This is the 134.6 acre tract that will be purchased through the REAP grant for $490,000. Jim and Nina Beeghly of Decorah currently own the property. It is located north of Fayette and contains a portion of the Volga River Recreational Trail. (Submitted photo)

Fayette County gets $490,000 grant to buy over 100 acres near Fayette

By Jack Swanson
jswanson@fayettecountynewspapers.com

The Fayette County Conservation Board has announced that they will receive a $490,000 Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) to purchase a 134.6-acre tract of land that is adjacent to the Fayette to Volga River Recreational Area Trail.

The Jim and Nina Beeghly Tract is adjacent to the city of Fayette and contains a multitude of varied ecosystems including wetlands, savanna, native prairie and forest resources.

Director of the Fayette County Conservation Board Rod Marlatt said that because of the grant, no local county property tax dollars were used in the acquisition. Only three counties in the state were fully funded, and one partially funded in the latest round of REAP grants.

With the help of husband Kevin (left) by her side, Spillville’s Joyce Meyer has had an eventful past year. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in November (2018) and underwent surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation until Sept. 30 when she completed her final treatment at Gundersen in La Crosse, Wisc. (submitted photo)

Meyer fights back against breast cancer

Zakary Kriener

News Writer
zkriener@fayettepublishing.com

It was news that turned her and her family’s lives upside down. Less than a year ago, Spillville’s Joyce Meyer learned some of the worst news of her life when she was told that she has breast cancer. The rollercoaster year for her has certainly had its ups and downs, but Meyer recently was able to ring the ceremonious bell at Gundersen in La Crosse, Wisc., as she completed her final treatment on Sept. 30.

“I first found a lump in my breast by doing a self-exam at the end of November (2018), right before I was going to schedule my annual mammogram,” recalled Meyer. “Two hours later, I was in the Calmar Gundersen Clinic where my PA, Stephanie Cenex, confirmed that there was a lump.”

One week later, Meyer had a special mammogram and ultrasound done at Gundersen Clinic in West Union, followed by a biopsy to confirm the cancer a couple ofweeks later.

“When I told my husband, Kevin, after the biopsy that I had cancer, we just held hands,” continued Meyer. “We couldn’t find the words to talk much more about how this could change our life at that moment. We were devastated and shocked and our world felt so uncertain.”