Producers may face many highs, lows

REGIONAL-The dairy industry is full of highs and lows.

But, much due to the global economic crisis, U.S. dairy product prices are slumped in a deep valley.

Yet, dairy producers and analysts remain hopeful for the future.

Dissecting prices
“Historically, the dairy industry would be described as a very volatile industry in terms of prices paid to dairy farmers for milk produced,” said Iowa State University Extension dairy field specialist Chris Mondak. “They move up and down radically, and sometimes without warning.”

Dairy producers are paid per hundredweight basis, rather than by gallon of milk, meaning every 100 pounds of milk sold, a producer will be paid.

Sometimes, the prices are at a healthy level, which would pay producers enough to cover their operation plus a little more. Usually, that price is in the $12-$13 range.

“The dairy industry is a supply and demand industry, so the price that the dairy producers receive depends on the market forces of supply and demand,” Mondak said. “Dairy producers are not price setters, they are price takers.”

Prices were at an all-time high last year due to factors ranging from an increased dairy demand in Europe and Asia, a decreased supply coming out of Australia, U.S. markets expanding globally and a good economy.

“On the flip side, we’re seeing a crash this year,” Mondak said. “We’ve gone from $18-$20 per hundredweight being paid to producers, to now about $10 per hundredweight.”

So, dairy producers are getting paid nowhere near their cost of production, which is making it difficult for them to remain in operation nationwide.

Mondak said a number of factors have contributed to the decline:

Because of the overall global economic slump, consumers have been pulling back, especially in the United States, where dairy products have decreased and people are being more careful with their money.

Australia and New Zealand are recovering from a drought, causing their milk supply to come back up.

“That increases the supply in Asia and causes a decreased demand for U.S. exports,” Mondak said.

The value of the dollar, which had been strong compared to other currencies, weakened, making U.S. products less attractive to buy.

“It is a dire financial situation for dairy farmers across the nation, including our local dairy farmers,” Mondak said. “While they are feeling the stress, they are also trying to remain optimistic. This is the business they know, the business they believe in, the business they are dedicated to. They are all about producing wholesome food for people, maintaining the occupation and lifestyle they have chosen. They want to stay in business.”

Coping strategies
While dairy producers are accustomed to the highs and lows of the dairy industry, Mondak said the most important thing they can do is remain hopeful.

“The USDA forecasts are talking about a bottoming out in the middle of 2009 and a prediction that there will be some improvement in the third and fourth quarters,” Mondak said. “Our producers are hanging on for that.”

But, besides remaining hopeful, the specialist said producers also should maintain a good relationship with their banker.

“The producers are being advised to let the banker know what’s going on, what their plans are and see if there are any strategies they can do to get through this time period,” Mondak said.

She said it also is a good time for producers to control costs and be efficient in their inputs.

And, that could come from providing a balanced ration for cows at the best prices possible,

“Those producers who own their own land and do some of their own production of corn silage or hay may have an advantage right now over those who are having to buy in everything. Producers and nutritionists are looking for opportunities where they can buy some of their feed inputs at good prices,” Mondak said. “They are just being good businessmen right now. They are having to be good shoppers.”

Local impact
Despite the hardship many U.S. dairy producers are facing, those in N’West Iowa have somewhat of an advantage.

“One of the reasons why this area has attracted dairy producers to move in from other places is because it has some of the elements that create good opportunities for a dairy farm,” Mondak said.

Dairy producers in N’West Iowa have access to land, a good water supply and the opportunity to have feed grown locally.

“Having feed grown locally is a huge advantage, because feed is the No. 1 expense on a dairy farm,” Mondak said. “Producers here in the Midwest region are situated close to the fields that grow the forage and grain crops needed to create balanced dairy rations and have an opportunity to get feed at costs lower than in some other places in the country that are not located close to a feed supply.”

And while there always will be dairy operations coming in and going out of the state, from an economic standpoint, Mondak said that can be a good thing.

“The dairy industry, including production and processing, is what some have called an ‘economic engine,’” Mondak said. “As an economic multiplier, it stimulates the region’s economy.”

She said economists calculate the dairy industry has having an economic multiplier effect of 2.29. So, for every $1 generated by dairy production, $1.29 is generated in economic growth, or every cow generates $15,000-$17,000 in economic activity.

“Given all major industries in Iowa, no other industry has an economic multiplier effect of this magnitude,” Mondak said.

This article appeared in the May 23, 2009 edition of The N'West Iowa REVIEW.

