good morning. thanks for joining us on this wednesday, december 16th. coming up in this half hour of news 4 today... controversy over a city project. while many are backing sioux a viaduct to help traffic move past railroad crossings, others say it would seriously hurt their businesses. we'll hear from both sides of the debate in just a minute. and kids often ask santa for a bike for christmas... and some sioux city boys can now cross that off their wish list.... thanks to a big donation from an anonymous donor. we'll check out the excitetent in just a minute. and the 8-ar-old new york girl who was badly burned in a fire that killed her family made national headlines last week for her simple christmas wish... to receive cards from people. but now another wish of hers has been granted. but first, here's ben.

winter weather advisory for knox, cedar, aelope, pierce, holt, clay (sd), yankton, and lincoln counties this morning rain mixing with some snow and perhaps some sleet is moving across the viewing area this morning, so be sure to plan for a longer morning commute in anticipation of slick if not snow-covered roads and low visibilities. it will be east of the viewing area by arrund on today leleving us with indy anan cold weather with quite a few clouds overhead. see graphics. wx timer @ :40 >> sioux city is trying to make it easier to navigate rail traffic through town. last week we told you about a proposed plan to build a viaduct over

it would begin at floyd boulevard and end east of the intersection of 18th street and steuben street. once the viaduct is completed, the existing crossing would permanently close. the 11th street crossing would could also be closed, which is causing controversy among business owners. ktiv's tommie clark visited those owners and has more on how the proposed project would affect them.

train honking. the

business owners say they've been told the city might also look into closing 28th street instead of 11th street at the crossing. sioux city officials will consider lowering fines for drivers ught speeding by traffic cameras posted on i-29. on monday, the city council will discuss whether to reduce the fine from 168 dollars to 100. the assistant city attorney says the fine applies to drivers caught going 11 to 15 mph over the posted speed limit. the proposal applies only to speed cameras along i-29 and not the city's red-light cameras posted around town. no injuries were reported when n

crashed into a house in spirit lake, iowa. the dickinson county sheriff's office says 23-year-old jamie leckband was driving when she failed to stop at a stop sign. the vehicle kept going and collided with a house. no one was home at the time. leckband was charged with operating while intoxicated. is is her third offense. the federaraaviation administration is investigating after a small plane landed on the roof of a south georgia home. two people were onboard the plane when it landed tuesday morning. neither one was hurt. the plane had taken off from jajasonville's airport and was headed for hilton head international airport in georgia when it apparently started have difficulties. investigators have not said what brought the plane down. weather is to blame for a deadly crash in northwest iowa. it happened yesterday morning at about 7:15 one mile east of sibley. the osceola county sheriff's office says 33-year-old patrick webb from sibley was killed. investigators say webb lost control of his pickup on an icy overpass on highway 60.

of a semi driven by y ward wood of north sioux city, south dakota. wood was not hurt. the dixon county sheriff's office is investigating a house explosion in northeast nebraska. it happened late monday night in the community of newcastle. the homeowner samuel livingsten was able to escape without getting hurt. ththincident is under investigation by the nebraska fire marshall. federal educution officials say iowa and nebraska have the top high school graduation rates in the country. iowa ranked frist among all states with a graduation rate of ninety point five percent for the 20-13 to 20-14 school year. nebraska came in second with eighty-nine point seven percent for the same period. the national high school graduation rate is eighty two point three percent, which is up from the previous year. the education department says the national rate is at the highest level since states adopted a uniform way of calculating their data five years ago. a former massachusett s high school student charged with

guilty of rape and murder. philip chism was 14-years- old when he raped, robbed and murdered 24-yeye-old colleen ritzer in 2013. the defense argued chism was not guilty because he suffered from severe psychological issues. prosecutors proved that chism was in full control of himself duriri the time of the crcres. chism could be sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole in 15 to 25 years on the murder charge. he could also be sentenced to life for the aggravated rape and robbery charges with parole eligibility in 15 years. the sentencing date has not ben set. federal authorities in los angeles have determined that a threat against los angeles county schools tuesday was not credible. the threat prompted school officials to close nearly 12-hundred schools as a precaution. a similar threat was received in new york city, buauthorities there concluded it to be a hoax. los angeles mayor, eric garcetti announced last night that the threat was not credible, but that people

" some have used words that i think are probably inappropriate like hoax and other things. whether it's criminal mischief or it's somebody testing vulnerabilities of multiple cities, we still do not know enough to say definitively," said los angeles mayor, eric garcetti. schools in los angeles will be open again today. the obama administration will announce changes to the terror alert system today. earlier this week homeland security secretary jeh johnson said the new alert system would better inform the public about threats to the united states. to help brighten t t holidays for local kids, one anonymous siouxland donor went above and beyond. "oh yeah!" last week, a donor surprised each girl at girls inc of sioux city with a bike. more than 115 bikes, along with helmets and locks were given away. yesterday, it was the boys' turn for a holiday surprise. 225 bikes were donated by the same anonymous

about 75 thousand dollars. unlike other donations the boys' club has received in the past, this donation is special. "this was a really interesting donation because it was completely unsolicited," said boys club of sioux city's chief professional officer eldon benson. "someone called us and they had decided that this is something that they wanted to do for the kids of sioux city. a lot of our kids come from low-income families, so to be able to have this kind of christmas gift item for them is something that's really special." to go with their new wheels, each kid also received a bike lock and a voucher for a helmet. christmas trees are everywhere right now. straight ahead, we'll show you how one company has become the top seller of the holiday item.

