(Audubon, Iowa) – A five-day run of the Audubon County Fair begins today (Wednesday). You can see the complete schedule HERE. Today’s activities at the fair include:

9:00 AM Judging 4-H Static Exhibits
9:00 AM-6:00 PM Fair board secretary’s office open
9:30 AM 4-H Garden Plot Judging
2:00 PM 4-H Communications & Table Setting Event – Agrihall
4:00 PM Open Class exhibits may arrive
4:00 PM Clover Kids Pet Show – Rabbit & Poultry Show Area
4:30 PM Clover Kids Showcase – 4-H Bldg.
5:00 PM 4-H Pet & Dog Show – Livestock Pavilion
6:00 PM 4-H Club booth displays must be set-up

Des Moines, Iowa – Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, Tuesday, announced that nominations for the 2023 John Lewis Youth Leadership award are now open for all Iowans aged 25 and under.  The John Lewis Leadership Award was established in 2021 as a way for every state to honor the extraordinary accomplishments of Congressman John Lewis. Secretaries of State across the nation are encouraged to recognize gifted, civic-minded young people with demonstrated leadership abilities with the award each year.

Nominations for the John Lewis Youth Leadership Award are open to Iowa residents aged 25 years or under for their meaningful commitment in addressing civil rights issues and bringing about authentic change in their communities. All nominations will be reviewed by the Office of the Iowa Secretary of State. Nomination closes on October 6 and recipients will be recognized in December.

Nomination forms are available at:

https://sos.iowa.gov/Initiatives/JohnLewisYouthAward.html

The John Lewis Youth Leadership Award was established by the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) and each state is encouraged to award up to two recipients each calendar year.

The Shelby County Fair begins its week long run today (Wednesday), in Harlan. Here’s today’s schedule of events & activities:

6:30 – 8:30 a.m………….Enter & Weigh 4-H/FFA Swine – Unload at dock and be inspected by veterinarian.
8:00 a.m…………………..Opening Flag Raising Ceremony – Front Gate
8:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m…..Bottle/Bucket Calf followed by Bottle/Bucket Calf Plus One Interviews-Extension Office, 906 6 th Street
9:00 -10:00 a.m…………Enter & Weigh 4-H/FFA Sheep and Goats – Unload at dock and be inspected by veterinarian
9:00 -11:00 a.m…………4-H Cake Decorating entries – 4-H Exhibit Building
8:45 a.m…………………..4-H Table Setting Exhibitor’s Meeting
9:00 -11:00 a.m…………4-H Table Setting – 4-H Exhibit Building
11:00 a.m…………………Willard Olson Swine Contest – 4-H Exhibit Building
11:15 a.m…………………Best of Iowa Contest Exhibitor’s Meeting
11:30 a.m…………………Best of Iowa Contest – Immanuel Lutheran Church
1:00 p.m…………………..4-H Booths to be finished
12:00 – 6:00 p.m………..Enter Open Class Non-Livestock Exhibits
6:30 p.m…………………..Judge Open Class Non-Livestock Departments (if not judging Thurs.)
5:30 – 6:30 p.m………….Enter 4-H/FFA Rabbits – All livestock must be inspected by the vet before  going to their cage
4:30 – 7:00 p.m………….Enter & Weigh 4-H/FFA Market Beef, Breeding Beef, & Dairy – Unload at dock and be inspected by a veterinarian.
4:30 – 5:30 p.m………….4-H/FFA Horses will be checked in – All livestock must be inspected by the vet before going to stall.
6:00 p.m…………………Tractor Pull – Grandstand
6:30 – 7:30 p.m………….Enter 4-H/FFA Poultry and Rabbits

(Radio Iowa) – After a 15 hour special session at the statehouse, the Republican-led legislature has passed a ban on most abortions in Iowa. The bill’s almost identical to one Governor Reynolds approved five years ago. There are exceptions for certain medical conditions and for victims of rape and incest, but most abortions would be banned when cardiac activity can be detected, around the sixth week of a pregnancy.

The Iowa Supreme Court recently deadlocked on the governor’s request to lift an injunction that’s kept the 2018 law from going into effect. Senate President Amy Sinclair, a Republican from Allerton, says the law has been in limbo because of judicial overreach. “Needlessly forcing the legislature to re-pass a law that is already been enacted,” Sinclair said, “in an effort to protect the lives of every single individual across our state who has a beating heart.”

