Arion man dies from injuries sustained in accident

Chance Benjamin Davis, 23, of Arion, died as a result of injuries sustained in a vehicle rollover accident that happened at about 4:16 p.m. on Sunday, May 5.

Davis was driving a cream-colored 2006 Ford XPL south on 210th Street when, for unknown reasons, at approximately 260 feet from the Hanover intersection, he started to lose control of the vehicle. The vehicle went off the roadway with its two passenger side wheels. At approximately 371 feet from the intersection, the vehicle came back on the roadway and then started to roll. It rolled five times before coming to rest on its top against a farm shed, striking the shed approximately seven feet off the ground. Davis died from injuries sustained in the crash.

The Denison Volunteer Fire Department extricated Davis by mechanical means. The Crawford County Ambulance transported Davis to Huebner Funeral Home in Denison. 

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Climbing to new heights with Hot Summer Nights

Photos By Gordon Wolf

One of the attractions at Hot Summer Nights in Uptown Denison on Saturday was this climbing wall provided by the Iowa Army National Guard. Children had fun testing their climbing skills to see if they could get to the top. Saturday’s celebration was the first of six Hot Summer Nights events scheduled for the next several months. Other dates are May 24, June 21, July 11, August 3 and August 17. Hot Summer Nights is now a city-sponsored event but is still organized by Taylor Borkowski. See more photos Below.

Music, food and games at Hot Summer Nights

Reylan (left) and Kobyn Gonzalez enjoy their elotes at Hot Summer Nights.

Children play a game in the Kids’ Zone.

Nick Hermann put out a lot of sound as a solo artist at Hot Summer Nights. He performed from 6 to 9 p.m.

Parranderos, a Latin combo, performed on stage from 9 p.m. to midnight.

People danced in the street to the music performed by Parranderos.

Bouncy house slides were a hit at Hot Summer Nights.

Vendors were kept busy as people lined up to try new foods and traditional favorites.

People line up to dance. 

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Rolling on the way to Manilla

Photos by Gordon Wolf

Bicyclists roll down a hill on Broadway, approaching Morningside Park, in the Manilla Madness bike ride on Saturday. The cyclists braved chilly temperatures and winds on their trek from Denison to Manilla and back. The Chamber & Development Council of Crawford County said 27 people participated in the ride this year. See more photos below. 

Riding the hills from Denison to Manilla and back

A pair of cyclists pedals through downtown Manilla to go to the wellness center were food and refreshments were being served during the Manilla Madness ride. Saturday’s ride was chilly but fun. 

Kathy Jorgensen stood at the entrance to Manilla beginning at 12:30 p.m. to welcome cyclists into the community.

Pat Lally stops to refuel at the trailer set up at the Pat Palmer residence in rural Manilla. 

This line of cyclists cruises east on county road M36. Leading the pack are Jake Broullire and Sadie Watson with the Air Force cycling team. Broullire is stationed at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and Watson is stationed at Whitman Air Force Base in Missouri. They flew into Omaha to ride in Manilla Madness on Saturday and then participate in a charity ride in Omaha on Sunday. 

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Grilling in Manilla

Photos by Gordon Wolf

Members of the Crawford County Cattlemen’s Association were out grilling in Manilla on Sunday. Pictured around the grill are (from left) Rick Vetter, Joel Kuhlmann, Tripp Muhlbauer and his dad, Jared, Mike Vogt and Dale Collins. The Cattlefeeders were grilling for anybody helping with cleanup efforts from the April 26 tornados, as well as for members of the public.  

Cattlemen’s Beef Princesses Amber Ragaller and Isabell Jepsen wrapped burgers and served people at the grill-out in Manilla, with the help of Lisa Vogt and Tripp Muhlbauer.

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A Beatles celebration

Photo by Gordon Wolf

Here Comes the Sun had people rocking at the Denison High School Fine Arts Center on Monday night. The five-person band performs a celebration of music by the Beatles. The performance was sponsored by Crawford County Arts and Mahoney and Gotto. 

