(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak report two people were arrested Sunday night. 28-year-old Nikolus Benton Schooling and 37-year-old Katie Marie Pierce, both of Red Oak, were taken into custody at around 10:50-p.m., in the 700 block of E. Market Street, in Red Oak. Schooling was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance/3rd offense-Methamphetamine (A Class-D Felony), and Poss. of Drug Paraphernalia. Pierce was arrested on a valid, outstanding Montgomery County warrant for Violation of Probation.

Pierce and Schooling were being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $5,000 bond, each. Red Oak Police were assisted at the scene by Deputies with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and K9 Unit.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Atlantic Public Library Director Michelle Andersen reports the Library plans to begin the upstairs interior updates project in two weeks. Beginning Monday, March 4th, the Atlantic Public Library will be open with limited or no access to the upstairs for the duration of the project. The public is encouraged to check out more items than normal by March 2nd.

Andersen says the library will be installing flooring and painting throughout the upstairs and stairwells of the library. She says it’s an opportunity to bring the more modern look the library achieved in the 2020 renovation of the downstairs, to the rest of the building.

Atlantic Public Library (Kathy Somers, photo, via www.atlantic.lib.ia.us)

Library staff, Andersen says, should be able to access upstairs shelves on most days but the public will not be allowed upstairs until it is safe to do so. Library card holders may continue to request items from the adult services collection through the online catalog or by contacting the library by phone, e-mail or text. It may take longer than normal to prepare the holds for pick up. Please wait for a notification that your material is ready before coming to pick it up. The library thanks you, in advance, for your understanding and patience.

The project is being funded by private gifts, donations, and grants.

(Radio Iowa) – The latest “Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll” answers the question of what we should call the men and women who grow the crops and livestock in our state.   J. Arbuckle runs the I-S-U Extension poll and says he noticed that people who work with those in agriculture tend to call them growers or producers. He put a question in the poll and the result was pretty clear, with 75 percent preferring the term “farmer.” Ten percent said they want to be called farm operator, eight percent preferred producer, while rancher and grower each received two percent of the vote. Arbuckle says it’s not surprising, as farmer is an all-encompassing term that indicates more of a lifestyle than a profession. But he says he didn’t anticipate that it would be as big percentage. He says everyone should know what farmers think to be able to communicating effectively with them.

“It’s important for people across the private and public sectors, you know stakeholders who work with farmers, to recognize that and to use the kinds of terminologies that farmers prefer,” Arbuckle says. He says no one seemed to ask the question before. “It’s just very interesting to me that the terminology that we at the university and then some of the private sector firms, and even the public sector, like the conservation agencies and stuff, often times use the term grower or producer,” he says. “And these are actually the least popular terms that the farmers think about when they when they think about terms that they would like to when they think about themselves, I guess.”

You can see more about the Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll on the I-S-U Extension website.

(Radio Iowa) – A series of regional educational conferences for Iowa hog farmers will be held this week at four strategic locations around Iowa. Zoey Dinkla is producer education director for the Iowa Pork Producers Association, which is helping put on the seminars.  Dinkla says, “The Iowa Pork Producers Association, the Pork Industry Center and Iowa State Extension and Outreach partner together to meet our production employees, our veterinarians, and any swine industry stakeholders, bringing them educational material, updates to the industry, and any kind of engagement that we can get with our producers where they are.”

She says there are several nationally-known speakers who will be sharing their knowledge at the conferences, including: “This year, we have Dr. Brett Kaysen with the National Pork Board,” Dinkla says. “He’s the senior vice president of producer and state engagement, so he’ll be discussing program of states that they’ve been working really hard in domestic and international markets, as well as all their success in foreign animal disease preparedness and prevention.”

The meetings are being held today (February 19th) in Orange City, February 20th in Webster City, February 21st in Nashua, and February 22nd in Washington.
iowapork.org

(Radio Iowa) – A bill that’s cleared an Iowa Senate committee targets protein products marketed as meat, but that are made from insects, plants or even stem cell cultures. Selling something labeled as beef, chicken, pork, turkey, goat or lamb that contains even a small percentage of protein that’s not meat would become illegal in Iowa. The fine for the crime would be 855-dollars and the potential for up to 30 days in jail. Senator Dawn Driscoll, a Republican from Williamsburg, is the bill’s sponsor.

“We are trying to promote meat in the state of Iowa,” Driscoll says, “and we are trying to not mislead customers.” Driscoll raises Angus cattle on her family farm in Iowa County. “Our taxpayer dollars should be supporting our agriculture here in Iowa, not some hedge funding fake meat company,” Driscoll says. “…We are also protecting the consumers as far as labeling.” The bill would prohibit the three state universities from conducting research into the production or use of manufactured protein products.

