A Visit Back to our Favorite Stories - Part 1 January through June
Wed, 12/31/2025 - 10:13am
admin
By:
Rachel Riley TPD New Editor
Highlighted below are some of the stand-out stories from our community each month of 2025, selected by the TPD staff. These pieces — chosen from a year rich with local achievements, service, and heartfelt farewells — showcase leaders, neighbors, and organizations that shaped the first half of 2025. While we at TPD didn’t all agree on the top stories from each month, we did agree that many community members and businesses did great things this year, making the selection process very difficult!
January — Busch getting settled in as Howard County Sheriff
Rick Busch’s arrival as Howard County Sheriff read as a transition from national and international service into local leadership, carrying credentials that signal both operational experience and ceremonial recognition. His background includes Special Warfare leadership, combat deployments, work with AFOSI protective details for national leaders, a Bronze Star and later working as a State Trooper. Those elements framed him as someone whose professional life had been shaped by responsibility, discretion, and protective duty — qualities that translate into clear expectations for local law enforcement leadership. The profile focused on Busch’s career returning to county government: meant to introduce Busch to residents and showcase his institutional knowledge gained in diverse, high-pressure environments - this profile on Rick Busch marked a pivotal change in our County’s Law Enforcement leadership.
Original article information:
Author: Daniel Evans, TPD Publisher / Date Published: 1/1/25
Excerpt from original article:
“While serving as a State Trooper, I continued in the Air Force Reserve for over nine years as an Individual Mobility Augmentee (IMA), “ added Busch. “As an IMA Reservist, I deployed with active-duty special warfare units before cross-training into the Air Force Office of Special Investigations as a Special Agent.”
February — Brady Mikkelson set to retire, move - Adopted by the Cresco Community Mikkelson will truly be missed
Some stories are small and steady in their power, and Brady Mikkelson’s is one of those. The piece traced habitual acts that stitch a town together — mornings at Fareway, afternoons at the school, sports announcements on Super C radio and parades, just to name a few — and used simple scenes to show how belonging is developed over time. Brady is concrete proof of a life present in public routines. Community is an accumulation of friendships, gestures and repeated presence, a sense of belonging and kindness. Brady shone bright as a Cresco resident and is dearly missed around town today.
Original article information:
Author: Daniel Evans, Publisher / Date Published: 2/5/25
Excerpts from original article:
“Born with Down’s Syndrome, Mikkelson was often found working at Fareway Foods in Cresco, and most recently at the Howard Winneshiek School, usually in the high school building.”
“My favorite part of my job is making friends. Everyone really treats me well and I like having friends.” Mikkelson adds.
March — Vobr named Kiwanis 2025 Farmer of the Year - To be honored at Crestwood FFA Banquet March 16 at Expo Center.
Honoring Robert Vobr as Kiwanis Farmer of the Year became a meditation on continuity and care. His life, framed by early FFA leadership, successive farming degrees, and decades on the land, reads as a vocabulary of commitment. The award recognized not just output but the patient work of stewardship: passing knowledge, tending soil, and keeping local rhythms intact. In a county where fields measure time as much as calendars do, Vobr’s story is a reminder that legacy often arrives in plowed rows and steady routines rather than sudden headlines.
Original article information:
Author: Daniel Evans, Publisher / Date Published: 3/12/25
Excerpts from original article:
“At the age of 72, there is no letting up for farmer Robert Vobr, as he continues to farm his operation of approximately 700 acres — like he’s still age 50!”
April — Howard County Business & Tourism Annual Banquet ~Lt. Gov. Chris Cournoyer guest speaker, TPD presents awards~
The Howard County Business & Tourism Banquet functioned as both recognition and a fun and social night out for attendees: an evening where volunteer labor, entrepreneurial effort and educational commitment were made visible through awards and speeches. The event featured local winners such as the Lime Springs Betterment Foundation named ‘Organization of the year’, a recognized teacher of second grade at Notre Dame Catholic School, Sheila Slifka named as ‘Teacher of the Year’, and a long-serving citizen and active member of our community, Dr. Paul Jensen named as ‘Citizen of the Year’; it also included remarks from CEO, Robin Schulter from RHSHC and Lt. Gov. Chris Cournoyer, who connected local action to broader policy context. The event was MC’d by Chamber of Commerce Executive Director, Jason Passmore with awards given by Times Plain Dealer Publisher, Daniel Evans. The banquet’s atmosphere combined appreciation of community leaders both in the foreground and those who assist from the sidelines: small businesses and tourism interests used the night to showcase initiatives, recruit collaborators and shore up volunteer energy. Three stories leading up to the banquet story were also published two weeks ahead, featuring each of one of the three winners.
Original article information:
Sara York - Former TPD Editor & Daniel Evans, Publisher / Dates Published: 4/16/25 & 4/30/25
Excerpts from original article:
“McAllister’s was alive with energy and pride on the evening of April 22, 2025 as it hosted the Howard County Business and Tourism Banquet. The atmosphere was vibrant as guests mingled, exchanging stories and laughter during the social hour that kicked off the night.”
May 2025 — Crestwood High School Celebrates Class of 2025
Through the years, there are certain consistent events that the Times Plain Dealer reports on, and Graduation is always included. With a new batch of graduates each year, the event,al although similar from year to year, always has a different feel from year to year. With the excitement building, waiting for the big moment to collect their diploma - the piece of paper they have been working toward for their entire school careers. Graduates at attention, friends and family looking on proudly, Graduation made the top list as this marks an important high point in the career of the Crestwood Howard-Winneshiek Community students - many of whom have spent their entire school careers on the Howard-Winneshiek School grounds. The event served not only as a celebration of academic success but also as a heartfelt farewell to a class filled with talent, determination, and promise for the future.
Original article information:
Author: Rachel Riley - TPD Reporter / Date Published: 5/28/25
Excerpt from original article:
“On Sunday, May 18th, Crestwood High School in Cresco proudly celebrated the graduation of the Class of 2025. Surrounded by family, friends and faculty, 80 seniors walked across the floor to receive their diplomas, marking the culmination of 13 years of dedication and academic achievement.”
June — Local Veteran is Celerated as Wax Figure in Marine Corps Museum
The profile of Retired Lt. Col. Steven Ray Douglas focused on the intersection of local roots and national military service. The story traced Douglas from the Norman Borlaug farm region near Cresco through a distinguished Marine Corps career that included Huey piloting and other notable contributions, culminating in the unusual honor of being rendered as a wax figure for a Marine Corps museum display. The story highlighted both the contributions local Douglas made in the Marines along with the technical and symbolic work of translating a living person into an exhibit — sculptors taking measurements as well as using Douglas himself to make a live model replica — placing that act within a broader discussion about who is selected for public commemoration. Douglas’s inclusion in a museum exhibit reframed a private life of service into a learning tool that teaches visitors about sacrifice, history and civic duty.
Original article information:
Author: Sara York, Former TPD Editor / Date Published: June 11, 2025
Note on excerpt availability
“Growing up on the Norman Borlaug farm outside Cresco, he (Douglas) enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserves after graduating from Crestwood High School and proudly served in Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 24th Marine in Des Moines. His journey continued at Iowa State, where he graduated in 1996, earning a commission through the Platoon Leaders Course and attending Flight School in Pensacola, Florida, to become a UG-1N Huey helicopter pilot.”
“Transforming Steven into a wax figure was no simple task; it took four hours of meticulous molding. They carefully placed straws in his nose to ensure he could breathe throughout the process, crafting his face, chest, torso, arms, hands, legs and feet. Finally, he stood before a lifelike representation of himself, a surreal moment capturing his remarkable journey.”
