Travel

Kingsley is stop on RAGBRAI route (03/15/10)
The town of Kingsley is the first pass-through town on the 2010 RAGBRAI route in July. The full RAGBRAI route was released on Sunday in the Des Moines Register and at the website, www.ragbrai.com. According to the website, bicyclists will travel north on Floyd Boulevard to 46th Street Sioux City and then travel east on County Road D-12 in Woodbury County before turning north on Highway 140 into Kingsley...

Museum to preview all-school reunion (03/09/10)
"Decades of Excellence," a preview of the Le Mars Community High School All-School Reunion, will be 2 p.m. Sunday, March 14 at the Plymouth County Historical Museum. Carolyn Vance, director of the Le Mars Community School District's Alumni Association, will share details of the coming reunion. Some reminiscing by alumni is also planned...

City approves Historic Preservation grant match request (03/03/10)
Le Mars City Council members Tuesday agreed to give the local Historic Preservation Commission $10,000 throughout two years to help place portions of downtown Le Mars on the National Register of Historic Places. The money, which will be paid $5,000 per year in 2011 and 2012, will be the local match of a grant...

County naturalist plans Black Hills youth backpacking trip (02/23/10)
Plymouth County's naturalist is planning an out-of-state backpacking trip for local youth this summer. This first-ever trip will give five students a chance to backpack with naturalist Victoria DeVos in the Black Hills, S.D., for five days in August...

Museum plans 'Spring Preview of Authors (02/16/10)
"Spring Preview of Authors" will put the spotlight on Kingsley during the Plymouth County Historical Museum's first 2010 program Sunday, Feb. 21. The book signing and program will begin at 2 p.m. in the museum's Music Room on the main floor. Doors to the museum will be open from 1-5 p.m...

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...

Children take a look at eye exams (01/28/10)
A visit to the eye doctor was a fun and informative outing for children at Noah's Ark Preschool Wednesday. Optometrist Dr. Becky DeRuyter of Advanced Eye Health located at Wal-Mart in Le Mars gave the students a tour of the exam rooms and explained what happens when someone gets an eye exam...

Jetting off to Cancun? County passport numbers up (01/26/10)
Plymouth County residents have decided it's time for a vacation according to passport numbers at the Plymouth County Recorders office. From the Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, 2009, residents applied for 173 passport books, which is up from the 80 passport applied for between July 1 to Sept. 30...

Travel not advised on Highway 75, 60 north (01/25/10)
The Iowa Department of Transportation is reporting that travel conditions in northwest Iowa are extremely hazardous. Multiple roadways are being temporarily closed due to a high incidence of traffic crashes, including those involving high-profile vehicles...

Le Mars receives $5,000 advertising boost (01/15/10)
The City of Le Mars was awarded $5,000 for advertising the recreation trail, banquet facilities and the new nine holes of the Willow Creek Golf Course. The announcement came Thursday from the Vision Iowa Board, which awards $100,000 each year in Community Attraction and Tourism (CAT) dollars for marketing...

Chamber, Museum offer New Year's Eve entertainment (12/29/09)
Two New Year's Eve events will offer area residents an opportunity to ring in the new year and also raise money for comunity projects and the preservation of the area's history. New this year is the Le Mars Chamber of Commerce New Year's Eve Dance at the Le Mars Convention Center upper level...

Museum ball tickets now on sale (12/23/09)
Tickets are now on sale at Lally's East Side Restaurant in Le Mars for "New York! New York!," a New Year's Eve Ball sponsored annually in "Old Central" gym by the Plymouth County Historical Museum in Le Mars. Tickets also can be purchased at the museum during open hours, every day from 1-5 p.m. except Mondays. Tickets are available at the door on the night of the dance...

Storm brewing: Meteorologist discourages Christmas travel (12/22/09)
Travelers planning to leave Plymouth County this Christmas may likely be stuck. A major winter storm is expected to blow into northwest Iowa and surrounding areas Wednesday and continue through Christmas Eve (Thursday) and into Christmas Day (Friday)...

Museum plans New Year's ball (12/10/09)
"New York! New York!" once again will be the theme for the New Year's Eve Ball at the Plymouth County Historical Museum Thursday, Dec. 31, in Le Mars. This year's ball is being billed as a family event. The evening will include a children's movie in the Music Room for those wishing to bring children or grandchildren...

