HOPE GLOWS 5K RUN
The second annual Hope Glows 5K run/walk is April 11 at McKinley Park. More than 500 people participated last year. All proceeds from this event go to Relay for Life. To register or for more information, visit www.fnbcreston.com or visit the bank locations in Creston.
H-10 HONOR Taylor Briley of Creston lands on the Hawkeye 10 second-team all-conference. More in SPORTS, page 5A. >>
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News Advertiser MONDAY, MARCH 9, 2015
SHAW MEDIA GROUP SERVING SW IOWA SINCE 1879 BREAKING NEWS COVERAGE AT WWW.CRESTONNEWS.COM
3 dead after weekend ice fishing accident By BAILEY POOLMAN
Three men from Creston drown Saturday at a farm pond located north of Creston on the Adair-Union County line. Funeral service information for these men can be found on page 2A. ■
CNA staff reporter bpoolman@crestonnews.com
Three Creston men are dead following an ice fishing incident Saturday at a farm pond north of Creston. Earl R. Burkhalter, 71, Charles W. Critz, 75, and James E. Oshel, 68, all of Creston, were been pronounced dead after drowning. According to a Creston Police and Union County Sheriff report, law enforcement received a report of a possible drowning
8:06 p.m. Saturday. Upon arrival, it was determined the three men had been ice fishing earlier in the afternoon and failed to return. A large hole was discovered on a farm pond located on the Adair-Union county line in Union County. “They apparently went ice fish-
ing, and hadn’t returned,” said Todd Jackson, Creston fire chief. “Somebody went back to check on them, and they just found the hole in the ice and all the equipment on the ice.” Creston and Afton fire departments, Greater Regional Medical Center ambulance service and
Midwest Regional Dive Team responded to the pond. “Once we got all set up, the Creston ice rescue crew retrieved all three of them,” Jackson said. Of the three victims, two were retrieved from the water 20 minutes after rescue crews were onscene, and the third was retrieved approximately a half-hour later. The victims had been approximately 20 feet from shore. Jackson said paramedics performed CPR on the three victims on-scene because a human being can survive longer in a cold at-
mosphere. A Mercy One helicopter landed at Greater Regional, while two landed on-scene before flying to Des Moines. They were later pronounced dead. In a press release Sunday, Department of Natural Resources officials urged anglers to take extreme caution around ice as warmer weather is causing conditions to deteriorate rapidly. They added that ice depths are not uniform on any body of water and there is no such thing as safe ice.
legislative coffee
Safety Mental health, school funds concerns high on list of concerns block effort to raise interstate speed limit
By BAILEY POOLMAN CNA staff reporter
bpoolman@crestonnews.com
From children to adults, constituents wondered what the futures of school funding and mental health care were during the second legislative coffee at the restored Creston Depot Saturday. Iowa Rep. Jack Drake, R-Griswold, Iowa Senator Tom Shipley, R-Nodaway, and U.S. Rep. David Young, R-Van Meter, were present to answer questions by constituents. “Being from a small town of about 1,000, it gives me a better perspective over a lot of my colleagues about rural issues and rural Iowa,” Young said. “You have to take a look at what’s happening to rural America. There are less and less representatives in Congress from rural parts, so I want to be a voice for them.” Young, who’s last visit in February included talks with local educators and a tour of Wellman Dynamics, is currently on a legislative recess. “I try to identify myself as someone who wants to find
CNA photo by BAILEY POOLMAN
U. S. Rep. David Young stands to answer a question during a legislative coffee at the restored Creston Depot Saturday.
the problem and develop the solutions,” Young said. “I wish it were easier, but unfortunately, Washington, D.C., can be a little too toxic. But, Iowans expect you to come to the table and sit down and talk it over, and look for the commonalities and solutions.”
School funding
“Our children are our future, they’re our biggest natural resource, and we have an educational system right now that’s top down from Washington, D.C.,” Young said. “First and foremost, the teachers and administrators,
they see those children’s faces every day. They teach differently to kids. Kids have different needs in the classroom. Washington, D.C., doesn’t understand that. We need local control in our classroom.” Young branched off from discussion about the amount of money Iowa schools might receive this year. Iowa Democrats proposed a 4 percent increase in spending, totalling $210 million, while Republicans proposed a 1.25 percent increase. “We do have a problem with our budget,” Drake said.
“We have $200 million, and $100 million of that is going to our schools to start with.” Currently, the Democrats and Republicans are stuck between how much money schools will get. Young said there was a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives that would gut No Child Left Behind, a piece of legislation that stemmed from the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. “I think part of the issues that we have in our local schools comes back exactly to ... if we could get our money back. It’s our money,” Shipley said. “I think we, number one, have to empower our teachers to be able to teach rather than jump through these hoops to satisfy some bureaucrat, and second, make sure we have the best person in front of that classroom that we can get.”
Mental health
The other issue that stemmed from the legislative coffee was mental health, which Lisa Swanson, mental Please see COFFEE, Page 2
DES MOINES (AP) — Iowa drivers will stay out of the fast lane for now, after lawmakers did not advance a bill that would have boosted the speed limit on interstate highways, bringing it in line with many nearby states. The bill sought to raise the speed limit on interstate highways to 75 mph, up from the current limit of 70 mph. It died in the state Senate several days ago, amid questions about the safety ramifications. That means Iowa drivers will continue at slower speeds than those behind the wheel in Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota, all of which have interstate speed limits of 75 mph. Bill sponsor Sen. Brad Zaun, R-Urbandale, said he was looking at other states as examples. “Most of the states, definitely in the west and the northwest are, you know, higher speed limits,” Zaun said. “That was the reason that I filed the bill.” Iowa’s interstate highway speed limit was last increased in 2005, up from 65 mph.
CNA photo by KYLE WILSON
Comedy night: Comedians Randy Wallace, left, and Eric Green interrogate Creston-
native Brandon Cross during an improv scene at the fourth annual Creston Parks and Recreation comedy night held Saturday at Eagles Lodge in Creston. John Kawa with the park board said the event — which featured a prime rib dinner, auction, raffle and comedians — raised more than $10,000. The money will go directly to the McKinley Park Restoration Fund for improvements at McKinley Park. For a list of improvements completed at the park over the past 10 years, see page 10A.
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CNA photo by SCOTT VICKER
Top performer: Creston senior Raegen Smith (right) performs as part of the All-Iowa Dance
Team during a pregame ceremony honoring veterans at the Class 1A girls basketball state championship game Friday at Wells Fargo Arena. Creston junior Lexie Heckman performed during halftime of Saturday’s game.
Creston Fareway’s March 10-16
Door Prizes Samples