(Atlantic, Iowa) – The First Church of Christ and their “Shine Like Stars” Committee, have set the date for the “2025 Shine Like Stars” event.  Shine Like Stars is a free, prom-like experience for persons with intellectual/physical limitations. Honored guests dress up and are treated to an evening of dinner, dancing, flowers, karaoke, photo booth pictures, and goody bags with fun swag for them to take home. Organizers says there are typically 80-to 90 special guests in attendance in addition to the dance buddies and volunteers needed to make the evening of April 5th a success. Each guest goes through a special ceremony to receive a crown or tiara so that they may be celebrated for the Kings and Queens that they are. It truly is a special night!  A mailer has gone out to  guests who registered last year, but others may register.  A Formal Invitation will be mailed to each registrant (so that they get a nice formal invitation to the event). The registration deadline is March 21st.

Some important dates to remember, include:

March 16, 2025: From 2-until 4-p.m., is “Yes to the Dress-Up.”  Any lady or man who would like to attend the event can come to FCC and see if there is a dress or suit that they might like to have for the event – no charge

April 5th, from 5:30-p.m. until 8:30–p.m., is the “Shine Like Stars” event.  This is a free event for the honored guests.  Doors at FCC open at 5:30pm with dinner, dancing, photo-booth, party bus rides, crowning ceremony, and gift bag activities.

The event is hosted by First Church of Christ and Central Churches of Christ along with help from New Life Church. As with all events such as this, it takes volunteers and donations to ensure that participants have that special red-carpet experience. If you would consider making a monetary donation to this event or would be willing to help – there are many opportunities for you to get involved. Checks can be made out to FCC/Shine Like Stars and mailed to 1310 SW 7th St, Atlantic, IA 50022. (Their Tax ID# is 42-1178870) If you would like to sign up for a volunteer spot, watch for sign-up opportunities on the FCC Facebook page, go to https://www.fccatlantic.com/ministries, or reach out to one of the committee members:

• Monica Sanny Brandt 515.971.6270 monicabrandt17@gmail.com
• Emily Clark 402.980.0934 eclark811@gmail.com
• Billie Hoover 712.250.0286 bhoover265@gmail.com
• Stephanie Kinzie 712.249.8087 stephanie.kinzie@mvtransit.com

If you have any question, please call or e-mail one of the committee members listed above.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak – with assistance from Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies – arrested a man this (Tuesday) morning, on a felony drug charge. Authorities say 48-year-old Richard Allen Straw, of Red Oak, was taken into custody at around 4:45-a.m. in the 100 block of W. Valley Street, on a Class-C Felony charge of Possession with the Intent to Distribute less than 5 grams of methamphetamine. Straw was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $10,000 bond.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports a woman from Cass County (IA) was arrested Monday afternoon, on a charge of Failure to Appear on a Drug Trafficking-Methamphetamine. 43-year-old Heather Loreen Butler, of Griswold, was arrested in Griswold at around 4-p.m. and held on a $25,000 bond in the Montgomery County Jail.

And, 30-year-old Tylor Daniel Fine, of Stanton, was arrested today (Tuesday) a little after 4-a.m., in Red Oak. He was charged with Driving While Suspended x 11. Fine was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a slightly more than $491 bond.

(Radio Iowa) – The Sioux City Art Center is sending a mural painted by Grant Wood almost 100 years ago out for some restoration work. The “Corn Room Mural” was originally commissioned for the Martin Hotel in Sioux City in 1926 and at one point was covered in wallpaper and paint in the 1950’s before it was recovered in 1979.

Art Center curator Christopher Atkins says the mural gives a good view of a very different time in Sioux City 100 years ago. There are several sections and they will be taken to Minneapolis in two phases for the renovation work. Eugene Eppley also commissioned corn murals for their hotels in Council Bluffs and Cedar Rapids.

