KJAN News can be heard at five minutes after every hour right after Fox News 24 hours a day!
Keep up-to-date with Fox News Radio, Radio Iowa, Brownfield & the Iowa Agribusiness Networks!
KJAN News can be heard at five minutes after every hour right after Fox News 24 hours a day!
Keep up-to-date with Fox News Radio, Radio Iowa, Brownfield & the Iowa Agribusiness Networks!
(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic Chamber Ambassadors were hosted by Heritage House on Thursday, September 9th to celebrate new staff. Executive Director, Peter Gray, introduced the Ambassadors to Julian Bedolla who came on board in May as the Executive Chef/Food & Beverage Director. Julian is originally from California and has an extensive background in country club dining across the US and is experienced in a large variety of cuisines. Julian enjoys creating experience through food and encouraging those around him to try new combinations of flavors.
Diane Funk has been with Heritage House for many years and has recently taken on the role of Director of Nursing in the Health Center. Diane has rich knowledge and experience in long-term care and infectious disease control. The Ambassadors were also introduced to Sarah Lindeman as the new business office manager.
Pictured Left to Right, Standing: Peter Gray, Kelsey Beschorner, Jim Kickland, Heidi Hinman, Dr. Keith Leonard, Bill Saluk, Dawn Marnin, Dolly Bergmann, Donnie Drennan, Kathie Hockenberry, Rich Perry, Krysta Hanson, Lana Westphalen, Haley Kickland.
Pictured Left to Right, Seated: Julian Bedolla, Diane Funk, Sarah Lindeman and Kennedy Freund. (Photo submitted)
Heritage House’s mission is to support the independence, health, and well-being of older adults wherever they call home. Heritage House provides multiple lifestyle options including independent living, assisted living, short-term rehabilitation, memory support, and long-term care.
For more information on Heritage House visit https://www.wesleylife.org/heritage-house or at 1200 Brookridge Circle in Atlantic.
(Radio Iowa) – YouTube and Facebook users have started seeing a new ad touting Iowa as a destination for tourists and for workers. The “This Is Iowa” ad that debuted this week on social media platforms will soon be running on Midwest television stations and five national cable networks. A spokeswoman for the Iowa Economic Development Authority said $3.7 million in federal pandemic recovery funds are being used for the multi-media campaign. “This is part of our ‘This Is Iowa’ initiative,” said the IEDA’s Staci Hupp-Ballard, “which is really about encouraging people to visit, live, work and do business in Iowa.”
The project was started in 2019. “It was built on research around the perceptions of Iowa which showed that most people simply don’t know enough about the state to form an accurate opinion,” Hupp-Ballard said. “That’s a challenge, but it’s also an opportunity for us.” The latest survey from a national market research firm called Destination Analysts shows about half of Americans are planning an overnight trip somewhere this fall. Hupp-Ballard said this regional campaign is meant to build on that, to attract more visitors from surrounding states.
“Most people need to explore a place before they’ll seriously consider moving there,” Hupp-Ballard said, “and so what’s great about ‘This Is Iowa’ is it brings…our tourism and our workforce and business marketing together.” At the start of the 30 second ad the words “adventure, unexpected, vibrant and a secret worth sharing” flash on the screen. Some of the images that flash on the screen are of a hiking trail, a sailboat on a lake, and the Des Moines skyline at night.
“This is Iowa, we just haven’t been properly introduced,” the narrator says at the six-second mark of the ad. The advertisement ends with an aerial view of the High Trestle Bridge near Madrid lit in blue lights at night.
The broadcast News at 8:07-a.m., with Ric Hanson.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (4.4MB)
Subscribe: RSS
The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports that on Wednesday, Sept. 8th, Deputies arrested 64-year-old Terry Dean Calhoun, of Anita, for possession of controlled substance 3rd or subsequent offense, possession of drug paraphernalia and felon in control of a firearm. Calhoun was transported to Cass County Jail where he is currently being held on bond.
