(Council Bluffs, IA) – The Community Foundation for Western Iowa today (Wednesday) announced the appointment of two new members to its Board of Directors, Christina Bateman of Atlantic, Iowa, and Kevin Cabbage of Stanton, Iowa. Bateman and Cabbage joined the Community Foundation’s 15-member board comprised of dedicated community members and leaders committed to improving the lives of all residents in western Iowa. The two began their three-year terms in May, with the option to serve a maximum of three terms.

Christina Bateman

Kevin Cabbage

Donna Dostal, CF President and CEO, said “On behalf of the Board of Directors and staff, we are delighted that Christina and Kevin are joining our Board during such a fundamental time at the Community Foundation. As we continue to grow and expand our services throughout western Iowa, their leadership and expertise will be essential. Given their involvement in the communities of Atlantic and Stanton, I am confident Christina and Kevin will play an important role on the Community Foundation’s future.”

Christina Bateman has been a realtor with Meyer and Gross Real Estate Co. for over 10 years, and previously worked as a project manager for her family’s commercial construction company, Allied Engineering. She and her husband, Joe, and their children reside in Atlantic, Iowa, and in her freetime, Christina enjoys walking, reading, and cheering on the Iowa Hawkeyes.
Bateman is passionate about her hometown and serving others. She is a member and past president of the Atlantic Rotary Club; founder and president of Faith’s Friends; member and past president of the Atlantic YMCA board; a committee chair for the Ann W. Wickman Child Development Center; Board member of Cass/Atlantic Development Corporation; member of Atlantic Community Development LLC; and co-founder and president of Vision Atlantic Inc.

Kevin Cabbage is the chief executive officer at Farmers Mutual Telephone Company in Stanton, where he started as a technician in 1983 and has been employed for over 40 years.
Cabbage is involved in numerous professional organizations, some of which include: the Governor’s Empower Rural Iowa Initiative; chairman of the Iowa High School Sports Network board; CEO of the Stanton Old Lumber Yard (OLY) Events Center; president of the Southwest Iowa Network board; Alquist 3D Printing board and advisory committee chair; and Cellular 29, Ltd. Board. Additionally, Cabbage volunteers his time with the following community organizations: Stanton Child Resource Center board; chairman of the City of Stanton Vision committee; board of trustee member at Montgomery County Memorial Hospital; and board member with the Stanton Community Foundation.

The Community Foundation also welcomed new committee members to help advance the organization’s mission of “creating a lasting legacy in our region by engaging our citizens and communities for durable change and fostering a culture of philanthropy”:

• Jacob Cool, Director of Member Services at the Council Bluffs Greater Area Chamber of Commerce and 712 Initiative, and Kimberly Schneckloth, owner of The Acres Event Center, both joined the Community Impact Grants committee;
• Ryan Daisy, Associate Attorney at Willson & Pechacek, P.L.C., joined the Education committee;
• Meridith Dillon, Director of Strategic Growth and Innovation at Blair Freeman, joined the newly established Housing committee;
• Cara Marker-Morgan, Executive Director at Golden Hills RC&D, joined the committee for the Women’s Fund of Southwest Iowa;
• and Evan Summy, Vice President of Midwest Ag Services, Inc., and Travis Castle, owner and agent at American Family Insurance – Castle & Associates, Inc., both joined the Unmet Needs committee.

About Community Foundation for Western Iowa:

The Community Foundation for Western Iowa, formerly Pottawattamie County Community Foundation, is a tax-exempt public charity, 501(c)(3), that serves thousands of people who share a common interest in improving the quality of life in Western Iowa. Through the Community Foundation, individuals, families, businesses and organizations can create permanent charitable funds that help their communities meet the challenges of changing times. The foundation invests and administers these charitable funds. The Community Foundation is overseen by a volunteer board of leading citizens and run by professionals with expertise in identifying the needs of their community.

In 2023, investors at the Community Foundation awarded 320 grants totaling an astounding $5.4 million dollars to a variety of nonprofit organizations. To learn about the Community Foundation’s growth and impact, view its recent annual report at: www.givewesterniowa.org/impact/report.

(Radio Iowa) – Keokuk is beginning work on the road that leads to the only national cemetery in Iowa. The city has given the street the honorary designation of the Road of Honor. Mayor Kathie Mahoney says a good chunk of the money from city issued bonds for road repairs will be put toward the three-point-four-million-dollar project.

