Stories from Friday, December 27, 2019

Some farm groups and farm-state lawmakers expressed anger at the Trump administration recently over final ethanol rules that they said failed to uphold the president’s promises to the industry. The Environmental Protection Agency released its final renewable fuel standard but it did not include language that President Donald Trump agreed to in meetings with industry officials, Iowa’s governor and congressional representatives during September and October...

Alli Wagoner’s first-grade class is partnered with Security Trust & Savings Bank for the 2019-2020 school year Partners In Excellence program. On Wednesday Dec 18 , the class got to visied them. They made ornaments for the tree that is in the lobby of the Bank. The Bank provided each child with a new book, and also treated them to a tour while they were there. / Pilot submitted...

Fight fans can ring in New Year’s Eve with wild action from some of the region’s best combat athletes. Northwest Iowa Combat Sports and Oasis Nightclub are hosting Kickoff 2020, Tuesday, December 31, 7-10 p.m. General admission tickets are $25, available through the club’s Facebook page, by message at Northwest Iowa Combat Sports Facebook page, or at Rent-All or Midwest Rustproofing in Storm Lake. Tickets at the door will be $30. Ringside seats are $40...

Who remembers or still plays the game of marbles? Consider practicing up because visitors to the 50th anniversary Albert City Threshermen and Collectors Show will have a chance to play this game and other games that have been popular through the generations. Look for the game area near the corn crib where families will have a chance to share in some fun with games like marbles, jacks, Mr. Potato Head and Twister!...

The Cherokee Area Young Leaders are partnering with the Little Sioux Events Center to throw a New Year’s Eve party in Cherokee called the Little Sioux Winter Bash. It will be on Tuesday, December 31. Hy Vee will be selling burgers and hot dogs outside at 7 p.m. ...

The first-ever Prom for Purpose is excited to invite you to its Totally 80’s! event. This is an event for those 22+ to celebrate with friends and reminisce on all things 1980s. Prom for Purpose is Saturday, February 22, 7-11 p.m, at the Storm Lake KC Hall. Tickets are $30/$45 for a couple, available online at bvu.givepulse.com/event/149635-Prom-for-Purpose-Totally-80s...

The 16th annual Women in Denim Conference will be held January 24 and 25 at Buena Vista University. Women involved in agriculture will find sessions to sharpen their skills in decision making, leadership and finances. There are workshops that also support and acknowledge the importance of family, community, leisure time, and overall wellness. This year topics related to gardening, nutrition, home improvement, cooking, communication and personal growth are part of the agenda...

A St. Mary’s School parent is urging other parents to join in a call for traffic control around the school. “We all know pick up at school is chaotic and at times dangerous, as there are drivers who go through the left lane very fast and don’t follow the school’s protocol,”said Alyssa Garcia in an online post. ...

On the evening of Sunday, December 22, the Storm Lake Police Department was dispatched to the 1100 block of Erie Street for a reported robbery. The victim told police that during a transaction for merchandise sold via social media, a third party emerged from behind a tree and grabbed the items away from the victim while threatening to assault the victim...

A reception will be held for Storm Lake Public Safety Director Mark Prosser and Water Distribution Supervisor Gary Oehler on Monday, Dec 30th at King’s Pointe Resort, 3:30 - 5:30 p.m. Everyone is welcome to stop in with well wishes. Prosser is completing his 30th year with the city’s police department in January, and Oehler is retiring after 50 years with the city...

For the CEO of Tyson Foods Inc. - Storm Lake’s largest employer - there were nearly 10.5 million good reasons to like 2019. Noel White, the company’s highest compensated executive in the fiscal year, earned that many dollars in his first full year since being promoted to the position, according to Arkansas Business...

Iowa gas prices remain steady, falling half a cent per gallon on average around the state this week, at $2.35 per gallon. Storm Lake pumps dropped by about two cents, to remain below average, with most stations at $2.28-$2.30 early in the week. The local prices are 6.2 cents per gallon lower than a month ago and stand 28.7 cents per gallon higher than a year ago...

