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Editorial

Service to his community is central to Terry Moehnke

When the Fort Dodge City Council ends its business meetings, traditionally the mayor calls for a motion to adjourn. That did not happen Monday evening. Instead, Councilman Terry Moehnke called for the motion to adjourn and when that motion passed, he rapped the gavel on the table to end the meeting. When he did that, he essentially wrapped up his 10-year career as a councilman. It was a decade of service in which he spent thousands of hours working on various projects he felt were necessary for the public good.They included improving the riverfront, updating the infrastructure on the ...

Santa Cops were on the beat again

The Santa Cops project is a delightful annual effort to make the holiday season a bit brighter for area youngsters whose families need a hand up to make this time of year as merry as it should be. The Fort Dodge Police Association, Webster County Sheriff’s Department, Fort Dodge/Webster County Reserves, Iowa State Patrol and Gowrie Police Department collaborate on a truly inspiring holiday undertaking. Officers took the young folks on holiday shopping sprees at Target in Fort Dodge on two evenings last week. Area schools help pair law enforcement officers with needy families and ...

This holiday season, support hometown businesses

Tens of millions of Americans will do most, if not all, their holiday season shopping with giant online retail operations this year. They will argue that it is more convenient or safer for them to do so rather than patronize local brick-and-mortar stores. Local retailers, from mom-and-pop specialty shops to the big-box stores, rely on Christmas shoppers for significant chunks of the revenue that keeps them open year-round. If they have a bad holiday shopping season, they suffer terribly. Some may not survive long into the new year. So what? Well, put on your thinking cap for a ...

4-H members demonstrate leadership, service

A tremendous amount of young talent was gathered under one roof in Fort Dodge recently. The occasion was the Webster County 4-H awards celebration, which brought together the student club members and their adult leaders and other supporters. Throughout the evening, the event lived up to its name as a long list of awards was presented. They included a variety of club and project honors, special awards, scholarships and volunteer recognition awards. 4-H members who will graduate from high school this spring were saluted as they wind down their years in the club. It was a memorable ...

One man’s donation makes huge difference for Humane Society

Someday soon, the animals sheltered by the Almost Home Humane Society of North Central Iowa will be traveling to veterinarian appointments in comfort, safety and even a little bit of style. This will be possible thanks to a remarkable gift by one man. Dave Ristau, of Fort Dodge, and his late wife, Lis, were passionate about animals for all of their married life. They shared their home with lots of dogs and cats over the years, including six dogs adopted from Almost Home. Recently, Dave Ristau made a $10,000 donation to Almost Home. By doing that, he provided all the matching ...

Farm News Ag Show is Friday, Saturday

As farmers wrap things up on the 2023 growing season, it is not too early for them to start thinking about next year’s growing season. Farm News, a sister publication of The Messenger, is ready to help them do just that with the upcoming Ag Show. CJ Bio America presents the 21st annual Farm News Ag Show will be Friday and Saturday at the Webster County Fairgrounds south of Fort Dodge at 22770 Old Highway 169. The show will run from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday and 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. At 7:30 a.m. Saturday there will be a free pancake breakfast sponsored by Webster County ...