Stories from Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Nine months of re-organizing, construction and and a 12,000 square foot expansion is now done. Finishing touches were wrapped up last week and a grand re-opening was held Tuesday morning at the Spirit Lake Furniture Mart. "It's a relief to have it done, it's awesome," said Furniture Mart President Gordy Wallenstein. "The proof is in the pudding and it's a great facility."...

Jan Turner wanted to change lives. During her 14 years as Cherish Center executive director she did just that -- transforming the lives of dozens of mothers and impacting hundreds of other community members. Cherish Center will continue to impact lives, but with someone else at the helm. Turner recently announced her retirement, which is effective at the end of the month...

A local Kiwanis service organization heard the cry for help and took action in a big way. Devastation struck the town of Moore, Okla. on May 20. A massive tornado tore through the suburb of Oklahoma City, killing dozens of people and injuring hundreds of others. It left a community in complete disarray -- without homes and the basic necessities of life. The tornado was regarded as one of the most destructive in American history...

Attendees can tap into their inner food critic, enjoy talented musicians or just help a good cause as part of the Okoboji Foundation's 25th Anniversary celebration. The evening of fundraising and celebration will start with a time of socializing at 6 p.m. Saturday, June 29, at Boji Bay Pavilion in north Milford. The program starts at 6:30 p.m. with a history of the foundation, set to music...

April 19, 1929 -- June 17, 2013 A funeral service for Delores Hanneman, age 84, of Spirit Lake, was held Saturday, June 22, 2013 at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Spirit Lake. Burial was at Morgan Cemetery in Schleswig. Delores Dorothy Hanneman was born April 19, 1929, the daughter of Carl and Hildegard (Henning) Bartels at Hanover Township, Crawford County, Iowa. Delores was raised and educated in Charter Oak, where she graduated high school...

Oct. 2, 1924 -- June 19, 2013 A funeral service for Helen Gamble, age 88, of Spirit Lake, was held Tuesday, June 25, 2013, at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Spirit Lake. Burial was at St. Margaret's Catholic Cemetery in Spirit Lake. Helen Marie Fishburn Gamble, daughter of Jesse Marshall Fishburn and Minerva Mae Manwarren Fishburn, was born Oct. 2, 1924 in Cleveland. She was a 1942 graduate of Spencer High School...

May 19, 1925 -- June 18, 2013 A funeral service for Lura "Lou" Cable was held Saturday, June 22, 2013 at Union Memorial Church in Milford. Burial was at Lakeview Cemetery. Lura Elizabeth Williamson Cable was born May 19, 1925, in Spirit Lake, the daughter of Glen Williamson and Amy Elizabeth McIntyre Williamson. ...

June 30, 1927 -- Jan. 5, 2013 Patricia Ann Goodenow, age 85, of Spirit Lake, passed away Saturday, Jan. 5, 2013, at Lakes Regional Healthcare in Spirit Lake. She was born on June 30, 1927, in Battle Creek to Paul and Helen (Virtue) Hollister. Patricia graduated from Mapleton High School in 1945, and St. ...

May 19, 1933 -- May 3, 2013 Sixteen days before his 80th birthday, Terry went home to his heavenly father to join his wife, Lynn, family and friends who prepared his way. He is survived by his children, Judy (Rick) Smith, Mike and Terry Mark McGeorge; and by three grandchildren, Breanna and Jenna McGeorge and Seth Smith. Terry was preceded in death by his parents, Thomas R. McGeorge and Lottie H. Monroe, and by his two brothers, Tom and Don...

June 12, 2013 Zeek Lee Titus passed away at the Spencer Municipal Hospital on June, 12, 2013. A funeral service for Zeek Lee Titus, infant son of Allison Sinks and Justin Titus of Ruthven was Saturday, June 15, at the Martin-Mattice Funeral Home in Emmetsburg...

I want to go on record as saying I hate to go to auctions! Not because the auctioneer isn't nice or not doing his job. I have the greatest admiration for auctioneers and their staff who try to make some old broken down "family treasure" seem like the greatest thing on earth and make you feel guilty for not wanting it in your house or garage...

I wanted to congratulate the Okoboji Foundation on their 25 year anniversary of "Making a Difference" to the Lakes Region. The thoughtful and meaningful gifts of the Okoboji Foundation have impacted non-profit organizations throughout the Iowa Great Lakes Area, and have increased our ability to make a difference...

