712 Digital Group - top

Pursuit results in a fatal crash in northern IA Wed. night

News

June 13th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Lake Mills, Iowa) – A vehicle being pursued by law enforcement in northern Iowa’s Winnebago County, crashed Wednesday night and ejected the driver, who died at the scene. According to the Iowa State Patrol, authorities were chasing a 2005 Lincoln LS at around 10-p.m., when the vehicle failed to negotiate a curve on Highway 69 at 212th Avenue, near Lake Mills.

When the car entered the ditch and rolled over, the driver was ejected. Their name was being withheld pending notification of family.

The Patrol was assisted at the scene by the Lake Mills Police, Fire & EMS  Departments, and the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office.

Posted in News |

Skyscan Forecast for Atlantic & the Nishna Valley: Thursday, June 13, 2024

Weather

June 13th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Today: Increasing clouds, with a high near 92. S/SW winds 5 to 10 mph becoming N/NE & gusting to near 20 mph.
Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 60.
Tomorrow: Sunny, with a high near 86. East wind 5 to 10 mph.
Tom. Night: A 60% chance of showers & thunderstorms. Low around 63.
Saturday: Partly sunny &  breezy w/a 40% chance of showers and thunderstorms. High near 88.
Sat. Night: Breezy w/a 40% chance of showers and thunderstorms. Low around 69.
Sunday: Mostly sunny & breezy w/just a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. High near 93.

Wednesday’s High in Atlantic was 88. Our Low this morning was 68. Last year on this date, the High in Atlantic was 84 and the Low was 54. The record High for June 13th was 100 in 2022. The record Low was 37 in 1906. Sunrise: 5:45. Sunset: 8:54.

Posted in Weather |

Atlantic School Board approves request to advertise for School Resource Office position

News

June 12th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

[UPDATED 6/13] (Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic Community School District’s (ACSD) Board of Education, Wednesday evening, discussed and then voted to approve, a request to advertise for a shared-position with the City of Atlantic, for a School Resource Officer (SRO). Atlantic School District Superintendent Dr. Beth Johnson..

Prior to the Board’s vote, Atlantic Police Chief Devin Hogue mentioned he had applied for a COPS (Community Oriented Policing Service) Grant. He expects to be notified in late September, about whether or not the grant is approved.

He said the nationwide federal grant is for a three-year program.

Chief Hogue said since the Atlantic P-D has previously never applied for the grant, he hopes that works in their favor.

In the meantime, a 28-E cost sharing agreement between the City and the School District would have to be approved by both entities. Superintendent Beth Johnsen said Middle School Principal Casey Pelzer was exploring the possibility as well, of the District applying for a similar type of, or other grant opportunities, to share in the cost of hiring an SRO.

In her report to the Board, Superintendent Johnsen said the District received $50,000 per district building, in the form of a School Safety Grant, for a total of $200,000.

She said also, the District’s new web page will be coming on-line in the next week or so.

Additional information will be released on social media, including the ACSD Facebook page. The Board, Wednesday, approved the resignations of:

  • Cecily McCuen, Special Education;
  • Alexandra Statia, Kitchen
  • Kerry Jepsen, Para (to take HS Secretary position)
  • and Alyssa Boltz, Soccer coach.

They also approved 2024-25 School Year Contract Recommendations and/or Letters of Assignment for:

  • 2024 Fall Sports Coaching Recommendations, Sponsor and Advisor positions
  • New position: Jr. High Assistant Volleyball Coach (#2)
  • Anna Pauley, 9th grade Volleyball
  • and Lisa Sonntag, JV Volleyball.

The Board approved 2024-25 Substitute Wage Rates (affecting two positions), in the amount of $150/day and $190/day, respectively. They approved PLC Supplemental Contracts, and by a vote of 3-to 2: Administrative, Director and non-union Employment, Contracts. The dissenting votes came from Jodi Stowater-Goodrich and Josh McLaren. In other business, the Atlantic School Board approved Fuel Bids as presented, Transportation Routing Software, and the renewal of Liability & Workman’s Comp Insurance, along with 2024-25 Membership renewals pertaining to: The Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB); Iowa School Finance Information Service (ISFIS), and Rural School Advocates of Iowa (RSAI).

Posted in News |

MARILYN RUTH NELSON, 82, of Atlantic (Svcs. 6/15/24)

Obituaries

June 12th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

MARILYN RUTH NELSON, 82, of Atlantic, died Wednesday, June 12, 2024, at Unity Point Methodist Hospital in Des Moines. Funeral services for MARILYN NELSON will be held 11-a.m. Saturday, June 15, 2024, at the Elk Horn Lutheran Church (Elk Horn, IA). Schmidt Family Funeral Home in Atlantic has the arrangements.