All Democrats present voted against the bill. House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst of Windsor Heights says the era of big government is back. “Women will be less free in a few hours than they are right now,” Konfrst said. “…If the state can tell you you have to have a baby, what else can the state tell you? That you can’t?” Governor Reynolds says the bill provides a clear answer to the Iowa Supreme Court about the legislature’s intent and she plans to sign the bill into law Friday.

Republican Representative Shannon Lundgren of Peosta was the bill’s floor manager in 2018 and again yesterday (Tuesday).”There was nothing hypothetical about it then and there is nothing about that now,” Lundgren said. “This bill sets a clear standard where the state has an interest in the life of the child…When there is a heartbeat, there is life.” Senator Molly Donahue, a Democrat from Cedar Rapids, says the bill will force women to make difficult choices.

“This abortion ban is not preventing abortion,” Donahue said. “but rather just a cause of a heavier burden of women having to leave the state to access care or to decide to self abort in an unsafe way.” Representative Brad Sherman, a Republican from Williamsburg, says government’s job is to protect the rights of every person, including the unborn. “If they’re not prepared to have a baby, they shouldn’t have sex if they’re that concerned about it,” Sherman said. “I will stand for everyone’s right to practice abstinence.”

Representative Heather Matson, a Democrat from Ankeny, says every pregnancy is unique and sometimes dangerous. “What you are dictating to women and doctors with this bill today is that their own well being or their own extensive medical training simply doesn’t matter,” Matson said. Representative Luana Stoltenberg, a Republican from Davenport who backed the bill, says as a young woman she had three abortions.

“I was told that it was just a blob of tissue,” Stoltenberg says. “…Every day I live with the reality that I killed the only children I would ever have.” Senator Zach Wahls, a Democrat from Coralville, says the bill is a radical overreach. “Poll after poll shows that Iowans want to protect the freedom to make this personal decision for our own families,” Wahls said After 11 p.m., some opponents of the bill who’d been in the Senate gallery watching the debate started booing when the bill passed on a 32-to-17 vote.

The bill passed the House a couple of hours earlier on a 56 to 34 vote. Two House Republicans who support a ban on all abortions voted against the bill and one Republican senator voted no. All other Republicans present voted for it. Planned Parenthood officials have said they intend to challenge the law in court, so there may be another drawn out legal battle before the fate of the law is known.

(Clarinda, Iowa) (Updated 9:40-p.m. w/the name of the 2nd driver)  – A head-on crash Tuesday afternoon (July 11) in Page County claimed the life of both drivers. The Iowa State Patrol reports the accident happened on Highway 2, just west of N Avenue, at around 2:30-p.m.

Authorities say a 2019 Nissan Sentra driven by 71-year-old Denise James, from Omaha, NE, was traveling west on Highway 2 at the 45 mile marker, at the same time a 2019 Nissan Rogue driven by 78-year-old Sandra Aparo, of Clarinda, was traveling eastbound.

For reasons unknown, James’ Sentra crossed the center line of the road and collided with the SUV. Both drivers died at the scene. The Patrol says the were wearing their seat belts. The crash remains under investigation.

The Patrol was assisted at the scene by the Page County Sheriff’s Office and Clarinda Fire and Rescue.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Board of Directors of the Atlantic CSD will meet at 5:30-p.m. Wednesday, July 12th, for a regular board meeting. Normally held in the High School Media Center, the Board will instead gather in the Schuler Elementary Library (located at 501 E 11th Street), due to construction activities take place in the HS Media Center.

The board meeting will be streaming live on YouTube at the following link: https://youtube.com/live/FDu_R4-86tI?feature=share

Wednesday’s tentative agenda is as follows:

Call to Order
I. Roll Call
II. Approve Meeting Agenda
III. Welcome Visitors/Public Comment
IV. Principal Reports
V. Superintendent Report
VI. Board Report- Committees
VII. Financial Reports
VIII. Discussion Items

A. Kickoff Staff PD Days
B. IASB Priorities for upcoming legislative session

IX. Consent Items

A. Meeting Minutes
B. Bills
C. Open Enrollment
D. General Education & Special Education Contracts
E. Resignations
F. Contract Recommendations/Letters of Assignment
G. Gifts, Grants & Bequests
H. Approved Fundraiser

X. Action Items

A. Board Secretary Sworn In
B. Approval of name change on Bank Accounts
C. .5 FTE Homeschool Assistance Teacher
1. Job description
D. Sealed bid for 2003 Ford Van sale
E. Purchase of Truck
F. Varsity Bound Service Agreement 23-24

XI. Upcoming Dates
A. Board Retreat – July 19, 2023; 2-6 PM
XII. Adjourn

Council Bluffs, Iowa – On Saturday July 8, 2023 the Council Bluffs Police Department requested assistance from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) with an officer involved shooting that occurred at the intersection of Valley View Drive and College Road in Council Bluffs.

