Religious Movements

Gehlen student removed from school after e-threat (03/04/10)
An 18-year-old Gehlen Catholic Schools student who allegedly authored a message threatening other Gehlen students was removed from the school immediately Thursday. The student, an 18-year-old female, sent the alleged message via an electronic communication, according to the Le Mars Police...

Johnson, Albus prepare for Nigeria mission trip (02/16/10)
A commitment to global missions by members of United Methodist Church of Le Mars (UMCL) will be realized this summer as two members travel to Nigeria. Barb Johnson of Merrill and Chelsea Albus, 18, of Le Mars will be part of the Iowa United Methodist Conference's Iowa Volunteers in Mission group in June, working in a southern area of Nigeria in partnership with the United Methodist Church there...

Snow days adding up for Le Mars Community and Gehlen Schools (02/08/10)

Ten Le Mars scouts honored with Pope Pius XII emblem (02/08/10)
Ten local boys will be receiving the highest emblem in Catholic boy scouting. Michael Brandenburg, Tim Burwitz, Mitchel Christoffel, Preston Freking, Matt Klein, Kyle Mangerson, Zack Nemmers, Jonathan Puhl, Ryan Sitzmann and Andrew Theisen were honored Sunday at a Mass in Le Mars for earning the Pope Pius XII Emblem...

'Feed the Need' grocery project continues (02/04/10)
A successful food collection project started at the Christmas holiday season will continue on an as-needed basis. "Feed the Need for Christian Needs" was started by the United Church Women (UCW) organization at the Presbyterian United Church of Christ in cooperation with Fareway and Hy-Vee grocery stores in Le Mars...

Water for Life Honduras (02/03/10)
A local group is about to change the lives of people of five villages, plagued with parasites and other water-borne diseases. The Le Mars Rotary Club spearheaded fundraising for water projects in Honduras, pulling together more than $35,000. That's enough to build a water system in each of those five villages, bringing clean, potable water to more than 1,000 people's homes...

New Honduran president good news for mission group (02/02/10)
Will the inauguration of new Honduran president Porfirio Lobo Sosa mean restoration of the country's international aid, and with that return funding to Mission Honduras Le Mars programs? That's what Richard Seivert, director of Mission Honduras Le Mars and Gehlen Catholic Mission Honduras, believes...

Gehlen opens Catholic Schools Week with special Mass (01/29/10)
A Mass at Gehlen Catholic Schools gymnasium at 8:45 a.m. Monday will kick off Catholic Schools Week under the theme, "Dividends for Life." The week will celebrate the life-long impact of a Catholic education. Catholic Schools Week is observed Jan 31 through Feb. 6 and is celebrated by the National Catholic Education Association and schools throughout the Diocese of Sioux City...

Gehlen speech groups advance to state (01/27/10)
Four groups from Gehlen Catholic School are advancing to the State Large Group Speech competition. They earned a spot at state after competing in Saturday's Large Group Speech District Competition at East High School in Sioux City. "It went real well, even though we missed a lot of practice for snow days," Coach Elizabeth Rogers said...

Gehlen kindergarten, TK round up dates set (01/25/10)
Plans are underway at Gehlen Catholic School to welcome the classes of 2023 and 2024. Catholic and non-Catholic parents of children who will be 5 years old by December 31, 2010, are invited to an information meeting on from 7-8 p.m. Tuesday, February 23 in the Gehlen Library...

Spring construction set for Gehlen Wellness Center (01/12/10)
What started as a free-standing structure to house a wellness center at Gehlen Catholic Schools will now be an addition to the school's back gym. Construction on the addition is expected to start in the spring, according to Tony Gunter, the school's high school athletic director, teacher and coach...

Gehlen band takes first at bowl competition (12/30/09)
The Gehlen Catholic School Marching Band swept the Class 1A field show competition at the 2009 Champs Sports Bowl this week. Even though the band barely arrived in Orlando, Fla. on time due to poor traveling weather, the Gehlen students took the field and claimed not only the overall title for the high school band competition but also all five category awards...

St. Lucy Day: Celebration of lights and sweets (12/14/09)
As the girls enter the classroom, children's eyes light up. Dressed in all white with a golden sash and a unique crown -- a wreath of evergreen with four candles in it -- the eighth grade girls of St. Catherine-St. Mary's Catholic School in Remsen are playing the role of St. Lucy...

