Stories from Friday, May 11, 2018

The City of Cherokee has an opportunity to expand its trail system with the purchase of 55 acres on the east side of town. New paved trails will connect to Main and Spruce Streets and connect to the existing trail system to the north or south. Paved and unpaved trails will wind through a natural park setting...

HARASSMENT On the morning of Wednesday, May 9, at approximately 8:30 a.m. the Storm Lake Police Department took a report in reference to harassment. Police were advised by the reporting party that Daniel McDonald, age 18 of Storm Lake, allegedly made contact with him via a text message early in the morning of May 9, 2018 and attempted to make contact with the reporting party’s juvenile daughter after being previously warned by police to have no contact with the family...

Buena Vista University has announced that Dr. Ann Monroe-Baillargeon has been named dean of the School of Education. She will assume the role on June 29. Prior to joining BVU, Monroe-Baillargeon worked at the University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford, Conn., where she served as dean of the School of Education for three years before returning to faculty for one year. ...

Buena Vista Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, honored Abigail Daly with the ROTC Gold Medal at its regular meeting on April 25. She is a Senior at Buena Vista University majoring in Computer Science. She graduates this May. Ms Daly is also a member of the BVU women’s basketball team and has a hobby in Theatre Production. Her hometown is Waukee, IA. She was introduced to the DAR members by fellow cadet Matayo Christiansen...

The Storm Lake Dollars for Scholars organization awarded a total of $43,400 to graduating seniors from St. Mary’s High School and Storm Lake High School at the awards ceremony held on Sunday, May 6. This amount included 15-$600 and 55-$400 scholarships generated from the Community campaign as well as 28 Sponsored Scholarships from a number of community sponsors...

Spring has sprung. But is it too late to get a good start on the growing season? Brad Jones of Jones Nursery says certainly not. There is no shortened growing season yet, says Jones. Vegetables like tomatoes do not like frost, so they usually are not planted until a week or two into May. ...

The Most Reverend R. Walker Nickless will ordain five Deacons into the Catholic Church on Saturday, May 12, at the Cathedral of the Epiphany, Sioux City beginning at 10 a.m. Among those to be ordained is Michael Higgins, Early. The men will be assigned to various parishes across the diocese...

The annual celebration of Latino heritage, “Fiesta Latina,” will be held in the Lamberti Recreation Center on the Buena Vista University campus Saturday, May 19. The event – which is free and open to the public – is being coordinated by RAICES, a student organization at BVU that is designed to increase the visibility and heighten the awareness of students of Latin descent.  ...

Buena Vista County Auditor’ Office is reminding voters of changes they will see in the election process starting with the June 5, 2018 Primary Election. The changes are from legislation approved during the 2017 Iowa legislative session that included voter identification (ID) requirements and changes to the absentee voting process...

Ready, Set, GROW! is experiencing a growth spurt in Alta and Storm Lake. To complement that growth, Central Bank and Central Insurance donated $10,000 as they expand their childcare services into Storm Lake. “We’re grateful for Central Bank and Central Insurance’s investment in our youth,” said Emily Bodholdt, president of the daycare’s board of directors...

Country comedian, singer and platinum-selling songwriter Joe Denim has joined the lineup for the Mill Creek Festival, August 3 and 4, rural Cherokee. He will be hosting with comedy and music performances both nights. Joe says and writes about what most other people dare even think. Now with his debut single “If I Had A Million Dollars,” Joe is giving the average American permission to recall the time when the American Dream was reachable...

The Clay County Fair announces that Lita Ford will open for Tesla as part of the SRG Concert Series at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 9 in the Sleep Number Grandstand at the 2018 Clay County Fair. A British born rocker who grew up on the streets of L.A., Lita Ford is considered one of the most important female representatives of the rock genre. ...

The first Genesis Music Festival is planned for the June 1-3 weekend at Sports Park Raceway, Fort Dodge, featuring 16 bands on three stages including the popular tribute band Hairball. The group that had led the Frontier Days events at the Fort Museum for the past 10 years departed to put on the music festival, feeling there was no room for growth at the Fort Museum site...

