Prairie Awakening Today at the Kuehn Conservation Area
One of the Dallas County Conservation Board’s most popular events of the season takes place this weekend at the Kuehn Conservation Area.
The 18th annual Prairie Awakening Celebration happens Saturday from 3-9pm.
Everyone is welcome to join them in the arena carved into the tall grasses of the prairie to experience song, dance and stories of the first people to the area.
An evening meal of fry bread and Indian tacos will be available at the event, with proceeds going to support the celebration.
There’s no cost to attend and the event is open to all ages. Attendees should plan to bring a blanket or lawn chair to sit on.
Perry and ADM School Board Election Results
All five incumbents in the Perry and Adel De Soto Minburn school districts were able to gather enough votes to earn a another term on the board in Tuesday’s board of education elections.
According to unofficial results from the Dallas County Auditor’s office, newcomer Linda Andorf received the most votes in Perry. She will be joined by incumbent Jim Lutmer who was elected to his second term on the board and incumbent Kenia Alarcon narrowly beat out challenger Susan Brelsford by just three votes to earn her second term. Other challengers in the race were were Corey Eastman and Pete Malmberg.
In the ADM school district, incubent Bart Banwart received the the most votes. He will be joined by fellow incumbents Tim Canney and Kim Roby. Challengers in the race were Michele Crystal, Pam Peters, Don Orban, and Shawnda Behr.
All results are unofficial until canvassed by the Dallas County Board of Supervisors during a special meeting at 1pm this Friday.
For the full results CLICK HERE.
Man Arrested After Alleged Sexual Assault at the Perry Public Library
A 26-year old Perry man faces felony charges after being arrested for sexual abuse.
Gebrentensaye Gebrehiwot was arrested last week for third degree sexual abuse, a Class D Felony and an aggravated misdemeanor charge of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse.
According to the Perry Police Department, the charges stem from a complaint made by a female victim on September 2nd. The victim says she previously met Gebrehiwot at the Perry Public Library. On Wednesday, the victim says Gebrehiwot asked her to help him with some homework. She agreed and sat next to him at a table. At one point, Gebrehiwot allegedly took the victim’s hand and placed it on his groin outside his clothing. The victim also states that he tried to place his hand on her breast inside her shirt. She then left the library and reported the incident to police a short time later.
Officers collected evidence and interviewed the suspect before arresting him the following day. Gebrehiwot was transported to the Dallas County Jail. He posted $10,000 bond Tuesday and has since been released until his next court date on September 14th.
Raccoon Valley Radio will continue to bring you more information as it becomes official.
Dallas County Ordinance Says Trail Users Must Obey Signage
As we recently reported, four of six citations issued to cyclists who ran stop signs on the Raccoon River Valley Trail in Guthrie County have been dismissed.
County Attorney Mary Benton told us the Guthrie County Conservation Board does not have a regulation in place that states people need to obey the stop signs.
Those who ride the trail in Dallas County however, do have to stop. Conservation Director Mike Wallace points out that there is a county ordinance in place that states “It is unlawful for any person to perform any act in violation of posted rules, regulations or signs.”
The County’s code of ordinances does not however lay out what the specific penalty is for a violation of the ordinance. Other conservation regulation violations carry fines of between $25 and $100.
Wallace says it is his understanding that any law enforcement officer would have the authority to write citations to trail users, though he is not aware of any being written in Dallas County.
Weekly Precipitation Report
We are less than two full weeks into the month of September, yet one local community has already surpassed the normal monthly rainfall total.
According to the National Weather Service, Perry received 3.77 inches of rain in the past week for a total of almost four inches already this month.
Around 2.45 inches of rain fell in Jefferson since our last report for a total of 2.5 inches in September. Just 0.4 inch was recorded in Guthrie Center since last week.
Normal monthly rainfall totals range from almost 3.4 inches in Guthrie Center to 2.9 inches in Jefferson.