Stories from Tuesday, March 23, 2021

Private Family Graveside services for Carolyn A. Stull, age 88, of Storm Lake, will be held at Buena Vista Memorial Park Cemetery. The Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Storm Lake is in charge of the arrangements. Carolyn was born September 7, 1932, the daughter of Glen and Dorothea (Heschke) Shannon, in Storm Lake...

Donald R. Sievers, age 85, of Storm Lake, died Thursday, March 18, at the Good Samaritan Society in Newell. Funeral services took place Sunday, March 21, at the Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Storm Lake. Visitation will take place one hour prior to the funeral at the funeral home. Burial will be at a later date in the Buena Vista Memorial Park Cemetery in Storm Lake. The Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Storm Lake is in charge of the arrangements...

Harold Hinkeldey, age 89, of Storm Lake, Iowa passed away Friday, March 19, at his home in Storm Lake with the help of hospice care and surrounded by his family and his favorite cat, Smokey, by his side. Funeral services took place Monday, March 22, at 10:30 a.m. ...

An open-air “Blessing of the Bikes” ecumenical prayer service will be held at 10:30 a.m., Saturday May 1st at Hope Church, 2015 W. Milwaukee Ave, Storm Lake. All people who ride a motorcycle, bicycle or wheelchair are welcome. This is a joint service of the Gospel Fellowship in cooperation with area motorcycle clubs. The Gospel Fellowship is an inter-denominational network of church and ministry leaders...

In recognition of Severe Weather Awareness Week, which is scheduled for March 22 through March 26, and in an effort to promote public awareness, the City of Storm Lake will participate in a statewide voluntary tornado drill. The tornado drill will take place on Wednesday, March 24, 2021. The Storm Lake and Lakeside tornado sirens will be activated at approximately 10:10 am. The sirens will sound for approximately three minutes...

Buena Vista University and the Newell-Fonda Community School District have signed a Strategic Partnership that aims to benefit both entities in strengthening the communities they serve. Under the agreement, employees of the Newell-Fonda Schools, as well as their spouses/domestic partners and dependents, may receive grant funding to lower the overall cost of education while enrolled in classes at BVU’s Storm Lake campus. ...

• Device usage has increased by 1/3 since the start of the pandemic. • 28% say that having constant access to tech during the pandemic has made their pre-existing anxiety about the virus worse. Since the very first cellphone call was made in 1973, these slim, glossy, rectangular objects have become one of the most important things in our lives. ...

Last week I attended the national Consumer Food Safety Conference (virtually of course). One consistent theme throughout the conference was the importance of creating a ‘culture of food safety’ in our homes, our workplaces, and the places we gather in our communities...

Plains Area Mental Health Center and Genoa Healthcare have opened a new on-site pharmacy in Le Mars to serve patients with behavioral health conditions. In Iowa, approximately one in 20 adults live with a serious mental illness such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression. ...

Like an innocuous kid version of “The Purge,” Miguel Arteta’s “Yes Day” imagines an annual 24-hour holiday of lawlessness. The concept comes from Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s 2009 picture book, which suggested a day when parents — regularly such fonts of “No!” — have to answer in the positive to their children’s demands. For some, the idea had real appeal not just for giving kids a shot at decision-making freedom but for momentarily relieving parents of the burden of constant disapproval...

Thirty years ago, antique letterpresses sitting in newspaper basements were considered, at best, fodder for metal recyclers. Fast forward to today, and they’re a novelty. Just as vinyl albums have made a comeback, so, too, has the letterpress. A Muddy Kind of Love by Carolyn A. ...

An exciting double-bill in the fabulous Roof Garden will kick off Memorial Day weekend at the Iowa Great Lakes. Rock the Roof with Mogen’s Heroes and then Surfin’ Safari - two of Okoboji’s favorites,will share the stage Thursday, May 27, starting at 6 p.m. Tickets will be $8-$15 each and ordering information will be available soon at www.iowarocknroll.com/events...

