Year in Review - Part I: Top local news stories printed from January-June 2023

To read the the full article, Year in Review - Part 1: Top local news stories from January-June 2023, pick up this week's print edition or subscribe to our e-edition by clicking here.

The items below summarize the top news stories that appeared in The Standard during the first six months of 2023, January-June.

JANUARY
The Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI) for 2022 ended its annual seven-day bicycle ride across the state in Lansing in late July this past summer. RAGBRAI is the oldest, largest and longest multi-day recreational bicycle touring event in the world.

The total profit realized from Lansing RAGBRAI 2022 was $113,298.92, which is the highest in the history of the annual event, according to RAGBRAI officials. Local organizers say the success of the event in Lansing was only possible because of the immense work and volunteer hours of hundreds of citizens, coming together to show Iowa pride and hospitality. Lansing RAGBRAI Executive Chair Ian Zahren would like to say to the people of the Lansing area and the RAGBRAI riders: “We are immensely grateful to all of you!”

Ordinarily, towns on the RAGBRAI route can expect to profit about five percent of the overall funds. Many earn $20,000-$30,000 as a result of their efforts. This is about what the Lansing community generated in profit the last time the ride ended in Lansing in 2017. In 2022, however, Lansing generated more than a 50 percent profit margin, doubled the revenue generated in 2017 and nearly quadrupled the profit.

Physicians and staff at Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon are pleased to announce that the first baby born to an established patient at the hospital in 2023 has arrived. Zachary John Baumler, son of Liz and Dustin Baumler of Ossian, was recently celebrated as the First Baby of the Year at Veterans Memorial Hospital.

Zachary was born January 13, 2023 at 12:33 p.m.  He weighed 8 pounds, 15 ounces and was 21 inches long at the time of his birth. He joins siblings Raelynn and Conner at home. His grandparents are Dave and Janette Heitman of rural Lansing, Natalie Hemesath of Calmar and the late Joseph Baumler.

Meehan Memorial Lansing Public Library hosted a presentation Thursday, January 12 updating the community about the historical and archaeological work continuing to take place for the Black Hawk Bridge replacement project. Addressing a standing-room only audience in the library that evening were Clayton Burke, Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) overseeing engineer on the bridge project; Ray Werner, historian with Tall Grass Prairie Archaeology LLC, Iowa City; and Brennan Dolan, cultural resource project manager, District 2, with the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT).

Dolan told attendees that a special bid letting - the Lansing bridge project is the only project in this letting - will take place in the summer 2023. The contractor for the project should be known by late August or early September. “This time next year folks will likely see work underway for the new piers,” Dolan said.

FEBRUARY
Participation in the Little Britches Rodeo of Wisconsin over the past several years has gained Waukon Middle School eighth grader Mackenzie Herman some good memories, good friends, and within this past year or so, some high-end awards to show for her work.

But her parents, Rick and Cathy Herman of rural Waukon, say the greatest thing they have seen their daughter gain from participating in the rodeo is confidence in herself and growth as a young lady in most everything she does, even beyond rodeo.

“I’m just amazed at how it’s helped her grow in so many things in her life,” Rick said. “Her grades have improved. I think rodeo had a lot to do with teaching her that the more you try, the better you’re going to do. And that means a lot. She’s shy, but she’s really coming out of her shell more and more.

She may not be able to get up in front of a crowd, but when she’s up on that horse, out there doing those rodeos, it’s like the audience isn’t even there. And we’re just so proud to see how much she’s grown as a person, just from having the horses and the rodeo; it’s a really good thing.”

Tanner Sanness, age 26, of Reconnected Farms near Dorchester was named the first-place winner of Iowa Farm Bureau Federation’s (IFBF) “Grow Your Future” Award.

The award promotes young agriculturalists, ages 18-35, with a niche market, unique ag service or specialty business. Sanness was announced the winner during the 2023 IFBF Young Farmer Conference, held January 27-28 at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines, and took home $7,500 to grow his mushroom growing business.

“I was in college when I heard a podcast about the health benefits of Lion’s Mane mushrooms,” says Sanness. “I wasn’t involved in farming at all at the time. When I couldn’t find them locally, I bought a grow kit.”

