News Center newsletter

Steve and Donna Stortz of Waukon and Deborah and Charles Hammel of Dorchester announce the engagement and upcoming wedding of their children, Shaylie Stortz of Waukon and Kenneth Hammel of Dorchester. The couple plans to exchange vows Saturday, November 6 at St. Patrick Catholic Church in Waukon.

A dance will be open to  the public from 7:30 p.m. to midnight at the Waukon Banquet Center. The bride-to-be is a 2014 graduate of Waukon High School and a 2018 graduate of Iowa State University with a Bachelors Degree in History and Political Science. She is employed as a Social Studies teacher at North Fayette Valley High School in West Union.

The groom-to-be is a 2013 graduate of Waukon High School and a 2015 graduate of Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC) in Calmar with an Associates Degree in Agricultural Business. He is employed by Valley Ag in New Albin.
 

Mark and Barbara (Ferring) Howe of Waukon will be celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary. The couple exchanged vows November 7, 1981 at St. Patrick Catholic Church in Waukon.

Their children include Justin (Ami) Howe of Oxford, Matt Howe of New Albin and Emily (Jesse) Spors of Marion. They have 14 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

In honor of the occasion, cards and well wishes may be sent to 388 Red Bud Drive, Waukon, IA 52172. No gifts are requested.

Terry Kolsrud and Shawna Peterson, both of Waukon, announce their engagement and upcoming wedding to take place Saturday, November 6, 2021. A private ceremony with family is planned with a dance open to the public to follow from 6-10 p.m. at The Barn in Prairie du Chien, WI.

The bride-elect is the daughter of Al Peterson and Sara Ghan, both of Lansing. The groom-elect is the son of Bernard and the late Lorna Kolsrud of Waukon.
 

Reservations are being taken now for the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation’s  Christmas Fantasy to be held Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, November 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22, at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds Pavilion in Waukon.

This year the theme for Christmas Fantasy will be “Baby It’s Cold Outside,” which is fitting for an outdoor Fantasy. A drive-through of lighted displays will be out in front of the Fairgrounds Pavilion for anyone wanting to drive through or walk through evenings during the event. The grounds will be open from 5-9 p.m. Thursday through Sunday nights and from 4-7 p.m. Monday night. The format of the event was changed again this year to keep the event COVID-safe.

Reservations are now being taken for drive-through meals which will be offered Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. All meals must be reserved with a reservation five days prior to the event. Reservations can be made by calling 563-568-6262.

A third booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccination is now available for all those who meet the following criteria:

• 65 years and older
• Age 18+ who live in long-term care settings
• Age 18+ who have underlying medical conditions
• Age 18+ who work or live in high-risk settings
• It must also be at least six months from your last dose of the COVID vaccine.

Veterans Memorial Hospital Community and Home Care/Allamakee County  Public Health will be offering two walk-in clinics on campus in the near future. The first walk-in clinic will be Friday, November 5 from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Those needing the Pfizer booster dose will go to the main entrance of the hospital and those needing the Moderna vaccination will go to the ICN entrance on the southeast side of the hospital.

by Angie Mettille, RN, BSN, CDCES

November is Diabetes Awareness Month. Diabetes is a disease that affects millions of people in the United States. It is a result of insulin resistance and/or deficiency, causing blood sugars to be too high. You likely know someone that has diabetes, or maybe have been diagnosed with diabetes yourself. Even if you have never been told that you have diabetes, it is important to be aware of symptoms of elevated blood sugars, also called hyperglycemia.

There are also millions of people in the United States that have diabetes but have not been diagnosed. How do you know that you may have high blood sugars? Whether you have been diagnosed with diabetes or not, it is important to listen to your body and be proactive if you are experiencing any of the following symptoms. These symptoms could be related to dangerously high blood sugars:

For those who don’t know just how much blood is needed by certain patients, here are some facts from the LifeServe Blood Center:

• Cancer patients can use up to eight units of blood a month.
• Bone Marrow Transplant patients can use up to two units a day.
• Cardiovascular Surgery patient can use between two and 25 units.
• Liver Transplant patients can use up to 100 units.
• Auto/Trauma Accident patients can use from five to 100 units.
• Premature infants can use up to one to four units.
• Burn victims can use up to 20 units of platelets.
• Heart surgery patients can use up to three to eight units of red cells and one to 10 units of platelets.
• Organ transplant patients can use 10-30 units of blood.

The next LifeServe Blood Center blood drive will be held Thursday, November 4 from 12-5 p.m.  The blood drive will be held at the First Baptist Church in south Waukon.

Memorials were recently received by the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation in Waukon in memory of Janet Palmer by Ann Roed, Wayne and Nona Sawyer, Chuck and Lois Votsmier, Jens and Jane Kallevang, and Bruce Palmer.

Memorials were also received in memory of Norma Bloxham by Mary Ann Hager, Jerry and Linda Siegrist and Chuck and Lois Votsmier; in memory of Arlene Ritter by Patsy Kerndt and Joyce Kuhse; in memory of Pat and Keith Sander by Kate Wooden and Jerry and Linda Siegrist; and in memory of Nancy Wirkler by  Robert Wirkler.

In addition, memorials were received in memory of Nobert Kraus by Dr. Susan Bozeman, in memory of John Duvel by Tom and Karen Regan, in memory of Elinor Weymiller by Joan Bieber and Dorothy Sandry, in memory of David Schutte by Craig and Barb Lensing and Patsy Kerndt, and in memory of Daniel Howe by Mary Ann Hager, Jerry and Linda Siegrist, and Marlys Leiran.

To the Editor:

I am curious which small-town, rural, Midwestern, American ideal or ideals are being conveyed by flags that say “(Expletive) Biden, and (expletive) you for voting for him,” like the one flying at the edge of Iowa State Highway 76 on the edge of Rossville? Is there anyone out there willing to provide me with an appropriate explanation I can give to my nine-year-old niece, my four-year-old nephew, or the seventh and eighth graders I teach that makes it clear to them why this language and attitude are not okay at school, church, or in other public spaces but are just fine as a “Welcome” flag for places like the small town of Rossville in northeast Iowa?

I will clarify, I am not looking for a shouting match and will not tolerate any further name calling, nor demeaning responses. I am truly curious how this can be spun into something acceptable. How can this be made acceptable by any rational explanation?

To the Editor:

Over the past few weeks, we have noticed a change in our ability to transfer critically ill patients who need complex medical care to other facilities with resources available to provide that care. In most cases these situations have involved patients who require intensive care but we have also had experiences where it has been difficult to transfer patients for other reasons that may not need intensive care