COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — Mention domestic wine, and most people think Napa Valley or Sonoma. But Iowa’s Loess Hills? The Daily Nonpareil reports that could one day be the case after the region that runs along Iowa’s western border with Nebraska was recently certified as an American Viticultural Area. The federal designation is coveted by grape growers and not easy to get.

Doug Grave is president of the Western Iowa Grape Growers association and co-owner of Bodega Victoriana Winery near Glenwood. He says the association undertook a five-year, $50,000 effort to get the designation. The money went to soil scientists, geologists, map makers, climate scientists and other experts to show the area is the only one in the U.S. where the entire grape vine’s root is completely encompassed in loess soil.

The Iowa Department of Corrections issued a statement Saturday afternoon, with regard to an escaped Work Release inmate. DOC spokesman Fred Scaletta says 26-year old Karlos L. Goldman Jr., was placed on escape status following an unexcused absence from the Fort Des Moines Work Release Facility.

Karlos Goldman

Goldman is serving a 26-year sentence, which began Dec. 18, 2008, for assault while participating in felony, voluntary absence, two counts of first-degree theft and forgery in two counties. He is described as African-American with black hair who is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs around 270 pounds. He has tattoos on his chest, upper left arm, left forearm, right forearm and neck. He has piercings on both ears.

Anyone with information on Goldman’s whereabouts is asked to contact the Des Moines Police Department or the Polk County Sheriff’s Department.

w/ Riley Smith

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Kids across Iowa are hearing a message about the importance of reading books and switching off the television from an unlikely source — the star of a T-V show. Dan Wardell is the host of Iowa Public T-V’s Kids Clubhouse and he’s making his 10th annual trek to libraries across Iowa this summer.

“Ten years, I’ve been on the Reading Road Trip,” Wardell says. “It started with 51 libraries ten years ago and now I’m visiting 75 libraries, the biggest of the big libraries and the smallest of the small libraries all across the state. Just teaching kids to turn their TVs off, go outside and play, use their imaginations, read good books, and eat healthy food.” Wardell said he creates his own tales when he makes his stops.

“One of the cool things they’ve always let me do at IPTV is to write my own stories for these Reading Road Trip events,” he says. “I don’t actually read a book during the events but we incorporate the librarians, we incorporate the kids, we even incorporate the grownups into a super-interactive story time.”

The show will run for ten weeks. Find the full list of all of the stops at the website: http://site.iptv.org/about/iptv-news/iptv-announces-dates-tenth-annual-reading-road-trip

(Radio Iowa)

The Red Oak Police Department reports two arrests and one accident early Saturday morning.

At 1:19am Saturday officers responded to a two-vehicle accident at N 8th Street and Inman Drive in Red Oak. A 2008 Mercury Milan driven by 22-year-old Brooke Carpenter of Red Oak was struck from behind by a 2011 Chevy Cruze driven by 28-year-old Sara Orme of Omaha.  Carpenter stated she had braked for a slowing vehicle in front of her and Orme stated she attempted to brake but was unable to stop before the collision.  No injuries were reported and no citations were issued at the scene. The Mercury sustained an estimated $2,000 damage and the Chevy had an estimated $5,000 damage.

At 3:33am officers arrested 70-year-old Carroll Euguene Thurman of Red Oak and 28-year-old Branden James Buffington of Shenandoah in the 2500 block of North Broadway Street on charges of 2nd Degree Theft, a Class D Felony.  They were taken to the Montgomery County Law Enforcement Center and held on $5,000 full cash bond each.

The 18th Annual Cass County Relay for Life was a big hit on Friday night at the Atlantic High School Track.  A large crowd gathered to celebrate survivors, remember those they have lost, and fight back against cancer on what turned out to be a beautiful night in Atlantic.

Relay day was kicked off with a tractor ride that included 37 tractors that left from the Cass County Fairgrounds at 9:00am and returned in the afternoon to Sunnyside Park.  The Windbags and UCC Riders Motorcyle team had another great ride as well that started in the noon hour at the Atlantic City Park and wound down at the Survivors Dinner at the High School.

The Survivor dinner was held at 5:00pm at the Atlantic High School Commons with a meal provided by Atlantic Hy-Vee.  That meal was followed by the opening ceremonies on the track and the survivors lap honoring all those that have won or are battling their fight against cancer.

The event featured a wide variety of entertainment, food, games, and fun.  Entertainment was provided by Sheltered Reality drumline, Zumba with Allison Knox-Westmeyer, and performances by Villa Dance Students. Food was available from the Atlantic Kiwanis, Troublesome Creek BBQ, and cotton candy from the Lewis Life Preservers team.  Kids games were provided by National Honor Society students and a bounce house was available courtesy of the Nishna Valley Family YMCA.

Fundraising was a huge success with end of the night totals at $71,958.37 raised with more funds still expected to come in.  The Relay for Life Committee would like to thank everyone who helped make Relay 2016 a great success in Cass County.

