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MIKE STANLEY, 75, of Harlan (Memorial Svc. 3/30/24)

Obituaries

March 26th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

MIKE STANLEY, 75, of Harlan, died Sunday, March 24, 2024, at MercyOne Hospital – Downtown. A Memorial Service for MIKE STANLEY will be held 2-p.m. Saturday, March 30, 2024, at the AHSTW High School Gymnasium in Avoca. Pauley-Jones Funeral Home in Avoca has the arrangements.

The family will greet friends at the AHSTW High School Gym on Saturday, from 1-until 2-p.m.

MIKE STANLEY is survived by:

His wife – Michaele [Silcox] Stanley, of Harlan.

His sons – Sean (Mary) Stanley, of Johnston; David Stanley, of Omaha, & James Stanley (Amy Asbahr), of Avoca.

and 2 grandchildren.

The search is on for the ‘coolest thing’ that’s manufactured in Iowa

News

March 26th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Association of Business and Industry (ABI) is sponsoring its first annual “Coolest Thing Made in Iowa” competition. A-B-I spokesperson, Kelsey O’Conner says you don’t have to be a member to nominate a cool thing. “We’re joining about 20 other state associations who have hosted a successful competition like this in their state and it’s really meant to highlight all the cool products that the manufacturing industry in Iowa produces,” O’Conner says. She says it also shows the varied jobs available in the state. O’Conner says agriculture is a major part of the state’s economy, but not the only industry.

“We do tend to go the Ag way when we think of what I will produces, as we should, but we also have lots of cool products that are made that support the ag industry and a lot of other industries worldwide,” she says. You can make a nomination at www.coolestthingIA.com. “And under contest information you’ll find the nominate a product tab and you go there fill out the simple form, it’s not too intimidating. We just ask for a logo and an image of the product and a short description and then you submit the nominations and we will review those here at A-B-I,” she says.

They will take nominations through April 8th and then move through until they have a final four. “And once those top four are announced they’ll go head to head with each other all four of them and in the final round of voting and then we will announce the winner at A-B-Is annual taking care of business conference,” she says. “That conference moves around the state different years. This year we’re going to be in the Quad Cities.”

She says the Coolest Things website can also answer any of your questions about the contest.

Public hearing for acting director of Iowa Dept of Education

News

March 26th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – A senate committee will likely vote on the governor’s nominee to lead the Iowa Department of Education tomorrow (Wednesday). McKenzie Snow took over as acting director of the department in late June, but she must win 34 yes votes in the Iowa Senate to be confirmed for the role. Taryn Frideres, the governor’s chief of staff, was the first person to testify in favor of Snow at a subcommittee hearing this (Tuesday) morning. “I am here to say she is eminently qualified for the position,” Frideres said, “and exactly the type of leader the department needs at this time.” Iowa State Board of Education president John Robbins, a retired superintendent, also spoke on Snow’s behalf.

“Director Snow’s experience in state agencies in Virginia and New Hampshire along with her experience at the U.S. Department of Education have positioned her to successfully address the unique challenges of state leadership in Iowa.” Critics say Snow is not qualified for the role and its 200-thouand dollar salary because she has never been a licensed teacher or school administrator — at a time when the department is absorbing other agencies. Jackson Kleinmeyer, a student at Kirkwood Community College, is urging senators to reject Snow’s nomination. “You’re going to put a lot of faith in someone to run our entire education system,” he said, “and never mine this person is not legally qualified to run an elementary school.”

Jessica Roman of North Liberty, a special education consultant with the Grant Wood A-E-A, says Snow’s experience lies in policy writing, in four different jobs over the past seven years. “If you’re having heart surgery, who do you want to consult, the surgeon or the person who wrote the hospital handbook?” Roman asked. Snow delivered an opening statement to start the hearing and answered questions from the three senators on the panel. “I’ve heard, maybe a few times, that I didn’t come up through the ranks of education in Iowa and that’s true. I bring something different,” Snow said. “…I am a leader experienced in managing teams of experts and large scale budgets with a track record of results for students.”

