🗣️ It’s Friday: Time for
Only in Iowa, Positively Iowa, this week’s pet photo, and
reader replies.
RAGBRAI route announced: The annual cross-state party on wheels will start this July in Onawa and end up in Dubuque, organizers announced this week. It’s the shortest route in RAGBRAI’s 53 years, but beware: It’s also the 10th hilliest.
Iowa judges keep ordering ICE to release people agents detain, saying they’re “covering their tracks” and using a “legal fiction” (aka lying) when they deny them bond.
|
|
|
These Iowa waterfalls really show off during the winter months. (Leon S/Unsplash)
|
While some of Iowa’s falls transform into solid walls of ice in the winter, others are unique “warm” springs that continue to flow even in the coldest months.
Here are some of the best waterfalls in the state, ranging from spillways that often freeze solid to defiant, “warm” springs that typically flow all year long.
|
|
|
👩🎓 Helping immigrants like her: West Des Moines Valley high school student Nyibol Chol (pictured) helped raise $15,000 for a scholarship geared towards first-generation, immigrant, and refugee students at her school—and was recently awarded her own scholarship by ACLU Iowa for those efforts.
🎸 Guitars for all: An Ankeny mother and son who make adaptive guitars are looking to partner with local organizations that serve disabled folks to get them in the right hands.
📿 A first for Dubuque: The Rev. Gregory Lambert, known as “Father Greg” to parishioners at St. Edward Catholic Church and students at Waterloo Columbus Catholic High School, is the first Black American priest ordained in the entire 187-year history of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque in Northeast Iowa—if not the entire state, writes Pat Kinney.
|
|
|
🐴 This is Cooper, the big puppy of reader Tammy M.
“We pack out into the mountains in the summer,” she wrote. “As a treat, I give my horse Cooper some grain at 7 p.m. as an incentive to come back to the campsite from free grazing. Here you can see his feed bag hanging up on the tree, and he is looking at me waiting for his treat.”
Animals absolutely know when it’s treat time!
Send me your pet photos here.
|
|
|
Readers are invited to add to the conversation by emailing responses@iowastartingline.com. Please include your first name and last initial. You may also want to include your city, but that’s up to you. I may edit your content for conciseness or to correct typos.
|
New Iowa nurse gun violence group started:
- “My name is Alex and I am [a] registered nurse who lives in Iowa and wants to make a real difference in our communities. This is why I very recently founded Nurses Against Community and Gun Violence (NACGV).
Right now, we are nothing more than a few like-minded individuals who believe we can truly make a difference to those affected by violence. However, I know we can [do] so much more.
I am looking to spread the word and try to rally a few volunteers. Here’s a link to the Facebook page. I realize we are still very early, but I really hope you’ll follow along! I will be focused on the Des Moines metro; we hope to be statewide someday!” — Alex M., Guthrie Center
USDA cuts hurt farmers:
The one Democrat missing as a cosponsor:
-
“Thank you for this! I’m curious why [Sen.] Zach Wahls did not sign onto Senate File 2046. Have you heard anything?” — Lucy M.
(NOTE: I reached out to Wahls, who says he supports the legislation. Here is his response: “While I didn’t have the opportunity to co-sponsor SF 2046 before the bill was filed, last year, I co-sponsored the exact same legislation, SF 147, and I look forward to voting in support of SF 2046 if it comes before the Labor Committee and for its passage on the floor of the Iowa Senate.”)
Trump speech/protest:
Local author:
-
“I would like to share with you ‘The Doxan Series,’ written by Michael Bolinger (my brother) who grew up in Davenport. This series currently consists of three books with Iowa settings:
“The Doxan,” published March 10, 2020
“The Wormwood Variant,” published August 30, 2022
“Dust in the Cosmic Wind,” publication planned for February 2026
The genre is sci-fi / superhero. Many of the memories and places from Michael’s childhood have found their way onto the pages of these action packed novels.” — Sherri L.
Friend’s ICE encounter:
-
“Hi Amie, you have probably seen this interview with your friend. She remains a solid clear-thinking warrior, despite so much trauma. Sharing just in case you hadn’t seen it. Although, if the algorithm found me it probably found you too.” — Shirley W. (NOTE: It is still shocking seeing the video of her arrest everywhere. I am very glad she is able to tell her story to the public now, and hope she will get a measure of justice from this.)
Remembering a near-death experience:
-
“Another anniversary—now marking 43 years!—of my own near-death experience in January of 1983 when I was T-boned by a pickup truck at 8th and Marquette streets in Davenport when I was home for the weekend (from my position in Des Moines as executive director of the National Catholic Rural Life Conference.)
The young dude driving the pickup had ‘borrowed’ it from his dad’s backyard where it was there TO HAVE ITS NON-WORKING BRAKES FIXED! Consequently, as he began cruising down Eighth Street’s sharp hill toward Marquette Street, he picked up speed until he rammed me.
The consequence? Eight broken ribs on my left side, a punctured and collapsed left lung, and my left shoulder blade shattered into three pieces.
I could not take a full breath but could only pant. I never lost consciousness and, incredibly, felt almost no pain. But I also clearly remember thinking, ‘I may just have ‘bought the farm.’
Fire and ambulance rescuers were at my side within minutes and my time in the hospital was only one week. They put a tube in my chest to drain the blood there (I later saw an X-ray that showed that one rib fragment was driven less than an inch from my heart) and my lung re-inflated within 24 hours. They didn’t reset any of the broken bones, and as a consequence I have little real protection from impacts on my left side—and also, as I get down on the floor to pet our cat Scooter every evening, have to put up with the feel (and noise) of my shoulder bones grinding against each other a tad.
Needless to say, this had a powerful impact on my view of life and, indeed, of the fleeting sacredness of all life. So, please, don’t take your own life, or those of the people you love, for granted. It can be taken from you in an instant. …
And, please, NEVER bring harm to another person or intentionally to any of our fellow creatures, either. We are all just here for a fleeting moment of time.” — Greg C.
|
The car Greg C. was driving after his January 1983 crash. (Courtesy Greg C.)
|
|
|
Do you enjoy reading this newsletter?
|
|
|
Do you want to support Iowa Starting Line’s mission while showcasing your products or services to an engaged audience of 21,000+ subscribers?
Email advertise@couriernewsroom.com for more information.
|
|
|
Thanks for reading. This newsletter was written by Amie Rivers. It was edited by Paula Solis.
Iowa Starting Line is free for everyone. Your support makes our work possible.
|
|
|
You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website.
Iowa Starting Line
c/o COURIER Newsroom
101 Avenue of the Americas
8th and 9th Floors
New York, NY 10013
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or from this list.
|
|
|
|
