Jody E. “Smokey” Clauson, age 61, of Marengo, IL passed away August 8, 2024. Visitation was held Tuesday, August 13, 2024 at The Healy Chapel, 332 West Downer Place, Aurora, IL. Burial will take place at 12 p.m. Friday, August 16 at Waterloo Ridge Church Cemetery in Dorchester.
In lieu of flowers the family is requesting donations be made to diabetic research in her name. To sign the online guestbook, please visit www.healychapel.com.
Jody was born April 21, 1963 in Phoenix, AZ to Joseph and Glenda (Shelby) Spatz. She retired from the Beacon News as a Telemarketer in Aurora, IL. She was a founding member of “The Five Mile Club”.
Janette Jerrine Ryder-Blong, 87, died Thursday, August 1, 2024 at Good Samaritan Center in Waukon. Funeral services will be held Wednesday, August 14 at 11 a.m. at St. Patrick Catholic Church in Waukon with Fr. John Moser, Fr. Joseph Sevcik, and Rev. Msgr. Ed Lechtenberg officiating. Burial will be at Mount Olivet Cemetery, Waukon.
Friends may greet the family from 4-7 p.m. Tuesday, August 13 at Martin-Grau Funeral Home in Waukon where there will be a 4 p.m. scripture service. In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to St. Patrick Catholic Church.
Janette was born April 20, 1937, at her parents’ home in rural Castalia. Her father had gone to find the midwife for delivery, but by the time he had returned home Janette had already been born.
Giving back to “a really great cause”... Eleven-year-old Brogan Gavin of rural Lansing and his Angus steer, Johnny, (photo above) have been selected to participate in the Iowa Governor’s Charity Steer Show at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines this Saturday, August 10, an event that benefits Ronald McDonald House Charities each year. Brogan’s dad, Tom Gavin, has also been selected to be his “celebrity” show partner during the annual event that will take place at 4:30 p.m. this Saturday in the Livestock Pavilion near the center of the Iowa State Fairgrounds. The Gavin family (photo below) knows well all the support Ronald McDonald House Charities has to offer as they were able to stay in one of the organization’s locations in Rochester, MN during Brogan’s treatment for T-cell ALL several years ago. Pictured in the family photo are parents Tom and Alana Gavin (left to right in back), along with their four children, Brielle, Brogan (holding Johnny), Breyson and Braxon (left to right in front). Submitted photos.
Donations can be made in support of Brogan Gavin to benefit Ronald McDonald House
The annual Governor’s Charity Steer Show held as part of the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines each year will have some local flair to it this year, as the 42nd annual event takes place at the Livestock Pavilion on the Iowa State Fairgrounds this Saturday, August 10.
Brogan Gavin, 11-year-old son of Tom and Alana Gavin of rural Lansing, and his Angus steer, Johnny, have been selected to participate in this year’s show. They will be one of 24 exhibitor/steer pairs on display during this year’s event, each circling the show ring accompanied by a “celebrity” showperson.
Living up to its name ... For the second consecutive year, the “Feed the Kids” program in Waukon that began last year has undoubtedly lived up to its name, as evident in the number of children pictured in each of these two photos. Filling a gap in the Allamakee Community School District’s Summer Feeding Program during the month of July, this year’s participation in the program grew by more than 40% over last year’s inaugural campaign, feeding nearly 2,000 lunches and just under 2,400 take-home breakfasts to local youth. Submitted photos.
The “Feed the Kids” program in Waukon completed its second July of feeding lunches and grab-and-go breakfasts to children 18 years of age and younger this past week. The program grew by over 40% from its inaugural effort last year, serving 1,974 lunches and 2,367 breakfasts over the course of 18 days during the month of July, up from its nearly 1,400 meals served during last year’s first-time effort.
The Allamakee Community School District (ACSD) provides breakfasts and lunches during June and August to local children as part of its Summer Feeding Program. However, to fill the July feeding gap (when the school does not provide those meals), members of four local churches in Waukon, including St. Patrick Catholic Church, St. John’s Lutheran Church, St. Paul’s United Methodist Church and Zion United Church of Christ, started to meet in May of last year to come up with an initial plan for last summer’s inaugural effort, and did so again to plan for this year.
