PORTSMOUTH -- The bottle of Seagram’s 7 whiskey has been on display at the Portsmouth American Legion for decades, saved for the last remaining World War II veteran from the post.    That veteran so happens to be Alvin Heller, who couldn’t have been more surprised when Legion members from Post #547 brought the encased bottle to him at Elm Crest Retirement Community recently.    Although they couldn’t present it in person due to the COVID-19 pa

    HARLAN -- During Catholic Schools Week, SCCS students painted kindness rocks to be placed in and around the six Catholic parishes.

    HARLAN -- Interviews of the three finalists for the Harlan Community Schools superintendent position will be held Thursday, Feb. 11 in Harlan.    Interview teams will start at 11 a.m. and run through roughly 7 p.m., with a school board meeting holding a closed session meeting following at 7:30 p.m.  Each candidate also will be offered a building and community tour on Thursday.    Finalists include Dr.

    HARLAN -- Pre-schoolers at the Shelby County Catholic School got the chance Friday to try out their snow shoeing skills.    Shelby County and Iowa Department of Natural Resources Naturalist Christina Roelofs said she brings the program to the area schools for exercise, fun, and to show students how important it would be to have snowshoes in an area that gets lots of snow.    “It’s great exercise,” she said.

    COUNTY --  Educators and persons aged 75 and older are receiving their first COVID-19 vaccinations this week as local public health officials said Phase 1B of the vaccination program is getting under way in Shelby County.    Phase 1B of the COVID-19 vaccine began last week in Iowa.

     HARLAN -- The year was 2006, and Leasa Stark Brouillard and her family moved back to Harlan, to care for her father who had cancer. After his passing, Brouillard thought, “oh boy, now what?”    It had been years since the Harlan resident had practiced pottery, but an initiation by fire, as she called it, pushed her to buy a potter’s wheel and kiln.

    HARLAN – Shelby County Catholic School, along with other Catholic schools across the nation, will celebrate Catholic Schools Week January 31-February 6.    Catholic Schools Week is an annual observance meant to highlight the value of Catholic education and its contributions to communities and the nation.    The theme for this year and through 2025 is Catholic Schools: Faith, Excellence, Service.  Catholic schools have a specific purpose to

    COUNTY – The well-being of Shelby County children continues to be better than average, according to the National Kids Count Initiative sponsored by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.    Comparatively, Shelby County’s children fare better than their counterparts across the state and nation, report numbers indicate.

    WASHINGTON, DC – Harlan native Kyle Gordon was part of history in the making Wednesday, Jan. 20, performing with the U.S. Army Band Pershing’s Own, the premier band of the U.S.

COUNTY – Shelby County, through its representative Iowa Communities Assurance Pool (ICAP), on Friday, Jan. 22 settled a lawsuit with a former employee for $860,000.    Kellie Paschke, West Des Moines, attorney for Jason Wickizer, confirmed this week that Shelby County, the Emergency Management Commission and their insurer have agreed to pay to settle the lawsuit for unpaid wages, wrongful termination, and other matters.

    EARLING -- Fire raced through an Earling home at approximately 8 a.m. Thursday morning, Jan. 28, and while the home sustained significant damage, all the occupants were able to exit safely.  Firefighters from Earling, Panama, Westphalia, Defiance, and Harlan were on scene battling the blaze.

    AVOCA -- AHSTW Homecoming King Jacob Roush, son of Kathleen Roush and Mike Roush of Avoca, and Queen Chloe Falkena, daughter of Chad and Robin Butler of Harlan, were crowned during coronation ceremonies held Sunday, Jan.

    COUNTY – The 2021 Shelby County Cattlemen’s Association will host a drive-through style banquet in 2021 instead of its annual in-person event in order to adhere to safety considerations during the COVID-19 pandemic.    Annually bringing anywhere from 600-725 people together for the popular banquet just wasn’t in the cards this year, said association president Tim Graeve.    “The decision to not have an in-person banquet was an extremely di

    COUNTY -- The Shelby County Board of Supervisors and Shelby County Emergency Management Commission have approved the appointment of ICAP (Iowa Communities Assurance Pool) to handle litigation efforts going forward in a lawsuit brought by a former employee.    The supervisors approved a resolution Thursday, Jan.

HARLAN -- The Harlan Community School District Board of Directors announced Friday, Jan.