Welfare Of The Mentally Ill

Budget cuts limit low income housing for Plymouth County (03/01/10)
Assistance for low income housing in Plymouth County and surrounding areas will be cut back in 2010. It's a result of lower budgets for the Siouxland Regional Housing Authority (SRHA) which provides low income housing support for Plymouth, rural Woodbury, Cherokee and Manona counties, and the area north of Highway 20 in Ida county...

Demand increases, dollars shrink for preschool scholarships (12/26/09)
A group that helps Plymouth County residents at or below 200 percent of the poverty level send their children to preschool is feeling the pinch. Last year Northwest Iowa Community Empowerment offered 114 preschool scholarships -- 74 full-tuition and 40 half-tuition -- for eligible low-income families in Plymouth County...

Groups rush to bring cheer to families in need (12/17/09)
The Christmas packages are coming in at the Christian Needs Center in Le Mars. The food and clothing pantry is staying just ahead of families' needs this Christmas season. "We're doing okay," said director Jess Larson. As of Monday, all the families and individuals on the center's adopt-a-family list had been adopted...

County injects $2,500 into drug court to sustain program (12/16/09)
Plymouth County's drug court is receiving a $2,500 boost from the county coffers. On Tuesday, the Plymouth County Board of Supervisors approved giving that sum of money to the program to keep it going through June 2010. Drug Court, which brings adults and juveniles facing drug-related charges in front of a panel of their peers for goal-setting, encouragement and enforcement, is low on money...

Cherokee Mental Health Institute escapes DHS chopping block (12/15/09)
The Iowa Department of Human Services is recommending closing the Mount Pleasant Mental Health Institute -- not Cherokee's -- in a proposal today (Tuesday) to the Iowa Legislature. Last spring, the Legislature asked the DHS to recommend closing one of Iowa's four mental health institutes without cutting services...

Community Foundation award $142,169 in grants (12/14/09)
Twenty-seven organizations and groups in Plymouth County are recipients of grant money totaling $142,169 from the Community Foundation of Greater Plymouth County. The $142,169 represents the largest amount the foundation has been able to award in grants in the four years it has existed...

Cherokee Mental Health Institute not on chopping block (12/14/09)
The Iowa Department of Human Services is recommending closing the Mount Pleasant Mental Health Institute, not Cherokee's institue, in a proposal today (Tuesday) to the Iowa Legislature. Last spring, the Legislature commanded the DHS to recommend closing one of Iowa's four mental health institutes without cutting services...

The stimulus dollars and you: Have you been touched by recovery money? (12/10/09)
More than $8 million worth of federal stimulus dollars has been quietly sliding through the IV of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and into Plymouth County's veins. That injection meant some schools could keep a teacher one more year. It meant replacing a worn bridge and repaving some roads. It meant some families will have money to weatherize their homes...

Deadline looming for first look at closure of Mental Health Institutes (12/01/09)
The Iowa Department of Human Services will make its recommendation in two weeks as to which of the Cherokee, Independence, Clarinda or Mount Pleasant Mental Health Institutes should close. On Dec. 15, the Department of Human Services (DHS) will present its decision to Iowa Gov. Chet Culver and the Legislature...

Juvenile center's client number down, budget tighter (11/13/09)
Plymouth County juveniles charged with serious crimes are sometimes ordered to go to the Youth Emergency Services Center by judges to await their fates. It costs the county $150 per day, per person to house an individual at the detention center, which rents space on the campus of the Cherokee Mental Health Institute...

Domestic violence: Men can also be victims (10/27/09)
In reported cases of domestic violence, men are more often found to be abusers and women victims -- but that's not always the truth. "Can men be victims? Yes they can," said Cathy Van Maanen, Council on Sexual Assault & Domestic Violence (CSADV) outreach coordinator for Plymouth County...

Local Pheasants Forever build on top chapter status (10/19/09)
Plymouth County Pheasants Forever, recognized as the No. 1 chapter in the nation, is working hard on habitat projects in the county while also promoting safe hunting. The chapter is celebrating this fall that top designation for national support which includes programs, habitat projects, youth efforts and national expenditures...

