Stories from Monday, January 15, 2018

April 20, 1940 -January 12, 2018

After lengthy review and failed communication, the City of Cherokee has followed through with an official Dangerous Building Notice, filed Dec. 29, 2017, against Lewis Apartments/Hotel owner Dennis Esch of Omaha, Neb. “The situation is beyond band-aid fixes and it’s time for a permanent solution,” said City Administrator Sam Kooiker in his weekly report...

This weekly fishing report is compiled from information gathered from local bait shops, angler creel surveys and county and state parks staff. For current information, contact the district fisheries office at the phone number listed at the end of each district report...

“Eagles on the River,” a program hosted by the Prairie Heritage Center in Peterson, brings area residents closer to the birds in their natural habitat. The eagle population has been rising steadily since the 1980s, but has begun to level off in recent years...

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The head of Iowa’s court system warned Wednesday that “Iowans are losing access to justice” because more than 100 key court jobs statewide remain empty due to ongoing spending cuts from the Legislature. Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Cady told legislators in his State of the Judiciary address that the court system is operating with 115 “essential” positions unfilled. Overall, the office has 182 fewer positions than one year ago...

ACCIDENTS On January 9, at approximately 3 p.m., at Lakehouse Dr. and Barton St. in Strom Lake, a vehicle driven by Dustin Readinger of Guthrie Center, struck a vehicle owned by Charles Pizinger of Clive. Total damages were estimated at $1400.

Have you ever been hit square between the eyes? I mean, nearly knocked down? That happened to a whole auditorium of theater-goers at the Rosemary Clausen Center for Performing Arts. As unsuspecting attendees entered the beautiful sold-out facility, little did they know they’d be struck with a re-creation of the very best of one of the most well-known, most honored, most loved musical groups that has ever existed...

Area native and Chalk Couture Designer Gina Sisco will be in Galva to show you how to make magnetic chalkboards. The public is invited to gather at The Meeting Place in Galva at 9 a.m. on Saturday, February 24. During the one-hour program, Gina will talk about chalk boards and demonstrate several different creative ways to make new items. ...

A drug charge against a Storm Lake woman has been dismissed. Judy Sneaker, 57, of Storm Lake, had been arrested December 21 on felony charges of conspiracy to deliver a controlled substance, as part of a series of arrests police had dubbed, “Operation Winter Blues.”...

The 14th Women in Denim conference is scheduled for January 26 and 27 in Storm Lake. Women in Denim recognizes and celebrates women involved in any aspect of agriculture and those who enjoy the rural way of life. The conference kicks off Friday afternoon with vendor shopping and sessions on fitness and wine tasting. Attendees will also be invited to participate in a service sewing project to benefit CAASA (Council Against Abuse and Sexual Assault)...

On the afternoon of Thursday January 11, at approximately 4:31 p.m., the Storm Lake Fire Department was dispatched to 125 Mae Street in reference to a fire burning in the attic. Upon arrival of fire fighters they observed thick smoke coming from the roof vents of the home...

Iowa State University (ISU) Extension and Outreach will host a ‘Radon Risks in Your Home’ learning with lunch session on Thursday, Jan. 25 from noon to 1 p.m. Kevin Nulle, a certified radon mitigation specialist from Ida Grove, will be leading the discussion. Individuals are encouraged to attend, ask questions and learn about the risks of having radon in homes, how to test for it, and how to mitigate radon if found...

According to the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH), reported cases of gonorrhea are increasing quickly in Iowa. Preliminary Iowa data indicates there were 3,600 cases of gonorrhea in 2017. This would be a 145 percent increase since 2013. There were 2,600 cases reported in 2016...

The Buena Vista Regional Healthcare Foundation has received a gift of more than $550,000 from the Estate of Gladys Liebsch-Heuton. Gladys passed away in November, 2017. She was a long-time resident of the Rembrandt area who was well-known for her generous spirit and boundless energy...

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A major Iowa grocery retailer has announced it will no longer allow its employees to use tobacco products on company property, including the store in Storm Lake. Des Moines television station KCCI reports that Fareway Food Stores implemented the policy, effective Monday. Under the new policy, smoking and the use of any other tobacco or tobacco-like products such as electronic cigarettes and chewing tobacco is banned on all company property...

Just as agricultural producers need to make active business adjustments to respond to the current agricultural economic challenges, farm families or farm couples need to make active adjustments to maintain the quality and stability of their adult couple relationships...

The construction of a new high school auditorium in Storm Lake has spurred creation of the first full professional Performing Arts Series for the community, beginning later this year. Season tickets are available for $120 each at the Community Education office, or call 732-5711 with questions. A season brochure and order form is also available online...

Encouraging youth to choose purity is again the focus of Cherish Center’s annual event, No Apologies. Doors will open at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 31, at the Clay County Fair and Events Center for students in sixth to 12th grade. A great night is in store with musical band Bonray, illusionist and comedian Joshua Jordan and speaker Jon Pausley. ...

Storm Lake School District officials are working to narrow their choice among three options as potential sites for a new Early Childhood Center building. After a closed session huddle with their newly-retained real estate representative Steve Brashears during last month’s school board meeting, Brashears has been talking to the owners of three potential sites in the area of the middle and elementary school on the west side of Storm Lake...

In a lengthy strategic planning session this week, the Storm Lake City Council set four themes that the city will work toward over the next three to five years: • Improve perception of the community • Improve housing availability • Develop a diversified economic base...

What a Storm Lake man termed a “joke” has cost him a felony charge and a trip to jail on a $5,0000 bond in a counterfeit money case. On Tuesday, Dec. 12, police were called to Storm Lake Honda on a report that someone had attempted to pass a counterfeit $100 bill. ...