“In honor of the veterans and the Keokuk National Cemetery, that was the first choice of roads to assure a safe trip and a comfortable trip,” she says. The city is also receiving 960-thousand dollars in federal grants for the Road of Honor. The work should be completed by the end of the year.

The Keokuk National Cemetery is the final resting place for veterans dating back to the Civil War.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowans’ plans for Fourth of July picnics and fireworks shows could fizzle as forecasters say rain showers are likely tomorrow in wide areas of the state. Meteorologist Roger Vachalek, at the National Weather Service, says parts of Iowa will see scattered rain in the morning, carrying over into more drenchings in the afternoon.

“Unfortunately, it looks like some of those are going to linger into the evening. Maybe some of the holiday festivities — I don’t know if they’ll be postponed, but something to keep in mind, especially if you live in far northern Iowa or even along that Highway 20 corridor,” Vachalek says. “Farther south and west, the rain may break a bit here in the evening hours.”

Forecast models show there’s the potential for severe weather in the approaching storms, with what’s described as a “marginal risk” for lightning, and worse. “The system that’s rolling through may bring enough energy with it to produce some afternoon storms that could have either a little bit of hail, some wind, or maybe an isolated tornado,” Vachalek says. “It’s not a high threat by any means for any of those three factors or items, but just something to keep in mind.”

Storms that rolled across the state last night dumped large amounts of rain in some regions, with Indianola reporting more than five inches of rain over 12 hours.

(Radio Iowa) – State officials estimate 2000 homes were damaged or destroyed during recent flooding in northwest Iowa. After previous flooding in Cherokee, FEMA bought out 40 properties. Another 70 homes in Cherokee were destroyed in this year’s flooding and Cherokee Mayor Craig Schmidt said he doesn’t know where people will go.

“They’re not staying if they can’t find another place to live if their home is devastated,” he said. “The reality of it is, and it’s not comforting, but all the other towns around us are saying the same thing: ‘No workers and no housing.’ So, what do you do?”

Governor Kim Reynolds and FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell surveyed flood damage in Cherokee, Spencer and Rock Valley last week. Reynolds said the state needs to figure out how to combine state and local resources and get new homes built as quickly as possible. The governor told reporters she and her staff are trying to come up with some type of transitional housing plan as well as incentives for developers that build homes and apartments.

ATLANTIC, IOWA – July 3, 2024 – Interstate 29 and I-680 north of Council Bluffs are expected to partially reopen at approximately 3 p.m. today, following severe flooding in the area.

You should expect intermittent lane closures on I-680 between the Mormon Bridge and Exit 61, Old Mormon Bridge, and on I-29 between I-680 and Exit 71, I-880 near Loveland. All lanes will be open on I-29 south of I-680.

If you are traveling west out of Crescent on Old Mormon Bridge Road, please note that the northbound I-29 on-ramp will remain closed.

Floodwaters remain in the area. The Iowa DOT reminds travelers to never enter a water-covered roadway. Do not move or travel around barricades or fencing as they are placed there for your safety. Turn around and don’t drown.

A man from northwest Iowa who defrauded pork producers while working as the regional manager of an Iowa livestock dealer, “Lynch Livestock,” was sentenced on June 24, 2024, to six months in federal prison. The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa reports 52-year-old Robert Harry Bickerstaff, from Rock Rapids, received the prison term after a December 1, 2023, guilty plea to one count of wire fraud. Bickerstaff was released on the bond previously set and is to surrender to the United States Marshal on a date yet to be set.

At plea and sentencing hearings, and in his plea agreement, Bickerstaff admitted that he had worked as a regional manager for Lynch Livestock between 2018 and 2021  As a regional manager, Bickerstaff oversaw livestock buying stations in Iowa, Minnesota, and South Dakota.  From time to time, Bickerstaff also personally counted, classified, and weighed swine at these stations.

Bickerstaff admitted he participated in a scheme to defraud livestock producers personally and by directing others to (1) falsely and fraudulently lower the weights and reduce the numbers and classifications of swine that producers and sellers had delivered to the dealer at its buying stations; (2) manipulate the weights of swine either manually or using a crowbar, paddle, or other similar object, and thus defeat the electronic scales on which livestock producers’ swine was weighed at his buying stations; and (3) create fraudulent “sort sheets” and scale tickets containing false numbers, classifications, and weights of producers’ swine for transmission to Lynch Livestock’s headquarters in Waucoma, Iowa.  Finally, concerned about a potential investigation into his conduct in early 2021, Bickerstaff instructed others to destroy anything with his name on it.