Snow was the deputy director of Virginia’s Department of Education when Governor Reynolds hired her.

Montgomery County Supervisors approve Weed Resolution & change in VA Affairs office hours

News

March 26th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors, during the public comments portion of their meeting today (Tuesday), heard a plea from Barb Nelson, who lives near Stanton, to put discussion and action on an ordinance pertaining to pipelines, on their agenda for the next meeting.

The request was acknowledged by Board Chair Mike Olson, but no action was taken at this time. The Montgomery County Supervisors received a report on the destruction of noxious weeds and passed a Resolution to that effect. Here’s a portion of the Resolution as read by Supervisor Mark Peterson….

The Supervisors also received a report from Montgomery County Zoning Commissioner/Assistant to Engineer Karen Albert, Barry Byers. He said road crews have been spotting rock, conducting cold patching, building equipment maintenance

And, they discussed at length, increasing the County Veterans Affairs Office hours, effective April 1st. County V-A Executive Director Curtis White requested the change in hours, due to the number of claims and contacts made, and to take care of the added work load.

A motion to set the White’s hours at 30-hours per week through June 30th (pro-rated), to include sick time, failed. A second motion for 28-hours from April 1st until June 1st, with a review to see how that fits in with the FY 25 Budget, after that time, passed as presented.

Mills County Sheriff’s report, 3/26/24

News

March 26th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports three arrests took place, Monday:

At around 11:52-p.m., 22-year-old Hannah Ruth Eakin, of Red Oak, was arrested for Driving While Barred. Her bond was set at $2,000.

At around 9:20-p.m., Monday, Mills County Deputies arrested 24-year-old Brandon Lane Good, of Red Oak, on a warrant for Violation of Probation. His bond was set at $5,000.

And, at around 7:20-p.m., Monday, 48-year-old Jason Vaughn Young, of Silver City, was arrested for Driving While Barred. His bond was set at $2,000.

LINDA ROSE LOVELL, 69, of Atlantic (Prayer Svc. 3/29/24)

Obituaries

March 26th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

LINDA ROSE LOVELL, 69, of Atlantic, died Monday, March 25, 2024, at Atlantic Specialty Care. A Prayer Service for LINDA LOVELL will be held 11-a.m. Friday, March 29, 2024, at the Schmidt Family Funeral Home in Adair.

Following the service, a luncheon with the family and friends will be held at the Adair Community Building (In Adair, IA).

A Private Interment will take place at the Canby Cemetery, south of Adair.

Council Bluffs family’s fire damaged residence hit by thieves while they were away

News

March 26th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa [KETV] — A family in Council Bluffs is working hard to remain positive after they were involved in two life-changing events in March. KETV reports Sara and John Faris were in Dallas with their daughter for a cheer competition in early March. On the drive back they got a call from a neighbor saying their house was on fire. When they returned, they saw what was left of their house. The outside was ruined and the inside was a total loss. They’ve started a GoFundMe to help rebuild the home, which has been in their family since 1962.

No one was injured, and the firefighters were able to save their dog, who was in the kennel in the living room. Just as the family was getting back on their feet they returned to their house Sunday morning to find their garage was broken into. That’s where they stored the belongings that weren’t lost in the fire. Faris said whoever committed the theft stole tools and their daughter’s bicycle and looked through every bag, box and bin in the garage, one of which contained a birth certificate and a watch received as a gift. A necklace was also stolen.

The Faris’ have security cameras, but they were damaged in the fire. They are waiting for police reports to go through for the lost items. They’re also waiting on insurance claims to go through on the home. You can access the GoFundMe page by following this link.

