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The Waukon softball team played its way to a 6-24 overall record during its 2026 campaign, as former Waukon softball head coach Melissa Ward returned to the helm of the program after a two-year absence. This summer’s overall result includes a mark of 4-16 in Upper Iowa Conference (UIC) play that placed the Lady Indians sixth in the final Large School Division standings of the UIC, as an overall young squad that featured just one senior on this season’s roster and as many as three each of sophomores and freshmen in the line-up, along with one eighth grader, worked to find the right mix as the season played on.

The Auxiliary of Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) and Elliott Jewelers Women’s Health Day will be celebrating their 21st annual event this year, returning to an evening “Women’s Wellness Night Out” from 4-7 p.m., September 1, at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds Pavilion. The event will be sponsored again this year by Veterans Memorial Hospital and Elliott Jewelers, in conjunction with the Waukon Chamber of Commerce.

Visitors to the Veterans Memorial Hospital booth during the downtown Waukon Corn Days meal Friday, August 14 will be invited to play Heart Health Trivia with prizes awarded. 

Adults are also invited to take advantage of the free wellness testing offered with immediate results. Free Blood Pressure Checks, Blood Sugar Tests and Hemoglobin (Iron) Tests will all be offered.  Random testing such as this opportunity at Waukon Corn Days helps to find the individuals who have high, undiagnosed diabetes, blood pressure or low iron and direct them to the professionals who can help them successfully manage the issue. Each test takes just a couple minutes to complete and does not require any fasting.

Free samples of sunblock with an SPF of 50 will also be handed out along with skin cancer awareness and prevention information, compliments of Allamakee Public Health and the Iowa Cancer Consortium.

There is still time to get vital immunizations before school starts. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), vaccines help the body learn how to defend itself from disease without the dangers of a full-blown infection. The immune response to a vaccine might cause tiredness and discomfort for a day or two, but the resulting protection from the vaccination can last a lifetime.

Infections are unpredictable and can have long-term consequences. Even mild or symptom-less infections can be deadly. For example, most people infected with the human papillomavirus (HPV) never show any sign of infection.

But for some, the sign appears years later as an aggressive, life-threatening cancer. By then, it’s too late to get vaccinated.

The Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Diabetes Support Group will hold its next meeting Thursday, August 20, 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 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, Certified Diabetes Educator at Veterans Memorial Hospital at 563-568-3411.
 

Become a Dementia Friend by attending a one-hour information session coordinated by Northeast Iowa Area Agency on Aging (NEI3A) to learn about living with dementia and the simple things you can do to support someone living with dementia. These sessions are free and open to the public.

Learn some basics of dementia such as what dementia is, how it can affect a person, some tips for communicating with people who have dementia, and other ways to support people with dementia. No registration is required and feel free to bring a friend. 

Memorials were recently received by the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation in memory Kathryn “Kate” Urell by Chris and M’Liss Bulman, Mary Ann Burke, Mary Fink, Bob and Karen Fossum, Mary Ann Hager, David and Suzanne Hahn, Tammy Knudtson, Eunice Kolsrud, Ken and Gloria Krambeer, Ernie and Donnalee Osland, Meg Schaller, Danny and Sue Schlitter, Trish and Corey Shelton, Chuck and Lois Votsmier, Jim and Dorothy Waters, Donna Wood and the Class of 1961.

Memorials were also received in memory of Brigitte Weymiller by Mary Ann Hager, Brad and Judy Herman, Gordon and Darlene Kaeser and Rita Mathis.

Additional memorials were also received in honor of Irv Fosaaen by Carl and Betty Christianson and Cathy Fischer; and in memory of Jane Butler by Karla and Dave Hammel.

A donation was also made in honor of Jane Fransen’s 100th birthday by Linda Siegrist.

Gary and Alice (Baumgartner) Bulman of Lansing will be celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary Saturday, August 29 at Empty Nest Winery in rural Waukon with an open house from 1-4 p.m. The celebration will be hosted by their children Cindy, Gary Greg and Clark.

The couple married August 26, 1956, at Salem United Church of Christ, Ludlow.

For those unable to attend the celebration, cards and well wishes may be sent to: 908 Goldfinch Drive, Lansing, IA 52151.
 

Kee High School and St. George 1967 graduates can mark their calendars for the 60-Year Class Reunion to take place September 19, 2027. The Reunion Committee has set that date with TJ Hunters in Lansing as the location for the 60-Year Class Reunion in 2027.
 

Gary L. Gelo, 84, of Waukon passed away Sunday, August 9, 2026, at Mayo Clinic Health System in La Crosse, WI. Funeral services were held Thursday, August 13, at Martin-Grau Funeral Home in Waukon with Tom Hollmann officiating. Burial followed at Oakland Cemetery, Waukon.

Gary Lee Gelo was born November 3, 1941, in Waukon to Arthur and Eunice (Krousie) Gelo. He graduated from Waukon High School in 1959, and married Gloria Heins November 19, 1962, in Luana. Together, they farmed in Jefferson Township, rural Waukon, raising beef cattle, crops, and dairy cows. Farming was Gary’s lifelong passion; a gifted tradesman and steward of the land, he took immense pride in his farm and meticulously cared for his equipment.

Gary and Gloria enjoyed motorcycle trips across the country and riding with the Wednesday Night Riders. He also cherished his classic 1965 Ford Mustang Fastback.