Community News

The 2016 Northeast Iowa Pie Championships, held January 31 to raise funds for the Hamre-Giesen Post of Disabled American Veterans, has released its list of top placewinners in the Pie Judging Contest held as part of the event. A total of 66 pies were entered into the Pie Judging Contest from Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa. This year's top-three placewinners each received a ribbon and are listed below in each of seven different divisions:
Cream Pies: First place - Jennifer Dettbarn, Hazleton; Second place - Eunice Kolsrud, Waukon; Third place - Barb Leppert, Lansing.
Custard Pies: First place - Maxine Bloxham, Waukon; Second place - Maxine Bloxham, Waukon; Third place - Jane Brandt, Decorah.
Fluff Pies: First place - Sue Perkins, Waukon; Second place - Peggy Slaughter, Waukon; Third place - S&D Cafe-Sandy Halverson, Waukon.

The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Monday, February 1, with several citizens approaching the Board during the Public Comment portion of the meeting with a list of questions/concerns in regard to the Driftless Area Education and Visitor Center currently under construction just south of Lansing at the area more locally known as the Columbus property. Board member Dennis Koenig was not in attendance at the meeting.

The Waterville Community Foundation has introduced a new logo. The Waterville Community Foundation is an affiliate of the Community Foundation of Northeast Iowa (CFNEIA), and the new look is part of CFNEIA’s release of its new brand and redesigned website.
“As we looked at updating our logo and brand, the Community Foundation of Northeast Iowa wanted to make sure the new look helped our affiliate community foundations raise awareness in their local communities,” said Jake Byers, CFNEIA Director of Marketing and Communications. “They are creating an incredible impact at the local level and we want to help them let people in their communities know about the good they do.”

After 37 years, Route Service Representative Jim Hennessy of Waukon declared January 14, 2016 as his last day at CITY Laundering Co. based out of Oelwein. Hennessy started with CITY when he was only 24 years old, back in November of 1978.
“I wanted a job so I took the first opportunity that came my way,” Hennessy said. “I heard from a customer of CITY’s that they were looking for a new Route Representative for the area so I contacted CITY and (Past President) Roger B. Wetlaufer had me hired.”
Hennessy took over Route 9, which services areas such as Waukon, Postville and Monona, and over time, Hennessy said CITY has always played a large role throughout his life.

The Waukon City Council met in regular session Monday, February 1, with Councilman Steve Wiedner not in attendance right away but entering the meeting later on. No public comment was heard or read during the allotted time for such comment early in the meeting.
In departmental reports, Waukon Police Chief Phil Young reported that the lost data from the Police Department’s computer storage drive has been recovered, and that a new back-up system is already in place. Waukon City Clerk Al Lyon reported that the bill for the recovery efforts has also already been paid.

The annual St. Patrick's Day Parade in Waukon has been scheduled for Sunday, March 13 and will begin at 1 p.m. Further details about the parade will be published as they are finalized and made available.
 

Editor's Note: The following was submitted by Jeni Burckart, a 2007 graduate of Waukon High School who now works as a clinical pharmacist at Gundersen Health System in La Crosse, WI. She self-published her first book "Millennial Maxims: Guiding Principles for Unlocking Your Goals and Living Life on Your Terms" in November of 2015 and shares her insight into that experience below.

Swartz Law Firm, PLLC of Waukon announces the addition of Kevin Stinn to its staff as an associate attorney. Stinn graduated from Drake University Law School in Des Moines in 2013.
Stinn is a native of Bellevue, NE, having graduated from Bellevue East High School in 2001. He received his B.A. degree in 2005 from Iowa State University in Ames, majoring in Political Science with minors in History and Philosophy. In 2015 he earned a Masters degree in Health Care Administration (M.H.A.) from Des Moines University in Des Moines.
While in law school, Stinn held a summer internship with Iowa Legal Aid in Council Bluffs. He also worked for a summer with an attorney in Palmer, AK on cases involving mineral leases and easements. He was a teaching assistant for two years while pursuing his Masters degree in Health Care Administration.

Kids spending time at Robey Memorial Library in Waukon will have new resources available to help promote the connections between public media and early literacy and math skills, thanks to a new Library Corner placed at the library by Iowa Public Television. The new IPTV Ready for School Library Corner will open Tuesday, February 2 at 10:30 a.m. with a "Peg & Cat" storytime and special counting activity. Families are invited to attend the event.
The Library Corner creates a bright, fun-filled learning environment with age-appropriate materials for use by children, families and librarians. PBS KIDS DVDs, "Martha Speaks" read-aloud books and resources, a colorful banner featuring PBS KIDS characters, a "Peg & Cat" standing character, a colorful rug and more all help to create an inviting space for children. Online resources include PBS KIDS Lab, a website with more than 140 games and hands-on activities that help to build early math and literacy skills.

Electrical power was interrupted in various locations throughout Waukon and the surrounding area Wednesday afternoon, January 13, but local authorities advise that it was not necessarily a result of the coinciding incident pictured here, where the powerline pole seen standing at an angle on the right side of the photo was clipped at approximately 11:30 a.m. Wednesday by the unoccupied refrigerated food truck facing to the left in the photo. The truck had been parked atop the hill near the Waukon Dental location in the initial block of First Avenue NW when its parking system disengaged, sending the driverless truck careening down the street, where it struck one vehicle parked on the north side of the street and ultimately jumped the curb to clip off the powerline pole located on the southeast corner of the intersection of First Avenue NW and First Street NW, narrowly missing the JaDecc'S U.S. Cellular building located on that same corner.