Having quality child care is vital to an employee’s success on the job. It also contributes to the economic success of a community. Child Care Resource & Referral (CCR&R) staff report that parents in Atlantic are discovering it is hard to find child care. It is very difficult if they have an infant or work evening or weekend shifts.

CCR&R provides resources designed to support the operation of a successful child care business. CCR&R provides training on health, safety, and child development. Child Care Consultants offer guidance to start and maintain a quality child care business. They also give information on regulations and additional sources of income. The CCR&R Consultant provides support to all child care businesses, whether it is in a home, a center or a preschool.

In Iowa, an adult can care for up to five children at any one time without being registered. However, there are benefits to being registered with the Department of Human Services. The consultant can explain the rules and help new providers get on track to offer a quality program.

The need for child care is constant. CCR&R is here to offer support during all stages of a child care business. If you are interested in starting a child care business in your home, please contact CCR&R at 712-243-3118.  CCR&R is a program of West Central Community Action. Funding is provided by the Iowa Department of Human Services through the Child Care Development Fund.

CCR&R welcomes your questions about quality child care. Please call 1-800-945-9778 or check out the website at www.iowaccrr.org.

(Press Release)

DES MOINES, Iowa – This is a critical time of year for the more than 500,000 Iowans who rely on Medicare for their health care, as the annual open enrollment period begins today. According to Kris Gross, director of the Iowa Senior Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP), over the next seven-plus weeks all recipients should take a fresh look at their prescription drug plan and make any needed changes – even if they’ve been happy with it.

“The reason for that is because all of these plans, the Part D and Medicare Advantage plans, have a one-year contract with Medicare,” she says. “They can change their premiums, deductibles, co-payments, co-insurance, the drugs they cover, the networks they work with, all of those things can change from year to year.”

Gross says during last year’s open enrollment, SHIIP helped Iowans save more than $15 million, and most of that was from changing Part D and Medicare Advantage plans. For those who want help reviewing plans available for 2016 to find which one is best for them, Gross says they can contact SHIIP from anywhere in the state.

“We have counselors in most counties in Iowa and they can sit down with someone face to face and get a comparison done, get help understanding the changes or what their options are,” she says. “For people who want to do it themselves, the Medicare website has an option for comparing plans on the Medicare plan finder.”

The Medicare open enrollment period runs through Dec. 7.

(Iowa News Service)

Police in Creston report one person was arrested this (Thursday) morning, while three others were arrested Wednesday. 37-year old Shannon Ranae Danielson, of Creston, was arrested at around 2:20-a.m. today (Wed.), on a Public Intoxication charge. Danielson was being held in the Ringgold County Jail on $300 bond.

Late Wednesday morning, Creston Police arrested 37-year old Robert Gregory, of Creston, on a warrant out of Mahaska County. Gregory was turned over to jail staff for extradition. Early Wednesday afternoon, 25-year old Matthew Jon Buchanan, of Creston, was arrested on a warrant out of Union County, for Contempt of Court. He was later released on $650 bond. And, 25-year old Rojas Filiberto-Manzanarez, of Creston, was arrested Wednesday evening, for Public Intoxication. He was later released on $300 bond.

Creston Police said also, an Ellston woman reported her vehicle was vandalized Wednesday morning, while it was parked at the Creston Fareway Store. The damage was estimated at $2,000.

The area’s top news at 7:07-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (4.3MB)

Subscribe: RSS

Special Weather statement for the following KJAN listening area counties: SAC-CRAWFORD-CARROLL-AUDUBON-GUTHRIE-DALLAS-CASS-ADAIR-MADISON-ADAMS-UNION-TAYLOR-RINGGOLD
338 AM CDT THU OCT 15 2015

…STRONG WINDS AND DRY CONDITIONS LEAD TO HIGH FIRE DANGER…

NORTHWEST WINDS WILL INCREASE SUBSTANTIALLY TODAY BECOMING VERY GUSTY BY THE AFTERNOON. RELATIVE HUMIDITY WILL ALSO FALL TO VERY LOW VALUES IN THE 20S THIS AFTERNOON. AS A RESULT, CONDITIONS
WILL BE HAZARDOUS FOR BURNING OR ANY FIRES THAT START AS THEY MAY BE ABLE TO SPREAD QUICKLY…ESPECIALLY IN FIELDS OR AREAS WHERE SURFACE VEGETATION HAS CURED.

ANY BURNING IS STRONGLY DISCOURAGED, AND THOSE ENGAGING IN HARVESTING ACTIVITIES SHOULD BE AWARE OF THE INCREASED FIRE THREAT.

