A Charles City accounting firm has given Worth County officials a report showing the books are a mess at the county emergency-management commission. At a commission meeting in Northwood Thursday night, county supervisor Ken Abrams, one member of the commission, looked over the report that showed little record-keeping for money spent by the former head of the agency. He says a credit-card bill was paid but there’s no record of what the credit card was used to buy that totaled over 100-dollars. Abrams noted the report shows spending with no receipts filed, and little detail on many purchases by the commission’s former director. He mentions to several small sums “not accounted for, from four-dollars to 42-dollars,” saying there’s no documentation of what was bought, just bills that submitted and paid. The accounting firm says what it did was not an audit, just a review of the agency’s funding and its spending for the fiscal year that ended in June. The review was requested by an interim director, after former director Marty Martin quit to run for sheriff. Martin says the review of his old books was a good idea. Martin says when he took the job, the office had been vacant for at least three months and the only training or guidelines he got was a brief talk with the former coordinator. Martin says he thinks it’s “great” that they’re putting guidelines together, saying it will improve the efficiency of the office. After he stepped down as director, the emergency-management commissioner for Mitchell County, Ray Huftalin, took on interim duties managing the Worth County commission as well, and requested the financial reports for both of them. Martin, who’s retired from the Mason City police department, served two years as head of the emergency-management commission and now is challenging Worth County sheriff David Gents in Tuesday’s election.
Independent Congressional candidate touts pro-abortion stance
The Independent candidate running for Iowa’s first district congressional seat is making a last-minute appeal to so-called “pro-choice” voters as the two major party candidates in the race are both pro-life. Denny Heath of Clinton — the Independent candidate in the first district — says “it’s all about the freedom to choose what to do with your own body. I don’t think any person, any organization, any religion, any government should have the right to tell you what you should do with your own body.” Heath says Bill Gluba, the democratic candidate, has vowed to help overturn Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion. Heath says that’s not the democratic party’s platform position on the issue. The incumbent in the race — republican Congressman Jim Nussle — supports abortion in limited circumstances — in cases of rape, incest, or to save the life or health of the mother. The first congressional district runs along the Mississippi River from Davenport up to Dubuque that is a heavily Catholic area of the state in which pro-life candidates do well at the ballot box.
Heart Connection offers holiday cards
This weekend’s arrival of Halloween means Thanksgiving and Christmas aren’t far behind, prompting some folks to think ahead to their holiday cards. Tony Timm, associate director of the Heart Connection Children’s Cancer Programs urges Iowans to consider sending colorful cards purchased through the non-profit group, drawn by children. Timm says the artists all attend the Heart Connection’s camps, which are for children with cancer and their siblings. About 300 children in Iowa per year attend the camps and one of the ways they give back is to design the cars. He says 100-percent of the proceeds from the card sales go back into the organization’s programs. Timm says this year’s crop of cards is colorful. The cards show things like snowmen, penguins, trees and snowflakes. To view or order the cards, call (515) 243-6239 or surf to “www.holidaycardsbykids.com”.
New wind farm sees first turbines go up
A ceremony in northwest Iowa celebrated the raising of the first wind turbines in a 107 turbine wind farm near Shaller. MidAmerican Energy vice president Jack Alexander talked about the project. He says this “Intrepid” wind project will be located in Sac and Buena Vista counties, the other site is located in Wright and Hamilton county. MidAmerican president Greg Abel says the project will generate enough electricity to power 85-thousand homes. He says the project will result in significant long-term payments to more than one hundred landowners in the area, create 250 construction jobs and 20 permanent jobs. Abel says there are other benefits as well. He says situated in the fields of corn and soybeans, wind energy is clearly becoming a new cash crop for farmers. Abel says once the project is complete, wind, water and biomass will be the source of more than eight percent of MidAmerican’s electric generating capacity.
