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Waukon High School 1971 graduate Dr. Michael Osterholm, one of the world’s leading infectious disease epidemiologists, with expertise in pandemic preparedness, disease outbreak investigations and public health practice, will have an endowed chair in his name at the University of Minnesota (UMN) School of Public Health (SPH), where he has served on the faculty for the past 48 years. The Michael T. Osterholm Endowed Chair in Infectious Disease Research and Policy was made possible with generous funding from philanthropist Christy Walton and the Alumbra Innovations Foundation, as well as more than 1,000 individual donors who have supported the chair’s endowment.

Election Essentials is a weekly series of articles offering a variety of information regarding elections in Iowa and Allamakee County prior to this year’s November 5 General Election. The information is being provided courtesy of Allamakee County Auditor and Commissioner of Elections Denise Beyer.

With the General Election in less than one month, Tuesday, November 5, 2024, voters may be considering whether they will vote at the polls, or vote absentee, prior to Election Day. There are two options for voting absentee in Iowa: In person at the auditor’s office, or by mail. In Iowa the term “absentee” refers to voting prior to Election Day, regardless of the method.

by Julie Berg-Raymond

On a recent afternoon in late September, Sarah and Steve Murray, of Lansing, sat down and talked about Sarah’s recent experience with spinal cord injury (SCI), and about her ongoing recovery and rehabilitation - being undertaken with the help of professionals in the field, and with the loving support of family, friends and the wider community.

The conversation took place at Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) in Waukon, where Sarah would soon bring to completion more than six weeks of treatment for pressure wounds - a fairly common complication among persons with SCI (it is variously estimated that between 50 and 80 percent of persons with SCI develop a pressure wound at least once in their lives). The conversation took place outside; it was a beautiful day, and Sarah and Steve wanted to get out and enjoy the sunshine.

Everyone is invited to join area youth on athletic fields across the nation Wednesday, October 9 in sharing their Christian faith with other students and the general public for this year’s Fields of Faith event. The local event is now in its 13th year and will open to the public at 6:30 p.m., with the event scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. at the Waukon High School football field Wednesday, October 9, or in the Waukon High School gym in the event of bad weather.

Election Essentials is a weekly series of articles offering a variety of information regarding elections in Iowa and Allamakee County prior to this year’s November 5 General Election. The information is being provided courtesy of Allamakee County Auditor and Commissioner of Elections Denise Beyer.

In an effort to increase voter education and engagement and also provide another avenue for voters to obtain essential information about upcoming elections, the Allamakee County Auditor’s office has launched a new Facebook page: Allamakee County Elections. One goal of the Auditor’s office is voter education and with almost every voter having constant access to the internet via their cell phone or home computer, creating an elections Facebook page seemed like an easy way to educate and inform voters. Voters can stay informed about all aspects of the 2024 General Election right from their Facebook feed.

Waukon High School seniors Olivia Dougherty and Jaxon Brinkman were crowned Waukon High School's 2024 Homecoming Queen and King at the "Burning of the W" pep rally held Thursday evening, September 19 at Waukon High School. Unfortunately, the traditional “Burning of the W” was not allowed to take place at the end of the pep rally due to weather conditions. Additional photos of Waukon High School's Homecoming events are featured on Page 32 in this week's issue, as well as coverage of the Waukon football team's Homecoming game with North Fayette Valley featured on Page 18. Even more photos from this year’s Homecoming festivities can also be found at the Photo Galleries link on The Standard’s website, www.waukonstandard.com.
 

by Brianne Grimstad

May 3, 2024 was a day that changed the life of Zach Quandahl of Waukon and his family members.

It was a nice day outside and Zach decided to take advantage of that by taking his Harley-Davidson motorcycle for a ride to meet some friends for supper in New Albin. Traveling along Highway 9, just north of Waukon past the Allamakee County Public Safety Center, the bike began to wobble, and Zach was unable to stop it. He met an oncoming vehicle and clipped the headlight of the car with his left leg.

He continued to ride as long as he was able to and slow the motorcycle down, before he himself went down. He was able to call 911 at 5:11 p.m. for himself.

Four people who encountered the scene of the incident stopped to give assistance, one of them being an off-duty EMT.

Zach’s left leg was lacerated badly, and with help from the bystanders, they used belts to make a tourniquet on his leg. One of the belts, however, broke.

by Joe Moses

State of Iowa Auditor Rob Sand continued his annual 99 County Tour with a Town Hall meeting in Waukon Thursday morning, September 19 at the Sweeney Shelter near the Allamakee County Freedom Rock in Waukon City Park.

Sand began the town hall meeting by providing an update relating to the State Auditor Office’s Public Innovations and Efficiencies (PIE) Program. He noted that this program recognizes the efforts of local governments, including counties and cities in addition to school districts, in saving tax dollars and promoting efficiency. Sand explained that a checklist of items compiled through this program is sent out each year to schools and local governments to provide suggestions with ongoing feedback allowing entities to share and add to these efficiencies.

Election Essentials is a weekly series of articles offering a variety of information regarding elections in Iowa and Allamakee County prior to this year’s November 5 General Election. The information is being provided courtesy of Allamakee County Auditor and Commissioner of Elections Denise Beyer.

Any eligible voter who is unsure if they are registered or unsure if they are registered at the correct address can check by going to the Allamakee County Elections website, https://allamakeecountyelections.iowa.gov/, clicking “Am I Registered”, and entering their name and zip code. See the QR code at the end of this article +to easily check your registration.

Seniors Violet Nehman (left) and Parker Leppert (right) were crowned Kee High School’s 2024 Homecoming Queen and King at the coronation event held prior to Homecoming Week Sunday, September 15 in the Kee High School gymnasium to kick off this week’s Homecoming festivities. The change made last year to an earlier coronation date will now allow the King and Queen to preside over the entire Homecoming Week. Celebratory pages highlighting Kee’s 2024 Homecoming can be found inside this week’s Standard on Pages 14-15. Photo by Danielle Potter.

Pick up the Wednesday, September 18, 2024 print edition of The Standard or subscribe to our e-edition or print edition by clicking here.