Bickerstaff held a degree in Agribusiness and was experienced in the pork industry.  Bickerstaff was a pork producer himself.  In February 2022, Bickerstaff won a “Hog Wild” award from a statewide pork producers’ association for his role in promoting pork in Lyon County. Bickerstaff is the fifth manager of Lynch Livestock sentenced in this livestock fraud scheme.

Billie Joe Wickham, of Waucoma, Iowa, pled guilty on July 15, 2022, to one count of Conspiracy to Defraud the United States.  On January 13, 2023, Wickham was sentenced to six months of imprisonment and fined $3,000.  Wickham must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Charlie Lynch, of Fort Atkinson, Iowa, pled guilty on July 25, 2022, to one count of Conspiracy to Defraud the United States.  On January 13, 2023, Lynch was sentenced to five years of probation and fined $3,000.

Leland “Pete” Blue, of Fredericksburg, Iowa, pled guilty on July 28, 2022, to one count of Conspiracy to Defraud the United States.  On January 13, 2023, Blue was sentenced to five years of probation and fined $1,000.

Tyler Thoms, of Fayette, Iowa, pled guilty on August 9, 2022, to one count of Causing a Livestock Dealer to Keep Inaccurate Accounts and Records.  On January 13, 2023, Thoms was sentenced to one year of probation.

Bickerstaff’s employer, Lynch Family Companies, Inc., of Waucoma, Iowa, also known as “Lynch Livestock,” pled guilty on July 29, 2022, to one count of Failing to Comply with an Order of the Secretary of Agriculture.  On February 10, 2023, Lynch Livestock was sentenced to five years of probation, fined $196,000, and ordered to pay over $3 million in restitution to livestock producers and farmers.

Officials with the U-S Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa have announced a man from Crawford County, 37-year-old Ian Ward, of Denison, pled guilty July 2nd (2024), to one count of prohibited person in possession of a firearm, one count of possession of a short-barreled rifle, and one count of possession of silencers.

At the plea hearing, evidence showed that on August 21, 2023, a traffic stop in Pocahontas County found Ward, high on fentanyl (he admitted as much to the deputy who stopped him), with six traditional firearms, including an illegal, short-barreled rifle, plus several full silencer/suppressor type devices. Law enforcement also located and seized from Ward’s vehicle methamphetamine, THC wax, and drug user paraphernalia. Ward admitted to being a user of fentanyl, meth, and marijuana and to a previous conviction for a felony drug offense in Minnesota. Being a felon as well as illegal user of drugs prohibited Ward from possessing any firearm.

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a pre-sentence report is prepared. Ward remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. On the prohibited possession of firearm conviction, Ward faces a possible maximum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and not more than three years of supervised release following any imprisonment. On the two convictions of possession of illegal firearm/silencers, Ward faces a possible maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, a $10,000 fine, and not more than three years of supervised release following imprisonment.

(Harlan, Iowa) – The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office today (Wednesday), released a report on arrests that took place between June 4th and June 30th. Most recently:

On the 28th, 62-year-old Susan Yvonne King, of Harlan, was arrested and transported to the Shelby County Jail after a traffic stop on Willow St. King was charged with OWI-1st offense, Failure to Provide Proof of Financial Liability, and Driving on Wrong Side of Two-Way Highway.  And, on the 27th, 37-year-old Lachelle Jean Petersen, of Atlantic, was arrested and transported to the Shelby County Jail on an active Shelby County warrant.

Other arrests included:

6/04/2024: Dallas Paul Steinkuehler, Age 28, Woodbine IA. Steinkuehler was arrested following a traffic stop on M16. Steinkuehler was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with Driving while Barred.

6/07/2024: Daniel Raymond Harris, Age 58, Harlan IA. Harris was arrested after a call for service on Hwy 44 and transported to the Shelby County Jail. Harris was charged with No Valid Driver’s License, Failure to maintain control, and OWI first offense.

6/08/2024: Kendra Kathleen Kyle, Age 30, Avoca IA. Kyle was arrested after a traffic stop on Chatburn Ave. Kyle was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia; Gavin Patrick Burroughs, Age 19, Harlan IA. Burroughs was arrested after a traffic stop on Farnam St.  Burroughs was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with OWI-1st offense.

