(Radio Iowa) – The search continues today for the body of a newborn baby at the center of a Fort Dodge homicide investigation.

According to Fort Dodge, police captain Dennis Quinn, officers from the Fort Dodge Police Department, and the Webster County Sheriff’s reserves were joined by the FBI over the weekend in the search of the child’s body. The investigation began before Thanksgiving after the Webster County telecommunication center received information indicating that a female had given birth to a child at home and that the body was moved to another location. 

Webster County Crime Stoppers is offering a reward to anyone with information that leads to the discovery of the child’s body.
The names of the people at the center of the homicide investigation have not been officially released at this time as no charges have yet been filed.

(Radio Iowa) – Federal officials are again pushing back the deadline for when travelers from Iowa and elsewhere need that little gold star on their I-D cards to board domestic flights. Jessica Mayle, regional spokeswoman for the U-S Transportation Security Administration, says the so-called Real I-D won’t be required now until 2025. While she suspects some travelers will put off the process, Mayle tells KCRG-TV there’s more involved in getting the I-D than just renewing your last driver’s license.

“Maybe look at when your ID is already expiring,” Mayle says, “and maybe when you already had to do this project of getting your ID renewed, go online, do the research, what do I need to do to get that elevated REAL ID versus just renewing my driver’s license as it is now.” The list of documents that might be required during the process includes a passport, marriage certificate, bank statement and a Social Security card. Not only does the two-year extension give residents the opportunity to better prepare, but it’s also being used to help driver’s license stations across the country.
Kayla Burkett is the product integration coordinator at the Iowa D-O-T.

SAMPLE of a “Real ID” w/the required gold star

“Many state drivers license agencies are still addressing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Burkett says. “That’s also why the deadline has been pushed back previously.” Nearly two-thirds of Iowans have already gotten their Real I-D as Burkett says the tally for the state is now at 64-percent. In the next two years, she says the Department of Homeland Security wants to make it a simpler process for those who still need to get theirs.

“They will use this time to implement some process improvements or ways that we can more efficiently accept or identify Real ID documents and things like that,” Burkett says. The program was designed in the wake of the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, and was originally scheduled to go into practice in 2008, but has been repeatedly delayed.

(Omaha, NE) –  Officials with the Community Foundations of Southwest Iowa report Sunni Kamp has been named Director of the organization. The Foundations are affiliates of the Omaha Community Foundation, serving Audubon, Cass, Crawford, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page and Shelby Counties.

“Sunni is a dynamic, proven leader with a true passion for serving the people of Iowa. Her previous experience leading the Story County Community Foundation will help us evolve the work in the nine counties we serve. Her experience working on our Donor Services team translates well for the focus needed to build relationships and make community connections,” said Donna Kush, President and CEO of the Omaha Community Foundation.

In her new role, Kamp will lead the Foundations’ grantmaking and fundraising efforts as well as manage each county’s State of Iowa County Endowment Fund Program. The Foundations manage more than $26.5 million in assets, including approximately $24.9 million in endowed assets. They have granted more than $2.1 million so far in 2022.

Sunni Kamp

“As an Iowa native, I am humbled to be assuming this position and excited to expand on the outstanding work the Foundations have done in our affiliate counties,” Kamp said. “Working with and serving communities in Southwest Iowa excites me, and I look forward to building upon the success and philanthropic impact these communities have made.”

Kamp, who joined the Omaha Community Foundation in 2021, holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Northern Iowa and a Master’s Degree from Drake University. She is taking over the Director role from Stacey Goodman, who is leaving at the end of the year for an opportunity outside the organization.

About the Community Foundations of Southwest Iowa

The Community Foundations of Southwest Iowa serve to benefit the communities and residents of nine counties in Southwest Iowa: Audubon, Cass, Crawford, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page and Shelby Counties. With generous donations from fundholders, they support organizations working to improve the quality of life in each county.

The Community Foundations of Southwest Iowa receive funds each year from the State of Iowa County Endowment Fund Program. These funds are distributed via grants to support the needs and opportunities in the areas of arts and culture, education, environment, health, human services, and historic preservation.

Learn more at SWIowaFoundations.org

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Atlantic Chamber of Commerce Programs Director Kelsey Beschorner says “Now that the scores have been tallied, and winners have been contacted, we can announce the winners of the 2022 Lighted Christmas Parade!”

The Lighted Parade Awards are presented by NISHNANET.

Holiday Spirit- Villa Dance Company

Twinkle, Twinkle Award- Clinton Farms

Overall Winner- Atlantic Bottling Company

Photos courtesy Kelsey Beschorner

The 2022 Lighted Parade and Fireworks were presented by A.M. Cohron, Atlantic Promotion Commission, and McDermott and Son Roofing.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Bailey Smith said “We have been getting requests for comment regarding everything going on with the sale of the movie theater.” Smith says “We were made aware a few weeks ago of plans to sell the theater building to a local church, ensuring the closure of our long-standing family entertainment center. The Chamber and CADCO formed a buyer’s group to purchase the property and secured a buyer for the business portion of the theater, who had a business model that would create a positive cash flow. After meeting with all parties involved to come to an agreement that would benefit everyone, we were notified last week our offer was denied and the decision remained to sell the property to the church.” The theater is being purchased by the New Life Church.

