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Get out and vote Tuesday

Early March is not a typical time for a local election. That does not mean that Tuesday’s vote is unimportant. On Tuesday, the voters will decide if a property tax of 75 cents per $1,000 of taxable value should be levied to pay for emergency medical services throughout Webster County. It is estimated that the proposed tax will generate $1.6 million annually to be divided between all the communities in the county for providing pre-hospital emergency medical care. Currently, there is no designated tax funding stream to help pay for training and equipping ambulance services and the ...

Kersten is deserving choice for Catalyst Award

It is likely that no one has been as successful as Jim Kersten at approaching state and federal decision makers to secure their support for things that will benefit Fort Dodge, Webster County and Iowa Central Community College. For some, lobbying has a kind of negative connotation. But the reality is, in order to get help for a project or a program, someone has to make a case to the people who can provide the money or other assistance. When it comes to doing that skillfully and consistently, Kersten has no match. And he is motivated simply by his love for his hometown. The Greater ...

Enjoy the Progress Agriculture section

The annual Progress edition wraps up with the Agriculture section in today’s edition of The Messenger. It provides a comprehensive look at how a wide array of developments in our region are shaping the agricultural tomorrow. While every issue of this newspaper is filled with articles, features and advertisements that readers find informative and useful, the special section we call Progress provides a perspective that goes far beyond simply reporting the latest happenings. Our goal is to look at the big picture, capture trends and explore more fully events that may lead to headlines ...

Eggs and Issues is democracy in action

Interaction between citizens and the officials they elect to represent them is crucial to a democracy. Citizens must be able to tell the officials what they want and what they don’t want. They must also be able to hold the officials accountable for their actions. The elected officials must explain to the citizens why they take the actions they do. In Fort Dodge there has been an event in place for at least 25 years that brings state, and sometimes federal, legislators together with citizens. It’s called Eggs and Issues. Eggs and Issues is a forum that is held once a month ...

FFA enriches the lives of students

FFA was established in 1928 as Future Farmers of America. It was renamed the National FFA Organization in 1988 to reflect the rapid changes and greater employment diversity in agriculture. To most of us, it is known simply as FFA. After more than eight decades, FFA continues to enrich the lives of students by helping them develop their potential for leadership, personal growth and career success through agriculture education. The FFA motto captures the spirit of the organization succinctly: “Learning to do, doing to learn, earning to live, living to serve.” Those 12 words help ...

Partnerships made Iowa Central Fuel Testing Lab possible

The Iowa Central Fuel Testing Laboratory is a place few people will visit, but its presence is a benefit to everyone in the state. Drivers will be assured that the ethanol they pump into their cars and light trucks is good quality fuel, thanks to the work of the lab. Truckers across the state will know that the biodiesel they fill their rigs with will not gum up the engine, thanks to testing conducted at the new facility in Fort Dodge. The Fort Dodge community is lucky to have the lab in its midst. Such a facility could have been built in pretty much any Midwestern state that, like ...