Stories from Tuesday, June 2, 2015

A local contractor was able to escape a house fire without injury Monday, June 1. The Spirit Lake Fire Department was dispatched shortly after 4 p.m. to reports of a structure fire on the Lutheran Lakeside Camp property. Contractors were in the process of renovating a home when the fire broke out in the kitchen and dining room area...

Rain or shine, the Seventh Annual Biker's Sunday takes place June 7. Spirit Life Fellowship Church expects to welcome nearly 200 participants. "We had 190 last year in a pouring-down rain," church pastor and organizer Eric Holdeman said. "It was the biggest crowd ever."...

Tuesday night's contest between visiting Pocahontas Area and host Okoboji played out like a prize fight, but in the end, it was the Indians that dealt the knockout blow as a nine-run fifth inning vaulted them to a 20-14 win in Milford. The Pioneers found themselves on their heals from the opening stanza, as the Pocahontas Area hitters jumped all over starting pitcher Isaac Fritsch, who was quickly pulled for reliever Pat Ellrich...

Spirit Lake jumped all over MOC-Floyd Valley Tuesday night, as the Class 3A No. 7-ranked Indians defeated the Dutch 13-0 in five innings of softball action. Spirit Lake started slow, as Caitlyn Roberts drew a one-out walk before a two-out single by Carly Ites brought the junior around to score, putting the Indians up 1-0 after one...

Upper Des Moines Opportunity, Inc. (UDMO) would like to extend our gratitude to the Good Neighbor Fund, in particular, those who contributed to this fund. The dollars raised in the Good Neighbor 2014 Fund Drive not only benefit the individuals and families who are served by UDMO, but a number of other charitable organizations in Dickinson County...

As some of the most active and engaged Republicans in Iowa, we are writing to urge you to participate in the Iowa Straw Poll. The Straw Poll is a political tradition stretching back to 1979. Many of us remember attending as children, or bringing our own children along while we participated in this grassroots event. In the past, the Straw Poll has drawn more than 20,000 caucus-going Iowa activists, which would make it the largest political gathering in the country...

Nov. 30, 1931 -- May 27, 2015 Lawrence Harold Hedges was born Nov. 30, 1931, in Spirit Lake. He was the son of Harold and Thora (Tritle) Hedges. He lived his youth and attended school in Swea City, Spirit Lake and Ocheyedan, graduating from Ocheyedan High School. He served in the United States Army from 1952 to 1954 during the Korean Conflict. He attained the rank of Specialist First Class and was honorably discharged...

May 17, 1920 -- May 24, 2015 Funeral services for Gladys Johnson of Milford were held Saturday, May 30, 2015 at First Lutheran Church in West Okoboji. Burial was at Milford Cemetery. Gladys Rosalind Johnson, daughter of Nels and Elisa Roarson, was born in Ossian May 17, 1920. ...

It's time to catch up on some business happenings around the Iowa Great Lakes. The Iowa Navy Commodores have a pair of ribbon-cutting events this week. the staff at Keelson Harbor is holding a grand opening to unveil a new addition. The event is at 4 p.m. Thursday. Interiors at the Great Lakes Mall is also holding a grand opening. Commodores will be on hand at 10 a.m. Friday. Congratulations to both companies!...

May 15, 1927 -- May 26, 2015 Corrinne Winders, 88, was born in Humboldt on May 15, 1927, to Carl and Clara (Oleson) Nielsen. She passed away peacefully surrounded by her loving family Tuesday May 26, 2015, in Spirit Lake. Corky, as she was known by all, was a strong woman and cheated death many times over the last five years as her health declined. ...

Residents are encouraged to "Celebrate the Arts" Saturday, June 6 in honor of the Pearson Lake Arts Center's 50th anniversary celebration. Guests at this year's event will don elegant headwear as part of the "Hats off to 50 years" theme. Social hour begins at 5:30 p.m. at the Okoboji venue along Highway 71...

There's Sunshine in Milford and it has nothing to do with a weather forecast. Roling Signs and Awnings installed "Sunshine Foods" signs Wednesday, May 27, in Milford. The rebranded grocery store takes the place of Buy Rite Foods along the east side of Highway 71...

