By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette

During the regular meeting of the Panora City Council on Jan. 12, the councilmembers dealt with a request from the Guthrie County Board of Supervisors. The city of Panora is one of nine entities being asked to select a representative to serve on the county EMS advisory council. Each entity is also asked to select an alternate. The Panora council selected Brian Dorsett with Roger Dorr as alternate.

The council held a public hearing on the proposed restated plan for the Panora Urban Revitalization Area. City Administrator Lisa Grossman summarized the requirements for tax abatements.

“You have to make improvements to your property over a certain percentage,” Grossman said.

Grossman noted that all residential properties in Panora are eligible to apply for tax abatements, if qualifying improvements have been made. New properties also can apply.

Brenda Dudley addressed the council with an annual update and funding renewal request regarding Midwest Partnership. She summarized the work of Midwest Partnership as “economic development for Guthrie and Adair counties.” The council approved funding for renewal of membership with Midwest Partnership.

Dudley told of a program called “Hometown Pride,” which would involve up to eight communities working together on a program in their communities.

The council reviewed and accepted the city’s fiscal year 2025 financial audit.

The next regular meeting is set for Monday, Jan. 26 at 5:30 p.m. The public is welcome. Interested persons may attend in person or electronically by visiting the website https://meet.goto.com/cityofpanora or by phone 1-312-757-3121 (Access Code 295-099-701, Audio PIN 220#).

Special to the Times Vedette

Lisa Carstens of Greenfield was appointed to the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Adair County extension council at its organizational meeting Jan. 5. She fills a vacancy left by Jessica Christensen who resigned from the council on Oct. 20. Carstens’ appointment will expire at the end of 2026, at which time she may choose to run in the county’s general election. 

The nine-member county extension council annually elects officers to comply with federal and state laws to aid in disseminating useful and practical information from the state’s land grant university to the people of Iowa.

Matt Mensing, Greenfield, was re-elected as chairperson. Mensing will preside at all meetings of the county extension council, have authority to call special meetings and perform duties as performed and exercised by a chairperson of a board of directors of a corporation. Greg Lilly, Greenfield, was re-elected vice chairperson. 

Matthew Rohrig, Orient, was elected secretary and has the responsibility of keeping the minutes of all county extension council meetings and signing required papers for the council.

The council re-elected Sondra Baudler, Fontanelle, to the treasurer position. The treasurer has charge of all of the funds of the county extension council; receives, deposits, pays and disburses. The treasurer ensures an accurate record of receipts and disbursements and submits reports to the county extension council.

As elected officials, the county extension council is the local governing body of ISU Extension and Outreach. The county extension council hires county staff, manages the county extension budget, and helps determine programming. In partnership with Iowa State University, the council provides educational opportunities that bring university resources to the needs of the county and region.

ISU Extension and Outreach is part of the federal Cooperative Extension Service — a network of more than 100 land-grant institutions, including Iowa State University, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture serving communities and counties across the United States. Every county in Iowa has an elected extension council that decides how to support ISU Extension and Outreach educational programs at the county level.

The county extension office is located at 154 Public Square, Suite C in Greenfield. To learn more about ISU Extension and Outreach in Adair County, visit www.extension.iastate.edu/adair. For more information about ISU Extension and Outreach, visit www.extension.iastate.edu.

By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette

The Jan. 9 Times Vedette coverage of Yale’s Jan. 6 city council meeting included a quotation by Tom Madden regarding a water project the city will undertake later this year to improve the water quality. To clarify, the project has not yet begun. Madden stressed that throughout the project, the water will remain safe for drinking. The city will clearly communicate with all citizens prior to the project’s start date.

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On Jan. 9, a total of eight players participated. Lela Schwartz got a 20, 21 and a 16; Allen Pierce got a 17 and a 16; Roy Carl got two 16s; Dick Ellis got a 16 and a 24; Sandy Rumelhart got a 20; and Robert Klever got a 20, 16 and 18.

On Jan. 12, a total of five players participated. Wayne Nickel got the only 17 high hand.

