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The annual New Albin Days Past and Present celebration that was held June 13-14 celebrated the community of New Albin in all its past history and present glory, with the youth that represent the future of the community being very involved in the annual event through a wide variety of activities. Lydia Strong, daughter of Jason and Stacie Strong of New Albin, was crowned Little Miss New Albin at the Friday, June 13 pageant. The youth of the New Albin community and also those visiting during the annual New Albin Days celebration helped leave their mark on this year's event by contributing throughout the weekend to the mural now created annually during the celebration. Photo courtesy of Lori Darling. Additional photos can be found in in this week's print and e-editions of The Standard as well as by clicking on the Photo Gallery link.
 

by Bob Beach

It was nearly a case of very unfortunate deja vu this past week for Waukon and the surrounding Allamakee County area, as heavy rains Wednesday and Thursday, June 18 and 19 brought some of the same results as almost exactly one year ago - although not to the same overall degree.
National Weather Service data reported rain totals of between eight and nine inches in the few days prior to and including a Thursday, June 19 storm that topped off that total with a frequency of one to one-and-a-half inches of rain per hour during a two-hour period in the early afternoon hours. It was that same type of rain total frequency, both overall and per hour, that brought flash flooding destruction to the downtown Waukon community and the greater Allamakee County area during the June 22-23, 2013 time period.

This summer Dave and Pam Kruger, owners of Empty Nest Winery of Waukon, are gaining recognition not only for their successful, expanding wine business, but also for their work in the Local Foods movement being selected as one of the “Faces of Northeast Iowa’s Farmers Markets”.
In the Spring of 2013, Northeast Iowa Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) opened an application process for a project to highlight farmers market vendors.  The organization received funding from a USDA Farmers Market Promotion Program grant secured by the Iowa League of RC&Ds.  The project, a collaborative effort involving individual RC&Ds across the state, charged Northeast Iowa RC&D with selecting 10 applicants from its seven-county region to be profiled as the face of northeast Iowa’s farmers markets. These applicants were then interviewed and photographed by a professional photographer to capture each producer’s unique story.

by Bob Beach

The "Thunder in the Park" Civil War re-enactment event held in Waukon Friday evening, June 13 through Sunday afternoon, June 15 drew a good level of interest, despite rain forcing cancellation of the cannon night firing scheduled for Saturday evening. Although the battle lines were clearly drawn in the re-enactment phase of the weekend's abundant activities, all seemed to come together in peace and harmony for the Saturday evening dance and other relaxation times within the re-enactment camps, and all certainly came together to make the weekend what event originator Al Lyon called "a satisfying success." A total of 90 re-enactors took part in the battle events, with anticipation high to begin planning in August for next year's event. "We were pretty pleased for this being just our second year," Lyon said. "We plan to keep growing, but it takes some time to work out all the kinks when you start an event like this.

by Bob Beach

by Bob Beach

The annual New Albin Days celebration is scheduled to take place in the community of New Albin this weekend, Friday and Saturday, June 13 and 14. A wide variety of events is being scheduled, with a schedule of events available on Page 12A of this week's issue of The Standard.
This year's New Albin Days button (pictured with this article) that can be purchased for admission to most any of this year's events was designed by Jonah Reinke. The buttons are available for purchase at most New Albin businesses and on the festgrounds at this year's event.
The crowning of Miss New Albin will take place Friday, June 13. Entry forms for the Miss New Albin Pageant are available at New Albin Savings Bank or by contacting Jen Mitchell. Girls entering the contest must reside within the 52160 zip code and be between six and 11 years old.

The 2014 Allamakee County Dairy Parade traversed the streets of Lansing Monday, June 2, with a number of area businesses, families and organizations providing entries to pay tribute to the dairy industry and sharing not only their appreciation for area dairy producers, businesses and organizations, but also some of the dairy treats they produce. Photos by Andrea Kerndt. View and find out how purchase this photo and more in the Photo Gallery.