State says drop in enrollment won’t cause major problems
The Iowa Department of Education reported this week that enrollment is down this fall in Iowa schools. The statewide public-school attendance total of 483-thousand was down by 16-hundred-32. The agency’s Kathi Slaughter says schools that may need more desks or fewer lockers have to adapt to the changing numbers, but she says it’s not a crisis. For example, Slaughter says they lost 160 students in Davenport, but it’s such a big district and that loss is spread out over 12 grades, so the impact is diluted. Des Moines lost 266, but that’s still less than one-percent of their students. Slaughter says the schools will receive less funding, but the impact will be relatively small overall at each grade level. She says small schools that find their numbers falling don’t necessarily face consolidation with other neighboring districts. According to Slaughter, small districts, or declining enrollment, don’t always mean schools must merge or consolidate. But she says any school must be able to attract and keep good teachers, offer a full curriculum, and keep a safe school, so any school that finds it cannot do those things may have to consider solutions, including mergers or consolidations. If some areas continue to decline Slaughter says they’ll have to consider whether they can still offer quality education for their students’ needs. As you may recall, Governor Tom Vilsack has suggested the state offer incentives to schools to share services. Slaughter says some years the totals go down, some years they increase, and there’s no clear pattern to which area, metropolitan or rural, large or small, will gain or lose students in a given year.
High School Football Scores – October 29, 2004
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 28
Assumption, Davenport 33, Pleasant Valley 8
Cedar Rapids, Kennedy 38, Linn-Mar, Marion 20
Council Bluffs, Abraham Lincoln 38, Sioux City, North 6
Gehlen Catholic, LeMars 42, River Valley, Correctionville 0
Valley Community, Elgin 47, Tripoli 0
West Central, Maynard 38, Don Bosco, Gilbertville 0
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 29
CLASS 4A
Ames 33, Fort Dodge 24
Ankeny 13, Southeast Polk, Runnells 6
Bettendorf 45, Davenport, Central 14
Bishop Heelan Catholic, Sioux City 38, Council Bluffs, Thomas Jefferson 7
Burlington 41, Davenport, North 0
Cedar Falls 35, Cedar Rapids, Prairie 28, ot
Cedar Rapids, Jefferson 30, Dubuque, Senior 20
Des Moines, East 38, Des Moines, Lincoln 14
Des Moines, Hoover 28, Des Moines, North 7
Dowling Catholic, West Des Moines 36, Urbandale 34
Dubuque Hempstead 30, Waterloo West 0
Dubuque Wahlert 34, Waterloo West 6
Iowa City, City High 20, Cedar Rapids Washington 12
Iowa City, West 37, Xavier, Cedar Rapids 22
Johnston 49, Indianola 34
Marshalltown 24, Newton 20
Muscatine 35, Davenport West 17
North Scott, Eldridge 48, Clinton 0
Ottumwa 24, Des Moines Roosevelt 7
Sioux City, East 48, Sioux City, West 14
Valley, West Des Moines 55, Mason City 14
CLASS 3A
ADM, Adel 28, Perry 14
Algona 20, LeMars 14 (ot)
Anamosa 30, Epworth Western Dubuque 20
Ballard, Huxley 28, Webster City 0
Benton,Van Horne 44, Knoxvie 0
Boone 34, Nevada 7
Carlisle 49, Clear Creek-Amana 14
Central Clinton, DeWitt 17, Maquoketa 14
Chariton 35, Keokuk 0
Crestwood, Cresco 20, Charles City 19
Decorah-North Winneshek 28, Waukon 0
Denison-Schleswig 35, Atlantic 0
Fairfield 0, Centerville 0 (tie-suspended in third quarter)
Glenwood 26, JSPC, Jefferson 7
Grinnell 31, Williamsburg 20
