Bethesda House ‘Special Night of Ministry’

The Bethesda House, located at 201 High Ave. East in Oskaloosa, invites the public to a special night of ministry with Stephanie & Robert Newton on the eve of Saturday, December 16.

44th Anniversary MERRY TUBACHRISTMAS 2017

MERRY TUBACHRISTMAS is celebrating its 44th anniversary (1974-2017) and will be in Oskaloosa, Iowa on Sunday, December 10th at Penn Central Mall. The general public is invited to experience this FREE concert featuring traditional Christmas carols played by an all tuba-euphonium choir at 3:30PM.

Low-brass and tuba players can register to perform at the December 10th concert the day of the event. Registration starts at 1PM in the center court. Practice is at 1:30PM in Suite 101 with the concert performance at 3:30PM in the center court on Sunday, December 10th at Penn Central Mall in Oskaloosa.

Musco Illuminates Iowa State Capitol

Posted on December 1, 2017 by Rick Watts

Iowa’s Golden Dome has a different kind of glow after sundown. The high-pressure sodium lights that cast an orange tint on the state capitol at night are gone. A new L-E-D system is in place, courtesy of Oskaloosa-based Musco Sports Lighting. Jim Berns, Musco’s international engineering manager, was at the capitol Thursday night.

“It was April of 2016 when we first did the demonstration on the west side here,” Berns says. “It’s been a long process, but we’ve finally made it to the night to turn them all on.” Berns and his team made some final adjustments last night. Musco installed similar lighting systems at the White House in 2008 and for the Statue of Liberty in 2015.

“Nice to finally bring it to Iowa and show what can be done on the Capitol Building,” Berns says. L-E-D lighting is cheaper and Berns says it will cut the electric costs for “light-scaping” the capitol “by about two-thirds.”

“It’s also more efficient at getting light to what you want it,” Berns says. “The other huge advantage with LED is maintenance costs. The light source in past lighting fixtures was the weakest link of the system. Now, the light source with LEDs will last hundreds of thousands of hours if you control how they’re operated and monitor the heat and get that away from the fixture. They can last a tremendously long time.”

In 1988, A-B-C Television crews used lights to illuminate the exterior of the capitol building for the network’s Caucus Night reports. State leaders, including then-Governor Terry Branstad, liked the look so much they decided to make nighttime lighting permanent. Berns says Iowa’s statehouse is the only one in the country that has one of Musco’s new L-E-D systems.

“I think the biggest reaction is just being able to see the colors that the capitol really is rather than orange at night and just the truer color that you see on the dome,” Berns said.

Berns just returned to Iowa from the United Arab Emirates where he met with Musco teams working on lighting sports stadiums in the Middle East as well as Europe. Musco is also working on new lighting at Kaufmann Stadium, the home field for the Kansas City Royals, and two other Major League Baseball stadiums.

Oskaloosa Boys Win, Girls Fall at Fairfield

Posted on November 29, 2017 by Rick Watts

The Oskaloosa boys and girls participated in their first doubleheader on the hardwood this season on the road against Fairfield. The boys picked up a big 64-52 win and the girls struggled to a 55-28 defeat.

The girls led off the double-dip with a very fresh young group leading the charge. No senior played in the game. That inexperience showed as the Indians committed 23 first half turnovers and scored only six points through the first two quarters. At the break, it was all Fairfield, 34-6.

Things got better as the game wore on, however, as the ball-handling improved with only four giveaways in the second half. The Indians would outscore the Trojans 22-21 in the last two quarters, the second straight game Osky would better their opponent down the stretch.

Sophomore Mary Nelson led the way in scoring for the Indians with 11 points. Junior Marleigh Denburger just missed on a double-double with nine points and 11 rebounds. Freshman Kaylee Johnson pulled down a team-high seven rebounds and snagged three steals.

“I like the fight in my girls,” Head Coach Jacie White said after the game. “We just have to find a way to fight earlier in games and stay in them.”

The boys would be tested for the entire first half. The first quarter showcased both teams’ defensive abilities as neither side was able to put a run together. Fairfield would have a small 12-9 lead after the first period. The second stanza would see the Indians put together more offense with great ball movement. Osky outscored the Trojans in the second 22-14 and had a 31-26 lead at the half.

In the second half, Osky would increase the lead with great defense and some solid offensive work. They would eventually cruise to the twelve-point win.

Senior Jarad Kruse did a lot of the work for Osky with a mammoth double-double, netting 21 points and 12 boards. He also added two assists and four steals. Junior Cole Henry also had double figures in points and rebounds as he put up 14 and 11 with a team-high five assists. Tanner DeKock would also have five assists. Highly touted sophomore Xavier Foster would score 16 points for the Indians.