Election may calm Honduras waters, allow more aid (12/07/09)
After more than four months of uncertainty, the people of Honduras elected a new president last week -- a move that will hopefully speed aid to the poor there, according to a Le Mars man with a close connection to the country. Richard Sievert, director of Mission Honduras Le Mars and teacher at Gehlen Catholic School, has been closely following the situation in Honduras, especially since June, when the country's president was deposed...

Your letters matter, soldier tells students (12/03/09)
After writing letters to a soldier in Afghanistan for months, elementary students at Gehlen Catholic School got to meet him face to face. Army Specialist Scott Tillman, of Le Mars, spent Wednesday afternoon speaking in classrooms a few days before returning for a second tour of duty in Afghanistan...

LCS, Gehlen students present holiday music concerts (12/01/09)

Gehlen, LCS students selected for Opus Honor Choir Festival (11/09/09)
Students from Le Mars Community Schools and Gehlen Catholic School have been chosen to participate in the 23rd annual Opus Honor Choir Festival. Gehlen Catholic eighth grade student Sara Roder will make her fourth appearance in an Opus Honor Choir. She also received the high honor of being chosen as a solo finalist for the song, "Benedictus" in the 7th & 8th Grade Girls Honor Choir...

Gehlen Catholic hosts Veteran's Day Prayer Service (11/09/09)
Gehlen Catholic School will host a Veteran's Day Prayer Service at 8:45 a.m. Wednesday in the Gehlen Catholic gym. Members of the community, past and present servicemen and women and their families are invited to attend the service. Guest speaker will be Gary Tillman, nurse anesthetist at Floyd Valley Hospital in Le Mars. Gary and his wife, Elaine, are the parents of Michelle ('98), Jake ('01) Scott ('03) and David, a senior at Gehlen Catholic...

Student takes a seat in the UN (11/03/09)
Along with students from around the world, Sarah Gengler filed into the United Nations' General Assembly Hall -- the meeting place of nations -- and took her seat. Her place card read: United Arab Emirates. The Gehlen Catholic School alum isn't a United Nations (UN) delegate, at least not yet, and she's not from the United Arab Emirates, but she did serve on her university's National Model UN delegation...

Hand sanitizer pumps up locals against germs (10/16/09)
Free standing automated hand sanitizer dispensers for shoppers to use greet customers in the Le Mars Hy-Vee dairy section. That's just one precaution local stores and facilities are taking to combat the spread of germs in the wake of H1N1. Hand washing along with hand sanitization is the No. 1 prevention against the flu, other than vaccination, according to the Centers for Disease Control...

Two earn Eagle Scout rank with service, leadership (10/16/09)
Mitch Christoffel and Matt Klein were honored at a Court of Honor celebration Sunday, Sept. 27 for earning the highest rank in scouting, the Eagle Scout Award. Christoffel's Eagle Scout service project involved helping design and build a brick border and landscaping around Gehlen Catholic School's electronic sign...

Drug court: It's not about being judged (10/15/09)
Editor's note: This is the second story in a two-part series about Plymouth County's drug court, which celebrates its second anniversary this week. Jerry Haack was homecoming king in his class at Gehlen Catholic School. He set records on the track. He grew up in a healthy family environment...

St. Paul Lutheran Church, Remsen, celebrates 125th anniversary (10/15/09)
Congregation members of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Remsen will celebrate its 125th anniversary Sunday, Oct. 18. St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church, the oldest Christian congregation in Remsen, traces its history back to the 1880s. The missionary workers from the Evangelical Synod of North America visited the Remsen vicinity and occasionally conducted services in private homes...

Students may still travel to Honduras despite political turmoil (10/09/09)
For the first time in Gehlen Catholic School's history, two student teams, instead of just one, will travel to Honduras this spring to help connect communities to fresh water supplies. At least that is coordinator Richard Seivert's hope. Honduras has been pummeled by political unrest since June when the country's president, Manuel Zelaya, was deposed after he tried to hold a vote about re-writing the nation's constitution, according to international news reports...

Gehlen homecoming parade set (10/08/09)
With a forecast of a sunny but cool day Friday, Gehlen Catholic Schools has several actvities planned for Homecoming 2009. Friday is Jay Spirit Day and starts with the Jays Olympics at Cleveland Park at 8:50 a.m. The coronation ceremony will be noon in the Gehlen Gym...

Presbyterian UCC celebrates 125 years of sharing faith (09/11/09)

Gehlen students prepare for 2009-10 school year (08/03/09)
After many changes this summer, Gehlen Catholic Schools principals Lorie Nussbaum and Jeff Alesch say Gehlen Catholic is ready for the 2009-2010 school year. Those families who have not completed their registration should stop by the office Monday through Thursday, Aug. 3 through 6, between 9 a.m. and noon and 1 to 3 p.m...

