Stories from Wednesday, May 8, 2019

Buena Vista University’s block party drew a crowd Saturday, as students put on games and activities for the community and especially its children. The fun included a dress-up photo booth, psychedelic art, face painting, chalk art, food trucks, a live radio broadcast, inflatable playgrounds and more...

Family members and loved ones haven’t given up their search for Kolton Dicus, the 25-year-old who disappeared from Milford more than two weeks ago. And, they’d like the public’s help at 11 a.m. Saturday at Old City Hall in Milford. A search party will meet at the building, which is located 1021 10th St. The Milford Police Department is housed in the same building, but the search is being organized by Kolton’s family...

Dale D. Barr, age 92, of Storm Lake died Thursday, May 2, at the Buena Vista Regional Medical Center in Storm Lake. Funeral services took place Tuesday, May 7, at 10:30 a.m. at the Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Alta. Burial will be in the Woodlawn Cemetery in Alta. ...

On the evening of Saturday May 4 at approximately 11:11 p.m. SLPD Officers were called to Buena Vista University on a report of a subject in possession of marijuana.  Upon arrival officers met with BVU Campus Security who reported that they had located people in a vehicle that had an odor of marijuana coming from it.  Officers located the vehicle and conducted a consent search.  During the search, police located marijuana and other drug paraphernalia. ...

Cole Brake, Rembrandt, has been named the winner of the 2019 Shirley Sorbe Memorial Scholarship Award. Cole, the son of Loren and Crystal Brake, attends Alta-Aurelia High School. His future plans are to attend Iowa State University to pursue an agriculture or business degree. He wants to expand his knowledge of farming and agriculture in today’s world so he can continue the tradition of grain farming in his family...

In honor of national Nurses Week, the 100 Great Iowa Nurse Organization held their award ceremony in Des Moines on Sunday, May 5. Julie Anderson, Director of Same Day Surgery/Endo at Buena Vista Regional Medical Center, was honored as a 100 Great Iowa Nurses for 2019. ...

The Buena Vista University art gallery hosted a display of imaginative handmade characters using paper mache and other techniques in many different styles.

The final act in the 2018-19 Community Education Performing Arts Series is a band that takes prisoner rock, punk and rockabilly and slams them together into a memorable high-energy offering. Take an authentic trip back to the fantastic ‘50s with The Holy Rocka Rollaz, Friday, May 10 at Storm Lake High School. Show time is 7:30 p.m. For advance ticket info, call CE at 712-732-5711...

Arts On Grand will be welcoming long-time local artist Dennis Dykema back to the gallery this May. His new exhibition, “Since We Last Met” will be on display from May 14 until June 22. There will be a reception with the artist and a brief talk on Thursday, May 16 from 5:30 a.m. to 7:30 p,m,...

Storm Lake Public Library will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of the NASA moon landing milestone this summer. The special event will be held July 20, 1-3 p.m., and everyone is welcome. A dramatic monologue performance by local actress and educator Bethany Larson, “1969 A Moon Landing Memory” will be performed, and Jana Baily will give a historical presentation, “The Space Race.”...

Buena Vista County Supervisors have scheduled a public hearing for a proposed single barn finishing farm in Section 17 of Lincoln Township. Director of BV County Environmental Health Kim Johnson said the tentative proposal is small, at less than about 2,000 animals, so a master matrix passage will not be required for approval. Since it’s below that threshold, only a manure management plan (MMP) will be evaluated...

Fiesta Latina is organized annually by BVU’s RAICES organization and serves as a community fundraiser. This year the event will take place on May 11, from 1-6 p.m., in Frank Starr Park. Fiesta Latina will feature Hispanic food, music and more. Admission is free to the public. Proceeds from the event will be donated to Upper Des Moines Opportunity...

Iowa gas prices have fallen 1.3 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.74 to start the week. Gas prices in Iowa are 7.9 cents per gallon higher than a month ago, yet stand 2.7 cents per gallon higher than a year ago. Most Storm Lake pumps were at $2.69 for super unleaded, having held steady for a couple of weeks...

The stakes are high for Storm Lake man Dion Tyree Caldwell after a jury found him guilty of operating while intoxicated Thursday—his third OWI since 2013 that could land him in prison for up to five years. With little more than the testimony of the officer who arrested him, Storm Lake prosecutor Ashley Herrig argued the state’s case for OWI and public intoxication with no field sobriety tests demonstrating Caldwell’s level of intoxication or physical evidence indicating how much he drank...

Storm Lake recognized outstanding students from Storm Lake High and St. Mary’s on Sunday, awarding thousands in scholarships for their academic and community dedication as they head to college. The Scholarship America program included two levels of chapter scholarships at $600 or $400 each, plus 22 sponsored scholarships. ...

Buena Vista University’s digital media students and organizations earned 36 awards in the annual Society for Collegiate Journalists (SCJ) national media contest. These results afforded BVU top honors in the national contest’s newly established sweeps awards...

