Cherokee Class of '59 celebrates Homecoming Weekend - Twenty-four members of the Cherokee High School graduating classes (both Wilson and Immaculate Conception) of 1959 met over the recent Cherokee Homecoming weekend to renew old aquaintances, and catch up on what's been happening in their lives. The group met at Gerald and Nancy Sears' home prior to the Homecoming Parade Friday afternoon, and later had a social time and supper before some class members attended the Washington High School Homecoming football game. On Saturday, the group took a bus tour of Cherokee, conducted by class member Gerald Sears, and a social hour and supper was held at the Cherokee Country Club that evening, The weekend concluded with a Sunday brunch at Danny's Sport Spot. Front row, left to right, Bill Lee, Gerald Sears, Jim Becker, Larry Clark, Gary Meyer, Larry Dyslin. Second row - Dan Hankens, Jane Nelson, Carolyn (Fuhrman) Probasco, Barbara (Brasser) Bowers, Norma (Smith) Hogrefe, Nancy (Welch) Hartliep, Karen (Davis) Peck. Third row - Marvin Christensen, Sandra (Mullenberg) Mickesh, Melba (Whitcomb) Kert, Gayle (Fuhrman) Messerole, Ruby (Smith) Johnson, Pat (Miller) Thomason. Back row - Doug Wray, Bob Hall, Tom Augard, Marilyn (Brooker) Jacobsen, Dick Anderson. Also attending, but not present for the photo, was Delores (Bengtson) Mueller. Photo contributed

Going Buggy - Fourth graders in Jan Brown's M-M-C classroom at Cleghorn are completing a unit about insects. Students participated in an 'insect bee' in which they were asked to identify insects. This threesome was undefeated. Pictured, left to right, are Mahaley Dirks, Aliyah Jackson, and Drew Woodall. Photo contributed

Teacher and student share love of 4-H - When Cherokee Middle School announced they would be having dress-up days during Homecoming Week, Carol Higgins, left, noticed the 4-H shirt that student Emily Lewis, right, was wearing, and it gave her an idea for look-alike day. One common interest the teacher and student share is their love of 4-H. The two decided it would be fun to wear their 4-H shirts and be "twins". Before she became a teacher, Higgins was the 4-H County Youth Coordinator in Plymouth County. While serving as CYC, she started the Clover Kids program in Plymouth County and the Fair King contest, both which are still going strong today. Higgins was an active 4-H member as a child. A few projects of hers that went to the Iowa State Fair, were a refinished piano that belonged to her grandmother, a log cabin quilt, and a prom dress. Higgins continues to be involved as a 4-H leader in her community of Remsen, and is a 4-H judge in surrounding counties at fair time. Emily Lewis, a 6th grader at CMS, is a two-year member of the Millcreek Valley in Cherokee County. Her favorite project areas are baking and making cute crafts. October 4-11 is National 4-H Week. 4-H is open to all youth in grades 4-12. Anyone interested in joining 4-H should call the Cherokee Extension Office at 225-6196. Photo contributed

Now THAT's a Sunflower! Junior Bierman poses beneath the imposing sunflower plant in his backyard at 6 Bow Drive in Cherokee. Junior said he planted the seed for the plant on June 1 of this year, and it now stands 10 feet 5 inches high, with a flower which measures 20 inches across. Junior thinks it has reached full growth. Photo by Dan Whitney

Take your pick - The Brightside Lounge in downtown Cherokee recently livened up its popular alley entrance with bright logos of Iowa's two favorite Division I college football teams - the Iowa State University Cyclones and the University of Iowa Hawkeyes. We're told that Holton Custom Signs of Cherokee painted CyHawk and Herky, payment in-kind. Photo by Chris Reed

Domestic abuse awareness bike ride - On Sunday Oct. 4, the Center Against Abuse and Sexual Assault's (CAASA) held their first bike ride for Domestic abuse awareness month. Pictured is Dennis Bahr, left, and Julie Schulenberg of CAASA. They had 31 riders sign up which Schulenberg thought was great for the first year. Bahr completed the entire 24 miles. "He is a true inspiration - no one should say they can't do it. He is an amazing person," said Schulenberg. CAASA thanks Letsche's Bike Shop, RJ Thomas Mfg., and Sleezer Fertility Center as sponsors, and for all the donations from Fareway, Hy-Vee, Tyson Deli, Allyson Harrison with Little Debbie, McDonald's, and Creative Services. Photo contributed

Spider art - Reagan Bahrke and Brenden Boock, 2nd graders at River Valley, are proudly displaying the hard work they put into their spider research project. The students each researched a different type of spider and then chose a way to display it. Reagan and Brenden did their research on the Tarantula Spider. Photo contributed

Poster children - Ethan Spotten, Tristan Mammen, and Zevon Wipf, also 2nd graders at River Valley, are showing their Black Widow poster that they used to display their spider research. Photo contributed

