Stories from Friday, August 30, 2019

Who do you think is worthy of the 2019 Citizen of the Year nomination for Alta? Nominations are due Nov. 15, and the honoree will be recognized at the Christmas Tree Lighting on Dec. 8. Forms are available now, and can be turned in to City Hall of Heritage Bank...

Stacks of school supplies, including shoes and socks, to be distributed to local families with young children, were brought into Alta Elementary School on Thursday, August 22nd. The supplies were donated by the community to the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Auxiliary, where Auxiliary President Kathy Fisher collected the supplies. She said this is the tenth year of Backpack Mania...

The Buena Vista Raceway and manager Joey Ciechanowski held a program this year that allowed kids 12 and under to get in for free with a non-perishable food item. With the season at an end, Ciechanowski will take the donations to Upper Des Moines to donate...

The German, Swedish and Irish cultures were celebrated at the 23rd annual Hanover Festival, which took place on August 25th. An older generation danced to nostalgic music, and the younger crowd experienced an authentic history lesson. Great food was had by all...

Edward Dean (Peanuts) Schramm, 95 died August 24, at the Iowa Veterans Home in Marshalltown. He died of natural causes. He was born Nov. 18, 1923, on a farm near Early, to Bernhard August and Alberta (Scothorn) Schramm. Funeral services will be held at the United Methodist Church in Early, Saturday, August 31, at 11 am. Visitation will be held at Farber and Otteman Funeral Home in Sac City, on Friday, August 30, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Burial will be held at a later date...

Selma Katherine Buckendahl Rice passed away on Saturday, August 24. Funeral services were held on Tuesday, August 27, at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church near Lakefield, MN, with Pastor Paul Sajban officiating. Visitation was held one hour prior to the service at the church. Casket bearers will be Dick Amendt, Trent Schumacher, Kevin Schmid, Zach Schumacher, and Dakota Schmid. Burial will be held in the Lakefield Cemetery...

Charles F. Roder, age 87, of Sioux Rapids, and formerly of Linn Grove, Arnolds Park, and Branson, Missouri died Saturday, August 24, at St. Luke Lutheran Home in Spencer. A Celebration of Life Service will be held on Friday, August 30, at 1:30 p.m. at the Sliefert Funeral Home in Sioux Rapids. A reception will follow at the American Legion Hall in Sioux Rapids. The Sliefert Funeral Home in Sioux Rapids is in charge of the arrangements...

Funeral services are pending in Fort Dodge for a 23-year-old man who disappeared near East Lake Okoboji late Saturday night. Authorities found the body of Vincent Harvey in the waters near Parks Marina at around 11:53 p.m. Monday, according to the Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office. Harvey had been reported missing at 10:42 a.m. Sunday morning. He had last been seen on foot at around 11:30 p.m. Saturday near a dock at the marina...

The City of Storm Lake is accepting nomination papers for three City Council positions up for the election this fall. Candidates seeking these positions must be residents living within the city limits. Nomination papers can be picked up at City Hall (620 Erie Street), the County Auditor’s office at the courthouse, or on the Secretary of State’s Website sos.iowa.gov/elections/electioninfo/cityelections. ...

On the afternoon of Wednesday, August 28, at approximately 4:13 p.m. the Storm Lake Fire Department responded to East 1st Street and Oneida Street in reference to a vehicle on fire. Upon arrival of fire fighters they observed a 1999 Chevy pickup truck fully engulfed in flames. ...

Horseshoe throwers from across the state competed in the Iowa State Elders Championship division of the Horseshoe Contest Saturday at the 2019 Iowa State Fair. The State Fair hosts horseshoe competitions every Fair day. Division winners are crowned daily. All Horseshoe Pitching competitions take place on the horseshoe courts just east of Farm Bureau Pioneer Hall...

Women, are you interested in learning new outdoor activities in a supportive environment? A full slate of activities is on tap for this year’s Women in the Outdoors Event sponsored by the National Turkey Federation and the Lyon, O’Brien, Osceola and Sioux County Conservation Boards...

Storm Lake St. Mary’s Preschool parents and students were treated royally the first day of preschool Monday. The parent organization PTP (Parents and Teachers of Panthers) set up a coffee bar right outside of the preschool for the parents and had Panther Way t-shirts and basketballs for the preschool students. ...

Storm Lake St. Mary’s priests blessed each of the preK-12 classrooms at the school this week. Father Brent Lingle, pastor and president of the school and Father Michael Cronin, school chaplain blessed the office and every classroom at the beginning of the school day as this is the first full week of school in the local parochial school. Fr. Michael Cronin, school chaplain, sprinkles holy water in Mrs. Cassie Hartwell’s kindergarten classroom to bless it for the school year...

We’ve got spirit, how about you? Powell Broadcasting has announced the launch of Spirit 712, an online contemporary Christian music radio station. Rather than tuning in on traditional radios, listeners can hear this musical ministry through their computer, mobile apps, and Alexa...

Corn Belt Telephone Co., Inc. held a ground breaking ceremony for their new Medical Building in Sac County today, Friday, August 23rd. The Medical Office Building located at 216 W. 1st St., Wall Lake, Iowa, will house two full time Dentists including Dr. Taylor Schroeder. The adjacent office will provide accommodation for another committed medical professional, which will be announced at a later date...

The owner of popular Spencer restaurant Taqueria el Tapatio, Eduardo Sanchez Idalgo, is opening up a new Mexican restaurant at Storm Lake. The father of two previously worked for El Mexicano Restaurant for over 12 years in Storm Lake and Spencer, and turned entrepreneur six years ago...