forecast next! >

few clouds overhead. the wind will continue to be brisk both tonight and tomorrow as a few peeks of sun return, but a brighter day will be had on friday as temperatures remain near 30 degrees. we'll be much closer to 40 over the weekend with some decent sunshine before clouds return, buttild weatherr sticks around early next week. in the meantime, safe travels th morning! see graphics. >> it's time to deck the halls and get in the holiday spirit -- that includes picking out the perfect tree. courtney reagan takes a look at how one retailer has made a market in christmas trees and become the number one seller of the christmas staple along the way.

ones... and more are bought at chain retailers like home depot and lowe's, than anywhere else... (sot: freddy lang, home depot live goods merchant) "we're the number 1 seller of christmas trees in the country last year we sold about 2 point 8 million trees, which is a lot of trees and we expect to surpass 3 million trees this year" (reporter stand up: courtney reagan) "it takes just 2 days or less between the time that trees are harvested here in the blue ridge mountains at sextov farms before they're ailable at home depot stores between north carolina and florida." and live christmas trees are just part of home depot's quest to capitalize on all things festive... in the past decade, its holiday merchandise assortment has grown five-fold to more than 45-hundred products. ...and while home depot's big season is the spring, holiday merchandise is critical to success in the fourth quarter. (sot: kelie charles, home depot holiday merchant) "...in 2014 for example we outpaced the company's fourth qtr comps we can move the needle for the entire company in terms of sales and profit" a holiday wish home depot is

that was courtney reagan

en we come back.. her story made national news. one special new york 8 year old girl asked for christmas cards this year. but what she got was something even better. stay tuned.

its a dream come true for an 8-year-old new york girl. after being badly burned and losing her family in a house fire, the young lady is getting a special present. jessica layton has the story.

about to be fulfilled. sa'fyre terry was overjoyed to see her best friend zach. then stunned when he and the folks from 'baking memories for kids' gave her the news. it's the latest grant gesture that started out with safy're's sisile request for christmas cards. she wanted a little comfort on the heals of terrible years. safy're survived a suspected arson that killed her father, sister and two brothers. leaving her with burns on three quarters of her body since safyre's wish went viral, she's received nearlyly00-thousand cards frfr arouou the world and more e an 4 thousand packages. and nowow the trip of a lifetime. overcome with emotion, safyre's aunt liz dolder has kept the trip a secret for months. she'll never forget the day she got the news. it was just what she needed, during one safyre's worst days in the hospital. and the number of friends who showed up for the announcement monday was overwhelming . (s/ jessica layton / reporting1:22-1:36) "the family yard was set up for a birthday party. they are celebrating safy're's twin cousin's 8th birthdhd today. so

time and for the first time in a long time this family finally has something to look forward to. (s/ liz dolder / safyre's aunt1:37-1:44) "finally go and just have fun. just have fun, oh my god. just for a whole week. i can relax. she may want to relax. but this little girl is on the go. and t tre's one person sa'fyre can't wait to see "cinderella" after so much trauma, so much pain - princess sa'fyre may get

we've seen a lot of rain the last few days.... and it's turning to snow in some parts of siouxland. what can we expect for totoy's forecast? ben's in next to tell us. and a happy reunion for a family who thought they'd never see

>

stickck around earlylynext week. in the meantime, safe travels

the happy reunion between a family and service dog is all caught on camera. the nbc affiliate inin lexington, kentucky was s interviewing jason and carolyn cooper about their lost dog, radar. minutes later, as the cameras were rolling, the coopers prayers were answered. reporter patrick price has the story.

reunited after almost four days apart. natsts "i got him." s/jason cooper/radar' s owner :43-:46 "oh my god. i never expected to see him." nats "hi buddy (crying)" in tears, the coopers were whole again as a family. s/jason cooper/radar' s owner :50-:57 "i had hope, but i was afraid. this is the m mt amazing thing. i just can't b bieve it." s/carolyn cooper/radar' s owner :58-1:02 "i guess somebody had the right place in their heart and put him back over there." but this dog isn't just a service dog or a family pet. radar was a lifeline for madeline and her sister sophia - both suffering from a terminal genetic disorder. s/jason cooper/radar' s owner 1:12-1:15 "watching over our daughters. watching over madeline before she passed away." then they moved to kentucky to start a new life after their two daughterpassed away. radar was the only physical memory left. s/carolyn cooper/radar' s owner 1:23-1:27 "he's one of the only souls who has the same memories and experiences we do." just in time for radar's yearly christmas tree ornament and his own presents under the tree. he says "this evening, i'm home

it's . more news and weather for you on news-4 today after the break. first though.. here's a look at some of the events on the

welcome back and thanks for joining us this morning. coming up... the republican presidential candidates squared off in their final debate of the year. the showdown was focused on national security with plenty of clashes among the gop rivals fighting to upstage donald trump. the latest from washington. and former vermont governor howard dean made a stop in sioux city yesterday. he's endorsing hillary clinton. we'll take you there in a minute. and traveling during the holidays can be stressful for everyone. but it's even harder for the elderly. we'll show you some for them. but first ben....