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...

Museum to host 'Tree Skirts and Tea' (12/04/09)
After completing a record-breaking "Great Garage and Bake Sale," the Plymouth County Historical Museum is preparing for its annual holiday open house, "Tree Skirts and Tea," Sunday. The open house at the countywide museum in Le Mars will feature a program at 2 p.m. in the Music Room about historic Christmas tree skirts...

Preprints now available online (11/20/09)
In addition to finding local news, sports, a community calendar and hundreds of photos, visitors to www.lemarssentinel.com can now find coupons, inserts and other bargains. The Daily Sentinel is among a group of community newspaper companies from across the United States that have joined forces to launch Zip2Save.com, a national website that features online preprints, coupons, deals, travel specials and more. ...

$85,000 awarded for ECO Center (11/13/09)
An environmental learning and meeting center in Hillview Park is officially less than $7,500 away from being built. The Iowa Department of Economic Development awarded an $85,000 Community Attractions and Tourism (CAT) grant to the project Wednesday...

Brig. Gen. Jack Nicholson awarded Silver Star for action in Vietnam (10/30/09)
Dec. 27, 1963 had already been a devastating day. Of the 240 men then-Capt. John "Jack" Nicholson was with, only 39 were able to walk away from an eight-hour battle with the Viet Cong. But for Nicholson, the night wasn't over. He would lead his men to save the lives of nine people...

Mission Honduras production to air on local TV (10/30/09)
A slideshow and video production of 2009 Mission Honduras trips will be airing on Cable Access Channel 12 on Sundays during November. The production is named "Gehlen Catholic Mission Honduras 2009: A Year In Review." Gehlen Catholic Mission Honduras will present the DVD productions of each of...

Who's 'In the Moood for Fun?' (10/23/09)
What's the best part of the Halloween season? Trick-or-treating and having fun. Both are offered for elementary school-age children and their families from 6-8 p.m. Monday and 4-6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, at the Ice Cream Capital of the World Visitor Center/Museum in Le Mars during "In the Moood for Fun!" which also includes brief museum tours...

Museum to host railroading program, ethnic food fair (10/19/09)
Railroading in Plymouth County and ethnic foods of the area will be the focus of a program Sunday at the Plymouth County Historical Museum. The Rev. Gary Landsness of St. John's Lutheran Church, ELCA, Le Mars, will present a program on railroading at 1:30 p.m. in the museum's Music Room on the main floor...

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...

Intersections to be closed for rail work (10/09/09)
Two city street segments will be temporarily closed Monday morning to allow for rail work by the City of Le Mars. The railroad crossings near Business Highway 75 on both Sixth Avenue Southwest and 12th Street Southwest will be closed to traffic. Work will begin at the Sixth Avenue Southwest crossing at about 9:30 a.m. When that is finished, the crew will move to the 12th Street Southwest crossing and close the street there...

National Guard honors student member with trip to capital (10/06/09)
Private Kayla Hohbach always wanted to see the nation's capital. That dream came true when she was chosen as one of less than 10 Iowa National Guardsman to take an incentive trip to Washington D.C. Sept. 26-Oct. 1. "They said 'You've been a really good leader and we want to reward you so we are going to send you D.C.' because they try to send a private to D.C. every year if they can," said Hohbach, a senior at Le Mars Community High School...

Lt. governor gets taste of what Iowa has to offer (07/08/09)
Tourism traffic is up this year, according to Ice Cream Capital of the World Visitor Center tour group coordinator Colleen Nelson. Tuesday, the center hosted a special tourist -- Iowa Lieutenant Governor Patty Judge. She took a tour of the ice cream museum and made the difficult choice between banana split and chocolate soda -- she chose the soda -- at the Blue Bunny Ice Cream Parlor next door...

Lt. Governor to visit ice cream parlor Tuesday (07/06/09)
Iowa's Lieutenant Governor Patty Judge will be stopping by Le Mars for a scoop of ice cream Tuesday. The 1:30 p.m. stop at the Blue Bunny Ice Cream Parlor is Judge's fourth destination on the 2009 Travel Iowa tour, which started July 1. "Over the next two months I will be traveling the state, visiting some of Iowa's favorite attractions -- and some that are yet to be discovered," Judge wrote in an online blog she started to highlight the trip...

