 years. The store has around 150 guitars in stock, and plenty of amps to go with them.
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Not long after Omaha Sen. Theresa Thibodeau was appointed to the Nebraska Legislature last fall, Thibodeau’s daughter Eleanor, a fourth grader studying Nebraska history and government, asked her for help with a question on a homework assignment: What are the duties of a state senator?
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For a farm kid from Albion, even the promise of a lucrative law career could not deter Sen. Tom Briese from a life working the land.
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For the past 16 years, Sen. Justin Wayne has coached basketball for a youth sports program in Omaha and serves as its president. In 2008, a few of his players noticed his grousing about Omaha’s public schools, so they encouraged Wayne to follow the same advice he gave them: if you are going to complain, be a part of the solution.
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To say that newly-appointed Sen. Robert Clements has deep roots in his legislative district would be an understatement. His great-great-grandfather John came to the area in 1868 to homestead as an immigrant from England. He went on to be one of the four men who incorporated the village of Elmwood in 1886.
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Visitors to the Capitol watching Sen. Carol Blood address a full legislative chamber would never guess that public speaking used to make her uncomfortable.
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Sen. Lou Ann Linehan cannot remember a time when politics and history did not fascinate her.
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