Kevin and Trish Martin of Waukon announce the birth of their son, Mason Edwin Martin, born October 23, 2017 at Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon. He weighed 6 lbs. 5 ozs. and measured 20-1/4 inches in length at the time of his birth. He joins sisters, Brooklyn (8) and Alexis (6).
Grandparents are Walter and Peggy Martin of Waukon and Lorraine and Linda Kalke of Decorah. Betty Lundt of Decorah is a great-grandparent.
Liz Heitman and Dustin Baumler of Ossian announce the birth of their daughter, Raelynn Karen Baumler, born October 19, 2017 at Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon. She weighed 8 lbs. 9 ozs. and measured 22 inches in length at the time of her birth.
Grandparents are Dave and Janette Heitman of Lansing and Dave and Natalie Knutson of Ossian.
Candido and Mindy Caguach-Hernandez of Postville announce the birth of their son, Dominick Yair Caguach-Hernandez, born October 12, 2017 at Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon. He weighed 8 lbs. 7 ozs. and measured 19-1/4 inches in length at the time of his birth. He joins siblings, Marcy (15), Luis (11) and Mariah (4).
Grandparents are Susan Kuhse of Postville and Ken Kuhse of Cedar Rapids. Vivian Peterson of Postville is a great-grandparent.
by Jeremy Leitz, Allamakee County Executive Director (563) 568-2148
Upcoming Deadlines and Important Dates
• November 10: Office closed in recognition of Veteran’s Day
• December 15: Report acreages intended to be used for forage and pasture in 2018
• December 15: Sign up for, or opt out of, the 2018 Margin Protection Program
County Committee Election
During the week of November 6 producers in Ludlow, Jefferson, Post, Franklin, Linton, and Fairview Townships will receive county committee voting ballots. The last day to return completed ballots to the FSA office is December 4. If you’re an eligible producer in one of these townships, be on the lookout for your ballot. Committee members are a critical component of the day-to-day operations of FSA. They work to make FSA agricultural programs serve the needs of local producers.
Feeding system at new pork facility ... An interior view of the new pork facility on Gronna Drive in rural Waterville during the public tour and open house held earlier this year. Gated pens and the feeding system are shown in the climate-controlled facility that holds up to 2,499 pigs at a time, finishing out over 7,000 pigs annually. Standard photo by Joe Moses.
New pork facility begins operation ... A new pork facility on Gronna Drive in rural Waterville was open for public tours earlier this year and began operation in July with the arrival of pigs from Reicks View Farms. Pictured is the outside of the pork facility with visible bio-security measures including screening to keep birds out and rocks surrounding the facility to deter rodents from coming near the facility. Standard photo by Joe Moses.
The public tours pork facility ... The public was given a rare opportunity to tour a newly-built pork facility constructed this year on Gronna Drive in rural Waterville. Experts in the industry provided tours of the climate-controlled facility July 17 prior to the July 20 arrival of pigs from Reicks View Farms. Standard photo by Joe Moses.
by Joe Moses
Pork Month has come to a close with the end of October and another year for the pork industry has almost come to a close for 2017. The pork industry has proven to be an integral part of the local agriculture-based economy in northeast Iowa. According to the Iowa Pork Producers Association’s 2017 data, the pork industry in Allamakee County represents 393 jobs with $21.9 million in labor income, producing $1.4 million in state and local taxes and $3.1 million in federal taxes. Countywide, pork accounts for $53.5 million in sales with the involvement of 49 farms hosting an inventory of 107,184 hogs.
For beginning or aspiring farmers, a few thousand dollars in start-up cash, an experienced mentor and support network and a solid business plan can be the keys to a successful farm start-up.
Practical Farmers of Iowa offers all of these to participants in their two-year Savings Incentive Program. Applications for this competitive program only open once a year, and must be submitted by November 11 using the online form found at http://practicalfarmers.org/savings-incentive-program. Those admitted will begin the program in early 2018 and graduate in late 2019. Applications will be evaluated by a committee of Practical Farmers members using a scoring system that rewards a noticeable commitment to developing applicants’ independent farming goals.
The Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Women in Ag Leadership Conference will be held November 27-28 at the Iowa State Center - Scheman Building in Ames, Iowa. Online registration is now available.
Monday evening from 5:30-8:30 p.m., conference attendees have the opportunity to participate in one of the three Intensive Leadership Workshops offered. Dinner during the workshops is included in the cost of registration. The three-hour interactive sessions will give women practical leadership advice and tools as well as inspire women to lead successfully at all levels of experience.
