Obituary

Eleanor D. Kullberg, 97

Eleanor D. Kullberg, 97, of Gowrie passed away Tuesday, November 10, 2020 at Fort Dodge Health and Rehabilitation.

Due to COVID, private burial will be held at Lost Grove Cemetery, Lanyon, Iowa. A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. Palmer Funeral Home Gowrie is serving the family.

Eleanor was born April 20, 1923, the daughter of Martin and Martha Wing. She graduated from Callender High School. In July 1942 she was united in marriage to George Kullberg. They were lifelong residents of the Lanyon and Gowrie and were members of Zion Lutheran Church.

Eleanor is survived by children, Bruce (Lynn) Kullberg of Montgomery, TX, Marty (Ray) Pickett of Fort Dodge, and Bob Kullberg of Bloomington, MN; grandchildren, Jamison (Jess), Niki (Jeff) and Shane (Sara); several great grandchildren; nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her husband of 65 years, George; her parents; brothers, Edward, Marlo, and Darwin; and sisters, Velma and Darlene.

Eleanor truly enjoyed her children and grandchildren. They all had many fun years of fishing, camping, playing cards, and baking. She will be forever missed but never forgotten.

Cards with memories of her can be sent to Marty Pickett at 2714 North 13th Place, Fort Dodge, Iowa 50501.

Evelyn June Isom, 87

Eleanor D. Kullberg, 97

Gowrie – Evelyn June Isom 87, passed away Friday, November 13, 2020 at Pearl Valley Rehabilitation & Nursing at Gowrie. Private Family Funeral Services will be at United Methodist Church, Gowrie, with Pastor Susan Rohden officiating. Burial of casket will be at Gowrie Township Cemetery. Palmer Funeral Home, Gowrie is in charge of arrangements.

June is survived by her husband Dalbert of 68 years; son Ed (Janet) Isom of Omaha; daughter Lori Price of Webster City; grandchildren, Brad (Lacy) Isom, Kim Isom, Katie Price, Tyler (Madi) Price, and Ellie Price; sister Donna Ziemer of Des Moines; sister-in-law Lynnette Granfield of Carroll, NE; and several nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends. She was preceded in death by her parents, Clarence and Opal (Cunningham) Davis; and brothers, Glen, Chet, and Bob Davis.

Evelyn June Davis was born July 7, 1933 at Hay Camp, Iowa and graduated from Harris High School. June attended Wayne State College where she received her teaching certificate. On May 9, 1953 she was united in marriage to Dalbert Isom at Sioux City, Iowa. She taught school for 30 years at Carroll, NE, Pilger, NE, Wakefield, NE, Grand Junction, IA, Ayshire, IA, and Gowrie, IA. June continued to have lifelong relationships with her former students.

Memorials may be left to the discretion of the family.

Jean A. Schmidt, 95

Eleanor D. Kullberg, 97

Jean A. Schmidt, 95

Jean A. Schmidt, 95, of Fort Dodge, died Friday, November 6, 2020, at Fort Dodge Health & Rehab.

Cremation rites will take place at Gunderson Funeral Home & Cremation Services. Family interment services will be held at a later date.

Jean is survived by her husband Willie; her son Gary (Cathy) Schmidt, Fort Dodge; five grandchildren, nine great grandchildren, seven great-great grandchildren; and a step brother David (Joyce) Albert, Tiburon, California. She was preceded in death by a son Terryl, siblings, Chester Todd, Jack Todd and Clara Weller; and her parents.

Jean Aileen Todd, the daughter of Chester and Ethel (Swearinger) Todd, was born April 14, 1925, in El Segundo, California. Jean worked at a small diner in California where she met her future husband, Willie. On February 2, 1943, Jean was united in marriage to Willie Schmidt in Los Angeles. The couple lived in California before moving to Gowrie. Jean worked with her husband for many years in the trucking business and assisted him with his work around the community of Gowrie. They returned to California where they lived for a short time. From 1982 to 2000, they lived in Arizona before returning to Iowa.

Jean was active in the Lutheran Church and the American Legion Auxiliary. She enjoyed playing cards with family and friends and fishing.

Local News

High School Gymnasium Expansion Continues

By Shari Everhart

Expansion and construction of the gymnasium at the Southeast Valley High School, Gowrie, continues. The target month for completion is mid-February 2021 and the addition will increase the facility’s capacity to 1,200.

