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February report: Economic growth likely in Midwest, Plains

News

March 2nd, 2015 by Ric Hanson

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – A new report suggests economic growth is ahead for nine Midwestern and Plains states. The survey report issued Monday says the overall Mid-America Business Conditions Index climbed to 57.0 in February from 54.8 in January.  Creighton University economist Ernie Goss oversees the survey, and he says the regional growth is likely although areas “linked closely to the energy sector, including ethanol, are experiencing pullbacks in economic activity.”

The survey results from supply managers are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests economic growth, while a score below that suggests decline. The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

Posted in News |

BERNARD NORBERT BLUM, 73, of Logan (Svcs. 3/6/15)

Obituaries

March 2nd, 2015 by Ric Hanson

BERNARD NORBERT BLUM, 73, of Logan, died Sun., March 1st, at Westmont Care Center, in Logan. Mass of the Christian Burial for Bernard Blum will be 11-am Friday, March 6th, at St. Boniface Catholic Church in Westphalia. Pauley-Jones Funeral Home of Harlan has the arrangements.

Visitation at the funeral home is on Wednesday from 6-until 9-pm, with a Rosary at 7-p.m.; Visitation will resume Thursday from 8-am until 11-am, at the funeral home.

Inurnment will be in the St. Boniface Cemetery.

BERNARD BLUM is survived by:

His sons – Joe (Marlene) Blum, and Bob (Patty) Blum, all of Council Bluffs, & John Blum, of Woodbine.

His daughters – Kim (Jeff) Coleman, and Kelli (Shane) Steinkuehler, all of Woodbine.

6 brothers – Kenneth (Doris) Blum, of Walnut; Jerry (Jean) Blum, of St. Paul, MN; Marcus (Janet) Blum, of Fischer, TX; Ralph (Patty) Blum, of Harlan; and Eugene (Jackie) Blum, of Westphalia, and Michael (Vicky) Blum, of Council Bluffs.

6 sisters – Mary Ann (Vernon) Sandbothe, of Atlantic; Margaret (Robert) Halferty, of Vancouver, WA; Agnes (Jim) Starr, of Milwaukee, WI; Monica (Lanny) Newland, of Persia, IA; Linda (John) White, of Council Bluffs, and Theresa Miller, of Colorado Springs, CO.

11 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

Posted in Obituaries |

ROSE M. BYLUND, 88, of Audubon (Svcs. 3/4/15)

Obituaries

March 2nd, 2015 by Ric Hanson

ROSE M. BYLUND, 88, of Audubon, died Sat., Feb. 28th, at Mercy Hospital Medical Center, in Des Moines. Funeral services for ROSE BYLUND will be held 10:30-a.m. Wed.,  March 4th, at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, in Audubon. Kessler Funeral Home in Audubon has the arrangements.

Friends may call at the funeral home, where they family will be present at 5-p.m. Tuesday (3/3).

Burial will be in the Maple Grove Cemetery in Audubon.

ROSE BYLUND is survived by:

Her children – Larry Bylund; Karen Guthrie; Mary Anne (Larry) Pomeroy; Cheryl (Greg) Averill; Carole (Jim) Zahn, and Janet (Steve) Schreck.

Her sisters – Anna England, and Violet (Darrell “Arch”) Andersen.

14 grandchildren, 23 great-grandchildren, and 16 step great-grandchildren, as well as other relatives and friends.

Posted in Obituaries |

ELVIRA MILLER, 93, of Earling (Svcs. 3/5/15)

Obituaries

March 2nd, 2015 by Ric Hanson

ELVIRA MILLER, 93, of Earling, died Sun., March 1st, at the Little Flower Haven Nursing Home. A Mass of Christian Burial service for ELVIRA MILLER will be held 11-a.m. Thu., March 5th, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Earling. Pauley-Jones Funeral Home in Harlan has the arrangements.

