(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports five people were arrested over the weekend, two of them were arrested on drug, burglary & theft charges. Saturday morning, 51-year-old Jason Allan Lohoff, of the Trails End Camp Ground, was arrested at 118 Manor Drive in Creston. Lohoff was charged with Possess Drug Paraphernalia, Possession of a controlled substance, Marijuana/1st offense, Theft in the 2nd Degree, and Burglary in the 3rd Degree. Lohoff was taken to the Union County Jail where he later bonded out on a bond of $11,300. Also in connection with that same incident, 35-year-old Jennifer Ann Self, of Creston, was arrested for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Possession of a controlled substance/Marijuana-1st offense, Intent Manufacture/Deliver Meth, Theft in the 2nd- and Burglary 3rd-Degree. Self was taken to the Union County Jail where she is being held on a bond of $25,000.

At around 2:25-a.m., Saturday, Creston Police arrested 24-year-old Ronan Francis Noeth, of Creston, for OWI/1st Offense and Carrying a Weapon – While Intoxicated (OWI). Noeth was taken to the Union County Jail where he later bonded out on a bond of $2,000.

Just before Noon, Saturday, 24-year-old Louis Riley Lumbard, of Creston, was arrested for Driving Suspended. Lumbard was cited and released from the scene on a promise to appear. And, late Sunday morning, 69-year-old Michael Dennis Seddon, of Creston, was arrested on an Assault charge. Seddon was taken to the Union County Jail where he later bonded out on a bond of $300.

(Atlantic) The 41st Annual Atlantic Rotary Club Auction Saturday night, raised $25,300. All of the proceeds from the event will be reinvested into local community initiatives. Net proceeds from the raffle will benefit the School Resource Officer (SRO) Program. The auction and raffle were held at the Atlantic Community Center.

Rotary leaders says since its inception, the Atlantic Rotary Club has raised over $1.3 million to support various community non-profit projects, underscoring their commitment to making a positive impact in the region.

(Montgomery County, Iowa) – Fire fighters from Red Oak and Stanton were dispatched to the scene of a field fire Sunday afternoon at 2343 J Ave. In a post on social media, Red Oak fire officials said crews responded to the site south/southeast of Red Oak at around 12:34-p.m. In addition to the two fire departments, neighboring farmers responded with their tractors and disks. (Photos are from the Red Oak FD’s Facebook page)

Authorities say debris from a burn pit near a residence is believed to have started the fire. No injuries were reported and the incident command was terminated a little more than an hour later.

The Montgomery County Emergency Management Agency, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, and the Johnson family (with their tractors and disks) were on the scene. Montgomery County Communications coordinated emergency response efforts.

(Radio Iowa) – Senator Chuck Grassley says President-elect Trump’s second pick to serve as attorney general is well-regarded and experienced. Grassley will be chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2025 and will oversee the confirmation hearing for former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi. Grassley says senators will learn more about her in the coming weeks, but Grassley says he worked with Bondi on criminal justice reform during Trump’s first term.

Former Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz withdrew his nomination to be Trump’s attorney general last Thursday, and Trump announced he’d nominate Bondi for the job.

(Radio Iowa) – The holiday season can be a stressful time of year for people struggling with their monthly budgets. Food Bank of Iowa C-E-O Michelle Book says that of them don’t have enough food to eat. “As I go out and visit our pantry partners, what I’m hearing from them is that the increase in the lines for food pantry service is made up of two demographics; one, it’s young families with children who are working, or two, it’s folks living on fixed income, people living on Social Security and disability,” she says.

Book says every month since COVID-19 aid ended in 2022, food pantries across the state have seen more and more traffic. “Iowa is among three states that saw the largest increase, 44 percent, in the number of people facing food insecurity according to Feeding America’s latest “Map the Meal Gap” report,” Book says. With Thanksgiving just a few days away and December holidays around the corner, she worries about Iowans faced with making some tough financial choices. “If they’re struggling to make ends meet, save your financial resources to pay your heating bill or to cover the cost of transportation and find food assistance near you. People can come to foodbankofIowa.org, and click the “find food” button,” Book says.

Iowa is served by six Feeding America food banks – with 40% of food going to children.

(Radio Iowa) – Many Iowans will go around the table at Thanksgiving and list the things for which they’re thankful, but a University of Iowa study finds simply expressing gratitude can help to improve heart health. Dr. Harleah Buck is director of the U-I’s Csomay Center for Gerontological Excellence. Buck says research shows gratitude can help to reduce inflammation, blood pressure, and heart rate, and it’s an odd coincidence we offer thanks during this particular holiday. “The foods that we eat at Thanksgiving tend -not- to be good for our heart. They’re heavy in the fats and things that we know are not good,” Buck says, “however, expressing gratitude around the table, I like to think ameliorates some of that.”

Research finds gratitude may help to boost a person’s ability to care for themselves, whether that’s taking their medication or getting more sleep. Buck and her team reviewed more than a dozen research studies involving the impact of gratitude on more than four-thousand people. “One of the studies that we looked at actually showed that expressing gratitude results in people feeling more confident that what they do makes a difference with their heart,” Buck says, “so it really is the gift that keeps on giving.” Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death globally, killing more people in recent years than even COVID-19. Buck, who’s also a professor in the U-I College of Nursing, says it’s fascinating something like gratitude can have such a far-reaching psychological and physiological impact.

“In the scientific literature, gratitude is defined as an emotional response to other people’s kindness, but it can also be a mood that focuses on what we cherish in life,” Buck says, “but the important part is it can become a trait. It can be something, a practice, that you can actually make part of your life.” How do we put more gratitude in our lives? Buck says there are all sorts of ways, and one of the easiest may be writing in a journal — on your laptop, in a notebook, or even on your phone. “Start out by writing what you’re thankful for each and every day. That can help you to track new things and remind you of the good things in your life,” Buck says. “At Thanksgiving around the table, we can share our gratitude. We can express it directly to people, and then we can listen to theirs, which also helps to lift our mood.”

The website for the Csomay Center says its mission is to advance innovations in research, education, and practice to promote optimal aging and quality of life in all older adults and their caregivers.