(Radio Iowa) – The Axiom 4 spacecraft carrying Iowa native astronaut Peggy Whitson and three crewmates is scheduled to undock from the International Space Station as soon as today (Thursday) to make the flight home, with splashdown planned in the Pacific Ocean. During an Axiom Space interview earlier this week, the 65-year-old Whitson said her team has made excellent progress on some 60 experiments during the two-week research mission on the orbiting laboratory. “One of Shux’s (Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla) experiments is growing microalgae, and they can be used in potentially future space missions as a food supplement, got lots of nutrients and things in it,” Whitson says. “And speaking of food, Tibor (Hungarian astronaut Tibor Kapu) is also growing radishes, and he’s doing a great job with the radishes and the miniature wheat.”

Whitson says she’s been particularly focused on advancing a breast cancer study nicknamed CLEO, a project she started during her first Axiom mission in May of 2023. “We’re continuing on the Cancer in Low Earth Orbit study,” she says, “where we’re growing cancer cells and treating them with two different types of drugs to see if they will be more effective at affecting and stopping the replication of the cancer cells.” The American Cancer Society estimates more than 300-thousand new breast cancer cases will be diagnosed nationwide this year, and the risks are one-in-eight that the average American woman will develop breast cancer.

Whitson says the cancer research they’re doing on this mission is promising. “We had previously, on Axiom 2 and 3, some very interesting results, and so this time it’s actual breast tissue from a subject on the ground that we’re testing the drugs against,” Whitson says, “so I’m very excited about those research results.” Whitson, who grew up on a farm near Beaconsfield, is completing her second mission to the orbiting station with Axiom Space, following three NASA missions. She retired from the agency in 2018.

Considered the United States’ most experienced astronaut, Whitson has now spent some 690 days in space, more than any other American.

(Greenfield, Iowa)…

THURSDAY, JULY 10 (Harlan, Iowa) 
6:30 – 8:00 a.m………….Enter & Weigh 4-H/FFA Beef Cows/Calves, Feeder Calves, Dairy Cows in Production, & Bottle/Bucket Calves – All livestock is to unload at dock and be inspected by a                                        Veterinarian.
8:00 a.m…………………..Poultry Exhibitors’ Meeting
8:30 a.m…………………..Judge 4-H/FFA Poultry (tent)
8:30 a.m…………………..Judge Open Class Non-Livestock Departments (if not judging Weds.)
8:30 a.m…………………..Enter 4-H/FFA Cats & Small Pets (cement pad North of Morgan Hall)
8:45 a.m…………………..Cat and Small Pet Exhibitors’ Meeting
9:00 a.m…………………..Judge 4-H/FFA Cats & Small Pets
9:00-9:30 a.m……………Enter Bottle Animals – Unload at dock and be inspected by a Veterinarian.
9:30 a.m…………………..Judge 4-H/FFA Feeder Calves, Beef Cow/Calves, Breeding Beef, and Dairy Cattle
10:00 a.m…………………Pie & Muffin Baking (check Green Book for your scheduled time.)
10:00 a.m.- 1:00 p.m….Little Hands on the Farm & Livestock Babies Barn Exhibits Open
12:30 p.m…………………Bottle/Bucket Calf and Bottle/Bucket Calf Plus One Exhibitors’ Meeting
1:00 p.m…………………..Judge 4-H/FFA/Clover Kids Bottle Bucket Calf Show
2:30 p.m…………………..Open Class Bottle Show
3:00-5:00 p.m……………Little Hands on the Farm & Livestock Babies Barn Exhibits Open
4:00 p.m…………………..Carnival Opens
6:00 p.m…………………..Shelby County Fair Parade – ‘”Shelby County Fair, How Sweet It Is!’
7:00-7:30 p.m……………Strolling Act – ‘Farmer Phil’
7:30-9:00 p.m……………Little Hands on the Farm & Livestock Babies Barn Exhibits Open
8:00-8:30 p.m……………Strolling Act – ‘Farmer Phil’
8:00 p.m…………………..Show Ring: Crowning of 2025 Shelby County Fair Queen and Hall of Fame Awards
9:00-9:30 p.m…………..Strolling Act – ‘Farmer Phil’

4-H & Open Class Buildings open following judging to 10:00 p.m.
Nishna Valley Model Railroad Building open from 4:00 – 9:00 p.m.