anticipation of slick if not snow-covered roads and low visibilities. it will be east of the viewing area by around noon today leaving us with windy and cold weather with quite a few clouds overhead. see graphics. >> this morning we're tracking reaction to last night's republican presidential debate. if you missed it - or didn't stay up late to watch the end - you may have missed the news: donald trump

party, no matter what. tracie potts is in washington with reaction this morning.

this country illegally now?" (sot: rand paul/ (r) presidential candidate :49- :54) "he's the weakest of all the candidates on immigration. he's te one for an open border leaving us defenseless." (sot: carly fiorina/ (r) presidential candidate :55- :57) "this is why the nation is fed up with the political class." (sot: chris christie/ (r) presidential candidate :58- 1:02) "if your eyes are glazed overr like mine this is what it's like to be on the floor of the s. senate." islam, isis and terror were the most discussed topics on facebook during the debate. (sot: john kasich/ (r) presidential candidate 1:07-1:14) "we need to have a coalition that will stand for nothing less than the total destruction of isis." this morning, kasich heads to iowa - the caucuses, now just 46 days away. interesting: the candidate who got the most twitter followers during the debate? bernie sanders - a democrat. i'm tracie potts in wassington, now back to you. >> former vermont governor howard dean campaigned for hillary clinton in sioux city on tuesday. at a private house party, dean gave supporters two main reasons to vote for clinton, her decision making skills and her experience. "first, is she makes decision based on facac, not based on political reason or emotional reason and that is really important because when you are president, you better care what the facts are and the second is she has been in the fight for working people, for middle class people for a

dean ran for the democratic nomination for president in 2004. he's also served as chairman of the democratic national committee. last night, nebrasas state senator jim schchr announced his campaign for re-election in 2016. senator scheer will soon be completing his first 4 year term. he also served on the district 3 nebraska board of education. education, roads and taxes are issues that scheer looks to address in the final year of his first term, and he says he'll continue working on them for another 4 years if he wins re- electio "with the session starting the 6th of january and i will be in lincoln pretty much full time between january 6th and february 15th i just wanted the district to know; one, how appreciative i am to be able to represent them, and two, i do intend on asking them for the pleasureo represent them again." the deadline for an incumbent senator to declare candidacy

scheer said he wanted no confusion on whether he was running. right now, no one else has entered the race. secretary of state john kerry and his russian counterpart say that a group of foreign ministers will meet at the united nations on friday to discuss a political transition in war-ravaged syria. kerry met with russisi president vladimir putut at the kremlin yesterday to try to narrow gaps in the american and russian approaches to the crisis in syria. after the meeting kerry said that the u-s and russia see the conflict as "fundamentally very similar." millions around the world watched d front of television and computer screens yesterday as a russian soyuz spacecraft blasted off from kazakhstan. the spacecraft carrying british astronaut tim peake, u-s nasa astronaut timothy kopra and russian astronaut yuri malenchenko, successfully arrived at the international space station about six hours after liftoff. peake is britain's first publicly funded british astronaut and the first briton to visit the i-s-s.

retiring from n-b-c. the famous and fabled forecaster, stepped down after 65 years with the network... spending 35 of them on the today show. al roker helped scott sign off for the last time yesterday, with willard being his wacky self. "i don't know where all this retirement i said i'm expiring not retiring. i'm gonna a - i said you'd better change the locks on that door. i've retired twice before you know." al roker presented scott with a radio he found in an antique shop. he said roker has been his second dad and he loves him very much! yesterday, some of the ktiv crew had a chance to spread a little holiday cheer in northeast nebraska. the "tree of love" made a stop in wakefield, nebraskakahis afternoon. iv's very own al joens and tj springer visited the wakefield care center with the folks from the wakefield branch of the iowa nebraska bank. there was singing of christmas

traveling can be hard on everyone, but especially for the elderly. coming up, we'll show you some ways totoake it easier for them.

>

brighter day will be had on friday as temperatures remain near 30 degrees. we'll be much closer to 40 over the weekend with some decent sunshine before clouds return, but mild weather sticks around early next week. in the meantime, safe travels this morning! see graphics.

traveling for the holidays can be exhausting for everyone. but t at if you're vacatioiong with an older parent or grandparent? there are special considerations you need to keep in mind, and now is the time to start planning. bob hansen has more in healthbeat four.

when seniors travel out of town. and it's smart to know what's available and what doctors and hospitals are in your network if there's a problem. (sot: breanne brehh, maxim healttcare services) "have a list aheadadof time of hospitals near you, doctors offices near you, and see if they take your insurance as well. those are just little things you can do ahead of time to make sure that you're safe." loved one can help their relatives by arranging medication, especially when it comes to time changes. but not everyone should hit the road. (sot: breanne brehm, maxim healthcare servicess "if you've recentll had surgery or your immune systm permanently compromised, i'd suggest trying to have your family cme to you instead." the challenge for families is often caring for older relatives and young children on the same trip. (reporter stand up: bob hansen) "some folks will actually travel with a care giver, others might hire one when they get to their final destination." maxim companion services says they arrange both short and long term care for families. one other important piece of advice when traveling with seniors... don't over do it. (sot: breanne brehm, maxim healthcare services) "make sure you're getting rest. make sure you're not filling that itinerary to the full and make sure you enjoy your time." >> that was bob hansen reporting.

lot of older relatives are in the care of baby boomers... people today in their 50's and 60's. but almost a quarter of adults are in the e re of millennials. coming up on news 4 today... ford is going to start testing self-driving cars. and kohl's is giving you extra time to get your holiday shopping done this year.

