The Atlantic Parks and Recreation Department’s Board of Directors will meet in a regular session 5:15-p.m. Monday, in the City Council’s Chambers at City Hall, in Atlantic. Action items and.or New Business includes:

• Discussion with regard to tree removal at Sunnyside Park
• The closing of roads in the Sunnyside Park (as previously announced, the road gates closed Jan. 10th)
• An Ice Skating Rink update
• An update on the Community Gardens
• Bikes for recreation
• PALS
• Controlled Burns
• Ice Fishing.

In his report to the Board, Parks and Rec Director Bryant Rasmussen is expected to talk about:

• A Recreation shed being built
• Grants he’s applied for
• New recreation items added to the shop
• Snow removal efforts
• Spring Projects that are underway
• and, an update on the the previously announced New Year’s Challenge.

OTTUMWA, Iowa (AP) – Bernie Sanders is seeking out first-time Iowa caucus participants where they live, work and shop. Pete Buttigieg is signaling to them through friends of supporters and closing the deal in big rallies. The strategies represent one of the most important pieces of a winning presidential Iowa campaign: getting new people to participate.

It always matters, but in a highly competitive Democratic presidential caucus campaign, expanding the electorate is vitally important for the pack of four candidates scrambling to break out in the coming two weeks. The candidate who turns out the most and the broadest array of first time participants stands a very good chance of winning.

Several meetings are set to kick-off the week around the listening area, from Boards of Supervisors to School Board sessions. The Adair County Board of Supervisors will meet 9-a.m. Monday in their Boardroom at the Courthouse in Greenfield. On their agenda are FY21 Budget Requests from Sheriff Jeff Vandewater, and Auditor Mandy Berg (re: Auditor & Data Processing), followed by a Budget Work Session.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors will meet 1:30-p.m. Monday, in their Boardroom at the Courthouse in Atlantic. On their agenda is the interview during a closed session, of an applicant for the County Engineer’s position, followed by a report from the Cass County Attorney, and the amendment of a 2020 5-year Secondary Roads Program, and budgetary considerations.

The Griswold School Board will meet 5:30-p.m. Monday in the Conference Room at the High School. The Board will consider approval of a retirement compensation package for Non-Certified Employees, conduct a facilities inspection walk-through, and possibly hold a closed session for strategy negotiations.

The Exira/Elk Horn-Kimballton School Board meets 6-p.m. Monday in the Conference Room at the Elk Horn Building. Discussion and/or Action items include those pertaining to: A Sharing Agreement; Setting the time and date for the 2020-21 Calendar Hearing; and Personnel Hires/Transfers and related matters.

The CAM School Board meets 6:30-p.m., Monday, in the CAM High School Superintendent’s Office. The Board will continue discussions with regard to a Facility Assessment with Boyd Jones & Alley Poyner Macchieto.

And, the Audubon School Board meeting gets underway at 7-p.m., Monday, in the High School Boardroom. Their action items include: Setting the date/time for the March 3rd meeting; Possible action on Wrestling Room RTU(s); Approving a contract with Denovo for Construction Management Services (re: High School Improvements), and approving a contract with Studio Melee, for Architect Services; also, approval of changes to the shared superintendent’s position with two districts, and…personnel matters. Discussion will also be held with regard to possible calendar options for 2019-20.

Police in Red Oak report a traffic stop at around 2:30 this (Sunday) morning, resulted in the arrest of a Clarinda woman. 31-year old Shona Renae Carlson was arrested for OWI/1st offense. She was transported to the Montgomery County Jail, and held on a $1,000 bond.

Many area churches have cancelled their Sunday services today (1/19), due to the bitterly cold air. The list on our CANCELLATIONS page will be updated as necessary, but for now, here is the list of churches that have cancelled for today (as of 4:20-a.m.):

• Adair-Good Shepard Lutheran Church (1/19)
• Adair-United Methodist Church (1/19)
• Bridgewater-United Methodist Church (1/19)
• Buck Creek Methodist will not have services Sunday. (1/19)
• Casey-United Methodist Church (1/19)
• No services at the Trinity Christian Church in Bridgewater. (1/19)
• Coon Rapids-First Christian Church (1/19)
• No services at the Marne Methodist Church. (1/19)
• Massena-United Methodist Church (1/19)
• No services or Bible classes at the St. John’s Lutheran Church in Audubon (1/19)
• No services at the United Congregational Methodist Church in Lewis. (1/19)
• No services at Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Anita. (1/19)

ANKENY, Iowa (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg says the Oval Office benefits from the perspective of a commander in chief who has served in the military in wartime. During an interview in Iowa Saturday, Buttigieg says his service gives him a special understanding of deployed men and women.

He says it sets him apart from not only his top tier rivals, but President Donald Trump. He says, “That perspective is needed especially when we’ve got a president who thinks that strength is the same as the chest-thumping of the loudmouth guy at the end of the bar.”

NEWTON, Iowa (AP) — The Senate impeachment trial schedule means this may well be the last full weekend of campaigning in Iowa for some Democratic candidates. Four senators in the race will serve as jurors in the trial of President Donald Trump. They are Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Michael Bennet of Colorado.

That’s left their campaigns scrambling to come up with ways to keep them on voters’ radars in Iowa and the early-voting states. It could also be an advantage for two of their rivals, former Vice President Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana.

INDIANOLA, Iowa (AP) — Joe Biden has called for Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign to “disown” what he calls “doctored video” that some Sanders supporters say shows the former vice president endorsing Republican calls to cut Social Security and Medicare. Top Sanders’ aides have in recent weeks circulated video clips of Biden discussing Social Security and Medicare over the years.

One of them shows him saying former Republican Speaker Paul Ryan was “right” when he said Republicans would have to consider entitlement spending after the GOP tax cuts. But the clip misses Biden’s larger point accusing the GOP of a cynical legislative strategy to force the issue. Biden told voters in Iowa that Sanders should “disown” the video, which he called “doctored.” Sanders campaign did not immediately respond.

MUSCATINE, Iowa (AP) – A 20-year-old Muscatine man has been found guilty of first-degree murder for the 2018 stabbing death of his grandmother on her birthday. The Muscatine Journal reports that the jury on Friday found Darian Lensgraf guilty of killing 66-year-old Diana Lensgraf on Dec. 12, 2018.

He faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison when he’s sentenced on March 6. He remains behind bars until his sentencing. Lensgraf was arrested after a convenience store clerk called 911 to report that Lensgraf was in the store holding a bloody knife. His grandmother’s body had been found only minutes earlier.

An out-of-control pickup struck a vehicle that slid into the ditch, Friday, and nearly struck two people who were out with the other vehicle. The Iowa State Patrol says the accident happened at around 12:04-p.m. on Interstate 80 westbound near mile marker 58, in Cass County.

The Patrol says a 2013 Ford Super Duty pickup driven by 24-year old Sheron A. Williams, of Suwanee, GA., was traveling in the right lane just before the accident took place. The driver of a 2019 Hino straight truck and a State Trooper were walking around the truck and checking out front end damage.

Williams was traveling too fast for the road conditions. She lost control of her pickup, which left the road and entered the north ditch before hitting the front end of the straight truck. Authorities say she narrowly missed striking the driver of the truck and the Trooper. Injured in the crash was 42-year old Skeeter S. Hutchinson, of Burlington, NJ., and 47-year old Michael E. Adger, of Omaha. Both were transported by Medivac Ambulance to the Cass County Memorial Hospital, in Atlantic.

Atlantic Fire and Rescue assisted at the scene.