PORTSMOUTH -- James D. Crawford, 72, Portsmouth, died Friday, July 3 at the VA Hospital in Omaha, NE.    Services are pending at Pauley Jones Funeral Home in Harlan.

    HARLAN -- Graveside memorial services for Bonnie Petersen will be Friday, July 10.    Petersen, 95, died November 25, 2019.    Visitation will be at Grace Baptist Church, Harlan, from 6:30-7:30 p.m., with the graveside memorial service to follow at 8 p.m. at Rose Hill Cemetery, Kirkman.    All friends are welcome to join the family in a celebration of Petersen’s life.

    HARLAN -- Highlights from the HCHS Graduation Ceremony held Sunday, June 28 at Merrill Field.

    HARLAN -- Kids have been having fun since the Norman D. Stamp Aquatic Center opened for swimming for the summer on June 17. Approximately 160 people were at the swimming pool on opening day.
 

    STATE – Providing needed funding for Iowa’s state law enforcement was a signature accomplishment of this year’s legislature, says Iowa Sen.

    HARLAN – Harlan Community Schools finished 42nd on U.S. News & World Report’s 2020 list of Iowa’s top high schools.    The magazine annually ranks nearly 18,000 schools based on how well they prepare students for college, graduation rates and on how well students perform on state assessments.    Harlan Community a

    REGIONAL – The number of registered sex offenders that call the greater Shelby County area their home has remained steady in the last six months, according to Iowa’s state sex offender registry.    Shelby County and areas surrounding the county have 45 registered sex offenders as of this month, as opposed to December, 2019 when there were 44 registered sex offenders listed in the area.

    DEFIANCE -- Ron Schaben of Defiance said he hasn’t turned down very many trips to drive school bus for activity events during his more than 20 years of serving as a school bus driver for the Harlan Community School District.    “I drive for activities usually whenever I am asked.

SHELBY -- Rick Kiesel and Patty Welsh are the candidates on the ballot of a July 7 special election to fill a vacancy on the Shelby City Council.    Polls will be open from 7 a.m.-8 p.m.  Voting will take place at the Shelby Community Hall.  Absentee ballots also are accepted.  Monday, July 6 at 5 p.m.