United Group Insurance

Fifth suspect arrested in the deaths of 2 women from Kansas

News

April 24th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

TEXAS COUNTY, OK – As the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation continues its investigation into the deaths of 27-year-old Veronica Butler and 39-year-old Jilian Kelley, officials today (Wednesday)  announced an additional arrest was made on April 24th. (As mentioned in KJAN’s previous reports, Jilian Kelley was the wife of Pastor Heath Kelley, who served as a Youth Minister at the Church of Christ in Griswold.)
Based on the evidence and information gathered from the case, 31-year-old Paul Grice was arrested and booked into the Texas County Jail on two counts of First-Degree Murder, two counts of Kidnapping, and one count of Conspiracy to Commit Murder in the First Degree.

Suspect Paul Grice

Both Butler and Kelley went missing on March 30 and found deceased in rural Texas County on April 14. This is still an ongoing investigation at this time.

Posted in News |

Hawkeyes Set For Big Ten Championships

Sports

April 24th, 2024 by Asa Lucas

THIS WEEK

The University of Iowa men’s golf team is set to travel to Columbus, Ohio to compete in the Big Ten Championships April 26-28 at Scioto Golf Club.

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

The 54-hole tournament tees off on Friday and concludes Sunday, with 18 holes to be played each day. The tournament is set to tee off at 9 a.m. (ET) Friday and Saturday with the final round teeing off at 8 a.m. (ET) on Sunday.

FOLLOW THE ACTION

You can follow this week’s action by visiting golfstat.com for live scoring. Links can be found on the men’s golf schedule page at hawkeyesports.com.

THE FIELD

All 14 Big Ten opponents will be competing in the tournament, the field features five Spikemark top-50 ranked opponents: No. 18 Illinois, No. 46 Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, No. 44 Northwestern, No. 36 Ohio State, Penn State, No. 28 Purdue, Rutgers, and Wisconsin.

THE COURSE

Designed by renowned Scottish-born architect Donald Ross, with the opening of the golf course in 1916, a decade later the course hosted the 1926 U.S. Open Championship won by golfing legend Bobby Jones.  Scioto is one of only five golf courses in the United States to have hosted five different major championships.  The 1931 Ryder Cup, the 1950 PGA Championship, the 1968 U.S. Amateur, and the 1986 Senior U.S. Open each added to the tournament legacy and prestige of the Club.

Scioto has been acclaimed around the world as a strategic routing and a course that demands precise shot-making.  The golf course, recently renovated in 2021 by Andrew Green, where fairway widths were widened to original size, Ross designed features such as hummocks and flat bottom bunkers were again restored to showcase the original design while built for the modern player.  Features that were removed in previous renovations, were restored and the greens were rebuilt in the style that represented the era when the course first opened over 100 years ago.  

Today, the course provides a great test to the finest players in the world, ready to host major championships, and yet is one that is most enjoyable for all levels of players.  The USGA will return to Scioto for the 2026 U.S. Senior Open and the 2036 U.S. Amateur Championship.

TOURNAMENT HISTORY

Iowa has earned one team Big Ten Championship in program history. The Hawkeyes won the conference title in 1992 at Finkbine Golf Course.

Mac McClear was the co-medalist in 2023 where he became the first Hawkeye to win multiple conference championships after also winning the event in 2021. McClear became the 16thmen’s golfer to win multiple Big Ten Championships with the victory last season. 

McClear is one of four Hawkeyes to win the individual medalist at the Big Ten Championships, joining Carson Schaake (2015), Brad Klapprott (1992) and John Jacobs (1946).

Illinois won the Big Ten Championships in 2023 at eight-under par, leading the field by 17 strokes. Iowa tied for fifth place.

Posted in Sports |

Planting is delayed in NE Iowa due to a lack of rain

Ag/Outdoor, News

April 24th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – Planting season is underway for most of Iowa, except in the northeast, where the tractors are being stalled by unpredictable rainfall and a lack of moisture. The region’s been in extreme drought for three years, but in the past few weeks, it’s gotten several inches of rain. That’s thrown off planting plans for many farmers who anticipated a drier spring. Iowa State University field agronomist Terry Basol says it means the region still has a lot of catching up to do.

