2008 in review: Hellos and goodbyes

The year 2008 saw the election of the nation's first African-American president, Sen. Barack Obama, after he first won the Iowa caucus in January. The year brought rough times for the nation's and world's economy as well. Le Mars also bid adieu to the 100-year long presence of Harker's, a foodservice company that started as a meat market. [Click to enlarge]

Editor's note: This is the second of two stories recapping 2008's top stories in the Daily Sentinel.

5. Iowa begins Smokefree Air Act

Indoor smoking, except in people's homes, became a rarity after the Smokefree Air Act went into effect in Iowa July 1. The law banned smoking in restaurants, bars, workplaces and other public areas including the Plymouth County Fairgrounds and school ball fields. Smoking sections were eliminated in restaurants, and smokers must go outdoors to light up a cigarette or pipe. The Smokefree Air Act, signed into law by Governor Chet Culver in April, includes exemptions for casinos and state prisons, among others. Several establishment owners argued that a smoking ban should cover all places, not excluding casinos. There is also confusion as to which agency is enforcing the law.

4. Barack Obama elected, Iowa chose him first

The citizens of the United States elected the first African-American president Nov. 4. Sen. Barack Obama, 47, will serve as the nation's 44th president. But it all started in Iowa. Obama made several visits to Le Mars leading up to the Iowa Caucus Jan. 3, the first caucus in the nation. Plymouth County Democrats, along with the rest of Iowa Democrats, chose Obama as their favorite for the presidential nomination in the caucus, setting the tone for the rest of the race. In a tight run with Hilary Clinton for the nomination, Obama pulled the lead, building a campaign around the buzzwords "hope" and "change." In November, Obama, with running mate Sen. Joe Biden, won the general election over Republican challenger Sen. John McCain 52-46 percent. Obama's inauguration is set for Jan. 20 at the U.S. Capitol.

3. Recession: are we there yet?

It's hard to tell where it began. Rising food, gasoline and commodity prices. The supbrime mortgage crash. A plummeting real estate market on the East and West Coasts. The weak U.S. dollar. A downward sliding U.S. stock market impacting people with 401K accounts and other investments. Financial firms declaring bankruptcy. Gas prices that peaked above $4 before diving to less than $1.50 before the end of 2008. It all tallied up to be an economic crisis that some claim is the biggest since the Great Depression. The federal government stepped in to bail out financial institution AIG for up to $85 billion. Governments around the globe nationalized financial institutions in their nations. In November, 533,000 U.S. jobs were lost, the biggest monthly loss since 1974. The Federal Reserve lowered interest rates more than 5 times in 2008. In December, the federal government also announced $17.4 billion in loans to help three U.S. automobile makers avoid bankruptcy. On Dec. 1, the National Bureau of Economic research officially declared that the U.S. economy entered recession in December 2007.

2. Harker's closes

On Friday, Aug. 29, Harker's, a long-time Le Mars food service company, officially closed its doors. The name "Harker's" has been connected with food delivery in Le Mars since 1906 when George Harker opened a meat market. The business grew, becoming a foodservice company in 1954 and peaking in the 1980s, when Harker's ran production centers in Le Mars, Orange City and Sioux Center and employed 1,500 people. In 1986, the Harker family sold the company to Holly Farms, which was purchased by Tyson Foods in 1989. In 1990, Harker's Distribution Inc. purchased Tyson Foods' distribution business. Then in April 2006, the fourth generation of the Harker family in the meat processing business, bought controlling interest in the Le Mars company. By then, the out-of-town facilities were sold, but Harker's still employed about 500 in production, delivery and sales. In 2007, company officials cut back the workforce twice and sold the distribution business to Reinhart FoodService in LaCrosse, Wis. When the final piece of Harker's closed in 2008, only 28 employees remained. At that time, Jim Harker hinted at the purchase of the Le Mars facility by another producer at some point in the future. No purchase has yet been made public.

1. LCS faces budget crunch

The Le Mars Community School District started out 2008 facing a tight budget. In January, after approving nearly $500,000 in budget cuts, the school board started the process to try to start an Instructional Support Levy (ISL) to raise money for teacher pay, textbooks and school programs. With a petition, the ISL went to a vote by the public in the school district. It was voted down. In the meantime, the board had cut another $250,000 from the school budget in April, eliminating the transitional kindergarten program and a half-time music position, among other cuts. In May, the school board began the ISL process again. It went to a vote for the second time in September and again failed by less than 50 votes out of 3,801 total votes cast. Now, heading into 2009, the board has decided to try for the ISL a third time to help pay for teacher salaries, programs and textbooks, this time adding tighter limits to what they are asking for.

Other stories from 2008:

*Soldiers from the Le Mars area returned home in April from a 10-month training and tour of duty in Iraq. They were part of a group of 35 soldiers from Troop A, 1st Squadron, 113th Cavalry.

*Ralph Klemme resigned from the Iowa Environmental Protection Commission as of September after the commission voted to deny two livestock requests which had met all DNR criteria. Klemme voted in favor of the two requests.

*The Le Mars Community School addition, which included a middle school gymnasium, a classroom addition and a drive connecting the north parking lot and Stadium Drive, was completed in August.

*Plans for the Environmental Conservation Opportunities (ECO) Center, a center for conservation education and gatherings at Hillview Park in Hinton, were revealed in April although money for the center is not finalized after a $400,000 grant was denied.

*Hinton Community School officials are planning to add a new elementary and gymnasium but are currently halted, looking into negotiating for land near the school where a family farm exists. The school board discussed the possibility of using eminent domain to secure the land.

*What was formerly known as the one-penny SILO (State Infrastructure Local Option) sales tax was switched by vote to become not a county tax but a statewide tax, aiming to provide schools with equal amounts of money per student. The sales tax is still 1 cent.

*Numerous reports of graffiti around Le Mars, including on schools, homes, churches, vehicles and public buildings, came in throughout 2008. Authorities said that these could be warning signs that individuals in Le Mars are seeking to start gang activity, and they urged the community to increase involvement in youths' lives.