A bake sale to benefit the Hannah McLennon Haitian Relief fund drive will be held Feb. 10, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Belle Plaine Community Center.
The event is sponsored by the Belle Plaine Over 60 Club.
Donations of baked goods are welcome. Bring them to the community center that day by 9 a.m.

[Belle Plaine, IA] – The Belle Plaine Police Department announced today that they are teaming up with the National Football League (NFL), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and other State and local highway safety and law enforcement officials to remind everyone to designate a sober driver if they plan to be drinking alcohol on Super Bowl Sunday.
“We want to pass our safety message to everyone who will be drinking this weekend, real Fans Don’t Let Fans Drive Drunk,” said Chief Kris Hudson. “Please act responsibly, designate a sober driver before the Super Bowl party begins and leave your car keys at home.”
Super Bowl Sunday is one of America’s biggest and most entertaining national sporting events as friends and families gather to socialize and watch the big game. Yet, it has also become one of the Nation’s most dangerous days on the roadways due to impaired driving.
According to research by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2008, fatalities in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes accounted for 32 percent of all motor vehicle traffic fatalities. On Super Bowl Sunday (February 3 to 5:59 am February 4), 49 percent of the fatalities occurred in crashes where a driver or motorcycle rider had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level of .08 or higher.
“Designating a sober driver should be on the top of everyone’s Super Bowl party list,” said Hudson. “It’s just one of several easy steps to help save lives.”
Additional tips from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration follows. To learn more information you can also visit www.stopimpaireddriving.org
If you are hosting a Super Bowl party:
• Remember, you can be held liable and prosecuted if someone you served ends up in an impaired-driving crash.
• Make sure all of your guests designate their sober drivers in advance, or help arrange ride-sharing with other sober drivers.
• Serve lots of food and include lots of non-alcoholic beverages at the party.
• Stop serving alcohol at the end of the third quarter of the game and begin serving coffee and dessert.
• Take car keys away from anyone who is thinking of driving while impaired.

If you are attending a Super Bowl party or watching at a sports bar or restaurant:
• Designate your sober driver before the party begins and leave your car keys at home.
• Avoid drinking too much alcohol too fast. Pace yourself—eat enough food, take breaks, and alternate with non-alcoholic drinks.
• If you don’t have a designated driver, ask a sober friend for a ride home; call a cab, friend, or family member to come and get you; or just stay where you are and sleep it off until you are sober.
• Never let a friend get behind the wheel of their vehicle if you think they are about to drive while impaired. Remember, Fans Don’t Let Fans Drive Drunk.
• Always buckle up – it’s still your best defense against other impaired drivers.

Belle Plaine hosted Montezuma in a boy-girl basketball doubleheader earlier this week with mixed results. The girls pulled out a 46-39 win, but the boys dropped a 74-57 decision to the Braves.
The last time the girls’ teams faced each other, Belle Plaine came home with a 47-28 decision. But this time, after they battled to a 7-7 first quarter tie, the Plainsmen took a 24-13 lead into the half. But Montezuma kept it close, trailing after three quarters, 38-31.
Dani Coover played an especially inspired second half and finished as the high point player with 23 points. She also had nine rebounds, two assists and three steals. Taylor Schafbuch also finished in double figures with a doze, along with five rebounds, seven assists and five steals. Macy DeMeulenaere had eight points and two rebounds. Julie Long added three points and five steals and Laura Breja had three rebounds.
For Montezuma, Brittany Bryan had 11 points and Emily Long added 10.
The Plainsmen hit just 15 of 41 shots from the field and trailed in the rebounding department, 23-21. But they connected on 16 of 31 free throw attempts, while the visitors hit just two of three attempts. Montezuma also had a 19-10 lead in turnovers.
Despite scoring 23 first quarter points, the Plainsman boys couldn’t top the Braves, who moved to 9-6 on the season. The Plainsmen have a record of 6-8. Belle Plaine scored seven points in the second quarter, before bouncing back with 18 in the third. But they had just nine in the last period.
Keegan DeMeulenaere led the Belle Plaine scoring with 13 points. He also had seven rebounds, two assists, three steals and two blocks. Ben Ehlen had 12 poitns, three rebounds, three assists and six steals. Cooper Northrop was next with nine points and two steals. Mitch Jacobi had eight points and four rebounds. Chris Janss had seven points, seven rebounds, two assists, three steals and two blocks. Kyle Janss had four points, two rebounds and two steals. Seivon Steward had two points and four rebounds and Zach Snyder also had two points with two rebounds.
The Plainsmen scored on 19 of 50 shots from the field, including four of 15 three-point tries. They also had 15 free throws in 22 attempts and a dozen turnovers.
The Plainsman teams travel to Lynnville-Sully Friday night before starting a busy first week of February. They host North Mahaska on Monday, travel to Keota on Tuesday and then host Tri-County Friday for Parents’ Night.

