Upcoming Deadlines/Dates
March 15: 2021 ARCPLC Signup
Healthy Soil should be our New Year’s Goal by LuAnn Rolling, District Conservationist
I would like to reflect on some observations of where agriculture is in 2020 as we prepare to launch into 2021. I have a quote from Gus Speth, Co-founder of the Natural Resources Defense Council, on my wall. He says, “I used to think that top environmental problems were biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and climate change. I thought that thirty years of good science could address these problems. I was wrong. The top environmental problems are selfishness, greed and apathy, and to deal with these we need a cultural and spiritual transformation. And we scientists don’t know how to do that.”
Climate and weather predictions are topics of webinar
Livestock producers and agribusiness professionals are invited to a webinar discussing climate and weather predictions for the 2021 growing season. The webinar, set for Wednesday, Jan. 20, from noon to 1 p.m., features Dennis Todey, director of the United States Department of Agriculture’s Climate Hub in Ames.
Beth Doran, beef specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, said Todey will bring accurate and important information for those who work with livestock and crop production agriculture.
“Dennis Todey is known nationally for his knowledge and experience in weather forecasting and comes with distinction as the former president of the American Association of State Climatologists,” Doran said. “This is a timely presentation, given that currently more than half of Iowa is experiencing drought conditions ranging from abnormally dry to severe drought.”
Webinar will explore the opportunities and challenges of miscanthus
Iowa Learning Farms, in partnership with the Iowa Nutrient Research Center and Conservation Learning Group, is hosting a free wetland virtual field day on growing miscanthus in Iowa on Thursday, Jan. 14 at 1 p.m.
Join for a live conversation with Emily Heaton, Iowa State University agronomy professor and extension biomass crop specialist.
Miscanthus has received widespread attention as a biomass crop for bioenergy in Europe, while bedding and bioproduct markets are developing faster than energy markets in the U.S.
Heaton’s team is exploring what it takes to successfully grow miscanthus in Iowa and measuring the impact on soil health and water quality. The team is also exploring converting areas of fields that produce low corn and soybean yields to miscanthus for improved long-term profitability.
Three Allamakee County officials were sworn into office by District Judge Alan Heavens Monday morning, January 4, all three of them being elected or re-elected to their respective offices in the general election this past November. Pictured above, left to right, in the photo are Judge Alan Heavens, newly-elected Allamakee County Board of Supervisors member Mark Reiser, re-elected Allamakee County Auditor Denise Beyer and re-elected Allamakee County Sheriff Clark Mellick. Standard photo by Joe Moses.
The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Monday, January 11 to address a full agenda of items including Fiscal-Year 2022 funding requests for organizations, the consideration of changes to the Allamakee County employee handbook and a recommendation from the Allamakee County Compensation Board.
During Public Comment, Waukon City Manager Gary Boden discussed attending a recent meeting relating to funding options for a new ambulance. Boden said that there is a need for planning for this purchase and the purchase of a new fire truck as part of a capital equipment project with budgeting for 10 and 15 years into the future being necessary. Chairperson Larry Schellhammer and Supervisor Dan Byrnes advised of upcoming meetings with township trustees that will include discussion of the ambulance purchase among other matters.
First Baby of the Year ... Pictured are Cody Runice and Chanda Halvorson of Waukon, holding their newborn son, Alyxzandr Mikkel Runice, the First Baby of the Year born at Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon, January 3, 2021. The family will enjoy many gifts thanks to the local merchants who helped celebrate the First Baby of 2021 born at Veterans Memorial Hospital. Submitted photo.
Veterans Memorial Hospital physicians and staff have announced that the First Baby of the Year born at the hospital was Alyxzandr Mikkel Runice, son of Chanda Halvorson and Cody Runice of Waukon. He joins siblings Addysen, Karsyn, Kaydahlynn, Karvyr and Amiiyah at home.
Alyxzandr was born January 3, 2021 at 11:01 p.m., weighing 7 pounds, 5 ounces and measuring 19-3/4 inches long. Dr. Dave Schwartz and Dr. Nicole Barbee assisted with the delivery.
This fortunate child and his family received the following generous gifts compliments of these area merchants:
The past week’s timeframe of Tuesday, January 5 through Monday, January 11 marks the third consecutive week that new COVID-19 case numbers in Allamakee County have been around 50 or below, those being the lowest weekly numbers since a late October weekly total of 39 cases. However, this past week is the only one of those three past lower case total weeks that did not involve a holiday that closed testing sites yet still yielded the lowest weekly total, 45 new cases, since those 39 cases were reported for the week of October 20-26 - which, at that point, was a new weekly high of reported cases for the county since the pandemic began.
“Reading Colors Your World” is the theme of Robey Memorial Library’s 2021 Adult Reading Challenge, which began January 1 and continues through December 31 of this year. Robey Memorial Library challenges area individuals to read something new or different this year.
Receive a prize drawing entry for reading from one of each of 12 categories: Based on a true story; Book set in one of 49 states (not Iowa); Book that teaches you something; Book with a blue cover; Graphic novel or Picture book; Hobby-themed; Humorous; Listen to an audiobook; Science; Short Story or Essay; Set in another country; and Suspense.
Rain or Shine Treasures receives First Dollar visit ... Rain or Shine Treasures, newly opened at 5 East Main Street in Waukon, received a First Dollar Visit from the Waukon Chamber of Commerce recently. Pictured above at that First Dollar presentation are, left to right, business owners Daneela McKee and Brady Sorum. Photo by Waukon Chamber of Commerce.
A storefront with a mixture of antiques and new gifts has been opened at 5 East Main Street in Waukon since October of this past year. Rain or Shine Treasures was established at that location by Daneela McKee and Brady Sorum of Waukon in an effort to expand from an already established online sales arrangement (www.rainorshinetreasures.com) to a retail storefront location welcoming in-person customers. “We love working with people and meeting new people,” McKee and Sorum said.
McKee first moved to the Waukon area in 2003. She remained here after her husband passed away in 2012, and their now 12-year-old son is a seventh grader at Waukon Middle School. She and Waukon area native Brady Sorum began dating three years ago, and the two felt that starting their retail business in Waukon was a good fit.
Nikki’s Ultimate Glow, LLC receives First Dollar visit ... Nikki’s Ultimate Glow, LLC, the tanning salon now under new ownership at 14 Spring Avenue in Waukon, recently received a First Dollar Visit from the Waukon Chamber of Commerce. Pictured above at that First Dollar presentation is Nikki’s Ultimate Glow, LLC owner Nikki Dietrich. Photo courtesy of the Waukon Chamber of Commerce.
The tanning salon that has been established at 14 Spring Avenue in Waukon is under new ownership as of the fall of this past year. Nicole Dietrich of Waukon has opened Nikki’s Ultimate Glow, LLC as of September 28, offering a wide variety of tanning lotions and accessories in store in addition to tanning services with a “main focus on keeping things affordable and convenient for everyone,” she said.
Dietrich was born in Waukon but raised in Prairie du Chien, WI. She moved back to the area and married Waukon native Dillon Dietrich. The couple has two sons, six-year-old Dayton and three-year-old Dexter, and the flexibility of owning her own business allows Dietrich to care for her family in whatever manner they may need.