There was a slight setback early on due to a water main problem. Per the city of Gowrie’s request, a fire hydrant was installed across from the new addition which required an 8-inch main instead of a 6-inch one. There was an issue with the need to extend fire hydrants down the street and a problem connecting all the water mains located at the intersection at Lincoln and Riddle. Some difficulty was encountered with the age of the pipes and valves and digging the trench and paving the street. The city and the school came to a compromise of splitting the cost.

An added obstacle in constructing the foundation for the exterior of the building crews encountered a buried fuel tank at the old bus barn garage which had to be removed. It had initially appeared on the EPA’s watch list, but at some point, had been removed from the listing. The DNR had to be notified so the correct amount of soil that had to be removed from around the old diesel tank would be in compliance. Much hinges on finished work which includes the floor and how it fits in the flooring installers schedule. Not adding new flooring to what already exists will depend on sanding down and refinishing and repainting the court featured that will be going in the opposite direction. Read More...

Heartland Bank Delivers Donuts For All SV Staff

Heartland Bank kicked off National American Education Week by delivering donuts to each building in the Southeast Valley School District! The bank delivered 22 dozen boxes of donuts to the staff members to show how much they appreciate all they do for our students! Heartland Bank would like to thank all of the staff members at Southeast Valley for providing a quality education for our local students each and every day!

November 20th Chili Cook Off Held at SV High School

By Shari Everhart

The annual Southeast Valley High School chili cook off was held Friday, November 20. The yearly event is held before the Thanksgiving break and is organized by the Student Council along with Student Council Advisors, Devan Walker and Amanda Strouse.

Teachers volunteer to make chili and students donate $1.00 to vote. A total of $100 was raised that will be donated to Unity Point-Trinity Regional Medical Center and Stewart Memorial Hospital.

This year’s winner was teacher Christine Lavender, who received a trophy for her effort. She had these comments regarding being named winner: “Yes, I would love nothing more than to advertise my win! I can now say to my family how fortunate they are to eat my award-winning chili! A trophy is an award, right?”

Sports

SV Dance Team Compete at State Tournament

The Southeast Valley Dance Team competed at State on Wednesday, November 18th. The girls had a lot of obstacles placed in their way for State this year but they did a great job and definitely left it all on the dance floor! The Jaguars are coached by Vicky Vinchattle and Tiffany DeCastro.

History of Friday Night Lights in Gowrie, Football

By Rick Vinsand

Gowrie’s 1902 Football team boasted of being “Champions of Webster, Calhoun, Hamilton, Pocahontas, Boone and Greene Counties.” Team members were Albert T. Blomgren, C.G. Bengston, Frank W. Lindquist, J.E.T. Johnson, Robert Jefferson, Bert Gardner, Dr. Rodgers, Bill Whalen, Everett Gruver, Henning Johnson, Carl Magnusson, Dr. Hoffman, Andrew Bragg, Ernest Johnson, and Joe Ford.

The big news of the year was the introduction of football officially at the local school. The inexperienced 1960 football team more than lived up to expectations by winning three games and losing two by slight margins and outscored its opponents 77-74.

Prairie High’s undefeated football team of 1967 established the best record in the school’s history. The Panthers, who were undisputed champions of the West Central Conference, closed out the season with seven victories, no losses, and one tie. Members of the team included: Greg Moe, Jim Dean, Wayne Johanson, Mike Linquist, Gary Peterson, Paul Drake, Dean Adkins, Alvin Naeve, Allan Amandus, Dave Roos, Randy Johnson, Phil Jakeman, Doug Ziemer, Fred Baedke, Jim McCubbin, Phil Bailey, Gregg Norine, Jon Roos, Ron Lundblad, Bob Showers, Allen Johnson, Greg Carlson, Norman Peterson, Asst. Coach John Volf, Mike Carlson, Jerry Jondle, Jim Froisland, Steve Lind, Randy Hunter, Barry Jacobson, Duane Gallentine, Curt Bradshaw, Tom Larson, and Coach Don Lewis.

In 1972 the State Playoff system was initiated by IHSAA for the first time; four classes with four qualifiers in each class. In 1976 Championship Read More...