(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa chapter of the American Red Cross will be starting 2026 much as it always does, with a critical need for blood donors as blood supplies are dangerously low. Agency spokesman Josh Murray says he’s hoping the blood shortage in the new year makes people stop and think about what they can do to help year-round.

This year, the Red Cross held more than 12-hundred blood drives across Iowa and collected more than 30-thousand units of blood. Murray suggests if you’re pondering making a New Year’s resolution, consider resolving to give blood.

You can safely donate blood every 56 days and the process typically takes less than an hour, while the actual collection just lasts about ten minutes.

The blood is used for people facing life-threatening conditions like cancer, sickle cell disease, childbirth complications and traumatic injuries. He says patients rely on a consistent blood supply to survive and heal, and it’s the blood already on the shelves that helps save lives in an emergency.

(Red Oak, IA) – The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors are set to hold their 2026 Organizational and Regular meetings** back-to-back this Friday morning (Jan. 2nd), in their Red Oak courthouse meeting room. First-up, at 9-a.m., is the Organizational Meeting, which includes (among other things) the following:

• Appoint Chairman and Vice-Chairman of Board for calendar year 2026
• Set Board’s meeting schedule for 2026
• Set Montgomery County Employee’s Holiday Schedule for 2026
• Set the Mileage rate for 2026 (IRS guideline)
• and, appointments of Supervisors to serve on 16 committees.

During the Regular weekly meeting that begins at approximately 9:15-a.m., Friday (or, following adjournment of the prior session), the Montgomery County Supervisors will act on New Business matters, including:

1. 1. 2026-01 Payment of Fixed Charges
   2. Approve Resolution 2026-02 Naming Depositories
   3. Approve Resolution 2026-03 Construction Evaluation
   4. Discuss FY24 Audit
   5. Discuss 175 years anniversary
   6. Set dates for budget work sessions
   7. Consideration for allowance of homestead exemption for grandfathered parcel for 2024 and 2025 parcel 641227136009000.

The next regular meeting is scheduled for Tuesday January 13, 2026, at 9:00 a.m.

***Please note, this is a public meeting; however, it may be conducted via ZOOM. Join Zoom Meeting at 

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85039693411

Meeting ID: 850 3969 3411

Or, dial by your location +1 312 626 6799 If you are calling in, Press *9 to raise your hand if you wish to speak.31

(Creston, IA) – A Union County man was arrested Tuesday afternoon, on a Class-D Felony charge of  Domestic Abuse Assault by impeding the flow of air/and-or blood, causing bodily injury, as well as for Possession of a Controlled Substance/2nd Offense (an Aggravated Misdemeanor). The Creston Police Department reports 29-year-old Ryan Jason Parmenter, of Creston, was taken into custody at around 12:20-p.m. and transported to the Union County Jail. He was being held without bond until seen by a Judge.

(Radio Iowa) – This is traditionally the deadliest week of the year for heart attacks in Iowa, and even though it’s been getting warmer and the weekend snow has pretty much melted away in this area, it’s important to keep in mind that when heavy snow falls, one potential cause for heart attacks is overexertion, which for many of us, can stem from shoveling snow.  Rob Gavora, chief administrative officer at MercyOne-Iowa Heart Center in Des Moines, says shoveling is a chore many of us face routinely and it can also be lethal if you push too hard.

“Yes, it definitely is a risk,” Gavora says. “Actually, even just being out in the cold in general can sometimes restrict blood flow. Unusual activities like that, indulging in certain types of foods or not exercising, anything that is different for folks, or getting them off their routines just increases your risk for having some type of event.” Know your bodies’ limits and don’t overextend. Gavora says some Iowans may need to consider hiring out their snow removal, or abandoning the shovel for something more powerful.  “If there are different ways to snow blow, have somebody else help with some of that work so it’s broken up is definitely recommended,” Gavora says. “It’s also recommended to have somebody who, if you are again someone who does need to shovel, that you’re not outside for more than 10, 15, 20 minutes. And take breaks. Don’t have just one long episode or event that might be straying from the norm in terms of how you normally work out, especially being out in the cold for that long period of time.”

A study from the American Heart Association finds more Iowans die from heart attacks during the last week of December than any other week of the year, while nationwide, the most cardiac deaths occur on December 25th, followed by December 26th and January 1st.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Racing and Gaming Administrator Tina Eick says she is happy with the numbers as they approach the end the calendar year. “At the end of November, we’re sitting pretty good. The casinos are running at half a percentage down for the calendar year, and on the sports wagering side, the books revenue wise are up twenty-two percent,” she says. Competition has continued to pick up for Iowa’s operations. The most recent is the start of mobile sports book wagering in Missouri. “Absolutely I would anticipate there’s going to be a huge interest in that for people in Missouri. I’m cautiously optimistic that given the eleven strong operators that we have in Iowa, that we will continue to have strong interest in Iowa,” Eick says.

