February 2016

Wed
10
Feb

TigerHawks send 4 to Districts

 

The North Fayette Valley crowd at Saturday’s Sectional Wrestling Tournament in Decorah pulls to its right in support of Kelvin Guyer as he rallies from a three-point deficit in the final period to win a thriller, 11-10. (Jerry Wadian photo)

 

TigerHawks send 4 to Districts

 

 

By Jerry Wadian
jwadian@thefayettecountyunion.com

 

 

North Fayette will send four wrestlers to the District Tournament Saturday in Independence. District action is two rounds with any necessary wrestlebacks. Two of the four wrestlers in each weight class will advance to the State Wrestling Tournament in Des Moines Thursday through Saturday, Feb. 18-20.

Action in Independence on Saturday will begin at noon; admission is $6, and there will be a concession stand.

The Class 2A Sectional Tournament in Decorah on Saturday proved to be as tough as expected. New Hampton, ranked first in the class, won. Crestwood, also highly ranked, placed second, just 5.5 points ahead of surprising Oelwein. The TigerHawks finished fifth, but managed to send a champion and three runners-up to District action.

Wed
10
Feb

Watch for Breaking News Here!

Wed
10
Feb

Kenny Strong

Kenny Strong

 

 

Friends and family are invited to an open house celebration honoring Kenny Strong's 80th birthday.

Please join Kenny and his family from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13, at Veterans Memorial Community Building (the Legion Hall) in Elgin.

The celebration is being hosted by Kenny and Bev’s four children and their families.

Cards would be welcome and may be sent to 311 Franklin St., Elgin, IA 52141. 

Wed
10
Feb

Laney Lickteig

Laney Lickteig

 

 

Steve and Jodi Lickteig of Cresco are happy to announce the birth of their daughter Laney Kay, who was born at 10:32 a.m. Friday, Jan. 22, 2016, at Olmsted Medical Center in Rochester, Minn.

Laney weighed 9 lbs. 14 oz. and measured 21.5 inches in length.

She is the couple’s first child.

Grandparents are Scott Jacobson of West Union, Lisa Ameling of Marble Rock, and Don and Jackie Lickteig of Cresco.

Great-grandparents are Roger and Karen Michael of West Union. 

Wed
10
Feb

Cora Skinner

Cora Skinner

 

 

Matthew and Mandy Skinner of Center Point welcomed daughter Cora Lynn into the world on Saturday, Dec. 26, 2015.

Born at Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids, Cora weighed 6 lbs. 11 oz. and was 21½ inches in length.

She joins sister Paige, 6, and brother Gavin, 3, at home.

Grandparents are Gary and Karen Skinner of West Union and Steve and Jaci Thomassen of Newton.

Verna Skinner of Ossian and Jan Pierce of Eldora are Cora’s great-grandmothers.

Wed
10
Feb

Council approves hire of new police chief

Dylan Schauer

 

 

Council approves hire of new police chief

 

 

By Chris Deback
cdeback@thefayettecountyunion.com

 

There’s a new Chief in town, and his name is Dylan Schauer.

 

The West Union City Council approved the hire of Schauer from Wyoming as the city’s new police chief by a 4-1 vote at its regular Monday meeting on Feb. 8.

Councilmember Isaiah Stansbery was the lone dissenter of the group. He felt a starting salary of $65,000 was too high for a new City employee.

Wed
10
Feb

In love, from Iowa to Juneau

 

Bill and Ruby Miller of West Union are pictured on the day they celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary last September with a dinner following services at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Eldorado. (Janell Bradley photo)

 

In love, from Iowa to Juneau

 

 

Janell Bradley

Contributing Writer

 

 

After 65 years of marriage, Bill and Ruby Miller say they would still do it all over again if given the chance.

When Ruby was first introduced to the handsome Bill Miller, who grew up at Fayette’s west edge, he was wearing his military uniform. Miller served two years with the U.S. Navy at the end of World War II. He was a student at Upper Iowa University when he was convinced to attend a dance at The Coliseum in Oelwein. It was there that he caught the eye of a young, pretty, Ruby Koester, who had grown up at the top of the Eldorado Hill. She was working as a stylist at Miller’s Beauty Shop in Oelwein.

Wed
10
Feb

17 State Awards

 

Fayette County Union and Fayette Publishing staff members (front, l-r) Zak Kriener, Danielle Luchshinger, LeAnn Larson, Chris DeBack (back, l-r) Sue Wolf, Stephanie Hermen, Steven Murray, Connie Lauer, Amanda Reiling-Pasket and Brian Smith were honored with 17 awards earned by the local staff at the 2015 Better Newspaper Contests held in Des Moines Friday.Not pictured are staff members Amy Boehm, Jerry Wadian and Jerry Blue. (Jerry Blue photo)

 

17 State Awards

 
 

By Chris Deback
cdeback@thefayettecountyunion.com

 

 

The Fayette County Union and Fayette Publishing staff was honored with 17 awards at the Iowa Newspaper Association's Convention and Trade Show held Feb. 3-5 at the Des Moines Marriott Hotel.

 

Publisher LeAnn Larson stated, “This year, I am again extremely proud of our entire staff.  It’s not just about individuals winning awards, it’s about the commitment and teamwork from our entire staff to produce quality news stories, photos and advertisements for our four quality publications week after week. I am so very proud of each and every one of them.”

Wed
10
Feb

Keune: God had a hold of me . . .

 

Les Keune of West Union discusses his near-death experience ice fishing with Union reporter Chris DeBack. While traveling on the Mississippi River at the Minnesota Slough near Lansing, his snowmobile fell through the ice. He managed to grab hold of his ice fishing shelter and phone for help, but he was in the ice cold water for approximately 30 minutes. 

 

Keune: God had a hold of me . . .

 

 

By Chris Deback
cdeback@thefayettecountyunion.com

 

 

Les Keune is an experienced ice fisherman. Having spent a majority of winters in his adulthood out on the ice, last Friday was going to be just another morning with him, the cold and some fish.

Keune was in the Minnesota Slough near Lansing having set out from Armory Road onto the Mississippi with his snowmobile and mobile ice shelter. He made it 1½ miles on the ice before he came to a patch of ice that made him a little gun-shy. He didn’t want to risk an accident, so he got off his snowmobile and began to check out the ice.

“I have fished that place many, many times, and I know the ice down there,” Keune said. “So, I pulled up and stopped, because you can’t drive across the islands. I went down with a spud and sounded out the ice, and it sounded good. There was snowmobile track already through there, so I took off around there.”

Just when he thought he was safe, he felt the snow beneath his snowmobile begin to give. First, the back end of the snowmobile fell into the water and then the front end. He rolled off the snowmobile and began to tread water with his ice armor on.  

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