At the Monday, April 24 meeting of the Allamakee County Board of Supervisors, Allamakee County Emergency Management Coordinator Corey Snitker reported that the large debris field within the Big Slough in the Mississippi River from last year’s flooding has been cleaned up following the coordination and efforts of several organizations. Following the record flooding of the Upper Iowa River last year in August, an unexpected result of that flooding was the large amount of man-made and woody debris collected by that river’s rising floodwaters which, in turn, flowed downriver and finally settled in and clogged the Big Slough of the Mississippi River south of New Albin (as evident in the photo above taken during the recent clean-up effort). Upon notification of the existence of this debris field by members of the Friends of Pool 9, efforts began with several agencies to determine a plan of action to clean up this large debris field.
Kent Sweeney, owner of Side Street Cycles in Waukon, displays the motorcycle he created for a local motorcycle enthusiast, along with the First Place award the bike recently received in the Sport Custom Class at the 30th Anniversary Donnie Smith Bike & Car Show in Minneapolis, MN. Standard photo by Joe Moses.
Assistance from local businesses helps latest creation take first place in Sport Custom class
Following an initial custom motorcycle creation in 2015 that earned high accolades, Kent Sweeney of Side Street Cycles in Waukon was hoping to build on that momentum, and seems to have been able to do just that. A second such creation has already earned a first-place award in the Sport Custom Class of the 30th Anniversary Donnie Smith Bike & Car Show held in Minneapolis, MN March 25-26.
Sweeney once again teamed up with the local motorcycle enthusiast he had joined forces with to modify a 2003 Harley-Davidson Super Glide Sport in 2015 into a winner of two other Donnie Smith Bike & Car Show awards and high honors from Hot Bike Power Tour. With their follow-up creation, the pair chose a 2007 Harley-Davidson FXDSE, which Sweeney describes in plain words as a Screaming Eagle CVO Dyna.
The Corner of Hope Foods Resource Bank local growing project held its annual Blessing of the Seed and Soil on a blustery Saturday morning, April 29 to kick off the growing season. The event was held at the Mt. Olivet food plot north of Waukon, and Father Mark Osterhaus of St. Patrick Catholic Church gave the blessing. Submitted photo.
The Waukon Fire Department responded to a blaze at 204 Fifth Street SW in Waukon just prior to midnight Saturday, April 29, finding an unattached garage owned by Vickie Larson of Waukon fully engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived. Crews were at the scene of the fire for several hours. The garage and its contents were a total loss, but the two houses adjacent immediately to the north and to the south of the garage were both saved from any serious damage by the efforts of the responding fire crew. The cause of the fire has been determined to be electrical in nature. Submitted photo.
The Waukon City Council met in regular session Monday, May 1 to address a full agenda of items, including an update regarding the Des Moines Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI®), issues concerning parking on Main Street and Allamakee Street and an expansion at Reelcore.
During Public Comments, Howard Van Ruler of Howards Home Furnishings complimented the City Council and specifically Councilman Dwight Jones for following up with Town & Country Sanitation and helping resolve his concerns. Van Ruler was previously informed that he would need to have recyclables and garbage containers moved to the street for collection, rather than being left in the alley behind his business. Van Ruler indicated that garbage and recycling collection has been accomplished in the alley without any problem.
Kee High School juniors Caleb Conway (left) and Jack Mooney (right) have been selected to attend Boys State June 11-16 this year in Johnston. They were selected by and are sponsored by the Lansing VFW Post 5981 and Lansing American Legion Post 50. Submitted photo.
Two Kee High School junior students, Jack Mooney and Caleb Conway, have been selected to attend the annual Boys State event being held at Fort Dodge in Johnston June 11-16 this year. Local selection of attendees is being sponsored by the Lansing Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 5981 and Lansing American Legion Post 50.
Jack Mooney is the son of Dan and Renee Mooney of rural New Albin. Caleb Conway is the son of Greg and Jenny Conway of rural Lansing.
Begun in 1938, Boys State is a six-day course in self government, consistently taught with a hands-on approach. The young men of 2017 Boys State, all of whom will have finished their junior year of high school, will be divided into 32 cities. Four cities constitute a county and eight counties make up Boys State. The cities are composed of members of the Nationalist and Federalist parties. The citizens within these cities hold party caucus meetings, conventions, campaigns and general elections.
Members of the Knights of Columbus Council 12244 in Lansing conducted their bi-annual roadside clean-up Saturday, April 22. The job was accomplished with the help of members John Colsch, Sam Kuhn, Marty Brennan, Lornie Mitchell, Jim Hosch, John Delong, Mike Quillin, Tony Monat, Bob Teff and Earl Hammell. Submitted photo.
The Lansing City Council met in its regular session Monday night, May 1. After approving the Consent Agenda, the Council discussed the problem with hiring lifeguards and other personnel for the City swimming pool this season. It was reported that only three lifeguard applications have been received and it was felt that 10 lifeguards would be needed in order to make the pool operational at optimal safety. Those involved say time is running short, but they remain hopeful that more applications will be received prior to the swimming season.
St. Patrick School in Waukon recently hosted a Jump Rope for Heart event to raise money for the American Heart Association. Students collected pledges and performed their Jump Rope for Heart activities April 4 and April 6 in their Physical Education (PE) classes under the direction of David Miller. New additions to the Jump Rope for Heart event this year included trampolines and pogo sticks (pictured above and at right). All Junior Kindergarten through sixth grade students at St. Patrick School participated in the event and helped raise over $1,300 for the American Heart Association. Submitted photos.
Thea Meyer, a 2015 graduate of Waukon High School and the daughter of Don and Mary Meyer of Waukon, was awarded the Emma Meiners-Emerson/Alice Emerson-Hart Scholarship for Excellence in Teaching Elementary Education at the Upper Iowa University 2017 Honors and Awards Recognition Banquet held April 8 in Fayette. This scholarship is awarded to a student with a grade point average (GPA) of 3.75 or higher and majoring in Elementary Education who is also a native of northeast Iowa. Meyer is pictured in the center of the above photo at the banquet with scholarship presenters Dean and Alice Hart (left and right, respectively). Submitted photo.
