Stories from Tuesday, August 25, 2020

Invitation to participate in a public forum broadcast live from Spencer City Hall on Wednesday, Aug. 26, has been extended to the four candidates representing the Republican and Democratic parties in the upcoming U.S. congressional primary in November...

The Northwest Iowa Public Safety Training Center is a common locale to witness some smoke or fire as fire departments diligently practice their craft, however last week a different form of heat was present. The High-risk Entry and Arrest Team — whose membership includes departments within Clay County and others from the region in Iowa and Minnesota — gathered in east Spencer Wednesday and quickly began working with the modular training facility clearing rooms, maneuvering and practicing with weaponry modified to shoot chalk rounds.. ...

Imagine Iowa Great Lakes has announced the completion of the State Pier at Arnolds Park and will celebrate this accomplishment with a ribbon cutting ceremony, as well as a formal dedication and renaming of this property in honor of the late Berkley Bedell, at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 5...

Joe Tachovsky’s father Frank mentioned being in World War II when he was still alive, but it wasn’t until his death that Joe learned the real truth – the hard, brutal and bloody truth. When Joe discovered that truth in a box of his father’s World War II mementoes, he was inspired to learn more. He found that his father had led a platoon of 40 elite Marines behind Japanese lines to help take the island of Saipan in one of the war’s bloodiest battles...

Rock n Roll Damnation will be in concert Saturday,October 17 at the Cherokee VFW post/Kee*Stirs. Showtime is 9 p.m. The Sioux Falls band will be doing its first live appearance since March, when the pandemic shut down their scheduled shows. The event will also be celebrating site co-owner Dawn Miller’s 50th birthday. “It’s going to be a bash for the ages,” the band promises...

Roots performer Mudbone will be in concert Saturday, August 29 at The Docket in Lake View, with special guest Ted Stockholm. Showtime is 8 p.m. Mudbone’s performances tell the story of how American roots music evolved. This multi-genre artist showcases original music across blues, bluegrass, funk, country, rock & roll, and soul...

Arch Allies will provide its traditional finale for the Live at the Lake concert series, September 5 at Preservation Plaza, next to the amusement park in Arnolds Park. This is free, family show. Bring your own seating or pull up your boat along the shoreline...

There would be no tents set up in parking lots. No long lines of cars. No medical staff in full protective gear. No waiting for results. Instead, you’d take your own COVID-19 diagnostic test at home with a $1 (or so) kit. You’d take your own nasal and cough samples. You’d spread the samples on a card. You’d stuff the card in an envelope with a virus-killing coating and let everything incubate overnight. Then you’d drop the envelope at a collection center or in the mail...

With winter fast approaching, many are wondering how COVID-19 will affect the 2020–2021 influenza season. Dr. Gregory Poland, an infectious diseases expert and director of the Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research Group, says while it’s difficult to predict exactly what will happen, the Southern Hemisphere, where the flu season is coming to an end, offers some clues...

Raise your hands for back-to-school savings and great prize giveaways! Storm Lake United is teaming up with several of our retailers to offer several fantastic prizes to celebrate the start of the 2020-2021 school year. Prizes include waterpark passes, courtesy of King’s Pointe Waterpark & Resort, a one-day pass to LaunchPAD Children’s museum, 23 pairs of Adventureland Passes (one pair per winner), courtesy of Storm Lake Radio, $100 Storm Lake Bucks, and $50 Storm Lake Bucks, provided by Storm Lake United. ...

Imagine Bethany Short’s surprise when a representative from Gov. Kim Reynolds’ office reached out recently, asking Short if she’d like to speak during a statewide news conference. “I’ll admit, I was a little taken aback,” says Short, a 2014 graduate of Buena Vista University, and, until that time, not someone who had ever attended, much less been featured in, a governor’s press conference...

It may be a while before Buena Vista University permanently resolves its presidency, according to Interim President Brian Lenzmeier. When he accepted the role with the sudden departure of Joshua Merchant earlier this year, Lenzmeier said he told the board he would stay in the role for as long as they want him to...

The “lighthouse art installation” project has been delayed, but not forgotten. Two Storm Lake High School art teachers proposed a project to the city council last December for an art installation around the community with iconic lighthouses to be painted by various local artists and art students...

Darlene Ulven, age 71 of Granby, MO, formerly of Schaller, passed away on Saturday, August 1, at Cassville Health and Rehab in Cassville, MO.  Darlene Rose Ulven was born on April 24, 1949 to parents Frances and Mary (Babatz) Kuchenmeister.  She graduated high school with the class of 1967 from Buffalo, MN.    Dar was united in marriage to Lowell Ulven on October 22, 1994 in Schaller, IA.  They lived in Schaller for many years and Dar worked for Jerry Woodke Fiberglass.  After a brief vacation, they decided to move to Granby, MO in 1996, where Dar worked at a Fiberglass Manufacturing Business where they made foreign sports cars.. ...

Iris Kathryn Halverson entered into Eternal Life with her Savior Jesus Christ in Heaven on Wednesday, August 19, at St. Luke Lutheran Home in Spencer, Iowa. Private funeral services took place on Monday, August 24, at the United Methodist Church in Alta. ...

Authorities continue to look into a suspicious death after Rollin “R.J.” Bontrager’s remains were found Wednesday, July 22, in Virgin Lake near Ruthven. They think 29-year-old Allan Michael Dean Schwidder, of Emmetsburg, may be responsible for events that led to the grim discovery...

The Oak Grove Century Farm, nestled in a grove of trees, lost one of the buildings on the property to a blaze last week which required the Peterson Fire Department and three other neighboring responders to get it under control. Black smoke could be seen for miles, rising high into the sky northwest of the city of Peterson. ...

Storm Lake schools are anticipating a challenging legislative year for education. “The state is going to balk at new money. It’s going to be a nightmare,” Board of Education Chairman Peter Steinfeld predicted during a recent meeting. The district annually prioritizes goals in a Call for Legislative Action...

A Sioux Rapids man accused of stabbing a Milford resident and stealing a golf cart now faces a charge of attempted murder. Darrel Kay Pounds, age 29, was accused of leaving 22-year-old Troy Dean Petersen in critical condition after stabbing him in the chest with a knife during an altercation early Saturday, Aug. ...

A new committee has formed to work toward a public dog park in Storm Lake. Mayor Mike Porsch said the group recently had its first meeting to determine if there is interest. “We have that,” he said. The Mayor’s Committee on Parks, Trails and Urban Forestry has been talking about a dog park among other projects for longer than a year, but no progress was made. That group struggled to achieve a quorum at meetings, and has not met in a number of months...

Pam Bogue has found herself pressed into service as the face of the fight against COVID-19 in Buena Vista County. The challenge will serve as punctuation to a 13-year career as administrator of Public Health, when she steps down in January. The county board of health planned in a meeting last week to begin a search for a replacement immediately...

The new welcome project on the Storm Lake lakefront at Lake and Lakeshore in nearly complete, with only lighting yet to be installed. The sign doubles as a double-sided bench with landscaping and flowers. The Spooner family donated for the project, which was designed by artist Jennifer Felton...

A Buena Vista County Suicide Prevention Coalition has kicked off, with an organizing meeting held last week. The effort has lofty goals - to decrease suicide attempts in the county by 90 percent, and to reach 70 percent of the population with a stigma-ending message...