United Group Insurance

Iowa Guard leader plans to review facilities, close those not ‘sustainable’

News

January 17th, 2020 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) — The new leader of the Iowa National Guard says his plan for the future includes taking a tough look at how they will spend their funds on facilities. Major General Ben Corell spoke about the issue in his address to the Iowa Legislature Thursday. “Just as critical to having the right force structure in place for the future is our ability to maintain and develop sustainable infrastructure. This means we must invest our limited financial resources now into our existing facilities that are in optimal locations as we identify future locations that offer strategic advantage as we posture ourselves for future success,” Corell says.

General Corell says this will mean the closing of some guard facilities. “We recognize the hard reality that we will need to divest ourselves of some legacy properties and infrastructure that is no longer sustainable to maintain,” he says. Corell says the changing Iowa population is part of the reason they need to evaluate things. “We can no longer delay the inevitable. At some point very soon, we will start the process to close select Army National Guard facilities within the state that no longer can support the needs of the Iowa National Guard,” according to Corell.

He says they will thoroughly review the facilities. “We have initiated a careful and deliberate process to assess the future viability of all of our facilities measured against the needs of future force structure requirements and forecasted state demographic patterns,” Corell says. “As we start this process we will work closely with affected communities, along with local and state leadership in a transparent process to minimize the impacts of any future facility closures.”

Corell says they will dedicate the new Davenport Readiness Center in April of this year. This center was built with 23-million dollars in federal funds — and replaces the outdated Davenport Brady Street Armory which was one of our oldest active facilities. He say are also looking at a new facility in central Iowa. “As we look to the future, we believe a Readiness Center located south of the Des Moines metro area will maximize opportunities presented by shifting demographics within the state,” he says. “We are currently in discussions for the potential development of a multi-use facility between the Iowa National Guard and the City of West Des Moines.”

The review of the facilities is part of an eight-year strategic plan Corell laid out for lawmakers. Corell was named the leader of the Iowa National Guard in August to replace General Tim Orr who retired.

Skyscan Forecast for Atlantic & the area: Friday, Jan. 17, 2020

Weather

January 17th, 2020 by Ric Hanson

TODAY: **Winter Weather Advisory for snow & mixed precip. until 6-p.m. Saturday for Cass & most area Counties**Cloudy & windy, w/snow, sleet and freezing rain – mixed at times this afternoon. High 31. SE @ 15-20. (2-4″ of snow is possible).

TONIGHT: Cloudy w/light mixed precip. becoming light snow late. Low 20. NW @ 10-20.

TOMORROW: Cloudy & windy, w/light snow ending in the morning; Becoming partly cloudy. High 20. NW @ 20-40.

SUNDAY: P/Cldy. High 12.

MONDAY: P/Cldy. High 15.

Thursday’s High in Atlantic was 19 (the 24-hour High ending at 7-a.m today). Our Low was -4. We received 1″ of snow from 5-a.m. up until 7-a.m., today. Last year on this date, the High was 30 and the Low was 21. The Record High for Jan. 17 in Atlantic, was 57 in 1989. The Record Low was -21 in 1984.

Area basketball scores from Thursday, 1/16/20

Sports

January 17th, 2020 by Ric Hanson

BOYS BASKETBALL

Hawkeye Ten Conference

Clarinda 58, Sidney 42
Denison-Schleswig 36, Sergeant Bluff-Luton 33
Glenwood 69, Kuemper Catholic 54
Lewis Central 51, Creston 39

Western Iowa Conference

AHSTW 54, Underwood 48
IKM-Manning 62, Riverside 32
Treynor 64, Missouri Valley 20

Rolling Valley Conference

CAM 66, West Harrison 60
Woodward-Granger 70, Coon Rapids-Bayard 51

Corner Conference

East Mills 61, Fremont Mills 46
Griswold 38, Essex 29
Stanton 68, Southwest Valley 49

Pride of Iowa Conference

Martensdale-St. Marys 80, Lenox 36
Mount Ayr 65, Central Decatur, Leon 48
Nodaway Valley 67, East Union 21

Other Scores

ADM, Adel 80, Bondurant Farrar 64
Ballard 62, Winterset 60
Carroll 80, Boone 38
Woodward Academy 84, West Central Valley, Stuart 37

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Hawkeye Ten Conference

Glenwood 76, Kuemper Catholic 36
Lewis Central 53, Creston 49
Sergeant Bluff-Luton 58, Denison-Schleswig 38
Sidney 54, Clarinda 11