> > wall street scored

yesterday, even as investors anticipated a decision by the federal reserve today to increase interest rates. investors were encouraged asashe price of oil continued to recover. bank stocks rose as traders awaited the fed's next move. the dow rose 156 points to close at 17,525. the nasdaq gained 43, and the s&p climbed 21 points. are you a chchstmas shopping procrastinato r? one store wants to help you out. kohls announced yesterday that it will keep its doors open 24 hours a day during the final stretch before christmas. the discount retail store will stay open for 170 hours straight starting on december 17th at 7 a-m .... giving shoppers until 6 p-m christmas eve to cross those last few names off their holiday

ford motor company will begin n the process of testing self-driving cars in january. the ford fusion hybrid sedan will be put through its paces at the company's research and innovation center in palo alto, california. but the testing will actually begin with extensive route mapping. e driverless cars won't hit the road until the second half of 2016. coming up after the break, we'll

stories making headlines in siouxland. plus the trailer for j-k rowling's new movie has just been released. and hollywood stars went crazy for the new star wars film it's all coming up in hollywood minute.

cedar, antelope, pierce, holt, clay (sd), yankton, and lincoln counties this morning rain mixing with some snow and perhaps some sleet is moving across the viewing area thhs morning, so be sure to plan for a longer morning commute in anticipation of slick if not snow-covered roads and low visibilities. it will be east of the viewing area by around noon today leaving us with windy and cold weather with quite a few clouds overhead. the wind will continue to be brisk both tonight and tomorrow as a few peeks of sun return, but a brighter day will be had on friday as temperatures remain near 30 degrees. we'll be much closer to 40 over the weekend with some decent sunshine before clouds return, but mild weather sticks around early next week. in the meantime, safe travels

time for a look at the siouxland news stories making top headlines this morning. part of the proposed 18th street viaduct project in sioux city is not sitting well with some businsses. under the plan, once the viaduct is open, the 11th street railroad crossing would closed. the food bank of siouxland is right next to the tracks. director linda scheid says closing the crossing would close off one point of access. that's a special concern in the winter, because the only other access is a short, steep hill. the owner of nearby alignment specialists is also concerned. he says 11th street is his bread and butter. jim scheer is running for

senator r nounced yesterday he will seek k fourth term in the unicameral in next year's election. scheer represents norfolk the state legislature. he says education, roads and taxes will be his priority in this year's session. so far, nobody has filed papers to run against him. the deadline to do so is in february. and bikes for boys! the anonymous donor who bought new bicycles for the girls at girls inc. last week hasow done the same for the boys club. the boys were surprised with 225 new bicycles yesterday. it's a gift of more than 75- thousand dollars. each boy also received a lock and voucher for a new bike helmet. the first reviews are in for star wars: the force awakens. mary moloney has that and more in today's hollywood minute.

family's eric stonestreet echoed his praisese (nats: lumos maxima) the first trailer for fantastic beasts and where to find them features everything we've come to expect from jk rowling's wizarding world.... suspense, spells, and strange creatures galore. (n(ns: growling suitcase) we also catch a glimpse of one thing fans have never seen before... american wizards. (nats: yesterday a wizard entered new york with a case) the u-s set harry potter spinoff hits theaters next november. howard stern is in for five more years at sirius. after down to the wire negotiations the two managed to reach a deal. the terms have not been disclosed. for hollywood minute... i'm mary moloney

coming up in our third half hour of news 4 today.... a new york girl who captured hearts around theheorld after her family died in a fire.. is going to disneywod! we'll also have today's holiday trivia question. and high school basketball teams were in action across siouxland last night. we'll have the highlights from some of the match ups in the sports fource

good morning.

wednesday, december 16th. coming up in this half hour of news 4 today... controversy over a city project. while many are backing sioux city's plans to build a viaduct to help traffic move past railroad crossings, others say it would seriously hurt their businesses. we'll hear from both sides of the debate in just a minute. and kids often ask santa for a bike for christmas... and some sioux city boys can now cross that off their wish list.... thanks to a big donation from an anonymous donor. we'll check out the excitement in just a minute. and the 8-year-old new york girl who was badly burnededn a fire that killed her family made national headlines last week for her simple christmas wish... to receive cards from people. but now another wish of hers has been granted. but first, here's ben.

perhaps sooe sleet is mmving ross the viiwing area this morning, so be sure to plan for a longer morning commute in anticipation of lick if not snow-covered roads and low visibilities. it will be east of the viewing area by around noon today leaving us with windy and cold weather with quite a few clouds overhead. see graphics. >> sioux city is trying to make it easier to navigate rail traffic through town. last week we told you about a proposed plan to build a viaduct over 18th street. it would begin at floyd boulevevd and end east of the intersection of 18th street and steuben street. once the viaduct is completed, the crossing at 11th street would close.... and that's where the concern comes in for some business owners. ktiv's tommie clark shows us how they would be

