Total Motors To Kick-off “Coats and Cans” Campaign
(Le Mars) – Total Motors is again organizing their annual coat drive, but this year they are doing it in conjunction with a “can” or food drive. The re-branded program is called “Coats and Cans” and will kick off on Monday, November 18th and continue to Saturday, November 23rd. Mitch Christoffel serves as the Marketing Manager for the local auto dealership and explains
the program.
Christoffel says they have also found the continual need for food or non-perishable food items becomes even more necessary as the holidays and colder weather approaches. This year the program has expanded to Total Motors Orange City location as well. He talks about the drop-off locations accepting both the donated coats and food items.
Christoffel says all the donated coats and cans will stay within the local area. With the early cold weather, organizers are adjusting and moving the coat drive earlier in the year.
Their effort to collect winter coats and accessories for kids and adults will still continue as it has in the past. Christoffel says they will accept either new or used coats that are in good condition.If the coat is not brand new, but gently used, Kathy Stone at Ideal Cleaners in Le Mars gives to the program by contributing her time and resources. All of the food and coats
will be locally distributed immediately following the conclusion of the program, in order to give necessary essentials to families and people in need before Thanksgiving.
Plymouth County Agriculture Society To Hold Annual Meeting
(Le Mars) — The annual meeting of the Plymouth County 4-H and Agricultural Society (a.k.a. Plymouth County Fair) will be held this evening at 7:30 p.m.
at the lower level of the Le Mars Convention Center in Le Mars. The following director terms expire at the annual meeting: Jim Jauer, Terry Reuter, Rich Benson, Michael Beitelspacher, Tom Bainbridge, Tom Lehner, Chance Klemme, Keith Koerselman and Ben Vondrak. Membership to the Plymouth County 4-H and Agricultural Society is open to any county resident that pays
a $5 one-time membership fee by 4:30 p.m. the day of the meeting to the Plymouth County Extension and Outreach Office. The regular monthly meeting of the fairboard will immediately follow the annual meeting. Election of new officers will take place. The meeting is open to the public.
Jill Biden To Visit Le Mars
(Le Mars) — Dr. Jill Biden, the wife of former Vice President Joe Biden, is scheduled to make a campaign visit in Le Mars on Saturday, November 16th.
Mrs. Biden will appear at the Bellissimo Coffee Works located at 410 4th Street Southwest at 3:45 p.m. Her husband, Democrat Joe Biden, is running for president. The vice president made a stop through Le Mars and held a town hall meeting at Floyd Valley Healthcare, focusing on rural health care, back in mid-July.
Gay Pastor Requests Leave Of Absence As Settlement For Methodist Church
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – Officials say a gay pastor in Iowa City will request a leave of absence as part of a settlement of complaints that her sexual orientation violates United Methodist Church law.
The Rev. Anna Blaedel had been director of the Wesley Center at the University of Iowa but stepped down in May because of a church complaint filed in 2018. She’s been the subject of three complaints since she publicly disclosed in 2016 that she was gay.
Blaedel has since been working 10-15 hours a week leading the center’s Table Tuesday program, in which college students gather to discuss spirituality and social justice.
The Rev. Tyler Schwaller has been representing Blaedel, and he told The Gazette that Blaedel will retain her pastoral credentials. Blaedel has declined to comment.
Delegates at a United Methodist Church conference in St. Louis voted in February to strengthen a ban on LGBTQ clergy and same-sex marriage.
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Police Investigate Threats Against Iowa State University Students
AMES, Iowa (AP) – Police are investigating what officials say is a threat posted on social media to three Iowa State students.
Iowa State Police Chief Michael Newton said Wednesday that the
university is trying to identify who posted it on Reddit.
The university says the threat targeted three students who participated in a Land Acknowledgement statement made at a Students Against Racism meeting on Nov. 7. Such statements acknowledge the indigenous people who once inhabited the land.
The poster typed these words next to the photo: “We fought for this land and won, and will be more than willing to kill for it again if you try and take it.”
Newton says police are working with Reddit to find information about the poster.
70 Year Old Man Arrested For Killing His Wife
ZEARING, Iowa (AP) – Authorities have arrested and charged a central Iowa man with killing his wife.
Story County court records say 70-year-old Gary Pillman is charged with second-degree murder and is being held on $500,000 bail. The records don’t list an attorney for him.
He’s accused in the slaying of 62-year-old Betty Pillman. Her body was found outside their home in Zearing on Wednesday. Authorities say she had several lacerations to her upper body. He was at the home and was taken to a hospital for treatment of arm lacerations.
The Story County Sheriff’s Office says a Zearing resident called 911 around 5 p.m. to report that a neighbor told her he’d killed his wife.
Iowa Has Over 600 Environmental Water Impairments
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – State natural resources officials say Iowa will report 622 river, lake and wetland segments with impairments to the Environmental Protection Agency as part of its 2018 summary of water quality.
That’s a 2% increase over the 608 reported in the 2016 report.
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says Thursday the 622 water body segments on this year’s list had 831 impairments. An impairment means a segment of a water body doesn’t meet established quality standards.
The most common river impairments in Iowa include bacteria presence and fish kills, for which the most common cause is animal waste.
Iowa has more pigs and egg-laying chickens than any other state, and it constantly struggles to balance water quality and agricultural interests.
The most severe problem for lakes is algae growth. That’s often the result of nutrients such as phosphorous from farm fertilizer washing from fields into the water.
Environmental activists Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement say it’s evidence the state is failing when it comes to improving water quality.