Ordination, consecration service set for new Lutheran clergy (07/10/09)
Three Lutheran congregations will celebrate together as their newly called pastor and diaconal minister will be ordained and consecrated in a 3 p.m. service Sunday, July 12, at St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Craig. Sarah and Joel Nye have accepted a call to serve the three congregations of the newly-formed Plymouth Ministries. This includes St. John Evangelical Lutheran, rural Akron, St. John's Evangelical Lutheran, Craig, and St. John Lutheran Church, Merrill...

Fuentes places first in local Lions Peace Poster contest (06/05/09)
"Peace Begins With Me!" is the theme for the 2009 Lions International Peace Poster Contest. The Le Mars Lions Club annually sponsors the local contest for sixth grade students. Students from Gehlen Catholic Schools participated in this year's contest...

New road by senior center, parking by planned church get council OK (05/21/09)
Le Mars City Council members approved a roughly $225,000 concept plan that will add parking, sewer lines and a public roadway near Le Mars Senior Center, Floyd Valley Apartments, and the planned new St. Joseph Church. The improvements, City Administrator Scott Langel explained, would involve expanding Yoerger Drive, which runs east from Sixth Avenue Northeast between Floyd Valley Apartments and the existing Gehlen Catholic School parking lot...

Packing meals: Small sacrifice could save many lives (05/11/09)
If you could save a starving person, what would you give up? Staci Spearn, a senior at Gehlen Catholic School, said "the best food" like pizza, lasagna and cheeseburgers. Chris Gabriel, another senior, said Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. Trent Toben, a Gehlen senior, said he would sleep outside for a month...

Gehlen packs dry meals Friday (05/05/09)
Gehlen Catholic School is hosting the fourth annual Kids Against Hunger event Friday. The event involves packing dry meal mixes to send to malnourished people around the world. The public can join Gehlen kindergarten through 12th grade students in contributing and packing meals...

Schools work to keep students from dropping out (05/01/09)
Two Plymouth County school districts experienced higher student dropout rates during the 2007-08 school year than in previous years. Larry Johnson, principal at Le Mars Community High School, isn't sure why 13 students in grades 9-12 dropped out last year, but he has some theories...

Volunteers and Sitzmanns honored at Friends of Gehlen Catholic Ball (04/29/09)
Thanksgiving. For many, Thanksgiving is a holiday celebrated in November. But for Gehlen Catholic, this year's Friends of Gehlen Catholic Ball was the kick off for National Volunteer Appreciation Week, April 26-May 2. The gala, held Saturday, April 25, focused on thanking those individuals who give generously of their time, talents, and treasurers to the school...

Gehlen adds section to transitional kindergarten program (04/28/09)
Gehlen Catholic Schools will have a second transitional kindergarten section for the 2009-2010 school year. The Rev. Kevin Richter made the surprise announcement, met with applause and cheers, at the Friends of Gehlen Ball Saturday. The school is in the second year of a three-year pilot program for transitional kindergarten (TK) and currently has 30 students on the list for next year...

Gehlen Ball sure to be 'a Grande Gala' (04/21/09)
There's still time to get tickets for the 2009 Friends of Gehlen Catholic Ball "a Grande Gala" set for this Saturday, April 25. Food, special presentations, and auction and live music highlight the evening which raises money for education of students at Gehlen Catholic Schools...

Gehlen plans fourth Kids Against Hunger event (04/20/09)
A giant meal-packing operation is returning to Gehlen Catholic School this spring. Gehlen will host the fourth annual Kids Against Hunger event which involves packing dry meal mixes to send to malnourished people around the world on Friday, May 8. The public can join all Gehlen Kindergarten through senior students in contributing and packing meals...

Gehlen hosts Prom 2009 (04/17/09)
Peace. Welcome back to the glorious decade of tie-die, beads and Volkswagen vans. Gehlen Catholic School is hosting prom this weekend. The theme: Peace, Prom, Love. "You'll see flowers back from the '70s and peace signs," Lisa Niebuhr of Gehlen said...

Gehlen jazz band competes at Iowa Jazz Championships (04/16/09)
The Gehlen Catholic School Jazz I Band made its first ever appearance in the Iowa Jazz Championships Tuesday in Des Moines. Band member Sarah Jentz, a junior, brought home an Outstanding Soloist Award for her solos on alto saxophone during the band's performance...

