Stories from Tuesday, July 18, 2017

Houston Hawkins (17) and the Spirit Lake baseball team suffered a 5-0 season-ending defeat in the first round of the Class 3A District 2 baseball tournament Friday night in Le Mars. The Indians were the last of the Lakes Area's baseball teams left alive heading into their bout with the Bulldogs, as Harris-Lake Park and Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrhsire bowed out of the postseason a day earlier...

A pitchers duel for four and a half innings Friday night turned into a display of power by Le Mars' Keaton Candor. The senior blasted a pair of home runs to highlight a 5-0 Bulldogs win over Spirit Lake in the Class 3A District 2 baseball tournament in Le Mars...

Entering Thursday night's second round district tournament showdown with War Eagle Conference foe and ninth-ranked West Sioux, Harris-Lake Park knew it would be facing an uphill battle from the outset. Unfortunately, the Wolves were limited to just three hits in a 10-0 loss to the Falcons...

Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire hit its stride entering postseason play, winning six of its last eight to finish the regular season just three games under .500. That momentum carried into the Class 1A District 2 tournament. The Titans picked up a 3-1 victory over Sioux Central in their first round contest hosted by Newell-Fonda on Tuesday, July 11, but their run ended two days later with a 13-4 loss to the Mustangs in Remsen...

Senior Gavin DeVos became the sixth Spirit Lake baseball player ever —and the second this season — to collect his 100th career hit after going 3-4 at the dish in a 9-3 win over MOC-Floyd Valley in the regular season finale on July 11. DeVos, a four-year starter at Spirit Lake, had a career batting average of .310, with 10 doubles, 41 RBIs and 76 runs scored. DeVos also excelled on the pitching mound for the Indians, amassing a 13-10 career record with 156 innings pitched and 133 strikeouts...

The Palo Alto County Sheriff’s Office says it is still investigating the circumstances behind a single-vehicle crash that claimed a Graettinger man’s life. Funeral services for 27-year-old Jacob Alan Hoffman were held Tuesday at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Graettinger. ...

Mills were still crushing various grains when the city of Milford was incorporated. In fact, many say the town was named for the mills that used the heavy discs to make meal. One such stone was enshrined near the former Milford City Hall — currently the Milford Police Station — but time has taken its toll on the memorial. Local Tim Kinnetz is working with several members of the community to preserve the city’s namesake stone...

Apex Clean Energy and Alliant Energy are continuing to move ahead with the next step toward expanding wind production in Dickinson and Clay County. The expansion, called the Upland Prairie Project, was approved by the Iowa Utilities Board in October of 2016. ...

“I’ll preface this with saying, I didn’t go looking for this,” Dickinson County Supervisor Paul Johnson told his fellow board members. Johnson had heard from two employees of Hope Haven, which rents a county-owned building. He was told Hope Haven has been having issues involving the facility’s restrooms...

Remember the $5,000 July nonprofit challenge The Okoboji Foundation is inviting everyone to participate in the $5,000 July Nonprofit Challenge at GiveOkoboji.com. The fund with the highest giving total over $5,000 in July receives an additional $5,000 from the Okoboji Foundation. ...

Yes, dear citizens, the CAFOs are coming, even to the Iowa Great Lakes. The hog slaughter plant being build in nearby Windom, Minnesota, puts Dickinson County directly in the crosshairs of the ongoing expansion of industrial pork production. Although other states have cracked down on Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), Iowa has rolled out the red carpet by weakening environmental laws and ignoring the vast research documenting the air and water pollution, human diseases odor issues, flies and economic damage that occurs in areas when this industry moves in.. ...

The solitary writer of Anti-Trump Letters to The Editor in our community continues to be worried about our future. His negative view is probably shared by leftists on the East and West coasts, mainly because President Trump was elected. Meanwhile, most of us in the Midwest – who voted for Trump - are enjoying our summer. ...

The advent of wind turbines coming to my farming community has opened my eyes to a whole new set of societal issues. There is a clear delineation between those who embrace the idea of wind turbines and those who do not want anything to do with them...

AUG. 10-12 Everything in the world is connected. A vibrant example of that connectivity is where prairie and lakes meet. A mutual admiration society, these two ecosystems affect each other and depend on each other in the Iowa Great Lakes Region. That is why conservation professionals from throughout the region have banded together to create the Prairie Lakes Conference. The event takes place Thursday and Friday, Aug. 10-11, at the Arrowwood Resort & Conference Center in Okoboji...

The Dickinson County Fairgrounds continues to be a hub of activity in Spirit Lake. Two more days of 4-H/FFA activities remain. This year’s schedule has featured several staple shows, as well as a few new additions. From meals, to games to livestock shows, the fair is an annual place for participants, families and community to come together, according to Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Youth Coordinator Hannah Brockshus...

