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No. 20 Iowa State hosts Arkansas State

Sports

September 20th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

The 20th ranked Iowa State Cyclones host Arkansas State. ISU coach Matt Campbell is concerned about the Red Wolves team speed.

Campbell says Arkansas State has a lot of weapons on offense.

Campbell says communication will be a key for the Cyclone defense against an Arkansas State defense that wants to play hurry up.

Campbell says the first chore is to be lined up at the snap.

Kick-off is at 1-p.m. Saturday (CT)

UNI visits Hawaii Saturday night

Sports

September 20th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Northern Iowa is at Hawaii for a late night kickoff, Iowa time. Panther coach Mark Farley on the long wait for kickoff.

Farley says there is a plan to keep the players busy.

Hawaii is 1-2 with the losses to UCLA and Sam Houston.

Farley says Hawaii is also highly skilled on defense.

Kick-off is 11-p.m. CT Saturday.

Georgia man dies in a northern IA crash Thursday afternoon

News

September 20th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Mitchell County, Iowa) – One person died and two others were injured Thursday, during a collision between two trucks in northern Iowa. The Iowa State Patrol says a 2024 Mack truck was traveling south on Kirkwood Avenue west of Staceyville (in Mitchell County). A 2012 Peterbilt semi was traveling east on 465th Street. The Patrol says the driver of the Mack truck, 43-year-old Senika Range, of McDonough, GA, failed to yield the right of way from the stop sign and entered the intersection, where the truck was struck on the passenger side by the semi. The Peterbilt rolled over and spilled a load of corn as a result to the crash, which happened at around 12:35-p.m., Thursday.

A passenger in the Mack truck – 60-year-old Eric Mitchell, of Atlanta, GA – was ejected from the vehicle following the impact and died from his injuries after being flown to a hospital in Minnesota . He was not wearing a seat belt. Senika Range, and the driver of the semi, 24-year-old Christo Vander Linde, of Staceyville, were injured. Both were transported to a local hospital.

The Patrol was assisted at the scene by crews with the Staceyville Fire Dept., St. Ansgar Fire & EMS, and the Mitchell County Ambulance service.

MARION WISSLER, 88, of Windsor Heights, a Lewis native (9-23-2024)

Obituaries

September 20th, 2024 by Jim Field

MARION WISSLER, 88, of Windsor Heights, a Lewis native, died September 17, 2024 at Kavanagh House in Des Moines.  Graveside services for MARION WISSLER will be held on Monday, September 23, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. at Oakwood Cemetery in Lewis.  Hamilton’s on Westown Parkway is assisting the family.

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Memorial visitation will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday, September 21, 2024 at Hamilton’s on Westown Parkway, 3601 Westown Pkwy in West Des Moines Iowa.

The family requests memorials be sent to the Hitchcock House in Lewis. Marion was extremely proud of the role that his great-grandfather, Henry Wissler, played in the Underground Railroad, working with other abolitionists in southwest Iowa. Henry was a station agent/conductor who helped freedom seekers find their way to safety, and the Hitchcock House keeps this important history alive.  Donations can be sent to: Hitchcock Advisory Board, 63788 567th Lane, Lewis, IA 51544.

MARION WISSLER is survived by:

Sons:  Mike (Sara) Wissler and Steve (Cindy) Wissler of Ankeny

4 Grandchildren

Banned book give-away planned in central Iowa this weekend

News

September 20th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa is the first stop this weekend on the national tour of what’s known as the Banned Wagon, as publishing giant Penguin Random House offers free books that are the focus of court battles and controversy. Jan Danielson Kaiser, spokeswoman for Beaverdale Books in Des Moines, says they have a long list of speakers who will use the vehicle as a backdrop for addressing censorship, and the importance of protecting the freedom to read. “It is a 20-foot bookmobile and it’s going to be parked right smack in front of the store,” Danielson Kaiser says, “and they are going to be giving away 20 different titles of banned books.” The Banned Wagon is scheduled to make stops in multiple cities and states that are being impacted by book banning, and they chose Iowa to start the venture.

“We’re just happy to be able to help them spread the word, spread some great titles,” she says, “some wonderful books that you might even know, like, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” “The Color Purple,” “The Fault in Our Stars,” “The Outsiders,” even “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.” Danielson Kaiser says the American Library Association tracked instances of book banning during the first half of the 2023-24 school year, and reached the highest level ever documented.  “There were 4,240 unique book titles that were targeted for censorship in the last year, and there’s been 1,247 demands to censor library books,” Danielson Kaiser says, “so there’s a lot of pressure on libraries, a lot of pressure on schools.”

Penguin-Random House image

Sunday’s event will run from noon to 4 P-M, while a Banned Book Fair is planned for September 29th at the Franklin Events Center in Des Moines. Other cities the Banned Wagon will visit include: Milwaukee; Chicago; Indianapolis; Cleveland; Richmond, Virginia; Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Gainesville, Florida and Austin, Texas — all places with a high volume of book bans and challenges.