ALGONA - The Storm Lake girls swim team got their season started off on the right foot Tuesday evening when they took on the Algona Bulldogs. The Tornadoes notched a 110-86 win to start off the Lindsay Brown era with a victory. “All the girls put in a great effort tonight. It was good to get in the pool competitively, work the kinks out, and see how people perform in competition,” Brown said...

IDA GROVE - The start of the 2019 campaign didn’t go exactly according to plan for the Alta-Aurelia volleyball team on Thursday night. It was a close contest throughout, but the Warriors dropped a three set decision to the OA-BCIG Falcons; 21-25, 22-25 and 22-25...

SCHALLER - The Ridge View volleyball team saw their two set lead evaporate on Tuesday night in their season opener as they took on the South Central Calhoun Titans. The Titans made it interesting by rallying to force a fifth and deciding set, but the Raptors were able to rebound to take the night, 3-2. The set scores were: 26-24, 25-13, 21-25, 20-25 and 16-14...

ESTHERVILLE - The Sioux Central volleyball team got off on the right foot on Tuesday night to begin the 2019 volleyball season. The Rebels took a three set win over the Estherville-Lincoln Central Midgets; 25-15, 25-17 and 25-21. “It’s always huge to win the season opener, especially when it’s not in your own gym,” Rebel coach Sara Grossnickle said. ...

Storm Lake’s Labor Day weekend celebration is scheduled for Sunday in Chautauqua Park, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. The fun includes the Kiwanis Car Show, with antiques, classics, hot rods, muscle cars, sports cars and trucks. The awards ceremony begins at 3:30. Sac City House of Ceramics will be on hand this year, as participants can create their own masterpiece in the park. Heart Spun Balloon Creations will be available to create balloon art for children...

Responding to a large increase in cases, Buena Vista County Attorney Paul Allen will add an investigator to his staff. County Supervisors agreed to adding the new position this week, noting that much of the funds needed are already in the budget. Allen told the Pilot-Tribune that felony criminal cases are up 50 percent from 2017 levels, including an increase in cases involving weapons. ...

Storm Lake Police Public Safety Director and Police Chief Mark Prosser has joined police chiefs and sheriffs from across the United States in issuing a statement to the diverse citizens they serve in their respective communities. Prosser and the others are members of the Law Enforcement Immigration Task Force under the umbrella of the National Immigration Forum...

The name of the class is a mouthful - Integrated Manufacturing Advancement Program - but you might think of it as “Opportunity 101.” Iowa Central Community College recently brought its I-MAP class to Storm Lake for the first time. The first class of four graduates happens to reflect the immigrant-rich diversity of the community well - one Lao, one Karen, one Mexican and one a refugee from Africa...

By DANA LARSEN Pilot-Tribune Editor Prairie Lakes Area Association Association is taking the unusual step of encouraging local educators to learn from a man who attempted to kill himself - by hurling himself off the Golden Gate Bridge at age 19. AEA Director Jeff Herzberg recently attended the Midwest School Mental Health Conference in Des Moines, put on by the Iowa-based “Please Pass the Love” organization, and returned urging his board to learn about the keynote speaker, Kevin Hines...

Home Grown, a new Storm Lake event focused on local responses to food insecurity, will take place Thursday, Sept. 5. The public is invited to take part in all the events. Tickets are $10 for a bus tour including Eden Gardens, The Bridge youth training gardens and the Farmer’s Market, with presentations on efforts taking place to address hunger in the community. ...

The Lake Improvement Commission met for what is probably the final time this year Monday, but could not take any action after failing to have a quorum attend. Chairperson Gary Lalone noted that the last pieces of the dredge operation have been removed from Casino Beach, putting punctuation to the end of the 15-year dredging era on the lake...

The Storm Lake Board of Education has renewed an agreement to provide mental health services within the school buildings, with Plains Area Mental Health. Shannon Williams will return as mental health profession, to augment the counseling staff. The district has approved its fresh fruits and vegetables contract with Fareway, the only bidder. ...

Congressman Steve King again says he is under fire by “the fake news media,” and is asking his supporters to defend him with campaign donations. “During a recent town hall meeting, I stood up for Muslims in the wake of China’s horrible human rights abuses, like forcing Muslim women to be sterilized and taking away their children, but even that drew fire and hate from the left,” King said in an email message sent to the Pilot-Tribune...

Storm Lake City Council member Tyson Rice has announced plans this week to run for another term. “I really feel we have a lot of unfinished projects that I want to see continued,” Rice told the Pilot-Tribune. “For a while I had said I wasn’t interested in running again, because it does take a lot of a person’s time, but a few people have encouraged me to change my mind. Sometimes it seems like government moves slowly, but I feel like we’re going someplace,” he said...

Storm Lake Police have made arrests in another vehicle burglary and another car theft, on the heels of a spree of such crimes last week. Tuesday afternoon, police were called to the On 800 block of Northwestern Drive for a suspicious person reportedly looking inside vehicles...

Iowa’s pheasant hunters should expect to find a similar number of birds as last year, with the exception of south central and southeast Iowa, where the pheasant population decline was more significant. Based on the August roadside survey, Iowa’s statewide average is 17 pheasants per 30 mile route, down from 21 per route last year...

Boaters heading out for the Labor Day holiday will likely find busy waterways across the state. Susan Stocker, boating law administrator and education coordinator for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, said boat operators need to operate with caution and to watch for hazards in the water...