~a column by Colleen O’Brien What I wanted most in the world when I was a kid was a bike of my own. My sister and I shared one, a situation that satisfied neither of us. The year she turned 10, she got a bike, and it was then I knew that two weeks later, on my ninth birthday, I’d…
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Tree Tracings
~by Valerie Ogren, Greene County Genealogical Society Meeting notice: The next meeting of the Greene County Genealogical Society will be Saturday, May 2, at 10 am in the basement meeting room of the Jefferson public library. Karen Pound will present her program “Silent Cities,” with pictures of various gravestone art and explain its meaning. Come early and try out the new elevator. …
Read MoreLetter to the editor
Dear editor, Thank you, Greene County, for your continued and overwhelming support of Relay for Life. So many have been touched by cancer and this is the best way for us to remember, celebrate and fight back every year. Thanks to all who attended and participated. Thanks for the enthusiastic fundraising teams. Thanks to the numerous business and organization sponsors and…
Read MoreWhat squirrels have to do with writing
~a column by Colleen O’Brien The hard work of writing (writers are always complaining about it) is this: it’s hard to pull your gaze away from the squirrel on the telephone wire outside the window. This does not endear complaining writers to physically hard-working folks at all, but our whiney ways are all a part of the profession. A writer…
Read MoreStirring up trouble
~a column by Colleen O’Brien I can’t tell you how disgusted I am to read a news story telling me the salary difference between the top CEOs in the country compared to their average employee’s wage. It’s as if some darned liberal reporter (so many are, you know; muckrakers of the first order) just wants to create divisiveness among the…
Read MoreBranstad, Reynolds announce ‘Give Back Iowa’
Challenge encourages employer supported volunteering DES MOINES – Gov. Terry E. Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday announced the launch of Give Back Iowa, a six week challenge running from April 14-May 31 to engage Iowans in employer supported volunteering. “Give Back Iowa complements my ‘Call to Service’ initiative to increase the number of Iowans that are volunteering, as well…
Read MoreElectronics and I are not reality, virtual or otherwise
~a column by Colleen O’Brien The last time I opened my email, which was just a minute ago, I found I also had opened something called a “hangout.” I could see and hear my friend in Italy, but, alas, she could not see or hear me.
Read MoreSafe at Home Act clears legislative hurdle
Bill establishes a confidential address to protect victims of domestic abuse and assault ~by Lora Koch, The Scranton Journal Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate (right) and state communications specialist Kevin Hall (left) recently held local meetings, including one in Guthrie County, to announce House passage of the Safe at Home Act. The bill, House File 585, received unanimous approval from the legislators…
Read MoreLegacy announces Miller as board chair
National non-profit organization is devoted to tobacco control DES MOINES – Legacy, the country’s largest non-profit public health organization dedicated to ending tobacco use across the nation, on April 6 announced Attorney General Tom Miller as its new chairman. Miller has served on the Legacy board of directors since 2008. “Attorney General Miller is a dedicated advocate for consumers and…
Read MoreLetter to the editor
Our Jefferson veterans groups, Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, an the Veterans of Foreign Wars auxiliary, would like to thank the individuals who attended our first fundraiser meal for the year.
Read MoreNot a call to arms but a call to words, photos and videos
~a column by Colleen O’Brien The latest on-the-spot news reporting is not email, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, it’s the “citizen journalist” via a new smart phone application called NewsByMe. The whole idea of this news-gathering and disseminating app will give seasoned journalists the willies; it’s giving me a minor headache as I ponder the possibilities of everyone playing the reporter.
Read MoreTree Tracings
Greene County Genealogical Society ~by Valerie Ogren Meeting notice: The next meeting will be Saturday, April 4, at 10 am. We will be back in the Jefferson public library basement this time. Jane Millard tells me the new elevator is very quiet compared to the old one. Shirley Ross will share her knowledge of “Information Found in the Clerk of District Court…
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