Top Stories

by Joe Moses

The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Monday, July 18 with a full agenda of items including the hiring of two Dispatcher/Corrections Officers, a stop sign resolution and the discussion and consideration of private monetary donations towards paving projects. There were no comments during the Public Comments portion of the meeting.
Several routine reports were presented to the Supervisors. The Treasurer's Semi-Annual and Annual Reports, the Recorder's Quarterly Report, the Environmental Health Quarterly Report and the Relief Office Quarterly Report were all accepted and placed on file.

The Office of U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) has announced upcoming traveling office hours in all 99 counties across Iowa for the month of July. Representatives from Senator Ernst’s office will be available in counties throughout the state to assist Iowans with problems or questions about eligibility involving issues such as Social Security, veterans benefits, military affairs, passports, immigration issues, and other federal programs. Senator Ernst will not be in attendance at the traveling office hours.

The representative from Senator Ernst's office will be at the Dolores Tillinghast Memorial Library Community Room, located at 234 North Fourth Street in Harpers Ferry, Monday, July 25 from 10-11 a.m. Anyone unable to attend the traveling office hours but seeking assistance with federal agencies is asked to visit online at Ernst.Senate.Gov to contact one of Senator Ernst's offices or submit a casework request.
 

Coronation event kicks off 163rd Allamakee County Fair Tuesday, July 19

Seven Allamakee County young ladies are vying for the title of 2016 Allamakee County Fair Queen. Those seven candidates for this year's crown include Lizzie Blake, Erika Johnson, MaKayla Manning, Kaylonna McKee, Miranda Reinhardt, Leah Riese and Bethany Stock.

The crown of Allamakee County Fair Queen and all the honors and responsibilities that accompany it will be bestowed upon one of those seven candidates Tuesday evening, July 19 during the Allamakee County Fair Queen Coronation being held at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds Pavilion in Waukon to help kick off the 163rd Allamakee County Fair.

A total of 29 Allamakee County 4-H youth recently showcased their talents by competing in various communications and clothing events during the Expressions Day Program and Style Show held at the Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC) Waukon Campus and the Waukon High School Auditorium Sunday, June 26. Several received top awards and will have the opportunity to represent Allamakee County at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines August 11-21.

The 4-H’ers winning top honors in Educational Presentations and advancing on to represent Allamakee County at the Iowa State Fair include Michael Mattson, Abby Wiemerslage, Christa Heffern and Taylor Howard. These 4-H’ers are judged on stage presence, vocal projection, organization, visual aids, educational value of topic, and how well they kept their audience interested as they present their information.

by Joe Moses

Due to the Fourth of July holiday falling on the usual Monday meeting day of the Allamakee County Board of Supervisors, Monday, July 4, the Board held a delayed regular session last week, resulting in two Board meetings within the past week's timeframe. Coverage of both meetings appears below.

TUESDAY, JULY 5
The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in a holiday-delayed regular session Tuesday, July 5 due to the Fourth of July holiday falling on its usual Monday meeting day. A brief meeting agenda consisted of signing the engagement letter for the continuation of services with Hacker, Nelson & Co., P.C. and approving the fiscal year 2017 appropriation resolution.

A case spanning several decades and including a more recent investigation renewed several years ago was finally brought to more of a legal close Friday, July 8 with the sentencing of a former Effigy Mounds National Monument Superintendent. Thomas Munson, age 76, of Prairie du Chien, WI served as the national monument's superintendent for more than two decades before retiring in 1994. He was sentenced July 8 in Federal District Court in Cedar Rapids for removing ancient burial remains from the national monument in 1990 and hiding them in his own garage for more than 20 years.

Saturday, July 2 at approximately 7 p.m., a burglary and theft occurred at the Bodensteiner Implement (Waukon Implement/John Deere) dealership south of Waukon on Highway 9.

Numerous Stihl power tools, Stihl accessories and pressure washers were taken. During the investigation, video surveillance was obtained in reference to the burglary and theft showing two vehicles in the area at the time (see accompanying photographs) A pick-up owned by Bodensteiner Implement was also stolen and abandoned at the Innovative Ag Services parking lot approximately a mile away on Ninth Street SW, Waukon.

The following day, Sunday, July 3, the Winneshiek County Sheriff’s Office also investigated the theft of Stihl power tools and accessories from the Bodensteiner Implement dealership west of Decorah on Highway 9. It is believed these two incidents are related.

Thomas Munson, the former Effigy Mounds National Monument Superintendent who pled guilty to removing ancient human remains from the national monument, is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids for sentencing this Friday, July 8. Munson pleaded guilty to misdemeanor embezzlement and theft of prehistoric human skeletal remains in a plea deal reached in early January of this year.

According to documents from Iowa's Northern District U.S. Attorney's Office, in mid-July of 1990 during his tenure as Effigy Mounds Superintendent, Munson carried a box of human remains from the monument's curatorial facility to his car, and directed a subordinate to do the same. He then drove the stolen remains to his home in Prairie du Chien, WI and hid them for more than two decades. When the boxes were finally recovered in May of 2012, investigators found that several of the human bones were broken or fragmented beyond recognition.

The first-ever Iowa 99 County Bible Reading Marathon took place throughout the state of Iowa this past week following a proclamation signed by Iowa Governor Terry Branstad in late April. Organized in Allamakee County by Mary Keatley and Kristi Hager, more than 200 local residents took part in the Bible Reading Marathon on the lawn of the Allamakee County Courthouse (as pictured in surrounding photos) over the course of its four days Thursday, June 30 through Sunday, July 3. Both Keatley and Hager shared that the local effort came together because Allamakee County was part of a larger network where Ginny Caligiuri, Iowa Prayer Caucus State Director, had weekly tele-conferences, emails, suggestions and a basic format. “We followed the vision which she and others shared,” they said. “People came together. It gave people an opportunity to read God's Word in public, probably for the first time, something they may have never done before, and won't forget.

by Joe Moses

A familiar face has returned to the Waukon area to carry on a career steeped in serving and protecting.

Corey Snitker, a 1985 graduate of Waukon High School, began his new position as Emergency Management Coordinator with Allamakee County in late April of this year. Snitker is also a graduate of Iowa State University, where he attended with a Marine option ROTC scholarship.