Stories from Tuesday, October 19, 2021

Chicago Farmer will perform Tuesday, Nov. 2 at Byron’s in Pomeroy. Showtime is 8 p.m.-midnight. The son of a small town farming community, Cody Diekhoff logged plenty of highway and stage time under the name Chicago Farmer before settling in the city in 2003. Profoundly inspired by fellow midwesterner John Prine, he’s a working-class folk musician to his core. His small town roots, tilled with city streets mentality, are turning heads North and South of I-80...

Actor Duffy Hudson as his magical alter ego Alfredo the Magnificent will perform mind boggling feats of prestidigitation during a children’s magic show, Saturday, Oct. 28 at Sanford Museum in Cherokee. He will defy the very laws of physics. He will reach into your mind and reveal your secret thoughts. He will pull your card out of thin air. And the greatest magic trick of all, he will make you laugh...

Young singer/songwriter/guitarist Emma Elsbecker from Algona will be performing live at Shiny Top Brewing in Fort Dodge. Emma is a freshman at Iowa Central Community College. Emma began writing music at age 10 and performing at age 13. Her original songs include “Pick Me Up,” “Dramatic” and “Never Really Truly.” Her inspirations cross several genres, as she covers classic and newer rock and country...

The Hard Rock resort in Sioux City will host Rock-O-Ween, October 29, featuring the Pork Tornadoes. Doors open at 7, showtime is 8 p.m. Must be 21 or over to attend. The popular regional band will perform pop/rock hits from the 1980s to today, and a costume contest offers $2,000 in prizes - $500 each for the best male and female costume and $1,000 for the best couple or group costumes. ...

The Usual Suspects will return to InnSpiration Wines & Vines at Linn Grove, October 29 in the Friday Night Music concert series. The show starts at 6:30. The acoustic blues and rock band is based out of Orange City.

“Voices from the Pandemic” by Eli Saslow (Doubleday) More than 18 months into the coronavirus pandemic, there’s already been a bumper crop of books about COVID-19 that have focused primarily on the policy failures that allowed the virus to spread. Eli Saslow’s “Voices from the Pandemic” instead draws attention to the people who have been affected by the virus...

With the annual fall crop harvest running ahead of schedule, Iowa’s 2021 pheasant season is expected to be another good one when 55,000 plus blaze orange clad hunters take to the fields on Oct. 30. And based on the results of the August pheasant survey, hunters can afford to be optimistic...

Storm Lake (incl Little Storm Lake) Water temperature is around 60 degrees. Most of the lake is free of vegetation. Channel Catfish - Fair: Use cut bait or dip baits fished on the bottom in areas along shore with rocks. Walleye - Slow: Water temperatures are cooling down; shore fishing for walleyes should improve as they begin to increase feeding behavior. ...

Fall leaves are beautiful – until they pile up in your yard. Don’t send those precious nutrients up in smoke. Instead, put those nuisance leaf piles to good use. Leaves, small branches and other landscape materials can nourish your lawn, garden or community. It’s easy:...

Buena Vista Librarians were awarded a $5,000 ARPA grant facilitated by the State Library of Iowa. The State Library of Iowa announced 367 Iowa libraries received grants from the American Rescue Plan Act funding. Left to right: Elizabeth Huff, Storm Lake Public Library; Jensen Bodholt, Newel Public Library; Luellen Phelps, Sioux Rapids Public Library; Mary Johnson, Albert City Public Library; and Jim Cox, Marathon Public Library...

Gov. Kim Reynolds said she’s in talks with lawmakers to combat vaccine mandates at private businesses, but she does not plan to issue an executive order on the issue. “(Iowans) have said enough is enough,” Reynolds said during a WHO Radio interview Wednesday. “They are tired of the overreach, they are tired of the mandates.”...

Buena Vista Regional Medical Center Auxiliary is offering three $500.00 scholarship opportunities for those looking to pursue education in a health related field. Application deadline is March 31. Applicants are only permitted to be awarded the scholarship twice in their lifetime and must pursue a degree in a Health related field...

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is reminding people with Medicare that Medicare Open Enrollment is now open and now is the time to review their coverage options and make a choice that meets their health care needs. Medicare’s Open Enrollment period gives those who rely on Medicare the opportunity to make changes to their health plans or prescription drug plans, pick a Medicare Advantage Plan, or return to Original Medicare...

Buena Vista Regional Medical Center’s Nursing Honor Guard had the honor of attending beloved BVRMC nurse Mary Jo Dellwo’s funeral Friday, recognizing Mary Jo’s 40 plus years of service to the nursing profession. / BVRMC photo

Iowa Latinx groups called for state leaders to be more welcoming toward refugees in the wake of a Republican emphasis on border security, which they said was politically motivated. “Let’s get over this fear-mongering,” said League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) of Iowa Political Director Joe Henry. “They’re doing the work, so let’s welcome more of them. We certainly need more workers.”...

The pumpkin patch at Jones Nursery in Storm Lake served as a seasonal backdrop for a family photo, complete with the prerequisite waving to capture the little ones’ attention. / Pilot photo by Dana Larsen

For veteran Iowa state representative Gary Worthan, there’s little to do but wait. His political future could hang on the state redistricting process. After the first effort at redoing the districts was rejected earlier this month along party lines, a second version is due on the 21st, and legislators will be called back to Des Moines to address it...

Children crawled all over the Buena Vista University’s mascot giant mascot letters, a recent addition that was a hit during Homecoming celebration. Alums, supporters and kids explored the campus during last weekend’s event. See the Pilot’s Facebook page for more photos. / Pilot photo by Dana Larsen...

The path to national acclaim for street photographer Andre D. Wagner, a 2010 Buena Vista University graduate, started with a nasty bump. Failure. “I had a tryout for the NBA’s Development League,” Wagner says to a group of students in Lage Communications Center on the BVU campus. “I came to BVU because I was recruited to play basketball. I’d played basketball for years and that’s what I wanted to do.”...

“The world needs more art.” So muses Haley McAndrews, who shared her wares at Witter Art Gallery in Storm Lake during the recent Artisans Road Trip. She’s doing her part, churning out colorful, dynamic images from her Red Stone Studio, along with kusudama (a form of origami) paper flowers. Her newest project is illustrating her first children’s book, expected to be published in December...

UNI education students will be getting first-hand classroom experience in Storm Lake. Thirteen college students are in an English as a second language teaching program this fall, and have committed to an all-day every-day experience in classrooms in Storm Lake, one of the most diverse school systems in the state...

COVID-19 cases remain fairly steady in Buena Vista County. Thirty-one new cases were reported in the week ending Sunday, down 26 percent from a mild spike the previous week, to about equal the 30 cases reported in the first week of October. Case counts have remained well below the 65 reported in the last week of September...