Western Iowa Conference

AHSTW 67, Underwood 53
IKM-Manning 96, Riverside 29
Treynor 52, Missouri Valley 14

Rolling Valley Conference

CAM 78, West Harrison 44
Woodward-Granger 45, Coon Rapids-Bayard 23

Corner Conference

Griswold 49, Essex 33
Stanton 49, Southwest Valley 34

Pride of Iowa Conference

Martensdale-St. Marys 65, Lenox 37
Mount Ayr 53, Central Decatur, Leon 39
Nodaway Valley 77, East Union, Afton 21

Other Scores

ADM, Adel 56, Bondurant Farrar 53
Bishop Heelan Catholic, Sioux City 56, Council Bluffs, Abraham Lincoln 38
Carroll 69, Boone 53
Prairie, Cedar Rapids 62, Council Bluffs, Thomas Jefferson 43
West Monona 57, Lawton-Bronson 40
Westwood, Sloan 65, River Valley, Correctionville 23

Midwest Sports Headlines: 1/17/2020

Sports

January 17th, 2020 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Liam Robbins had 19 points and 12 rebounds to lead five Drake players scoring in double figures and the Bulldogs stretched their home win streak to 10 games, defeating Illinois State 84-74. Jonah Jackson and D.J. Wilkins added 13 points apiece for the Bulldogs. Roman Penn chipped in 12 points, and Noah Thomas had 10. Zach Copeland led the Redbirds with a career-high 32 points.

MINNEAPOLIS, MN (AP) – Monika Czinano scored 21 points on 10-of-11 shooting and No. 22 Iowa rallied from a 13-point deficit with eight minutes left to beat Minnesota 76-75. Kathleen Doyle had 17 points, six rebounds and eight assists,for Iowa. The Hawkeyes used 16-4 run that pulled Iowa within a point with 1:10 to play. After Jasmine Brunson missed a layup, Alexis Sevillian hit a 3-pointer with eight seconds left and Iowa held on. Freshman Sara Scalia had her first career double-double with 18 points and a career-high 10 rebounds for the Golden Gophers.

UNDATED (AP) — Of the coaches in the NFL’s Final Four, Andy Reid is the outlier. Only Kansas City’s coach has been the head man in a Super Bowl. Only Reid is close to having a Hall of Fame-worthy resume. Only Reid has been around for a couple of decades. So while Tennessee’s Mike Vrabel, Green Bay’s Matt LaFleur and San Francisco’s Kyle Shanahan might look up to Reid and his career achievements, they also recognize that whichever of them wins the NFL title will be doing so for the first time as a coach.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has been among the best bargains in professional sports, leading his team to back-to-back AFC title games on his rookie contract. He’s largely flown under the radar this season, too, thanks to a series of injuries and the ascendance of Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson. But with the end of the season drawing near, all that is about to change. Mahomes is lining himself up for a payday unlike anything the NFL has ever seen.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs will host the Tennessee Titans in the AFC championship game. For Chiefs coach Andy Reid it’s one more opportunity to return to the Super Bowl. That’s something he’s accomplished only once in his long career. For Titans counterpart Mike Vrabel it’s an opportunity to make it back as a coach after winning three Lombardi Trophies as a player in New England. The game features the power running of the Titans’ Derrick Henry and the aerial assault of the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes in an intriguing matchup for a spot in Miami.

UNDATED (AP) — Sunday’s game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tennessee Titans is the first AFC championship since 2002 that doesn’t feature Tom Brady or Peyton Manning or Ben Roethlisberger. Brady and the New England Patriots are missing from the conference championship weekend for the first time since 2010. Brady has been to 13 AFC title games and won nine of them. John Elway’s Denver Broncos defeated the Cleveland Browns in two of the most famous AFC title game showdowns and the Cincinnati Bengals beat the San Diego Chargers in 1982 in minus-59 degrees wind chill that left Dan Fouts with icicles hanging from his beard.

UNDATED (AP) — Derrick Henry has just about carried Tennessee’s offense to the AFC championship game. The Titans have been stellar on defense as well. Now they take on Patrick Mahomes and the potent Kansas City Chiefs for a trip to the Super Bowl. Here’s how the teams match up.
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Aliyah Boston and Victaria Saxon each had 10 points and 10 rebounds to lead No. 1 South Carolina to a 78-45 victory over Missouri. Zia Cooke and Mikiah Herbert Harrigan scored 14 each for the Gamecocks, who played their first game since taking over the top spot in the AP Top 25. Aijha Blackwell scored 13 points to lead the Tigers.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — New Missouri State football coach Bobby Petrino says he knew he wouldn’t stay retired. Petrino made the comment at his introductory news conference Thursday. Petrino’s string of embarrassing foibles at previous coaching stops made him a high-risk proposition at the big schools. He says he is glad to have a job again, even if it’s at one of the bottom programs in the second tier of college football. Petrino says one of the things he can teach players is that they always have obstacles to overcome.