Public visitation with the family will be held at the funeral home on Friday, June 14th from 5-until 7-p.m

Interment is in the Elk Horn Lutheran Cemetery. A luncheon will be held following the interment in the fellowship hall of the Elk Horn Lutheran Church.

Memorials may be directed to the Marilyn Nelson Family, to be determined at a later date. They may be mailed to the Schmidt Family Funeral Home – P.O. Box 523, Atlantic, IA 50022.

MARILYN RUTH NELSON is survived by:

Her daughter – Cheri (Mike) Mahoney, of Willow Spring, NC, and Nancy (Dustin) Williams of Lincoln, NE.

Her sons – Leland Nelson, of Elk Horn, IA, and Paul (Kim) Nelson, of Dexter.

Her brothers – Charles (Melody) Baker, of Tampa, FL,  and Randy (Kathy) Baker, of LeGrand, IA.

Her sisters – Joanne (Gary) Parker, of Columbus, NE,., and Beverly (Larry) Mundt, of Fort Worth TX.

6 grandchildren; 9 great-grandchildren;  sister-in-law Barbara Baker of Greenfield, other relatives and friends.

Posted in Obituaries |

Carr Receives Third Iowa State Male Athlete of the Year Honor

Sports

June 12th, 2024 by Asa Lucas

AMES, Iowa – For the third time in his career, Iowa State wrestler David Carr has been named the Gary Thompson Iowa State Male Athlete of the Year. Carr is the second Cyclone to win the award three times in his career, joining Cael Sanderson (1999, 2001-02).

Carr posted a 27-2 record in 2023-24 and won his second national title to become the 17th Cyclone wrestler to win multiple national titles and the first since 2010 (Jake Varner). David and his father, Nate, are one of four father-son duos in NCAA Division I history to each win at least two national titles.

The Canton, Ohio native won Amateur Wrestling News’ Hammer Award for winning the most competitive weight class at the NCAA Championships. The path to his national title included wins over the No. 1, 2 and 5 seeds, and four of his five opponents in the tournament either finished on the podium or had earned All-American honors at some point in their career.

As the No. 4 seed, Carr defeated eventual All-American Hunter Garvin (Stanford) in the second round, returning two-time All-American No. 5 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) in the quarterfinals, two-time defending national champion No. 1 Keegan O’Toole (Missouri) in the semifinals and undefeated freshman No. 2 Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) in the national finals.

At the Big 12 Championship, Carr fell to his rival, top-ranked O’Toole of Missouri, in the finals, 8-2. Carr would avenge the loss just two weeks later in the national semifinals on a takedown with 10 seconds remaining to win, 8-6. It capped a historic rivalry where the pair met five times in a two-year span with Carr holding a 3-2 advantage in the series.

Carr owned a 40:3 takedown ratio during the 2023-24 season (80 for, 6 against) and registered 19 bonus-point wins (six falls, nine tech falls, four major decisions). He defeated 10 top-10 opponents, wrested in 14-of-15 duals and led Iowa State with 67 dual points.

Carr helped Iowa State to its first Big 12 team title since 2009 and a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championships, the Cyclones’ best finish since 2010.

An all-time great, Carr leaves a winning legacy at Iowa State. He finished with a 120-5 career record, tied for the 15th-most wins in school history, and his .960 career winning percentage ranks fourth in program history (min. 100 wins) behind Cael Sanderson (1.000), Dan Gable (.990) and Tim Krieger (.967). Carr never lost a dual match as a Cyclone (67-0).

Carr became the first five-time All-American in program history and the 12th Cyclone to finish on the podium four times at the NCAA Championships. He never placed worse than third at the national tournament, following his 2021 national title with a third-place finish in 2022, a runner-up in 2023 before securing a second title in 2024.

In May, Carr completed his master’s degree in education with a 3.81 GPA. He was named a 2024 National Wrestling Coaches Association Scholar All-American.

Carr will be honored at a football game this fall.

Posted in Sports |

125 Hawkeyes Earn Spring Academic All-Big Ten Honors

Sports

June 12th, 2024 by Asa Lucas

IOWA CITY, Iowa – One hundred twenty-five University of Iowa student-athletes have been named to the 2024 Spring Academic All-Big Ten team, the conference office announced Wednesday. The list includes student-athletes from baseball (10), men’s golf (4), women’s golf (3), rowing (26), softball (13), women’s tennis (5), men’s track and field (19), women’s track and field (38) and women’s wrestling (7).

The 13 softball honorees are a school record.  It is the first-year women’s wrestling student-athletes could be recognized.

A total of 2,271 students competing in spring and at-large sports were honored, including 174 in baseball, 189 in softball, 310 in women’s rowing, 80 in men’s and 72 in women’s golf, 181 in men’s and 183 in women’s lacrosse, 56 in men’s and 76 in women’s tennis, 291 in men’s and 382 in women’s track and field and 277 in at-large sports (representing bowling, fencing, ice hockey, lightweight rowing, rifle, men’s volleyball, sand volleyball, synchronized swimming, water polo and women’s wrestling.)

