Firefighters Respond To Two Calls Just Prior To Noon
(Le Mars) — The Le Mars Fire and Rescue Department responded to two separate calls prior to the noon hour. Firefighters were called to “The Dailey Stop” located on Plymouth Street northeast for a gasoline spill, then nearly at the same time, they were summoned to the Man Trap hair styling
salon on Central Avenue for an odor of smoke. Upon further investigation, firefighters detected a small electrical fire in the electric panel in the basement of the building. They were able to use fans to help ventilate the smoke from the building.
Floyd Valley Apartment Residents Able To Use Elevator Again
(Le Mars) — Residents of the Floyd Valley Apartments are now breathing a sigh of relief, as the one and only elevator is back in operation. The elevator had its motor burned out nearly three weeks ago, resulting in the elevator to no longer function for the people inside the five-story building. Many of the residents living at Floyd Valley Apartments are senior citizens and needed assistance going up and down the stairs. More than a year ago, the elevator at the Floyd Valley Apartments was out of order for nearly four months.
Bishop Walker Nickless To Visit Gehlen Catholic School
(Le Mars) — Gehlen Catholic of Le Mars will have a special visitor attend classes on Monday. Bishop Walker Nickless will stop by the local Catholic school to participate in the “Man Cave Monday” class as taught to Gehlen’s 5th and 6th grade boys. Kyle Marugg, the math and religion instructor for Gehlen Catholic, holds “Man Cave Monday” at the start of each week. It is a class designed to teach the young boys chivalry, selflessness, and heroic virtue. Man Cave Monday begins with the boys kneeling & praying. The boys then discuss how they can imitate the lives of the saints and other heroic men daily. The 5th graders report how they demonstrated their manliness
like the saints & are presented a new challenge for the week such as taking up someone else’s tray or letting the girls go ahead of them. Man Cave Monday ends in another prayer. Man Cave Monday incorporates the Catholic faith & components of PBIS (Positive Behavioral Intervention & Supports).
PBIS is a behavior management program by educating & encouraging good behaviors. “In Man Cave, we applaud the positive decisions our young men choose to make such as helping their mom with chores or holding the door for
someone. I also believe students naturally behave better in the moments after Man Cave in the hallway.” Mr. Marugg noted.
Plymouth County Pork Producers To Hold Annual Banquet Saturday Evening
(Le Mars) — Plymouth County Pork Producers will hold their annual banquet Saturday evening at the upper level of the Le Mars Convention Center. Andy Schroeder serves as the organization’s president.
Schroeder says during the event the pork producers will name the new Plymouth County pork queen, as well as select their “Little Miss Pigtails” contestants. Schroeder says the banquet will feature the comedian and illusionist Jerry Frasier from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He says the pork banquet is open to the public. Tickets are free for current paid members of
the Plymouth County Pork Producers Association, and they are $15 for non-members. Door prizes will be awarded during the banquet. Schroeder says the Plymouth County pork industry plays a vital role in the area’s economy by providing jobs to more than 1800 people tied directly or indirectly to
pork production. He says Plymouth County pork producers contribute more than ten million dollars to local and state taxes, and nearly 25 and a half million dollars go to federal taxes, according to a 2017 economic impact study conducted by the Iowa Pork Producers Association.
Sioux County Sheriff’s Office To Feature “What You Don’t See” Interactive Educational Trailer
(Orange City) — The Sioux County Sheriff’s Office next week will host a mobile trailer featuring an interactive exhibit that is designed to inform parents about the dangers of drugs that may be found inside their children’s bedroom. Sioux County Deputy Wayland Pollema serves as the school resource officer and talks about the trailer entitled: “What You Don’t See.”
Pollema says when parents visit the mobile trailer they will have an “eye-opening” experience.
The Sioux County Sheriff’s deputy says there are even different types of clothing that have drug-related references.
Pollema says the exhibit is open to parents and teachers, but not the teens.
The “What You Don’t See” trailer will be at the Boyden-Hull elementary school at Boyden on Monday between 10:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. On Tuesday, the educational trailer will be parked at the M-OC Floyd Valley high school between the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. Then on Wednesday, March 13th, the mobile interactive trailer will be at the Boyden-Hull High School
at Hull between 1:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. The trailer will remain at the Boyden-Hull high school overnight and will be open on Thursday between 11:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.
In addition to viewing the trailer, on Wednesday evening, Pollema says a local nurse will present a program to parents and the community of the dangers of vaping.
That program is scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. from the Boyden-Hull High School Auditorium.
Altoona Woman Accused Of Stealing From Several Polk County Businesses
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A woman has been accused of stealing thousands of dollars from several businesses in Polk County.
Polk County court records say 65-year-old Janet Cole is charged with six counts of theft, three of forgery, two of fraudulent practices and one of money laundering. The records don’t list the name of an attorney who could comment for her. Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 18.
Court documents say since 2012 she wrote unauthorized checks to herself and forged signatures on checks written to the companies.
The records say she lives in Altoona.
Iowa Supreme Court Upholds Ruling Of Lower Court Dealing With Transgenders Receiving Medicaid
UNDATED (AP) – The Iowa Supreme Court has upheld a lower court’s ruling that the state cannot deny two transgender women Medicaid coverage for sex reassignment surgery. In its ruling Friday, the state’s high court agreed with Judge Arthur Gamble’s ruling in June that a 1995 Iowa Department of Human Services policy denying Medicaid coverage for sex reassignment surgery
violates the state’s 2007 Civil Rights Act. That act added gender identity to the state’s list of protected classes.
Inmate Dies In Prison
FORT MADISON, Iowa (AP) – An Iowa man convicted of a 1987 drug-related slaying has died in prison. The Iowa Corrections Department says 71-year-old Charles Robinson succumbed to an illness Wednesday at the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison. The Des Moines Register reports that Robinson
was a drug dealer who fatally shot 50-year-old Joseph Coon in January 1987 and wounded another man.
Des Moines Man Sentenced To Prison For Distributing Child Pornography
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A Des Moines man has been sentenced to more than 15 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography. Federal prosecutors for Iowa say 35-year-old Joseph Marchesini was sentenced Friday in Des Moines’ federal courthouse to 188 months in prison. Marchesini
pleaded guilty in October 2018 to distribution of child pornography. In his plea, he admitted to distributing via the internet images of children – some of them preschoolers – being sexually assaulted.