Additional networking activities are also available Monday. Conference attendees can sign up to take a free campus tour from 3-5 p.m. and enjoy a hospitality room at the Best Western University Park Inn and Suites from 8:30-10 p.m.
City Council Wards in the town of Waukon ... With multiple City Council Wards in Waukon being part of this year's City Election scheduled for Tuesday, November 7, City officials felt it in the best interest of voters to remind them of the area each of the town's three City Council Wards covers.
Ward Two (highlighted in yellow in the southwest portion of Waukon) does not actually have a city council candidate on the City Election ballot this year, as the Ward Two council seat currently occupied by John Lydon is not up for election for another two years. Residents in Ward Two will vote at St. John's Lutheran Church for the mayor and at-large city council seat, as well as the proposed hotel/motel tax increase.
Ward One (highlighted in blue and essentially covering all areas east of Spring Avenue/Rossville Road and Allamakee Street, plus a couple smaller areas just west of Allamakee Street in the north portion of the city) has just one candidate, Gayle Decker, vying for that seat, which is actually being vacated by current occupant Steve Wiedner as he seeks the mayor's seat in this year's election. Ward One residents will vote at the NICC Waukon Center.
Ward Three (highlighted in pink and covering the vast majority of northwest Waukon) is the lone contested council race in Waukon this year, with three candidates vying for that seat, including incumbent Don Steffens and challengers Arvid Hatlan and Kevin Welsh. Residents of Ward Three will vote in the Supervisors Board Room in the Allamakee County Courthouse. For additional information on ward locations or voting precincts, contact the Waukon City Clerk's office at 563-568-3492. Submitted image.
Voters in all Allamakee County towns with local government representation are scheduled to go to the polls Tuesday, November 7 to cast their selections in the 2017 City Election. Sample ballots of the respective races within each of the communities with local government candidates competing in this year's election were published on Pages 2B and 3B in the October 25 issue of The Standard, along with a listing of polling sites for all six Allamakee County towns holding elections this year. Election polls will be open from 7 a.m.-8 p.m. in Waukon and from 12 noon-8 p.m. in all other Allamakee County communities holding elections.
Allamakee County Economic Development & Tourism (ACED) unveiled a new postcard (pictured at right) at the ACED Annual Meeting hosted in New Albin Thursday, October 19. The meeting attendees were challenged by ACED Director Val Reinke to mail the postcard to a friend or family member outside of Allamakee County with an invitation to visit. Reinke commented, “Tourists and residents alike have inquired about a 'local' postcard and now we can finally offer one.”
This postcard was created to highlight and recognize Allamakee County’s top tourist locations, including Effigy Mounds National Monument (more than 80,000 visitors a year), Yellow River State Forest (more than 40,000 visitors a year), Driftless Area Scenic Byway (voted most scenic byway in Iowa) and Great River Road (36.2 miles through Allamakee County). This postcard design also matches the new display banners created for tourism and economic development events.
Unique training opportunity for Lansing Fire Department ... Members of the Lansing Fire Department take a moment for a photo before implementing a live house burn training exercise at a house located at 1151 Westgate Drive in Lansing Saturday, October 21. The house was being razed for future development opportunities and the property owners offered the house as an opportunity for the Lansing volunteer crew to further their training and experience. Pictured above as the home begins to burn are: Left to right - Front row: Kenny Johnson, Troy Hill, Tony Becker, Steve Darling. Back row: Jamie Rasque, Conrad Rosendahl, Chandler Quirk, Ben Verdon, Nick Hammell, Joe Manning. Photo by Julie Berg-Raymond.
Learn from the burn ... The house located at 1151 Westgate Drive in Lansing was used by the Lansing Fire Department as a live house burn training opportunity on a rainy Saturday morning, October 21 before the house was completely dismantled and cleared from the property for future development. Department volunteers were able to use the burning of the home to train in smoke-filled space rescue and firefighting, along with a number of other firefighting techniques for both interior and exterior situations. Surrounding photos by Julie Berg-Raymond.
by Julie Berg-Raymond
About two dozen people stood out in the rain one recent early morning, Saturday, October 21, to watch members of the all-volunteer Lansing Fire Department burn a house to the ground.
Firefighters call the exercise a “live house burn.”
It was a spectacular situation to witness - the disintegration of a building, as clouds of black smoke rolled from windows and tongues of flame consumed a long-standing structure with impossible speed; and plenty of cameras were on hand that morning to capture the event.
More importantly, it was an opportunity to witness friends and neighbors in this small town of Lansing practicing to do the work of everyday heroes.
