Stories from Thursday, January 19, 2017

In honor of Martin Luther King Jr day on Monday, January 16, BVU held the MLK Day of Service. Students and volunteers packed food for a variety of organizations and experienced a food inequality simulator during the Hunger Banquet. Emmanuel Amon was in charge of the event, with help from Student M.O.V.E members, Sodexo staff, and Director of Spiritual Life, Rev. Ken Meissner...

Lana Fort and daughter Sasha Stevenson are opening a new coffee shop together called Coffee Tree, located on Lake Avenue downtown. The shop will have a short menu including soups, salads, sandwiches, ice cream, and specials as well as an assortment of coffee beverages...

The worse the weather, the busier your local tow truck drivers get. “It’s not very glamorous. It’s miserable, and you can wear the best Carhartt Extremes and Under Armor, and you’re still going to be freezing,” says Tyson Rice, of Storm Lake Towing, in the wake of the ice storm that immobilized the area early this week...

The Marathon City Council voted Tuesday night to continue exploring the development of a large-scale solar project on a former baseball field site owned by the city. At the meeting, Trusted Energy delivered the results of their study, which indicated that the City of Marathon could save citizens a minimum of $2 million dollars in electric costs over the next 20 years through the installation of a 1.42MW solar project...

Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa Tuesday convened a meeting with several fellow senators from biofuels-producing states and Texas Gov. Rick Perry, President-elect Trump’s nominee to serve as secretary of the Department of Energy. The agency conducts research on fuel optimization that is relevant to biofuels policy-making. Grassley made the following comment after the meeting...

Registrations continue to be accepted for the 2017 Women in Denim conference scheduled for January 27 and 28 held at Buena Vista University. The Women in Denim conference targets women involved in all facets of agriculture or those who enjoy rural living. Participants may choose from a wide variety of sessions, covering topics such as farm and personal finance, agriculture marketing, estate planning, gardening, decorating, exercise, cooking, home improvement, quilting and more...

The desire to make a visit to the Arnolds Park Amusement Park a more enjoyable experience has brought about a renovation plan. The HAPI Board (Historic Arnolds Park, Inc.) developed a plan of improvements to be worked on during a 4-5 year time span...

Most lakes in the district are covered with 7 to 13 inches of ice. Use caution and test ice depths often. Here is a look at the DNR Fishing Report. Storm Lake (including Little Storm Lake) Ice thickness is 9-13 inches. Yellow Perch - Fair: Use wax worms and minnows fished on a jig in 5-8 feet of water. ...

By DANA LARSEN Pilot-Tribune Editor The Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now is blasting the Obama Administration for requesting an Environmental Impact Statement on the Dakota Access Pipeline, which could further slow completion of the project. Environmental activists and pipeline protesters have been pushing a mailing blitz to demand that the Army Corps of Engineers complete the impact study. A recent tweet indicates that Obama will force the issue...

The public is invited to learn more about Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), the program’s future under the new administration and how it may affect immigrant families. Immigration attorney Amy Abraham and accredited representative Shannon Schroeder from the Mary J. Treglia Community House will lead the workshop. This workshop will take place Monday, January 30 from 3:30-4:30 p.m. at Our Place in Storm Lake...

Central Bank in Storm Lake will be hosting a Bankers Blood Drive Bank on Friday, January 20 from 8 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. Registration and refreshments are located inside. To schedule and appointment, call Stacey Meyer or Taylor Lullmann at 732-2190 or go online to www.lifeservebloodcenter.org. Walk-ins are welcome. Please bring a valid form of ID (drivers license or donor ID card.)...

The Grout Museum District, 503 South Street, is opening a new temporary Korean War exhibit in the summer of 2017. The exhibit will feature “Faces Of The Fallen,” a component that will honor Iowans who died in the Korean War. It will also go on to become a permanent part of the Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum...

• On a scale of 5 popcorn buckets, “Hidden Figures” pops up a full 4 1/2 tubs of golden goodness. Perfectly flavored, savor the taste of a film that offers a look at three heroic figures who used their brains to overcome the ugly prejudices of their time, paving the way for the American space program and minority women who followed them. MPAA rating: PG. Running time: 2 hours, 7 minutes.

Barnes PRCA Rodeo of Peterson and Cherokee will produce the Rawhide Bull Riding Challenge January 20-21 at the Tyson Event Center here, featuring the debut of “Sniper,” a renowned Barnes bull. Sniper is black Braham-Cross bred bull recently purchased by Barnes PRCA Rodeo this past December. The bull was named in honor of 21-year-old fallen Marine Hunter “HD” Hogan. Hogan was killed in action in Afghanistan while serving with the 1st BN, 8th Marines, 2nd Marine division on June 23, 2012...

Artwork by Mary Ortner, entitled “Bootes and Friends” is on display in the BVU Art Gallery until January 29. Working with paint, board, papers, and found objects, Iowa artist, Mary Ortner’s collages and illustrations will delight the child in everyone. Ortner is a self-taught artist who took up painting while living in Washington, D.C., at the time the Washington Color School was at its height – later showing in many D.C. and New York galleries. / Photos courtesy of BVU...

Storm Lake is known to be a growing and culturally diverse town. It is part of everyday life to go to school, work, or shop around town and interact with people who do not have English as their first language. As the community hospital, Buena Vista Regional Medical Center (BVRMC) works hard to provide top quality care to everyone no matter their language skills...

Farm and agribusiness women are invited to attend one or both of the upcoming ‘Farm Transition and Estate Planning’ and ‘Farm Health and Safety Concerns’ educational evenings hosted by Iowa State University (ISU) Extension and Outreach in Cherokee. The programs will be hosted by Cherokee County’s ‘Annie’s Alums,’ a group of women who have completed ISU Extension and Outreach’s Annie’s Project which is a program focused on financial, human resources, legal, marketing and production education for women involved in agriculture.. ...

If you are thinking about planting a new windbreak or adding rows to an existing windbreak this spring, the months of January and February provide a good time to plan the layout, planting needs, and sign up for cost share incentives. It is also a good time to begin contacting businesses that provide trees and shrubs, to determine costs, and check on early season discounts for large orders...

January 16, 1924 - January 13, 2017

November 18, 1927 - January 15, 2017

May 28, 1944 - January 14, 2017

Local amateur winemaker, Susan Diersen, wants to teach you the basic steps of making wine on Thursday, February 9th at 6:30 p.m. at The Meeting Place in Galva! During this one-hour program, Susan will explain wine making terms, ingredients and equipment needed to prepare your first gallon of wine. ...