Grant Wood’s Corn Room Mural (Sioux City Art Center photo)

Wood is from Anamosa and in 1930 painted “American Gothic” which became his most recognized work.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A woman from Red Oak was arrested at around 9:30-p.m. Monday, in Red Oak. According to Red Oak Police, 61-year-old Farron Renee Dignin was taken into custody in the 1800 block of E. Summit Street, for Public Intoxication. Dignin was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $300 bond.

(Radio Iowa) – A bill to remove gender identity protections from the Iowa Civil Rights Act is eligible for debate in the Iowa House Thursday and will be considered by a Senate subcommittee today (Tuesday). Representative Brian Meyer, a Democrat from Des Moines, says Republicans should be addressing other priorities like housing and child care.

“I give you credit, when you want to move quick on culture wars, you guys move like a flash,” Meyer said. “I’ve never seen anything like it.” All but one Republican on the House Judiciary Committee approved the bill late Monday afternoon. All the Democrats on the panel voted no. Representative Lindsay James is a Democrat from Dubuque.

“When you love folks in the LGBTQ community, these kinds of bills make you sick to your stomach because this bill is legalizing discrimination against vulnerable folks,” James said. Republican Representative Steven Holt of Denison says having gender identity listed in the Iowa Civil Rights Act elevates the rights of transgender Iowans above others.

“Liberal Democrats have bought into an ideology that erases women,” Holt said. “Liberal Democrats who once championed women’s rights and helped forge women’s sports and Title IX…are now perfectly O.K. with erasing women,” Holt said. “That men should be allowed to invade the bathrooms and private spaces of biological females, thereby erasing their rights — that’s the discrimination that’s happening right now.”

Hundreds of people gathered in the Capitol yesterday (Monday) to protest the bill. They shouted at Republicans who voted for the bill. It’s possible the bill could pass both the House and Senate before the end of the week.

(Radio Iowa) – A Republican who serves on the panel that drafts the budgets for Iowa’s three state-supported universities questions whether the University of Iowa has not done enough to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion content. Representative Brooke Boden of Indianola says she’s recently found information about D-E-I on the university’s websites.

“We have hundreds of millions of dollars of federal money coming down the pike that if we’re not willing to comply that we’re going to miss out on for the state of Iowa,” Boden said, “so this is a concern to me to still be seeing so much of that out there.” University of Iowa president Barbara Wilson says a search of the university’s website may show stories about D-E-I activities in the past, but Wilson says the university is working vigorously to comply with state and federal directives on D-E-I.

“We’re not trying not to comply. Trust me. We’re working very hard on it,” Wilson said. “…We’ve closed offices. We’ve gotten rid of every DEI committee in every department, across every college. We have retained a central office, but we’ve eliminated about 11 positions in that central office and it’s focused primarily on civil rights and access and opportunity programs.” For example, that’s the office where low income University of Iowa students can get tutoring, financial counseling and mentoring through a federally-funded program.

Wilson says she understands “diversity, equity and inclusion” are politically charged words now and she says the university doesn’t have special D-E-I programs or quotas, but Wilson says diversity of experience still matters and that includes first generation students, veterans and students from rural Iowa.  “I can’t imagine getting rid of the word ‘diversity’ you all. Now if you tell me I need to, I will, but it doesn’t actually reflect who we are. We welcome students from all backgrounds, from all regions, from multiple viewpoints,” Wilson said, “…We’re trying to meet students where they are and ensure their success at the University of Iowa and define diversity in the broadest possible terms, so we haven’t really gotten rid of anything and we’re continuing to talk about this, being careful of our language, but the ultimate goal is to support students from all different backgrounds and tell them they all belong in Iowa and at the University of Iowa.”

Wilson made her comments during a meeting with members of a budget subcommittee in the Iowa House. The president of the Board of Regents told lawmakers the board began talking about eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives before any state or federal mandates and if there’s something on a university website that may be D-E-I related, it’s to be taken down.