Thursday, December 18, 2014

Courier News

Courtesy of the 12-17-14 edition of Ida County Courier (www.idacountrycourier.com)


Churches celebrate Christmas with special services

Corpus Christi Community Churches (St. Martin Catholic in Odebolt, Sacred Heart Catholic in Ida Grove and Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic in Holstein) Christmas Eve (Dec. 24) and Christmas Day (Dec. 25) service times are as follows:
 - 5 p. m. Christmas Eve services at Ida Grove and Holstein 7:30 p. m. at Odebolt.
 - Christmas Day services are at 8 a. m. in Ida Grove, 9 a. m. in Holstein and 8 a. m. at St. Martin's in Odebolt. (this was changed from the original 10 a.m.)


New Year’s Eve Mass (Dec. 31) vigil will be held at Sacred Heart in Ida Grove at 5 p. m. New Year’s Day (Jan. 1) services are 8:30 a. m. at St. Martin and 9 a. m. at Our Lady of Good Counsel.


Bethel Lutheran of Kiron and Faith Lutheran Church of Odebolt have three special services. Christmas Eve candlelight and communion services will be at 6 p. m. at Faith and 10 p. m. at Bethel. On Christmas Day, a service will be held at 10:30 a. m. at Odebolt Nursing and Rehab Center.

Odebolt First Presbyterian Church’s Christmas Eve candlelight & communion service is at 6 p. m.

Trinity Lutheran Church has three holiday services scheduled. On Christmas Eve at 6 p. m. is the candlelight worship service including the Sunday school Christmas program. Christmas Day’s worship service begins at 9 a. m. On New Year’s Eve, a worship service will be held at 6 p. m.

Odebolt United Methodist Church’s Christmas Eve candlelight service begins at 5 p. m.


Arthur Evangelical Free Church will have a 5:30 p. m. service on Christmas Eve.

Arthur Methodist Church has no special services planned. Members of the congregation are invited to attend services at First United Methodist Church in Ida Grove.

Kiron First Baptist Church will hold a candlelight Christmas Eve service at 5 p. m.

Rural school decorations for Christmas
Elementary children of the Odebolt-Arthur School who stopped at the library after classes on December 2nd and December 4th, enjoyed constructing handmade ornaments that now grace the wild cedar tree that stands in the Rural Schools Museum of Odebolt for its Christmas tree.  A number of folks stopped by on Saturday, December 6th after the city celebration at the Community Center, to check out the decorated tree and school room.  Some guests were also entertained on December 7th, around the celebration of lighting the Tribute Tree at the Historical Museum.  If you should wish to also enjoy the beauty of the unique ornaments, as demonstrated by our photo, or visit the Rural Schools Museum of  Odebolt anytime, call 712-830-8328, to make arrangements. The tree will be up through December.


How about a present for your community?
by Gerald F. Schnep, Keep Iowa Beautiful executive director

Several studies indicate that the average spending for each person for holiday season gifts ranges from $100 to $1,000. All of that tends to go to other individuals. That is our heritage.

How about a slight change by adding another recipient of the generosity of the holidays— your hometown community. This is a new one on the giving list. The addition or change requires us to think a little differently and ask ourselves how that gift could help the community.

That gift can range from a simple act of volunteering for a community project or service club project benefiting the community to providing a financial contribution to an ongoing community project. It could also take the form of maintaining/watering lowering plants and/or hanging lower baskets.

Volunteering can include adopting a park or natural area, maybe a street or a parking lot to help keep it clean and possibly some landscaping. It could also be helping in the city hall or with community improvement projects. In addition it can be agreeing to serve on committees that aid the city in their efforts—parks board, planning and zoning, long-range planning, ordinances review, etc.

That financial gift can go either directly to the city or to a service club that is sponsoring the project. Maybe you can encourage others to join with you in the idea so that the gift becomes fairly significant.

The financial type of projects can range from helping to buy:
-waste/recycling receptacle(s),
-outdoor lighting feature, lighting for the city Christmas tree or maybe the tree itself
-webpage development or updating,
-promotional material on the community
-trees, lowers, shrubs forpublic areas, flower planters,
-new/replacement signs, support for home improvements and many others that you explore with your home community

Whatever the case, make sure that the city is receptive to the idea, the volunteer effort and/or the gift. Don’t give them something they don’t need or want and don’t force your volunteerism (even if well intended) on to the city if they don’t need or can’t handle it.

In fact, one idea my wife suggested is that the city sponsor a holiday tree. Decorations on the tree can include envelopes with notes on them identifying projects that can be done in and for the community. Maybe there can be an event in which individuals, organizations or businesses could bid on the opportunity to pick an envelope for their project.

Another way to give a gift to your community is to make a gift to your countywide or local community foundation. That gift is special as it keeps on giving as a percent (normally 5 percent) is donated back to community projects each year in perpetuity.

Your gift of time, talent or treasure can make a difference, encourage others and give you a great sense of satisfaction.

Remember, if you can’t make a gift or if you forget, take the opportunity to make a New Year’s resolution that will benefit your community. Resolve that you will get involved and help your community in some way that makes the community a better place and builds a sense of pride.

Happy holidays from Keep Iowa Beautiful.
 

Click the photo to enlarge it.

Click the photo to enlarge it.

Click the photo to enlarge it.

Click the photo to enlarge it.


Odebolt woman arrested on theft charge
The Sac County Sheriff’s Office arrested Brenda Manmiller, 66, of Odebolt on Dec. 8, charging her with theft in the first degree, a Class “C” felony.

The sheriff’s office opened an investigation in November after it was alleged that Manmiller, who was operating a bookkeeping business, allegedly misappropriated funds belonging to Jim’s TV and Appliance in Odebolt.

The total loss to Jim’s TV and Appliance isn’t known, but it appears it will be more than $25,000 over several years.

The investigation continues.  The Ida County Sheriff’s Office assisted the Sac County Sheriff’s Office.


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