On September 4th, Cass County Deputies responded to an accident at the 400 block of Maple St. in Anita. Marianne Martha Fann, of Atlantic, was driving at 2018 Chrysler Pacifica traveling east bound on Maple St., when her vehicle sideswiped a parked 2011 Chevy HHR owned by 3 Bee Farms of Griswold. No one was injured in the accident.
On August 27th, Cass County Deputies responded to an accident on Hwy 92 west of Massena. Clifford Dean Schaffer, of Corning, was traveling westbound driving at 2014 Chevy Silverado pick-up. Schaffer’s rear wheel and tire came loose striking a 2018 Cora Predator Semi driven by Bradley Allen Ruth, of Orient, who was traveling in the eastbound lane. The tire then came off of the semi and struck a 2018 Nissan Rogue driven by Joshua Vaden Hall, of Waukee, who was traveling westbound. No injuries were reported.
And, on August 26th, Cass County Deputies responded to an accident at 10th and Plum Streets in Atlantic. John Francis Dvorak, of Atlantic, driving a 1997 GMC Jimmy was northbound stopped at the intersection at 10th and Plum Streets. Thomas Jordan Frederickson, of Atlantic, was driving a 2005 Chevy pickup traveling northbound when he failed to stop, striking the rear of Dvorak’s vehicle. Dvorak was taken by private vehicle to Cass County Memorial Hospital for treatment of unknown/possible injuries.
(Williamsburg, Iowa) – An arson investigation at a large park led state conservation officers to an Iowa man. According to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 49-year-old Jereme Goltz, of Williamsburg, faces charges including two counts of third-degree arson, felony possession of a controlled substance- methamphetamine (3rd or subsequent offense), and littering following a two-month long investigation by Iowa Department of Natural Resources conservation officers.
During the months of July and August, DNR officials noticed an uptick in the number of illegal fires being set in parking lots, fields, and woodlands located within the 14,000-acre Hawkeye Wildlife Area. The fires damaged trees, fields, and parking lot posts and destroyed multiple hay bales owned by a farmer leasing a portion of the state land.
Jereme P. Goltz
As a result of the investigation, DNR conservation officers, along with the Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation and the Iowa State Patrol executed a search warrant at Goltz’s residence in Williamsburg. There, officers seized electronics, evidence relating to the fires, as well as methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.
In 2019, Goltz led an Iowa conservation officer in a vehicle pursuit at the Hawkeye Wildlife Area. During the chase, Goltz left his vehicle and fled on foot into flood waters of the Iowa River where he climbed a tree. A lengthy rescue effort by Iowa DNR officers, the Johnson County Sheriff’s Department, the Iowa State Patrol and local fire departments to remove Goltz from the tree. Goltz was charged and convicted of eluding, carrying weapons, and possession of methamphetamine.
The latest U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) data released Thursday, indicates this past week saw continued improvement in conditions across drought-stricken areas of the Central and Northern Plains states as well as in Iowa and Minnesota, where light-to-moderate rainfall accumulations were observed. On this week’s map, widespread one-category improvements were made in drought-stricken areas in northern Iowa and western Minnesota, which received another round of beneficial precipitation this week. In those areas rainfall accumulations ranged from 1 to 4 inches. In areas of northern Iowa and southern Minnesota, percentage of normal precipitation has ranged from 150% to 300% of normal for the last 30-day period.
Likewise, light rainfall this week led to trimming back of small areas of Moderate Drought (D1) in northwestern Illinois and west-central Indiana. Conversely, dry conditions during the past 90-day period led to slight expansion of areas of Severe Drought (D2) in northern Wisconsin as well as areas of Moderate Drought (D1) in Upper Peninsula Michigan.
