AREA — Loess Hills Agriculture in the Classroom (LHAITC) is proud to announce that it has received funding from  the Community Foundations of Southwest Iowa (Harrison and Shelby Counties) during the Fall 2025 grant cycle. This generous support will help LHAITC continue its mission of bringing agricultural literacy into local classrooms through hands-on, curriculum-based lessons.

HARLAN —For public record, the accounting firm of Eide Bailly LLP released an audit report for the Myrtue Medical Center, Harlan on November 4, 2025.

SHELBY COUNTY — West Central Community Action (WCCA) is now accepting applications from families and individuals requesting assistance this holiday season through the Shelby County Adopt-A-Family Program.
Applications will be accepted through December 1, 2025.

HARLAN — Area medical agencies recently received hands-on training when the University of Iowa’s Simulation in Motion–Iowa (SIM-IA) truck made a stop at Myrtue Medical Center in Harlan.
SIM-IA is a program designed to bring simulated clinical learning opportunities to local communities across the state.

WESTPHALIA – St. Boniface Parish in Westphalia will celebrate the dedication of its newly constructed Heritage Center on Sunday, November 30, following 10:00 a.m. Mass. A meal and a blessing by the Bishop will mark this special occasion, honoring the parish’s long legacy of faith, tradition, and community leadership.

 HARLAN — Stetson Thurman’s lifelong dream is to join the Professional Bull Riders association, and at just 10 years old, he’s well on his way to making it happen.
 The fifth grader was recently crowned the Junior Bull Riding World Champion of the International Miniature Rodeo Association. Only the top 10 in each division qualified for the championships based on their performances throughout the year.

Mary Beth Goeser, 57, loving wife and devoted mother, was born into eternal life on November 8th, 2025 after a courageous battle with cancer.

James Louis DeBlauw, beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, October 29, 2025, surrounded by his three children.Jim was born on October 25, 1944, in Sioux City, Iowa. He was left on the doorsteps of St. Joseph’s Hospital as a newborn baby, shortly afterward brought to St. James Orphanage in Omaha, Nebraska, and thirteen months later was joyfully adopted by Louis and Catheryn DeBlauw.

Mervin Rita Rau was born on August 3, 1939, to Gilbert and Lidwina (Eisterhold) Rau at Westphalia, Iowa, the 12th child in a family of 15 children. She was baptized at St. Boniface Church.  The family moved to a farm near Portsmouth, where she attended grade school and was confirmed at St. Mary’s Church.After they moved to a farm near Manilla, Mervin graduated from Manilla High School.