Stories from Friday, January 18, 2019

DES MOINES - Cherokee native Becky Hockman was named to the Hy-Vee Hall of Fame in December. Hockman, vice president of retail accounting, was recently inducted as the 2018 Department Director of the Year at the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting...

The old days of an institutional “cafeteria” or “servery” for college meals has taken a dramatic about-face at Buena Vista University, where a new restaurant, CRU5H, debuted Wednesday evening as part of the formal unveiling of the heavily-renovated BVU Forum...

Northern Lights, a debut novel by Raymond Strom, explores a young man’s sexuality as he searches for his mother in the Upper Midwest. The novel is scheduled for Feb. 12 release by Simon & Schuster. Strom was born in Hibbing, Minn., and lived in small towns across Minnesota, Wisconsin, the Dakotas and Montana...

How much of a sweet tooth do you have when it comes to movies? It’s a question you might want to consider before stepping out for ”A Dog’s Way Home ,” W. Bruce Cameron adaptation of his book about a dog who finds her way back to her owner across 400 miles of Colorado terrain, because this is one sugary concoction. ...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced Thursday that it had decided to temporarily reopen some Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices on Thursday, Jan. 17 and Friday, Jan. 18, in addition to Tuesday, Jan. 22, during normal business hours.  The USDA recalled about 2,500 FSA employees to reopen these offices that closed during the ongoing government shutdown, to handle a backlog of farm loan activities...

The City of Storm Lake announced recent promotions and restructuring of city operations this week.  Through internal changes, the City has reorganized to combine Water Treatment, Wastewater Treatment, Storm Water and Code Compliance into one department:  Water Quality and Code Compliance. Scott Olesen, a longtime city employee, has been assigned oversight of this newly created department...

The Iowa Department of Human Services (DHS) has been notified by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, known in Iowa as Food Assistance, will be available for the month of February. Due to the federal shutdown, issuance of February Food Assistance benefits will be early...

Buena Vista University is preparing to launch its marching band for 2019 - making it the only school in the American Rivers Conference to boast such a program. “The program will serve as yet another platform that will provide young people the opportunity to come to BVU and become involved in something that’s really of interest to them and that they are passionate about,” President Josh Merchant said...

Iowa’s ethanol industry continues it’s streak of breaking annual production records as ethanol plants in the state produced 4.35 billion gallons of ethanol in 2018. Up from 4.2 billion in 2017, the production is just shy of the 4.5 billion gallon capacity of Iowa’s ethanol producers, which is expected to make up approximately 27 percent of all production nationally. Officials with the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association said the achievement came during a difficult year and is a sign of strength...

Updates from the Storm Lake Police Department, the Buena Vista County Sheriff's Office and the Storm Lake Fire Department.

A spaghetti dinner will benefit the St. Mary’s Dance Team for their new uniforms. The dinner will be from 4 to 7 p.m. on Sunday, January 20 at the St. Mary’s Parish Center, located at 300 East Third Street (adjacent to the church.) This event is co-sponsored by the Knights of Columbus and the St. Mary’s Boosters. The cost is $7 per person. Kids under 6 eat free. All you can eat and all are welcome...

Buena Vista Regional Medical Center’s Emergency Services recently visited the various buildings in the Storm Lake Community School District. Annually the Ambulance Crew visits the schools to discuss and review the school’s emergency protocols. When an emergency happens, it’s important to keep children as calm as possible and not interrupt their daily activities. ...

August 10, 1932 - January 12, 2019

March 21, 1932 - January 14, 2019

Western Iowa Congressman Steve King is firing back against recent charges of racism, citing comments from Fox News political analyst Brit Hume Tuesday. “Brit Hume, a respected journalist who admittedly is no fan of mine, has it right: the New York Times is publishing ‘completely bogus’ hit pieces about me. ...

District Court Judge James C. Ellefson ordered a new trial date for a high-profile kidnapping and abuse case that has been moved to Spirit Lake. Alex C. Shadlow’s trial was scheduled to begin Monday, Jan. 7, in Dickinson County, but attorneys are still working with the court to finalize the list of witnesses to be interviewed. A pre-trial conference will take place June 21 in Eldora. The trial is now scheduled to take place June 24 in Spirit Lake...

WASHINGTON — Comments by Republican Rep. Steve King about white supremacy are “abhorrent,” the White House said Wednesday as bipartisan condemnation of King continued. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders praised a move by House Republicans to strip the nine-term Iowa lawmaker of his committee assignments...

Deep down, is everyone prejudiced? That’s a question that Buena Vista University professor Wind Goodfriend is exploring this season, as she prepares to deliver a speech to launch a series of insightful events for Black History Month at Misericordia University in Pennsylvania...

With Storm Lake schools considered “targeted” for certain groups of students’ academic performance under the Every Student Succeeds Act, discussion is underway to address the situation. The targeted areas include: • Storm Lake Elementary - English Language Learners, low socio-economic students, and Hispanic students...

