Last week the Monona County Fair was held. Among the first events at the fair is the crowning of the new fair royalty. The MVAOCOU School District was well represented amongst the candidates. Three of those candidates were named to the royalty.
    Sara Rosener, daughter of Angie and John Rosener of Mapleton was crowned the Monona County Fair Queen.
    "As my name was called to be queen, I just felt so grateful," stated Rosener. "There were a lot of good girls there, and I knew that any of them would be great queens, so I was surprised when my name was called."
    Sara stated that the girls who competed in the queen contest conducted two different interviews with the judges, asking why the candidate wanted to be queen and other questions pertinent to the candidate. While the interviews were ongoing, the candidates not in front of the judges worked together to make a tie blanket which was auctioned off at the fair. They also ate lunch with the judges. Finally, a question was asked to each candidate during the coronation ceremony.
    "My favorite part of being queen so far is meeting all of these new people. I have gotten to know the rest of the court but also many people from the county. I especially loved meeting the little girls that want to be a queen like me."
    Candidates were kept busy during the fair. The queen and her court handed out trophies and ribbons at each livestock show. They also rode out in a truck in front of the crowds at the grandstand events. The three older girls were interviewed by radio stations. Queen Sara was on KTIV news, interviewing with Ron Demers. Rosener also said that the court also read during story time to the younger kids at the fair interacted with the fair goers throughout the week.
    The Little Princess candidates also were interviewed to determine the winner. The judges watched how well the girls interacted with each other during crafts, snacks, and games and also interviewed each candidate. The little ladies learned a short dance which they performed on Tuesday night at opening ceremonies. At the ceremony, Parker Hanson, daughter of Jennifer and Beau Hanson of Castana was crowned the Little Princess while Brooke Comes, daughter of Jenna and Daniel Comes of Mapleton stood by her friend as the first runner up in the Little Princess contest.
    "When they called my name, I was both shocked and excited," said Parker. "I kinda freaked out inside but was super happy."
    Little princesses helped hand out ribbons and attend the competitions. As the Little Princess, Parker was announced at all the grandstand events and waved at the crowd from the back of the pickup. She also was able to hang out with Queen Sara and the rest of the royalty.
    "My favorite part of being a little princess was handing out ribbons at all the events and meeting lots of new people and making new friends throughout the week," added Hanson.
    Brooke Comes was surprised when her name was called as the first runner up. She was also happy for her friend, Parker when her name was called as Little Princess. Much like her friend, Brooke liked handing out the ribbons and trophies, riding in the back of the truck to be announced before the grandstand events, meeting new people, and getting to do all the fun things at the fair as royalty.
    Congratulations to these ladies, and good performance to Sara who will represent Monona County at the state fair.
    Fair results will be published after the Woodbury County Fair.

    It's time to hit the sidewalk in front of the BlueJay Boutique and find some great bargains. The annual sidewalk sale is this Friday and Saturday from 9:00 until 6:30 on Friday and 9:00 until 3:00 Saturday. Discounted apparel for all seasons will be available to snatch up. Check out the ad in this week's Review for more information.

    Former Danbury City Clerk Stacy Rockdaschel, 32, pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree theft at her hearing which was held on July 10th. Sentencing has been scheduled for September 13 in Woodbury County District Court.
    Under the plea agreement, Rockdaschel will be placed on probation for five years with a prison sentence of up to 10 years suspended as long as she completes the probation. She also will be fined $1,370 and ordered to pay $151,000 in restitution to the city of Danbury. She has been ordered to pay the city $900 each month until these funds are repaid. She also must pay the court costs for this case. The plea deal also states that Stacy could be sent to a residential treatment facility if the Department of Corrections deems it necessary.
    Rockdaschel was the city clerk from March 19, 2020, until her May 15, 2022, resignation. She was arrested in October of 2023 after an Iowa State Auditor's investigation of the city's finances from March 2020 to May 2022 found nearly $100,000 in retail and wholesale purchases on the city's credit card. The total of the purchases, court documents said, was between $177,468 and $209,646. Rockdaschel was suspected of using the city's credit cart to make more than 1,500 personal purchases of items including women's and children's clothing, cosmetics, home decor items, wine glasses, scrapbooking supplies, tickets to the Omaha zoo, flowers, kitty litter and food. Rockdaschel also is accused of using city credit cards to pay for personal services to Facebook, Kickstarter, TikTok and Shopify.
    The auditor's report found an additional $32,000 in city purchases during Rockdaschel's employment that could not be accounted for, and an estimated $26,500 in utility cash payments was missing. The auditor also found thousands of dollars from shelter house rentals were unaccounted for.
    A second charge described on Iowa Courts Online as Ongoing Criminal Conduct - Unlawful Activity has been dropped with the plea.

    Ames, IA – July is here, and summer is in full swing. Our young beef farmers are diligently preparing their 4-H projects for the county fair, kids are cooling off by the pool and the irresistible aroma of beef sizzling on the grill fills the air. As a parent navigating summer vacation, you might be searching for fun and engaging activities for your child. Look no further! The Iowa Beef Industry Council is excited to announce a coloring contest that will spark creativity and provide entertainment.
    Participation is easy and hassle-free. Simply download the coloring page from https://www.iabeef.org/events/kids-coloring-contest and let your child's imagination run wild with crayons, colored pencils and markers. Once your child has created their masterpiece, upload a high-quality photo of their artwork using the form provided on our site. Children will be grouped into four categories: ages 2-3, 4-5, 6-7, and 8-9. The winning artwork in each category will receive a $50 beef certificate and a summer grilling swag item perfect for their age.