Those who drive on Iowa 76 north of Waukon will need to be aware of construction work that was scheduled to begin Monday, August 5 and will last until late August, weather permitting. Construction crews will intermittently close lanes from Waukon to the Minnesota state line so micro-surfacing work can be done to the pavement, which involves the application of a thin protective coating. Drivers will travel through the work zone with the assistance of flaggers and a pilot car.
The latest traveler information is available anytime through the Iowa DOT 511 system. Visit 511ia.org; call 511 (within Iowa) or 800-288-1047 (nationwide); stay connected with 511 on Facebook or X (find links at https://iowadot.gov/511/511-social-media-sites); or download the free app to any mobile device.
Those who drive on the Mississippi River Bridge at Lansing will need to be aware that intermittent closures on the bridge will resume again this Thursday, August 8, weather permitting. The temporary closures were delayed by high river levels in June.
Construction crews will continue work on constructing a new pier and driving the pier foundation for the new bridge that will replace the current bridge. Intermittent closures of up to two hours will happen on the existing bridge between the hours of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. to reduce vibration from construction activity and traffic, limiting the chance of damage occurring.
Weather permitting, these closures will be done by Friday, August 16. The Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) will be updating the Lansing Bridge Facebook page with the approximate closure time a day in advance. There will not be any closures of the bridge this Friday, August 9 in consideration of Lansing Fish Days.
The End of Watch: Ride to Remember rolling memorial honoring fallen law enforcement officers will be on display for the general public at the Allamakee County Sheriff’s Office this Friday, August 9 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Among those honored within the End of Watch display will be fallen Allamakee County Deputy Sheriff John Grampovnik, who passed away January 27, 2022 from complications as a result of contracting COVID-19 in the line of duty.
Deputy Grampovnik had served with the Allamakee County Sheriff’s Department for almost 25 years and previously served with the Waukon Police Department. He is survived by his wife, daughter, father, three sisters, and many nieces and nephews.
The End of Watch display will be at the Allamakee County Sheriff’s Office as part of Day 70 of a 73-day tour across the United States. More information is available at www.endofwatchride.com.
The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Monday, August 5 to address a full agenda of matters including the consideration of setting a date and time for appointing a County Treasurer, discussion and consideration of bids for the CAT6 network cable and security camera upgrade work for the County Courthouse, and the consideration of new tandem truck chassis quotes.
The meeting was called to order by Board of Supervisors Chairperson Dan Byrnes with Supervisors Mark Reiser and Dennis Keatley present. There was no Public Comment during the time allotted for that agenda item.
Those interested in serving on the Veterans Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees must file the candidacy paperwork by August 28 to be on the November ballot
Allamakee County voters will have a unique opportunity in the coming November 5, 2024 General Election.
After voter approval in November 2022, Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) was transferred from City of Waukon ownership to ownership by Allamakee County. Per Iowa Code 347, a new board of trustees is required to be voted in and all trustee seats are up for election. The VMH Board of Trustees consists of seven members. Membership is open to any eligible resident of Allamakee County.
A board of trustees has many responsibilities, including but not limited to:
The Board of Directors of the Eastern Allamakee Community School District (EACSD) met at Kee High School in Lansing Monday, July 22 for its regular monthly session. The session was delayed a week from its usual third Monday of the month schedule in order to allow new EACSD Superintendent Nick Trenkamp the opportunity to attend, as the school board for the Central Community School District in Elkader that the EACSD is sharing Trenkamp’s services with also meets the third Monday of each month.
After the adoption of the agenda, the July consent items, minutes of the June meetings, bills for June and July, Secretary’s Financial Report for June, and the Activity and Food Service June report were approved. The board also approved the purchase of three 75” Interactive displays and rolling carts in the amount of $6,597 for New Albin Elementary School.