Visitation at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church is on Wed. (3/4) from 4-to 8-pm, with a Rosary at 7-p.m.

Burial will be in the St. Joseph’s Cemetery at Earling.

ELVIRA MILLER is survived by:

6 daughters – Joanne Grady, of Harlan; Karen Hutchinson, of Highlands Ranch, CO; Connie (Don) Reischl, of Gretna, NE; Charlotte (Ron) Willenborg, of Manning; Mary (Bob) Bissen, of Earling, & Julie (Pat) Rogers, of Omaha.

Her sister – Mildred Retz, of Hesperia, CA.

Posted in Obituaries |

NWS weather forecast for Atlantic & the KJAN listening area, 3/2/2015

Weather

March 2nd, 2015 by Ric Hanson

(Updated 3:48-a.m.)

EARLY THIS MORNING…MOSTLY CLOUDY. NORTHEAST WIND NEAR 5 MPH.

TODAY…PARTLY SUNNY IN THE MORNING THEN BECOMING MOSTLY CLOUDY. HIGH IN THE MID 30S. SOUTHEAST WIND 5 TO 15 MPH.

TONIGHT…CLOUDY. NOT AS COLD. A CHANCE OF FREEZING RAIN…A SLIGHT CHANCE OF SNOW AND SLEET THROUGH MIDNIGHT…THEN RAIN AND FREEZING RAIN LIKELY AFTER MIDNIGHT. NO SNOW AND SLEET ACCUMULATION. ICE ACCUMULATION UP TO ONE TENTH OF AN INCH. LOW IN THE UPPER 20S. SOUTH WIND 10 TO 15 MPH. CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION 70 PERCENT.

TUESDAY…CLOUDY. RAIN LIKELY IN THE MORNING…THEN A SLIGHT CHANCE OF SNOW EARLY IN THE AFTERNOON. BREEZY. NO SNOW ACCUMULATION. HIGH IN THE MID 30S. SOUTHWEST WIND 15 TO 20 MPH SHIFTING TO THE NORTHWEST AROUND 25 MPH IN THE AFTERNOON. GUSTS UP TO 35 MPH. CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION 70 PERCENT.

WEDNESDAY…MOSTLY SUNNY. COLDER. HIGH 15 TO 20. NORTHWEST WIND AROUND 15 MPH WITH GUSTS TO AROUND 25 MPH.

THURSDAY…SUNNY. HIGH IN THE UPPER 20S.

Posted in Weather |

Hawkeyes prepare for final road test

Sports

March 2nd, 2015 by Ric Hanson

The Iowa Hawkeyes play their final road game of the regular season tomorrow (Tuesday) night with a visit to Indiana. The Hawkeyes improved to 10-6 in the Big Ten with Saturday’s overtime win at Penn State to clinch their first winning record in league play since 2007. No matter what happens on Tuesday night the Hawks will finish with a winning record on the road in the Big Ten.

(Radio Iowa)

Posted in Sports |

Tougher penalties considered for ag-related theft

Ag/Outdoor, News

March 2nd, 2015 by Ric Hanson

Getting caught stealing a horse was a serious crime in the wild west. A small group of Iowa legislators has been mulling the idea of tougher penalties for modern day cattle rustlers, pig thieves and corn snatchers. Representative Lee Hein raises livestock and grain on a farm near Monticello and he says, unfortunately, it’s far easier to catch a car thief than to catch someone who’s stolen agricultural commodities.

“You always count everything going into the yard and then as we sell them, we count them going out,” Hein says, “And there’s been times when I’ve probably been short maybe 10-15 hogs and I wonder: ‘Did you miscount or did somebody slip in there at night and load a load up and is gone with it.” Hein first considered establishing a minimum prison sentence for those caught stealing livestock or corn and beans, but he’s now considering other options. And He’s not sure whether the bill he’s trying to craft will survive this Friday’s deadline to pass a House committee.