The Magic of Bill Blagg Live! tour comes to the Sioux City Orpheum Theatre for one show only, April 9.  Critics and audiences alike rave about Bill’s interactive magic and jaw-dropping illusions that the Chicago Tribune called, “Absolutely incredible!”...

Gov. Kim Reynolds and key GOP lawmakers said Friday new state revenue projections support their move to accelerate income tax cuts. The three-member Revenue Estimating Conference met Friday to update the state’s official revenue estimates. The new projections show that even if lawmakers take no action, tax cuts based on revenue growth would take effect in a little over a year under legislation approved in 2018...

Constitutional Carry passed the Iowa House of Representatives last night on a bipartisan vote of 60 to 37. Constitutional Carry is the right to carry a concealed weapon without the requirement to obtain a permit from the government. This has been one of the most controversial issues that we have taken up this year. If this bill is ultimately signed by the Governor, Iowa will join 18 other states as a Constitutional Carry state...

Storm Lake Middle School’s seventh and eighth graders recently participated in the Scholastic Art and Writing Competition. The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards is the nation’s longest-running, most prestigious recognition program for creative teens. The awards are presented by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, an organization whose mission is to identify students with exceptional artistic and literary talent and present their remarkable work to the world. ...

Seven businesses including Storm Lake Tyson Foods turkey plant will team with DNR’s Pollution Prevention (P2) Intern Program this summer to increase efficiency of a system or process and reduce associated operating costs. Upper-level engineering students will work on-site at one of the assigned seven companies to analyze data, research pollution prevention strategies, and provide calculated recommendations. ...

In the early 1900’s, capes were worn by nurses to provide warmth on the job and served as a way to display nursing rank. The nursing cape symbolizes the goal of the nurse, which is to provide “service to those in need” and was handed out to graduating nurses until the 1980s...

Reactions are mixed to a recent Iowa House bill that would eliminate a permit requirement to buy or carry a handgun, but Storm Lake Rep. Gary Worthan suggests the issue’s time has come. The action has been pushed in the state for years by the Iowa Firearms Coalition and the National Rifle Association, he said. An NRA lobbyist claimed Iowa’s current law treats guns as a privilege and not a right...

Buena Vista County saw 22 newly-confirmed COVID-19 cases over the past week. Case numbers have been steady since a spike in the first week of March with 47 cases. Tests over the past seven days in the county have been running 4% positive. Among surrounding counties, Clay County (Spencer) had the highest number of new cases last week at 39, and the highest test positivity rate at 8%. ...

Jenelle Martin’s career goal is two-fold: she seeks to use her skills while giving something back to the greater community. At Buena Vista University Admissions, she’s meeting both goals as the University’s first Multicultural Enrollment Advisor...

The Storm Lake Community Schools’ preliminary budget for 2020-21 would hold the tax levy rate steady at $17.17 per $1,000 property valuation, up only a small fraction of a penny. A “main goal’ for the budgeting process was to avoid a tax increase, leaders said. However, the income surtax rate would increase, from 4% to 5%. Valuations in the district are expected to be up about 3%. The board of education plans a public hearing April 7 at noon over Zoom prior to adopting the budget...

As vaccination numbers climb, attention in Buena Vista County will turn to encouraging those people who may be hesitant to get their COVID-19 shots. A second mass vaccination clinic, Thursday at King’s Pointe, served all 200 available doses. Another is planned for the same location Thursday of this week. Phone lines at Buena Vista County Public Health open Tuesday morning...

Some rather unique performers stole the show during Dance Team Night at Newell-Fonda Saturday. / Photo by Scott Kilbride

Jason Konz and Axel Hernandez leaned toward a black mat emblazoned with “BVU” lettering on a November evening in the Estelle Siebens Science Center. They joined four peers and Dr. Shawn Stone, BVU Professor of Physics and Computer Science, in making history for the University...