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Positively Iowa: A Pink Bus Got Them to Hawai’i

February 8, 2024

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It’s Thursday, Feb. 8, 2024.

Hey folks, it’s Amie, and it’s time for some good news!

This week:

1. Fog was no match for the kindness of strangers in the Quad Cities ✈️
2. The case of the mysterious roll of film 🎞️
3. Federal money coming to help several Iowa airports 💰

Let’s get to it!

Amie Rivers

Community Editor, Iowa Starting Line

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1. Kindness to the rescue 🌴

Having your flight canceled sucks. For 22 older adults from the Quad Cities, a lingering fog at the Moline airport last month meant a long-planned excursion to Hawai’i might not happen.

But when fellow stranded traveler Lisa Broer heard about their plight, she was so touched she started working on ways to get the group to Chicago in time for their flight.

From there, a series of kindnesses from strangers led to all 22 seniors to board a Barbie-pink Tumbleson Transportation shuttle bus (pictured above), brought just for them. And they made it to their dream vacation after all.

💬 “I’m just happy that they got to go — that means the world to me more than anything.”

~Lisa Broer

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2. A mystery in a roll of film 📸

Nancy Bleuer of West Bend bought an old camera from an Algona antique shop last year, and found a used roll of film inside.

So she got it developed, and became curious: Who were these people in these snapshots in time from 60 years ago?

Finally, she posted photos to social media, where they took off-and found their way to Cathi Waugh, 64, of Emmetsburg, who saw photos of long-gone family members, and herself at age four.

💬 “[There are] good humans out there yet.”

~Cathi Waugh

3. More money to help Iowa airports ✈️

In this 2022 photo, President Joe Biden prepares to greet Rep. Cindy Axne, D-Iowa, and Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie as Biden arrives on Air Force One at Des Moines International Airport. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

More than $15 million in federal grant money is coming to help fix and improve 20 airports across Iowa.

The Des Moines International Airport (pictured above) will receive nearly $5.5 million to construct a new terminal. The Dubuque Regional Airport will receive nearly $2.7 million, and 18 others will get help with much-needed projects.

The money is courtesy of President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Act. US Sen. Chuck Grassley was its lone Iowa Republican backer (then-Rep. Cindy Axne, a Democrat, also backed it), and he touted the news last week.

💬 “Keeping this critical infrastructure in top shape will strengthen Iowa’s economy and ensure Iowans’ safety when they travel. I’m glad to see this significant investment put to good use in our communities.”

~US Sen. Chuck Grassley