Serving O'Brien & Clay Counties
Serving O'Brien & Clay Counties
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The plumes of dust rising from local fields haven't settled in recent weeks thanks to dry conditions that have allowed farmers to harvest at breakneck pace. According to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, one-quarter of the corn for grain in the state had been harvested Oct. 4, more than three weeks ahead of last year and 12 days ahead of average. This marked only the second time since 2000 that at least one-quarter of the corn for grain crop was harvested by that date....
It may have been a week later than expected, but new royalty got their due Monday night at Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn High School. Cher Hibbing and Gabe Bronstad were named Homecoming queen and king during the coronation ceremony, which was held outside at the football field. All Homecoming activities were postponed a week because of the high number of students quarantined due to COVID-19 public heath guidelines. Hibbing, of Hartley, is the daughter of Bill and Josie Hibbing. She's involved in Dance...
The Hartley Community Daycare Center was temporarily closed this week due to a confirmed case of COVID-19. Facility administrators were made aware of the situation Sunday after a test confirmed the COVID-19 infection. The child had been at the building Friday, but was experiencing no symptoms and passed COVID-19 protocol when they arrived. Following recommendations from public health officials, the facility was closed Monday through Wednesday. It was scheduled to reopen today after extensive...
Members of Hartley's pool taskforce committee hope several years of planning are about to pay off. Literally. Fundraising efforts for Hartley's new pool get underway this Sunday with a sack lunch event at the community center from 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Pulled pork sandwiches, chips, cookies and a drink will be available for a free will donation, with drive-thru and pick-up options available. Jackie Stoltz, one of the original members of the pool taskforce committee, said it felt good to finally be...
The end of the COVID-19 pandemic remains a moving target, but local residents on Friday offered praise to Gov. Kim Reynolds for her handling of the unprecedented situation. Around a dozen people showed up to 1015 Steak Company in Sibley to quiz the governor about the pandemic's status in Iowa. Reynolds told guests she was proud of how Iowans handled the situation and felt the Hawkeye State was on solid footing moving forward. "It's taken all of us together," she said. "We're in a lot better...
Gov. Kim Reynolds on Sept. 29 released new guidance to Iowans regarding COVID-19 exposure and quarantine timelines. O'Brien County Public Health will follow the new guidelines and urges local residents to wear a mask when social distancing is not possible. As of Wednesday morning, the rate of positive COVID-19 tests over the last two weeks was 18.4 percent. • If you wear a mask in public settings, businesses, communities, and in schools, and the person that tested positive also had a mask on, t...
• Traffic Tonny Champin Wleh, Spencer, No Valid Driver’s License. Todd Allen Meyeraan, II, Sheldon, Violation Restricted Driver’s License. Timothy Joseph Elbert, Sheldon, Illegal Passing. Colby Gene Simm, Paullina, Unsafe Backing. Brenda Lynn Lamb, Sheldon, Speeding. Sade Shilis Grant, Coon Rapids, Minn., Speeding. Christina Marie Plautz, Sioux City, Speeding. River Jason Fox, LeMars, Minor In Possession. Daniel Patrick Wheeler Morris, Paullina, Failure to Obey Traffic Control Device. Amy Sue Shelling, Hospers, Speeding. Andrew Theodore Johns...
Everly's "new" fire truck is definitely an eye-catcher. The bright yellow exterior of the 2000 Luverne Spartan stands out among traditional red fire trucks in the area. Though it might be a rather unique sight on fire calls, it's no bother to Everly firefighters – a paint job has never put out an inferno. "We really like it so far," said Everly Fire Chief Brian Kahl. "For a small town, this is a lot of truck, but we'll put it to good use." The local department purchased the truck from the S...
Named to president’s list at DMACC Luke Peters, of Hartley, was named to the summer semester president’s list at Des Moines Area Community College. He is a building trades student. To be eligible for inclusion on the list, a student must have completed a minimum of six credits and earned a 4.0 grade point average for the semester. Iowa farmers serve on NCGA board Iowa farmer-leaders continue to serve on the National Corn Growers Association’s Corn Board, fulfilling their elected roles. In June, the corn board elected Chris Edgington, of Mitch...
Voters will have the opportunity to elect four members of the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Clay County Council during the Nov. 3 general election. "The council members elected this year will be involved in bringing educational opportunities to Clay County for the next four years," said Regional Extension Director Beth Frankenstein in a news release. "ISU Extension and Outreach Clay County educational programming is a cooperative effort involving local citizens, Iowa State...
Blood drive Oct. 21 in Hartley The next blood drive in Hartley is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 21, from 12:30-5:30 p.m. at the Hartley Community Center, 820 2nd Street NE. Appointments are required. To set up your donation appointment, text LIFESERVE to 999-777, call (800) 287-4903 or visit lifeservebloodcenter.org. Only blood donors will be allowed inside the building due to COVID-19. H-M-S menus Thursday, Oct. 8: Breakfast – Pancake, sausage bites, fruit, juice; Lunch – Chili/crackers, celery, carrots (9-12), cinnamon roll, pears. Fri...