Hampton-Dumont 7, Forest City 0
Harlan 42, Creston-Orient-Macksburg 7
Iowa Falls-Alden 14, Clear Lake 6
Lewis Central, Council Bluffs 17, Carroll 14
Marion 17, Mount Vernon 14
MOC-Floyd Valley 14, Humboldt 7
Mount Pleasant 14, Oskaloosa 6
New Hampton 47, Independence 7
Norwalk 49, Clarke, Osceola 13
South Tama County, Tama 33, Pella 25
Spirit Lake 30, Spencer 6
Storm Lake 30, Estherville-Lincoln Central 0
Vinton-Shellsburg 19, Manchester West Delaware 0
Waukee 49, Saydel 0
Waverly-Shell Rock 25, Oelwein 14
Winterset 55, Dallas Center-Grimes 0
CLASS 2A
Battle Creek-Ida Grove 32, Eagle Grove 19
Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley 20, Western Christian, Hull 0
Cascade 8, MFL MarMac, Monona 6
Central Lee, Donnellson 15, New London-Danville 6
Clarinda 21, Shenandoah 6
Clarion-Goldfield 33, LaPorte City, Union 6
Eddyville-Blakesburg 9, Van Buren, Keosauqua 6
Emmetsburg 27, Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn 14
Gilbert 14, Ogden 0
Grundy Center 21, North Polk, Alleman 0
Kuemper Catholic, Carroll 47, West Central Valley, Stuart 6
Maquoketa Valley, Delhi 17, Center Point-Urbana 0
Mediapolis 22, Columbus, Columbus Junction 0
Mid-Prairie, Wellman 55, Louisa-Muscatine, Letts 7
Nodaway Valley, Greefield 20, Missouri Valley 7
North Fayette, West Union 53, Sumner-Fredericksburg 6
Okoboji, Milford 21, Manson-NW Webster 15
Osage 13, Garner-Hayfield 12
PCM, Monroe 28, Bondurant-Farrar9
Red Oak 44, Maple Valley-Anthon-Oto 0
Sheldon 7, Sioux Center 6
Sigourney-Keota 53, Davis County, Bloomfield 8
Solon 32, Dyersville Beckman 13
South O’Brien, Paullina 21, Pocahontas Area 10
St. Edmond, Fort Dodge 45, Cherokee 7
Columbus Catholic, Waterloo 34, South Winneshiek, Calmar 8
West Burlington-Notre Dame 12, Albia 0
West Lyon, Inwood 35, Sergeant Bluff-Luton 6
Wilton 19, West Liberty 6
CLASS 1A
AGWSR Ackley 41, Woodward-Granger 7
Akron-Westfield 41, West Sioux, Hawarden 6
Bedford 41, Corydon, Wayne 0
Bishop Garrigan, Algona 62, North Butler, Greene 22
Central Decatur, Leon 45, Pleasantville 20
Clayton Ridge, Guttenberg 39, Bellevue 20
Denver 17, Wapsie Valley, Fairfield 16
Durant-Bennett 21, Highland-Lone Tree 6
Eldora-New Providence 26, Prairie Valley, Gowrie 12
Griswold 20, Audubon 6
Hinton 14, Sioux Central, Sioux Rapids, 6
Interstate 35, Truro 31, Mount Ayr 22
Lake Mills 32, Belmond-Klemme 6
East Marshall, LeGrand 8, South Hamilton, Jewell 7
MMC, Marcus 12, Alta 7
Montezuma 33, Cardinal, Eldon 0
Nashua-Plainfield at Gladbrook-Reinbeck, ppd to Saturday, 1:00
Newman Catholic, Mason City 27, Rockford 14
Paullina, South O’Brien 21, Pocahontas Area 10
Panorama, Panora 21, Corning 0
Regina, Iowa City 17, Pekin 14
St. Albert, Council Bluffs 17, Riverside, Oakland 7
St. Ansgar 17, Aplington-Parkersburg 14
Tipton 33, North Cedar, Stanwood 19
Turkey Valley, Jackson Junction 18, Dike-New Hartford 0
Underwood 27, Logan-Magnolia 12
West Branch 48, Belle Plaine 0
West Marshall, State Center 35, Colfax-Mingo 0
West Monona, Onawa 8, Tri-Center, Neola 0
CLASS A
Alburnett 22, NUH, Cedar Falls 8
BCLUW, Conrad 48, English Valleys, North English 15
Boyer Valley, Dunlap 12, West Harrison, Mondamin 7
CAM, Anita 36, Clarinda Academy 6
Central City 22, East Central, Miles 6
Colo-Nesco 31, Martensdale-St. Marys 6
CWL, Corwith 28, Woden-Crystal Lake-Titonka 14
Dunkerton 45, Kee, Lansing 6
Earlham 69, Hubbard-Radcliffe 46
East Buchanan, Winthrop 21, Preston 7
East Union, Afton 34, Lynnville-Sully 6
Galva-Holstein 36, Wall Lake View-Auburn 0
GMG, Garwin at Tri-County, Thornburg, ppd to Monday, 7 p.m.
