River Valley

by Susan Cantine-Maxson

Twenty-four-year-old New Albin native Allie Colsch had an odd feeling in her chest one day earlier this spring.

She was very busy at the time, studying to be a physician’s assistant at the University of Dubuque. She attributed her  pain to issues like bad posture, indigestion or possibly inflammation of the ribs. Nothing seemed to fit, but she was in the middle of graduate school in an intensive program and she didn’t want to take the time to go to the doctor.

Finally, she decided it wasn’t going away and no amount of over-the-counter medication was making the pain better. Then she started running a fever.

She stated, “The fever made me see a doctor. I had pain for six to eight weeks before I had it checked out.”

Her diagnosis was a large tumor in the middle of her chest, more specifically diagnosed as a form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma called primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma.

This Saturday, August 25, family and friends of lifelong resident and local “River Rat” Pat Sandry will be honoring his memory with the First Annual Pat Sandry Memorial Fishing Derby and Friends of Pool 9 Fundraiser held on the Mississippi River. Sandry passed away in November of last year after a short, courageous battle with cancer. He thoroughly enjoyed the outdoors, had a great passion for fishing and hunting, and he truly treasured the beauty of the Lansing area.

Entry fee is $50 per boat with 50% payback in prize money and 50% being donated to Friends of Pool 9. There is a limit of two adults and two children per boat.

Kerndt Brothers Bank has announced that Tony Smith has joined the bank as Vice President, Senior Business Banker. He will be responsible for providing lending and deposit services to agricultural and commercial customers throughout Allamakee County in Iowa and Vernon County in Wisconsin. His responsibilities also include business development and creating new relationships for the bank.

Smith joins Kerndt Brothers Bank from the First National Bank of Barry in Pittsfield, IL, where he focused on building relationships with existing customers while developing new business. He brings over 20 years of experience in various business positions, including 13 years in banking with progressive responsibilities related to lending and bank management.

Allamakee County artist Andrew Wroble of Harpers Ferry received a 2018 Iowa State Fair Merit Award in the Fine Art Gallery Exhibition that coincides with this year’s State Fair in Des Moines. Wroble’s work is inspired by landscape in northeast Iowa and, in particular, his time spent in the Yellow River State Forest near Harpers Ferry. Two of Wroble’s works were juried in for the show which highlights over 200 compositions of original art. “Reaching Provence”, a large ink wash painting which the artist says “reflects daydreams on a slow fishing day,” was awarded third-place honors in the watercolor category at the Exhibition’s August 5 reception and awards ceremony.

As part of the “Allamakee Libraries Rock” program this summer, Dolores Tillinghast Memorial Library in Harpers Ferry is hosting a series of events as part of its Kids Summer Reading Program. The next event is scheduled to take place at the library:

• Friday, August 24: Rockin’ and Reading from 2-3 p.m.

Thursday, July 19, central Iowa experienced multiple tornadoes causing destruction in Pella, Bondurant and Marshalltown. More than 625 homes were either totally destroyed or heavily damaged. These people had little to no warning as these storms quickly developed.

One of the local agencies that responded immediately is the American Red Cross.  As of July 23, the Red Cross had served 30,570 meals and snacks, distributed 16,007 relief items and surveyed the amount of damaged homes.  The organization plans to continue to serve at least 1,000 hot meals twice a day until there is no longer a need.

Kerndt Brothers Bank is teaming up with the American Red Cross by accepting contributions which will be sent to the Red Cross to continue to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small. People turn to the Red Cross in their darkest hours looking for relief and help during their time of recovery.

by Susan Cantine-Maxson

The Lansing Lions Club recently completed the finishing touches on its Playground Enhancement Project featuring the new playground equipment replicating a steamboat on the Mississippi River.

The Lions Club wants to acknowledge all who provided financial support for the project. The new  donor recognition signs erected at the playground site capture the names of those who responded to the “Big Catch” funding campaign for the project.

The project goals included the enhancement of the playground by making it safe, educational and handicap-accessible by adding such amenities as a multi-activity commercial structure for children ages five to 12, benches for those watching the children play, a bicycle rack, a handicap-accessible picnic table,  trees which will eventually  protect the children from the sun, and educational signage about boating and water safety.

The annual Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Ride to Cure Diabetes charitable bicycle ride will be taking place this Saturday, August 11, starting in La Crosse, WI and riding through Minnesota and into Allamakee County along the Mississippi River and then back to La Crosse, WI. JDRF is the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes (T1D) research and sponsors six 2018 JDRF Rides across the country, including the one beginning in La Crosse, WI.

James Kerndt, President and CEO of Kerndt Brothers Savings Bank, has announced that Ronald Doornink has accepted the position of Vice President/ Business Banker in the Lansing office. Doornink is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin - Madison, and has worked in a variety of ag lender positions for the last 27 years, most recently serving as Ag Lender/Commercial Banker at First National Bank in Waupaca, WI.

The Ferryville Tourism Council invites everyone to attend its third and final Chautauqua program for the 2018 season. The program will be held Wednesday, August 15 at 8 p.m. at the Ferryville Village Hall, along Hwy. 35 at the south edge of Ferryville, WI. Treats will be available during the program.

The featured speaker for this presentation will be Robert Taunt, a local historian and past president of the La Crosse County Historical Society. Taunt is a writer, photographer and researcher. He has been speaking on historical topics for the past 25 years.

For the August 15 program, Taunt will be sharing the story of a steamboat, the War Eagle. Attendees will learn about steamboating in the era of large boats loaded with passengers plying the waters of the Upper Mississippi River.