O’Brien County’s COVID-19 positivity rate increased this week to one of the Top 10-highest in the state. According to Iowa’s coronavirus update page Wednesday morning, the number of positive tests returned in O’Brien County over the last 14 days was 18.4 percent, ranking No. 7 in Iowa. Clay County was No. 23 with a 12.4 positivity rate. The total number of deaths associated with COVID-19 remained the same over the past week in O’Brien County (9) and Clay County (4). Overall, O’Brien County has had 472 total confirmed coronavirus cases since...
The board of supervisors on Tuesday approved a burn ban for O'Brien County's unincorporated areas due to exceptionally dry conditions. The burn ban request was sent to the Iowa State Fire Marshal's Office for review and was approved. The ban prohibits supervised burns without a permit in affected areas. Additionally, a burn ban for all of Clay County remains in place. According to the order, "open burning constitutes a danger to life or property" during periods of extended dryness. The...
This week marks the National Fire Protection Association's (NFPA) 98th year of publicly observing Fire Prevention Week. President Calvin Coolidge declared Fire Prevention Week a national observance in 1925, which gives it the title of the longest-running public health observance in the United States. The week entails teachers, adults and children learning how to stay safe in situations involving a fire. The role of firefighters in communities is of obvious importance to all. This week the local...
Kevin Wood has held a plethora of positions, all working towards the one he has today. He previously taught at Rabiner Treatment Center for one year and then taught special education at Manson Northwest Webster for a decade before taking over as the 7-12 principal for seven years. Wood was steered in CC/E's direction via an operational sharing opportunity, as he also holds the title of superintendent at Sioux Central. "I am most excited to lead and network with great educators," he said. "I...
The Clay Central/Everly Music Boosters recently purchased a new instrument to adorn the Nature Learning Center lot. The Akambira is an instrument derived from the African xylophone that allows children to play the C major pentatonic scale. This weather-resistant device will add to the Nature Learning Center instrument line up, allowing elementary students the opportunity to make music in the great outdoors. CC/E encourages learning in many forms of creative play, including the use of musical...
This year continues to be very different and the 2020 4-H Show Iowa took the place of the Iowa State Fair for Clay County 4-H human sciences and communication exhibitors. Clay County 4-Hers did an excellent job of representing the area. Twenty-three human sciences exhibits were sent for state judging, with 17 receiving blue ribbons and six earning reds. Clay County 4-Hers also had the opportunity to demonstrate their communication skills by sending in a video of the qualifying communication....
Helen Rae VanderBerg was born Aug. 29, 1928 in Spencer, to Albert and Catherine (Rozeboom) VanderBerg. The family then moved to Orange City where she spent her childhood. Following high school Helen went to Northwestern College, obtaining a two-year teaching degree. Her first job was in Rock Valley, with 30 kindergarteners! On July 14, 1950, Helen married Audley (Aud) DeGraaf. Following their marriage they moved to Calumet where Aud taught and coached for three years. They then moved to Hartley, where Helen substitute taught while raising...
Word was received that Karen Jacobs, wife of David Jacobs, passed away on Thursday, Sept. 10, 2020, of cancer. Her body was donated to science. Karen was a sister-in-law of Karen Klaassen, Duane Jacobs, Dwight Jacobs, Marsha McClain and Eileen Jacobs....
• Oct. 11, 1945 Moneta High School was host to the state district baseball tournament. Five sectional winners participated. Moneta defeated Dolliver, 6-5, in the opening round and Hull, 7-4, in the semifinals. Larrabee downed Moneta, 6-1, in the finals before a fine crowd. The Hartley town council hired Leon Schoel, of Spencer, as engineer for the sewage disposal plant. He was directed to draw up plans and specifications which would be filed until such time as Hartley decided to have the plant constructed. Plans were to use government funds f...
Four old buildings near downtown Hartley met their abrupt demise last week. Schmillen Construction, of Marcus, tore down the old scale house, well house and city jail on Oct. 1. The scale and another small shed were also removed. The jail and well house were built in 1940 and scale house was erected in 1960. The city council in July decided that after years of sitting vacant, it was time for the buildings to go. The demolition process took about a day, and the area was backfilled with new dirt...
Although the team was a bit short on numbers, all six Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn junior varsity cross country runners brought home individual medals from the Alta-Aurelia Invite on Sept. 28. With a few kids out, Hawk coach Nicole Dorhout decided to run those who remained in the junior varsity division. “Some of these kids are capable of running varsity but since we didn’t have the numbers to put up a complete team, we decided to let them run JV for a meet. We often ask them to move up to varsity, but once in a while it’s nice for a freshman or so...
Early in the Class A District 1 matchup between Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn and Akron-Westfield on Oct. 2, it appeared whichever team had the ball last would win. Every time H-M-S scored in the first quarter, Akron-Westfield would answer. But that scenario came to an end as the Hawk offense scored twice before halftime, the defense blanked A-W the rest of the game, and both units scored in the fourth quarter to wrap up a 50-18 win at Peterson Field. The Westerners matched each Hawk touchdown in the...
After staying close to the .500 mark during the first half of the volleyball season, Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn has found the going tough in terms of getting back into the win column. The Hawks dropped their fifth-straight match to South O'Brien (11-25, 22-25, 19-25) in War Eagle Conference action on Oct. 1 in Hartley. The Wolverines' early lead in the first set was never seriously threatened. H-M-S started strong in the second set to build an 11-7 lead, lost the advantage and briefly regained it....