Guthrie Center 20, Woodbine 6
Kingsley-Pierson 40, Sac City 0
Laurens-Marathon 20, Rockwell City-Lytton 18
Lawton-Bronson 26, Odebolt-Arthur 25, ot
Lisbon 33, Springville 0
Madrid 74, Des Moines Christian 0
Manning 15, IKM, Manilla 6
Newell-Fonda 6, Armstrong-Ringsted 0
North Iowa, Buffalo Center 44, Clarksville 22
North Mahaska, New Sharon at Marengo, Iowa Valley, ppd to Saturday, 10 a.m.
North Tama, Traer 20, Winfield-Mt. Union 0
Northeast Hamilton, Blairsburg 40, Nora Springs-Rock Falls 17
Northwood-Kensett 57, North Central, Manly 0
Olin 42, Edgewood-Colesburg 38
Postville 34, Central, Elkader 20
Riceville 52, Rockwell-Swaledale 6
Schaller-Crestland 26, Clay Central-Everly 15
Southest Webster, Burnside 33, Graettinger-Terril 2
Treynor 47, AHST, Avoca 7
Van Meter 16, Southeast Warren, Liberty Center 6
Waco, Wayland 7, HLV, Victor 6
West Bend-Mallard 31, Lake City Southern Cal 0
West Hancock, Britt 71, Janesvlle 0
Woodbury Central, Moville 35, Westwood, Sloan 15
EIGHT PLAYER
Adair-Casey 54, Lenox 30
Aurelia 54, Spalding Catholic, Granville 0
East Greene, Grand Junction 20, Exira 14
Elk Horn-Kimballton 32, Coon Rapids-Bayard 13
Farragut 73, South Page, College Springs 6
Glidden-Ralston 69, Ar-We-Va Westside 0
Hamburg 52, Essex 22
Harmony, Farmington 28, Moravia 12
Lamoni 40, Murray 0
Nishna Valley, Hastings 58, Villisca 26
Northeast Hamilton, Blairsburg 40, Nora Springs-Rock Falls 17
Remsen-Union 43, Charter Oak-Ute 39
Ruthven-Ayrshire 14, North Kossuth, Swea City 13
Sentral, Fenton 20, Pomeroy-Palmer 7
Sidney 49, Fremont-Mills, Tabor 6
St. Mary’s, Remsen 77,Whiting 6
Twin Cedars, Bussey 34, Melcher-Dallas 26
Twin River Valley, Bode 62, Harris-Lake Park 34
Ventura 70, CAL-Dows, Latimer 40
Walnut 49, Stanton 14
Giuliani attacks Kerry during stop in Mason City
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani made a stop in Mason City Friday on behalf of President Bush, a day after Giuliani said it was American troops who bear “ultimate responsibility” for missing explosives in Iraq. On Friday, a soldier said he had been in charge of destroying explosives from the weapons depot in question, but Pentagon spokesmen could not confirm that what was destroyed was what’s listed as missing. During his stop in Mason City, Giuliani attacked John Kerry for making the missing explosives an issue. Giuliani said there was “allegedly” 377 tons of explosives that are unaccountaged for, but “what the New York Times and CBS News doesn’t emphasize is that our military has captured and destroyed over 400,000 tons of explosives since they’ve been in Iraq.” Giuliani told the crowd in Mason City that Kerry is showing “duplicity” by criticizing President Bush over the missing weapons. “If John Kerry is so concerned about these 377 tons of explosives that he allegedly says are missing, why does he question the President attacking Saddam Hussein when Saddam Hussein was sitting there with 400,000 tons of explosives that we’ve now had to destroy,” Giuliani said. Giuliani also accused Kerry of not supporting American troops. “What he does in calling into question, without any evidence when nobody knows the facts, calling into question what was done in Iraq, constantly second-guessing, saying to them you know ‘wrong war, wrong place, wrong time.’” Colin Van Ostren, a spokesman for the Kerry campaign in Iowa, says “Rudy Giuliani and George Bush should apologize for blaming this security breach on our soldiers.” Van Ostren says accountability stops with the Commander-in-Chief, and George Bush has failed that test yet again. “Excuses and finger-pointing don’t keep our country safe, and that’s why Iowans are turning to John Kerry for a fresh start,” Van Ostren said.