One hundred fifteen student-athletes carried a perfect grade point average, including seven Hawkeye women’s track and field student-athletes – Alli Bookin-Nosbisch, Grace Bookin-Nosbisch, Jamie Kofron, Lauren McMahon, Katie Moore, Lillian Schmidt and Kelli Tosic.

To be eligible for Academic All-Big Ten selection, students must be on a varsity team, as verified by being on the official squad list as of May 1 for spring sports, who have been enrolled fulltime at the institution for a minimum of 12 months and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher.

Posted in Sports |

Iowa Volleyball: Big Ten Announces 2024 Schedule

Sports

June 12th, 2024 by Asa Lucas

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa volleyball program has finalized its 2024 schedule after the Big Ten Conference announced the league slate on Wednesday afternoon.

Iowa opens Big Ten play on the East Coast, taking on Rutgers on Sept. 26 and Maryland on Sept. 28.

The Hawkeyes welcome Washington to Xtream Arena for Iowa’s Big Ten home opener on Oct. 4 before traveling to Nebraska on Oct. 6.

October features six home matches at Xtream Arena, beginning with the contest against the Huskies, followed by a back-to-back against Rutgers (Oct. 11) and Purdue (Oct. 12). After a midweek trip to Northwestern (Oct. 16), the Hawkeyes return home to face Oregon (Oct. 20), Michigan (Oct. 25) and Illinois (Oct. 27).

Iowa concludes October with a match at Ohio State before a trip to Penn State on Nov. 2. The Hawkeyes head to Madison, Wisconsin, to battle the Badgers on Nov. 8.

The Hawkeyes host a four-match homestand in the middle of November, entertaining Northwestern (Nov. 10), Indiana (Nov. 14), Michigan State (Nov. 17) and Nebraska (Nov. 20).

Iowa wraps up the regular season on the road, heading to Minneapolis on Nov. 23 for a match versus Minnesota. The Hawkeyes will spend Thanksgiving in Los Angeles, opening the trip with UCLA on Nov. 27. Iowa’s regular season finale is on Nov. 29, when the Hawkeyes take on USC for the first time in program history.

Start times and broadcast information will be announced at a later date.

Season tickets are on sale now for the 2024 campaign. Ticket details can be found HERE.

The full schedule can be found below and at hawkeyesports.com under the Iowa Volleyball schedule tab.

2024 FULL SCHEDULE
Aug. 24 – Black and Gold Scrimmage – 5 p.m.
Aug. 30 vs. Liberty (San Juan, Puerto Rico)
Aug. 31 vs. Providence (San Juan, Puerto Rico)

Sept. 6 vs. San Jose State – 12 p.m.
Sept. 6 vs. Delaware – 6 p.m.
Sept. 7 vs. Cal Baptist – 6:30 p.m.
Sept. 11 at Iowa State – 6:30 p.m.
Sept. 13 vs. St. Thomas (Milwaukee, Wis.) – 4 p.m.
Sept. 14 vs. Illinois State (Milwaukee, Wis.) – 12 p.m.
Sept. 15 at UW-Milwaukee (Milwaukee, Wis.) – 1 p.m.
Sept. 19 vs. South Dakota – 6 p.m.
Sept. 20 vs. Saint Louis – 6 p.m.
Sept. 21 vs. Drake – 2 p.m.
Sept. 26 at Rutgers
Sept. 28 at Maryland

Oct. 4 vs. Washington
Oct. 6 at Nebraska
Oct. 11 vs. Rutgers
Oct. 12 vs. Purdue
Oct. 16 at Northwestern
Oct. 20 vs. Oregon
Oct. 25 vs. Michigan
Oct. 27 vs. Illinois
Oct. 31 at Ohio State

Nov. 2 at Penn State
Nov. 8 at Wisconsin
Nov. 10 vs. Northwestern
Nov. 14 vs. Indiana
Nov. 17 vs. Michigan State
Nov. 20 vs. Nebraska
Nov. 23 at Minnesota
Nov. 27 at UCLA
Nov. 29 at USC

*BOLD indicates home matches at Xtream Arena.

Posted in Sports |

Casey’s sees food sales help them finish with a strong 4th quarter

News

June 12th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – The Ankeny-based Casey’s convenience store chain reports decreased revenue but a 12% increase in net income for the fourth quarter compared to last year.

Casey’s President Darren Rebelez says that’s due in part to continued growth in their prepared food sales. He says they’ve been able to keep costs under control by closely tracking supply. “The digital production planner provides the stores with clear data on what quantities of prepared foods need to be made at certain times throughout the day,” he says.

