The Spencer Daily Reporter

01/04/2025

Schueller tabbed to replace retired chief deputy

*Larsen hangs it up after 31-year career

Randy M. Cauthron
Managing Editor
[email protected]

Clay County Sheriff’s Deputy Joe Schueller will fill the shoes as Chief Deputy after Zach Larsen retired from the position effective Jan. 2. Larsen took the end of 2024 off with remaining vacation time.

See full story in Tuesday’s Daily Reporter

01/03/2025

1st ‘Movie Night’ scheduled at Spencer Y

Spencer Y will host a Movie Night with a showing of “Moana 2” at 6 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 11, at the facility location on the corner of 11th Street West and West 11th Avenue. Charge is $5 and includes popcorn, water and candy.

More in Tuesday’s Daily Reporter

01/03/2025

CHC to open new location locally in 2025

Community Health Center of Fort Dodge, Inc will expand into Spencer in 2025 with the opening of a new Federally Qualified Health Center.

More in Tuesday’s Daily Reporter

12/21/2024

Austin Roberts Memorial Tournament
In Spencer today

9 Tigers advance to the semis
7 Tigers to the finals including
106 Gress
126 Beehler
150 Heying
157 Johnson
165 Roth
190 Otaniyi
215 Lorenzen

12/17/2024

Super big thanks to Farmers Bank and Occasions for the goodies dropped off today at the Spencer Reporter. They are greatly appreciated!

12/14/2024

Thanks to everyone who donated in some way to this year's Holiday Family Adoption Program through the Spencer Reporter in support of Upper Des Moines Opportunity. All of your help, all of your donations and all of your gifts are overwhelming signs of how much a community can care for one another. You can still help others through many programs in the community this holiday season, and we encourage you to do so!

12/13/2024

WEATHER UPDATE - HOLIDAY FAMILY ADOPTION DROP-OFF for the families adopted through the Spencer Reporter:
We will be open 9 a.m. to Noon at the Depot Saturday as originally planned.
BUT, we will have one person who can be available Friday (this) afternoon, 2-4 p.m., at the Depot for those who want to beat the weather system that is moving in. Please call us at 712-262-6610 to let us know if you are planning to come Friday afternoon and to schedule that. If you do not call ahead, there is no guarantee there will be someone there.
We really need all of the gifts dropped by noon Saturday so the volunteers who deliver them can them done over the weekend.

12/12/2024

Reminder to those dropping gifts Saturday for the Holiday Family Adoption Program through the Reporter - WE NEED BOXES. If you can BOX your gifts, that will be a great help. We've had more difficulty this year securing boxes than in past years. Meat and fruit boxes with handles cut in work great, so long as there isn't a hole in the bottom of them!

12/12/2024

Nonprofit Clay County Food for Life is seeking public assistance in the aftermath of the June 22 local flooding. The agency, which provides meat to people in need throughout the county, is asking for ongoing support as it navigates the changes in the livestock industry — which requires the meat to be purchased from federally inspected plants as opposed to the past when area farms donated.
https://www.spencerdailyreporter.com/news/food-life-seeking-assistance-costs-go

12/12/2024

12/11/2024

Trinity Lutheran Church is in the midst of a toy drive for the youth of Spencer. Toys can be dropped off at Trinity, Monday through Friday, Dec. 9-17, between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. in the church entryway, and distribution will be conducted Wednesday, Dec. 18. Families can come to Trinity behind the Spencer Family YMCA, between 3-7 p.m. and pick out a toy for their child.

https://www.spencerdailyreporter.com/news/church-organizes-community-toy-drive

12/11/2024

A property owner in Spencer’s North Y development is appealing a nearly $200,000 award for damages related to the Iowa Department of Transportation’s taking of 2.77 acres of property through eminent domain to Clay County district court.

A property owner in Spencer’s North Y development is appealing a nearly $200,000 award for damages related to the Iowa Department of Transportation’s taking of 2.77 acres of property through eminent domain to Clay County district court.

12/10/2024

Melanie Bloom, Sioux Central's ag education instructor, was honored at the Sioux Central gymnasium on Dember 9 after Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Bloom as the 2025 Iowa Teacher of the Year.
The Teacher of the Year Award recognizes exceptional teachers who demonstrate excellence in the classroom and who have made a significant impact on student outcomes and their fellow educators.
https://www.spencerdailyreporter.com/news/sioux-centrals-bloom-named-iowa-teacher-year

12/10/2024

Chronic wasting disease, a fatal neurological disease affecting deer, elk and moose, continues to spread across Iowa, with new detections in 11 counties since last year.
The disease, which can take years to cause visible symptoms in infected animals, poses a growing threat to the state's valuable whitetail deer population, according to state officials who hosted a virtual public meeting to discuss the disease on Dec. 5. So far, only three deer found in northwest Iowa counties have tested positive for the disease. All three of those deer were found in Woodbury County, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, and most of the roughly 404 wild deer that tested positive for CWD were found in the northeast and southern parts of the state.
https://www.spencerdailyreporter.com/news/northwest-iowa-still-free-cwd

12/09/2024

Several LifeServe blood drives are set to be held around Spencer and the surrounding region this month.

The holiday season is sweeter when you save lives with LifeServe Blood Center. This winter, while you're baking cookies, building snowmen and staying cozy, don’t forget the gift that truly matters — saving lives. Through Jan. 4, every blood donation made could also mean winning one of the amazin...

12/08/2024

The City of Spencer is proposing to reallocate $1.37 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds from a planned bridge project to instead provide direct assistance to businesses and rental property owners impacted by recent flooding.
The plan, outlined by Interim City Manager Kevin Robinson during the Monday, Dec. 2, City Council meeting, would involve deobligating the ARPA funds currently earmarked for the West 18th Street bridge replacement. The state of Iowa would then use its own ARPA funds to cover the cost of that infrastructure project, freeing up the city's $1.37 million allocation for use on flood recovery projects.

The City of Spencer is proposing to reallocate $1.37 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds from a planned bridge project to instead provide direct assistance to businesses and rental property owners impacted by recent flooding.

12/07/2024

Several Spencer High Schoolers showcased their talent at the 78th Annual All-State Music Festival late in November.

https://www.spencerdailyreporter.com/news/shs-students-perform-78th-annual-all-state-festival

12/06/2024

UPDATED: THANKS to all who helped collect letters this year. Our special Letters to Santa section will appear in the Dec. 18 Northwest Iowa Shopper and the Dec. 20 Spencer Reporter.

Last call for kids to get us their Letters to Santa for the season. These boxes are at the Spencer Library, Spencer YMCA and the Southpark Mall through Monday, Dec. 9. You can also use the drop slot at our office at 22 E. 4th St. in Spencer. The slot is by our front door. We need time to type them for our special section and then get them forwarded to the North Pole. There's still time to get your holiday greeting ads into the section as well by calling your sales rep or 712-262-6610.