For the first time in 10 years, Spencer is inviting an estimated 20,000 guests, comprised of bicycle riders, support crews and others associated with RAGBRAI to enjoy a little bit of northwest Iowa's hospitality in the region's hub city. The cyclists and traveling support crews will begin rolling onto the Clay County Fairgrounds during the mid-morning hours on Sunday, July 23, and the volunteer group of local organizers have been busy putting detailed plans in place and are anxious to welcome the guests to town. ...

The Okoboji Foundation has released a mid-July update during the $5,000 July Nonprofit Challenge at GiveOkoboji.com. The gifts received through July 17 total $30,800.00. Five Lakes nonprofit organizations shown in bold below have received gifts of varying sizes. Okoboji Foundation Family of Funds nonprofit partners participating in the challenge include:...

The Dickinson County Republican Central Committee has announced plans for the annual summer picnic. The event will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 22. Butch and Debbie Parks will host the event at the Barefoot Bar at Parks Marina on East Lake Okoboji...

Farmers continued to haul grain, apply herbicides, cut hay and cultivate fields as hot, dry weather continued across the state. “We are seeing some stress to both crops and livestock from the ongoing hot and dry weather,” Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey said. “Southcentral and southeast Iowa are currently the driest parts of the state, with more than 85 percent of topsoil rated short or very short of moisture in those areas.”...

Joseph Wyatt Davis, age 34, was booked into the Dickinson County Jail on charges of domestic abuse and assault at 12:40 a.m. Tuesday, July 11. Bond was set at $1,000. Elizabeth Denise Johnson, age 30, was booked into the Dickinson County Jail on charges of domestic abuse and assault at 4:06 p.m. Tuesday, July 11. Bond was set at $1,000...

The Iowa Finance Authority and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources recently announced that 32 Iowa communities have received low-interest water quality loans totaling more than $78.1 million through the State Revolving Fund. Area funds include:...

The Northwest Iowa Concert, directed by Rich Nicklay, will present its final summer concert at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 26, at Hawkeye Care Center. The band is comprised of volunteers from area communities and the public is invited to the concert. Music selections will include marches, overtures, patriotic pieces and sing-a-longs. ...

Boji Bay Legacy Park at Milford has announced that national rock group, Bridger will join Great White at its Boji Bike Rally concert. The bands will perform at the north Milford venue starting at 6 p.m. Friday, Aug. 18. Bridger is comprised of four of the members from the current band, Head East. They include, Glen Bridger on guitars, Darren Walker on lead vocals, Eddy Jones on drums, Greg Manahan on bass and special guest Chrissy Fike on keyboards...

The Okoboji Summer Theatre continues its 60th anniversary season with its sixth production of the summer: “Move Over, Mrs. Markham by Ray Cooney and John Chapman.” The production runs from Tuesday, July 25, through Sunday, July 30. Like the best British farces, set in an elegant top-floor London flat, this one has it all — multiple zany couples and characters, plenty of chaos and naughty nonsense, and, of course, multiple doors to be slammed...

Butterfly milkweed, wild bergamot, royal catchfly, wild white indigo, hoary vervain — the number of native plants in the prairie might seem overwhelming. However, the Native Plantings workshop put on by Dickinson County Conservation 10 a.m. Wednesday, July 26, at the Lakes Area Farmers Market in Spirit Lake will help make people a little more comfortable with Iowa’s wildflower species...

It’s a family affair! The Ladies of the Lake Chapter of DAR welcomed two new members at its July 11 meeting. Regent Mary Thunhorst (right) installed Diana Sanders (left) and her mother Delma Hanby (center), both of Spirit Lake. A third family member, Diana’s daughter and Delma’s granddaughter Maya Sanders, will be installed at a later date since she is currently in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. The family patriot is Ebenezer Tingley, a native of New Jersey, who fought in the American Revolution...

The inaugural Donate Life 5K, conducted July 8, in Spencer was coordinated to bring organ donation to northwest Iowa. Seventy-two participants, of all ages — including a past transplant recipient and Nate Fisher, a 17-year-old who is currently on a transplant list — either ran or walked the distance. ...

For many of us, summertime in the Iowa Great Lakes is synonymous with enjoying the outdoors and warm weather. However, when the temperatures and humidity levels rise, it can be harder to sweat, which is the body’s way of cooling off — and eventually result in heat exhaustion, heatstroke, or heat cramps. ...

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey encouraged Iowa students who are in kindergarten through grade 8 to take part in the “Farmers Market Scavenger Hunt” again this year. The farmers markets participating in the program are the Storm Lake Farmers Market and Cherokee Farmers Market...

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey announced that four successful watershed-based demonstration projects funded in 2014, and set to end this year, will receive a second round of funding. The locally-led projects will build upon previous demonstration objectives and continue working toward accelerated implementation of practices that improve water quality...

7 p.m. Wednesday, July 19 Wild Wednesdays at Waitt Lab — “Spineless Wonders: Life without a Backbone” is the program. Most of the world’s creatures lack internal skeletons, participants can explore how they get along without them. UPCOMING 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 25...