The Iowa Department of Public Health has released the 2014 Immunization Annual Report, which provides multiple immunization coverage rates for individual counties and the state. According to the report, Dickinson County has an immunization rate of 84 percent for 2-year-old children, which is the highest rate among every county in the state and compares to the overall state rate of 69 percent. ...

Spirit of Harmony Chorus, award winning chorus of Sweet Adelines International, has named their SAY award recipient for 2015. SAY stands for Sweet Adeline of the Year. This year's winner is Sally Bohmer of Estherville. Bohmer was honored May 11 at the annual Spirit of Harmony banquet...

Five concerts are scheduled during the 35th Annual Iowa Lakes Community College Reggie Schive Summer Jazz Camp. The public is invited to attend. Concerts are Monday through Thursday, June 8-11, and feature the Headliners and camp participants. Headliners include Roger Neumann, saxophones -- Los Angeles; Michael Gurciullo, trumpet and vocals -- Las Vegas and Omaha; Tony Gulizia, keyboard and vocals -- Vail, Colo.; Joey Gulizia, percussion -- Omaha; Andy Hall, bass -- Lincoln, Nebraska; Scott Hesse, guitar -- Chicago; CJ Kocher, saxophones -- Vermillion, South Dakota; and Dan Cassady, trombone -- Iowa City.. ...

Ryan Novak, 24, Spirit Lake, was charged with operating while intoxicated -- second offense, violation of financial liability coverage, an open container and speeding at 3:27 a.m. Saturday, May 30, along Highway 71 in Spirit Lake. Andrew Stowell, 42, Spirit Lake, was charged with operating while intoxicated and violation of financial liability coverage at 11:41 p.m. Saturday, May 30, at Highway 71 and 32nd Street...

For 38 years, soccer players have made the trip to the Iowa Great Lakes Region to compete. Those first teams were ahead of their time. Soccer was not the most popular sport in this area. In fact, most of the residents didn't know how it was played or what the rules were. ...

For the fourth consecutive year Okoboji's Alex Mankle earned a top-10 finish at the IGHSAU State Golf Tournament, as the senior finished 23-over par to place sixth at the Class 3A tourney held at the American Legion Memorial Golf Course in Marshalltown Monday and Tuesday...

It took extra innings to determine a winner in Monday's Siouxland Conference baseball showdown between Okoboji and West Lyon, but in the end it was was the Pioneers who pulled out a 5-2 road victory. Runs were at a premium, as the Pioneers scored once in the first and once more in the third to hold a 2-0 lead before West Lyon plated one in the bottom half of the third to make it a 2-1 game...

Leading 3-1 through five, the Harris-Lake Park softball team tacked three runs onto its lead in the sixth inning to salt away a 6-3 win over visiting Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn/Remsen-Union on Monday in Lake Park. After a scoreless first, the Wolves plated one in the second on a bases-loaded walk. MMC-RU responded in the top of the third, pushing one across to knot the score, but H-LP scored one in the bottom half of the third and another in the fourth to take a two-run advantage...

A trio of runs in the fifth inning lifted the Harris-Lake Park baseball team to a home victory over visiting Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn/Remsen-Union on Monday, as the Wolves edged MMC-RU 9-8 in Lake Park. H-LP jumped on top first, scoring three runs in both the first and second innings to lead 6-0, but four MMC-RU runs in the third and another in the fourth made it a one-run game through four...

Spirit Lake held an early 4-3 lead in a road baseball contest with Sioux Center, but the Warriors rallied in the fourth and fifth innings, tacking on nine runs to earn a 12-5 win over the Indians. The visitors struck first, as Cory Meschede and Keaton Leach reached base to lead off the opening stanza. ...

It was a death by a thousand cuts for Sioux Center Monday night, as the Class 3A No. 7-ranked Spirit Lake softball team slowly but surely chipped away at an 8-1 road victory over the Warriors. The Indians pushed a run across in both the first and second innings before scoring twice in the fourth, once in the fifth, twice more in the sixth and once in the seventh in the win...