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Story updated:In a world where we expect things instantly if not sooner, there are a few things I expect to take longer. One would have been the new Casey's location. When I had a press release that said in two days the former John's Qwik Stop would be changed into a Casey's I thought that would be a pretty fast turnover. But Casey's came in and is well on its way to establishing the new location.

New Early Literacy Initiative Aims to Deliver Books to Children Across Benton and Tama Counties Better Tomorrows Early Childhood Iowa is launching a new, ambitious early literacy initiative to bring the joy and pride of book ownership to children across Benton and Tama counties. Through a partnership with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, this initiative will provide one age-appropriate, high-quality book every month to children from birth to age five at no cost for families enrolled in the program.

As 2023 begins, Human Trafficking Prevention and Awareness Month is in full swing. During this time, I'm encouraging all Iowans to take a moment to educate themselves on the signs of trafficking so we can help prevent this terrible crime and support survivors as they work through the healing process.Important Dates to Remember:January 11 - Wear Blue DayWear Blue on January 11 to raise awareness for human trafficking and uplift survivors of this horrible crime.

We've wrapped up December, we've wrapped up 2022, and we've wrapped up another year of the Holiday Lights Punch Card event! THANK YOU to everyone for proving once again what a great community we live in! You stayed local, shopped local, and supported businesses that do all they can to support you! And through it, you helped keep $237,600 in Vinton just over the holiday alone with the punch cards! But that's just one side of the equation! A huge THANK YOU also goes out to all those businesses that saw us coming, offered a helping hand as we shopped, extended their business hours, came in on Sundays, and even opened their doors during a blizzard to make sure we had the things we needed .

In a Facebook post this weekend, John's Kwik Stop said, "Our time is coming to an end at JQS. We want to thank each and everyone one of you for supporting us and making our job enjoyable. We wish the best to everyone and we will miss all of you. Just a small thank you to all, we will have FREE coffee tomorrow our LAST DAY of business and will be closing at 8:00 pm.

Kyle Koeppen, Superintendent for Vinton-Shellsburg Community School District, announced that Kent Ryan, a recently retired educator with more than thirty years experience in education and more than a decade in administration, has been selected to serve as the interim principal at Tilford Elementary School for the second semester of this school year.

Remember the old movie, "You've got mail?" The Vinton post office found out last week that they had a ton of mail. Delivery of more than 2,300 packages arrived at the local post office from Amazon.The post office is now an Amazon Delivery Unit, which means the post office will be taking on some of the Amazon deliveries. Amazon delivered three truckloads of packages to the building.

Just when you thought Highway 150 was finally finished...it may not be. In a news release the IDOT said, "The Iowa Department of Transportation will hold a virtual public information meeting to discuss a planning study on Iowa 150. The study area is a 28-mile corridor on Iowa 150 from just north of I-380 in Benton County, extending through Buchanan County to the south edge of Fayette County and its junction with Iowa 281 just south of Oelwein’s city limits.

Deputies in Merrick County Nebraska, served a warrant in Clarks, Nebraska, over the New Year's weekend. Herbert G. Eddards, 44, who was residing in Clarks, is facing multiple charges which include sexual abuse of a child in the second degree, assault with intent to commit sexual abuse, and lascivious.Eddards was residing in Clarks when served and was arrested without incident.

-There is a form of slavery taking place in Iowa right now. It’s called human trafficking, and it occurs when men, women, or children are forced to perform labor services or sexual acts. This horrific crime affects thousands of people across the U.S., and it can happen to anyone. The State of Iowa is taking steps to raise awareness about human trafficking and put an end to this danger, but we need your help.