David Stucker and Dr. Sanjay Basu wrote a book called "The Body Economic: Why Austerity Kills." They were alarmed by the sudden increase in suicides and other mental health issues in the wake of austerity measures across the globe. A good public health and education system helps fight economic recession. We need Medicare for all, free education for all. This creates hope rather than despair...

Local DNR officials say an overabundance of white bass may have caused a recent die-off at Silver Lake near Lake Park in recent weeks. Silver Lake had a large population of 12- to 14-inch bass, according to fisheries biologist Mike Hawkins. When fish or wildlife populations become overpopulated, the transmission of diseases becomes more frequent. Hawkins said he received three calls from concerned homeowners who saw a large number of dead fish on the shore...

Four microscopic zebra mussel larvae were found in a recent sample of East Lake Okoboji. The discovery is an indicator of adult reproduction of the aquatic invasive species Spirit Lake according to DNR Fisheries Biologist Mike Hawkins. Officials have yet to find adult zebra mussels in the Lakes but it seems as though at least a few are present...

Spirit Lake Police have filed a second-degree theft charge following an investigation involving missing funds from a non-profit performing arts group. Spirit Lake Police say 41-year-old Brian Keith Kessler used a Lakes Community Theatre credit or debit card for unauthorized online purchases totaling $1,300. The criminal complaint was filed by Spirit Lake police on June 14. Kessler was served with an arrest warrant on June 18, according to court documents...

Folks from outside the Iowa Great Lakes will remember Bill Krause for his love of the Iowa Hawkeyes and his chain of Kum & Go convenience stores. But, some of the area's most influential business leaders will remember Krause for his role in preserving the area's Coney Island-style amusement park or his support of a regional arts center...

Even though they travel to the southern hemisphere each winter, a pair of nesting ospreys always seem to find their way back to the Dickinson County Nature Center each spring. Now, it's time for the person who made their arrival possible to say good-bye. Naturalist and environmental educator Barb Tagami is leaving her post after more than 14 years in Dickinson County...

It wasn't your typical blowout victory, as Spirit Lake used a patient approach at the plate to surge past Cherokee 11-1 in five innings Wednesday, June 19 in Lakes Conference softball action. The Indians drew a season-high 13 walks, including one with the bases loaded. They also took advantage of seven stolen bases after recording just four hits...

The Spirit Lake baseball team used an aggressive approach on the base paths to surge past Cherokee 9-3 Wednesday, June 19 in Lakes Conference action. In an error-filled game, the Indians took advantage of seven hits and seven stolen bases. Two defensive miscues and two base hits immediately put the Indians ahead 2-0 in the first inning...

Okoboji put up much more of a fight in its second meeting with Sheldon but still couldn't break into the win column in a 5-2 road setback Wednesday, June 19 in Siouxland Conference action. The Orabs used a three-run third inning to break open a 1-1 tie...

Okoboji fell on back-to-back nights in a pair of Siouxland Conference games with Sheldon and Central Lyon. The Pioneers fell 3-0 to Sheldon on June 19 after getting outdueled by 10 runs the first time they met on May 29. "We definitely played better than we did the first time," said Okoboji coach Rory Marra. ...

Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire battled tough in a pair of games without senior leader Alyssa Hoffman on the first day of the Okoboji Invitational, splitting showdowns with Sibley-Ocheyedan and Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn Thursday, June 20 in Milford...

Heavy Saturday morning rain showers deemed the fields unplayable and forced the second day of the Okoboji Invitational to be cancelled, which allowed the hometown Pioneers to finish with a 1-1 record after splitting games with Spalding Catholic and Clay Central-Everly on Thursday night...

On a night when hits were hard to come by, Macy Gunderson led Harris-Lake Park to a 5-3 victory over Pocahontas Area/Pomeroy-Palmer with a solid pitching effort Thursday, June 20 in non-conference softball play. The Wolves actually fell behind 2-0 in the first inning...

Harris-Lake Park suffered a disheartening 9-8 loss at the hands of Estherville Lincoln Central, giving up a walk-off inside-the-park home run to Derek Nieland in the bottom of the 10th inning Thursday, June 20 in Estherville. "It was a game that was very tough to lose because we finally came out and swung the bats at the beginning of the game," said Harris-Lake Park coach Jared Rahe. ...