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May the 4th at the library

Photos by Gordon Wolf

On Saturday, the Children’s Library at Norelius Community Library was all about Star Wars. Games and crafts celebrated May the 4th, playing on the movie’s signature line, “May the Force be with you.” Pictured, children use inflatable lightsabers during a game to hit balloons over a line. 

Bryan Taylor wears a Yoda mask in the picture booth.

Bebe Miles (left), along with Aaron Hoffman and Zoey Hoffman see who can keep a balloon afloat the longest by bouncing them off lightsabers.  

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At the griddle

Photo by Gordon Wolf

Ezra Bygness, of Denison, was one of the people busy at the griddle for a pancake breakfast at the shelter house at Kiron South Park on Sunday. His grandfather, Mike Lickteig, of Kiron, was busy with other duties at the breakfast. The breakfast was a fundraiser for Kiron’s 125th anniversary celebration scheduled for the weekend of August 23, 24 and 25.

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Crawford County Beautification Week May 13-17

The Women in Business Impact Organization (WIBIO) of the Chamber & Development Council of Crawford County is inviting people, businesses, schools and organizations to help beautify the county during Beautification Week, May 13-17.

WIBIO provided the following ways to help in this effort.

• Clean up your yard

• Help a neighbor with their yard

• Pick up trash

• Recycle

• Paint

• Donate unused items

• Volunteer for a local charity

• Adopt a highway or sidewalk

• Plant something

• Organize a project in the community

People are invited to contact the CDC office at 712-263-5621 or email mnutt@cdcia.org for more information and other suggestions of how to get involved.

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Cleanup benefit planned for Saunders family in Manilla

A benefit for the family of Scotty William Saunders and Morgan Saunders has been planned for Saturday, May 11. Their acreage was directly hit by the storms on April 26. Several buildings were lost to the storm.

People are needed to help with the cleanup at their farm located at 3361 300th Street, west of Manilla. The come-and-go effort will last from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Those who volunteer to help are asked to bring gloves.

Lunch will be served at 11:30 a.m. for all participants.

Freewill donations will be taken.

Cash or check donations can be mailed to their address or to Morgan’s VENMO at: @Morganlsaunders.

People who have equipment that could be used in the cleanup effort are asked to contact Scott at 712-579-0330. 

Monogram Prepared Meats in Harlan will be donating packages of bacon to volunteers.

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Schleswig VFW Auxiliary to meet May 13

Schleswig VFW Auxiliary 3930 will conduct its monthly meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, May 13, at the Schleswig Golf Course clubhouse. A salad bar dinner will be followed by the meeting. 

On the meeting agenda are the installation of officers, a memorial service for deceased members, discussion on Schleswig’s 125th anniversary, the new banner and other items.

Members are asked to bring a salad to share and a table setting.

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Boy Scout paper drive this Saturday

The Boy Scouts of Troop 55 in Denison will conduct their monthly paper drive this Saturday, May 11, at the Walmart parking lot. The Boy Scouts will be there from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. to help unload tied, bundled or sacked newspapers.

Acceptable papers can be brought in paper bags or cardboard boxes but not in plastic bags.

People are asked to limit the amount of cardboard they bring.

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Ribbon cutting for The Cottage

Photo By Gordon Wolf

The Cottage celebrated the opening in its new location with a ribbon cutting conducted by the Chamber & Development Council of Crawford County on Monday.

The Cottage, owned by mother and daughter tandem of Cindy Borkowski and Taylor Borkowski (pictured in front), is located in the former Ben Franklin building, 1401 Broadway in Denison. Also pictured are Taylor’s children, Kreighton holding the left side of the ribbon and Kinnik holding the right, and Collyns being held in the back on the left side of the photograph.

