Dorchester Times: Nina Papik, 90, Passes; Celebration Of Life Wednesday

Sunday, October 26, 2014

Nina Papik, 90, Passes; Celebration Of Life Wednesday

Longtime area resident Nina May Papik passed away October 23, 2014, at Tabitha Care Center in Crete Nebraska at the age of 90. Nina was born June 26, 1924 to Joseph and Clara Kohel in Wilber, the youngest of two daughters. Nina graduated Wilber High School in 1941 and taught in country schools south of Wilber before her marriage to Frank Papik on January 30, 1946. They moved to the Papik family farm south of Dorchester to farm with Frank’s father and moved their home to Crete in 1977 when Frank retired from the farm. Frank and Nina raised their two children, Allen and Janice, on that family farm.

In 1958, Nina began her career in the Saline County Courthouse working as a typist in the Abstract Office. For most of her working years, she was a social services/case worker in the Saline County office of the Nebraska Department of Social Services and at one time served as Vice President of the Southeast Nebraska Welfare Association. By 1985, Nina decided to spend more time traveling, crocheting, antiquing, farm toy shows, and enjoying her grandchildren so she chose to retire that summer.

Sports was always a big part of Nina and Frank’s life, so following their grandchildren’s sports activities became their passion and seldom missed a game. Also close to their hearts was Husker athletics. Nina and Frank spent many years attending Nebraska football games, as well as Husker men and women’s basketball games. They shared this love for Husker athletics with their children and grandchildren over the years. Travel also became treasured times that Frank and Nina spent together. They traveled to many Husker regular season and bowl games always making new friends, followed the Women’s basketball team to many tournaments, and also took trips to Czechoslovakia and Hawaii. Once the grandchildren started Little League baseball and T-Ball (softball), Nina and Frank were at almost every sporting competition that they could attend. Nina loved spending time her grandchildren, and in her later years was so excited to see her growing number of great-grandchildren.

She is survived by her children, Allen and Twila Papik of Dorchester, and Janice and Lee Eret of Lincoln. Grandchildren: Baxter and Magdalena Papik of Edmond, Oklahoma; Michelle and Mitch McCarthy of Lincoln; Lindsey Eret of Lincoln, Kelli and Brian Kohout of Crete. Great-Grandchildren: Baila Papik, Xander Papik, and Julia McCarthy.

Nina was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Frank, her sister Evelyna Burianek and brother-in-law Ed Burianek.

Celebration of Nina’s life will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, October 29, 2014 at Kuncl Funeral Home in Crete. Pastor Rayl Robbins will officiate. Visitation will be on Tuesday from 5-8 p.m. at Kuncl Funeral Home in Crete. Cremation. Private family burial.

Memorials to the Dorchester Volunteer Fire Department.

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Dorchester: A Good Little Family Town

Dorchester, Nebraska (est. population 630) is located in northern Saline county. Close in proximity to Interstate 80, Dorchester is only 25 minutes from the state capital of Lincoln (est. population 250,000) and about 55 minutes from Omaha (metro population 725,000).

Dorchester's median resident age is 37 years. In 2005, Dorchester had a median family income of approximately $35,600. The median house value was about $63,000. About 95 percent of Dorchester residents commute to work via Interstate and highways.

The village has a quality public school, which received a $4.1 million expansion and modernization in 2008; it offers a small classrooms and individualized attention. Total enrollment of grades K-12 is around 230-250 students.

Ancestries of the Dorchester area are primarily German (42.4%), Czech (24.9%), Irish (12.5%), English (5.4%), and Dutch (4.9%).

Dorchester Historical Facts

* On July 4, 1871, the railroad reached Dorchester.
* Incorporated in 1881, Dorchester's population grew from 200 to 500 by 1882.
* In 1882, Dorchester had 90 buildings, 35 of which were businesses or public facilities. Brick buildings lined both sides of Washington Avenue for two blocks.
* Dorchester's longest-running newspaper was The Dorchester Star, which was published until the late 1940s.
* By 1889, Dorchester's population is said to have reached 800, while the town housed an opera house, a two-story brick schoolhouse with a bell tower, and four churches.
* By the 1910s, Dorchester had electricity, a water tower and a fire department.
* Dorchester's main arteries, Highways 6 and 33, were graveled in the 1940s.
* Dorchester's first irrigation well was drilled on Chris Weber's farm and rural electrification was finished following WWII.

A Village with History

Dorchester is one of the "alphabet towns" on the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad line built west from Lincoln. The town site was selected for its pleasant location in the northern part of Saline County, about eight miles west of Crete. This situation is an attractive one, being on the level prairie land, midway between the West Blue River and Turkey Creek. The first named stream is three miles north, and the latter about the same distance south from the town. Dorchester was platted in 1870 and incorporated in 1881. The name "Dorchester" came from either for a suburb of Boston by that name or a town in England. No one is sure. Two of the very first settlers were James Seely and Edward McIntyre, who both made Dorchester their permanent home.

Dorchester: In The Beginning

Here is a look at Dorchester around 1890, less than a decade after its official incorporation, as documented by Andreas' History of the State of Nebraska:
* POPULATION: "About 300, and is made up of a substantial and progressive class of citizens, who are moral and industrious. ... The town grew but very little until the year 1879, for the reason that Pleasant Hill, on Turkey Creek, a short distance south, was the county seat and naturally drew a trade for quite a large scope of country."
* BUSINESS: "The business and professional interests of the town are represented by three general merchandise stores, two drug, one grocery, one furniture, two hardware, and two millinery stores, one bank, two restaurants, two hotels, three livery stables, a post office, one newspaper office, two elevators, two lumber yards, two coal yards, two blacksmith shops, two lawyers and four physicians."
* SCHOOL: "The schoolhouse is a good one. The schoolhouse was built in 1872, since which time the public schools have been continually kept up. The present schoolhouse is 24' x 40' in size, two stories high. The school is graded and consists of three departments. The house is found too small, and arrangements will soon be made to increase its size."
* CHURCHES: "There are three substantial churches."
* HOMES: "The residence portion of the village is made up of neat houses of different styles of architecture, but none of them very large."
* NEWSPAPER: "The Dorchester Star, which was established August 21, 1881, by H. C. Bittenbender, who edited it until January 19, 1882, when he sold it to Ryerson & Bullock, the present proprietors. The Star is a bright weekly paper, five-column quarto, in size, and is Republican in politics."