Officers from multiple agencies were involved in a high-speed pursuit of a subject who was suspected to be involved in multiple violent incidents throughout the morning of July 8th in and around Omaha, and Bellevue, Nebraska. The suspect was identified as Matthew Briggs (41 years old) of Omaha Nebraska. Briggs was known to be armed with multiple weapons. The pursuit crossed into Iowa with Briggs driving 100+ mph at times during the pursuit. The pursuit ended in Council Bluffs when a Council Bluffs Patrol Officer performed a P.I.T. maneuver on the vehicle Briggs was operating, ending the pursuit.

Briggs pointed a weapon at the officers and two officers fired their weapons at Briggs. Law enforcement and EMS immediately performed life-saving measures on Briggs. Briggs was transported to the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha where he was pronounced deceased. Briggs was later transported to the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner in Ankeny, Iowa. On July 10, 2023, a forensic autopsy was performed on Briggs. Briggs died of a fatal gun-shot wound.

On July 10, 2023, Agents from the DCI interviewed the officers who were involved in the shooting. The officers have been identified as Lieutenant Chad Geer who is a 27-years veteran of the Council Bluffs Police Department, and Lieutenant Martin Stiles who is a 23-years veteran of the Omaha Police Department.

This is an ongoing investigation, and no further details are being released at this time. At the conclusion of the DCI’s investigation, the case will be reviewed by the Pottawattamie County Attorney and the Iowa Attorney General’s Office.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa State Fair will have 64 new foods when it opens the gates in August. Some of the new offerings for this year include Bacon and Sweet Corn Lobster Rolls, a Bacon Cheddar Pretzel Dog, Blueberry Mini Donuts, a Bucket of Soda, and Butterbeer Ice Cream.

For those who like their food on a stick, there’s the Crunch Cool Ranch Pickle on a Stick and Deep Fried Strawberry Shortcake on a Stick and Catfish in on a Stick and Grilled Shrimp on a Stick.

The Fair will pick three of the new foods next Tuesday to be voted on by fairgoers as the best new food at the Fair.

2023 New Food List

(Banh Mi) Vietnamese Sandwich; (Café Muoi) Salted Coffee; A-Hootenanny Ice Cream; Amish Donuts; Apple Pie Cookie Ice Cream; Bacon and Sweet Corn Lobster Rolls; Bacon Cheddar Pretzel Dog; Bauder’s Cherry Dream Ice Cream; Berry Bowl-Frozen Sorbet; Birch Beer Soda; Blueberry Mini Donuts; Bubble Tea; Bucket of Soda; Buffalo Chicken Bacon Ranch Fries; Burrito Bowl; Butterbeer Ice Cream; Byrd Dawg Crispy Chicken Sandwich; Caramel Apple Cake Pops; Catfish in a Boat or on a Stick; Chicken Salad Hoagie; Chopped Brisket Sandwich; Chopped Italian Chicken Hoagie; Chopped Italian Ham Hoagie;Chopped Italian Roast Beef Hoagie; Citrus Boost Energy Drink; Cookie Dough Sundae, Cotton Candy Art, Cotton Candy Cheese Cake, Craft Link on a Stick,  Crunch Cool Ranch Pickle on a Stick, Deep Fried Bacon Brisket Mac-N-Cheese Grilled Cheese, Deep Fried Strawberry Shortcake on a Stick, Deep Fried Sweet Corn Nugget. Dill Pickle Flavored Cheese Curds, Dough Crazy (Chocolate Chip, Cake Batter, Brownie Batter, Brookie, CC Dough w/o CC, Monster, Cherry Chocolate Chip, Cookies and Cream) Sweet Stick, Fried Caramel Apple Cow Tail, Grilled Shrimp on a Stick, Grinder Ball, Hot Stuff Grilled Cheese, Iowa Sweet Corn Sundae, Iowa Twinkie-Jalapeno Filled with Pulled Pork, Corn and Cream Cheese, Wrapped in Bacon, Smoked with Sweet and Sticky BBQ, Finished with Ranch. Korean Bacon Egg Dog. Korean Egg Dog, Lamb Gyro Salad, Made from Scratch Bacon Maple Monkey Bread, Orange (with Peppermint) Sipper, Orange Float, Orange Slush, Orange-Frosty, Oreo Brownie Blast, Peanut Butter Cream Donuts, Pop Corn Shrimp, Pork Belly Pinwheel, Raspberry Chipotle Grilled Cheese, Shrimp Ceviche, Shrimp Poke Bowl, Shrimp Tacos, Soft Serve Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Sundae,Southern Fried Corn on the Cob, The Ooey Gooey All American Grilled Cheese, Ube Funnel Cake, Walking Banana Dessert,Walking Smores Dessert, Walleye in a Boat or on a Stick.