Girl's memory lives on through funding effort

ASHTON-Most 3-year-olds look forward to the joy of opening presents, eating cake and playing with friends and family members on their fourth birthday.

Not Autumn Huss.

Rather, the daughter of Troy and Becky Huss of Ashton spent her fourth birthday recovering form open heart surgery.

When Becky was five months pregnant with Autumn, she went in for a routine ultrasound. Only, what doctors at Orange City Area Health System discovered would leave the Husses in disbelief.

The medical professionals in Orange City knew something was wrong, so they sent Becky to Sanford Health in Sioux Falls, SD, where it was determined Autumn had an irregular heartbeat.

On April 15, 2005 — five days after she was born at the University of Michigan Health System in Ann Arbor, Autumn underwent open heart surgery to repair a hole in her heart; correct her aorta and pulmonary arteries, which had been reversed; and fix her aortic arch, which was becoming too narrow.

“If they would not have determined something was wrong with Autumn’s heart before she was born, she would not have made it,” Troy said.

The Husses thought their problems were behind them until they were getting ready to be discharged and one more complication was found.

“They found that one of her coronary arteries was kinked, so she went back in for surgery two weeks from her birth date,” Becky said.

Autumn has been going back to Sanford Health for six-month checkups since she was born. She also has to have a MRI once a year.

In January, when she went in for her regular checkup, doctors found that the blood pressure between Autumn’s arms and legs was severely different, so she was again sent to the University of Michigan Health System.

“They thought they would be able to just do a heart cath and go in and balloon her heart open,” Becky said.

But, the procedure proved unsuccessful, so on April 9 — the day before Autumn’s fourth birthday — she underwent her third open heart surgery.

While Autumn was recovering at home, Troy and Becky received a unexpected phone call.




Shayla Rohrbaugh was born Dec. 4, 1998, with a condition called schizencephaly, meaning the two halves of her brain did not connect while it was developing.

After she was born, Shayla could not feed from a bottle and began having seizures, so her mother, Lindsay, took her to the doctor.

“She was only supposed to live for a couple of years,” said Jerry Faulkner of Spencer, Lindsay’s father.

But, Shayla, who Faulkner called Shayla Bee, defied the odds and lived to be 6.

Not long after Shayla died, Faulkner formed a living memorial to his granddaughter, the Shayla Bee Fund.

And in the past two years, the group has raised more than $35,000 that has been distributed to responsible working class families in limited financial means with a child in a medical crisis.

“We’re learning as we go, because we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into,” Faulkner said.

He said all of the money collected has been through event-based fundraisers — be that canoe floats, motorcycle shows or dodgeball tournaments — all throughout northwest Iowa.

Monetary donations as high as $2,000 are given to families in need, but to even be considered, the family has to be nominated by someone. The Shayla Bee Fund Board meets once a month to review the applications. If the board sees one that fits the mission statement, interviews with the family are conducted and funds are awarded unconditionally.

“The money is not for anything; it’s for whatever they see fit,” Faulkner said. “We just assume that our donation will be spent wisely by the family.”

When the organization first began, the Shayla Bee Fund only considered those families that lived within a 20-mile radius of Spencer, which is where the group is based.

“We probably did eight or nine donations in the area, but then we ran into a little trouble, where we went four months without a nomination when we had money in the bank, so we met and talked about the sustainability of what we were doing and ultimately made a decision to reach out farther,” Faulkner said. “We knew of several families that could have used our help, but they were outside of our geographical area.”

The decision to reach out to a 50-mile radius was finalized in November 2008. Since then, the requests have come pouring in.

And when Faulkner and his group of motorcycle-riding friends travel to the families’ houses to personally deliver the donation, he cannot help but think of Shayla.

“It’s something you’ll never forget — standing over a little girl and watching her die, but our family has chosen to make this a good thing because there’s nothing we could have done to change it,” he said. “We decided that this was going to strengthen our family, not destroy it, and with our friends, look what’s happened. Shayla has become a household name now.”




Troy and Becky Huss aren’t sure they would have ever heard of the Shayla Bee Fund if it wasn’t for Troy’s sister-in-law, Janine Huss, who works with Shayla’s mother, Lindsay.

Janine nominated Troy and Becky, and on April 21, they received a phone call from Jerry Faulkner, telling them they would be receiving a donation — making them the 17th family to have benefited from the Shayla Bee Fund.

“It was a big surprise,” Troy said. “We weren’t expecting it at all. We had all of Autumn’s medical bills coming in and our expenses from being in Michigan, plus all of our lodging and food.”

