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In 2020, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children received 29,684 reports of suspected human trafficking incidents in the United States. In that same year, the Department of Justice initiated 425 human trafficking prosecutions with 625 defendants being convicted of human trafficking related offenses. Due to the sheer number of suspected trafficking information the statistics for 2022 and 2023 have not yet been able to be completely compiled and calculated. Human trafficking is a $150 billion-dollar criminal industry where it is estimated that less than 1% of human trafficking victims are ever actually identified. Even with all of the statistical data, it has been found by the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research that only 20% of people believe that human trafficking happens in their own communities. This is why it is of utmost importance to be educated and aware of what to look for when it comes to human trafficking, in order to do our best to keep our communities safe.
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Jason Von Eschen has been a volunteer firefighter for the Wagner Fire Department since 2010. What drew Jason to wanting to become a firefighter were the people that were on the Wagner Fire Department at the time. Not only were they a great group of people, but they were all people that Jason looked up to, not only as firefighters but as members of the Wagner community.
Read moreOne of the bigger agenda items that was discussed by the City Council at the regular monthly meeting was presented by Wagner Area Development Director, Margaret Doom. Margaret had been contacted to see if Wagner would be interested in the opportunity to submit a proposal to not only be the host site Charles-Mix County fairgrounds, but also to build a new facility. The facility would include a commercial kitchen, dining hall for 300 people, board room, indoor rodeo sized arena and an indoor shooting sports arena. These facilities would be rentable to the public. The proposal has a deadline of October 21st for bids to be submitted and is open to all of Charles-Mix County towns. The initial estimate of the project is $2 million dollars to be raised over the next couple of years with construction then beginning in Spring of 2027. Requirements of minimum bids to be accepted include at least 10 acres of land and a plan on how to raise $1 million by December of 2025 and then to raise another $1 million by December 2026. Even though the community that ends up getting the bid to build would foot the costs for the project, any money raised through rentals would go back into the Charles Mix County 4-H Foundation and not the city. Margaret presented the general information to the city council to see if there was interest to proceed or not in the bidding process. It was also brought up by residents that attended the meeting the impact that this type of rental establishment would have on businesses/organizations such as the Wagner Theater and American Legion as well as the county 4-H grounds and buildings not being located in a central part of the county, making it more difficult for some 4-H families to be able to attend meetings, practices and events. Discussion by the council included the probability of a higher cost than estimated for the project, not having the 4-H location be central in the county and the possible affect it could have on Wagner’s already established businesses losing rentals. It was decided by the council that Wagner would encourage the county to continue to have the county 4-H fairgrounds in Lake Andes. Thus, Wagner will not be pursuing or submitting a bid or proposal for the project.
Read more10 Years Ago - 2014 Coach Amy Tyler celebrated her 300th career win in volleyball.
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The library was pleasantly surprised by a phone call from the Platte Library, that we would be a recipient from a book drive sponsored by a young man from Platte for his Senior project. The books included children’s and adult books, but what I am really happy to report are the number of audio books we received for our adult collection. Pictured is the new collection. Please feel free to visit the library and look at the new collection.
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What is duck banding? Who does duck banding? Why is duck banding important? For most people these types of questions never even cross their mind unless they are a part of an ornithological organization, work for a wildlife organization or are a duck hunter. Duck banding is method that is used to help study different aspects of ducks as well as identify ducks through the use of a band attached to their leg, beak or foot. Duck banding is an important part aiding the Migratory Bird Division of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in information regarding duck’s dispersal, migration, behavior, social structure, life span, population, estimated survival and productivity, toxicology, disease research which in turn helps them in their conservation efforts of setting hunting regulations and detecting changes in any waterfowl populations. All of the data that is garnered from each reported duck band is entered into the Bird Banding Laboratory (BBL) database to be used for analyses and studies.
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October 2nd found us at the Rotary Clubhouse with three more Wagner Community Seniors present. They introduced themselves and spoke about their studies and their future. Julia Bruguier and Vincent Bruguier are twins, and their parents are Jayette Bruguier and Drew Bruguier. Julia is thinking of attending USD and going into Elementary Education. Her twin brother Vincent is also thinking of a four-year degree at USD and studying psychology. Isabella Hull is thinking of the National Guard and/or a four-year degree in business. She would like to have her own nail shop someday.
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