By Coach Steve Mengler
The 7th grade boys hosted the English Valley Bears on Friday, January 22nd. While the game was close throughout the first half, with the Bears leading by one at the break, the Plainsmen shooting went incredibly cold in the second half which allowed the Bears to win by a score of 46-37.
This was a disappointing effort in many areas. Defensively we struggled to create turnovers much of the game, and we had great difficulty stopping two English Valley players. The point guard from EV had 31 points on the night, as we tried a zone defense and man to man to slow him down. The center on English Valley had 13 points, so two players accounted for 44 of the 46 points they scored.
I was very disappointed that we could not find someone or a combination of people to stop or slow down these athletes. Foul problems also created some smaller than usual line ups creating some mismatches on defense. For the game the Plainsmen were called for 17 fouls, a season high, while the Bears were whistled for five fouls. I do not blame the officiating for this whatsoever; we simply did not move our feet on defense and tried to play defense with our hands which resulted in a lot of lazy fouls and subsequently a lot more free throws taken by English Valley. I am not sure why during this game our feet appeared to be glued to the floor.
Offensively we did a lot of good things to get a lot of good shots. The only problem was that we were incapable of hitting shots consistently. We took a season high 71 shots, which comes out to about three per minute of clock time which is unusually high. Unfortunately we could only convert 17 of those shots for 24 percent. The team only reached the free throw line six times converting three of these shots.
English Valley had a couple of tall players on defense which intimidated many of our smaller players. Although not a statistic I normally keep, I would guess that the Bears had at least ten if not more blocked shots which may have caused the Plainsmen to alter their shots resulting in less accuracy.
There were some positives coming out of this game. As usual we had balanced scoring, this time led by Trey Squiers with 14 points. Justin Jacobi had eight points, Vance Bohlen five points, Josh Long four points, and Cody Bergom, Austin Vranek, and Adrien Griffith each adding a bucket. Typically in a 7th grade game 37 points would be enough to claim victory, but our defense certainly let us down, especially in the second half. Leading the team in rebounding on this evening were three players, Squiers, Griffith, and Jacobi who each grabbed seven rebounds each.
Hoping to bounce back from the loss to English Valley, the junior high boys travelled to Marengo to face the Iowa Valley Tigers in another rematch from earlier in the season. The 7th grade boys probably played their best game of the year in the first game against the Tigers, falling 49-39 to a very good 7th grade team.
The second game started out much the same, with the score being tied 4-4 after three minutes. Iowa Valley was doing a great job of pressing us but we were doing an equally outstanding job of patiently breaking the press and getting good looks at the basket. Unfortunately, the wheels came off and Iowa Valley tightened the press and we made numerous unforced turnovers, allowing Iowa Valley to open the game up early with a 19-4 lead at the end of the first quarter. The second quarter of the game was much the same, with the Plainsmen trailing 30-13 at the break. Much to our boys’ credit, they continued to fight back and play hard, but ultimately fell to the Tigers by a score of 54-33.
For the fourth game in a row we struggled on the offensive end of the court. We managed to take 62 shots, hitting 14 of them for 22 percent from the field. Unfortunately we felt like we needed to force those shots a bit early before we were squared up to the basket, so many of them were well off the mark. We hit five of 12 free throws on the night indicating that we were doing a good job of taking the ball to the basket. Balanced scoring was again evident, with Bohlen and Long leading the team with eight points, Jacobi with seven points, Squiers with six points, and Vranek with four points.
We also did a good job on the boards again, pulling down 30 rebounds against a much taller Iowa Valley team. Jacobi led the way in this category with 8 boards, while Long pulled down six boards, Squiers and Griffith each grabbed four, and Vranek added three to the team rebounding total. Our defense was a little weak as we allowed Iowa Valley easy looks at the basket, especially in transition.