UNDATED (AP) — Rutgers hosts Minnesota in one of the top games in the Big Ten this weekend. The Scarlet Knights have won seven of their last eight games, are off to their best start since 1982-83 and sit one game behind first-place Michigan State. Rutgers is 12-0 at home entering the game against Minnesota (10-7, 4-3). The 6-foot-11, 250-pound Myles Johnson figures to get tested by the Gophers’ 6-10, 240 Daniel Oturu. Oturu has seven games with 20 points and 10 rebounds, most in the country. Minnesota comes in 0-5 on the road.

Iowa early News Headlines: Friday, Jan. 17, 2020

News

January 17th, 2020 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Iowa news at 3:40 a.m. CST

(Statewide) – Hundreds of schools across Iowa have cancelled classes for today in advance of an anticipated snowstorm. Western Iowa will see the storm begin early morning. By the afternoon central Iowa will have snow, rain and freezing rain. Saturday morning is expected to bring blowing snow with 40 to 50 mph winds. For the latest local cancellations, go kjan.com and click on the Cancellations tab under Community Hub.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Republican legislative leaders have introduced a resolution that would declare there is no right to an abortion under the Iowa Constitution. The proposed constitutional amendment introduced Thursday is a response to a 2018 Iowa Supreme Court ruling striking down a law requiring a 72-hour waiting period for women seeking an abortion. The court said in that ruling the state constitution guarantees women freedom to make their own health decisions, including whether to have an abortion. A constitutional amendment must pass this year, next year and then win approval of voters in a statewide election.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa inmate Gentric Hicks has spent 43 years in prison for a murder that his laywers say his deceased half brother actually committed. Now 73, Hicks is seeking DNA testing on a hunting cap the killer left at the scene of the fatal shooting at a southeastern Iowa motel that could either prove his innocence or affirm his guilt. Hicks is serving a life sentence for the May 23, 1976, murder of 28-year-old Jerry Foster at the Hill Crest Motel on Highway 61 outside Fort Madison. His petition claims his prosecution was based on flawed eyewitness and fingerprint analysis testimony.
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A Webster City doctor has been sentenced to two months in prison for making false statements in Medicare claims. Federal prosecutors say 76-year-old Joseph Latella also agreed Thursday to pay more than $316,000 in restitution. Latella pleaded guilty in July to one count of making false statements relating to health care matters. Prosecutors say Latella operated a private practice in Webster City and served as the medical director for several nursing homes at the time of the offense. Prosecutors say Latella falsely declared he had spent more time with patients than he actually had at two nursing homes to qualify for more expensive billing to Medicare and Medicaid.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Authorities in Iowa had to round up more than 1,700 piglets after a semi-trailer overturned on a freeway just north of Des Moines. The crash happened Thursday afternoon when the truck and trailer overturned on an ramp to Interstate 35. Iowa State Patrol troopers had to close the ramp at times as crews worked to capture and unload hundreds of pigs. The Iowa Department of Public Safety said in a tweet, “authorities working to corral and transport 1,738 piglets!” It was unclear how long the delays would last.

Slater, Karras Named to Pro Football Hall of Fame

Sports

January 16th, 2020 by admin

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Standouts Fred “Duke” Slater, who played for the University of Iowa from 1918-21, and Alex Karras (1956-57) have been named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Slater and Karras are members of the 2020 Centennial Class.

Slater joined the Iowa program following a prep career at Clinton (Iowa) High School. He earned first-team All-Big Ten honors in his final three seasons. Slater earned first-team All-America honors in 1921, becoming the first African-American at Iowa to earn the distinction.

In his four seasons, Slater helped Iowa post a 23-6-1 record. Iowa had a perfect 7-0 Big Ten record in 1921 to claim the conference title, and was named by more than one media outlet as national champion.

Slater played 10 seasons of professional football. He was the first African-American lineman in NFL history and the only African-American to play in the NFL in 1927 and 1929. Slater was a six-time All-Pro.