Food supply low at Christian Needs Center (10/13/09)
The shelves in the food pantry at the Christian Needs Center have some bare spots. Director Jess Larson is hoping donations will pick up again soon so families in need won't have to worry about putting food on the table. "We've seen quite an increase in the people who use our services," Larson said...

Sheriff hopes company can save jail money (10/12/09)
Plymouth County Sheriff Mike Van Otterloo hopes a company that provides jail health care programs can help curb rising inmate medical and prescription costs. Otterloo told county supervisors Tuesday he plans to contract with Advanced Correctional Healthcare, of Illinois, at $2,417 a month for its "cost saving" services...

Men in red shoes to create awareness Saturday (10/08/09)
Twenty-six men will "Walk a Mile in Her Shoes" Saturday to raise awareness for Domestic Violence. The male volunteers, wearing women's red heels, will talk to diners about the importance of men being more involved in stopping violence against women from 5-9 p.m. at 4 Brothers Bar & Grill, 1430 Twin Rivers Blvd., Le Mars...

Men will strap on women's shoes to create awareness (09/25/09)
Nearly 30 local men will step into women's fancy red heels next month to raise Domestic Violence awareness as they "Walk a Mile in Her Shoes." These male volunteers will be showing off their footwear while emphasizing the importance of men being more involved in stopping violence against women at the Oct. 10 event...

Pheasants' habitat dwindles by millions of acres each year (09/18/09)
Hunters may face a challenge this season -- the pheasant population is on a downward spiral in Plymouth County and throughout Iowa. Last year Iowa had 100,000 hunters and 383,000 birds, which is four birds per person in the field. Other years there have been 1.5 million pheasants, said John Linquist, Pheasants Forever regional representative. "From the early 2000s to now there has been a steady decline because of weather and habitat," Linquist said. The cold, damp spring this year affected pheasants' nesting habits, said Mike Slota, Pheasants Forever chairman for Plymouth County youth programs. "The weather has to be somewhat warm to produce the insects for the chicks when they're hatched," Slota said. "The hens can't keep the chicks adequately warm and they just die from exposure." The loss of habitat also affects pheasants' nesting because hens have less area to hide from predators, Slota said. Pheasant habitats, which usually require 5 to 10 acres, are areas with a mixture of tall and short grasses and flowering plants that attract insects, Slota said. A major reason that habitat is dwindling is that millions of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) acres are going away each year, Linquist said. Last year alone 1.1 million CRP acres expired, according to www.pheasantsforever.org. With the price of grain, farmers are finding they can make more money planting their land than putting it into CRP acres, Slota said. "With this economy you can't blame any farmer for squeezing every dollar out of the ground they can," Slota said. "Their job is to produce grain and make money off the ground. We understand that." Farmers began enrolling their qualified land into CRPs to be planted into habitats 10 to 15 years ago and receiving federal compensation, Linquist said. "A lot of people's acres are expiring and there are no new signups," he said. Another 3.8 million CRP acres will expire this fall and 4.4 million acres next September for a total of 21 million acres gone from the program by the end of 2012 without a new signup. The USDA does not have a signup scheduled, according to the Pheasants Forever website. "It's hard to maintain a bird population when we're constantly taking conservation acres out of play," Linquist said. Pheasants Forever hopes to turn that around with its program, Reload Iowa. The intent of Reload Iowa is to establish 1 million acres of new habitat on Iowa landscape. That means $11.5 million will need to be raised and 50 employees hired to go door-to-door to work with landowners to create the habitat, Linquist said. "That program is going to have to pay enough money out to entice the farmer to want to do this," Slota said. "The farmer has to look at the bottom line." There are also national programs like Conservation Practice 38 or State Acres For wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) working to help conserve and create new habitat. SAFE started last year with 200,000 CRP acres that were divided among states. "We had 27,700 acres," Linquist said. "All of those acres have been used up and all within a year." The loss of habitat and dwindling pheasant population in Plymouth County and throughout the state has a trickle-down effect on economy and recreation, Linquist said. "When the population of the birds down so does the population of the hunters," he said. That means less dollars spent shopping, eating and staying locally by nonresident hunters. Fewer hunters also leads to a loss of revenue on licenses, which means less money to help support county and state parks, Linquist said. "That's what buys the land and sees to the upkeep," he said. "We're hurting ourselves by people not going out and hunting." A declining pheasant and hunter population is also detrimental for the next generation of would-be hunters, but Slota's optimistic Reload Iowa and similar programs will turn the numbers around. "I hope we start seeing an increase in the next couple of years," Slota said. "I would love to see it start going back the other way and hopefully we are doing the right things to make it start going the other way."