In conjunction with Secretary of Ag Mike Naig, the Iowa Beef Industry Council and Fareway Stores, Inc. unveiled a semi-truck recognizing the contributions of Iowa cattle farmers. Unveiled to kick-off May Beef Month, the trailer showcases quality product, set off by a quote from an Iowa cattle farmer...

The Iowa State Extension and Outreach is pleased to partner with the USDA-NRCS, the Buena Vista and Pocahontas County Farm Bureau and the Buena Vista County and Pocahontas Soil and Water Conservation Districts to bring Agronomy in the Field to Buena Vista County. ...

One Storm Lake family wants to bring to diners an experience that means as much to the diners as it does to the owners—a dream come true. In doing so, Mi Ranchito is filling Lakeshore Pho’s old location at 1411 East Lakeshore Drive, bringing a new, authentic experience to town...

The Alta-Aurelia Trap team hosted a trap shoot on Saturday April 28. Teams competing were Alta-Aurelia, Storm Lake, Okoboji. GTRA and Sioux City. In the High School division the Alta-Aurelia squad of Noah Sundene, Cody Goodwin, Cory Goodwin, Nick Beazley and Wyatt Tuttle won first place...

Alta Kiwanis welcomed Officer Tim Smith from BV Co. Sheriff’s Department. Officer Smith has been on the job 18 years. He served Mapleton for four years, worked for Storm Lake PD nine years serving as field training officer. For the past four years he has worked in Sheriff’s dept. as instructor training officer. He has also been involved in periodic boat and jet ski patrol on Storm Lake...

On Tuesday May 22, at 4:30 p.m. the Alta Library will behaving a Kick Off Night for their Summer Reading Library program. There will be games, a story time, fun and treats. Come join the the library for an exciting evening and learn about all of the exciting programs the library has planned for the summer...

The Alta City Council voted unanimously to rescind the Trails Committee resolution and purchase a new garbage truck. After learning that the Pedestrian Trail and Safe Routes to School Committee lost their matching grant from the Buena Vista County Foundation, leaving them with no funding or way to finish projects, the council decided to rescind Trails Committee Resolution 1514, dissolving City Council’s relationship with the committee. ...

The Alta Parks Board reported that is has procured a concession stand manager, but is still struggling to secure lifeguards this summer for the pool. Chairman Randy Ericksen said that they will be lowering the minimum hiring age to 15 and raising the pay rate from $7.50 to $8.00 per hour. ...

The management of Westview Trailer Park in Alta is not cooperating with the Westview Revitalization Plan previously presented to City Council, according to an update at Tuesday’s City Council meeting. The plan, spearheaded by union organizer Jesse Case at TeamCAN (Teamsters Community Action Network), was formed to include efforts from Westview residents, the city of Alta and management to contribute to a long-term vision that all parties could be happy with while keeping residents in their homes.. ...

According to John Searcey of Surprise, Arizona, “Good people live in Alta, Iowa!” Searcey recently came into contact with two Altans, who may have helped to save his life. He shared this story: I recently had the opportunity to come into contact with two model citizens from your community and owe them a great big thank you...

Trusted Energy will be holding a groundbreaking ceremony Monday at 6 p.m. for its solar project in Marathon. The project, which has been the product of over a year of collaboration between Trusted Energy, Marathon city leaders and community investors, will be celebrated as it enters its first phase of construction. The 278-kilowatt community project will be going in at the end of the month into early June, installing in three phases. A typical house uses 6 to 18 kilowatts per day...

The Storm Lake City Council has unanimously approved a reciprocal policy for Sunrise Pointe Golf Course. With the number of memberships and amount of revenue down in recent years, city officials hope that a policy that would allow members of other courses to play Sunrise Pointe will increase traffic for the local course...

The Freedom Rock project in Buena Vista County has received a $10,000 grant from the Buena Vista County Community Foundation. The fundraising goals for the project is just over $40,000, which must be raised by October when the rock, located at Albert City, is scheduled to be painted in a patriotic theme by artist Ray “Bubba” Sorensen II to honor veterans...

