Thursday, July 2, 2020:
ALGONA – Bomgaars will be expanding its inventory to the Kmart building in Algona.

KOSSUTH COUNTY—Transparency and honesty are two words Don McGregor, former chair of the Kossuth County Board of Supervisors, hopes the current board addresses.

SEXTON—Two dissimilar buildings were the subjects of an easy move to Sexton on Wednesday, June 24.
“The move went very smooth. The route was good and friendly,” said Tom Mader, who along with his wife, Christy, are owners of Heartland Building Moving. “It was a little nerve-racking when we pulled out, but once we got on the street, we were fine.”
Ken Clark owns both buildings. One is a 44-foot-by-96-foot, 4-year-old Morton building, and the other is an old county jail.

Whittemore's Josiah Laddusaw and Garrett Schmidt ham it up before graduation. Photo by Mindi Spear.

KOSSUTH COUNTY—Retail stores and restaurants are reopening, and people are mingling, but Kossuth County officials say we need to stay vigilant in battling COVID-19 by using safe health practices.
The number of positive cases of the novel coronavirus in Kossuth County has risen to 33 as of July 4. Some 1,221 individuals have been tested, with most of those tests showing negative results. Kossuth County has reported no deaths due to COVID-19. Twenty had recovered.

ALGONA—Several churches have opened, with restrictions, for worship services while others are opening soon.
“It has been a little bit of an annoyance to me that we talk about closing of worship,” said the Rev. Chris Burtnett of First Congregational United Church of Christ in Algona. “The church has not been closed. We were worshipping in a different way.”

How sweet it is to have local honey available at the Kossuth County Farmers Market. One of our market vendors, Jean Dearch of Lu Verne, brings a beautiful array of homemade jams, jellies and honey from her own hives.

The next six to eight months will be a challenge for livestock and row-crop producers, according to Chris Boshart, the general manager and chief executive officer of Gold-Eagle Cooperative. “We don’t look for prices to have any miraculous return to pre-COVID-shutdown levels anytime soon,” he said. “We need some export policy, export business to help us out.”

Bennett and Bethany Fehr hold the castles they constructed. Submitted photos.
WEST BEND—Being stuck in a house for a period has found avid readers focused on books out of the normal.

SIOUX CITY—A Lakota methamphetamine dealer was sentenced Thursday, June 25, to 14 years in federal prison.
Christopher Paul Hanson, 30, received the prison term after a guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute at least 1,500 grams of pure methamphetamine and possession of a firearm by a drug user.
Read more about it in the July 2 Kossuth County Advance.

Bishop Garrigan held its 2020 prom Saturday, June 27. It started with the grand march on the track. To adhere to social distancing guidelines, students were broken up into two groups with two sessions of prom. Students spent their session listening to music and playing after prom games such as minute to win it, cash cab, plinko and a few more. Bailey Meister, Kaylyn Meyers, Gracie Elsbecker and Cade Winkel get ready to play a game with cups. Submitted photos.

We are all aware that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected almost every phase of our lives, including limiting activities we normally enjoy. For nonprofit organizations, like the Kossuth County Agriculture and Motorsports Museum, normal activities that generate revenue needed to meet ongoing expenses have been, to a significant degree, curtailed. However, like many organizations, adjustments have been made, certain activities have resumed and plans for future events scheduled.

I want you to know how great this community has been during this difficult time in our history. The people of our community, the ecumenical community and my Presbyterian churches in Algona and Irvington have really stepped up and served the Lord and each other.

Sawyer Curtis and Maddie Nevitt pose on the bridge on the bike path off of Finn Drive as part of the Algona High School prom. The COVID-19 coronavirus changed a lot of events for schools this year, but students were able to have a prom, with several changes and a few months later than normal. Photo by Michelle Penning.

KOSSUTH COUNTY—It will look different than past years, but the Kossuth County Fair is a go. The fair board voted on Sunday evening, June 21, to hold the county fair tentatively, Tuesday, Aug. 3 through Saturday, Aug. 8.