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Tracy Byrd to headline Friday's grandstand entertainment; Variety of activities and events planned

This week, July 15-19,  the 173rd Allamakee County Fair will be held for all to enjoy at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds in Waukon. A wide variety of entertainment is in place to headline this year’s Fair at the grandstand, along with a great deal of other activities for everyone to enjoy each and every day throughout the five-day event.

GRANDSTAND STAR POWER AND HORSE POWER

by Olivia Enyart

In the early months of this year, four of Postville’s youth from both the Postville High School and the Rise Academy in the Postville Community School District teamed up to create an experiment for the Plant the Moon Challenge Spring of 2026 through NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), competing in a field of 155 high school entries from across the nation and on a global scale.

Team members of the group the members called SmellsFishy1! included Angie Barrutia, Olivia Enyart, Yehuda Leib Mahr, Isabella Koenig, and Hattie Ruff. The adult advisors for the experiment were Postville High School Science Teacher Sean Singewald and Postville Community School District Home School Coordinator Annette Fry.

July 15 coronation event for both groups will help kick off the 173rd Allamakee County Fair

The pageantry of the Allamakee County Fair will kick off this year’s event once again, as the traditional Allamakee County Fair Queen Contest will again be complemented by the celebration of the Allamakee County Fair Little Miss Contest for younger ages. The coronation event for both of those competitions, featuring a total of nine Allamakee County young ladies between the two contests this year, will take place Wednesday, July 15 at 5 p.m. at the Fairgrounds Pavilion in Waukon to help kick off the 173rd Allamakee County Fair, running July 15-19 in Waukon.

The Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) reports that crews from contractor Kraemer North America installed the final steel beams that connect the top of the center span of the new Mississippi River bridge at Lansing, completing the structural outline of the bridge as the month of June transitioned to July. In addition to the final beams being placed and connected (as visible in the photos at right), Kraemer crews also performed a ceremonious “topping out” placement, where the final and highest beam had a fir tree and flag placed upon it (as pictured near the middle right in the photo at right), a builder’s tradition that dates back thousands of years from Scandinavia that claims that placing a fir tree on the highest piece of a structure symbolizes good fortune and a safe completion of the project.

Veterans Memorial Hospital Administrator Michael Coyle resigned from his position Tuesday, June 23, effective immediately. The hospital’s board of trustees and leadership team have implemented a transition plan to ensure continuity of operations and patient care.

“Our priority remains the delivery of safe, high-quality care to our patients and community,” states Dennis Lyons, Board of Trustees Chairman. “We have a strong leadership team, dedicated medical providers, and talented, hardworking, capable employees who remain focused on our mission of delivering high quality, compassionate care. We are confident in the hospital’s continued success and stability during this transition.”

This Saturday, July 4, the Allamakee County Veterans Museum at 105 Allamakee Street in Waukon will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. There is no admission charge. The public is welcome to visit for tours, and the local Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Auxiliary will be providing cookies and beverages for the Fourth of July event.

The Veterans Museum honors the service and sacrifice of Allamakee County veterans who have served the United States in uniform throughout the years.

Guided tours will be given of exhibits from the Civil War, Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War, and all post 9-11 conflicts. Patriotic music from all eras will be played.

All local veteran videos in the museum library will be available for presentation on request. Donations of additional pictures to the Veteran Honor Walls will be welcome.
 

Midwest Veterans of America will be hosting an America 250 event Saturday, July 4 at the Waukon City Park to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. All area Veterans and their family and friends are invited to a cookout at the Sweeney Shelter near the Freedom Rock in the Waukon City Park, beginning at 11 a.m.

Those attending are asked to bring a salad or a dessert to pass, all other items for the cookout event will be provided. There will also be a live auction with proceeds from that auction being donated to Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon. The musical anthem for each branch of the U.S. military will be played as all Veterans will be honored for their service.

Lunchtime meals served each weekday in July, donations welcome to help sustain the program

Waukon churches and community members have banded together once again this July to bring hot lunches to area children, ages 18 and under. In 2025, its third year, the Feed the Kids (FTK) program served 2,849 lunches and distributed 2,383 breakfast bags in the 23 days of the program. This was an increase of 874 meals from 2024. The number of days to serve will again be 23 this year, and the lunch menu for each of those days can be found accompanying this article at right.

The Allamakee Community School District (ACSD) provides a summer feeding program to local children ages 18 and under during the months of June and August, but there is nothing in place for July. Community members felt there were still “food insecure” children who needed to eat all summer long and the program got started based on that premise.

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds issued a disaster proclamation for Allamakee County Monday afternoon, June 22 in response to severe weather that occurred Wednesday, June 17, and its continuing impacts.

Governor Reynolds’ proclamation allows State of Iowa resources to be utilized to respond to and recover from the effects of these storms and activates the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program and the Disaster Case Advocacy Program. The proclamation is effective immediately and will remain in effect for 30 days unless terminated or extended.

The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program provides grants up to $7,000 for households with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level. Grants are available for home or car repairs, replacement of personal property or food, and temporary housing expenses. Original receipts are required for those seeking reimbursement for actual expenses related to storm recovery.

Trees and farm outbuildings suffer brunt of damage but no injuries reported from abrupt June 17 storm

One of the strongest tornadoes recorded locally in 40 years ripped through the eastern middle of Allamakee County late Wednesday afternoon, June 17, starting right near the very center of the county and progressing slightly southeast before crossing the Mississippi River and continuing into Wisconsin at a total distance of nearly 33 miles traveled in around a 45-minute timeframe. Although no injuries or fatalities were reported from the quick-hitting storm, the tornado did leave significant damage to trees, farm buildings and fields, in addition to some home damage as it roared through Allamakee County.