building on a regular basis in bad weather because i can not get up that hill and when you start thinking about truck traffic, obviously it's even more dangerous," said food bank of siouxland executive director, linda scheid. on the other side of the railroad trackcksits alignment specialists. the owner of the automotive repair facility says closing 11th street would hurt his business as well. "the viaduct, i'm 100% behind it. it's great, another avenue of getting over the trains like outer belt, it's fantastic. but my real problem is taking away 11th street. you're affecting a lot of people," said alignment specialists owner and manager, rick coury. he says his business attracts people from outside sioux city and he needs that through street to get to his place. "11th street is kind of my bread and butter. i've lived here 60 years and there's not a lot of streets that go east west that you can go from lewis boulevard to hamilton," said alignment specialists owner and manager, rick coury. business owners say they want their voice to be heard, concerns to be understood and a viable solution to be reached. in sioux city...tommie clark...ktiv news 4. >> business owners say they've been

might also look into closing 28th street instead of 11th street at the crossing. . the dixon county sheriff's office investigating a house explosion in northeast nebraska. it happened late monday night in the communqty of newcastle. the homeowner samuel livingsten was able to escape without getting hurt. the explosion is under investigation by the nebraska fire marshall. federal education officials say iowa and nebraska have the top high school graduation rates in the country. iowa ranked frist among all states with a graduation rate of ninety point five percent for the 20-13 to 20-14 school year. nebraska came in second with eity-nine point seven percent for the same period. the national high school graduation rate is eighty two point three percent, which is up from the previous year. the education department says the national rate is at the highest level since

data five years ago. a former massachusett s high school student charged with killing a teacher was found guilty of rape and murder. philip chism was 14-years- old when he raped, robbed and murdered 24-year-old colleen ritzer in 2013. the defense argued chism was not guilty because he suffered from severe psychological issues. prosecutors proved that chism was in full control of himself during the time of the crimes. chism could be sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole in 15 to 25 years on the murder charge. he could also be sentenced to life for the aggravated rape and robbery charges with parole eligibility in 15 years. the sentencing date has not ben set. federal authorities in los angeles have determined that a threat against los s geles county schools tuesday was not credible. thththreat prompted school officials to close nearly 12-hundred schools as a precaution. a similar threat was received in new york city, but authorities there concluded it to be a hoax.

announced last night that the threat was not credible, but that people should still be alert. " some have used words that i think are probably inappropriate like hoax and other things. whether it's criminal mischief or it's somebody testing vulnerabilities of multiple cities, we still do not know enough to say definitively," said los angeles mayor, eric garcetti. schools in los angeles will be open again today. the obama administration will announce changes to the terror alert system today. earlier this week homeland security secretary jeh johnson said the new alert system would better inform the public about threats to the united states. earlier this week, we showed you the surprise donation of 115 bikes, one for each girl a agirls inc of sioux ci. yesterday, it was the boys' turn for a holiday surprise. "oh yeah!" 225 bikes were donated by the same anonymous donor to the boys' club of sioux city. the boys' bikes alone ring

thousand dollars. unlike other donations the boys' club has received in the past, this donation is special. "this was a really interesting donation because it was completely unsolicited," said boys club of sioux city's chief professional officer eldon benson. "someone called us and thth had decided that this is somemeing that they wanted to do for the kids of sioux city. a lot of our kids come from low-income families, so to be able to have this kind of christmas gift item for them is something that's really special." to go with their new wheels, each boy also rereived a bike lock a a a voucher for a helmet. when we come back... we step into the ktiv kitchen for a quick way to impress your family and friends for all you seasonal get-togethers! and i'll have your complete

>

clouds return, but mild weather sticks around early next week. in the meantime, safe travels this morning! see graphics.

if you're having family and friends over for the holidays, you're probably trying to come up with some quick and easy snacks to make. on "centsable health" this morning, a healthy appetizer they're sure to enjoy. here's ktiv's sheila brummer.

whitney: these are kind of out of the box and kind of fun to mbke. we are cooking with wonton wrgppers today. this is what the package looks like. and, you can find this in the produce section. usually in the same section where you can see the packaged lettuce. or, by the tofu. that's where you would find them. this is what a crab rangoon is made with if you get chinese take out. there are only about 17 calories per wrapper. that surprises a lot of people. sheila: i was shocked when you told me before. whitney: these are usually deep-fat fried, whh adds more calories. we are baking ours. but, it's all about what we put in the middle. the filling of these take so little. we are going to be using cream cheese in the middle of mine. we are usually just maybe a teaspoon in the middle of mine. i am going to show you how to do a southwest wanton appetizer. it's a good vegetarian option and it's so simple. feel free to change the ingredients. let's start with a tub of cream cheess and, because i think it's easier to work with i am usually the philadelphia cream cheese that is already whipped. sheila: so, it's already ready to go. and, it's 35% less fat. whitney: this is just nice to work with i don't have to wait for it to get to room temperature. and, i'm going to use some onion. sheila: you don't have to pre cook those? whitney: yes, red bell pepper, corn and

veggies a little bit hard. but, you could cook them a little bit if you wanted to soften them up a little bit. but, my favorite part of this recipe is how pretty the filling kind of is. so, that's all we are going to do. but, today the focus here is the technique and how to work with the wanton wrappers and to fold them. you'll want a wet paper towel next to you so things don't dry out if you don't . sheila: so, just get it done and don't wait. whitney: if you're just starting out make sure you have a wet paper towel to cover your wantons so they don't dry out. once you get the hang of it you will be faster. you'll want a glass of water to dip your finger into. run around the outside because that's where where you want to seal it shut. the first ththg to fold these is probably my favorite is into a little triangle. just use a teaspoon of filling. cheat a little into a corner. i am going to fold corner to corner. then squeeze it shut and get the air out of it. i got my a little wet here but you get the idea. 350 for 15 minutes. the other way you put the two on top of each other. this is a little quicker. put, the filling in. this goes a little faster. you also cook for 350 degrees for 15 minutes. sheila: you also have the other recipes as well that we will have on ktiv.com. for other ideas on what you can do with the wonton as an appetizer go to ktiv.com and you'll get everything you need to know about ts week's centsable health." >>

on the basketball court! and sioux center faced sheldon

thriller. all that and more coming up in the sports fource morning wrap.