Iowa City dad gets five years for carrying handgun into elementary school

News

March 26th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – An eastern Iowa man was sentenced Monday to five years in prison for bringing a handgun to his child’s school. Prosecutors say 32-year-old Brandon Jones of Iowa City walked into Grant Wood Elementary last November and demanded to speak with the principal, saying his child was wrongfully sent home. As he walked into the school, Jones unholstered a nine-millimeter handgun and handed it to someone, saying: “Hold my gun so I don’t do something stupid.” Rachel Zimmermann Smith is the Johnson County Attorney.

“The thing that has probably not gotten enough attention is just the focus on the staff and the kids that were at Grant Wood that day,” she says, “and how it affected them, and what that staff did to protect the kids and each other in what was a really scary situation.”

A judge sentenced Jones to five years for one count of carrying weapons on school grounds and two counts of harassment in the first degree. Initially, Prairielands Freedom Fund posted bail for Jones. The bail fund said in a statement the firearm was legal and when Jones realized he’d brought it into the school, he immediately asked his partner to remove it from the premises.

Volunteers needed for Great American Cleanup

Ag/Outdoor, News

March 26th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – Keep Iowa Beautiful is looking for more volunteers to join the state’s effort in the national Great American Cleanup. Executive director, Andy Frantz says the idea is to clean up public spaces. “Whether it’s church groups, sports clubs, just volunteers or whatever to make a concerted effort to clean up parks, rivers, riverbeds, roadsides, all of those sorts of things. S every year there’s a big push,” he says. You can go to KeepIowaBeautiful.org to sign up. “The first 35 of those communities this year that sign up will be eligible for a 50-dollar reimbursement to any expenses, it’s pretty loose, any expenses that are related to the pickup efforts,” Frantz says. “It can be anything from bags to pickers to gloves.”

He asks that you sign up so they know how many groups are taking part. “They can do it between now and the end of July, we’d like to hope that they’ll be able to pull it together by then. So it’s really an open window that sits available to any of the communities and whatever works for them, you know weather permitting all of those sorts of things to have their local event,” he says. Frantz says the effort makes a difference. “There have been about 50 events in the last couple of years. Seven-thousand volunteer hours and over three-thousand trash bags of litter and debris have been picked up,” Frantz says. He says there are a lot more clean up efforts that happen each year outside this program.

Frantz says applications are due April 30th for those who want to be considered for the reimbursement money. Awarded communities will receive notification on May 6th.

UI study: Many parents keep no tabs on teens’ use of social media

News

March 26th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – Almost half of all parents say they don’t monitor or restrict their teenagers’ internet and social media use, according to a national survey done in part at the University of Iowa. U-I journalism and mass communication professor Rachel Young says they found it’s very hard to keep a digital leash on a teen’s online world. “When we spoke with parents, it wasn’t because they didn’t want to or didn’t think it was important,” Young says, “but rather because it was so incredibly challenging to find strategies that they felt really worked for them and that they could sustain.”

Adults often use social media differently from teens, so Young says when a parent tries to restrict internet use, it can have all sorts of ripple effects. “Monitoring or limiting could really threaten their relationship with their teenager,” Young says, “because media is so crucial to teenagers’ social lives, and entertainment, and even school, and all these areas in the teens’ life, trying to figure out reasonable limits is really tough for parents.”

While the survey’s findings may initially -sound- like parents aren’t stepping up, Young says the responsibility is genuine and parents are taking their duties seriously. “The parents that we spoke with were really engaged in talking to their teenagers about what they were experiencing online, and making sure their teenagers felt really comfortable coming to them if they encountered any trouble,” Young says, “which is exactly what you would want to see.”

State legislators are considering a bill that would require anyone under 18 to have parental permission before they could use a social media account. Young says that could be difficult to regulate. “Kids are often really adept at technology, so to get an account on TikTok or Instagram, there already is a check to see how old you are, but we find that kids are often pretty good at figuring out how to get around that,” Young says. “It’s not really too challenging.”

Still, she says any type of check that would let parents know their kids are creating these accounts is important. Young’s findings were published recently in Computers in Human Behavior.