Stories from Tuesday, June 26, 2018

If the line for face-painting was any indication, the Dickinson County Relay for Life was another success. Paula Nordblad, one of the local organizers for the local American Cancer Society fundraiser, stayed busy from 5:15-10 p.m., including a lot of time adding color to young faces...

Nancy and Gary Ranum are proud to announce the engagement of their daughter Amber Ann Ranum to Jeremy RayMond Prochnow, son of Tammy and John Prochnow. Amber graduated from Spirit Lake High School and is self-employed as owner of Greenstems Farm. Jeremy graduated from Spirit Lake High School and AIB College of Business and is employed by Wooden Life...

Aug.11, 1937 — June 22, 2018 Funeral services were held Tuesday, June 26, 2018, at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Milford for Elizabeth "Betty" Ann Kelly-Spies of Milford. A private burial was at Riverside Cemetery in Spencer. The Rev. Tim Johnson officiated...

July 25, 1922 — June 11, 2018 Iola P. Jones, 95, of Milford, passed away peacefully on Monday, June 11, at Accura Healthcare in Milford. Iola was born July 25, 1922, in Milford, the daughter of Harry Robert and Celia Esther (Bovee) Carpenter. She was raised and educated in Milford, where she graduated from Milford High School...

Oct. 14, 1951 — June 22, 2018 Terry Olson, 66, of Terril, passed away unexpectedly on Friday, June 22, 2018. Terry was born Oct. 14, 1951 in Estherville, the son of Dick and Tillie Olson. He was raised on a farm in Terril and attended Lake Center school through seventh grade until his school merged with Terril, graduating from Terril High School...

Milford Memorial Library will continue its children’s summer reading program at 10 a.m. Tuesday, June 26, in the community room. On this date, we will have "Sheltered Reality" and their program called "Music with Meaning!" This program is geared for students in preschool through grade 4 and there is no charge to attend the program. Don't forget to bring in your music notes prize sheet for some cool incentives. For registration and information, contact Miss Betty or visit MML's website...

People seldom know when they're going to need a lifesaving blood transfusion, but up to 90 percent of us will need blood at some point in our lives. Thanks to people across the country who donate their blood, those with cancer, those in automobile accidents, those undergoing heart surgery and more are able to get the care needed...

JUNE 27 - JULY 4 WILD WEDNESDAYS - Free, fun family science programs. 7:00 PM Waitt Lab June 27: Taking it to the Nest Level: All About Birds From their colors to their calls and beyond - come learn all about our feathered friends. TUESDAY FRIENDS SCIENCE SEMINARS - 7:00 PM MAHAN HALL...

A medieval metaphor for modern times. Alexander paused for a moment on a parapet of the castle in which he was born. He knew the world outside the wall could not be trusted. There were thieves. There were killers. But he assumed there were good people as well. ...

Final action on the Fiscal Year 2019 budget happened on June 1, as Governor Reynolds signed all of the budget bills that day. Unlike her predecessor, Governor Reynolds only made minor revisions to the budgets adopted by the Legislature this session...

On behalf of Spenser's Underground Youth Ministry Board of Directors, I would like to thank the Good Neighbor Fund for its generosity in donating to our ministry. Without help from the Good Neighbor Fund and other organizations and private donors, Spenser's Underground could not provide the valuable service to local teens. ...

After watching cars line up like little tin soldiers on Highway 71 by Minervas 30 deep, I felt the need to write this letter. On busy weekends it takes people 2-3 cycles of the light to get through. Using both lanes and allowing cars to merge, everyone gets through faster...

In a recent letter to the editor titled “Trump on the World Stage” the writer criticizes the President for not doing what the writer thinks President Trump should have done at world meetings. The members of NATO do not pay into NATO at the agreed rate of 2 percent of their GDP. ...

A joint project with the city of Arnolds Park, Dickinson County Secondary Roads and Dickinson County Trails resulted in new 8-foot concrete shoulders being paved on each side of 190th Street from Bridges Bay to 242nd Avenue. The project addressed serious safety concerns on a busy road that sees a lot of bicycle and pedestrian traffic. It also completes the first phase in DCTB’s long-term plan to continue trails around the east side of East Lake Okoboji...

The Okoboji Summer Theatre is pleased to present its fourth production of the summer: "Annie," music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin and book by Thomas Meehan. The production runs from Tuesday, July 3, through Sunday, July 8 with a 4:30 p.m. ...

Sponsorships are still available, but seats will be hard to come by when Georgia Clay performs Saturday, June 30 at the Arnolds Park Pavilion. Boots & Boogie Bike Bash II features the Minneapolis-area band as part of a fundraiser for the Dickinson County Trails Association. ...

With the Independence Day holiday falling on Wednesday this year, adjustments have been made in the annual Fourth of July flea market schedule in the Iowa Great Lakes Region. The Treasure Village Flea Market will begin Saturday, June 30 and continue through Monday, July 2. Hours for the wide variety of vendors on the Treasure Village grounds will be 9 a.m. to 6 p.m...