Prepared food sales have increased 14 percent in the last two fiscal years as they have added new items to the menu. Rebelez spoke during a conference call for investors and says they have avoided the large inflationary cost increases that restaurants have been having trouble with. “A  lot of those franchisees don’t have places to turn to, or other levers to pull to absorb a lot of the operating cost inflation that they’ve experienced over the last couple of years and that’s why you’re seeing menu prices expand as high as they have,” he says.

(Casey’s photo)

Rebelez says he doesn’t see the higher menu prices for their restaurant competitors dropping anytime soon, which helps Casey’s food sales. “Franchisees have to decide that they can absorb the inflation and really take a haircut in their profitability to be able to drop their restaurant prices,” he says. “I’d really don’t anticipate that happening. I think you’ll see what you’re starting to see now with some spurts of promotional activity for a month at a time, which is I think what some of these guys have been doing, but I don’t know that that’s very sustainable over the long term given their the franchise dynamic.”

Rebelez says they continue to add more stores to their mix. “During the fiscal year we built 42 new stores and acquired another 112 for a total of 154 new and acquired stores,” Rebelez says. “We are ahead of our pace for adding at least 350 stores by the end of fiscal 2026.”

Casey’s now has 2,658 stores in 17 states, including the addition of stores purchased in Texas.

Posted in News |

Exhibit in Sioux City honors local guitar legend Tommy Bolin

News

June 12th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – An exhibit at the Sioux City Public Museum features the photos, instruments and personal memorabilia of a local rock legend. Museum curator Matt Anderson says the “Gypsy Soul” exhibit features guitarist Tommy Bolin, who was known for his solo session work and for playing with the James Gang and Deep Purple.

“If you look up Tommy Bolin online you’ll find numerous very influential guitarists and rock musicians that cite him as an influence and an inspiration. He is just a highly regarded historically for his talent,” Anderson says. Anderson says Bolin was born in 1951 and taught himself to play the guitar and seem to have an aptitude for it. “And also just the desire to work hard at it. And so at 16 years old, he went out to Denver, Colorado where there was a burgeoning music scene, and he got involved with a band called Zephyr,” Anderson says. “And that was actually kind of his first national touring act, they recorded two albums with him. And they were kind of a blues rock ensemble with the lead singer, a female lead singer that was kind of the Janis Joplin mold.”

Bolin went on to become one of the most talented and versatile hard rock guitarists to emerge during the first half of the 1970s. It started with him being asked to play on Billy Cobham’s Jazz Fusion album called “Spectrum.” Anderson says it was big step. “He is self-taught, doesn’t read music, and he was in a room with a bunch of veteran jazz musicians, you know virtuoso musicians who all read charts and things like that and he would just listen to what they were going to play and then improvise the lead guitar and on this album, his guitar playing is really the driving force,” he says. Bolin then replaced Joe Walsh in the James Gang in 1973 and Ritchie Blackmore in Deep Purple in 1975. He released a solo album “Teaser” in 1975, while his 1976 album “Private Eyes” earned him opening concert slots with Peter Frampton, Jeff Beck, Rush, and ZZ Top.

His life and career were cut short by a drug overdose on December 4th of 1976. Many of the items on display are from the collection of Bolin’s brother Johnnie, who was the drummer in the original Tommy B

Posted in News |

Webster City to host fest for chicken farmers, homesteaders

Ag/Outdoor, News

June 12th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – Some Iowans own just one chicken, while the state’s large operations may house thousands of the birds, and for everyone in between, there’s what’s being called Murray Fest Midwest. Coordinator Tom Watkins says the event in Webster City later this month is designed for keepers of backyard chickens, hobby farmers, and budding homesteaders. Watkins works at the Murray McMurray Hatchery, which hatched the idea for a festival.

“Fourth of July falls in the middle of the week, so we’re not actually able to ship chicks that week, so we said, ‘Let’s have a quick sale’ and that kind of evolved into how do we get people into town to purchase chicks?” Founded more than a century ago, the hatchery offers all sorts of tiny feathered creatures via mail order, including chickens, ducks, geese, pheasants, quail and turkeys. “In this kind of market, we say chickens are the ‘gateway animal’ that gets you started,” Watkins says, “and then you end up with a goat and a cow or some other critters well.”

Watkins says a range of speakers and demonstrations are scheduled for the three-day fest. “We’re trying to cover all the bases,” Watkins says. “It’ll be a lot of chicken information but it’ll be a lot of gardening information, we have speaker on sheep, we’ve got milk cows, we’ve got pigs, we’ve got dog training and stuff like that, just a little bit everything.”

Watkins says there are multiple live music acts that will be performing during the fest which runs June 29th through July 1st at the Hamilton County Fairgrounds in Webster City.

Posted in Ag/Outdoor, News |