A man from Harrison County faces three felony charges after barricading himself in a home and firing two gunshots as police negotiated with him. According to the Daily NonPareil, 24-year old Cody J. Smith, of Logan, was taken into custody following an incident that occurred around 2:45-a.m. Monday, in Logan.

Police in Council Bluffs said early this (Thursday) morning, that an arrest warrant has been issued for a man who was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon but escaped and struck a police officer with a vehicle while attempting to flee. 27-year old Adam W. Thomas, of Council Bluffs, is wanted for Attempt to Commit Murder, Theft in the 1st degree, Theft by Deception, and Escape from Custody.

Adam W. Thomas

Officials say the incident began at around 3:30-p.m. Wednesday. A Council Bluffs Police Officer was at the Bomgaar’s store (2703 E. Kanesville Blvd.) when store staff notified him of a fraud in progress. Through an investigation the officer was able to identify a suspect (Adam Thomas) who was still in the store. With the assistance of a second Council Bluffs Officer Thomas was handcuffed and taken into custody a little before 4-p.m.

Thomas, was placed in a patrol vehicle, but while the officers were continuing with their investigation, Thomas managed to escaped from the patrol car. He returned to the 2007 Chevy pickup he arrived at the store in, and began to drive away. Thomas ignored verbal commands by one of the officers for him to stop, and in the process of leaving, struck one of the officers with the truck. An officer fired several shots in an attempt to stop Thomas, be he was able to flee the scene, heading eastbound. The officer who was hit by the pickup was being treated at a local hospital. The names of the officers involved in this incident are not being released at this time.

The pickup Thomas drove was located at around 9-p.m. Wednesday, abandoned in the Crescent/Underwood area (near 23752 Idlewood Road). The suspect vehicle had been reported stolen on Oct. 13th. The area where the pickup was found was searched by officers with the assistance of the Omaha Police Department Helicopter and K-9 unit as well as the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Department and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

As of early this morning, Thomas has not been found. The suspect vehicle was towed to a secure location where a search warrant will be conducted at a later date and time to be determined. Anyone with information of Adam W. Thomas, should contact their local law enforcement agency immediately.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A former prison guard has admitted that he smuggled cellphones into Iowa’s Anamosa State Penitentiary. Federal court records say 29-year-old Garrett Barton of Anamosa, pleaded guilty on Tuesday. Officials say he smuggled the phones into the prison and extorted money from an inmate.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A political action committee that opposes Hillary Rodham Clinton’s presidential bid has aired a TV ad showing the grave of Chris Stevens, the U.S. ambassador killed on Benghazi, Libya. The 30-second ad by the Stop Hillary PAC aired on CNN in selected media markets during Tuesday’s Democratic debate. It also shows photos of Stevens and three other Americans killed during the September 2012 attacks. Democrats on the House Benghazi committee condemned the ad and said Stevens’ image was used without his family’s permission.

RICHMOND, Virginia (AP) — Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump has a new target for his barbs: Democratic contender Bernie Sanders. Trump told thousands of people at a rally at the Richmond International Raceway in Virginia Wednesday evening that Sanders is a “maniac” who is pushing Democratic front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton to the left.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A report card is out on the Mississippi River basin, and the grade is not good: a D+, with the river’s aging transportation infrastructure topping the list of concerns. America’s Watershed Initiative on Wednesday released details of its report card, which assessed categories such as the abundance of clean water, flood control and risk, and recreation.

Tomorrow (Thursday) is the deadline for fire departments in rural Iowa to seek state grants to buy equipment to fight fires in farm fields and timber areas. Gail Kantak, the fire supervisor for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, says this is the time of year over-heated combines start a fire.  “Pay attention to sparks and hot spots especially when you’re out in that tinderbox of fuel in your corn and beans,” Kantak says. “It can lead to a big problem.”

On Monday afternoon, two fire fighters in Scott County were treated for smoke inhalation after two fires swept through about two-thousand acres of eastern Iowa farm ground. Later Monday afternoon in northwest Iowa, a semi was destroyed in a field fire near Fostoria. Kantak says grain bins are unfortunately fertile ground for fires, too, and a lit light bulb touching the grain can spark a fire.

“Also keep in mind that the dust created by the grain as it’s filling is combustible as well,” Kantak says, “so just be really careful with those things and keep the electricity off in the bin as much as you can.” Iowa fire departments that serve communities with a population under 10-thousand are eligible for Volunteer Fire Assistance Grants.

The grants of up to 35-hundred dollars provide matching funds to buy fire fighting equipment “to save lives and protect property in rural areas.” In addition, the fire program staff in the Department of Natural Resources offers courses for volunteer fire fighters in Iowa to teach tactics for putting out fires in fields and other wild lands.

(Radio Iowa)