COUNTY -- Non-profit agencies within Shelby County will have until the end of August to complete applications for funding from Shelby County Community Chest (SCCC). Funds from SCCC are made possible by the generosity of local donors to the SCCC annual fund drive which will be taking place this fall.

    EARLING -- David Frum has always been an entrepreneur. Happily married with five sons, he lives in Earling working at his printing shop and managing the Dairy Queen in Denison.

    REGIONAL -- This past month saw one of the most active months in several years for the Shelby County Disaster Assistance Saw Team.    With deployments to Nishna Bend Park for removal of trees posing a threat to campsites, to Portsmouth following a micro-burst that caused damage to several trees in town, providing technical assistance removing a tree from the Nishnabotna River blocking downriver access, to Elk Horn Park to remove hazardous

    HARLAN -- Myrtue Medical Center CEO Barry Jacobsen shared updates on the current pharmacy and roofing projects at MMC as well as the master facility planning progress at the MMC Board of Trustees July meeting.    Jacobsen said the pharmacy project is going along well and is on pace for an estimated October completion date.

    HARLAN -- Two more years at $35,000 each year is the extended contract the Harlan Municipal Utilities Board of Trustees granted the Shelby Co.

    COUNTY -- Some years before I went to college, my parents decided to buy a subscription to the Harlan Tribune. I, of course, being a teenager, didn’t quite care about what my parents did with our paper subscriptions. I didn’t read the paper, so I was indifferent, it simply meant I had more things to grab from the mailbox.    As I got older I did start to notice the paper more and more.

    HARLAN – Tickets are still available for Harlan Community Theatre’s presentation of The Music Man this weekend at Harlan Community High School.    Director Kayla Weis said the 60-plus member cast has been working hard over the summer in rehearsals and is ready for showtimes this Friday-Sunday.   

    STATE --  The annual Iowa Sales Tax Holiday will take place this weekend on Friday, August 2 to Saturday, August 3.    Shoppers will be exempt from the seven percent sales tax within stores throughout the entire state of Iowa these days, thanks to a sponsorship from the Iowa Department of Revenue.    Sales of a single item with a price that is less than $100 only qualify for the exemption, but items that sell for more than that do not.    

    REGIONAL -- Thanks to a nagging pain in her shoulder, Shelby resident Deb Bladt is a cancer survivor.    Along with the other three recipients of the Methodist Jennie Edmundson Foundation 2019 Spirit of Courage awards – Dr.

    HARLAN - School-based therapist, Katie Sandquist, and Harlan Community High School Principal, Scott Frohlich, were invited to the Governor’s Teachers Cabinet to discuss mental health in schools recently.      The Teachers Cabinet is a group of educators that advises the governor on education policy for the state. Gov.

    HARLAN -- Day one of Camp Wilderness at Prairie Rose State Park had participants learn how to identify animals with skulls and furs as well as learn about the wildlife around the park. The event is one of 14 across many state parks in Iowa, put on by the University of Iowa, which hopes to expand the number of events to 20 next year.

    HARLAN – Iowa Senator Jason Schultz, R-Schleswig, has organized a local tour on Tuesday, July 30 to help residents learn about one of the options for bottle redemption in Iowa.    “Over the last few years, one of the topics I receive the most communication on from my constituents is bottle redemption centers and the various ‘Bottle Bills’ the legislature has discussed,” said Schultz.    “Droppett is one of the options that has been explore

     AVOCA – A 2017 AHSTW High School graduate and Avoca native is serving at Naval Station Mayport, FL.         Seaman Apprentice Sarah LaJoye serves as master-at-arms that is responsible for harbor patrol.  LaJoye credits her hometown for giving her opportunities she would not have had otherwise experienced that has helped in naval service. 

    On Sunday, July 21, thousands came to Avoca through RAGBRAI®. Being one of the meeting towns during the cyclists’ route, Avoca hosted a number of vendors, RAGBRAI participants and others simply wishing to view the event. 

    COUNTY – Shelby County may be eligible for federal funding to help control the mosquito population in all communities due to the flooding and wet conditions the county has experienced since March.    It’s expected that mosquito populations are on the rise and will continue to be on the increase during the next few months, with a possible increase in West Nile Virus following, officials said.  Warding off the mosquito numbers and illnesses