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Residents traveling on Highway 150 near Urbana late in the evening on Wednesday night, saw flames, a lot of flames. The fire could be seen from miles away. The Urbana Fire Department was conducting a controlled burn in an area field located near the Urbana corner, north of the ECI REC offices.From the north and west sides of the highway, the fire looked pretty ominous.

Benton County Attorney, Ray Lough along with his two assistant attorneys Tim Dille and Megan Hall spoke briefly to the Vinton Kiwanis Club. The three shared a little about their experience and duties as part of the team in Benton County. Both Dille and Hall were appointed to their positions under former county attorney Dave Thompson and have continued in their positions under Lough.

The Vinton-Shellsburg Prom 2023 Grand March will be held on Saturday, April 15 in the High School Auditorium. The doors will open at 6:00 p.m. and the event will begin at 6:30 p.m. This is a free event and the public is welcome to attend. 

Vinton is participating in the 2023 Iowa's Living Roadways Community Visioning Program. Community Visioning is a transportation enhancement planning process that serves Iowa communities under 10,000 in population.The program helps community volunteers envision aesthetic and ecological improvements along roadsides and related landscapes by blending environmental stewardship with community improvement projects.

Following the flood of 2008, the city of Vinton lost homes near the river's edge in Vinton. A few homes along second street that were so badly damaged that they were eventually torn down and the lots empty. In 2010, with the help of the Vinton Parks and Recreation Department and Americorp, the empty lots began producing. By turning some of that floodplain into community garden space, kids and area residents learned to grow their own food.

 On March 2, the Area Substance Abuse Council (ASAC), Benton County Sherriff, Ronald Tippett, Benton County Attorney, Ray Lough, and Megan Hall, spoke with Iowa Attorney General, Brenna Bird, to discuss the Substance Use and Mental Health efforts in the county. The group was able to discuss substance use trends, the prevention services that are offered, and the need for expanded substance use and problem gambling services in Benton County.

Friends of the Center Point Library sponsored a BlueTone Jass Collective performance at the Center Point Library on Thursday, March 23. Getting down with the tuba at a jazz concert, in the library? Yes! The four-person band, plus a stand-out vocalist, performed nine different instruments and a range of tunes from Louie Armstrong to the Beatles, much to the delight of the spring concert crowd of about 20 attendees.

On Saturday, 40 Vinton-Shellsburg FFA members competed at the District Contests at Beckman Catholic High School. Here are their results:Conduct of Chapter Meetings: Will McKenna, Wes McKenna, Eli Ollinger, Ben McGowan, Ben Buhr, Andrew Allsup, and Cooper McClintock - SilverJob Interview: Kelcie Appleby - GoldParliamentary Procedure: Alana Fleming, Megan Schlitter, Izzie Birker, Grayce McClintock, and Rachel Rollinger - GoldPrepared Public Speaking: Annabelle Newton - 2nd Gold - Advance to StateAg Broadcasting: Jazmyn Dods - SilverCreed Speaking: Cal Christenson - SilverFarm Business Management: Kaelyn Pettyjohn, Kail Evans, and Kate Timmerman - .

The Kids Krusaders of the First Christian Church in Vinton is made up of youth grades 1-6. The kids meet every Wednesday after school from 3:30-5:00 p.m. where they make crafts, have a Bible story time, snacks provided by the church members, music, games and a prayer time. Each month, the group has a special theme. This month, the theme was "giving.

The following arrest as well as a little of the story shared by a local mother is a reminder to parents and their children that the internet is not a safe place.Roshaun Demetrius Collins, 21, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin was arrested on February 15, 2023, in Milwaukee after abducting a 13-year-old girl from Benton County. According to the mother, neighbors witnessed the child entering a silver or gray SUV early on Monday morning, February 13.