Last of the Lewis and Clark Route
(Used with the permission of The Spencer Advocate)
(The following article is an update on Steve Pogge, who was featured in an article in the Spencer Advocate.
He stopped in Lynch in August 1999)

I am convinced that the friendliest people in America are from the small towns of the Midwest. The drivers are courteous, everyone waves and there are the local cafes where no one is in a hurry and you can get good basic food with a little conversation thrown in. Over the last few months, I spent many hours eating and exchanging stories in these small town cafes.

Of all the towns that I traveled through in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, N&S Dakota, there are three that are particularly memorable. The first is my home town of Minden/Neola, IA because of family and long time friends. Having lived all over the country, I still think of Iowa as home. The second is Lynch, NE. When I biked through this little town, I was struck by an imposing historic building called the House of Renewal. Feeling a need to get renewed after my first thousand miles. I stopped to check it out. I was greeted by Mary Hildman, a pastoral minister who is in charge of the house. She informed me I could indeed stay there for the night. I find out that it has quite an illustrious history, erected in 1918 as a sanatorium. Great I think, people already think I am crazy now I just checked myself into a sanatorium. I felt better when I learned it was converted into a Catholic hospital in 1924. It served the area well for many years until 1971 when the town decided it was time to build a modern health facility. Instead of tearing the old hospital down, they converted it into a convent. However, in 1981, due to the advance age of the Sisters, it was closed again and reopened as a place of renewal for weary travelers, retreats and family gatherings. It is truly unique. It was one of the only hotels that I had been at where a prayer is said for you before check-in. I need all the prayers I can get and welcomed the opportunity to have one said. Mary Hildman is one of the kindest, warmest people you'll ever want to meet. If you are passing through northeast Nebraska be sure and stop. The artifacts of the old hospital, the artwork, and atmosphere are worth stopping for. As the Benedictine Sisters so aptly put it, "It is a place akin to Heaven."