Letsche's celebrates 40 years in business - Letsche's Bike and Radio Shack celebrated the 40th anniversary of their business by hosting the Chamber Coffee on Friday October 9. Owner Tom Letsche (second from right) thanks all for their attendance and also for their business through the years. Photo by Dan Whitney

Fun times! The elementary students in Aurelia were greeted with some new playground equipment when the new school year started. This photo shows workers installing the equipment this summer. Photo by Dan Whitney

Skylar Sokol was a real team player - serving as ball boy and happily decked out in school colors at a recent Aurelia High School football game. Photo by Paul Struck

A slice of life - Dee and Jim Nelson of Aurelia have made a juicy-looking work of art from a tree in their yard. Photo by Dan Whitney

Welcoming the public - Joyce Woods is pictured welcoming the public to the 10th annual Cherokee Presbyterian Women Omelet Brunch and Bake Sale held at the Memorial Presbyterian Church in Cherokee on Sunday. Photo by Troy Valentine

Good eating - There was a lot of good food and plenty of treats at the Memorial Presbyterian Church on Sunday during the 10th annual Presbyterian Women Omelet Bunch and Bake Sale. Photo by Troy Valentine

Raising funds - Eleanor Johnson, center, is pictured writing a check to JoAnn Kruger and Joyce Woods for her recent purchase of many of the baked goods that was part of the 10th annual Cherokee Presbyterian Women Omelet Brunch and Bake Sale held on Sunday at the Memorial Presbyterian Church. Photo by Troy Valentine

Serving up - There was plenty of food to choice from for the people who attended the 10th annual Cherokee Presbyterian Women Omelet Brunch and Bake Sale held last weekend. Photo by Troy Valentine

Harvest Hoopla activities in Aurelia The Aurelia Commercial Club and other local organizations put on the annual "Harvest Hoopla" in their town on Saturday, October 17. These photos show just some of the fun provided for young and old alike. Activities started with a Fun House for the young kids and concluded with a Big Band - era dance for the older kids. Despite the cool weather, these young ladies displayed their baked goods for sale outside the Aurelia Community Center during Saturday's Harvest Hoopla. Photo by Dan Whitney

The Friends of Aurelia had a "Little Spooks House of Fun" at the Aurelia Community Center during the Harvest Hoopla. Karrie Pingel (right) was in charge of this station, one of several with fun activities for the kids. Photo by Dan Whitney

At this station, the young people could toss beanbags at the "holey" ghost to win prizes. Photo by Dan Whitney

Tayler Rohwer(#11) ran the bingo station at the Harvest Hoopla's Little Spooks House of Fun in Aurelia on Oct.17th. Photo by Dan Whitney

Here come the kids! Led by the Aurelia Bulldog, the Aurelia Kiddies' Costume Parade took place at 4:30 on Saturday afternoon Oct. 17th, during the annual Aurelia Harvest Hoopla Celebration. Photo by Dan Whitney

Parading downtown - These were just a few of the costumed paraders in Aurelia on Oct.17th during the town's annual Harvest Hoopla Celebration. Photo by Dan Whitney

Grilling supper - Greyling Fredericksen (far right) grills some turkey for the Commercial Club supper at the Community Center in Aurelia on Harvest Hoopla Day, while Dana Sleezer (left) heads to help the Cherokee County Pork Producers grill their specialty for the sumptuous feast. Photo by Dan Whitney

Dynamite dioramas - The students in Jodi Feser's third grade class at MMC Elementary have been spending some classroom time recently cracking the covers on their favorite books. After completing the reading assignment, the youngsters combined the perusal project with an artistic endeavor when they were challenged to make either a diorama or a poster based on their tale. As you can see by these projects turned in by class members Colton Meyer (The Girl who loved Wild Horses,) Cadon Remington (Going to Sleep on the Farm) and Allison Gregg (The Case of the Clue at the Zoo,) the results of the project were admirable. Photo by Ron Flewelling

Flower power - In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the staff and students at River Valley Elementary have been selling chances on a bouquet of pink roses. On Oct. 16, these flowers were raffled off as well as a second bouquet donated by Evelyn's Greenhouse in Correctionville. The winners of the flowery windfall were Susan Reinking and Linda Johnson. The proceeds of the raffle will be donated to the June E. Nylan Cancer Center. In this photo, one of the bouquets is seen being displayed by Jill and Linda Johnson. Linda is a 12 year survivor. Photo by Ron Flewelling

Food finesse - The youngsters from the Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn Elementary School have been spending time the past several days doing their part in eliminating world hunger. The students in MMC grades kindergarten through sixth have been participating in a month long observation of the Dr. Norman Borlaug World Food Prize Day by collecting food, canned goods and detergents for local food banks. In this photo, you can see the growing collection of foodstuffs being displayed by MMC third grade good deed doers Dean Jenness, Zach Means and Conner Rassel. As a side note of interest, Dr. Borlaug, a native Iowan, was only one of five people to ever be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the Presidential Award of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal, mainly for his work in ending world famine Photo by Ron Flewelling

Pastor's repast - The Quimby Methodist Church's Annual Pork Loin Supper was the place to be on Saturday evening, Oct. 17th, for any true gourmand. The evening's bill-of-fare tickled the taste buds of a lot of folks dropping in for the event including the Methodist's Pastor Richard Layman and his better half, Lela.