While Autumn seems to be doing fine now, Troy and Becky have been extremely impressed with the amount of support they have been showing throughout the past four years.

“We definitely want to thank the Shayla Bee Fund, of course, as well as the community, the Orange City Area Health System, Sanford Health, the University of Michigan, the Ronald McDonald House, Children’s Miracle Network, our families and my employer, Deluxe Feeds — they’ve all been very, very good to us throughout the whole thing,” Troy said.

This article appeared in the May 16, 2009 edition of The N'West Iowa REVIEW.

Mother, daughter win KTIV look-alike contest

ORANGE CITY-Elli Krosschell doesn’t mind looking like her mom.

In fact, she kind of likes it.

“There are some people who ask me, ‘Do you like looking like your mom?’ and I say, ‘Yeah, actually I do. I enjoy it,” the 14-year-old said.

And if it wasn’t enough that friends and family members are always confusing the two, their similarities were confirmed May 1 when Elli’s mom, Kimber, received a phone call from KTIV-TV in Sioux City informing her that the mother/daughter duo had won the station-sponsored “Free to be Girlie — Mother/Daughter Look-Alike Contest.”

“I said, ‘You’re kidding me,’ and they said, ‘Nope. You really do look alike,’” Kimber said.

As the victors, Kimber and Elli won a $100 gift certificate for chocolates or flowers from Lottie & Eva’s in Sioux City as well as $100 gift certificates to Massage & Body in Sioux City and School Supply Corner in South Sioux City, NE.

The two already have begun planning a mother/daughter day out to redeem the prizes, but said they would include those that helped them out by giving them chocolates.

Kimber, who’s 41, and Elli heard about the contest while they were watching television together.

“There was an ad on for it and Elli said we should do it,” Kimber said. “I thought it would be fun, but asked Elli if she thought we could win.”

Elli felt confident enough, as did Kimber’s husband, Perry, and the couple’s three other children, Bret, 18, Kade, 10 and Mali, 7.

“Our family got totally excited, because they’re always confusing us,” Kimber said.

As a requirement of the contest, Elli and Kimber had to send in pictures documenting their personalities. As Perry just finished a six-year stint as head football coach at Unity Christian High School in Orange City, Elli and Kimber wanted to showcase their love for going to the games together, so they wore identical black Knights football sweatshirts.

But, one more thing needed to be done to make sure the Krosschells stood out against the other competition.

“We’ve kind of had similar hairstyles forever, but just a couple of days before the contest, I had gotten my bangs cut,” Kimber said. “Elli had let her bangs grow long, so we talked about it and decided we had better get our hair to look the same again, so she got her bangs cut.”

For the pictures, which Perry took, Kimber and Elli stood side by side. Kimber stood on her tip toes and Elli had to slouch a bit to make sure they were at an even height.

“She’s two or three inches taller than me,” Kimber said. “That’s where we don’t look alike.”

But, for both Krosschells, the contest only affirmed their love for each other.

“I think it’s every mom’s dream to have a daughter look like them,” Kimber said. “It’s just an honor and a privilege. There’s nothing you can do to make it happen, necessarily. Sure, we style our hair the same or wear the same sweatshirt, but beyond that, it’s a gift from God.”

And Elli has no qualms about it.

“She’s my best friend,” Elli said. “She’s always there for me.”

ANOTHER LOOK-ALIKE? It’s obvious Kimber Krosschell and her 14-year-old daughter, Elli, look alike. Even their family members confuse the two blondes. But, what about and her other daughter, 7-year-old Mali? “She has dark hair,” Kimber said. “But, I think we looked more alike when we were younger than even Elli and I did.”

This article appeared in the May 16, 2009 edition of The N'West Iowa REVIEW.

AT&T will take on Altell lines

REGIONAL-Alltel customers in N’West Iowa may be facing yet another change by the end of this year.

AT&T Wireless has announced an agreement to expand its coverage territory as part of a $2.35 billion deal to acquire assets from rival Verizon Wireless.

When Verizon purchased Alltel in a $5.9 billion agreement last year, part of the arrangement required Verizon to divest its Alltel properties in areas where Verizon already had a presence.

“It was all to promote competition,” said Kerry Hibbs, AT&T Western Region public affairs representative. “It would not have been fair for Verizon to have its traditional facilities and then take over Alltel as well. That would basically just leave Verizon.”

For the deal to be completed, Verizon had to auction off its assets in 79 service areas across 18 states, representing 1.5 million subscribers.

Dallas-based AT&T, the country’s largest telecommunications company, was the high bidder.