Ice Cream Days begins with social and outdoor movie (06/16/09)
Two . . . One . . . The countdown to Ice Cream Days is melting away. Thursday the Le Mars event kicks off with the first melt-in-your-mouth activities, including the annual Primebank Ice Cream Social and ice cold rootbeer floats in the Plymouth County Historical Museum...

Ice Cream Days 2009 Schedule of Events (06/15/09)
THURSDAY, JUNE 18 1 p.m. - 5 p.m. "Cone Sculptures" crafted by area artists in various media for outdoor exhibit at The Arts Center, 200 Central Avenue SE. Sculptures will be auctioned to public bidders for private placement around Le Mars. 1 p.m. - 5 p.m. Ice-cold root beer floats in the 1940's Miller's Leech diner, "Milestone Memories" exhibit of historic wedding dresses, five floors of history at the Plymouth County Historical Museum, 335 1st Avenue SW. Free admission...

Museum to dedicate stained glass window (06/10/09)
Flag Day will take on a different twist at the Plymouth County Historical Museum in Le Mars this Sunday, June 14, when the museum hosts the dedication of a stained glass window. The window, which was in the former First United Methodist Church in Le Mars, will be dedicated in the museum's Religious Heritage Room following a brief program at 2 p.m. in the Music Room...

Dinner theater draws visitors by the busload (05/11/09)
A jewel thief turned out to be a good catch for Le Mars last week. More than 200 out-of-town visitors spent last Thursday shopping Le Mars and getting to know the city, thanks to the spring mystery theater fundraiser "Sherla Combs and the Case of the Great Jewel Robberies" hosted by the Le Mars Area Chamber of Commerce Main Street Mentors...

Tour highlights new life for two historic buildings (05/08/09)
(Fourth and final in a series) Two buildings, a former church and a former high school, have been converted to new uses while still maintaining their historical significance in the community. A church building at 401 First St. S.W. is now a residence for Eric Wong, who purchased it from the Assembly of God Church...

Historic tour offers look at pink granite Victorian home (05/07/09)
(Third in a series) Pink granite from quarries around Sioux Falls, S.D., and a location on the curve of Highway 3 West make the Victorian style home at 11 Sixth Ave. S.W. stand out. The house, now owned by Randy and Berdene Barta and home to Berdene's, a reservation-only dining establishment and the Bartas, is one of five stops on the 2009 Historic Tour of Homes and Churches this Saturday...

St. George's Episcopal Church a stop on historic tour (05/06/09)
(Second in a series) A church building, erected at a cost of $3,200 in 1881, is one of five stops on the Historic Tour of Homes and Churches Saturday, May 9. St. George' Episcopal Church at 400 First Ave. S.E. was built in response to the need for an Anglican church in Le Mars for the young British men who were being sent to this area to learn farming. In the next 10 years, an estimated 1,000 English colonists would use the building as a worship and social center...

Historic homes tour set for May 9 (05/01/09)
The Le Mars Historic Preservation commission and the Plymouth County Historical Museum will host this year's Tour of Historic Homes and Churches Saturday, May 9. The tour gives participants an opportunity to see inside homes in Le Mars that have unique features come with a little bit of local history...

Area bowler strikes her way to hall of fame (04/30/09)
Elsie Slagter started bowling in 1950 when she was about 22. In a little more than a decade, the Marcus woman would be regionally famous for her skills in 10-pin. Sixty years later -- April 2009 -- she'd join Iowa's hall of fame for female bowlers. That announcement took Slagter, who bowled regularly at Sweet 16 lanes in Le Mars, by surprise...

'May Day at the Museum' gives students history lessons (04/28/09)
Approximately 300 Plymouth County fourth grade students took home local history Monday after participating in the ninth annual "May Day at the Museum" at the Plymouth County Historical Museum in Le Mars. Learning stations offered the students and teachers a glimpse of local history and gave them the opportunity to explore all floors of the museum...