How badly does Storm Lake need housing? Bad enough for the city council to unanimously approve a new incentive that will only charge a dollar for home building permits from now through the end of the year. The policy will apply to single-family attached or detached houses, but the homes built must be completed by the end of 2019...

The City of Storm Lake will be hosting two open house discussions on the downtown area, with Mayor Mike Porsch.  Input and ideas are welcomed from downtown businesses, tenants, and community members. Everyone is invited to participate. Light snacks and coffee will be provided...

The Storm Lake Schools are preparing to kick off another summer food program, open to all children and youth age 1-18. This year, since there is no summer school at the elementary, the early part of the season will be held at the middle school, June 4-June 21. Breakfast will be at 8 a.m. Monday through Thursday, and lunch 11:30-12:30...

LAURENS - Iowa Central is moving forward with plans to establish a Manufacturing Training Hub in Laurens to serve area high schools. The college estimates that it will invest up to $750,000 in this career academy, in hopes of convincing interested students to stay in Iowa and their home communities to fill quality jobs offered by companies in the region...

A pair of freshmen highlight the 2018 All-Iowa Conference Softball Team for Buena Vista as Carlee Guyett was named a First Team catcher while Kate Lesmeister landed Second Team utility recognition. Junior Autumn Boland wraps up her career with an Honorable Mention selection at second base...

The Northwest Iowa Bulldogs, based in Aurelia, are back for another season of semi-professional football. This season will see a handful of changes for the Bulldogs as they are in a new league with more teams and see a rival move a little closer. The ‘Dogs left their old league due to not seeing too much potential growth with four other teams. ...

EMMETSBURG - The St. Mary’s girls’ golf team was able to have enough girls on the course on Tuesday night to field a team score against Emmetsburg. The Panthers fell to the E-Hawks though, 202-238. St. Mary’s Hailey Hartman carded a 52 to pace the way. Jordan Hewett scored 58, Hailey Nepple 61 and Lizzie Lenhart 67. The medalist honors went to E-Burg’s Parker Traub who scored a 49...

GRAETTINGER - The Mustangs took on the Titans of Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Aryshire on Tuesday night. The Newell-Fonda girls won 209-233 as the boys were narrowly bested, 175-176. The Newell-Fonda ladies was paced by Morgan Lynch’s score of 50 which also earned her the medalist honors. Teammates Sydney Tauber and Jenna Coppock both carded a 52, but Tauber was able to get the runner-up spot on a tie-breaker. Olivia Larsen scored a 55, Becca Mandernach 59 and Sammie Bovero 70...

STORM LAKE - The Tornado and Warriors girls’ golf teams went head to head on Tuesday night. However, Storm Lake was unable to field a team score with only three girls playing, and A-A scored 197 as a team. Warrior Annika Patton shot a three over par, 39, for the medalist spot. ...

MONDAMIN - The Ridge View boys already know that two of their relays teams are going to Drake Stadium next week after the State qualifying meet on Thursday night. The girls did not see anyone earn an automatic bid. The boys finished fifth as a team with 83 points and the girls fourth with 68 out of the 14 teams...

MANSON - The Alta-Aurelia boys and girls track teams saw numerous State qualifiers on Thursday night a 2A District meet. Overall the boys finished second and the girls won the district with a score of 121, coming back from a 25 point deficit in the second half of the meet...

SIOUX RAPIDS - Three area teams worked hard on Thursday night to earn the right to go on to the State meet. The Sioux Central boys and girls saw a handful advance, the Newell-Fonda girls see some go, and the Panther boys qualify in two field events...

ORANGE CITY - The 3A State qualifying meet for Storm Lake was a cold, rainy one on Thursday evening as the green and white saw one competitor be able to advance on to the State meet this year. The Tornadoes took eighth place in boys and girls. Storm Lake’s Emma Kenkel qualified in the 200 meter dash, winning the event in 28.15 and then took second in the 400 meter dash with a time of 1:01.72. ...

February 6, 1930 - May 7, 2018

A Storm Lake resident suffered severe injuries Wednesday night when a large tree fell on a car parked on the south side of the Linn Grove Dam, as a brief storm blew through the area shortly before 7:30 p.m. with winds estimated at over 40 miles per hour...