Today (Friday) is the annual Day of Service and Giving on what would have been the 23rd birthday of an Eagle Grove boy. Aaron Eilerts was 14 when he was killed by a tornado that hit the Boy Scout camp in Harrison County in 2008. Beth Stephas, a counselor at Robert Blue Middle School, says students at Aaron’s old school are tackling 14 projects, several which were started by Aaron.

“We have a large group that will be sewing pillow cases that will be donated to the local hospitals for patients,” Stephas says. “We have students that will be doing pet blankets, a project Aaron did that benefited the Humane Society, making blankets for the pets in the kennels.” Students have branched off and launched their own community service projects which Stephas says are inspired by Aaron’s memory. “One of those is a project we’ve been doing every year where we take plain, white pillow cases and decorate those to send to service people that have been deployed,” she says.

Other kids are making dolls that will be sent to Haiti, while others are crafting little lending libraries to place around town. Stephas says it’s a real honor for the students to be carrying on Aaron’s thoughtful volunteer efforts year after year. “Many of them were just toddlers at the time Aaron died, so for them to be able to learn a little bit about his heart and then be able to participate in projects that he did, what a wonderful learning opportunity for our kids and a fantastic legacy to the memory of Aaron Eilerts.”

Former Iowa Governor Chet Culver signed a proclamation in 2008 marking February 24th as a statewide Day of Service and Giving in memory of Eilerts. The Robert D. and Billie Ray Center gives out an award each summer to an Iowan who follows the lead of Aaron Eilerts in giving back to their communities during the Iowa Character Counts Awards ceremony.

(Radio Iowa)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The leader of the Iowa State Patrol is retiring after a 32-year career with the force. The service retirement of Col. Michael Van Berkum was approved Monday and will be effective March 3. He had been the patrol’s chief since 2015.

In a statement to The Associated Press, Department of Public Safety Commissioner Roxann Ryan says Iowans should thank Van Berkum for his decades of service. She says he embodies the best of the patrol – “leadership, integrity and dedicated service for the public good.”

Ryan has not named a replacement for Van Berkum, but the department says more information will be released when he retires next week. Three of Van Berkum’s classmates from the department’s 1985 academy class will also retire the same day. A Rock Valley native, Van Berkum served the patrol in a number of roles as an officer and supervisor.

The Iowa Department of Transportation reports that (as of 8:45-a.m.) Interstate 80 westbound, west of Shelby, is blocked in both lanes due to a crash. The blockage is between Exit 34: County Road M16 and Exit 29: County Road L66.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – A man has been imprisoned for stealing from his employer in northwest Iowa. The Sioux City Journal reports that 45-year-old Scott Chamberlain was sentenced in Sioux City on Thursday to 10 years in prison. Chamberlin had pleaded guilty to theft.

Court documents say that, beginning in January 2009, Chamberlain took a skid loader and other equipment from W.A. Klinger and kept them at his home in Kingsley. The documents also say he charged more than $10,000 in personal purchases on company credit cards. He’s been ordered to pay $10,000 to his former employer.

The Creston Police Department reports two Union County residents were arrested Thursday afternoon on warrants out of Nebraska, for Failure to Appear in court. 29-year old Christopher Wollums and 23-year old Louise Yan Boughner, both of Creston, were taken into custody at around 12:15-p.m. Wollums was being held in the Union County Jail, while Boughner was being held in the Ringgold County Jail, both pending extradition to Nebraska.