The Friends of the Milford Memorial Library’s annual book sale is from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, July 21, and from 9-11 a.m. Saturday, July 22. The book sale is located in the east side of the Milford Community Center. The Milford Memorial Library has been accepting donations of books for the past year and has a wide selection of gently used books for sale. ...

Area students recently received degrees from Buena Vista University. They include from: Milford – Amanda Cook, Bachelor of Arts (business administration at BVU's Spencer site), Jennifer Davis Bachelor of Arts degree in (business administration, management — entrepreneurship track — and accounting at BVU’s Spencer site) and Daniel Nase, Bachelor of Arts (finance & banking and business administration at BVU's Spencer site); Okoboji — Kevin Pernick, Bachelor of Arts degree (finance & banking at BVU's Estherville site);. ...

Iowa State University (ISU) Extension and Outreach invites area residents to learn all the basics of water bath canning and freezing foods at a salsa workshop scheduled from 5-9 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 22 at United Methodist Church Wesley Place in Spirit Lake. The hands-on workshop is part of “Preserve the Taste of Summer,” a food preservation course offered by ISU Extension and Outreach. Renee Sweers, ISU Extension and Outreach Nutrition and Wellness program specialist, will lead the workshop...

Sen. Chuck Grassley said that fall internships for college-aged Iowans are still available. Applications are due Friday, July 21. The Senate internships are available in Grassley offices in Washington, D.C., Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, Davenport, Des Moines, Sioux City and Waterloo. The fall internship program runs from Aug. 21 to Dec. 15...

FAFSA completion numbers are up in Iowa and around the United States after an earlier start date and a series of awareness campaigns. As of June 30, nearly 22,000 high school seniors in Iowa had completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, up more than eight percent from the year before. Nationwide, the number of seniors who completed FAFSAs was up more than nine percent, according to the National College Access Network...

Donald Rodawig, Jr., M.D. has been a name long associated with healthcare in the Iowa Great Lakes. In 1934, his father, also a physician, was the first to provide surgical procedures in Dickinson County and renovated “The Pillars” — as it was known at the time — into the Marcus Snyder Memorial Hospital. That facility was established years before a county hospital came into existence...

Feb. 4, 1989 — July 8, 2017 A funeral service for Steve Friedrich, 28, of Spencer, was held Thursday, July 13, at Turner Jenness Funeral Home in Milford. Interment was at Milford Cemetery in Milford. 
Stephen Howard Friedrich, the son of Denise (Strong) Friedrich and Howard Friedrich, was born Feb. ...

March 9, 1923 — March 2, 2017 Elinor Healy Bedell, age 93, passed away peacefully at her Naples, Florida home on March 2, 2017, after a brief illness. She was born in Mankato, Minnesota on March 9, 1923. She was known to friends and family as a gentle, kind, and loving woman. She grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota and during her childhood and whenever she could later in life she enjoyed summers in Grand Marais, Minnesota...

Dec. 13, 1942 — July 11, 2017 Private family services were held for Albert Berg, age 74 of Lake Park.  Albert Lewis Berg was born Dec. 13, 1942, in Dickinson County to Nellen and June (Emerson) Berg. He attended school in Lake Park, Jackson County and graduated from Spirit Lake High School in 1961...

Former Spirit Lake and current Northwestern College football player Jacob Jenness was recently nominated for the 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team. Since 1992, the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team has been one of the most coveted community service awards in college football, bringing together select student-athletes from all divisions of play to honor their dedication to volunteerism and enriching the lives of others. ...

One of the hobbies my wife and I enjoy together is backyard bird feeding. With a variety of feeders to attract a wide range of birds, we get so many different types of birds to enjoy their special treat each day. From hummingbirds, to purple finches, to gold finches, to chipping sparrows, to chickadees, to nuthatches, to downy woodpeckers, to red-bellied woodpeckers, to robins, to mourning doves, to orioles, to rose breasted grosbeaks…they appear daily. Bunches of them!...

Fish are cold-blooded creatures. Water temperatures have an effect on their way of doing things. When the water is cold, the fish prefer a slow moving bait. Their metabolism is slower in cold water, so they don’t move as fast. When water temperatures warm up, like they do in the summer, fish will move around more, and they’ll also be willing to chase down a faster moving bait...

The sounds of scraping as metal buckets pick up rocks and dirt, of trucks beeping as they back up, of workers calling to one another — we had better get used to some more noise at the Dickinson County Nature Center as construction begins on Pollinator Paradise...

Summer ... it has officially arrived here in Iowa! Temperatures have been in the 90s for at least a week now with a brief respite on the horizon. Throughout the Midwest, the average temperatures have been 12 to 15 degrees warmer than the norm. Water temperatures have been warmer as well, leading to some very early action on our local lakes and reservoirs...

National Hunting and Fishing Day (NHF Day), an annual celebration of hunters and anglers, features a new twist this year. Richard Childress, NASCAR legend and honorary chair for NHF Day, is asking hunters and anglers to participate in the new NHF Day Challenge by taking someone hunting, fishing or target shooting. ...