“Our 30-year average is roughly 30 inches of rain,” Basol says, “and last year, that total was 13.8.” Basol says moisture levels in the region’s topsoil are nearly drained, which makes rainfall even more critical. He says that lack of topsoil moisture is troubling for farmers, especially when compared to last year.

“Fast forward to 2024, that’s been depleted for the most part,” he says, “so we’re going to rely heavily on timely rains to carry us through.” Despite the rainfall of recent weeks, the yearly moisture average is down by more than 50 percent.

Posted in Ag/Outdoor, News |

Update on wind farm planned in three northwest Iowa counties

Ag/Outdoor, News

April 24th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – Developers of a northwest Iowa wind farm plan to erect 18 turbines in Emmet County. The Red Rock Wind Energy Center project is being scaled back in neighboring Dickinson County, though, as officials consider changes to Dickinson County’s wind turbine ordinance.

Joe Crowley is project developer for Invenergy, the company building the wind farm. “We’ve definitely been delayed,” Crowley said Tuesday. “…That being said, working with counties is how we build successful projects.”

The company originally planned to build 83 wind turbines in Dickinson County, but Crowley says that’s been pared back to around 70 wind turbines due to expected changes in the county’s ordinance. Yesterday, Crowley briefed Emmet County Supervisors on Invenergy’s prep work in their county.

“We’ve been doing geo-technical studies as well diligence to make sure that the sites that we currently have are suitable for the turbines that we’re contemplating,” Crowley said, “as well as just keeping up on working with landowners and refining our layout to make sure that they fit the needs as best as possible.”

The Red Rock Wind Energy Center is planned for Emmet, Dickinson and Clay Counties. Invenergy has built 17 other wind farms in Iowa.

Posted in Ag/Outdoor, News |

ENOLA MARIE HANSEN, 85, of Wiota (Svcs. 5/1/24)

Obituaries

April 24th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

ENOLA MARIE HANSEN, 85, of Wiota, died Tuesday, April 23, 2024, at Iowa Methodist Hospital, in Des Moines. Funeral services for ENOLA HANSEN will be held 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, May 1, 2024, at the Brayton Lutheran Church in Brayton. Kessler Funeral Home in Exira has the arrangements.

Open visitation with family will be held on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Kessler Funeral Home in Exira.

Interment is at the Oak Hill Cemetery, west of Brayton. A luncheon will be held following the committal service in the fellowship hall of the Brayton Lutheran Church.

ENOLA HANSEN is survived by:

Her sons – Mark (Marlene) Hansen, of Wiota; Steven (Sandy) Hansen, of Atlantic, and Brian (Kari) Hansen, of Anita.

Her daughter – Laura Hansen, of Clive.

Her sister – Janet (Duane) Clark, of Guthrie Center.

9 grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren, and 3 great-great-grandchildren; her brother-in-law, other relatives & friends.

Posted in Obituaries |

Atlantic Police report, 4/24/24

News

April 24th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Officials with the Atlantic Police Department report 10 arrests took place over the past week.

  • On Tuesday, April 23rd, Officers with the A-PD arrested 30-year-old Jesse Boken, of Atlantic, for Public Intoxication.
  • On the 22nd, 39-year-old Mathew Rigen, of Shelby, was arrested for Theft in the 5th Degree (Shoplifting). Rigen was cited into court and released at the scene.
  • On the 21st, 34-year-old Benjamin Sonish, of Atlantic, was arrested for OWI/1st offense.
  • On April 20th, 37-year-old Robert Hackwell, of Atlantic, was arrested for OWI/1st offense.
  • There were 3 arrests in Atlantic on April 19th:
    • 63-year-old Susan Bashor, of Atlantic, and 47-year-old Amanda Bashor, of Clarinda, were arrested for Violation of a No Contact Order, and,
    • 28-year-old KR Takauo, of Atlantic, was arrested for Public Intox.\
  • On April 18th, Atlantic Police arrested:
    • 30-year-old Chad Arbuckle, of Atlantic, for Theft in the 4th Degree
    • 30-year-old Edward Parrott, of Council Bluffs, for Simple Assault, and
    • 37-year-old Jessica Blumberg, of Atlantic, for Domestic Abuse Assault.

