Deadlines/Dates
July 13-19: Allamakee County Fair
July 15: Deadline to Report Acres
August 2: Primary Nesting Season Ends
August 12: Deadline to submit an SDRP application
VMH Ambulance Service to utilize new equipment ... Pictured above, left to right, are Shawn Martin, EMT; McLain Swauger, EMS Supervisor; and Dylan Farning, Paramedic, all of Veterans Memorial Hospital Ambulance Service with the new Binder Lift they purchased thanks to the funds that had been collected through memorial donations to the hospital’s Foundation. With more than 24 different handles to grab to help responders lift patients out of restricted, cramped areas, the binder lift will save on back injuries and pulling on patient arms, giving them more of a comfortable cushion. Submitted photo.
The Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Ambulance Service was recently able to purchase a Binder Lift thanks to the funds that had been collected through memorial donations to the hospital’s Foundation. This Binder Lift will greatly assist the emergency medical team with lifting patients off the ground. It has over 24 different handles to grab to help responders lift patients out of restricted, cramped areas, such as around the toilet, and can be used on patients weighing from 80 to 800 pounds.
Waukon Golf and Country Club held a 4 gal best shot invitational golf tournament Monday, June 29. The committee chose a “Pink Out” theme to raise funds for breast cancer awareness and prevention. A $500 donation was presented to the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation for the Radiology Department Mammography fund. The winning team of the Championship flight with a score of 62 was the four generation Peake family team pictured above, left to right, including Brenna Bodensteiner, her mother Amy Bodensteiner, her grandmother Cathy Peake Angel, and her great-grandmother, 94-year-old JoAnn Peake. Submitted photo.
Visitors to the Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Fair Booth this year will be invited to play hospital trivia. Prizes will be awarded along with support information and other giveaways. They will also be offering free blood pressure checks, blood sugar tests and hemoglobin testing each day at the Allamakee County Fair with educational materials provided for each.
Thousands of people in the United States have diabetes and are unaware they do. Random testing such as this opportunity at the county fair helps to find the individuals who have high, undiagnosed diabetes and direct them to the professionals who can help them successfully manage the disease. For more information on diabetes and diabetes management, feel free to call Angie Mettille, BSN/RN/CDCES, Diabetes Educator, at Veterans Memorial Hospital at 563-568-3411.
Thursday, July 16, at 3:30 pm staff from both Veterans Memorial Hospital and Clinic and Regional Health Services of Howard County area hospitals will present “Mental Health and Aging.” The program will take place in Decorah Public Library’s lower level meeting room.
Our physical health is often the first thing we think of as we age, but mental and emotional health play critical roles in our wellbeing. Join Mackenzie Adams, Kayla Baxter, and Katie Osmonson to learn from trained providers about what mental health means as we age. Attendees will learn to recognize common challenges in older adulthood, learn to recognize signs of some mental health issues, and learn about local and national resources that can help them.
Free Sport Physicals will be offered one more time, Wednesday, July 22, from 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Hospital Clinic-Waukon for all junior high and high school students who need the physical for participating in the 2026-2027 school sporting events.
This clinic will include all necessary documentation, including a concussion screening, for participation in all school activities. Physicals are scheduled in 1-hour segments. The clinic staff will not be administering vaccines during this time. If those are needed for students, call the clinic at 563-568-5530 to schedule an appointment.
Students in area schools were emailed a google doc (2026 Athletic Physicals) to sign-up for a time slot for this free clinic. Parent emails will not work for sign-up so students will need to sign-up for a time slot that works best for them or the family.
For more information, contact your middle school or high school secretaries for assistance.
The Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Diabetes Support Group will hold its next meeting Thursday, July 16, at 10 a.m. The meeting will be held at Veterans Memorial Hospital in the Large Conference Room, located on the lower level of the hospital.
This month’s topic will focus on getting back to the basics with straightforward diabetes information and reviewing carbohydrates and carb counting. “This is one of the most important foundations of blood sugar control because we all eat,” explains Angie Mettille, Diabetes Educator and facilitator of the these Diabetes Support Group meetings. “If we do a good job with monitoring our carb intake most of the time, blood sugars will benefit.”
This diabetes class is open to everyone who has diabetes or has a friend or loved one with diabetes. For more information on the Diabetes Support Group, call Angie Mettille, RN, Diabetes Educator, at VMH at 563-568-3411.
Dayton and Catherine (Katey) (McGeough) Jones of Harpers Ferry are celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary with a card shower. The couple married July 7, 1956 at St. Pius Cherry Mound Church in Harpers Ferry.
Their family includes children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. In honor of the occasion, cards and well wishes may be sent to 622 Hwy 364 Road, Harpers Ferry, IA 52146.
The 66th annual reunion of the Bulman, Hartley and Beardmore families is scheduled for Sunday, July 19 at the Community Center in Eitzen, MN. A potluck meal will be served at 12:30 p.m. with a meeting and social time to follow.
The five Bulman ancestors who came to America from Little Thetford, England in the 1850s were Thomas, George, William, John and their sister, Mary Bulman Sadler. All descendants of these early settlers are cordially invited to attend this reunion meal. Beverages will be provided. Those planning to attend are asked to bring food to share, their own table service, family pictures and stories. This year our story board recounts the tragic deaths of 1919 in the Upper Iowa River neighborhood. It was also the year of prohibition, so we will be serving 1919 root beer.
Home-run homecoming ... Kee softball junior third baseman Rylee Mudderman is swarmed at home plate by her celebrating teammates after she blasted a two-run home run to give the Hawks the lead in the bottom of the third inning of their 11-3 Class 1A Region 7 quarterfinals win at home over Springville Wednesday, July 8. Mudderman also knocked out Kee’s only two hits in their 9-1 regional semifinals loss at Edgewood-Colesburg Friday, July 10, driving in the Hawks’ lone run of that ballgame. Photo by Danielle Potter. View and find out how to purchase this photo and many more by clicking on the Photos link on this webpage.
The Kee softball team had its Class 1A postseason tournament trail both started and stopped this past week, as the Lady Hawks split a pair of five-inning mercy-rule results to ultimately have their 2026 season brought to a close. Kee’s girls opened Class 1A Region 7 tournament play with an 11-3 win at home over Springville in a regional quarterfinals match-up Wednesday, July 8 before experiencing a reversal of that fortune two days later with a 9-1 defeat at 15th-rated Edgewood-Colesburg Friday, July 10 to bring this summer’s diamond campaign to a halt.