“I thought we played well at times,” Head Coach Ryan Parker said. “But we need to clean up a few areas. Rebounding and effort need to improve and we will figure that out.”

“We are going to get everyone’s best shot every single night,” Parker continued. “We have to be ready every night and play at a high level. It’s different being the hunted instead of the hunter and we need to go through experiences like tonight.”

Both teams will be back in action on Friday night in their home openers. They will face Pella Christian to kick off Little Hawkeye Conference play. The girls will start things off at 6:15 PM at the Oskaloosa High School Gymnasium.

You can hear the live broadcast on 99.5 FM/740 AM KMZN and check out a live video stream on radiokmzn.com and MCG Channel 7 with the pregame show starting at 6 PM.

Oskaloosa Eagles Charity Soup Supper

The Oskaloosa Eagles Aerie 276 will be holding a soup supper before the parade on Thursday, Nov. 30 from 4:30-7:30PM. Chili, corn bread, ham & potato soup, as well as homemade rolls will be available for $5.00 per bowl.

“Help us raise [money] for charity and enjoy a delicious meal!”

About the Oskaloosa Eagles “People Helping People”

The Fraternal Order of Eagles is an international non-profit organization uniting fraternally in the spirit of liberty, truth, justice, and equality, to make human life more desirable by lessening its ills and promoting peace, prosperity, gladness and hope.

MidWestOne Bank Hosts Blood Drive

On Friday, December 1, MidWestOne Bank in Oskaloosa will host a community blood drive from 9:30 AM – 1:00 PM, located at 222 First Ave E, inside of the “Group Meeting Room”. All donors will receive a free t-shirt.

To donate, please contact Missy Sneller at (641)673-8303 or visit www.bloodcenterimpact.org and use code 5049 to locate the drive.

Blood donation is a safe, simple procedure that takes about 45 minutes to one hour. Individuals with diabetes or controlled high blood pressure may be accepted as eligible donors.

OHS Community Blood Drive

Oskaloosa High School will host a community blood drive from 9:30 AM – 2:30 PM on Tuesday, November 28 at 1816 N Third Street, inside the Small Gym. This blood drive has been sponsored by the OHS Student Council. To donate, please contact a member of the student council, or visit www.bloodcenterimpact.org and use the code 5066 to locate the blood drive.

Potential donors must be at least 17 years of age (16 with parental permission form, available through www.bloodcenter.org) and weigh more than 110 pounds. A photo I.D. is required to donate. For questions about eligibility, please call the Mississippi Valley Blood Center at (800)747-5401. Donors who last gave blood on or before 10/3/17 are eligible to give at this drive.

Oskaloosa Boys Swimming Competes in Marshalltown

Posted on November 22, 2017 by Rick Watts

The Oskaloosa Boys High School Swim Team traveled to Marshalltown to swim against the hosts and the Des Moines Roosevelt swim teams to kick off their season. The team this year is still young but has a good mixture of kids from all grade levels that are working hard to get better.

The Indians came out of the gate looking strong as the 200-yard Medley Relay team of Owen Gordon, Jarod Miller, Carson Breon, and Jack Miller took second place with a time of 1:51.06. This time is already 4 ½ seconds faster than their best time last year.

The next race was the 200 Free and Jack Dawson was the first individual swimmer for Osky this year as he swam a 2:12.59 which was also faster than his best time last year.

In the next event, 200-IM, Colin Fiechtner took to the blocks and finished in a time of 2:34.99. The final races in the first section of the meet was the 50-Free JV and Varsity events. Anthony Chavez and Nicholas Koenig who are both new to the sport of swimming competed in their first JV event and set the bar for the rest of the year as they swam 41.52. Jack Miller was up next in the Varsity 50-Free and swam a 24.46 to take home second place honors. After a short intermission the 100-Fly race was next and Carson Breon earned a third-place finish with a time of 1:01.34 and Jarod Miller was fourth place with a time of 1:01.74.

The second session started with the 100-Free as Jack Dawson took 4^th place in a time of 58.04, a personal best, and was followed by Nicholas Koenig with a 1:35.91 and Anthony Chavez with a time of 2:43.77. The long grueling race, 500-Free, was swam by Owen Gordon as he earned second place honors with a 5:48.99. Coach Grant was impressed with Owen as it is early in the year for this fast of a race. The next race was the 200 Freestyle Relay as Osky sent the team including Colin Fiechtner, Carson Abrahamson, Jack Dawson, and Carson Breon to the blocks and they finished the race in a time of 1:43.99.