The Chairpersons for the Cass and Audubon County Community Foundations, both  countywide community foundations, have announced that the fall grant program is now beginning for non-profit organizations in the separate, respective counties.  The deadline to apply for funds through the online grant application process is September 1st.  In Cass County, $27,800 was allocated for the fall grant cycle. In Audubon County, $39,000 is available.

Of the Cass County funds, $2,500 is from the Griswold Community Development Endowed Fund, and $500 is from the Triumph Endowed Fund for Cass County. Of the funds available in Audubon County, approximately $2,000 comes from the Leon and Iva Milliman Endowed Fund for the Exira area, $2,500 is from the Charles T. and Kathleen K. Manatt Endowed Fund, $650 is from the Audubon State Bank/Stephen Garst Endowed Fund, $1,000 is for the City of Audubon from the Audubon Masonic Association Endowed Fund, $450 is for the City of Audubon from the Fred and Evelyn Nissen Endowed Fund for Audubon, and $450 is for the City of Audubon from the Merle and Norma Petersen Endowed Fund.

In both counties, Foundation grant dollars will be awarded for a single year. The mission of the Community Foundation grants and programs, is to participate in funding community betterment projects and nonprofit organizations who have similar objectives.  The goals are to improve the quality of life in the county by supporting needs that are not being met in the areas of civic, cultural, health, education and social service.  The objective is to fund projects that will have a permanent impact for the counties that people can take advantage of for many years.

Only organizations providing services in Cass County or Audubon County are eligible (in their respective counties, only).  They must be able to demonstrate broad community/county support and supply a copy of their 501(c)(3) IRS determination letter.  Requests for general operational funds will not be considered.  The mission is to provide funds to those nonprofit and governmental agencies that are involved in community betterment through their organizations.

After July 15^th, application procedures and grant guidelines will be available online at www.iowacommunityfoundations.org/casscef (for Cass County) or www.iowacommunityfoundations.org/auduboncef (for Audubon County).   Click on the Grant Information tab or contact any board member for additional information.  Detailed instructions are provided in a downloadable form, as well as a link to the online application.  Only online applications will be considered.

Community Foundations in Southwest Iowa are particularly attractive charities because donations to these funds may be eligible for a 25% Endow Iowa Tax Credit. Contact Dennis Nissen or Denise Cardos at 800-794-3458 with grant application specific questions.   All completed applications will be considered at the October board meeting with notification of results the end of October.

Cass County Sheriff’s Deputy Josh McLaren told KJAN News late Friday night, that one person was in custody at the Cass County Jail, charged with Domestic Abuse Assault, following an incident that took place a few hours earlier, in Massena.

McLaren said at around 8:02-p.m., Cass County Communications received a call from the Des Moines Police Department, with regard to a domestic situation in Massena. Shortly thereafter, the Comm Center received a 9-1-1 call from Massena. Dispatchers were able to ping the cell phone to determine a general area where the incident took place. McLaren and Deputy Ryan Johnson responded. Eventually, the residents were contacted.

An adult male and adult female came out of a residence. The female was distraught, and advised an altercation had taken place with her boyfriend. At that time, the boyfriend was inside the home, with a minor child. The deputies went inside the home and located the child and gave the child to its mother. They then repeatedly tried to make contact with the boyfriend, but were unable to do so.

The Communications Center advised deputies the subject might be armed, therefore the deputies left the home and requested assistance from other law enforcement officers. Deputies from Adair, Adams, Montgomery, Pottawattamie, and Shelby Counties, along with the Iowa State Patrol, all responded to the scene and set up a perimeter. MidWest MedAir was also notified and were enroute in case they were needed, but they were subsequently cancelled.

The male subject was seen by a family member going to an apartment in Massena, but a search revealed he was not there. He was later seen traveling on foot toward the Massena Sale Barn, and while the search efforts were concentrated at the area, a short time later, it was learned the subject was inside another residence occupied by a female. The deputies arrived and took the man into custody without incident a little after 10-p.m. He was unarmed.

A weapon was recovered after from the original residence once the scene was secured. The unidentified man was brought to the Cass County Jail. Additional charges are possible. Authorities utilized the Cass County Wireless Emergency Notification System (WENS) to notify residents in Massena of the situation.

If you are not signed up for WENS, go to the KJAN.com home page and click on the link.

THE ALL CLEAR has been given in Massena. Authorities thank you for your cooperation. The subject being sought by authorities in Massena, has been “detained.” The incident which lead officials to urge residents in the community to lock their doors appears to be under control. Again, no further details are available, other than they were looking for a man who reportedly had a gun and was on foot.

(Update 10:05-p.m.: THE ALL CLEAR has been given in Massena. The subject being sought by authorities in Massena, has been “detained.” The incident which lead officials to urge residents in the community to lock their doors appears to be under control. Again, no further details are available, other than they were looking for a man who reportedly had a gun and was on foot. Authorities thank you for your cooperation.)

Numerous local law enforcement agencies are in Massena this evening searching for a man with a gun. The subject was described as wearing blue jeans and a light colored shirt. The Cass County Emergency Management Agency put out a message to residents in the area to “Please remain inside your home and lock the doors.”

The are trying to track the subject, who was last seen leaving an apartment and on foot. We will update you when more becomes known.