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports two people were arrested on separate charges, Wednesday. Creston Police Officers arrested 35-year-old Walter Ivan Malacara, of Lenox, at around 11:35-a.m.. He was charged at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, with Failure to Appear (in court). Malacara was being held in the Union County Jail on a $2,000 cash-only bond.

And, at around 6-p.m. Wednesday, Creston Police arrested 42-year-old Heather Marie Davis, of Lorimor. Davis was charged with: Failure to Comply with Conditions for Pretrial Release; Providing False Identification Information, and Harassment in the 1st Degree. She was transported to the Clarke County Jail and held without bond until making an initial court appearance.

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department says no injuries were reported following a collision Wednesday evening on Townline Street. Authorities say a 2016 Chevy Equinox (SUV) driven by 40-year-old Erin Miller, of Creston, was stopped at the intersection of Townline and Cherry Streets, waiting on traffic, when the vehicle was rear-ended by a 2015 Nissan Altima. Police said the driver of the car, 24-year-old Kayla Bendt, of Creston, didn’t notice the SUV was stopped, before her vehicle hit the Chevy. The accident happened at around 7:20-p.m.

Damage from the collision amounted to a police-estimated $4,500. No citations were issued according to the police report.

(Council Bluffs, Iowa) – The Pottawattamie County Roads Department reports some changes to the timeline for a couple of projects:

• The project completion date for 208th Street (between Magnolia and Pinoak Roads), has been postponed to to 4-p.m. Friday, July 11th. The road is closed to thru traffic due to construction on a crossroad pipe.
• The project completion date for 525th Street is extended to 5-p.m. July 18th, due to the weather. 525th Street is closed to thru traffic from Pioneer Trail (G-66) north to Beechnut Road, due to a crossroad pipe replacement.

(Radio Iowa) – Winnebago Industries plans to close two manufacturing facilities in northeast Iowa. The Iowa Workforce Development’s Worker Adjustment and Retraining website shows the company has informed the state that 77 employees will be laid off at the Waverly facility on September 8th, with 18 being laid off at the Charles City campus on that same date. An additional 26 will be let go when the Charles City plant fully closes on December 12th.

In a statement released to the media, Winnebago says they are working to streamline their operations by moving production from the two plants to their Forest City and Lake Mills locations. They say the decision follows a comprehensive assessment and reflects the company’s proactive response to optimize their manufacturing footprint, enabling them to enhance operational efficiency and align production with consumer demand.

The announcement comes after Winnebago announced in May that they were laying off almost 200 employees at all four of their northern Iowa facilities.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Chapter of the Sierra Club Iowa Chapter has released a report that summarizes habitat loss in the state and calls for urgent action to expand corridors that connect wild areas. Drake University ecology and botany professor Thomas Rosburg says Iowa has lost more than 90 percent of its wetlands and prairies and around three-quarters of its forests and woodlands in the last 200 years. “And this means of course that millions and millions of individual plants and animals that once were here are now simply gone,” he says. He says what’s left of Iowa’s native ecosystems is largely fragmented, which makes it harder for species to move for food, mates and shelter.

“And that’s of course a tremendous conversion from what once was a tremendously diverse and bountiful and productive landscape to again, a now landscape where biodiversity is threatened,” Rosburg says. He says expanding and improving habitat corridors along streams and rivers could help connect the state’s remaining prairies, wetlands and forests. “The other type of corridor that’s sort of ready to use is our roadways,” he says. He says we could add more native grasses and wildflowers alongside roadways to make a difference.

