The Nebraska Passport program starts today (May 1) and runs through September 30, 2024. The program’s purpose is to help travelers discover Nebraska’s hidden gems including a wide variety of travel adventures like museums, parks, restaurants, wineries, retail stores, and more.
Two businesses in the KCNI/KBBN listening area are featured as a part of the 2024 passport: The Secret Garden in Merna and Anthem Coffee in Thedford. Both businesses were featured in local news stories recently on SandhillsExpress.com.
The Secret Garden story link
Anthem Coffee story link
Located west of Merna off of Highway 92, The Secret Garden offers passport visitors a unique blend of shopping. Owner Kelli Safranek said she’s excited to show visitors everything.
“We are a very unique store, because we are a half mile off a paved road. So we have the country view. Also inside of our store we use primitive crafts with antiques with spiritual sayings and devotions all tied into one. Plus we have food and drinks and a greenhouse so there’s lots of different things to see when you come in,” said Safranek.
For Anthem Coffee, the chapters of their story include a building purchase in 2021, eleven months of renovation from “completely gutted” to revitalized, a grand opening in October 2022, and amazing local support ever since.
“The non-local climbs a bit in the summer, but our local support has been incredible. We definitely wouldn’t be able to be here without it. A lot of businesses in tourist locations can survive off of the tourism but we’re not necessarily a tourist location. So our local support has meant everything to us and it has blown my mind. I didn’t expect it. I expected them to love what we have here and to frequent us quite often, but as often as everyone comes continues to amaze me,” said Clark.
Those interested in participating in the Nebraska Passport program can do so by utilizing either a physical passport that gets stamps at each stop or the passport app that uses location to verify a visit. Participants are also encouraged to share selfies and travel stories.
