Stories from Tuesday, May 11, 2021

The Twin Lakes Conference Art Show was held virtually this year. Area students winning honors included Faith De Groot of Alta-Aurelia with awards for best acrylic painting, best non-acrylic painting, and the Students’ Choice Award for two of her works, “Not Quite Reflected” and “Bottle on a Rainy Road.”...

April is National Sexual Assault Awareness Month. United Community Health Center staff collected several items to help restock the CAASA pantry. These donations are made available to clients in and around our community as another resource. Centers Against Abuse and Sexual Assault (CAASA) provides services to victims and survivors of Sexual Assault. All services are free and confidential to all men, women, and children. Services are available 24 hours a day 7 days a week...

Over the past several months, Hy-Vee, Inc. has partnered with various community groups, churches and community organizations to administer tens of thousands of COVID-19 vaccine doses in communities that traditionally may have struggled with access to health care. ...

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. If a friend, neighbor or community member were experiencing mental health issues, would you be able to intervene so they could get help? If you needed help, would you know where to turn? According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, one in five adults experiences mental illness each year. ...

On National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day, U.S Senators Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) are announcing bipartisan legislation to address rising youth suicide rates across the country. “In 2019 one out of every five high school students in Iowa considered suicide. ...

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced that she has assembled a “compromise” budget plan that will phase out Iowa’s property tax-based mental health system and provide $400 million in tax cuts for Iowans. The proposed budget, she said, repeals the inheritance tax, expands child care and workforce housing, and creates what she called “sustainable funding for mental health services.” The proposal will result in the elimination of $100 million in property tax collections as the state takes over the funding of mental health services.. ...

A national environmental nonprofit is calling on Iowa to ramp up testing of algae toxins in lakes after a study turned up a dozen large algae blooms in areas that weren’t tested.  The Environmental Working Group analyzed state test results in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin, and checked news reports in an annual assessment. The verdict: More testing is needed, in the nonprofit’s view. ...

After a year under COVID that brought Hollywood to its knees, theaters are open and new releases are beginning to flow. While more and more movies are co-releasing to streaming services, there’s still nothing like seeing a summer blockbuster on the big screen - and you know your microwave popcorn doesn’t measure up. Crawl out of your caves, movie lovers. Here’s a look at some of the best bets for the coming season:...

HyNoon Kiwanis announces the start of another season of sailing. Information and class registrations are available at the Storm Lake United office at 119 W 6th St., phone 732-3780, or call Rick Peterson at 299-4374. Sailing is a great lifetime sport and Storm Lake is a great sailing lake –many times you have the lake to yourself...

Nora (Seda) Krieger, a 2014 Buena Vista University graduate, had to get her photo taken for a request she’s never had before. “I never imagined I would be on a billboard,” Krieger says. It’s what comes with an educator being named Educator of the Year by the Rotary Club of Des Moines. Krieger will be one of five teachers featured on the traveling signage for the next several months...

Hopes for a dog park in Storm Lake have been leashed, at least for the time being. Into early 2020, a land owner had offered to donate a site in the central part of town, with the condition that it be used only for a community dog park. The park project was discussed at length by the Mayor’s Committee on Parks, Trails and Urban Forestry, which suggested that a separate group of volunteers be formed to begin fundraising,and that middle schoolers be given the opportunity to choose a name for the park.. ...

With the first of a series of painted lighthouses to go into place during Storm Lake Proud Week this month, that art installation may be just the beginning. The tennis backstop in Chautauqua Park may be turned over to one of the lighthouse artists or other local artist for a painted mural, Mayor Mike Porsch recently told the Mayor’s Committee on Parks, Trails and Urban Forestry. ...

The Storm Lake Farmer’s Market will begin in June, returning to last year’s site in the downtown parking lot on Erie Street, if the city approves. There is still time for vendors to make arrangements to join. Despite the pandemic last year, the market soldiered on, with a few vendors opting to sit out. ...

St. Mary’s students were all smiles for the Prom Grand March Saturday night in the school gym, with decor including seahorses, giant seashells, and a pirate ship big enough for the couples to walk through. BVU’s theatre set crew helped students create the scene...

Angie Snyder knows about resilience, and perseverance, first hand. Her daughter, Ellie, was diagnosed with Rett Syndrome back in 2011, and it’s been a journey for the Snyder family to find out more about the condition, since then. Rett Syndrome is a rare genetic neurological disorder that occurs primarily in girls. ...

STORM LAKE - The Storm Lake boys tennis team lost to Spencer 3-6 on Thursday evening at home. In singles matches senior Kevin Lopez beat Sam Feldmann 6-3, 6-3 and sophomore Josh Steffen won 7-5, 7-5 over Jack DeWitt. Senior Jaylen Saengchanpheng lost 3-6, 7-5, 0-1 (6-10) to Charlie Steele, senior Wenceslao Navarro lost 6-7 (0-7), 2-6 to Landon Ellis, senior Eric Ni lost 0-6, 0-6 to Riley DeWitt and senior Leo Vang lost 0-6, 1-6 to Owen Kierscht...

STORM LAKE - The Tornado girls picked up a 2-0 victory over Spirit Lake at home Thursday night. Storm Lake held the ball to Spirit Lake’s half of the field before freshman Nelly Cortez scored around halfway through the first half. In the second half the Tornadoes continued to hold Spirit Lake scoreless while senior Cynthia Rodriguez scored off a penalty kick before the end of the match...

The $109 billion Biden plan to make two years of community college free for all might be a disaster for private universities like Buena Vista, some might expect. BVU President Brian Lenzmeier sees it differently. “We’ve been thinking a little bit about that. ...