The ranking of Greene County as having the highest teen pregnancy rate in the state in 2010 was a call to action for healthcare providers, schools and community groups. Data recently released by the Iowa Department of Public Health’s vital statistics division shows the effort has paid off. Data for 2014 shows a 60 percent decline in the number of…
Read MoreMonth: January 2016
Low cost spay/neuter clinics set for February
(Edited Jan. 27 with different dates) Animal Protection and Education (APE) charity is marking Spay Day 2016 with a pair of low cost spay and neuter clinics for cats. Clinics will be held Mondays, Feb.15 and Feb. 29, in Grand Junction. Cats will be spayed/neutered by a licensed DVM, microchipped and treated for fleas, earmites, roundworms and hookworms. The spay package…
Read MoreWeather data, week ending Jan. 22
The good news for the week ending Jan. 22 is that Jefferson residents didn’t need to mow their lawns or swat mosquitos. The bad news is that it was just plain cold. High temperature for the week was 22 degrees and the low was -11 degrees according to volunteer weather observer John Beltz. Jefferson received just .03 inch of precipitation…
Read MoreConsumer alert: Beware of ‘epidemic’ IRS phone scam
Long-running nationwide scam continues to target Iowans with threatening calls DES MOINES – Though it’s been a years-long nationwide scam, Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller is again alerting Iowans about the ongoing IRS scam now that it is tax filing season.
Read MoreRams girls end long losing streak, score more points than boys
Ram basketball fans had reasons to cheer for the girls Friday night as they ended a 10 game losing streak with a convincing win over the South Hamilton Hawks in Jefferson. Their win was convincing, 61-50, as the Rams scored more than twice their season average. That game, a high scoring game for both teams, preceded a comparatively low scoring…
Read MoreGames end with identical scores, but one win and one loss for Rams
The Greene County Rams split basketball games against Collins-Maxwell/Baxter in Baxter Jan. 19. In something not likely to happen again, the scores in the boys’ game and the girls’ game were identical, 45-34. The girls were on the short end, although they scored nine more points than their season average. The boys were on the long end in their game,…
Read MoreThank you volunteers, from JPRD
To the editor, Jefferson Park and Recreation would like to thank all the volunteers to helped make the Steven Silbaugh Memorial Wrestling tournament Sunday, Jan 17, such a success. Vicky Lautner, JPRD director
Read MoreSchool board revises good conduct policy
Policy is purposely “gray” to allow for appeals A Greene County student who commits a serious violation of the district’s activity eligibility/good conduct policy could be ineligible to participate in extracurricular activities for a year or longer.
Read MoreElks to host dinner, comedy Feb. 12
The Jefferson Elks will host their 13th annual Valentine’s Dinner and Comedy fundraiser event on Friday evening, Feb. 12, at the Elks Lodge, 103 W. Harrison, Jefferson IA. This year’s show promises to be entertaining with comedian Josh Alton on stage at 8 pm.
Read MoreAvant garde tombstone, anyone?
~a column by Colleen O’Brien In France, a new kind of grave stone — avant garde, irreverent, meaningful, amusing to some, annoying to the rest — has sprouted in a cemetery in Montmartre, the historically subversive, bohemian area on the Right Bank of the Seine in Paris. The unusual tombstone is the brainchild of a few artists, writers and other…
Read MoreLetter to the editor – Patti Edwardson
To the editor, I am a woman for Bernie. Like many Americans, I want to see a woman elected president of the United States. However, I also want women – and men – from all walks of life to have the opportunities that will get them into leadership positions so the real likelihood of women elected president will last into…
Read MoreChamber’s ABC Award to Dianne Blackmer
Dianne Blackmer, volunteer on-site director for the Greene County Christian Action Resource Center food pantry, was honored with the Above and Beyond the Call (ABC) Award at the Greene County Chamber of Commerce’s annual meeting Monday at the Elks lodge in Jefferson. Diane Wise (right), recipient of last year’s award, presented the award to Blackmer (left), saying that Blackmer “exemplifies…
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