Are you looking for something to bring your family together to learn teamwork, improve communication, and have fun while cooking and eating good food? Iowa State University Extension and Outreach—Montgomery County is pleased to offer a new program called Food, Family and Fun! Sponsored in part due to grant funding from Boost 4 Families, this program is geared towards families with children aged 5-18.

Families will get together with program instructors and volunteers once a month for six months to prepare healthy meals through hands-on cooking experiences. Families will also receive parenting resources and participate in activities that will focus on communication, teamwork, relationships, and health and nutrition. At the end of each session, families will take a meal home with them to freeze or eat later in the week.

There are two locations for Food, Family and Fun—Red Oak High School and Southwest Valley Middle School in Villisca. Sessions are planned to start on February 10th and 11th. Families can pay $50 for the program in either one lump sum or $10 at each session.

Registration is limited due to space, so sign up TODAY! Families need to fill out the registration form found in the brochure at www.extension.iastate.edu/montgomery.

Questions about the program? Contact Stephanie Langner, Montgomery County Extension Program Coordinator at 712.623.2592 or slangner@iastate.edu .

(Press Release)

More area and State news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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The Internal Revenue Service is making its annual appeal to taxpayers to sign up for the Earned Income Tax Credit. The director of the program for the I-R-S, Ken Corbin, says if you made money working in 2015, you may be eligible. “Any person who has earned income from employment — whether you are running a business, farming or self employed — could potentially qualify for E-I-T-C,” Corbin says. He says taxpayers all across the country take advantage of the tax credit.

“Nationwide last year, over 27 million families received more than 66 BILLION dollars in Earned Income Tax Credit dollars,” according to Corbin. “The average E-I-T-C refund to those families was over two-thousand-400 dollars.” He says there are still one in five people who may be eligible, who don’t know about the credit, or don’t file for it. “Meaning that more than one million of the taxpayers are not putting E-I-T-C dollars to work for them,” Corbin says. “Anyone with earnings of 54-thousand dollars or less should see if they qualify at

I-R-S-dot-gov, search word: E-I-T-C.” Corbin says many Iowans do take advantage of the credit. “Over 200-thousand Iowans claimed E-I-T-C last year, bringing in a combined refund amount of over 450-thousand dollars back into the economy of Iowa. With an average refund of more than two-thousand-200 dollars,” he says. You may’ve checked in the past and found you weren’t eligible for the credit. Corbin says you should check again, especially if you’ve had some major changes in your life.

“Marital status changes, they might have children, employment changes, changes in their income,” Corbin says. He says you should check each tax year to see if changes might make you eligible. Corbin says you can still file and claim the E-I-T-C tax credit even if you are not required to file a tax return.

(Radio Iowa)

Farmers! Are the youth you hire for summer work certified to drive tractors for you? The Shelby county/ISU Extension and Outreach office will be conducting a Tractor Safety Certification course for youth between the ages of 13-16. This certification is required by Iowa law for 14-17 year olds who will be operating a tractor over 20hp for neighbors or relatives.

At the six week course, participants will learn how to operate a tractor safely, safety on the road, tractor controls and maintenance, how to avoid other farm accidents and other pertinent information. The course will be held at the Shelby County Extension office at 906 6th Street in Harlan. Classes will run each Monday beginning Feb. 29th through April 4th, with the driving test on Saturday April 9th. Classes begin at 6:30 and will end at 9:00pm.

The cost is $50 and checks should be made payable to Shelby County Extension and Outreach. Registration forms are available at the Shelby County Extension office and are to be returned by Feb. 22nd. Interested persons may also call the Shelby County Extension office at (712)755-3104 and a registration form will be mailed to them.

The 7:06-a.m. Newscast from KJAN News Director, Ric Hanson.

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The Creston Police Department says a resident in the 300 block of N. Sycamore Street reported Saturday, someone stole Albuterol Sulfate out of his kitchen cabinet. The inhalation aerosol is typically used to treat wheezing and shortness of breath caused by breathing problems such as asthma. The loss was estimated at $35.

