Community News

by Joe Moses

The Waukon City Council met in regular session Monday, October 15 to discuss a full agenda of items including the Urban Chicken Ordinance, the 2019 Department of Transportation (DOT) Street Project and an update on the Green Valley Bridge project. Mayor Pat Stone called the meeting to order with approval of the current agenda with the addition of three items.

There was no Public Comment and the council moved into Departmental Reports. Street Superintendent Keith Burrett discussed a letter from St. Patrick’s Catholic Church concerning the curb on the east side of the church which is in need of repair. Burrett recommended that this future project would best be accomplished in the summer, outside of the school year. Burrett indicated that a storm sewer collapse in the northeast part of town will involve some exploratory digging this week to determine necessary repairs.

There was a lot of activity at the corner of Second Street and First Avenue NW in Waukon this past week. In addition to the City of Waukon street improvement project along First Avenue NW, the former Northeast Auto Body building was also torn down to make way for a new drive-up ATM to be installed and operated by Farmers & Merchants Savings Bank. The bank purchased the property earlier this year from previous owner Jamie Dougherty once he made plans to move his business to Ninth Street SW in Waukon, with the bank now planning for a drive-up 24-hour ATM. Farmers & Merchants Savings Bank Chief Operating Officer and Cashier Nancy Schoh stated, “We love seeing customers inside our branch, but understand how convenient it is to stay in your car. We hope to have the new ATM operational later this year. It is one more way we are making it easier to bank with us.” Standard photos by Joe Moses.

Waukon Shopko employee Mary Monroe was honored Wednesday, October 10 for 50 years of employment at a celebration held at the Waukon Shopko location. She is pictured in the center of the above photo with Shopko Chief Executive Officer Russ Steinhorst (left) and Chief Operations Officer Jim DePaul (right), who both traveled from Shopko headquarters in Green Bay, WI to attend the event.

The Allamakee-Clayton Electric Cooperative (ACEC) Board of Directors has announced the selection of its current Manager of Economic Development and Community Relations Hollee McCormick as the individual who will succeed current Executive Vice President/General Manager (EVP/GM) Paul Foxwell following his anticipated retirement in May of next year. McCormick has been employed at the Cooperative for the past four years.

McCormick has gained valuable experience working under the current EVP/GM, and the Board’s early selection of her to succeed Foxwell will allow ample opportunity for further training and development. The Cooperative is pleased to have the opportunity to select an individual that is well-known to the Cooperative, its existing employees, and its members. McCormick lives in the community, is a Cooperative member, and therefore is very familiar with the area and the issues that are important to the membership.

Northeast Iowa RSVP (Retired and Senior Volunteer Program) is seeking volunteers for several programs in the Allamakee County area. The program is seeking volunteers for the before and after school programs in Waukon, the new LIFT (Lansing Iowa Food Trust) food pantry, anyone interested in helping with a Volunteer Reception Center, and several other areas.
The RSVP mission is to engage persons age 55 and above in volunteer service to meet critical community needs; and to provide a high quality experience that will enrich the lives of volunteers. RSVP volunteers choose where they will volunteer and how much time they will spend volunteering. Studies have proven that volunteering is good for a person’s health and last year over 321 volunteers from Allamakee, Howard and Winneshiek County logged over 27,000 hours. This amounts to an economic impact of nearly $614,000.

by Joe Moses

The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Monday, October 8 to address agenda items including the consideration of quotes regarding the purchase of a tractor backhoe for the Secondary Roads Department, the approval of Secondary Roads transfers and quarterly reports for Planning and Zoning and the Allamakee County Sheriff’s Department. Chairperson Larry Schellhammer called the meeting to order with approval of the current agenda and October 1 minutes.

Carol Krumme of Waukon State Bank was recently honored by the Iowa Bankers Association for 50 years of service to Waukon State Bank. She was one of 21 individuals recognized in Iowa for reaching the 50-year milestone and received the plaque and pin she is displaying in the adjacent photo to commemorate the occasion.

John Sorenson, Iowa Bankers Association President stated, “Iowa Banks have been a trusted resource for Iowans for more than 100 years. We are honored to have the commitment and experience of bankers like Carol Krumme, who have worked to provide valuable service to Iowa bank customers and their communities for more than half a century.”

Wednesday, October 3 at approximately 10:35 p.m., a multi-agency narcotics investigation was conducted by law enforcement agencies of the Northeast Iowa Drug Task Force. During the investigation, a Waukon Police Officer attempted a traffic stop on a vehicle driven by Mason Edwin Lee Frick, age 20, of Waukon. Frick attempted to elude law enforcement, traveling at a high rate of speed beginning in Waukon, traveling through Luana and ending in Postville through law enforcement intervention.

Frick was taken into custody and transported to the Allamakee County Jail. He has been charged with one count of Controlled Substance Violation - C Felony, one count of Eluding - D Felony, one count of Possession of a Controlled Substance - Serious Misdemeanor, and one count of Driving While License Revoked - Serious Misdemeanor. Frick will also be charged with numerous traffic offenses. He is currently being held in the Allamakee County Jail awaiting arraignment.

Students from Waukon High School will join thousands of other youth on athletic fields across the nation Wednesday, October 10 to share their Christian faith with fellow students and the general public during the 15th annual national Fellowship of Christian Athletes’ (FCA) Fields of Faith event. This interdenominational outreach event will be held at more than 500 locations throughout the nation.

The local event is now in its seventh year and will start at 7 p.m. at the Waukon High School football field that Wednesday evening. Attendees are encouraged to bring a lawn chair or blanket to sit on. In the case of inclement weather, the event will be held inside the Waukon High School gymnasium.

People’s Choice voting begins this week

The Miss Iowa USA® and Miss Iowa Teen USA® competitions for 2018 are scheduled for this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, October 6-7 in Newton. Among this year’s contests for a second consecutive year will be Cassandra Berger, the daughter of Rusty and Cynthia Berger of Waukon who was a semifinalist in last year’s competition.

Berger is a 2012 graduate of Waukon High School who also graduated magna cum laude from the University of Dubuque in May 2016, having majored in Accounting, Human Resource Management and Business Administration. She is currently working to complete her Masters of Business Administration degree in the spring of 2019 at the University of Dubuque, currently working on campus as a Graduate Assistant in the Wendt Character Center, which brings together students who want to be proactive about developing their character and making the world around them better.