Professional Baseball

¿Habla español? :Plains Area staff trains to be multi-lingual (01/29/10)
Employees at Plains Area Mental Health are learning to say "What do you need?" and "How much does this piano cost?" -- in Spanish. It's all part of a new venture Plains Area is starting to help reduce cultural and language barriers. About 25 therapists and receptionists at the Le Mars mental health center and its Storm Lake counterpart are working on picking up another language and learning about that group's culture...

Together we can beat the winter blues (01/28/10)
Around 5:30 on Tuesday evening, I was speed walking up the sidewalk to Gehlen, my face staring at the sidewalk in an attempt to keep the cold wind at bay, and all of the sudden I realized - it's still light out! The days are getting longer, the sun is shining (as of Wednesday afternoon) and February is just around the corner...

Job training program revision, could limit local businesses (01/28/10)
One-half million dollars for Plymouth County business could be at stake as the State of Iowa discusses adjustments in funding to the Iowa Industrial New Jobs Training Program. Plymouth County businesses that received job training funding in 2009 were Plymouth Energy - $250,612, Plymouth Oil - $153,000, Wells Dairy - $25,000 and Bodeans Baking Company - $63,403...

LCS board negotiation team makes initial proposal Monday (12/18/09)
Negotiation teams from Le Mars Community School District and Le Mars Community Education Association will meet at 5 p.m. Monday, Dec. 21, at the Education Service Center at 940 Lincoln St. S.W. At this special meeting, the board's negotiating team will present their initial bargaining proposal for the 2010-11 contract to the teachers' association...

Community Foundation award $142,169 in grants (12/14/09)
Twenty-seven organizations and groups in Plymouth County are recipients of grant money totaling $142,169 from the Community Foundation of Greater Plymouth County. The $142,169 represents the largest amount the foundation has been able to award in grants in the four years it has existed...

When life was simple: Fitzgerald recalls pony carts and hand-me-downs (12/03/09)
Editors Note: This story is the first in a weekly series looking back at life decades ago and remembering a time when people's lifestyle was very different than today. Was life simpler when $1 bought four gallons of gas or during the Great Depression when it cost less to use corn as fuel than sell it or when children played baseball instead of computer games?...

Williams & Co. marks 80 years of business (11/17/09)
The staff of the Le Mars office of Williams & Co., P.C., joins with other offices of the firm in celebrating 80 years of service to the area. Jeff Peters is the shareholder in charge of the Le Mars office, which opened in 1972. Williams & Co. was started in 1929 in Sioux City by Charles A. Williams. His son, Robert "Bob" Williams later joined the firm, retiring in the mid-1980s...

Olympic champion returns to roots: Jennie Finch headlines Pink Ribbon Night (10/30/09)
You won't find too many natives of Southern California who enjoy the smell of a cattle farm. But Jennie Finch is not your typical California girl. "It's funny how you appreciate the smell of cows and cornfields," said Finch, a softball pitcher for Team USA and a two-time Olympian, said in Le Mars Thursday. ...

KC Phonothon passes $1 million mark (09/08/09)
At 10 a.m. last Wednesday history was made in the Knights of Columbus Hall in Le Mars. Callers for the 30th Annual KC Phonothon passed the $1 million mark in terms of total money raised by the event in the past 30 years for people with disabilities...

Face of the Phonothon: Brannan shares her Life Skills story (09/01/09)
The Annual KC Phonothon for persons with disabilities has benefited a number of Plymouth County residents who receive services at Life Skills Training Center in Le Mars through the years. The 30th annual phonothon this Wednesday will be no different...

King is honorary chair for 30th Annual KC Phonothon (08/31/09)
Steve King, the first executive director of Life Skills Training Center in Le Mars, has been chosen as the honorary chairman for the 30th Annual KC Phonothon for Persons with Disabilities. For more than 30 years, King has led nonprofit agencies serving people with disabilities...

Courthouse annex building in hands of architect (07/29/09)
The Plymouth County Supervisors Tuesday hired an engineering firm to oversee construction of an annex building near the courthouse to help with space needs. M Plus Architects Inc., of Sioux City, was hired at a cost of $36,400 to develop designs, prepare construction documents, oversee bidding and provide construction administration for the annex building...

Engineer cost estimates necessary for space needs (07/22/09)
The Plymouth County Supervisors need clarification before they can continue with plans to construct an annex building to help with courthouse space needs. The supervisors Tuesday decided to ask for specific engineering cost estimates from M Plus Architects Inc., of Sioux City, and Schlotfeldt Engineering Inc., of Le Mars...

