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Bonnie A. Mussatti, 82, of La Crosse, WI passed away peacefully Thursday, April 8, 2022. A Celebration of Bonnie’s Life will be held later in the year.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to ASPCA at 888-661-ASPCA or ALSAC/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105. An online guestbook can be found at www.schumacher-kish.com.

She was born in Milwaukee, WI to Lawrence and Mildred Oswald. December 7, 1957, she married John A. Mussatti. Bonnie was a hard worker, employed at Curtis Industries in Milwaukee, WI for many years as the Human Resources Director.

Later moving to DeSoto, WI, on top of Lawrence Ridge, she embarked on a life as a National Owner/Operating trucker with her husband, John Mussatti, traveling the U.S. After retiring from trucking, she worked at Northern Engraving in Lansing until her final retirement, after which she provided caregiving to her family.

More than 30 years after three young women were murdered, and another was assaulted but survived, the man responsible has reportedly been identified using investigative genealogy, according to information released last Tuesday, April 5 by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) Field Office in Indianapolis, IN. The four cold case crimes took place from February 1987 through January 1990 at hotel locations in Kentucky and Indiana and have been dubbed the I-65 or Days Inn Murders, due to their location and proximity to Interstate 65 in those two states.

According to State and local authorities, the investigation continues into the cause of the Sunday, February 13 fire that destroyed a pair of buildings on the initial block of Allamakee Street in downtown Waukon and impacted adjacent buildings with smoke, water and other damage. The arrival of an excavator (pictured below) at the fire site during the first full week of April had many speculating that demolition and clean-up work were set to begin at the site. However, the machine was only on site for several days and was not utilized for clean-up purposes but was instead used only to allow for safer and more convenient access to the investigation site, as evident with the knocking down of the front wall and canopy area of the former Tin, Rust & Harmony building believed to be the point of origin of the blaze and which is now noticeably more open in the photo above.

by Julie Berg-Raymond

U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley spoke to about 80 people Monday, April 11 at Robey Memorial Library in Waukon, as part of his 42nd annual “99-County Tour.” Grassley, 88, is in his seventh senate term, having first been elected in 1980.

Monday afternoon, Grassley addressed topics ranging from infrastructure (“Iowa’s bridges are the worst in the 50 states in the nation,” he noted) to Social Security and the cost of insulin.

“There are still two and a half trillion dollars in the Social Security trust fund that will keep your check at 100 percent until about 2034,” Grassley said, in response to a question about the program’s long-term viability. “When this is gone, your check will be around 77 percent.” Addressing “looming deficits,” he said, “will take bipartisan leadership. I won’t be in Congress in 2034,” he noted, drawing laughter from attendees; “but it will have to be bi-partisan.”

by Susan Cantine-Maxson

Quilts of Valor were presented to six area veterans at the Driftless Area Education and Visitor Center in Lansing Sunday afternoon, April 3. Recipients of the quilts included six local veterans who have been “touched by war,” according to event organizers, and those veterans included: Bill Rethwisch, Jerry Stussy,  Fred Rethwisch,  Randy Sickles,  Mike Bailey and Lanny Fields.

Bill  Rethwisch began his service in 1965 on an old WWII destroyer. He went to Vietnam and served as a boiler operator.

Jerry Stussy served beginning in 1987. He served in the U.S. Air Force for four years and then went into the National Guard for nine years.

Fred  Rethwisch served from 1972-1974 in the U.S. Army in Korea for 16 months. His duties included driving a truck, transporting materials.

Randy Sickles served in the U.S. Army and National Guard. He served in South America, the Middle East, the Gulf War and Iraq.

Allamakee County has begun a road improvement project on the easterly six miles of County Road A26 (Iowa River Drive), a stretch from near its intersection with Lycurgus Road all the way to State Highway 26, just south of New Albin (as depicted by the red line in the map image above). Work will begin on the east end by Highway 26 and go southwesterly to a bit west of the graveled Wheatland Road, a bit north of where Lycurgus Road intersects with Iowa River Drive.

This project involves grading, culvert replacements, small bridge replacement, full pavement removal areas and the milling of the asphalt surface, and the full length of the project will then be covered with new hot mix asphalt pavement. Skyline Construction from Decorah is the prime contractor for the project.

Thursday, April 21 at 6:30 p.m. the Allamakee County Veterans Museum will recognize Korean War Veterans with a presentation at its new museum in the former Vet’s Club building on Allamakee Street in Waukon.

A video interview with U.S. Marine Corps veteran Rupert Caballero of Waukon will be presented. This long-time educator was recently interviewed for the program. Caballero will also be present at the event to share comments and answer questions.

The public is invited to attend. There is no admission or membership charge. The Allamakee County Veterans Museum is handicapped accessible. Due to COVID concerns, masks are encouraged but not required. Light refreshments will be available.

The museum will open to the public beginning Memorial Day weekend 2022 and tours will be offered at that time. Monthly educational programs have been offered at the Veterans Museum since November 2021.

The Waukon High School Music Department recently took 19 students on a trip to Memphis and Nashville, TN over the school district’s recent spring break from March 24-28. Students were able to learn about and experience American musical history from its roots in blue grass, country and soul music (with some of their activities pictured in the surrounding photos).

The students left by chartered bus Thursday, March 24. When they arrived in Memphis late Thursday evening, their first stop was to the Bass Pro Shop Pyramid, a pyramid-shaped store that was once an event center and sporting arena. The pyramid is so large that it is considered the sixth largest pyramid in the world.

Read Across Iowa launched March 1 and began a month-long celebration to bring the joys of reading to kids of all ages. Agriculturally-themed Read Across Iowa classroom visits happened at New Albin Elementary School and across the state and featured books and materials about agriculture that will appeal to all readers.

Becky Rea, K-12 Program Coordinator from Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Allamakee County visited Pre-K through second grade classes at New Albin Elementary School. “Sylvia’s Spinach” or “Right This Very Minute” were read aloud to each class. Classes sampled either a yogurt parfait or salad kabob featuring spinach (far left photo). Pre-K and Kindergarten made plant part flowers (middle photo). First and second grade planted spinach seeds (far right photo). “When you read with children, you are making an investment,” said Rea. “Early reading and talking with children gives them a strong start and a life-long return.”

Kay L. Chapman, CPA PC of Muscatine recently released an audit report on the Eastern Allamakee Community School District in Lansing. A copy of the audit report is available for review in the District Secretary’s Office, in the Office of Auditor of State and on the Auditor of State’s web site at https://auditor.iowa.gov/audit-reports.

The District’s revenues totaled $6,001,009 for the year ended June 30, 2021, a seven-percent increase from the prior year. Expenses for District operations totaled $5,531,906, a six-percent increase from the prior year. Program revenues increased. The increase in expenses is primarily related to instruction expenses.