O’Brien, Osceola, Lyon and Sioux counties all fall within the realm of the agreement, but Hibbs said Alltel customers in N’West Iowa do not need to do anything yet.

“We hope to get the regulatory approvals by the end of 2009,” he said. “Once that happens, Alltel customers will become AT&T customers, unless, of course, they chose to go with another cell-phone provider. That’s their choice, but if they want to, they could come to AT&T. That would be great for us and for them.”

The AT&T deal is contingent on regulatory approval and likely will close during the fourth quarter of 2009. AT&T then will need to invest about $400 million more in converting from Verizon’s Code Division Multiple Access network to its Global System for Mobile communication technology.

As a result, Alltel customers eventually will need to purchase a new cell phone since AT&T’s GSM phones are not compatible with Alltel’s CDMA phones.

“Of course, we think we have the best network,” Hibbs said. “We carry the iPhone and are the only cell-phone company that offers rollover minutes, so I think we will benefit a lot of customers.”

The cellular service switchover is not the first for many area Alltel customers. Alltel purchased Midwest Wireless of Mankato, MN, as part of a $1 billion transaction that went into effect in July 2007.

This article appeared in the May 16, 2009 edition of The N'West Iowa REVIEW.

Mi'Ono still serving Sanborn

SANBORN-There’s no doubt about it, the Mi’Ono Club has a blast.

And, closing in on 53 years, the Sanborn-based women’s service organization shows no signs of stopping.

With only five of the original members still remaining in the club today, they’ve decided to take a look back at the memories and experiences they have shared over the years.

Getting started
The Mi’Ono Club began in 1956 after a member of the now defunct 20th Century Club — a service group composed of older women — expressed a desire to have the younger women in Sanborn involved.

Composed of 12 Sanborn women, all in their late teens or early 20s, the group settled on calling themselves the Mi’Ono Club, which stands for Monday is our night out.

“We actually hold our meetings on Wednesday now, but we used to have them on Mondays,” said charter member Jeanette Endorf.

Endorf, Bernice Dorman, Ardis Dummett, Colleen Lowery and Jamie Postma have been in the group since the beginning and remain the only original members still involved.

Funding projects
For the first five years of its existence, the Mi’Ono Club was a federated organization, but group members quickly found that the money they raised was not going to better the town, it was being sent away.

“We wanted to do good in Sanborn,” Dummett said. “We knew there were a lot of projects we could help out with, especially with the school.”

So, the group opted to quit its affiliation, allowing more projects to be done in the community.

The first such project happened in 1962, when the Mi’Ono Club purchased four rocking animals for the Sanborn City Park. At $75 a piece, the colorful aluminum animals situated on springs, took the club awhile to raise money for.

“We worked for six years to raise the money for those,” Endorf said.

But, that was only the beginning.

While the rocking animals are no longer at the park, the Mi’Ono Club has many other projects to show for.

In its 53 years, the organization has purchased a scoreboard and built a concession stand for the football field; painted playground equipment in the Sanborn City Park, purchased curtains for the Sanborn Golf & Country Club, purchased large appliances for the Sanborn Community Center; built dugouts at Brady Field and Miller Park; put in the water system at Brady Field; planted and maintained flowers at Main Street Park; planted flowers in pots along Main Street; took part in story hour at the Sanborn Public Library; purchased chairs and the first water slide at the Sanborn Swimming Pool; collected for the United Nations Children’s Fund; adopted a Sanborn family for Christmas each year; annually supported the Sanborn Fire Department, Sanborn Ambulance, Sanborn American Legion and Sanborn Public Library; donated $1,000 to both the parks and recreation department and the Sanborn Preservation Society; and commissioned for a large train mural to be painted just off of Main Street.

The Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn School District also has been a priority for the Mi’Ono Club. The group annually has given $50 to an eighth-grader with perfect attendance and $50 to one randomly drawn honor roll student and contributed to the high school after-prom party.

“You name it, we’ve done it — community servicewise,” Dorman said.

But, where do the funds come from?

Multiple times a year, the Mi’Ono Club members don the blue and pink shirts they purchased with their own money and set up stands around town. The organization also has raised funds by hosting basketball and softball games, holding Tupperware parties and selling concession items at volleyball games and Little League events.

Mi’Ono pride
The Mi’Ono Club has seen 62 members since 1956.

The group always has limited its membership. After starting out with 12 members 53 years ago, the organization upped its membership limit to 18 in the early 1960s.

Having monthly meetings eight times a year, the group uses its off months to enjoy overnight trips to destinations all over the Midwest.

