Home News KLEM News for Monday, June 5

KLEM News for Monday, June 5

ENHANCED PATROLS

The Le Mars Police Department and the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Office plan on partnering for enhanced patrols on Monday, June 5. On this date law enforcement officers will be on the look out for speeding drivers, distracted drivers, impaired drivers and drivers not wearing their seatbelts.  It is our goal to decrease injury and fatality accidents in Le Mars and Plymouth County.  Please buckle up and drive safe!

 

CONSERVATION SUMMER CAMPS

Plymouth County Conservation’s summer camps are almost completely booked for the summer.  Naturalist Victoria DeVos says these camps have proven to be very popular events for kids.

De Vos says the camps are organized on a multi-year rotation.

And they cover a variety of ages and activities.

Enrollments in the summer camps are capped.

Kids from kindergarten to eight grade can take part in the camps. The three camps planned for June are already full. There are a few places available for 5th and 6th graders in a camp July 11 through 13.  Contact the Plymouth County Conservation office at Hillview Park in Hinton for more information.

De Vos has tried a number of different camps over the 16 years she’s organized these youth camps

There are other events put on by Plymouth County Conservation later this season. De Vos says they are planning an Elk Burger Dinner and Auction in September.

This is a fundraiser for the Plymouth County Conservation Foundation. The other summer event sponsored by Plymouth County Conservation is a hunter education field day on August 2nd. This is part of the qualification for the Hunter’s Education Course.

ROAST AND RIDE
Eight Republican presidential hopefuls spoke to about 900 likely Iowa Caucus goers this weekend. Iowa Senator Joni Ernst hosted the annual Roast and Ride event at the Iowa State Fairgrounds. . It started with a convoy of motorcycles riding from a Harley-Davidson dealership to the Iowa State Fairgrounds. Former Vice President Mike Pence gave a preview of the campaign he intends to launch this week in Iowa. Pence mentioned the role Iowa’s first in the nation Caucuses play in determining who will be the G-O-P’s nominee.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis says he’s not making idle promises on the campaign trail that he’d forget as president.South Carolina Senator Tim Scott announced at the event that he’ll be on “The View” today (Monday), after a co-host of the show said he doesn’t understand systemic racism because he’s a Republican.

Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley indirectly criticized the debt ceiling deal Iowa’s Republican congressional delegation supported.

Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, businessmen Vivek Ramaswamy and Perry Johnson and former radio show host Larry Elder also spoke at the event. Former President Donald Trump was invited, but chose not to attend. Ernst was asked if she’d consider an invitation to serve in a Republican president’s administration or the party’s VICE presidential nomination.
Trump considered Ernst as a running mate in 2016, but Ernst said at the time she had a lot more to do in the U.S. Senate. In July of 2016, Ernst was in the middle of year two of her first six-year term.

 

PAVING PROJECT

A paving project at the Plymouth County Fairgrounds is near completion.  A contractor has been pouring a concrete parking lot west of Century Hall over the past week.  This is one of the major projects planned by the fair board leading up to the Plymouth County Fair this summer.

 

GOVERNOR SIGNS REMAINING BILLS

Governor Kim Reynolds signed 67 bills into law Thursday, completing action on all the bills that passed the 2023 Iowa legislature. A new law limiting the state auditor’s authority to pursue some information for audits and investigations was at the top of the list of bills released by the governor’s office.  State Auditor Rob Sand says his ability to investigate waste, fraud and abuse in state government will be limited, as he will no longer be able to get a court order to compel reluctant state agencies to turn over materials. Governor Reynolds has said those kind of disputes should be settled by mediation in the executive branch.

 

LUTHERAN SERVICES SIOUX CITY

Lutheran Services in Iowa is celebrating the opening of an office in Sioux City. The agency provides services in immigrant and refugee resettlement, early childhood needs, and foster care and adoption. Nick Wuertz is director of refugee services at L-S-I and says they provide help to people who come to northwest Iowa from all over the world.

Mallory Berkenpas oversees a variety of efforts as the agency’s service coordinator for early childhood programs.

Sarah Green, the vice president of philanthropy and church relations with L-S-I, says they need more people to help with their services and to donate supplies for the refugees.

Learn more about the organization at lsiowa.org.

 

WHITSON READY
Iowa native astronaut Peggy Whitson says she’s ready for her -next- space mission after returning last week from her record-setting fourth trip to the International Space Station. Whitson, who grew up in Beaconsfield, is the only astronaut who’s gone into orbit on an American space shuttle, a Russian Soyuz, and now a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule carrying Whitson and three crewmates splashed down off the Florida coast last week following a ten-day mission. While Whitson has spent well over 600 days aboard the space station, she says new equipment and a large crew made navigating inside the orbiting outpost more of a challenge. Eleven astronauts and cosmonauts were aboard the station at one time during this Axiom 2 mission. Whitson, who is now a private astronaut, was asked whether she’s ready for her next launch. Private astronaut John Shoffner and two Saudi Arabian astronauts joined Whitson aboard Axiom 2. They conducted more than 20 experiments in space. With her fourth mission completed, Whitson’s U.S. space endurance record stands at 675 days.

 

APPEAL FOR BIODIESEL

Governor Kim Reynolds and the govenrors of Nebraska and Missouri have signed off on a letter that urges that E-P-A to increase the federal requirement for biodiesel production. The three Midwest governors say diesel fuel supplies remain at low levels and farmers and truckers are dealing with stubbornly high prices. A year ago, the average price for a gallon of diesel hit an all time high of just over five dollars a gallon in Iowa. It’s fallen to about 3-72 a gallon today according to triple A. The governors say in their letter that soybean-based biodiesel and biomass-based diesel — made with other plant materials — supports the rural economy and expands the fuel supply. The governors  are urging the E-P-A to substantially increase the volume of biodiesel production required under the Renewable Fuels Standard — but so do without reducing ethanol production requirements.

 

DES MOINES CON

Some of the world’s most recognized voice actors were in central Iowa last weekend at Des Moines Con. Event creator Ben Penrod calls it a non-specific fan event, for people who love comic books, superheroes, sci-fi, Marvel films, cartoons and anime. Penrod says Tom Kenny, the voice actor who gives life to Spongebob Squarepants — in addition to many other familiar cartoon characters — greeted the crowds in Des Moines. A woman who is billed as -the- most famous anime voice actor in the world, Sarah Natochenny, appeared at the event. She is the voice of Ash Ketchum, the main character in Pokemon. The list of celebrities included actor Ross Marquand, known for “The Walking Dead” and “Avengers: Endgame,” pro wrestler Kevin Nash, and Jim Cummings who voiced Winnie The Pooh.  The event was held at the Des Moines Convention Center.