And, late Sunday night, 37-year old Ryan Ray Rinehart, of Creston, was issued a Criminal Citation for Theft in the 5th Degree. Rinehart was released on a promise to appear later, in court.

Sheriff’s officials in Montgomery County report a Bellevue man was arrested early this (Monday) morning, in Villisca. 19-year old Preston Gage Struckmeyer was taken into custody at around 3-a.m. on a valid Fremont County Bench Warrant for Probation Violation. Struckmeyer was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $1,500 bond.

Officials with the Iowa Dept. of Natural Resources say a man was injured Sunday afternoon during an accidental shooting in Guthrie County. 33-year old Jeremy Cooper, of Bagley, was injured at around 1-p.m., while target shooting at the Bays Branch shooting range near Panora.

Authorities say Cooper was target practicing with his .17 caliber rifle  when the wind blew his paper target off the stand at the 50-yard berm. He had left his gun propped on some sandbags on the shooting bench and walked down to fix the target. While he was trying to rehang his target, the gun fell off the sandbags and fired with bullet hitting his left arm, passing through and also hitting him in his left upper torso.

Cooper was transported by ambulance to Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines where he was treated for non-life threatening injuries.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa roads officials are preparing for a major winter storm, but forecasters say the snow is likely to miss Monday’s caucuses. The National Weather Service says the storm isn’t expected to reach western Iowa until early Tuesday, so people participating in the presidential caucuses should be able to get home.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — For all the hype surrounding the February 1st caucuses, only a fraction of Iowa’s registered voters participate. Most Republicans expect a higher turnout in 2016 than the last two caucuses, when about 120,000 showed up. Democrats doubt they will match 2008, when nearly 240,000 came out.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump ended Sunday with a simple message to his backers. “We have to win in Iowa,” he says. Trump told an audience in Sioux City Sunday evening that he’s been encouraged to temper expectations, but just can’t bring himself to do it.

AMES, Iowa (AP) — As she’s traveled the state making her closing argument to Iowa caucus-goers, Hillary Clinton is channeling the economic indignation of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. His unapologetically liberal campaign has tightened the race ahead of Monday’s caucuses and given him a lead in the New Hampshire race that follows a week later. At event after event, Clinton cloaks her detailed policy plans in Sanders’ outraged rhetoric. Pharmaceutical pricing “burns” her up. Companies that take advantage of the tax loopholes get her “pretty riled up.”

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — From raising the minimum wage to legalizing medical marijuana, some bills in the Iowa Legislature have an uphill battle that isn’t so steep in some other statehouses. Two dozen states have a system that allows residents to bypass lawmakers and place proposed initiatives on an election ballot. The system varies by state, but the idea is that citizens should have an option B when it comes to enacting potential laws. Iowa doesn’t have such a system, and that means state lawmakers might face a little less pressure to pass certain bills, much to the frustration of some residents seeking action. Despite that, there seems to be a consensus among Iowa lawmakers that the current system should remain and that approving an option B could complicate things.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio is airing 30-minute television programs in every Iowa television market this weekend. Rubio is flying from Dubuque to Sioux City and other cities this weekend as part of a busy weekend of campaigning heading into Monday’s Iowa caucuses — the first contest in the 2016 race for president. The Florida senator has held more public events in Iowa since Thanksgiving than any other Republican.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — Police in eastern Iowa are investigating separate shootings only hours apart. The first was reported Friday night on East 6th Street in Davenport. The Quad-City Times reports that a woman was wounded in that shooting around 9:30 p.m. and taken to a local hospital. Police say a van parked the street and a nearby house were hit by the gunfire. Four people in a car chased by police from the area were taken in for questioning.

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — A newly-opened restaurant in Waterloo is now closed for at least a week to clean up from an accidental fire. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that the blaze broke out in Tokyo Bay just after 3 a.m. Saturday.