Plymouth Energy hearing for grain dealer license postponed (06/11/09)
The Merrill ethanol plant has another 2 1/2 months to make their financial system comply with state standards. The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) temporarily revoked Plymouth Energy's license to purchase grain as a dealer in early May because of "deficiencies" in the company's financial system and accounting with grain transactions, according to Rich Wahl, of the IDALS...

Floyd Valley Apartments nominated for Historic Register (05/28/09)

Johnson honored with Life Skills award (05/12/09)
Hard-working. Flexible. Willing to take on any new job. These are just a few of the characteristics used to describe Julie Johnson, the winner of the 2009 Life Skills Training Center Client Achievement Award. The honor was announced Monday during Life Skills' annual meeting...

Arbitration hearing set for LCS teacher contract negotiations (04/22/09)
An arbitration hearing for the Le Mars Community School District and Le Mars Education Association will be held at 4 p.m. Thursday, April 23, at the Education Service Center, 940 Lincoln St. S.W. The meeting will be conducted by arbitrator Sharon Gallagher, who will receive information from both the school district and the teachers' association regarding contract negotiations for the 2009-10 school year...

Rexwinkel is 2009 Iowa Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher of the Year (04/01/09)
A Le Mars Community Middle School teacher has been named the 2009 Iowa Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher of the Year. Lorene Rexwinkel received the honor at the 2009 Iowa Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (IAFSC) state meeting in Cedar Falls March 27...

Man to run 61 miles through Plymouth County (03/26/09)
He couldn't bake a pie. He couldn't throw pottery. And he couldn't strum a beautiful melody on a guitar. But Jim Ellis wanted to help. So he ran. Ellis was running while his friends from Northwestern College hosted the first annual Red Letter Festival -- all to raise money for The Bridge in Orange City...

Tucker to serve as Hawarden's city administrator (02/27/09)
Plymouth County's former economic development director has been offered a new position -- that of Hawarden city administrator and city clerk. Gary Tucker, who worked with economic development in Plymouth County for nine years, will officially begin the Hawarden position on March 16, according to Sharole Rens, finance director and interim city clerk for Hawarden...

OdysseyWare gives alternative high school students new class options (02/19/09)
A new software program, OdysseyWare, is helping students make huge strides at the Le Mars Community Alternative High School. Julie Theisen has led the Alternative High School, formerly known as the Individualized Learning Center (ILC), for 19 years and is excited about the software program and what it means for her students. The classroom is located in the Education Service Center at 940 Lincoln St. S.W...

County economic development director resigns (01/21/09)
Plymouth County's Economic Development Director resigned Tuesday. Gary Tucker, who served in the position for nine years, submitted his letter of resignation -- effective immediately -- after a closed session with the county board of supervisors discussing the position...

State's cut pulls more than $150,000 from LCS budget (01/14/09)
The Le Mars Community School District could see a potential cut of $157,483 in state aid with the 1.5 percent across-the-board reduction in general fund expenditures authorized by Gov. Chet Culver. That's the news LCS board members received from Superintendent Dr. Todd Wendt at Monday's board meeting...

More budget requests on table for supervisors (01/12/09)
Plains Area Mental Health Center and Plymouth County emergency management officials requested increased budgets for 2009-10 Tuesday. Patrick Schmitz, Plains Area Mental Health Center's executive director, presented a 4.8 percent increase to the center's budget. The increase comes from an increase in services offered to county clientele...

LCS board holds hearing on ISL resolution (01/05/09)
The Le Mars Community Schools Board of Education will hold a public hearing at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 7, on a resolution of intent to participate in the instructional support program. The hearing will be held at the Education Service Center, 940 Lincoln St. S.W. and provides district residents an opportunity to address the board about the resolution...

LCS board begins ISL process for third time (12/23/08)
The Le Mars Community Schools board of education has agreed to make a third attempt to pass an instructional support levy (ISL) for the school district. The board unanimously approved the ISL resolution of intent to participate at their Monday night meeting...

LCS sees slight increase in free, reduced lunches served (12/19/08)
In a year when the economy is weak, a survey by the School Nutrition Association, which represents workers who provide meals for school-age children, reports that almost 80 percent of schools they surveyed are reporting an increase in the number of free lunches served this year...

Community Foundation awards more than $106,000 in grants (12/12/08)
More than $106,000 in Community Foundation grant money was awarded to 26 organizations and groups in Plymouth County at a breakfast meeting Thursday, Dec. 11. The grants were presented by members of the Community Foundation of Greater Plymouth County. The presentation was postponed from Dec. 9 due to weather and road conditions...