In just its second road tournament, the Bedell Family YMCA U10 traveling soccer team secured a 2-0-1 record in heated competition in Rochester, Minn., last weekend. "Each of the kids played with great effort," said coach Alan Ditsworth. "They are all MVPs in my book for their tremendous hustle and exemplary sportsmanship."...

Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire finally got the breakout offensive performance they were looking for as a team on the way to sweeping a Cornbelt Conference twinbill from Corwith-Wesley-LuVerne on Thursday, June 20. The Titans clubbed 19 hits in both games, winning the opener 26-0 in four innings and making easy work of the Panthers 16-1 in game two...

Future Spirit Lake Spirit Lake eighth grader Kelsey Kannenberg and her softball team, the Minnesota Renegades 99, recently competed in the Premiere Girls Fastpitch National Qualifier in Indianapolis, Ind. The team earned a qualifying position in the National Fastpitch Championship Tournament to be held in Hunting Beach, Calif in late July. Kannenberg batted .586 with a .760 on-base percentage and 13 runs batted in for the weekend. The premiere metro based club is out of the Twin Cities...

The second annual championship trophy is staying close to home after Harris-Lake Park pulled off its biggest upset of the year by taking down 11th-ranked (Class 2A) George-Little Rock/Central Lyon 5-3 in the title game of the team's home invitational Saturday, June 22 in Lake Park...

Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire dropped a doubleheader with West Bend-Mallard Monday night in Cornbelt Conference softball action. The Titans (6-17, 3-5 in the Cornbelt) fell 10-0 in five innings in the opening game and battled tough before falling short in a 5-1 setback in the nightcap...

Harris-Lake Park certainly held its own for a game and a half of a double-dip with top-ranked (Class 2A) North Union Monday night in Cornbelt Conference softball play. The Wolves (9-12, 4-4 in the Cornbelt) came up short by a 4-0 margin in game one and trailed 3-1 through four innings in the second game only to get outscored 10-1 in the final three innings by the Warriors (23-2, 8-0). A seven-run fifth frame opened up the commanding lead for North Union...

Harris-Lake Park left plenty of scoring opportunities on the table after getting swept in a doubleheader with Cornbelt Conference frontrunner North Union Monday, June 24 in league play. The Wolves stranded 16 total base runners in the two outings, falling 8-3 in the opening game and dropping a 3-0 decision in game two...

Going into Monday night's game, many were expecting a fiercely contested match-up with Spirit Lake sitting one game behind Class 3A No. 6 Le Mars in the Lakes Conference baseball standings. But the Bulldogs had other plans, controlling all aspects of the game in a 10-0 victory that lasted only six innings...

Spirit Lake gave undefeated Le Mars its toughest challenge so far this season with seven innings of impressive softball. The Indians, however, couldn't make a 1-0 lead stand up after Molly Renken drove in the game-winning run in walk-off fashion with a run-scoring single in the bottom of the seventh to lift the third-ranked (Class 4A) Bulldogs to a 2-1 victory Monday night in Lakes Conference play...

Okoboji couldn't come up with a timely hit after putting together a couple of serious threats in an 8-0 loss to league-leading Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley Monday, June 24 in Siouxland Conference softball action. With the win, the Nighthawks stays out in front of the pack with a 10-1 conference record and 17-2 overall mark. The Pioneers are now 6-16 overall and 2-7 in the Siouxland...

Okoboji couldn't quite put a complete game together, faltering to Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley 6-5 after playing four solid innings of baseball Monday, June 24 in Siouxland Conference play. "After giving up two runs early in the game to BH/RV, Houston (Hawkins) settled in a little bit. ...

Jacob Stammer, 30, Jackson, Minn., was charged with no driver's license and no insurance at 3:36 p.m. Sunday, June 23 at Denver Avenue and Highway 71. Jordan Mathisen, 24, Emmetsburg, was charged with an OWI at 2:13 a.m. Sunday, June 23 at 19th Street and Hill Avenue...

All four local schools were given challenging draws when the Class 1A, 2A, 3A, 4A and 5A regional softball pairings were released by the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union Monday night. Spirit Lake (15-12) hits the road to take on a Sioux Center team they have split two regular season match-ups with on Tuesday, July 9 in the Class 3A Region 1 quarterfinals. ...

The DNR says it will continue to monitor water samples following a wastewater discharge into Big Spirit Lake. Shortly before 8 a.m. Wednesday, a resident of the city of Orleans reported an overflowing manhole in the 13700 block of Sunset Drive, on the southeast side of Big Spirit Lake...