Community Involvement

Restoring a Historical Town

About the photo: Deb Reeh, Alliance material assistant chief clerk

For nearly a year, Deb Reeh, Alliance, Neb., material assistant chief clerk, has been helping to preserve a piece of history. She volunteers at Dobby's Frontier Town, helping to refurbish the 19-building village.

The town began with a grocery store owned by Kenneth, "Dobby" Lee's father, in 1923 on the northeast edge of Alliance. Dobby's Frontier Town today includes a jail, general store, blacksmith shop and livery stable. Perhaps most historic is Robert Anderson's log cabin, which was brought in on a flatbed trailer.

"Frontier Town is kept up strictly by volunteers and grants because it's a nonprofit project," says Reeh, who volunteers throughout each week. "A lot of people with original material and merchandise will donate to help keep it up….There is a satisfaction in seeing a building from start to finish and the transformation that takes place."