Providing a safe, warm place to sleep
By Kim Fickett “No kid sleeps on the floor in our town.” This simple mission by Sleep in Heavenly Peace has helped give thousands of children a safe, warm place to sleep. Most recently…
Museum continues Festival of Trees tradition
More than 60 uniquely designed Christmas trees will be on display as part of the inaugural Plymouth County Museum Festival of Trees. The event, which will run for three consecutive wee…
Merry and Bright: Hometown Christmas set for Dec. 3
By Kim Fickett Who’s ready to get their jingle on? As the calendar flips into December, the Akron Area Chamber of Commerce is putting its final touches on the annual Hometown Christmas…
Chamber seeks local Griswalds
By Kim Fickett Calling all Clark Griswald enthusiasts! The Akron Area Chamber of Commerce is gearing up to hold its annual Holiday Light Contest and are looking for those who love to …
‘Shame on you’ : Raymond scolds trail engineer for shortcomings
By Kim Fickett What began as an update on the PlyWood Trail project ended with a scolding by Plymouth County Attorney Darin Raymond at the Nov. 18 Plymouth County Board of Supervisors …
Gubernatorial candidates descend on Plymouth County
Members of Plymouth County gathered at Willow Creek Golf Course to hear from three of the Republican governor candidates who have thrown their name in the hat for the November 2026 ele…
Schram becomes youngest Lions Club president
By Kim Fickett A call to service at a very young age has led to Mackenzie Schram being the youngest president in the Akron Lions Club organizational history. “My decision to join the L…
Akron Center Stage gets a refresh
By Kim Fickett For the more than 80 dancers at Akron Center Stage, a much-needed refresh of their practice space was completed early this fall. It was in September, when the dance stud…
It's time to gobble, gobble: Thanksgiving closures announced
Who’s ready to get their gobble on? We are officially less than a week away from Thanksgiving, and families are starting to prepare for the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. W…
A-W board increases sub pay
It was a rather low-key meeting for the Akron-Westfield School Board on Monday, Nov. 10. Superintendent Derek Briggs said while many of the policy reviews on the agenda were a part of …
Luck of the draw: Bohlke named Westfield mayor
It all came down to drawing a name from a hat for the mayor’s race in Westfield. It was at the Wednesday, Nov. 12 Plymouth County Board of Supervisors meeting when the two mayoral cand…
‘I want to bring politics to you’ - Senator Grassley visits with A-W students
The Akron Hometowner By Sabrina Escalante The Akron-Westfield junior and senior students filled the auditorium to welcome Senator Chuck Grassley on Nov. 13, marking his 45th county to…
Gill named to Akron police department
A new face is patrolling the streets of Akron. It was Oct. 1 when Cade Gill began his new role with the city as its assistant police chief. “I am very grateful to be the assistant chi…
2026 fair dates announced
By Kim Fickett Mark your calendars, the 2026 Plymouth County Fair dates have officially been released. This coming year’s fair dates have been set with the Best Five Days of Summer to…
Christmas in Hometown Le Mars returns with two days of holiday magic
LE MARS – Christmas in Hometown Le Mars returns this holiday season Friday, Nov. 28, and Saturday, Nov. 29, with more holiday magic than ever before. Expanding to two festive days giv…
Schoenfelder earns repeat trip to All-State
For the second consecutive year, Akron-Westfield’s Nathan Schoenfelder was selected for the All-State Music Festival on Saturday, Nov. 22, in Ames. Schoenfelder was accepted into the A…