Northwestern College Starts A Leadership Development Program
(Le Mars) — Northwestern College of Orange City is broadening its reach throughout northwest Iowa, and is creating a leadership development program aimed at assisting businesses and identifying leaders within a community.
Representatives of the new program were in Le Mars Wednesday morning discussing the program with community leaders. Erica Vonk is the director of “Accelerate Siouxland-Siouxland’s Regional Leadership Development Program” and explains the purpose and mission of the new outreach program.
Josh Van Es is a recent graduate of Northwestern College and has started his own small retail business in Orange City. He tells how the program will help benefit small businesses within the area.
Vonk tells of the five areas of focus for the new Center for Innovation and Leadership at Northwestern College.
The program is scheduled to begin by late summer.
Inmate Charged in Anamosa Prison Worker Murders Will Be Tried By Judge
(Anamosa, IA) — One of the inmates accused in the murders of two Anamosa state prison workers wants a judge to decide his case. A Jones County judge accepted the request from Michael Dutcher (doo-cher) Tuesday to waive his right to a jury trial. Dutcher’s bench trial was set to begin on August 3rd.
He and Thomas Woodard are charged with first-degree murder in the March 23rd deaths of Anamosa correctional Officer Robert McFarland and nurse Lorena Schulte. Investigators say Dutcher and Woodard were trying to escape when they beat McFarland and Schulte with hammers. They’re also charged with
kidnapping and attempted murder. Woodard’s trial is scheduled to start on September 21st in Linn County.
Relatively Quiet Peak Tornado Season in Iowa
(Des Moines, IA) — The peak season for tornadoes in Iowa ends today (Wednesday) and April, May, and June have been relatively quiet for severe storms. National Weather Service meteorologist Kenny Podrazik (pah-DRAZ-ick) says it’s been a fairly quiet year with only six tornadoes confirmed in the
state through June. He says statewide totals would typically average 34 or 35 tornadoes through the end of this month. Podrazik says he’s totally fine with being below normal for tornadoes. He says it’s possible to see tornadoes during a secondary season in July and we definitely get some storms in August.
The derecho that tore across Iowa on August 10th of last year was the most damaging thunderstorm in U-S history.
Benefit Concert Raises $5K For Xavior Harrelson Reward Fund
(Grinnell, IA) — Organizers say a benefit concert in Grinnell Tuesday night raised more than five-thousand dollars for the search for a missing boy from Montezuma. The reward fund for 11-year-old Xavior Harrelson has grown to about 32-thousand dollars. Xavior went missing since May 27th. Country singer Adam Whitehead of Marshalltown and Hunter Mason of Ottumwa performed at the fundraiser and the crowd wore orange which is Xavior’s favorite color.
Concert organizer Joy Van Landschoot was thrilled by all the support the community is showing for Xavior.
New UPS Cargo Facility Opens at Eastern Iowa Airport
(Cedar Rapids, IA) — A new ten-point-two-million-dollar cargo facility is now open at the Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids. United Parcel Service signed a ten-year lease on the 40-thousand square foot facility and will use it to sort and distribute packages. U-P-S has been operating at the airport since 1983 out of a facility that’s about one-fifth the size of the new cargo
handling area. It will employ around 100 workers. Construction started in 2019 and the project is funded with state and federal grants and money from the Cedar Rapids Airport Commission.
