Top Stories

by Joe Moses

Iowa Senator Charles Grassley held a Q&A session Tuesday, May 4 at the Waukon Wellness Center’s Community Room as part of his annual 99-County Tour, an effort to hear directly from his constituents about issues affecting Iowans. Over 20 individuals were in attendance representing a cross section of business, industry, health care and economic development within Allamakee County.

CEO Michael Coyle of Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) in Waukon began the discussion with Grassley by providing some background relating to the recent opening of the VMH Waukon Medical Clinic. Coyle discussed the Mayo Clinic’s decision to leave that clinic space a year and a half ago, leaving many without a local primary health care provider. Coyle noted that the Gundersen Clinic on the VMH campus has done a great job in serving patients but with the loss of the Mayo Clinic, there was a need for additional providers in this community.

by Lissa Blake

Customer Service representatives are often the heart and soul of successful organizations.

And in order for a community to be successful, it has to make sure those representatives have the tools to promote their assets.

Beginning June 1, Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC), in partnership with Allamakee County Economic Development (ACED) and Tourism, will offer an “earn and learn” month-long class (33 hours of class instruction) to help local businesses and existing or potential workers develop their customer service skills. At the end of the course, participants will earn a customer service certificate.

The Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Medical Clinic is now open, offering primary family health care to the entire northeast Iowa area with the opening of its doors for the first time Monday, May 3. The new clinic is located in the former Mayo Clinic building on East Main Street in Waukon, with Mayo Clinic having ceased operations in Waukon in December 2019.

Renovation of the clinic building began in January of this year and was completed in April. The building now meets the privacy and technology needs required by rural health care clinics today.

“Now, with both the Gundersen Clinic and VMH Waukon Clinic, northeast Iowa has the access to primary health care they need and deserve,” VMH officials shared.

by Julie Berg-Raymond

People who live near the Upper Mississippi River in northeast Iowa tend to know a lot about that river.

They know about its long (and, increasingly, long-ago) history of commercial fishing, and many of them have their own favorite fishing spots among the great river’s “lakes” and backwaters; their local media provides river levels throughout the season, alongside other news and informational reports. They think of the first barge the way other people think of the first robin - as a sure sign that spring has arrived.

But here’s a fact even many river town dwellers may not know: The Guinness World Record for paddling by canoe the 2,300-mile length of the Mississippi River is 18 days, four hours and 51 minutes - set in 2003, by Bob Bradford and Clark Eid.

Kee High School seniors Mado Shako (left) and Owen Henkes (right) were selected as the 2021 Kee High School Prom Queen and King at the annual event held Saturday, April 24. Shako was selected from a Queen court that also consisted of fellow seniors Jaiden Berns, Rhissa Eiden and Alexis Johnson. Henkes was chosen from a King court that also included fellow seniors Jesse Jones, Kellen Maddox and Michael Mattson. Photo courtesy of DW Photography.

Waukon High School seniors Hailey Fahey (left) and Ryan VanderVelden (right) were selected as the 2021 Waukon High School Prom Queen and King at the annual event held Saturday, April 24. Fahey was selected from a Queen court that also consisted of fellow seniors Hayley Christensen, Bailey Shafer and Madelyn Waters. VanderVelden was chosen from a King court that also included fellow seniors Denzel Decker, Daniel Gruman and Brennan Sweeney.

by Kelli Boylen

Two Waukon High School (WHS) graduates recently returned from spending nearly 11 months in Kuwait with the Iowa National Guard. Adam Benzing, a 2015 WHS graduate, of Harpers Ferry, and Andrew Miller, a 2018 WHS graduate, of Cedar Rapids, recently shared some of the experiences of their deployment.

Benzing, Miller and other members of the Iowa National Guard were deployed May 28, 2020 and returned home earlier this month, April 7. The unit Benzing belongs to is headquartered out of Oelwein, and Miller is based out of Waterloo.

Although the two of them were both deployed at the same time and are both members of the Iowa National Guard Company C, 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Regiment, they belong to different units within the regiment and did not get the opportunity to interact during their time there, nor did they know each other in school.

The Allamakee County Dairy Promotion Board has scheduled its 2021 Allamakee County Dairy Banquet for Saturday, June 12 at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds Pavilion. The meal will be served from 7-8:30 p.m. and the awards program starts at 8 p.m. Tickets may be purchased at the door.

The annual Allamakee County Dairy Banquet celebration recognizes the importance of the dairy industry in Allamakee County and the contributions dairy families make to this important industry. Every year top producers from the county are recognized at the banquet. In addition, several other awards are presented that evening.

The 2021 Allamakee County Dairy Princess will also be crowned. Additional information about this year’s Allamakee County Dairy Princess application deadline can be found on Page 2 of this edition of The Standard.

The 2021 Waukon High School Prom is scheduled to be held this Saturday, April 24 at the Waukon Middle School gymnasium. Doors will open at 7 p.m. for the 8 p.m. Grand March, with no limit to the number of guests a Prom participant may invite to the Grand March but masks being required to be worn at all times by all in attendance. Students participating in Prom may remove their masks during the Grand March procession only.

Following the Grand March will be the coronation of this year’s Prom King and Queen. Visitors are asked to exit the building after the coronation in order for students to start the Prom dance. Students need to be present and attend both the dance and Post Prom event to be eligible for prizes at the Post Prom event being held in the Waukon High School gymnasium. Post Prom will offer a variety of activities, including games, contests and a hypnotist, and will take place following the Prom dance, from 11 p.m.-3:30 a.m.

The 2021 Kee High School Prom is scheduled for this Saturday, April 24. Pictured at left are the senior class Queen and King candidates for the annual event. Left to right - Front row: Queen candidates Mado Shako, Rhissa Eiden, Alexis Johnson, Jaiden Berns; Back row: King candidates Owen Henkes, Michael Mattson, Kellen Maddox, Jesse Jones. The annual banquet will be held at TJ Hunter’s Banquet Hall on Main Street in Lansing at 5:30 p.m. The dance will take place from 8-11:30 p.m. in the banquet hall.