Volunteers Help “Then Feed Just One” Prepare Meals For Honduras
(Le Mars) — The Hunger Relief Program, “Then Feed Just One” is happening now at Gehlen Catholic School. Volunteers comprising of Gehlen students, staff and faculty, Opportunities Unlimited, and others from businesses and the community have gathered to assemble meal packets. Dick Sievert, the Director for the organization, “Then Feed Just One” explains what is included in those meals.
Listen to
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Sievert says over the eleven years of existence, Gehlen has produced well over one and a half million meals. The director of the hunger relief organization says all told, with other schools, churches, and others contributing, more than ten million meals have been created and sent to Honduras. Sievert says the program got started from a medical mission to Honduras, when a woman after being treated for her medical ailments told the doctor she was disappointed.
Listen to
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Sievert says it was shortly there after that he was able to organize efforts to distribute food to the starving children of Honduras.
In a study by the World Health Organization and UNICEF, 29 percent of the children living in Honduras will be affected by stunting, or when the brain doesn’t have an opportunity to fully develop due to malnutrition. Officials say they hope to create and pack up to 120,000 to 130,000 meals during today’s activity.
Northey Says No To U.S. Senate Bid
(Des Moines) — Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey has laid to rest any talk about running for U-S Senator. In a facebook posting, Northey says he consulted with family and friends and decided against throwing his name in as a Republican candidate. Northey, along with Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds had both been mentioned as possible candidates seeking the position being vacated by Democratic Senator Tom Harkin. Democratic Congressman Bruce Braley has announced he would be seeking the position of U-S Senator. Braley has been able to pick up some key Democratic endorsements including Senator Harkin, Former Congressman Leonard Boswell, State Attorney General Tom Miller and State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald. No one from the Republican side has announced their intention to run, although it is widely speculated that Iowa Congressman Steve King may do so. As of today, King still has not officially announced his intentions, saying only he is still considering it.
Gas Leak Now Contained
MONTICELLO, Iowa (AP) – Authorities have contained a ruptured propane line in eastern Iowa, and an evacuation of the area has been lifted.
Jones County Sheriff Greg Graver says crews stopped the flow from the line’s breach point around 3 a.m. Friday. Crews later assessed the rural area near Monticello and determined it was safe.
Power crews then restored power to the area and evacuated residents were allowed back into their homes. The company that owns the line is working to repair the damage.
The rupture on the 12-inch line occurred Wednesday. A farmer on a tractor struck the above ground pipeline, causing the line to spew gas. An unusual spring snowstorm delayed crews and equipment from arriving on scene to repair the line.
Monticello is about 40 miles northeast of Cedar Rapids.
Former Manager Of Kosher Meat Packing Facility Faces Trial
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) – A former manager at an Iowa kosher slaughterhouse is set to appear in federal court after being extradited from Israel.
Hosam Amara has been indicted on charges of harboring people in the country illegally. He fought extradition from Israel, where he fled after a 2008 immigration raid at the former Agriprocessors
Inc. meatpacking plant in Postville.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office says he has been returned to Iowa, and he’ll appear Friday in Cedar Rapids for an initial hearing and arraignment.
Prosecutors say Amara fled after federal agents arrested nearly 400 Agriprocessors workers on charges that they were in the country illegally. Amara was arrested in Israel on March 31, 2011.
Former Agriprocessors Vice President Shalom Rubashkin was sentenced to 27 years in prison on financial fraud charges following the raid.
Dog Bites Nose Off Of Woman
MADRID, Iowa (AP) – An Iowa woman whose nose was severely injured by an attacking dog says her husband bit the animal to make it stop its assault.
Caren and Laine Henry says that a 50-pound Labrador mix ran out of a yard near Laine’s father’s home in rural Madrid (MAD’-rihd) on Sunday to attack the couple while they were walking their pet
beagle.
Caren Henry says the dog bit her abdomen and right thigh, scratched at her eyes, then clamped onto her nose, tearing it off. She says her husband was bit on an arm when he tried to help her.
Caren Henry says Laine “finally had to bite the dog in its nose, and it let loose.”
The county doesn’t have a vicious-dog ordinance.
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Lesbian Birth Certificate
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Supreme Court says the state health department must list the names of both spouses in a same-sex relationship on a child’s birth certificate.
The court ruled Friday that the department must include the name of the non-birthing spouse in a lesbian marriage as a legal parent to any child born during the union.
Justices say that a state law that allowed only the “name of the husband” to appear on the birth certificate violates the equal protection clause in the Iowa Constitution.
The ruling is a victory for Heather and Melissa Gartner of Des Moines, who sued after the department listed only Heather as a parent of their daughter in 2009.
The couple married after the Iowa Supreme Court legalized gay marriage in 2009.
Iowa’s “Best Burger” Found In Mediapolis
MEDIAPOLIS, Iowa (AP) – An entry from the southeast corner of Iowa has been named best burger in the state.
The Iowa Cattlemen’s Association and the Iowa Beef Industry Council announced the 2013 winner
Thursday. It is the Angus Black Crown Burger from 61 Chop House Grille in Mediapolis.
The half-pound broiled beef patty is cooked to medium and is topped with a beer-cheese sauce, a black pepper-flavored Colby-Jack cheese and apple-wood-smoked bacon. That stack of flavors is
sandwiched between layers of a buttery egg bun.
The cattle groups say the restaurant beat 348 other entrants. Judges rated the 10 finalists on taste, appearance and proper serving temperature.
Last year’s winner was Coon Bowl III in Coon Rapids.