paris: there's a lot to do on a dairy farm. nobody's gonna do it for you. you have to get out there and do it yourself. bernie sanders is a well-known friend of family farms. bernie cannot be bought out by big money. bernie's opinion cannot be purchased. it's time e r our next president to get in there, roll up his sleeves, take off the gloves, and take on wall street, take on big business, take on big money, and get the working class back to where they should be. he's a rock.

one of siouxland's top rivalries was re-newed last night on the basketball court. ktiv's brad pautsch has more in the sports fource morning wrap.

the other way -- 6 straight points for burnside give heelan a quick 7 point lead. east tries to come back. off the miss -- 6-7 jaylen rees tips it back in. but the black raiddrs were down by doubube digits. heelan goos baseline -- elijah hazecamp drives in for 2 more -- the crusaders led 21 to 9. but east does fight back. connor murrell hits the pull-up j at the horn -- he had 28 -- and east knocks off heelan 79-67. sioux center -- third in 2a, averaging 71 points per game -- and second in field goal percentage. 1st period -- sheldon's jaden kleinhesselink with the take-away -- takes it all the way to the rack -- the orabs fly out to a 16 point lead to end the quarter. later -- warriors in transition -- tyus arends -- finds a cutting brendan zeutenhorst -- lays it in -- sioux center rallying. sheldon still making big shots -- kleinhesselink from the wing -- buries the triple -- orabs holding on. but the warriors pick it up in the 2nd half -- arends drives -- kicks -- marcus winterfeld -- the senior hits the corner 3. the warriors finish off the orabs in vertime, 71-6-6, to remain unddfeated. the 5 and 0 0 idge view boys visiting 2 and 2 west monona. early on, the raptors start fast as ryan currie gets the pass on the inside, and he goes up between two defenders for the basket to put ridge view up four. but the spartans answer back when tyler westendorf gets the board and takes it all the way for the layup and the foul, spartans now down two. later on, westerndorf makes the pass to alal harris, who nails the 3-pointer r o pull the spartans within two. then the raptors go on a fast break, garret lamp attacks the defense and makes the tough shot, ridge view beats the spartans, 69 to 56.

ranked first in 2a, trying to stay unbeaten against south o'brien. 2nd half -- senior chanda zomermaand gives it up -- gets it right back -- and knocks down the mid-range jumper -- knights adding to a 20-point lead. wolverines hanging tough -- savanna sickelka can't get the triple to go -- but senior maycee sth there to clean the glass and drop it in. but the knights showing why they sit atop the 2a rankings -- zomermaand -- finds justine malenke -- the freshman hits from downtown -- pads unity's lead. what a night and career for zomermaand -- 1,000 points in a knights jersey for the senior -- tack on 3 more -- unity christian runs wild over south o-brien, 56-21. for more go to ktiv.com. i'm brad pautsch with the sports fource morning wrap. >> comingngp next...

coming up next... it's time for today's holiday trivia question. and one special new york 8 year old girl asked for christmas cards this year. but what she got wasasomething even better. stay tuned.

a car gives you freedom. room to grow. and in time, room to grow up. your dream car evolves, and protecting it takes committed support.

wiwier weather advisory for knox, cedar, ananlope, pierce, holt, clay (sd), yankton, and lincoln counties this morning rain mixing with some snow and perhaps some sleet is moving across the viewing area this morning, so be sure to plan for a longer morning commute in anticipation of slick if not snow-covered roads and low visibilities. it will be east of the viewing area by around noon today leaving us with windy and cold weather with quite a few clouds overhead. the wind will continue to be brisk both tonight and tomoorow as a few peeks offsun return, but a brighter day w wll be had on friday as temperatures remain near 30 degrees. we'll be much closer to 40 over the weekend with some decent sunshine before clouds return, but mild weather sticks around early next week. in the meantime, safe travels

it's time for today's 12 days of holiday trivia question. today is dayay of 12. al is in the lead with h points. and ben and i are tied at 4. each day we play for a player at home. here's who we're playing for today. i'm playing for margaret wuggzer of arnolds park, iowa. . i'm playing for roger gruber from sioux city. i'm playing for barb furlich of sioux city. so let's get to it... here's our morning show producer

thanks guys. if you get the question correct, your players win a 20 dollar gift card to a step in thyme florals. if you get the question wrong, they'll get a 10 dollar gift card to the floral shop here is today's question... in what year was "rudolph the red-nosed reindeer" first introduced to the world? (a) 1949 (b) 1901 (c) 1939 (d) 1954 and you can play from home to. just go to our facebook page to give us your answers. al and sarah? thanks, kaitlyn. its a dream come true for a new york 8 year-old. after being badly burned and losing her family in a house fire, the young lady is getting a special present. jessica layton has the story.

