News
Benton County named by Reynolds for SBA Disaster Assistance
Today, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) granted her request to provide assistance in the form of low-interest disaster loans for eight counties impacted by the March 31, 2023, severe weather event. Homeowners, renters, businesses, and most nonprofit organizations in Benton, Cedar, Iowa, Johnson, Linn, Louisa, Muscatine, and Washington counties, whose property was damaged or destroyed by this disaster, will be able to apply for low-interest disaster loans from the SBA.
Perry Johnson, presidential candidate visits Vinton
Presidential candidate for 2024 Perry Johnson made a stop in Vinton on Friday. A group of Benton County Republicans welcomed him at the Vinton Family Restaurant on Friday afternoon. He and his wife Diane arrived on his bus along with a handful of staff members to greet the group. Johnson describes himself as very conservative, pro-second amendment, anti-woke, anti-China, pro-American worker, pro-life, and believes that we have live in the greatest country that the world has ever known and he intends to keep it that way. Benton County Conservation Opportunity to Expand Wildcat Bluff Recreation Area
The Benton County Conservation Board (BCCB) is excited to announce an opportunity to expand one of
its existing properties.
Our park, Wildcat Bluff Recreation Area (Wildcat Bluff), two miles south of Urbana, Iowa is home to: The
East Unit Shop, 24 campsites, a boat ramp, miles of hiking trails, Iowa’s best disc golf course (ranked top
10 in the nation and top 20 in the world), great timber and wildlife habitat, and Cedar River fishing
access.
Northern lights could be seen on Sunday night
If you were fortunate enough to be driving outside the city limits on Sunday night, you had an opportunity to see the northern lights. Sometimes, you just have to stop and take a picture...even though a photo never does the sight justice! Community Effort to clean and repair headstones at Maple Cemetary May 6
A community effort organized by the local VFW , American Legion and the Amvets is being organized to help in restoring and sprucing up the headstones in Maplewood Cemetery. The group plans to clean and repair headstones in the cemetery located on the western edge of Vinton. The group will begin working at 8:00 am and work until about 3:00 pm. Families, students and anyone interested are invited in the task to help preserve the headstones in Maplewood.
FFA Volunteer Auction Results
On Monday, April 10th members of the Vinton-Shellsburg FFA Chapter held their annual Volunteer Auction. The Volunteer Auction is a chance where members are able to volunteer for eight hours to members and organizations within the community. Parents of members, guests, and other community members are able to come to the auction and donate money for the volunteer efforts of members. A Heartfelt Thank You
After the Iowa lawmakers again said, "yes, we will continue to fund newspapers but not you independent online types" I was reminded again, that Vinton Today is pretty special. For 13 years, this online adventure has proven to be the only real independent source of news in Benton County. In a way, NOT receiving money from government entities, allows me the freedom to make observations out loud that other reporters don't dare to.
Senate modifies public notices bill to maintain newspaper requirement
An Iowa Senate bill that would have eliminated a requirement for public entities to publish certain notices in newspapers was significantly altered on Thursday to keep the newspaper requirement.Senate File 546 was then approved by a 37-12 vote.“Public notices will still be printed in the newspapers,” said Sen. Chris Cournoyer, a LeClaire Republican who introduced the initial version of the bill.
2023-24 IOWA FFA STATE OFFICERS
95th Iowa FFA Annual Delegate Business MeetingThe Iowa FFA Leadership Conference was held at Hilton Coliseum in Ames on April 16-18, 2023. The new
Iowa FFA Officer team was elected and announced. Learning to do, doing to learn, earning to live, and living to serve. These nine leaders will live out their year of service
speaking with FFA members from across the state, presenting leadership camps and workshops, and traveling around
Iowa and the United States. Vinton-Shellsburg FFA Conquers State Convention
By: Co-Reporter, Grace Schminke From Sunday April 16th through Tuesday April 18th, 45 members from the Vinton-Shellsburg FFA Chapter traveled to Ames for the 95th Annual State Leadership Conference. The members spent countless hours preparing for their competitions with setting up and practicing for their competitions. On Sunday, the chapter got to help with the Meal for the Heartland event where they were able to help package meals for a charity event.