Cienna Friesen
Greetings, all you Stromsburgers, Osceolans, Shelbeans, Polkers, and Greshamites.
I’m a “Hebronite” (Hebron, Neb.—about an hour south of Stromsburg on Highway 81). I graduated from Thayer Central, did my “Gen Eds” at Southeast Community College in Hebron and Lincoln, transferred to the University of Nebraska at Kearney, and graduated there with a degree in English with a writing emphasis.
Though I went to college to sharpen my writing and storytelling skills, I have many interests. “Too many hobbies,” some might say. I’m a reader, artist, musician, and runner. I think animals of all kinds are pretty neat (even those giant, hairy wolf spiders are interesting— from a distance) and if I could make a living tramping through woods and creeks, I would. That’s essentially what I did through college, working for the Nebraska Game & Parks Commission at Rock Creek Station State Historical Park.
When offered to work at the news, I was excited—a real writing job! But I had one major reservation: Moving to a small town that I had practically no connections to was intimidating. In the city, you can stay anonymous. In a town like Stromsburg, introduce yourself once and it will spread faster than, well… the news.
Let the record state that I am no longer worried about the prospect of integrating myself into Polk County, if the friendly folks I’ve met so far are anything to go by.