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Awards presented at 712 Film Festival

Pictured are John Parr, Ethan Olsen and Landon Seebeck, who were among those involved in the film “Disconnected.” Photo by Gordon Wolf

The 712 Film Festival was conducted at the Donna Reed Theater in Denison on Saturday. Seventeen student film productions and 10 professional film productions were shown. The festival was started last year to showcase the filmmaking talent of Iowa-based students and professionals. Among the student productions were two comedies produced by Denison High School students – “Disconnected,” a comedy, and “Killer Crush,” a dark comedy. “Disconnected” won a critic’s choice award for best choreography and “Killer Crush” won the critic’s choice “Poor Toby” award. Toby was the name of one of the main characters, whose dates were thwarted by a girl who had a crush on him. Those who attended the festival were able to vote for their four favorite films. “Killer Crush” and “Disconnected” tied for first. 

Pictured is Diego Cid, who was among those involved in the film “Killer Crush.” 

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Garden talk

Photo by Gordon Wolf

Annie Kroll (left) with the Crawford County Garden Club explains the qualities of this plant to Sharon Gosch at the club’s plant sale on Saturday. The sale took place at the shelter house at Morningside Park in Denison from 9 a.m. to noon. 

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Funeral Notices

Guenter (Gunner) Detlefsen

Funeral services for Guenter (Gunner) Detlefsen, 80, of Schleswig, were conducted at 10:30 a.m. Monday, May 6, at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Schleswig with burial at the Morgan Cemetery. 

He passed away Wednesday, May 1, at Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.

Survivors include his wife, Joyce Detlefsen, of Schleswig; sons, Scott Detlefsen and his wife, Kathleen, and their son, Joseph Detlefsen, all of Nebraska; Brad Detlefsen and his wife, Monica, and their children, Matthew Detlefsen and Thomas Detlefsen, all of Omaha; a sister, Erika Ragsdell, of Tennessee; siblings-in-law, Larry Preul and his wife, Mary, of Nevada, Gary Preul and his wife, Barb, of Denison, Darrell Preul and his wife, Linda, of Tennessee, Darlene and her husband, Dick Rudner, of Arizona, Rick Preul and his wife, Deb, of Kiron, and Berneil Preul, of Denison; and nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends. 

Services were entrusted to the Huebner Funeral Home.

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Library News

Denison Library Friends to meet May 13

The Denison Library Friends will meet at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, May 13, in the Carnegie Room at Norelius Community Library. 

The agenda includes regular business reports, results of the White Elephant Sale, updates on library renovations, the digitalizing of yearbooks, and the library director’s report. 

The public is invited to attend.

The next meeting will be Monday, September 9, at 5:30 p.m. at Norelius Community Library.

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Local Calendar

Friday, May 10, 2024

Denison city wide garage sales, runs through Sunday, May 12.

Unity Ridge Lutheran School spring musical, “It’s Cool in the Furnace,” performed at 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 11, 2024

Denison postal carriers “Stamp Out Hunger” food drive for the Temporary Aid Program (TAP). Put non-perishable food or paper items by your mailboxes or mail slots and the city and rural letter carriers will pick up the donations. 

Boy Scout Troop 55 paper drive, 9 a.m.-1 p.m., Walmart parking lot.

Storytime at Norelius Community Library, 10 a.m. Stories, songs and a special activity at the end of the session. For children ages 0-5.

Sunday, May 12, 2024

Vail Volunteer Fire Department Mother’s Day Breakfast, at Vail Community Center, 7:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Serving biscuits and gravy, bacon, hashbrowns, scrambled eggs, milk, juice and coffee. Free will offering.

Monday-Friday, May 13-17, 2024

Women in Business Impact Organization Crawford County Beautification Week. Contact the CDC office at 712-263-5621 or email mnutt@cdcia.org to find out how you can get involved.

Monday, May 13, 2024

Euchre at the Denison Senior Center, 6 p.m.
Denison American Legion Post 8 monthly meeting, 7 p.m., at Homestead Assisted Living.

Tuesday, May 14, 2024

Staley’s chicken dinner drive-through fundraiser for Crawford County Wellness Center, 4:30-7 p.m., Stables at Copper Ridge. Price is $15. Includes two pieces of fried chicken, two sides, dinner roll and cookie.

Cards & Coffee at Norelius Community Library, for people ages 19 and older, 5:30 p.m. Coffee and tea will be provided.