Eick says they will know more in the coming months about how that competition has impacted Iowa’s casinos. “When those numbers come in, that first set of numbers come in January, that’s absolutely what we’ll be looking at. To see how things shake out with that new competition in Missouri,” she says. Eick says the casinos have held their own, even in the face of some big winter storms. “Weather is a wild card and we saw exactly that in the last few days of November. As I talked with different G-M’s they definitely were impacted by the wild weather we had over the Thanksgiving weekend,” Eick says. She says a better weather outlook here at the end of December is good to see.

Eick says the I-R-G-C has pushed casinos to reinvest in their properties to keep them up to date as a way to answer the competition at the borders. She says the Omaha/Council Bluffs area is an example of how that has paid off as a survey predicted they would lose as much as 40 percent of their business across the border. “The impact has not been anywhere near that 30 to 45 percent range. It’s more been in the ten to 15 percent range, so that’s great news,” she says.

The end of December will mark the end of the first half of the fiscal year for Iowa’s casinos and sports books.

(Radio Iowa) – New Year’s Eve is one of the most dangerous nights of the year to be on the road due to the risk posed by impaired drivers, and Iowans are being reminded to make responsible choices. Katie Jensen, a wellness education specialist at Emplify Health by Gundersen, says if you’re planning to celebrate and welcome 2026 tonight, be sure to make arrangements now in order to get home safely. “If you’ve been drinking at all, having a plan ahead of time, even before you would go out, making that plan and figuring out, ‘Okay, how am I going to get home? Am I going to maybe only have one or two beverages, because I know I’m going to be here for a while,'” Jensen says. “Maybe only have one or two when you first get there, and then switch to something non-alcoholic the rest of the evening.”

There are multiple options, ranging from designating a driver to using a taxi or ride-sharing service. If you’ll be driving, Jensen warns of imbibing in any substances that might impact your ability to drive, even cold medicine that might make you sleepy. “Anything that’s going to impair your focus, your concentration, is going to be something that you want to completely eliminate out of your system — or out of your car — before even getting on the road,” Jensen says. “So that could be drugs, it could be alcohol, it could even be texting and driving. That is another form of impaired driving, really, because you are taking your attention off of the road and onto something else.”

Officials with Triple A (AAA) say their “Tow to Go” program is available in Iowa for the New Years holiday. The organization says the effort is meant to decrease impaired driving by offering car owners a ride and a free tow of their vehicle within a ten-mile radius. Their initiative continues through 6 a.m. Friday, January 2nd. Officials with Triple A say they are proud to offer the service but they are asking folks to make an effort to arrange for a sober ride before heading out drinking and to only use Tow to Go as a last resort. Their service is available at no cost to both AAA Members and non-members. Your call is confidential. The hotline is (855) 2-TOW-2-GO or (855) 286-9246.

A recent study found more than ten-thousand people are killed in the U-S every year by an alcohol-impaired driver. “Really, making that one choice could affect not only your own family, but other people’s families as well,” Jensen says, “especially if you’re going to get behind the wheel and you’ve been drinking, or you’ve been doing other substances that would impact your concentration and focus.” December is National Impaired Driving Prevention Month.

(Red Oak, IA) – Police in Red Oak report a woman was arrested Tuesday night at the Montgomery County Law Enforcement Center, on a felony OWI charge. Authorities say 40-year-old Kristin Ann Miller, of Clarinda, was arrested at around 7-p.m. for OWI/3rd offense – a Class D Felony. Miller was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $5,000 bond.

(Red Oak, IA) – The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports a traffic stop this (Wed.) morning (12/31), in Red Oak, resulted in the arrest of 40-year-old Aaron Lucas Allen, of Red Oak, on charges that include Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Driving Under Suspension. Allen was arrested at around 12:18-a.m. near N. 8th and E. Nuckols Streets, in Red Oak. He was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $491.25 bond.  Red Oak Police assisted in the arrest.

And, at around 5:50-p.m. Tuesday (12/30), Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested 23-year-old Chance Deshon Marley Manley, of Council Bluffs, following a traffic stop near Broadway and Walnut Streets, in Red Oak. Manley was arrested for Driving While License Denied, canceled, suspended or revoked. His bond was set at $491.25.