There will be no Memorial Day commemorations at cemeteries across Iowa this year. Gov Kim Reynolds announced Wednesday that hair and nail salons, barbershops, campgrounds, and libraries across the state may reopen Friday at 5 am. Businesses in the 22 counties where COVID-19 restrictions were not relaxed May 1 will also be able to open on the same 50 percent…
Read MoreYear: 2020
Saddorises get okay on hog CAFO
~by Janice Harbaugh for GreeneCountyNewsOnline The Greene County board of supervisors presided over two public hearings at their regular meeting May 11. Both hearings were applications for new CAFOs (confined animal finishing operations) to be built in Greene County. The public and media attended through videoconferencing and telephone connections through Zoom.
Read MoreDoug Schroeder, 1941 – 2020
Douglas Alan Schroeder, 78, passed away May 10, 2020. Private family graveside services will be held at the Jefferson Municipal Cemetery. A Celebration of Life with family and friends will be held at a later date in Des Moines. At an early age, Doug displayed a strong work ethic, which led to him working part-time at John Morrell Meat Packing…
Read MoreMusings on leadership
~a column by Colleen O’Brien Can you imagine the whining and blaming if protestors with guns were encouraged to harangue at the White House? Can you imagine what he would do with guns at his gates? Or at the Lincoln Memorial? That silly staging area for a political rally, where in the photos someone looks like a recalcitrant child being…
Read MoreThe allure of the postal aroma
~a column by Colleen O’Brien It was the smell that awoke me, the smell in the dream. I was in the Post Office in Jefferson, where my dad worked. I was a little girl and I had come in through the wide swinging doors off the loading dock at the back where I’d been hanging out after school. The compelling…
Read MoreSupes okay new hog CAFO despite lack of support from county residents
~by Janice Harbaugh for GreeneCountyNewsOnline The Greene County board of supervisors presided over an historic public hearing held through videoconferencing at their regular meeting on May 11. Forty people, including the board, electronically attended the hearing on the Stumpf Finishers, LLC application for a hog confinement in Highland Township. Many of the attendees activated their video capabilities through Zoom and…
Read MorePresbyterian Churches receive grants for local projects
The North Central Iowa Presbytery Mission and Ministry Committee recently awarded four mission grants to the Greater Greene County Presbyterian Churches in Greene County. Each church submitted grant applications to help the most vulnerable in our county deal with the needs that have arisen during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read More60-ton boulder being moved from Bayard to Glidden
~courtesy of The Scranton Journal A Bayard landmark is about to become the Liberty Rock in Glidden. If things go as planned, City officials hope to have the project completed by the end of 2020. The late Max McCord grew tired of hitting a large rock with his farm equipment many years ago and decided to dig up the rock.…
Read MoreScranton Fishing Day delayed, Little League cancelled
Scranton Fishing Day postponed – It is with much sadness that the organizers have decided to delay the Scranton Fishing Day that was planned for June 6. Due to coronavirus and the desire to keep everyone safe, organizers feel it is best to postpone the event until later this summer. “We really appreciate your support,” said Leesa Squibb. Persons who…
Read MoreSoil conditions dry, planting going well
There were 4.7 days suitable for field work during the week ending May 10, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. Showers early in the week briefly slowed planting progress and below normal temperatures delayed emergence. Topsoil moisture levels across the state rated 4 percent very short, 15 percent short, 78 percent adequate and 3 percent surplus. West central…
Read MoreReynolds delays decision on how and where Iowa reopens
Iowans are still waiting to hear Gov Kim Reynolds’ next steps to reopen the Iowa economy after being slowed by the COVID-19 pandemic, despite her saying Monday she’d have an announcement Tuesday. At her Tuesday press briefing Reynolds said she’s still reviewing information, and that she’ll have an announcement Wednesday. “I know Iowans and businesses are eager to know what’s…
Read MoreJim Lawton, 1938 – 2020
James (Jim) Eugene Lawton was born January 14, 1938, near Linden at the home of his grandparents Clem and Lelah Gibbons. His parents were Isabelle Lydia (Gibbons) and John Peter Lawton who lived near Cooper Iowa at the time. The family moved to Dawson Township on a farm near Paton in 1943. At a young age his mother and siblings…
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