6/09/2024: Brandon Hillgartner, Age 44, Harlan IA. Hillgartner was arrested after a traffic stop on Chatburn Ave. Hillgartner was arrested and transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with OWI- 1st Offense, and Speeding; Adam Richard Mardesen, Age 50, Elk Horn IA. Mardesen was arrested after a traffic stop on Yucca Rd. Mardesen was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with Failure to Use Safety Belt, Operating Non-Registered Vehicle, Failure to Provide Proof of Financial Liability, and Possession of a controlled substance.

6/10/2024: Reid Jeffrey Hemminger, Age 39, Harlan IA. Hemminger was arrested and transported to the Shelby County Jail on an Active Shelby County Warrant.

6/16/2024: Anthony Schwery, Age 28, Defiance, IA. Schwery was arrested after a traffic stop. Schwery was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with Failure to Maintain Control, and OWI – First offense; Emma Jo Rossell, Age 20, Harlan, IA. Rossell was arrested after a call for service and transported to the Shelby County Jail. Rossell was charged with Disorderly Conduct-Fighting/Violence.

6/18/2024: Rex Dean McDermott, Age 57, Elk Horn, IA. Mcdermott was arrested after a call for service and transported to the Shelby County Jail. Mcdermott was charged with Driving while Barred, driving while License Denied or Revoked, and Operating without Interlock.

6/20/2024: Orin Wesley Wright III, Age 31, Kirkman, IA. Wright was arrested after a call for service and transported to the Shelby County Jail. Wright was charged with OWI-1st offense.

6/21/2024: Steven Glenn Herrington, Age 60, Council Bluffs, IA. Herrington was arrested and transported to the Shelby County Jail on an active Shelby County Warrant.

6/23/2024: Gage Michael Johnston, Age 27, Henderson, IA. Johnston was arrested after a call for service and transported to the Shelby County Jail. Johnston was charged with Theft 1st degree, Speeding (21 or over), No valid Driver’s license, and Failure to Yield to Emergency Vehicle; Camryn Rose Casebeer, Age 19, Harlan IA. Casebeer was arrested after a traffic stop on 12th street and transported to the Shelby County Jail. Casebeer was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance Marijuana, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Improper registration plate lamp, Person under 21 using Tobacco/Vape products.

Note: All arrests reported on the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page are arrests made by the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office with charges originating from the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office. If an arrest originated by another Agency (Iowa State Patrol, Division of Criminal Investigations, Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Department of Natural Resources, Ect.) but the individual was brought to the Shelby County Jail that arrest would not be reported on our page. Additionally, a person arrested on an arrest warrant from another County and brought to the Shelby County Jail to be held until picked up by a different County/Agency would not be reported on this page.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Board of Supervisors, during their meeting this (Wednesday) morning, approved renewal of the County’s ICAP (Iowa Communities Assurance Pool) Insurance. Auditor Mandy Berg said the increase wasn’t as big as she expected, as there was only one claim. Last year the rate went up $250. This year it was $256. That’s likely to change next year, she said.

Supervisor John Twombley commented some insurance companies are no longer renewing policies when they expire. That leaves policy holders holding the bag for finding coverage on their own. In other business, the Adair County Board of Supervisors set the hours the courthouse in Greenfield will be open during RAGBRAI®. Mandy Berg said the riders will be in Greenfield on July 23^rd.

Following brief discussion, the Board agreed to close the courthouse to the public during the event, and allow County Department Heads to make a decision on staff hours or vacation time as needed, similar to what was done during the pandemic.

And, the Board approved the appointment of John Twombly to both the Board of Adjustment and the Planning and Zoning Commission in the same motion (both are 5 year terms). The Board tabled action on a County Tax Abatement, to allow members to think it through and gather more information.

(Anita, Iowa) – The CAM School District’s Board of Education held a Workshop Tuesday evening in Anita, with regard to District Facilities. Superintendent Paul Croghan told KJAN News the Board received, and then discussed, a recommendation from the Facility Committee.

The Board weighed the options of maintaining two buildings and two different campuses, and the costs versus one campus and one building over-time.

Following the Committee’s presentation, Croghan said the CAM School Board asked questions and gave the Committee time to speak freely about anything they thought the Board might consider. During the Board’s next, regular meeting on July 15th, the Board and Committee representatives will mull over the financial projection numbers. A workshop will precede the regular meeting on the 15th.

Paul Croghan said the Committee’s recommendation to move forward with a one-building district, was based on a number of factors.

He says the process of finding answers to questions about the District’s needs was not taken lightly.

He said he appreciates everyone who has worked to compile the necessary information, and 560 District patrons who responded to an online survey that was unique to the CAM District, and those who want to be informed and involved in the decision making process.