Community News

TASC, Inc. recently received notification from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) that it has been awarded accreditation for a three-year period for its Community Employment Services: Employment Supports, Community Employment Services: Job Development, Community Housing, Community Integration and Supported Living programs. TASC, Inc. is a  nonprofit organization serving individuals with disabilities in Allamakee, Winneshiek, Howard, Fayette and Clayton counties.

The Waukon Feed Ranch has created a corn maze at its Agronomy Center location along Old Highway 9 west of Waukon once again this year, and the first full weekend in September will feature events involving that maze that will benefit two local high school FFA chapters. Saturday and Sunday, September 7-8, the public can navigate the corn maze for a freewill donation that will then be disbursed between the two FFA programs at Waukon and Kee High Schools.

Bruening Rock Products, Inc. recently contributed a $5,000 donation to the tennis court project currently underway next to the Waukon High School parking lot (pictured in the photo below). Pictured in the photo above, Waukon Park and Recreation Wellness Director Jeremy Strub (center) receives that $5,000 donation check from Bruening Rock Products, Inc. engineer Jesse Delaney (right) and Bruening Rock Products, Inc. Waukon location manager Rich Johnson (left). The tennis court project currently has its foundational base completed (as pictured above) and is awaiting the paving phase of the project before the final court painting and sealing can take place, all of those final phases being heavily dependent on weather conditions but scheduled to be completed by this fall. Submitted photos.
 

by Joe Moses

The Waukon City Council met in regular session Monday, August 19 to address a full agenda of items including an interim compensation agreement for the City Manager position, retirement proposals for Police Chief Phil Young and a presentation from Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission. Mayor Pro-Tem Gayle Decker called the meeting to order due to the scheduled absence of Mayor Pat Stone.

The Public Hearing on the proposed disposition of interest in real property - West Side Subdivision Lot 1 of Lot 1 was opened and closed without comment from the public in attendance. City Clerk Lana Snitker indicated that no written or verbal comments were received prior to the meeting.

Waukon Fareway Store Manager Cleve Branan (right) hands keys to new Assistant Grocery Manager Adam Peters (left), who transferred from an Omaha, NE Fareway store and has been with Fareway for 19 years. This is Peters’ third assistant manager position. He and his wife, Katie, were married in September 2018 and she works at Fareway in Decorah. They say they are excited to be in northeast Iowa and they enjoy fishing, kayaking and being outdoors in their spare time.
 

Joyce Sadler recently retired from Good Samaritan Society-Waukon, completing a 23-year career in the facility’s Dietary Department. She started with Good Samaritan Center in May of 1996 and officially retired July 28 of this year after more than two decades of faithful service to Good Samaritan Society residents. Submitted photo.
 

Waukon Corn Days is quickly approaching - scheduled for August 16 this year - and event organizers are in need of volunteers. Waukon Corn Days offers an opportunity to volunteer in the community, with volunteering seen as the ultimate exercise in democracy.

The Corn Days meal will be served at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds, and due to the street improvement project in downtown Waukon this year there will be no parade. In order for this year’s Corn Days to run effectively and efficiently, volunteers are needed to handle necessary tasks to ensure that the event runs smoothly. It is a fact that volunteers are critical to the success of community events.

Volunteers are needed for the following times and tasks associated with this year’s Corn Days celebration:

by Brianne Eilers

CLARIFICATION: In a previous article regarding Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH), it was stated that VMH will no longer be able to offer diagnostic mammography. To further clarify this statement, VMH will still be able to do yearly 3D screening mammograms. Should the screening mammogram reveal anything suspicious, an additional diagnostic mammogram or procedure is needed. In that case, patients will now be referred to a facility of the patient’s choosing to follow up on these abnormalities that showed up in the screening mammogram.

(Editor’s Note: A previous article regarding follow-up to a Veterans Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees meeting may have given the wrong the impression that Veterans Memorial Hospital is no longer able to offer mammograms at its facility in Waukon. What was trying to be explained was that follow-up mammograms may need to be referred to another facility due to Gundersen Health Systems currently experiencing a shortage in its radiology personnel. The Standard regrets any confusion caused by any previous articles and welcomes the further explanation below offered by Veterans Memorial Hospital.)

Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon continues to offer state-of the art 3D mammography. The advanced breast tomosynthesis technology installed less than two years ago, provides exams that are clinically proven to significantly increase the detection of breast cancers, while simultaneously decreasing the number of women asked to return for additional testing.

Representatives of Black Hills Energy, pictured above at far left, Operations Supervisor Ivan Hackman and second from right, Service Technician Arvid Hatlan, thank contractors for practicing safe digging during the Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT) Street and Sidewalk Project in Waukon. In early August, Black Hills Energy teams across Iowa have delivered 811 logo coolers filled with water and Gatorade to local construction crews who comply with 811 digging laws. No matter what the date, the law requires that you call 811 to have underground utility lines marked before you break ground. That’s true whether you’re a homeowner setting a fencepost or a contractor conducting a large excavation. You can also enter your request at http://www.iowaonecall.com/.