Gov. Kim Reynolds issued a disaster declaration for Clay, Dickinson, Emmet, Kossuth, Lyon, Osceola, Palo Alto, Scott and Story on June 21. This will help the area access state resources in the recovery from the severe weather. Specifically, it opens up access the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program for qualifying residents. ...

The Dickinson County Board of Supervisors on May 1 passed a resolution that outlines county policy for the use of fireworks in some areas. On the county level, the board of supervisors has said it wishes to adopt the Iowa law regarding the use of "first-class fireworks," "second-class fireworks" and "consumer fireworks."...

Paula Render, age 40, of Spirit Lake was charged with violation of a no contact/protective order at 7:14 p.m. Tuesday, June 19, in the 1900 block of 25th Street in Spirit Lake. Gabrielle Audrey Blink, age 21, of Longmont, Colorado, was charged with drunkenness at 1:46 a.m. Sunday, June 24, near the intersection of 240th Avenue and North Temple Drive in Spirit Lake...

Lakes Regional Healthcare plans to begin the Children Have An iDentity (CHAD) program. CHAD is a nationwide program by the Travelers Protective Association that began as a result of a traffic crash involving a 13-month-old boy named Chad. The babysitter who was driving was killed. Chad was injured, but no one at the scene knew his identity. Only because an emergency room nurse recognized him could his parents be quickly located and his injuries be treated...

Immunizations are shown to prevent disease and improve health and are one of the greatest contributions to population health. For example, in the 1950s before the vaccine, polio caused paralysis in over 15,000 cases per year and death in multiple others. Through the four doses of the vaccine, polio has been eradicated from the United States since 1979...

Lakes Regional Healthcare’s imaging department has undergone several changes in the past months. In December they installed their new 64-slice CT scanner that provides faster scans and improved images at lower radiation doses. Lakes Regional Healthcare received a $400,000 grant from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust's Rural Healthcare Program to purchase the new CT scanner...

Iowa streams are swollen and swift with consistent rainfall the past several days. Some rivers are already dangerously high, and more rivers could rise fast. “We encourage all paddlers, especially new and inexperienced paddlers, to stay on lakes and flat-water while the rivers are high due to heavy rain," Todd Robertson, the paddling instructor and Outreach Coordinator for Rivers Programs at the Iowa DNR, said...

Car shows are a summer staple in Iowa Great Lakes and classic car enthusiasts will have two chances to enjoy curbside show-and-tells. Classic old cars and trucks have secured a spot downtown Spirit Lake for the past two decades. The Spirit Lake Chamber of Commerce encourages the public to experience relaxation, good food and fun once again on Saturday, June 30...

RAGBRAI, the Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa begins July 21 in Onawa, but visitors to the Iowa Great Lakes don't have to wait that long to get the road work in. The University of Okoboji will hold its 34th Annual Cycling Classic June 30, with Milford as the starting point. The 26th Annual Big Spirit Trails Festival features BRASL, the annual Bike Ride Around Spirit Lake on July 7...

On June 28, representatives from many local business and other community members who simply love the game of golf and the YMCA will hit the links at Emerald Hills in Arnolds Park to support the YMCA of the Okobojis in an eight-inch cup, four-person best-ball tournament...

Jeff Plagge, President & CEO of Northwest Financial Corp., Arnolds Park is pleased to announce the promotion of Dave Ward to Chief Credit Officer for Northwest Financial Corp. and Northwest Bank. Ward will be responsible for direction of all credit functions related to banking activities throughout Northwest Financial Corp. and Northwest Bank...

One of the many special aspects of our home is the abundance of traditions that are shared here. An annual favorite is the Fourth of July fireworks show, a celebration cherished by friends and families each summer. The beautiful display of fireworks by J&M Displays will light up the sky for all to enjoy at 10:07 p.m. Wednesday, July 4 over West Lake Okoboji...

This summer, West O Beer is going to be the only place serving authentic Chicago style hot dogs. Every Wednesday, there will be a hot dog cart serving Vienna style Chicago Hot dogs manned by a real Chicagoan. The Inn Hot Dog Cart will serve Vienna Beef franks on a Rosen's steamed bun and it is "run through the garden" meaning that Plochman’s Mustard, neon green relish, two sports peppers (tangy and less hot than a jalapeno), onions, dill pickle spear, tomato wedges and topped off with celery salt to create truly a "banquet on a bun.". ...

The colorful crackles and the cacophony of sound will once again accompany the celebration of Independence Day in the Iowa Great Lakes. Though the holiday lands in the middle of the week this year, most of the area displays have been scheduled close to the actual July 4 date...

Congress is another step closer to a final draft of the latest Farm Bill. The bill is readdressed every five years, and all three of northwest Iowa's Republican congressmen are representing the state on agriculture committees in either the House or the Senate. ...

The sport of stand up paddle boarding is a fairly recent addition to the world of water-based recreation. Jean Schmidt, head of paddle board and water accessory sales at Parks Marina, said the business has offered equipment for the sport for about 4-5 years and several customers have maintained their interest in the sport since then. Saturday, enthusiasm for the sport was taken to a new level...