“But the biggest thing I want is to let agriculture understand that this is a bigger issue than what I realized,” Hein says. “Maybe we need to start figuring up ways to put up cameras or start lockimg things up way tighter.” 2011 is the most recent year for which data is available and there were more convictions in Iowa that year for stealing livestock or grain than for car theft.

(Radio Iowa)

Posted in Ag/Outdoor, News |

Iowa early News Headlines: Mon., March 2nd 2015

News

March 2nd, 2015 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — Iowa racing officials are reviewing a recommended plan to distribute $72 million settlement related to the end of greyhound racing in Council Bluffs. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission plans to review the report Thursday. Half of the money would support the Iowa Greyhound Association’s operation of the Dubuque track, which plans to run races from April 29th to October 25th on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Most of the rest of the money would go to Iowa breeders based on their past performance.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — A new facility offering psychiatric care and substance abuse treatment to children and teens in northwest Iowa is expected to address an important need in the region when it opens this spring. The Sioux City Journal reports the new Jackson Recovery Centers Child and Adolescent Recovery Hospital opens in May.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Police are investigating after finding a woman’s body in an alley in Des Moines. Sergeant Jason Halifax says the body was reported shortly before 8:45 a.m. yesterday in an alley near 14th Street and 14th Place. Halifax said the woman was 35-years-old. Her name wasn’t immediately released Sunday.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa man has been sentenced to 7 years in prison for fatally stabbing another man during an argument last March. The Quad-City Times reports Judge John Telleen says the argument between Tremaine Gabirel and Christian Wood outside a Davenport nightclub was about “stupid stuff.”

Posted in News |

Iowa racing officials look at plan to distribute $72 million

News

March 1st, 2015 by Ric Hanson

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) – Iowa racing officials are reviewing a recommended plan to distribute $72 million settlement related to the end of greyhound racing in Council Bluffs. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission plans to review the report Thursday. Half of the money would support the Iowa Greyhound Association’s operation of the Dubuque track, which plans to run races from April 29 to Oct. 25 on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.  Most of the rest of the money would go to Iowa breeders based on their past performance.

Dubuque’s Mystique Casino and Bluffs Run Greyhound Park in Council Bluffs agreed to pay the settlement in exchange for ending subsidized racing. About $1.2 million would be set aside for closing expenses at Bluffs Run and no-kill greyhound adoption centers.

Posted in News |

JULIA SCHLICHTE, 47, of Manning (Svcs. 3/6/15)

Obituaries

March 1st, 2015 by Ric Hanson

JULIA SCHLICHTE, 47, of Manning, died Feb. 28th at home, as the result of a residential fire. A Mass of Christian Burial service for JULIA SCHLICHTE will be held 10:30-a.m. Fri., March 6th, at the Sacred Heart Church in Templeton. Ohde Funeral Home in Manning has the arrangements.

Friends may call at the Templeton Community Center from 4-until 8-pm Thu., March 5th, with a Prayer service at 7-p.m.;  Visitation will resume Friday at the Sacred Heart Church, from 9:30-a.m. until the time of service.

Burial will be in the Sacred Heart Cemetery in Templeton.

JULIA SCHLICHTE is survived by:

Her husband – Leroy Schlichte, of Manning.

Her children – Elizabeth Schlichte, of Cedar Rapids; Ryan Schlichte, of Nevada; and Sarah and Steven Schlichte, both of Manning.

Her mother – Arlene Stangl, of Dedham.

Her sisters – Sandie Gonnerman, of Lincoln, NE; Faye Seidl, of Coon Rapids; Peggy Pinto, of Argentina; LeAnn McElroy, and Linda Byrum, both of Des Moines.

Her brothers – Craig and Royce Stangl, both of Coon Rapids.

Brothers and Sisters in law- Dan (Marcia) Schlichte of Ralston; Susan (Robert) Block of Ames and Rebecca (Jason) Bahl of Urbandale. Numerous aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and many friends.

Posted in Obituaries |