for years her family has called her princess sa'fyre. playing happily on her swing set with friends, she had no idea her fairy tale dreams were about to be fulfilled. sa'fyre terry was overjoyed to see her best friend zach. then stunned when he and the folks from 'baking memories for kids' gave her the news. it's the latest grant gesture that started out with safy're's simple request for christmas cards. she wanted a little comfort on the heals of terrible years. safy're survived a suspected arson that killed her father, sister and two brothers. leaving her with burns on three quarters of her body since safyre's wish went viral, she's received nearly 200-thousand

more than 4 thousand packages. and now - the trip of a lifetime. overcome with emotion, safyre's aunt liz dolder has kept the trip a secret for months. she'll never forget the day she got the news. it was just what she needed, during one safyre's worst days in the hospital. and the number of friends who showed up for the announcement monday was overwhelming . (s/ jessica layton / reporting1:22-1:36) "the family yard was set up for a birthday party. they are celebrating safy're's twin cousin's 8th birthday today. so this big surprise couldn't have come at a better time and for the first time in a long time this family finally has something to look forward to. (s/ liz dolder / safyre's aunt1:37-1:44) "finally go and just have fun. just have fun, oh my god. just for a whole week. i can relax. she may want to relax. but this little girl is on the go. and there's one person sa'fyre can't wait to see when she gets to disney. "cinderella" after so much trauma, so much pain - princess sa'fyre may get

it's . time for a break. we're back with our fourth half hour of news 4 today. first though.. here's a look at some of the events on the

i am rose winkel from landstuhl regional medical center in landstuhl, germany. and, i would like to wish my parents, mary ellen and vincent letters a very merry christmas. i love you,

good morning and thanks for

coming up this morning... the republican presidential candidates squared off in their final debate of the year. the showdown was focused on national s surity with plenty of clashes among the gop rivals fighting to upstage donald trump. the latest from washington. and former vermont governor howard dean made a stop in sioux city yesterday. he's endorsing hillary clinton. we'll hear from him in a minute. and we've got another half court shsh to show you. but this one wasn't shot by a fan. it's by a mascot. that's coming up in what's trending. but first ben....

this morning we're tracking reaction to last night's republican presidential debate. if you missed it - or didn't stay up late to watch the end - you may have missed the news: donald trump says he's sticking with the potts is in washington with reaction this morning.

"you're real tough." (sot: jeb bush/ (r) presidential candidate :07- :10) "you're never gonna be president of the united states by insulting y yr way to the presidency." donald trump and jeb bush captured the top moments on social media... trump topped facebook, google, twitter - and six online polls. (sot: donald trump/ (r) presidential candidate :19- :21) "it was a great debate, i really enjoyed it." next to trump... ben carson got the most new followers on twitter last night... weighing in on isis in syria: (sot: dr. ben carson/ (r) presidential candidate :27- :32) "there will be boots on the ground, and they'll be over here if we don't get them out now." ted cruz came in number two on social media. he clashed with marco rubio on immigration and national security. (sot: ted cruz/ (r) presidential candidate :39- :43) "he was fighting to grant t amnesty and not to s sure the border." (sot: marco rubio/ (r) presidential candidate :44- :48) "does ted cruz rule out ever legalizing people that are in this country illegally now?" (sot: rand paul/ (r) presidential candidate :49- :54) "he's the weakest of all the candidates on immigration. he's the one for an open border leaving us defenseless." (sot: carlrlfiorina/ (r) presidential candidate :55- :57) "this is why the nation is fed

(sot: chris christie/ (r) presidentialandidate :58- 1:02) "if your eyes are glazed over like mine this is what it's like to be on the floor of the u.s. senate." islam, isis and terror were the most discussed topics on facebook during the debate. (sot: john kasich/ (r) presidential candidate 1:07-1:14) "we need to hhve a coalition that will ststnd for nothing less than the total destruction of isis." this morning, kasich heads to iowa - the caucuses, now just 46 days away. interesting: the candidate who got the most twitter followers during the debate? bernie sanders - a democrat. i'm tracie potts in washington, now back to you. >> former vermont governor howard dean campaigned for hillary clinton in sioux city on tuesday. at a private house party, dean gave supporters two main reasons to vote for clinton, her decision making skills and her experience. "first, is she makes decision based on facts, not based on political reason or emotional reason and that is really important because when you are president, you better care what the facts are and the second is she has been in ththfight for working people, for middle class people for a very long time," says dean. dean ran for the democratic nomination for president in 2004. he's also served as chairman of the democratic national commitite.

