Month: September 2026

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) – Students on campus at ISU have pounds, 900lbs to be specific, of ground beef to get from Benny’s Pantry thanks to a generous donation from Direct Communications through the Power County Livestock Sale Committee. Today’s cow-sized donation doubles last year’s haul of ground beef, giving more students access to high-quality protein.

Early in the morning on September 30, volunteers with Benny’s Pantry and representatives from the 4H and FFA Programs at the Power County Fair transported 900lbs of packaged ground beef through the Student Union Building to the student food bank. This marks the second year Benny’s Pantry has received a sizeable drop of beef.

“We wanted to be able to give back to the students so they can have the food they need, because they’re the future generation,” said Timothy May, President of Direct Communications. May partnered with the livestock officials from Power County to make the donation to ISU’s student pantry. To them, it means investing in the future generation of employees and entrepreneurs.

“If they’re not able to get enough food to do well in their classes and to survive and things like that,” May stated. “Then they’re not going to be able to succeed in life in general.”

Benny’s Pantry is always grateful for donations, even more so when they include fresh, unfrozen produce and meats.

“This donation is just such a beautiful, beautiful gift.”

– Lisa Crawford, Director of Benny’s Pantry

Lisa Crawford, Director of Benny’s Pantry, said students are extremely grateful when they walk in and see high quality protein available.

“This is going to help feed so many students,” Crawford said. “They’re going to be able to take it home and make a healthy and full meal with it. One of my favorite parts of working in the pantry is seeing the true appreciation when students come in and find something that they’re going to enjoy and that’s nutricious.”

Crawford said last years’ beef donation went flying off the shelves, and she hopes by increasing the amount of beef, more students can be fed. Unlike other food pantries that make food boxes for patrons, Benny’s Pantry allows students to grab a basket like in a grocery store and choose items they really want.

“We could not make any of this happen without our volunteers, we rely heavily on them,” Crawford explained. “We also take unopened, not-expired food donations right in the pantry.”

The story of the hefty 900lbs of beef starts long before it filled the shelves of Benny’s Pantry. The animals that provided the meat were raised by 4H and FFA Member kids in Power County.

“At the Spring weigh-in, they essentially start their project to raise this animal, feed it, train it and ultimately it teaches the child responsibility,” said Travis Mills, Chairman of the Power County 4H FFA Livestock/Fat Stock Sale Committee. “Not only in work ethic, but also financially because they’ve got the costs to purchase, feed and take care of that animal.”

Once the animals are show ready, the kids compete their livestock in multiple categories. Following the competition, people can purchase the animals.

“As the Fat Stock Sale Committee, we’ve added a new layer to this where we allow people to purchase these animals and do a double good and donate it to a food bank of their choice,” Mills said. “Direct Communications has always been one of our very top sponsors and they always encourage us to think out of the box and do something new.”

Mills said that by donating to Benny’s Pantry, they are simultaneously supporting the 4H FFA kids as well as collegiate students in need at ISU. He added the quality of the meat donated to the pantry is far better than what you can find for reasonable prices in the grocery stores.

“There are absolutely no byproducts,” he said. “This meat is, as we say, right off the bone. As natural as you can get, processed right here in Idaho.”

Mills said their piece of the donation process wouldn’t be possible without the volunteers as well. No one is employed to administer the programs involved, and Mills said the work goes from the spring to the fall to ensure livestock quality every year.

Originally Posted 5:28 PM, Sep 29, 2026

By: Riley Shoemaker

CANYON COUNTY, Idaho (KIVI) — The man charged with murder and kidnapping in the disappearance of 5-year-old Michael Vaughan asked a judge Tuesday to dismiss the charges, arguing prosecutors have not presented enough evidence to establish that a murder or kidnapping occurred.

Prosecutors disagreed, arguing the evidence presented against Stacey Wondra is sufficient for the case to move forward.

Michael was 5 years old when he disappeared from his Fruitland neighborhood in July 2021. More than five years later, his remains have never been found.

That absence of physical evidence was central to Wondra’s defense Tuesday.

“It’s important to note that Michael — not only has Michael never been found — no skin, no bones, no teeth, no blood, no DNA. Nothing of Michael has ever been found,” Wondra’s attorney told the judge. “Judge, we don’t even know if he’s actually dead.”

The defense also challenged other evidence presented during Wondra’s preliminary hearing. His attorneys argued that alerts from cadaver dogs at the Wondra property do not prove a body was buried there, noting that Michael’s remains were not found during an extensive search of the property.

Wondra’s attorneys also questioned the significance of a tricycle found near the home. During Tuesday’s hearing, the judge asked about evidence connecting the tricycle to Michael. The defense said no evidence presented at the preliminary hearing established who owned it or that Michael had been on it.

The defense also disputed prosecutors’ characterization of Wondra’s conversations with investigators as a confession. His attorney acknowledged some of Wondra’s statements could be viewed as incriminating but argued Wondra never admitted to participating in anything that happened to Michael.

At one point, the judge pushed back as the defense argued Wondra did not have a legal duty to report what he said he witnessed. The judge pointed to language in Idaho law applying the reporting requirement to “all persons.”

Prosecutors argued the case against Wondra goes beyond an alleged failure to report what happened.

“Would we have preferred to have found Michael? Absolutely. In fact, we are still looking,” the prosecutor said. “But we have to take the cards we’re dealt. And so the case is built on what you can prove, what you can show.”

The state said Wondra told investigators that Michael was brought into the house and that he later saw Michael duct-taped before being placed into a duffel bag. Prosecutors said Wondra then got into a vehicle with the group as Michael was taken away.

Prosecutors argue Wondra aided and abetted the kidnapping. Among their arguments, the state said Wondra helped maintain the vehicle while Michael was allegedly being transported and later participated in what prosecutors described as a cover story intended to conceal the group’s movements.

After the hearing, Michael’s mother, Brandi Vaughan, said listening to the defense repeatedly discuss the absence of her son’s remains was difficult.

“It was upsetting. I shed quite a few tears, especially when the defense lawyer kept describing the fact that there was no body, no skin — all of the things of a human,” Vaughan said. “That was hard to listen to.”

Investigators previously named three other people as allegedly involved in the case: Sarah Wondra, Brandon Shurtliff and Adrien Lucienne. Stacey Wondra is the only person currently charged in Michael’s death.

Sarah Wondra was previously charged with failing to report Michael’s death, but that charge was later dismissed.