The leaders of many Salvation Army centers in Iowa are reporting deep declines in donations this holiday season at Red Kettle locations. Newton Salvation Army Captain Janelle Cleaveland says finding volunteers to serve as Red Kettle bell ringers has been difficult – especially on weekdays. Red Kettles are posted at just a few locations around Newton. “There are six spots and we normally ask people to volunteer for two hours. People can do one hour,” Cleaveland said.  The lack of volunteers, according to Cleaveland, has the annual fundraising campaign a long way from a goal of $33,000 – with just one week to go. “We’re only at 50-percent,” Cleaveland said. “So, we still have about $15,000 or $16,000 left towards our goal.”

The Red Kettle campaign in Newton and most other Iowa cities will end on December 23. In Council Bluffs-Omaha, the Salvation Army’s Jeff Beckman says Red Kettle donations are down just eight-percent this year over last. He credits a decrease in traffic at shopping centers. “Although I didn’t want to admit this the last couple of years, this year I think online shopping is beginning to impact the number of people who are out in the stores,” Beckman said.

Officials with the Salvation Army in Des Moines reported this week their Red Kettle campaign has raised around half of its $950,000 goal.

(Radio Iowa)

VERSAILLES, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri state trooper convicted of a misdemeanor for the drowning death of a handcuffed Iowa man has been fired. The Kansas City Star reports that that a Missouri State Highway Patrol spokesman confirmed Anthony Piercy was fired Friday, more than 3 1/2 years after 20-year-old Brandon Ellingson, of Clive, Iowa, drowned in the Lake of the Ozarks.

In September, Piercy was sentenced to 10 days in jail and two years on supervised probation after pleading guilty to negligent operation of a vessel. Piercy had pulled Ellingson over on the lake in May 2014 for suspicion of operating while intoxicated. Ellingson drowned after being thrown from the boat by a wave while wearing an improperly secured life vest.

Ellingson’s father, Craig Ellingson, says he received an email Friday from Missouri State Highway Patrol Col. Sandra Karsten stating that Piercy was fired after the patrol’s procedural hearing board determined he had violated patrol policies in Brandon Ellingson’s death.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa officials are warning that state income tax refunds will be delayed in 2018. The Des Moines Register reports that Iowa Department of Revenue Director Courtney Kay-Decker says the refund delays are a result of her agency doubling down on fraud prevention efforts. The news comes after Iowa residents were told this past spring that their state tax refunds would be delayed several weeks as a measure to combat identity theft and fraud. But the Register found another cause: The state didn’t have enough cash to pay residents at the same pace as previous years.

Kay-Decker says her agency stopped nearly 10,500 erroneous refunds from being processed this year through Nov. 12. Those refunds accounted for more than $17 million.

CLEAR LAKE, Iowa (AP) — Some northern Iowa residents are seeking state approval to keep a popular dock at a state park despite revised rules that limit dock lengths. The Globe Gazette reports that the future of the Sunset Bay dock northeast of Clear Lake State Park remains uncertain due to its 496-foot (151-meter) length. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources capped commercial dock lengths at 300 feet (91 meters) from the water’s edge under revised regulations in 2008.

Resident Jake Kopriva submitted a dock permit application to the department last month to keep the dock at its current length. Kopriva says keeping the current length will encourage economic activity and help manage current boat slip shortages. A department official told the newspaper the agency is reviewing Kopriva’s application and hopes to respond by the end of the month.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Police say no children were hurt when a sport utility vehicle crashed into Willard Elementary School in Des Moines.

The Des Moines Register says the crash happened shortly before 2 p.m. Friday when the vehicle, which was headed south on East 30th Street, left the road and hit the east side of the school. Des Moines police spokesman Sgt. Paul Parizek says police are investigating the cause of the crash.

The driver suffered a minor head injury but was able to walk to an ambulance. Parizek says the driver told officer that the brakes on the SUV failed.

Parizek says the crash “didn’t even knock books off the bookshelves” on the other side of the school’s brick wall that was hit.

BOONE, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s egg farmers and a regional grocery chain have partnered for a promotion to donate eggs to the Food Bank of Iowa this holiday season. The Iowa Egg Council and Fareway Stores say they will give a dozen eggs to the food bank for every two dozen bought by each customer at all Fareway stores in Iowa. The campaign begins Monday and runs through Dec. 23. The promotion will donate up to 21,600 dozen eggs to the food bank.

The council says the campaign aims to give back to individuals who are food insecure in the communities Iowa egg farmers live and serve. Food bank president and CEO Michelle Book says eggs are nutritious source of protein and a great way to help sustain the people the food bank serves.

The Iowa State Patrol reports an Omaha man was killed in a car versus pedestrian accident early Saturday morning in Mills County on Interstate 29 at the 33 mile marker. At 2:10am a 2015 Toyota 4Runner driven by 37-year-old Sarah Elizabeth Perry of Saxonbury, NC was passing a Semi traveling north in the left lane of Interstate 29. The Toyota struck 19-year-old Tyler Ryan Givens-Dunn of Omaha, NE who was riding a skateboard in the left lane of the Interstate. Givens-Dunn was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to the Loess Hills Funeral Home.

The Iowa State Patrol was assisted at the scene by the Mills County Sheriff’s Office and Glenwood/Pacific Junction Rescue.