Like many pastors, I am “bivocational.” I work half time for a small-town church, preaching on Sundays and doing what I can to serve the community during the week, but I also have to hold down a separate full time job to insure my family and make ends meet. Until a couple months ago, I ...
As a new Board that will be installed into office January 1, 2025, we would request the current Board to refrain from appointing new members to the zoning board of adjustment to replace Todd Sebesta and Kurt Kelley and any further appointments. Todd resigned in mid-November 2024. Kurt ...
Iowa’s most popular deer hunting seasons are just around the corner, when roughly 100,000 hunters take to the timber for the long-awaited gun seasons. Iowa’s first gun season is Dec. 7-11. Second gun season is Dec. 14-22. Last year, hunters reported harvesting around 60,000 deer during ...
Wind turbine blades play a crucial part in clean energy generation, but their disposal poses a growing challenge. Luckily, innovative solutions provide new ways to keep them out of landfills. As the wind industry grows, there is an increasing need for replacement of older wind turbine blades ...
With the holiday season here, it is time for reflection. Whether with family, friends, or yourself, this is a wonderful time of year to come together for reflection. Take the time this holiday season to relax and reflect on what was, what is, and what will be. Holidays are a way to make ...
Out here on the farm, we know things can break down and go wrong. And when they do, we address it. We don’t ignore the problem and hope it goes away. We face the truth, fix the problem and move on. That’s how we live our lives. And that’s why I was upset when I heard the recent news ...
Growing up in northern Tama County, oddly enough, I have fond memories of getting groceries. When staying with my grandma in Clutier, I remember visiting the small grocery store on Main Street. Since the last time I stepped foot into the store, maybe over 20 years ago, I still vividly remember ...
In partnership with Polk County and Iowa Cover Crop, the Polk Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) has planted a cover crop demonstration plot for farmers and landowners to visit at their leisure. This opportunity provides producers a space to learn about cover crops and observe which ...
Greetings, friends and neighbors, This will be my final newsletter as your state senator. It has been an absolute honor to serve the Cedar Valley in the Iowa Senate since March of 2019. It is fitting that this newsletter is going out right before Thanksgiving because I want to express my ...
When I knew I was not going to farm anymore, I needed to cheer myself up. I decided to ride Amtrak. Due to a bomb cyclone cancelling my ride from Seattle to St. Paul, I ended up riding the California Zephyr from Emeryville, Calif. to Omaha. As a child, my mom and I rode a partial version of ...