Players return for seventh annual Accordion Fest (04/15/09)
Carla Drost of Alton and Lyle Koehlmoos of Granville attended the first Art Pahl Accordion Festival in 2003. They have returned each year for the the musical event in the Plymouth County Historical Museum's Old Central Gym. They are two of eight accordion players who plan to be part of the Seventh Annual Art Pahl Accordion Festival this Sunday, April 19...

Plymouth County Historical Museum prepares for annual accordion fest (03/31/09)
For the seventh year, accordion music will fill "Old Central" Gym at the Plymouth County Historical Museum, beginning at 2 p.m., Sunday, April 19. Accordion players from several states are expected to join the jam and provide music for dancing and listening...

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...

'Kitchen memories' leads museum lineup of activities (03/24/09)
Everything from a kitchen memories program to "Woofstock," a celebration of the dog, is on the calendar for visitors to the Plymouth County Historical Museum in Le Mars. First up this Sunday, March 29, will be the museum's third "Milestone Memories" monthly program. Joan Kroepel and friends of Le Mars will lead "Memories from the Kitchen Window" program in the museum's Music Room on the main floor...

Convention and Visitor Bureau about to take first steps (02/25/09)
Ultimately, the goal is to bring tour buses back to Le Mars, to create regional, even statewide interest in Le Mars and draw people here. But right now, the fledgling Le Mars Convention and Visitor Bureau is just taking shape. Last week, the Le Mars City Council preserved $60,000 of the Hotel/Motel Tax revenue with the idea of using that money to create a center of tourism, recreation, convention and lodging information for Le Mars...

Museum's 'Milestone Memories' to honor couples (02/10/09)
"Milestone Memories," a program to honor couples who have been married 50 years or longer, will mark Valentine's Day weekend at the Plymouth County Historical Museum in Le Mars. Several Plymouth County couples who have been married for at least 50 years will participate in the wedding program at 2 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 15, in the museum's Music Room, on the main floor...

LCS students compete in national quilt block challenge (01/19/09)
Students in the textile arts class at Le Mars Community High School put their skills good use as they designed quilt square for the National Quilt Museum: Museum of the American Quilter's Society/Moda School Block Challenge Contest 2009. LCS family and consumer sciences instructor Rosemary Cronin obtained the entry information for the contest, based in Kentucky, and had the students put their creative energy to work in creating the 16-by-16-inch square blocks using the paper piecing method of construction.. ...

Sheldon says goodbye to Lakes Conference (01/15/09)
The closest lake to Sheldon is about a 50 mile jog across Highway 18 and up Highway 71. So perhaps it's not surprising that Sheldon will be leaving the Lakes Conference at the end of the current school year and joining the Siouxland Conference beginning next fall...

Museum to open year with cemetery program (01/13/09)
"Tombstone Transcriptions" will launch the 2009 program year for the Plymouth County Historical Museum in Le Mars at 2 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 18, in the Museum's Music room. Mary Holub, a member of the Northwest Iowa Genealogy Program, will explain a cemetery program which she has been working on for several months. In transcribing various tombstone etchings, she also has discovered some surprising history...

Museum, ECO Center chosen as grant recipients (01/06/09)
Loess Hills Alliance announced nine organizations within its economic development committee will receive grants for 2009 -- two will go to Plymouth County entities. The Plymouth County Conservation Board will receive $4,000 for construction of its proposed Economic Conservation Opportunities (ECO) Center. The conservation department requested a $10,000 grant...

New Year's at the Museum (01/05/09)

Museum plans silent auction at New Year's Eve ball (12/31/08)
Fifty area businesses from five communities in Plymouth County will have offerings on the Plymouth County Historical Museum's New Year's Eve Ball silent auction tonight (Wednesday). The doors for the silent auction will open at 5:30 p.m. in "Old Central" Gym lobby. Bidding may continue on the auction items until 10 p.m...

Museum plans New Year's Eve ball (12/26/08)
"New York! New York!" once again will be the theme for the Plymouth County Historical Museum's fourth annual New Year's Eve Ball from 7 to 11 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 31. Dancing and fellowship will be available in "Old Central" Gym where "Music Illusions" will star Tom and Patty Mullally and friends. Doors to the Gym lobby will open at 6 p.m...

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