May is National Foster Care Month and an Iowan who works to get kids into foster homes says it has a two-fold purpose. Bambi Schrader of the Iowa Kids Network says “We literally want to let people know that foster parents do provide care out of the goodness of their heart and because they want to provide a stable and safe environment for kids. And it’s kind of a thankless job — so we just want to show that we are appreciative for that. We also want to let people know that we have a need for more foster kids all the time.”

She says the need for foster parents continues to grow. “We have about 23-hundred licensed foster parents in Iowa right now…25-hundred-and-50 children just last year were placed into foster care. So, we are already at a deficit, and some of those homes already have children in them,” Schrader says. She says there are some four-thousand kids across the state who need foster care. She says they are looking for anyone who is willing to help.”We need homes of all shapes, sizes, types, varieties.”

Schrader says there are some key things that make a good foster family. “We look for families that have stability and their income doesn’t have to be that of a rich person, but it has to be stable enough so that when they bring in a child it is not going to be a deficit for them,” Schrader explains. ” Really, we just need all different the types of families who can step up for the children that we have in foster care.”

Schrader says every parents faces challenges with their own kids, and taking on foster kids is no different. “I think when you take a child who comes from trauma that has been removed from parental care due to unsafe situations — you are definitely going to have some more challenging things to go through,” Schrader says. She says they help parent deal with the challenges and determine what is causing the challenges so they can work to change that behavior.

Schrader encourages anyone interested in foster care to seek out more information. You can go to their website at www.iowakidsnet.com, or you can call 1-800-243-0756. Schrader says once you call they will let you know the requirements for being a foster parents and then will work you through the process to be able help the kids who need a home.

(Radio Iowa)

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Results from a monthly survey of business supply managers suggest a slight improvement in the economic conditions in nine Midwest and Plains states. The Mid-America Business Conditions Index report released Monday says the overall economic index for the region rose to 61.4 in April from 60.1 in March.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss oversees the survey, and he says the figures suggest strong growth for both manufacturing and nonmanufacturing through the third quarter of this year. The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth in that factor. A score below that suggests decline.

The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

Police in Creston arrested a man on numerous charges, Sunday. 24-year old Nicholas Shields, of Creston, was arrested at around 8:40-a.m. on charges that include 4 counts of Burglary in the 3rd Degree, Theft in the 1st Degree, Possession of a Controlled Substance, Attempted Burglary in the 2nd Degree, and 1st Degree Criminal Mischief. His bond at the Union County Jail, was set at $10,000.

Creston Police also arrested 46-year old Andrew Sewell, of Stuart. Sewell was taken into custody Friday night for Public Intoxication. He was later released on a $300 bond.

And, authorities in Creston say it appears the Creston City Pound had been broken into sometime between 5-a.m. and 7:30-a.m., Saturday. Four dogs were taken from the property and the locks were cut on several kennels as well as the outside gate. There was no dollar estimate of the loss or damage.

The area’s top news at 7:05-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

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The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports two people were arrested following a gas drive-off from the Casey’s Store in Villisca, Sunday night. 24-year old James Robert Castillo, and 20-year old Karaline Kay Overton, both of Bedford, were charged with Theft in the 5th Degree after the vehicle they were in was stopped at the intersection of Highway 71/Business Highway 2, on the east side of Clarinda at around 8:25-p.m. They were brought to the Montgomery County Jail and were held on $300 bond each.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by Clarinda Police, the Page County Sheriff’s Office and Iowa State Patrol.

Police in Red Oak arrested a man from Nebraska Sunday afternoon on a felony warrant out of Douglas County, NE., for Violation of Parole on a prior felony charge of Possession of a deadly weapon by a Prohibited Person. 31-year old Jesse Charles Adams, of Omaha, was arrested at around 2-p.m. in the 1700 block of Broadway in Red Oak, following a report of a suspicious person.

Officers ran the vehicles’ license and registration and learned of the warrant for Adams’ arrest. He was brought to the Montgomery County Jail and held without bond, pending extradition to the Douglas County (NE) Jail.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Scaffolding will soon envelop the Iowa Capitol dome as workers continue a $10 million renovation project that won’t be finished for at least a year. Crews began repairs to the 131-year-old building in April but their work will become more evident this week as scaffolding goes up around the dome windows, edging up over lower parts of the Capitol’s gold-plating. The work is needed to fix internal cracks and exterior weathering.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — A longtime fixture in Dubuque will leave the Mississippi River for the Ohio as the Spirit of Dubuque paddleboat departs for Cincinnati. Owner Walt Webster tells the Telegraph Herald the dual-paddlewheel boat was expected to leave for its new home in Cincinnati this week. Webster says Dubuque River Rides employed about 25 workers during summer months including employees who work at Ice Harbor Galley, a restaurant he and his wife opened in 2004.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s largest utility is in the midst of a $3.6 billion investment in wind power and intends to keep spending on the towers with a goal of producing 100 percent of its energy from renewable sources. The Des Moines Register reports that MidAmerican Energy plans to build 1,000 more turbines over the next couple of years on top of the more than 2,000 it already has around the state. The utility’s share of its energy that comes from renewable sources will jump from 55 percent to nearly 90 percent.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Some Iowa City Community School District students snagged an interesting find on a recent nature field trip: a rare Central newt. Chad Swope, who leads the annual field trips, told the Press-Citizen that herpetologists confirmed the small salamander as a Central newt _ a threatened species not native to Johnson County. Fifth-grader Brody Hiscock found the newt in his next as he scooped up turtles, frogs and snails.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Scaffolding will soon envelop the Iowa Capitol dome as workers continue a $10 million renovation project that won’t be finished for at least a year. Crews began repairs to the 131-year-old building in April but their work will become more evident this week as scaffolding goes up around the dome windows, edging up over lower parts of the Capitol’s gold-plating.

The work is needed to fix internal cracks and exterior weathering. Officials hope the external work will be completed by Thanksgiving, but the internal fixes are expected to stretch into next spring. Workers won’t need to re-gild the dome, a task last completed in 1999 at a cost of about $400,000. The gold leaf is expected to last another 10 to 15 years.

A blood drive will take place today (Sunday), in Harlan, in honor of a Harlan High School Math teacher who is fighting cancer. Julie DuVal, who has coached high school volleyball for 19 years in addition to teaching math, was recently diagnosed with Mantel Cell Lymphoma, and will likely need blood products as part of her treatment.

Her friends and co-workers are inviting the entire Harlan Community, especially staff and students at the Harlan School, to support Julie by donating blood in her name during the blood drive which takes place from Noon until 8-p.m. today at Merrill Field at the Harlan High School (1001 Elm St.).

Blood transfusions are often a critical component of treatment for those fighting cancer. With every blood or platelet donation, there could be many families served and given a chance for another birthday.

To make an appointment download call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or visit redcrossblood.org.

A traffic stop Saturday night in Montgomery County resulted in a woman being taken into custody on drug charges. Authorities say 43-year old Michelle Dawnie Morris, of Des Moines, was pulled over at the intersection of P Avenue and Highway 34, northeast of Stanton. Following an investigation, Morris was taken into custody for Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. She was booked into the Montgomery County Jail and held on $1,000 bond.