(Radio Iowa) — A local foundation has awarded 200-thousand dollars in grants to assist with immediate needs of flood victims in southwest Iowa and eastern Nebraska. The Iowa West Foundation made the award as part of seven-point-seven ($7.7) million dollars in grants and initiative funding that was awarded in their current cycle. Foundation C-E-O Pete Tulipana says Iowa West partnered with other groups to get funding to flood victims. “We actually worked with some of our sister and brother foundations on the Omaha side and asked them to join us in providing funding for emergency relief in southwest Iowa,” Tulipana says. “A total of 565-thousand dollars was actually funded by four foundations.”

The foundation is the non-profit license holder which receives the state mandated fees from the Council Bluffs casinos and is also funded by investment income. The grant money was divided among the various organizations working on flood relief in southwest Iowa. “Like Food Bank of the Heartland, Iowa Legal Aid, Harrison County Foundation, Mills County Flood Fund and Fremont County Flood Fund, in addition to traditional organizations like the Red Cross and Salvation Army, who are reaching out in those communities,” Tulipana says.

By awarding the money to organizations that already have presence in flood-affected areas, Tulipana says the partnering foundations can have an immediate impact on recovery efforts. “Make sure that there was emergency funding available immediately for all those who were impacted by the flood, and that those funds were available and distributed by organizations who had boots on the ground in communities that were the hardest hit,” according to Tulipana.

Tulipana says the Iowa West Foundation will also look towards more long-term assistance for flood victims. “Our plan is to take a second look at this and look at the longer-term needs once the floodwaters have receded and we see what the situation is,” Tulipana explains. “We realize this is a devastating event to many, many families, and we want to be a part of helping to find the solution.”

A full list of grant awards from the foundation can be found at iowawestfoundation.org.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – July 18, 2019 – Alliant Energy’s Iowa energy company is taking proactive steps to reduce costs for customers because of today’s heat. Energy prices can increase during intensely hot days like today. To reduce the impact of rising energy prices on monthly bills Alliant is are activating their voluntary Appliance Cycling program for Thursday and continue to monitor the weather forecast to determine if it is needed for Friday too. The energy company will remotely control central air conditioners for participating customers in the central and southern zone in Iowa. This applies to electric, residential customers located along and south of Highway 20, extending to the southern border of the state.

Participants will see their central air conditioner cycled in 15-minute intervals from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. The blower fan will continue to circulate the cooler air already in the home. The program reduces peak energy use on the overall energy grid, which lowers costs for customers. The last time Alliant activated the program, was July 12, 2018. Learn more at: alliantenergy.com/appliancecycling

For the next couple of weeks (July 17-30), Hy-Vee will be asking customers to join the> Hy-Vee mission to Kabloom deserving individuals and organizations with a room full of roses in support of Hy-Vee’s Petals for Pedals to benefit Variety, the Children’s Charity. Participation for the community is easy. First purchase a few dozen roses for only $10 per dozen at your local Hy-Vee or online at Hy-Vee.com. Second, choose a deserving individual or organization to Kabloom and prepare to surprise them with a room full of roses. Third, take a picture or video of the surprise. Forth, upload to Facebook, Instagram, twitter, YouTube and/or Snachat using #Kabloom.

Kabloom recipients at the Ann W. Wickman Child Development Center in Atlantic (photos submitted)

Petals for Pedals is a promotion the Atlantic Hy-Vee and others across the State are doing, in partnership with Variety, the Children’s Charity, all Hy-Vee locations will sell one dozen roses for only $10 from July 17-30th. For every dozen roses sold, a portion of the proceeds will go toward giving bikes to deserving children.

DES MOINES, IA – This Sunday, July 21st, U.S. Democrat Representative Cindy Axne (IA) will complete her 16-county tour for July with seven stops in Madison, Adair, Pottawattamie, Fremont, Mills, Montgomery and Cass counties. Rep. Axne will start the day by visiting county fairs in Madison, Adair, Pottawattamie and Fremont Counties. She will then tour a local brewery in Mills County, followed by a “Connect with Your Congresswoman” (CWYC) in rural Montgomery County. Axne will end the day visiting with RAGBRAI riders as they complete their first day of riding in Cass County.

Axne’s CWYC town hall events provide an opportunity for constituents to meet the Congresswoman, ask questions regarding her work in Washington, and discuss concerns facing local communities. Axne was recently highlighted by the Town Hall Project for holding more public town halls than any other freshman Member of Congress between January and April.

