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ROWENA HAZEL RATZLAFF, 79, of Atlantic (Svcs.12/28/12)

Obituaries

December 23rd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

ROWENA HAZEL RATZLAFF, 79, of Atlantic, died Sun., Dec. 23rd, at the Cass County Memorial Hospital in Atlantic. Funeral services for ROWENA RATZLAFF will be held 1:30-p.m. Fri., Dec. 28th, at the Roland Funeral Home in Atlantic.

A family visitation will be held from 5- to 6-pm Thursday (12/27), at the funeral home.  Condolences may be left at www.rolandfuneralservice.com.

Burial will be in the Atlantic Cemetery at a later date.

ROWENA RATZLAFF is survived by:

Her sons – David (Judy) Ratzlaff, Larry Ratzlaff, John Ratzlaff, Tommy Ratzlaff and Bruce (Deb) Ratzlaff.

Her daughters – Linda (Barney) Eiesman, and Tammy Pringnitz.

Her sister – Betty Mauk.

Her brothers – Jack (Emy) Barringer, and Mick (Loretta) Barringer.

Posted in Obituaries |

Colts beat Chiefs 20-13 to clinch playoff berth

Sports

December 23rd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Andrew Luck threw for 205 yards to break the single-season rookie record, and his touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne late in the fourth quarter Sunday gave the Indianapolis Colts a 20-13 win over the Kansas City Chiefs and a berth in the playoffs.

Luck surpassed Cam Newton’s year-old record of 4,051 yards passing by a rookie in the second quarter, and then came through in the closing minutes. He marched Indy to the Chiefs 7, and then found Wayne in the back of the end zone on third-and-goal for the go-ahead score.

It was the seventh time Luck has rallied his team to victory in the fourth quarter. Darius Butler returned an interception 32 yards for a TD in helping the Colts (10-5) join the 2008 Miami Dolphins as the only NFL teams to win at least 10 games after losing 14 or more the previous season.

Posted in Sports |

NWS Forecast for Cass & area Counties in Iowa: Sun., Dec. 23rd 2012

Weather

December 23rd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

327 AM CST SUN DEC 23 2012 National Weather Svc./Des Moines

TODAY…PARTLY SUNNY. COLDER. HIGH IN THE LOWER 20S. NORTHEAST WIND 5 TO 10 MPH.

TONIGHT…MOSTLY CLOUDY. LOW 5 TO 10 ABOVE. NORTHWEST WIND 5 TO 10 MPH.

MONDAY…MOSTLY CLOUDY. HIGH AROUND 15. NORTHWEST WIND AROUND 10 MPH.

MONDAY NIGHT…MOSTLY CLOUDY. LOW ZERO TO 5 ABOVE. NORTH WIND 5 TO 10 MPH.

CHRISTMAS DAY…MOSTLY CLOUDY. HIGH AROUND 10. NORTH WIND 10 TO 15 MPH.

TUESDAY NIGHT…MOSTLY CLOUDY. LOW ZERO TO 5 BELOW.

WEDNESDAY AND WEDNESDAY NIGHT…PARTLY CLOUDY. HIGH 5 TO 10 ABOVE. LOW ZERO TO 5 BELOW.

THURSDAY…PARTLY SUNNY. HIGH 15 TO 20.

Posted in Weather |

Stranded car tow ban lifted on Iowa highways

News

December 22nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Car owners who had to abandon their stuck or stranded vehicles over the last few days can now get them towed. The Iowa State Patrol says it has lifted the prohibition on towing for most of the state’s interstate highways and other state roads. The patrol says arrangements should be made to safety remove cars in a ditch or along the shoulder of a state highway or interstate through a licensed tow operator. If conditions on a particular roadway or in a specific region of the state deteriorate again the prohibition could be reinstated. The patrol also advises car owners to contact local law enforcement to verify if towing is allowed on county roadways, or roads and streets.

Posted in News |

Mason leads Drake past Eastern Illinois 74-56

Sports

December 22nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Micah Mason had 19 points and six assists and Drake continued its torrid 3-point shooting during a 74-56 victory over Eastern Illinois on Saturday. The Bulldogs (6-5), who came into the game ranked fifth in the country with 9.1 3-pointers per game, were 13 of 22 beyond the arc and shot 56 percent overall from the floor. They also hit 15 of 18 free throws.  Drake also got 14 points from Ben Simons, 11 from Chris Hines and 10 from Seth VanDeest.

Sherman Blanford had 18 points and seven rebounds for Eastern Illinois (3-10), which outrebounded Drake 25-19 but committed 19 turnovers. Morris Woods added 10 points for the Panthers.  Drake trailed 26-24 before scoring nine straight points to close the first half. A 3-pointer and layup by Mason to start the second half extended the lead to 12 points, and the Bulldogs later added a 14-2 run to make it 61-41 with 9:42 remaining.