“The Regent universities are not doing it now,” Driscoll says. “We’re setting a precedent in Iowa.” Senator Nate Boulton, a Democrat from Des Moines, says cutting off research is unwise. “We may learn things that are dangerous from cultivated food products. We may learn things that can have potential healing properties that were never thought of before,” Boulton said. “This bill seems to have the effect of knocking the peanut out of George Washington Carver’s hand before he could get started.”

Senator William Dotzler, a Democrat from Waterloo, says the bill pits the livestock industry against farmers who’re raising protein-rich soybeans. “We need to continue to have research on all our products so that we can have value added agriculture in this state,” Dotzler said.

If the bill becomes law all of the state’s school districts, Iowa’s community colleges as well as Iowa, Iowa State and U-N-I would be required to have policies preventing the purchase of plant- or insect-based food labeled as meat.

(Creston, Iowa) – Police in Creston investigated two, non-injury accidents that took place Friday (Feb. 16th). The first occurred at around 10:40-a.m., near the intersection of Sumner Street and New York Avenue. Officials say a 2002 Chevy Blazer driven by 81-year-old Joseph R. Kessler,of Creston, was stopped at a red light while westbound on New York Avenue. A 2012 Honda Civic driven by 23-year-old Sophia Alexandra Groumoutis, of Creston, was traveling west on New York Avenue.

According to the report, as the car was traveling downhill toward the stop light, it was traveling too fast for conditions, and slid into the rear bumper of the SUV, causing minor damage to both vehicles estimated at $3,000 altogether. Police noted wet/icy road conditions contributed to the collision. No citations were issued.

The second accident happened at around 2:45-p.m. Friday, in Creston. Authorities say a 2007 Pontiac Grand Prix, driven by 33-year-old Samantha Jo Gile-Smith, of Creston, was traveling south in the 400 block of N. Cherry Street. An unoccupied  2013 Chrysler 200 was legally parked along the west curb facing south. Gile-Smith initially told officers her car struck the other vehicle when her steering locked-up, but she later admitted to having fallen asleep. She said her steering was fine, and that she had awakened after the collision.

Damage from the accident amounted to $7,000. Both vehicles were declared a total loss, and were towed from the scene. No citations were issued.

(Creston, Iowa) – Officials with the Creston Police Department today (Sunday), said there were two arrests for Theft, and an OWI arrest. Friday afternoon (Feb. 16), Creston Police arrested 20-year-old Molly Nichole Bagby, of Corning, was arrested at the Creston Hy-Vee. She was charged with Theft in the 2nd Degree/General (over $1,500 under $10,000_. Bagby was taken to the Union County Jail and later released on a $5,000 cash or surety bond.

And, 39-year-old Yarioska Rondoncama, of New York, was arrested at the Creston Union County LEC (Law Enforcement Center). Rondoncama was charged under a Union County Warrant for three counts of Theft in the 5th Degree. Rondoncama was also charged with OWI/1st offense, and Driving while revoked. He was taken to the Union County Jail where and held on a $2,900 cash or surety bond.

Early Saturday morning, 34-year-old Cody Reese Craig, of Greenfield, was arrested at the Creston Union County LEC for OWI/1st Offense. Craig was taken to the Union County Jail and later released on a $1,000 cash or surety bond.

JOHNSON COUNTY, Iowa (KCRG) – The North Liberty and Solon Fire Departments responded to a fire at the Iowa Raptor Project around 4:24am on Friday.

Crews arrived to find a fire in four enclosures, which were a total loss. The four raptors in the enclosures were killed. Those include two red-tailed hawks, one Harris’s hawk, and one gyrfalcon. Officials say the remaining birds are being closely observed for any signs of distress.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation and a damage estimate is not yet available.

The Iowa Raptor Project and the Macbride Nature Recreation Area will be closed until further notice.

DES MOINES, Iowa [KCCI] — Three months after the Animal Rescue League of Iowa took in dozens of neglected horses from a property near Madrid, the animals are healed and available for adoption.

The Dallas County Sheriff’s Office removed 46 horses from a rural property in November 2023 and charged the owner, 78-year-old Linda Kay Kilbourne of Johnston, with livestock neglect. Once the ARL took the horses into their care, they said the animals were covered in lacerations and bite marks from the other horses and were suffering from undernourishment. Now, the ranch manager at the ARL’s Second Chance Ranch said the herd is healed and ready for new homes. In total, 31 of the 46 horses are in the ARL’s care, with 21 at the ranch facility. See all the horses available for adoption here.

The reason the ranch successfully helped the herd recover is because of recent changes at the facility. Over the past two years, the ARL updated the stalls, outdoor paddock area and hired more staff to help them handle more animals. While the new facilities are able to handle the large herd, it is at capacity. By the end of March, the ARL is expecting more horses to join when five of their mares give birth; emphasizing the importance of getting horses adopted now.