Community News

by Bob Beach

Fiesta Vallarta Mexican Restaurant opened for business Monday, September 29 at 9 East Main Street in Waukon, former home of Main Street Entertainment. Business owner Jose Velarde said his appreciation for small towns led him to Waukon and the opening of his own business.
"I like the small towns, and I had been looking for a town like Waukon," Velarde shared. "When I saw there wasn't a Mexican restaurant here, I decided to try it."
The experience Velarde gained to open his own business came from working with his uncle in a Mexican restaurant in Ames, where he moved to after graduating from high school. "I had been working in the restaurant business for a long time and have seen that it is a good business to serve people, and I like that, so I decided to open my own restaurant," he said.

Laura Larson, the daughter of Joanne Larson and the late Ralph Larson of Waukon and a 1986 graduate of Waukon High School, was one of 168 firefighters honored at the 28th Annual International Association of Fire Fighters Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial Observance held in Colorado Springs, CO Saturday, September 20.
Larson, a Captain of Engine 56 with the Omaha Fire Department, died in May of this year from ovarian cancer at the age of 46. Her death was classified as a line-of-duty death due to years of inhaling toxic smoke ruled as contributing to her cancer. Her name is now forever commemorated after being engraved in the marble wall of honor that is part of the overall Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial located in the shadow of Pike's Peak of the Rocky Mountains.

Students at Waukon High School have selected their Homecoming representatives for 2014, with the coronation of this year's Homecoming Queen and King to take place at the traditional "Burning of the 'W'" pep rally scheduled for this Thursday evening, September 25, beginning at 7 p.m. at Waukon High School. Pictured in the top photo at right (photo courtesy of Waukon High School Publications class) are this year's Waukon High School Homecoming Queen and King candidates from the 2014-2015 Senior class, including: Left to right - Front row: Queen candidates Allie Schwartz, Thea Meyer, Katie Kerndt and Jacqueline Welch. Back row: King candidates Jacob Ronan, Gunnar Grangaard, Adam Benzing and Landon Sivesind. Pictured in the bottom photo at right, left to right and front to back, are Junior Class attendants Nicole Behrend and Will Keenan, Sophomore Class attendants Sydney Herman and Logan Sullivan, and Freshman Class attendants Kylee Hager and Isaiah Welch.

Students, parents and community members are invited to join thousands of others on athletic fields all across the nation Wednesday, October 8 to share their Christian faith with each other during the ninth annual national Fields of Faith event. Although in existence nationwide for those nine years, the local Fields of Faith event in Waukon is being held for just its third year that same evening at the Waukon High School football field after a successful inaugural event in 2012 that drew more than 400 local people, and a growing congregation of nearly 1,000 attendees last year.
The event will kick off with a performance again this year by the band "513FREE" which will take place at 6 p.m. The Fields of Faith program will begin at 7 p.m. with a series of speakers sharing their faith and other personal stories.

by Bob Beach

by Bob Beach

by Bob Beach

The Waukon City Council met in special session Tuesday, August 26 for further discussions about the paving project on Third Street NE. Mayor Loren Beneke told the Council that Veenstra and Kimm, Inc., an engineering firm based in Mason City, had agreed to review the engineering work on the project done by TeKippe Engineering, a division of Fehr Graham Engineering, the City's engineering firm.
City Attorney Jim Garrett told the Council that if Veenstra and Kim conclude that TeKippe made an error or errors in planning the project, the City may have a case to recover the cost of reviewing the project along with other damages.
Following a brief discussion, the Council unanimously agreed to pay Veenstra and Kimm, Inc. a fee of $3,200 to review the engineering work on the project.
 

Following completion of its expansion project, Robey Memorial Library will hold a Grand Re-Opening Dedication and Open House Saturday, September 13 from 2-4 p.m. The Library invites all community members to take part in the celebration activities at 401 First Avenue NW location in Waukon.
The library expansion more than doubled the size of the library to add space for books, more computer stations, small study rooms, and a new community room.
Celebration events include a dedication ceremony at 2 p.m.; library tours; room naming contest; silent auction; a "make & take" activity for kids; special displays; photo presentation; and refreshments.

by Brianne Eilers
 
Members of the Northeast Iowa Quilters Guild spent Saturday, August 16 working at Queen Jean Quilting in Waukon to put the finishing touches on the Quilts of Valor that are heading to South   Carolina for the 50th Anniversary of the 1stLAAM Battalion Bravo Battery. These men were some of the first Marines to go into Vietnam during the Vietnam War.
Quilter Barbara Davidson, of Decorah, and her husband, Harry, will be taking over 20 quilts to the reunion in Charleston, SC for distribution among the veterans. Harry Davidson was among those first Marines going into Vietnam.
The quilts were made my local quilters (some of whom are pictured in surrounding photos) who volunteered their time and materials to make these Quilts of Valor. The quilts are stored in a matching, handmade pillowcase, and each quilt contains a label on the back with the names of the volunteers who helped to make their quilt.