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For the past few years, Helane Cummings has accompanied her husband, Phil, to Des Moines for the Iowa State Fair Cook-Off contest. This year, she will join him in the competition in Des Moines on Aug. 13. Phil and Helane were among 11 Benton County outdoor chefs brought their grills and their special recipes to the Benton County Fairgrounds Saturday afternoon for the annual Benton County Farm Bureau Cook-Off.

The first Shop & Chalk event in Vinton attracted 38 chalk artists who shared their work on the sidewalks Saturday morning. Friends Steph Berry and Corinna Mildner created a cat, which was a favorite among shoppers as well as one of the prize winners. In front of the Palace Theatre, a square with long-haired stick figures represents Emma and Lily Horst, whose parents, Gerald and Marcy, manage the Palace.

Saturday, August 3rd will mark the 6th Annual Cedar River R.A.T.S. clean up project… If your family has been looking for a fun, worthwhile event to do together, consider coming to the clean up! We will be meeting at the Mt. Auburn boat ramp @ 8:40 AM on Saturday, and everyone is invited for a fun workday on the water. The 2013 route is going to take us from Mt.

Ag , Animals, & Natural Resources  Selected for State Fair: Emily Schneider, Riley Schneider  Blue: Lori Anderson, Tristan Ingalls, Jacob Lowe, Kyle Miner, Madeline Moen, Samuel Moen, Natalie Peters, Will Schmidt (2), Landon Siek, Larissa Volz, Matthew Voss Clothing & Fashion  Selected for State Fair: Nicole Lowe, Megan Ternus  Award of Excellence: Nicole Lowe, Megan Ternus  Blue: Rebekah Leipold, Olivia Sash, Payton Sash, Rylee Sash (2), Julia Shultis, Megan Ternus, Emma Wiley  Red: Lori Anderson, Emma Arnold, Machaela Ingalls Family & Consumer Sciences  Selected For State Fair: Emily Schneider, Rachel Tandy  Award of Excellence: Sarah Kreutner, Danielle Pollock, Lauren Tandy  Blue: Anika Fortune, Payton Sash Food & Nutrition  Selected for State Fair: Cali Arbuckle, Katelyn Cook, Mitchell Hanson, Megan Ternus, Natalie Towe, Dorothy Zaugg  Award of Excellence: Lori Anderson, Natalie Hanson, Daniel Janssen, Kasi McWhorter, Kailey Saunders, Zach Saunders, Rachel Tandy  Outstanding Junior: Natali Miller, Kendall Putz, Brock Radeke, Matthew Rippel, Kailey Saunders, Grant Toale, Grace Zaugg  Blue: Lori Anderson (2), Macy Arbuckle, Travis Booth, Hannah Brecht, Zachary Brecht, Grace Collingwood, Molly Cummings, Lyric Dutton, Machaela Ingalls, Tristan Ingalls, Gerik Jurgens, Leah Kaufman (2), Katie Langstraat, Hannah Miller (2), Sara Petrzelka, Cheyenne Railsback, Kailey Saunders, Zach Saunders, Carly Selken, Julia Shultis, Natalie Towe, Larissa Volz, Jared Ward, Dorothy Zaugg  Red: Emma Arnold, Hannah Cook, Hunter Hillman, Rusty Kraklio, Sandra Kraklio, Kasi McWhorter, Krystal Putz Home Improvement  Selected for State Fair: Heidi Kaestner, Jenna Lane, Nicole Lowe, Madelyn Schadle  Award of Excellence: Miranda Fortune, Mitchell Hanson, Wesley Hanson, Tristan Ingalls (2), Leah Kaufman, Nicole Lowe (2), Shelby McDonald, Sarah Schminke, Emily Schneider, Riley Schneider, Landon Siek, Kaitlyn Sievers, Kaylee Sorum, Lauren Tandy  Outstanding Junior: Sandra Kraklio, Megan Schulte, Jared Ward  Blue: Zane Anderson, Wesley Hanson, Machaela Ingalls, Will Schmidt, Emily Schneider, Riley Schneider, Kaylee Sorum, Sam Ward Horticulture  Award of Excellence: Sarah Schminke, Natalie Towe  Blue: James Brecht, Dalton Johnson, Cassie Kenney, Maggie Stutzman  Red: James Brecht Photography  Selected for State Fair: Sam Becker (2), Travis Booth, Tanner Brecht, Erin Corrigan, Avery King, Shelby McDonald, Marissa Nolan, Erin Schmidt (2), Lauren Upmeyer, Blaine Volesky  Award of Excellence: Christian Atkinson (3), Amelia Birker, Tanner Brecht (2), Zachary Brecht, Brandy Carlson, Rabeka Coffland, Erin Corrigan, Molly Cummings, Morgan Eggert (3), Grant Franzenburg, Hannah Gates (2), Ben Haerther, Mataya Hammes, Miranda Hammes (2), Dakota Henry, Bobbie Hilmer, Ethan Horak, Machaela Ingalls (2), Tristan Ingalls (3), Kaitlin Isbell, Daisy Johnson (3), Gerik Jurgens (2), Leah Kaufman, Rusty Kraklio, Kamryn Lillie, Karys Lillie (3), Kristen Lowe, Nicole Lowe, Harlee Marks, Shelby McDonald, Carley McMains, Kasi McWhorter, Skyler Pettitt, Danielle Pollock, Pantera Ranberger, Payton Sash, Zach Saunders, Erin Schmidt, Will Schmidt, Sarah Schminke, Emily Schneider, Carly Selken (2), Tori Stien, Alexis Symonds (4), Megan Ternus (2), Natalie Towe (3), Lauren Upmeyer, Maria Wrage  Outstanding Junior: Tyler Atkinson (2), Hunter Hillman, Sandra Kraklio, Jesse Pladsen, Kailey Saunders (2), Megan Schulte, Grace Zaugg  Blue: Kathryn Andersen (4), Sadie Andersen (2), Cali Arbuckle, Macy Arbuckle, Tyler Atkinson (2), Sam Becker, Jacob Bingham (2), Amelia Birker (2), Tanner Brecht, Zachary Brecht, Brandy Carlson (2), Rabeka Coffland, Erin Corrigan, Molly Cummings (2), Lyric Dutton (4), Morgan Eggert, Grant Franzenburg (3), Hannah Gates (2), Ben Haerther (2), Mataya Hammes (3), Miranda Hammes (2), Dakota Henry (3), Hunter Hillman (3), Bobbie Hilmer (2), Ethan Horak (3), Machaela Ingalls (3), Tristan Ingalls (2), Kaitlin Isbell, Daisy Johnson, Gracie Jurgens (2), Leah Kaufman (2), Avery King (2), Rusty Kraklio, Sandra Kraklio (4), Kamryn Lillie (2), Karys Lillie, Kristen Lowe, Nicole Lowe, Jacob Ludeking (4), Harlee Marks (3), Shelby McDonald (2), Carley McMains (2), Kasi McWhorter (2), Natali Miller (3), Dani Montgomery, Wesley Mott (2), Marissa Nolan (3), Natalie Peters, Skyler Pettitt (2), Nathanael Philipps (2), Jesse Pladsen, Danielle Pollock (2), Pantera Ranberger (2), Olivia Sash (2), Payton Sash, Rylee Sash, Donny Sass (4), Tommy Sass (4), Kailey Saunders (2), Zach Saunders (3), Erin Schmidt, Will Schmidt (3), Sarah Schminke (3), Emily Schneider (2), Riley Schneider (3), Megan Schulte (3), Carly Selken (2), Taylor Shipley, Landon Siek, Kaitlyn Sievers, Tori Stien (3), Maggie Stutzman (3), Megan Ternus (2), Hannah Thompson (2), John Timmerman (4), Natalie Towe, Connie Upmeyer (4), Lauren Upmeyer (3), Blaine Volesky, Katy Ward, Isaac Wiley, Maria Wrage (3), Grace Zaugg (2).

