The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports Deputies and numerous rescue crews responded to a call for help early this (Thursday) morning, about a man who was floating on the East Nishnabotna River who had become unresponsive. The 9-1-1 call to the PageComm Dispatch Center came in at around 1:12-a.m., from a 44-year old female. The woman said she had been floating with a 53-year old man on the river since 8-p.m. Wednesday. She said that they were north of Essex.

Numerous agencies were dispatched to this large area. It was determined from the phone calls that the female and the male were on the East Nishnabotna River between the bridges on 110th ST and D Avenue,  north of Essex. Due to accessibility issues associated with the area, the rescue operation took some time, as there is no boat access within several miles.

When the woman and her companion were located at around 3-a.m. Thursday (today), the man was deceased. The Page County Sheriff’s Office was assisted in the search /recovery effort by the Essex Fire & Rescue, Red oak Fire & Rescue, Corning Fire & Rescue, Mt. Ayr Fire & Rescue, Clarinda Fire & rescue, Shenandoah Police Department, Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, Montgomery County EMA, Page County EMA, Midwest Regional Dive Team, Iowa DNR as well as local citizens with knowledge of the river in the area.

The incident remains under investigation at this time. The name of the male was being withheldpending notification of relatives. More information will be released at a later date.

(Radio Iowa) – A coalition of trade unions is putting up a 100-thousand dollar reward for tips that lead to an arrest in connection with a noose found hanging at a construction site in Altoona. Earl Agan is president of the Central Iowa Building Trades. “There’s absolutely, positively no place for this kind of behavior in the union construction industry,” Agan says, “and anything at all we can do to help bring whoever’s responsible for this to justice — and send a clear message to everybody else that this is not acceptable — we’re going to do.”

The noose was found at the Facebook Data Center. Investigators believe it was put there on Juneteenth, the holiday that marks the end of slavery in America. “There’s no way shape or form anybody should have to put up with this at the workplace,” Agan says, “and we don’t want anybody to feel unwanted when they come to work in the union construction industry.” The reward money comes from dues paid by construction workers across the country. “The general presidents and business managers of this area just felt strongly enough about it that we felt it was the right thing to do,” Agan says.

The Altoona Police Department is investigating the incident.  Agan says 50-thousand dollars will be paid if a tip leads to the arrest of a person or persons. The other half of the reward will be paid if there’s a conviction. The reward offer expires September 1st.

Two people were arrested on separate warrants today (Thursday), in Mills County. Authorities say 34-year old Colton Mitch MClain, of Bellevue, NE., was arrested at the Mills County Sheriff’s Office, on a warrant for Failure to Appear on the original charge of Violation of Probation. His bond was set at $1,000. And, 43-year old Michael Raymond Carver, of Council Bluffs, was arrested at the Mills County Jail, on a warrant for Harassment in the 3rd Degree. His bond was set at $2,000.

CLARINDA, IA — Iowa Democrat 3rd District Representative Cindy Axne, today (Thursday), introduced legislation to rename the U.S. Post Office in Clarinda in honor of Jessie Field Shambaugh, the former school superintendent from Page County, and longtime Iowa educator known to many as the ‘Mother of 4-H.’ Axne said “The values of leadership, engagement, and community that I carry with me today I owe to my time as a 4-H kid growing up in Iowa, and I’m proud to have the opportunity to honor one of Iowa’s most valuable daughters for her contributions to our state and for bringing these ideals to millions of 4-H’ers since.” Axne says ‘Miss Jessie’ – as she was affectionately called by her students – was a trailblazer, educator, mother, author, and radio contributor – and I look forward to honoring her legacy in Page County by cementing her place in the heart of its community.”

Rep. Axne announced her bill to rename the Clarinda Post Office with Jessie Field Shambaugh’s grandson, Seth Watkins, at American Legion Post 98 in Clarinda

Shambaugh began teaching in Page County in 1901, and formed the Boys Corn Club and the Girls Home Club to teach students essential skills for the farm and home through extracurricular  programs. To boost participation for the Clubs, she created a clover pin – with each leaf labeled with an H. Her design became the symbol of 4-H in 1914 when the Smith-Lever Act established the Cooperative Extension program through the USDA, formalizing 4-H clubs across the country.

Today, over 6 million schoolchildren participate in 4-H activities – learning life skills, leadership, and cooperation through the same values of ‘Head, Hands, Heart, and Health’ that Shambaugh helped pioneer over a century ago. Shambaugh was also an author, a radio contributor on KFNF in Shenandoah, and the mother of two children. She was born in 1881 near Shenandoah, studied at Shenandoah’s Western Normal College, graduated Tabor College in Fremont County, and was elected superintendent of schools in Page County in 1906. She died in 1971 in Clarinda. In 1977, Shambaugh was named to the Iowa Women’s Hall of Fame.

The bill introduced by Rep. Axne to rename the post office at 101 S. 16th Street is co-sponsored by the other three members of the Iowa House delegation: Reps. Abby Finkenauer (IA-01), Dave Loebsack (IA-02), and Steve King (IA-04).

(Radio Iowa) – The number of Iowans filing a first-time unemployment claim jumped 28 percent last week. At the same time, the total number of Iowans getting unemployment benefits fell by five percent. According to Iowa Workforce Development, Nearly 10-thousand-700 people who had a job in Iowa filed an initial claim for unemployment last week. Over half of those who filed for unemployment were self-employed, independent contractors or working in manufacturing. The state paid out nearly 32-million dollars in unemployment benefits to 135-thousand out-of-work Iowans last week.