Face of the Phonothon: Brannan shares her Life Skills story (09/01/09)
The Annual KC Phonothon for persons with disabilities has benefited a number of Plymouth County residents who receive services at Life Skills Training Center in Le Mars through the years. The 30th annual phonothon this Wednesday will be no different...

Holy rolling for hunger: Pastors cycle across U.S. (08/05/09)
A group of pastors are fighting hunger, but not from the pulpit. Instead of waiting for people to come to church, they're bringing the message to them on a bamboo bicycle built for three. Hitting every corner of the country, three Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA) pastors and their support team from West Virginia put thousands of miles behind them to raise awareness of world hunger and how people can respond...

Grant will help provide sexual abuse education (07/13/09)
The Council on Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence (CSADV) Plymouth County outreach shared its message of sexual abuse prevention with more than 500 children this past school year. A $6,500 grant received this month from Prevent Child Abuse (PCA) Iowa will help CSADV Plymouth County outreach continue educating elementary, preschool and daycare children...

Supervisors decline choice of mental health provider (06/03/09)
Those receiving county aid for mental health therapy services will not have the option of going to Moir Counseling for care. The Plymouth County Supervisors Tuesday did not approve a contract with Moir Counseling to allow Katy Moir to provide mental health therapy to people receiving county support for those services...

Remsen's apartments receive nearly $200,000 in Iowa Finance Authority Loans (04/14/09)
The Iowa Finance Authority's (IFA) Board of Directors recently approved loans totaling nearly $200,000 to St. Francis Apartments in Remsen. The project is an affordable housing property for families and seniors, owned by W&C Inc, and located at 315 Harrison Street...

Children to learn about sexual abuse prevention (03/30/09)
Happy Bear will visit Le Mars Public Library this week to teach children about good, bad and mixed-up touch. April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. The panda mascot, sponsored by the Council on Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence (CSADV), will lead a sexual abuse prevention and safety program 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 1...

Red Cross supplies cots, goods to help prepare local shelters (03/16/09)
In case of a flood, an ice storm, a heat wave, tornado or pandemic, victims who are forced from their Plymouth County homes will have a place to sleep. Friday, the Siouxland Area Chapter of the Red Cross delivered 80 cots, pillows, blankets and a supply of adult and youth comfort kits to the Le Mars Disaster Services building...

Coaches earn recognition for 'Coaching Boys into Men' (02/23/09)
During last year's football and cross country season male athletes learned not only how to throw a ball or run a mile but how to respect girls. Le Mars Community Schools' Jim Boyd, head football coach and counselor, and Al Engebretson, head cross country middle and high school coach and a math teacher at LCMS, participated in a nationwide program "Coaching Boys into Men."...

More budget requests on table for supervisors (01/12/09)
Plains Area Mental Health Center and Plymouth County emergency management officials requested increased budgets for 2009-10 Tuesday. Patrick Schmitz, Plains Area Mental Health Center's executive director, presented a 4.8 percent increase to the center's budget. The increase comes from an increase in services offered to county clientele...

