News Center newsletter

by Alexis Johnson

The Lansing City Council held its regular meeting Monday, March 15. The meeting centered around the consent agenda, a public hearing, PeopleService update, Parks Board update and the City Clerk’s update.

The consent agenda consisted of council meeting minutes from March 1, 2021 and Park and Recreation minutes from March 8, 2021. A motion was made and seconded to approve the consent agenda.

The public hearing regarding Resolution #948, adopting the Fiscal Year 2022 budget, started at 7:06 p.m. and ended at 7:33 p.m. After minimal discussion, a motion was made and seconded to approve Resolution #948.

PeopleService report included an update explaining that infrastructure and equipment held up well with the colder temperatures over the past month. In April, PeopleService plans to flush the City water pipes when warmer weather occurs.

The nine Waukon High School students pictured at right advanced from their District Individual Speech Contest held March 1 to the State Contest that was scheduled to take place Saturday, March 13 at Postville High School. Pictured at right, left to right, are the following students listed with their advancing performance: Top row - Denzel Decker, Improvisational Acting; Alaina Gebel, Expository Address; Mady Helgerson, Expository Address; Violet Holthaus, Prose; Bottom row - Ethan Hooten, Public Address; Vivian Khan, Original Oratory; Olivia Marti, Original Oratory; Ryan VanderVelden, Musical Theater; Abby Wiemerslage, Reviewing and Storytelling. Submitted file photos.
 

The eight Kee High School students pictured above competed in 11 different events at District Contest Saturday, February 27 in Postville. The group brought home 10 one ratings and one two rating, with those 10 one-rated events advancing to State Contest scheduled for this past Saturday, March 13 in Postville. Pictured above, left to right, are: Left to right - Front row: Lilly Peterson, Cadan Evanson, Riley Troendle; Back row: Monica Davis, Abby Wood, Owen Henkes, Phoenix Crass, Neva Peterson. Submitted photo.
 

Kee High School’s spring production will be a comedy called “Nun of Your Business” by Craig Sodaro and published by Eldridge Publishing Co. The play will be performed Saturday, March 27 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, March 28 at 2 p.m. in the Kee High School gymnasium.

Admission fee will be taken at the door. Social distance seating will be made available throughout the floor of the gym as well as seating in the bleachers. This light-hearted comedy is filled with practice scenes that keep the cast and crew laughing and being involved.

The Sisters of Faith, Hope and Charity at the convent of St. Fermilda are in the midst of all kinds of intrigue and they’re not even sure how they got there. But don’t think because they took vows of reverence and poverty that they’ll let some hard-nosed hoods get the best of them.

Waukon High School senior Bailey Shafer was one of five Iowa high school seniors who received a 2021 Iowa Bankers Association (IBA) Student Athlete Achievement Award during the Iowa High School Girls Basketball State Tournament March 5-6 at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. One student from each class was awarded a $1,000 scholarship from the IBA to the college of her choice, with Shafer pictured at right receiving her award during the Class 3A State Championship game Saturday, March 6 from Dennis Lyons of FreedomBank of Waukon.
Award recipients were selected based on their academic performance, athletic participation, leadership skills and community involvement. Other award recipients included Class 1A: Ellie Lago, Newell-Fonda High School; Class 2A: Alexis Shike, Nodaway Valley High School; Class 4A: Emma Hughes, Glenwood High School; and Class 5A: Lindsey Kelderman, Waukee High School.

Luke O’Hare, a 6’4” senior on the Rushford-Peterson High School boys basketball team in Minnesota and the son of Brenda and 1988 Waukon High School graduate Tim O’Hare, was recently honored for scoring the 1,000th point of his high school varsity basketball career. The young O’Hare has been a three-year starter and four-year varsity contributor for the Trojans and has averaged 13.1 points and 2.3 assists per game, becoming the sixth player in school history to achieve that “grand” scoring landmark. He is the grandson of Mike and Virginia O’Hare of rural Lansing.

The most recent previous Rushford-Peterson player to score 1,000 points in his varsity career also has Waukon ties. Charlie Krambeer, the son of Brian and Jean (Asleson) Krambeer and the grandson of Ken and Gloria Krambeer of rural Waukon, achieved that milestone during his senior season in 2015. Submitted photo.
 

The Waukon boys basketball team turned in one of its better seasons in recent history and one of its best Northeast Iowa Conference (NEIC) seasons in over a decade, eclipsing the 15-win mark for just the third time in the past decade and playing to its best NEIC record and team finish in well over a decade, all while setting some records along the way to a 15-6 overall result and 9-3 runner-up effort in NEIC play. All those achievements were accomplished under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic that veteran Waukon boys basketball coach Jed Hemann says dealt his team somewhat of a bittersweet hand this past year.

The Kee boys basketball team played its way to an 11-11 season record during its 2020-2021 campaign, posting double-digit wins for the first time in three seasons and for just the third time in the last nine years. In addition to that improved, double-digit win total, Kee boys basketball coach Pat Wagner feels another success emerging from this season laced with uncertainty was being able to play through the entire season schedule without any sudden adjustments having to be made due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We got really lucky,” Coach Wagner said. “We got all of our games played and had no issues with COVID-19, so I feel like the pandemic had little or no effect on our team. We had a good season; not a great season but a good season. Eleven wins is the most a Kee High boys team has collected in a long time. We picked up two more wins than last season and finished in the upper half of a very competitive Upper Iowa Conference.”

Mabel Sires, 90, of Mabel, MN, formerly of Spring Grove, MN, died Tuesday, March 9, 2021 at Green Lea Senior Living in Mabel, MN. Private graveside service will be in the Trinity Lutheran Cemetery in Spring Grove, MN. The Mengis Funeral Home in Mabel, MN is assisting with arrangements.

Mabel Marie (Dougherty) Sires came into this world May 28, 1930, a gift for all of us, but first to her parents, Johnnie and Anna (Hawes) Dougherty. She took on the role of caregiver early in her youth as she lost her mother at a young age and helped her dad greatly with her brothers and sisters as the second oldest daughter in the family. Mabel loved being a mom and grandma and spent many years taking care of others as a home health aide.

Delores Marie Needham Fee was born October 5, 1938 in Waukon to Leo and Ethel (Burckart) Needham. She passed away March 4, 2021 at the hospital in Newton, KS. A memorial service will be held at a later date in the Waukon area.

Delores “Dee” Fee grew up in the Monona area most of her life. She married Clarence “Pete” Fee August 8, 1958 in Waukegan, IL. Two sons were born into this marriage, Craig and Brian. The marriage ended in 1978.

Dee continued to live around the Waukon and Lansing area where she worked many different types of jobs. She retired from Cabela’s in 2016 after 17-plus years.

Dee loved the outdoors. She could be found horseback riding, hunting, camping, fishing, looking for ginseng, feeding her birds, making s’mores or grilling a juicy steak. She also loved spending time with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.