(Radio Iowa) – Hundreds of people attended the weekend ribbon-cutting and open house for the new UnityPoint Health-Marshalltown Hospital. It’s the result of a 38-point-4 million dollar expansion of the existing medical park on the south edge of town. Jenni Friedly is the facility’s chief operating officer and vice president. Friedly says, “We’re really excited about the design of this new health care facility in Marshalltown, the newest hospital in Iowa and hopefully, we’ll hold that title for a long time.”

Friedly says the new hospital has been a long-time priority for Marshalltown. “We really did a lot of digging into how to build a new, efficient, sustainable health care system for the community and we’re excited to show that off,” she says. “We built flexibility for health care in Marshalltown so we can continue to serve.”

UnityPoint Health’s support services began moving into the new facility on April 21st, while the remaining departments are expected to make the move in today (Monday) through Wednesday.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – An Atlantic man facing felony charges of Attempted Murder and Willful Injury-Causing Serious Injury, claims he’s not guilty by reason of self-defense. That’s according to court documents filed Friday. 19-year-old Michael Gehling is accused of stabbing a man during the late night hours of April 3rd. According to online court records, arraignment for Michael Gehling will be held May 2nd and a Pre-Trial Conference on June 6th. Both begin at 9-a.m. His trial is set to take place June 28th at 9:30-a.m.

Gehling was arrested without incident on April 4th, following an investigation that began with a 9-1-1 call about a man who had a stab wound. Officers learned the incident happened in the area of 6th and Pine Streets.

The victim (whose name was not released) was transported to the Cass County Memorial Hospital (Cass Health), in Atlantic, and was later transported to the UNMC in Omaha, for treatment of serious injuries.

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports seven arrests from over the past few days. Early this (Monday) morning, 33-year old Whitney Christine Picard, of Louisiana, was arrested at 800 Laurel Street and charged with Driving with Suspended. Picard was cited and released from the scene. Late Sunday night, 36-year-old Douglas Edward Woodward III, of Creston, was arrested at the Creston Union County Law Enforcement Center and charged with Driving while Barred. Woodward was being held on a $2,000 cash or surety bond. And, 25-year-old Aaron Christopher Ortiz was arrested Sunday, at his residence in Creston. Ortiz was taken into custody on a Department of Corrections warrant for Violation of Parole. He was being held without bond in the Union County Jail.

Saturday afternoon, Creston Police arrested 27-year-old Chasity Cheyne Bolinger, of Creston. She was arrested at the Creston Union County Law Enforcement Center on a Union County warrant for Possession of a Controlled Substance/Marijuana 1st Offense, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Child Endangerment. Bolinger was later released on a $5,300 cash or surety bond. That same day, 52-year-old Tony Dean Fizer, of Creston, was arrested for Driving while Barred and Eluding. He was later released on a $4,000 cash or surety bond.

Friday evening, 18-year-old Triston Thomas Barncastle, of Creston, was arrested on a Union County warrant for Harassment/1st Degree-Sexting. He was later released on a $2,000 cash or surety bond. Friday night, 58-year-old Theodore Lance Giles, of Creston, was arrested at the intersection of Sumner and Townline with assistance from the Creston K9 “Baxo.” Giles was charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Possession of Controlled Substance 3rd Offense Methamphetamine. He was later released on a $5,300 cash or surety bond.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The second of two Cass County Republicans “Know your candidates” forums will take place next Monday, May 2nd, at the Cass County Community Center, in Atlantic. The event will begin at approximately 7-p.m. and conclude at 8:30-p.m. Whereas the last forum covered the candidates’ positions on Laws & Regulations; Energy & Labor, and Exploring Agriculture, the May second forum will lean more toward discussion concerning Government Control, Education, and Law and Order.

The following Republican candidates for office have been invited to attend:

• For U-S Senate: Incumbent Charles Grassley.
• State Senator – Candidate for U-S House: Jim Carlin
• Candidate for U-S House/3rd District: State Senator Zach Nunn; Nicole Hasso; Gary Leffler.
• Candidates for State Auditor: ToddHalbur; Mary Ann Hanusa.
• Candidate for State Attorney General: Brenna Bird.

(Radio Iowa) – The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is hosting a hiring event at the end of this week in central Iowa. T-S-A spokesperson, Jessica Mayle, says the event is in West Des Moines, but they have jobs open statewide. “We’re hiring in Des Moines, Waterloo, Dubuque, Sioux City, Mason City, a couple of others. So, pretty much all of our airports are hiring right now. We’re ramping up travelers coming back here, we’re going into our heavy travel summer travel season,” Mayle says. There are two main qualifications. “You just have to be 18, a U-S citizen, you don’t have to have experience in this type of work before. Although if you do and you’re interested, that would certainly help you. But there’s extensive training,” she says.

Mayle says there are some attributes that would make you a good fit for these jobs. “Someone who’s very detail-oriented, who really has a lot of patience…. patience both for the kind of work, you’re looking at screens a lot, you’re looking at bags, that look the same a lot. And then patience for people as well, this is a public facing position,” according to Mayle. “So you should enjoy working with the public and interacting with people, I think those skills would really be helpful and would make you successful in the role.” Mayle says the event will showcase the benefits the job has to offer.

“We know, this is a time when people have a lot of a lot of choices, if you’re changing careers, or you’re starting a career. We know there’s a lot of opportunities right now for job seekers,” she says. “And, you know, I would just say to consider, you know, T-S-A really can be the first step towards a federal career, there are so many benefits to working for the federal government.”
Those benefits include paid leave, healthcare and a 401 K. There’s also another benefit to starting now.

“We have a bonus up to one thousand dollars for eligible new hires. And 500, you would get right away after onboarding and another 500 after one year of service. And that’s for everyone who would onboard before September 30th. So if you apply now, and you get started in the process, now you should be on board before September 30th,” Mayle says.

The event is Thursday and Friday (28-29) from 9 a-m. to 3 p-m both days at Sheraton West Des Moines Hotel.

Another event, for Epply Airfield in Omaha, is being held from 3-6-pm Thursday, April 28th, at Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs

To find out more and register for the event, go to jobs.tsa.gov and look for the recruiting event section.