During the NFL off-season, Slater took classes and earned a law degree from Iowa in 1928. He served as a Chicago assistant district attorney and in 1960, became the first black member of the Chicago Superior Court. He moved to the Circuit Court of Cook County in 1964. Slater passed away in 1966 at the age of 67.

Slater was one of five members of the inaugural Iowa Sports Hall of Fame in 1951 and was a member of the inaugural National Football Foundation College Football Hall of Fame that same year. Slater Residence Hall on the University of Iowa campus bears his name and is the only Iowa residence hall named after a student-athlete.

As part of the 100-year celebration of Iowa football in 1989, Slater and Karras were named to Iowa’s all-time football team.

Karras was a defensive tackle for the Hawkeyes in 1956 and 1957. The native of Gary, Indiana, earned All-America honors as a junior and was a consensus All-American as a senior. He earned the Outland Trophy in 1957 as the top lineman in the nation, and was second in voting for the 1957 Heisman Trophy.

Karras and the Hawkeyes posted a 16-2-1 record in two seasons, concluding the 1956 season at 9-1 after a 35-19 win over Oregon State in the Rose Bowl. The Hawkeyes won the Big Ten title and were named national champions by at least one national media outlet.

Karras was the 10th player selected in the 1958 NFL Draft. He played his entire NFL career (1958-70) for the Detroit Lions, earning first- or second-team All-Pro nine times and being selected for the Pro Bowl four times.

Karras was inducted into the Iowa Varsity Club Hall of Fame in 1989 and was inducted into the National Football Foundation College Football Hall of Fame in 1991. Karras passed away in 2012 at the age of 77.

Slater and Karras join three other Hawkeyes as members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame: safety Emlen Tunnell (inducted in 1967), safety Paul Krause (1998) and defensive end Andre Tippett (2008).

DONNIE POWELL, 74, of Massena (Svcs. 1/21/20)

Obituaries

January 16th, 2020 by Ric Hanson

DONNIE POWELL, 74, of Massena, died Wednesday, January 15, 2020, at his home. Funeral services for DONNIE POWELL will be held 10:30-a.m. Tuesday, January 21st, at the United Methodist Church in Massena. Steen Funeral Home in Massena has the arrangements.

Friends may call at the Steen Funeral Home in Massena on Monday, January 20, from 2-until 7-p.m., with the family greeting friends from 5-until 7-p.m.; Online condolences may be left to the family at www.steenfunerals.com.

Burial is in the Massena Center Cemetery, with full military graveside rites by the Anita American Legion Post No. 210.  A luncheon will be held at the church following services at the cemetery.

Memorials may be directed to the Donnie Powell memorial fund to be established by the family at a later date.

DONNIE POWELL is survived by:

His daughters – Carrie (David) Stanley, of Des Moines; Tammie (David) Marshall, of Johnston, and Misty (Greg) Sachs, of Ames.

His brother – Cleve (Toni) Powell, of Massena.

7 grandchildren; 6 great grandchildren; his significant other: Jane Sullivan, of Greenfield; other relatives and friends.

Crews round up over 1,700 piglets after semi overturns

Ag/Outdoor, News

January 16th, 2020 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Authorities in Iowa had to round up more than 1,700 piglets after a semi-trailer overturned on a freeway just north of Des Moines. The crash happened Thursday afternoon when the truck and trailer overturned on an ramp to Interstate 35. Iowa State Patrol troopers had to close the ramp at times as crews worked to capture and unload hundreds of pigs.

The Iowa Department of Public Safety said in a tweet, “authorities working to corral and transport 1,738 piglets!” It was unclear how long the delays would last.

Survey of Plains, Western bankers says rural economy growing

News

January 16th, 2020 by Ric Hanson

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – A new survey of bankers suggests the economy is growing in rural parts of 10 Plains and Western states. The survey released Thursday showed that the overall index for rural parts of the region improved to 55.9 in January from December’s 50.2. Any score above 50 suggests a growing economy.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says hiring remains strong across the region. Bankers from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming were surveyed.

Republicans introduce Iowa abortion constitutional amendment

News

January 16th, 2020 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa Republican legislative leaders have introduced a resolution that would declare there is no right to an abortion under the Iowa Constitution. The proposed constitutional amendment introduced Thursday is a response to a 2018 Iowa Supreme Court ruling striking down a law requiring a 72-hour waiting period for women seeking an abortion.

The court said in that ruling the state constitution guarantees women freedom to make their own health decisions, including whether to have an abortion. A constitutional amendment must pass this year, next year and then win approval of voters in a statewide election.