Sanness now grows 300 to 500 pounds of mushrooms per week that can be found in local grocery stores and 20 area restaurants. With his winnings, he plans to purchase a delivery van and walk-in cooler.

Alaina Gebel, a graduating senior at Waukon High School and the daughter of Nate and Tami Gebel of rural Lansing, has been named a Career and Technical Education candidate as part of the 2023 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program. The Career and Technical Education candidates were nominated by their Chief State School Officers based on their accomplishments in career and technical education fields.

Gebel was chosen as one of 67 high school senior candidates from all nominations across the state of Iowa. She was one of five state of Iowa nominations selected within the Career and Technical Education Department.

Felty Ervin Yoder, age 22, of Waterville has been sentenced to a maximum of 45 years in prison on a total of 10 counts of criminal activity regarding incidents that had taken place over the past two years, mainly against his wife. That sentence was handed down in Allamakee County District Court in Waukon Monday, February 13, according to documents filed in the case.

A jury of Allamakee County residents returned guilty verdicts against Yoder on all 10 counts of that criminal activity following a brief trial in mid-December of 2022. The jury found him guilty on four counts of Sexual Abuse Assault in the Third Degree (Class C Felony), five counts of Iowa Sex Offender Registry Violations as a Second Offense (Class D Felony), and one count of Domestic Abuse Assault as a Third Offense (Class D Felony).

Each year, payouts from endowment funds held by the Allamakee County Community Foundation support organizations’ missions and improve quality of life in local communities. One of those funds is a new endowment started by the Sweeney family of Waukon, which will support the Foundation’s own efforts to address Allamakee County’s greatest needs for generations to come.

Margo Sweeney and her late husband, Jim, are Waukon natives who returned to the community to raise their four children. “After a decade of living away, it felt good to return to our hometown,” Margo recalls. “We enjoyed living here for 40 years, working and raising our family.”

When Jim passed away, Margo began looking for a way to honor him and leave a legacy in their native Allamakee County. A conversation with Allamakee County Community Foundation Coordinator Betty Steege piqued her interest in the Allamakee Forever Fund. The Foundation is working to build the fund, which will continue growing and providing flexible dollars to help address critical and emerging needs for generations to come.
 
MARCH
Rural Lansing property owners near the site of a proposed large-scale extraction pit filled a meeting room at the Driftless Area Education and Visitors Center Thursday evening, March 2 for a public hearing about the site.

Ames Construction of Burnsville, MN has applied to the Allamakee County Planning and Zoning Office for a conditional use permit to operate a “borrow pit” at a farm at 2074 Lafayette Ridge Drive, south of Lansing. Ames would be removing 307,000 cubic yards of fill and trucking it seven miles to fill and cap the Alliant Energy ash ponds at Power Plant Road, south of Lansing. The project would last approximately from May through November this year. Randy and Kristy Gaunitz are the extraction pit site landowners.

Funding from an anonymous donor, skills learned and implemented by Waukon High School students, and a willingness to try and take care of those who need it most all came together with the creation and installation of The Goodwill Box in the lower parking lot of the Allamakee County Courthouse in Waukon Tuesday, February 28.

Prompted by funding from the generosity of a donor who desired to remain anonymous, Waukon High School Industrial Arts Instructor Caleb Ferring said he was contacted about the idea of having his students construct a vessel that could be accessed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by members of the public experiencing food insecurity or who may have otherwise fallen on hard times. Ferring said he and students from his Woodworking, Metals and Welding classes through Waukon High School and Northeast Iowa Community College started the project in early December of this past year and were involved in the design, construction and ultimate placement of what is being called The Goodwill Box.

The idea and funding for the project were all developed by the donor as a means to honor the kindness and memory of former Allamakee County Auditor Mary O’Neill, who served County leaders and residents in that capacity from 2000-2008. O’Neill passed away in July of this past year.

The Allamakee County Community Foundation (ACCF) Board is celebrating a milestone in its campaign to raise $450,000 toward a permanent endowment that will help address local needs for years to come. Thanks to gifts from board members and community leaders, and the support of an anonymous donor, over $225,000 has been raised for the Allamakee Forever Endowment Fund.

The initiative will help the Foundation build its endowment and provide an annual payout that will help address emerging needs and opportunities in communities across Allamakee County.