The Jefferson city council needed just 20 minutes to deal with items on the July 23 meeting agenda. The first item of new business was to approve the farm lease with Adam Ebersole for the 159 city-owned acres around the municipal airport runways. Ebersole and the city are now in the second year of a two-year contract. Cash rent for…
Read MoreYear: 2024
What happened to Iowa Nice?
~a column by GCNO publisher Victoria Riley I’ve told people many times that ‘Iowa Nice’ is real, that Iowans are friendly, considerate, respectful people. If I take a cue from those who are ‘in charge’ in Iowa, I need to quit saying that. If Iowa Nice were real, Gov Kim Reynolds and other elected officials would have responded to President…
Read MoreToo much of too much
~a column by Colleen O’Brien Had it been a novel instead of real life, this past week would never have made it to the publisher’s desk. As fact of real life, it was also too much of too much, a poorly written novel because it had too many plots for one piece of fiction, let alone fact: we became party…
Read MorePlayers tell casts for radio shows
Cast lists have been posted and rehearsals have started for the Community Players of Greene County’s Radio Hour, slated for Saturday, Aug. 24, at Spring Lake Park lakeside shelter. Cast members for “The Bickersons” include John Schoening, Jeff Hughes and Lindy Lehman. “The Lottery” will be read by Josh Tuel, Jeff Hughes, Snowy Anderson, Alicia Sloan, Gwen Hooper, Ash Elliott,…
Read MoreRecord turn out for Scranton Kids Fishing Day
The Steven Squibb Scranton Kids Fishing Day this year was held on a new day and time: Friday, June 7, from 5 to 7 p.m. It turned out to be the most successful event in the last 12 years, with a record turnout of children and parents. The event garnered support from sponsors both locally and internationally, reflecting its growing…
Read MoreSupervisors hear insurance renewal costs, update on TIF and career academy payments
The Greene County supervisors got mixed news at their July 22 meeting when Joan St Clair and John Heydon of McDonald Insurance presented costs for renewal of the county’s insurance through the Iowa Communities Assurance Pool (ICAP). The bad news is that the county’s total bill for insurance – property, crime, boiler & machinery, auto physical damage, workers’ compensation and…
Read MoreJefferson’s Russell Park: From a swamp to a peaceful oasis in the middle of town
~by Denise O’Brien Van for the Greene County Historical Society Once upon a time, Jefferson’s Russell Park was a wetland, home to muskrats and bullrushes. More than a century ago, that swath of swamp in the middle of Jefferson was transformed into a peaceful park named after the judge who donated the land. Mikki Schwarzkopf of Jefferson will relate the…
Read MoreRoutine business for Scranton city council
The Scranton city council handled routine business during their 40-minute meeting on July 9. Fund transfers and the allocation of ARPA money resolutions were unamiously approved. A change was made to the insurance, raising the deductibles for building and auto insurance. Ashley Squibb reported the Scranton Fishing Day was the best they have hosted so far. Ninety youngsters were registered…
Read MoreGenealogical Society meets Aug. 3
The August meeting of the Greene County Iowa Genealogical Society will be Saturday, Aug. 3, at 10 am in the basement to the Jefferson public library. Everyone is welcome and the basement is handicapped accessible. The reference library is open every Saturday from 9 to 11 am and Wednesdays from 1 to 3 pm.
Read MoreWomen’s suffrage movement topic of library program
The Churdan public library will host historian Kathy Willson, on Wednesday, Aug. 7, at 9:30 a.m. August 26, 2020, marked the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote. In this program, Wilson investigates why women had to fight for decades to get the right to vote, why Black and minority women were excluded from the…
Read MoreLifeServe in Scranton next Monday
LifeServe Blood Center thanked the community of Scranton for hosting a blood drive in March. A total of 21 units of blood were collected, saving and potentially sustaining the lives of 63 people in need. Additional drives are scheduled in Scranton on Mondays, July 29 and Nov. 18. They will be held in the Scranton United Methodist Church from 2:30…
Read MoreCrops just a little behind average year
Most of the state received little rainfall and experienced below average temperatures. These conditions allowed Iowa farmers 5.9 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending July 21, 2024, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. Field activities included harvesting oats for grain, cutting and baling hay, and applying fungicides. Topsoil moisture condition across Iowa rated 1 percent very…
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