Wells' Dairy donates dozens of computers to local schools (04/07/09)
On Friday, a van backed up to Wells' Dairy's corporate headquarters to pick up a load, but it wasn't ice cream. It was computers. Students and teachers from Gehlen Catholic School helped load up 28 computers donated by Wells' Dairy. Earlier, another 44 went to Le Mars Community Schools...

Message for students: Don't drink and drive (04/06/09)
Gehlen Catholic School students felt the impact Friday of what happens when teenagers drink and drive. Junior high and senior high students listened quietly as Russ Reineke talked about his 24-year-old son, Dale's death, at the hands of a drunk driver...

What do babies and teaching a language have in common? Read on (04/03/09)
Would you make your baby diagram sentences? Or would you expect your 1 year old to order his or her own food at a restaurant? Not likely. That's why Elizabeth Rogers, or Se�orita Eli as her students know her, is using the Total Physical Response (TPR) method to teach high school Spanish at Gehlen Catholic Schools...

Mission Honduras students to give more than supplies (03/30/09)
They leave with bags loaded with goods for the people of Honduras. They will come back empty-handed, but in some ways richer. For the 10th year, a team of Gehlen Catholic School students will travel to Honduras to meet and serve the people there. The 32-member team was commissioned Friday at a ceremony at Gehlen...

Gehlen actors draw audience into mansion of mystery (03/27/09)
A mansion. The will of a dead playwright. Distant relatives. An actress. A butler. Gehlen Catholic School's play "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark," by Tim Kelly, has the perfect formula for a twist ending. It all starts when a playwright dies, leaving a will behind. Two relatives are called to his mansion to read the will...

Gehlen students earn first place in math contest (03/26/09)
Math. That's what earned a team of five sixth graders from Gehlen Catholic School a trip to Fort Dodge this May. Gehlen's sixth grade math team earned first place at the Area Education Agency (AEA) Math Competition in Sioux City Tuesday, advancing to the state contest in Fort Dodge May 1...

LCMS, Gehlen Catholic students selected for BVU Honor Band Festival (02/25/09)
Students from Le Mars Community Middle School and Gehlen Catholic Schools will take part in the 28th Annual Buena Vista University Honor Band Festival this Saturday, Feb. 28, in Storm Lake. The following students from Le Mars Community Middle School have been selected to perform in the festival: Ben Meis, oboe; Yashila Permeswaran, bassoon; Emily Ellefson, clarinet; Zach Kooistra, trumpet; Rodrigo Cobian, trumpet; Evan Richards, trombone; Karter Ewing, trombone; Tim Fett, baritone and Rebecca Luksan, percussion. ...

Gehlen TK program making a difference (02/12/09)
A pilot program for transitional kindergarten (TK) is in its second year at Gehlen Catholic Schools and is giving children the boost needed to prepare them for kindergarten. "This is something that has been requested by parents for more than 15 years," said Gehlen Catholic Elementary principal Lorie Nussbaum said. School officials decided to do a three-year pilot program to see how it would work...

Gehlen music students present Advent Concert (12/17/08)
Students in the Gehlen Catholic Schools 7-12 vocal and 5-12 music department will present their Advent Concert at 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 18, in the school gymnasium. The 64-voice mixed junior high choir will sing four selections including "Give Me Wings," "Noel, Noel," "When Peace Shall Come" and "Down, Down The Chimney." The junior high girls will sing "Sleep, Little Baby, Sleep" and the junior high boys will sing "The Shepherd's Spiritual." The junior high is directed and accompanied by Beverly Evans.. ...

Holiday happenings (12/12/08)
Dec. 13 - No hustle, no bustle $5 Holiday Soup and Sandwich Lunch available at the Arts Center, 200 Central Ave. S.E., from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eat in or take out. Gift Wrapping contest winners and raffle winners announced at 4:30 p.m. Dec. 13 - "The Nutcracker" presented by The Dance Studio Performance Company and the Le Mars Arts Council, 6 p.m. at the Le Mars Community Middle School Auditorium. Tickets at the door, $8 for adults, $5 for children through high school age...

Benefit supper for Danny Pick at Gehlen (12/11/08)
A benefit soup and sandwich supper for Danny Pick will be held this Friday, Dec. 12, at Gehlen Catholic Schools, sponsored by the Gehlen J-Club. Serving will be from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the school cafeteria. A freewill donation will be received for the meal...

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