PERSIA -- Catherine Ann Franks, 81, Persia, died April 26 at Immanuel Medical Center.    Services will be held Friday, April 29 at 2 p.m. at St. Mary Our Lady of Fatima Church in Portsmouth with burial in the Valley View Cemetery at Persia.  Visitation was held Thursday, April 28 from 4-8 p.m. with family greeting friends from 6-8 p.m.

    PERSIA -- John Ferdinand Bauer Stamp, 85, Persia, died Sunday, April 24 at Jennie Edmundson Hospital in Council Bluffs.    Services will be held Saturday, April 30 at 11 a.m.

    WALNUT -- Wayne Allen Brockhoff, 56, Walnut, died April 23 at the Avoca Nursing and Rehab Center.    Services will be held Saturday, April 30 at 11 a.m. at Pauley Jones Funeral Home in Avoca.  There will be no burial.  Family will greet friends Saturday from 9-11 a.m.

    ELK HORN -- Gilbert H. Hoogensen, 96, Elk Horn, formerly of Harlan, died Thursday, April 21 in Harlan.    Services will be held Friday, April 29 at 10:30 a.m. at Burmeister-Johannsen Funeral Home in Harlan with burial in the Jacksonville Cemetery at Jacksonville.  Friends are asked to call Thursday, April 28 from 2-8 p.m. with family greeting friends from 5-7 p.m.

    HARLAN – Harlan City Administrator Terry Cox admitted last week that he wrongly submitted a reimbursement request for a hotel room that was provided to him for free, and he’s now facing some serious questions from city officials who are further investigating Cox’s expense reports.    Harlan City Council members questioned Cox Wednesday, April 20 at a meeting of the Personnel and Finance Committee about expenses related to recent conference

    HARLAN – It’s not official policy, but it doesn’t look right and shouldn’t happen.    Those words come from some Harlan City Council members who agreed last week to develop a policy that eliminates providing alcohol free of charge for city employees at a city event such as the city’s annual appreciation dinner or fire department annual awards dinner.    “There is not an official law that I know of…that says you can’t purchase alcohol, but

    COUNTY – Grants totaling $107,719.12 were awarded last week to Shelby County nonprofit agencies by the Shelby County Community Foundation.
 

    HARLAN – Two Harlan Community School Board members recently attended the National School Board Association convention in Boston, MA, at a cost of $4,713.96 to the school district.    HCS Superintendent of Schools Justin Wagner confirmed that board president Kathy Mahlberg and board member Joni Larsen attended the convention April 8-11.

    HARLAN -- Jim and Julie Bruck of Harlan announce the engagement of their daughter, Ashley to Jeff Petersen both of Harlan. Jeff is the son of Gaige Petersen, Harlan; and Deanne Kroger, Harlan.    The couple will marry on May 21 at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Harlan.