Building relationships is at heart of new Asylum director (12/24/08)
Roxanne Rahn knew she wanted to help young people since she was their age. Now, after raising her own children, Roxanne is seeing that dream unfold. Roxanne is the new City Life director at the Asylum Teen Center in Le Mars. Her job: build relationships with teens, help them walk toward success in their own lives, and encourage them along the way...

You answered the call: Christian Needs Center doing OK (12/22/08)
A little overwhelming. That's how the Le Mars Christian Needs Center's director Laura Van Wyk described the community response to the center's appeal for donations to help them serve people through the holidays. In October the center's board of directors asked the community for food and money donations to help keep the center's services available...

Is Le Mars seeing the first signs of gangs? (11/24/08)

Dog tags might help get strays home, veterinarian says (11/20/08)
A peppy Jack Russell terrier squirms in Tammy Singer's arms at the Le Mars Veterinary Clinic. This dog, the veterinarian assistant said, was brought to the clinic -- which also serves as the city pound -- several weeks ago. It was found loose near Greenwood Avenue in Le Mars. Although it has a collar, the pup has no tags to tell who its owners might be...

A cardboard city, a homeless night (11/10/08)
Spending an icy night in a cardboard box might seem like a crazy thing for more than 60 Gehlen Catholic School students to try. But what they did Sunday night was in honor of the 100 million homeless people worldwide who don't have the choice. For the second year, Gehlen hosted "Wake up to the homeless -- eat with the poor," an event that allows students to spend nearly 24 hours experiencing living in extreme poverty...

The drinking age debate: locals speak (09/12/08)
While a national group is urging university and college leaders to sign onto an initiative calling for a lower drinking age -- 18 years old -- locals aren't gung-ho about the idea. A project known as the Amethyst Initiative, launched this summer, is a group of more than 125 university and college presidents and chancellors urging elected leaders to support debate on the 21-year-old drinking age and reconsider laws related to that rule...

Community Foundation accepting grant applications (09/09/08)
Applications for grant funding from The Community Foundation of Greater Plymouth County are due Oct. 1, 2008. The foundation is calling for grant applications from all communities in Plymouth County. Areas of emphasis include: Children, Youth & Families, Community Betterment, Health & Human Services, Education, Environment, and Arts & Culture...

When mommy is arrested: Police plan for children on the scene (08/18/08)
Patrol cars pull up to a house, looking for an adult suspect. They enter the house to make an arrest. There, on the couch, an eight year old is reading a book. Suddenly, the plan changes. "Kids are so impressionable," said Le Mars Police Chief Stu Dekkenga. "It's a big deal, removing a parent. You don't want to traumatize the child."...

Former Le Mars teacher has 'Great Expectations' for musical (06/06/08)
Remember orphan Pip's antics in the novel "Great Expectations?" A former Le Mars teacher, Margaret Hoorneman, liked Charles Dickens' classic story so much she transformed it into a musical -- writing its first script when she was 80 years old. Now Hoorneman's musical has been on stage and she is hoping it will eventually hit Broadway...

Le Mars United Way awards funding to area agencies (06/03/08)
A teen pregnancy prevention program, meat vouchers for families in need, a fine arts after-school program and addiction recovery services are among 14 projects receiving grant money from the Le Mars United Way this year. Fourteen local agencies will be receiving a total of $58,500 from the nonprofit organization to provide area families with basic needs and services...

DNR looks at extending bobcat hunting grounds (04/28/08)
Aiming to bag a big cat? Thinking of Africa? Try Woodbury County. If the Natural Resources Commission approves a new rule, area hunters and trappers could enjoy a bobcat season closer to home. "Last year was the first year there was a season for bobcats, the allowed hunters to get 150 of them in the southern two tiers of Iowa counties," explained Steve Grabel of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. ...

LCS students will compete state National History Day competition (04/24/08)
Le Mars Community Schools will send 11 students to the National History Day state competition in Des Moines on April 28. Forty-seven Le Mars Community Middle School students and one Le Mars Community High School student participated in the Northwest AEA National History Day district contest held on March 14, with the 11 chosen for advancement to the state competition...

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