The Cottonwood County Sheriff’s Office posted an important privacy update stating if you have an iPhone and have done the recent iOS 17 update, they have set a new feature called NameDrop defaulted to ON. This feature allows the sharing of your contact info just by bringing your phones close together. To shut this off go to Settings, General, AirDrop, Bringing Devices Together. Change to OFF. PARENTS: Don’t forget to change these settings after the update on your children’s phones, also to keep them safe as well!
https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/namedrop-iphone-share-contact-info-iph1b6c664b7/ios
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The Windom Police Department reported on the 22nd at 10:48 pm an officer made a traffic stop in the 2400 block of River Road for a vehicle that crossing over the center and fog lines. After investigation and conducting standardized field sobriety testing, an arrest was made of a 22-year-old Windom female for Driving While Impaired, pending results of the BCA urine test. On the 24th at 10pm officers responded to a call at Highway 60 and 71. Upon arrival and speaking with a Windom female the officers found out that her brother had run away from the area of the 2300 block of Highway 60 and he was quite aggressive. Officers did a search and were unable to locate the male. Officers were then dispatched for a drunk person in the 1500 block of 3rd Ave at approximately 10:18pm. When officers arrived on scene the reporting party stated there was a guy inside trying to kill his mom. After investigation an arrest was made of a 29-year-old Windom male for 2 counts of 4th Degree Assault to Peace Officers, along with 5th Degree Assault and Terroristic Threat violations.
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Today’s meeting include:
- Windom Area Health Governing Board of Directors at 5:30pm in the Large Conference Room at the Hospital.
- Windom Area School Board will be holding a work session at 6:30pm in the Windom City Council Chambers. You can view the meeting live at Media SB22 on YouTube.
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The Windom City Council met on the 21st. The Planning Commission voted to recommend denying the variance request at 1453 4th Avenue. Due to the property owner already has 2 detached buildings on the property and moved in a 3rd without permission. The 3rd storage building would need an approved variance which the Council denied. A street closure was approved for the American Lutheran Church Living Nativity on Dec 13th from 5 -7 pm on Prospect Avenue between 9th and 10th Streets. The Council approved the Fire Departments request to replace the SCBA Compressor. The cost for the unit is estimated at $44,926.09, which is a Revolve Air Compressor unit. This will be paid with forward funding from the 2024 capital money for the fire department and will fit within the 5.6 levy amount. The Council thanked the electric department for lighting up downtown and making it feel special.
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The Federated Rural Electric Trust, Jackson, recognized local organizations receiving $20,984 through Operation Round Up. These donations occur due to monthly contributions by participating Federated members. 29 groups received money in this 58th round of funding:
Organization Amount Purpose:
- Human Services of Faribault & Martin Co. $225 Buy 25 Love & Logic Way parenting workbooks
- JCC Ag Department $250 Fund 18 students with OSHA 10 work-based training certification
- MCW Speech Department $400 Speechwire software used for speech meets
- HL-O Family Career Community Leaders of America Cricut machine to make student display boards $450 for classes & events
- HL-O Elementary Special Education $478 Five flexible wobble chairs & set of alphabet cards
- MCW Trimont Elementary $500 Toward pickleball paddles/balls for grades 3-6 phy ed classes
- HL-O Agriculture Program $500 Kitchen tools to demo taking raw ingredients to make products
- Jackson County Riverbend Quilters $500 Toward professional quilting of quilts made for veterans
- Alano Society, Fairmont $500 Toward coffee, toiletry/paper supplies & sanitizer for meetings
- Ruby’s Pantry, Sherburn $500 Toward an electric pallet jack for food distribution
- Helping Hands, Ceylon $500 Toward new park equipment in Mondale Park
- Beautiful Inside & Out (BIO) Girls $500 Scholarships for JCC girls in grades 2-6 mentoring program
- JCC Discovery Place Preschool/ECFE $569 Seating for reading area & removable wall-mount ball hoop
- Caregiver Response Effort & Service Team$600 For informational mailings & printing of brochures
- Southwest West Central Svc Cooperative $669 Buy Blaze Pods for JCC special ed student training tools
- HL-O H.S. Family & Consumer Science $700 10 new stools for higher classroom tables
- HL-O Robotics $750 Additional kit/materials for a third team to compete
- Fairmont High School Robotics $750 Toward control system and swerve motors/controller
- Jackson Co. Animal Protection Society, Jackson $800 For microchipping scanner, vaccination/spray/neutering
- JCC H.S. Shop Class $848 Rockler router table for wood shop for students
- James Lutheran School, Northrop $995 Replace failed 8-year-old weather station to teach about weather
- SW Crisis Center, Worthington $1,000 Program supplies & personal need items
- Family Services Network, Jackson $1,000 Buy coats & snowpants for families in need
- Truman Public Schools, Ag Dept. $1,000 For Ag Centric Technology Trailer for K-12 hands-on learning
- Martin County Historical Society, Fairmont$1,000 Scan 1,850 cardboard mount slides for digitizing/preservation
- HL-O Elementary $1,000 Roller skate rentals for phy ed classes
- Des Moines Valley Health & Human Svcs$1,000 20 car seats for low-income households
- Ceylon Fire Department $1,500 Toward new portable radio replacing failing old one
- HL-O H.S. Industrial Tech Program $1,500 Toward a new welder replacing one that quit working
Total $20,984
The Trust Board received 34 applications totaling $63,023 in this 58th round of funding. The Trust Board will meet again in the spring to determine the next round of funding. The deadline for submitting applications is February 1.
About 76 percent of Federated Rural Electric members participate in Operation Round Up. They allow their electric bills to be rounded up to the nearest dollar. For example, a bill of $55.75 is rounded up to $56. The extra cents go to a special trust fund, which is administered by an independent Trust Board that consists of seven Federated members. Since the first round of funding in 1995, nearly $903,000 has been awarded to local organizations and as high school scholarships.
“Operation Round Up is a way for members to help members,” said Stuart Smart, Federated’s Trust Board Chairman. “Just a few cents a month, when added with other members’ cents, can really add up and do some good in our communities. On average, a member’s Round Up contributions amount to approximately $6 a year, which is tax-deductible.”
The Trust Board’s policy outlines project categories eligible for funding:
- community service (emphasis on public safety, health care and enhancement of cultural environment),
- community leadership programs,
- education and youth projects (social problems and wellness/athletics),
- environmental projects (recycling, environmental education and environmental ag research),
- emergency energy assistance funds to organizations for distribution and
- disaster relief.
Interested organizations may go to www.federatedrea.coop to download the application form and information, e-mail info@federatedrea.coop for an application or call 507-847-3520; ask for Andrea.
Federated is a Touchstone Energy cooperative serving 5,300 members in Jackson and Martin Counties.
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