Euchre Night at Ricketts Community Building, 7 p.m. Entry fee is $5.

Wednesday, May 15, 2024

Storytime at Norelius Community Library, 2 p.m., for children ages 0-5. Stories, songs and a special activity at the end of the session.

Euchre Night at Charter Oak Community Building, 7 p.m.

Thursday, May 16, 2024

Myong’s Chinese dinner at Schleswig Golf Course, 5-8 p.m.

Game Night at Norelius Community Library, for ages 12 and older, 5:30 p.m. Go for the pizza and snacks and stay to play games. Go to the library’s website (www.denison.lib.ia.us/calendar) to find out what games will be played. 

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Senior Lunch Menu

Served at the Senior Center on South Main in Denison
Call 712-263-4950 before 9:30 a.m.

Friday, May 10:
baked chicken, vegetables, dinner roll, fruit cocktail

Monday, May 13:
Salisbury steak, mashed potatoes, green beans, applesauce

Tuesday, May 14:
tuna melt sandwich, potato salad, peas, banana pudding

Wednesday, May 15:
liver and onions, mashed potatoes, gravy, carrots, raspberry applesauce

Thursday, May 16:
chicken pot pie, cottage cheese, gelatin cake

Friday, May 17:
pork roast, cooked potatoes and carrots, peaches 

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Two tornadoes hit the Manilla area

Elvis Hayes, of Manilla, picks up tree debris at the Nishnabotna Cemetery on Saturday morning. A tornado that passed through the cemetery caused extensive damage to trees. Some gravestones were pushed off their bases.  Photos by Gordon Wolf

Two tornadoes passed through the Manilla area and one passed through the Buck Grove area last week Friday night. The towns of Manilla and Buck Grove were not hit.

Extensive tree damage was done, most notably at the Nishnabotna Cemetery located on a hill along Highway 141 west of Manilla.

Some farm buildings in rural Manilla were destroyed or damaged. Debris from the damage could be seen scattered in farm fields.

One tornado that hit the Manilla area, classified as an EF-2, came from a system that was in Shelby County. National Weather Service information says that this tornado lasted from 6:28 to 6:44 p.m. and had estimated peak winds of 112 miles per hour. The path length was 9.24 miles and the maximum width was 200 yards.  

The second tornado to hit the Manilla area also came from the same storm system that was passing through Shelby County. It was classified as an EF-1 and had estimated peak winds of 107 miles per hour. The path length was 12.32 miles and the maximum width was 200 yards. It lasted from 6:51 to 7:08 p.m. 

Tractors were called in on Saturday to move tree debris at the Nishnabotna Cemetery.

Justin Johnson drags a tree limb to put on a pile of tree debris at the Nishnabotna Cemetery west of Manilla. 

According to the National Weather Service Damage Assessment Toolkit, building damage caused by the EF-1 tornado included total destruction of four farm buildings, an uplift or collapse of roof structure to three farm buildings and the collapse of walls on one farm building. It also caused wooden power poles to lean. 

The EF-2 tornado caused the total destruction of a farm building just northwest of Manilla.

Along with the tree and building damage in rural Manilla, a Manilla Fire Department vehicle was damaged in the storm. Manilla Fire Chief Corey Gaskill said department members were in the vehicle checking houses after the first tornado passed through when the second tornado came upon them. The tornado threw a grain bin into the truck. The impact shattered the back window, took paint off the skid unit, broke all the mirrors and actually chipped the windshield from the inside. The firefighters were not hurt but were covered in glass, said Gaskill.

The Buck Grove tornado lasted from 6:31 to 6:34 p.m. The path length was 2.02 miles and its maximum width was 40 yards. Estimated peak winds are unknown. It remained in open land so a damage rating cannot be made.

A map that accompanies this story shows the paths of the two tornadoes that struck the Manilla area. As a reference point, the arrow for the Manilla tornado #1 path is just north of Manilla.

A second map shows the path of the Buck Grove tornado with the paths of the Manilla tornadoes to the right. Buck Grove is to the northwest of the graphic of the tornado path.