She adds “Our organizations are very aware of the struggles COVID-19 brought and what our business community had to endure with closures. Running a theater, when you’re not allowed to be open, is one thing. Running a theater when Hollywood halts production and/or sends movies straight to streaming is another. CADCO assisted in the financing of the theater and has been supportive throughout the entire three years of ownership. During the pandemic, the Chamber offered the theater a business grant to help alleviate costs as well as ensure the theater was at community events to help boost their revenue. We thank the community for all of their support and popcorn purchases to help the theater during this time.”

Bailey Smith stressed “This closure is not due to lack of community support, and we will continue our efforts to ensure generations to come get to experience that same, buttery excitement.”

She adds, “The Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce and Cass/Atlantic Development Corp. (CADCO), while separate entities, have a shared goal that we work towards every day: make Atlantic the best place to live, work and play. We combine our resources daily to ensure current business needs in our community are being met while also focusing on recruitment of entrepreneurs and businesses that will continue to grow Atlantic. One asset that we have always relied on in our recruitment efforts is the movie theater, now known as Atlas Atlantic Cinema.”

Any further questions may be directed at Devin & Rylea Anderson, the New Life Church or the Board of Adjustment. Devin & Rylea Anderson, owners of the movie theater have issued a statement of the matter: “We are hard at work this winter on our movie schedule, our merchant movies, and our winter popcorn samplers. We continue to rent the movie theater to the New Life Church on Sundays and will support them as they appear before the board of adjustments to get a conditional use permit for their activities in the theater building.”

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Cass County Engineer Trent Wolken today (Tuesday) updated the Cass County Board of Supervisors on current bridge projects. The good news, he said is that Bridge # 289 over the East Nishnabotna River on W. 6th Street, in Atlantic’s, may open as soon as the end of today.

Wolken said progress on other projects will be let and/or are in the process of being contracted for.

He said they have a Maintenance Superintendent position open, and there’s a conference coming up next week.

In other business, the Board of Supervisors approved the FY 2021-22 Urban Renewal Report, and the hiring of Tamara Devall as Auditor’s Clerk. The Board spent nearly a hour discussing 2023 Cass County Employee Health insurance renewal options with Ryan Berven, from Group Benefit Partners, with regard to the FY ’24 renewal. Cass County is the first of 28 Counties in the ISAC plan the review encompasses.

No action was taken on any changes, pending further information from ISAC and other necessary data.

(Radio Iowa) – A federal report finds a vast majority of colleges and universities mislead prospective students about the true cost of an education, a report Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley calls “alarming.” Grassley says the report from the Government Accountability Office studied financial aid offer letters from dozens of institutions, letters students use to compare prices and to determine where they might go to college. Grassley says, “In these letters, 91% of the colleges understated true costs, 65% left out important details about financial aid packages, and almost a third listed loans as grants.”

Grassley says the G-A-O report highlights the “deceptive practices” being used by so many colleges, demonstrating Congress needs to act. The Iowa Republican is co-sponsoring a bill called Understanding the True Cost of College Act. “The bill would require colleges to follow well-documented best practices for information contained in all financial aid offer letters,” Grassley says. “It would create a universal financial aid offer letter, so students can easily compare financial aid packages between schools.”

He says the need for an apples-to-apples comparison is critical. Grassley did not know which, if any, Iowa institutions were studied. The G-A-O report compared the financial aid offers from 176 colleges and assessed them against ten best practices from the Department of Education and a commission comprised of 22 federal agencies. None of the colleges followed all ten recommendations.

Click to access gao-23-104708.pdf

(Atlantic, Iowa) – A program entering its 10th year in Atlantic, serves to benefit the Atlantic Food Pantry, and reward children in the Atlantic School District. In the past, the Atlantic Police Department has offered trips to the zoo and other rewards, but COVID and staffing issues made that difficult. Atlantic Police Chief Devin Hogue said this year, the kids’ effort to raise the most items to stock the Pantry in the contest, could win them a pizza party. Hogue said the kids are all-in for the win.

The Chief said canned goods and other non-perishables are worth points. Last year, nearly 40-thousand items were collected. Hogue says they hope to eclipse that amount in this year’s food drive. He says the program has the support of parents, who might just happen to see some items missing from their cabinets or the home pantry.

Aside from the goal of winning a pizza party for their efforts, the kids, he says come away with a sense of giving and helping others less fortunate. Hogue says his officers are all about helping others.

Items for the Atlantic Food Pantry are being accepted through December 12th.

[7:05-a.m. News ](Creston, Iowa) –  Police in Creston, Monday afternoon, arrested a man for Failure to Appear (in court), on an original charge of Indecent Exposure, a Serious Misdemeanor. 58-year-old James Chandler Sash, of Creston, was arrested at his residence. Sash was transported to the Union County Jail, where he was being held without bond.

(Audubon, Iowa) – The Audubon County Conference Board has voted to appoint Janell Bluml as Assessor, in Audubon County. Bluml has served as Deputy Assessor for many years and is certified for the job. She succeeds Deb Umland, who retired at the end of November. Bluml officially took over the post on December 1st.
It’s expected an additional employee will be hired, which will make the Assessor’s Office fully staffed.

Janell Bluml