Belle Plaine Activities Director Greg Walton has announced the following schedule changes involving the JV basketball teams and the junior high wrestlers.
The postponed JV girls and boys basketball games at Lynnville-Sully that were to have been played on Monday, January 25, 2010 will now be played at Lynnville-Sully on Friday, January 29th at 4:30 p.m. They will be playing before the varsity games.
Due to Keota making up a varsity girls/boys game on Wednesday, February 3, 2010 we had to change our JV basketball games at Keota. We will now play the girls/boys JV basketball games at Keota on Tuesday, February 2nd at 4:30 p.m. before the varsity games.
Our junior high wrestlers will be wrestling their last meet of the season at BGM on Friday, January 29, 2010. This is a make up meet for the Iowa Valley meet that was postponed on January, 8, 2010

The road that led Amy Dollash to her present position as an associate with the firm of Kollmorgen, Schlue & Zahradnik, P.C. took some interesting twists and turns along the way. She brings a list of various experiences to the practice, just four years out of law school.
A native of Cedar Rapids, she graduated from Cedar Rapids Jefferson High School. She met Eric Hrabak at the time of her grandfather’s funeral while she was a high school senior. They both were considering colleges and she agreed to visit Graceland College with Eric and another friend. She enrolled on a soccer scholarship and graduated with a double major in international relations and communications writing with a literature emphasis.
Along the way, their friendship blossomed and after graduation, they moved to Cedar Rapids. A couple of family situations, including a problem with a property transaction, caused her to consider entry into law school. But she said she always wanted to be a lawyer. Back in fifth or sixth grade, she was in a mock trial situation in school. Her opponent was a boy she really wanted to beat. She did and the interest continued.
Right before she was to enter law school, she decided to have a routine physical exam while she still had insurance where she was employed. She said the doctor called her a couple of days later and in a strangely upbeat tone she informed her that she had diabetes. The doctor also informed her that her life would never be quite the same again, something that someone preparing for the rigors of law school didn’t need to hear. Incidentally, she was never able to figure out that doctor’s upbeat attitude when delivering potentially devastating news, but she was sure to switch doctors soon after that, she said.
Still, she entered the University of Iowa College of Law in 2003 and she and Hrabak moved to Belle Plaine, where he joined the family business, Hrabak Funeral Home. For the next 2 ½ years, she commuted to school in Iowa City and after that, she went to work for Iowa Legal Aid, where she worked with juveniles and abusive family situations, an area of the law she still finds very rewarding.
She remembers one day, when she and Eric were out at a Waterloo restaurant, she vaguely recognized the waitress. The waitress also recognized her and told her how much help she had been with a situation involving her son.
The ability to help somebody make a family situation better is one of the most important part of her career, she said. She continues to serve on a team of professionals that help foster children and families navigate through the system and she also serves as a volunteer court appointed special advocate for children with special circumstances.
That’s the sort of connection many lawyers don’t get when they opt to join a large law practice. She said that when she was in law school, there were a few students in her class they called “gunners” who aspired to work in those large firms, exchanging 90 hour work weeks and no life outside the office for six-figure incomes.
Through an internship and her first post-graduate position with Legal Aid, she was able to have a more personal connection with her clients. For the last two years, she has worked with the Dunakey and Klatt law firm in Waterloo, specializing in real estate and foreclosure.
So the move to her current position, which she began the first of this year, will not only allow her to be closer to home, but will also allow her to practice a variety of law, from family and juvenile issues, to real estate and taxes. It should also give her the opportunity to become more involved in the community. She met a lot of people at last week’s open house at the firm, but asks that local residents be patient with her as she learns their names.
She has already had the chance to attend meetings on Main Street development and beautification. Dollash is especially interested in potential development of trails in and around Belle Plaine, as she likes to bike and hike. With an eye on starting a family in the future, she said she is especially happy with the development of the aquatics center and school improvements in the city.
Jennifer Zahradnik, who completed the purchase of the law firm from Larry Schlue on Jan. 1, said she was pleased to welcome Dollash to the practice, especially with her interest in family law. She also said that Schlue will remain as a full-time employee through the tax season, then continue working part-time for the firm.
Zahradnik was recently appointed the Belle Plaine city attorney and Dollash was appointed assistant city attorney.