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley has nominated 50 Iowa students to be considered for appointments to the U.S. service academies. One area student is included, Connor Pickhinke, of Early and Ridge View High School, is among the nominees for the U.S. Air Force Academy...

A Very FROZEN Party will be presented on Saturday, January 18, 10-11 a.m. at the Alta Community Library, and you are invited to join in. The library will celebrate all things “Frozen.” The party will be jam packed with fun and exciting things. There will be a meet and greet with Anna and Elsa as well as a photo opportunity. ...

Enter Dr. Wind Goodfriend’s office at Buena Vista University and a stack of books greets you, each book boasting of Goodfriend content. “I have 14 book chapters in these books,” Goodfriend says with a nod toward the stack. “I have this, ‘Social Psychology,’ which I co-authored and am using in my classes, and I have its companion book I wrote, ‘Case Studies in Social Psychology.’”...

The DNR is reminding snowmobile and off-highway vehicle owners and users to renew their registrations before January 1, 2020. Registrations for snowmobiles and OHVs purchased during the 2019 registration cycle will expire on December 31. Any decal displayed on a machine with a “19” printed on it will no longer be valid for machines to be used on snowmobile trails, public ice, or the OHV parks. ...

January 11, 1937 - December 20, 2019

February 14, 1937 - December 21, 2019

April 4, 1934 - December 24, 2019

After more than a century, a barn near the tiny northern Iowa community of Duncombe is getting a new home and a new look. Matt and Libby Mitchell acquired the barn built in 1915 and watched nervously Thursday as it was moved about a mile over fields to a new location...

Federal authorities in Iowa are placing a new priority on prosecuting violent crime and firearm offenses. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa is handling an increasing number of cases that would typically be considered state-level offenses, according to the Sioux City Journal...

A blazing sunset lights up the Awaysis Park beach area in Storm Lake. Despite an unusually cold stretch in November, December through the Christmas holiday was relatively warm and snowless, so much so that a large number of waterbirds remained on the lake this week taking advantage of small areas of open water. / Pilot photo by Dana Larsen...

A Newell man who was already facing charges in two arson incidents was recently jailed again in a child sexual abuse case. Brent Mack, 25, was charged by the Newell Police Department with Sexual Abuse 2nd Degree involving a child younger than age 12, as well as Lascivious Acts With a Child - Fondling, Lascivious Acts With a Child - Inflicting Pain, and two counts of Indecent Contact with a Child. Mack remained in the county jail this week on $25,000 bond...

A Storm Lake man was arrested and charged with attempted murder, following a stabbing in Sac City Monday night. Dalton Goodman, 24, was held in Sac County on a $25,000 cash bond. According to Sac City Police, the stabbing took place in the 500 block of South 13th Street shortly before midnight. ...

The top seven Democratic candidates running to replace President Donald Trump took the stage in Los Angeles 24 hours after the House of Representatives voted to impeach the president. In an interview with the Pilot-Tribune shortly after the debate, candidate Tom Steyer noted that he has been pushing for Trump’s removal for two years through the “Need to Impeach” group he formed in 2017...

A fundraiser raffle is planned to assist with medical bills for Storm Lake infant Aleczander, son of Claudia Villegas and Francisco Suarez. Aleczander was born September 23 with a congenital heart defect called hypaplastic left heart syndrome. The condition requires open heart surgeries, and eventually a heart transplant...

Storm Lake Schools leaders are disappointed, but not surprised, by new test score results that they say do not reflect the kind of challenges their community faces. The district saw a higher percentage of non-proficient students, and a lower percentage of advanced students than the statewide average, at every grade level where a comparison is shown...

The day is quickly arriving, well, tonight in fact. Tonight begins the two game bowl stretch for the two major colleges in Iowa. The Iowa Hawkeyes will take on one of the most storied programs in college football, the USC Trojans, in the Holiday Bowl...