Each of the named individuals mentioned above (With the exception of Mathew Rigen) were taken into custody and booked into the Cass County Jail.

Posted in News |

Iowa’s Cooper DeJean and Iowa State’s T.J. Tampa ready for NFL Draft

Sports

April 24th, 2024 by Seth Tiegs

Iowa All-American Cooper DeJean will be the latest Iowa defensive back to be taken in the NFL Draft. DeJean is projected to be taken in Thursday night’s first round in Detroit. Hawkeye defensive coordinator Phil Parker.

Parker says the program has produced so many defensive backs in part because of how they study the game.

Parker on the work ethic players take to the next level.

Iowa State corner T.J. Tampa is projected as a second or third round pick in the draft. Cyclone cornerback coach Hank Poteat (poh-teet) says Tampa’s versatility is a strength.

Poteat says Tampa will fit in a lot of different systems at the next level.

Tampa was a third-team All American this past season.

Posted in Sports |

B1G baseball to move to 30-game conference schedule

Sports

April 24th, 2024 by Seth Tiegs

Iowa baseball coach Rick Heller says the Big Ten will move to a 30-game conference schedule next year when the league adds USC, UCLA, Washington and Oregon. The Big Ten currently has an eight week, 24-game schedule. Beginning next year the Hawkeyes will play 10 conference foes and make one trip to the west coast each season.

Heller says Big Ten coaches had advocated for divisional play.

The Big Ten footprint will expand to 14 states but Heller says the new schedule will preserve regional rivalries.

The top eight teams qualify for the Big Ten Tournament. Heller believes that will expand to 10 or 12 teams beginning next season and the format may resemble the one used by the ACC.

The Hawkeyes return to Big Ten play this weekend by visiting Nebraska for a three-game series.

Posted in Sports |

Hayashida, Kranholdt Earn B1G Recognition

Sports

April 24th, 2024 by Seth Tiegs

IOWA CITY, Iowa– University of Iowa women’s tennis sophomore Daianna Hayashida was named to the All-Big Ten team, it was announced Wednesday by the league office. Sophomore Pia Kranholdt was Iowa’s Big Ten Sportsmanship Award recipient.
The honor is the first of Hayashida’s career. It is the second straight season and the third time in four seasons the Hawkeyes have had an All-Big Ten honoree.
Hayashida finished the regular season with an 11-6 record in singles, including a 5-2 mark in Big Ten play. The Lima, Peru, native has been Iowa’s No. 1 singles player throughout the spring season.
Hayashida and senior Vipasha Mehra are currently ranked No. 85 nationally in doubles with a 4-3 record. Hayashida has a total of nine doubles victories during the spring.
Kranholdt was selected as Iowa’s Big Ten Sportsmanship Award recipient. The distinction is presented to student-athletes who display sportsmanship and ethical behavior, are in good academic standing and demonstrate good citizenship outside of athletics.
On the court, Kranholdt holds a 9-7 singles record, including a 5-3 mark in Big Ten play. She is also a part of the winningest doubles tandem, posting 11 wins while playing alongside junior Barbora Pokorna.
The seventh-seeded Hawkeyes open Big Ten Tournament play Thursday, facing No. 10 seed Penn State at 1 p.m. (CT) in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Posted in Sports |

La DONNA KING, 88, of Adair (Graveside Svcs. 4/27/24)

Obituaries

April 24th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

La DONNA KING, 88, of Adair, died Tuesday, April, 23, 2024 at Atlantic Specialty Care, in Atlantic (IA). Graveside Services for La DONNA KING will be held 2:30-p.m.  Saturday, April 27, 2024, at the St. Clair Cemetery in Ute, Iowa. Schmidt Family Funeral Home of Adair is handling the arrangements.

Memorials may be directed to the family in memory of La Donna. Memorial contributions may be mailed to the Schmidt Family Funeral Home, P.O. Box 523, Atlantic, Iowa 50022.

Posted in Obituaries |