Sunday, July 21 Schedule:

Madison County: Madison County Fair Visit, Madison County Fairgrounds, 1146 W Summit St., Winterset. 8:45 AM – 9:45 AM

Adair County: Adair County Fair Visit, Adair County Fairgrounds, 900 NE Elm St, Greenfield. 10:15 PM – 11:15 PM

Pottawattamie County: Pottawattamie County Fair Visit, Pottawattamie County Fairgrounds, 307 W Lincoln St, Avoca. 12:15 PM – 1:15 PM

Fremont County: Fremont County Fair Visit, Fremont County Fairgrounds, 1004 Legion Rd, Sidney. 2:30 PM – 3:15 PM

Mills County: Keg Creek Brewing Company Visit, Keg Creek Brewing County, 22381 221st S, Glenwood. 3:45 PM – 4:45 PM

Montgomery County: Connect with Your Congresswoman in Montgomery County, 409 Main St, Elliott. 5:45 PM – 6:45 PM

Cass County: Visit with RAGBRAI riders in Cass County, Downtown Atlantic City Park. 7:15 PM – 8:00 PM

The Iowa Environmental Protection Commission, Tuesday, approved an update to the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) Intended Use Plan (IUP) Project Priority List, for state fiscal year 2020, during their meeting in Des Moines. Among the projects where planning and design (P&D) loans were approved, were those in Lewis, Malvern and Adel. In Lewis, a Water Treatment and Distribution System P&D loan of $120,000 was approved. In Malvern, a $228,000 P&D loan was approved for the construction of a new water treatment plant. And, in Adel, a $1.025-million DWSRF loan for P&D water treatment improvements was approved for Adel.

An Infrastructure and Engineering-related improvement loan was approved for Mt. Ayr in a revised loan application. The city will receive $4.1-million for a water main replacement project and water plant demolition, and a supplemental loan of $275,000 for the movement of a prefabricated booster pump station to a new location, to improve pressure for the water system.

Atlantic Fire Chief Mark McNees, co-chair of the beer garden for RAGBRAI, reports Atlantic native Paul Kay, who owns and operates a brewery in Burlington, IA, will have two of their craft beers featured at the RAGBRAI beer garden in the Atlantic City Park, this Sunday. Paul Kay grew up in Atlantic and his family still farms north of town. His brewery’s Kolsh Fordy Five and Royal Jelly 6-4-3 Honey Wheat beers, will be available during the bicycling event, which will draw thousands of people from across the State, Country and the world. The brewery was established in the Fall of 2015. (To learn more visit http://www.parksidebrewing.com/index.html)

McNees said “As a committee we are thrilled to be able to feature beers with a local connection and encourage area residents to come down to the garden and sample them as they watch the riders enter town, or come down and enjoy some as they partake in the entertainment that evening featuring Freakabout and Hairball.”

The beer garden can be found near the City Park stage, Sunday. It will be open at 1-p.m. and close at 10:30-p.m. If you would like to volunteer to serve and process transactions at the beer garden, contact the Atlantic Chamber Office at 243-3017.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Pope Francis has selected a priest from the Dubuque Archdiocese to become bishop of the Des Moines Diocese. The selection of the Rev. William Joensen was announced Thursday. His ordination and installation is scheduled for Sept. 27. Joensen replaces Bishop Richard Pates, who turned 75 last year and, as required by the church, submitted his resignation. He’s held the post since 2008.

Joensen grew up in Ames and attended Iowa State University. He was ordained in 1989 and served in parish ministry for six years before beginning graduate studies in philosophy. He’s been a philosophy professor at Loras College in Dubuque and assisted at parishes in and around Dubuque. The Diocese of Des Moines includes 80 parishes in 23 counties in central and southwest Iowa.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office reports 24-year old Matthew Allen Strong, of Harlan, was transported from the Shelby County Jail to the Pott. County Jail, Wednesday morning. Strong was being held in the Pott. County Jail on a warrant for Violation of Probation. 47-year old Steven Allen Durham, of Wahoo, NE., an inmate at the Saunders County, NE., Jail, was transported to the Pott. County Jail, Wednesday afternoon, to address two warrants for Violation of Probation.

A Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Deputy who stopped to assist a motorist at Highway 6 and Railroad Highway, late Wednesday night, spoke with subjects in the vehicle who admitted they had been drinking. The driver, 23-year old Madison E. Lambert, of Omaha, was subsequently arrested for OWI/1st offense. 21-year old Anthony Joseph Tucci, of Omaha, was arrested at the same scene, for Public Intoxication and Interference with Official Acts.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Federal authorities have accused a nurse with a scheme to fraudulently obtain painkillers from her patients in eastern Iowa. Prosecutors say 31-year-old Katie Boll, of Manchester, is charged with 13 counts of acquiring controlled substances by fraud, deception or subterfuge in 2018 and one count of tampering with a consumer product. Prosecutors say she used mouthwash to dilute liquid morphine, resulting in injury to a patient. U.S. District Court records say Boll’s pleaded not guilty. Her trial in Cedar Rapids is scheduled to begin Sept. 16.

Authorities say Boll was a nurse for the Good Neighbor Society in Manchester when she schemed to acquire hydrocodone, morphine and other painkillers from at least 14 patients in her care.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a Guatemala man charged with killing an Iowa woman and her two children had been deported twice from the U.S. and is believed to be in the country illegally. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Wednesday night that 31-year-old Marvin Oswaldo Escobar-Orellana gave Des Moines police a false name, Marvin Esquivel-Lopez.

Shawn Neudauer, an ICE spokesman, says Escobar-Orellana was deported in 2010 and again in 2011. In 2010, he was convicted of illegal entry into the U.S. He’s accused of shooting 29-year-old Rossibeth Flores-Rodriguez, her 11-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son. Police say he had been living at the family’s home and that they found no evidence that he had a personal relationship with the victims.