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DORIS “BETTY” ELIZABETH BRUCK, 88, OF AVOCA (SVCS 4/21/12)

Obituaries

April 17th, 2012 by admin

DORIS “BETTY” ELIZABETH BRUCK, 88, OF AVOCA died on Monday, April 16 at the Avoca Nursing and Rehab Center.  Mass of Christian Burial for DORIS “BETTY” ELIZABETH BRUCK will be held on Saturday, April 21 at 10:30 AM at St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Defiance.  Pauley Jones Funeral Home in Harlan has the arrangements.

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Visitation will be at the funeral home on Friday, April 20 from 8 AM to 9 PM with family greeting friends from 4 to 8 PM.

Visitation will also be at St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Defiance on Saturday, April 21 from 9:30 AM to 10:15 AM before the service.

A rosary will be held at the funeral home on Friday, April 20 at 7 PM.

Burial will be at Oak Hill Cemetery in Irwin.

DORIS “BETTY” ELIZABETH BRUCK is survived by:

3 Daughters:  Janet (Gerald) Handlos of Georgetown, TX;  Mary (Tom) Gaskill of Tuscon, AZ;  Jill (Gary) Sebern of Denison

1 son:  Bruce (Donna) Bruck of Bloomington, MN

3 Brothers:  Kenneth “Helen” Nollen of Independence;  Harry (Shirley) Nollen of Mobile, AL;  Ronald (Ruth) Nollen of Westphalia

1 sister:  Marilyn (Edward) Goeser of Harlan

10 grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren


 

Twister-wracked Thurman sees recovery begin to take shape

News

April 17th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Recovery efforts are still in full-swing in the southwest Iowa town of Thurman which was hit by a powerful tornado on Saturday. Hundreds of volunteers turned out to help with the initial clean-up. Red Cross spokeswoman Alyson Roach says her agency’s workers are still in the Fremont County town, lending a hand. “They’re out right now with food trucks serving meals, snacks, making sure people are hydrated,” Roach says. Virtually every home in Thurman suffered some damage from the E-F-2 twister, while 14 houses were demolished and 28 were heavily damaged. The town of about 229 people had no serious injuries reported and no deaths. The Red Cross will continue to serve meals as long as they’re needed and Roach says they’re helping residents who were impacted by the storm.

“We have assessed the damage in the area to determine which houses were hardest hit and we are starting the process of client casework,” Roach says. “We’ll determine the immediate disaster cause needs of families and help them out with food, clothing, shelter, referrals, information, whatever they need to get through the next few days while they’re recovering.” Roach says those clean-up volunteers made a huge difference, evidenced in one example on Sunday, the day after the tornado struck.  “Six o’clock AM, you couldn’t see across the park because it was so littered with tree limbs, debris and insulation,” she says. “By the end of the day, there were kids playing in the playground.”

To make a donation toward the community’s recovery, call 800-Red Cross or visit: “redcross.org”.

(Matt Kelley/Radio Iowa)

Chiefs’ Berry wonders about hit that left him hurt

Sports

April 17th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Chiefs safety Eric Berry is telling people to “make your own opinion” about whether the Buffalo Bills intentionally hurt him in last season’s opener. Last month, as the NFL was accusing the New Orleans Saints of using a bounty system to reward players for knocking opponents out of games, Berry tweeted that he wondered whether the Bills had offered incentives to hurt him. The Pro Bowl safety tore the ACL in his left knee when he was blocked by wide receiver Stevie Johnson. Although the open-field block was deliberately low, it was still within the rules. Berry said Tuesday that his tweet was “pretty much a joke. Pressed on whether he thought the hit was intentional, he said: “You can look at the tape and make your own opinion about that. I mean, my opinion is my opinion.”

Iowa students hospitalized after experiment

News

April 17th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

STORM LAKE, Iowa (AP) — Five students at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake are hospitalized after officials say they ingested caffeine during a science experiment. University spokeswoman Jennifer Felton told KTIV-TV in Sioux City that the students were hospitalized late Monday and will remain in the hospital until Wednesday. No details of the experiment were immediately released. Felton says in a statement that the students’ instructor has been placed on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of an investigation. The instructor’s name wasn’t released. Felton says all research involving physical activity or changes in the human subjects have been suspended until further notice.

Every 15 minutes played out at the Griswold Schools

News

April 17th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Students at the Griswold High School witnessed the effects drinking and driving have on young lives, Tuesday. The school driveway was the scene of a “fatal” traffic accident involving five of their classmates.

Griswold students, including the "Living Dead" gather prior to the accident scene being revealed

As the student body gathered on bleachers and two buses that were blocking their view of the crash scene pulled away, the teens witnessed the aftermath of the “crash,” which was actually staged as part of a program entitled “Every 15 Minutes.” Aptly named because on average, every 15 minutes, someone in the country dies in an alcohol related collision. Tuesday’s program began with a 9-1-1 call to Cass County Communications.

