A Shelby County business was the winner of the Southwest Iowa Regional Dream Big Grow Here Contest. The 2nd annual pitch off was held this past Monday at Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs. Shane and Maritza McCool with Willow Creek Glass Chapel and Banquet Hall in Shelby won the grand prize of $5,000 and will advance to the state level to compete for a chance to win $10,000.

Dream Big, Grow Here winners.

The runner-up and receiving $1,000 was Katrina Riggs, with Egg Krate Antiques LLC of Elk Horn.

Honorable mentions included: Elaine Hollen, with Pudgy Pumpkin Patch Gift Shop of Red Oak; Andre and Eva Franco, with Innovative Strength and Conditioning in Neola; Sheila Roane, with Kitchen Sisters LLC of Persia, and Linda Grimm, with Valley Drug Store in Missouri Valley.

All honorable mentions received $250. Willow Creek Glass Chapel and Banquet Hall will compete in the state competition at the EntreFest Conference in 2014.

w/ Ric Hanson

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Police in Clarinda are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a man whose body was discovered at around 9:30-a.m., Wednesday. Clarinda Police Chief Keith Brothers says officers responded to 702 West Tarkio St. to investigate the death of 41-year old Charles O. Grubb, who resided at that location.

The manner and cause of the man’s death will be determined through an autopsy conducted by the Iowa State Medical Examiner’s Office in Ankeny. The Page County Medical Examiner’s Office, Clarinda Regional Health Center Emergency Medical Services and the Clarinda Fire Department assisted in the investigation.

Officials with the Shelby County Extension Council have announced the addition of Mary Taggs as County Extension Educator at the Shelby County ISU Extension and Outreach office in Harlan. Taggs, an Elk Horn native, began her duties as the Shelby County Extension Educator on October 7th. She replaces former Shelby County Extension Educator Angela Ahrenholtz.

Mary Taggs

Taggs will be responsible for county coordination and facilitation of ISU Extension programs in communities, families, business and industry, agriculture and natural resources, and 4-H youth development. Taggs has a strong background in both youth and adult education,  is a 1991 graduate of Iowa State University with a bachelor’s degree in Family Services, and she is a former Shelby County 4-Her with related experience in community leadership, youth education and 4-H.

Mary and her husband John reside in Harlan. They have three children, April, 20, a student at Luther College, Jacob, 16, a junior at HCHS and Emily, 12, is a student at HCMS.

w/ Ric Hanson

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All over the nation, veterans will be honored on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, for their service to our country. In Iowa, several public transit agencies will be offering free rides to veterans and veterans’ family members Nov. 11th or 12th. To find out if your local transit agency is participating, go to http://www.iowadot.gov/transit/transitveterans.html. Be sure to check back, as the list will be updated daily. Some agencies provide free, year-round rides to veterans with a service-related disability.

Iowa is served by 19 urban transit agencies, 16 regional transit agencies, and 10 mobility managers supporting urban and rural communities in each of Iowa’s 99 counties. All public transit services are open to the public. More than 27.5 million public transit rides were provided in Iowa last year, representing nearly nine rides for each resident and a ridership increase of 14.5 percent over the past six years.

Police in Red Oak say two people were arrested Wednesday night, on separate charges. 19-year old Brooks R. Hilgerson, of Shelbyville, KY, was arrested at around 8:45-p.m. in the 1800 block of East Summit Street, on a charge of Criminal Mischief in the 4th degree. Hilgerson was booked into the Montgomery County Jail and held on $1,000 bond.

And, at around 10: 25-p.m.,  34-year old Marcella Janine Mutchler, of Essex, was arrested in Red Oak on a valid Page County warrant for Failure to Appear on a charge of Theft in the 5th degree. Mutchler was taken into custody in the 2100 block of Highway 48 and brought to the Montgomery County Jail where she was held before being turned over to authorities from Page County. Her bond was set at $900.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

MOUNT PLEASANT, Iowa (AP) — A prosecutor says a former Iowa jail guard was the only person with an opportunity to kill his pregnant wife. Scott Brown said yesterday during opening arguments in the trial of Seth Techel that only Techel was inside the trailer when Lisa Techel was shot in May 2012. He also noted that Seth Techel waited 18 minutes after his wife was shot to call for help.

BADGER, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa State Patrol says a 90-year-old man died when his car ran off the road in thick fog and hit a semi-trailer in Webster County. The state patrol says Joseph Earl Colwell of rural Humboldt died in yesterday morning’s crash in the small town of Badger, about 8 miles northeast of Fort Dodge.

CASA GRANDE, Ariz. (AP) — Authorities have released the names of an Iowa resident and another person who died in a 19-vehicle pileup on Interstate 10 during an Arizona dust storm. The Arizona Department of Public Safety said 51-year-old David Bechtel of Milton, Iowa was killed around noon Tuesday in the multi-vehicle wreck north of Picacho Peak.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Frank Podraza of Nebraska expressed gratitude while visiting the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Podraza, a Korean War veteran, called the structure down to earth and a proper reflection of the nature of the war. Korean War veterans from Iowa arrived in Washington, D.C. yesterday on another Honor Flight.

A Council Bluffs man was arrested Wednesday morning, in Atlantic. According to the Police Department, 39-year old Andy Walters was taken into custody on a 1st offense OWI charge. Walters was booked into the Cass County Jail and held pending an initial court appearance.

(12:40-p.m.)

The Iowa Finance Authority and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources have announced that 22 Iowa communities will benefit from a combined total of more than $34.7 million in low-cost water quality loans through the State Revolving Fund. State Revolving Fund Construction Loans are a low-cost construction financing option available for Iowa cities and municipalities for water quality initiatives. Planning & Design Loans are zero percent loans that assist with the first-phase of project expenses.

In Cass County, the City of Anita will receive slightly more than One-million dollars for a water quality improvement project designed to correct inflow and infiltration problems, and  Anita Municipal Utilities $102-thousand for the Planning and Design Phase. The City of Massena will receive $445,500 for infiltration and inflow corrections. In Ringgold County, Mt. Ayr will receive $378,000 for a drinking water connection project. Elsewhere…The City of Shenandoah is receiving just over $14-million for a new treatment plant and water main project, and the City of Hancock, $98,910 for planning and design.

The State Revolving Fund has awarded Iowa communities and municipalities more than $2.1 billion in Construction Loans and $125 million through Planning & Design Loans since program inception. The loans are made available as part of the State Revolving Fund.