The Ridge View students represented themselves very well on Wednesday, May 1 at the Northwest Industrial Tech Fair held at Moville. The many hours of hard work paid off as they competed against other students in many different divisions. There were 8-9 schools in attendance with about 300 students competing with projects in woodworking, metalworking, welding, drafting, agriculture and many FCS divisions. ...

Iowa outdoor enthusiasts will soon have an option to place an organ donor sticker on their hunting and fishing licenses under a new law signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds. It’s called Logan’s Law after Logan Luft, of Charles City, who died at age 15 in 2017 after an all-terrain vehicle crash...

Iowa Central Community College’s Board of Trustees have approved the formation of a Cybersecurity Club. This club will give students experience in solving issues with computer network vulnerabilities and help enhance skills in addressing online threats. Students that are a part of the club will be participating in cyber defense competitions against other colleges. The group will meet monthly to partake in presentations, demonstrations, or labs presented by members and guest speakers...

Low commodity prices and delayed fieldwork due to precipitation have many Iowa farmers feeling the effects of stress. While some stress is normal, too much can lead to physical, mental and emotional problems, according to Larry Tranel, dairy specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach...

There was plenty of boat traffic on the lake with beautiful spring weather last weekend. Canoes patrolled off Scout Park beach, sharing the lake with kayaks, power boats, pontoons and sailboats.

Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, said the conversation surrounding political change on issues like climate change, criminal justice reform and raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour started with the strides his campaign made in Iowa. Sanders visited the Clay County Fair & Events Center to ask citizens to help him complete the “political revolution” which started four years ago...

“Lord, help me!” John Hankerson’s mother wailed outside the courtroom before sentencing, walking down the hall away from the crowd seated on benches as his father followed. His sister walked the other way, fanning her face as tears streamed down while she attempted to maintain composure...

A Storm Lake Police officer was injured in a scuffle with an intoxicated patient at the medical center early Sunday morning. Shortly before 2 a.m., officers were called to the emergency room, where a patient was reportedly being belligerent with medical staff. The intoxicated man, Brook Stephens, 23, of Clarinda, had been dropped off by concerned friends earlier in the night...

A Storm Lake man was overcome by fumes while using gas powered equipment in the basement of a home Saturday night. Firefighters were called to a residence in the 1100 block of Spooner Street for a reported carbon monoxide incident shortly before 8 p.m...

An item at the end of Monday’s Storm Lake City Council meeting generated unexpected controversy, as a plan to purchase land from the school district for a long-approved flood mitigation project died on a deadlocked 2-2 vote. For the two dissenting council members, the problem wasn’t with the project, but with a concern that the City isn’t taking care of the outdoor resources it already has. ...

State changes in potential election dates have thrown a curve at the Storm Lake School District, which had planned to take a second attempt for an Early Childhood building to voters in early August. A new system has just been put in place that takes that date off the table. Instead, the district will have to wait until September 10th for the public vote...

LE MARS - The Storm Lake golf boys took part in the Lakes Conference meet on Monday afternoon. The green and white finished in fifth place out of the seven teams. “It is not where we would have liked to finish in the conference but we know what we need to fine tune before Thursday,” SL Coach Andrew Zinn said. “Our conference is a tough one and our sectional is going to be tougher.”...

SPENCER - The Storm Lake girls tennis team tried to get back in the win column on Monday night against the Spencer Tigers, but were unable to do so, falling 7-2. “We did some good things tonight and the girls continue to improve,” SL Coach Staci Maloy said...

STORM LAKE - The Storm Lake girls soccer team played host to unbeaten and powerful Spencer on Monday night. The Tigers flexed on the Tornadoes early, scoring in the first 30 seconds, and used that to take a 10-0 contest from the green and white. “We had mentally taken ourselves out of the game before we even started. ...

STORM LAKE - The Storm Lake boys tennis team took on their rivals in the Spencer Tigers on the court Monday afternoon. The green and white fell in a 7-2 meet to fall to 4-6 on the year. “I thought the match on Monday night was a little closer than the score indicated,” SL Coach Sam Lipps said. ...

SPENCER - The Storm Lake boys soccer team kept up their winning ways this season, albeit in a nail biting fashion. The #5 green and white were able to ward off a feisty Spencer team on Monday night to take a 2-1 victory for their 12th win of the season...

SPENCER - The Storm Lake boys track team traveled north on Monday night for a relay event that featured a handful of other teams. The green and white took third place out of six schools with 155 points as Spencer won the meet with 304. Xeng Vang was fourth in the 100 meter dash as he took 11.9 seconds to finish. ...

SIOUX RAPIDS - Monday night saw the final tune-up before the State qualifying meets this week as the Alta-Aurelia girls, Sioux Central and Newell-Fonda all competed at the Sioux Central Co-Ed Relays. The A-A girls took second with 125 points, Rebels third with 104 and Mustangs fourth with 94. The Sioux Central boys were second with 124 points and the Mustangs third with 91. Pocahontas Area won both meets...

A little one is entranced by the bubbles at one of the fun booths offered for the Buena Vista University students as they hosted a Block Party Saturday for the community. See page 11 for more event photos.