The final session of the night started with the 100-Backstroke event as Oskaloosa sent Jack Miller who earned 3^rd place honors and finished in a time of 1:02.43 and Colin Fiechtner who finished in 1:13.79. In the 100-Breastroke Osky sent Jarod Miller who earned a 3^rd place finish with a time of 1:11.27, personal best, and Carson Abrahamson finished in 1:19.73. The final race of the night was the 400-Free Relay as Osky earned a 3^rd place finish here in a time of 3:49.72, which was faster than all of last year, and it was swam by the team members of Carson Breon, Owen Gordon, Jack Miller, and Jarod Miller.

Next on the schedule for the Indians is traveling to Des Moines East and taking on them and Marshalltown on Thursday, November 30^th at 5:30pm. Reminder in advance is that the Boys Swim team has their first ever home swim meet on Dec 14, at the YMCA.

Oskaloosa Man Cashes Out On Lottery Win

Posted on November 21, 2017 by Rick Watts

A recent family road trip ended up paying off for an Oskaloosa man as he won a big prize playing the lottery.

Jason Waite claimed the sixth of eight top prizes of $10,000 available in the Iowa Lottery’s “Winner’s Circle” scratch game.

Waite, 43, said he was on a road trip with his family Nov. 16 and they stopped at Kum & Go, 11989 Hickman Road in Urbandale for drinks. Waite also bought a scratch ticket.

“Just looked to see how many tickets there were for each game and there were just a few left of that particular one so I decided to get those tickets,” Waite told lottery employees Friday as he claimed his prize at the lottery’s headquarters in Clive.

Waite scratched off the ticket in the car while his wife, Cherlynn, drove.

“She actually made a comment, ‘Boy, it would be nice to win $10,000,’” he said. “I just nonchalantly scratched it off and I said, ‘Well, it looks like we won.’”

Cherlynn didn’t believe him right away, so he showed her the winning ticket. They also looked up the rules of the game online to double-check their work.

Waite, who is a self-employed business owner, said he plans to save his winnings.

Winner’s Circle is a $2 scratch game. More details about how to play this game, and number of prizes still up for grabs in it can be found on the Iowa Lottery’s website, www.ialottery.com.

Three Local Towns Recognized As Main Street Iowa Challenge Grant Recipients

Posted on November 16, 2017November 16, 2017 by Rick Watts

The Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) today awarded $933,300 in Main Street Iowa Challenge Grants to 14 communities around the state. The grants will benefit local improvement projects such as façade upgrades and restoration, upper floor rehabilitation, building stabilization and repairs and remodeled spaces for expanding downtown businesses. The announcements were made during a ceremony held at the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden.

“The Main Street Iowa Challenge grants have proven to be catalysts for the revitalization of Iowa’s historic main streets,” said IEDA Director Debi Durham. “These projects demonstrate the ongoing financial commitment the people of our state – both our elected officials and private citizens – have made to the revitalization of our historic downtown districts. Rehabilitated downtown buildings create opportunities for new business and new residences in the core of our communities.”

The grants are administered through IEDA’s Iowa Downtown Resource Center and Main Street Iowa programs. The funding will be distributed in the form of matching grants to the selected Main Street programs. The estimated total project cost of the 14 bricks and mortar projects is over $2.7 million.

“Each project must provide at least a dollar-for-dollar cash-match. In total, these projects will leverage three times the state’s investment into bricks and mortar rehabilitation. These projects will also have a significant economic impact within each district and have a direct impact on each community’s downtown revitalization efforts,” explained Main Street Iowa State Coordinator Michael Wagler.

The Challenge Grant program is funded through an appropriation from the Iowa Legislature. Since the first appropriation in 2002 through 2016, approximately $6.8 million in state and federal funds have leveraged over $45 million of private reinvestment. Over the life of the program, 138 projects in 49 Main Street Iowa commercial districts across the state have received funding.

The Oskaloosa Area Chamber and Development Group was included on the list of 14 communities to be honored. Specifically, the Dixon Block Apartment on 111 High Avenue East. The IEDA Grant received totals to $75,000. That grant along with $137,500 matched amount from Iowa Economic Development means the OACDG receives $212,500.

The Chariton Area Chamber and Main Street was also recognized for the Exchange Block Restoration. The restoration received $75,000 from IEDA Grant which was matched by $80,000 for a total of $155,000.

Ottumwa Main Street received theirs for 105-107 East Main Street Façade improvements. The IEDA Grant was marked at $47,800 with an Iowa Economic Development match of $47,800 for a total of $95,600.

Photos of recipients will be available at iowaeconomicdevelopment.com/MainStreetIowa after November 20, 2017. For more information about the Main Street Iowa Challenge Grant program, contact Michael Wagler, State Coordinator, Main Street Iowa, at 515.348.6184 or mainstreet@iowaeda.com.

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