On Monday, November 23, 2015, the Iowa Department of Public Safety (DPS), will package full Thanksgiving meals that will be donated to one family in need in each of Iowa’s 99 counties.  The Iowa DPS recognizes that there are many families in need this holiday season and organized a collection within the Department raising over $5,000.

Fareway Stores, Inc. offered their assistance by gathering a full-sized turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, a five pound bag of potatoes and a pie for each of the 99 families.  The remaining funds will be distributed to 15 food banks around Iowa.

“Our Department serves this entire state through our six divisions and several bureaus.  We are in all 99 counties working on a daily basis. We felt this would be a great way to give back to the communities we live in and serve, especially when they are in need this holiday season,” DPS Commissioner Roxann Ryan said.

Iowa State Patrol Troopers, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) Special Agents and other Iowa Department of Public Safety members will hand deliver the meals to the families, as well as the checks to the food banks that afternoon.

The Department of Public Safety would like to thank Fareway for their assistance in making this project possible.

The upcoming weekend is typically a very busy one for Iowa grocery stores as consumers stock up on supplies for next week’s Thanksgiving dinner. Despite fears turkey prices would skyrocket due to this spring’s bird flu outbreak, U-S-D-A economist Annemarie Kuhns says turkey prices have actually dropped in the past week and are only up a few cents a pound from a year ago.

“This is the main attraction for your Thanksgiving meal and retailers tend to offer deep discounts on their turkeys to bring people into the store,” Kuhns says. Iowans may find frozen turkeys selling for as low as 59-cents a pound, however, many of those beloved side dishes may cost more to prepare. Sweet potato prices are up nearly 28-percent from a year ago while russet potatoes are up more than eight-percent.

Egg prices are up significantly from 2014, in large part, due to the bird flu outbreak. She says a dozen eggs will run you a full dollar more. “On average, $2.97,” Kuhns says. “They cost $1.97 at this time last year.” Kuhns says the price of green beans, milk and cranberries are all down this year. Iowa remains the nation’s number-one hog producer and Kuhns says now is a good time to buy ham as prices are down a half-a-dollar. “Per pound ham prices are about $4.13 this year,” she says. “Last year, they cost about $4.63.”

Overall, it’s estimated the Thanksgiving dinner will cost about six-percent more than last year’s big meal.

(Radio Iowa)

Officials in Council Bluffs report the City is expecting a rain and snow mixture during the morning and afternoon, today. That mix should change to all snow by 6-p.m. and continue until 11-p.m. Snow accumulation totals are expected to be between 2 to 3 inches.

Winds will be picking up this evening as the temperatures begin to drop, potentially causing slick road conditions into the evening. Council Bluffs Public Works will have crews out treating streets all day, however, as always, they ask that you drive with caution.