A new movie is available for rent on Amazon, but this time the star of it isn’t any old Hollywood A-lister—it’s Storm Lake’s very own Alison Hixon. The Storm Lake-raised artist and actor got her break after moving to Chicago, following school at Stephen’s College in Missouri...

Sac County Sheriff’s officials are seeking clues to the identity of a male gunman who shot a rural Lake View man at his home in the early morning hours Wednesday. Officers were called to the residence around 12:30 a.m. and found 55-year-old Richard Vossberg suffering from a gunshot wound in the shoulder. Vossberg was taken to Loring Hospital in Sac City and later transferred to Mercy Medical Center in Sioux City, where his injury is not considered life-threatening...

$15M renovation unveiled to public, second phase being planned

STORM LAKE - Storm Lake swimming got back in the pool on Tuesday night during their lone home meet of the season. They welcomed in the Spencer Tigers, and saw senior Cole Keenan set a new school record. Keenan bested his own record in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:58.21. He picked up second in the 100 freestyle and nearly broke another record, falling just shy at 51.26 seconds. Zack Brown took first in the 500 freestyle with a time of 6:58.55...

HOLSTEIN - Ridge View had Siouxland Christian on the ropes after halftime on Tuesday night and were unable to deliver that knockout blow. However, the Raptors were able to regroup and defend their home court with a 62-55 win. “It was a fun game to watch from the sidelines on Tuesday night. Both teams came out on fire and it was a defense battle down the stretch,” RV Coach Mike Smith said. “We really pressured their guards and it caused some turnovers that led to some easy buckets.”...

HOLSTEIN - The Ridge View girls got off to a slow start on Tuesday night but was able to rebound through the final three quarters against Siouxland Christian, claiming a 63-36 decision. “We didn’t start well and lacked communication and flow on both ends of the floor. ...

POCAHONTAS - The Alta-Aurelia wrestlers to back at it on Tuesday night on the road and came away with a pair of dual wins. They were able to best Pocahontas Area and Estherville-Lincoln Central on the mats. “We wrestled two good duals and the guys showed lots of improvements. ...

SIOUX FALLS – The GK Storm gymnastics team competed at the All American Invite in Sioux Falls, SD last weekend. Gymnasts scored individually in the four events (vault, bars, beam, floor), and also as a team with their GK Blaze teammates from LeMars. The GK Gold team brought home first place. The Silver team placed second as a team, and the bronze team placed fourth...

EMMETSBURG - The Rebel girls couldn’t quite get on track in the first half against Emmetsburg on Tuesday night in a Twin Lakes Conference contest. Sioux Central got tripped up by the E-Hawks, 63-53. “We really played hard and I thought both teams played with great effort and enthusiasm. ...

ALTA - The Alta-Aurelia girls continue to look for that elusive first win of the season as Tuesday night yielded the same results the first 14 games of the season have - a strong effort that just fell short. The Warriors bowed to Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Aryshire, 44-27...

EMMETSBURG - The Sioux Central boys hit the road on Tuesday night looking to keep their perfect record in the Twin Lakes Conference intact against Emmetsburg. In what Coach Stephen Tjaden described as not the prettiest of games, the Rebels stood tall with a 10-point victory, 49-39...

STORM LAKE - The no. 1 team in 1A, Newell-Fonda, got off to a quick start against St. Mary’s on Tuesday night and kept their undefeated season going. The Panthers were unable to slow the relentless pressure defense and bowed 86-34 to the Mustangs. “We did a great job of moving the basketball on offense and the girls made the extra passes to find great looks,” N-F Coach Dick Jungers said. “Defensively I was pleased at our effort and intensity and our ability to make things tough on St. Mary’s.”...

STORM LAKE - Offense was hard to come by for the Storm Lake girls basketball team on Tuesday night against the visiting Carroll Tigers. The Tornadoes connected on just 34 percent of their shots in a 54-29 defeat. “Carroll is an experienced team that has everyone back from last year. They are very sound fundamentally,” SL Coach Sam Lipps said. “We are continuing to improve defensively.”...

ALTA - The Alta-Aurelia boys basketball team had plenty of reasons to be fired up on Tuesday night, coming off their first loss in quite some on the previous Friday. It was back to the Twin Lakes Conference grind as they battled Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Aryshire. The Warriors never relented in a 76-39 victory, earning their 10th win of the season...

STORM LAKE - It was another hot night of Twin Lakes Conference boys basketball on Tuesday night in the Panther Pit. St. Mary’s welcomed in Newell-Fonda, and the Mustangs were unkind visitors, taking a 91-39 decision. “I thought we came out with an aggressive and focused mindset, and we were able to maintain it from start to finish,” N-F Coach Shad Coppock said. ...

STORM LAKE - The atmosphere at the Tornado Fieldhouse on Tuesday night felt more like a game in March rather than mid January. It was a prize fight between the green and white and #6 Carroll. The two schools traded blows for the entire 32 minute span of the game. In the end, the Tornadoes fell just shy of picking up the huge win, instead dropping a 68-67 decision...