News

On Saturday morning, the area AMVETS (American Vets), VFW & Auxiliary dedicated a new flag that was installed at John's Qwik Stop. When arriving in Vinton via C Ave. you will see the flag peeking over the top of the houses. Denny Miller, Commander of the AMVETS presented the call to colors followed by Dale Henry who read the following poem:"Oh Flag of Our UnionO flag of our Union, To you, we'll be true,To your red and white stripes,And your stars on the blue, The emblem od freedom, The symbol of right, We children salute you, O flag fair and bright.

On 12-18-2020, at about 9:07 AM, the Benton County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a stolen vehicle near Keystone IA. The 911 caller reported that he had observed his stolen 2013 Chev 2500 Silverado being driven by unknown persons.  The vehicle had been reported stolen from Linn County on 12-06-20. With the assistance of the vehicle owner, officers would locate the vehicle and suspects were taken into custody.

By Co-Reporter, Annabelle NewtonOn Thursday, December 10th, the Vinton-Shellsburg FFA Chapter prepared their annual fruit sale products for distribution. The chapter's busy day included unloading fruit, meats, nuts and cheese that came from Fareway, Minntex and Kramer’s. Throughout the day, the FFA members sorted and quality checked all of the items.

Two members of the La Societe des Quarante Hommes et Huit Chevaux aka "The Forty and Eight," made a visit to Tilford Elementary to make a donation to The Backpack Program. The group presented Molly Noren with $1,000 in gift cards to be distributed to families participating in the program to help make their Christmas a bit brighter. The two members present were Alan Woodhouse and not pictured, Roger Uthoff both area Veterans.

 The Post-Prom and Vinton Kiwanis fundraiser at John’s Qwik Stop, originally scheduled for this Saturday has been postponed to next SPRING, due to weather.  The event was to have benefitted the Post Prom Committee as well as the activities of the local Kiwanis Club.We'll keep you posted to the new date and time. 

At approximately 8:31 PM on December 15, 2020 the Benton County Sheriff’s Office initiated a vehicle pursuit in the 3300 Block of 66th Street, Benton County IA. The initial reason for the pursuit was a registration violation. The vehicle was black 2013 Nissan Altima. The pursuit continued northbound on 30th Avenue Drive and then eastbound on 61st Street Lane at speeds over 100 mile-per-hour.

Each year the Vinton Kiwanis Club sends a special request to the North Pole and requests Santa to make a visit to some of the children in Vinton-Shellsburg School District. Usually, Santa treats the students with special needs and their parents to lunch and a Christmas party. Traditionally the children get to sit on Santa's lap and tell him their requests.

I had to chuckle as I visited the Christmas display at Kersten's this year. There used to be a new display each year, but that hasn't been the case since the original Kersten passed away. However, I think that this display might be 2020. For our seeing impaired, it's a photo of Santa's sleigh crashed, Santa has his arm in a sling and he's trying to hitchhike a ride.

The Lions Club president Robin Martin presents to the Scouts and leaders of Boy Scout Troop 47 a check for $1851 to cover the costs associated with chartering the troop for the upcoming year.  Troop 47 serves boys from Vinton, Shellsburg, Garrison and Mount Auburn.  The Lions Club has been the chartering organization for the Troop since 1934 during which time thousands of boys and young men have participated with 82 becoming Eagle Scouts – and two more being awarded this week.

VFW Post 8884 & Auxiliary presented Vinton-Shellsburg High Students with their Voice of Democracy Essay Awards on Monday at the High School.The top 4 winners included a three-way tie for 2nd place. The 2nd Place Winners are:Molly Haisman and Katelyn Humiston, from Vinton Shellsburg High School. The 3rd-second place winning student is Cierra Michael from Independence High School.