Community News

Julie Wittry of Dorchester has been hired as the new director at the Humane Society of Northeast Iowa (HSNEI) Love & Friendship Adoption Center. Wittry replaces volunteer Director Kim Powell, a professor at Luther College in Decorah, who used a sabbatical to spearhead the capital campaign for HSNEI’s new Love & Friendship Adoption Center. Since the Center opened in December, Powell has served as director, along with Julie Kriener who served as interim director when Powell returned to Luther in February.
Wittry, who relocated from Caledonia, MN with her husband, Tom, seven years ago, said her involvement with HSNEI began when a stray dog showed up at their home. “We were trying to research how we could help this dog and I was put in connection with Brenda Flatjord (of Waukon) and it kind of snowballed,” said Wittry.

by Bob Beach

The past three months for two-year-old Nalla Billmeyer of Clermont and her family have been a rollercoaster of emotions filled with scary, frustrating lows and victorious highs of all degrees. Just over a month after celebrating her second birthday, the daughter of Allan and Jessica Billmeyer of Clermont and granddaughter of Steve and Kelli McKee of Harpers Ferry was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
Nalla has the distinction of being born December 12, 2012 (12/12/12) and the further distinction of having her name be the same as her father's, but in reverse. But those are just some of the things that have proven to set this two-year-old fighter apart from other children her age.

by Bob Beach

by Brianne Eilers

Jet's Meat Processing in Waukon brought home a total of six awards from the Cured Meat Competition held as part of the 79th Annual Convention of the Iowa Meat Processors Association (IMPA) held in Ames February 5-8. Glen Monroe and Andy Thesing (left to right) of Jet's Meat Processing display some of the plaques representing the awards, which included Grand Champion Cottage Bacon, Grand Champion Franks/Wieners (Coarse Ground), Grand Champion Flavored Snack Sticks, Reserve Grand Champion Bone-In Ham, Reserve Grand Champion Specialty Ham and Reserve Grand Champion Restructured Jerky.

by Bob Beach

McCormick Motorz, owned and operated by Trent and Jayne McCormick of Waukon, opened for business at 504 Rossville Road in Waukon in June of 2014. Trent, a lifetime resident of Waukon, is a 2002 graduate of Waukon High School. Since graduation, he made a hobby of buying and selling cars while working full time at area businesses such as Culligan and Debuhr and Casper Plumbing and Heating, before making selling cars his business beginning with a six-year term of employment at West Side Auto Sales in Waukon.
"Cars are my hobby. I wanted it to be my job," Trent said. "It's always nice to be your own boss and to treat people the way they should be treated."

by Brianne Eilers

by Bob Beach