The 2013 East Pottawattamie County Fair is set to begin today (Wednesday), in Avoca. The fair runs through Sunday, and as always, will feature the activities of area 4-H’ers, and entertainment for persons of all ages. Judging for the Queen Contest began Monday, and concludes Thursday evening at 6, with the coronation.

Four young ladies are vying for the title of Fair Queen: 16-year old Jessica Butcher, of Avoca; 17-year old Sophie Kock, of Hancock, and 16-year old Hannah Constable, of Shelby. Those teens will be juniors at A-H-S-T this fall. The fourth contestant is 18-year old Breanna Kixmiller, of Walnut, who will be a senior this fall, at the Atlantic High School.

That same evening, a new event débuts at the fair: a Family Fun Night, featuring carnival games, inflatable’s, face painting, a temporary tattoo artist and prizes for kids.  On the schedule Friday night, is the Texaco Country Showdown, a national touring country music talent search. That’ll be followed by the Figure 8 Races, and a demolition derby.

The East Pott. County Fair concludes with a livestock auction next Monday, July 22^nd. For more on the fair, go to PottawattamieCountyFair.com or visit the fair’s Facebook page.

The Iowa Lottery reports a woman from Cass County is the latest, big instant scratch game winner in the County, during fiscal year 2013. Kristen Karstens, of Massena, won $50,000 in the “Super Crossword” game, with a ticket purchased at the 21^st Century Co-Op C-Store, in Massena.

Fiscal Year 2013 ended June 30^th, and the lottery released a review of its top prize winners for the year, last Friday. Officials say Tamara Wiley, of Lewis, was the county’s latest and biggest lotto winner during the year, winning $40,000 in the Powerball game, with a ticket purchased at an Atlantic Casey’s Store.

Even with all those winners, there are lottery prizes that expire without being claimed every year in Iowa. Lottery officials remind players to double-check their tickets for any prizes they may have won. In FY 2013, more than $1.3 million in prizes expired without being claimed in Iowa lotto games. Prize money left unclaimed after redemption deadlines goes into the lottery’s prize pools for future games and promotions.

Winning lotto numbers may be checked by visiting the lottery website at www.ialottery.com or calling the winning numbers hotline at (515) 323-4633. They may also be checked by visiting a lottery retail outlet or calling the lottery at (515) 725-7900 from 8-a.m. to 4:30-p.m. Monday through Friday.  

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

MASON CITY, Iowa (AP) — The family of a man charged in the 1994 killing of a 20-month-old boy has issued a statement expressing sympathy with the child’s family and asking the media to respect its privacy. The Mason City Globe Gazette reportsthe family of 37-year-old Michael Jason Cisneros issued the statement yesterday. Cisneros is charged with first-degree murder in the death of John Joseph Snyder Jr.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The number of people reporting a food-borne intestinal illness believed to have come from a contaminated vegetable is now at 134 in Iowa and Nebraska as new cases continue to surface. Iowa has reported 81 cases of cyclosporiasis spread across 25 counties. The Iowa Department of Public Health says at least five people have been hospitalized.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Authorities in Des Moines say they have made the largest heroin bust in the city’s history. Des Moines police say they seized 11 pounds of heroin and three pounds of methamphetamine from a pick-up truck Saturday on Interstate 80. The Des Moines Register reports that’s more than 440 times as much heroin found in the city last year.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Officials at a Des Moines zoo say a 16-year-old female lion has died of cancer. KCCI-TV reports that Gavivi died after being diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer in 2012. The lion was born in 1997 and came to the Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines in 1999.

The Red Oak Police Department reports 45-year old Raymond Lee Briggs, of Red Oak, was arrested Tuesday on a 5th degree Theft charge. Briggs was arrested in the 400 Block of North 3rd Street where he was found in possession of stolen property from a vehicle burglary that had occurred 20 minutes prior. Briggs was taken to the Montgomery County Law Center and held on $300 cash bond. There is still an open investigation on the vehicle burglary.

A head-on crash Tuesday afternoon east of Shenandoah has claimed the life of the Shenandoah High School Volleyball Coach. The Iowa State Patrol reports 45-year old Chad Van Houten of Shenandoah died at the scene of the crash at around 2:30-p.m., four-miles West of E Avenue on 190th Street. The driver of the other vehicle, 64-year old Larry Wise of Clarinda, was transported to the Shenandoah Hospital by ambulance. Both men were wearing their seat belts.

Officials say Van Houten was westbound on 190th Street in a 2003 Dodge Intrepid, while  Wise was eastbound in a 2006 GMC pickup. Their vehicles met at the crest of a hill and collided in an offset, yet head-on manner. The accident remains under investigation.

Van Houten coached volleyball at Shenandoah for more than 5-years. He also worked as a guard for the Iowa Department of Corrections in Clarinda, and co-owned a drug store in Clarinda, along with his wife, Annie. Tuesday’s school board meeting in Shenandoah was postponed, and grief counselors called-in to help students, staff and the community deal with the loss.