The Fourth of July is a day of celebration in the United States. Families get together for picnics and fireworks which usually requires traveling either long or short distances. With increased road use and the possibility of increased alcohol consumption, the risk of traffic crashes rises. ...

It's been almost 25 years since the waters in the Lakes Area hit memorably high levels in 1993, and now Mother Nature seems to be delivering an encore. Heavy rains have led to water entering some basements, roads have been closed and the county is preparing for more — rainfall and thunderstorms are in the Saturday forecast...

Okoboji surrendered four late runs to lose 7-6 to Pocahontas Area in a back-and-forth, non-conference softball road battle on Tuesday, June 19. After two scoreless innings, the Pioneers took the first lead of the contest with a run in the top half of the third. The Indians answered with a pair of runs in the bottom half of the third to take a 2-1 advantage...

The Okoboji baseball team picked up its third win in a four-game road stand Friday with a 15-5 drubbing of Siouxland Conference foe Sibley-Ocheyedan. After two scoreless, the Pioneers plated three runs in the top half of the third to take the game's first lead. ...

Less than a week after earning their first win of the season, the Okoboji softball team picked up its first Siouxland Conference victory with a 3-0 road victory over Sheldon. After four scoreless innings, the Pioneers plated a run in each of the final three innings to salt away the victory...

Editor’s note: Although we live right here in the Iowa Great Lakes, we often do not realize all of the natural resources we have here. This is a feature on Kettleston Hogsback provided by the Iowa DNR. The rarest of rare Iowa landscapes, remnant prairie is found in certain locations on the Kettleson Hogsback wildlife area. Its high quality and diverse prairie plants have been the seed source used to establish other Iowa prairies...

Where has the time gone? The Fourth of July holiday is knocking on the door! Wow! Also known as Independence Day, it celebrates the anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, That’s 242 years, which seems like a lot to us, but in the scope of civilizations and countries, the United States is pretty young...

Summer is here: It came quickly this year. Fishing in the summer can be very productive. However, on that day when you’re on the water, fishing conditions might not be the best for the species of fish that you want to catch. We might really want to catch walleyes, but in reality, in some bodies of water, the largemouth bass might be biting better...

This past weekend, Dick Lineweaver and his son Eric invited me to go bluegill fishing with them. Although the spawn is essentially over, the bite is still definitely on. West Okoboji has a tremendous bluegill population, and over the course of three hours I would guess we caught well over 100 fish. ...

The 11th-ranked (3A) Spirit Lake softball team, coming off of a thrilling 5-4 win over Cherokee on Friday, struggled to three losses at a tournament in Cedar Rapids on Saturday. The Indians fell to seventh-ranked (5A) Fort Dodge, previously ranked New Hampton and unranked Linn-Mar...

The Okoboji baseball team split a pair of games over the weekend at a tournament hosted by Estherville Lincoln Central. The Pioneers fell to the fifth-ranked (2A) Midgets before topping Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn on Saturday. After three scoreless innings against ELC, the Pioneers took the first lead of the contest with a run in the top half of the fourth inning. ...

The Spirit Lake baseball team picked up a 9-2 road win over Lakes Conference foe Cherokee Friday. The Indians fell behind early, as the Braves plated a run in the bottom half of the opening stanza to lead 1-0. After a scoreless second inning, Spirit Lake took control with three runs in the top half of the third to make it a 3-1 contest...

The Harris-Lake Park softball team picked up an extra-innings road win over Sibley-Ocheyedan on Tuesday. The Wolves, led by junior Mady Brevik, defeated the Generals 10-9 in eight innings at Sheldon. Brevik was 4-5 at the plate and pitched all eight innings, striking out eight batters while allowing nine runs (seven earned) on 10 hits and two walks...

The Harris-Lake Park softball team went 1-1 at its home tournament on Saturday. The Wolves earned a 7-6 come-from-behind win over George-Little Rock/Central Lyon, and fell 2-0 to Cherokee. "I was really happy with how the girls played," Harris-Lake Park coach Eric Clouse said. ...

The Okoboji softball team went 1-2 at their home tournament on Saturday. The Pioneers picked up a win over Sibley-Ocheyedan, but fell to Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn and Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire. Okoboji opened with a 4-2 loss to the Hawks and an 18-6 loss to the Titans before ending the tournament with a 16-0 win over the Generals...

The Harris-Lake Park baseball team got off to a rough start Friday afternoon in an 11-0 War Eagle Conference home loss to Akron-Westfield. The Westerners plated two runs in each of the first three innings before scoring one in the fourth and four in the sixth...

Clutch defense and late-inning heroics led 11th-ranked Spirit Lake to a walk-off win over Cherokee Friday afternoon, as the Indians broke their tie with the Braves on top of the Lakes Conference softball standings. Trailing 4-1 heading to the bottom half of the final frame, the Indians plated four runs — including the game-winning single by junior Payton Ahrenstorff — to down Cherokee 5-4 at home...