One of the last events of the 2013 Benton County Fair was the Parade of Champions, in which the top winners of all of the horse, livestock and pet shows were honored. The audience had a chance to see the top winners and their entries one final time.   Poultry: Champion Non-Commercial Individual Poultry: Bethany Miller Champion Poultry Exhibit: Carter Moore Reserve Champion Poultry Exhibit: MiKayla Raue Sr.

One Benton County family will be recognized for a Heritage Farm Award and five families will be recognized for Century Farm awards in 2013. These families will travel to Des Moines to the Iowa State Fair on August 13th and receive a certificate and farm marker from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation.

The first FEMA Corps teams finished their projects and graduated June 13. The team leaders (Green Shirts) for the second class of FEMA Corps teams arrived at the NCCC Campus in Vinton a week ago.  A total of 24 Team Leaders began their 11-month journey with FEMA Corps on Monday. Many of them are returning members from FEMA Corps’ inaugural class.

West Branch auto shop owner Virgil Gingrich and Garrison's Billy Grimm took turns trying to disconnect the other's trailer from his truck as the two were the last of several participants in Thursday's trailer races to keep their vehicles running and their trailers securely fastened after several laps of crashing and banging.  Gingrich eventually was able to force Grimm's trailer loose, earning him the plaque presented by 2013 Fair Queen Willow Huber.

Those attending the "Night of Destruction" event at the Benton County Fair on Thursday saw a preview of a new show planned for late in August on the History Channel. Team Danger, a group of automobile daredevils, brought several stunts to the "Night of Destruction" at the Benton County Speedway. "Jalepeno," One of the Team Danger stuntmen, drove through a "Wall of Fire" in a small pick-up truck.

John Gualtier of Vinton has received just about every award possible for a member of the Iowa American Legion to receive. He has been honored in Washington, D.C., and has received numerous awards from state and county officials. The awards honor Gualtier for his years of volunteering, helping Iowa veterans to apply for benefits, as well as driving them to appointments at VA facilities.