(August 4, 2023: Atlantic, IA) – Officials with SHIFT ATL report that their Summer Soiree event on July 15th helped raise over $20,000 for the nonprofit organization. Funds raised from this year’s event will be poured directly back into SHIFT ATL’s latest venture, Sunnyside Range, to make facility and programming upgrades to keep a vital community attraction available for years to come.

SHIFT ATL Board Member Jessie Shiels said “We cannot say THANK YOU enough to all of our sponsors, vendors and community members that helped make this event a huge success for our organization. Without the community support and excitement for what we are working so hard to create in Atlantic, SHIFT ATL would not exist. We are grateful to continue carrying out our mission and ensuring Atlantic is a place everyone wants to live, play and work for years to come.”

SHIFT ATL 2023 Summer Soiree

Summer Soirée 2023 is made possible through support of Executive sponsors such as Cass Health, TS Bank, Landus, Camblin Mechanical, AM Cohron and Son, Armour Insurance, Rigid Edge Exteriors, Lindeman Tractor, Elvis Hass State Farm, and Green Acres Lawn and Landscaping. And, Advocate sponsors, include Rolling Hills Bank and Trust, Megan Roberts State Farm, Principal Financial (Mark Smith and Erin Freund), Atlantic Rotary and Venteicher Auctioneering, with Supporting sponsors Henningsen Construction, Anita Supply Center, Rush CPA and Associates, Iowa Corn, and Casey’s. Beverage sponsor Atlantic Bottling and Floral sponsor Farm House and Flowers.

To learn more about each project, to donate or to get involved, contact shiftatlantic@gmail.com, visit the website
shiftatl.org or Facebook page, @shiftatl.

(Radio Iowa) – With kids headed back to school in a few weeks, an expert says now would be the ideal time for parents to start weaning them off of social media so they’ll be able to better focus on their studies. Gerta Bardhoshi, a professor of counselor education at the University of Iowa, says don’t try and force them to quit everything cold turkey, but do offer suggestions on how they can start breaking what may be a slight addiction to their electronic devices.

How much is too much social media? Teenagers themselves may know they may have a problem. A recent survey found one-third of teens say they are online “constantly,” while another third said they spend “too much time” on social media.

Bardhoshi is director of research and training at the U-I’s Scanlan Center for School Mental Health. She says parents should be somewhat lenient and not try to push their child into giving up all social media, at least not all at once.

Kids will model their parents’ behavior and Bardhoshi says that includes when moms and dads set good examples, and not-so-good examples.

Establishing healthy boundaries around phone and social media use, Bardhoshi says, can benefit the entire family.

Scanlan Center link: https://scsmh.education.uiowa.edu/

DES MOINES – Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate announced today (Friday), that his office has released a new and updated handbook for Iowa notaries. Iowa notaries are essential components of Iowa’s business, legal, financial, and real estate communities, and it is imperative for every Iowa notary Public to stay current on Iowa notary law and receive guidance on proper recording and notarial service.

The Handbook for Iowa Notaries Public was finalized and published during the summer of 2023 to provide Iowa notaries with an additional, convenient resource for learning and as a reference on best practices.

Pate says his office “Is proud to serve as Iowa’s small business portal, and Iowa’s notaries are integral to the state’s business community. This handbook provides valuable information to help notaries perform these duties. It is our hope that this resource complements notarial service, empowers notarial participation, and inspires notarial integrity.”

Iowa Notaries Public are commissioned by the Office of the Iowa Secretary of State to serve the public as impartial and unbiased witnesses. The most common function of the notary is to witness and attest that the identity of the person appearing before the notary matches the identity of the person who signed the document.

The handbook includes information on electronic and remote online notarizations as well as traditional notarization. While the updated handbook offers important guidance on notarial services, it is not legal advice, and notaries with legal questions should consult an attorney. Additionally, all notaries are strongly encouraged to read and understand Iowa Code chapter 9B and Iowa Administrative Code 721—43 for further guidance.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – Officials with the Variety Children’s Charity say Fareway Stores, Inc. partnered with Variety to conduct the seventh annual Round Up at the register in July at all 138 store locations, raising a total of $171,450.14 for Variety – the Children’s Charity. Fareway CEO Reynolds W. Cramer said “We want to thank our generous customers for their heartfelt donations to Variety-the Children’s Charity. We have proudly partnered with Variety for more than 35 years and are committed to helping kids who are at-risk, critically ill, or living with special needs across our footprint.”

Customers had the opportunity to round up to the next dollar or provide an additional donation on their grocery bill to help fund Variety’s mission. Dollars raised through the round up will stay in the state in which they were raised, and will help create opportunities for children to fully share in the experiences of life.

The top five fundraising stores will now have the opportunity to host a specialized bike giveaway to a child in their community:

1.    077-Norwalk

2.    137-Polk City

3.    705-Clear Lake

4.    073-Council Bluffs   

5.    025-Clinton

Sheri McMichael, State of Iowa Executive Director of Variety, said “We sincerely appreciate the fundraising efforts of Fareway and Fareway customers. These funds will allow us to continue our efforts to help children who are at-risk, under privileged, critically ill or living with special needs.”

(Radio Iowa) – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will headline a fundraiser this Saturday for Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird. Bird, the first Republican in 40 years to serve as Iowa’s attorney general, has appeared with other G-O-P presidential candidates, too. “When they come to Iowa, I’m glad to show them around, whether that’s showing them around the farm or around the State Fair that’s coming up,” Bird says. “I look forward to hosting all of them.”

A few dozen Republicans in the Iowa legislature have endorsed candidates in the 2024 presidential race, but statewide elected officials have not. “Right now, I am neutral — not endorsing in the Caucuses,” Bird says. “My focus is really on doing the job that I’ve got before me. It’s a big job. I’ve got changes to make since my predecessor had been there for four decades.”

Bird, who defeated incumbent Democrat Tom Miller in last fall’s election, says she may endorse a candidate as the January 15th Caucuses draw closer. “I’m somebody that loves the Iowa Caucuses. I went to my first caucus when I was just 13, so I think the most important thing about the Caucuses will be about the people who go and show up and vote and persuade their neighbors about who they should vote for,” Bird says. “That’s the beauty of the Caucus.”

Bird, by the way, was a junior delegate when she was 13 and did not vote in the Caucuses. Bird made her comments during a recent appearance on Iowa Press on Iowa P-B-S.

(Hospers, Iowa) – A collision between a car and a semi tractor-trailer in northwest Iowa, Thursday afternoon, resulted in four people being transported to the hospital in Orange City. The Iowa State Patrol reports a 1999 Chevy Malibu and a 2014 Peterbilt semi was traveling north on Highway 60 in Hospers, with the semi in the left lane, traveling faster than the car. As the semi nearly came abreast of the car, the driver of the Chevy, 28-year-old Dinora Sabillon-Diaz, of South Sioux City, NE., signaled a lane change, and moved left, into the side of the semi.

The car hit the right front corner of the semi before going sideways and hitting the front of the semi. The truck came to rest on the Highway, north of the intersection with Hospers Drive. The car came to rest in the median, north of Hospers Drive. The accident happened at around 3:30-p.m.

Dinora Sabillon-Diaz and her passengers: 49-year-old Edith Sabillon-Diaz, an eight-year-old child and a three-year-old child, all of South Sioux City, NE., were injured. None of the crash victims were wearing a seat belt.

The driver of the semi, 75-year-old Jerald William Ollerich, of Sioux Falls, SD, was not injured.