VALENTINE, Neb. - Thirty cents for a loaf of bread, $4,500 for a new car—that was 1976. It was also the year Doug Boyer started working for the Cherry County Roads Department. Now, after nearly 50 years, Boyer is retiring.

“A job became available in my hometown of Mullen. Back then jobs weren’t real easy to get ahold of,” said Boyer.

In 1976, at just 19 years old, Boyer first started driving a truck.

“I started at $2.65 per hour,” said Boyer.

But Boyer quickly moved up the ranks, becoming assistant foreman, then district foreman, and eventually supervisor.

“There’s lots of stress that goes along with the job at different times. We think of stress with snow removal a lot, but we’ve had terrible floods,” said Boyer.

Boyer’s career spanned four emergency declarations, including the devastating flood of 2019.

“We didn’t have a road in District 2 that wasn’t affected. We either had them closed or people going around it,” said Boyer.

Managing roads in a county larger than the state of Connecticut is no small feat. County commissioners recently honored Boyer with a retirement celebration, calling his departure the end of an era.

“It’s really, really unusual for anybody to serve that many years in any job for that matter. He will truly be missed,” said County Commissioner Martin DeNaeyer.

Meanwhile Boyer isn’t certain of his next road in life, but he’s not afraid to take the road less traveled.

“God has guided my footsteps. He’s put me out the door from here. I don’t know where he’s going to lead me next," said Boyer. “I totally have faith that he’ll put me where he wants me."