“It doesn’t seem like 30 years.” That’s how Bob Storm 59, summed up his 30-year, five-term tenure on the Belle Plaine Park Board. But after serving on the board since 1980, he decided not to seek another six-year term. Nick Palmer was elected to fill his spot and joins Les Jacobi and Andy Ehlen on the current board.
Residents will have a chance to greet Storm and honor his service, as well as recognizing the more than 50 years served by Nadine Thomasson as the Red Cross swim instructor and long time aquatics director at an open house on Sunday, from 1-3 p.m. at the Belle Plaine Community Center.
Much of the possible ease in serving on the board over the years came from quality full-time directors, he said. Over the early years, there was a succession of directors who lasted only a short time before they sought employment in larger cities. Then the board hired Bill Daily, a lifetime Belle Plaine resident, who stayed in the director’s position for over 20 years before being spirited away to become the city administrator. He was replaced by another longtime resident, Jed Eichhorn, then by yet another director who grew up here, Joel Formanek, the current director.
Storm, who served as the park board president all 30 years of his tenure, said the board enacted policies, gave the director direction and annually wrestled with the budget. Otherwise, the board members allowed the directors to do their job. He estimated that over his term on the board he may have received only three calls to handle problems in the department.
“We were always fortunate to have city councils and mayors who were very pro parks and recreation,” he said. Storm was a downtown businessman for many years, then a car salesman before going full time with his real estate business. Although some people might shy away from seeking local elected office because of a potential backlash from residents that could affect their business, Storm said there was a lot of community support over the years and many people took part in the various programs, as parents and volunteers.
In the first few years of his term on the board, the city built the bath house at the swimming pool. He is proud of the fact that it was constructed in such a way that it can be renovated to serve the new aquatics center, slated to open later this year.
Several years later, another big addition to the park system was the development of Box Park, which went from a corn field to a park featuring paved walkways and several flower beds. The park was developed through the guidance of then-director Bill Daily, with a lot of help from local groups and individuals to design and maintain the flower beds.
The city has a lot of park land for a town with a population of just under 3,000. Storm said the city has been fortunate to have several caretakers over the years, including Dick Roggentien, Vernon Blomme and currently Charles Johnson who all treated the parks with the same care they might show with their own property.
One of the final big projects carried out on Storm’s watch was the planning and construction of the new aquatics center. He said this new feature should be a real plus for the city, bringing a lot more people to town.
The city and the school district have long enjoyed good cooperation on sharing facilities, Storm said. With the pending closure of Central Elementary School, the future of Lee Gym is still in doubt. Storm said that spirit of cooperation will be as important as ever.
Storm said he intends to continue working with his real estate business and hopes the local economy will turn around this year. His wife, Judy, operates a beauty shop in the same building.

Officials with Waste Management report that workers were unable to complete their regular route on the south side of the city today. They will be back tomorrow to finish the regular route.

Postseason competition for local basketball and wrestling teams is right around the corner. The wrestling team kicks it off on Saturday, Feb. 6, with a sectional meet. The girls’ basketball squad opens district action on Feb. 13 and the boys will follow on Feb. 15.
The Plainsman wrestlers travel to BGM for the sectional meet. Other teams in that meet include BGM, Cardinal of Eldon, English Valleys, Pekin, Tri-County and Van Buren. First and second place finishers advance to the district meet the following Saturday, Feb. 13, at Eddyville-Blakesburg where they will face the qualifiers from the Pleasantville sectional. Teams in that meet include Colfax-Mingo, Eddyville-Blakesburg, Lynnville-Sully, Martensdale St. Mary’s, Moravia, Pleasantville and Wayne of Corydon.
First and second place teams from each of those two sectionals advance to the regional duals on Tuesday, Feb. 9 at Pekin.
The state meet will be held in Des Moines Feb. 17-20.
The girls’ state tourney begins March 1.
Belle Plaine’s girls’ basketball squad hosts BGM in the first round of postseason play on Saturday, Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. The winner of that game advances to the winner of the Iowa Valley-Mount Vernon game Tuesday, Feb. 16 at Mount Vernon.
Other teams in Region Six include second rated Cascade, Dyersville Beckman, Bellevue, Northeast of Goose Lake, Mid-Prairie, Sigourney, Monticello, Maquoketa Valley, North Cedar, North Linn, Cardinal and Pekin.
The regional finals are set for Feb. 22 at Marion.
District action for the boys begins Monday, Feb. 15. Sites and opponents are still to be determined, as the boys seed the teams in each district. Belle Plaine’s district includes BGM, Cardinal, Iowa Valley, 16th-rated Mid-Prairie, Pekin, Sigourney and Van Buren. The district final is set for Feb. 23 at Otumwa with the survivor from that district facing the the winner from District 12 in the substate game at Oskaloosa on Feb. 27. Teams in District 12 include eighth-rated Pella Christian, as well as Albia, Central Decatur, Clarke, Davis County, Eddyville-Blakesburg, Pleasantville and Wayne.
The boys’ state tourney begins March 8.

Two local residents who have played a major role in the city’s recreational programs for many years will be honored at an open house Sunday.
Bob Storm has stepped down after serving on the Belle Plaine Park Board for 30 years. Nadine Thomasson will also be honored for being involved with Red Cross swim lessons at the local pool for over 50 years, with service as director for over 30 years.
The open house will be held Sunday, Jan. 31, from 1-3 p.m. at the Belle Plaine Community Center.