Auditors find utility billing error in small NE Iowa town’s billing system

News

September 20th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – A report from the state auditor’s office has identified a costly error in a small northeast Iowa town’s utility billing system. About 500 people live in the town of Elma. Staff in the state auditor’s office reviewed the city’s financial records for the 2022 fiscal year and found the city had deficits of over 441-thousand dollars in its Enterprise, Sewer and Water Funds. The review by auditors discovered the sewer and water bills for Elma residents and businesses hadn’t been raised, as required by a city ordinance.

Starting in 2019, the utility rates were to go up three percent every July 1st.

The state auditor’s report says the rates in the billing system have not increased as required. The report did not indicate whether the error was made in just one year or over several years.

Hawkeyes Secure Five-Set Win on Phills’ Career Night

Sports

September 20th, 2024 by Asa Lucas

CORALVILLE, Iowa – University of Iowa volleyball opened the Kwik Star Klassic with a five-set victory over South Dakota on Thursday night at Xtream Arena.

The Hawkeyes are 6-4 on the season and 2-0 in five-set matches.

Freshman Dominique Phills had a career night with 18 kills to lead the Hawkeyes. Phills’ previous personal best was 12. Senior Gracie Gibson was efficient on the attack, converting on 10 of her 19 swings (.474). Seniors Joy Galles and Michelle Urquhart recorded 16 and 13 digs, respectively, for the Hawkeye defense. Sophomore Hannah Whittingstall was strong at the net, matching her career high with seven blocks.

As a team, Iowa assisted on 51-of-55 kills. Freshman Jenna Meitzler set up 42 Hawkeye kills in the tournament opener. Iowa hit .198, while holding South Dakota to .165.

HEAR FROM COACH BARNES
“I’m proud of the way we prepared this week. With our freshman setter (Meitzler) stepping up, we tailored everything to her this week, gave her some confidence and the team has rallied around that. I am also proud of Dominique (Phills). She had a great match and really helped us win that fifth set. When we went up 2-0, we knew there was a lot of game left. Credit to South Dakota for fighting back. We’ll certainly take the win against a very good team like that.”

Creston man arrested for Probation Violation

News

September 20th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Creston, Iowa) – Police in Creston arrested a man Thursday night, for Failure to Appear on a Probation Violation charge. 43-year-old David Junior Richman, of Creston, was arrested at around 8:15-p.m. at a residence in the 500 block of W. Montgomery Street. Richman was taken to Union County Jail and held without bond until he makes an initial appearance before the magistrate.

Dozens of SW Iowa artists are featured in 20 locations on weekend ‘art tour’

News

September 20th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – Artists from communities across southwest Iowa will be featured in a multi-city showcase this weekend, starting this (Friday) afternoon. The Southwest Iowa Art Tour is in its 11th year with displays in Page, Fremont, Montgomery, Mills, Pottawattamie, and Shelby counties. Tour coordinator Rebecca Castle Laughlin says there’s a wide range of art, including: painting, sculpture, photography, pottery, wood carving, jewelry and more. “It seems like every year there’s at least one art form that I didn’t know about,” Laughlin says. “For example, we’ve got up in Council Bluffs, there’s an artist who combines fiber art with her painting. So, she does quilting but she paints on the fabric also.”

Laughlin says the event allows artists to spotlight their work while also providing an economic development opportunity for the participating communities. “It was very grassroots-oriented and we tried to get some excitement around the local arts venues and artists that are in our area,” she says. “We want to get them some more sales, obviously, but also bring awareness to the fact that you can make a viable living off the arts in southwest Iowa.” Laughlin says they’ve been handing out brochures with maps at various locations, and they’re also available online for the self-guided tour.

“You can really just plan out your route,” Laughlin explained. “You might say, ‘I’ve got a youth football game tomorrow in Oakland, so I can hit Avoca, Neola, and Macedonia real quick.’ So, really just building it around your schedule. And hit as many spots as you can, because there are some really great artists.” A sneak peak of the tour runs from 4 to 7 p.m. today (Friday), while the main tour is from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, and noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday.

The art will be on display at 20 locations in 13 communities on this year’s tour, including: Harlan, Avoca, Neola, Council Bluffs, Macedonia, Glenwood, Malvern, Red Oak, Essex, Clarinda, Shenandoah, Sidney, and Thurman.

(More on the web at swiarttour.com)

Final Summitt Carbon pipeline meeting is today

Ag/Outdoor, News

September 20th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – The final public meeting on the expansion of the Summit Carbon Solutions carbon capture pipeline expansion project is today (Friday). Farmer Dave Balder (bald-er) plans to attend the meeting in Buena Vista County and opposes the project. “This is a dangerous, profit-driven project, and I see that it will be obsolete before it even gets completed.” Balder, who lives a mile north of the Valero Renewable Fuels plant in Albert City already granted easements on his property for two natural gas pipelines. He says those pipelines are projects that benefit the public, but the carbon pipeline is not.

“I do not agree with someone coming in and with eminent domain and taking over, especially since this is a private situation,” Balder says. Summit Carbon Solutions scheduled public meetings in 23 counties as required by the Iowa Utilities Commission as it seeks to increase its nearly 700-mile carbon capture pipeline by 340 miles.

Several property owners, lawmakers, and the Sierra Club have filed lawsuits opposing the use of eminent domain to build the pipeline connecting about 60 ethanol plants across five states.