July Fourth of July celebrations in Clearfield and Kellerton and the Ringgold County Fair provide plenty of summer fun. The theme of this year’s fair is “Country Roots and Boots.” Caroline McAlexander is crowned fair queen with Sophia Uhlenkamp serving as princess. The Raiderette softball team finishes the season with a 24-7 record, falling one…

After a reprieve in 2017, commodity prices, interest rates and trade disruptions drove Iowa farmland values down for the fourth time in five years. The average statewide value of an acre of farmland is now estimated to be $7,264. This represents a decrease of 0.8 percent, or $62 per acre, from the 2017 estimate.  …

At Monday’s Mount Ayr city council meeting, a letter from the Wellness Center Advisory Group previewing the timeline to complete a public survey concerning recreational facilities including a pool, wellness center and/or other facilities.   For more on this story, sign in to the e-edition.

Long-time Mount Ayr special education teacher Jodie Geist was among 16 educators named last week by Gov. Kim Reynolds to the first-ever Governor’s Teachers Cabinet. The cabinet is being convened to give teachers a more prominent voice in education policy decisions. For more on this story, sign in to the e-edition.

In their last regular meeting of the year on Monday, December 17, the Mount Ayr city council discussed several items related to the upcoming water distribution improvement project, group insurance and appointments to city boards.   For more on this story, sign in to the e-edition.