LOGAN, Iowa (AP) – A Logan church hosted Drive Your Tractor to Church Day to attract locals who aren’t regular parishioners. Immanuel Lutheran Church held the event, which featured a 17-mile tractor ride, lunch, children’s games and a shorter hayrack ride, on Sunday in an effort to strengthen the community, church trustee Justin Gochenour told the Omaha World-Herald. “We thought it would be a great way to get more kids involved with the church, which is something that a lot of parishes are struggling with right now,” he said.

Church officials said they were pleased with the turn out, from both children and adults. “We had 50 or 60 non-regulars come to Mass this morning,” Gochenour said. “We don’t know the exact number yet, but it was big enough to be substantial.”

Kids ran around, riding toy tractors and throwing footballs, while the streets were lined with all types of tractors. The event, which was embraced by the church board, will help Immanuel Lutheran stand out from other churches, according to parish officials.

The Rev. Jerald Firby, pastor of the church, said he thought Tractor Ride Sunday was a great idea. He also said he thinks the event helped to attract people who don’t typically attend services at Immanuel Lutheran. “Most farmers have their own churches they go to,” he said.

The event was so successful that parish officials want to hold it again.

State health officials say the demand for smoke-free housing is increasing in the state. Sieglinde Prior oversees the Smoke-Free Housing Registry for the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) “We get a lot of calls hoping that we can help people who are looking for, or living in apartments already, and they are dealing with a smoker in the same building. They are hoping that there is some sort of legal venue to help them to get the smoker removed from that building,” Prior says.

Prior says there are no rules to keep smokers from living in an apartment. “They’re hoping that the Smoke Free Air Act — which was passed in 2008 — would deal with that, but it does not. The Smoke Free Air Act only deals with the common areas in a multi-unit complex,” Prior says. She can help them by suggesting a place where they can live.”We have a registry and it is housed in a website called smoke-freehomes.iowa.gov” Prior says.

She says anybody can go there and click on the link to smoke-free housing. Prior says they will certify that the residence is indeed smoker-free.”There are different levels, but the minimum that we require before we put a property into the registry is that at least one building is completely smoke-free. And they have no grandfathered residents living in that building,” Pior explains.

She says they have partners that can work with landlords who want their rentals to be smoke-free. Prior says they go out and have information and guides and if the property goes smoke-free, they can get free signage to advertise that they are smoke-free. The registry has 319 properties now listed. Prior says more builders of new rentals are considering making them smoke-free — with one reason being the cost.”The costs for preparing an apartment for reuse after a smoker has left is much higher — two to three to four times higher than if a non-smoker moves out,” Prior says.

The department is also working with another organization called Iowa housing search-dot-com (Iowahousingsearch.com) “We are working with them so any property that we have in our registry, we will send it over to them, and they will mark it with a special icon that shows this property is on our registry and they meet these qualifications. Prior says a survey found nearly 75 percent of Iowans say they would choose a smoke-free apartment.

With KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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Three Atlantic man were arrested on separate charges over the weekend. The Police Department reports 49-year old David Gatrel was arrested Sunday for Domestic Abuse Assault and for being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm. And, 24-year old Jonathan Leonardi was arrested Sunday for OWI/1st Offense.

On Saturday, 24-year old Nathan Stone, of Atlantic, was arrested for Burglary in the 3rd degree, Criminal Mischief in the 3rd degree, and Public Intoxication. All three men were booked into the Cass County Jail.

Incidents of theft and vandalism were reported over the weekend, in Creston. According to the Creston Police Department, both incidents were reported on Sunday. A resident in the 500 block of Pine Street reported someone entered a home on his property in the 400 block of Birch Street and took a dishwasher, push lawn mower, miscellaneous tools, a bathroom vanity, antique stained glass window, and long, two-piece dresser. The loss was estimated at $2,250.

And, a Creston woman reported to police someone threw a rock through the rear window of her vehicle while it was parked outside of her residence in the 300 block of Oak Street. The incident happened sometime between midnight and 5:20-a.m., Sunday. The damage was estimated at $300.

With KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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There were no serious injuries reported following a rollover accident early this (Monday) morning, north of Shelby. According to dispatch reports, a vehicle driven by a Harlan woman rolled over near the intersection of 450th and Hackberry Road, at around 12:30-a.m.

No other details are currently available.

A traffic stop Sunday evening in Red Oak, resulted in the arrest of 42-year old Lester Michael Ballard. The Red Oak man was taken into custody at around 7:20-p.m., for Driving While Suspended. He was also cited for Operating a motor vehicle without registration, and driving without insurance. Ballard was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $300 bond.

Sheriff’s officials in Adams County cited a Villisca man Sunday evening, following an investigation into a rollover accident. 32-year old John Dolph Carlton, of Villisca, was cited for Failure to Maintain Control, after the pickup he was driving went out of control as it was traveling northbound on Chestnut Avenue, about one-half mile south of 150th Street.

The truck slid into the right side ditch and came into contact with some small trees. The collision caused the truck to flip over onto the driver’s side, causing minor damage to the vehicle. No injuries were reported.

A new campaign offers support to veterans in Iowa who might be considering ending their own lives. It’s called “The Power of One” and it emphasizes the effect just one person, one conversation or one act can have on the life of a veteran or service member. The V-A’s Caitlin Thompson encourages friends and family of Iowa veterans to know the warning signs.

“Sleeping more or less than usual, getting angry more quickly than usual, getting more withdrawn from family members or friends, or drinking more or using drugs,” Thompson says. “Really, the hallmark sign is if somebody is expressing feelings of hopelessness or saying things like people would be better off without me.” The Iowa Department of Public Health shows 445 Iowans died by suicide in 2013, though there are no specific numbers for Iowa veterans’ suicides. Thompson says professionals are on staff at all V-A medical centers in Iowa to handle this type of situation.

“We also have suicide prevention coordinators at every VA around the country,” she says. “They do outreach events every month and they are the local experts in suicide prevention with veterans.” Thompson says Vietnam-era veterans are at particular risk for suicide. Of those service members who take their own lives, 70-percent are over 50 years old. The V-A is also seeing rising suicide numbers in veterans between the ages of 20 and 29. Many of those in the military who have taken their own lives haven’t even been deployed.

“What we need to be aware of especially with veterans is when people are going through major transitions,” Thompson says. “We know veterans go through a lot of transitions. Major life events can be high risk periods for suicide, such as divorce or relationship issues, job loss, financial problems or legal problems.” Veterans, current military members and their families can get help by calling the Veterans Crisis Line at 800-273-8255 or by sending a text to 838255. Online chat is also available at VeteransCrisisLine.net/Chat. Anyone else in the state can call the Suicide Prevention Lifeline at (800) 273-TALK or go to www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org.

(Radio Iowa)