(Radio Iowa) – A blackberry farmer from Indiana has made it to central Iowa in his walk across the United States in an effort to raise awareness and funds for Feeding America, a non-profit organization representing 200 food banks nationwide. Brian Christner visited the Food Bank of Iowa in Des Moines today (Tuesday), as the agency struggles to keep up with an unprecedented demand for food.

“It’s a tough time right now, no doubt, especially the summertime,” Christner says. “This is when donations go down to food banks and kids no longer are getting those meals from schools. The solution is, we all need to get together and help out those that are doing the heavy lifting.” Christner is planning to walk 48-hundred miles across the U-S. The hike began February 18th in Delaware and will end at Point Reyes National Seashore State Park in California in November. He says the best way for Iowans to help other Iowans who are food insecure is with their money and their time.

“One dollar to Feeding America represents ten meals. Since they are such a large organization, they’re able to purchase things in quantity,” Christner says. “The other way is volunteering, going in and helping at a food bank. That really helps keep the costs down and then they’re able to purchase more food.” Christner has already made stops at the River Bend Food Bank in Davenport and at the Northern Iowa Food Bank in Waterloo, and in another ten days or so, he’ll reach the Food Bank for the Heartland in Omaha/Council Bluffs.

“Blackberry” Brian Christner (Photo from Feeding America)

“I am so incredibly amazed at the people that work at the pantries,” Christner says. “These people are angels that are out there helping and giving. It’s really a beautiful thing. I feel blessed to be able to meet these people as I move along in my journey.”

You can follow his hike at Blackberry Brian on Facebook or via the website: https://www.hikingamerica.com/blackberry-brian/

(Radio Iowa) – A few dozen Iowans have shared their views on a six week abortion ban at public hearings at the Iowa Capitol. The Iowa House and Senate convened early this (Tuesday) morning for a one-day special legislative session to consider a bill to ban abortions after fetal cardiac activity can be detected.

Maggie DeWitte, executive director of Pulse Life Advocates, urged legislators to act. “It is beyond time to once and for all have this heartbeat law passed for the second time, signed into law for the second time, but now be able to be enforced,” DeWitte said. Dr. Deborah Ann Turner, president of the League of Women Voters of the United States, is an O-B-G-Y-N who was medical director at Planned Parenthood North Central States. She previously practiced at hospitals in Davenport, Mason City and Des Moines.

“Respect the people seeking abortion as individuals,” Turner said “…You have no license or right to make medical decisions about anyone’s health except your own.” Samantha Fett, chair of the Warren County chapter of Moms for Liberty, thanked the governor and G-O-P legislators in advance for acting on the bill, but she ultimately wants to see all abortions outlawed.

Special-session-protests.-RI-photo

“There’s no more important calling on this earth than to have children,” Fett said. “It’s the fundamental part of our society that is true and beautiful.” Reverend Brigit Stevens is the executive minister for the Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota Conferences of the United Church of Christ. She says abortion will not go away, it will go underground if the bill becomes law.

“The interpretation imposed by this legislation represents a narrow Christian view that is not appropriate criteria for public policy,” she said. Terry Aman, pastor of the Church of the Way in Des Moines, urged legislators to vote for the bill. “Everyone in this room is going to stand before a holy God and give an account,” Aman said, “and woe to the one who says, ‘I arbitrarily chose death.'” Hundreds of opponents of the bill gathered for a midday rally in the Capitol rotunda. Waverly Zhou urged the crowd to defeat G-O-P legislators running for reelection in 2024.

“We know we can’t change their minds, but we can do what voters and citizens of this country do best and that is vote them out,” she said, prompting the crowd to chant: “vote them out.” Reverend Debbie Griffin of a downtown Des Moines Disciples of Christ church told the crowd pregnancy is complicated. “My faith compels me to protec the freedom of choice of my neighbors,” she said.

As the rally was underway, a group of people who backed the bill gathered in a small Capitol meeting room to pray for passage of the legislation. The House and Senate are expected to begin debating the bill around 4 p.m. It will be around 10 p.m. when the House takes a final vote and the Senate will vote around on the bill after 11 p.m.