In the immediate KJAN listening area, the Drought Monitor map shows Abnormally dry conditions remain over most of Cass, Adair, Audubon, Montgomery and Madison Counties, along with small sections of Mills, Adams, Fremont and Page Counties. Under those conditions, corn shows drought stress and the soil is dry The southeast quarter of Guthrie and most of Dallas County, is in a Moderate Drought. In a moderate drought: Soybeans abort pods; corn test weights are struggling; Grasses are brown; more grass fires occur; burn bans are issued, and pond levels decline.
The NWS Precipitation Forecast calls light precipitation accumulations (generally under 1 inch) during the week ahead.
(Radio Iowa) – A professor of interior design at Iowa State University is doing research on designing spaces for people with disabilities, especially for those with autism. As an interior designer in her native England, Julie Irish worked on a range of projects for educational buildings, libraries, airports, chapels and historical landmarks, but one assignment gave her pause. “I was asked to design a school in Cardiff for children with severe disabilities and autism,” Irish says, “but there was still at the back of my mind that there’s not really research to help me design for people with autism.” That realization inspired Irish to devote her time toward interior designs that were both elegant and ergonomic, and importantly, accessible to all. “It’s kind of like the perspective that people aren’t disabled, they’re disabled by the environment,” Irish says, “and that’s where my interior design focused then.”
Early on, Irish wanted to be a veterinarian, but struggled in science. She loved drawing and crafting, though, which led her to the design field. She earned a degree in interior design, followed by a master’s degree in inclusive design. Irish says that degree helped her to understand how the environment affects people, and how she as a designer could improve. “The number of people with disabilities is growing and I think perhaps we haven’t quite caught up,” Irish says, “just the idea of making what we design better for people.”
Irish is in her third year of teaching at I-S-U. She leads a faculty learning community called Autism Links, which gathers faculty from various departments to share research surrounding autism. While her focus now is on people with disabilities, she’s also had clients who are royalty. “My claim to fame is that I designed a restroom in Cardiff Castle for Her Majesty the Queen,” Irish says, laughing. “I don’t know if she ever used it but I like to think she did.”
In the spring of 2022, Irish and her I-S-U colleagues will lead a design studio to look at the former Veterans Affairs Hospital site in Waterloo to see how it could be redesigned.
The Creston Police Department reports two arrests. At around 2:22-a.m. today (Friday), 23-year-old Skyler Rose Suzanne Wambold, of Ames, was arrested at Maple and Mills in Creston, and an Adams County Warrant for Failure to Appear. Wambold was taken to Adams Co. Jail, where her cash-only bond was set at $200. And, at around 11:05-p.m. Thursday, 35-year-old Dustin Kolby Outlaw, of Denham Springs, LA., was arrested at a bar on W. Adams Street, in Creston. He was charged with Public Intoxication – 1st Offense, and transported to the Union County Jail. Outlaw later posted a $300 bond, and was released.
The broadcast News at 7:06-a.m., from Ric Hanson.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (4.3MB)
Subscribe: RSS
(Radio Iowa) – Judges in state AND federal court are being asked to temporarily block the state from enforcing its ban on mask mandates in schools. Fran Parr of Council Bluffs, the mother of twin boys who are first graders, filed a lawsuit in state court last month, arguing schools have a duty to protect students from the coronavirus. During a hearing in Polk County District Court yesterday (Thursday), Parr’s attorney, Daniel McGinn, said it is unreasonable for state lawmakers to forbid local school boards from requiring masks.
“It serves no educational, medical or scientific goal,” he told the judge. “It’s just enacted for political reasons to appeal to a certain segment of Iowa’s population who are unhappy about masks. They don’t like the inconvenience.” Sam Langholz, an assistant Iowa attorney general, argued lawmakers have the authority to set a statewide policy on masks in schools.
“Ms. Parr and many other Iowans have strong feelings and opinions about the wisdom of this statute,” he said, “but that’s not a valid basis to enjoin a duly enacted statute of the State of Iowa.”
A FEDERAL judge in Des Moines will hear legal arguments today (Friday) from a group of parents of children with disabilities who are challenging Iowa’s ban on mask mandates in schools.