Stabbing trial begins for Velarde (12/10/08)
When Josh Thompson first saw Christopher Velarde at a bar on April 27, 2008, Velarde complimented Thompson on his New York Yankees baseball cap. The next date the two men would see the hat was in court as a piece of crime scene evidence that would link them together...

School board predicts money crunch, weighs ISL option (11/20/08)
A "mixed bag" is how one board member described the input on the Instructional Support Levy (ISL) received from the Le Mars Community School's District Learning and Instructional Impact Team, (DLIIT) at the board's meeting Monday, Nov 10. The Instructional Support Levy provides a funding source for general fund expenditures through property tax, income surtax and a small amount of state aid...

Daily Sentinel welcomes Geleynse as co-sports editor (11/19/08)
All the way from a state where agriculture means apples, carrots and blueberries, Jesse Geleynse is joining the staff at the Le Mars Daily Sentinel as co-sports editor. Geleynse grew up playing baseball and soccer in Mount Vernon, Wash., about an hour north of Seattle...

Raymond elected president of county attorney group (11/18/08)
Plymouth County Attorney Darin Raymond is the new President of the Iowa County Attorneys Association (ICAA). Raymond was elected to the one year term by his fellow County Attorneys at the Fall Conference of the ICAA held in West Des Moines, Iowa, November 9-12, 2008...

KCs phonothon tops $48,000 (09/04/08)
Plymouth County residents "answered the call" of Knights of Columbus members as the 29th annual KC Phonothon for Persons with Disabilities brought in more than $48,000 in donations Wednesday. Le Mars KC Phonothon chair Dennis Bollin reported a total of $48,467 was raised by the close of the phonothon at 9 p.m. Wednesday...

Life Skills quilt auction sets new record (07/30/08)
A new record, both number of quilts and dollars raised, was set at the 12th annual Life Skills Foundation Quilt Auction Saturday in Century Hall at the Plymouth County Fairgrounds. The 56 items on the auction block raised $11,805 for the Life Skills Foundation...

Farrer says fair is five best days of summer (07/16/08)
When you think of livestock at the Plymouth County Fair, rabbits and poultry may not be the steer or swine you were imagining. Thirteen-year-old Grady Farrer would disagree. The owner of rabbits, chickens and pheasants, Farrer believes that poultry and rabbits are where the real livestock shows occur...

LCS board sets July 25 hearing on ISL resolution (07/15/08)
The Le Mars Community School Board has set a public hearing on their intent to participate in the Instructional Support Program, a tax levy which would raise money for salaries, supplies and program costs for the school. The hearing will be noon on Friday, July 25, at the Education Service Center located at 940 Lincoln St. S.W...

LCS administration makes the move (06/17/08)
Now there's a cornfield between the Le Mars Community Middle and High Schools and the district's new central office. The LCS administrative staff moved last week to the former Wells' Dairy headquarters on Lincoln Street Southwest. Along with the district superintendent's office and business office, the schools' technology and printing will also be based there...

Local athletes compete in Special Olympics (06/03/08)
Two young women from Le Mars put on their racing shoes to compete at the 2008 Special Olympics State Summer Games at the end of last month and came home with honors. Crystal Brannan and Julie Johnson, both residents at a Plymouth Life waiver home in Le Mars, competed in the 50 meter dash at the Special Olympics which were held May 22-24 at Iowa State University in Ames...

Six county residents on the ballot June 3 (05/30/08)
Voters will go to the polls for the primary election Tuesday, June 3, to pick candidates from their party to face off in the November general election. Six Plymouth County residents are running for county offices. On the Republican side, Mark Loutsch and incumbent John Schneider are competing for the District 2 seat on the county board of supervisors. ...

Brannan wins award based on personal growth (05/13/08)
Crystal Brannan took home the Client Achievement Award Monday during the Life Skills Training Center's annual meeting. Rhonda Mahan, rehabilitation manager at the center, said Brannan was chosen by staff for her "growth in many areas including independence, flexibility, motivation and self initiation."...

LOST requests approach half a million dollars (03/25/08)
An outdoor saddle club arena in Merrill. A rented van for a mission trip to Montana. A handicapped-accessible bathroom at the Le Mars Little League Park. A kids' cabin at the Plymouth County Historical Museum. These are just a few of the 36 projects that county groups are seeking money for through the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) grant program...

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