When Griswold Rescue arrived on the scene, they found the driver of a pickup 17-year old Jordyn Sindt, of Griswold, laying “dead” on the hood of the pickup, after having been ejected through the windshield.

The driver of the pickup, "dead" with a white sheet upon her.

Three teens were in a crumpled car. In the scenario, Lifenet Helicopter is called in and lands next to the crash site. The chopper transported one of the victims, 17-year old Alec Capps to a trauma center, where he later “dies.”

LifeNet touches down in front of the Griswold High School

Two other passengers in the car, driven by 18-year old Garrett Muhlbauer, of Lewis, were “injured” and transported by ambulance to the Cass County Memorial Hospital. They included 18-year old Melanie Palmer and 16-year old Austin Lorenz. A State Trooper administered a field sobriety test to Muhlbauer, who tested .09 for alcohol consumption and was “arrested” and taken to jail.

Trooper Wayne Brosam administers a field sobriety test to Muhlbauer

Muhlbauer was charged with two counts of motor vehicle homicide and cited for open container.

Judy Nelson, a Registered Nurse with the Cass County Memorial Hospital’s Emergency Room, helped facilitate the exercise. In the two-day program, one student is removed from the classroom every 15-minutes. That person becomes one of the “Living Dead.” They are returned to the classroom with a ghostly white painted face, and are told not to respond to or talk with anyone for the remainder of the day. Their parents receive a phone call from law enforcement, informing them of their child’s “death.”

The parents identify their child, "killed" in the crash.

Other activities, aside from viewing the results of the collision, include a mock trial for the accused drunk driver, an overnight retreat for students, and a separate retreat for parents. The second day culminates with a mock funeral and/or memorial service for the entire student body. When asked whether the students would actually learn something from the experience, Cass County Sheriff Darby McLaren said the serious message about the consequences of driving impaired will make them think before they get behind the wheel or ride with an impaired driver.

The program was featured last Spring, in Atlantic, as well. Judy Nelson said she hopes to have all of the school districts in the County experience it for themselves. For more information about the “Every 15-minutes” program, log on to www.every15minutes.com.

Mock collision being staged today in Griswold

News

April 17th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

An educational, mock collision is taking place this (Tuesday) afternoon, in Griswold, at the High School. The “Every 15 Minutes” program involves students portraying victims of a crash caused by an impaired driver. The public is being asked to avoid the area along North Street and Highway 48, between 1- and 3-p.m., so as to not interfere with Emergency vehicles. No parking is being allowed in the area.

This is Your Nishna Valley 04-14-2012

Podcasts, This is Your Nishna Valley

April 17th, 2012 by admin

w/ Jim Field and Stacie Linfor

Play

Woman pleads guilty to stealing from SW IA Booster Club

News

April 17th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

A Clarinda woman facing a jury trial over the theft of funds from the Clarinda High School Athletic Booster Club has instead plead guilty to the charges filed against her. 52-year-old Cynthia Ann Gerdts entered her plea Monday,  in Page County District Court.  Gerdts had faced a felony charge of Theft in the 2nd degree, and an Aggravated Misdemeanor charge of Theft in the 3rd degree. She was granted a deferred judgement and ordered to pay restitution to the Booster Club amounting to just over $25,600.

The judge also placed Gerdts on two-years probation in association with the felony charge, and ordered the woman to stay with a gambling treatment program. She must also complete 365 hours of community service over the next two years. On the second charge, the judge sentenced Gerdts to two-years in prison, but then suspended the entire term. The case against her was prosecuted by the Page County Attorney’s office.

ROLF STIERLE, 74, of Atlantic (Svcs. 4-23-12)

Obituaries

April 17th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

ROLF STIERLE, 74, of Atlantic, died Tue., April 17th, at the Atlantic Nursing and Rehab Center. Funeral services for ROLF STIERLE will be held 10:30-a.m. Mon., April 23rd, at the Brayton Lutheran Church. Roland Funeral Home in Atlantic has the arrangements.

Visitation at the funeral home is open on Saturday (4/21) from 8am-Noon; and on Sunday (4/22) at 1-p.m., with the family visitation from 3-5pm Sunday.

ROLF STIERLE is survived by:

His wife – Llesa.

His daughters – Sonya Marson, of Council Bluffs, & Nicole Bradshaw,  Atlantic, IA.

Sedina trial set for May 30th

News

April 17th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Trial for an Atlantic woman accused of taking inappropriate pictures of a bathing, elderly woman at a local nursing home, will take place May 30th in Shelby County District Court. 35-year old Amanda Sedina, was arrested last month on a serious misdemeanor charge of Invasion of Privacy-Nudity, for allegedly taking a picture of a 78-year old female resident at the Salem Lutheran Home, in Elk Horn. Sedina was working as an employee of the facility at the time. The alleged incident was reported to authorities on March 22nd

Sedina is scheduled to be arraigned April 23rd. Her pre-trial conference will be held May 7th. Sedina remains free on bond, while awaiting her court appearances.