Another story that shows the power of tornadoes came from Wayne Collins. He was checking a pasture near Buck Grove when he came upon a piece of a business sign, four feet by eight feet in size. He didn’t recognize the phone number on the portion of sign and posted a picture of it on Snapchat. He later began getting comments that the number was a Minden phone number. A friend asked if he could put the photo on Facebook. The communication on social media eventually made its way to the owner of the business who called Collins. The building associated with the sign – West Central Roofing – was destroyed. The sign traveled more than 40 miles from Minden to the pasture near Buck Grove. Collins said the business owner will pick up the portion of the sign sometime when he is in the area.

This piece of sign traveled over 40 miles from Minden to a pasture near Buck Grove.  Submitted Photo

These maps from the National Weather Service in Des Moines show the paths of the two tornadoes that went through the Manilla area and the tornado that was southeast of Buck Grove the evening of Friday, April 26. 

This map from the National Weather Service in Omaha shows the path of the tornado that caused destruction in Minden. One person died as a result of the tornado and three were injured. The EF-3 tornado had a path of 40.9 miles and a maximum width of 0.97 mile. It lasted from 5:25 to 6:29 p.m. on April 26. It’s estimated peak wind was 160 miles per hour. According to the National Weather Service, the tornado formed east of McClelland while the previous Treynor/McClelland tornado was in the process of dissipating. The tornado tracked north-northeast through the eastern part of Minden, to the immediate east of Tennant, the west of Harlan and the immediate east of Defiance before dissipating just south of the Shelby-Crawford county line.

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Gov. Reynolds requests expedited Presidential Disaster Declaration for severe weather

Governor Kim Reynolds has requested an expedited Presidential Disaster Declaration for nine Iowa counties where significant damage was sustained from severe weather that occurred on April 26. 

The governor requested funding under the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Individual Assistance Program and the activation of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Disaster Loan Program for Clarke, Crawford, Harrison, Mills, Polk, Pottawattamie, Ringgold, Shelby and Union counties. 

Funding under the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Individual Assistance Program provides disaster-affected homeowners, renters, and businesses access to programs and services to maximize recovery, including assistance with housing, personal property replacement, medical expenses, and legal services.  

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Disaster Loan Program provides homeowners, renters, businesses, and most nonprofit organizations in the affected counties whose property was damaged or destroyed by this disaster, the ability to apply for low-interest disaster loans from the SBA. 

In addition, the governor requested funding to conduct hazard mitigation activities for the entire state. 

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Hot Summer Nights series kicks off this Saturday

The first of six Hot Summer Nights events slated for Uptown Denison will take place this Saturday, May 4, on Broadway from Avenue C to 14th Street.

Featured will be live music, food, a beer garden and a kids’ zone full of family fun.

Nick Hermann will kick off the music at 6 p.m. and will perform until 9 p.m.

Parranderos, a Latin combo, will perform from 9 p.m. to midnight.

Taylor Borkowski, the event organizer, said that attending Hot Summer Nights helps the community in two ways.

“What’s cool about Hot Summer Nights is that, No. 1, it’s a way to promote community engagement, but what’s really neat is that we are able to donate the proceeds after expenses to various projects in the community, basically a double benefit,” she said.

Last year’s proceeds of $12,000 were donated to the Crawford County Wellness Center project.

This year’s proceeds from the series of six Hot Summer Nights events will go towards improvements at Washington Park.

An all-inclusive playground will be built this year at the park.

“So basically, if you support Hot Summer Nights, not only are you supporting the food trucks, the musicians and the shops uptown, but you’re also giving back to another community project that benefits everyone,” Borkowski said.

She continued that more games have been added to the Kids’ Zone.

“The kids are the future of this town, and we want to give them a reason to be excited about what’s here,” said Borkowski.

The five other Hot Summer Nights dates this year will be on May 24, June 21, July 11, August 3 and August 17.

A note is that for this Saturday’s Hot Summer Nights, Broadway from Avenue C to 14th Street will close at 3 p.m. to set up for the event.

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