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Gary Lawrence Welper (i.e., Gare-Bear), 65, of Laramie, WY passed away Wednesday, January 6, 2021 at his home surrounded by his family. Gary fought valiantly over the past six years with end stage renal disease.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, January 13 at St. Matthew’s Catholic Church in Gillette, WY with Father Cliff Jacobson officiating; interment to follow at Mt. Pisgah Cemetery in Gillette, WY. Visitation will take place from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, January 12 at Walker Funeral Home in Gillette, WY.

Gary was born October 11, 1955 in La Crosse, WI to Harold and Joan Welper. He spent his early years growing up on a farm near Dorchester. He became a big brother a few years later when his little sister, Beverly, joined the family. While living on the farm, he learned the value of hard work doing chores and milking cows before he would head to school in the morning. He also enjoyed being raised around many cousins and family.

Dean L. Bechtel, 73, of rural Monona died Saturday, January 9, 2021 at Gundersen Medical Center in La Crosse, WI. Memorial services with military honors will be held Friday, January 15 at 1:30 p.m. at Zion United Church of Christ in Waukon with Rev. Cathy Jurgens officiation. Visitation will be from 12 p.m. until the time of services Friday at the church. In consideration of concerns regarding COVID-19, social distancing and wearing of masks is required. Martin-Grau Funeral Home in Waukon is handling arrangements.

A full obituary will appear in the January 20 edition of The Standard. You can subscribe to The Standard's print edition or e-edition by clicking here.

Delores Jean Kroack, 76, of Waukon died Tuesday, January 5, 2021 at Good Samaritan Center in Waukon. Funeral services were held Saturday, January 9 at St. Patrick Catholic Church in Waukon with Fr. John Moser, Fr. Joseph Schneider and Rev. Msgr. Ed Lechtenberg officiating. Burial was at Mt. Olivet Cemetery, Waukon.

Memorials may be made to St. Patrick School, Veterans Memorial Hospital or Good Samaritan Center, all in Waukon. Cards may be sent to Joe Kroack at 503 Third Street SW, Waukon, IA 52172. Martin-Grau Funeral Home in Waukon is handling arrangements.

Delores Jean Kroack was born April 16, 1944 in Monona, the daughter of George and Marjorie (Molitor) Topel. She attended Figgie Country School in rural Allamakee County and graduated from MFL High School in 1962.

Upcoming Deadlines/Dates
February 12: CRP Signup
March 15: 2021 ARCPLC Signup

USDA to Open General Signup for the Conservation Reserve Program in January 2021
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced the signup periods for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in 2021. Signup for general CRP will be open from Jan. 4, 2021, to Feb. 12, 2021. This program is competitive and provides annual rental payments for land devoted to conservation purposes.

Three-part series for women involved in the dairy industry begins January 22

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach will host Boots in the Barn virtually, a program for women dairy producers. Boots in the Barn is a three-part series for women involved in a dairy operation or industry and will be held as a webinar series.

The webinars will be held January 22 and 29, and February 5, via ZOOM from noon to 1:15 p.m.

The January 22 session will feature Sarah Adcock, assistant professor in animal welfare research/teaching at the University of Wisconsin. Adcock will discuss pain management for disbudding and steps producers can take to stay ahead of consumer concerns and changing industry standards for this procedure.

Understanding trusts can help guide your farm transition

Depending on your family situation and the value of your estate, forming a trust can be an important addition to your farm transition plan.

A will gives basic assurance of where farm and personal assets will go at death, but a trust can provide more detail and instruction, with the flexibility to transition your farm the way you want it to go.
In an article written for the December Ag Decision Maker, two experts with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach give an overview of what a trust is, the different kinds of trusts, who they benefit and what a person should consider before forming a trust.

“The trust is a very useful and flexible tool for estate planning, yet it is probably the most underused estate management technique,” according to Kelvin Leibold and Melissa O’Rourke, farm management specialists with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.

by Julie Berg-Raymond

A group of volunteers in Allamakee County ended 2020 – a difficult year, by any estimation – on a positive note, by donating $4,500 to organizations that serve their communities, as well as awarding scholarships to a pair of local high school graduates.

The volunteers, organizers of the third annual Driftless Half-Marathon (DHM) held October 10 between Harpers Ferry and Lansing, recently presented checks to the Allamakee County Sheriff’s Department K9 Fund; the Lansing Volunteer Fire Department; Lansing Volunteer EMS; the Lansing Police Department Kindness Campaign; and the Harpers Ferry Volunteer Fire Department and EMS.

“The majority of our donations (totaling more than $13,000 since the race’s founding) go to those who help make the race safe,” says DHM Founder and Director Amanda Hess. “Our medical volunteers are out on the course before and after the runners.”

To read the the full article, Year in Review - Part 2: Top local news stories from July-December 2020, pick up this week's print edition or subscribe to our e-edition by clicking here.

Below is a portion of that article, July through August, summarizing the top news stories that appeared in The Standard.

by Joe Moses

The Waukon City Council met in regular session Monday, January 4 to address a full agenda of items. In contrast to previous years, organizational matters addressed at the beginning of the year were approved as part of the consent agenda rather than being individually approved as regular agenda items. These organizational decisions include keeping meetings scheduled for the first and third Mondays of the month at 7 p.m., approving depositories of City funds, declaring The Standard as the official City newspaper, among other matters.

by Brianne Eilers

The Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Board of Trustees met in December for it monthly meeting as well as its yearly joint meeting with the medical staff. The month of November ended on a positive financial note at Veterans Memorial Hospital, with a profit of $5,183. While it may not be a huge profit, VMH Administrator Michael Coyle pointed out that it is significantly better than the loss in November 2019 of $31,483 for the month.

Year-to-date, the hospital is showing a positive bottom line of $35,633. At this time in November 2019, VMH was looking at a loss of $427,730. “That’s a nice little turn around,” Coyle said, adding that the difference between where they were at, year-to-date, from November 2019 compared to November 2020, is a positive $463,363. Coyle also noted that they had budgeted a profit margin of $22,800 for the year and currently they are $12,833 positive to budget.