Stories from Tuesday, November 11, 2008

A park catering to dogs and their owners was given the green light by Spencer Park Board members Monday night. The park, which has been discussed for several years, is proposed to be up to four acres of usable space. Its placement is tentatively planned south of U.S. Highway 18 in the DeWolf Park area west of the trees...

An upstairs room in Gerald "Gerry" Johnson's Clay County farmhouse is filled to the brim with items representing well over 100 years of family military service. The wall jutting from the room's door frame proudly hosts three framed, embroidered military patches of Johnson's late father and two late uncles. ...

Six people, including five members of the Westwood High School wrestling team, remain hospitalized as authorities continue to investigate a crash that left one man dead. The crash happened on Iowa Highway 141 near Hornick Saturday morning as a school district sport utility vehicle carrying the wrestling team to a wrestling clinic in Mapleton collided nearly head-on with a van in Woodbury County...

The Iowa Great Lakes Chapter of the American Red Cross held a garage sale Saturday at the Gateway North center in Spencer. The sale was aimed at raising funds for the local chapter's contribution to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund. The sale raised over $3,000, toward the local chapter's $30,000 goal. ...

A Melvin man being held in the Clay County Jail was charged with felony assault on a peace officer and criminal mischief in the fifth degree - a simple misdemeanor following an incident in the jail facility involving jail staff and a Clay County deputy...

After seven weeks on the New York Times Best Sellers list, Dewey made the leap from No. 3 to No. 1 on the hardcover nonfiction list. According to Spencer co-author Vicki Myron (above), she has been receiving mail from all over the world with regards to "Dewey: The Small Town Library Cat Who Touched The World." Myron noted that some countries won't publish the book until January or February, but it is currently out in seven countries so far including with translations for Brazil, Italy, Sweden, Poland, Finland, Holland, and Portugal. ...

Jade Beehler was a finalist for the 2009 Iowa Assistant Secondary Principal of the Year award sponsored by the School Administrators of Iowa. "It is an honor for us to recognize quality school administrators in Iowa," said Dan Smith, SAI executive director...

Singer/songwriter Alan Morphew will perform at Arts on Grand in Spencer at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 13, as part of the Music in the Gallery Series. A $5--$10 donation is requested, with all proceeds going to Morphew. Morphew is a modern folk rock singer/songwriter from Los Angeles. ...