Governor Ricketts honors important work force, signs over a dozen proclamations

Monday, April 8th 2019, 5:41 PM CDT by Zach Worthington

There was a lot going on at the Nebraska state capitol building on Monday.

Governor Ricketts honored line-workers this morning with their own appreciation day.

They help to deliver power to nearly 2 million Nebraskans across 77,000 square miles in the state.

Ricketts signed a proclamation declaring Monday, April 8th, as Line-Workers Appreciation Day.

"Recognizing our line-workers is terribly important. It's well deserved, quite frankly because of the liability that we enjoy on a day to day basis comes from their hard work. It comes from them going out in weather that the rest of us would prefer not to go out in," said Pat Pope, CEO of Nebraska Public Power District.

Following the line-workers appreciation day declaration, the governor headed over to Warner Chamber to sign over a dozen proclamations.

Members of Madonna Rehabilitation's Amputee Network were in attendance as the month of April was proclaimed as Limb Loss Awareness Month.

"It's an opportunity to celebrate the fact that we are still here and able to hug our grand kids, in my case, ride motorcycles again. I lost my leg in a motorcycle crash just over three years ago," said Dale Johnson.

Johnson says nearly 10,000 Nebraskans underwent a limb amputation between 2004 and 2014.

He says chances are good that your life will be impacted by someone who has limb loss.

"The fact that we can get out and walk, the fact that we, whether we're walking with a prosthetic, whether we're utilizing a wheelchair or a mobile device, we're still able to get out and enjoy days like this," said Johnson.

Another notable proclamation was made by Miss Nebraska, Lex Najarian, who has a personal connection to Lyme disease.

Governor Ricketts has proclaimed the month of May as Lyme Disease Awareness month in the state.

"When I became Miss Nebraska U.S.A, I found out how big of a voice I can have with Lyme disease, which my mom has suffered from for almost twenty years now. If affects everyone differently, my mom suffered from hearing loss and vertigo," said Najarian.

Najarian, who will be competing in the Miss U.S.A Pageant on May 2nd, is running for the crown, in part on her platform of raising awareness for Lyme disease.

"It'll be just a really great opportunity to make people aware of Lyme disease and the fact that it has affected people in all fifty states and worldwide but especially here is where we can have the biggest impact," said Najarian.

https://www.klkntv.com/story/40272377/governor-ricketts-honors-important-work-force-signs-over-a-dozen-proclamations