senator jim scheer announced his campaign for re-election in 2016. senator scheer will soon be completing his first 4 year term. he also served on the district 3 nebraska board of education. education, roads and taxes are issues that scheer looks to address in the final year of his first term, and he says he'll continue working on them for another 4 years if he wins re- election. "with the session starting the 6th of january and i will be in lincoln pretty much full time between january 6th and february 15th i just wanted the district to know; one, how appreciative i am to be able to represent thth, and two, i do intend on askiki them for the pleasure to represent them again." the deadline for an incumbent senator to declare candidacy isn't until february, but scheer said he wanted no confususn on whether he was s running. right now, no one else has entered the race. secretary of state john kerry and his russian counterpart say that a group of foreign ministers will meet at the united nations on friday to discuss a political transition in war-ravaged syria. kerry met with russsn president

at the kremlin yesterday to try to narrow gaps in the american and russian approaches to the crisis in syria. after the meeting kerry said that the u-s and russia see the conflict as "fundamentally very similar." millions around the world watched in front of television and computer screens yesterday as a russian soyuz spacecraft blasted off from kazakhstan. the spacecraft carrying british astronaut tim peake, u-s nasa astronaut timothy kopra and russian astronaut yuri malenchenko, successfully arrived at thth international space station about six hours after liftoff. peake is britain's first publicly funded british astronaut and the first brit to visit the i-s-s. yesterday, some of the ktiv crew had a chance to spread a little holiday cheer in northeast nebraska. the "tree of love" made a stop in wakefefld, nebraska this afternoon. ktiv's very own al joens and tj ringer visited the wakefield care center with the folks from the wakefield branch of the iowa nebraska bank. members of the wakefield

honors of passing out the gifts. they also sang christmas songs and helped pass out treats for the crowd. one resident told me this was the most people she's ever seen in the activity room at the wakefield care center. yesterday, we showed you a half court shot from an oklahoma city thunder fan. today, we've got an even more spectatalar half court shot to show you. and it wasn't by a fan this time. that's coming up in what's trending. and i'll have your complete

>

in what's trending on this wednesday morning... an nba mascot comes through big time for a nuggets fan. eight-hundred bucks was riding on this backward, half-court shot and rocky comes through. that is a difficult shot made to look easy by one of the best in the business. nice shot rocky!

this morning's 12 days of holiday trivia question. in what year was "rudolph the red-nosed reindeer" first introduced to the world? (a) 1949 (b) 1901 (c) 1939 (d) 1954 and be sure to weigh on what you think the answer is on the facebook page. still to come.. a best selling author is spreading the literary wealth. plus...kate middleton spread the christmas cheer yesterday at a youth center. that's coming up after the break. have your next burger with a side of awesome. the one-of-a-kind, creamy blend of sweet and tangy. miracle whip and proud of it. at kraft we start with quality ingredients. all expertly blended to make our mayo. so y y can take whatever you're making

> if you missed jimmy fallon last

on the show tonight will ferrell, and twenty one pilots. you can catch the tonight show with jimmy fallon right here on ktiv at 10:35 after news 4. it's a surprise from best-

he's giving two-million- dollars in grants and bonuses to school libraries and independent bookstore workers. some 250-thousand dollars in holiday bonuses will go to 87- employees of independent patterson . the duchess of cambridge visited anna freud center ininamden yestserday where she joined the children at their festive end of year party. kate middleton took part in a christmas- tree collage- making workshop before participating in a drum circle. showing off her playful side, she played queen's anthem "we will rock you" during a session on west african drums. children beamed as kate embraced them with hugs and smiles. national ugly christmas sweater day is coming up. it's friday! so to get your into the spirit, and thinking about y yr best holiday threads, here's a group pic of some ktiv'ers at our christmas party this past weekend. so we'll be doing our annual ugly christmas

and we want to see your festive sweaters. send them to us and you might see a few of them on the air. send them to connect@ktiv. com, or you can post them to our facebook page. wednesday al- actress krysten ritter is 34

52 al- rock singer- musician billy gibbons (zz top) is 66 >

in the meantime, safe travels this morning! see graphics. >> we're wrapping things up on this wednday morning. when we come back we'll have the top headlines in siouxland. plus the answer to today's trivia question. and people took to the waves in

praised as one of america's best mayors who governed as a pragmatist. bernie sanders passed more amendments in a republican congress than any other member. cracked the gridlock with john mccain engthen veterans' healthcare. bernie sanders. a consistent, prininpled, and effefeive leader.

sanders: i'm bernie sanders and i approve this message. time for a look at the siouxland news stories making top headlines this morning. part of the proposed 18th street viaduct project in sioux city is businsses. under the plan, once the viaduct is open, the 11th street railroad crossingngould be closed. the food bank of siouxland is right next to the tracks. director linda scheid says closing the crossing would close off one point of access. that's a special concern in the winter, because the only other access is hill. the owner ofofearby alignment

he says 11th street is his bread and butter. and bikes for boys! the anonymous donor who bought new bicycles for the girls at girls inc. last week has now done the same for the boys club. the boys were surprised with 225 new bicycles yesterday. it's a gift of more than 75- thousand dollars. each boy also received a lock and voucher for a new bike helmet.

a sea of red and white yesterday. 320 people dressed up in santa costumes and rode the waves. the surfing santas set a guinness world record for the largest surf lesson. they beat the previous record of 250 surfers. the event was organized by a non-profit surfing group that raises awareness for mental health issues and a local surf school. time to answer today's 12 days of holiday trivia question. i'm m the lead with 6 poiois. and sarah and ben are tied at 4. let's go to our morning show producer kaitlyn kinney. ok, kaitlyn, read us the question one more time. in what year was "rudolph the red-nosed reindeer" first introduced to the world? (a) 1949

(c) 1939 (d) 1954 today's s swer is "c", 1939. rudolph and his red nose were introduced to the world by montgomery ward department stores in their christmas