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Jane Elaine (Palmer) Rausch and James Dean Johnson were united in marriage July 1, 2017 surrounded by their family and close friends in one of the historic family farm barns at their home in rural Waterville/Monona.  Officiating the ceremony was Loretta Muffett, niece and goddaughter of the groom.

The bride is the daughter of Norbert and Nola (Enyart) Palmer of Waukon, and the granddaughter of the late Emmett and Evelyn (Klees) Palmer, and Russell and Adeline (Smith) Enyart.

The groom is the son of the late Levi and Drucilla (Buege) Johnson of Waukon, and the grandson of the late Leo and Ruth (Ralston) Johnson and Ferdinand and Florence (Harris) Buege.

The parents of the bride were escorted down the aisle by the groom, and the bride was escorted down the aisle by her sons, Benjamin and Michael Rausch, to the songs “When I Say I Do” and “The Day Before You”.

Angie Guider and Detrick Steiber, both of Lansing, wish to invite family and friends to a dance celebrating their recent wedding ceremony. The dance will be held August 19 from 8-12 p.m. at the Winchester in Waterville.
The bride’s parents are Tom and Marion Guider of Lansing. The groom’s parents are Daryl Steiber (Pam Lichty) and Diana Steiber (Bill Meyer), all of Lansing.

Sean and Rose Onsgard of Dorchester announce the birth of their daughter, Stella Rose Onsgard, born July 28, 2017 at Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon. She weighed 7 lbs. 2 ozs. and measured 19-3/4 inches in length at the time of her birth. She joins a brother, Walter (3).

Grandparents are Pat and Jerald Oakes of Spring Grove, MN, Kenneth Onsgard of La Crosse, WI, Kathy McClenathen of Winona, MN and Roger Hammel of Dorchester. Great-grandparents are Walter and Maryann Mahr of Dorchester and Ralph Hammel, Sr. of Decorah.
 

by Dick Schilling, "Editor Emeritus"

... that Mother Nature really smiled on Allamakee County as Ragbrai ended over the weekend.

Temperatures were moderate and there was no rain. In late July, heavy thunderstorms and readings in the 90s are always a possibility. As a result of the excellent conditions, the sponsoring Des Moines Register declared this the most beautiful ride of them all. Newspapers and TV, for example, showed the light fog turned early Saturday morning’s landscape into a sort of a French impressionist painting effect. And the shots of the Mississippi River near the power plant in Lansing were fantastic!

All of which proves again that we who live here sometimes seem to take it for granted.

I avoided the activities as much as I could, feeling I would only be in the way at my age.

To the Editor:

Waukon and Allamakee County, I couldn’t be prouder to call this place home!

Early on in the process of RAGBRAI preparations, I heard someone say that “if a town could ruin RAGBRAI, it would be Waukon,” and I’m happy to say that nothing could have been further from the truth. For those 48 hours we worked as a community of kind, caring and compassionate people who fed the hungry, gave drink to the thirsty, sheltered the homeless, welcomed the traveler and showed the state and each other what we are capable of.

Friends from outside the area repeatedly told me how great the community did and they found our warmth, hospitality and organizational skills to be unmatched. Those who came to our medical tent were grateful for the care they received and for the treats we fed them while we patched up their wounds or as we gave them IV fluids.

To the Editor:

My appreciation goes out to all the organizers, volunteers, hosts, churches, businesses, bands, police officers and others who helped to make Waukon a place of hospitality for the riders on RAGBRAI®. At the edge of town, riders were greeted by a crowd of residents and an artistic archway. To satisfy our hunger, there were local churches and restaurants who served an amazing variety of food for affordable prices.

From one end of town to the other, people allowed their lawns to be transformed into campgrounds. Throughout town, there were benches, signs and bicycle-themed art that created a festive atmosphere. In the evening, a local band played fun music for a massive crowd in the middle of downtown.

To the Editor:

Everyone who worked so hard to make RAGBRAI happen, please give yourselves a huge pat on the back and put a big smile on your face. It was a fantastic event and one of the most exciting small town Iowa events I have experienced.

Many thousands of people from all over the country and even outside of the U.S. got to experience Allamakee County and had a great time doing it. Well done, indeed!

Ben Ross
Waukon
 

To the Editor:

A recent writer referred to God as the “Originator of liberty and justice.” I must disagree, as those cherished ideals are also common to many secular cultures.

I am not a religious person, but I am delighted to treat others fairly, and to ensure that their rights and liberties are respected. I do that not because some God or holy book is telling me to, but simply because everyone deserves to be treated that way.

And I might also correct the writer that the Declaration of Independence essentially does “call on a religion” in the fight for independence.  Check out the last paragraph, especially the very eloquent closing sentence.

Mark Brandt
Minneapolis, MN
 

by Jeremy Leitz, Allamakee County Executive Director (563) 568-2148

Upcoming Deadlines and Important Dates
• September 1 - December 15: 2018 Margin Protection Program Sign-Up

Elections for the 2017 County Committee
Elections for USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) County Committees are underway in Allamakee County.

It is important that every eligible producer participate in these elections because FSA county committees are a link between the agricultural community and the USDA. The 2017 election in Allamakee County will be conducted for the representative Local Administrative Area (LAA): Ludlow, Jefferson, Post, Franklin, Linton, and Fairview townships.

County committee election ballots will be mailed to eligible voters Nov. 6, 2017.  The last day to return completed ballots to the Allamakee County USDA service center is Dec. 4, 2017.
Unauthorized Disposition of Grain

Helicopters and planes have become more noticeable over rural Allamakee County with crop dusting in full swing. Pictured above, Will Powell, owner and pilot for Alabama-based Xtreme Aviation, lands a helicopter on top of the truck used for refueling and refilling the water/chemical combination used on fields. Powell is one of several contractors applying fungicide to corn and beans in eastern Iowa. Powell is pictured below applying fungicide at a rural Lansing farm. Standard photos by Joe Moses.