Officials with the Iowa Finance Authority say the IFA’ Board of Directors recently awarded $824,655 in grants to twenty-five organizations to assist homeless and domestic violence shelters with costs associated with providing essential services and emergency shelter operations. The funding is made available through the Shelter Assistance Fund program. Among the projects awarded Shelter Assistance Funds, was New Visions Homeless Services, in Council Bluffs, which received $37,500.

Shelter Assistance Fund applications are accepted on an annual basis and are judged through a competitive process. The Iowa Finance Authority received 28 eligible applications for the 2015 round requesting more than $1.2 million in funding. The program is funded with proceeds from the Real Estate Transfer Tax.

A panel of judges scored the applications based on criteria in several categories, including: project design and competition priorities, experience and capacity, community partnerships, performance, budget and grants management.

The Iowa Council on Homelessness reports that 18,810 Iowans experienced homelessness in 2013 and a total of 11,811 were served by a shelter.

SAC CITY, Iowa (AP) – An Iowa man accused of providing alcohol to a teenager before a fatal car crash faces felony charges. The Fort Dodge Messenger reports 21-year-old Matthias V. Stork, of Breda, is charged with two counts of supplying alcohol resulting in death. Court records show he has pleaded not guilty.

Stork is accused of giving beer to a 17-year-old prior to a two-vehicle crash in late August. The teen survived, but 16-year-olds Bailey Jacobsen and Lindsey Quirk, both of Wall Lake, were killed.

Authorities say the surviving teen’s blood alcohol level was above the legal limit for minors driving. The teen is facing vehicular homicide charges.

In an update to our earlier story, officials with the Iowa DNR today (Thursday) identified an elderly man who was accidentally shot by his own rifle.  The DNR says 88-year old Clark Melby, of Dunlap, is expected to survive a gunshot wound to his upper torso.

Melby was getting out of his vehicle in a harvested corn field west of Dunlap when he fell and the high-powered rifle he was carrying discharged into his upper torso shortly before 5 p.m. on Wednesday. The bullet passed through him and did not hit any vital organs.

Melby was alone at the time of the incident, but was able to contact a neighbor who then alerted emergency personnel. He was airlifted to University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. The incident remains under investigation by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) has released the 2013 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) Annual Report. The report shows Iowa continues to lead the nation in the percentage of older Iowans who receive an influenza and pneumonia vaccination, but the state faces challenges in categories such as obesity, smoking, and binge drinking.

The BRFSS is an Iowa-specific surveillance system that surveys adults 18 years and older on self-reported health behaviors. Each month a random sample of structured telephone interviews are done. Questions in the survey relate to nutrition, physical activity, tobacco use, hypertension, blood cholesterol, alcohol use, inadequate preventive health care, and other risk factors. Because the survey is conducted on an annual basis, the continuous use of this system allows analysis of trends over time.

Positive trends reports in the 2013 BRFSS Annual Report include:

Only six states had an equal or lower percentage of non-elderly residents without health insurance than Iowa.
Only six states had a lower prevalence of current asthma.
The percent of Iowans reporting being diagnosed with arthritis was lower in 2013 than in 2012.
Although the percent of Iowans age 65 and over who reported having a flu shot declined in relative standing among the states from past years, Iowa still has the highest percentage in the nation.
The percent of Iowans age 65 and over who reported having a pneumonia shot increased, and Iowa is ranked among the top ten states in this category.

Challenges raised by the report include:

The percent of respondents considered to be over their healthy weight (overweight or obese) increased from that reported in 2012.
Significantly fewer Iowans had engaged in some sort of physical activity for exercise during the past month other than their regular job in 2013 than in 2012.
The percent of current smokers increased from that reported in 2012.
There are only four states with a higher prevalence of reported binge drinking. States with high rates of binge drinking are mostly in the Midwest.
In terms of being tested for HIV, there were only three states with a lower percentage of people tested than Iowa’s.
Initiated in 1981, BRFSS is the largest, continuously conducted, telephone survey in the world. It is conducted by states under the guidance of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and is designed to identify and monitor risk factors for chronic diseases and other leading causes of death. Iowa began full participation in the survey in 1988.

To see the 2013 BRFSS Annual report, visit www.idph.state.ia.us/brfss/common/pdf/2013BRFSSannual.pdf.

A Nebraska man was sentenced to prison Wednesday in Pottawattamie County District Court, for being a felon in possession of a firearm. U-S District Court Judge John A. Jarvey sentenced 35-year old Barvarito Garcia Longoria, of Omaha, to 84 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa says on April 3, 2014, Garcia Longoria pled guilty to the charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Pottawattamie County law enforcement investigated a domestic incident, and found Garcia Longoria in possession of a defaced 9mm handgun. Garcia Longoria was prohibited from possessing a firearm after he pled guilty in 2006 to third degree assault on an officer.

The investigation was conducted by the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

A public hearing will take place this (Thursday) evening in Walnut, with regard to a proposed Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) application to the CDBG Housing Fund. Jeremey Middents, with SWIPCO (Southwest Iowa Planning Council) will be present at the Walnut City Council meeting to discuss submission of the application on behalf of a Housing Rehabilitation Program. The hearing will be followed by the possible adoption of a Resolution approving the application.

In other business, the Walnut City Council will: Act on approving membership in SWIPCO; Review the City’s Health Insurance package; Act on the purchase of the Wheatley property; Hold an annual evaluation of City Employees, and hold the second and possibly waive the third readings of ordinances pertaining to Off-road utility vehicles, solid waste, vacancies in an elected office and City elections, and underage persons serving as social hosts.

The meeting begins at 5-p.m. in the council’s chambers at the Walnut City Hall.

The Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce says nominations are currently being accepted for the “Angels of Christmas” recognition and awards. The Angels of Christmas is a tradition in Atlantic to help give thanks and recognize area residents who symbolize the true meaning of the season. Angels exemplify the true Christmas spirit all year long, putting others first, spreading generosity and sharing the holiday spirit with everyone that meet.

Together the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce and Cass County Health System will honor the Angels of Christmas at the Holiday Concert on December 7th at the First United Methodist Church. Nominations are now being accepted in writing at the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce. Nominations can be submitted until November 12th, 2014. Angels of Christmas receive AtlantiCash and an angel figurine in appreciation for their positive attitude of giving.

To nominate an Angel, submit a brief paragraph by November 12th to the Chamber at 102 Chestnut Street in person, through the mail, or by e-mail to chamber@atlanticiowa.com.