What if I were to tell you that a Storm Lake native won four “Oscars,” worked with everyone from John Wayne to Walt Disney, contributed more to the film industry than any actor, had a hand in making everything from “Gone With the Wind” to “Star Wars,” yet is nearly forgotten?...

Mid-January in northwest Iowa can be cold, stark, and uninviting, with temps plummeting below freezing, and several inches of snow on the ground already. So far this winter, there hasn’t been as much snow, but the temperature thing sure has gotten a grip on the need for something hot, and inviting, to drink during the day. ...

CHEROKEE - The Ridge View wrestlers took part in a quad meet on Thursday night, walking away with three losses for their efforts. They fell against Cherokee, 60-21, dropped one to West Sioux, 66-8 and bowed to Pocahontas Area, 54-21. “We wrestled tough. ...

GRAETTINGER - The Alta-Aurelia grapplers picked up a dual win but also dropped one on Thursday night. They fell to Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Aryshire, 66-15, but rebounded to defeat East Sac County, 48-28. The Titans of GT-RA took the first three matches by two open spots and a fall victory to build up an early 18-0 point lead. ...

CARROLL - Saturday was another busy day on the mats for the green and white grapplers, Storm Lake competing in five duals through the day. They managed to win four of those duals and just dropped one. They were able to best Johnston, Kuemper Catholic, AC/GC and Audubon. Their lone loss was to Missouri Valley...

NEWELL/WEST BEND - A slow first half harmed the Mustang boys on Thursday night, allowing Estherville-Lincoln Central to build a lead they could not overcome in the second half. In the end Newell-Fonda bowed 54-43. There was a lid on the bucket in the first quarter for Newell-Fonda, the Mustangs only registering four points while allowing 15 to go to the second down by 11 points. The second period saw more of the same with NF scoring five to ELC’s 11, going to halftime with the score 26-9...

Buena Vista softball is excited to announce that the annual Rusty Mohler Pitching Clinic is back and coming up soon in February. Join the BVU Softball coaching staff and players with guest coach Katie Brown, former Storm Lake resident and Spirit Lake ace, for our most in depth pitching camp of the year. The high school camp will be February 3 (Grades 8 – 12) and February 4 will be youth (grades 3 – 7). ...

STORM LAKE - Buena Vista built a 44-34 halftime lead against visiting Loras College on Saturday afternoon, but the Duhawks outscored the Beavers by 12 in the third quarter and hung on in the end for a 76-73 victory. Jasmine Demers recorded her fourth straight double-double with a game-high 22 points and 10 rebounds. ...

ROCKWELL CITY - The Warriors could not contain South Central Calhoun’s Maddie Jones on Friday night as AA bowed to the undefeated Titans, 59-46. Alta-Aurelia jumped out to an early three point lead after the first quarter, 15-12, but the offense stagnated in the second quarter, mustering five points while giving up 13 to go to the locker room down 25-20...

GOWRIE - The Sioux Central boys got out to an early double digit lead and used strong defense in the second half against Southeast Valley to walk away with a 74-36 victory. The Rebels built an 11 point lead after the first quarter, 21-10, and built on that in the second, the score at halftime being 39-24. Sioux Central outscored the Jaguars by 14 in the third frame to take a 61-32 lead to the final quarter. They continued their good defense by holding SEV to four points...

STORM LAKE - Buena Vista overcame a double-digit deficit early in the second half to take a 52-51 lead, but the Beavers were unable to pull away from visiting Loras, and the Duhawks prevailed in a tight game down the stretch with an 82-80 victory. There were six ties and seven lead changes in the contest as neither team was able to mount much of a cushion over the final 20 minutes. ...

NEWELL/WEST BEND - Thursday night was another night for the Newell-Fonda girls as their defense continued to cause havoc on their opposition, taking 18 steals and forcing other turnovers against Estherville-Lincoln Central. The Mustangs took a 68-39 decision on the night...

ROCKWELL CITY - Friday night was a tale of two halves for the Alta-Aurelia boys. They came out with their lockdown defense in the first 16 minutes and hung on in the second half against South Central Calhoun to take a 55-48 decision. The Warriors put the clamps down defensively in the first quarter, allowing two Titan points, taking an 11 point lead to the second frame, 13-2. AA kept the pressure on, outscoring SCC by six to take a 17 point advantage to half, 27-10...

SAC CITY - A one point first quarter set the tone for St. Mary’s on Friday night against East Sac County, placing them in a hole they could not escape from in a 66-40 loss. The Panthers had the first point of the game but then allowed ESC to go on a 22-0 run over the rest of the first and some of the second quarter to take the commanding lead. St. Mary’s scored seven points in the second frame, but trailed by 21 at half, 29-8...

SAC CITY - The Panthers had a difficult first half and tried to turn it on late against East Sac County but were unable to climb out the hole in a 61-52 loss on Friday night. The Raiders took an early eight point advantage, 12-4 to the second quarter. ...

STORM LAKE - It was an up and down night for the green and white on Friday as they were able to best Estherville-Lincoln Central, 63-50. Storm Lake opened on an 8-2 in the first quarter and took that six point advantage to the second quarter, 13-7. A pair of three pointers to begin the second opened the lead to 12, 21-9, but ELC fought their way back into the game a little bit with the halftime score being 26-17 for Storm Lake...

STORM LAKE - It was a long back and forth game starting in the second quarter between the Tornadoes and Estherville-Lincoln Central. In the end, after 36 minutes of play, one team had to get the win, and it was Storm Lake picking up their third of the year, 85-80...

November 9, 1944 - January 9, 2018