The Guthrie Center cribbage players generally meet at Guthrie Center Library, 400 Grand St., on Mondays at 8 a.m. and at the New Homestead independent living dining hall, 2306 State St., at 8 a.m. on Wednesdays and at 1 p.m. on Fridays. Organizers say there is always room for more, and they will be glad to teach you how to play. They play for quarters on Wednesday and Friday.

Dylan, Aspen, River and Charlie show the eggs they raise.

Barnes family of Casey has found a hobby they enjoy that also teaches valuable lessons for their children. 

By Rich Wicks | Guthrie Center Times, January 2026

The Dylan and Aspen Barnes family of Casey has found a hobby they enjoy that also helps teach valuable lessons for the children. For the past four years, the family has been keeping chickens for egg-laying. The family now includes 3-year-old son, River, and 2-month-old daughter, Charlie.

“When we first moved to Casey in 2021, we started out with goats and sheep, then we got into chickens, pretty much for a fun hobby,” Aspen said. “Once we had River, we knew that we wanted to keep up with the animals, because it does teach kids good responsibility. I grew up with that, and when I met Dylan, he had chickens under his deck at his mom’s house. So, we were used to that, and we wanted to introduce that to River.”

In addition to the life lessons, the family appreciates the edible results of their hobby.

“My dad actually went in half on this with us, just because he likes the farm-fresh eggs as well,” Aspen said. “This is our fourth year of having eggs, but our first year selling them.”

Unfortunately, Dylan and Aspen discovered others viewed the chickens as a free meal, too.

“There’s a little barn out there, and Dylan built a little run off it just so the chickens could be outside,” Aspen said. “We had some free-range chickens for the first three years, but there are a lot of foxes around here, so the chickens disappeared very quickly.”

Aspen and Dylan explained that besides foxes, the chickens face threats from other predators, including raccoons, hawks, opossums, minks, owls and others. Dylan made changes to the chicken enclosure, and the predators have no longer been a major issue.

The chickens produce more than enough eggs for the family, so some eggs are now donated or sold.

“We have only hens. We got them in April,” Aspen said. “They are just now all starting to lay eggs. Now we’re getting 20 to 30 eggs a day. We eat eggs like crazy, but we can’t keep up.”

Aspen explained that free local delivery of eggs is available, and she even delivers to the Des Moines area for free when she is headed there. Currently, the eggs sell for $3 a dozen, but Aspen explained the price may fluctuate from time to time. Discounts are offered for anyone who trades in empty cartons. When the family has plenty of eggs to sell, Aspen posts their availability on the Casey Community page on Facebook with current pricing. 

The family’s eggs are various shades of brown and vary in size, but the insides look nearly identical to store-bought eggs with bright yellow yolks. Although free-range eggs tend to have orange yolks, the Barnes family’s eggs do not get that coloration in their run.

“The chicken run eggs look like store-bought eggs when you crack them open. But ours are not processed in any way,” Aspen said. 

The Barnes eggs are available either washed or unwashed. Although some customers prefer washed, the unwashed eggs stay fresh longer.

“You can keep unwashed eggs for three to four months on the counter, and if they’re in the fridge, probably seven to eight months,” Dylan said.

Looking to the future, Aspen said the family plans to continue having animals as long as that provides a learning experience for the kids and as long as the workload remains reasonable. Asked about the most challenging part of having laying hens, Aspen said the weather can make everything more work.  

“Chickens are fairly simple. The chores can be challenging, especially when it’s really cold out. Their water freezes,” Aspen said. “At one point, I was ready to just throw in the towel and be done with animals, but, at the end of the day, I do want to be able to teach our kids that these are living creatures and they provide for us, so we need to provide for them.” 

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Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) congratulates the following students on being named to the Fall 2025 President’s List. The fall terms run from September to December.

Full-time undergraduate students who have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.700 and above for the reporting term are named to the President’s List. Full-time status is achieved by earning 12 credits over each 16-week term or paired 8-week terms grouped in fall, winter/spring, and summer.

• Lexee Bonus of Bagley