The five charter members still involved could not imagine a better organization to be involved in.

“It’s fun,” Postma said. “We always have a good time.”

All the while giving back to the community.

“People in the community support us very well,” Lowery said. “They do appreciate us, so we try to do things that will benefit everyone in the town.”
This article appeared in the May 16, 2009 edition of The N'West Iowa REVIEW

Changes planned for park

SANBORN-The playground equipment at Miller Park in Sanborn is nearing the 25-year mark.

“It’s showing its age,” said Sanborn city administrator Jim Zeutenhorst.

Yes it is.

The metal swing chains, which once beamed a sparkling silver, have aged to rust, while the paint colors on the two merry-go-rounds bear almost no resemblance to the bright hues that once gleamed in the sunlight.

But, come mid-July, all of that will change.

The 129-acre park will instead feature two playground areas — one for younger children and one for older children — both of which will feature a variety of different slides and fort areas, among a climbing wall and climbing wave for those who are more adventurous.

Funding for the $40,000 worth of playground equipment has been acquired mostly through donations; however, Zeutenhorst said the city did receive a $3,500 grant from the O’Brien County Community Foundation.

Zeutenhorst and city clerk Becki Hurtig, along with the rest of the city staff will assist the park board and volunteers in assembling the equipment in July after it arrives from Little Tikes Commercial Play Systems Inc. in Farmington, MO.

But, that’s not the only upgrade Miller Park will see this summer.

The two baseball and softball diamonds within the park are encircled with dilapidated fencing and feature graffiti-bearing scoreboards.

So, by the end of June, Michael’s Fence Co. in Sioux Falls, SD will replace the worn fencing and Daktronics in Ankeny will put in two new scoreboards.

Because of the improvements, which will cost the city a combined total of $15,500 — $8,500 for the fencing and $7,000 for the scoreboards — Hurtig said Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn Middle School will play its baseball and softball games at the fields, something that has never been done before.

Zeutenhorst said the city also is looking into covering half of the two-and-a-half mile nature and recreational trail at Miller Park with concrete.

“The trail started out as asphalt in the early 1980s. Two years ago, we resurfaced half of it by pouring concrete over it,” he said. “We’re looking into containing bids for a possible fall construction to resurface the other half with concrete.”

The park also features a nine-hole disc golf course, 19 camping sites with full hookups, a shelter house, sand volleyball courts, horseshoe pits and Sanborn Golf & Country Club. The club features a full-service steakhouse and lounge along with a nine-hole golf course that has two sets of tee boxes for each hole, providing a unique experience for those wanting to play two rounds.

Miller Park gets its fair share of use, but Hurtig and Zeutenhorst both agreed that once the improvements are made, even more people will be drawn to the recreation area.
This article appeared in the May 16, 2009 edition of The N'West Iowa REVIEW.

Come away to 'Brigadoon'

ORANGE CITY-A land of enchantment.

That's what New Yorkers Tommy Albright and Jeff Douglas discover after traveling to the Scottish Highlands on a game-hunting vacation.

Only, the two never have their hunting experience. Rather, they get lost.

And, out of the early morning mist, appears a village called Brigadoon, where residents are 200 years behind - they still dress in traditional Scottish apparel and local vendors sell milk, ale and wool.

It is apparent to Tommy and Jeff that something isn't right.

Soon, they find that Brigadoon is enchanted and only appears to wanderers like the two New Yorkers every 100 years.

That doesn't stop Tommy from falling in love with one of the locals, though, which creates a much larger problem. If Tommy stays in Brigadoon, he will only come back to life every 100 years, but if he leaves, the village will disappear entirely.

It's a dilemma only the attendees of "Brigadoon," which will come to life on stage Wednesday, May 13-Saturday, May 16, during the Orange City Tulip Festival, will experience.

Although director Keith Allen says different audience members will experience different emotions during the musical, romance is sure to reign overall.

"Most people like romantic stories of love," Allen said. "There's also a subplot that people will get interested in, but if it's something enjoyable to see after a long day at the Tulip Festival. It's a refreshing way to end the whole day."

Especially for Allen, producer Betty Ferrell, musical director Tom Hydeen and the cast of over 40.

But, if that's not enough, Allen said the music is supreme.

"The music is just gorgeous," Allen said. "It's beautiful, wonderful."

It's no wonder, as the music features book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner, who also wrote "My Fair Lady," and music by Frederick Loewe.

"I just want people to enjoy it," Allen said. "That's what we try to do."
This article appeared in the May 9, 2009 edition of DISCOVER! Magazine.