News Center newsletter

Lansing VFW Auxiliary #5981 is holding a Soup & Sandwich Supper to honor all Veterans Thursday, March 21 from 3-7 p.m. at Immaculate Conception Church Hall, 648 Main Street in Lansing. A special ceremony, to commemorate National Vietnam Veterans Day and to honor Veterans and widows of Vietnam Veterans, will begin at 5 p.m. Keynote speaker is Steve Bartels, Vietnam Veteran and Lansing native, who now resides in Indiana. Everyone is invited to attend.
 

Third graders in several schools in Allamakee County have discovered what it’s like to get a letter from someone else. The students at St. Patrick School (such as pictured in the photo below) and East Elementary School (such as pictured in the photo at center) in Waukon and at New Albin Elementary School (such as pictured above) - 120 students in all - participated in pen pal programs this fall. The letters were answered by volunteers from the Northeast Iowa RSVP program, which serves Allamakee, Howard and Winneshiek Counties.

The Decorah IowaWORKS Center and Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services will offer job seekers an opportunity to connect with area employers in Waukon this Friday, March 1. The Waukon Career Fair will feature over 30 employers/organizations seeking individuals who are motivated to come in and talk with them and seek employment. The event is open to the public.

The Career Fair will take place this Friday, March 1 from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. at the Waukon High School gymnasium, located at 1061 3rd Avenue NW in Waukon. It is being hosted by the Allamakee Community School District, Northeast Iowa Community College, Allamakee County Economic Development and Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services/IowaWORKS.
 

Iowa high school and college students, as well as their parents or guardians, have a chance at one of 45 scholarship awards deposited into a College Savings Iowa account. Registration for the Iowa Student Loan (ISL) Education Lending Scholarship is open now through March 29. Registration is available online at www.IowaStudentLoan.org/Savings and scholarship recipients will be determined by a random drawing in April.

“After a very successful fall registration period, we are happy to offer a second chance for Iowa families to receive funds for their education,” said Steve McCullough, president and CEO, Iowa Student Loan Liquidity Corporation (ISLLC), which sponsors the scholarship and provides educational funding under the name ISL Education Lending. “And the valuable information all registrants receive as part of the program can help make their existing college funding go further.”

The historic run that has made the 2023-2024 Kee boys basketball season the best in program history was brought to an unfortunate close this past week, with the Hawks ending up on each end of a pair of three-point thrillers in the furthest postseason push ever by a Kee boys basketball team. The bucket Hawks began the week by laying claim to their first-ever district championship after pulling out a 59-56 overtime thriller in the Class 1A District 12 title game played against fellow Upper Iowa Conference squad South Winneshiek Tuesday, February 20 at Waukon High School.

Chest pain is a common presenting complaint in any emergency room, including the emergency room at Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH). There is always the possibility of heart disease in every complaint of chest pain or upper abdominal pain, and it must be taken very seriously.

The common signs and symptoms of an acute myocardial infarction, commonly called a heart attack, are:
1. Chest pain (crushing, squeezing or heaviness).
2. Sudden onset of weakness, nausea, fainting and sweating without an obvious cause.
3. Pain that radiates to the shoulders, neck or arms.

These symptoms occur when the blood flow to a part of the heart is blocked, often by a blood clot. This happens because coronary arteries that supply the heart with blood slowly become clogged from a build-up of cells, fat and cholesterol called plaque.

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Rehabilitation is now able to offer more in-home occupational therapy care, thanks to the addition of Amy Evanson, Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant. Amy works closely with the hospital’s Community and Home Care Department patients, providing patients assistance with the day-to-day tasks of living at home following an illness, injury or surgery, helping them regain function and independence.

Currently, Amy travels to Village Creek to visit Judy Shogren three times per week, following her recent nursing home stay. Amy takes time to work with Judy on her routine in-home duties to build her function and independence.

“I don’t know what I’d do without this service, now that I have it,” states Judy. “I’m so glad to be able to be back in my home.”

The next LifeServe Blood Center blood drive will be held Monday, March 4, from 12-5 p.m. at the First Baptist Church in south Waukon. The LifeServe Blood Center supplies Veterans Memorial Hospital with its blood and blood products.

by Brandy Strub, Dietitian, Veterans Memorial Hospital

As most of you know, February is American Heart Health Month. But are you aware that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that 382-541 per 100,000 people (age 35+) from Allamakee County died from heart disease from 2018-2020. That’s higher than the state average of 310-368 per 100,000 and the national average of 319.5 per 100,000!

In order not to be a statistic and to prevent dying from heart disease, it is recommended that you keep your blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugars within a healthy range. What’s considered a healthy range? It’s not necessarily the same for everyone, so work with your health care professionals to see what is right for you. Eating healthy, getting active, lowering stress and not smoking is also recommended.

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Speech-Language Pathologist Steven Mazzafield offers a Stroke Support Group for individuals who have experienced a stroke, as well as caregivers and family members affected by stroke.

Monthly meetings are held the first Thursday of every month at 2 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Hospital. The next Stroke Support Group meeting will be held Thursday, March 7 at 2 p.m. This month the meeting will be held in the Large Conference Room.

The Stroke Support Group provides opportunities to share tips, tricks, or trials among participants, offer support for caregivers, and provide an opportunity for socialization.

While strokes can happen at any age, risk of stroke is greatest as people get older with the majority of strokes occurring after the age of 70. Risk factors for stroke include obesity, sedentary lifestyle, binge drinking, diabetes, smoking, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure.