News

Our VFW and Auxiliary District 2 had several winners last weekend at our Midwinter conference in Des Moines, Iowa. We had a student from Independence, Iowa Post 2440 who wrote his Voice of Democracy essay. He finished as runner up at state competition. Matthew Loomis entered his essay on "IS AMERICA TODAY OUR FOREFATHERS' VISION?"  These students can enter this contest if they are in 9-12th grade.

By Robin OpsahlAdvocates of child victims said a proposed constitutional amendment allowing for remote testimony for children and people with certain disabilities could help young victims from being retraumatized in the courtroom, but others said the measure could abridge the rights of wrongfully accused defendants.House Study Bill 35 is the constitutional amendment proposed by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird’s office, adding that the right of an accused party to confront their accuser “may be limited by law” when the witness is a person under age 18 or has a mental illness, intellectual disability or other developmental disability.

It is with great pride that we recognize Vinton-Shellsburg High School senior Megan Schlitter as the recipient of the January Difference Maker Award! Megan's unwavering dedication to service and leadership has made a profound impact on our school and community.Last summer, Megan returned from a life-changing trip to Washington, D.C., and was inspired to develop a Living to Serve project that would address food insecurity.

We are grateful for the willingness of the people in this county to support our local Salvation Army Service Extension Unit. We met our goal by raising over $20,000. We usually have some donations that don't get to us until the first week in January. So our grand total, as of today, is $20,869.46We had a new development this year. We added a site in Belle Plaine.

By Robin OpsahlIowa lawmakers are considering a proposal to add a new animal to its list of dangerous wild animals: sharks.A subcommittee in the Iowa House met Thursday to discuss House File 24, a bill that would add sharks that can grow to a length of 23 inches or more, or that have a  documented history of biting humans, to the state’s existing code prohibiting contact with dangerous wild animals.

1/16/25The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) released 3,700 rainbow trout this afternoon at Lake Petocka in Bondurant, Triumph Park West and East in Waukee, and Terra Lake in Johnston.“We decided to stock trout earlier so anglers could take advantage of favorable ice conditions," said Ben Dodd, Iowa DNR fisheries biologist.The winter community trout stockings at these Central Iowa community lakes were previously scheduled for Feb.

As part of the Shellsburg Area Community Group’s (SACG) ongoing efforts to improve the city's park areas, the Parks Committee undertook the task of researching, funding, acquiring and installing a steel shaded canopy and picnic table on a concrete pad this fall. This is at the East end of Memorial Park, near the beginning of the disk golf course and close to the walking trail.

Each year at this time our youth from Elementary schools from District 2 VFW and Auxiliary write their essays.  Towns in our District 2 VFW and Auxiliary were: Vinton-Shellsburg 2440 (which Vinton Auxiliary transferred to Independence 2440 but still got to participate in Vinton). Cedar Rapids 788; Dubuque 508. The elementary schools started writing their essays when school started and finished in October for local competition.

For those who are not on Facebook:Garbage trucks don’t like this cold weather either.Tuesday’s garbage/recycling service with S&J Sanitation will be delayed until Wednesday.

Get ready, Eastern Iowa! One of our own is about to make waves on national television. Justin Meredith, a Benton County native, will be showcasing his moonshining talents on Discovery's hit show Moonshiners: Master Distiller this Tuesday night, January 21st at 8:00 p.m.The popular series pits three contestants against each other each week in a spirited battle to craft the best liquor possible.