Methodist meal - On October 17, a lot of area folks gave their resident cooks and pot swabbers a break and headed on down to Quimby for the Methodist Church's Annual Pork Loin Supper. Pork loins, baked potatoes, green bean casserole, baked beans, salad, bread buns and dessert was the menu of the evening, a repast that would be at home on any harvest menu. In this photo, stalwart servers Howard McCoy and Emily Theisen are seen preparing to dish it out to friends and neighbors dropping in for the event. Photo by Ron Flewelling

Pink Power! On Oct. 15, things around the River Valley Elementary building were definitely at a rosy hue. This unusual and pleasant splash of color was due to the fact that many of the school's staff and students wore pink clothing items to show their support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Among the many RV Elementary denizens who chose to wear pink were students Dylan Georgopoulos, Isaac Beeson, Cody Volkert, Tyler Paulsen, Devon Payne, Justin Beeson, Kyle Roepke, Avree Hanson and Grace Volkert and RV staff members Jason Roggatz, Matt Jenness and Linda Johnson. Photo by Ron Flewelling

Bake sale bonanza - October 17 marked the date of the Cherokee Villa's Annual Bake Sale and Bazaar. A bevy of area folks dropped in to buy their share of the cakes, pies, breads and cookies offered during the event. In this photo, volunteer cookie and cake wranglers Corinne Malzer, Joann Christensen, Ruth Hausmann and Hazel Schultze are seen displaying just a few of the tasty items found at the bake sal Photo by Ron Flewelling

Youth Group bargains - On October 17, the members of Cherokee's First Church of Christ Youth Group were the hosts at a special fund-raising rummage sale. The event offered a wide variety of items, just a few of which are seen being displayed by Pastor Tom Lewis and youth group member Mariah Collins. The proceeds garnered from the sale will be used to help finance the young Church of Christ members' fall and winter projects and activities. Photo by Ron Flewelling

Bug business - The students in the second grade class at RV Elementary have been spending some class time recently really getting bugged out. After delving into the world of insects in their studies, the students completed artistic projects on bugs and other creepy-crawlers like these turned in by class members Jazzmine Wortman, Kayla Knaack, Sawyer Cockburn and Colten Burnham. Photo by Ron Flewelling

Painting Pumpkins at the Good Times Place - Seniors at the Good Times Place learned the ins-and-outs of decorating pumpkins recently from Sarah Boldt. In this photo, Boldt gives her students pointers on the art of spray painting pumpkins, as Sally Peters (left) and Sharon Watts (right) look over the ones they have just painted with a brush. Photos by Dan Whitney

Painted Pumpkin - Marlene Kelly poses with the pumpkin she has just finished painting.

Focusing - Sharon Watts focuses on creating her orange work of art.

Gilding the pumpkin - Students who wanted to spray paint a pumpkin were directed outside to "do their thing."

Adding a touch of class - Martin and Sheila Zauhar add a little touch of class to a small pumpkin as they spray paint it gold in the parking lot outside of the Cherokee Community Center.

Golden Pumpkins - Morgan Graverholt (foreground) spray paints a small pumpkin gold, while Marty and Sheila Zauhar do the same in the background.

Drawing the face - Instructor Sarah Boldt (center) teaches her students at the Good Times Place about making faces for jack-o-lanterns.

Halloween spirit - River Valley second graders are all wrapped up in Halloween. Taylor Knaack, Sarah Van Beek and Ethan Spotten are pictured getting into the Halloween spirit. Photo contributed

Here come Miss Piggy- Miss Piggy, a.k.a., Christa Blake, arrived in all her glory at River Valley School to celebrate Halloween. Photo contributed

All wrapped up - Also getting in the Halloween spirit from the River Valley Scond grade class are Ember Williamson, Gregory McCormick and Kendell Fitch. Photo contributed

Hawkeye Pride - The second grade Hawkeye fans were also out in full force at River Valley. pictured are, left to right, Taylor Knaack, Patty Brandhorst and Beau Miller. Photo contributed

Homeroom Halloween - Kindergarten students at the Cherokee Roosevelt Elementary School celebrated the Halloween Holiday with games and treats on Friday. Kimberly Lux's Kindergarten class took time out from their Halloween party to display their costumes before going back to they fun activities. Photo by Mike Leckband

Honoring Red Ribbon Week - In honor of Red Ribbon Week fourth graders Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn Elementary School at Cleghorn participated by wearing red. Activities took place all week to enhance the pillars of character. Photo contributed

Special guest - Washta Mayor Don Parrott is pictured reading to the River Valley 4th grade students as the October Mystery Reader. Don read some scary stories to the students to get them in the Halloween mood. Photo contributed