Posted in Sports |

JUDITH ALTFILLISCH-KEHM, 71 (formerly of Atlantic) – Svcs. 12/28/12)

Obituaries

December 22nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

JUDITH ALTFILLISCH-KEHM, 71, of Scottsdale, AZ (& formerly of Atlantic), died  Dec. 19th in Scottsdale. Funeral services for JUDITH ALTFILLISCH-KEHM will be held 11-a.m. Fri., Dec. 28th, at Zion Lutheran Church in Atlantic. Hockenberry Family Care Funeral Home in Atlantic has the arrangements.

Visitation with the family present, will be held from 5-to 7-pm Thu., Dec. 27th, at the funeral home.

Burial will be in the Old Memory Cemetery at New Market, IA.

JUDITH ALTFILLISCH-KEHM is survived by:

Her husband – Jack Kehm of Scottsdale, AZ

Her mother – Edris Fann, of Clarinda.

Her daughters – Gayle Keiser, of Robins, Ia, and JoAnne Morenz, of Atlantic.

Her brothers – Allen Fann, of Atlantic, and Randy Fann, of Fuquay-Varina, NC.

Her sisters – Elaine Bruning, of Savannah, GA and Jill Fain, of Denver, Co.

and 5 grandchildren.

Posted in Obituaries |

2 SW IA residents injured in crash on I-80 in Adair County, Saturday

News

December 22nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

An accident early Saturday afternoon in Adair County resulted in two people being sent to the hospital. According to the Iowa State Patrol, a 2005 Chrysler Town and Country van driven by 41-year old Nicole Rainey, of Grant, was traveling in the eastbound lane of Interstate 80 three-miles east of Stuart, when the vehicle hit a patch of ice. The van slid into the median and hit a 1998 Chrysler Sebring that was parked in the median facing westbound, due to an earlier, weather-related incident. The van came to rest on its wheels facing westbound in the median.

Rainey, and a passenger in the van, 14-year old Mykenzie Rainey, also from Grant, were injured, and transported by Stuart Rescue to Mercy Hospital West Hospital in Des Moines. The Sebring was unoccupied at the time of the crash, which occurred at around 12:10-p.m.

Posted in News |

Iowa routs Coppin State 80-50

Sports

December 22nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Aaron White scored 20 points as Iowa throttled Coppin State 80-50 on Saturday. The Hawkeyes (11-2) have won six straight games for the first time in eight years. White made 7 of 8 shots from the floor and 6 of 7 from the foul line. The forward had six dunks — including a nice one-hand slam off an alley-oop. The Hawkeyes scored 50 points in the paint and missed all 17 of their 3-point attempts.

Iowa used a 17-2 run in the first half to pull away from Coppin State (3-10). The Eagles didn’t score on 16 of 17 possessions during that 10-minute stretch. Coppin State had 14 points and 12 turnovers at halftime. Sterling Smith, Troy Franklin and Andre Armstrong each scored nine points to lead the Eagles. Gabe Olaseni scored a career-high 14 points for Iowa, which doesn’t play again until the Big Ten opener Dec. 31 against No. 6 Indiana.

Posted in Sports |

Massena man arrested in Creston on sex abuse charge

News

December 22nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Lenox Police Chief Jon Huggins reports a Massena man was arrested late Friday night in Creston.

Roy Liles (Photo courtesy Lenox P-D/Taylor County Sheriff’s Dept.)

47-year old Roy Liles was taken into custody by Lenox and Creston Police on two felony counts of 2nd Degree Sexual Abuse. The charges stem from an investigation by the Lenox Police Department into allegations that Liles committed various sexual acts with a 6-year old female in Lenox over a period of several months.

Liles was transported to the Taylor County Jail where he was being held without bond pending an appearance before a magistrate. The investigation continues and additional charges are possible.

Posted in News |

Council Bluffs casino to be sold to Pinnacle

News

December 22nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A Las Vegas-owned casino operator plans to buy the company that owns the Ameristar casino in Council Bluffs. The Des Moines Register reports) that Pinnacle Entertainment says it plans to buy Ameristar Casinos for $2.8 billion.The Council Bluffs riverboat casino operates on the Missouri River and has 869 employees.

No major changes are expected in the operation and it will still be branded an Ameristar casino. Pinnacle owns seven casinos in Louisiana, Missouri, and Indiana and a racetrack in Ohio. Ameristar also owns seven other casinos in addition to the Council Bluffs operation. The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission, which regulates gambling in Iowa is expected to consider the deal next summer.

Posted in News |