Sixty-two counties and 25 cities in Iowa do this, according to the Tallgrass Prairie Center

(Radio Iowa) – A nine year old central Iowa boy has won a national award for being a civic leader. Henry Menninga, of Des Moines, has helped organize mock elections to teach people about elections, he distributes care packages to homeless individuals and he writes thank you notes to locally owned businesses in his neighborhood. “I feel like I just want to help everybody,” Menninga said. “…I like helping people. It makes me feel happy.”

Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate hosted a ceremony at the statehouse yesterday (Wednesday) and presented Menninga with the Medallion Award from the National Association of Secretaries of State. Pate says he was blown away by Henry’s dedication to his community, which includes organizing garbage clean-up at a city park. Henry’s mother says her son gets an idea and he follows through — like the snacks, handwarmers and hats he distributes in care packages for homeless people.

Sec. Pate, Henry Menninga & Senator Knox. (photo courtesy Sec, Pate’s office)

“Driving to his school downtown when he was five and he would see them on the street and so he asked me on the way home: ‘What can we do to help them?’ And I just said: ‘There’s lots of different resources for them. I’m not sure exactly what we could do.” And he said: ‘Well, let’s make them bags and you post it on Facebook so people help me get the stuff,'” she said. “That’s just of how he is. He just kind of pulls the ideas himself.”

Henry is one of just 100 people in the country this year who’ll be getting the medallion for civic engagement. Iowa’s secretary of state says Henry’s story is a reminder that effective leadership isn’t about age, it’s about having the courage and determination to care for others.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic School District’s Board of Education held their regular monthly meeting at the High School, Wednesday evening. The Board heard from District Transportation Manager Steve Andersen, who recapped the past year’s transportation statistics.

He said the District’s fleet consists of 14 buses, each with a 65-passenger capacity, three are used primarily for activties, the rest for routes and activities. There are four diesel and 10 propane-powered buses, along with 12 gasoline vehicles. There are also some SUV’s and passenger cars. He praised his route drivers and fleet mechanics for their efforts in keeping the passengers safe.

ACSD Transportation Director Steve Andersen

Andersen expressed his thanks to the Board for approving the new bus routing software that’s been implemented over the past year. Later on during the action portion of the meeting, the Atlantic School Board approved Andersen’s request for the purchase of two, 65-passenger diesel Blue Bird buses from School Bus Sales, for $278,484. The buses will be used for activities and backup routes. Andersen said it will take about six-to seven-months for the buses to be delivered.

Andersen said while he likes the clean-burning properties of propane, the flexibility and range of diesel is preferred for this round of purchases. In her report to the Board, Superintendent Dr. Beth Johnsen discussed recent reports about a shake-up in the Hawkeye 10 Athletic Conference.

Johnsen said the Superintendents’ consensus is to try and keep the Conference “very strong and competitive.” She mentioned also, the Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (PPEL) is slated to end in the next couple of years.

The Board will work with the IASB if the Board members decide they want to hold a vote on the levy, but regardless of their decision, it has to be done before 2027. The Atlantic School Board approved an elevator repair bid from Kone Elevators and Escalators, for the Washington Elementary School, in  the amount of $130,000. The Board then discussed matters pertaining to the proposed bond referendum for District Facilities improvements, and later acted to approve: An SVPA (architects)  fee proposal; a Bond Election Engagement Letter with Attorneys Ahlers and Cooney, along with a Sales Tax Bond Issuance Letter.

Atlantic School Board mtg. 7-9-25 via YouTube

The Board also heard from Piper Sandler Managing Director for Education, Travis Squires, with regard to the funding options the district has for the proposed projects, and the borrowing limits. Last month, the Atlantic School Board reviewed a facilities master plan prepared and submitted by SVPA Architects, with an estimated total cost of just over $40 million. Financing for the project is split into two pieces, with over half of the project funded by a $28-million general obligation bond. In order for the referendum to pass, it must acquire 60% of the vote as a ballot question in November.

In other business, the Atlantic School Board approved Employment Contracts for the 2025-26 School Year, along with four resignations (as previously mentioned).